David Hume on probability and the Gambler’s fallacy

Cette présentation examinera le degré de certitude qui peut être atteint dans le domaine scientifique. Le paradigme scientifique est composé de deux extrêmes; causalité et déterminisme d'un côté et probabilité et indéterminisme de l'autre. En faisant appel aux notions de Hume de la ressemblance et la contiguïté, on peut rejeter la causalité ou le hasard objectif comme étant sans fondement et non empirique. Le problème de l'induction et le sophisme du parieur proviennent d’une même source cognitif / heuristique. Hume décrit ces tendances mentales dans ses essais « Of Probability » et « Of the Idea of Necessary Connexion ». Une discussion sur la conception de la probabilité de Hume ainsi que d'autres interprétations de probabilité sera nécessaire. Même si la science glorifie et idéalise la causalité, la probabilité peut être comprise comme étant tout aussi cohérente. Une attitude probabiliste, même si elle est également non empirique, pourrait être plus avantageuse que le vieux paradigme de la causalité.

Rendimiento de los estudiantes finlandeses en PISA: las claves del éxito en lectura.

Número extraordinario 2006, con el título: PISA. Programa para la Evaluación Internacional de Alumnos. Resumen basado en el de la publicación

Convergent evolution of [D-Leucine1] microcystin-LR in taxonomically disparate cyanobacteria

Abstract Background Many important toxins and antibiotics are produced by non-ribosomal biosynthetic pathways. Microcystins are a chemically diverse family of potent peptide toxins and the end-products of a hybrid NRPS and PKS secondary metabolic pathway. They are produced by a variety of cyanobacteria and are responsible for the poisoning of humans as well as the deaths of wild and domestic animals around the world. The chemical diversity of the microcystin family is attributed to a number of genetic events that have resulted in the diversification of the pathway for microcystin assembly. Results Here, we show that independent evolutionary events affecting the substrate specificity of the microcystin biosynthetic pathway have resulted in convergence on a rare [D-Leu1] microcystin-LR chemical variant. We detected this rare microcystin variant from strains of the distantly related genera Microcystis, Nostoc, and Phormidium. Phylogenetic analysis performed using sequences of the catalytic domains within the mcy gene cluster demonstrated a clear recombination pattern in the adenylation domain phylogenetic tree. We found evidence for conversion of the gene encoding the McyA2 adenylation domain in strains of the genera Nostoc and Phormidium. However, point mutations affecting the substrate-binding sequence motifs of the McyA2 adenylation domain were associated with the change in substrate specificity in two strains of Microcystis. In addition to the main [D-Leu1] microcystin-LR variant, these two strains produced a new microcystin that was identified as [Met1] microcystin-LR. Conclusions Phylogenetic analysis demonstrated that both point mutations and gene conversion result in functional mcy gene clusters that produce the same rare [D-Leu1] variant of microcystin in strains of the genera Microcystis, Nostoc, and Phormidium. Engineering pathways to produce recombinant non-ribosomal peptides could provide new natural products or increase the activity of known compounds. Our results suggest that the replacement of entire adenylation domains could be a more successful strategy to obtain higher specificity in the modification of the non-ribosomal peptides than point mutations.

Nonlinear constrained and saturated control of power electronics and electromechanical systems

Power electronic converters are extensively adopted for the solution of timely issues, such as power quality improvement in industrial plants, energy management in hybrid electrical systems, and control of electrical generators for renewables. Beside nonlinearity, this systems are typically characterized by hard constraints on the control inputs, and sometimes the state variables. In this respect, control laws able to handle input saturation are crucial to formally characterize the systems stability and performance properties. From a practical viewpoint, a proper saturation management allows to extend the systems transient and steady-state operating ranges, improving their reliability and availability. The main topic of this thesis concern saturated control methodologies, based on modern approaches, applied to power electronics and electromechanical systems. The pursued objective is to provide formal results under any saturation scenario, overcoming the drawbacks of the classic solution commonly applied to cope with saturation of power converters, and enhancing performance. For this purpose two main approaches are exploited and extended to deal with power electronic applications: modern anti-windup strategies, providing formal results and systematic design rules for the anti-windup compensator, devoted to handle control saturation, and “one step” saturated feedback design techniques, relying on a suitable characterization of the saturation nonlinearity and less conservative extensions of standard absolute stability theory results. The first part of the thesis is devoted to present and develop a novel general anti-windup scheme, which is then specifically applied to a class of power converters adopted for power quality enhancement in industrial plants. In the second part a polytopic differential inclusion representation of saturation nonlinearity is presented and extended to deal with a class of multiple input power converters, used to manage hybrid electrical energy sources. The third part regards adaptive observers design for robust estimation of the parameters required for high performance control of power systems.

Model predictive control in thermal management of multiprocessor systems-on-chip

MultiProcessor Systems-on-Chip (MPSoC) are the core of nowadays and next generation computing platforms. Their relevance in the global market continuously increase, occupying an important role both in everydaylife products (e.g. smartphones, tablets, laptops, cars) and in strategical market sectors as aviation, defense, robotics, medicine. Despite of the incredible performance improvements in the recent years processors manufacturers have had to deal with issues, commonly called “Walls”, that have hindered the processors development. After the famous “Power Wall”, that limited the maximum frequency of a single core and marked the birth of the modern multiprocessors system-on-chip, the “Thermal Wall” and the “Utilization Wall” are the actual key limiter for performance improvements. The former concerns the damaging effects of the high temperature on the chip caused by the large power densities dissipation, whereas the second refers to the impossibility of fully exploiting the computing power of the processor due to the limitations on power and temperature budgets. In this thesis we faced these challenges by developing efficient and reliable solutions able to maximize performance while limiting the maximum temperature below a fixed critical threshold and saving energy. This has been possible by exploiting the Model Predictive Controller (MPC) paradigm that solves an optimization problem subject to constraints in order to find the optimal control decisions for the future interval. A fully-distributedMPC-based thermal controller with a far lower complexity respect to a centralized one has been developed. The control feasibility and interesting properties for the simplification of the control design has been proved by studying a partial differential equation thermal model. Finally, the controller has been efficiently included in more complex control schemes able to minimize energy consumption and deal with mixed-criticalities tasks

Defining new criteria for selection of cell-based intestinal models using publicly available databases

The criteria for choosing relevant cell lines among a vast panel of available intestinal-derived lines exhibiting a wide range of functional properties are still ill-defined. The objective of this study was, therefore, to establish objective criteria for choosing relevant cell lines to assess their appropriateness as tumor models as well as for drug absorption studies.

Storage as a way to grammaticalization

This paper explores the possible contribution of various types of storage to grammaticalization processes, and the description of such processes by means of Construction Grammar(s) (CxG). The grammaticalization processes of French pas and certain complex adpositions in German and Finnish serve to illustrate that storage can background the literal meaning of elements like pas, thus enabling the constructions containing them to grammaticalize. A further form of storage, the emergence of a productive template on the basis of high type frequency, may in turn stand behind their grammaticalization. Two further assumptions about language use are also exploited in the explanation of grammaticalization: the possibility of processing complex units holistically and a human urge to interpret recurring forms as signs.

The Efficacy of a Novel Microbial 6-Phytase Expressed in Aspergillus oryzae on the Performance and Phosphorus Utilization of Cold- and Warm-Water Fish: Rainbow Trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss , and Nile Tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus

The efficacy and tolerance of a novel microbial 6-phytase were investigated in rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss, and Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus. Reference diets were sufficient in available phosphorus (P). The test diet limiting in available P was supplemented with phytase at 500, 1000, or 2000 phytase units/kg feed. The enzyme was effective in increasing total P apparent digestibility coefficient in relation to increasing the dose of phytase in rainbow trout and Nile tilapia. Zinc apparent digestibility improved in relation to phytase supplementation in rainbow trout. P release due to phytase supplementation ranged from 0.06 to 0.18% P/kg feed in rainbow trout and from 0.13 to 0.26% P/kg feed in Nile tilapia. A 58-d performance trial was conducted to evaluate tolerance of fish to phytase supplementation. Dietary treatments consisted of a basal diet without phytase or supplemented with 2000 and 200,000 phytase units/kg feed. Results indicate that this novel microbial 6-phytase is well tolerated by fish. Significant improvements for growth as well as feed conversion ratio were observed when the phytase was fed at 2000 phytase units/kg feed. This phytase is proven efficient in releasing P from phytate and could be added when plants are used for fish meal replacement in diets for salmonid and omnivorous fish.

La producción de conocimientos en Docencia Universitaria, una mirada sobre las de tesis de Maestría con alumnos internacionales, el caso de la Facultad Regional Buenos Aires de la Universidad Tecnológica Nacional

Como consecuencia del proceso de regionalización de la Educación Superior, la Universidad Tecnológica Nacional al igual que el resto de las Universidades latinoamericanas, ha recibido durante la última década un número creciente de estudiantes extranjeros. En el caso específico de la Maestría en Docencia Universitaria (MDU) de la Facultad Regional Buenos Aires de la Universidad Tecnológica Nacional (UTN.BA), se ha evidenciado una importante afluencia de alumnos provenientes de la República Federativa de Brasil. En el período 1999-2012 se relevaron 145 planes de tesis presentados y aprobados por laComisión de Posgrado de la UNT.BA. Entre ellos, 104 pertenecen a alumnos brasileños, mientras que 36, pertenecen a alumnos argentinos. De los planes de tesis aprobados, en el período estudiado 27, de un total de 48, corresponde a trabajos de tesis presentados y defendidos por alumnos brasileños y 21, por alumnos argentinos. Si se considera que en el año 2008 inició la cursada la primera cohorte de alumnos brasileños, la incidencia de sus trabajos de tesis cobra mayor relevancia. El objetivo del presente trabajo fue caracterizar a los estudiantes de la MDU de la UTN.BA, cuyos planes de tesis hayan sido aprobados por la Comisión de Posgrado en el período 1999-2012 con el fin de valorar la importancia de sus aportes a la investigación educativa a nivel binacional. Para ello se llevó a cabo una investigación de carácter cualitativa-descriptiva de impronta documental, la cual se desarrolló a partir de la recolección de información sobre los tesistas de las cohortes 1999-2012 y sus trabajos tesis

La producción de conocimientos en Docencia Universitaria, una mirada sobre las de tesis de Maestría con alumnos internacionales, el caso de la Facultad Regional Buenos Aires de la Universidad Tecnológica Nacional

Como consecuencia del proceso de regionalización de la Educación Superior, la Universidad Tecnológica Nacional al igual que el resto de las Universidades latinoamericanas, ha recibido durante la última década un número creciente de estudiantes extranjeros. En el caso específico de la Maestría en Docencia Universitaria (MDU) de la Facultad Regional Buenos Aires de la Universidad Tecnológica Nacional (UTN.BA), se ha evidenciado una importante afluencia de alumnos provenientes de la República Federativa de Brasil. En el período 1999-2012 se relevaron 145 planes de tesis presentados y aprobados por laComisión de Posgrado de la UNT.BA. Entre ellos, 104 pertenecen a alumnos brasileños, mientras que 36, pertenecen a alumnos argentinos. De los planes de tesis aprobados, en el período estudiado 27, de un total de 48, corresponde a trabajos de tesis presentados y defendidos por alumnos brasileños y 21, por alumnos argentinos. Si se considera que en el año 2008 inició la cursada la primera cohorte de alumnos brasileños, la incidencia de sus trabajos de tesis cobra mayor relevancia. El objetivo del presente trabajo fue caracterizar a los estudiantes de la MDU de la UTN.BA, cuyos planes de tesis hayan sido aprobados por la Comisión de Posgrado en el período 1999-2012 con el fin de valorar la importancia de sus aportes a la investigación educativa a nivel binacional. Para ello se llevó a cabo una investigación de carácter cualitativa-descriptiva de impronta documental, la cual se desarrolló a partir de la recolección de información sobre los tesistas de las cohortes 1999-2012 y sus trabajos tesis

La producción de conocimientos en Docencia Universitaria, una mirada sobre las de tesis de Maestría con alumnos internacionales, el caso de la Facultad Regional Buenos Aires de la Universidad Tecnológica Nacional

Como consecuencia del proceso de regionalización de la Educación Superior, la Universidad Tecnológica Nacional al igual que el resto de las Universidades latinoamericanas, ha recibido durante la última década un número creciente de estudiantes extranjeros. En el caso específico de la Maestría en Docencia Universitaria (MDU) de la Facultad Regional Buenos Aires de la Universidad Tecnológica Nacional (UTN.BA), se ha evidenciado una importante afluencia de alumnos provenientes de la República Federativa de Brasil. En el período 1999-2012 se relevaron 145 planes de tesis presentados y aprobados por laComisión de Posgrado de la UNT.BA. Entre ellos, 104 pertenecen a alumnos brasileños, mientras que 36, pertenecen a alumnos argentinos. De los planes de tesis aprobados, en el período estudiado 27, de un total de 48, corresponde a trabajos de tesis presentados y defendidos por alumnos brasileños y 21, por alumnos argentinos. Si se considera que en el año 2008 inició la cursada la primera cohorte de alumnos brasileños, la incidencia de sus trabajos de tesis cobra mayor relevancia. El objetivo del presente trabajo fue caracterizar a los estudiantes de la MDU de la UTN.BA, cuyos planes de tesis hayan sido aprobados por la Comisión de Posgrado en el período 1999-2012 con el fin de valorar la importancia de sus aportes a la investigación educativa a nivel binacional. Para ello se llevó a cabo una investigación de carácter cualitativa-descriptiva de impronta documental, la cual se desarrolló a partir de la recolección de información sobre los tesistas de las cohortes 1999-2012 y sus trabajos tesis

SMAD3/4-dependent transcriptional activation of the human type VII collagen gene (COL7A1) promoter by transforming growth factor β

The human type VII collagen gene (COL7A1) recently has been identified as an immediate-early response gene for transforming growth factor β (TGF-β)/SMAD signaling pathway. In this study, by using MDA-MB-468 SMAD4−/− breast carcinoma cells, we demonstrate that expression of SMAD4 is an absolute requirement for SMAD-mediated promoter activity. We also demonstrate that the SMAD binding sequence (SBS) representing the TGF-β response element in the region −496/−444 of the COL7A1 promoter functions as an enhancer in the context of a heterologous promoter. Electrophoretic mobility-shift assays with nuclear extracts from COS-1 cells transfected with expression vectors for SMADs 1–5 indicate that SMAD3 forms a complex with a migration similar to that of the endogenous TGF-β-specific complex observed in fibroblast extracts. Electrophoretic mobility-shift assays using recombinant glutathione S-transferase-SMAD fusion proteins indicate that both SMAD4 and C-terminally truncated SMAD3, but not SMAD2, can bind the COL7A1 SBS. Coexpression of SMAD3 and SMAD4 in COS-1 cells leads to the formation of two complexes: a DNA/protein complex containing SMAD3 alone and another slower-migrating complex containing both SMAD3 and SMAD4, the latter complex not being detected in fibroblasts. Maximal transactivation of COL7A1 SBS-driven promoters in either MDA-MB-468 carcinoma cells or fibroblasts requires concomitant overexpression of SMAD3 and SMAD4. These data may represent the first identification of a functional homomeric SMAD3 complex regulating a human gene.

Fault diagnosis of an automotive suspension system

With the development of the embedded application and driving assistance systems, it becomes relevant to develop parallel mechanisms in order to check and to diagnose these new systems. In this thesis we focus our research on one of this type of parallel mechanisms and analytical redundancy for fault diagnosis of an automotive suspension system. We have considered a quarter model car passive suspension model and used a parameter estimation, ARX model, method to detect the fault happening in the damper and spring of system. Moreover, afterward we have deployed a neural network classifier to isolate the faults and identifies where the fault is happening. Then in this regard, the safety measurements and redundancies can take into the effect to prevent failure in the system. It is shown that The ARX estimator could quickly detect the fault online using the vertical acceleration and displacement sensor data which are common sensors in nowadays vehicles. Hence, the clear divergence is the ARX response make it easy to deploy a threshold to give alarm to the intelligent system of vehicle and the neural classifier can quickly show the place of fault occurrence.