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Introduction: Early identification and follow-up of young people with ultra-high-risk for psychosis (UHR) has become one of the main targets of early intervention programmes. Objectives:We aimed to explore the presence of dissociative symptoms and self-reported trauma exposure in a population of adolescents (<18 years) referred to a UHR Early Intervention Programme. Methods: We studied 77 adolescents (mean age 15.2 year old, 60% males) attending the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Department from Parc Taulí Hospital (Sabadell, Spain) who were referred to the UHR Early Intervention Programme. The Comprehensive Assessment of At Risk Mental States (CAARMS) interview was administered to obtain a UHR diagnosis. Dissociative symptoms were defined by the presence of at least one of the following CAARMS items: depersonalization, derealization and/or perceptual abnormalities. Self-reported exposure to traumatic events was assessed by clinical interview. Fisher's exact test was used to compare categorical variables between diagnostic groups (UHR vs non-UHR). Significance was set at p<0.05 (two-tailed). Results: 27 out of 77 (35%) screened adolescents met UHR criteria. UHR individuals reported more dissociative symptoms than non-UHRsubjects (100%vs 57%, p<0.001). UHR individuals also reported a greater exposure to traumatic events than non-UHR individuals (63% vs 36%, p= 0.03). However, there was a significant prevalence of dissociative symptoms not related to perceived trauma in both groups. Conclusions: Among adolescents who are referred to a UHR programme, those meeting UHR criteria show a greater prevalence of dissociation and exposure to traumatic events. Dissociative symptoms are not necessarily associated with trauma exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photovoltaic solar energy is booming due to the continuous improvement in photovoltaic panel efficiency along with a downward trend in production costs. In addition, the European Union is committed to easing the implementation of renewable energy in many companies in order to obtain funding to install their own panels. Nonetheless, the nature of solar energy is intermittent and uncontrollable. This leads us to an uncertain scenario which may cause instability in photovoltaic systems. This research addresses this problem by implementing intelligent models to predict the production of solar energy. Real data from a solar farm in Scotland was utilized in this study. Finally, the models were able to accurately predict the energy to be produced in the next hour using historical information as predictor variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cities contribute around 80% of global greenhouse gas emissions. There is currently a massive growth in urban areas internationally, especially in developing countries. Urban centers and cities should offer an effective answer to new problems arising from planning and expansion, according to criteria of sustainability. Decisions for sustainable cities planning and management should be taken on an evaluation of their consequences. Correspondingly, each strategy should be designed and undertaken with the right tools of study, analysis and prediction. This paper aims to offer an analysis of the aspects involved in designing sustainable cities. It involves an overview of published papers focusing on urban transport, building energy consumption, green areas planning, waste management and water supply on a city-wide scale. In order to give a broader concept of sustainability in cities, an analysis of other variables from a social point of view is also given. The discussion of this research reflects that the adoption of mechanisms to promote sustainable development is a matter not only of decision makers and designers, but also of users and citizens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]