Digital map is a tool for
university planning
Ronei Thezolin
Unicamp is mapping the campus with the aim of obtaining a digital cartographic base, in order to assist the university's planning, providing a faithful and updated portrait of the facilities and infrastructure. The project, coordinated by the Construction Technical Office (Estec), is being led by the company Multispectral and monitored by the Faculty of Civil Engineering (FEC). The initial phase of mapping ended in April with the taking of aerial photos. Completion of ground support work and preparation of the digital map is scheduled for June.
This is the first time that Unicamp has invested in cartography, which will become a tool with registration information that will assist in planning activities. "The implementation and monitoring of projects and structural undertakings will be provided by the digital map", highlights professor Paulo Eduardo Moreira Rodrigues da Silva, dean of university development. "The digital database will be used in areas of administration, such as City Hall (telephony), Estec (constructions), electrical, computing and water and sewage networks", highlights the coordinator of Estec, professor Carlos Alberto Bandeira Guimarães. “New data updates, such as blocks, buildings or roads on campus, will also be carried out quickly by the system”, adds Guimarães. The map will also serve as a source of research for the areas of civil engineering, agriculture and geosciences. "Currently we only have artistic maps of the campus", highlights professor Maria Teresa Françoso (FEC), who follows the work.
The digital mapping project consists of obtaining a database from aerial photographs, on a scale that allows the visualization of objects measuring over 40 centimeters. This first phase of the project was completed in April by Empresa Multispectral, winner of the tender. Ground support is currently being carried out and digital mapping will then be carried out, which will detail the various aspects of the surface, such as blocks, roads, buildings, contour lines, poles, trees, etc. This work should be completed in June and will culminate in a complete digital map and color orthophoto of the entire campus area.
Having a digital map is the first step towards implementing a Geographic Information System - GIS, an objective to be achieved by Unicamp. This technology encompasses a set of procedures for input, manipulation, storage and analysis of georeferenced data. It is a tool aimed at information management and can be applied to a wide variety of purposes: projects, infrastructure networks and public services (water, sewage, paving, garbage collection, transport, public lighting, etc.), security, marketing, analysis of land use and the environment.
Professor Maria Teresa Françoso, who has followed the project since its inception, defended her doctorate at the USP Polytechnic School in 1998. In her thesis, she presents a set of guidelines for implementing Geographic Information Systems in medium-sized city halls. To this end, she carried out a diagnosis of the stage of computerization in the municipalities of the State of São Paulo, focusing more precisely on spatial information: cartographic base, geographic information systems, technical records, etc. She analyzed different aspects of the data and information collected in a field research, in which all cities in the State of São Paulo were consulted, with populations between 20 thousand and 1 million inhabitants.
UNICAMP IN THE PRESS
FSP
The project for the Theater-Laboratory of the Institute of Arts, which will have 500 seats, earned its creators, architects recently graduated from USP, a prize of R$20. It will be the newest theater in the city, which could take a year to build.
NewScientist and GloboNews
NIB researcher Sílvia Cardoso caught the media's attention with her research on laughter. GloboNews and NewScientist magazine, among others, showed Sílvia's work.
http://globonews.globo.com/GloboNews/article/0,6993,A296321-571,00.html
FSP
The biggest drop in income seen in the first quarter of 2002 — compared to the entire Cruzado Plan — was assessed by economist Anselmo Luís dos Santos, from Unicamp. According to him, reversing this situation would take at least four years.
Popular Mail
Organ donations fell 30,7% compared to the first four months of 2001, reports Correio Popular, based on data from Unicamp's Organ Procurement Center. There were nine kidney donations in 2001 compared to just 2 from January to April this year. The 16 kidneys received in 2002 represent just over half of the previous year, which reached 30. The closest number is that of corneas - eight donations this year and ten in 2001.
FSP
Under the management of Unicamp since March 2000, the Sumaré State Hospital has just been classified among the ten best Brazilian hospital entities by the Ministry of Health. The ministry evaluated 4.239 hospitals across the country.
Distance learning course will reach 4 thousand students
Maria Alice da Cruz
Unicamp will coordinate the course distance "Management of maintenance of hospital equipment" from July 8th. The university is one of three entities that make up a consortium implemented by ReforSUS, a program of the Ministry of Health aimed at improving the equipment fleet in Brazilian hospitals. The purpose of the consortium is to designate institutions capable of managing the use of equipment acquired by ReforSUS within the improvement project. Alongside Unicamp, Unifesp and Lex Sistemas coordinate the project. According to doctor Saide Jorge Calil, the consortium was selected with ten points ahead of the second team placed. The course aims to train 4 thousand students throughout Brazil to maintain equipment.
Unicamp, in addition to general management, is responsible for preparing all course content. The invitation to participate is addressed to 1.200 institutions, including hospitals, laboratories and blood clinics. Each institution will be able to enroll three to four students. The selection of students depends on the Ministry, which must send a letter with the candidate's profile. The target audience is any professional already involved in equipment management.
The teaching support material was defined according to the needs of each participating entity. The student can follow the course online, via CD-ROM, or by correspondence. Registration entitles you to a book, a student guide. TV Unifesp hired artists to produce a video that will be distributed to students containing scenes depicting everyday situations in a hospital. Each entity will receive six ribbons. According to Calil, unlike other distance learning courses that use the Call Center system, where the student does not have contact with those who help coordinate, the participant will answer the questions to a tutor. "It's an unprecedented experience, as each of the country's five macro-regions will have someone responsible for tutoring", she states. The project has 62 tutors who will be responsible for the quality of learning for 60 students each. "The tutor's role is not to let the student stray. If the student has any doubts, they should ask the tutor", he advises.
Erratum
In the edition of Jornal da Unicamp nº 174, page 12, the section "Worried about this..." refers to the neurologist who provides services to Feac, and not the doctor. Elba Etchebehere, nuclear doctor at HC and coordinator of the research "Brain spect in children and adolescents on multiple drugs".
