Memorial sites in countries in transition to democracy

This work is inspired and originated from an experience of cooperation with the Council of Europe, lasted from summer 2005 to the end of 2009, as a member of various delegations that have made observation missions in different countries, mainly belonging to the former Soviet bloc and the former Yugoslavia. In that capacity the author was able to witness firsthand the effects of a policy change on society, which was very rapid after the fall of the Berlin Wall, an event that is a symbol, in those areas, the watershed between two opposed eras. On the one hand, the domain of socialcommunist ideology and on the other that freedom so much dreamed, which later led to considerable social dislocation, very much evident today. The search for memorial sites and their significance is the theme that unites this trip, with the discovery of "intangible areas" but place over the places

Functional methods in quantum field theory

Iniziamo introducendo l'integrazione su manifold di Hilbert, tramite l'approssimazione dello spazio tangente alla varietà. Passiamo poi a descrivere due tecniche per regolarizzare integrali funzionali o di cammino quadratici (che presentano un laplaciano nell'azione): la regolarizzazione e rinormalizzazione tramite zeta function e il cutoff nel tempo proprio. Cerchiamo di confrontare i due diversi risultati (finiti) così ottenuti. Sussessivamente applichiamo l'integrazione funzionale agli integrali di cammino usando il formalismo della quantizzazione in qp-simboli ottenendo così un'ampiezza di probabilità. Infine iniziamo a sviluppare questi argomenti per le teorie di gauge. In particolare ci soffermeremo su vari aspetti geometrici dei campi di gauge, quali la connessione e la curvatura (usando il formalismo dei fibrati). In ultimo introduciamo l'integrazione funzionale per le teorie di gauge

SURVEY OF THE INDUSTRIAL NEEDS OF ELECTRICITY TO OBTAIN INFORMATION TO BE USED AS A BASIS FOR A CURRICULUM IN ELECTRICITY IN THE HIGH SCHOOL

The purpose of this study was to find what information had been found useful, by one hundred select individuals gainfully employed and interested in the industrial use of electricity, in order to choose items to be used for the construction of a curriculum in electricity for high school pupils

Dynamics of perinatal bovine leukemia virus infection

BACKGROUND: Bovine leukemia virus (BLV) is highly endemic in many countries, including Argentina. As prevention of the spread from infected animals is of primary importance in breaking the cycle of BLV transmission, it is important to know the pathophysiology of BLV infection in young animals, as they are the main source of animal movement. In this work, we determined the proviral load and antibody titers of infected newborn calves from birth to first parturition (36 months). RESULTS: All calves under study were born to infected dams with high proviral load (PVL) in blood and high antibody titers and detectable provirus in the colostrum. The PVL for five out of seven calves was low at birth. All animals reached PVLs of more than 1% infected peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), three at 3 months, one at 6 months, and one at 12 months. High PVLs persisted until the end of the study, and, in two animals, exceeded one BLV copy per cell. Two other calves maintained a high PVL from birth until the end of the study. Antibody titers were 32 or higher in the first sample from six out of seven calves. These decayed at 3–6 months to 16 or lower, and then increased again after this point. CONCLUSIONS: Calves infected during the first week of life could play an active role in early propagation of BLV to susceptible animals, since their PVL raised up during the first 12 months and persist as high for years. Early elimination could help to prevent transmission to young susceptible animals and to their own offspring. To our knowledge, this is the first study of the kinetics of BLV proviral load and antibody titers in newborn infected calves.Fil: Gutiérrez, Gerónimo. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Veterinarias y Agronómicas. Instituto de Virología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Alvarez, Irene. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Veterinarias y Agronómicas. Instituto de Virología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Merlini, Ramiro. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Veterinarias y Agronómicas. Instituto de Virología; ArgentinaFil: Rondelli, Flavia. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias; ArgentinaFil: Trono, Karina Gabriela. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Veterinarias y Agronómicas. Instituto de Virología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

A Review of Current and Historical Research Contributions to the Development of Ground Autonomous Vehicles for Agriculture

In this study, a comprehensive overview of the available autonomous ground platforms developed by universities and research groups that were specifically designed to handle agricultural tasks was performed. As cost reduction and safety improvements are two of the most critical aspects for farmers, the development of autonomous vehicles can be of major interest, especially for those applications that are lacking in terms of mechanization improvements. This review aimed to provide a literature evaluation of present and historical research contributions toward designing and prototyping agricultural ground unmanned vehicles. The review was motivated by the intent to disseminate to the scientific community the main features of the autonomous tractor named BOPS-1960, which was conceived in the 1960s at the Alma Mater Studiorum University of Bologna (UNIBO). Jointly, the main characteristics of the modern DEDALO unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) for orchard and vineyard operations that was designed recently were evaluated. The basic principles, technology and sensors used in the two UNIBO prototypes are described in detail, together with an analysis of UGVs for agriculture conceived in recent years by research centers all around the world

Evaluation of the Stability Behavior of an Agricultural Unmanned Ground Vehicle

Precision farming is the newest agricultural approach in countries with highly mechanized field operations, and the role of unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) in smart farming is becoming increasingly prominent. This work aimed to evaluate the stability of the DEDALO UGV developed by the University of BOLOGNA for precision orchard and vineyard management. The driving part of the machine is somewhat peculiar; it moves autonomously in the field combined with a tank to store water and pesticide mixture for crop protection, with an additional structure to carry agricultural implements. The study aimed to evaluate the stability of the agricultural unladen UGV, and mulcher and sprayer mounted configurations. In the case of the sprayer, the stability behavior was evaluated with an empty and full tank. The machine, in terms of stability, was studied both laterally and longitudinally. A theoretical model was developed based on the upstream side forces measured during experimental tipping tests. The results of the experimental data were compared with the theoretical predicted results to validate the model. In the lateral test, the average value of the limit stability angle was 48 degrees, while in the longitudinal test, it was 49 degrees. The results of the model were statistically correlative (R2 > 95) and denoted that the most stable condition occurred in the case of the UGV fitted with the mulcher in the longitudinal tipping position (56 degrees), while the most unstable condition was the case of the unladen UGV in the longitudinal tipping position (40 degrees). Although the stability problem is not directly connected with the operator, as these machines do not require a driver, the lack of stability can lead to the UGV overturning with consequent risks for the surrounding environment and damage to the UGV body

Energy absorption in actual tractor rollovers with different tire configurations

In order to better understand the complexities of modern tractor rollover, this paper investigates the energy absorbed by a Roll-Over Protective Structure (ROPS) cab during controlled lateral rollover testing carried out on a modern narrow-track tractor with a silent-block suspended ROPS cab. To investigate how different tractor set-ups may influence ROPS and energy partitioning, tests were conducted with two different wheel configurations, wide (equivalent to normal ‘open field’ operation) and narrow (equivalent to ‘orchard/vineyard’ operation), and refer to both the width of the tires and the corresponding track. Dynamic load cells and displacement transducers located at the ROPS-ground impact points provided a direct measurement of the energy absorbed by the ROPS cab frame. A trilateration method was developed and mounted onboard to measure load cell trajectory with respect to the cab floor in real-time. The associated video record of each rollover event provided further information and opportunity to explain the acquired data. The narrow tire configuration consistently subjected the ROPS cab frame to more energy than the wide tire arrangement. To better evaluate the influence of the ROPS cab silent-blocks in lateral rollover, static and dynamic tests were performed. The results confirm that tires influence the energy partition significantly and that further understanding of silent-blocks’ dynamic performance is warranted

Population spread and cultural transmission in Neolithic transitions

The classical wave-of-advance model is based on Fisher's equation. However, this approach leads to an unbounded wave-of-advance speed at high reproduction rates. In contrast, an integro-difference model leads to a finite upper bound for the speed, namely the maximum dispersal distance divided by the generation time. Intuitively, this is a very reasonable result. This demic model has been generalized to include cultural transmission (Fort, PNAS 2012). We apply this recent demic-cultural model to determine the percentages of demic and cultural diffusion in the Neolithic transition for two case studies: (i) Europe, and (ii) southern Africa (Jerardino et al., submitted 2014). The similarities and differences between both case studies are interpreted in terms of the three mechanisms at work (population reproduction, dispersal and acculturation)

REALIDADE E FICÇÃO NO DISCURSO TELEVISIVO

Análise da maneira como alguns programas televisivos transitam em mão dupla entre os universos da realidade e da ficção, produzindo, para a construção de suas narrativas, ficções sobre os fatos do real, ou dando tons de realidade ao universo da ficção, em que o uso da imagem e outras operações intertextuais garantem a produção da verossimilhança. Neste sentido, real e ficcional são mutuamente fertilizados, conferindoespecificidades próprias à ação pedagógica da televisão, que através da construção de seus temas passa a se inserir no debate público e na construção da experiência socialcontemporânea

The Future of Formula 1 Racing: Neural Networks to Predict Tyre Strategy

La Formula 1 è uno dei motorsport più popolari al mondo, con milioni di fan che seguono ogni gara. È uno sport altamente competitivo e tecnologicamente avanzato, con team che cercano costantemente modi per ottimizzare le loro prestazioni e ottenere un vantaggio competitivo. Uno dei fattori critici nella performance di un team è la scelta delle gomme durante una gara. Di solito sono disponibili tre diversi tipi di pneumatici per ogni gara, con diversi livelli di aderenza, durata e velocità. Le gomme più morbidi offrono maggior aderenza ma si consumano più velocemente, mentre quelle più dure durano più a lungo ma offrono meno aderenza. I team devono scegliere quali utilizzare durante la gara in base a una serie di fattori, tra cui la temperatura della pista, l’usura delle gomme e le condizioni meteorologiche. La strategia delle gomme è un aspetto essenziale della performance di un team, poiché fare le scelte giuste può fornire un vantaggio competitivo. I team devono bilanciare la necessità di tempi sul giro ottimali con la necessità di ridurre al minimo il numero di pit stop richiesti durante la gara. Ciò richiede un’analisi accurata dei dati, compresi i tassi di usura delle gomme e i tempi sul giro, per determinare il momento ottimale per cambiare le gomme e quale gomma utilizzare. Lo scopo di questa tesi di laurea è quello di sviluppare e implementare reti neurali, in particolare LSTM e GRU, per prevedere la strategia delle gomme durante una gara di Formula 1. Il progetto mira a utilizzare i dati telemetrici provenienti dall’API ”FastF1” e sviluppare un modello che possa prevedere con precisione quando e quali cambi di gomme sono richiesti durante una gara. I risultati del progetto possono fornire informazioni sull’efficacia di questi algoritmi in questo contesto e contribuire allo sviluppo di modelli di previsione delle gomme più avanzati in futuro