The study deals with J. Baudrillad’s conception of reality as hyper reality. J. Baudrillad’s conception of hyper reality and the lost of referential reality is presented through the analysis of numerous writings, articles as well as critical texts. First of all, the author’s conception of simulated and non-referential reality is compared with the classical understanding of reality, which contains dualistic tension, whereas the other is nuclear and the distinctions between object/subject, true/false, real/unreal are no longer possible. Then the author of the study also brings the theme of ‘produced reality’ and mass mediated life as it is represented in J. Baudrillad’s philosophical writings. The influence of hyper reality on the practical way of life is also analyzed. Finally, the themes of non-referential language, philosophical dialogue and possibility for classical philosophy are considered.

Two main subjects, ellipsometry and computer screen photo-assisted techniques (CSPT), form the main line in this thesis. Ellipsometry is an optical technique based on the detection of polarization changes of light upon interaction with a sample. As most optical detection techniques it is non-intrusive and an additional advantage is its high surface sensitivity: thickness resolution in the order of pm can in principle be achieved. Therefore, ellipsometry is widely used as a technique for determination of optical constants and layer thickness for thin-layer structures. Lately ellipsometry has also been proposed for sensing applications, utilizing the detection of changes in the properties of thin layers. One application is described in this thesis concerning the detection of volatile organic solvents in gas phase using modified porous silicon layers, fabricated by electrochemical etching of silicon to create nm-sized pores. This greatly increases the surface area, promoting gas detection because the number of adsorption sites increases. Other applications of ellipsometry discussed in this thesis are based on combination with CSPT. CSPT is a way to exploit existing optical techniques for use in low-cost applications. In CSPT the computer screen itself is used as a (programmable) light source for optical measurements. For detection a web camera can be used and the whole measurement platform is formed by the computer. Since computers are available almost everywhere, this is a promising way to create optical measurement techniques for widespread use, for example in home-diagnostics. Since the only thing that needs to be added is a sample holder governing the physical or chemical process and directing the light, the cost can be kept very low. First, the use of CSPT for the measurement of fluorescence is described. Fluorescence is used in many detection applications, usually by chemically attaching a fluorescent marker molecule to a suitable species in the process and monitoring the fluorescent emission. The detection of fluorescence is shown to be possible using CSPT, first in a cuvette-based setup, then using a custom designed micro array. In the latter, polarizers were used for contrast enhancement, which in turn led to the implementation of an existing idea to test CSPT for ellipsometry measurements. In a first demonstration, involving thickness measurement of silicon dioxide on silicon, a thickness resolution in the order of nm was already achieved. After improvement of the system, gradients in protein layers could be detected, opening the door toward biosensor applications. Some further development will be needed to make the CSPT applications described here ready for the market, but the results so far are certainly promising.

Interactive handheld electronic displays use hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) thin film transistor (TFT) as a backplane and a Touch Screen Panel (TSP) on top as an input device. The low mobility and instability of a-Si:H TFT threshold voltage are major two issues for driving constant current as required for Active Matrix Organic Light Emitting Ddiode (AMOLED) displays. Low mobility is compensated by increasing transistor width or resorting to more expensive material TFTs. On the other hand, the ever increasing threshold voltage shift degrades the drain current under electrical operation causing OLED display to dim. Mutual capacitive TSP, the current cell phone standard, requires two layers of metals and a dielectric to be put in front of the display, further dimming the device and adding to visual noise due to sun reflection, not to mention increased integration cost and decreased yield. This thesis focuses on the aforementioned technological hurdles of a handheld electronic display by proposing a dual-gate TFT used as an OLED current driving TFT and a novel phase response readout scheme that can be applied to a one metal track TSP. Our dual-gate TFT has shown on average 20% increase in drive current over a single gate TFT fabricated in the same batch, attributed to the aid of a top channel to the convention bottom channel TFT. Furthermore the dual gate TFT shows three times the Poole-Frenkel current than the single gate TFT attributed to the increase in gate to drain overlap. The dual-gate TFT shows a 50% improvement in threshold voltage shift over a single gate TFT at room temperature, but only ~8% improvement under 75ºC. This is an important observation as it shows an accelerated threshold voltage shift in the dual-gate. This difference in the rate of threshold voltage change under varying temperature is attributed to the difference in interface states, supporting Libsch and Kanicki’s multi-level temperature dependant dielectric trapping model. The phase response TSP readout scheme requires IC only on one side of the display. Cadence Spectre simulation results showed that both touch occurrence and touch position can be obtained using only one metal layer.

El ámbito de esta investigación se ubica en la revisión de las posibilidades instruccionales que tiene la lectura y escritura de la imagen digital en la Educación. En este sentido debemos destacar que si bien es cierto que durante estos últimos treinta años la funcionalidad de la imagen ha estado siempre vinculada a criterios reduccionistas que la colocan en el mejor de los casos como simple ilustración gráfica de los contenidos educativos, también es cierto que la creciente difusión de las tecnologías digitales ha permitido ampliar su valor instruccional al convertirla en una forma visual escrita para ser leída a través de la pantalla digital. De modo que en este mundo digital y visual, leer y escribir con imágenes se ha convertido en una necesidad por lo demás educativa. En este orden de ideas presentamos este trabajo de investigación que busca, por un lado, desarrollar una propuesta metodológica para la lectura y escritura de la imagen digital, y por el otro, implementar estas metodologías a través de un curso analizado bajo el modo de un estudio de caso y cuyo objetivo fue valorar el desempeño de los estudiantes al escribir las pantallas de un objeto para el aprendizaje a partir de las metodologías de lectura y escritura de la imagen digital. El proceso seguido para compilar los datos se fundamentó en las técnicas del cuestionario, la entrevista individual y el análisis de las actividades propuestas en el curso. La aplicación del primer cuestionario permitió determinar el grado de conocimiento que tenían los estudiantes sobre la imagen digital antes de comenzar el curso. La entrevista individual nos permitió determinar los criterios de lectura adquiridos por los estudiantes luego de haber utilizado la metodología de lectura de la imagen digital para analizar los materiales educativos de Galavís (2008) y Azzato (2009). Las actividades propuestas en el curso nos permitieron valorar el desempeño de los estudiantes al leer y escribir la imagen digital de un objeto para el aprendizaje. Finalmente, una vez completado el curso, procedimos a aplicar el segundo cuestionario cuyo objetivo fue determinar el nivel de conocimiento adquirido por los estudiantes acerca de la lectura y escritura de la imagen en pantallas digitales. Los resultados obtenidos en cada uno de los análisis nos permitieron determinar que las metodologías propuestas fueron altamente útiles para escribir la imagen educativa en las pantallas de cada uno de los objetos para el aprendizaje creados en el curso. / "Functions of the digital image in Education: A methodological proposal for writing and reading of digital images in instructional screens" TEXT: The scope of this investigation lies in the review of instructional possibilities that have reading and writing the digital image in Education. In this regard we must emphasize that although it is true that during the last thirty years, the functionality of the image has always been linked to reductive criteria that place them at best as a simple graphic illustration of the educational content, it is also true that the increasing spread of digital technologies has allowed to expand its instructional value by making a menu written to be read through the digital screen. So in this digital world and visual images to read and write has become a necessity otherwise educational. We presents this research that seeks, first, develop a methodology for reading and writing in digital imaging, and on the other, to implement these methodologies through an ongoing review under the guise of a case study aimed to assess student performance in writing displays an object for learning from the methodologies of reading and writing in digital imaging. The process used to compile the data was based on the techniques of questionnaire, interview and analysis of proposed activities in the course. The implementation of the first questionnaire allowed us to determine the degree of knowledge that students had on the digital image before starting the course. The interview allowed us to determine the criteria for reading acquired by students after reading the methodology used digital imaging to analyze the educational materials Galavis (2008) and Azzato (2009). The proposed activities in the course allowed us to assess student performance in reading and writing the digital image of an object for learning. Finally, after completing the course, proceed with the second questionnaire aimed to determine the level of knowledge acquired by students about reading and writing of the image in digital displays. The results in each of the tests allowed us to determine that the proposed methodologies were highly useful to write the image educational displays each of the learning objects created in the course.

The diagnosis of dehydration in the older person admitted to hospital has been associated with increased morbidity and mortality. In spite of the high US hospital mortality and morbidity rates associated with dehydration (although presumably not the only contributing factor), no standardised or validated approach to assess or easily screen for dehydration in the hospital setting is reported in the international literature. Therefore, a series of studies was undertaken to assess the extent of this, and to identify other gaps in the current literature. The first study estimated the dehydration prevalence amongst older people upon admission to geriatric and rehabilitation unit in the Australian setting to estimate the morbidity burden in the Australian context. The second study assessed the application of dilution and bio-electrical impedance (BIA) techniques as alternative means to assess dehydration in the clinical setting. The third study undertook to validate against total body water the parameters required to confirm dehydration and to identify those that contribute little to discrimination. The final study integrated the information from the first two studies to identify a clinically practical, sensitive and specific screen suitable for the identification of those at risk of dehydration in a geriatric and rehabilitation unit. Older people aged 60 years or over admitted to the Geriatric and Rehabilitation Unit (GARU) of a tertiary teaching hospital in Brisbane. Australia, were eligible for participation in the study. Individuals were excluded if: involuntarily admitted, informed consent was not obtained, younger than 60 years or fitted with a pacemaker (due to contraindication with the use of BIA). Of 82 GARU participants approached, 43 fulfilled the inclusion criteria and consented, 21 declined and 18 were ineligible. Thirty-five (35) of the 43 were able to be involved in the assessment of prevalence. The studies in this thesis provide original insights into dehydration including prevalence, body water contents, useful clinical assessment and screening parameters. Results showed that dehydration prevalence amongst older people is substantially underreported in the Australian geriatric and rehabilitation unit setting (17.1%) when compared to the reported through coding from the medical record (5.3%). The presence of dehydration has frequently been measured in healthy populations by assessing total body water loss through short-term weight change. Gold standard dilution and bio-electrical impedance techniques were used to assess body water as the assessment of dehydration by weight change has practical and ethical limitations in the clinical setting for either research or assessment applications. Gold standard dilution studies and the bio-electrical impedance technique were not confirmed to be either practical or valid alternates to assess dehydration in the clinical setting. Weight and body mass index (BMI) confounded the association between body water and dehydration. Good agreement (78-87%) of global clinical dehydration assessment (clinical assessment) was confirmed between the study's medical officer and the consultants of the Geriatric and Rehabilitation Unit (GARU) and thus become the alternate dependant variable. Although the optimal combination of parameters for clinical dehydration assessment was unable to be elucidated, clinically significant changes upon mild dehydration were more apparent with physical as opposed to biochemical parameters. BMI confounded the association between dehydration and some physical measurements, such as the drop in systolic blood pressure on standing and skin turgor. Of all the clinical assessment and screening variables explored, tongue dryness was validated and represents a practical, sensitive (64%) and specific (62%) dehydration screen suitable for use with all older people in a geriatric and rehabilitation unit setting. Dehydration was established to be more prevalent amongst older Australians admitted to hospital than previously acknowledged or identified by hospitals. The finding identifies dehydration as a significant clinical issue considering the ageing Australian population, limited health resources and the association of dehydration with increased morbidity and mortality. The validation of the simple dehydration screen will contribute to the identification and treatment of dehydration. Although the highest sensitivity and specificity is always desired for screening, it is not always achieved. Moderate sensitivity results in more people being identified at risk by the screen than confirmed to be dehydrated through clinical assessment. Moderate specificity results in the screen's failure to identify those who would be clinically assessed with dehydration. Moderate sensitivity and specificity necessitates the assessment of more people than those with the condition and results in other people with the condition of interest not being identified. Each situation is reduced with increasing levels of sensitivity and specificity. A valid and simple dehydration screen provides future opportunities to confirm improved clinical (prevent adverse events, improve or stabilise disease), cost (reduce intensity of care, hospital stay) and client (death, disability) outcomes as a result of improved identification and timely and appropriate treatment. New insights are provided into individual clinical assessment measures as well as valid and reliable screening. A number of recommendations and future dehydration studies are discussed. The key recommendation for future studies is to discern between intracellular and intravascular volume depletion to enable investigation of an homogenous sample. Further studies are needed to also establish optimal dehydration prevention methods (e.g. awareness and positioning of fluids, beverage carts) and provide evidence that hydration support enhances primary (e.g. morbidity and mortality) and secondary (e.g. cognitive or functional measures, quality of life) health outcomes. Through responsive systems in health delivery, dehydration amongst older hospitalised people can be identified, better managed if present, and avoided with suitable treatment.

<p>Ambient Occlusion är en teknik för ambient ljussättning i digitala tredimensionella scener. Sådana scener ljussätts vanligtvis med en konstant mängd ambient ljus på samtliga ytor oberoende av ytornas vinkel och position gentemot olika ljuskällor i scenen. Detta ger ett platt och kalt intryck och utan vidare ljussättningstekniker är det ytterst svårt att urskönja detaljer i scenen. Ambient Occlusion åthjälper detta genom att reducera mängden ambient ljus i vissa delar av scenen. Ambient ljus är en enkel approximation av det reflekterade diffusa ljuset som antas nå nästan överallt i scenen. Genom att sänka det ambienta ljuset på punkter i scenen med tät eller täckande geometri så ger Ambient Occlusion ett intryck av att det sekundära diffusa ljuset ej når dessa platser. Pappret undersöker en äldre variant av Ambient Occlusion där mängden ambient ljus beräknas statiskt för en scen och sparas i texturer. Vidare undersöks nyare metoder där mängden ambient ljus beräknas dynamiskt på den renderade scenen i Pixel Shaders. Det senare tillvägagångssättet kallas Image Based Ambient Occlusion eller Screen Space Ambient Occlusion. Detta nya tillvägagångssätt jämförs mot den traditionella angreppsvinkeln med förberäknade texturer. Teknikerna utvärderas och jämförs mot varandra i avseende på tids- och minneskomplexitet, enkelhet och visuellt resultat utöver specifika egenskaper för de enskilda teknikerna. Arbetets resultat beskrivs i slutet av rapporten. I resultatet presenteras hur shaderteknikerna pga sina brister inte är applicerbara i alla scener.</p>

Submitted by Emanuel Varela Cardoso (emanuel.varela@ufcg.edu.br) on 2018-06-14T20:51:37Z No. of bitstreams: 1 CARMEM LÚCIA CAVALCANTI COUTINHO – DISSERTAÇÃO (PPG-CEMat) 2015.pdf: 1178536 bytes, checksum: 7b4bc6d75aa15e3438cedfa584239124 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-06-14T20:51:37Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 CARMEM LÚCIA CAVALCANTI COUTINHO – DISSERTAÇÃO (PPG-CEMat) 2015.pdf: 1178536 bytes, checksum: 7b4bc6d75aa15e3438cedfa584239124 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-07-09 / A técnica sling pela via transobturadora é eficaz para o tratamento de mulheres com Incontinência Urinária de Esforço e apresenta elevada taxa de cura e melhora da qualidade de vida com baixos índices de complicações. Este trabalho teve como objetivo desenvolver e confeccionar, uma tela de policaprolactona, para uso na técnica de Sling e realizar análises comparativas deste material com a tela de polipropileno, utilizada comercialmente. A pesquisa foi desenvolvida no Laboratório de Avaliação e Desenvolvimento de Biomateriais do Nordeste – CERTBIO. Utilizouse duas amostras de tela, uma confeccionada no CERTBIO e outra de uso comercial. Foram avaliadas as composições químicas e físicas das telas de Policaprolactona (PCL) e Polipropile no (PP), através das técnicas de: Espectroscopia na Região de Infravermelho com Transformada de Fourier (FTIR), Difração de Raios X (DRX) e Microscopia Eletrônica de Varredura (MEV), Tensão superficial, Ensaios Mecânicos de Tração e Teste de Citotoxicidade. Pode-se comprovar pela análise de FTIR, que o material formador das telas era apenas de polipropileno e policaprolactona. A análise de DRX corroborou com os resultados obtidos na análise de FTIR, que indicavam que o material das telas tratava de PP e PCL, apresentando um espectograma característico d estes polímeros. Também, através da análise de DRX, foi possível observar o grau de cristalinidade indicando o PP que possui maior grau de cristalinidade que o PCL. Pode-se comprovar também, que o PP possui maior resistência mecânica que o PCL, verificando assim que o PP é mais frágil e quebradiço do que o PCL. A análise de tensão superficial mostrou que as duas telas possuem molhabilidade parcial devido as cavidade presentes na superfície das telas. A biocompatibilidade dos compostos foi confirmada com o teste de Citotoxicidade. / The sling technique by transobturator approach is effective for the treatment of women with Stress Urinary Incontinence and has a high cure rate and improved quality of life with low complication rates. This work aimed to develop and produce, polycaprolactone, screen for use in Sling surgery and to perform comparative analyses of this material with a polypropylene bladder, used commercially. The survey was developed in the laboratory of evaluation and development of Biomaterials in the Northeast-CERTBIO. Two samples were used to screen; a made in the laboratory and another used commercially. Been evaluated physical and chemical compositions of the Polycaprolactone (PCL) and Polypropylene (PP) screens, through the following techniques: infrared Spectroscopy in the region with a Fourier transform (FTIR), x-ray Diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), surface tension, traction mechanical essays and Cytotoxicity test. You can check by the FTIR analysis, that the trainer material of fabrics was just poliproplieno and polycaprolactone, for examining the computer spectrogram. The XRD analysis corroborated with the results obtained in the FTIR analysis, which indicated that the material was PP screens and PCL, showing a characteristic you might like to look of these polymers. Also, through the analysis of DRX, it was possible to o bserve the degree of crystallinity indicating the PP has higher degree of crystallinity the PCL. One can prove that the PP has higher mechanical strength than the PCL, checking so that the PP is more brittle than the PCL. The analysis of surface tension showed that both screens have partial wettability due to cavity present on the surface of the canvas. The biocompatibility of the compounds has been confirmed with the Cytotoxicity test and it showed low cytotoxicity in two screens.

Chez Drosophila melanogaster, l’orientation horaire (dextrale) des organes est déterminée par un gène unique codant la Myosine non conventionnelle de type ID (MyoID). Un crible génétique modificateur en contexte sensibilisé pour myoID nous a permis d’identifier klp64D comme un gène interagissant génétiquement avec myoID. Celui-ci code l’une des sous-unités motrices du complexe moteur hétérotrimérique Kinésine-2 (Kin-2) constitué d’une autre sous-unité motrice Klp68D et d’une sous-unité adaptatrice Kap3. Nous montrons que klp68D interagit génétiquement avec myoID lors de la mise en place de l’axe D/G. Ceci suggère donc un rôle de l’ensemble du complexe Kin-2 dans l’asymétrie D/G. Chez les vertébrés, Kin-2 participe à l’assemblage des cils impliqués dans la détermination D/G lors de la gastrulation. Or, chez la drosophile, les cils ne sont pas requis dans la détermination D/G. MyoID et Kin-2 sont requis de manière synchrone dans la voie dextrale lors de la détermination D/G. En outre, Kin-2 joue un rôle important dans la rotation horaire du génitalia et l’enroulement dextral de l’intestin postérieur adulte (hindgut). Kin-2 est requise dans l’organisateur D/G de l’hindgut adulte pour l’orientation biaisée des cellules qui n’expriment pas MyoID. Par ailleurs, nos résultats suggèrent que l’activité de Kin-2 n’est pas requise dans le sous-ensemble de cellules qui exprime MyoID. Enfin, le rôle joué par Kin-2 dans l’asymétrie D/G semble indépendant de la polarité apico-basale et des jonctions adhérentes. Kin-2 pourrait donc jouer un rôle non ciliaire dans la phase de propagation de l’information directionnelle induite par MyoID. / In nature most of the bilateralia are left/right (L/R) asymmetric. In Drosophila, asymmetry is apparent in the directional looping of gut and terminalia. Dextral orientation of organs is controlled by the activity of a single gene myosin ID (myoID) whose mutation induces a fully inverted L/R axis. To date little is known of how the initial L/R cue induced by MyoID is propagated and maintained through the rest of the architecture of the L/R organizer. Here we present the identification of klp64D and klp68D as new myoID interacting genes. These genes encodes the two motor sub-units of the Drosophila Kinesin-2 motor complex. Interestingly, this microtubule-based motor plays a ciliary function in vertebrate L/R morphogenesis. However, we show that in Drosophila cilia are not involved in L/R asymmetry. We demonstrate that Kinesin-2 acts during L/R determination in the dextral pathway. Furthermore Kinesin-2 is required for proper L/R patterning both of male genitalia and of adult hindgut. L/R activity of Kinesin-2 is restricted to cells that do not express MyoID suggesting a role for this motor in propagation of the L/R cue. Our findings show for the first time a non ciliary role for Kinesin-2 in L/R axis determination. Thus, these results shed light on an evolutionary conservation between Drosophila and vertebrate L/R determination.

Os transtornos de ansiedade representam uma das formas mais comuns de psicopatologia em crianças e adolescentes e estão associados com prejuízos no funcionamento acadêmico, social e familiar. Porém, permanecem frequentemente subdiagnosticados e subtratados. O bullying escolar é muito comum e está associado com um amplo espectro de problemas psiquiátricos, incluindo sintomas de ansiedade. O principal objetivo desta tese foi examinar a prevalência de bullying em uma grande amostra comunitária de crianças e adolescentes brasileiros e investigar a associação entre bullying e sintomatologia ansiosa de acordo com o DSM-IV. Esse estudo transversal consistiu no preenchimento de um questionário sobre bullying e de sua frequência e de um instrumento auto-aplicativo de triagem para transtornos de ansiedade que é a Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders (SCARED) por 2.353 estudantes entre 9 e 18 anos provenientes de seis escolas pertencentes à área de captação da Unidade Básica de Saúde do Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre. Um total de 22,9% da amostra relatou envolvimento com bullying frequente, como agressor (7,6%), como vítima (5,7%) ou como agressor-vítima (9,6%). Em geral, meninos foram mais envolvidos como agressores e como agressores-vítimas e meninas como vítimas. Nossos achados demonstraram que estudantes envolvidos com bullying, como vítimas ou agressores-vítimas, apresentavam maiores escores na SCARED total e em suas subescalas do que agressores ou do que os estudantes sem envolvimento com bullying. A prevalência do bullying encontrada no nosso estudo está na média quando comparada com estudos prévios na literatura. Vítimas e agressores-vítimas, mas não agressores, são grupos associados com uma sintomatologia ansiosa mais alta. Embora no Brasil as taxas para as prevalências dos transtornos de ansiedade na infância e adolescência sejam substanciais, há uma carência de instrumentos para avaliar os sintomas de ansiedade e constructos relacionados à ansiedade em crianças e adolescentes. Adicionalmente, essa tese avaliou as propriedades psicométricas de duas escalas que são utilizadas na avaliação da ansiedade em crianças e adolescentes. A SCARED é um instrumento auto-aplicativo que foi originalmente desenvolvido como uma ferramenta de triagem para avaliar os transtornos de ansiedade na infância e adolescência de acordo com o DSM-IV. Os resultados encontrados em nosso estudo evidenciam que a SCARED apresenta propriedades psicométricas apropriadas e é um instrumento válido e confiável para avaliar sintomas de ansiedade em jovens no Brasil. O Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index (CASI) é o principal instrumento utilizado para avaliar sensibilidade à ansiedade em crianças e adolescentes. A sensibilidade à ansiedade é um constructo temperamental que pode ser conceitualizado como o medo de que sintomas de ansiedade possam ter graves consequências físicas, psicológicas ou sociais para o indivíduo. A sensibilidade à ansiedade está associada com outras medidas de ansiedade, principalmente àquelas que avaliam sintomas relacionados ao transtorno do pânico, e pode ser considerada um fator de risco para o desenvolvimento de sintomas de ansiedade e de transtornos de ansiedade em jovens. Nossos achados demonstraram uma confiabilidade apropriada e evidência de validade convergente entre a CASI e a SCARED em uma subamostra do nosso estudo, sugerindo que a CASI possa ser uma ferramenta útil na avaliação da sensibilidade à ansiedade nessa população. Tendo em vista os limitados recursos em relação à saúde mental e a pouca atenção clínica aos transtornos de ansiedade, acredita-se que tais instrumentos possam 11 se tornar ferramentas úteis na triagem de crianças e adolescentes com sintomas de ansiedade e que poderão necessitar de avaliações adicionais e de tratamento. / Anxiety disorders are one of the most common forms of psychopathology among children and adolescents and are associated with impairments in academic, social, and family functioning. Although very prevalent, the anxiety disorders are often undetected or untreated. School bullying is common and is associated with a broad spectrum of psychiatric problems, including anxiety symptomatology. The main objective of this study was to examine the prevalence of bullying behaviors in a large communitarian sample of Brazilian children and adolescents and to investigate the association between bullying behaviors and DSM-IV anxiety symptomatology. This cross-sectional study involved completion of a self-report questionnaire about bullying behaviors and their frequency and the Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders (SCARED) that is also a self-report screening tool for childhood anxiety disorders by 2353 students aged 9-18 years from 6 schools located in the catchment area of the Primary Care Unit from the Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre. A total of 22.9% of the sample reported frequent involvement in bullying, as a bully (7.4%), as a victim (5.7%), or as a bully-victim (9.5%). In general, boys were more likely to be involved as bully and as bully-victim, and girls were more likely to be involved as victims. Our findings showed that students involved in bullying behaviors, as victims or bully-victims, were more likely to have higher total scores in SCARED scale, as well as in its subscales than bullies and than uninvolved students. The prevalence of bullying behaviors found in our sample is about average when compared with previous studies described in the literature. Victims and bully-victims, but no bullies, are groups associated with higher anxiety symptomatology. Although prevalence rates of anxiety disorders in Brazilian youth are significant, there is a lack of validated instruments to assess anxiety symptoms and related constructs in children and adolescents. In addition, this study verified the psychometrics properties of two scales that are frequently used in the assessment of anxiety in children and adolescents. The SCARED is a self-report instrument that was originally developed as a screening tool for DSM-IV childhood anxiety disorders. Our study suggested that the SCARED has appropriate psychometric properties and is a useful and reliable instrument to assess anxiety symptoms in Brazilian youth. The Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index (CASI) is the principal instrument used to assess anxiety sensitivity in children and adolescents. Anxiety Sensitivity refers to the tendency to fear anxiety-related sensations and is thought to arise from beliefs about their harmful physical, cognitive, or social consequences. Anxiety sensitivity is associated with other anxiety measurements, mainly those evaluating panic symptoms. It is also considered a risk factor for the development of anxious symptomatology and anxiety disorders in youth. Our findings demonstrated an appropriate reliability and evidence of convergent validity in the CASI with the SCARED in a subsample of our study, suggesting that the CASI could be a suitable tool for evaluating anxiety sensitivity in this population. Given the limited mental health resources and the paucity of clinical attention to childhood anxiety disorders in Brazil, these instruments may be a valuable tool for screening Brazilian children and adolescents with anxiety symptoms who may need further assessment and treatment.

xiii, 89 p. : ill. A print copy of this thesis is available through the UO Libraries. Search the library catalog for the location and call number. / Participation in athletics includes an inherent risk of becoming injured that is related to the nature of the games and activities of the players. Current literature reports that approximately seven million high school students participate in sports yearly in the United States and, during the 2005-2006 sport seasons, 1.4 million injuries were reported. Considering this high number of injuries, there is little doubt that definitive research into the determination of factors that might help predict the degree of injury risk associated with sport participation is warranted. Despite common association of variables such as joint laxity, range of motion, strength and balance with injury, these traditional measures have not proven to be reliable predictors of vulnerability. Consequently, attempts have been made to identify practical methods that may better permit identification of individuals who show a high likelihood of injury during athletic competition. This study examined one such system, the Functional Movement Screen (FMS), which utilizes measures of mobility and stability to permit its developers to assert that it can be used to practically and accurately identify vulnerable athletes. Critical data on inter-rater and intra-rater performance were first obtained on a team of athletic trainers to ensure that they could reliably execute the testing methods. Following confirmation of this fact, 112 high school basketball athletes were screened with the FMS and their injuries (non-contact neuromusculoskeletal tissue damage in school-sanctioned basketball) were tracked throughout an entire season. Data analysis to determine if a commonly-used FMS cutoff score of less than 14 out of 21 could identify vulnerable athletes revealed that this value was not significantly related to the likelihood of sustaining an injury. Furthermore, logistic regression revealed that none of the individual predictors (gender, FMS movements, and movement asymmetries) were significant predictors of injury susceptibility. The results indicate that, despite the fact that multiple evaluators and trials can be practically used to evaluate FMS scores in a large group of high school basketball athletes, the test does not appear to be a valid tool in assessing injury risk in this population during an entire season. / Committee in charge: Gary Klug, Chairperson, Human Physiology; Paul van Donkelaar, Member, Human Physiology; Andrew Lovering, Member, Human Physiology; Roland Good, Outside Member, Special Education and Clinical Sciences