Automatic camera control in virtual environments augmented using multiple sparse videos

Automated virtual camera control has been widely used in animation and interactive virtual environments. We have developed a multiple sparse camera based free view video system prototype that allows users to control the position and orientation of a virtual camera, enabling the observation of a real scene in three dimensions (3D) from any desired viewpoint. Automatic camera control can be activated to follow selected objects by the user. Our method combines a simple geometric model of the scene composed of planes (virtual environment), augmented with visual information from the cameras and pre-computed tracking information of moving targets to generate novel perspective corrected 3D views of the virtual camera and moving objects. To achieve real-time rendering performance, view-dependent textured mapped billboards are used to render the moving objects at their correct locations and foreground masks are used to remove the moving objects from the projected video streams. The current prototype runs on a PC with a common graphics card and can generate virtual 2D views from three cameras of resolution 768 x 576 with several moving objects at about 11 fps. (C)2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Under flow impedimetric measurements using magnetic particles for label-free detection affinity target

The necessity to adapt sensors based on electrochemical techniques for high throughput analysis control increases the interest to develop new analytical systems able to perform measurements under buffer now. In this report we explored the possibility of employing a new system to make impedimetric measurements to detect the interaction between proteins and small molecules. The well-known biotin-streptavidin interaction was adopted to evaluate the proposed assembly. This system allows us to perform experiments under flow. Magnetic beads functionalized with streptavidin were used and first characterized using AFM and FTIR. Non-faradic impedance spectroscopy allowed the detection of the biotin-streptavidin interaction. Using our new system and under a flow of PBS buffer, 5 10-5 M of biotin was detected with a stable signal. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

On the open-circuit interaction between methanol and oxidized platinum electrodes

In the present work, results of the interaction between methanol and oxidized platinum surfaces as studied via transients of open-circuit potentials are presented. The surface oxidation before the exposure to interaction with 0.5 M methanol was performed at different polarization times at 1.4 V vs reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE). In spite of the small changes in the initial oxide content, the increase of the pre-polarization time induces a considerable increase of the time needed for the oxide consumption during its interaction with methanol. The influence of the identity of the chemisorbing anion on the transients was also investigated in the following media: 0.1 M HClO4, 0.5 M H2SO4, and 0.5 M H2SO4 + 0.1 mM Cl-. It was observed that the transient time increases with the energy of anion chemisorption and, more importantly, without a change in the shape of the transient, meaning that free platinum sites are available at the topmost layer all over the transient and not only in the potential region of small oxide `coverage`. The impact of the pre-polarization time and the effect of anion chemisorption on the transients are rationalized in terms of the presence of surface and subsurface oxygen driven by place exchange.

Open Circuit Interaction of Formic Acid with Oxidized Pt Surfaces: Experiments, Modeling, and Simulations

We report in this work the study of the interaction between formic acid and an oxidized platinum surface under open circuit conditions. The investigation was carried out with the aid of in situ infrared spectroscopy, and results analyzed in terms of a mathematical model and numerical simulations. It has been found that during the first seconds of the interaction a small amount of CO(2) is produced and absolutely no adsorbed CO was observed. A sudden drop in potential then follows, which is accompanied by a steep increase first of CO(2) production and then by adsorbed CO. The steep transient was rationalized in terms of an autocatalytic production of free platinum sites which enhances the overall rate of reaction. Modeling and simulation showed nearly quantitative agreement with the experimental observations and provided further insight into some experimentally inaccessible variables such as surface free sites. Finally, based on the understanding provided from the combined experimental and theoretical approach, we discuss the general aspects influencing the open circuit transient.

On the interaction of bovine serum albumin with ionic surfactants: Temperature induced EPR changes of a maleimide nitroxide reflect local protein dynamics and probe solvent accessibility

The interaction of bovine serum albumin (BSA) with the ionic surfactants sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS, anionic), cetyltrimethylammonium chloride (CTAC, cationic) and N-hexadecyl-N,N-dimethyl-3-ammonio-1-propanesulfonate (HPS, zwitterionic) was studied by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy of spin label covalently bound to the single free thiol group of the protein. EPR spectra simulation allows to monitor the protein dynamics at the labeling site and to estimate the changes in standard Gibbs free energy, enthalpy and entropy for transferring the nitroxide side chain from the more motionally restricted to the less restricted component. Whereas SDS and CTAC showed similar increases in the dynamics of the protein backbone for all measured concentrations. HPS presented a smaller effect at concentrations above 1.5 mM. At 10 mM of surfactants and 0.15 mM BSA, the standard Gibbs free energy change was consistent with protein backbone conformations more expanded and exposed to the solvent as compared to the native protein, but with a less pronounced effect for HPS. In the presence of the surfactants, the enthalpy change, related to the energy required to dissociate the nitroxide side chain from the protein, was greater, suggesting a lower water activity. The nitroxide side chain also detected a higher viscosity environment in the vicinity of the paramagnetic probe induced by the addition of the surfactants. The results suggest that the surfactant-BSA interaction, at higher surfactant concentration, is affected by the affinities of the surfactant to its own micelles and micelle-like aggregates. Complementary DLS data suggests that the temperature induced changes monitored by the nitroxide probe reflects local changes in the vicinity of the single thiol group of Cys-34 BSA residue. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Med rena händer i kampen mot VRI : Sjuksköterskors följsamhet till riktlinjer om handhygien: främjande och hindrande faktorer En litteraturöversikt

Bakgrund: Uppkomsten av vårdrelaterade infektioner (VRI) är ett globalt problem. Den vanligaste smittvägen är via personalens händer. Bra handhygien är väsentligt för att minska VRI. Med bättre följsamhet till handhygien kan uppkomsten av VRI minskas, därför har forskning om följsamhet till handhygien och faktorer som inverkar, stort betydelse. Syfte: Syftet var att sammanställa och beskriva aktuell forskning om sjuksköterskors följsamhet till handhygien och vilka faktorer främjar respektive hindrar följsamheten till handhygien. Metod: En litteraturöversikt som baserades på artiklar publicerade de senaste fem åren, från länder som följer Världshälsoorganisationens (WHO) handhygieniska riktlinjer. Sexton artiklar valdes efter kvalitetsgranskning för analys och beskrivning. Artiklarna bearbetades med innehållsanalys. Resultat: Sjuksköterskors följsamhet till handhygien var låg. Följande främjande faktorer identifierades: handhygien efter patientkontakt, materialtillgång, förebilder, utbildning, verbala och visuella påminnelser, positiva individuella attityder, kvinnlig könstillhörighet, yrkesgrupp, specialitet, patientens skydd, arbetskultur och samhällets inställning till handhygien. Följande hindrande faktorer identifierades: hög arbetsbelastning, bristande utbildning, kunskapsbrist, individuella attityder, hudpåverkan, materialtillgång, arbetskultur och samhällets inställning till handhygien, manlig könstillhörighet, yrkesgrupp, specialitet. Slutsats: Enligt resultat rekommenderas: samspelet med kollegor och patienter, stöd av teamarbete ledare, förebilder, materialtillgång, utbildning, påminnelser, intervention med tillgång till information, stöd, resurser och möjligheter för regelbunden kunskapsuppföljning, motivera till handhygien före patientkontakt, involvera patienter.

Rent dissipation, political viability and the strategic adoption of free trade agreements

This paper studies the political viability of free trade agreements (FTAs). The key element of the analysis is the “rent dissipation” that these arrangements induce: by eliminating intra-bloc trade barriers, an FTA reduces the incentives of the local firms to lobby for higher external tariffs, thereby causing a reduction of the rents created in the lobbying process. The prospect of rent dissipation moderates the governments’ willingness to participate in FTAs; they will support only arrangements that are “substantially” welfare improving, and no FTA that reduces welfare. Rent dissipation also implies that the prospects of political turnover may create strategic reasons for the formation of FTAs. Specifically, a government facing a high enough probability of losing power may want to form a trade bloc simply to “tie the hands” of its successor. An FTA can affect the likelihood of political turnover as well. If the incumbent party has a known bias toward special interests, it may want to commit to less distortionary policies in order to reduce its electoral disadvantage; the rent dissipation effect ensures that an FTA can serve as the vehicle for such a commitment. In nascent/unstable democracies, the incumbent government can use a free trade agreement also to reduce the likelihood of a dictatorial takeover and to “consolidate” democracy – a finding that is consistent with the timing of numerous accessions to and formations of preferential arrangements.

Quantifying epistemic actions in human-computer interaction

As digital systems move away from traditional desktop setups, new interaction paradigms are emerging that better integrate with users’ realworld surroundings, and better support users’ individual needs. While promising, these modern interaction paradigms also present new challenges, such as a lack of paradigm-specific tools to systematically evaluate and fully understand their use. This dissertation tackles this issue by framing empirical studies of three novel digital systems in embodied cognition – an exciting new perspective in cognitive science where the body and its interactions with the physical world take a central role in human cognition. This is achieved by first, focusing the design of all these systems on a contemporary interaction paradigm that emphasizes physical interaction on tangible interaction, a contemporary interaction paradigm; and second, by comprehensively studying user performance in these systems through a set of novel performance metrics grounded on epistemic actions, a relatively well established and studied construct in the literature on embodied cognition. The first system presented in this dissertation is an augmented Four-in-a-row board game. Three different versions of the game were developed, based on three different interaction paradigms (tangible, touch and mouse), and a repeated measures study involving 36 participants measured the occurrence of three simple epistemic actions across these three interfaces. The results highlight the relevance of epistemic actions in such a task and suggest that the different interaction paradigms afford instantiation of these actions in different ways. Additionally, the tangible version of the system supports the most rapid execution of these actions, providing novel quantitative insights into the real benefits of tangible systems. The second system presented in this dissertation is a tangible tabletop scheduling application. Two studies with single and paired users provide several insights into the impact of epistemic actions on the user experience when these are performed outside of a system’s sensing boundaries. These insights are clustered by the form, size and location of ideal interface areas for such offline epistemic actions to occur, as well as how can physical tokens be designed to better support them. Finally, and based on the results obtained to this point, the last study presented in this dissertation directly addresses the lack of empirical tools to formally evaluate tangible interaction. It presents a video-coding framework grounded on a systematic literature review of 78 papers, and evaluates its value as metric through a 60 participant study performed across three different research laboratories. The results highlight the usefulness and power of epistemic actions as a performance metric for tangible systems. In sum, through the use of such novel metrics in each of the three studies presented, this dissertation provides a better understanding of the real impact and benefits of designing and developing systems that feature tangible interaction.

On the interaction of bovine serum albumin with ionic surfactants: Temperature induced EPR changes of a maleimide nitroxide reflect local protein dynamics and probe solvent accessibility

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Preparation and characterization of free films of high amylose/pectin mixtures cross-linked with sodium trimetaphosphate

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

O trabalho dos assistentes sociais nos hospitais universitários Onofre Lopes (HUOL) e Hospital Ana Bezerra (HUAB) da UFRN: os desafios da formação permanente

This paper discusses the process of training social workers in the environment of University Hospitals- UH s. These hospitals provide space for professional education aiming to achieve a critical and purposeful professional performance. As environments for training, producing knowledge and providing essential services to the public, these hospitals require all members of the healthcare team to have a continued education. Understanding that training has to be a priority and conceived as constant pursuit for update through the interaction of Teaching, Researching and EPO ( Education and Public Outreach). These dimensions provide approximations and domain of theoretical and methodological, giving special importance to understanding the social reality, a sine qua non condition to the work of the Social Service professional. The main goal of the research was to comprehend how the continuous professional education of the social worker occurs and it s relation with the articulations involving Teaching, Researching and EPO, as significant elements for the job of the social workers in the Hospital Universitário Ana Bezerra and Hospital Universitário Onofre Lopes/UFRN. The research was conducted through a literature review, documentary and field inquiries with semistructured interviews including the group of 09 (nine) social workers from the aforementioned hospitals, taking as a reference the quantitative and qualitative approach to analyze mediations that stand between the subject and the social context. The results indicate that social workers in these university hospitals have their insertion beyond the care provided to patients in performance in the areas of education through preceptorship to undergraduate students and social work residents in and extension projects with low insertion in area of research. We note that there is a recognition of the importance of a continuous education, indicating that the qualification of social worker is essential in transforming their daily professional practice to better monitor, critically explain the peculiarities of public health in its everyday showing of how unequally access is provided to the users of the public health system

Evolution of representation of the hands in plastic arts

A interação entre arte e ciência foi intensa durante o Renascimento, sofrendo declínio nos anos posteriores com retomada significativa no século XX, principalmente com o uso de técnicas de identificação, datação de obras de arte e o desenvolvimento de novos materiais. O relacionamento entre artes plásticas e Cirurgia da Mão mantêm-se intenso , sendo freqüente o uso de reproduções artísticas da mão nas ilustrações de textos científicos. Objetivando compreender o papel da mão nas artes plásticas, reproduções de obras de artes (esculturas e pinturas) representativas de vários estilos ou períodos da história da arte foram analisadas com enfoque no estudo das mãos. Detalhes anatômicos, relacionamento com outras estruturas do corpo humano, papel na composição e aspectos simbólicos das mãos foram estudados no contexto histórico e artístico de obras de arte do período paleolítico (pré-história) até o século XX. A representação da mão nas artes plásticas está diretamente relacionada ao estilo ou período da obra e à capacidade individual de interpretação e execução do artista.

The role of vision in Parkinson's disease locomotion control: Free walking task

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Interaction of the Anti-Inflammatory Annexin A1 Protein and Tacrolimus Immunosuppressant in the Renal Function of Rats

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

A micelle nucleation model for the interaction of dodecyl sulphate with Lys49-phospholipases A(2)

Bothropstoxin-I (BthTx-I) is a Lys49-PLA(2) from the venom of Bothrops jararacussu that lacks detectable catalytic activity, yet causes rapid Ca2+-independent membrane damage. With the aim of understanding the interaction between BthTx-I and amphiphilic molecules, we have studied the interaction of sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS) with the protein. Circular dichroism and attenuated total reflection Fourier-transform infrared spectra of BthTx-I reveal changes in the alpha-helical organization of the protein at an SDS/BthTx-I molar ratio of 20-25. At SDS/BthTx-I ratios of 40-45 the alpha-helices return to a native-like conformation, although fluorescence emission anisotropy measurements of 2-amino-N-hexadecyl-benzamide (AHBA) demonstrate that the total SDS is below the critical micelle concentration when this transition occurs. These results may be interpreted as the result of SDS accumulation by the BthTx-I homodimer and the formation of a pre-micelle SDS/BthTx-I complex, which may subsequently be released from the protein surface as a free micelle. Similar changes in the alpha-helical organization of BthTx-I were observed in the presence of dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine liposomes, suggesting that protein structure transitions coupled to organization changes of bound amphiphiles may play a role in the Ca2+-independent membrane damage by Lys49-PLA(2)s. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.