Exploiting CAFS-ISP

In the summer of 1982, the ICLCUA CAFS Special Interest Group defined three subject areas for working party activity. These were: 1) interfaces with compilers and databases, 2) end-user language facilities and display methods, and 3) text-handling and office automation. The CAFS SIG convened one working party to address the first subject with the following terms of reference: 1) review facilities and map requirements onto them, 2) "Database or CAFS" or "Database on CAFS", 3) training needs for users to bridge to new techniques, and 4) repair specifications to cover gaps in software. The working party interpreted the topic broadly as the data processing professional's, rather than the end-user's, view of and relationship with CAFS. This report is the result of the working party's activities. The report content for good reasons exceeds the terms of reference in their strictest sense. For example, we examine QUERYMASTER, which is deemed to be an end-user tool by ICL, from both the DP and end-user perspectives. First, this is the only interface to CAFS in the current SV201. Secondly, it is necessary for the DP department to understand the end-user's interface to CAFS. Thirdly, the other subjects have not yet been addressed by other active working parties

Design and Implementation of Fragmented Clouds for Evaluation of Distributed Databases

In this paper, we present a Fragmented Hybrid Cloud (FHC) that provides a unified view of multiple geographically distributed private cloud datacenters. FHC leverages a fragmented usage model in which outsourcing is bi-directional across private clouds that can be hosted by static and mobile entities. The mobility aspect of private cloud nodes has important impact on the FHC performance in terms of latency and network throughput that are reversely proportional to time-varying distances among different nodes. Mobility also results in intermittent interruption among computing nodes and network links of FHC infrastructure. To fully consider mobility and its consequences, we implemented a layered FHC that leverages Linux utilities and bash-shell programming. We also evaluated the impact of the mobility of nodes on the performance of distributed databases as a result of time-varying latency and bandwidth, downsizing and upsizing cluster nodes, and network accessibility. The findings from our extensive experiments provide deep insights into the performance of well-known big data databases, such as Cassandra, MongoDB, Redis, and MySQL, when deployed on a FHC

StackInsights: Cognitive Learning for Hybrid Cloud Readiness

Hybrid cloud is an integrated cloud computing environment utilizing a mix of public cloud, private cloud, and on-premise traditional IT infrastructures. Workload awareness, defined as a detailed full range understanding of each individual workload, is essential in implementing the hybrid cloud. While it is critical to perform an accurate analysis to determine which workloads are appropriate for on-premise deployment versus which workloads can be migrated to a cloud off-premise, the assessment is mainly performed by rule or policy based approaches. In this paper, we introduce StackInsights, a novel cognitive system to automatically analyze and predict the cloud readiness of workloads for an enterprise. Our system harnesses the critical metrics across the entire stack: 1) infrastructure metrics, 2) data relevance metrics, and 3) application taxonomy, to identify workloads that have characteristics of a) low sensitivity with respect to business security, criticality and compliance, and b) low response time requirements and access patterns. Since the capture of the data relevance metrics involves an intrusive and in-depth scanning of the content of storage objects, a machine learning model is applied to perform the business relevance classification by learning from the meta level metrics harnessed across stack. In contrast to traditional methods, StackInsights significantly reduces the total time for hybrid cloud readiness assessment by orders of magnitude

Auto-tuning Distributed Stream Processing Systems using Reinforcement Learning

Fine tuning distributed systems is considered to be a craftsmanship, relying on intuition and experience. This becomes even more challenging when the systems need to react in near real time, as streaming engines have to do to maintain pre-agreed service quality metrics. In this article, we present an automated approach that builds on a combination of supervised and reinforcement learning methods to recommend the most appropriate lever configurations based on previous load. With this, streaming engines can be automatically tuned without requiring a human to determine the right way and proper time to deploy them. This opens the door to new configurations that are not being applied today since the complexity of managing these systems has surpassed the abilities of human experts. We show how reinforcement learning systems can find substantially better configurations in less time than their human counterparts and adapt to changing workloads

Effects of sizing agents on mechanical properties of carbon fiber–polymer composites via fused filament fabrication additive manufacturing.

This study demonstrated the effects of changing the sizing agent parameter during the preparation of carbon fibers on the mechanical properties of composite made with acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) as the matrix material and carbon fibers as the fiber material. Three types of sizing agents produced by Allnex were used to coat three different batches of carbon fibers that were mixed with a torque rheometer and extruded with a barrel-style melt extruder into continuous spools of 1.75 mm filament for use with commercial 3D printers. Tensile tests were conducted on the filaments and tensile bars printed from the materials. Results showed that mechanical properties improved for each sizing agent when compared to nominal properties for ABS, but when compared to previously studied properties for fibers sized with an epoxy-based agent, modulus was not as high but tensile stress was around the same. This indicated that the physical limitation of the properties of the tensile strength of the fibers is independent of sizing agent chosen, but tensile modulus changed accordingly with the sizing agent chosen. Further studies should be done to document effects of a wider library of sizing agents on the mechanical properties of carbon fiber composites

Contextual impacts on industrial processes brought by the digital transformation of manufacturing: a systematic review

The digital transformation of manufacturing (a phenomenon also known as "Industry 4.0" or "Smart Manufacturing") is finding a growing interest both at practitioner and academic levels, but is still in its infancy and needs deeper investigation. Even though current and potential advantages of digital manufacturing are remarkable, in terms of improved efficiency, sustainability, customization, and flexibility, only a limited number of companies has already developed ad hoc strategies necessary to achieve a superior performance. Through a systematic review, this study aims at assessing the current state of the art of the academic literature regarding the paradigm shift occurring in the manufacturing settings, in order to provide definitions as well as point out recurring patterns and gaps to be addressed by future research. For the literature search, the most representative keywords, strict criteria, and classification schemes based on authoritative reference studies were used. The final sample of 156 primary publications was analyzed through a systematic coding process to identify theoretical and methodological approaches, together with other significant elements. This analysis allowed a mapping of the literature based on clusters of critical themes to synthesize the developments of different research streams and provide the most representative picture of its current state. Research areas, insights, and gaps resulting from this analysis contributed to create a schematic research agenda, which clearly indicates the space for future evolutions of the state of knowledge in this field

Memory-aware sizing for in-memory databases

In-memory database systems are among the technological drivers of big data processing. In this paper we apply analytical modeling to enable efficient sizing of in-memory databases. We present novel response time approximations under online analytical processing workloads to model thread-level forkjoin and per-class memory occupation.We combine these approximations with a non-linear optimization program to minimize memory swapping in in-memory database clusters. We compare our approach with state-of-the-art response time approximations and trace-driven simulation using real data from an SAP HANA in-memory system and show that our optimization model is significantly more accurate than existing approaches at similar computational costs

A Synthesis of the Literature on the Relationship Between Food Access and Overweight and Obesity in African American Adolescents

Food access shapes a community’s nutritional environment and impacts the health and physical well-being of its residents. When a community does not have adequate access to outlets that offer healthy options, it is difficult to maintain a healthy diet. As a result, we often see higher rates of chronic disease, overweight and obesity among some populations. African American communities may be disproportionately affected by overweight and obesity because of limited food access. This literature review examines the public health significance of food access and how the presence of full service grocery stores impacts eating habits and overweight and obesity among African American adolescents. The results are primarily cross-sectional studies organized and presented in three sections: (1) food environment, (2) eating habits, and (3) policy implications. The findings in this literature review suggest that the problem of overweight and obesity in African American adolescents is indeed a multi-faceted issue. While there does appear to be a correlation between access to full service supermarkets and eating behaviors, overweight and obesity, there are other factors to consider. It is unclear if the presence of more full-service supermarkets alone is enough to significantly impact a reduction of overweight and obesity among African-American youth. While quantitative studies provide important baseline data, researchers should consider developing qualitative studies that may offer additional insight into individual, family and environmental factors that vary geographically

Cell-free protein synthesis of membrane (1,3)-beta-D-glucan (curdlan) synthase: Co-translational insertion in liposomes and reconstitution in nanodiscs

A membrane-embedded curdlan synthase (CrdS) from Agrobacterium is believed to catalyse a repetitive addition of glucosyl residues from UDP-glucose to produce the (1,3)-β-d-glucan (curdlan) polymer. We report wheat germ cell-free protein synthesis (WG-CFPS) of full-length CrdS containing a 6xHis affinity tag and either Factor Xa or Tobacco Etch Virus proteolytic sites, using a variety of hydrophobic membrane-mimicking environments. Full-length CrdS was synthesised with no variations in primary structure, following analysis of tryptic fragments by MALDI-TOF/TOF Mass Spectrometry. Preparative scale WG-CFPS in dialysis mode with Brij-58 yielded CrdS in mg/ml quantities. Analysis of structural and functional properties of CrdS during protein synthesis showed that CrdS was co-translationally inserted in DMPC liposomes during WG-CFPS, and these liposomes could be purified in a single step by density gradient floatation. Incorporated CrdS exhibited a random orientation topology. Following affinity purification of CrdS, the protein was reconstituted in nanodiscs with Escherichia coli lipids or POPC and a membrane scaffold protein MSP1E3D1. CrdS nanodiscs were characterised by small-angle X-ray scattering using synchrotron radiation and the data obtained were consistent with insertion of CrdS into bilayers. We found CrdS synthesised in the presence of the Ac-AAAAAAD surfactant peptide or co-translationally inserted in liposomes made from E. coli lipids to be catalytically competent. Conversely, CrdS synthesised with only Brij-58 was inactive. Our findings pave the way for future structural studies of this industrially important catalytic membrane protein.Agalya Periasamy, Nadim Shadiac, Amritha Amalraj, Soňa Garajová, Yagnesh Nagarajan, Shane Waters, Haydyn D.T. Mertens, Maria Hrmov