Extending UML templates towards flexibility

UML templates are generic model elements that may be instantiated as domain specific solutions by means of parameterization. Some of the elements in a template definition are marked as parameters, implying that these must be sub-stituted by elements of the domain model, so to get a fully functional instance of the template. On parameter substitutions, UML enforces that the parame-tered element and its substitute must be of the same kind (both classes, both at-tributes, etc.). This paper shows that this constraint confines the applicability of templates and proposes an alternative that, by allowing substitutions among elements of different kinds, broadens that applicability. Cross-kind substitu-tions, however, require adequate semantics for the Binding relationship. Such semantics are proposed as model transformations that must complement the plain substitutions preconized by UML. Examples of such transformations are provided for activities in a template being expanded into a bound element.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A demonstration of compilability for UML template instances

Because of the thin set of well-formedness rules associated to Templates in UML, ill-formed elements may result from bindings to templates. Although such ill-formedness is generally detected by some UML validation rule, the problem is poorly reported because it is not normally imputed to the binding. Typically, such problems are detected as non-compilable code in the template instances. A set of well-formedness rules, additional to those of the standard UML, was proposed as a way to ensure the compilability of instances and prevent this problem from occurring. Such set of constraints was proposed in a previous paper and named Functional Conformance, but a demonstration of its effectiveness was not yet provided. Such a demonstration is outlined in the current paper. Carrying out the demonstration revealed the need for two more rules than those previously envisioned for Functional Conformance.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

Eosinophilic fasciitis (Shulman's disease): review and comparative evaluation of seven patients.

OBJECTIVES: Eosinophilic fasciitis (EF) was described in 1974 by Shulman as a rare fibrosing connective tissue disease of unknown etiology. An undetermined trigger is thought to lead to the degranulation of eosinophils that interact with fibroblasts and express fibrogenic cytokines including the transforming factor of tumor growth a and b and interleukins 1 and 6. The purpose of this study was to summarize seven cases of EF in a central hospital. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This was a retrospective and descriptive study of a population with EF of a central hospital. All patients diagnosed with EF in a hospital unit were admitted to the study between January 1, 2005, and April 30, 2018. RESULTS: A total of seven patients diagnosed with EF were analyzed. The median age of the population at the time of diagnosis was 56 years, and 57% of the patients were women. All patients had elevated peripheral eosinophilia and sedimentation rate, and only one patient had hypergammaglobulinemia. All patients had edema and cutaneous thickening of the limbs, 57% had constitutional symptoms, and 57% had inflammatory arthritis with joint contracture. Prednisolone (PDN) therapy was initiated in all patients, and only in two was the association of PDN with methotrexate (MTX) initially performed. In one patient triple therapy of PDN, MTX, and cyclosporine was required. At the time of this publication, only one patient maintains active disease, and tocilizumab has been initiated. CONCLUSIONS: Recent studies show a more favorable response from the combination of PDN and MTX than from PDN alone. Considering the rarity of the disease, more long-term studies are needed regarding the etiopathogenetics, progression, recurrence of EF, and new effective therapies.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Extending UML templates towards computability

UML templates allow the specification of generic model elements that can be reproduced in domain models by means of the Bind relationship. Binding to a template encompasses the substitution of that template’s parameters by compatible domain elements. The requirement of compatibility, however, is checked over by UML in a very permissive way. As a consequence, binding to a template can result in badly-formed models and non-computable expressions. Such option in the design of UML was certainly intentional and meant to allow for richer semantics for the Bind relationship, as the specialization of the concept is advised at several points of the standard. This paper proposes one such specialization. One that guarantees well-formedness and computability for elements bound to a template. This is achieved by introducing the concept of Functional Conformance, which is imposed between every template’s parameter and its application domain substitute. Functional conformance is defined in terms of well-formedness rules, expressed as OCL constraints on top of OMG’s UML metamodel.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

Mesoporous acid catalysts for renewable raw-material conversion into chemicals and fuel

Mesoporous catalysts, such as silica (PMOs, MCM-41, SBA-15) and activated carbons, have been used in heterogeneous catalysis, due to a combination of high surface areas and controlled pore sizes. These mesoporous materials have been used as catalyst in a wide range of chemical reactions. Due to environmental pressure and a decrease in fossil fuel sources, alternative fuel sources, such as biomass or renewable feedstock sources, have become increasingly popular. Traditionally, the biomass conversion is carried out over homogeneous catalysts. However, homogeneous catalysts have some disadvantages, such as difficulty in separations and the production of toxic waste. Solid catalysts can replace the homogeneous ones in order to make the processes simpler and more environmentally benign. Heterogeneous catalysts have been used in different reactions biomass conversion. In this work, the use of mesoporous acid catalysts (silica and activated carbons) for the biomass conversion into chemicals and fuel will be reviewed

The contribution of Portuguese solar thermal program on the country energy efficiency

The solar radiation available all over the year is a strong reason to promote the utilization of this resource and during the year 2009, a new program based on a 50% subside, was promoted by the Portuguese government. As expected, a significant number of new installations were realized. In 2009 the state program provided the installation of more than 50,000 systems. The program can be considered a success on the Portuguese solar thermal collector market

Innovation strategies for smart specialisation (RIS3): Past, present and future research

The recent change in the regional development strategy of the European Union (EU) results in an important need to study the terms of change and their respective implications. This study seeks, through a bibliometric analysis, to ascertain the developments taking place in studies on research and innovation strategies for smart specialisation (RIS3) to identify shortcomings and opportunities for future research. This bibliometric review drew upon the Scopus database with the sample selected containing all the articles containing the keywords “Research and Innovation Strategies for Smart Specialisation” or “RIS3.” This correspondingly reports how some authors maintain that the path the EU should take involves imitative innovation. Meanwhile, others propose that each region should specialise in those industries that are already established there and thus avoid targeting any areas they do not already know/specialise in. Our findings detail six clusters in RIS3 research, which help in contextualising the literature review: (a) business discovery; (b) smart specialisation; (c) innovation; (d) specialisation; (e) regional policies; and (f) regional development. This study furthermore sets out perspectives for future lines of research and correspondingly seeks to convey a vast theoretical basis that may serve as the point of departure for future studies.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Business processes modelling and diagnosis

The computerization of relevant information in organizations is increasingly becoming a necessary reality in companies that want to be present in a market that is characterized by innovation, adaptability and where bigger amounts of information are increasingly available and accessible to everyone, the use of Social Collaboration tools in organizations become increasingly crucial to keep a business running (Brocke et al. 2018). In (Alter 2013), work systems are described as systems “in which human participants and machines perform work (processes and activities) using information, technology and other resources to produce specific products/services for specific internal and external customers”. The computerization of processes is not, however, so complete because all the formal and informal relationships among employees, which underlie each organization and have a high impact on the correct definition of processes, are not correctly considered. In order to mitigate this problem, this article presents a proposal for representing, in computer systems, formal and informal relations between employees and the consequent integration in organizational processes in order to provide automatic diagnosis of highlighted processes.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

Results of DEC Unit Assisted by Solar Energy in Lisbon

The Air Handling Unit (AHU) with Desiccant Evaporative Cooling (DEC) technology, assisted by solar energy, is in operation at LNEG (former INETI) since 1999, ant it has some features in its design, resulting from local constraints of the building and from design decisions taken at that time with the purpose to investigate different solutions. This unit has a conventional auxiliary back-up cooling unit, an heat pump, to assist the DEC AHU on cold production in heavy summer load conditions, that guarantees the comfort conditions of the 12 offices, but does not permit an high solar fraction in summer due to the role of its condenser. So, to limit the time operation period of the heat pump, was recently introduced a new humidifier in the air admission section. In this paper we make a description of this AHU and we report the results obtained so far after those modifications, in a qualitative way, and we begin the discussion of using the performance figures, adopted in the framework of IEA SHC Task 38, to this unit