1,676 research outputs found
3D numerical study of the transient behaviour on plasticity induced crack closure
Daniel Camas, Fernando Antunes, Pablo Lopez-Crespo, Antonio Gonzalez-Herrera, 3D Numerical Study of the Transient Behaviour on Plasticity Induced Crack Closure, Abstract Booklet of the MSMF9, Edited by Pavel Sandera, Brno University of Technology, 2019, pp. 136.The numerical analysis of the plasticity induced crack closure requires the development of the plastic wake. Transient behaviour is observed when the crack starts to grow. The plastic wake length has an influence on the crack closure results and a great impact on the computational cost. Previous works have analysed the influence of this parameter considering bi-dimensional specimens in either plane strain or plane stress conditions. Lately, some three-dimensional models have appeared in order to analyse the crack closure phenomenon. The main scope of this study is to quantify and comprehend the minimum length required to stabilise the crack opening and closure values considering a three-dimensional model. On this purpose, a CT aluminium specimen has been modelled three-dimensionally and several calculations have been made in order to evaluate the influence of the simulated plastic wake. The numerical analysis is made in terms of crack closure and opening values.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tec
Innovative calcium phosphate bioactive and nanostructured coatings for enhanced osseointegration of dental implants
Estimation of kinetic parameters related to biochemical interactions between hydrogen peroxide and signal transduction proteins
Copyright © 2014 Brito and Antunes. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.The lack of kinetic data concerning the biological effects of reactive oxygen species is slowing down the development of the field of redox signaling. Herein, we deduced and applied equations to estimate kinetic parameters from typical redox signaling experiments. H2O2-sensing mediated by the oxidation of a protein target and the switch-off of this sensor, by being converted back to its reduced form, are the two processes for which kinetic parameters are determined. The experimental data required to apply the equations deduced is the fraction of the H2O2 sensor protein in the reduced or in the oxidized state measured in intact cells or living tissues after exposure to either endogenous or added H2O2. Either non-linear fittings that do not need transformation of the experimental data or linearized plots in which deviations from the equations are easily observed can be used. The equations were shown to be valid by fitting to them virtual time courses simulated with a kinetic model. The good agreement between the kinetic parameters estimated in these fittings and those used to simulate the virtual time courses supported the accuracy of the kinetic equations deduced. Finally, equations were successfully tested with real data taken from published experiments that describe redox signaling mediated by the oxidation of two protein tyrosine phosphatases, PTP1B and SHP-2, which are two of the few H2O2-sensing proteins with known kinetic parameters. Whereas for PTP1B estimated kinetic parameters fitted in general the present knowledge, for SHP-2 results obtained suggest that reactivity toward H2O2 as well as the rate of SHP-2 regeneration back to its reduced form are higher than previously thought. In conclusion, valuable quantitative kinetic data can be estimated from typical redox signaling experiments, thus improving our understanding about the complex processes that underlie the interplay between oxidative stress and redox signaling responses.Supported by Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT), Portugal (PEst-OE/QUI/UI0612/2013 and VIH/SAU/0020/2011).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
iTV PREFARC: Arquitectura de recomendações iTV
No presente trabalho é proposta uma arquitectura, assim como a concepção e implementação de um PoC, de um sistema de recomendações flexível que permite integrar novos modelos de negócio relacionados ao longo do tempo. O PoC implementado é vocacionado para a problemática da televisão interactiva e, mais concretamente, para o excesso de informação com que os utilizadores se deparam diariamente.
Este sistema, denominado de iTV PREFARC, permite processar, de forma massiva, a informação de EPG, integrando-a para posterior processamento no motor de recomendações. Disponibiliza também funcionalidades para classificar os itens presentes no sistema (programas televisivos, vídeos, etc.), e obter as recomendações calculadas pelo sistema. A interacção com os consumidores do sistema é sempre feita através de serviços Web.
São também abordados cenários de aplicação que permitem atestar a utilidade do sistema, demonstrando simultaneamente como interagem os diferentes componentes
Modeling BDN framework in ArchiMate: benefits management of IS investments applied in the context of media and television industry digital transformation
O alinhamento entre os investimentos em Tecnologia da Informação (TI) e a definição ao dos objetivos de negócios e recorrentemente referido na literatura como uma tarefa primordial com impacto direto no lucro da organização. A Arquitetura Corporativa (EA) desempenha um papel importante na descrição das dependências entre um roteiro de migração ao de TI e as contra- partes de negócios, portanto, facilitando as decisões das partes interessadas. No entanto, as evidencias mostram que um número significativo de projetos de TI não consegue entregar os resultados desejados. Normalmente, as causas do fracasso incluem (i) a predominância de abordagens de gestão financeira de caixa preta que oferecem indicadores fracos, empheg, retorno sobre o investimento ou redução de custos, e (ii) não identificar os benefícios de negócios reais fornecidos pelo valor que pode ser gerado por um investimento em TI. Este artigo usa ArchiMate para propor um modelo para entender, projetar e gerenciar os benefícios do negocio. ArchiMate permite, entre outros, modelar camadas de negócios, aplicativos, tecnologia ou estratégia e agora é estendido com benefícios de negócios. Especificamente, é apresentado um ponto de vista da ArchiMate baseado no modelo Benefit Dependence Network (BDN). O objetivo dessa visão é apoiar os stakeholders que estão ao gerenciando os benefícios a serem alcançados por um investimento em TI. A solução conceitual e discutida e demonstrada no contexto do caso de uso da industria de televisão ao e vídeo de mídia. Posteriormente, as deficiências ontológicas desse modelo s ´ ao discutidas utilizando o método Wand Weber e por meio de entrevistas com especialistas.The alignment between Information Technologies (IT) investments and business objectives definition is recurrently referred in the literature as a paramount task owning a direct impact on the
organization’s profit. Enterprise Architecture (EA) plays an important role in describing the dependencies between an IT migration roadmap and business counterparts, therefore, facilitating
the stakeholder’s decisions. However, evidence shows that a significant number of IT projects
fail to deliver the desired outcomes. Usually, the failure causes are (i) the dominance of blackbox financial management approaches offering poor indicators, e.g., return-on-investment or
cost reduction, and (ii) not identifying the real business benefits provided by the value that can
be generated by an IT investment. This paper uses ArchiMate to propose a model to understand, design, and manage the business benefits. ArchiMate enables, among others, to model
business, application, technology, or strategy layers and is now extended with business benefits. In specific, an ArchiMate viewpoint based on the Benefits Dependency Network (BDN)
model is presented. The purpose of this viewpoint is to support the stakeholders that are managing the benefits to be achieved by an IT investment. The conceptual solution is argued and
demonstrated in the context of the media video and television industry use case. Afterward,
the ontological deficiencies of this model are discussed using the Wand Weber method and
through interviews with experts
Modos de contratualização e de organização do programa "Escola a Tempo Inteiro": as necessidades das famílias e as necessidades das crianças
A “Escola a Tempo Inteiro” é um Programa do Ministério da Educação (ME) iniciado
em 2006 com o objectivo, entre outros, de “dar resposta às necessidades das famílias”, através
do aumento do tempo de permanência dos alunos na escola. Para a concretização do Programa,
o ME estabeleceu parcerias com os Municípios e os Agrupamentos de Escolas e criou
“Actividades de Enriquecimento Curricular”. Esta medida de política educativa obedeceu a um
modelo definido centralmente pelo ME, através de vários normativos legais que vão desde o
financiamento até às orientações programáticas dessas actividades, como o Inglês, a Música e a
Actividade Física e Desportiva. Apesar da tendencial uniformidade, o Programa permitiu
alguma diversidade nos modos de organização, dependendo estes, em grande medida, dos tipos
de contratualização estabelecidos entre os Municípios e os Agrupamentos de Escolas e outras
entidades locais para a realização das referidas actividades. Nesta comunicação apresentam-se
resultados de uma investigação realizada no âmbito de um Mestrado concluído em 2010 e que
estão na origem de um projecto de doutoramento em curso na Universidade do Minho. Os
resultados da referida investigação dão conta das formas de concretização do Programa e do
modo como se conciliam as necessidades das famílias e as necessidades das crianças, com
recurso a metodologias de investigação que permitiram captar as perspectivas das próprias
crianças
Big Data, ubiquitous exploitation, and targeted advertising:: new facets of the cultural industry
The emergence of the so-called digital culture from the development of new information and communication technologies led to criticisms of the concept of cultural industry, elaborated by Horkheimer and Adorno in the 1940s, defining the new configuration based on interactivity, open communication and greater freedom among users. However, to a critical view, the new configuration is even more totalitarian than the previous one. All the actions of users in the digital environment generate information that can be compiled and organized according to mathematical algorithms, configuring the so-called Big Data; such information includes personal preferences, political trends, gender, and even personality profiles, and leads to ubiquitous surveillance and manipulation through targeted advertising, being politically and economically far more effective than in the age of the cultural industry described by Adorno. The update of the critical theory of society implies understanding this new configuration, its pretensions and its contradictions. Therefore, the present article aims both to update the concept of cultural industry denouncing, thus, the new forms of manipulation, and to criticize the idea that freedom is immanent to the Digital Culture, present in its defenders.A emergência da cultura digital a partir do desenvolvimento de novas tecnologias de informação e comunicação levou a críticas ao conceito de indústria cultural elaborado por Horkheimer e Adorno nos anos 1940, definindo a nova configuração a partir da interatividade, comunicação aberta e maior liberdade entre usuários. Entretanto, a um olhar crítico, a nova configuração se revela mais totalitária que a anterior. Todas as ações dos usuários no ambiente digital geram informações que podem ser compiladas e organizadas de acordo com algoritmos matemáticos, configurando o chamado Big Data; essas informações incluem dados sobre preferências, tendências políticas, gênero e perfis de personalidade, e levam a tentativas de vigilância ubíqua e manipulação por meio de propaganda dirigida, sendo política e economicamente muito mais eficaz do que na era da indústria cultural descrita por Adorno. A atualização da teoria crítica da sociedade implica compreender essa nova configuração, suas pretensões e contradições. Nesse sentido, este artigo objetiva tanto atualizar o conceito de indústria cultural, denunciando, assim, as novas formas de manipulação, quanto criticar a ideia de que a liberdade é imanente à Cultura Digital, presente em seus defensores
IN VITRO AND IN VIVO REMOVAL OF ORAL ANTIDIABETIC AGENTS (METFORMIN) USING ACTIVATED CARBONS
Diabetes is the most worldwide common chronic disease,
according the International Diabetes Federation [1], more than
32 million citizens living in the European Union have
diabetes, representing nearly 10% of the population, to which
we should add equal number of people suffering from
impaired glucose tolerance. Diabetes prevalence is growing at
alarming rate worldwide, being of particular relevance the
type 2 diabetes. Nowadays 285 million people worldwide live
with diabetes and it is expected that this numbers will increase
by 20% until 2030 due to obesity and the ageing of the
population [1].
This growth leads to an increasing consumption of drugs such
as oral antidiabetics. Metformin is one of the active principles
most commonly used for this purpose being among the
pharmaceuticals with the highest production numbers
worldwide to treat type 2 diabetes because is cheap, has high
level of tolerance and when used in the prescribed dosage is
very secure with minimal side effects. However, in case of
overdose of metformin upon a ingestion of more than 10 times
the prescribed dosage, accidentally or on propose, lactic
acidosis and low blood pressure can occur. Overdoses with
metformin are relatively uncommon, but may have serious
consequences, if medical attention is not given on time, it may
lead to coma and ultimately death Because of its spread use
another problem must be taken into consideration, which
needs to be addressed, the occurrence of metformin residues in
sewage and surface waters due to improper discharge of the
non-used tablets to regular garbage [2]. This situation is
becoming a serious problem of environmental pollution and
public health.
This paper reports the use of activated carbon produced from
biomass for the removal of metformin in 2 different settings.
On one hand, from aqueous solutions and, in another hand,
from simulated biological fluids (gastric and intestinal)
conjugated with in vivo testing
Design of a Flexible and Extensible Fault Injector for Testing Concurrent and Distributed Applications
Socioeconomic conditions and head and neck cancer: a systematic literature review
O presente estudo teve como objetivo descrever as principais características dos estudos epidemiológicos que investigaram a associação entre condições socioeconômicas e câncer de cabeça e pescoço. Foram pesquisadas as bases de dados Medline (Literatura Internacional em Ciências), Lilacs (Literatura Latino-Americana e do Caribe em Ciências da Saúde) e Scielo (Scientific Electronic Library Online), além de referências citadas nos artigos obtidos a partir da busca primária nessas bases. O período de publicação considerado englobou 38 anos (1970-2007) e a análise restringiu-se aos artigos em espanhol, inglês ou português. Foram selecionados 25 estudos, 15 com delineamento caso-controle, quatro ecológicos e seis que mesclaram informações de bases de dados oficiais, como censos e registros de câncer ou de óbitos. A maior parte das pesquisas reportou associação entre piores condições socioeconômicas e câncer de cabeça e pescoço. Os indicadores mais empregados foram a ocupação e a escolaridade. Poucos estudos investigaram mediação, procurando evidenciar quais os fatores proximais operam na associação investigada. Pesquisas adicionais, com critérios uniformes para proceder aos ajustes nos modelos de regressão e amostra suficiente, são necessárias para investigar essa dimensão.This study sought to describe the main characteristics of epidemiological studies that investigated the association between socioeconomic conditions and head and neck cancer. Research was carried out on the Medline (International Science Literature), Lilacs (Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences Literature) and Scielo (Scientific Electronic Library Online) databases, as well as the references cited in the articles obtained through the primary search of the aforementioned databases. The publication period considered included 38 years (1970-2007) and the analysis was restricted to articles in Spanish, English or Portuguese. Twenty-five studies were selected, 15 that outlined case-control, four ecological and six that combined information from official databases, such as censuses and cancer or death records. Most cases reported an association between lower socioeconomic conditions and head and neck cancer. The most used indexes were occupation and education. Few studies investigated medication, aiming to point out which proximal factors operate in the investigated association. Additional studies, with uniform criteria to effect the adjustments in the regression models and sufficient samples, are required to inquire this dimension
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