A Framework for Integrating Non-Functional Requirements into Conceptual Models

The development of complex information systems calls for conceptual models that describe aspects beyond entities and activities. In particular, recent research has pointed out that conceptual models need to model goals, in order to capture the intentions which underlie complex situations within an organisational context. This paper focuses on one class of goals, namely non-functional requirements (NFR), which need to be captured and analysed from the very early phases of the software development process. The paper presents a framework for integrating NFRs into the ER and OO models. This framework has been validated by two case studies, one of which is very large. The results of the case studies suggest that goal modelling during early phases can lead to a more productive and complete modelling activity.       

Response of Corn Seedlings (Zea mays L.) to Different Concentrations of Nitrogen in Absence and Presence of Silicon

Silicon - Corn plants are highly demanding of nitrogen and the application of silicon has been studied because it minimizes stress from different natures, and for the better utilization of some...     

Can imageability help us draw the line between storage and composition?

Language requires both storage and composition. However, exactly what is retrieved from memory and what is assembled remains controversial, especially for inflected words. Here, “imageability effects” is introduced as a new diagnostic of storage and a complement to frequency effects. In 2 studies of past-tense morphology, more reliable imageability and frequency effects were found on irregulars than on regulars. An interaction with sex was also observed: Males but not females showed more reliable frequency and imageability effects for irregulars than for regulars; females but not males showed signs of storage for regulars, particularly among higher frequency forms. Overall, the findings validate imageability effects as another diagnostic of storage and suggest that the line between storage and computation is not a simple function; rather, it depends upon the interplay of both item- and subject-specific factors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Montmorillonite as support for peroxide in the melt grafting of maleic anhydride onto polypropylene

Grafting of maleic anhydride onto polypropylene was performed in a Haake torque rheometer, in the presence of organically modified montmorillonite, MMT (used as support for the peroxide), according to a 2³ factorial design, where the maleic anhydride concentration (C_MA), peroxide concentration (C_per) and reaction time (t_r) were varied. For comparison, the reaction in the absence of MMT was also conducted. Polypropylene degradation was assessed by parallel plate rheometry and size exclusion chromatography (SEC) and percentage of reacted maleic anhydride (%MA_g) was obtained by titration and FTIR spectroscopy. The results showed differences in both systems, conventional and in the presence of MMT. The structure of polypropylene grafted with maleic anhydride, PP‐g‐MA, indicates longer branches are formed in the presence of MMT compared to in its absence, demonstrated by FTIR analysis. As in conventional reaction systems, an increase in C_per caused an increase in %MA_g and a reduction in molar mass. The variable C_MA showed to be not significant in the grafting reaction in the presence of MMT, even at high DCP levels, at a 5% significance level. On the other hand, increase in C_MA resulted in significant increase in viscosity. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016 , 133, 44134.     

Doxycycline Decreases Atherosclerotic Lesions in the Aorta of ApoE-⁄- and Ovariectomized Mice with Correlation to Reduced MMP-2 Activity

Atherogenic events promote changes in vessel walls, with alteration of the redox state, and increased activity of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). Thus, this study aims to evaluate aortic remodeling, MMP activity, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels after treatment with doxycycline in ApoE^-⁄- and ovariectomized mice (OVX). Female ApoE^-⁄--knockout mice (5 weeks) were submitted to ovariectomy surgery to induce experimental menopause. They then received chow enriched with 1% cholesterol to induce hypercholesterolemia. The animals were divided into two experimental groups: ApoE^-⁄-/OVX vehicle and ApoE^-⁄-/OVX doxycycline (30 mg/kg) administered by gavage once a day for 28 days (15th to the 18th week of life). Blood samples were collected to measure total cholesterol and fractions. The aorta was used for morphometry and to measure the activity and expression of MMP-2 and ROS levels. The ApoE^-⁄-/OVX doxycycline group showed no change in total and fraction cholesterol levels. However, there was a reduction in ROS levels, MMP-2 expression, and activity that correlated with a decrease in atherosclerotic lesions relative to the ApoE^-⁄-/OVX vehicle (p > 0.05). Therefore, we conclude that doxycycline in ApoE^-⁄-/OVX animals promotes a reduction in atherosclerotic lesions by reducing ROS and MMP-2 activity and expression.     

Infiltrated La0.5Ba0.5CoO3-δ in La0.8Sr0.2Ga0.8Mg0.2O2.8 scaffolds as cathode material for IT-SOFC

The electrochemical response of infiltrated La_0.5Ba_0.5CoO_3-δ (LBC) in porous La_0.8Sr_0.2Ga_0.8Mg_0.2O_2.8 (LSGM) has been investigated. The thermal expansion coefficient (TEC) of the resulting electrode was measured, obtaining α?=?12.5?×?10^?6 K^?1, a value similar to that of LSGM. The polarization resistance (Rp) and the processes involved in the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) for the new electrode were studied and analyzed through complex impedance spectroscopy measurements as a function of temperature and oxygen partial pressure (pO₂), using a symmetrical cell. The value of Rp for the infiltrated LBC turned out to be lower than that measured for an electrode prepared with a composite LBC-LSGM (1:1?wt%) by an order of magnitude, for the temperature range 750?°C ≤ T?≤?900?°C, and about 5 times lower for the temperature range 450?°C≤ T?≤?650?°C. At 600?°C, the LBC infiltrated cathode exhibits a polarization resistance R_p =?0.22?Ω?cm², in air. The complex impedance spectra show two processes, one identified as low frequency (LF),with a characteristic frequency of 10?Hz, and the other as intermediate frequency (IF), with a range between 0.05 and 2000?Hz. The LF process could be associated to the diffusion of oxygen in the gas phase through the pores of the electrode. Its resistance, R_LF =?0.01?Ωc?m²_, was found to be independent of the temperature and half of that obtained for the LBC composite cathode. On the other hand, the IF process is related to charge transfer at the electrode surface and the electrode-electrolyte interface. The LBC cobaltite infiltrated in the LSGM scaffolds offers an adequate thermal expansion coefficient and good electrocatalytic activity for the ORR.     

Aryl phosphate derivatives of bromo-methoxy-azidothymidine are dual-function spermicides with potent anti-human immunodeficiency virus

Detergent-based vaginal microbicides, in addition to their high contraceptive failure rates, cause mucosal erosion and local inflammation that might increase the risk of heterosexual human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmission. In a systematic effort to identify a microbicide contraceptive potentially capable of preventing the sexual transmission of HIV as well as providing fertility control, a series of novel aryl phosphate derivatives of 5-bromo-6-methoxy-3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine (AZT; zidovudine) were synthesized and examined for dual anti-HIV and sperm-immobilizing activity (SIA). Whereas AZT displayed potent anti-HIV activity (IC50 = 0.006 microM) but lacked SIA (EC50 > 300 microM), two 5-bromo-6-methoxy-aryl phosphate derivatives of AZT, compounds WHI-05 and WHI-07, exhibited potent anti-HIV activity as well as SIA. The IC50 (HIV) and EC50 (SIA) values for WHI-07 were 439-fold and 13.5-fold lower, respectively, than those for the detergent-based virucidal spermicide, nonoxynol-9 (N-9). Sperm motion kinematics using computer-assisted sperm motion analysis combined with confocal laser scanning microscopy, high-resolution low-voltage scanning, and transmission electron microscopy demonstrated that both WHI-05 and WHI-07 cause a complete and irreversible loss of sperm motility in a concentration- and time-dependent fashion without concomitantly affecting the sperm acrosomal membrane integrity. In experiments designed to assess the fertilizing capacity of treated sperm, preincubation of sperm with either compound resulted in a concentration-dependent loss of the ability to adhere to and penetrate zona-free hamster eggs as well as inhibition of binding to human zona. WHI-07 applied intravaginally prior to artificial insemination of epididymal sperm drastically reduced fertility in hormonally primed CD-1 mice. Unlike the intravaginal application of N-9, repetitive intravaginal application of WHI-07 did not damage the vaginal epithelium or cause local inflammation. Structure-function relationship analyses showed that the addition of bromo-methoxy functional groups to AZT was essential for, and the aryl phosphate derivatization contributory to, the SIA of both compounds. Compounds WHI-05 and WHI-07 may be useful as dual-function vaginal contraceptives for women who are at high risk for acquiring HIV/acquired immunodeficiency virus syndrome by heterosexual vaginal transmission.     

Blood and plasma selenium levels and GSH-Px activities in patients with arterial hypertension and chronic heart disease

Among the 57 monoclonal antibodies analyzed within the T-cell group of the Second International Swine CD Workshop, one mAb fell within cluster T14a that included the CD6 standard a38b2 (No. 175). The new mAb MIL8 (No. 082) and a38b2 both precipitated from activated T-cells a 150 kDa monomeric protein. Staining patterns on the various cell types were similar. There was no inhibition of binding of either mAb to peripheral blood T-cells with the opposite mAb. The new mAb, MIL8, reacts with a separate epitope on porcine wCD6.     

3D reconstruction of tomographic images applied to largely spaced slices

This paper presents a full reconstruction process of magnetic resonance images. The first step is to bring the acquired data from the frequency domain, using a Fast Fourier Transform algorithm. A Tomographic Image Interpolation is then used to transform a sequence of tomographic slices in an isotropic volume data set, a process also called 3D Reconstruction. This work describes an automatic method whose interpolation stage is based on a previous matching stage using Delaunay Triangulation. The reconstruction approach uses an extrapolation procedure that permits appropriate treatment of the boundaries of the object under analysis.