From a pattern-language to a pattern ontology approach for CSCL script design

Collaborative activities, in which students actively interact with each other, have proved to provide significant learning benefits. In Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL), these collaborative activities are assisted by technologies. However, the use of computers does not guarantee collaboration, as free collaboration does not necessary lead to fruitful learning. Therefore, practitioners need to design CSCL scripts that structure the collaborative settings so that they promote learning. However, not all teachers have the technical and pedagogical background needed to design such scripts. With the aim of assisting teachers in designing effective CSCL scripts, we propose a model to support the selection of reusable good practices (formulated as patterns) so that they can be used as a starting point for their own designs. This model is based on a pattern ontology that computationally represents the knowledge captured on a pattern language for the design of CSCL scripts. A preliminary evaluation of the proposed approach is provided with two examples based on a set of meaningful interrelated patters computationally represented with the pattern ontology, and a paper prototyping experience carried out with two teaches. The results offer interesting insights towards the implementation of the pattern ontology in software tools.

Resiliência em idosos atendidos na Rede de Atenção Básica de Saúde em município do nordeste brasileiro

Objetiva-se avaliar a capacidade de resiliência, a auto-estima e o apoio social em idosos através de um estudo exploratório com uma amostra por conveniência constituída por idosos usuários da rede pública de saúde do município de Natal-RN, Brasil, os quais responderam ao questionário e às Escalas de Resiliência, Auto-estima e Apoio Social. Participaram 65 idosos com idade média de 71 anos, sendo 81% do sexo feminino, com baixas condições sócio-econômicas. Identificou-se que os idosos apresentam características resilientes, auto-estima positiva e apoio social percebido como satisfatório, mesmo diante das perdas e declínios vivenciados na velhice. Além disso, verificaram-se correlações moderadas e positivas entre resiliência e auto-estima, já que na medida em que uma aumenta, a outra também se eleva. Assim, o ato de viver bem esse período crítico parece ser favorecido pela resiliência enquanto recurso propiciador do desenvolvimento e pelos fatores de proteção, importantes indicadores de saúde.

Design and Construction Procedures for Concrete Overlay and Widening of Existing Pavements, September 2005

State Highway Departments and local street and road agencies are currently faced with aging highway systems and a need to extend the life of some of the pavements. The agency engineer should have the opportunity to explore the use of multiple surface types in the selection of a preferred rehabilitation strategy. This study was designed to look at the portland cement concrete overlay alternative and especially the design of overlays for existing composite (portland cement and asphaltic cement concrete) pavements. Existing design procedures for portland cement concrete overlays deal primarily with an existing asphaltic concrete pavement with an underlying granular base or stabilized base. This study reviewed those design methods and moved to the development of a design for overlays of composite pavements. It deals directly with existing portland cement concrete pavements that have been overlaid with successive asphaltic concrete overlays and are in need of another overlay due to poor performance of the existing surface. The results of this study provide the engineer with a way to use existing deflection technology coupled with materials testing and a combination of existing overlay design methods to determine the design thickness of the portland cement concrete overlay. The design methodology provides guidance for the engineer, from the evaluation of the existing pavement condition through the construction of the overlay. It also provides a structural analysis of various joint and widening patterns on the performance of such designs. This work provides the engineer with a portland cement concrete overlay solution to composite pavements or conventional asphaltic concrete pavements that are in need of surface rehabilitation.

Fatores de risco e complicações em hipertensos/diabéticos de uma regional sanitária do nordeste brasileiro

Objetivou-se com este estudo identificar os fatores de risco e a complicações associadas em usuários com hipertensão/diabetes, cadastrados no HIPERDIA da Secretaria Executiva Regional VI em Fortaleza, CE. O estudo documental analítico abordou 2.691 pessoas. Do total, 73,6% eram mulheres; 44,6% tinham 60-79 anos, com média de 60,8 anos; 87,4% eram brancos, amarelos ou pardos; 63,7% tinham até oito anos de estudo; 79,7% não eram fumantes; 56,6% sedentários; 59,6% apresentavam sobrepeso/obesidade; 48,4% possuíam antecedente familiar de doença cardiovascular. Verificou-se associação entre sedentarismo e sobrepeso/obesidade com diabéticos e diabéticos hipertensos; antecedente familiar de doença cardiovascular com os hipertensos e diabéticos hipertensos; acidente vascular encefálico, doença arterial coronariana e insuficiência renal crônica com hipertensos e diabéticos hipertensos; infarto e acidente vascular encefálico com diabéticos. O antecedente familiar cardiovascular associou-se com doença arterial coronariana e infarto. Evidenciou-se a presença relevante de fatores de risco e complicações, destacando a necessidade da educação em saúde com os usuários.

Universal Design for Better Living The Essential Bathroom, May 2004

An easy-living home requires a full-sized bathroom on the main level. Family members will appreciate the extra space and guests of all ages and abilities will feel more welcome. At a minimum, you’ll need a five foot circle of open floor space for maneuvering a wheelchair between bathroom fixtures. A small powder room won’t work for guests who use walkers or wheelchairs. A shower stall—with no curb to step over—is more convenient than a tub for most guests. Make sure the doorway opening for the bathroom is at least 32 inches wide (preferably 36 inches). Universal design features, such as these, make homes better for everyone.

Universal Design for Better Living: “Where to Get Gadgets and Gizmos”, May 2004

If they don’t carry the item, ask them to order it for you. Look at discount stores, such as Target, Wal-Mart, K-Mart, or Menard’s (they are more likely to carry items with universal design features). Look at the “Gadgets and Gizmos” section of the Iowa State University Extension Web site on “Universal Design & Home Accessibility.”

Mortalidade pós-neonatal no território brasileiro: uma revisão da literatura

O presente trabalho trata-se de revisão sistemática, referente ao período de 2004 a 2009, sobre o tema mortalidade pós-neonatal. Teve o objetivo de identificar como se colocam na literatura, as causas da morte e a relação com as condições socioeconômicas. Foram selecionados 27 artigos, 74,4% publicados em periódicos da área da Saúde Pública e 66,7%, de desenho do tipo ecológico. Quase a totalidade versava sobre grupos de causas e seus componentes (66,7%), seguidos pelo terço restante, sobre a identificação dos fatores determinantes dos óbitos. A região Sudeste produziu mais de 37% dos estudos. Na maioria dos municípios e estados brasileiros, a redução superou 50% no final da década de 1990. Dentre os grupos de causas de óbitos, predominou o grupamento diarreia-pneumonia, seguido pelas malformações congênitas. As condições de vida segundo indicadores socioeconômicos - moradia, saneamento básico, educação e acesso à saúde - foram determinantes para os maiores índices de mortalidade pós-neonatal por causas passíveis de redução.

Desempenho motor de idosos do Nordeste brasileiro: diferenças entre idade e sexo

O objetivo deste estudo foi identificar o desempenho motor, de acordo com o sexo e o grupo etário, em idosos residentes em comunidade do Nordeste brasileiro. Trata-se de estudo transversal que analisou dados de 316 idosos de uma pesquisa epidemiológica de base domiciliar e populacional realizada em janeiro de 2011. Participaram do estudo 173 mulheres (54,7%) e 143 homens com idade média de 74,2 (± 9,8 anos). As mulheres apresentaram maior declínio funcional com o avanço da idade e mais limitação funcional em testes de força/resistência de membros inferiores e locomoção. Em ambos os sexos, a prevalência de limitação funcional foi mais elevada nos grupos etários de 70-79 anos e > 80 anos, com as mulheres apresentando mais limitação a partir dos 70 anos e os homens, a partir dos 80 anos. Os dados desta pesquisa podem subsidiar o planejamento de medidas para prevenção, manutenção ou melhora da limitação funcional em idosos, proporcionando maiores cuidados integrados.

Influence of a lifestyle intervention in preschool children on physiological and psychological parameters (Ballabeina): study design of a cluster randomized controlled trial.

Childhood obesity and physical inactivity are increasing dramatically worldwide. Children of low socioeconomic status and/or children of migrant background are especially at risk. In general, the overall effectiveness of school-based programs on health-related outcomes has been disappointing. A special gap exists for younger children and in high risk groups. This paper describes the rationale, design, curriculum, and evaluation of a multicenter preschool randomized intervention study conducted in areas with a high migrant population in two out of 26 Swiss cantons. Twenty preschool classes in the German (canton St. Gallen) and another 20 in the French (canton Vaud) part of Switzerland were separately selected and randomized to an intervention and a control arm by the use of opaque envelopes. The multidisciplinary lifestyle intervention aimed to increase physical activity and sleep duration, to reinforce healthy nutrition and eating behaviour, and to reduce media use. According to the ecological model, it included children, their parents and the teachers. The regular teachers performed the majority of the intervention and were supported by a local health promoter. The intervention included physical activity lessons, adaptation of the built infrastructure; promotion of regional extracurricular physical activity; playful lessons about nutrition, media use and sleep, funny homework cards and information materials for teachers and parents. It lasted one school year. Baseline and post-intervention evaluations were performed in both arms. Primary outcome measures included BMI and aerobic fitness (20 m shuttle run test). Secondary outcomes included total (skinfolds, bioelectrical impedance) and central (waist circumference) body fat, motor abilities (obstacle course, static and dynamic balance), physical activity and sleep duration (accelerometry and questionnaires), nutritional behaviour and food intake, media use, quality of life and signs of hyperactivity (questionnaires), attention and spatial working memory ability (two validated tests). Researchers were blinded to group allocation. The purpose of this paper is to outline the design of a school-based multicenter cluster randomized, controlled trial aiming to reduce body mass index and to increase aerobic fitness in preschool children in culturally different parts of Switzerland with a high migrant population. Trial Registration: (clinicaltrials.gov) NCT00674544.

Design Guide and Construction Specifications for National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Site Runoff Control, 2006

According to the 1972 Clean Water Act, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) established a set of regulations for the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES). The purpose of these regulations is to reduce pollution of the nation’s waterways. In addition to other pollutants, the NPDES regulates stormwater discharges associated with industrial activities, municipal storm sewer systems, and construction sites. Phase II of the NPDES stormwater regulations, which went into effect in Iowa in 2003, applies to construction activities that disturb more than one acre of ground. The regulations also require certain communities with Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems (MS4) to perform education, inspection, and regulation activities to reduce stormwater pollution within their communities. Iowa does not currently have a resource to provide guidance on the stormwater regulations to contractors, designers, engineers, and municipal staff. The Statewide Urban Design and Specifications (SUDAS) manuals are widely accepted as the statewide standard for public improvements. The SUDAS Design manual currently contains a brief chapter (Chapter 7) on erosion and sediment control; however, it is outdated, and Phase II of the NPDES stormwater regulations is not discussed. In response to the need for guidance, this chapter was completely rewritten. It now escribes the need for erosion and sediment control and explains the NPDES stormwater regulations. It provides information for the development and completion of Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plans (SWPPPs) that comply with the stormwater regulations, as well as the proper design and implementation of 28 different erosion and sediment control practices. In addition to the design chapter, this project also updated a section in the SUDAS Specifications manual (Section 9040), which describes the proper materials and methods of construction for the erosion and sediment control practices.

Optimal Design of Permit Markets with an Ex Ante Pollution Target, August 2006

In this paper, we examine the design of permit trading programs when the objective is to minimize the cost of achieving an ex ante pollution target, that is, one that is defined in expectation rather than an ex post deterministic value. We consider two potential sources of uncertainty, the presence of either of which can make our model appropriate: incomplete information on abatement costs and uncertain delivery coefficients. In such a setting, we find three distinct features that depart from the well-established results on permit trading: (1) the regulator’s information on firms’ abatement costs can matter; (2) the optimal permit cap is not necessarily equal to the ex ante pollution target; and (3) the optimal trading ratio is not necessarily equal to the delivery coefficient even when it is known with certainty. Intuitively, since the regulator is only required to meet a pollution target on average, she can set the trading ratio and total permit cap such that there will be more pollution when abatement costs are high and less pollution when abatement costs are low. Information on firms’ abatement costs is important in order for the regulator to induce the optimal alignment between pollution level and abatement costs.

Cabo verde e a Importação do Ideologema Brasileiro da Mestiçagem

Este artigo busca desvelar as relações entre a formação de intelectuais e as lutas em torno da definição da identidade nacional em Cabo Verde. Até as duas primeiras décadas do século XX a África aparecia para os intelectuais cabo-verdianos como potência adormecida, a colonização portuguesa era parcialmente contestada e uma identidade atlântica emergia concorrente à identidade lusitana. A racialização dessa identidade atlântica sob os pressupostos "brasileiros" da mestiçagem e a hegemonia dessa afirmação de identidade no arquipélago se dá na década de trinta sob o silêncio político imposto pelo regime de Salazar. Após a discussão sobre os efeitos dessa censura política para a autonomia da literatura cabo-verdiana o artigo conclui sugerindo que identidades (africanas, mestiças, crioulas, européias) disputadas em nível transcontinental e estratégias geopolíticas transatlânticas adquiriram sentidos inesperados nesse contexto e conjuntura determinada.

Experimental design on the simplex

Optimum experimental designs depend on the design criterion, the model andthe design region. The talk will consider the design of experiments for regressionmodels in which there is a single response with the explanatory variables lying ina simplex. One example is experiments on various compositions of glass such asthose considered by Martin, Bursnall, and Stillman (2001).Because of the highly symmetric nature of the simplex, the class of models thatare of interest, typically Scheff´e polynomials (Scheff´e 1958) are rather differentfrom those of standard regression analysis. The optimum designs are also ratherdifferent, inheriting a high degree of symmetry from the models.In the talk I will hope to discuss a variety of modes for such experiments. ThenI will discuss constrained mixture experiments, when not all the simplex is availablefor experimentation. Other important aspects include mixture experimentswith extra non-mixture factors and the blocking of mixture experiments.Much of the material is in Chapter 16 of Atkinson, Donev, and Tobias (2007).If time and my research allows, I would hope to finish with a few comments ondesign when the responses, rather than the explanatory variables, lie in a simplex.ReferencesAtkinson, A. C., A. N. Donev, and R. D. Tobias (2007). Optimum ExperimentalDesigns, with SAS. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Martin, R. J., M. C. Bursnall, and E. C. Stillman (2001). Further results onoptimal and efficient designs for constrained mixture experiments. In A. C.Atkinson, B. Bogacka, and A. Zhigljavsky (Eds.), Optimal Design 2000,pp. 225–239. Dordrecht: Kluwer.Scheff´e, H. (1958). Experiments with mixtures. Journal of the Royal StatisticalSociety, Ser. B 20, 344–360.1