Constructive interval temporal logic in Alf

This paper gives an implementation of an interval temporal logic in a constructive type theory, using the Alf proof system. After explaining the constructive approach, its relevance to interval temporal logic and potential applications of our work, we explain the fundamentals of the Alf system. We then present the implementation of the logic and give a number of examples of its use. We conclude by exploring how the work can be extended in the future

Contextual Mobile Learning for professionals working in the “Smart City”

In this study, we propose an innovative approach using the “Contextual Mobile Learning System” based on the “Electronic Performance Support System” (EPSS) to support efficient just-in-time learning for professionals working in the “Smart city”. In this paper, we present the principle and the structure of our contextual mobile learning system, which uses a search engine to find appropriate learning units in relation with working activities and conditions and the user’s / worker’s profile. We further discuss the proposed system structure, supportive process and context-driven engine. Finally, we describe a scenario using our contextual mobile learning system

An augmented lecture feedback system to support learner and teacher communication

The definitive version is available at www3.interscience.wiley.comIn this paper it is advocated that the feedback loop between students and lecturer could be improved by making use of Augmented Reality (AR) techniques. The bidirectional communication teacher-students is sometimes hampered by students’ fear of showing themselves up in front of their classmates. In order to overcome this problem a system is proposed whereby lecturers receive immediate and private feedback both individualised for each student as well as aggregated for the whole class. With that purpose the lecturer, who is equipped with a head mounted AR display, can visualize symbols that student select to represent their status in relation to the lecture content. In order to explore the possibilities of this approach an experience was conducted in a lecture on a university course. The results are encouraging and suggest that as this technology matures and less intrusive AR display models become available, it could provide effective support to communication and interaction during lectures.Publicad

Audiographic-based instructional delivery

Issued as Quarterly report [1-3], and Final report, Project no. G-36-605Final report has title: Audiographic-based instructional delivery: an experiment in Georgia educatio

Structural biology of bacterial functional amyloid formation

Amyloids are proteinaceous aggregates best known for their role in degenerative diseases involving protein misfolding. Research into amyloid has intensified in recent times due to its prominence in many debilitating human diseases and limited understanding of the causes. The discovery of functional amyloids in a broad range of species has enhanced our understanding of amyloid, of these the curli system of E. coli has been extensively studied, in this system CsgC was identified as a potent inhibitor of amyloid. An additional protein was discovered in some curli operons in other species termed CsgH and warrants further study. A morphologically similar but genetically distinct bacterial functional amyloid system was identified in Pseudomonas encoded by the fapABCDEF operon and termed amyloid-like fibres (Alf). The study of functional amyloid has the potential to provide insights into how amyloid can be controlled. The aims of this thesis were to investigate the novel functional amyloid system of Pseudomonas with a view to structural and functional characterisation of the individual components. The structure and function of the CsgH protein were also studied by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and the ThioflavinT (ThT) amyloid fibrillation assay. Constructs were produced for all the Alf proteins and the more structured components, FapD and FapF, were optimised to produce constructs for structural study. The structure of CsgH was solved successfully using NMR and showed that the protein shared a similar tertiary structure to CsgC. The function of the CsgH was shown to be similar to CsgC inhibiting amyloid formation by CsgA at substoichiometric concentrations. Mutagenesis, ThT assay and NMR were used to show that CsgH and CsgA interact and that several charged residues have an important role in function. It was also interesting to note that CsgH was capable of inhibiting amyloid formation by the FapC amyloid protein of Pseudomonas.Open Acces

A debugging model for functional logic programs

This paper presents a box-oriented debugging model for the functional logic language ALF. Due to the sophisticated operational semantics of ALF which is based on innermost basic narrowing with simplification, the debugger must reflect the application of the different computation rules during program execution. Hence our debugging model includes not only one box type as in Byrd's debugging model for logic programs but several different kinds of boxes corresponding to the various computation rules of the functional logic language (narrowing, simplification etc.). Moreover, additional box types are introduced in order to allow skips over (sometimes) uninteresting program parts like proofs of the condition in a conditional equation. Since ALF is a genuine amalgamation of functional and logic languages, our debugging model subsumes operational aspects of both kinds of languages. As a consequence, it can be also used for pure logic languages, pure functional languages with eager evaluation, or functional logic languages with a less sophisticated operational semantics like SLOG or eager BABEL

Fatigue Performance: Asphalt Binder versus Mixture versus Full-Scale Pavements

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) built 12 asphalt pavements in 1993 to validate Superpave tests and specifications used to measure the rutting and fatigue cracking performances of hot-mix asphalts and asphalt binders. Each pavement had four test sites. These sites were tested for either rutting or fatigue cracking using the FHWA’s Accelerated Loading Facility (ALF). The main objective of the study documented in this paper was to compare the fatigue performance results from laboratory bending beam fatigue tests to the ALF fatigue cracking data obtained for these sites from lanes 1 through 4. The four lanes consisted of two asphalt pavement layer thicknesses (100 and 200 mm) and two asphalt binders (PG 58-34 and PG 64-22). Each lane was tested at three temperatures 10, 19, and 28°C. Another objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between the asphalt binder parameter for intermediate temperature performance (G*sinδ) and asphalt pavement fatigue life. Findings of this study showed that a relatively good correlation was obtained between the ALF pavement fatigue life and the asphalt mixture fatigue life from the strain-controlled bending beam fatigue tests. Comparison of the fatigue results at the three test temperatures showed rational trends with the longest fatigue life at 28°C and the shortest fatigue life at 10°C. Fatigue power models at these test temperatures were also obtained for asphalt mixtures produced using the two asphalt binders

Patients accept therapy using embryonic stem cells for Parkinson’s disease:a discrete choice experiment

Background: New disease-modifying ways to treat Parkinson’s disease (PD) may soon become a reality with intracerebral transplantation of cell products produced from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs). The aim of this study was to assess what factors influence preferences of patients with PD regarding stem-cell based therapies to treat PD in the future. Methods: Patients with PD were invited to complete a web-based discrete choice experiment to assess the importance of the following attributes: (i) type of treatment, (ii) aim of treatment, (iii) available knowledge of the different types of treatments, (iv) effect on symptoms, and (v) risk for severe side effects. Latent class conditional logistic regression models were used to determine preference estimates and heterogeneity in respondents’ preferences. Results: A substantial difference in respondents’ preferences was observed in three latent preference patterns (classes). “Effect on symptoms” was the most important attribute in class 1, closely followed by “type of treatment,” with medications as preferred to other treatment alternatives. Effect on symptoms was also the most important attribute in class 2, with treatment with hESCs preferred over other treatment alternatives. Likewise for class 3, that mainly focused on “type of treatment” in the decision-making. Respondents’ class membership was influenced by their experience in treatment, side effects, and advanced treatment therapy as well as religious beliefs. Conclusions: Most of the respondents would accept a treatment with products emanating from hESCs, regardless of views on the moral status of embryos. Preferences of patients with PD may provide guidance in clinical decision-making regarding treatments deriving from stem cells.</p

The audiographic learning facility: research and development

Issued as Annual progress report, and Final report, Project no. G-36-606Final report has title: The audiographic learning facility: research and developmen

Juvenile idiopathic arthritis - from macrophage to mortality

Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is the most common rheumatic disease in children. Studies of the immunopathogenesis in JIA has mainly focused on the adaptive immune system, while less is known of the role of the monocytes. JIA is considered a chronic disease, although only about 50% of participants in long-term follow-up studies have active disease as adults. The treatment arsenal for JIA has expanded during the last three decades, but if this has improved the long-term outcome is not known.When a diagnosis of JIA is confirmed almost all children and parents ask the same important questions: “Why did I/my child get this disease?”, “What will happen to me now?” and “Will I ever get well?”. The overall aim of this thesis has been to study different aspects of these questions – from the pathophysiological role of monocytes and their function in blood and the synovial environment, to incidence, outcome measures with short- and long-term perspectives, risk of depression and anxiety, and mortality.Children with active oligoarticular JIA display monocytes of a mixed pro- and anti-inflammatory polarization pattern in the synovial environment, with reduced capacity to phagocytize, unique for this JIA subtype. This supports the hypothesis that oligoarticular JIA should not be considered as a pediatric version of adult rheumatic arthritides.The mean annual incidence rate in Skåne (the southernmost region of Sweden) 1980 – 2010 was 9.9/100,000 children < 16 years, with significantly increasing numbers during the period. The mortality was interpreted as low, fewer patients were diagnosed with JIA-associated uveitis and the need of joint corrective surgery was decreased compared to previously published data. However, children with JIA diagnosed since the introduction of biologic immunomodulatory treatment still experienced disease activity more than 50% of the follow-up years. No increased risk for diagnosis with depression or anxiety was found in JIA patients and they were also not diagnosed at an earlier age than age- and sex-matched controls.In conclusion, the long-term outcome of JIA has improved and the risk for depression and anxiety is not found to be increased in JIA. There are however still challenges with active disease more than half of the time in spite of state-of-the-art treatment. Follow-up in adulthood is needed to answer the question of how many JIA patients that still needs healthcare as adults