Exact solutions for the agricultural and the two-dimensional packing problems

Objectives and study method: The objective of this study is to develop exact algorithms that can be used as management tools for the agricultural production planning and to obtain exact solutions for two of the most well known twodimensional packing problems: the strip packing problem and the bin packing problem. For the agricultural production planning problem we propose a new hierarchical scheme of three stages to improve the current agricultural practices. The objective of the first stage is to delineate rectangular and homogeneous management zones into the farmer’s plots considering the physical and chemical soil properties. This is an important task because the soil properties directly affect the agricultural production planning. The methodology for this stage is based on a new method called “Positions and Covering” that first generates all the possible positions in which the plot can be delineated. Then, we use a mathematical model of linear programming to obtain the optimal physical and chemical management zone delineation of the plot. In the second stage the objective is to determine the optimal crop pattern that maximizes the farmer’s profit taken into account the previous management zones delineation. In this case, the crop pattern is affected by both management zones delineation, physical and chemical. A mixed integer linear programming is used to solve this stage. The objective of the last stage is to determine in real-time the amount of water to irrigate in each crop. This stage takes as input the solution of the crop planning stage, the atmospheric conditions (temperature, radiation, etc.), the humidity level in plots, and the physical management zones of plots, just to name a few. This procedure is made in real-time during each irrigation period. A linear programming is used to solve this problem. A breakthrough happen when we realize that we could propose some adaptations of the P&C methodology to obtain optimal solutions for the two-dimensional packing problem and the strip packing. We empirically show that our methodologies are efficient on instances based on real data for both problems: agricultural and two-dimensional packing problems. Contributions and conclusions: The exact algorithms showed in this study can be used in the making-decision support for agricultural planning and twodimensional packing problems. For the agricultural planning problem, we show that the implementation of the new hierarchical approach can improve the farmer profit between 5.27% until 8.21% through the optimization of the natural resources. An important characteristic of this problem is that the soil properties (physical and chemical) and the real-time factors (climate, humidity level, evapotranspiration, etc.) are incorporated. With respect to the two-dimensional packing problems, one of the main contributions of this study is the fact that we have demonstrate that many of the best solutions founded in literature by others approaches (heuristics approaches) are the optimal solutions. This is very important because some of these solutions were up to now not guarantee to be the optimal solutions.

Relatório de Estágio de Intervenção Comunitária

O envelhecimento populacional, bem como a longevidade dos indivíduos são fenómenos relativamente novos no entanto, a sociedade não se encontra preparada para cuidar de todos estes indivíduos. Neste sentido, o envelhecimento torna-se um fenómeno mundial irreversível e inevitável em todos os seres vivos, sendo uma temática emergente para a delineação de políticas de saúde que minimizem as consequências que dele advêm. É, deste modo, que surgem os cuidadores informais, familiares que ficam com idosos dependentes a cargo. O cuidador informal enfrenta no seu quotidiano situações imprevisíveis e sofre perdas de controlo pessoal que vão provocar alterações na sua saúde física e emocional. Na ausência de cuidadores informais aptos para o seu papel, a temática do envelhecimento torna-se ainda mais grave e emergente. Com base nestas premissas, o nosso estágio decorreu de Setembro de 2013 a Fevereiro de 2014, na UCC de Elvas (1ª fase) e posteriormente, nos domicílios dos cuidadores informais. O estágio teve apenas uma intervenção na área da capacitação em AVD’s de alimentação, mobilização e eliminação, dos cuidadores informais com idosos dependentes a cargo, que era composta por sessões de educação para a saúde e sessões de treino e reuniões de grupo entre os cuidadores. Ao longo da intervenção foi utilizada a metodologia do planeamento em saúde e as sessões de educação para a saúde suportaram-se no MDAIF. Foram inseridos na intervenção 10 cuidadores informais e relativamente à satisfação manifestada pelos mesmos acerca da intervenção obteve-se um resultado de 100% que se mostraram muito satisfeitos ou extremamente satisfeitos. Este estágio de intervenção comunitária permitiu-nos adquirir a maioria das competências gerais do Enfermeiro Especialista assim como as competências específicas do Enfermeiro Especialista em Enfermagem Comunitária e de Saúde Pública definidas pela Ordem dos Enfermeiros.

FAULT MORPHOLOGY WITHIN THE SOUTHERN KENYAN PORTION OF THE EAST AFRICAN RIFT VALLEY

Faults form quickly, geologically speaking, with sharp, crisp step-like profiles. Logic dictates that erosion wears away this "sharpness" or angularity creating more rounded features. As erosion occurs, debris accumulates at the base of the scarp slope. The stable end point of this process is when the scarp slope approaches an ideal sigmoid shape. This theory of fault end process, in combination with a new method developed in this report for fault profile delineation, has the potential to enable observation and categorization of fault profiles over large, diverse swaths of fault formation-- in remote areas such as the Southern Kenyan Rift Valley. This up-to date method uses remote sensing data and the digitizer tool in Global Mapper to create shape files of fault segments. This method can provide further evidence to support the notion that sigmoidal- shaped profiles represent a natural endpoint of the erosional process of fault scarps. Over time, faults of many different ages would exist in this similar shape over a wide region. However, keeping in mind that other processes can be at work on scarps-- most notably drainage patterns, when anomalies in profiles are observed, reactivation in some form possibly has occurred.

An automatic classifier of emotions built from entropy of noise

The electrocardiogram (ECG) signal has been widely used to study the physiological substrates of emotion. However, searching for better filtering techniques in order to obtain a signal with better quality and with the maximum relevant information remains an important issue for researchers in this field. Signal processing is largely performed for ECG analysis and interpretation, but this process can be susceptible to error in the delineation phase. In addition, it can lead to the loss of important information that is usually considered as noise and, consequently, discarded from the analysis. The goal of this study was to evaluate if the ECG noise allows for the classification of emotions, while using its entropy as an input in a decision tree classifier. We collected the ECG signal from 25 healthy participants while they were presented with videos eliciting negative (fear and disgust) and neutral emotions. The results indicated that the neutral condition showed a perfect identification (100%), whereas the classification of negative emotions indicated good identification performances (60% of sensitivity and 80% of specificity). These results suggest that the entropy of noise contains relevant information that can be useful to improve the analysis of the physiological correlates of emotion.

Aplicação do modelo de Pólya na resolução de problemas de processo : um estudo envolvendo alunos do 2.º ano do 1.º Ciclo do Ensino Básico

Relatório de Estágio apresentado à Escola Superior de Educação do Instituto Politécnico de Castelo Branco para cumprimento dos requisitos necessários à obtenção do grau de Mestre em Educação Pré-Escolar e Ensino do 1.º Ciclo do Ensino Básico.

Development of Novel Time-Domain Electromagnetic Methods for Offshore Groundwater Studies: A Data Application from Bat Yam, Israel

Recent marine long-offset transient electromagnetic (LOTEM) measurements yielded the offshore delineation of a fresh groundwater body beneath the seafloor in the region of Bat Yam, Israel. The LOTEM application was effective in detecting this freshwater body underneath the Mediterranean Sea and allowed an estimation of its seaward extent. However, the measured data set was insufficient to understand the hydrogeological configuration and mechanism controlling the occurrence of this fresh groundwater discovery. Especially the lateral geometry of the freshwater boundary, important for the hydrogeological modelling, could not be resolved. Without such an understanding, a rational management of this unexploited groundwater reservoir is not possible. Two new high-resolution marine time-domain electromagnetic methods are theoretically developed to derive the hydrogeological structure of the western aquifer boundary. The first is called Circular Electric Dipole (CED). It is the land-based analogous of the Vertical Electric Dipole (VED), which is commonly applied to detect resistive structures in the subsurface. Although the CED shows exceptional detectability characteristics in the step-off signal towards the sub-seafloor freshwater body, an actual application was not carried out in the extent of this study. It was found that the method suffers from an insufficient signal strength to adequately delineate the resistive aquifer under realistic noise conditions. Moreover, modelling studies demonstrated that severe signal distortions are caused by the slightest geometrical inaccuracies. As a result, a successful application of CED in Israel proved to be rather doubtful. A second method called Differential Electric Dipole (DED) is developed as an alternative to the intended CED method. Compared to the conventional marine time-domain electromagnetic system that commonly applies a horizontal electric dipole transmitter, the DED is composed of two horizontal electric dipoles in an in-line configuration that share a common central electrode. Theoretically, DED has similar detectability/resolution characteristics compared to the conventional LOTEM system. However, the superior lateral resolution towards multi-dimensional resistivity structures make an application desirable. Furthermore, the method is less susceptible towards geometrical errors making an application in Israel feasible. In the extent of this thesis, the novel marine DED method is substantiated using several one-dimensional (1D) and multi-dimensional (2D/3D) modelling studies. The main emphasis lies on the application in Israel. Preliminary resistivity models are derived from the previous marine LOTEM measurement and tested for a DED application. The DED method is effective in locating the two-dimensional resistivity structure at the western aquifer boundary. Moreover, a prediction regarding the hydrogeological boundary conditions are feasible, provided a brackish water zone exists at the head of the interface. A seafloor-based DED transmitter/receiver system is designed and built at the Institute of Geophysics and Meteorology at the University of Cologne. The first DED measurements were carried out in Israel in April 2016. The acquired data set is the first of its kind. The measured data is processed and subsequently interpreted using 1D inversion. The intended aim of interpreting both step-on and step-off signals failed, due to the insufficient data quality of the latter. Yet, the 1D inversion models of the DED step-on signals clearly detect the freshwater body for receivers located close to the Israeli coast. Additionally, a lateral resistivity contrast is observable in the 1D inversion models that allow to constrain the seaward extent of this freshwater body. A large-scale 2D modelling study followed the 1D interpretation. In total, 425 600 forward calculations are conducted to find a sub-seafloor resistivity distribution that adequately explains the measured data. The results indicate that the western aquifer boundary is located at 3600 m - 3700 m before the coast. Moreover, a brackish water zone of 3 Omega*m to 5 Omega*m with a lateral extent of less than 300 m is likely located at the head of the freshwater aquifer. Based on these results, it is predicted that the sub-seafloor freshwater body is indeed open to the sea and may be vulnerable to seawater intrusion.

Sustainable futuring. Learning and unlearning the past A critical discourse study of ‘fashion sustainability’-related discursive formations in Vogue Italia (1965-2021)

Recent scholarly works on the relationship between ‘fashion’ and ‘sustainability’ have identified a need for a systemic transition towards fashion media ‘for sustaianbility’. Nevertheless, the academic research on the topic is still limited and rather circumscribed to the analysis of marketing practices, while only recently some more systemic and critical analyses of the symbolic production of sustainability through fashion media have been undertaken. Responding to this need for an in-depth investigation of ‘sustainability’-related media production, my research focuses on the ‘fashion sustainability’-related discursive formations in the context of one of the most influential fashion magazines today – Vogue Italia. In order to investigate the ways in which the ‘sustainability’ discourse was formed and has evolved, the study considered the entire Vogue Italia archive from 1965 to 2021. The data collection was carried out in two phases, and the individualised relevant discursive units were then in-depth and critically analysed to allow for a grounded assessment of the media giant’s position. The Discourse-Historical Approach provided a methodological base for the analysis, which took into consideration the various levels of context: the immediate textual and intertextual, but also the broader socio-cultural context of the predominant, over-production oriented and capital-led fashion system. The findings led to a delineation of the evolution of the ‘fashion sustainability’ discourse, unveiling how despite Vogue Italia’s auto-determination as attentive to ‘sustainability’-related topics, the magazine is systemically employing discursive strategies which significantly mitigate the meaning of the ‘sustainable commitment’ and thus the meaning of ‘fashion sustainability’.

Integrated communication and learning towards autonomous mobile radio networks

The integration of distributed and ubiquitous intelligence has emerged over the last years as the mainspring of transformative advancements in mobile radio networks. As we approach the era of “mobile for intelligence”, next-generation wireless networks are poised to undergo significant and profound changes. Notably, the overarching challenge that lies ahead is the development and implementation of integrated communication and learning mechanisms that will enable the realization of autonomous mobile radio networks. The ultimate pursuit of eliminating human-in-the-loop constitutes an ambitious challenge, necessitating a meticulous delineation of the fundamental characteristics that artificial intelligence (AI) should possess to effectively achieve this objective. This challenge represents a paradigm shift in the design, deployment, and operation of wireless networks, where conventional, static configurations give way to dynamic, adaptive, and AI-native systems capable of self-optimization, self-sustainment, and learning. This thesis aims to provide a comprehensive exploration of the fundamental principles and practical approaches required to create autonomous mobile radio networks that seamlessly integrate communication and learning components. The first chapter of this thesis introduces the notion of Predictive Quality of Service (PQoS) and adaptive optimization and expands upon the challenge to achieve adaptable, reliable, and robust network performance in dynamic and ever-changing environments. The subsequent chapter delves into the revolutionary role of generative AI in shaping next-generation autonomous networks. This chapter emphasizes achieving trustworthy uncertainty-aware generation processes with the use of approximate Bayesian methods and aims to show how generative AI can improve generalization while reducing data communication costs. Finally, the thesis embarks on the topic of distributed learning over wireless networks. Distributed learning and its declinations, including multi-agent reinforcement learning systems and federated learning, have the potential to meet the scalability demands of modern data-driven applications, enabling efficient and collaborative model training across dynamic scenarios while ensuring data privacy and reducing communication overhead.

Data-driven multivariate flood hazard modeling

The present Dissertation shows how recent statistical analysis tools and open datasets can be exploited to improve modelling accuracy in two distinct yet interconnected domains of flood hazard (FH) assessment. In the first Part, unsupervised artificial neural networks are employed as regional models for sub-daily rainfall extremes. The models aim to learn a robust relation to estimate locally the parameters of Gumbel distributions of extreme rainfall depths for any sub-daily duration (1-24h). The predictions depend on twenty morphoclimatic descriptors. A large study area in north-central Italy is adopted, where 2238 annual maximum series are available. Validation is performed over an independent set of 100 gauges. Our results show that multivariate ANNs may remarkably improve the estimation of percentiles relative to the benchmark approach from the literature, where Gumbel parameters depend on mean annual precipitation. Finally, we show that the very nature of the proposed ANN models makes them suitable for interpolating predicted sub-daily rainfall quantiles across space and time-aggregation intervals. In the second Part, decision trees are used to combine a selected blend of input geomorphic descriptors for predicting FH. Relative to existing DEM-based approaches, this method is innovative, as it relies on the combination of three characteristics: (1) simple multivariate models, (2) a set of exclusively DEM-based descriptors as input, and (3) an existing FH map as reference information. First, the methods are applied to northern Italy, represented with the MERIT DEM (∼90m resolution), and second, to the whole of Italy, represented with the EU-DEM (25m resolution). The results show that multivariate approaches may (a) significantly enhance flood-prone areas delineation relative to a selected univariate one, (b) provide accurate predictions of expected inundation depths, (c) produce encouraging results in extrapolation, (d) complete the information of imperfect reference maps, and (e) conveniently convert binary maps into continuous representation of FH.