Research and the choice of a course of study

This paper presents some research on the choice of a course of study as related to a certain social, family and labor context. The methodology used included the definition of the theoretical basis and a series of empirical investigations which comprised different kinds of sur- veys, records, observations, participants as well as other fieldwork. The results obtained shed some light on the issue and raise new questions. This study was especially carried out to analyze the choice of the following courses of study: Law, Psychology and the different Teaching Courses.

Helium isotope ratios and sedimentation rate models of ODP holes

A continuous age model for the brief climate excursion at the Paleocene-Eocene boundary has been constructed by assuming a constant flux of extraterrestrial 3He (3He[ET]) to the seafloor. 3He[ET] measurements from ODP Site 690 provide quantitative evidence for the rapid onset (and short duration (<120 kyr) of global warming and of the associated disturbance to the Earth's surficial carbon budget at this time. These observations support astronomically calibrated age models indicating extremely rapid release of isotopically light carbon, possibly from seafloor methane hydrate, as the proximal cause of the event. However, the 3He[ET] technique indicates a previously unrecognized and extreme increase in sedimentation rate coincident with the return of climate proxies to pre-event values. The 3He[ET]-based age model thus suggests a far more rapid recovery from the climatic perturbation than previously proposed or predicted on the basis of the modern carbon cycle, and so may indicate additional or accelerated mechanisms of carbon removal from the ocean-atmosphere system during this period. 3He[ET] was also measured at ODP Site 1051 to test the validity of the Site 690 chronology. Comparison of these data sets seems to require removal of several tens of kyr of sediment within the climatic excursion at Site 1051, an observation consistent with sediment structures and previous age modeling efforts. The Site 1051 age model shows a ~30 kyr period in which climate proxies return toward pre-event values, after which they remain invariant for ~80 kyr. If this rise represents the recovery interval identified at Site 690, then the 3HeET-based age models of the two sites are in good agreement. However, alternative interpretations are possible, and work on less disrupted sites is required to evaluate the reliability of the proposed new chronology of the climate excursion. Regardless of these details, this work shows that the 3HeET technique can provide useful independent evidence for the development and testing of astronomically calibrated age models.

Environmental consciousness, economic gain and consumer choice of energy efficient appliances in Thailand, China and India

In developing economies, consumption of electricity in residential and commercial sectors increased with economic development. In order to identify the factors for effective facilitation of standard and labeling programs, this article explores factors that affect consumer choice to energy-efficient products. Main findings are as follows: (1)Consumers in Thailand shows the highest awareness to environmental friendly concepts, followed by India and China.(2) Chosen labeled products include air-conditioners, TVs, refrigerators and washing machines, but not some popular products such as ceiling fans, electric fans or mobile phones. (3) Consumer who has higher energy conservation perception will buy energy efficient products.(4) Consumers in China, India and Thailand are sensitive to energy efficiency of products, primarily because they lead to less expenditure on electricity. (5) Labeling works to make levels of the energy efficiency of products more visible and thus helped consumers to choose the products.

Innnovation and new business models for the regional development: travel and transportation

Regional development could present different strategies: •Relocation of industry clusters •Foreign Direct Investment attraction •Innovation based on new business models The Regional Government of Madrid (3rd largest GDP in the EU) selected strategic industries to compete & innovate: •Travel & Transportation •Aerospace •Nanotech. & •Biotech. •ICTs. •Energy

Regularized logistic regression and multi-objective variable selection for classifying MEG data

This paper addresses the question of maximizing classifier accuracy for classifying task-related mental activity from Magnetoencelophalography (MEG) data. We propose the use of different sources of information and introduce an automatic channel selection procedure. To determine an informative set of channels, our approach combines a variety of machine learning algorithms: feature subset selection methods, classifiers based on regularized logistic regression, information fusion, and multiobjective optimization based on probabilistic modeling of the search space. The experimental results show that our proposal is able to improve classification accuracy compared to approaches whose classifiers use only one type of MEG information or for which the set of channels is fixed a priori.

Design and analysis of ripple-based controls based on the discrete modeling and Floquet theory

Ripple-based controls can strongly reduce the required output capacitance in PowerSoC converter thanks to a very fast dynamic response. Unfortunately, these controls are prone to sub-harmonic oscillations and several parameters affect the stability of these systems. This paper derives and validates a simulation-based modeling and stability analysis of a closed-loop V 2Ic control applied to a 5 MHz Buck converter using discrete modeling and Floquet theory to predict stability. This allows the derivation of sensitivity analysis to design robust systems. The work is extended to different V 2 architectures using the same methodology.

Foreground segmentation in depth imagery using depth and spatial dynamic models for video surveillance applications

Low-cost systems that can obtain a high-quality foreground segmentation almostindependently of the existing illumination conditions for indoor environments are verydesirable, especially for security and surveillance applications. In this paper, a novelforeground segmentation algorithm that uses only a Kinect depth sensor is proposedto satisfy the aforementioned system characteristics. This is achieved by combininga mixture of Gaussians-based background subtraction algorithm with a new Bayesiannetwork that robustly predicts the foreground/background regions between consecutivetime steps. The Bayesian network explicitly exploits the intrinsic characteristics ofthe depth data by means of two dynamic models that estimate the spatial and depthevolution of the foreground/background regions. The most remarkable contribution is thedepth-based dynamic model that predicts the changes in the foreground depth distributionbetween consecutive time steps. This is a key difference with regard to visible imagery,where the color/gray distribution of the foreground is typically assumed to be constant.Experiments carried out on two different depth-based databases demonstrate that theproposed combination of algorithms is able to obtain a more accurate segmentation of theforeground/background than other state-of-the art approaches.

Time-dependent vascular regression and permeability changes in established human tumor xenografts induced by an anti-vascular endothelial growth factor/vascular permeability factor antibody

The hyperpermeability of tumor vessels to macromolecules, compared with normal vessels, is presumably due to vascular endothelial growth factor/vascular permeability factor (VEGF/VPF) released by neoplastic and/or host cells. In addition, VEGF/VPF is a potent angiogenic factor. Removal of this growth factor may reduce the permeability and inhibit tumor angiogenesis. To test these hypotheses, we transplanted a human glioblastoma (U87), a human colon adenocarcinoma (LS174T), and a human melanoma (P-MEL) into two locations in immunodeficient mice: the cranial window and the dorsal skinfold chamber. The mice bearing vascularized tumors were treated with a bolus (0.2 ml) of either a neutralizing antibody (A4.6.1) (492 μg/ml) against VEGF/VPF or PBS (control). We found that tumor vascular permeability to albumin in antibody-treated groups was lower than in the matched controls and that the effect of the antibody was time-dependent and influenced by the mode of injection. Tumor vascular permeability did not respond to i.p. injection of the antibody until 4 days posttreatment. However, the permeability was reduced within 6 h after i.v. injection of the same amount of antibody. In addition to the reduction in vascular permeability, the tumor vessels became smaller in diameter and less tortuous after antibody injections and eventually disappeared from the surface after four consecutive treatments in U87 tumors. These results demonstrate that tumor vascular permeability can be reduced by neutralization of endogenous VEGF/VPF and suggest that angiogenesis and the maintenance of integrity of tumor vessels require the presence of VEGF/VPF in the tissue microenvironment. The latter finding reveals a new mechanism of tumor vessel regression—i.e., blocking the interactions between VEGF/VPF and endothelial cells or inhibiting VEGF/VPF synthesis in solid tumors causes dramatic reduction in vessel diameter, which may block the passage of blood elements and thus lead to vascular regression.