Posture Recognition Using the Interdistances Between Wearable Devices

Recognition of user's postures and activities is particularly important, as it allows applications to customize their operations according to the current situation. The vast majority of available solutions are based on wearable devices equipped with accelerometers and gyroscopes. In this article, a different approach is explored: The posture of the user is inferred from the interdistances between the set of devices worn by the user. Interdistances are first measured by using ultra-wideband transceivers operating in two-way ranging mode and then provided as input to a classifier that estimates current posture. An experimental evaluation shows that the proposed method is effective (up to ∼98.2% accuracy), especially when using a personalized model. The method could be used to enhance the accuracy of activity recognition systems based on inertial sensors

Determination of gaseous elemental mercury (GEM) emissions by a non-stationary static accumulation chamber. The case study of Portoscuso (South-West Sardinia)

This work describes the methodology based on a non­statonary statc accumulaton chamber used for measuring the GEM emissions at the soil­atmosphere interface in some residental and agricultural areas of the Portoscuso Municipality (South­West Sardinia). Afer a preliminary risk assessment of soil contaminaton, the investgated areas highlighted potental significant human health risks for volatlizaton pathways related to total Hg content in the soil. The aim of this study is to use the GEM emission rate to estmate indoor and outdoor human exposure according to the specific use of the areas. Acceptable GEM emissions (AGEM), i.e. maximum emissions associated with an acceptable human exposure and health risk, were defined accordingly and compared with measured ones. The measured GEM emissions probably consttute the sum of two contributons: • a real flux of GEM “through the soil­atmosphere interface”. This flux is originated by the presence of sources (both natural and/or related to potental contaminaton) in the first meters of depth and is regulated by mainly advectve mechanisms; • a component produced “at the soil­atmosphere interface”, as a response to the acton of UV radiaton on divalent Hg (II) in soil partcles. In this study the contributon of each of these two components has not been evaluated; however the main results showed, at the scale of the single sample representatve area (Thiessen polygon), few values (8 out of 163, about 5%) exceeding the AGEM values for the indoor scenario. These results are poorly indicatve of a real unacceptable risk, given their extremely punctual extent not representatve of a long­term human exposure. Conversely, GEM emissions for each macroarea showed a general compliance with acceptable thresholds emission (AGEM) computed for both outdoor and indoor scenarios. Further investgatons will be aimed at discriminatng the two components that originate the measured GEM flux values

Las aportaciones de plataformas como Netflix y las series al aprendizaje de la criminología. Análisis desde una perspectiva crítica

Memoria ID-0160. Ayudas de la Universidad de Salamanca para la innovación docente, curso 2017-2018

El aprendizaje del derecho a través de la realización de debates

Memoria ID-170. Ayudas de la Universidad de Salamanca para la innovación docente, curso 2010-2011.El objetivo principal de este proyecto era conseguir que el estudiante adquiriera una serie de conocimientos a través de la preparación de un debate en el que los diferentes grupos de las diferentes asignaturas defenderían posturas contrapuestas para intentar convencer al resto de sus compañeros o al profesor de que su planteamiento es el más idóneo, no solo por la calidad de los argumentos utilizados sino también por la forma en que los mismos se han expuesto, ya que se habría formado previamente al estudiante en técnicas de expresión oral y de lenguaje verbal y no verbal

New genetic loci link adipose and insulin biology to body fat distribution.

Body fat distribution is a heritable trait and a well-established predictor of adverse metabolic outcomes, independent of overall adiposity. To increase our understanding of the genetic basis of body fat distribution and its molecular links to cardiometabolic traits, here we conduct genome-wide association meta-analyses of traits related to waist and hip circumferences in up to 224,459 individuals. We identify 49 loci (33 new) associated with waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for body mass index (BMI), and an additional 19 loci newly associated with related waist and hip circumference measures (P < 5 × 10(-8)). In total, 20 of the 49 waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI loci show significant sexual dimorphism, 19 of which display a stronger effect in women. The identified loci were enriched for genes expressed in adipose tissue and for putative regulatory elements in adipocytes. Pathway analyses implicated adipogenesis, angiogenesis, transcriptional regulation and insulin resistance as processes affecting fat distribution, providing insight into potential pathophysiological mechanisms

Seismic Behaviour of Steel Moment-Resisting Frames with Stiffening Braces

none3The present paper deals with the seismic behaviour of steel structures which are designed in the attempt of exploiting the dual characteristics of moment resisting frames (MRFs) and concentrically braced frames (CBFs) as lateral force resisting systems. Three prototype frames are studied within the context of Eurocode 8 (EC8) provisions; these are MRFs which are traditionally designed, against ultimate seismic actions (ULS), without checking serviceability limit state rules (SLS-interstory drift limits). To fulfill these requirements concentrical braces are inserted in the frames, which are not considered in the collapse resistance of the structural system. The non-linear behaviour of these systems under ultimate seismic environment is studied and compared to the one of the unbraced MRFs. The influence of second order effects is also investigated. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd, All rights reserved.L. MARTINELLI; M.G. MULAS; F. PEROTTIMartinelli, Luca; Mulas, MARIA GABRIELLA; Perotti, Federic

A CASE STUDY OF COLLAPSE DURING THE 2009 L’AQUILA (ITALY) EARTHQUAKE

A number of masonry and reinforced concrete (RC) buildings suffered failure during the magnitude Mw 6.3 earthquake that struck the city of L’Aquila (Italy) on April 6 2009. Many of the RC buildings were designed and built between the late fifties and the early seventies. The partial collapse of the “Casa dello Studente” (Student House) building in L’Aquila, with its high death toll of eight students killed and one suffering serious injury, is paragdimatic on one hand of the possible fragility of reinforced concrete construction of that period, on the other hand of failure due to an adverse sequence of events. The legal authority appointed a forensic team, lead by the first author, for investigating the causes and the mechanism of the collapse. During a six-months period, the team had a unique chance to analyze in a thorough way the collapse causes. The joint efforts of the forensic team led to a complete explanation of the collapse and highlighted the sequence of missed opportu- nities that let this happen. Collapse took place within part of the North wing trough a twofold mechanism: a weak-story mechanism, which involved collapse of all the columns at the first story, and the complete collapse of three columns located close to the floor center. The two mechanisms were due to an initial design error, never discovered during the subsequent ren- ovations of the building, whose effects were adversely amplified by a non-structural fire-proof wall inserted in recent times to comply with fire safety requirements. This imposed unforeseen strength and ductility requirements on members not specifically designed for this. This paper presents some of the result of the studies that, not strictly necessary for legal reasons, were only performed after completing the report for the legal authority. Nonlinear analyses are adopted to highlight the role of each of the factors listed above which lead to the structural failure

Morphological, chemical and genetic diversity of wild myrtle (Myrtus communis L.) populations in Sicily.

Myrtus communis L. is a shrub widespread in the Mediterranean area. The interest in this species is growing, mainly due to its pharmacological and aromatic properties. The overexploitation of wild populations induced increasing degradation of plant cover with serious risk of loss of genetic diversity. This research explored the morphological, chemical, and genetic diversity of wild myrtle populations in Sicily, with the aim to provide a first characterization of a core collection of 36 accessions from 7 localities for future domestication programs. Amplified fragment length polymorphism fingerprinting generated 152 polymorphic fragments. STRUCTURE analysis identified three genetic clusters (A, B, and C) corresponding to specific geographical origin. Analysis of molecular variance estimated a quite high overall fixation index (FST = 0.332). Misilmeri and Ispica were the more divergent populations (FST = 0.502), while M. Pellegrino and Scopello revealed the lowest FST (0.153). The relationships between genetic, morphological, and biometric data were investigated. Significant correlation between genetic clusters and bush shape/plant growth behavior was found (P &lt; 0.005). Moreover, morphological traits such as leaf, fruit, and seed size were significantly correlated to Clusters B and C. Leaves’ secondary metabolite profiles were evaluated based on antioxidant activity and total tannin and phenol concentrations. High antioxidant activity differences were recorded using DPPH (21.4–35.5 mmol Trolox/100 g DW) and ABTS (24.2–39.5 mmol Trolox/100 g DW) methods. A low variability was observed among populations regarding phenol (2466–3800 mg catechin equivalents/100 g DW) and total tannin contents (93.9–262.3 mg catechin equivalents/100 g DW). Results indicated that multiple approaches based on genetic, morphological, and chemical traits might allow the characterization of natural myrtle diversity