Search based software engineering: Trends, techniques and applications

© ACM, 2012. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of ACM for your personal use. Not for redistribution. The definitive version is available from the link below.In the past five years there has been a dramatic increase in work on Search-Based Software Engineering (SBSE), an approach to Software Engineering (SE) in which Search-Based Optimization (SBO) algorithms are used to address problems in SE. SBSE has been applied to problems throughout the SE lifecycle, from requirements and project planning to maintenance and reengineering. The approach is attractive because it offers a suite of adaptive automated and semiautomated solutions in situations typified by large complex problem spaces with multiple competing and conflicting objectives. This article provides a review and classification of literature on SBSE. The work identifies research trends and relationships between the techniques applied and the applications to which they have been applied and highlights gaps in the literature and avenues for further research.EPSRC and E

Branch-Localized Induction Promotes Efficacy of Volatile Defences and Herbivore Predation in Trees

Induction of plant defences can show various levels of localization, which can optimize their efficiency. Locally induced responses may be particularly important in large plants, such as trees, that show high variability in traits and herbivory rates across their canopies. We studied the branch-localized induction of polyphenols, volatiles (VOCs), and changes in leaf protein content in Carpinus betulus L., Quercus robur L., and Tilia cordata L. in a common garden experiment. To induce the trees, we treated ten individuals per species on one branch with methyl jasmonate. Five other individuals per species served as controls. We measured the traits in the treated branches, in control branches on treated trees, and in control trees. Additionally, we ran predation assays and caterpillar food-choice trials to assess the effects of our treatment on other trophic levels. Induced VOCs included mainly mono- and sesquiterpenes. Their production was strongly localized to the treated branches in all three tree species studied. Treated trees showed more predation events than control trees. The polyphenol levels and total protein content showed a limited response to the treatment. Yet, winter moth caterpillars preferred leaves from control branches over leaves from treated branches within C. betulus individuals and leaves from control Q. robur individuals over leaves from treated Q. robur individuals. Our results suggest that there is a significant level of localization in induction of VOCs and probably also in unknown traits with direct effects on herbivores. Such localization allows trees to upregulate defences wherever and whenever they are needed.</p

The effects of probiotic bacteria on glycaemic control in overweight men and women: a randomised controlled trial

Background/Objectives: Evidence from animal and in vitro models suggest a role of probiotic bacteria in improving glycaemic control and delaying the onset of type 2 diabetes. However, the evidence from controlled trials in humans is limited. The objective was to determine if the probiotic bacteria L. acidophilus La5 and B. animalis subsp lactis Bb12, supplemented in a whole food (yoghurt) or isolated (capsules) form, can improve biomarkers of glycaemic control. Subjects/methods: Following a 3-week washout period, 156 overweight men and women over 55 years (mean age: 67±8 years; mean body mass index (31±4 kg/m2) were randomized to a 6-week double-blinded parallel study. The four intervention groups were: (A) probiotic yoghurt plus probiotic capsules; (B) probiotic yoghurt plus placebo capsules; (C) control milk plus probiotic capsules; and (D) control milk plus placebo capsules. Outcome measurements, including fasting glucose, insulin, glycated haemoglobin and Homoeostasis Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR), were performed at baseline and week 6. Results: Relative to the milk-control group, probiotic yoghurt resulted in a significantly higher HOMA-IR (0.32±0.15, P=0.038), but did not have a significant effect on the other three measures of glycaemic control (P>0.05). Relative to placebo capsules, probiotic capsules resulted in a significantly higher fasting glucose (0.15±0.07 mmol/l, P=0.037), with no significant effect on the other three measures of glycaemic control (P>0.05). Further analyses did not identify other variables as contributing to these adverse findings. Conclusions: Data from this study does not support the hypothesis that L. acidophilus La5 and B. animalis subsp lactis Bb12, either in isolated form or as part of a whole food, benefit short-term glycaemic control. Indeed, there is weak data for an adverse effect of these strains on glucose homoeostasis

Abuse in Women and Men with and without Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders

We aimed to investigate the history of abuse in childhood and adulthood and health-related quality of life (HRQL) in women and men with FGID in the general adult population. A cross-sectional study in a random population sample (n = 1,537, 20–87 years) living in Östhammar municipality, Sweden, in 1995 was performed. Persons with FGID (n = 141) and a group of abdominal symptom-free controls (SSF, n = 97) were selected by means of a validated questionnaire assessing gastrointestinal symptoms (the ASQ). Abuse, anxiety and depression (the HADS) and HRQL (the PGWB) were measured. Women with FGID had a higher risk of having a history of some kind of abuse, as compared with the SSF controls (45% vs.16%, OR = 2.0, 95% CI: 1.01–3.9; SSF = 1), in contrast to men (29% vs. 24% n.s.). Women with a history of abuse and FGID had reduced HRQL 91 (95% CI 85–97) as compared with women without abuse history 100 (95% CI 96–104, P = 0.01, “healthy” = 102–105 on PGWB). Childhood emotional abuse was a predictor for consulting with OR = 4.20 (95% CI: 1.12–15.7.7). Thus, previous abuse is common in women with FGID and must be considered by the physician for diagnosis and treatment of the disorder