Estimation of latent variable models for ordinal data via fully exponential Laplace approximation

Latent variable models for ordinal data represent a useful tool in different fields of research in which the constructs of interest are not directly observable. In such models, problems related to the integration of the likelihood function can arise since analytical solutions do not exist. Numerical approximations, like the widely used Gauss Hermite (GH) quadrature, are generally applied to solve these problems. However, GH becomes unfeasible as the number of latent variables increases. Thus, alternative solutions have to be found. In this paper, we propose an extended version of the Laplace method for approximating the integrals, known as fully exponential Laplace approximation. It is computational feasible also in presence of many latent variables, and it is more accurate than the classical Laplace method

O Iraque norte-americano: a tradução para o inglês do romance Frankenstein em Bagdá, de Ahmed Saadawi

The subject of our research is the novel بغداد في فرانكشتاين , by the Iraqi Ahmed Saadawi, which still does not have a translation into Portuguese. In particular, we analyze the translation into English, by Jonathan Wright - Frankenstein in Baghdad (2017). The American translator himself recognizes that about 10,000 words were edited from the original text. In addition, he introduced an index with the list of characters in the novel and suppressed the footnotes introduced in the original in Arabic to explain terms from the Iraqi variety of Arabic and to remember the fictional content of the references made in the novel to Iraqi names, activities, events and institutions. The suppression of these linguistic, cultural and political marks from the novel not only facilitates the Anglo-Saxon reader's understanding, as Venuti's concept of the translator's invisibility suggest, but, above all, attenuates its specific roots in contemporary Iraq during the North American occupation.Trabalho de Conclusão de Curso (Graduação)O objeto de nossa pesquisa é o romance Frankenstein em Bagdá (بغداد في فرانكشتاين),do iraquiano Ahmed Saadawi, que ainda não dispõe de uma tradução para a língua portuguesa. Analisamos, em particular, a sua tradução em inglês que, intitulada Frankenstein in Baghdad (2017), foi realizada por Jonathan Wright. O próprio tradutor inglês reconhece que cerca de 10 mil palavras foram editadas do texto original. Além disso, ele introduziu um índice com a lista de personagens do romance e suprimiu as notas de rodapé introduzidas no original em árabe para explicar termos oriundos da variedade iraquiana do árabe e explicitar o teor ficcional das referências realizadas no romance a nomes, atividades, eventos e instituições iraquianas. O apagamento dessas marcas linguísticas, culturais e políticas do romance não apenas facilita a compreensão do leitor anglosaxão, como sugere o conceito de invisibilidade do tradutor de Venuti, mas, sobretudo, atenua o seu enraizamento específico no Iraque contemporâneo durante a ocupação norte-americana

Stability of casein micelles cross-linked with genipin: a physicochemical study as a function of pH

Chemical or enzymatic cross-linking of casein micelles (CMs) increases their stability against dissociating agents. In this paper, a comparative study of stability between native CMs and CMs cross-linked with genipin (CMs-GP) as a function of pH is described. Stability to temperature and ethanol were investigated in the pH range 2.0-7.0. The size and the charge ($\zeta$-potential) of the particles were determined by dynamic light scattering. Native CMs precipitated below pH 5.5, CMs-GP precipitated from pH 3.5 to 4.5, whereas no precipitation was observed at pH 2.0-3.0 or pH 4.5-7.0. The isoelectric point of CMs-GP was determined to be pH 3.7. Highest stability against heat and ethanol was observed for CMs-GP at pH 2, where visible coagulation was determined only after 800 s at 140 $^\circ$C or 87.5% (v/v) of ethanol. These results confirmed the hypothesis that cross-linking by GP increased the stability of CMs.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, International Dairy Journal, 201

Room Temperature Oxidation of Al-Cu-Fe and Al-Cu-Fe-Cr Quasicrystals

We have investigated formation of oxides on quasicrystalline and crystalline alloy surfaces of similar composition, in different oxidizing environments. This includes a comparison between a quaternary orthorhombic approximate of Al-Cu-Fe-Cr quasicrystal and the ternary Al-Cu-Fe quasicrystalline and crystalline phases. We noted that each sample showed the following common trends: preferential oxidation of the Al, enrichment in the concentration of Al present at the surface upon oxidation, water concentration is directly related to oxide thickness, and the oxide thickness displays a strong correlation with the bulk concentration of Al in the sample