Abstract

The emergence of massive open online course (MOOCs) has been a turning point for the academic world and, especially, in the design and provision of training courses in Higher Education. Now that the first moments of the information explosion have passed, a rigorous analysis of the effect of the movement in high-impact scientific world is needed in order to assess the state of the art and future lines of research. This study analyzes the impact of the MOOC movement in the form of scientific article during the birth and explosion period (2010-2013) in two of the most relevant databases: Journal Citation Reports (WoS) and Scopus (Scimago). We present, through a descriptive and quantitative methodology, the most significant bibliometric data according to citation index and database impact. Furthermore, with the use of a methodology based on social network analysis (SNA), an analysis of the article’s keyword co-occurrence is presented through graphs to determine the fields of study and research. The results show that both the number of articles published and the citations received in both databases present a medium-low significant impact, and the conceptual network of relationships in the abstracts and keywords does not reflect the current analysis developed in general educational media.

Abstract

Transport accessibility is an important driver of urban growth and key to the sustainable development of cities. This paper presents a simple GIS-based tool developed to allow the rapid analysis of accessibility by different transport modes. Designed to be flexible and use publicly-available data, this tool (built in ArcGIS) uses generalized cost to measure transport costs across networks including monetary and distance components. The utility of the tool is demonstrated on London, UK, showing the differing patterns of accessibility across the city by different modes. It is shown that these patterns can be examined spatially, by accessibility to particular destinations (e.g., employment locations), or as a global measure across a whole city system. A number of future infrastructure scenarios are tested, examining the potential for increasing the use of low-carbon forms of transport. It is shown that private car journeys are still the least cost mode choice in London, but that infrastructure investments can play a part in reducing the cost of more sustainable transport options. Document type: Article

Abstract

Extreme natural and man-made events can harm the road infrastructure facilities with substantial economic"br" damages. The research presented in this paper focuses on the quantification of the availability and safety of road"br" infrastructure during the occurrence of extreme events. It presents the first results of the implementation of"br" Resilience Engineering to road infrastructure. This work is carried out within the framework of the BMVI"br" Network of Experts of the German Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure as part of the"br" research ‘Quantification and prognosis of the availability and safety of road infrastructure in extreme events’"br" which is a component of the topic ‘Increasing the reliability of transport infrastructures’ lead by the Federal"br" Highway Research Institute (BASt).

Abstract

From a mobility perspective, walking is considered to be the most sustainable transport mode. One of the consequences of motor-oriented urban configuration on pedestrian mobility is urban fragmentation, which affects sustainability in cities. In this paper, we use a natural-based approach to landscape fragmentation and connectivity (inherited from landscape ecology) for pedestrian mobility planning. Our aim is to design a useful methodology to identify priority pedestrian corridors, and to assess the effects of implementing barrier-free pedestrian corridors in the city. For this purpose, we developed a method that integrates Geographical Information Systems (GIS) network analysis with kernel density methods, which are commonly used for designating habitat corridors. It was applied to Vitoria-Gasteiz (Spain). Pedestrian mobility was assessed by comparison of travel times between different scenarios. Results show that the implementation of pedestrian corridors reduces travel time by approximately 6%. Thus, an intervention in a small percentage of the city’s street network could considerably reduce pedestrian travel times. The proposed methodology is a useful tool for urban and transport planners to improve pedestrian mobility and manage motorised traffic. Document type: Article

Abstract

This paper analyzes the Web applications to manage literature in Biomedical Sciences. We identified, examined and described 28 academic utilities that perform automated analysis. They are user-friendly, and altogether provide better search, retrieval, management and metaanalysis (bibliometrics, network analyses and text mining) of PubMed literature in an efficient, automated, updatedand systematized manner that facilitates the simultaneous handling of large quantities of paper records, making it possible for the user to choose the most relevant. All of these initiatives address the needs and challenges of biomedical research in our time.

Abstract

Despite its long existence and international acceptance, network theory and analysis is a practically unknown approach in Documentation, both theoretically and methodologically speaking. Fortunately, this trend is changing, inasmuch as network theory and analysis may mean a quantitative and qualitative leap forward in the representation and analysis of the structure of all types of scientific domains, whether geographic, thematic or institutional. The extraordinary advances that have taken place in recent years in the study and analysis of complex networks have been made possible by a number of parallel developments. First of all, with computerized data acquisition and handling, large databases can be managed, leading to the emergence of different real network topologies. Secondly, the increase in computing power has made it possible to explore networks with millions of nodes. Thirdly, there is the slow but sure breakdown of boundaries between disciplines. This can be seen by researchers because of their ability to access and use databases that facilitate an understanding of the generic properties of complex networks.

Abstract

Spain’s academic web space is diagrammed, together with its relationship with the European Higher Education Area (EHEA), with the goal of determining the topology, the outstanding universities, and our standing with respect to other European web spaces. Several co-link maps and network graphs visually represent these relationships among universities and web spaces. The results show that the Spanish network is rather isolated from other European universities, because the out- and inlink percentages are quite low considering the volume of content and the number of Spanish universities. On the other hand, Spain’s academic web space is quite cohesive, with a significant nucleus that is strongly interconnected. We conclude that the limited use of the English language and minimal electronic publication of quality research in accessible repositories could explain this isolation. In addition, Spanish universities have a more local than international emphasis.

Abstract

Using visualization techniques based on social networks, this study aims to analyze stem cell research in Spain, as reflected in the Science Citation Index (SCI) database between 1997 and 2010 , divided into three sub-periods. The selected unit of analysis was the KeyWords Plus descriptors (KW+), the unit of measurement was their co-occurrence , and the Pajek and VOSviewer tools were used to generate and display the social networks. The results show two complementary images of research: the static structure, distinguishing between clinical and basic research, and the evolutionary dynamic, analysing both the most established and the emerging lines. The main contribution of this work is to present a methodology for the visualization and detection of the main r esearch lines over time, demonstrating its applicability and its predictability in scientific and geographic domains.