Comparative study of Land Use/Cover classification using Flickr photos, satellite imagery and Corine land cover database

Ponencias, comunicaciones y pósters presentados en el 17th AGILE Conference on Geographic Information Science "Connecting a Digital Europe through Location and Place", celebrado en la Universitat Jaume I del 3 al 6 de junio de 2014.Volunteered Geographic Information has been increasing exponentially over the last years, capturing the attention of the scientific community. Researchers have been very active exploring a vast amount of initiatives and trying to develop methodologies and possible real applications for this new source of geographic information. Land Use/Cover production is one of the areas where this type of geographic information might be very useful. In this paper we evaluate if geo-referenced and publicly available photos from the Flickr initiative can be used as a source of geographic information to help Land Use/Cover classification. Using the Corine Land Cover nomenclature, we compare the classification obtained for selected photo locations, against the classification obtained from high resolution satellite imagery for the same locations. We conclude that this source cannot be used alone for the purpose of Land Use/Cover classification but we also believe that it might contain helpful information if combined with other sources

Equações diferenciais na física

A modelação matemática fornece modelos que permitem descrever, interpretar e prever a evolução de situações reais nas mais diversas áreas do conhecimento. As equações diferenciais são uma das ferramentas matemáticas usadas na modelagem de fenómenos físicos. O estudo da segunda lei de Newton e a lei de Hooke permite deduzir que certos sistemas envolvendo massas e molas apresentem um comportamento de oscilador harmónico. O estudo de múltiplos osciladores acoplados e a ligação ao problema da corda vibrante leva-nos ao estudo das equações diferenciais parciais, das séries de Fourier e do método da separação das variáveis; Di erential equations in Physics Abstract: The mathematical modeling o er us models that allow us to describe, interpret and predict the evolution of real situations in various elds of knowledge. The di erential equations are one of the mathematic tools when modeling physic phenomena. The study of Newton's second law and Hooke's law allow us to deduct that certain systems which involve masses and springs show an oscillator and harmonious behaviour. The study of multiple coupled oscillators and the connection to the vibrating string lead us to the study of the partial di erential equations, the series of Fourier and to the method of the separation of variables

Conception of a good-practices guide to the nature based tourism in the Azores (Portugal)

2011 Shanghai International Conference on Social Science (SICSS 2011) 17-20 August.Azorean archipelago, located in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, is packed with natural treasures well known in most parts of the world. In order to preserve them, the Portuguese government has set up a net of protected areas in all nine islands of the archipelago, known as “Island Parks”. Within these protected landscape we find Natura 2000 network, built upon two EC Directives: the Habitats and Birds Directives. Apart from a strict conservation objective, Natura 2000 is supposed to provide some sort of income to local communities, a goal that can be achieved through tourism. But tourism and conservation can collide unless the activities practiced in those areas, follow a set of rules aimed at its preservation. Because tourism usually has impacts upon the environment where it is practiced (e.g. soil erosion, habitat destruction, pollution), more and more tourists become sensitive to environmental protection. Tourism of Nature and Ecotourism are growing sectors within Azorean tourism. Thus, our main concern is to build a field guide of good-practices, to the touristy activities practiced in the protected areas of the Azores. We will present, in pocket guidebooks, all out-door activities that can be practiced on the islands, and where they may occur within each island. According to location, rules and good practices will be explained. A parallel will be established between them and biodiversity conservation. As a result, tourists will be informed about potential dangers to endemic fauna and flora, and be aware of how to protect them by respecting those rules. Two different guides will focus marine and terrestrial activities. The marine guidebook will refer to ludic fishing, snorkeling and scuba-diving, while the terrestrial one will resume the existing trails, speleology, bicycle and climbing.FCT e programa COMPET

Electrical circuit analysis and technical english: articulation in a project-based learning environment

This paper describes the integration of Electrical Circuit Analysis and Technical English in the same curricular module, in the context of a Project Based Learning (PBL) environment. The idea consists in taking advantage of the PBL setting to provide a context for the learning of the two different subjects in an articulated manner. The results of the evaluation of the first iteration of this experiment will also be discussed

Important problem features for the promotion of onceptual understanding in introductory electronics

This article describes an investigation in which a set of problems, specifically designed to develop conceptual understanding in introductory Electronics, were used as a teaching and learning strategy in an active learning setting. Some of the suggested problems have similarities with those presented by concept inventories, in that they are designed to address common students’ misconceptions. The goal, however, is not to detect misconceptions, but rather to challenge students’ conceptual reasoning. The investigation setting, integrated in the project-based learning environment established at the Higher Education Polytechnic School of Águeda (University of Aveiro, Portugal) since 2001, was designed as a source of abundant data, that included field notes, students written responses to the open problems and interviews. Qualitative analysis was used to identify important problem features that seem to prompt conceptual reasoning, and to evaluate the approach. Although the setting and the learning environment are described in some detail, to set the scene and provide context for the issues being discussed, this article concentrates on the problems and their important features in the promotion of conceptual understanding. Examples of the various formats of problems used in the investigation are provided to better illustrate the discussion. Results of the analysis indicate that the use of such problems does seem to have a positive impact in the conceptual reasoning of the students. However, students also report a generalized feeling of insecurity, for every new problem presented an emotional challenge, as well as a challenge to their assumptions. The analysis also indicates that it is important to seek a proper balance between the qualitative and quantitative components of the problems suggested to the students. As a conclusion, the article will offer a summary of the most important problem features in the promotion of conceptual understanding, as far as the results of this investigation are concerned

A platform to integrate crowdsourced, physical sensor and official geographic information to assist authorities in emergency response

In this work, a prototype GIS-based platform to integrate Volunteered Geographic Information from various sources with other spatial data is presented, aiming at assisting civil protection authorities in emergency response situations. The platform is now in the implementation phase, and this paper covers some aspects about its development and preliminary results to demonstrate the potentialities of the approach proposed

Sustentabilidade em destinos turísticos insulares: o projecto Azores Green Islands Tourism

1st International Conference on Tourism & Management Studies, Algarve 26-29 October 2011.A presente investigação se enquadra no Projecto Azores Green Islands Tourism, que é uma parceria da Universidade dos Açores com a ARENA, com apoio da FCT e do MIT. O objectivo é identificar e avaliar como os operadores turísticos dos Açores, vêem o ecoturismo e a adopção de práticas sustentáveis como forma de agregar valor ao destino. O projecto está sendo realizado nas nove ilhas do Arquipélago e possui a duração de um ano. A selecção da população investigada foi realizada através do registo oficial das empresas cadastradas na Direcção Regional de Turismo e o levantamento dos dados através da implementação de inquérito. Como principais resultados e contributos espera-se: elaborar um banco de dados das empresas com informações sobre a adopção de boas práticas; identificar a percepção dos operadores sobre o ecoturismo; identificar e avaliar como os operadores vêem a adopção de práticas sustentáveis como forma de agregar valor ao destino; elaborar um diagnóstico da actividade; e contribuir para uma reflexão sobre a importância das práticas sustentáveis. Dessa forma, espera-se identificar quais estratégias são necessárias para estimular a adopção destas práticas, culminando na elaboração de um plano de acção direccionando um planeamento futuro a ser tomado para o turismo sustentável no Arquipélago

Blended Learning in Marketing Education: Using Alumni Experiences to Increase Student Motivation

During the COVID-19 pandemic, both teachers and students underwent significant adaptation and flexibility in higher education courses. The literature documenting these experiences has grown extensively, with educators highlighting challenges and opportunities in distance learning formats. These reports are crucial to understanding how forced adaptations resulted in more productive activities for students than we had thought of before. These experiences also hold fundamental importance for deriving insights for the future, serving as valuable lessons for colleagues to draw inspiration from and apply them to their disciplines. This article describes an experience developed in an introductory Marketing subject that, due to university directives, adopted a blended learning regime during COVID-19. What started as a problem turned into an opportunity. An alumni engagement activity was devised to enhance student motivation — an undertaking that would have been challenging in an exclusively classroom-based setting. This activity became essential, elevating student motivation, promoting new experiences, facilitating networking, and encouraging collaborative work

An EFL student-generated syllabus

Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Centro de Comunicação e ExpressãoNa área de estudos da aquisição de uma segunda língua, os pesquisadores têm discutido a respeito dos insumos linguísticos sob duas pespectivas: do tipo e seu efeito na aprendizagem. Quanto ao tipo de insumos, a literatura tem abordado, entre outros aspectos, o discurso do professor, a fala modificada, o maternales, livros texto e matérias de ensino autênticos. A relação entre insumos que são gerados espontaneamente pelos alunos. O objetivo deste estudo é observar o insumo gerado por um grupo de alunos quando aprende inglês através do método comunitário. Os dados indicam que os alunos deram pouca atenção à expansão do vocabulário e à análise gramatical de estruturas. O método mostrou-se estimulante para a aprendizagem e os resultados mostram que o grupo estava pronto para assumir as suas próprias responsabilidades na criação dos insumos necessários para a aprendizagem

User generated spatial content sources for land use/land cover validation purposes : suitability analysis and integration model

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor in Information Management, specialization in Geographic Information SystemsTraditional geographic information has been produced by mapping agencies and corporations, using high skilled people as well as expensive precision equipment and procedures, in a very costly approach. The production of land use and land cover databases are just one example of such traditional approach. On the other side, The amount of Geographic Information created and shared by citizens through the Web has been increasing exponentially during the last decade, resulting from the emergence and popularization of technologies such as the Web 2.0, cloud computing, GPS, smart phones, among others. Such comprehensive amount of free geographic data might have valuable information to extract and thus opening great possibilities to improve significantly the production of land use and land cover databases. In this thesis we explored the feasibility of using geographic data from different user generated spatial content initiatives in the process of land use and land cover database production. Data from Panoramio, Flickr and OpenStreetMap were explored in terms of their spatial and temporal distribution, and their distribution over the different land use and land cover classes. We then proposed a conceptual model to integrate data from suitable user generated spatial content initiatives based on identified dissimilarities among a comprehensive list of initiatives. Finally we developed a prototype implementing the proposed integration model, which was then validated by using the prototype to solve four identified use cases. We concluded that data from user generated spatial content initiatives has great value but should be integrated to increase their potential. The possibility of integrating data from such initiatives in an integration model was proved. Using the developed prototype, the relevance of the integration model was also demonstrated for different use cases