The present study analyzed the hunting and wildlife trafficking in the neighbourship of the Ecological Station Raso da Catarina (ESEC Raso da Catarina), in Bahia, in order to contribute to environmental conservation strategies for the region. Among the specific objectives was seek to know five dimensions of hunting activity and wildlife trafficking practiced in the study region (socio-demographic profile of hunters and wildlife traffickers; behavior of hunters and traffickers, hunting profile, economic aspects involved in hunting and, the knowledge of the prohibition of illegal activities against wildlife and mitigation strategies). Also looked for to identify the network of agencies potentially involved in combating the hunting and wildlife trafficking, their strategies and difficulties of action, through the method of research in data and methodological triangulation, based on semi-structured interviews with hunters, employees of the ICMBio of ESEC Raso da Catarina and police officers of the Caatinga Independent Policing Company (Companhia de Policiamento Independente da Caatinga - CIPE / Caatinga); analysis of ICMBio infraction records, police reports records of CIPE / Caatinga and the Federal Highway Police (Polícia Rodoviária Ferderal - PRF). The results indicated that most hunters had between 41 and 50 years old, had incomplete primary education, were in majority farmers and residents of the Riacho Village, municipality of Paulo Afonso, Bahia. As for the most hunted species, there was a predominance for the group of birds, with higher value of use for the species arribaçã (Zenaida auriculata) (VU = 0.31), and for the group of mammals, the armadillo-peba (Euphractus sexcinctus) the species with higher value of use (VU = 0.85). Most hunters preferred to use animals as a means of transport, the dog as a hunting technique, and they preferred to hunt on Saturdays and Sundays, often once or twice a month, during nocturnal and rainy periods, motivated by subsistence reasons. All hunters revealed that they are aware of the prohibition on hunting but are unaware of who is responsible for the prohibition. Regarding surveillance, the ICMBio is the agency that is at the forefront of operations to combat hunting and trafficking of animals in the study area. However, it faces difficulties due to lack of resources and integration with other institutions. / O presente estudo analisou a caça e o tráfico de animais silvestres na área de abrangência da Estação Ecológica Raso da Catarina (ESEC Raso da Catarina), na Bahia, visando contribuir com estratégias de conservação ambiental para a região. Dentre os objetivos específicos buscou-se conhecer cinco dimensões da atividade de caça e tráfico de animais silvestres praticadas na região de estudo (perfil sóciodemográfico dos caçadores e traficantes de animais silvestres; comportamento dos caçadores e traficantes; perfil da caça; aspectos econômicos envolvidos na caça e o conhecimento sobre a proibição das atividades ilegais contra a fauna silvestre e propostas de mitigação). Procurou-se também identificar a rede de agências potencialmente envolvidas para combater a caça e tráfico de animais, suas estratégias e dificuldades de atuação, através do método de pesquisa em triangulação de dados e metodológica, com base em entrevistas semiestruturadas com caçadores, funcionários do ICMBio da ESEC Raso da Catarina e policiais da Companhia de Policiamento Independente da Caatinga (CIPE/Caatinga); análise de registros de infração do ICMBio e os registros de ocorrências policiais da CIPE/Caatinga e da Polícia Rodoviária Federal (PRF). Os resultados indicaram que a maioria dos caçadores tinha entre 41 e 50 anos de idade, possuía ensino fundamental incompleto, eram em maioria agricultores e residentes do Povoado Riacho, município de Paulo Afonso, Bahia. Quanto às espécies mais caçadas, houve predominância para o grupo das aves, com maior Valor de Uso para a espécie arribaçã (Zenaida auriculata) (VU=0,31), e para o grupo dos mamíferos, o tatu-peba (Euphractus sexcinctus) foi a espécie com maior valor de uso (VU=0,85). A maioria dos caçadores utilizou preferencialmente animais como meio de transporte, o cachorro como técnica de caça, preferiam caçar aos sábados e domingos, frequentemente de uma a duas vezes por mês, em períodos noturnos e chuvosos, motivados por razões de subsistência. Todos os caçadores revelaram ter conhecimento da proibição da caça, mas desconheciam de quem é a responsabilidade pela proibição. Em relação à fiscalização, o ICMBio é o órgão que está à frente das operações de combate à caça e tráfico de animais na área de estudo, entretanto enfrenta dificuldades por falta de recursos e integração com outras instituições.

Orientador: Hugo Enrique Hernandez Figueroa / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Eletrica e de Computação / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-09T06:26:18Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Hsu_AtilioClaudio_M.pdf: 6986419 bytes, checksum: 5d1120daa8d4126ad4a6fd84fd5ac188 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007 / Resumo: Nesta dissertação apresenta-se o desenvolvimento e a implementação de algoritmos para geração de malhas adaptativas de elementos triangulares, visando o estudo de problemas de propagação eletromagnética em domínios bidimensionais. Foram implementadas duas técnicas de refinamento, uma baseada no método da troca de arestas denominado Delaunay e a outra baseada na técnica de suavização de Laplace. O gerador implementado leva em conta interfaces de curvatura arbitrária e, também, pode ser facilmente integrado aos programas desenvolvidos no Departamento de Microonda e Óptica (DMO) / Abstract: This work presents the development of algorithms for adaptive mesh generation of triangular elements applicable to electromagnetic propagation problems in bidimensional domains. Several techniques were used, such as edgeflip, known as Delaunay method, and the Laplacian¿s smoothing method. The program considers arbitrary curvature interfaces and can be easily integrated to the programs created in the Department of Microwaves and Optics (DMO) / Mestrado / Telecomunicações e Telemática / Mestre em Engenharia Elétrica

Os Medidores de Distância por Triangulação a Laser são sistemas optoeletrônicos destinados à medição de pequenas distâncias ou deslocamentos, sem contato físico direto. Estes equipamentos possuem um grande campo de aplicações industriais. Este trabalho descreve as diversas configurações que este equipamento pode se apresentar, discutindo suas vantagens relativas. São estudadas também as suas partes e os componentes mais indicados. O projeto detalhado de um medidor usando sensor tipo CCD, e apresentado. Algumas aplicações industriais deste modelo são relatadas e diversos métodos e sugestões de uso são apresentadas, com base nas experiências realizadas pelo autor. / Laser Triangulation Rangefinders are non-contact, optoelectronic devices for measurement of small displacements or distances. These devices offer a broad range of industrial applications. This work explains common configurations, parts and main components, comparing their advantages. A detailed project on a CCD based Laser Rangefinder is presented. Some industrial applications for that project are related, discussing practical aspects based on authors experience. Some potential applications are also suggested.

Abstract This study focuses on the information behaviour of older adults. The interdisciplinary approach combines everyday life information-seeking, a gerontological notion of successful ageing and research on media use. First, the media repertoires of older adults are examined from the perspective of their course of life. Their information behaviour when they have retired is analysed in Pamela McKenzie's terms of information practices, i.e. 1) active seeking, 2) active scanning, 3) non-directed monitoring and 4) getting information by proxy. A new viewpoint to information use in information studies is independent and activating media use. The theoretical framework applies a gerontological life course approach, which connects former life events to latter events in one's information behaviour. The framework in this study encompasses everyday information behaviour more generally than information-seeking. The main concepts of the framework are information practices, media use, and as a new concept, enactment. The study is based on a qualitative approach that utilizes methodological triangulation. The empirical data was gathered from 319 elderly Finns. The longitudinal material was gathered from 13 retired teachers. The methods used were interview (2004), questionnaire (2001 & 2004), sentence completion task (2001 & 2004) and the Depression-Happiness Scale (2004). A second set of material consisted of 306 media diaries from the national Yksi päivä mediaa (Media use in one day) material collected in 2001. The main methods of analysis were a narrative life review and content analysis. Different methods and material collected at two different times increase the reliability of the results and illustrate changes in the explored phenomena. This study indicates that the life course approach should be taken into account in information studies, at least when research focuses on older adults. An interesting result is the concept of enactment, which describes the activating role of media. Analysis of the data indicated that media use of older adults is connected, for example, to organising their daily programme, food, physical exercise and health, language skills, civil debate, crosswords, competitions and games, time of devotion, and lending, borrowing and recycling of material. Another notable result is the application of McKenzie's model of information practices to structure the information behaviour in everyday life. The model is also improved by applying a new information practice, abstaining from information. Its role in the information behaviour of everyday life should be studied further. The activating role of media use among populations other than the elderly is another important issue in a media environment that will be more interactive in the future. / Tiivistelmä Tutkimus kohdistuu ikääntyneiden informaatiokäyttäytymiseen. Tieteidenvälisessä tarkastelussa yhdistyvät informaatiotutkimuksen arkielämän tiedonhankinnan tutkimus, gerontologiasta omaksuttu käsitys onnistuvasta vanhenemisesta ja viestinnän alan mediankäytön tutkimus. Aluksi tarkastellaan ikääntyneiden mediarepertuaarien muutoksia heidän elämänkulkunsa ajalta. Eläkkeellä olon aikaista informaatiokäyttäytymistä analysoidaan arjen informaatiokäytäntöinä, joita Pamela McKenzien teoreettisen mallin mukaisesti ovat 1) aktiivinen etsintä, 2) aktiivinen seuranta, 3) kohdentumaton havainnointi ja 4) informaation saaminen toisen henkilön kautta. Informaatiotutkimuksessa uutena tiedonkäytön sovellusalana on omaehtoinen ja aktiivinen mediankäyttö. Teoreettisessa viitekehyksessä sovelletaan gerontologista elämänkulun lähtökohtaa. Sen mukaisesti ihmisten aiemmilla elämänkokemuksilla on yhteyksiä heidän myöhempään informaatiokäyttäytymiseensä. Viitekehys kattaa tiedonhankintaa yleisemmin arkielämän informaatiokäyttäytymisen. Siinä keskeisiä ovat informaatiokäytäntöjen ja mediankäytön käsitteet sekä uutena esitetty toimintaan aktivoitumisen (enactment) käsite. Tutkimus perustuu laadulliseen lähestymistapaan, jossa sovelletaan menetelmätriangulaatiota. Empiirinen aineisto on koottu yhteensä 319 ikääntyneeltä suomalaiselta. Pitkittäisaineisto koostuu 13 opettajaeläkeläiseltä saaduista tiedoista. Menetelminä olivat haastattelu (2004), kysely (2001 ja 2004), lauseentäydennystehtävä (2001 ja 2004) ja The Depression-Happiness Scale -mittari (2004). Toisena aineistona olivat 306 mediapäiväkirjaa, jotka on kerätty Yksi päivä mediaa -kirjoitustapahtumassa (2001). Pääasiallisina analyysimenetelminä olivat narratiivinen elämäntarkastelu ja sisällönanalyysi. Eri menetelmillä ja kahtena eri ajankohtana kerätyn aineiston analyysi lisää tulosten luotettavuutta ja nostaa esille tutkittavien ilmiöiden muutoksia. Tutkimuksen perusteella elämänkulun lähtökohta tulisi ottaa huomioon informaatiotutkimuksen teoreettisissa malleissa. Tämä koskee ainakin ikääntyneiden informaatiokäyttäytymistä. Kiinnostava tulos on toimintaan aktivoitumisen käsitteen esittäminen. Käsite kuvaa sitä, miten mediankäyttö aktivoi toimintaan. Esimerkiksi päiväohjelman organisointi, ravinto, liikunta ja terveys, kielitaidon ylläpitäminen, yhteiskunnalliseen keskusteluun osallistuminen, sanaristikot, kilpailut ja pelaaminen, hiljentyminen sekä aineiston vaihto, lainaaminen ja kierrätys nousivat esille aineiston analyysissä. Merkittävä tulos on myös McKenzien informaatiokäytäntöjen mallin soveltaminen ihmisten arkisen informaatiokäyttäytymisen jäsentämiseen sekä mallin täydentäminen informaatiosta pidättäytymisen informaatiokäytännöllä. Informaatiokäyttäytymisen käsitteen vakiinnuttaminen alan suomenkieliseen terminologiaan selkiyttäisi arkielämän tiedonhankinnasta käytettyä käsitteistöä. Jatkotutkimuksissa olisi selvitettävä informaatiosta pidättäytymistä osana laajempaa informaatiokäyttäytymistä. Mediankäytön toimintaan aktivoivaa merkitystä olisi tutkittava myös muista väestöryhmistä kuin ikääntyneistä. Lisäksi olisi tutkittava sitä, millaisia vaikutuksia median vuorovaikutuksellisuuden lisääntymisellä on ihmisten arkiseen toimintaan.

Czech and Vietnamese are the national languages of the Czech Republic and Vietnam, re- spectively. The distinctive features and the shortage of resources renders Czech-Vietnamese machine translation into a difficult task, leading to the fact that no effort has been put into developing a translation tool specifically for the language pair. In this thesis, we develop phrase-based statistical machine translation systems for the language pair and investigate the potential to improve the translation quality with pivoting. Pivoting refers to a set of ma- chine translation approaches through which a natural language, called pivoting language, is introduced to solve the problem of data scarcity between source and target languages, one of the most challenging problems of statistical machine translation. Selecting English as the sole pivoting language for Czech-Vietnamese translation, we prepare training and test- ing corpora for the three language pairs. All possible corpus sources are explored regarding each specific language pair. The next step is to improve quality of the training corpora through normalizing and filtering. Various experiments with pivoting methods are carried out to analyse the performance of pivoting methods in a realistic working condition.

Abstract In the present research of engineering studies in the Department of Process and Environmental Engineering in the University of Oulu the graduation processes of eight various groups of students were documented and analyzed. For the validation of the data triangulation method was availed of. The accumulation of study attainments was calculated and, using the measured data, the graduation time models were created. A new method of modeling a non-linear study process by using a Matlab step response model was developed. The model is exact in the essential area of operation and can be used in any educational organization which considers following the process of graduation important. In this research study attainments were examined and explained with the help of self-regulation test analyses. The test used in this research is based on a shortened version of Guglielmino’s Self Directed Learning Readiness test. It measures the student’s capability for autonomous learning. A connection between good success in studies and observed self-directive learning was noticed as early as during the second academic year. The engineering study attainments were also compared to the study success in the upper secondary school. The results show that the students with satisfactory learning results in the upper secondary school did better than expected in their university studies. Instead, the students with better success in the upper secondary school than the group mentioned underachieved in their university studies. The students whose success was better than average during the first academic year were also better during the following years. Examining the study attainments of the eight elementary courses during the three years of studies showed that about 46 per cent of students passed the elementary courses in proper time. One year after the elementary courses had been given, 73 per cent of the students had passed them. / Tiivistelmä Tekniikan ylioppilaiden opiskelututkimuksessa käytettiin tutkimusmenetelmänä triangulaatiota. Työssä analysoitiin kahdeksan eri vuosikurssin opintosuoritusten perusteella Oulun yliopiston Prosessi- ja ympäristötekniikan osaston opiskelijoiden valmistumisprosessia. Opintosuoritusten avulla laskettiin eri vuosikurssien opintoviiveet ja saatujen mittaustietojen avulla tehtiin valmistumisaikamallit. Tutkimuksessa löydettiin uusi tapa mallintaa epälineaarista opiskeluprosessia askelvastemallilla. Menetelmän avulla saatu suoriutumismalli on todellisiin mittaustuloksiin verrattuna luotettava keskeisellä toiminta-alueella kolmesta seitsemään vuotta, kun tavoitteena on, että aloittaneista valmistuu 50 % kuudessa vuodessa. Työssä tutkittiin opintomenestystä itseohjautuvuusvalmiutta selvittävien testistöjen avulla. Tutkimuksessa käytetty testi perustuu Koron (1993) laatimaan versioon. Se on lyhennetty Guglielminon (1977) luomasta testistä Self Directed Learning Readiness, joka mittaa opiskelijan valmiutta itseohjattuun opiskeluun. Tutkimuksessa käytetyssä SDLR-testissä yhteen laskettujen pisteiden vaihteluväli on 37–185. Työssä käytetyn itseohjautuvuusanalyysin avulla testattiin opiskelijoiden valmiutta itsenäiseen ja pitkäjänteiseen opiskeluun opinto-ohjelman mukaisesti. Löydettiin yhteys keskimääräistä paremman opiskelumenestyksen ja keskimääräistä kehittyneemmän itseohjautuvuusvalmiuden välillä. Opiskelua tutkittiin lukiomenestyksen perusteella. Voitiin havaita, että tyydyttävästi lukiossa menestyneet pärjäsivät odotettua paremmin yliopisto-opinnoissaan. Sen sijaan lukiossa hyvin menestyneet alisuoriutuivat odotettua useammin opinnoissaan. Ensimmäisenä opiskeluvuonna keskimääräistä paremmin menestyneet opiskelijat selvisivät jatkossakin paremmin. Tämän havainnon perusteella voidaan väittää, että ensimmäisen vuoden opintomenestyksellä on selvä yhteys tulevien vuosien opintomenestykseen: huono opintomenestys ensimmäisenä vuotena johti sekä vuonna 2005 että 2004 aloittaneiden opiskelijoiden ryhmissä keskimäärin noin 26 % alempaan opintoviikkokertymään kolmen vuoden aikana verrattuna hyvin opiskelussa ensimmäisenä vuonna menestyneisiin ryhmiin. Opintosuorituksia tutkittiin kolmen ensimmäisen opiskeluvuoden aikana olleiden kahdeksan peruskurssin osalta. Havaittiin, että keskimäärin 46 % opiskelijoista suoritti peruskurssit ajallaan. Vuoden kuluttua peruskurssien päättymisestä keskimäärin 73 % opiskelijoista oli suorittanut ne.

Historically there has been many changes to the construction of fatherhood. These changes have not been linear and most significant changes took place during the twentieth century. Four ways of being and acting as a father (i.e., Discourses) have been identified: the father as moral overseer; the father as distant breadwinner; the father as sex-role model, and the new nurturant father. Previous studies have indicated that men’s experiences of fatherhood are very diverse and multifaceted. Fathers may experience intense feelings of elation and happiness, as well as depression and anxiety. Results even indicated that some fathers experienced physical symptoms such as morning sickness or hormonal changes, similar to what the mother could experience. There is also a distinction between three phases: pre-natal, the birth, and post-natal. However, there is a significant gap in the available knowledge related to the subjective experience of fathers, particularly in the South African context. This study is an exploration from within a social constructionist framework, of the experiences of first-time fatherhood. Using a multiple-case study design, the aim was to explore and answer the question: “How do men experience first-time fatherhood?” A qualitative approach to research was applied and three first-time fathers were recruited applying purposive and snowball sampling strategies for interviews that were conducted during May to June 2003. The Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique, which requires the participants to build a collage and participate in a semi-structured interview, was utilized for data collection. Data were analysed by way of thematic analysis, based on transcriptions and translations of the interview material. Three major themes emerged from the data: responsibility, feelings and thoughts and relationships. Collectively, ten sub-themes were extracted from the interviews.. With regard to responsibility, the three first-time fathers indicated that they associated aspects such as financial, emotional and educational provision as primary concerns of first-time fatherhood. Thoughts and feelings ranged from feelings of happiness and elation, stress and anxiety, to confusion and helplessness, as well as a sense of a loss of freedom. In terms of relationships, family, marriage, and the father-child relationship, emerged as significant in their overall experience of first-time fatherhood. These themes and the sub-themes were identified in both the collage and interview material collected for each father. The utilisation of the ZMET and a qualitative approach based in a social constructionist perspective proved useful in eliciting the more intimate experiences of first-time fatherhood. The project was, however, limited because only white male subjects were involved, and themes related to masculine stereotypes in the construction of the father’s reality of first-time fatherhood, and the gender of the baby, could not be explored. Further research on the topic is therefore proposed to explore the richness of the topic and to offer context-specific constructions of the multiple realities of first-time fatherhood. / Dissertation (MA (Research Psychology))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Psychology / unrestricted

A reconstrução de superfícies a partir de nuvens de pontos faz parte de um novo paradigma de modelagem em que modelos computacionais para objetos reais são reconstruídos a partir de dados amostrados sobre a superfície dos mesmos. O principal problema que surge nesse contexto é o fato de que não são conhecidas relações de conectividade entre os pontos que compõe a amostra. Os objetivos do presente trabalho são estudar métodos implícitos para a reconstrução de superfícies e propor algumas melhorias pouco exploradas por métodos já existentes. O uso de funções implícitas no contexto da reconstrução conduz a métodos mais robustos em relação a ruídos, no entanto, uma das principais desvantagens de tais métodos está na dificuldade de capturar detalhes finos e sharp features. Nesse sentido, o presente trabalho propõe o uso de abordagens adaptativas, tanto na poligonalização de superfícies quanto na aproximação de superfícies. Além disso, questões relativas à robustez das soluções locais e à qualidade da malha também são abordadas. Por fim, o método desenvolvido é acoplado aumsoftware traçador de raios afimde se obterumamaneira de modelar cenas tridimensionais utilizando nuvens de pontos, além dos objetos gráficos tradicionais. Os resultados apresentados mostram que muitas das soluções propostas oferecem um incremento à qualidade dos métodos de reconstrução anteriormente propostos / Surface reconstruction from point clouds is part of a new modeling paradigm in which computational models for real objects are reconstructed from data sampled from their surface. The main problem that arises in this context is the fact that there are no known connectivity relationships amongst the points that compose the sample. The objectives of the present work are to study implicit methods for surface reconstruction and to propose some improvements scarcely explored by previous work. The use of implicit functions in the context of surface reconstruction leads to less noise sensitive methods; however, one major drawback of such methods is the difficulty in capturing fine details and sharp features. Towards this, the present work proposes the use of adaptive approaches, not only in the polygonization but also in the surface approximation. Besides, robustness issues in local solutions and mesh quality are also tackled. Finally, the developed method is embedded in a ray tracer software in order to set a basis for modeling tridimensional scenes using point sets, in addition to traditional graphic objects. The presented results show that a great deal of the proposed solutions offer a quality increase to the reconstruction method previously proposed

My paper work deals with the 3D active triangular method of building reconstruction. First, there was a measuring triangular system created. Then the way of its automatic calibration was proposed and consequently also performed. Also algorithms for the automatic detection of the sample projected were proposed. Algoriths were presented with several sample buildings. The result of these algorithms are 3D models of individual buildings. In the end achieved results nd restrictions of the system proposed were assessed.

The paper describes basic principles of the finite element method. Further, basic properties of triangulation are discussed. The thesis is primarily focused on the Delaunay and Greedy triangulation. Greedy triangulation is simple to implement, but may not produce the optimal shape of triangles. Delaunay method is used due to its robustness in a wide range of fields especially in computer graphics. This method is relatively easy to implement and provides triangles with high quality.