An extensible benchmark and tooling for comparing reverse engineering approaches

Various tools exist to reverse engineer software source code and generate design information, such as UML projections. Each has specific strengths and weaknesses, however no standardised benchmark exists that can be used to evaluate and compare their performance and effectiveness in a systematic manner. To facilitate such comparison in this paper we introduce the Reverse Engineering to Design Benchmark (RED-BM), which consists of a comprehensive set of Java-based targets for reverse engineering and a formal set of performance measures with which tools and approaches can be analysed and ranked. When used to evaluate 12 industry standard tools performance figures range from 8.82\% to 100\% demonstrating the ability of the benchmark to differentiate between tools. To aid the comparison, analysis and further use of reverse engineering XMI output we have developed a parser which can interpret the XMI output format of the most commonly used reverse engineering applications, and is used in a number of tools

Simulating Cambrian Climate: The Significance of Atmospheric CO2 Concentration and Continental Position

The Cambrian Period began approximately 541 million years ago, and is known for the “Cambrian Explosion”, a time when multicellular life began to rapidly diversify. There is natural historic evidence (isotopes, rock formations, and fossils) that suggests the Cambrian Period experienced a warm climate. However, there is also conflicting evidence that the Cambrian climate may have undergone freezing and thawing cycles, with ice possibly present near the equator. It is critical to understand how ecosystems were able to adapt to past climate changes, especially when analyzing the impacts of modern human activity on climate. Climate model simulations were run to explore the type of climate the Cambrian may have experienced, as well as the sensitivity of the climate to greenhouse gases and land-surface conditions. Based on the simulated annual and global average surface temperature, mean annual precipitation, and sea ice thickness in the climate model, ice formation would have been unlikely at the equator during the Cambrian, even during the winter season

Reading workshop and vocabulary knowledge : allies in comprehension

The Reading Workshop develops a purpose for reading, gives students a greater sense of their own efficacy, broadens understanding of reading strategies, provides a context that supports the student choice of what is read, and allows integration of prior knowledge in what is read (Kletzien & Hushion, 1992). Students are able to construct and direct their own learning in the Reading Workshop by reading books of their independent choice, respond to what is read, and receive mini-skill instruction on reading strategies. Students are invited to be actively involved in a process that is consistent with whole language philosophy (Atwell, 1987). They are motivated to practice reading which often solves many reading problems that children experience (Swift). Workshop classrooms are not a time of chaos, but a time of active literacy (McAndrew, 1993)