Distributed models in P-Systems architectures to reduce computation time

Membrane systems are computational equivalent to Turing machines. However, their distributed and massively parallel nature obtains polynomial solutions opposite to traditional non-polynomial ones. At this point, it is very important to develop dedicated hardware and software implementations exploiting those two membrane systems features. Dealing with distributed implementations of P systems, the bottleneck communication problem has arisen. When the number of membranes grows up, the network gets congested. The purpose of distributed architectures is to reach a compromise between the massively parallel character of the system and the needed evolution step time to transit from one configuration of the system to the next one, solving the bottleneck communication problem. The goal of this paper is twofold. Firstly, to survey in a systematic and uniform way the main results regarding the way membranes can be placed on processors in order to get a software/hardware simulation of P-Systems in a distributed environment. Secondly, we improve some results about the membrane dissolution problem, prove that it is connected, and discuss the possibility of simulating this property in the distributed model. All this yields an improvement in the system parallelism implementation since it gets an increment of the parallelism of the external communication among processors. Proposed ideas improve previous architectures to tackle the communication bottleneck problem, such as reduction of the total time of an evolution step, increase of the number of membranes that could run on a processor and reduction of the number of processors.

Membrane Dissolution in Distributed Architectures of P-Systems

The goal of this paper is twofold. Firstly, to survey in a systematic and uniform way the main results regarding the way membranes can be placed on processors in order to get a software/hardware simulation of P-Systems in a distributed environment. Secondly, we improve some results about the membrane dissolution problem, prove that it is connected, and discuss the possibility of simulating this property in the distributed model. All this yields an improvement in the system parallelism implementation since it gets an increment of the parallelism of the external communication among processors. Also, the number of processors grows in such a way that is notorious the increment of the parallelism in the application of the evolution rules and the internal communica-tionsstudy because it gets an increment of the parallelism in the application of the evolution rules and the internal communications. Proposed ideas improve previous architectures to tackle the communication bottleneck problem, such as reduction of the total time of an evolution step, increase of the number of membranes that could run on a processor and reduction of the number of processors

Sistema abierto de Televisión Digital Terrestre (TDT) accesible para personas con deficiencia visual

Este artículo detalla el diseño, implementación y validación de un sistema abierto de Televisión Digital accesible para personas con deficiencia visual. La solución facilita que este colectivo pueda acceder a los contenidos de la guía electrónica de programación recibidos a través de la TDT, pudiendo configurar a demanda la interfaz de usuario gráfica (IGU) y la síntesis de voz (TTS). Se presenta el análisis de sistemas existentes, requisitos demandados por este colectivo y tecnologías disponibles, tanto de TDT como de TTS, con el fin de elegir las más apropiadas con criterios de accesibilidad, interoperabilidad y bajo coste. Los resultados obtenidos en la investigación demuestran que el sistema desarrollado es congruente con los criterios del Diseño para Todos según constata la validación realizada. El sistema ofrece combinaciones de colores y fuentes (contraste, tamaño) para diferentes necesidades de la deficiencia visual, y utiliza TTS local y adaptable para las personas con ceguera.

Caracterización del movimiento fuerte en el emplazamiento de la presa de Itoiz

Se presenta en este trabajo una nueva caracterización del movimiento del suelo en la presa de Itoiz, consistente con la peligrosidad sísmica del emplazamiento. En primer lugar, proponemos una metodología con tres niveles de aproximación al movimiento esperado, que es después aplicada considerando las características particulares de la presa y su emplazamiento. Los cálculos de peligrosidad se realizan siguiendo la línea metodológica conocida como PSHA, con un método probabilista zonificado y formulando un árbol lógico que combina diferentes zonificaciones sísmicas y modelos de movimiento fuerte. La peligrosidad se representa en términos de la aceleración pico PGA y de las aceleraciones espectrales para periodos coincidentes con los de vibración de la presa, considerando dos estados de la misma correspondientes a presa vacía (T=0.1s) y presa con capacidad máxima de llenado (T=0.22 s). Se caracterizan los correspondientes movimientos para dos periodos de retorno, 975 años y 4975 años, asociados al sismo de proyecto y al sismo extremo, respectivamente. El efecto de sitio en el emplazamiento de la presa también fue tenido en cuenta. La metodología propuesta conduce a caracterizar el movimiento con tres niveles de detalle. En una primera etapa se obtienen los espectros de respuesta uniforme (UHS) para los dos niveles de movimiento referidos. Seguidamente se desarrolla un análisis de desagregación para obtener los sismos de control que previsiblemente pueden afectar mas a la presa. Estos se identifican como los que más contribuyen a los movimientos objeto dados por las aceleraciones espectrales de los dos periodos característicos, SA (0,1 s) y SA (0.22 s) y para los dos periodos de retorno de 975 y 4975 años asociados a lo sismos de proyecto y extremo. De ahí se obtienen los espectros de respuesta específicos para las cuatro combinaciones resultantes. Finalmente, se realiza una simulación del movimiento en el dominio del tiempo, obteniendo acelerogramas sintéticos mediante el método de número de onda discreto. Las simulaciones se realizaron considerando fuentes finitas en diferentes posiciones y evaluando el efecto de la directividad en las posibles fuentes consideradas. Se concluye destacando la importancia del efecto de directividad, en la caracterización del emplazamiento de la presa.

Mecánica de rocas : fundamentos e ingeniería de taludes

Este libro ha nacido de las clases de Mecánica de Rocas que impartimos en la Universidad Politécnica de Madrid y en la de Vigo, y en el Máster Internacional “Aprovechamiento Sostenible de los Recursos Minerales”. Ha sido escrito pensando en los universitarios y en los profesionales de la geotecnia. A ambos colectivos les dedicamos con todo cariño esta obra en la que hemos invertido muchas horas durante los últimos años. El impulso para ponernos a escribir surgió cuando recibimos el encargo de la Cátedra Madariaga de la Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros de Minas de la UPM de organizar unos cursos sobre estabilidad de taludes, que fueron financiados por la Comisión Nacional de Seguridad Minera, y el apoyo prestado por el Máster contribuyó a que se terminara el libro. Hay en esta obra dos partes claramente diferenciadas. La primera es de Fundamentos de Mecánica de Rocas y aquellos que posean ya un conocimiento general sobre esta materia podrían saltársela y comenzar a leer el libro en la segunda parte, que está dedicada a la Ingeniería de Taludes. No obstante, recordar las bases nunca está de más por lo que, sin duda alguna, la lectura ordenada del libro, de principio a fin, puede resultar muy provechosa. Evidentemente la obra es incompleta pues tanto la Mecánica de Rocas como la Ingeniería de Taludes han adquirido una extensión tal que resulta imposible resumirlas en un sólo libro, aunque sea tan extenso como éste. Los fundamentos variarán poco en los próximos años, pero ciertos aspectos prácticos y métodos de cálculo posiblemente serán superados en breve plazo. Esperamos, sin embargo, que el libro resulte útil durante un tiempo al menos tan largo como el que nos ha llevado escribirlo. El nivel de conocimientos que se requiere para leer el libro está al alcance de los alumnos de nuestras universidades; a propósito se ha partido de unas bases accesibles. No obstante, los problemas que se presentan en la ingeniería de taludes son, en general, únicos y se requiere experiencia para resolverlos correctamente. Varios profesores han contribuido con capítulos a esta obra: D. Ricardo Laín Huerta (Capítulo 9), D. Celestino González Nicieza y Dª Inmaculada Álvarez Fernández (Capítulo 15), Dª. Inmaculada Álvarez Fernández y Miguel Ángel Rodríguez Díaz (Capítulo 16), D. Fernando García Bastante (Capítulo 17), Dª. María Belarmina Díaz Aguado y D. Fernando Ariznavarreta Fernández (Capítulo 18). A todos ellos les agradecemos su colaboración.

Distributed System for Cognitive Stimulation Over Interactive TV.

Descripción y evaluación de sistema de estimulación cognitiva a través de la TDT orientada a personas con enfermedad de Parkinson, con supervisión por parte de sus terapeutas de forma remota. Abstract: This paper details the full design, implementation, and validation of an e-health service in order to improve the community health care services for patients with cognitive disorders. Specifically, the new service allows Parkinson’s disease patients benefit from the possibility of doing cognitive stimulation therapy (CST) at home by using a familiar device such as a TV set. Its use instead of a PC could be a major advantage for some patients whose lack of familiarity with the use of a PC means that they can do therapy only in the presence of a therapist. For these patients this solution could bring about a great improvement in their autonomy. At the same time, this service provides therapists with the ability to conduct follow-up of therapy sessions via the web,benefiting from greater and easier control of the therapy exercises performed by patients and allowing them to customize new exercises in accordance with the particular needs of each patient. As a result, this kind of CST is considered to be a complement of other therapies oriented to the Parkinson patients. Furthermore, with small changes, the system could be useful for patients with a different cognitive disease such as Alzheimer’s or mild cognitive impairment.

Perturbed angular correlation study of Ta-181-doped PbTi1-xHfxO3 compounds

In this work, the hyperfine quadrupole interaction at Ta-doped PbTi1-xHfxO3 polycrystalline samples is studied for the first time. Powders with x=0.25, 0.50 and 0.75 were prepared and characterized by X-ray diffraction analysis. Perturbed Angular Correlation (PAC) analyses were done as a function of temperature, using low concentration Ta-181 nuclei as probes. In the ferroelectric and paraelectric phases of these compounds two sites were occupied by the probes. For each site the quadrupole frequency, asymmetry and relative distribution width parameters were obtained as a function of temperature above and below the Curie temperature (T-C). One of these sites was assigned to the regular Ti-Hf site, while the other one was assigned to some kind of defect. The behavior of the hyperfine parameters as a function of temperature was analyzed in terms of a recent published phase diagram and the presence of disorder below and above T-C. For the three compositions measured, the obtained hyperfine parameters present discontinuities which correspond to the ferroelectric-paraelectric phase transition. In both phases it was found broad frequency distributed interactions. The disorder in the electronic distribution would be responsible for the broad line width of the hyperfine interaction. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Seismic Hazard and Ground Motion Characterization at the Itoiz Dam (Northern Spain).

This paper presents a new hazard-consistent ground motion characterization of the Itoiz dam site, located in Northern Spain. Firstly, we propose a methodology with different approximation levels to the expected ground motion at the dam site. Secondly, we apply this methodology taking into account the particular characteristics of the site and of the dam. Hazard calculations were performed following the Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Assessment method using a logic tree, which accounts for different seismic source zonings and different ground-motion attenuation relationships. The study was done in terms of peak ground acceleration and several spectral accelerations of periods coinciding with the fundamental vibration periods of the dam. In order to estimate these ground motions we consider two different dam conditions: when the dam is empty (T = 0.1 s) and when it is filled with water to its maximum capacity (T = 0.22 s). Additionally, seismic hazard analysis is done for two return periods: 975 years, related to the project earthquake, and 4,975 years, identified with an extreme event. Soil conditions were also taken into account at the site of the dam. Through the proposed methodology we deal with different forms of characterizing ground motion at the study site. In a first step, we obtain the uniform hazard response spectra for the two return periods. In a second step, a disaggregation analysis is done in order to obtain the controlling earthquakes that can affect the dam. Subsequently, we characterize the ground motion at the dam site in terms of specific response spectra for target motions defined by the expected values SA (T) of T = 0.1 and 0.22 s for the return periods of 975 and 4,975 years, respectively. Finally, synthetic acceleration time histories for earthquake events matching the controlling parameters are generated using the discrete wave-number method and subsequently analyzed. Because of the short relative distances between the controlling earthquakes and the dam site we considered finite sources in these computations. We conclude that directivity effects should be taken into account as an important variable in this kind of studies for ground motion characteristics.

Estudio de algunos casos de fisuración descendente en carreteras españolas

Tradicionalmente se ha admitido que la mayor parte de las fisuras que aparecen en la superficie del pavimento procede de las capas inferiores, afectadas por la fatiga o por la retracción que acompaña al fraguado de materiales tratados con cemento. Con dicho enfoque las fisuras superficiales no serían más que la evolución o el reflejo de un problema originado en las capas inferiores. Sin embargo, en la última década diversos trabajos de investigación han puesto de manifiesto la relevancia de otro problema muy diferente: la iniciación de fisuras en la capa de rodadura que progresivamente van afectando a las capas inferiores. Es lo que se ha denominado fisuración descendente (top-down cracking). En este artículo se muestran varios casos estudiados en carreteras españolas, en los que se ha constatado que las fisuras observadas en la superficie afectaban sólo a la capa de rodadura, aunque en algunos casos habían progresado, dañando ya la parte superior de la capa intermedia. Para caracterizar las mezclas asfálticas afectadas por este problema, más generalizado de lo que se creía hasta ahora, al menos en determinadas zonas climáticas, se extrajeron testigos, comprobando la granulometría de las mezclas, sus características mecánicas y el estado del ligante. Como resultado general puede concluirse que las mezclas afectadas tenían problemas de segregación granulométrica en vertical, y en todos los casos el ligante había envejecido sensiblemente, a pesar de tratarse de actuaciones algunas de ellas con sólo unos pocos años en servicio.

Inorganic hydrophobic coatings: Surfaces mimicking the nature

Added value products are being developed in ceramic industry. Different optical effects as bright metallic shine or new functionalities as hydrophobicity or bactericide characteristics are the new properties searched on the tiles. In this study, we prepare glassy coatings for tiles based on copper pigment by a conventional industrial process. The obtained coatings present different aesthetical aspects, including bright metallic aspect which confers a high decorative value to the tile. Furthermore, these metallic coatings present hydrophobic properties with contact angles with water as high as 115 degrees and also bactericide characteristics. Superficial microstructure and nanoparticles were found in the bactericide-hydrophobic samples, resembling the surface of hydrophobic leaf surfaces. This structure was formed by the crystallization of CuO nanoparticles as Tenorite due to the copper saturation of the glassy matrix at the surface of the coatings.

Quinine doped hybrid sol-gel coatings for wave guiding and optical applications

Pure and quinine doped silica coatings have been prepared over sodalime glasses. The coatings were consolidated at low temperature (range 60-180 A degrees C) preserving optical activity of quinine molecule. We designed a device to test the guiding properties of the coatings. We confirmed with this device that light injected in pure silica coatings is guided over distances of meters while quinine presence induces isotropic photoluminescence. With the combined use of both type of coatings, it is possible to design light guiding devices and illuminate regions in glass elements without electronic circuits.

Dielectric behaviour of Hf-doped CaCu3Ti4O12 ceramics obtained by conventional synthesis and reactive sintering

CaCu3(Ti4xHfx)O12 ceramics (JC = 0.04, 0.1 and 0.2) were prepared by conventional synthesis (CS) and through reactive sintering (RS), in which synthesis and sintering of the material take place in one single step. The microstructure and the dielectric properties of Hf-doped CCTO (CCTOHf) have been studied by XRD, FE-SEM, AFM, Raman and impedance spectroscopy (IS) in order to correlate the structure, microstructure and the electrical properties. Samples prepared by reactive sintering show slightly higher dielectric constant than those prepared by conventional synthesis in the same way than the pure CCTO. Dielectric constant and dielectric losses decrease slightly increasing Hf content. For CCTOHf ceramics with x> 0.04 for CS and x> 0.1 for RS, a secondary phase HfTi04 appears. As expected, the reactive sintering processing method allows a higher incorporation of Hf in the CCTO lattice than the conventional synthesis one.

Laboratorio de electrónica y componentes: ejercicios y problemas

Ejercicios y problemas del Laboratorio de electrónica y componentes en le E.T.S.I. de Telecomunicación de la Universidad Politécnica de Madrid

Desarollo de un sistema interactivo para estimulación cognitiva en HTML5

En España hay más de 115.500 personas que padecen Parkinson. Esto la convierte en la segunda enfermedad neurodegenerativa más común, por detrás del Alzheimer. La mayoría de los enfermos se encuentran en edades comprendidas entre los 50 y los 80 años, lo que unido al incremento de la esperanza de vida hace que se prevea un incremento del número de enfermos de Parkinson en pocos años. El Parkinson es un desorden crónico y degenerativo que afecta a la parte del cerebro encargada del sistema motor, es decir, la encargada de coordinar la actividad, el tono muscular y los movimientos, así como a las capacidades cognitivas. Esta patología crónica, de momento, no tiene cura. A los pacientes se les aplican tratamientos farmacológicos para frenar la progresión de la enfermedad. Además, se aplican terapias adicionales como la fisioterapia, la logopedia, la musicoterapia, la estimulación cognitiva o la terapia ocupacional. El uso de las Tecnologías de la Información y Comunicaciones en el campo de la estimulación cognitiva permite que personas con deterioro cognitivo puedan realizar sesiones de estimulación desde su domicilio de forma remota, complementando las terapias individuales y/o grupales que haya indicado el terapeuta. Además, evita desplazamientos hasta el centro de atención, que en ocasiones pueden ser difíciles de efectuar por encontrarse en lugares alejados o por problemas de movilidad del afectado. Asimismo, el uso de este tipo tecnología permite que los resultados de los ejercicios realizados por los pacientes se puedan almacenar para que el terapeuta los pueda analizar en cualquier momento y de esta manera ir adecuando la terapia. Finalmente, la plataforma que se propone cuenta con el valor añadido de permitir la interactividad con los terapeutas y la posibilidad de adaptar los ejercicios a cada paciente, según las necesidades que presente cada uno. SUMMARY. In Spain, there are more than 115.500 people with Parkinson disease. Due to this, it is the second most common neurodegenerative disease, only behind Alzheimer's disease. Most patients have ages between 50 and 80 years of age, which together with the increase in life expectancy to provide an increase in the number of patients with Parkinson's in a few years. Most patients have aged between 50 and 80 years old, which together with the increase of life expectancy provide a growth in the number of people with Parkinson’s in a few years. Parkinson's is a chronic and degenerative disorder that affects the part of the brain responsible for the motor system, i.e., responsible for coordinating activity, muscle tone and movements, as well as cognitive abilities. Nowadays, this chronic pathology has no cure. Pharmacological treatments are applied to patients for slowing down the advance of this disease. In addition, there are additional therapies such as physiotherapy, speech therapy, music therapy, cognitive stimulation or occupational therapy. The use of the Information Technologies and Communications in the field of cognitive stimulation allows people with cognitive impairment may carry out stimulation sessions in their home remotely, complementing individual therapies or group therapies provided by the therapist. This minimizes trips to the attention center, which sometimes can be difficult due to they live in remote places or they are mobility-reduced people. In addition, the use of such technology allows that the results of the exercises personalized by patients can store so that the therapist can analyze them at any time and therefore he or she adapts the therapy. Finally, the proposed platform brings the added value of allowing interaction with the therapists and the possibility of adapting the exercises to each patient according to his or her needs.

Zone design of specific sizes using adaptive additively weighted voronoi diagrams

Territory or zone design processes entail partitioning a geographic space, organized as a set of areal units, into different regions or zones according to a specific set of criteria that are dependent on the application context. In most cases, the aim is to create zones of approximately equal sizes (zones with equal numbers of inhabitants, same average sales, etc.). However, some of the new applications that have emerged, particularly in the context of sustainable development policies, are aimed at defining zones of a predetermined, though not necessarily similar, size. In addition, the zones should be built around a given set of seeds. This type of partitioning has not been sufficiently researched; therefore, there are no known approaches for automated zone delimitation. This study proposes a new method based on a discrete version of the adaptive additively weighted Voronoi diagram that makes it possible to partition a two-dimensional space into zones of specific sizes, taking both the position and the weight of each seed into account. The method consists of repeatedly solving a traditional additively weighted Voronoi diagram, so that each seed?s weight is updated at every iteration. The zones are geographically connected using a metric based on the shortest path. Tests conducted on the extensive farming system of three municipalities in Castile-La Mancha (Spain) have established that the proposed heuristic procedure is valid for solving this type of partitioning problem. Nevertheless, these tests confirmed that the given seed position determines the spatial configuration the method must solve and this may have a great impact on the resulting partition.