Semantic industrial categorisation based on search engine index

Analysis of specialist language is one of the most pressing problems when trying to build intelligent content analysis system. Identifying the scope of the language used and then understanding the relationships between the language entities is a key problem. A semantic relationship analysis of the search engine index was devised and evaluated. Using search engine index provides us with access to the widest database of knowledge in any particular field (if not now, then surely in the future). Social network analysis of keywords collection seems to generate a viable list of the specialist terms and relationships among them. This approach has been tested in the engineering and medical sectors

Using ontology engineering for understanding needs and allocating resources in web-based industrial virtual collaboration systems

In many interactions in cross-industrial and inter-industrial collaboration, analysis and understanding of relative specialist and non-specialist language is one of the most pressing challenges when trying to build multi-party, multi-disciplinary collaboration system. Hence, identifying the scope of the language used and then understanding the relationships between the language entities are key problems. In computer science, ontologies are used to provide a common vocabulary for a domain of interest together with descriptions of the meaning of terms and relationships between them, like in an encyclopedia. These, however, often lack the fuzziness required for human orientated systems. This paper uses an engineering sector business collaboration system (www.wmccm.co.uk) as a case study to illustrate the issues. The purpose of this paper is to introduce a novel ontology engineering methodology, which generates structurally enriched cross domain ontologies economically, quickly and reliably. A semantic relationship analysis of the Google Search Engine Index was devised and evaluated. Using Semantic analysis seems to generate a viable list of subject terms. A social network analysis of the semantically derived terms was conducted to generate a decision support network with rich relationships between terms. The derived ontology was quicker to generate, provided richer internal relationships and relied far less on expert contribution. More importantly, it improved the collaboration matching capability of WMCCM

Evaluating practitioner cyber-security attack graph configuration preferences

Attack graphs and attack trees are a popular method of mathematically and visually rep- resenting the sequence of events that lead to a successful cyber-attack. Despite their popularity, there is no standardised attack graph or attack tree visual syntax configuration, and more than seventy self-nominated attack graph and twenty attack tree configurations have been described in the literature - each of which presents attributes such as preconditions and exploits in a different way. This research proposes a practitioner-preferred attack graph visual syntax configuration which can be used to effectively present cyber-attacks. Comprehensive data on participant ( n=212 ) preferences was obtained through a choice based conjoint design in which participants scored attack graph configuration based on their visual syntax preferences. Data was obtained from multiple participant groups which included lecturers, students and industry practitioners with cyber-security specific or general computer science backgrounds. The overall analysis recommends a winning representation with the following attributes. The flow of events is represented top-down as in a flow diagram - as opposed to a fault tree or attack tree where it is presented bottom-up, preconditions - the conditions required for a successful exploit, are represented as ellipses and exploits are represented as rectangles. These results were consistent across the multiple groups and across scenarios which differed according to their attack complexity. The research tested a number of bottom-up approaches - similar to that used in attack trees. The bottom-up designs received the lowest practitioner preference score indicating that attack trees - which also utilise the bottom-up method, are not a preferred design amongst practitioners - when presented with an alternative top-down design. Practitioner preferences are important for any method or framework to become accepted, and this is the first time that an attack modelling technique has been developed and tested for practitioner preferences

A business model for collaborative commerce marketplace

Growth in eBusiness has led to an increase in the research of online business models characterized into two broad areas: goods and services provider models and collaborative models. Collaborative commerce marketplace (CCM) is vital in eBusiness models however it is only discussed in relation to the management of parts of the supply chain and not the system as a whole in the academic literature (Hodge and Cagle 2004). This paper proposes a comprehensive, visual business model for CCM with an emphasis on the interactions between core business competency to attain organizational objectives. An emerging competency of CCM such as partner/supplier identification is used to illustrate the versatility of the proposed model

Co-creation in service assemblages for service innovation : an empirical investigation

Co-creation could enhance service innovation (Perks, Gruber, and Edvardsson, 2012). Despite the research conducted on co-creation, the issue concerning how actors could form service system with high density still needs to be addressed (Michel, Vargo and Lusch, 2008). We conceptualized service system as an assemblage and investigated emergence and dynamic process of assemble and dissemble of service assemblages by drawing on theories of co-creation, affordance, task network and modularity and the notion of assemblage (Delanda, 2006). We developed a framework and empirically examined how to map the competences required for actors in a task network and how capacities could be optimally (re)configured as assemblages (clusters) for value co-creation. We demonstrated that the framework developed could be applied to formation, reformation of service assemblages for design of service offerings enabling optimal value co-creation

Materials selection using knowledge-based techniques

A successful design is one of the most important elements for the commercial success of a product and the selection of appropriate materials is a key step within the product design process. The task is not easy; a large number of interacting factors, both technical and economic, need to be taken into consideration and a vast amount of data investigated. Product designers can benefit from using computer systems which can emulate the reasoning processes of an expert in selecting materials and provide ready access to appropriate materials data. The knowledge based system developed, Plassel fulfils the key requirements identified for such a system. It can: 1. Emulate the reasoning processes of a plastics expert. 2. Allow a customised data search to be undertaken 3. Access a range of data sources covering both embodiment and detail data. 4. Convert component functional requirements into property requirements. 5. Allow knowledge and experience to be stored in the system 6. Allow cost to be fully considered Professor Ashby in 1993 [1] stated "A full expert system for materials selection is decades away. Success has been achieved in specialised highly focused applications". Plasse1 is not such an application, it provides access to a full set of selection facilities. Novel aspects of Plassel include its ability to select on multi-dimensional criteria, automatically 'rate' materials and to conduct customised searches. Professor Ashby concludes with "It is only a question of time before more fully developed systems become available. They are something to keep informed about." Plassel is a more fully developed system for plastic materials selection than those currently available

A review of attack graph and attack tree visual syntax in cyber security

Perceiving and understanding cyber-attacks can be a difficult task, and more effective techniques are needed to aid cyber-attack perception. Attack modelling techniques (AMTs) - such as attack graphs, attack trees and fault trees, are a popular method of mathematically and visually representing the sequence of events that lead to a successful cyber-attack. These methods are useful visual aids that can aid cyber-attack perception. This survey paper describes the fundamental theory of cyber-attack before describing how important elements of a cyber-attack are represented in attack graphs and attack trees. The key focus of the paper is to present empirical research aimed at analysing more than 180 attack graphs and attack trees to identify how attack graphs and attack trees present cyber-attacks in terms of their visual syntax. There is little empirical or comparative research which evaluates the effectiveness of these methods. Furthermore, despite their popularity, there is no standardised attack graph visual syntax configuration, and more than seventy self-nominated attack graph and twenty attack tree configurations have been described in the literature - each of which presents attributes such as preconditions and exploits in a different way. The survey demonstrates that there is no standard method of representing attack graphs or attack trees and that more research is needed to standardise the representation

Artificial cell research as a field that connects chemical, biological and philosophical questions

This review article discusses the interdisciplinary nature and implications of artificial cell research. It starts from two historical theories: Gánti's chemoton model and the autopoiesis theory by Maturana and Varela. They both explain the transition from chemical molecules to biological cells. These models exemplify two different ways in which disciplines of chemistry, biology and philosophy can profit from each other. In the chemoton model, conclusions from one disciplinary approach are relevant for the other disciplines. In contrast, the autopoiesis model itself (rather than its conclusions) is transferred from one discipline to the other. The article closes by underpinning the relevance of artificial cell research for philosophy with reference to the on-going philosophical debates on emergence, biological functions and biocentrism

Investigation of associations between retinal microvascular parameters and albuminuria in UK Biobank: a cross-sectional case-control study.

BACKGROUND: Associations between microvascular variation and chronic kidney disease (CKD) have been reported previously. Non-invasive retinal fundus imaging enables evaluation of the microvascular network and may offer insight to systemic risk associated with CKD. METHODS: Retinal microvascular parameters (fractal dimension [FD] - a measure of the complexity of the vascular network, tortuosity, and retinal arteriolar and venular calibre) were quantified from macula-centred fundus images using the Vessel Assessment and Measurement Platform for Images of the REtina (VAMPIRE) version 3.1 (VAMPIRE group, Universities of Dundee and Edinburgh, Scotland) and assessed for associations with renal damage in a case-control study nested within the multi-centre UK Biobank cohort study. Participants were designated cases or controls based on urinary albumin to creatinine ratio (ACR) thresholds. Participants with ACR ≥ 3 mg/mmol (ACR stages A2-A3) were characterised as cases, and those with an ACR < 3 mg/mmol (ACR stage A1) were categorised as controls. Participants were matched on age, sex and ethnic background. RESULTS: Lower FD (less extensive microvascular branching) was associated with a small increase in odds of albuminuria independent of blood pressure, diabetes and other potential confounding variables (odds ratio [OR] 1.18, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.03-1.34 for arterioles and OR 1.24, CI 1.05-1.47 for venules). Measures of tortuosity or retinal arteriolar and venular calibre were not significantly associated with ACR. CONCLUSIONS: This study supports previously reported associations between retinal microvascular FD and other metabolic disturbances affecting the systemic vasculature. The association between retinal microvascular FD and albuminuria, independent of diabetes and blood pressure, may represent a useful indicator of systemic vascular damage associated with albuminuria

The Relationship Between Ambient Atmospheric Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) and Glaucoma in a Large Community Cohort.

Purpose: Glaucoma is more common in urban populations than in others. Ninety percent of the world's population are exposed to air pollution above World Health Organization (WHO) recommended limits. Few studies have examined the association between air pollution and glaucoma. Methods: Questionnaire data, ophthalmic measures, and ambient residential area air quality data for 111,370 UK Biobank participants were analyzed. Particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter < 2.5 μm (PM2.5) was selected as the air quality exposure of interest. Eye measures included self-reported glaucoma, intraocular pressure (IOP), and average thickness of macular ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer (GCIPL) across nine Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) retinal subfields as obtained from spectral-domain optical coherence tomography. We examined the associations of PM2.5 concentration with self-reported glaucoma, IOP, and GCIPL. Results: Participants resident in areas with higher PM2.5 concentration were more likely to report a diagnosis of glaucoma (odds ratio = 1.06, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.01-1.12, per interquartile range [IQR] increase P = 0.02). Higher PM2.5 concentration was also associated with thinner GCIPL (β = -0.56 μm, 95% CI = -0.63 to -0.49, per IQR increase, P = 1.2 × 10-53). A dose-response relationship was observed between higher levels of PM2.5 and thinner GCIPL (P < 0.001). There was no clinically relevant relationship between PM2.5 concentration and IOP. Conclusions: Greater exposure to PM2.5 is associated with both self-reported glaucoma and adverse structural characteristics of the disease. The absence of an association between PM2.5 and IOP suggests the relationship may occur through a non-pressure-dependent mechanism, possibly neurotoxic and/or vascular effects