Combining Spreadsheet Smells for Improved Fault Prediction

Spreadsheets are commonly used in organizations as a programming tool for business-related calculations and decision making. Since faults in spreadsheets can have severe business impacts, a number of approaches from general software engineering have been applied to spreadsheets in recent years, among them the concept of code smells. Smells can in particular be used for the task of fault prediction. An analysis of existing spreadsheet smells, however, revealed that the predictive power of individual smells can be limited. In this work we therefore propose a machine learning based approach which combines the predictions of individual smells by using an AdaBoost ensemble classifier. Experiments on two public datasets containing real-world spreadsheet faults show significant improvements in terms of fault prediction accuracy.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, to be published in 40th International Conference on Software Engineering: New Ideas and Emerging Results Trac

Ornithine-δ-aminotransferase is essential for Arginine Catabolism but not for Proline Biosynthesis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Like many other plant species, Arabidopsis uses arginine (Arg) as a storage and transport form of nitrogen, and proline (Pro) as a compatible solute in the defence against abiotic stresses causing water deprivation. Arg catabolism produces ornithine (Orn) inside mitochondria, which was discussed controversially as a precursor for Pro biosynthesis, alternative to glutamate (Glu).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We show here that ornithine-δ-aminotransferase (δOAT, At5g46180), the enzyme converting Orn to pyrroline-5-carboxylate (P5C), is localised in mitochondria and is essential for Arg catabolism. Wildtype plants could readily catabolise supplied Arg and Orn and were able to use these amino acids as the only nitrogen source. Deletion mutants of δ<it>OAT</it>, however, accumulated urea cycle intermediates when fed with Arg or Orn and were not able to utilize nitrogen provided as Arg or Orn. Utilisation of urea and stress induced Pro accumulation were not affected in T-DNA insertion mutants with a complete loss of δ<it>OAT </it>expression.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our findings indicate that δOAT feeds P5C exclusively into the catabolic branch of Pro metabolism, which yields Glu as an end product. Conversion of Orn to Glu is an essential route for recovery of nitrogen stored or transported as Arg. Pro biosynthesis occurs predominantly or exclusively via the Glu pathway in Arabidopsis and does not depend on Glu produced by Arg and Orn catabolism.</p

Principles and approaches for the machining simulation of ceramic matrix composites at microscale: a review and outlook

Ceramic Matrix Composites (CMC) are advanced materials composed of ceramic fibers embedded in a ceramic matrix, resulting in a highly durable and lightweight composite structure offering exceptional high-temperature performance, excellent mechanical properties, and superior resistance to wear and corrosion. CMC find applications in industries such as aerospace, automotive, energy, and defense, where high strength and thermal stability are crucial. Despite their numerous advantages, machining CMC presents unique challenges. The hardness and brittleness of ceramics make them difficult to machine using conventional methods. The abrasive nature of ceramic particles can rapidly wear down cutting tools, leading to decreased tool life and increased costs. Numeric simulations for the machining of CMC are therefore particularly interesting due to their ability to provide insights into tool-material interactions and optimize machining parameters without the need for expensive and time-consuming physical trials. This paper discusses existing methods and approaches from different materials like Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastics (CFRP) and monolithic ceramics and puts forward an outlook for the numerical simulation of the machining process of CMC

Compiling Geometric Algebra Computations into Reconfigurable Hardware Accelerators

Geometric Algebra (GA), a generalization of quaternions and complex numbers, is a very powerful framework for intuitively expressing and manipulating the complex geometric relationships common to engineering problems. However, actual processing of GA expressions is very compute intensive, and acceleration is generally required for practical use. GPUs and FPGAs offer such acceleration, while requiring only low-power per operation. In this paper, we present key components of a proof-of-concept compile flow combining symbolic and hardware optimization techniques to automatically generate hardware accelerators from the abstract GA descriptions that are suitable for high-performance embedded computing

Code of Good Practices on Fiscal Transparency

Der von IWF entwickelte Code of Good Practices on Fiscal Transparency soll für eine umfassende Information der Öffentlichkeit über den Aufbau und die Aufgaben der Regierungen, die fiskalischen Ziele und die öffentlichen Haushalte sorgen. Die durch den Verhaltenskodex geforderte Transparenz in der Geld- und Finanzpolitik ist für Caio K. Koch-Weser, Bundesministerium der Finanzen, nicht nur eine elementare Voraussetzung für eine demokratische Kontrolle, sondern ist vor allem vor dem Hintergrund der zunehmenden Globalisierung und der wirtschaftspolitischen Überwachungsfunktion des IWF von Bedeutung. Für Deutschland stehe die Notwendigkeit fiskalischer Transparenz im Rahmen der Europäischen Wirtschafts- und Währungsunion, insbesondere des Stabilitäts- und Wachstumspaktes, und der damit erforderlichen finanzpolitischen Koordinierung im Blickpunkt. Für Dr. Dietmar Hornung, DEKABank, Frankfurt, kann die Implementierung von Standards und Codes dazu beitragen, die Belastbarkeit der Informationen zu steigern und so die Stabilität sowohl des politischen Prozesses zu fördern als auch die Volatilität der Kapitalmärkte zu dämpfen: "Empirische Untersuchungen bestätigen in der Tat den Zusammenhang zwischen fiskalischer Transparenz und fiskalischer Performance. … eine höhere fiskalische Transparenz (geht) im Regelfall mit einem niedrigeren Haushaltsdefizit sowie einem niedrigeren Stand an öffentlichen Schulden einher. Fazit: Der Code of Good Practices on Fiscal Transparency ist ein wirksames Instrument." Für Prof. Dr. Horst Tomann, Freie Universität Berlin, erfordert fiskalische Transparenz, "dass die Prinzipien der Klarheit, der Wahrheit und der Vollständigkeit bei der Aufstellung und Verabschiedung des Budgets befolgt werden. Der Code of Good Practices on Fiscal Transparency, den der IWF im Rahmen seiner Beratungspraxis entwickelt hat, enthält im Grunde nichts anderes.

Multicriteria optimization as enabler for Sustainable Ceramic Matrix Composites (SCMC)

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