Autonomic Computing: the natural fusion of Soft Computing and Hard Computing

Abstract- Autonomic Computing is emerging as a significant new approach in the design of computing systems. Its overall goal is the creation of Self-Managing Systems. In order to achieve this, Hard and So3 Computing are required. The benefits from utilizing Soy Computing include their ability to handle imprecision, uncertainty and partial truth that is inherently present in any complex real world problem accompanied by the practicable benefits of Hard Computing namely the stability of highly predictable solutions and typically low computational burden. This paper motivates the proposition that the successful creation of Autonomic Systems requires a fusion of Soj? Computing and Hard Computing

Pulse Monitoring: Extending the Health-check for the Autonomic GRID

This paper upon looking at the Autonomic Computing architecture and Grid Computing highlights the importance of health check mechanisms to achieve a reflex-healing duel strategy. This will provide new design options for the development of the Autonomic Grid. The resulting pulse monitor is based on extending the existing Grid heart-beat monitor with urgency or anxiety levels such as that used in the NASA beacon monitor. The paper concludes with a discussion that this health check mechanism may be utilized in the future to achieve the necessary sense of urgency within a system for affect and emotion intelligence

Orchestrating the Dynamic Adaptation of Distributed Software with Process Technology

Software systems are becoming increasingly complex to develop, understand, analyze, validate, deploy, configure, manage and maintain. Much of that complexity is related to ensuring adequate quality levels to services provided by software systems after they are deployed in the field, in particular when those systems are built from and operated as a mix of proprietary and non-proprietary components. That translates to increasing costs and difficulties when trying to operate large-scale distributed software ensembles in a way that continuously guarantees satisfactory levels of service. A solution can be to exert some form of dynamic adaptation upon running software systems: dynamic adaptation can be defined as a set of automated and coordinated actions that aim at modifying the structure, behavior and performance of a target software system, at run time and without service interruption, typically in response to the occurrence of some condition(s). To achieve dynamic adaptation upon a given target software system, a set of capabilities, including monitoring, diagnostics, decision, actuation and coordination, must be put in place. This research addresses the automation of decision and coordination in the context of an end-to-end and externalized approach to dynamic adaptation, which allows to address as its targets legacy and component-based systems, as well as new systems developed from scratch. In this approach, adaptation provisions are superimposed by a separate software platform, which operates from the outside of and orthogonally to the target application as a whole; furthermore, a single adaptation possibly spans concerted interventions on a multiplicity of target components. To properly orchestrate those interventions, decentralized process technology is employed for describing, activating and coordinating the work of a cohort of software actuators, towards the intended end-to-end dynamic adaptation. The approach outlined above, has been implemented in a prototype, code-named Workflakes, within the Kinesthetics eXtreme project investigating externalized dynamic adaptation, carried out by the Programming Systems Laboratory of Columbia University, and has been employed in a set of diverse case studies. This dissertation discusses and evaluates the concept of process-based orchestration of dynamic adaptation and the Workflakes prototype on the basis of the results of those case studies

Combining SOA and BPM Technologies for Cross-System Process Automation

This paper summarizes the results of an industry case study that introduced a cross-system business process automation solution based on a combination of SOA and BPM standard technologies (i.e., BPMN, BPEL, WSDL). Besides discussing major weaknesses of the existing, custom-built, solution and comparing them against experiences with the developed prototype, the paper presents a course of action for transforming the current solution into the proposed solution. This includes a general approach, consisting of four distinct steps, as well as specific action items that are to be performed for every step. The discussion also covers language and tool support and challenges arising from the transformation

An architectural framework for self-configuration and self-improvement at runtime

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Air Force Institute of Technology Research Report 2010

This report summarizes the research activities of the Air Force Institute of Technology’s Graduate School of Engineering and Management. It describes research interests and faculty expertise; lists student theses/dissertations; identifies research sponsors and contributions; and outlines the procedures for contacting the school. Included in the report are: faculty publications, conference presentations, consultations, and funded research projects. Research was conducted in the areas of Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Electro-Optics, Computer Engineering and Computer Science, Systems and Engineering Management, Operational Sciences, Mathematics, Statistics and Engineering Physic

3D-in-2D Displays for ATC.

This paper reports on the efforts and accomplishments of the 3D-in-2D Displays for ATC project at the end of Year 1. We describe the invention of 10 novel 3D/2D visualisations that were mostly implemented in the Augmented Reality ARToolkit. These prototype implementations of visualisation and interaction elements can be viewed on the accompanying video. We have identified six candidate design concepts which we will further research and develop. These designs correspond with the early feasibility studies stage of maturity as defined by the NASA Technology Readiness Level framework. We developed the Combination Display Framework from a review of the literature, and used it for analysing display designs in terms of display technique used and how they are combined. The insights we gained from this framework then guided our inventions and the human-centered innovation process we use to iteratively invent. Our designs are based on an understanding of user work practices. We also developed a simple ATC simulator that we used for rapid experimentation and evaluation of design ideas. We expect that if this project continues, the effort in Year 2 and 3 will be focus on maturing the concepts and employment in a operational laboratory settings