Micronacions i micronacionalisme a la xarxa d'Internet: un reflex del món en clau virtual

El micronacionalisme no és un fenomen nou però l'arribada de la informàtica i les innovacions de la xarxa i el món virtual han augmentat de sobte el protagonisme d'un fet que ja existia des d'abans que s'inventessin el mitjans de comunicació massius. A partir de diferents exemples es repassen els conceptes de sobirania, estat i territori tot tenint com a punt de referència els nous microestats que han sorgit a Internet durant les darreres dècades.El micronacionalismo no es un fenómeno nuevo pero la llegada de la informática y las innovaciones en la red y el mundo virtual han aumentado de pronto el protagonismo de un hecho que ya existía des de antes de que se inventaran los actuales medios de comunicación masivos. A partir de diferentes ejemplos se repasan los conceptos de soberanía, estado y territorio teniendo como punto de referencia los nuevos microestados que han surgido en Internet en las últimas décadas.Micronationalism is not a new phenomenon but the rise of the computer age, and the innovations in the net and the virtual worlds increased suddenly its prominence. In fact these political forms exited way before the invention of the mass media that are spreading them now. Using some relevant examples of these phenomena, this paper reviews concepts such as sovereignty, state, or territory, using as a reference de new microstates that have appeared and expanded through Internet in the last decades

Monte Carlo modelling projects the loss of most land-terminating glaciers on Svalbard in the 21st century under RCP 8.5 forcing

The high Arctic archipelagos around the globe are among the most strongly glacierized landscapes on Earth apart from the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. Over the past decades, the mass losses from land ice in the high Arctic regions have contributed substantially to global sea level rise. Among these regions, the archipelago of Svalbard showed the smallest mass losses. However, this could change in the coming decades, as Svalbard is expected to be exposed to strong climate warming over the 21st century. Here we present extensive Monte Carlo simulations of the future ice-mass evolution of 29 individual land-terminating glaciers on the Svalbard archipelago under an RCP 8.5 climate forcing. An extrapolation of the 29 sample glaciers to all land-terminating glaciers of the archipelago suggests an almost complete deglaciation of the region by 2100. Under RCP 8.5, 98% of the land-terminating glaciers will have declined to less than one tenth of their initial size, resulting in a loss of 7392 ± 2481 km ^2 of ice coverage

Diferencias entre los sistemas educativos español y finlandés: centrado en la asignatura de las ciencias sociales

En este trabajo nos centraremos en explicar nuestro sistema educativo actual en España, comparándolo así con el proclamado mejor sistema educativo actual como es el finlandés. Para ello, por un lado, definiremos primero lo que es el sistema educativo y los elementos que lo forman, apoyándonos en los dos sistemas que hemos nombrado anteriormente para observar las diferencias existentes entre ambos. En la actualidad, el sistema educativo español no es considerado uno de los mejores y eso se puede observar en los informes PISA que veremos durante el trabajo. Esto es causado por las numerosas reformas legislativas a lo largo de las últimas décadas, que no han mejorado ni el fracaso escolar ni han mejorado el nivel de competencias educativas en nuestro sistema. Sin embargo, en Finlandia, el sistema educativo está ausente de elementos burocráticos que hace que la educación se fundamente en valores como la equidad y la calidad. Por otro lado, analizaremos las programaciones de aula centrándonos en la asignatura de las ciencias sociales del curso 5º de Primaria de los dos sistemas educativos, para poder observar todas las diferencias nombradas anteriormente en la fundamentación teórica y dar a entender la importancia que tiene la enseñanza de esta asignatura en la escuela. Complementando así, lo que es un trabajo de análisis y comparación entre dos sistemas educativos totalmente diferentes, donde podremos ver la variedad de ideas que pueden existir entre un mismo tema como es la educación

On the errors involved in the estimate of glacier ice volume from ice thickness data

The assessment of the glacier thickness is one of the most widespread applications of radioglaciology, and is the basis for estimating the glacier volume. The accuracy of the measurement of ice thickness, the distribution of profiles over the glacier and the accuracy of the boundary delineation of the glacier are the most important factors determining the error in the evaluation of the glacier volume. The aim of this study is to get an accurate estimate of the error incurred in the estimate of glacier volume from GPR-retrieved ice-thickness data

Constraining the mass balance of East Antarctica

We investigate the mass balance of East Antarctica for the period 2003-2013 using a Bayesian statistical framework. We combine satellite altimetry, gravimetry, and GPS with prior assumptions characterizing the underlying geophysical processes. We run three experiments based on two different assumptions to study possible solutions to the mass balance. We solve for trends in surface mass balance, ice dynamics, and glacial isostatic adjustment. The first assumption assigns low probability to ice dynamic mass loss in regions of slow flow, giving a mean dynamic trend of 17 ± 10 Gt yr-1 and a total mass imbalance of 57 ± 20 Gt yr-1. The second assumption considers a long-term dynamic thickening hypothesis and an a priori solution for surface mass balance from a regional climate model. The latter results in estimates 3 to 5 times larger for the ice dynamic trends but similar total mass imbalance. In both cases, gains in East Antarctica are smaller than losses in West Antarctica

Joint inversion estimate of regional glacial isostatic adjustment in Antarctica considering a lateral varying Earth structure (ESA STSE Project REGINA)

A major uncertainty in determining the mass balance of the Antarctic ice sheet from measurements of satellite gravimetry, and to a lesser extent satellite altimetry, is the poorly known correction for the ongoing deformation of the solid Earth caused by glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA). Although much progress has been made in consistently modelling the ice-sheet evolution throughout the last glacial cycle, as well as the induced bedrock deformation caused by these load changes, forward models of GIA remain ambiguous due to the lack of observational constraints on the ice sheet's past extent and thickness and mantle rheology beneath the continent. As an alternative to forward modelling GIA, we estimate GIA from multiple space-geodetic observations: GRACE, Envisat/ICESat and GPS. Making use of the different sensitivities of the respective satellite observations to current and past surface mass (ice mass) change and solid Earth processes, we estimate GIA based on viscoelastic response functions to disc load forcing. We calculate and distribute the viscoelastic response functions according to estimates of the variability of lithosphere thickness and mantle viscosity in Antarctica. We compare our GIA estimate with published GIA corrections and evaluate its impact in determining the ice mass balance in Antarctica from GRACE and satellite altimetry. Particular focus is applied to the Amundsen Sea Sector in West Antarctica, where uplift rates of several cm/yr have been measured by GPS. We show that most of this uplift is caused by the rapid viscoelastic response to recent ice-load changes, enabled by the presence of a low-viscosity upper mantle in West Antarctica. This paper presents the second and final contribution summarizing the work carried out within a European Space Agency funded study, REGINA, (www.regina-science.eu)

The impact of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and specific learning disorders on academic performance in Spanish children from a low-middle- and a high-income population

IntroductionPast research has demonstrated that attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), specific learning disorders (SLD), and socioeconomic status (SES) affect a host of educational outcomes. However, there are no studies examining whether SES moderates the association between these neurodevelopmental disorders (ND) and the academic achievement of children and adolescents. The present investigation examined the impact of ADHD and SLD on academic performance in 1,287 Spanish students aged 5–17 from a low-middle (LM)- and a high-income population, when adjusted for comorbidity and demographic factors that may influence educational functioning.MethodsParents completed a questionnaire regarding demographic data along with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Additionally, teachers provided information on learning difficulties trough the Protocol for Detection and Management of Dyslexia. Teacher’s Version. Academic performance across multiple domains (i.e., first language, foreign language, mathematics) was obtained from school records. ND were determined using standardized diagnostic methods based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders criteria. To examine the effects of ADHD and SLD on academic achievement and the potential moderating role of SES, a series of ordinal logistic regressions were conducted.ResultsEmotional/behavioral problems, learning difficulties, and ND were more frequent among individuals from the LM-income population. After controlling for gender, age, parental divorce/separation, grade retention, frequency of screen use, and daily meals, both ADHD and SLD were associated with worse educational outcomes. Lower SES also increased the risk for academic impairment, although the interactions with ADHD or SLD were not significant.ConclusionThese findings indicate that ADHD and SLD exert a pervasive impact on academic performance across different socioeconomic backgrounds. Therefore, early detection and effective intervention strategies aimed at students with these ND are crucial to improve their educational functioning and mitigate the negative consequences related to academic problems