Made available in DSpace on 2015-04-14T13:33:12Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 466524.pdf: 1652435 bytes, checksum: 558bad92f43c6a1060329314b7696b41 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-12-16 / Objective : To evaluate the growth, lung function and physical activity in school children between 8 and 11 years of age, premature very low birth weight infants compared with school term infants with adequate weight. Methods : We evaluated children born preterm and weighing ≤1500 grams in a regional neonatal ICU who were aged between 8 and 11 years. The control group consisted of children born at term weighing ≥2500 grams. The data were measured regarding the anthropometry, lung function (spirometry) and physical activity. In addition, information was recorded in the perinatal period / neonatal in newborns of very low birth weight (VLBW) infants. Results : 93 patients were evaluated, 45 in the control group and 48 of VLBW infants. There was no significant difference in the comparison between the anthropometric characteristics, nutritional and results of pulmonary function between the two groups. Similarly, perinatal / neonatal variables were not found associated with lung function at school age in VLBW group. Finally, while there was no significant difference in the levels of physical activity and sedentary behavior between groups, the RNBMP had a tendency to be more active than the control. Conclusion : The results of this study demonstrate similar findings and preserved growth, lung function and there was a trend of VLBW group be more active compared to control subjects. / Objetivo : Avaliar o crescimento, fun??o pulmonar e n?vel de atividade f?sica em escolares entre 8 e 11 anos de idade, nascidos prematuros de muito baixo peso em compara??o com escolares nascidos a termo e com peso adequado. Materiais e m?todos : Foram inclu?das crian?as que nasceram prematuras e com peso ≤1500 gramas, internadas em uma UTI neonatal que se encontravam com idades entre 8 e 11 anos. O grupo controle foi composto por crian?as nascidas a termo com peso ≥2500 gramas. Foram mensurados os dados referentes ? antropometria, fun??o pulmonar (espirometria) e atividade f?sica. Al?m disso, foram registradas as informa??es do per?odo perinatal/neonatal nos rec?m-nascidos de muito baixo peso (RNMBP). Resultados : Foram avaliadas 93 crian?as, sendo 45 do grupo controle e 48 dos RNMBP. N?o houve diferen?a significativa na compara??o entre as caracter?sticas antropom?tricas, nutricionais e nos resultados de fun??o pulmonar entre os dois grupos avaliados. Da mesma forma, as vari?veis perinatais/neonatais n?o se encontraram associadas com a fun??o pulmonar na idade escolar no grupo de RNMBP. Por fim, embora n?o houve diferen?a significativa nos n?veis de atividade f?sica e no comportamento sedent?rio entre os grupos, os RNBMP obtiveram uma tend?ncia em ser mais ativo do que o controle. Conclus?o : Os resultados do presente estudo demonstram achados similares e preservados de crescimento, fun??o pulmonar e houve uma tend?ncia do grupo RNMBP em ser mais ativos em compara??o aos sujeitos controles.

This work investigates the feasibility of assessing fun from only the computational analysis of facial images captured from low-cost webcams. The study and development was based on a set of videos recorded from the faces of voluntary participants as they played three different popular independent games (horror, action/platform and puzzle). The participants also self-reported on their levels of frustration, immersion and fun in a discrete range [0,4], and answered the reputed Game Experience Questionnaire (GEQ). The faces were found on the videos collected by a face tracking system, developed with existing implementations of the Viola-Jones algorithm for face detection and a variation of the Active Appearance Model (AAM) algorithm for tracking the facial landmarks. Fun was represented in terms of the prototypic emotions and the levels of frustration and immersion. The prototypic emotions were detected with a Support Vector Machine (SVM) trained from existing datasets, and the frustration, immersion and fun levels were detected with a Structured Perceptron trained from the collected data and the self reported levels of each affect, as well as estimations of the gradient of the distance between the face and the camera and the blink rate measured in blinks per minute. The evaluation was supported by a comparison of the self-reported levels of each affect and the answers to GEQ, and performed with measurements of precision and recall obtained in cross-validation tests. The frustration classifier could not obtain a precision above chance, mainly because the collected data didn\'t have enough variability in the reported levels of this affect. The immersion classifier obtained better precision particularly when trained with the estimated blink rate, with a median value of 0.42 and an Interquartile Range (IQR) varying from 0.12 to 0.73. The fun classifier, trained with the detected prototypic emotions and the reported levels of frustration and immersion, obtained the best precision scores, with a median of 0.58 and IQR varying from 0.28 to 0.84. All classifiers suffered from low recall, what was caused by difficulties in the tracking of landmarks and the fact that the emotion classifier was unbalanced due to existing datasets having more samples of neutral and happiness expressions. Nonetheless, a strong indication of the feasibility of assessing fun from recorded videos is in the pattern of variation of the levels predicted. Apart from the frustration classifier, the immersion and the fun classifier were able to predict the increases and decreases of the respective affect levels with an average error margin close to 1. / Este trabalho investiga a viabilidade de medir a diversão apenas a partir da análise computacional de imagens faciais capturadas de webcams de baixo custo. O estudo e desenvolvimento se baseou em vídeos gravados com as faces de voluntários enquanto jogavam três diferentes jogos populares e independentes (horror, ação/plataforma e puzzle). Os participantes também reportaram seus níveis de frustração, imersão e diversão no intervalo discreto [0, 4], e responderam ao renomado Game Experience Questionnaire (GEQ). Faces foram encontradas nos vídeos coletados utilizando um sistema desenvolvido com implementações existentes do algoritmo de Viola-Jones para a detecção da face e uma variação do algoritmo Active Appearance Model (AAM) para o rastreamento das marcas faciais. A diversão foi representada em termos das emoções prototípicas e dos níveis de frustração e imersão. As emoções prototípicas foram detectadas com uma Máquina de Vetores de Suporte (SVM) treinada com bases de dados existentes, e os níveis de frustração, imersão e diversão foram detectados com um Perceptron Estruturado treinado com os dados coletados e os níveis reportados de cada afeto, com o gradiente da distância entre a face e a câmera, e com a taxa de piscadas por minuto. A avaliação foi apoiada pela comparação dos níveis reportados com as respostas ao GEQ, e executada com métricas de precisão e revocação (recall) obtidas em testes de validação cruzada. O classificador de frustração não obteve uma precisão acima de chance, principalmente porque os dados coletados não tiveram variabilidade suficiente nos níveis reportados desse afeto. O classificador de imersão obteve uma precisão melhor particularmente quando treinado com a taxa de piscadas, com uma média de 0.42 e uma Amplitude Interquartil (IQR) entre 0.12 e 0.73. O classificador de diversão, treinado com as emoções prototípicas e os níveis reportados de frustração e imersão, obteve a melhor precisão, com média de 0.58 e IQR entre 0.28 e 0.84. Todos os classificadores sofreram de baixa revocação, causada por dificuldades no rastreamento das marcas faciais e pelo desbalanceamento do classificador de emoções, cujos dados de treinamento continham mais exemplos de expressões neutras e de felicidade. Ainda assim, um forte indicador da viabilidade de medir diversão a partir de vídeos está nos padrões de variação dos níveis previstos. Com exceção da frustração, os classificadores de imersão e de diversão foram capazes de prever os aumentos e reduções dos níveis dos respectivos afetos com uma margem de erro média próxima de 1.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-29T14:22:48Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Fabricio Mario Maia Fava.pdf: 17540766 bytes, checksum: dbdc481a71a11cbb7c042f4b6f5eee16 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-09-13 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Evaluating the quality of interaction with digital games has been a hard task. This is due mainly to the unawareness of proper tools and criteria or to its inappropriate application. The usability methods, for instance, are often used for the analysis of applications aiming productivity. Nevertheless, they are not established regarding the evaluation of interaction with videogames, which are developed to help players to have fun. Another tool adopted to measure the quality of interaction with other digital games is the playability. However, the unawareness of its evaluation criteria makes this method even less explored. So, we propose on this work to discuss the relations between playability and usability in digital games, trying to identify characteristics and concerns in every technique regarding design and evaluation of videogames. To cover up such questions, we weaved dialogues with game researchers as Jesper Juul, Katie Salen and Erick Zimmerman; scholars of topics related to fun and entertainment, as Nicole Lazzaro, Donald Norman and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi; besides researchers in the field of playability, as Carlo Fabricattore and Aki Jarvinen; and of the usability, like Katherine Isbister, Noah Schaffer and Sauli Laitinen. The knowledge of the topics discussed by these authors led us to adopt the application of usability and playability heuristics as research methodology, with the first person shooting games for computers as gender and study platform. Through this approach it was possible tot identify the observation needs concerning kinds of interaction problems before choosing the evaluation method (playability and usability) that will be used. By doing so, the measurement of the interaction quality will be more accurate and will contribute to the project of games able to keep players emotionally evolved. Considering the few literature about playability and usability in digital games, it is expected that this work help professionals and researchers in the designing and evaluating processes of videogames / Avaliar a qualidade da interação com os jogos digitais tem sido uma tarefa complexa. Isso se deve principalmente ao desconhecimento de ferramentas e critérios adequados ou à sua aplicação de forma inapropriada. Os métodos de usabilidade, por exemplo, são bastante utilizados para a análise de aplicações com Rns de produtividade. No entanto, não estão estabelecidos quanto à avaliação da interação com os videogames, que são desenvolvidos pensando em ajudar os jogadores a terem diversão. Outra ferramenta adotada para mensurar a qualidade da interação com os jogos digitais é a jogabilidade. Todavia, o desconhecimento de seus critérios de avaliação torna esse método ainda pouco explorado. Nesse sentido, propomos com este trabalho discutir as relações entre jogabilidade e usabilidade em jogos digitais, buscando identificar as características e preocupações de cada técnica no que diz respeito ao design e avaliação de videogames. Para dar conta dessas questões, traçamos diálogos com pesquisadores de jogos como Jesper Juul, Katie Salen e Erick Zimmerman; estudiosos das questões relacionadas à diversão e ao entretenimento, como Nicole Lazzaro, Donald Norman e Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi; além de pesquisadores do campo da jogabilidade, como Carlo Fabricattore e Aki Jarvinen; e da usabilidade, como Katherine Isbister, Noah Schaffer e Sauli Laitinen. O conhecimento das questões discutidas por esses autores nos conduziu a adotar a aplicação de heuristicas de jogabilidade e usabilidade como metodologia de pesquisa, tendo os jogos de tiro em primeira pessoa para computador como gênero e plataforma de estudo. Com essa abordagem, foi possivel identificar a necessidade da observação dos tipos de problemas de interação antes da escolha do método de avaliação (jogabilidade e usabilidade) que será utilizado. Dessa forma, a mensuração da qualidade da interação será mais precisa e contribuirá no projeto de jogos capazes de manter os jogadores envolvidos emocionalmente. Considerando a pouca literatura pertinente à jogabilidade e usabilidade nos jogos digitais, espera-se que esse trabalho auxilie profissionais e pesquisadores no processo de design e avaliação de videogames

Submitted by Sara Ribeiro (sara.ribeiro@ucb.br) on 2017-04-06T13:41:06Z No. of bitstreams: 1 CintiaMota CardealTese2014.pdf: 2995266 bytes, checksum: 4704c3b2f9fabf12e53e2d59ca4d1e83 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-04-06T13:41:06Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 CintiaMota CardealTese2014.pdf: 2995266 bytes, checksum: 4704c3b2f9fabf12e53e2d59ca4d1e83 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-02-21 / This study aimed to analyze the profile of executive function and neuroelectrical activations answers from the P300 component of school under acute stimuli of exercise at different intensities . The sample consisted of 60 individuals , divided randomly into control group , experimental group to the experimental group and moderate exercise to intense exercise aged 7 to 14 years . Initial tests to characterize the sample and spirometry for verification and determination of VO2max values for exercise intensity were applied . And the second time were applied cognitive tests ( Flanker and oddball paradigm ) moderate or intense physical exercise , with the reapplication of cognitive tests after acute exercise . It was observed that held moderate and intense aerobic exercise differ statistically from the control group in the executive function testing and procurement of P300. In testing the intense attention the only group differed significantly from the control group mind. In both tests the intensive group achieved better results compared to the other groups. The neuroelectrical frontoparietal network was established for the Flanker paradigm and frontoparietal network and the temporal to the oddball paradigm. We conclude that the results point to a favorable direction of physical activity in the school of moderate and intense in general. / Essa pesquisa teve como objetivo analisar o perfil das respostas da fun????o executiva e as ativa????es neuroel??tricas a partir do componente P300 de escolares sob est??mulos agudos de exerc??cio f??sico em diferentes intensidades. A amostra foi constitu??da de 60 indiv??duos, divididos de forma aleat??ria em grupo controle, grupo experimental para o exerc??cio moderado e grupo experimental para o exerc??cio intenso com idade entre 7 e 14 anos. Foram aplicados os testes iniciais para caracteriza????o da amostra e a ergoespirometria para a verifica????o do VO2max e determina????o dos valores para intensidade do exerc??cio. E no segundo momento aplicaram-se os testes cognitivos (paradigma Flanker e oddball) o exerc??cio f??sico moderado ou intenso, havendo a reaplica????o dos testes cognitivos logo ap??s o exerc??cio agudo. Foi observado que realizou o exerc??cio aer??bio moderado e intenso se diferenciaram estatisticamente do grupo controle no teste de fun????o executiva e nas aquisi????es do P300. No teste aten????o o somente o grupo intenso se diferenciou significativa mente do grupo controle. Em ambos os testes o grupo intenso obteve melhores resultados em rela????o aos demais grupos. A rede neuroel??trica frontoparietal foi estabelecida para o paradigma Flanker e a rede frontoparietal e temporal para o paradigma oddball. Conclui-se que os resultados apontam para uma dire????o favor??vel da atividade f??sica na escola de forma moderada e intensa, de maneira geral.

Submitted by Sara Ribeiro (sara.ribeiro@ucb.br) on 2017-04-20T17:36:27Z No. of bitstreams: 1 FranciscodeAssisdaSilvaFerreiraTese2016.pdf: 1490793 bytes, checksum: 723a3751c0bb7200af11e9383d4583c8 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Sara Ribeiro (sara.ribeiro@ucb.br) on 2017-04-20T17:37:05Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 FranciscodeAssisdaSilvaFerreiraTese2016.pdf: 1490793 bytes, checksum: 723a3751c0bb7200af11e9383d4583c8 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-04-20T17:37:05Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 FranciscodeAssisdaSilvaFerreiraTese2016.pdf: 1490793 bytes, checksum: 723a3751c0bb7200af11e9383d4583c8 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-08-29 / This thesis is divided in two main chapters: The first chapter revolves around the decomposing of five Federative Units's expenses, taking in account the revenue of each distinct unit, in healthcare, education and transport and in the search for empirical evidence, supported by a adapted theoretic model, of the impact of the latter in the Consumption Growth Rate of said Federative Units. The data was delated and the econometric estimation of the model parameters was made through a non-linear method. This allowed the derivated model parameters to be calculated and the ascertainment of the influence of transport investiment in the consumption. The second chapter's theme is Urban Mobility, initially discussing the population's necessity of transiting in the urban space, the problematic of traffic jams, the inefficacy of public transportation, and the externalities and diseconomies generated by said factors. In the endeavour of modeling the flow of vehicles through a road network, the so called "Flow Functions" are presented: this family of functions determines the time spent in shuttle between two consecutive bus stations and captures the e effects the increase of users sharing the same route has on the travel time. / Esta tese est?? dividida em dois cap??tulos: o primeiro investiga a decomposi????o de gastos p??blicos com sa??de, educa????o, transporte e seu impacto na taxa de crescimento do consumo em cinco unidades da federa????o, enquanto o segundo versa sobre a mobilidade urbana e as fun????es de fluxo. O primeiro cap??tulo trata da busca por evid??ncias emp??ricas, apoiadas num modelo te??rico adaptado, sobre o impacto do investimento em transporte na taxa de crescimento do consumo. Para isso, foram utilizados dados municipais de gastos com sa??de, educa????o e transporte, al??m das receitas correntes dos munic??pios. Os dados foram deflacionados e foi aplicado um m??todo n??o linear na estimativa econom??trica dos par??metros do modelo. A partir destes resultados, os par??metros derivados do modelo te??rico foram calculados, permitindo avaliar se os investimentos em transporte exercem influ??ncia sobre a taxa de crescimento do consumo. No segundo cap??tulo, a tem??tica ?? mobilidade urbana, discutindo primeiramente a necessidade do deslocamento por parte da popula????o de uma cidade, problemas com congestionamento, a inefici??ncia do transporte p??blico, deseconomia e outras externalidades geradas por engarrafamentos tamb??m foram abordadas. A tentativa de modelar o fluxo de ve??culos numa malha vi??ria serviu de inspira????o para as fun????es de fluxo que ser??o introduzidas aqui. Ent??o, dentro deste contexto, introduzimos uma fam??lia de fun????es com objetivo de modelar o deslocamento de usu??rios do transporte p??blico numa malha vi??ria. Estas fun????es determinam o tempo de deslocamento entre duas esta????es consecutivas e capturam o efeito do aumento de fluxo de usu??rios compartilhando a mesma via.

Submitted by Sara Ribeiro (sara.ribeiro@ucb.br) on 2017-06-13T14:11:27Z No. of bitstreams: 1 SinvalBragadeFreitasTese2016.pdf: 706624 bytes, checksum: 578a2a771cd50a1b6f9bb8145d641ce3 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Sara Ribeiro (sara.ribeiro@ucb.br) on 2017-06-13T14:11:38Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 SinvalBragadeFreitasTese2016.pdf: 706624 bytes, checksum: 578a2a771cd50a1b6f9bb8145d641ce3 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-06-13T14:11:39Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 SinvalBragadeFreitasTese2016.pdf: 706624 bytes, checksum: 578a2a771cd50a1b6f9bb8145d641ce3 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-06-03 / In this paper rst we studied a family of functions de ned as Arrow-Debreu functions, which proved to contain the entire family of pseudo concave functions that appear in the literature. We show that the closures of the preferred sets are usually star shaped and when the e ective domain is convex these sets are also convex. Some existence results for the classical maximization problem are given for this family of functions. After this the concept of satiation a ordability opportunities in unbounded economies is introduced and shown that the hypothesis that there is no satiation a ordability opportunity de ned here is necessary and su cient condition for existence of solution for the consumer problem. Finally it is shown this hypothesis is a consequence of inconsequential arbitrage condition. / Neste trabalho estudamos primeiro uma fam??lia de fun????es de nidas como Fun????es de Arrow- Debreu, a qual provamos conter toda a fam??lia de fun????es pseudo c??ncavas que aparecem na literatura. Mostramos que os fechos dos conjuntos dos preferidos s??o, em geral, estrelados e quando o dom??nio efetivo ?? convexo esses conjuntos tamb??m s??o convexos. Alguns resultados de exist??ncia para o problema de maximiza????o cl??ssico s??o dados para essa fam??lia de fun????es. Em seguida, o conceito de oportunidades de acessibilidade saciada em economias n??o limitadas ?? introduzido e mostrado que a hip??tese de n??o exist??ncia de oportunidade de acessibilidade saciada aqui de nida ?? condi????o necess??ria e su ciente para que o problema do consumidor tenha solu????o. Finalmente ?? mostrado que essa hip??tese ?? consequ??ncia da condi????o de arbitragem inconsequente.

”Sustainable reconciliation”, a form of international aid relief program, has been developed and constructed to help populations overcome war trauma, using different activities within art, entertainment and sports.  Theorists claim that if conducted properly, activities such as these, should lead to good social capital, causing higher levels of culture tolerance, gender equality and creativity, as well as better health and life satisfaction. This study has examined how the non-governmental organization, the Cross Cultural Project Association’s relief program, the Open Fun Football Schools has affected its participants in Belgrade, Serbia. A quantitative analysis has been conducted through the means of a multi question survey, to see if certain variables are correlated with the projects influence, “OFFS social capital”. According to the results, the activities did have positive effects on education, culture tolerance, gender equality, creativity, heath and life satisfaction. In addition the social capital influenced by the activities was found to be dependent on participants’ level of culture tolerance, and vice versa. The project is found to set the foundation for good social networking possibilities and create good social capital, all great aspects for the purpose of peace building.

In 1963, architect Cedric Price, theatre producer Joan Littlewood, and cybernetician Gordon Pask proposed a new kind of leisure centre called the Fun Palace. Though never built, the project continues to influence architecture and is the inspiration for this thesis. Known also as the “Laboratory of Fun,” the Fun Palace developed a compelling yet problematic narrative: people would have the freedom to design their own spatial experiences, but their behaviours would be monitored and probed. Innovations from the cybernetic committee had propelled the Fun Palace beyond mundane reality and into the virtual. In fact, the Fun Palace was more than a building; it was an information interface where architecture and humans were connected by cybernetic feedback. Of particular importance to this thesis is the way the Fun Palace antici- pated how digital technology would transform the world, and how it can be understood as an early prototype of the digital city. The model of space that the Fun Palace proposed shifted our understanding of architecture from autonomous and static to complex and dynamic; from an architecture of walls to an architecture of fields. This thesis is organized along three lines of inquiry. Firstly, that architecture is participatory. Secondly, that architecture is multidimensional. Thirdly, that architecture is generated by real-time transactions. The thesis concludes with a speculation called In The Fields: a mobile laboratory for co-creation in the digital city.

The aim of the thesis is to re-read the design process of Cedric Price&rsquo / s Fun Palace via &ldquo / patterns of utopia&rdquo / in order to understand and discuss how social imagination guides practice of architecture. Social imagination, as conceptualized in this thesis, denotes the intellectual activity of critically observing the social context and utilizing available resources in favor of new social possibilities. It can be argued that architectural practice is continuously subjected to political, cultural, and financial changes, the accumulation of which may easily bring forth changes in programmatic and physical aspects of space. The thesis claims that in order to keep in pace with the extents of change and variation in social experience, architectural production requires the integration of social imagination into the design process. Keeping this in mind, patterns of utopia are conceptualized as guidelines that help the integration of social imagination into the design process. In turn, Price&rsquo / s Fun Palace is re-read from the scope of patterns, in order to understand the relations between social dimension of the project and how this dimension is reflected onto the design of a flexible set of programs.

China in the new millennium has witnessed the surge of the digital wave, which has played a pivotal role in reshaping the social and cultural landscapes. This dissertation employs institutional and content analysis to link the ascendance of Internet culture with the state-led marketization, commercialization, and modernization project. By systematically examining blog and Bulletin Board Systems (BBSs), two of the most dynamic online spaces in China, it brings to the fore the intertwining official, commercial, individual, and social forces conducive to the vitality, ingenuity, and diversity of Internet culture in China. The main body of this dissertation is divided into four chapters. Chapter one describes the developmental history of the Internet and blogging industry in China, and discusses how the rule of the attention economy dominates the industrial practice of commercial Internet portals. By taking Sina.com as a primary case study, this chapter elucidates how the strategic structuring of attention is paramount for Sina.com’s success in promoting celebrity blogs. In turn, celebrity blogging has fundamentally changed the social and cultural landscape of China. The following three chapters delineate three prominent cultural modes digital media have fostered: fun-seeking, trailblazing, and taboo-breaking. Each formulation epitomizes how a particular style of attention rule is implemented in online space. Chapter two investigates how the playful collective attention projected on an alternative media type fosters the birth of China’s first Internet celebrity: Furong Jiejie (Sister Lotus). Chapter three explores how the “attention-haves,” represented by such celebrities as Yang Lan and Xu Jinglei, innovatively capitalize on the attention rule and engage in new modes of cultural production via new media. In chapter four, I use blogs of Mu Zimei and Han Han as examples, and detail how their taboo-breaking practices disrupt preset parameters of social, cultural, and political norms. I contend their particular style of blogging greatly contributes to catching public attention and engaging in contentious issues, which further fosters the emergence of a literal public sphere in contemporary China. / text