Recent theoretical progress on an information geometrodynamical approach to chaos

In this paper, we report our latest research on a novel theoretical information-geometric framework suitable to characterize chaotic dynamical behavior of arbitrary complex systems on curved statistical manifolds. Specifically, an information-geometric analogue of the Zurek-Paz quantum chaos criterion of linear entropy growth and an information-geometric characterization of chaotic (integrable) energy level statistics of a quantum antiferromagnetic Ising spin chain in a tilted (transverse) external magnetic field are presented.Comment: 5 pages, presented at the 28th International Workshop on Bayesian Inference and Maximum Entropy Methods, Sao Paulo (Brazil)(July-2008

Full Bayesian analysis for a class of jump-diffusion models

A new Bayesian significance test is adjusted for jump detection in a diffusion process. This is an advantageous procedure for temporal data having extreme valued outliers, like financial data, pluvial or tectonic forces records and others.Comment: 15 pages, 7 figures; real data analysis adde

ANÁLISE DA VIABILIDADE DE COMPOSTAGEM DOS RESÍDUOS SÓLIDOS PROVENIENTES DA ESTAÇÃO DE TRATAMENTO DE EFLUENTES EM INDÚSTRIA DE ALIMENTOS.

With the objective to analyze the viability of composting organic waste and the excess sludge from food industry wastewater treatment plant (WTP), was built a pilot composting plant. This was fitted with waste generated in the company in the following composition: 5% by mass (7.5 kg) of refectory remains, 4% (6 kg) of WTP waste from the static screen, 60% (90 kg) of excess sludge from biological treatment also of the WTP, 1% (1.5 kg) of biomass boiler ash, and 30% (45 kg) of pruning and gardening as structuring agent. Over 90 days were monitored temperature, pH and moisture to ensure the correct procedure. After 32 days it was found that the composted material entered in maturation phase. Samples were sent for analysis in external laboratory to evaluate the presence of heavy metals, viable helminth eggs, salmonella, and thermotolerant coliforms resulting in the values within the allowed according to CONAMA resolution 375/2006 (Brazilian Standards). With the collected data it was found a high operational, financial and environmental viability to realize the internal composting process of excess sludge and solid waste, resulting in a soil corrective for the company existing eucalyptus reforestation and ensuring correct allocation of solid waste generated by industry, from the point of generation until its final destination, besides to aggregate value in which until now was assumed as waste.Com objetivo de analisar a viabilidade da compostagem dos resíduos orgânicos e do lodo excedente da estação de tratamento de efluentes (ETE) de uma indústria de alimentos, foi construída uma composteira piloto. Esta foi montada com resíduos gerados na empresa na seguinte composição: restos de refeitório 5% em massa (7,5 kg), resíduos provenientes da peneira estática da ETE 4% (6 kg), lodo excedente do tratamento biológico também da ETE 60% (90 kg), cinzas da caldeira de biomassa 1% (1,5 kg) e restos de poda e jardinagem como agente estruturante 30% (45 kg). Ao longo de 90 dias foram monitoradas a temperatura, pH e umidade para assegurar o correto procedimento. Após 32 dias constatou-se que o material compostado entrou em fase de maturação. Amostras foram enviadas para análise em laboratório externo para avaliação da presença de metais pesados, ovos de helmintos viáveis, salmonella e coliformes termotolerantes obtendo-se os valores dentro do permitido segundo resolução CONAMA 375 (2006) para composto classe B. Com os dados coletados verificou-se que é alta a viabilidade operacional, financeira e ambiental de realização do processo de compostagem interna do lodo excedente e resíduos sólidos gerados, obtendo-se um corretivo de solo para o reflorestamento de eucalipto existente na empresa e assegurando a correta destinação dos resíduos sólidos gerados pela indústria, desde o ponto de geração até sua destinação final, além de se agregar valor ao que até então era assumido como resíduo

Gestión colaborativa para disminuir el riesgo de inundación en el municipio de Puebla

En el municipio de Puebla, el crecimiento ilegal sobre zonas inundables ha superado la capacidad de gestión pública local ya que a pesar de existir 17,585 viviendas en riesgo de inundación no hay mecanismos oficiales claros de acciones preventivas. La colaboración entre el sector público y social para prevenir dicho riesgo es un paso fundamental que tratamos de implementar en la Microcuenca Clavijero, Municipio de Puebla, donde la Universidad ha adquirido un rol informador y de vinculación entre ambos actores. Nuestro objetivo es mostrar la importancia de la prevención del riesgo a través de la colaboración entre actores, las dificultades para construir un proceso de gestión de tal naturaleza, así como nuestros avances en un contexto con fuertes límites conceptuales sobre la gestión del riesgo, financieros y organizacionales.In the city of Puebla, illegal urban growth in floodplains has exceeded the capacity of local governance since, despite the existence of 17.585 homes at risk of flooding, there are still no clear formal mechanisms of preventive actions. The collaboration between the public and social sectors to prevent that risk is a crucial step that we are trying to implement in Micro basin Clavijero, City of Puebla, where the University has acquired a role as informer and mediator between both actors. Our aim is to show the importance of risk prevention through collaboration between actors, the difficulties to build a management process of this kind, as well as our progress in a context marked by a technocratic vision with strong financial, legal and organizational limits

From Inference to Physics

Entropic dynamics, a program that aims at deriving the laws of physics from standard probabilistic and entropic rules for processing information, is developed further. We calculate the probability for an arbitrary path followed by a system as it moves from given initial to final states. For an appropriately chosen configuration space the path of maximum probability reproduces Newtonian dynamics.Comment: Presented at MaxEnt 2008, the 28th International Workshop on Bayesian Inference and Maximum Entropy Methods in Science and Engineering (July 8-13, 2008, Boraceia Beach, Sao Paulo, Brazil

Does early weaning influence weight gain and body composition in adult mice?

OBJETIVO: Avaliar o efeito do desmame precoce sobre o ganho de peso e a composição corporal de camundongos adultos jovens. MÉTODOS: Camundongos Swiss Webster, machos, foram desmamados precocemente (14º dia de vida) ou amamentados até o 21º dia de vida (grupo controle). Após o desmame, os animais foram alimentados com ração elaborada para roedores em crescimento até o 63º dia de vida, quando então foram sacrificados. RESULTADOS: O peso corporal dos animais do grupo desmamado de forma precoce foi significantemente maior no 28º, 35º e no 63º dias de vida em relação ao grupo controle (p<0,05). Porém, o consumo de ração não diferiu entre os grupos. A concentração sérica de proteínas totais, albumina e ferro, bem como a concentração hepática, muscular e cerebral de proteínas, ácido desoxirribonucléico e a relação proteína/ácido ribonucléico, não diferiram significantemente entre os grupos. O grupo desmamado precocemente apresentou maior quantidade absoluta de massa magra, lipídeos, proteínas e cinzas, em comparação ao grupo controle (p<0,05). A quantidade relativa de umidade, lipídeos, massa magra, proteínas e cinzas não diferiu entre os grupos. CONCLUSÃO: O desmame precoce, associado à ingestão de ração elaborada para roedores em crescimento, resultou em aumento do ganho de peso, porém não afetou a composição corporal de camundongos adultos.OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to assess the effect of early weaning on weight gain and body composition of young adult mice. METHODS: Swiss Webster male mice were weaned early, on the 14th day of life, or breastfed until the 21st day of life (control group). After weaning, the animals were fed a chow specifically made for growing rodents up to the 63rd day of life, when they were sacrificed. RESULTS: The body weight of the animals from the early-weaned group was significantly greater on the 28th, 35th, 63rd days of life compared to those from the control group (p<0.05). Nevertheless, no significant difference in the food intake between the groups was observed. The concentration of serum total proteins, albumin and iron, as well as the concentration of protein, DNA and the protein/RNA ratio in the liver, muscle and brain, did not differ between the groups..The early-weaned group showed an increased absolute quantity of lean mass, lipids, protein and ash compared with the control group (p<0.05). The relative quantity of water, lipids, lean mass, protein and ash did not differ between the groups. CONCLUSION: Early weaning, associated with the consumption of a chow specifically made for growing rodents, led to an increase in weight gain, but did not influence body composition in adult mice.Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq

Gibbs Paradox and Similarity Principle

As no heat effect and mechanical work are observed, we have a simple experimental resolution of the Gibbs paradox: both the thermodynamic entropy of mixing and the Gibbs free energy change are zero during the formation of any ideal mixtures. Information loss is the driving force of these spontaneous processes. Information is defined as the amount of the compressed data. Information losses due to dynamic motion and static symmetric structure formation are defined as two kinds of entropies - dynamic entropy and static entropy, respectively. There are three laws of information theory, where the first and the second laws are analogs of the two thermodynamic laws. However, the third law of information theory is different: for a solid structure of perfect symmetry (e.g., a perfect crystal), the entropy (static entropy for solid state) S is the maximum. More generally, a similarity principle is set up: if all the other conditions remain constant, the higher the similarity among the components is, the higher the value of entropy of the mixture (for fluid phases) or the assemblage (for a static structure or a system of condensed phases) or any other structure (such as quantum states in quantum mechanics) will be, the more stable the mixture or the assemblage will be, and the more spontaneous the process leading to such a mixture or an assemblage or a chemical bond will be.Comment: Final version 12 pages, 10 figures, presented at MaxEnt200

CONSEQUÊNCIAS ESPECÍFICAS ARBITRÁRIAS EM MATCHING DE IDENTIDADE SÃO EFETIVAS PARA O ESTABELECIMENTO DE CLASSES DE EQUIVALÊNCIA?

Two experiments verified whether abstract stimuli used as specific outcomes in an identity matching-to-sample procedure would foster the formation of equivalence classes comprised of the antecedent stimuli and the specific consequences. In Experiment I, five participants acquired identity matching relations (AA, BB, and CC) with three distinct class-specific outcomes (rf1, rf2, and rf3). However, they underperformed on trials that tested for the emergence of AB, AC, BA, CA, BC e CB equivalence relations. These failures may have been due to the deterioration of the relations between antecedent stimuli and the specific consequences, induced by the extinction procedure in training trials, prior to the testing block. For this reason, Experiment 2 implemented two manipulations: 1) the training trials with extinction prior to tests were removed; and 2) an overtraining of the identity relations with the specific consequences was conducted prior to the testing block. Two participants acquired the baseline relations and were exposed to the overtraining procedure. However, their performances on testing did not indicate the formation of equivalence relations. The negative results in both experiments seem to be related to the lack of reinforcing properties of the arbitrary stimuli used as specific consequences.Keywords: stimulus equivalence, specific consequences, negative results, undergraduates. Dois experimentos foram conduzidos com o objetivo de verificar se estímulos arbitrários apresentados como consequências específicas em um procedimento matching-to-sample de identidade (IDMTS) garantiria a formação de classes de estímulos equivalentes nas quais estariam inclusos os estímulos antecedentes e as consequências específicas. No Experimento 1, cinco estudantes universitários aprenderam as relações de identidade AA, BB e CC com três consequências específicas (rf1, rf2 e rf3), mas exibiram baixo desempenho nas tentativas que testaram a emergência das relações de equivalência AB, AC, BA, CA, BC e CB. Estes fracassos poderiam refletir uma deterioração das relações entre os estímulos antecedentes e as consequências específicas, induzida pelo procedimento de extinção aplicado nas tentativas que antecederam o bloco de teste. Por isso, duas manipulações foram feitas no Experimento 2: 1) as tentativas de treino em extinção antes do teste foram removidas e 2) um supertreino das relações de identidade de linha de base com as consequências específicas foi realizado antes do início do bloco de teste. Dois participantes aprenderam as relações de identidade de linha de base e passaram pela fase de supertreino. Apesar disso, os acertos no bloco de teste não indicaram a emergência de relações de equivalência. Os resultados negativos em ambos os estudos podem ser explicados pela ausência de propriedades reforçadoras dos estímulos empregados como consequências específicas. Palavras-chave: equivalência de estímulos, consequências específicas, resultados negativos, estudantes universitários.

FBST for Mixture Model Selection.

The Fully Bayesian Significance Test (FBST) is a coherent Bayesian significance test for sharp hypotheses. This paper proposes the FBST as a model selection tool for general mixture models, and compares its performance with Mclust, a model-based clustering software. The FBST robust performance strongly encourages further developments and investigations

Testing Significance in Bayesian Classifiers.

The Fully Bayesian Significance Test (FBST) is a coherent Bayesian significance test for sharp hypotheses. This paper explores the FBST as a model selection tool for general mixture models, and gives some computational experiments for Multinomial-Dirichlet-Normal-Wishart models