Relational Cloud: The Case for a Database Service

In this paper, we make the case for â databases as a serviceâ (DaaS), with two target scenarios in mind: (i) consolidation of data management functionality for large organizations and (ii) outsourcing data management to a cloud-based service provider for small/medium organizations. We analyze the many challenges to be faced, and discuss the design of a database service we are building, called Relational Cloud. The system has been designed from scratch and combines many recent advances and novel solutions. The prototype we present exploits multiple dedicated storage engines, provides high-availability via transparent replication, supports automatic workload partitioning and live data migration, and provides serializable distributed transactions. While the system is still under active development, we are able to present promising initial results that showcase the key features of our system. The tests are based on TPC benchmarks and real-world data from epinions.com, and show our partitioning, scalability and balancing capabilities

B-SMART: A Reference Architecture for Artificially Intelligent Autonomic Smart Buildings

The pervasive application of artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms is transforming many industries and aspects of the human experience. One very important industry trend is the move to convert existing human dwellings to smart buildings, and to create new smart buildings. Smart buildings aim to mitigate climate change by reducing energy consumption and associated carbon emissions. To accomplish this, they leverage artificial intelligence, big data, and machine learning algorithms to learn and optimize system performance. These fields of research are currently very rapidly evolving and advancing, but there has been very little guidance to help engineers and architects working on smart buildings apply artificial intelligence algorithms and technologies in a systematic and effective manner. In this paper we present B-SMART: the first reference architecture for autonomic smart buildings. B-SMART facilitates the application of artificial intelligence techniques and technologies to smart buildings by decoupling conceptually distinct layers of functionality and organizing them into an autonomic control loop. We also present a case study illustrating how B-SMART can be applied to accelerate the introduction of artificial intelligence into an existing smart building

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY IN ROMANIA

The purpose of this paper is to identify the main opportunities and limitations of corporate social responsibility (CSR). The survey was defined with the aim to involve the highest possible number of relevant CSR topics and give the issue a more wholesome perspective. It provides a basis for further comprehension and deeper analyses of specific CSR areas. The conditions determining the success of CSR in Romania have been defined in the paper on the basis of the previously cumulative knowledge as well as the results of various researches. This paper provides knowledge which may be useful in the programs promoting CSR.Corporate social responsibility, Supportive policies, Romania