Production and use of documentation in scientific software development

Software is becoming ubiquitous in science. The success of the application of scientific software depends on effective communication about what the software does and how it operates. Documentation captures the communication about the software. For that reason, practices around scientific software documentation need to be better understood. This thesis presents four qualitative empirical studies that look in depth at the production and use of documentation of scientific software. Together, the studies provide evidence emphasising the importance of documentation and shows the handshake between written documentation and the informal, ephemeral information exchange that happens within the community. Four reasons behind the obstacles to producing effective scientific software documentation are identified: 1) the insufficient resources; 2) lack of incentives for researchers; 3) the influence of the community of practice; 4) the necessity of keeping up with the regular advancements of science. Benefits of the process of producing documentation are also identified: 1) aiding reasoning; 2) supporting reproducibility of science; 3) in certain contexts, expanding the community of users and developers around the software. The latter is investigated through a case study of documentation ‘crowdsourcing’. The research reveals that there is a spectrum of users, with differing needs with respect to documentation. This, in turn, requires different approaches in addressing their needs. The research shows that the view of what constitutes documentation must be broad, in order to recognise how wide a range of resources (e.g., formal documents, email, online fora, comments in the source code) is actually used in communicating knowledge about scientific software. Much of the information about the software resides within the community of practice (and may not be documented). These observations are of practical use for those producing documentation in different contexts of scientific software development, for example providing guidance about engaging a community in ‘crowdsourcing’ documentation

Ocena użyteczności języka ojczystego (polskiego) w uczeniu się gramatyki języków obcych (angielskiego i rosyjskiego): wyniki badań

This article reports a study which gathered Polish learners’ opinions about the usefulness of L1-based techniques in learning L2 English and L3 Russian grammar. The results reveal a negative correlation between the length of study and the level  of positive evaluations of the usefulness of L1-based clues. Although L1 was generally considered more useful in learning Russian, the evaluations differed considerably in relation to particular structures in both languages

Akcje dla kandydatów na studia

Autorka artykułu jest pracownikiem Dział promocji Politechniki Łódzkiej.Artykuł zamieszczony jest w : Życie Uczelni : biuletyn informacyjny Politechniki Łódzkiej nr 153, październik 2020„Potęguj możliwości” i #PoznajPŁ to dwie akcje promocyjne Politechniki Łódzkiej adresowane do kandydatów na studia pierwszego i drugiego stopnia. To dla nich niepowtarzalna okazja, aby poznać utalentowanych studentów Politechniki Łódzkiej, zyskać szerszą wiedzę na temat oferty kształcenia oraz przekonać się, jak wygląda studiowanie na naszej uczelni

Pierwszy w historii PŁ wirtualny dzień otwarty

Autorka artykułu jest pracownikiem Działu Promocji Politechniki ŁódzkiejArtykuł zamieszczony jest w : Życie Uczelni : biuletyn informacyjny Politechniki Łódzkiej nr 152, lipiec 2020Sytuacja epidemiczna postawiła nas przed nową rzeczywistością. Politechnika Łódzka chętnie wyznacza nowe trendy, dlatego wyszła naprzeciw potrzebom maturzystów, którzy zostali pozbawieni możliwości przyjazdu na naszą uczelnię. Pierwszy w historii PŁ dzień otwarty online został zorganizowany przez Dział Promocji Politechniki Łódzkiej, a realizacją techniczną zajęło się Centrum Multimedialne PŁ

Jak piszą o mieszkańcach Republiki Czeskiej polscy dziennikarze? – o profilowaniu wizerunku Czechów w dyskursie internetowym wybranych rozgłośni z obszaru Górnego Śląska

The article focuses on determining how Czech’s stereotypical features are present in public discourse on the internet pages of selected broadcasting radio stations. Analysis of the material has been preceded by an attempt of reconstructing the basic stereotype of the Czech which functions in the consciousness of the Poles. The basis for this part of the study are dictionary sources, sociological works, as well as ethnoliguistic. 36 internet articles published in 2013 have been analysed from the linguistic point of view. All of them have been published on the websites of four radio stations broadcasting in the area of Higher Silesia: Radio Opole, Radio Bielsko, Antyradio and Radio Aniol Beskidow

Encapsulation stability of duplex emulsions prepared with SPG cross-flow membrane, SPG rotating membrane and rotor-stator techniques—A comparison

AbstractFood grade duplex W1/O/W2 emulsions were prepared using three different techniques: SPG cross-flow membrane, SPG rotating membrane and high-shear mixer. The primary W1/O emulsion had sodium chloride encapsulated in the inner aqueous droplets as a marker compound. Duplex emulsion droplet size and salt encapsulation were both investigated by modifying the emulsification conditions inherent for each technique; cross-flow velocity (CFV) and trans-membrane pressure (TMP) for the cross-flow membrane, rotational velocity (RV) and TMP for the rotating membrane, and mixing time for the high-shear mixer.Emulsion droplet size was shown to increase with TMP and to decrease with both CFV and RV. Minimum droplet size obtained (∼12 μm) was similar for all three emulsifying techniques, which suggests that at high shear stresses, the minimum droplet size is determined primarily by the decrease in the interfacial tension.It was also shown that the amount of salt released during storage depends on the emulsification technique (8–20% for the cross-flow membrane, ∼13% for the high-shear mixer and ∼8% for the rotating membrane). The differences in salt release were explained in terms of emulsions droplet size and interfacial properties of adsorbed surfactant molecules. The unexpected high amount of salt released by duplex emulsions produced by the cross-flow membrane was associated with the magnitude and duration of shear forces, which act on duplex droplets during semi-batch emulsification

Does apoptosis occur in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis? TUNEL experience from human Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) tissues

The role that apoptosis plays in the pathogenesis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is still unclear. From our autopsy samples, we have undertaken an effort to verify if apoptosis in ALS really occurs or if can at least be detected. The study was performed using TUNEL method for screening the apoptotic changes in the autopsy samples from 8 ALS cases compared with 16 control cases. No features of apoptosis (DNA cleavages) were noted in any of the investigated regions of the central nervous system in ALS cases as well as in controls. These preliminary results seem to support the reports, which deny the role of apoptosis in human ALS. The following investigations using additional methods will be performed for detection the apoptotic signals in ALS

Frequency of G2677T/A and C3435T polymorphisms of MDR1 gene in preeclamptic women

Objective: Preeclampsia (PE) belongs to main causes of mortality rates of mothers, fetuses and new born children. Polymorphism of MDR1 gene is connected with reduction of P-glycoprotein expression in placenta and increased fetal exposure to xenobiotics. The aim of the study was to determine the frequency of C3435T and G2677T/A polymorphisms of MDR1 gene in pregnant women with preeclampsia. Materials and methods: The study consisted of 180 Polish women including 60 women with PE and 120 healthy pregnant women. Determination of C3435T and G2677T/A polymorphisms of MDR1 gene was performed using PCR-RFLP method. Results: No significant association between genotypes of the examined polymorphisms and the clinical parameters of pregnant women with PE was observed. However the interesting tendency to higher prevalence of mutated 2677A allele of G2677T/A MDR1 polymorphism in PE group has been shown (2,50 vs. 0,83% in controls, OR=3,05, ns). Conclusions: The results of this study suggest no significant effect of examined C3435T and G2677T/A MDR1 polymorphisms in PE pathogenesis. However given the noteworthy results related to mutated 2677A allele of G2677T/A MDR1 polymorphism in preeclamptic women further studies seem to be needed. Nevertheless, the frequency of investigated polymorphisms was consistent with the distribution in other Caucasian populations