pinecone/core-2020-05-10-deduplication huggingface dataset:
Taxonomy Based Testing and Validation of a new Defect\ud
Classification for Health Software

Defect-based testing is a powerful tool for finding errors in software. Many software manufacturers\ud
avoid this method because it requires a detailed defect taxonomy that is expensive to\ud
construct and difficult to validate. The Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation\ud
(AAMI) is developing SW911, a defect taxonomy to be published as a standard for\ud
health software. This paper details three methods to validate SW91 for its comprehensiveness.\ud
The initial validations of SW91 were conducted via mapping vulnerabilities from the Common\ud
Weakness Enumeration and a dataset from a medical device software development company\ud
in Ireland. Taxonomy based testing is another validation method proposed in this research\ud
and its applicability was investigated using empirical data from a medical device software\ud
development company in Ireland. Finally, the paper details future plans to implement\ud
taxonomy based testing to improve software quality in medical device software and to\ud
validate SW91. This validation will focus on the efficiency, reliability, ability to perform useful\ud
analyses and defect coverage of SW91
The maintenance implications of the customization of ERP software

Enterprise resource planning (ERP) software is a dominant approach for dealing with legacy information system problems. In order to avoid invalidating maintenance and development support from the ERP vendor, most organizations reengineer their business processes in line with those implicit within the software. Regardless, some customization is typically required. This paper presents two case studies of ERP projects where customizations have been performed. The case analysis suggests that while customizations can give true organizational benefits, careful consideration is required to determine whether a customization is viable given its potential impact upon future maintenance. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd
AVal: an Extensible Attribute-Oriented Programming Validator for Java

International audienceAttribute Oriented Programming (@OP) permits programmers to extend the semantics of a base program by annotating it with attributes defined in an attribute domain-specific language (AttDSL). In this article, we propose AVal: a Java5 framework for the definition and checking of rules for @OP in Java. We define a set of meta-annotations to allow the validation of @OP programs, as well as the means to extend these meta-annotations by using a compile-time model of the program's source code. AVal is fully integrated into the Eclipse IDE. We show the usefulness of the approach by using examples of its use applied to three AttDSLs: an @OP framework that helps programming SAX parsers, an @OP extension for the Fractal component model called Fraclet, and the JSR 181 for web services definition
Formal methods for legacy systems.

Paper dated January 6, 1995A method is described for obtaining useful information from legacy code. The approach uses formal proven program transformations, which preserve for refine the semantics of a construct while changing its form. The applicability of a transformation in a particular syntactic context is checked before application. By using an appropriate sequence of transformations, the extracted representation is guaranteed to be equivalent to the code. In this paper, we focus on the results of using this approach in the reverse engineering of medium scale, industrial software, written mostly in languages such as assembler and JOVIAL. Results from both benchmark algorithms and heavily modified, geriatric software are summarised. It is concluded that the approach is viable, for self-contained code, and that useful design information may be extracted from legacy systems at economic cost. We conclude that formal methods have an important practical role in the reverse engineering process.Partly funded bu Alvey project SE-088, partly through a DTI/SERC and IBM UK Ltd. funded IEATP grant "From assembler to Z using formal transformations" and partly by SERC (Science and Engineering Research Council) project "A proof theory for program refinement and equivalence: extensions"
Achieving Process modeling and Execution through the Combination of Aspect and Model-Driven Engineering Approaches

International audienceOne major advantage of executable software process models is that once defined, they can be simulated, checked and validated in short incremental and iterative cycles. This also makes them a powerful asset for important process improvement decisions such as resource allocation, deadlock identification and process management. In this paper, we propose a framework that combines Aspect and Model-Driven Engineering approaches in order to ensure process modeling, simulation and execution. This framework is based upon UML4SPM, a UML2.0-based language for Software Process Modeling and Kermeta, an executable metaprogramming language
UML-based regression testing for OO software

In software maintenance, a system has to be regression tested after modifying it. The goal of regression testing is to ensure that modifications have not adversely affected the system. Regression test selection determines a subset of test cases, from the initial test suite, which concentrates on the parts of the system affected by the modification. Previous techniques have been mainly code-based and several of them have addressed procedural programs. When working with large and complex object-oriented systems, source code-based regression testing is usually costly. This paper proposes a programming-language-independent technique for regression test selection for object-oriented software based on Unified Modeling Language (UML 2.0) design diagrams. These diagrams are: the newly introduced interaction overview diagram, class diagrams, and sequence diagrams. We assume a test suite that contains both unit and system test cases. Based on the software changes reflected in the class and the interaction overview diagrams, our proposed technique selects test cases in phases. In the first phase, we select both unit and system test cases that directly traverse the changed methods and their calling methods. For the second phase, we present algorithms for detecting system level changes in the interaction overview diagram. If the change is at the action level, which is represented by a sequence diagram, only the test cases that execute changed methods will be selected. We apply our proposed technique to a few object-oriented subject applications and evaluate its precision and inclusiveness in addition to the number of selected tests; the results demonstrate the advantages of the technique. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.PublishedN/
RNA Biomarkers: Diagnostic and Prognostic Potentials and Recent Developments of Electrochemical Biosensors

Ribonucleic acids (RNAs) are considered as effective and minimally invasive biomarkers for disease diagnosis and prognosis due to their critical role in the regulation of different cellular processes. Over the past several years, the rapid progress in RNA biomarker research has resulted in the development of a large number of high-performance RNA-detection methods. Most of these methods are based on molecular-biology techniques such as quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), microarrays, and RNA sequencing. In recent years, considerable attention has also been dedicated to developing RNA biosensors, exploiting micro- and nanofabrication technologies, and various readout strategies, including electrochemical and optical transducers. Here, the recent developments of RNA biosensors are concisely reviewed with a special emphasis on electrochemical-detection approaches. The following points are also highlighted: i) all the types of clinically relevant RNAs (mRNAs, miRNAs, lncRNAs) and their diagnostic and prognostic potential in cancer are outlined, ii) major challenges associated with current techniques are identified, followed by a critical analysis of how these challenges have been addressed by different biosensing approaches, and iii) the current requirements that still need to be met for effective screening of RNA biomarkers in both research and clinical settings.Griffith Sciences, School of Natural SciencesFull Tex
Growth of Carbon Nanotubes inside Boron Nitride Nanotubes by Coalescence of Fullerenes: Toward the World's Smallest Coaxial Cable

The use of boron nitride nanotubes as effective nanoscale containers for the confinement and thermal transformations of molecules of C60-fullerene is demonstrated. The gas-phase insertion of fullerenes into the internal channel of boron nitride nanotubes yields quasi-1D arrays, with packing arrangements of the guest-fullerenes different from those in the bulk crystal and critically dependent on the internal diameter of the host-nanotube. Interestingly, the confined fullerene molecules: i) exhibit dynamic behavior and temperature-dependent phase transitions analogous to that observed in the bulk crystal and (ii) can be effectively removed from within the internal channel of nanotubes by excessive sonication in organic solvent, indicating weak host-guest interactions. The thermal treatment of fullerenes confined within nanotubes at 1200 °C in argon triggers the polymerization and coalescence of the guest fullerenes into carbon nanotubes inside boron nitride nanotubes affording a hybrid nanostructure – the world’s smallest coaxial cable – on a preparative scale, as confirmed by high-resolution bright-field transmission electron microscopy imaging, electron energy loss spectroscopy, energy-filtered transmission electron microscopy elemental mapping and UV vis absorption spectroscopy
Dynamic spillovers in the United States : stock market, housing, uncertainty, and the macroeconomy

In this study we examine dynamic macroeconomic spillovers in the United States, with
a particular focus on the stock market, housing and economic policy uncertainty (EPU).
Based on monthly data over the period 1987M1 to 2014M11, our  ndings reveal the following
features. First, the transmission of various types of shocks contributes signi cantly
to economic 
uctuations in the United States. Second, spillovers show large variations
over time. Third, in the wake of the global  nancial crisis, spillovers have been exceptionally
high in historical perspective. In particular, we  nd large spillovers from EPU,
as well as stock market and housing returns to other variables, in particular in
ation,
industrial production and the federal funds rate. These results illustrate the contagion
from the housing and  nancial crisis to the real economy and the strong policy reaction
to stabilise the economy.http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)2325-80122017-10-31hb2016Economic
The shocking origins of political transitions : evidence from earthquakes.

Do earthquakes trigger political transitions? Using a rich panel dataset of 160 countries observed over 1950–2007, we find that earthquake shocks, measured in terms of the effect of ground‐motion amplitude on death toll, have two contradicting effects on political change. On the one hand, earthquakes drive transitions into democracy due to an affective shock, which we interpret to be the reaction of citizens by which they hold the incumbent government responsible for earthquake damages. On the other hand, earthquakes indirectly hasten transitions into a less democratic regime because they increase the income level contemporaneously, possibly due to short‐term emergency response and recovery expenditures, and thus, raising the opportunity cost of contesting the incumbent government. Overall, we show that, while not leading to a full‐fledged regime transition, earthquake shocks open a new democratic window of opportunity, but this window is narrowed by improved economic conditions
Potential Improvement in Fill Factor of Lead-Halide Perovskite Solar Cells

In this study, the origin of the fill factor (FF) in lead-halide perovskite solar cells is discussed based on different thicknesses of 2, 2′, 7, 7′-tetrakis(N, N-di-p-methoxyphenylamine)-9, 9-spirobifluorene (spiro-OMeTAD) as the hole-transporting layer (HTL). As the thickness of HTL is decreased, FF increases and hence, the photovoltaic performance is also improved. This is mainly ascribed to the reduced series resistance with decreasing HTL thickness. Such improvement in FF is examined on the basis of an empirical equation for FF with the diode and photovoltaic parameters. As a result, the thickness-dependent FF can be well explained by this equation. The potential improvements in FF and PCE are further discussed on the basis of the empirical equation
Photocatalytic Behavior of Fluorinated Rutile TiO$_2$(110) Surface:
  Understanding from the Band Model

Surface fluorination of TiO$_2$ (F-TiO$_2$) has complicate photocatalytic
behavior in degradation of organic compounds. This work attempts to establish
an elegant scenario based on the band model to understand this behavior.
Density functional theory (DFT) calculations show that fluorination of the
rutile TiO$_2$(110) surface (F-TiO$_2$${110}$) results in the falling of band
edges. The falling of valence band edge (VBE) facilitates production of free
$\cdot$OH radicals, whereas the falling of conduction band edge (CBE) lowers
the reducing power of photo-electrons and inhibits reductive reactions mediated
by them. As a result, the photo-electrons are built up in the conduction band
which depresses photo-holes in the valence band to produce $\cdot$OH radicals
due to the requirement of electrical neutrality and thus leads to a low
degradation rate of organic compounds. Even though, our model suggests a route
to improve the degradation efficiency, by introducing a scavenger of
photo-electrons to promote formation of $\cdot$OH radicals.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure
Sonographic diagnosis of acute appendicitis in children: A 3-year retrospective

<b>Introduction</b>\ud
\ud
 - Ultrasound is commonly used as a tool for investigation of acute appendicitis in children. The accuracy of ultrasound in appendicitis depends on the ability to visualise the appendix and the potential contribution from secondary signs. The study was a retrospective analysis of children referred for sonographic investigation of possible acute appendicitis at an Australian tertiary paediatric hospital between January 2008 and December 2010.\ud
\ud
<b>Methods</b>\ud
\ud
 - Radiology reports, ultrasound images and electronic medical records were evaluated for eligible patients. The ability to visualise the appendix and determine secondary sonographic signs was evaluated for diagnostic accuracy.\ud
\ud
<b>Results</b>\ud
\ud
 - The study identified 457 eligible children, with the appendix visualised on ultrasound in 40.7% of cases. Using a binary diagnostic model that incorporated equivocal results, sensitivity of ultrasound to diagnose acute appendicitis was 88.1%, specificity 91.4% and accuracy 90.4%. Ultrasound was found to have a high negative predictive value (96.3%), and the presence of echogenic mesentery had a positive predictive value of 89.4%.\ud
\ud
<b>Discussion</b>\ud
\ud
 - Our results compare favourably with other studies, but indicate the potential for improvement in accuracy and visualisation, with a future study incorporating new methods of categorising ultrasound findings currently being undertaken
SubCollaboration: large-scale group management in collaborative learning

Computer-supported collaborative learning is a paradigm that uses technology to support collaborative methods of instruction. When combining collaborative learning with the need to exchange documents between students and the teaching staff in a blended learning scenario, version control systems (VCSs) greatly simplify this collaboration. Furthermore, these tools need to be adopted in regular classes as they are used in industrial environments. But deploying a collaborative environment in which version control is used does not scale for large classes. This paper presents SubCollaboration, a platform that uses the VCS Subversion to manage a large number of work spaces in a collaborative learning environment. The tool maintains a reference workspace where teaching staff introduces new material that is then synchronized with the team repositories. Two case studies are presented showing that students easily learn the use of version control and its deployment in large classes is feasible.This work was partially funded by the Learn3 project, ‘Plan Nacional de I+D+I TIN2008-05163/TSI’, the Best Practice Network ICOPER (Grant No. ECP-2007-EDU-417007), the Flexo Project ‘Plan Nacional de Investigación Científica, Desarrollo e Innovación Tecnológica’ (Ref. TSI-020301-2008-19), and the ‘Emadrid: Investigación y desarrollo de tecnologías para el e-learning en la Comunidad de Madrid’ project (S2009/TIC-1650).Publicad
Scenarios-based testing of systems with distributed ports

Copyright @ 2011 John Wiley & SonsDistributed systems are usually composed of several distributed components that communicate with their environment through specific ports. When testing such a system we separately observe sequences of inputs and outputs at each port rather than a global sequence and potentially cannot reconstruct the global sequence that occurred. Typically, the users of such a system cannot synchronise their actions during use or testing. However, the use of the system might correspond to a sequence of\ud
scenarios, where each scenario involves a sequence of interactions with the system that, for example, achieves a particular objective. When this is the case there is the potential for there to be a significant\ud
delay between two scenarios and this effectively allows the users of the system to synchronise between scenarios. If we represent the specification of the global system by using a state-based notation, we\ud
say that a scenario is any sequence of events that happens between two of these operations. We can encode scenarios in two different ways. The first approach consists of marking some of the states of the specification to denote these synchronisation points. It transpires that there are two ways to interpret such models and these lead to two implementation relations. The second approach consists\ud
of adding a set of traces to the specification to represent the traces that correspond to scenarios. We show that these two approaches have similar expressive power by providing an encoding from marked states to sets of traces. In order to assess the appropriateness of our new framework, we show that it represents a conservative extension of previous implementation relations defined in the context of the distributed test architecture: if we onsider that all the states are marked then we simply obtain ioco (the classical relation for single-port systems) while if no state is marked then we obtain dioco (our previous relation for multi-port systems). Finally, we concentrate on the study of controllable\ud
test cases, that is, test cases such that each local tester knows exactly when to apply inputs. We give two notions of controllable test cases, define an implementation relation for each of these notions, and relate them. We also show how we can decide whether a test case satisfies these conditions.Research partially supported by the Spanish MEC project TESIS (TIN2009-14312-C02-01), the UK EPSRC project Testing of Probabilistic and Stochastic Systems (EP/G032572/1), and the UCM-BSCH programme to fund research groups (GR58/08 - group number 910606)
A Component-Based Middleware Platform for Reconfigurable Service-Oriented Architectures

International audienceThe Service Component Architecture (SCA) is a technology-independent standard for developing distributed Service-Oriented Architectures (SOA). The SCA standard promotes the use of components and architecture descriptors, and mostly covers the life-cycle steps of implementation and deployment. Unfortunately, SCA does not address the governance of SCA applications and provides no support for the maintenance of deployed components. This article covers this issue and introduces the FRASCATI platform, a run-time support for SCA with dynamic reconfiguration capabilities and run-time management features. The article presents the internal component-based architecture of the FRASCATI platform, and highlights its key features. The component-based design of the FRASCATI platform introduces many degrees of flexibility and configurability in the platform itself and for the SOA applications it can host. The article reports on micro-benchmarks highlighting that run-time manageability in the FRASCATI platform does not decrease its performance when compared to the de facto reference SCA implementation: Apache TUSCANY. Finally, a smart home scenario illustrates the extension capabilities and the various reconfigurations of the FRASCATI platform
MicroMAIS: executing and orchestrating Web services on constrained mobile devices

Mobile devices with their more and more powerful resources allow the development of mobile information systems in which services are not only provided by traditional systems but also autonomously executed and controlled in the mobile devices themselves. Services distributed on autonomous mobile devices allow both the development of cooperative applications without a back-end infrastructure and the development of applications blending distributed and centralized services. In this paper, we propose MicroMAIS: an integrated platform for supporting the execution of Web service-based applications natively on a mobile device. The MicroMAIS platform is composed of mAS and μ-BPEL. The former allows the execution of a single Web service, whereas the latter permits the orchestration of several Web services according to the WS-BPEL standard
The DigiHome Service-Oriented Platform

International audienceNowadays, the computational devices are everywhere. In malls, offices, streets, cars, and even homes, we can find devices providing and consuming functionality to improve the user satisfaction. These devices include sensors that provide information about the environment state (e.g., temperature, occupancy, light levels), service providers (e.g., Internet TVs, GPS), smartphones (that contain user preferences), and actuators that act on the environment (e.g., closing the blinds, activating the alarm, changing the temperature). Although these devices exhibit communication capabilities, their integration into a larger monitoring system remains a challenging task, partly because of the strong heterogeneity of technologies and protocols. Therefore, in this article, we focus on home environments and propose a middleware solution, called DigiHome, that applies the Service Component Architecture (SCA) component model to integrate data and events generated by heterogeneous devices in this kind of environments. DigiHome exploits the SCA extensibility to incorporate the REpresentational State Transfer (REST) architectural style and, in this way, leverages on the integration of multiscale systems-of-systems (from wireless sensor networks to the Internet). Additionally, the platform applies Complex Event Processing technology that detects application-specific situations. We claim that the modularization of concerns fostered by DigiHome and materialized in a service-oriented architecture, makes it easier to incorporate new services and devices in smart home environments. The benefits of the DigiHome platform are demonstrated on smart home scenarios covering home automation, emergency detection, and energy saving situations