An awareness of the effect of agricultural production on the environment has led to the development of policies to mitigate its adverse effects. This dissertation provides analyses of agri-environmental policies designed to protect environmental assets, as well as analytical decision-making tools useful for conducting policy evaluations. The first essay employs propensity score matching techniques to estimate the additionality of federal agricultural conservation programs for six conservation practices for farmers in Ohio. Additionality is an important measure of the effectiveness of conservation programs in inducing an increase in the conservation effort of farmers. Results suggest that additionality is positive and statistically significant for all six conservation practices. However, while programs achieve positive additionality for all practice types, a comparison between conservation practices reveals that certain practice types achieve higher percent additionality than others. Such results, coupled with information on the environmental benefits obtained per practice, could prove useful to program managers for improving the effectiveness of conservation programs. The second essay develops a new methodology to decompose the additionality measure into the two effects induced by conservation programs: expansion versus the new adoption of conservation practices. To do so, the relative contributions of two types of farmers, prior-adopters and new-adopters, are estimated. Results of the decomposition reveal that the additionality for prior-adopters is not significant for all practice types. Instead, additional conservation effort comes from new-adopters adopting new practices. Second, decomposition estimates suggest that practice types with a greater fraction of enrolled farmers that are new-adopters achieve greater percent additionality than those with greater proportions of prior-adopters. This suggests that a farmers? history in conservation adoption has a significant influence on additionality levels. The final essay analyzes the effect of recent instream flow diversion-guidelines on agricultural water security and streamflows within a decentralized water management regime. Spatially-explicit economic and hydrologic models are integrated to evaluate the tradeoffs between salmon bypass-flows and agricultural water security for three different diversion-guidelines within a northern-California watershed. Results indicate that the most restrictive diversion-guideline provides the greatest protection of bypass-flow days within smaller watersheds; however, within larger watersheds protection is not as significant. Water security, however, decreases sharply under the strict and moderate diversion-guidelines, especially during dry years. Overall, results indicate that greater focus should be given to protecting streamflows in the smallest watersheds, and meeting human water needs during dry years, when agricultural water security is impacted the most.

Introdução: A readmissão de pacientes nas unidades de terapia intensiva (UTIs) está associada a piores desfechos durante a internação hospitalar. Através da análise de preditores existe a possibilidade de identificar os pacientes sob risco de readmissão e planejar possíveis intervenções visando melhorar a segurança destes pacientes. Objetivos: Avaliar o desempenho da saturação venosa central (SvcO2), do lactato, do déficit de bases (DB), dos níveis de proteína C reativa (PCR), do Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA), do Stability and Workload Index for Transfer (SWIFT) escore do dia da alta da UTI como preditores e fatores de risco para readmissão de pacientes na unidade de terapia intensiva (UTI), além de verificar a frequência de readmissões na UTI. Métodos: O estudo avaliou pacientes criticamente enfermos internados consecutivamente na unidade de terapia intensiva do Hospital Nossa Senhora da Conceição que receberem alta da UTI, no período entre Agosto/2011 e Agosto/2012. Resultados principais: Utilizando análise multivariada o SOFA e o SWIFT da alta foram identificados como fatores de risco independentemente associados à readmissão na UTI. Entretanto, com uma área sob a curva receiver operating characteristic (ROC) de 0,63 e 0,66 respectivamente, estes escores podem não ter grande aplicabilidade clínica em nossa população. A PCR, a SvcO2, o DB e o lactato não estão associados a readmissão de pacientes críticos. Conclusões: Apesar do grande impacto clínico e econômico associado à readmissão de pacientes na UTI, nossa capacidade para discriminar os pacientes sob risco de readmissão e objetivar os critérios de alta dos pacientes críticos segue inadequada. / Background: Readmission of patients in intensive care units (ICUs) is associated with worse outcomes during hospitalization. Possibly, identifying patients at risk for readmission through the analysis of predictors, some intervention may be planned for the security of these patients. Objectives: To evaluate the performance of central venous oxygen saturation (ScvO2), lactate, base deficit (BD), C-reactive protein (CRP), the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score and the Stability and Workload Index for Transfer (SWIFT) score at the day of discharge from the intensive care unit (ICU) as predictors and risk factors for readmission or unexpected death among critically ill patients and to identify the frequency of readmissions in the ICU. Design: Prospective observational study. Location: academic tertiary hospital in Brazil. Patients: A total of 1,360 patients admitted to a 59 beds medical-surgical ICU from August 2011 to August 2012. Methods: We compared the characteristics and laboratory data of readmitted patients and not readmitted patients discharged from the ICU. Through multivariate analysis we identified potential risk factors independently associated with readmission. Main results: SOFA and SWIFT were identified as significant risk factors for ICU readmission. However, with an area under the ROC curve of 0.63 and 0.66, these scores would appear to have limited clinical applicability in our population. CRP, ScvO2, BD and lactate were not associated with readmission of critically ill patients. Conclusions: Perfusion and inflammatory markers are not good predictors of ICU readmission. Despite the clinical and economic impact associated with readmission in ICU, our ability to predict which patients will be readmitted is still inadequate.

Introdução: A readmissão de pacientes nas unidades de terapia intensiva (UTIs) está associada a piores desfechos durante a internação hospitalar. Através da análise de preditores existe a possibilidade de identificar os pacientes sob risco de readmissão e planejar possíveis intervenções visando melhorar a segurança destes pacientes. Objetivos: Avaliar o desempenho da saturação venosa central (SvcO2), do lactato, do déficit de bases (DB), dos níveis de proteína C reativa (PCR), do Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA), do Stability and Workload Index for Transfer (SWIFT) escore do dia da alta da UTI como preditores e fatores de risco para readmissão de pacientes na unidade de terapia intensiva (UTI), além de verificar a frequência de readmissões na UTI. Métodos: O estudo avaliou pacientes criticamente enfermos internados consecutivamente na unidade de terapia intensiva do Hospital Nossa Senhora da Conceição que receberem alta da UTI, no período entre Agosto/2011 e Agosto/2012. Resultados principais: Utilizando análise multivariada o SOFA e o SWIFT da alta foram identificados como fatores de risco independentemente associados à readmissão na UTI. Entretanto, com uma área sob a curva receiver operating characteristic (ROC) de 0,63 e 0,66 respectivamente, estes escores podem não ter grande aplicabilidade clínica em nossa população. A PCR, a SvcO2, o DB e o lactato não estão associados a readmissão de pacientes críticos. Conclusões: Apesar do grande impacto clínico e econômico associado à readmissão de pacientes na UTI, nossa capacidade para discriminar os pacientes sob risco de readmissão e objetivar os critérios de alta dos pacientes críticos segue inadequada. / Background: Readmission of patients in intensive care units (ICUs) is associated with worse outcomes during hospitalization. Possibly, identifying patients at risk for readmission through the analysis of predictors, some intervention may be planned for the security of these patients. Objectives: To evaluate the performance of central venous oxygen saturation (ScvO2), lactate, base deficit (BD), C-reactive protein (CRP), the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score and the Stability and Workload Index for Transfer (SWIFT) score at the day of discharge from the intensive care unit (ICU) as predictors and risk factors for readmission or unexpected death among critically ill patients and to identify the frequency of readmissions in the ICU. Design: Prospective observational study. Location: academic tertiary hospital in Brazil. Patients: A total of 1,360 patients admitted to a 59 beds medical-surgical ICU from August 2011 to August 2012. Methods: We compared the characteristics and laboratory data of readmitted patients and not readmitted patients discharged from the ICU. Through multivariate analysis we identified potential risk factors independently associated with readmission. Main results: SOFA and SWIFT were identified as significant risk factors for ICU readmission. However, with an area under the ROC curve of 0.63 and 0.66, these scores would appear to have limited clinical applicability in our population. CRP, ScvO2, BD and lactate were not associated with readmission of critically ill patients. Conclusions: Perfusion and inflammatory markers are not good predictors of ICU readmission. Despite the clinical and economic impact associated with readmission in ICU, our ability to predict which patients will be readmitted is still inadequate.

O linfoma é uma doença neoplásica comum em cães, requerendo quimioterapia para aumentar a sobrevida dos pacientes. Durante o tratamento, são freqüentes as recidivas, que motivam alteração do protocolo medicamentoso. Proteína C-reativa e amilóide A sérica são mediadores de fase aguda produzidos no fígado que apresentam elevações de concentrações séricas em condições inflamatórias, infecciosas e neoplásicas de maneira geral. O objetivo do trabalho foi avaliar o papel dessas proteínas na monitorização da remissão e recidiva do linfoma em cães, utilizando 2 protocolos de tratamento. O protocolo COP (ciclofosfamida, vincristina e prednisona) caracterizou-se por fase de indução de 1 mês e ciclos de manutenção a cada 21 dias e o protocolo VCM (vincristina, ciclofosfamida, metotrexato e L- asparaginase) foi empregado em um regime semanal contínuo. Constituíram-se 5 grupos de estudo: Normal (20 cães hígidos), Controle COP (4 cães hígidos submetidos a quimioterapia com o protocolo COP), Controle VCM (4 cães hígidos submetidos a quimioterapia com o protocolo VCM), Linfoma COP (10 cães com linfoma multicêntrico tratados com o protocolo COP) e Linfoma VCM (10 cães com linfoma multicêntrico tratados com o protocolo VCM). Proteína C-reativa e amilóide A sérica foram determinadas pela técnica de Elisa e a eletroforese foi feita em tiras de acetato de celulose. Nos cães do grupo Normal, o estabelecimento das concentrações de proteína C-reativa, amilóide A sérica e as rações eletroforéticas ocorreu uma única vez; nos cães dos grupos Controle COP e Controle VCM na 1ª, 2ª, 3ª, 4ª, 7ª, 10ª, 13ª e 16ª semanas de quimioterapia e, nos cães dos grupos Linfoma COP e Linfoma VCM, na 1ª, 2ª, 3ª e 4ª semanas, bem como na recidiva e num momento de estabilidade da doença imediatamente antes da recidiva. Os resultados foram interpretados por análise de variância com medidas repetidas, tendo como fatores de controle os grupos e as semanas de observação, seguida de comparações múltiplas de Tukey, ao nível de significância de 5 %. Concluiu-se que: o linfoma induz a resposta de fase aguda em cães, sendo a intensidade da resposta amenizada durante o tratamento bem-sucedido dos pacientes; incrementos de proteína C-reativa e amilóide A sérica não estão relacionados à recidiva do linfoma; a quimioterapia do linfoma com os protocolos COP e VCM não altera a resposta de fase aguda, avaliada por meio dessas proteínas, nem existe diferença na resposta de fase aguda entre tais protocolos; existe relação direta entre os níveis de proteína C-reativa e amilóide A sérica no curso do linfoma e da quimioterapia; aumentos das concentrações séricas de proteína C-reativa são acompanhados de elevações da fração de β2-globulinas e aumentos de amilóide A sérica são acompanhados de elevações de β1-globulinas. / Lymphoma is a common neoplasm in dogs and chemotherapy is indicated to achieve long-term survivals. During the treatment, frequent relapses require drug regimen modifications. C-reactive protein (CRP) and serum amyloid A (SAA) are hepatic acute-phase mediators and usually are increased in inflammatory, infectious and neoplastic conditions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of these proteins in remission and relapse monitoring of dogs with lymphoma, under 2 chemotherapy protocols. COP protocol (cyclophosphamide, vincristine and prednisone) included an one-month induction period and maintenance cycles each 21 days and VCM protocol (vincristine, cyclophosphamide, methotrexate and L-asparaginase) was administered in a continuous weekly schedule. Five groups were composed: Normal (20 healthy dogs), COP Control (4 healthy dogs submitted to chemotherapy with COP protocol), VCM Control (4 healthy dogs submitted to chemotherapy with VCM protocol), COP Lymphoma (10 dogs with multicentric lymphoma treated with COP protocol) and VCM Lymphoma (10 dogs with multicentric lymphoma treated with VCM protocol). CRP and SAA were determined by Elisa tests and the electrophoresis was performed in cellulose acetate strips. In Normal dogs, CRP and SAA levels, as well the electrophoretic fractions, were measured only one time; in COP Control and VCM Control groups of dogs at the chemotherapy weeks 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 10, 13 and 16; in dogs from groups COP Lymphoma and VCM Lymphoma, at the weeks 1, 2, 3 and 4, beside the relapse and a called stability moment immediately before the relapse. Results were compared by means of repeated measures variancy analyses, considering the groups and the observation weeks as the control factors, followed by Tukey´s multiple comparisons, at 5 % of significance level. It was concluded that: lymphoma induces an acute phase response in dogs and the intensity of response declines along the disease remission; increases of CRP and SAA are not related to lymphoma relapse; neither COP nor VCM chemotherapy changes the acute-phase response, when CRP and SAA are taken in account, and there is not difference on acute-phase response between both regimens; there is a positive correlation between CRP and SAA levels during lymphoma assessment and chemotherapy; increases of CRP levels are followed by β2-globulin elevations and increases of SAA levels are related to β1-globulin elevations.

Uno de los problemas más importantes que aqueja a las empresas ensambladoras y comercializadoras de vehículos es la rotura de stock de productos terminados, la cual perjudica de manera significativa las utilidades por las pérdidas de venta y que por ende tiene un impacto negativo en la rentabilidad de la empresa. Por ello, muchas de las pymes trataron de afrontar esta situación mediante el uso de herramientas como el modelo Q que revisa de forma continua los inventarios pero que no indica cuándo y en qué cantidades la empresa debe abastecer a sus puntos de venta o como el Just in Time que es un sistema de organización de la producción que logra que el producto llegue al cliente justo a tiempo, pero es una metodología que requiere de un alto nivel de desarrollo de los proveedores y gestión eficiente de su cadena de suministro donde las pymes no lograrían alcanzar, así también como el POQ que es una metodología, la cual determina un lote óptimo de compra pero que no determina el tiempo y la forma del abastecimiento. Por ello y en vista de la existencia de diversos esfuerzos e investigaciones con referencia a la gestión de inventarios para solucionar el problema siendo propuestas muy tradicionales con un alcance limitado con respecto a una visión integral del impacto del problema a lo largo de la cadena de suministros. Se plantea desarrollar un sistema de gestión inventarios que permita integrar las técnicas del MRP (Planificación de Requerimientos de Materiales), RFID (identificación por Radiofrecuencia) y CRP (Programa de Reabastecimiento Continuo) con una visión integradora, innovadora y tecnológica para la mejora de manera óptima y eficiente de los procesos. La forma de validación operacional que se propone para este modelo es mediante una simulación de la dinámica de sistemas, la cual es una técnica que permite una mejor comprensión sobre la evolución o comportamiento de los sistemas a través del tiempo y permite descubrir y describir problemas y modelos de manera sistemática. Asimismo, la manera de validar económicamente fue mediante el uso del flujo económico e indicadores financieros. De esta manera, el principal resultado de las validaciones es que en un escenario optimista, donde se consideró un incremento de la exactitud de inventario, reducción del error de previsión, incremento de la calidad de pedidos generados e incremento de las órdenes perfectas, los cuales eran los indicadores principales del modelo se llegó al resultado de una disminución continua de la rotura de stock. . Por ende, se valida la funcionalidad de la propuesta y viabilidad económica, ya que al aplicarlo soluciona el problema de la rotura de stock. / One of the most important problems afflicting vehicle assembly and marketing companies is the stock breakage of finished products, which significantly damages profits due to sales losses and therefore has a negative impact on the profitability of the company. For this reason, many of the SMEs tried to face this situation by using tools such as the Q model that continuously reviews inventories but does not indicate when and in what quantities the company must supply its points of sale or such as the Just in Time, which is a production organization system that ensures that the product reaches the customer just in time, but it is a methodology that requires a high level of supplier development and efficient management of its supply chain where SMEs do not they would be able to achieve, as well as the POQ, which is a methodology, which determines an optimal purchase lot but does not determine the time and form of supply. For this reason, and in view of the existence of various efforts and investigations with reference to inventory management to solve the problem, being very traditional proposals with a limited scope with respect to a comprehensive vision of the impact of the problem throughout the supply chain. . It is proposed to develop an inventory management system that allows integrating the techniques of MRP (Material Requirements Planning), RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) and CRP (Continuous Replenishment Program) with an integrative, innovative and technological vision for the improvement of the optimal and efficient processes. The form of operational validation that is proposed for this model is through a simulation of the dynamics of systems, which is a technique that allows a better understanding of the evolution or behavior of systems over time and allows discovering and describing problems and models systematically. Likewise, the way to validate economically was through the use of economic flow and financial indicators. In this way, the main result of the validations is that in an optimistic scenario, where an increase in inventory accuracy, a reduction in forecast error, an increase in the quality of generated orders and an increase in perfect orders was considered, which were the main indicators of the model, the result of which was a continuous decrease in stock breakage. . Therefore, the functionality of the proposal and economic viability are validated, since when applied it solves the problem of stock breakage. / Trabajo de Suficiencia Profesional

No description available.

Master’s thesis in the first part focuses on the effectiveness of communication in the selection of reference nodes during the anchor-free localization in WSN. In this part two anchor-free localization algorithms AFL and CRP are explored. Knowledge learned on the selection of reference nodes and communication complexities of these algorithms are used in the second part. The second part is aimed at eliminating weaknesses in communication and subsequently proposed a new algorithm for selection of references. The principle of the newly proposed algorithm CASRU (Centralized Algorithm for Selection of Reference Nodes) is based on the principle of CRP. CASRU algorithm builds logical tree structure and then filters the communication through it. New algorithm achieves much greater success in the selection in randomly distributed networks while reducing the amount of communication load.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.