Run-time defragmentation for dynamically reconfigurable hardware

Reconfigurable computing experienced a considerable expansion in the last few years, due in part to the fast run-time partial reconfiguration features offered by recent SRAM-based Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), which allowed the implementation in real-time of dynamic resource allocation strategies, with multiple independent functions from different applications sharing the same logic resources in the space and temporal domains. However, when the sequence of reconfigurations to be performed is not predictable, the efficient management of the logic space available becomes the greatest challenge posed to these systems. Resource allocation decisions have to be made concurrently with system operation, taking into account function priorities and optimizing the space currently available. As a consequence of the unpredictability of this allocation procedure, the logic space becomes fragmented, with many small areas of free resources failing to satisfy most requests and so remaining unused. A rearrangement of the currently running functions is therefore necessary, so as to obtain enough contiguous space to implement incoming functions, avoiding the spreading of their components and the resulting degradation of system performance. A novel active relocation procedure for Configurable Logic Blocks (CLBs) is herein presented, able to carry out online rearrangements, defragmenting the available FPGA resources without disturbing functions currently running.

Comparative analysis of time-frequency methods estimating the time-varying microstructure of sleep EEG spindles

Proceedings of the Information Technology Applications in Biomedicine, Ioannina - Epirus, Greece, October 26-28, 2006

Potential dementia biomarkers based on the time-varying microstructure of sleep EEG spindles

Proceedings of the 29th Annual International Conference of the IEEE EMBS Cité Internationale, Lyon, France August 23-26, 2007

Real Time Internet DGPS Service

The accuracy of the Navigation Satellite Timing and Ranging (NAVSTAR) Global Positioning System (GPS) measurements is insufficient for many outdoor navigation tasks. As a result, in the late nineties, a new methodology – the Differential GPS (DGPS) – was developed. The differential approach is based on the calculation and dissemination of the range errors of the GPS satellites received. GPS/DGPS receivers correlate the broadcasted GPS data with the DGPS corrections, granting users increased accuracy. DGPS data can be disseminated using terrestrial radio beacons, satellites and, more recently, the Internet. Our goal is to provide mobile platforms within our campus with DGPS data for precise outdoor navigation. To achieve this objective, we designed and implemented a three-tier client/server distributed system that establishes Internet links with remote DGPS sources and performs campus-wide dissemination of the obtained data. The Internet links are established between data servers connected to remote DGPS sources and the client, which is the data input module of the campus-wide DGPS data provider. The campus DGPS data provider allows the establishment of both Intranet and wireless links within the campus. This distributed system is expected to provide adequate support for accurate (submetric) outdoor navigation tasks.

On the hydrogeology of the Lower Tagus Basin and its Cenozoic geologic evolution

The chemical features of the ground water in the Lower Tagus Cenozoic deposits are strongly influenced by lithology, by the velocity and direction of the water movement as well as by the localization of the recharge and discharge zones. The mineralization varies between 80 and 900 mg/l. It is minimal in the recharge zones and in the Pliocene sand and maximum in the Miocene carbonated and along the alluvial valley. Mineralization always reflects the time of permanence, the temperature and the pressure. The natural process of water mineralization is disturbed in agricultural areas because the saline concentration of the infiltration water exceeds that of the infiltrated rainwater. In the discharge zones, the rise of the more mineralized, some times thermal deep waters related to tectonic accidents give rise to anomalies in the distribution of the aquiferous system mineralization model. The diversity of the hydrochemical facies of the ground water may be related to several factors whose identification is some times difficult.

Multiple Linear Regression and Artificial Neural Networks to Predict Time and Efficiency of Soil Vapor Extraction

The prediction of the time and the efficiency of the remediation of contaminated soils using soil vapor extraction remain a difficult challenge to the scientific community and consultants. This work reports the development of multiple linear regression and artificial neural network models to predict the remediation time and efficiency of soil vapor extractions performed in soils contaminated separately with benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylene, trichloroethylene, and perchloroethylene. The results demonstrated that the artificial neural network approach presents better performances when compared with multiple linear regression models. The artificial neural network model allowed an accurate prediction of remediation time and efficiency based on only soil and pollutants characteristics, and consequently allowing a simple and quick previous evaluation of the process viability.

Como polir uma montanha: trabalho de projeto

Esta reflexão visa contextualizar o processo criativo da componente prática do Trabalho de Projecto – Objecto conferente do grau de Mestre em Teatro, especialização em Artes Performativas – Interpretação, e que consiste no solo Como polir uma montanha que teve lugar no Lavadouro Público de Carnide com Acolhimento do Teatro do Silêncio em Maio de 2014. O objectivo foi criar um espectáculo com base em acções de limpeza, utilizando os gestos quotidianos como elemento catalisador do processo criativo. Procurei, desta forma, espelhar algumas rotinas do dia-a-dia no campo abstracto das artes performativas, desconstruindo o espaço privado e servindo-me do corpo como ferramenta primordial na comunicação destas acções através do movimento. A premissa para este solo partiu da limpeza enquanto acção passível de gerar transformação no espaço e no tempo, e também no corpo e na mente. Inicialmente pensei que a limpeza era fundamental para a organização destes elementos, contudo o resultado levou-me a compreender que limpeza e organização podem ter pressupostos muito distintos. Fundamentei a minha pesquisa observando acções quotidianas de limpeza em contextos diversificados como a vivência rural, a vivência urbana e ao nível da memória – a minha e a de outros indivíduos – de como processamos determinados comportamentos observados desde a infância. Durante o processo de criação de Como polir uma montanha, surgiram diversas inquietações que me levaram a reflectir também sobre a problemática de ser criadora e intérprete a solo, e de como esta questão é transversal à noção de si mesmo perante o outro. Esta noção leva-me a questionar o limiar que separa, mas também une, o palco e a plateia. Por isso integrei o público na acção cénica, através de elementos que propunham uma observação participativa do espectáculo.

Educar para o regresso a casa após o transplante hepático

RESUMO: Em cuidados de saúde diferenciados, a promoção da saúde e as actividades de educação para a saúde são indispensáveis à capacitação individual, habilitando a pessoa a prevenir complicações da sua patologia e a agir no sentido de exercerem um maior controlo sobre a sua própria saúde para a obtenção de ganhos em saúde. Com esta investigação pretendeu-se analisar a satisfação da pessoa transplantada hepática sobre os cuidados de enfermagem prestados, no âmbito da educação para a saúde e identificar dimensões que influenciaram a percepção e experiência da pessoa, face à preparação do regresso a casa. Foi realizado um estudo descritivo, transversal, de abordagem de investigação mista e exploratório, com orientação quantitativa e qualitativa, num movimento dedutivo-indutivo, baseado numa amostra de conveniência de 75 pessoas transplantadas hepáticas do Hospital de Curry Cabral. Os resultados foram analisados no âmbito da problemática em estudo, baseada na estrutura do movimento metodológico, ao nível das expectativas, experiência e percepção da satisfação da pessoa transplantada hepática. Neste estudo, salienta-se que os factores do domínio sócio-demográfico que influenciaram as expectativas são a idade e o tempo de internamento, assim como as experiências anteriores influenciaram a forma como a pessoa transplantada hepática recebeu as informações nesse internamento. As pessoas submetidas a transplante hepático, inquiridas neste estudo, afirmaram, em termos globais, que os cuidados de enfermagem recebidos durante o internamento, no âmbito da educação para a saúde, para o regresso a casa foram “Bons/Muito Bons” e “Razoáveis”. As expectativas, experiências anteriores, experiência com os cuidados de enfermagem e as percepções sobre os cuidados de enfermagem e a preparação para o regresso a casa são, neste contexto, reconhecidas como influenciadoras da satisfação com os cuidados de enfermagem. É imprescindível, portanto, que as actividades de educação para a saúde desenvolvidas pelos enfermeiros, usando a sua autonomia, contribuam para enfatizar o cuidar profissional em enfermagem, dando visibilidade à sua intervenção com a pessoa e/ou família no regresso a casa. SUMMARY: In differentiated healthcare, the promotion of health and health education activities are indispensable for personal empowerment, preparing the individual to prevent complications of his own disease, exercising a greater control over his own health, resulting in global health gains. This investigation was intended to analyse the satisfaction of liver transplant patients about the nursing care given, concerning health education, as well as to try and identify aspects that influenced the patient’s perception and experience when dealing with the preparation of returning home. The study was descriptive, with a mixed approach of exploratory and mixed inquiry, with qualitative and quantitative orientation, in a deductive-inductive direction. The population integrated a convenience sample of 75 liver transplant patients admitted at the Curry Cabral Hospital. The results were analysed according to the objectives, based on the methodological movement structure, level of expectations, experience and perception of the patient’s satisfaction. This study draws attention to the fact that demographic factors such as age and hospitalisation time influenced expectations, as well as previous experiences influenced the manner in which these patients received information during their hospital stay. The patients submitted to liver transplant, questioned in this study, affirmed, in a global manner, that nursing care given during admission, concerning health education for returning home were "Good/Very Good" and "Reasonable". Expectations, previous experiences, experience with and perceptions about nursing care as well as hospital discharge preparation were in this context, recognized as influences on the satisfaction of nursing care given. It is indispensable, therefore, that activities related to health education autonomously developed by nurses, contribute to emphasize the professional role of nursing care, highlighting the nurse’s intervention with the patient and/or family when returning home.

Real-time scheduling with resource sharing on heterogeneous multiprocessors

Consider the problem of scheduling a task set τ of implicit-deadline sporadic tasks to meet all deadlines on a t-type heterogeneous multiprocessor platform where tasks may access multiple shared resources. The multiprocessor platform has m k processors of type-k, where k∈{1,2,…,t}. The execution time of a task depends on the type of processor on which it executes. The set of shared resources is denoted by R. For each task τ i , there is a resource set R i ⊆R such that for each job of τ i , during one phase of its execution, the job requests to hold the resource set R i exclusively with the interpretation that (i) the job makes a single request to hold all the resources in the resource set R i and (ii) at all times, when a job of τ i holds R i , no other job holds any resource in R i . Each job of task τ i may request the resource set R i at most once during its execution. A job is allowed to migrate when it requests a resource set and when it releases the resource set but a job is not allowed to migrate at other times. Our goal is to design a scheduling algorithm for this problem and prove its performance. We propose an algorithm, LP-EE-vpr, which offers the guarantee that if an implicit-deadline sporadic task set is schedulable on a t-type heterogeneous multiprocessor platform by an optimal scheduling algorithm that allows a job to migrate only when it requests or releases a resource set, then our algorithm also meets the deadlines with the same restriction on job migration, if given processors 4×(1+MAXP×⌈|P|×MAXPmin{m1,m2,…,mt}⌉) times as fast. (Here MAXP and |P| are computed based on the resource sets that tasks request.) For the special case that each task requests at most one resource, the bound of LP-EE-vpr collapses to 4×(1+⌈|R|min{m1,m2,…,mt}⌉). To the best of our knowledge, LP-EE-vpr is the first algorithm with proven performance guarantee for real-time scheduling of sporadic tasks with resource sharing on t-type heterogeneous multiprocessors.

Efficient schedulability tests for real-time embedded systems with urgent routines

Task scheduling is one of the key mechanisms to ensure timeliness in embedded real-time systems. Such systems have often the need to execute not only application tasks but also some urgent routines (e.g. error-detection actions, consistency checkers, interrupt handlers) with minimum latency. Although fixed-priority schedulers such as Rate-Monotonic (RM) are in line with this need, they usually make a low processor utilization available to the system. Moreover, this availability usually decreases with the number of considered tasks. If dynamic-priority schedulers such as Earliest Deadline First (EDF) are applied instead, high system utilization can be guaranteed but the minimum latency for executing urgent routines may not be ensured. In this paper we describe a scheduling model according to which urgent routines are executed at the highest priority level and all other system tasks are scheduled by EDF. We show that the guaranteed processor utilization for the assumed scheduling model is at least as high as the one provided by RM for two tasks, namely 2(2√−1). Seven polynomial time tests for checking the system timeliness are derived and proved correct. The proposed tests are compared against each other and to an exact but exponential running time test.

Juggling time concepts: complex metanarrative in Alejandro González Iñárritu’s 21 Grams

ABSTRACT - Starting with the explanation of metanarrative as a sort of self-reflexive storytelling (as defended by Kenneth Weaver Hope in his unpublished PhD. thesis), I propose to talk about enunciative practices that stress the telling more than the told. In line with some metaficcional practices applied to cinema, such as the ‘mindfuck’ film (Jonathan Eig, 2003), the ‘psychological puzzle film’ (Elliot Panek, 2003) and the ‘mind-game film’ (Thomas Elsaesser, 2009), I will address the manipulations that a narrative film endures in order to produce a more fruitful and complex experience for the viewer. I will particularly concentrate on the misrepresentation of time as a way to produce a labyrinthine work of fiction where the linear description of events is replaced by a game of time disclosure. The viewer is thus called upon to reconstruct the order of the various situations portrayed in a process that I call ‘temporal mapping’. However, as the viewer attempts to do this, the film, ironically, because of the intricate nature of the plot and the uncertain status of the characters, resists the attempt. There is a sort of teasing taking place between the film and its spectator: an invitation of decoding that is half-denied until the end, where the puzzle is finally solved. I will use three of Alejandro Iñárritu’s films to better convey my point: Amores perros (2000), 21 Grams (2003) and Babel (2006). I will consider Iñárritu’s methods to produce a non-linear storytelling as a way to stress the importance of time and its validity as one of the elements that make up for a metanarrative experience in films. I will focus especially on 21 Grams, which I consider to be a paragon of the labyrinth.

Maximum level and time to peak of dam-break waves on mobile horizontal bed

Journal of Hydraulic Engineering, Vol. 135, No. 11, November 1, 2009

Time-domain optimization of amplifiers based on distributed genetic algorithms

Thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the subject of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Estrutura a partir do Movimento em Sistemas Autónomos

Mestrado em Engenharia Electrotécnica e de Computadores - Ramo de Sistemas Autónomos

System-on-chip field-programmable gate array design for onboard real-time hyperspectral unmixing

Hyperspectral instruments have been incorporated in satellite missions, providing large amounts of data of high spectral resolution of the Earth surface. This data can be used in remote sensing applications that often require a real-time or near-real-time response. To avoid delays between hyperspectral image acquisition and its interpretation, the last usually done on a ground station, onboard systems have emerged to process data, reducing the volume of information to transfer from the satellite to the ground station. For this purpose, compact reconfigurable hardware modules, such as field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), are widely used. This paper proposes an FPGA-based architecture for hyperspectral unmixing. This method based on the vertex component analysis (VCA) and it works without a dimensionality reduction preprocessing step. The architecture has been designed for a low-cost Xilinx Zynq board with a Zynq-7020 system-on-chip FPGA-based on the Artix-7 FPGA programmable logic and tested using real hyperspectral data. Experimental results indicate that the proposed implementation can achieve real-time processing, while maintaining the methods accuracy, which indicate the potential of the proposed platform to implement high-performance, low-cost embedded systems, opening perspectives for onboard hyperspectral image processing.