Playgrounds

Playgrounds defies the idea of singularity and control through a practice of design aiming to offer generous universes3 for one to explore freely. Building blocks of cognition such as modular thinking, hyper-linking, recursion, repetition, self-referencing and self-representation are utilized for designing honest and slightly uncomfortable experiences in order to keep the reader awake and aware

Towards a Classification System for the Shape, Location, and Orientation of Hill-Sachs Lesions

A Hill-Sachs lesion (HSL) is a compression fracture on the humeral head created when the soft humeral head impacts the edge of the glenoid during shoulder dislocation. HSL incidence is reported in 47% of acute anterior glenohumeral dislocations and in 40-80% of patients with chronic instability. A Bankart lesion, the avulsion of the anterior/inferior labrum and inferior glenohumeral ligament from the glenoid rim, is often accompanied by a HSL. Soft tissue repairs are often unsuccessful when a significant bony defect is left untreated; it is our long-term goal to determine which bony defects should be treated to prevent failure of soft tissue repair. Surgeons have proposed the presence of "large" HSLs or the position and orientation of the HSL as causes for recurrent dislocation following Bankart repair. Unfortunately, in the orthopedic literature there is no system for classifying HSLs, or even for quantifying their size, position, and/or orientation which precludes the objective comparison of the work of various authors. The development of such a system is the necessary precursor to the production of any meaningful conclusions about the significance of the HSL. An inexpensive medical image segmentation process using active contours was implemented to build 3D reconstructions of the humeral head. Each of the active contour parameters was optimized for the clinical data set. Literature studies were conducted to come to a consensus on critical lesion traits and methods for computationally quantifying the lesion's traits. The long-term goal of this study is to compare clinical outcomes to the quantitative measures determined using this method.Digitized from a paper copy provided by the Physiological Sciences Graduate Interdisciplinary Program

Urban Reclamation in São Paulo

Thesis (M.C.P.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 2009."September 2009." Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 153-159).The urbanized terrain of São Paulo is characterized by wasteful landscapes on peripheral areas of the metropolitan agglomeration, and decaying landscapes of waste in the core of the city. If on the one hand, the increasingly vacant core of São Paulo is fully equipped with infrastructure, on the other, the burgeoning periphery sprawls onto non-structured lands. Within the core of the city, the São Paulo lowlands stand out as a potential regional site to address this major incongruence. This thesis proposes to study the modernization of a landscape, from an undesired floodplain into a crucial component for the functioning of the metropolis. I examine the lowlands as a constructed landscape, and argue that the infrastructural nature of the territory creates a platform for continued reclamation. By identifying the themes and narrative of the area, I then explore the lowlands as a site for contemporary urban planning in order to re-frame the city's current questions regarding its future.by Victor Eskinazi.M.C.P

Muscle Synergies Facilitate Computational Prediction of Subject-Specific Walking Motions.

Researchers have explored a variety of neurorehabilitation approaches to restore normal walking function following a stroke. However, there is currently no objective means for prescribing and implementing treatments that are likely to maximize recovery of walking function for any particular patient. As a first step toward optimizing neurorehabilitation effectiveness, this study develops and evaluates a patient-specific synergy-controlled neuromusculoskeletal simulation framework that can predict walking motions for an individual post-stroke. The main question we addressed was whether driving a subject-specific neuromusculoskeletal model with muscle synergy controls (5 per leg) facilitates generation of accurate walking predictions compared to a model driven by muscle activation controls (35 per leg) or joint torque controls (5 per leg). To explore this question, we developed a subject-specific neuromusculoskeletal model of a single high-functioning hemiparetic subject using instrumented treadmill walking data collected at the subject's self-selected speed of 0.5 m/s. The model included subject-specific representations of lower-body kinematic structure, foot-ground contact behavior, electromyography-driven muscle force generation, and neural control limitations and remaining capabilities. Using direct collocation optimal control and the subject-specific model, we evaluated the ability of the three control approaches to predict the subject's walking kinematics and kinetics at two speeds (0.5 and 0.8 m/s) for which experimental data were available from the subject. We also evaluated whether synergy controls could predict a physically realistic gait period at one speed (1.1 m/s) for which no experimental data were available. All three control approaches predicted the subject's walking kinematics and kinetics (including ground reaction forces) well for the model calibration speed of 0.5 m/s. However, only activation and synergy controls could predict the subject's walking kinematics and kinetics well for the faster non-calibration speed of 0.8 m/s, with synergy controls predicting the new gait period the most accurately. When used to predict how the subject would walk at 1.1 m/s, synergy controls predicted a gait period close to that estimated from the linear relationship between gait speed and stride length. These findings suggest that our neuromusculoskeletal simulation framework may be able to bridge the gap between patient-specific muscle synergy information and resulting functional capabilities and limitations

Madness and anchoring in the Brazilian press: a study in social representation

A Reforma Psiquiátrica Brasileira visou introduzir novas formas de pensar a loucura, trazendo outros sentidos sobre a saúde mental, no entanto observa-se nas comunicações cotidianas o uso das expressões louco e loucura para adjetivar acontecimentos sociais ou comportamentos diferentes. Este estudo teve como objetivo investigar os principais conteúdos e crenças que ancoram as representações sociais da loucura em um jornal impresso.  Realizou-se uma Análise de Conteúdo Temática com 846 matérias do jornal Folha de São Paulo dos anos de 1978 e 2018. Construíram-se sete categorias que ancoram a ideia de loucura: Excêntrico, Imprevisível, Intenso, Irracional, Violento, Subversivo e Transgressor. As matérias reforçam o estigma da loucura como algo divergente, estranho.  A construção de uma ancoragem inversa fundamenta as representações da loucura demarcando o distanciamento entre os “normais” e os “loucos”. Concluiu-se que a loucura ainda é compreendida a partir da desvalorização e desmerecimento social, acarretando em práticas de exclusão.La locura se configura como un objeto social que permea diferentes grupos y esferas de la arena pública. Este estudio tuvo como objetivo investigar los principales contenidos y creencias que anclan las representaciones sociales de la locura en un periódico brasileño. Se utilizaron materiales del periódico Folha de São Paulo de 1978 y 2018. El corpus fue analizado a partir del Análisis de Contenido Temático. Los resultados demuestran la existencia de siete categorías que anclan la comprensión de la locura: Excéntrica, Impredecible, Intensa, Irracional, Violenta, Subversiva y Transgresora. Así, se hizo evidente que los artículos periodísticos refuerzan el estigma de la locura como algo divergente. La construcción de un ancla inversa es un fundamento central para comprender las representaciones de la locura, ejemplificada desde la distancia entre lo “normal” y lo “loco”. En ese sentido, la locura se entiende desde la desvalorización y indignidad social, traduciéndose en prácticas de exclusión.The Brazilian Psychiatric Reform sought to introduce new perspectives on madness, integrating other meanings about mental health; however, it seems that mad and crazy are used in everyday communications to describe social events and behaviors. This study aimed to investigate the main contents and beliefs that anchor the social representations of madness in a printed newspaper.  A Thematic Content Analysis was carried out with 846 articles from the newspaper Folha de São Paulo from the years 1978 and 2018. Seven categories were constructed that anchor the idea of madness: Eccentric, Unpredictable, Intense, Irrational, Violent, Subversive, and Transgressive. The stories reinforce the stigma of madness as something divergent, strange.  The construction of an inverse anchoring underlies the representations of madness, demarcating the distance between the “normal” and the “crazy. It was concluded that madness is still understood based on social devaluation and demeaning, leading to exclusionary practices

Le Corbusier in Berlin, 1958: the universal and the individual in the unbuilt city

[EN] Among several urban plans designed for Berlin, we find Le Corbusier`s project for the Hauptstadt Berlin 1958 competition, which aimed at thinking the reconstruction of the city center destroyed in the II World War. Corbusier`s relation with Berlin dates back to 1910, when he arrives at the city to work at Peter Behrens` office. So, for him, the plan for Berlin was a rare opportunity to develop ideas about the city that provided one of the largest contributions to his urban design education, and also to develop ideas he formulated forty years before for Paris` center. Besides that, this project was developed almost simultaneously with CIAM`s crises and dissolution, which culminated in the 50`s with the consequent appearance of Team 10. At that moment Corbusier`s universalist approach to urbanism starts to be challenged by CIAM`s young generation, which had a critical approach towards the design methods inherited from the previous generation, associated with CIAM`s foundational moment. From the beginning of the 50`s on, this new generation balances the universalist ideals inherited from the previous generation with individualist ones they identified as necessary to face the new post war reality. Thus, the main goal of this paper is to analyse Corbusier’s design for Berlin and question whether he, at an already mature point of his career, was proposing a plan that answered only the questions that were important to CIAM and to the canonical principles of modern architecture, or if he had also addressed those that belonged to the new generation and Team 10`s agenda, both of them present in the debates of the moment, largely identified as a transitional period.[ES] Entre varios planes urbanos diseñados para Berlín, esta el proyecto de Le Corbusier para el concurso Hauptstadt Berlín 1958, que tenia como objetivo pensar la reconstrucción del centro de la ciudad, destruida en la II Guerra Mundial. La relación de Corbusier con Berlín se remonta a 1910, cuando llega a la ciudad para trabajar en la oficina de Peter Behrens. Así que, para él, el plan de Berlín fue una rara oportunidad de desarrollar ideas sobre la ciudad que dio una de las mayores enseñanzas a su aprendizaje en diseño urbano, y también para desarrollar las ideas que formuló cuarenta años antes para el centro Paris. Además de eso, este proyecto se ha desarrollado simultáneamente con la crisis y disolución de CIAM, y con la aparición de Team 10. En ese momento, el enfoque universalista de Corbusier comienza a ser cuestionado por la generación joven de CIAM, que tenía enfoque crítico hacia los métodos de diseño heredados de la generación anterior. Desde el principio de los 50`s, esta nueva generación equilibra los ideales universalistas heredados de la generación anterior con los individualistas necesarios para hacer frente a la nueva realidad. Por lo tanto, lo principal objetivo de este trabajo es analizar el diseño de Corbusier para Berlín y cuestionar si, en un punto ya maduro de su carrera, él propone un plan que respondió sólo las cuestiones que eran importantes para CIAM y a los principios canónicos de la arquitectura moderna, o si también se trataron temas que pertenecían a la nueva generación y a la agenda del Team 10, ambos presentes en los debates del momento, en gran parte identificado como un período de transición.Oliveira Eskinazi, M. (2016). Le Corbusier in Berlin, 1958: the universal and the individual in the unbuilt city. En LE CORBUSIER. 50 AÑOS DESPUÉS. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. 1575-1591. https://doi.org/10.4995/LC2015.2015.9211575159

ARACRUZ CREDO: 40 ANOS DE VIOLAÇÕES E RESISTÊNCIA NO ES

O livro “Aracruz Credo: 40 anos de denúncias e resistências no ES” organizado pela Rede Brasil sobre Instituições Financeiras Multilaterais e pela Rede Alerta Contra o Deserto Verde, como já indica o subtítulo da obra, é um conjunto de artigos que denunciam as inúmeras atrocidades de uma das maiores empresas produtoras de celulose do mundo, a Aracruz Celulose . A empresa se instalou no norte do Espírito Santo na década de 1970, e, da mesma forma como outras empresas do setor de celulose e de outros setores do agronegócio, recebeu enormes incentivos do Estado. O livro conta com 14 artigos que abordam inúmeros aspectos das problemáticas que a empresa trouxe ao estado do Espírito Santo e das lutas e resistências das populações atingidas. Trabalho importantíssimo, principalmente pelo fato de que tais questões não apresentados pela mídia regional e nacional, ao contrário, mantém-se com o objetivo de defender intensamente os interesses do agronegócio e raramente dar voz aos povos atingidos

Associations between psychosis and visual acuity impairment: A systematic review and meta-analysis

OBJECTIVES: Several theories propose that visual acuity impairment is associated with psychosis. Visual impairment could lead to psychosis or the converse, or they may share underlying pathology or risk factors. In the first evidence synthesis in this area for over 25 years, we collated studies measuring the association between visual acuity impairment and psychosis. METHODS: We searched the MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO and Web of Science databases for studies published from 1992 to 2020, using the Newcastle Ottawa Scale to assess risk of bias. We narratively synthesized findings, and meta-analysed sufficiently homogenous results. RESULTS: We included 40 papers which reported on 31 studies. Evidence from seven cohort studies was inconsistent, which precluded meta-analysis of this study design. These contradictory results also made it difficult to draw conclusions regarding a temporal association. We found evidence for an association from eight cross-sectional studies treating visual acuity impairment as the exposure and psychosis as the outcome [pooled Odds Ratio (OR) =1.76, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) 1.34 - 2.31], and four with the reverse exposure and outcome (OR 1.85, 95% CI 1.17 - 2.92). Seven case control studies with mixed findings were found, but only two primarily addressed our research question, and these findings were mixed. CONCLUSIONS: Although evidence supports a cross-sectional association between visual acuity impairment and psychosis, further research is needed to clarify the temporal direction, given the mixed findings in cohort studies. Understanding the association may give insights into prevention strategies for people at risk of visual acuity impairment and psychosis