Abstract
Segmentation process serves to aid the pathology diagnosing process since segmentation filters the interference from other anatomical structures and helps focus on the posterior segment structures of the eye, highlighting a set of signals that will serve for diagnosis of various retinal pathologies. Automatic retinal vessel segmentation can lead to a more accurate diagnosis. This paper presents a framework for automatic vessel segmentation of lower-resolution retinal images taken with a smartphone equipped with D-EYE lens. The framework is evaluated and the attained results were presented. A dataset was assembled and annotated of train models for automatic localisation retinal areas and for vessel segmentation. For the framework, two CNN based models were successfully trained, a Faster R-CNN that achieved a 96% correct detected of all regions with an MAE of 39 pixels, and a U-Net that achieved a DICE of 0.7547. © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020.

Abstract
External defibrillators are recognized effective to revert ventricular fibrillation and pulseless ventricular tachycardia. This paper presents a new settable defibrillator, designed to assess the effectiveness of the following defibrillation waveforms during clinical trials: monophasic damped sinusoidal (MDS); biphasic truncated exponential (BTE) and rectilinear biphasic waveform (RBW). The device flexibility allows the setting of the defibrillation waveforms most relevant parameters, namely energy and pulses duration. The device usage is also relevant in biomedical engineer and medical staff education and training programs.

Abstract
We consider the problem of multi agents cooperating in a partially-observable environment. Agents must learn to coordinate and share relevant information to solve the tasks successfully. This article describes Asynchronous Advantage Actor-Critic with Communication (A3C2), an end-to-end differentiable approach where agents learn policies and communication protocols simultaneously. A3C2 uses a centralized learning, distributed execution paradigm, supports independent agents, dynamic team sizes, partially-observable environments, and noisy communications. We compare and show that A3C2 outperforms other state-of-the-art proposals in multiple environments.

Abstract
One of the biggest, most competitive and quicker shifting markets is the smartphone industry. Evaluating significant opportunities and being sustainable in the market is entirely up to a firm’s innovation strategy. In this article, we perform an in-depth analysis by available means to study trends and tendencies relative to Apple and Xiaomi, two completely different companies with completely different approaches. We tested the clients’ needs and perceptions, in an attempt to see if they are part of the enterprises’ strategy (in a survey, with 193 responses). Indeed, customers are interested in powerful cameras, good storage capacity and a good duration of the battery of their smartphones. The market is evaluated above 1.5 billion units sold per year and demonstrates high demand for every new model to be different, more powerful, more capable of fulfilling our lifestyle. Apple uses an incremental innovation sales strategy, based on the billions of euros used in secret research and development. On the other hand, Xiaomi performs open innovation, taking customers’ needs and ideas to the world. What is the best approach? Will it be enough to stay on top? An analysis using Google Trends shows how Nokia has faded away over time, how Apple had a spike of interest concerning its latest iPhone 11 launch; while Xiaomi is ever more popular, especially in Portugal. © 2020, The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Abstract
Millions of people use public transport on a daily basis. Although most public transport systems use traditional ticketing approaches, based on tickets and smartcards, there are already ticketing alternatives based on smartphones. Most of the mobile ticketing solutions developed and available in the market use technologies such as Near Field Communication (NFC) or Quick Response Codes (QR Codes), and there are practically no studies on the use of Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) for this purpose. This paper focuses on assessing the feasibility of using BLE beacons for mobile ticketing in urban passenger transport. The study was conducted during the development of a mobile ticketing solution for the Metropolitan Area of Porto (AMP) that takes advantage of the Bluetooth technology present on the passengers' smartphones. It uses BLE beacons to track the passengers' trips from the start to the end, as part of an implementation of a check-in/be-out system. This solution was implemented as a prototype to be tested in the AMP and all the tests performed were made during the course of a pilot test of this prototype. The study consisted of a set of technical tests related with beacons signal monitoring and the gathering and analysis of passengers' feedback who participated in a four months pilot test. The results obtained suggest that the BLE technology is feasible for mobile ticketing in urban passenger transport. The paper also presents the various available deployment alternatives, identifies the main problems found and proposes solutions to solve them, filling an important research gap in the literature. © 2020 The Authors

Abstract
This paper showcases how the Contract Agency Model can be used to uncover literacy practices in videogame’s own terms as a complement to existing, more ‘indirect’ games literacies, using as an example the videogame Total War: Shogun 2. The paper first situates the Contract Agency Model within approaches to videogames and within approaches to media literacy. The paper then identifies three interesting literacy practices in the videogame, which also exemplify the eight levels of abstraction of the Contract Agency Model. The paper concludes by discussing the model’s implications to media literacy and videogames, namely that videogames effect a second-order mutual signaling with their players – agency as a conversation of commitment to meaning – that is humanizing of those players, and that the model can uncover this as an im-plicit contract of bio-costs, as a ‘direct’ literacy of videogames, i.e. a literacy in videogames’ own terms. © 2020 BY-NC-ND.