A Taxonomy Of Aspect-Oriented Security

Aspect-Oriented Programming is gaining prominence,  particularly in the area of security. There are however no taxonomies available, that classify the proliferation of research done in the area of Aspect-Oriented Security. This paper attempts to categorize research outputs conducted in this area, and evaluate the usability of the aspect-oriented paradigm in terms of software security

Autonomic control in preterm infants - what we can learn from mathematical descriptions of vital signs

Background: Preterm birth is a major burden, affecting approximately 15 million infants each year. Recent advances in reproductive medicine increases that number even more. The population of preterm infants in particular suffers from autonomic dysregulation that manifests as temperature instability and poor control of heart rate and breathing. Thermal care, monitoring of vital signs in a neonatal intensive care unit, pharmacotherapy, and respiratory support over weeks to months is necessary. Improvements in neonatal care in the past years lead to a decrease in mortality, especially in very preterm infants. However, former preterm infants still are a high-risk population for acute and chronic sequelae as a result of the interruption of the physiological development. A better understanding of the pathophysiology of the autonomic dysregulation in that population would be very useful. Unfortunately, accurate diagnostic tools that objectively assess and quantify the immature autonomic control in neonates are lacking. Methods: In this PhD thesis we examined different effects of the immature autonomic control in very preterm infants under clinically relevant conditions. We conducted a prospective single center observational study, where we assessed fluctuations in body temperature, sleep behavior, and heart rate variability in very preterm infants. We described the different regulatory systems using distinct mathematical expressions, such as detrended fluctuation analysis and sample entropy. We assessed associations between these outcome parameters and relevant factors of the infant’s history, such as demographic parameters and co-morbidities. Besides that, we analyzed lung function measurements of preterm infants and healthy term controls at a comparable postconceptional age, to describe respiratory control. Results: This study is systematically assessing different physiological signals of autonomic dysregulation in preterm infants during their first days of life. We found associations between parameters describing the complexity of time series analysis and maturity or relevant co-morbidities of the infants. In the analysis of heart rate variability we even found that parameters derived from time series analysis, assessed during the infants first days of life, improve our ability to predict future evolution of the infants’ autonomic stability. Lastly, several weeks after the expected due date, tidal breathing pattern of preterm infants showed a different reaction in response to a sigh when compared to term born controls at equivalent postmenstrual age indicating that autonomic dysregulation in preterm infants is still present well beyond the expected due date. Conclusion: A better understanding about the resolution of autonomic dysregulation in this population is not only important for the infant and its family but has the potential to support resource allocation and identification of patients with elevated risk for future deterioration. We thus think that the insights about the immature autonomic control in preterm infants, gained through this PhD work, are of substantial scientific and clinical relevance

Nanotopographic device for neural subtypes segregation

Tese de mestrado integrado em Engenharia Biomédica e Biofísica, apresentada à Universidade de Lisboa, através da Faculdade de Ciências, 2014A usabilidade de próteses avançadas pode ser melhorada através do aumento do controlo motor sobre a prótese e da resposta sensitiva do paciente. Como a topografia da superfície desempenha um papel importante, ao nível da nanoescala, no crescimento e condução dos axónios, o dispositivo nanotopográfico foi construído com o objetivo de estudar a resposta axonal de neurónios periféricos a diferentes tamanhos de nanogradeamentos. O design inovador deste dispositivo incorpora: (1) câmaras microfluídicas para isolamento axonal; (2) canais fisicamente modificados com vários relevos nos nanogradeamentos; e (3) uma abordagem de bifurcação baseada na nanotopografia. A linha celular F11 (neurónios sensitivos nociceptivos) foi escolhida como modelo para analisar a resposta celular no dispositivo nanotopográfico. Materiais e técnicas otimizadas foram usados para assegurar a qualidade do dispositivo: os canais foram moldados em PDMS e os nanogradeamentos impressos na superfície de COC. Em paralelo, colorações e ensaios bioquímicos foram realizados para avaliar as condições ótimas de cultura das F11, nomeadamente os ensaios de ADN, ATP, e LIVE/DEAD. As potenciais aplicações deste dispositivo nanotopográfico foram apresentadas. A Neurofluídica é um campo em recente desenvolvimento que visa construir dispositivos microfluídicos para a investigação neurobiológica. O dispositivo nanotopográfico tem potencial para ser útil nesta área emergente, fornecendo informação acerca das preferências topográficas de cada tipo de célula. Com base nisto, poderia ser possível obter-se a segregação física de subtipos de neurónios. Em resposta às altas e crescentes taxas de amputações, estes avanços poderiam ser úteis no desenvolvimento de interfaces neuro-protéticas altamente sofisticadas.The usability of advanced prostheses can be improved by increasing the degree of motor control over the prosthesis and sensitive feedback to the patient. As nanoscale surface topographies play an important role in axonal outgrowth and guidance, a nanotopographic device was constructed for studying the axonal response of peripheral neurons to different nanograting sizes. This innovative device design incorporates: (1) microfluidic chambers for axonal isolation; (2) physically modified channels with several nanograting ridges; and (3) a bifurcating nanotopography-based approach. The F11 cell line (nociceptive sensory neurons) was chosen as model to analyse cell response in the nanotopographic device. Optimal materials and techniques were used to assure the quality of the device: Channels were molded on PDMS and nanogratings were printed on the COC surface. In parallel, staining and biochemical assays were performed to evaluate the optimal F11 culture conditions, such as DNA, ATP, and LIVE/DEAD assays. Existing and potential applications of the nanotopographic device were presented. Neurofluidics is an early stage field which develops microfluidic devices for neurobiological research. The nanotopographic device has the potential to be useful in this emerging area by providing insight into topographical preference for each cell type. Based on that, physical segregation of neuron subtypes might be achieved. In response to high and rising amputation rates, these achievements could be useful in the development of highly sophisticated neural-prosthetic interfaces

Model Driven Development of Agents for Ambient Intelligence

En esta tesis se define un proceso dirigido por modelos para el desarrollo de sistemas de Inteligencia Ambiental (AmI) basados en agentes auto-gestionados que pueden ser ejecutados en los dispositivos más usuales de los entornos AmI, teléfonos inteligentes o sensores. Nuestra solución está centrada en una arquitectura de MAS totalmente distribuida y descentralizada, gracias a la integración de los agentes en los dispositivos heterogéneos que suelen formar parte de un sistema AmI

2014 - 2015 University Catalog

This is a one-year Catalog, effective beginning Summer Quarter 2014. Volume 104, Number 1, July 2014https://scholarsrepository.llu.edu/univcatalog/1002/thumbnail.jp

2016 - 2017 University Catalog

This is a one-year Catalog, effective beginning Summer Quarter 2016. Volume 105, Number 1, July 2016https://scholarsrepository.llu.edu/univcatalog/1000/thumbnail.jp

2015 - 2016 University Catalog

This is a one-year Catalog, effective beginning Summer Quarter 2015. Volume 104, Number 1, July 2015https://scholarsrepository.llu.edu/univcatalog/1001/thumbnail.jp

2013 - 2014 University Catalog

Volume 103, Number 1, July 2013 Published once a year, July 2013https://scholarsrepository.llu.edu/univcatalog/1003/thumbnail.jp

2012 - 2013 University Catalog

Volume 102, Number 1, July 2012 Published once a year, July 2012https://scholarsrepository.llu.edu/univcatalog/1004/thumbnail.jp

2011 - 2012 University Catalog

Volume 101, Number 1, July 2011 Published once a year, July 2011https://scholarsrepository.llu.edu/univcatalog/1005/thumbnail.jp