Analysis of exploratory eye movements in patients with schizophrenia during visual scanning of projective tests' figures

OBJECTIVE: Compare pattern of exploratory eye movements during visual scanning of the Rorschach and TAT test cards in people with schizophrenia and controls. METHOD: 10 participants with schizophrenia and 10 controls matched by age, schooling and intellectual level participated in the study. Severity of symptoms was evaluated with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale. Test cards were divided into three groups: TAT cards with scenes content, TAT cards with interaction content (TAT-faces), and Rorschach cards with abstract images. Eye movements were analyzed for: total number, duration and location of fixation; and length of saccadic movements. RESULTS: Different pattern of eye movement was found, with schizophrenia participants showing lower number of fixations but longer fixation duration in Rorschach cards and TAT-faces. The biggest difference was observed in Rorschach, followed by TAT-faces and TAT-scene cards. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest alteration in visual exploration mechanisms possibly related to integration of abstract visual information.

Implementação de um sistema de customer relationship management na broaden information solutions

Dissertação de mestrado em Sistemas de Informação

A integração de técnicas BIM (Building Information Modeling) no projeto e na construção de estruturas de madeira

Dissertação de mestrado integrado em Engenharia Civil

Cognitive functioning and efficacy of cognitive intervention in Multiple Sclerosis

Tese de Doutoramento em Psicologia Clínica / Psicologia

All over the place localization system

The MAP-i Doctoral Programme in Informatics, of the Universities of Minho, Aveiro and Porto

Metaphorisms in programming

This paper introduces the metaphorism pattern of relational specification and addresses how specification following this pattern can be refined into recursive programs. Metaphorisms express input-output relationships which preserve relevant information while at the same time some intended optimization takes place. Text processing, sorting, representation changers, etc., are examples of metaphorisms. The kind of metaphorism refinement proposed in this paper is a strategy known as change of virtual data structure. It gives sufficient conditions for such implementations to be calculated using relation algebra and illustrates the strategy with the derivation of quicksort as example.

A integração do Building Information Modeling (BIM) num projeto de reabilitação

Dissertação de mestrado integrado em Engenharia Civil

O livro na revista: como revistas semanais brasileiras e portuguesas abordam livros e literatura

Dissertação de mestrado em Comunicação, Arte e Cultura

Myocardial perfusion by contrast echocardiography. Establishment of normal pattern of intracoronary injection and safety in humans

OBJECTIVE: To establish the normal pattern and safety of echocardiographic contrast in patients with no significant obstruction of epicardial coronary arteries. METHODS: 67 patients with normal coronary arteries or obstructions < 50% were selected from 277 patients who underwent coronary angiography (CA). Mean age was 56 ± 11years and 36 were males. At the end CA, echocardiographic contrast was selectively injected into each coronary artery. The parasternal short axis of the left ventricle (LV) was divided into six segments: anterior (A), antero-lateral (AL), postero-lateral (PL), posterior (P), infero-septal (IS) and antero-septal (AS). Anterolateral (ALPM) and posteromedial papillary muscles (PMPM) were also considered. The pattern and intensity of the appearance of the myocardial contrast was visually analyzed. RESULTS: The right coronary artery (RCA) was dominant in 60 patients. Contrast appearance was sudden and simultaneous in the 3 muscle layers. All segments could be contrasted after the injection in both coronary arteries. 100% of the AS, A and AL segments, 97% of the PL and 98% of the ALPM were perfused by the left coronary artery (LCA). P and IS segments were perfused by the RCA in 85% and 82%, respectively, and by a dominant LCA in 71% of the cases. The PMPM was perfused by a dominant RCA in 77% and by a dominant LCA in 86%. There were no symptoms. CONCLUSION: Intracoronary injection of the sonicated solution is a safe procedure that allows for an excellent opacification of the myocardium and can potentially be used during routine CA.

Trends in mortality due to ischemic heart disease in the municipality of Goiania, Brazil, during the years between 1980 and 1994

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the trends of specific, standardized coefficients of mortality due to ischemic heart disease according to sex and age during the years 1980 and 1994 in the municipality of Goiania, GO, Brazil. METHODS: Data on deaths were retrieved from the Information on Mortality System of the Ministry of Health; population data were obtained from the Foundation of the Brazilian Institute for Geography and Statistics (IBGE). The trends of the specific coefficients were analyzed by triennia of the historical series, including individuals of both sexes from 25 years of age on, partitioned into 6 age groups of ten years intervals. The population data corresponding to the year 1980 were used as the standard for the calculation of each age group coefficient. Analyses were carried out by straight linear regression. RESULTS: Coefficients were greater for males in each triennium of the series and increased with age in both sexes. The study of the trends of the specific age coefficients of both sexes revealed a stable pattern of evolution up to the age of 65-74 years (P>0.05). From 75 years on, a clear-cut decline in mortality due to ischemic heart disease was shown by both sexes. The standardized coefficients also showed a significant decline (p<=0.05). CONCLUSION: The municipality of Goiânia is at present in a stage of epidemiological transition similar to that of developed countries, even though the observed decline is predominantly influenced by the mortality of older individuals (75 years of age or older).

Hypertension in a female nursing staff-pattern of occurrence, diagnosis, and treatment

OBJECTIVE: To report the pattern of occurrence, diagnosis, and treatment of hypertension in a female nursing staff of an emergency hospital. METHODS: We carried out a cross-sectional study that included interviews and blood pressure measurements of 494 nursing professionals at an emergency hospital in the city of Salvador, in the state of Bahia, Brazil. We considered hypertensive all individual with blood pressure > or = 140/90 mmHg or normal pressure if on regular treatment. RESULTS: We found a prevalence of hypertension of 36.4%. Only 18.3% of the individuals ignored their hypertensive condition, and 64.2% admitted not being having regular treatment. Of those individuals who were having treatment, 69.4% had elevated blood pressure on examination. The major reasons for not being on treatment was the occasional elevation of blood pressure (22.2%) and medical counseling (20.0%). CONCLUSION: The results point to the need to introduce hypertension control measures in this occupational group, because of the magnitude of the disease and the potential impact on diffusion of knowledge and measures to control hypertension.

Reliability of the information about the history of diagnosis and treatment of hypertension. Differences in regard to sex, age, and educational level. The pró-saúde study

OBJECTIVE: To assess the intraobserver reliability of the information about the history of diagnosis and treatment of hypertension. METHODS: A multidimensional health questionnaire, which was filled out by the interviewees, was applied twice with an interval of 2 weeks, in July '99, to 192 employees of the University of the State of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ), stratified by sex, age, and educational level. The intraobserver reliability of the answers provided was estimated by the kappa statistic and by the coefficient of intraclass correlation (CICC). RESULTS: The general kappa (k) statistic was 0.75 (95% CI=0.73-0.77). Reliability was higher among females (k=0.88, 95% CI=0.85-0.91) than among males (k=0.62, 95% CI=0.59-0.65).The reliability was higher among individuals 40 years of age or older (k=0.79; 95% CI=0.73-0.84) than those from 18 to 39 years (k=0.52; 95% CI=0.45-0.57). Finally, the kappa statistic was higher among individuals with a university educational level (k=0.86; 95% CI=0.81-0.91) than among those with high school educational level (k=0.61; 95% CI=0.53-0.70) or those with middle school educational level (k=0.68; 95% CI=0.64-0.72). The coefficient of intraclass correlation estimated by the intraobserver agreement in regard to age at the time of the diagnosis of hypertension was 0.74. A perfect agreement between the 2 answers (k=1.00) was observed for 22 interviewees who reported prior prescription of antihypertensive medication. CONCLUSION: In the population studied, estimates of the reliability of the history of medical diagnosis of hypertension and its treatment ranged from substantial to almost perfect reliability.

Relative information entropy in cosmology: The problem of information entanglement

The necessary information to distinguish a local inhomogeneous mass density field from its spatial average on a compact domain of the universe can be measured by relative information entropy. The Kullback-Leibler (KL) formula arises very naturally in this context, however, it provides a very complicated way to compute the mutual information between spatially separated but causally connected regions of the universe in a realistic, inhomogeneous model. To circumvent this issue, by considering a parametric extension of the KL measure, we develop a simple model to describe the mutual information which is entangled via the gravitational field equations. We show that the Tsallis relative entropy can be a good approximation in the case of small inhomogeneities, and for measuring the independent relative information inside the domain, we propose the R\'enyi relative entropy formula.

Contribution to an efficient transmission of information to the textile fashion consumer and the influence in sustainable attitudes

The concepts involved in sustainable textile fashion, demanding good knowledge about raw materials, processes, end use properties and circuits amongst others, are able to determine the way the textile product is designed and the behavior of the consumer, regarding life style and buying decisions. The textile product`s life integrates raw materials, their processing, distribution, use by the consumer and destination of the product after useful lifetime, this is, his complete life cycle. It is very important to recognize the power of the consumer to influence parameters related to sustainability, namely when he decides how, when and why he buys and afterwards by the attitudes taken during and after use. The conscious act of consumption involves ethical, ecological and technical knowledge in which the concern is overall lifecycle of the fashion product and not exclusively aesthetic and symbolic values strongly related with its ephemeral nature. The present work proposes the classification of textile products by means of an innovative label aiming to establish a rating related to the Life of Fashion Products, by using parameters considered with especial impact in lifecycle, as textile fibers, processing conditions, generated wastes, commercialization circuits, durability and cleaning procedures. This label for sustainable fashion products aims to assist the stakeholders with informed attitudes and correct decisions in order to promote the objectives of sustainable fashion near designers, consumers and industrial experts.

The London journal of botany : containing figures and descriptions of such plants as recommend themselves by their novelty, rarity, history, or uses : together with botanical notices and information and and occasional portraits and memoirs of eminent botanists.

v.2 (1843)