bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Using Smart Home Technology in Brain Injury Rehabilitation: The Road towards Service Development
Authors: Oddy Michael  , Ramos Sara da Silva  , Harris Nigel
Published: February 2025

This paper reports the process of developing an assistive technology transitional living service for brain injury rehabilitation. The aim of the service is to take advantage of smart home technology to assess, rehabilitate and promote independence in individuals with acquired brain injury who wish to live on their own in the community.
Making Brainstorming Meetings Accessible for Blind Users
Authors: Pölzer Stephan  , Schnelle-Walka Dirk  , Pöll Daniel  , Heumader Peter  , Miesenberger Klaus
Published: February 2025

Co-located meetings, as a fundamental part of our professional and educational lives heavily rely on visual information. In such meetings visual information consists of a) the artifact or “content” part (as for instance in brainstorming meetings the mind maps) and b) of nonverbal communication elements (like deictic gestures and gazes). Blind persons to a large extent do not have access to these important aspects of information and communication which are only available via the visual channel. Personal support is considered to be the only viable solution, but can only be made available in exceptional cases. This puts blind people at a disadvantage. This paper presents first research results focusing on tracking, analyzing and representing non-visual information and communication elements to blind people to allow more independent access and participation in communication. We present a general system architecture as well as a prototype implementation presenting visual information also to blind users, so that the information gap between sighted and blind participants is reduced in co-located meetings. These activities form the basis for our future research activities on access to non-verbal communication for blind people.
Virtual Mobility Trainer for Visually Impaired People
Authors: Koutny Reinhard  , Miesenberger Klaus
Published: February 2025

This paper presents a prototype [1] of a location-based and context aware system supporting blind and visually impaired people to improve their mobility skills and in particular enhancing traditional mobility training. The system supports annotating pre-defined routes with information provided in standard mobility training sessions for blind people. This allows later on to reuse the information provided in a person to person session and even to share this expertise with other people. People in need of knowing by heart a certain route can go back to the stored mobility training information to better remember and learn how to manage this route independently. The virtual mobility trainer allows making repeatedly, time independent and location-based use of information provided from a human instructor. We present a first prototype which allows designing routes, accessible to blind and visually impaired so that it can be used for mobility training. Furthermore, this tool allows performing advanced orientation tasks assisting blind people in an unknown environment. We use the Digital Graffiti framework [2] as underlying framework, which supports the needed annotation of maps with virtual landmarks.
Autonomous Navigation based on Binaural Guidance for People with Visual Impairment
Authors: Carrasco Eduardo  , Loyo Estíbaliz  , Otaegui Oihana  , Fösleitner Claudia  , Spiller John  , Patti Daniela  , Olmedo Rafael  , Dubielzig Markus
Published: February 2025

This work addresses the challenge of designing an effective, reliable and affordable navigation system for blind and visually impaired people (BVIP). Our contribution focuses essentially on the integration of accurate real-time user positioning data with binaural 3D audio based guiding techniques on mobile devices. The purpose is to produce a binaural navigation system that can be used to guide BVIP along pre-defined tracks. A preliminary prototype of this concept has been built and tested with 4 expert users obtaining encouraging results.
Synthetic and Natural Speech Intelligibility in Individuals with Visual Impairments: Effects of Experience and Presentation Rate
Authors: Barouti Marialena  , Papadopoulos Konstantinos  , Kouroupetroglou Georgios
Published: February 2025

The present study aims to compare the intelligibility of words produced in natural and synthetic speech both with normal and fast speaking rate. The effect of several individual parameters on the intelligibility of synthetic speech was also investigated. Thirty adults with visual impairment took part in the research. The experimental design consisted of two parts: a structured interview and a psychoacoustic test. The interviews were focused on the participants' demographic data experience in using synthetic speech. The results indicated that participants performed more accurately in recognizing words presented in normal speaking rate than in a fast rate. Moreover, the results indicated that the differences between synthetic and natural speech were statistically significant.
Characterization of Proximity Sensors for the Design of Electronic Travel Aids
Authors: Pyun Rosali  , Kim Yeongmi  , Wespe Pascal  , Gassert Roger
Published: February 2025

The main goal of Electronic Travel Aids is to detect obstacles and provide information to help visually impaired people safely navigate the surroundings. To achieve an efficient ETA design, the properties of the integrated sensors need to be considered for their suitability. This paper investigates the characteristics of two types of proximity sensors for this purpose. The transfer functions of an infrared and an ultrasonic sensor were determined. For the latter, we also examined the detection threshold for different obstacle distances, and reconstructed the beam shape in 3D. For the ultrasonic sensor, a width detection threshold of 12 mm was found for a distance of 3 m, with an important increase beyond 3 m. These characteristics provide insights into the suitability of two low-cost proximity sensors for ETAs.
Experiences of Older People using Videoconferencing in Home Care – A Case Study of Telecare from Finland
Authors: Pietikäinen Jorma  , Mallenius Seppo
Published: February 2025

The objective of this qualitative case study is to explore home care patients' perceptions of a videoconference system as part of their home care. The study also aims to examine how the possibility to form a video connection with nursing staff affects home care patients' feelings of loneliness and security. Seven home care patients' perceptions of the used videoconference system were surveyed using semi-structured interviews with themes based on technology acceptance literature. The gathered research material was analyzed thematically. The study is part of a larger KOVI project. The interviewed home care patients felt they had a natural conversation through the videoconference device. The individuals' views of the usefulness of videoconference technology seemed to be an essential factor in the acceptance and use of technology. The use of the videoconference device was not considered particularly challenging, so the ease of the use of technology and learning to use the device were not considered a major challenge, not even for the elderly. The customers were worried about the privacy because of the installed cameras, but considered the safety the system brings more important. The lack of previous knowledge concerning technology, however, was noted in situations that deviated from common usage of the equipment. Guidance and instructions in difficult situations and maintenance of the device were deemed important.
Exploring the Use of GPS for Locating Persons with Dementia
Authors: Øderud Tone  , Landmark Bjørg  , Eriksen Sissel  , Fossberg Anne Berit  , Brørs Kirsti Fossland  , Mandal Turid Berg  , Ausen Dag
Published: February 2025

The study “Trygge spor” is exploring the use of Global Positioning System (GPS) technology to locate persons with dementia. The overall objectives have been to assess the deployment of technology and services facilitating safety and security for people with dementia, family caregivers and professional caregivers. 55 persons with dementia and their caregivers participated in the impact study, and have been using GPS when performing outdoor activities as part of their daily activities during the evaluation period of eleven months. A commercially available GPS was provided to the participants. This paper describes the study design and discusses the findings with reference to persons with dementia and their caregivers. The study reveals that using GPS for locating persons with dementia provided increased safety for all stakeholders, including persons with dementia, family caregivers and professional caregivers. Persons with dementia might maintain their autonomy and continuing their outdoor activities despite the progression of the disease and they could enjoy their freedom. A precondition for successful implementation of GPS locating persons with dementia is to properly assess the user needs, identify appropriate technical solutions and discuss the ethical dilemmas in order to select the least intrusive intervention. Furthermore it was experienced that collaboration between persons with dementia, family caregivers and professional caregivers are important for successful implementation of GPS for locating persons with dementia. It is advisable to further include persons with dementia and their caregivers in the process of developing appropriate devices and services for persons with dementia. More research is needed in order to evaluate the long term impacts and how to implement technology and services for locating persons with dementia as part of the regular services provided by public health care providers.
Thinking through Design and Rehabilitation
Authors: Craig Claire  , Gwilt Ian  , Langley Joe  , Partridge Rebecca
Published: February 2025

The initiative described in this paper explores how the concept of ‘design thinking’ can be introduced to people with spinal cord injuries (SCI) as a route to improved independence, resourcefulness and personal control. The underpinning premise of the study is that design thinking offers a kind of resourcefulness and the ability to think laterally about problems.
Power to the People: An Exploration of Participatory Research and Development in Disability Practice
Authors: Long Siobhan  , Lattimore Nadine  , Timmins Fiona  , Ekins Ray  , Timmins Bernard  , O'Rourke Pearl  , Coyle Eugene
Published: February 2025

Aim: this paper aims to briefly describe some current approaches to participative research and technological development with people with disability in the Republic of Ireland (Roi).
The Self-Guide System for the People Who Needs Help at Evacuation: The Second Case Study at Kagoshima City Aquarium
Authors: Kimura Tsutomu  , Kanda Kazuyuki  , Otsuka Mika  , Sasaki Kyoko  , Dewa Naoko  , Chikuchishin Mitsuko  , Kashiwagi Nobuyuki  , Matsubayashi Kuniharu
Published: February 2025

A proposal of a resolution system using electronic communication tools at evacuation and a report of the demonstrations at an aquarium. It is unique to the point that the self-guide system is used either at emergency or at daily situation.
Mixed Technical and Market Evaluation of Home Automation Networks for AAL Solutions
Authors: Saidinejad Hassan  , Radaelli Jacopo  , Veronese Fabio  , Salice Fabio
Published: February 2025

The demographics are experiencing an elderly population growth. One of the main concerns, due to this growth, is the cost of elderly care which is rapidly rising. Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) has been proposed as a solution for independent ageing in place, reducing the care costs and improving the quality of life of the elderly. Alongside with the benefits like tele-care, health monitoring, and assistance in activities of daily living, ambient intelligence in smart homes offers another important service which is home control. The right choice of the home automation (HA) technology is crucial for an effective home control. This is challenging in a dynamic and competitive HA market with several standards and alliances. A long-term investment on an HA solution requires not only technical evaluation but also a market evaluation of existing technologies and an understanding of how it will be shaped in future. In this work we searched for mixed technical and market indicators in order to evaluate HA technologies and base our smart home platform on it.
Evaluation of PIR-based Presence and Person Fall Detection System
Authors: Kuusinen Jere  , Vilkkinen Heikki
Published: February 2025

The study has the objective of monitoring person activity at home and detect possible person falls with passive infrared sensor units. The system is targeted to alert of any abnormal activity at home, such as falls, too long visits to the toilet, unplanned leaving of the building as well as some normal activities, such as wake-ups in the morning and persons' presence and movement. Non-visual monitoring system was selected in order to respect the person's privacy. Data collection and alerts are gathered by a web-based service. The alert service is able to send alerts using SMS or a web service – XML or e-mails.
Evaluation of Body Vibrations during Manual Wheelchair Running over the Newly Developed Indoor Tactile Guidance
Authors: Yanagihara Takao  , Hara Yoshiaki  , Kuwahata Ken
Published: February 2025

TWSIs compliant with the JIS could be an extra barrier for pedestrians, wheelchair users, and baby carriage users. We have considered that bump heights should have been lower for lower limbs disabled and prosthesis users. We developed newly developed Indoor tactile guidance having 2 mm height or less. Especially, this tactile guidance targets indoors. Because indoors are less danger than outdoors and the floor faces are comparatively flat. On the other hand, some studies have suggested that the vibration caused by manual wheelchairs running over the sidewalk and tactile walking surface indicators have risk of secondary disorders for the wheelchair users. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the body vibration for wheelchair users running over newly developed Indoor tactile guidance. Results for the manual wheelchair showed that significant differences existed between TWSIs compliant with JIS and the indoor tactile guidance in body vibration and dis comfort level. TWSIs compliant with JIS are approximately five times as large as the 1 mm height of the indoor tactile guidance and are approximately three times as large as the 2 mm height of the indoor tactile guidance. The development of the indoor tactile guidance in consideration of body vibrations for wheelchair users is necessary.
Development of the Data Collection System on Assistive Technology Services in Finland
Authors: Töytäri Outi  , Salmi Minna  , Hurnasti Tuula
Published: February 2025

This paper describes the results of a pilot study on what information from assistive technology services could be obtained from current assistive technology registers used in health centers and central hospitals. In addition it describes the usability and functionality of the used questions about the data on assistive technology. The piloting of the questionnaire showed that it requires improving in order to develop the national data collection system on assistive technology services in Finland.
Assistive Technology Services Delivery System in Slovakia
Authors: Šimšík Dušan  , Galajdová Alena  , Onofrejová Daniela
Published: February 2025

Assistive technology plays important role in the development of an Inclusive society. As accessible mainstream services rise relatively slower than needs and requirements of increasing population of seniors and of course persons with disabilities, assistive technology often have to be the main tool for obtaining an accessible service. AT experts in Europe are looking for more efficient and useful AT service delivery system. There is no chance to have only one common system in the whole Europe. However, transfer of knowledge between countries and good examples together with some international basis for AT database and more deep cooperation in research shall be helpful. Paper describes some ideas and results from authors' experience in Slovak AT service delivery system.
Technology Support in School for Pupils with Disability
Authors: Dahlbäck Jessica
Published: February 2025

The Swedish Institute of Assistive Technology runs two projects which analyzes how the use of technology in school can support pupils with disability. The projects have been following the pupils and offering them different kinds of support with the aim to prepare them for a future employment or further studies. To be able to identify the pupils and their disabilities, an instrument called the School Setting Interview (SSI) has been used. The SSI is an occupational therapy assessment developed at Linköping University in Sweden. The projects have employed occupational therapists to perform the interviews of the pupils. Occupational therapist is not a common profession in the Swedish schools. In the preparation of the projects it was needed to include this profession with the aim to expand the perspective of the pupils and their needs of support. So far, approximately 400 pupils have been interviewed. A majority of the interviewed pupils have a cognitive disability or dyslexia. More than 50 percent of these pupils had no earlier on documented diagnosis. The results so far indicate that the SSI instrument has made it possible for the pupils to explain their situation for the occupational therapists about their situation in school. The most common assistive technologies which have been distributed to the pupils in the projects are tablet computers and smartphones with different kind of applications, scanner mice, spelling programs and time-aids. It is too early to draw general conclusions from the projects. However we have indications that the pupils perceive that different kind of assistive technology can help them in school. One of the projects, which is financed by the Swedish Government, will end in September and then we will be able to present for instance quantitative and qualitative data from about 400 - 500 students, evaluation of the experience of the occupational therapist's competence in school and a socio-economic analysis.
Perspectives on Integrated Emergency Response
Authors: Alexander David
Published: February 2025

This chapter examines the broad picture regarding the prospects for integration in response to crises and civil contingencies. It evaluates the complexity of emergency situations, using so-called ‘complex emergencies’ as a yardstick. It considers the various forms of potential to develop interoperability in emergency planning, management and response. Next, it probes the different forms of organisation that have been created in order to tackle disasters and emergencies and weighs up their potential for a more integrated approach. It extends this analysis into the humanitarian response field. Lastly the ways in which organisations learn and adapt are considered in relation to the potential for more integrated responses. It is concluded that integration is a fundamental need in emergency management, but it should be achieved by creating functional links rather than ever larger organisational structures.
Hospital Response and Natural Disasters
Authors: Miniati Roberto
Published: February 2025

A disaster is a serious disruption of the functioning of a community or system in a given spatial area causing widespread losses which exceed the ability of the affected system or community to cope with it, using its own resources. In this context, the operational continuity of hospital systems is essential for medical response during disasters and it depends on both structural and non-structural aspects. Although many models and studies already exist in the field of risk reduction, the complexity of the system makes the hospital application really difficult. In the following chapter is reported the development of a new integrated methodology and the application to several case studies (seismic risk assessment for both Italian and US medical facilities, and flooding risk assessment for the Italian hospital). A large part of the study was carried out under the aegis of the European Commission's Framework Program 7 project “MOVE – Methods for the Improvement of Vulnerability Assessment in Europe.”
Disasters and Mass Casualty Incidents: the dual use of Field Hospitals. The Experience of the Italian Alpini Field Hospital during Disasters
Authors: Rossodivita Alessandra  , Losapio Lucio Pantaleo
Published: February 2025

In a “ Disaster” local health services can be overwhelmed, and damage to clinics and hospitals can render them useless. Damage to the health care infrastructure will further compromise the delivery of health services. Many countries maintain mobile field hospitals in order to react in case of disaster. Lessons from past complex disasters such as civil conflicts, wars and humanitarian emergencies showed that Field Hospitals (FH) – as temporary civilian or military hospitals - play a significant response role in disasters and Mass Casualty Incidents (MCI) management. The authors describe an Italian Model of Mobile Field Hospital of ANA- Italian Association of Alpini as “a mobile- flexible hospital structure, self –contained, self –sufficient health care of rapid deployment and expansion or contraction, which has worked, works and will be engaged in case of disasters, in humanitarian emergencies, during mass casualty incidents (MCI) or during major medical incidents”. This Field Hospital supports the activities of civil protection in national and international context, implements local emergency services and hospital bed surge capacity and treatment of mass-casualties in disasters for a specific period of time, especially during international long term missions, but also during peacetime in mass gatherings events and training programs in emergency preparedness. The authors would like to suggest the dual use of a Field Hospital in supporting counties' and populations' needs during disaster time, during wars and conflicts, but also during peacetime.
Emergency medical and public health responses to the 2005 London bombings
Authors: Baker David  , Murray Virginia
Published: February 2025

On 7thJuly 2005 terrorists attacked the transportation system in London detonating four improvised explosive devices. 56 persons died and over 700 were injured, 45 of them critically. These bombings were unexpected and besides causing major injury and loss of life, longer term health effects were reported. A full major incident command structure was put in place led by the London UK Metropolitan Police, and involved other emergency services, the health system and central government. The transportation system of the capital was severely affected with major disruption of the city transportation system for 24 hours. Road traffic became completely gridlocked in the central area with all transport inside the M25 beltway suspended. Communications failures included the breakdown of the mobile phone system due to overload. Despite previous experience with the management of bombing incidents in the UK, the scale of the attacks was significant and caused considerable strains on the emergency response system and public health as well as on the infrastructure of the city.
Crisis and emergency response capabilities – Republic of Bulgaria
Authors: Stoykov Mitko
Published: February 2025

Prof. Mitko Stoykov in his speech he gave introduction in the Bulgarian case. Further he explained the Crisis and Emergency management capabilities of Bulgaria. The bases for the functioning of the system are the legal and normative documents which were briefly mentioned. After that Prof. Stoykov continued with the Crisis and Emergency Management System (CEMS), their training and interoperability. Next in his presentation was the cooperation of the Bulgarian and Allied CEMS and in the end with the problems that CEMS are facing.
Health Threats and Cross Border Cooperation - Important Component in Regional Security. (Global public health security in the 21st century)
Authors: Pollozhani Azis K.
Published: February 2025

Mr. Azis Pollozhani was speaking about the Health threats and cross border cooperation as important part for the regional security. He gave the examples of the past events and their consequences. After that he continued with the global public health security in the 21st century and the implementation of the international health regulations.
Sustained Emergency Relief Regionally Developed Capacities MKSF BRIEFING
Authors: Hadergjonaj Fadil
Published: February 2025

The cornerstone of this presentation was the mission of the Ministry for the Kosovo Security Forces (MKSF) and the Kosovo Security Forces (KSF). After the brief presentation on the mission he continued with the structures MKSF and the KSF. Next in his presentation were the achievements and the operations of the MKSF and KSF. Fulfilling of recommendation for Full Operational Capabilities (FOC) from Commander of the KFOR was emphasized as main achievement. After that the bilateral cooperation on this field that Kosovo has was the point of presentation. In the end he focused on the challenges that MKSF and KSF, the priorities 2012-2014 and the future training requirements.
A Brief Theory of Terrorism and Technology Revisited
Authors: Tillema Herbert K.
Published: February 2025

Terrorism, strictly defined, is an ancient political instrument. Its strategic objective is to instill terror and by so doing alter attitudes and prospective behavior among selected political targets. Technology circumscribes tactics of both terrorism and counterterrorism. Investment in the latest defense technology ostensibly advantages counterterrorism. In practice, technical advantage does not necessarily confer decisive strategic advantage, especially if the effort concentrates solely upon physical defense. Effective defense against terrorism additionally requires sophisticated political counter-strategy in order to influence prospective behavior of terrorists and potential terrorists as well as other parties.
QoS-Aware Cloud Application Management
Authors: Martin Patrick  , Soltani Sima  , Powley Wendy  , Hassannezhad Mastoureh
Published: February 2025

Cloud computing is attractive to many organizations because of its support for on-demand resources. The processes of deploying and running an application on the cloud need to be simple and efficient in order to justify the costs incurred in moving to the cloud. Unfortunately this is not necessarily the case today. Cloud application management therefore needs to become more provider-independent, autonomic and Quality-of-Service (QoS) aware. The QuARAM framework for QoS-aware autonomic cloud application management supports application developers in selecting a cloud provider, provisioning resources on the provider, deploying the application, and then managing the execution of the application.
NATO and Critical Infrastructure Resilience – Planning for the Unknown
Authors: Kerigan-Kyro Dinos
Published: February 2025

Critical infrastructure is vital for modern existence. It includes communications and the Internet, the logistics of food and water supplies, and transport on the roads, in the air, on water, and by rail. The supply and distribution of gasoline and electricity is perhaps the most important aspect, as it underpins our entire critical infrastructure and indeed our modern way of life. Without power nothing can operate. Our critical infrastructure is however subject to ever increasing asymmetric threats. Such threats can arise from industrial accidents, extreme weather, and deliberate sabotage caused by terrorists and extreme protest. Moreover, those that wish to do harm have an ever increasing ease of access to vital critical infrastructure systems by way of ‘cyber’ information technology. Since 9/11, NATO has adapted to face these new challenges. Continuing this adaptation is vital. The paper argues that information-sharing and emergency planning based on resilience and flexibility is the key way in which we can address these new challenges.
Critical Infrastructure Protection: The EU Perspective
Authors: Naucodie Francois
Published: February 2025

Although the issue of critical infrastructure protection would normally be a national concern, the cross-border aspects of the problem do cause concern for the European Union (EU). The EU has created a number of bodies to address this issue and they have begun to tackle this issue through a series of seminars. The EU is currently developing a road map for the protection of critical infrastructure.
An Analysis of a Cyberattack on a Nuclear Plant: The STUXNET Worm
Authors: Staff
Published: February 2025

The STUXNET worm has come into daily lexicon by accident. A very powerful piece of malware, designed to target specifically Iranian nuclear facilities using certain Siemens software, has shown us the possible vulnerabilities to such measures.
Aligning National Cyber Security Strategies to International Guidance: A First Step Toward Improving Incident Response Capabilities Across NATO
Authors: Holt Matthew W.
Published: February 2025

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has a key role to play in improving member states' and partners' overall cyber defense posture. To achieve this objective, NATO must ensure it is not imposing overlapping or conflicting requirements that may make national cyber security programs less effective, and must drive efforts to improve national incident response and international coordination. Developing these capabilities will require coordinated planning, implementation, and performance management of mature national cyber security strategies across NATO countries. Understanding all layers of the NATO cyber ecosystem, including the stakeholders' priorities, maturity levels of current guidance on cyber security, and NATO's own ability to influence and add value to each layer of its ecosystem is essential to ensure NATO can issue effective guidance.
Evolution of National and Corporate CERTs – Trust, the Key Factor
Authors: Kruidhof Olaf
Published: February 2025

This paper discusses the evolution of Computer Emergency Response Teams (CERTs) due to trends in technology and society. It shows how these trends affect the selection of services a CERT can provide to its constituency, and the effects on its resources. The argument is that CERTs need to focus more and more on the specific services they can provide. The selection of these services must be driven by the objectives of their parent organization, the constituency they serve, and the urgency by which services must be provided. The paper further asserts that cyber security organizations (highly) specialized in a limited number of tasks should collaborate with others in order to effectively handle incidents. Trust among participants represents the basis for any successful collaboration. Trust, however, only exists between people. Thus, several other elements need to be in place in order to extend individual trust to organizations.
Exploiting Data- and Task-Parallelism in the Solution of Riccati Equations on Multicore Servers and GPUs
Authors: Benner P.  , Ezzatti P.  , Quintana-Ortí E.S.  , Remón A.
Published: February 2025

In this paper we evaluate two solvers for the algebraic Riccati equation –a crucial operation in control theory– based on the Newton iterative scheme for the matrix sign function. When the target architecture is a multicore server with a moderate number of cores, our Riccati solvers exploit the task-parallelism that exist in the computational kernels that compose the Newton iteration. On the other hand, for hybrid platforms that include a graphics processor (GPU), we further exploit the data-parallelism of the major kernels and off-load these computations to the graphics device. Our experimental results on a platform equipped with state-of-the-art technology from AMD, Intel and NVIDIA reveals significant acceleration factors from the GPU.
PRACE DECI (Distributed European Computing Initiative) Minisymposium
Authors: Johnson Chris  , Bochenkova Anastasia V.  , Granovsky Alexander A.  , Bond Peter J.  , Paramo Teresa  , Glatard Tristan  , Romero R. William A.  , Friboulet Denis  , Zasada Stefan J.  , Coveney Peter V.
Published: February 2025

DECI (Distributed European Computing Initiative) is a resource exchange programme which provides researchers all over Europe with access to Tier-1 super-computing resources. DECI first ran within the DEISA project but since mid-2011 has operated within the PRACE environment (http://www.prace-project.eu), so far supporting 99 projects providing approximately 300 million core hours of computing time across over 25 machines. DECI calls open at 6-monthly intervals and successful projects are given access to resources for 1 year. Here we present an overview of some of the DECI projects presented in this Minisymposium highlighting some of DECI's achievements so far.
SAT-based Model Checking: Interpolation, IC3, and Beyond
Authors: Grumberg Orna  , Shoham Sharon  , Vizel Yakir
Published: February 2025

SAT-based model checking is currently one of the most successful approaches to checking very large systems. In its early days, SAT-based (bounded) model checking was mainly used for bug hunting. The introduction of interpolation and IC3\PDR enable efficient complete algorithms that can provide full verification as well.
Foundations of Infinite-State Verification
Authors: Majumdar Rupak
Published: February 2025

These lecture notes give an introduction to the field of infinite-state model checking. We take a language-theoretic view, and focus on a few foundational results.
Applications of Interactive Proof to Data Flow Analysis and Security
Authors: Klein Gerwin  , Nipkow Tobias
Published: February 2025

We show how to formalise a small imperative programming language in the theorem prover Isabelle/HOL, how to define its semantics, and how to prove properties about the language, its type systems, and a number of data flow analyses.
Methodological Challenges in the Study of Terrorist Leaders
Authors: Maskaliunaite Asta
Published: February 2025

The paper discusses some ontological and methodological issues involved in the studying of terrorist leaders. It starts from assessing the state of literature on terrorism in general and recurring challenges identified in it. In the many self-reflecting articles on the topic, the following issues are identified: the problem of the absence of an agreed definition; the poor quality of research; itinerant contributors; presence of ‘self-appointed experts’; unwillingness of researchers to commit to the study of terrorism; lack of barriers of entry into the field; problems with data; lack of cohesion and lack of clear methodologies; lack of intellectual progress. The paper moves on to discuss issues particular to the analysis of terrorist leaders. The trends identified follow the dichotomies present in social sciences in general, such as structure vs. agency and explanation vs. understanding. The paper shows fruitful avenues available in advancing on these roads. The last section discusses the value of different methodologies such as qualitative and quantitative analysis identifying the work done so far and assessing the possibilities for the future.
Definition of Terrorist Act in International Law and Polish Criminal Law. Problems and Policy Implications
Authors: Libront Karolina
Published: February 2025

Poland should provide for comprehensive participation in the fight against terrorism also by contributing to the creation and implementation of international law, and at the same time adequately shaping its domestic legal framework. The article will focus on both international as well as Polish criminal law and their definitions of a terrorist act. Criminal law is the most basic tool to pursue and condemn individuals involved in terrorism. The author will briefly examine and compare Polish and international legal solutions as well as draw policy implications for Poland.
The Importance of Southern Leaders in The Sahelisation and Hybridisation of AQIM
Authors: Cristiani Dario
Published: February 2025

The major argument of this essay is that the impact of specific, high-ranking militants within AQIM was decisive in boosting the Sahelisation and the hybridisation of the Algerian terrorism. The GSPC had to move southward following the situation of weakness in which it was caught at the end of the 1990s. Yet, the rise within the ranks of the GSPC/AQIM of Mokhtar Belmokhtar earlier, and Abou Zeid later, were key factors in changing the operational and geographic features of the group. Above all after joining the Al Qaeda franchising – and using more Qaedist tactics to hit Algeria between 2007 and 2008 – the group increased its focus on para-legal and illegal economic activities, some of them also openly illicit (Haram), reducing its commitment toward proper and classic minor Jihad. The personalities, as well as the personal features and ambitions of the two key AQIM southern leaders, were key in strengthening this dynamic.
A Survey of Interdependency Models for Critical Infrastructure Networks
Authors: Banerjee Joydeep  , Das Arun  , Sen Arunabha
Published: February 2025

The critical infrastructures of the nation such as the power grid and the communication network are highly interdependent. Also, it has been observed that there exists complex interdependent relationships between individual entities of the power grid and the communication network that further obfuscates the analysis, and mitigation of faults in such multi-layered networks. In recent years, the research community has made significant efforts towards gaining insight and understanding of the interdependency relations in such multi-layered networks, and accordingly, a number of models have been proposed and analyzed towards realizing this goal.
Evaluation of the Reliability of Repairable s — t Networks by Fast Simulation Method
Authors: Kuznetsov Nickolay
Published: February 2025

A network with unreliable edges is considered. All failed edges can be repaired. Distribution functions of failure-free operation and repair time of edges are supposed to be of general type. A fast simulation method producing unbiased estimates for the network failure (interruption of connection between two given nodes s and t in a given time interval) is developed. It is proved that under some weak conditions these estimates have a bounded relative error with increasing reliability of components. Numerical examples demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed method.
Robust Networked Control Systems with Communication Constraints
Authors: Mehta Siddhartha S.  , Mackunis William  , Curtis Jess W.
Published: February 2025

Shared-channel communication networks, e.g., a wireless local area network, are susceptible to congestion that can adversely affect performance and stability of systems operating over a network due to packet loss and time-delays. In addition to poor network service quality, congestion can result in partial or complete network collapse. The detrimental effects of congestion on a network and the systems operating over the network can be mitigated by designing a controller to reduce the reliance of systems on the network by reducing channel utilization. In this chapter, a context-aware communication policy that stabilizes a class of nonlinear networked control systems (NCS) operating over a bandwidth-limited shared-channel is developed to reduce channel utilization. The NCS under consideration is also assumed to be affected by an unmodeled, nonlinear, exogenous disturbance. The control objective is to stabilize a nonlinear NCS in the presence of uncertainties while minimizing the network usage. The informational value of the output states can be analyzed in the context of system stability using model-based approaches. When fused with event-based triggering, the context-aware communication policy results in aperiodic feedback signals that guarantee uniformly ultimately bounded tracking of output states of an uncertain perturbed system along the desired time-varying trajectory. The proposed NCS is validated using simulations for nonlinear scalar and coupled MIMO systems.
Hop-Constrained Tree-Shaped Networks
Authors: Monteiro Marta S.R.  , Fontes Dalila B.M.M.  , Fontes Fernando A.C.C.
Published: February 2025

Hop constraints are used to limit the number of links between two given points in a network, this way improving the quality of service by increasing the availability and reliability of the network. They have been applied to a limited number of problems, although their application can be of the greatest importance both from the academical and practical points-of-view. In this work, we survey relevant and recent works on hop-constrained problems focusing on problems with tree shaped solutions.
Distributed Computer Attack Detection System for Corporate Networks
Authors: Sargsyan Vardan  , Sargsyan Arman  , Ghazaryan Armen
Published: February 2025

This paper presents a method for distributed attacks detection in corporate computer networks. The method is designed according to the modern requirements of attack detection and can be used to reveal existing and modified attacks. A mathematical model of the system is developed using hybrid neural networks. Hybrid networks are presented as an integration of two artificial networks – a multilayer neural network and a self-organizing map or Kohonen network. The model can be applied in corporate networks for increasing efficiency of security management. Corporate networks formed the environment of network economy and disseminate critical managerial, business and financial information, which needs to be protected from dynamically changing computer attacks. The developed methodology was applied to analysis of the Armenian commercial banking system.
Optimal Balanced Packing Using Phi-Function Technique
Authors: Stoyan Yuriy  , Stetsyuk Petro  , Romanova Tatiana
Published: February 2025

We study NP-hard placement optimization problems, which cover a wide spectrum of industrial applications, including space engineering. The review paper considers phi-functions as an analytical tool for describing placement constraints, including containment, non-overlapping, allowable distances, prohibited areas, object translations and rotations. A mathematical model of a basic placement problem is presented as a non-smooth optimization problem. We consider two solution algorithms for optimization placement problems. The reader will get acquainted with two subsequent problems of the basic placement problem encountered in space engineering.
Monotonic and Non-Monotonic Infections on Networks
Authors: Gutfraind Alexander
Published: February 2025

The structure of a network can significantly affect the course of infections on it. For example, a human-to-human contact network affects the epidemiology of infectious diseases, affecting both the rate of new infections and the sizes of outbreaks. Related results are also known for infrastructure systems like communication and power transmission systems that experience cascading breakdowns. Despite this dependence, some characteristics of outbreaks are predictable based only on the infection being transmitted. Here we consider SIR-like infections, and give an elementary proof that for any network, increasing the probability of transmission monotonically increases the mean outbreak size. We also introduce a simple model, termed 2FleeSIR, in which susceptibles protect themselves by avoiding contacts with infectees. The dynamics of 2FleeSIR are fundamentally different from SIR dynamics because 2FleeSIR seems to exhibit no outbreak transition in densely-connected networks. Moreover, 2FleeSIR exhibits non-monotonic phenomena: for some networks, increasing transmissibility actually decreases the final extent. We show that in non-monotonic epidemics, public health officials might be able to intervene in a fundamentally new way to change the network so as to control the effect of unexpectedly-high transmissibility. However, interventions that decrease transmissibility might actually cause more people to become infected.
Developing Perception-Based Criteria of Inclusive (Architectural) Design
Authors: Lukman Aldyfra  , Bridge Catherine  , Dain Stephen  , Boon Mei-Ying
Published: February 2025

Inclusive design outcomes in architecture rely on valid and reliable information about user experiences. The way users perceive and experience the built environment contains the clues for the optimal facilitation of their needs and expectations. However, their perceptions of aspects of the built environment and their needs and expectations are not easily accessed for incorporation into the design work of professional architects and architecture students. This paper identifies how this need may be addressed and outlines methods of making such knowledge more accessible and in a form that facilitates ease of incorporation of user perceptions and expectations into design. Specifically, this paper details approaches whereby user perceptions are transformed into design tools that can be used by architects for applying inclusive design. Several approaches that are described in this paper can be applied and combined by architects and students to obtain information regarding user perception of the built environment and subsequently converting the information into the tools or criteria for designing inclusive buildings and facilities. The approaches and the tools are expected to support the incorporation of inclusive design into the architecture profession and education.
Downsizers and Other Movers: The Housing Options, Choices and Dilemmas of Older Australians
Authors: Judd Bruce  , Liu Edgar  , Easthope Hazel  , Bridge Catherine
Published: February 2025

Downsizing and retirement village living are popularly regarded as the norm for older Australians, when in reality this accounts for only a small proportion of them. Most remain in their own larger detached homes in the general community for as long as possible, until disability or illness renders this difficult or impossible. However the design of most detached suburban houses does not facilitate ageing in place. Based on findings from two recent research projects funded by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute, this paper explores why most older Australians remain in their own homes, why those who do move or downsize do so, into what types of dwellings and tenure, and how they go about this process. The findings challenge conventional understandings of both housing utilization and downsizing. Underutilisation is largely a misnomer amongst older Australians and downsizing is relatively rare. Those who do downsize do so generally for lifestyle and reduced maintenance rather than financial reasons, yet there is a lack of supply of appropriately designed, located and affordable housing which ironically might encourage moving/downsizing to the benefit of the ageing population and the wider housing market. These findings also support the need to accelerate the adoption of universal design principles in both housing and neighbourhoods, a need also recognized by older people themselves.
Inclusive Housing (Lab) for All: a home for research, demonstration and information on Universal Design (UD)
Authors: Herssens Jasmien  , Nijs Mieke  , Froyen Hubert
Published: February 2025

This paper states the underlying concept and motivation of the design and building process of a Universal Design (UD) living lab that opened in 2013. The UD-lab is located in the city centre of Hasselt, Belgium and initiates three main ambitions: demonstration, conducting research and offering information on the added values of Universal Designing. The paper confirms the importance of global real life initiatives in order to drive forward the general awareness on Universal Designing, as ongoing activity. Besides the paper stresses the fact that the impact of small local initiatives may instantly bridge the gap between government, institutions and the population at large by means of a UD-attitude.