WoLMIS: a labor market intelligence system for classifying web job vacancies

In the last decades, an increasing number of employers and job seekers have been relying on Web resources to get in touch and to find a job. If appropriately retrieved and analyzed, the huge number of job vacancies available today on on-line job portals can provide detailed and valuable information about the Web Labor Market dynamics and trends. In particular, this information can be useful to all actors, public and private, who play a role in the European Labor Market. This paper presents WoLMIS, a system aimed at collecting and automatically classifying multilingual Web job vacancies with respect to a standard taxonomy of occupations. The proposed system has been developed for the Cedefop European agency, which supports the development of European Vocational Education and Training (VET) policies and contributes to their implementation. In particular, WoLMIS allows analysts and Labor Market specialists to make sense of Labor Market dynamics and trends of several countries in Europe, by overcoming linguistic boundaries across national borders. A detailed experimental evaluation analysis is also provided for a set of about 2 million job vacancies, collected from a set of UK and Irish Web job sites from June to September 2015.     

Quantifier Guided Aggregation for the Veracity Assessment of Online Reviews

The Social Web is characterized by a massive diffusion of unfiltered content, directly generated by users via the spread of different social media platforms. In this context, a challenging issue is to assess the veracity of the information generated within the sites of online reviews. To address this issue, a common practice in the literature is to select and analyze some veracity features associated with users and their reviews, by mostly applying machine learning techniques, to provide a classification in genuine and deceptive reviews. In this paper, we do not focus on the feature selection and user behavior analysis issues, but we concentrate on the aggregation process with respect to each single veracity feature. In most of the approaches based on machine learning techniques, the contribution of each feature in the classification process is not measurable by the user. For this reason, we propose a multicriteria decision making approach based both on the assessment of multiple criteria and the use of aggregation operators with the aim of obtaining a veracity score associated with each review. Based on this score, it is possible to detect fake reviews. The proposed model is evaluated on a Yelp data set by applying different aggregation schemes, and it is compared with well‐known supervised machine learning techniques.     

In vitro testing of thiolated poly(aspartic acid) from ophthalmic formulation aspects

Ocular drug delivery formulations must meet anatomical, biopharmaceutical, patient-driven and regulatory requirements. Mucoadhesive polymers can serve as a better alternative to currently available ophthalmic formulations by providing improved bioavailability. If all requirements are addressed, a polymeric formulation resembling the tear film of the eye might be the best solution. The optimum formulation must not have high osmotic activity, should provide appropriate surface tension, pH and refractive index, must be non-toxic and should be transparent and mucoadhesive. We would like to highlight the importance of in vitro polymer testing from a pharmaceutical aspect. We, therefore, carried out physical–chemical investigations to verify the suitability of certain systems for ophthalmic formulations. In this work, in situ gelling, mucoadhesive thiolated poly(aspartic acid)s were tested from ophthalmic formulation aspects. The results of preformulation measurements indicate that these polymers can be used as potential carriers in ophthalmic drug delivery.     

AGM Contraction and Revision of Rules

In this paper we study AGM contraction and revision of rules using input/output logical theories. We replace propositional formulas in the AGM framework of theory change by pairs of propositional formulas, representing the rule based character of theories, and we replace the classical consequence operator Cn by an input/output logic. The results in this paper suggest that, in general, results from belief base dynamics can be transferred to rule base dynamics, but that a similar transfer of AGM theory change to rule change is much more problematic. First, we generalise belief base contraction to rule base contraction, and show that two representation results of Hansson still hold for rule base contraction. Second, we show that the six so-called basic postulates of AGM contraction are consistent only for some input/output logics, but not for others. In particular, we show that the notorious recovery postulate can be satisfied only by basic output, but not by simple-minded output. Third, we show how AGM rule revision can be defined in terms of AGM rule contraction using the Levi identity. We highlight various topics for further research.     

Synthesis,Surface Properties,and Self-Aggregation Behavior of a Branched N,N-Dimethylalkylamine Oxide Surfactant

Amine-oxide surfactants have emerged as highly stable, nontoxic, and cost-effective constituents of detergent formulations, specifically as wetting agents and foam boosters. With the aim of enhancing their functional behavior, a new member of this family, N,N-dimethyl-2-propylheptan-1-amine oxide, bearing a branched alkyl tail (C₁₀DAO-branched) was synthesized and purified using a simple and easily scalable strategy starting from 2-propylheptan-1-ol. 2D-nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and mass spectrometry confirm the obtainment of the desired product in high yield and purity. The protonation behavior of the branched surfactant is not affected by alkyl tail branching, as shown by potentiometric titrations. In contrast, surface activity and aggregation behavior of C₁₀DAO-branched is dramatically different from that of the linear analog N,N-dimethyldecyl-1-amine oxide (C₁₀DAO-linear), in that it occupies a higher area at the solution interface and aggregates at much higher concentration, forming larger aggregates, as detected using tensiometry and dynamic light scattering (DLS), respectively. Aggregation behavior of C₁₀DAO-branched is less sensitive to pH variations. Foaming tests show that C₁₀DAO-branched is a more effective foam booster than its linear analog, in both acidic and basic solutions. The experimental results indicate that the branched surfactant can be used in applications that require enhanced and pH-independent surface activity and foamability.     

The effect of thiol content on the gelation and mucoadhesion of thiolated poly(aspartic acid)

A synthetic poly(amino acid), poly(aspartic acid) modified with thioethyl side groups, was studied as an in situ gelling and mucoadhesive dosage form. The chemical structure and the controllable, large thiol content of the polymer were confirmed using ¹H NMR spectroscopy and Ellman's assay. In situ gelation of aqueous polymer solutions was induced by oxidation and monitored using oscillation rheometry. The strength of mucoadhesion towards excised mucosa was characterised by tensile tests in ex vivo experiments. Release kinetics of ophthalmic antibiotic ofloxacin was studied from an in situ crosslinked hydrogel and a liquid formulation to prove the sustained release of the former. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry     

A statistical engineering strategy for mixture problems with process variables

Experimenting with both mixture components and process variables, especially when there is likely to be interaction between these two sets of variables, is discussed. We consider both design and analysis questions within the context of addressing an actual mixture/process problem. We focus on a strategy for attacking such problems, as opposed to finding the best possible design or best possible model for a given set of data. In this sense, a statistical engineering framework is used. In particular, when we consider the potential of fitting parsimonious linear additive or nonlinear models as opposed to larger linearized models, we find potential to reduce the size of experimental designs. It is difficult in practice to know what type of model will best fit the resulting data. Therefore, an integrated, sequential design and analysis strategy is recommended. Using two published data sets and one new data set, we find that in some cases nonlinear models, or linear additive models —with no process/mixture interaction terms, enable reduction of experimentation on the order of 50%. In other cases, additive or nonlinear models will not suffice. We therefore provide guidelines as to when such an approach is likely to succeed, and propose an overall strategy for these types of problems.     

From wheat sourdough to gluten‐free sourdough: a non‐conventional process for producing gluten‐free bread

Gluten‐free (GF) sourdough was prepared from wheat sourdough and analysed both in fresh (GFS) and dried forms (DGFS). The gluten content in each GF sourdough sample was <20 mg kg^?1. The dough leavening capacity and the properties of the bread samples were investigated and compared to those of bread prepared using bakery yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae). Two commercial rice‐based mixtures (different for the presence/absence of buckwheat flour) were used to prepare bread samples. In GFS, lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and yeasts were found in amounts corresponding to 10⁸ and 10⁷ CFU g^?1, respectively, whereas both LAB and yeasts were detected in lower amounts (about 10⁶ CFU g^?1) in DGFS. When used in bread‐making, both GFS types produced significant dough acidification and exhibited good dough development during proofing, resulting in loaves with specific volume values between 3.00 and 4.12 mL g^?1, values similar to those obtained for reference bread (3.05÷4.15 mL g^?1). The use of GFS was effective in lowering the bread staling rate during storage for up to 7 days.     

A Fluid-Dynamic Traffic Model on Road Networks

We consider a mathematical model for fluid-dynamic flows on networks which is based on conservation laws. Road networks are studied as graphs composed by arcs that meet at some nodes, corresponding to junctions, which play a key-role. Indeed interactions occur at junctions and there the problem is underdetermined. The approximation of scalar conservation laws along arcs is carried out by using conservative methods, such as the classical Godunov scheme and the more recent discrete velocities kinetic schemes with the use of suitable boundary conditions at junctions. Riemann problems are solved by means of a simulation algorithm which processes each junction. We present the algorithm and its application to some simple test cases and to portions of urban network.