Wireless Sensor Network Solution for Sustainable Food Production

Environmental monitoring has become a key aspect in food production over the last few years. Due to their low cost, low power consumption and flexibility, Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) have turned up as a very convenient tool to be used in these environments where no intrusion is a must. In this work, a WSN application in a food factory is presented. The paper gives an overview of the system set up, covering from the initial study of the parameters and sensors, to the hardware-software design and development needed for the final tests in the factory facilities

Cost and energy efficient reconfigurable embedded platform using Spartan-6 FPGAs

Modern FPGAs with run-time reconfiguration allow the implementation of complex systems offering both the flexibility of software-based solutions combined with the performance of hardware. This combination of characteristics, together with the development of new specific methodologies, make feasible to reach new points of the system design space, and make embedded systems built on these platforms acquire more and more importance. However, the practical exploitation of this technique in fields that traditionally have relied on resource restricted embedded systems, is mainly limited by strict power consumption requirements, the cost and the high dependence of DPR techniques with the specific features of the device technology underneath. In this work, we tackle the previously reported problems, designing a reconfigurable platform based on the low-cost and low-power consuming Spartan-6 FPGA family. The full process to develop the platform will be detailed in the paper from scratch. In addition, the implementation of the reconfiguration mechanism, including two profiles, is reported. The first profile is a low-area and low-speed reconfiguration engine based mainly on software functions running on the embedded processor, while the other one is a hardware version of the same engine, implemented in the FPGA logic. This reconfiguration hardware block has been originally designed to the Virtex-5 family, and its porting process will be also described in this work, facing the interoperability problem among different families

One-pot co-crystallization of beta and pentasil nanozeolites for the direct conversion of a heavy reformate fraction into xylenes

[EN] Upgrading of the heavy reformate fraction (HR), containing mainly C9+ aromatics, is usually performed by dealkylation or by transalkylation with added benzene and/or toluene to obtain the more valuable xylenes. However, when the costs related to the use of benzene and toluene are considered, the one-step dealkylation/transalkylation of the C9+ alkylaromatics to xylenes becomes economically attractive. Thus, in a first step, ethylmethylbenzenes (EMB) will have to be dealkylated to toluene, which will then react with the trimethylbenzenes (TMB) present in the HR feed to produce xylenes by transalkylation. Medium pore zeolites will favor dealkylation, whereas large pore zeolites will be more adequate for carrying out the transalkylation reaction. In this work, we present the one-pot synthesis of beta-pentasil aggregates with tunable ratios of the large pore beta to the medium pore component. We show that the close proximity of the beta and pentasil nanocrystals obtained by one-pot co-crystallization synthesis, results in a highly efficient catalyst for the consecutive dealkylation/transalkylation process. The bifunctional catalyst based on the co-crystallized aggregate is more active and selective to xylenes than a catalyst based on a physical mixture of equivalent beta and pentasil nanozeolites synthesized following an analogous procedure. The small crystallite sizes of the co-crystallized zeolites provide the additional advantage of a lower deactivation rate as compared to a reference benchmark catalyst. Results are shown on both, model molecules and industrial HR feed.This work has been supported by Saudi Aramco, by the Spanish Government-MICINN through "Severo Ochoa" (SEV 2012-0267) and RTI2018-101033-B-I00, by the European Union through ERC-AdG-2014-671093 (SynCatMatch) and by the Ftmdacion Ramon Areces through a research contract of the "Life and Materials Science" program. We thank Belen Esparcia for technical assistance, and the Electron Microscopy Service of the UPV for their help in sample characterization.Margarit Benavent, VJ.; Portilla Ovejero, MT.; Navarro Villalba, MT.; Abudawoud, R.; Al-Zahrani, IM.; Shaikh, S.; Martínez, C.... (2019). One-pot co-crystallization of beta and pentasil nanozeolites for the direct conversion of a heavy reformate fraction into xylenes. Applied Catalysis A General. 581:11-22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apcata.2019.05.014S112258

Environmental Wireless Sensor Network Deployment in Food Industry: from Theory to Practice

The difficulty behind Wireless Sensor Network deployments in industrial environments not only resides in the number of nodes or the communication protocols but also in the real location of the sensor nodes and the parameters to be monitored. Sensor soiling, high humidity and unreachable locations, among others, make real deployments a very difficult task to plan. Even though it is possible to find myriad approaches for floor planners and deployment tools in the state of the art, most of these problems are very difficult to model and foresee before actually deploying the network in the final scenario. This work shows two real deployments in food factories and how their problems are found and overcome

One-pot synthesis of nano-crystalline MCM-22

[EN] Nano-crystalline MCM-22 zeolite was synthesized in a one-pot procedure by the use of an organosilane (dimethyl-octadecyl-(3-trimethoxysilylpropyl)-ammonium chloride, TPOAC) in the zeolite synthesis gel. This crystal growth inhibition procedure introduced mesopores in the MCM-22 crystallites. The lower mechanical stability of the nano-crystalline MCM-22 zeolite compared with bulk MCM-22 can be countered to some extent by pillaring. The increased external surface of the microporous zeolite domains resulted in increased accessibility of the Bronsted acid sites, as followed from the better performance in liquid-phase benzene alkylation with propylene as compared with bulk MCM-22. The increased accessibility of the internal acid sites in Mo-loaded hierarchical MCM-22 was also evident from the improved benzene selectivity during methane aromatization. Silylation of hierarchical Mo/MCM-22 was detrimental for the catalytic performance in MDA. The nano-crystalline MCM-22 has physico-chemical and catalytic properties intermediate between those of MCM-22 and ITQ-2 with the benefit over ITQ-2 that it can be synthesized in a single step. (C) 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.Funding from the 7th Framework Program of the European Commission through the Collaborative Project Next-GTL (agreement no 229183) and financial support by the Spanish Government-MINECO through "Severo Ochoa" (SEV 2012-0267), Consolider Ingenio 2010-Multicat (CSD2009-00050) and MAT2012-31657 are acknowledged. Marta E. Martinez Armero thanks MINECO for economical support through pre-doctoral fellowship for doctors training (BES-2013-066800). The authors thank B. Esparcia for technical assistance.Tempelman, CHL.; Portilla Ovejero, MT.; Martínez Armero, ME.; Mezari, B.; De Caluwe, NGR.; Martínez, C.; Hensen, EJM. (2016). One-pot synthesis of nano-crystalline MCM-22. Microporous and Mesoporous Materials. 220:28-38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.micromeso.2015.08.018S283822

Gender differences in addiction severity

Gender has been associated with substance use disorders (SUD). However, there are few studies that have evaluated gender differences in a global and a standardized way, and with a large sample of patients with SUD. Our goal is to analyze the role of gender in addiction severity throughout multiple life domains, using the Addiction Severity Index-6 (ASI-6). A naturalistic, multicenter and prospective study was conducted. A total of 221 patients with SUD (80.1% men) were interviewed with the ASI-6. Our results indicate that the Recent Summary Scores (RSSs) of men and women are similar, with the exception of Psychiatric and Partner- Problems, where women showed higher severity (p = .017 and p = .013, respectively). Statistically significant gender differences were found in certain aspects of the ASI-6 domains: men have more problems of physical health, legal issues, and alcohol and other substance use; and woman score higher in problems of mental health, social network, subjective evaluations of SUD consequences, and treatment needs. These results should be taken into account to improve the identification, prevention, and treatment of SUD.Se ha descrito que el género es un factor que condiciona los trastornos por uso de sustancias (TUS). Sin embargo, hay pocos estudios que hayan evaluado esas diferencias de género de manera global, estandarizada y en una muestra amplia de pacientes con TUS. Nuestro objetivo es analizar el rol del género en la gravedad de la adicción a través de los diversos dominios de vida mediante el Addiction Severity Index-6 (ASI-6). Se llevó a cabo un estudio naturalístico, multicéntrico y prospectivo con una muestra compuesta por 221 pacientes con TUS (80,1% hombres). Los participantes fueron entrevistados con el ASI-6. Los resultados han mostrado que las Puntuaciones Sumarias Recientes (PSRs) son similares entre hombres y mujeres a excepción de las correspondientes a Salud mental y Pareja- Problemas, donde las mujeres presentan mayor gravedad (p = 0,017 y p = 0,013, respectivamente). Por otra parte, se han encontrado diferencias estadísticamente significativas e diversos aspectos concretos de las áreas contempladas por el ASI-6, que indican que los hombres presentan más problemas en cuanto a salud física, cuestiones legales y uso de alcohol y drogas, y la mujeres en salud mental, red social y la valoración subjetiva sobre las consecuencias del TUS y la necesidad de tratamiento. Estos resultados deben tenerse en cuenta a la hora de implementar una mejora en la identificación, prevención y tratamiento de los TUS

Creating an Index to Calculate the Level of Convergence of a Medium

Since the end of 1990's, media are undergoing great changes brought by digital technology, with the objective to optimize resources and enrich contents. The concept of convergence has a relevant significance in this process. We see the convergence as an integrating process of traditional separated media outlets and modes of communication that affect business, technology, professionals, and audiences at all stages of production, delivery, and consumption of contents of any kind (information, entertainment, and advertising). This paper provides a methodological tool for calculating an index over which reflects the level of convergence of a medium. This proposal, fruit of the work of a collective research project -which is currently carried out by a numerous group of Spanish scholars with public funding (see for details our website _www.infotendencias.com/objetivos_)-, is based on the following variables: relationships among newsrooms, media polyvalence, type of collaboration on contents development, and type of contents delivery

Combining MRI and clinical data to detect high relapse risk after the first episode of psychosis

Detecting patients at high relapse risk after the first episode of psychosis (HRR-FEP) could help the clinician adjust the preventive treatment. To develop a tool to detect patients at HRR using their baseline clinical and structural MRI, we followed 227 patients with FEP for 18–24 months and applied MRIPredict. We previously optimized the MRI-based machine-learning parameters (combining unmodulated and modulated gray and white matter and using voxel-based ensemble) in two independent datasets. Patients estimated to be at HRR-FEP showed a substantially increased risk of relapse (hazard ratio = 4.58, P < 0.05). Accuracy was poorer when we only used clinical or MRI data. We thus show the potential of combining clinical and MRI data to detect which individuals are more likely to relapse, who may benefit from increased frequency of visits, and which are unlikely, who may be currently receiving unnecessary prophylactic treatments. We also provide an updated version of the MRIPredict software

Results of the COVID-19 mental health international for the general population (COMET-G) study.

INTRODUCTION: There are few published empirical data on the effects of COVID-19 on mental health, and until now, there is no large international study. MATERIAL AND METHODS: During the COVID-19 pandemic, an online questionnaire gathered data from 55,589 participants from 40 countries (64.85% females aged 35.80 ± 13.61; 34.05% males aged 34.90±13.29 and 1.10% other aged 31.64±13.15). Distress and probable depression were identified with the use of a previously developed cut-off and algorithm respectively. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Descriptive statistics were calculated. Chi-square tests, multiple forward stepwise linear regression analyses and Factorial Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) tested relations among variables. RESULTS: Probable depression was detected in 17.80% and distress in 16.71%. A significant percentage reported a deterioration in mental state, family dynamics and everyday lifestyle. Persons with a history of mental disorders had higher rates of current depression (31.82% vs. 13.07%). At least half of participants were accepting (at least to a moderate degree) a non-bizarre conspiracy. The highest Relative Risk (RR) to develop depression was associated with history of Bipolar disorder and self-harm/attempts (RR = 5.88). Suicidality was not increased in persons without a history of any mental disorder. Based on these results a model was developed. CONCLUSIONS: The final model revealed multiple vulnerabilities and an interplay leading from simple anxiety to probable depression and suicidality through distress. This could be of practical utility since many of these factors are modifiable. Future research and interventions should specifically focus on them

Familial hypercholesterolaemia in children and adolescents from 48 countries: a cross-sectional study

Background: Approximately 450 000 children are born with familial hypercholesterolaemia worldwide every year, yet only 2·1% of adults with familial hypercholesterolaemia were diagnosed before age 18 years via current diagnostic approaches, which are derived from observations in adults. We aimed to characterise children and adolescents with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia (HeFH) and understand current approaches to the identification and management of familial hypercholesterolaemia to inform future public health strategies. Methods: For this cross-sectional study, we assessed children and adolescents younger than 18 years with a clinical or genetic diagnosis of HeFH at the time of entry into the Familial Hypercholesterolaemia Studies Collaboration (FHSC) registry between Oct 1, 2015, and Jan 31, 2021. Data in the registry were collected from 55 regional or national registries in 48 countries. Diagnoses relying on self-reported history of familial hypercholesterolaemia and suspected secondary hypercholesterolaemia were excluded from the registry; people with untreated LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) of at least 13·0 mmol/L were excluded from this study. Data were assessed overall and by WHO region, World Bank country income status, age, diagnostic criteria, and index-case status. The main outcome of this study was to assess current identification and management of children and adolescents with familial hypercholesterolaemia. Findings: Of 63 093 individuals in the FHSC registry, 11 848 (18·8%) were children or adolescents younger than 18 years with HeFH and were included in this study; 5756 (50·2%) of 11 476 included individuals were female and 5720 (49·8%) were male. Sex data were missing for 372 (3·1%) of 11 848 individuals. Median age at registry entry was 9·6 years (IQR 5·8-13·2). 10 099 (89·9%) of 11 235 included individuals had a final genetically confirmed diagnosis of familial hypercholesterolaemia and 1136 (10·1%) had a clinical diagnosis. Genetically confirmed diagnosis data or clinical diagnosis data were missing for 613 (5·2%) of 11 848 individuals. Genetic diagnosis was more common in children and adolescents from high-income countries (9427 [92·4%] of 10 202) than in children and adolescents from non-high-income countries (199 [48·0%] of 415). 3414 (31·6%) of 10 804 children or adolescents were index cases. Familial-hypercholesterolaemia-related physical signs, cardiovascular risk factors, and cardiovascular disease were uncommon, but were more common in non-high-income countries. 7557 (72·4%) of 10 428 included children or adolescents were not taking lipid-lowering medication (LLM) and had a median LDL-C of 5·00 mmol/L (IQR 4·05-6·08). Compared with genetic diagnosis, the use of unadapted clinical criteria intended for use in adults and reliant on more extreme phenotypes could result in 50-75% of children and adolescents with familial hypercholesterolaemia not being identified. Interpretation: Clinical characteristics observed in adults with familial hypercholesterolaemia are uncommon in children and adolescents with familial hypercholesterolaemia, hence detection in this age group relies on measurement of LDL-C and genetic confirmation. Where genetic testing is unavailable, increased availability and use of LDL-C measurements in the first few years of life could help reduce the current gap between prevalence and detection, enabling increased use of combination LLM to reach recommended LDL-C targets early in life