Stochastic models of default intensity for derivatives and counterparty risk valuation

Imperial Users onl

Metaplanning, Geodesign e Sistemi di Supporto alla Pianificazione di seconda generazione

Il processo di pianificazione ha subito un’evoluzione significativa negli ultimi decenni, passando gradualmente da un paradigma tecnocratico ad uno partecipativo. Tuttavia la complessità del processo aumenta con il coinvolgimento di numerosi attori e occorrono nuovi strumenti per governare tale complessità, capaci di facilitare la gestione del processo. La modellazione del processo di pianificazione dovrebbe essere alla base di un Sistema di Supporto alla Pianificazione (PSS), contribuendo così all’ottimizzazione, all’automazione, alla documentazione dei contenuti, ed al monitoraggio del progetto. Al fine di sperimentare questa ipotesi, il geodesign è stato individuato come un approccio metodologico adatto al paradigma partecipativo della pianificazione, per sperimentare la modellazione del processo secondo un approccio di “metaplanning”, attraverso tecniche e strumenti di Business Process Management. L’obiettivo finale è di aprire la strada verso lo sviluppo di PSS di 2a generazione

Sharing Geoprocessing Workflows with Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN)

Graphical geoprocessing workflows are often built visually on interactive canvases of GIS software. Such workflows cannot be shared among different software, due to structural and semantical differences. This study experiments with a workflow created for ILWIS software and transforms it into a BPMN process model, exploiting XML serialisations of the two workflows. Ultimately, it aims at contributing to interoperability of geoprocessing workflows, through an extended approach serving as a frame around workflow conversion

Ο ρόλος της μουσικής και του ηχητικού σχεδιασμού σε ταινίες ψυχολογικού θρίλερ: Δημιουργική προσέγγιση στην ταινία Happy Νew Υear (2021)

Η παρούσα εργασία συνοψίζει τις λειτουργίες της μουσικής και του ηχητικού σχεδιασμού στον κινηματογράφο και πιο συγκεκριμένα στις ταινίες ψυχολογικού θρίλερ. Προσεγγίζει τα αισθητικά και ηχητικά μοντέλα της μουσικής στον κινηματογράφο, υπό το πρίσμα της θεωρίας της μουσικής, της τεχνολογίας του ήχου, καθώς και των γνωσιακών επιστημών. Παρατίθενται συγκεκριμένα παραδείγματα ταινιών και αισθητικών μοντέλων που ακολουθούν σπουδαίοι δημιουργοί του είδους, καθώς επίσης και τεχνικές δημιουργίας αγωνίας και έντασης, μέσω συνθετικών και τεχνολογικών εργαλείων. Η παρούσα έρευνα ολοκληρώνεται με τη δημιουργική προσέγγιση και εφαρμογή συγκεκριμένων αισθητικών μοντέλων και τεχνικών στην πρωτότυπη ταινία μικρού μήκους Happy New Year (2021).This paper summarizes the functions of music and sound design in cinema and especially in psychological thriller films. It approaches the aesthetic and sound models of music in cinema, according to the musical theories, sound technology, and the cognitive sciences. Specific examples of films and aesthetic models are cited in this paper, followed by great composers of the genre, as well as techniques for creating suspense and tension, through composing and technological tools. The present research is completed with the creative approach and application of specific aesthetic models and techniques in the original short film Happy New Year (2021)

Intensive Care Management of The Critically Ill Elderly Population: The Case of ‘Sotiria’ Regional Chest Diseases Hospital of Athens, Greece

The aim of this study was to assess the characteristics and short-term outcome of elderly patients admitted to the ICU of ‘Sotiria’ Regional Chest Diseases Hospital of Athens. We examined retrospectively the records of 344 patients aged ≥70 years old admitted to the ICU of a tertiary hospital during a five-year period, from 2009-2013. We reported demographic and clinical data, length of ICU stay, need for mechanical ventilation and ICU mortality. Among 1730 admitted to the ICU during this period, the elderly comprised 344 (19.8%). The main causes of ICU admission were Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) exacerbation (n=169), postoperative respiratory failure (n=78), acute respiratory failure of various etiologies (n=76) and cardiogenic pulmonary edema (n=25). Overall mortality rate of elderly patients was 41.5%. According to age groups, 200 patients were 70-74 years old with a mortality rate of 47%, 42 patients were 80-84 years old presenting a mortality rate of 28.5%, while 14 patients aged over 85 years old, presented a mortality of 42.8%. The mean length of ICU stay (LOS) for the elderly patients was 11.2 days, while the corresponding LOS value for younger patients was 8.1 days. Elderly patients present highest mortality than younger population. However, mortality does not correlate exclusively with advancing age over 70 years, but mostly with the underlying disease. Therefore, age should not be the sole determinant of ICU admission

The Key Roles of PTEN in T-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Development, Progression, and Therapeutic Response

T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) is an aggressive blood cancer that comprises 10–15% of pediatric and ~25% of adult ALL cases. Although the curative rates have significantly improved over the past 10 years, especially in pediatric patients, T-ALL remains a challenge from a therapeutic point of view, due to the high number of early relapses that are for the most part resistant to further treatment. Considerable advances in the understanding of the genes, signaling networks, and mechanisms that play crucial roles in the pathobiology of T-ALL have led to the identification of the key drivers of the disease, thereby paving the way for new therapeutic approaches. PTEN is critical to prevent the malignant transformation of T-cells. However, its expression and functions are altered in human T-ALL. PTEN is frequently deleted or mutated, while PTEN protein is often phosphorylated and functionally inactivated by casein kinase 2. Different murine knockout models recapitulating the development of T-ALL have demonstrated that PTEN abnormalities are at the hub of an intricate oncogenic network sustaining and driving leukemia development by activating several signaling cascades associated with drug-resistance and poor outcome. These aspects and their possible therapeutic implications are highlighted in this review

Poetics, Materialities, Performances: Greek Photographic Books 2000-2023

At the dawn of the new century, we are witnessing the renaissance and democratisation of the photographic book in Greece. The exhibition Poetics, Materialities, Performances: Greek Photographic Books 2020-2023 documents this evolution and explores its characteristics. Several factors have influenced this development. The advent of new digital technologies enabled cost-efficient production, self-publishing, and international dissemination. The relatively delayed institutionalisation of photography as an art form on par with painting and sculpture within the Greek art scene, played an equally significant role, resulting in a notable increase in museum publications. Furthermore, as photographic books respond to and reflect diverse pictorial approaches and trends, this curatorial proposition seeks to offer a concise overview of contemporary photographic practices. To this end, the selection is cross-generational and includes books that retrospectively cover a broader context of practice dating back to the 1970s. It encompasses monographs that may focus on a specific topic, publications presenting one or more bodies of work, curated retrospectives of a practitioner’s oeuvre, as well as expanded exhibition publications and self-published books. The books on display present a kaleidoscope of photographic practices, ranging from landscape, street, studio, directorial, and diaristic photography to social documentary, conflict photography, and re-articulations of “the photographic,” which often arise from the intersection of photography with various other media, such as digital media and painting. They also address a wide array of topics: identities, the Greek crisis, history and collective memory, the interplay between nature and culture, communities, societal issues, politics. The title of the exhibition indicates three methodological approaches to the materials. Poetics, that is, the storytelling mechanisms, the editing and sequencing of the photographs, the dialectical juxtaposition of text, images, and graphic design, plays a pivotal role in this exploration. Equally significant are the materiality and objecthood of these publications, including their size and format, the paper thickness and texture, all of which are integral parts of their narrative and haptic experience. Lastly, the exhibition highlights how photographic books perform as visual and textual propositions and as cultural experiences, and examines the impact these performances have on audiences and the histories of Greek photography. The purpose of a book is to be leafed through and read. In line with this principle, the exhibition is designed as an interactive display that invites touch and contemplation. Here, visitors are not passive spectators but active participants whose individuality determines the ways the books are handled and their journey of multiple associations. Artists Costis Antoniadis, Alexandros Avramidis, Manolis Baboussis, Ilias Bourgiotis, Dimitra Dede, John Demos, Nikos Economopoulos, Petros Efstathiadis, Pavlos Fysakis, Aikaterini Gegisian, Alexandros Georgiou, Aris Georgiou, Haris Kakarouhas, Stratos Kalafatis, Katerina Kaloudi, Alexandros Katsis, Demetris Koilalous, Panos Kokkinias, Yannis Kontos, Maria Louka, Natassa Markidou, Nikos Markou, Despina Meimaroglou, Persephone Michou, Katerina Moschou, Lia Nalbantidou, Effie Paleologou, Nikos Panayotopoulos, Yiannis Pantelidis, Roula Patra, Avraam Pavlidis, Paris Petridis, Penelope Petsini, Nikos Pilos, Platon Rivellis, Andreas Schοinas, Panagiotis Sotiropoulos, Spyros Staveris, Yiannis Theodoropoulos, Marinos Tsagkarakis, Dimitris Tsoumplekas, Eirini Vourloumis, Tassos Vrettos, Yorgos Yatromanolakis, Yiorgis Yerolymbos, Zak / Zackie Oh, Lily Zoumpoul