Multi-party Contract Management for Microservices

This paper discusses the necessary steps and means for ensuring the successful deployment and execution of software components referred to as microservices on top of platforms referred to as Internet of Things (IoT) devices, clouds, and edges. These steps and means are packaged into formal documents known in the literature as contracts. Because of the multi-dimensional nature of deploying and executing microservices, contracts are specialized into discovery, deployment, and collaboration types, capturing each specific aspect of the completion of these contracts. This completion is associated with a set of Quality-of-Service (QoS) parameters that are monitored allowing to identify potential deviations between what has been agreed upon and what has really happened. To demonstrate the technical doability of contracts, a system is implemented using different datasets that support experiments related to assessing the impact of the number of microservices and platforms on the performance o f the system

The Effect of the Presence ofAudit Committees on Earnings Management in Morocco

Our paper will try emphasizing the effect of the presence of audit committees on earnings management within the Moroccan context, and most specifically in the companies listed in the Casablanca stock exchange. We have adopted previous research embedded in the Dechow, Sloan and Sweeny (1995) model of earnings management that requires a maximum of 6 companies by sector, a condition that limited our sample to 27 companies dispatched only on 4 industry sectors. Given that the companies manipulate the accruals to show the increasing results or to maintain the stock price, the role of the audit committee is to ensure that this manipulation is to be reduced in order to provide investors with accurate information. In the Moroccan context, this reduction started appearing in 2014. The years 2011, 2012 and 2013 were marked by a preparation of implementation tools of these committees mainly the integration of independent administrators within the administrative boards. However, due to lack of data, this study might be limited given the fact that the year 2016, which represented a year where the listed companies should have created an audit committee, was not covered by our study

Effect of dust on the operation of photovoltaic solar panels installed in the Hodna region - Experimental study

In this work, an experimental study of the effect of dust on the operation of photovoltaic solar panels was conducted in the Hodna region. For this, a monocrystalline type of solar panel was tested with a power of 100W. A quantity of dust was scattered for the first tests during the month of March 2022, then the voltage and current were measured. The second tests were conducted under outdoor M’sila conditions for two months. The results obtained show that the accumulation of dust on the surface of the panels reduces the passage of solar radiation on the one hand, and leads to a rise in the temperature of the panels on the other hand, which reduces the energy produced by the photovoltaic system. Therefore, periodic cleaning of photovoltaic solar panels is necessary

A robust design of an innovative shaped rebar system using a novel uncertainty model

The current paper has investigated a newly developed re-bar system by implementing uncertainty models to optimise its geometry. The study of the design parameters of this re-bar system has been carried out utilising a novel uncertainty model that has been developed at Swansea University. The importance of this invention comes from the fact that the whole process of optimisation has been automated by linking ANSYS Workbench to MATLAB via the in-house written code, Despite the fact that in the past, ANSYS APDL was linked to MATLAB, however, the APDL was very limited to only simple geometries and boundary conditions unlike the Workbench which can simulate complex features. These shortfalls have been overcome by automating the process of optimisation, identifying the key influential parameters and the possibility to carry out a huge number of trials. Moreover, the tools that have been developed can pave the way for robust optimisation of this proposed structure. The uncertainty in the design parameters of this re-bar system is of a paramount importance in order to optimise the bond strength between the newly developed rebar and the concrete matrix as well as to fully understand the behaviour of the proposed system under pull-out conditions. The interface between the rebar and the concrete matrix was considered as a ‘cohesive zone’ whereby the interfacial area is studied as a function of the bonding strength

Creep deformation mechanisms in a γ titanium aluminide

Titanium aluminides (TiAl) are considered as potential alternatives to replace nickel-based alloys of greater density for selected components within future gas turbine aero-engines. This is attributed to the high specific strength as well as the good oxidation resistance at elevated temperatures. The gamma (γ) titanium aluminide system Ti-45Al-2Mn-2Nb has previously demonstrated promising performance in terms of its physical and mechanical properties. The main aim of the current study, which is a continuation of a previously published paper, aims at evaluating the performance of this titanium aluminide system under high temperature creep conditions. Of particular interest, the paper is strongly demonstrating the precise capability of the Wilshire Equations technique in predicting the long-term creep behaviour of this alloy. Moreover, it presents a physically meaningful understanding of the various creep mechanisms expected under various testing conditions. To achieve this, two creep specimens, tested under distinctly different stress levels at 700 °C have been extensively examined. Detailed microstructural investigations and supporting transmission electron microscopy (TEM) have explored the differences in creep mechanisms active under the two stress regimes, with the deformation mechanisms correlated to Wilshire creep life prediction curves

A robust design of an innovative shaped rebar system using a novel uncertainty model

The current paper has investigated a newly developed re-bar system by implementing uncertainty models to optimise its geometry. The study of the design parameters of this re-bar system has been carried out utilising a novel uncertainty model that has been developed at Swansea University. The importance of this invention comes from the fact that the whole process of optimisation has been automated by linking ANSYS Workbench to MATLAB via the in-house written code, Despite the fact that in the past, ANSYS APDL was linked to MATLAB, however, the APDL was very limited to only simple geometries and boundary conditions unlike the Workbench which can simulate complex features. These shortfalls have been overcome by automating the process of optimisation, identifying the key influential parameters and the possibility to carry out a huge number of trials. Moreover, the tools that have been developed can pave the way for robust optimisation of this proposed structure. The uncertainty in the design parameters of this re-bar system is of a paramount importance in order to optimise the bond strength between the newly developed rebar and the concrete matrix as well as to fully understand the behaviour of the proposed system under pull-out conditions. The interface between the rebar and the concrete matrix was considered as a ‘cohesive zone’ whereby the interfacial area is studied as a function of the bonding strength

Surgical site infection after gastrointestinal surgery in high-income, middle-income, and low-income countries: a prospective, international, multicentre cohort study

Background: Surgical site infection (SSI) is one of the most common infections associated with health care, but its importance as a global health priority is not fully understood. We quantified the burden of SSI after gastrointestinal surgery in countries in all parts of the world. Methods: This international, prospective, multicentre cohort study included consecutive patients undergoing elective or emergency gastrointestinal resection within 2-week time periods at any health-care facility in any country. Countries with participating centres were stratified into high-income, middle-income, and low-income groups according to the UN's Human Development Index (HDI). Data variables from the GlobalSurg 1 study and other studies that have been found to affect the likelihood of SSI were entered into risk adjustment models. The primary outcome measure was the 30-day SSI incidence (defined by US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria for superficial and deep incisional SSI). Relationships with explanatory variables were examined using Bayesian multilevel logistic regression models. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02662231. Findings: Between Jan 4, 2016, and July 31, 2016, 13 265 records were submitted for analysis. 12 539 patients from 343 hospitals in 66 countries were included. 7339 (58·5%) patient were from high-HDI countries (193 hospitals in 30 countries), 3918 (31·2%) patients were from middle-HDI countries (82 hospitals in 18 countries), and 1282 (10·2%) patients were from low-HDI countries (68 hospitals in 18 countries). In total, 1538 (12·3%) patients had SSI within 30 days of surgery. The incidence of SSI varied between countries with high (691 [9·4%] of 7339 patients), middle (549 [14·0%] of 3918 patients), and low (298 [23·2%] of 1282) HDI (p < 0·001). The highest SSI incidence in each HDI group was after dirty surgery (102 [17·8%] of 574 patients in high-HDI countries; 74 [31·4%] of 236 patients in middle-HDI countries; 72 [39·8%] of 181 patients in low-HDI countries). Following risk factor adjustment, patients in low-HDI countries were at greatest risk of SSI (adjusted odds ratio 1·60, 95% credible interval 1·05–2·37; p=0·030). 132 (21·6%) of 610 patients with an SSI and a microbiology culture result had an infection that was resistant to the prophylactic antibiotic used. Resistant infections were detected in 49 (16·6%) of 295 patients in high-HDI countries, in 37 (19·8%) of 187 patients in middle-HDI countries, and in 46 (35·9%) of 128 patients in low-HDI countries (p < 0·001). Interpretation: Countries with a low HDI carry a disproportionately greater burden of SSI than countries with a middle or high HDI and might have higher rates of antibiotic resistance. In view of WHO recommendations on SSI prevention that highlight the absence of high-quality interventional research, urgent, pragmatic, randomised trials based in LMICs are needed to assess measures aiming to reduce this preventable complication

Search for dijet resonances in proton-proton collisions at root s=13 TeV and constraints on dark matter and other models

Correction: DOI:10.1016/j.physletb.2017.09.029Peer reviewe

Search for new physics with dijet angular distributions in proton-proton collisions at root S = 13 TeV

Peer reviewe