Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
FORMAÇÃO INICIAL DE PROFESSORES E EDUCAÇÃO DE JOVENS E ADULTOS: POSSIBILIDADES DA EXTENSÃO UNIVERSITÁRIA

O trabalho que aqui se apresenta teve como objetivo investigar possibilidades e limites da extensao universitaria como ambiente de aprendizagem e formacao inicial de professores, propondo-se tambem a analisar as principais dificuldades identificadas por alunos dos cursos de Pedagogia e Ciencias Sociais (licenciatura) acerca dessa formacao inicial para o exercicio da atividade docente. Focaliza as percepcoes de graduandos em relacao a participacao em um projeto de extensao que lhes possibilitou atuar como professores de alunos em sala de aula da Educacao de Jovens e Adultos (EJA), durante um ano letivo. Foram realizadas entrevistas semi-estruturadas com nove participantes. O conteudo das falas foi analisado e organizado em quatro categorias tematicas. Os resultados mostram que, para esses graduandos, o diferencial da extensao universitaria e que a mesma oferece a oportunidade de atuacao numa situacao real, porem sob supervisao, evidenciando um espaco de reflexao originada na pratica. Dando enfase a supervisao, os alunos valorizam esse recurso como relevante e mencionam ser justamente ele que nao esta presente de forma habitual nas situacoes tradicionais de estagio. Destacam tambem a relevância da pratica, da autopercepcao e da vivencia do fazer docente. Concluindo, percebe-se que os dados sao indicativos de que, com pouca visibilidade no contexto academico, atividades extensionistas necessitariam ser mais e intensamente valorizadas, dado o papel articulador que podem exercer entre as atividades investigativas e didaticas, essenciais para a formacao inicial. Palavras-chave: Extensao Universitaria; formacao Inicial; docencia. DOI: http://dx.doi. org/10.14244/19827199845
On a chain of transformations for generating alloy from NL constraints

Multi-Paradigm Modelling uses models from multiple domains to leverage the tools, techniques and expertise provided by each of the individual domains. Recent advances in model transformation technology allow automated production of one model from another to improve the application of multi-paradigm techniques. Systems development starts with the requirements gathering phase, which usually comprises of a textual description of the system requirements provided in Natural Language (NL). It is therefore evident that there is a clear scope for incorporating NL Processing techniques in Multi-Paradigm Modeling. However, using NLP methods pushes the boundaries of Multi-Paradigm Modeling to an extreme; indeed NLs are inherently ambiguous and open to interpretation. In this paper, we propose a novel approach based on standards (such as SBVR) that can cope with syntactic and semantic ambiguities in NL specifications and can map them to formal languages such as Alloy. The tool implementing our approach is currently the only available tool for translating NL specifications to formal languages such as Alloy, etc.
M/M/1 Queuing Model for Adaptive Cross-Layer Error Protection in WLANs

An analytical model is employed to solve a cross-layer optimization problem in IEEE 802.11 wireless local area networks (WLANs). Closed-form expressions for the optimum retry limit, packet overflow drop rate and overall loss rate are derived using M/M/1 queuing model, and subsequently an adaptive MAC retry limit scheme is studied. Furthermore simulation results (network simulator-2) will verify the accuracy of our analytical model.
Accuracy of CT-Based attenuation correction in bone imaging with PET/CT

PET/CT has become the most comprehensive diagnostic tool in oncology imaging providing improved lesion identification and localization. Bone is a common site of metastasis and the quantitative accuracy of PET images in bone tissue is important for assessing response to therapy. The use of CT images for attenuation correction is becoming a standard procedure in these scanners. However the impact of CT-based attenuation correction (CTAC) on the accuracy of PET tracer uptake values measured in bone has not been carefully evaluated, having only been carefully studied in soft tissue. We investigated the accuracy of CTAC on PET bone images by comparing the attenuation coefficients with PET transmission scans. For this, we imaged frozen bovine femur segments in a 20 x 20 cm cylindrical phantom. Different regions of the bones in both images were segmented by using thresholding and erosion methods to get equivalent volume masks. Differences in linear attenuation coefficients between the two images were then calculated. We repeated this analysis using patient images from the same patient imaged on the GE Advance PET scanner and the GE Discovery STE PET/CT scanner. The impact of the errors in the linear attenuation coefficients on PET SUV measurements was evaluated by simulations using the patent images with known bone disease and elevated levels of FDG uptake in bone (e.g. SUV = 5) at disease sites. The impact of the errors in the linear attenuation coefficients was then estimated by forward projection and reconstruction, after including the effects of attenuation and attenuation correction.
Lesson planning guidelines for student teachers: A scaffold for the development of pedagogical content knowledge

Abstract Lesson planning for student teachers is often regarded in technical terms, merely as the means to ensure effective classroom performance. This approach limits the possibilities that the process of lesson planning offers to the development of professional competence among student teachers. In particular, student teachers need to begin to develop their pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), the capacity to make pedagogical choices that are logically derived from content and contextual knowledge. This article reports on a Lesson Planning Guideline which is used to scaffold the construction of student teachers’ PCK individually by requiring them to consider the constituent parts of PCK individually and in relation to one another during the planning process. This guideline was developed in response to perceived limitations of existing guidelines used in our institution and found in texts for student teachers. Called a “Rationale for lesson design” the Guideline does not attempt to simplify the planning .
Dead regions in the cochlea: implications for speech recognition and applicability of articulation index theory: Regiones cocleares muertas: implicaciones en el reconocimiento del lenguaje y su aplicabilidad en la teoría del índice de articulación

Dead regions in the cochlea have been suggested to be responsible for failure by hearing aid users to benefit from apparently increased audibility in terms of speech intelligibility. As an alternative to the more cumbersome psychoacoustic tuning curve measurement, threshold-equalizing noise (TEN) has been reported to enable diagnosis of dead regions. The purpose of the present study was first to assess the feasibility of the TEN test protocol, and second, to assess the ability of the procedure to reveal related functional impairment. The latter was done by a test for the recognition of low-pass-filtered speech items. Data were collected from 22 hearing-impaired subjects with moderate-to-profound sensorineural hearing losses. The results showed that 11 subjects exhibited abnormal psychoacoustic behaviour in the TEN test, indicative of a possible dead region. Estimates of audibility were used to assess the possible connection between dead-region candidacy and ability to recognize low-pass-filtered speech. Large variability was observed with regard to the ability of audibility to predict recognition scores for both dead-region and no-dead-region subjects. Furthermore, the results indicate that dead-region subjects might be better than no-dead-region subjects at recognizing speech of marginal audibility. Se ha sugerido que las regiones cocleares muertas son responsables del fracaso de algunos usuaríos de auxiliares auditivos en beneficiarse del aparente aumento de audibilidad en términos de inteligibilidad del lenguaje. Como alternativa a la medición psicoacústica de las curvas de frecuencia característica, se ha reportado que la prueba de ruido ecualizante del umbral (TEN) permite el diagnóstico de estas regiones. El propósito de este estudio, en primer lugar, fue conocer la factibilidad de un protocolo de pruebas TEN y segundo, evaluar la habilidad de este procedimiento para revelar trastornos funcionales relacionados. Esto último se logró por medio de una prueba de reconocimiento de items de lenguaje con filtrado pasa-bajo. Se colectaron datos de 22 hipoacúsicos con pérdidas sensorineurales moderadas a profundas. Los resultados demostraron que 11 sujetos mostraron un comportamiento psicoacústico anormal en la prueba TEN, lo que indica una posible muerte de la región. Se utilizaron cálculos de audibilidad para probar la posible conexión entre una probable región muerta y la habilidad para reconocer lenguaje con filtro pasa-bajo. Se observo una amplia variabilidad en la predicción de puntaje de reconocimiento tanto en sujetos con regiones muertas como en sujetos sin ellas. Además, los resultados indican que los sujetos con regiones muertas pueden reconocer mejor el lenguaje en un nivel de audibilidad marginal.
Does the Sustainability of Comprehensive Intervention Programs Depend on Parent Involvement?

In this research, the importance and sustainability of one of the components of Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP), parent involvement, was studied identifying the importance placed on parent involvement determined the programs’ capacity for sustainability. Results show parent involvement activities, which may provide the most beneficial outcome for parents and their children, are activities that include parents in the planning, decision making, and recruitment of other parents, and that parents need to be considered an important part of GEAR UP services from the beginning of program development. The importance placed on parent involvement was found to have a strong positive effect on the capacity for sustainability of partnership type programs, which draws attention to the way partnership programs are created, and programs that best meet the needs of the community are created by those in the community in which services are provided.
Feature extraction from infrared scan data based on SM-MS algorithm for autonomous mobile robot

This paper presents a new feature extraction system that is to be used with a 2D infrared (IR) range finder. It consists of three data processing modules: cluster, segment and fit. Taking the accuracy and real time of feature extraction into account, a Most Similar (MS) algorithm is designed, combining the Split and Merge (SM) algorithm, a new data segment method-SM-MS algorithm is proposed, which can detect line, arc and corner accurately and quickly. In order to verify the concept, a computer simulation and an experiment prototype were built. The results proved that the new feature extraction method can provide high performance for autonomous mobile robot (AMR) in an indoor dynamic environment.
Geoengineering and Climate Change Polarization: Testing a Two-channel Model of Science Communication

We conducted a two-nation study (United States, n = 1500; England, n = 1500) to test a novel theory of science communication. The cultural cognition thesis posits that individuals make extensive reliance on cultural meanings in forming perceptions of risk. The logic of the cultural cognition thesis suggests the potential value of a distinctive two-channel science communication strategy that combines information content (“Channel 1”) with cultural meanings (“Channel 2”) selected to promote open-minded assessment of information across diverse communities. In the study, scientific information content on climate change was held constant while the cultural meaning of that information was experimentally manipulated. Consistent with the study hypotheses, we found that making citizens aware of the potential contribution of geoengineering as a supplement to restriction of CO2 emissions helps to offset cultural polarization over the validity of climate-change science. We also tested the hypothesis, derived from competing models of science communication, that exposure to information on geoengineering would provoke discounting of climate-change risks generally. Contrary to this hypothesis, we found that subjects exposed to information about geoengineering were slightly more concerned about climate change risks than those assigned to a control condition.
Cloned Cattle Fetuses with the Same Nuclear Genetics Are More Variable Than Contemporary Half-Siblings Resulting from Artificial Insemination and Exhibit Fetal and Placental Growth Deregulation Even in the First Trimester1

Abstract The cloning of cattle by somatic cell nuclear transfer (NT) is associated with a high incidence of abnormal placentation, excessive fluid accumulation in the fetal sacs (hydrops syndrome), and fetal overgrowth. Fetal and placental development was investigated at Day 50, during placentome formation; at Day 100, when placentation was completed; and at Day 150, when the hydrops syndrome frequently develops. The NT fetuses were compared with contemporary half-siblings generated from in vitro-produced embryos or by artificial insemination (AI). Fetal cotyledon formation and vascularization of the chorioallantoic membranes was initiated normally in NT conceptuses, but fewer cotyledons successfully formed placentomes. By Day 100, the mean number of placentomes was significantly lower in surviving NT fetuses. Only those with normal placentome numbers were represented in surviving NT pregnancies at Day 150. The mean total caruncle tissue weight of the placentomes was significantly higher in the surviving NT groups at Days 100 and 150, irrespective of the placentome numbers, indicating that increased NT placental weight was caused by excessive uterine tissue growth. By Day 100, NT fetuses exhibited growth deregulation, and those that survived to Day 150 were 17% heavier than contemporary AI controls. Placentome, liver, and kidney overgrowth accompanied the hydrops syndrome at Day 150. The NT fetal overgrowth was not a consequence of in vitro embryo culture and showed no correlation with placental overgrowth. However, in vitro culture and incomplete reprogramming of the donor genome are epigenetic effects that may override genetic traits and contribute to the greater variability in placental and fetal development in the NT group compared with AI half-siblings.
Clathrin‐mediated endocytosis is essential in Trypanosoma brucei

In Trypanosoma brucei, the plasma membrane is dominated by glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)‐anchored proteins. Endocytic activity correlates with expression levels of the clathrin heavy chain TbCLH, and additional evidence suggests that rapid endocytosis may play a role in evasion of the immune response. TbCLH is present on both endocytic vesicles and post‐Golgi elements, suggesting a similar range of functions in trypanosomes to higher eukaryotes. We have assessed the role of TbCLH using RNA interference (RNAi). Suppression of TbCLH expression results in rapid lethality in the bloodstream stage, the form most active for endocytosis. The flagellar pocket, the site of both endocytosis and exocytosis, becomes massively enlarged, suggesting that membrane delivery is unaffected but removal is blocked. Endocytosis in TbCLHRNAi cells is essentially undetectable, suggesting that clathrin‐mediated mechanisms are the major route for endocytosis in T.brucei and hence that GPI‐anchored proteins are endocytosed by clathrin‐dependent pathways in trypanosomes. In contrast, a massive internal accumulation of vesicles and significant alterations to trafficking of a lysosomal protein were observed in the procyclic stage, indicating developmental variation in clathrin function in trypanosomes.
Quantum Field Theory Treatment of Neutrino Oscillations in Vacuum and in Matter

We study neutrino oscillations in vacuum and in matter using field theoretical methods and wave-packets. In particular, we calculate the neutrino propagator in the presence of matter with constant density for the case of two flavors, obtaining the resonance formula. In the extreme relativistic limit, the result of the usual quantum mechanical treatment is recovered with interesting, but small modifications.
Biophysical basis for the geometry of conical stromatolites

Stromatolites may be Earth’s oldest macroscopic fossils; however, it remains controversial what, if any, biological processes are recorded in their morphology. Although the biological interpretation of many stromatolite morphologies is confounded by the influence of sedimentation, conical stromatolites form in the absence of sedimentation and are, therefore, considered to be the most robust records of biophysical processes. A qualitative similarity between conical stromatolites and some modern microbial mats suggests a photosynthetic origin for ancient stromatolites. To better understand and interpret ancient fossils, we seek a quantitative relationship between the geometry of conical stromatolites and the biophysical processes that control their growth. We note that all modern conical stromatolites and many that formed in the last 2.8 billion years display a characteristic centimeter-scale spacing between neighboring structures. To understand this prominent—but hitherto uninterpreted—organization, we consider the role of diffusion in mediating competition between stromatolites. Having confirmed this model through laboratory experiments and field observation, we find that organization of a field of stromatolites is set by a diffusive time scale over which individual structures compete for nutrients, thus linking form to physiology. The centimeter-scale spacing between modern and ancient stromatolites corresponds to a rhythmically fluctuating metabolism with a period of approximately 20 hr. The correspondence between the observed spacing and the day length provides quantitative support for the photosynthetic origin of conical stromatolites throughout geologic time.
Using Continuing Professional Development with Portfolio in a Pharmaceutics Course

The introduction of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) to encourage individual life-long learning as a way of maintaining professional competency in pharmacy has faced resistance. To investigate ways to address this barrier we included CPD with portfolio in a university Pharmaceutics course. Underpinning knowledge for the course was delivered using a flipped classroom approach and students used the CPD model to address clinical scenarios presented in a simulated pharmacy setting. Students produced portfolio items for the different case scenarios and submitted these for assessment. This provided the opportunity for students to carry out repeated application of the CPD cycle and, in so doing, develop skills in critical thinking for self-reflection and self-evaluation. This course was designed to encourage the development of higher level learning skills for future self-directed learning. Thirty six students submitted a completed portfolio. Twenty nine students achieved a result of >70%, five students scored between 57%–69%, one student obtained a mark of 50% and one student failed. The end of course survey revealed that while students found portfolio development challenging (40%), they also reported that it was effective for self-learning (54%). Differentiating between the concepts “reflection” and “evaluation” in CPD was problematic for some students and the use of clearer, simpler language should be used to explain these processes in future CPD work.
Upper Limb Electromyographic Analysis Synchronized with Kinematics in Cervical Spinal Cord Injured Patients during the Activity of Daily Living of Drinking

Cite this article: de los Reyes-Guzmán A, López-Dolado E, Lozano-Berrio V, Pérez-Nombela S, Torricelli D, et al. (2017) Upper Limb Electromyographic Analysis Synchronized with Kinematics in Cervical Spinal Cord Injured Patients during the Activity of Daily Living of Drinking. JSM Physical Med Rehabil 1(1): 1004. *Corresponding author Ana de los Reyes-Guzmán, Biomechanical and Technical Aids Department, National Hospital for Paraplegics, Finca La Peraleda s/n, 45071, Toledo, Spain, Email:
EEG Detection of Early Alzheimer's Disease Using Psychophysical Tasks

In this study, we hypothesized that a quantitative EEG (qEEG) method for measuring EEG variability combined with specific psychophysical tasks could improve the classification accuracy of subjects with normal aging vs. mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or mild dementia due to Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders (ADRD). The cross-sectional sample consisted of 48 subjects (32 normal aging and 16 ADRD: n=3 mild dementia, n=13 MCI FAST stage 3). During EEG recording, subjects performed two visual, delayed recognition memory tasks as well as a task that tested their ability to perceive structure-from-motion (SFM). These EEG data were used to compute qEEG measures of the (normalized) variance of posterior cortical activity during the first 150 milliseconds (ms) after stimulus onset and the variance of anterior cortical activity during the second 150 ms epoch. The ratio, anterior/posterior cerebral qEEG value, was then computed for each subject, and the optimal cutoff value identified to discriminate normal from impaired subjects. An optimal qEEG cutoff value for the delayed recognition memory tasks correctly discriminated 30 of the 32 normal aging subjects (94% specificity) and 14 of 16 MCI-to-mild ADRD subjects (88% sensitivity). On the other hand, the application of this qEEG measure to EEG data recorded while subjects performed a SFM task did not distinguish between ADRD and normal aging any better than chance. In conclusion, this qEEG measure is specific to the psychophysical task being performed by the subject. When it was combined with delayed recognition memory tasks, it yielded results that are comparable to the accuracies reported by PET scan studies of normal aging vs. AD with mild cognitive impairment. These results warrant further evaluation.
Corporate choice of banks: Decision factors, process and responsibility - First evidence

In this paper, we investigate how firms choose thei r banks. We focus on the decision factors, the decision process and the decision maker playing a role in determining the firm-bank relationships. We have access to a unique survey ru n by a major bank in the Czech Republic. We find that firms that consider bank reputation to be an important decision factor, have fewer bank relationships and are less likely to red uc the number or quantity of services taken from their banks. Firms that emphasize the price of bank services are more likely to end relationships and to reduce services. Firms that em ploy solicited offers when choosing banks have more bank relationships. Interestingly, the id ntity of the corporate decision maker determines both the number of bank relationships an d the firm’s switching behavior. A CFO deciding on his/her own will opt for a lower number of banks and for a higher turnover of the existing bank relationships than a committee of boa rd members.