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Publications

2025

Next Higher Point: Two Novel Approaches for Computing Natural Visibility Graphs

Authors
Daniel, P; Silva, VF; Ribeiro, P;

Publication
COMPLEX NETWORKS & THEIR APPLICATIONS XIII, COMPLEX NETWORKS 2024, VOL 1

Abstract
With the huge amount of data that has been collected over time, many methods are being developed to allow better understanding and forecasting in several domains. Time series analysis is a powerful tool to achieve this goal. Despite being a well-established area, there are some gaps, and new methods are emerging to overcome these limitations, such as visibility graphs. Visibility graphs allow the analyses of times series as complex networks and make possible the use of more advanced techniques from another well-established area, network science. In this paper, we present two new efficient approaches for computing natural visibility graphs from times series, one for online scenarios in.O(n log n) and the other for offline scenarios in.O(nm), the latter taking advantage of the number of different values in the time series (m).

2025

Edge-enabled distributed digital twins with embedded intelligence for smart aquaculture systems

Authors
Costa, D; Rocha, EM; Costa, V; Rocha, MM; Marques, C;

Publication
JOURNAL OF AMBIENT INTELLIGENCE AND SMART ENVIRONMENTS

Abstract
Aquaculture is the world's fastest-growing food production sector, yet it lags behind other industries in adopting upcoming digital technologies. Challenges, such as integrating multimodal data and maintaining reliable network connectivity, have hindered the development of digital twins for monitoring aquaculture systems. This paper addresses these challenges through two main contributions: (i) a novel edge-based architecture for digital twinning that enables distributed, localized monitoring and actuation, reducing dependence on centralized systems and robust networks; and (ii) a three-stage algorithmic approach for mortality monitoring tailored to edge computing environments. This approach enables early detection of rising mortality rates using data fused from diverse sources, including directly monitored environmental parameters (e.g. pH and temperature), and novel optical biosensors that make use of lightweight computer vision and machine learning techniques for the estimation of bacterial concentrations within edge devices. The algorithmic strategy was tested in a real-world recirculating aquaculture system for Solea senegalensis, where bacterial concentration was estimated with an F1-score of 0.83 across five concentration levels using biosensor imagery. Moreover, a multimodal drift detection algorithm successfully identified abnormal data trends aligned with significant changes in input distributions, with preemptive drift signals preceding critical 7-day mortality spikes.

2025

A Comparative Analysis of Centralized and Federated Learning for Multimodal ECG and PCG Classification

Authors
Silva, MG; Oliveira, B; Coimbra, M; Renna, F; de Carvalho, AV;

Publication
2025 47TH ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF THE IEEE ENGINEERING IN MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY SOCIETY, EMBC

Abstract
In this study, we analyzed federated learning (FL) for ECG and PCG data from the PhysioNet 2016 challenge dataset. We tested multiple approaches of FL and evaluated how these approaches affect the performance metrics of cardiac abnormality detection while preserving data privacy. We compared the performance of the centralized and federated models with two and four clients. The results demonstrated that multimodal federated models using both ECG and PCG data consistently outperformed centralized single-modality ECG or PCG models; in fact the gains provided by multimodal approaches can compensate for the loss in performance induced by distributed learning. These findings highlight the potential of multimodal federated learning to not only provide decentralization advantages but also to achieve comparable performance with the centralized single-modality approaches.

2025

Performance Evaluation of Separate Chaining for Concurrent Hash Maps

Authors
Castro, A; Areias, M; Rocha, R;

Publication
MATHEMATICS

Abstract
Hash maps are a widely used and efficient data structure for storing and accessing data organized as key-value pairs. Multithreading with hash maps refers to the ability to concurrently execute multiple lookup, insert, and delete operations, such that each operation runs independently while sharing the underlying data structure. One of the main challenges in hash map implementation is the management of collisions. Arguably, separate chaining is among the most well-known strategies for collision resolution. In this paper, we present a comprehensive study comparing two common approaches to implementing separate chaining-linked lists and dynamic arrays-in a multithreaded environment using a lock-based concurrent hash map design. Our study includes a performance evaluation covering parameters such as cache behavior, energy consumption, contention under concurrent access, and resizing overhead. Experimental results show that dynamic arrays maintain more predictable memory access and lower energy consumption in multithreaded environments.

2025

Automated Social Media Feedback Analysis for Software Requirements Elicitation: A Case Study in the Streaming Industry

Authors
Silva, M; Faria, JP;

Publication
ENASE

Abstract

2025

Biomimicry for sustainability: Upframing service ecosystems

Authors
Gallan, S; Alkire, L; Teixeira, JG; Heinonen, K; Fisk, P;

Publication
AMS Review

Abstract
Amidst an urgent need for sustainability, novel approaches are required to address environmental challenges. In this context, biomimicry offers a promising logic for catalyzing nature’s wisdom to address this complexity. The purpose of this research is to (1) establish a biomimetic understanding and vocabulary for sustainability and (2) apply biomimicry to upframe service ecosystems as a foundation for sustainability. Our research question is: How can the principles of natural ecosystems inform and enhance the sustainability of service ecosystems? The findings highlight upframed service ecosystems as embodying a set of practices that (1) promote mutualistic interactions, (2) build on local biotic and abiotic components supporting emergence processes, (3) leverage (bio)diversity to build resilience, (4) foster resource sharing for regeneration, and (5) bridge individual roles to optimize the community rather than individual well-being. Our upframed definition of a service ecosystem is a system of resource-integrating biotic actors and abiotic resources functioning according to ecocentric principles for mutualistic and regenerative value creation. The discussion emphasizes the implications of this upframed definition for sustainability practices, advocating for a shift in understanding and interacting with service ecosystems. It emphasizes the potential for immediate mutualistic benefits and long-term regenerative impacts. © Academy of Marketing Science 2025.

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