Calculation of the Risk of Lawsuits over Construction Flaws in Flat Roofs

In order to achieve sustainability objectives in the use of a building, its elements’ operating problems should be minimized. From this premise, a total of 497 cases related to construction flaws in flat roofs were analyzed in this research. A matrix was developed indicating the risk of lawsuits by owners according to the degree of nuisance resulting from the construction flaws studied, their technical importance, and the type of pathological origin. Based on these factors, it is possible to predict a greater or lesser probability of an owner filing a lawsuit—risk factor (F). A wide range was found for this probability, with the largest value being 865 times greater than the smallest value. The value of F was divided into 5 categories to classify the diverse results obtained and determine the number of cases and interrelations ascribed to each category. Additionally, the level of presence of said cases was calculated through the analysis of 3 di erent demographic aspects, it being noted that a greater purchasing power and a higher concentration of urban population lead to more stringent requirements and, subsequently, to a greater number of lawsuits. With all these results, building quality can be improved while resulting in greater constructive-financial sustainability and in a reduction of the economic resources required of society (fewer lawsuits and associated human resources)

La Tecnología del Desempeño Humano y su Contribución al Cambio Organizacional, una Consideración sobre los Modelos iniciales y de Diagnostico

El presente trabajo expone una descripción detallada de los modelos de procesos de mejora del desempeño, centrándose en el modelo de Tecnología del Desempeño Humano (HPT) en sus fases iniciales y de diagnóstico. Este enfoque se presenta como una herramienta integral para evaluar y establecer acciones de manera sistemática, con el objetivo de mejorar la eficiencia y eficacia en la organización en la que se implementa. La investigación es de tipo descriptivo ya que la información obtenida tiene por objeto especificar propiedades, características y rasgos importantes dentro del contexto de lo que significa un modelo de un proceso de mejora del desempeño y los diferentes tipos desarrollados, todo esto soportado en estudios e investigaciones realizadas por la Sociedad Internacional para la Mejora del Desempeño (ISPI), los resultados obtenidos indican la clasificación, el alcance y el nivel de detalle. Se concluye que la aplicación de esta información permite identificar los atributos esenciales de un modelo de un proceso de mejora del desempeño organizacional, facilitando así el desarrollo sostenido de esta a través de la modificación de la cultura organizacional con acción directa en las conductas de los integrantes, conociendo las brechas de una situación actual del desempeño contra la deseada.   This paper presents a detailed description of performance improvement process models, focusing on the Human Performance Technology (HPT) model in its initial and diagnostic phases. This approach is presented as a comprehensive tool to evaluate and establish actions in a systematic way, with the objective of improving efficiency and effectiveness in the organization where it is implemented. The research is of a descriptive type since the information obtained aims to specify properties, characteristics, and important features within the context of what a model of a performance improvement process means and the different types developed, all this supported by studies and research conducted by the International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI), the results obtained indicate the classification, scope and level of detail. It is concluded that the application of this information allows to identify the essential attributes of a model of a process of organizational performance improvement, thus facilitating the sustained development of this through the modification of the organizational culture with direct action in the behaviors of the members, knowing the gaps of a current situation of performance against the desired one

La Tecnología del Desempeño Humano y su Contribución al Cambio Organizacional, Una Consideración sobre los Modelos iniciales y de Diagnostico

El presente trabajo expone una descripción detallada de los modelos de procesos de mejora del desempeño, centrándose en el modelo de Tecnología del Desempeño Humano (HPT) en sus fases iniciales y de diagnóstico. Este enfoque se presenta como una herramienta integral para evaluar y establecer acciones de manera sistemática, con el objetivo de mejorar la eficiencia y eficacia en la organización en la que se implementa. La investigación es de tipo descriptivo ya que la información obtenida tiene por objeto especificar propiedades, características y rasgos importantes dentro del contexto de lo que significa un modelo de un proceso de mejora del desempeño y los diferentes tipos desarrollados, todo esto soportado en estudios e investigaciones realizadas por la Sociedad Internacional para la Mejora del Desempeño (ISPI), los resultados obtenidos indican la clasificación, el alcance y el nivel de detalle. Se concluye que la aplicación de esta información permite identificar los atributos esenciales de un modelo de un proceso de mejora del desempeño organizacional, facilitando así el desarrollo sostenido de esta a través de la modificación de la cultura organizacional con acción directa en las conductas de los integrantes, conociendo las brechas de una situación actual del desempeño contra la deseada.   This paper presents a detailed description of performance improvement process models, focusing on the Human Performance Technology (HPT) model in its initial and diagnostic phases. This approach is presented as a comprehensive tool to evaluate and establish actions in a systematic way, with the objective of improving efficiency and effectiveness in the organization where it is implemented. The research is of a descriptive type since the information obtained aims to specify properties, characteristics, and important features within the context of what a model of a performance improvement process means and the different types developed, all this supported by studies and research conducted by the International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI), the results obtained indicate the classification, scope and level of detail. It is concluded that the application of this information allows to identify the essential attributes of a model of a process of organizational performance improvement, thus facilitating the sustained development of this through the modification of the organizational culture with direct action in the behaviors of the members, knowing the gaps of a current situation of performance against the desired one

A power efficient neural spike recording channel with data bandwidth reduction

This paper presents a mixed-signal neural spike recording channel which features, as an added value, a simple and low-power data compression mechanism. The channel uses a band-limited differential low noise amplifier and a binary search data converter, together with other digital and analog blocks for control, programming and spike characterization. The channel offers a self-calibration operation mode and it can be configured both for signal tracking (to raw digitize the acquired neural waveform) and feature extraction (to build a first-order PWL approximation of the spikes). The prototype has been fabricated in a standard CMOS 0.13μm and occupies 400μm×400μm. The overall power consumption of the channel during signal tracking is 2.8μW and increases to 3.0μW average when the feature extraction operation mode is programmed.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación TEC2009-08447Junta de Andalucía TIC-0281

Transistor-Level Synthesis of Pipeline Analog-to-Digital Converters Using a Design-Space Reduction Algorithm

A novel transistor-level synthesis procedure for pipeline ADCs is presented. This procedure is able to directly map high-level converter specifications onto transistor sizes and biasing conditions. It is based on the combination of behavioral models for performance evaluation, optimization routines to minimize the power and area consumption of the circuit solution, and an algorithm to efficiently constraint the converter design space. This algorithm precludes the cost of lengthy bottom-up verifications and speeds up the synthesis task. The approach is herein demonstrated via the design of a 0.13 μm CMOS 10 bits@60 MS/s pipeline ADC with energy consumption per conversion of only 0.54 pJ@1 MHz, making it one of the most energy-efficient 10-bit video-rate pipeline ADCs reported to date. The computational cost of this design is of only 25 min of CPU time, and includes the evaluation of 13 different pipeline architectures potentially feasible for the targeted specifications. The optimum design derived from the synthesis procedure has been fine tuned to support PVT variations, laid out together with other auxiliary blocks, and fabricated. The experimental results show a power consumption of 23 [email protected] V and an effective resolution of 9.47-bit@1 MHz. Bearing in mind that no specific power reduction strategy has been applied; the mentioned results confirm the reliability of the proposed approach.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación TEC2009-08447Junta de Andalucía TIC-0281

Accurate Settling-Time Modeling and Design Procedures for Two-Stage Miller-Compensated Amplifiers for Switched-Capacitor Circuits

We present modeling techniques for accurate estimation of settling errors in switched-capacitor (SC) circuits built with Miller-compensated operational transconductance amplifiers (OTAs). One distinctive feature of the proposal is the computation of the impact of signal levels (on both the model parameters and the model structure) as they change during transient evolution. This is achieved by using an event-driven behavioral approach that combines small- and large-signal behavioral descriptions and keeps track of the amplifier state after each clock phase. Also, SC circuits are modeled under closed-loop conditions to guarantee that the results remain close to those obtained by electrical simulation of the actual circuits. Based on these models, which can be regarded as intermediate between the more established small-signal approach and full-fledged simulations, design procedures for dimensioning SC building blocks are presented whose targets are system-level specifications (such as ENOB and SNDR) instead of OTA specifications. The proposed techniques allow to complete top-down model-based designs with 0.3-b accuracy.Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia TEC2006-03022Junta de Andalucía TIC-0281

From textbooks to digital teaching materials

Esta presentación indica que este número es un monográfico que aborda la transformación de los materiales didácticos escolares en el contexto de la sociedad digital. Ofrece reflexiones y evidencias empíricas sobre dicho proceso tanto en el contexto español como internacional, especialmente el latinoamericano y europeo. Los libros de texto a lo largo del S.XX fueron, y siguen siendo, el material didáctico hegemónico de lo que se enseña y aprende en el aula.This presentation indicates that this issue is a monograph that deals with the transformation of school didactic materials in the context of the digital society. It offers reflections and empirical evidence about this process both in the Spanish and international context, especially Latin American and European. Textbooks throughout the twentieth century were, and still are, the hegemonic didactic material of what is taught and learned in the classroom.peerReviewe

A self-calibration circuit for a neural spike recording channel

This paper presents a self-calibration circuit for a neural spike recording channel. The proposed design tunes the bandwidth of the signal acquisition Band-Pass Filter (BPF), which suffers from process variations corners. It also performs the adjustment of the Programmable Gain Amplifier (PGA) gain to maximize the input voltage range of the analog-to-digital conversion. The circuit, which consists on a frequency-controlled signal generator and a digital processor, operates in foreground, is completely autonomous and integrable in an estimated area of 0.026mm 2 , with a power consumption around 450nW. The calibration procedure takes less than 250ms to select the configuration whose performance is closest to the required one.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación TEC2009-08447Junta de Andalucía TIC-0281

A Model-Driven approach for functional test case generation

Test phase is one of the most critical phases in software engineering life cycle to assure the final system quality. In this context, functional system test cases verify that the system under test fulfills its functional specification. Thus, these test cases are frequently designed from the different scenarios and alternatives depicted in functional requirements. The objective of this paper is to introduce a systematic process based on the Model-Driven paradigm to automate the generation of functional test cases from functional requirements. For this aim, a set of metamodels and transformations and also a specific language domain to use them is presented. The paper finishes stating learned lessons from the trenches as well as relevant future work and conclusions that draw new research lines in the test cases generation context.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad TIN2013-46928-C3-3-