Real equilibrium exchange rates. A panel data approach for advanced and emerging economies.

Based on an behavioral equilibrium exchange rate model, this paper examines the determinants of the real effective exchange rate and evaluates the degree of misalignment of a group of currencies since 1980. Within a panel cointegration setting, we estimate the relationship between exchange rate and a set of economic fundamentals, such as traded-nontraded productivity differentials and the stock of foreign assets. Having ascertained the variables are integrated and cointegrated, the long-run equilibrium value of the fundamentals are estimated and used to derive equilibrium exchange rates and misalignments. Although there is statistical homogeneity, some structural differences were found to exist between advanced and emerging economies.

Development of advanced silicon radiation detectors for high energy physics and medical imaging

The 1st chapter of this work presents the different experiments and collaborations in which I am involved during my PhD studies of Physics. Following those descriptions, the 2nd chapter is dedicated to how the radiation affects the silicon sensors, as well as some experimental measurements carried out at CERN (Geneve, Schwitzerland) and IFIC (Valencia, Spain) laboratories. Besides the previous investigation results, this chapter includes the most recent scientific papers appeared in the latest RD50 (Research & Development #50) Status Report, published in January 2007, as well as some others published this year. The 3rd and 4th are dedicated to the simulation of the electrical behavior of solid state detectors. In chapter 3 are reported the results obtained for the illumination of edgeless detectors irradiated at different fluences, in the framework of the TOSTER Collaboration. The 4th chapter reports about simulation design, simulation and fabrication of a novel 3D detector developed at CNM for ions detection in the future ITER fusion reactor. This chapter will be extended with irradiation simulations and experimental measurements in my PhD Thesis.

How to improve the formal analytic reasoning and scientific motivation in the intellectual training of medical students

A review article of the The New England Journal of Medicine refers that almost a century ago, Abraham Flexner, a research scholar at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, undertook an assessment of medical education in 155 medical schools in operation in the United States and Canada. Flexner’s report emphasized the nonscientific approach of American medical schools to preparation for the profession, which contrasted with the university-based system of medical education in Germany. At the core of Flexner’s view was the notion that formal analytic reasoning, the kind of thinking integral to the natural sciences, should hold pride of place in the intellectual training of physicians. This idea was pioneered at Harvard University, the University of Michigan, and the University of Pennsylvania in the 1880s, but was most fully expressed in the educational program at Johns Hopkins University, which Flexner regarded as the ideal for medical education. (...)

On the joint production of research and training

Universities and research institutions have the responsibility to produce science and to provide training to new generations of researchers. In this paper, we propose a model to analyze the determinants of a senior scientist's decisions about allocating time between these tasks. The results of this decision depend upon the characteristics of the research project, the senior scientist's concern for training and the expected innate ability of the junior scientist involved. We analyze the role that a regulator can play in defining both the value of scientific projects and the future population of independent scientists.

Insomnia in hospitalised patients with advanced disease: prevalence and related factors

Objectiu: Avaluar prevalença i factors associats a l’insomni en pacients ingressats a una unitat de cures pal•liatives. Mètode: Entrevista estructurada a pacients consecutivament ingressats avaluant l’insomni a través de l’escala Sleep Disturbance Scale, i els factors físics, psicològics i ambientals potencialment associats. Resultats principals: El 47% presentà insomni moderat a sever. Els factors potencialment associats més prevalents foren dolor, distrés psicològic, rumiacions nocturnes i factors ambientals. En l’anàlisi multivariada, rumiacions nocturnes i somnolència diürna (relació inversa) es relacionaren amb insomni moderat a sever. Conclusions: L’insomni és un símptoma prevalent relacionat amb rumiacions nocturnes i absència de somnolència diürna.

Teacher training in "multicultural" Sweden

This paper builds on the experience of the on-going, mainly ethnographic, research project called Teacher training in’ multicultural’ Sweden. Class, gender and ethnicity. In this multi-disciplinary project a number of scholars conduct research through participant observation in, and through the study and analysis of documents from, a number of teacher training colleges in Sweden. In this paper I will use empirical material gathered from two teacher training colleges to discuss this basic issue. One college is situated in a suburb outside Stockholm and it consciously portrays itself as a college for ‘multicultural’ students who will later teach in ‘multicultural’ suburbs. The other college is situated in a small town and although ‘multiculturalism’ is seen as important in the educational system students with mainly ‘Swedish’ background are recruited. In the first college ‘differences’ are lauded and students are encouraged to ponder upon and develop their ethnic profile. In the second ‘similarities’ are more taken for granted. I will argue, however, that within these colleges ‘differences’ and ’similarities’ are not only discussed but actually created against a backdrop of macro-constraints which are not much scrutinized within these colleges.

ALK rearrangement in a selected population of advanced non small cell lung cancer patients. FISH and inmunohistochemistry diagnostic methods, prevalence and clinical outcomes

Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) rearrangements represents a new driver oncogenic event in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). ALK positive patients account for a 1-7% of NSCLC patients. The objective of this study is to know the prevalence and clinical characteristics of ALK positive patients in a cohort of NSCLC patients and to compare inmunohistochemistry with D5F3 monoclonal antibody with gold standard method fluorescence in situ hybridation

Control of optical fields and single photon emitters by advanced nanoantenna structures

The control of optical fields on the nanometre scale is becoming an increasingly important tool in many fields, ranging from channelling light delivery in photovoltaics and light emitting diodes to increasing the sensitivity of chemical sensors to single molecule levels. The ability to design and manipulate light fields with specific frequency and space characteristics is explored in this project. We present an alternative realisation of Extraordinary Optical Transmission (EOT) that requires only a single aperture and a coupled waveguide. We show how this waveguide-resonant EOT improves the transmissivity of single apertures. An important technique in imaging is Near-Field Scanning Optical Microscopy (NSOM); we show how waveguide-resonant EOT and the novel probe design assist in improving the efficiency of NSOM probes by two orders of magnitude, and allow the imaging of single molecules with an optical resolution of as good as 50 nm. We show how optical antennas are fabricated into the apex of sharp tips and can be used in a near-field configuration.

TFC Creación de un LiveCD Linux para Training de Seguridad

Memoria del TFC de Ingeniería Informática Técnica de Sistemas en el area Linux sobre una distribución LiveCD para realizar Trainings de Seguridad

Criteria for ICT-supported Higher Education Teachers Training

Aquest document pretén recollir aportacions teòriques sobre les pràctiques pedagògiques que incorporen i promouen l'ús de les TIC per tal de definir els criteris per al disseny de la formació dels professors d'educació superior en les TIC.

Analysis of teachers training for ICT Higher Education

Aquest document pretén recollir aportacions teòriques i pràctiques sobre les pràctiques pedagògiques que incorporen i promouen l'ús de les TIC per tal d'aclarir, facilitar i fer coherent el disseny de la formació dels professors d'educació superior en les TIC. El seu propòsit és trobar alternatives de formació que compleixin amb les necessitats educatives del professor, així com per superar o atenuar les dificultats i/o la manca de voluntat a les quals s'enfronta en la pràctica educativa en introduir aplicacions de les TIC.

WePreserve 2009: DPE/Planets/CASPAR/nestor Joint Training Event: The Preservation challenge: basic concepts and practical applications (Barcelona, 23-27 març 2009)

Reseña del congreso WePreserve 2009 que tuvo lugar los pasados 23 al 27 de marzo en Barcelona, organizadopor la Facultad de Biblioteconomía y Documentación de la Universitat de Barcelona, con la colaboración del Institut d'Estudis Catalans, la Biblioteca de Catalunya y el Consorci de Biblioteques de Barcelona. El seminario 2009 WePreserve se celebra anualmente desde el año 2007 y participan todas las figuras de referencia europeas en materia de investigación en sistemas y metodologías que garantizan la preservación digital de los documentos: Digital Preservation Europe (DPE), Preservation and Long-term Access Through Networked Services (Planets), Cultural Artistic and Scientific Knowledge for Preservation, Access and Retrieval (CASPAR), y Network of expertise in Digital long-term preservation (nestor).

Testing Delivery Systems in Transnational virtual learning: the vocational management training for the european tourism industry (VocMat) case study

This article discusses the lessons learned from developing and delivering the Vocational Management Training for the European Tourism Industry (VocMat) online training programme, which was aimed at providing flexible, online distance learning for the European tourism industry. The programme was designed to address managers ‘need for flexible, senior management level training which they could access at a time and place which fitted in with their working and non-work commitments. The authors present two main approaches to using the Virtual Learning Environment, the feedback from the participants, and the implications of online Technology in extending tourism training opportunities

Self-Development of Competences for Social Inclusion Using the TENCompetence Infrastructure

This paper describes a pilot study centred on the technology-enhanced self-development of competences in lifelong learning education carried out in the challenging context of the Association of Participants Àgora. The pilot study shows that the use of the TENCompetence infrastructure, i.e. in this case the Personal Development Planner tool, provides various kinds of benefits for adult participants with low educational profiles and who are traditionally excluded from the use of innovative learning technologies and the knowledge society. The selforganized training supported by the PDP tool aims at allowing the learners to create and control their own learning plans based on their interests and educational background including informal and non-formal experiences. In this sense, the pilot participants had the opportunity to develop and improve their competences in English language (basic and advanced levels) and ICT competence profiles which are mostly related to functional and communicative skills. Besides, the use of the PDP functionalities, such as the self-assessment, the planning and the self-regulating elements allowed the participants to develop reflective skills. Pilot results also provide indications for future developments in the field of technology support for self-organized learners. The paper introduces the context and the pilot scenario, indicates the evaluation methodology applied and discusses the most significant findings derived from the pilot study.