Suggestions to the article: medical professionalism research characteristics and hotspots

Scientometrics - The article published on 5 July 2021 is well-written and of interest. However, some improvements could be made, such as ten Tables/Figures can be shortened to highlight the focused...     

Threshold privacy-preserving cloud auditing with multiple uploaders

International Journal of Information Security - Data integrity is a critical security issue in cloud storage. The data integrity checking schemes by a third-party auditor (TPA) have attracted a lot...     

RanGen: A Random Network Generator for Activity-on-the-Node Networks

In this paper, we describe RanGen, a random network generator for generating activity-on-the-node networks and accompanying data for different classes of project scheduling problems. The objective is to construct random networks which satisfy preset values of the parameters used to control the hardness of a problem instance. Both parameters which are related to the network topology and resource-related parameters are implemented. The network generator meets the shortcomings of former network generators since it employs a wide range of different parameters which have been shown to serve as possible predictors of the hardness of different project scheduling problems. Some of them have been implemented in former network generators while others have not.     

A case of cognac adulteration

Summary Linear discriminant analysis of GLC-aromagram data is used to separate several classes of wine distillates, namely cognac, armagnac and brandy. In this paper we demonstrate how this method was used to detect adulteration. The adulteration was confirmed by the presence of ethyl heptanoate and limonene, which are well-known flavour compounds. They were analysed by means of a Purge and Trap headspace technique. Mass spectrometry was used to identify these flavours.

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Ein Beispiel für die Verfälschung von Cognac

Zusammenfassung Die Linear-Discriminanz-Analyse von GLC-Aromagramm-Daten wird zur Klassifizierung von Weindestillaten wie Cognac, Armagnac und Brandy verwendet. In dieser Arbeit werden mit dieser Methode Verfälschungen nachgewiesen, die durch die Gegenwart der Ethylester der Heptansäure und des Limonen belegt werden konnten. Diese Substanzen wurden mit der Purge- und Trap-Methode erfaßt und massenspektrometrisch identifiziert.

     

A classification of predictive-reactive project scheduling procedures

The vast majority of the project scheduling research efforts over the past several years have concentrated on the development of workable predictive baseline schedules, assuming complete information and a static and deterministic environment. During execution, however, a project may be subject to numerous schedule disruptions. Proactive-reactive project scheduling procedures try to cope with these disruptions through the combination of a proactive scheduling procedure for generating predictive baseline schedules that are hopefully robust in that they incorporate safety time to absorb anticipated disruptions with a reactive procedure that is invoked when a schedule breakage occurs during project execution. In this paper we discuss the results obtained by a large experimental design set up to evaluate several predictive-reactive resource-constrained project scheduling procedures under the composite objective of maximizing both the schedule stability and the timely project completion probability.     

New constructions of OSBE schemes and their applications in oblivious access control

Oblivious signature-based envelope (OSBE) schemes have demonstrated their potential applications in the protection of users privacy and rights. In an OSBE protocol, an encrypted message can only be decrypted by the receiver who holds a valid signature on a public message, while the sender (encrypter) does not know whether the receiver has the signature or not. Our major contributions in this work lie in the following aspects. We improve the notion of OSBE so that a valid credential holder cannot share his/her credential with other users (i.e., all-or-nothing non-transferability). We clarify the relationship between one-round OSBE and identity-based encryption (IBE) and show that one-round OSBE and semantically secure IBE against the adaptively chosen identity attack (IND-ID-CPA) are equivalent, if the signature in the OSBE scheme is existentially unforgeable against adaptively chosen message attacks. We propose an oblivious access control scheme to protect user privacy without the aid of any zero-knowledge proof. Finally, we also highlight some other novel applications of OSBE, such as attributed-based encryption.     

Securing DSR against wormhole attacks in multirate ad hoc networks

A wormhole attack is one of the hardest problems to detect whereas it can be easily implanted in any type of wireless ad hoc network. A wormhole attack can easily be launched by the attacker without having knowledge of the network or compromising any legitimate nodes. Most existing solutions either require special hardware devices or make strong assumptions in order to detect wormhole attacks which limit the usability of these solutions. In this paper, we present a security enhancement to dynamic source routing (DSR) protocol against wormhole attacks for ad hoc networks which relies on calculation of round trip time (RTT). Our protocol secures DSR against a wormhole attack in ad hoc networks for multirate transmissions. We also consider the processing and queuing delays of each participating node in the calculation of RTTs between neighbors which to date has not been addressed in the existing literature. This work provides two test cases that show that not taking multirate transmission into consideration results in miss identifying a wormhole attack.     

Critical power as an endurance index

The relationship between exhaustion time (t(lim)) and the work performed at the end of constant-power exercises can be described by a linear relationship (Wlim = a + b t(lim)) for work involving the whole body (eg cycling) or part of the body (eg knee extensions). The slope b in the equation is termed the critical power and has been proposed as an index of the capacity to perform work over a long period of time. The first objective of the present study was to compare the values of slopes b calculated from whole-body work of short duration, ie maximal and supra-maximal cycling exercises (slope b1), with the values calculated from the same work, the durations of which were between 3.5 and 35 min (slope b3), as in the protocols used by Scherrer and Monod (1960) for body-part work. Slope b1 was significantly higher than slope b3 in 10 subjects who performed 5 cycling exhausting exercises (60, 73, 86, 100 and 120% of maximal aerobic power (MAP) in watts). Exhaustion times corresponding to power outputs equivalent to b1 and b3 were equal to 29.0 +/- 19.1 min and 48.6 +/- 9.8 min respectively. Moreover, the exhaustion times at 60 and 73%,MAP were significantly correlated with slope b3 (expressed in %MAP) but not with slope b1. Consequently, slope b3 should be considered as the critical power instead of slope b1 as in some studies in the literature (Moritani et al, 1981). The second objective was to study the physiological significance of the critical power (slope b3) of whole-body work (cycling). The workload that corresponded to a lactate steady state was not significantly different from b3 (68.8 +/- 6.0 vs 68.7 +/- 6.3% MAP). Nevertheless, slope b3 represents a workload corresponding to a slight but significant drift of heart rate or oxygen uptake. These results probably explain why b3 is a power which can be maintained for a long time but not beyond about l h in an average subject.