Adaptable Structures

The research Project suggests that the current architectural habitat is largely presented in a rigid, static and non- modifiable way, making it impossible to make future transformations. The research Project states that adaptability and transformation are vital components for society, as well as that architecture and design should give answers to current changes. It is here where the mobile systems appears, (which incorporate the feedback concept for its control and movement) and today they are outlined as a more efficient way to produce adaptative answers. For this reason, the research group (GEA) has come exploring and experimenting during the last three years with more than 20 mobile systems, aiming to apply the features of these systems in order to build and develop an adaptable architecture, satisfying the needs of contemporary man, society and the worldLa investigación en estructuras adaptables manifiesta que el hábitat arquitectónico actual se presenta en su mayoría rígido, estático e inmodificable, haciendo casi imposible futuras transformaciones, así como cambios de forma y de espacio en el tiempo con fines adaptativos. El proyecto investigativo sostiene que la adaptabilidad y capacidad de transformación son una necesidad de la sociedad, y que la arquitectura y el diseño actual deben dar respuesta a esta necesidad de cambio. Es aquí donde aparecen los sistemas móviles que, incorporando el concepto de retroalimentación para su control y movimiento, se perfilan hoy como una de las formas más eficientes para producir respuestas adaptativas. Por esta razón, el grupo de investigación (GEA) ha venido explorando y experimentando en estos tres últimos años con más de 20 sistemas móviles con el objetivo de aplicar las características de estos sistemas en la construcción y el desarrollo de una arquitectura adaptable para satisfacer las necesidades del hombre actual, la sociedad y el mund

Borderlands spirituality: practical theology and ministry in three Latino Protestant congregations

Latino foreign born immigrants from Central and South America and the Dominican Republic represent around twenty percent of the Latino population in the United States. This wave of “Other Latinos/as” began to arrive in the late 1970s and early 1980s. This thesis explores the spiritual practices of three Latino Protestant congregations comprised mainly by first generation immigrants in the area of New England. Drawing from literature in spirituality studies, theology, and Latino/a studies, this thesis brings a religious and cultural analysis of Latino immigration through the lens of Gloria E. Anzaldúa’s spiritual theorizing of Borderlands as a Nepantla experience. The thesis, moreover, proposes pastoral practices of spiritual, ethnic identity, and community formation that are biblically and theologically informed, contextual, and transformative in response to the needs and particularities of these congregations. In analyzing data from the “Other Latinos/as” this study thus provides a needed corrective and supplement to the widespread notion of a monolithic Latino theology of spirituality based on the Mexican, Puerto Rican and Cuban immigrant experiences. The thesis also aims to move the conversation about Latino Protestant spirituality beyond the common stereotypes which describe it as festive, family oriented, and emotive towards a more nuanced understanding of the religious practices of these communities

Aging and technology: a living lab cohort characterization

Senior cohort studies have gained special relevance in an increasingly aging society. Challenges such as the growing prevalence of neurodegenerative disorders, as well as recent public health challenges such as the covid-19 pandemic show us not only the specific challenges faced regarding the promotion of health and well-being of senior individuals, but also the need to understand the role of seniors as active citizens and as agents in the development of solutions and services that aim to promote independence, autonomy, and well-being. This study aims at a comprehensive characterization of a cohort of senior individuals integrated in a Living Lab in Northern Portugal (Porto area), and to test a model of attitudes and use of technology. Fourty-four Portuguese community- dwelling seniors (37 women and 7 men) were assessed on cognitive performance, health status personality, and psychological well-being, lifestyle, and attitudes and use of technology. Results revealed differences in cognitive functioning between independent living (non-users) and adult day care users, and showed associations between several dimensions and the model of attitudes and use of technology. Future studies should explore the validity of the developed instrument in other contexts and replicate the results in larger and more heterogenous populations

Design of a compact and low-power TDC for an array of SiPM's in 110nm CIS technology

Silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) are meant to substitute photomultiplier tubes in high-energy physics detectors and nuclear medicine. This is because of their -to name a few interesting properties- compactness, lower bias voltage, tolerance to magnetic fields and finer spatial resolution. SiPMs can also be built in CMOS technology. This allows the incorporation of active quenching and recharge schemes at cell level and processing circuitry at pixel level. One of the elements that can lead to finer temporal resolutions is the time-to-digital converter (TDC). In this paper we describe the architecture of a compact TDC to be included at each pixel of an array of SiPMs. It is compact and consumes low power. It is based on a voltage controlled oscillator that generates multiple internal phases that are interpolated to provide time resolution below the time delay of a single gate. Simulation results of a 11b TDC based on a 4-stage VCRO in 110nm CIS technology yield a time resolution of 80.0ps, a DNL of ±0.28 LSB, a INL ±0.52 LSB, and a power consumption of 850μW.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad TEC2015-66878-C3-1-RJunta de Andalucía TIC 2012-2338Office of Naval Research (USA) N00014141035

Estudo da lixiviação de um concentrado de zinco

Neste trabalho estudou-se a lixiviação em meio sulfúrico do zinco e outros metais de valor de um concentrado zinco, tendo-se realizado ensaios de lixiviação à pressão atmosférica e em autoclave. Nos estudos de lixiviação utilizou-se o ião férrico (sulfato férrico) como agente oxidante e avaliaram-se os efeitos de diversas variáveis como a razão sólido/líquido, concentração do ião Fe (III), temperatura, a pressão de oxigénio e a presença de enxofre elementar na eficiência da lixiviação. Os ensaios de lixiviação em autoclave sob pressão de oxigénio foram realizados para verificar o efeito da manutenção da quantidade de Fe (III) na lixívia, por oxidação do Fe(II) com oxigénio. Os resultados obtidos mostraram que à pressão atmosférica para uma razão sólido/líquido de 5% foi possível lixiviar no máximo 59% de zinco e 22% de cobre com solução de 0,25 M de Fe2(SO4)3 e 0,50 M de H2SO4 em 2 horas a 60ºC e com uma razão sólido/líquido de 5% foi possível lixiviar no máximo 65% de zinco e 23% de cobre com uma solução de 0,5 M de Fe2(SO4)3 e 0,25 M de H2SO4 em 2 horas a 80ºC. Efectuar a lixiviação do concentrado de zinco sobre pressão de oxigénio permitiu aumentar a cinética da reacção de lixiviação, tendo sido possível lixiviar 97% de zinco e 48% do cobre em 2 horas de lixiviação com uma solução de 0,25 M Fe2(SO4)3 e 0,5 M H2SO4 a 95 ºC e a 6 bar de pressão de oxigénio (à entrada do reactor) com uma razão sólido/líquido de 5%. Utilizando razão sólido/líquido de 10 % foi possível lixiviar 93% de zinco e 54% do cobre com uma solução de 0,50 M Fe2(SO4)3 e 1,25 M H2SO4 a 95 ºC e a 6 bar de pressão de oxigénio, e para uma razão sólido/líquido de 20 % foi possível lixiviar 84% de zinco e 39% do cobre com uma solução de 0,11 M Fe2(SO4)3 e 2,00 M H2SO4 a 95 ºC e a 10 bar de pressão. As análises de difracção de Raios X efectuados aos resíduos de lixiviação revelaram que o enxofre era maioritariamente oxidado a enxofre elementar. Assim, para um dos ensaios de lixiviação em autoclave, verificou-se que a remoção com tetracloreto de carbono do enxofre elementar formado num primeiro andar de lixiviação (s/l=20%, 0,11 M Fe2(SO4)3 e 2,00 M H2SO4 a 95 ºC e a 10 bar de pressão) permitia aumentar a percentagem de zinco no segundo andar de 42 para 68%. Por último, o estudo do efeito da temperatura permitiu calcular como base nas velocidades iniciais do zinco a energia de activação para a lixiviação do zinco que foi de 39 ± 1.40 kJ/mol para a lixiviação em autoclave e de 38 ± 1.40 kJ/mol para a lixiviação à pressão atmosférica, o que é indicativo do controlo reaccional.In this work it was studied leaching in sulphuric medium of zinc and other value metals of a zinc sulphide concentrate, having realized atmospheric and pressure leaching tests. In the leaching studies the ferric ion (ferric sulphate) was used as oxidant agent and had evaluated the effect of several variables as solid / liquid ratio, Fe (III) ion concentration, temperature, oxygen pressure and the presence of elemental sulphur in leaching efficiency. Leaching tests in an autoclave under oxygen pressure were were carried out in order to evaluate / check the effect of holding the amount of Fe (III) in bleach by oxidation of Fe (II) with oxygen. The obtained results showed that to the atmospheric pressure a 5% solid / liquid ratio it was possible to leach at most 59 % of zinc and 22 % of copper with a solution of 0,25 M of Fe2(SO4)3 and 0,50 M of H2SO4 in 2 hours at 60ºC and with a 5% solid / liquid ratio were possible to leach at most 65 % of zinc and 23 % of copper with a solution of 0,5 M of Fe2(SO4)3 and 0,25 M of H2SO4 in 2 hours at 80ºC. Making the zinc sulphide concentrate leaching on oxygen pressure increase the leaching kinetics of the reaction,being possible to leach 97% zinc and 48% copper in two hours of leaching with a solution of 0,25 M Fe2(SO4)3 and 0,5 M H2SO4 at 95 °C and 6 bar oxygen pressure (entrance to the reactor) with a 5% solid / liquid ratio. Using 10% solid/liquid reason, it was possible to leach 93% of zinc and 54% of copper with a solution of 0.50 M Fe2(SO4)3 and 1.25 M H2SO4 at 95 °C and 6 bar oxygen pressure, and for a 20% solid/liquid reason it was possible to leach 84% of zinc and 39% od copper with a solution of 0.11 M Fe2(SO4)3 and 2.00 M H2SO4 at 95 °C and 10 bar oxygen pressure. X-ray diffraction analyses carried out on leaching residues showed that sulfur was mainly oxidized to elemental sulfur. So, for one of the autoclave leaching tests, it was found that the removal with carbon tetrachloride of elemental sulfur formed on the first leaching floor (s/l=20%, 0,11 M Fe2(SO4)3 e 2,00 M H2SO4 a 95 ºC e a 10 bar oxygen pressure) allowed to increase the percentage of zinc in the second floor of 42 to 68%. Finally, the study of the effect of temperature allowed to calculate based on initial rates of zinc the activation energy for the zinc leaching that was 39 ± 1.40 kJ/mol for pressure leaching and 38 ± 1.38 kJ/mol for the atmospheric leaching, which is indicative of the control reaction

An assessment of cross-contamination issues in the context of chemical and pharmaceutical processes using a continuous oscillatory baffled reactor

Past research in oscillatory baffled reactors has shown that there are significant technological and business advantages in using such reactor technology in fine chemical and pharmaceutical industries: shorter reaction times, fewer by-products, uniform product quality and higher yields, while at the same time with a significant saving in space, capital and running costs. This project focused on the robustness and adaptability of the continuous oscillatory baffled reactor (COBR) for a large spectrum of chemical reactions that are performed in very different fields of industry: from cosmetics and fine chemicals to pharmaceutical products. In particular, the emphasis was on cross contamination issues which may occur when different reactions are performed in a tandem fashion in this reactor. The experimental results indicate that the COBR is well suited to a broad spectrum of chemical reactions, as well as for crystallization operations. During the continuous production of a fine chemical and two active pharmaceutical ingredients in tandem the conditions inside the reactor remained stable and were easily controlled. The minimal amounts of contaminants present and the high quality of the products obtained are a testament to the consistent operation and robust nature of the COBR. The three production phases were interspersed with a well-defined cleaning procedure. The established cleaning protocol is simple, efficient and fast, while the amount of waste generated is minimized. The cleaning kinetics is of first order, which is consistent with previous work. The results reported in this thesis show that the COBR, which incorporates quality-by-design principles, is a suitable alternative to current mixing technologies and can be readily assimilated into a variety of fine chemical and pharmaceutical manufacturing processes

San Vicente Ferrer (1350-1419) y la eficacia filosófica y retórica del sermón: Arte y Filosofía

O objetivo deste trabalho é analisar alguns aspectos do discurso filosófico e dos elementos da retórica medieval contidos nos sermões de São Vicente Ferrer (1350-1419), sobretudo suas reflexões sobre um tema presente, de forma corrente e universal, na Idade Média cristã: o das virtudes morais, ou virtudes cardeais. Utilizaremos, para isso, um sermão específico em língua latina (o Sermão V do IV Domingo do Advento), no qual o pregador relaciona as quatro virtudes cardeais com episódios da vida e obra de Cristo, como relatadas nos Evangelhos. O tema será relacionado com algumas representações artísticas do santo: as pinturas de Joan Macip (1540-1545) e a mais famosa, de Alonso Cano (1601-1667), “São Vicente Ferrer Pregando” (1644-1645), bem como o retábulo central do altar da Igreja do convento dominicano de Cervera (Segarra, c. 1456), que representa São Vicente Ferrer e a Mãe de Deus (Virgem Apocalíptica), de Pedro García de Benabarre (1445-1485). Nossa análise iconográfica basear-se-á na perspectiva teórica de Erwin Panofsky (1892-1968), e na definição de imagem para o período conforme as considerações de Jean-Claude Schmitt (1946- ).The aim of this work is to analyze some aspects of the philosophical discourse and the medieval rethoric elements contained in the sermons of Saint Vincent Ferrer (1350-1419), especially his thoughts about a theme currently and universally present in the Christian Middle Ages: the moral virtues or cardinal virtues. For this, we will utilize a specific sermon wrote in Latin language (the Vth Sermon of the IVth Sunday of Advent), in which the preacher relates the four cardinal virtues with episodes of the life and deeds of Christ, as reported in the Gospels. The theme will be related with some artistic representations of the saint: the paintings of Joan Macip (1540-1545) and the most famous, of Alonso Cano (1601-1667), “Saint Vincent Ferrer Preaching” (1644-1645), as well as the central altarpiece of the Dominican Convent Church of Cervera (Segarra c. 1456), which represents Saint Vincent Ferrer and the Mother of God (Apocalyptic Virgin) of Pedro García de Benabarre (1445-1485). Our iconographic analysis is based on the theoretical perspective of Erwin Panofsky (1892-1968), and in the definition of image for the period according with the considerations of Jean-Claude Schmitt (1946- )

When to start antiretroviral therapy: as soon as possible

BACKGROUND: The debate regarding ‘When to Start’ antiretroviral therapy has raged since the introduction of zidovudine in 1987. Based on the entry criteria for the original Burroughs Wellcome 002 study, the field has been anchored to CD4 cell counts as the prime metric to indicate treatment initiation for asymptomatic individuals infected with Human Immunodeficiency Virus. The pendulum has swung back and forth based mostly on the relative efficacy, toxicity and convenience of available regimens. DISCUSSION: In today’s world, several factors have converged that compel us to initiate therapy as soon as possible: 1) The biology of viral replication (1 to 10 billion viruses per day) strongly suggests that we should be starting early. 2) Resultant inflammation from unchecked replication is associated with earlier onset of multiple co-morbid conditions. 3) The medications available today are more efficacious and less toxic than years past. 4) Clinical trials have demonstrated benefits for all but the highest CD4 strata (>500 cells/μl). 5) Some cohort studies have demonstrated the clear benefit of antiretroviral therapy at any CD4 count and no cohort studies have demonstrated that early therapy is more detrimental than late therapy at the population level. 6) In addition to the demonstrated and inferred benefits to the individual patient, we now have evidence of a Public Health benefit from earlier intervention: treatment is prevention. SUMMARY: From a practical, common sense perspective we are talking about life-long therapy. Whether we start at a CD4 count of 732 cells/μl or 493 cells/μl, the patient will be on therapy for over 40 to 50 years. There does not seem to be much benefit in waiting and there likely is significant long-term harm. Do not wait. Treat early. The counter-argument to this debate topic can be freely accessed here: http://www.biomedcentral.com/1741-7015/11/148