Artificial Intelligence and Systems Theory: Applied to Cooperative Robots

This paper describes an approach to the design of a population of cooperative robots based on concepts borrowed from Systems Theory and Artificial Intelligence. The research has been developed under the SocRob project, carried out by the Intelligent Systems Laboratory at the Institute for Systems and Robotics - Instituto Superior Tecnico (ISR/IST) in Lisbon. The acronym of the project stands both for "Society of Robots" and "Soccer Robots", the case study where we are testing our population of robots. Designing soccer robots is a very challenging problem, where the robots must act not only to shoot a ball towards the goal, but also to detect and avoid static (walls, stopped robots) and dynamic (moving robots) obstacles. Furthermore, they must cooperate to defeat an opposing team. Our past and current research in soccer robotics includes cooperative sensor fusion for world modeling, object recognition and tracking, robot navigation, multi-robot distributed task planning and coordination, including cooperative reinforcement learning in cooperative and adversarial environments, and behavior-based architectures for real time task execution of cooperating robot teams

The use of smartphones in public spaces in the Smart Cities Era

Nowadays the possibility of being ubiquitous connected generates new patterns in the relation between people and the built environment. In a time when cities around the globe claim to be smart, it is crucial to be conscious and highlight the value of its inhabitant’s collective wisdom. Technology can improve efficiency in many aspects but cities cannot be understood without its people. We are reorganizing our lives around mass mobile communications. Given that the research scope needs to be updated. Some studies on the use of mobiles in urban spaces have been done, however they have rarely been used to describe this phenomena at a street level, understanding how users interact with public spaces (or not), while online. The research sought to investigate how the widespread use of smartphones frames people’s behavior and interaction with public spaces and create new forms of urban dynamics in the Smart Cities era. In this context, we compared the different social groups (tourists, temporary and permanent residents) that inhabit the city. Taking El Born area in the city of Barcelona as case study we have analyzed the use of public spaces and how mobile technology affects the way people relate to the city while online. Adopting traditional methods of field observation and combining them with surveys we have extended and improved existing methodologies, generating a singular comprehensive dataset, consisting of more than 5000 observations. The analysis of all collected data provided insightful outcomes both at street level and from the users’ point of view. The results evince that behavioral patterns on the use of technology in public spaces are tightly linked to the social group each person belongs to and to the relation each one has to a place. Although online information about places is getting progressively more accurate, there is still a valuable intangible layer of knowledge held by locals that can not be replaced by any map, recommendation system or app. Despite the infinite possibilities of being online, mediated perception do not replace the intangible value of face-to-face relations

Indirect costs of financial distress

We estimate the indirect costs of financial distress due to lost sales by exploiting real estate (RE) shocks and cross-supplier variation in RE assets and leverage. We show that for the same client buying from different suppliers, the client’s purchases from distressed suppliers decline by an additional 13% following a drop in local RE prices. The effect is more pronounced in more competitive industries, manufacturing, durable goods, less-specific goods, and when the costs of switching suppliers are low. Our results suggest that clients reduce their exposure to suppliers in financial distress

A Escrita de Maura Lopes Cançado: um Contraponto com a (des)articulação da Linguagem do Louco

Esta tese de doutorado se propõe a pesquisar e a analisar a linguagem literária de Maura Lopes Cançado, tendo como pressuposto a relação entre literatura e loucura. As obras da escritora, Hospício é deus e O sofredor do ver, evidenciam aspectos que particularizam a narrativa e a linguagem de Maura, posicionando-a como uma escritora em fratura com o seu tempo. Dentro da concepção de contemporâneo de Giorgio Agamben, Maura se inscreve na condição de escritora desconexa, excêntrica, em desacordo com o seu tempo. Privilegiando a temática da loucura, a leitura de suas obras promove articulações possíveis entre a vida e a obra da autora, paciente de hospício, caracterizando a atividade da criação literária de Maura, simultaneamente, como lugar de memória, de denúncia, de resistência e de exercício de dobra. Os postulados de pensadores como Maurice Blanchot, Gilles Deleuze, Heloisa Buarque de Hollanda, Flora Sussekind, Michel Foucault, Erving Goffman e outros fazem mediação para a reflexão. Uma vez que a linguagem de Maura apresenta em sua elaboração a estrutura e a temática da violência, da repressão e da dor, que dá voz a uma coletividade encerrada no hospício, confere-se a manifestação de um teor testemunhal a suas obras, cuja abordagem se fará mediante os estudos de Jaime Ginzburg e Márcio Seligmann-Silva

The use of an integrative approach to identify coelomocytes in three species of the genus Holothuria (Echinodermata)

Coelomocytes in the Holothuroidea are traditionally identified according to their morphology through light, fluorescence, or electron microscopy. Former studies have typically used only one method, with few works combining two or more approaches. Studies using cytocentrifugation to study these cells are scarcer. Thus, for the first time, an integrative approach was used to compare coelomocytes in Holothuroidea. This approach consisted of living and stained cells, scanning electron microscopy (for spherule cells), and accurate morphometric analyses. Specifically, we used specimens of Holothuria grisea, Holothuria arenicola, and Holothuria tubulosa to test whether cytocentrifugation could be valuable in comparative studies with coelomocytes, whether an integrative approach could help to understand spherule cell diversity, and whether closely related species, even those having distinct geographic distributions and ecological requirements, would have a similar population of coelomocytes. Our results showed seven distinct cell types in these species, including phagocytes, fusiform cells, morula cells, acidophilic spherulocytes, spherulocytes, progenitor cells, and crystal cells. Total and differential cell counts, along with morphometric parameters, were similar among species. Morphometric analyses of spherule cells revealed consistent differences among the diameter of their cytoplasmic spherules, as well as a set of different morphotypes in acidophilic spherulocytes and spherulocytes. Cytospin preparations proved to be quite useful because they provided constant morphological and morphometric data, allowing accurate identification of the cell types and comparisons among species. Moreover, this study highlighted (1) that the spherule diameter is a good parameter to separate spherule cells and (2) a putative maturation process to acidophilic spherulocytes and spherulocytes. Lastly, we showed that the cells of these species are very similar, regardless of their geographic distribution and ecology. Thus, our work contributes to a better understanding of the coelomocytes in Holothuria, a genus with a wide geographic distribution. The present study may be useful to establish these species as important model organisms, as well as bring insights into the functions of coelomocytes

Caracterización preliminar de las interacciones aguas subterráneas-humedales-ser humano en Iberoamérica y en la Península Ibérica

El proyecto UNESCO IGCP 604 tiene como objetivo elaborar un marco conceptual sobre las interacciones aguas subterráneas–humedales-ser humano, y está motivado por el Programa de Evaluación de los Ecosistemas del Milenio de Naciones Unidas. Como resultados preliminares se ha elaborado información de catorce humedales en nueve países. Sus características morfológicas, hidrológicas, químicas, etc. son muy variables. Solamente los servicios de abastecimiento de agua y de regulación hídrica parecen estar ampliamente extendidos, con una tendencia dominante a mantenerse estables o a empeorar. Todos los servicios culturales son frecuentes y muestran una tendencia mayoritaria a mejorar. Entre los factores que inducen cambios en los servicios, los de impacto más extendido son: extracción de agua, cambios en el uso de suelo, contaminación y cambio climático y global. Presentan impactos variables, pero la tendencia general es a mantenerse estables o a aumentar.This paper presents the preliminary results of The UNESCO project IGCP 604, whose objec-tive is to elaborate a conceptual framework on groundwater-wetland-human beings interactions, and is moti-vated by the UNESCO Millennium Ecosystems Assessment Programme. Data from fourteen wetlands in nine countries have been elaborated. Their morphological, hydrological, chemical, etc. characteristics are highly variable. Only the water supply and water regulation services seem to be widely extended, and their general evolution trend is to be stable or to worsen. All the cultural services seem to be widely extended, and the dominant trend is to improve. The factors that most widely induce changes in wetland services are water ex-traction, biological exploitation, changes in land use, pollution, and climate and global change. They cause variable impacts, which tend to be stable or to increase

Cytocentrifugation as an additional method to study echinoderm coelomocytes: A comparative approach combining living cells, stained preparations, and energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy

Introduction: Echinoderm coelomocytes have traditionally been investigated through a morphological approach using light microscopy, which relies on the idea of constant cell shape as a stable character. However, this can be affected by biotic or abiotic conditions. Objective: To analyze if the consistency in cell morphology offered by the cytocentrifugation method, might be used as a convenient tool to study echinoderm coelomocytes. Methods: Cells of Echinaster (Othilia) brasiliensis (Asteroidea), Holothuria (Holothuria) tubulosa (Holothuroidea), Eucidaris tribuloides, Arbacia lixula, Lytechinus variegatus, and Echinometra lucunter (Echinoidea) were spread on microscope slides by cytocentrifugation, stained, and analyzed through light microscopy. Additionally, fluorescence microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy were applied to cytospin preparations, to complement the analysis of granular and colorless spherulocytes of Eucidaris tribuloides. Results: Altogether, 11 cell types, including phagocytes, spherulocytes, vibratile cells, and progeni-tor cells were identified in the samples analyzed. The granular spherulocyte, a newly-described cell type, was observed in all Echinoidea and was very similar to the acidophilic spherulocytes of Holothuria (Holothuria) tubulosa. Conclusions: Cytocentrifugation proved to be versatile, either as the main method of investigation in stained preparations, or as a framework on which other procedures may be performed. Its ability to maintain a constant morphology allowed accurate correspondence between live and fixed/stained cells, differentiation among similar spherulocytes as well as comparisons between similar cells of Holothuroidea and Echinoidea

Una nueva especie trifoliolada de Arachis (Fabaceae) y comentarios adicionales sobre la sección taxonómica Trierectoides

Se describe una nueva especie de Arachis, con hojas trifolioladas, A. sesquijuga. Esta se diferencia de las otras especies trifolioladas, ambas con folíolos ternados, por la presencia de un raquis evidente, lo que caracteriza a la hoja como pinnada. Datos históricos sobre la acumulación de conocimiento referente a las raras especies trifolioladas son comentados en secuencia cronológica

The finding of an early edition of “Aphthonius in Spain: the Aphthonii Sophistae Progymnasmata, Rodolpho Agricola Phrysio interprete”, printed in Barcelona in 1546

Este artículo presenta el hallazgo de un opúsculo con la versión latina de los progymnasmata de Aftonio realizada por Rodolfo Agrícola, que fue impreso en Barcelona en el taller de Carles Amorós en 1546 y perteneció al colegio jesuita de dicha ciudad. Este librito constituye una pieza importante para la historia del texto de Aftonio en España, porque se trata de la impresión más temprana de progymnasmata que ha sido hallada hasta ahora. Además, este hallazgo proporciona nuevas evidencias del significativo papel que jugó la Corona de Aragón en la recepción de los antiguos ejercicios retóricos. En este trabajo se ofrece un breve estudio inicial que se centra en el contenido, el contexto editorial y académico y la posible filiación del opúsculoThis paper presents the finding of an opuscule with the Latin version of Aphthonius’ progymnasmata by Rodolphus Agricola, which was printed in Barcelona at Carles Amorós’ workshop in 1546 and belonged to the Jesuit school there. This small book is an important piece in the history of Aphthonius’ text in Spain, since it is the earliest printing of progymnasmata which has been found up to now. In addition, this finding provides new evidence of the significant part played by the Crown of Aragón in the reception of the ancient rhetorical exercises. A brief initial study is offered in this paper, focusing on the content, the editorial and academic context and the possible filiation of the opuscul