Two-Layer Load Balancing for Onedata System

The recent years have significantly changed the perception of web services and data storages, as clouds became a big part of IT market. New challenges appear in the field of scalable web systems, which become bigger and more complex. One of them is designing load balancing algorithms that could allow for optimal utilization of servers' resources in large, distributed systems. This paper presents an algorithm called Two-Level Load Balancing, which has been implemented and evaluated in onedata - a global data access system. A study of onedata architecture, request types and use cases has been performed to determine the requirements of load balancing set by similar, highly scalable distributed systems. The algorithm was designed to match these requirements, and it was achieved by using a synergy of DNS and internal dispatcher load balancing. Test results show that the algorithm does not introduce considerable overheads and maintains the performance of the system on high level, even in cases when its servers are not equally loaded

Using translation process research to explore the creation of subtitles:an eye-tracking study comparing professional and trainee subtitlers

Although translation process research (TPR) has become one of the most active fields in Translation Studies in the last 20 years, the process of subtitle creation has received little attention. This subtitling process research study adopts TPR methods to explore the production of interlingual subtitles. We conducted two experiments: Experiment 1 comparing professional subtitlers and subtitling trainees using the same subtitling tool, and Experiment 2 comparing two groups of professional subtitlers, each using a different subtitling programme. We collected data from eye tracking, screen recording, mouse clicks and keystroke logging, and post-experiment interviews. In Experiment 1, professionals and trainees exhibited different subtitling processes, with trainees following a highly structured sequence of viewing, spotting, translation and revision stages. Professionals were slightly faster, but text condensation levels were similar for both groups. In Experiment 2, the options offered by the subtitling tool significantly affected the process. Additionally, the age and experience were suggested as relevant factors influencing the task. Our findings confirm the suitability of using TPR methods to study the production of subtitles and set the grounds for further studies in the field of subtitling process research

INTERACTIVE CLOUD DATA FARMING ENVIRONMENT FOR MILITARY MISSION PLANNING SUPPORT

In a modern globalised world, military and peace keeping forces often face situations which require very subtle and well planned operations taking into account cultural and social aspects of a given region and its population as well as dynamic psychological awareness related to recent events which can have impact on the attitude of the civilians. The goal of the EUSAS project is to develop a prototype of a system enabling mission planning support and training capabilities for soldiers and police forces dealing with asymmetric threat situations, such as crowd control in urban territory. In this paper, we discuss the data-farming infrastructure developed for this project, allowing generation of large amount of data from agent based simulations for further analysis allowing soldier training and evaluation of possible outcomes of different rules of engagement

Group Membership Management Framework for Decentralized Collaborative Systems

Scientific and commercial endeavors could benefit from cross-organizational, decentralized collaboration, which becomes the key to innovation. This work addresses one of its challenges, namely efficient access control to assets for distributed data processing among autonomous data centers. We propose a group membership management framework dedicated for realizing access control in decentralized environments. Its novelty lies in a synergy of two concepts: a decentralized knowledge base and an incremental indexing scheme, both assuming a P2P architecture, where each peer retains autonomy and has full control over the choice of peers it cooperates with. The extent of exchanged information is reduced to the minimum required for user collaboration and assumes limited trust between peers. The indexing scheme is optimized for read-intensive scenarios by offering fast queries -- look-ups in precomputed indices. The index precomputation increases the complexity of update operations, but their performance is arguably sufficient for large organizations, as shown by conducted tests. We believe that our framework is a major contribution towards decentralized, cross-organizational collaboration

A redshifted Fe Kα\alpha line from the unusual gamma-ray source PMN J1603-4904

Multiwavelength observations have revealed the highly unusual properties of the gamma-ray source PMN J1603-4904, which are difficult to reconcile with any other well established gamma-ray source class. The object is either a very atypical blazar or compact jet source seen at a larger angle to the line of sight. In order to determine the physical origin of the high-energy emission processes in PMN J1603-4904, we study the X-ray spectrum in detail. We performed quasi-simultaneous X-ray observations with XMM-Newton and Suzaku in 2013 September, resulting in the first high signal-to-noise X-ray spectrum of this source. The 2-10 keV X-ray spectrum can be well described by an absorbed power law with an emission line at 5.44$\pm$0.05 keV (observed frame). Interpreting this feature as a K{\alpha} line from neutral iron, we determine the redshift of PMN J1603-4904 to be z=0.18$\pm$0.01, corresponding to a luminosity distance of 872$\pm$54 Mpc. The detection of a redshifted X-ray emission line further challenges the original BL Lac classification of PMN J1603-4904. This result suggests that the source is observed at a larger angle to the line of sight than expected for blazars, and thus the source would add to the elusive class of gamma-ray loud misaligned-jet objects, possibly a {\gamma}-ray bright young radio galaxy.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figure, A&A accepte

A Novel Way of Using Simulations to Support Urban Security Operations

The growing importance of security operations in urban terrain has triggered many attempts to address the perceived gaps in the readiness of security forces for this type of combat. One way to tackle the problem is to employ simulation techniques. Simulations are widely used to support both mission rehearsal and mission analysis, but these two applications tend to be seen as distinctly separate. We argue that integrating them in a unified framework can bring significant benefits for end-users. We perform a structured walk-through of such a unified system, in which a novel approach to integration through the behaviour cloning enabled the system to capture the operational knowledge of security experts, which is often difficult to express verbally. This capability emerged as essential for the operation of the integrated system. We also illustrate how the interplay between the system components for the mission analysis and mission rehearsal is realized

Opieka ginekologiczna po transplantacji komórek krwiotwórczych – zalecenia na podstawie piśmiennictwa i własnych doświadczeń

Transplantacja komórek krwiotwórczych ( – HCT ) jest ugruntowaną metodą leczenia zarówno nienowotworowych, jak i rozrostowych chorób układu krwiotwórczego. U kobiet wiąże się jednak z występowaniem powikłań wczesnych i późnych dotyczących układu moczowo-płciowego. Konsekwencją gonadotoksycznego postępowania przygotowawczego (chemioterapii i radioterapii) jest przedwczesne wygaśnięcie funkcji jajników. U biorczyń allogenicznych przeszczepów ( HCT, allo-HCT) dodatkowo występują powikłania związane z występowaniem przewlekłej choroby przeczep przeciw gospodarzowi ( cGvHD) w istotny sposób upośledzające jakość życia kobiet w przypadku zajęcia strefy anogenitalnej (GvHDgyn). Dodatkowo przewlekła immunosupresja sprzyja występowaniu wtórnych nowotworów układu moczowo-płciowego. Pacjentki po HCT, szczególnie obciążone cGvHD, wymagają długoletniej interdyscyplinarnej opieki, włączając opiekę ginekologiczną. W pracy przedstawiono problemy ginekologiczne pacjentek po HCT oraz zaproponowano schemat standardu opieki ginekologicznej po transplantacji na podstawie piśmiennictwa i własnych doświadczeń

Epidemiological features and changes in the occurrence of infectious diseases in Poland from 2015 to 2020 in the context of the emerging novel SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic

Introduction. The novel emerging infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a global public health concern. The ongoing pandemic outbreak in Poland makes a great impact on the diagnosis and treatment of other conditions including cancer and non-neoplastic diseases such as other infectious diseases.  Research design. This study aimed to analyze trends in morbidity of selected infectious diseases in Poland over the last 6 years and assess the impact of the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic on the incidence of other infectious diseases from January 1, 2020, to December 31, 2020, compared to the same period in 2019.  Results. No clear trend in the total number of cases of infectious diseases in Poland in the years 2015–2019 was observed. During the period from January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020, a total of 1 273 155 SARS-CoV-2 infections were recorded in Poland; they represented the second most common disease entity in the analyzed period (after flu and suspected flu). At the same time, there was a decrease in morbidity for almost all disease entities for which at least one case had been reported in 2019. The mean hospitalization rate for COVID-19 amounted to 250.2 cases per 100 000 inhabitants.  Conclusions. The lack of a clear trend in data for the years 2015–2019 makes it difficult to measure the impact of COVID-19 disease on the occurrence of other infectious diseases in Poland. The latest data indicate a significant reduction in the number of cases reported in 2020 vs. 2019. The question remains, whether this reduction results from limitations in interpersonal contacts forced by the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, or is it a matter of underreporting of other diseases