Goals and strategies for a constructive practice in musical performance teaching

The Version of Record of this manuscript has been published and is available in Cultura y Educación 2008 http://www.tandfonline.com/ http://dx.doi.org/10.1174/113564008783781468Este artículo muestra las metas y estrategias que caracterizan la práctica de un modelo constructivo, ilustrándolas mediante el análisis de casos de enseñanza instrumental en aulas de conservatorio. Partiendo de un análisis metacognitivo de secuencias de enseñanza y aprendizaje, se muestran las estrategias seguidas desde una práctica constructiva para planificar las actividades, supervisarlas y evaluarlas. Se observa que las metas, y también las estrategias que utilizan, difieren de las empleadas en enfoques más tradicionales, siendo la principal diferencia el convertir la reflexión en objetivo de la enseñanza, para el cual los contenidos musicales son solo un medio para alcanzar esa metaThe main purpose of this paper is to show the goals and strategies that characterize the practice of a constructive model through the analysis of cases of musical performance teaching in conservatoire classrooms. Adopting a metacognitive analysis of teaching-learning sequences, we illustrate the strategies derived from a constructive practice in the planning, regulation and evaluation. We show that the goals, and consequently the strategies used by teachers that assume a constructive approach, differ from those employed in more traditional approaches, which are based on more direct teaching strategies. In constructive practice reflection on learning becomes the main objective whilst musical pieces are conceived as the means to achieve those reflective goals, contrasting with more traditional teaching approache

Cultures in music education: learning to play an instrument

The Version of Record of this manuscript has been published and is available in Estudios de Psicología 2005 http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1174/0210939054024858En nuestra tradición cultural, la formación artística y más específicamente la educación musical, ocupa un lugar secundario dentro de la educación formal. En una cultura en la que se privilegian los conocimientos abstractos, formalizados y descontextualizados, formar la sensibilidad artística no está entre las prioridades educativas. Vero incluso en los espacios de instrucción dedicados específicamente a la educación musical, como es el caso de los Conservatorios Superiores de Música, se sigue privilegiando la transmisión del conocimiento abstracto, formal. En este artículo se presentan dos estudios que analizan los procesos de enseñanza y aprendizaje de la música en Conservatorios. El primero de ellos muestra cómo se enseña en los conservatorios la interpretación musical, mientras que el segundo analiza la forma en que los alumnos aprenden el lenguaje musical en su proceso de formación como intérpretes. En ambos estudios se observa una progresión desde formas de enseñanza y aprendizaje centradas en la reproducción de las obras musicales, como productos culturales cerrados, acabados, hacia estrategias que activan los conocimientos y representaciones de los alumnos con el fin de promover en ellos una comprensión e interpretación más profunda de la música como forma de sentir y conocer el mundoIn our cultural tradition, artistic education and, more specifically, music education occupies a secondary place to formal education. In a society in which abstract, formalized and decontextualized knowledge is a privilege, building an artistic sensibility is not among the priorities of education. But even in places exclusively dedicated to music education, such as the Conservatory of Music, the transmission of formal and abstract knowledge is still privileged. The paper presents two studies analysing music teaching-learning processes in Conservatories. The first shows how music interpretation is taught at conservatories, while the second analyses how student learn music language during the process of training to interpret. In both studies, students progress from a teaching-learning system focused on reproducing musical pieces as closed and finished cultural products, to strategies that activate students' knowledge and representations in order to promote a deeper understanding and interpretation of music as a way of discovering and feeling about the worl

Learning and teaching musical performance: changing conceptions and educationl practices

The Version of Record of this manuscript has been published and is available in Cultura y Educación 2008 http://www.tandfonline.com/ http://dx.doi.org/10.1174/113564008783781495En los últimos años, la enseñanza de la interpretación musical en los conservatorios viene estando sometida a exigencias de cambio, tanto por las propias reformas curriculares que han tenido lugar como por el desarrollo de la propia investigación en este dominio. Sin embargo, esas demandas de cambio hacia una enseñanza basada en un modelo constructivista apenas han alcanzado la realidad de las aulas. Este artículo propone que una de las razones de esa resistencia al cambio son las concepciones implícitas sobre el aprendizaje y la enseñanza de profesores y alumnos, al tiempo que introduce el resto de los estudios que componen este número monográficoDuring the last few years, the education of musical interpretation in conservatoires is demanding a change due to 1) curricular reforms that have taken place and 2) progress made by research in this field. Nevertheless, these demands of change towards an education based on a constructivist model have scarcely reached the reality of the classroom. It is proposed that one of the reasons for this resistance to change is teachers’ and pupils’ implicit conceptions about learning and education. The paper also introduces the rest of the studies that make up this monographic issueEste artículo forma parte de la investigación Instrucción para el cambio representacional: de las teorías implícitas al aprendizaje de conocimientos en contextos educativos, financiada por el Plan Nacional I+D+, Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia, SEJ2006-15639-C02-01, cuya investigadora principal es María del Puy Pérez Echeverrí

Cyt c6-3: A new isoform of photosynthetic Cyt c6 exclusive to heterocyst-forming cyanobacteria

All known cyanobacteria contain Cyt c6, a small soluble electron carrier protein whose main function is to transfer electrons from the Cyt b6 f complex to PSI, although it is also involved in respiration. We have previously described a second isoform of this protein, the Cyt c6-like, whose function remains unknown. Here we describe a third isoform of Cyt c6 (here called Cytc6-3), which is only found in heterocyst- forming filamentous cyanobacteria. Cyt c6-3 is expressed in vegetative cells but is specifically repressed in heterocysts cells under diazotrophic growth conditions. Although there is a close structural similarity between Cyt c6-3 and Cyt c6 related to the general protein folding, Cyt c6-3 presents differential electrostatic surface features as compared with Cyt c6, its expression is not copper dependent and has a low reactivity towards PSI. According to the different expression pattern, functional reactivity and structural properties, Cyt c6-3 has to play an as yet to be defined regulatory role related to heterocyst differentiation.Fundación de Investigación de la Universidad de Sevilla FIUS05710000Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad BIO2012-35271, BIO2015-64169-PJunta de Andalucía PAIDI BIO-02

Global expression studies in baker's yeast reveal target genes for the improvement of industrially-relevant traits: the cases of CAF16 and ORC2

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Recent years have seen a huge growth in the market of industrial yeasts with the need for strains affording better performance or to be used in new applications. Stress tolerance of commercial <it>Saccharomyces cerevisiae </it>yeasts is, without doubt, a trait that needs improving. Such trait is, however, complex, and therefore only in-depth knowledge of their biochemical, physiological and genetic principles can help us to define improvement strategies and to identify the key factors for strain selection.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We have determined the transcriptional response of commercial baker's yeast cells to both high-sucrose and lean dough by using DNA macroarrays and liquid dough (LD) model system. Cells from compressed yeast blocks display a reciprocal transcription program to that commonly reported for laboratory strains exposed to osmotic stress. This discrepancy likely reflects differences in strain background and/or experimental design. Quite remarkably, we also found that the transcriptional response of starved baker's yeast cells was qualitatively similar in the presence or absence of sucrose in the LD. Nevertheless, there was a set of differentially regulated genes, which might be relevant for cells to adapt to high osmolarity. Consistent with this, overexpression of <it>CAF16 </it>or <it>ORC2</it>, two transcriptional factor-encoding genes included in this group, had positive effects on leavening activity of baker's yeast. Moreover, these effects were more pronounced during freezing and frozen storage of high-sucrose LD.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Engineering of differentially regulated genes opens the possibility to improve the physiological behavior of baker's yeast cells under stress conditions like those encountered in downstream applications.</p

Aprendiendo a interpretar música por medio del Smartphone: la explicitación y reconstrucción de las representaciones encarnadas

This paper presents a single case, descriptive study in music teaching. Instead of following the more analytic, traditional teaching methods, based on the processing of musical scores, this study assumes an emotional and embodied approach to music learning. In order to uncover the processes of representational redescription needed to make sense of instrumental music, we analyze the specific role played by different representations, from the embodied representations, including gestures or body positions and movements, all the way to the use of symbolic systems, such as the scores. We also study how the use of Smartphones in the classroom can contribute to an epistemic approach to music learning and teaching. Finally, we contrast these different teaching models and suggest a functional integration of different kind of representations in music classrooms.En este artículo se expone un trabajo descriptivo de enseñanza de la música, basado en un caso, en el que, desde un enfoque emocional y encarnado, alejado de los métodos tradicionales, analíticos y basados en la partitura, se muestra el papel que juegan diferentes representaciones, desde las más encarnadas (la posición corporal, los gestos) hasta las más simbólicas (la partitura), en el proceso de redescripción representacional para dar sentido emocional a la música. Además, se estudia cómo el uso del Smartphone y otros dispositivos similares pueden ayudar a un acercamiento epistémico a la enseñanza y el aprendizaje de la música. Se discuten los diferentes enfoques de acercamiento a la música y las relaciones entre diferentes representaciones.Este artigo apresenta um trabalho descritivo de ensino de música, baseado em um caso, no qual, a partir de uma abordagem emocional e encarnada, longe dos métodos tradicionais, analítica e baseada na partitura, mostra o papel desempenhado por diferentes representações, do mais encarnado (posição corporal, gestos) ao mais simbólico (a partitura), no processo de redescrição representacional para dar um significado emocional à música. Além disso, estuda-se como o uso do Smartphone e outros dispositivos similares podem auxiliar uma abordagem epistêmica ao ensino e aprendizado da música. As diferentes abordagens abordadas na música e as relações entre diferentes representações são discutidas

Cytochrome c6 is the main respiratory and photosynthetic soluble electron donor in heterocysts of the cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC 7120

Cytochrome c6 is a soluble electron carrier, present in all known cyanobacteria, that has been replaced by plastocyanin in plants. Despite their high structural differences, both proteins have been reported to be isofunctional in cyanobacteria and green algae, acting as alternative electron carriers from the cytochrome b6-f complex to photosystem I or terminal oxidases. We have investigated the subcellular localization of both cytochrome c6 and plastocyanin in the heterocyst-forming cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC 7120 grown in the presence of combined nitrogen and under diazotrophic conditions. Our studies conclude that cytochrome c6 is expressed at significant levels in heterocysts, even in the presence of copper, condition in which it is strongly repressed in vegetative cells. However, the copper-dependent regulation of plastocyanin is not altered in heterocysts. In addition, in heterocysts, cytochrome c6 has shown to be the main soluble electron carrier to cytochrome c oxidase-2 in respiration. A cytochrome c6 deletion mutant is unable to grow under diazotrophic conditions in the presence of copper, suggesting that cytochrome c6 plays an essential role in the physiology of heterocysts that cannot be covered by plastocyanin.Fundación de Investigación de la Universidad de Sevilla FIUS05710000Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad BIO2015-64169-PJunta de Andalucía PAIDI BIO-02

Tuning the transdermal delivery of hydroquinone upon formulation with novel permeation enhancers

Hydroquinone (HQ) is an anti-hyperpigmentation agent with poor physicochemical stability. HQ formulations are currently elaborated by compounding in local pharmacies. Variability in the characteristics of HQ topical formulations can lead to remarkable di erences in terms of their stability, efficacy, and toxicity. Four different semisolid O/Wformulations with 5% HQ were prepared using: (i) Beeler's base plus antioxidants (F1), (ii) Beeler's base and dimethyl isosorbide (DMI) as solubiliser (F2), (iii) olive oil and DMI (F3), and (iv) Nourivan®, a skin-moisturising and antioxidant base, along with DMI (F4). Amongst the four formulations, F3 showed the greatest physicochemical stability with less tendency to coalescence but with marked chromatic aberrations. An inverse correlation was established by multivariate analysis between the mean droplet size in volume and the steady-state flux, which explains why F3, with the smallest droplet size and the most hydrophobic excipients, exhibited the highest permeation across both types of membranes with enhancement ratios of 2.26 and 5.67-fold across Strat-M® and mouse skin, respectively, compared to F1. It is crucial to understand how the HQ is formulated, bearing in mind that the use of different excipients can tune the transdermal delivery of HQ significantly

Fish mortality associated to volcanic eruptions in the Canary Islands

The Canary Islands are an active volcanic archipelago. In the last decade, volcanic activity has occurred twice on the youngest and western most islands: El Hierro (submarine eruption) in 2011-12, and La Palma (subaerial eruption) in 2021. 70 fish specimens of different species from El Hierro volcano and 14 from La Palma were necropsied. A notable high and early mortality of fishes was registered during the submarine eruption of El Hierro. In most of them, generalized congestion in the gills, liver, spleen, kidney, heart and rete mirabile of the swim bladder was observed. Some specimens also presented exophthalmia, gastric eversion, ocular haemorrhages, over-inflation of swim bladder and gas bubbles mainly on the skin and cornea. The eruption of La Palma volcano was characterized by the emission of large amounts of lava flows and pyroclastic deposits (mainly ash in size) both, on land and sea. Lava flowed on land and eventually reached the sea, forming lava deltas in the coastline of La Palma. This event was also associated with an increase in fish mortality in locations near to the lava deltas. Fishes presented ash particles in opercula/oral cavities and gills. In addition, several fishes presented an intense intestinal impaction composed of volcanic material including ashes and hyaloclastites fragments. To our best knowledge this study describes, for the first time, pathological findings in dead fishes associated with two different styles of recent volcanic eruptions in the Canary Islands