De Ambato Research Articles

Scaffolding techniques and speaking skill

The use of scaffolding techniques in the classroom help students improve the development of their language skills. The present study aimed to analyze the influence of Scaffolding techniques on the development of speaking skill in students of seventh semester in “Pedagogia de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros.” The research developed a quantitative approach and it was experimental. The population in the study were 24 students of seventh semester. The instruments used during the investigation were a preand posttest, the researcher used part 3 of B1 preliminary test to assess students before and after the treatments. The treatments consisted on 5 session where the researcher applied scaffolding techniques, additionally, a survey was applied to determine students’ perceptions towards the use of scaffolding techniques. Assessing speaking performance rubric was used to evaluate speaking sub skills such as: grammar and vocabulary, discourse management, pronunciation and interactive communication. At the end of the investigation, the findings showed an improvement in students speaking development since the average before the treatment was 6,8/10, in contrast, after the treatments students’ average was 7,7/10. Thus, scaffolding techniques influence the speaking skill instudents of seventh semester from Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros atUniversidad Técnica de Ambato.

The Collapse of the Vaults of the Ambato Matriz Church in the 1949 Earthquake: A Response with a Technical Approach

This research examines the structural behavior of the central vault of the Matriz church that collapsed during the 1949 earthquake in Ambato, Ecuador. Following the disaster, the church and Episcopal Palace were demolished. The central vault lacked buttresses and had large cracks two years before the collapse. A study was conducted using graphic restitution and the theory of limit analysis of structures to analyze the mechanical behavior of the central vault. The aim was to provide a technical explanation for the cause of the collapse beyond the impact of the earthquake. The limit analysis of structures is a tool that determines the technical stability conditions of a masonry structure using graphic statics. In this case, the respective checks of the structural behavior could be made, concluding that the structural ensemble of the central vault was unstable and could have collapsed at any moment, not necessarily due to an earthquake. The article is based on the research project “Architectural analysis of the central nucleus of Ambato between 1895 and 1949: styles, types, techniques, losses, and continuities”, which was conducted at the Universidad Técnica de Ambato, Ecuador, from 2021 to 2023.

Evaluación de Electrolizadores Alcalinos y PEM para Producción de Hidrógeno Verde de Fuentes Hidroeléctricas en el Ecuador

Introducción The yearly increase in energy demand has encouraged the scientific community to find new sources of energy production without affecting the environment. Renewable technologies have become extremely popular due to the low greenhouse emissions and availability of natural energy sources (wind, sun, water, earth, tides, etc.), However, because of the intermittent energy generation from renewable sources, it is complex to rely on these technologies to guarantee the energy supply. Therefore, over the last decade, hydrogen has become increasingly studied as an energy carrier to replace current energy production technologies based on fossil fuels. Hydrogen can be easily coupled with other energy sources, increasing the efficiency of the systems. Nevertheless, hydrogen cannot be found in nature on its own and needs to be produced, currently, the most efficient method for green hydrogen generation is based on the electrolysis of water, this electrochemical process relies on the availability of water and the efficiency and correct selection of the electrolyser. Thus, this research evaluates the Alkaline and Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) electrolysers for green hydrogen generation using water from hydroelectric power plants in Ecuador. Objetivos Evaluate Alkaline and PEM electrolysers for green hydrogen generation from hydroelectric power in Ecuador Método The methodology consists of a literature review of different brands of alkaline and PEM electrolysers selecting the ones with the highest efficiencies. For the analysis of data and information processing, quantitative methods were used. Finally, a sample of 9 hydroelectric plants was obtained for the study (Molino, Mazar, Agoyán, San Francisco, Pucará, La Península, Illuchi N 1, Illuchi N 2, Marcel Laniado). Principales resultados Different electrolyser manufacturers were analysed: Nel ASA producer of alkaline as well as PEM electrolysers, among them several models were evaluated NEL A 300, NEL A 485, NEL A 1000, NEL A 3880 with alkaline technology, and NEL MC 250, NEL M 5000 with PEM technology. H-TECH Electronic Co.Ltd with its model H-TEC HCS 10 using PEM technology. SIEMENS Energy, with its electrolyser technology PEM Silyzer 300 and McPhy with Mclyzer alkaline technology. All models were evaluated with the data from the 9 hydroelectric plants. Using technical data from the selected electrolysers and availability factor (90 %) from the hydroelectric plants, the potential of hydrogen production per year was calculated. The NEL A 3880 model with a system factor of 94% and a power of 14.7 MW displays the highest hydrogen production for alkaline technology, while the NEL MC 250, with an efficiency of 79% and 1 MW of power using PEM technology shows the highest hydrogen generation, these results are achieved for the Agoyan hydroelectric plant. Conclusiones The alkaline electrolysers show a better hydrogen generation capacity, achieving a total of 300 x 10e6 Kg of H2 per year with the NEL A 3880 model, in comparison with the PEM electrolyser technology that accounts for a maximum hydrogen production of 214 x 10e6 Kg of H2 per year. These results from the evaluation of the electrolysers show that it is feasible to establish a system for green hydrogen production based on hydroelectric power plants in Ecuador. The authors acknowledge the financial support received from the Universidad Técnica de Ambato and Dirección de Investigación y Desarrollo (DIDE) through the research project number PFICM28 “ANÁLISIS DE FACTIBILIDAD DE GENERACIÓN DE HIDRÓGENO VERDE MEDIANTE FUENTES DE ENERGÍA HIDROELÉCTRICA EN EL ECUADOR”.

Estrategia KWL en la compresión lectora

Introducción Language learners select and employ strategies that help them learn or use language skills efficiently. Language learning strategies are operations that learners adopt consciously to develop a language task or learn the target language. Different from learning strategies, language learning strategies have a direct relation with language learners. What distinguishes a language learning strategy from other processes is that students are conscious of their selection. Autonomy is another fact that some strategies provide students. For the first time the Know-want to Know-Learned (KWL) strategy in 1986. The KWL strategy activates students’ prior knowledge when they answer the following questions: What I know (K), what I want to learn (W), and what I learned (L)., The KWL strategy uses a three-column chart to organize and answer three previous questions. The K goes to the first column, then the W in the second column, and finally the L in the last column. Students follow three steps to write ideas in each column, answering the questions raised in the heading’s row. It involves the reading process from pre-reading, during reading, until after reading. Objetivos To determine the students’ attitudes toward the KWL strategy in the improvement of the reading comprehension. Método The present research used human and technological resources. The human resources were 45 students of fourth semester A of the “Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros” major at Universidad Técnica de Ambato. Students consisted of 11 men and 34 women. It was expected that the 45 students to have B1 English level. Technological resources were necessary for the investigation because the process was developed during the virtual modality. So, the researcher used mobile devices, the internet, a computer to gather data and analyze it. Additionally, the researcher used platforms to collect information like Google Classroom and Google forms. Principales resultados “reading for main idea” showed that students obtained an average of 3.38 in the pre-test and an average of 3.73 over 5 points. The difference between both scores is 0.35. Meanwhile, in the second part “reading for specific information and detailed comprehension”, the result of the pre-test was 0.78, and the post-test was 2.93. The difference between both averages is 2,15. On the other hand, in the section that evaluated “scanning for specific information”, students obtained an average of 6.38 during the pre-test and an average of 7.2 during the post-test with a difference of 0.82. Furthermore, in the last section that focused on tested reading for detailed comprehension, students obtained an initial average of 2.41 and a final average of 2.53. It means that the averages have a difference of 0.02. After applying the KWL strategy to improve students’ reading comprehension skills, students obtained final averages of 13.04 and 16.22 with a difference of 3.18 points. Conclusiones the effects of the KWL strategy on the improvement of students’ reading comprehension of fourth semester A of Pedagogía de Los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros major. This was proved after the analysis of the results of the experiment and the verification of the hypothesis. The results of the experiment showed that students improve from 13.04 to 16.22 points over 25. Additionally, the null hypothesis was rejected allowing us to verify that the alternative hypothesis was true. Consequently, the KWL (Know, Want to Know, Learned) strategy had a strong influence on the development of reading comprehension skills during the teaching process.

Promoviendo el juego de roles para el aprendizaje interactivo para desarrollar habilidades comunicativas

Introducción The goal of the current research project is to assist students in developing their communication skills, which makes it intriguing. The use of the role-playing technique on students to encourage their interaction with the English language in real-time also serves to develop fluency and accuracy in the oral presentation of English in this context. This study was crucial because it could easily be integrated into the curriculum and because it aimed to develop cultural variety by enhancing language proficiency and reinforcing knowledge via the use of various stories. Also, the value of role-playing supports the teaching and learning environment by engaging students and achieving immersive learning. This research project aims to analyze the influence of role-playing on communicative skills. The participants were 34 students in the 5th semester in the career of “Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros” at “Universidad Técnica de Ambato”. The research was collected in three stages: pre-test, treatment, and post-test, in 8 interventions. The pre-test consists of 2 parts taken from a B1 Cambridge PET which are: speaking and writing. The intervention process involved presenting slides with information about role-playing, the different topics to be covered and a small demonstration of each role-playing to be carried out in each class, worksheets to practice grammar skills and other helpful resources. In contrast to the pre-test phase, where they frequently made fossilized mistakes, the post-treatment pupils demonstrated better communication abilities by speaking with more assurance and expanding their vocabulary. If the treatment had been applied for a longer period, the improvement and influence would have been more noticeable. Objetivos To determine the influence of role-playing in the improvement of communicative skills. Método Pre-experimental Principales resultados The data collected was taken from the pre-test and post-test which were based on a Cambridge standardized test. The criteria to assess students the progress for evaluating speaking and writing performance B1 was grammar and vocabulary, discourse management, pronunciation, and interactive communication. Hence, 18 was the greatest score and 6 was the lowest for each criterion. The findings from the pre-test and post-test are contrasted in this table. The speaking and writing pre-test averages are shown in the first column, along with the final average of these scores, which is 21.8 out of a possible 40 points. Secondly, in the second column presented the post-test averages of both parts are displayed in the subsequent column following the interventions, with the combined averages producing a total score of 24.44 out of a possible 40 points. It demonstrates that the speaking section scored 1.70 points higher than the writing section, which scored 0.94 points higher. Conclusiones After a thorough evaluation procedure, it was discovered that the children had a medium-low level. This is based on the results of the tests used to evaluate the students, and even after the interventions, they continue to utilize fossilized errors and a narrow vocabulary range at this level. Even though there weren’t enough sessions, role-playing proved effective in helping students in the fifth semester with their communication abilities. As a result, it is possible to show the difference between the pre-test and post-test and the advantages of using different topics to involve the class during the lessons. Additionally, the best settings were sports, animals, shopping, traveling, and transportation.

Ilustrando el aprendizaje de vocabulario a través de los sitios web educativos

Introducción The web is a great medium of communication and is well suited to shorter documents with lots of links. The Web is not good for very long documents that need to present an ever-evolving argument. Some of the Internet technologies for the development and use of Websites are grouped in Web 2.0 tools. Which are a set of interaction mechanisms with visitors to a website where programmers offer new services on the sites, achieving greater interactivity to enable the formation of virtual communities. Educaplay is a platform for the creation of multimedia educational activities, characterized by attractive and professional results. Is aimed at creating a community of users with a vocation to learn and teach while having fun. The platform provides various possibilities for teaching professionals to install their own online educational space on the platform, where everyone can take classes to another level of participation. In addition, this application allows teachers to create different types of multimedia and interactive activities with educational orientation, through different scenarios such as Riddles, Complete, Crossword, Dialogue, Dictation, Order letters, Order words, Test. Objetivos To identify the importance of Educational Websites (Educaplay) for teaching vocabulary. Método The research was important to take into account and consider the different types of resources such as technical, technological, and human. Technical resources, books, articles, and online theses from the Universidad Técnica de Ambato repository, among others, were used to obtain the necessary information and guide the research. On the other hand, to apply the first variable were used some technological resources like computers, smartphones, and Educational websites (Educaplay). Then, to measure the second variable the Reading and Writing Part of Flyers Cambridge exam was chosen . Finally, in terms of human resources, there were 22 students from Unidad Educativa Sagrada Familia in 9th grade “A” of EGB, of which 12 students were women and 10 were men. This research was also based on a qualitative approach. It was qualitative because a series of interventions and observation techniques were carried out on the Educational Websites (Educaplay) and the influence on vocabulary teaching. Principales resultados The test that was applied consists of 3 parts. The first part comprised a dialogue between two people in which students completed multiple selection questions. The second part was about a gap-fill activity in which students chose an appropriate word to complete sentences. The third part featured a variety of sentences in which students had to read and choose the appropriate word that defines it. The rubric used allowed the students to obtain a score of 2.5 out of 2.5 points, for parts 1 and 2, on the other hand, in part 3 the students were able to obtain a score of 5 points. The student could obtain a maximum score of 10 points at the end of the test. For the analysis and interpretation of the results, a series of tables and graphs were prepared, which allowed a better understanding. These tables show the average result of each part that was evaluated in both the pre-test and the post-test. Conclusiones The use of this educational website (Educaplay) contributed to the development of abilities and skills, achieving a better understanding of vocabulary. The vocabulary level of students was reflected in the pre-test (A2 Flyers) taken at the beginning of the process. The overall percentage obtained was 5.23 out of 10 points which means that they had a medium level. This evidenced that the students had shortcomings in their vocabulary, they could not identify the meaning of some words that were unknown to them and that at their level they should have known. The results of the post-test were obtained to later infer that the use of educational websites for the English language had a significant impact on student’s learning. The percentage that students obtained was 9.59. As it can be seen, the score was high and that means that they improved their vocabulary level. Therefore, the use of educational websites is an important factor in the development of vocabulary skills in students.

BUILDING UP VOCABULARY USING THE ROLE PLAY STRATEGY IN YOUNG ADULT LEARNERS OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE

Vocabulary is considered as an essential element in foreign language development. Learning how to use the new vocabulary words in a specific context provides learners more opportunities to express their ideas effectively. However, foreign language environments have used some traditional strategies to introduce this sub-skill causing an inefficient foreign language production. Implementing the role play strategy offers foreign learners an interactive and valuable source to use the language productively in authentic simulated situations. This research was performed to determine the effect of the role play strategy in building up vocabulary. A group of 48 participants from A2 level at Universidad Técnica de Ambato were immersed in this study. The researchers developed a quasi-experimental study in which the control and the experimental groups were not chosen randomly. The control group remained learning the vocabulary with the traditional strategies, while the experimental group was approached to the implementation of an interactive and meaningful strategy: the semi-scripted role play. A standardized rubric from Cambridge University Press for A2 level was used to assess the speaking skills in the grammar and vocabulary, pronunciation, and interactive communication criteria. According to the results obtained once the pre-test and post-test were applied, the students of both groups significantly improved their ability to build up vocabulary at the A2 level, although in the case of the experimental group the result was even better since it showed a significant difference concerning the control group (p-value = 0,0055).

Strengthening the English language reading comprehension by using inferring meaning strategy

Introduction. The English language has become one of the most spoken languages all around the world. English teachers must face the challenge of achieving significant learning and for doing so, it is essential to use some strategies that facilitate the learning process. When teaching reading, which is one of the four language skills, there is a great number of strategies to apply depending on the aim of the reader. One of the most useful is Inferring Meaning Strategy. Objective. The aim of this research is to analyze the efficacy of this strategy when developing reading comprehension in 28 students from the 5th semester of Pedagogy de los Idiom’s nationals y estrangers (PINE) at Universidad Técnica de Ambato. Methodology. At first it was necessary to apply a diagnostic test to check students’ previous knowledge. For this, the second and fourth part from the reading section of the Preliminary English Test (PET) were used. Students had the opportunity of practicing the strategy for a month. During this period, they had to complete some comprehension activities related to readings. Finally, the experimental group took a post- test from PET to evaluate the effectiveness of the strategy. Results. The results obtained were analyzed using the student’s t-test. Conclusion. They evidenced that the Inferring Meaning Strategy contributes to the development and improvement of the reading comprehension

Fostering English vocabulary learning through gamification strategy. A preliminary study

This study was conducted to establish the effectiveness of the Gamification strategy in the vocabulary acquisition in the English language in the students of the first semester at Pedagogy of National and Foreign Languages Program at Universidad Técnica de Ambato. A descriptive and correlational methodology was used, and as a data collection technique, a pretest and posttest of knowledge were applied. 73 students participated in this research study (36 students were in the control group and 37 in the experimental group). The results of the pretest showed that most of the students had a limited vocabulary in the English Language. Therefore, the use of the Duolingo learning platform was proposed as a gamification strategy to improve the level of vocabulary that students demand. Finally, a posttest was applied, which showed that the students went from a basic to intermediate level, establishing the effectiveness of the proposed gamification strategy (Duolingo learning platform) in the acquisition of new vocabulary.

Fostering English vocabulary learning through gamification strategy. A preliminary study

This study was conducted to establish the effectiveness of the Gamification strategy in the vocabulary acquisition in the English language in the students of the first semester at Pedagogy of National and Foreign Languages Program at Universidad Técnica de Ambato. A descriptive and correlational methodology was used, and as a data collection technique, a pretest and posttest of knowledge were applied. 73 students participated in this research study (36 students were in the control group and 37 in the experimental group). The results of the pretest showed that most of the students had a limited vocabulary in the English Language. Therefore, the use of the Duolingo learning platform was proposed as a gamification strategy to improve the level of vocabulary that students demand. Finally, a posttest was applied, which showed that the students went from a basic to intermediate level, establishing the effectiveness of the proposed gamification strategy (Duolingo learning platform) in the acquisition of new vocabulary.

Strengthening the English language reading comprehension by using inferring meaning strategy

Introduction. The English language has become one of the most spoken languages all around the world. English teachers must face the challenge of achieving significant learning and for doing so, it is essential to use some strategies that facilitate the learning process. When teaching reading, which is one of the four language skills, there is a great number of strategies to apply depending on the aim of the reader. One of the most useful is Inferring Meaning Strategy. Objective. The aim of this research is to analyze the efficacy of this strategy when developing reading comprehension in 28 students from the 5th semester of Pedagogy de los Idiom’s nationals y estrangers (PINE) at Universidad Técnica de Ambato. Methodology. At first it was necessary to apply a diagnostic test to check students’ previous knowledge. For this, the second and fourth part from the reading section of the Preliminary English Test (PET) were used. Students had the opportunity of practicing the strategy for a month. During this period, they had to complete some comprehension activities related to readings. Finally, the experimental group took a post- test from PET to evaluate the effectiveness of the strategy. Results. The results obtained were analyzed using the student’s t-test. Conclusion. They evidenced that the Inferring Meaning Strategy contributes to the development and improvement of the reading comprehension

The portfolio resource in the development of the English writing process

Introduction. The portfolio is an educational resource widely applied in English learning process due to its versatility in compiling to evidence of a student’s academic work. It also contributes to an exhaustive follow-up on the students’ goals achievement and their skills development. Objective. The study points out the benefits of the portfolio in the development of the writing skill among students from A1 Starter level of the Universidad Técnica de Ambato during the academic semester September 2017 – February 2018. Methodology. During the research project a quantitative qualitative methodology was applied. Moreover, correlational variables helped to determine the students’ deficiency in their writing process through the application of a pre-test and post-test. To obtain a significant sample of the research population four parallels belonging to A1 level were randomly selected with a total of 119 learners which were divided into experimental and control group. Results. After applying the evaluation instruments, the finding analysis showed a meaningful improvement in the development of writing English skills in the experimental group over the control group. Conclusion. It was evident that portfolio’s usage helps learners to be more aware and independent in their learning progress, this was reflected in their writing production.

La aplicación de métodos tecnológicos de evaluación de idioma extranjero en relación con el nivel de estrés que estos generan en los estudiantes universitarios

La presente investigación tuvo por objeto averiguar el nivel de estrés académico y sus diferentes comportamientos, que se producen al aplicar evaluaciones a los estudiantes usando algunas herramientas tecnológicas como son StarQuiz Netclient, Socrative, Google Forms como también pruebas plateadas a través de la plataforma Moodle de la Universidad Técnica de Ambato. Cada una de las pruebas evalúa las destrezas de comprensión lectora así como el manejo de vocabulario en general y contiene claves de respuestas para ser seleccionadas a través de dispositivos móviles como tablets, teléfonos celulares o computadores personales. Estas pruebas van acompañadas de tres tests de autoevaluación para averiguar el nivel de estrés, la primera antes de la prueba, la segunda durante la prueba y la tercera después de la prueba. Esta investigación se realizó en el Centro de Idiomas de la Universidad Técnica de Ambato, en donde se aplicó a una muestra de 215 estudiantes, quienes cursaban niveles de inglés, italiano, francés y chino mandarín. Para la recolección de datos se utilizaron las técnicas de la encuesta aplicadas en test, en la que la información que se generó fue tabulada y representada mediante gráficos y tablas estadísticas; estos resultados nos dieron a conocer una correlación negativa significativa entre el nivel de estrés generado y el rendimiento académico, y que existe mayor grado de estrés durante la prueba, bajando el nivel de estrés antes de la prueba y un mínimo nivel de estrés al finalizar la prueba; lo que implica que los estudiantes frente a una evaluación utilizando aplicaciones tecnológicas, existe poca tolerancia de comportamientos frente a las evaluaciones que realizan.

ENTOMOFAUNA DIVERSITY IN SUNFLOWER CROP IN ASSOCIATION WITH ATTRACTANT PLANTS

<p>The objective of the research was to determine the effect of the association of the sunflower crop with attractive crops on the diversity and abundance of the entomofauna at the Experimental Farm Querochaca, Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias, Universidad Tecncia de Ambato (UTA), Ecuador. Samplings of insects visiting sunflower were made at 8:30; 11:30 and 14:30 h during three months. The insects were separated by morphotypes and posteriorly identified to family or when possible to species level using taxonomic keys. Specimens belonging to Diptera and Hymenoptera were sent to the J.M Osorio-UCOB Entomological Museum (Venezuela) for identification. The different morphotypes were separated by their feeding habit as predators, phytophagous, parasitoids and pollinators. A total of 379, 1065 and 396 insects were collected when the sunflower seeded alone, in association with <em>Vicia</em> and Chinese cabbage, respectively. In general, the entomofauna composition was similar in the three cropping systems in which it was found that the highest number of families collected corresponded to insects of predatory habit (11), phytophagous (5), pollinators (4) and parasitoids (2) (p<0,001). Diptera showed greatest diversity of families (14), followed by Homoptera (3) and Hymenoptera (3), whereas only two families from Coleoptera and one from Hemiptera were collected. A positive correlation was observed between insect numbers and temperature in sunflower + Vicia (r = 0.9144, p <0.00), sunflower + Chinese cabbage (r = 0.9548, p <0.00) and sunflower alone (r = 0.9204, p <0.00). According using attractive plant species in association to sunflower promoted higher insect diversity, including pollinator and natural enemies species, which could be profited to increase crop productivity, however, more detailed studies are required to establish its impact.</p>

CICABI 2018 - 1st International Congress of Food Science and Biotechnology - Special issue of "Italian Journal of Food Science"

Vol 31 No 5 (2018)This Special Issue of the Italian Journal of Food Science collects the presentations given at the “CICABI 2018. 1st International Congress of Food Science and Biotechnology” organized by the Engineer and Food Science Faculty (Facultad de Ciencia e Ingenieri?a en Alimentos) of the Technical University of Ambato (Universidad Te?cnica de Ambato), held at Ambato, Ecuador on June 25-29, 2018.These papers were reviewed by the Scientific Committee of CICABI 2018 before their presentation but they did not undergo the conventional reviewing system of the Italian Journal of Food Science.

Ecosystem modeling using artificial neural networks: An archaeological tool

Prediction of past Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (paleo-NDVI) in Valle de Ambato (Catamarca, Argentina) in the periods of 550–650 and 1550–1650CE was carried out to test the efficacy of Artificial Neural Network (ANN) to predict past environments for Archaeology. This work shows that both subtropical Yunga and xerophytic Chaqueña vegetations respond in contrasting fashion to changes in climate forcings. To predict the past an ANN perceptron multilayer model was used. Modern NDVI data and Tree-Ring data were obtained from NOAA-Paleoclimate, and other public sources. These data were used to train the model. Real data and predictions were close (Pearson correlation 0.83–0.90) and warranted the following step, hindcasting. Important paleo-NDVI fluctuations lasting 15 to 20years were identified in both periods under study. The paleo-NDVI fluctuations in the earlier period were probably related to the unidentified eruption of 583. The fluctuations in the later period appear related to the eruption of 1600 of the Huaynaputina volcano (SW Peru). These findings suggest that the model accurately identified vegetation fluctuations in response to changes in the volcanic forcing. Hence, the ANNs may be considered as apt tools for modeling past environments in support of archaeology.

Herramienta para evaluar cuantitativamente el proceso de formación informal que tiene lugar a través de una aplicación Facebook.

El estudio del impacto de Facebook en el ámbito educativo ha estado basado, mayoritariamente, en el análisis cualitativo de los resultados de aprendizaje y de motivación de los estudiantes. El presente trabajo toma como punto de partida el uso de la aplicación Facebook Sigma por parte de estudiantes de la Universidad Técnica de Ambato, la que les permite compartir recursos educativos, en lo que constituye un proceso de aprendizaje informal que está teniendo lugar. Nos hemos propuesto construir Gamma, una herramienta para generar estadísticas y gráficos que ilustren el impacto de la red social en este proceso de aprendizaje. En el presente trabajo se presentan los resultados del estudio de cómo aquellos que aprenden de forma informal, valoran el uso de Gamma. Se comprobó que la aplicación 1) sirve de retroalimentación a los usuarios de la comunidad educativa con relación al valor de los recursos educativos y de las acciones sociales que tienen lugar y que 2) permite evaluar cuantitativamente el impacto del uso de Facebook en el proceso de formación informal. Como valor agregado, Gamma garantiza la comunicación entre usuarios adeptos y detractores del uso de Facebook en el ámbito educativo.

El desarrollo regional como responsabilidad social de la universidad. Caso del ecoturismo en la provincia de Tungurahua

El rol de la universidad en el desarrollo regional es objeto de reflexión en este artículo mediante el análisis de un caso concreto: el desarrollo del ecoturismo en la provincia de Tungurahua, en Ecuador, por medio del programa Prometeo de la Secretaría de Educación Superior, Ciencia Tecnología e Innovación con la Universidad Técnica de Ambato. La responsabilidad social universitaria como concepto se presenta mediante la articulación de la metodología de investigación acción participativa, en la cual el proceso de análisis y propuesta de acciones a desarrollar son producto del diálogo y acuerdos entre actores de la academia y los sectores público y privado. Las conclusiones apuntan a que el desarrollo del ecoturismo, como necesidad identificada en el cambio de matriz productiva, requiere de una universidad que desde la interacción con grupos de interés sea catalizadora de los intereses de las diferentes partes y anteponga el trabajo participativo que garantice una visión conjunta en un área interdisciplinar como el turismo. © Revista Colombiana de Ciencias Sociales.

Successive reactivation of older structures under variable heat flow conditions evidenced by K–Ar fault gouge dating in Sierra de Ambato, northern Argentine broken foreland

The Argentine broken foreland has been the subject of continuous research to determine the uplift and exhumation history of the region. High-elevation mountains are the result of N–S reverse faults that disrupted a W–E Miocene Andean foreland basin. In the Sierra de Ambato (northern Argentine broken foreland) the reverse faults offset Neogene sedimentary rocks (Aconquija Fm., ∼9 Ma) and affect the basement comprising Paleozoic metamorphic rocks that have been dated at ∼477−470 Ma. In order to establish a chronology of these faults affecting the previous continuous basin we date the formation age of clay minerals associated with fault gouge using the K–Ar dating technique. Clay mineral formation is a fundamental process in the evolution of faults under the brittle regime (<<300 °C). K–Ar ages (9 fractions from 3 samples collected along a transect in the Sierra de Ambato) vary from Late Devonian to Late Triassic (∼360–220 Ma). This age distribution can be explained by a long lasting brittle deformation history with a minimum age of ∼360 Ma and a last clay minerals forming event at ∼220 Ma. Moreover, given the progression of apparent ages decreasing from coarse to fine size fractions (∼360−311 Ma for 2−1 μm grain size fraction, ∼326−286 Ma for 1–0.2 μm and ∼291−219 Ma of <0.2 μm), we modeled discrete deformation events at ∼417 Ma (ending of the Famatinian cycle), ∼317–326 Ma (end of Gondwanic orogeny), and ∼194–279 Ma (Early Permian - Jurassic deformation). According to our data, the Neogene reactivation would not have affected the K–Ar system neither generated a significant clay minerals crystallization in the fault gouge, although an exhumation of more than 2 Km is recorded in this period from stratigraphic data.

Earthquake deformation in the northwestern Sierras Pampeanas of Argentina based on seismic waveform modelling

We investigate the seismic properties of modern crustal seismicity in the northwestern Sierras Pampeanas of the Andean retroarc region of Argentina. We modelled the complete regional seismic broadband waveforms of two crustal earthquakes that occurred in the Sierra de Velasco on 28 May 2002 and in the Sierra de Ambato on 7 September 2004. For each earthquake we obtained the seismic moment tensor inversion (SMTI) and tested for its focal depth. Our results indicate mainly thrust focal mechanism solutions of magnitudes Mw 5.8 and 6.2 and focal depths of 10 and 8 km, respectively. These results represent the larger seismicity and shallower focal depths in the last 100 years in this region. The SMTI 2002 and 2004 solutions are consistent with previous determinations for crustal seismicity in this region that also used seismic waveform modelling. Taken together, the results for crustal seismicity of magnitudes ≥5.0 in the last 30 years are consistent with an average P-axis horizontally oriented by an azimuth of 125◦ and T-axis orientation of azimuth 241 ◦ and plunge 58 ◦ . This modern crustal seismicity and the histori