Embedding the DIRECT algorithm in a penalty approach for solving engineering design problems

Publicado em CD-ROMIn this paper we investigate the performance of DIRECT algorithm when solving constrained engineering design problems. For this purpose, the hyperbolic penalty approach is employed and the algorithm is modified in order to preserve feasibility of solutions. The algorithm is illustrated on six well–known engineering problems with promising results. Comparisons with other global optimization solvers are reported and discussed

Intracardiac mass from Burkitt's lymphoma in an immunocompromised patient: a very rare form of presentation

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Endo-cannibalism in the making of a recent British ancestor

Following his death in 1975, the ashes of Wally Hope, founder of Stonehenge People's Free Festival, were scattered in the centre of Stonehenge. When a child tasted the ashes the rest of the group followed this lead. In the following decades, as the festival increasingly became the site of contest about British heritage and culture, the story of Wally's ashes was told at significant times. His name continues to be invoked at gatherings today. This paper discusses these events as 'the making of an ancestor', and explores wider contexts in which they might be understood. These include Druidic involvement in the revival of cremation, Amazonian bone-ash endo-cannibalism, and popular means of speaking of and to dead relatives. In addition to considering the role of 'ancestors' in contemporary Britain, the paper contributes to considerations of 'ancestry' as a different way of being dead, of a particular moment in the evolution of an alternative religious neo-tribal movement, of the meanings of 'cannibalism', and of the ways in which human remains might be treated by the bereaved and by various other interested parties

Integrated impact assessment of shares, automated and electric mobility

Major transformations in the road transportation sector such as vehicle automation, electrification, and shared mobility, create opportunities to tackle sector challenges. Despite the promising positive impact, little is known about the real potential and the effective sustainability of a combination oh these emerging mobility systems. The proposed doctoral research plan intends to understand and quantify the environmental and energy-related impacts of shared, fully automated, and electric mobility. A fundamental understanding of the upstream and downstream environmental impacts of a product and a system considering SAEVs fleet adjusted to different travel demands will be conducted in a life cycle assessment (LCA) approach. The assessment of potential environmental impact reduction has always been a research hotspot; however, most studies are only focused on operational impact. Moreover, the impact of SAEVs in the road network considering presence, routing, location, access to charging stations and scheduling will be addressed. Hence, automated driving decisions and distinguishing normal from recurring driving patterns are required to develop a framework for generating an automated mobility service. Attention will be given to the application of SAE mobility both at urban and inter-urban scales. The evaluation of the impacts of emerging mobility systems requires a comprehensive set of criteria. Results of the research intend to culminate into a feasibility study combining environmental, economic, and consumer perspective viability of the examined systems. The main research questions of this study are: 1) Which routing strategies should be adopted for energy-efficient driving decision?; 2) What are the impacts of SAEVs systems through a life cycle concept?; 3) What is the potential of SAEVs to manage traffic demand at urban and interurban scales?publishe

Integração de um servidor web num sistema de pesagem

O presente artigo, descreve a integração das novas tecnologias de informação (TIs) via Web nos sistemas tradicionais de pesagem, dotando estes de grandes facilidades de interligação com outros sistemas ou equipamentos. Destas facilidades podem ser distinguidas as seguintes: leitura dos valores do peso local e remotamente; facilidades de ligação com sistemas de informação, bases de dados e outras formas de gestão e controlo centralizados; fácil ligação dos equipamentos em rede, possibilitando o controlo centralizado dos equipamentos e de todo o material por eles pesado; facilidades de teleassistência e telemanutenção

Stereo vision calibration procedure for 3D surface measurements

In reverse engineering, rapid prototyping or quality control with complex 3D object surfaces, there is often the need to scan a complete 3D model using laser digitizers. Those systems usually use one camera and one laser,- using triangulation techniques; complex 3D objects can cause information gaps in the model obtained. To overcome this problem, another camera can be used. Traditional calibration procedures for those systems normally result in a full 3D camera calibration, involving individual implicit camera parameters, a rigid motion equation relating the explicit cameras parameters of each camera and the intersection with the laser line. This paper presents a new stereo vision laser strip calibration procedure for 3D surface measurements. In this calibration procedure the laser plane is the one that matters, only one set of laser-coplanar calibration points for camera calibration is needed, and a dead zone scan area is considered, since the digitalization arm is mounted in a 3 degree freedom machine PC-based Motion Control with multiple scan paths.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT

Mesenchymal stem cells-derived exosomes: A new possible therapeutic strategy for Parkinson’s disease?

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most prevalent neurodegenerative disorder worldwide. Clinically, it is characterized by severe motor complications caused by a progressive degeneration of dopaminergic neurons (DAn) and dopamine loss. Current treatment is focused on mitigating the symptoms through administration of levodopa, rather than on preventing DAn damage. Therefore, the use and development of neuroprotective/disease-modifying strategies is an absolute need, which can lead to promising gains on PD translational research. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs)–derived exosomes have been proposed as a promising therapeutic tool, since it has been demonstrated that they can act as biological nanoparticles with beneficial effects in different pathological conditions, including PD. Thus, considering their potential protective action in lesioned sites, MSCs-derived exosomes might also be active modulators of the neuroregeneration processes, opening a door for their future use as therapeutical strategies in human clinical trials. Therefore, in this review, we analyze the current understanding of MSCs-derived exosomes as a new possible therapeutic strategy for PD, by providing an overview about the potential role of miRNAs in the cellular and molecular basis of PD.This research was funded by Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology(FCT): IF Development Grant (IF/00111/2013) to AJ Salgado) and Post-Doctoral Fellowship to F.G. Teixeira (SFRH/BPD/118408/2016). This article has been developed under the scope of the project NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000023, supported by the Northern Portugal Regional Operational Programme (NORTE 2020), under the Portugal 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER). This work has been funded by FEDER funds, through the Competitiveness Internationalization Operational Programme (POCI), and by National funds, through FCT, under the scope of the projects POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007038 and POCI-01-0145-FEDER-029751.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Calibration procedure for 3D surface measurements using stereo vision and laser stripe

This paper proposes a new stereo vision calibration procedure and laser strip detection for 3D surface measurements. In this calibration procedure the laser plane is the one that matters, only one set of laser-coplanar calibration points is needed for image cameras calibration; and a dead- zone scan area is considered, since the igitalization arm is assembled in a 3 degree-freedom machine PC-based Motion Control with multiple scan paths. It is also presented some algorithms for 3D surface treatment.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT

Automatic trajectory generation for the milling of sculpted surfaces acquired from laser scanning systems

The present work describes a set of algorithms for the milling of sculpted surfaces acquired from laser scanning systems. The milling operations cover three operations: roughing, semi-finishing and finishing. The developed algorithms use techniques ranging from computer vision to computer graphics following a different approach when compared with the usual milling techniques, usually feature based. The implementation of 3D path simulator was also described and testing of the different milling trajectories presented.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT