DESIGN OF CONSUMMER THERMAL SUBSTATIONS FOR THE INTEGRATION OF DISTRIBUTED SOLAR TECHNOLOGIES IN DISTRICT HEATING SYSTEMS

In most cases, building service designers choose between Solar thermal (ST) and District Heating (DH) technologies for their integration in buildings. By doing so, only a fraction of the buildings within a particular district is used for ST, while at the same time energy intensity in DH networks can be reduced. In some cases, building-integrated solar thermal systems are connected to DH networks by means of dedicated pipes. In all these cases, sub-optimal situations are reached with lower fraction of renewable heat, reduced network strength and/or additional heat losses. In this paper, a consummer substation concept is proposed with reversible heat flow and net metering, which avoids local thermal storage in the solar loop. Adaptations required for multi-dwelling buildings are presented.European Commission's H2020, 768567, RELaTE

RELATED, A FLEXIBLE APPROACH TO THE DEPLOYMENT AND CONVERSION OF DH NETWORKS TO LOW TEMPERATURE, WITH INCREASED USE OF LOCAL SOLAR SYSTEMS

District heating (DH) systems are key systems for the de-carbonization of heating energy in European Cities. In order to allow for this transition, while guaranteeing competitive energy costs, conversion of DHs is required. DH operation temperature needs to be reduced in order to increase the performance of renewable systems and operation criteria needs to be adopted for the introduction of weather-dependent, distributed heat sources such as solar systems. This paper presents the RELaTED decentralized Ultra-Low Temperature DH network scheme, and its adaptation to several operational schemes such as new and existing DH networks, with different levels of complexity. Transitory phases in the conversion process are discussed.European Commission's H2020, 768567, RELaTE

Highly synchronized noise-driven oscillatory behavior of a FitzHugh-Nagumo ring with phase-repulsive coupling

We investigate a ring of $N$ FitzHugh--Nagumo elements coupled in \emph{phase-repulsive} fashion and submitted to a (subthreshold) common oscillatory signal and independent Gaussian white noises. This system can be regarded as a reduced version of the one studied in [Phys. Rev. E \textbf{64}, 041912 (2001)], although externally forced and submitted to noise. The noise-sustained synchronization of the system with the external signal is characterized.Comment: 7 pages, 15 figures, uses aipproc.cls, aip-6s.clo and aipxfm.sty. "Cooperative Behavior in Neural Systems: Ninth Granada Lectures'', edited by J. Marro, P. L. Garrido, and J. J. Torre

Towards the implementation of a preference-and uncertain-aware solver using answer set programming

Logic programs with possibilistic ordered disjunction (or LPPODs) are a recently defined logic-programming framework based on logic programs with ordered disjunction and possibilistic logic. The framework inherits the properties of such formalisms and merging them, it supports a reasoning which is nonmonotonic, preference-and uncertain-aware. The LPPODs syntax allows to specify 1) preferences in a qualitative way, and 2) necessity values about the certainty of program clauses. As a result at semantic level, preferences and necessity values can be used to specify an order among program solutions. This class of program therefore fits well in the representation of decision problems where a best option has to be chosen taking into account both preferences and necessity measures about information. In this paper we study the computation and the complexity of the LPPODs semantics and we describe the algorithm for its implementation following on Answer Set Programming approach. We describe some decision scenarios where the solver can be used to choose the best solutions by checking whether an outcome is possibilistically preferred over another considering preferences and uncertainty at the same time.Postprint (published version

Can Race-Neutral Remedies Achieve Racial Desegregation? Introduction to the ACLU Amicus Brief Submitted to the U.S. Supreme Court

The American Civil Liberties Union supports the Seattle School District’s policy to consider race as one of several tie-breaking factors in assigning students to high schools. We believe the district has a compelling interest in preventing the racial segregation of its schools, and it has narrowly focused its policy to achieve this goal, in accordance with United States Supreme Court decisions. We believe that desegregation furthers equality of opportunity, and that racial diversity strengthens the educational experience for all students in public schools

Percepción y rentabilidad cinegética : la hipótesis del “verdadero ecologista”

The hunting supposes in the set of the Spanish state an activity that together its economic importance plays an outstanding factor in the performance, modification and conservation of natural spaces. The hunter becomes an active agent who through a secular practice influences the fugitives and in the existing biodiversity in them, adapting it to his necessities. This fact is the beginning of concept and a particular environmental perception. Within this dynamics, taking care of the emic speeches, the hunter thinks of himself as a “true ecologist” due to the works that makes for the cinegetic fauna and its habitat. In addition the ecological confrontation to that “another” ecologism of associations and ecological groups to which they consider far anyway from the “natural reality”. The communication affects the hypothesis to consider that the perception as much as the performance comes determined by a concept of profitability, that the hunter and the companies of the sector activate according to the case by virtue of making profitable economically and/or recreationally the investment done. The figure of the hunter as “true ecologist” would be immersed in a dialectic one between an “atavic speech” and an economic conditioner.La caza supone en el conjunto del estado español una actividad que junto a su importancia económica juega un factor destacado en la actuación, modificación y conservación de espacios naturales. El cazador se convierte en agente activo que a través de una práctica secular influye sobre los acotados y en la biodiversidad existente en ellos, adaptándola a sus necesidades. Este hecho parte de un concepto y una percepción medioambiental particular. Dentro de esta dinámica, atendiendo a los discursos emic, el cazador se arroga la auto-definición de “verdadero ecologista” en virtud a los trabajos que realiza en pro de la fauna cinegética y su hábitat. A ello se une la confrontación a ese “otro” ecologismo de asociaciones y colectivos ecologistas a los que consideran alejados de la “realidad” natural. El texto incide en la hipótesis de considerar que tanto la percepción como la actuación vienen determinadas por un concepto de rentabilidad, que el cazador y las empresas del sector activan según el caso en virtud de rentabilizar económica y/o recreativamente la inversión realizada. La figura del cazador como “verdadero ecologista” quedaría inmersa en una dialéctica entre un “discurso atávico” y un condicionante económico

Apuntes para el debate ecuatoriano sobre medios

En los últimos años algunos países progresistas de América Latina han realizado cambios a sus leyes que regulan los medios de comunicación, con especial énfasis sobre los medios audiovisuales1 que explotan el espacio radioeléctrico. Una cuestión que comparten estas nuevas leyes de comunicación es el criterio de reorganizar las concesiones de radio y televisión, con el compromiso de entregar un tercio de estas frecuencias a los medios constituidos por organizaciones sin fines de lucro, que son denominados medios comunitarios. Además, en varios casos, como el ecuatoriano, también se reserva otro tercio de las frecuencias para medios de organismos públicos. Estos cambios posibilitarían que en el mediano plazo el sector comunitario y público posean, en conjunto, la mayor parte de las frecuencias de los medios audiovisuales en varios países de la región. En teoría tendríamos un conjunto de espacios antes acaparados por el sector privado, que deben pasar a manos de sectores fuera de unalógica estrictamente mercantil para la realización de sus producciones. En este marco nos preguntamos, ¿qué posibilidades existen para un relanzamiento de propuestas de comunicación orientadas, en un sentido amplio, hacia la educomunicación?2 Trataremos de ensayar respuestas a esta pregunta tomando como referencia el caso ecuatoriano y los desafíos, entendidos como logros y limitaciones, que plantea su nueva ley de comunicación.In the last few years, some progressive countries in Latin America have made changes to laws that regulate media, with a particular emphasis on audiovisual media that make use of radio broadcast ing space. A key feature shared by these new media laws is the criteria for reallocating radio and TV concessions, with a compromise of assigning a third of these frequencies to non-governmental organizations, referred to as community media. Moreover, in several cases, as in Ecuador, another third of the frecuencias are reserved for public institutions. These changes would allow, in the medium term, for community and public groups to own most of the range of audiovisual media frequencies in several countries in the region. In theory, we would have spaces that had been previously hoarded by the private sector, now in the hands of groups outside of the strictly commercial rationality used for their own benefit. In this context, we ask, what possibilities are there for a relaunch of communication proposals oriented, in the general sense, to “educommunication” (educational communication)? We will attempt to provide answers by using Ecuador as a reference for both challenges, learned successes, and limitations under the new Law of Communication

Guía para la elaboración de un Plan de Implantación de un Sistema APPCC en el área de restauración de un centro médico

La seguridad alimentaria presenta uno de los objetivos a abordar de manera prioritaria tanto en industria alimentaria como en restauración en cualquiera de sus ámbitos. A raíz de esta creciente preocupación del consumidor, el ámbito legal dentro de la Unión Europea, obliga a los operadores de las empresas del sector a desarrollar programas y procedimientos que aseguren la inocuidad de sus productos y elaboraciones, basadas en los principios del Análisis de Peligros y Puntos de Control Críticos (APPCC). Este sistema se fundamenta científicamente y tiene carácter sistemático, y el presente trabajo formula los pasos a seguir para evaluar los peligros específicos y establecer medidas de control basadas en la prevención, eliminación y/o reducción de éstos a niveles aceptables en cada una de las fases específicas del proceso, en lugar de realizar este análisis en las elaboraciones finales, lo que supone una ventaja para la empresa a múltiples niveles. Además, el trabajo también explica cómo desarrollar los requisitos previos que deben adoptarse conforme a los principios de higiene alimentaria según dicta el Codex Alimentarius. La presente guía se presenta para abordar de una forma simple y eficaz la implantación de un Sistema APPCC dentro del área de restauración de un centro hospitalario, ofreciendo una metodología eficaz para la verificación y validez de los Puntos de Control Críticos con el fin de garantizar el cumplimiento y control efectivo del sistema de APPCC