299 research outputs found
A Branching Time Model of CSP
I present a branching time model of CSP that is finer than all other models
of CSP proposed thus far. It is obtained by taking a semantic equivalence from
the linear time - branching time spectrum, namely divergence-preserving coupled
similarity, and showing that it is a congruence for the operators of CSP. This
equivalence belongs to the bisimulation family of semantic equivalences, in the
sense that on transition systems without internal actions it coincides with
strong bisimilarity. Nevertheless, enough of the equational laws of CSP remain
to obtain a complete axiomatisation for closed, recursion-free terms.Comment: Dedicated to Bill Roscoe, on the occasion of his 60th birthda
Static Trace-Based Deadlock Analysis for Synchronous Mini-Go
We consider the problem of static deadlock detection for programs in the Go
programming language which make use of synchronous channel communications. In
our analysis, regular expressions extended with a fork operator capture the
communication behavior of a program. Starting from a simple criterion that
characterizes traces of deadlock-free programs, we develop automata-based
methods to check for deadlock-freedom. The approach is implemented and
evaluated with a series of examples
Stretchable, fully polymeric electrode arrays for peripheral nerve stimulation
There is a critical need to transition research level flexible polymer bioelectronics toward the clinic by demonstrating both reliability in fabrication and stable device performance. Conductive elastomers (CEs) are composites of conductive polymers in elastomeric matrices that provide both flexibility and enhanced electrochemical properties compared to conventional metallic electrodes. This work focuses on the development of nerve cuff devices and the assessment of the device functionality at each development stage, from CE material to fully polymeric electrode arrays. Two device types are fabricated by laser machining of a thick and thin CE sheet variant on an insulative polydimethylsiloxane substrate and lamination into tubing to produce pre‐curled cuffs. Device performance and stability following sterilization and mechanical loading are compared to a state‐of‐the‐art stretchable metallic nerve cuff. The CE cuffs are found to be electrically and mechanically stable with improved charge transfer properties compared to the commercial cuff. All devices are applied to an ex vivo whole sciatic nerve and shown to be functional, with the CE cuffs demonstrating superior charge transfer and electrochemical safety in the biological environment
Obstetric anal sphincter injury: a systematic review of information available on the internet.
OBJECTIVE: There is no systematic evaluation of online health information pertaining to obstetric anal sphincter injury. Therefore, we evaluated the accuracy, credibility, reliability, and readability of online information concerning obstetric anal sphincter injury. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Multiple search engines were searched. The first 30 webpages were identified for each keyword and considered eligible if they provided information regarding obstetric anal sphincter injury. Eligible webpages were assessed by two independent researchers for accuracy (prioritised criteria based upon the RCOG Third and Fourth Degree Tear guideline); credibility; reliability; and readability. RESULTS: Fifty-eight webpages were included. Seventeen webpages (30%) had obtained Health On the Net certification, or Information Standard approval and performed better than those without such approvals (p = 0.039). The best overall performing website was http://www.pat.nhs.uk (score of 146.7). A single webpage (1%) fulfilled the entire criteria for accuracy with a score of 18: www.tamesidehospital.nhs.uk . Twenty-nine webpages (50%) were assessed as credible (scores ≥7). A single webpage achieved a maximum credibility score of 10: www.meht.nhs.uk . Over a third (21 out of 58) were rated as poor or very poor. The highest scoring webpage was http://www.royalsurrey.nhs.uk (score 62). No webpage met the recommended Flesch Reading Ease Score above 70. The intra-class coefficient between researchers was 0.98 (95% CI 0.96-0.99) and 0.94 (95% CI 0.89-0.96) for accuracy and reliability assessments. CONCLUSION: Online information concerning obstetric anal sphincter injury often uses language that is inappropriate for a lay audience and lacks sufficient accuracy, credibility, and reliability
Test Model Coverage Analysis under Uncertainty
In model-based testing (MBT) we may have to deal with a non-deterministic
model, e.g. because abstraction was applied, or because the software under test
itself is non-deterministic. The same test case may then trigger multiple
possible execution paths, depending on some internal decisions made by the
software. Consequently, performing precise test analyses, e.g. to calculate the
test coverage, are not possible. This can be mitigated if developers can
annotate the model with estimated probabilities for taking each transition. A
probabilistic model checking algorithm can subsequently be used to do simple
probabilistic coverage analysis. However, in practice developers often want to
know what the achieved aggregate coverage, which unfortunately cannot be
re-expressed as a standard model checking problem. This paper presents an
extension to allow efficient calculation of probabilistic aggregate coverage,
and moreover also in combination with k-wise coverage
Telephone Consultation for Improving Health of People Living with or at Risk of HIV: A Systematic Review
BACKGROUND: Low cost, effective interventions are needed to deal with the major global burden of HIV/AIDS. Telephone consultation offers the potential to improve health of people living with HIV/AIDS cost-effectively and to reduce the burden on affected people and health systems. The aim of this systematic review was to assess the effectiveness of telephone consultation for HIV/AIDS care. METHODS: We undertook a comprehensive search of peer-reviewed and grey literature. Two authors independently screened citations, extracted data and assessed the quality of randomized controlled trials which compared telephone interventions with control groups for HIV/AIDS care. Telephone interventions were voice calls with landlines or mobile phones. We present a narrative overview of the results as the obtained trials were highly heterogeneous in design and therefore the data could not be pooled for statistical analysis. RESULTS: The search yielded 3321 citations. Of these, nine studies involving 1162 participants met the inclusion criteria. The telephone was used for giving HIV test results (one trial) and for delivering behavioural interventions aimed at improving mental health (four trials), reducing sexual transmission risk (one trial), improving medication adherence (two trials) and smoking cessation (one trial). Limited effectiveness of the intervention was found in the trial giving HIV test results, in one trial supporting medication adherence and in one trial for smoking cessation by telephone. CONCLUSIONS: We found some evidence of the benefits of interventions delivered by telephone for the health of people living with HIV or at risk of HIV. However, only limited conclusions can be drawn as we only found nine studies for five different interventions and they mainly took place in the United States. Nevertheless, given the high penetration of low-cost mobile phones in countries with high HIV endemicity, more evidence is needed on how telephone consultation can aid in the delivery of HIV prevention, treatment and care
Dynamical Boson Stars
The idea of stable, localized bundles of energy has strong appeal as a model
for particles. In the 1950s John Wheeler envisioned such bundles as smooth
configurations of electromagnetic energy that he called {\em geons}, but none
were found. Instead, particle-like solutions were found in the late 1960s with
the addition of a scalar field, and these were given the name {\em boson
stars}. Since then, boson stars find use in a wide variety of models as sources
of dark matter, as black hole mimickers, in simple models of binary systems,
and as a tool in finding black holes in higher dimensions with only a single
killing vector. We discuss important varieties of boson stars, their dynamic
properties, and some of their uses, concentrating on recent efforts.Comment: 79 pages, 25 figures, invited review for Living Reviews in
Relativity; major revision in 201
Problem Solving Using Process Algebra Considered Insightful
Process algebras with data, such as LOTOS, PSF, FDR, and mCRL2, are very suitable to model and analyse combinatorial problems. Contrary to more traditional mathematics, many of these problems can very directly be formulated in process algebra. Using a wide range of techniques, such as behavioural reductions, model checking, and visualisation, the problems can subsequently be easily solved. With the advent of probabilistic process algebras this also extends to problems where probabilities play a role. In this paper we model and analyse a number of very well-known – yet tricky – problems and show the elegance of behavioural analysis
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