Analyzing the Interoperability of WS-Security and WS-ReliableMessaging Implementations

Since their invention as lightweight integration technology about a decade ago, Web Services have matured significantly. Today, major middleware solution vendors as well as industry communities like RosettaNet are propagating Web services even for exchanging business-critical data and implementing inter-organizational business processes. Core enablers for using Web services in this domain are stateful interactions using the Web Services Business Process Execution Language (WS-BPEL) as well as advanced communication features like security and reliability using the WS-Security and WS-ReliableMessaging standard specifications. However, advanced communication features come at the price of complexity which challenges interoperability across different Web services stack implementations. Interoperability, in turn, is a predominant requirement for an integration technology such as Web services, in particular if inter-organizational business processes are supposed to be implemented on top of that technology. This paper approaches the problem of testing the interoperability of the so-called WS-* standards, advanced Web services communication features that are typically defined as SOAP extensions and configured using WS-Policy. Being essential to business process integration, WS-Security and WS-ReliableMessaging are selected as representatives of this group and the two major Java-based Web services stack implementations Metro and Axis2 are tested for interoperability. We operationalize the notion of interoperability for testing WS-* standards, suppose an approach for deriving test cases from WS-* specifications as well as a method for performing the test cases, and we provide a comprehensive interoperability review of the two selected Web services stack implementations

Rock glacier inventory of the western Nyainqêntanglha Range, Tibetan Plateau, supported by InSAR time series and automated classification

The western Nyainqêntanglha Range on the Tibetan Plateau reaches an elevation of 7,162 m and is characterized by an extensive periglacial environment under semi-arid climatic conditions. Rock glaciers play an important part of the water budget in high mountain areas and recent studies suggest that they may even act as climate-resistant water storages. In this study we present the first rock glacier inventory of this region containing 1,433 rock glaciers over an area of 4,622 km. To create the most reliable inventory we combine manually created rock glacier outlines with an automated classification approach. The manual outlines were generated based on surface elevation data, optical satellite imagery and a surface velocity estimation. This estimation was generated via InSAR time series analysis with Sentinel-1 data from 2016 to 2019. Our pixel-based automated classification was able to correctly identify 87.8% of all rock glaciers in the study area at a true positive rate of 69.5%. In total, 65.9% of rock glaciers are classified as transitional with surface velocities of 1–10 cm/yr. In total, 18.5% are classified as active with higher velocities of up to 87 cm/yr. The southern windward side of the mountain range contains more numerous and more active rock glaciers. We attribute this to higher moisture availability supplied by the Indian Monsoon

Integrated land and water-borne geophysical surveys shed light on the sudden drying of large karst lakes in southern Mexico

Karst water resources play an important role in drinking water supply but are highly vulnerable to even slight changes in climate. Thus, solid and spatially dense geological information is needed to model the response of karst hydrological systems to such changes. Additionally, environmental information archived in lake sediments can be used to understand past climate effects on karst water systems. In the present study, we carry out a multi-methodological geophysical survey to investigate the geological situation and sedimentary infill of two karst lakes (Metzabok and Tzibaná) of the Lacandon Forest in Chiapas, southern Mexico. Both lakes present large seasonal lake-level fluctuations and experienced an unusually sudden and strong lake-level decline in the first half of 2019, leaving Lake Metzabok (maximum depth ∼25 m) completely dry and Lake Tzibaná (depth ∼70 m) with a water level decreased by approx. 15 m. Before this event, during a lake-level high stand in March 2018, we collected water-borne seismic data with a sub-bottom profiler (SBP) and transient electromagnetic (TEM) data with a newly developed floating single-loop configuration. In October 2019, after the sudden drainage event, we took advantage of this unique situation and carried out complementary measurements directly on the exposed lake floor of Lakes Metzabok and Tzibaná. During this second campaign, we collected time-domain induced polarization (TDIP) and seismic refraction tomography (SRT) data. By integrating the multi-methodological data set, we (1) identify 5–6 m thick, likely undisturbed sediment sequences on the bottom of both lakes, which are suitable for future paleoenvironmental drilling campaigns, (2) develop a comprehensive geological model implying a strong interconnectivity between surface water and karst aquifer, and (3) evaluate the potential of the applied geophysical approach for the reconnaissance of the geological situation of karst lakes. This methodological evaluation reveals that under the given circumstances, (i) SBP and TDIP phase images consistently resolve the thickness of the fine-grained lacustrine sediments covering the lake floor, (ii) TEM and TDIP resistivity images consistently detect the upper limit of the limestone bedrock and the geometry of fluvial deposits of a river delta, and (iii) TDIP and SRT images suggest the existence of a layer that separates the lacustrine sediments from the limestone bedrock and consists of collapse debris mixed with lacustrine sediments. Our results show that the combination of seismic methods, which are most widely used for lake-bottom reconnaissance, with resistivity-based methods such as TEM and TDIP can significantly improve the interpretation by resolving geological units or bedrock heterogeneities, which are not visible from seismic data. Only the use of complementary methods provides sufficient information to develop comprehensive geological models of such complex karst environment

QoS-Enabled B2B Integration

Business-To-Business Integration (B2Bi) is a key mechanism for enterprises to gain competitive advantage. However, developing B2Bi applications is far from trivial. Inter alia, agreement among integration partners about the business documents and the control flow of business document exchanges as well as applying suitable communication technologies for overcoming heterogeneous IT landscapes are major challenges. At the same time, choreography languages such as ebXML BPSS (ebBP), orchestration languages such as WS-BPEL and Web Services are promising to provide the foundations for seamless interactions among business partners. Automatically translating choreography agreements of integration partners into partner-specific orchestrations is an obvious idea for ensuring conformance of orchestration models to choreography models. Moreover, the application of such model-driven development methods facilitates productivity and cost-effectiveness whereas applying a service oriented architecture (SOA) based on WS-BPEL and Web Services leverages standardization and decoupling. By now, the realization of QoS attributes has not yet received the necessary attention that makes such approaches suitable for B2Bi. In this report, we describe a proof-of-concept implementation of the translation of ebBP choreographies into WS-BPEL orchestrations that respects B2Bi-relevant QoS attributes

Beclagung aines ley=||ens genant Hanns schwalb über || vil mißbreüch Christliches lebens/ vnd dariñ be||griffen kürtzlich von Johannes Huß/||sen. Jm Jar. M.D.XXI.||

Vorlageform des Erscheinungsvermerks: [Augsburg: Melchior Ramminger 1521

QoS-Enabled Business-to-Business Integration Using ebBP to WS-BPEL Translations

Business-To-Business Integration (B2Bi) is a key mechanism for enterprises to gain competitive advantage. However, developing B2Bi applications is far from trivial. Inter alia, agreement among integration partners about the business documents and the control flow of business document exchanges, applying suitable communication technologies for overcoming heterogeneous IT landscapes as well as ensuring a Quality of Service (QoS) level that is sufficient for B2Bi are major challenges. In this context, applying choreography languages like ebXML BPSS (ebBP) for agreement among integration partners, orchestration languages like WS-BPEL for specifying partner-specific behavior, and Web Services for communication promises seamless interactions among business partners. In this scenario, the conformance of orchestration models to choreography models and cost-effective development are of paramount importance. Consequently, top-down approaches that automatically translate choreography models into orchestration models have been proposed. By now, the realization of QoS attributes has not yet received the necessary attention that makes such approaches suitable for B2Bi. In this paper, we describe a proof-of-concept implementation of a translation of ebBP choreographies into WS-BPEL orchestrations that respects B2Bi relevant QoS attributes

Insights into a remote cryosphere: a multi-method approach to assess permafrost occurrence at the Qugaqie basin, western Nyainqêntanglha Range, Tibetan Plateau

Permafrost as a climate-sensitive parameter and its occurrence and distribution play an important role in the observation of global warming. However, field-based permafrost distribution data and information on the subsurface ice content in the large area of the southern mountainous Tibetan Plateau (TP) are very sparse. Existing models based on boreholes and remote sensing approaches suggest permafrost probabilities for most of the Tibetan mountain ranges. Field data to validate permafrost models are generally lacking because access to the mountain regions in extreme altitudes is limited. The study provides geomorphological and geophysical field data from a north-orientated high-altitude catchment in the western Nyainqêntanglha Range. A multi-method approach combines (A) geomorphological mapping, (B) electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) to identify subsurface ice occurrence and (C) interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) analysis to derive multi-annual creeping rates. The combination of the resulting data allows an assessment of the lower occurrence of permafrost in a range of 5350 and 5500 m above sea level (a.s.l.) in the Qugaqie basin. Periglacial landforms such as rock glaciers and protalus ramparts are located in the periglacial zone from 5300–5600 m a.s.l. The altitudinal periglacial landform distribution is supported by ERT data detecting ice-rich permafrost in a rock glacier at 5500 m a.s.l. and ice lenses around the rock glacier (5450 m a.s.l.). The highest multiannual creeping rates up to 150 mm yr−1 are typically observed on these rock glaciers. This study closes the gap of unknown state of periglacial features and potential permafrost occurrence in a high-elevated basin in the western Nyainqêntanglha Range (Tibetan Plateau)

Delineation of a Quaternary Aquifer Using Integrated Hydrogeological and Geophysical Estimation of Hydraulic Conductivity on the Tibetan Plateau, China

Groundwater is the most unexplored element of the hydrologic cycle on the Tibetan Plateau (TP) due to harsh climate conditions. This study aims at delineating and characterizing the unexplored Zhanongtang–Ganmanong aquifer, situated in the Zhagu subcatchment of the Nam Co catchment, south-central TP. Multiple hydrogeophysical and lithological in situ field and laboratory methods are applied: depth-to-water-table measurements, grain size analysis, hydraulic empirical and field methods to estimate hydraulic conductivity (K), and analysis of electrical resistivity tomography profiles. Integration of these methods revealed the existence of a Quaternary hydrostratigraphic unit that was found to be unconsolidated, laterally heterogeneous and homogeneous over depth. The results revealed consistent K ranges of three K zones, which is in accordance with local lithology. The K ranges are applicable to other locations within the Nam Co catchment with similar lithology as in the study area without further field experiments. Permafrost was found to be absent in the study area ranging from 4730 m a.s.l. to 5200 m a.s.l. altitude. These results provide insight into the hydrogeological conditions of the TP and are useful for conceptual and numerical groundwater flow modeling to predict future changes of water fluxes and water budgets caused by climatic change, especially in remote areas

Delineation of a Quaternary Aquifer Using Integrated Hydrogeological and Geophysical Estimation of Hydraulic Conductivity on the Tibetan Plateau, China

Groundwater is the most unexplored element of the hydrologic cycle on the Tibetan Plateau (TP) due to harsh climate conditions. This study aims at delineating and characterizing the unexplored Zhanongtang–Ganmanong aquifer, situated in the Zhagu subcatchment of the Nam Co catchment, south-central TP. Multiple hydrogeophysical and lithological in situ field and laboratory methods are applied: depth-to-water-table measurements, grain size analysis, hydraulic empirical and field methods to estimate hydraulic conductivity (K), and analysis of electrical resistivity tomography profiles. Integration of these methods revealed the existence of a Quaternary hydrostratigraphic unit that was found to be unconsolidated, laterally heterogeneous and homogeneous over depth. The results revealed consistent K ranges of three K zones, which is in accordance with local lithology. The K ranges are applicable to other locations within the Nam Co catchment with similar lithology as in the study area without further field experiments. Permafrost was found to be absent in the study area ranging from 4730 m a.s.l. to 5200 m a.s.l. altitude. These results provide insight into the hydrogeological conditions of the TP and are useful for conceptual and numerical groundwater flow modeling to predict future changes of water fluxes and water budgets caused by climatic change, especially in remote areas