iSensA - A System for Collecting and Integrating Sensor Data

The idea of monitoring several types of parameters in various environments has been motivating significant research works in Internet of Things (IoT). This paper presents the design and construction of iSensA, a system for integrating and collecting information from sensors. The solution implements a multi-sensor monitoring system and then expands the monitoring concept to an IoT solution, by employing multi-network access, Web services, database and web and mobile applications for user interaction. iSensA system is highly configurable, enabling several monitoring solutions with different types of sensors. Experiments have been performed on real application scenarios to validate and evaluate our proposition.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

Omnidirectional WPT and data communication for electric air vehicles: feasibility study

This paper investigates the feasibility of using the three dimensional omnidirectional inductive channel for power transfer and as a power line communication PLC for ground-based vehicle, electric air vehicle or space applications, the simulation results is performed by the advanced design system software using lumped equivalent circuit model. The power transfer efficiency determined based on multiport scattering (S)-parameters numerical simulation results while the theoretical channel capacity is calculated based on Matlab software as a function of the coupling coefficient considering an additive white Gaussian noise . Furthermore, the magnetic field distribution is evaluated as function of the misalignment angle θ between the receiver and the three orthogonal transmitters coils

Optimizing Human Performance to Enhance Safety: A Case Study in an Automotive Plant

Human factors play a relevant role in the dynamic work environments of the manufacturing sector in terms of production efficiency, safety, and sustainable performance. This is particularly relevant in assembly lines where humans are widely employed alongside automated and robotic agents. In this situation, operators’ ability to adapt to different levels of task complexity and variability in each workstation has a strong impact on the safety, reliability, and efficiency of the overall production process. This paper presents an application of a theoretical and empirical method used to assess the matching of different workers to various workstations based on a quantified comparison between the workload associated with the tasks and the human capability of the workers that can rotate among them. The approach allowed for the development of an algorithm designed to operationalise indicators for workload and task complexity requirements, considering the skills and capabilities of individual operators. This led to the creation of human performance (HP) indices. The HP indices were utilized to ensure a good match between requirements and capabilities, aiming to minimise the probability of human error and injuries. The developed and customised model demonstrated encouraging results in the specific case studies where it was applied but also offers a generalizable approach that can extend to other contexts and situations where job rotations can benefit from effectively matching operators to suitable task requirements

Mathematical modeling and parameter estimation of levodopa motor response in patients with Parkinson disease

Parkinson disease (PD) is characterized by a clear beneficial motor response to levodopa (LD) treatment. However, with disease progression and longer LD exposure, drug-related motor fluctuations usually occur. Recognition of the individual relationship between LD concentration and its effect may be difficult, due to the complexity and variability of the mechanisms involved. This work proposes an innovative procedure for the automatic estimation of LD pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics parameters, by a biologically-inspired mathematical model. An original issue, compared with previous similar studies, is that the model comprises not only a compartmental description of LD pharmacokinetics in plasma and its effect on the striatal neurons, but also a neurocomputational model of basal ganglia action selection. Parameter estimation was achieved on 26 patients (13 with stable and 13 with fluctuating LD response) to mimic plasma LD concentration and alternate finger tapping frequency along four hours after LD administration, automatically minimizing a cost function of the difference between simulated and clinical data points. Results show that individual data can be satisfactorily simulated in all patients and that significant differences exist in the estimated parameters between the two groups. Specifically, the drug removal rate from the effect compartment, and the Hill coefficient of the concentration-effect relationship were significantly higher in the fluctuating than in the stable group. The model, with individualized parameters, may be used to reach a deeper comprehension of the PD mechanisms, mimic the effect of medication, and, based on the predicted neural responses, plan the correct management and design innovative therapeutic procedures

Educommunication and archaeological heritage in Italy and Spain: an analysis of institutions’ use of Twitter, sustainability, and citizen participation

Improving heritage educommunication on the web 2.0 is key to reaching certain sustainable development goals focused on educational quality and citizen participation. Although numerous partial studies have already been conducted, to date neither assessment tools nor detailed studies are available regarding the quality of educommunicative initiatives. Spain and Italy’s archaeological heritage museums have a consolidated track record on Twitter, which has been bolstered by museum closures due to COVID-19 and has resulted in a significant change to their educommunicative policies. The present article aims to analyze educommunicative actions undertaken on Twitter at Italian archaeological museums, compare their strategies with a previous study on Spanish institutions, and analyze to what degree the sustainability of heritage, citizen participation, learning opportunities, and universal access are being promoted. This mixed method analysis was carried out through the implementation of a web 2.0 heritage educommunication analysis tool focused on three key factors: educational procedure, R-elational interactions, and the prevailing learning paradigm, as well as a content analysis of the variables that comprise them. The key findings suggest that neither country is close to achieving a quality educommunicative strategy. Italian archaeological heritage institutions use Twitter simply as an advertising platform. Despite being a social media platform, participative initiatives are scarcely promoted, although heritage sustainability is promoted through raising awareness of conservation and appreciation. Spanish institutions, however, demonstrated the opposite pattern of use

Spanish Archaeological Museums during COVID-19 (2020): An Edu-Communicative Analysis of their Activity on Twitter through the Sustainable Development Goals

On 18 March 2020, Spanish museums saw their in-person activities come to a halt. This paradigm shift has raised questions concerning how these institutions reinvented themselves and modified their edu-communicative strategies to promote heritage through active citizen participation. The present study centers on analyzing how the main Spanish archaeological museums and sites (N = 254) have used Twitter as an edu-communicative tool and analyzes the content of their hashtags through a mixed methodology. The objective is to identify the educational strategies for both transmitting information as well as interacting with users. We did it by observing and analyzing if Spanish archaeological institutions are promoting a type of quality, accessible, and egalitarian education and promoting the creation of cyber communities that ensure the sustainability of heritage through citizen participation. This paper proposes an innovative assessment of communication on Twitter based on the purpose of messages from the viewpoint of heritage education, their r-elational factor, and predominant type of learning. The main findings reveal a significant increase in Twitter activity, both in quantitative and qualitative terms: educational content is gaining primacy over the simple sharing of basic information and promotional content. The networks forge new ways to teach–learn and interact with media and represent a strong channel to promote the sustainability of heritage, its preservation, and appreciation

IoT Middleware Platforms for Smart Energy Systems: An Empirical Expert Survey

Middleware platforms are key technology in any Internet of Things (IoT) system, considering their role in managing the intermediary communications between devices and applications. In the energy sector, it has been shown that IoT devices enable the integration of all network assets to one large distributed system. This comes with significant benefits, such as improving energy efficiency, boosting the generation of renewable energy, reducing maintenance costs and increasing comfort. Various existing IoT middlware solutions encounter several problems that limit their performance, such as vendor locks. Hence, this paper presents a literature review and an expert survey on IoT middleware platforms in energy systems, in order to provide a set of tools and functionalities to be supported by any future efficient, flexible and interoperable IoT middleware considering the market needs. The analysis of the results shows that experts currently use the IoT middleware mainly to deploy services such as visualization, monitoring and benchmarking of energy consumption, and energy optimization is considered as a future application to target. Likewise, non-functional requirements, such as security and privacy, play vital roles in the IoT platforms’ performances

The Group Element of Cybercrime: Types, Dynamics, and Criminal Operations

While cybercrime can often be an individual activity pursued by lone hackers, it has increasingly grown into a group activity, with networks across the world. This chapter critically examines the group element of cybercrime from several perspectives. It identifies the platforms that online groups - cybercriminal and otherwise - use to interact, and considers groups as both perpetrators and victims of cybercrime. A key novelty is the discovery of new types of online groups whose collective actions border on criminality. The chapter also analyzes how online cybercrime groups form, organize, and operate. It explores issues such as trust, motives, and means, and draws on several poignant examples, from Anonymous to LulzSec, to illustrate the arguments

Backwoods cures: An exploration of Southern Appalachian folk medicine

The people of the Southern Appalachians have a unique culture all their own. An important component of this culture can be observed in the manner in which these individuals chose to combat that enemy of all mankind: disease. A beautiful amalgamation of cultures including Cherokee, Scotch-Irish, and other European ancestries is present in this region and exhibited through the rural remedies utilizing a rich local pharmacopeia and magico-religious folklore related to healing. However, the people of the Southern Appalachians, while geographically isolated, did not exist in a vacuum. Exciting discoveries of local primary sources demonstrate the employment of contemporary medicine in tandem with what was available locally. This project also examines the utility of virtual museums. Together with the research on the subject of Southern Appalachian Folk Medicine, the research on virtual museums culminates in the creation of a digital exhibition using the Omeka exhibit building platform. This exhibition can be visited at the following link: http://backwoodscures.omeka.net (Author abstract)Perry, K.E. (2018). Backwoods cures: An exploration of Southern Appalachian folk medicine. Retrieved from http://academicarchive.snhu.eduMaster ArtsHistoryCollege of Online and Continuing Educatio