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OBJECTIVE: An important issue related to electric powered wheelchair (EPW) is usability. Recent studies did not use heuristic evaluation and did not consider users' and developers' participation in the usability evaluation process of the EPW, especially when it has to be driven using alternative commands. Thus, this study investigates the use of heuristics to evaluate the usability of EPW driven by alternative commands, considering the opinion of users and assistive technology (AT) development professionals. METHODS: The study was carried out with 54 participants: 28 EPW users (Group I) and 26 AT developers (Group II). We built a set of 25 heuristics that affects EPW usability. Participants rated each of the 25 heuristics according to their importance for the usability of EPW using the five-point Likert scale. We used the R Software to perform the Wilcoxon Mann-Whitney test as a statistical comparisons test between Group I and II. RESULTS: The results showed a statistically significant difference (p<0.05) between Group I and II in the evaluation of 16 heuristics. We identified an important set of heuristics that could help evaluate and improve the usability of EPW. CONCLUSION: The findings highlighted the importance of considering users' and developers' points of view in developing an EPW and its evaluation criteria. It could help the design of the device match the user's needs and expectations. The set of heuristics in this study can be adapted to evaluate other devices' usability using the heuristic evaluation approach.

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This paper presents a comparative study that explores the performance of various meta-heuristics employed for Optimal Signal Design, specifically focusing on estimating parameters in nonlinear systems. The study introduces the Robust Sub-Optimal Excitation Signal Generation and Optimal Parameter Estimation (rSOESGOPE) methodology, which is originally derived from the well-known Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithm. Through a real-life case study involving an Autonomous Surface Vessel (ASV) equipped with three Degrees of Freedom (DoFs) and an aerial holonomic propulsion system, the effectiveness of different meta-heuristics is thoroughly evaluated. By conducting an in-depth analysis and comparison of the obtained results from the diverse meta-heuristics, this study offers valuable insights for selecting the most suitable optimization technique for parameter estimation in nonlinear systems. Researchers and experimental tests in the field can benefit from the comprehensive examination of these techniques, aiding them in making informed decisions about the optimal approach for optimizing parameter estimation in nonlinear systems.

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Background: The use of heuristics in clinical decision-making processes increases in contexts of high uncertainty, such as those in Intensive Care Units (ICU. Given the impossibility of empirically studying their impact on real-world conditions, clinical vignettes were developed with the goal of identifying the use of heuristics in the care of critically ill patients during the COVID-19 pandemic in different clinical contexts. Methodology: Vignettes were designed by critical care physicians in Spain to assess the use of representativeness, availability, and status quo heuristics in the care of critically ill patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. The construct, internal and external validity of the vignettes designed in Spain, the United States and Chile were evaluated. A questionnaire was piloted with the vignettes being validated in the three aforementioned countries through a computer application built for this purpose. Results: 16 study vignettes grouped into 5 models were created: each model included between 2 and 4 vignettes. The vignettes designed were closed-response vignettes with 2-3 possible alternatives. The vignettes, initially developed in Spain in Spanish, were translated to English and adapted to the Spanish used in Chile. The clinical content of the vignettes was not modified during the translation process. Conclusions: The vignettes allow for the study of the use of heuristics in critical care clinical decision making in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The piloting and validation process used can serve as a model for similar multinational studies exploring clinical decision making.

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Background: Noninvasive ventilation (NIV) provides positive pressure through different interfaces. A multifunctional full-face mask prototype was developed to provide NIV from three sources: ICU ventilators, portable ventilators, and high-flow medical gas pipeline systems. This study aimed to evaluate the usability of this prototype mask. Methods: This was a quantitative experimental study, conducted in two phases: the development of a full-face mask prototype NIV interface, and the evaluation of its usability by health professionals (evaluators) using a heuristic approach. The Wolf Mask prototype is a multifunctional full-face mask that makes it possible to deliver positive pressure from three different sources: microprocessor-controlled ICU ventilators, portable ventilators with single-limb circuits, and high-flow medical gas. The evaluation was conducted in three stages: presentation of the prototype to the evaluators; skills testing via simulation in a clinical environment; and a review of skills. Results: The prototype was developed by a multidisciplinary team and patented in Brazil. The evaluators were 10 health professionals specializing in NIV. Seven skills related to handling the prototype were evaluated. Three of the ten evaluators called for (non-urgent) changes to improve recognition of the components of the prototype. Only one evaluator called for (non-urgent) changes to improve recognition of the pieces, assembly, and checking the mask. Conclusions: The newly developed multifunctional full-face mask prototype demonstrated excellent usability for providing noninvasive ventilation from multiple sources. Minor modifications may further improve the design.

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Background: The use of serious games (SG) has received increasing attention in health care, and can be applied for both rehabilitation and evaluation of motor signs of several diseases, such as Parkinson's disease (PD). However, the use of these instruments in clinical practice is poorly observed, since there is a scarcity of games that, during their development process, simultaneously address issues of usability and architectural design, contributing to the non-satisfaction of the actual needs of professionals and patients. Thus, this study aimed to present the architecture and usability evaluation at the design stage of a serious game, so-called RehaBEElitation, and assess the accessibility of the game. Methods: The game was created by a multidisciplinary team with experience in game development and PD, taking into consideration design guidelines for the development of SG. The user must control the movements of a bee in a 3D environment. The game tasks were designed to mimic the following movements found in the gold-standard method tool-Movement Disorder Society-Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS)-for the assessment of individuals with PD: hand opening and closing, hand extension and flexion, hand adduction and abduction, finger tapping, and forearm supination and pronation. The user interacts with the game using a wearable interface device that embeds inertial and tactile sensors. The architecture of RehaBEElitation was detailed using the business process model (BPM) notation and the usability of the architecture was evaluated using the Nielsen-Shneiderman heuristics. Game accessibility was evaluated by comparing the overall scores of each phase between 15 healthy participants and 15 PD patients. The PD group interacted with the game in both the ON and OFF states. Results: The system was modularized in order to implement parallel, simultaneous and independent programming at different levels, requiring less computational effort and enabling fluidity between the game and the control of the interface elements in real time. The developed architecture allows the inclusion of new elements for patient status monitoring, extending the functionality of the tool without changing its fundamental characteristics. The heuristic evaluation contemplated all the 14 heuristics proposed by Shneiderman, which enabled the implementation of improvements in the game. The evaluation of accessibility revealed no statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) between groups, except for the healthy group and the PD group in the OFF state of medication during Phase 3 of the game. Conclusions: The proposed architecture was presented in order to facilitate the reproduction of the system and extend its application to other scenarios. In the same way, the heuristic evaluation performed can serve as a contribution to the advancement of the SG design for PD. The accessibility evaluation revealed that the game is accessible to individuals with PD.

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R E S U M E N Las ciencias cognitivas, en especial la psicología y la neurociencia social en los últimos años han ofrecido gracias a los avances investigativos del cerebro y a las técnicas no invasivas de neuroimagen métodos novedosos para comprender los mecanismos neurobiológicos subyacentes a la toma de decisiones. Por tanto, en este documento, se busca entender y comprender en qué medida los atajos heurísticos contribuyen a la toma de decisiones políticas, al contrastar los diferentes atajos mentales y sesgos cognitivos que asumen lo votantes a la hora de elegir candidatos o partidos políticos.

R E S U M O As ciências cognitivas, especialmente a psicologia e as neurociências sociais, têm nos últimos anos oferecido novos métodos para a compreensão dos mecanismos neurobiológicos subjacentes à tomada de decisões graças aos avanços na investigação cerebral e às técnicas de neuroimagem não invasivas. Portanto, este artigo procura compreender até que ponto os atalhos heurísticos contribuem para a tomada de decisões políticas, contrastando os diferentes atalhos mentais e os preconceitos cognitivos que os eleitores assumem quando escolhem candidatos ou partidos políticos.

A B S T R A C T Cognitive sciences, especially psychology and social neuroscience, have offered in recent years, thanks to advances in brain research and non-invasive neuroimaging techniques, novel methods to understand the neurobiological mechanisms underlying decision making. Therefore, this paper seeks to understand the extent to which heuristic shortcuts contribute to political decision making, by contrasting the different mental shortcuts and cognitive biases assumed by voters when choosing candidates or political parties.

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This paper presents a georeferenced optimal planning model of a rural distribution network for deploying an underground network considering a real scenario for increasing electrification in this area. A model is presented based on a heuristic process that minimizes the resources required to route the grid for a defined time horizon. Then, the model is scalable according to the population density, the established and georeferenced zone, and the specified period; that is, it adjusts to any of these variables. Additionally, the modeling is presented in CYME software, considering a series of technical criteria to provide the actual scenario with a verifiable planning model of an underground network. Therefore, the voltage drop and level of overload in transformers and feeders are considered to deliver an optimum power quality to the end-user. These results will be tabulated and presented as an alternative to different planning and design models that an electric distribution company may have to minimize the resources used in an underground deployment.

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Network slicing is a vital component of the 5G system to support diverse network scenarios, creating virtual networks (slices) by mapping virtual network requests to real networks. The mapping is an arduous computing process, mathematically studied and known as the Virtual Network Embedding (VNE) problem, and its complexity is NP-Hard. The mapping process is oriented to respect the QoS demands from the virtual network requests and the available resources in the physical-substrate infrastructure. Meta-heuristic approaches are a suitable way to solve the VNE problems because of their capacity to escape from the local optimum and adapt the solution search to complex networks; these abilities are essential in 5G networks scenarios. This article presents a systematic review of meta-heuristics organized by application, development and problem-solving approaches to VNE. It also provides the standard parameters to model the infrastructure and virtual network requests to simulate network slicing as a service. Finally, our work proposes some future research based on the discovered gaps.

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Resumen Evaluar el funcionamiento de los gestores de información y conocimiento implementados en el Instituto Superior de Tecnologías y Ciencias Aplicadas (InSTEC) es el objetivo de la investigación. Ello, no solo posibilita el mejoramiento futuro del desempeño de estos, sino también sirve como estudio preliminar para la inserción de otros gestores en el futuro. Los métodos de análisis documental y evaluación heurística sustentan las bases teóricas, mientras que las herramientas automáticas Nibbler, GooglePageRank, SEOptimer, Website Grader, la entrevista y las encuestas a usuarios evidencian el desempeño de los gestores. Los resultados revelaron que la calidad del sitio externo y de la intranet obtuvo 69,4% de competencia global. Varios de los indicadores de estos sitios se deben perfeccionar en aras de brindar un mejor servicio a los usuarios del Instituto en la gestión de la información y el conocimiento, tan necesaria en las universidades.

Abstract The papers goal is to assess the already implemented information and knowledge managers at InSTEC. This allows improving the managers future work, and serves as a preliminary study for including others in the future. Documentary analysis and heuristics evaluation methods are the theoretical basis; meanwhile, automatic tools Nibbler, GooglePageRank, SEOptimer, Website Grader, interviews and polls to users evidenced the actual development of both sites. The studys outcomes revealed the quality of InSTECs external website and its intranet achieved 69,4 % of general competency. These sites indicators must be enhanced to provide a better service to users in the information and knowledge management so needed in universities.

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RESUMEN: La toma de decisiones está influenciada por múltiples factores muchas veces no conscientes. En este artículo se sintetizan algunos correlatos neurobiológicos del componente afectivo y social sobre la toma de decisiones, incluyendo el impacto del estrés agudo y crónico y la perspectiva cognitiva de las heurísticas y los sesgos en la práctica clínica. A nivel afectivo, la hipótesis del marcador somático ha asociado la respuesta corporal periférica con estructuras nerviosas centrales en la configuración de las decisiones; intervienen estructuras como la corteza orbitofrontal y el hipocampo. En la toma de decisiones sociales se involucran las dimensiones recompensa y motivación. En este tipo de decisiones es crucial la capacidad de mentalizar a otro e integrar su perspectiva en la toma de decisiones. Esta función se ha relacionado con el surco temporal posterosuperior, la unión temporoparietal, la corteza cingulada anterior y la corteza prefrontal medial. No obstante, en la toma de decisiones sociales también se integra el cumplimiento de normas socialmente establecidas. El estrés agudo o crónico puede afectar la toma de decisiones, positiva o negativamente. En estos procesos se han involucrado al eje hipotálamo-hipófiso-adrenal junto con circuitos corticoestriados, prefrontales, amigdalinos e hipocampales. En la toma de decisiones clínicas se conjugan factores "prerreflexivos" emocionales, sociales y cognitivos que influyen directamente en las conductas adoptadas con los pacientes. Recomendamos enfatizar la investigación en esta área y fortalecer su enseñanza para reconocerlos adecuadamente.

ABSTRACT Decision-making is influenced by multiple unaware factors. We synthesize some neurobiological correlates of the affective and social components on decision-making, including the impact of acute and chronic stress. We also address the impact of heuristics and biases on clinical practice from the cognitive perspective. At an affective level, the hypothesis of the somatic marker has associated the peripheral body response with central nervous structures in the configuration of decisions; structures such as the orbitofrontal cortex and the hippocampus intervene. The reward and motivation dimensions are involved in social decision-making. In these types of decisions, the ability to mentally engage others and integrate their perspective into decision making is crucial. This function has been related to the posterior superior temporal sulcus, the temporoparietal junction, the anterior cingulate cortex, and the medial prefrontal cortex. However, compliance with socially established norms is also integrated into social decision-making. Acute or chronic stress may affect decision-making, positively or negatively. The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis has been involved in these processes together with corticostriatal, prefrontal, amygdala and hippocampal circuits. In clinical decision-making, "pre-reflective" emotional, social and cognitive factors are combined, influencing the decisions towards patients. We recommend emphasizing research in this field and strengthening education in this area to recognize these aspects adequately.

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El error médico es considerado un problema de salud pública que puede estar relacionado con fallas en la toma de decisiones de parte de un médico acerca del diagnóstico, el tratamiento o el pronóstico de un paciente, es decir, en el razonamiento médico. A pesar de su importancia, la comprensión sobre el razonamiento clínico ha sido heterogénea, con el uso de múltiples definiciones y modelos teóricos que se enfocan en distintos aspectos del procesamiento que hace el médico en la atención de un paciente. Esta diversidad conceptual puede explicarse por la influencia del contexto histórico. El cómo piensa el médico puede verse desde el pensamiento mágico en la Antigüedad, pasando por el racionalismo del Renacimiento y la aproximación científica moderna, hasta los modelos actuales del pensamiento dual y la estimación de probabilidades. Lo que parece ser constante es que existe una misión explicativa de saber qué le ocurre al paciente, aunque el fin último sea más comprender la experiencia del enfermo. En esta revisión narrativa se presenta esta evolución con una de línea de tiempo que resume las formas de concebir el razonamiento en medicina, según el contexto histórico.

SUMMARY Medical error is a public health problem, that may be related to failures in a doctor's decisionmaking about a patient's diagnosis, treatment, or prognosis, that is, in medical reasoning. Despite its importance, the understanding of clinical reasoning has been heterogeneous, with the use of multiple definitions and theoretical models, which focus on different aspects of the processing that physicians elaborate about taking care of a patient. This conceptual diversity can be explained by the influence of the historical context. How physicians think can be seen from magical thinking in Antiquity, through Renaissance rationalism and the modern scientific approach, to current models of dual thinking and probability estimation. What seems to be constant is that it has an explanatory mission of knowing what happens to the patient, although the ultimate goal is more to understand the patient's experience. In this narrative review, this evolution is presented with a timeline, which summarizes the ways of conceiving reasoning in medicine according to the historical context.

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OBJECTIVES: We develop a patient prioritization scheme for treating patients infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) and study under which scenarios it outperforms the current practices in Spain and Chile. STUDY DESIGN: We use simulation to evaluate the performance of prioritization rules under two HCV patient cohorts, constructed using secondary data of public records from Chile and Spain, during 2015-2016. METHODS: We use the results of a mathematical model, which determines individual optimal HCV treatment policies as an input for constructing a patient prioritization rule, when limited resources are present. The prioritization is based on marginal analysis on cost increases and health-outcome gains. We construct the Chilean and Spanish case studies and used Monte Carlo simulation to evaluate the performance of our methodology in these two scenarios. RESULTS: The resulting prioritizations for the Chilean and Spanish patients are similar, despite the significant differences of both countries, in terms of epidemiological profiles and cost structures. Furthermore, when resources are scarce compared with the number of patients in need of the new drug, our prioritization significantly outperforms current practices of treating sicker patients first, both in terms of cost and healthcare indicators: for the Chilean case, we have an increase in the quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) of 0.83 with a cost reduction of 8176 euros per patient, with a budget covering 2.5% of the patients in the cohort. This difference slowly decreases when increasing the available resources, converging to the performance indicators obtained when all patients are treated immediately: for the Spanish case, we have a decrease in the QALYs of 0.17 with a cost reduction of 1134 euros per patient, with a budget covering 20% of the patients in the cohort. CONCLUSION: Decision science can provide useful analytical tools for designing efficient public policies that can excel in terms of quantitative health performance indicators.

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Directed evolution methods mimic in vitro Darwinian evolution, inducing random mutations and selective pressure in genes to obtain proteins with enhanced characteristics. These techniques are developed using trial-and-error testing at an experimental level with a high degree of uncertainty. Therefore, in silico modeling of directed evolution is required to support experimental assays. Several in silico approaches have reproduced directed evolution, using statistical, thermodynamic, and kinetic models in an attempt to recreate experimental conditions. Likewise, optimization techniques using heuristic models have been used to understand and find the best scenarios of directed evolution. Our study uses an in silico model named HeurIstics DirecteD EvolutioN, which is based on a genetic algorithm designed to generate chimeric libraries from 2 parental genes, cry11Aa and cry11Ba, of Bacillus thuringiensis. These genes encode crystal-shaped δ-endotoxins with 3 conserved domains. Cry11 toxins are of biotechnological interest because they have shown to be effective as biopesticides for disease-spreading vectors. With our heuristic model, we considered experimental parameters such as DNA fragmentation length, number of generations or simulation cycles, and mutation rate, to get characteristics of Cry11 chimeric libraries such as percentage of population identity, truncation of variants obtained from the presence of internal stop codons, percentage of thermodynamic diversity, and stability of variants. Our study allowed us to focus on experimental conditions that may be useful for the design of in vitro and in silico experiments of directed evolution with Cry toxins of 3 conserved domains. Furthermore, we obtained in silico libraries of Cry11 variants, in which structural characteristics of wild Cry families were observed in a review of a sample of in silico sequences. We consider that future studies could use our in silico libraries and heuristic computational models, as the one suggested here, to support in vitro experiments of directed evolution.

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O estudo teve o objetivo de analisar o Sistema de Informação de Imunizações web do Brasil sob a ótica das heurísticas de usabilidade. Trata-se de um estudo descritivo, com abordagem qualitativa sobre a avaliação de usabilidade de um novo software sobre o Programa Nacional de Imunizações, com base nas dez Heurísticas de Nielsen. Participaram quatro especialistas da área de Tecnologia da Informação, com conhecimento sobre usabilidade e Programa de Imunizações. Os dados foram tratados pela análise de Conteúdo, na modalidade Temático-Categorial. O sistema proporciona, de um lado, facilidade de acesso aos usuários, podendo ser acessado de qualquer lugar e momento, desde que tenha conectividade com a internet; e de outro, apresenta problemas de usabilidade quanto à percepção de localização do usuário no percurso feito dentro do próprio sistema; apresenta entraves em relação a padronização tanto das telas, quanto dos recursos disponibilizados pelo sistema, além de falhas e duplicidade de comandos, que dificultam o registro e acesso às informações. Os problemas elucidados na avaliação de usabilidade do Sistema de Informação de Imunizações do Brasil poderão embasar melhorias nas novas versões de atualizações(AU)

Este estudio tuvo como objetivo analizar el sistema de información de inmunizaciones en Brasil desde la perspectiva de las heurísticas de usabilidad. Se realizó un estudio descriptivo, con un enfoque cualitativo, sobre la evaluación de la usabilidad de un nuevo software en el programa nacional de inmunización, basado en las diez heurísticas de Nielsen. Participaron cuatro especialistas del área de Tecnología de la Información, con conocimiento sobre usabilidad y el programa de inmunizaciones. Los datos fueron tratados mediante análisis de contenido, en la modalidad temático-categorial. El sistema proporciona facilidad de acceso a los usuarios, al que se puede acceder desde cualquier lugar y en cualquier momento, siempre que tenga conectividad a internet, y presenta problemas de usabilidad con respecto a la percepción del usuario de la ubicación en la ruta tomada dentro del propio sistema. Presenta obstáculos en relación con la estandarización de ambas pantallas y los recursos puestos a disposición por el sistema, además de fallas y duplicación de comandos, que dificultan el registro y el acceso a la información. Los problemas aclarados en la evaluación de usabilidad del sistema de información de inmunizaciones en Brasil pueden respaldar mejoras en nuevas versiones de actualizaciones(AU)

The purpose of the study was to analyze the Brazilian immunization information system from the perspective of usability heuristics. A descriptive qualitative study was conducted evaluating the usability of a new software for the national immunization program based on the ten Nielsen's heuristics. Four specialists from the Information Technology area participated who were knowledgeable about usability and the immunization program. The data were processed by thematic-categorial content analysis. The system provides users with easy access from any place at any time, as long as they can connect to the Internet, and presents usability problems related to perception by users of their place along the route taken within the system itself. It also poses hurdles concerning standardization of the two screens and the resources made available by the system, besides failures and duplication of commands, which hampers the recording of and access to information. The problems clarified in the evaluation of the usability of the Brazilian immunization information system may serve to improve new updated versions(AU)

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Abstract: Immunization, the most successful public health intervention to date, can only be effective if eligible individuals or their legal representatives have access to vaccines and subsequently comply with their use. Under-vaccination stems from multiple causes: access, affordability, awareness, acceptance and activation. In this paper, we focus on acceptance and, specifically, on factors pertaining to individual or parental compliance, specifically the psychology of judgment and decision making. We describe how heuristics and cognitive biases - a facet of thoughts and feelings - affect vaccination decision making. Additionally, we address when and how social processes play a role and how attitudes towards vaccines might reflect a more general underlying attitude or ideology. The understanding of how decision making, with regards to vaccines occurs, and the role played by heuristics and cognitive biases can help inform more appropriate public health interventions.

Resumen: La inmunización es la intervención en salud pública más exitosa hasta la fecha. No obstante, sólo puede ser efectiva si las personas elegibles, o sus representantes legales, tienen acceso a las vacunas y, consecuentemente, cumplen con su uso. Existen múltiples causas de infravacunación: acceso, asequibilidad, concienciación, aceptación y activación. En este trabajo, nos enfocamos en la aceptación y esceficamente, centrándonos en factores respecto a la conformidad individual o parental, específicamente en cuanto a la psicología de juicio y toma de decisiones. Describimos como sesgos heurísticos y cognitivos -una faceta de pensamientos y sentimientos- que afectan a la toma de decisiones sobre la vacunación. Asimismo, nos centramos en cuándo y cómo los procesos sociales desempeñan un papel y cómo las actitudes hacia las vacunas quizás reflejen una actitud subyacente más general o ideológica. La compresión sobre cómo se toman las decisiones, en relación a cuándo se tienen que tomar las vacunas y el papel desempeñado por sesgos heurísticos y cognitivos puede informarnos más apropiadamente sobre las intervenciones en salud pública.

Resumo: A imunização, a intervenção da saúde pública mais bem sucedida até hoje, só pode ser eficaz se as pessoas elegíveis ou seus representantes legais tiverem acesso às vacinas e aderirem ao seu uso. A subvacinação pode resultar de várias causas: acesso, viabilidade, conscientização, aceitação e ativação. Neste trabalho, focamos na aceitação e, especificamente, nos concentramos nos fatores relativos à cooperação do indivíduo ou de seus pais, especificamente a psicologia do julgamento e da tomada de decisões. Descrevemos como as heurísticas e os vieses cognitivos - um aspecto dos pensamentos e sentimentos - afetam a tomada de decisão quanto à vacinação. Além disso, abordamos quando e como os processos sociais desempenham um papel e como as atitudes em relação às vacinas podem refletir uma atitude ou ideologia subjacente mais geral. A compreensão de como a tomada de decisões em relação às vacinas ocorre e o papel desempenhado pelas heurísticas e pelos vieses cognitivos pode ajudar a informar as intervenções de saúde pública de forma mais adequada.

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BACKGROUND: The International Performance Assessments of Learning (iPAL) project developed a framework for the construction of performance assessments for testing critical thinking, which proposes structuring them around a problem situation that sets an authentic (i.e., real-life-like) problem-solving task for the test-taker. Its critical thinking construct - which reflects the dominant conception of critical thinking - focuses on assessment and use of information, of arguments, and of consequences, and on communication. However, it fails to acknowledge that perspectives on a problem situation are systemically articulated in networks and derive from worldviews, which should also be critically examined. AIMS: We aim to elaborate on the iPAL framework and enhance its critical thinking construct, incorporating a new facet of perspective analysis. We also intend to show what design considerations the construction of a performance assessment appropriate for this task entails. DEVELOPMENT: Based on Werner Ulrich's Critical Systems Heuristics, which provides a systemic way of analysing perspectives about a problem situation, we argue the need to introduce perspective analysis in the critical thinking construct, and we discuss the considerations necessary for designing critical thinking performance assessments that test perspective analysis skills: about the kind of problem situation the test-taker will face and about the expectations she may have about her task or role in that problem situation. We illustrate how performance assessments of this kind can be constructed by means of an example of an actual test.

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According to published studies in the field, random choice and random estimation are the only options for tackling judgment and decision-making tasks where the elements from which to infer a required criteria are not recognized. In Campitelli and Labollita (2010), participants were asked to estimate the nationality and Elo rating of chess players based on their surnames. In the present study I re-analyze those 123 participants from Campitelli and Labollita (2010) who declared not to have recognized any player. Even in this scenario of null recognition, they managed to correctly infer the Russian players' nationality and Elo ratings; it is likely that successful and ecologically rational heuristics were used. I found evidence of new structured probabilistic environments external to the lab, likely to have generated a number of undirected and involuntary associations in the memories of the participants, who may have used them in their heuristics to infer the criteria requested. The results support the models of limited rationality: despite the scarcity of available information, the fact that the heuristics did not guarantee success, and the risk of overestimating the heuristics' effectiveness while underestimating their own biases, participants still favored them over random guesswork, thus suggesting an adaptive use. I invite a revision of what is considered "good reasoning" when applied to problems in environments of uncertainty that call for satisfactory, rather than optimal, solutions. This research provides the basis for new studies in the field of heuristics under previously unexplored conditions, and a new perspective for the analysis of prior works, towards a better understanding of the relationship between cognition and the environment.

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Sorting unsigned permutations by reversals is a difficult problem; indeed, it was proved to be NP -hard by Caprara ( 1997 ). Because of its high complexity, many approximation algorithms to compute the minimal reversal distance were proposed until reaching the nowadays best-known theoretical ratio of 1.375. In this article, two memetic algorithms to compute the reversal distance are proposed. The first one uses the technique of opposition-based learning leading to an opposition-based memetic algorithm; the second one improves the previous algorithm by applying the heuristic of two breakpoint elimination leading to a hybrid approach. Several experiments were performed with one-hundred randomly generated permutations, single benchmark permutations, and biological permutations. Results of the experiments showed that the proposed OBMA and Hybrid-OBMA algorithms achieve the best results for practical cases, that is, for permutations of length up to 120. Also, Hybrid-OBMA showed to improve the results of OBMA for permutations greater than or equal to 60. The applicability of our proposed algorithms was checked processing permutations based on biological data, in which case OBMA gave the best average results for all instances.

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RESUMO

El problema de marco, entendido como un problema de relevancia, es uno de los principales problemas de las Ciencias Cognitivas. Frente a algunos autores que lo consideran aún un problema pendiente de solución, se ha propuesto que una de las posibles soluciones es el uso de heurísticas. El inconveniente es que hay dos programas de investigación sobre heurísticas: el programa de Heurísticas y Sesgos y el de Heurísticas Rápidas y Frugales. Estos programas se han enfrentado en un gran debate acerca de la racionalidad humana postulando distintas concepciones de racionalidad. Así, el objetivo del presente trabajo fue indagar cómo se relaciona el problema de marco con tal debate sobre racionalidad. Se argumenta que el fenómeno fundamental del problema de marco está mejor articulado a una concepción optimista de la racionalidad humana y sería más cercano a la concepción de racionalidad ecológica propuesta por el programa de Heurísticas Rápidas y Frugales.

The frame problem (McCarthy & Hayes, 1969) arose within the field of Artificial Intelligence research, more precisely within the calculation of situations, as the problem about how to represent, in the most succinct way possible, the fact that in a particular situation most properties of objects remain the same or are not disturbed by the performance of a particular action. Despite its logical origin, it did not take long for this problem to be addressed by several philosophers becoming the subject of major discussions that still surround the frame problem. One of the key difficulties that this problem tries to solve is the so-called difficulty of the vastness of the information: it would seem impossible to analyze each of the pieces of information from a vast set of information and evaluate, in each case, if it is or not relevant to carry out the taskin question. Of course, exploring a vast amount of information with very limited cognitive and temporal resources is one of the main computational limitations that the frame problem must overcome. Currently, the resolution of the frame problem has awakened a renewed interest in recent years, and its resolution has been taken up again. Proof of this is Fodor's (2000) treatment of the frame problem by criticizing some current strategies for its solution, such as the use of heuristics. The use of heuristics as strategies to explain cognitive processes is a subject of great relevance at present and especially of great interest in the area of psychology. Generally, the heuristics understood, prima facie, as practical rules that, with little information, offer reasonable solutions to problems or questions would solve the computational limitations of the frame problem by providing the computational processing sought. It must be considered that, as the difficulty of the vastness of information reflects, the determination of relevance is not computationally easy since it is necessary to evaluate large amounts of information and that is why the use of heuristics would appear as the main candidate to limit the computational load in the determination of relevance. The problem is that there are two research programs that work on heuristics: the Heuristics and Biases program and the Heuristics Fast and Frugal program. In literature of the area, the rivalry between these programs with respect to the methodology and way of working is often high-lighted, but also in terms of the scope and limits of the rationality that each of these programs postulates. More particularly, both programs have faced a great debate about human rationality, postulating different conceptions of rationality. Taking into account that it has been proposed to interpret the frame problem as a problem of rationality, the general objective of this paper is to investigate how the frame problem relates to such a debate on rationality; more specifically, it will be questioned which of these conceptions of rationality would be better articulated with the fundamental phenomenon of the frame problem. First, in this work we will analyze, the standard conception of rationality, considering some o the main criticisms that it has faced. These objections will allow us to introduce later the ecological conception of rationality postulated by the program of Fast and Frugal Heuristics. Finally, it will be evaluated which of these two concepts would be more linked to the fundamental phenomenon of the frame problem, in order to finally present the conclusions. We argue that the fundamental phenomenon of the frame problem is better articulated to an optimistic view of human rationality and it would be closer to the concept of ecological rationality proposed by the Heuristic Fast and Frugal program.