Telecommunications for the needy: how needed are they?

Telecommunications, mobile and non-mobile, play a major role in our society, but their role as tools for escaping poverty remains a policy agenda still with room for progress both in Europe and around the World. Some groups in society, like the needy, have difficulties in accessing and using such technologies in ways that mirror the debates of the late 90s over the "digital divide". For some groups, like the needy, it would be more exact to address the concept of digital poverty rather than digital divide, because without access to telecommunications one might not have the same degree of opportunities to leave poverty or not to fall into poverty [34] [3] [4]. The goal of this paper is to scope the problem by departing from the Portuguese case study. Our research is empirical and highlights the telecommunication ownership and expenditures of the Portuguese population, and specially the most fragile segments within it. Such an effort is undertaken while not ignoring major issues of political economy of the contemporary globalizing networked society. Our main argument in this paper is that, if telecommunications are a needed tool for the lower income segments of the population, that is the needy, a debate around digital poverty associated to mobile telecommunications is needed in Europe too and to address such issues we need public policy commitments

La erosión en campos cultivados en Galicia (NW España)

[Resumen] En la presente comunicación se realiza un seguimiento de la erosión en parcelas cultivadas en Galicia. Para ello, en la estación experimental El Pedroso se construyeron dos parcelas, de diferente pendiente, y se sometieron a un proceso de laboreo según las formas tradicionales de cultivar. En la presente comunicación se exponen los resultados del seguimiento de la experimentación desde abril a diciembre de 1995, en donde se observa que la pendiente desempeña una función distinta de la que en un principio podría pensarse, dado que la escorrentía y carga varían de forma inversa a la pendiente.[Abstract] A very closed study of erosion is made in this paper about plough plots in Galicia. For this, in the experimental station El Pedroso were built two plots, with different slope, and were ploughed in a traditional way. In this paper we resume the results of the experiment from april to december 1995, where it is seen that slope has a different function that was thought at the beginning of the experiment, because discharge and load don't vary directly with slope

Espécies de cigarrinhas-das-pastagens (Hemiptera: Cercopidae) no meio-norte do Mato Grosso.

O objetivo destre trabalho foi identificar as principais espécies de cigarrinhas-das-pastagens que ocorrem em áres produtoras de bovinos de corte no meio-norte do estado de Mato Grosso. Foram efetuadas amostragens mensais de cigarrinhas de novembro/1999 a fevereiro/2000 em cinco municípios, encontrando-se as seguintes espécies: Barra do bugres - Deois flavopicta (87%) e Mahanarva fimbriolata (13%); Colider - D. flavopicta (81%) e M. Fimbriolata (19%); Alta Floresta e São José do Rio Claro - D. flavopicta (72%) e M fimbriolata (28%); Juara - D. flavopicta (51%) e M fimbriolata (37%) e Zulia entreriana (12%)

Identification of transitional disks in Chamaeleon with Herschel

Transitional disks are circumstellar disks with inner holes that in some cases are produced by planets and/or substellar companions in these systems. For this reason, these disks are extremely important for the study of planetary system formation. The Herschel Space Observatory provides an unique opportunity for studying the outer regions of protoplanetary disks. In this work we update previous knowledge on the transitional disks in the Chamaeleon I and II regions with data from the Herschel Gould Belt Survey. We propose a new method for transitional disk classification based on the WISE 12 micron-PACS 70 micron color, together with inspection of the Herschel images. We applied this method to the population of Class II sources in the Chamaeleon region and studied the spectral energy distributions of the transitional disks in the sample. We also built the median spectral energy distribution of Class II objects in these regions for comparison with transitional disks. The proposed method allows a clear separation of the known transitional disks from the Class II sources. We find 6 transitional disks, all previously known, and identify 5 objects previously thought to be transitional as possibly non-transitional. We find higher fluxes at the PACS wavelengths in the sample of transitional disks than those of Class II objects. We show the Herschel 70 micron band to be an efficient tool for transitional disk identification. The sensitivity and spatial resolution of Herschel reveals a significant contamination level among the previously identified transitional disk candidates for the two regions, which calls for a revision of previous samples of transitional disks in other regions. The systematic excess found at the PACS bands could be a result of the mechanism that produces the transitional phase, or an indication of different evolutionary paths for transitional disks and Class II sources.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&A: 11 March 2013 11 pages, 15 figure

QSO 2237+0305 VR light curves from Gravitational Lenses International Time Project optical monitoring

We present VR observations of QSO 2237+0305 conducted by the GLITP collaboration from 1999 October 1 to 2000 February 3. The observations were made with the 2.56 m Nordic Optical Telescope at Roque de los Muchachos Observatory, La Palma (Spain). The PSF fitting method and an adapted version of the ISIS subtraction method have been used to derive the VR light curves of the four components (A-D) of the quasar. The mean errors range in the intervals 0.01-0.04 mag (PSF fitting) and 0.01-0.02 mag (ISIS subtraction), with the faintest component (D) having the largest uncertainties. We address the relatively good agreement between the A-D light curves derived using different filters, photometric techniques, and telescopes. The new VR light curves of component A extend the time coverage of a high magnification microlensing peak, which was discovered by the OGLE team.Comment: 15 pages, 3 figures, ApJ accepted (Feb 19

Modelling the Interaction Levels in HCI Using an Intelligent Hybrid System with Interactive Agents: A Case Study of an Interactive Museum Exhibition Module in Mexico

Technology has become a necessity in our everyday lives and essential for completing activities we typically take for granted; technologies can assist us by completing set tasks or achieving desired goals with optimal affect and in the most efficient way, thereby improving our interactive experiences. This paper presents research that explores the representation of user interaction levels using an intelligent hybrid system approach with agents. We evaluate interaction levels of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) with the aim of enhancing user experiences. We consider the description of interaction levels using an intelligent hybrid system to provide a decision-making system to an agent that evaluates interaction levels when using interactive modules of a museum exhibition. The agents represent a high-level abstraction of the system, where communication takes place between the user, the exhibition and the environment. In this paper, we provide a means to measure the interaction levels and natural behaviour of users, based on museum user-exhibition interaction. We consider that, by analysing user interaction in a museum, we can help to design better ways to interact with exhibition modules according to the properties and behaviour of the users. An interaction-evaluator agent is proposed to achieve the most suitable representation of the interaction levels with the aim of improving user interactions to offer the most appropriate directions, services, content and information, thereby improving the quality of interaction experienced between the user-agent and exhibition-agent

High spatial resolution optical imaging of the multiple T Tauri system LkH{\alpha} 262/LkH{\alpha} 263

We report high spatial resolution i' band imaging of the multiple T Tauri system LkH$\alpha$ 262/LkH$\alpha$ 263 obtained during the first commissioning period of the Adaptive Optics Lucky Imager (AOLI) at the 4.2 m William Herschel Telescope, using its Lucky Imaging mode. AOLI images have provided photometry for each of the two components LkH$\alpha$ 263 A and B (0.41 arcsec separation) and marginal evidence for an unresolved binary or a disc in LkH$\alpha$ 262. The AOLI data combined with previously available and newly obtained optical and infrared imaging show that the three components of LkH$\alpha$ 263 are co-moving, that there is orbital motion in the AB pair, and, remarkably, that LkH$\alpha$ 262-263 is a common proper motion system with less than 1 mas/yr relative motion. We argue that this is a likely five-component gravitationally bounded system. According to BT-settl models the mass of each of the five components is close to 0.4 M$_{\odot}$ and the age is in the range 1-2 Myr. The presence of discs in some of the components offers an interesting opportunity to investigate the formation and evolution of discs in the early stages of multiple very low-mass systems. In particular, we provide tentative evidence that the disc in 263C could be coplanar with the orbit of 263AB.Comment: 11 pages, 7 figures, Accepted 2016 May

Development of Non-Petroleum-Based Binders for Use in Flexible Pavements – Phase II

Bio-binders can be utilized as asphalt modifiers, extenders, and replacements for conventional asphalt in bituminous binders. From the rheology results of Phase I of this project, it was found that the bio-binders tested had good performance, similar to conventional asphalt, except at low temperatures. Phase II of this project addresses this shortcoming and evaluates the Superpave performance of laboratory mixes produced with the enhanced bio-binders. The main objective of this research was to develop a bio-binder capable of replacing conventional asphalt in flexible pavements by incorporating ground tire rubber (GTR) into bio-oil derived from fast pyrolysis of agriculture and forestry residues. The chemical compatibility of the new bio-binder with GTR was assessed, and the low-temperature performance of the bio-binders was enhanced by the use of GTR. The newly developed binder, which consisted of 80 percent conventional binder and 20 percent rubber-modified bio-oil (85 percent bio-oil with 15 percent GTR), was used to produce mixes at two different air void contents, 4 and 7 percent. The laboratory performance test results showed that the performance of the newly developed bio-binder mixes is as good as or better than conventional asphalt mixes for fatigue cracking, rutting resistance, moisture sensitivity, and low-temperature cracking. These results need to be validated in field projects in order to demonstrate adequate performance for this innovative and sustainable technology for flexible pavements

Perceived quality of life and the specific physical activities by the elderly

Se analizaron indicadores de salud con respecto a la percepción de la calidad de vida (CVRS) mediante el cuestionario Short Form-36 Health Survey (SF-36) y parámetros cinemáticos manifestados en el movimiento press banca (12 kilos) como predictores de las adaptaciones neurofisiológicas que se producen con la actividad física. Se trataron valores de potencia, de velocidad, aceleraciones, fuerza y variables temporales. Se utilizaron dos grupos, uno activo, de práctica física habitual (12H, 6M, 68,4±5,6 años, 1,65±0,074m, 74,57±15,41kg, BMI 26,93±4,02; act/sem 4,5±1,65h.), y otro sedentario (16H, 7M, 69 ± 7,07 años, 1,67 ± 0,072m, 74,95 ± 7,4kg, BMI 26,84±2,78) Se encontraron diferencias significativas (p<0,05;gl=1,39;dz=0,5). El grupo considerado activo se percibe con mejor calidad de vida y manifiesta de manera más rápida y con mayor fuerza el movimiento solicitado. Las conclusiones son relevantes para posteriores estudios que se centren en la pérdida de propiedades neuromusculares acompañada a la falta de práctica y al efecto del envejecimiento.Quality of life related to health indicators (QLRH) were analyzed by means of the Short Form-36 Health Survey (SF-36) questionnaire and the specified kinetic parameters of the bench press movement (12 kg) as predictors of the neurophysiological adaptations produced by physical activity. These were the values of power, velocity, acceleration, strength and temporal variables. Two groups were studied: the first group was active, undertaking regular physical activity (12 male; 6 female; 68,4±5,6 years; 1,65±0,074m; 74,57±15,41kg; BMI 26,93±4,02; weekly activity 4,5±1,65h.); the second group was sedentary (16 male; 7 female; 69±7,07 years; 1,67±0,072m; 74,95±7,4kg; BMI 26,84±2,78). Significant differences were found (p<0,05;df=1,39;dz=0,5). The group regarded as active considered itself as having a better quality of life and was able to perform the requested movement with greater speed and strength. The conclusions are relevant for future studies that centre on the loss of neuromuscular properties accompanied by a lack of physical activity and the effects of aging