Abstract
We consider an R&D investment function in a Cournot duopoly competitionmodel inspired in the logistic equation. We study the economical effects resulting from the firms having different R&D efficiencies. We present three cases: (1) both firms are efficient and have the same degree of efficiency; (2) both firms are less efficient and have the same degree of efficiency; (3) firms are asymmetric in terms of the efficiency of their R&D investment programs.We study the myopic dynamics on the production costs obtained from investing the Nash investment equilibria. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2016.

Abstract
Iris liveness detection methods have been developed to overcome the vulnerability of iris biometric systems to spoofing attacks. In the literature, it is typically assumed that a known attack modality will be perpetrated. Then liveness models are designed using labelled samples from both real/live and fake/spoof distributions, the latter derived from the assumed attack modality. In this work it is argued that a comprehensive modelling of the spoof samples is not possible in a real-world scenario where the attack modality cannot be known with a high degree of certainty. In fact making this assumption will render the liveness detection system more vulnerable to attacks that were not included in the original training. To provide a more realistic evaluation, this work proposes: a) testing the binary models with unknown spoof samples that were not present in the training step; b) the use of a single-class classification designing the classifier by modelling only the distribution of live samples. The results obtained support the assertion that many evaluation methods from the literature are misleading and may lead to optimistic estimates of the robustness of liveness detection in practical use cases.

Abstract
Able to simultaneously encode discrete transitions and continuous behaviour, hybrid automata are the de facto framework for the formal specification and analysis of hybrid systems. The current paper revisits hybrid automata from a coalgebraic point of view. This allows to interpret them as state-based components, and provides a uniform theory to address variability in their definition, as well as the corresponding notions of behaviour, bisimulation, and observational semantics.

Abstract

Abstract
This study intends to provide an insight on the possibilities of detecting structural damage through the analysis of the measured structural response of a cable-stayed bridge to daily and seasonal temperature variations. The Corgo Bridge, where a continuous monitoring system has been installed and is acquiring data for more than one year, is selected as case study. The characterization of the thermal action in its three components (uniform, linear and non-linear) is performed using a finite element thermal analysis in which the boundary conditions are defined using the measured wind velocity, radiation, ambient temperature and air temperature inside the box-girder. Once the calculated concrete temperatures fit well those measured by the embedded temperature sensors, the corresponding time histories of the uniform and differential temperature components are applied to a mechanical finite element model to obtain the structural response of the bridge. The results of the numerical simulations are compared with one year and half of experimental measurements and reasonable agreement is found. Finally, two damage scenarios are simulated involving small decreases in stiffness of the stay cables. The ability of detecting damage using the structural response to thermal loads is evaluated applying Multilinear Regression Analysis (MLR) and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to the simulated data sets. Finally, some conclusions are put forward regarding the feasibility of early damage detection in the selected cable-stayed bridge using the adopted methodology and the installed monitoring system.

Abstract
In this article we describe the implementation of remote monitoring and control for multiple and independent experiments, namely, ecosystem replication experiments. First by presenting the main concepts behind the system architecture, and ultimately its design, and secondly by discussing its implementation. The system makes use of IEEE 802.15.4 Standard for Wireless Communications, a BeagleBone Black as the central coordinator for the experiments, and Arduino Mega as the monitoring and control device for each experiment. Data is stored on a PostgreSQL RDBMS, and the user interfaces with the system through a Website.