Tsunami-HySEA model validation for tsunami current predictions

Model ability to compute and predict tsunami flow velocities is of importance in risk assessment and hazard mitigation. Substantial damage can be produced by high velocity flows, particularly in harbors and bays, even when the wave height is small. Besides, an accurate simulation of tsunami flow velocities and accelerations is fundamental for advancing in the study of tsunami sediment transport. These considerations made the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program (NTHMP) proposing a benchmark exercise focussed on modeling and simulating tsunami currents. Until recently, few direct measurements of tsunami velocities were available to compare and to validate model results. After Tohoku 2011 many current meters measurement were made, mainly in harbors and channels. In this work we present a part of the contribution made by the EDANYA group from the University of Malaga to the NTHMP workshop organized at Portland (USA), 9-10 of February 2015. We have selected three out of the five proposed benchmark problems. Two of them consist in real observed data from the Tohoku 2011 event, one at Hilo Habour (Hawaii) and the other at Tauranga Bay (New Zealand). The third one consists in laboratory experimental data for the inundation of Seaside City in Oregon.Acknowledgements: This research has been partially supported by the Junta de Andalucía research project TESELA (P11-RNM7069) and the Spanish Government Research project DAIFLUID (MTM2012-38383-C02-01) and Universidad de Málaga, Campus de Excelencia Andalucía TECH. The GPU and multi-GPU computations were performed at the Unit of Numerical Methods (UNM) of the Research Support Central Services (SCAI) of the University of Malaga

On the local Lorentz invariance in N=1 supergravity

We discuss the local Lorentz invariance in the context of N=1 supergravity and show that a previous attempt to find explicit solutions to the Lorentz constraint in terms of $\gamma-$matrices is not correct. We improve that solution by using a different representation of the Lorentz operators in terms of the generators of the rotation group, and show its compatibility with the matrix representation of the fermionic field. We find the most general wave functional that satisfies the Lorentz constraint in this representation

A Set of Prescribed Activities for Enhancing Requirements Engineering in the Development of Usable E-Government Applications

Over the last years, e-Government applications have become indispensable in every country as they help stakeholders carry out tasks with the administration. However, and despite their growing usage, most of these applications are created through a developercentered approach instead of a user-centered one, using traditional development processes that do not fit well with the diversity of stakeholders and existing legislation that involve e-Government applications today. Besides, usability is an important clue in the development of such solutions, so a user-centered approach, combined with a successful stakeholder and legislation analysis, should be considered overall. This paper is focused on addressing these concerns, and it provides a set of prescribed activities, tasks and products to be carried through a user-centered process in order to design usable web-based e-Government solutions. Specifically, our approach considers requirements engineering activities enhancing usability by analyzing the diversity and interests of the stakeholders involved, as well as the specific legislation as a source of organizational requirements. In addition, a validation is provided through a case study, showing the feasibility of the approach presentedThis work has been partially supported by the funding projects «Flexor» (grant number TIN2014-52129-R) granted by the Spanish Government and «eMadrid» (grant number S2013/ICE-2715) granted by the Madrid Research Council

Nuevos pteridófitos de la provincia de Huelva. I.

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The labour of patronage of Miguel Francisco de Gambarte in Navarra

Miguel Francisco de Gambarte fue un navarro establecido en el Virreinato de Nueva España hacia mediados del siglo XVIII. Siguiendo la práctica que fue habitual entre los indianos que lograron triunfar en América, remitió a su tierra natal distintos legados de plata labrada y pinturas. Este artículo sintetiza su labor de patronazgo artístico a través de nueva documentación procedente del Archivo General de Indias.Miguel Francisco de Gambarte was born in Navarre but took up residence in the Viceroyalty of New Spain in the mid-18th century. Following a common practice among the «Indianos» who managed to succeed in America, he sent several legacies of carved silverwork and paintings back to his homeland. This article summarises his work of artistic patronage through new documentation from the Archivo General de Indias

Hierarchically-structured metalloprotein composite coatings biofabricated from co-existing condensed liquid phases

Complex hierarchical structure governs emergent properties in biopolymeric materials; yet, the material processing involved remains poorly understood. Here, we investigated the multi-scale structure and composition of the mussel byssus cuticle before, during and after formation to gain insight into the processing of this hard, yet extensible metal cross-linked protein composite. Our findings reveal that the granular substructure crucial to the cuticle’s function as a wear-resistant coating of an extensible polymer fiber is pre-organized in condensed liquid phase secretory vesicles. These are phase-separated into DOPA-rich proto-granules enveloped in a sulfur-rich proto-matrix which fuses during secretion, forming the sub-structure of the cuticle. Metal ions are added subsequently in a site-specific way, with iron contained in the sulfur-rich matrix and vanadium coordinated by DOPA-catechol in the granule. We posit that this hierarchical structure self-organizes via phase separation of specific amphiphilic proteins within secretory vesicles, resulting in a meso-scale structuring that governs cuticle function

A Bayesian Model of COVID-19 Cases Based on the Gompertz Curve

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need for finding mathematical models to forecast the evolution of the contagious disease and evaluate the success of particular policies in reducing infections. In this work, we perform Bayesian inference for a non-homogeneous Poisson process with an intensity function based on the Gompertz curve. We discuss the prior distribution of the parameter and we generate samples from the posterior distribution by using Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods. Finally, we illustrate our method analyzing real data associated with COVID-19 in a specific region located at the south of Spain.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad. Gobierno de España; 2014-2020 ERDF Operational Programme; Consejería de Economía, Conocimiento, Empresas y Universidad.Junta de Andalucí

Numerical tool for tsunami risk assessment in the southern coast of Dominican Republic

The southern coast of Dominican Republic is a very populated region, with several important cities including Santo Domingo, its capital. Important activities are rooted in the southern coast including tourism, industry, commercial ports, and, energy facilities, among others. According to historical reports, it has been impacted by big earthquakes accompanied by tsunamis as in Azua in 1751 and recently Pedernales in 2010, but their sources are not clearly identified. The aim of the present work is to develop a numerical tool to simulate the impact in the southern coast of the Dominican Republic of tsunamis generated in the Caribbean Sea. This tool, based on the Tsunami-HySEA model from EDANYA group (University of Malaga, Spain), could be used in the framework of a Tsunami Early Warning Systems due the very short computing times when only propagation is computed or it could be used to assess inundation impact, computing inundation with a initial 5 meter resolution. Numerical results corresponding to three theoretical sources are used to test the numerical tool.This research has been partially supported by the Spanish Government Research project SIMURISK (MTM2015-70490-C2-1-R), the Junta de Andalucía research project TESELA (P11-RNM7069), and Universidad de Málaga, Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech. The GPU and multi-GPU computations were performed at the Unit of Numerical Methods (UNM) of the Research Support Central Services (SCAI) of the University of Malaga

Propuesta de una Metodología de Desarrollo Proyectual en el Ámbito de la Responsabilidad Social para la Enseñanza en Arquitectura

En las facultades de Arquitectura es frecuente encontrar que se desarrollen proyectos desvinculados y aislados de la comunidad, generando una desconexión entre las prácticas educativas y la población. En este articulo se propone una Metodología de Desarrollo Proyectual vinculando a la comunidad con el desarrollo de proyectos en el marco de la Responsabilidad Social Universitaria. Utilizando una metodología descriptiva y transversal, se estudia la situación actual de las metodologías proyectuales y la responsabilidad social a través del análisis de antecedentes, teorías y enfoques de diversos autores. Adicionalmente, mediante un método mixto de encuestas y entrevistas, se evalúa el involucramiento de los actores del proceso educativo con la comunidad. Los hallazgos confirman el bajo grado de vinculación entre la población y las metodologías proyectuales, siendo que estas ultimas cumplen su función pedagógica, pero sin producir aportes de valor social. El objetivo es presentar una propuesta de Metodología de Desarrollo Proyectual vinculada con la Responsabilidad Social Universitaria, orientada a ofrecer soluciones a las necesidades de la población y generar un impacto positivo en la comunidad. Los resultados obtenidos fueron validados por el método de expertos y considerados pertinentes para su aplicación en el ámbito de la investigación, responsabilidad social y desarrollo de proyectos.   At Architecture Schools, it is commonly observed that they develop projects which are rather unengaged and isolated from the community, thus generating disconnection between educational practices and the population. In this article, a Project Development Methodology is proposed linking the community with development of projects framed within University Social Responsibility. Using descriptive and transversal methodology, the current situation of project methodologies and social responsibility are studied through the analysis of background information, theories, and approaches of a number of authors. Additionally, by means of a mixed method including surveys and interviews, engagement between relevant parties of the educational process and the community is assessed. The findings confirm there is a low level of engagement between the population and project methodologies, as these latter fulfill their pedagogical function, but producing no contribution of social value. The goal is to present a Project Development Methodology proposal, engaged to the University Social Responsibility, oriented to offering solutions to the needs of the population and thus generate a positive impact over the community. The results obtained have been methodologically validated and considered relevant for their application in the field of research, social responsibility, and project development

Propuesta de una Metodología de Desarrollo Proyectual en el Ámbito de la Responsabilidad Social para la Enseñanza en Arquitectura

En las facultades de Arquitectura, es frecuente encontrar que se desarrollen proyectos desvinculados de la comunidad, generando una desconexión entre esta y las prácticas educativas. En este artículo se propone una Metodología de Desarrollo Proyectual en el marco de la Responsabilidad Social Universitaria, orientada a ofrecer soluciones a las necesidades de la comunidad y generar un impacto positivo en ella. Utilizando un método descriptivo y transversal, se estudia la situación actual de las metodologías proyectuales y la responsabilidad social a través del análisis de antecedentes, teorías y enfoques de diversos autores. Adicionalmente, mediante un método mixto de encuestas y entrevistas, se evalúa el involucramiento de los actores del proceso educativo con la comunidad. Los hallazgos confirman el bajo grado de vinculación entre la población y las metodologías proyectuales, siendo que estas últimas cumplen su función pedagógica, pero sin producir aportes de valor social. Los resultados obtenidos fueron metodológicamente validados y considerados pertinentes para su aplicación en el ámbito de la investigación, responsabilidad social y desarrollo de proyectos.   At Architecture Schools, it is commonly observed that they develop projects which are rather unengaged with the community, thus generating disconnection between this and educational practices. In this article, a Project Development Methodology is proposed framed within University Social Responsibility, oriented to offering solutions to the needs of the community and thus generate a positive impact over it. Using descriptive and transversal methodology, the current situation of project methodologies and social responsibility are studied through the analysis of background information, theories, and approaches of a number of authors. Additionally, by means of a mixed method including surveys and interviews, engagement between relevant parties of the educational process and the community is assessed. The findings confirm there is a low level of engagement between the population and project methodologies, as these latter fulfill their pedagogical function, but producing no contribution of social value. The results obtained have been methodologically validated and considered relevant for their application in the field of research, social responsibility, and project development