Using Spec Explorer for Automatic Checking of Constraints in Software €Controlled Systems.

In software engineering, several formal models and tools are proposed for defining system requirements and constraints formally. Such formal definitions can help in the automatic checking and verification for them. It can also help in the automatic test case generation, execution and verification. In this paper, we will demonstrate and evaluate the usage of Spec Explorer from Microsoft for defining and checking examples of software controlled system such as cruise control. Such formal requirements can be eventually embedded in the developed system or can help in exposing important elements to test in the testing stage or through the usage of the applicationModel-Based Testing, Spec Explorer, FSM Models, Software Controlled Systems

Heat Transfer from A Flat Surface to Air Flowing in Radial Direction.

Some approximate theoretical expressions have been derived to show the effect of flow conditions on heat transfer between flat surfaces and fluids flowing parallel to therm Special comparison was made between the case of uniform parallel flow and that of radial flow parallel to the surface. It was predicted that the heat transfer in uniform parallel flow would be higher than in outward radial flow, other conditions being the same. Two groups of experiments were carried out. In the first group air was flowing between two parallel plates in an outward radial direction. One of the plates was electrically heated. No such heating was supplied to the second plate, but it was insulated against external radiation. Eight different gaps between the plates were tested, and the average coefficients of heat transfer were obtained. The effect of the gap on the heat transfer was obtained for both laminar and turbulent flows. All the data of the different gaps were brought together by introducing equations containing the Nusselt and Reynolds numbers and the gap-to-length ratio. Comparison was also made between the present results and the theoretical and experimental results of other workers on heat transfer from flat surfaces to air in uniform parallel flow, little or no other information on radial flow being available. The effect of flow conditions was discussed. In the second group of experiments the unheated plate was rotated. Four different speeds of rotation and four different gaps were tested. The effect of this rotation on both the flow pattern and heat transfer was studied. The experimental results were compared with analytical ones and agreement was generally fair. Finally, from the calculated length of path of the air particles, an expression was found for the effect of the disc rotation on heat transfer

Intentional poisoning among preadolescents at one poison center in Saudi Arabia

Background: The epidemiology of intentional poisoning among preadolescents in conservative communities needs furtherexploration. Preadolescence (9-14 years) is a remarkable human developmental stage with a heightened risk for such incidents, oftenless discussed than adolescence. Objective: To present a report on intentional poisoning incidents among preadolescents visitinga single poison center in Saudi Arabia. Materials and Methods: A chart review of 315 poisoning reports was conducted between2009 and 2011. It was followed by a phone interview of parents of poisoned children to investigate the demographic, incident andoutcome characteristics. Cases of accidental and chronic poisoning were excluded. Results: Nine eligible cases were identified(2.9%); four were classified as suicidal attempts, two nonsuicidal self-injurious, and three were unknown. Of the five males andfour females, three had chronic medical conditions (G6PD deficiency, epilepsy, or asthma) while six were previously healthy. Sevencases ingested medications (acetaminophen, desmopressin, augmentin and benylin, amitriptyline, and chlordiazepoxide) while twoingested clorox, all in large doses. Conclusions: Few intentional poisoning incidents were observed among Saudi preadolescents,which could be an underreported figure in a culturally and religiously conservative community

Transient analysis of grid-connected wind-driven PMSG, DFIG and SCIG at fixed and variable speeds

This paper is aimed at presenting transient analysis of a grid-connected wind-driven permanent magnet synchronous generator (PMSG) at fixed and variable speeds by solving the system describing differential equations. For comparison purpose, wind-driven squirrel cage (SCIG) and doubly fed (DFIG) induction generators at fixed and variable speeds are studied using MATLAB/SIMULINK software package. Different from PMSG and DFIG the grid should feed the reactive losses of transmission lines and transformers at any value of short circuit ratio for SCIG. This increases the dynamic stability of DFIG and PMSG when compared with SCIG. Under three-phase-to-ground fault and single-phase-to-ground fault conditions, the time required to recover stability of PMSG wind farm is less than those  DFIG and SCIG wind farms for fixed and variable speeds indicating that PMSG is more stable than of DFIG and of SCIG wind farms

Amelioration Effects of Calcium Amendments on the Growth of Phaseolus vulgaris L. Under Sodium Stress

Two greenhouse experiments were conducted to determine the amelioration effect of Ca salts (CaS04 and CaC12 ) on the growth of snapbeans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) under sodium stress and to determine the effect of ion speciation on the uptake of Ca, Na, S04, and Cl by snapbeans. In Experiment 1, the seeds were grown in styrofoam pots, with a growing medium of sand and vermiculite at a volume ratio of 3:1. The treatment solutions were 0 (Hoagland\u27s solution), 20, 40, 60, and 80 mmolc/L NaCl or Na2S04. Statistical analysis (ANOVA) showed that NaCl treatments depressed the growth of snapbeans more than corresponding Na 2S04 treatments. Also NaCl treatments increased the uptake of Na and Ca as compared to Na2S04treatments. Sodium uptake appeared to be related to the concentrations of complex species rather than to free Na ion, whereas Ca uptake strongly correlated with free Ca2+ concentration. In Experiment 2, the seeds were grown in a sand growing medium. The treatment solutions were 0 (Hoagland\u27s solution), 15, 30, 45, and 60 mmolc/L NaCl or Na2S04 , combined with CaSO4 • 2H20 or CaCl2 • 2H20 at concentrations of 15 or 30 mmolc/L . In addition, one replicate was planted in PVC cells (with electrodes) in order to monitor the electrical conductivity of the media using the four probe. The results showed that addition of CaS04 to NaCl or Na2S04 was associated with a better amelioration of Na stress than CaCl2 • Also the presence of CaS04 , with NaCl or Na2S04 , decreased the uptake of Ca and Na ions relative to CaCl2 treatment. Ion speciation data suggested that Na complexation was more important than free ion concentration in affecting Na uptake by the plant, whereas Ca, S04 , and Cl uptake were correlated to free ion concentrations. With respect to EC, determinations, the four probe was used to monitor salinity during the whole experiment period. Ion speciation data showed that Na2S04 treatments had a lower EC than NaCl at the same molar concentration levels. Also, CaS04 treatments, regardless of the Na salt, had lower EC values than CaCl2 treatments of equal concentration

A laboratory approach to ecological studies of the grasses : Arrhenatherum elatius (L.) Beav. ex J. and C. Presl Agrostis tenuis Sibth. and Festuca ovina L.

An attempt has been made to recognise laboratory characteristics which allow features of the ecology of three common British grasses, Arrhenatherum elatius (L.) Beauv. ex J. and C. Presl, Agrostis tenuis Sibth and Festuca ovina L. to be predicted. Experimental work was carried out in controlled and semicontrolled environments and involved a consideration of plant morphology, measurements of responses in germination and growth to light and temperature, and measurement of responses to nutrient stress, metal toxicity, and defoliation. In some experiments, additional species, Deschampsia flexuosa and Zerna erecta, were included in order to provide a wider basis for comparison. Predictions of the field ecology, were evaluated by reference to published accounts of the ecology of the species and predictions of competitive ability were tested by carrying out competition experiments. Attributes which when used singly or in combination appear to have a predictive value include seed weight, seed dormancy, response of germination and vegetative growth to temperature, relative growth rate under productive conditions, dry matter production in seedlings subjected to mineral nutrient stress or manganese toxicity, root growth of plants exposed to soluble aluminium, leaf extension growth in shade, light intensity compensation point and tiller production -under continuous clipping. The ecological significance of the differences between the species with respect to these attributes is explored in the Discussion. The data on which predictions have been based were derived from investigations carried out on a single field population of each species. Evidence of the need to/account of intraspecific variation was obtained in the present study; it was necessary to carry out additional experiments to take account of morphological variation in Arrhenatherum elatius. It is concluded, however, that whilst genetic variation within the species may have an important influence, the laboratory characteristics of plants drawn from a single field population frequently reveal attributes which control the broad ecology of the species

Natural convection in a square inclined enclosure with vee-corrugated sidewalls subjected to constant flux heating from below

Two-dimensional steady natural convective flow in a square inclined enclosure with vertical vee-corrugated sidewalls and horizontal top and bottom surfaces has been numerically studied. A discrete heat flux strip of 24% of the total length is flush-mounted on the bottom wall, while the other non-heated parts of the bottom wall and the top wall are considered adiabatic. The two vee-corrugated sidewalls are maintained at constant cold temperature. Grashof number is varied from 103 to 106, corrugation frequency is varied from 0.5 to 2.0, corrugation amplitude has been fixed at 10% of the enclosure height and the enclosure inclination angle is varied to 0◦, 10◦, 20◦ and 30◦ respectively. The enclosure is filled with air (Pr = 0.71). The flow has been assumed to be steady and laminar. Fluid properties have been assumed constant except for the density change with temperature that gives rise to the buoyancy forces. The solution has been obtained using the governing equations written in terms of dimensionless variables. The dimensionless governing equations are solved using finite volume method. Results are presented in the form of streamline and isotherm plots. The results of the present work show that the natural convection phenomenon is greatly affected by increasing the enclosure inclination angle. The variation in the average Nusselt number at the bottom wall, where the heat source exists and the maximum dimensionless temperature are also presented. The results are compared and found to be in a good agreement with other published results

Pricing policies in an oligopolistic market: A system dynamics study. A study of the design of pricing policies in a manufacturing firm, with specific reference to the synthetic fibre industry.

The objective of this thesis is to investigate and describe components of pricing system which influence the dynamic performance of a price leader manufacturing firm in an oligopoly capital intensive industry producing an identical intermediate product (s). The synthetic fibre industry is chosen as an illustrative case upon which the discussion is built. However, this work could generally be applied to a wide variety of organizations and situations. After discussing the suitability of system dynamics to the formulation of long-run pricing strategy, a model of the pricing system is constructed by using this technique. The behaviour of this system is examined in terms of feedback loops. That is to illustrate how the characteristics of these loops and the interaction among them affect the dynamic behaviour of the system, and how this behaviour can be improved via changing the components of these loops and/or their structures. The improved system is simulated under different external disturbances, certain parameter changes, and different pricing control policies. The simulation shows that the design of a set of robust pricing policies makes the system insensitive to external disturbance and error in parameters. It also shows that the ability of the firm to attain its growth and profitability objectives is affected by the chosen control pricing policies. Some potential applications of the model, particularly, as planning and training tools are highlighted. It is concluded that System Dynamics is an appropriate approach to the formulation of the long-run pricing strategies

A case-control study of medical, psychological and socio-economic factors influencing the severity of chronic rhinosinusitis

BACKGROUND: Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is a common and debilitating disorder. Little is known about the epidemiology of this disease. The aims of the study were to identify differences in socio-economic variables and quality of life between patients with chronic rhinosinusitis and healthy controls, to identify any significant associations between CRS and other medical co-morbidities, psychiatric disease or environmental exposure and to explore the experience of CRS from the perspective of CRS sufferers. METHODS: Participants were recruited from ENT clinics from 30 centres across the UK. They completed a study-specific questionnaire considering environmental, medical and socio-economic factors, and SF-36 and SNOT-22 scores. All participants with CRS were diagnosed by a clinician and categorised as having CRS (with polyposis, without polyposis or allergic fungal rhinosinusitis (AFRS)). Controls included family and friends of those attending ENT outpatient clinics and hospital staff who had no diagnosis of nose or sinus problems and had not been admitted to hospital in the previous 12 months. RESULTS: A total of 1470 study participants (1249 patients and 221 controls) were included in the final analysis. Highly significant differences were seen in generic and disease-specific quality of life scores between CRS sufferers and controls; mean SNOT-22 score 45.0 for CRS compared with 12.1 amongst controls. There were no clear differences in socioeconomic variables including social class, index of multiple deprivation and educational attainment between cases and controls. Common comorbidities with a clear association included respiratory and psychiatric disorders, with a higher frequency of reported upper respiratory tract infections. CONCLUSIONS: CRS is associated with significant impairment in quality of life and with certain medical co-morbidities. In contrast to other common ENT disorders, no socioeconomic differences were found between patients and controls in this study

Reliable Machine Learning Model for IIoT Botnet Detection

Due to the growing number of Internet of Things (IoT) devices, network attacks like denial of service (DoS) and floods are rising for security and reliability issues. As a result of these attacks, IoT devices suffer from denial of service and network disruption. Researchers have implemented different techniques to identify attacks aimed at vulnerable Internet of Things (IoT) devices. In this study, we propose a novel features selection algorithm FGOA-kNN based on a hybrid filter and wrapper selection approaches to select the most relevant features. The novel approach integrated with clustering rank the features and then applies the Grasshopper algorithm (GOA) to minimize the top-ranked features. Moreover, a proposed algorithm, IHHO, selects and adapts the neural network’s hyper parameters to detect botnets efficiently. The proposed Harris Hawks algorithm is enhanced with three improvements to improve the global search process for optimal solutions. To tackle the problem of population diversity, a chaotic map function is utilized for initialization. The escape energy of hawks is updated with a new nonlinear formula to avoid the local minima and better balance between exploration and exploitation. Furthermore, the exploitation phase of HHO is enhanced using a new elite operator ROBL. The proposed model combines unsupervised, clustering, and supervised approaches to detect intrusion behaviors. The N-BaIoT dataset is utilized to validate the proposed model. Many recent techniques were used to assess and compare the proposed model’s performance. The result demonstrates that the proposed model is better than other variations at detecting multiclass botnet attacks