Enterprise Deployment of the OSGi Platform

Práce se zabývá problematikou technologie OSGi, která nabízí odlišný přístup k modularitě jazyka Java. Vývoj modularity jazyka je dán do souvislosti s novou technologií. Práce rozebírá praktické aspekty OSGi přístupu od návrhu aplikace, přes její vývoj až po samotné nasazení a následnou údržbu. Dle uvedených doporučení je realizována demonstrační aplikace, nad kterou jsou prováděny zátěžové a další testy s cílem nasimulovat běžný provoz serverové aplikace. Práce v závěru zhodnocuje použití technologie OSGi jako celku při tvorbě rozsáhlých aplikací.This thesis focuses on the OSGi technology that offers distinct approach to modularity of the Java language. The technology is shown in connection to the natural evolution of the language. The thesis discusses practical elements of the OSGi approach from application design through development stages to the server deployment and maintenance phase. An example application is build upon the presented recommendations. The application is stress-tested with several simulations of different realistic traffic types. The thesis sums up the usage of the OSGi technology and evaluates its aspects.

“An Unfinished Phrase”: Philosophy of life and language in Virginia Woolf’s The Waves

Virginia Woolf’s novel, The Waves, is an expression and exploration of an authorial and philosophical crisis. The crisis is authorial, in that Woolf expresses deep uncertainty about the relation of the act and product of writing to life, and the crisis is philosophical, in that Woolf grapples with problems that are epistemological, ontological, aesthetic, and linguistic. Woolf’s authorial and philosophical crisis can be understood as part of the broader crisis of modernity. I argue that the crisis of modernity can be read as a crisis of “imaginaries,” and that the project of Woolf and the Modernists was to imaginatively develop new vocabularies with which to express, understand, and make, modern life. I suggest that the character Bernard pursues the central imaginative project of The Waves – to find the set of “perfect” phrases with which to tell the “true” story of life. I examine his attempts to find a semantically meaningful vocabulary by moving away from prose towards poetry. Correspondingly, I examine Bernard’s dissatisfactions with “telling” life through narratives, and consider whether the characters’ lives are better understood as episodes, or through Woolf’s profound “moments of being.” I explore the characters’ attempts to form a fulfilling vocabulary shared amongst a narrowing circle – as friends, as a couple, or as individuals. I also discuss the important role of silence in The Waves. I conclude by analysing Bernard’s final soliloquy, which closes the novel. I argue that his soliloquy presents a complex and philosophically compelling vision of life as vacillation, as evidenced by the “wave” motif, which runs through The Waves

Cloud Framework on Infrastructure as a Service

Práce se zabývá podrobnou analýzou požadavků na moderní aplikační rámec pro prostředí cloud. Za pomoci standardních návrhových vzorů a technik připravuje teoretický základ a pravidla, která musí uvnitř rámce platit. V práci je realizována referenční implementace a připravena demonstrační aplikace středního rozsahu, aby představila výhody plynoucí z užití frameworku.The thesis covers an in-depth analysis of the requirements for a modern application framework that runs in the cloud environment. It uses standard design patterns and approaches to prepare guidelines for the framework. A reference implementation is created to prove framework concept. The medium-sized demo application is also developed to prove the framework benefits.

The Activity of Silicon Carbide Particles in Al-Based Metal Matrix Composites Revealed by Scanning Electrochemical Microscopy

Scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM) is used to image variations in electrochemical activity over the surface of an aluminum-based metal matrix composite (MMC) in contact with buffered or unbuffered neutral solutions. The composite consists of an Al - 13.5% Si - 9% Mg alloy matrix and reinforcing silicon carbide particles (SiCp). Feedback mode SECM imaging using ferrocenemethanol as a redox mediator in 0.1 M NaCl solution and in buffer solution (pH 6.8) revealed that the SiC particles are electrochemically active. The data suggest that the electronic conductivity at these sites is higher than that of the Al2O3 film covering the alloy matrix surface. The reduction of dissolved oxygen on the silicon carbide particles was investigated by in situ SECM images of samples and current vs. tip-substrate distance curves. The results with samples of SiCp/Al composites immersed in distilled water alone or in either 0.1 M NaCl or boric acid/borax buffer containing ferrocenemethanol as mediator demonstrate that the silicon carbide particles are conductive and act as local cathodes for the reduction of oxygen

Torulaspora delbrueckii: Towards Innovating in the Legendary Baking and Brewing Industries

Baking and brewing are among the oldest bioprocesses refined by human societies. Both fermentative processes have successfully used domesticated strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae in their process as the biocatalyst throughout their evolution. However, the dominance of S. cerevisiae has limited the capability for diversification of many organoleptic properties of the final product, such as aroma and flavours. The use of non-Saccharomyces yeasts can be an enormous source of opportunities for innovation in both fermentative processes. Torulaspora delbrueckii is a ubiquitous yeast species, and numerous strains have been isolated from many different bioprocesses. The strains of T. delbrueckii, once considered microbial contamination, have recently shown several advantages over S. cerevisiae strains, including higher ethanol tolerance; better capabilities to consume wort sugars; higher resistance to hop/pH/osmotic stress; and freeze-thaw resistance, among others. This chapter aims to present a comprehensive review of frontier research on T. delbrueckii regarding its potential and prospects for the baking and brewing industries

Developing ICT Skills of STEM Teachers in Mexico: The Key Role of the Tutorial Function

It is well documented in distance education literature that one of the factors that are considered essential to the success of an online course is the tutorial function. The role of counselor consists of assisting and encouraging students, building learning activities, and developing support strategies for the use of technology. The tutor thus was assessed as one element of great importance in on-line education, and, to some, an essential feature of this mode. In this paper, the importance of the tutorial function and its effect on the development of skills for using information and communication technology (ICT) in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) teachers was analyzed. The results showed that on average the treatment contributed to improving the skills of teachers, as 100% of those analyzed for competence increased their scores. Interpolation lines were used for three domains, and demonstrated the effectiveness of the tutor function. The implications of this work are discussed in the context of the National Development Plan of Mexico (2003-2018), and more specifically, under the recommendations of the inclusion of ICT competency standards for teachers of UNESCO

On-chip micro-supercapacitors for operation in a wide temperature range

Onion-like carbon (OLC) based micro-supercapacitor electrodes prepared by electrophoretic deposition (EPD) were combined with a eutectic mixture of ionic liquids (IL), producing a micro-supercapacitor which is able to function from −50 °C to 80 °C. This device was electrochemically characterized by cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy at different scan rates and different temperatures. At 20 °C, a capacitance of 1.1 mF.cm−2 per footprint area of device at 200 mV.s−1 within 3.7 V was measured, hence a specific energy of 15 mJ.cm−2 and a specific power of 240 mW.cm−2. At−50 °C, 76% of the capacitance wasmaintained at 10 mV.s−1 within 3.7 V. By integrating with IL, this micro-supercapacitor can be potentially used in portable electronic devices that are required to work under temperature extremes

Confirmation of a recent bipolar ejection in the very young hierarchical multiple system IRAS 16293-2422

We present and analyze two new high-resolution (approx 0.3 arcsec), high-sensitivity (approx 50 uJy beam-1) Very Large Array 3.6 cm observations of IRAS 16293-2422 obtained in 2007 August and 2008 December. The components A2alpha and A2beta recently detected in this system are still present, and have moved roughly symmetrically away from source A2 at a projected velocity of 30-80 km s-1. This confirms that A2alpha and A2beta were formed as a consequence of a very recent bipolar ejection from A2. Powerful bipolar ejections have long been known to occur in low-mass young stars, but this is -to our knowledge-- the first time that such a dramatic one is observed from its very beginning. Under the reasonable assumption that the flux detected at radio wavelengths is optically thin free-free emission, one can estimate the mass of each ejecta to be of the order of 10^-8 Msun. If the ejecta were created as a consequence of an episode of enhanced mass loss accompanied by an increase in accretion onto the protostar, then the total luminosity of IRAS 16293-2422 ought to have increased by 10-60% over the course of at least several months. Between A2alpha and A2beta, component A2 has reappeared, and the relative position angle between A2 and A1 is found to have increased significantly since 2003-2005. This strongly suggests that A1 is a protostar rather than a shock feature, and that the A1/A2 pair is a tight binary system. Including component B, IRAS 16293-2422 therefore appears to be a very young hierarchical multiple system.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journa

Value of diffusion weighted MR imaging as an early surrogate parameter for evaluation of tumor response to high-dose-rate brachytherapy of colorectal liver metastases

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>To assess the value of diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) as an early surrogate parameter for treatment response of colorectal liver metastases to image-guided single-fraction ¹⁹²Ir-high-dose-rate brachytherapy (HDR-BT).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Thirty patients with a total of 43 metastases underwent CT- or MRI-guided HDR-BT. In 13 of these patients a total of 15 additional lesions were identified, which were not treated at the initial session and served for comparison. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) including breathhold echoplanar DWI sequences was performed prior to therapy (baseline MRI), 2 days after HDR-BT (early MRI) as well as after 3 months (follow-up MRI). Tumor volume (TV) and intratumoral apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) were measured independently by two radiologists. Statistical analysis was performed using univariate comparison, ANOVA and paired t test as well as Pearson's correlation.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>At early MRI no changes of TV and ADC were found for non-treated colorectal liver metastases. In contrast, mean TV of liver lesions treated with HDR-BT increased by 8.8% (<it>p </it>= 0.054) while mean tumor ADC decreased significantly by 11.4% (<it>p </it>< 0.001). At follow-up MRI mean TV of non-treated metastases increased by 50.8% (<it>p </it>= 0.027) without significant change of mean ADC values. In contrast, mean TV of treated lesions decreased by 47.0% (<it>p </it>= 0.026) while the mean ADC increased inversely by 28.6% compared to baseline values (<it>p </it>< 0.001; Pearson's correlation coefficient of r = -0.257; p < 0.001).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>DWI is a promising imaging biomarker for early prediction of tumor response in patients with colorectal liver metastases treated with HDR-BT, yet the optimal interval between therapy and early follow-up needs to be elucidated.</p