Improving predictions of solvation free energies from non-polarisable models by applying polarisation corrections

Classical non-polarisable models, normally based on a combination of Lennard-Jones (LJ) sites and point charges, are extensively used to model thermodynamic properties of fluids. An important shortcoming of this class of models is that they do not explicitly account for polarisation effects - i.e. a description of how the electron density responds to changes in the molecular environment. Instead, polarisation is implicitly included into the parameters of the model, usually by fitting to pure liquid properties (e.g. density). A problem arises when trying to describe thermodynamic properties that involve a change of phase (e.g. enthalpy of vaporisation), solutions/mixtures (e.g. solvation free energies), or properties that directly depend on the electronic response of the medium (e.g. dielectric constant). Fully polarisable models present a natural route for addressing these limitations, but at the price of a much higher computational cost. The main goal of this thesis is to obtain a non-polarisable force field for alcohols, amines and ketones able to predict both pure liquid properties and solvation free energies with a high degree of accuracy through the use of post-facto polarisation corrections. These corrections are applied to the properties computed using the non-polarisable force field in order to account for the effects of polarisation, and thus, increase the model's accuracy while maintaining its computational effciency. This work is part of a larger project which end goal is to predict the solubility of drug molecules (e.g. paracetamol). These molecules usually contain hydroxyl, amino and carbonyl groups, and thus, this thesis focuses on molecules with these functional groups. Aromatic rings are another functional group present in most drug molecules, however, they are not studied here due to time limitations. Alcohols and amines are interesting from a fundamental point of view as they are the simplest molecules that combine a hydrophobic moiety with a hydrogen-bonding functional group. Also, alcohols and ketones are widely used as solvents and amines are used in CO2 adsorption/desorption processes designed to decrease CO2 emissions. The model developed in this thesis is called PolCA, standing for 'Polarisation-Consistent Approach', and it is an extension of the modified TraPPE force field for hydrocarbons proposed by Jorge [1] that eliminates systematic deviations from experimental solvation free energies. The new amino, hydroxyl and carbonyl parameters were fitted to several pure-component experimental properties including the density and enthalpy of vaporisation, and in some cases also self-solvation free energies. The optimization was carried out using meta-models that predict how the simulated properties change with the input parameters, allowing for a better exploration of the force field parameters' space. The PolCA force field for alcohols can accurately predict methanol to decanol's densities, diffusion constants (except for methanol), enthalpies of vaporisation, free energies of self-solvation, dielectric constants and solvation free energies in hexadecane. PolCA also does a very good job at predicting the densities, enthalpies of vaporisation and free energies of self-solvation of linear and branched primary amines, and its predicted solvation free energies of linear primary amines in hexadecane are in very good agreement with experimental data. However, it greatly overpredicts the dielectric constant of methylamine and significantly overpredicts other linear and branched amines' dielectric constants. Furthermore, PolCA can accurately predict the densities, enthalpies of vaporisation, diffusion constants and self-solvation free energies of propanone to 2-decanone (except for butanone and 2-pentanone's densities which are underpredicted), however, it greatly overpredicts ketones' dielectric constants and sovation free energies in hexadecane (more negative values). Lastly, PolCA was used to calculate solvation free energies of amines and ketones in octanol and multifunctional compounds' densities and dielectric constants to test its transferability. Our force field was not able to simultaneously predict solvation free energies in hexadecane and octanol, and thus a re-parameterisation will be carried out in future work using polarisation corrections obtained with more accurate methods. Nonetheless, the results obtained in this work show that the approach proposed here is very promising since they significantly improve agreement with experiment for the dielectric constant and solvation free energies of alcohols and amines in hexadecane.Classical non-polarisable models, normally based on a combination of Lennard-Jones (LJ) sites and point charges, are extensively used to model thermodynamic properties of fluids. An important shortcoming of this class of models is that they do not explicitly account for polarisation effects - i.e. a description of how the electron density responds to changes in the molecular environment. Instead, polarisation is implicitly included into the parameters of the model, usually by fitting to pure liquid properties (e.g. density). A problem arises when trying to describe thermodynamic properties that involve a change of phase (e.g. enthalpy of vaporisation), solutions/mixtures (e.g. solvation free energies), or properties that directly depend on the electronic response of the medium (e.g. dielectric constant). Fully polarisable models present a natural route for addressing these limitations, but at the price of a much higher computational cost. The main goal of this thesis is to obtain a non-polarisable force field for alcohols, amines and ketones able to predict both pure liquid properties and solvation free energies with a high degree of accuracy through the use of post-facto polarisation corrections. These corrections are applied to the properties computed using the non-polarisable force field in order to account for the effects of polarisation, and thus, increase the model's accuracy while maintaining its computational effciency. This work is part of a larger project which end goal is to predict the solubility of drug molecules (e.g. paracetamol). These molecules usually contain hydroxyl, amino and carbonyl groups, and thus, this thesis focuses on molecules with these functional groups. Aromatic rings are another functional group present in most drug molecules, however, they are not studied here due to time limitations. Alcohols and amines are interesting from a fundamental point of view as they are the simplest molecules that combine a hydrophobic moiety with a hydrogen-bonding functional group. Also, alcohols and ketones are widely used as solvents and amines are used in CO2 adsorption/desorption processes designed to decrease CO2 emissions. The model developed in this thesis is called PolCA, standing for 'Polarisation-Consistent Approach', and it is an extension of the modified TraPPE force field for hydrocarbons proposed by Jorge [1] that eliminates systematic deviations from experimental solvation free energies. The new amino, hydroxyl and carbonyl parameters were fitted to several pure-component experimental properties including the density and enthalpy of vaporisation, and in some cases also self-solvation free energies. The optimization was carried out using meta-models that predict how the simulated properties change with the input parameters, allowing for a better exploration of the force field parameters' space. The PolCA force field for alcohols can accurately predict methanol to decanol's densities, diffusion constants (except for methanol), enthalpies of vaporisation, free energies of self-solvation, dielectric constants and solvation free energies in hexadecane. PolCA also does a very good job at predicting the densities, enthalpies of vaporisation and free energies of self-solvation of linear and branched primary amines, and its predicted solvation free energies of linear primary amines in hexadecane are in very good agreement with experimental data. However, it greatly overpredicts the dielectric constant of methylamine and significantly overpredicts other linear and branched amines' dielectric constants. Furthermore, PolCA can accurately predict the densities, enthalpies of vaporisation, diffusion constants and self-solvation free energies of propanone to 2-decanone (except for butanone and 2-pentanone's densities which are underpredicted), however, it greatly overpredicts ketones' dielectric constants and sovation free energies in hexadecane (more negative values). Lastly, PolCA was used to calculate solvation free energies of amines and ketones in octanol and multifunctional compounds' densities and dielectric constants to test its transferability. Our force field was not able to simultaneously predict solvation free energies in hexadecane and octanol, and thus a re-parameterisation will be carried out in future work using polarisation corrections obtained with more accurate methods. Nonetheless, the results obtained in this work show that the approach proposed here is very promising since they significantly improve agreement with experiment for the dielectric constant and solvation free energies of alcohols and amines in hexadecane

A polarization-consistent model for alcohols to predict solvation free energies

Classical nonpolarizable models, normally based on a combination of Lennard-Jones sites and point charges, are extensively used to model thermodynamic properties of fluids, including solvation. An important shortcoming of these models is that they do not explicitly account for polarization effects, i.e., a description of how the electron density responds to changes in the molecular environment. Instead, polarization is implicitly included, in a mean-field sense, into the parameters of the model, usually by fitting to pure liquid properties (e.g., density). This causes problems when trying to describe thermodynamic properties that involve a change of phase (e.g., enthalpy of vaporization), that directly depend on the electronic response of the medium (e.g., dielectric constant), and that require mixing or solvation in different media (e.g., solvation free energies). Fully polarizable models present a natural route for addressing these limitations but at the price of a much higher computational cost. In this work, we combine the best of those two approaches by running fast simulations using nonpolarizable models and applying post facto corrections to the computed properties in order to account for the effects of polarization. By applying this new paradigm, a new united-atom force field for alcohols is developed that is able to predict both pure liquid properties, including dielectric constant, and solvation free energies in different solvents with a high degree of accuracy. This paves the way for the development of a generic classical nonpolarizable force field that can predict solvation of drug-like molecules in a variety of solvents

The dipole moment of alcohols in the liquid phase and in solution

Understanding polarization effects in condensed phases, like liquids and solutions, requires computational methods that can accurately predict dipole moments and energy of polarized molecules. In this paper, we report an improvement and extension of our recently developed Self-Consistent Electrostatic Embedding (SCEE) method, and apply it to determine the dipole moment of pure liquid alcohols, as well as of methanol dissolved in a variety of solvents (namely, other alcohols, water and hexadecane). We observe that the dipole moments of pure liquid alcohols are enhanced by ∼0.9 D over their gas phase values, which is similar to the dipole enhancement previously observed for water, and much higher than what is predicted by dielectric continuum models. Our results demonstrate the importance of accounting for local solvation effects, namely the formation of hydrogen bonds, when calculating the extent of liquid phase polarization. In fact, we argue that the dipole enhancement upon solvation can be explained as a superposition of two effects: bulk screening described by the solvent dielectric constant and local solvation that requires a discrete molecular-level description of the system. SCEE is able to account for both effects simultaneously, and is thus a powerful tool to estimate polarization effects in liquids and solutions

Microencapsulation of chia seed oil (Salvia hispanica L.) in spray and freeze-dried whey protein concentrate/soy protein isolate/gum arabic (WPC/SPI/GA) matrices

Microencapsulation by different drying methods protects chia seed oil (CSO) against oxidative degradation, and ultimately facilitates its incorporation in certain foods. The aim of this work was to analyze the influence of freeze or spray drying, as well as of the coacervation phenomena in a ternary wall material blend whey protein concentrate/soy protein isolate/gum arabic (WPC/SPI/GA)?on the physico?chemical properties of microencapsulated CSO. Differential scanning calorimetry studies indicated that the onset, peak, and end set temperatures for denaturation events shifted from 72.59, 77.96, and 78.02 to 81.34, 86.01, and 92.58 °C, respectively, in the ternary blend after coacervation. Oxidative stability indexes (OSI) of powders were significantly higher (p < 0.05) for both drying methods after inducing coacervation?from 6.45 to 12.04 h (freeze-drying) and 12.05 to 15.31 h (spray drying)?which was possibly due to the shifted denaturation temperatures after biopolymer interaction. It can be concluded that the ternary WPC/SPI/GA blend constitutes an adequate matrix to encapsulate CSO.Fil: Bordón, María Gabriela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Alimentos Córdoba. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Alimentos Córdoba; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto de Ciencias y Tecnología de los Alimentos; ArgentinaFil: Barrera, Gabriela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Alimentos Córdoba. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Alimentos Córdoba; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Cs.exactas Físicas y Naturales. Departamento de Química Industrial y Aplicada; ArgentinaFil: Penci, Maria Cecilia. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto de Ciencias y Tecnología de los Alimentos; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Alimentos Córdoba. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Alimentos Córdoba; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Cs.exactas Físicas y Naturales. Departamento de Química Industrial y Aplicada; ArgentinaFil: Bori, Andrea. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Cs.exactas Físicas y Naturales. Departamento de Química Industrial y Aplicada; ArgentinaFil: Caballero, Victoria. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Cs.exactas Físicas y Naturales. Departamento de Química Industrial y Aplicada; ArgentinaFil: Ribotta, Pablo Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Alimentos Córdoba. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Alimentos Córdoba; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto de Ciencias y Tecnología de los Alimentos; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; ArgentinaFil: Martinez, Marcela Lilian. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Alimentos Córdoba. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Alimentos Córdoba; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto de Ciencias y Tecnología de los Alimentos; Argentin

New force-field for organosilicon molecules in the liquid phase

In this paper, we present a new molecular model that can accurately predict thermodynamic liquid state and phase-change properties for organosilicon molecules including several functional groups (alkylsilane, alkoxysilane, siloxane and silanol). These molecules are of great importance in geological processes, biological systems and material science, yet no force field currently exists that is widely applicable to organosilicates. The model is parameterized according to the recent Polarization-Consistent Approach (PolCA), which allows for polarization effects to be incorporated into a non-polarizable model through post facto correction terms, and is therefore consistent with previous parameterizations of the PolCA force field. Alkyl groups are described by the United-Atom approach, bond and angle parameters were taken from previous literature studies, dihedral parameters were fitted to new quantum chemical energy profiles, point charges were calculated from quantum chemical optimizations in a continuum solvent, and Lennard-Jones dispersion/repulsion parameters were fitted to match the density and enthalpy of vaporization of a small number of selected compounds. Extensive validation efforts were carried out, after careful collection and curation of experimental data for organosilicates. Overall, the model performed quite well for the density, enthalpy of vaporization, dielectric constant and self-diffusion coefficient, but slightly overestimated the magnitude of self-solvation free energies. The modular and transferable nature of the PolCA force field allows for further extensions to other types of silicon-containing compounds

Using machine learning to predict residence time distributions in Coiled Flow Inverter (CFI) reactors

INTRODUCTION - A CFI reactor consist of a inner tube wrapped around a circular frame. This geometry leads to the formation of secondary flow patterns (Dean vortices) known to improve radial mixing. - Better radial mixing results in a tighter residence time distribution (). Many processes, such as virus inactivation, require a tight to avoid unwanted transformations or product damage. - The tightness of the can be evaluated using the relative width (), the ratio between the minimum and maximum residence times. An value of 1 corresponds to an ideal plug flow reactor

Creatividad, discapacidad y género: Una mirada desde la Educación Especial

El presente artículo invita a pensar a la creatividad desde una perspectiva crítica y decolonial que ofrezca posibles transformaciones y permita crear cuestionamientos a las imposiciones, opresiones y jerarquías impuestas por una perspectiva eurocéntrica. Expone una postura crítica latinoamericana sobre las definiciones de la creatividad; aborda la creatividad, el género y la discapacidad, reflexionando acerca de la vinculación existente entre estos conceptos, exponiendo al género como una construcción social impuesta. Retoma diferentes autores y autoras para analizar concepciones hegemónicas y vigentes sobre: racismo, sexo-género, clase, entre otros, y expone el concepto de interseccionalidad para abordar las múltiples discriminaciones que puede atravesar una persona por su forma de ser y estar en el mundo. Por otro lado, expone alternativas conceptuales, ideológicas, teóricas, frente a las consecuencias negativas de aquellos estudios cuyas perspectivas de análisis llevan a consideraciones reduccionistas. Aprecia el proceso orientado hacia la decolonialidad de los conceptos abordados en Latinoamérica que permita desarrollar perspectivas ideológicas y culturales que respondan a un contexto propio. Se enmarca a la creatividad desde una postura latinoamericana porque se necesitan cambios radicales sobre las perspectivas que centralizan los procesos creativos en individuos aislados sin considerar el contexto que los rodea. La decolonialidad se basa en la resistencia de los grupos racializados y oprimidos contra la deshumanización, la explotación y el genocidio que surgieron desde la colonización. A su vez, se contemplan las actuaciones del educador y educadora especial, exponiendo diferentes formas de trabajo y ejemplificando algunas implicancias de la creatividad en forma concreta, proponiendo a la misma como eje transversal de las propuestas abordadas para ofrecer contextos creativos que nos permitan desarrollar y acompañar de mejor forma, la construcción de procesos creativos individuales.Fil: Cardozo, Maria. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; ArgentinaFil: Zabaleta, Cinthia. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; ArgentinaFil: Marioli, Marcela Ines. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto; ArgentinaFil: de la Barrera, María Laura. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Instituto de Investigaciones Sociales, Territoriales y Educativas. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Centro Cientifico Tecnologico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Investigaciones Sociales, Territoriales y Educativas.; ArgentinaFil: Elisondo, Romina Cecilia. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto. Instituto de Investigaciones Sociales, Territoriales y Educativas. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas. Centro Cientifico Tecnologico Conicet - Cordoba. Instituto de Investigaciones Sociales, Territoriales y Educativas.; Argentin

Identifying Factors Influencing Attention in Adolescents with a Co-Created Questionnaire : A Citizen Science Approach with Secondary Students in Barcelona, Spain

Studies on factors that can influence attention in healthy adolescents are recent and focus on recurrent topics. Students' contribution to public health research often revolves around collecting data but rarely around creating data collection instruments. The ATENC!Ó project reunited secondary students and scientists to create a questionnaire including factors that students thought could affect their attention. We conducted a cross-sectional study to assess whether the factors included in this questionnaire had an effect on attention in adolescents. A total of 1667 students (13-16 years old) from 28 schools in Barcelona performed a validated attention test and answered the questionnaire. The response speed consistency (attentiveness), expressed as hit reaction time standard error (HRT-SE, in ms), was used as the primary outcome. Analyses were conducted using conditional linear regression with school as strata, adjusted for sociodemographic characteristics and further stratified by gender and maternal social class. Some factors showed a negative influence on attention, including taking medication and not reading regularly. We found a significant 14.3% (95% confidence interval: 3.4%, 25.3%) higher median of HRT-SE (increase inattentiveness) among students who reported not having a good relationship with classmates. Students' input into research is relevant for advancing the knowledge production in public health

Alteration of placental haemostatic mechanisms in idiopathic intrauterine growth restriction

La restricción del crecimiento intrauterino es una complicación del embarazo con alta probabilidad de morbilidad y mortalidad perinatal, que parece ser causada por desarrollo anormal de la vasculatura placentaria. Los procesos hemostáticos son importantes para el desarrollo de la placenta y el desequilibrio entre factores procoagulantes y anticoagulantes se ha asociado con restricción del crecimiento intrauterino. Objetivo. Evaluar el compromiso hemostático en la placenta de los embarazos complicados con restricción del crecimiento intrauterino idiopática. Materiales y métodos. Se estudiaron cinco placentas de embarazos con restricción de crecimiento intrauterino idiopática y 19 controles. Se realizó examen macroscópico e histológico, y análisis de la expresión de factor tisular y trombomodulina a nivel de ARNm por PCR en tiempo real y proteínas por ELISA. Resultados. Se evidenció compromiso hemostático en las placentas de embarazos con restricción de crecimiento intrauterino idiopática, siendo la trombosis de los vasos coriales el hallazgo histológico más importante. Se encontró aumento en la expresión de la proteína del factor tisular (p=0,0411) y en la razón de factor tisular/trombomodulina a nivel de ARNm (p=0,0411) y proteína (p=0,0215). No hubo diferencias estadísticamente significativas entre los grupos en los niveles de ARNm de factor tisular o trombomodulina, ni de trombomodulina a nivel de proteína. Conclusión. Se presenta evidencia de alteración de los mecanismos hemostáticos de la placenta, incluyendo la expresión anormal de factor tisular y de la razón factor tisular/trombomodulina, en embarazos complicados con restricción del crecimiento intrauterino idiopática.Q2179-188Intrauterine growth restriction is a complication of pregnancy with a high probability of perinatal morbidity and mortality. It appears to be caused by abnormal development of placental vasculature. Haemostatic processes are important for the development of the placenta, and an imbalance between procoagulant and anticoagulant factors has been associated with risk of intrauterine growth restriction. Objective. To evaluate coagulation abnormalities in placenta of pregnancies complicated with idiopathic intrauterine growth restriction. Materials and methods. Five placentas from pregnancies with idiopathic intrauterine growth restriction were compared to 19 controls. We performed gross and histological examination of the placenta. Analysis was made of both mRNA expression by real-time PCR and protein by ELISA of tissue factor and thrombomodulin in placental tissue. Results. Results based on histological evaluation were consistent with an increased prothrombotic state in placentas from pregnancies with idiopathic intrauterine growth restriction, and thrombosis of chorionic vessels was the most important finding. The study showed an increased expression of tissue factor protein (p=0.0411) and an increase in the ratio of tissue factor/thrombomodulin mRNA (p=0.0411) and protein (p=0.0215) in placentas from pregnancies with idiopathic intrauterine growth restriction. There were no statistically significant differences neither between cases and controls in the mRNA levels of tissue factor or thrombomodulin nor at the protein level of thrombomodulin. Conclusion. Evidence of alteration of local haemostatic mechanisms at the level of the placenta, including abnormal expression of tissue factor and tissue factor/thrombomodulin ratio, in pregnancies that occur with idiopathic intrauterine growth restriction is presented

Manual integrado de acción tutorial

Este documento se ha realizado con ayuda financiera de la Unión Europea, a través del proyecto "IDEAS - Iniciativas para el desarrollo educativo y socio comunitario" (Ref. DCI-ALA/2014/351-291). El contenido de este documento es responsabilidad exclusiva de sus autores y en modo alguno debe considerarse que refleja la posición de la Unión EuropeaEl Manual Integrado de Acción Tutorial (MIAT, en adelante) que se introduce con este texto es el documento que recoge propuestas de intervención organizadas y dirigidas a mejorar la atención de los estudiantes de centros de estudios nocturnos de Costa Rica. Su realización se enmarca dentro del Proyecto IDEAS y ha de servir tanto para la formación del profesorado a realizar como para guiar la actuación en los centros educativos. Su concreción tiene en cuenta la realidad contextual del país y la propia de los destinatarios (profesorado y estudiantes de centros de estudios nocturnos). El desarrollo de los distintos módulos tiene una estructura similar, presentando para cada uno de ellos una Introducción, que sitúa el Módulo en el marco del programa formativo y que presenta los temas que se abordan; un Esquema de contenido, que bajo la modalidad de esquema de contenido o mapa conceptual permite identificar y relacionar los tópicos que se abordan; las Temáticas que se abordan y desarrollan; y las Actividades, diferenciando entre las de aplicación, referidas a propuestas vinculadas con la comprensión y contextualización del contenido desarrollado, y las de desarrollo, vinculadas a la profundización en la temática. Se completa la información con las Referencias bibliográficas y el Glosario que se presentan al final del texto. Además, durante la presentación de las distintas temáticas se utilizan cuatro soportes complementarios al texto. Son síntesis parciales, citas de autor, notas para saber más y propuesta de actividades, que pretenden llamar la atención del participante en la formación y ayudarle en su progreso académico. El texto así concebido no solo ha de servir para el desarrollo del Proyecto, sino que también puede servir como documento de trabajo para otros centros educativos no insertos en el Proyecto IDEAS, para la formación del profesorado de escuelas nocturnas y para el desarrollo de las instituciones de nocturno. Hasta aquí un intento más de cambiar la realidad a partir de la modificación de las prácticas pedagógicas. Los resultados se habrán de ver, sin que perdamos de vista que todos somos en parte protagonistas y responsables de los mismos. Desde esta perspectiva, asumimos los comentarios que, al respecto, se nos quieran hacer llegar