Uma perspectiva naturalista do usuário de design

Este estudo reúne uma série de informações sobre design centrado no usuário e naturalismo. Através da compilação e análise de dados bibliográficos, breves conhecimentos sobre cada tema foram relacionados com o intuito de apresentar uma perspectiva naturalista do usuário de produtos de design. O método de pesquisa utilizado foi a investigação bibliográfica, que abrange as áreas de design, design centrado no usuário e naturalismo filosófico. Exemplificando as relações entre essas áreas, alguns conhecimentos obtidos pela neurociência fornecem uma perspectiva naturalista do usuário de design, de modo a mostrar como fatores biológicos podem influenciar sua interação com objetos de design.Abstract: This study collects a range of information about user-centered design and naturalism. Through the compilation and analysis of bibliographic data, brief knowledge of each theme were related to present a naturalistic perspective of the user of design products. The research method employed was a bibliographic search, covering the areas of design, user-centered design and philosophical naturalism. Exemplifying the relations between these areas, some knowledge from neuroscience provide a naturalistic perspective of the user of design products, in order to show how biological factors influence his interaction with design objects

Improving Desert Locust Decision Support in Africa and Asia Using SMAP Soil Moisture Estimates

In the desert areas from northern Africa to East Asia, occasional rainfall in hyper-arid environments results in the development of vegetation that harbor destructive swarms of Desert Locusts (DL). The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has developed a Decision Support System (DSS) for monitoring Desert Locust events based on remotely sensed precipitation and vegetation estimates. However, the precipitation data applied by the FAO DSS have been shown to have a low probability of detection in this area leading to high uncertainty in their DL forecasts. We demonstrate the correspondence of AMSR-E soil moisture anomalies with observed Desert Locust events in north Africa and southwest Asia. This relationship enables an improvement to the existing FAO DL Decision Support System through the addition of expected SMAP products which will provide similar soil moisture products to AMSR-E, but at higher spatial resolution. The SMAP rootzone soil moisture product (L4_SM) will be particularly useful in this regard

Role of Estrogen and Estrogen Receptor in GH-Secreting Adenomas

Acromegaly is a rare disease with several systemic complications that may lead to increased overall morbidity and mortality. Despite several available treatments, ranging from transsphenoidal resection of GH-producing adenomas to different medical therapies, complete hormonal control is not achieved in some cases. Some decades ago, estrogens were first used to treat acromegaly, resulting in a significant decrease in IGF1 levels. However, due to the consequent side effects of the high dose utilized, this treatment was later abandoned. The evidence that estrogens are able to blunt GH activity also derives from the evidence that women with GH deficiency taking oral estro-progestins pills need higher doses of GH replacement therapy. In recent years, the role of estrogens and Selective Estrogens Receptor Modulators (SERMs) in acromegaly treatment has been re-evaluated, especially considering poor control of the disease under first- and second-line medical treatment. In this review, we analyze the state of the art concerning the impact of estrogen and SERMs on the GH/IGF1 axis, focusing on molecular pathways and the possible implications for acromegaly treatment