Esta pesquisa reporta-se ao problema descrito na literatura científica como o “fracasso do ensino do cálculo”. Propusemos conhecer as noções que alunos da disciplina Cálculo Diferencial e Integral apresentam sobre limite, e também como a qualidade dessa noção ou conceito afeta a elaboração de noções sobre derivadas e integrais. Para obter essas noções, objetos de aprendizagem foram criados e disponibilizados online, em páginas de um site com domínio privado, mas de acesso aberto. Cada objeto de aprendizagem foi elaborado contendo uma situação-problema referente aos applets de cada página e um espaço de registro de respostas. Os applets abordam situações que permitem o estudo de limites, derivadas e integrais; foram elaborados no Geogebra. Os espaços de registro de respostas foram elaborados com tecnologia Google e incorporados à página do site. A metodologia consistiu na aplicação de atividades na disciplina Cálculo Diferencial e Integral. Nelas interagiram alunos e OA. As aplicações foram realizadas nas três unidades da disciplina. Para a complementação e investigação, foram feitas entrevistas inspiradas no método clínico piagetiano. Tanto os registros de respostas, quanto as entrevistas, foram autorizadas com a assinatura do termo de consentimento livre e esclarecido. Fundamenta-se a análise das respostas na Epistemologia Genética; em especial, na abstração reflexionante. A escolha deu-se devido ao caráter explicativo dessa teoria da gênese do conhecimento matemático. Os resultados demonstram que conhecimentos foram construídos em situação de interação entre alunos e OA. Várias noções foram registradas. Constatou-se, inclusive, conceituação de limite, de derivada e integral definida. Foi possível, a partir dos conhecimentos e noções apresentadas, estabelecer relações lógicas entre esses conhecimentos e, posteriormente, observar grupos com desenvolvimento cognitivo compatíveis com as relações lógicas apresentadas. O OA, com tecnologia Geogebra e Google, mostrou-se como um importante instrumento nos processos de desenvolvimento e aprendizagem do conceito de limite e dos demais conceitos da disciplina Cálculo Diferencial e Integral. Mostrou-se também como um importante instrumento para a avaliação no ambiente escolar a partir dos registros coletados. / This research refers to the problem described in the scientific literature as the "failure of calculus teaching". We propose to know the notions that students of the discipline Differential and Integral Calculus present on limit, and also how the quality of this notion or concept affects the elaboration of notions about derivatives and integrals. To get these notions, learning objects were created and made available online, on pages of a privately-owned, but open-access site. Each learning object was elaborated containing a problem situation regarding the applets of each page and a space of record of answers. The applets approach situations that allow the study of boundaries, derivatives and integrals; Were developed in Geogebra. Response log spaces were crafted using Google technology and embedded into the site page. The methodology consisted of the application of activities in the discipline Differential and Integral Calculus. In them they interacted students and OA. The applications were carried out in the three units of the discipline. For the complementation and investigation, interviews were made inspired by the Piagetian clinical method. Both the response records and the interviews were authorized with the signing of the informed consent form. It is based the analysis of the answers in the Genetic Epistemology; In particular, in reflective abstraction. The choice was due to the explanatory character of this theory of the genesis of mathematical knowledge. The results demonstrate that knowledge was built in a situation of interaction between students and OA. Several notions were recorded. It was also found a concept of limit, derivative and definite integral. It was possible, based on the knowledge and notions presented, to establish logical relations between these knowledges and, later, to observe groups with cognitive development compatible with the presented logical relations. The OA, with Geogebra and Google technology, proved to be an important instrument in the development and learning processes of the concept of boundary and other concepts of the Differential and Integral Calculus discipline. It was also shown as an important instrument for the evaluation in the school environment from the collected records.

This text is dealing with the intersection of three main elements: abstraction, geometrical form and distortion. Together these three paths forms garments around and in relation to the body. Throughout the project body is reduced into rectangular planes and cylinders. To reduce body into geometrical shapes can be explained as a method or a system through which body is approach as a neutral form. Because body is the source for abstraction, this approach can be applied to any part of the body and repeated in various compositions as it will always relate to a body form in some ways. The project also focuses on how to build holistic compositions through hues. Geometrically reduced body shapes are arranged through three dimensional compositions in which relationships between dominant, subdominant and subordinate forms are specifically in focus. Garments are embodied through weaving, Dominant and subdominant forms are investigated through distortion as a result of leaving warp and weft threads unattached in certain areas in the woven material. The technique expresses both organic and geometric in the material itself. In combination with colour blocks and panels and cylinders as forms, the technique was able to be translated into wearable forms. The project was developed as a dialogue between intuitive search and an intelligent reflective approach to outcomes. Because the projects put strong focus on subconscious notion of form emotions and senses plays an important role as guidance throughout the project. Findings are presented in collection of ten outfits where aesthetic qualities of form are put as a primary factor. / Program: Konstnärlig masterutbildning i mode- och textildesign

Agentes que utilizam técnicas de Aprendizado por Reforço (AR) buscam resolver problemas que envolvem decisões sequenciais em ambientes estocásticos sem conhecimento a priori. O processo de aprendizado desenvolvido pelo agente em geral é lento, visto que se concretiza por tentativa e erro e exige repetidas interações com cada estado do ambiente e como o estado do ambiente é representado por vários fatores, a quantidade de estados cresce exponencialmente de acordo com o número de variáveis de estado. Uma das técnicas para acelerar o processo de aprendizado é a generalização de conhecimento, que visa melhorar o processo de aprendizado, seja no mesmo problema por meio da abstração, ao explorar a similaridade entre estados semelhantes ou em diferentes problemas, ao transferir o conhecimento adquirido de um problema fonte para acelerar a aprendizagem em um problema alvo. Uma abstração considera partes do estado e, ainda que uma única não seja suficiente, é necessário descobrir qual combinação de abstrações pode atingir bons resultados. Nesta dissertação é proposto um método para seleção de abstração, considerando o processo de avaliação da aprendizagem durante o aprendizado. A contribuição é formalizada pela apresentação do algoritmo REPO, utilizado para selecionar e avaliar subconjuntos de abstrações. O algoritmo é iterativo e a cada rodada avalia novos subconjuntos de abstrações, conferindo uma pontuação para cada uma das abstrações existentes no subconjunto e por fim, retorna o subconjunto com as abstrações melhores pontuadas. Experimentos com o simulador de futebol mostram que esse método é efetivo e consegue encontrar um subconjunto com uma quantidade menor de abstrações que represente o problema original, proporcionando melhoria em relação ao desempenho do agente em seu aprendizado / Agents that use Reinforcement Learning (RL) techniques seek to solve problems that involve sequential decisions in stochastic environments without a priori knowledge. The learning process developed by the agent in general is slow, since it is done by trial and error and requires repeated iterations with each state of the environment and because the state of the environment is represented by several factors, the number of states grows exponentially according to the number of state variables. One of the techniques to accelerate the learning process is the generalization of knowledge, which aims to improve the learning process, be the same problem through abstraction, explore the similarity between similar states or different problems, transferring the knowledge acquired from A source problem to accelerate learning in a target problem. An abstraction considers parts of the state, and although a single one is not sufficient, it is necessary to find out which combination of abstractions can achieve good results. In this work, a method for abstraction selection is proposed, considering the evaluation process of learning during learning. The contribution is formalized by the presentation of the REPO algorithm, used to select and evaluate subsets of features. The algorithm is iterative and each round evaluates new subsets of features, giving a score for each of the features in the subset, and finally, returns the subset with the most highly punctuated features. Experiments with the soccer simulator show that this method is effective and can find a subset with a smaller number of features that represents the original problem, providing improvement in relation to the performance of the agent in its learning

A maioria das propostas de planejamento de rotas para robôs móveis não leva em conta a existência de soluções para problemas similares ao aprender a política para resolver um novo problema; e devido a isto, o problema de navegação corrente deve ser resolvido a partir do zero, o que pode ser excessivamente custoso em relação ao tempo. Neste trabalho é realizado o acoplamento do conhecimento prévio obtido de soluções similares, representado por uma política abstrata, a um processo de aprendizado por reforço. Além disto, este trabalho apresenta uma arquitetura para o aprendizado por reforço simultâneo, de nome ASAR, onde a política abstrata auxilia na inicialização da política para o problema concreto, e ambas as políticas são refinadas através da exploração. A fim de reduzir a perda de informação na construção da política abstrata é proposto um algoritmo, nomeado X-TILDE, que constrói uma política abstrata estocástica. A arquitetura proposta é comparada com um algoritmo de aprendizado padrão e os resultados demonstram que ela é eficaz em acelerar a construção da política para problemas práticos. / Most work in path-planning approaches for mobile robots does not take into account existing solutions to similar problems when learning a policy to solve a new problem, and consequently solves the current navigation problem from scratch, what can be very time consuming. In this work we couple a prior knowledge obtained from a similar solution to a reinforcement learning process. The prior knowledge is represented by an abstract policy. In addition, this work presents a framework for simultaneous reinforcement learning called ASAR, where the abstract policy helps start up the policy for the concrete problem, and both policies are refined through exploration. For the construction of the abstract policy we propose an algorithm called X-TILDE, that builds a stochastic abstract policy, in order to reduce the loss of information. The proposed framework is compared with a default learning algorithm and the results show that it is effective in speeding up policy construction for practical problems.

I am investigating a New Age spiritual movement called the Law of Attraction that has been the source of recent media attention due to the recent publication of a self-help book called The Secret. The book investigates this phenomenon, which is a theory that takes positive thinking to the extreme. The theory states that reality can be literally manifested through one's thoughts. I am interested in this trend because it supports consumerist values, entrepreneurship, and self-actualization while using socialist rhetoric to promote capitalist values. I am also interested in the implications that this rhetoric holds for women and marginalized groups. I will investigate how the theory draws on quotes from spiritual leaders, famous scientists, and revered world figures and abstracts their meanings by placing them in a paradigm for their own use. I will also look at how they use the authority of science and an appeal to traditionally Christian language to promote blind faith in this principle. I will look at how this movement positions consumerism and consumption as a means of self-actualization and spiritual salvation and analyze how the theory lends itself to the ideals of capitalism. Finally, I will emphasize how the Law of Attraction disregards women and marginalized groups by ignoring systemic restrains by focusing only on the power of the individual with a blatant disregard for social institutions and systems. This project will be a textual rhetorical analysis that will incorporate an ethnographic study, textual analysis, and a critical theoretical approach to theory. The goal of this project is to interrogate a contemporary self-help and New Age spiritual movement that is symptomatic of the contemporary preoccupation with self-actualization and the discourse of positive-thinking.

Within my studio practice I have been examining the aesthetics of leisure spaces, the implications of good and bad taste, and what it means to live one’s best life. Considering the history of design motifs and the influence of color upon the human psyche, my thesis exhibition of abstract paintings contains references to patterns, design movements, and modes of artifice that have historically been seen as brazen and tacky. These include nods to the Memphis Design group, faux marble, terrazzo, stucco, and artificial sand. Each has held an important place in the history of designed spaces, and at one time or another they were deeply celebrated before being criticized. I am drawn to the parallels between the surface treatment of furniture and architectural spaces, and the surface of a canvas. My use of materials includes a mixture of high- and lowbrow to reinterpret media such as highly pigmented acrylic paint, natural and artificial sand, volcanic pumice, and hardware store products for DIY home improvement. I use a formal, modernist painting language to elevate the artificial and superficial to the hierarchy associated with the moral underpinnings of modernism. By being entirely serious about the unserious, this work aims to question the value we assign to play and why tastefulness rarely aligns with fun.

The Semantic Web provides a framework for semantically annotating data on the web, and the Resource Description Framework (RDF) supports the integration of structured data represented in heterogeneous formats. Traditionally, the Semantic Web has focused primarily on more or less static data, but information on the web today is becoming increasingly dynamic. RDF Stream Processing (RSP) systems address this issue by adding support for streaming data and continuous query processing. To some extent, RSP systems can be used to perform complex event processing (CEP), where meaningful high-level events are generated based on low-level events from multiple sources; however, there are several challenges with respect to using RSP in this context. Event models designed to represent static event information lack several features required for CEP, and are typically not well suited for stream reasoning. The dynamic nature of streaming data also greatly complicates the development and validation of RSP queries. Therefore, reusing queries that have been prepared ahead of time is important to be able to support real-time decision-making. Additionally, there are limitations in existing RSP implementations in terms of both scalability and expressiveness, where some features required in CEP are not supported by any of the current systems. The goal of this thesis work has been to address some of these challenges and the main contributions of the thesis are: (1) an event model ontology targeted at supporting CEP; (2) a model for representing parameterized RSP queries as reusable templates; and (3) an architecture that allows RSP systems to be integrated for use in CEP. The proposed event model tackles issues specifically related to event modeling in CEP that have not been sufficiently covered by other event models, includes support for event encapsulation and event payloads, and can easily be extended to fit specific use-cases. The model for representing RSP query templates was designed as an extension to SPIN, a vocabulary that supports modeling of SPARQL queries as RDF. The extended model supports the current version of the RSP Query Language (RSP-QL) developed by the RDF Stream Processing Community Group, along with some of the most popular RSP query languages. Finally, the proposed architecture views RSP queries as individual event processing agents in a more general CEP framework. Additional event processing components can be integrated to provide support for operations that are not supported in RSP, or to provide more efficient processing for specific tasks. We demonstrate the architecture in implementations for scenarios related to traffic-incident monitoring, criminal-activity monitoring, and electronic healthcare monitoring.

This thesis consists of a series of internationally published, peer reviewed, conference research papers and one journal paper. The papers evaluate and further develop two modelling methods for use in Information Technology (IT) design and for the educational and training needs of students within the area of computer and network technology. The IT age requires technical talent to fill positions such as network managers, web administrators, e-commerce consultants and network security experts as IT is changing rapidly, and this is placing considerable demands on higher educational institutions, both within Australia and internationally, to respond to these changes.

Dans cette thèse, nous étudions les systèmes de transitions asynchrones en tant que modèles pour la sémantique des systèmes réactifs. Les systèmes de transitions asynchrones (STA) de Shields et Bednarczyk, sont une généralisation des systèmes de transitions (ST) et des structures d'événements stables (SE). Tout d'abord nous définissons l'opération de raffinement d'actions sur les STA, qui permet de relier entre elles les descriptions d'un système a différents niveaux d'abstraction. Ensuite, nous proposons des équivalences sémantiques sur les STA et nous étudions leur compatibilité avec l'opération de raffinement. Enfin, nous relions notre cadre avec celui de la théorie des sémantiques opérationnelles structurées (SOS) de Plotkin

Dans le cadre de la télécommunication, les entreprises développent des protocoles gérant le transfert de données entre machines. Ces protocoles fonctionnent sur le principe d'envoi de messages entre deux parties par l'intermédiaire de canaux non fiables. Pour s'assurer que tous les messages ont bien été reçus, les techniques employées consistent à réémettre les messages perdus et/ou à attendre un laps de temps déterminé avant de conclure à l'échec de la transmission. De plus, les systèmes sont souvent modélisés en fonction de paramètres. Nous avons travaillé sur un modèle mathématique permettant la vérification de spécifications (comportements attendus des systèmes) pour des protocoles manipulant à la fois des compteurs, des files d'attente ou des horloges, ainsi que des paramètres. Le but de l'analyse est de calculer l'ensemble des comportements possibles du système puis de vérifier qu'aucun d'eux ne viole une spécification attendue. Le problème ici est que cet ensemble est infini. En effet, un comportement est fonction des valeurs prises par les variables du système au cours de l'exécution et certaines sont définies sur un domaine infini. Il faut alors pouvoir représenter ces comportements de façon finie et aussi trouver des méthodes pour calculer en un temps fini un ensemble infini. Plus formellement, nous nous sommes placés dans le cadre de l'analyse automatique des systèmes (model-checking). La représentation choisie pour les modèles à compteurs et horloges paramétrés est une extension des matrices de bornes pour laquelle nous avons une méthode exacte d'accélération (calcul en un temps fini d'ensembles de comportements infinis). Du côté pratique, nous avons implanté ces méthodes dans un outil TReX qui est, à notre connaissance, le seul pouvant manipuler de manière exacte des compteurs, des horloges et des files d'attente. Nous avons pu vérifier des exemples conséquents tels que le protocole de retransmission bornée.