Business Intelligence: Microsoft Power BI

Työn tavoitteena on tutkia Business Intelligencen ja BI-työkalujen vaatimusten kehittymistä viime vuosien aikana ja tutkia miten Microsoft Power BI -ohjelmisto vastaa modernin päätöksenteon tarpeisiin. Työ on toteutettu suurimmalta osin kirjallisuuskatsauksena, minkä lisäksi Microsoft Power BI:n toiminnallisuutta on tutkittu käytännössä käyttäen ohjelmiston ilmaisversiota. Tutkimuksessa on havaittu, että tiedon lähteiden määrän ja datan monimuotoisuuden kasvaessa on syntynyt tarve uusille, tehokkaille BI-järjestelmäratkaisuille, jotka hyödyntävät uudenlaisia menetelmiä. Modernissa BI 2.0 -mallissa korostuvat kehittyneemmän verkkoinfrastruktuurin ja ohjelmistotekniikan täysi hyödyntäminen, käytön helppous, tiedon tuottaminen ja jakaminen massoille, tiedon rikastamisen mahdollistaminen ja visualisoinnin ja interaktiivisuuden keskeinen asema tiedon tulkinnassa. Tutkimuksen perusteella Microsoft Power BI vaikuttaisi täyttävän keskeneräisyydestään ja muutamista tiedonhallinnallisista puutteistaan huolimatta lähes kaikki toimivan BI 2.0 -järjestelmän määritelmistä. Ohjelmisto tarjoaa riittävät analyyttiset ja esitystekniset työkalut useimpien tyypillisten käyttäjien tarpeisiin, minkä lisäksi paranneltu Location Intelligence -ratkaisu sekä uudet Q&A ja nopea oivallus -toiminnot luovat mielenkiintoisen tavan selata dataa. Jää nähtäväksi, miten ratkaisu kehittyy vielä tulevaisuudessa.

TU Graz: Course: 707.000 Web Science and Web Technology: Lecture 9: Metadata, Tagging and Folksonomies

In this class, we will discuss metadata as well as current phenomena such as tagging and folksonomies. Readings: Ontologies Are Us: A Unified Model of Social Networks and Semantics, P. Mika, International Semantic Web Conference, 522-536, 2005. [Web link] Optional: Folksonomies: power to the people, E. Quintarelli, ISKO Italy-UniMIB Meeting, (2005)

Serie de Documentos. Facultad de Jurisprudencia N° 73. El sujeto jurídico indígena de la política pública para personas víctimas del conflicto armado ubicadas en Bogotá

Los indígenas como sujeto jurídico para el reconocimiento de derechos étnicos han sido definidos desde el paradigma del multiculturalismo liberal, basado en características esencialistas de la identidad, como el vínculo con el territorio ancestral rural, el uso de la lengua nativa, y la organización colectiva y comunitaria. Sin embargo, el conflicto armado colombiano ha generado el desplazamiento forzado de gran parte de esta población i1, en su mayoría hacia áreas urbanas y metropolitanas, donde son inaplicables las características que eran tenidas en cuenta para el reconocimiento y la garantía de sus derechos. La ausencia de un sujeto jurídico étnico que responda a las condiciones de un indígena desterritorializado víctima de desplazamiento forzado a causa del conflicto armado que solicita atención individual, se convierte en un obstáculo para la garantía de sus derechos étnicos en la implementación de la política pública de atención, asistencia y reparación a víctimas del conflicto armado, porque las medidas afirmativas y el enfoque diferencial étnico, obligación del ejecutivo, queda a la discrecionalidad de las decisiones administrativas, poniendo en riesgo la garantía del derecho a la identidad cultural y, por lo tanto, a la diversidad étnica y cultural de la nación.

Trends in the start of the wet season over Africa

A quarter of a century of daily rainfall data from the Global Telecommunications System are used to define the temporal and spatial variability of the start of the wet season over Africa and surrounding extreme south of Europe and parts of the Middle East. From 1978 to 2002, the start of the wet season arrived later in the year for the majority of the region, as time progressed. In some parts of the continent, there was an annual increase in the start date of up to 4 days per year. On average, the start of the wet season arrived 9–21 days later from 1978 to 2002, depending on the threshold used to define the start of the rains (varying from 10–30 mm over 2 days, with no dry period in the following 10 days). It is noted that the inter-annual variability of the start of the wet season is high with the range of start dates varying on average from 116 to 142 days dependent on the threshold used to determine the start date. These results may have important implications for agriculturists on all levels (from the individual farmer to those responsible for regional food supply), as knowledge of potential future climate changes starts to play an increasingly important role in the agricultural decision-making process, such as sowing and harvesting times.

Association of vitamin D status with arterial blood pressure and hypertension risk: a mendelian randomisation study

BACKGROUND: Low plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) concentration is associated with high arterial blood pressure and hypertension risk, but whether this association is causal is unknown. We used a mendelian randomisation approach to test whether 25(OH)D concentration is causally associated with blood pressure and hypertension risk. METHODS: In this mendelian randomisation study, we generated an allele score (25[OH]D synthesis score) based on variants of genes that affect 25(OH)D synthesis or substrate availability (CYP2R1 and DHCR7), which we used as a proxy for 25(OH)D concentration. We meta-analysed data for up to 108 173 individuals from 35 studies in the D-CarDia collaboration to investigate associations between the allele score and blood pressure measurements. We complemented these analyses with previously published summary statistics from the International Consortium on Blood Pressure (ICBP), the Cohorts for Heart and Aging Research in Genomic Epidemiology (CHARGE) consortium, and the Global Blood Pressure Genetics (Global BPGen) consortium. FINDINGS: In phenotypic analyses (up to n=49 363), increased 25(OH)D concentration was associated with decreased systolic blood pressure (β per 10% increase, -0·12 mm Hg, 95% CI -0·20 to -0·04; p=0·003) and reduced odds of hypertension (odds ratio [OR] 0·98, 95% CI 0·97-0·99; p=0·0003), but not with decreased diastolic blood pressure (β per 10% increase, -0·02 mm Hg, -0·08 to 0·03; p=0·37). In meta-analyses in which we combined data from D-CarDia and the ICBP (n=146 581, after exclusion of overlapping studies), each 25(OH)D-increasing allele of the synthesis score was associated with a change of -0·10 mm Hg in systolic blood pressure (-0·21 to -0·0001; p=0·0498) and a change of -0·08 mm Hg in diastolic blood pressure (-0·15 to -0·02; p=0·01). When D-CarDia and consortia data for hypertension were meta-analysed together (n=142 255), the synthesis score was associated with a reduced odds of hypertension (OR per allele, 0·98, 0·96-0·99; p=0·001). In instrumental variable analysis, each 10% increase in genetically instrumented 25(OH)D concentration was associated with a change of -0·29 mm Hg in diastolic blood pressure (-0·52 to -0·07; p=0·01), a change of -0·37 mm Hg in systolic blood pressure (-0·73 to 0·003; p=0·052), and an 8·1% decreased odds of hypertension (OR 0·92, 0·87-0·97; p=0·002). INTERPRETATION: Increased plasma concentrations of 25(OH)D might reduce the risk of hypertension. This finding warrants further investigation in an independent, similarly powered study.

Regulation of cardiac myocyte cell death.

Cardiac myocyte death, whether through necrotic or apoptotic mechanisms, is a contributing factor to many cardiac pathologies. Although necrosis and apoptosis are the widely accepted forms of cell death, they may utilize the same cell death machinery. The environment within the cell probably dictates the final outcome, producing a spectrum of response between the two extremes. This review examines the probable mechanisms involved in myocyte death. Caspases, the generally accepted executioners of apoptosis, are significant in executing cardiac myocyte death, but other proteases (e.g., calpains, cathepsins) also promote cell death, and these are discussed. The two principal cell death pathways (death receptor- and mitochondrial-mediated) are described in relation to the emerging structural information for the principal proteins, and they are discussed relative to current understanding of myocyte cell death mechanisms. Whereas the mitochondrial pathway is probably a significant factor in myocyte death in both acute and chronic phases of myocardial diseases, the death receptor pathway may prove significant in the longer term. The Bcl-2 family of proteins are key regulators of the mitochondrial death pathway. These proteins are described and their possible functions are discussed. The commitment to cell death is also influenced by protein kinase cascades that are activated in the cell. Whereas certain pathways are cytoprotective (e.g., phosphatidylinositol 3'-kinase), the roles of other kinases are less clear. Since myocyte death is implicated in a number of cardiac pathologies, attenuation of the death pathways may prove important in ameliorating such disease states, and possible therapeutic strategies are explored.

Seasonal patterns of viral and bacterial infections among children hospitalized with community-acquired pneumonia in a tropical region

Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a common cause of morbidity among children. Evidence on seasonality, especially on the frequency of viral and bacterial causative agents is scarce; such information may be useful in an era of changing climate conditions worldwide. To analyze the frequency of distinct infections, meteorological indicators and seasons in children hospitalized for CAP in Salvador, Brazil, nasopharyngeal aspirate and blood were collected from 184 patients aged < 5 y over a 21-month period. Fourteen microbes were investigated and 144 (78%) cases had the aetiology established. Significant differences were found in air temperature between spring and summer (p = 0.02) or winter (p < 0.001), summer and fall (p = 0.007) or winter (p < 0.001), fall and winter (p = 0.002), and on precipitation between spring and fall (p = 0.01). Correlations were found between: overall viral infections and relative humidity (p = 0.006; r = 0.6) or precipitation (p = 0.03; r = 0.5), parainfluenza and precipitation (p = 0.02; r = -0.5), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and air temperature (p = 0.048; r = -0.4) or precipitation (p = 0.045; r = 0.4), adenovirus and precipitation (p = 0.02; r = 0.5), pneumococcus and air temperature (p = 0.04; r = -0.4), and Chlamydia trachomatis and relative humidity (p = 0.02; r = -0.5). The frequency of parainfluenza infection was highest during spring (32.1%; p = 0.005) and that of RSV infection was highest in the fall (36.4%; p < 0.001). Correlations at regular strength were found between several microbes and meteorological indicators. Parainfluenza and RSV presented marked seasonal patterns.

Procalcitonin is useful in identifying bacteraemia among children with pneumonia

Empirical antibiotic use is prescribed in managing children with pneumonia worldwide. We assessed the usefulness of procalcitonin (PCT) and interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) in differentiating viral from bacterial pneumonia. Among 159 hospitalized children, pneumonia was diagnosed based on clinical complaints plus pulmonary infiltrate. Aetiology was investigated for 9 viruses and 4 atypical and 3 typical bacteria. PCT and IFN-alpha were measured in the serum sample collected on admission. Eight patients had bacteraemic infections, 38 had non-bacteraemic typical infections, and 19 patients had atypical bacterial infections. Viral and unknown aetiology was established in 57 (36%) and 34 (21%) cases, respectively. Three patients with bacterial infection without collected blood culture were excluded. IFN-alpha (IU/ml) was detectable in 20 (13%) cases. The difference among median PCT values of the bacteraemic (4.22; 1.56-7.56), non-bacteraemic typical bacterial (1.47; 0.24-4.07), atypical bacterial (0.18; 0.06-1.03) and only viral (0.65; 0.11-2.22) subgroups was significant (p = 0.02). PCT was >= 2 ng/ml in 52 (33%) cases. The presence of IFN-alpha was associated with PCT <2 ng/ml (90% vs. 64%, p = 0.02). The negative predictive value (95% confidence interval) of PCT >= 2 ng/ml was 95% (89-100%), 89% (78-100%), 93% (85-100%) for differentiation of bacteraemic from viral, atypical bacterial and non-bacteraemic typical bacterial infection, respectively, and 58% (49-68%) for differentiation between bacterial and viral infection. PCT may be useful in identifying bacteraemia among children hospitalized with community-acquired pneumonia. IFN-alpha was uncommonly detected.

The role of respiratory viral infections among children hospitalized for community-acquired pneumonia in a developing country

We report an investigation for 16 bacteria and viruses among 184 children hospitalized with pneumonia in Salvador, Brazil. Etiology was established in 144 (78%) cases. Viral, bacterial, and mixed infections were found in 110 (60%), 77 (42%), and 52 (28%) patients, respectively. Rhinovirus (21%) and Streptococcus pneumoniae (21%) were the most common pathogens. Our results demonstrate the importance of viral and pneumococcal infections among those patients.

Optical energy storage properties of Sr(2)MgSi(2)O(7):Eu(2+),R(3+) persistent luminescence materials

The details of the mechanism of persistent luminescence were probed by investigating the trap level structure of Sr(2)MgSi(2)O(7):Eu(2+),R(3+) materials (R: Y, La-Lu, excluding Pm and Eu) with thermoluminescence (TL) measurements and Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations. The TL results indicated that the shallowest traps for each Sr(2)MgSi(2)O(7):Eu(2+),R(3+) material above room temperature were always ca. 0.7 eV corresponding to a strong TL maximum at ca. 90 A degrees C. This main trap energy was only slightly modified by the different co-dopants, which, in contrast, had a significant effect on the depths of the deeper traps. The combined results of the trap level energies obtained from the experimental data and DFT calculations suggest that the main trap responsible for the persistent luminescence of the Sr(2)MgSi(2)O(7):Eu(2+),R(3+) materials is created by charge compensation lattice defects, identified tentatively as oxygen vacancies, induced by the R(3+) co-dopants.

Sjuksköterskans omvårdnadsåtgärder för att förebygga fall hos patienter med demenssjukdom på somatiska vårdavdelningar Litteraturöversikt

Bakgrund: På somatiska vårdavdelningar är fallrisken hög då det gäller patienter med demenssjukdom. Olika faktorer leder till att denna patientgrupp riskerar att inneha hög fallfrekvens på sjukhus. Syftet är att beskriva hur sjuksköterskan med hjälp av omvårdnadsåtgärder kan förebygga fall hos patienter med demenssjukdom på somatiska vårdavdelningar. Metod som valts är en litteratur översikt som är baserad på 15 vetenskapliga artiklar av både kvalitativ- och kvantitativansats. Resultat: Att identifiera vilka faktorer som leder till ökad fallrisk är ett viktigt arbete för sjuksköterskan för att kunna sätta in rätt omvårdnadsåtgärder. Upprättandet av individanpassat fallpreventionsprogram kan förebygga fall genom att patientens styrkor och svagheter identifieras. Vårdmiljön har en stor betydelse för patienter med demenssjukdom för att motverka risken för fallolyckor. Genom att samverka med andra professioner kan sjuksköterskan få ett större urval av omvårdnadsåtgärder i det fallförebyggande arbetet. Olika sorters hjälpmedel kan användas i omvårdnaden och därmed förebygga fall och framförallt fallskador. Slutsats: Fallolyckor innebär svåra skador hos äldre patienter med demens med en lång vårdtid och ökat lidande som följd. Det bör därför ligga i sjuksköterskans intresse att mer systematiskt använda sig av någon av tidigare nämnda omvårdnadsåtgärder då de hjälper till att förhindra fallolyckor i hög grad.

Representations of culture in EIL : Cultural representation in Swedish EFL textbooks

The English language has become an international language and is globally used as a lingua franca. Therefore, there has been a shift in English-language education toward teaching English as an interna-tional language (EIL). Teaching from the EIL paradigm means that English is seen as an international language used in communication by people from different linguistic and cultural backgrounds. As the approach to English-language education changes from the traditional native-speaker, target country context, so does the role of culture within English-language teaching. The aim of this thesis is to in-vestigate and analyse cultural representations in two Swedish EFL textbooks used in upper-secondary school to see how they correspond with the EIL paradigm. This is done by focusing on the geograph-ical origin of the cultural content as well as looking at what kinds of culture are represented in the textbooks. A content analysis of the textbooks is conducted, using Kachru’s Concentric Circles of English as the model for the analysis of the geographical origin. Horibe’s model of the three different kinds of culture in EIL is the model used for coding the second part of the analysis. The results of the analysis show that culture of target countries and "Culture as social custom" dominate the cultural content of the textbook. Thus, although there are some indications that the EIL paradigm has influ-enced the textbooks, the traditional approach to culture in language teaching still prevails in the ana-lysed textbooks. Because of the relatively small sample included in the thesis, further studies need to be conducted in order to make conclusions regarding the Swedish context as a whole.

What Culture? : Cultural representations in English as a foreign language textbooks

Teaching the cultural aspect of foreign language education is a complex and sometimes difficult task, especially since English has become an international language used in different settings and contexts throughout the world. Building on the idea that the spread of the English language and its international status in the world has made English an important school subject to develop students’ cross-cultural and intercultural awareness, this paper has studied what research reveals about the influence this has had on cultural representations in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) textbooks. Findings from a systematic literature review that analyzed four different international studies on the topic are presented. The study showed that EFL textbooks often present stereotypical and overgeneralized representations of culture and that the cultural aspect of EFL education is not adequately addressed since focus tends to lean towards language proficiency. Results also indicated that though steps are made to include cultural representations from different international contexts, the target culture of countries where English is the first language remains dominant in EFL textbooks. The findings are discussed in correlation with the Swedish national curriculum and syllabus.

Meio ambiente e enfermagem: suas interfaces e inserção no ensino de graduação

A degradação ambiental vem modificando nosso cenário de forma acelerada e interferindo negativamente no processo saúde-doença de toda a comunidade. No entanto, o meio ambiente vem sendo concebido como um simples cenário, algo externo ao ser humano, não onde estamos inseridos e no qual acontecem suas interações e inter-relações. A complexidade dos problemas ambientais clama pela adoção de medidas que superem práticas assistencialistas, levando à adoção de práticas transdisciplinares que avancem na promoção da saúde. Neste artigo procura-se discutir, nesta perspectiva, a necessidade de inserção nos cursos de graduação em saúde a temática saúde e meio ambiente, adotando como exemplo um curso de enfermagem do interior paulista que inseriu uma disciplina relacionada ao tema. Analisa também o papel do enfermeiro na relação com o meio ambiente segundo a representação social dos alunos, trabalhada a partir do Discurso do Sujeito Coletivo. Nota-se que é fundamental discutir essa temática ambiental entre os profissionais da saúde, a fim de que eles se empoderem desse conhecimento e consigam identificar problemas relacionados à questão ambiental, propondo ações resolutivas e preventivas, juntamente com a comunidade, procurando amenizar os riscos ambientais a que todos estão expostos. Reforça-se a profundidade do papel dos profissionais de saúde diante dos problemas ambientais, buscando a saúde em uma perspectiva ampliada de promoção da saúde.