An XML-Based Approach for the Automatic Verification of Software Requirements Specifications

In this paper, we present an approach for the automatic verification of software requirements specifications. This approach is based on the representation of software requirements in XML and the usage of the XSLT language not only to automatically generate requirements documents, but also to verify some desired quality properties and to automatically compute some metrics. These ideas have been implemented in REM, an experimental requirements management tool that is also described in this paper.Comisión Interministerial de Ciencia y Tecnología TIC 2000–1106–C02–0

Verifying Software Requirements with XSLT

In this article, we present an approach for the automatic verification of software requirements documents. This approach is based on the representation of software requirements in XML and the usage of the XSLT language not only to automatically generate requirements documents, but also to verify some desired quality properties and to compute some metrics. These ideas have been implemented in REM, an experimental requirements management tool that is also described in this paper.Comisión Interministerial de Ciencia y Tecnología TIC 2000–1106–C02–0

A Controlled Experiment for Evaluating a Metric–Based Reading Technique for Requirements Inspection

Natural language requirements documents are often verified by means of some reading technique. Some recommendations for defining a good reading technique point out that a concrete technique must not only be suitable for specific classes of defects, but also for a concrete notation in which requirements are written. Following this suggestion, we have proposed a metric–based reading (MBR) technique used for requirements inspections, whose main goal is to identify specific types of defects in use cases. The systematic approach of MBR is basically based on a set of rules as ”if the metric value is too low (or high) the presence of defects of type must be checked”. We hypothesised that if the reviewers know these rules, the inspection process is more effective and efficient, which means that the defects detection rate is higher and the number of defects identified per unit of time increases. But this hypotheses lacks validity if it is not empirically validated. For that reason the main goal of this paper is to describe a controlled experiment we carried out to ascertain if the usage of MBR really helps in the detection of defects in comparison with a simple Checklist technique. The experiment result revealed that MBR reviewers were more effective at detecting defects than Checklist reviewers, but they were not more efficient, because MBR reviewers took longer than Checklist reviewers on average.Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología TIC 2003-02737-C02-01Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología TIC2003-07804-C05-0

A Controlled Experiment to Evaluate the Effects of Mindfulness in Software Engineering

Context. Many reports support the fact that some psycho--social aspects of software engineers are key factors for the quality of the software development process and its resulting products. Based on the experience of some of the authors after more than a year of practising mindfulness---a meditation technique aimed to increase clearness of mind and awareness---we guessed that it could be interesting to empirically evaluate whether mindfulness affects positively not only the behaviour but also the professional performance of software engineers. Goal. In this paper, we present a quasi--experiment carried out at the University of Seville to evaluate whether Software Engineering & Information Systems students enhance their conceptual modelling skills after the continued daily practice of mindfulness during four weeks. Method. Students were divided into two groups: one group practised mindfulness, and the other---the control group---were trained in public speaking. In order to study the possible cause--and--effect relationship, effectiveness (the rate of model elements correctly identified) and efficiency (the number of model elements correctly identified per unit of time) of the students developing conceptual modelling exercises were measured before and after taking the mindfulness and public speaking sessions. Results. The experiment results have revealed that the students who practised mindfulness have become more efficient in developing conceptual models than those who attended the public speaking sessions. With respect to effectiveness, some enhancement have been observed, although not as significant as in the case of efficiency. Conclusions. This rising trend in effectiveness suggests that the number of sessions could have been insufficient and that a longer period of sessions could have also enhanced effectiveness significantly.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad TIN2012-32273Junta de Andalucía P12-TIC-1867Junta de Andalucía TIC-590

Comprobación Automática de Requisitos de Calidad en Sistemas Multiorganizacionales

El uso de servicios WEB y de servidores de aplicaciones durante el desarrollo y explotación de sistemas multiorganizacionales basados en la WEB (MOWS), ha puesto de relieve algunas limitaciones de los actuales lenguajes de especificación de requisitos de calidad para soportar el tratamiento automá- tico que, sobre este tipo de requisitos, precisan el desarrollo y la explotación de MOWS. En este artículo se presenta un lenguaje formal de especificación de requisitos que facilita la comprobación automática de la conformidad y la economía, dos propiedades de gran interés para los MOWS.Comisión Interministerial de Ciencia y Tecnología TIC 2000-1106-C02-0

Inter-specific comparative analysis of distribution and habitat use patterns of benthic decapod crustaceans in shallow waters

[Abstract] Coastal areas have been widely considered as nurseries for many marine species. New approaches to this concept take into account interactions among environmental variables and ecological variations related to geographical location, as well as complex life cycles of marine invertebrates. We present a comparative approach to assess the relevance of environmental variables on the determination of patterns of distribution and habitat use of benthic decapod species in coastal areas. We hypothesize that this approach allows us to infer processes originating these patterns and to identify the main habitat use models. An intensive fine-grain sampling design was used to take into account the environmental gradients occurring at different spatial scales (defined by substrate type, depth, exposure and geographical location) in a temperate oceanic bay (Ria de A Coruña, Spain). A high proportion of juveniles were found in most populations, but the results do not allow us to generalize the idea of coastal areas as potential nurseries, except for few species with a marked spatial segregation between juveniles and adults. Larval transport seems to be the main process regulating mesoscale distribution patterns, while microscale distribution responds to a complex interaction among different processes, i. e. habitat selection at settlement, differential mortality among habitats, post-settlement dispersal and ontogenetic habitat shifts. Sandy substrates showed low-diversity communities dominated by hermit crabs. In rocky bottoms, variability in spatial patterns was mostly related to substrate type and geographical location. Caridean shrimps showed higher densities on flat rock surfaces, with similar juvenile and adult patterns. Anomuran species occurred mainly on cobbles. Distribution patterns of brachyurans varied among species, but did not change greatly from juveniles to adultsMinisterio de Ciencia y Tecnología; REN2000 –0446MARMinisterio de Ciencia y Tecnología; REN2003-04816Xunta de Galicia; XUGA10301B9

Movements of juvenile and adult spider crab ("Maja squinado") in the Ría da Coruña (NW Spain)

Presentado no Fifth Conference on Fish Telemetry held in Europe, 9-13 June 2003, Ustica, Palermo, Italy[Abstract] In August 2002, 12 juvenile and 12 adult (recently terminal moulted) spider crabs were tagged using ultrasonic pingers (Sonotronics, USA) in the Ría da Coruña (NW Spain). Both adults and juveniles were released in the same sandy shallow bottoms (5-10 m) in which they were caught. This area, as known from previous studies, is a typical juvenile area where juvenile spider crabs carry out their terminal moult before the autumn migration to deep bottoms. The tracking was carried out daily for a period of two weeks, although not all the crabs were located every day. Juvenile crabs were found to move small distances, performing non-directional movements near the coast, in protected areas up to 10 m deep. Two of the adult crabs performed small scale movements in the outer (more exposed) part of the estuary, at depths of up to 20 m. The rest of the adult crabs remained in the juvenile area, performing the same non-directional movements as the juveniles. Four male adult crabs were recaptured by commercial fisheries in the following months, three of them at more than 40 m deep, in the central channel of the estuary, probably while performing their seasonal descent migration. A female carrying eggs was recaptured in December near the coast, probably after carrying out both a descent and ascent migration.Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología; REN2000-0446/MA

Efficacy and predictability of maxillary and mandibular expansion with the Invisalign® system

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficacy and predictability of upper and lower orthodontic expansion with the Invisalign® system. From a sample of 167 patients; 64 upper and 51 lower arches were randomly selected from patients who had been

Una Revisión Empírica de Heurísticas de Verificación de Casos de Uso basadas en Métricas

En este artículo se presenta una revisión de varias de las heurísticas de verificación de requisitos basadas en métricas desarrolladas por el Grupo de Ingeniería del Software de la Universidad de Sevilla. Esta revisión se basa en los datos empíricos obtenidos de prácticas de alumnos de segundo ciclo de la Ingeniería Informática de la Universidad de Sevilla. El análisis de los datos empíricos ha permitido confirmar la validez de las heurísticas previamente propuestas así como afinar algunos de sus parámetros, mejorando de esta forma su capacidad de predecir la presencia de defectos en los requisitos. Uno de los aspectos más interesantes obtenidos mediante el análisis empírico ha sido la detección de posibles mejoras en el modelo de casos de uso en el que estaban basadas las heurísticas iniciales, proporcionando una importante realimentación a la investigación inicial.Comisión Interministerial de Ciencia y Tecnología TIC 2000–1106–C02–01Junta de Castilla-La Mancha PCB–02–00