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En la actualidad, los programas académicos están en constante desarrollo para adaptarse a las necesidades cambiantes del alumnado y de la sociedad. Esto obliga al profesorado universitario a formarse en metodologías activas y a rediseñar sus asignaturas para motivar la participación del estudiantado. En este contexto, el Aprendizaje-Servicio (ApS) se presenta como una herramienta de actualidad, que favorece el desarrollo y evaluación de competencias e incluye la necesidad de formar al estudiante en valores. Con esta metodología se apuesta por el aprendizaje de los contenidos de las asignaturas, para su posterior aplicación a una necesidad social vinculada con el entorno más próximo al alumnado. En este trabajo, se presenta una propuesta de aplicación de ApS que se ha llevado a cabo a lo largo del año 2023 con alumnado de grado y de máster en la E.T.S. de Edificación de Madrid. La experiencia ha tenido como objetivo acercar al estudiantado a la problemática ocasionada como consecuencia del aumento descontrolado de neumáticos en los vertederos de las grandes ciudades, y la necesidad de buscar soluciones eficientes y sostenibles para su reciclaje y revalorización. De esta manera, se describen las fases, planificación y metodología empleada a lo largo de un curso académico resaltando los aspectos más relevantes. Los resultados muestran cómo la integración del ApS en las asignaturas ha mejorado el grado de satisfacción del alumnado y ha permitido generar ideas y desarrollar productos que pueden servir como motor para impulsar un cambio hacia un sector de la construcción más sostenible. Así, la formación del alumnado en materia de sostenibilidad se ha presentado como un factor clave en el curso, siendo posible la adaptación de esta propuesta en otras asignaturas interesadas en abordar la problemática medioambiental en entornos urbanos.

The annual production of plastic waste worldwide has doubled in just two decades, with approximately 390 million tonnes of plastic waste now being generated. In this context, the construction industry must move towards the development of new, more sustainable materials made under circular economy criteria. In this work, a physico-mechanical characterisation of gypsum composites with the incorporation of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) waste, replacing 2-4-6-8-10% by volume of the original raw material, has been conducted. The results show how the incorporation of these plastic wastes improves the water resistance of the gypsum material without additions, as well as producing a decrease in thermal conductivity and greater resistance to impact. On the other hand, it has been found that, as the percentage of recycled raw material added increases, the mechanical resistance to bending and compression decreases, leading to fracture due to a lack of cohesion between the matrix and the waste. Nevertheless, in all the cases studied, mechanical strengths higher than those established by the EN 13279-2 standard were obtained. Thus, the results confirm the viability of these secondary raw materials to be used in the development of new products for sustainable building, especially in the design of prefabricated panels for false ceilings.

The incorporation of rubber recycled aggregates from end-of-life tyres (ELT) in the manufacturing process of sustainable building materials has gained great interest in recent decades as a result of the large volume of this waste being generated annually. In this work, the objective is to make a contribution towards the circularity of construction products by carrying out a physico-mechanical characterisation of new gypsum composites made with the incorporation of these recycled rubber aggregates. To this end, up to 30% by volume of the original raw material has been substituted, analysing the mechanical resistance to bending and compression. Although lower than those of traditional gypsum material, both properties exceed the limits set at 1 and 2 MPa, respectively, by the current regulations. In addition, water absorption by capillarity significantly decreases, and thermal conductivity is reduced by more than 35% with respect to the reference material. Finally, in order to provide the research with a practical application, a prefabricated plate design has been proposed that incorporates the gypsum materials studied and an agglomerated rubber band that increases the thermal resistance and improves the efficiency of the designed construction system. In this way, this research reflects the potential of these novel building materials and explores new avenues for their application in building construction. © 2024 by the authors.

Norms and handbooks have played a key role in the design of residential rooms in Sweden since the 1940s. Ever since, changes in housing policies have led to varying definitions and regulations of residential rooms, allowing their existence, defining their configuration, and framing their performance. And yet, none of these rooms has been built; they are prescribed room types that belong in the pages of handbooks that validate the framework in which housing design can operate. What are these prescribed room types? What do they look like? Who and what do they include? Have they changed over time? In response to these questions, this article follows the evolution of a set of residential room types in the design handbooks that have accompanied housing policy bills in Sweden from 1942 to 2023. These manuals are not the law itself but operate as an interface for professionals and designers by reflecting the practical consequences of the norm. Diagrams, dimensions, texts, and references to housing literature vary from handbook to handbook to define the specific traits of each type of room. By studying these traits in relation to key moments of Swedish housing politics, the article reveals the role that norms and standards have played in the establishment of the regulatory regime in which housing design in Sweden operates today.

The Swedish Social Services Act (SFS 2001:453) stipulates since 1982 that the municipal Social Committee should become well acquainted with the living conditions in the municipality. They should also participate in urban planning, and in cooperation with other public bodies, organizations, associations and individuals promote good living environments in the municipality. The development, planning and design of good living environments for older people is an endeavour of great complexity that demands collaboration between many actors. Housing and care for older people is an important area in which social servicesand urban planning could benefit from collaboration. Planning for older people has recently been indicated as urgent and necessary, especially in the light of changed demography in which the proportion of older people is increasing. A built environment that accommodates older people’s everyday needs embraces issues such as age-friendliness, care, socio-spatial inequality, inclusion, and innovation. This research program, CollAge, investigates cross-sectoral collaboration in Swedish municipalities between social eldercare, urban planning and Senior Citizens’ Councils as regards housing and care. With diverse qualitative methodologies the multidisciplinary team of scholars in social work, architecture and urban planning explore how eldercare interventions and services are managed and understood in municipal urban planning and development, and how older people’s preferences can contribute to improved quality of care in social services and housing provision. The ultimate aim of the programme is to develop a methodological tool – CollAge – to support, facilitate and structure collaboration between the three actors.

The purpose of the present study was to build and develop and ad hoc multiple-choice written test to assess the schoolchildren’s knowledge of the environment around the educational center for physical conditioning (CENAFI). A total of 189 students (95 females) from first to fourth grades of Compulsory Secondary Education (Mage = 13.57 ± 1.3 years) participated in the study. The phases of the test validation were: (1) Construction and definition of the structure and purpose of the test; (2) content validation by experts; (3) piloting; (4) depuration and application of the definitive instrument; (5) test-retest reliability assessment; and (6) discriminant validity assessment. The final test consisted of 30 objective multiple-choice questions with moderate global difficulty (average = 11.60 points out of 30). All quantitative indices were adequate in difficulty, discrimination, and met the qualitative criteria established by the experts. The test-retest reliability of the test was adequate (ICC = .65) and the students who experienced the intervention program obtained a higher score than those of the control group, thus showing equally adequate discriminant validity. The results show that it is a valid and reliable measuring instrument in order to obtain information on schoolchildren’s knowledge of their immediate environment for physical conditioning. The present study represents a valuable contribution to scientific literature and has important practical repercussions for the Physical Education subject., El objetivo del presente estudio fue construir y validar una prueba escrita de elección múltiple ad hoc para evaluar el conocimiento de los escolares sobre el entorno próximo al centro educativo para el acondicionamiento físico (CENAFI). Un total de 189 estudiantes (95 mujeres) de primer a cuarto curso de Educación Secundaria Obligatoria (edad media = 13.57 ± 1.3 años) participaron en el estudio. Las fases de la validación de la prueba fueron: (1) Construcción y definición de la estructura y finalidad de la prueba; (2) validación de contenido por expertos; (3) pilotaje; (4) depuración y aplicación del instrumento definitivo; (5) evaluación de la fiabilidad test-retest; y (6) evaluación de la validez discriminante. La prueba final consistió en 30 preguntas objetivas de elección múltiple con una dificultad global moderada (media = 11.60 puntos sobre 30). Todos los índices cuantitativos fueron adecuados en dificultad, discriminación y cumplieron con los criterios cualitativos establecidos por los expertos. La fiabilidad test-retest de la prueba fue adecuada (CCI = .65) y los estudiantes que vivenciaron el programa de intervención obtuvieron una puntuación mayor que los del grupo control, mostrando, por tanto, una validez discriminante igualmente adecuada. Los resultados demuestran que es un instrumento de medida válido y fiable para obtener información sobre el conocimiento de los escolares del entorno próximo para el acondicionamiento físico. El presente estudio representa una contribución valiosa para la literatura científica y con importantes repercusiones prácticas para la asignatura de Educación Física.

Desde su constitución en diciembre de 2019, la Oficina de Aprendizaje-Servicio (ApS) de la UPM se ha dedicado a promover y difundir la metodología ApS en el ámbito de las enseñanzas de nuestra universidad. Nuestra misión es trabajar en colaboración con entidades externas a la UPM para abordar las demandas y necesidades sociales, utilizando los conocimientos de nuestros estudiantes y profesores para contribuir a la construcción de una sociedad más justa y equitativa. En línea con los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible (ODS) y la Agenda 2030, se han impulsado convocatorias de proyectos de impacto social, colaborando estrechamente con otras oficinas con objetivos similares en diferentes universidades. Se han establecido numerosas colaboraciones con Ayuntamientos, Asociaciones, ONG, Fundaciones y centros de enseñanza, enfocadas en mejorar entornos desfavorecidos y apoyar a colectivos vulnerables en nuestro entorno. La positiva acogida de estas iniciativas ha generado un creciente interés por parte de nuestros docentes y estudiantes, reflejado en la participación en las actividades organizadas por la oficina. En cuanto a la difusión, el año pasado publicamos la primera edición del ebook "Experiencias de Aprendizaje-Servicio Universitario". En esta segunda edición, hemos recopilado algunas de las experiencias más destacadas realizadas durante 2023 por el profesorado y los estudiantes de nuestra universidad en el ámbito del AprendizajeServicio. Nuestra intención es continuar ampliando estas publicaciones con futuras ediciones, dando visibilidad a las iniciativas meritorias que se llevan a cabo en nuestra comunidad universitaria. Agradecemos sinceramente a todos los profesores que han contribuido a esta segunda edición con sus experiencias y esperamos que sirva como inspiración y guía para futuros proyectos de Aprendizaje-Servicio en nuestra universidad. ¡Gracias por su compromiso y dedicación!.

The immobilization of a glutamate dehydrogenase from Thermus thermophilus (GDH) on glyoxyl agarose beads at pH 7 has permitted to perform the immobilization, purification and stabilization of this interesting enzyme. It was cloned in Escherichia coli and a first thermal shock of the crude preparation destroyed most mesophilic multimeric proteins. Glyoxyl agarose can only immobilize enzymes via a multipoint and simultaneous attachment. Therefore, only proteins having several terminal amino groups in a position that permits their interaction with a flat surface can be immobilized. GDH became rapidly immobilized at pH 7 and its multimeric structure became stabilized as evidenced by SDS-PAGE. This derivative was stable at acidic pH value while the non-stabilized enzyme was very unstable under these conditions due to subunit dissociation. After immobilization, a further incubation at pH 10 improved enzyme stability under any inactivating conditions by increasing the enzyme–support bonds. In fact, GDH immobilized at pH 7 and incubated at pH 10 preserved more activity than GDH directly immobilized at pH 10 (50% versus 15% after 24 h of incubation) and was also more stable (1.5- to 3-fold, depending on the conditions)., Comunidad de Madrid, Ministerio de Ciencia, Fundación Ramón Areces, Depto. de Ingeniería Química y de Materiales, Fac. de Ciencias Químicas, TRUE, pub