Science Letters:Detection of Catabacter hongkongensis in polluted European water samples

The Catabacteriaceae is a new bacterial family with a unique member: Catabacter hongkongensis is a strictly anaerobic, non-sporulating, Gram-positive coccobacillus that is phylogenetically related to some clostridial clusters. Little is known of its epidemiology and environmental distribution, but the inclusion of its 16S rRNA gene sequence in GenBank has allowed it to be detected qualitatively. As a first approach for prospective surveys, a real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) procedure to identify C. hongkongensis has been developed. The presence of Catabacteriaceae in 29 water bodies subjected to possible human or animal impact has been investigated. Four of them were positive. The results confirm that highly polluted water can contain C. hongkongensis.     

A framework for scientific knowledge generation

This paper investigates the notional development of various approaches claiming to add value in knowledge generation during the 20th century, with the aim to identify what it is that enhances productiveness in knowledge generation. Observing that knowledge generation is a complex phenomenon, an approach is used for the investigation that was developed specifically to study un-deterministic complex systems. A list of salient features for scientific knowledge generation is presented as a result. In addition to these features, various problem types are identified from literature. These two are then integrated to provide a proposed framework for scientific knowledge generation, which is trans-disciplinary and useful for scientific problem-solving in a pluralist reality. A case study illustrates the implementation of this framework.     

Brain metastases of melanoma mechanisms of attack on their defence system by engineered stem cells in the microenvironment

This report gives a better emphasis on the role of targeted effectors （e.g. a combination of 5-FC with CD-NSPCs as compared to the application of NSPCs alone） and how such delivery of pro-drug activating enzymes and other tumor-killing substances may overcome melanocytic defence system, interact with and promote the host defence and immune response modulations not only in melanoma but, potentially, in other highly-metastatic cancers.     

An international collaborative investigation of beginning seventh grade students' understandings of scientific inquiry: Establishing a baseline

Although understandings of scientific inquiry (as opposed to conducting inquiry) are included in science education reform documents around the world, little is known about what students have learned about inquiry during their elementary school years. This is partially due to the lack of any assessment instrument to measure understandings about scientific inquiry. However, a valid and reliable assessment has recently been developed and published, Views About Scientific Inquiry (VASI; Lederman et al. [2014], Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 51, 65–83). The purpose of this large-scale international project was to collect the first baseline data on what beginning middle school students have learned about scientific inquiry during their elementary school years. Eighteen countries/regions spanning six continents including 2,634 students participated in the study. The participating countries/regions were: Australia, Brazil, Chile, Egypt, England, Finland, France, Germany, Israel, Mainland China, New Zealand, Nigeria, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Turkey, and the United States. In many countries, science is not formally taught until middle school, which is the rationale for choosing seventh grade students for this investigation. This baseline data will simultaneously provide information on what, if anything, students learn about inquiry in elementary school, as well as their beginning knowledge as they enter secondary school. It is important to note that collecting data from all of the approximately 200 countries globally was not humanly possible, and it was also not possible to collect data from every region of each country. The results overwhelmingly show that students around the world at the beginning of grade seven have very little understandings about scientific inquiry. Some countries do show reasonable understandings in certain aspects but the overall picture of understandings of scientific inquiry is not what is hoped for after completing 6 years of elementary education in any country.     

The impact of community college attendance on baccalaureate attainment

Community colleges are seen as contradictory institutions. Supporters contend that community colleges increase baccalaureate attainment by providing access to higher education for students who would otherwise not attend college, while critics argue that these institutions decrease baccalaureate attainment for students who would otherwise attend a 4-year institution. Using the National Education Longitudinal Study, this article advances the literature on the impact of community colleges on baccalaureate attainment by estimating new models that allow controlling for pathways of enrollment while using different measures of educational expectations and correcting for college choice. Findings suggest that community colleges significantly reduce the probability of attaining a bachelor’s degree, as compared to 4-year institutions, an effect that remains after having taken into account non-traditional enrollment pathways, educational expectations, and self-selection into 2-year and 4-year institutions.An earlier version of this paper was presented at the November 2004 Annual Meeting of the Association for the Study of Higher Education.     

Estrategias de conteo implicadas en los procesos de adición y sustracción

Resumen

A lo largo del presente trabajo se analizan las diferencias existentes entre los diversos procesos puestos en juego por los sujetos a la hora de cuantificar lo real, destacando de entre ellos el subproceso de cuantificación extensiva métrica y uno de los esquemas básicos que lleva aparejados: el esquema de conteo. A continuación se pasa a analizar las diferentes estrategias utilizadas por nuetros escolares de 1°, 2°, 3° y 4° de E.G.B. cuando aplican este esquema para la resolución de algoritmos de adición y de sustracción, destacando la vinculación entre el desarrollo de las estrategias de conteo y la eficiencia en la solución de estos algoritmos.     

Science Letters: Quantification of Helicobacter pylori levels in soil samples from public playgrounds in Spain

Helicobacter pylori are ubiquitous Gram-negative bacteria with a high estimated level of infection in the world populations, but a majority of the infected persons are asymptomatic. This pathogen has been classified by the World Health Organization as a class I carcinogen and recognized as the causal agent of most peptic ulcers and chronic gastritis that might lead to stomach cancer. Although not all the transmission pathways of these bacteria into humans have been properly identified, enough data have sugg...     

Methodologies for the inclusive education of students with severe visual impairment or blindness / Metodologías que garantizan la inclusión educativa de estudiantes con discapacidad visual grave o ceguera

The aim of this paper is to present the educational experiences that have been implemented in the community of Madrid (Spain) with students with severe visual impairment or blindness. We highlight why and how the new educational policies being implemented have achieved the genuine inclusion of these students in line with European educational objectives. The study was carried out during the academic years 2010–11 to 2015–16. We conclude that the educational inclusion of students with visual impairment becomes a reality upon the effective participation of two specialized teams, namely, the educational psychologists for young children (divided in stages from zero to three years and from four to 12 years of age) and the educational specialists in visually impaired children. This constitutes a prime example that can be extended to other contexts and other disabilities. It becomes evident that, to be effective, inclusive education requires a joint and coordinated response from all professionals involved in the education process.