Reducing structural ambiguity in natural language software requirements specifications

Abstract. The ambiguity of natural language (NL) causes miscommunication and misunderstandings. Precision of language is particularly important in software development when handling requirements agreed between the customer and the provider. Software Requirements Specification (SRS) is a commonly used document type for specifying the requirements. A strict standard for how every SRS should be constructed does not exist, and thus it is often written in NL. However, some restricted languages can be used for specifying requirements. An example of such is Easy Approach to Requirements Syntax (EARS). In this thesis is presented an automated tool for reducing the structural ambiguity of requirements by converting NL into EARS form. Four different text datasets were used for testing the converter and they were compared before and after conversion and against each other. Both performance and ambiguity reduction of the tool were assessed using various measures. Since a standard ambiguity measurement was not available, a combination of sentence structure assessment, word occurrences against Zipf’s law, readability score and information complexity was used. The results suggest that the tool reduces structural ambiguity of sentences. The tool is successful in converting NL into the different EARS patterns and the converted sentences are less complicated and more readable, according to the results. This hints at the possibility of creating more automated tools that could be used to reduce ambiguity in NL SRS. It might not be possible to make people start using a restricted language, like EARS, for writing the documents, but with the help of automated converters, sentences could be mapped to more restricted forms to help with making better sense of them.Luonnollisen kielen rakenteellisen moniselitteisyyden vähentäminen ohjelmistojen vaatimusten määrittelyissä. Tiivistelmä. Luonnollisen kielen epämääräisyys aiheuttaa vaikeuksia kommunikoinnissa ja ymmärtämisessä. Kielen tarkkuus on erityisen tärkeää ohjelmistokehityksessä silloin kun käsitellään asiakkaan ja tarjoajan keskenään sopimia vaatimuksia ohjelmistolle. Ei ole olemassa tiukkaa standardia sille miten vaatimusten määrittelydokumentti pitäisi rakentaa, joten se usein kirjoitetaan luonnollisella kielellä. Siitä huolimatta joitain rajoitettuja kieliä voidaan käyttää yksittäisten vaatimusten määrittelyyn. Eräs esimerkki rajoitetusta kielestä on Easy Approach to Requirements Syntax (EARS). Tässä diplomityössä esitellään automatisoitu työkalu vähentämään rakenteista epämääräisyttä muuttamalla luonnollista kieltä EARS-muotoon. Neljää erilaista tekstiä käytettiin työkalun testaamiseen ja niitä verrattiin toisiinsa sekä ennen että jälkeen muuntamisen. Työkalun toimintaa ja epämääräisyyden vähentämistä mitattiin useilla metriikoilla. Epämääräisyyden mittaamiseen valittiin joukko kvantitatiivisia metriikoita: lauserakenteita analysoitiin, sanojen ilmiintyvyystiheyttä ja lausiden luettavuutta mitattiin ja informaation kompleksisuuttakin verrattiin muunnettujen ja muuntamattomien tekstien välillä. Tulosten perusteella esitelty työkalu vähentää lauseiden rakenteellista epämääräisyyttä. Se muuntaa onnistuneesti luonnollista kieltä EARS-muotoon ja tulosten mukaan muunnetut lauseet ovat vähemmän monimutkaisia ja luettavampia. Tämä viittaa siihen, että automatisoiduilla työkaluilla voisi olla mahdollista vähentää epämääräisyyttä luonnollisella kielellä kirjoitetuissa vaatimusten määrittelydokumenteissa. Vaikkei ihmisiä saataisikaan kirjoittamaan vaatimusten määrittelyjä rajoitetuilla kielillä, automatisoiduilla kielen muuntajilla lauseita voidaan uudelleenmuotoilla rajoitetumpiin muotoihin, jotta niistä saataisiin paremmin selvää

Musiikinopettajien kokemuksia kehitysvammaisten oppilaiden integroitumisesta yleisopetuksen musiikintunnille

Tiivistelmä. Tasa-arvoisen ja laadukkaan opetuksen toteuttamiseksi jokaisen lapsen tulisi saada musiikinopetusta musiikinopettajan opettamana. Tässä pro gradu -tutkielmassa tarkoituksenani oli selvittää musiikinopettajien kokemuksia kehitysvammaisten oppilaiden yleisopetuksen musiikintunnille integroitumiseen liittyvistä hyödyistä ja haasteista, musiikinopettajien kokemuksia integraatiota tukevista ja hankaloittavista tekijöistä sekä selvittää musiikinopettajien erityispedagogisia opintoja ja heidän toiveitaan musiikinopettajakoulutukseen sisällytettävistä erityispedagogiikan opinnoista. Tutkimustulokset osoittivat suurimman osan musiikinopettajista olevan sitä mieltä, että kehitysvammaisten tulisi saada musiikinopetusta musiikinopettajan opettamana, mutta erillisryhmässä. Kuitenkin musiikinopettajat kokivat, että kehitysvammaisten oppilaiden integroitumisesta yleisopetuksen musiikintunnille hyötyvät niin kehitysvammaiset kuin yleisopetuksenkin oppilaat. Musiikinopettajat kokivat toimiviksi työskentelytavoiksi integraatio-opetuksessa oppilaslähtöisyyden, monipuolisen työskentelyn, positiivisuuden ja työyhteisön työntekijöiden välisen toimivan yhteistyön. Integraation onnistumista tukivat riittävät ohjaajaresurssit, sopivat ryhmäkoot ja opettajien riittävä työkokemus. Integraation onnistumista puolestaan hankaloittivat riittämätön koulutus ja ulkoisten resurssien puutteet. Integraatio-opetuksen haasteiksi koettiin puutteellisten resurssien lisäksi oppilaiden väliset tasoerot, haastava käyttäytyminen, arvioinnin haasteet ja yleisopetuksen oppilaiden haitalliset vaikutukset kehitysvammaisiin oppilaisiin. Musiikinopettajakoulutus ei sisällä juurikaan erityispedagogiikan opintoja, mutta noin puolella kyselyyn vastanneista oli erillisiä erityispedagogiikan opintoja. Musiikinopettajat toivoivat musiikinopettajakoulutukseen erityispedagogiikan osalta käytännönläheisyyttä ja lisää tietoa erityisopetuksen menetelmistä. Toisin sanoen henkilökunnan riittävällä erityispedagogiikan osaamisella, riittävällä resurssoinnilla, harkitulla integraatioryhmän valinnalla sekä työyhteisön jäsenten välisellä yhteistyöllä luodaan edellytykset onnistua kehitysvammaisten oppilaiden integroitumisessa yleisopetuksen musiikintunneille.The experiences of music teachers in integrating pupils with intellectual disabilities into mainstream music lessons. Abstract. In order to achieve equal and high-quality education every child should receive music teaching by a music teacher. In this master thesis my aim was to find out the music teachers experiences of the benefits and challenges of integrating pupils with intellectual disabilities, the music teachers experiences of integration functionality and non-functioning, and to find out music teachers special education studies and their wishes about special education studies to be included in music teacher training. The survey results show that most of music teachers believe that pupils with intellectual disabilities should receive music education as taught by a music teacher but in a separate group. The research results also showed that pupils with disability and the mainstream education benefit from the integration of a pupil with intellectual disabilities into a mainstream education music lesson. The results show the music teachers experiences of effective working methods which emphasize diverse work, pupil orientation, positivity, and effective cooperation in the work community. The functionality of the integration was supported by sufficient instructor resources, appropriate group size and sufficient work experience. The functioning of the integration was perceived to be deficient due to insufficient training and lack of external resources. In addition to insufficient resources, the challenges of integration teaching were perceived to be differences in abilities between pupils, challenging behavior, assessments challenges and the detrimental effects of mainstream education pupils towards ones with disabilities. The music teacher training itself does not include much special education studies but about half of the respondents had attended to special education studies on their own. Music teachers wanted practicality in music teacher training and more information on special education methods. In other words, the adequate staff training and resources, considered group selection and cooperation between members of the work community creates a possibility for the integration of pupils with intellectual disabilities into mainstream music lessons

Social Support for Chamorro Breast Cancer Survivors on Guam

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess the types of social support used by Chamorro (indigenous) breast cancer survivors on Guam. Methods: We assessed social support use among 25 self-reported Chamorro women with a diagnosis of breast cancer through interviews and construction of genograms and ecomaps -pictorial displays of the women's family relationships, medical history, and their social networks. Results: The mean age of the participants was 54.5 years. The average number of years since the diagnosis of breast cancer was 7.8 years. Respondents indicated that the nuclear family was the most important form of social support (34.2%). Indeed, nuclear family and other types of informal systems were the most common type of social support used by the women (60.2%). Formal support services, clubs, and organizations were reported by 17.9% of participants while spiritual and/or religious resources were reported by 21.9% of them. Conclusion: These Chamorro breast cancer survivors depended largely on family for social support. Support from family, although informal, should be recognized as a pivotal factor in recovery and survivorship. Future directions could incorporate formal and informal mechanisms to utilize this natural support resource

The MINDMAP project: mental well-being in urban environments

__Background:__ The MINDMAP consortium (2016–2019) aims to identify opportunities provided by the urban environment for the promotion of mental well-being and functioning of older people in Europe by bringing together European cities with urban longitudinal ageing studies: GLOBE, HAPIEE, HUNT, LASA, LUCAS, RECORD, Rotterdam Study, Turin Study. A survey on mental healthcare planning policies and programmes dedicated to older persons covering the range from health promotion to need of nursing care was performed for profound data interpretation in Amsterdam, Eindhoven, Hamburg, Helsinki, Kaunas, Krakow, London, Nord-Trøndelag, Paris, Prague, Rotterdam and Turin. __Objectives:__ To collect detailed information on healthcare planning policies and programmes across these European cities to evaluate variations and to delineate recommendations for sciences, policies and planners using experience from evidence-based practice feedback from the MINDMAP cities. __Materials and methods:__ The MINDMAP partners identified experts in the 12 cities with the best background knowledge of the mental health sector. After pretesting, semi-structured telephone interviews (1–2 h) were performed always by the same person. A structured evaluation matrix based on the geriatric functioning continuum and the World Health Organization (WHO) Public Health Framework for Healthy Ageing was applied. __Results:__ A complete survey (12 out of 12) was performed reporting on 41 policies and 280 programmes on the city level. It appeared from extensive analyses that the focus on older citizens, specific target groups, and multidimensional programmes could be intensified. __Conclusion:__ There is a broad variety to cope with the challenges of ageing in health, and to address both physical and mental capacities in older individuals and their dynamic interactions in urban environments

Chemical regeneration of thermally conditioned basalt fibres

The disposal of fibre reinforced composite materials is a problem widely debated in the literature. This work explores the ability to restore the mechanical properties of thermally conditioned basalt fibres through chemical treatments. Inorganic acid (HF) and alkaline (NaOH) treatments proved to be effective in regenerating the mechanical strength of recycled basalt fibres, with up to 94% recovery of the strength on treatment with NaOH. In particular, HF treatment proved to be less effective compared to NaOH, therefore pointing towards a more environmentally sustainable approach considering the disposal issues linked to the use of HF. Moreover, the strength regeneration was found to be dependent on the level of temperature experienced during the thermal treatment process, with decreasing effectiveness as a function of increasing temperature. SEM analysis of the fibres' lateral surfaces suggests that surface defects removal induced by the etching reaction is the mechanism controlling recovery of fibre mechanical properties. In addition, studies on the fracture toughness of the regenerated single fibres were carried out, using focussed ion beam (FIB) milling technique, to investigate whether any structural change in the bulk fibre occurred after thermal exposure and chemical regeneration. A significant increase in the fracture toughness for the regenerated fibres, in comparison with the as-received and heat-treated basalt ones, was measured

Lung regions differently modulate bronchial branching development and extracellular matrix plays a role in regulating the development of chick embryo whole lung.

Normal branching development is dependent on the correlation between cells and extracellular matrix. In this interaction glycosaminoglycans, cytokines and growth factors play a fundamental role. In order to verify the distribution and influence of extracellular matrix and related enzymes on chick embryo lung development, 6 day-old whole lungs were maintained in vitro with testicular hyaluronidase, beta-N-acetyl-D-glucosaminidase and chondrotinase ABC or in linkage with apical, medial and caudal lung regions of 6-day development before and after enzyme treatment. In a separate lung region beta-N-acetyl-D-glucosaminidase and hyaluronidase were determined. Our data show that the whole lung cultures increase bronchial branching development when the medial region is admixed separately, while the separate apical or caudal regions or apical combined with caudal region do not affect bronchial branching development. The enzyme treatment of medial region prevents the branching development in associated whole lung. The bronchial branching development of whole lung cultured in medium containing the enzymes related to glycosaminoglycans turnover is significantly altered. In conclusion, these data show that the different influence of separate apical, medial, caudal lung regions on bronchial branching development is related to the extracellular matrix composition

Functionalization of commercial electrospun veils with zinc oxide nanostructures

The present research is focused on the synthesis of hexagonal ZnO wurtzite nanorods for the decoration of commercially available electrospun nylon nanofibers. The growth of ZnO was performed by a hydrothermal technique and for the first time on commercial electrospun veils. The growth step was optimized by adopting a procedure with the refresh of growing solution each hour of treatment (Method 1) and with the maintenance of a specific growth solution volume for the entire duration of the treatment (Method 2). The overall treatment time and volume of solution were also optimized by analyzing the morphology of ZnO nanostructures, the coverage degree, the thermal and mechanical stability of the obtained decorated electrospun nanofibers. In the optimal synthesis conditions (Method 2), hexagonal ZnO nanorods with a diameter and length of 53.5 nm ± 5.7 nm and 375.4 nm ± 37.8 nm, respectively, were obtained with a homogeneous and complete coverage of the veils. This easily scalable procedure did not damage the veils that could be potentially used as toughening elements in composites to prevent delamination onset and propagation. The presence of photoreactive species makes these materials ideal also as environmentally friendly photocatalysts for wastewater treatment. In this regard, photocatalytic tests were performed using methylene blue (MB) as model compound. Under UV light irradiation, the degradation of MB followed a first kinetic order data fitting and after 3 h of treatment a MB degradation of 91.0% ± 5.1% was achieved. The reusability of decorated veils was evaluated and a decrease in photocatalysis efficiency was detected after the third cycle of use