Escacs, un sistema intel·ligent

Des dels inicis dels ordinadors com a màquines programables, l’home ha intentat dotar-los de certa intel•ligència per tal de pensar o raonar el més semblant possible als humans. Un d’aquests intents ha sigut fer que la màquina sigui capaç de pensar de tal manera que estudiï jugades i guanyi partides d’escacs. En l’actualitat amb els actuals sistemes multi tasca, orientat a objectes i accés a memòria i gràcies al potent hardware del que disposem, comptem amb una gran varietat de programes que es dediquen a jugar a escacs. Però no hi ha només programes petits, hi ha fins i tot màquines senceres dedicades a calcular i estudiar jugades per tal de guanyar als millors jugadors del món. L’objectiu del meu treball és dur a terme un estudi i implementació d’un d’aquests programes, per això es divideix en dues parts. La part teòrica o de l’estudi, consta d’un estudi dels sistemes d’intel•ligència artificial que es dediquen a jugar a escacs, estudi i cerca d’una funció d’avaluació vàlida i estudi dels algorismes de cerca. La part pràctica del treball es basa en la implementació d’un sistema intel•ligent capaç de jugar a escacs amb certa lògica. Aquesta implementació es porta a terme amb l’ajuda de les llibreries SDL, utilitzant l’algorisme minimax amb poda alfa-beta i codi c++. Com a conclusió del projecte m’agradaria remarcar que l’estudi realitzat m’ha deixat veure que crear un joc d’escacs no era tan fàcil com jo pensava però m’ha aportat la satisfacció d’aplicar tot el que he après durant la carrera i de descobrir moltes altres coses noves.

Multisystem Developmental Disorder in Children from 2 to 6 Years Old : A Three Years Follow-Up Study

This research studied children who had been diagnosed with Multisystem Developmental Disorder (MSDD) (NC, 2002) under the Diagnostic Classifications of Mental Health and Developmental Disorders of Infancy and Early Childhood (DC: 0 - 3). They all showed, to a varying degree, difficulties in relating to others, play, affective interaction and severe delay in developing communication skills. Some studies have observed continuity in the diagnosis of autism during the first years of life. The objective of this study is to analyse the development of infants with MSDD whose diagnosis of autism was not confirmed. We also attempted to verify any possible psychomotor developmental differences based on, or related to, the severity and typology (B and C) of the MSDD. To enable us to do this we carried out a 3-year follow-up during which we assessed the infants (n = 15) and their parents. They are 2 - 4 years old. Results showed that type B children did present a greater impairment of psychomotor development in assessment tests. However, we did not observe any correlation between the degree of severity of the initial symptoms and later diagnoses. Conclusion: although our sample is small, we can conclude that there isn’t a clear evolution in the diagnosis, but we have found significant differences in the symptomatology between the type B and C

Perspectives for the Spanish Intervention in Macao in the 19th Century

The purpose of this paper is to analyse some essential events concerning the relationship between Spain and Macao in the middle of the 19th century. Macao remained as a privileged spot for the commercial activities of Spain in China after the opening of the international ports agreed upon in the Treaty of Nanjing in 1842. This encouraged Spanish diplomatic representatives to render special attention to the Portuguese enclave. This became the origin of a shocking proposal for the military conquest of Macao and its surrounding territories by one of these representatives, Sinibaldo de Mas. Although this proposal was never taken under consideration, it helps us to better understand the role Macao played in Spanish strategies in China. Years later, Mas participated as a mediator when the Chinese government attempted to regain sovereignty over Macao by paying an economic compensation to Portugal. The involvement of Sinibaldo de Mas in this project has a strong symbolic meaning, making him a key agent in the relations between Spain and Macao in the 19th century.

Uma visão sobre a estrutura, composição e biodegradação da madeira

Wood is the main raw material used in the pulp and paper industry. It is a material that presents heterogeneous structure and complex composition, which results in a relatively resistant material to the biodegradation process. In the present review, we attempted to summarize the structural characteristics of wood and describe the chemical nature of its major components to, afterwards, comment about its biodegradation. The role of the enzyme manganese peroxidase in the lignin degradation by a selective white-rot fungus, Ceriporiopsis subvermispora, was highlighted.

Síntese de poliuretanos modificados por óleo de mamona empregados em materiais energéticos

The aim of this work was to synthesize a polyurethane polymer matrix using castor oil as a polymer chain modifier, whose characteristics can be adjusted for use as a binder in the manufacture of energetic materials such as propellant and pyrotechnics for aerospace use. We attempted the partial substitution of hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene (HTPB), a pre-polymer commonly used as a starting polyol in obtaining energetic matrix composites. Thermoanalytical techniques were employed to characterize the material based on castor oil and the unmodified HTPB. The results showed similar behaviors, confirming the possibility of their use as polymer matrix composites through the proposed adaptations.

Kartonkimateriaalien muotoutuvuus vuokien valmistuksessa

Diplomityön tavoitteena oli tutkia erilaisten elintarvikekartonkien muotoutuvuutta prässäämällä valmistettujen vuokien valmistuksessa. Kirjallisuusosassa käsiteltiin mm. kartongin muotoutuvuuteen vaikuttavia ominaisuuksia sekä lämpötilan ja kosteuden vaikutusta muotoutuvuuteen. Lisäksi kirjallisuusosassa käytiin läpi vuokien valmistusprosessi, jossa vuoka-aihiot valmistetaan stanssaamalla ja vuoat prässäämällä. Lopuksi on esitetty vuokien valmistuksessa kartongin muotoutuvuuteen vaikuttavia ajoparametrejä. Kokeellisessa osassa valmistettiin prässäämällä vuokia erilaisista kartonkimateriaaleista. Jokaiselle materiaalille etsittiin sopivat ajoparametrit erilaisissa kosteuspitoisuuksissa ja vertailtiin niiden muotoutuvuutta. Työ sisälsi myös kaksi laminointikoeajoa, jonka tuloksena saatuja materiaaleja verrattiin referenssi vuokakartonkiin. Vuokien todettiin muotoutuvan parhaiten kosteuden ollessa 7 – 9,4 % välillä. Työssä erottui kartongit, jotka muotoutuivat muita paremmin sekä kartongit, jotka muotoutuivat muita huonommin. Näiden muotoutuvuutta pyrittiin selvittämään mitattujen paperiteknisten ominaisuuksien avulla, mutta selvää yksittäistä selittävää ominaisuutta ei löytynyt. Parhaiten muotoutuvuutta kuvasivat kartonkien kuitukoostumukset. Laminoitujen rakenteiden todettiin muotoutuvan vuokakartonkia paremmin. Tähän vaikuttivat laminaattien korkeammat lujuus- ja venymäarvot.

True believers: the recption of Descartes's meditations by Malebranche and Huet

Both Nicholas Malebranche and Pierre-Daniel Huet were at first positively influenced by Descartes's Meditations, and both came to perceive shortcomings in that work. With respect to mind-body dualism, Malebranche attempted to strengthen Descartes's position by jettisoning clarity and distinctness basing it instead on a principle of intentionality. Huet jettisoned the whole position in favor of skepticism. The source of their different responses lay in their different estimations of Descartes's integrity.

International research partnerships: establishing partner selection criteria in the university-university context

The main objective of the study was to identify and evaluate criteria for international partner selection in university-university context. This study attempted at promoting better understanding of how universities should proceed in selecting partners for producing joint research publications. Thus, the aim of the study was to gain an understanding of how research collaborations can be developed and how partners can be selected. The choice of a right partner has been identified as a precondition for partnership success. In international research collaborations partnering scientists with different skills and backgrounds bring together complementary knowledge into research projects, which in most cases results in a higher quality output. Therefore, prior to selecting a partner, the set of criteria should be established. This research examined twelve Russian universities with the status of national research university as potential partners for Lappeenranta University of Technology, and selected the most appropriate universities based on established set of criteria. Potential partners’ evaluation was done using secondary sources by tracking partners’ academic success during the period 2005 – 2010. Based on established criteria, the study calculated the partnership index for each university. The results of the research reveal that among twelve examined universities there are four potential partners who have been rather active in publishing scientific articles during 2005 – 2010.

Boundary identification in the domain of a parabolic partial differential equation

Bakgrunden och inspirationen till föreliggande studie är tidigare forskning i tillämpningar på randidentifiering i metallindustrin. Effektiv randidentifiering möjliggör mindre säkerhetsmarginaler och längre serviceintervall för apparaturen i industriella högtemperaturprocesser, utan ökad risk för materielhaverier. I idealfallet vore en metod för randidentifiering baserad på uppföljning av någon indirekt variabel som kan mätas rutinmässigt eller till en ringa kostnad. En dylik variabel för smältugnar är temperaturen i olika positioner i väggen. Denna kan utnyttjas som insignal till en randidentifieringsmetod för att övervaka ugnens väggtjocklek. Vi ger en bakgrund och motivering till valet av den geometriskt endimensionella dynamiska modellen för randidentifiering, som diskuteras i arbetets senare del, framom en flerdimensionell geometrisk beskrivning. I de aktuella industriella tillämpningarna är dynamiken samt fördelarna med en enkel modellstruktur viktigare än exakt geometrisk beskrivning. Lösningsmetoder för den s.k. sidledes värmeledningsekvationen har många saker gemensamt med randidentifiering. Därför studerar vi egenskaper hos lösningarna till denna ekvation, inverkan av mätfel och något som brukar kallas förorening av mätbrus, regularisering och allmännare följder av icke-välställdheten hos sidledes värmeledningsekvationen. Vi studerar en uppsättning av tre olika metoder för randidentifiering, av vilka de två första är utvecklade från en strikt matematisk och den tredje från en mera tillämpad utgångspunkt. Metoderna har olika egenskaper med specifika fördelar och nackdelar. De rent matematiskt baserade metoderna karakteriseras av god noggrannhet och låg numerisk kostnad, dock till priset av låg flexibilitet i formuleringen av den modellbeskrivande partiella differentialekvationen. Den tredje, mera tillämpade, metoden kännetecknas av en sämre noggrannhet förorsakad av en högre grad av icke-välställdhet hos den mera flexibla modellen. För denna gjordes även en ansats till feluppskattning, som senare kunde observeras överensstämma med praktiska beräkningar med metoden. Studien kan anses vara en god startpunkt och matematisk bas för utveckling av industriella tillämpningar av randidentifiering, speciellt mot hantering av olinjära och diskontinuerliga materialegenskaper och plötsliga förändringar orsakade av “nedfallande” väggmaterial. Med de behandlade metoderna förefaller det möjligt att uppnå en robust, snabb och tillräckligt noggrann metod av begränsad komplexitet för randidentifiering.

Rummet i vårdandets värld

This study is made in the context of basic research within the field ofcaring science. The aim is to make a theoretical and ontological investigation of what the space is in the world of caring. The basic proposition is that the space, as a fundamental dimension, has an impact on how the appreciation of one's mental health and suffering is shaped, and vice versa. The overall purpose is to develop a theoretical model of space from the caring science point of view andalso to offer an ideal concept of space to caring science. Guided by a theoretical horizon (Eriksson 1993, Eriksson 1995, Eriksson 2001) and methodological approach grounded in Gadamer's philosophic and existential hermeneutics a three-stage analysis and interpretation is conducted. The hermeneutic spiral of this investigation starts through a procedure in accordance with Eriksson's model (1997) of concept definition. The goal is to clarify the etymology of the concept as well as semantic differences between synonymous concepts, i.e. to identify the different extents of the concept of `space` (`rum`) in order to bring these closer for an exploration. The second phase is to analyse and interpret a sample of narratives in order to explicate the ontological nature and meaning of the space. The material used here is literary texts. The goal is to clarify the characteristics of the very inside of the space when it is shaped in relation to the human being in encountering suffering. In the third phase an interview study is taken place. The focus of the study is directed towards the phenomenon of space as it is known by a patient in a landscape of psychiatric care, i.e. what the space is in a contextual meaning. Then, a gradual hermeneutic understanding of the space is attempted by using theories from the field of caring science as well as additional theories from other disciplines. Metaphors are used as they are vivid and expressive tools for generating meaning. Different metaphoric space formations depict here a variety of purports that, although not quite the same, share extensive elements. Six metaphorically summarized entities of meaning emerged. The comprehensive form of space is pointed out as the Mobile-Immobile Room. Furthermore, the Standby, the Asylum, the Wall and the Place. In the further dialogue with the texts the understanding has deepened ontologically. The theoretical model ofthe space sums up the vertical, horizontal and the inward extent of deepness inthe movement of mental health. Three entities of ontological meaning have emerged as three significant rooms: the Common Land emerges as the ideal concept of mutual creation in the freedom of doing, being and becoming health. On the interpersonal level it means freedom, which includes sovereignty, choice and dignity of the human being. The Ice World signifies, ultimately, the space as a kind of frozenness of despair which "wallpapers" the person's entire being in the world in the drama of suffering. The Spiritual Home is shaped when the human being has acquired the very core of his/her inner and outer placeness as a kind of "at-homeness" and rootedness. Time is a central element and the inward extent of deepness of this trialectic space. Each of the metaphors is then the human being's unique, although even paradoxical, way of conceiving reality, and mastering spiritual suffering. They condense characteristic structures and patterns of dynamic scenery, which take place within the movement of health. The space encloses a contradictory spatiality constituted through the dynamic field of meaningfulness and meaninglessness. Anyway, it is not through a purging of these contradictions but through bringing them together in a drama of suffering that the space is shaped as ontologically good and meaningful in the world of caring.

The mathematics of McTaggart's paradox

Mc Taggart's celebrated proof of the unreality of time is a chain of implications whose final step asserts that the A-series (i.e. the classification of events as past, present or future) is intrinsically contradictory. This is widely believed to be the heart of the argument, and it is where most attempted refutations have been addressed; yet, it is also the only part of the proof which may be generalised to other contexts, since none of the notions involved in it is specifically temporal. In fact, as I show in the first part of the paper, McTaggart's refutation of the A-series can be easily interpreted in mathematical terms; subsequently, in order to strengthen my claim, I apply the same framework by analogy to the cases of space, modality, and personal identity. Therefore, either McTaggart's proof as a whole may be extended to each of these notions, or it must embed some distinctly temporal element in one of the steps leading up to the contradiction of the A-series. I conclude by suggesting where this element might lay, and by hinting at what I believe to be the true logical fallacy of the proof.

Inferential Rationality and Internalistic Scarecrows

Abstract In a recent paper, Manuel Pérez Otero attempted to turn the tables on Paul Boghossian's claim that content externalism is incompatible with the 'a priority of our logical abilities'. In reply, Boghossian argued that Pérez Otero's criticism misses the main point of his argument through concentrating on the semantics of singular (as opposed to general) terms. I elaborate on Boghossian's reply by showing that even taken on its own terms Pérez Otero's paper fails to engage with internalism through systematically misrepresenting what a truly internalistic account of the semantics of singular terms should be.

Population structure and density of Attalea phalerata Mart. ex Spreng. (Arecaceae) in a semideciduous forest

The structure of a population can be seen as the result of biotic and abiotic interacting forces. The studies of population characteristics are vital to improve the understanding of ecosystem functioning. In this study, we attempted to answer the two following questions: What are the population structure of Attalea phalerata? and Are there any influence of reproducers presence, canopy openness, declivity, basal area and soil coverage on recruitment of individuals in this population? We distinguished four ontogenetic stages in A. phalerata. Reproducers and virgins were sampled by using 25 plots (400 m²), juveniles and seedlings were sampled in sub-plots (100 m²). We found 2,328 Attalea phalerata individuals per hectare, first two ontogenetic stages accounted for 89.8% of the total, describing a relatively stable population. None of the analyzed factors were affecting the natural regeneration of Attalea phalerata in the fragment. The density and distribution pattern found for the population are probably signs of formation of oligarchic forests, moreover, the species seems to be able to colonize clearings and open areas.

Network effects: Scale development and implications for new product performance

More and more innovations currently being commercialized exhibit network effects, in other words, the value of using the product increases as more and more people use the same or compatible products. Although this phenomenon has been the subject of much theoretical debate in economics, marketing researchers have been slow to respond to the growing importance of network effects in new product success. Despite an increase in interest in recent years, there is no comprehensive view on the phenomenon and, therefore, there is currently incomplete understanding of the dimensions it incorporates. Furthermore, there is wide dispersion in operationalization, in other words, the measurement of network effects, and currently available approaches have various shortcomings that limit their applicability, especially in marketing research. Consequently, little is known today about how these products fare on the marketplace and how they should be introduced in order to maximize their chances of success. Hence, the motivation for this study was driven by the need to increase our knowledge and understanding of the nature of network effects as a phenomenon, and of their role in the commercial success of new products. This thesis consists of two parts. The first part comprises a theoretical overview of the relevant literature, and presents the conclusions of the entire study. The second part comprises five complementary, empirical research publications. Quantitative research methods and two sets of quantitative data are utilized. The results of the study suggest that there is a need to update both the conceptualization and the operationalization of the phenomenon of network effects. Furthermore, there is a need for an augmented view on customers’ perceived value in the context of network effects, given that the nature of value composition has major implications for the viability of such products in the marketplace. The role of network effects in new product performance is not as straightforward as suggested in the existing theoretical literature. The overwhelming result of this study is that network effects do not directly influence product success, but rather enhance or suppress the influence of product introduction strategies. The major contribution of this study is in conceptualizing the phenomenon of network effects more comprehensively than has been attempted thus far. The study gives an augmented view of the nature of customer value in network markets, which helps in explaining why some products thrive on these markets whereas others never catch on. Second, the study discusses shortcomings in prior literature in the way it has operationalized network effects, suggesting that these limitations can be overcome in the research design. Third, the study provides some much-needed empirical evidence on how network effects, product introduction strategies, and new product performance are associated. In general terms, this thesis adds to our knowledge of how firms can successfully leverage network effects in product commercialization in order to improve market performance.

Tuotannonohjausjärjestelmän kehittäminen laivanrakennustelakalla

Diplomityön tavoitteena oli selvittää tuotannon vallitseva toimintatapa, niin organisaation rakenteen, kuin myös sen toimintojen osalta. Vallitsevan toimintatavan epäkohtien perusteella pyrittiin luomaan uusi toimintatapa, jonka mukaan tuotannon tulisi toimia. Työn laajempana tarkoituksena oli edesauttaa tuotannonohjausjärjestelmän kehitystä ja käyttöönottoa STX Europen Turun telakalla. Työssä tutkittiin runkotuotannon tuotanto-organisaation prosesseja ja tuotannon toimintatapaa uuden tuotannonohjausjärjestelmän aikana. Tutkimuksessa selvitettiin tuotannon prosessien toimintaa ja havaintojen perusteella kuvattiin toimintojen epäkohdat. Tuotanto-organisaation toiminta kuvattiin yleisellä tasolla, jolloin epäkohtien vaikutus muuhun organisaatioon ja sen toimintaan ilmenivät. Havaintojen perusteella kävi ilmi, että tuotanto-organisaation toiminta ei ollut tuotannonohjausjärjestelmän vaatimalla tasolla. Tehtävienkuvauksia ei oltu laadittu tarvittavalla tarkkuudella. Asianomaiset henkilöt eivät olleet tietoisia heidän vastuualueistaan ja velvollisuuksistaan toimiessaan uuden tuotannonohjausjärjestelmän kanssa. Kuvauksen perusteella luotiin uusi ehdotus tuotanto-organisaation toimintatavalle. Työn johtopäätöksenä todettiin tarve uudelle tuotantoa tukevalle prosessille sekä prosessikuvauksien luomiselle koko tuotanto-organisaation toiminnasta. Johtopäätöksissä todettiin tuotannonohjausjärjestelmän olevan käyttöönottovalmiudessa, mutta mahdollisiin kehityskohteisiin tulisi ohjata resursseja.