Soft Sides of Software

Software is a field of rapid changes: the best technology today becomes obsolete in the near future. If we review the graduate attributes of any of the software engineering programs across the world, life-long learning is one of them. The social and psychological aspects of professional development is linked with rewards. In organizations, where people are provided with learning opportunities and there is a culture that rewards learning, people embrace changes easily. However, the software industry tends to be short-sighted and its primary focus is more on current project success; it usually ignores the capacity building of the individual or team. It is hoped that our software engineering colleagues will be motivated to conduct more research into the area of software psychology so as to understand more completely the possibilities for increased effectiveness and personal fulfillment among software engineers working alone and in teams

Study to Assess the Prevalence of Soft Drinking and its Determinants among the School going Children of Gwalior city

Background: Over the time there has been spectrum of changes in the universe. It may be at physical, chemical and cultural level. People have adopted newer life styles like their working style, clothing’s, food habits and so on. One of the pertinent example of this newer food habits is rising consumption of soft drinks rather than traditional home made drinks. This study was aimed to find out various determinants responsible for this rising trend of soft drinking so that effective intervention can be undertaken to overcome this creeping problem. Objectives: To find out the prevalence of soft drinking consumption among the students and to assess the determinants of soft drink consumption among the students. Materials and methods: It was a cross sectional study. A sample of 200 students was selected from the both govt. and private schools by stratified random sampling. Then they all were interviewed by using pre tested, semi structured proforma. Later on data was analyzed manually and by using suitable statistical software. Results: Frequent drinking of soft drinks was found more among the students of private schools than govt. (p < 0.05). A significant association was found between pocket money, TV watching and frequency of soft drinking (p< 0.05).Other reasons which were found to be responsible by far for frequent soft drinking like lack of awareness regarding hazards, frequent TV watching, desire of new taste, lack of health education from the parents side etc. Conclusion: Soft drinking consumption is creeping day by day amongst the children with out knowing their hazards. And they are the future of any country so there should be effective intervention from both sides govt. as well as parents to get rid of it at earliest

Facial Soft-Tissue Asymmetry in 3D Cone Beam Computed Tomography Images of Children with Surgically Corrected Unilateral Clefts

Cleft lip with or without cleft palate (CL/P) is a relatively common craniofacial malformation involving bony and soft-tissue disruptions of the nasolabial and dentoalveolar regions. The combination of CL/P and subsequent craniofacial surgeries to close the cleft and improve appearance of the cutaneous upper lip and nose can cause scarring and muscle pull, possibly resulting in soft-tissue depth asymmetries across the face. We tested the hypothesis that tissue depths in children with unilateral CL/P exhibit differences in symmetry across the sides of the face. Twenty-eight tissue depths were measured on cone-beam computed tomography images of children with unilateral CL/P (n = 55), aged 7 to 17 years, using Dolphin software (version 11.5). Significant differences in tissue depth symmetry were found around the cutaneous upper lip and nose in patients with unilateral CL/P

Three-dimensional digital geometry design of soft tissue implants for patients with Poland’s syndrome using Magics and Freeform® Modeling™

Published ThesisPoland’s syndrome is a unilateral congenital defect displaying deformities of mostly the soft tissues and the skeleton. The syndrome commonly affects the right side of the thorax and is more often found in males. Many Poland’s syndrome patients display the absence of the pectoralis major muscle, although other muscles such as the pectoralis minor may also be affected. Poland’s syndrome is also associated with hand deformities. Poland's syndrome patients usually seek medical intervention to improve their aesthetic appearance. Most of the interventions are traumatic, invasive, surgical procedures. Less invasive and traumatic approaches are constantly being developed. Therefore, the main aim of this study was to design three-dimensional digital geometries of soft tissues for two Poland’s syndrome patients that can be used for the production of soft tissue implants in the manufacturing process. A female (Case Study 1) and a male (Case Study 2) Poland’s syndrome patient were included as two case studies. CT scanned digital imaging data sets were acquired of the two Poland’s syndrome patients and were processed in Mimics® software to create 3D digital geometries in STL file format. A number of manipulations and pixel-by-pixel editing steps were applied to isolate the regions of interest which were then imported into the programs Magics and Freeform® Modeling™. The program Freeform® Modeling™ was used to describe the extent of the aesthetic presentation of the deformity by determining the difference between the healthy and affected sides of the thorax in both patients. The angles between the vertical and oblique planes for both sides of the thorax were measured and the difference between these angles calculated. For the female the difference was 6.5º, while for the male it was 14º. The design phase followed two design routes to design soft tissue 3D digital geometries of the pectoralis muscle for each patient using the programs Magics and Freeform® Modeling™. The one route involved using a mirror image of the whole thorax (Technique A), while the other route involved firstly the isolation of the pectoralis muscle from the healthy side of the thorax and thereafter producing a mirror image (Technique B). Four different soft tissue 3D digital geometries of the pectoralis muscle resulted for each patient from these design routes. Three different analyses were performed to compare the outcomes of the different design routes and software programs. A deviation analysis was performed using Geomagic® Control™ to calculate the deviation between the design route outcomes and constructed digital test models. Most of the deviation test points for all techniques fell within the nominated tolerance region of >-5 and <+5 mm (more than 70% for the female more than 80% for the male). An implant mass property analysis using Freeform® Modeling™ revealed that the 3D digital geometries produced using Freeform® Modeling™ Technique A presented with surface areas and volumes closest to original healthy pectoralis muscle in the female, while for the male it was Freeform® Modeling™ Technique B. A body conformation analysis was performed to ascertain to what extent the different techniques used to produce the 3D digital geometries had the potential to reconstruct the soft tissue deformities, thus the resultant 3D digital geometries were compared with an original body conformation, as well as with an ideal body conformation. For both patients the four 3D digital geometries were relatively close to the ideal body conformation dimensions. In an attempt to compare the performance of Magics and Freeform® Modeling™, they were assessed, where possible, in terms of software functionality, hardware possibilities, and geometry development time and software/hardware costs. It could be concluded that, in this study, Freeform® Modeling™ appeared to be the better suited software program for the designing of 3D digital geometries of soft tissue implants

Three-dimensional cephalometric evaluation of maxillary growth following in utero repair of cleft lip and alveolar-like defects in the mid-gestational sheep model

Objective: To evaluate maxillary growth following in utero repair of surgically created cleft lip and alveolar (CLA)-like defects by means of three-dimensional (3D) computer tomographic (CT) cephalometric analysis in the mid-gestational sheep model. Methods: In 12 sheep fetuses a unilateral CLA-like defect was created in utero (untreated control group: 4 fetuses). Four different bone grafts were used for the alveolar defect closure. After euthanasia, CT scans of the skulls of the fetuses, 3D re-constructions, and a 3D-CT cephalometric analysis were performed. Results: The comparisons between the operated and nonoperated skull sides as well as of the maxillary asymmetry among the experimental groups revealed no statistically significant differences of the 12 variables used. Conclusions: None of the surgical approaches used for the in utero correction of CLA-like defects seem to affect significantly postsurgical maxillary growth; however, when bone graft healing takes place, a tendency for almost normal maxillary growth can be observed. Copyright (c) 2006 S. Karger AG, Basel

New technologies in rhinoplasty : a comprehensive workflow for computer-assisted planning and execution

Rhinoplasty in facial cleft patients is among the most challenging types of reconstructive facial surgery due to its variability Advances in 3-dimensional imaging enable improved preoperative assessment in rhinoplasty. In complex cases with bony support irregularities and asymmetry, it is rational to initiate planning with reconstruction of the aberrant substructure (ie, "bottom-up" planning) rather than starting the surgical design with soft-tissue morphing. We present a new comprehensive workflow in which novel advanced technologies are implemented to perform "bottom-up" computer-assisted planning and execution in complex rhinoplasty cases. This workflow enables meticulous planning, use of grafting templates, and 3-dimensional-guided osteotomies with integration of piezotome and intraoperative navigation. Previous reports separately discuss some of these innovations. However, greater benefit lies in the combination of these techniques, with emphasis on preoperative computer analysis, virtual planning, and transfer to the operation theater. Surgeons are seeking new ways to enhance minimally invasive approaches and to obtain predictable and favorable clinical results. The presently introduced workflow allows clinicians to plan complex cases in a simple, effective, and safe manner, with the combination of different techniques to produce consistent results

Cabri's role in the task of proving within the activity of building part of an axiomatic system

We want to show how we use the software Cabri, in a Geometry class for preservice mathematics teachers, in the process of building part of an axiomatic system of Euclidean Geometry. We will illustrate the type of tasks that engage students to discover the relationship between the steps of a geometric construction and the steps of a formal justification of the related geometric fact to understand the logical development of a proof; understand dependency relationships between properties; generate ideas that can be useful for a proof; produce conjectures that correspond to theorems of the system; and participate in the deductive organization of a set of statements obtained as solution to open-ended problems

Calibration of the dynamic behaviour of incomplete structures in archeological sites: The case of Villa Diomede portico in Pompeii

This paper reports the research activities carried out on Villa Diomede in Pompeii, built during the "Pre-Roman period" (i.e. the 3rd century BC) and discovered between 1771 and 1774 during the archaeological excavations. It is one of the greatest private buildings of Pompeii and it is located on the western corner of the modern archeological site. Three levels compose the building: the ground floor, the lower quadriportico with a square plan and a series of colonnades on the four sides around the inner garden and the cryptoportico. Villa Diomede was damaged by the strong earthquake occurred in AD 63 that caused the collapse of the western pillars of the quadriportico and later damaged after the big eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79. In June 2015 a series of nondestructive tests (NDT) were carried out by the authors in order to obtain information on the state of conservation of the building and to assess its structural behavior. Direct and tomographic sonic pulse velocity tests, ground penetrating radar, endoscopies and operational modal analysis were performed on the remaining structural elements on the two levels of the Villa. The present paper reports the main outcomes and findings of ambient vibration tests implemented to extract the modal parameters in terms of eigenfrequencies, mode shapes and damping ratios. Operational modal analysis and output-only identification techniques were applied to single stone pillars of the quadriportico structure and then to the entire square colonnade of Villa Diomede. Results are then used to study the soil-structure interaction at a local level and extend the gained information for the numerical calibration of the whole structure. Thanks to this methodology a detailed model updating procedure of the quadriportico was performed to develop reliable numerical models for the implementation of advance structural and seismic analysis of this "incomplete" archaeological structure