Action Recognition in Videos: from Motion Capture Labs to the Web

This paper presents a survey of human action recognition approaches based on visual data recorded from a single video camera. We propose an organizing framework which puts in evidence the evolution of the area, with techniques moving from heavily constrained motion capture scenarios towards more challenging, realistic, "in the wild" videos. The proposed organization is based on the representation used as input for the recognition task, emphasizing the hypothesis assumed and thus, the constraints imposed on the type of video that each technique is able to address. Expliciting the hypothesis and constraints makes the framework particularly useful to select a method, given an application. Another advantage of the proposed organization is that it allows categorizing newest approaches seamlessly with traditional ones, while providing an insightful perspective of the evolution of the action recognition task up to now. That perspective is the basis for the discussion in the end of the paper, where we also present the main open issues in the area.Comment: Preprint submitted to CVIU, survey paper, 46 pages, 2 figures, 4 table

Sugar utilization patterns and respiro-fermentative metabolism in the baker’s yeast Torulaspora delbrueckii

The highly osmo- and cryotolerant yeast species Torulaspora delbrueckii is an important case study among the non-Saccharomyces yeast species. The strain T delbrueckii PYCC 532 1, isolated from traditional corn and rye bread dough in northern Portugal, is considered particularly interesting for the baking industry. This paper reports the sugar utilization patterns of this strain, using media with glucose, maltose and sucrose, alone or in mixtures. Kinetics of growth, biomass and ethanol yields, fermentation and respiration rates, hydrolase activities and sugar uptake rates were used to infer the potential applied relevance of this yeast in comparison to a conventional baker's strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The results showed that both maltase and maltose transport in T delbrueckii were subject to glucose repression and maltose induction, whereas invertase was subject to glucose control but not dependent on sucrose induction. A comparative analysis of specific sugar consumption rates and transport capacities suggests that the transport step limits both glucose and maltose metabolism. Specific rates of CO2 production and O-2 consumption showed a significantly higher contribution of respiration to the overall metabolism in T delbrueckii than in S. cerevisiae. This was reflected in the biomass yields from batch cultures and could represent an asset for the large-scale production of the former species. This work contributes to a better understanding of the physiology of a non-conventional yeast species, with a view to the full exploitation of T delbrueckii by the baking industry.This work was partially funded by Agência de Inovação (AdI) program POCI2010/2.3, project ‘PARFERM’. C. A.-A. and A. P. were supported by PhD fellowships from PRAXIS XXI – BD/21543/99 and BD/13282/ 2003, respectively (Fundação para a Ciência e para a Tecnologia, Portugal).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

RESPOSTAS TERMOGRÁFICAS DOS ESFORÇOS EM ATLETAS DE VOLEIBOL

O objetivo do estudo foi analisar as respostas termográficas provenientes dos esforços realizados por jovens atletas em uma partida simulada de voleibol. Participaram 17 jogadoras pertencentes a seleção roraimense infanto-juvenil. Foram coletados termogramas do bíceps, tríceps, quadríceps e isquiotibiais das atletas antes e após a partida. Os resultados dos termogramas apresentaram variações de 0,8°C e 0,7°C nos lados direito/esquerdo do bíceps, 0,7°C e 0,8°C para o tríceps direito/esquerdo respectivamente. Na musculatura inferior, a análise termográfica apontou maiores variações para a musculatura do quadríceps após o jogo, com valores de 1,5°C para o lado direito e 1,1°C para o lado esquerdo. Os músculos isquiotibiais dos lados direito e esquerdo apresentaram aumentos de 0,7°C. Concluímos que uma partida de voleibol ocasiona alterações térmicas nos músculos, com maior concentração nos quadríceps. Consideramos ainda, a termografia como um método que apresenta importante papel na mensuração e controle do desgaste físico em partidas de voleibol

Interface da má absorção da frutose e depressão: revisão sistemática da literatura

The present study aims to clarify whether patients with poorly absorption of fructose are more susceptible to develop depression. It is a systematic review of literature using the descriptors of health, in BVS Salud and Medline database. Inclusion criteria: studies with patients with or without fructose malabsorption, and with or without depressive symptoms, in all age, groups of both sexes and animal studies. In English, Spanish and Portuguese. Exclusion criteria: studies whose focus was not the fructose malabsorption affecting directly or indirectly in the emergence of depression. Nine articles were recovered, published in English between 1998 and 2014, two of them are reviews, one cross sectional study, five cohort and one clinical trial. The methodological quality was evaluated by the journal´s impact factor where the article was published; in addition to analyzing the quality of each by the CASP and Strobe, evaluated by EQUATOR. One positive relation between fructose malabsorption and depression was found in eight studies except one. The relation between fructose malabsorption and depression is hardly implemented in clinical / gastroenterological practice; so many cases are not being diagnosed. Nowadays, the prevalence of depression is high and the etiology is multifactorial. This is the first national study that correlates systematically the fructose malabsorption and depression. New studies are needed for the diagnosis and therapy

Aplicação semiótica a projetos de produto: estudo de caso do polo moveleiro ubaense

O artigo propõe um estudo sobre a relação entre a teoria semiótica e sua aplicação no processo de criação de projetos de produtos, desde o conceito até a sua divulgação pelas empresas do município de Ubá, Zona da Mata mineira. Foram realizadas pesquisas de campo, entrevistas com designers e análises de materiais de divulgação. A ideia foi também propor aspectos teóricos da semiótica aplicada ao design que possam fundamentar a elaboração dos projetos concernentes à produção moveleira de Ubá, sempre confrontando a teoria com o que acontece na prática, a fim de estimular discussões acerca dos possíveis benefícios de sua aplicação, seja por questões simbólicas ou pelo valor que é agregado. Portanto, deseja-se ressaltar a importância do estudo da semiótica para o design, que, segundo os dados obtidos na pesquisa, apesar de existirem alguns incentivos para a busca da diferenciação semântica dos produtos da região, há a falta de interesse em investimentos voltados à utilização do design como um diferencial competitivo, pois o polo ainda não reconhece todo o seu potencial estratégico

The challenges to plan and develop pedagogical practices involving digital written culture in childhood education

Nowadays children are part of the digital culture (Cassany, 2002), using its supports and involving themselves in different uses of digital written culture (Chartier, 2011, 2016). Are teachers considering these uses in preschools? How can we create teaching proposals that attend the learning conditions of young children? How do children deal with the devices, languages, and the particular uses of digital written culture? This text aims to reflect on the processes to incorporate digital technologies in the development of pedagogical activities of preschool teachers from two public schools in Brazil. The data was collected during a research done with four teachers of four to five-year-old children. The activities proposed were developed through a collaboration of the researchers and the teachers, considering their teaching demands and the children’s development. The results show that the teachers started to notice the importance of using digital technologies in the processes of appreciation of written culture. On the other hand, children are stimulated to become authors and to understand the digital support as one more instrument to think and interact with society.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Ethanol tolerance of sugar transport, and the rectification of stuck wine fermentations

The incomplete consumption of sugar resulting from stuck wine fermentation is associated with important economic losses. One of the solutions to this serious problem consists of reinoculating the brew with a yeast starter culture that is both alcohol tolerant and a vigorous fructose fermenter. The present work aimed to select yeast strains capable of restarting stuck wine fermentations, and identify key parameters that contribute to the efficiency of the strains. Commercial and non-commercial Saccharomyces wine strains were tested, as well as strains of the fermentative non-Saccharomyces species Zygosaccharomyces bailii and Torulaspora delbrueckii. Although the latter species were shown to be more resistant to a combination of ethanol- and acetic-acid-induced cell death, commercial Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains were the most efficient fructose consumers in medium simulating a stuck fermentation. Stationary-phase S. cerevisiae cells performed better than inocula prepared from exponentially growing cultures, which correlates with the higher resistance to ethanol of non-growing populations. Stationary-phase cells pre-adapted to ethanol did not improve fructose consumption rates; this was in contrast to exponential-phase cells that benefited from prior incubation in ethanol-containing medium. Notably, a correlation was observed between yeast fructose consumption capacity and glucose (or fructose) transport. Our results challenge the current belief that ethanol tolerance, expressed in terms of cell viability, is a reliable criterion for the selection of yeast strains to restart stuck fermentations. Instead, this capacity seems to be based on sugar transport and its resistance to ethanol. In an attempt to further improve cell viability in the presence of high ethanol concentrations, hybrid strains of T. delbrueckii and S. cerevisiae were produced, and they showed high potential as restarter strains. The present work opens perspectives for the application of innovative strategies in the wine-making industry.Agência de Inovação (AdI) program POCI2010/2.3, project PARFERM, for its funding gran

Sistema de Raciocínio Baseado em Casos para Auxílio ao Diagnóstico de Patologias do Joelho em Idosos

Este trabalho apresenta o desenvolvimento de um sistema para auxiliar o fisioterapeuta no diagnóstico de patologias de joelho em idosos, utilizando a técnica de Raciocínio Baseado em Casos (RBC). O estudo foi realizado a partir de levantamentos bibliográficos sobre RBC e as patologias de joelho acometidas em idosos. A aplicação foi desenvolvida com a participação de um profissional da área de Fisioterapia que forneceu casos reais para compor a base de casos e realizar testes de validação do sistema.

Previous Acute Polio and Post-Polio Syndrome: Recognizing the Pathophysiology for the Establishment of Rehabilitation Programs

Previous acute poliomyelitis (PAP) can be defined as an endemic human disease caused by an enterovirus of worldwide distribution, which compromises the anterior horn cells of the spinal cord. Poliovirus has infected and victimized thousands of people all over the world[...

Production of DMC from CO₂ via Indirect Route: Technical–Economical–Environmental Assessment and Analysis

Interest in dimethyl carbonate (DMC), a saleable chemical destination of CO₂, has grown significantly. DMC is an oxygenated octane-booster and a safer and nontoxic substitute of well-established methylating-carbonylating hazardous chemicals like dimethyl sulfate and phosgene. Considering the CO₂ routes to DMC, the one commercially promising converts CO₂ with ethylene oxide (EO) to ethylene carbonate (EC), which then reacts with excess methanol (MeOH) to DMC and ethylene glycol (EG). This indirect route (IR) apparently exhibits green chemistry attributes. It converts greenhouse gases (GHG) to valuables, such as EG, EC, and DMC. Apparently, it is not energy intensive; it has 100% atom economy without wastes. However, there is a massive energetic obstacle occluded in the separation of the azeotropic pair DMC–MeOH yet to be considered. This work assesses the technical, economical, and environmental IR flowsheet for CO₂ conversion to DMC. Assessment of entrainers for extractive distillation of DMC–MeOH was accomplished for EG versus methyl–isobutyl–ketone. Process design, energy consumption, and GHG emissions were assessed and showed that both alternatives are profitable but gave negative chemical sequestration indexes. Their GHG emissions through energy consumption and purges overcome the chemical conversion of CO₂ to DMC. The process alternative using EG as the entrainer exhibits higher profitability and better sustainability indexes