O IMPACTO DO TAMANHO DA CLASSE NA PERCEPÇÃO DE QUALIDADE DOS ALUNOS DE UMA INSTITUIÇÃO DE ENSINO SUPERIOR PRIVADA BRASILEIRA

The changes in the Brazilian Higher Education industry have caused strong business pressures on local institutions, including increasing number of students per class. This trend rises risks for the institutions in failing at providing quality services. Several studies propose negative correlation between class size and education service quality. Thus, this study aims at evaluating the allegedly negative correlation between service quality and class size through students’ own perspective (perceived quality). Based on the theoretical premises of Parasaruman et al. SERVQUAL Scale (1988) this research assumes a quantitative nature using descriptive and inferential statistics (Exploratory Factorial Analysis, Cronbach’s alpha, correlation). The author did not find evidences of similar studies during the bibliographic review; showing the innovative and contributive value of the present research. The results show tendencies of possible negative correlation between class size and perceived quality.Los cambios en el sistema educacional superior brasileño han traído inúmeras presiones a las instituciones privadas, incluyendo el incremento en la cantidad de estudiantes en clases y su consecuente reto sobre la calidad del servicio ofrecido. Estudios sugieren la relación negativa entre el tamaño de la clase y la calidad del servicio educacional. El presente estudio objetiva analizar la posibilidad de correlación entre tamaño de clase y calidad del servicio a través de la percepción del proprio alumno. Basada en los conceptos teóricos de Parasaruman et al. (1988) y su instrumento de coleta (SERVQUAL), el trabajo asume una naturaleza cuantitativa de carácter descriptivo con aplicación de estadísticas descriptivas e inferenciales (Evaluación Factorial Exploratoria, Alfa de Cronbach y Correlaciones). No encuentran-se evidencias de trabajos similares, elevándose el perfil innovador y la contribución de la encuesta. Los resultados confirman la posible correlación negativa entre tamaño de clase y percepciones de calidad.A crescente competição no Ensino Superior privado brasileiro tem gerado pressões nas instituições deste segmento, resultando, em muitos casos, na elevação do número de alunos por classe. Todavia, surgem questionamentos quanto à qualidade do serviço prestado. Estudos sugerem relação negativa entre tamanho da classe e qualidade do ensino. Diante do exposto, este artigo se propôs a avaliar o impacto do tamanho da classe na percepção de qualidade do serviço, na perspectiva dos alunos. Utilizando-se da escala SERVQUAL de Parasaruman et al. (1988) como base teórica, a pesquisa assume natureza quantitativa de caráter descritivo, por meio de análises estatísticas descritivas e inferenciais (AFE, Alfa de Cronbach e correlações). Evidências de estudos similares não foram encontradas durante a revisão bibliográfica, o que realça o caráter inovador e a contribuição da pesquisa. Os resultados demonstram indícios de possível relação negativa entre tamanho da classe e qualidade percebida dos alunos.DOI: 10.21714/2178-8030gep.v19.476

Measurement of the cosmic ray spectrum above 4×10184{\times}10^{18} eV using inclined events detected with the Pierre Auger Observatory

A measurement of the cosmic-ray spectrum for energies exceeding $4{\times}10^{18}$ eV is presented, which is based on the analysis of showers with zenith angles greater than $60^{\circ}$ detected with the Pierre Auger Observatory between 1 January 2004 and 31 December 2013. The measured spectrum confirms a flux suppression at the highest energies. Above $5.3{\times}10^{18}$ eV, the "ankle", the flux can be described by a power law $E^{-\gamma}$ with index $\gamma=2.70 \pm 0.02 \,\text{(stat)} \pm 0.1\,\text{(sys)}$ followed by a smooth suppression region. For the energy ($E_\text{s}$) at which the spectral flux has fallen to one-half of its extrapolated value in the absence of suppression, we find $E_\text{s}=(5.12\pm0.25\,\text{(stat)}^{+1.0}_{-1.2}\,\text{(sys)}){\times}10^{19}$ eV.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO

Energy Estimation of Cosmic Rays with the Engineering Radio Array of the Pierre Auger Observatory

The Auger Engineering Radio Array (AERA) is part of the Pierre Auger Observatory and is used to detect the radio emission of cosmic-ray air showers. These observations are compared to the data of the surface detector stations of the Observatory, which provide well-calibrated information on the cosmic-ray energies and arrival directions. The response of the radio stations in the 30 to 80 MHz regime has been thoroughly calibrated to enable the reconstruction of the incoming electric field. For the latter, the energy deposit per area is determined from the radio pulses at each observer position and is interpolated using a two-dimensional function that takes into account signal asymmetries due to interference between the geomagnetic and charge-excess emission components. The spatial integral over the signal distribution gives a direct measurement of the energy transferred from the primary cosmic ray into radio emission in the AERA frequency range. We measure 15.8 MeV of radiation energy for a 1 EeV air shower arriving perpendicularly to the geomagnetic field. This radiation energy -- corrected for geometrical effects -- is used as a cosmic-ray energy estimator. Performing an absolute energy calibration against the surface-detector information, we observe that this radio-energy estimator scales quadratically with the cosmic-ray energy as expected for coherent emission. We find an energy resolution of the radio reconstruction of 22% for the data set and 17% for a high-quality subset containing only events with at least five radio stations with signal.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO

Measurement of the Radiation Energy in the Radio Signal of Extensive Air Showers as a Universal Estimator of Cosmic-Ray Energy

We measure the energy emitted by extensive air showers in the form of radio emission in the frequency range from 30 to 80 MHz. Exploiting the accurate energy scale of the Pierre Auger Observatory, we obtain a radiation energy of 15.8 \pm 0.7 (stat) \pm 6.7 (sys) MeV for cosmic rays with an energy of 1 EeV arriving perpendicularly to a geomagnetic field of 0.24 G, scaling quadratically with the cosmic-ray energy. A comparison with predictions from state-of-the-art first-principle calculations shows agreement with our measurement. The radiation energy provides direct access to the calorimetric energy in the electromagnetic cascade of extensive air showers. Comparison with our result thus allows the direct calibration of any cosmic-ray radio detector against the well-established energy scale of the Pierre Auger Observatory.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DOI. Supplemental material in the ancillary file

Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear un derstanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5–7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8–11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world’s most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepre sented in biodiversity databases.13–15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may elim inate pieces of the Amazon’s biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological com munities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple or ganism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region’s vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most ne glected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lostinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio