Search

Remote controlled laboratories had a great push during the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, they were already out there but lacking in visibility. This external trigger pushed the academy to face a global challenge to start offering remote experiments more consistently and maturely. Instituto Superior Técnico (IST) has been offering several remote experiments since 2000 but with the need for an update due to technological aging. As such, the framework for remote experiments in education (FREE) was created based on new web technologies. In addition to the most diverse experiments that had already been developed, FREE includes two experiments that aimed at advanced-level physics students: the Langmuir probe and the electromagnetic (EM) cavity. Both allow users to configure the various parameters and to access the results in real time or check back later. All this access is done using a browser (on a PC or mobile phone) without the need to install additional software. The results of an experimental execution are stored in a database and are downloadable, allowing users to do various analyses and to determine the corresponding plasma density and temperature. In this paper, we will introduce how FREE was used in the implementation of both experiments and give an insight into their didactic approach, such as: (i) how to perform an experimental execution, (ii) the typical data set obtained with, and (iii) the corresponding analysis necessary for the user to retrieve information from it.

This paper develops a methodology to estimate ship emissions using Automatic Identification System data (AIS). The methodology includes methods for AIS message decoding and ship emission estimation based on the ship's technical and operational characteristics. A novel approach for ship type identification based on the visited port terminal is described. The methodology is implemented in a computational tool, SEA (Ship Emission Assessment). First, the accuracy of the method for ship type identification is assessed and then the methodology is validated by comparing its predictions with those of two other methodologies. The tool is applied to three case studies using AIS data of maritime traffic along the Portuguese coast and in the port of Lisbon for one month. The first case study compares the estimated emissions of a ferry and a cruise ship, with the ferry emitting much less than the cruise ship. The second case study estimates the geographical distribution of emissions in the port of Lisbon, with terminals corresponding to areas with a heavier concentration of exhaust emissions. The third case study focuses on the emissions from a container ship sailing along the continental coast of Portugal, differing considerably from port traffic since it operates exclusively in cruising mode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this research was to develop a computational tool to ease the process of technical building inspections. Thus, a web-based application was created, supported by a well-structured expert inspection system for the building envelope. This application has a distributed architecture, which allows easy implementation using common technologies. Java and JavaScript programming languages are used, as well as HTML and CSS for the interface. The building inspection application is composed of three main processes, namely: a module to treat correlations between data referring to building pathology (e.g., classification of defects and their causes and the correlations between them); a process to help collect information during the inspection procedure (data entry forms filled dynamically); and a process to update the information stored in the first process (for instance, to include new material in the system). The application is extensible and is capable of inspecting 12 types of building elements and materials used in the building envelope. The first demonstration prototype allows a complete inspection of two types of materials. Tests of the application have revealed the advantages of transposing extensive building pathology information to a computational platform: saving time (no need to insert data after the inspection); guiding the surveyor throughout the inspection (the surveyor's input options are limited); providing an easy-to-use interface, which runs on affordable devices; allowing direct storage of information; and reducing errors and omissions of inspection data, as the system guarantees its consistency. In the future, new functionalities can be developed to improve the application's capabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Measurement of the concentration of iron in the skin, if correlated with total body iron stores, may enable better informed decisions on when to initiate, change or stop therapy in hereditary heamochromatosis. Naive haemochromatosis patients with iron overload and with C282Y and/or H63D HFE mutations were evaluated at the following time-points: disease diagnosis, end of the therapy programme, and 6 months after the end of therapy. The distribution and concentration of iron in the skin were assessed by quantitative nuclear microscopy methods, in parallel with serum and plasma iron concentration. Iron content in the liver was determined by nuclear magnetic resonance. Iron accumulated in the epidermis; its concentration increased from outer to inner layers, being maximal in the basal layer (7.33±0.98 μmol/g). At all 3 time-points, most of the iron was associated with the extracellular space. During the phlebotomy programme the iron content of the skin and the liver decreased by a factor of 2. These data suggest that measurements of iron concentration in the epidermis, which is a readily accessible tissue, reflect iron overload in the liver. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) of skin tumors or pre-cancerous lesions and of age-related macular degeneration combines the administration of porphyrins or porphyrin precursors and illumination with red light at the diseased sites. Photosensitizers absorbing light beyond 630 nm where tissues have the highest transmittance produce singlet oxygen, a highly reactive activated oxygen species and a major cytotoxin. The PDT of age-related macular degeneration is performed with red laser light after i.v. injection of verteporfin (Visudyne®) a hydrophobic porphyrin carried by serum lipoproteins whose endocytosis leads to accumulation of the porphyrin in endothelial cells of choroidal neo-vessels. In the PDT of skin cancers, local synthesis of the photosensitizer occurs after topical application of the natural protoporphyrin IX precursor δ-aminolevulinic acid (or its ester forms) on the lesions. In all the cases, the photosensitizers should be rapidly excreted to avoid a long lasting skin photosensitivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nuclear microscopy is a technique based on a focused beam of accelerated particles that has the ability of imaging the morphology of the tissue in vivo and of producing the correspondent elemental maps, whether in major, minor, or trace concentrations. These characteristics constitute a strong advantage in studying the morphology of human skin, its elemental distributions and the permeation mechanisms of chemical compounds. In this study, nuclear microscopy techniques such as scanning transmission ion microscopy and particle induced X-ray emission were applied simultaneously, to cryopreserved human skin samples with the purpose of obtaining high-resolution images of cells and tissue morphology. In addition, quantitative elemental profiling and mapping of phosphorus, calcium, chlorine, and potassium in skin cross-sections were obtained. This procedure accurately distinguishes the epidermal strata and dermis by overlapping in real time the elemental information with density images obtained from the transmitted beam. A validation procedure for elemental distributions in human skin based on differential density of epidermal strata and dermis was established. As demonstrated, this procedure can be used in future studies as a tool for the in vivo examination of trans-epidermal and -dermal delivery of products. Microsc. Res. Tech., 2007. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) by porphyrins and related tetrapyrrole derivatives is an emerging new treatment modality of tumors of lung, eosophagus and skin and of age-related macular degeneration. Phase III clinical trials for other applications such as re-stenosis after angioplasty are also underway. Under systemic conditions, the transport of porphyrin photosensitizers by serum low density lipoproteins and their specific delivery to tumor cells and vasculature is a determinant of treatment effectiveness. However, this effectiveness can be improved by increasing the selectivity of the photosensitizer uptake by tumors and by using photosensitizers absorbing light in the 660–800 nm range where tissues have the highest transmittance. Another treatment showing great promise is the PDT of skin cancers after topical application of the protoporphyrin IX precursor delta-aminolevulinic acid (or its ester forms). In all the cases, the photosensitizers should be rapidly excreted to avoid a long lasting skin photosensitivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]