A study into the feasibility of generic programming for the construction of complex software

A high degree of abstraction and capacity for reuse can be obtained in software design through the use of Generic Programming (GP) concepts. Despite widespread use of GP in computing, some areas such as the construction of generic component libraries as the skeleton for complex computing systems with extensive domains have been neglected. Here we consider the design of a library of generic components based on the GP paradigm implemented with Java. Our aim is to investigate the feasibility of using GP paradigm in the construction of complex computer systems where the management of users interacting with the system and the optimisation of the system’s resources is required.Postprint (author's final draft

Understanding Ohio’s land bank legislation

The effects of sustained high rates of foreclosure on numerous areas of Cuyahoga County have thrust land banking to the forefront of recent public policy discussions in Ohio. This Policy Discussion Paper seeks to inform those discussions by explaining the state’s current land banking system and by illustrating how the proposed system under Senate Bill 353/House Bill 602 (the Land Bank Bill) would work.Banking law - Ohio

Propagating Data Policies: a User Study

When publishing data, data licences are used to specify the actions that are permitted or prohibited, and the duties that target data consumers must comply with. However, in complex environments such as a smart city data portal, multiple data sources are constantly being combined, processed and redistributed. In such a scenario, deciding which policies apply to the output of a process based on the licences attached to its input data is a difficult, knowledge- intensive task. In this paper, we evaluate how automatic reasoning upon semantic representations of policies and of data flows could support decision making on policy propagation. We report on the results of a user study designed to assess both the accuracy and the utility of such a policy-propagation tool, in comparison to a manual approach

SWEET PERSUASION: SOFT DRINKS, SCHOOL FUNDING, AND CHILDREN'S HEALTH

"Pouring rights" contracts between soft drink companies and schools have created substantial controversy. Treating the issue as externality problem, we analyze the Pigouvian tax solution and propose a contract between the government and schools to provide an incentive compatible method for government to utilize the tax revenue.Public Economics,

Take It To The Bank: How Land Banks Are Strengthening America's Neighborhoods

This report scans the land banking field nationally and reports on the scope and state of this movement. It also includes insights and recommendations for land bank practitioners, based on Community Progress staff members' many collective years of experience working with land banks across the country. There is no land bank model kit. There are, however, common attributes of effective and successful land banks that current and future land bank staff, practitioners, governments, and partner organizations can adopt. This report is intended to help shorten the learning curve

Nest architecture of Oxaea austera (Andrenidae, Oxaeinae) and its significance for the interpretation of Uruguayan fossil bee cells

Oxaea austera nests in hard, red lateritic soils with dense grass cover. Some characters of Oxaea austera nests conform to the known architecture of the oxaeine nests such as the long, vertical shaft and the radiating, horizontal tunnels connected to vertical cells. The presence of more than one cell per lateral, cells at different depths containing larvae at different stages, and discrete walls in the main and laterals are described for the first time for Oxaeinae. One cell was located at the end of each lateral with others (2–4) near them, in some cases arranged in a row just beneath the lateral. Cells are oriented vertically and consist of a chamber, a spiral closure and an antechamber connected with a lateral. The chamber and antechamber are surrounded by a thick discrete wall. Each nest was occupied by at least two active females indicating communal nesting. They also contained older cells, suggesting the reutilization of the nests by successive generations. Both behaviors may be a response to the difficulties of excavation in hard soils. Communal nesting may be also a defensive behavior against nest cleptoparasites. The shape, size, discrete walls of lateritic soil material, spiral closure, and antechamber of O. austera cells closely resemble the fossil bee cells included in the ichnogenus Palmiraichnus from the early Eocene Asencio Formation of Uruguay. This new evidence reinforces the proposal of extinct representatives of Oxaeinae as it constructor.Fil: Sarzetti, Laura Cristina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; ArgentinaFil: Genise, Jorge Fernando. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; ArgentinaFil: Sánchez, María Victoria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; Argentin