A content search system considering the activity and context of a mobile user

People routinely carry mobile devices in their daily lives and obtain a variety of information from the Internet in many different situations. In searching for information (content) with a mobile device, a user’s activity (e.g., moving or stationary) and context (e.g., commuting in the morning or going downtown in the evening) often change, and such changes can affect the user’s degree of concentration on his or her mobile device’s display and information needs. Therefore, a search system should provide the user with an amount of information suitable for the current activity and a type of information suitable for the current context. In this study, we present the design and implementation of a content search system that considers a mobile user’s activity and context, with the goal of reducing the user’s operation load for content search. The proposed system switches between two kinds of content search systems according to the user’s activity: the location-based content search system is activated when the user is stationary (e.g., standing and sitting), while a menu-based content search system is activated when the user is moving (e.g., walking). Both systems present information according to user context. The location-based system presents detailed information via menus and a map according to location-based categories. The menu-based system presents only a few options to enable users to get content easily. Through user experiments, we confirmed that participants could get desired information more easily with this system than with a commercial search system.     

FENECIA: failure endurable nested-transaction based execution of composite Web services with incorporated state analysis

Interest in the Web services (WS) composition (WSC) paradigm is increasing tremendously. A real shift in distributed computing history is expected to occur when the dream of implementing Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) is realized. However, there is a long way to go to achieve such an ambitious goal. In this paper, we support the idea that, when challenging the WSC issue, the earlier that the inevitability of failures is recognized and proper failure-handling mechanisms are defined, from the very early stage of the composite WS (CWS) specification, the greater are the chances of achieving a significant gain in dependability. To formalize this vision, we present the FENECIA (Failure Endurable Nested-transaction based Execution of Composite Web services with Incorporated state Analysis) framework. Our framework approaches the WSC issue from different points of view to guarantee a high level of dependability. In particular, it aims at being simultaneously a failure-handling-devoted CWS specification, execution, and quality of service (QoS) assessment approach. In the first section of our framework, we focus on answering the need for a specification model tailored for the WS architecture. To this end, we introduce WS-SAGAS, a new transaction model. WS-SAGAS introduces key concepts that are not part of the WS architecture pillars, namely, arbitrary nesting, state, vitality degree, and compensation, to specify failure-endurable CWS as a hierarchy of recursively nested transactions. In addition, to define the CWS execution semantics, without suffering from the hindrance of an XML-based notation, we describe a textual notation that describes a WSC in terms of definition rules, composability rules, and ordering rules, and we introduce graphical and formal notations. These rules provide the solid foundation needed to formulate the execution semantics of a CWS in terms of execution correctness verification dependencies. To ensure dependable execution of the CWS, we present in the second section of FENECIA our architecture THROWS, in which the execution control of the resulting CWS is distributed among engines, discovered dynamically, that communicate in a peer-to-peer fashion. A dependable execution is guaranteed in THROWS by keeping track of the execution progress of a CWS and by enforcing forward and backward recovery. We concentrate in the third section of our approach on showing how the failure consideration is trivial in acquiring more accurate CWS QoS estimations. We propose a model that assesses several QoS properties of CWS, which are specified as WS-SAGAS transactions and executed in THROWS. We validate our proposal and show its feasibility and broad applicability by describing an implemented prototype and a case study.     

Critical dynamics of a sheared micellar solution

We have investigated the dynamic behavior of a nonionic micellar solution of tetra-ethylene glycoln-decylether (C₁₀ E₄) in water near its critical point in the presence of shear. The non-Newtonian behavior of the viscosity can be represented by * = [ 1 +a(S₄)=]², where* is the viscosity in the absence of shear,S is the shear rate. ₄ is the lifetime of the critical Iluctuations,a is a system-dependent constant, and = 0.02 In addition, we have found that, before attaining a steady state, the sheared mixture undergoing phase separation shows significant shear-dependent rheological effects due to the presence of concentration domains.Paper presented at the Twelfth Symposium on Thermophysical Properties, June 19–24. 1994, Boulder, Colorado, U.S.A.     

Semi-autonomous serially connected multi-crawler robot for search and rescue

In this paper, we develop a semi-autonomous serially connected multi-crawler robot for search and rescue. In large-scale disasters, such as earthquakes and tornadoes, the application of rescue robots to search for survivors under rubble would be beneficial. Snake-like robots (robots composed of serially connected units) are an effective candidate for such robots. Their long body enables them to overcome obstacles, and they can move into narrow spaces because of their thin shape. However, conventional snake-like robots have significant problems with operability. The numerous degrees of freedom of their bodies require complex operation to overcome obstacles, and training is required for the operators. Thus, survivors or community members cannot operate conventional robots to search for victims, despite the availability of such rescue robots. Here, we address this problem and develop a semi-autonomous serially connected multi-crawler robot designed for non-trained operators, such as community members or rescued survivors. It can be controlled easily by a conventional two-channel user interface with levers for turning and straight line motion. To demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed mechanism, a prototype robot was developed and experiments were conducted. The results confirm that the proposed robot had both higher operability and higher mobility than conventional robots.     

A knowledge assimilation method for logic databases

In this paper we consider a deductive question-answering system for relational databases as a logic database system, and propose a knowledge assimilation method suitable for such a system. The concept of knowledge assimilation for deductive logic is constructed in an implementable form based on the notion of amalgamating object language and metalanguage. This concept calls for checks to be conducted on four subconcepts, provability, contradiction, redundancy, independency, and their corresponding internal database updates. We have implemented this logic database knowledge assimilation program in PROLOG, a logic programming language, and have found PROLOG suitable for knowledge assimilation implementation.     

Multinomial Bayesian learning for modeling classical and nonclassical receptive field properties

We study the interplay of Bayesian inference and natural image learning in a hierarchical vision system, in relation to the response properties of early visual cortex. We particularly focus on a Bayesian network with multinomial variables that can represent discrete feature spaces similar to hypercolumns combining minicolumns, enforce sparsity of activation to learn efficient representations, and explain divisive normalization. We demonstrate that maximal-likelihood learning using sampling-based Bayesian inference gives rise to classical receptive field properties similar to V1 simple cells and V2 cells, while inference performed on the trained network yields nonclassical context-dependent response properties such as cross-orientation suppression and filling in. Comparison with known physiological properties reveals some qualitative and quantitative similarities.     

Colorimetric microdetermination of sulphites in foods by use of the modified rankine apparatus. IV.

Summary Detection and determination of traces of sulphites in foods was attempted by use of the modified Rankine apparatus and pararosaniline colorimetry. Replacement of alkaline titration reported previously by pararosaniline colorimetry lowered the absolute detection limit from 30 g (titration method) to 2 g. In view of clean analysis, in the color developing system, 0.1 N-sodium hydroxide was used in place of mercuric chloride solution commonly used as an absorbant of sulphites. In order to prevent oxidative decomposition of sulphites during operation, nitrogen gas was used as carrier instead of air. Dimedone and sodium azide were used for the elimination of aldehydes and nitrites, respecitvely, in the sample, which will disturb the color development of sulphites with pararosaniline-formaldehyde reagents. With this improved method, it was possible to determine the residual sulphites in frozen peeled shrimps, sugared beans and other foods with low sulphite contents accurately.

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Colorimetrische Mikrobestimmung von Sulfiten in Lebensmitteln bei Anwendung der modifizierten IV. Rankine Apparatur

Zusammenfassung Geringe Sulfitmengen in Lebensmitteln (geschälte Garnelen, gezuckerte Bohnen) können colorimetrisch bestimmt werden. Die neuentwickelte Methode beruht auf einer Kombination von colorimetrischer Bestimmung mittels p-Rosanilin und der Bestimmungsmethode nach Rankine. Auf diese Weise lassen sich Gehalte von 2 g noch genau bestimmen. Bei der Farbentwicklung wurde das giftige Quecksilbertetrachlorid durch 0.1 n-NaOH ersetzt, anstelle von Luft Stickstoff als Trägergas verwendet und somit eine Oxydation des Sulfits während der Bestimmung vermieden. Da Nitrit und Aldehyde die Farbentwicklung stören, wurde ihr Einfluß durch Dimedon und Natriumazid ausgeschaltet.

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Studies on the Analyses of Sulphites in Foods (IV)     

ISS experiments for the clarification of boiling and two-phase flow in microgravity and for the development of high-performance space cold plates

Inflow boiling, gravity effects on the distribution of both phases are observed in a heated tube and heat transfer coefficients due to two-phase forced convection is deteriorated in microgravity. In narrow channels between heated and unheated plates, the increase in subcooling enlarges a size of flattened bubble and reduces the frequency of detachment under microgravity conditions resulting the emphasis of heat transfer deterioration. To clarify reasons for the unknown behaviors of interfacial distribution and corresponding characteristics in heat transfer not easily be clarified through the experiments on ground, the opportunity on the experiments utilizing long-term microgravity duration realized in ISS is required. The experiments on microgravity boiling and two-phase flow are proposed by the collaboration of researchers in five countries. A common test loop is designed to conduct multiple experiments by the interchangeable structures of test sections; a transparent heated tube for the visualized flow boiling, a stainless tube for the measurement of CHF data, a copper surface for the heat transfer data of nucleate boiling with superimposed liquid flows in a duct, a glass heated plate with multiple array of small temperature sensors and transparent heaters for the clarification of mechanisms in nucleate boiling heat transfer, and one or two models of cold plates for practical applications. A direction of researches in the present discipline is proposed based on the existing experimental results and on the idea developed by the present authors.     

Reusing Primitive and Acquired Motion Knowledge for Gait Generation of a Six-legged Robot Using Genetic Programming

There has been growing interest in motion planning problems for mobile robots. In this field, the main research is to generate a motion for a specific robot and task without previously acquired motions. However it is too wasteful not to use hard-earned acquired motions for other tasks. Here, we focus on a mechanism of reusing acquired motion knowledge and study a motion planning system able to generate and reuse motion knowledge. In this paper, we adopt a tree-based representation for expressing knowledge of motion, and propose a hierarchical knowledge for realizing a reuse mechanism. We construct a motion planning system using hierarchical knowledge as motion knowledge and using genetic programming as a learning method. We apply a proposed method for the gait generation task of a six-legged locomotion robot and show its availability with computer simulation.