Adapting virtual machine techniques for seamless aspect support

Current approaches to compiling aspect-oriented programs are inefficient. This inefficiency has negative effects on the productivity of the development process and is especially prohibitive for dynamic aspect deployment. In this work, we present how well-known virtual machine techniques can be used with only slight modifications to support fast aspect deployment while retaining runtime performance. Our implementation accelerates dynamic aspect deployment by several orders of magnitude relative to mainstream aspect-oriented environments. We also provide a detailed comparison of alternative implementations of execution environments with support for dynamic aspect deployment

Dynamic Virtual Join Point Dispatch

Conceptually, join points are points in the execution of a program and advice is late-bound to them. We propose the notion of virtual join points that makes this concept explicit not only at a conceptual, but also at implementation level. In current implementations of aspect-oriented languages, binding is performed early, at deploy-time, and only a limited residual dispatch is executed. Current implementations fall in the categories of modifying the application code, modifying the meta-level of an application, or interacting with the application by means of events—the latter two already realizing virtual join points to some degree. We provide an implementation of an aspect-oriented execution environment that supports truly virtual join points and discuss how this approach also favors optimizations in the execution environment

Internet of robotic things : converging sensing/actuating, hypoconnectivity, artificial intelligence and IoT Platforms

The Internet of Things (IoT) concept is evolving rapidly and influencing newdevelopments in various application domains, such as the Internet of MobileThings (IoMT), Autonomous Internet of Things (A-IoT), Autonomous Systemof Things (ASoT), Internet of Autonomous Things (IoAT), Internetof Things Clouds (IoT-C) and the Internet of Robotic Things (IoRT) etc.that are progressing/advancing by using IoT technology. The IoT influencerepresents new development and deployment challenges in different areassuch as seamless platform integration, context based cognitive network integration,new mobile sensor/actuator network paradigms, things identification(addressing, naming in IoT) and dynamic things discoverability and manyothers. The IoRT represents new convergence challenges and their need to be addressed, in one side the programmability and the communication ofmultiple heterogeneous mobile/autonomous/robotic things for cooperating,their coordination, configuration, exchange of information, security, safetyand protection. Developments in IoT heterogeneous parallel processing/communication and dynamic systems based on parallelism and concurrencyrequire new ideas for integrating the intelligent “devices”, collaborativerobots (COBOTS), into IoT applications. Dynamic maintainability, selfhealing,self-repair of resources, changing resource state, (re-) configurationand context based IoT systems for service implementation and integrationwith IoT network service composition are of paramount importance whennew “cognitive devices” are becoming active participants in IoT applications.This chapter aims to be an overview of the IoRT concept, technologies,architectures and applications and to provide a comprehensive coverage offuture challenges, developments and applications

Using Java for distributed computing in the Gaia satellite data processing

In recent years Java has matured to a stable easy-to-use language with the flexibility of an interpreter (for reflection etc.) but the performance and type checking of a compiled language. When we started using Java for astronomical applications around 1999 they were the first of their kind in astronomy. Now a great deal of astronomy software is written in Java as are many business applications. We discuss the current environment and trends concerning the language and present an actual example of scientific use of Java for high-performance distributed computing: ESA's mission Gaia. The Gaia scanning satellite will perform a galactic census of about 1000 million objects in our galaxy. The Gaia community has chosen to write its processing software in Java. We explore the manifold reasons for choosing Java for this large science collaboration. Gaia processing is numerically complex but highly distributable, some parts being embarrassingly parallel. We describe the Gaia processing architecture and its realisation in Java. We delve into the astrometric solution which is the most advanced and most complex part of the processing. The Gaia simulator is also written in Java and is the most mature code in the system. This has been successfully running since about 2005 on the supercomputer "Marenostrum" in Barcelona. We relate experiences of using Java on a large shared machine. Finally we discuss Java, including some of its problems, for scientific computing.Comment: Experimental Astronomy, August 201

An Intelligent Management System for Hybrid Network between Visible Light Communication and Radio Frequency

This thesis investigates the challenges and potential solutions associated with hybrid Visible Light Communication (VLC) and Radio Frequency (RF) systems for indoor network environments. The rapid development of VLC technology, characterized by its high data rates, energy efficiency, and inherent security features, offers promising opportunities to complement RF networks in providing seamless connectivity and improved performance. However, integrating VLC and RF technologies effectively requires addressing a range of research and engineering challenges, including network coexistence, handover mechanisms, resource allocation, localization, and standardization.We begin by conducting a comprehensive literature review encompassing existing research, technologies, and solutions related to hybrid VLC/RF architectures, handover management, indoor localization techniques, and the challenges faced by these systems. This background provides a solid foundation for understanding the current state-of-the-art and identifying research gaps in the field of hybrid VLC/RF networks.Next, we propose a novel hybrid network architecture that integrates VLC and RF communication systems to enhance their strengths while mitigating their weaknesses. We discuss various types of hybrid VLC/RF architectures found in the literature and present our proposed design, which addresses the identified challenges through innovative strategies and mechanisms.To improve system performance in our hybrid system, we develop an enhanced priority feedback channel that optimizes the traffic priority based on user preferences and network conditions. This approach minimizes service disruptions, reduces latency, and maintains user Quality of Experience (QoE)\nomenclature{QoE}{Quality of Experience}.Furthermore, we introduce a novel intelligent management system architecture tailored for hybrid VLC/RF networks. This system employs advanced algorithms and techniques to optimize resource allocation, load balancing, localization, and handover management, ensuring efficient operation and seamless connectivity.We evaluate the performance of our proposed solutions through extensive simulations and testbed experiments, considering different network scenarios and metrics. The results demonstrate significant improvements in terms of data rate, latency, handover success rate, and localization accuracy, validating the effectiveness of our proposed architecture and management system.Lastly, we explore several real-world applications and case studies of our intelligent management system in various indoor environments, such as retail stores, offices, and hospitals. These examples illustrate the practical benefits of our solution in enhancing customer experiences, optimizing operational efficiency, facilitating targeted marketing, and improving energy management.In conclusion, this thesis contributes to the advancement of hybrid VLC/RF networks by proposing an innovative architecture and intelligent management system that address the key challenges faced by these systems in indoor environments. The findings and solutions presented in this work provided the backbone for the future research and development efforts aimed at fully harnessing the potential of VLC technology in combination with RF networks

Beyond Reality: The Pivotal Role of Generative AI in the Metaverse

Imagine stepping into a virtual world that's as rich, dynamic, and interactive as our physical one. This is the promise of the Metaverse, and it's being brought to life by the transformative power of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI). This paper offers a comprehensive exploration of how generative AI technologies are shaping the Metaverse, transforming it into a dynamic, immersive, and interactive virtual world. We delve into the applications of text generation models like ChatGPT and GPT-3, which are enhancing conversational interfaces with AI-generated characters. We explore the role of image generation models such as DALL-E and MidJourney in creating visually stunning and diverse content. We also examine the potential of 3D model generation technologies like Point-E and Lumirithmic in creating realistic virtual objects that enrich the Metaverse experience. But the journey doesn't stop there. We also address the challenges and ethical considerations of implementing these technologies in the Metaverse, offering insights into the balance between user control and AI automation. This paper is not just a study, but a guide to the future of the Metaverse, offering readers a roadmap to harnessing the power of generative AI in creating immersive virtual worlds.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figure

The simplicity project: easing the burden of using complex and heterogeneous ICT devices and services

As of today, to exploit the variety of different "services", users need to configure each of their devices by using different procedures and need to explicitly select among heterogeneous access technologies and protocols. In addition to that, users are authenticated and charged by different means. The lack of implicit human computer interaction, context-awareness and standardisation places an enormous burden of complexity on the shoulders of the final users. The IST-Simplicity project aims at leveraging such problems by: i) automatically creating and customizing a user communication space; ii) adapting services to user terminal characteristics and to users preferences; iii) orchestrating network capabilities. The aim of this paper is to present the technical framework of the IST-Simplicity project. This paper is a thorough analysis and qualitative evaluation of the different technologies, standards and works presented in the literature related to the Simplicity system to be developed

E-Voting in an ubicomp world: trust, privacy, and social implications

The advances made in technology have unchained the user from the desktop into interactions where access is anywhere, anytime. In addition, the introduction of ubiquitous computing (ubicomp) will see further changes in how we interact with technology and also socially. Ubicomp evokes a near future in which humans will be surrounded by “always-on,” unobtrusive, interconnected intelligent objects where information is exchanged seamlessly. This seamless exchange of information has vast social implications, in particular the protection and management of personal information. This research project investigates the concepts of trust and privacy issues specifically related to the exchange of e-voting information when using a ubicomp type system

Early aspects: aspect-oriented requirements engineering and architecture design

This paper reports on the third Early Aspects: Aspect-Oriented Requirements Engineering and Architecture Design Workshop, which has been held in Lancaster, UK, on March 21, 2004. The workshop included a presentation session and working sessions in which the particular topics on early aspects were discussed. The primary goal of the workshop was to focus on challenges to defining methodical software development processes for aspects from early on in the software life cycle and explore the potential of proposed methods and techniques to scale up to industrial applications