A novel framework for modeling value for the customer, an essay on negotiation

This paper proposes a novel framework for modelling the Value for the Customer, the so-called the Conceptual Model for Decomposing Value for the Customer (CMDVC). This conceptual model is first validated through an exploratory case study where the authors validate both the proposed constructs of the model and their relations. In a second step the authors propose a mathematical formulation for the CMDVC as well as a computational method. This has enabled the final quantitative discussion of how the CMDVC can be applied and used in the enterprise environment, and the final validation by the people in the enterprise. Along this research, we were able to confirm that the results of this novel quantitative approach to model the Value for the Customer is consistent with the company's empirical experience. The paper further discusses the merits and limitations of this approach, proposing that the model is likely to bring value to support not only the contract preparation at an Ex-Ante Negotiation Phase, as demonstrated, but also along the actual negotiation process, as finally confirmed by an enterprise testimonial.

On the DNA of eleven mammals

This paper studies the DNA code of eleven mammals from the perspective of fractional dynamics. The application of Fourier transform and power law trendlines leads to a categorical representation of species and chromosomes. The DNA information reveals long range memory characteristics.

Multi-dimensional scaling applied to histogram-based DNA analysis

This paper aims to study the relationships between chromosomal DNA sequences of twenty species. We propose a methodology combining DNA-based word frequency histograms, correlation methods, and an MDS technique to visualize structural information underlying chromosomes (CRs) and species. Four statistical measures are tested (Minkowski, Cosine, Pearson product-moment, and Kendall τ rank correlations) to analyze the information content of 421 nuclear CRs from twenty species. The proposed methodology is built on mathematical tools and allows the analysis and visualization of very large amounts of stream data, like DNA sequences, with almost no assumptions other than the predefined DNA “word length.” This methodology is able to produce comprehensible three-dimensional visualizations of CR clustering and related spatial and structural patterns. The results of the four test correlation scenarios show that the high-level information clusterings produced by the MDS tool are qualitatively similar, with small variations due to each correlation method characteristics, and that the clusterings are a consequence of the input data and not method’s artifacts.

A multidimensional scaling analysis of musical sounds based on pseudo phase plane

This paper studies musical opus from the point of view of three mathematical tools: entropy, pseudo phase plane (PPP), and multidimensional scaling (MDS). The experiments analyze ten sets of different musical styles. First, for each musical composition, the PPP is produced using the time series lags captured by the average mutual information. Second, to unravel hidden relationships between the musical styles the MDS technique is used. The MDS is calculated based on two alternative metrics obtained from the PPP, namely, the average mutual information and the fractal dimension. The results reveal significant differences in the musical styles, demonstrating the feasibility of the proposed strategy and motivating further developments towards a dynamical analysis of musical sounds.

Analysis and visualization of chromosome information

This paper analyzes the DNA code of several species in the perspective of information content. For that purpose several concepts and mathematical tools are selected towards establishing a quantitative method without a priori distorting the alphabet represented by the sequence of DNA bases. The synergies of associating Gray code, histogram characterization and multidimensional scaling visualization lead to a collection of plots with a categorical representation of species and chromosomes.

Memory as discourse in Harold Pinter's old times, betrayal and a kind of Alaska

This paper aims at developing the topic of identity and the narration of the self through the other in Harold Pinter’s plays Old Times, Betrayal and A Kind of Alaska. In these plays Pinter deploys strategies to convey multiple implications which are based on the power of memory in which the structure of the plays is concocted.

A novel application of microwave-assisted extraction of polyphenols from brewer’s spent grain with HPLC-DAD-MS analysis

This paper reports a novel application of microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) of polyphenols from brewer’s spent grains (BSG). A 24 orthogonal composite design was used to obtain the optimal conditions of MAE. The influence of the MAE operational parameters (extraction time, temperature, solvent volume and stirring speed) on the extraction yield of ferulic acid was investigated through response surface methodology. The results showed that the optimal conditions were 15 min extraction time, 100 °C extraction temperature, 20 mL of solvent, and maximum stirring speed. Under these conditions, the yield of ferulic acid was 1.31±0.04% (w/w), which was fivefold higher than that obtained with conventional solid–liquid extraction techniques. The developed new extraction method considerably reduces extraction time, energy and solvent consumption, while generating fewer wastes. HPLC-DADMS analysis indicated that other hydroxycinnamic acids and several ferulic acid dehydrodimers, as well as one dehydrotrimer were also present, confirming that BSG is a valuable source of antioxidant compounds.

Remediation of sandy soils contaminated with hydrocarbons and halogenated hydrocarbons by soil vapour extraction

This paper presents the study of the remediation of sandy soils containing six of the most common contaminants (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylene, trichloroethylene and perchloroethylene) using soil vapour extraction (SVE). The influence of soil water content on the process efficiency was evaluated considering the soil type and the contaminant. For artificially contaminated soils with negligible clay contents and natural organic matter it was concluded that: (i) all the remediation processes presented efficiencies above 92%; (ii) an increase of the soil water content led to a more time-consuming remediation; (iii) longer remediation periods were observed for contaminants with lower vapour pressures and lower water solubilities due to mass transfer limitations. Based on these results an easy and relatively fast procedure was developed for the prediction of the remediation times of real soils; 83% of the remediation times were predicted with relative deviations below 14%.

Analysing organochlorine pesticides in strawberry jams using GC-ECD, GC-MS/MS and QuEChERS sample preparation

This paper describes a comparison of adaptations of the QuEChERS (quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged and safe) approach for the determination of 14 organochlorine pesticide (OCP) residues in strawberry jam by concurrent use of gas chromatography (GC) coupled to electron capture detector (ECD) and GC tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS). Three versions were tested based on the original QuEChERS method. The results were good (overall average of 89% recoveries with 15% RSD) using the ultrasonic bath at five spiked levels. Performance characteristics, such as accuracy, precision, linear range, limits of detection (LOD) and quantification (LOQ), were determined for each pesticide. LOD ranged from 0.8 to 8.9 microg kg-1 ; LOQ was in the range of 2.5–29.8 microg kg- 1; and calibration curves were linear (r2>0.9970) in the whole range of the explored concentrations (5–100 microg kg- 1). The LODs of these pesticides were much lower than the maximum residue levels (MRLs) allowed in Europe for strawberries. The method was successfully applied to the quantification of OCP in commercially available jams. The OCPs were detected lower than the LOD.

Negotiation platform for personalised advertising

This paper describes a multi-agent brokerage platform for near real time advertising personalisation organised in three layers: user interface, agency and marketplace. The personalisation is based on the classification of viewer profiles and advertisements (ads). The goal is to provide viewers with a personalised advertising alignment during programme intervals. The enterprise interface agents upload new ads and negotiation profiles to producer agents and new user and negotiation profiles to distributor agents. The agency layer is composed of agents that represent ad producer and media distributor enterprises as well as the market regulator. The enterprise agents offer data upload and download operations as Web Services and register the specification of these interfaces at an UDDI registry for future discovery. The market agent supports the registration and deregistration of enterprise delegate agents at the marketplace. This paper addresses the marketplace layer, an agent-based negotiation platform per se, where delegates of the relevant advertising agencies and programme distributors negotiate to create the advertising alignment that best fits a viewer profile and the advertising campaigns available. The whole brokerage platform is being developed in JADE, a multi-agent development platform. The delegate agents download the negotiation profile and upload the negotiation results from / to the corresponding enterprise agent. In the meanwhile, they negotiate using the Iterated Contract Net protocol. All tools and technologies used are open source.

Access and use of european information: a comparative analysis

This paper presents some results of a survey on access to European information among a group of 234 users of 55 European Documentation Centres (EDCs), from 21 European Union (EU) Member-States. The findings of the questionnaire made to 88 EDCs' managers, from 26 EU Member-States, will also be analyse. Two different points of view regarding issues related to reasons to access European information, the valued aspects during that access and the use of European databases will be compare.

Real-time scheduling of parallel tasks in the Linux Kernel

This paper proposes a global multiprocessor scheduling algorithm for the Linux kernel that combines the global EDF scheduler with a priority-aware work-stealing load balancing scheme, enabling parallel real-time tasks to be executed on more than one processor at a given time instant. We state that some priority inversion may actually be acceptable, provided it helps reduce contention, communication, synchronisation and coordination between parallel threads, while still guaranteeing the expected system’s predictability. Experimental results demonstrate the low scheduling overhead of the proposed approach comparatively to an existing real-time deadline-oriented scheduling class for the Linux kernel.

Shannon information and power law analysis of the chromosome code

This paper studies the information content of the chromosomes of twenty-three species. Several statistics considering different number of bases for alphabet character encoding are derived. Based on the resulting histograms, word delimiters and character relative frequencies are identified. The knowledge of this data allows moving along each chromosome while evaluating the flow of characters and words. The resulting flux of information is captured by means of Shannon entropy. The results are explored in the perspective of power law relationships allowing a quantitative evaluation of the DNA of the species.

Shannon entropy analysis of the genome code

This paper studies the chromosome information of twenty five species, namely, mammals, fishes, birds, insects, nematodes, fungus, and one plant. A quantifying scheme inspired in the state space representation of dynamical systems is formulated. Based on this algorithm, the information of each chromosome is converted into a bidimensional distribution. The plots are then analyzed and characterized by means of Shannon entropy. The large volume of information is integrated by averaging the lengths and entropy quantities of each species. The results can be easily visualized revealing quantitative global genomic information.

Application of integer and fractional models in electrochemical systems

This paper describes the use of integer and fractional electrical elements, for modelling two electrochemical systems. A first type of system consists of botanical elements and a second type is implemented by electrolyte processes with fractal electrodes. Experimental results are analyzed in the frequency domain, and the pros and cons of adopting fractional-order electrical components for modelling these systems are compared.