Porqpine: a peer-to-peer search engine

In this paper, we present a fully distributed and collaborative search engine for web pages: Porqpine. This system uses a novel query-based model and collaborative filtering techniques in order to obtain user-customized results. All knowledge about users and profiles is stored in each user node?s application. Overall the system is a multi-agent system that runs on the computers of the user community. The nodes interact in a peer-to-peer fashion in order to create a real distributed search engine where information is completely distributed among all the nodes in the network. Moreover, the system preserves the privacy of user queries and results by maintaining the anonymity of the queries? consumers and results? producers. The knowledge required by the system to work is implicitly caught through the monitoring of users actions, not only within the system?s interface but also within one of the most popular web browsers. Thus, users are not required to explicitly feed knowledge about their interests into the system since this process is done automatically. In this manner, users obtain the benefits of a personalized search engine just by installing the application on their computer. Porqpine does not intend to shun completely conventional centralized search engines but to complement them by issuing more accurate and personalized results.Postprint (published version

How Can Social Networks Ever Become Complex? Modelling the Emergence of Complex Networks from Local Social Exchanges

Small-world and power-law network structures have been prominently proposed as models of large networks. However, the assumptions of these models usually lack sociological grounding. We present a computational model grounded in social exchange theory. Agents search attractive exchange partners in a diverse population. Agent use simple decision heuristics, based on imperfect, local information. Computer simulations show that the topological structure of the emergent social network depends heavily upon two sets of conditions, harshness of the exchange game and learning capacities of the agents. Further analysis show that a combination of these conditions affects whether star-like, small-world or power-law structures emerge.Complex Networks, Power-Law, Scale-Free, Small-World, Agent-Based Modeling, Social Exchange Theory, Structural Emergence

El Monestir Jerònim de la Trinitat de Miramar, Mallorca.

Abstract not availabl

NetExpert : sistema basado en inteligencia artificial para la localización de expertos

Peer Reviewe

Estudi d'aportació solar tèrmica en un procés de producció d'embotits artesans

[cat] Al sector càrnic espanyol, concretament al subsector d'elaborats, el principal recurs energètic és el gasoil. En aquest article es valora l'aportació d'Energia Solar Térmica de mitja temperatura a l'esquema energètic d'una fàbrica d'embotits a Mallorca (Illes Balears). La instal·lació s'orienta tant a l'aportació d'energia tèrmica en els processos de producció, com a l'obtenció d'aigua calenta sanitària al llarg de tot l'any. S'implementen i comparen quatre escenaris mitjancant la seva simulació amb TRNSYS 16. El primer comprén la instal·lació de col·lectors plans convencionals com a solució de baix cost. En els tres següents s'inclouen combinacions de diferents tecnologies de captació, entre elles un concentrador solar (el CCStaR) dissenyat a la Universitat de les Illes Balears