Evaluación neuropsicológica de calidad de vida (ENCV) en pacientes con enfermedad vascular cerebral (EVC)

[Resumen] En este artículo procuramos hacer una reflexión profundizada relativa a las temáticas de la Calidad de Vida (CV) en Pacientes con Enfermedad Vascular Cerebral (EVC). La EVC se refiere a cualquier disfunción cerebral, producto de un proceso patológico que envuelva los vasos sanguíneos, e es presentada como una de las principales causas de muerte o incapacidad pos-accidente. La necesidad de una adecuada evaluación de aspectos como la Calidad de Vida es fundamental para un plano de rehabilitación adaptado a cada enfermo. En este artículo presentamos algunas de las propuestas más utilizadas en nuestros tiempos para la evaluación de la Calidad de Vida en Pacientes con Enfermedad Vascular Cerebral (EVC).[Abstract] In this article we tried to make a deepened reflection relative to the thematic of Life Quality Activities in Patients who suffered a stroke. A stroke is related with any cerebral dysfunction, product of a pathological process that surrounds the blood vessels, and is presented / displayed like one of the main causes of death or post-accident incapacity. The necessity of a suitable evaluation of Quality of Life is fundamental for an adapted rehabilitation plane to each patient. In this article we presented some of the most used proposals in our times for the evaluation of Quality of Life in Patients who suffered a strok

Use of Tyre-Derived Aggregate as Backfill Material for Wave Barriers to Mitigate Railway-Induced Ground Vibrations

[Abstract] The use of piles as barriers to mitigate vibrations from rail traffic has been increasing in theoretical and practical engineering during the last years. Tyre-derived aggregate (TDA) is a recycled material with some interesting applications in civil engineering, including those related to railway engineering. As a novelty, this paper combines the concept of pile wave barriers and TDA material and investigates the mitigation effect of pile barriers made of TDA on the vibrations transmitted by rail traffic. This solution has a dual purpose: the reduction of railway vibrations and the recycling of a highly polluting material. The mitigation potential of this material when used as backfill for piles is analysed using a numerical scheme based on a 3D finite-difference numerical model formulated in the space/time domain, which is also experimentally validated in this paper in a real case without pile barriers. The numerical results show insertion loss (IL) values of up to 11 dB for a depth closed to the wavelength of Rayleigh wave. Finally, this solution is compared with more common backfills, such as concrete and steel tubular piles, showing that the TDA pile is a less effective measure although from an environmental and engineering point of view it is a very competitive solution

Herbicidas para o controle de plantas daninhas em eucalipto

To ensure the maximum forestry productivity the adoption of efficient managements is essential. Weed control is very important, since presence of weeds can lead to competition for key factors to plant development. Weed interference can cause losses of up to 50 % in productivity and over 90 % of reduction in the profitability of forestry areas. Chemical control is widely used in weed management and about 30 % of the total costs of production and up to 50 % of the work force used in eucalypt crop cycle are intended for this purpose. Brazilian forestry sector has great economic expressiveness, but there are few herbicides registered. Chemical weed control should still fit the standards required by eucalypt certifications. The expansion of sector and the economic importance of this crop in Brazil make necessary the development of new herbicides and new spraying techniques to increase herbicides efficiency, new research, as well as encouraging adoption of an integrated weed management plan in eucalypt.Para garantir a máxima produtividade florestal, a adoção de um manejo eficiente é essencial. O controle de plantas daninhas é muito importante, já que a presença dessas pode ocasionar competição por fatores fundamentais ao desenvolvimento das plantas. A interferência das plantas daninhas pode ocasionar perdas de até 50 % na produtividade e mais de 90 % de redução na rentabilidade das áreas florestais. O controle químico é amplamente utilizado no manejo das plantas daninhas, e cerca de 30 % dos custos totais de produção e mais de 50 % da mão-de-obra utilizada na cultura do eucalipto são destinadas para esse propósito. O setor florestal tem uma grande expressividade econômica, mas poucos herbicidas são registrados. O controle químico ainda deve se encaixar aos padrões requeridos pelas certificadoras. A expansão do setor e a importância econômica do eucalipto no Brasil fazem necessário o desenvolvimento de novos herbicidas, novas tecnologias de aplicação, novas pesquisas, bem como a adoção de um plano de manejo integrado de plantas daninhas em eucalipto

Micromouse 3D simulator with dynamics capability: a unity environment approach

The micromouse competition has been gaining prominence in the robotic atmosphere, due to the challenging and multidisciplinary characteristics provided by the teams’ duels, being a gateway for those who intend to deepen their studies in autonomous robotics. In this context, this paper presents a realistic micromouse simulator developed with Unity software, a widely game engine with dynamics and 3D development platform used. The developed simulator has hardware-in-the-loop capabilities, aims to be simple to use, it can be customizable, and designed to be as similar as possible to the real robot configurations. In this way, the proposed simulator requires few modifications to port the microcontroller code to a real robot. Therefore, the framework presented in this work allows the user to simulate the development of new algorithm strategies dedicated to competition and also hardware updates. The simulation supports several mazes, from previous competitions and has the possibility to add different mazes elaborated by the user. Thus, the features and functionality of the simulator can serve to accelerate the project’s development of the beginning and advanced competitors, using real models to reduce the gap between the mouse robot behavior in the simulation and the reality. The developed simulation environment is available to the community. © 2021, The Author(s).This work has been supported by FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia within the Projects UIDB/05757/2020 and UIDB/50014/2020.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Localization and navigation of an omnidirectional mobile robot: the robot@factory case study

The Robot@Factory competition was recently included in Robotica, the main Portuguese Robotics Competition. This robot competition takes place in an emulated factory plant, where Automatic Guided Vehicles (AGVs) must cooperate to perform tasks. To accomplish their goals, the AGVs must deal with localization, navigation, scheduling and cooperation problems that must be solved autonomously. This robot competition can play an important role in education due to its inherent multidisciplinary approach, which can motivate students to bridge different technological areas. It can also play an important role in research and development, because it is expected that its outcomes will later be transferred to real-world problems in manufacturing or service robots. By presenting a scaled-down factory shop floor, this competition creates a benchmark that can be used to compare different approaches to the challenges that arise in this kind of environments. The ability to alter the environment, in some restricted areas, can usually promote the test and evaluation of different localization mechanisms, which is not possible in other competitions. This paper presents one of the possible approaches to build a robot capable of entering this competition. It can be used as a reference to current and new teams.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Glyphosate retention in grassland riparian areas is reduced by the invasion of exotic trees = La retención de glifosato en las áreas ribereñas con pastizales se reduce por la invasión de árboles exóticos

In this study, we examined some aspects regarding the effect of willow trees (Salix fragilis L.) invasion of grassland riparian environments in the Argentinean Pampas on the runoff reduction, sedimentation and glyphosate retention in the riparian vegetation strip (RVS). To assess the influence of willows on the filtering mechanisms, we performed runoff simulation experiments in plots of 1.5 x 2.5 m, in coastal environments characterized by the presence of willows or the lack of trees. Despite the short length of the experimental plots, the retention of glyphosate in the controls, with no trees, was higher and reached almost 74%. Nevertheless, sediment retention did not differ significantly between the tree areas and the grassy controls. The runoff reduction in plots with willows was of 63%. The presence of willow trees significantly altered the measured biophysical properties, such as soil moisture and aboveground biomass, compared to areas without trees. Analysis of partial correlations for environments with and without trees showed that the reduction in runoff volume increased significantly with the soil sand content and the groundwater table depth, while it decreased with bulk density, soil moisture and the riparian slope. Sediment retention increased significantly with aboveground biomass, litter and root biomass; and decreased with the riparian slope. In turn, glyphosate retention increased significantly with sediment retention and decreased with the riparian slope and litter biomass. The mechanisms involving the effect of willows could not be well explained. Due to the increased intensification of agriculture, treeless RVS are important to reduce glyphosate concentration in streams and their sinks. Nevertheless, the presence of trees is also important in the context of agroecosystems and agricultural landscapes, as they contribute to reduce the runoff flow.En este estudio se analizaron algunos aspectos relacionados al efecto de la invasión de sauces (Salix fragilis L.) en ambientes ribereños con vegetación herbácea, de las Pampas de Argentina, sobre la reducción del flujo de escorrentía y la retención de sedimentos y glifosato en las franjas de vegetación ribereñas. A fin de evaluar la influencia de los sauces sobre los mecanismos de filtrado, se realizaron experimentos de simulación de escurrimiento superficial en parcelas de 1,5 por 2,5 m en ambientes caracterizados por presencia vs ausencia de sauces. A pesar de la escasa longitud de las parcelas experimentales, la retención de glifosato en las parcelas control, -sin árboles-, alcanzó casi al 74%. Sin embargo, la retención de sedimentos no difirió significativamente entre las áreas con y sin árboles. Por su parte, la reducción del volumen de escorrentía en los sitios con árboles alcanzó el 63%. La presencia de árboles solo modificó significativamente las propiedades biofísicas humedad del suelo y biomasa aérea, comparadas con áreas sin árboles. Los análisis de correlaciones parciales para ambientes con y sin árboles, mostraron que la reducción en volumen de escorrentía aumentó significativamente con el contenido de arena del suelo y la profundidad al nivel freático, y disminuyó con la densidad aparente, la humedad del suelo y la pendiente de la franja ribereña. Sin embargo, la retención de sedimentos aumentó significativamente con la biomasa aérea, de mantillo y de raíces y disminuyó con la pendiente de la franja ribereña. A su vez, la retención de glifosato aumentó significativamente con la retención de sedimentos y disminuyó con de la pendiente de la franja ribereña y la biomasa de mantillo. No obstante, los mecanismos que involucran el efecto de los sauces no pudieron ser bien explicados. Si bien surge la importancia de los ambientes sin árboles por su función de filtrado de glifosato frente a la creciente intensificación de la agricultura, en el contexto de agroecosistemas y paisajes agrícolas la presencia de árboles, contribuye a la reducción del flujo de escorrentía.EEA BarrowFil: Giaccio, Gustavo Carlos María. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Barrow; ArgentinaFil: Laterra, Pedro. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Balcarce-Unidad Integrada. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias; ArgentinaFil: Aparicio, Virginia Carolina. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Balcarce; ArgentinaFil: Costa, Jose Luis. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Balcarce; Argentin

The intensity of non-target site mechanisms influences the level of resistance of sourgrass to glyphosate

Non-target site mechanisms are involved in the resistance of sourgrass (Digitaria insularis) to glyphosate. Studies on the 14C-glyphosate absorption and translocation as well as the detection of glyphosate and its metabolites in sourgrass plants were carried out under controlled conditions to investigate if the differential response of resistant sourgrass biotypes (R1 and R2) is derived from the intensity of non-target site mechanisms involved in the resistance to glyphosate. Different pattern of absorption was observed between S (susceptible) and R2 from 12 up to 48 hours after treatment with glyphosate (HAT), and between S and R1 just at 12 HAT. The initial difference in glyphosate absorption among the biotypes did not maintained at 96 HAT and afterwards. Smaller amount of herbicide left the treated leaf into the rest of shoot and roots in R2 (25%) than in S (58%) and R1 (52%). In addition, slight difference in glyphosate translocation was observed between S and R1. We found high percentage (81%) of glyphosate in the S biotype up to 168 HAT, while just 44% and 2% of glyphosate was recovered from R1 and R2 plant tissues. In addition, high percentage of glyphosate metabolites was found in R2 (98%) and R1 (56%) biotypes, while a very low percentage (11%) was found in the S biotype. As previous studies indicated resistant factors of 3.5 and 5.6 for R1 and R2, respectively, we conclude that the differential response of sourgrass biotypes is derived from the intensity of the non-target site mechanisms involved in the resistance to glyphosate

Improvement of Performance in Freezing of Gait detection in Parkinsons Disease using Transformer networks and a single waist worn triaxial accelerometer

Freezing of gait (FOG) is one of the most incapacitating symptoms in Parkinsons disease, affecting more than 50 percent of patients in advanced stages of the disease. The presence of FOG may lead to falls and a loss of independence with a consequent reduction in the quality of life. Wearable technology and artificial intelligence have been used for automatic FOG detection to optimize monitoring. However, differences between laboratory and daily-life conditions present challenges for the implementation of reliable detection systems. Consequently, improvement of FOG detection methods remains important to provide accurate monitoring mechanisms intended for free-living and real-time use. This paper presents advances in automatic FOG detection using a single body-worn triaxial accelerometer and a novel classification algorithm based on Transformers and convolutional networks. This study was performed with data from 21 patients who manifested FOG episodes while performing activities of daily living in a home setting. Results indicate that the proposed FOG-Transformer can bring a significant improvement in FOG detection using leave-one-subject-out cross-validation (LOSO CV). These results bring opportunities for the implementation of accurate monitoring systems for use in ambulatory or home settings

Numerical Simulation of Bitumen Emulsion-Stabilised Base Course Mixtures With C&D Waste Aggregates Considering Nonlinear Elastic Behaviour

[Abstract:] This study presents the numerical modelling of a load-volume road pavement section with bitumen emulsion-stabilised base courses. The base courses used natural and construction and demolition aggregates. A 3D finite difference model was used to determine the peak responses of the pavement sections when subjected to loads. Three nonlinear models were adopted in the two base courses. The response predictions of the three models were similar. Both the resilient and permanent behaviours of these materials were modelled. An analysis was conducted on the rutting resistance of the base course materials. Both base courses were suitable for use in low-volume roads. The base course made with construction and demolition aggregates was more resistant to rutting.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad; BIA2016-80317-

Intoxicación accidental de un toro con Wedelia glauca (“sunchillo”) confirmada por análisis de contenido ruminal

Wedelia glauca is an invasive, perennial plant of the Asteraceae family native to South America. Its toxicity is attributed to the presence of a hepatotoxic terpenoid known as atractyloside, a powerful inhibitor of cellular respiration and ATP synthesis. Cattle are the most frequently poisoned species, and the course of this poisoning is hyperacute or acute. Occasionally, it is possible to find fragments of plants in the rumen contents and indentify the dermis structure of the plants, as they do not undergo significant changes in spite of the mechanic and enzymatic activities occurring in the rumen. The macroscopic and microscopic anatomopathologic findings of a natural Wedelia glauca poisoning case in a Hereford bull are reported. It was confirmed by micrographic analysis of plant fragments found in the rumen contents and also in bales used to feed those animals.Wedelia glauca es una planta perenne e invasiva perteneciente a la familia Asteraceae que se encuentra en América del Sur. Su toxicidad se debe a la presencia de un terpenoide hepatotóxico conocido como atractilósido, un potente inhibidor de la respiración celular y de la síntesis de ATP. El ganado bovino resulta intoxicado con frecuencia, siendo el curso de la afección hiperagudo o agudo. Ocasionalmente es posible encontrar fragmentos vegetales en el contenido ruminal y así identificar la estructura de la dermis de las plantas, ya que no sufren cambios significativos a pesar de los procesos mecánicos y enzimáticos del rumen. Se presentan los hallazgos macroscópicos y microscópicos de un caso de intoxicación natural por Wedelia glauca en un toro Hereford, confirmado por el análisis micrográfico de fragmentos vegetales hallados en contenido ruminal y fardos de alfalfa utilizados en su alimentación.Facultad de Ciencias Veterinaria