Del "know how" al poder: la metodologia d'avaluació d'intangibles empresarials en competència i la seva aplicació en un entorn oligopolístic

Sometimes, behind the entrepreneurial profit the degree of monopoly is concealed. What it occurs with the models of investments evaluation when the skill of the employer consists on having capacity to capture the regulator?

Design and Construction in Fair Housing: Enforcement, Timeless and Practical Suggestion, Spring 2010

In addition to the Fair Housing Act of 1968, other legislation has expanded protection from discrimination for individuals with disabilities, including the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Notably, the Fair Housing Amendments Act (FHAA), signed into law by Ronald Reagan in 1988, expanded equal housing protection to individuals with disabilities. The legislative history behind the 1988 Amendments notes that one aim of the law was to address both purposeful discrimination as well as what is sometimes unintentional discrimination caused by the design and construction of inaccessible housing.

Medication use in pregnancy: a cross-sectional, multinational web-based study.

OBJECTIVES: Intercountry comparability between studies on medication use in pregnancy is difficult due to dissimilarities in study design and methodology. This study aimed to examine patterns and factors associated with medications use in pregnancy from a multinational perspective, with emphasis on type of medication utilised and indication for use. DESIGN: Cross-sectional, web-based study performed within the period from 1 October 2011 to 29 February 2012. Uniform collection of drug utilisation data was performed via an anonymous online questionnaire. SETTING: Multinational study in Europe (Western, Northern and Eastern), North and South America and Australia. PARTICIPANTS: Pregnant women and new mothers with children less than 1 year of age. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Prevalence of and factors associated with medication use for acute/short-term illnesses, chronic/long-term disorders and over-the-counter (OTC) medication use. RESULTS: The study population included 9459 women, of which 81.2% reported use of at least one medication (prescribed or OTC) during pregnancy. Overall, OTC medication use occurred in 66.9% of the pregnancies, whereas 68.4% and 17% of women reported use of at least one medication for treatment of acute/short-term illnesses and chronic/long-term disorders, respectively. The extent of self-reported medicated illnesses and types of medication used by indication varied across regions, especially in relation to urinary tract infections, depression or OTC nasal sprays. Women with higher age or lower educational level, housewives or women with an unplanned pregnancy were those most often reporting use of medication for chronic/long-term disorders. Immigrant women in Western (adjusted OR (aOR): 0.55, 95% CI 0.34 to 0.87) and Northern Europe (aOR: 0.50, 95% CI 0.31 to 0.83) were less likely to report use of medication for chronic/long-term disorders during pregnancy than non-immigrants. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, the majority of women in Europe, North America, South America and Australia used at least one medication during pregnancy. There was a substantial inter-region variability in the types of medication used.

Evidential relevance in scene to offender transfer cases: development and analysis of a likelihood ratio for offence level propositions

The present paper focuses on the analysis and discussion of a likelihood ratio (LR) development for propositions at a hierarchical level known in the context as 'offence level'. Existing literature on the topic has considered LR developments for so-called offender to scene transfer cases. These settings involve-in their simplest form-a single stain found on a crime scene, but with possible uncertainty about the degree to which that stain is relevant (i.e. that it has been left by the offender). Extensions to multiple stains or multiple offenders have also been reported. The purpose of this paper is to discuss a development of a LR for offence level propositions when case settings involve potential transfer in the opposite direction, i.e. victim/scene to offender transfer. This setting has previously not yet been considered. The rationale behind the proposed LR is illustrated through graphical probability models (i.e. Bayesian networks). The role of various uncertain parameters is investigated through sensitivity analyses as well as simulations.

Age vs. Experience: Evaluation of a Video Feedback Intervention for Newly Licensed Teen Drivers, TPF-5(207), 2013

This project examines the effects of age, experience, and video-based feedback on the rate and type of safety-relevant events captured on video event recorders in the vehicles of three groups of newly licensed young drivers: 1. 14.5- to 15.5-year-old drivers who hold a minor school license (see Appendix A for the provisions of the Iowa code governing minor school licenses); 2. 16-year-old drivers with an intermediate license who are driving unsupervised for the first time; 3. 16-year-old drivers with an intermediate license who previously drove unsupervised for at least four months with a school license. METHODS: The young drivers’ vehicles were equipped with an event-triggered video recording device for 24 weeks. Half of the participants received feedback regarding their driving, and the other half received no feedback at all and served as a control group. The number of safety-relevant events per 1,000 miles (i.e., “event rate”) was analyzed for 90 participants who completed the study. RESULTS: On average, the young drivers who received the video-based intervention had significantly lower event rates than those in the control group. This finding was true for all three groups. An effect of experience was seen for drivers in the control group; the 16-year-olds with driving experience had significantly lower event rates than the 16-year-olds without experience. When the intervention concluded, an increase in event rate was seen for the school license holders, but not for either group of 16-year-old drivers. There is strong evidence that giving young drivers video-based feedback, regardless of their age or level of driving experience, is effective in reducing the rate of safety-relevant events relative to a control group who do not receive feedback. Specific comparisons with regard to age and experience indicated that the age of the driver did not have an effect on the rate of safety-events, while experience did. Young drivers with six months or more of additional experience behind the wheel had nearly half as many safety-relevant events as those without that experience.

Back Warning Sensors for Tow Plows, RB07-012, 2013

Backup warning system devices were evaluated to determine if they would alert winter maintenance snow plow drivers to obstacles directly behind the trailer and out of view of the driver when a unit is backed up. When the sensors on the back of the tow plow were covered with snow during plowing operations, the sensor would go off in the cab and continue going off, which would result in drivers turning the volume of the unit way down. One shop stated that the wireless transmitted signal would be hit or miss depending on the winter weather that they were operating in. The sensors on the back of the tow plow trailer would come in contact with salt brine and in this situation one of the sensors did go bad. The weatherproof box that was designed to keep the system waterproof did not fully keep the moisture out. It was found that the system did alert drivers of items behind the unit and there were no backup accidents reported during the research period.

A nasopalatine duct cyst in a 7-year-old child.

The nasopalatine duct cyst (NPDC) is a developmental cyst of the anterior palate's midline, usually presenting as an asymptomatic swelling located just behind the maxillary central incisors. It is the most common non-odontogenic cyst of the jaws but is seen rarely in children. The purpose of this paper was to report an unusual case of nasopalatine duct cyst in a 7-year-old boy who presented with a slow-growing, slight swelling of the anterior palate together with malpositioned permanent maxillary central incisors. Although rare in children, NPCD should be included in the differential diagnosis of anterior palate swelling, particularly if associated with malpositioned maxillary central incisors.

Validation of Design Recommendations for Integral Abutment Piles, HR-292, 1989

Since integral abutment bridges decrease the initial and maintenance costs of bridges, they provide an attractive alternative for bridge designers. The objective of this project is to develop rational and experimentally verified design recommendations for these bridges. Field testing consisted of instrumenting two bridges in Iowa to monitor air and bridge temperatures, bridge displacements, and pile strains. Core samples were also collected to determine coefficients of thermal expansion for the two bridges. Design values for the coefficient of thermal expansion of concrete are recommended, as well as revised temperature ranges for the deck and girders of steel and concrete bridges. A girder extension model is developed to predict the longitudinal bridge displacements caused by changing bridge temperatures. Abutment rotations and passive soil pressures behind the abutment were neglected. The model is subdivided into segments that have uniform temperatures, coefficients of expansion, and moduli of elasticity. Weak axis pile strains were predicted using a fixed-head model. The pile is idealized as an equivalent cantilever with a length determined by the surrounding soil conditions and pile properties. Both the girder extension model and the fixed-head model are conservative for design purposes. A longitudinal frame model is developed to account for abutment rotations. The frame model better predicts both the longitudinal displacement and weak axis pile strains than do the simpler models. A lateral frame model is presented to predict the lateral motion of skewed bridges and the associated strong axis pile strains. Full passive soil pressure is assumed on the abutment face. Two alternatives for the pile design are presented. Alternative One is the more conservative and includes thermally induced stresses. Alternative Two neglects thermally induced stresses but allows for the partial formation of plastic hinges (inelastic redistribution of forces). Ductility criteria are presented for this alternative. Both alternatives are illustrated in a design example.

Retaining Wall - Modular Unit Reinforced Earth Tensar Geogrid Reinforcement, HR-549, 1998

This research, initiated in October 1992, was located at the intersection of Blairs Ferry Road and Lindale Drive in the City of Marion. The wall is located on the southeast corner of the intersection. Reinforced retaining wall construction started with a five inch base of roadstone with one inch of sand for leveling purposes. One and one-half to two feet of one inch clean stone was placed behind the blocks. A four inch perforated plastic pipe was placed approximately nine inches from the bottom of the one inch clean stone. The Tenswal, tensar geogrid was placed at every third layer. Openings in the Tenswal are hooked over plastic dowels in the blocks. The tenswal reaches from the face of the wall back 5' to 8'. The cost for constructing this wall was $124,400. The wall has performed well for the past five years. The wall improves the aesthetics of a high traffic volume intersection of an urban area. Many positive comments have been received by the city regarding its appearance. The City of Marion has been pleased with the wall and has used this type of wall on subsequent projects.

Meédicaments: une cause sous-estimée d'hypertension artérielle [Drugs: an underestimated cause of arterial hypertension].

In Switzerland, as in other Occidental countries, the prevalence of arterial hypertension (AHT) in the adult population is around 30-40%. Among the causes of secondary AHT, drug induced hypertension is sometimes omitted. Many molecules can induce AHT or worsen it due to an interaction with anti hypertensive drugs. Among these, NSAIDs and anti depressants, widely prescribed, should be used with caution, particularly in patients at risk, namely: those with preexisting AHT, the elderly, or patients suffering from kidney disease, diabetes, and/or heart failure. Increases in blood pressure have also been described with anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) drugs, used in the treatment of (metastatic) cancer. A thorough anamnesis of drugs, including over the counter ones, should be performed in every hypertensive patient, and can avoid cumbersome and unnecessary investigations and therapy.

Association of moderate alcohol use and binge drinking during pregnancy with neonatal health.

Background:  Heavy drinking and smoking during pregnancy are known to have a negative impact on the unborn child. However, the impact of low-to-moderate alcohol consumption and binge drinking has been debated recently. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship of moderate prenatal drinking and binge drinking with birthweight, being small for gestational age (SGA) at birth, preterm birth, and neonatal asphyxia. Methods:  Moderate alcohol drinking, binge drinking, and several possible confounders were assessed in 1,258 pregnant women; information on neonatal health was obtained at birth. Results:  Results indicate that 30.8% of the women drank at low levels (<2 glasses/wk), 7.9% drank moderately (2 to 4 glasses/wk), and 0.9% showed higher levels of drinking (≥5 glasses/wk); 4.7% reported binge drinking (defined as ≥3 glasses/occasion). 6.4% of the children were SGA (<10th percentile of birthweight adjusted for gestational age), 4.6% were preterm (<37th week of gestation), and 13.0% showed asphyxia (arterial cord pH <7.10 and/or arterial cord lactate >6.35 mmol and/or Apgar score <7 at 5 minutes). When controlling for maternal age, citizenship, occupational status, parity, smoking, use of prescription/over-the-counter drugs, illicit drug use, and child gender moderate drinking was related to lower birthweight (p < 0.01), and moderate drinking and binge drinking were associated with neonatal asphyxia at trend level (p = 0.06 and p = 0.09). Moderate drinking and binge drinking were not related to length of gestation. Conclusions:  In contrast to recent reviews in the field, our results assume that moderate drinking and binge drinking are risk factors for neonatal health.

Transverse Joint Sealing with Improved Sealers, HR-276, 1991

Concern about premature joint sealant failures occurring in portland cement concrete (PCC) pavements gave impetus to initiating this research project. Eight sealants, including three silicone sealants, were evaluated and tested in the lab as well as incorporated in approximately 700 joints in the field and evaluated over a six-year period. The preliminary data show that among the silicone sealants, Dow Corning 888 rated the highest. However, this was rated third overall behind the W. R. Meadows cold-applied Sof Seal and Crafco #231 hot pour sealants. The W. R. Meadows and Crafco sealants cost approximately 30 percent and 50 percent less to furnish and place than the Dow Corning product. All joint sealants will continue to be evaluated.

Wind Loads on Dynamic Message Cabinets and Behavior of Supporting Trusses, TR-612, 2013

Large Dynamic Message Signs (DMSs) have been increasingly used on freeways, expressways and major arterials to better manage the traffic flow by providing accurate and timely information to drivers. Overhead truss structures are typically employed to support those DMSs allowing them to provide wider display to more lanes. In recent years, there is increasing evidence that the truss structures supporting these large and heavy signs are subjected to much more complex loadings than are typically accounted for in the codified design procedures. Consequently, some of these structures have required frequent inspections, retrofitting, and even premature replacement. Two manufacturing processes are primarily utilized on truss structures - welding and bolting. Recently, cracks at welding toes were reported for the structures employed in some states. Extremely large loads (e.g., due to high winds) could cause brittle fractures, and cyclic vibration (e.g., due to diurnal variation in temperature or due to oscillations in the wind force induced by vortex shedding behind the DMS) may lead to fatigue damage, as these are two major failures for the metallic material. Wind and strain resulting from temperature changes are the main loads that affect the structures during their lifetime. The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Specification defines the limit loads in dead load, wind load, ice load, and fatigue design for natural wind gust and truck-induced gust. The objectives of this study are to investigate wind and thermal effects in the bridge type overhead DMS truss structures and improve the current design specifications (e.g., for thermal design). In order to accomplish the objective, it is necessary to study structural behavior and detailed strain-stress of the truss structures caused by wind load on the DMS cabinet and thermal load on the truss supporting the DMS cabinet. The study is divided into two parts. The Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) component and part of the structural analysis component of the study were conducted at the University of Iowa while the field study and related structural analysis computations were conducted at the Iowa State University. The CFD simulations were used to determine the air-induced forces (wind loads) on the DMS cabinets and the finite element analysis was used to determine the response of the supporting trusses to these pressure forces. The field observation portion consisted of short-term monitoring of several DMS Cabinet/Trusses and long-term monitoring of one DMS Cabinet/Truss. The short-term monitoring was a single (or two) day event in which several message sign panel/trusses were tested. The long-term monitoring field study extended over several months. Analysis of the data focused on trying to identify important behaviors under both ambient and truck induced winds and the effect of daily temperature changes. Results of the CFD investigation, field experiments and structural analysis of the wind induced forces on the DMS cabinets and their effect on the supporting trusses showed that the passage of trucks cannot be responsible for the problems observed to develop at trusses supporting DMS cabinets. Rather the data pointed toward the important effect of the thermal load induced by cyclic (diurnal) variations of the temperature. Thermal influence is not discussed in the specification, either in limit load or fatigue design. Although the frequency of the thermal load is low, results showed that when temperature range is large the restress range would be significant to the structure, especially near welding areas where stress concentrations may occur. Moreover stress amplitude and range are the primary parameters for brittle fracture and fatigue life estimation. Long-term field monitoring of one of the overhead truss structures in Iowa was used as the research baseline to estimate the effects of diurnal temperature changes to fatigue damage. The evaluation of the collected data is an important approach for understanding the structural behavior and for the advancement of future code provisions. Finite element modeling was developed to estimate the strain and stress magnitudes, which were compared with the field monitoring data. Fatigue life of the truss structures was also estimated based on AASHTO specifications and the numerical modeling. The main conclusion of the study is that thermal induced fatigue damage of the truss structures supporting DMS cabinets is likely a significant contributing cause for the cracks observed to develop at such structures. Other probable causes for fatigue damage not investigated in this study are the cyclic oscillations of the total wind load associated with the vortex shedding behind the DMS cabinet at high wind conditions and fabrication tolerances and induced stresses due to fitting of tube to tube connections.

Rhétorique et cognition : perspectives théoriques et stratégies persuasives

D'une certaine manière, la rhétorique est un art cognitif. L'art de discourir en situation concrète dans l'espoir de faire adhérer l'auditoire à une thèse suppose une forte aptitude cognitive: celle de se représenter la façon dont l'auditoire lui-même se représente une situation rhétorique. Or, à partir du moment où agir sur les représentations d'autrui est facilité par des techniques rhétoriques ou sophistiques, la question de la tromperie verbale s'est immiscée dans des affaires de régulation sociale et, avec elle, des enjeux tant de crédibilité que de crédulité. Dans le cadre démocratique rendant encore plus aiguë une forme de dépendance à l'information d'autrui, la nécessité de croire tout comme la possibilité d'être leurré mettent à l'épreuve tant le fonctionnement social de la Cité que l'évaluation des informations et de leurs auteurs. Le but des contributions de cet ouvrage n'est pas de dénoncer les effets de certains schèmes argumentatifs que d'aucuns jugeraient fallacieux ni d'ajouter une couche nouvelle aux critiques des sophismes, mais d'étudier leur fonctionnement et leurs effets cognitifs hic et nunc. Quels sont les mécanismes langagiers et cognitifs qui expliquent la «performance» des arguments réputés fallacieux? Comment fonctionnent les stratégies rhétoriques à l'intersection entre cognition, sciences du langage et société? Cet ouvrage, issu du colloque Communication et Cognition: manipulation, persuasion et biais dans le langage, tenu à Neuchâtel du 26 au 28 janvier 2011, propose plusieurs propositions originales ou hypothèses stimulantes dans l'espoir qu'elles inspireront tant les chercheurs spécialisés en rhétorique et sciences du langage à aller voir du côté de la psychologie cognitive que les spécialistes de ce domaine à mettre en évidence la rhétoricité de leurs recherches. English version: In a way, rhetoric is a cognitive art. The art of speaking in concrete situations in the hope of gaining the audience's consent on a given issue requires the operation of a cognitive ability: that of being able to represent the way an audience represents itself a rhetorical situation. Nonetheless, once we consider that rhetorical or sophistic techniques influence people's representations, verbal deception becomes a matter of social regulation, together with issues of credibility and credulity. In a democratic context fostering a form of dependence towards other people's information, the necessity of believing everything and the possibility of being duped are challenges for both the social management of the City and the evaluation of information and of its sources. The contribution of the chapters of this volume is neither to be found in the condemnation of the fallacious effects of specific argument schemes nor in the addition of yet another layer to fallacy criticism, but in the study of how fallacies work, hic et nunc. What are the linguistic and cognitive mechanisms at play behind the "performance" of fallacious arguments? How do rhetorical strategies work at the interface of cognition, language science and society? This book gathers papers that were presented during the international conference Communication & Cognition: manipulation, persuasion and biases in language, held at the University of Neuchâtel in January 2011. A number of original proposals and stimulating hypotheses emerge from them: we hope that these will inspire researchers in the language sciences who specialise in rhetoric to take on board cognitive scientific insights but also researchers in cognitive science to engage with the rhetoricity of their own research.

Remote Control of Mobile Devices in Android Platform

Remote control systems are a very useful element to control and monitor devices quickly and easily. This paper proposes a new architecture for remote control of Android mobile devices, analyzing the different alternatives and seeking the optimal solution in each case. Although the area of remote control, in case of mobile devices, has been little explored, it may provide important advantages for testing software and hardware developments in several real devices. It can also allow an efficient management of various devices of different types, perform forensic security tasks, etc ... The main idea behind the proposed architecture was the design of a system to be used as a platform which provides the services needed to perform remote control of mobile devices. As a result of this research, a proof of concept was implemented. An Android application running a group of server programs on the device, connected to the network or USB interface, depending on availability. This servers can be controlled through a small client written in Java and runnable both on desktop and web systems.