Shape classification using complex network and Multi-scale Fractal Dimension

Shape provides one of the most relevant information about an object. This makes shape one of the most important visual attributes used to characterize objects. This paper introduces a novel approach for shape characterization, which combines modeling shape into a complex network and the analysis of its complexity in a dynamic evolution context. Descriptors computed through this approach show to be efficient in shape characterization, incorporating many characteristics, such as scale and rotation invariant. Experiments using two different shape databases (an artificial shapes database and a leaf shape database) are presented in order to evaluate the method. and its results are compared to traditional shape analysis methods found in literature. (C) 2009 Published by Elsevier B.V.

A quarter of a century of CBT : the vicissitudes of an idea

In 1983, a competency-based vocational education (CBVE) program began in Croydon Park College of TAFE, South Australia. This was six years before the Australian State Ministers of Vocational Education and Training decreed competency-based training (CBT) to be the national training imperative. Two reports were produced in 1985 and 1987, based on evaluations over a three-year period. 25 years on, the two authors have tracked down and interviewed some of the original staff in the program. This paper traces the vicissitudes of an idea - CBT - as it was conceived in 1982, implemented from 1983, evaluated over a three-year period and as it became transformed over the next generation. What were the features of CBVE then? How did these features alter over time? What contextual factors may account for shifts over this period? To respond to these questions, the paper uses data from 1983-85 and interview data from 2008.

Compartimentação morfotectônica da Alta Mogiana Paulista (Nordeste do Estado de São Paulo)

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Interactions of chromatin context, binding site sequence content, and sequence evolution in stress-induced p53 occupancy and transactivation.

Cellular stresses activate the tumor suppressor p53 protein leading to selective binding to DNA response elements (REs) and gene transactivation from a large pool of potential p53 REs (p53REs). To elucidate how p53RE sequences and local chromatin context interact to affect p53 binding and gene transactivation, we mapped genome-wide binding localizations of p53 and H3K4me3 in untreated and doxorubicin (DXR)-treated human lymphoblastoid cells. We examined the relationships among p53 occupancy, gene expression, H3K4me3, chromatin accessibility (DNase 1 hypersensitivity, DHS), ENCODE chromatin states, p53RE sequence, and evolutionary conservation. We observed that the inducible expression of p53-regulated genes was associated with the steady-state chromatin status of the cell. Most highly inducible p53-regulated genes were suppressed at baseline and marked by repressive histone modifications or displayed CTCF binding. Comparison of p53RE sequences residing in different chromatin contexts demonstrated that weaker p53REs resided in open promoters, while stronger p53REs were located within enhancers and repressed chromatin. p53 occupancy was strongly correlated with similarity of the target DNA sequences to the p53RE consensus, but surprisingly, inversely correlated with pre-existing nucleosome accessibility (DHS) and evolutionary conservation at the p53RE. Occupancy by p53 of REs that overlapped transposable element (TE) repeats was significantly higher (p<10-7) and correlated with stronger p53RE sequences (p<10-110) relative to nonTE-associated p53REs, particularly for MLT1H, LTR10B, and Mer61 TEs. However, binding at these elements was generally not associated with transactivation of adjacent genes. Occupied p53REs located in L2-like TEs were unique in displaying highly negative PhyloP scores (predicted fast-evolving) and being associated with altered H3K4me3 and DHS levels. These results underscore the systematic interaction between chromatin status and p53RE context in the induced transactivation response. This p53 regulated response appears to have been tuned via evolutionary processes that may have led to repression and/or utilization of p53REs originating from primate-specific transposon elements.

Collaborative evolution: the context surrounding the formation and the effectiveness of a school partnership in a divided community in Northern Ireland

This paper examines an initiative promoting collaboration between schools located in a city setting in Northern Ireland, which is broadly divided along ethnic and political lines. The schools involved, like the vast majority of schools in Northern Ireland, educate Protestant and Catholic children separately. This presents particular challenges for school collaboration as it implies the establishment of new, connected relationships in an education system, which is historically and contemporaneously more characterised by division. Since 2007, the schools in this study have been involved in an education initiative which promotes cross-sectoral shared learning in core areas of the curriculum with a view to promoting school improvement; the additional, indirect goal is also about improving community relations. However, over this period, the relationship between the institutions has deepened, leading schools to examine how they can sustain partnership and evolve collaborative practice. This paper explores how the partnership has evolved and assesses its effectiveness as a collaborative enterprise. The paper concludes by demonstrating how effective collaboration between schools in Northern Ireland mitigates the potentially negative impacts of educating children separately, but also how effective models of school collaboration are capable of providing enhanced learning opportunities for pupils and are also capable of developing the communities in which they are located.

First-best technological strategy in an Nth-BEST economic context: a case-study of the evolution of the Acindar steelplant in Rosario, Argentina""

Includes bibliography

The evolution of a community of practice at the Queensland University of Technology for lecturers involved in large first year units

Communities of practice (CoPs) may be defined as groups of people who are mutually bound by what they do together (Wenger, 1998, p. 2), that is, they “form to share what they know, to learn from one another regarding some aspects of their work and to provide a social context for that work” (Nickols, 2000, para. 1). They are “emergent” in that the shape and membership emerges in the process of activity (Lees, 2005, p. 7). People in CoPs share their knowledge and experiences freely with the purpose of finding inventive ways to approach new problems (Wenger & Snyder, 2000, p. 2). They can be seen as “shared histories of learning” (Wenger, 1998, p. 86). For some time, QUT staff have been involved in a number of initiatives aimed at sharing ideas and resources for teaching first year students such as the Coordinators of Large First Year Units Working Party. To harness these initiatives and maximise their influence, the leaders of the Transitions In Project (TIP)1 decided to form a CoP around the design, assessment and management of large first year units.

Preparing for Research Assessment: Co-evolution and Gamesmanship

In this paper we adopt a complex systems perspective to examine the perturbations caused by the introduction of the Research Quality Framework (RQF) at a research-intensive Australian university. This case is instructive as it 1) presents a Federal policy initiative that attempted to fundamentally alter the recognition and reward mechanism within a regulated funding environment, 2) analyses the strategies of an institution and its research groups as they sought to not only comply with the implementation of the RQF but to maximise their outcome,and 3) it reveals the ways that some actors used this perturbation to advance their own interests. In short, this case represents an instrumental study into the dynamics of how information systems, organisations, and individuals co-evolve in practice as they seek to navigate a complex problem scenario.

Visualizing the evolution of knowledge management capability in construction firms

A firm, as a dynamic, evolving, and quasi-autonomous system of knowledge production and application, develops knowledge management capability (KMC) through strategic learning in order to sustain competitive advantages in a dynamic environment. Knowledge governance mechanisms and knowledge processes connect and interact with each other forming learning mechanisms, which carry out double loop learning that drives genesis and evolution of KMC to modify operating routines that effect desired performance. This paper reports a study that was carried out within a context of construction contractors, a type of project-based firms, operating within the dynamic Hong Kong construction market. A multiple-case design was used to incorporate evidence from the literature and interviews, with the help of system dynamics modeling, to visualize the evolution of KMC. The study demonstrates the feasibility to visualize how a firm's KMC matches its operating environment over time. The findings imply that knowledge management (KM) applications can be better planned and controlled through evaluation of KM performance over time from a capability perspective.