Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Student workload: a case study of its significance, evaluation and management at the Open University

Distance students are time poor and some drop out of their studies because they fall behind with coursework. This raises the issue of how course teams decide upon how many study hours should be included in a course. This article presents a number of Open University projects that have addressed student workload management and relates how learning design has incorporated these findings into advice for new module development. Moreover, the article also discusses how recent automatic feedback systems can motivate and support time-poor students when writing their assignments. This is an important finding as drop-out can occur when students are unable to devote the necessary time to their summative assessments and drop out of the learning process.
System or security managers adaptive response tool

This paper describes the design and function of a system being developed under a DARPA SBIR Phase I and II project for Adaptive Network and Security Management. The system is called SoSMART (System or Security Managers Adaptive Response Tool). The objective of our system is to provide an automatic, adaptive response capability that provides 24/7 around the clock monitoring and response to system and security functions across a network of completing systems. To achieve this objective we combine an agent architecture and Case-based reasoning (CBR) with available system management or security tools. The agent architecture is used for tool integration, functional abstraction and as a medium for distributed reasoning. The CBR is used to define incident/response pairings that can recognize situations that require response and associate response actions with those situations. An important aspect of our system is its use of CBR's adaptation process to allow it to dynamically adapt it's control and monitoring activity as the system operates. This paper contains an overview of our approach, a description of important system details, a worked example of the systems operation and finishes with a summary.
Statistical precision and robustness of the AMSAA continuous reliability growth estimators

The statistical precision and robustness study of the US Army material systems analysis activity (AMSAA) continuous reliability growth estimation procedure investigates the relative error distribution of the mean time between failures estimator. The study also addresses how this distribution is influenced when the failure data are generated from a finite number of configurations rather than from the AMSAA continuous-failure-rate curve. This methodology can be used to calculate the required test time associated with an idealized planning curve to achieve a specified precision with a given probability. <<ETX>>
Binary program integrity models for defeating code-reuse attacks

During a cyber-attack, an adversary executes offensive maneuvers to target computer systems. Particularly, an attacker often exploits a vulnerability within a program, hijacks control-flow, and executes malicious code. Data Execution Prevention (DEP), a hardware-enforced security feature, prevents an attacker from directly executing the injected malicious code. Therefore, attackers have resorted to code-reuse attacks, wherein carefully chosen fragments of code within existing code sections of a program are sequentially executed to accomplish malicious logic. Code-reuse attacks are ubiquitous and account for majority of the attacks in the wild. On one hand, due to the wide use of closed-source software, binary-level solutions are essential. On the other hand, without access to source-code and debug-information, defending raw binaries is hard. A majority of defenses against code-reuse attacks enforce ”control-flow integrity”, a program property that requires the runtime execution of a program to adhere to a statically determined control-flow graph (CFG) – a graph that captures the intended flow of control within the program. While defenses against code-reuse attacks have focused on reducing the attack space, due to the lack of high-level semantics in the binary, they lack in precision, which in turn results in smaller yet significant attack space. This dissertation presents program integrity models aimed at narrowing the attack space available to execute code-reuse attacks. First, we take a semantic-recovery approach to restrict the targets of indirect branches in a binary. Then, we further improve the precision by recovering C++-level semantics, and enforce a strict integrity model that improves precision for virtual function calls in the binary. Finally, in order to further reduce the attack space, we take a different perspective on defense against code-reuse attacks, and introduce Stack-Pointer Integrity – a novel integrity model targeted at ensuring the integrity of stack pointer as opposed to the instruction pointer. Our results show that the semantic-recovery-based approaches can help in significantly reducing the attack space by improving the precision of the underlying CFG. Function-level semantic recovery can eliminate 99.47% of inaccurate targets, whereas recovering virtual callsites and VTables at a C++ level can eliminate 99.99% of inaccurate targets. BINARY PROGRAM INTEGRITY MODELS FOR DEFEATING CODE-REUSE ATTACKS by Aravind Prakash B.E. Visvesvaraya Technological University, Belgaum, India, 2004 M.S. University of Miami, FL, 2009 Dissertation Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical & Computer Engineering Syracuse University May 2015 c © Copyright 2015 Aravind Prakash All Rights Reserved
Numerical Solution of the Buckley-Leverett Equations

A modified random choice method is described for solving simultaneously the Buckley-Leverett, incompressibility, and Darcy's Law equations for immiscible displacement in a porous medium. The main idea of the numerical method is to modify the one-dimensional Riemann solvers in the split random choice method so that the multidimensional flow is represented correctly. Other features include flux conserving differencing of pressure and velocity and an accurate description of sources and sinks. Numerical results for a two-dimensional five-spot waterflood indicate that the advancing front is kept sharp by the method, that the time of breakthrough is accurate, and that grid orientation effects are unimportant. 9 references, 10 figures.
Video Clips Classification with Hierarchical Approach

Clips classification, Hierarchical tree, low-level descriptors. Video sections Abstract. In this paper, we propose an approach with hierarchical tree for clips classification in broadcast soccer video. In this method, video frames are firstly classified and grouped into sections, and the sections are divided into clips. Then we can use the low-level descriptors to classify the clips. Low-level descriptions include color, motion descriptor and edge descriptor. Experiments on real soccer video programs show the encouraging results.
Softc: An Operational Software Correlator

Softc has been used operationally for spacecraft navigation at JPL for over 2 years and will be JPL's Mark 5 correlator next year. Softc was written to be as close to an ideal correlator as possible, making approximations only below 10(exp -13) seconds. The program can correlate real USB, real LSB, or complex I/Q data sampled with 1, 2, 4. or 8-bit resolution, and was developed with strong debugging tools that made final debugging relatively quick. Softc's algorithms and program structure are fully documented. Timing tests on a recent Intel CPU show Softc processes 8 lags of 1-bit sampled data at 10 MSamples/sec, independent of sample rate.
Flow control for delay-sensitive services with shared token pool scheme

Conventional flow control techniques based on a sliding window mechanism generally rely on feedback control messages from destination nodes to regulate traffic flow. In high speed networks, however, since propagation time across networks typically dominate whole communication delay, such mechanisms are not considered to be suitable for network traffic travelling long distance. So on behalf of window based mechanisms, the algorithm which controls traffic by regulating data input rate is used to control flow in the high speed communication environments. In this paper, we propose an input rate regulation scheme named shared token pool scheme, which not only avoids congestion but also increases network utilization. Through the simulation we showed that STP scheme could greatly reduce an average delay compared to that of original leaky bucket scheme so that it is thought to be useful for delay-sensitive services in high speed networks.
Verification of marine forecasts using an objective area forecast verification system

Many meteorological service providers issue forecasts that contain short summary statements. These forecasts attempt to capture all the expected conditions during a forecast period. The area forecast verification system has been developed to verify these forecasts when they are issued in pre‐determined geographical areas. This system verifies forecasts by comparing them with gridded nowcast model analysis fields. Results are presented for the wind speed component of the shipping forecast and the inshore waters forecast. Both of these products are issued by the UK Met Office on behalf of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency. Like most summary forecasts these products contain hand written text. This text is carefully interpreted into a series of invariant sub‐periods. These sub‐periods are then compared to the nowcast model analysis fields. During each forecast sub‐period all available hourly nowcast model analyses are accumulated to create an observation distribution within that sub‐period. Verification is performed using a contingency table approach which is specifically designed to reflect the distribution formed by the observations within each sub‐period of the forecast. Various performance measures are calculated including the Gerrity skill score – which is weighted according to the priorities of the customer. Shipping forecasts issued during the 12 month period ending on 31 August 2011 had a proportion correct to within ± 1 Beaufort Force of 0.886 and a Gerrity skill score of 0.823. Inshore waters forecasts issued during this period had a proportion correct to within ± 1 Beaufort Force of 0.940 and a Gerrity skill score of 0.848. Analysis indicates that both forecasts tend to exaggerate the wind speeds and often neglect to include the lower Beaufort Force categories. © 2013 British Crown copyright, the Met Office. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Performance evaluation of digital signal transmission channels on coronating power lines

A procedure is presented to evaluate transient responses of multiconductor power line carrier channels to any input digital signal code. The method involves the synthesis of an autoregressive filter to simulate corona noise on HV transmission lines. An accurate model of the multiconductor power line and a rigorous propagation algorithm are used. The single-phase and two-phase couplings most suitable for digital transmission on a practical three-phase line are selected. Transmission capacity limits for various lengths and different signal-to-corona noise ratios are given. Results of an extensive series of simulation tests run on a practical 380-kV power line are given. <<ETX>>
A Network Model for Parallel Line Balancing Problem

Gokcen et al. (2006) have proposed several procedures and a mathematical model on single-model (product) assembly line balancing (ALB) problem with parallel lines. In parallel ALB problem, the goal is to balance more than one assembly line together. In this paper, a network model for parallel ALB problem has been proposed and illustrated on a numerical example. This model is a new approach for parallel ALB and it provides a different point of view for interested researchers.
Identifying Phrases in Instructional Text Documents UsingInstructional Objective and Goals

Resumo: There are no consensual methodologies to aid teachers how to identify main facts or piece of domain elements inside instructional text documents. Teachers identify which facts are relevant to their instructional activities while reading document. This paper describes a helpful model and process to identify, select and order relevant facts and phrases inside an instructional text document. This process is guided by some pedagogical information such as “what is the Instructional Objective and its Goals” and “which are the relevant concepts or keywords of this domain”. The main contribution of this report is how to use pedagogical information to select main facts and pieces of knowledge. The findings of a preliminary experiment shows that these model and process could be used to aid teachers to identify relevant facts and phrases inside text document. Abstract: There are no consensual methodologies to aid teachers how to identify main facts or piece of domain elements inside instructional text documents. Teachers identify which facts are relevant to their instructional activities while reading document. This paper describes a helpful model and process to identify, select and order relevant facts and phrases inside an instructional text document. This process is guided by some pedagogical information such as “what is the Instructional Objective and its Goals” and “which are the relevant concepts or keywords of this domain”. The main contribution of this report is how to use pedagogical information to select main facts and pieces of knowledge. The findings of a preliminary experiment shows that these model and process could be used to aid teachers to identify relevant facts and phrases inside text document.
INTERACTIONS OF MOBILE AGENTS IN THE DISTRIBUTED SYSTEM1

Presented process calculus for communication and mobility of mobile software agents can be used to express distributed computational environment and mobile code applications in general. Agents are abstraction of the functional part of the system architecture and they are modeled as process terms. Agent actions model interactions within the distributed environment: local/remote communication and mobility. Places are abstraction of the single computational environment where the agents are evaluated and where interactions take place. Distributed computational environment is modeled as a parallel composition of places where each place is evolving asynchronously. Operational semantics defines rules to describe behavior within the distributed environment and provides a guideline for implementations. Via a series of examples we show that mobile code applications can be naturally modeled. Keywords: software agent, distributed system, mobile code, communication, process calculus, mobile agent
Um estudo sobre o design, a implementação e a avaliação de interfaces flexíveis para idosos em telefones celulares

The elderly population grows in Brazil and this fact increases the need to develop appropriate information and communication technologies to the public. As cell phones are getting cheaper, many families would like their elderly to be users of these devices aiming to have contact with them when they are out of their homes. However, the current cell phones design favors the younger people, not considering the different needs of the elderly population. At the most, even in the elderly population, there are differences regarding education, experience with technology, cognitive abilities and physical prowess. This dissertation argues for the design, implementation and evaluation of interfaces that are flexible to meet the diverse requirements of the elderly in the interaction with cell phones. One approach to the design of flexible user interfaces was applied in a case study and, considering the results of a practice with elderly users, a set of norms which define the design of the system flexible behavior was specified. This dissertation proposes and presents a framework that provides the interface reconfiguration during the interaction time, named FlexInterface. This framework addresses the concept of interface elements as components that are loaded, instantiated and destroyed when requested. Furthermore, this dissertation also brings an approachthat supports the evaluation of flexible interfaces for the elderly in mobile phones. The proposed analytical approach presents heuristics for this specific context of use. Finally, an assessment with elderly people was performed to verify the feasibility of the proposal. This study found that there was a reduction in the interaction time with the use of flexible interface and an increase in the users’ satisfaction.
PIM analysis and development : improving information visibility in a micro-note taking tool

The digital age has brought about an information overload for individuals. While digital personal information management (PIM) tools are advancing, any one PIM tool generally fails to meet all the information management needs of an individual. Tools that require too much effort to save a new piece of information cause users to record less of their information, which often results in these pieces of information becoming fragmented and/or lost. People frequently lack the right information at the right time, even if the information is kept by one of their PIM tools. Individuals either forget that they previously recorded a piece of information, or are away from their digital devices at the wrong times. How can people keep better track of more of their information? Micro-note tools, which require minimal time, effort, and distraction for the task of capturing new pieces of information may be part of the answer. This thesis evaluates the List-it micro-note PIM tool, a Firefox addon that lets users take notes in a browser sidebar. This evaluation has led to a better understanding of how users interact with and view PIM tools. An analysis of two years of List-it usage led to many insights into PIM tool usage. An examination of List-it users resulted in the discovery of four types of interaction styles that describe how users interact with their PIM tool: Packrats, Minimalists, Sweepers, and Revisers. An examination of notes kept in List-it identified five major categories of personal information: reminders (memory triggers), reference items, journal/diary entries, scratch pad (external cognition), and posterity. The analysis also resulted in several hypothesized unmet needs and the development of new features to meet these needs, which focused primarily on improving the visibility of notes. Finally, a new application was designed and constructed that, as a single codebase, produces a Chrome Extension, a Firefox add-on, and a regular multi-browser compatible website for the new features of List-it. This thesis is one iteration in the understanding of and design for future needs faced by users of PIM tools. Thesis Supervisor: David R. Karger Title: Professor
Experiments in rights control : expression and enforcement

The Internet has transformed our long-term perception on working, entertainment, and living rapidly. We can now work comfortably in our own home, shop for our groceries without stepping outside the house, and enjoy high-quality entertaining digital content, such as music or lm. This digital content can easily be produced and copied with available digital technologies; and the content can be distributed and shared through the Internet almost effortlessly. This phenomenon has created a wide variety of usage scenarios, and has also induced huge loss to the lm and music industry through piracy. To solve this problem, we have to protect the digital content by controlling how the users are using the content. Thus, rights control has emerged as a potential solution.
Distributed Computing for Mechanical Virtual Human

To improve the efficiencies in kinematics, dynamics analysis and finite element (FE) calculation, distributed computing is used in the project of Chinese mechanical virtual human (CMVH). A three-dimensional (3D) musculoskeletal model of a male human and its finite element model have been constructed according to the male dataset of Chinese visible human (CVH). Many servers and software have been architected by using the method of distributed computing. Finally, a distributed computing platform by using these models to solving the parameters has been established. This distributed computing platform will provide wide applications in the areas such as medical engineering, robot design, physical and art education, sport, ergonomics and traffic accident analysis etc.
Formal hardware verification methodology and its application to a network interface chip

We describe how the functional correctness of a circuit design can be verified by machine checked formal proof. The proof system used is LCF_LSM, a version of Milner's LCF with a different logical calculus called LSM. We give a tutorial introduction to LSM in the paper. Our main example is the ECL chip of the Cambridge fast ring (CFR). Although the ECL chip is quite simple (about 360 gates) it is nevertheless real. Minor errors were discovered as we performed the formal proof, but when the corrected design was eventually fabricated it was functionally correct first time. The main steps in the verification were: (a) writing a high-level behavioural specification in the LSM notation, (b) translating the circuit design from its modula-2 representation in the Cambridge design automation system to LSM, (c) using the LCF_LSM theorem-proving system to generate mechanically a proof that the behaviour determined by the design is equivalent to the specified behaviour. To accomplish the second of these steps, an interface between the Cambridge design automation system, and the LCF_LSM system was constructed
PURWARUPA SISTEM PAKAR UNTUK MENENTUKAN JUMLAH KALORI DIET BAGI PENDERITA DIABETES MELLITUS

Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is one of the chronic diseases. People from all ages can suffer Diabetes Mellitus, but usually suffered the people who do not care about a healthy diet. Despite of taking drugs, the main treatment for DM is healthy diet with balanced food composition. The diet arrangement for the patient is hard to be created because it needs the knowledge from the nutritionists (expert) and calculation so that needs program to make it easier and give alternative solution for the patient to obtain a healthy balanced diet. Prototype of expert system for calculating amount of calorie for Diabetes Mellitus patient is one of the alternatives from various systems that have been used to overcome the problems they faced. The aim of this system is to make prototype of expert system for calculating amount of calorie diet to help patient on healing process. The design of this expert system using forward chaining and broca rules. This knowledge base is generated through interviews and library research from the nutritionists who have experience in the field. The result of this study can determine amount of calorie diet according to the Diabetes Mellitus patient’s need. Keywords: Expert system, Diabetes Mellitus, Calorie , Broca, Forward chaining.
A Co-Training Based Semi-Supervised Human Action Recognition Algorithm

A novel semi-supervised algorithm based on co-training is proposed in this paper. In the method, the motion energy history image are used as the different feature representation of human action; then the co-training based semi-supervised learning algorithm is utilized to predict the category of unlabeled training examples. And the average motion energy and history images are calculated as the recognition model for each category action. When recognition, the observed action is firstly classified through its correlation coefficients to the prior established templates respectively; then its final category is determined according to the consistency between the classification results of motion energy and motion history images. The experiments on Weizmann dataset demonstrate that our method is effective for human action recognition.