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Objective: To propose a criterion to determine the sample size in stochastic simulations of MC (Monte Carlo) and MCMC (Markov chain Monte Carlo), guaranteeing certain precision estimating parameters. It is intended that the accuracy is guaranteed in a dimensionless way. Materials and methods: This paper proposes a criterion is proposed that seeks to meet the stated objective. In addition, a methodology for its application. Results and discussion: The application of the methodology is presented in 3 different contexts: MC simulation in which the sample of interest presents moderate variability, MC simulation in which the sample of interest presents excessive variability, and MCMC simulation. In all cases, adequate estimates of the number of MC and MCMC runs are obtained from relatively small samples. Furthermore, the application of the methodology represents only a marginal additional computational cost. Conclusions: The criterion presented in this paper allows for determining the sample size in stochastic simulations, guaranteeing dimensionless precision in estimating parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes and discusses the implementation of a project-based undergraduate course on applied electromagnetics in electronics engineering with a conceiving-designing-implementingoperating (CDIO) approach involving active project-based learning (PBL). The course, which requires a combination of mathematical and physics concepts for its completion, allows students to understand the principles of electromagnetic transmission theory in wireless communication systems. This paper presents the course proposal, its project description, and results hinting at the relationship with the CDIO process. The proposed projects allow students to engage in core concepts such as complex vectors, Maxwell's equations, boundary conditions, Poynting's theorem, uniform plane waves, reflection and transmission of waves, waveguides, cavity resonators, and computerassisted design. The proposed methodology results suggest that students lowered their perception of the difficulty of the course, and most students recognized a better learning process of the core concepts for this course. In addition, students' final course grades showed an average improvement of approximately 6% compared with the final grades of other groups with different methodologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This reflection paper aims to show how synodality comes from the action of the Holy Spirit in us. Christian life is driven by the Spirit to recover the meaning of following Jesus Christ. Allowing the Spirit to lead and transform us as a Church through his faithful and creative action will help us make synodality a reality, a vital ecclesial dimension already present in the first Christian communities, a fact that the epistles bear witness to. It is the action of the Spirit that makes a Church go on the move with a prophetic attitude of acting from the inside out, from the bottom up, reading the signs of the times. The action of the Spirit makes us men and women of prayer, a praying church in search of God's will. It is the Spirit who makes us capable of listening from the bottom of our heart to the voice of diversity, plurality, even criticism and opposition. The Spirit enables us to reach out to others, letting ourselves be found, and being there to meet with others. These are all real dynamics of listening to others. It is the Spirit who grants us the gift of discernment. The Spirit makes us capable of reading reality and discovering God's action in it. The action of the Spirit prepares us to have an attitude of service and dedication, to come out of ourselves and reach out to others, especially to the most vulnerable and unprotected. It moves us to liberation by making solidarity, justice, and peace real. We get to examine our behavior as believers by the action of the Spirit which makes us realize the characteristics and dimensions of our synodal experience as seen from a baptismal vocation perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Women silenced in the Assembly, prevented from asking their husbands in public, and having to bring their heads covered. All this points to a situation of subjugation of the woman/wife in relation to the man/husband. This textual situation, present in Paul's letters which are considered authentic, generally advocates a situation of gender equality, and raises questions about the figure of the Apostle and about the possibility of late textual interpolation in the Pauline letters. In this paper, we seek to analyze Paul's personality within his cultural and religious background. We also seek to identify who are the women with whom he worked in terms of apostolic and ministerial parity in order to understand the possible reasons for late textual interpolation in his written liberating message. The investigative procedure employed in this research is, mainly, the interpretative and analytic critique of the textual analysis. The main conclusions are that the Word of God is always a force of renewal capable of transforming the structures of a society. Wherever Paul went, this transformation took place in a germ. However, because of the incarnation process, the Word of God can suffer adverse forces, especially in the context of a sexist and misogynist society, making it possible, therefore, to think of textual extracts interpolated within the authentic Paulinum corpus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper summarizes the current research on the letter to Colossians. It proposes the status quaestionis of the most significant interpretations concerning the identity of the addressees, archaeological research, epistolary introduction, Christology and theology of the letter. Comparative studies of the cities in the Lycus Valley suggest that the recipients of the letter were people scattered throughout the region, but unlike Laodicea and Hierapolis, only the humblest city in the valley was mentioned in the initial greetings. Numismatics and epigraphy highlight Colossae's secondary role. However, since the tell of ancient Colossae had not yet been excavated, scholars await further archeological evidence. Regard ing the epistolary introduction, current studies focus on the understanding of hope and the use of memory. The various attempts made to identify the opponents and the error of Colossians illustrate the methodological difficulties in studying the letter. For a suitable historical reconstruction of Paul's opponents, they may need a more balanced approach, distinguishing thoroughly both the historical situation and rhetorical situation. The exegetical-theological studies on the Christological Hymn of the last twenty years are fewer in number than those of a socio-historical nature. However, among the former, those that focus on the rhetoric and argumentation theory offer a holistic perspective more suited to understanding the letter. Rhetorical studies on the Christological Hymn of Col 1:15-20 have made it possible to overcome the one-sided perspective based on the correction of a possible heresy contained in the letter. Recent rhetorical and theological studies have also contributed greatly to identifying the features of the Christological μυστήριον. The study of the Christology of universal lordship has helped researchers to clarify the distinctive aspects of the letter's soteriology and eschatology. If diachronic exegesis has multiplied the hypotheses about the composition of the letter, the synchronic approach has offered a better articulated perspective on the mystery of Christ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main purpose of this paper is to analyze the entrepreneurship research activity that uses the institutional approach as a conceptual framework in the specific context of Latin America. To do so, a semi-systematic literature review is conducted using 24 articles published between 2009 and 2021 in major entrepreneurship journals. The results show that institutional conditions significantly shape entrepreneurial dynamics. The review highlights a two-way relationship between formal and informal institutions that can either drive or hinder ventures. Policymakers should thus prioritize a comprehensive institutional approach to enhance entrepreneurial growth and boost regional prosperity. This is the first review of entrepreneurship research from the institutional approach in the Latin American context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article deals with the understanding that older women in Cafam Day Center (Centro Dia Cafam) of Bogotá have of their spirituality and its function in their lives. It is the result of a field investigation in which theology and nursing teachers took part. The study's purpose was to offer academic elements to improve the spiritual accompaniment of older women in the medical environment and in geriatric pastoral work. Studies of this nature underline the description of the spiritual experience of the older individual, but ignore the analysis of the spiritual quality that rules the lives of these persons. Our study analyzes the types of divine representation that support the spiritual universe of older women who attend the Cafam Day Center, the types of spirituality derived from such representations and the spiritual risks inherent to a situation in which gods and spirituality merge into a retributive dynamic of fear and obedience. The study bases itself on the theoretical dynamics of the transcendental anthropological method whose premise states that the human being is able to have a deep inner experience of God's reality, a transcendental experience that takes place with no other mediation than ourselves, while God's reality takes place in an act of self-communication. The study bases itself on the theoretical dynamics of the transcendental anthropological method whose premise states that the human being is able to have a deep inner experience of God's reality, a transcendental experience that takes place with no other mediation than ourselves, while God's reality takes place in an act of self-communication. This paper is divided in three parts: first, it presents the research method, which is followed by the explanaition of its procedure (participants and procedure implemented in the construction of data); and it concludes with the presentation of the results and some conclusions drawn from the investigative process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To propose a methodological procedure that serves as a guide for applying techniques in the measurement uncertainty evaluation, such as GUM, MMC, and Bayes; in addition, to develop an application in a nontrivial case study. Materials and methods: In this paper, a set of steps are proposed that allow validating the measurement uncertainty evaluation from techniques such as GUM, MMC, and Bayes; these were applied as a strategy to evaluate the uncertainty of an indirect measurement process that sought to determine the level of a fluid by measuring the hydrostatic pressure generated by it at rest on the bottom of a container. The results obtained with each technique were compared. Results and discussion: the use of the GUM was found to be valid for the case under study, and the results obtained by applying the Bayesian approach and the MC technique provided highly useful complementary information, such as the Probability Density Function (PDF) of the measurand, which enables a better description of the phenomenon. Likewise, the posterior PDF obtained with Bayes allowed us to approximate closer values around the true values of the measurand, and the ranges of the possible values were broader than those offered by the MMC and the GUM. Conclusions: In the context of the case under study, the Bayesian approach presents more realistic results than GUM and MMC; in addition to the conceptual advantage presented by Bayes, the possibility of updating the results of the uncertainty evaluation in the presence of new evidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This paper presents a joint application of systematic layout planning (SLP) and TOPSIS methods for the facility layout design of a power generation turbine parts repair workshop. The SLP method is an easy-to-apply tool that can consider both qualitative and quantitative criteria. Materials and Methods: In this case study, the SLP method is adapted for a future plant project that is not currently in place. First, instead of a materials flow analysis, the definition of the process flow, as well as the department requirements, is carried out. Then, the closeness relationships between the process flow activities and the layout alternatives are determined. Finally, the TOPSIS method is applied to evaluate and select the best layout alternative according to the compliance with closeness relationships, the location of dangerous departments, the flow of operations, and the location of departments around a current electrical substation. Results and Discussion: The resulting facility design complies with the defined criteria, and its architectural and layout designs are presented using 3D software. Conclusion: The joint application of SLP and TOPSIS methods allowed us to obtain a proper facility layout design for the case of a power generation turbine parts repair workshop. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Estimate an optimal policy for the blood platelets supply chain distribution problem using a vendor-managed inventory problems approach. Methods and materials: This paper uses an integrated simulation-based optimization model to develop a Vendor- Managed Inventory approach for blood platelets. Simulation is used to estimate the performance of a defined inventory policy. On the other hand, a genetic algorithm finds optimal or near-optimal inventory policies. This approach is evaluated using a case study inspired by a real blood center in Colombia. Results and discussion: Using the proposed approach, key indicators in the blood supply chain such as total cost and outdated units are significantly improved while maintaining the service level. In terms of costs, the VMI model shows a 19.19% advantage over the non-VMI solution. Moreover, the proposed VMI solution can reduce by 42.25% the number of expired platelets. Conclusions: Using a VMI-based distribution system and a simulation-based optimization approach with genetic algorithms offers promising results in the proposed use case. This mixed methodology allows for flexible system configurations without the need for complex changes in the algorithm, and it does so without the need for excessive computational resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: In this paper, the photocatalytic degradation of acetaminophen was evaluated using silver-doped titanium dioxide nanoparticles in a cylindrical-parabolic composed photoreactor. Materials and methods: Titanium dioxide was synthesized via green synthesis using Cymbopogon citratus leaf extract and doped by silver photodeposition. Results and discussion: Morphological information shows that large agglomerates of approximately 49 nm can be attributed to the strong interaction between nanoparticles and their polycrystalline nature. The photodeposition of metallic silver reduces the surface effects, allowing a decrease in the electrostatic interaction and diameter size of the titanium dioxide, as well as the optical properties due to surface poising during the reduction of silver ions to metallic silver. The photocatalytic activity was performed to degrade acetaminophen as the drug model under visible-light radiation. The results are promising, with superior photodegradation of acetaminophen of approximately 37% and 11% for unmodified titanium dioxide and silver-doped titanium dioxide (0.75 at%) nanostructures compared to the commercial photocatalyst, respectively. Conclusions: Accordingly, the potential photocatalytic application of silver-doped titanium dioxide nanostructures is highlighted and represents a promising alternative for the photodegradation of organic compounds from wastewater eluents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to properly monitor the health status of the hydrological resources of a region, in terms of water contamination, a scalable and low-cost system is necessary to map the water quality at different locations and allow the prioritization of more sophisticated and expensive monitoring campaigns on those areas where a suspicious behavior seems to be occurring. This paper presents the design and implementation process of such an IoT-based solution for low-cost and scalable water quality monitoring applications. To achieve that end, we propose the utilization of a lowcost inter-digital capacitance (IDC) sensor to characterize the conductivity of the water, a very telling parameter about the level of pollution in the water. Additionally, an embedded method to measure such sensor was designed and implemented, which considers the requirements of a portable platform: low computational capabilities, small memory and low power consumption. Our results show that an IDC sensor is capable of detecting the changes of the capacitance of the sample, and therefore mapping the changes in the conductivity of the water. Additionally, integrating an embedded measuring method is a valid option for in-situ characterization of water samples and the complete solution enables a new paradigm for water quality monitoring in large scale scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an analysis of the reasons and motivations behind several educational figures in the constructing of hybrid methodologies through combinations based on entrepreneurship education as a method. A qualitative exploratory study wa s carried out, and data was collected through 19 semi-structured interviews. Data was analyzed through a discourse analysi s technique which made it possible to appreciate that hybrid methodologies are built as part of a contextualization process that seek s to apply correctly the methodologies concerned to the educator's culture, context, and even personal style present at the time. The understanding of the role that an educator's context plays in his or her choice of contents and teaching approaches could help to avoid biases and create transformational education practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]