7,791 research outputs found
Raising Critical Consciousness in Engineering Education: A Critical Exploration of Transformative Possibilities in Engineering Education and Research
This thesis represents a critical exploration of the opportunities, challenges, and barriers to enacting social justice via the engineering curriculum. Through an ethnographic case study of a British engineering for sustainable development course, I illuminate tensions and contradictions of attempts to “do good” while “doing engineering” in a higher education setting. This work is couched within critical and anti-colonial theoretical frames. Through critical and reflexive analysis, I illustrate attempts of participants to innovate in engineering education toward a counter-hegemonic engineering practice, and highlight transformative possibilities, as well as barriers. This case illustrates how the structures that formed modern engineering continue to shape engineering higher education, restraining attempts to transform engineering training for social good.A central question that has driven this work has been: Is it possible to cultivate a more socially just form of engineering practice through engineering higher education? The function of asking this question has been to interrogate a core assumption in engineering education research – that with the right blend of educational interventions, we can make strides towards social justice. My intent in interrogating this assumption is not to be nihilistic per se. I believe it is entirely possible that engineering could potentially be wielded for just cause and consequence. However, if we do not critically examine our core assumptions around this issue, we may also miss out on the possibility that socially just engineering is not achievable, at least in the way we are currently approaching it or in the current context within which it exists.An examination of this topic is already underway in the US context. However, it is under-explored in a British context. Given the different historical trajectories of engineering and engineering in higher education between these two contexts, a closer look at the British context is warranted
Using machine learning to predict pathogenicity of genomic variants throughout the human genome
Geschätzt mehr als 6.000 Erkrankungen werden durch Veränderungen im Genom verursacht. Ursachen gibt es viele: Eine genomische Variante kann die Translation eines Proteins stoppen, die Genregulation stören oder das Spleißen der mRNA in eine andere Isoform begünstigen. All diese Prozesse müssen überprüft werden, um die zum beschriebenen Phänotyp passende Variante zu ermitteln. Eine Automatisierung dieses Prozesses sind Varianteneffektmodelle. Mittels maschinellem Lernen und Annotationen aus verschiedenen Quellen bewerten diese Modelle genomische Varianten hinsichtlich ihrer Pathogenität.
Die Entwicklung eines Varianteneffektmodells erfordert eine Reihe von Schritten: Annotation der Trainingsdaten, Auswahl von Features, Training verschiedener Modelle und Selektion eines Modells. Hier präsentiere ich ein allgemeines Workflow dieses Prozesses. Dieses ermöglicht es den Prozess zu konfigurieren, Modellmerkmale zu bearbeiten, und verschiedene Annotationen zu testen. Der Workflow umfasst außerdem die Optimierung von Hyperparametern, Validierung und letztlich die Anwendung des Modells durch genomweites Berechnen von Varianten-Scores.
Der Workflow wird in der Entwicklung von Combined Annotation Dependent Depletion (CADD), einem Varianteneffektmodell zur genomweiten Bewertung von SNVs und InDels, verwendet. Durch Etablierung des ersten Varianteneffektmodells für das humane Referenzgenome GRCh38 demonstriere ich die gewonnenen Möglichkeiten Annotationen aufzugreifen und neue Modelle zu trainieren. Außerdem zeige ich, wie Deep-Learning-Scores als Feature in einem CADD-Modell die Vorhersage von RNA-Spleißing verbessern. Außerdem werden Varianteneffektmodelle aufgrund eines neuen, auf Allelhäufigkeit basierten, Trainingsdatensatz entwickelt.
Diese Ergebnisse zeigen, dass der entwickelte Workflow eine skalierbare und flexible Möglichkeit ist, um Varianteneffektmodelle zu entwickeln. Alle entstandenen Scores sind unter cadd.gs.washington.edu und cadd.bihealth.org frei verfügbar.More than 6,000 diseases are estimated to be caused by genomic variants. This can happen in many possible ways: a variant may stop the translation of a protein, interfere with gene regulation, or alter splicing of the transcribed mRNA into an unwanted isoform. It is necessary to investigate all of these processes in order to evaluate which variant may be causal for the deleterious phenotype. A great help in this regard are variant effect scores. Implemented as machine learning classifiers, they integrate annotations from different resources to rank genomic variants in terms of pathogenicity.
Developing a variant effect score requires multiple steps: annotation of the training data, feature selection, model training, benchmarking, and finally deployment for the model's application. Here, I present a generalized workflow of this process. It makes it simple to configure how information is converted into model features, enabling the rapid exploration of different annotations. The workflow further implements hyperparameter optimization, model validation and ultimately deployment of a selected model via genome-wide scoring of genomic variants.
The workflow is applied to train Combined Annotation Dependent Depletion (CADD), a variant effect model that is scoring SNVs and InDels genome-wide. I show that the workflow can be quickly adapted to novel annotations by porting CADD to the genome reference GRCh38. Further, I demonstrate the integration of deep-neural network scores as features into a new CADD model, improving the annotation of RNA splicing events. Finally, I apply the workflow to train multiple variant effect models from training data that is based on variants selected by allele frequency.
In conclusion, the developed workflow presents a flexible and scalable method to train variant effect scores. All software and developed scores are freely available from cadd.gs.washington.edu and cadd.bihealth.org
Efectos de un nuevo nutracéutico basado en aceite de oliva virgen extra, aceite de algas y extracto de hojas de olivo sobre las alteraciones metabólicas y cardiovasculares asociadas al envejecimiento
Tesis Doctoral inĂ©dita leĂda en la Universidad AutĂłnoma de Madrid, Facultad de Medicina, Departamento de FisiologĂa. Fecha de Lectura: 23-07-2021Esta tesis tiene embargado el acceso al texto completo hasta el 23-01-2023Este trabajo de investigaciĂłn ha sido financiado por
la beca “Doctorados Industriales 2017” (IND2017/BIO7701) de la Comunidad de Madri
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Ensuring Access to Safe and Nutritious Food for All Through the Transformation of Food Systems
Anuário cientĂfico da Escola Superior de Tecnologia da SaĂşde de Lisboa - 2021
É com grande prazer que apresentamos a mais recente edição (a 11.ÂŞ) do Anuário CientĂfico da Escola Superior de Tecnologia da SaĂşde de Lisboa. Como instituição de ensino superior, temos o compromisso de promover e incentivar a pesquisa cientĂfica em todas as áreas do conhecimento que contemplam a nossa missĂŁo. Esta publicação tem como objetivo divulgar toda a produção cientĂfica desenvolvida pelos Professores, Investigadores, Estudantes e Pessoal nĂŁo Docente da ESTeSL durante 2021. Este Anuário Ă©, assim, o reflexo do trabalho árduo e dedicado da nossa comunidade, que se empenhou na produção de conteĂşdo cientĂfico de elevada qualidade e partilhada com a Sociedade na forma de livros, capĂtulos de livros, artigos publicados em revistas nacionais e internacionais, resumos de comunicações orais e pĂłsteres, bem como resultado dos trabalhos de 1Âş e 2Âş ciclo. Com isto, o conteĂşdo desta publicação abrange uma ampla variedade de tĂłpicos, desde temas mais fundamentais atĂ© estudos de aplicação prática em contextos especĂficos de SaĂşde, refletindo desta forma a pluralidade e diversidade de áreas que definem, e tornam Ăşnica, a ESTeSL. Acreditamos que a investigação e pesquisa cientĂfica Ă© um eixo fundamental para o desenvolvimento da sociedade e Ă© por isso que incentivamos os nossos estudantes a envolverem-se em atividades de pesquisa e prática baseada na evidĂŞncia desde o inĂcio dos seus estudos na ESTeSL. Esta publicação Ă© um exemplo do sucesso desses esforços, sendo a maior de sempre, o que faz com que estejamos muito orgulhosos em partilhar os resultados e descobertas dos nossos investigadores com a comunidade cientĂfica e o pĂşblico em geral. Esperamos que este Anuário inspire e motive outros estudantes, profissionais de saĂşde, professores e outros colaboradores a continuarem a explorar novas ideias e contribuir para o avanço da ciĂŞncia e da tecnologia no corpo de conhecimento prĂłprio das áreas que compõe a ESTeSL. Agradecemos a todos os envolvidos na produção deste anuário e desejamos uma leitura inspiradora e agradável.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Victims' Access to Justice in Trinidad and Tobago: An exploratory study of experiences and challenges of accessing criminal justice in a post-colonial society
This thesis investigates victims' access to justice in Trinidad and Tobago, using their own narratives. It seeks to capture how their experiences affected their identities as victims and citizens, alongside their perceptions of legitimacy regarding the criminal justice system. While there have been some reforms in the administration of criminal justice in Trinidad and Tobago, such reforms have not focused on victims' accessibility to the justice system. Using grounded theory methodology, qualitative data was collected through 31 in-depth interviews with victims and victim advocates. The analysis found that victims experienced interpersonal, structural, and systemic barriers at varying levels throughout the criminal justice system, which manifested as institutionalized secondary victimization, silencing and inequality. This thesis argues that such experiences not only served to appropriate conflict but demonstrates that access is often given in a very narrow sense. Furthermore, it shows a failure to encompass access to justice as appropriated conflicts are left to stagnate in the system as there is often very little resolution. Adopting a postcolonial lens to analyse victims' experiences, the analysis identified othering practices that served to institutionalize the vulnerability and powerlessness associated with victim identities. Here, it is argued that these othering practices also affected the rights consciousness of victims, delegitimating their identities as citizens. Moreover, as a result of their experiences, victims had mixed perceptions of the justice system. It is argued that while the system is a legitimate authority victims' endorsement of the system is questionable, therefore victims' experiences suggest that there is a reinforcement of the system's legal hegemony. The findings suggest that within the legal system of Trinidad and Tobago, legacies of colonialism shape the postcolonial present as the psychology and inequalities of the past are present in the interactions and processes of justice. These findings are relevant for policymakers in Trinidad and Tobago and other regions. From this study it is recognized that, to improve access to justice for victims, there needs to be a move towards victim empowerment that promotes resilience and enhances social capital. Going forward it is noted that there is a need for further research
Immediate skin-to-skin contact for very preterm and low birth weight infants : from newborn physiology to mortality reduction
There is a contrast between the incidence of low birth weight and the contents and outcomes
of neonatal care in high- versus middle- and low-income countries. Most of the neonatal
deaths worldwide are attributed to low birth weight, occur within the first three postnatal days
and can be prevented without intensive care.
There are many benefits of skin-to-skin contact when initiated as per today’s
recommendations, after an infant has become stable. Intermittent skin-to-skin contact is a
component of neonatal care in Sweden. There is a knowledge gap concerning the effects of
skin-to-skin contact initiated immediately after birth in unstable newborn very preterm and
low birth weight infants.
The overall aim of this thesis was to fill the knowledge gap on the effects of skin-to-skin
contact initiated immediately after birth in unstable very preterm and low birth weight infants
in high- as well as in low- and middle-income countries. More specifically, the aims were to
investigate the cardiorespiratory effects and the effect on mortality.
The five studies in this thesis derive from three randomised clinical trials comparing care in
skin-to-skin contact immediately after birth with conventional care for very preterm or low
birth weight infants, and from one register study. Studies I and II involved very preterm
infants in Scandinavia, where study I (n=55) investigated the effect on infant temperature at
one postnatal hour and study II (n=91) infant cardiorespiratory parameters during the first six
postnatal hours. Study III (n=1475) reported on skin-to-skin contact initiation time and daily
duration as per the Swedish Neonatal Quality Register. Study IV (n=3211) was a trial on the
effect on neonatal mortality in low birth weight infants in Ghana, India, Malawi, Nigeria and
Tanzania. Study V described the cardiorespiratory parameters during the first four days in the
infants enrolled in study IV.
Study I found that infants in skin-to-skin contact had 0.3°C lower temperature at one
postnatal hour and study II that they had 0.52 points higher stability on a six-graded scale
during the first six postnatal hours. Study III found that currently in Sweden, we initiate skin-
to-skin contact for very preterm infants after half a day and daily durations of skin-to-skin
contact amount to five hours during the stay in the neonatal unit. Study IV found 25%
reduced neonatal mortality in low birth weight infants exposed to immediate and continuous
skin-to-skin contact. Study V found similar cardiorespiratory parameters during the first four
days of life in the two allocations of the cohort of study IV.
There were benefits of skin-to-skin contact initiated immediately after birth, in terms of
cardiorespiratory stabilisation in very preterm infants in high-income countries and mortality
reduction in low birth weight infants in low- and middle-income countries. Skin-to-skin
contact immediately after birth was not part of the conventional care. Data were collected
during different postnatal time periods in the studies and were thus not comparable in detail.
Mother-neonatal intensive care units should be available where low birth weight infants are
born and skin-to-skin contact integrated into the neonatal medical care. Future research
should focus on risks and scale-up
Modeling, Simulation and Data Processing for Additive Manufacturing
Additive manufacturing (AM) or, more commonly, 3D printing is one of the fundamental elements of Industry 4.0. and the fourth industrial revolution. It has shown its potential example in the medical, automotive, aerospace, and spare part sectors. Personal manufacturing, complex and optimized parts, short series manufacturing and local on-demand manufacturing are some of the current benefits. Businesses based on AM have experienced double-digit growth in recent years. Accordingly, we have witnessed considerable efforts in developing processes and materials in terms of speed, costs, and availability. These open up new applications and business case possibilities all the time, which were not previously in existence. Most research has focused on material and AM process development or effort to utilize existing materials and processes for industrial applications. However, improving the understanding and simulation of materials and AM process and understanding the effect of different steps in the AM workflow can increase the performance even more. The best way of benefit of AM is to understand all the steps related to that—from the design and simulation to additive manufacturing and post-processing ending the actual application.The objective of this Special Issue was to provide a forum for researchers and practitioners to exchange their latest achievements and identify critical issues and challenges for future investigations on “Modeling, Simulation and Data Processing for Additive Manufacturing”. The Special Issue consists of 10 original full-length articles on the topic
Technologies and Applications for Big Data Value
This open access book explores cutting-edge solutions and best practices for big data and data-driven AI applications for the data-driven economy. It provides the reader with a basis for understanding how technical issues can be overcome to offer real-world solutions to major industrial areas. The book starts with an introductory chapter that provides an overview of the book by positioning the following chapters in terms of their contributions to technology frameworks which are key elements of the Big Data Value Public-Private Partnership and the upcoming Partnership on AI, Data and Robotics. The remainder of the book is then arranged in two parts. The first part “Technologies and Methods” contains horizontal contributions of technologies and methods that enable data value chains to be applied in any sector. The second part “Processes and Applications” details experience reports and lessons from using big data and data-driven approaches in processes and applications. Its chapters are co-authored with industry experts and cover domains including health, law, finance, retail, manufacturing, mobility, and smart cities. Contributions emanate from the Big Data Value Public-Private Partnership and the Big Data Value Association, which have acted as the European data community's nucleus to bring together businesses with leading researchers to harness the value of data to benefit society, business, science, and industry. The book is of interest to two primary audiences, first, undergraduate and postgraduate students and researchers in various fields, including big data, data science, data engineering, and machine learning and AI. Second, practitioners and industry experts engaged in data-driven systems, software design and deployment projects who are interested in employing these advanced methods to address real-world problems
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