Deadline Missing Prediction Through the Use of Milestones

Distributed Real-Time Thread is an important concept for distributed real-time systems. Distributed Threads are schedulable entities with an end-to-end deadline that transpose nodes, carrying their scheduling context. In each node, the thread will be locally scheduled according to a local deadline, which is defined by a deadline partitioning algorithm. Mechanisms for predicting the missing of deadlines are fundamental if corrective actions are incorporated for improving system quality of service. In this work, a mechanism for predicting missing deadlines is proposed and evaluated through simulation. In order to illustrate the main characteristics of the proposed mechanism, experiments will be presented taking into account different scenarios of normal load and overload. Simulations show that the deadline missing prediction mechanism proposed presents good results for improving the overall performance and availability of distributed systems

EDUCAÇÃO SUPERIOR: UMA ANÁLISE À LUZ DOS MARCOS REGULATÓRIOS BRASILEIROS DO INEP/MEC

O presente paper é resultado de uma pesquisa do Grupo de Pesquisa: Políticas, Avaliação e Gestão no Ensino Superior da Universidade Federal de Santa Maria/RS. O artigo faz uma análise da leitura de dez projetos pedagógicos de Instituições de Ensino Superior do Brasil, das quais 05 (cinco públicas) e 05 (cinco) privadas, que se constitui em função de um referencial teórico centrado na perspectiva de compreender os desafios enfrentados pelas IES para empreenderem uma gestão acadêmica eficaz e transparente, no contexto do marco regulatório do INEP. Foram considerados também com a mesma intensidade os documentos lançados pelo INEP como subsídios para regular todas as avaliações das Instituições de Ensino Superior, quer seja do ponto de vista institucional, quer seja da avaliação de curso. A reflexão que nos ocupa constrói-se a partir de um trabalho de revisão bibliográfica e análise de dados, que toma dimensão à medida que comparamos os projetos pedagógicos implantados pelas IES no sentido de atender as demandas para a realização de uma gestão acadêmica eficiente e eficaz. Este trabalho vislumbra contribuir nesse sentido e, portanto ampliar o estudo nesta área, estimulando a reflexão de outros pesquisadores

Indeterminate thyroid cytology: Detecting malignancy using analysis of nuclear images

Background: Thyroid nodules diagnosed as 'atypia of undetermined significance/ follicular lesion of undetermined significance' (AUS/FLUS) or 'follicular neoplasm/ suspected follicular neoplasm' (FN/SFN), according to Bethesda’s classification, represena challenge in clinical practice. Computerized analysis of nuclear images (CANI) could be a useful tool for these cases. Our aim was to evaluate the ability of CANI to correctly classify AUS/FLUS and FN/SFN thyroid nodules for malignancy. Methods: We studied 101 nodules cytologically classified as AUS/FLUS (n = 68) or FN/SFN (n = 33) from 97 thyroidectomy patients. Slides with cytological material were submitted for manual selection and analysis of the follicular cell nuclei for morphometric and texture parameters using ImageJ software. The histologically benign and malignant lesions were compared for such parameters which were then evaluated for the capacity to predict malignancy using the classification and regression trees gini model. The intraclass coefficient of correlation was used to evaluate method reproducibility. Results: In AUS/FLUS nodule analysis, the benign and malignant nodules differed for entropy (P < 0.05), while the FN/SFN nodules differed for fractal analysis, coefficient of variation (CV) of roughness, and CV-entropy (P < 0.05). Considering the AUS/FLUS and FN/SFN nodules separately, it correctly classified 90.0 and 100.0% malignant nodules, with a correct global classification of 94.1 and 97%, respectively. We observed that reproducibility was substantially or nearly complete (0.61–0.93) in 10 of the 12 nuclear parameters evaluated. Conclusion: CANI demonstrated a high capacity for correctly classifying AUS/FLUS and FN/SFN thyroid nodules for malignancy. This could be a useful method to help increase diagnostic accuracy in the indeterminate thyroid cytology.This study received financial support from Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP; processes number 2016/14987-0 and number 2016/14988-6). Further funding through 'Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologi' – FCT and FEDER 'Fundo Europeu de Desenvolvimento Regional funds through the COMPETE 2020'; by Operacional Programme for Competitiveness and Internationalization 'POCI' (Grant no. POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007274); by the 'Advancing cancer research: from basic knowledge to application' (grant no. NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000029); and by the 'Projetos Estruturados de I & D & I', funded by Norte 2020 – Programa Operacional Regional do Norte

Assessment of impacts on ecosystem services provided by geodiversity in highly urbanised areas: a case study of the Taubaté Basin, Brazil

This work presents a method to identify, to evaluate and to quantify the losses of the offer of ecosystem services provided by geodiversity, using as a case study the Taubaté Basin region, a highly urbanized portion of southeastern São Paulo State, Brazil. Our method considers not only the qualitative analysis of the abiotic as- pects, but also the historical and cultural context, in which the geodiversity elements are crucial for local economy development. The method is based on: i) Qualitative evaluation and definition of six Essential Geodiversity Variables (EGVs), used as the basis for the identification of 53 ecosystem services distributed into four functions: regulating, supporting, provisioning, and cultural; ii) Definition of land use categories based on two land use maps elaborated in order to compare the transformation occurred in the region between 1986 and 2016; iii) Quantification and evaluation of the impacts on the offer of ecosystem services caused by land use transformations occurred in region in a 30–year gap. The results showed that anthropogenic action is the main factor that alter the availability of local services, with emphasis on the supply of water, soils and mineral resources, and its potentially influence on the quality of life of certain species. We reinforce the view that public policies on land management and planning should consider the ecosystem assessment, as it provides evidence to propose actions to mitigate impacts and for environmental compensation, favoring the sustainable use of re- sources by society.The authors would like to thank CAPES for the Academic Mobility Program PDSE Scholarship / Process Nr. 88,881.135227 / 2016–01 and for the PhD research scholarship in Brazil awarded to the first author

Decentralization and Local Institutional Arrangements for Wetland Management in Ethiopia and Sierra Leone.

In Ethiopia and Sierra Leone, recent social, political and environmental transformations have precipitated the intensification of wetland use, as local people have sought to safeguard and strengthen their livelihoods. Concurrent decentralization policies in both countries have also seen the government strengthen its position at the local level. Drawing upon recent field-based evidence from Ethiopia and Sierra Leone, this paper examines the compatibility between community-based local institutions for wetland use, and the process of decentralization. It argues that decentralization has in fact restricted the development of mature local institutional arrangements, due to its intrinsically political interventionist nature

Evaluation of neuromotor development by means of the Harris Infant Neuromotor Test

Objective: To investigate the neuromotor development of at-risk children between three and 12 months of life, administering the Brazilian version of the Harris Infant Neuromotor Test (HINT).Method: A longitudinal study, with 78 children and 76 parents/guardians discharged from a neonatal intensive care unit in Fortaleza-CE/Brazil. Two instruments were administered: HINT and a socioeconomic questionnaire, between July/2009 to August/2010. Data from 55 preterm and 23 term children were analyzed. Results: The final mean scores ranged from 14.6 to 25.2 and from 11.2 to 24.7, for preterm and term, respectively, showing that 91% of children demonstrated good neuromotor performance; seven premature infants showed alterations which led to the referral of three children to a specialized clinic for examination and diagnostics.Conclusion: The test allowed nurses to assess infant development, identify deviations early, and plan interventions

Winning Fights Induces Hyperaggression via the Action of the Biogenic Amine Octopamine in Crickets

Winning an agonistic interaction against a conspecific is known to heighten aggressiveness, but the underlying events and mechanism are poorly understood. We quantified the effect of experiencing successive wins on aggression in adult male crickets (Gryllus bimaculatus) by staging knockout tournaments and investigated its dependence on biogenic amines by treatment with amine receptor antagonists. For an inter-fight interval of 5 min, fights between winners escalated to higher levels of aggression and lasted significantly longer than the preceding round. This winner effect is transient, and no longer evident for an inter-fight interval of 20 min, indicating that it does not result from selecting individuals that were hyper-aggressive from the outset. A winner effect was also evident in crickets that experienced wins without physical exertion, or that engaged in fights that were interrupted before a win was experienced. Finally, the winner effect was abolished by prior treatment with epinastine, a highly selective octopamine receptor blocker, but not by propranolol, a ß-adrenergic receptor antagonist, nor by yohimbine, an insect tyramine receptor blocker nor by fluphenazine an insect dopamine-receptor blocker. Taken together our study in the cricket indicates that the physical exertion of fighting, together with some rewarding aspect of the actual winning experience, leads to a transient increase in aggressive motivation via activation of the octopaminergic system, the invertebrate equivalent to the adrenergic system of vertebrates

Options for monitoring and estimating historical carbon emissions from forest degradation in the context of REDD+

Measuring forest degradation and related forest carbon stock changes is more challenging than measuring deforestation since degradation implies changes in the structure of the forest and does not entail a change in land use, making it less easily detectable through remote sensing. Although we anticipate the use of the IPCC guidance under the United Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), there is no one single method for monitoring forest degradation for the case of REDD+ policy. In this review paper we highlight that the choice depends upon a number of factors including the type of degradation, available historical data, capacities and resources, and the potentials and limitations of various measurement and monitoring approaches. Current degradation rates can be measured through field data (i.e. multi-date national forest inventories and permanent sample plot data, commercial forestry data sets, proxy data from domestic markets) and/or remote sensing data (i.e. direct mapping of canopy and forest structural changes or indirect mapping through modelling approaches), with the combination of techniques providing the best options. Developing countries frequently lack consistent historical field data for assessing past forest degradation, and so must rely more on remote sensing approaches mixed with current field assessments of carbon stock changes. Historical degradation estimates will have larger uncertainties as it will be difficult to determine their accuracy. However improving monitoring capacities for systematic forest degradation estimates today will help reduce uncertainties even for historical estimates