A practical approach to object based requirements analysis

Presented here is an approach developed at the Unisys Houston Operation Division, which supports the early identification of objects. This domain oriented analysis and development concept is based on entity relationship modeling and object data flow diagrams. These modeling techniques, based on the GOOD methodology developed at the Goddard Space Flight Center, support the translation of requirements into objects which represent the real-world problem domain. The goal is to establish a solid foundation of understanding before design begins, thereby giving greater assurance that the system will do what is desired by the customer. The transition from requirements to object oriented design is also promoted by having requirements described in terms of objects. Presented is a five step process by which objects are identified from the requirements to create a problem definition model. This process involves establishing a base line requirements list from which an object data flow diagram can be created. Entity-relationship modeling is used to facilitate the identification of objects from the requirements. An example is given of how semantic modeling may be used to improve the entity-relationship model and a brief discussion on how this approach might be used in a large scale development effort

Evaluating Reanalysis of Vertical Cloud Structure Across a Stratocumulus to Shallow Cumulus Transition using CloudSat-CALIPSO Observations

Stratocumulus clouds play an important role in the global energy balance. Thick layers of stratocumulus clouds over the subtropical oceans gradually thin and transition into shallow cumulus clouds as they traverse from higher latitudes towards the equator. Since these clouds are so widespread, they have a significant radiative effect by reflecting solar radiation, which helps control the cooling of the climate system. Atmospheric reanalyses are uniformly gridded global datasets of atmospheric parameters sourced from historical, current, and model-assimilated observations of the atmosphere. This investigation quantifies the degree to which reanalysis products accurately simulate this cloud regime transition by comparing them to observational satellite data. The physical atmospheric state parameters responsible for reanalysis-observation differences are also identified. Analysis reveals that all reanalysis products exhibit shortcomings in accurately simulating the stratocumulus to cumulus transition, and differences in dynamical and thermodynamical background conditions within each reanalysis environment affect the degree to which each reanalysis depicts cloud coverage and regime type. Understanding errors in model and reanalysis representations of this physical cloud regime transition process will allow researchers to utilize these products with greater awareness of their limitations

Waterbird use of Kentucky Reservoir mudflats

Mudflats associated with rivers in mid-continental United States are important for waterbirds to rest and replenish energy reserves during migration. Kentucky Reservoir is the largest reservoir in the Tennessee River Valley (TRV), and extensive mudflat acreage is exposed during annual drawdowns. It has been proposed that timing of drawdowns will significantly affect waterbird use of TRV mudflats. Thus, I quantified influences of drawdown of Kentucky Reservoir on waterbird use, available food resources, and mudflat characteristics. From August - December 2006 and 2007, I conducted waterbird surveys twice weekly at 9 mudflats in Kentucky Reservoir. I quantified temporal and spatial changes at mudflat sites by sampling mudflat acreage weekly and vegetation, aquatic invertebrates, soil characteristics, and water depth twice monthly. Initial mudflat exposure occurred in early to mid-August; mean mudflat acreage was 35 ha.I recorded 26 species of shorebirds, 20 species of waterfowl, and 25 species of other waterbirds (e.g., herons, gulls) using mudflats in Kentucky Reservoir. Mean shorebird abundance, richness, and diversity were greatest during September, while mean shorebird density was greatest during August when mudflat acreage was lowest. Most long-distance migrant shorebirds of high conservation concern were recorded during August and September, whereas shorter-distance migratory shorebirds and waterfowl were most common October - December. Invertebrates were the most abundant food resource available to shorebirds and waterfowl (1.5 - 3.6 g m⁻²); Chironomidae was the most common taxa. Vegetation establishment and seed production decreased with decreasing mudflat elevation, which was related to duration of mudflat exposure.Soil moisture and compaction, water depth, and invertebrate density results revealed that optimal foraging conditions for shorebirds occurred within a 20-m band centered on the waterline. Shorebirds and waterfowl using mudflats spent the majority of their time feeding, while all other waterbirds spent most of their time resting. My results indicate that Kentucky Reservoir mudflats provide important foraging and resting habitat for a diverse assemblage of waterbirds. I recommend that mudflats in Kentucky Reservoir be exposed by 1 August (New Johnsonville gage height \u3c108.81 m [357 ft] MSL) to provide habitat for rare long-distance migratory shorebirds and to facilitate vegetation establishment and seed production for waterfowl

Trends in regional atmospheric water cycles across ocean basins diagnosed using multiple products

2021 Spring.Includes bibliographical references.The importance of water within the earth system, especially its direct impacts on weather and climate through its presence and transport in the atmosphere, cannot be overstated. Accordingly, it is critical to obtain an accurate baseline understanding of the current state of the atmospheric branch of the water cycle if we are to infer future changes to the water cycle and associated influences on weather and climate. Technological advances in both remote and in-situ observing systems have made it possible to characterize water and energy budgets on global scales. However, relatively little work has been done to study the degree of closure, and thus the accuracy of these methods, at regional scales – especially over the oceans. This is a task complicated by the lack of long-term continuous data records of the variables of interest, including ocean surface evaporation, atmospheric water vapor flux divergence, and precipitation. This work aims to fill these gaps and contribute to the establishment of a baseline understanding of the water cycle within the current TRMM and GPM era. The evolution of water cycle closure within five independent regions in the equatorial Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans has been established previously using atmospheric reanalysis and gridded observational and pseudo-observational data products. That research found that while the water budgets closed extremely well in most basins, the water cycle within the West Pacific was found to trend out of closure within the first decade of the 21st century. The current study aims to extend this analysis temporally, in addition to including a wider variety of independent data sources to confirm the presence of this emerging lack of closure and hypothesize the reason for its existence. Differences between independent products are used within the context of each region to infer whether the emerging lack of closure is a data artifact or is a result of a more fundamental shift in the physical mechanisms and characteristics of the evaporation, precipitation, or water vapor flux divergence within a specific region. Results confirm an initial hypothesis that the emerging lack of water cycle closure in the West Pacific is not due to satellite or instrument drift. Rather, it appears to be related to changes in the prevalence of deep isolated versus deep organized convection in the West Pacific region and its associated impact on passive microwave precipitation retrieval algorithms

Analysis of Fund-Raising Activities In Regard to Alumni Giving at Bethel College

Problem. This study addressed the problem of how small Christian institutions of higher education may best organize and manage their fund-raising programs to maximize alumni support. The purpose of this study was to investigate and analyze what would be the best strategy in working with alumni. Method. An experimental design was used with a pre-test/post-test control group. Six different treatments for stimulating alumni giving were studied: Dear Friend letter, telethon, personalized letter, gimmick letter, incentive letter, and personal visitation. The study was limited to Bethel College and included three hundred alumni randomly selected and given one of the six treatments. The results of the study were determined by the use of analysis of covariance with one and two covariants. Further statistical analyses included a-priori tests, histograms, chi-squares, and scatterplots. The analyses included both the actual dollar amounts received from the six treatments as well as the expenses incurred in conducting the treatments. Results. The results showed that personal visitation produced the most dollars; however, telethon was the most cost-efficient, followed closely by personal visitation and then by incentive letter, dear friend letter, personal letter, and gimmick letter. Recommendations. Recommendations based on the study were: (1) that the results of the study be reviewed by the fund raisers of small private colleges and universities and that they implement the most productive methods, personal vistation and telethon; as the primary means of raising funds from alumni; (2) that personal visitation should be the chief method of fund raising among alumni as long as expenses are minimized (this can be accomplished by either cutting the dollar amounts or researching individuals in detail to determine if their gifts will be significant); (3) that since cost analysis proved telethon produced the best results, it should be seriously considered as a means of fundraising; (4) that letter writing as a means of fundraising from alumni be used after personal contact; and (5) that since the incentive letter proved to be the best income producer of the four letters, it should be the preferred letter used in fund raising (for variety it can be followed respectively by the Dear Friend letter, personal letter, and gimmick letter)

Designing an Educational and Intelligent Human-Computer Interface for Older Adults

As computing devices continue to become more heavily integrated into our lives, proper design of human-computer interfaces becomes a more important topic of discussion. Efficient and useful human-computer interfaces need to take into account the abilities of the humans who will be using such interfaces, and adapt to difficulties that different users may face – such as the particular difficulties older users must face. However, various issues in the design of human-computer interfaces for older users yet exist: a wide variance of ability is displayed by older adults, which can be difficult to design for. Motions and notions found intuitive by younger users can be anything but for the older user. Properly-designed devices must also assist without injuring the pride and independence of the users – thus, it’s understood that devices designed “for the elderly” may encounter a poor reception when introduced to the ageing community. Affective computing gives current researchers in HCI a useful opportunity to develop applications with interfaces that detect mood and attention via nonverbal cues and take appropriate actions accordingly. Current work in affective computing applications with older adult users points to possibilities reducing feelings of loneliness in the older adult population via these affective applications. However, we believe that everyday applications – such as chat programs or operating systems – can also take advantage of affective computing principles to make themselves more accessible for older adults, via communication enhancement. In this thesis, we document a variety of work in the field of developing human-computer interfaces for the older adult user, and the various requirements each of these studies confirm regarding human-computer interaction design for the elderly. We then explain how integration of affective computing can positively affect these designs, and outline a design approach for proper human-computer interfaces for the elderly which take into account affective computing principles. We then develop a case study around a chat application – ChitChat – which takes these principles and guidelines into account from the beginning, and give several examples of real-world applications also built with these guidelines. Finally, we conclude by summarizing the broader impacts of this work

Pelagic Habitat Use by Benthic Fishes – Juvenile Scorpaenoids of the Oceanic Gulf of Mexico

The suborder Scorpaenoidei is among the most speciose fish taxa of the World Ocean, including the Gulf of Mexico (GoM). Most adult scorpionfishes are benthic and have a pelagic juvenile phase. Although the species descriptions and distributions of adult scorpionfishes within the GoM are well documented, their juvenile forms are largely undescribed. Due to the poorly resolved taxonomic status of juvenile scorpionfishes, their assemblage dynamics have not been accurately assessed. Specimens were collected from the GoM during seven research cruises (2010-2011), as part of the NOAA-supported Offshore Nekton Sampling and Analysis Program (ONSAP), and during six research cruises (2015-2018), as a part of the GOMRI-supported Deep Pelagic Nekton Dynamics of the Gulf of Mexico Consortium (DEEPEND). Members of the suborder Scorpaenoidei occurred within 47% of epipelagic trawls from the ONSAP and DEEPEND surveys. Juvenile scorpaenoids were as abundant within the upper 200 m of the GoM during the day from the DEEPEND survey as one of the most successful midwater fish groups, the Myctophidae. Nine unique morphotypes were defined, with putative identifications, based upon meristics, morphometrics, and internal and external features with an emphasis on head spines. Pontinus rathbuni accounted for the majority of specimens collected. Specimens of P. rathbuni that were of comparable size to juvenile myctophids (e.g., 15-19 mm standard-length) showed the same diet composition as myctophids but predated during the day as opposed to nocturnal feeding by the myctophids, suggesting a degree of niche partitioning between juvenile benthic and adult pelagic species in a low-latitude oceanic ecosystem

American newspaper book editors - a profile.

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston University N.B.: Page 38 misnumbered

Difficulties with Sharing: A Proposal to Define the Voluntary Unit and Protect the Rights of Surface Co-Owners and Mineral Servitude Holders in Louisiana

The article focuses on the co-ownership principles and nature of the mineral servitude in Louisiana. Topics discussed include the importance of implementing reforms in the Mineral Code, solutions for equitable remedies for surface co-owners, and the judicial opinion of the Supreme Court of Louisiana on the case Frost-Johnson Lumber Co. v. Sailing\u27s Heirs