Los algoritmos y la toma de decisiones administrativas. Especial referencia a la transparencia

The current model of public management is based on the implementation of artificial intelligence for administrative decision-making, introducing algorithms that, due to their opacity, do not fully comply with the principles of transparency and good governance required of public administrations in a state governed by the rule of law. Therefore, it is necessary to analyse what factors determine the inadequate use of algorithms, and consequently, to find a way to give visibility to the source code that determines their operation, thus obtaining a motivation of the administrative acts issued, allowing citizens to make allegations or appeal the automated actions of the Administration. Finally, it seeks to draw attention to the need to promote and implement intelligent and responsible governance by the institutions, and considers how to adapt traditional institutions to the information and communication technologies used by the Administration. This work seeks to provide a response from a legal-practical point of view to the situations that affect citizens, paying special attention to the use of algorithms in automated administrative decision-making.El modelo actual de gestión pública se basa en la implementación de la inteligencia artificial para la toma de decisiones administrativas, introduciendo algoritmos que por su opacidad no alcanzan con plenitud el cumplimento de los principios de transparencia y buen gobierno exigidos a las Administraciones públicas en un Estado de derecho. Por ello, es preciso analizar qué factores determinan un empleo inadecuado de los algoritmos y, consecuentemente, encontrar un medio para dar visibilidad al código fuente que determina su funcionamiento, obteniendo así una motivación de los actos administrativos dictados, permitiendo a los ciudadanos realizar alegaciones o recurrir las actuaciones automatizadas de la Administración. Finalmente, se busca llamar la atención sobre la necesidad de fomentar e implementar una gobernanza inteligente y responsable por parte de las instituciones, y se plantea cómo adaptar las instituciones tradicionales a las tecnologías de la información y la comunicación empleadas por la Administración. En este trabajo se busca dar una respuesta desde el punto de vista jurídico-práctico ante las situaciones que afectan a los ciudadanos, prestando especial atención al empleo de los algoritmos en la toma de decisiones administrativas automatizadas

Passive sampling of wastewater as a tool for the long-term monitoring of community exposure: Illicit and prescription drug trends as a proof of concept

Embargo until 20 May 2019.A passive sampling device, the Polar Organic Chemical Integrative Sampler (POCIS), was calibrated in-situ over a 4-week period in Oslo (Norway) for 10 illicit drugs and pharmaceuticals with the goal of developing an approach for monitoring long-term wastewater drug loads. The calibrations were performed in triplicate using three different overlapping calibration sets under changing environmental conditions that allowed the uncertainty of the sampling rates to be evaluated. All 10 compounds exhibited linear uptake kinetics and provided sampling rates of between 0.023 and 0.192 L d−1. POCIS were deployed for consecutive 2-week periods during 2012 and 2013 and the calculated time-weighted average (TWA) concentrations used to define different drug use trends. The relative uncertainty related to the POCIS data was approximately 40% and, except for citalopram, 85% of all the long-term measurements of pharmaceuticals were within the confidence interval levels calculated to evaluate the effects of changing environmental conditions on the TWA estimations. POCIS was demonstrated to be sufficiently robust to provide reliable annual drug use estimates with a smaller number of samplers (n = 24) than recommended for active sampling (n = 56) within an acceptable level of sample size related uncertainty < 10%. POCIS is demonstrated to be a valuable and reliable tool for the long-term monitoring of certain drugs and pharmaceuticals within a defined population.acceptedVersio

Effectiveness of environmental surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 as an early warning system during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review

publishedVersio

The effect of extraction methodology on the recovery and distribution of naphthenic acids of oilfield produced water

Comprehensive chemical characterization of naphthenic acids (NAs) in oilfield produced water is a challenging task due to sample complexity. The recovery of NAs from produced water, and the corresponding distribution of detectable NAs are strongly influenced by sample extraction methodologies. In this study, we evaluated the effect of the extraction method on chemical space (i.e. the total number of chemicals present in a sample), relative recovery, and the distribution of NAs in a produced water sample. Three generic and pre-established extraction methods (i.e. liquid-liquid extraction (Lq), and solid phase extraction using HLB cartridges (HLB), and the combination of ENV+ and C8 (ENV) cartridges) were employed for our evaluation. The ENV method produced the largest number of detected NAs (134 out of 181) whereas the HLB and Lq methods produced 108 and 91 positive detections, respectively, in the tested produced water sample. For the relative recoveries, the ENV performed better than the other two methods. The uni-variate and multi-variate statistical analysis of our results indicated that the ENV and Lq methods explained most of the variance observed in our data. When looking at the distribution of NAs in our sample the ENV method appeared to provide a more complete picture of the chemical diversity of NAs in that sample. Finally, the results are further discussed

Assessing sample extraction e ciencies for the analysis of complex unresolved mixtures of organic pollutants: A comprehensive non-target approach

The comprehensive extraction recovery assessment of organic analytes from complex samples such as oil field produced water (PW) is a challenging task. A targeted approach is usually used for recovery and determination of compounds in these types of analysis. Here we suggest a more comprehensive and less biased approach for the extraction recovery assessment of complex samples. This method combines conventional targeted analysis with a non-targeted approach to evaluate the extraction recovery of complex mixtures. Three generic extraction methods: liquid-liquid extraction (Lq), and solid phase extraction using HLB cartridges (HLB), and the combination of ENV+ and C8 (ENV) cartridges, were selected for evaluation. PW was divided into three parts: non-spiked, spiked level 1, and spiked level 2 for analysis. The spiked samples were used for targeted evaluation of extraction recoveries of 65 added target analytes comprising alkanes, phenols, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, producing absolute recoveries. The non-spiked samples were used for the non-targeted approach, which used a combination of the F-ratio method and apex detection algorithm. Targeted analysis showed that the use of ENV cartridges and the Lq method performed better than use of HLB cartridges, producing absolute recoveries of 53.1 ± 15.2 for ENV and 46.8 ± 13.2 for Lq versus 19.7 ± 6.7 for HLB. These two methods appeared to produce statistically similar results for recoveries of analytes, whereas they were both different from the produced recoveries via the HLB method. The non-targeted approach captured unique features that were specific to each extraction method. This approach generated 26 unique features (mass spectral ions), which were significantly different between samples and were relevant in differentiating each extract from each method. Using a combination of these targeted and non-targeted methods we evaluated the extraction recoveries of the three extraction methods for analysis of PW.acceptedVersio

Assessing sample extraction efficiencies for the analysis of complex unresolved mixtures of organic pollutants: a comprehensive non-target approach

The comprehensive extraction recovery assessment of organic analytes from complex samples such as oil field produced water (PW) is a challenging task. A targeted approach is usually used for recovery and determination of compounds in these types of analysis. Here we suggest a more comprehensive and less biased approach for the extraction recovery assessment of complex samples. This method combines conventional targeted analysis with a non-targeted approach to evaluate the extraction recovery of complex mixtures. Three generic extraction methods: liquid-liquid extraction (Lq), and solid phase extraction using HLB cartridges (HLB), and the combination of ENV+ and C8 (ENV) cartridges, were selected for evaluation. PW was divided into three parts: non-spiked, spiked level 1, and spiked level 2 for analysis. The spiked samples were used for targeted evaluation of extraction recoveries of 65 added target analytes comprising alkanes, phenols, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, producing absolute recoveries. The non-spiked samples were used for the non-targeted approach, which used a combination of the F-ratio method and apex detection algorithm. Targeted analysis showed that the use of ENV cartridges and the Lq method performed better than use of HLB cartridges, producing absolute recoveries of 53.1 ± 15.2 for ENV and 46.8 ± 13.2 for Lq versus 19.7 ± 6.7 for HLB. These two methods appeared to produce statistically similar results for recoveries of analytes, whereas they were both different from the produced recoveries via the HLB method. The non-targeted approach captured unique features that were specific to each extraction method. This approach generated 26 unique features (mass spectral ions), which were significantly different between samples and were relevant in differentiating each extract from each method. Using a combination of these targeted and non-targeted methods we evaluated the extraction recoveries of the three extraction methods for analysis of PW

Analysis of stimulant drugs in the wastewater of five Nordic capitals

Publisher's version (útgefin grein)Wastewater-based epidemiology is an efficient way to assess illicit drug use, complementing currently used methods retrieved from different data sources. The aim of this study is to compare stimulant drug use in five Nordic capital cities that include for the first time wastewater samples from Torshavn in the Faroe Islands. Currently there are no published reports that compare stimulant drug use in these Nordic capitals. All wastewater samples were analyzed using solid phase extraction and ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry. The results were compared with data published by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction based on illicit drugs in wastewater from over 50 European cities. Confirming previous reports, the results showed high amphetamine loads compared with other European countries. Very little apparent abuse of stimulant drugs was detected in Torshavn. Methamphetamine loads were the highest from Helsinki of the Nordic countries, indicating substantial fluctuations in the availability of the drug compared with previous studies. Methamphetamine loads from Oslo confirmed that the use continues to be high. Estimated cocaine use was found to be in the lower range compared with other cities in the southern and western part of Europe. Ecstasy and cocaine showed clear variations between weekdays and weekends, indicating recreational use. This study further demonstrates geographical trends in the stimulant drug market in five Nordic capitals, which enables a better comparison with other areas of the continent.We wish to acknowledgesupport by COST (EuropeanCooperation inScience and Technology) [Grant number ES1307], as well as the Icelan-dic Research Fund [Grant number 163049-051] and the University ofIceland Research Fund [Grant number HI17060092].Peer Reviewe