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On the effectiveness of run-time checks
Run-time checks are often assumed to be a cost-effective way of improving the dependability of software components, by checking required properties of their outputs and flagging an output as incorrect if it fails the check. However, evaluating how effective they are going to be in a future application is difficult, since the effectiveness of a check depends on the unknown faults of the program to which it is applied. A programming contest, providing thousands of programs written to the same specifications, gives us the opportunity to systematically test run-time checks to observe statistics of their effects on actual programs. In these examples, run-time checks turn out to be most effective for unreliable programs. For more reliable programs, the benefit is relatively low as compared to the gain that can be achieved by other (more expensive) measures, most notably multiple-version diversity
The intra- and interrater reliability of the action research arm test: A practical test of upper extremity function in patients with stroke
Objectives: To determine the intra- and interrater reliability of the Action Research Arm (ARA) test, to assess its ability to detect a minimal clinically important difference (MCID) of 5.7 points, and to identify less reliable test items. Design: Intrarater reliability of the sum scores and of individual items was assessed by comparing (1) the ratings of the laboratory measurements of 20 patients with the ratings of the same measurements recorded on videotape by the original rater, and (2) the repeated ratings of videotaped measurements by the same rater. Interrater reliability was assessed by comparing the ratings of the videotaped measurements of 2 raters. The resulting limits of agreement were compared with the MCID. Patients: Stratified sample, based on the intake ARA score, of 20 chronic stroke patients (median age, 62yr; median time since stroke onset, 3.6yr; mean intake ARA score, 29.2). Main Outcome Measures: Spearman's rank-order correlation coefficient (Spearman's rho); intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC); mean difference and limits of agreement, based on ARA sum scores; and weighted kappa, based on individual items. Results: All intra- and interrater Spearman's rho and ICC values were higher than .98. The mean difference between ratings was highest for the interrater pair (.75; 95% confidence interval, .02-1.48), suggesting a small systematic difference between raters. Intrarater limits of agreement were -1.66 to 2.26; interrater limits of agreement were -2.35 to 3.85. Median weighted kappas exceeded .92. Conclusion: The high intra- and interrater reliability of the ARA test was confirmed, as was its ability to detect a clinically relevant difference of 5.7 points
Mapping individual electromagnetic field components inside a photonic crystal
We present a method to map the absolute electromagnetic field strength inside
photonic crystals. We apply the method to map the electric field component Ez
of a two-dimensional photonic crystal slab at microwave frequencies. The slab
is placed between two mirrors to select Bloch standing waves and a
subwavelength spherical scatterer is scanned inside the resulting resonator.
The resonant Bloch frequencies shift depending on the electric field at the
position of the scatterer. To map the electric field component Ez we measure
the frequency shift in the reflection and transmission spectrum of the slab
versus the scatterer position. Very good agreement is found between
measurements and calculations without any adjustable parameters.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figure
Superfluid-insulator transition of the Josephson junction array model with commensurate frustration
We have studied the rationally frustrated Josephson-junction array model in
the square lattice through Monte Carlo simulations of D XY-model. For
frustration , the model at zero temperature shows a continuous
superfluid-insulator transition. From the measurement of the correlation
function and the superfluid stiffness, we obtain the dynamical critical
exponent and the correlation length critical exponent . While the dynamical critical exponent is the same as that for cases
, 1/2, and 1/3, the correlation length critical exponent is surprisingly
quite different. When , we have the nature of a first-order transition.Comment: RevTex 4, to appear in PR
Magnetic excitations in the low-temperature ferroelectric phase of multiferroic YMn2O5 using inelastic neutron scattering
We studied magnetic excitations in a low-temperature ferroelectric phase of
the multiferroic YMn2O5 using inelastic neutron scattering (INS). We identify
low-energy magnon modes and establish a correspondence between the magnon peaks
observed by INS and electromagnon peaks observed in optical absorption [1].
Furthermore, we explain the microscopic mechanism, which results in the
lowest-energy electromagnon peak, by comparing the inelastic neutron spectral
weight with the polarization in the commensurate ferroelectric phase.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
The responsiveness of the action research arm test and the Fugl-Meyer Assessment scale in chronic stroke patients
The responsiveness of the Action Research Arm (ARA) test and the upper extremity motor section of the Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA) scale were compared in a cohort of 22 chronic stroke patients undergoing intensive forced use treatment aimed at improvement of upper extremity function. The cohort consisted of 13 men and 9 women, median age 58.5 years, median time since stroke 3.6 years. Responsiveness was defined as the sensitivity of an instrument to real change. Two baseline measurements were performed with a 2-week interval before the intervention, and a follow-up measurement after 2 weeks intensive forced use treatment. The limits of agreement, according to the Bland-Altman method, were computed as a measure of the test-retest reliability. Two different measures of responsiveness were compared: (i) the number of patients who improved more than the upper limit of agreement during the intervention; (ii) the responsiveness ratio. The limits of agreement, designating the interval comprising 95% of the differences between two measurements in a stable individual, were -5.7 to 6.2 and -5.0 to 6.6 for the ARA test and the FMA scale, respectively. The possible sum scores range from 0 to 57 (ARA) and from 0 to 66 (FMA). The number of patients who improved more than the upper limit were 12 (54.5%) and 2 (9.1%); and the responsiveness ratios were 2.03 and 0.41 for the ARA test and the FMA scale, respectively. These results strongly suggest that the ARA test is more responsive to improvement in upper extremity function than the FMA scale in chronic stroke patients undergoing forced use treatment
A Molecular Line Observation toward Massive Clumps Associated with Infrared Dark Clouds
We have surveyed the N2H+ J=1-0, HC3N J=5-4, CCS J_N=4_3-3_2, NH3 (J, K) =
(1, 1), (2, 2), (3, 3), and CH3OH J=7-6 lines toward the 55 massive clumps
associated with infrared dark clouds by using the Nobeyama Radio Observatory 45
m telescope and the Atacama Submillimeter Telescope Experiment 10 m telescope.
The N2H+, HC3N, and NH3 lines are detected toward most of the objects. On the
other hand, the CCS emission is detected toward none of the objects. The
[CCS]/[N2H+] ratios are found to be mostly lower than unity even in the Spitzer
24 micron dark objects. This suggests that most of the massive clumps are
chemically more evolved than the low-mass starless cores. The CH3OH emission is
detected toward 18 out of 55 objects. All the CH3OH-detected objects are
associated with the Spitzer 24 micron sources, suggesting that star formation
has already started in all the CH3OH-detected objects. The velocity widths of
the CH3OH J_K=7_0-6_0 A+ and 7_{-1}-6_{-1} E lines are broader than those of
N2H+ J=1-0. The CH3OH J_K=7_0-6_0 A+ and 7_{-1}-6_{-1} E lines tend to have
broader linewidth in the MSX dark objects than in the others, the former being
younger or less luminous than the latter. The origin of the broad emission is
discussed in terms of the interaction between an outflow and an ambient cloud.Comment: Accepted to Ap
The use of oscillatory signals in the study of genetic networks
The structure of a genetic network is uncovered by studying its response to
external stimuli (input signals). We present a theory of propagation of an
input signal through a linear stochastic genetic network. It is found that
there are important advantages in using oscillatory signals over step or
impulse signals, and that the system may enter into a pure fluctuation
resonance for a specific input frequency.Comment: 46 pages, 5 figures. Submitted to PNAS on May 27th 2004. The paper is
under consideratio
Pitfalls in the design and analysis of paediatric clinical trials: a case of a âfailedâ multi-centre study, and potential solutions
Aim: To increase awareness of possible pitfalls in the design and analysis of a multi-centre randomized clinical trial and to give an overview of alternative study designs and their consequences for power analyses in case of limited availability of trial participants
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