Application de stratégies visant à favoriser l’intégration de connaissances par des élèves de Techniques administratives ayant ou percevant avoir des difficultés relatives à des fonctions cognitives spécifiques

Le nombre d'élèves du collégial ayant présenté un diagnostic de trouble d'apprentissage ou de déficit d'attention (avec ou sans hyperactivité) aux autorités de leur institution scolaire s'est accru de façon considérable au cours de la dernière décennie. Comme seules les personnes souhaitant bénéficier de mesures particulières d'encadrement dans leur cégep doivent déclarer ces diagnostics, il est possible de croire qu'un nombre plus grand d'élèves que celui suggéré par les statistiques disponibles ait soit un trouble d'apprentissage ou un déficit d'attention. Le problème qui est à l'origine de cette recherche est composé de deux éléments. D'une part, il est possible qu'un trouble d'apprentissage soit le résultat du dysfonctionnement de plus d'une fonction cognitive et il est également possible que plusieurs troubles d'apprentissage coexistent. Cette complexité invite à agir, dans un contexte d'enseignement, sur des fonctions cognitives précises, plutôt que sur des troubles d'apprentissage en particulier. D'autre part, le cours Initiation à la comptabilité offert au collège Édouard-Montpetit présente un faible taux de réussite, le niveau d'intégration de certaines connaissances de ce cours est insuffisant pour plusieurs élèves et des désavantages découlent du fait qu'il n'est plus offert en laboratoire informatique depuis 2009. L'objectif général de cette recherche est de favoriser l'intégration des connaissances relatives à l'équation comptable de base et à la production des états financiers de l'entreprise commerciale par des élèves de Techniques administratives ayant ou percevant avoir des difficultés de traitement de l'information et de mémoire, d'attention, de lecture/écriture ou des fonctions exécutives à l'aide de matériel pédagogique mis en ligne. Une recension des écrits a permis, dans un premier temps, d'identifier les processus cognitifs sollicités dans l'apprentissage des différents types de connaissances dont le niveau d'intégration de plusieurs élèves est insuffisant, de même que de cerner le rôle et l'interdépendance des fonctions cognitives à l'étude. Ensuite, des moyens qui permettent de compenser des faiblesses relatives au traitement de l'information, aux processus mnésiques et attentionnels, de même qu'au niveau de certaines habiletés langagières et des fonctions exécutives ont été circonscrits. Une stratégie visant à favoriser les apprentissages d'élèves ayant, notamment, des troubles d'apprentissage a par la suite été identifiée, de même que les caractéristiques attendues d'une plateforme informatique afin qu'elle soit aidante pour des élèves ayant des difficultés cognitives. Les composantes du cadre conceptuel ont été intégrées au matériel pédagogique développé et mis en ligne. Ensuite, le matériel a fait l'objet d'une expérimentation et d'une évaluation auprès de trois catégories de participantes et de participants. Une posture épistémologique interprétative a été privilégiée pour cette recherche développement. Une approche mixte à prédominance qualitative a été utilisée. Ainsi, les outils de collecte de données qui ont été choisis visaient à comprendre le regard que posaient ces trois catégories de participantes et de participants à l'étude sur le matériel pédagogique développé et mis en ligne, plutôt que de mesurer une possible généralisation des résultats obtenus. Les catégories de personnes qui ont expérimenté et évalué le matériel sont formées de deux groupes d'élèves inscrits au cours Initiation à la comptabilité à la session d'automne 2010, de trois des cinq élèves de Techniques administratives ayant présenté un diagnostic de trouble d'apprentissage ou de déficit d'attention auprès des autorités du collège et d'une experte en services adaptés. L'analyse et l'interprétation des résultats a permis de constater que pour chacune des catégories de participantes et de participants à l'étude, le matériel pédagogique atteignait l'objectif général visé. Ainsi, une perception de légère amélioration de chacune des connaissances établies dans l'objectif général de recherche a été notée. De plus, les principales composantes du cadre conceptuel semblent atteindre leurs visées respectives. Cependant, plusieurs façons d'améliorer le matériel pédagogique ont été relevées par les personnes qui l'ont évalué. Parmi celles-ci, nous retrouvons le développement de plus d'autoévaluations, l'amélioration du nombre et de la précision des consignes d'utilisation du matériel, l'affinement des tables des matières et des points de repère visuels, de même que l'accroissement du nombre de sens sollicités lors de l'utilisation du matériel pédagogique. Une piste de recherche future pourrait être d'améliorer ce matériel pédagogique mis en ligne en y intégrant les suggestions formulées par les participantes et les participants à la présente étude, de même qu'en ajoutant au cadre conceptuel de nouvelles connaissances relatives aux neurosciences. Ensuite, il serait possible de procéder à une nouvelle expérimentation, s'échelonnant sur une plus grande période de temps, afin d'établir si les résultats obtenus peuvent être transférés à d'autres contextes d'apprentissage.

An application of two techniques for the analysis of short, multivariate non-stationary time-series of Mauritanian trawl survey data

Min/max autocorrelation factor analysis (MAFA) and dynamic factor analysis (DFA) are complementary techniques for analysing short (> 15-25 y), non-stationary, multivariate data sets. We illustrate the two techniques using catch rate (cpue) time-series (1982-2001) for 17 species caught during trawl surveys off Mauritania, with the NAO index, an upwelling index, sea surface temperature, and an index of fishing effort as explanatory variables. Both techniques gave coherent results, the most important common trend being a decrease in cpue during the latter half of the time-series, and the next important being an increase during the first half. A DFA model with SST and UPW as explanatory variables and two common trends gave good fits to most of the cpue time-series. (c) 2004 International Council for the Exploration of the Sea. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Application of Deep Learning techniques in the search for BSM Higgs bosons in the $\mu\mu$ final state in CMS

The Standard Model (SM) of particle physics predicts the existence of a Higgs field responsible for the generation of particles' mass. However, some aspects of this theory remain unsolved, supposing the presence of new physics Beyond the Standard Model (BSM) with the production of new particles at a higher energy scale compared to the current experimental limits. The search for additional Higgs bosons is, in fact, predicted by theoretical extensions of the SM including the Minimal Supersymmetry Standard Model (MSSM). In the MSSM, the Higgs sector consists of two Higgs doublets, resulting in five physical Higgs particles: two charged bosons $H^{\pm}$, two neutral scalars $h$ and $H$, and one pseudoscalar $A$. The work presented in this thesis is dedicated to the search of neutral non-Standard Model Higgs bosons decaying to two muons in the model independent MSSM scenario. Proton-proton collision data recorded by the CMS experiment at the CERN LHC at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV are used, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of $35.9\ \text{fb}^{-1}$. Such search is sensitive to neutral Higgs bosons produced either via gluon fusion process or in association with a $\text{b}\bar{\text{b}}$ quark pair. The extensive usage of Machine and Deep Learning techniques is a fundamental element in the discrimination between signal and background simulated events. A new network structure called parameterised Neural Network (pNN) has been implemented, replacing a whole set of single neural networks trained at a specific mass hypothesis value with a single neural network able to generalise well and interpolate in the entire mass range considered. The results of the pNN signal/background discrimination are used to set a model independent 95\% confidence level expected upper limit on the production cross section times branching ratio, for a generic $\phi$ boson decaying into a muon pair in the 130 to 1000 GeV range.

Application Of Tactile/kinesthetic Stimulation In Preterm Infants: A Systematic Review.

To verify the methods used by the clinical trials that assessed the effect of tactile/kinesthetic stimulation on weight gain in preterm infants and highlight the similarities and differences among such studies. This review collected studies from two databases, PEDro and PubMed, in July of 2014, in addition to bibliographies. Two researchers assessed the relevant titles independently, and then chose which studies to read in full and include in this review by consensus. Clinical trials that studied tactile stimulation or massage therapy whether or not associated with kinesthetic stimulation of preterm infants; that assessed weight gain after the intervention; that had a control group and were composed in English, Portuguese, or Spanish were included. A total of 520 titles were found and 108 were selected for manuscript reading. Repeated studies were excluded, resulting in 40 different studies. Of these, 31 met all the inclusion criteria. There were many differences in the application of tactile/kinesthetic stimulation techniques among studies, which hindered the accurate reproduction of the procedure. Also, many studies did not describe the adverse events that occurred during stimulation, the course of action taken when such events occurred, and their effect on the outcome. These studies made a relevant contribution towards indicating tactile/kinesthetic stimulation as a promising tool. Nevertheless, there was no standard for application among them. Future studies should raise the level of methodological rigor and describe the adverse events. This may permit other researchers to be more aware of expected outcomes, and a standard technique could be established.

A method to determine volatile contaminants in polyethylene terephthalate (PET) packages by HDC-GC-FID and its application to post-consumer materials

A simple and low cost method to determine volatile contaminants in post-consumer recycled PET flakes was developed and validated by Headspace Dynamic Concentration and Gas Chromatography-Flame Ionization Detection (HDC-GC-FID). The analytical parameters evaluated by using surrogates include: correlation coefficient, detection limit, quantification limit, accuracy, intra-assay precision, and inter-assay precision. In order to compare the efficiency of the proposed method to recognized automated techniques, post-consumer PET packaging samples collected in Brazil were used. GC-MS was used to confirm the identity of the substances identified in the PET packaging. Some of the identified contaminants were estimated in the post-consumer material at concentrations higher than 220 ng.g-1. The findings in this work corroborate data available in the scientific literature pointing out the suitability of the proposed analytical method.

A reliable measure of similarity based on dependency for short time series: an application to gene expression networks

Background: Microarray techniques have become an important tool to the investigation of genetic relationships and the assignment of different phenotypes. Since microarrays are still very expensive, most of the experiments are performed with small samples. This paper introduces a method to quantify dependency between data series composed of few sample points. The method is used to construct gene co-expression subnetworks of highly significant edges. Results: The results shown here are for an adapted subset of a Saccharomyces cerevisiae gene expression data set with low temporal resolution and poor statistics. The method reveals common transcription factors with a high confidence level and allows the construction of subnetworks with high biological relevance that reveals characteristic features of the processes driving the organism adaptations to specific environmental conditions. Conclusion: Our method allows a reliable and sophisticated analysis of microarray data even under severe constraints. The utilization of systems biology improves the biologists ability to elucidate the mechanisms underlying celular processes and to formulate new hypotheses.

Prospective and Randomized Comparison of Two Techniques of Staple Line Reinforcement During Open Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass: Oversewing and Bioabsorbable Seamguard (R)

Aims: Surgical staple line dehiscence usually leads to severe complications. Several techniques and materials have been used to reinforce this stapling and thus reduce the related complications. The objective was to compare safety of two types of anastomotic reinforcement in open gastric bypass. Methods: A prospective, randomized study comparing an extraluminal suture, fibrin glue, and a nonpermanent buttressing material, Seamguard (R), for staple line reinforcement. Fibrin glue was excluded from the study and analysis after two leaks, requiring surgical reintervention, antibiotic therapy, and prolonged patient hospitalization. Results: Twenty patients were assigned to the suture and Seamguard reinforcement groups. The groups were similar in terms of preoperative characteristics. No staple line dehiscence occurred in the two groups, whereas two cases of dehiscence occurred in the fibrin glue group. No mortality occurred and surgical time was statistically similar for both techniques. Seamguard made the surgery more expensive. Conclusion: In our service, staple line reinforcement in open bariatric surgery with oversewing or Seamguard was considered to be safe. Seamguard application was considered to be easier than oversewing, but more expensive.

Automated supervised classification of variable stars in the CoRoT programme Method and application to the first four exoplanet fields

Aims. In this work, we describe the pipeline for the fast supervised classification of light curves observed by the CoRoT exoplanet CCDs. We present the classification results obtained for the first four measured fields, which represent a one-year in-orbit operation. Methods. The basis of the adopted supervised classification methodology has been described in detail in a previous paper, as is its application to the OGLE database. Here, we present the modifications of the algorithms and of the training set to optimize the performance when applied to the CoRoT data. Results. Classification results are presented for the observed fields IRa01, SRc01, LRc01, and LRa01 of the CoRoT mission. Statistics on the number of variables and the number of objects per class are given and typical light curves of high-probability candidates are shown. We also report on new stellar variability types discovered in the CoRoT data. The full classification results are publicly available.

Electrical and Magnetic Characterization of BSCCO and YBCO HTS Tapes for Fault Current Limiter Application

Several high temperature superconductor (HTS) tapes have been developed since the late eighties. Due to the new techniques applied for their production, HTS tapes are becoming feasible and practical for many applications. In this work, we present the test results of five commercial HTS tapes from the BSCCO and YBCO families (short samples of 200 mm). We have measured and analyzed their intrinsic and extrinsic properties and compared their behaviors for fault current limiter (FCL) applications. Electrical measurements were performed to determine the critical current and the n value through the V-I relationship under DC and AC magnetic fields. The resistance per unit length was determined as a function of temperature. The magnetic characteristics were analyzed through susceptibility curves as a function of temperature. As transport current generates a magnetic field surrounding the HTS material, the magnetic measurements indicate the magnetic field supported by the tapes under a peak current 1.5 times higher than the critical current, I(c). By pulsed current tests the recovery time and the energy/volume during a current fault were also analyzed. These results are in agreement with the data found in the literature giving the most appropriate performance conductor for a FCL device (I(peak) = 4 kA) to be used in a 220 V-60 Hz grid.

Proposal for underwater structural analysis using the techniques of ESPI and digital holography

The purpose of this article is to study the application of the holographic interferometry techniques in the structural analysis of submarine environment. These techniques are widely used today, with applications in many areas. Nevertheless, its application in submarine environments presents some challenges. The application of two techniques, electronic speckle pattern interferometry (ESPI) and digital holography, comparison of advantages and disadvantages of each of them is presented. A brief study is done on the influence of water properties and the optical effects due to suspended particles as well as possible solutions to minimize these problems. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Application of Fluorescence to the Study of Crude Petroleum

Crude petroleum oils are complex mixtures of different compounds (mainly organic), which are obtained from an extensive range of different geological sources. The fluorescence of crude petroleum oils derives largely from the aromatic hydrocarbon fraction, and this fluorescence emission is strongly influenced by the chemical composition (e.g., fluorophore and quencher concentrations) and physical characteristics (e.g., viscosity and optical density) of the oil. The fluorescence spectroscopy (FS) is increasingly used in petroleum technology due the availability of better optical detection techniques, because FS offers high sensitivity, good diagnostic potential, and relatively simple instrumentation. In this work we analyzed crude petroleum at different dilution in Nujol, a transparent mineral oil. The main objective of this work was to verify the possibility to measure crude oil emission spectroscopic without use of volatile solvents. The mixtures of nujol with different -crude oil concentrations were measured with a 10 mm optical path cuvette thus simplifying the fluorescence spectroscopy signal detection. The emission spectra were obtained by exciting the samples with a 400 W Xenon lamp at 350 nm, 450 nm and 532 nm. The emissions of the samples were collected perpendicularly with the excitation axis.

IBA application for rooting of Eucalyptus benthamii Maiden and Cambage x Eucalyptus dunnii Maiden minicuttings

IBA application for rooting of Eucalyptus benthamii Maiden and Cambage x Eucalyptus dunnii Maiden minicuttings. Eucalyptus has great importance in the forestry sector and many advances in the area of improvement have been achieved with the advent of biotechnological techniques. However, some promising genotypes still do not have multiplication protocols with cloning techniques, such as minicutting. The study aimed to evaluate IBA concentrations for survival, rooting and vegetative vigor of E. benthamii x E. dunnii minicuttings, and determine the maximum technical efficiency dose. Ministumps H12, H19 and H20 clones were cultivated in a clonal minigarden under a semi-hydroponic system. For rooting, the rninicutting basal portion was plunged in hydro-alcoholic solutions, whose concentrations were: 0; 2,000; 4,000; 6,000 and 8,000 mg L(-1) of IBA. The experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design, with the factors consisting of three clones and five IBA concentrations, with five replications, containing 10 minicuttings per replication. IBA positively influenced the minicutting rooting processes, with differentiated behavior between the clones, with 30.32 to 55.45% rooting variation. The positives increments occurred until the highest IBA concentration for H12 and H19 clones. However, the range between 4,000 and 6,000 mg L(-1) of IBA treatments promoted the best rooting results for the H20 clone.

Application of hydrophobic resin adhesives to acid-etched dentin with an alternative wet bonding technique

Hydrophilic dentin adhesives are prone to water sorption that adversely affects the durability of resin-dentin bonds. This study examined the feasibility of bonding to dentin with hydrophobic resins via the adaptation of electron microscopy tissue processing techniques. Hydrophobic primers were prepared by diluting 2,2-bis[4(2-hydroxy-3-methacryloyloxy-propyloxy)-phenyl] propane/triethyleneglycol dimethacrylate resins with known ethanol concentrations. They were applied to acid-etched moist dentin using an ethanol wet bonding technique that involved: (1) stepwise replacement of water with a series of increasing ethanol concentrations to prevent the demineralized collagen matrix from collapsing; (2) stepwise replacement of the ethanol with different concentrations of hydrophobic primers and subsequently with neat hydrophobic resin. Using the ethanol wet bonding technique, the experimental primer versions with 40, 50, and 75% resin exhibited tensile strengths which were not significantly different from commercially available hydrophilic three-step adhesives that were bonded with water wet bonding technique. The concept of ethanol wet bonding may be explained in terms of solubility parameter theory. This technique is sensitive to water contamination, as depicted by the lower tensile strength results from partial dehydration protocols. The technique has to be further improved by incorporating elements of dentin permeability reduction to avoid water from dentinal tubules contaminating water-free resin blends during bonding. (c) 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res 84A: 19-29, 2008.

Exploratory Approach to the use of Techniques of Regression Analysis and Pooled Analysis in Studies of Consumer Behavior

This paper is part of a large study to assess the adequacy of the use of multivariate statistical techniques in theses and dissertations of some higher education institutions in the area of marketing with theme of consumer behavior from 1997 to 2006. The regression and conjoint analysis are focused on in this paper, two techniques with great potential of use in marketing studies. The objective of this study was to analyze whether the employement of these techniques suits the needs of the research problem presented in as well as to evaluate the level of success in meeting their premisses. Overall, the results suggest the need for more involvement of researchers in the verification of all the theoretical precepts of application of the techniques classified in the category of investigation of dependence among variables.

An investigation of the anti-pronation effect of two taping methods after application and exercise

This study investigated the effect of two anti-pronation taping techniques on vertical navicular height, an indicator of foot pronation, after its application and 20 min of exercise. The taping techniques were: the low dye (LD) and low dye with the addition of calcaneal slings and reverse sixes (LDCR). A repeated measures study was used. It found that LDCR was superior to LD and control immediately after application and exercise. LD was better than control immediately after application but not after exercise. These findings provide practical directions to clinicians regularly using anti-pronation taping techniques.