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Parkinson's disease (PD) is the fastest-growing neurodegenerative disorder, currently affecting ~7 million people worldwide. PD is clinically and genetically heterogeneous, with at least 10% of all cases explained by a monogenic cause or strong genetic risk factor. However, the vast majority of our present data on monogenic PD is based on the investigation of patients of European White ancestry, leaving a large knowledge gap on monogenic PD in underrepresented populations. Gene-targeted therapies are being developed at a fast pace and have started entering clinical trials. In light of these developments, building a global network of centers working on monogenic PD, fostering collaborative research, and establishing a clinical trial-ready cohort is imperative. Based on a systematic review of the English literature on monogenic PD and a successful team science approach, we have built up a network of 59 sites worldwide and have collected information on the availability of data, biomaterials, and facilities. To enable access to this resource and to foster collaboration across centers, as well as between academia and industry, we have developed an interactive map and online tool allowing for a quick overview of available resources, along with an option to filter for specific items of interest. This initiative is currently being merged with the Global Parkinson's Genetics Program (GP2), which will attract additional centers with a focus on underrepresented sites. This growing resource and tool will facilitate collaborative research and impact the development and testing of new therapies for monogenic and potentially for idiopathic PD patients.

Abstract Introduction: Cardiac pacemaker (PM) therapy is of paramount importance. PM use increases with age, with an estimated increased use of 70% to 80% in patients over 65 years. This study evaluated the perception of the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of elderly patients with PM, comparing them with patients without PM, by applying two quality of life questionnaires: EuroQoL 5-dimensions (EQ-5D) and 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36). Methods: This study included elderly patients divided into a group with PM and another without PM. Information on HRQoL was obtained using the EQ-5D and SF-36 questionnaires. Results: The study involved 104 elderly patients with PM and 150 without PM. The distribution of responses to the EQ-5D was similar between groups. Statistical differences within the gender variable in the group of elderly people with PM were significant for the mobility, habitual activities, and anxiety/depression domains and for the average EQoL utility score and visual analogue scale (EQ-VAS). Elderly patients with PM presented significant differences between New York Heart Association classes 1 and 2 for the mobility domain and EQ-VAS, while those evaluated through SF-36 presented higher averages in vitality, general health status, and pain. However, a different analysis was observed in the physical aspect domain. Conclusion: The SF-36 demonstrated that elderly patients with PM had an HRQoL similar to or greater than those without PM. However, the results of the EQ-5D did not show significant differences regarding the implantation of PM and HRQoL between the two groups of elderly individuals in the study.

Os Contos de Kolimá são considerados a obra máxima de Varlam Chalámov. Partindo de diálogos do escritor com A ilha de Sacalina, de Anton Tchekhov, e da leitura de Chalámov da prosa do século XIX, este artigo procura discutir alguns elementos formais do seu texto literário, tendo em vista a proposta de uma nova prosa do autor, a única possível para representar a experiência nos campos stalinistas. Na segunda parte, analisa-se duas narrativas, de Tchekhov e de Chalámov, com o foco nos narradores de seus contos e seus pontos de vista sobre as personagens. Além disso, busca-se mostrar, por meio da análise, que a experiência de Chalámov como testemunha do Gulag modifica estruturas narrativas em nome da representação literária.

The paradigm shift in transportation systems towards Cooperative, Connected and Automated Mobility (CCAM) aims to improve vehicle maneuverability, reduce pollution, and increase safety. CCAM is primarily responsible for ensuring the best mobility environment, making it one of the main trends in the automotive industry. However, taking advantage of CCAM in Cross-Border Corridors (CBCs) faces many challenges, which go beyond infrastructure deployment cost, and all of which are related to supporting Service Continuity (SC) for mobile users, especially in light of the diversity of territories, network coverage areas, international roaming agreements, and type of cooperative maneuvers. As a solution to these challenges, the paper proposes and implements a new architecture for CCAM SC in CBCs that combines a federation of Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC) concepts to maintain SC.

The healthcare model is shifting towards integrated care approaches. This new model requires patients to be more closely involved. The iCARE-PD project aims to address this need by developing a technology-enabled, home-based, and community-centered integrated care paradigm. A central part of this project is the codesign process of the model of care, exemplified by the active participation of patients in the design and iterative evaluation of three sensor-based technological solutions. We proposed a codesign methodology used for testing the usability and acceptability of these digital technologies and present initial results for one of them, MooVeo. Our results show the usefulness of this approach in testing the usability and acceptability as well as the opportunity to incorporate patients’ feedback into the development. This initiative will hopefully help other groups incorporate a similar codesign approach and develop tools that are well adapted to patients’ and care teams’ needs.

Road infrastructure plays a critical role in the support and development of the Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems (C-ITS) paradigm. Roadside Units (RSUs), equipped with vehicular communication capabilities, traffic radars, cameras, and other sensors, can provide a multitude of vehicular services and enhance the cooperative perception of vehicles on the road, leading to increased road safety and traffic efficiency. Moreover, the central C-ITS system responsible for overseeing the road traffic and infrastructure, such as the RSUs, needs an efficient way of collecting and disseminating important information to road users. Warnings of accidents or other dangers, and other types of vehicular services such as Electronic Toll Collection (ETC), are examples of the types of information that the central C-ITS system is responsible for disseminating. To remedy these issues, we present the design of an implemented roadside and cloud architecture for the support of C-ITS services. With the main objectives of managing Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) communication units and network messages of a public authority or motorway operator acting as a central C-ITS system, the proposed architecture was developed for different mobility testbeds in Portugal, under the scope of the STEROID research project and the pan-European Connected Roads (C-Roads) initiative. RSUs, equipped with ETSI ITS-G5 communications, are deployed with a cellular link or fiber optics connection for remote control and configuration. These are connected to a cloud Message Queuing Telemetry Transport (MQTT) broker where communication is based on a geographical tiling scheme, which allows the selection of the appropriate coverage areas for the dissemination of C-ITS messages. The architecture is deployed in the field, on several Portuguese motorways, where road traffic and infrastructure are monitored through a C-ITS platform with visualization and event reporting capabilities. The provided architecture is independent of the underlying communication technology and can be easily adapted in the future to support Cellular-V2X (PC5 interface) or 5G RSUs. Performance results of the deployed architecture are provided.

Abstract Background Malaria remains a major public health problem in South America, mostly in the Amazon region. Among newly proposed ways of controlling malaria transmission to humans, paratransgenesis is a promising alternative. Paratransgenesis aims to inhibit the development of parasites within the vector through the action of genetically modified bacteria. The first step towards successful paratransgenesis in the Amazon is the identification of Anopheles darlingi symbiotic bacteria, which are transmitted vertically among mosquitoes, and are not pathogenic to humans. Methods Culturable bacteria associated with An. darlingi and their breeding sites were isolated by conventional microbiological techniques. Isolated strains were transformed with a GFP expressing plasmid, pSPT-1-GFP, and reintroduced in mosquitoes by feeding. Their survival and persistence in the next generation was assessed by the isolation of fluorescent bacteria from eggs, larvae, pupae and adult homogenates. Results A total of 179 bacterial strains were isolated from samples from two locations, Coari and Manaus. The predominant genera identified in this study were Acinetobacter, Enterobacter, Klebsiella, Serratia, Bacillus, Elizabethkingia, Stenotrophomonas and Pantoea. Two isolated strains, Serratia-Adu40 and Pantoea-Ovo3, were successfully transformed with the pSPT-1-GFP plasmid and expressed GFP. The fluorescent bacteria fed to adult females were transferred to their eggs, which persisted in larvae and throughout metamorphosis, and were detected in adult mosquitoes of the next generation. Conclusion Serratia-Adu40 and Pantoea-Ovo3 are promising candidates for paratransgenesis in An. darlingi. Further research is needed to determine if these bacteria are vertically transferred in nature.

Major maritime carriers are globally demanding improvements in the efficiency of port operations. Cargo carried by ships must be loaded and unloaded quickly with minimal stopover time in the port. This requirement mandates seaports to deploy cutting-edge technology to the port area so that logistic processes are increasingly efficient and reliable. In this scenario, the attack surface of such critical infrastructure is growing very rapidly and advanced security techniques must be deployed to enforce a high attack resilience. A Distributed Ledger-based Credential Management System exploiting a Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) to enable transparent and real-time tracking of logistic vehicles and cargos within a terminal is presented in this paper. Based on a customization of Vehicular Ad-Hoc Network (VANET) security standards, the proposed scheme provides authentication, authorization, and revocation capabilities to promptly exclude misbehaving logistic vehicles from the system, while maintaining an immutable record of all the logistic vehicles’ activity. The laboratory validation demonstrates that the delay of the devised scheme is not dependent on the quay area capacity, thus being applicable in seaports of any size. Furthermore, the effectiveness of the solution is demonstrated with the field trial results obtained with the EU Horizon 2020 COREALIS project testbed deployed in the Port of Livorno.

The imminent pervasive adoption of vehicular communication, either localized (ETSI ITS G5, IEEE WAVE or cellular D2D), long range (5G) or hybrid, will foster a richer service ecosystem for vehicular applications. The appearance of new cryptography-based solutions envisaging digital identity and currency exchange are set to stem new approaches for existing and future challenges. This article presents a novel tolling architecture that harnesses the availability of 5G C-V2X connectivity for open road tolling using smartphones, IOTA as the digital currency, and Hyperledger Indy for identity validation. An experimental feasibility analysis is used to validate the proposed architecture for secure, private, and convenient electronic toll payment.

The growth of the automobile industry in recent decades and the overuse of personal vehicles have amplified problems directly related to road safety, such as the increase in traffic congestion and number of accidents, as well as the degradation of the quality of roads. At the same time, and with the contribution of climate change effects, dangerous weather events have become more common on road infrastructure. In this context, Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems (C-ITS) and Internet of Things (IoT) solutions emerge to overcome the limitations of human and local sensory systems, through the collection and distribution of relevant data to Connected and Automated Vehicles (CAVs). In this paper, an intra- and inter-vehicle sensory data collection system is presented, starting with the acquisition of relevant data present on the Controller Area Network (CAN) bus, collected through the vehicle’s On-Board-Diagnostics II (OBD-II) port, as well as on an on-board smartphone device and possibly other additional sensors. Short-range communication technologies, such as Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), Wi-Fi, and ITS-G5, are employed in conjunction with long-range cellular networks for data dissemination and remote cloud monitoring. The results of the experimental tests allow the analysis of the road environment, as well as the notification in near real-time of adverse road conditions to drivers. The developed data collection system reveals itself as a potentially valuable tool for improving road safety and to iterate on the current Road Weather Models (RWMs).

A hérnia de Richter é uma hérnia abdominal em que apenas parte da circunferência do intestino é aprisionada e estrangulada no orifício herniário. Suas manifestações clínicas são bastante variadas. O tratamento é cirúrgico. Apresentamos o relato de um homem de 65 anos com dor e distensão abdominal, náuseas e vômitos há quatro dias, que ao exame físico apresentava abaulamento doloroso e irredutível na cicatriz umbilical.

O Divertículo de Meckel é a anomalia congênita mais comum do trato gastrointestinal, incidindo em aproximadamente 2% da população em geral. Embora a maioria dos pacientes permaneça assintomática, ele pode se apresentar com uma variedade grande de manifestações clínicas quando surge algum tipo de complicação, geralmente na forma de inflamação, obstrução ou sangramento, tornando amplo o rol de diagnósticos diferenciais. Seu diagnóstico é difícil e ainda permanece como um grande desafio porque a maioria dos exames complementares mostra somente alterações decorrentes das complicações, sem precisão em estabelecer que estas ocorram nesta anomalia, e geralmente ocorre durante a cirurgia. O tratamento nos achados acidentais / incidentais, assim como nos casos manifestados com complicação, é ainda controverso e motivo de dúvidas. No presente estudo descreve-se um caso de diverticulite de Meckel como causa de obstrução do íleo pelo processo inflamatório, onde a técnica de diverticulectomia foi empregada com sucesso no tratamento, garantindo uma boa evolução pós-operatória.

Monitoring road traffic is extremely important given the possibilities it opens up in terms of studying the behavior of road users, road design and planning problems, as well as because it can be used to predict future traffic. Especially on highways that connect beaches and larger urban areas, traffic is characterized by having peaks that are highly dependent on weather conditions and rest periods. This paper describes a dataset of mobility patterns of a coastal area in Aveiro region, Portugal, fully covered with traffic classification radars, over a two-year period. The sensing infrastructure was deployed in the scope of the PASMO project, an open living lab for co-operative intelligent transportation systems. The data gathered includes the speed of the detected objects, their position, and their type (heavy vehicle, light vehicle, two-wheeler, and pedestrian). The dataset includes 74,305 records, corresponding to the aggregation of road information at 10 min intervals. A brief analysis of the dataset shows the highly dynamic nature of traffic during the two-year period. In addition, the existence of meteorological records from nearby stations, and the recording of daily data on COVID-19 infections, make it possible to cross-reference information and study the influence of weather conditions and infections on traffic behavior.

Introdução: Os cancelamentos de cirurgias eletivas que ocorrem no próprio dia da cirurgia acarretam importantes consequências clínicas, sociais e económicas, individuais e familiares, mas também institucionais, e refletem processos de eficiência e qualidade das organizações. Este estudo pretende avaliar a dimensão dos cancelamentos no dia da cirurgia numa instituição do Serviço Nacional de Saúde, quantificando-os, identificando as causas, origem e previsibilidade, na relação com variáveis sociodemográficas e intervenções dedicadas à sua redução. Material e Métodos: Metodologia quantitativa descritiva, de abordagem não experimental, longitudinal e de dimensão temporal retrospetiva, relativa aos episódios com cancelamentos cirúrgicos no dia da cirurgia, decorridos no período compreendido entre 1 de janeiro e 31 de dezembro de 2018. Resultados: A taxa de cancelamento no próprio dia foi de 2,9%, variando entre as especialidades cirúrgicas, maioritariamente em doentes do sexo feminino, na faixa etária dos 50 aos 80 anos, com estado físico II ou III, segundo a American Society of Anestesiology, e sem consulta pré-anestésica ou pré-operatória prévias; as três causas de cancelamentos mais evidentes são: a falta de tempo operatório, a falta de camas e/ou materiais e a alteração do estado de saúde, a maioria das quais evitáveis e imputáveis à instituição. Discussão: Os múltiplos motivos de cancelamento refletem uma variedade de processos a montante e a jusante, que culminam no cancelamento cirúrgico, e cuja a origem/imputabilidade se dispersa entre a instituição e o próprio doente. Conclusão: A taxa de cancelamento de cirurgias eletivas no próprio dia da operação é relativamente baixa, mas as causas são frequentemente evitáveis, justificando a generalização de estratégias de redução dos cancelamentos.

Abstract Background Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a chronic progressive disorder leading to increasing disability. While the symptoms and needs of patients in the early stages of their disease are well characterized, little information is available on patients in the late stage of the disease. Methods/design The Care of Late-Stage Parkinsonism (CLaSP) study is a longitudinal, multicenter, prospective cohort study to assess the needs and provision of care for patients with late stage Parkinsonism and their carers in six European countries (UK, France, Germany, Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden). In addition, it will compare the effectiveness of different health and social care systems. Patients with Parkinsonism with Hoehn and Yahr stage ≥IV in the “On”-state or Schwab and England stage 50% or less are evaluated at baseline and three follow-up time-points. Standardised questionnaires and tests are applied for detailed clinical, neuropsychological, behavioural and health-economic assessments. A qualitative study explores the health care needs and experiences of patients and carers, and an interventional sub-study evaluates the impact of specialist recommendations on their outcomes. Discussion Through the combined assessment of a range of quantitative measures and qualitative assessments of patients with late stage parkinsonism, this study will provide for the first time comprehensive and in-depth information on the clinical presentation, needs and health care provision in this population in Europe, and lay the foundation for improved outcomes in these patients. Trial registration The protocol was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov as NCT02333175 on 07/01/2015.

A mucocele é a dilatação da luz do apêndice devido ao acúmulo de material mucinoso no seu interior que ocorre após sua obstrução. É uma doença rara e geralmente assintomática, sendo na maioria das vezes um achado incidental no momento da laparotomia. Todavia, pode cursar com dor abdominal, alterações de hábito intestinal, massa abdominal, sangramento intestinal, anemia e emagrecimento. O tratamento da mucocele é fundamentalmente cirúrgico e a complicação mais importante é o pseudomixoma peritoneal. Neste trabalho realizamos uma revisão literária e a descrição de 2 casos diagnosticados e tratados no Hospital Escola Luiz Gioseffi Jannuzzi (HELGJ), onde as pacientes evoluíram bem somente após a remoção cirúrgica do apêndice.

Abstract Introduction In all surgical disciplines, including neurosurgery, there are questions about the level of evidence supporting surgical practices and the mechanisms and adequacy of knowledge translation. Objectives To assess the perception of Brazilian neurosurgeons of information sources and decision-making mechanisms related to their medical practices. Methods An online questionnaire was sent to the 2,400 members of the Brazilian Neurosurgical Society. Results A total of 32% of the neurosurgeons completed the questionnaire, 53% had more than 10 years experience, 67% had worked in public hospitals, 34% had performed spine surgeries, and 30% had performed brain tumor surgeries. The therapeutic decisions were based mostly on internship learning (54%) and personal professional experience (52%). The most common information sources were scientific abstracts (53%) and the Internet (47%). A total of 89% believed that evidence-based medicine was relevant, 93% believed protocols or guidelines were necessary, and 74% subscribed to a medical journal. Nonetheless, only 43% had protocols implemented in their services, 93% highly valued a surgeon's personal experience, and 63% showed little familiarity with the interpretation of scientific concepts in the literature. Among the respondents, 83% were willing to try an innovative treatment alternative if it was shown to improve clinical outcomes and reduce severe complications. Conclusions The disparity in the responses highlights the need to implement recommendations that improve decision-making mechanisms.

As hérnias de Spiegel ocorrem por defeito da parede abdominal através da aponeurose spigeliana, entre a linha semilunar e a borda lateral do músculo reto, logo abaixo da linha arqueada de Douglas e, geralmente, acima dos vasos epigástricos superiores. Este defeito pode se estender desde a nona cartilagem costal até a espinha púbica e recebeu esse nome em homenagem ao anatomista belga Adriaan van den Spiegel, após detalhar as estruturas anatômicas envolvidas nesse tipo de hérnia. O seu pequeno e fibroso colo é responsável por estrangulamento em boa parte dos casos. Estas hérnias são de grande interesse para o cirurgião pelos vários diagnósticos diferenciais que se pode levantar. Geralmente, não apresentam sintomas característicos, podendo nem mesmo haver massa evidente à inspeção ou palpação. O objetivo deste trabalho é relatar achados compatíveis com as hérnias de Spiegel, defeitos estes muito raros e com poucos relatos na literatura mundial.

Os adenomas vilosos colorretais são tumores epiteliais benignos que representam de 5% a 10% dos pólipos colorretais e apresentam grande potencial de malignização. Localizam-se principalmente no cólon sigmoide e no reto, podendo ser classificados em mucossecretores e não mucossecretores, com apresentação clínica habitual de retorragia. O presente trabalho tem como objetivo a descrição de um caso clínico conduzido nas dependências do Hospital Escola Luiz Gioseffi Jannuzzi com características compatíveis àquele descrito em 1954 por McKittrick e Wheelock. O paciente cursou com falha renal aguda por hipovolemia e apresentou melhora clínica após o tratamento instituído.

Introdução: A pessoa com esquizofrenia apresenta classicamente prejuízo do processo do pensamento, da perceção e das habilidades de interação e de funcionamento social. As Atividades de Ocupação Terapêutica (AOT) promovem, previnem, e habilitam e recuperam as habilidades sociais, os comportamentos verbais e não-verbais apropriados, apresentando-se a revisão de evidências que mostram a pertinência, eficácia e os benefícios desta aprendizagem e treino. Desenvolvimento: Selecionando especificamente clientes com esquizofrenia internados na Unidade de Reabilitação (UCAERe-T) aplica-se, um estudo experimental de sujeito único, com a finalidade de avaliar a eficácia do programa estruturado de AOT de Conversação e Interação Social para aprendizagem e treino habilidades de comunicação/conversação de clientes com Esquizofrenia. Conclusão: Este projeto de melhoria contínua, em duas vertentes: investigação clínica e extensão de serviços em parceria, prospetiva por um lado a melhoria dos diversos outcomes clínicos, nomeadamente: funcionamento pessoal e social; envolvimento social; habilidades de interação social; bem-estar pessoal; comportamento interpessoal; equilíbrio do humor; motivação; autoestima; e autonomia pessoal; e por outro lado a concretização de indicadores de produção

Introdução: O ensino da farmacologia clínica visa a aquisição de conhecimentos, competências e comportamentos que assegurem a decisão de prescrição de forma racional. Os autores apresentam os resultados de um estudo concebido para avaliar as perceções, atitudes e comportamentos associados ao conceito de prescrição racional ao longo da formação. Material e Métodos: Foram realizados quatro grupos focais com alunos do primeiro, terceiro e quinto ano e jovens internos da formação específica. Utilizou-se um guião semi-estruturado com perguntas abertas e estudos de caso destinados a explorar os comportamentos associados à decisão terapêutica. Resultados: A análise identifica uma evolução de conceitos ao longo da formação académica. As referências a normas de orientação e efetividade emergem a partir do terceiro ano. A segurança e a adaptação às características individuais do doente emergem nos grupos do quinto ano e dos jovens internos. As fontes de informação consideradas mais relevantes foram os estudos de eficácia e revisões sistemáticas, os documentos regulamentares e as plataformas online. Discussão: A revisão da literatura recente aponta para a necessidade de implementar estratégias dedicadas ao desenvolvimento das competências adequadas à prescrição racional. O recurso a grupos focais é uma metodologia a considerar para envolver os discentes na autoavaliação de competências e informar os docentes acerca das perceções e atitudes dos alunos. Conclusão: Esta análise ilustra a sensibilização dos estudantes e jovens médicos para a adaptação da terapêutica às características do doente e a necessidade de reforçar estes conceitos, para que se sintam preparados para a prescrição racional em situações clínicas complexas.

The European Huntington's Disease Network (EHDN) commissioned an international task force to provide global evidence-based recommendations for everyday clinical practice for treatment of Huntington's disease (HD). The objectives of such guidelines are to standardize pharmacological, surgical and non-pharmacological treatment regimen and improve care and quality of life of patients. A formalized consensus method, adapted from the French Health Authority recommendations was used. First, national committees (French and English Experts) reviewed all studies published between 1965 and 2015 included dealing with HD symptoms classified in motor, cognitive, psychiatric, and somatic categories. Quality grades were attributed to these studies based on levels of scientific evidence. Provisional recommendations were formulated based on the strength and the accumulation of scientific evidence available. When evidence was not available, recommendations were framed based on professional agreement. A European Steering committee supervised the writing of the final recommendations through a consensus process involving two rounds of online questionnaire completion with international multidisciplinary HD health professionals. Patients' associations were invited to review the guidelines including the HD symptoms. Two hundred and nineteen statements were retained in the final guidelines. We suggest to use this adapted method associating evidence base–medicine and expert consensus to other rare diseases.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via the original article.

O objetivo deste trabalho foi comparar níveis de estresse oxidativo em camundongos da linhagem Balb-C submetidos a duas condições distintas de treinamento: treinamento moderado e progressivo de natação (G-T) e indução de overtraining (G-OVER). Foram investigados alguns marcadores de estresse oxidativo, tais como substâncias reativas ao ácido tiobarbitúrico (TBARS), proteínas carboniladas (PC) e grupamentos sulfidrila (GSH) no plasma e atividade das enzimas antioxidantes catalase (CAT) e glutationa redutase (GR) no hemolisado. Como marcadores de alteração celular, quantificaram-se concentrações plasmáticas das enzimas creatina quinase (CK), aspartato transferase (AST), creatinina (CRE) e uréia (UR). Como resultados importantes observamos que na situação G-OVER houve queda significativa de CAT e GR (p

In the last few decades, dedicated wireless channels were specifically allocated to enable the development and implementation of vehicular communication systems. The two main protocol stacks, the WAVE standards proposed by the IEEE in the United States and the ETSI ITS-G5 in Europe, reserved 10 MHz wide channels in the 5.9 GHz spectrum band. Despite the exclusive use of these frequencies for vehicular communication purposes, there are still cross channel interference problems that have been widely reported in the literature. In order to mitigate these issues, this paper presents the design of a two-stage FIR low-pass filter, targeting the integration with a digital baseband receiver chain of a custom vehicular communications platform. The filter was tested, evaluated and optimized, with the simulation results proving the effectiveness of the proposed method and the low delay introduced in the overall operation of the receiver chain.

Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) have evolved as a key research topic in recent years, revolutionizing the overall traffic and travel experience by providing a set of advanced services and applications. These data-driven services contribute to mitigate major problems arising from the ever growing need of transport in our daily lives. Despite the progress, there is still need for an enhanced and distributed solution that can exploit the data from the available systems and provide an appropriate and real-time reaction on transportation systems. Therefore, in this paper, we present a new architecture where the intelligence is distributed and the decisions are decentralized. The proposed architecture is scalable since the incremental addition of new peripheral subsystems is supported by the introduction of gateways which requires no reengineering of the communication infrastructure. The proposed architecture is deployed to tackle the problem of traffic management inefficiency in urban areas, where traffic load is substantially increased, by vehicles moving around unnecessarily, to find a free parking space. This can be significantly reduced through the availability and diffusion of local information regarding vacant parking slots to drivers in a given area. Two types of parking systems, magnetic and vision sensor based, have been introduced, deployed, and tested in different scenarios. The effectiveness of the proposed architecture, together with the proposed algorithms, is assessed in field trials.

Os resultados de aprendizagem assumem-se como importante ferramenta no quadro do Ensino Superior, já que permitem descrever os conhecimentos e competências que se espera que os estudantes demonstrem no final da sua formação. Este estudo descreve o nível de implementação, dos resultados de aprendizagem no contexto nacional, explorando quais as competências mais valorizadas nos perfis de saída dos seus diplomados (1º, 2º e 3º ciclos). Partindo de uma metodologia mista, foi elaborada uma matriz de análise, validada teórica e empiricamente. Esta taxonomia integra competências específicas à área científica e um conjunto alargado de competências transversais, possibilitando uma leitura compreensiva dos resultados de aprendizagem.

Traffic control management at intersections, a challenging and complex field of study, aims to strike a balance between safety and efficient traffic control. Nowadays, traffic control at intersections is typically done by traffic light systems which are not optimal and exhibit several drawbacks, such as poor efficiency and real-time adaptability. With the advent of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), vehicles are being equipped with state-of-the-art technology, enabling cooperative decision-making which will certainly overwhelm the available traffic control systems. This solution strongly penalizes users without such capabilities, namely pedestrians, cyclists, and other legacy vehicles. Therefore, in this work, a prototype based on an alternative technology to the standard vehicular communications, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), is presented. The proposed framework aims to integrate legacy and modern vehicular communication systems into a cohesive management system. In this framework, the movements of users at intersections are managed by a centralized controller which, through the use of networked retransmitters deployed at intersections, broadcasts alerts and virtual light signalization orders. Users receive the aforementioned information on their own smart devices, discarding the need for dedicated light signalization infrastructures. Field tests, carried out with a real-world implementation, validate the correct operation of the proposed framework.

Transportation systems are very important in modern life; therefore, massive research efforts have been devoted to this field of study in the recent past. Effective vehicular connectivity techniques can significantly enhance efficiency of travel, reduce traffic incidents and improve safety, and alleviate the impact of congestion, constituting the so-called Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) experience.[...]

This paper examines the comparative analysis of photovoltaic (PV) energy policies and data from Spain, Germany, and Brazil, focusing on understanding the factors influencing PV deployment and efficiency in these countries. This study identifies critical policy recommendations to enhance PV capacity, generation, and efficiency based on a comprehensive review of policy measures and statistical data from 2000 to 2022. These recommendations include prioritising legal stability and transition periods in policy implementation, addressing regional inequalities in PV deployment, and promoting the association of PV with other energy industries and sectors. Additionally, the study suggests the need for a strategic industrial policy to encourage domestic PV manufacturing, considering the potential benefits for economic development and employment.

Analisa-se a regularização fundiária prévia em áreas de potencial eólico no município de Santa Luzia-PB. Justifica-se pela necessidade de estudos que analisem a parte fundiária da instalação dos parques eólicos. A absorção dos excedentes de capital tem impactado negativamente a regularização fundiária, assim, questiona-se: Qual a importância da regularização fundiária prévia para os posseiros em áreas de potencial eólico? O objetivo é investigar se a regularização fundiária prévia pode proteger os posseiros na negociação com as empresas. O método parte dos estudos de Mariana Traldi (2022) e a metodologia da pesquisa passa pela coleta e tratamento de dados a partir da legislação, da jurisprudência, de livros e de artigos científicos relacionados ao tema, além de estudo do caso de Santa Luzia. A hipótese é que a regularização fundiária prévia pode dar mais segurança jurídica aos posseiros nas negociações com as empresas para a implantação dos aerogeradores em suas propriedades.

RESUMEN: Portugal está actualmente constituida por tres unidades geográficas: Portugal Continental, el Archipiélago de Madeira y el Archipiélago de las Azores. Nacido en el contexto de la Reconquista Cristiana, Portugal ya era nación independiente a mediados del siglo xn. A mediados del siglo xm, con la conquista de Algarve, mantenía prácticamente las mismas fronteras que hoy existen. El descubrimiento y la población de los Archipiélagos de Madeira y de las Azores datan del siglo xv.

Resumo O semiárido brasileiro é o novo destino do capital global em energias renováveis, diante da crise ambiental. Esse fato traz como consequência a expansão das bases da acumulação de capital: extração de mais-valor da força de trabalho, apossamento de terras dos camponeses e concentração fundiária. Para discutir essa problemática, os objetivos do presente texto são: a) apontar as novas particularidades da questão agrária ante a expansão dos parques eólicos; b) analisar o processo de desapossamento de terras dos agricultores; e c) apresentar a relação dos contratos de arrendamento com a renda da terra. Para isso, realizamos uma revisão de literatura sobre os temas da privatização dos bens comuns, em particular das terras para a produção de energia eólica, buscando explicar como a privatização sobre bens comuns, particularmente a força dos ventos, implica estratégias legais de redução de direitos e de serviços básicos a direitos exclusivos de propriedade privada. A “acumulação por despossessão”, conceito cunhado por David Harvey (2011) e aplicado por Mariana Traldi (2019) na análise da expansão da energia eólica no Brasil, implica apropriação pelo capital de extensas áreas a pretexto de se assegurar o “desenvolvimento sustentável”, o combate à “crise hídrica” ou uma “agenda verde”. O artigo parte da hipótese de que a implantação dos parques eólicos no Brasil passa por estocagem de terras sob o controle do direito de exploração econômica destas e insere-se em um novo movimento de reconcentração fundiária. Ao final, esboçamos propostas de modificação do marco legal da energia eólica.

The authors analyse the correspondence between Eça de Queiroz, a well-known Portuguese writer, and his wife, in 1900, describing the neurological disease of their second son, José Maria d'Eça de Queiroz, know as Zezé. In those letters, the writer mentions chorea as his son diagnosis, explaining in detail its clinical picture. In addition, the writer reveals the medical thoughts of the time about the aetiology, treatment and natural history of Sydenham's Chorea.