Música tradicional na iniciação musical: uma proposta de ordem de aprendizagem: projecto de aplicação do método húngaro no ensino especializado da música

Este projecto de aplicação do Método Húngaro no Ensino Especializado da Música – “Música tradicional na Iniciação Musical: Uma proposta de ordem de aprendizagem” – foi previsto para funcionamento na turma de 1º ano de Iniciação Musical no Conservatório Regional de Setúbal. O Método Húngaro foi desenvolvido na década de 40 a partir do Conceito de Educação Musical de Kodály e foi já adaptado a muitos países, independentemente das características da sua música tradicional e dos sistemas de leitura utilizados por norma. Este projecto formulou uma proposta de ordem de aprendizagem dos nomes das notas através de repertório tradicional português. Esta ordem de aprendizagem é apenas numa fase inicial igual à sequência utilizada na Hungria, progredindo posteriormente para um contexto tonal. Foram realizados registos em formato vídeo da performance da turma do repertório tradicional recolhido para o 1º ano. Este é um projecto em continuidade, que terá aplicação prática nas próximas turmas de Iniciação Musical.

Reise nach den Inseln Teneriffa, Trinidad, St. Thomas, St. Crux und Porto-Rico; auf Befehl der französischen Regierung, vom 30. Sept. 1796 bis zum 7. Juni 1789, unter der Leitung des Capitain Baudin unternommen, von Peter Le Dru. Mit Bemerkungen begleitet, nebst einer allgemeinen Ubersicht des ganzen westindischen Archipels, vorzüglich in Rücksicht der Kolonialwaaren, von E. A. W. Zimmermann.

Bd.1 (1811)

Reise nach den Inseln Teneriffa, Trinidad, St. Thomas, St. Crux und Porto-Rico; auf Befehl der französischen Regierung, vom 30. Sept. 1796 bis zum 7. Juni 1789, unter der Leitung des Capitain Baudin unternommen, von Peter Le Dru. Mit Bemerkungen begleitet, nebst einer allgemeinen Ubersicht des ganzen westindischen Archipels, vorzüglich in Rücksicht der Kolonialwaaren, von E. A. W. Zimmermann.

Bd.2 (1811)

Estudio previo a la implantación de un ERP en una empresa transitaria

Aquest projecte tracta de l'estudi previ que cal fer en una empresa abans d'aventurar-se a la implantació d'un sistema ERP. Ens centrarem en una PIME que té com a activitat bàsica la importació-exportació de mercaderies a o des de les Illes Canàries. L'estudi s'ha centrat en tres sistemes ERPs que es troben en el mercat actualment. La selecció té com a objetiu exposar els productes dels dos principals fabricants, SAP i Microsoft Navision. En contrapartida, ens ha semblat molt interessant incloure com a tercer sistema estudiat Open Bravo, un ERP basat en software lliure.

Taxonomical and biogeographical problems in Mediterranean shrews of the genus Crocidura (Mammalia, Insectivora) with reference to a new karyotype from Sicily (Italy)

Shrews of the genus Crocidura from Sicily revealed a new karyotype from Europe: 2n = 36, NF = 56, NFa = 52. With reference to the revision of Vesmanis (1976), this shrew is provisionally attributed to C. caudata Miller, 1901 and it is proposed to call it the "Sicilian shrew". Its chromosome complement is similar to that of shrews from Canary Islands and a species from Burundi (Central Africa), suggesting that it might have split off from a line of Paleotropical origin. Following these findings, the modern concept of Mediterranean island colonization by shrews must be revised. The distinctive characteristics of Mediterranean shrews should also be revised.

Els isòtops radiogènics(Sr i Nd) en diferents contextes geodinàmics: Illes Canaries i Vesuvi. Preparació i anàlisi de mostres mitjançant la tècnica analítica TIMS

Projecte de recerca elaborat a partir d’una estada l’ Osservatorio Vesuviano (Nàpols, Italia) entre novembre del 2006 i març del 2007. Un dels objectius principals de l’estada ha estat conèixer la tècnica analítica Thermal Ionisation Mass Spectrometry (TIMS ) per l’anàlisi d’isòtops radiogènics (Sr i Nd). Aquesta estada ha permès aprendre tant la part de preparació de les mostres, com la part d’utilització i programació de l’instrument. Inicialment en el projecte es va programar l’anàlisi dels isòtops radiogènics en laves i xenòlits de l’illa de Gran Canaria (Illes Canàries) amb l’objectiu de modelar geoquímicament el mantell terrestre sota les illes Canàries. Finalment, i a part de les mostres inicials de Gran Canaria, es van incloure mostres del volcà Vesuvi per tal de concloure un projecte iniciat el 2003 amb el Professor Giovanni Orsi i la Professora Lucia Civetta. L’estudi dels isòtops radiogènics en contextes geodinàmics tant diferents ha permès comparar la variació dels isòtops radiogènics de Sr i Nd que existeix entre volcanisme d’ intraplaca (Illes Canàries) i volcanisme en zones convergents (Vesuvi).

Genetic diversity and differentiation processes in the ploidy series of Olea europaea L.: a multiscale approach from subspecies to insular populations.

Geographical isolation and polyploidization are central concepts in plant evolution. The hierarchical organization of archipelagos in this study provides a framework for testing the evolutionary consequences for polyploid taxa and populations occurring in isolation. Using amplified fragment length polymorphism and simple sequence repeat markers, we determined the genetic diversity and differentiation patterns at three levels of geographical isolation in Olea europaea: mainland-archipelagos, islands within an archipelago, and populations within an island. At the subspecies scale, the hexaploid ssp. maroccana (southwest Morocco) exhibited higher genetic diversity than the insular counterparts. In contrast, the tetraploid ssp. cerasiformis (Madeira) displayed values similar to those obtained for the diploid ssp. guanchica (Canary Islands). Geographical isolation was associated with a high genetic differentiation at this scale. In the Canarian archipelago, the stepping-stone model of differentiation suggested in a previous study was partially supported. Within the western lineage, an east-to-west differentiation pattern was confirmed. Conversely, the easternmost populations were more related to the mainland ssp. europaea than to the western guanchica lineage. Genetic diversity across the Canarian archipelago was significantly correlated with the date of the last volcanic activity in the area/island where each population occurs. At the island scale, this pattern was not confirmed in older islands (Tenerife and Madeira), where populations were genetically homogeneous. In contrast, founder effects resulted in low genetic diversity and marked genetic differentiation among populations of the youngest island, La Palma.

Diversity of Vibrionaceae bacteria isolated from the haemolymph of the spider crab Maja brachydactyla

Aims: The aim of this study was to characterise and identify vibrios isolated from the haemolymph of apparently healthy adult spider crabs (Maja brachydactyla) wild-caught in the Spanish localities of Galician coast and in the Canary Islands and also from captive animals held at IRTA’s facilities in the Ebro Delta of Catalonia, north-west Spanish Mediterranean coast. Methods and Results: A total of 277 bacterial isolates were obtained, and of these, 171 were characterised with rep-PCR, resulting electrophoretic bands were analysed and clusters formed. Identification of representative strains of each cluster was made by sequencing the 16S rRNA. Samples from animals caught in Galicia and captive at IRTA (around 15–18 C) rendered mostly species belonging to the Splendidus clade (72Æ2 and 76Æ6% respectively), commonly found in cold waters (below 20 C). Higher species diversity was found in the haemolymph of the captive animals. In the warmer Canary Islands waters (around 21 C), the diversity of vibrios is dominated by three clades, Harveyi (Vibrio core group, 39Æ3%), Orientalis (23Æ2%) and Splendidus (21Æ4%) with a species diversity that equals that of the colder captive animals. Conclusions: Differences in the vibrios populations were found in the haemolymph extracted from animals collected from the three localities. Potential new species were found, and their description is under way. Significance and Impact of Study: As with other invertebrates, spider crabs also contain a diverse population of vibrios. These findings should help researchers to diagnose when a crab is infected.

Morbilidad psíquica, existencia de diagnóstico y consumo de psicofármacos. Diferencias por comunidades autónomas según la Encuesta Nacional de Salud de 2006

Background: Most of the studies on sychological distress in Spain have been conducted in small geographical areas or specific population groups. However, there are no studies that provide representative data for each Autonomous Community (AC). The objectives of this paper are to determine, both in Spain and in the AC, the prevalence of psychological distress, diagnosis, use of psychoactive medication, social support and self-perceived health, as well as to study the association between psychological distress and the rest of the variables. Methods: Cross-sectional study, using data from the 2006 National Health Survey, that was completed by 29,478 persons. Variables studied: sociodemographics, psychological distress (GHQ-12), self-perceived health, mental disorder diagnosis, functional social support (Duke) and use and prescription of psychoactive medication. Results: The prevalence of psychological distress in Spain was 20,1%; the highest prevalence was found in Canary Islands (28,2%) and the lowest in La Rioja (12,2%). Among those who presented psychological distress, 62,4% had never received a mental disorder diagnosis, and 71,6% had not used psychoactive medication in the last year. The highest prevalences of non-diagnosed cases (81,8%) and cases non-treated with psychoactive medication (83,1%) were found in La Rioja, whereas the lowest prevalences were found in Asturias. Eight percent of the persons who presented psychological distress had low social support and 63,8% reported bad self-perceived health. Conclusions: Psychological distress is a prevalent phenomenon, and more than half of the persons who suffer it receive neither a diagnosis nor psychoactive medication. Moreover, there are considerable differences between the AC.

ACCEDA y BUSTREAMING : Integración de audio y video en el proceso de autoarchivo del Repositorio de la ULPGC en acceso abierto

Presentació de les dues noves plataformes desenvolupades per la Biblioteca de la Universitat de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria: ACCEDA (documentació científica de la ULPGC en accés obert) i BUSTREAMING (documentació multimèdia). Aquestes són dues noves iniciatives de la Biblioteca Universitària emmarcades dins del moviment Open Access, que se sumen a la ja existent Memòria Digital de Canàries, que es va iniciar l'any 2003 amb molt d'èxit. Tot i que el programari utilitzat per al desenvolupament d'ACCEDA és DSpace, la Biblioteca Universitària ha implementat serveis als usuaris i administradors, com per exemple, la possibilitat de dipositar documents sense haver d'utilitzar l'autoarxivament i la incorporació de l'eina BUStreaming desenvolupada per la pròpia Biblioteca.

Search for dark matter using VHE gamma-ray telescopes

One of the unresolved questions of modern physics is the nature of Dark Matter. Strong experimental evidences suggest that the presence of this elusive component in the energy budget of the Universe is quite significant, without, however, being able to provide conclusive information about its nature. The most plausible scenario is that of weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs), that includes a large class of non-baryonic Dark Matter candidates with a mass typically between few tens of GeV and few TeVs, and a cross section of the order of weak interactions. Search for Dark Matter particles using very high energy gamma-ray Cherenkov telescopes is based on the model that WIMPs can self-annihilate, leading to production of detectable species, like photons. These photons are very energetic, and since unreflected by the Universe's magnetic fields, they can be traced straight to the source of their creation. The downside of the approach is a great amount of background radiation, coming from the conventional astrophysical objects, that usually hides clear signals of the Dark Matter particle interactions. That is why good choice of the observational candidates is the crucial factor in search for Dark Matter. With MAGIC (Major Atmospheric Gamma-ray Imaging Cherenkov Telescopes), a two-telescope ground-based system located in La Palma, Canary Islands, we choose objects like dwarf spheroidal satellite galaxies of the Milky Way and galaxy clusters for our search. Our idea is to increase chances for WIMPs detection by pointing to objects that are relatively close, with great amount of Dark Matter and with as-little-as-possible pollution from the stars. At the moment, several observation projects are ongoing and analyses are being performed.

Pre-hospital antibiotic treatment and mortality caused by invasive meningococcal disease, adjusting for indication bias.

Background: Mortality from invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) has remained stable over the last thirty years and it is unclear whether pre-hospital antibiotherapy actually produces a decrease in this mortality. Our aim was to examine whether pre-hospital oral antibiotherapy reduces mortality from IMD, adjusting for indication bias. Methods: A retrospective analysis was made of clinical reports of all patients (n = 848) diagnosed with IMD from 1995 to 2000 in Andalusia and the Canary Islands, Spain, and of the relationship between the use of pre-hospital oral antibiotherapy and mortality. Indication bias was controlled for by the propensity score technique, and a multivariate analysis was performed to determine the probability of each patient receiving antibiotics, according to the symptoms identified before admission. Data on in-hospital death, use of antibiotics and demographic variables were collected. A logistic regression analysis was then carried out, using death as the dependent variable, and prehospital antibiotic use, age, time from onset of symptoms to parenteral antibiotics and the propensity score as independent variables. Results: Data were recorded on 848 patients, 49 (5.72%) of whom died. Of the total number of patients, 226 had received oral antibiotics before admission, mainly betalactams during the previous 48 hours. After adjusting the association between the use of antibiotics and death for age, time between onset of symptoms and in-hospital antibiotic treatment, pre-hospital oral antibiotherapy remained a significant protective factor (Odds Ratio for death 0.37, 95% confidence interval 0.15–0.93). Conclusion: Pre-hospital oral antibiotherapy appears to reduce IMD mortality.

The involvement of thaumatin-like proteins in plant food cross-reactivity: a multicenter study using a specific protein microarray

Cross-reactivity of plant foods is an important phenomenon in allergy, with geographical variations with respect to the number and prevalence of the allergens involved in this process, whose complexity requires detailed studies. We have addressed the role of thaumatin-like proteins (TLPs) in cross-reactivity between fruit and pollen allergies. A representative panel of 16 purified TLPs was printed onto an allergen microarray. The proteins selected belonged to the sources most frequently associated with peach allergy in representative regions of Spain. Sera from two groups of well characterized patients, one with allergy to Rosaceae fruit (FAG) and another against pollens but tolerant to food-plant allergens (PAG), were obtained from seven geographical areas with different environmental pollen profiles. Cross-reactivity between members of this family was demonstrated by inhibition assays. Only 6 out of 16 purified TLPs showed noticeable allergenic activity in the studied populations. Pru p 2.0201, the peach TLP (41%), chestnut TLP (24%) and plane pollen TLP (22%) proved to be allergens of probable relevance to fruit allergy, being mainly associated with pollen sensitization, and strongly linked to specific geographical areas such as Barcelona, Bilbao, the Canary Islands and Madrid. The patients exhibited >50% positive response to Pru p 2.0201 and to chestnut TLP in these specific areas. Therefore, their recognition patterns were associated with the geographical area, suggesting a role for pollen in the sensitization of these allergens. Finally, the co-sensitizations of patients considering pairs of TLP allergens were analyzed by using the co-sensitization graph associated with an allergen microarray immunoassay. Our data indicate that TLPs are significant allergens in plant food allergy and should be considered when diagnosing and treating pollen-food allergy.

Rationale and design of a randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled multicenter trial to study efficacy, security, and long term effects of intermittent repeated levosimendan administration in patients with advanced heart failure: LAICA study.

BACKGROUND Advanced heart failure (HF) is associated with high morbidity and mortality; it represents a major burden for the health system. Episodes of acute decompensation requiring frequent and prolonged hospitalizations account for most HF-related expenditure. Inotropic drugs are frequently used during hospitalization, but rarely in out-patients. The LAICA clinical trial aims to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of monthly levosimendan infusion in patients with advanced HF to reduce the incidence of hospital admissions for acute HF decompensation. METHODS The LAICA study is a multicenter, prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel group trial. It aims to recruit 213 out-patients, randomized to receive either a 24-h infusion of levosimendan at 0.1 μg/kg/min dose, without a loading dose, every 30 days, or placebo. RESULTS The main objective is to assess the incidence of admission for acute HF worsening during 12 months. Secondarily, the trial will assess the effect of intermittent levosimendan on other variables, including the time in days from randomization to first admission for acute HF worsening, mortality and serious adverse events. CONCLUSIONS The LAICA trial results could allow confirmation of the usefulness of intermittent levosimendan infusion in reducing the rate of hospitalization for HF worsening in advanced HF outpatients.

Habitat, morphology and karyotype of the Saharan shrew Crocidura tarfayaensis (Mammalia : Soricidae)

The Saharan shrew Crocidura tarfayaensis Vesmanis and Vesmanis, 1980, has a limited disribution along the Atlantic coast of Sahara, south of Agadir (Morocco) through Western Sahara into Mauritania and is only known from few captures and some owl pellets. Here we report field data from the successful trapping of five specimens of C. tarfayaensis in the Guelmim region. The habitat was characterized by sand dunes along a river, with dense shrubberies of Tamarix sp., the huge grass Erianthus ravennae (Poaceae) and flat bushes of Atriplex glauca var. ifniensis (Chenopodiaceae). Morphological discrimination with C. whitakeri were examined. The chromosomes of C. tarfayaensis revealed a karyotype of 2n = 36, similar to that of the Canary shrew C. canariensis and the Sicilian shrew C. sicula. In conclusion, C. tarfayaensis seems to be a descendant of the presumed continental ancestor of the two island species.