Abstract

Abstract
The use of cooperative diversity techniques and network coding concepts are promising solutions to improve the communication reliability in industrial Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs). In this paper, we propose the NetCoDer scheme to address this problem, whose design is based in these concepts. The effectiveness of the NetCoDer scheme is evaluated through both an experimental setup with real WSN nodes and a simulation assessment, comparing its performance against state-of-the-art TDMA-based retransmission techniques.

Abstract

Abstract
Currently excessive fossil fuel consumption has become a serious problem. People are searching for new solutions of energy production and there are several options to obtain alternative sources of energy without further devastating the already destroyed environment. One of these solutions is growing microalgae, from which biodiesel can be obtained. The microalgae production is a growing business because of its many useful compounds. In order to collect these compounds microalgae must first be harvested and then dried. Nowadays the solutions used for drying use too much energy and therefore are too expensive and not sustainable. The goal of this project, one of the possible choices during the EPS@ISEP 2013 Spring, was to develop a solar microalgae dryer. The multinational team involved in its development was composed of five students, from distinct countries and fields of study, and was the responsible for designing a solar microalgae dryer prototype for the microalgae laboratory of the chemical engineering department at ISEP, suitable for future tests and incorporating control process (in order not to destroy the microalgae during the drying process). The solar microalgae dryer was built to work as a distiller that gets rid of the excess water from the microalgae suspension. This paper presents a possible solution for this problem, the steps to create the device to harvest the microalgae by drying them with the use of solar energy (also used as an energy source for the solar dryer control system), the technologies used to build the solar microalgae dryer, and the benefits it presents compared to current solutions. It also presents the device from the ethical and sustainable viewpoint. Such alternative to already existing methods is competitive as far as energy usage is concerned. Finally, working on microalgae made the team elements feel that they may contribute to the broad field of biodiesel production research and investigation.

Abstract
Evolutionary-based algorithms play an important role in finding solutions to many problems that are not solved by classical methods, and particularly so for those cases where solutions lie within extreme non-convex multidimensional spaces. The intrinsic parallel structure of evolutionary algorithms are amenable to the simultaneous testing of multiple solutions; this has proved essential to the circumvention of local optima, and such robustness comes with high computational overhead, though custom digital processor use may reduce this cost. This paper presents a new implementation of an old, and almost forgotten, evolutionary algorithm: the population-based incremental learning method. We show that the structure of this algorithm is well suited to implementation within programmable logic, as compared with contemporary genetic algorithms. Further, the inherent concurrency of our FPGA implementation facilitates the integration and testing of micro-populations.

Abstract
Empirical literature on the geographical location of creative activities has been traditionally based on the spatial analysis of industries, often disregarding the creative employment that lies outside the necessarily limited boundaries of creative industries. As an extension to the most recent methodologies using industry and occupational data on industrial cluster analysis, this paper analyses agglomeration and co-location patterns of core creative activities, considering both 'embedded' (creative professionals working outside the creative sectors) and 'specialized' (creative professionals working in the creative sectors) creative employment. Using location quotients and principal component factor and cluster analyses, applied to all 308 Portuguese municipalities, we found that the geographical agglomeration and co-location patterns of core creative groups differ substantially. The typical arguments sustained by the literature-the tendency of creative industries/employment to agglomerate and co-locate in large metropolises-are only supported in the case of knowledge-intensive activities subjected to Intellectual Property Rights, most notably 'Advertising/Marketing', 'Publishing', 'TV/Radio', and 'Software/Digital Media', densely concentrated and co-located in highly developed, large urban centres, with high levels of human capital. These arguments do not hold for the traditional creative activities of 'Architecture', 'Design/Visual Arts' and 'Crafts', which, although co-located, appear mostly dispersed with small concentrations around intermediate urban centres. 'Teaching/training/research' present quite dispersed geographical patterns with some clusterization around municipalities with tertiary education institutions. 'Film/video/photography' and 'Music/Performing Arts' show some dispersion throughout the Portuguese territory with concentration around small urban centres and in rural areas. It is evident that, from agglomeration to co-location patterns, creative employment reveals heterogeneous characteristics across creative groups.