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El acuífero del Ventós es un pequeño acuífero próximo a la ciudad de Alicante cuyas aguas se destinan exclusivamente al abastecimiento de la localidad de Agost. Sus recursos subterráneos son, por tanto, de especial importancia para esta población. Puesto que estos recursos son fuertemente dependientes de la precipitación, y ante el actual escenario de cambio climático, se ha realizado un estudio con el objeto de comprobar si se han producido cambios y tendencias en la precipitación anual, así como en el número de días de lluvia, episodios lluviosos y episodios lluviosos eficaces frente a la recarga durante los últimos 44 años. Los resultados obtenidos indican que el valor de precipitación anual media es de 282 mm, y a pesar de observarse una ligera tendencia positiva, esta no es estadísticamente significativa. Tampoco la disminución del número de días y episodios lluviosos tienen significación estadística. Los episodios superiores a 20 mm, considerados eficaces frente a la recarga, no reflejan tendencia alguna, por lo que, en principio, se puede concluir que no hay evidencias de un cambio significativo en la precipitación anual sobre el acuífero del Ventós, y especialmente en lo que respecta a precipitación que genera recarga.

The objective of the study is to quantify the effect of climate change on the climatic risks associated with droughts and diminished water resources in the eastern Iberian Peninsula. For this purpose, this work analyses the 70-year historical series (1952–2021) of daily rainfall data from 353 meteorological stations. They are located in a key recharge area of the hydrological system, the Sierra de Albarracín, where three important rivers originate, namely the Tagus, the Júcar and the Turia, as do several tributaries of the Guadiana and Ebro rivers. It analyses trends in: annual and seasonal rainfall volumes with specific studies about their intensity according to certain percentiles; the number of rainy days, dry spell duration (< 1 mm/day) and drought evolution with the Standardized Precipitation Evaporation Index. The most relevant results are: (1) the second 35 years of the study period (1987–2021) were notably drier than the first part (1952–1986), with smaller volumes and fewer days with recorded precipitation; (2) summer and winter were most affected by pluviometric decrease, with losses of >50% of rainfall volume at some stations; (3) moderate rainfall significantly reduced between the 50th and 95th percentiles, which were more important in the system's water recharge; (4) the stations with a negative precipitation trend predominated; (5) the medium- and long-term analyses (12 and 36 months) highlighted the drought situation in which the headwaters of the analyzed basins are immersed. The trend indicates that the situation will become critical.

Spatial mapping is one of the most useful methods to display information about the seismic parameters of a certain area. As in b-value time series, there is a certain arbitrariness regarding the function selected as smoothing kernel (which plays the same role as the window size in time series). We propose a new method for the calculation of the smoothing kernel as well as its parameters. Instead of using the spatial cell-event distance we study the distance between events (event-event distance) in order to calculate the smoothing function, as this distance distribution gives information about the event distribution and the seismic sources. We examine three different scenarios: two shallow seismicity settings and one deep seismicity catalog. The first one, Italy, allows calibration and showcasing of the method. The other two catalogs: the Lorca region (Spain) and Vrancea County (Romania) are examples of different function fits and data treatment. For these two scenarios, the prior to earthquake and after earthquake b-value maps depict tectonic stress changes related to the seismic settings (stress relief in Lorca and stress build-up zone shifting in Vrancea). This technique could enable operational earthquake forecasting (OEF) and tectonic source profiling given enough data in the time span considered.

Many previous research studies have shown how local and even regional earthquakes can significantly affect the release of radon in the soil. The aim of this work is to investigate the relationship between radon measurements and the daily seismic activity rate and develop a methodology that allows estimating the seismic activity rate using only radon measurements. To carry out this study, the earthquake catalogue of the Vrancea region (Romania) has been used to estimate the daily seismic activity rate during a given time period, in which radon measurements were also recorded, from January 2016 to September 2020. The Vrancea zone represents the most active seismic zone in Europe and is located on the eastern edge of the strongly bent Carpathian arc. In the case of the radon measurements, seasonal behaviours and linear trends due to non-seismic factors have been identified and subsequently removed. The discrete wavelet transform has been used to analyse the radon signal at two different scales: long and short periods. From the analysis carried out on a long-period scale, an approximate linear relationship has been obtained between the radon series and the daily seismic activity rate, which provides insights into the behaviour of the seismic activity in the study region with only the radon information. In addition, the study reveals certain characteristics that could be used as precursors of earthquakes at different scales: weeks in the case of the estimated daily seismic activity rate, and days in the case of the short-period signal obtained by the wavelet analysis. The results obtained for this region allow us to hope that the analysis of the radon time series can become an effective complement to the conventional seismic analysis used in operational earthquake forecasting.

The current study focuses on Spanish undergraduate students enrolled in Meteorology-related subjects that would make use of weather forecasts in their future professional careers. The main aim of this study is twofold. Firstly, to evaluate the students’ confidence in the current weather forecasts. Secondly, to analyze the students’ perception and understanding of uncertainty associated with weather-related forecasts. To address these issues, a Google Form questionnaire was developed. A total of 101 students participated in the corresponding survey during the academic year 2018-2019. Results show that students have a well-founded opinion and a fairly solid knowledge of weather forecasts, both regarding confidence and in relation to the trend found in the current weather forecasts towards less accurate predictions for larger lead times. The results found in the current study are in line with previous research conducted in different specific contexts and should be taken into account to implement different learning strategies in the classroom.

Background Hereditary fructose intolerance (HFI) is a rare inborn error of fructose metabolism caused by the deficiency of aldolase B. Since treatment consists of a fructose-, sucrose- and sorbitol-restrictive diet for life, patients are at risk of presenting vitamin deficiencies. Although there is no published data on the status of these vitamins in HFI patients, supplementation with vitamin C and folic acid is common. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess vitamin C and folate status and supplementation practices in a nationwide cohort of HFI patients. Methods Vitamin C and folic acid dietary intake, supplementation and circulating levels were assessed in 32 HFI patients and 32 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Results Most of the HFI participants presented vitamin C (96.7%) and folate (90%) dietary intake below the recommended population reference intake. Up to 69% received vitamin C and 50% folic acid supplementation. Among HFI patients, 15.6% presented vitamin C and 3.1% folate deficiency. The amount of vitamin C supplementation and plasma levels correlated positively (R = 0.443; p = 0.011). Interestingly, a higher percentage of non-supplemented HFI patients were vitamin C deficient when compared to supplemented HFI patients (30% vs. 9.1%; p = 0.01) and to healthy controls (30% vs. 3.1%; p < 0.001). Conclusions Our results provide evidence for the first time supporting vitamin C supplementation in HFI. There is great heterogeneity in vitamin supplementation practices and, despite follow-up at specialised centres, vitamin C deficiency is common. Further research is warranted to establish optimal doses of vitamin C and the need for folic acid supplementation in HFI.

The present work is focused on basic electronics subjects and specifically on the understanding and interpretation of amplifier circuits based on bipolar junction transistors. In this context, students acquire the skills to identify the different configurations, algebraically analyze the circuit and obtain the necessary parameters to characterize the behavior of the amplifier. However, from a practical point of view, students have more difficulties in understanding and interpreting the connection between the theoretical concepts and the real behavior of the circuit. In this sense, the objective of this research work is to develop and provide students with an online simulation tool that allows them to interact with the amplifier circuits studied in the theory class and understand how they behave with different configurations, component values or signals. The incorporation of circuit simulation in theory class has been investigated by the authors themselves during several courses. Compared to other courses, in which these simulations were not introduced, an improvement was observed in the obtained results. Additionally, students positively valued the inclusion of these simulation tools in the theory class and considered that it helps them to better understand the theoretical concepts. From this survey, it was deduced that students would like to have these same simulation tools outside the classroom in order to complement the non-face-to-face study.

Weather forecasts affect many persons’ lives and are used by the general public on a daily basis. However, they are not perfect, and there is an uncertainty associated with the current weather forecasts; users should be aware of this uncertainty. Previous research analyzes the perceptions, uses, and interpretations of uncertainty of Spanish undergraduate students. This study continues with this research line, but we investigate the degree of confidence and communication preferences of students enrolled in three meteorology-related subjects taught at two universities in Spain. We evaluated to what extent students trust in the current weather forecasts and analyzed how students are aware of the uncertainty associated with the forecasts considering different lead times. In addition, we assessed how students value the forecast of several weather elements as well as the students’ preferences for deterministic versus nondeterministic forecasts under two weather situations, with different degree of complexity in the forecast communication. A Google Form questionnaire was developed to address these issues. The survey was conducted in 2018/19, and 101 participants anonymously filled out the survey. Participants were enrolled in three different subjects taught in the degree in marine sciences at the University of Alicante and the degrees in environmental sciences and physics at the University of Valencia. Results show that students have a well-formed opinion of weather forecasts, both for confidence and in relation to the trend found in the current weather forecasts toward less accurate forecasts for larger lead times. For students’ preferences for deterministic versus nondeterministic forecasts, a significant majority of participants prefer weather forecasts that incorporate some uncertainty; a minority prefer single-valued (deterministic) forecasts. In comparing our results with those found in previous studies in different countries and contexts, similar outcomes are observ

Hereditary Fructose Intolerance (HFI) is an autosomal recessive inborn error of metabolism characterised by the deficiency of the hepatic enzyme aldolase B. Its treatment consists in adopting a fructose-, sucrose-, and sorbitol (FSS)-restrictive diet for life. Untreated HFI patients present an abnormal transferrin (Tf) glycosylation pattern due to the inhibition of mannose-6-phosphate isomerase by fructose-1-phosphate. Hence, elevated serum carbohydrate-deficient Tf (CDT) may allow the prompt detection of HFI. The CDT values improve when an FSS-restrictive diet is followed; however, previous data on CDT and fructose intake correlation are inconsistent. Therefore, we examined the complete serum sialoTf profile and correlated it with FSS dietary intake and with hepatic parameters in a cohort of paediatric and adult fructosemic patients. To do so, the profiles of serum sialoTf from genetically diagnosed HFI patients on an FSS-restricted diet (n = 37) and their age-, sex- and body mass index-paired controls (n = 32) were analysed by capillary zone electrophoresis. We found that in HFI patients, asialoTf correlated with dietary intake of sucrose (R = 0.575, p < 0.001) and FSS (R = 0.475, p = 0.008), and that pentasialoTf+hexasialoTf negatively correlated with dietary intake of fructose (R = −0.386, p = 0.024) and FSS (R = −0.400, p = 0.019). In addition, the tetrasialoTf/disialoTf ratio truthfully differentiated treated HFI patients from healthy controls, with an area under the ROC curve (AUROC) of 0.97, 92% sensitivity, 94% specificity and 93% accuracy.

El presente estudio evalúa cómo el alumnado de la Universidad de Alicante interpreta el grado de incertidumbre asociado a las predicciones meteorológicas de viento y precipitación. En primer lugar, se ha comprobado la respuesta del alumnado ante la predicción determinista de la velocidad del viento y la cantidad de precipitación. En segundo lugar, se ha evaluado si el alumnado toma alguna medida ante distintas situaciones de riesgo relacionadas con dichos parámetros, tanto cuando la información se presenta en términos deterministas como de probabilidad. Los resultados indican que un pequeño porcentaje del alumnado espera pronósticos perfectos, mientras que la mayoría reconoce cierto grado de incertidumbre inherente a los pronósticos meteorológicos. En este sentido, el alumnado espera una desviación de ±5-10 km/h para la velocidad del viento, y de ±30 mm para el caso de la cantidad de precipitación. Por otro lado, el alumnado tomaría acciones de precaución ante situaciones de riesgo por fenómenos extremos de viento y precipitación, si bien hay una mayor variedad de respuestas en relación a cuándo y cómo el alumnado tomaría una acción determinada para la predicción de estos mismos parámetros meteorológicos expresados en términos de probabilidad.

En este estudio cuantitativo se evalúa cómo el alumnado de la Universidad de Alicante interpreta el grado de incertidumbre asociado a las predicciones meteorológicas de viento y precipitación. Para ello, se ha diseñado un cuestionario que incluye 8 preguntas que han sido respondidas por un total de 71 alumnos de grado y máster. En primer lugar, se ha comprobado la respuesta del alumnado ante la predicción determinista de la velocidad del viento y la cantidad de precipitación. En segundo lugar, se ha evaluado si el alumnado toma alguna medida ante distintas situaciones de riesgo relacionadas con dichos parámetros, tanto cuando la información es presentada en términos deterministas como cuando se presenta en términos de probabilidad. Los resultados indican que un pequeño porcentaje del alumnado espera pronósticos perfectos, mientras que la mayoría reconoce cierto grado de incertidumbre inherente a los pronósticos meteorológicos. En este sentido, el alumnado espera una desviación de ±5-10 km/h para la velocidad del viento, y de ±30 mm para el caso de la cantidad de precipitación. Así mismo, el alumnado tomaría acciones de precaución ante situaciones de riesgo por fenómenos extremos de viento y precipitación, aunque hay una mayor variedad de respuestas en cuanto a la probabilidad a la cual se tomaría una acción determinada para la predicción probabilística de estos parámetros meteorológicos.

This quantitative study evaluates how 71 Spanish undergraduate students perceive and interpret the uncertainty inherent to deterministic forecasts. It is based on several questions that asked participants what they expect given a forecast presented under the deterministic paradigm for a specific lead time and a particular weather parameter. In this regard, both normal and extreme weather conditions were studied. Students’ responses to the temperature forecast as it is usually presented in the media expect an uncertainty range of ±1°–2°C. For wind speed, uncertainty shows a deviation of ±5–10 km h−1, and the uncertainty range assigned to the precipitation amount shows a deviation of ±30 mm from the specific value provided in a deterministic format. Participants perceive the minimum night temperatures as the least-biased parameter from the deterministic forecast, while the amount of rain is perceived as the most-biased one. In addition, participants were then asked about their probabilistic threshold for taking appropriate precautionary action under distinct decision-making scenarios of temperature, wind speed, and rain. Results indicate that participants have different probabilistic thresholds for taking protective action and that context and presentation influence forecast use. Participants were also asked about the meaning of the probability-of-precipitation (PoP) forecast. Around 40% of responses reformulated the default options, and around 20% selected the correct answer, following previous studies related to this research topic. As a general result, it has been found that participants infer uncertainty into deterministic forecasts, and they are mostly used to take action in the presence of decision-making scenarios. In contrast, more difficulties were found when interpreting probabilistic forecasts.

Este trabajo evalúa cómo interpreta el alumnado de la Universidad de Alicante el grado de certidumbre asociado a las predicciones meteorológicas de temperatura. Por un lado, se ha comprobado la respuesta del alumnado ante las predicciones de temperatura presentadas en los medios de comunicación. Por otro lado, se ha evaluado si el alumnado toma alguna medida ante distintas situaciones de riesgo relacionadas con la temperatura, cuando esta información es presentada en términos deterministas o de probabilidad. Los resultados indican que el alumnado espera un grado de incertidumbre de entre 1 y 2 ºC en los pronósticos de estos parámetros atmosféricos cuando son presentados en términos deterministas. Además, el alumnado muestra una mayor confianza en la predicción de temperatura mínima que en la máxima. Finalmente, el alumnado tomaría acciones de precaución ante situaciones de riesgo por temperaturas extremas, aunque las respuestas varían cuando esta predicción se presenta en términos probabilísticos.

En este trabajo se evalúa cómo el alumnado de la Universidad de Alicante interpreta el grado de certidumbre asociado a la predicciones meteorológicas de temperatura. Para ello, se ha diseñado un cuestionario que incluye 8 preguntas que han sido respondidas por un total de 71 alumnos de grado y máster. En primer lugar, se ha comprobado la respuesta del alumnado ante la predicción de temperatura, tal y como son presentadas habitualmente a través de distintos medios de comunicación. En segundo lugar, se ha evaluado si el alumnado toma alguna medida ante distintas situaciones de riesgo relacionadas con la temperatura, tanto cuando es presentada en términos deterministas como cuando se presenta en términos de probabilidad. De esta forma, se pretende comprobar la fiabilidad que percibe el alumnado en los pronósticos actuales de las temperaturas máximas y mínimas. Los resultados indican que el alumnado espera un grado de incertidumbre de entre 1 y 2 ºC en los pronósticos de estos parámetros atmosféricos cuando son presentados en términos deterministas. Además, los resultados parecen mostrar una mayor confianza en la predicción de temperatura mínima que en la máxima. Así mismo, el alumnado tomaría acciones de precaución ante situaciones de riesgo por temperaturas extremas, si bien hay una mayor variedad de respuestas cuando esta predicción se presenta en términos de probabilidad.

Land Surface Models (LSM) have shown some difficulties to properly simulate day-time 2-m air and surface skin temperatures. This kind of models are coupled to atmospheric models in mesoscale modelling, such as the Regional Atmospheric Modeling System (RAMS) and the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model. This model coupling is used within Numerical Weather Prediction Systems (NWP) in order to forecast key physical processes for agricultural meteorology and forestry as well as in ecological modelling. The current study first evaluates the surface energy fluxes and temperatures simulated by these two state-of-the-art NWP models over two distinct vegetated covers, one corresponding to a poor and sparsely vegetated area and the other one corresponding to the tall and well-vegetated area of a forest. On the other hand, the importance of parameterizing the thermal roughness length within the LSM coupled to the corresponding atmospheric model is also evaluated. The LEAF-3 LSM is used within the RAMS modelling environment while the Noah-MP LSM is applied within WRF. Results indicate that the original version of the models underestimates the temperature during the day, more remarkably in the forested area, whereas modifications in the thermal roughness length successfully simulates the temperature and sensible heat flux forecasts over this area. This study highlights the key role of the surface exchange processes when coupling land and atmosphere models. In this regard, incorporating an extra resistance in the surface-layer parameterization through the thermal roughness length is essential to simulate well both temperatures and sensible heat fluxes, which becomes more relevant over tall and well-vegetated areas, such as a forest. This extra resistance for heat exchange prevents effective molecular diffusion in the layer between the momentum roughness length and the thermal roughness length. Additionally, an appropriate description of the canopy height permits to apply

El uso de resultados de modelos numéricos como recurso para el estudio de conceptos complejos en asignaturas relacionadas con la Meteorología está ampliamente extendido. En concreto, en lo referente a las predicciones meteorológicas. El propósito del presente estudio es explorar la confianza que tiene el alumnado matriculado en este tipo de áreas del conocimiento en dichas predicciones. Para ello, se ha utilizado un enfoque cuantitativo y método no experimental a través de una encuesta. Se recoge así información relacionada con el medio de comunicación preferente utilizado por el alumnado para obtener este tipo de previsiones, así como información relacionada con la percepción y valoración de los estudiantes de las predicciones meteorológicas así como de la incertidumbre asociada. La muestra se compone de 157 individuos pertenecientes a las universidades de Alicante (n = 73) y Valencia (n = 84). Los resultados indican que el alumnado solo experimenta previsiones incorrectas algunas veces o incluso raramente y muestra una idea clara de la incertidumbre. Estos resultados están de acuerdo con estudios simulares llevados a cabo en otros países.

We present a procedure for exposure and vulnerability evaluation that integrates LiDAR, orthophotos, and other ancillary datasets. It comprises three phases: (1) city stratification into homogeneous regions; (2) exposure database compilation; and (3) vulnerability allocation using predictive modelling. We have conducted two applications in Lorca (Spain) and Port-au-Price (Haiti) and here we compare them. Each phase of the method is subject to variations due mainly to data availability; however, it does not affect the final accuracy that remains high in both scenarios (over 80%). It is a flexible procedure that is able to adapt to the particular features of two different cities.

Las predicciones meteorológicas son herramientas utilizadas por el alumnado de asignaturas relacionadas con la Meteorología y Oceanografía para visualizar e interpretar conceptos físicos complejos. Este estudio tiene como objetivo analizar en qué medida el alumnado del Grado en Ciencias del Mar de la Universidad de Alicante está familiarizado con las previsiones meteorológicas y su incertidumbre asociada. En este estudio hemos seguido un enfoque cuantitativo y método no experimental, mediante encuesta, que incluye un total de 4 preguntas realizadas a 73 alumnos del grado. Estas cuestiones han sido previamente validadas en estudios anteriores desarrollados en otros países y contextos. El análisis de resultados se centra en la descripción de frecuencias y porcentajes de respuestas, así como en la aplicación de pruebas no paramétricas dentro del entorno de computación estadístico R. Los resultados obtenidos muestran que el alumnado percibe la incertidumbre asociada a los pronósticos meteorológicos, así como su tendencia a aumentar para mayores alcances temporales de previsión. Esto se corresponde con las evidencias científicas encontradas en relación a las previsiones a largo plazo. Por otro lado, el alumnado valora de forma positiva las predicciones meteorológicas actuales, y hace uso de medios de comunicación selectivos de forma mayoritaria para la consulta de dichas predicciones.

The Valencia coastal region (Western Mediterranean) is especially sensitive to extreme heat events, where they are really common. However, due to its geophysical characteristics and climatic conditions, the incidence of high and extreme temperatures may still be modulated over this area by means of sea breeze circulations, defining a Sea Breeze Convergence Zone (SBCZ) due to the meet and interaction of these mesoscale conditions and Western synoptic-scale wind regimes. A proper definition of this convergence zone is of significant importance over the study area for the simulation and forecast of intense-heat meteorological events. This study analyses a week period in August 2010 over this area, which alternates the presence of meteorological conditions prone to high and extreme temperatures with sea breeze conditions that temper these extreme temperatures. The simulations have been performed using the mesoscale model Regional Atmospheric Modeling System (RAMS). The analysis focuses on the ability of different initial conditions and technical features and two widely used planetary boundary layer parameterizations to forecast and reproduce the observed high and extreme temperatures, as well as to properly capture the main associated atmospheric patterns. It has been found that an increased horizontal resolution in the initial atmospheric fields produces a better representation of the regional and local wind flows simulated by the mesoscale model, leading to an accurate characterization of the temperature fields when these wind circulations dominate over the area of study. However, no significant differences are obtained within the intense-heat situations, associated with atmospheric synoptic-scale forcings. Regarding PBL parameterizations, the local PBL scheme tends to underestimate the daytime temperatures, while the non-local scheme produces higher temperatures than the local scheme, skilfully reproducing the observations. Additionally, the non-local scheme overesti