Expansion of the Distance Modality in Brazilian Higher Education: Implications for Quality and Equity

With globalization and the knowledge society, the expansion of higher education has become an ‘object of desire’ among governments to bolster both economic growth and social development. In recent decades, just as in other countries, Brazil has expanded the system and become the fourth largest in the world in enrollment numbers, significantly increasing distance education at for-profit private institutions. However, massification without the necessary attention to quality and equity may present undesired consequences. Thus, considering Brazil has created one of the largest information databases that allow for studies with huge samples, we statistically analyzed performance in a wide scale national examination (Enade) with approximately 222,000 students, disaggregated by background and education modalities. The results back the argument that learning possibilities and performance in distance education are inferior in relation to in-person modalities and that the expansion based on distance education at for-profit private institutions may be reproducing inequalities within the higher education system in one of the most unequal nations in the world

Unimpaired Neuropsychological Performance and Enhanced Memory Recall in Patients with Sbma: A Large Sample Comparative Study.

Peculiar cognitive profile of patients with SBMA has been described by fragmented literature. Our retrospective study reports the neuropsychological evaluations of a large cohort of patients in order to contribute towards the understanding of this field. We consider 64 neuropsychological evaluations assessing mnesic, linguistic and executive functions collected from 2013 to 2015 in patients attending at Motor Neuron Disease Centre of University of Padova. The battery consisted in: Digit Span forwards and backwards, Prose Memory test, Phonemic Verbal fluency and Trail making tests. ANCOVA statistics were employed to compare tests scores results with those obtained from a sample of healthy control subjects. Multiple linear regressions were used to study the effect on cognitive performance of CAG-repeat expansion, the degree of androgen insensitivity and their interaction to cognitive performance. Statistical analyses did not reveal altered scores in any neuropsychological tests among those adopted. Interestingly, patients performed significantly better in the Prose Memory test's score. No relevant associations were found with genetic, hormonal or clinical patients' profile. Results inconsistent with previous studies have been interpreted according to the phenomenon of somatic mosaicism. We suggest a testosterone-related and the mood state-dependant perspectives as two possible interpretations of the enhanced performances in the Prose Memory test. Further studies employing more datailed tests batteries are encouraged

Milk fatty acid profiles of beef cows in response to a short feed restriction during lactation.

Abstract M75 The relationship between energy balance and the milk fatty acid (FA) profile is well established in dairy cows but has received little attention in beef cattle. We analyzed the milk fatty acid profile of 16 Parda de Montaña beef cows 2 mo post-calving in response to a 4-d (d) dietary restriction (55% of energy requirements, 6.2 kg dry matter (DM) hay/d), as compared with a previous basal and an 8-d refeeding period (100% of requirements; 7.0 kg DM/d hay + 2.7 kg DM/d concentrate). With d0 as the start of restriction, milk was sampled on days d-2 (basal), d1, d3 (restriction) and d5, d6, d8 (refeeding). Individual FA were identified by gas chromatography, and sums of FA were calculated (saturated (SFA), monounsaturated (MUFA), polyunsaturated (PUFA), cis-MUFA, trans-MUFA, C4-C15 de novo synthesis FA and C16-C24 mobilization FA). These sums and the 4 major FA (C16:0, C18:1–9c, C18:0, C14:0) were analyzed using mixed models, with day as fixed and cow as random effects. All the results presented here were significant at P < 0.001. The milk FA profile responded immediately to changes in the energy balance and/or the diet. On d1 of restriction, the concentrations of SFA decreased, mainly due to a reduction in the de novo synthesis FA and C16. A concomitant increase in MUFA (associated with that of C18:1–9c, predominant in body fat) was observed. These changes, along with the increments in C16-C24 FA, indicate an enhanced fat mobilization from the adipose tissue. During the restriction, C18:0 and trans-MUFA decreased while cis-MUFA and PUFA increased, as a result of both the mobilization and the change in diet composition..

Milk fatty acid profiles of beef cows in response to a short feed restriction during lactation.

Abstract M75 The relationship between energy balance and the milk fatty acid (FA) profile is well established in dairy cows but has received little attention in beef cattle. We analyzed the milk fatty acid profile of 16 Parda de Montaña beef cows 2 mo post-calving in response to a 4-d (d) dietary restriction (55% of energy requirements, 6.2 kg dry matter (DM) hay/d), as compared with a previous basal and an 8-d refeeding period (100% of requirements; 7.0 kg DM/d hay + 2.7 kg DM/d concentrate). With d0 as the start of restriction, milk was sampled on days d-2 (basal), d1, d3 (restriction) and d5, d6, d8 (refeeding). Individual FA were identified by gas chromatography, and sums of FA were calculated (saturated (SFA), monounsaturated (MUFA), polyunsaturated (PUFA), cis-MUFA, trans-MUFA, C4-C15 de novo synthesis FA and C16-C24 mobilization FA). These sums and the 4 major FA (C16:0, C18:1–9c, C18:0, C14:0) were analyzed using mixed models, with day as fixed and cow as random effects. All the results presented here were significant at P < 0.001. The milk FA profile responded immediately to changes in the energy balance and/or the diet. On d1 of restriction, the concentrations of SFA decreased, mainly due to a reduction in the de novo synthesis FA and C16. A concomitant increase in MUFA (associated with that of C18:1–9c, predominant in body fat) was observed. These changes, along with the increments in C16-C24 FA, indicate an enhanced fat mobilization from the adipose tissue. During the restriction, C18:0 and trans-MUFA decreased while cis-MUFA and PUFA increased, as a result of both the mobilization and the change in diet composition..

Effects of condensed tannins from sainfoin on the milk fatty acid profile of ewes.

Abstract M136 There is an increased interest in using local fodder legumes to improve the self-sufficiency of feed for livestock. Sainfoin (Onobrychis viciifolia) is a typical high-quality crop of Mediterranean areas with a medium-high content of condensed tannins (CT), however their effects on milk composition are not well known. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of CT from fresh sainfoin on milk production, chemical composition, and fatty acids during 4 wk of lactation. Twenty pairs dam-lamb were individually fed fresh sainfoin ad libitum plus 200 g/d of barley. The distribution of pairs dam-lamb were done according to ewe’s BW (60.7 ± 6.15 kg BW) and BCS (3.3 ± 0.57), lambing date (06/04/2019 ± 0.95) and lamb weight at birth (4.1 ± 0.64 kg BW). Half of the ewes were daily orally dosed 100 g of PEG 4000/200 mL water per ewe as a tannin-binding agent (SF+PEG) and the other half received only water (SF). Once a week, ewes were milked and samples of sainfoin and milk were obtained and analyzed for chemical composition and individual fatty acids (FAs). The total saturated FA (SFA), monounsaturated FA (MUFA), polyunsaturated FA (PUFA), PUFA n-3 and PUFA n-6 were calculated. The sums and the major FA were analyzed using mixed models, with week of lactation as fixed and ewe as random effects using the SAS statistical software (SAS v.9.3)..

Effects of total replacement of soybean meal and corn on ruminal fermentation, volatile fatty acids, protozoa concentration, and gas production

The main purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of total replacement of soybean meal and corn with triticale and faba bean or field pea on rumen fermentation, protozoa counts, and gas production of lactating ewes. A total of 30 Sicilo-Sarde ewes were randomly allocated into three groups and were fed 1.8 kg drymatter of oat hay plus 500 g of one of three concentrates: the first concentrate (CS) was mainly composed of soybean meal, corn, and barley; the second (TFB) was formed by triticale and faba bean; and the third (TFP) was composed of triticale and field pea. The type of concentrate did not affect ruminal pH or ammonia nitrogen concentration (P > 0.05). The individual concentrations of volatile fatty acids showed a significant interaction between the type of concentrate and sampling time (P 0.05). The cumulative gas production from the in vitro fermentation, the time of incubation, and their interaction was affected by concentrate (P < 0.001). The substitution of soybean meal and corn in the concentrate with faba bean or field peas and triticale might maintain rumen parameters of dairy ewes

A communication platform demonstrator for new generation railway traffic management systems: Testing and validation

Current rail traffic management and control systems cannot be easily upgraded to the new needs and challenges of modern railway systems because they do not offer interoperable data structures and standardized communication interfaces. To meet this need, the Horizon 2020 Shift2Rail OPTIMA project has developed a communication platform for testing and validating the new generation of traffic management systems (TMS), whose main innovative features are the interoperability of the data structures used, standardization of communications, continuous access to real-time and persistent data from heterogeneous data sources, modularity of components and scalability of the platform. This paper presents the main components, their functions and characteristics, then describes the testing and validation of the platform, even when federated with other innovative TMS modules developed in separate projects. The successful validation of the system has confirmed the achievement of the objectives set and allowed a new set of objectives to be defined for the reference platform for the railway TMS/Traffic Control systems

A communication platform demonstrator for new generation railway traffic management systems: Testing and validation

\ua9 2023 The Author(s). Current rail traffic management and control systems cannot be easily upgraded to the new needs and challenges of modern railway systems because they do not offer interoperable data structures and standardized communication interfaces. To meet this need, the Horizon 2020 Shift2Rail OPTIMA project has developed a communication platform for testing and validating the new generation of traffic management systems (TMS), whose main innovative features are the interoperability of the data structures used, standardization of communications, continuous access to real-time and persistent data from heterogeneous data sources, modularity of components and scalability of the platform. This paper presents the main components, their functions and characteristics, then describes the testing and validation of the platform, even when federated with other innovative TMS modules developed in separate projects. The successful validation of the system has confirmed the achievement of the objectives set and allowed a new set of objectives to be defined for the reference platform for the railway TMS/Traffic Control systems

Use and management of pasture in the cerrado biome: Impacts on aggregation of an oxisol.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the physical quality of a dystrophic Oxisol in the Cerrado biome, by means of its aggregation, after 19 years of use and management with pasture. The treatments were soil with natural vegetation (CERR); and soil with Brachiaria decumbens cultivar Basilisk pasture, under the following four types of management: soil with maintenance-level fertilization, every two years, and with legumes (PAML); soil with maintenance-level fertilization, every two years (PAM); soil with fertilization only at implantation (PAI); and soil with degraded pasture without fertilization (PD). In November 2012, after 19 years of land use in the treatments, soil samples were collected at four locations per plot, and at two depths, 0 to 10 and 10 to 20 cm. The study evaluated the size distribution of air-dried aggregates and the distribution of water-stable aggregates, determining the water-stable weighted mean diameters (WMDws), the efficiency ratio of aggregates (ERA) and organic matter content of soil. The management of grassland with fertilizer favors the formation of larger aggregates in the soil, as well as WMDsw, ERA and the content of organic matter, improving soil physical quality, both in the 0 to 10 cm and in the 10 to 20 cm layer. Impacts on soil aggregates caused by the removal of native vegetation can be improved with the use of soil under pasture and managed with fertilization in the 10 to 20 cm layer

Energy poverty in Portugal, Italy, and Norway: awareness, short-term driving forces, and barriers in the built environment

Portugal, Italy, and Norway differ by energy performance of buildings and gross domestic product (GDP). Portugal has significantly highest thermal discomfort with harsher winters. In 2021, 80% of Portuguese buildings had a low energy rating, with 75% of buildings without thermal insulation, highly contributing to the energy poverty (EP) of the country. In Italy, despite a generally mild climate, the building stock has low thermal performance. The most affected areas are the suburban and peri-urban ones, with an EP rate in southern regions between 13% and 20% compared to 8.8% at national level. Moreover, 65% of buildings were constructed before the first law on energy saving criteria and a 25% of it has never undergone any work of maintenance or improvement. Norway, despite the limited studies performs well respect to other European Economic Area and European Union countries, in investing and using indicators to enhance and monitor the green energies’ use. Because of energy price growth, seasonal price fluctuations, and different energy tariffs, energy inequality is increasing. EP risk is underestimated, masked by Norway's high GDP and regional price disparity. Energy inequality is increasing due to energy price growth, seasonal price fluctuations, and energy prices’ geographical inequality. The barriers in reducing EP are the underestimation of risk masked by the high GDP, and the need of homogenized prices in Norway. This study provides an overview to discuss EP awareness and it assesses the drivers and barriers that influence building's energy efficiency renovatio