Framing evidence: policy design for the zero carbon home

In 2006 the UK government announced a move to zero carbon homes by 2016. The demand posed a major challenge to policy makers and construction professionals entailing a protracted process of policy design. The task of giving content to this target is used to explore the role of evidence in the policy process. Whereas much literature on policy and evidence treats evidence as an external input, independent of politics, this paper explores the ongoing mutual constitution of both. Drawing on theories of policy framing and the sociology of classification, the account follows the story of a policy for Zero Carbon Homes from the parameters and values used to specify the target. Particular attention is given to the role of Regulatory Impact Assessments (RIAs) and to the creation of a new policy venue, the Zero Carbon Hub. The analysis underlines the way in which the choices about how to model and measure the aims potentially transforms them, the importance of policy venues for transparency and the role of RIAs in the authorization of particular definitions. A more transparent, open approach to policy formulation is needed in which the framing of evidence is recognized as an integral part of the policy process.

Cadaver decomposition in terrestrial ecosystems

A dead mammal (i.e. cadaver) is a high quality resource (narrow carbon:nitrogen ratio, high water content) that releases an intense, localised pulse of carbon and nutrients into the soil upon decomposition. Despite the fact that as much as 5,000 kg of cadaver can be introduced to a square kilometre of terrestrial ecosystem each year, cadaver decomposition remains a neglected microsere. Here we review the processes associated with the introduction of cadaver-derived carbon and nutrients into soil from forensic and ecological settings to show that cadaver decomposition can have a greater, albeit localised, effect on belowground ecology than plant and faecal resources. Cadaveric materials are rapidly introduced to belowground floral and faunal communities, which results in the formation of a highly concentrated island of fertility, or cadaver decomposition island (CDI). CDIs are associated with increased soil microbial biomass, microbial activity (C mineralisation) and nematode abundance. Each CDI is an ephemeral natural disturbance that, in addition to releasing energy and nutrients to the wider ecosystem, acts as a hub by receiving these materials in the form of dead insects, exuvia and puparia, faecal matter (from scavengers, grazers and predators) and feathers (from avian scavengers and predators). As such, CDIs contribute to landscape heterogeneity. Furthermore, CDIs are a specialised habitat for a number of flies, beetles and pioneer vegetation, which enhances biodiversity in terrestrial ecosystems.

Reforming theatre in Farnese Parma: the case of the Accademia degli Innominati (1574-1608)

The essay explores the socio-cultural role of the main academy in Parma, the Innominati (1574-1608), which flourished in the years when the Farnese dynasty was beginning to assert more forcefully its political control over the new state of Parma and Piacenza. The Innominati was from the start associated with the ruling dynasty, who must have recognized the importance of its cultural activities to strengthening their regime, particularly in the absence of a strong local university. This essay explores the institution’s contested position within the cultural landscape – as reflected also in its membership of courtiers, clergymen, and feudal aristocrats with more ambivalent relations with the Farnese. In particular, the focus falls on the theatrical activities of the group during the 1580s, a decade which saw the establishment of the Parma Index (1580) and the succession of the internationally celebrated Duke Alessandro Farnese (1587). Based on the little surviving evidence it is argued that the Academy in the 1580s became a creative hub for theatrical experimentation – through theoretical debate and composition, and possibly even performance. However, as relations between the Farnese and the local elites, especially feudal aristocrats, became more contested the Academy’s theatrical production and the public memory of this became increasingly controlled.

Distributed access control and privacy for the internet of me

This article presents an experimental scalable message driven IoT and its security architecture based on Decentralized Information Flow Control. The system uses a gateway that exports SoA (REST) interfaces to the internet simplifying external applications whereas uses DIFC and asynchronous messaging within the home environment.

Resilience of protein-protein interaction networks as determined by their large-scale topological features

The relationship between the structure and function of biological networks constitutes a fundamental issue in systems biology. Particularly, the structure of protein-protein interaction networks is related to important biological functions. In this work, we investigated how such a resilience is determined by the large scale features of the respective networks. Four species are taken into account, namely yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, worm Caenorhabditis elegans, fly Drosophila melanogaster and Homo sapiens. We adopted two entropy-related measurements (degree entropy and dynamic entropy) in order to quantify the overall degree of robustness of these networks. We verified that while they exhibit similar structural variations under random node removal, they differ significantly when subjected to intentional attacks (hub removal). As a matter of fact, more complex species tended to exhibit more robust networks. More specifically, we quantified how six important measurements of the networks topology (namely clustering coefficient, average degree of neighbors, average shortest path length, diameter, assortativity coefficient, and slope of the power law degree distribution) correlated with the two entropy measurements. Our results revealed that the fraction of hubs and the average neighbor degree contribute significantly for the resilience of networks. In addition, the topological analysis of the removed hubs indicated that the presence of alternative paths between the proteins connected to hubs tend to reinforce resilience. The performed analysis helps to understand how resilience is underlain in networks and can be applied to the development of protein network models.

QoS evaluation of bandwidth schedulersin IPTV networks offered SRD fluidvideo traffic: a simulation study

IPTV is now offered by several operators in Europe, US and Asia using broadcast video over private IP networks that are isolated from Internet. IPTV services rely ontransmission of live (real-time) video and/or stored video. Video on Demand (VoD)and Time-shifted TV are implemented by IP unicast and Broadcast TV (BTV) and Near video on demand are implemented by IP multicast. IPTV services require QoS guarantees and can tolerate no more than 10-6 packet loss probability, 200 ms delay, and 50 ms jitter. Low delay is essential for satisfactory trick mode performance(pause, resume,fast forward) for VoD, and fast channel change time for BTV. Internet Traffic Engineering (TE) is defined in RFC 3272 and involves both capacity management and traffic management. Capacity management includes capacityplanning, routing control, and resource management. Traffic management includes (1)nodal traffic control functions such as traffic conditioning, queue management, scheduling, and (2) other functions that regulate traffic flow through the network orthat arbitrate access to network resources. An IPTV network architecture includes multiple networks (core network, metronetwork, access network and home network) that connects devices (super head-end, video hub office, video serving office, home gateway, set-top box). Each IP router in the core and metro networks implements some queueing and packet scheduling mechanism at the output link controller. Popular schedulers in IP networks include Priority Queueing (PQ), Class-Based Weighted Fair Queueing (CBWFQ), and Low Latency Queueing (LLQ) which combines PQ and CBWFQ.The thesis analyzes several Packet Scheduling algorithms that can optimize the tradeoff between system capacity and end user performance for the traffic classes. Before in the simulator FIFO,PQ,GPS queueing methods were implemented inside. This thesis aims to implement the LLQ scheduler inside the simulator and to evaluate the performance of these packet schedulers. The simulator is provided by ErnstNordström and Simulator was built in Visual C++ 2008 environmentand tested and analyzed in MatLab 7.0 under windows VISTA.

The Role of Gay Spaces for a Gay Destination : Gay Tourism in Gran Canaria

This thesis has the aim to evaluate the role of gay spaces in Gran Canaria as a gay tourists destination with particular reference to gay exclusive resorts. The validation of the gay identity is a key motivation for homosexuals to travel, in order to connect with other homosexuals and experience the gay life that they might not be able to experience at home. Gay spaces have been defined both as liberated areas as well as ghettos, where the homosexuals are, in a way, restrained. The method chosen, a small number of semi- structured interviews with managers of gay exclusive resorts in Maspalomas, the hub of gay life in Gran Canaria, where major LGBT events are held, there is a gay friendly environment, a thriving gay scene and many gay exclusive resorts. In the case of Gran Canaria the gay-specific offer is complementary to the ‘regular’ tourism offer, as they coexist, complement and at times overlap. Nevertheless the gay centric holiday is still predominant amongst gay men, and it is likely to continue to be according to the informants. This is because gay tourists seek freedom and a sense of inclusion that they would not be able to find in mixed environments.

Winning the Accreditation Game: The Library as Key Player and Hidden Gold Mine

Libraries are a central hub of information resources supporting college and university curricula. Several library strategies, cross-campus collaborations, and philosophical considerations of electronic and print offerings led to successful accreditations in business and engineering programs.

Precificação em orquestradores de informação: maximizando redes estáveis

Em redes de inovação baseadas em trocas de informação, o agente orquestrador se apropria das informações dos atores periféricos, gera inovação e distribui em forma de valor agregado. É sua função promover a estabilidade na rede fazendo com que a mesma tenha taxas não negativas de crescimento. Nos mercados de análise de crédito e fraude, por exemplo, ou bureaus funcionam como agentes orquestradores, concentrando as informações históricas da população que são provenientes de seus clientes e fornecendo produtos que auxiliam na tomada de decisão. Assumindo todas as empresas do ecossistema como agentes racionais, a teoria dos jogos se torna uma ferramenta apropriada para o estudo da precificação dos produtos como mecanismo de promoção da estabilidade da rede. Este trabalho busca identificar a relação de diferentes estruturas de precificação promovidas pelo agente orquestrador com a estabilidade e eficiência da rede de inovação. Uma vez que o poder da rede se dá pela força conjunta de seus membros, a inovação por esta gerada varia de acordo com a decisão isolada de cada agente periférico de contratar o agente orquestrador ao preço por ele estipulado. Através da definição de um jogo teórico simplificado onde diferentes agentes decidem conectar-se ou não à rede nas diferentes estruturas de preços estipuladas pelo agente orquestrador, o estudo analisa as condições de equilíbrio conclui que o equilíbrio de Nash implica em um cenário de estabilidade da rede. Uma conclusão é que, para maximizar o poder de inovação da rede, o preço a ser pago por cada agente para fazer uso da rede deve ser diretamente proporcional ao benefício financeiro auferido pela inovação gerada pela mesma. O estudo apresenta ainda uma simulação computacional de um mercado fictício para demonstração numérica dos efeitos observados. Através das conclusões obtidas, o trabalho cobre uma lacuna da literatura de redes de inovação com agentes orquestradores monopolistas em termos de precificação do uso da rede, servindo de subsídio de tomadores de decisão quando da oferta ou demanda dos serviços da rede.

Estudos analíticos dos grafoelementos do eletroencefalograma em sono: fusos do sono, ondas agudas do vértex e o gradiente de freqüência e amplitude, como indicadores de comprometimento neurológico na criança

Innumerable studies have focused been reported on the sleep spindles (SS), Sharp Vertex Waves (SVW) and REM, NREM Sleep as indicators interpreting EEG patterns in children. However, Frequency and Amplitud Gradient (FAG) is rarely cited sleep parameter in children,that occurs during NREM Sleep. It was first described by Slater and Torres, in 1979, but has not been routinely evaluated in EEG reports. The aim of this study was to assess the absence of SS, SVW and FAG, as an indication of neurological compromise in children. The sample consisted of 1014 EEGs of children referred to the Clinical Neurophysiology Laboratory, Hospital Universitário de Brasília (HUB), from January 1997 to March 2003, with ages ranging from 3 months to 12 years old, obtained in spontaneous sleep or induced by choral hydrate. The study was transversal and analytical, in which, visual analysis of EEG traces was perfumed individually and independently by two electroencephalographers without prior knowledge of the EEG study or neurological findings. After EEG selection, the investigators analyzed the medical reports in order to define and correlate neurological pattern was classified according to the presence or absence of neurological compromise, as Normal Neurological Pattern (NNP), and Altered Neurological Pattern (ANP) respectively. From the visual analysis of the EEG(s), it was possible to characterize 6 parameters: 1- FAG present (64,1%); 2- FAG absent (35,9%); 3 - normal SS (87,9%); 4 - altered SS s (12,1%); 5 - normal SVW s (95,7%); 6 - altered SVW s (4,3%). The prevalence of well-formed FAG is found in the 3 months to 5 years age group in the children with NNF. FAG was totally absent from the age of 10 years. When comparing the three sleep graphielements, it was observed that SVW and SS were predominant in children with NNF. However, FAG absent was more prevalent in the ANF than in altered SS an SVW. The statistical analysis showed that there is a strong association of FAG absent, with isolated alteration, in ANF patients, in that the prevalence ratio was 6,60. The association becomes stronger when FAG absent + altered SS(s) is considered (RP= 6,68). Chi-square test, corrected by Yates technique, showed a highly significant relation for FAG ρ= 0,00000001, for error X of 5%, or else the 95% confidence interval (ρ<0,05). Thus, the FAG absent were more expressive in ANF patient than altered SS(s) and SVW(s). The association becomes stronger in order to establish a prognostic relation, when the FAG is combined with the SS. The results os this study allow us to affirm that the FAG, when absent at ages ranging from 3 months to 5 years , is an indication of neurological compromise. FAG is an age-dependent EEG parameter and incorporated systematically, in the interpretation criteria of the EEG of children s sleep, not only in the maturational point of view, but also neurological disturbances with encephalic compromise

Reconfigurações industriais das regiões metropolitanas do Nordeste: uma análise a partir do emprego formal

Industrial development experienced by Brazil from the 1950s, changed the concentration of population in the country. The process of development of domestic industry, concentrated in urban areas, crowded growing portion of the population.The Southeast region during the first stage of industrialization driven by the state, with the implementation of Plan goals, captained the major industrial projects implemented in the period and became the main industrial center of the country.In the decade from 1960 to 1980 the state action was marked by numerous regional development projects, softening the industrial concentration and Brazilian investment redirected to the Northeast.The second National Development Plan implemented in the 1970s led to major investments Northeast.This period marked the widespread urban growth and institutionalization of the first metropolitan areas in Brazil.The change of this developmental process is altered with the fiscal and financial crisis of the state in the 1980s and 1990s and spending cuts aimed at national development, reorienting the economy to liberal policies of economic liberalization and reduction of activity in the economy.Industrial policy was relegated to local development plans from the 1990s to the federating units fitting the wide use of tax incentives, the "war tax" to the continued industrialization process.In this context of the national economy work seeks to analyze the industrial setting in the metropolitan areas of Fortaleza, Recife and Salvador between 1995 and 2010.Although the metropolitan areas of Fortaleza, Recife and Salvador are the main urban centers of the Northeast, responsible for the advancement of industrial development, reconfigurations occurred between 1995 and 2010 by changing the level of industrial specialization built by regional division of labor in these regions.The work will be carried out by the method of descriptive analysis of the literature review on regional and urban development.Constitute quantitative method as the secondary data analysis of formal employment from the Annual Social Information (RAIS) Ministry of Labour and Employment (MTE).Using data RAIS / MTE analyzes the industrial specialization index using the Locational Quotient (LQ).Thus, it is assumed as a parameter analysis QL> 1, when the region has become specialized in a particular sector or QL <1, when the region does not have expertise in industrial sector analyzed.The conclusion of study indicates that there was in these metropolitan areas maintained the same bias hub.Fiscal policies, the states, was not successful in diversifying the productive structure and the Northeast region itself.This result is demonstrated by the need and dependence on state investments in the region to promote development.Industrial policies of recent years have been positive to meet the objectives of employment generation, but there must be specific policies for better diversification of production, in addition to integrating the economy of the Northeast sector and regionally

Metodologia de análise e diagnóstico de fratura em um componente automotivo sujeito a cargas cíclicas alternadas

The competitiveness of the trade generated by the higher availability of products with lower quality and cost promoted a new reality of industrial production with small clearances. Track deviations at the production are not discarded, uncertainties can statistically occur. The world consumer and the Brazilian one are supported by the consumer protection code, in lawsuits against the products poor quality. An automobile is composed of various systems and thousands of constituent parts, increasing the likelihood of failure. The dynamic and security systems are critical in relation to the consequences of possible failures. The investigation of the failure gives us the possibility of learning and contributing to various improvements. Our main purpose in this work is to develop a systematic, specific methodology by investigating the root cause of the flaw occurred on an axle end of the front suspension of an automobile, and to perform comparative data analyses between the fractured part and the project information. Our research was based on a flaw generated in an automotive suspension system involved in a mechanical judicial cause, resulting in property and personal damages. In the investigations concerning the analysis of mechanical flaws, knowledge on materials engineering plays a crucial role in the process, since it enables applying techniques for characterizing materials, relating the technical attributes required from a respective part with its structure of manufacturing material, thus providing a greater scientific contribution to the work. The specific methodology developed follows its own flowchart. In the early phase, the data in the records and information on the involved ones were collected. The following laboratory analyses were performed: macrography of the fracture, micrography with SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope) of the initial and final fracture, phase analysis with optical microscopy, Brinell hardness and Vickers microhardness analyses, quantitative and qualitative chemical analysis, by using X-ray fluorescence and optical spectroscopy for carbon analysis, qualitative study on the state of tension was done. Field data were also collected. In the analyses data of the values resulting from the fractured stock parts and the design values were compared. After the investigation, one concluded that: the developed methodology systematized the investigation and enabled crossing data, thus minimizing diagnostic error probability, the morphology of the fracture indicates failure by the fatigue mechanism in a geometrically propitious location, a tension hub, the part was subjected to low tensions by the sectional area of the final fracture, the manufacturing material of the fractured part has low ductility, the component fractured in an earlier moment than the one recommended by the manufacturer, the percentages of C, Si, Mn and Cr of the fractured part present values which differ from the design ones, the hardness value of the superior limit of the fractured part is higher than that of the design, and there is no manufacturing uniformity between stock and fractured part. The work will contribute to optimizing the guidance of the actions in a mechanical engineering judicial expertise

Análise de desempenho de um fogão solar construído a partir de sucatas de antena de tv

Given the growing environmental crisis caused by degradation, mainly due to the use of polluting energy sources, increasing the growing use of renewable energies worldwide, with emphasis on solar energy, an abundant supply and available to everyone, which can be harnessed in several ways: electricity generation; dehydration of food; heating, disinfection and distillation and cooking. The latter has as its primary feature the viability of clean, renewable energy for society, combating ecological damage caused by large-scale use of firewood for cooking foods, use in tropical countries with high solar radiation, and has funding NGOs throughout the world with the goal of achieving low-income population. The proposed project consists of a solar cooker for concentration, working from the reflection of sunlight by a hub that they converge to a focal point at the bottom of the pot, getting lots of heat. The solar cooker under study consists of two elliptical reflecting parabolas made from the recycling of scrap TV antenna, having 0.29 m² of surface area for each antenna, which were covered by multiple mirrors of 2 mm thick and mounted on a metal structure, with correction for the mobility of the apparent movement of the sun. This structure was built with the recycling of scrap metal, possessing a relatively low cost compared with other solar cookers, around US$ 50.00. This cost becomes negligible, since that will involve a great benefit to not have fuel costs for each meal, unlike the use of gas or firewood for cooking food. The tests show that the cooker has reached the maximum temperature of 740 ° C, for boiling water in an average time of 28 minutes, cooking various types of foods such as potatoes, rice and pasta in an average time of 45 minutes and still going as a solar oven, making pizza baking and meat. These cooking times do not differ much from the cooking times on a gas stove, it becomes the solar cooker as a good consumer acceptance, and furthermore not to deliver the same gases that can poison the food as with the wood stove. Proves the viability of using the stove to cook or bake in two daily meals for a family, still presenting a position to improve his performance with the addition of new materials, equipment and techniques