Report on a User Test and Extension of a Type Debugger for Novice Programmers

A type debugger interactively detects the expressions that cause type errors. It asks users whether they intend the types of identifiers to be those that the compiler inferred. However, it seems that novice programmers often get in trouble when they think about how to fix type errors by reading the messages given by the type debugger. In this paper, we analyze the user tests of a type debugger and report problems of the current type debugger. We then extend the type debugger to address these problems. Specifically, we introduce expression-specific error messages and language levels. Finally, we show type errors that we think are difficult to explain to novice programmers. The subjects of the user tests were 40 novice students belonging to the department of information science at Ochanomizu University.Comment: In Proceedings TFPIE 2014, arXiv:1412.473

A hybrid Finite Element-Statistical Energy Analysis method for impulsive and transient loading

The hybrid approach coupling Statistical Energy Analysis (SEA) and the finite element method has become a prominent technique for analysing structures under steady-state loads in the ‘mid-frequency’ range where some components behave in a deterministic manner with low modal density and others in a statistical manner with high modal density and statistical overlap. In this paper, the method is extended from its current steady-state capability to provide calculation of structural responses under impulsive and time-varying loads. Similar to the steady-state method, a system is split into deterministic components that are modelled using the finite element approach and statistical components that are modelled as SEA subsystems. An evolutionary spectrum approach based on the Priestley description of random processes is applied to model the response of both the SEA and deterministic components which are coupled by considering a power balance between the SEA subsystems. The diffuse field reciprocity relationship that relates the reverberant forces generated by a subsystem to the energy within it is explored under transient conditions where it is found that it can be important to account for the build-up of a reverberant field following an impulse. Results from the method are compared against finite element simulations for a system of plates coupled by a beam and it is found to generate predictions with the accuracy expected of an SEA-based method, although deterministic oscillations of the deterministic system at early times are not accounted for.MH

Response variance prediction using transient statistical energy analysis.

Statistical energy analysis (SEA) is a prominent method for predicting the high frequency response of complex structures under steady loading where the structure is split into subsystems and the subsystem energies are calculated. Since at high frequencies, the dynamic response of nominally identical structures can differ greatly, methods have been developed to predict both the mean and variance of the energy in the subsystems of a system across an ensemble of systems. SEA can be extended to predict the transient response of a system, either to shock or time-varying inputs and is known as transient SEA, although this formulation has so far only been interested in the mean response. In this paper, a method for predicting the variance of the transient response is derived by considering how an individual realisation can deviate from the mean. A matrix differential equation for the covariance of the subsystem energies is derived which is driven by terms representing the variability in the system. These variance terms are provided by assuming that the natural frequencies in each subsystem conform to the Gaussian orthogonal ensemble. The accuracy of the method is investigated both numerically and experimentally using systems involving coupled plates and its limitations are discussed.Mitsubishi Heavy Industrie

Diagnosis of Circumstellar Matter Structure in Type IIn Supernovae with Hydrogen Line Feature

Some supernovae (SNe), such as Type IIn SNe, are powered by collision of the SN ejecta with a dense circumstellar matter (CSM). Their emission spectra show characteristic line shapes of combined broad emission and narrow P-Cyg lines, which should closely relate to the CSM structure and the mass-loss mechanism that creates the dense CSM. We quantitatively investigate the relationship between the line shape and the CSM structure by Monte Carlo radiative transfer simulations, considering two representative cases of dense CSM formed by steady and eruptive mass loss. Comparing the H$\alpha$ emission between the two cases, we find that a narrow P-Cyg line appears in the eruptive case while it does not appear in the steady case, due to the difference in the velocity gradient in the dense CSM. We also reproduce the blue-shifted photon excess observed in some SNe IIn, which is formed by photon transport across the shock wave and find the relationship between the velocity of the shocked matter and the amount of the blue shift of the photon excess. We conclude that the presence or absence of narrow P-Cyg lines can distinguish the mass loss mechanism, and suggest high-resolution spectroscopic observations with $\lambda/ \Delta \lambda \gtrsim 10^4$ after the light curve peak for applying this diagnostic method.Comment: Submitted to Ap

Venture into Cross-Cultural Psychology

A peer-reviewed book based on presentations at the XXIII Congress of the International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology, 2016, Nagoya, Japan. (c) 2018, International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychologyhttps://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/iaccp_proceedings/1001/thumbnail.jp

Calibration of CRL all-sky imagers using an integrating sphere

As part of an international collaboration with the Geophysical Institute of the University of Alaska, we have developed two all-sky imagers (CRL-ASIs). A sensitivity calibration of the CRL-ASIs was performed using an integrating sphere belonging to the National Institute of Polar Research (NIPR). The two-dimensional sensitivities of the CRL-ASIs produced symmetrical distributions. Using this sensitivity data, we converted airglow/aurora images into two-dimensional distributions of absolute intensity. The sensitivity of the CRL-ASIs was measured for 13 wavelengths between 427.8 nm and 866.5 nm, and the relationship between the sensitivity and the wavelength was investigated for both imagers. The peak sensitivity occurred at about 550 nm

Quantification of Local Morphodynamics and Local GTPase Activity by Edge Evolution Tracking

Advances in time-lapse fluorescence microscopy have enabled us to directly observe dynamic cellular phenomena. Although the techniques themselves have promoted the understanding of dynamic cellular functions, the vast number of images acquired has generated a need for automated processing tools to extract statistical information. A problem underlying the analysis of time-lapse cell images is the lack of rigorous methods to extract morphodynamic properties. Here, we propose an algorithm called edge evolution tracking (EET) to quantify the relationship between local morphological changes and local fluorescence intensities around a cell edge using time-lapse microscopy images. This algorithm enables us to trace the local edge extension and contraction by defining subdivided edges and their corresponding positions in successive frames. Thus, this algorithm enables the investigation of cross-correlations between local morphological changes and local intensity of fluorescent signals by considering the time shifts. By applying EET to fluorescence resonance energy transfer images of the Rho-family GTPases Rac1, Cdc42, and RhoA, we examined the cross-correlation between the local area difference and GTPase activity. The calculated correlations changed with time-shifts as expected, but surprisingly, the peak of the correlation coefficients appeared with a 6–8 min time shift of morphological changes and preceded the Rac1 or Cdc42 activities. Our method enables the quantification of the dynamics of local morphological change and local protein activity and statistical investigation of the relationship between them by considering time shifts in the relationship. Thus, this algorithm extends the value of time-lapse imaging data to better understand dynamics of cellular function

Developmental Changes of Prefrontal Activation in Humans: A Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Study of Preschool Children and Adults

Previous morphological studies indicated that development of the human prefrontal cortex (PFC) appears to continue into late adolescence. Although functional brain imaging studies have sought to determine the time course of functional development of the PFC, it is unclear whether the developmental change occurs after adolescence to adulthood and when it achieves a peak because of the narrow or discontinuous range in the participant's age. Moreover, previous functional studies have not focused on the anterior frontal region, that is, the frontopolar regions (BA9/10). Thus, the present study investigated the developmental change in frontopolar PFC activation associated with letter fluency task by using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), in subjects from preschool children to adults. We analyzed the relative concentration of hemoglobin (ΔHb) in the prefrontal cortex measured during the activation task in 48 typically-developing children and adolescents and 22 healthy adults. Consistent with prior morphological studies, we found developmental change with age in the children/adolescents. Moreover, the average Δoxy-Hb in adult males was significantly larger than that in child/adolescent males, but was not true for females. These data suggested that functional development of the PFC continues into late adolescence. Although the developmental change of the frontopolar PFC was independent of gender from childhood to adolescence, in adulthood a gender difference was shown