A alta competitividade e os avanços tecnológicos propiciaram o surgimento de um novo modelo de terceirização de Tecnologia de Informação (TI), os Provedores de Serviços de Aplicativos (ASP - Application Service Providers). A proposta do modelo ASP é a comercialização de aplicativos de software como serviço. A satisfação dos clientes está diretamente relacionada à qualidade do serviço prestado. Para garantir que sejam fornecidos serviços com qualidade, é fundamental a adoção dos Acordos dos Níveis de Serviços (SLA - Service Levei Agreements) como mecanismo de controle. No entanto, são escassas as informações formalizadas que venham a contribuir com a especificação desses acordos. Propondo-se a contribuir com a compreensão de SLA para ASP, apresenta-se uma pesquisa exploratória do conceito de SLA para ASP, de modelos de qualidade e dos fatores de qualidade a serem considerados nos SLA para garantir a qualidade dos serviços prestados. / lhe current competitiveness of the global market and the continuous technological evolution pushed the risen of a new model of Information Technogy Outsourcing, the Application Service Providers (ASP). The ASP modelproposes the remote delivery of software as a service. Therefore, customers\' satisfaction is strictelly related to the quality of ser\\>ice delivered. It is highly recommended the adoption of Service Levei Agreement (SLA) as a control mechanism to assure such quality of service. However, there is a lack of formalized statements regarding the specification of these agreements. As a matter of contribution for the compreension of the SLA for ASP, this work introduces an exploratory research of the concep of SLA for ASP, and of the quality models and quality metrics to be considered by the SLA to assure the quality of the services provided.

No description available.

La sclérose latérale amyotrophique (SLA) est une maladie neurodégénérative fatale caractérisée par une perte progressive et sélective des neurones moteurs. La SLA est incurable et il n’existe aucun traitement efficace pour les personnes atteintes de cette maladie. Environ 90% des cas sont sporadiques tandis que 10% sont familiaux, et les patients décèdent généralement deux à cinq ans après l'apparition des premiers symptômes. De nombreuses anomalies génétiques sont associées à la SLA, incluant des mutations dans les protéines FUS, C9orf72, SOD-1 et TDP-43. Le laboratoire a développé un modèle transgénique de Caenorhabditis elegans surexprimant la protéine humaine mutante TDP-43(Q331K) dans les neurones moteurs GABAergiques. Nous avons également obtenu par mutagénèse et CRISPR-Cas9 des modèles physiologiquement représentatifs du nématode basés sur des mutations dans tdp-1, l'orthologue de TARDBP chez le C. elegans. L'objectif est de caractériser ces modèles et de déterminer s'ils peuvent récapituler certains aspects phénotypiques clés de la SLA, tels que des déficits moteurs et une neurodégénérescence dépendante de l'âge générant une paralysie. L’hypothèse est que le modèle TDP-1 pourra refléter plus précisément l’expression physiologique du gène dans la maladie humaine grâce à la mutation dans un gène endogène, l’absence de surexpression et l’expression ubiquitaire de la protéine TDP-1. Les résultats montrent que les modèles TDP-43/TDP-1 ont des déficits moteurs, une transmission synaptique altérée et une neurodégénérescence liée à l’âge. Cependant, seule la mutation dans TDP-43 semble avoir un effet sur la durée de vie. Ces modèles procurent différentes expressions physiologiques des protéines mutantes et donc, des phénotypes de niveaux d'intensité variables. Ils constitueront des outils utiles pour élucider de nouveaux mécanismes pathogéniques de la SLA ainsi que de bons candidats pour le criblage de médicaments et le développement de stratégies thérapeutiques. / Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease characterized by a progressive and selective loss of motor neurons. ALS is incurable and there are no effective treatments available for people living with the disease. About 90% of the cases are sporadic whereas 10% are familial, and patients usually die two to five years after symptom onset. Many gene defects are associated with ALS, including mutations in genes encoding FUS, C9orf72, SOD-1 and TDP-43 proteins. We have developed a transgenic Caenorhabditis elegans model expressing human mutant TDP-43(Q331K) in GABAergic motor neurons. We have also obtained by mutagenesis and CRISPR-Cas9 physiologically accurate models based on mutations in tdp-1, the C. elegans ortholog of TARDBP. Our objective is to characterize these models and determine if they can recapitulate key aspects of the disease such as motor deficits and age-dependent neurodegeneration causing paralysis. We believe that the TDP-1 model will reflect more precisely the physiological expression of the gene in the human disease because of its mutation in an endogenous gene, the absence of overexpression and ubiquitous protein expression. Our results show that both TDP-43 and TDP-1 models have motor deficits, synaptic transmission impairments and age-dependent neurodegeneration. However, only the TDP-43 mutation seems to have an effect on lifespan. These models provide different physiological expression of mutant proteins and thus phenotypes of varying intensity levels. They will be useful tools to elucidate new pathogenic mechanisms of ALS as well as being good candidates for drug screening and developing therapeutic strategies.

In the present investigation, 99 compulsory school students in Sweden were asked to define nine English idioms chosen for their variation in inherent transparency and frequency. The participants were divided into two groups, where Group 2 was provided with context of varying degrees of support, while Group 1 was not. All students answered a biographical questionnaire. Thus, the effects of intrinsic (transparency and frequency) and extrinsic factors (contextual support, extra-curricular activities (ECAs) and age) could be examined. Results show that transparency and frequency do affect idiom comprehension, but to a much lesser extent than context. A tentative correlation between more time spent on ECAs and high scores could be found as well as between active/passive activities and high/low scores. Age did not seem to affect the participants’ idiom comprehension.

In my thesis, I will focus on outsourcing the way it may be applied from global perspective. I will precisely define specific types of outsourcing, it`s versatility and summarize current trends in outsourcing business. Besides outsourcing, focus has also been put on managed service known as managed ICT services. Looking into these, particular interest is given to outsourcing of printing services and managed desktop services. As a result, deep dive into current situation of a concrete company was done, listing analysis of actual printing devices and desktop devices, ending with closing summary recommending the best way to implement new solution and smart ways of financing.

Assessing the company’s information system, this thesis deals with an analysis and proposal to changes, that lead to improvement of a company‘s current situation. In the introductory part there is a theoretic explanation regarding the issue of information systems and also a description of some analytical tools. In the next part there is an acquaintance with a company and an analysis of a current state of IS/ICT using several methods. The results of this analytical part then serve as proposal to changes including benefits evaluation, which the company can use and therefore improve its current position on the market.

This Master’s Thesis in Electrical Engineering concerns the introduction of a Parlay gateway in Skanova’s public circuit switched telephone network, what network integrity problems this brings, and how to preserve the integrity of the network. There is a rising demand from the market on Skanova to be able to offer integrated and useful services via their network. Examples of such services are Web Controlled Call Forwarding and Virtual Call Centres. Until now, these services have been implemented with the Intelligent Network concept which is a technology for concentrating the service logic in the telephone network to centralised service platforms within the network operator’s domain. Developing new services in this environment is expensive and therefore, Skanova wants to open the network for third party service providers. The opening of the network is enabled by the introduction of a gateway implementing the open service interface Parlay. The crucial point when opening the network for third party service providers is to maintain the integrity of the network. Parlay is an object oriented Application Programming Interface that enables a third party service access to core network resources in a controlled manner. The authors’ definition of network integrity is: “the ability of a network to steadily remain in a safe state, while performing according to the expectations and specifications of its owner, i.e. delivering the expected functionality and providing means to charge for utilised network resources”. The thesis describes a few services implemented via the Parlay interface and points out examples of activities in these services that may jeopardise the integrity of the network. The described activities belong to one of the two categories: Call Control Functionality or Lack of Charging Instruments. The thesis also describes two important methods for addressing encountered integrity problems. The methods are: Parlay Service Level Agreement and Policy Management.</p> Finally, the solutions are compared and the conclusion is that Policy Management is a conformable and flexible method for addressing lots of integrity problems and that these are important qualities, since new integrity problems will arise all the time.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) remain one of the leading causes of deaths worldwide. The formation and presence of aneurysm is a very important question in the study of this CVDs. An aneurysm is a balloon-like bulge on a blood vessel which forms over time. An aneurysm is usually considered to be a result of weakening of the blood vessel walls, this definition has stood over many years without being conclusively proven. Eventually, the aneurysm could clot or burst due to degradation of the aneurysm wall and accumulation of blood. The latter would lead to internal bleeding and result in a stroke. Local hemodynamics have been found to be very important in the study of the evolution of an aneurysm. In this study, a steady flow experimental investigation was conducted using planar Particle Image Velocimetery (PIV) on a rigid flow phantom of an idealised geometry consisting of a curve parent artery and a spherical aneurysm located on the outer convex side of the curvature. The flow phantom was fabricated directly using a commercially available desktop Stereolithography (STL) 3D printer instead of the more conventional investment casting method using a core. Although 3D printing technologies have been around for many years, the fabrication of flow phantoms by direct printing is still largely under-explored. This thesis details the results of investigation into the optimal printing and post-printing procedures required to produce a flow phantom of suitable clarity and transparency. Other important areas of concern such as the geometric accuracy, surface topography and refractive index of the final model are also investigated. A planar PIV is conducted to study the impact of flow rates on the local flow field in and around the aneurysm and their impact on the wall shear stress. It was found that direct 3D printing is appropriate for the fabrication of flow phantoms suitable for PIV or other flow visualisation techniques. It reduces the complexities and time needed compared to the conventional investment casting methods. It was observed that the optical properties of the printed material such as the high refractive index (RI) and the transmittivity of light could cause a problem in large models. From the PIV measurements it was found that flow rates affect the flow field in both the parent artery and the aneurysm. First, high velocities were observed on the outer curvature of the parent artery. Secondly the centre of rotation in the aneurysm is not at the geometric centre but is displaced slightly in the direction of the flow. Finally, the flow rate affects the angle in which flow enters the aneurysm from the parent vessel. This change in the flow angle affects the flow within the aneurysm. A higher flow rate in the parent artery increases the incident angle which brings the centre of rotation closer to the geometric centre of the aneurysm, this changes the location and magnitude of high velocities and hence the local wall shear stress (WSS) on the wall of the aneurysm. This may have implications in the evolution of aneurysms. / Mechanical and Industrial Engineering

This study investigates whether there is a relationship between student motivation and Focus on Form (FonF) frequency in English language teaching (ELT), with a focus on Swedish upper secondary school. The goal is to identify potential patterns of inefficiency in ELT that may need remediation, and to investigate potential benefits of promoting student motivation in ELT. The theoretical framework encompasses second language acquisition (SLA), FonF, ELT, corrective feedback and student motivation, including theories regarding intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Previous research includes findings regarding reactive and pre-emptive FonF, as well as motivational strategies. The applied methods include a questionnaire for self-evaluation regarding the students’ motivation in regard to English learning, and structured classroom observations. Three groups of students partook in the study: two groups attending an academic upper secondary school program, and one group attending a vocational upper secondary school program. One lesson á 55 minutes per group was observed. The results indicate that pre-emptive FonF occurs more frequently in groups with high intrinsic motivation, suggesting a potential relationship.

Teachers work with large student groups and their job is to make their pupils’ grow and evolve in their learning every day, even though the students may not be interested in the subject at all. How can teachers manage to do this with such a variety of students? What tools can be used to motivate as many of them as possible to achieve the most favourable learning outcomes? Music is a universal language that most people enjoy and for children it is even a natural part of growing up. Music can be a pleasant and fun element in the classroom, so we want to investigate if teachers could take advantage of this and use music and songs as an effective motivator to foster second language development. In the national curriculum, Skolverket states that teachers need to build upon the pupil’s confidence in their own ability to use language in different situations and for different purposes (Skolverket, 2011). What happens with the classroom environment when music is used and what happens to the pupils? There is research pointing to the benefits of using music in second language learning however, there exists some disagreement among researchers if music could improve language development or if it is just a fun activity. Researchers also discuss on how to use music in the classroom in the most valuable way. In the current study, we explore and provide an overview for the possible advantages of using music. We also investigate the effectiveness of different musical approaches for facilitating language learning for young children in an educational context. In particular, we will discuss how songs and music can motivate young English language learners in their process and how the second language development can benefit from this.