La labor de la universidad en cooperación es sólida y duradera.

Entrevista personal. Alfredo Blanco, Premio UPM Investigación para el Desarrollo.

Variable threshold algorithm for division of labor analyzed as a dynamical system

Division of labor is a widely studied aspect of colony behavior of social insects. Division of labor models indicate how individuals distribute themselves in order to perform different tasks simultaneously. However, models that study division of labor from a dynamical system point of view cannot be found in the literature. In this paper, we define a division of labor model as a discrete-time dynamical system, in order to study the equilibrium points and their properties related to convergence and stability. By making use of this analytical model, an adaptive algorithm based on division of labor can be designed to satisfy dynamic criteria. In this way, we have designed and tested an algorithm that varies the response thresholds in order to modify the dynamic behavior of the system. This behavior modification allows the system to adapt to specific environmental and collective situations, making the algorithm a good candidate for distributed control applications. The variable threshold algorithm is based on specialization mechanisms. It is able to achieve an asymptotically stable behavior of the system in different environments and independently of the number of individuals. The algorithm has been successfully tested under several initial conditions and number of individuals.

Género y transporte: análisis de la movilidad del cuidado como punto de partida para construir una base de conocimiento más amplia de los patrones de movilidad. El caso de Madrid

Las limitaciones en la capacidad de movilidad pueden ser consideradas en la actualidad como una forma de discriminación tremenda y a la vez invisible dentro de la sociedad. Para poder evitar esta discriminación es necesario que las políticas de transporte, que hasta ahora han basado sus actuaciones particularmente sobre las necesidades de acceso al empleo, reconozcan las exigencias de las personas dependientes y de aquellas que realizan las tareas no remuneradas del cuidado de otros y de atención a la familia. Las personas que trabajan en las tareas domésticas, en la mayoría de los casos mujeres, tienen muchas dificultades para sincronizar sus obligaciones con los tiempos y las distancias. Estas personas desempeñan un trabajo diario, que tiene lugar tanto fuera como dentro del hogar y tienen necesidades específicas de movilidad. El problema principal es que este tipo de trabajo no suele ser tomado en consideración, ya que no entra en la esfera del trabajo remunerado. Pero es una labor que está estrictamente ligada a la actividad de la sociedad y es un elemento indispensable para el funcionamiento de la vida urbana. Es un trabajo real, que tiene lugar en el espacio urbano, que exige un considerable esfuerzo físico y emocional, y que ayuda a garantizar la calidad de la vida cotidiana. Es un aspecto indispensable a tener en cuenta en el ejercicio de las políticas públicas y sociales. Sobre la base de estas consideraciones se introduce el concepto “Movilidad del cuidado” (Sánchez de Madariaga, 2009a y 2009b), mediante el cual se reconoce la necesidad de evaluar y hacer visible los desplazamientos diarios asociados con el trabajo del cuidado. Por trabajo del cuidado se entiende el trabajo no remunerado, realizado por los adultos para los niños u otras personas dependientes, incluido el trabajo relacionado con el mantenimiento del hogar. El análisis de este tipo de viajes exige ciertos cambios significativos en las formas de recoger datos estadísticos. No se trata solo de sumar los desplazamientos que actualmente aparecen en las estadísticas como viajes de compras, acompañamiento, gestiones, cuidado de otros, etc. El problema es que los datos sobre movilidad se recogen con una serie de sesgos que infravaloran los viajes de cuidado: las estadísticas no cuentan los viajes cortos a pie y tampoco reflejan bien los viajes encadenados, ambos típicamente femeninos; no se deslindan con precisión los viajes de cuidado de otro tipo de viajes, de manera que muchos desplazamientos relacionados con la esfera reproductiva aparecen como viajes personales o de ocio y en muchos casos se encasillan en la categoría otros. Mediante esta investigación se pretende estimar el peso que la movilidad del cuidado tiene en el total de la movilidad y describirla de manera precisa en un contexto geográfico determinado, en el caso específico Madrid. Los estudios sobre el tema realizados hasta el momento reconocen la necesidad de llevar a cabo encuestas de movilidad que tengan en cuenta las variables socio económicas que caracterizan a la población y también se demanda la segregación de los datos recogidos por sexo, así como el uso del género como una categoría analítica. Igualmente es indispensable atribuir la misma importancia que tienen los viajes relacionados con la esfera productiva a los que están relacionados con la esfera reproductiva. No obstante, es solo mediante la introducción del concepto de “movilidad del cuidado” que se propone una nueva categorización de los motivos de desplazamiento dentro de las “clásicas” encuestas de movilidad y, por primera vez, mediante esta investigación se aplica este concepto a un ejemplo práctico a partir del cual queda en evidencia la necesidad de un cambio de enfoque en las políticas de transporte. Así, a través el uso de encuestas cuantitativas y cualitativas realizadas ad hoc sobre la base de la metodología propuesta, se capturan los patrones de viajes significativos para poder describir en maneara exhaustiva la movilidad de las personas que tienen responsabilidades de cuidado. El objetivo es crear una base de conocimiento más amplia sobre los patrones de movilidad, comportamientos y necesidades, además de mejorar los conceptos operacionales y establecer políticas de transporte más equitativas, que respondan de mejor manera a las necesidades de género, beneficiando así a toda la sociedad. ABSTRACT Nowadays, limitations in urban mobility can be considered as some type of extreme discrimination, which remains invisible to the society. In order to avoid this kind of discrimination, new transport policies are required, especially considering that so far they have been based and organized particularly in relation to the needs derived from the access to employment. These policies must take into account the demands of people depending on the support of others as well as of unpaid caregivers in charge of looking after other individuals and taking care of the family. Most of the people devoted to domestic work, which in the vast majority of cases is carried out by women, find it difficult to coordinate their obligations with time and distances. These people carry out a daily job that takes place both inside their homes as well as outside, and they have specific mobility needs. The main issue is that this type of work is usually not taken into consideration, since it is not included under the scope of paid employment. However, this work is strictly related to the activities of society and is therefore a crucial element in the functioning of urban life. It is an actual job that takes place in an urban space, requires a considerable amount of physical and emotional effort and guarantees quality of life on a daily basis. This is an important aspect that should be taken into account when drafting public and social policies. The concept of “Mobility of care” (Sánchez de Madariaga, 2009a and 2009b) is introduced under these considerations. This concept acknowledges the need to evaluate and identify daily movements from one place to another that are related to caregiving. Caregiving is understood, in this case, as unpaid work that is carried out by adults for children and other people that depend on the support of others, and it also includes duties related to home maintenance. The analysis of these types of movements requires some significant changes in the way in which statistic data is gathered. The idea is to not only add up the movements that appear in statistics such as shopping trips, accompanying someone, dealings, caregiving, etc. The problem with data on mobility is that it is gathered with bias that undervalues mobility related to caregiving: statistics do not take into consideration short trips that are made walking nor do they properly reflect connected trips, both of which are typically feminine; moreover, there is an imprecise differentiation of trips related to caregiving and other kind of trips, and because of that, many of the trips related to the reproductive sphere are considered personal or recreational trips, and are many times labelled as others. This investigation aims to evaluate the importance that mobility of care has in mobility in general, describing it in a precise manner within a specific geographical context that in this case is Madrid. To this date, most of the studies on this subject have acknowledged the need to carry out mobility surveys that include socio economic variables that characterize the population and they have also requested that collected data is segregated by sex and that gender is used as an analytical category. Likewise, it is fundamental to give the same importance to mobility related to the sphere of reproduction as to that related to the sphere of productiveness. However, it is only through the implementation of the concept of “mobility of care” that a new categorization of mobility, within classic mobility surveys, is proposed. Also, for the first time and by this investigation, this concept is applied to a practical case, shining a light on the need to change the focus of transport policies. Through the use of ad hoc quantitative and qualitative surveys based on the proposed methodology, the patterns of relevant movements are identified in order to thoroughly describe the mobility of people responsible of caregiving. The aim is to create a broader knowledge base on patterns of mobility, behaviour and necessities, in addition to improving functional concepts and transport policies to make them more equitable and responsive to gender needs, thus benefitting society as a whole.

Labor risk prevention culture encouragement among students from building degree in the Technical University of Madrid

The influence of training in labor risk prevention and the development of the resulting pre-emptive culture are analyzed within this paper. In order to achieve this, a quantitative analysis of the students of Building Degree in the Technic University of Madrid has been developed. This study has been made in all grades, valuating the previous knowledge acquired during compulsory education. It must be kept in mind that the students in 3rd and 4th grade have received general and specific compulsory training in prevention and safety in the building sector.

GESTÃO DO CONHECIMENTO EM ARRANJOS PRODUTIVOS LOCAIS ESTUDO DE CASO DO PÓLO BRASILEIRO DE COSMÉTICO EM DIADEMA

Esta pesquisa apresenta um estudo de caso cujo objetivo é analisar se arranjos produtivos locais realizam a prática da gestão do conhecimento. A pesquisa foi realizada junto ao Pólo Brasileiro de Cosmético em Diadema, organização sem fins lucrativos, que articula as ações de micro, pequenas e médias empresas organizadas em fabricantes de cosméticos, produtores de bens e serviços, fornecedores de matéria-prima, prestadores de consultoria, comercializadores, clientes e parceiros. Para atender ao objetivo proposto recorreu-se a recursos quantitativo e qualitativo, com a utilização de formulários eletrônicos estruturados, disponibilizados na internet e técnicas da observação participante, envolvendo visitas previamente agendadas ao Pólo de Cosmético. O material de análise utilizou a pesquisa bibliográfica sobre arranjo produtivo local e gestão do conhecimento, caracterização da região do grande ABC e da cidade de Diadema, dados oficiais, políticas governamentais e entrevistas com o corpo diretivo do Pólo. Foi aplicado o instrumento de Terra (2005) que a partir de sete dimensões (estratégia e alta administração, sistemas de informação e comunicação, cultura organizacional, organização e processos de trabalho, políticas e práticas para a administração de recursos humanos e mensuração de resultados), avaliou se as organizações do arranjo produtivo realizam a prática da gestão do conhecimento. Os resultados obtidos apontaram a existência de práticas de gestão do conhecimento, com índices acima da média, convergindo para o entendimento de que se trata de um processo de gestão empresarial, além de confirmar, a partir de um sistema de intercâmbio social a origem do Pólo e seu desenvolvimento.(AU)

GESTÃO DO CONHECIMENTO EM ARRANJOS PRODUTIVOS LOCAIS ESTUDO DE CASO DO PÓLO BRASILEIRO DE COSMÉTICO EM DIADEMA

Esta pesquisa apresenta um estudo de caso cujo objetivo é analisar se arranjos produtivos locais realizam a prática da gestão do conhecimento. A pesquisa foi realizada junto ao Pólo Brasileiro de Cosmético em Diadema, organização sem fins lucrativos, que articula as ações de micro, pequenas e médias empresas organizadas em fabricantes de cosméticos, produtores de bens e serviços, fornecedores de matéria-prima, prestadores de consultoria, comercializadores, clientes e parceiros. Para atender ao objetivo proposto recorreu-se a recursos quantitativo e qualitativo, com a utilização de formulários eletrônicos estruturados, disponibilizados na internet e técnicas da observação participante, envolvendo visitas previamente agendadas ao Pólo de Cosmético. O material de análise utilizou a pesquisa bibliográfica sobre arranjo produtivo local e gestão do conhecimento, caracterização da região do grande ABC e da cidade de Diadema, dados oficiais, políticas governamentais e entrevistas com o corpo diretivo do Pólo. Foi aplicado o instrumento de Terra (2005) que a partir de sete dimensões (estratégia e alta administração, sistemas de informação e comunicação, cultura organizacional, organização e processos de trabalho, políticas e práticas para a administração de recursos humanos e mensuração de resultados), avaliou se as organizações do arranjo produtivo realizam a prática da gestão do conhecimento. Os resultados obtidos apontaram a existência de práticas de gestão do conhecimento, com índices acima da média, convergindo para o entendimento de que se trata de um processo de gestão empresarial, além de confirmar, a partir de um sistema de intercâmbio social a origem do Pólo e seu desenvolvimento.(AU)

Self-organized defensive behavior in honeybees

We investigated the defensive behavior of honeybees under controlled experimental conditions. During an attack on two identical targets, the spatial distribution of stings varied as a function of the total number of stings, evincing the classic “pitchfork bifurcation” phenomenon of nonlinear dynamics. The experimental results support a model of defensive behavior based on a self-organizing mechanism. The model helps to explain several of the characteristic features of the honeybee defensive response: (i) the ability of the colony to localize and focus its attack, (ii) the strong variability between different hives in the intensity of attack, as well as (iii) the variability observed within the same hive, and (iv) the ability of the colony to amplify small differences between the targets.

Division of Labor among the α6β4 Integrin, β1 Integrins, and an E3 Laminin Receptor to Signal Morphogenesis and β-Casein Expression in Mammary Epithelial Cells

Contact of cultured mammary epithelial cells with the basement membrane protein laminin induces multiple responses, including cell shape changes, growth arrest, and, in the presence of prolactin, transcription of the milk protein β-casein. We sought to identify the specific laminin receptor(s) mediating the multiple cell responses to laminin. Using assays with clonal mammary epithelial cells, we reveal distinct functions for the α6β4 integrin, β1 integrins, and an E3 laminin receptor. Signals from laminin for β-casein expression were inhibited in the presence of function-blocking antibodies against both the α6 and β1 integrin subunits and by the laminin E3 fragment. The α6-blocking antibody perturbed signals mediated by the α6β4 integrin, and the β1-blocking antibody perturbed signals mediated by another integrin, the α subunit(s) of which remains to be determined. Neither α6- nor β1-blocking antibodies perturbed the cell shape changes resulting from cell exposure to laminin. However, the E3 laminin fragment and heparin both inhibited cell shape changes induced by laminin, thereby implicating an E3 laminin receptor in this function. These results elucidate the multiplicity of cell-extracellular matrix interactions required to integrate cell structure and signaling and ultimately permit normal cell function.

Expression of a Hox gene, Cnox-2, and the division of labor in a colonial hydroid

We report the isolation and expression of the Hox gene, Cnox-2, in Hydractinia symbiolongicarpus, a hydrozoan displaying division of labor. We found different patterns of aboral-to-oral Cnox-2 expression among polyp polymorphs, and we show that experimental conversion of one polyp type to another is accompanied by concordant alteration in Cnox-2 expression. Our results are consistent with the suggestion that polyp polymorphism, characteristic of hydractiniid hydroids, arose via evolutionary modification of proportioning of head to body column.

Common endocrine and genetic mechanisms of behavioral development in male and worker honey bees and the evolution of division of labor.

Temporal polyethism is a highly derived form of behavioral development displayed by social insects. Hormonal and genetic mechanisms regulating temporal polyethism in worker honey bees have been identified, but the evolution of these mechanisms is not well understood. We performed three experiments with male honey bees (drones) to investigate how mechanisms regulating temporal polyethism may have evolved because, relative to workers, drones display an intriguing combination of similarities and differences in behavioral development. We report that behavioral development in drones is regulated by mechanisms common to workers. In experiment 1, drones treated with the juvenile hormone (JH) analog methoprene started flying at significantly younger ages than did control drones, as is the case for workers. In experiment 2, there was an age-related increase in JH associated with the onset of drone flight, as in workers. In experiment 3, drones derived from workers with fast rates of behavioral development themselves started flying at younger ages than drones derived from workers with slower rates of behavioral development. These results suggest that endocrine and genetic mechanisms associated with temporal polyethism did not evolve strictly within the context of worker social behavior.

Essential role for complex N-glycans in forming an organized layer of bronchial epithelium.

Mice lacking the complex subset of N-glycans due to inactivation of the Mgat1 gene die at mid-gestation, making it difficult to identify specific biological functions for this class of cell surface carbohydrates. To circumvent this embryonic lethality and to uncover tissue-specific functions for complex N-glycans, WW6 embryonic stem cells with inactivated Mgat1 alleles were tracked in chimeric embryos. The Mgat1 gene encodes N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase I (Glc-NAc-TI; EC 2.4.1.101), the transferase that initiates the synthesis of complex N-glycans. WW6 cells carry an inert beta-globin transgene that allows their identification in chimeras by DNA-DNA in situ hybridization. Independent Mgat1-/- and Mgat1+/- mutant WW6 isolates contributed like parent WW6 cells to the tissues of embryonic day (E) 10.5 to E16.5 chimeras. However, a cell type-specific difference was observed in lung. Homozygous null Mgat1-/- WW6 cells did not contribute to the epithelial layer in more than 99% bronchi. This deficiency was corrected by transfection of a Mgat1 transgene. Interestingly, heterozygous Mgat1+/- WW6 cells were also deficient in populating the layer of bronchial epithelium. Furthermore, examination of lung bud in E9.5 Mgat1-/- mutant embryos showed complete absence of an organized epithelial cell layer in the bronchus. Thus, complex N-glycans are required to form a morphologically recognizable bronchial epithelium, revealing an in vivo, cell type-specific function for this class of N-glycans.

Evidence for a preformed transducer complex organized by the B cell antigen receptor.

The B cell antigen receptor (BCR) consists of the membrane-bound immunoglobulin (mIg) molecule and the Ig-alpha/Ig-beta heterodimer, which functions as signaling subunit of the receptor. Stimulation of the BCR activates protein tyrosine kinases (PTKs) that phosphorylate a number of substrate proteins, including the Ig-alpha/Ig-beta heterodimer of the BCR itself. How the PTKs become activated after BCR engagement is not known at present. Here, we show that BCR-negative J558L cells treated with the protein tyrosine phosphatase inhibitor pervanadate/H2O2 display only a weak substrate phosphorylation. However, in BCR-positive transfectants of J558L, treatment with pervanadate/H2O2 induces a strong phosphorylation of several substrate proteins. Treatment with pervanadate/H2O2 does not result in receptor crosslinking, yet the pattern of protein phosphorylation is similar to that observed after BCR stimulation by antigen. The response requires cellular integrity because tyrosine phosphorylation of most substrates is not visible in cell lysates. Cells that express a BCR containing an Ig-alpha subunit with a mutated immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motif display a delayed response. The data suggest that, once expressed on the surface, the BCR organizes protein tyrosine phosphatases, PTKs, and their substrates into a transducer complex that can be activated by pervanadate/H202 in the absence of BCR crosslinking. Assembly of this preformed complex seems to be a prerequisite for BCR-mediated signal transduction.

Self-organized phase transitions in neural networks as a neural mechanism of information processing.

Transitions between dynamically stable activity patterns imposed on an associative neural network are shown to be induced by self-organized infinitesimal changes in synaptic connection strength and to be a kind of phase transition. A key event for the neural process of information processing in a population coding scheme is transition between the activity patterns encoding usual entities. We propose that the infinitesimal and short-term synaptic changes based on the Hebbian learning rule are the driving force for the transition. The phase transition between the following two dynamical stable states is studied in detail, the state where the firing pattern is changed temporally so as to itinerate among several patterns and the state where the firing pattern is fixed to one of several patterns. The phase transition from the pattern itinerant state to a pattern fixed state may be induced by the Hebbian learning process under a weak input relevant to the fixed pattern. The reverse transition may be induced by the Hebbian unlearning process without input. The former transition is considered as recognition of the input stimulus, while the latter is considered as clearing of the used input data to get ready for new input. To ensure that information processing based on the phase transition can be made by the infinitesimal and short-term synaptic changes, it is absolutely necessary that the network always stays near the critical state corresponding to the phase transition point.

Self-organized criticality: sandpiles, singularities, and scaling.

We present an overview of the statistical mechanics of self-organized criticality. We focus on the successes and failures of hydrodynamic description of transport, which consists of singular diffusion equations. When this description applies, it can predict the scaling features associated with these systems. We also identify a hard driving regime where singular diffusion hydrodynamics fails due to fluctuations and give an explicit criterion for when this failure occurs.