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Mold deterioration of historical documents in archives and libraries is a frequent and complex phenomenon that may have important economic and cultural consequences. In addition, exposure to toxic fungal metabolites might produce health problems. In this work, samples of broths of fungal species isolated from the documentary material and from indoor environmental samples of the Archive of Bogotá have been analyzed to investigate the presence of mycotoxins. High resolution mass spectrometry made possible to search for a large number of mycotoxins, even without reference standards available at the laboratory. For this purpose, a screening strategy based on ultra-high pressure liquid chromatography coupled to quadrupole-time of flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC–QTOF MS) under MS E mode was applied. A customized home-made database containing elemental composition for around 600 mycotoxins was compiled. The presence of the (de)protonated molecule measured at its accurate mass was evaluated in the samples. When a peak was detected, collision induced dissociation fragments and characteristic isotopic ions were also evaluated and used for tentative identification, based on structure compatibility and comparison with literature data (if existing). Up to 44 mycotoxins were tentatively identified by UHPLC–QTOF MS. 34 of these tentative compounds were confirmed by subsequent analysis using a targeted LC–MS/MS method, supporting the strong potential of QTOF MS for identification/elucidation purposes. The presence of mycotoxins in these samples might help to reinforce safety measures for researchers and staff who work on reception, restoration and conservation of archival material, not only at the Archive of Bogotá but worldwide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the prevalence of conflict and fragility continue to rise around the world, research is increasingly heralded as a solution. However, current ethical guidelines for working in areas suffering from institutional and social fragility, insecurity or violent conflict have been heavily critiqued as highly abstract; focussed only on data collection; detached from the realities of academia in the Global South; and potentially extractive. This article seeks to respond to that assessment by spotlighting some of the most prevalent challenges researchers face in the pursuit of ethical working practices. It explores the material and epistemic injustices that often shape and underpin research structures and relationships in these contexts. The paper draws on the authors' experiences of research in conflict-affected and fragile contexts over the last fifteen years and on workshop discussions with researchers based in fragile and conflict-affected contexts conducted in Amman, Bogotá and Dhaka in 2019-2020. The paper works from the premise that achieving ethical research in fragile spaces is not dependent solely on activity at the site of research, but also on decisions made across the entire ecosystem of a research project. It therefore interrogates the full research landscape, from funding models, to research design (including research topics, partnerships, methods, participant selection, and researcher positionality), to dissemination plans and ethical gatekeeping. The paper critically reflects on inequities in the processes of knowledge production about conflict and fragility and the key ethical challenges that researchers encounter. It highlights the need for further guidance, support and accountability to ensure ethical research practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Schedule conformance depends on construction activities starting and finishing on time. However, construction activities are often delayed because construction flows necessary to start their execution are unavailable. Construction flows can be classified into: labor, equipment, workspace, materials, precedence, information, and external. Current construction models do not formally represent, measure, and track all flow types. Hence, field managers lack formal methods for managing flows and instead rely on their intuition and experience managing them. This paper presents a construction model based on activities and flows called the activity–flow model (AFM). The AFM formally represents the activities, the flows, and their interactions. The AFM was validated prospectively through its implementation on three building projects that were in different phases (foundations, core and shell, and finishing), at different geographic locations (Bogota, Copenhagen, and Lima), and used different planning and control methods (master schedule and weekly planning, last planner system, and location-based management system). The AFM was able to represent all the activities and flows in the test projects, track variations of activities and flows, and quantify activity and flow variability. Field managers can use the metrics enabled by the AFM to plan and control the project. Such proactive flow management can help field managers improve flow readiness, which should reduce activity delays and improve schedule conformance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main aim of this study was to develop and test the effects of a field math intervention program on both number and geometry knowledge. The intervention was developed based on three basic skills previously associated with mathematical performance: symbolic number knowledge, mapping processes and spatial reasoning. The participants were 117 preschoolers from six schools in Cali and Bogotá. The children were assigned to an intervention group (N = 55) or a control group (N = 62). The intervention lasted 11 weeks with 3 sessions per week where the children participated in different game-based activities. Tests of numerical and geometric knowledge were administered before and after the intervention. The effects of the intervention were tested twice, immediately after the program ended and six months later. The results show that the children in the intervention group improved more than the control group in both number and geometry. The second posttest revealed a significant intervention effect for geometry, but not for numerical knowledge. The implications of these mixed patterns of results are discussed in the paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship of masculine eating/drinking beliefs on male consumers' concern with unhealthy eating/drinking habits and, in turn, with binge drinking. Additionally, this research tests if and how a change in these beliefs influences binge drinking intention and intention to eat unhealthy food. Design/methodology/approach: Three studies were conducted in Bogotá (Colombian males; convenience sampling). The purpose of Study 1 (N = 209) was to develop a scale to measure masculine eating/drinking beliefs. Study 2 (N = 191) tested the mediating role of concern with unhealthy eating/drinking habits in the relationship of masculine eating/drinking beliefs with binge drinking. Study 3 (N = 179) was an experimental study, which examined the effect of information about some negative consequences of masculine beliefs on the answers to the masculine eating/drinking beliefs inventory and, in turn, on binge drinking intention and intention to eat unhealthy food. Findings: A one-dimensional (eight-items) scale was developed and validated. The results of this paper show that masculine eating/drinking beliefs are associated with lower concern with unhealthy eating/drinking and, in turn, with higher binge drinking. Information that influences these beliefs leads to lower binge drinking and unhealthy food ingestion intentions. Research limitations/implications: This research presents the first scale that measures masculine eating/drinking beliefs. It provides initial evidence on how an intervention focused on the negative consequences of sexism can influence these beliefs, affecting binge drinking and overeating intentions. Practical implications: This research provides new findings on a topic associated with several health problems in many countries, including the effect on consumers' weight gaining and related illnesses. Originality/value: This research presents the first scale that measures masculine eating/drinking beliefs. It provides initial evidence about factors (through mediating variables) that link masculine eating/drinking beliefs with some unhealthy eating/drinking habits. In addition, the results show how information about some negative consequences of these beliefs can influence consumers' binge drinking and unhealthy food ingestion intentions, which leads to key recommendations for future interventions. As a result, this research provides new findings on a topic associated with several health problems in many countries, including the effect on consumers' weight gaining and related illnesses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the updated estimation method for estimating the transmission rate changes over time. The models for the population dynamics under SEIR epidemic models with stochastic perturbations are analysed the dynamics of the COVID-19 pandemic in Bogotá, Colombia. We performed computational experiments to interpret COVID-19 dynamics using actual data for the proposed models. We estimate the model parameters and updated their estimates for reported infected and recovered data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study seeks to understand how micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) can be innovative while developing their reputation. In doing so, this study focuses on companies classified as promoters of Colombia's "orange economy," which relates to the country's cultural and creative diversity. Firms with a non-technological emphasis also require knowledge, innovation, and reputation to perform better. In this regard, the study is based on the work of Hormiga and Garcia-Almeida (2016) who proposed the relationship between accumulated knowledge and innovation as background of reputation. In this paper, the purpose is to understand the internal reputation-building process carried out by MSMEs and the variables that intervene. Therefore, this research accounts for how MSMEs can build their reputation through innovation and accumulated knowledge. For this, a survey was conducted in 320 orange economy MSMEs located in Bogotá, Colombia, and the relationship of these variables was statistically tested through a quantitative analysis of multivariate data. Innovation was found to not impact the performance of companies, but this can be associated to factors that were not considered in this research. However, it is proposed to refine the original model by considering the manager's perspective. It is recommended that entrepreneurs invest resources in accumulating internal (tacit) knowledge to improve skills that enhance reputation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Population growth has led to the intensification of average daily traffic (ADT), highlighting vehicles as one of the major sources of heavy metal (HM) pollution in cities. The objective of this paper is to conduct a spatial analysis of the HM pollution associated with road-deposited sediments (RDSs), based on the ADT observed in the main roads of a Latin American megacity (Bogotá, Colombia). The following risk indices were considered: Geoaccumulation Index (Igeo), Integrated Pollution Index (IPI), Ecological Risk Index (ERI), Comprehensive Potential Ecological Risk Index (CERI), Hazard Index (HI), and Carcinogenic Risk Index (CRI). The findings confirm that a size fraction < 250 μm is the most suitable for studying the risk of HMs in the RDS from the indices considered. The best HMs indicative of the relationship with ADT are Ni, Cu, and Pb. The Pb is the HM of most attention, and Cr gains positions for its toxicity level during the evaluation of ecological, non-carcinogenic, and carcinogenic risks, respectively. Finally, the linear regression models developed between ADT and each of the risk indices considered have a better fit (R2 > 0.910) compared to the linear regression models developed between ADT and HM concentrations (R2 > 0.322). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper identifies environmental and industrial safety aspects generated during the production processes of two home appliances companies located in Bogotá. Essential quality tools were used, such as the Deming cycle and some of the seven (7) quality control tools, since it allows a more specific and complete approach to industrial problems. In addition, there is a methodology used to generate preventive strategies in these companies that mitigate workers' health and safety effects and optimize resources, raw materials, and costs (López, 2016). The analysis results evidenced that the companies generate a high environmental impact despite the controls that the department of environmental management takes. The two companies are producing a total of annual waste, reported as follows: 1.188 t that are usable, 1.45 t of non-usable, 2.85t of hazardous matters, 3.15t of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), as well as NOX, CO2 and VOC atmospheric emissions. Consequently, the environment and the health of workers are affected. In addition, the tools applied demonstrated that the final waste has correct disposal. Finally, the opportunities for business improvement in occupational safety and health and environmental management systems were proposed (Gracia et al, 2018). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a critical reflection on insights into the ongoing endeavours for community engagement by Ayara and MAL; two urban grassroot organisations in Bogota, Colombia, where a long history of internal conflicts has resulted in diverse human right violations. The paper presents examples of the grassroots organisations’ unique methods of engagement that promotes building collective intelligence from the bottom–up through creative collaboration and design processes, leading to rebuilding social fabrics that support the common good for the people of Bogota. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Boletín de la Sociedad Argentina de Botánica is the property of Sociedad Argentina de Botanica and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper attempts to ethnographically reflect on how material vulnerability is conceived and considered in practices of communal sustenance of architectures in trouble. Drawing on theories of maintenance, care, and repair, we will dwell on the learnings cultivated during a socio-material process that unfolded in response to the burning of a communal library in the southern periphery of the city of Bogotá. The collective practices of sustenance deployed to take care of the threatened architecture help us bring to the forefront questions of (I) distributed agency and ecology of practices; (II) unanticipated future and alternative temporalities; (III) creative and generative responses to damage or conflict; as well as (V) tentative and (IV) ‘opening of black boxes’ methods. Through the ethnographic analysis of the disassembling process, we will problematize the socio-material ecosystems needed to sustain lives in a ‘broken world’. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper seeks to establish an Industry 4.0 maturity model for manufacturing SMEs. This research presents the characteristics of the proposed model, which takes the elements and the scope of the fourth industrial revolution, as well as the dimensions and assessment scales of some maturity models already applied. Likewise, this document shows the modeling process and the model's validation in SMEs in the city of Bogotá-Colombia. Design/methodology/approach: To determine the criteria of the maturity model, 6 major stages have been established: Literature Review, Development of the model; Validation of the model; Application of the model; Data analysis; and Conclusion and Recommendations. Findings: Considering the validation of some maturity models shown in the literature review, and aligned with the purpose of this article, 8 dimensions have been established to measure the maturity level of SMEs: Service; Operations; Quality; Products; Documented information-Big Data; Leadership and strategy; Communication; and Culture and people. A model has been generated that allows evaluating the degree of compliance in each dimension for manufacturing SMEs. The model can be applied to companies in any industry. Also, it can determine the degree of implementation compliance of companies in the same sector. Research limitations/implications: According to the literature reviewed, SMEs, especially those in Latin America, still do not have a culture of applying the elements of Industry 4.0. Therefore, in the research, it was not easy to understand the intrinsic variables of Industry 4.0 that SMEs have applied in different areas, which does not allow us to have the current context of SMEs and from that perspective to have a better simulation of the business model maturity. Practical implications: The model presented in this document serves as a basis for SMEs in Latin America to establish a baseline measurement in relation to the application of Industry 4.0 elements in companies. Social implications: What is intended with this work is to frame a baseline so that companies can understand their current maturity level in terms that industry 4.0 could cover. Likewise, they can generate actions for the appropriation of new technologies that allow them to be more competitive. This document can be taken and applied by those entrepreneurs companies who wish to measure their operations. Originality/value: The essential point for the generation of the maturity level measurement model is focused on determining the necessary dimensions on which the evaluation is based. In the literature found, most models focus their dimensions on measuring the digital in their processes and tangentially evaluate the organizational structure and the relationship between them. Additionally, the authors who address the organization as a whole do not reveal the details for SMEs to self-evaluate. The models found have only been implemented to evaluate one company alone or individually. This model presents the core dimensions holistically and explicitly, taking important criteria such as quality, service, communication, and the culture of all employees. Additionally, it shows in detail the model that allows SMEs of the manufacturing sector to self-assess themselves in each dimension and in turn the degree of the business sector in which they are or belong. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To aim of the paper was to describe the neurological features of the physical examination in patients with Hansen's disease who were treated in Bogotá, Colombia. We carried out a descriptive study of all patients with a Hansen's disease diagnosis treated at a referral center between 2003-2018. There were 327 eligible electronic health records (EHRs) with a final sample of 282 subjects. Leprosy was most common in males (57.45%), median age at the diagnosis was 54 years, and lesions of the lower limbs were more common (75.1%). The median time from disease onset to consult was 12 months. Most of them were classified as having lepromatous leprosy (39.7%). Pain over the median nerve trunk was the most common manifestation of disease (28%), followed by pain over the radial trunk (22%). Sensitive alterations were more common than motor ones. Specifically, the posterior tibial nerve was affected in nearly half of subjects. Dual impairment was more common in the ulnar nerve (13.8%). Some disability was apparent in 23.8% of subjects; predominantly grade 1 disability. Findings regarding age, leprosy type, and the frequency of individual nerve compromise were consistent with reports from other countries. Nerve trunk thickening was infrequent, which might be a consequence of subjectiveness in the examination and sample differences in sex distribution, degree of disability and time since disease onset. The frequency of morbidity and disability found in this sample, though low when compared with other series, fails to meet public health goals, including those limiting disability in younger subjects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Ingeniería Solidaria is the property of Universidad Cooperativa de Colombia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Purpose: This paper analyses the success factors and barriers of sustainable continuous improvement practices in terms of company's maturity level. The key factors are necessary to establish strategies that reduce the risk of improvement failure and increase the company's maturity level. Design/methodology/approach: The paper presents a multi-case analysis of the success factors in the implementation of continuous improvement. This lead to comparison between the factors identified from the literature review and the practice of the continuous improvement programs in four large successful companies located in Bogota, Colombia applying Bessant's maturity model. Findings: The results identified five success factors and three barriers that companies should consider while implementing sustainable continuous improvement programs. The key success factors are availability of resources; management commitment; employee participation in improvement task identification; clear and realistic objectives; and, finally, existence of a leader. The major barriers are lack of alignment between organizational and continuous improvement objectives; lack of motivation in the team; and, resistance to change. The results confirm that, in spite the high maturity, it is necessary to align the organizational and continuous improvement objectives. Research limitations/implications: Since this research is a multi-case study, it is limited in terms of results generalizability for companies of different sizes, sectors and context. The academic and practical contribution of this paper is providing a better understanding of sustainable continuous improvement practices in Latin-American emerging economies. Originality/value: The present research provides an integral analysis of the key success factors, the barriers, the level of maturity and the behaviours that the companies should implement to achieve the sustainability of continuous improvement in emerging economies such as Colombia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a stochastic epidemiological model is presented as an extension of a compartmental SEIR model with random perturbations to analyze the dynamics of the COVID-19 pandemic in the city of Bogotá D.C., Colombia. This model incorporates the spread of COVID-19 impacted by social behaviors in the population and allows for projecting the number of infected, recovered, and deceased individuals considering the mitigation measures, namely confinement and partial relaxed restrictions. Also, the role of randomness using the concept of Brownian motion is emphasized to explain the behavior of the population. Computational experiments for the stochastic model with random perturbations were performed, and the model is validated through numerical simulations for actual data from Bogotá D.C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Theologica Xaveriana is the property of Pontificia Universidad Javeriana and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Direito da Cidade is the property of Editora da Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (EdUERJ) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: Currently, most of the world's population lives in cities, and the rapid urbanization of the population is driving increases in the demand for products, goods and services. To effectively design policies for urban sustainability, it is important to understand the trends of flows in energy and materials as they enter and leave a city. This knowledge is essential for determining the key elements characterizing future urban growth and addressing future supply challenges. Methods: This paper presents an analysis of the energy and material flows in the city of Bogotá over the time span from 2001 to 2017. Urban flows are also characterized in terms of their temporal evolution with respect to population growth to compare and identify the changes in the main input flows, wealth production, emissions and waste in the city. Results: The results of the analysis are then compared with those for other selected large urban agglomerations in Latin America and worldwide to highlight similarities and make inferences. The results show that in Bogotá, there was a decrease in some of the material flows, such as the consumption of water and the generation of discharge, in recent years, while there was an increase in the consumption of energy and cement and in the production of CO2 emissions and construction materials. Solid waste production remained relatively stable. With respect to the other large cities considered, we observe that the 10-year growth rates of the flows with respect to population growth are lower in Bogotá, particularly when compared with the other urban agglomerations in Latin America. Conclusions: The findings of this study are important for advancing characterizations of the trends of material and energy flows in cities, and they contribute to the establishment of a benchmark that allows for the definition and evaluation of the different impacts of public policy while promoting the sustainability of Bogotá in the coming decades. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Profile: Issues in Teachers' Professional Development is the property of Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Brazilian Journal of Management / Revista de Administração da UFSM is the property of Brazilian Journal of Management / Revista de Administracao da UFSM and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper explores the use of biochar obtained from the pyrolysis of Ulex Europaeus, an invasive species in the mountain ecosystems of Colombia, for the removal of total chromium from the water. The investigation was developed in two phases. First, the slow pyrolysis of Ulex Europaeus was carried out at varying temperatures (450, 550, and 650° C) to produce a biochar that was characterized by texture, surface area, and percent yield. In the second phase, the biochar then was used to test the removal of chromium from natural water samples collected from the Upper Bogotá River Basin. The removal of chromium with a commercial activated carbon also was assessed as a control. Finally, measurements of total chromium collected were used to evaluate biochar removal efficiencies. The biochar produced at both 550° C and 650° C was found to remove over two times the amount of chromium compared the activated carbon, demonstrating that biochar from Ulex Europaeus is an effective sorbent for total chromium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The transmission dynamics of the coronavirus—COVID-19—have challenged humankind at almost every level. Currently, research groups around the globe are trying to figure out such transmission dynamics under special conditions such as separation policies enforced by governments. Mathematical and computational models, like the compartmental model or the agent-based model, are being used for this purpose. This paper proposes an agent-based model, called INFEKTA, for simulating the transmission of infectious diseases, not only the COVID-19, under social distancing policies. INFEKTA combines the transmission dynamic of a specific disease, (according to parameters found in the literature) with demographic information (population density, age, and genre of individuals) of geopolitical regions of the real town or city under study. Agents (virtual persons) can move, according to its mobility routines and the enforced social distancing policy, on a complex network of accessible places defined over an Euclidean space representing the town or city. The transmission dynamics of the COVID-19 under different social distancing policies in Bogotá city, the capital of Colombia, is simulated using INFEKTA with one million virtual persons. A sensitivity analysis of the impact of social distancing policies indicates that it is possible to establish a 'medium' (i.e., close 40% of the places) social distancing policy to achieve a significant reduction in the disease transmission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

IoT environments are continuously changing. Changes may come from the service, connectivity, or physical layers of the IoT architecture. Therefore, to function appropriately, the system needs to dynamically adapt to its environment. In previous work, we posited eight challenges to foster adaptation through all architecture layers of IoT systems. In this paper, we address the challenges to manage the inclusion of new devices and devices' transient connection , by means of dynamic adaptations incorporated into our proposed software architecture for adaptive IoT systems. To manage dynamic adaptations, we extend the reference IoT architecture with our specialized components. In particular, we use (1) ontologies and instances to represent the domain knowledge; (2) a matching algorithm to pair services and IoT devices, taking into account their functional requirements, quality attributes and sensors properties; and (3) a match update algorithm used whenever sensors become (un)available. We evaluate the effectiveness of our solution with respect to the accuracy of matching services and IoT devices, and the response to environment changes. • This paper presents a new adaptive architecture for IoT Systems. • Ontology matching algorithm-based architecture to manage transient connections. • Functional, non-functional, and QoS matching algorithm between IoT components. • Matching algorithm with better precision and recall compared with the gold-standard. • Architecture deployed in a real case study for a SUDS system in the city of Bogotá. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Colombian Applied Linguistics Journal is the property of Colombian Applied Linguistics Journal and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Profile: Issues in Teachers' Professional Development is the property of Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Traffic accidents are of worldwide concern, as they are one of the leading causes of death globally. One policy designed to cope with them is the design and deployment of road safety systems. These aim to predict crashes based on historical records, provided by new Internet of Things (IoT) technologies, to enhance traffic flow management and promote safer roads. Increasing data availability has helped machine learning (ML) to address the prediction of crashes and their severity. The literature reports numerous contributions regarding survey papers, experimental comparisons of various techniques, and the design of new methods at the point where crash severity prediction (CSP) and ML converge. Despite such progress, and as far as we know, there are no comprehensive research articles that theoretically and practically approach the model selection problem (MSP) in CSP. Thus, this paper introduces a bibliometric analysis and experimental benchmark of ML and automated machine learning (AutoML) as a suitable approach to automatically address the MSP in CSP. Firstly, 2318 bibliographic references were consulted to identify relevant authors, trending topics, keywords evolution, and the most common ML methods used in related-case studies, which revealed an opportunity for the use AutoML in the transportation field. Then, we compared AutoML (AutoGluon, Auto-sklearn, TPOT) and ML (CatBoost, Decision Tree, Extra Trees, Gradient Boosting, Gaussian Naive Bayes, Light Gradient Boosting Machine, Random Forest) methods in three case studies using open data portals belonging to the cities of Medellín, Bogotá, and Bucaramanga in Colombia. Our experimentation reveals that AutoGluon and CatBoost are competitive and robust ML approaches to deal with various CSP problems. In addition, we concluded that general-purpose AutoML effectively supports the MSP in CSP without developing domain-focused AutoML methods for this supervised learning problem. Finally, based on the results obtained, we introduce challenges and research opportunities that the community should explore to enhance the contributions that ML and AutoML can bring to CSP and other transportation areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of GIST: Education & Learning Research Journal is the property of Institucion Universitaria Colombo Americana (UNICA) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Profile: Issues in Teachers' Professional Development is the property of Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Although the analysis of urban poverty has advanced towards the integration of objective and subjective approaches to assessing urban development, evaluation of quality of life in cities remains tied to a commodity framework which conceptualises it as the mere dotation of urban amenities. Multidimensional indicators of quality of life attempt to overcome this sort of restriction by considering broader informational spaces to assess well-being in cities. The capability approach has gone some way in addressing this as a multidimensional approach, however the interpretation of spatial phenomena has been absent from its application, meaning that the role of space in the configuration of urban poverty has been neglected. Drawing on cross-sectional data, this paper examines a multidimensional measure of urban poverty based on capabilities of young adults in Bogota in order to identify clusters of deprivation and affluence of well-being and determine levels of urban segregation based on this type of metric. The result is a spatialised index of capabilities that allow us to assess well-being from a perspective of socio-spatial differences. The findings support the importance of considering spatial patterning of capabilities in understanding poverty dynamics in cities. Spatialised capabilities may help to support urban policy design and promote greater understanding of spatial inequalities in cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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In parallel with the increasing availability of multiregional input–output (MRIO) tables, there has been a growing concern on IO modelling at lower levels of spatial disaggregation, to reflect the particular features of cities better. The urbanization process is one of the salient characteristics of the current stage of globalization, so it is imperative to know more about their global economic, social and environmental impacts. MRIO initiatives are defined at the country level, which means that we are potentially losing some key information about cities and their economic structures. In this paper, we fill this gap by putting together the IOT for the city of Bogota (Colombia) into the well-known OECD's ICIO database. After describing the structure of both IOTs, we document the harmonization and nesting procedures in a step by step approach, focusing on the main challenges and assumptions that we have to make. Additionally, a case study has been carried out to weight the level of integration of Bogota in global value chains. The analysis proves the low level of global integration: the bulk of the valued-added generated in Bogota due to the city's exports comes from the economy of the rest of the country and presents a significant deficit in its value-added balance. Apart, we hope it could shed some light to conduct similar adaptations for other cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of GIST: Education & Learning Research Journal is the property of Institucion Universitaria Colombo Americana (UNICA) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Íkala: Revista de Lenguaje y Cultura is the property of Universidad de Antioquia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Introduction: The stigma and social discrimination against cisgender women sex workers lead many of them to live in conditions characterized by social inequality, marginalization, persecution, and limited opportunities for sexual health literacy. Consequently, they are often compelled to establish a framework of preventive beliefs with little scientific validity, which they use to identify, mitigate, or avoid sexual health risks arising from their interactions with clients. This study investigates the sexual health beliefs that influence self-care practices aimed at preventing sexually transmitted infections among cisgender women sex workers in Colombia. Methods: We conducted a qualitative study framed in Hermeneutic Phenomenology. In-depth interviews and discussion groups were conducted with 34 cisgender women sex workers over 18 years of age in the center of the cities of Bogotá and Barranquilla in Colombia. Results: Seven themes emerged from the reflective and inductive thematic analysis of the narratives: (1) popular habits for the prevention of contagion, (2) ocular assessment of genitals, (3) condom lubrication, (4) suspicion of a hidden infection in the client, (5) saliva and oral contact as a source of contagion, (6) avoidance of semen contact, (7) and trust in God as protection. Conclusions: The findings reflect the need for health and social professionals to promote participatory and inclusive cooperation with sex workers to update the framework of preventive beliefs that help them guide sexual health self-care with autonomy and self-efficacy, strengthening favorable beliefs and negotiating unfavorable ones. It is also essential to have a sex worker-informed sexual health policy that guides the promotion of sexual health that is sensitive to the needs and consistent with the risks of sex work and ensures friendly and non-oppressive preventive care environments for sex workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of different machine learning models in estimating the pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical expenditures associated with Diabetes Mellitus type II diagnosis, based on the clinical risk index determined by the analysis of comorbidities. Materials and methods: In this cross-sectional study, we have used data from 11,028 anonymized records of patients admitted to a high-complexity hospital in Bogota, Colombia between 2017–2019 with a primary diagnosis of Diabetes. These cases were classified according to Charlson's comorbidity index in several risk categories. The main variables analyzed in this study are hospitalization costs (which include pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical expenditures), age, gender, length of stay, medicines and services consumed, and comorbidities assessed by the Charlson's index. The model's dependent variable is expenditure (composed of pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical expenditures). Based on these variables, different machine learning models (Multivariate linear regression, Lasso model, and Neural Networks) were used to estimate the pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical expenditures associated with the clinical risk classification. To evaluate the performance of these models, different metrics were used: Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE), Mean Squared Error (MSE), Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE), Mean Absolute Error (MAE), and Coefficient of Determination (R2). Results: The results indicate that the Neural Networks model performed better in terms of accuracy in predicting pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical expenditures considering the clinical risk based on Charlson's comorbidity index. A deeper understanding and experimentation with Neural Networks can improve these preliminary results, therefore we can also conclude that the main variables used and those that were proposed can be used as predictors for the medical expenditures of patients with diabetes type-II. Conclusions: With the increase of technology elements and tools, it is possible to build models that allow decision-makers in hospitals to improve the resource planning process given the accuracy obtained with the different models tested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Studia Universitatis Babes-Bolyai, Psychologia-Paedagogia is the property of Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: Traffic-related crashes are a leading cause of premature death and disability. The safe systems approach is an evidence-informed set of innovations to reduce traffic-related injuries and deaths. First developed in Sweden, global health actors are adapting the model to improve road safety in low- and middle-income countries via technical assistance (TA) programs; however, there is little evidence on road safety TA across contexts. This study investigated how, why, and under what conditions technical assistance influenced evidence-informed road safety in Accra (Ghana), Bogotá (Colombia), and Mumbai (India), using a case study of the Bloomberg Philanthropies Initiative for Global Road Safety (BIGRS). Methods: We conducted a realist evaluation with a multiple case study design to construct a program theory. Key informant interviews were conducted with 68 government officials, program staff, and other stakeholders. Documents were utilized to trace the evolution of the program. We used a retroductive analysis approach, drawing on the diffusion of innovation theory and guided by the context-mechanism-outcome approach to realist evaluation. Results: TA can improve road safety capabilities and increase the uptake of evidence-informed interventions. Hands-on capacity building tailored to specific implementation needs improved implementers' understanding of new approaches. BIGRS generated novel, city-specific analytics that shifted the focus toward vulnerable road users. BIGRS and city officials launched pilots that brought evidence-informed approaches. This built confidence by demonstrating successful implementation and allowing government officials to gauge public perception. But pilots had to scale within existing city and national contexts. City champions, governance structures, existing political prioritization, and socio-cultural norms influenced scale-up. Conclusion: The program theory emphasizes the interaction of trust, credibility, champions and their authority, governance structures, political prioritization, and the implement-ability of international evidence in creating the conditions for road safety change. BIGRS continues to be a vehicle for improving road safety at scale and developing coalitions that assist governments in fulfilling their role as stewards of population well-being. Our findings improve understanding of the complex role of TA in translating evidence-informed interventions to country-level implementation and emphasize the importance of context-sensitive TA to increase impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the student's academic performance in the School of Engineering at Universidad Nacional de Colombia - Bogota Campus. The impact is assessed from a quantitative approach based on (i) student's grades, (ii) student's progress in their curriculum and (iii) dropped courses. In addition, results from a faculty survey (qualitative approach) are presented to expand some explanatory perspectives on the main academic changes during the pandemic. Results show a significant increase in the average numerical grade as well as in the probability of a course being dropped during the pandemic conditions. Furthermore, the student's average curriculum progress per semester grew approximately 18%. A differentiated academic impact, depending on sex and family income was observed which may be included in future post-pandemic programs. The survey reflects a new faculty's perspective on evaluation tools and methodologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Visión Electrónica is the property of Fondo de Universidad Distrital Francisco Jose de Caldas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Introduction. Acute gastroenteritis affects between a quarter and a half of the people in the world each year. They are responsible for significant morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs. Their direct or indirect transmissions via water, food, air, or inert surfaces depend on their etiology (viral, bacterial, or parasitic) and the local context. Bogotá and its region have several specificities: wastewater is often discharged into rivers without or after primary treatment only, the deposit in the landfill of toilet papers and diapers soiled by excrement, and the low consumption of fruits and vegetables largely restricted to a handful of relatively cheap products that may be irrigated by surface freshwaters heavily contaminated with faeces. Objective. Our study aimed to assess the fluxes of some human enteric pathogens in the environment of Bogotá region and to try to relate these fluxes to the population health. Materials and methods. First, a method for culturing the human norovirus has been developed using isolated mouse intestinal villi as a cell model exhibiting the full diversity of intestinal epithelial cells. Several concentrations of trypsin were tested to activate noroviruses. The method was applied to faecal and environmental samples. Second, contamination with Escherichia coli and some human enteric pathogens was monitored in water (landfill leachate, runoff water, river, irrigation water, drinking water), leafy vegetables eaten raw (chards), and air (above the landfill, in rural and urban areas) in the Bogotá region. Third, the impact of socioeconomic contexts and individual practices (food, hygiene, and health) on cases of acute gastroenteritis was assessed from surveys carried out in one district of Bogotá and analyzed by various tools (principal component analysis, modelling, and others). Results. We have shown that mouse-isolated intestinal villi allow the infection and replication of human norovirus. The virus must be activated with trypsin and has an average replicative cycle of 10 hours. It was possible to see infectious noroviruses not detected by the used molecular method in several faeces and environmental samples. Almost all samples positive by the molecular method or immunodot-blot contained infectious noroviruses. At the regional level, the discharges of wastewater in the Bogotá and Balsillas rivers, and Tres Esquinas march contaminate the irrigation network of La Ramada area, in the northwest of Bogotá, with E. coli and potentially harmful human enteric pathogens. Conclusions. Chards harvested in Bogotá and its surroundings were heavily contaminated in contrast to other growing areas. Their contamination evolved from their production to their purchase in nearby stores, washings increasing or decreasing their contamination, and handling on the merchant's stalls increased contamination. The air was often contaminated with E. coli and Shigella spp. It was not possible to detect a particular contribution of the Doña Juana landfill in pathogen aerosolization. The presence of Shigella spp. was observed in more than half of the stools of people with diarrhea. Surveys have shown that the annual incidence of acute gastroenteritis decreases with increasing age; it seemed less common in households with elderly people, possibly due to stricter food hygiene practices. A transmission model of acute gastroenteritis distinguishing contamination from outside the households and between people in the same households did not show significant differences between neighborhoods. Used to simulate numerical experiments, we suggest working on much higher numbers of surveys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction. Acute gastroenteritis affects between a quarter and a half of the people in the world each year. They are responsible for significant morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs. Their direct or indirect transmissions via water, food, air, or inert surfaces depend on their etiology (viral, bacterial, or parasitic) and the local context. Bogotá and its region have several specificities: wastewater is often discharged into rivers without or after primary treatment only, the deposit in the landfill of toilet papers and diapers soiled by excrement, and the low consumption of fruits and vegetables largely restricted to a handful of relatively cheap products that may be irrigated by surface freshwaters heavily contaminated with faeces. Objective. Our study aimed to assess the fluxes of some human enteric pathogens in the environment of Bogotá region and to try to relate these fluxes to the population health. Materials and methods. First, a method for culturing the human norovirus has been developed using isolated mouse intestinal villi as a cell model exhibiting the full diversity of intestinal epithelial cells. Several concentrations of trypsin were tested to activate noroviruses. The method was applied to faecal and environmental samples. Second, contamination with Escherichia coli and some human enteric pathogens was monitored in water (landfill leachate, runoff water, river, irrigation water, drinking water), leafy vegetables eaten raw (chards), and air (above the landfill, in rural and urban areas) in the Bogotá region. Third, the impact of socioeconomic contexts and individual practices (food, hygiene, and health) on cases of acute gastroenteritis was assessed from surveys carried out in one district of Bogotá and analyzed by various tools (principal component analysis, modelling, and others). Results. We have shown that mouse-isolated intestinal villi allow the infection and replication of human norovirus. The virus must be activated with trypsin and has an average replicative cycle of 10 hours. It was possible to see infectious noroviruses not detected by the used molecular method in several faeces and environmental samples. Almost all samples positive by the molecular method or immunodot-blot contained infectious noroviruses. At the regional level, the discharges of wastewater in the Bogotá and Balsillas rivers, and Tres Esquinas march contaminate the irrigation network of La Ramada area, in the northwest of Bogotá, with E. coli and potentially harmful human enteric pathogens. Conclusions. Chards harvested in Bogotá and its surroundings were heavily contaminated in contrast to other growing areas. Their contamination evolved from their production to their purchase in nearby stores, washings increasing or decreasing their contamination, and handling on the merchant’s stalls increased contamination. The air was often contaminated with E. coli and Shigella spp. It was not possible to detect a particular contribution of the Doña Juana landfill in pathogen aerosolization. The presence of Shigella spp. was observed in more than half of the stools of people with diarrhea. Surveys have shown that the annual incidence of acute gastroenteritis decreases with increasing age; it seemed less common in households with elderly people, possibly due to stricter food hygiene practices. A transmission model of acute gastroenteritis distinguishing contamination from outside the households and between people in the same households did not show significant differences between neighborhoods. Used to simulate numerical experiments, we suggest working on much higher numbers of surveys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the macroeconomic determinants of first enrollment in private higher education institutions, as a dependent variable, for 21 Departments of Colombia plus the capital city of Bogotá from 2005 to 2020. The bases of the human capital theory were contrasted with the empirical evidence for the case studied, and the effect of currency devaluation represents a new contribution to the literature. We used the Prais-Winsten methodology with corrected standard errors and first-order autocorrelation correction to estimate the econometric model. The results suggest that favorable variations in GDP, wage expectations, and population positively impact the dependent variable. However, the devaluation of the Colombian peso against the US dollar, represented in the trm variable, has a negative effect, i.e., the devaluation of the peso would lead to a reduction in the dependent variable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fourth and fifth generation (4G-5G) cellular networks provide key enabling technologies for the ubiquitous deployment of Internet of Things(IoT) technology. This has allowed the implementation of different use cases or applications that have allowed their operation to be evaluated. Aligned with several research studies around 5G and 4G that are currently being carried out, this research proposes the implementation of a use case for the measurement and transmission of air quality in Bogota- Colombia, through the Internet of things and simulations in Software Defined Radio (GNU- ´ Radio). As a result, network performance indicators were obtained that make the application viable both in data acquisition and transmission, in the use case for air quality. In that sense, this research makes it possible to establish the basis for real operations in future implementations of emergent technologies in the city. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intra-abdominal hypertension (IAH) is the persistent increase of intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) that could be caused by several pathologies. It is capable of promoting organ dysfunction, thereby increasing the mortality rate of human patients. As for cats and dogs, there are still few reports on how this pressure can be monitored and treated as a routine for admitted and hospitalized animals and on its relationship with the mortality of the patients. Therefore, the objective of this paper was to report a case of IAH secondary to chronic diaphragmatic rupture in a dog, which was treated with a temporary abdominal closure (TAC). A bitch was admitted to the veterinary hospital to undergo an elective ovariohysterectomy when it was diagnosed with a diaphragmatic rupture and displacement of the liver and intestinal loops in the chest. After repositioning these structures in the abdominal cavity, tension was observed in the abdomen. A temporary abdominal closure was then performed with a Bogota bag. Immediately after the surgery, the IAP was measured, presenting a value of 15 mmHg, indicating that there was an increase in intra-abdominal pressure. The animal was hospitalized, and IAP was monitored. After 24 hours, IAP was 5.8 mmHg when the Bogota bag was removed, and definitive celiorraphy was performed. The patient showed satisfactory clinical progress and was discharged 72 hours after the surgical procedure. The treatment used for IAH proved to be effective and contributed to the quick and satisfactory recovery of the patient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Radon (222 Rn) is a naturally occurring gas that represents a health threat due to its causal relationship with lung cancer. Despite its potential health impacts, several regions have not conducted studies, mainly due to data scarcity and/or economic constraints. This study aims to bridge the baseline information gap by building an interactive dashboard (http://ircmodelingdashboard.eu.pythonanywhere.com/ , last access: 17 April 2024) that uses inferential statistical methods to estimate the spatial distribution of indoor radon concentration (IRC) for a target area. We demonstrate the functionality of the dashboard by modeling IRC in the city of Bogotá, Colombia, using 30 in situ measurements. IRC measured was the highest reported in the country, with a geometric mean of 91±14 Bq m -3 and a maximum concentration of 407 Bq m -3. In 57 % of the residences, RC exceeded the WHO's recommendation of 100 Bq m -3. A prediction map for houses registered in Bogotá's cadaster was built in the dashboard by using a log-linear regression model fitted with the in situ measurements, together with meteorological, geologic and building-specific variables. The model showed a cross-validation root mean squared error of 57 Bq m -3. Furthermore, the model showed that the age of the house presented a statistically significant positive association with RC. According to the model, IRC measured in houses built before 1980 presents a statistically significant increase of 72 % compared to IRC of those built after 1980 (p value = 0.045). The prediction map exhibited higher IRC in older buildings most likely related to cracks in the structure that could enhance gas migration in older houses. This study highlights the importance of expanding 222 Rn studies in countries with a lack of baseline values and provides a cost-effective alternative that could help deal with the scarcity of IRC data and get a better understanding of place-specific variables that affect IRC spatial distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Nature-based solutions are increasingly recognized as vital components of urban resilience strategies, particularly within the framework of green infrastructure. This study aims to propose an approach that fosters symbiosis between green and gray infrastructure to address the challenges posed by climate change in urban environments. Methods: We conducted a comprehensive review of guidelines and scientific literature to inform the selection of species and the design of root containers for urban tree planting. Additionally, we performed a multicriteria analysis and assessed water comfort to guide decision-making regarding species selection in specific city areas. Results: The methodology was applied to a case study in Bogotá, yielding insights applicable to any city with basic knowledge of suitable species for planting in built public spaces. Crucial criteria for selecting local species for sidewalks were identified, including size, permeability, soil compaction characteristics, and climatic adaptability. A list of desirable species adapted to all humidity zones of the case study city was generated. Hydrological sizing methods proposed are contingent upon both the species to be planted and the geometry of the streets. Discussion: The approach and findings presented in this study promote the development of trees and their ecosystem services while mitigating potential damage to surrounding infrastructure. Conclusion: Implementing strategies that facilitate symbiosis between green and gray infrastructure contributes to urban resilience and aids in climate change adaptation efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]