Building knowledge layers and networks from urban digital information

The understanding and management of complex digital information on cities need the use of tools providing experts with new insights about the knowledge hidden within this great amount of data. In this paper a methodology to provide such a kind of knowledge is presented. This methodology is based on Formal Concept Analysis and allows visualizing abstract concepts that can be interpreted (and hence discovered) by city researchers.Peer Reviewe

Extracting emergent knowledge about the socioeconomic urban contexts

An approach to represent and analyze socioeconomic contexts as well as to reason with them, in order to extract useful conclusions about the social perception emerging from citizens’ beliefs and feelings, is introduced. We concentrate here in the formal aspects of the solution, completing this way our workMinisterio de Economía y Competitividad TIN2013-41086-PJunta de Andalucía TIC-606

Building knowledge layers and networks from urban digital information

The understanding and management of complex digital information on cities need the use of tools providing experts with new insights about the knowledge hidden within this great amount of data. In this paper a methodology to provide such a kind of knowledge is presented. This methodology is based on Formal Concept Analysis and allows visualizing abstract concepts that can be interpreted (and hence discovered) by city researchers

On dynamic network security: A random decentering algorithm on graphs

pp. 656-668Random Decentering Algorithm (RDA) on a undirected unweighted graph is defined and tested over several concrete scale-free networks. RDA introduces ancillary nodes to the given network following basic principles of minimal cost, density preservation, centrality reduction and randomness. First simulations over scale-free networks show that RDA gives a significant decreasing of both betweenness centrality and closeness centrality and hence topological protection of network is improved. On the other hand, the procedure is performed without significant change of the density of connections of the given network. Thus ancillae are not distinguible from real nodes (in a straightforward way) and hence network is obfuscated to potential adversaries by our manipulation.S

Urban Knowledge Extraction, Representation and Reasoning as a Bridge from Data City towards Smart City

Urban Data management represents a major challenge in the field of Smart Cities. Its understanding is essential for the development of better smart services, which are a persistent demand in urban policies. From all the sources of data available, those that involve a collective processing of urban information (by the citizens or other collectives) deliver in fact, useful insights into social perception. Such is the case, for example, of data collected from mobile networks. Prior to the design of sociotechnical artifacts in cities, it seems important to extract the qualitative and quantitative opinions, sentiment and feedbacks present in these data. In this paper we present three solutions for mining these contents through Knowledge Extraction methods, as a previous step to the prospection of new smart services.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad TIN2013-41086-

Seismic performance comparison between structure-improvement techniques and ground-improvement techniques: Application to a reinforced concrete school building

The seismic retrofitting of reinforced concrete (RC) buildings has been widely analysed. Most of the solutions proposed are focused on the building’s structure improvement. However, the effects of ground-improvement techniques combined with the building’s structure-improvement techniques have not been usually analysed. Therefore, this paper aims to assess the seismic performance of a building by adding different seismic retrofitting techniques in the structure and the ground. A RC school building is proposed in this work. This has been selected because it was constructed prior to the current seismic code. Schools are some of the buildings most vulnerable to earthquakes. This is due to the low adult/child ratio. This paper is framed within the PERSITAH project (Projetos de Escolas Resilientes aos SISmos no Território do Algarve e de Huelva, in Portuguese). The main goal of the project is to analyse the seismic vulnerability of schools’ buildings located in the Algarve-Huelva region. This area is characterized by earthquakes of long-return period and large magnitude. Therefore, the population is not aware of the seismic hazard of the area. Different seismic retrofitting techniques have been added to the building and they have been compared and analysed. The techniques have consisted of the addition of X-bracings within the buildings’ bays, steel jackets in columns and soil injection grouting. These solutions have been added both individually and combined to generate hybrid models. Nonlinear static analyses have been carried out to determine the seismic performance of the building including each technique. The N2-method has been considered to obtain the performance displacement. Moreover, the damage level probability and the mean damage index have been determined for each retrofitting technique. Results have shown that the addition of X-bracings is the most efficient solution. However, this solution causes a great architectural impact. Therefore, the solution of steel jackets and/or injection grouting emerges as an interesting alternative

Perspectives of Therapeutic Drug Monitoring of Biological Agents in Non-Infectious Uveitis Treatment: A Review

Biological drugs, especially those targeting anti-tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha) molecule, have revolutionized the treatment of patients with non-infectious uveitis (NIU), a sight-threatening condition characterized by ocular inflammation that can lead to severe vision threatening and blindness. Adalimumab (ADA) and infliximab (IFX), the most widely used anti-TNF alpha drugs, have led to greater clinical benefits, but a significant fraction of patients with NIU do not respond to these drugs. The therapeutic outcome is closely related to systemic drug levels, which are influenced by several factors such as immunogenicity, concomitant treatment with immunomodulators, and genetic factors. Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) of drug and anti-drug antibody (ADAbs) levels is emerging as a resource to optimise biologic therapy by personalising treatment to bring and maintain drug concentration within the therapeutic range, especially in those patients where a clinical response is less than expected. Furthermore, some studies have described different genetic polymorphisms that may act as predictors of response to treatment with anti-TNF alpha agents in immune-mediated diseases and could be useful in personalising biologic treatment selection. This review is a compilation of the published evidence in NIU and in other immune-mediated diseases that support the usefulness of TDM and pharmacogenetics as a tool to guide clinicians' treatment decisions leading to better clinical outcomes. In addition, findings from preclinical and clinical studies, assessing the safety and efficacy of intravitreal administration of anti-TNF alpha agents in NIU are discussed

Analysis of a superbolide from a Damocloid observed over Spain on July 13, 2012

A superbolide with an estimated absolute magnitude of-20±1was seen on 2012 July 13 over the centre and south of Spain. This extraordinary event, which was witnessed by numerous casual observers, was recorded in the framework of the continuous fireball monitoring and meteor spectroscopy campaign performed by the SPanish Meteor Network (SPMN). Thus, because of optimal weather conditions, the bolide was imaged from 10 meteor observing stations. Here we present the analysis of this magnificent event, which is the brightest fireball ever recorded by our team. The atmospheric trajectory of the bolide and the orbit in the Solar system of the parent meteoroid were obtained. The emission spectrum produced during the ablation of this particle is also discussed.We found that the meteoroid, which was following a Halley Type Comet orbit, was depleted in Na and had a tensile strength one order of magnitude higher than that corresponding to typical cometary materials. By means of orbital analysis tools we have investigated the likely parent body of this particle and the results suggest that the progenitor is a damocloid. The impact area of the hypothetical remnants of the meteoroid is also given and a search for meteorites was performed, but none was found.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación AYA2009-13227 AYA2009-06330-E AYA2011-26522Junta de Andalucía P09-FQM-455

Analyzing the production, quality, and potential uses of solid recovered fuel from screening waste of municipal wastewater treatment plants

Over time, wastewater management evolves into a circular model, producing energy and moving towards zero waste. The usual screening waste treatment is the elimination, with no energy recovery processes. As an alternative, the production of solid recovered fuel (SRF) from screening has been studied, both non-densified and densified, in pellet form. The densification was developed, taking as variables the input moisture and size of the die, obtaining 20 different samples. The optimum pelletizing conditions are an input moisture content of 10% and dies with a compression ratio of 6/20, 6/24 and 8/32. SRF properties have been evaluated based on a quality proposal presented in this paper, which has been developed given the lack of uniformity in the existing SRF standards. The SRF produced complies with fuel quality requirements, such as lower calorific value, with values between 13.37 and 25.65 MJ/kg; Cl and Hg content, with maximums of 0.066% and 1.0 × 10����� 5 mg/MJ, respectively; and ash content, between 7.22% and 9.85%. Energy from waste plants could be the destination for all the SRF produced. Its use in cement plants and gasification processes, more restrictive than the previous one, would require manufacturing processes with adequate moisture levels and die size.EMASAGRA 4325University of Granada / CBU