45 research outputs found
Ecce Hommo: el relato del Hijo del Hombre: Un análisis en torno a la novela Um homem chamado Jesus de Frei Betto
No full textEl presente artículo propone una análisis literario de la novela del escritor brasileño Frei Betto dedicada a la vida de Jesús-Um homem chamado Jesus (2009)-, para demostrar que la misma forma parte del proyecto político e intelectual en el cual se inscribe su autor: la perspectiva de la Teología de la liberación y su rol como militante en los Círculos Bíblicos de Carlos Mesters y en las CEBS. El diseño de la literatura de Betto dedicada a la representación de ciertos motivos religiosos cristianos, todos los cuales giran en torno a la figura del personaje de Jesús, se encuentra permeado por la visión particular que como intelectual religioso brasileño recibió de la Teología de la Liberación y de su experiencia militante; junto con una mirada particular en torno al discurso literario como fuente pedagógica. En conclusión, militancia, religión y literatura forman parte para Frei Betto de un mismo proyecto en el cual lo que se pone en el centro de la discusión es la denuncia de sistemas de poder desiguales y opresivos.The present article proposes a literary analysis of Frei Betto’s novel –Um homem chamado Jesus (2009)– devoted to the life of Jesus. The aim is to demonstrate that Betto’s perspective of this historic character responds to his own intellectual and political project: his affi nity with Liberation Theology and his militancy in Mester’s Biblical Circles and Christian Base Communities (CEB). Betto’s novel is an example of the pedagogical role of literature to raise awareness about how past events can be reinterpreted from present events. The Brazilian author rethinks the life of Jesus in the present context from the point of view of Liberation Theology, and considers him as a victim of political persecution through his own intellectual and militancy life experience. Thus, according to Betto, literature and militancy are part of the same political and religious project.Fil: Paganelli, Pía. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Filosofía y Letras. Instituto de Literatura Hispanoamericana; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin
Designing a Metadata Model for Unstructured Document Management in Organizations
No full textAt present Document Management represents a critical problem for organizations, where a growing amount of information is produced in unstructured format. Metadata sets for Document Management addressing organizational needs are lacking, as most research efforts for Metadata specifications are focused on digital libraries and web communities requirements, rather than organizational ones. In this paper we propose a Metadata Model for Unstructured Document Management, called DMSML Document Management and Sharing Markup Language, which aims at modeling intrinsic properties of documents (e.g. title, author and keywords) as well as the relationships with the organizational context. Furthermore, while most metadata specifications don't rely on a well-developed data modeling methodology, our proposal is based on a three-layered data modeling approach, distinguishing a conceptual, logical and physical layer. This approach encourages understanding and easy adoption of metadata specifications among end users. At present we are developing a DMSML Framework prototype for validation purposes
Active Side Shafts Torsion Damping Control for Hybrid Electric Vehicles
No full textInternational audienceHybrid electric vehicles generally use an internal combustion engine and one or several electric drives. Optimization-based energy management strategies computes a power split between both the engine and the machine to minimize the fuel consumption. Nevertheless, the driving comfort is not taken into account. Due to its high torque bandwidth, the electric machine can be used to improve driving comfort. The objective of this paper is to propose the use the electric machine to actively damp the encountered side-shafts torque oscillations. The driveshaft torsional behavior is described and the corresponding comfort issues are highlighted. Simulations results have been done for the nominal case and to validate the controller behavior with respect to some un-modeled parameter variations
Document Management and Sharing Markup Language
No full textMetadata are a key mechanism for effective management, search and reuse of information in organizations, as a large amount of information is available in unstructured format. Existing metadata specifications map incompletely to requirements of document management in organizations, as they usually aim at representing intrinsic properties of documents (title, author, keywords, etc). In organizations, the value of
information depends also on the context of use (e.g. by whom, how and where information is accessed). In order to address these needs we propose a Metadata Model called DMSML (Document Management and Sharing Markup Language), which represents both intrinsic and context-of-use properties of documents. The metadata set should address requirements of genericity, extensibility and interoperability. Especially in order to facilitate interoperability we aim at integrating existing widely accepted standards in the DMSML specification. As regards extensibility, end users should be made capable of extending and refining the metadata set for specific application purposes, without being exposed to technical implementation details. Towards this end we investigate how
conceptual modelling can support integration and reuse of the DMSML metadata set and we propose a three-layer Metadata Model, which includes a conceptual, a logical and an XML-schema based syntax layer
Book Reviews
No full textBook Review 1Book Title: Physiological Function in Special EnvironmentsBook Author: Edited by Charles V. Paganelli & Leon E. FarhiSatellite Symposium of the American Physiological Society Fall Meeting (1985). Springer:Verlag New York Inc.Book Review 2Book Title: Parasitic DiseasesBook Author: M. Katz, D.D. Despommier & R. Gwadz Second edition, Springer-Veriag, 1988. 301 pages.Book Review 3Book Title: The Unheeded Cry - Animal Consciousness, Animal Pain, and ScienceBook Author: Bernard E. Rollin Published by the OUP. 308 pages
Hybrid vehicle energy management: singular optimal control
No full textHybrid vehicle energymanagement is often studied in simulation as an optimal control problem. Under strict convexity assumptions, a solution can be developed using Pontryagin’s minimum principle. In practice, however, many engineers do not formally check these assumptions resulting in the possible occurrence of so-called unexplained “numerical issues.” This paper intends to explain and solve these issues. Due to the binary controlled-state variable considered (e.g., switching on/off an internal combustion engine) and the use of a lookup table with linear interpolation (e.g., engine fuel consumption map), the corresponding Hamiltonian function can have multiple minima. Optimal control is not unique. Moreover, it is defined as being singular. Consequently, an infinite number of optimal state trajectories can be obtained. In this paper, a control law is proposed to easily construct a few of them
The Adam Smith Problem in Reverse: Self-Interest in Adam Smith’s \u3cem\u3eThe Wealth of Nations\u3c/em\u3e and \u3cem\u3eThe Theory of Moral Sentiments\u3c/em\u3e
No full textIn identifying the tensions between the two treatises that Adam Smith (1723-90) published during his lifetime\u27 - The Theory of Moral Sentiments\u27 (1759) and \u27The Wealth of Nations(1776) - \u27it can be seen that the first is more favorable to self-interest. The author presents the effects of self-interest under ideal conditions, examines some of the abuses of self-interest, and describes how Smith deals with abuses of self-interest. Smith\u27s first, lesser known treatise paints a picture of self-interest that more closely resembles that portrayed in modern economics: both the individual and society are better off when individuals pursue self-interest. In fact, there are both positive and negative accounts of self-interest, in addition to the remedies available against its excesses. Thus, a specific situation or set of circumstances may apply with cogency to the butcher, the baker, and the brewer, but the same does not necessarily hold true for merchants or manufacturers
Author Correction: A new microdispersed albumin derivative potentially useful for radio-guided surgery of occult breast cancer lesions (Scientific Reports, (2019), 9, 1, (5623), 10.1038/s41598-019-42014-2)
No full text: An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper
Determinants for success rates of temporary anchorage devices in orthodontics : A meta-analysis (n > 50)
No full textINTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to review the literature and evaluate the failure rates and factors that affect the stability and success of temporary anchorage devices (TADs) used as orthodontic anchorage. METHODS: Data were collected from electronic databases: MEDLINE database, Scopus, and Web of Knowledge. Four combinations of term were used as keywords: screw orthodontic failure, screw orthodontic success, implant orthodontic failure, and implant orthodontic success. The following selection criteria were used to select appropriate articles: articles on implants and screws used as orthodontic anchorage, data only from human subjects, studies published in English, studies with more than 50 implants/screws, and both prospective and retrospective clinical studies. RESULTS: The search provided 209 abstracts about TADs used as anchorage. After reading and applying the selection criteria, 26 articles were included in the study. The data obtained were divided into two topics: which factors affected TAD success and to what degree and in how many articles they were quoted. Clinical factors were divided into three main groups: patient-related, implant-related, and managementrelated factors. CONCLUSIONS: Although all articles included in this meta-analysis reported success rates of greater than 80 per cent, the factors determining success rates were inconsistent between the studies analysed and this made conclusions difficult. © The Author 2013. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Orthodontic Society. All rights reserved
Modelling the progression of cervical dilatation in spontaneous labour
No full textIntroduction The first attempt to model the progression of cervical dilation during spontaneous labour of pregnant women dates back to 1955 [1]. From the graphical analysis of the time profiles of dilation observed in 500 women aged 13 to 42 years, the Author derived a mean labour sigmoid curve, consisting in a latent phase followed by an active phase ending in a deceleration phase. This cervimetric graph, or cervicogram, is still reported in current manuals of obstetrics. Zhang et al [2, 3] fitted cervical dilation profiles with mixed models based on 10th or 8th degree polynomials, and concluded that the duration of latent and active phases largely differs from woman to woman, and that there is no deceleration at the end of the active phase. For this reason, these Authors supply charts reporting the empirical 95th centile of the distribution of labour duration for different values of cervical dilation at admission to labour room, thus abandoning the idea of modelling the progression of cervical dilation. The aim of this presentation is to show the use of parsimonious nonlinear mixed models to trace cervimetric charts, reporting current cervical dilation vs time to full dilation. Data and methods Data here used derive from an observational study including 328 low-risk women (146 primiparae and 182 multiparae), who delivered at Buzzi Children’s Hospital between April and June 2013 [4]. All women delivered vaginally at term, after uncomplicated single pregnancy and spontaneous labour managed by midwives, without any kind of medical intervention. We had to take into account a lot of difficulties and hindrances to construct a model for the progression of cervical dilation. The time of the beginning of labour is unknown (1); women are admitted to labour room at different degrees of dilation (2); cervical dilation measures are taken at irregular intervals as required by clinical practice (3); midwives usually assess cervical dilation with fingers, though the measure is reported in cm, from 0 (no dilation) to 10 (full dilation) (4); full cervical dilation is not indicated with a measure, but with a value of 10 cm, arbitrarily assigned to all women (5); individual dilation profiles are largely incomplete, a maximum of 5 measures per woman was recorded before full dilation, and only 60 women (18%) were assessed twice or more (6); the progression of cervical dilation is extremely erratic (7). Since dilation cannot be related to the unknown time from the onset of labour, we considered, as already suggested by Zhang et al [2], the time remaining to the attainment of full cervical dilation (t, time to full dilation), and expressed current dilation (yi(t), from 1 to 9 cm) observed in the ith woman as a function of a parsimonious nonlinear model (3 parameters only), instead of the 9 to 11 parameters of the polynomials used by Zhang et al [2, 3]: i i i i i(t) logit(y (t)/10) α= ×β+ log(t δ+ ) ε+
In {1}, logit(yi(t)/10) is a linear function of the log-transformation of time: parameter βi is the dilation velocity constant, the ratio α βii determines the time at maximum dilation velocity, and δi modulates the shape of the log-transformation of time; intra-individual random terms εi(t) were assumed to approximate a normal distribution, with variance proportional to {[E(yi(t))/10][1–E(yi(t))}-1. When back-transformed to the original scale, expression {1} defines a family of strongly asymmetrical never-decreasing (since cervical dilation is an irreversible process) sigmoid curves, with a slight slowdown of dilation velocity a little before, or at full dilation, in this latter case the curve presents an exponential shape. Because cervical dilation profiles were largely incomplete, we could not resort to the usual two-stage models [5] to trace cervimetric charts, but we were forced to adopt a nonlinear mixed model [6], which can obtain estimates of the parameters of the individual cervical dilation curves also for the women with profiles made up by a number of observations lower the number of paramtes (in our case 1 or 2 assesments only): i 0 i P 0 i P 0 P i(t) logit(y (t)/10) α= α+ α+ x (β+ β+β+ x)log(t δ+ δ+ x) ε+ {2} Parity (x=0 for primiparae, x=1 for multiparae) was included as a covariate into model {2}, since multiparae are known to progress somewhat faster in active-phase labour [7]. Parameters α0 and β0 refer to primiparae, αP and βP refer to the difference between multiparae and primiparae, whereas δ0 and δP modulate the log-transformation of time by parity. Random terms αi and βi, which model inter-individual differences, are assumed to have bivariate normal distribution with E(αi)=E(βi)=0 and unstructered covariance matrix Cov(αi,βi)=[ ] 2 2 σα σαβ σβ , , . Models {1} and {2} were fitted using PROC NLIN and NLMIXED of SAS/STAT® software (SAS Institute, Cary, NC; v.9.4, 2013). Results Although based on 3 parameters only, model {1} proved to be flexible enough to describe cervical dilation profiles of rather different shape. As shown in figure 1 (left), concerning primiparous women, profiles may present an inflection point (i.e. a maximum dilation velocity) already 4 hours before the attainment of full dilation (orange curve) or at about 1 hour (dark red and green curves) or in the last half hour of the dilation process (the remaining profiles). Ten hours before the attainment of full dilation there are women with no more than 1 cm dilation and women with so much as 4 cm dilation. During the labour, dilation velocity may vary considerably from woman to woman: 10 hours before the attainment of full dilation, dilation velocity is always less than 0.5 cm/hr, but maximum velocity may be more than 3.5 cm/hr when initial dilation is 1 cm (red and blue curves) or be about 1 cm/hr when initial dilation is 4 cm (green curve). It is worth noting that women with different initial dilation (red curve: 1.7 cm, olive green curve: 2.7 cm) may present the same maximum velocity (1.7 cm/hr), since their dilation profiles differ in convexity. Figure 1 (right) shows, plotted on the cervicometric charts traced with mixed model {2}, the cervical dilation profiles (green lines) of the 95 primiparous women with 2 or more assessments and the dilation values (green dots) of the 51 women with 1 assessment only, predicted on the basis of model {2}. Green dots As expected, though individual profiles differ largely, the large majority of them lies completely within the interval 3rd – 97th centile of the cervicometric charts. At 10 hours, the distribution of dilation values conditional on time to full dilation is highly right skewed, then positive skewness decreases and the distribution becomes symmetrical when median dilation is 5 cm, and left skewed subsequently. The same results were observed in the 182 multiparous women included in the study. We observe that a 4 cm dilation is the 97th centile 10 hours before the attainment of full dilation, and is the 3 rd centile at 0.5 hours. This means that, at 10 hours, 3% of women present more than 4 cm dilation, but that another 3% of women still present a 4 cm dilation half an hour before the end of dilation process. So a 4 cm dilation observed from 10 to 0.5 hours before the attainment of full dilation cannot be regarded as unusual. Analogously, at 10 hours, 10% and 25% of women present more than 3 and 2 cm dilation, respectively, but 10% and 25% of women still present a 3 or 2 cm dilation, 1 and 3 hours before the end of dilation process. Our data confirm that labour progresses faster in multiparae than in primiparae: e.g. a 5 cm dilation is achieved 45 min vs 1 hour and half before the end of dilation process in multiparae. Primiparae present a wider variability (+30% in terms of interquartile range) in the distribution of dilation values conditional on time to full dilation. Conclusions In 1955 Friedman [1] wrote: “The dynamic nature of parturitional change has, in the past, rendered exceedingly difficult the detailed and critical analysis of its vagaries”. Actually, try to model the kinetics of the cervical dilation process turned out still to be a very hard task. Nonetheless some important points were established: (1) a parsimonious nonlinear parametric model is suitable to describe very different shapes of the dilation process, (2) mixed nonlinear models allow to trace plausible cervimetric charts even in the case of dilation profiles largely incomplete, (3) the above model provide quantitative estimates of the inter-individual variability and of the difference in the progression of cervical dilation between primiparae and multiparae. Unfortunately, the classical cervicograms give an unrealistic and useless picture of labour progression when referred to a single patient, the course of cervical dilation being largely erratic even in the case of spontaneous labour in uncomplicated pregnancies. In the first place, during labour the time remaining to the attainment of full cervical dilation is unknown, so the charts cannot be used in obstetric practice; in the second place a subsequent value of dilation cannot be predicted on the basis of the previous assessments. For these reasons, Ferrazzi et al [4] proposed cervimetric charts reporting the distribution of time needed to gain 1 cm in cervical dilation as a function of current dilation. Although theoretically usable, the practical value of these charts remains very low. In primiparous women, the time needed to gain 1 cm in dilation ranges from 10 (10th centile) to 110 min (90th centile) when current dilation is 1 cm, and from 5 to 70 min when current dilation is 9 cm. In multiparous women, the reference interval is somewhat narrower, the time needed ranging from 3 to 70 min when current dilation is 1 cm, and from 2 to 45 min when current dilation is 9 cm. On the basis of these results they concluded that the progression of cervical dilatation in normal human labour is unpredictable.
References 1. Friedman EA. Primigravid labor. A graphicostatistical analysis. Obstetrics and Gynecology 1955; 6:567-589. 2. Zhang J, Troendle JF, Yancey MK. Reassessing the labor curve in nulliparous women. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology 2002; 187:824-828. 3. Zhang J, Landy HJ, Branch DW, et al. Contemporary patterns of spontaneous labor with normal neonatal outcomes. Obstetrics and Gynecology 2010; 116:1281-1287. 4. Ferrazzi E, Milani S, Cirillo F, at al. Progression of cervical dilatation in normal human labor is unpredictable. Acta Obstet Gynecol Scand 2015; 94:1136-1144. 5. Laird NM, Ware JH. Random-effects models for longitudinal data. Biometrics 1982; 38:963-974. 6. Goldstein H. Nonlinear multilevel models, with an application to discrete response data. Biometrika 1991; 78:45-51. 7. Friedman EA. An objective approach to the diagnosis and management of abnormal labor. Bull N Y Acad Med 1972; 48:842-858
