Social networks and cooperative learning in a MOOC

MOOCs are changing the educational landscape and gaining a lot of attention in scientific literature. However, the pedagogical design of these proposals has been called into question. It is precisely MOOCs’ social aspect, i.e. the interaction between course participants and the support for learning processes that has become one of the main topics of interest. This article presents the results of a research project carried out at the University of the Basque Country, which focused in cooperative learning and the intensive use of social networks in a MOOC. Significant data was compiled through Likert-type surveys, revealing that the use of both external and internal social networks in a massive open online course is a factor that is evaluated positively by students. We argue that the use of social networks as a learning strategy in a MOOC has an influence on academic performance and on the students' success rate. Furthermore, the participants’ age also has a bearing on the social networks they use, and we have found that the younger members tend to work with external networks such as Twitter or personal blogs, whereas the older students are more inclined to use forums from the Chamilo or Ning platforms.

Las Comisiones del Mapa de España en la década de 1850

La necesidad de contar con un mapa de base científica que cubriera todo el territorio español llevó al Estado a crear en paralelo varias Comisiones con cometidos geodésicos, topográficos y cartográficos durante la década de 1850. La labor simultánea de estas Comisiones se prolongó hasta 1859, cuando se aprobó la Ley de Medición del Territorio, que las fusionó en un único organismo. Este artículo analiza aspectos técnicos de los trabajos que realizaron estas Comisiones a partir de la información contenida en algunos documentos que custodia el Archivo Topográfico del IGN. Las conclusiones que se extraen son que estas Comisiones acometieron operaciones geodésicas que resultaron cruciales en el establecimiento ulterior de la red de triangulación peninsular, realizaron mediciones topográficas que fueron reutilizadas veinte años después en el levantamiento del Mapa Topográfico Nacional, e idearon las características catastrales que fueron adoptadas durante todo el siglo posterior para el Catastro de España.

Paul Karl Feyerabend Las proyecciones de la proliferación teórica en la relación ciencia-metafísica

La doctrina de la Proliferación teórica de Paul Karl Feyerabend ha sido interpretada por sus especialistas como un intento de salvaguardar el ideal del progreso científico. Aunque tales estudios hacen justicia, en parte, a la intencionalidad de nuestro filósofo no explicitan la crítica fundamental que implica para Feyerabend el pluralismo teórico. La proliferación teórica constituye en sí misma una reductio ad absurdum de los distintos intentos del positivismo lógico y del racionalismo crítico por definir la ciencia a expensas de lo metafísico. Este artículo presenta la proliferación teórica como una reivindicación del papel positivo que ocupa la metafísica en el quehacer científico. Se consigna la defensa que hace Feyerabend de la metafísica en cuanto que ésta constituye la posibilidad de superar el conservadurismo conceptual, aumentar de contenido empírico de la ciencia y recuperar el valor descriptivo de las teorías científicas.

Vis-á-Vis-á-Vis. The Three-dimensional and artistic view of a problem

ANPO (A Non-predefined Outcome) is an an art-making methodology that employs structuralist theory of language (Saussure, Lacan, Foucault) combined with Hegel’s dialectic and the theory of creation of space by Lefebvre to generate spaces of dialogue and conversation between community members and different stakeholders. These theories of language are used to find artistic ways of representing a topic that community members have previously chosen. The topic is approached in a way that allows a visual, aural, performative and gustative form. To achieve this, the methodology is split in four main steps: step 1 ‘This is not a chair’, Step 2 ‘The topic’, Step 3 ‘ Vis-á-vis-á-vis’ and step 4. ‘Dialectical representation’ where the defined topic is used to generate artistic representations.The step 1 is a warm up exercise informed by the Rene Magritte painting ‘This is not a Pipe’. This exercise aims to help the participants to see an object as something else than an object but as a consequence of social implications. Step 2, participants choose a random topic and vote for it. The artist/facilitator does not predetermine the topic, participants are the one who propose it and choose it. Step 3, will be analysed in this publication and finally step 4, the broken down topic is taken to be represented and analysed in different ways. 

La recuperación mutua en personas con trastornos psicológicos o diversidad funcional a través de la práctica creativa

En el presente artículo introducimos el concepto de “recuperación mutua” y proponemos las prácticas creativas como herramientas eficientesde recuperación de personas tanto con problemas de salud mental como con algún tipo de diversidad funcional. Frente al concepto clásico de “arte-terapia” nosotros proponemos el concepto de “práctica creativa” como más compatible con el modelo de “recuperación mutua”. Para ello, en primer lugar realizamos un breve repaso crítico a la relación del arte con la locura. Seguidamente, presentamos los conceptos hermanos de “recuperación” y “recuperación mutua” en el marco de lo que se ha venido a denominar las “health humanities”. Para finalizar, describimos dos prácticas creativas que en la actualidad están siendo evaluadas en España en el contexto de un proyecto de investigacióninternacional en recuperación mutua: Los seminarios creativos con personas con trastorno mental grave en el Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Sevilla y el grupo de teatro con personas con diversidad funcional de la Asociación Síndrome de Down-Sevilla

Substance P induces histamine release from human pulmonary mast cells.

Substance P elicits histamine release from human skin and rodent mast cells. Since neuropeptide-mediated reflexes may be important in asthma, we examined the ability of substance P to stimulate human mast cells obtained at bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL). BAL samples were obtained at routine bronchoscopy from 35 non-preselected patients. Histamine release experiments were performed in a standard manner using substance P and the calcium ionophore A23187. Both substance P (50 μM) and A23187 caused histamine release (median 26.7%, range 6.2–62.8% and 32.1%, 7.7–56.8% respectively) which was significantly greater (P < 0.0001) than the spontaneous release (median 15.6%, range 4.1–33.4%), i.e. that in the absence of any stimulus. Substance P induced histamine release was via an energy dependent process and was blocked by preincubation with antimycin A. A significant correlation was observed between substance P induced release and spontaneous release but was not observed with A23187 induced release. Mast cell counts correlated significantly with substance P induced release but not with spontaneous or A23187 induced release. The substance P induced histamine secretion was elicited at similar concentrations to those used with rodent and human skin mast cells. Asthma is associated with increased numbers of mast cells which have both increased spontaneous and stimulated secretory responses. Thus, in vivo, the bronchoconstrictor action of substance P may in part result from activation of mast cells in the bronchial lumen.

Electronic cell counting to measure total cell numbers in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid

Cell counting of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid is performed manually in routine practice. This has both methodological and inherent errors; however, the accuracy and suitability of automated counting devices have been questioned. In this study, a Coulter(R) Counter D Industrial model was calibrated and then used to measure the total cell count in unprocessed bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, and compared to a standard manual method.