Safety and sustainability research for university schools of fine arts

Designing new teaching programs for both undergraduate and graduate university studies involves integrating concepts and methodologies regarding quality, work safety and hazard prevention, and environmental protection. One of the challenges facing Spanish research within the realm of European Higher Education concerns health and safety issues in the Arts.In the case of Fine Arts, student exploration is one of the fundamental pillars of the study program; therefore it is imperative that art studios be optimized. This optimization affects both designated resources (infrastructures, materials, equipment, etc.) and organization of the teaching force.In this context, the aim of our research is to improve educational practices by designing quality measures that are both friendly to the environment and hazardous free. The aim here is to assure adequate art studio and laboratory management, and provide students with hazard free health and environmentally safe concepts that can be incorporated in their professional lives.The school of Fine Arts at the University of Barcelona is part of a pilot program, where our experience in educational innovation and research is serving as a reference for the implantation of OSHAS 18001 norms.

Una mirada a l'educació a través de les arts plàstiques

L’ensenyament i aprenentatge a través de l’art en el context escolar ha estat motiu de preocupació per a molts investigadors des de fa dècades. En aquesta línia, el Centre de Recursos Pedagògics d’Osona i el Centre d’Arts Contemporànies de Vic van impulsar ara fa tres anys el projecte Art i Escola, el qual pretén donar valor i reconeixement a l’aprenentatge mitjançant les arts plàstiques que realitzen diverses escoles a partir d’una temàtica comuna, enguany, La Xarxa. Aquest estudi parteix del desig de conèixer i aprofundir en una proposta artística elaborada conjuntament pels alumnes de 6è de primària d’una escola ordinària amb tots els alumnes d’una escola d’educació especial. Així doncs, el següent estudi de cas s’ha portat a terme tot indagant en la pràctica a través de les arts plàstiques que han realitzat les dues escoles.

The impact of adopting a CLIL approach on EFL learners reading skills in Catalonia school

En els últims anys, un gran nombre de docents i escoles han estat introduint programes AICLE a les escoles catalanes. A la majoria d’escoles, però, només s'ensenya anglès com a llengua estrangera, la qual cosa, limita les oportunitats d'estar en contacte amb la llengua estrangera en un context diferent. L’objectiu d'aquest estudi és analitzar si els infants milloren en les seves habilitats lectores i comprovar si existeix un avantatge significatiu respecte els alumnes que només estudien anglès com a llengua estrangera. L’estudi empíric que us presento a continuació, compara els resultats obtinguts en dues proves de comprensió lectora. A les proves hi van participar dos grups d’alumnes de cinquè de d’Educació Primària. Un dels grups seguia un programa AICLE (1 hora a la setmana i , a més aprenia anglès coma llengua estrangera); l’altre grup només estudiava anglès com a llengua estrangera. L'objectiu principal d'aquest projecte d'investigació és esbrinar si els programes AICLE tenen un impacte en les habilitats lectores en llengua anglesa dels alumnes. Així doncs, humilment intentaré contribuir a la literatura existent sobre els beneficis de l’AICLE.

Characterisation of anatomical properties of the human basal ganglia using magnetic resonance imaging

The detailed in-vivo characterization of subcortical brain structures is essential not only to understand the basic organizational principles of the healthy brain but also for the study of the involvement of the basal ganglia in brain disorders. The particular tissue properties of basal ganglia - most importantly their high iron content, strongly affect the contrast of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) images, hampering the accurate automated assessment of these regions. This technical challenge explains the substantial controversy in the literature about the magnitude, directionality and neurobiological interpretation of basal ganglia structural changes estimated from MRI and computational anatomy techniques. My scientific project addresses the pertinent need for accurate automated delineation of basal ganglia using two complementary strategies: ? Empirical testing of the utility of novel imaging protocols to provide superior contrast in the basal ganglia and to quantify brain tissue properties; ? Improvement of the algorithms for the reliable automated detection of basal ganglia and thalamus Previous research demonstrated that MRI protocols based on magnetization transfer (MT) saturation maps provide optimal grey-white matter contrast in subcortical structures compared with the widely used Tl-weighted (Tlw) images (Helms et al., 2009). Under the assumption of a direct impact of brain tissue properties on MR contrast my first study addressed the question of the mechanisms underlying the regional specificities effect of the basal ganglia. I used established whole-brain voxel-based methods to test for grey matter volume differences between MT and Tlw imaging protocols with an emphasis on subcortical structures. I applied a regression model to explain the observed grey matter differences from the regionally specific impact of brain tissue properties on the MR contrast. The results of my first project prompted further methodological developments to create adequate priors for the basal ganglia and thalamus allowing optimal automated delineation of these structures in a probabilistic tissue classification framework. I established a standardized workflow for manual labelling of the basal ganglia, thalamus and cerebellar dentate to create new tissue probability maps from quantitative MR maps featuring optimal grey-white matter contrast in subcortical areas. The validation step of the new tissue priors included a comparison of the classification performance with the existing probability maps. In my third project I continued investigating the factors impacting automated brain tissue classification that result in interpretational shortcomings when using Tlw MRI data in the framework of computational anatomy. While the intensity in Tlw images is predominantly

A transformada de Fourier em basic

In this paper we describe three computer programs in Basic language about the Fourier transform (FFT) which are available in the Internet site http://artemis.ffclrp.usp.br/SoftwareE.htm (in English) or http://artemis.ffclrp.usp.br/softwareP.htm (in Portuguese) since October 1998. Those are addresses to the Web Page of our Laboratory of Organic Synthesis. The programs can be downloaded and used by anyone who is interested on the subject. The texts, menus and captions in the programs are written in English.

Enhancement of R&D project management system

Stora Enso has research centres in Finland, Sweden and Germany. The research centres use PIMS as a research project invoicing and monitoring system. Possible reorganization and new financing model for R&D functions have been considered and the project management system should be developed to support the new operation model. The objective of this thesis is to find a model for R&D project management, and to present the project management system of Stora Enso, and to discuss if the current system could be developed to respond to the new needs or should it be replaced with another system. The theoretical part of the study describes challenges in R&D project management, and presents different project characteristics, and methods for managing R&D project portfolio. It is also described how the project management system can support project monitoring and controlling, and how inter-project learning can be enhanced. The empirical part of the study presents the current project management system of Stora Enso and how the system should be developed to support Stora Enso’s R&D functions better. In conclusion, it is stated that there is no relevant reason to replace PIMS with another system, because PIMS can be developed to support R&D project management better with a hybrid system. It is also suggested that the new financing model should not be implemented before more comprehensive analysis of its effects is conducted.

ESTRO-HERO survey: Guidelines for equipment and staffing of radiotherapy facilities in the European countries: Final results of the ESTRO-HERO survey

Background and purpose: In planning to meet evidence based needs for radiotherapy, guidelines for the provision of capital and human resources are central if access, quality and safety are not to be compromised. A component of the ESTRO-HERO (Health Economics in Radiation Oncology) project is to document the current availability and content of guidelines for radiotherapy in Europe. Materials and methods: An 84 part questionnaire was distributed to the European countries through their national scientific and professional radiotherapy societies with 30 items relating to the availability of guidelines for equipment and staffing and selected operational issues. Twenty-nine countries provided full or partial evaluable responses. Results: The availability of guidelines across Europe is far from uniform. The metrics used for capital and human resources are variable. There seem to have been no major changes in the availability or specifics of guidelines over the ten-year period since the QUARTS study with the exception of the recent expansion of RTT staffing models. Where comparison is possible it appears that staffing for radiation oncologists, medical physicists and particularly RTTs tend to exceed guidelines suggesting developments in clinical radiotherapy are moving faster than guideline updating. Conclusion: The efficient provision of safe, high quality radiotherapy services would benefit from the availability of well-structured guidelines for capital and human resources, based on agreed upon metrics, which could be linked to detailed estimates of need

ESTRO-HERO survey: Radiotherapy equipment and departments in the European countries: Final results from the ESTRO-HERO survey

Background: Documenting the distribution of radiotherapy departments and the availability of radiotherapy equipment in the European countries is an important part of HERO the ESTRO Health Economics in Radiation Oncology project. HERO has the overall aim to develop a knowledge base of the provision of radiotherapy in Europe and build a model for health economic evaluation of radiation treatments at the European level. The aim of the current report is to describe the distribution of radiotherapy equipment in European countries. Methods: An 84-item questionnaire was sent out to European countries, principally through their national societies. The current report includes a detailed analysis of radiotherapy departments and equipment (questionnaire items 2629), analyzed in relation to the annual number of treatment courses and the socio-economic status of the countries. The analysis is based on validated responses from 28 of the 40 European countries defined by the European Cancer Observatory (ECO). Results: A large variation between countries was found for most parameters studied. There were 2192 linear accelerators, 96 dedicated stereotactic machines, and 77 cobalt machines reported in the 27 countries where this information was available. A total of 12 countries had at least one cobalt machine in use. There was a median of 0.5 simulator per MV unit (range 0.31.5) and 1.4 (range 0.44.4) simulators per department. Of the 874 simulators, a total of 654 (75%) were capable of 3D imaging (CT-scanner or CBCToption). The number of MV machines (cobalt, linear accelerators, and dedicated stereotactic machines) per million inhabitants ranged from 1.4 to 9.5 (median 5.3) and the average number of MV machines per department from 0.9 to 8.2 (median 2.6). The average number of treatment courses per year per MV machine varied from 262 to 1061 (median 419). While 69% of MV units were capable of IMRT only 49% were equipped for image guidance (IGRT). There was a clear relation between socio-economic status, as measured by GNI per capita, and availability of radiotherapy equipment in the countries. In many low income countries in Southern and Central-Eastern Europe there was very limited access to radiotherapy and especially to equipment for IMRT or IGRT. Conclusions: The European average number of MV machines per million inhabitants and per department is now better in line with QUARTS recommendations from 2005, but the survey also showed a significant heterogeneity in the access to modern radiotherapy equipment in Europe. High income countries especially in Northern-Western Europe are well-served with radiotherapy resources, other countries are facing important shortages of both equipment in general and especially machines capable of delivering high precision conformal treatments (IMRT, IGRT)

G+: Enhanced Traffic Grooming in WDM Mesh Networks using Lighttours

In this article, a new technique for grooming low-speed traffic demands into high-speed optical routes is proposed. This enhancement allows a transparent wavelength-routing switch (WRS) to aggregate traffic en route over existing optical routes without incurring expensive optical-electrical-optical (OEO) conversions. This implies that: a) an optical route may be considered as having more than one ingress node (all inline) and, b) traffic demands can partially use optical routes to reach their destination. The proposed optical routes are named "lighttours" since the traffic originating from different sources can be forwarded together in a single optical route, i.e., as taking a "tour" over different sources towards the same destination. The possibility of creating lighttours is the consequence of a novel WRS architecture proposed in this article, named "enhanced grooming" (G+). The ability to groom more traffic in the middle of a lighttour is achieved with the support of a simple optical device named lambda-monitor (previously introduced in the RingO project). In this article, we present the new WRS architecture and its advantages. To compare the advantages of lighttours with respect to classical lightpaths, an integer linear programming (ILP) model is proposed for the well-known multilayer problem: traffic grooming, routing and wavelength assignment The ILP model may be used for several objectives. However, this article focuses on two objectives: maximizing the network throughput, and minimizing the number of optical-electro-optical conversions used. Experiments show that G+ can route all the traffic using only half of the total OEO conversions needed by classical grooming. An heuristic is also proposed, aiming at achieving near optimal results in polynomial time

Alternative Techniques of Neural Signal Processing in Neuroengineering

Neural signal processing is a discipline within neuroengineering. This interdisciplinary approach combines principles from machine learning, signal processing theory, and computational neuroscience applied to problems in basic and clinical neuroscience. The ultimate goal of neuroengineering is a technological revolution, where machines would interact in real time with the brain. Machines and brains could interface, enabling normal function in cases of injury or disease, brain monitoring, and/or medical rehabilitation of brain disorders. Much current research in neuroengineering is focused on understanding the coding and processing of information in the sensory and motor systems, quantifying how this processing is altered in the pathological state, and how it can be manipulated through interactions with artificial devices including brain–computer interfaces and neuroprosthetics.

Anàlisi de les claus criptogràfiques utilitzades en bitcoin

El present projecte realitza una anàlisi de les claus criptogràfiques utilitzades en bitcoin. El projecte introdueix les nocions bàsiques necessàries de les corbes el·líptiques, la criptografia de corbes el·líptiques i els bitcoins per a realitzar l’anàlisi. Aquesta anàlisi consisteix en explorar el codi de diferents wallets bitcoin i realitzar un estudi empíric de l’aleatorietat de les claus. Per últim, el projecte introdueix el concepte de wallet determinista, el seu funcionament i alguns dels problemes que presenta.

La Adquisición de competencias básicas en educación primaria: una aproximación interdisciplinar desde la didáctica de la lengua y de las matemáticas

Este artículo trata de la aplicación de las competencias básicas en el currículum de Educación Primaria. El objetivo que persigue es ofrecer algunas estrategias para ayudar a los maestros a integrar las competencias básicas en los métodos de programación y evaluación. Con este fin, y para prever las posibles dificultades en la implementación de las competencias básicas, en la primera parte del artículo se analiza la situación actual a partir de la lectura de diversos documentos legales vigentes. A continuación, en la segunda parte del artículo se aportan algunas herramientas para facilitar esta integración desde las áreas de lengua y de matemáticas. Realizamos esta aproximación desde la didáctica de la lengua y de las matemáticas por su carácter instrumental para la adquisición de otros conocimientos

Síntese de fotoprotetores e sua imobilização em poli(metacrilato de metilo): um projeto integrado de química orgânica, química de polímeros e fotoquímica

Dibenzalacetone and other aldol condensation products are known sunscreens commonly used in cosmetics. This type of compounds can easily be prepared in an Organic Chemistry Lab by reaction of aldehydes with ketones in basic medium. These compounds can be incorporated in poly(methyl methacrylate) and used as UV light absorbers, for example in sunglasses. This project has the advantage of using inexpensive reagents which are readily available in Chemistry Laboratories. This experiment can also be a base starting point for discussions of organic, polymer and photochemistry topics.

Application of cloud point preconcentration and flame atomic absorption spectrometry for the determination of cadmium and zinc ions in urine, blood serum and water samples

A simple, sensitive and selective cloud point extraction procedure is described for the preconcentration and atomic absorption spectrometric determination of Zn2+ and Cd2+ ions in water and biological samples, after complexation with 3,3',3",3'"-tetraindolyl (terephthaloyl) dimethane (TTDM) in basic medium, using Triton X-114 as nonionic surfactant. Detection limits of 3.0 and 2.0 µg L-1 and quantification limits 10.0 and 7.0 µg L-1were obtained for Zn2+ and Cd2+ ions, respectively. Relative standard deviation was 2.9 and 3.3, and enrichment factors 23.9 and 25.6, for Zn2+ and Cd2+ ions, respectively. The method enabled determination of low levels of Zn2+ and Cd2+ ions in urine, blood serum and water samples.

Agile CRM System Implementation Project

The application of information technology (IT) in customer relationship management (CRM) is growing rapidly as many companies implement CRM systems to support their numerous customer facing activities. However, failure rates of CRM projects remain notably high as they deliver scant solutions and poor user acceptance. As a consequence, it is justified to study previously researched CRM success factors and apply them to CRM system implementation. The aim of this master’s thesis was to get acquainted with relevant academic theories, frameworks and practices concerning CRM and agile development, and use them to generate a modified CRM project strategy to support the successful execution of the case company’s, Process Vision Oy, CRM implementation project. The empirical CRM system implementation project was conducted simultaneously with writing this thesis. Its theoretical findings could be transferred into practice through active participation in the CRM system development and deployment work. The project’s main goal was to produce and take into use a functioning CRM system. The goal was met, since at the time of printing this thesis the first system release was successfully published to its users at Process Vision’s marketing and sales departments. The key success elements in the CRM project were cyclic, iterative system development, customer oriented approach, user inclusion and flexible project management. Implying agile development practices ensured being able to quickly respond to changes arising during the progress of the CRM project. Throughout modelling of the core sales process formed a strong basis, on which the CRM system’s operational and analytical functionalities were built. End users were included in the initial specification of system requirements and they provided feedback on the system’s usage. To conclude, the chosen theoretical CRM roadmaps and agile development practices proved as beneficial in the successful planning and execution of the agile CRM system implementation project at Process Vision.