Audio segmentation-by-classification approach based on factor analysis in broadcast news domain

This paper studies a novel audio segmentation-by-classification approach based on factor analysis. The proposed technique compensates the within-class variability by using class-dependent factor loading matrices and obtains the scores by computing the log-likelihood ratio for the class model to a non-class model over fixed-length windows. Afterwards, these scores are smoothed to yield longer contiguous segments of the same class by means of different back-end systems. Unlike previous solutions, our proposal does not make use of specific acoustic features and does not need a hierarchical structure. The proposed method is applied to segment and classify audios coming from TV shows into five different acoustic classes: speech, music, speech with music, speech with noise, and others. The technique is compared to a hierarchical system with specific acoustic features achieving a significant error reduction

Spatiotemporal perspectives on urban energy transitions: a comparative study of three cities in China

This paper develops an integrated framework to study the socio-spatial and temporal dimensions of urban energy transitions to investigate the development and spread of solar energy technologies in urban China. A comparative analysis of three case studies of solar energy transitions in the cities of Foshan (in Guangdong), Rizhao (in Shandong), and Wuxi (in Jiangsu) demonstrates the framework’s applicability. The results map each city’s trajectory towards low carbon energy. Transitions result from dynamic interactions among central and local governments, solar manufacturers, solar installers, and residents. Alongside industrial strategies, locally-specific factors have a determining influence on the eventual outcomes

Bibliometric Analysis Of The Evolution Of Educational Quality During A 10-Year Research Period (2012–2022)

This study consists of a quantitative bibliometric methodology, that was carried out to determine from what perspective the concept of educational quality is being approached in the scientific community using the following keywords: performance, indicators, curriculum, management team, and teaching. The evolution of scientific research on educational quality in the Social Sciences and Education has been studied in the last 10 years. To investigate the existing literature on this topic, the Web of Science database was used and the results obtained from the scientific literature were based on concepts such as quality assurance and improvement, evaluation, professional development, higher education, and learning outcomes, among others. This study revolves around four components: education, curriculum, educational quality, and health education

Magnetic stress as a driving force of structural distortions: the case of CrN

We show that the observed transition from rocksalt to orthorhombic P$_{nma}$ symmetry in CrN can be understood in terms of stress anisotropy. Using local spin density functional theory, we find that the imbalance between stress stored in spin-paired and spin-unpaired Cr nearest neighbors causes the rocksalt structure to be unstable against distortions and justifies the observed antiferromagnetic ordering. This stress has a purely magnetic origin, and may be important in any system where the coupling between spin ordering and structure is strong.Comment: 4 pages (two columns) 4 figure

Multicaloric materials and effects

Multicaloric materials show thermal changes that can be driven simultaneously or sequentially by more than one type of external field, and the resulting multicaloric effects can be large in multiferroic materials. The use of more than one driving field can permit access to larger thermal changes, with smaller field magnitudes, over wider ranges of operating temperature, while manipulating hysteresis. The thermodynamics behind multicaloric effects is well established, but only a small number of multicaloric effects have been experimentally studied to date. Here we describe the fundamentals of multicaloric effects, and discuss the performance of representative multicaloric materials. Exploiting multicaloric effects could aid the future development of cooling devices, where key challenges include energy efficiency and operating temperature span

Integrated study of factors affecting fetal weight in singleton pregnancies. Nomogram and development of basic and advanced fetal growth customized models

We have performed a multivariate analysis to explore the influence on birth and ultrasound fetal weight estimation of traditional factors as biochemical data and maternal characteristics in combination with non- traditionally explored predictors as paternal height, Pregnancy-associated plasma protein A (PAPP-A), single umbilical artery or Free-beta Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (fß- HCG). The study was performed for a Spanish population (region of Aragon) in singleton pregnancies at term (37-42 weeks). Also, we have created a nomogram and in order to predict the occurrence of SGA (small for gestational age) and LGA (large for gestational age) cases we provide a multivariate predictive model of fetal weight that have been compared with other models in the prediction of ultrasound and birth weights. After study we have created a software application for automated calculation of percentile fetal weight, adjusting the variables when they were significant

Development and application of depth damage and sealing coefficient curves to estimate urban flooding economic impact on Spanish urban areas

[EN] In order to estimate pluvial flood damages within urban areas, a widely element employed are the well-known depth damage curves, which relate water depth to a certain level of damage. This study presents the development carried out in order to obtain depth damage curves tailored for Barcelona city and related to 14 types of properties. Moreover, a conceptual model to transfer outside-of-properties water depths into inside-of-properties water depths. The developed curves, have also been transferred to Badalona municipality and damages for actual flood events have been estimated for both cities. The obtained outcomes have been considered accurate enough, according to the conducted validation process based on the comparison with actual flood claims provided by the Spanish re-insurance company Consorcio de Compensación de Seguros (CCS).[ES] Para la estimación de daños por inundaciones pluviales en zonas urbanas, un elemento ampliamente utilizado son las llamadas curvas de daños, que no son más que la relación de los daños producidos en un tipo de propiedad para un cierto nivel de agua. En este estudio se presenta el desarrollo llevado a cabo para obtener curvas de daños asociadas a 14 tipos de propiedades para la ciudad de Barcelona. Se propone también un modelo conceptual para transferir el calado en las calles al calado en el interior de las propiedades. Las curvas desarrolladas, han sido trasladadas a la ciudad de Badalona y se han estimado los daños de dos eventos reales de inundación para ambas ciudades. Los resultados obtenidos han sido aceptables, de acuerdo con la validación realizada a partir de los datos de indemnizaciones facilitados por el consorcio de compensación de seguros (CCS).Los autores agradecen el apoyo del proyecto RESCCUE y BINGO, ambos financiados por el programa H2020 de la Unión Europea (Acuerdo No. 700174y No. 641739 respectivamente).A los autores les gustaría manifestar también su agradecimiento al Consorcio de Compensación de Seguros (CCS), por su colaboración en la disponibilidad de datos que han permitido validar los resultados obtenidos.Martínez-Gomariz, E.; Guerrero-Hidalga, M.; Russo, B.; Yubero, D.; Gómez, M.; Castán, S. (2019). Desarrollo y aplicación de curvas de daño y estanqueidad para la estimación del impacto económico de las inundaciones en zonas urbanas españolas. Ingeniería del Agua. 23(4):229-245. https://doi.org/10.4995/ia.2019.12137SWORD22924523

Magnetic properties of Ni2.18Mn0.82Ga Heusler alloys with a coupled magnetostructural transition

Polycrystalline Ni2.18Mn0.82Ga Heusler alloys with a coupled magnetostructural transition are studied by differential scanning calorimetry, magnetic and resistivity measurements. Coupling of the magnetic and structural subsystems results in unusual magnetic features of the alloy. These uncommon magnetic properties of Ni2.18Mn0.82Ga are attributed to the first-order structural transition from a tetragonal ferromagnetic to a cubic paramagnetic phase.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, revtex

Development of a tight-binding potential for bcc-Zr. Application to the study of vibrational properties

We present a tight-binding potential based on the moment expansion of the density of states, which includes up to the fifth moment. The potential is fitted to bcc and hcp Zr and it is applied to the computation of vibrational properties of bcc-Zr. In particular, we compute the isothermal elastic constants in the temperature range 1200K < T < 2000K by means of standard Monte Carlo simulation techniques. The agreement with experimental results is satisfactory, especially in the case of the stability of the lattice with respect to the shear associated with C'. However, the temperature decrease of the Cauchy pressure is not reproduced. The T=0K phonon frequencies of bcc-Zr are also computed. The potential predicts several instabilities of the bcc structure, and a crossing of the longitudinal and transverse modes in the (001) direction. This is in agreement with recent ab initio calculations in Sc, Ti, Hf, and La.Comment: 14 pages, 6 tables, 4 figures, revtex; the kinetic term of the isothermal elastic constants has been corrected (Eq. (4.1), Table VI and Figure 4