A simple solver for linear integer systems is designed and accelerated on aCycloneV SoC chip that contains Cortex-A based MCU, programmable FPGA, andinter-connect bridges. The solver is designed based on the Gaussian Elimination method, where a system coefficient matric is converted to a Row-Echelon matrix and performing back Back-Substitution to solve system variables. The matrix conversion is implemented in the FPGA with serial and parallel architectures, where the processing of two equations is performed using single and multiple reducer modules. In comparison with the software-based solver, the solver with hardware based-based matrix conversion modules are faster by at least 75% despite very high MCU clock and data transfer overhead between the subsystems.

Within the aerospace design, analysis and optimization community, there is an increasing demand to finalize the preliminary design phase of the wing as quickly as possible without losing much on accuracy. This includes rapid generation of designs, an early adaption of higher fidelity models and automation in structural analysis of the internal structure of the wing. To perform the structural analysis, the aerodynamic load can be transferred to the wing using many different methods. Generally, for preliminary analysis, indirect load transfer method is used and for detailed analysis, direct load transfer method is used. For the indirect load transfer method, load is discretized using shear-moment-torque (SMT) curve and applied to ribs of the wing. For the direct load transfer method, the load is distributed using one-way Fluid-Structure Interaction (FSI) and applied to the skin of the wing. In this research, structural analysis is performed using both methods and the nodal displacement is compared. Further, to optimize the internal structure, iterative changes are made in the number of structural members. To accommodate these changes in geometry as quickly as possible, the parametric design method is used through Engineering SketchPad (ESP). ESP can also provide attributions the geometric feature and generate multi-fidelity models consistently. ESP can generate the Nastran mesh file (.bdf) with the nodes and the elements grouped according to their geometric attributes. In this research, utilizing the attributions and consistency in multi-fidelity models an API is created between ESP and Nastran to automatize the multi-fidelity structural optimization. This API generates the design with appropriate parameters and mesh file using ESP. Through the attribution in the mesh file, the API works as a pre-processor to apply material properties, boundary condition, and optimization parameters. The API sends the mesh file to Nastran and reads the results file to iterate the number of the structural member in design. The result file is also used to transfer the nodal deformation from lower-order fidelity structural models onto the higher-order ones to have multi-fidelity optimization. Here, static structural optimization on the whole wing serves as lower fidelity model and buckling optimization on each stiffened panel serves as higher fidelity model. To further extend this idea, a parametric model of the whole aircraft is also created.<br>

As a consequence from the negative impact on the envirionment and many consumers growing lack of confidence for fashion industry companies, increasing demand for transparency in sustainability has developed during the last years. This is stated by the generations Y and Z. Despite the increased awareness about transparency and sustainability, however it seems as most of these consumers have not changed their behavior when hey are buying clothes The reason for this might be a lack of clear labelling and marketing of sustainable alternatives.  The purpose of this thesis is to try to explore consumer's attitudes among members of the generations Y and Z towards labelling with focus on sustainability, and thereby if fashion companies could affect their sales in a positive way through clearer sustainability labelling.The research is made through a quantitative survey that measures attitudes from respondents born between the years 1980 to 2000 regarding transparency, sustainability and labelling within the fashion industry. The result of the study indicates that respondents that take a real interest in consuming in a sustainable way have good knowledge of diffrent sustainability labels. But many of the total number of respondenters have relatively poor knowledge about different kinds of sustainability labels. The majority of the respondents say that they think it would be interesting to know more about the products environmental effects. And the respondents also say that they feel satisfied when they buy clothes from brands that have a clear and visible sustainability labelling. The stimulating feeling of satisfaction is something that the companies could use to get a long time strengthening of the brand, och also wich could effect their sales in a positive way.  From the study can be said that it seems to exist a potential for fashion companies to reach positive sales effects if efforts was taken to present more clearly and easily understandable information about sustainability and if they had better sustainability labelling for clothes. / Som en följd av negativa miljökonsekvenser och konsumenters bristande förtroende för företag i modebranschen ställer konsumenterna krav på en högre grad transparens av företagens hållbarhetsarbete. Detta anger konsumenter från generationerna benämna som Y och Z. Trots den ökade medvetenheten om transparens och hållbarhet har inte en förändring gentemot en mer hållbar konsumtion och hållbara val skett. En anledning till detta anges vara bristen på tydlig märkning och marknadsföring av hållbara alternativ.  Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka attityder till miljömärkningar vid köp av kläder hos konsumenter som tillhör generationerna Y och Z och om företagen genom tydligare hållbarhetsinformation skulle kunna påverka sin försäljning positivt. Studien är genomförd genom en kvantitativ enkätundersökning som mäter attityder tillhörande respondenter födda under 1980- till 2000-talet gentemot transparens, hållbarhet och miljömärkningar i modebranschen.  Resultaten som framkom av studien redogör för att respondenter i som är intresserade av ett hållbart köpbeteende i stor grad känner till olika miljömärkningar. Likaså är det många konsumenter som har en svag kännedom om dessa. Majoriteten av respondenterna tycker att det vore intressant att få reda på produkters miljöbelastning och respondenterna känner sig nöjda med varumärken som har en tydligare miljöredovisning. Av att respondenterna känner sig nöjda och har en positiv syn på företaget antas det att det skulle kunna påverka företagens försäljning och således lönsamhet positivt. Studien visar att det finns en god potential för företag inom modebranschen att kunna uppnå en positiv effekt i sin försäljning av ökad grad av hållbarhetstänkande samt tydlig och lättillgänglig märkning av kläder.

Metabolic disturbances associated with central obesity and insulin resistance might underlie the higher rates of diabetes and coronary heart disease in South Asians compared with Europeans. A cross sectional study of 135 healthy South Asians and Europeans, aged 40-55 years, was performed to test whether lower insulin sensitivity in South Asians is explained by ethnic differences in body fat pattern and to establish if there are ethnic differences in postprandial triglyceride and intramyocellular lipid (IMCL) content that are associated with insulin sensitivity. Visceral fat area (VFA), measured by CT scan, was higher in South Asians than in Europeans in analyses adjusted for age, sex and body mass index (p=0.001). VFA was strongly associated with insulin sensitivity index (ISI), measured by the short insulin tolerance test, in both groups independently of total % body fat (measured by DEXA scan). In age and sex adjusted analyses ISI was 0.71 % min-1 lower in South Asians (95% CI -1.18 to -0.25, p=0.003). Adjustment for body fat pattern and triglyceride (fasting and 8 hour postprandial) reduced the ethnic difference in ISI to - 0.41 % min-1 (95% Cl -0.86 to 0.03, p=0.066). In both groups 8 hour postprandial triglyceride was highly correlated with ISI and VFA and the relationship of ISI to VFA was eliminated by adjusting for triglyceride. In a sub- study, mean IMCL content (measured by magnetic resonance spectroscopy) was higher in South Asians (p=0.046). In Europeans IMCL was correlated positively with % body fat, waist/hip ratio, VFA and negatively with ISI. In South Asians IMCL was not significantly related to ISI or obesity. We conclude that body fat pattern and IMCL cannot account for ethnic difference in insulin sensitivity. Alterations of lipid metabolism, possibly in the postprandial period, are likely to underlie the association of central obesity with insulin resistance.

visando o aumento de sua competitividade a interação entre empresas e governos se torna fundamental para proporcionar as condições econômicas adequadas a operação da empresa. No novo cenário mundial, a inovação assume papel preponderante como o principal fator que determina a competitividade das empresas, e conseqüentemente, das nações, cujas políticas industriais passam a ser, na realidade, políticas de inovação tecnológica. Este trabalho estuda os principais instrumentos de política industrial utilizados pelos governos, situando-os num contexto histórico, a fim de recolher subsídios para analisar a atual política industrial brasileira e compará-la com a de outros países mais avançados. A interpretação das empresas de alta tecnologia com relação as medidas para melhorar a capacitação tecnológica e a competitividade das empresas brasileiras, incluídas na Política Industrial, de 1990, e avaliada através de uma pesquisa de campo. O trabalho conclui sugerindo a redefinição de objetivos e a priorização de alguns instrumentos como alternativas para a reorientação da política industrial brasileira.

O veneno de animais contém um arsenal de toxinas que desencadeia respostas fisiológicas e bioquímicas específicas. A crotamina, um peptídio catiônico (4,4 kDa, pI 9,5), é um dos componentes mais abundantes do veneno de cascavel Sul Arrericana (Crotalus durissus terrificus). No Brasil, há populações de C. d. terrificus que expressam ou não a crotamina no veneno. Em um único espécime de C. d. terrificus crotamina-positivo, foram isolados cDNAs precursores de duas isoformas de crotamina, dentre as quais a crotamina lle-19, presente somente no veneno de C.d. ruruima. Análise por Northern blot de RNA total e mensageiro de glândulas de C.d. terrificus crotamina-positivo e -negativo, indica que a expressão é defectiva em espécimes de cascavel crotamina-negativo. O gene da crotamina (Crt-pl) foi isolado e possui três exons interrompidos por dois introns de diferentes fases e tamanhos. O exon I codifica a totalidade do peptídio sinal; o exon II codifica os três resíduos carboxi-terminais do peptídio sinal, bem como a maior parte da toxina madura; o terceiro exon codifica os resíduos terminais da toxina. Tentativa de identificar o pseudogene da crotamina, que indicaria a ausência de transcritos na glânlula de veneno, permitiu isolar um gene parálogo ao da crotamina, isto é o gene crotasin (Cts-p2). Esse gene apresenta a mesma organização estrutural do gene da crotamina, contudo, o intron I é cerca de 800 pares de base mais longo e o exon II é hipermutado. Esse gene é expresso em diferentes tecidos de cascavel, majoritariamente no pâncreas, mas insignificantemente nas glândulas de veneno. Surpreendentemente, esse gene é também detectado no genoma de C. d. terrificus crotamina-positivo, sugerindo que o gene de crotamina é o produto de uma duplicação gênica, bem como da evolução acelerada que operou restritivamente ao exon II. Buscando as funções do produto desse gene nos tecidos de cascavel, por alinhamento de domínios protéicos e outras famílias de peptídios de vertebrados, duas categorias foram encontradas: peptídios catiônicos antibióticos (&#946;-defensinas) e domínios ricos em cisteína de receptores de fator de crescimento. Testes antibióticos indicam que o crotasin, a crotamina e oligopeptídios derivados sintéticos possuem certa atividade microbicida seletiva. Por outro lado, ensaios com células-tronco embrionárias de camundongo e crotamina de veneno mostram que a crotamina é citotóxica em concentrações milimolares, mas induz a diferenciação dos corpos embrionários, em concentrações micromolares. Esses achados demonstram a multi-funcionalidade de peptídios catiônicos, com três pontes de cisteína precisamente arranjadas, é decorrente da versatilidade dos domínios protéicos anfipáticos, que permitem interação com a membrana plasmática, modulando canais iônicos e receptores celulares. / Abstract not available.

Ageing, immunity and stress tolerance are inherent characteristics of all organisms. In animals, these traits are regulated, at least in part, by forkhead transcription factors in response to upstream signals from the Insulin/Insulin–like growth factor signalling (IIS) pathway. In the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, these phenotypes are molecularly linked such that activation of the forkhead transcription factor DAF-16 both extends lifespan and simultaneously increases immunity and stress resistance. It is known that lifespan varies significantly among the Caenorhabditis species but, although DAF-16 signalling is highly conserved, it is unclear whether this phenotypic linkage occurs in other species. In this project we investigate this phenotypic covariance by comparing longevity, stress resistance and immunity in four Caenorhabditis species. We show, using phenotypic analysis of DAF-16 influenced phenotypes, that among four closely related Caenorhabditis nematodes, the gonochoristic species (Caenorhabditis remanei and Caenorhabditis brenneri) have diverged significantly with a longer lifespan, improved stress resistance and higher immunity than the hermaphroditic species (Caenorhabditis elegans and Caenorhabditis briggsae). Interestingly, we also observe significant differences in expression levels between the daf-16 homologues in these species using Quantitative Real-Time PCR, which positively correlate with the observed phenotypes. We also provide additional evidence in support of a role for DAF-16 in regulating phenotypic coupling by using a combination of wildtype isolates, constitutively active daf-16 mutants and bioinformatic analysis. Finally, we take a closer look at the daf-16 gene and its isoforms in C. elegans and their role in driving specific responses to stress. These findings impact upon our understanding of the diversification of the IIS pathway and the evolution of longevity in general, and illustrate how such differences could explain both inter and intra-species differences in ageing, immunity and stress response.

Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Mechanical Engineering, 2014. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (page 59). / Solar lighting technologies have reached a point where they are affordable in many developing countries. While many of these products have had a positive impact on communities, the market also has poorly designed and manufactured products that develop a poor reputation among users and hurt adoption rates of solar technologies. current efforts to evaluate solar lanterns have resulted in the development of standards and testing protocols for solar lanterns manufacturers. In this thesis, we explored the development of new user-focused testing methodologies that include both field testing and technical testing. In particular, for the field testing, we applied projective methods to understand biases in reported usage, addressed individual decision making process, and applied maximum difference methodology to understand user-valuation. For the technical testing, we developed a new system for characterizing the light output of solar lanterns and developed embedded instrumentation for solar lanterns to understand how they were used in the field. / by Amit A. Gandhi. / S.M.

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Aeronautics and Astronautics, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 121-124). / (cont.) of UAVs and targets. Additionally, sensitivity trials are used to capture each algorithm's robustness to real world planning environments where planners must negotiate incomplete or inaccurate system models. The mission performances of both methods degrade as the quality of their system models worsen / Cooperation is essential for numerous tasks. Cooperative planning seeks actions to achieve a team's common set of objectives by balancing both the benefits and the costs of execution. Uncertainty in action outcomes and external threats complicates this task. Planning algorithms can be generally classified into two categories: exact and heuristic. In this thesis, an exact planner, based on Markov decision processes, and a heuristic, receding horizon controller are evaluated in typical planning problems. The exact planner searches for an optimal policy with global contingencies, while the heuristic controller sequentially approximates the global plans over local horizons. Generally, the two planners trade mission and computational performance. Although the results are limited to specific problem instances, they provide characterizations of the algorithms' capabilities and limitations. The exact planner's policy provides an optimal course of action for all possible conditions over the mission duration; however, the algorithm consumes substantial computational resources. On the other hand, the heuristic approach does not guarantee optimality, but may form worthy plans without evaluating every contingency. On a fully-observable battlefield, the planners coordinate a team of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to obtain a maximum reward by destroying targets. Stochastic components, including UAV capability and attrition, represent uncertainty in the simulated missions. For a majority of the examined scenarios, the exact planner exhibits statistically better mission performance at considerably greater computational cost in comparison to the heuristic controller. Scalability studies show that these trends intensify in larger missions that include increasing numbers / by Rikin Bharat Gandhi. / S.M.

Thesis (M.Eng.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references. / by Saumil J. Gandhi. / M.Eng.