Analysis of the peculiarity of the japanese software development style in offshore software development

Offshore software development (OSD) is now becoming a global trend. While western companies are using OSD effectively, Japanese companies have not yet used it effectively. Several studies have concluded that this is due to the peculiarity of the Japanese software development style in OSD and have pointed out the problems of Japanese OSD. However, the peculiarity of the Japanese software development style has not been identified yet. Therefore, this paper attempts to identify it. Most previous studies have described the problems of Japanese OSD without considering the software development method. We have focused on agile methods and attempted to analyze the problems pointed out previous studies in accordance with the features of agile methods. It was found that the Japanese software development style is agile‐like. In addition, a survey was conducted to find out what kind of software development method is being used in Japanese OSD projects. It was found that the waterfall method is mainly used. It is concluded that the peculiarity of the Japanese software development style and problems come from the conflict between the software development methods used and their actual implementations. IEEJ Trans 2010 DOI: 10.1002/tee.20605     

Temperature-responsive culture surfaces for insect cell sheets to fabricate a bioactuator

ABSTRACT

For the first time, we have fabricated insect-derived cell sheets by using temperature-responsive culture surfaces having a phase-transition temperature below 25°C. We prepared the temperature-responsive cell culture surfaces (tissue culture polystyrene, TCPS) by grafting a copolymeric gel consisting of hydrophobic N-tert-butylacrylamide (tBAAm) and N-isopropylacrylamide (IPAAm) units. First, to characterize the hydrophilic and hydrophobic properties of the copolymeric gel-grafted surfaces, static water contact angles of each surface were measured at various temperatures. By increasing the amount of tBAAm in the grafted copolymeric gel, the transition temperature of the gel was shifted to lower temperatures. At 25°C, the grafted copolymeric gel was dehydrated, and the insect-derived cells (AeAl2 cells) adhered on all the copolymeric gel-grafted surfaces. At 20°C, AeAl2 cells cannot adhere on the P(IPAAm-1.62tBAAm)-TCPS surface (the initial molar ratio of IPAAm and tBAAm (tBAAm?=?1.62 mol%)) better than on other surfaces (TCPS and tBAAm?=?4.88, 8.17 mol%). These two findings implied that the lower critical solution temperature of the copolymeric gel-grafted-TCPS existed from 20°C to 25°C. The laminin-coated P(IPAAm-1.62tBAAm)-TCPS surface showed temperature-dependent cell attachment and detachment properties, while AeAl2 cells were not detached from the extracellular matrix uncoated P(IPAAm-1.62tBAAm)-TCPS surface. AeAl2 cells and insect muscle cells were harvested as the respective sheets.     

Improving the shelf life stability of vacuum-packed fresh-cut peaches (Prunus persica L.) by radio frequency heating in water

The present study aimed to investigate the influence of radio frequency (RF) heating at 70 and 80 °C, in comparison with the traditional conventional heating. The RF heating technology was applied for maintaining the colour and textural quality as well as inactivating the enzymatic activity of polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and reducing the Escherichia coli growth in packaged fresh-cut peach samples. To evaluate this, 120 g of freshly cut peach fruit was placed in heat-resistant plastic bags, and 50 mL of sugar solution (12°Brix) was added to each bag and vacuum-packed for conventional heating and radio frequency (RF) heating. Our results demonstrated that the RF heating process could reduce the heating time by up to 83% at 70 and 80 °C as compared to conventional heating. Moreover, RF heating at 70 and 80 °C reduced the PPO enzymatic activity, which caused enzymatic browning, up to 85.46% and 93.5%, respectively, as compared to 40.86% reduction only for conventional heating. Furthermore, RF heating completely inhibited E. coli growth. Collectively, we demonstrated that RF heating is an emerging and promising technology for improving the quality of fresh-cut fruits such as peach during various storage conditions. The present study provides relatively novel information on the effectiveness of RF heating in maintaining the quality of fresh-cut peaches. In the future, we would like to investigate the effectiveness of RF heating on other agricultural products.     

Effects of water-soluble soybean polysaccharide on rheological properties,stability and lipid digestibility of oil-in-water emulsion during in vitro gastrointestinal digestion

Water-soluble soybean polysaccharide (SSPS) is a naturally occurring emulsifier. SSPS was used as the sole emulsifier to stabilize an oil-in-water (O/W) emulsion. The effects were investigated of different SSPS concentrations (3–20% (w/w)) on the lipid digestibility, rheological properties and stability of O/W emulsions during in vitro digestion model. The droplet size of the emulsions tended to increase during the oral phase because the emulsions were unstable and droplets coalesced, except with a SSPS concentration of 20% (w/w). The presence of SSPS markedly reduced the free fatty acid (FFA) content after its stabilized O/W emulsion passed through in vitro gastrointestinal digestion. The amount of FFA significantly decreased as the concentration of SSPS increased due to SSPS stabilization film on oil droplet surface and high viscous system. SSPS may be an attractive alternative ingredient to control the lipid digestibility of emulsions for various food products.     

Gradient-index lens-array method based on real-time integral photography for three-dimensional images

Because a three-dimensional (3-D) autostereoscopic image can be seen from a desired viewpoint without the aid of special viewing glasses, integral photography (IP) is an ideal way to create 3-D autostereoscopic images. We have already proposed a real-time IP method that offers 3-D autostereoscopic images of moving objects in real time by use of a microlens array and a high-definition television camera. But there are two problems yet to be resolved: One is pseudoscopic images that show a reversed depth representation. The other is interference between the element images that constitute a 3-D autostereoscopic image. We describe a new gradient-index lense-array method based on real-time IP to overcome these two problems. Experimental results indicating the advantages of this method are shown. These results suggest the possibility of using a gradient-index lens array for real-time IP.     

High-Intensity Discharge Lamp with Mo–SiO2 Functionally Graded Material

We show the invention of the new type of hermetically sealed high-intensity discharge lamps, made of Mo–SiO₂ functionally graded material (FGM) as an electrode and a sealing component. In the case of high-intensity discharge lamps with Mo–SiO₂ FGM (FGM lamp), the thermal expansion coefficient between Mo and SiO₂ is functionally graded so that it tolerates a large number of heating cycles, with no cooling system required. Furthermore, lamps survive without breakage. The W electrode is totally separated from the lamp envelope by the FGM, so that no leakage of the luminous elements or gases takes place, when a large gas pressure exists inside a lamp.     

Quantitative measurement of hard x-ray spectra for high intensity laser produced plasma

X-ray line spectra ranging from 17 to 77 keV were quantitatively measured with a Laue spectrometer, composed of a cylindrically curved crystal and a detector. Either a visible CCD detector coupled with a CsI phosphor screen or an imaging plate can be chosen, depending on the signal intensities and exposure times. The absolute sensitivity of the spectrometer system was calibrated using pre-characterized laser-produced x-ray sources and radioisotopes. The integrated reflectivity for the crystal is in good agreement with predictions by an open code for x-ray diffraction. The energy transfer efficiency from incident laser beams to hot electrons, as the energy transfer agency for specific x-ray line emissions, is derived as a consequence of this work.     

Nitridation enhancing effect of ZrO2 on silicon powder

The nitridation behavior of silicon powder with added Zr compounds was studied in order to assess the catalytic effect of zirconium on the formation of reaction bonded silicon nitride, using high purity silicon powder and monoclinic zirconia as starting materials. Thermogravimetric analysis revealed that the addition of ZrO₂ to Si powder reduced the temperature of the main nitridation reaction, and increased the amount of silicon converted to silicon nitride at a given temperature. On the other hand, the nitridation rate at higher temperatures (1380-1400 °C) indicated similar values for both pure Si and Si with ZrO₂ additions.     

Hazard curve evaluation method development for a forest fire as an external hazard on nuclear power plants

A method to obtain a hazard curve of a forest fire was developed. The method has four steps: a logic tree formulation, a response surface evaluation, a Monte Carlo simulation, and an annual exceedance frequency calculation. The logic tree consists domains of “forest fire breakout and spread conditions”, “weather conditions”, “vegetation conditions”, and “forest fire simulation conditions.” Condition parameters of the logic boxes are static if stable during a forest fire or not sensitive to a forest fire intensity, and non-static parameters are variables whose frequency/probability is given based on existing databases or evaluations. Response surfaces of a reaction intensity and a fireline intensity were prepared by interpolating outputs from a number of forest fire propagation simulations by fire area simulator (FARSITE). The Monte Carlo simulation was performed where one sample represented a set of variable parameters of the logic boxes and a corresponding intensity was evaluated from the response surface. The hazard curve, i.e. an annual exceedance frequency of the intensity, was therefore calculated from the histogram of the Monte Carlo simulation outputs. The new method was applied to evaluate hazard curves of a reaction intensity and a fireline intensity for a typical location around a sodium-cooled fast reactor in Japan.     

Spermiogenesis is impaired in mice bearing a targeted mutation in the protein phosphatase 1cgamma gene

Type 1 protein phosphatases (PP1) are involved in diverse cellular activities, ranging from glycogen metabolism to chromatin structure modification, mitosis, and meiosis. The holoenzymes are composed of two or more subunits, including a catalytic subunit (PP1c) and one or more regulatory subunits. Many eukaryotes possess several catalytic subunit genes which encode highly conserved isoforms. In rodents, one of these isoforms, PP1cgamma2, appears to be expressed predominantly in testes. Whether PP1cgamma2 performs a testis-specific function is unclear. To address this and other questions, the PP1cgamma gene was disrupted by targeted insertion in murine embryonic stem cells. Mice derived from these cells were viable, and homozygous females were fertile. However, males homozygous for the targeted insertion were infertile. Histological examination revealed severe impairment of spermiogenesis beginning at the round spermatid stage. In addition, defects in meiosis were inferred from the presence of polyploid spermatids. Immunohistochemistry revealed the presence of PP1calpha protein on condensing spermatids in both wild-type and mutant testes, suggesting that this closely related isoform is unable to compensate for the loss of PP1cgamma. These defects are discussed in the light of known functions of protein phosphatase 1.