La Psicología Social a la búsqueda de la Mente Pública

En el presente texto, el autor se sumerge en las primeras décadas del siglo XX, de las que rescata el pensamiento de autores que influyeron, desde aquella época fundacional, en el ulterior desarrollo de las relaciones públicas. Si éstas pueden ser entendidas hoy como un modo de comunicación que persigue vender la imagen más favorable posible de la empresa, para Ewen su campo abarca un fenómeno mucho más amplio de influencia social de orden publicitario. Los profesionales de las relaciones públicas (PR) son contratados por un cliente para construir un entorno psicológico de percepciones con el fin de beneficiar al cliente

Ingenieros en la sombra: biografía de una idea

We publish in this issue a new chapter of the book of the distinguished American researcher, Stuart Ewen, PR! A Social History of Spin (Basic Books, New York, 1996), whose Spanish translation the author has gave at our journal. In this new issue, witch is a continuation of the published in the first number of Pensar la Publicidad, Ewen pursue its inquiry about how the foundations of the manufacture consent during the period between the two World Wars were layed, focusing specifically on two key figures in the history of that social engineering: Walter Lippmann, and Edward L. Bernays. Stuart Ewen is also author of Captains of Consciousness: Advertising and the Social Roots of the Consumer Society (1977), All Consuming Images: The Politics of Style in Contemporary (1988) and, written in collaboration with Elizabeth Ewen, Channels of Desire: Mass Images and the Shaping of American Consciousness (2th ed. 1992). The second of these books was translated into Spanish with the title Todas las imágenes del consumismo. La política de estilo en la cultura contemporánea (México, Grijalbo, 1991).Publicamos en el presente número un nuevo capítulo del libro del destacado investigador norteamericano Stuart Ewen PR! A Social History of Spin (Basic Books, Nueva York, 1996), cuya traducción al castellano ha cedido expresamente el autor a nuestra revista. En esta nueva entrega, continuación de la publicada en el número 1 de Pensar la Publicidad, Ewen prosigue su indagación en torno a cómo se sentaron las bases de la ingeniería del consenso durante el periodo comprendido entre las dos guerras mundiales, en este caso centrándose en dos figuras clave en la historia de dicha ingeniería social: Walter Lippmann y Edward L. Bernays. Stuart Ewen es autor, además, de obras como Captains of Consciousness: Advertising and the Social Roots of the Consumer Society (1977), All Consuming Images: The Politics of Style in Contemporary (1988) y, en colaboración con Elizabeth Ewen, Channels of Desire: Mass Images and the Shaping of American Consciousness (2ª ed. 1992), la segunda de las cuales está traducida al castellano con el título Todas las imágenes del consumismo. La política de estilo en la cultura contemporánea (México, Grijalbo, 1991)

Mercy

A dog named Finn makes heroic efforts to save the life of a fallen bird, while his human friend watches from a window

A DISSONANT DECLARATION FROM THE FED-UP HUMANS OF AMERICA

In October of 1997 a Media and Democracy Congress was held in the Great Hall of The Cooper Union. Appearing under his nom de plume, Archie Bishop, the author delivered a revision of the Declaration of Independence which, for many years, was unavailable in printed form. Then, a few years back, Hideaki Hirano—a prominent Japanese sociologist—posted a written version in Japanese translation. Now, Academic Works will serve as the repository in which the original document will be made available to a reading and thinking public

Developments in microscale and nanoscale sensors for biomedical sensing

The widespread use of point of care testing in biomedical and clinical applications is a major aim of the electrochemical field. A large number of groups are working on lab-on-a-chip systems or sensor arrays which are underpinned by electrochemical detection methodologies. Miniaturized transducers have the potential to be adopted in such systems for diagnosis of a range of diseases in both clinical and nonclinical settings. In this review, we will present the current trends and state of the art for a selection of miniaturized sensing elements (microelectrodes, nanoelectrodes, and field-effect transistors) and provide an impression of current technologies, their associated performance characteristics, and also considering the major barriers to adoption and how they might be surmounted in future so these technologies can fulfil their early promise

Development of a rapid, antimicrobial susceptibility test for E. coli based on low-cost, screen-printed electrodes

Antibiotic resistance has been cited by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as one of the greatest threats to public health. Mitigating the spread of antibiotic resistance requires a multipronged approach with possible interventions including faster diagnostic testing and enhanced antibiotic stewardship. This study employs a low-cost diagnostic sensor test to rapidly pinpoint the correct antibiotic for treatment of infection. The sensor comprises a screen-printed gold electrode, modified with an antibiotic-seeded hydrogel to monitor bacterial growth. Electrochemical growth profiles of the common microorganism, Escherichia coli (E. coli) (ATCC 25922) were measured in the presence and absence of the antibiotic streptomycin. Results show a clear distinction between the E. coli growth profiles depending on whether streptomycin is present, in a timeframe of ≈2.5 h (p < 0.05), significantly quicker than the current gold standard of culture-based antimicrobial susceptibility testing. These results demonstrate a clear pathway to a low cost, phenotypic and reproducible antibiotic susceptibility testing technology for the rapid detection of E. coli within clinically relevant concentration ranges for conditions such as urinary tract infections

Biologically modified microelectrode sensors provide enhanced sensitivity for detection of nucleic acid sequences from Mycobacterium tuberculosis

This paper describes improved sensitivity when using biosensors based on microfabricated microelectrodes to detect DNA, with the goal of progressing towards a low cost and mass manufacturable assay for antibiotic resistance in tuberculosis (TB). The microelectrodes gave a near 20 times improvement in sensitivity compared to polycrystalline macroelectrodes. In addition, experimental parameters such as redox mediator concentration and experimental technique were investigated and optimised. It was found that lower concentrations of redox mediator gave higher signal changes when measuring hybridisation events and, at these lower concentrations, square wave voltammetry was more sensitive and consistent than differential pulse voltammetry. Together, this paper presents a quantifiable comparison of macroelectrode and microelectrode DNA biosensors. The final assay demonstrates enhanced sensitivity through reduction of sensor size, reduction of redox mediator concentration and judicious choice of detection technique, therefore maintaining manufacturability for incorporation into point of care tests and lab-on-a-chip devices

Examining the impact of audience response systems on student performance in anatomy education: a randomized controlled trial

Background and Aims: Electronic audience response systems (ARSs) offer the potential to enhance learning and improve performance. However, objective research investigating the use of ARSs in undergraduate education has so far produced mixed, inconclusive results. We investigated the impact of ARSs on short- and long-term test performance, as well as student perceptions of the educational experience, when integrated into undergraduate anatomy teaching. Methods and Results: A cohort of 70 undergraduate medical students were randomly allocated to one of two groups. Both groups received the same anatomy lecture, but one group experienced the addition of ARSs. Multiple-choice tests were conducted before, immediately after the lecture and again 10 weeks later. Self-perceived post-lecture subject knowledge, confidence and enjoyment ratings did not differ between groups. Test performance immediately following the lecture improved when compared against baseline and was modestly but significantly superior in the group taught with ARSs (mean test score of 17.3/20 versus 15.6/20 in the control group, p = 0.01). Tests conducted 10 weeks after the lecture showed no difference between groups (p = 0.61) although overall a small improvement from the baseline test was maintained (p = 0.02). Conclusions: Whilst ARSs offer opportunities to deliver novel education experiences to students, an initial superiority over standard methods does not necessarily translate into longer-term gains in student performance when employed in the context of anatomy education. Key words: medical education; education methodology; education technology; audience response systems; anatomy