A infraestrutura de transportes traz benefícios sociais e econômicos, porém traz também inevitáveis impactos ambientais que não podem ser negligenciados, como supressão da vegetação local e poluição atmosférica. Esses impactos ambientais podem ser quantificados e analisados pela técnica Avaliação do Ciclo de Vida (ACV), que cria a possibilidade de contemplar o aspecto ambiental na tomada de decisões e pode trazer melhor compreensão da cadeia produtiva. Na última década, é crescente a utilização dessa técnica na área de pavimentação, entretanto ainda é pouco usual no Brasil. O objetivo dessa dissertação é avaliar os impactos ambientais produzidos por duas técnicas de restauração de pavimentos asfálticos, comparando-se os resultados de ACV que observaram as fases de produção de materiais e de transportes. Dois cenários de restauração foram estudados, o primeiro considerou uma mistura asfáltica composta exclusivamente por materiais virgens (restauração convencional), e o segundo, considerou uma mistura asfáltica composta por 35% de Reciclado de Pavimento Asfáltico (RPA). As ACV foram procedidas de três maneiras distintas: (a) com o banco de dados e software alemão GaBi e o método EDIP 1997, (b) com o banco de dados da USLCI e pelo método do EDIP 1997, e (c) com software PavementLCA e o método TRACI. Os resultados obtidos a partir dos três diferentes procedimentos indicaram que a restauração com RPA apresentou redução dos impactos ambientais potencias quando comparada com a restauração convencional. Observou-se também que, para a maioria das análises, a atividade que mais contribuiu para os impactos das duas estratégias de restauração foi a de produção dos materiais. A análise de sensibilidade dos resultados obtidos com o GaBi e com o USLCI mostrou diferenças consideráveis, causadas pelas diferentes fontes de dados. Apesar de ser uma técnica em crescimento, a ACV ainda apresenta limitações quando aplicada a pavimentos, sobretudo, pela complexidade de seu ciclo de vida e pelas incertezas que envolvem sua elaboração, assim, estudos sobre ACV devem continuar, a fim de padronizar a técnica para a área e, com o tempo, obter resultados cada vez mais precisos. / Transportation infrastructure brings social and economic benefits, but it also brings unavoidable environmental impacts that can not be neglected, such as suppression of local vegetation and air pollution. These environmental impacts can be quantified and analyzed by the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) technique, which creates the possibility of contemplating the environmental aspect in decision making and can provide a better understanding of the production chain. In the last decade, the use of this technique in the area of pavement is increasing, although not very usual in Brazil. The goal of this thesis is to analyze the environmental impacts produced by two asphalt pavement rehabilitation techniques, comparing the LCA results of material production and transportation phases. Two rehabilitation scenarios were studied, the first one considering an asphalt mixture composed exclusively by raw materials (conventional rehabilitation), and the second one considered an asphalt mixture composed by 35% of Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement (RAP). The LCA was done in three different ways: (a) with the German database and software GaBi and the EDIP 1997 method, (b) with the USLCI database and the EDIP 1997 method, and (c) with PavementLCA software and the TRACI method. The results obtained from the three different procedures indicated that the rehabilitation with RPA showed reduction of the potential environmental impacts when compared with the conventional rehabilitation. It was also observed that for the majority of the analysis, the activity that contributed the most to the impacts of the two rehabilitation strategies was the material production one. The sensitivity analysis of the results obtained with GaBi and with USLCI showed considerable differences in their values, caused by the different data sources. Although it is a growing technique, LCA still presents limitations when applied to pavements, mainly due to the complexity of its life cycle and the uncertainties involved in its elaboration, so studies about LCA should continue with the aim of standardizing the technique for the area and, over time, achieve increasingly more accurate results.

Title: Microscopic nuclear models for open-shell nuclei Author: Jakub Herko Institute: Institute of Particle and Nuclear Physics Supervisor: Mgr. František Knapp, Ph.D., Institute of Particle and Nuclear Physics Abstract: Since the nucleus is a quantum many-body system consisting of con- stituents whose mutual interaction is not satisfactorily known, it is necessary to use approximate methods when describing the nucleus. Basic approximate approaches in the microscopic theory of the nucleus are the Hartree-Fock the- ory, Tamm-Dancoff approximation and random phase approximation. They are described in the first chapter of this thesis. The main aim was to develop mi- croscopic models for open-shell nuclei with two valence particles or holes. They are described in the second chapter, which contains detailed derivations of the relevant formulae. These methods have been numerically implemented. The re- sults of the calculations of the nuclear spectra and the electromagnetic transition probabilities are presented in the third chapter. Keywords: Tamm-Dancoff approximation, random phase approximation, open- shell nuclei, nuclear spectra, electromagnetic transition probabilities ii

Cette thèse s'inscrit dans un contexte où chaque saut technologique, voit apparaitre des circuits intégrés produits de plus en plus tôt dans la phase de qualification et où la technologie de ces circuits intégrés se rapproche de plus en plus des limitations physiques de la matière. Malgré des contre-mesures technologiques, on se retrouve devant un taux de défaillance grandissant ce qui crée des conditions favorables au retour des techniques de tolérance aux fautes sur les circuits intégrés non critiques.La densité d'intégration atteinte aujourd'hui nous permet de considérer les réseaux reconfigurables de processeur comme des architectures SoC d'avenir. En effet, l'homogénéité de ces architectures laisse entrevoir des reconfigurations possibles de la plateforme qui permettraient d'assurer une qualité de service et donc une fiabilité minimum en présence de défauts. Ainsi, de nouvelles solutions de protection doivent être proposées pour garantir le bon fonctionnement des circuits non plus uniquement au niveau de quelques sous-fonctionnalités critiques mais au niveau architecture système lui-même.En s'appuyant sur ces prérogatives, nous présentons une méthode de protection distribuée et dynamique innovatrice, D-Scale. La méthode consiste à détecter, isoler et recouvrir les systèmes en présence d'erreurs de type « crash ». La détection des erreurs qui ont pour conséquence un « crash » de la plateforme est basée sur un mécanisme de messages de diagnostique échangés entre les unités de traitement. La phase de recouvrement est quant à elle basée sur un mécanisme permettant la reconfiguration de la plateforme de manière autonome. Une implémentation de cette protection matérielle et logicielle est proposée. Le coût de protection est réduit afin d'être intégré dans de futures architectures multiprocesseurs. Finalement, un outil d'évaluation d'impacte des fautes sur la plateforme est aussi étudié afin de valider l'efficacité de la protection. / This thesis is placed in a context where, for each technology node, integrated circuits are design at an earlier stage in the qualification process and where the CMOS technology appears to be closer to the silicon physical limitations. Despite technological countermeasure, we face an increase in the failure rate which creates conditions in favor of the return of fault-tolerant techniques for non-critical integrated circuits.Nowadays, we have reached such an integration density that we can consider the reconfigurable processor array as future SoC architectures. Indeed, these homogenous architectures suggest possible platform reconfigurations that would ensure quality of service and consequently a minimum reliability in presence of defects. Thus, new protection solutions must be proposed to ensure circuit smooth operations not only for sub-critical functionalities but at the system architecture level itself.Based on these prerogatives, we present an innovative dynamical and distributed protection method, named D-Scale. This method consists in detecting, isolating and recovering the systems in the presence of error which lead to a "crash" of the platform. The crash error detection is based on heartbeat specific messages exchanged between PEs. The recovery phase is based on an autonomous mechanism which reconfigures the platform.A hardware/software implementation was proposed and evaluated. The protection cost is reduced in order to be integrated within future multi-processor SoC architectures. Finally, a fault effect analysis tool is studied in order to validate the fault-tolerant method robustness.

This research studies the three market-leading RPA-tools, Automation Anywhere, Blue Prism and UiPath, in order to fill the lack of literature regarding methods for evaluating and comparing RPA-tools. Design science research was performed by designing and creating artefacts in the form of process implementations and an evaluative model. A typical process representing a common area of use was implemented using each of the three RPA-tools, in order to create an evaluative model. Official documentation, along with the three implementations, were studied. Evaluative questions specific to RPA-tool evaluation were created based on a quality model for product quality found in the ISO/IEC 25010 standard. Characteristics dependant on organisational context were not included in the evaluation, in order to create an evaluative model which is not dependant on any specific business environment. The results of the research provide knowledge of (1) how RPA-tools can be implemented and (2) the differences that exist between the three market-leading RPA tools. The research also contributes in the form of a method for investigating and evaluating the RPA-tools. When creating the evaluative model, some of the criteria found in the ISO/IEC 25010 quality model were concluded to be of low relevance and, therefore, not included in the model. By analysing and evaluating the created evaluative model, using a theoretical concept of digital resources and their evaluation, the validity of the evaluative model was reinforced. From an evaluative perspective, this research emphasises the need to appropriate and change existing evaluative methods in order to successfully evaluate the most relevant characteristics of RPA-tools. / Denna forskning studerar de tre marknadsledande RPA-verktygen, Automation Anywhere, Blue Prism och UiPath, för att fylla bristen på litteratur om metoder för utvärdering och jämförelse av RPA-verktyg. Design science research genomfördes genom att utforma och skapa artefakter i form av processimplementeringar och en utvärderingsmodell. En typisk process som representerar ett vanligt användningsområde implementerades med användning av vart och ett av de tre RPA-verktygen för att skapa en utvärderingsmodell. Officiell dokumentation, tillsammans med de tre implementeringarna, studerades. Utvärder-ingsfrågor specifika för RPA-verktygsutvärdering skapades baserat på en kvalitetsmodell för produktkvalitet som finns i ISO/IEC 25010-standarden. Egenskaper som är beroende av organisatoriskt sammanhang ingick inte i utvärderingen för att skapa en utvärderingsmodell som inte är beroende av någon specifik affärsmiljö. Resultaten av forskningen ger kunskap om (1) hur RPA-verktyg kan implementeras och (2) skillnaderna som finns mellan de tre marknadsledande RPA-verktygen. Forskningen bidrar också i form av en metod för att undersöka och utvärdera RPA-verktygen. Vid skapandet av utvärderingsmodellen drogs slutsatsen att några av kriterierna i kvalitetsmodellen i ISO/IEC 25010 var av låg relevans och de är därför inte inkluderade i den resulterande modellen. Genom att analysera och utvärdera den skapade utvärderingsmodellen, med hjälp av ett teoretiskt koncept av digitala resurser och deras utvärdering, förstärktes utvärderingsmodellens validitet. Ur ett utvärderingsperspektiv betonar denna forskning behovet av att anpassa och ändra befintliga utvärderingsmetoder för att framgångsrikt utvärdera de mest relevanta egenskaperna hos RPA-verktyg.

Das Feline Coronavirus (FCoV) ist in den Katzenpopulationen der ganzen Welt weit verbreitet. Das Problem dieses Virus ist seine große Wahrscheinlichkeit zu mutieren. Einige dieser Mutationen können zu einer veränderten Pathogenität und zu einem schweren Verlauf der Infektion führen. So bleibt es möglicherweise nicht wie bei den meisten der infizierten Tiere bei einem inapparenten Verlauf oder milden Durchfall, sondern es kommt zur Entwicklung einer häufig tödlich endenden systemischen Erkrankung, der Felinen Infektiösen Peritonitis (FIP). Um dies zu verhindern ist es essentiell, Virusausscheider schnell zu identifizieren und zu eliminieren, um den Virusdruck in Katzenpopulationen so gering wie möglich zu halten. Die Polymerase-Kettenreaktion (PCR) für den Nachweis von FCoV in Kot ist der Goldstandard, aber ist zeitaufwendig und erfordert ein gut ausgestattetes Labor. Als isothermale Methode liefert die Reverse Transkription Rekombinase Polymerase Amplifikation (RT-RPA) eine schnelle und kostengünstige Alternative für den molekularen Nachweis von FCoV. Ziel dieser Studie war es, einen Schnelltest zum Nachweis von FCoV zu entwickeln, der auf der RT-RPA basiert. Drei Vorwärts- und drei Rückwärtsprimer sowie eine Sonde wurden erstellt. Als Zielsequenz wurde die hochkonservierte, nicht-translatierte Region des 7b Gens gewählt. Alle möglichen Kombinationen dieser Primer wurden getestet und das Paar mit der höchsten Sensitivität für die weitere Validierung ausgewählt. Bei einer konstanten Temperatur von 42 °C wurde die reverse Transkription mit anschließender DNA-Amplifikation und Detektion innerhalb von 15 Minuten durchgeführt. Die analytische Sensitivität wurde anhand von neun Wiederholungen mit der Verdünnungsreihe des molekularen Standards (10^3-10^0RNA Kopien/µL) ermittelt und die Nachweisgrenze mittels Probit-Analyse berechnet. Für die Untersuchung auf Kreuzreaktionen wurde DNA oder RNA von 19 Viren getestet. Die Leistung der RT-RPA unter Verwendung klinischer Proben wurde mit extrahierter RNA von 39 felinen Kotproben analysiert. Alle Ergebnisse wurden denen der real-time RT-PCR gegenübergestellt. Die UTR des 7b Gens ausgewählter Proben, einschließlich einer falsch negativ getesteten Probe, wurde sequenziert und mittels Geneious Prime analysiert. Die Probit-Analyse ergab eine Nachweisgrenze von 58,5 RNA-Kopien/Reaktion. Die RT-RPA amplifizierte keine Nukleinsäuren der 17 getesteten anderen Pathogenen, zeigte jedoch eine Kreuzreaktion mit dem Caninen Coronavirus und dem Transmissiblen Gastroenterits-Virus. Der Vergleich der Resultate der real-time RT-PCR mit den 39 extrahierten Kotproben und den Ergebnissen der RT-RPA ergab eine Sensitivität von 90,9% und eine Spezifität von 100%. Bei der Sequenzierung wurde keine Sequenzänderung in der Region von Primern und Sonde festgestellt. Die RT-RPA hat sich als schnelle und effektive Maßnahme für den Nachweis von FCoV in extrahierten Kotproben herausgestellt. Die einfache Handhabung der RPA macht wiederholtes Testen möglich, um auch die intermittierenden Ausscheider zu erkennen. Die Anwendung des Schnelltests könnte so zu einer Reduktion von FCoV innerhalb der Katzenpopulationen beitragen.:Inhaltsverzeichnis 1. Einleitung 1 2. Literaturübersicht 3 2.1 Felines Coronavirus 3 2.1.1 Virus Klassifikation 3 2.1.2 Struktur und Genom 4 2.1.3 Virusevolution 6 2.2 Epidemiologie und Krankheitsverlauf 8 2.2.1 Übertragung und Umweltstabilität 8 2.2.2 Krankheitsverlauf 9 2.2.3 Prävalenz 12 2.2.4 Prävention 13 2.2.5 Behandlung 13 2.2.6 Impfung 14 2.3 Diagnostik 15 2.3.1 Indirekter Erregernachweis 15 2.3.2 Direkter Erregernachweis 17 3. Publikation 27 3.1 Stellungnahme zum Eigenanteil der Publikation 27 3.2 Publikation 27 4. Diskussion und Schlussfolgerung 40 5. Zusammenfassung 47 6. Summary 49 7. Literaturverzeichnis 51 8. Abbildungsverzeichnis 64 9. Tabellenverzeichnis 64 10. Anhang 65 11. Danksagung 72

Feline coronavirus (FCoV) is endemic in cat populations worldwide. Persistently, subclinically infected cats play a significant role in spreading the infection. Testing fecal samples of cats may facilitate efforts to decrease the viral burden within a population. Real-time RT-PCR is highly sensitive and specific for the detection of FCoV but must be performed in a fully equipped laboratory. A simple and accurate assay is needed to identify FCoV at the point-of-need. The aim of this study was to develop a rapid FCoV detection assay based on isothermal amplification technology, i.e., reverse transcription-recombinase polymerase amplification (RT-RPA). Primers were designed to target the highly conserved 3′ untranslated region of the 7b gene. Running on a constant temperature of 42 °C, reverse transcription as well as DNA amplification and detection was achieved in a maximum of 15 min. A probit analysis revealed a detection limit of 58.5 RNA copies/reaction. For cross-detection, nucleic acids from 19 viruses were tested. Both RT-RPA and real-time RT-PCR showed cross-detection with canine coronavirus and transmissible gastroenteritis virus, but not with other pathogens. To evaluate clinical performance, RNA was extracted from 39 fecal samples from cats. All samples were tested simultaneously with real-time RT-PCR resulting in a RT-RPA sensitivity and specificity of 90.9% and 100%, respectively. RT-RPA can be considered a promising simple method for rapid detection of FCoV.

To detect Post-kala-azar leishmaniasis (PKDL) cases, several molecular methods with promising diagnostic efficacy have been developed that involve complicated and expensive DNA extraction methods, thus limiting their application in resource-poor settings. As an alternative, we evaluated two rapid DNA extraction methods and determined their impact on the detection of the parasite DNA using our newly developed recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) assay. Skin samples were collected from suspected PKDL cases following their diagnosis through national guidelines. The extracted DNA from three skin biopsy samples using three different extraction methods was subjected to RPA and qPCR. The qPCR and RPA assays exhibited highest sensitivities when reference DNA extraction method using Qiagen (Q) kit was followed. In contrast, the sensitivity of the RPA assay dropped to 76.7% and 63.3%, respectively, when the boil & spin (B&S) and SpeedXtract (SE) rapid extraction methods were performed. Despite this compromised sensitivity, the B&S-RPA technique yielded an excellent agreement with both Q-qPCR (k = 0.828) and Q-RPA (k = 0.831) techniques. As expected, the reference DNA extraction method was found to be superior in terms of diagnostic efficacy. Finally, to apply the rapid DNA extraction methods in resource-constrained settings, further methodological refinement is warranted to improve DNA yield and purity through rigorous experiments.

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No description available.

RPA, AI och IPA blir allt mer populära verktyg inom företagande. Detta trots att det till stor del saknas teoretisk förankrad förståelse för vilka förmågor teknologierna besitter och hur de kan understödja företagsledning. Som ett svar på den bristande tillgängligheten av forskning kring ämnet, syftade denna studie till att på ett inkluderande och övergripande plan, samla teknologiernas förmågor och nytta. Varpå dessa kunde kopplas mot verksamhetsstyrning i form av konceptet TQM. Studien genomfördes som en kvalitativ enfallsstudie, där fallet utgjordes av ett internationellt teknikföretag som arbetar med applikationer kopplat till teknologierna. Den empiri som fallet erbjöd samlades in genom semistrukturerade intervjuer, där företagets personal utgjorde studiens respondenter. Empirin jämfördes sedan med och kompletterades av den tidigare spridda teoretiska forskningen kring RPA, AI och IPA:s nyttjande och nytta. Ur sammankopplingen skapades en modell vilken gav en bred bild av teknologiernas nytta i relation till TQM och MBNQA-modellen som nyttjades för att konkretisera TQM. Resultatet antydde att RPA, AI och IPA kan utgöra viktiga verktyg för att stödja verksamhetsstyrning enligt TQM, och bidrog med en bred teoretisk referensram för teknologiernas förmågor i relation till verksamhetsstyrning. Studien belyste även behovet av mer forskning kring teknologiernas snabbt föränderliga förmågor i relation till verksamhetsstyrning och TQM. / RPA, AI, and IPA are becoming increasingly popular tools in the business sector. Despite their growing prevalence, there is a significant lack of theoretically grounded understanding of the capabilities these technologies possess and how they can support corporate management. In response to this research gap, the aim of this study was to comprehensively and inclusively gather the capabilities and benefits of these technologies. Subsequently, these factors were linked to business management through the concept of TQM. The study was conducted as a qualitative single-case study, with the case comprising an international technology company working with applications related to these technologies. The empirical data were collected through semi-structured interviews, with the company's personnel serving as the study's respondents. This empirical data were then compared with and supplemented by existing scattered theoretical research on the utilization and benefits of RPA, AI, and IPA. From this synthesis, a model was developed that provided a broad view of the technologies' benefits in relation to TQM and the MBNQA model, which was used to concretize TQM. The results suggested that RPA, AI, and IPA can serve as important tools to support business management according to TQM, and contributed a broad theoretical framework for the capabilities of these technologies in relation to business management. The study also highlighted the need for further research on the rapidly evolving capabilities of these technologies in relation to business management and TQM.