Abstract: Ahierarchicalmodel predictive controller (HMPC) is proposed for flexible and sustainable building automation. The implications of a building automation system for sustainability are defined, and model predictive control is introduced as an ideal tool to cover all requirements. The HMPC is presented as a development suitable for the optimization of modern buildings, as well as retrofit...

We demonstrate the advantage of specializing semantic word embeddings for either similarity or relatedness. We compare two variants of retrofitting and a joint-learning approach, and find that all three yield specialized semantic spaces that capture human intuitions regarding similarity and relatedness better than unspecialized spaces. We also show that using specialized spaces in NLP tasks and...

seismic retrofit of masonry slabs in existing steel or masonry buildings has found special significance in current codes as failure of unstable jack arch slabs has been reported as a major reason for collapsing structures in middle east deadly earthquakes. in this paper, three retrofit schemes are investigated and compared. the proposed rehabilitation techniques consist of a single x strapping,...

Traffic accidents cause tragic loss of life, property damage and substantial congestion to transportation systems. A large percentage of crashes occur at or near intersections. Therefore, traffic signals are often used to improve traffic safety and operations. The objective of this study is to present a significant and effective method of determining the optimal investment involved in retrofitt...

Nonpoint source pollution control and stormwater management are two objectives in managing mixed land use watersheds like those in New Jersey. Various best management practices (BMPs) have been developed and implemented to achieve both objectives. This study assesses the cost-effectiveness of selected BMPs for agricultural nonpoint source pollution control and stormwater management in the Nesha...

The main purpose of this work is to compare different criteria for the seismic strengthening of r.c. framed buildings in order to find the optimal combinations of these retrofitting techniques. To this end, a numerical investigation is carried out with reference to the town hall of Spilinga (Italy), a r.c. framed structure with an L-shaped plan built at the beginning of the 1960s. Five structur...