Imperfect bifurcations via topological methods in superlinear indefinite problems

In [5] the structure of the bifurcation diagrams of a class of superlinear indefinite problems with a symmetric weight was ascertained, showing that they consist of a primary branch and secondary loops bifurcating from it. In [4] it has been proved that, when the weight is asymmetric, the bifurcation diagrams are no longer connected since parts of the primary branch and loops of the symmetric case form an arbitrarily high number of isolas. In this work we give a deeper insight on this phenomenon, studying how the secondary bifurcations break as the weight is perturbed from the symmetric situation. Our proofs rely on the approach of [5,4], i.e. on the construction of certain Poincar\'e maps and the study of how they vary as some of the parameters of the problems change, constructing in this way the bifurcation diagrams.Comment: 13 pages, 7 figure

Deterministic Routing with HoL-Blocking-Awareness for Direct Topologies

AbstractRouting is a key design factor to obtain the maximum performance out of interconnection networks. Depending on the number of routing options that packets may use, routing algorithms are classified into two categories. If the packet can only use a single predetermined path, routing is deterministic, whereas if several paths are available, it is adaptive. It is well-known that adaptive routing usually outperforms deterministic routing. However, adaptive routers are more complex and introduces out-of-order delivery of packets. In this paper, we take up the challenge of developing a deterministic routing algorithm for direct topologies that can obtain a similar performance than adaptive routing, while providing the inherent advantages of deterministic routing such as in-order delivery of packets and implementation simplicity. The proposed deterministic routing algorithm is aware of the HoL-blocking effect, and it is designed to reduce it, which, as known, it is a key contributor to degrade interconnection network performance

Análisis cinemático del viraje en el esquí alpino de competición

Esta comunicación trata sobre la aplicación de la Biomecánica Deportiva como perspectiva científica, al análisis cinemático del esquí alpino como objeto de estudio, y ha sido realizada basándose en una situación real de competición como fue el Campeonato del Mundo de 1996 celebrado en Sierra Nevada (Granada). Para el análisis de la muestra, utilizamos la metodología y las tecnologías propias de la biomecánica Deportiva como son el método indirecto y las técnicas fotogramétricas tridimensionales, basadas en la filmación del gesto deportivo utilizando el vídeo. Los resultados obtenidos muestran la existencia de un patrón general de movimiento en la muestra de esquiadoras analizadas en cuanto a las velocidades tangenciales medias del CG(S).del sistema (esquiador más implementos). Entre las conclusiones, destacamos la existencia de una reducción de la velocidad tangencial media resultante en el recorrido analizado que es mayor aún, en el instante de paso del palo de viraje en particular y cuanto más curva es la trayectoria. Atendiendo a la desviación típica del comportamiento de la velocidad media resultante, podemos decir que en este tramo de paso de la puerta encontramos las diferencias entre la técnica individual de las esquiadoras analizadas. Este estudio nos confirma la importancia del entrenamiento en situación real de competición (en cuanto a material, características pista de entrenamiento, etc.

Exfoliated graphite flakes as soft-electrodes for precisely contacting nanoobjects

This is the post-peer reviewed version of the following article: P. ares et al. “Exfoliated graphite flakes as soft-electrodes for precisely contacting nanoobjects”. 2D Matererials, 2015, 2(3): 035008. Which has been published in final form at:http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/2053-1583/2/3/035008We introduce a simple, clean and reliable method to transfer exfoliated graphite flakes as soft-electrodes for the electrical contacts of nano-objects. The microelectrodes thus produced exhibit extremely well-defined and thin edges and can be placed at any sample location with sub-micrometer precision. The procedure is carried out under ambient conditions and does not require chemical agents. We present electrical characterization of relevant examples including carbon nanotubes, metal-organic MMX nanoribbons, reduced graphene sheets and damaged circuit repair. The quality of the electrical contacts thus obtained is as good as those fabricated with conventional techniques. This technique is particularly relevant for conductive atomic force microscopy (AFM) studiesThis work was supported by Consolider CSD2010-0024, MAD2D-CM, S2013/MIT-3007 and MAT2013-46753-C2-1 and

Valorising pasta industry wastes by the scale up and integration of solid-state and liquid-submerged fermentations

Pasta waste has previously been studied in a process to obtain lactic acid through a sequential hydrolysis and fermentation. The process was improved by using enzymes produced via solid-state fermentation of wheat bran in shake flasks. However, the scale-up of the solid-state fermentation is a complex task. In this study, amylase was produced in a home-designed tray bioreactor which allowed to carry out the hydrolysis and fermentation steps at the pilot scale. Due to the efficiency of the solid-state fermentation and the activity of the enzyme, only a small amount (100 g) of wheat bran was required to achieve high yields in a hydrolysis in a 72 L bioreactor (50 L working volume). Overall, the lactic acid yield was 0.68 gLA/gdS, and after the purification, the lactic acid recovered was 55 %, with a total ion concentration of 500 mg/L and an enantiomeric purity of 98.1 % L-LA.11 página

New Algebraic Quantum Many-body Problems

We develop a systematic procedure for constructing quantum many-body problems whose spectrum can be partially or totally computed by purely algebraic means. The exactly-solvable models include rational and hyperbolic potentials related to root systems, in some cases with an additional external field. The quasi-exactly solvable models can be considered as deformations of the previous ones which share their algebraic character.Comment: LaTeX 2e with amstex package, 36 page

From modular to centralized organization of synchronization in functional areas of the cat cerebral cortex

Recent studies have pointed out the importance of transient synchronization between widely distributed neural assemblies to understand conscious perception. These neural assemblies form intricate networks of neurons and synapses whose detailed map for mammals is still unknown and far from our experimental capabilities. Only in a few cases, for example the C. elegans, we know the complete mapping of the neuronal tissue or its mesoscopic level of description provided by cortical areas. Here we study the process of transient and global synchronization using a simple model of phase-coupled oscillators assigned to cortical areas in the cerebral cat cortex. Our results highlight the impact of the topological connectivity in the developing of synchronization, revealing a transition in the synchronization organization that goes from a modular decentralized coherence to a centralized synchronized regime controlled by a few cortical areas forming a Rich-Club connectivity pattern.Comment: 24 pages, 8 figures. Final version published in PLoS On

Radiomics analysis of bone marrow biopsy locations in [18F]FDG PET/CT images for measurable residual disease assessment in multiple myeloma.

The combination of visual assessment of whole body [18F]FDG PET images and evaluation of bone marrow samples by Multiparameter Flow Cytometry (MFC) or Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) is currently the most common clinical practice for the detection of Measurable Residual Disease (MRD) in Multiple Myeloma (MM) patients. In this study, radiomic features extracted from the bone marrow biopsy locations are analyzed and compared to those extracted from the whole bone marrow in order to study the representativeness of these biopsy locations in the image-based MRD assessment. Whole body [18F]FDG PET of 39 patients with newly diagnosed MM were included in the database, and visually evaluated by experts in nuclear medicine. A methodology for the segmentation of biopsy sites from PET images, including sternum and posterior iliac crest, and their subsequent quantification is proposed. First, starting from the bone marrow segmentation, a segmentation of the biopsy sites is performed. Then, segmentations are quantified extracting SUV metrics and radiomic features from the [18F]FDG PET images and are evaluated by Mann-Whitney U-tests as valuable features differentiating PET+/PET- and MFC+ /MFC- groups. Moreover, correlation between whole bone marrow and biopsy sites is studied by Spearman ρ rank. Classification performance of the radiomics features is evaluated applying seven machine learning algorithms. Statistical analyses reveal that some images features are significant in PET+/PET- differentiation, such as SUVmax, Gray Level Non-Uniformity or Entropy, especially with a balanced database where 16 of the features show a p value < 0.001. Correlation analyses between whole bone marrow and biopsy sites results in significant and acceptable coefficients, with 11 of the variables reaching a correlation coefficient greater than 0.7, with a maximum of 0.853. Machine learning algorithms demonstrate high performances in PET+/PET- classification reaching a maximum AUC of 0.974, but not for MFC+/MFC- classification. The results demonstrate the representativeness of sample sites as well as the effectiveness of extracted features (SUV metrics and radiomic features) from the [18F]FDG PET images in MRD assessment in MM patients.The author E.M. received financial support through a predoctoral Fellowship (ayuda del Programa Propio de I+D+i 2020) from Universidad Politecnica de Madrid. The project was partially supported by COVITECH-CM (Plataforma cientifico-tecnologica para alerta, diagnostico, pronostico, terapia y seguimiento de la enfermedad COVID19 y futuras pandemias) and REACT-UE through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the European Social Fund (EFS) and the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD).Open Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Springer Nature. The authors declare that no funds, grants, or other support were received during the preparation of this manuscriptS

Practical proposal to combat discapacity. The use of Tai Chi and Qigong

En el presente trabajo se valoran las posibilidades del Qigong en personas con movilidad reducida en los miembros inferiores, con el objetivo fundamental de mejorar la calidad de vida de estas personas. Presentamos una propuesta práctica formada por ejercicios sencillos, que justifica y adapta el Qigong a una población especial, como lesionados medulares, parapléjicos, hemipléjicos o cualquier patología limitadora de la marcha, ya sea en el hogar o en el hospital. La instrucción en el autocuidado es la parte esencial de este trabajo con personas adultas. Los resultados obtenidos en las diferentes experiencias que se han realizado han supuesto un fortalecimiento muscular y sobre todo un cambio en la actitud y calidad de vida de las personas