Abstract
This paper describes a study on applying data mining techniques to power transformer failure prediction. The data set used consisted not only on DGA tests, but also in other tests done to the transformer’s insulating oil. This dataset presented several challenges, such as highly imbalanced classes (common in failure prediction problems), and the temporal nature of the observations. To overcome these challenges, several techniques were applied for prediction and better understand the dataset. Pre-processing and temporality incorporation in the dataset is discussed. For prediction, a 1-class and 2-class SVM, decision trees and random forests, as well as a LSTM neural network were applied to the dataset. As the prediction performance was low (high false-positive rate), we conducted a test to ascertain if the amount of data collected was sufficient. Results indicate that the frequency of data collection was not adequate, hinting that the degradation period was shorter than the periodicity of data collection.

Abstract
The traditional attitude towards user interfaces has changed. The Post-WIMP era has brought about novel input modalities such as touch, tangibles or gestures that allow users to manipulate digital contents more intuitively. These novel input modalities make use of the users' innate skills instead of imposing the learning of new interaction techniques. Nonetheless, there has not been a systematic evaluation on how, or if, these interfaces influence the users' performance and/or preference: distinct interfaces may be more or less appropriate regarding different age groups, user profiles, contexts or type of tasks. This work is a preliminary evaluation on whether the users' efficiency is indeed influenced by different input modalities or age. We conducted a target acquisition performance evaluation with 60 subjects to understand how different input modalities influence the speed and accuracy of three specific age groups (children, young adults and older-adults) when dealing with a continuous selection task. Three input modalities were considered to perform the task (mouse, touch and gestures) and the methodology was based on Fitts' law, a target acquisition performance evaluation model. Overall, when comparing movement times amongst the three groups, there are significant differences between age groups regarding the index of performance. We believe our findings may show that indeed the type of input modality used and the user's age could affect one's performance.

Abstract
The introduction of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) in the electrical system is bringing various challenges. One of the recent solutions to deploy the potentials of PEVs in the system is through PEV parking lots (PL). The PLs not only provide a place for the PEVs charging requirements, but also give the possibility of exploiting the vehicle-to-gird (V2G) potential of PEVs in a more efficient manner comparing to PEV aggregators. On the other hand, the V2G mode gives the reserve market possibility to the PL operator, which can be a source of income other than selling energy to the PEV owners. However, the willingness of participating in the V2G mode may be low due to exposing battery degradation and not sufficient departure state of charge (SOC). As a result, this study investigates the behavior of PL on deploying the V2G mode of PEVs in reserve market participation considering the PEVs' traffic behavior.

Abstract
The research activities in a Higher Education Institution (HEI) is highly dependent of the development of research projects. Most times, these projects have, at the core of their workforce, scholarship fellows financed by the project budget and responsible for the execution of very specific research tasks. The procurement process, leading to the contracting of these fellows, evolves several internal bureaus, from several organic units of the HEI, in a complex and long process. This work reports on the development of system to support this process. The solution was integrated in the HEI ecosystem in a harmonious manner, by implementing the necessary features and using the other HEI systems features when possible. After a year, the scholarship management system has proved a success, providing the user features to conduct the process as well as the management analytics to proper support the governance of the research area.

Abstract
This research proposes new approaches to deal with the production planning and scheduling problem in brewery facilities. Two real situations found in factories are addressed, which differ by considering (or not) the setup operations in tanks that provide liquid for bottling lines. Depending on the technology involved in the production process, the number of tank swaps is relevant (Case A) or it can be neglected (Case B). For both scenarios, new MIP (Mixed Integer Programming) formulations and heuristic solution methods based on these formulations are proposed. In order to evaluate the approach for Case A, we compare the results of a previous study with the results obtained in this paper. For the solution methods and the result analysis of Case B, we propose adaptations of Case A approaches yielding an alternative MIP formulation to represent it. Therefore, the main contributions of this article are twofold: (i) to propose alternative MIP models and solution methods for the problem in Case A, providing better results than previously reported, and (ii) to propose new MIP models and solution methods for Case B, analyzing and comparing the results and benefits for Case B considering the technology investment required.

Abstract
The development of interferometric methodologies for deformation monitoring that are able to deal with long time series of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images made the detection of seasonal effects possible by decomposing the differential SAR phase. In the case of monitoring of man-made structures, particularly bridges, the use of high-resolution X-band SAR data allows the determination of three major components with significant influence on the SAR phase: the linear deformation trend, the height of structures over terrain, and the thermal expansion. In the case of stable metallic or (reinforced) concrete structures, this last effect can reach a magnitude comparable to or even exceeding the other phase components. In this review, we present two case studies that confirm the feasibility of InSAR techniques for bridge deformation monitoring and our original approach to refine the thermal expansion component.