Learning roadmaps for Higher Education

An integrated platform for the support of teaching activities as been developed and deployed at the Aveiro Norte Polytechnic School of the University of Aveiro. In this paper we present an approach to Learning Roadmaps for Higher Education based on this platform. The aprend.e platform – Electronic Integrated System for Learning and Training - has at its core a Learning Management System with a number of plugins. It represents a new challenge for the University of Aveiro for higher education and is already being at its core is the concept of learning roadmaps that act upon two fundamental axes: education and learning. For the teachers, it aims at becoming a self-supporting tool that stimulates the organization and management of the course materials (lectures, presentations, multimedia content, and evaluation materials, amongst others). For the students, the learning roadmap aims at promoting self-study and supervised study, endowing the pupil with the capabilities to find the relevant information and to capture the concepts in the study materials. The outcome will be a stimulating learning process together with an organized management of those materials

Rhodium and Iridium complexes with a new scorpionate phosphane ligand

A straightforward synthesis of a new hybrid scorpionate ligand [(allyl)2B(CH2PPh2)(Pz)]− ([A2BPN]−) is reported. Coordination to rhodium resulted in square-planar complexes [Rh(κ2-A2BPN)(L)(L′)] [L = L′ = 1/2cod (1,5-cyclooctadiene), CNtBu, CO (6); L = CO, L′ = NH3, pyridine, PPh3, PMe3] for which spectroscopic data and the molecular structure of [Rh(κ2-A2BPN)(CO)PPh3] (11) indicate the ligand to be κN,κP-bound to rhodium with two dangling free allyl groups. Studies in solution point out that the six-membered Rh–N–N–B–C–P metallacycle undergoes a fast inversion in all of them. The bis(carbonyl) complex 6 easily loses a CO group to give [{Rh(A2BPN)(CO)}2], a dinuclear compound in which two mononuclear subunits are brought together by two bridging allyl groups. Coordination to iridium is dominated by a tripodal κN,κP,η2-C═C binding mode in the TBPY-5 complexes [Ir(κ3-A2BPN)(L)(L′)] [L = L′ = 1/2cod (3), CNtBu (5), CO (7); L = CO, L′ = PPh3 (13), PMe3 (14), H2C═CH2, (17), MeO2CC≡CCO2Me (dmad, 18)], as confirmed by the single-crystal structure determination of complexes 3 and 18. A fast exchange between the two allyl arms is observed for complexes having L = L′ (3, 5, and 7), while those having CO and L ligands (14, 17, and 18) were found to be nonfluxional species. An exception is complex 13, which establishes an equilibrium with the SP-4 configuration. Protonation reactions on complexes 13 and 14 with HCl yielded the hydride complex [Ir(κ2-A2BPN)(CO)(Cl)(H)PPh3] (15) and the C-alkyl compound [Ir{κ3-(allyl)B(CH2CHCH3)(CH2PPh2)(Pz)}(Cl)(CO)PMe3] (16), respectively. The bis(isocyanide) complex 5 reacts with dmad to form [Ir(κ2-A2BPN)(CNtBu)2(dmad)]. On the whole, the electronic density provided to the metal by the [A2BPN]− ligand is very sensitive to the coordination mode. The basicity of the new ligand is similar to that of the TpMe2 ligand in the κN,κP mode but comparable to Tp if coordinated in the κN,κP,η2-C═C mode.This research was supported by the MICINN/FEDER (Project CTQ2011-22516, Spain), Gobierno de Aragón (GA)/FSE (E70), and GA-La Caixa (Grant 2012/GA LC 057). A.L.S. thanks MICINN/FEDER for a fellowship.Peer Reviewe

Seagrass meadows provide 3D habitat for reef fish

For large fishes, seagrass canopies typically provide a relatively flat habitat on seabeds, but seagrasses in the genus Posidonia can provide additional habitat complexity by forming organic-rich deposits known as mats. Erosional processes can scour channels through the mats, resulting in the formation of escarpments with caves. Here we report that reef fishes, such as groupers, inhabit the caves found within mat escarpments. The characteristics of the cavities are highly variable, ranging from small-elongated holes to deep caves with large entrances. The origin of these caves (biological and/or geological) is unknown, but it is possible that fish behavior enhance their formation. Posidonia seagrass escarpments provide a complex 3D habitat for reef fish that is not provided by typical canopy structure of seagrass. Further studies are required to gain insights into the natural history of seagrass escarpments and their ecological importance

Importance of single nodes in dynamics on networks

Identifying key players in collective dynamics remains a challenge in several research fields, from the efficient dissemination of ideas to drug target discovery in biomedical problems. The difficulty lies at several levels: how to single out the role of individual elements in such intermingled systems, or which is the best way to quantify their importance. Centrality measures describe a node's importance by its position in a network. The key issue obviated is that the contribution of a node to the collective behavior is not uniquely determined by the structure of the system but it is a result of the interplay between dynamics and network structure

Importance of single nodes in dynamics on networks

Identifying key players in collective dynamics remains a challenge in several research fields, from the efficient dissemination of ideas to drug target discovery in biomedical problems. The difficulty lies at several levels: how to single out the role of individual elements in such intermingled systems, or which is the best way to quantify their importance. Centrality measures describe a node's importance by its position in a network. The key issue obviated is that the contribution of a node to the collective behavior is not uniquely determined by the structure of the system but it is a result of the interplay between dynamics and network structure

Effects of three different combined training interventions on jump, change of direction, power performance, and inter-limb asymmetry in male youth soccer players

Background: This study compared the effects of performing different unilateral combined training interventions on diverse vertical and horizontal jumping performance parameters, change of direction, concentric and eccentric mean power, and their associated inter-limb asymmetries in young soccer players. Methods: Forty-seven young male soccer players (age: 15.5 ± 0.9 years) were distributed into three groups. Two groups performed the same training volume with both legs, beginning with the weaker leg (Stronger Volume Weaker leg group (SVW), n = 14) or with the stronger leg (Stronger Volume Stronger leg group, (SVS), n = 15). The third group executed double the volume with the weaker leg and also commenced with such leg (Double Volume Weaker leg group (DVW), n = 16) during a 10-week period. Pre- and post-intervention tests included a single-leg hop, single-leg lateral hop, triple hop, bilateral and unilateral countermovement jumps, a change of direction speed test, concentric and eccentric mean power during the lateral squat test, and their corresponding asymmetries. Results: Single-leg hop weaker leg, triple hop weaker leg, and bilateral countermovement jump improvements were achieved in the SVW (ES: 0.29 to 0.46) and DVW (ES: 0.55 to 0.73) groups. Between-groups analysis showed better results in single-leg hop in the SVW and DVW compared to group SVS. The DVW group achieved better improvements in countermovement jump in comparison to groups SVS and SVW. Conclusions: Groups that started with the weaker leg seemed to achieve a greater volume of significant changes than when starting with the stronger leg. Performing a double volume on the weaker limb does not guarantee further improved performance compared to other groups

Comparison of three eccentric overload training strategies on power output and interlimb asymmetry in youth soccer players

Background: The present study compared the effects of performing the lateral squat exercise in three different formats from eccentric overload training on concentric/eccentric peak/mean power and inter-limb asymmetries in young soccer players. Methods: Forty-five young male (U-17) soccer players were distributed into three groups. Two groups performed the same training volume with both legs, beginning with the weaker leg (SVW, n = 15) or with the stronger leg (SVS, n = 15). The third group executed double volume with the weaker leg and also commenced with such leg (DVW, n = 15) in the lateral squat during a 10-week period. Pre- and post-intervention metrics included concentric and eccentric peak/mean power during the lateral squat test and their corresponding asymmetries. Results: All groups improved all power variables. Concentric mean and peak power asymmetry were substantially reduced in the SVW (ES: 0.89), DVW (ES: 0.43), and in SVW (ES: 1.60). Eccentric mean and peak power asymmetry were also substantially decreased in SVW (ES: 0.81) and in DVW (ES: 0.68). Between-group analyses showed substantially better performance in concentric and eccentric variables with stronger and weaker legs in SVW and DVW groups compared with SVS. Conclusions: Those groups which started with the weaker leg showed greater both power enhancements and reductions on inter-limb asymmetries

Late Quaternary sediment dynamics in the Gulf of San Jorge (Patagonia): A multi-proxy approach

The Patagonian coast of the Argentine Continental Shelf (ACS) extends along a relatively stable continental margin at the intersection of the present Antarctic ice sheet and the relic of the former Patagonian ice sheet. Since the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), the sedimentation on the Atlantic shore of Patagonia has changed significantly due to the marine transgression at first, but also because of the decrease of glacial meltwater flows to the Atlantic derived from the Northern Patagonian Ice Field (NPIF) 1. The Patagonian shore of the ACS thus provides a preferential area to study the impact of post-LGM sea-level fluctuations and ice extent variations on sedimentary processes. In this context, we investigate Late Quaternary marine sediments from the Gulf of San Jorge (GSJ) to characterize the sedimentation in the central part of the Argentine Patagonian margin since the LGM. The GSJ is a semicircular basin forming an encroachment of the South Atlantic Ocean between latitudes 45°and 47° S, in which the sedimentation is presently controlled by oceanic and aeolian inputs, and inner Gulf erosion/runoffs 2. The post-glacial evolution of the sedimentary environments as well as the climatic and oceanographic variations were reconstructed using paleomagnetic parameters, major and trace elements, bulk and clay mineralogy, multi-sensor core logging and radiocarbon dating, coupled with the interpretation of seismic lines. The ~2000 km of geophysical data (subbottom profiler and sparker) and the 15 sediment cores (gravity and piston cores) used in this study were collected on board the R/V Coriolis II during the MARGES (Marine Geology of the Gulf of San Jorge) expedition in the GSJ and continental shelf in 2014. The base of the lithostratigraphy identified in the Gulf is characterized by a decametric-thick highly-indurated sediment layer corresponding to a high amplitude and laterally continuous seismic reflection extending through the entire GSJ. This facies most likely reflects both the sea-level lowstand and absence of seawater in this part of the GSJ during the LGM. Furthermore, our results illustrate two main sedimentary sequences: a Late glacial sequence with relatively high sedimentation rates (>65 cm/kyr) and an Early Holocene to present sequence with lower sedimentation rates (<25 cm/kyr). The former is associated with the marine transgression (e.g., tidal flat environment) coupled with the influence of the NPIF drainage system prior to 13 700 cal yr BP. The latter corresponds to the end of the marine transgression with a progressive decrease of energy to reach contemporary conditions between 10 250 and 7400 cal yr BP.Fil: Desiage, P. A.. Institut des Sciences de la Mer de Rimouski; CanadáFil: Onge, G.. Institut des Sciences de la Mer de Rimouski; CanadáFil: Montero Serrano, J. C.. Institut des Sciences de la Mer de Rimouski; CanadáFil: Haller, Miguel Jorge F.. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia "San Juan Bosco"; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Instituto Patagónico de Geología y Paleontología; Argentina20th International Sedimentological CongressQuebecCanadáInternational Association of SedimentogistsSociety for Sedimentary Geolog

Employment Expectations and Gross Flows by Type of Work Contract

There is growing interest in understanding firms’ temporary and permanent employment practices and how institutional changes shape them. Using data on Spanish establishments, we examine: (a) how employers adjust temporary and permanent job and worker flows to prior employment expectations, and (b) how the 1994 and 1997 labour reforms promoting permanent employment affected establishments’ employment practices. Generally, establishments’ prior employment expectations are realized through changes in all job and worker flows. However, establishments uniquely rely on temporary hires as a buffer to confront diminishing long-run employment expectations. None of the reforms significantly affected establishments’ net temporary or permanent employment flows.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/40032/3/wp646.pd