Comparative analysis of MPC controllers applied to Autonomous Driving

Este trabajo presenta el diseño de un sistema de evasión de obstáculos, aplicable en situaciones de emergencia. La solución propone un MPC multivariable para controlar la posición, orientación y velocidad del vehículo autónomo. El controlador considera las limitaciones físicas del vehículo, así como la morfología de la vía para conseguir minimizar los posibles daños que puedan afectar al sistema y en consecuencia a la pérdida de control del vehículo. Las restricciones principales están basadas en las fuerzas laterales que afectan a los neumáticos, obtenidas de la implementación de los modelos cinemático y dinámico de la planta. Inicialmente, el controlador hace que el sistema siga una trayectoria predefinida. No obstante, tomará las acciones de evasión necesarias cuando detecte obstáculos, para conseguir realizar trayectorias libres de colisiones. Los resultados obtenidos tras la validación del sistema se presentan con el simulador para conducción autónoma CARLA.This work presents the design of an obstacle avoidance system, employable in emergency situations. The solution proposes a multivariable Model Predictive Controller (MPC) to control the position, orientation and velocity of an autonomous vehicle. The controller considers the vehicle0s physical limitations, as well as the road morphology, to minimize any possible damage to the system and the loss of control of the vehicle. Its main constraints are based on the lateral tire forces, obtained from the implementation of a kinematic and dynamic plant model. The controller, initially following a predefined trajectory, will take the needed evasive actions in order to perform a collision-free trajectory, in case of an obstacle detection. The results obtained from the system validation are presented with CARLA open-source simulator for autonomous driving.Grado en Ingeniería en Electrónica y Automática Industria

Ordinary and extraordinary prices in the Giolito Libri spirituali sales list

This article illustrates an early modern sales list of books, the Libri spirituali di stampa of the Venetian Giolito publishing house. This printed list, kept in the Biblioteca Comunale Augusta in Perugia, includes the descriptions of 81 devotional and religious sixteenth century books with their prices expressed in Venetian lire (an account money). The aim of the research is to illustrate the price policy of the Giolito firm between 1587 and 1592, and the segment of the market they intended to serve. For this purpose, on the basis of the books priced, the list has been dated and placed in chronological relation with other already known Giolito sales catalogues. In the second part of the article, average prices per printing sheet are calculated and the relationships between prices and dates, languages and formats are taken into consideration. In the end, the reasons why some few editions were proposed on the market at a higher price are discussed. The list is published in the Appendix

Toma de decisiones y análisis de resultados de la dirección y gestión del área/departamento de marketing, de la empresa "Montoro", en el Mercado "Copro20"

Tras haber participado en una simulación en la que se ponía al alumno al frente de una empresa de productos fitness, formando parte de un consejo de administración, como director del departamento de Marketing, el presente documento tratará de reflejar y analizar las actuaciones que se llevaron a cabo. Centrándose en un primer lugar en la presentación de la empresa y la definición del mercado en el que se compite, la presentación de los productos que comercializa, el método de la definición de los objetivos y su grado de consecución, el desarrollo de las estrategias que se siguieron, además de analizar las ventajas y desventajas de los resultados obtenidos. Se utilizarán los datos extraídos del simulador para dar una visión completa y certera de la situación de la empresa a lo largo de todo el tiempo que duró la actividad de la misma, apoyándose en ellos para poder justificar de forma honesta la situación final de la organización.Administración de Empresa

Priorities and strategies for improving Roma women’s access to primary health care services in cases on intimate partner violence: a concept mapping study

Background: With an explicit focus on Roma women in Spain (Kale/Spanish Gypsies), this study aims to integrate key informants’ opinions about the main actions needed to improve primary health care services’ and professionals’ responses to Roma women in an Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) situation. Methods: Concept mapping study. A total of 50 (brainstorming phase), 36 (sorting and rating phase) and 16 (interpretation phase) participants from Roma civil society groups, primary health care professionals and other related stakeholders (social services, academic experts and other IPV NGOs representatives) from different cities in Spain were involved in the different study phases. Results: Among the 55 action proposals generated, ten priority actions were identified through consensus as most important for improving primary health care’s response to Romani women in an IPV situation, and these included primary, secondary and tertiary prevention activities. Conclusion: Results indicated that efforts to address this challenge should take an integrated approach that reinforces the primary health care response to IPV in general, while also promoting more specific actions to address barriers to access that affect all Roma women and those who experience IPV in particular.The material and analysis of this study is part of the larger research project titled “Violence against women and the responses of primary health professionals in Spain”, financed by the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness of the Government of Spain, Carlos III Institute and Fondos FEDER (Ref.PI13/00874), directed by the professor Carmen Vives-Cases

Young people, privacy and dependence on social networks

En los últimos años asistimos a una cierta consolidación de los comportamientos y actitudes aparejados al uso de las redes sociales y de las obligaciones tecnológicas que los usuarios se han autoimpuesto: la inversión de tiempo y energías en compartir con los demás escenas y actos de su vida privada y profesional, la necesidad de estar siempre conectados, y la agudización de sensaciones y sentimientos contrapuestos que todo ello provoca (ansiedad, inseguridad, soledad…). Es esta comunicación se describe de manera pormenorizada el comportamiento, las actitudes y la percepción sobre las redes sociales que manifiestan los jóvenes relativas a la privacidad y la dependencia en estas redes. En el caso de la privacidad51, los jóvenes son cada vez más conscientes de que, a pesar de que manifiestan una dependencia que roza la adicción, deben proteger parte de su vida privada porque lo que se expone en las redes resulta después incontrolable. Los resultados sobre privacidad y dependencia en las redes que presentamos aquí forman parte de la investigación que se realiza en el Programa de Actividades sobre Vulnerabilidad Digital (PROVULDIG) cuyo objetivo principal es estudiar las amenazas y retos que Internet representa para diversos colectivos sociales especialmente vulnerables, como son los niños, los adolescentes, los jóvenes y las tercera edad. Con ello se pretende también dar a conocer las posibilidades de alfabetización digital de los jóvenes y servir como marco de referencia tanto para sus progenitores como para todos aquellos sectores de la sociedad que trabajan con este colectivo, especialmente el profesorado, que se encuentran con grandes lagunas a la hora de proponer nuevas vías de formación, trabajo y participación online de manera constructiva. El objetivo es ofrecer un panorama descriptivo de la situación actual que a su vez pueda servir para orientar a los ciudadanos hacia una participación responsable en las redes sociales con pleno conocimiento de sus posibilidades y sus límites.In recent years, we have observed certain consolidation of behaviors and attitudes associated to the use of social networks and the technological obligations that some users have self-imposed to themselves: the investment of time and energy in sharing with other scenes and acts of their private and professional lives, the need to be always connected, and the intensification of the conflicting feelings that all this provokes (anxiety, insecurity, loneliness...). This communication describes in detail the behavior, attitudes and perception about social networks that young people manifest regarding privacy and dependence on these networks. For example, in the case of privacy, young people are increasingly aware that, despite their dependence or addiction, they must protect part of their private life because what is today exposed on a social network is later uncontrollable. The results on privacy and dependence on social networks presented here are part of a research project within the Program of Activities on Digital Vulnerability (PROVULDIG), whose main objective is to study the threats and challenges that the Internet represents for various social groups especially vulnerable, such as children, adolescents, and the elderly. It also aims at increasing the awareness about the possibilities of digital literacy of young people and serves as a framework of reference for both their parents and the sectors of society that work with this group --especially teachers--, who find large gaps when proposing new ways of training, work and online participation in a constructive way The objective is to offer a descriptive overview of the current situation that can serve to guide citizens towards responsible participation in social networks with full knowledge of its possibilities and its limits

Worsening of myocardial performance index in beta-thalassemia patients despite permanently normal iron load at MRI: A simple and cheap index reflecting cardiovascular involvement?

Abstract Background Iron Overload Cardiomyopathy (IOC) due to repeated transfusions still represents the main cause of death in Thalassemia major (TM) patients. Because iron overload remains asymptomatic for long time, it is important to stratify the patients based on the risk of developing IOC before the appearance of clinical signs of heart failure. The magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) T2* may be useful but it is expensive and its MRI software has limited availability; conventional echocardiographic parameters, although easy availability, remain normal until advanced stages of IOC. Tissue Doppler Imaging (TDI) opened a new way to explore systolic and diastolic function directly or through derived index such as myocardial performance index (MPI) which has a prognostic value in different cardiomyopathies. Methods We enrolled 46 consecutive β-TM patients without clinical signs of heart failure and we tested them with echocardiography in 2011 and again in 2015. MPI of left and right ventricular lateral wall was calculated by TDI. All TM patients had a T2* MRI evaluation of the heart in the year before. Results Despite the absence of significant changes in morphological data at echo and at T2* evaluation, S′ waves of the lateral ventricular wall decrease while time passed, MPI worsened during the follow-up period and the derived systolic pulmonary artery systolic pressure (PAPs) increased in 2015 with respect to 2011. Conclusion TDI and MPI may reveal very early myocardial dysfunction in TM patients despite a normal T2* value. Together with PAPs they should be periodically checked in these patients

La oposición al reinado de Amadeo de Saboya: un análisis de la propaganda y de las manifestaciones críticas.

El presente trabajo pretende analizar distintos tipos de manifestaciones con-trarias a la figura de Amadeo de Saboya durante su reinado (1871-1873) para desglosar los motivos que expliquen la animadversión hacia el rey por parte de sus detractores y, a través de ello, lograr un mejor estudio de las causas que propiciaron su caída.Además, se pondrá atención en la evolución del proyecto político emergido de la Revo-lución de 1868 y en la posterior Constitución de 1869, como elementos que debían sos-tener la monarquía democrática, también se analizará el papel que los principales par-tidos políticos jugaron en el devenir de este proyecto democrático.<br /

Is sexual attraction and place of origin a moderator of sex in pornography consumption? Cross-sectional study on a representative sample of young adults

Background: Pornography consumption is higher in men, but we do not know if this association can be modified by different variables, such as sexual attraction and place of origin. Given the impact pornography has on minors, there are limited studies that analyze the use of pornography in representative samples of the adult population. The aim was analyze the prevalence and factors associated with using pornography in young adult men and women, living in Spain, with different sexual attractions and different places of birth. Methods: Cross-sectional study with an online survey conducted with 2515 men and women aged between 18 and 35 years of age. The prevalence of pornography consumption is described and analyzed in the total sample and stratified by sex, according to socio-demographic and sexual attraction variables. The association between covariates and pornography consumption at some point in life was estimated with prevalence ratios (PR) obtained with the Poisson models of robust variance. Dependent variable: voluntarily using pornography at some point in life. Socio-demographic variables were included in the analysis: age, sex, level of education, place of birth. Sexual attraction was also analyzed. Results: In Spain, 94.7% of men between 18 and 34 years and 74.6% of women have voluntarily used pornography at some point in their life. The mean age to start using it is earlier in men [Mean:14.2; Standard Deviation (SD):2.3]. Bisexual/homosexual attraction (reference: heterosexual) increases the probability of using pornography in women [(PR (95%CI): 1.30 (1.22; 1.38)]. Yet this is not observed in men. In both sexes, the probability of using pornography increases with age [(PR (95%CI): 1.01(1.00; 1.01)] and coming from abroad (reference: native), being the effect of country of birth significantly higher in women [(PR (95%CI): 1.17 (1.09; 1.26)] than in men [(PR (95%CI): 1.04 (1.01; 1.07). Conclusions: Public health programmes aimed at improving affective-sexual health should consider the high use of pornography among young adults in Spain, as well as those variables that increase its use.This research was supported by the CIBER of Epidemiology and Public Health of Spain (Grant ESP20PI02) and by the Institute of Health Carlos III (Grant PI22CIII/00036). Open Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Springer Nature.S

Do we have friendly services to meet the needs of young women exposed to intimate partner violence in the Madrid region?

Introduction: Women experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV) do not tend to go very frequently to formal support services. The objective of this study is to identify barriers related to the accessibility, acceptability, equity, appropriateness and effectiveness of IPV services from the perspective of the professionals working in the IPV public services. Methods: A qualitative study was carried out in the Madrid region based on 13 semi-structured interviews of young women who had survived IPV as well as 17 interviews with professionals. A thematic content analysis was performed, guided by the dimensions proposed by the World Health Organization (WHO) for friendly services for young people. Results: From the perspective of the young women and professionals, barriers were identified for all the dimensions of the WHO's friendly services for young people: accessibility: lack of information and support from the social setting, scarce dissemination of the services, economic cost, non-adapted schedules, inadequate locations or lack of services in settings close to young people; acceptability: lack of protocols to guarantee confidentiality, lack of speed in the provision of services or their referral, unwelcoming environments or unsympathetic professional malpractice; equity: discriminatory professional attitudes towards groups with different social status and lack of protocols to ensure the care of these groups; appropriateness: unmet needs and lack of multidisciplinary teams; and effectiveness: shortage of time, resources, competent professionals, protocols and coordination. Conclusions: Strategies are needed to make the necessary changes to promote friendly services for the care of young people exposed to IPV. Additionally, it must be emphasized that resources are needed to raise awareness and disseminate IPV services, as well as to train professionals in this area. Patient or Public Contribution: This paper is based on professionals' perspectives of public IPV-related services of different areas such as Psychology, Social Work, Nursing, Psychiatry, Social Education and young women exposed to IPV. They either work in the public administration at the local, regional or state level or in NGOs in Spain.This study was funded by the Health Institute Carlos III (Ref. PI17CIII/00022)

Disclosing Gender-Based Violence: A Qualitative Analysis of Professionals’ and Women’s Perspectives through a Discursive Approach

Supporting women to disclose gender-based violence (GBV) is a central feature of how healthcare and other welfare services address this problem. In this paper we take a discursive approach to analyse the process of disclosing GBV from the perspectives of young women who have been subjected to GBV and professionals working in the welfare system. Through a reflective thematic analysis of 13 interviews with young women who have been subjected to GBV and 17 with professionals working in different sectors of the welfare system, we developed four themes about how disclosure is perceived: (i) as a conversation between acquaintances; (ii) as ‘no solution’; (iii) as a possible prerequisite for action; and (iv) as difficult because GBV is normalised. Even if disclosure is not the solution per se, it makes it possible to respond institutionally to GBV on an individual basis through the figure of the expert professional who is alert to signs, knows how to support disclosure, and has the power to legitimate women’s claims of GBV. We acknowledge the possibilities that supporting disclosure brings for women subjected to GBV, but at the same time, problematise that it can re-centre expertise in the professional and place the responsibility on women.This study was funded by the Health Institute Carlos III (Ref. PI17CIII/00022)