903 research outputs found
Resource virtualisation of network routers
There is now considerable interest in applications that transport time-sensitive data across the best-effort Internet. We present a novel network router architecture, which has the potential to improve the Quality of Service guarantees provided to such flows. This router architecture makes use of virtual machine techniques, to assign an individual virtual routelet to each network flow requiring QoS guarantees. We describe a prototype of this virtual routelet architecture, and evaluate its effectiveness. Experimental results of the performance and flow partitioning of this prototype, compared with a standard software router, suggest promise in the virtual routelet architecture
Hera-JVM: abstracting processor heterogeneity behind a virtual machine
Heterogeneous multi-core processors, such as the Cell processor, can deliver exceptional performance, however, they are notoriously difficult to program effectively. We present Hera-JVM, a runtime system which hides a processorâs heterogeneity behind a homogeneous virtual machine interface. Preliminary results of three benchmarks running under Hera-JVM are presented. These results suggest a set of application behaviour characteristics that the runtime system should take into account when placing threads on different core types.
MOOCs in language education and professional teacher development: possibilities and potential
Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) developed from the traditions of distance and selfaccess
learning, and are growing in popularity. As a new and exciting area of education, the
potential of MOOCs to transform education by allowing free access to courses for anyone with
the access to technology and the internet has potential for teachers and learners to benefit from
the courses offered. In this short article, three different perspectives on using MOOCs in
educational contexts within Japan are discussed. The first describes a collaborative project in
which one of the authors participated in a MOOC alongside a group of language learners. In the
next, individual students pursuing self-directed language learning chose MOOCs to meet their
various goals of knowledge and skill development as they prepared to study abroad. Finally, this
article considers the role of MOOCs in professional teacher development through the reflections
from a teacher participant. All three discussions relate their ideas to the themes of possibility and
potential, while considering practical issues for language learners and educators
British trade unions and the academics: the case of Unionlearn
Unionlearn and union learning representatives were developed by the British TUC to match workers with education and training opportunities, strengthen the economy, foster market inclusion and facilitate social mobility. Their contribution to union revitalisation was emphasised. This article questions whether, with unions confronting global crisis, this is a necessary initiative. It stemmed from TUC failure to achieve policy goals, institutional needs, consequent acceptance of a lesser role, and the availability of state finance. Claims by academics that it provides influence over state policy and contributes to revitalisation remain inadequately evidenced. Union resurgence is not immanent. The way forward is through adversarial grassroots organising and socialist education, not through retooling capital, improving membersâ marketability and partnership with a hostile state
Sustainability, transport and design: reviewing the prospects for safely encouraging eco-driving
Private vehicle use contributes a disproportionately large amount to the degradation of the environment we inhabit. Technological advancement is of course critical to the mitigation of climate change, however alone it will not suffice; we must also see behavioural change. This paper will argue for the application of Ergonomics to the design of private vehicles, particularly low-carbon vehicles (e.g. hybrid and electric), to encourage this behavioural change. A brief review of literature is offered concerning the effect of the design of a technological object on behaviour, the inter-related nature of goals and feedback in guiding performance, the effect on fuel economy of different driving styles, and the various challenges brought by hybrid and electric vehicles, including range anxiety, workload and distraction, complexity, and novelty. This is followed by a discussion on the potential applicability of a particular design framework, namely Ecological Interface Design, to the design of in-vehicle interfaces that encourage energy-conserving driving behaviours whilst minimising distraction and workload, thus ensuring safety
Radical political unionism reassessed
Defections from European social-democratic parties and a resurgence of union militancy have prompted some to diagnose a new left-wing trade unionism across Europe. This comment on the article by Connolly and Darlington scrutinizes trends in France and Germany but primarily analyses recent developments in Britain. While there are some instances of disaffiliation from the Labour Party, support for electoral alternatives, growth in political militancy and emphasis on new forms of internationalism, these have been limited. There is insufficient evidence to suggest that we are witnessing the making of a new radical collectivism
Parallel String Sample Sort
We discuss how string sorting algorithms can be parallelized on modern
multi-core shared memory machines. As a synthesis of the best sequential string
sorting algorithms and successful parallel sorting algorithms for atomic
objects, we propose string sample sort. The algorithm makes effective use of
the memory hierarchy, uses additional word level parallelism, and largely
avoids branch mispredictions. Additionally, we parallelize variants of multikey
quicksort and radix sort that are also useful in certain situations.Comment: 34 pages, 7 figures and 12 table
Animal-sediment interactions: the effect of ingestion and excretion by worms on mineralogy
International audienceBy controlled experiments that simulate marine depositional environments, it is shown that accelerated weathering and clay mineral authigenesis occur during the combined process of ingestion, digestion and excretion of fine-grained sediment by two species of annelid worms. Previously characterized synthetic mud was created using finely ground, low-grade metamorphic slate (temperature approximately 300°C) containing highly crystalline chlorite and muscovite. This was added to experiment and control tanks along with clean, wind-blown sand. Faecal casts were collected at regular intervals from the experimental tanks and, less frequently, from the control tanks. Over a period of many months the synthetic mud (slate) proved to be unchanged in the control tanks, but was significantly different in faecal casts from the experimental tanks that contained the worms Arenicola marina and Lumbricus terrestris. Chlorite was preferentially destroyed during digestion in the gut of A. marina. Both chlorite and muscovite underwent XRD peak broadening with a skew developing towards higher lattice spacing, characteristic of smectite formation. A neoformed Fe-Mg-rich clay mineral (possibly berthierine) and as-yet undefined clay minerals with very high d-spacing were detected in both A. marina and L. terrestris cast samples. We postulate that a combination of the low pH and bacteria-rich microenvironment in the guts of annelid worms may radically accelerate mineral dissolution and clay mineral precipitation processes during digestion. These results show that macrobiotic activity significantly accelerates weathering and mineral degradation as well as mineral authigenesis. The combined processes of sediment ingestion and digestion thus lead to early diagenetic growth of clay minerals in clastic sediments
ReevaluaciĂłn crĂtica del holotipo de Beothukis mistakensis, Ășnico organismo rangeomorfo excepcionalmente preservado en Mistaken Point, Terranova, CanadĂĄ
The holotype of Beothukis mistakensis in Mistaken Point, Newfoundland, is the only currently known specimen that can be definitely placed within the species. Morphological differences between the holotype of B. mistakensis and the well-constrained species plumosa suggest that the two are not congeneric and Culmofrons plumosa should be retained as a valid taxon as originally established.El holotipo de Beothukis mistakensis en Mistaken Point, Terranova, es el Ășnico ejemplar actualmente conocido que puede ser colocado definitivamente dentro de la especie. Las diferencias morfolĂłgicas entre el holotipo de B. mistakensis y la especie plumosa sugieren que ambas no son congĂ©neres y que Culmofrons plumosa deberĂa conservarse como un taxĂłn vĂĄlido tal como se estableciĂł originalmente
Union renewal in historical perspective
This article revisits contemporary union renewal/revival debates through comparison with the late 1930s resurgence of trade unionism in the UKâs engineering industry. It is argued that the 1930s union renewal arose from more favourable contextual conditions than those currently obtaining. It was led by political activists, with better-articulated organisation and greater resonance in the working class than their contemporary counterparts, and who were assisted by state policy and pro-worker forces. Conclusions are drawn in relation to current debates
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