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

University students face the challenge of communicating in a foreign language while speaking. This is perceived as one of the most complex skills to develop. The lack of opportunities to interact in the target language, in and out of the English classrooms, prevents students from acquiring fluency and confidence. This study examines the development of students' oral communication skills of Level B1 (Pre-Intermediate level of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) using the WhatsApp applications. Forty–five EFL learners aged 18-25 from a language center at a university in Ecuador performed exercises using voice messages and short videos as part of their course planned activities. The data collection method consisted of surveys and interviews with the participants and their teacher’s observations. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and cross-tabulation accordingly. Analysis of the data evidenced that short videos were far more effective than voice messaging in improving the participants' oral communication skills. Other benefits were the improvement of grammar and pronunciation observed in the learners' voice messages, with the consequent improvement of their speaking fluency. It can be said that the participants' overall oral communication skills developed with the use of the WhatsApp application in this study. Therefore, the authors recommend exploring the application of technological resources in the EFL classroom.

The objective of this work was to evaluate the point load test index, known as Is (50), of rock material or simply rock, depending on the dimensions of the specimens that were developed and subjected to the test. It began with the taking of samples of the same material, which comes from a single outcrop and is composed of amphibole andesite. The outcrop is in a sector called Cojitambo, in the province of Cañar in Ecuador. In a second instance, test tubes were elaborated until obtaining ninety, which were in ideal conditions for the test, and divided into three groups of thirty, called P5, P7, and P9. The dimensions of the specimens were approximately 10x10x5 cm, 10x10x7 cm, and 10x10x9 cm, respectively. As a third stage, the precise dimensions of the specimens were taken and evaluated, as they were subjected to the point load test. The results are interesting since they show different behavior for each group of test tubes, raising some questions while the point load test index of the rock can be objectively assessed. The obtained conclusions should be taken into consideration.

Responding effectively to humanitarian crises and emergencies caused by disasters of various kinds is a challenging task. The logistical aspects inherent to the planning and execution of response actions are oriented to effectively minimize costs and human losses. This study proposes a mathematical model to support the decision-making of the organizations involved in providing support to an emergency event. Such varied assistance can include suggesting the location of temporary transfer centers, distributing resources through secondary routes from the centers to the areas affected by the disaster, and reducing the risk of late delivery. The innovative aspect of this work incorporates a measure that quantifies, in a monetary manner, the time in which a vulnerable person is deprived of a resource (time between the generation of aid demand and the aid reception). Finally, the proposed model is applied in an instance derived from the effects caused by the earthquake in Ecuador in 2016.

The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected millions of migrants, refugees, asylum-seekers, and stateless persons as well as IDPs worldwide. At the same time, the dependence of economies and societies on migrant and refugee labour to perform essential work in such sectors as healthcare, transportation, services, agriculture, food production and distribution, construction, industry, commerce, and others became even more obvious. However, many policies and actions addressing COVID-19 at the beginning of the pandemic were established with little or no consideration for migrants and refugees, resulting in excessive COVID cases, high mortality rates, unemployment, and loss of livelihood across migrant and refugee populations. The paper argues that a comprehensive and rights-based package of measures is needed for effective response to the pandemic, relevant and proportionate to prevent the spread of coronavirus and allowing for people and economies to sustain socio-economic development on local, national, and regional levels. Based on in-depth review and critical analysis of literature as well as synthesis of approaches and recommendations contained in guidance documents from international organisations, the paper provides policy lines and actions/action steps on COVID-19 and migrants and refugees. It covers the interrelated issues of health and healthcare including vaccination; non-discrimination and inclusion; social protection; employment; community support and protection; gender; refugee specific measures; cross-border mobility; data, narrative, and communications; and recovery. Only a comprehensive package of measures that includes migrants, refugees, asylum seekers, stateless persons and IDPs in national and local COVID-19 responses can possibly solve challenges posed by the pandemic in our global, mobile, interconnected and interdependent world.

The mashua (Tropaeolum tuberosum Ruiz & Pavón) is an Andean tuber that is grown in the high Andean lands of South America, it is a resistant plant that requires little fertilizer and is resistant to nematodes and various pests, it is part of the native diet and is It is considered a very nutritious food. However, its usefulness is diminishing and it is not widely consumed in society, since the elderly are the ones who consume it the most. In this study, the objective of the research is to collect information on the physicochemical characteristics, nutritional composition and bioactive compounds in the three varieties of mashua: black, purple and yellow. For this reason, a systematic search was carried out in scientific databases such as Science Direct, Elsiver, Scielo, Wiley Online and academic Google; in addition to collecting information from repositories and books; where results were obtained from high levels of nutrients such as proteins present in the black mashua, carbohydrates in the yellow variety and phosphorus in purple; it also has outstanding physicochemical characteristics in the purple and black mashua, antioxidant activity, bioactive compounds such as polyphenols and glucosinolates identified in the three varieties. These compounds play a fundamental role in the prevention of cancer and other neurodegenerative diseases. Likewise, this tuber contributes to the food industry by developing viable products for commercial promotion that meet the nutritional and healthy expectations of consumers.

The objective of this research was to generate a model of reliability, availability, and maintainability of the telecommunications and data transmission platform. This model allows the calculation of the availability and estimation of the reliability of the switches (switches), routers (Routers), UPS (uninterruptible power supply), access points (Access Point), access points / bridge (Access point / bridge), and radio link equipment. The location of Maturin de Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA) was taken as a case study.  The study consisted of field research with a descriptive level. The population consisted of eight (8) workers in the area. Failure reports of the eastern monitoring center (CIMOR, acronym in Spanish) for the last eighteen (18) months of 106 equipment installed in Maturin were used to collect information. The reliability, availability, and maintainability (CDM) analysis methodology and the Raptor 7.0 software were used to develop the model. This proposed model allows availability calculations and reliability projections of the platform, as an essential requirement for the realization of maintenance plans and support in decision-making for optimizing the organization's operational performance. The proposed model is an example for the telecommunications platforms of any of the locations that make up PDVSA, only by analyzing the configuration and function of the components within the system (reliability block diagram).

This paper presents a digital system for the control and monitoring of the angular velocity of a disk in real-time. The system is based on using an infrared optical sensor that detects interruptions in the slots of the rotating disk, coupled to the shaft of the DC motor. The rotational speed of the disk is dependent on the rotational speed of the motor shaft.  The motor rotation revolutions are controlled by a programmable microprocessor that generates a pulse width signal with variability. The system has serial communication with the computer. This type of communication sends the data recorded by the sensor and digitized by the microprocessor to an Excel sheet for their graphical representation. The graphs allow us to visualize the disk´s angular speed variability and establish characteristics to understand and comprehend what is taken for granted in theory.

The objective of this research was to develop a theoretical construct for the management of information technology (IT) projects, taking as a case study the Management of AIT South East Region belonging to Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA). The work is framed within research with a feasible project modality and  a descriptive and field-type research level. The data collection techniques used were documentary review, direct observation, and unstructured interviews. The sample was represented by project leaders assigned to management. The theoretical construct is supported by a project office and a maturity model (based on the OPM3 - Organizational Project Management Maturity Model) in project management composed of five (5) levels, from the lowest (level 0) to achieve the desired objective (level 4), i.e., continuous improvement and the use of best practices. This effect makes it possible to identify, implement and optimize critical capabilities in an orderly manner. The theoretical construct for IT project management provides a simple representation of this process, which guides and facilitates the execution of projects to the different actors involved, ensuring the understanding of the sub-processes and relationships that compose it. In this way, the optimal operation required to provide and maintain information technology services and integrated solutions is guaranteed.

The emergency situation caused by COVID-19 resulted in an increase in social and economic vulnerability in vulnerable populations, among which immigrant women stand out, especially those in irregular administrative situations. In 2020, a study carried out by the “Por Ti Mujer Association”,  the life experiences and realities lived by the group of Latin American immigrant women from the city of Valencia, and its metropolitan area, were systematized. That greatly affected the social and health crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic. It especially impacted the labor, economic, and emotional dimensions, concluding that their affects violated the exercise of their fundamental rights. The role social and political advocacy played by third sector organizations, the verified weakness and insufficiency of social protection systems, research and advocacy work, and these types of reports, the trajectory of the “Por Ti Mujer Association” constituted an example of good practices. They also contributed to democratic governance, the construction of public policy, the strengthening and defense of the human rights of immigrant women, and to raising awareness and strengthening civil society.

This article proposes to implement an educational workshop based on the “role-play” technique as a fundamental tool to be included in the syllabus of a course offered in any of the last two years on an Engineering Program to introduce social problems such as global migration-related situations. Through impersonating a diplomatic representative of a nation, participants get to analyze the problems that migrants and refugees cope with within several countries, but also gain awareness, empathy, and embody the crisis and fundamental human rights vulnerability they experience day by day, motivating students to routinely incorporate innovative solutions to these conflicts. A “Role-play” simulation-based tool commonly used is the Model United Nations (MUN), representing the United Nations System focused on students from schools, colleges, or universities. The article examines the MUN model methodology, its benefits, and its overall importance for the social skills development of the participants.  Additionally, we review the positive impact of including social topics, such as global migration, into educational programs.