Global analysis of piecewise linear systems using impact maps and surface Lyapunov functions

This paper presents an entirely new constructive global analysis methodology for a class of hybrid systems known as piecewise linear systems (PLS). This methodology infers global properties of PLS solely by studying the behavior at switching surfaces associated with PLS. The main idea is to analyze impact maps, i.e., maps from one switching surface to the next switching surface. Such maps are known to be "unfriendly" maps in the sense that they are highly nonlinear, multivalued, and not continuous. We found, however, that an impact map induced by an linear time-invariant flow between two switching surfaces can be represented as a linear transformation analytically parametrized by a scalar function of the state. This representation of impact maps allows the search for surface Lyapunov functions (SuLF) to be done by simply solving a semidefinite program, allowing global asymptotic stability, robustness, and performance of limit cycles and equilibrium points of PLS to be efficiently checked. This new analysis methodology has been applied to relay feedback, on/off and saturation systems, where it has shown to be very successful in globally analyzing a large number of examples. In fact, it is still an open problem whether there exists an example with a globally stable limit cycle or equilibrium point that cannot be successfully analyzed with this new methodology. Examples analyzed include systems of relative degree larger than one and of high dimension, for which no other analysis methodology could be applied. This success in globally analyzing certain classes of PLS has shown the power of this new methodology, and suggests its potential toward the analysis of larger and more complex PLS

Simpler is better: a novel genetic algorithm to induce compact multi-label chain classifiers

Multi-label classification (MLC) is the task of assigning multiple class labels to an object based on the features that describe the object. One of the most effective MLC methods is known as Classifier Chains (CC). This approach consists in training q binary classifiers linked in a chain, y1 → y2 → ... → yq, with each responsible for classifying a specific label in {l1, l2, ..., lq}. The chaining mechanism allows each individual classifier to incorporate the predictions of the previous ones as additional information at classification time. Thus, possible correlations among labels can be automatically exploited. Nevertheless, CC suffers from two important drawbacks: (i) the label ordering is decided at random, although it usually has a strong effect on predictive accuracy; (ii) all labels are inserted into the chain, although some of them might carry irrelevant information to discriminate the others. In this paper we tackle both problems at once, by proposing a novel genetic algorithm capable of searching for a single optimized label ordering, while at the same time taking into consideration the utilization of partial chains. Experiments on benchmark datasets demonstrate that our approach is able to produce models that are both simpler and more accurate

Unravelling the behavior of nanostructures during digestion and absorption

The food industry is increasingly focused on preventing nutrition-related diseases and improving consumers’ wellbeing. As a result, there is a growing trend towards healthy foods, enriched with bioactive compounds (such as vitamins, probiotics, bioactive peptides and antioxidants) produced through the application of innovative and safe technologies. In this context, the development of novel delivery systems for food applications through the use of nanotechnology has been extensively explored [1]. In fact, the encapsulation of bioactive compounds in bio-based nanostructures have been reported as promising mean of protecting the valuable bioactive compounds and providing new functionalities (e.g. increase of bioavailability). However, the use of very small particle sizes may alter the biological fate of the ingested materials and bioactive compounds, which could potentially have adverse effects on human health [2]. Therefore, the emerging field of nanotechnology offers new challenges to food industry not only by offering novel tools to improve food quality and human health, but also by introducing questions about nanostructures’ behaviour within the human body. The challenges that must be overcome before nanotechnology can be entirely embraced by food industry, includes the optimisation of nanostructures’ formulations to increase stability and bioactive compounds’ bio availability and the risk assessment of their use in food. The understanding of the behaviour of different nano-based delivery systems (e.g. nanoemulsions, nanoparticles) under digestion conditions, assessing their efficiency and safety is therefore of utmost importance to enable its widespread application in the food industry. This evaluation can be challenging, however, there are opportunities to take advantage from the lessons learned from pharmaceutical industry and of the considerable progress in the development of more realistic in vitro models to more accurately predict the behaviour of bio-based nanostructures once ingestedinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Leadership efficacy in youth football: athletes and coaches’ perspective

According to the Leadership Efficacy Model, leadership efficacy depends on leaders’ tendency to make linear relationships between leadership philosophy, practice, and criteria (i.e., congruence of leadership cycles). Moreover, efficacy increases if coaches make these linear relationships by using the optimal leadership profile and by considering the antecedent factors of leadership (characteristics of the leader, team members, and organizational conditions; i.e., favorability of conditions for leadership). This study compared the perceptions of athletes and their coaches regarding leadership cycles, and tested the moderator role of optimal leadership profile and leadership favorability in the relationship between leadership cycles and leadership efficacy. This study included 92 football athletes (ages less than 17 and 19 years) and respective coaches (n = 5). The evaluation protocol included measures of leadership cycles, leadership styles, leadership favorability, and sport performance perception. Athletes and coaches agreed on coaches’ need to increase their practice and criteria, but athletes also considered that coaches should better clarify their philosophy. Regression analyses confirmed that leadership congruency predicts higher perceptions of team performance in athletes. Moreover, optimal leadership profile and higher leadership favorability were associated with higher team and individual performance. However, these two factors did not moderate the relationship between leadership congruency and efficacy.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

Stream sediment analysis for Lithium (Li) exploration in the Douro region (Portugal): A comparative study of the spatial interpolation and catchment basin approaches

Lithium (Li) was recently added to the list of critical raw materials by the European Union due to its significance for the green energy transition. Thus, the development of new toolchains to make Li exploration more economic and more effective is needed. Stream sediment analysis can play an important part in these new tool chains. In this work, two historical stream sediment datasets covering parts of the Fregeneda-Almendra pegmatite field in the Douro region (Portugal) were reprocessed considering two distinct approaches: spatial interpolation through inverse distance weighting (IDW) and the catchment basin approach using the concentration area (C-A) fractal analysis. The following objectives were delineated: (i) determine pathfinder elements for Li, considering relevant associations in the mineralization sources; (ii) compare the performance of both approaches; (iii) identify new target areas for Li. In the case of spatial interpolation, the highest Li values were associated to granites although the use of key elements allowed lithological discrimination and the delineation of target areas. In the catchment basin approach, fractal analysis proved to be effective in decreasing the number of areas of interest with high accuracy (>75%) when considering the previously mapped Li-pegmatites. One of the limitations identified was the number of anomalous basins related to the granites, despite the use of pathfinder elements allowing discriminating granite- from pegmatite-related Li anomalies. Comparing the two approaches, the spatial interpolation method is more adequate for the early stages of exploration (reconnaissance), while the catchment basin approach is more suited for prospect-scale exploration. Field validation of the results identified one pegmatite containing Li mineralization and three others with favorable signs for Li mineralization in the Douro region.The authors would like to thank the financial support provided by FCT– Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, I.P. (Portugal) and BMBF Jülich – Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (Germany), with the ERA-MIN/0001/2017 – LIGHTS project. The work was also supported by Portuguese National Funds through the FCT projects UIDB/04683/2020 and UIDP/04683/2020 – ICT (Institute of Earth Sciences) and UIDB/50019/2020 – IDL (Instituto Dom Luiz). Joana Cardoso-Fernandes and Jéssica Lima are financially supported within the compass of their respective Ph.D. Thesis, ref. SFRH/BD/136108/2018 and ref. 2020.05793.BD, by national funds from MCTES through FCT, and co-financed by the European Social Fund (ESF) through POCH – Programa Operacional Capital Humano – and NORTE 2020 regional program. The Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovacion y Universidades (Project RTI2018-094097-B-100, with ERDF funds) and the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) (grant GIU18/084) also contributed economically. The authors are also grateful to BRGM (Bureau de Recherches Géologiques et Minières) and LNEG (Laboratório Nacional de Energia e Geologia) for making the data available for this study

API480: features towards therapy in honeybee hives

American foulbrood disease (AFB) is a devastating bacterial disease affecting honeybees. It is caused by Paenibacillus larvae, a worldwide-distributed spore forming Gram-positive bacterium which spread easily across apiaries producing highly resistant spores. When AFB symptoms are found the burning of contaminated hives is mandatory causing serious economic losses [1]. Bacteriophages (phages) are being considered valuable solutions to the control of this infection [2-5]. So far, 48 Siphoviridae P. larvae phages sequences are known and most encode integration genes suggesting a temperate lifestyle. All of these 48 phages seem to have a common evolutionary ancestor showing an overall common structure. Their genomes were grouped into four clusters (with Fern, Harrison, Vegas and Halcyone as representative phages) and one singleton (phage Lily) [6].Project APILYSE,PTDC/CVT-EPI/4008/2014-POCI-01-0145-FEDER-016598,-funded by FEDER through COMPETE2020-Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização(POCI) and the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology(FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of UID/BIO/04469/2019 unit and BioTec Norte operation(NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000004) funded by the European Regional Development Fund under the scope of Norte2020-Programa Operacional Regional do Norte.The work was also supported by CEB-UM that provided the laboratorial facilities to perform this research. HR was supported by FCT through the grant SFRH/BD/128859/2017. MB and RL were supported by KULeuven through a GOAgrant[3E140356]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Propylthiouracil-induced cutaneous vasculitis

The use of propylthiouracil (PTU) is associated with the development of different auto-antibodies, amongst them are antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (ANCA) that are involved in the pathogenesis of ANCA associated systemic vasculitis. The case of a 46-years old woman who presented cutaneous vasculitis when taking PTU for Graves' disease is reported. Perinuclear ANCA (p-ANCA) was positive with titer > 1/320, but anti-myeloperoxidase antibodies were not detected. Skin biopsy showed leucocytoclastic vasculitis. The patient improved within ten days after withdrawing PTU and the resolution of hyperthyroidism was achieved with radioiodine (131I). The p-ANCA test remained positive > 1/320 eight months and four years after PTU withdrawal.O uso do propiltiouracil (PTU) está associado ao desenvolvimento de diferentes auto-anticorpos, entre eles anticorpos anticitoplasma de neutrófilos (ANCA), que estão envolvidos na patogênese das vasculites sistêmicas ANCA-associadas (VSAA). Será relatado o caso de um paciente do sexo feminino, de 46 anos, que apresentou vasculite cutânea durante o uso de PTU como terapêutica para doença de Graves. O ANCA com padrão perinuclear (p-ANCA) foi positivo em títulos > 1/320, porém anticorpos antimielo-peroxidase (MPO) não foram detectados. A biópsia de pele revelou uma vasculite leucocitoclástica. Houve melhora clínica em dez dias após a retirada do PTU e optou-se pelo iodo radioativo (I131) para o tratamento do hipertireoidismo. O p-ANCA manteve-se positivo em títulos > 1/320 em duas medidas, realizadas oito meses e quatro anos após a suspensão do PTU.Hospital do Servidor Público Estadual Francisco Morato de OliveiraUniversidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Escola Paulista de MedicinaUNIFESP, EPMSciEL

Urban traffic simulation using mobility patterns synthesized from real sensors

Data Availability Statement: The data presented in this study are openly available in Zenodo at 10.5281/zenodo.7997433 and were produced using the code available at https://github.com/fabio-r-goncalves/norte (accessed on 1 November 2023).Smart cities are an ongoing research topic with multiple sub-research areas, from traffic control to optimization and even safety. However, testing the new methodologies or technologies directly in the real world is an almost impossible feat that, inclusively, can result in disaster. Thus, there is the importance of simulation. Simulation enables testing new and complex methodologies and gauging their impact in a realistic context without adding any safety issues. Additionally, these can accurately map real-world conditions depending on the simulation configuration. One key aspect of the simulation is the traffic flows in the simulated region. These may be hard to find and, if ill-set, may introduce bias in the results. This work is on the characterization of the traffic in the city center of Guimarães, Portugal. An urban simulation scenario was established, using SUMO as the mobility traffic simulator, with traffic patterns derived from real-world data provided by Guimarães City Hall and using Eclipse MOSAIC for extended vehicular simulation. Apart from mobility patterns analysis, this work also provides publicly accessible datasets, simulations, and applications made available to future research works.Funding: This work has been supported by FCT—Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia within the R&D Units Project Scope: UIDB/00319/2020 by FEDER funds, through the North Portugal Regional Operational Programme (NORTE 2020), Portugal 2020, within the Project Scope NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000086