Universidad del Norte, Colombia

About: Universidad del Norte, Colombia is a education organization based out in Barranquilla, Colombia. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Context (language use). The organization has 3562 authors who have published 4355 publications receiving 37861 citations. The organization is also known as: University of the North, Colombia & Uninorte.

Confronting congestion in urban areas: Developing Sustainable Mobility Plans for public and private organizations in Bogotá

Abstract: Work trips contribute the most to congestion during peak hours in urban areas. For that reason, public and private organizations can play a relevant part by developing mobility plans (MPs) to propose possible strategies to confronting congestion. Although MP strategies such as the promotion of active and public transport modes, the implementation of parking policies, telecommuting, and flexible work schedules have gained popularity for addressing traffic congestion in recent years, there has been a lack of studies reporting on the potential impact of their implementation in organizations located in Global South cities. This paper evaluates the modal choice by drivers (cars and motorcycles) in response to a series of specific mobility strategies if MPs are implemented by mid-size and large public and private organizations in the city of Bogota (Colombia). The modal share of employee trips after implementing different travel demand management instruments was evaluated using a stated preference survey. The results of this study suggest that substantial increases of parking charges in the organization’s vicinity are likely to lead to the highest reduction of private cars use and the highest modal share increase for public transport, carpooling, bicycling, and walking. The provision of company bus services seems not to be as the most effective strategy to discourage employees from using a car. Then, these plans should contain a combination of strategies rather than consider them separately to increase the possibility of achieving better results. Also, more studies evaluating the potential success of organizations adopting MPs in the cities of the Global South are needed.

Intercultural Competence: Another Challenge

Abstract: This paper intends to draw the attention of language teachers and educational authorities to the area of culture teaching in foreign language education at a time when the recently issued Basic Standards of Competencies in Foreign Language have conferred modest attention to this aspect of language education. The paper first describes the notion of Intercultural communicative competence. It then discusses the tensions between this new understanding of the teaching of culture and the prevailing teaching practices, approaches, beliefs and discourses associated with the learning and teaching of culture. Third, it reports on the results of a study which critically analyzed the academic discourses of in-service teachers in Colombia regarding the cultural component of foreign language programs; finally, it proposes ways to start taking new directions. Key words: Intercultural competence, standards, culture, culture teaching, ideologies, discourses El presente articulo intenta llamar la atencion de maestros y autoridades educativas sobre el area de la ensenanza de la cultura en lenguas extranjeras en un momento en el que los recientemente publicados Estandares Basicos de Competencias en Lenguas Extranjeras - Ingles prestan modesta atencion a este aspecto. Primero se describe la nocion de competencia comunicativa intercultural. Luego se discuten las tensiones entre este nuevo concepto de la ensenanza de la cultura y las practicas de ensenanza, los enfoques, creencias y discursos asociados con el aprendizaje y la ensenanza de la cultura. Se reportan tambien los resultados de un estudio que analiza criticamente los discursos academicos de profesores colombianos acerca del componente cultural en la ensenanza de lenguas extranjeras. Finalmente, se proponen formas de iniciar nuevos rumbos. Palabras clave: Competencia intercultural, estandares, cultura, ensenanza de la cultura, ideologias, discursos

Impact of antibiotic de-escalation on clinical outcomes in community-acquired pneumococcal pneumonia.

Abstract: BACKGROUND Although antibiotic de-escalation is regarded as a measure that reduces selection pressure, adverse drug effects and costs, evidence supporting this practice in community-acquired pneumococcal pneumonia (CAPP) is lacking. METHODS We carried out a retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data of a cohort of hospitalized adults with CAPP. Pneumococcal aetiology was established in patients with one or more positive cultures for Streptococcus pneumoniae obtained from blood, sterile fluids or sputum, and/or a positive urinary antigen test. De-escalation therapy was considered when the initial antibiotic therapy was narrowed to penicillin, amoxicillin or amoxicillin/clavulanate within the first 72 h after admission. The primary outcomes were 30 day mortality and length of hospital stay (LOS). Adjustment for confounders was performed with multivariate and propensity score analyses. RESULTS Of 1410 episodes of CAPP, antibiotic de-escalation within the first 72 h after admission was performed in 166 cases. After adjustment, antibiotic de-escalation was not associated with a higher risk of mortality (OR = 0.83, 95% CI = 0.24-2.81), but it was found to be a protective factor for prolonged LOS (above the median) (OR = 0.46, 95% CI = 0.30-0.70). Similar results were found in patients classified into high-risk pneumonia severity index classes (IV-V), those with clinical instability and those with bacteraemia. No significant differences were documented in adverse drug reactions or readmission (<30 days). CONCLUSIONS Antibiotic de-escalation seems to be safe and effective in reducing the duration of LOS, and did not adversely affect outcomes of patients with CAPP, even those with bacteraemia and severe disease, and those who were clinically unstable.

Coating thickness and interlayer effects on CVD-diamond film adhesion to cobalt-cemented tungsten carbides

Abstract: In this study, diamond coating adhesion on cobalt-cemented tungsten-carbide (WC–Co) substrates was investigated using scratch testing. In particular, a methodology was applied to evaluate the effects of the coating thickness and the interlayer on diamond coating delaminations. In the coating thickness effect research, substrate surface preparations, prior to diamond depositions, were common chemical etching using Murakami solutions. On the other hand, to study the interlayer effect, Cr/CrN/Cr and Ti/TiN/Ti, were deposited to WC–Co substrate surfaces (no chemical etching) by using a commercial physical vapor deposition (PVD) system in a thickness architecture of 200 nm/1.5 μm/1.5 μm, respectively. Diamond films were synthesized by using a hot-filament chemical vapor deposition (HFCVD) reactor at a fixed gas mixture with varied deposition times. Scratch testing was conducted on the fabricated specimens using a commercial instrument. It is noted that the onset of coating delamination can be clearly identified by high-intensity acoustic emission (AE) signals and high tangential force fluctuations when such events occur, which can be used to determine the critical load for coating delaminations. Scratched track morphology was also characterized by scanning electron microscopy and white light interferometry. The results show that the adhesion of diamond coatings on WC–Co substrates increases with the increased coating thickness, with a nearly linear relation. The trend is consistent with the findings from a previous study that experimentally evaluated the coating thickness effect on the diamond-coated tool performance. Scratched tracks were characterized by diamond coating cracking and coating delaminations once the adhesion critical load is reached. For the two types of interlayer materials tested, neither of them seems to be effective and the diamond coating with the Ti-interlayer shows poor adhesion compared to the Cr-interlayer coatings.

A Generalized Blakers-Massey Theorem

Abstract: We prove a generalization of the classical connectivity theorem of Blakers-Massey, valid in an arbitrary higher topos and with respect to an arbitrary modality, that is, a factorization system (L,R) in which the left class is stable by base change. We explain how to rederive the classical result, as well as a recent generalization by Chacholski-Scherer-Werndli. Our proof is inspired by the one given in Homotopy Type Theory.