3D model based map building

Comunicación presentada en el IX Workshop de Agentes Físicos (WAF'2008), Vigo, 11-12 septiembre 2008.

A Computational Method based on Radio Frequency Technologies for the Analysis of Accessibility of Disabled People in Sustainable Cities

The sustainability strategy in urban spaces arises from reflecting on how to achieve a more habitable city and is materialized in a series of sustainable transformations aimed at humanizing different environments so that they can be used and enjoyed by everyone without exception and regardless of their ability. Modern communication technologies allow new opportunities to analyze efficiency in the use of urban spaces from several points of view: adequacy of facilities, usability, and social integration capabilities. The research presented in this paper proposes a method to perform an analysis of movement accessibility in sustainable cities based on radio frequency technologies and the ubiquitous computing possibilities of the new Internet of Things paradigm. The proposal can be deployed in both indoor and outdoor environments to check specific locations of a city. Finally, a case study in a controlled context has been simulated to validate the proposal as a pre-deployment step in urban environments.

Evidence of different thermoregulatory mechanisms between two sympatric Scarabaeus species using infrared thermography and micro-computer tomography

In endotherms insects, the thermoregulatory mechanisms modulate heat transfer from the thorax to the abdomen to avoid overheating or cooling in order to obtain a prolonged flight performance. Scarabaeus sacer and S. cicatricosus, two sympatric species with the same habitat and food preferences, showed daily temporal segregation with S. cicatricosus being more active during warmer hours of the day in opposition to S. sacer who avoid it. In the case of S. sacer, their endothermy pattern suggested an adaptive capacity for thorax heat retention. In S. cicatricosus, an active ‘heat exchanger’ mechanism was suggested. However, no empirical evidence had been documented until now. Thermographic sequences recorded during flight performance showed evidence of the existence of both thermoregulatory mechanisms. In S. sacer, infrared sequences showed a possible heat insulator (passive thermal window), which prevents heat transfer from meso- and metathorax to the abdomen during flight. In S. cicatricosus, infrared sequences revealed clear and effective heat flow between the thorax and abdomen (abdominal heat transfer) that should be considered the main mechanism of thermoregulation. This was related to a subsequent increase in abdominal pumping (as a cooling mechanism) during flight. Computer microtomography scanning, anatomical dissections and internal air volume measurements showed two possible heat retention mechanisms for S. sacer; the abdominal air sacs and the development of the internal abdominal sternites that could explain the thermoregulation between thorax and abdomen. Our results suggest that interspecific interactions between sympatric species are regulated by very different mechanisms. These mechanisms create unique thermal niches for the different species, thereby preventing competition and modulating spatio-temporal distribution and the composition of dung beetle assemblages.

Variación espacial de la exposición a contaminación atmosférica en la ciudad de Valencia y su relación con un índice de privación

Objetivo: Evaluar la variación espacial de la exposición a dióxido de nitrógeno (NO2) en la ciudad de Valencia y su relación con la privación socioeconómica y la edad. Métodos: La población por sección censal (SC) procede del Instituto Nacional de Estadística. Los niveles de NO2 se midieron en 100 puntos del área de estudio, mediante captadores pasivos, en tres campañas entre 2002 y 2004. Se utilizó regresión por usos del suelo (LUR) para obtener el mapa de los niveles de NO2. Las predicciones del LUR se compararon con las proporcionadas por: a) el captador más cercano de la red de vigilancia, b) el captador pasivo más cercano, c) el conjunto de captadores en un entorno y d) kriging. Se asignaron niveles de contaminación para cada SC. Se analizó la relación entre los niveles de NO2, un índice de privación con cinco categorías y la edad (≥65 años). Resultados: El modelo LUR resultó el método más preciso. Más del 99% de la población superó los niveles de seguridad propuestos por la Organización Mundial de la Salud. Se encontró una relación inversa entre los niveles de NO2 y el índice de privación (β = –2,01 μg/m3 en el quintil de mayor privación respecto al de menor, IC95%: –3,07 a –0,95), y una relación directa con la edad (β = 0,12 μg/m3 por incremento en unidad porcentual de población ≥65 años, IC95%: 0,08 a 0,16). Conclusiones: El método permitió obtener mapas de contaminación y describir la relación entre niveles de NO2 y características sociodemográficas.

Changes in the storage and sink of carbon dioxide in subsurface atmospheres controlled by climate-driven processes: the case of the Ojo Guareña karst system

A comprehensive environmental monitoring program was conducted in the Ojo Guareña cave system (Spain), one of the longest cave systems in Europe, to assess the magnitude of the spatiotemporal changes in carbon dioxide gas (CO2) in the cave–soil–atmosphere profile. The key climate-driven processes involved in gas exchange, primarily gas diffusion and cave ventilation due to advective forces, were characterized. The spatial distributions of both processes were described through measurements of CO2 and its carbon isotopic signal (δ13C[CO2]) from exterior, soil and cave air samples analyzed by cavity ring-down spectroscopy (CRDS). The trigger mechanisms of air advection (temperature or air density differences or barometric imbalances) were controlled by continuous logging systems. Radon monitoring was also used to characterize the changing airflow that results in a predictable seasonal or daily pattern of CO2 concentrations and its carbon isotopic signal. Large daily oscillations of CO2 levels, ranging from 680 to 1900 ppm day−1 on average, were registered during the daily oscillations of the exterior air temperature around the cave air temperature. These daily variations in CO2 concentration were unobservable once the outside air temperature was continuously below the cave temperature and a prevailing advective-renewal of cave air was established, such that the daily-averaged concentrations of CO2 reached minimum values close to atmospheric background. The daily pulses of CO2 and other tracer gases such as radon (222Rn) were smoothed in the inner cave locations, where fluctuation of both gases was primarily correlated with medium-term changes in air pressure. A pooled analysis of these data provided evidence that atmospheric air that is inhaled into dynamically ventilated caves can then return to the lower troposphere as CO2-rich cave air.