Speculative Thread Framework for Transient Management and Bumpless Transfer in Reconfigurable Digital Filters

There are many methods developed to mitigate transients induced when abruptly changing dynamic algorithms such as those found in digital filters or controllers. These "bumpless transfer" methods have a computational burden to them and take time to implement, causing a delay in the desired switching time. This paper develops a method that automatically reconfigures the computational resources in order to implement a transient management method without any delay in switching times. The method spawns a speculative thread when it predicts if a switch in algorithms is imminent so that the calculations are done prior to the switch being made. The software framework is described and experimental results are shown for a switching between filters in a filter bank.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figures, to be presented at American Controls Conference 201

Structural Health Monitoring of Composite Airframe

Seminario impartido por el Profesor Aliabadi para describir los últimos logros obtenidos en el seno de los grupos de investigación que dirige en el Imperial College de Londres.Design and maintenance of future airframe composite structures is mainly influenced by the requirement to cope with accidental impact damage. The impact detection and identification strategy for existing structures is of primary importance both in structural health monitoring (SHM) and in non-destructive evaluation (NDE) techniques. Accurately detecting and characterizing an impact event based on sensor data leads us towards condition-based monitoring (CBM), where the subsequent damage can then be detected through active sensing strategies. In this talk, SHM techniques based ultrasonic guided wave will be presented for both passive and active SHM system. Application of these methods to complex stiffened panel will be shown through both experimental measurements and finite element simulations.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Factorization and escorting in the game-theoretical approach to non-extensive entropy measures

The game-theoretical approach to non-extensive entropy measures of statistical physics is based on an abstract measure of complexity from which the entropy measure is derived in a natural way. A wide class of possible complexity measures is considered and a property of factorization investigated. The property reflects a separation between the system being observed and the observer. Apparently, the property is also related to escorting. It is shown that only those complexity measures which are connected with Tsallis entropy have the factorization property.Comment: 7 pages, revtex4. For NEXT2005 proceeding

The Effect of Rating Agencies on Herd Behaviour

This paper purports to provide some evidence on the effect of rating agencies on herding in financial markets. By means of a laboratory experiment, we investigate the effect and interaction between private and public information. Previous experiments showed that lemmings behaviour can survive in a market context where information is private (Hey and Morone, 2004), and that an experimental market can be very volatile and not efficient in transmitting information (Alfarano et al., 2006). We study experimentally, if socially undesirable behaviour - that survives in a market contest - may be eliminated owing to the presence of rating agencies.herd behaviour; informational cascades; rating agency; bubble

Expectations for a new calorimetric neutrino mass experiment

A large calorimetric neutrino mass experiment using thermal detectors is expected to play a crucial role in the challenge for directly assessing the neutrino mass. We discuss and compare here two approaches to the estimation of the experimental sensitivity of such an experiment. The first method uses an analytic formulation and allows to readily obtain a sensible estimate over a wide range of experimental configurations. The second method is based on a frequentist Montecarlo technique and is more precise and reliable. The Montecarlo approach is then exploited to study the main sources of systematic uncertainties peculiar to calorimetric experiments. Finally, the tools are applied to investigate the optimal experimental configuration for a calorimetric experiment with Rhenium based thermal detectors.Comment: 25 pagers, 16 figure

The effect of school quality on educational attainment and wages

The paper examines the effects of school pupil-teacher ratios and type of school on educational attainment and wages using the British National Child Development survey (NCDS). The NCDS is a panel survey which has followed a cohort of individuals born in March 1958, and has a rich set of background variables recorded throughout the individual's life. The results suggest that, once we control for ability and family background, the pupil-teacher ratio has no impact on educational qualifications or on male wages. It has an impact on women’s wages at the age of 33, particularly those of low ability. We also find evidence that those who attend selective schools have better educational outcomes and, in the case of men, higher wages at the age of 33. The impact is higher for the type of individuals who are less likely not to attend selective schools, but for whom a comparison group does exist among those attending