HISTORY EDUCATION - SOME THOUGHTS FROM THE UK: interviews Peter J. Lee

The interest in publishing an interview with Professor Peter Lee comes in sync with the wish of bringing toBrazilhis research and reflections on what children and teenagers make of History. Such a wish departs from the presupposition that History teaching in Elementary School will advance little, if any, without History teachers’ and researchers’ serious consideration of learning -- that is, the cognitive processes involved in constructing historical thinking. These processes imply the understanding of what subjects make of historic ideas, and how they construct their perceptions of the past. Through this interview, it is also expected to contribute to the debate on the historical form and function on quotidian life, as it is postulated here (as his discussion also puts forth) that History is a way of thinking and interpreting human existence through time. History is not only an academic discipline, but also a public form of knowledge. Such dimensions articulate and intertwine in different planes, constituting the historical consciousness of both individuals and collectivities.  The challenges that emerge here cannot be ignored, particularly those related to the teaching of History in school environments. This is especially true if one believes that teaching History is a powerful tool that enables “readings” of the world, bringing forms of inhabiting and existing in this world to its full potential while articulated to a collective belonging in a project of common futures.Peter Lee was, until he very recently retired, a senior lecturer in the History Education Unit at the Institute of Education at the University of London. Having taught History in primary and secondary schools, Professor Lee has coordinated several research projects related to History Teaching and Learning, including CHATA (Concepts of History and Teaching Approaches) a project well-known in Brazil. Several of his publications investigate the ideas that children and teenagers have over History in several books, chapters, and articles – many of these with Rosalyn Ashby as co-author.  Some of his articles have been translated to Portuguese, circulating among researchers concerned with understanding how children learn History. The questions in this interview have been elaborated so that Peter Lee’s reflections may collaborate with the development of History Teaching and History Education research in Brazil. All contact has been made via e-mail, a rather useful tool that has shortened the distance between Florianópolis and London for a few long moments between July and October 2012

Data Driven Synthetic Load Modeling for Smart City Energy Management Studies

The primary aim of this dissertation is to provide synthetic residential load models with granular level information on the customers having information about the appliances that constitute each individual residential customer through time. The synthetic load model is capable of being widely utilized by the power system research community since only publicly available data is utilized for its generation. This gives researcher’s access to how the synthetic load was made and also how accurate the model is in representing real power system regions. As the title of the dissertation suggests, the synthetic residential load models are intended for smart city energy management studies. Smart city energy management studies have the ability to control tens of thousands of electricity customers in a coordinated manner to enact system-wide electric load changes. Such load changes have the potential to reduce congestion (i.e. stress on power system components) and peak demand (i.e. the need for peaking generation), among other benefits. For smart city energy management studies to have the capability of evaluating how their strategies would impact the actual power system, datasets that accurately characterize the system load are required that also contain individual loads of all buildings in a given area. Currently, such data is publicly unavailable due to privacy concerns. This dissertation’s synthetic residential load model combines a top down and bottom up approach for modeling individual residential customers and their individual electric assets, each possessing their own characteristics, using time-varying queueing models. The aggregation of all customer loads created by the queueing models represents a known city-sized load curve to be used in smart city energy management studies. The dissertation presents three queueing residential load models that make use of only publicly available data to alleviate privacy concerns. The proposed approach is mainly driven by the aggregated distribution companies load. An open-source Python tool to allow researchers to generate residential load data for their studies is also provided. The simulation results comparing the three queueing synthetic load models consider the ComEd region (utility company from Chicago, IL) to demonstrate the model’s characteristics, impact of the choice of model parameters, and scalability performance of the Python tool. The developed residential synthetic queueing load models are utilized to create the Midwest 240-Node distribution test case system, which generates appliance-level synthetic residential load for 1,120 homes for the Iowa State distribution system test case with 193 load nodes over three feeders. The Midwest 240-Node is a real distribution system from the Midwest region of the U.S. with real one-year smart meter data at the hourly aggregated node level resolution for 2017 available in an OpenDSS model. The synthetic residential queueing load model generated for the Midwest 240-Node one-year date has a mean absolute percentage error of 2.5828% in relation to the real smart meter data. The Midwest 240-Node distribution system OpenDSS model was converted to GridLAB-D to enable smart grid and transactive energy studies. The percentage of maximum error observed on voltage magnitude from the OpenDSS to GridLAB-D model is below 0.0009%. The GridLAB-D model and the generated synthetic residential load is made publicly available. The Midwest 240-Node real distribution system with the synthetic residential load that follows the real data from smart meters is intended to be a distributed energy active consumer test system network. The focus of the developed synthetic residential load models is smart city energy management studies; however, they can be utilized in many power systems studies to evaluate economic and technical impacts of distributed energy resources. For example, this dissertation also presents the utilization of the synthetic models for a PV rich low voltage network. The main component of the smart grid is demand response. Demand response, or energy management, utilizes commonly passive load in to active power system resources. Residential demand response, when aggregated, is capable of performing system-wide changes that enable its participation in the power system markets. This dissertation developed residential synthetic models to enable the standardization of approaches and allow different approaches to be compared under the same environment

CH2 domain of mouse IgG3 governs antibody oligomerization, increases functional affinity to multivalent antigens and enhances hemagglutination

<p>Mouse IgG3 is highly protective against several life-threatening bacteria. This isotype is the only one among mouse IgGs that forms non-covalent oligomers, has increased functional affinity to polyvalent antigens, and efficiently agglutinates erythrocytes. IgG3 also triggers the complement cascade. The high efficacy of protection after passive immunization with IgG3 is correlated with the unique properties of this isotype. Although the features of IgG3 are well documented, their molecular basis remains elusive. Based on functional analyses of IgG1/IgG3 hybrid molecules with swapped constant domains, we identified IgG3-derived CH2 domain as a major determinant of antibody oligomerization and increased functional affinity to a multivalent antigen. The CH2 domain was also crucial for efficient hemagglutination triggered by IgG3 and was indispensable for complement cascade activation. This domain is glycosylated and atypically charged. A mutational analysis based on molecular models of CH2 domain charge distribution indicated that the functional affinity was influenced by the specific charge location. N-glycans were essential for CH2-dependent enhancement of hemagglutination and complement activation. Oligomerization was independent of CH2 charge and glycosylation. We also verified that known C1q-binding motifs are functional in mouse IgG3 but not in IgG1 framework. We generated for the first time a gain-of-function antibody with properties transferred from IgG3 into IgG1 by replacing the CH2 domain. Finding that the CH2 domain of IgG3 governs unique properties of this isotype is likely to open an avenue toward the generation of IgG3-inspired antibodies that will be protective against existing or emerging lethal pathogens.</p

Digital narratives on entrance exams for the Brazilian secondary school: ego-documents and written culture in history of the present time

The proposal of this article is discussing digital narratives written in the first person, taken in their widest sense as ego-documents. We analyzed 12 blogs and 4 personal websites that provide written stories on entrance exams for the Brazilian secondary school (which were in force in Brazil between 1931 and 1971), as well as comments related to each post. The analysis of narratives was conducted having three irreducibly interconnected axes as a basis: the first one is methodological and requires discussing the possibilities and limits of exploring blogs and websites as adequate historical sources to grasp the contemporary phenomena of memory, narrative, and temporalities. The second axis implies analyzing narratives posted on blogs and websites as phenomena that contribute to provide the history of written culture in the present time with intelligibility. The third axis of analysis imposes thinking through meanings of the past and memory in the writings of one’s own. The issues raised herein deal with challenges of the meaning and interpretation of time by subjects of the present. If we take into account that narrating one’s life is a transcultural need related to the sense of existence, we must not give up thinking of changes that take place in human experience and its relation to historicity after hyper-connectivity, which became possible through the web 2.0, has significantly altered the flows of time and space. Keywords: Written culture. Digital narratives. Entrance exam for the Brazilian secondary school

SmartFlares fail to reflect their target transcripts levels

Abstract SmartFlare probes have recently emerged as a promising tool for visualisation and quantification of specific RNAs in living cells. They are supposed to overcome the common drawbacks of current methods for RNA analysis: the need of cell fixation or lysis, or the requirements for genetic manipulations. In contrast to the traditional methods, SmartFlare probes are also presumed to provide information on RNA levels in single cells. Disappointingly, the results of our comprehensive study involving probes specific to five different transcripts, HMOX1, IL6, PTGS2, Nrg1, and ERBB4, deny the usefulness of SmartFlare probes for RNA analysis. We report a total lack of correlation between fluorescence intensities of SmartFlare probes and the levels of corresponding RNAs assessed by RT-qPCR. To ensure strong differences in the levels of analysed RNAs, their expression was modified via: (i) HMOX1-knockdown generated by CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing, (ii) hemin-mediated stimulation of HMOX1- and IL1β-mediated stimulation of IL6- and PTGS2 transcription, (iii) lentiviral vector-mediated Nrg1 overexpression. Additionally, ERBB4-specific SmartFlare probe failed to distinguish between ERBB4-expressing and non-expressing cell lines. Finally, we demonstrated that fluorescence intensity of HMOX1-specific SmartFlare probe corresponds to the efficacy of its uptake and/or accumulation

Estudo de Conformidade Ambiental (ECA), para a obtenção da Licença Ambiental de Operação (LAO) do Laboratório de Camarões Marinhos (LCM, CCA - UFSC)

TCC (graduação) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina. Centro de Ciências Agrárias. Curso de Engenharia de Aquicultura.Os estudos de impactos ambientais são necessários para o correto desenvolvimento de uma aquicultura, praticada de forma sustentável e buscando a preservação dos recursos naturais. Entre as boas práticas da aquicultura, o Licenciamento Ambiental é o procedimento tomado para a regulamentação dos empreendimentos e para o registro da atividade perante os órgãos ambientais competentes. No licenciamento ambiental, são registradas as atividades realizadas, o relato dos possíveis impactos gerados e a descrição das medidas mitigadoras a serem tomadas. Dentre as atividades aquícolas passiveis de licenciamento, a carcinicultura costeira se destaca, pelos impactos que já ocorreram em ambientes costeiros e sobre a fauna e a flora aquática nativas. Entre os impactos gerados, destaca-se o aumento da turbidez, salinidade, incremento nos nutrientes orgânicos e inorgânicos, e toxicidade aos organismos. Neste contexto, o Laboratório de Camarões Marinhos (LCM, CCA – UFSC), localizado na Barra da Lagoa, Florianópolis – SC, desenvolve, desde 1984, atividades de produção de camarões marinhos da espécie exótica Litopenaeus vannamei (Boone, 1931), e por isto, necessita de um Estudo de Conformidade Ambiental, que é exigido para fins de regularização das licenças ambientais em operação. Os camarões produzidos são destinados, atualmente, para pesquisas cientificas, capacitação e educação de técnicos, graduandos e pós-graduandos, e para o cultivo na fazenda experimental da Yakult. O LCM conta com uma estrutura ampla dividida em diferentes setores produtivos, e cada um deles gera uma determinada carga de efluentes, que são destinados ao tratamento em lagoas de estabilização, para diminuição dos sólidos suspensos, DBO, e nutrientes, antes do lançamento destas no corpo receptor da Lagoa da Conceição. Esta Monografia teve como objetivo a elaboração do Estudo de Conformidade Ambiental, e por isto, atingiu os objetivos de capacitação técnica e obtenção de resultados relevantes para a estruturação da propEnvironment impact studies are necessary for the correct development of aquaculture, when the activity is practice in sustainable way and with the objective of preservation of natural sources. Between aquaculture good routine practices, the Environment License is a procedure adopted for the regulation of enterprises and for the correct registration of all activities front responsible environment agencies. On the Environment License, routine activities are registered, possible impacts are listed and all propositions of remedial actions are described. One of aquaculture activity that had an obligation of Environment License, marine shrimp culture in coastal zones is emphasize, for preview impacts recurrent in aquatic coastal zones and over native aquatic fauna and flora. Among impacts observed, increase on turbidity parameter, changes on salinity, high concentrations of organic and inorganic nutrients, and toxicity for native organisms. In this context, the Laboratório de Camarões Marinhos (LCM, CCA – UFSC), located around Lagoa da Conceição, Florianópolis – SC, have been developed since 1984 activities related with production of exotic marine shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei (Boone), and for this, needs the complete Environment Conformity Study for obtains its Environment License of Operation. Shrimps produced are currently intended for scientific researches, training and education of administrative staff, graduation and post-graduation students, and for the culture on experimental farm Yakult. The LCM has its productive structure divided in sectors, and each one is responsible by the production of some quantity of organic effluents, that are designated for preview treatment at stabilization lagoons, objective reduction of suspend solids, DBO and nutrients, before the discharge in aquatic receptor body on Lagoa da Conceição. The present Monograph aimed contribute in Environment Conformity Study elaboration, reached the objectives of technical capacitating and obtaining relevant results for management and adequacy proposing of effluents produced in the experimental station

ANSWERING GEOSPARQL QUERIES OVER RELATIONAL DATA

In this paper we present the system Ontop-spatial that is able to answer GeoSPARQL queries on top of geospatial relational databases, performing on-the-fly GeoSPARQL-to-SQL translation using ontologies and mappings. GeoSPARQL is a geospatial extension of the query language SPARQL standardized by OGC for querying geospatial RDF data. Our approach goes beyond relational databases and covers all data that can have a relational structure even at the logical level. Our purpose is to enable GeoSPARQL querying on-the-fly integrating multiple geospatial sources, without converting and materializing original data as RDF and then storing them in a triple store. This approach is more suitable in the cases where original datasets are stored in large relational databases (or generally in files with relational structure) and/or get frequently updated