Heralded as revolutionary in their potential to improve efficiency, transparency, and sustainability, blockchain technologies promise new forms of large-scale coordination between actors that do not necessarily trust each other. This paper examines blockchain imaginaries and associated metaphors. Our analysis focuses on bitcoin and ethereum, today's most prominent blockchains that use the proof-of-work consensus mechanism. We identify three principles that organise blockchain imaginaries: substantial, morphological, and structural. These principles position blockchain as an enabler of economic, political and epistemological practices, respectively. Blockchain infrastructure and protocols rely on substantial metaphors (e.g. gold, gas) to govern resource allocation, morphological metaphors (e.g. work, trust) to generate consensus and structural metaphors (e.g. chain, transaction) to establish shared knowledge. Those imaginaries rely on metaphorical displacements of meaning that make blockchain technology relevant and intelligible while simultaneously shaping the direction of technological development and positing these technologies as new forms of economic, political and epistemological organisation. They are not merely descriptive but performative. We conclude by showing how these principles partially overlap with three symbolically generalized media: money, power and truth. Money organises scarcity within the economic system, power organises consensus within the political system, and truth organises knowledge within the science system.

This paper reports a study about the perceptions of the academic community, employers and civil servants regarding graduates’ employability skills in East Africa. Specifically, it focuses on the mismatch between skills acquired in Higher Education (HE) and those in demand by employers, and explores factors influencing the situation. A mixed method approach was implemented including a survey and a set of focus groups. The questionnaire on employability skills was distributed among regional stakeholders attending the Open Day events organised by three East African HE Institutions. A Principal Components Analysis was applied for the categorisation of the most in-demand skills and the identification of four major workplace skill sets. To gain further insights into the stakeholders’ perceptions of the graduate employability skills gap, 11 focus groups were organised at the same universities. The general results showed that employability skills were mostly perceived as insufficiently developed during the students’ progress in their programs. The final results enabled a better understanding of the nuanced relationship between labour market valuation and graduates’ acquisition of each skill set. It also allowed us to identify problems and barriers, and suggest possible solutions to overcome the shortcomings experienced by the sub-Saharan HE system.

This paper reports a study about the perceptions of the academic community, employers and civil servants regarding graduates’ employability skills in East Africa. Specifically, it focuses on the mismatch between skills acquired in Higher Education (HE) and those in demand by employers, and explores factors influencing the situation. A mixed method approach was implemented including a survey and a set of focus groups. The questionnaire on employability skills was distributed among regional stakeholders attending the Open Day events organised by three East African HE Institutions. A Principal Components Analysis was applied for the categorisation of the most in-demand skills and the identification of four major workplace skill sets. To gain further insights into the stakeholders’ perceptions of the graduate employability skills gap, 11 focus groups were organised at the same universities. The general results showed that employability skills were mostly perceived as insufficiently developed during the students’ progress in their programs. The final results enabled a better understanding of the nuanced relationship between labour market valuation and graduates’ acquisition of each skill set. It also allowed us to identify problems and barriers, and suggest possible solutions to overcome the shortcomings experienced by the sub-Saharan HE system.

The technological revolution of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has brought about new learning scenarios as well as new professional requirements, such as the development of intercultural and Foreign Language (FL) skills. In this regard, Virtual Exchange (VE) projects provide students with learning opportunities through online social interaction and collaboration (Dooly, 2017); allowing authentic intercultural experiences for students who do not have the opportunity of travelling (O’Dowd, 2016) and promoting 21st-century skills development (Jager, Kurek, & O’Rourke, 2016). However, interacting online in the FL with a person from a different culture can entail an affective challenge for students and might give rise to Foreign Language Anxiety (FLA). FLA is a dysphoric and situational anxiety suffered by one out of three FL students which inhibits communication and learning (Horwitz, Horwitz, & Cope, 1986). Due to the impossibility of finding an available tool to investigate the presence and effects of FLA in VE environments, the Telecollaborative FLA Scale (T-FLAS) was designed. This article presents the development of the T-FLAS, a 21-item questionnaire with a five-point Likert scale, aiming to provide researchers and practitioners with a tool to explore FLA in VE.

The purpose of this article is to understand the perspectives of Catalan teachers regarding the role of digital technologies in Education. The analysis relied on questionnaire survey data, using multivariate statistical analysis (principal component analysis or PCA) in order to understand patterns in teacher perspectives about digital technologies. This was followed by employing a clustering technique to identify teacher profiles of perspectives on the relation between digital technologies, teaching and learning based on those patterns (using principal component scores). During a later stage, those profiles were characterized by relating them with teacher characteristics, digital competence levels, and usage of digital technologies in teaching practices. Our findings suggest that there are 5 main patterns that structure teachers’ perspectives on this relation: usefulness for networked learning, usefulness for effective learning, usefulness in the learning process, threats for learning and importance of combining new technologies with traditional methods. In addition, six teacher profiles were identified based on the teachers’ positioning regarding those five perspective patterns.

Clinical practice guidelines (CPG) are useful tools for clinical decision making, processes standardization and quality of care improvements. The current General Social Security and Health System (GSSHS) in Colombia is promoting the initiative of developing and implementing CPG based on evidence in order to improve efficiency and quality of care. The reduction of inequalities in health should be an objective of the GSSHS. The main propose of this analysis is to argue why it is necessary to consider the incorporation of equity considerations in the development and implementation of clinical practice guidelines based on the evidence. A series of reflections were made. Narrative description was used for showing the arguments that support the main findings. Among them are: 1. Differential effectiveness by social groups of interventions could diminish final effectiveness of CPG in the GSSHS; 2. To not consider geographical, ethnic, socioeconomic, cultural and access diversity issues within the CPG could have a potential negative impacts of the CPG; 3. Overall effectiveness of GPC could be better if equity issues are included in the quality verification checklist of the guideline questions; 4. Incorporating equity issues in the process of developing CPG could be cost effective, because improve overall effectiveness of CPG. Conclusions To include equity issues in CPG can help in achieving more equitable health outcomes. From this point of view CPG could be key tools to promote equity in care and health outcomes.

Resumen: La comunicación deviene en un ámbito esencial para la salud pública, dado que sus actuaciones, a menudo, son puros actos comunicativos cuando no intervenciones que necesitan apoyarse en ellos para modificar o asentar comportamientos y actitudes. En la presente investigación nos preguntamos hasta qué punto las publicaciones de salud pública insertan artículos en los que la comunicación es el eje protagónico de los mismos y, de hacerlo, cuál es su tipología y con qué enfoques metodológicos Se trata de una investigación exploratoria en la que la metodología empleada es el análisis de contenido; para llevarla a cabo se realizó una revisión automática y manual de los textos que se han sometido al estudio. La muestra la componen todos los a artículos de las revistas de salud pública revistas (18) de la plataforma SCIELO entre los años 2005 y 2015 (incluidos). Del total de artículos (19.886) se escogieron aquellos que la propia plataforma caracteriza como de 'comunicación', (n=124). Entre los resultados, destacamos que sólo el 0,62% de los artículos se centran en el ámbito de la comunicación. La mayoría (n=114) son artículos originales y generalmente son estudios empíricos y predominan las investigaciones cuantitativas; en 14 artículos no se especifica metodología alguna.Palabras clave: Salud pública, SCIELO, artículos, comunicación, tipología, metodología.Abstract: Communication becomes an essential area for public health, given that its actions are often pure communicative acts when not interventions that need to rely on them to modify or settle behaviors and attitudes. In the present investigation we ask to what extent public health publications insert articles in which communication is the protagonist axis and, if so, what is their typology and methodological approaches. It is an exploratory research in which the methodology used is content analysis; to carry it out, an automatic and manual review of the texts that have been submitted to the study was carried out. The sample includes all the articles published in public health journals (18) of SCIELO’s platform between 2005 and 2015 (both included). Of the total number of articles (19.886), those characterized as ‘communication’ by the own platform were selected (n=124). Among the results, we highlight that only 0.62% of the articles focus on the field of communication. The majority (n = 114) are original articles and are generally empirical studies and quantitative research predominates; in 14 articles no methodology is specified.Keywords: Public health, SCIELO, articles, communication, typology, methodology.

Introduccion. La comunicacion deviene en un ambito esencial para la salud publica, dado que sus actuaciones, a menudo, son puros actos comunicativos cuando no intervenciones que necesitan apoyarse en ellos con la finalidad de modificar o asentar comportamientos y actitudes. Objetivos. En la presente investigacion nos preguntamos hasta que punto las publicaciones de salud publica (que deberian ser muy sensibles a la inclusion de temas relacionados con la comunicacion) insertan articulos en los que la comunicacion es el eje protagonico de los mismos y, de hacerlo, que caracteristicas tienen. Metodologia. Se trata de una investigacion exploratoria en la que la metodologia empleada es el analisis de contenido; para llevarla a cabo se realizo una revision automatica y manual de los textos que se han sometido al estudio, para lo cual, la descarga automatizada de cada articulo se hizo a traves de scraping con un lenguaje de programacion python. La muestra la componen todas las revistas sobre salud publica que forman parte de la plataforma SCIELO (en total 18), revistas publicadas entre los anos 2005 y 2015 (incluidos). Del total de articulos (19.886) se escogieron aquellos que la propia plataforma caracteriza como de (124 articulos). Se hizo de esta manera para examinar unicamente a los textos que tenian a la comunicacion como argumento principal de su contenido. Resultados. Entre los resultados debemos destacar que solo el 0,62% de los articulos se centran en el ambito de la comunicacion. De ellos, solo el 18,54% estan escritos por equipos interdisciplinares, la mayoria de los autores principales son del ambito de la salud (93 articulos), mientra s que solo 15 articulos tienen como autor principal a un investigador del ambito de la comunicacion. Los articulos se escriben mayoritariamente en espanol, 55 (39 en portugues y 30 en ingles); sin embargo, la mayor parte de ellos, 59, se producen en Brasil . 114 son articulos originales; 6 son revisiones sobre literatura cientifica. No se aprecia ningun crecimiento o decrecimiento significativos de la produccion a lo largo de los anos estudiados. En 84 textos no se mencionan a los medios de comunicacion, siendo escasos los que se centran en la agenda de los medios, la calidad de sus producciones o los efectos de sus contenidos (11); cuando se habla de medios se suele hacer de la prensa (16 articulos). Solo un ejemplar inserta un dossier relacionado con la comunicacion y/o sus tecnologias (Rev Panam Salud Publica, Jun 2014, vol.35, no.5 -6), que lo dedica a la eHealth; 5 de las revistas analizadas no incluyen ningun articulo del ambito de la comunicacion. Por ultimo, resenar que los contenidos de los ejemplares estudiados son dispersos, a tal punto que es imposible una categorizacion.

Communication becomes an essential area for public health, given that its actions are often pure communicative acts when not interventions that need to rely on them to modify or settle behaviors and attitudes. In the present investigation we ask to what extent public health publications insert articles in which communication is the protagonist axis and, if so, what is their typology and methodological approaches. It is an exploratory research in which the methodology used is content analysis; to carry it out, an automatic and manual review of the texts that have been submitted to the study was carried out. The sample includes all the articles published in public health journals (18) of SCIELO's platform between 2005 and 2015 (both included). Of the total number of articles (19.886), those characterized as 'communication' by the own platform were selected (n=124). Among the results, we highlight that only 0.62% of the articles focus on the field of communication. The majority (n = 114) are original articles and are generally empirical studies and quantitative research predominates; in 14 articles no methodology is specified.

Recientemente, investigadores de diversos campos de las ciencias sociales han enfocado en los impactos sociales, culturales y politicos de los medios digitales. Para dar cuenta de los procesos especificos detras de la formacion de Anonymous, yo desarrollo un marco microsociologico para el analisis de formas globales “desencarnadas” de sociabilidad, anclando estas formas en la reciprocidad intersubjetiva mediada. Para ir mas alla del enfasis en el lenguaje como funcion integrativa de la sociedad de la sociologia interpretativa, privilegie las dimensiones de la temporalidad, los ritmos y los patrones en mi analisis. Tambien me enfoce en como los colectivos de Internet desencarnados construyen en pantallas de computadora, terminales y las redes digitales que los conectan. Mi analisis tiene en cuenta esas temporalidades, proyecciones y reflexiones, que apuntan a los componentes no simbolicos de la socialidad mediada. Esas interconexiones dinamicas detras del colectivo Anonimo acercan a traves de las nociones de publicos, redes y enjambres. Anonymous es resultado de la conciencia de que los artefactos y las huellas digitales sirven a la vigilancia e identificacion - como los documentos personales y los registros organizativos - la construcion de Anonymous basa en la ofuscacion de las conexiones offline para la desorganizacion de las redes digitales y de los procesos de produccion de significado. Esto es un desafio para los analisis que privilegian la coproduccion de objetos y conocimientos. Particularmente, cuando los sujetos de investigacion orientan intencionalmente hacia el desorden de las condiciones de clasificacion, estabilizacion y fijacion. La entidad Anonymous actua como camuflaje material, permitiendo la acumulacion y la libre apropiacion de su poder simbolico: es una presencia / ausencia material-semiotica generativa. Mi enfoque no limita a la produccion de artefactos digitales, integrando objetos de conocimiento, objetos culturales, tecnicas, iconografia, generos, e incluso la palabra Segui los objetos fronterizos que unen y separan el mundo invisible del anonimato colectivo en Internet - donde la manifestacion publica no compromete la privacidad - y el mundo de las instituciones y organizaciones - de los nombres y las caras. Lo que pierde o borra en la practica es la posibilidad de cerramiento y de evaluar contextos de practicas e intenciones. El resultado es la construcion material y semiotica de una de contingencia y caos, produciendo simultaneamente parches de estabilidad que integran el proceso constante de su propia transformacion y subversion. Esa zona existe en los margenes de los canales mediados, donde los diferentes mundos sociales, circuitos de conocimiento y circulos de sociabilidad unen y superponen. Concebo plataformas de subjetivacion como funciones de las practicas materiales, semioticas y discursivas, a traves de las cuales desestabilizan y reorganizan redes hibridas, creando rupturas y llenando vacios, posibilitando experiencias y conocimientos alternativos. Para rastrear la formacion de Anonimo, privilegie los objetos digitales y los discursos en contexto, analizando paginas web viejas, aparentemente irrelevantes o archivadas, un metodo que denomino arqueologia de Internet. Trace el desarrollo de un medio particular, el 4chan imageboard anonimo, que otros estudiosos han asociado con el lugar de nacimiento de Anonymous. En este sitio web hay una suspension del tabu, pero tambien de la creencia, ya que el engano y la disimulacion, o bait en la jerga del troll, son practicas comunes. Este escenario contrasta con los tipicos paisajes limpios de las redes sociales y las esferas publicas en linea que albergan rituales de autorrepresentacion y perfiles publicos en los que los temas socialmente valiosos son consagrados y apreciados. Los tableros anonimos privilegian las subjetividades relacionadas con la desviacion, el riesgo, el peligro, la toxicidad, la insalubridad, la impopularidad, la verguenza, el tabu y todo tipo de monstruos sociales. Tambien segui a los movimientos del colectivo a traves de diferentes periodos y ecologias digitales, considerando como la produccion de infraestructuras de comunicacion digital y representaciones de si mismo amplio aun mas las asociaciones materiales y semioticas detras de Anonymous. A pesar de ser casi invisible, este colectivo distribuido y descentralizado tiene capacidad para reaccionar rapida y eficazmente, manifestando rapidos cambios y versatilidad en terminos de escala de y tactica. Como tal, es capaz de generar eventos espectaculares que capten la atencion de los principales canales de comunicacion y que utilizan para senalar cuestiones que consideran de interes publico. Asi, adquiere el poder de fijacion de la agenda y es capaz de extender su alcance mucho mas alla de los circulos restrictivos de la sociabilidad digital anonima. En el campo de la ciencia politica, ha desarrollado la nocion de accion conectiva, enfatizando el papel de la comunicacion, la expresion flexible y las creencias personales en las redes de distribuida. Las nociones de politica personalizada o cotidiana parecen describir adecuadamente el lugar de Anonymous en el panorama politico actual. Senala la calidad auto-motivada de la accion, derivada de las ideas internalizadas, planes, imagenes, y el compartir de recursos. Sin embargo, ese mismo concepto obscurece los procesos reales a traves de los cuales estos elementos difusos se agregan en la formacion de redes de cooperacion metaestables, o como los nuevos medios y los canales de comunicacion de Internet articulan en formas semianorganizacionales. Para superar esa limitacion, combino perspectivas de la semiotica, la teoria social y la teoria politica para entender como esas morfologias teoricamente definidas construyen en la practica. Para ello, abordo dos cuestiones centrales para la politica: la organizacion y la representacion. El metodo activista de Anonymous consiste en diversas campanas basadas en Internet, protestas y acciones directas entre las logicas del activismo, los movimientos sociales, los publicos digitales y las culturas de fandom. En linea con la teoria de Accion Conectiva, esfuerza por la inclusion, convirtiendose en una plataforma abierta a la apropiacion. Su morfologia no sigue roles especificos, sino que esta compuesta por redes descentralizadas y semi-autonomas, celulas y agentes solitarios. Los procesos de representacion tambien debe considerarse en su caracter simbolico y no simbolico. La actividad de Anonymous tiende a unirse en torno a signos, en particular iconos – signos que representan objetos por analogia, o metafora, como el diagrama, que muestran una estructura parecida. Esta forma de representacion dio origen a la iconografia que representa las conexiones de Anonymous y entra en relaciones equivalentes con demandas politicas insatisfechas. A traves de esas enunciaciones iconicas, un sujeto politico construye materialmente -las imagenes de la mascara y el traje sin cabeza, el dispositivo retorico tu eres representan tanto la dinamica interactiva digital del colectivo como un demos, el ciudadano anonimo global de Internet. Estas observaciones explican la aversion al simbolismo, la identidad y la ideologia en las redes de distribuida - la auto- organizacion autonoma asocia con el rechazo del patron externo. El consenso, las formas de identificacion y la formulacion de las cuestiones realizan a traves de la precaria construccion intersubjetiva y (re)produccion de las propias redes de accion.

The new peer-to-peer (P2P) technologies have impacted the film industry, which advocates sanctions against the downloading and sharing of products found on the Internet. But the economic effect of file sharing on the film industry remains difficult to determine. In this article, we ask whether file sharing networks will affect the survival or potential growth of European cinema. The steady decline in traditional film distribution channels for European productions—cinema theatres and direct sales or renting—is leading to the emergence of new distribution channels. And yet the results of the movie industry’s calls—including those voiced by its European players—for stronger legislation against these same distribution channels are making their way through Europe by means of enforcement tools like HADOPI and other graduated response programs. Our hypothesis is that this offensive runs the risk of condemning a potential open distribution network and commons business model at its birth. For this, we start by clarifying the emerging global P2P phenomenon; we then stipulate what we mean by European cinema, outline its peculiar traits, and contrast it with North American cinema. Finally, we compare the consumption of European film in theatres with the availability of seeds and leechers for European cinema in P2P networks.

The new peer-to-peer (P2P) technologies have impacted the film industry, which advocates sanctions against the downloading and sharing of products found on the Internet. But the economic effect of file sharing on the film industry remains difficult to determine. In this article, we ask whether file sharing networks will affect the survival or potential growth of European cinema. The steady decline in traditional film distribution channels for European productions—cinema theatres and direct sales or renting—is leading to the emergence of new distribution channels. And yet the results of the movie industry’s calls—including those voiced by its European players—for stronger legislation against these same distribution channels are making their way through Europe by means of enforcement tools like HADOPI and other graduated response programs. Our hypothesis is that this offensive runs the risk of condemning a potential open distribution network and commons business model at its birth. For this, we start by clarifying the emerging global P2P phenomenon; we then stipulate what we mean by European cinema, outline its peculiar traits, and contrast it with North American cinema. Finally, we compare the consumption of European film in theatres with the availability of seeds and leechers for European cinema in P2P networks.

The new peer-to-peer (P2P) technologies have impacted the film industry, which advocates sanctions against the downloading and sharing of products found on the Internet. But the economic effect of file sharing on the film industry remains difficult to determine. In this article, we ask whether file sharing networks will affect the survival or potential growth of European cinema. The steady decline in traditional film distribution channels for European productions-cinema theatres and direct sales or renting-is leading to the emergence of new distribution channels. And yet the results of the movie industry's calls-including those voiced by its European players-for stronger legislation against these same distribution channels are making their way through Europe by means of enforcement tools like HADOPI and other graduated response programs. Our hypothesis is that this offensive runs the risk of condemning a potential open distribution network and commons business model at its birth. For this, we start by clarifying the emerging global P2P phenomenon; we then stipulate what we mean by European cinema, outline its peculiar traits, and contrast it with North American cinema. Finally, we compare the consumption of European film in theatres with the availability of seeds and leechers for European cinema in P2P networks.