ABSTRACT
Before the pandemic, distance learning was not a widely adopted option for science and engineering programs where in some courses, such as chemistry, electromagnetism, or fluid mechanics, etc., attending to laboratories and workshops was in most cases mandatory. The lockdown forced us to innovate, searching alternative ways to teach experimental phenomena, suddenly replaced with simulation science and technology, subjects that although rely on computers, also suffered changes from the transition. In this contribution, we propose an undergraduate course on simulation for chemical engineering, departing from the fact that modeling, and simulation are multipurpose and multidisciplinary tools. The course aims to reinforce the concepts of dynamical systems by using analogies between process engineering examples and other disciplines, particularly, epidemiology. For this purpose, a final project on modeling the dynamics of the COVID 19 pandemic in Mexico was designed and validated with a public database from the Mexican Secretariat of Health. By doing this, the students got in touch with the evolution of the dynamics outside of school hours, since it was common to see weekly updates and extrapolation trends of the pandemic, thus applying their skills to the final project. It was found that success factors were the use of official data, the use of Graphical User Interfaces to explore diverse simulation scenarios and the final project. The transition to the Distance Learning faced several challenges that were partially coped with the redesign of the course. © 2023 Institution of Chemical Engineers
ABSTRACT
The recent efforts to mount an R&D response to public health emergencies of international concern have led to the formation of what we term a biochemical infrastructure of vaccine development and production. In principle, this infrastructure is expected not only to curtail existing pandemics but also anticipate and contain yet-to-emerge future threats. Critically, by nature of its geographical distribution and technical modularity, that infrastructure promises both to accelerate and expand access to essential medical tools, and in so doing, redress global health inequities. In practice, however, the biochemical infrastructure of vaccines remains highly uneven, fragmented and unjust. Moving beyond calls for ‘global health solidarity', this paper examines the key actors, normative techniques and socio-technical assemblages, from viral platform technologies to intellectual property waivers and from accelerated regulatory pathways to advance market commitments, that serve to link ‘just-in-case' and ‘just-in-time' modalities of global health R&D. We argue that the biomedical infrastructure of vaccine development and production emerging in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic is unfolding across an innovation ecosystem that is more-than-national and yet less-than global: a reconfiguration that may offer possibilities for a new, radically-overhauled, model of vaccine equity. © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
ABSTRACT
Before the pandemic, distance learning was not a widely adopted option for science and engineering programs where in some courses, such as chemistry, electromagnetism, or fluid mechanics, etc., attending to laboratories and workshops was in most cases mandatory. The lockdown forced us to innovate, searching alternative ways to teach experimental phenomena, suddenly replaced with simulation science and technology, subjects that although rely on computers, also suffered changes from the transition. In this contribution, we propose an undergraduate course on simulation for chemical engineering, departing from the fact that modeling, and simulation are multipurpose and multidisciplinary tools. The course aims to reinforce the concepts of dynamical systems by using analogies between process engineering examples and other disciplines, particularly, epidemiology. For this purpose, a final project on modeling the dynamics of the COVID 19 pandemic in Mexico was designed and validated with a public database from the Mexican Secretariat of Health. By doing this, the students got in touch with the evolution of the dynamics outside of school hours, since it was common to see weekly updates and extrapolation trends of the pandemic, thus applying their skills to the final project. It was found that success factors were the use of official data, the use of Graphical User Interfaces to explore diverse simulation scenarios and the final project. The transition to the Distance Learning faced several challenges that were partially coped with the redesign of the course.
ABSTRACT
The recent efforts to mount an R&D response to public health emergencies of international concern have led to the formation of what we term a biochemical infrastructure of vaccine development and production. In principle, this infrastructure is expected not only to curtail existing pandemics but also anticipate and contain yet-to-emerge future threats. Critically, by nature of its geographical distribution and technical modularity, that infrastructure promises both to accelerate and expand access to essential medical tools, and in so doing, redress global health inequities. In practice, however, the biochemical infrastructure of vaccines remains highly uneven, fragmented and unjust. Moving beyond calls for ‘global health solidarity’, this paper examines the key actors, normative techniques and socio-technical assemblages, from viral platform technologies to intellectual property waivers and from accelerated regulatory pathways to advance market commitments, that serve to link ‘just-in-case’ and ‘just-in-time’ modalities of global health R&D. We argue that the biomedical infrastructure of vaccine development and production emerging in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic is unfolding across an innovation ecosystem that is more-than-national and yet less-than global: a reconfiguration that may offer possibilities for a new, radically-overhauled, model of vaccine equity. © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
ABSTRACT
The application of quantum dots (QDs) for detecting and treating various types of coronaviruses is very promising, as their low toxicity and high surface performance make them superior among other nanomaterials; in conjugation with fluorescent probes they are promising semiconductor nanomaterials for the detection of various cellular processes and viral infections. In view of the successful results for inhibiting SARS-CoV-2, functional QDs could serve eminent role in the growth of safe nanotherapy for the cure of viral infections in the near future; their large surface areas help bind numerous molecules post-synthetically. Functionalized QDs with high functionality, targeted selectivity, stability and less cytotoxicity can be employed for highly sensitive co-delivery and imaging/diagnosis. Besides, due to the importance of safety and toxicity issues, QDs prepared from plant sources (e.g. curcumin) are much more attractive, as they provide good biocompatibility and low toxicity. In this review, the recent developments pertaining to the diagnostic and inhibitory potentials of QDs against SARS-CoV-2 are deliberated including important challenges and future outlooks. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry (SCI).