An approach to integrating and creating flexible software environments

Engineers and scientists are attempting to represent, analyze, and reason about increasingly complex systems. Many researchers have been developing new ways of creating increasingly open environments. In this research on VEHICLES, a conceptual design environment for space systems, an approach was developed, called 'wrapping', to flexibility and integration based on the collection and then processing of explicit qualitative descriptions of all the software resources in the environment. Currently, a simulation is available, VSIM, used to study both the types of wrapping descriptions and the processes necessary to use the metaknowledge to combine, select, adapt, and explain some of the software resources used in VEHICLES. What was learned about the types of knowledge necessary for the wrapping approach is described along with the implications of wrapping for several key software engineering issues

VIP: A knowledge-based design aid for the engineering of space systems

The Vehicles Implementation Project (VIP), a knowledge-based design aid for the engineering of space systems is described. VIP combines qualitative knowledge in the form of rules, quantitative knowledge in the form of equations, and other mathematical modeling tools. The system allows users rapidly to develop and experiment with models of spacecraft system designs. As information becomes available to the system, appropriate equations are solved symbolically and the results are displayed. Users may browse through the system, observing dependencies and the effects of altering specific parameters. The system can also suggest approaches to the derivation of specific parameter values. In addition to providing a tool for the development of specific designs, VIP aims at increasing the user's understanding of the design process. Users may rapidly examine the sensitivity of a given parameter to others in the system and perform tradeoffs or optimizations of specific parameters. A second major goal of VIP is to integrate the existing corporate knowledge base of models and rules into a central, symbolic form

The Workshop Chairs voted Alois Ferscha's paper

and Coordination Architectures for Collaborative Enterprises continued two threads of workshops in the WET-ICE series that were held over the last four years. These workshops addressed the question of how Web techniques can be used 10 achieve or 10 improve collaboration within or between organizations, and which coordination mechanisms could be used in such an architecture. The papers presented at the workshop and included in the proceedings contributed 10 all areas mentioned. They triggered several discussions on the addressed topics. This report present the views expressed and conclusions drawn

Abstract Refactored Characteristics of Intelligent Computing Systems

We have discussed the following measurable characteristics of intelligent behavior in computing systems: (1) speed and scope of adaptibility to unforeseen situations; (2) rate of effective learning of observations; (3) accurate modeling and prediction of the relevant external environment; (4) speed and clarity of problem identification and formulation; (5) effective association and evaluation of disparate information; (6) identification of more important assumptions and prerequisites; (7) creation and use of symbolic language. In this paper, we isolate some common underlying capabilities for these characteristics, and show how they can all be produced using those capabilities. We describe the architecture of a system that has all of these underlying capabilities, using our Wrapping integration infrastructure to coordinate and organize a large collection of models and other computational resources. In particular, these models include complete models of the system’s resources and processing strategies, and therefore a model of its own behavior, which it can use to affect that behavior

Playing in the MUD: Virtual Worlds are Real Places

This paper is about how we will know whether our Intelligent Virtual Environments (IVEs) are appropriate for the tasks we set them. There are several important research questions that need to be answered before we can even begin to build IVEs for some of our more promising applications, such as entertainment, education, collaboration on research and development, military and other training