Ranking of departments and researchers within a university using two different databases: Web of Science versus Scopus

In this work, we compare the difference in the number of citations compiled with Scopus as opposed to the Web of Science (WoS) with the aim of analysing the agreement among the citation rankings generated by these databases. For this, we analysed the area of Health Sciences of the University of Navarra (Spain), composed of a total of 50 departments and 864 researchers. The total number of published works reflected in the WoS during the period 1999–2005 was 2299. For each work, the number of citations in both databases was recorded. The results indicate that the works received 14.7% more citations in Scopus than in WoS. In the departments, the difference was greater in the clinical ones than in the basic ones. In the case of the rankings of citations, it was found that both databases generate similar results. The Spearman and Kendall-Tau coefficients were higher than 0.9. It was concluded that the difference in the number of citations found did not correspond to the difference of coverage of WoS and Scopus.     

Unsupervised neural models for country and political risk analysis

This interdisciplinary research project focuses on relevant applications of Knowledge Discovery and Artificial Neural Networks in order to identify and analyze levels of country, business and political risk. Its main goal is to help business decision-makers understand the dynamics within the emerging market countries in which they operate. Most of the neural models applied in this study are defined within the framework of unsupervised learning. They are based on Exploratory Projection Pursuit, Topology Preserving Maps and Curvilinear Component Analysis. Two interesting real data sets are analyzed to empirically probe the robustness of these models. The first case study describes information from a significant sample of Spanish multinational enterprises (MNEs). It analyses data pertaining to such aspects as decisions over the location of subsidiary enterprises in various regions across the world, the importance accorded to such decisions and the driving forces behind them. Through a projection-based analysis, this study reveals a range of different reasons underlying the internationalization strategies of Spanish MNEs and the different goals they pursue. It may be concluded that projection connectionist techniques are of immense assistance in the process of identifying the internationalization strategies of Spanish MNEs, their underlying motives and the goals they pursue. The second case study covers several risk categories that include task policy, security, and political stability among others, and it tracks the scores of different countries all over the world. Interesting conclusions are drawn from the application of several business intelligence solutions based on neural projection models, which support data analysis in the context of country and political risk analysis.     

High-Frequency Induction Hardening with Controlled Capacitors-Discharge Pulse-Operation Processes

Induction hardening processes with power pulses obtained by means of capacitors-discharge high-frequency generators are discussed. The process is characterized by high-power densities and heating times on the order of some tens or hundreds of milliseconds together with cooling rates obtained by self-quenching without the use of auxiliary means. The possibility of obtaining the most favorable transient temperature distribution in the workpieces by controlling the shape of the pulses and therefore the variable time rate energy supply is examined. The influence of shape of pulses and discharge circuit's electrical parameters on the heating and cooling transients has been analyzed by a thermal model which allows prediction of the depths of hardening. Measurements from hardening tests carried out on steel samples varying the pulse shapes are given in support of the calculation results.     

Interaction of isobutene and methacrolein with silica-supported uranium and molybdenum oxide catalysts

The adsorption of isobutene (in the temperature range 309–341K) and methacrolein (in the temperature range 296–336 K) on a Mo/(Mo+U)=0.89 catalyst were studied. The equilibrium data were analysed according to Freundlich's model. The high coverages observed at lower temperatures suggest some participation of physical adsorption in the reversible adsorption. Entropy calculations showed that these adsorbed species are best described by a mobile model which assumes bidimensional translation and two rotational degrees of freedom. Isobutene is weakly chemisorbed, producing reversible species which were identified as a π-complex formed by interaction with surface OH groups through π-electrons (infrared bands at 1655, 1615, 1470 and 1375 cm^?1), and only a small fraction of isobutene interacts strongly via lattice oxygen forming intermediate species in the oxidation reaction. However, in the presence of oxygen at 523 K a majority of the surface species are strongly held by the surface (infrared bands at 1775, 1723, 1610, 1460 and 1350 cm^?1 associated to a methacrylic complex and bands at 1590 and 1538 cm^?1 of carbonate-carboxylate species).     

A CAVE-like environment as a tool for full-size train design

Simulations of models, in all different areas, is an expanding, attractive line of work. More and more applications are taking advantage of the improvements in technology and knowledge in this field, thus achieving results that would have been impossible to achieve with a real model, or foreseeing facts that otherwise would have been encountered too late in the production process. The rail industry is one possible beneficiary of this approach. Usually, before commencing the fabrication process of a new train, the construction of a full-size model is mandatory. Instead of building this full-size real model, which leaves little room for later, last-minute modifications, a virtual model can be built in the digital realm, thus offering a new platform for easier interaction with it. In this article, a simulation of a train is presented in order to tackle visual, aesthetic and ergonomic issues. The simulation runs on a PC-based CAVE-like architecture, offering a certain degree of interaction to the user, and combines static and dynamic computer-generated imagery, both with and without stereoscopy for 3D visualisation, as well as augmented virtuality techniques for the integration of the train with its environment.     

Dosage individualization of erythropoietin using a profile-dependent support vector regression

The external administration of recombinant human erythropoietin is the chosen treatment for those patients with secondary anemia due to chronic renal failure in periodic hemodialysis. The objective of this paper is to carry out an individualized prediction of the EPO dosage to be administered to those patients. The high cost of this medication, its side-effects and the phenomenon of potential resistance which some individuals suffer all justify the need for a model which is capable of optimizing dosage individualization. A group of 110 patients and several patient factors were used to develop the models. The support vector regressor (SVR) is benchmarked with the classical multilayer perceptron (MLP) and the Autoregressive Conditional Heteroskedasticity (ARCH) model. We introduce a priori knowledge by relaxing or tightening the epsilon-insensitive region and the penalization parameter depending on the time period of the patients' follow-up. The so-called profile-dependent SVR (PD-SVR) improves results of the standard SVR method and the MLP. We perform sensitivity analysis on the MLP and inspect the distribution of the support vectors in the input and feature spaces in order to gain knowledge about the problem.     

Sensitivity Analysis Methods to Design Optimal Ship Hulls

Automatic procedures for the design of ship hull geometries yielding minimal wave resistance and wave breaking are an attractive opportunity from both the economical and practical standpoints. Estimating the cost function gradient according to the Sensitivity Equation and Adjoint Methods (SEM, AM) instead of using the standard finite difference approximations has the potential of reducing the computational cost of the overall optimization procedure. Aim of this paper is to assess the actual extent of the cost reduction. Speed-up factors of up to 3.3 have been obtained in the evaluation of the cost function gradient and of about 1.6 in the overall optimization procedure applied to an optimal shape design problem of an existing tanker ship. The SEM and AM methods perform better than finite differences mainly because of (i) the smaller number of flow solutions needed to compute the cost function gradient and (ii) the opportunity of using the same LU factored matrix for both the flow solver and the SEM or AM equations, a circumstance arising as a consequence of having chosen a linearized potential flow model of the 3D free-surface problem.     

Geobag Performance as Scour Countermeasure for Bridge Abutments

This paper presents observations and data from a sequence of laboratory experiments conducted to evaluate geobags as a countermeasure to protect bridge-abutment foundations from failure attributable to scour of the alluvial-river channel in which they are placed. Geobags comprise geotextile cloth bags filled with local sediment or concrete. The experiments focused on the performance of geobags placed as an apron around pile-supported wing-wall abutments retaining erodible embankments, and subject to live-bed and clear-water flow conditions. Though an apron of geobags is shown to substantially reduce or eliminate scour immediately at the abutment, the apron must be formed flexibly of linked geobags. Moreover, a performance concern is that the apron may shift scour to a location flanking or downstream of the apron, and in so doing imperil a nearby pier or riverbank. The experiments indicate the importance of protecting the embankment region beneath and immediately behind the abutment’s pile cap. Live-bed conditions proved to be the more critical for abutment protection, owing to the capacity of dunes to destabilize geobags around the edges of the apron. Design guidelines are given and include using current riprap configurations for sizing and placing geobags.