Sistema Regional de Información
en línea para Revistas Científicas de América Latina,
el Caribe, España y Portugal

This article presents the results of a study conducted by the Kipus-Costa Rica Network of the Educational Research Institute (INIE) of the University of Costa Rica (UCR). The objective of the research was to analyze the implementation and relevance of the Educational Informatics Teacher Guides of the National Technological Training Program (PNFT) of the Ministry of Public Education (MEP) of Costa Rica. These guidelines were applied in the second half of 2023, following the cancellation of the agreement with the Omar Dengo Foundation (FOD) and the closure of the National Educational Informatics Program (PRONIE). The research is exploratory in nature, as it addresses a topic that has not been investigated in the Costa Rican education system to date. To this end, an online questionnaire with closed and open questions was administered to 374 Educational Informatics (IE) teachers in preschool, primary, and secondary education. Frequency and content analyses of the questionnaire, as well as reports from state institutions and theories related to the topic, were conducted. The study finds that the IE proposal was implemented without training all teaching staff, as less than 50% of teachers received it; of these, 80% rated it as deficient. Regarding the development of skills and competencies in students based on the Guide, more than 60% of teaching staff report that these are not being achieved. The study concludes that the Guides are insufficient to promote the development of technological skills in students. Furthermore, a reengineering of the administrative and academic management of IE in Costa Rica is urgently needed to improve technological training in the National Education System.

The objective of the study is to design and implement a didactic sequence based on socio-scientific controversies, supported by the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), in order to promote scientific argumentation among second-year secondary school students in Córdoba, Argentina. Framed within a Design-Based Research (DBR) approach, two iterative cycles (2023 and 2024) were carried out, including design, implementation, and analysis phases, allowing for adjustments to the proposal after the first cycle. The sample consisted of 37 students in the first cycle and 34 in the second, working in the subject of Biology with an emphasis on the cell and tissue engineering. The methodology combined participant observation, written records, and the analysis of argumentative responses structured according to Toulmin’s model, comparing productions completed with and without the support of ChatGPT. The results indicated improvements in the foundation of data and justifications, reflected in clearer conclusions; however, a decrease in the autonomous formulation of hypotheses and counterarguments was observed. In conclusion, the intervention strengthened argumentative skills, demonstrating the potential of AI to enrich educational practice and foster critical reflection on ethical and scientific dilemmas, despite some noted limitations in argumentative diversity and a certain dependence on technology.

In recent years, Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI) has experienced an explosive growth in everyday life, at work, and in academia. This research aims to identify the perceptions regarding the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI) among college students from the Atlantic Branch of the University of Costa Rica in 2024, and to describe these uses from a cognitive perspective through the relationship with the revised Bloom’s taxonomy. This study follows a quantitative design and approach. The survey was used as a data collection technique and the sample was selected using criteria of convenience and voluntary participation. The findings show that at the memory level students mainly use GAI to look up definitions of concepts (60.4%), whereas at the comprehension level to look up examples of information or concepts (63.5%). At the application level students use GAI to translate texts from Spanish into other languages; at the analysis level to solicit characteristics, properties, dimensions of a phenomenon (37.5%). At the evaluation level students primarily use GAI to correct the grammar of their own texts (43.8%), and at the creation level to produce brainstorms (50%). The conclusions suggest that students predominantly utilize GAI for lower-level cognitive processes like memorizing, comprehending and applying. Students also consider that they make an ethical use of GAI that enhances their academic progress. However, due to the novelty of the topic, it is necessary to continue researching in this area. 

Hailed by some as a great poetic spirit of our time, labelled by others as a mere  juggler, Jean Cocteau has remained an unexplained writer up to this day. However, if we heed his dramatic work, and more precisely his play The Infernal Machine, we realise he is a deeply modem author and has participated actively in the dramatic renewal of the 20'h century. By renewing the classical myth of Oedipus according to Sophocles, the writer intends to express his `poetry of theatre', thus denying it its form to preserve the message. Conceived as a dynamic space, the charm of his play lies in the interplay of music, light,  gesture, sound, word and objects, Cocteau's theatrical poetry deriving from this conjugation. Among a]l these theatrical components, we have chosen to deal with the disturbing power of objects, since all of them, from the scarf to the mirror, help Oedipus's destiny to be fulfilled. Far from being reduced to mere stylistic or ornamental accessories, they are assigned an important role in the action, by confirming the oracle and leading Oedipus to mutilate himself and Jocaste to hang herself.

El propósito de este trabajo es presentar una unidad práctica que integre conceptos y destrezas desde una perspectiva holística. Se utilizó como marco conceptual la teoría de las inteligencias múltiples de Gardner. Se tomó la unidad de los animales en peligro de extinción del currículo de ciencia para ilustrar la integración de las destrezas de información y las inteligencias múltiples.

Se examina el impacto de los recursos electrónicos en el desarrollo de colecciones. La incorporación de estos recursos a la biblioteca y el énfasis actual en el acceso plantea un nuevo modelo que, lejos de eliminar, le añade nuevas dimensiones y funciones al desarrollo de colecciones. Se presentan algunos recursos electrónicos, gratuitos y accesibles a través de Internet, y se destacan aquéllos que resultan relevantes para América Latina.

This article discusses the historie development of postcards and examines the ways in which this media has been utilized as sources for historie research highlighting a representative sample of scholarship produced thus far. It also briefly describes the Tarjetas Postales collection at the Colección Puertorriqueña, Sistema de Bibliotecas, Universidad de Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras and explores potential research uses of specific postcards and categories of postcards within the collection.

Background and Aims: Coprophilous ascomycetes are saprobic organisms capable of degrading plant material that was not fully descomposed in the process of animal digestion. In the most recent global review, a total of 9666 records of ascomycetes were reported in 1376 excreta. For Mexico, during the 1970’s 23 new species were described of the country, and to date the research of this group of fungi has not been carried out in depth. The objective of this study is to analyze the taxonomic diversity of fimicolous fungi from a xerophilous shrubland in the state of Hidalgo, including qualitative histochemical tests.Methods: Excreta samples were collected between 2023 and 2024. In the laboratory, they were placed in a wet chamber for two months so that the fruiting bodies could develop. The material was determined based on macro- and microscopic morphological characters. In addition, qualitative histochemical tests were carried out. The material was deposited in the herbarium ENCB. Key results: Twenty-nine species were determined in 19 genera, 14 families and four orders of Ascomycota, of which 16 are cited for the first time for the country. Moreover, Coprotus sangabrielensis is proposed as new to science and a taxonomic key is presented for the species in this study. Qualitative histochemical tests reveal that the fimicolous ascomycetes studied may contain alkaloids, terpenoids and polysaccharides. Conclusions: With the present study, the number of known species of coprophilous ascomycetes for the Mexican mycobiota was increased to 127. It is also the first study to consider histochemical tests in coprophilous fungi from Mexico, suggesting that the main metabolite groups are alkaloids, terpenoids, and polysaccharides, located mainly in asci and paraphyses, important for their use in future biotechnological applications.

Background and Aims: Pleurotus ostreatus (PO) is an edible mushroom whose consumption has increased due to its important nutrient content. It is a saprophytic fungus that can acquire nutrients depending on the substrate in which it is grown, and it is well-known that agro-industrial residues are an important source of nutrients. This work aims to evaluate the effect of spent coffee grounds (SCG) and potato peel residues (PPR) as a substrate on the polyphenol content and antioxidant and antibacterial activity of hydroalcoholic extract from PO mycelium. Methods: PO cultivation was carried out with four substrates that included wheat straw substituted with 10, 15, and 20% of a 1:1 mixture of residues (SCG and PPR). From the mycelium obtained, hydroalcoholic extracts were generated in which the phenolic content, antioxidant (antiradical and reducing power activity), and antibacterial activity against foodborne pathogens (Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli, and Salmonella typhimurium) were determined. Key results: The results showed that the highest antiradical activity against DPPH and the quantification of phenols occurred in the substrate with 10, 15, and 20% of SCG and PPR; the substrate containing 20% had a higher content of flavonoids and ABTS antiradical activity. However, there were no differences in the chlorogenic acid content among any substrates. All the substrates also exhibited antibacterial activity against tested pathogens, mainly against S. aureus. Conclusions: SCG and PPR enhance the polyphenol content and antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of hydroalcoholic extract from PO mycelium, making them effective substrates for cultivation.

Backgrounds and Aims: Huauzontle (Chenopodium berlandieri subsp. nuttalliae) is a pseudocereal native to Mexico with high nutritional value and rich in biologically important phytochemicals. The objective of this study was to evaluate its promoting effect on the growth of Lactiplantibacillus (Lpb.) plantarum Lp22 and Lp24, Lacticaseibacillus (Lcb.) casei Shirota and Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis Bb12, as part of its potentially prebiotic characterization. This effect is likely associated with its fiber and phenolic compound content.Methods: Dried huauzontle and control prebiotics (chicory fructooligosaccharides or agave inulin) were fermented using strains of Lpb. plantarum Lp22 and Lp24, Lcb. casei Shirota, E. coli ATCC 43892 (representative enteric bacteria) and Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis Bb12 (representative colonic probiotic bacteria) in specific media and modifying the carbon source (0.3%, w/v). Fermentation was carried out under anaerobic conditions, for 8 h at 37 °C. At the end of fermentation, cell concentration, pH, total phenols, and soluble and insoluble fiber were determined. Prebiotic activity (PA) and prebiotic index (PI) were calculated.Key results: At the end of fermentation with Lp22 strain in MRS medium added with huauzontle, the insoluble fiber content decreased by 0.32% compared to the other strains (p<0.05), while the soluble fiber content increased by ca. 0.42% in fermentation with Lp22, Lp24, and Bb12 (p<0.05) strains. The phenolic compound content increased on average by 1.33-fold across all studied strains, while cell concentration increased by 1.60 logarithmic cycles, showing no significant difference (p>0.05) compared to the control prebiotics. Likewise, no differences (p>0.05) were observed in PA and PI scores between huauzontle and control prebiotics.Conclusions: These findings highlight the capacity of huauzontle to selectively promote the growth of certain bacterial strains, supporting its potential as prebiotic ingredient.