Créditos

Créditos

CRÉDITOS

Créditos

Créditos

Créditos

Within-subject intra- and inter-method consistency of two experimental risk attitude elicitation methods

We compare the consistency of choices in two methods to used elicit risk preferences on an aggregate as well as on an individual level. We asked subjects to choose twice from a list of nine decision between two lotteries, as introduced by Holt and Laury (2002, 2005) alternating with nine decisions using the budget approach introduced by Andreoni and Harbaugh (2009). We find that while on an aggregate(subject pool) level the results are (roughly) consistent, on an individual(within-subject) level,behavior is far from consistent. Within each method as well as across methods we observe low correlations. This again questions the reliability of experimental risk elicitation measures and the ability to use results from such methods to control for the risk aversion of subjects when explaining e�ects in other experimental games.

STALKERBOT : learning to navigate dynamic human environments by following people

Service robots that operate in human environments will accomplish tasks most efficiently and least disruptively if they have the capability to mimic and understand the motion patterns of the people in their workspace. This work demonstrates how a robot can create a humancentric navigational map online, and that this map re ects changes in the environment that trigger altered motion patterns of people. An RGBD sensor mounted on the robot is used to detect and track people moving through the environment. The trajectories are clustered online and organised into a tree-like probabilistic data structure which can be used to detect anomalous trajectories. A costmap is reverse engineered from the clustered trajectories that can then inform the robot's onboard planning process. Results show that the resultant paths taken by the robot mimic expected human behaviour and can allow the robot to respond to altered human motion behaviours in the environment.

Considering the application of biophilic urbanism: A Sustainable Built Environment National Research Centre discussion paper

Biophilic urbanism, or urban design which refl ects human’s innate need for nature in and around and on top of our buildings, stands to make signifi cant contributions to a range of national, state and local government policies related to climate change mitigation and adaptation. Potential benefi ts include reducing the heat island effect, reducing energy consumption for thermal control, enhancing urban biodiversity, improving well being and productivity, improving water cycle management, and assisting in the response to growing needs for densifi cation and revitalisation of cities. This discussion paper will give an overview of the concept of biophilia and consider enablers and disablers to its application to urban planning and design. The paper will present findings from stakeholder engagement related to a consideration of the economics of the use of biophilic elements (direct and indirect). The paper outlines eight strategic areas being considered in the project, including how a ‘daily minimum dose’ of nature can be received through biophilic elements, and how planning and policy can underpin effective biophilic urbanism.

How to develop an online community for pre-service and early career teachers

This paper contributes a number of design principles for developing large-scale online communities of pre-service and early career teachers (PS&ECTs). It presents the paradigms of connected learning, networked learning and communities of practice and contrasts them. It describes the potential for online communities to meet the needs of PS&ECTs and it identifies gaps that exist within certain types of existing online communities that currently support PS&ECTs. The paper proposes design principles for a new type of online community for PS&ECTs. These principles are drawn from the literature and from the preliminary outcomes of a pilot study.

AndroMedia - Towards a Context-aware Mobile Music Recommender

Portable music players have made it possible to listen to a personal collection of music in almost every situation, and they are often used during some activity to provide a stimulating audio environment. Studies have demonstrated the effects of music on the human body and mind, indicating that selecting music according to situation can, besides making the situation more enjoyable, also make humans perform better. For example, music can boost performance during physical exercises, alleviate stress and positively affect learning. We believe that people intuitively select different types of music for different situations. Based on this hypothesis, we propose a portable music player, AndroMedia, designed to provide personalised music recommendations using the user’s current context and listening habits together with other user’s situational listening patterns. We have developed a prototype that consists of a central server and a PDA client. The client uses Bluetooth sensors to acquire context information and logs user interaction to infer implicit user feedback. The user interface also allows the user to give explicit feedback. Large user interface elements facilitate touch-based usage in busy environments. The prototype provides the necessary framework for using the collected information together with other user’s listening history in a context- enhanced collaborative filtering algorithm to generate context-sensitive recommendations. The current implementation is limited to using traditional collaborative filtering algorithms. We outline the techniques required to create context-aware recommendations and present a survey on mobile context-aware music recommenders found in literature. As opposed to the explored systems, AndroMedia utilises other users’ listening habits when suggesting tunes, and does not require any laborious set up processes.

Hyperfine effects in the nuclear magnetic resonance of paramagnetic molecules

Paramagnetic, or open-shell, systems are often encountered in the context of metalloproteins, and they are also an essential part of molecular magnets. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is a powerful tool for chemical structure elucidation, but for paramagnetic molecules it is substantially more complicated than in the diamagnetic case. Before the present work, the theory of NMR of paramagnetic molecules was limited to spin-1/2 systems and it did not include relativistic corrections to the hyperfine effects. It also was not systematically expandable. --- The theory was first expanded by including hyperfine contributions up to the fourth power in the fine structure constant α. It was then reformulated and its scope widened to allow any spin state in any spatial symmetry. This involved including zero-field splitting effects. In both stages the theory was implemented into a separate analysis program. The different levels of theory were tested by demonstrative density functional calculations on molecules selected to showcase the relative strength of new NMR shielding terms. The theory was also tested in a joint experimental and computational effort to confirm assignment of 11 B signals. The new terms were found to be significant and comparable with the terms in the earlier levels of theory. The leading-order magnetic-field dependence of shielding in paramagnetic systems was formulated. The theory is now systematically expandable, allowing for higher-order field dependence and relativistic contributions. The prevailing experimental view of pseudocontact shift was found to be significantly incomplete, as it only includes specific geometric dependence, which is not present in most of the new terms introduced here. The computational uncertainty in density functional calculations of the Fermi contact hyperfine constant and zero-field splitting tensor sets a limit for quantitative prediction of paramagnetic shielding for now.

Post-seizure EEG fractal dimension of first ECT predicts antidepressant response at two weeks

Background: Duration of seizure by itself is an insufficient criterion for a therapeutically adequate seizure in ECT. Therefore, measures of seizure EEG other than its duration need to be explored as indices of seizure adequacy and predictors of treatment response. We measured the EEG seizure using a geometrical method-fractal dimension (FD) and examined if this measure predicted remission. Methods: Data from an efficacy study on melancholic depressives (n = 40) is used for the present exploration. They received thrice or once weekly ECTs, each schedule at two energy levels - high or low energy level. FD was computed for early-, mid- and post-seizure phases of the ictal EEG. Average of the two channels was used for analysis. Results: Two-thirds of the patients (n = 25) were remitted at the end of 2 weeks. As expected, a significantly higher proportion of patients receiving thrice weekly ECT remitted than in patients receiving once weekly ECT. Smaller post-seizure FD at first ECT is the only variable which predicted remission status after six ECTs. within the once weekly ECT group too, smaller post-seizure FD was associated with remission status. Conclusions: Post-seizure FD is proposed as a novel measure of seizure adequacy and predictor of treatment response. Clinical implications: Seizure measures at first ECT may guide selection of ECT schedule to optimize ECT. Limitations: The study examined short term antidepressant effects only. The results may not be generalized to medication-resistant depressives. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Impact of Energy Expenditure Rate Constraints on the performance of Multihop Wireless Mesh Networks

In this article we study the problem of joint congestion control, routing and MAC layer scheduling in multi-hop wireless mesh network, where the nodes in the network are subjected to maximum energy expenditure rates. We model link contention in the wireless network using the contention graph and we model energy expenditure rate constraint of nodes using the energy expenditure rate matrix. We formulate the problem as an aggregate utility maximization problem and apply duality theory in order to decompose the problem into two sub-problems namely, network layer routing and congestion control problem and MAC layer scheduling problem. The source adjusts its rate based on the cost of the least cost path to the destination where the cost of the path includes not only the prices of the links in it but also the prices associated with the nodes on the path. The MAC layer scheduling of the links is carried out based on the prices of the links. We study the e�ects of energy expenditure rate constraints of the nodes on the optimal throughput of the network.

Acto-myosin contractility rotates the cell nucleus

The nucleus of the eukaryotic cell functions amidst active cytoskeletal �laments, but its response to the stresses carried by these �laments is largely unexplored. We report here the results of studies of the translational and rotational dynamics of the nuclei of single �broblast cells, with the e�ects of cell migration suppressed by plating onto �bronectin-coated micro-fabricated patterns. Patterns of the same area but di�erent shapes and/or aspect ratio were used to study the e�ect of cell geometry on the dynamics. On circles, squares and equilateral triangles, the nucleus undergoes persistent rotational motion, while on high-aspect-ratio rectangles of the same area it moves only back and forth. The circle and the triangle showed respectively the largest and the smallest angular speed. We show that our observations can be understood through a hydrodynamic approach in which the nucleus is treated as a highly viscous inclusion residing in a less viscous uid of orientable �laments endowed with active stresses. Lowering actin contractility selectively by introducing blebbistatin at low concentrations drastically reduced the speed and persistence time of the angular motion of the nucleus. Time-lapse imaging of actin revealed a correlated hydrodynamic ow around the nucleus, with pro�le and magnitude consistent with the results of our theoretical approach. Coherent intracellular ows and consequent nuclear rotation thus appear to be a generic property that cells must balance by speci�c mechanisms in order to maintain nuclear homeostasis

Sistematización de la información sobre dendroenergía existente en la región del Pacífico y Central de Nicaragua, período 1993-2012

La leña es la forma más simple de biomasa utilizada en los hogares del mundo. En Nicaragua, casi el cincuenta por ciento de los nicaragüenses cocinan con leña y carbón. Esta demanda de leña ha provocado sobre explotación del bosque seco del Pacifico de Nicaragua, ocasionando degradación progresiva del bosque. La información dendroenergética de los focos de producción de leña se encuentra dispersa y desorganizada, esto justifica la realización del presente estudio de sistematización, que servirá para establecer lineamientos básicos sobre las pautas a seguir al momento de la planificación, seguimiento y evaluación de proyectos y/o programas dendroenergéticos. La información se recolectó a través de entrevistas dirigidas a responsables administrativos o técnicos de cada entidad relevante del sector dendroenerg ético. Adicionalmente se recolectó información bibliográfica de documentos físicos y electrónicos. La información se organizó en cuatro tópicos: Leyes/políticas: se identificó la necesidad de la formulación y adición de leyes y/o políticas que promuevan y faciliten la inversión en proyectos de generación eléctrica renovable; Investigaciones/estudios/publicaciones: se observa buena cantidad de investigaciones y documentos educativos, sin embargo, están desactualizados y sin contenido ambiental completo; Organización, poca vinculación de las instancias gubernamentales del sector con los actores locales como las asociaciones, cooperativas y productores individuales; Producción/comercialización, limitada a actividades de plantación y producción de plántulas con fines energéticos. En conclusión, el sector dendroenergético en Nicaragua es poco atractivo a la inversión por los procedimientos administrativos, las normas jurídicas y la falta de mecanismos de incentivos y créditos. Las cooperativas y asociaciones no están bien vinculadas entre ellas, lo que no les permite incidir en políticas a favor del sector. Sin embargo, se detectan aspectos positivos, como La Estrategia de Leña y Carbón y la inserción en muchos hogares de las estufas mejoradas como mecanismo de ahorro dendroenergético.

Determinación de la calidad fitosanitaria de la semilla de frijol común en Nicaragua y alternativas de manejo del grano

En Nicaragua el género Phaseolus, representa una fuente importante de nutrientes que la población incluye en su dieta diaria, además provee ingresos a los productores con los que subsanan una parte de sus necesidades, El 95% de la producción de frijol en el país descansa en pequeños y medianos productores que enfrentan problemas como: Falta de asistencia técnica, poca o ninguna disponibilidad de créditos, poseen terrenos no adecuados para este cultivo y el uso constante de semillas remanentes de un ciclo a otro; Esto ha incidido de forma directa en la disminución de los rendimientos y en el aumento de los niveles de inoculo en la semilla. Son muchas las enfermedades que atacan a esta leguminosa y algunas de estas llegan a infestar y/o infectar la semilla logrando así un eficiente mecanismo de dispersión. Con el objetivo de conocer sobre la calidad fitosanitaria de la semilla utilizada por los productores, evaluar algunas técnicas para la preservación de la misma, determinar el nivel de conocimiento de los productores con respecto a las enfermedades y discernir sobre la efectividad de las técnicas de almacenamiento de la semilla utilizadas por los productores, se realizó este trabajo involucrando 75 productores del país, logrando recolectar de sus manos un total de 15 variedades las que corresponden a los nombres de: DOR-364, RAB-310, Honduras-46, Estelí-150, Estelí-90A, Estelí-B, Negro, Blanco, Chiricano, Rojo criollo, DICTA-114, Balin tíco, Revolución-84 y dos variedades del Centro Nacional de Investigación Agropecuaria (CNIA), DOR-805 y DOR-576. El trabajo se dividió en dos fases: una de campo que consistió en la colecta de datos y muestras de semillas en las zonas de estudio en el mes de Marzo y una de laboratorio en la que se determinaron los diferentes tipos de microorganismos presente en las semillas a través de Observación de síntomas, pruebas de laboratorio y identificación de los microorganismos. Se hizo una prueba de almacenaje mediante el uso de botes plásticos con tapadera, los tratamientos utilizados para la preservación fueron• Cal, Ceniza y Ceniza+Cal en dosis de 80gr de producto por libra de semilla, más o menos 25 libras por quintal de grano y un testigo. Los resultados de las encuestas demuestran que los productores reconocen las enfem1edades como tales, pero no pueden diferenciarlas en su totalidad como causadas por hongos, bacterias o virus. Se identificaron los siguientes patógenos: Rhizoctonia sotaní, Thanatephoms cucumeris, Collectotrichum lindemuthianum, Fusarium solani, Fusarium poae, Fusarium tricinctum, l-i1sarium oxyspomm, Penicillium .;pp, Aspergillus ochraceus, Aspergillus ustus, Aspergillus glaucus (Emericella nidulans)(Eim>tium link), Aspergiilus niger, Aspergillus parasitim Aspergillus candidus, Aspergillus terreus, Rhizopus oryzae, Rhizopus stolonifer, Xanthomona;• campestris pv phaseoli, Pseudomonas spp, el virus del mosaico común no se detectó en este trabajo. Los mejores resultados se observaron en los tratamientos de cal y cal+ceniza, siendo cal+ceniza quién presentó alta significancia en la disminución de la infección por hongos, gorgojos (Bruchidae) y bacterias, pudiendo disminuir hasta un 57% las infecciones de hongos, un 68% de las infecciones por bacterias a nivel superficial y un l 00% la población de gorgojos, con respecto a las presentadas por el testigo de laboratorio. El tratamiento de cal+ceniza es más barato, eficaz y menos peligroso que el uso de cualquier químico.

Papel de la mecanización agrícola en el desarrollo integral de la sociedad. Elementos para la planificación de estrategias de mecanización. Un caso de estudio

La mecanización agrícola, como parte integral del desarrollo agropecuario de un país, tiene como fin contribuir a superar el déficit de alimentación, siempre y cuando, planificadores y políticos entiendan la dimensión de ésta como instrumento de desarrollo. Dicha estrategia será positiva si se toma en cuenta elementos primarios de cada región, como son: población, conocimientos, tradiciones culturales, características climáticas, al igual que aspectos que apoyan al desarrollo de los citados elementos, como son: créditos, instalaciones, infraestructuras, etc. La propuesta de mecanización debe involucrar productores, empresarios, industriales, beneficiarios, el gobierno en su papel de rector de las políticas a establecer y las instituciones de investigación, asesoría y prueba, como garantices de definición de los sistemas de producción y tecnología a implementar. Investigación realizada a finales de 1997, con el propósito de conocer el estado de la mecanización en la zona del pacíficcrsur de Nicaragua, indica que el nivel mas común de mecanización utiliza fuente de energía mixta: tracción motriz y animales de tiro. Utilizando fincas de tres extensiones, en presencia de cuatro cultivos, se realizo un análisis de rentabilidad de los tres niveles más utilizados, a partir del cual se propone una estrategia de mecanización.