Ecogeomorfologia i drons com a eines de gestió dinàmica postincendi. El cas de la comarca del Pariatge, Mallorca

Ecogeomorphology and drones as dynamic tools for post-fire management. The experience in the Pariatge County, Mallorca Wildfires are one of the most significant driving factors in desertification processes. Furthermore, insular territories such Mallorca are more affected by human impacts due to their intrinsic socioecological fragility. The increase of burned surface area since 2011 in Balearic Islands involves a challenge in which forest management and research through interdisciplinary and technological advances should be joined. Ecogeomorphology is an emergent discipline which allows investigating the role of geomorphic processes in the vegetation recovery. Additionally, the introduction of unmanned aerial vehicles as remotesensing tools offers new and exciting opportunities for monitoring environmental processes. This paper pretends to elucidate the potential of ecogeomorphology and drones to implement more effective and dynamic post-fire management integrating both the resilience capacity of ecosystems with sediment connectivity for landscape restoration.Els incendis forestals són considerats un dels factors causals més importants en els processos de desertificació. Els territoris insulars com Mallorca són particularment sensibles als impactes antròpics, per la seva major fragilitat socioecològica. L?increment de superfície cremada a Mallorca d?ençà el 2011 esperoneja a vincular gestió forestal i recerca amb interdisciplinarietat i avenços tecnològics. L?ecogeomorfologia permet investigar el paper dels processos geomorfològics en la recuperació de la vegetació. Endemés, la introducció dels vehicles aeris no tripulats com a instruments de teledetecció presenta noves oportunitats en el monitoratge de processos ambientals. Aquest article pretén dilucidar el potencial de l?ecogeomorfologia i els drons per aplicar una gestió postincendi més efectiva i dinàmica, integrant la capacitat de resiliència dels ecosistemes amb la connectivitat dels sediments per restaurar el paisatge.Ecogeomorfología y drones como instrumentos de gestión dinámica post-incendio. El caso de la comarca del Pariatge, Mallorca Los incendios forestales son uno de los factores causales más importantes en los procesos de desertificación. Los territorios insulares como Mallorca son particularmente sensibles a los impactos antrópicos, a causa de su mayor fragilidad socioecológica. El incremento de superficie quemada en Mallorca desde el año 2011 incita vincular gestión forestal e investigación a través de interdisciplinariedad y avances tecnológicos. La ecogeomorfología permite investigar el papel de los procesos geomorfológicos en la recuperación de la vegetación. Además, la introducción de vehículos aéreos no tripulados como instrumentos de teledetección presenta nuevas oportunidades en la monitorización de procesos ambientales. Este artículo pretende dilucidar el potencial de la ecogeomorfología y de los drones para aplicar una gestión post-incendio más efectiva y dinámica, integrando la capacidad de resiliencia de los ecosistemas con la conectividad de los sedimentos para restaurar el paisaje

MiRNA Expression Profile of Human Subcutaneous Adipose and during Adipocyte Differentiation

BACKGROUND: Potential regulators of adipogenesis include microRNAs (miRNAs), small non-coding RNAs that have been recently shown related to adiposity and differentially expressed in fat depots. However, to date no study is available, to our knowledge, regarding miRNAs expression profile during human adipogenesis. Thereby, the aim of this study was to investigate whether miRNA pattern in human fat cells and subcutaneous adipose tissue is associated to obesity and co-morbidities and whether miRNA expression profile in adipocytes is linked to adipogenesis. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We performed a global miRNA expression microarray of 723 human and 76 viral mature miRNAs in human adipocytes during differentiation and in subcutaneous fat samples from non-obese (n = 6) and obese with (n = 9) and without (n = 13) Type-2 Diabetes Mellitus (DM-2) women. Changes in adipogenesis-related miRNAs were then validated by RT-PCR. Fifty of 799 miRNAs (6.2%) significantly differed between fat cells from lean and obese subjects. Seventy miRNAs (8.8%) were highly and significantly up or down-regulated in mature adipocytes as compared to pre-adipocytes. Otherwise, 17 of these 799 miRNAs (2.1%) were correlated with anthropometrical (BMI) and/or metabolic (fasting glucose and/or triglycerides) parameters. We identified 11 miRNAs (1.4%) significantly deregulated in subcutaneous fat from obese subjects with and without DM-2. Interestingly, most of these changes were associated with miRNAs also significantly deregulated during adipocyte differentiation. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The remarkable inverse miRNA profile revealed for human pre-adipocytes and mature adipocytes hints at a closely crosstalk between miRNAs and adipogenesis. Such candidates may represent biomarkers and therapeutic targets for obesity and obesity-related complications

SOCIB: the impact of new marine infrastructures in understanding and forecasting the coastal oceans: some examples from the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea

New monitoring technologies are being progressively implemented in coastal ocean observatories. As an example, gliders allow high resolution sampling, showing the existence of new features, such as submesoscale eddies with intense vertical motions that significantly affect upper ocean biogeochemical exchanges, an issue of worldwide relevance in a climate change context. SOCIB, is one of such systems, a new facility of facilities (covering from the coast to the open sea, and including among others a nearshore beach monitoring facility, HF radar, gliders and AUV’s, moorings, satellite, drifters and ARGO profilers, modelling), a scientific and technological infrastructure which is providing free, open, quality controlled and timely streams of oceanographic and coastal data and also modelling services. SOCIB takes profit of the strategic position of the Balearic Island at the Atlantic/Mediterranean transition area, one of the ‘hot spots’ of biodiversity in the world’s oceans. As an example of on-going SOCIB operations, since January 2011 sustained glider operations are in place in the Ibiza and Mallorca channels. The data centre is the core of SOCIB. The data management system created for gliders is an example of the new informatics capabilities for real time definition of mission planning, including adaptive sampling and real time monitoring using a Web tool that allows quick visualization and download. This type of new infrastructures, combined with new technologies and careful scientific analysis will allow new ways of international cooperation leading to major science breakthroughs in the very near future and new ways of science based coastal and ocean management.Peer Reviewe

A Proposal for Assessing Digital Economy Spatial Readiness at Tourism Destinations

Information and communications technologies (ICT)—and more precisely, their use from fulltime connected mobile gadgets—offer valuable opportunities to interact with tourists using their own devices. In order to exploit these benefits, destinations should have appropriate digital infrastructure to allow for bidirectional smart communication with their visitors. However, the spatial distribution of such coverage, and the geographical concurrence of tourism activities and ICT infrastructure, have been poorly examined. This paper contributes to this analysis by quantifying digital accessibility with both a broader regional approach and a narrower local perspective. First, we propose a digital immersion index, and apply it to the Balearic Islands, Spain. Second, alternative Moran’s indices are used to study the spatial distribution and correlation of tourism and technological infrastructure for a local destination. The results are presented through easily interpretable maps, which can inform tourism policies, such as identifying and prioritizing ITC investments

A near Real-Time Monitoring System Using Public WI-FI Data to Evaluate COVID-19 Social Distance Measures

This study assessed the applicability of geolocation data provided by public Wi-Fi infrastructures as information sources that can contribute to urban planning and management. We focused particularly on modeling and monitoring real-time mobility and congestion using geolocation capabilities of Wi-Fi public networks in Smart cities. The proposed methodology combines a detailed geographic analysis of the space with high-frequency indicators generated from network data. This study emphasizes the importance of Wi-Fi infrastructures as noninvasive monitoring systems, and describes how network data can be applied to generate useful indicators for urban planning and management. The methodology was empirically implemented in the city of Palma (Balearic Islands, Spain), where the social distance level was measured to identify conflicting areas. We demonstrate how the proposed solution can estimate pedestrians’ density efficiently and precisely through high-frequency monitoring (5 min or less) and the construction of comprehensive indicators. In this context, we suggest several public policies that can be implemented by using this methodological approach to monitor dynamic patterns of pedestrian mobility, especially during health crises or during high tourist seasons

A Proposal for Assessing Digital Economy Spatial Readiness at Tourism Destinations

[eng] Information and communications technologies (ICT)¿and more precisely, their use from fulltime connected mobile gadgets¿offer valuable opportunities to interact with tourists using their own devices. In order to exploit these benefits, destinations should have appropriate digital infrastructure to allow for bidirectional smart communication with their visitors. However, the spatial distribution of such coverage, and the geographical concurrence of tourism activities and ICT infrastructure, have been poorly examined. This paper contributes to this analysis by quantifying digital accessibility with both a broader regional approach and a narrower local perspective. First, we propose a digital immersion index, and apply it to the Balearic Islands, Spain. Second, alternative Moran's indices are used to study the spatial distribution and correlation of tourism and technological infrastructure for a local destination. The results are presented through easily interpretable maps, which can inform tourism policies, such as identifying and prioritizing ITC investments

A near Real-Time Monitoring System Using Public WI-FI Data to Evaluate COVID-19 Social Distance Measures

This study assessed the applicability of geolocation data provided by public Wi-Fi infrastructures as information sources that can contribute to urban planning and management. We focused particularly on modeling and monitoring real-time mobility and congestion using geolocation capabilities of Wi-Fi public networks in Smart cities. The proposed methodology combines a detailed geographic analysis of the space with high-frequency indicators generated from network data. This study emphasizes the importance of Wi-Fi infrastructures as noninvasive monitoring systems, and describes how network data can be applied to generate useful indicators for urban planning and management. The methodology was empirically implemented in the city of Palma (Balearic Islands, Spain), where the social distance level was measured to identify conflicting areas. We demonstrate how the proposed solution can estimate pedestrians’ density efficiently and precisely through high-frequency monitoring (5 min or less) and the construction of comprehensive indicators. In this context, we suggest several public policies that can be implemented by using this methodological approach to monitor dynamic patterns of pedestrian mobility, especially during health crises or during high tourist seasons

Las Matemáticas en el EEEU: Instrumentales y/ó estructurales

En esta ponencia se plantean puntos de reflexión sobre el reto que supone la aplicación de métodos de innovación en el campo de las matemáticas en general, y en particular en los nuevos planes de estudio de los grados de Empresa. Hasta ahora, la enseñanza de la mayoría de materias se centraba casi exclusivamente en la transmisión de conocimientos, especificados en los contenidos de un programa. En el futuro inmediato, los contenidos deben perder importancia en favor de las competencias. Pero el dilema que ya existía en torno a la pregunta matemáticas instrumentales contra matemáticas estructurales y formativas vuelve a aparecer al introducir el asunto de las competencias. ¿Hemos de dar a nuestros alumnos únicamente destrezas de cálculo siguiendo el esquema que han venido siguiendo desde el bachiller, o, sin prescindir de estas, también hay que introducirlos en el mundo más rico y complicado del pensamiento lógico-formal? En este artículo ofrecemos algunas consideraciones que esperamos ayuden a la reflexión y elaboración de mejores respuestas a esta pregunta

InnovIB. Recursos i recerca educativa de les Illes Balears

Resumen tomado del autorSe exponen los entornos virtuales de aprendizaje y las aplicaciones web 2.0 utilizadas por el equipo de formación a distancia (FaD) de la Consejería de Educación de las Islas Baleares. En primer lugar, se hace un recorrido histórico en cuanto a las aplicaciones utilizadas. En segundo lugar, se aportan datos estadísticos respecto a la oferta formativa y el número de alumnos participantes. Seguidamente, se comentan los indicadores utilizados para la evaluación de los contenidos de los cursos. Finalmente, se recogen las impresiones de los tutores y tutoras de FaD, las cuales pretenden determinar la dirección que debería tomar la FaD en el futuro.S´exposen els entorns virtuals d´aprenentatge i les aplicacions web 2.0 utilitzades per l´equip de formació a distància (FaD) de la Conselleria d´Educació de les Illes Balears. En primer lloc, es fa un recorregut històric vers les aplicacions utilitzades. En segon lloc, s´aporten dades estadístiques respecte a l´oferta formativa i el nombre d´alumnes participants. Seguidament, es comenten els indicadors utilitzats per al´avaluació dels continguts dels cursos. Finalment, es recullen les impressions dels tutors i tutores de FaD, les quals pretenen determinar la direcció que hauria de prendre la FaD en el futur.BalearesRedined Illes Balears; Universitat de les Illes Balears. Edifici Guillem Cifre de Colonya. Ctra. de Valldemossa, Km 7,5; 07122 Palma; +34971172792; +34971173190; [email protected]