Integrated System Health Management (ISHM) Technology Demonstration Project Final Report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mackey, Ryan; Iverson, David; Pisanich, Greg; Toberman, Mike; Hicks, Ken

2006-01-01

Integrated System Health Management (ISHM) is an essential capability that will be required to enable upcoming explorations mission systems such as the Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) and Crew Launch Vehicle (CLV), as well as NASA aeronautics missions. However, the lack of flight experience and available test platforms have held back the infusion by NASA Ames Research Center (ARC) and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) of ISHM technologies into future space and aeronautical missions. To address this problem, a pioneer project was conceived to use a high-performance aircraft as a low-cost proxy to develop, mature, and verify the effectiveness of candidate ISHM technologies. Given the similarities between spacecraft and aircraft, an F/A-18 currently stationed at Dryden Flight Research Center (DFRC) was chosen as a suitable host platform for the test bed. This report describes how the test bed was conceived, how the technologies were integrated on to the aircraft, and how these technologies were matured during the project. It also describes the lessons learned during the project and a forward path for continued work.

Remote sensing and eLearning 2.0 for school education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Voss, Kerstin; Goetzke, Roland; Hodam, Henryk

2010-10-01

The "Remote Sensing in Schools" project aims at improving the integration of "Satellite remote sensing" into school teaching. Therefore, it is the project's overall objective to teach students in primary and secondary schools the basics and fields of application of remote sensing. Existing results show that many teachers are interested in remote sensing and at same time motivated to integrate it into their teaching. Despite the good intention, in the end, the implementation often fails due to the complexity and poor set-up of the information provided. Therefore, a comprehensive and well-structured learning platform on the topic of remote sensing is developed. The platform shall allow a structured introduction to the topic.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Nakafuji, Dora; Gouveia, Lauren

This project supports development of the next generation, integrated energy management infrastructure (EMS) able to incorporate advance visualization of behind-the-meter distributed resource information and probabilistic renewable energy generation forecasts to inform real-time operational decisions. The project involves end-users and active feedback from an Utility Advisory Team (UAT) to help inform how information can be used to enhance operational functions (e.g. unit commitment, load forecasting, Automatic Generation Control (AGC) reserve monitoring, ramp alerts) within two major EMS platforms. Objectives include: Engaging utility operations personnel to develop user input on displays, set expectations, test and review; Developing ease of use and timelinessmore » metrics for measuring enhancements; Developing prototype integrated capabilities within two operational EMS environments; Demonstrating an integrated decision analysis platform with real-time wind and solar forecasting information and timely distributed resource information; Seamlessly integrating new 4-dimensional information into operations without increasing workload and complexities; Developing sufficient analytics to inform and confidently transform and adopt new operating practices and procedures; Disseminating project lessons learned through industry sponsored workshops and conferences;Building on collaborative utility-vendor partnership and industry capabilities« less

Biochemical Platform Processing Integration

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

The objective of this project is to facilitate deployment of enzyme-based biomass conversion technology. The immediate goal is to explore integration issues that impact process performance and to demonstrate improved performance of the lower-cost enzymes being developed by Genencor and Novozymes.

The Generation Challenge Programme Platform: Semantic Standards and Workbench for Crop Science

PubMed Central

Bruskiewich, Richard; Senger, Martin; Davenport, Guy; Ruiz, Manuel; Rouard, Mathieu; Hazekamp, Tom; Takeya, Masaru; Doi, Koji; Satoh, Kouji; Costa, Marcos; Simon, Reinhard; Balaji, Jayashree; Akintunde, Akinnola; Mauleon, Ramil; Wanchana, Samart; Shah, Trushar; Anacleto, Mylah; Portugal, Arllet; Ulat, Victor Jun; Thongjuea, Supat; Braak, Kyle; Ritter, Sebastian; Dereeper, Alexis; Skofic, Milko; Rojas, Edwin; Martins, Natalia; Pappas, Georgios; Alamban, Ryan; Almodiel, Roque; Barboza, Lord Hendrix; Detras, Jeffrey; Manansala, Kevin; Mendoza, Michael Jonathan; Morales, Jeffrey; Peralta, Barry; Valerio, Rowena; Zhang, Yi; Gregorio, Sergio; Hermocilla, Joseph; Echavez, Michael; Yap, Jan Michael; Farmer, Andrew; Schiltz, Gary; Lee, Jennifer; Casstevens, Terry; Jaiswal, Pankaj; Meintjes, Ayton; Wilkinson, Mark; Good, Benjamin; Wagner, James; Morris, Jane; Marshall, David; Collins, Anthony; Kikuchi, Shoshi; Metz, Thomas; McLaren, Graham; van Hintum, Theo

2008-01-01

The Generation Challenge programme (GCP) is a global crop research consortium directed toward crop improvement through the application of comparative biology and genetic resources characterization to plant breeding. A key consortium research activity is the development of a GCP crop bioinformatics platform to support GCP research. This platform includes the following: (i) shared, public platform-independent domain models, ontology, and data formats to enable interoperability of data and analysis flows within the platform; (ii) web service and registry technologies to identify, share, and integrate information across diverse, globally dispersed data sources, as well as to access high-performance computational (HPC) facilities for computationally intensive, high-throughput analyses of project data; (iii) platform-specific middleware reference implementations of the domain model integrating a suite of public (largely open-access/-source) databases and software tools into a workbench to facilitate biodiversity analysis, comparative analysis of crop genomic data, and plant breeding decision making. PMID:18483570

Framework Programmable Platform for the Advanced Software Development Workstation: Preliminary system design document

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mayer, Richard J.; Blinn, Thomas M.; Mayer, Paula S. D.; Ackley, Keith A.; Crump, John W., IV; Henderson, Richard; Futrell, Michael T.

1991-01-01

The Framework Programmable Software Development Platform (FPP) is a project aimed at combining effective tool and data integration mechanisms with a model of the software development process in an intelligent integrated software environment. Guided by the model, this system development framework will take advantage of an integrated operating environment to automate effectively the management of the software development process so that costly mistakes during the development phase can be eliminated. The focus here is on the design of components that make up the FPP. These components serve as supporting systems for the Integration Mechanism and the Framework Processor and provide the 'glue' that ties the FPP together. Also discussed are the components that allow the platform to operate in a distributed, heterogeneous environment and to manage the development and evolution of software system artifacts.

Modelling and Forecasting of Rice Yield in support of Crop Insurance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weerts, A.; van Verseveld, W.; Trambauer, P.; de Vries, S.; Conijn, S.; van Valkengoed, E.; Hoekman, D.; Hengsdijk, H.; Schrevel, A.

2016-12-01

The Government of Indonesia has embarked on a policy to bring crop insurance to all of Indonesia's farmers. To support the Indonesian government, the G4INDO project (www.g4indo.org) is developing/constructing an integrated platform for judging and handling insurance claims. The platform consists of bringing together remote sensed data (both visible and radar) and hydrologic and crop modelling and forecasting to improve predictions in one forecasting platform (i.e. Delft-FEWS, Werner et al., 2013). The hydrological model and crop model (LINTUL) are coupled on time stepping basis in the OpenStreams framework (see https://github.com/openstreams/wflow) and deployed in a Delft-FEWS forecasting platform to support seasonal forecasting of water availability and crop yield. First we will show the general idea about the project, the integrated platform (including Sentinel 1 & 2 data) followed by first (reforecast) results of the coupled models for predicting water availability and crop yield in the Brantas catchment in Java, Indonesia. Werner, M., Schellekens, J., Gijsbers, P., Van Dijk, M., Van den Akker, O. and Heynert K, 2013. The Delft-FEWS flow forecasting system, Environmental Modelling & Software; 40:65-77. DOI: 10.1016/j.envsoft.2012.07.010 .

Educational process in modern climatology within the web-GIS platform "Climate"

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gordova, Yulia; Gorbatenko, Valentina; Gordov, Evgeny; Martynova, Yulia; Okladnikov, Igor; Titov, Alexander; Shulgina, Tamara

2013-04-01

These days, common to all scientific fields the problem of training of scientists in the environmental sciences is exacerbated by the need to develop new computational and information technology skills in distributed multi-disciplinary teams. To address this and other pressing problems of Earth system sciences, software infrastructure for information support of integrated research in the geosciences was created based on modern information and computational technologies and a software and hardware platform "Climate» (http://climate.scert.ru/) was developed. In addition to the direct analysis of geophysical data archives, the platform is aimed at teaching the basics of the study of changes in regional climate. The educational component of the platform includes a series of lectures on climate, environmental and meteorological modeling and laboratory work cycles on the basics of analysis of current and potential future regional climate change using Siberia territory as an example. The educational process within the Platform is implemented using the distance learning system Moodle (www.moodle.org). This work is partially supported by the Ministry of education and science of the Russian Federation (contract #8345), SB RAS project VIII.80.2.1, RFBR grant #11-05-01190a, and integrated project SB RAS #131.

Biomass pre-extraction, hydrolysis and conversion process improvements fro an integrated biorefinery

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Jansen, Robert

In this project, Virdia will show that it can improve the production of sugars suitable for the conversion into advanced biofuels from a range of woods. Several biomass feedstocks (Pine wood chips & Eucalyptus wood chips) will be tested on this new integrated biorefinery platform. The resultant drop-in biodiesel can be a cost-effective petroleum-replacement that can compete with projected market prices

Multifunctional Web Enabled Ocean Sensor Systems for the Monitoring of a Changing Ocean

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pearlman, Jay; Castro, Ayoze; Corrandino, Luigi; del Rio, Joaquin; Delory, Eric; Garello, Rene; Heuermann, Rudinger; Martinez, Enoc; Pearlman, Francoise; Rolin, Jean-Francois; Toma, Daniel; Waldmann, Christoph; Zielinski, Oliver

2016-04-01

As stated in the 2010 "Ostend Declaration", a major challenge in the coming years is the development of a truly integrated and sustainably funded European Ocean Observing System for supporting major policy initiatives such as the Integrated Maritime Policy and the Marine Strategy Framework Directive. This will be achieved with more long-term measurements of key parameters supported by a new generation of sensors whose costs and reliability will enable broad and consistent observations. Within the NeXOS project, a framework including new sensors capabilities and interface software has been put together that embraces the key technical aspects needed to improve the temporal and spatial coverage, resolution and quality of marine observations. The developments include new, low-cost, compact and integrated sensors with multiple functionalities that will allow for the measurements useful for a number of objectives, ranging from more precise monitoring and modeling of the marine environment to an improved assessment of fisheries. The project is entering its third year and will be demonstrating initial capabilities of optical and acoustic sensor prototypes that will become available for a number of platforms. For fisheries management, there is also a series of sensors that support an Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries (EAF). The greatest capabilities for comprehensive operations will occur when these sensors can be integrated into a multisensory capability on a single platform or multiply interconnected and coordinated platforms. Within NeXOS the full processing steps starting from the sensor signal all the way up to distributing collected environmental information will be encapsulated into standardized new state of the art Smart Sensor Interface and Web components to provide both improved integration and a flexible interface for scientists to control sensor operation. The use of the OGC SWE (Sensor Web Enablement) set of standards like OGC PUCK and SensorML at the instrument to platform integration phase will provide standard mechanisms for a truly plug'n'work connection. Through this, NeXOS Instruments will maintain within themselves specific information about how a platform (buoy controller, AUV controller, Observatory controller) has to configure and communicate with the instrument without the platform needing previous knowledge about the instrument. This mechanism is now being evaluated in real platforms like a Slocum Glider from Teledyne Web research, SeaExplorer Glider from Alseamar, Provor Float from NKE, and others including non commercial platforms like Obsea seafloor cabled observatory. The latest developments in the NeXOS sensors and the integration into an observation system will be discussed, addressing demonstration plans both for a variety of platforms and scientific objectives supporting marine management.

A Prototype Greek Text to Greek Sign Language Conversion System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kouremenos, Dimitris; Fotinea, Stavroula-Evita; Efthimiou, Eleni; Ntalianis, Klimis

2010-01-01

In this article, a prototype Greek text to Greek Sign Language (GSL) conversion system is presented. The system is integrated into an educational platform that addresses the needs of teaching GSL grammar and was developed within the SYNENNOESE project (Efthimiou "et al." 2004a. Developing an e-learning platform for the Greek sign…

Teacher Perception on Educational Informatics Network: A Qualitative Study of a Turkish Anatolian High School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Karalar, Halit; Dogan, Ugur

2017-01-01

FATIH Project carried out by the Turkish government is one of the comprehensive technology integration project in the World. With this project, interactive boards, tablets and multifunctional printers have been distributed to schools and Internet infrastructure of schools improved. EIN (Educational Informatics Network) platform, known as EBA…

Integrated multi-sensor package (IMSP) for unmanned vehicle operations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crow, Eddie C.; Reichard, Karl; Rogan, Chris; Callen, Jeff; Seifert, Elwood

2007-10-01

This paper describes recent efforts to develop integrated multi-sensor payloads for small robotic platforms for improved operator situational awareness and ultimately for greater robot autonomy. The focus is on enhancements to perception through integration of electro-optic, acoustic, and other sensors for navigation and inspection. The goals are to provide easier control and operation of the robot through fusion of multiple sensor outputs, to improve interoperability of the sensor payload package across multiple platforms through the use of open standards and architectures, and to reduce integration costs by embedded sensor data processing and fusion within the sensor payload package. The solutions investigated in this project to be discussed include: improved capture, processing and display of sensor data from multiple, non-commensurate sensors; an extensible architecture to support plug and play of integrated sensor packages; built-in health, power and system status monitoring using embedded diagnostics/prognostics; sensor payload integration into standard product forms for optimized size, weight and power; and the use of the open Joint Architecture for Unmanned Systems (JAUS)/ Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) AS-4 interoperability standard. This project is in its first of three years. This paper will discuss the applicability of each of the solutions in terms of its projected impact to reducing operational time for the robot and teleoperator.

INTEGRATING MESO-AND MICRO-SIMULATION MODELS TO EVALUATE TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES, YEAR 2

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2017-07-04

In the Year 1 Report, the Arizona State University (ASU) Project Team described the development of a hierarchical multi-resolution simulation platform to test proactive traffic management strategies. The scope was to integrate an easily available mic...

Wolfram technologies as an integrated scalable platform for interactive learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaurov, Vitaliy

2012-02-01

We rely on technology profoundly with the prospect of even greater integration in the future. Well known challenges in education are a technology-inadequate curriculum and many software platforms that are difficult to scale or interconnect. We'll review an integrated technology, much of it free, that addresses these issues for individuals and small schools as well as for universities. Topics include: Mathematica, a programming environment that offers a diverse range of functionality; natural language programming for getting started quickly and accessing data from Wolfram|Alpha; quick and easy construction of interactive courseware and scientific applications; partnering with publishers to create interactive e-textbooks; course assistant apps for mobile platforms; the computable document format (CDF); teacher-student and student-student collaboration on interactive projects and web publishing at the Wolfram Demonstrations site.

Future Directions for Astronomical Image Display

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mandel, Eric

2000-01-01

In the "Future Directions for Astronomical Image Displav" project, the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO) and the National Optical Astronomy Observatories (NOAO) evolved our existing image display program into fully extensible. cross-platform image display software. We also devised messaging software to support integration of image display into astronomical analysis systems. Finally, we migrated our software from reliance on Unix and the X Window System to a platform-independent architecture that utilizes the cross-platform Tcl/Tk technology.

The QSPR-THESAURUS: the online platform of the CADASTER project.

PubMed

Brandmaier, Stefan; Peijnenburg, Willie; Durjava, Mojca K; Kolar, Boris; Gramatica, Paola; Papa, Ester; Bhhatarai, Barun; Kovarich, Simona; Cassani, Stefano; Roy, Partha Pratim; Rahmberg, Magnus; Öberg, Tomas; Jeliazkova, Nina; Golsteijn, Laura; Comber, Mike; Charochkina, Larisa; Novotarskyi, Sergii; Sushko, Iurii; Abdelaziz, Ahmed; D'Onofrio, Elisa; Kunwar, Prakash; Ruggiu, Fiorella; Tetko, Igor V

2014-03-01

The aim of the CADASTER project (CAse Studies on the Development and Application of in Silico Techniques for Environmental Hazard and Risk Assessment) was to exemplify REACH-related hazard assessments for four classes of chemical compound, namely, polybrominated diphenylethers, per and polyfluorinated compounds, (benzo)triazoles, and musks and fragrances. The QSPR-THESAURUS website (http: / /qspr-thesaurus.eu) was established as the project's online platform to upload, store, apply, and also create, models within the project. We overview the main features of the website, such as model upload, experimental design and hazard assessment to support risk assessment, and integration with other web tools, all of which are essential parts of the QSPR-THESAURUS. 2014 FRAME.

Opportunities of CMOS-MEMS integration through LSI foundry and open facility

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mita, Yoshio; Lebrasseur, Eric; Okamoto, Yuki; Marty, Frédéfic; Setoguchi, Ryota; Yamada, Kentaro; Mori, Isao; Morishita, Satoshi; Imai, Yoshiaki; Hosaka, Kota; Hirakawa, Atsushi; Inoue, Shu; Kubota, Masanori; Denoual, Matthieu

2017-06-01

Since the 2000s, several countries have established micro- and nanofabrication platforms for the research and education community as national projects. By combining such platforms with VLSI multichip foundry services, various integrated devices, referred to as “CMOS-MEMS”, can be realized without constructing an entire cleanroom. In this paper, we summarize MEMS-last postprocess schemes for CMOS devices on a bulk silicon wafer as well as on a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafer using an open-access cleanroom of the Nanotechnology Platform of MEXT Japan. The integration devices presented in this article are free-standing structures and postprocess isolated LSI devices. Postprocess issues are identified with their solutions, such as the reactive ion etching (RIE) lag for dry release and the impact of the deep RIE (DRIE) postprocess on transistor characteristics. Integration with nonsilicon materials is proposed as one of the future directions.

Integrating clinical and biological information in a shanghai biobank: an introduction to the sample repository and information sharing platform project.

PubMed

Cui, Wenbin; Zheng, Peiyong; Yang, Jiahong; Zhao, Rong; Gao, Jiechun; Yu, Guangjun

2015-02-01

Biobanks are important resources and central tools for translational medicine, which brings scientific research outcomes to clinical practice. The key purpose of biobanking in translational medicine and other medical research is to provide biological samples that are integrated with clinical information. In 2008, the Shanghai Municipal Government launched the "Shanghai Tissue Bank" in an effort to promote research in translational medicine. Now a sharing service platform has been constructed to integrate clinical practice and biological information that can be used in diverse medical and pharmaceutical research studies. The platform collects two kinds of data: sample data and clinical data. The sample data are obtained from the hospital biobank management system, and mainly include the donors' age, gender, marital status, sample source, sample type, collection time, deposit time, and storage method. The clinical data are collected from the "Hospital-Link" system (a medical information sharing system that connects 23 tertiary hospitals in Shanghai). The main contents include donors' corresponding medication information, test reports, inspection reports, and hospital information. As of the end of September 2014, the project has a collection of 16,020 donors and 148,282 samples, which were obtained from 12 medical institutions, and automatically acquired donors' corresponding clinical data from the "Hospital-Link" system for 6830 occurrences. This project will contribute to scientific research at medical institutions in Shanghai, and will also support the development of the biopharmaceutical industry. In this article, we will describe the significance, the construction phases, the application prospects, and benefits of the sample repository and information sharing service platform.

Development of an Online Platform to Support the Network of Caregivers of People with Dementia.

PubMed

Verwey, Renée; van Berlo, Miranda; Duymelinck, Saskia; Willard, Sarah; van Rossum, Erik

2016-01-01

In the Netherlands, care technology is used insufficiently to support people with dementia, their family and professional caregivers. In this project we integrate a range of services and applications into an online platform, with the aim to strengthen these networks and to support communication between their members. The prototype of the platform was made in an iterative user centered way. Semi structured (group) interviews were conducted to specify the requirements. The platform consists of 'cubes' with information about dementia (care), video communication options, a calendar and a care plan. The first prototype of the platform was valued by the participants, but privacy matters and registration issues were pointed out when using a shared care plan. Additional applications to monitor health and safety will be integrated in the second prototype. This prototype will be tested on its usability, feasibility and desirability during a pilot study in spring 2016.

Evaluating Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality Training for Industrial Maintenance and Assembly Tasks

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gavish, Nirit; Gutiérrez, Teresa; Webel, Sabine; Rodríguez, Jorge; Peveri, Matteo; Bockholt, Uli; Tecchia, Franco

2015-01-01

The current study evaluated the use of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) platforms, developed within the scope of the SKILLS Integrated Project, for industrial maintenance and assembly (IMA) tasks training. VR and AR systems are now widely regarded as promising training platforms for complex and highly demanding IMA tasks. However,…

Investigating the Primary School Teachers' Perspectives on the Use of Education Platforms in Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Uredi, Lütfi; Akbasli, Sait; Ulum, Hakan

2016-01-01

Technology plays an important role in educational activities in Turkey. This is largely because of the Faith Project, which was recently introduced into the country. The Fatih Project is a project of Turkish government which seeks to integrate computer technology into the country's public education system. Education Informatics Network is one of…

GEMS Project: A Platform to Investigate Multiple Sclerosis Risk

PubMed Central

Xia, Zongqi; White, Charles C.; Owen, Emily K.; Von Korff, Alina; Clarkson, Sarah R.; McCabe, Cristin A.; Cimpean, Maria; Winn, Phoebe A.; Hoesing, Ashley; Steele, Sonya U.; Cortese, Irene C. M.; Chitnis, Tanuja; Weiner, Howard L.; Reich, Daniel S.; Chibnik, Lori B.; De Jager, Philip L.

2015-01-01

The Genes and Environment in Multiple Sclerosis (GEMS) project establishes a platform to investigate the events leading to MS in at-risk individuals. It has recruited 2,632 first-degree relatives from across the USA. Using an integrated genetic and environmental risk score, we identified subjects with twice the MS risk when compared to the average family member, and we report an initial incidence rate in these subjects that is 30 times greater than that of sporadic MS. We discuss the feasibility of large-scale studies of asymptomatic at-risk subjects that leverage modern tools of subject recruitment to execute collaborative projects. PMID:26583565

Technology for the future - Long range planning for space technology development

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Collier, Lisa D.; Breckenridge, Roger A.; Llewellyn, Charles P.

1992-01-01

NASA's Office of Aeronautics and Space Technology (OAST) has begun the definition of an Integrated Technology Plan for the civilian space program which guides long-term technology development for space platforms, in light of continuing marker research and other planning data. OAST has conferred particular responsibility for future candidate space mission evaluations and platform performance requirement projections to NASA-Langley. An implementation plan is devised which is amenable to periodic space-platform technology updates.

Cross border semantic interoperability for clinical research: the EHR4CR semantic resources and services

PubMed Central

Daniel, Christel; Ouagne, David; Sadou, Eric; Forsberg, Kerstin; Gilchrist, Mark Mc; Zapletal, Eric; Paris, Nicolas; Hussain, Sajjad; Jaulent, Marie-Christine; MD, Dipka Kalra

2016-01-01

With the development of platforms enabling the use of routinely collected clinical data in the context of international clinical research, scalable solutions for cross border semantic interoperability need to be developed. Within the context of the IMI EHR4CR project, we first defined the requirements and evaluation criteria of the EHR4CR semantic interoperability platform and then developed the semantic resources and supportive services and tooling to assist hospital sites in standardizing their data for allowing the execution of the project use cases. The experience gained from the evaluation of the EHR4CR platform accessing to semantically equivalent data elements across 11 European participating EHR systems from 5 countries demonstrated how far the mediation model and mapping efforts met the expected requirements of the project. Developers of semantic interoperability platforms are beginning to address a core set of requirements in order to reach the goal of developing cross border semantic integration of data. PMID:27570649

Framework Programmable Platform for the Advanced Software Development Workstation (FPP/ASDW). Demonstration framework document. Volume 1: Concepts and activity descriptions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mayer, Richard J.; Blinn, Thomas M.; Dewitte, Paul S.; Crump, John W.; Ackley, Keith A.

1992-01-01

The Framework Programmable Software Development Platform (FPP) is a project aimed at effectively combining tool and data integration mechanisms with a model of the software development process to provide an intelligent integrated software development environment. Guided by the model, this system development framework will take advantage of an integrated operating environment to automate effectively the management of the software development process so that costly mistakes during the development phase can be eliminated. The Advanced Software Development Workstation (ASDW) program is conducting research into development of advanced technologies for Computer Aided Software Engineering (CASE).

COBALT: Development of a Platform to Flight Test Lander GN&C Technologies on Suborbital Rockets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carson, John M., III; Seubert, Carl R.; Amzajerdian, Farzin; Bergh, Chuck; Kourchians, Ara; Restrepo, Carolina I.; Villapando, Carlos Y.; O'Neal, Travis V.; Robertson, Edward A.; Pierrottet, Diego;

Collaborative Wikipedia Projects in the Virtual Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kenny, A. J.; Wolt, J. D.; Hurd, H. S.

2013-01-01

Wikipedia is a web-based, free-content encyclopedia that is openly editable and, thus, provides a unique platform for collaborations. Wikipedia projects are increasingly being integrated into upper-level courses across the country to explore advanced concepts, communicate science, and provide high-quality information to the public. Here we outline…

Unified Plant Growth Model (UPGM). 1. Background, objectives, and vision.

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Since the development of the Environmental Policy Integrated Climate (EPIC) model in 1988, the EPIC-based plant growth code has been incorporated and modified into many agro-ecosystem models. The goals of the Unified Plant Growth Model (UPGM) project are: 1) integrating into one platform the enhance...

Flexible workflow sharing and execution services for e-scientists

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kacsuk, Péter; Terstyanszky, Gábor; Kiss, Tamas; Sipos, Gergely

2013-04-01

The sequence of computational and data manipulation steps required to perform a specific scientific analysis is called a workflow. Workflows that orchestrate data and/or compute intensive applications on Distributed Computing Infrastructures (DCIs) recently became standard tools in e-science. At the same time the broad and fragmented landscape of workflows and DCIs slows down the uptake of workflow-based work. The development, sharing, integration and execution of workflows is still a challenge for many scientists. The FP7 "Sharing Interoperable Workflow for Large-Scale Scientific Simulation on Available DCIs" (SHIWA) project significantly improved the situation, with a simulation platform that connects different workflow systems, different workflow languages, different DCIs and workflows into a single, interoperable unit. The SHIWA Simulation Platform is a service package, already used by various scientific communities, and used as a tool by the recently started ER-flow FP7 project to expand the use of workflows among European scientists. The presentation will introduce the SHIWA Simulation Platform and the services that ER-flow provides based on the platform to space and earth science researchers. The SHIWA Simulation Platform includes: 1. SHIWA Repository: A database where workflows and meta-data about workflows can be stored. The database is a central repository to discover and share workflows within and among communities . 2. SHIWA Portal: A web portal that is integrated with the SHIWA Repository and includes a workflow executor engine that can orchestrate various types of workflows on various grid and cloud platforms. 3. SHIWA Desktop: A desktop environment that provides similar access capabilities than the SHIWA Portal, however it runs on the users' desktops/laptops instead of a portal server. 4. Workflow engines: the ASKALON, Galaxy, GWES, Kepler, LONI Pipeline, MOTEUR, Pegasus, P-GRADE, ProActive, Triana, Taverna and WS-PGRADE workflow engines are already integrated with the execution engine of the SHIWA Portal. Other engines can be added when required. Through the SHIWA Portal one can define and run simulations on the SHIWA Virtual Organisation, an e-infrastructure that gathers computing and data resources from various DCIs, including the European Grid Infrastructure. The Portal via third party workflow engines provides support for the most widely used academic workflow engines and it can be extended with other engines on demand. Such extensions translate between workflow languages and facilitate the nesting of workflows into larger workflows even when those are written in different languages and require different interpreters for execution. Through the workflow repository and the portal lonely scientists and scientific collaborations can share and offer workflows for reuse and execution. Given the integrated nature of the SHIWA Simulation Platform the shared workflows can be executed online, without installing any special client environment and downloading workflows. The FP7 "Building a European Research Community through Interoperable Workflows and Data" (ER-flow) project disseminates the achievements of the SHIWA project and use these achievements to build workflow user communities across Europe. ER-flow provides application supports to research communities within and beyond the project consortium to develop, share and run workflows with the SHIWA Simulation Platform.

Small Projects Rapid Integration and Test Environment (SPRITE): Application for Increasing Robustness

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rakoczy, John; Heater, Daniel; Lee, Ashley

2013-01-01

Marshall Space Flight Center's (MSFC) Small Projects Rapid Integration and Test Environment (SPRITE) is a Hardware-In-The-Loop (HWIL) facility that provides rapid development, integration, and testing capabilities for small projects (CubeSats, payloads, spacecraft, and launch vehicles). This facility environment focuses on efficient processes and modular design to support rapid prototyping, integration, testing and verification of small projects at an affordable cost, especially compared to larger type HWIL facilities. SPRITE (Figure 1) consists of a "core" capability or "plant" simulation platform utilizing a graphical programming environment capable of being rapidly re-configured for any potential test article's space environments, as well as a standard set of interfaces (i.e. Mil-Std 1553, Serial, Analog, Digital, etc.). SPRITE also allows this level of interface testing of components and subsystems very early in a program, thereby reducing program risk.

A Model Collaborative Platform for Geoscience Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fox, S.; Manduca, C. A.; Iverson, E. A.

2012-12-01

Over the last decade SERC at Carleton College has developed a collaborative platform for geoscience education that has served dozens of projects, thousands of community authors and millions of visitors. The platform combines a custom technical infrastructure: the SERC Content Management system (CMS), and a set of strategies for building web-resources that can be disseminated through a project site, reused by other projects (with attribution) or accessed via an integrated geoscience education resource drawing from all projects using the platform. The core tools of the CMS support geoscience education projects in building project-specific websites. Each project uses the CMS to engage their specific community in collecting, authoring and disseminating the materials of interest to them. At the same time the use of a shared central infrastructure allows cross-fertilization among these project websites. Projects are encouraged to use common templates and common controlled vocabularies for organizing and displaying their resources. This standardization is then leveraged through cross-project search indexing which allow projects to easily incorporate materials from other projects within their own collection in ways that are relevant and automated. A number of tools are also in place to help visitors move among project websites based on their personal interests. Related links help visitors discover content related topically to their current location that is in a 'separate' project. A 'best bets' feature in search helps guide visitors to pages that are good starting places to explore resources on a given topic across the entire range of hosted projects. In many cases these are 'site guide' pages created specifically to promote a cross-project view of the available resources. In addition to supporting the cross-project exploration of specific themes the CMS also allows visitors to view the combined suite of resources authored by any particular community member. Automatically generated author profiles highlight the contributions an individual has made through any of the projects with an option for customization by the author. An overarching portal site provides a unified view of resources within this diverse set of geoscience education projects. The SERC CMS provides a common platform upon which individual projects can build their own identities, while allowing cross-project pollination and synergies to be realized without significant extra investment by each project. This is a sustainable model for a collaborative platform that takes advantage of the energy and resources of individual projects to advance larger community goals.

Modeling Community Engagement in an Undergraduate Course in Psychology at an HBCU

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Henderson, Dawn X.

2017-01-01

This article describes an undergraduate course in community psychology at an Historically Black University. The course integrated community engagement using a local neighborhood revitalization project as a platform for students to volunteer, prepare a historical analysis, and sense of community project. The course aims to fulfill a requirement…

Support Units for University Teaching Based on WWW.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marzo, J. L.; Estebanell, M.; Fabregat, R.; Ferres, F.; Verdu, T.

This paper describes a University of Girona (Spain) project in which an interdisciplinary group has created an integrated platform for teachers to use to create and publish dynamic and interactive teaching materials that make use of new information technologies. Project objectives are summarized and an overview is provided of the functions of the…

An Approach to Integrate a Space-Time GIS Data Model with High Performance Computers

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wang, Dali; Zhao, Ziliang; Shaw, Shih-Lung

2011-01-01

In this paper, we describe an approach to integrate a Space-Time GIS data model on a high performance computing platform. The Space-Time GIS data model has been developed on a desktop computing environment. We use the Space-Time GIS data model to generate GIS module, which organizes a series of remote sensing data. We are in the process of porting the GIS module into an HPC environment, in which the GIS modules handle large dataset directly via parallel file system. Although it is an ongoing project, authors hope this effort can inspire further discussions on the integration of GIS on highmore » performance computing platforms.« less

Hybrid Cloud Computing Environment for EarthCube and Geoscience Community

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, C. P.; Qin, H.

2016-12-01

The NSF EarthCube Integration and Test Environment (ECITE) has built a hybrid cloud computing environment to provides cloud resources from private cloud environments by using cloud system software - OpenStack and Eucalyptus, and also manages public cloud - Amazon Web Service that allow resource synchronizing and bursting between private and public cloud. On ECITE hybrid cloud platform, EarthCube and geoscience community can deploy and manage the applications by using base virtual machine images or customized virtual machines, analyze big datasets by using virtual clusters, and real-time monitor the virtual resource usage on the cloud. Currently, a number of EarthCube projects have deployed or started migrating their projects to this platform, such as CHORDS, BCube, CINERGI, OntoSoft, and some other EarthCube building blocks. To accomplish the deployment or migration, administrator of ECITE hybrid cloud platform prepares the specific needs (e.g. images, port numbers, usable cloud capacity, etc.) of each project in advance base on the communications between ECITE and participant projects, and then the scientists or IT technicians in those projects launch one or multiple virtual machines, access the virtual machine(s) to set up computing environment if need be, and migrate their codes, documents or data without caring about the heterogeneity in structure and operations among different cloud platforms.

Tools to Analyze Morphology and Spatially Mapped Molecular Data | Informatics Technology for Cancer Research (ITCR)

Cancer.gov

This project is to develop, deploy, and disseminate a suite of open source tools and integrated informatics platform that will facilitate multi-scale, correlative analyses of high resolution whole slide tissue image data, spatially mapped genetics and molecular data for cancer research. This platform will play an essential role in supporting studies of tumor initiation, development, heterogeneity, invasion, and metastasis.

PREPARE: innovative integrated tools and platforms for radiological emergency preparedness and post-accident response in Europe.

PubMed

Raskob, Wolfgang; Schneider, Thierry; Gering, Florian; Charron, Sylvie; Zhelezniak, Mark; Andronopoulos, Spyros; Heriard-Dubreuil, Gilles; Camps, Johan

2015-04-01

The PREPARE project that started in February 2013 and will end at the beginning of 2016 aims to close gaps that have been identified in nuclear and radiological preparedness in Europe following the first evaluation of the Fukushima disaster. Among others, the project will address the review of existing operational procedures for dealing with long-lasting releases and cross-border problems in radiation monitoring and food safety and further develop missing functionalities in decision support systems (DSS) ranging from improved source-term estimation and dispersion modelling to the inclusion of hydrological pathways for European water bodies. In addition, a so-called Analytical Platform will be developed exploring the scientific and operational means to improve information collection, information exchange and the evaluation of such types of disasters. The tools developed within the project will be partly integrated into the two DSS ARGOS and RODOS. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Scientific Programming Using Java and C: A Remote Sensing Example

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Prados, Donald; Johnson, Michael; Mohamed, Mohamed A.; Cao, Chang-Yong; Gasser, Jerry; Powell, Don; McGregor, Lloyd

1999-01-01

This paper presents results of a project to port code for processing remotely sensed data from the UNIX environment to Windows. Factors considered during this process include time schedule, cost, resource availability, reuse of existing code, rapid interface development, ease of integration, and platform independence. The approach selected for this project used both Java and C. By using Java for the graphical user interface and C for the domain model, the strengths of both languages were utilized and the resulting code can easily be ported to other platforms. The advantages of this approach are discussed in this paper.

Reconfigurable microfluidic pump enabled by opto-electrical-thermal transduction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Takeuchi, Masaru; Hagiwara, Masaya; Haulot, Gauvain; Ho, Chih-Ming

2013-10-01

Flexible integration of a microfluidic system comprising pumps, valves, and microchannels was realized by an optoelectronic reconfigurable microchannels (OERM) technique. Projecting a low light fluidic device pattern—e.g., pumps, valves, and channels—onto an OERM platform generates Joule heating and melts the substrate in the bright area on the platform; thus, the fluidic system can be reconfigured by changing the projected light pattern. Hexadecane was used as the substrate of the microfluidic system. The volume change of hexadecane during the liquid-solid phase transition was utilized to generate pumping pressure. The system can pump nanoliters of water within several seconds.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Akyol, Bora A.; Allwardt, Craig H.; Beech, Zachary W.

VOLTTRON is a flexible, reliable, and scalable platform for distributed control and sensing. VOLTTRON serves in four primary roles: •A reference platform for researchers to quickly develop control applications for transactive energy. •A reference platform with flexible data store support for energy analytics applications either in academia or in commercial enterprise. •A platform from which commercial enterprise can develop products without license issues and easily integrate into their product line. •An accelerator to drive industry adoption of transactive energy and advanced building energy analytics. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, with funding from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Building Technologies Office, developedmore » and maintains VOLTTRON as an open-source community project. VOLTTRON source code includes agent execution software; agents that perform critical services that enable and enhance VOLTTRON functionality; and numerous agents that utilize the platform to perform a specific function (fault detection, demand response, etc.). The platform supports energy, operational, and financial transactions between networked entities (equipment, organizations, buildings, grid, etc.) and enhance the control infrastructure of existing buildings through the use of open-source device communication, control protocols, and integrated analytics.« less

Utag for iTAG: Putting the "U and me" in the Integrated Tracking of Aquatic Animals in the Gulf of Mexico

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simoniello, C.; Currier, R. D.; Kirkpatrick, B. A.; Kobara, S.

2016-02-01

Exciting advances in aquatic animal tracking capabilities are contributing to the development of a national Animal Telemetry Network under the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System. Ongoing efforts in this arena with the Gulf of Mexico Coastal Ocean Observing System Regional Association (GCOOS-RA) and partners, have laid the foundation for innovative community engagement that uses the iTAG platform to enhance ocean literacy. Presented will be an example of how the Utag for iTAG campaign was developed as a community service project in a Pinellas County, Florida, elementary school where approximately 70% of the students are underserved and/or underrepresented and more than half are on free or reduced lunch. The project incorporates the integration of telemetry platforms in the Gulf, a student-led visual arts project to develop the program logo, crowdsourcing to raise money to purchase telemetry tags, and a communication network that includes interactions among students, formal and informal educators, and scientists from the United States and Canada. The work is part of a larger effort by the GCOOS-RA to develop its citizen science observing network for the Gulf of Mexico.

Design and study of geosciences data share platform :platform framework, data interoperability, share approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, H.; Yi, D.

2010-12-01

The Deep Exploration is one of the important approaches to the Geoscience research. Since 1980s we had started it and achieved a lot of data. Researchers usually integrate both data of space exploration and deep exploration to study geological structures and represent the Earth’s subsurface, and analyze and explain on the base of integrated data. Due to the different exploration approach it results the heterogeneity of data, and therefore the data achievement is always of the import issue to make the researchers confused. The problem of data share and interaction has to be solved during the development of the SinoProbe research project. Through the research of domestic and overseas well-known exploration project and geosciences data platform, the subject explores the solution of data share and interaction. Based on SOA we present the deep exploration data share framework which comprises three level: data level is used for the solution of data store and the integration of the heterogeneous data; medial level provides the data service of geophysics, geochemistry, etc. by the means of Web service, and carry out kinds of application combination by the use of GIS middleware and Eclipse RCP; interaction level provides professional and non-professional customer the access to different accuracy data. The framework adopts GeoSciML data interaction approach. GeoSciML is a geosciences information markup language, as an application of the OpenGIS Consortium’s (OGC) Geography Markup Language (GML). It transfers heterogeneous data into one earth frame and implements inter-operation. We dissertate in this article the solution how to integrate the heterogeneous data and share the data in the project of SinoProbe.

CNV Workshop: an integrated platform for high-throughput copy number variation discovery and clinical diagnostics.

PubMed

Gai, Xiaowu; Perin, Juan C; Murphy, Kevin; O'Hara, Ryan; D'arcy, Monica; Wenocur, Adam; Xie, Hongbo M; Rappaport, Eric F; Shaikh, Tamim H; White, Peter S

2010-02-04

Recent studies have shown that copy number variations (CNVs) are frequent in higher eukaryotes and associated with a substantial portion of inherited and acquired risk for various human diseases. The increasing availability of high-resolution genome surveillance platforms provides opportunity for rapidly assessing research and clinical samples for CNV content, as well as for determining the potential pathogenicity of identified variants. However, few informatics tools for accurate and efficient CNV detection and assessment currently exist. We developed a suite of software tools and resources (CNV Workshop) for automated, genome-wide CNV detection from a variety of SNP array platforms. CNV Workshop includes three major components: detection, annotation, and presentation of structural variants from genome array data. CNV detection utilizes a robust and genotype-specific extension of the Circular Binary Segmentation algorithm, and the use of additional detection algorithms is supported. Predicted CNVs are captured in a MySQL database that supports cohort-based projects and incorporates a secure user authentication layer and user/admin roles. To assist with determination of pathogenicity, detected CNVs are also annotated automatically for gene content, known disease loci, and gene-based literature references. Results are easily queried, sorted, filtered, and visualized via a web-based presentation layer that includes a GBrowse-based graphical representation of CNV content and relevant public data, integration with the UCSC Genome Browser, and tabular displays of genomic attributes for each CNV. To our knowledge, CNV Workshop represents the first cohesive and convenient platform for detection, annotation, and assessment of the biological and clinical significance of structural variants. CNV Workshop has been successfully utilized for assessment of genomic variation in healthy individuals and disease cohorts and is an ideal platform for coordinating multiple associated projects. Available on the web at: http://sourceforge.net/projects/cnv.

Bringing the World to the Classroom through Videoconferencing and Project-Based Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hopper, Susan B.

2014-01-01

The focus of this paper is a case study of a Texas-based school that implemented global projects to connect their students with many states and countries as a platform for integrating collaboration and communication skills, technology tools, and cultural diversity into an existing curriculum. The school introduced videoconferencing at every grade…

Support for Taverna workflows in the VPH-Share cloud platform.

PubMed

Kasztelnik, Marek; Coto, Ernesto; Bubak, Marian; Malawski, Maciej; Nowakowski, Piotr; Arenas, Juan; Saglimbeni, Alfredo; Testi, Debora; Frangi, Alejandro F

2017-07-01

To address the increasing need for collaborative endeavours within the Virtual Physiological Human (VPH) community, the VPH-Share collaborative cloud platform allows researchers to expose and share sequences of complex biomedical processing tasks in the form of computational workflows. The Taverna Workflow System is a very popular tool for orchestrating complex biomedical & bioinformatics processing tasks in the VPH community. This paper describes the VPH-Share components that support the building and execution of Taverna workflows, and explains how they interact with other VPH-Share components to improve the capabilities of the VPH-Share platform. Taverna workflow support is delivered by the Atmosphere cloud management platform and the VPH-Share Taverna plugin. These components are explained in detail, along with the two main procedures that were developed to enable this seamless integration: workflow composition and execution. 1) Seamless integration of VPH-Share with other components and systems. 2) Extended range of different tools for workflows. 3) Successful integration of scientific workflows from other VPH projects. 4) Execution speed improvement for medical applications. The presented workflow integration provides VPH-Share users with a wide range of different possibilities to compose and execute workflows, such as desktop or online composition, online batch execution, multithreading, remote execution, etc. The specific advantages of each supported tool are presented, as are the roles of Atmosphere and the VPH-Share plugin within the VPH-Share project. The combination of the VPH-Share plugin and Atmosphere engenders the VPH-Share infrastructure with far more flexible, powerful and usable capabilities for the VPH-Share community. As both components can continue to evolve and improve independently, we acknowledge that further improvements are still to be developed and will be described. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Final Scientific/Technical Report for "Enabling Exascale Hardware and Software Design through Scalable System Virtualization"

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dinda, Peter August

2015-03-17

This report describes the activities, findings, and products of the Northwestern University component of the "Enabling Exascale Hardware and Software Design through Scalable System Virtualization" project. The purpose of this project has been to extend the state of the art of systems software for high-end computing (HEC) platforms, and to use systems software to better enable the evaluation of potential future HEC platforms, for example exascale platforms. Such platforms, and their systems software, have the goal of providing scientific computation at new scales, thus enabling new research in the physical sciences and engineering. Over time, the innovations in systems softwaremore » for such platforms also become applicable to more widely used computing clusters, data centers, and clouds. This was a five-institution project, centered on the Palacios virtual machine monitor (VMM) systems software, a project begun at Northwestern, and originally developed in a previous collaboration between Northwestern University and the University of New Mexico. In this project, Northwestern (including via our subcontract to the University of Pittsburgh) contributed to the continued development of Palacios, along with other team members. We took the leadership role in (1) continued extension of support for emerging Intel and AMD hardware, (2) integration and performance enhancement of overlay networking, (3) connectivity with architectural simulation, (4) binary translation, and (5) support for modern Non-Uniform Memory Access (NUMA) hosts and guests. We also took a supporting role in support for specialized hardware for I/O virtualization, profiling, configurability, and integration with configuration tools. The efforts we led (1-5) were largely successful and executed as expected, with code and papers resulting from them. The project demonstrated the feasibility of a virtualization layer for HEC computing, similar to such layers for cloud or datacenter computing. For effort (3), although a prototype connecting Palacios with the GEM5 architectural simulator was demonstrated, our conclusion was that such a platform was less useful for design space exploration than anticipated due to inherent complexity of the connection between the instruction set architecture level and the microarchitectural level. For effort (4), we found that a code injection approach proved to be more fruitful. The results of our efforts are publicly available in the open source Palacios codebase and published papers, all of which are available from the project web site, v3vee.org. Palacios is currently one of the two codebases (the other being Sandia’s Kitten lightweight kernel) that underlies the node operating system for the DOE Hobbes Project, one of two projects tasked with building a systems software prototype for the national exascale computing effort.« less

Renewable Energy Marketplace

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghadimian, Vachik

The renewable energy sector is evolving, and today, renewable energy has become a viable alternative for many facilities. Because this sector is in its infancy stage, lack of experience has resulted in failing solar projects. This project involves the design and implementation of a functioning web application that streamlines and automates the planning, risk assessment and financing of a solar development project. The three key stakeholders, the host facility, solar installer and financier are seamlessly integrated into a single marketplace. By designing a project development workflow, projects are vetted early on and terminated if deemed infeasible, saving time and resources. By risk assessing the project using the proposed scoring model, one can inherit more confident investors. The project scoring model also serves as a debt rating system, where investors can measure the risk/rewards. The platform will also serve as a communication medium between the three stakeholders. Besides storing documents like engineering drawings, permits, etc., the platform auto-generates all necessary transactional documents, legal documents and agreements among the three stakeholders.

From generic pathways to ICT-supported horizontally integrated care: the SmartCare approach and convergence with future Internet assembly.

PubMed

Urošević, Vladimir; Mitić, Marko

2014-01-01

Successful service integration in policy and practice requires both technology innovation and service process innovation being pursued and implemented at the same time. The SmartCare project (partially EC-funded under CIP ICT PSP Program) aims to achieve this through development, piloting and evaluation of ICT-based services, horizontally integrating health and social care in ten pilot regions, including Kraljevo region in Serbia. The project has identified and adopted two generic highest-level common thematic pathways in joint consolidation phase - integrated support for long-term care and integrated support after hospital discharge. A common set of standard functional specifications for an open ICT platform enabling the delivery of integrated care is being defined, around the challenges of data sharing, coordination and communication in these two formalized pathways. Implementation and system integration on technology and architecture level are to be based on open standards, multivendor interoperability, and leveraging on the current evolving open specification technology foundations developed in relevant projects across the European Research Area.

ART/Ada design project, phase 1. Task 3 report: Test plan

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Allen, Bradley P.

1988-01-01

The plan is described for the integrated testing and benchmark of Phase Ada based ESBT Design Research Project. The integration testing is divided into two phases: (1) the modules that do not rely on the Ada code generated by the Ada Generator are tested before the Ada Generator is implemented; and (2) all modules are integrated and tested with the Ada code generated by the Ada Generator. Its performance and size as well as its functionality is verified in this phase. The target platform is a DEC Ada compiler on VAX mini-computers and VAX stations running the VMS operating system.

Multidisciplinary optimization of a controlled space structure using 150 design variables

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

James, Benjamin B.

1992-01-01

A general optimization-based method for the design of large space platforms through integration of the disciplines of structural dynamics and control is presented. The method uses the global sensitivity equations approach and is especially appropriate for preliminary design problems in which the structural and control analyses are tightly coupled. The method is capable of coordinating general purpose structural analysis, multivariable control, and optimization codes, and thus, can be adapted to a variety of controls-structures integrated design projects. The method is used to minimize the total weight of a space platform while maintaining a specified vibration decay rate after slewing maneuvers.

The Ensemble Canon

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

MIittman, David S

2011-01-01

Ensemble is an open architecture for the development, integration, and deployment of mission operations software. Fundamentally, it is an adaptation of the Eclipse Rich Client Platform (RCP), a widespread, stable, and supported framework for component-based application development. By capitalizing on the maturity and availability of the Eclipse RCP, Ensemble offers a low-risk, politically neutral path towards a tighter integration of operations tools. The Ensemble project is a highly successful, ongoing collaboration among NASA Centers. Since 2004, the Ensemble project has supported the development of mission operations software for NASA's Exploration Systems, Science, and Space Operations Directorates.

Run Environment and Data Management for Earth System Models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Widmann, H.; Lautenschlager, M.; Fast, I.; Legutke, S.

2009-04-01

The Integrating Model and Data Infrastructure (IMDI) developed and maintained by the Model and Data Group (M&D) comprises the Standard Compile Environment (SCE) and the Standard Run Environment (SRE). The IMDI software has a modular design, which allows to combine and couple a suite of model components and as well to execute the tasks independently and on various platforms. Furthermore the modular structure enables the extension to new model combinations and new platforms. The SRE presented here enables the configuration and performance of earth system model experiments from model integration up to storage and visualization of data. We focus on recently implemented tasks such as synchronous data base filling, graphical monitoring and automatic generation of meta data in XML forms during run time. As well we address the capability to run experiments in heterogeneous IT environments with different computing systems for model integration, data processing and storage. These features are demonstrated for model configurations and on platforms used in current or upcoming projects, e.g. MILLENNIUM or IPCC AR5.

Integrated Modular Avionics for Spacecraft: Earth Observation Use Case Demonstrator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deredempt, Marie-Helene; Rossignol, Alain; Hyounet, Philippe

2013-08-01

Integrated Modular Avionics (IMA) for Space, as European Space Agency initiative, aimed to make applicable to space domain the time and space partitioning concepts and particularly the ARINC 653 standard [1][2]. Expected benefits of such an approach are development flexibility, capability to provide differential V&V for different criticality level functionalities and to integrate late or In-Orbit delivery. This development flexibility could improve software subcontracting, industrial organization and software reuse. Time and space partitioning technique facilitates integration of software functions as black boxes and integration of decentralized function such as star tracker in On Board Computer to save mass and power by limiting electronics resources. In aeronautical domain, Integrated Modular Avionics architecture is based on a network of LRU (Line Replaceable Unit) interconnected by AFDX (Avionic Full DupleX). Time and Space partitioning concept is applicable to LRU and provides independent partitions which inter communicate using ARINC 653 communication ports. Using End System (LRU component) intercommunication between LRU is managed in the same way than intercommunication between partitions in LRU. In such architecture an application developed using only communication port can be integrated in an LRU or another one without impacting the global architecture. In space domain, a redundant On Board Computer controls (ground monitoring TM) and manages the platform (ground command TC) in terms of power, solar array deployment, attitude, orbit, thermal, maintenance, failure detection and recovery isolation. In addition, Payload units and platform units such as RIU, PCDU, AOCS units (Star tracker, Reaction wheels) are considered in this architecture. Interfaces are mainly realized through MIL-STD-1553B busses and SpaceWire and this could be considered as the main constraint for IMA implementation in space domain. During the first phase of IMA SP project, ARINC653 impact was analyzed. Requirements and architecture for space domain were defined [3][4] and System Executive platforms (based on Xtratum, Pike OS, and AIR) were developed with RTEMS as Guest OS. This paper focuses on the demonstrator developed by Astrium as part of IMA SP project. This demonstrator has the objective to confirm operational software partitioning feasibility above Xtratum System Executive Platform with acceptable CPU overhead.

A COTS RF Optical Software Defined Radio for the Integrated Radio and Optical Communications Test Bed

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nappier, Jennifer M.; Zeleznikar, Daniel J.; Wroblewski, Adam C.; Tokars, Roger P.; Schoenholz, Bryan L.; Lantz, Nicholas C.

2016-01-01

The Integrated Radio and Optical Communications (iROC) project at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is investigating the merits of a hybrid radio frequency (RF) and optical communication system for deep space missions. In an effort to demonstrate the feasibility and advantages of a hybrid RFOptical software defined radio (SDR), a laboratory prototype was assembled from primarily commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware components. This COTS platform has been used to demonstrate simultaneous transmission of the radio and optical communications waveforms through to the physical layer (telescope and antenna). This paper details the hardware and software used in the platform and various measures of its performance. A laboratory optical receiver platform has also been assembled in order to demonstrate hybrid free space links in combination with the transmitter.

A COTS RF/Optical Software Defined Radio for the Integrated Radio and Optical Communications Test Bed

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nappier, Jennifer M.; Zeleznikar, Daniel J.; Wroblewski, Adam C.; Tokars, Roger P.; Schoenholz, Bryan L.; Lantz, Nicholas C.

2017-01-01

The Integrated Radio and Optical Communications (iROC) project at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is investigating the merits of a hybrid radio frequency (RF) and optical communication system for deep space missions. In an effort to demonstrate the feasibility and advantages of a hybrid RF/Optical software defined radio (SDR), a laboratory prototype was assembled from primarily commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware components. This COTS platform has been used to demonstrate simultaneous transmission of the radio and optical communications waveforms through to the physical layer (telescope and antenna). This paper details the hardware and software used in the platform and various measures of its performance. A laboratory optical receiver platform has also been assembled in order to demonstrate hybrid free space links in combination with the transmitter.

A Ubiquitous Sensor Network Platform for Integrating Smart Devices into the Semantic Sensor Web

PubMed Central

de Vera, David Díaz Pardo; Izquierdo, Álvaro Sigüenza; Vercher, Jesús Bernat; Gómez, Luis Alfonso Hernández

2014-01-01

Ongoing Sensor Web developments make a growing amount of heterogeneous sensor data available to smart devices. This is generating an increasing demand for homogeneous mechanisms to access, publish and share real-world information. This paper discusses, first, an architectural solution based on Next Generation Networks: a pilot Telco Ubiquitous Sensor Network (USN) Platform that embeds several OGC® Sensor Web services. This platform has already been deployed in large scale projects. Second, the USN-Platform is extended to explore a first approach to Semantic Sensor Web principles and technologies, so that smart devices can access Sensor Web data, allowing them also to share richer (semantically interpreted) information. An experimental scenario is presented: a smart car that consumes and produces real-world information which is integrated into the Semantic Sensor Web through a Telco USN-Platform. Performance tests revealed that observation publishing times with our experimental system were well within limits compatible with the adequate operation of smart safety assistance systems in vehicles. On the other hand, response times for complex queries on large repositories may be inappropriate for rapid reaction needs. PMID:24945678

A ubiquitous sensor network platform for integrating smart devices into the semantic sensor web.

PubMed

de Vera, David Díaz Pardo; Izquierdo, Alvaro Sigüenza; Vercher, Jesús Bernat; Hernández Gómez, Luis Alfonso

2014-06-18

Ongoing Sensor Web developments make a growing amount of heterogeneous sensor data available to smart devices. This is generating an increasing demand for homogeneous mechanisms to access, publish and share real-world information. This paper discusses, first, an architectural solution based on Next Generation Networks: a pilot Telco Ubiquitous Sensor Network (USN) Platform that embeds several OGC® Sensor Web services. This platform has already been deployed in large scale projects. Second, the USN-Platform is extended to explore a first approach to Semantic Sensor Web principles and technologies, so that smart devices can access Sensor Web data, allowing them also to share richer (semantically interpreted) information. An experimental scenario is presented: a smart car that consumes and produces real-world information which is integrated into the Semantic Sensor Web through a Telco USN-Platform. Performance tests revealed that observation publishing times with our experimental system were well within limits compatible with the adequate operation of smart safety assistance systems in vehicles. On the other hand, response times for complex queries on large repositories may be inappropriate for rapid reaction needs.

An open source platform for multi-scale spatially distributed simulations of microbial ecosystems

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Segre, Daniel

2014-08-14

The goal of this project was to develop a tool for facilitating simulation, validation and discovery of multiscale dynamical processes in microbial ecosystems. This led to the development of an open-source software platform for Computation Of Microbial Ecosystems in Time and Space (COMETS). COMETS performs spatially distributed time-dependent flux balance based simulations of microbial metabolism. Our plan involved building the software platform itself, calibrating and testing it through comparison with experimental data, and integrating simulations and experiments to address important open questions on the evolution and dynamics of cross-feeding interactions between microbial species.

Design of strength characteristics on the example of a mining support

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gwiazda, A.; Sękala, A.; Banaś, W.; Topolska, S.; Foit, K.; Monica, Z.

2017-08-01

It is a special group of particular design aproches that could be characterized as “design for X”. All areas of specific these design methodology, taking into account the requirements of the life cycle are described with the acronym DfX. It means an integrated computing platform approach to design binding together both the area of design knowledge and area of computer systems. In this perspective, computer systems are responsible for the link between design requirements with the subject of the project and to filter the information being circulated throughout the operation of the project. The DfX methodologies together form an approach integrating to different functional areas of industrial organization. Among the internal elements it can distinguish the structure of the project team, the people making it, the same process design, control system design and implementation of the action tools to assist this process. Among the elements that are obtained in the framework of this approach should be distinguished: higher operating efficiency, professionalism, the ability to create innovation, incremental progress of the project and the appropriate focus of the project team. It have been done attempts to integrate identified specific areas for action in the field of design methodology. They have already taken place earlier in the design due to the Economic Design for Manufacture. This approach was characteristic for European industry. In this case, an approach was developed in methodology, which can be defined as the Design to/for Cost. The article presents the idea of an integrated design approach related with the DfX approach. The results are described on the base of a virtual 3D model of a mining support. This model was elaborated in the advanced engineering platform like Siemens PLM NX.

An integrated development workflow for community-driven FOSS-projects using continuous integration tools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bilke, Lars; Watanabe, Norihiro; Naumov, Dmitri; Kolditz, Olaf

2016-04-01

A complex software project in general with high standards regarding code quality requires automated tools to help developers in doing repetitive and tedious tasks such as compilation on different platforms and configurations, doing unit testing as well as end-to-end tests and generating distributable binaries and documentation. This is known as continuous integration (CI). A community-driven FOSS-project within the Earth Sciences benefits even more from CI as time and resources regarding software development are often limited. Therefore testing developed code on more than the developers PC is a task which is often neglected and where CI can be the solution. We developed an integrated workflow based on GitHub, Travis and Jenkins for the community project OpenGeoSys - a coupled multiphysics modeling and simulation package - allowing developers to concentrate on implementing new features in a tight feedback loop. Every interested developer/user can create a pull request containing source code modifications on the online collaboration platform GitHub. The modifications are checked (compilation, compiler warnings, memory leaks, undefined behaviors, unit tests, end-to-end tests, analyzing differences in simulation run results between changes etc.) from the CI system which automatically responds to the pull request or by email on success or failure with detailed reports eventually requesting to improve the modifications. Core team developers review the modifications and merge them into the main development line once they satisfy agreed standards. We aim for efficient data structures and algorithms, self-explaining code, comprehensive documentation and high test code coverage. This workflow keeps entry barriers to get involved into the project low and permits an agile development process concentrating on feature additions rather than software maintenance procedures.

STINGRAY: system for integrated genomic resources and analysis.

PubMed

Wagner, Glauber; Jardim, Rodrigo; Tschoeke, Diogo A; Loureiro, Daniel R; Ocaña, Kary A C S; Ribeiro, Antonio C B; Emmel, Vanessa E; Probst, Christian M; Pitaluga, André N; Grisard, Edmundo C; Cavalcanti, Maria C; Campos, Maria L M; Mattoso, Marta; Dávila, Alberto M R

2014-03-07

The STINGRAY system has been conceived to ease the tasks of integrating, analyzing, annotating and presenting genomic and expression data from Sanger and Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) platforms. STINGRAY includes: (a) a complete and integrated workflow (more than 20 bioinformatics tools) ranging from functional annotation to phylogeny; (b) a MySQL database schema, suitable for data integration and user access control; and (c) a user-friendly graphical web-based interface that makes the system intuitive, facilitating the tasks of data analysis and annotation. STINGRAY showed to be an easy to use and complete system for analyzing sequencing data. While both Sanger and NGS platforms are supported, the system could be faster using Sanger data, since the large NGS datasets could potentially slow down the MySQL database usage. STINGRAY is available at http://stingray.biowebdb.org and the open source code at http://sourceforge.net/projects/stingray-biowebdb/.

Integrating Remote and Social Sensing Data for a Scenario on Secure Societies in Big Data Platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Albani, Sergio; Lazzarini, Michele; Koubarakis, Manolis; Taniskidou, Efi Karra; Papadakis, George; Karkaletsis, Vangelis; Giannakopoulos, George

2016-08-01

In the framework of the Horizon 2020 project BigDataEurope (Integrating Big Data, Software & Communities for Addressing Europe's Societal Challenges), a pilot for the Secure Societies Societal Challenge was designed considering the requirements coming from relevant stakeholders. The pilot is focusing on the integration in a Big Data platform of data coming from remote and social sensing.The information on land changes coming from the Copernicus Sentinel 1A sensor (Change Detection workflow) is integrated with information coming from selected Twitter and news agencies accounts (Event Detection workflow) in order to provide the user with multiple sources of information.The Change Detection workflow implements a processing chain in a distributed parallel manner, exploiting the Big Data capabilities in place; the Event Detection workflow implements parallel and distributed social media and news agencies monitoring as well as suitable mechanisms to detect and geo-annotate the related events.

STINGRAY: system for integrated genomic resources and analysis

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background The STINGRAY system has been conceived to ease the tasks of integrating, analyzing, annotating and presenting genomic and expression data from Sanger and Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) platforms. Findings STINGRAY includes: (a) a complete and integrated workflow (more than 20 bioinformatics tools) ranging from functional annotation to phylogeny; (b) a MySQL database schema, suitable for data integration and user access control; and (c) a user-friendly graphical web-based interface that makes the system intuitive, facilitating the tasks of data analysis and annotation. Conclusion STINGRAY showed to be an easy to use and complete system for analyzing sequencing data. While both Sanger and NGS platforms are supported, the system could be faster using Sanger data, since the large NGS datasets could potentially slow down the MySQL database usage. STINGRAY is available at http://stingray.biowebdb.org and the open source code at http://sourceforge.net/projects/stingray-biowebdb/. PMID:24606808

Offshore Energy Mapping for Northeast Atlantic and Mediterranean: MARINA PLATFORM project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kallos, G.; Galanis, G.; Spyrou, C.; Kalogeri, C.; Adam, A.; Athanasiadis, P.

2012-04-01

Deep offshore ocean energy mapping requires detailed modeling of the wind, wave, tidal and ocean circulation estimations. It requires also detailed mapping of the associated extremes. An important issue in such work is the co-generation of energy (generation of wind, wave, tides, currents) in order to design platforms on an efficient way. For example wind and wave fields exhibit significant phase differences and therefore the produced energy from both sources together requires special analysis. The other two sources namely tides and currents have different temporal scales from the previous two. Another important issue is related to the estimation of the environmental frequencies in order to avoid structural problems. These are issues studied at the framework of the FP7 project MARINA PLATFORM. The main objective of the project is to develop deep water structures that can exploit the energy from wind, wave, tidal and ocean current energy sources. In particular, a primary goal will be the establishment of a set of equitable and transparent criteria for the evaluation of multi-purpose platforms for marine renewable energy. Using these criteria, a novel system set of design and optimisation tools will be produced addressing new platform design, component engineering, risk assessment, spatial planning, platform-related grid connection concepts, all focussed on system integration and reducing costs. The University of Athens group is in charge for estimation and mapping of wind, wave, tidal and ocean current resources, estimate available energy potential, map extreme event characteristics and provide any additional environmental parameter required.

The EGS Data Collaboration Platform: Enabling Scientific Discovery

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Weers, Jonathan D; Johnston, Henry; Huggins, Jay V

Collaboration in the digital age has been stifled in recent years. Reasonable responses to legitimate security concerns have created a virtual landscape of silos and fortified castles incapable of sharing information efficiently. This trend is unfortunately opposed to the geothermal scientific community's migration toward larger, more collaborative projects. To facilitate efficient sharing of information between team members from multiple national labs, universities, and private organizations, the 'EGS Collab' team has developed a universally accessible, secure data collaboration platform and has fully integrated it with the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Geothermal Data Repository (GDR) and the National Geothermal Data Systemmore » (NGDS). This paper will explore some of the challenges of collaboration in the modern digital age, highlight strategies for active data management, and discuss the integration of the EGS Collab data management platform with the GDR to enable scientific discovery through the timely dissemination of information.« less

a Public Platform for Geospatial Data Sharing for Disaster Risk Management

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balbo, S.; Boccardo, P.; Dalmasso, S.; Pasquali, P.

2013-01-01

Several studies have been conducted in Africa to assist local governments in addressing the risk situation related to natural hazards. Geospatial data containing information on vulnerability, impacts, climate change, disaster risk reduction is usually part of the output of such studies and is valuable to national and international organizations to reduce the risks and mitigate the impacts of disasters. Nevertheless this data isn't efficiently widely distributed and often resides in remote storage solutions hardly reachable. Spatial Data Infrastructures are technical solutions capable to solve this issue, by storing geospatial data and making them widely available through the internet. Among these solutions, GeoNode, an open source online platform for geospatial data sharing, has been developed in recent years. GeoNode is a platform for the management and publication of geospatial data. It brings together mature and stable open-source software projects under a consistent and easy-to-use interface allowing users, with little training, to quickly and easily share data and create interactive maps. GeoNode data management tools allow for integrated creation of data, metadata, and map visualizations. Each dataset in the system can be shared publicly or restricted to allow access to only specific users. Social features like user profiles and commenting and rating systems allow for the development of communities around each platform to facilitate the use, management, and quality control of the data the GeoNode instance contains (http://geonode.org/). This paper presents a case study scenario of setting up a Web platform based on GeoNode. It is a public platform called MASDAP and promoted by the Government of Malawi in order to support development of the country and build resilience against natural disasters. A substantial amount of geospatial data has already been collected about hydrogeological risk, as well as several other-disasters related information. Moreover this platform will help to ensure that the data created by a number of past or ongoing projects is maintained and that this information remains accessible and useful. An Integrated Flood Risk Management Plan for a river basin has already been included in the platform and other data from future disaster risk management projects will be added as well.

Standardized exchange of clinical documents--towards a shared care paradigm in glaucoma treatment.

PubMed

Gerdsen, F; Müller, S; Jablonski, S; Prokosch, H-U

2006-01-01

The exchange of medical data from research and clinical routine across institutional borders is essential to establish an integrated healthcare platform. In this project we want to realize the standardized exchange of medical data between different healthcare institutions to implement an integrated and interoperable information system supporting clinical treatment and research of glaucoma. The central point of our concept is a standardized communication model based on the Clinical Document Architecture (CDA). Further, a communication concept between different health care institutions applying the developed document model has been defined. With our project we have been able to prove that standardized communication between an Electronic Medical Record (EMR), an Electronic Health Record (EHR) and the Erlanger Glaucoma Register (EGR) based on the established conceptual models, which rely on CDA rel.1 level 1 and SCIPHOX, could be implemented. The HL7-tool-based deduction of a suitable CDA rel.2 compliant schema showed significant differences when compared with the manually created schema. Finally fundamental requirements, which have to be implemented for an integrated health care platform, have been identified. An interoperable information system can enhance both clinical treatment and research projects. By automatically transferring screening findings from a glaucoma research project to the electronic medical record of our ophthalmology clinic, clinicians could benefit from the availability of a longitudinal patient record. The CDA as a standard for exchanging clinical documents has demonstrated its potential to enhance interoperability within a future shared care paradigm.

Jordan Water Project: an interdisciplinary evaluation of freshwater vulnerability and security

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gorelick, S.; Yoon, J.; Rajsekhar, D.; Muller, M. F.; Zhang, H.; Gawel, E.; Klauer, B.; Klassert, C. J. A.; Sigel, K.; Thilmant, A.; Avisse, N.; Lachaut, T.; Harou, J. J.; Knox, S.; Selby, P. D.; Mustafa, D.; Talozi, S.; Haddad, Y.; Shamekh, M.

2016-12-01

The Jordan Water Project, part of the Belmont Forum projects, is an interdisciplinary, international research effort focused on evaluation of freshwater security in Jordan, one of the most water-vulnerable countries in the world. The team covers hydrology, water resources systems analysis, economics, policy evaluation, geography, risk and remote sensing analyses, and model platform development. The entire project team communally engaged in construction of an integrated hydroeconomic model for water supply policy evaluation. To represent water demand and allocation behavior at multiple levels of decision making,the model integrates biophysical modules that simulate natural and engineered hydrologic phenomena with human behavioral modules. Hydrologic modules include spatially-distributed groundwater and surface-water models for the major aquifers and watersheds throughout Jordan. For the human modules, we adopt a multi-agent modeling approach to represent decision-making processes. The integrated model was developed in Pynsim, a new open-source, object-oriented platform in Python for network-based water resource systems. We continue to explore the impacts of future scenarios and interventions.This project had tremendous encouragement and data support from Jordan's Ministry of Water and Irrigation. Modeling technology is being transferred through a companion NSF/USAID PEER project awarded toJordan University of Science and Technology. Individual teams have also conducted a range of studies aimed at evaluating Jordanian and transboundary surface water and groundwater systems. Surveys, interviews, and econometric analyses enabled us to better understandthe behavior of urban households, farmers, private water resellers, water use pattern of the commercial sector and irrigation water user associations. We analyzed nationwide spatial and temporal statistical trends in rainfall, developed urban and national comparative metrics to quantify water supply vulnerability, improved remote sensing methods to estimate crop-water use, and evaluated the impacts of climate change on future drought severity.

A holistic approach to SIM platform and its application to early-warning satellite system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Fuyu; Zhou, Jianping; Xu, Zheyao

2018-01-01

This study proposes a new simulation platform named Simulation Integrated Management (SIM) for the analysis of parallel and distributed systems. The platform eases the process of designing and testing both applications and architectures. The main characteristics of SIM are flexibility, scalability, and expandability. To improve the efficiency of project development, new models of early-warning satellite system were designed based on the SIM platform. Finally, through a series of experiments, the correctness of SIM platform and the aforementioned early-warning satellite models was validated, and the systematical analyses for the orbital determination precision of the ballistic missile during its entire flight process were presented, as well as the deviation of the launch/landing point. Furthermore, the causes of deviation and prevention methods will be fully explained. The simulation platform and the models will lay the foundations for further validations of autonomy technology in space attack-defense architecture research.

Integrating CAD modules in a PACS environment using a wide computing infrastructure.

PubMed

Suárez-Cuenca, Jorge J; Tilve, Amara; López, Ricardo; Ferro, Gonzalo; Quiles, Javier; Souto, Miguel

2017-04-01

The aim of this paper is to describe a project designed to achieve a total integration of different CAD algorithms into the PACS environment by using a wide computing infrastructure. The aim is to build a system for the entire region of Galicia, Spain, to make CAD accessible to multiple hospitals by employing different PACSs and clinical workstations. The new CAD model seeks to connect different devices (CAD systems, acquisition modalities, workstations and PACS) by means of networking based on a platform that will offer different CAD services. This paper describes some aspects related to the health services of the region where the project was developed, CAD algorithms that were either employed or selected for inclusion in the project, and several technical aspects and results. We have built a standard-based platform with which users can request a CAD service and receive the results in their local PACS. The process runs through a web interface that allows sending data to the different CAD services. A DICOM SR object is received with the results of the algorithms stored inside the original study in the proper folder with the original images. As a result, a homogeneous service to the different hospitals of the region will be offered. End users will benefit from a homogeneous workflow and a standardised integration model to request and obtain results from CAD systems in any modality, not dependant on commercial integration models. This new solution will foster the deployment of these technologies in the entire region of Galicia.

Navigation and Positioning System Using High Altitude Platforms Systems (HAPS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tsujii, Toshiaki; Harigae, Masatoshi; Harada, Masashi

Recently, some countries have begun conducting feasibility studies and R&D projects on High Altitude Platform Systems (HAPS). Japan has been investigating the use of an airship system that will function as a stratospheric platform for applications such as environmental monitoring, communications and broadcasting. If pseudolites were mounted on the airships, their GPS-like signals would be stable augmentations that would improve the accuracy, availability, and integrity of GPS-based positioning systems. Also, the sufficient number of HAPS can function as a positioning system independent of GPS. In this paper, a system design of the HAPS-based positioning system and its positioning error analyses are described.

ENFIN a network to enhance integrative systems biology.

PubMed

Kahlem, Pascal; Birney, Ewan

2007-12-01

Integration of biological data of various types and development of adapted bioinformatics tools represent critical objectives to enable research at the systems level. The European Network of Excellence ENFIN is engaged in developing both an adapted infrastructure to connect databases and platforms to enable the generation of new bioinformatics tools as well as the experimental validation of computational predictions. We will give an overview of the projects tackled within ENFIN and discuss the challenges associated with integration for systems biology.

International Space Station Medical Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Starkey, Blythe A.

2008-01-01

The goals and objectives of the ISS Medical Project (ISSMP) are to: 1) Maximize the utilization the ISS and other spaceflight platforms to assess the effects of longduration spaceflight on human systems; 2) Devise and verify strategies to ensure optimal crew performance; 3) Enable development and validation of a suite of integrated physical (e.g., exercise), pharmacologic and/or nutritional countermeasures against deleterious effects of space flight that may impact mission success or crew health. The ISSMP provides planning, integration, and implementation services for Human Research Program research tasks and evaluation activities requiring access to space or related flight resources on the ISS, Shuttle, Soyuz, Progress, or other spaceflight vehicles and platforms. This includes pre- and postflight activities; 2) ISSMP services include operations and sustaining engineering for HRP flight hardware; experiment integration and operation, including individual research tasks and on-orbit validation of next generation on-orbit equipment; medical operations; procedures development and validation; and crew training tools and processes, as well as operation and sustaining engineering for the Telescience Support Center; and 3) The ISSMP integrates the HRP approved flight activity complement and interfaces with external implementing organizations, such as the ISS Payloads Office and International Partners, to accomplish the HRP's objectives. This effort is led by JSC with Baseline Data Collection support from KSC.

Study of Collaborative Management for Transportation Construction Project Based on BIM Technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jianhua, Liu; Genchuan, Luo; Daiquan, Liu; Wenlei, Li; Bowen, Feng

2018-03-01

Abstract. Building Information Modeling(BIM) is a building modeling technology based on the relevant information data of the construction project. It is an advanced technology and management concept, which is widely used in the whole life cycle process of planning, design, construction and operation. Based on BIM technology, transportation construction project collaborative management can have better communication through authenticity simulation and architectural visualization and can obtain the basic and real-time information such as project schedule, engineering quality, cost and environmental impact etc. The main services of highway construction management are integrated on the unified BIM platform for collaborative management to realize information intercommunication and exchange, to change the isolated situation of information in the past, and improve the level of information management. The final BIM model is integrated not only for the information management of project and the integration of preliminary documents and design drawings, but also for the automatic generation of completion data and final accounts, which covers the whole life cycle of traffic construction projects and lays a good foundation for smart highway construction.

Integrated Approach to Reconstruction of Microbial Regulatory Networks

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rodionov, Dmitry A; Novichkov, Pavel S

2013-11-04

This project had the goal(s) of development of integrated bioinformatics platform for genome-scale inference and visualization of transcriptional regulatory networks (TRNs) in bacterial genomes. The work was done in Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (SBMRI, P.I. D.A. Rodionov) and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL, co-P.I. P.S. Novichkov). The developed computational resources include: (1) RegPredict web-platform for TRN inference and regulon reconstruction in microbial genomes, and (2) RegPrecise database for collection, visualization and comparative analysis of transcriptional regulons reconstructed by comparative genomics. These analytical resources were selected as key components in the DOE Systems Biology KnowledgeBase (SBKB). The high-quality data accumulated inmore » RegPrecise will provide essential datasets of reference regulons in diverse microbes to enable automatic reconstruction of draft TRNs in newly sequenced genomes. We outline our progress toward the three aims of this grant proposal, which were: Develop integrated platform for genome-scale regulon reconstruction; Infer regulatory annotations in several groups of bacteria and building of reference collections of microbial regulons; and Develop KnowledgeBase on microbial transcriptional regulation.« less

Parametric Modelling of As-Built Beam Framed Structure in Bim Environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, X.; Koehl, M.; Grussenmeyer, P.

2017-02-01

A complete documentation and conservation of a historic timber roof requires the integration of geometry modelling, attributional and dynamic information management and results of structural analysis. Recently developed as-built Building Information Modelling (BIM) technique has the potential to provide a uniform platform, which provides possibility to integrate the traditional geometry modelling, parametric elements management and structural analysis together. The main objective of the project presented in this paper is to develop a parametric modelling tool for a timber roof structure whose elements are leaning and crossing beam frame. Since Autodesk Revit, as the typical BIM software, provides the platform for parametric modelling and information management, an API plugin, able to automatically create the parametric beam elements and link them together with strict relationship, was developed. The plugin under development is introduced in the paper, which can obtain the parametric beam model via Autodesk Revit API from total station points and terrestrial laser scanning data. The results show the potential of automatizing the parametric modelling by interactive API development in BIM environment. It also integrates the separate data processing and different platforms into the uniform Revit software.

Leveraging the Unified Access Framework: A Tale of an Integrated Ocean Data Prototype

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

O'Brien, K.; Kern, K.; Smith, B.; Schweitzer, R.; Simons, R.; Mendelssohn, R.; Diggs, S. C.; Belbeoch, M.; Hankin, S.

2014-12-01

The Tropical Pacific Observing System (TPOS) has been functioning and capturing measurements since the mid 1990s during the very successful Tropical Ocean Global Atmosphere (TOGA) project. Unfortunately, in the current environment, some 20 years after the end of the TOGA project, sustaining the observing system is proving difficult. With the many advances in methods of observing the ocean, a group of scientists is taking a fresh look at what the Tropical Pacific Observing System requires for sustainability. This includes utilizing a wide variety of observing system platforms, including Argo floats, unmanned drifters, moorings, ships, etc. This variety of platforms measuring ocean data also provides a significant challenge in terms of integrated data management. It is recognized that data and information management is crucial to the success and impact of any observing system. In order to be successful, it is also crucial to avoid building stovepipes for data management. To that end, NOAA's Observing System Monitoring Center (OSMC) has been tasked to create a testbed of integrated real time and delayed mode observations for the Tropical Pacific region in support of the TPOS. The observing networks included in the prototype are: Argo floats, OceanSites moorings, drifting buoys, hydrographic surveys, underway carbon observations and, of course, real time ocean measurements. In this presentation, we will discuss how the OSMC project is building the integrated data prototype using existing free and open source software. We will explore how we are leveraging successful data management frameworks pioneered by efforts such as NOAA's Unified Access Framework project. We will also show examples of how conforming to well known conventions and standards allows for discoverability, usability and interoperability of data.

Diabetes management using modern information and communication technologies and new care models.

PubMed

Spanakis, Emmanouil G; Chiarugi, Franco; Kouroubali, Angelina; Spat, Stephan; Beck, Peter; Asanin, Stefan; Rosengren, Peter; Gergely, Tamas; Thestrup, Jesper

2012-10-04

Diabetes, a metabolic disorder, has reached epidemic proportions in developed countries. The disease has two main forms: type 1 and type 2. Disease management entails administration of insulin in combination with careful blood glucose monitoring (type 1) or involves the adjustment of diet and exercise level, the use of oral anti-diabetic drugs, and insulin administration to control blood sugar (type 2). State-of-the-art technologies have the potential to assist healthcare professionals, patients, and informal carers to better manage diabetes insulin therapy, help patients understand their disease, support self-management, and provide a safe environment by monitoring adverse and potentially life-threatening situations with appropriate crisis management. New care models incorporating advanced information and communication technologies have the potential to provide service platforms able to improve health care, personalization, inclusion, and empowerment of the patient, and to support diverse user preferences and needs in different countries. The REACTION project proposes to create a service-oriented architectural platform based on numerous individual services and implementing novel care models that can be deployed in different settings to perform patient monitoring, distributed decision support, health care workflow management, and clinical feedback provision. This paper presents the work performed in the context of the REACTION project focusing on the development of a health care service platform able to support diabetes management in different healthcare regimes, through clinical applications, such as monitoring of vital signs, feedback provision to the point of care, integrative risk assessment, and event and alarm handling. While moving towards the full implementation of the platform, three major areas of research and development have been identified and consequently approached: the first one is related to the glucose sensor technology and wearability, the second is related to the platform architecture, and the third to the implementation of the end-user services. The Glucose Management System, already developed within the REACTION project, is able to monitor a range of parameters from various sources including glucose levels, nutritional intakes, administered drugs, and patient's insulin sensitivity, offering decision support for insulin dosing to professional caregivers on a mobile tablet platform that fulfills the need of the users and supports medical workflow procedures in compliance with the Medical Device Directive requirements. Good control of diabetes, as well as increased emphasis on control of lifestyle factors, may reduce the risk profile of most complications and contribute to health improvement. The REACTION project aims to respond to these challenges by providing integrated, professional, management, and therapy services to diabetic patients in different health care regimes across Europe in an interoperable communication platform.

Information-computational platform for collaborative multidisciplinary investigations of regional climatic changes and their impacts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gordov, Evgeny; Lykosov, Vasily; Krupchatnikov, Vladimir; Okladnikov, Igor; Titov, Alexander; Shulgina, Tamara

2013-04-01

Analysis of growing volume of related to climate change data from sensors and model outputs requires collaborative multidisciplinary efforts of researchers. To do it timely and in reliable way one needs in modern information-computational infrastructure supporting integrated studies in the field of environmental sciences. Recently developed experimental software and hardware platform Climate (http://climate.scert.ru/) provides required environment for regional climate change related investigations. The platform combines modern web 2.0 approach, GIS-functionality and capabilities to run climate and meteorological models, process large geophysical datasets and support relevant analysis. It also supports joint software development by distributed research groups, and organization of thematic education for students and post-graduate students. In particular, platform software developed includes dedicated modules for numerical processing of regional and global modeling results for consequent analysis and visualization. Also run of integrated into the platform WRF and «Planet Simulator» models, modeling results data preprocessing and visualization is provided. All functions of the platform are accessible by a user through a web-portal using common graphical web-browser in the form of an interactive graphical user interface which provides, particularly, capabilities of selection of geographical region of interest (pan and zoom), data layers manipulation (order, enable/disable, features extraction) and visualization of results. Platform developed provides users with capabilities of heterogeneous geophysical data analysis, including high-resolution data, and discovering of tendencies in climatic and ecosystem changes in the framework of different multidisciplinary researches. Using it even unskilled user without specific knowledge can perform reliable computational processing and visualization of large meteorological, climatic and satellite monitoring datasets through unified graphical web-interface. Partial support of RF Ministry of Education and Science grant 8345, SB RAS Program VIII.80.2 and Projects 69, 131, 140 and APN CBA2012-16NSY project is acknowledged.

Prototype development of a web-based participative decision support platform in risk management

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aye, Zar Chi; Olyazadeh, Roya; Jaboyedoff, Michel; Derron, Marc-Henri

2014-05-01

This paper discusses the proposed background architecture and prototype development of an internet-based decision support system (DSS) in the field of natural hazards and risk management using open-source geospatial software and web technologies. It is based on a three-tier, client-server architecture with the support of boundless (opengeo) framework and its client side SDK application environment using customized gxp components and data utility classes. The main purpose of the system is to integrate the workflow of risk management systematically with the diverse involvement of stakeholders from different organizations dealing with natural hazards and risk for evaluation of management measures through the active online participation approach. It aims to develop an adaptive user friendly, web-based environment that allows the users to set up risk management strategies based on actual context and data by integrating web-GIS and DSS functionality associated with process flow and other visualization tools. Web-GIS interface has been integrated within the DSS to deliver maps and provide certain geo-processing capabilities on the web, which can be easily accessible and shared by different organizations located in case study sites of the project. This platform could be envisaged not only as a common web-based platform for the centralized sharing of data such as hazard maps, elements at risk maps and additional information but also to ensure an integrated platform of risk management where the users could upload data, analyze risk and identify possible alternative scenarios for risk reduction especially for floods and landslides, either quantitatively or qualitatively depending on the risk information provided by the stakeholders in case study regions. The level of involvement, access to and interaction with the provided functionality of the system varies depending on the roles and responsibilities of the stakeholders, for example, only the experts (planners, geological services, etc.) can have access to the alternative definition component to formulate the risk reduction measures. The development of such a participative platform would finally lead to an integrated risk management approach highlighting the needs to deal with involved experts and civil society in the decision-making process for evaluation of risk management measures through the active participation approach. The system will be applied and evaluated in four case study areas of the CHANGES project in Europe: Romania, North Eastern Italy, French Alps and Poland. However, the framework of the system is designed in a generic way so as to be applicable in other regions to achieve the high adaptability and flexibility of the system. The research has been undertaken as a part of the CHANGES project funded by the European Commission's 7th framework program.

Net Venn - An integrated network analysis web platform for gene lists

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Many lists containing biological identifiers such as gene lists have been generated in various genomics projects. Identifying the overlap among gene lists can enable us to understand the similarities and differences between the datasets. Here, we present an interactome network-based web application...

Design and Development of a Low-Cost Aerial Mobile Mapping System for Multi-Purpose Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Acevedo Pardo, C.; Farjas Abadía, M.; Sternberg, H.

2015-08-01

The research project with the working title "Design and development of a low-cost modular Aerial Mobile Mapping System" was formed during the last year as the result from numerous discussions and considerations with colleagues from the HafenCity University Hamburg, Department Geomatics. The aim of the project is to design a sensor platform which can be embedded preferentially on an UAV, but also can be integrated on any adaptable vehicle. The system should perform a direct scanning of surfaces with a laser scanner and supported through sensors for determining the position and attitude of the platform. The modular design allows his extension with other sensors such as multispectral cameras, digital cameras or multiple cameras systems.

An integrated cell-free metabolic platform for protein production and synthetic biology

PubMed Central

Jewett, Michael C; Calhoun, Kara A; Voloshin, Alexei; Wuu, Jessica J; Swartz, James R

2008-01-01

Cell-free systems offer a unique platform for expanding the capabilities of natural biological systems for useful purposes, i.e. synthetic biology. They reduce complexity, remove structural barriers, and do not require the maintenance of cell viability. Cell-free systems, however, have been limited by their inability to co-activate multiple biochemical networks in a single integrated platform. Here, we report the assessment of biochemical reactions in an Escherichia coli cell-free platform designed to activate natural metabolism, the Cytomim system. We reveal that central catabolism, oxidative phosphorylation, and protein synthesis can be co-activated in a single reaction system. Never before have these complex systems been shown to be simultaneously activated without living cells. The Cytomim system therefore promises to provide the metabolic foundation for diverse ab initio cell-free synthetic biology projects. In addition, we describe an improved Cytomim system with enhanced protein synthesis yields (up to 1200 mg/l in 2 h) and lower costs to facilitate production of protein therapeutics and biochemicals that are difficult to make in vivo because of their toxicity, complexity, or unusual cofactor requirements. PMID:18854819

Restoration Science in New York Harbor: It takes a (large, diverse and engaged) village

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Newton, R.; Birney, L.; Janis, S.; Groome, M.; Palmer, M.; Bone, E.; O'Neil, J. M.; Hill, J.; Dennison, W.; Malinowski, P.; Kohne, L.; Molina, M.; Moore, G.; Woods, N.

2015-12-01

The Curriculum + Community Enterprise for Restoration Science (CCE-RS) facilitates partnerships between scientists and middle school educators on ecological restoration and environmental monitoring projects. The educational model is designed to wrap around the student, including classroom instruction, field science, after-school programs and engagement with the student's community. Its pillars include: a teacher training fellowship at Pace University, student curriculum, a digital platform, afterschool and summer mentoring, and community exhibits. The digital platform includes a tablet app tailored to the project's field protocols and linked to a database shared across schools and partnering institutions. Through the digital platform, data is integrated into a single citizen-science monitoring project, teachers share curriculum and best practices, and students link directly to their peers at other schools. Curriculum development has been collaborative between scientists, science education specialists, and secondary school teachers. The CCE-RS is rooted in project-based learning: the New York Harbor School has engaged high school students in environmental monitoring and oyster restoration in the Harbor for about the last decade. The science partners (U. of Maryland and Columbia) have been working with students and other citizen scientists in outdoor science over about the last decade. Local partners in outside-the-classroom education include the New York Academy of Sciences, The River Project, which will provide field education services, and Good Shepherd Services, which provides after-school programming in schools serving primarily poor families. Scientists on the project engage directly with teachers and informal educators in curriculum development and citizen-science outreach. We present the lessons learned from our first cohort of Fellows, the pedagogical model, and the digital platform, which is extensible to other ecological restoration settings.

Integrating Distributed Interactive Simulations With the Project Darkstar Open-Source Massively Multiplayer Online Game (MMOG) Middleware

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-09-01

be complete MMOG solutions such as Multiverse are not within the scope of this thesis, though it is recommended that readers compare this type of...software to the middleware described here ( Multiverse , 2009). 1. University of Munster: Real-Time Framework The Real-Time Framework (RTF) project is...10, 2009, from http://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/MMOX Multiverse . (2009). Multiverse platform architecture. Retrieved September 9, 2009, from http

Multiple-source spatial data fusion and integration research in the region unified planning management information system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Zhijun; Zhang, Liangpei; Liu, Zhenmin; Jiao, Hongbo; Chen, Liqun

2008-12-01

In order to manage the internal resources of Gulf of Tonkin and integrate multiple-source spatial data, the establishment of region unified plan management system is needed. The data fusion and the integrated research should be carried on because there are some difficulties in the course of the system's establishment. For example, kinds of planning and the project data format are different, and data criterion is not unified. Besides, the time state property is strong, and spatial reference is inconsistent, etc. In this article the ARCGIS ENGINE is introduced as the developing platform, key technologies are researched, such as multiple-source data transformation and fusion, remote sensing data and DEM fusion and integrated, plan and project data integration, and so on. Practice shows that the system improves the working efficiency of Guangxi Gulf of Tonkin Economic Zone Management Committee significantly and promotes planning construction work of the economic zone remarkably.

A Robust Cooling Platform for NIS Junction Refrigeration and sub-Kelvin Cryogenic Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilson, B.; Atlas, M.; Lowell, P.; Moyerman, S.; Stebor, N.; Ullom, J.; Keating, B.

2014-08-01

Recent advances in Normal metal-insulator-superconductor (NIS) tunnel junctions (Clark et al. Appl Phys Lett 86: 173508, 2005, Appl Phys Lett 84: 4, 2004) have proven these devices to be a viable technology for sub-Kelvin refrigeration. NIS junction coolers, coupled to a separate cold stage, provide a flexible platform for cooling a wide range of user-supplied payloads. Recently, a stage was cooled from 290 to 256 mK (Lowell et al. Appl Phys Lett 102: 082601 2013), but further mechanical and electrical improvements are necessary for the stage to reach its full potential. We have designed and built a new Kevlar suspended cooling platform for NIS junction refrigeration that is both lightweight and well thermally isolated; the calculated parasitic loading is pW from 300 to 100 mK. The platform is structurally rigid with a measured deflection of 25 m under a 2.5 kg load and has an integrated mechanical heat switch driven by a superconducting stepper motor with thermal conductivity G W/K at 300 mK. An integrated radiation shield limits thermal loading and a modular platform accommodates enough junctions to provide nanowatts of continuous cooling power. The compact stage size of 7.6 cm 8.6 cm 4.8 cm and overall radiation shield size of 8.9 cm 10.0 cm 7.0 cm along with minimal electrical power requirements allow easy integration into a range of cryostats. We present the design, construction, and performance of this cooling platform as well as projections for coupling to arrays of NIS junctions and other future applications.

Tour Guide Robots: An Integrated Research and Design Platform to Prepare Engineering and Technology Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yelamarthi, Kumar

2016-01-01

Many interesting research and design questions occur at the intersections of traditional disciplines, yet most coursework and research programs for undergraduate engineering students are focused on one discipline. This leads to underutilization of the potential in better preparing students through multidisciplinary projects. Identifying this…

Guidelines for NASA Missions to Engage the User Community as a Part of the Mission Life Cycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Escobar, V. M.; Friedl, L.; Bonniksen, C. K.

2017-12-01

NASA continues to improve the Earth Science Directorate in the areas of thematic integration, stakeholder feedback and Project Applications Program tailoring for missions to transfer knowledge between scientists and projects. The integration of application themes and the implementation of application science activities in flight projects have evolved to formally include user feedback and stakeholder integration. NASA's new Flight Applied Science Program Guidelines are designed to bridge NASA Earth Science Directorates in Flight, Applied Sciences and Research and Development by agreeing to integrate the user community into mission life cycles. Thus science development and science applications will guide all new instruments launched by NASAs ESD. The continued integration with the user community has enabled socio-economic considerations into NASA Earth Science projects to advance significantly. Making users a natural part of mission science leverages future socio-economic impact research and provides a platform for innovative and more actionable product to be used in decision support systems by society. This presentation will give an overview of the new NASA Guidelines and provide samples that demonstrate how the user community can be a part of NASA mission designs.

An integrated information system for the acquisition, management and sharing of environmental data aimed to decision making

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

La Loggia, Goffredo; Arnone, Elisa; Ciraolo, Giuseppe; Maltese, Antonino; Noto, Leonardo; Pernice, Umberto

2012-09-01

This paper reports the first results of the Project SESAMO - SistEma informativo integrato per l'acquisizione, geStione e condivisione di dati AMbientali per il supportO alle decisioni (Integrated Information System for the acquisition, management and sharing of environmental data aimed to decision making). The main aim of the project is to design and develop an integrated environmental information platform able to provide monitoring services for decision support, integrating data from different environmental monitoring systems (including WSN). This ICT platform, based on a service-oriented architecture (SOA), will be developed to coordinate a wide variety of data acquisition systems, based on heterogeneous technologies and communication protocols, providing different sort of environmental monitoring services. The implementation and validation of the SESAMO platform and its services will involve three specific environmental domains: 1) Urban water losses; 2) Early warning system for rainfall-induced landslides; 3) Precision irrigation planning. Services in the first domain are enabled by a low cost sensors network collecting and transmitting data, in order to allow the pipeline network managers to analyze pressure, velocity and discharge data for reducing water losses in an urban contest. This paper outlines the SESAMO functional and technological structure and then gives a concise description of the service design and development process for the second and third domain. Services in the second domain are enabled by a prototypal early warning system able to identify in near-real time high-risk zones of rainfall-induced landslides. Services in the third domain are aimed to optimize irrigation planning of vineyards depending on plant water stress.

Coordinating teams of autonomous vehicles: an architectural perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Czichon, Cary; Peterson, Robert W.; Mettala, Erik G.; Vondrak, Ivo

2005-05-01

In defense-related robotics research, a mission level integration gap exists between mission tasks (tactical) performed by ground, sea, or air applications and elementary behaviors enacted by processing, communications, sensors, and weaponry resources (platform specific). The gap spans ensemble (heterogeneous team) behaviors, automatic MOE/MOP tracking, and tactical task modeling/simulation for virtual and mixed teams comprised of robotic and human combatants. This study surveys robotic system architectures, compares approaches for navigating problem/state spaces by autonomous systems, describes an architecture for an integrated, repository-based modeling, simulation, and execution environment, and outlines a multi-tiered scheme for robotic behavior components that is agent-based, platform-independent, and extendable via plug-ins. Tools for this integrated environment, along with a distributed agent framework for collaborative task performance are being developed by a U.S. Army funded SBIR project (RDECOM Contract N61339-04-C-0005).

ENFIN--A European network for integrative systems biology.

PubMed

Kahlem, Pascal; Clegg, Andrew; Reisinger, Florian; Xenarios, Ioannis; Hermjakob, Henning; Orengo, Christine; Birney, Ewan

2009-11-01

Integration of biological data of various types and the development of adapted bioinformatics tools represent critical objectives to enable research at the systems level. The European Network of Excellence ENFIN is engaged in developing an adapted infrastructure to connect databases, and platforms to enable both the generation of new bioinformatics tools and the experimental validation of computational predictions. With the aim of bridging the gap existing between standard wet laboratories and bioinformatics, the ENFIN Network runs integrative research projects to bring the latest computational techniques to bear directly on questions dedicated to systems biology in the wet laboratory environment. The Network maintains internally close collaboration between experimental and computational research, enabling a permanent cycling of experimental validation and improvement of computational prediction methods. The computational work includes the development of a database infrastructure (EnCORE), bioinformatics analysis methods and a novel platform for protein function analysis FuncNet.

Smart Cities Intelligence System (SMACiSYS) Integrating Sensor Web with Spatial Data Infrastructures (sensdi)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bhattacharya, D.; Painho, M.

2017-09-01

The paper endeavours to enhance the Sensor Web with crucial geospatial analysis capabilities through integration with Spatial Data Infrastructure. The objective is development of automated smart cities intelligence system (SMACiSYS) with sensor-web access (SENSDI) utilizing geomatics for sustainable societies. There has been a need to develop automated integrated system to categorize events and issue information that reaches users directly. At present, no web-enabled information system exists which can disseminate messages after events evaluation in real time. Research work formalizes a notion of an integrated, independent, generalized, and automated geo-event analysing system making use of geo-spatial data under popular usage platform. Integrating Sensor Web With Spatial Data Infrastructures (SENSDI) aims to extend SDIs with sensor web enablement, converging geospatial and built infrastructure, and implement test cases with sensor data and SDI. The other benefit, conversely, is the expansion of spatial data infrastructure to utilize sensor web, dynamically and in real time for smart applications that smarter cities demand nowadays. Hence, SENSDI augments existing smart cities platforms utilizing sensor web and spatial information achieved by coupling pairs of otherwise disjoint interfaces and APIs formulated by Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) keeping entire platform open access and open source. SENSDI is based on Geonode, QGIS and Java, that bind most of the functionalities of Internet, sensor web and nowadays Internet of Things superseding Internet of Sensors as well. In a nutshell, the project delivers a generalized real-time accessible and analysable platform for sensing the environment and mapping the captured information for optimal decision-making and societal benefit.

A monolithically integrated polarization entangled photon pair source on a silicon chip

PubMed Central

Matsuda, Nobuyuki; Le Jeannic, Hanna; Fukuda, Hiroshi; Tsuchizawa, Tai; Munro, William John; Shimizu, Kaoru; Yamada, Koji; Tokura, Yasuhiro; Takesue, Hiroki

2012-01-01

Integrated photonic circuits are one of the most promising platforms for large-scale photonic quantum information systems due to their small physical size and stable interferometers with near-perfect lateral-mode overlaps. Since many quantum information protocols are based on qubits defined by the polarization of photons, we must develop integrated building blocks to generate, manipulate, and measure the polarization-encoded quantum state on a chip. The generation unit is particularly important. Here we show the first integrated polarization-entangled photon pair source on a chip. We have implemented the source as a simple and stable silicon-on-insulator photonic circuit that generates an entangled state with 91 ± 2% fidelity. The source is equipped with versatile interfaces for silica-on-silicon or other types of waveguide platforms that accommodate the polarization manipulation and projection devices as well as pump light sources. Therefore, we are ready for the full-scale implementation of photonic quantum information systems on a chip. PMID:23150781

One project of Educational Innovation applying news Information and Communications Technologies (ICT): CyberAula 2.0

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mendiola, M. A.; Aguado, P. L.; Espejo, R.

2012-04-01

The main objective of the CyberAula 2.0 project is to support, record and validate videoconferencing and lecture recording services by means the integration of the Polytechnic University of Madrid (UPM) Moodle Platform with both the Global Plaza platform and Isabel videoconference tool. Each class session is broadcast on the Internet and then recorded, enabling geographically distant students to participate in on-campus classes. All the software used in the project is open source. The videoconferencing tool that we have used is called Isabel and the web platform to schedule, perform, stream, record and publish the videoconferences automatically is called GlobalPlaza. Both of them have been developed at UPM (Universidad Politécnica de Madrid) and are specifically designed for educational purposes. Each class session is broadcasted on the Internet and recorded, enabling geographically distant students to participate live in on-campus classes with questions through a chat tool or through the same videoconference. In order to provide educational support to GlobalPlaza, the CyberAula 2.0 project has been proposed. GlobalPlaza (Barra et al., 2011) is the web platform to schedule, perform, stream, record and publish videoconferences automatically. It is integrated with the videoconferencing tool called Isabel (Quemada et al, 2005), which is a real-time collaboration tool for the Internet, which supports advanced collaborative web/videoconferencing with application sharing and TV like media integration. Both of them are open source solutions which have been developed at our university. GlobalPlaza is a web application developed in the context of the GLOBAL project, a research project supported by the European Commission's seventh framework program. Students can review the recording lectures when needed through Moodle. In this paper we present the project developed at the Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros Agrónomos (ETSIA), Secondary Cycle free-elective-subject, which is currently in process of expiration with the introduction of new curricula within the framework of the European Higher Education Space. Students participate in this subject with outstanding interest, thus achieving transversal competences as they must prepare and present a report in the last week of the Semester. The Project development background was the inclusion of the subject Plants of agro-alimentary interest. It has a quite remarkable, attractive practical deal within the Subjects Offer by this Center and it is one of the most demanded subjects of the free elective ones by students, whose active participation can be highlighted, either in practical workshops or in their individual presentation of reports. In the workshops they must identify, describe, classify and even taste several species of agro-alimentary interest (fruits of tempered or tropical regions, aromatic plants and spices, edible mushrooms and cereals and pseudocereals), many of them formerly unknown for the majority. They are asked to fill some questionnaires in order to consolidate concepts and to evaluate their personal participation in the subject development.

Integration of a mobile-integrated therapy with electronic health records: lessons learned.

PubMed

Peeples, Malinda M; Iyer, Anand K; Cohen, Joshua L

2013-05-01

Responses to the chronic disease epidemic have predominantly been standardized in their approach to date. Barriers to better health outcomes remain, and effective management requires patient-specific data and disease state knowledge be presented in methods that foster clinical decision-making and patient self-management. Mobile technology provides a new platform for data collection and patient-provider communication. The mobile device represents a personalized platform that is available to the patient on a 24/7 basis. Mobile-integrated therapy (MIT) is the convergence of mobile technology, clinical and behavioral science, and scientifically validated clinical outcomes. In this article, we highlight the lessons learned from functional integration of a Food and Drug Administration-cleared type 2 diabetes MIT into the electronic health record (EHR) of a multiphysician practice within a large, urban, academic medical center. In-depth interviews were conducted with integration stakeholder groups: mobile and EHR software and information technology teams, clinical end users, project managers, and business analysts. Interviews were summarized and categorized into lessons learned using the Architecture for Integrated Mobility® framework. Findings from the diverse stakeholder group of a MIT-EHR integration project indicate that user workflow, software system persistence, environment configuration, device connectivity and security, organizational processes, and data exchange heuristics are key issues that must be addressed. Mobile-integrated therapy that integrates patient self-management data with medical record data provides the opportunity to understand the potential benefits of bidirectional data sharing and reporting that are most valuable in advancing better health and better care in a cost-effective way that is scalable for all chronic diseases. © 2013 Diabetes Technology Society.

FREEWAT: an HORIZON 2020 project to build open source tools for water management.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Foglia, L.; Rossetto, R.; Borsi, I.; Mehl, S.; Velasco Mansilla, V.

2015-12-01

FREEWAT is an HORIZON 2020 EU project. FREEWAT main result will be an open source and public domain GIS integrated modelling environment for the simulation of water quantity and quality in surface water and groundwater with an integrated water management and planning module. FREEWAT aims at promoting water resource management by simplifying the application of the Water Framework Directive and related Directives. Specific objectives of the project are: to coordinate previous EU and national funded research to integrate existing software modules for water management in a single environment into the GIS based FREEWAT and to support the FREEWAT application in an innovative participatory approach gathering technical staff and relevant stakeholders (policy and decision makers) in designing scenarios for application of water policies. The open source characteristics of the platform allow to consider this an initiative "ad includendum", as further institutions or developers may contribute to the development. Core of the platform is the SID&GRID framework (GIS integrated physically-based distributed numerical hydrological model based on a modified version of MODFLOW 2005; Rossetto et al. 2013) in its version ported to QGIS desktop. Activities are carried out on two lines: (i) integration of modules to fulfill the end-users requirements, including tools for producing feasibility and management plans; (ii) a set of activities to fix bugs and to provide a well-integrated interface for the different tools implemented. Further capabilities to be integrated are: - module for water management and planning; - calibration, uncertainty and sensitivity analysis; - module for solute transport in unsaturated zone; - module for crop growth and water requirements in agriculture; - tools for groundwater quality issues and for the analysis, interpretation and visualization of hydrogeological data. Through creating a common environment among water research/professionals, policy makers and implementers, FREEWAT main impact will be on enhancing science- and participatory approach and evidence-based decision making in water resource management, hence producing relevant and appropriate outcomes for policy implementation. Large stakeholders involvement is thought to guarantee results dissemination and exploitation.

SenSyF Experience on Integration of EO Services in a Generic, Cloud-Based EO Exploitation Platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Almeida, Nuno; Catarino, Nuno; Gutierrez, Antonio; Grosso, Nuno; Andrade, Joao; Caumont, Herve; Goncalves, Pedro; Villa, Guillermo; Mangin, Antoine; Serra, Romain; Johnsen, Harald; Grydeland, Tom; Emsley, Stephen; Jauch, Eduardo; Moreno, Jose; Ruiz, Antonio

2016-08-01

SenSyF is a cloud-based data processing framework for EO- based services. It has been pioneer in addressing Big Data issues from the Earth Observation point of view, and is a precursor of several of the technologies and methodologies that will be deployed in ESA's Thematic Exploitation Platforms and other related systems.The SenSyF system focuses on developing fully automated data management, together with access to a processing and exploitation framework, including Earth Observation specific tools. SenSyF is both a development and validation platform for data intensive applications using Earth Observation data. With SenSyF, scientific, institutional or commercial institutions developing EO- based applications and services can take advantage of distributed computational and storage resources, tailored for applications dependent on big Earth Observation data, and without resorting to deep infrastructure and technological investments.This paper describes the integration process and the experience gathered from different EO Service providers during the project.

FREEWAT: an HORIZON 2020 project to build open source tools for water management.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rossetto, Rudy; Borsi, Iacopo; Foglia, Laura

2015-04-01

FREEWAT is an HORIZON 2020 project financed by the EU Commission under the call WATER INNOVATION: BOOSTING ITS VALUE FOR EUROPE. FREEWAT main result will be an open source and public domain GIS integrated modelling environment for the simulation of water quantity and quality in surface water and groundwater with an integrated water management and planning module. FREEWAT aims at promoting water resource management by simplifying the application of the Water Framework Directive and other EU water related Directives. Specific objectives of the FREEWAT project are: to coordinate previous EU and national funded research to integrate existing software modules for water management in a single environment into the GIS based FREEWAT and to support the FREEWAT application in an innovative participatory approach gathering technical staff and relevant stakeholders (in primis policy and decision makers) in designing scenarios for the proper application of water policies. The open source characteristics of the platform allow to consider this an initiative "ad includendum" (looking for inclusion of other entities), as further research institutions, private developers etc. may contribute to the platform development. The core of the FREEWAT platform will be the SID&GRID framework in its version ported to the QGIS desktop. SID&GRID (GIS integrated physically-based distributed numerical hydrological model based on a modified version of MODFLOW 2005; Rossetto et al. 2013) is an open source and public domain modelling platform firstly developed within the EU-POR FSE 2007-2013 Regione Toscana - Italy and then ported to the QGIS desktop through a dedicated fund by Regione Toscana. SID&GRID will be complemented by June 2015 with solute transport (also density dependent) capabilities in aquifers within the MARSOL (2014) EU FPVII project. Activities will be mainly carried out on two branches: (i) integration of modules, so that the software will fit the end-users requirements, including tools for better producing feasibility and management plans; (ii) a set of activities devoted to fix bugs and to provide a well-integrated interface for the different tools implemented. Further capabilities to be integrated are: - a dedicated module for water management and planning that will help to manage and aggregate all the distributed data coming from the simulation scenarios; - a whole module for calibration, uncertainty and sensitivity analysis; - a module for solute transport in the unsaturated zone; - a module for crop growth and water requirements in agriculture; - tools for dealing with groundwater quality issues; - tools for the analysis, interpretation and visualization of hydrogeological data. Through creating a common environment among water research/professionals, policy makers and implementers, FREEWAT main impact will be on enhancing science- and participatory approach and evidence-based decision making in water resource management, hence producing relevant and appropriate outcomes for policy implementation. The Consortium is constituted by partners from various water sectors from 10 EU countries, plus Turkey and Ukraine. Synergies with the UNESCO HOPE initiative on free and open source software in water management greatly boost the value of the project. Large stakeholders involvement is thought to guarantee results dissemination and exploitation. Acknowledgements This paper is presented within the framework of the project FREEWAT, which has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under Grant Agreement n. 642224. References MARSOL (2014). Demonstrating Managed Aquifer Recharge as a Solution to Water Scarcity and Drought www.marsol.eu [accessed 4 January 2015] Rossetto, R., Borsi, I., Schifani, C., Bonari, E., Mogorovich P. & Primicerio M. (2013) - SID&GRID: integrating hydrological modeling in GIS environment hydroinformatics system for the management of the water resource. Rendiconti Online Societa Geologica Italiana Volume 24, 282-283

From WSN towards WoT: Open API Scheme Based on oneM2M Platforms.

PubMed

Kim, Jaeho; Choi, Sung-Chan; Ahn, Il-Yeup; Sung, Nak-Myoung; Yun, Jaeseok

2016-10-06

Conventional computing systems have been able to be integrated into daily objects and connected to each other due to advances in computing and network technologies, such as wireless sensor networks (WSNs), forming a global network infrastructure, called the Internet of Things (IoT). To support the interconnection and interoperability between heterogeneous IoT systems, the availability of standardized, open application programming interfaces (APIs) is one of the key features of common software platforms for IoT devices, gateways, and servers. In this paper, we present a standardized way of extending previously-existing WSNs towards IoT systems, building the world of the Web of Things (WoT). Based on the oneM2M software platforms developed in the previous project, we introduce a well-designed open API scheme and device-specific thing adaptation software (TAS) enabling WSN elements, such as a wireless sensor node, to be accessed in a standardized way on a global scale. Three pilot services are implemented (i.e., a WiFi-enabled smart flowerpot, voice-based control for ZigBee-connected home appliances, and WiFi-connected AR.Drone control) to demonstrate the practical usability of the open API scheme and TAS modules. Full details on the method of integrating WSN elements into three example systems are described at the programming code level, which is expected to help future researchers in integrating their WSN systems in IoT platforms, such as oneM2M. We hope that the flexibly-deployable, easily-reusable common open API scheme and TAS-based integration method working with the oneM2M platforms will help the conventional WSNs in diverse industries evolve into the emerging WoT solutions.

From WSN towards WoT: Open API Scheme Based on oneM2M Platforms

PubMed Central

Kim, Jaeho; Choi, Sung-Chan; Ahn, Il-Yeup; Sung, Nak-Myoung; Yun, Jaeseok

2016-01-01

Conventional computing systems have been able to be integrated into daily objects and connected to each other due to advances in computing and network technologies, such as wireless sensor networks (WSNs), forming a global network infrastructure, called the Internet of Things (IoT). To support the interconnection and interoperability between heterogeneous IoT systems, the availability of standardized, open application programming interfaces (APIs) is one of the key features of common software platforms for IoT devices, gateways, and servers. In this paper, we present a standardized way of extending previously-existing WSNs towards IoT systems, building the world of the Web of Things (WoT). Based on the oneM2M software platforms developed in the previous project, we introduce a well-designed open API scheme and device-specific thing adaptation software (TAS) enabling WSN elements, such as a wireless sensor node, to be accessed in a standardized way on a global scale. Three pilot services are implemented (i.e., a WiFi-enabled smart flowerpot, voice-based control for ZigBee-connected home appliances, and WiFi-connected AR.Drone control) to demonstrate the practical usability of the open API scheme and TAS modules. Full details on the method of integrating WSN elements into three example systems are described at the programming code level, which is expected to help future researchers in integrating their WSN systems in IoT platforms, such as oneM2M. We hope that the flexibly-deployable, easily-reusable common open API scheme and TAS-based integration method working with the oneM2M platforms will help the conventional WSNs in diverse industries evolve into the emerging WoT solutions. PMID:27782058

GABBs: Cyberinfrastructure for Self-Service Geospatial Data Exploration, Computation, and Sharing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, C. X.; Zhao, L.; Biehl, L. L.; Merwade, V.; Villoria, N.

2016-12-01

Geospatial data are present everywhere today with the proliferation of location-aware computing devices. This is especially true in the scientific community where large amounts of data are driving research and education activities in many domains. Collaboration over geospatial data, for example, in modeling, data analysis and visualization, must still overcome the barriers of specialized software and expertise among other challenges. In addressing these needs, the Geospatial data Analysis Building Blocks (GABBs) project aims at building geospatial modeling, data analysis and visualization capabilities in an open source web platform, HUBzero. Funded by NSF's Data Infrastructure Building Blocks initiative, GABBs is creating a geospatial data architecture that integrates spatial data management, mapping and visualization, and interfaces in the HUBzero platform for scientific collaborations. The geo-rendering enabled Rappture toolkit, a generic Python mapping library, geospatial data exploration and publication tools, and an integrated online geospatial data management solution are among the software building blocks from the project. The GABBS software will be available through Amazon's AWS Marketplace VM images and open source. Hosting services are also available to the user community. The outcome of the project will enable researchers and educators to self-manage their scientific data, rapidly create GIS-enable tools, share geospatial data and tools on the web, and build dynamic workflows connecting data and tools, all without requiring significant software development skills, GIS expertise or IT administrative privileges. This presentation will describe the GABBs architecture, toolkits and libraries, and showcase the scientific use cases that utilize GABBs capabilities, as well as the challenges and solutions for GABBs to interoperate with other cyberinfrastructure platforms.

Satellite communications provisions on NASA Ames instrumented aircraft platforms for Earth science research/applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shameson, L.; Brass, J. A.; Hanratty, J. J.; Roberts, A. C.; Wegener, S. S.

1995-01-01

Earth science activities at NASA Ames are research in atmospheric and ecosystem science, development of remote sensing and in situ sampling instruments, and their integration into scientific research platform aircraft. The use of satellite communications can greatly extend the capability of these agency research platform aircraft. Current projects and plans involve satellite links on the Perseus UAV and the ER-2 via TDRSS and a proposed experiment on the NASA Advanced Communications Technology Satellite. Provisions for data links on the Perseus research platform, via TDRSS S-band multiple access service, have been developed and are being tested. Test flights at Dryden are planned to demonstrate successful end-to-end data transfer. A Unisys Corp. airborne satcom STARLink system is being integrated into an Ames ER-2 aircraft. This equipment will support multiple data rates up to 43 Mb/s each via the TDRS S Ku-band single access service. The first flight mission for this high-rate link is planned for August 1995. Ames and JPL have proposed an ACTS experiment to use real-time satellite communications to improve wildfire research campaigns. Researchers and fire management teams making use of instrumented aircraft platforms at a prescribed burn site will be able to communicate with experts at Ames, the U.S. Forest Service, and emergency response agencies.

Team Oriented Robotic Exploration Task on Scorpion and K9 Platforms

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kirchner, Frank

2003-01-01

This final report describes the achievements that have been made in the project over the complete period of performance. The technical progress highlights the different areas of work in terms of Progress in Mechatronics, Sensor integration, Software Development. User Interfaces, Behavior Development and Experimental Results and System Testing. The different areas are: Mechatronics, Sensor integration, Software development, Experimental results and Basic System Testing, Behaviors Development and Advanced System Testing, User Interface and Wireless Communication.

SSTAC/ARTS review of the draft Integrated Technology Plan (ITP). Volume 3: Space power and thermal management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1991-01-01

Viewgraphs of briefings from the SSTAC/ARTS review of the draft integrated technology plan on thermal power and thermal management are presented. Topics covered include: space energy conversion research and technology; space photovoltaic energy conversion; chemical energy conversion and storage; thermal energy conversion; power management; thermal management; space nuclear power; high capacity power; surface power and thermal management; space platforms power and thermal management; and project SELENE.

SSTAC/ARTS review of the draft Integrated Technology Plan (ITP). Volume 3: Space power and thermal management

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

Viewgraphs of briefings from the SSTAC/ARTS review of the draft integrated technology plan on thermal power and thermal management are presented. Topics covered include: space energy conversion research and technology; space photovoltaic energy conversion; chemical energy conversion and storage; thermal energy conversion; power management; thermal management; space nuclear power; high capacity power; surface power and thermal management; space platforms power and thermal management; and project SELENE.

Control and Non-Payload Communications (CNPC) Prototype Radio - Generation 2 Security Flight Test Report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Iannicca, Dennis C.; Ishac, Joseph A.; Shalkhauser, Kurt A.

2015-01-01

NASA Glenn Research Center (GRC), in cooperation with Rockwell Collins, is working to develop a prototype Control and Non-Payload Communications (CNPC) radio platform as part of NASA Integrated Systems Research Program's (ISRP) Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Integration in the National Airspace System (NAS) project. A primary focus of the project is to work with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and industry standards bodies to build and demonstrate a safe, secure, and efficient CNPC architecture that can be used by industry to evaluate the feasibility of deploying a system using these technologies in an operational capacity. GRC has been working in conjunction with these groups to assess threats, identify security requirements, and to develop a system of standards-based security controls that can be applied to the GRC prototype CNPC architecture as a demonstration platform. The proposed security controls were integrated into the GRC flight test system aboard our S-3B Viking surrogate aircraft and several network tests were conducted during a flight on November 15th, 2014 to determine whether the controls were working properly within the flight environment. The flight test was also the first to integrate Robust Header Compression (ROHC) as a means of reducing the additional overhead introduced by the security controls and Mobile IPv6. The effort demonstrated the complete end-to-end secure CNPC link in a relevant flight environment.

The Geohazards Exploitation Platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Laur, Henri; Casu, Francesco; Bally, Philippe; Caumont, Hervé; Pinto, Salvatore

2016-04-01

The Geohazards Exploitation Platform, or Geohazards TEP (GEP), is an ESA originated R&D activity of the EO ground segment to demonstrate the benefit of new technologies for large scale processing of EO data. This encompasses on-demand processing for specific user needs, systematic processing to address common information needs of the geohazards community, and integration of newly developed processors for scientists and other expert users. The platform supports the geohazards community's objectives as defined in the context of the International Forum on Satellite EO and Geohazards organised by ESA and GEO in Santorini in 2012. The GEP is a follow on to the Supersites Exploitation Platform (SSEP) an ESA initiative to support the Geohazards Supersites & Natural Laboratories initiative (GSNL). Today the GEP allows to exploit 70+ Terabyte of ERS and ENVISAT archive and the Copernicus Sentinel-1 data available on line. The platform has already engaged 22 European early adopters in a validation activity initiated in March 2015. Since September, this validation has reached 29 single user projects. Each project is concerned with either integrating an application, running on demand processing or systematically generating a product collection using an application available in the platform. The users primarily include 15 geoscience centres and universities based in Europe: British Geological Survey (UK), University of Leeds (UK), University College London (UK), ETH University of Zurich (CH), INGV (IT), CNR-IREA and CNR-IRPI (IT), University of L'Aquila (IT), NOA (GR), Univ. Blaise Pascal & CNRS (FR), Ecole Normale Supérieure (FR), ISTERRE / University of Grenoble-Alpes (FR). In addition, there are users from Africa and North America with the University of Rabat (MA) and the University of Miami (US). Furthermore two space agencies and four private companies are involved: the German Space Research Centre DLR (DE), the European Space Agency (ESA), Altamira Information (ES), DEIMOS Space (ES), eGEOS (IT) and SATIM (PL). The GEP is now pursuing these projects with early adopters integrating additional conventional and advanced EO processors. It will also expand its user base to gradually reach a total of 60 separate users in pre-operations in 2017 with 6 new pilot projects being taken on board: photogrammetric processing using Optical EO data with University of Strasbourg (FR); optical based processing method for volcanic hazard monitoring with INGV (IT); systematic generation of Interferometric displacement time series based on the Sentinel-1 data with CNR IREA (IT); systematic processing of Sentinel-1 Interferometric Browse imagery with DLR (DE); precise terrain motion mapping with SPN Persistent Scatterers Interferometric chain of Altamira Information (ES); and a campaign to test and exploit GEP applications with the Corinth Rift Laboratory in which Greek and French experts of seismic hazards are engaged. Following the pre-operations phase starting in 2017 the Geohazards platform is intended to support a broad user community and has already established partnerships with large user networks, a particular example of which being the EPOS research infrastructure. Within EPOS, the GEP is intended to act as the main interface for accessing, processing, analysing and sharing products related to the Satellite Data Thematic Service.

SITHON: An Airborne Fire Detection System Compliant with Operational Tactical Requirements

PubMed Central

Kontoes, Charalabos; Keramitsoglou, Iphigenia; Sifakis, Nicolaos; Konstantinidis, Pavlos

2009-01-01

In response to the urging need of fire managers for timely information on fire location and extent, the SITHON system was developed. SITHON is a fully digital thermal imaging system, integrating INS/GPS and a digital camera, designed to provide timely positioned and projected thermal images and video data streams rapidly integrated in the GIS operated by Crisis Control Centres. This article presents in detail the hardware and software components of SITHON, and demonstrates the first encouraging results of test flights over the Sithonia Peninsula in Northern Greece. It is envisaged that the SITHON system will be soon operated onboard various airborne platforms including fire brigade airplanes and helicopters as well as on UAV platforms owned and operated by the Greek Air Forces. PMID:22399963

Research on digital city geographic information common services platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Dequan; Wu, Qunyong; Wang, Qinmin

2008-10-01

Traditional GIS (Geographic Information System) software development mode exposes many defects that will largely slow down the city informational progress. It is urgent need to build a common application infrastructure for informational project to speed up the development pace of digital city. The advent of service-oriented architecture (SOA) has motivated the adoption of GIS functionality portals that can be executed in distributed computing environment. According to the SOA principle, we bring forward and design a digital city geographic information common services platform which provides application development service interfaces for field users that can be further extended relevant business application. In the end, a public-oriented Web GIS is developed based on the platform for helping public users to query geographic information in their daily life. It indicates that our platform have the capacity that can be integrated by other applications conveniently.

A Framework to Integrate Public, Dynamic Metrics into an OER Platform

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cohen, Jaclyn Zetta; Omollo, Kathleen Ludewig; Malicke, Dave

2014-01-01

The usage metrics for open educational resources (OER) are often either hidden behind an authentication system or shared intermittently in static, aggregated format at the repository level. This paper discusses the first year of University of Michigan's project to share its OER usage data dynamically, publicly, to synthesize it across different…

From Redlining to Benevolent Societies: The Emancipatory Power of Spatial Thinking

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mitchell, Katharyne; Elwood, Sarah

2012-01-01

This study highlights the power of place, and reconceptualizes geography education as integral to the larger project of teaching for democratic citizenship. Using an interactive web platform, the researchers asked 29 seventh grade girls to research and map significant cultural and historical places associated with an ethnic group, or women, in the…

An Embedded Systems Course for Engineering Students Using Open-Source Platforms in Wireless Scenarios

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rodriguez-Sanchez, M. C.; Torrado-Carvajal, Angel; Vaquero, Joaquin; Borromeo, Susana; Hernandez-Tamames, Juan A.

2016-01-01

This paper presents a case study analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of using project-based learning (PBL) combined with collaborative learning (CL) and industry best practices, integrated with information communication technologies, open-source software, and open-source hardware tools, in a specialized microcontroller and embedded systems…

The 2015-2016 SEPMAP Program at NASA JSC: Science, Engineering, and Program Management Training

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Graham, L.; Archer, D.; Bakalyar, J.; Berger, E.; Blome, E.; Brown, R.; Cox, S.; Curiel, P.; Eid, R.; Eppler, D.;

Optoelectronic tweezers integrated with lensfree holographic microscopy for wide-field interactive cell and particle manipulation on a chip.

PubMed

Huang, Kuo-Wei; Su, Ting-Wei; Ozcan, Aydogan; Chiou, Pei-Yu

2013-06-21

We demonstrate an optoelectronic tweezer (OET) coupled to a lensfree holographic microscope for real-time interactive manipulation of cells and micro-particles over a large field-of-view (FOV). This integrated platform can record the holographic images of cells and particles over the entire active area of a CCD sensor array, perform digital image reconstruction to identify target cells, dynamically track the positions of cells and particles, and project light beams to trigger light-induced dielectrophoretic forces to pattern and sort cells on a chip. OET technology has been previously shown to be capable of performing parallel single cell manipulation over a large area. However, its throughput has been bottlenecked by the number of cells that can be imaged within the limited FOV of a conventional microscope objective lens. Integrating lensfree holographic imaging with OET solves this fundamental FOV barrier, while also creating a compact on-chip cell/particle manipulation platform. Using this unique platform, we have successfully demonstrated real-time interactive manipulation of thousands of single cells and micro-particles over an ultra-large area of e.g., 240 mm(2) (i.e. 17.96 mm × 13.52 mm).

A survey of informatics platforms that enable distributed comparative effectiveness research using multi-institutional heterogeneous clinical data

PubMed Central

Sittig, Dean F.; Hazlehurst, Brian L.; Brown, Jeffrey; Murphy, Shawn; Rosenman, Marc; Tarczy-Hornoch, Peter; Wilcox, Adam B.

2012-01-01

Comparative Effectiveness Research (CER) has the potential to transform the current healthcare delivery system by identifying the most effective medical and surgical treatments, diagnostic tests, disease prevention methods and ways to deliver care for specific clinical conditions. To be successful, such research requires the identification, capture, aggregation, integration, and analysis of disparate data sources held by different institutions with diverse representations of the relevant clinical events. In an effort to address these diverse demands, there have been multiple new designs and implementations of informatics platforms that provide access to electronic clinical data and the governance infrastructure required for inter-institutional CER. The goal of this manuscript is to help investigators understand why these informatics platforms are required and to compare and contrast six, large-scale, recently funded, CER-focused informatics platform development efforts. We utilized an 8-dimension, socio-technical model of health information technology use to help guide our work. We identified six generic steps that are necessary in any distributed, multi-institutional CER project: data identification, extraction, modeling, aggregation, analysis, and dissemination. We expect that over the next several years these projects will provide answers to many important, and heretofore unanswerable, clinical research questions. PMID:22692259

Cloud Computing for Geosciences--GeoCloud for standardized geospatial service platforms (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nebert, D. D.; Huang, Q.; Yang, C.

2013-12-01

The 21st century geoscience faces challenges of Big Data, spike computing requirements (e.g., when natural disaster happens), and sharing resources through cyberinfrastructure across different organizations (Yang et al., 2011). With flexibility and cost-efficiency of computing resources a primary concern, cloud computing emerges as a promising solution to provide core capabilities to address these challenges. Many governmental and federal agencies are adopting cloud technologies to cut costs and to make federal IT operations more efficient (Huang et al., 2010). However, it is still difficult for geoscientists to take advantage of the benefits of cloud computing to facilitate the scientific research and discoveries. This presentation reports using GeoCloud to illustrate the process and strategies used in building a common platform for geoscience communities to enable the sharing, integration of geospatial data, information and knowledge across different domains. GeoCloud is an annual incubator project coordinated by the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) in collaboration with the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) and the Department of Health and Human Services. It is designed as a staging environment to test and document the deployment of a common GeoCloud community platform that can be implemented by multiple agencies. With these standardized virtual geospatial servers, a variety of government geospatial applications can be quickly migrated to the cloud. In order to achieve this objective, multiple projects are nominated each year by federal agencies as existing public-facing geospatial data services. From the initial candidate projects, a set of common operating system and software requirements was identified as the baseline for platform as a service (PaaS) packages. Based on these developed common platform packages, each project deploys and monitors its web application, develops best practices, and documents cost and performance information. This paper presents the background, architectural design, and activities of GeoCloud in support of the Geospatial Platform Initiative. System security strategies and approval processes for migrating federal geospatial data, information, and applications into cloud, and cost estimation for cloud operations are covered. Finally, some lessons learned from the GeoCloud project are discussed as reference for geoscientists to consider in the adoption of cloud computing.

iSPHERE - A New Approach to Collaborative Research and Cloud Computing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Al-Ubaidi, T.; Khodachenko, M. L.; Kallio, E. J.; Harry, A.; Alexeev, I. I.; Vázquez-Poletti, J. L.; Enke, H.; Magin, T.; Mair, M.; Scherf, M.; Poedts, S.; De Causmaecker, P.; Heynderickx, D.; Congedo, P.; Manolescu, I.; Esser, B.; Webb, S.; Ruja, C.

2015-10-01

The project iSPHERE (integrated Scientific Platform for HEterogeneous Research and Engineering) that has been proposed for Horizon 2020 (EINFRA-9- 2015, [1]) aims at creating a next generation Virtual Research Environment (VRE) that embraces existing and emerging technologies and standards in order to provide a versatile platform for scientific investigations and collaboration. The presentation will introduce the large project consortium, provide a comprehensive overview of iSPHERE's basic concepts and approaches and outline general user requirements that the VRE will strive to satisfy. An overview of the envisioned architecture will be given, focusing on the adapted Service Bus concept, i.e. the "Scientific Service Bus" as it is called in iSPHERE. The bus will act as a central hub for all communication and user access, and will be implemented in the course of the project. The agile approach [2] that has been chosen for detailed elaboration and documentation of user requirements, as well as for the actual implementation of the system, will be outlined and its motivation and basic structure will be discussed. The presentation will show which user communities will benefit and which concrete problems, scientific investigations are facing today, will be tackled by the system. Another focus of the presentation is iSPHERE's seamless integration of cloud computing resources and how these will benefit scientific modeling teams by providing a reliable and web based environment for cloud based model execution, storage of results, and comparison with measurements, including fully web based tools for data mining, analysis and visualization. Also the envisioned creation of a dedicated data model for experimental plasma physics will be discussed. It will be shown why the Scientific Service Bus provides an ideal basis to integrate a number of data models and communication protocols and to provide mechanisms for data exchange across multiple and even multidisciplinary platforms.

Rapidly Deployable Security System Final Report CRADA No. TC-2030-01

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kohlhepp, V.; Whiteman, B.; McKibben, M. T.

The ultimate objective of the LEADER and LLNL strategic partnership was to develop and commercialize_a security-based system product and platform for the use in protecting the substantial physical and economic assets of the government and commerce of the United States. The primary goal of this project was to integrate video surveillance hardware developed by LLNL with a security software backbone developed by LEADER. Upon completion of the project, a prototype hardware/software security system that is highly scalable was to be demonstrated.

Co-integrating plasmonics with Si3N4 photonics towards a generic CMOS compatible PIC platform for high-sensitivity multi-channel biosensors: the H2020 PlasmoFab approach (Conference Presentation)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tsiokos, Dimitris M.; Dabos, George; Ketzaki, Dimitra; Weeber, Jean-Claude; Markey, Laurent; Dereux, Alain; Giesecke, Anna Lena; Porschatis, Caroline; Chmielak, Bartos; Wahlbrink, Thorsten; Rochracher, Karl; Pleros, Nikos

2017-05-01

Silicon photonics meet most fabrication requirements of standard CMOS process lines encompassing the photonics-electronics consolidation vision. Despite this remarkable progress, further miniaturization of PICs for common integration with electronics and for increasing PIC functional density is bounded by the inherent diffraction limit of light imposed by optical waveguides. Instead, Surface Plasmon Polariton (SPP) waveguides can guide light at sub-wavelength scales at the metal surface providing unique light-matter interaction properties, exploiting at the same time their metallic nature to naturally integrate with electronics in high-performance ASPICs. In this article, we demonstrate the main goals of the recently introduced H2020 project PlasmoFab towards addressing the ever increasing needs for low energy, small size and high performance mass manufactured PICs by developing a revolutionary yet CMOS-compatible fabrication platform for seamless co-integration of plasmonics with photonic and supporting electronic. We demonstrate recent advances on the hosting SiN photonic hosting platform reporting on low-loss passive SiN waveguide and Grating Coupler circuits for both the TM and TE polarization states. We also present experimental results of plasmonic gold thin-film and hybrid slot waveguide configurations that can allow for high-sensitivity sensing, providing also the ongoing activities towards replacing gold with Cu, Al or TiN metal in order to yield the same functionality over a CMOS metallic structure. Finally, the first experimental results on the co-integrated SiN+plasmonic platform are demonstrated, concluding to an initial theoretical performance analysis of the CMOS plasmo-photonic biosensor that has the potential to allow for sensitivities beyond 150000nm/RIU.

Platform for monitoring water and solid fluxes in mountainous rivers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nord, Guillaume; Esteves, Michel; Aubert, Coralie; Belleudy, Philippe; Coulaud, Catherine; Bois, Jérôme; Geay, Thomas; Gratiot, Nicolas; Legout, Cédric; Mercier, Bernard; Némery, Julien; Michielin, Yoann

2016-04-01

The project aims to develop a platform that electronically integrates a set of existing sensors for the continuous measurement at high temporal frequency of water and solid fluxes (bed load and suspension), characteristics of suspended solids (distribution in particle size, settling velocity of the particles) and other variables on water quality (color, nutrient concentration). The project is preferentially intended for rivers in mountainous catchments draining areas from 10 to 1000 km², with high suspended sediment concentrations (maxima between 10 and 300 g/l) and highly dynamic behavior, water discharge varying of several orders of magnitude in a short period of time (a few hours). The measurement of water and solid fluxes in this type of river remains a challenge and, to date, there is no built-in device on the market to continuously monitor all these variables. The development of this platform is based on a long experience of measurement of sediment fluxes in rivers within the French Critical Zone Observatories (http://portailrbv.sedoo.fr/), especially in the Draix-Bléone (http://oredraixbleone.irstea.fr/) and OHMCV (http://www.ohmcv.fr/) observatories. The choice was made to integrate in the platform instruments already available on the market and currently used by the scientific community (water level radar, surface velocity radar, turbidity sensor, automatic water sampler, video camera) and to include also newly developed instruments (System for the Characterization of Aggregates and Flocs - see EGU2016-8542 - and hydrophone) or commercial instruments (spectrophotometer and radiometer) to be tested in surface water with high suspended sediment concentration. Priority is given to non-intrusive instruments due to their robustness in this type of environment with high destructive potential. Development work includes the construction of a platform prototype "smart" and remotely configurable for implantation in an isolated environment (absence of electric network and wired communication network). This platform should enable interaction between different sensors, remote management and real-time sensors, sending SMS (Short Message Service) and e-mail alarms, remote data transmission and data archiving. A test of the current platform is planned in 2016 on a site of the French Critical Zone Observatories.

Supporting Building Portfolio Investment and Policy Decision Making through an Integrated Building Utility Data Platform

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Aziz, Azizan; Lasternas, Bertrand; Alschuler, Elena

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act stimulus funding of 2009 for smart grid projects resulted in the tripling of smart meters deployment. In 2012, the Green Button initiative provided utility customers with access to their real-time1 energy usage. The availability of finely granular data provides an enormous potential for energy data analytics and energy benchmarking. The sheer volume of time-series utility data from a large number of buildings also poses challenges in data collection, quality control, and database management for rigorous and meaningful analyses. In this paper, we will describe a building portfolio-level data analytics tool for operational optimization, businessmore » investment and policy assessment using 15-minute to monthly intervals utility data. The analytics tool is developed on top of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Standard Energy Efficiency Data (SEED) platform, an open source software application that manages energy performance data of large groups of buildings. To support the significantly large volume of granular interval data, we integrated a parallel time-series database to the existing relational database. The time-series database improves on the current utility data input, focusing on real-time data collection, storage, analytics and data quality control. The fully integrated data platform supports APIs for utility apps development by third party software developers. These apps will provide actionable intelligence for building owners and facilities managers. Unlike a commercial system, this platform is an open source platform funded by the U.S. Government, accessible to the public, researchers and other developers, to support initiatives in reducing building energy consumption.« less

Integrated Toolset for WSN Application Planning, Development, Commissioning and Maintenance: The WSN-DPCM ARTEMIS-JU Project.

PubMed

Antonopoulos, Christos; Asimogloy, Katerina; Chiti, Sarah; D'Onofrio, Luca; Gianfranceschi, Simone; He, Danping; Iodice, Antonio; Koubias, Stavros; Koulamas, Christos; Lavagno, Luciano; Lazarescu, Mihai T; Mujica, Gabriel; Papadopoulos, George; Portilla, Jorge; Redondo, Luis; Riccio, Daniele; Riesgo, Teresa; Rodriguez, Daniel; Ruello, Giuseppe; Samoladas, Vasilis; Stoyanova, Tsenka; Touliatos, Gerasimos; Valvo, Angela; Vlahoy, Georgia

2016-06-02

In this article we present the main results obtained in the ARTEMIS-JU WSN-DPCM project between October 2011 and September 2015. The first objective of the project was the development of an integrated toolset for Wireless sensor networks (WSN) application planning, development, commissioning and maintenance, which aims to support application domain experts, with limited WSN expertise, to efficiently develop WSN applications from planning to lifetime maintenance. The toolset is made of three main tools: one for planning, one for application development and simulation (which can include hardware nodes), and one for network commissioning and lifetime maintenance. The tools are integrated in a single platform which promotes software reuse by automatically selecting suitable library components for application synthesis and the abstraction of the underlying architecture through the use of a middleware layer. The second objective of the project was to test the effectiveness of the toolset for the development of two case studies in different domains, one for detecting the occupancy state of parking lots and one for monitoring air concentration of harmful gasses near an industrial site.

Integrated Toolset for WSN Application Planning, Development, Commissioning and Maintenance: The WSN-DPCM ARTEMIS-JU Project

PubMed Central

Antonopoulos, Christos; Asimogloy, Katerina; Chiti, Sarah; D’Onofrio, Luca; Gianfranceschi, Simone; He, Danping; Iodice, Antonio; Koubias, Stavros; Koulamas, Christos; Lavagno, Luciano; Lazarescu, Mihai T.; Mujica, Gabriel; Papadopoulos, George; Portilla, Jorge; Redondo, Luis; Riccio, Daniele; Riesgo, Teresa; Rodriguez, Daniel; Ruello, Giuseppe; Samoladas, Vasilis; Stoyanova, Tsenka; Touliatos, Gerasimos; Valvo, Angela; Vlahoy, Georgia

2016-01-01

In this article we present the main results obtained in the ARTEMIS-JU WSN-DPCM project between October 2011 and September 2015. The first objective of the project was the development of an integrated toolset for Wireless sensor networks (WSN) application planning, development, commissioning and maintenance, which aims to support application domain experts, with limited WSN expertise, to efficiently develop WSN applications from planning to lifetime maintenance. The toolset is made of three main tools: one for planning, one for application development and simulation (which can include hardware nodes), and one for network commissioning and lifetime maintenance. The tools are integrated in a single platform which promotes software reuse by automatically selecting suitable library components for application synthesis and the abstraction of the underlying architecture through the use of a middleware layer. The second objective of the project was to test the effectiveness of the toolset for the development of two case studies in different domains, one for detecting the occupancy state of parking lots and one for monitoring air concentration of harmful gasses near an industrial site. PMID:27271622

Nanotechnology and textiles engineered by carbon nanotubes for the realization of advanced personal protective equipments

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Andretta, Antonio, E-mail: Antonio-Andretta@klopman.com; Terranova, Maria Letizia; Lavecchia, Teresa

2014-06-19

Carbon nanotubes (CNT) and CNT-based active materials have been used to assemble the gas sensing unit of innovative platforms able to detect toxic atmospheres developing in confined workplaces. The main goal of the project was to realize a full-featured, operator-friendly safety detection and monitoring system based on multifunctional textiles nanotechnologies. The fabricated sensing platform consists of a multiple gas detector coupled with a specifically designed telecommunication infrastructure. The portable device, totally integrated in the workwear, offers several advantages over the conventional safety tools employed in industrial work activities.

Nanotechnology and textiles engineered by carbon nanotubes for the realization of advanced personal protective equipments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andretta, Antonio; Terranova, Maria Letizia; Lavecchia, Teresa; Gay, Stefano; Picano, Alfredo; Mascioletti, Alessandro; Stirpe, Daniele; Cucchiella, Cristian; Pascucci, Eddy; Dugnani, Giovanni; Gatti, Davide; Laria, Giuseppe; Codenotti, Barbara; Maldini, Giorgio; Roth, Siegmar; Passeri, Daniele; Rossi, Marco; Tamburri, Emanuela

2014-06-01

Carbon nanotubes (CNT) and CNT-based active materials have been used to assemble the gas sensing unit of innovative platforms able to detect toxic atmospheres developing in confined workplaces. The main goal of the project was to realize a full-featured, operator-friendly safety detection and monitoring system based on multifunctional textiles nanotechnologies. The fabricated sensing platform consists of a multiple gas detector coupled with a specifically designed telecommunication infrastructure. The portable device, totally integrated in the workwear, offers several advantages over the conventional safety tools employed in industrial work activities.

Integrated Global Observation Strategy - Ozone and Atmospheric Chemistry Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hilsenrath, Ernest; Readings, C. J.; Kaye, J.; Mohnen, V.; Einaudi, Franco (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

The "Long Term Continuity of Stratospheric Ozone Measurements and Atmospheric Chemistry" project was one of six established by the Committee on Earth Observing Satellites (CEOS) in response to the Integrated Global Observing Strategy (IGOS) initiative. IGOS links satellite and ground based systems for global environmental observations. The strategy of this project is to develop a consensus of user requirements including the scientific (SPARC, IGAC, WCRP) and the applications community (WMO, UNEP) and to develop a long-term international plan for ozone and atmospheric chemistry measurements. The major components of the observing system include operational and research (meeting certain criteria) satellite platforms planned by the space faring nations which are integrated with a well supported and sustained ground, aircraft, and balloon measurements program for directed observations as well satellite validation. Highly integrated and continuous measurements of ozone, validation, and reanalysis efforts are essential to meet the international scientific and applications goals. In order to understand ozone trends, climate change, and air quality, it is essential to conduct long term measurements of certain other atmospheric species. These species include key source, radical, and reservoir constituents.

Digital Radiography and Computed Tomography Project -- Fully Integrated Linear Detector ArrayStatus Report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tim Roney; Robert Seifert; Bob Pink

2011-09-01

The field-portable Digital Radiography and Computed Tomography (DRCT) x-ray inspection systems developed for the Project Manager for NonStockpile Chemical Materiel (PMNSCM) over the past 13 years have used linear diode detector arrays from two manufacturers; Thomson and Thales. These two manufacturers no longer produce this type of detector. In the interest of insuring the long term viability of the portable DRCT single munitions inspection systems and to improve the imaging capabilities, this project has been investigating improved, commercially available detectors. During FY-10, detectors were evaluated and one in particular, manufactured by Detection Technologies (DT), Inc, was acquired for possible integrationmore » into the DRCT systems. The remainder of this report describes the work performed in FY-11 to complete evaluations and fully integrate the detector onto a representative DRCT platform.« less

Molecular Cloning Designer Simulator (MCDS): All-in-one molecular cloning and genetic engineering design, simulation and management software for complex synthetic biology and metabolic engineering projects.

PubMed

Shi, Zhenyu; Vickers, Claudia E

2016-12-01

Molecular Cloning Designer Simulator (MCDS) is a powerful new all-in-one cloning and genetic engineering design, simulation and management software platform developed for complex synthetic biology and metabolic engineering projects. In addition to standard functions, it has a number of features that are either unique, or are not found in combination in any one software package: (1) it has a novel interactive flow-chart user interface for complex multi-step processes, allowing an integrated overview of the whole project; (2) it can perform a user-defined workflow of cloning steps in a single execution of the software; (3) it can handle multiple types of genetic recombineering, a technique that is rapidly replacing classical cloning for many applications; (4) it includes experimental information to conveniently guide wet lab work; and (5) it can store results and comments to allow the tracking and management of the whole project in one platform. MCDS is freely available from https://mcds.codeplex.com.

Buried waste integrated demonstration human engineered control station. Final report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1994-09-01

This document describes the Human Engineered Control Station (HECS) project activities including the conceptual designs. The purpose of the HECS is to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of remote retrieval by providing an integrated remote control station. The HECS integrates human capabilities, limitations, and expectations into the design to reduce the potential for human error, provides an easy system to learn and operate, provides an increased productivity, and reduces the ultimate investment in training. The overall HECS consists of the technology interface stations, supporting engineering aids, platform (trailer), communications network (broadband system), and collision avoidance system.

Patient-Centered e-Health Record over the Cloud.

PubMed

Koumaditis, Konstantinos; Themistocleous, Marinos; Vassilacopoulos, George; Prentza, Andrianna; Kyriazis, Dimosthenis; Malamateniou, Flora; Maglaveras, Nicos; Chouvarda, Ioanna; Mourouzis, Alexandros

2014-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the Patient-Centered e-Health (PCEH) conceptual aspects alongside a multidisciplinary project that combines state-of-the-art technologies like cloud computing. The project, by combining several aspects of PCEH, such as: (a) electronic Personal Healthcare Record (e-PHR), (b) homecare telemedicine technologies, (c) e-prescribing, e-referral, e-learning, with advanced technologies like cloud computing and Service Oriented Architecture (SOA), will lead to an innovative integrated e-health platform of many benefits to the society, the economy, the industry, and the research community. To achieve this, a consortium of experts, both from industry (two companies, one hospital and one healthcare organization) and academia (three universities), was set to investigate, analyse, design, build and test the new platform. This paper provides insights to the PCEH concept and to the current stage of the project. In doing so, we aim at increasing the awareness of this important endeavor and sharing the lessons learned so far throughout our work.

The Virtual Learning Environment ROODA: An Institutional Project of Long Distance Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Behar, Patricia Alejandra; Leite, Silvia Meirelles

2006-01-01

This article describes ROODA (http://www.homer.nuted.edu.ufrgs.br), a virtual learning environment and one of the official Long Distance Education platforms that has been in use since 2005 at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre, Brazil. It is free software that integrates syncronous and assyncronous…

Sharing and interoperation of Digital Dongying geospatial data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Jun; Liu, Gaohuan; Han, Lit-tao; Zhang, Rui-ju; Wang, Zhi-an

2006-10-01

Digital Dongying project was put forward by Dongying city, Shandong province, and authenticated by Ministry of Information Industry, Ministry of Science and Technology and Ministry of Construction P.R.CHINA in 2002. After five years of building, informationization level of Dongying has reached to the advanced degree. In order to forward the step of digital Dongying building, and to realize geospatial data sharing, geographic information sharing standards are drawn up and applied into realization. Secondly, Digital Dongying Geographic Information Sharing Platform has been constructed and developed, which is a highly integrated platform of WEBGIS. 3S (GIS, GPS, RS), Object oriented RDBMS, Internet, DCOM, etc. It provides an indispensable platform for sharing and interoperation of Digital Dongying Geospatial Data. According to the standards, and based on the platform, sharing and interoperation of "Digital Dongying" geospatial data have come into practice and the good results have been obtained. However, a perfect leadership group is necessary for data sharing and interoperation.

The Western States Water Mission: A Hyper-Resolution Hydrological Model and Data Integration Platform for the Western United States

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Famiglietti, J. S.; David, C. H.; Reager, J. T., II; Oaida, C.; Stampoulis, D.; Levoe, S.; Liu, P. W.; Trangsrud, A.; Basilio, R. R.; Allen, G. H.; Crichton, D. J.; Emery, C. M.; Farr, T.; Granger, S. L.; Hobbs, J.; Malhotra, S.; Osterman, G. B.; Rueckert, M.; Turmon, M.

2017-12-01

The Western States Water Mission (WSWM) is a high-resolution (3 km2), hydrological model and data integration platform under development at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for the last 2 years. Distinctive features of the WSWM are its explicit representations of river networks and deep groundwater, an emphasis on uncertainty quantification, a major visualization and data distribution effort, and its focus on multivariate data assimilation, including GRACE/FO, SMAP, SWOT and MODSCAG fractional snow covered area. Importantly, the WSWM is actively managed as a flight project, i.e. with the rigor of a satellite mission. In this presentation we give an overview of the WSWM, including past accomplishments status, and future plans. In particular, results from recent 30-year simulations with GRACE and MODSCAG assimilation will be presented.

EarthScope's Plate Boundary Observatory in Alaska: Building on Existing Infrastructure to Provide a Platform for Integrated Research and Hazard-monitoring Efforts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boyce, E. S.; Bierma, R. M.; Willoughby, H.; Feaux, K.; Mattioli, G. S.; Enders, M.; Busby, R. W.

2014-12-01

EarthScope's geodetic component in Alaska, the UNAVCO-operated Plate Boundary Observatory (PBO) network, includes 139 continuous GPS sites and 41 supporting telemetry relays. These are spread across a vast area, from northern AK to the Aleutians. Forty-five of these stations were installed or have been upgraded in cooperation with various partner agencies and currently provide data collection and transmission for more than one group. Leveraging existing infrastructure normally has multiple benefits, such as easier permitting requirements and costs savings through reduced overall construction and maintenance expenses. At some sites, PBO-AK power and communications systems have additional capacity beyond that which is needed for reliable acquisition of GPS data. Where permits allow, such stations could serve as platforms for additional instrumentation or real-time observing needs. With the expansion of the Transportable Array (TA) into Alaska, there is increased interest to leverage existing EarthScope resources for station co-location and telemetry integration. Because of the complexity and difficulty of long-term O&M at PBO sites, however, actual integration of GPS and seismic equipment must be considered on a case-by-case basis. UNAVCO currently operates two integrated GPS/seismic stations in collaboration with the Alaska Earthquake Center, and three with the Alaska Volcano Observatory. By the end of 2014, PBO and TA plan to install another four integrated and/or co-located geodetic and seismic systems. While three of these are designed around existing PBO stations, one will be a completely new TA installation, providing PBO with an opportunity to expand geodetic data collection in Alaska within the limited operations and maintenance phase of the project. We will present some of the design considerations, outcomes, and lessons learned from past and ongoing projects to integrate seismometers and other instrumentation at PBO-Alaska stations. Developing the PBO network as a platform for ongoing research and hazard monitoring equipment may also continue to serve the needs of the research community and the public beyond the sun-setting and completion of EarthScope science plan in 2018.

The TRIPOD e-learning Platform for the Training of Earthquake Safety Assessment

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Coppari, S.; Di Pasquale, G.; Goretti, A.

2008-07-08

The paper summarizes the results of the in progress EU Project titled TRIPOD (Training Civil Engineers on Post-Earthquake Safety Assessment of Damaged Buildings), funded under the Leonardo Da Vinci program. The main theme of the project is the development of a methodology and a learning platform for the training of technicians involved in post-earthquake building safety inspections. In the event of a catastrophic earthquake, emergency building inspections constitute a major undertaking with severe social impact. Given the inevitable chaotic conditions and the urgent need of a great number of specialized individuals to carry out inspections, past experience indicates that inspectionmore » teams are often formed in an adhoc manner, under stressful conditions, at a varying levels of technical expertise and experience, sometime impairing the reliability and consistency of the inspection results. Furthermore each Country has its own building damage and safety assessment methodology, developed according to its experience, laws, building technology and seismicity. This holds also for the partners participating to the project (Greece, Italy, Turkey, Cyprus), that all come from seismically sensitive Mediterranean countries. The project aims at alleviating the above shortcomings by designing and developing a training methodology and e-platform, forming a complete training program targeted at inspection engineers, specialized personnel and civil protection agencies. The e-learning platform will provide flexible and friendly authoring mechanisms, self-teaching and assessment capabilities, course and trainee management, etc. Courses will be also made available as stand-alone multimedia applications on CD and in the form of a complete pocket handbook. Moreover the project will offer the possibility of upgrading different experiences and practices: a first step towards the harmonization of methodologies and tools of different Countries sharing similar problems. Finally, through wide dissemination activities, the final aim of the project is to ensure the deployment and the integration into existing earthquake mitigation policies and vocational training schemes.« less

The TRIPOD e-learning Platform for the Training of Earthquake Safety Assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Coppari, S.; Di Pasquale, G.; Goretti, A.; Papa, F.; Papa, S.; Paoli, G.; Pizza, A. G.; Severino, M.

2008-07-01

The paper summarizes the results of the in progress EU Project titled TRIPOD (Training Civil Engineers on Post-Earthquake Safety Assessment of Damaged Buildings), funded under the Leonardo Da Vinci program. The main theme of the project is the development of a methodology and a learning platform for the training of technicians involved in post-earthquake building safety inspections. In the event of a catastrophic earthquake, emergency building inspections constitute a major undertaking with severe social impact. Given the inevitable chaotic conditions and the urgent need of a great number of specialized individuals to carry out inspections, past experience indicates that inspection teams are often formed in an adhoc manner, under stressful conditions, at a varying levels of technical expertise and experience, sometime impairing the reliability and consistency of the inspection results. Furthermore each Country has its own building damage and safety assessment methodology, developed according to its experience, laws, building technology and seismicity. This holds also for the partners participating to the project (Greece, Italy, Turkey, Cyprus), that all come from seismically sensitive Mediterranean countries. The project aims at alleviating the above shortcomings by designing and developing a training methodology and e-platform, forming a complete training program targeted at inspection engineers, specialized personnel and civil protection agencies. The e-learning platform will provide flexible and friendly authoring mechanisms, self-teaching and assessment capabilities, course and trainee management, etc. Courses will be also made available as stand-alone multimedia applications on CD and in the form of a complete pocket handbook. Moreover the project will offer the possibility of upgrading different experiences and practices: a first step towards the harmonization of methodologies and tools of different Countries sharing similar problems. Finally, through wide dissemination activities, the final aim of the project is to ensure the deployment and the integration into existing earthquake mitigation policies and vocational training schemes.

Implementation of a safe-by-design approach in the development of new open pilot lines for the manufacture of carbon nanotube-based nano-enabled products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

López de Ipiña, Jesús M.; Hernan, Angel; Cenigaonaindia, Xabier; Insunza, Mario; Florez, Sonia; Seddon, Richard; Vavouliotis, Antonios; Kostopoulos, Vasilios; Latko, Paulina; Durałek, Paweł; Kchit, Nadir

2017-06-01

The project PLATFORM (H2020, GA 646307) aims to develop three new pilot lines (PPLs) for the manufacture of carbon nanotube-based nano-enabled products (buckypapers, treated prepregs, doped veils), for the European aeronautics and automotive industries (a Technology Readiness Level 6 - TRL6 - is expected at the end of the project). The Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC (MD) - transposed into the respective national legislations - is the European regulatory framework for the design and construction of new machinery, as the future PPLs. PPLs are not required to comply with the provisions of the MD until they are put into service - expected in 2020, after project completion - but then, the MD will be fully applicable. In this regulatory context, the project PLATFORM is aligning the design of the PPLs according to the MD requirements, in order to facilitate the CE marking in 2020 (TRL9) and avoid potential economic costs associated with future re-adaptations or modifications needed to ensure compliance with the MD. This paper discusses the methodological approach followed by the project PLATFORM to integrate all the nanosafety aspects in the design of the PPLs, in order to achieve safe designs in conformity with the relevant Essential Health and Safety Requirements (EHSRs) of the MD. Since machinery must be designed and constructed taking into account the results of the risk assessment (RA), this paper describes the systematic and iterative approach for RA and risk reduction followed to eliminate hazards as far practicable and to adequately reduce risks by the implementation of protective measures. This process has been guided by the harmonized standards EN ISO 12100 and EN ISO 14123, taking the relevant phases of life cycle, expected uses and operation modes of the PPLs into account. A specific tool to guide the safe design of the PPLs and facilitate the RA process has also been produced by the project (PLATFORM - SbD toolkit).

Integration of a neuroimaging processing pipeline into a pan-canadian computing grid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lavoie-Courchesne, S.; Rioux, P.; Chouinard-Decorte, F.; Sherif, T.; Rousseau, M.-E.; Das, S.; Adalat, R.; Doyon, J.; Craddock, C.; Margulies, D.; Chu, C.; Lyttelton, O.; Evans, A. C.; Bellec, P.

2012-02-01

The ethos of the neuroimaging field is quickly moving towards the open sharing of resources, including both imaging databases and processing tools. As a neuroimaging database represents a large volume of datasets and as neuroimaging processing pipelines are composed of heterogeneous, computationally intensive tools, such open sharing raises specific computational challenges. This motivates the design of novel dedicated computing infrastructures. This paper describes an interface between PSOM, a code-oriented pipeline development framework, and CBRAIN, a web-oriented platform for grid computing. This interface was used to integrate a PSOM-compliant pipeline for preprocessing of structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging into CBRAIN. We further tested the capacity of our infrastructure to handle a real large-scale project. A neuroimaging database including close to 1000 subjects was preprocessed using our interface and publicly released to help the participants of the ADHD-200 international competition. This successful experiment demonstrated that our integrated grid-computing platform is a powerful solution for high-throughput pipeline analysis in the field of neuroimaging.

Integration of imagery and cartographic data through a common map base

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clark, J.

1983-01-01

Several disparate data types are integrated by using control points as the basis for spatially registering the data to a map base. The data are reprojected to match the coordinates of the reference UTM (Universal Transverse Mercator) map projection, as expressed in lines and samples. Control point selection is the most critical aspect of integrating the Thematic Mapper Simulator MSS imagery with the cartographic data. It is noted that control points chosen from the imagery are subject to error from mislocated points, either points that did not correlate well to the reference map or minor pixel offsets because of interactive cursorring errors. Errors are also introduced in map control points when points are improperly located and digitized, leading to inaccurate latitude and longitude coordinates. Nonsystematic aircraft platform variations, such as yawl, pitch, and roll, affect the spatial fidelity of the imagery in comparison with the quadrangles. Features in adjacent flight paths do not always correspond properly owing to the systematic panorama effect and alteration of flightline direction, as well as platform variations.

Enhancing participatory approach in water resources management: development of a survey to evaluate stakeholders needs and priorities related to software capabilities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Foglia, L.; Rossetto, R.; Borsi, I.; Josef, S.; Boukalova, Z.; Triana, F.; Ghetta, M.; Sabbatini, T.; Bonari, E.; Cannata, M.; De Filippis, G.

2016-12-01

The EU H2020 FREEWAT project (FREE and open source software tools for WATer resource management) aims at simplifying the application of EU-water related Directives, by developing an open source and public domain, GIS-integrated platform for planning and management of ground- and surface-water resources. The FREEWAT platform is conceived as a canvas, where several distributed and physically-based simulation codes are virtually integrated. The choice of such codes was supported by the result of a survey performed by means of questionnaires distributed to 14 case study FREEWAT project partners and several stakeholders. This was performed in the first phase of the project within the WP 6 (Enhanced science and participatory approach evidence-based decision making), Task 6.1 (Definition of a "needs/tools" evaluation grid). About 30% among all the invited entities and institutions from several EU and non-EU Countries expressed their interest in contributing to the survey. Most of them were research institutions, government and geoenvironmental companies and river basin authorities.The result of the questionnaire provided a spectrum of needs and priorities of partners/stakeholders, which were addressed during the development phase of the FREEWAT platform. The main needs identified were related to ground- and surface-water quality, sustainable water management, interaction between groundwater/surface-water bodies, and design and management of Managed Aquifer Recharge schemes. Needs and priorities were then connected to the specific EU Directives and Regulations to be addressed.One of the main goals of the questionnaires was to collect information and suggestions regarding the use of existing commercial/open-source software tools to address needs and priorities, and regarding the needs to address specific water-related processes/problems.

Globus Identity, Access, and Data Management: Platform Services for Collaborative Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ananthakrishnan, R.; Foster, I.; Wagner, R.

2016-12-01

Globus is software-as-a-service for research data management, developed at, and operated by, the University of Chicago. Globus, accessible at www.globus.org, provides high speed, secure file transfer; file sharing directly from existing storage systems; and data publication to institutional repositories. 40,000 registered users have used Globus to transfer tens of billions of files totaling hundreds of petabytes between more than 10,000 storage systems within campuses and national laboratories in the US and internationally. Web, command line, and REST interfaces support both interactive use and integration into applications and infrastructures. An important component of the Globus system is its foundational identity and access management (IAM) platform service, Globus Auth. Both Globus research data management and other applications use Globus Auth for brokering authentication and authorization interactions between end-users, identity providers, resource servers (services), and a range of clients, including web, mobile, and desktop applications, and other services. Compliant with important standards such as OAuth, OpenID, and SAML, Globus Auth provides mechanisms required for an extensible, integrated ecosystem of services and clients for the research and education community. It underpins projects such as the US National Science Foundation's XSEDE system, NCAR's Research Data Archive, and the DOE Systems Biology Knowledge Base. Current work is extending Globus services to be compliant with FEDRAMP standards for security assessment, authorization, and monitoring for cloud services. We will present Globus IAM solutions and give examples of Globus use in various projects for federated access to resources. We will also describe how Globus Auth and Globus research data management capabilities enable rapid development and low-cost operations of secure data sharing platforms that leverage Globus services and integrate them with local policy and security.

Scoping review and evaluation of SMS/text messaging platforms for mHealth projects or clinical interventions.

PubMed

Iribarren, Sarah J; Brown, William; Giguere, Rebecca; Stone, Patricia; Schnall, Rebecca; Staggers, Nancy; Carballo-Diéguez, Alex

2017-05-01

Mobile technology supporting text messaging interventions (TMIs) continues to evolve, presenting challenges for researchers and healthcare professionals who need to choose software solutions to best meet their program needs. The objective of this review was to systematically identify and compare text messaging platforms and to summarize their advantages and disadvantages as described in peer-reviewed literature. A scoping review was conducted using four steps: 1) identify currently available platforms through online searches and in mHealth repositories; 2) expand evaluation criteria of an mHealth mobile messaging toolkit and integrate prior user experiences as researchers; 3) evaluate each platform's functions and features based on the expanded criteria and a vendor survey; and 4) assess the documentation of platform use in the peer-review literature. Platforms meeting inclusion criteria were assessed independently by three reviewers and discussed until consensus was reached. The PRISMA guidelines were followed to report findings. Of the 1041 potentially relevant search results, 27 platforms met inclusion criteria. Most were excluded because they were not platforms (e.g., guides, toolkits, reports, or SMS gateways). Of the 27 platforms, only 12 were identified in existing mHealth repositories, 10 from Google searches, while five were found in both. The expanded evaluation criteria included 22 items. Results indicate no uniform presentation of platform features and functions, often making these difficult to discern. Fourteen of the platforms were reported as open source, 10 focused on health care and 16 were tailored to meet needs of low resource settings (not mutually exclusive). Fifteen platforms had do-it-yourself setup (programming not required) while the remainder required coding/programming skills or setups could be built to specification by the vendor. Frequently described features included data security and access to the platform via cloud-based systems. Pay structures and reported targeted end-users varied. Peer-reviewed publications listed only 6 of the 27 platforms across 21 publications. The majority of these articles reported the name of the platform used but did not describe advantages or disadvantages. Searching for and comparing mHealth platforms for TMIs remains a challenge. The results of this review can serve as a resource for researchers and healthcare professionals wanting to integrate TMIs into health interventions. Steps to identify, compare and assess advantages and disadvantages are outlined for consideration. Expanded evaluation criteria can be used by future researchers. Continued and more comprehensive platform tools should be integrated into mHealth repositories. Detailed descriptions of platform advantages and disadvantages are needed when mHealth researchers publish findings to expand the body of research on TMI tools for healthcare. Standardized descriptions and features are recommended for vendor sites. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Development of a Maternal, Newborn and Child mHealth Intervention in Thai Nguyen Province, Vietnam: Protocol for the mMom Project

PubMed Central

McBride, Bronwyn; Nguyen, Liem Thanh; Wiljer, David; Vu, Nguyen C; Nguyen, Cuong K

2018-01-01

Background Ethnic minority women (EMW) living in mountainous areas of northern Vietnam have disproportionately high infant and maternal mortality rates as a result of low maternal health knowledge, poverty, and remoteness from low-capacity health centers. Objective The objective of this study was to describe the protocol for the development and evaluation of the mMom intervention, which is an integrated mobile health (mHealth) system designed to improve maternal and infant health knowledge, and behavior among women in remote areas of Thai Nguyen, Vietnam. Methods This project featured the following four phases: (1) development of an mHealth platform integrated into the existing health management information system in partnership with the provincial health department; (2) ethnographic fieldwork and intervention content development; (3) intervention piloting and implementation; and (4) evaluation of the intervention’s impact on participants’ maternal health knowledge, behavior, and interactions with the health system. Results The mMom project development process resulted in the following: (1) the successful development of the mMom system, including the mHealth platform hardware and integration, the intervention plan and content, and the monitoring and evaluation framework; (2) the piloting and implementation of the intervention as planned; and (3) the implementation of the monitoring and evaluation framework components. Conclusions This protocol outlines the development of the mMom intervention and describes critical next steps in understanding the impact of the intervention on participants and the wider health system in Thai Nguyen province, Vietnam. PMID:29326095

Electronic Self-report Assessment--Cancer (ESRA-C): Working towards an integrated survey system.

PubMed

Karras, Bryant T; Wolpin, Seth; Lober, William B; Bush, Nigel; Fann, Jesse R; Berry, Donna L

2006-01-01

The Clinical Informatics Research Group and Biobehavioral Nursing and Health Systems at the University of Washington are working with interdisciplinary teams to improve patient care and tracking of patient-reported symptoms and outcomes by creating an extensible web-based survey and intervention platform. The findings and cumulative experience from these processes have led to incremental improvements and variations in each new implementation of the platform. This paper presents progress in the first year of a three-year NIH study entitled Electronic Self Report Assessment--Cancer (ESRA-C). The project's goals are to enhance and evaluate the web-based computerized patient self-reporting and assessment system at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance. Preliminary work and lessons learned in the modification of the platform and enhancements to the system will be described.

Improving healthcare services using web based platform for management of medical case studies.

PubMed

Ogescu, Cristina; Plaisanu, Claudiu; Udrescu, Florian; Dumitru, Silviu

2008-01-01

The paper presents a web based platform for management of medical cases, support for healthcare specialists in taking the best clinical decision. Research has been oriented mostly on multimedia data management, classification algorithms for querying, retrieving and processing different medical data types (text and images). The medical case studies can be accessed by healthcare specialists and by students as anonymous case studies providing trust and confidentiality in Internet virtual environment. The MIDAS platform develops an intelligent framework to manage sets of medical data (text, static or dynamic images), in order to optimize the diagnosis and the decision process, which will reduce the medical errors and will increase the quality of medical act. MIDAS is an integrated project working on medical information retrieval from heterogeneous, distributed medical multimedia database.

Reconfigurable, Cognitive Software-Defined Radio

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bhat, Arvind

2015-01-01

Software-defined radio (SDR) technology allows radios to be reconfigured to perform different communication functions without using multiple radios to accomplish each task. Intelligent Automation, Inc., has developed SDR platforms that switch adaptively between different operation modes. The innovation works by modifying both transmit waveforms and receiver signal processing tasks. In Phase I of the project, the company developed SDR cognitive capabilities, including adaptive modulation and coding (AMC), automatic modulation recognition (AMR), and spectrum sensing. In Phase II, these capabilities were integrated into SDR platforms. The reconfigurable transceiver design employs high-speed field-programmable gate arrays, enabling multimode operation and scalable architecture. Designs are based on commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components and are modular in nature, making it easier to upgrade individual components rather than redesigning the entire SDR platform as technology advances.

Systematic and Open Identification of Researchers and Authors: Focus on Open Researcher and Contributor ID

PubMed Central

Akazhanov, Nurbek A.; Voronov, Alexander A.; Kitas, George D.

2014-01-01

Unique identifiers of researchers and authors can help all stakeholders of scientific communications improve their workflows. There have been several attempts to establish professional networks of scholars and list their scholarly achievements on digital platforms. Some of these platforms such as Google Scholar, Web of Knowledge and PubMed are searched to pick relevant peer reviewers, assess authors' publication history or choose suitable candidates for research and academic projects. However, each of these hubs has its specific applications, limiting the universal use for permanent tagging of researcher profiles. The Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID) initiative, launched in 2012, is aimed at registering scholarly contributors and averting the persistent ambiguity of recorded author names. The ORCID registry is growing fast and integrating with other ID-generating platforms, thereby increasing the functionality of the integrated systems. ORCID identifiers are increasingly used for selecting peer reviewers and acknowledging various scholarly contributions (e.g., published articles, reviewer comments, conference presentations). The initiative offers unique opportunities for transparent disclosures of author contributions and competing interests and improving ethical standards of research, editing, and publishing. PMID:25408574

Systematic and open identification of researchers and authors: focus on open researcher and contributor ID.

PubMed

Gasparyan, Armen Yuri; Akazhanov, Nurbek A; Voronov, Alexander A; Kitas, George D

2014-11-01

Unique identifiers of researchers and authors can help all stakeholders of scientific communications improve their workflows. There have been several attempts to establish professional networks of scholars and list their scholarly achievements on digital platforms. Some of these platforms such as Google Scholar, Web of Knowledge and PubMed are searched to pick relevant peer reviewers, assess authors' publication history or choose suitable candidates for research and academic projects. However, each of these hubs has its specific applications, limiting the universal use for permanent tagging of researcher profiles. The Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID) initiative, launched in 2012, is aimed at registering scholarly contributors and averting the persistent ambiguity of recorded author names. The ORCID registry is growing fast and integrating with other ID-generating platforms, thereby increasing the functionality of the integrated systems. ORCID identifiers are increasingly used for selecting peer reviewers and acknowledging various scholarly contributions (e.g., published articles, reviewer comments, conference presentations). The initiative offers unique opportunities for transparent disclosures of author contributions and competing interests and improving ethical standards of research, editing, and publishing.

Distributed Processing of Sentinel-2 Products using the BIGEARTH Platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bacu, Victor; Stefanut, Teodor; Nandra, Constantin; Mihon, Danut; Gorgan, Dorian

2017-04-01

The constellation of observational satellites orbiting around Earth is constantly increasing, providing more data that need to be processed in order to extract meaningful information and knowledge from it. Sentinel-2 satellites, part of the Copernicus Earth Observation program, aim to be used in agriculture, forestry and many other land management applications. ESA's SNAP toolbox can be used to process data gathered by Sentinel-2 satellites but is limited to the resources provided by a stand-alone computer. In this paper we present a cloud based software platform that makes use of this toolbox together with other remote sensing software applications to process Sentinel-2 products. The BIGEARTH software platform [1] offers an integrated solution for processing Earth Observation data coming from different sources (such as satellites or on-site sensors). The flow of processing is defined as a chain of tasks based on the WorDeL description language [2]. Each task could rely on a different software technology (such as Grass GIS and ESA's SNAP) in order to process the input data. One important feature of the BIGEARTH platform comes from this possibility of interconnection and integration, throughout the same flow of processing, of the various well known software technologies. All this integration is transparent from the user perspective. The proposed platform extends the SNAP capabilities by enabling specialists to easily scale the processing over distributed architectures, according to their specific needs and resources. The software platform [3] can be used in multiple configurations. In the basic one the software platform runs as a standalone application inside a virtual machine. Obviously in this case the computational resources are limited but it will give an overview of the functionalities of the software platform, and also the possibility to define the flow of processing and later on to execute it on a more complex infrastructure. The most complex and robust configuration is based on cloud computing and allows the installation on a private or public cloud infrastructure. In this configuration, the processing resources can be dynamically allocated and the execution time can be considerably improved by the available virtual resources and the number of parallelizable sequences in the processing flow. The presentation highlights the benefits and issues of the proposed solution by analyzing some significant experimental use cases. Main references for further information: [1] BigEarth project, http://cgis.utcluj.ro/projects/bigearth [2] Constantin Nandra, Dorian Gorgan: "Defining Earth data batch processing tasks by means of a flexible workflow description language", ISPRS Ann. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., III-4, 59-66, (2016). [3] Victor Bacu, Teodor Stefanut, Dorian Gorgan, "Adaptive Processing of Earth Observation Data on Cloud Infrastructures Based on Workflow Description", Proceedings of the Intelligent Computer Communication and Processing (ICCP), IEEE-Press, pp.444-454, (2015).

EFEHR - the European Facilities for Earthquake Hazard and Risk: beyond the web-platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Danciu, Laurentiu; Wiemer, Stefan; Haslinger, Florian; Kastli, Philipp; Giardini, Domenico

2017-04-01

European Facilities for Earthquake Hazard and Risk (EEFEHR) represents the sustainable community resource for seismic hazard and risk in Europe. The EFEHR web platform is the main gateway to access data, models and tools as well as provide expertise relevant for assessment of seismic hazard and risk. The main services (databases and web-platform) are hosted at ETH Zurich and operated by the Swiss Seismological Service (Schweizerischer Erdbebendienst SED). EFEHR web-portal (www.efehr.org) collects and displays (i) harmonized datasets necessary for hazard and risk modeling, e.g. seismic catalogues, fault compilations, site amplifications, vulnerabilities, inventories; (ii) extensive seismic hazard products, namely hazard curves, uniform hazard spectra and maps for national and regional assessments. (ii) standardized configuration files for re-computing the regional seismic hazard models; (iv) relevant documentation of harmonized datasets, models and web-services. Today, EFEHR distributes full output of the 2013 European Seismic Hazard Model, ESHM13, as developed within the SHARE project (http://www.share-eu.org/); the latest results of the 2014 Earthquake Model of the Middle East (EMME14), derived within the EMME Project (www.emme-gem.org); the 2001 Global Seismic Hazard Assessment Project (GSHAP) results and the 2015 updates of the Swiss Seismic Hazard. New datasets related to either seismic hazard or risk will be incorporated as they become available. We present the currents status of the EFEHR platform, with focus on the challenges, summaries of the up-to-date datasets, user experience and feedback, as well as the roadmap to future technological innovation beyond the web-platform development. We also show the new services foreseen to fully integrate with the seismological core services of European Plate Observing System (EPOS).

A web-based online collaboration platform for formulating engineering design projects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Varikuti, Sainath

Effective communication and collaboration among students, faculty and industrial sponsors play a vital role while formulating and solving engineering design projects. With the advent in the web technology, online platforms and systems have been proposed to facilitate interactions and collaboration among different stakeholders in the context of senior design projects. However, there are noticeable gaps in the literature with respect to understanding the effects of online collaboration platforms for formulating engineering design projects. Most of the existing literature is focused on exploring the utility of online platforms on activities after the problem is defined and teams are formed. Also, there is a lack of mechanisms and tools to guide the project formation phase in senior design projects, which makes it challenging for students and faculty to collaboratively develop and refine project ideas and to establish appropriate teams. In this thesis a web-based online collaboration platform is designed and implemented to share, discuss and obtain feedback on project ideas and to facilitate collaboration among students and faculty prior to the start of the semester. The goal of this thesis is to understand the impact of an online collaboration platform for formulating engineering design projects, and how a web-based online collaboration platform affects the amount of interactions among stakeholders during the early phases of design process. A survey measuring the amount of interactions among students and faculty is administered. Initial findings show a marked improvement in the students' ability to share project ideas and form teams with other students and faculty. Students found the online platform simple to use. The suggestions for improving the tool generally included features that were not necessarily design specific, indicating that the underlying concept of this collaborative platform provides a strong basis and can be extended for future online platforms. Although the platform was designed to promote collaboration, adoption of the collaborative platform by students and faculty has been slow. While the platform appears to be very useful for collaboration, more time is required for it to be widely used by all the stakeholders and to fully convert from email communication to the use of the online collaboration platform.

The Intersections of the CEDAW and CRPD: Putting Women's Rights and Disability Rights into Action in Four Asian Countries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

de Alwis, Rangita de Silva

2010-01-01

This report examines a new model built on advancing an intersectional human rights platform of action. The four country project in the Asian region provided a powerful locus for an innovative human rights praxis which integrated a dialectical interaction between different social movements, analytical insights and concrete political strategies and…

I Help, Therefore, I Learn: Service Learning on Web 2.0 in an EFL Speaking Class

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sun, Yu-Chih; Yang, Fang-Ying

2015-01-01

The present study integrates service learning into English as a Foreign Language (EFL) speaking class using Web 2.0 tools--YouTube and Facebook--as platforms. Fourteen undergraduate students participated in the study. The purpose of the service-learning project was to link service learning with oral communication training in an EFL speaking class…

Project Morpheus: Lean Development of a Terrestrial Flight Testbed for Maturing NASA Lander Technologies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Devolites, Jennifer L.; Olansen, Jon B.

2015-01-01

NASA's Morpheus Project has developed and tested a prototype planetary lander capable of vertical takeoff and landing that is designed to serve as a testbed for advanced spacecraft technologies. The lander vehicle, propelled by a Liquid Oxygen (LOX)/Methane engine and sized to carry a 500kg payload to the lunar surface, provides a platform for bringing technologies from the laboratory into an integrated flight system at relatively low cost. In 2012, Morpheus began integrating the Autonomous Landing and Hazard Avoidance Technology (ALHAT) sensors and software onto the vehicle in order to demonstrate safe, autonomous landing and hazard avoidance. From the beginning, one of goals for the Morpheus Project was to streamline agency processes and practices. The Morpheus project accepted a challenge to tailor the traditional NASA systems engineering approach in a way that would be appropriate for a lower cost, rapid prototype engineering effort, but retain the essence of the guiding principles. This paper describes the tailored project life cycle and systems engineering approach for the Morpheus project, including the processes, tools, and amount of rigor employed over the project's multiple lifecycles since the project began in fiscal year (FY) 2011.

The Method of Multiple Spatial Planning Basic Map

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, C.; Fang, C.

2018-04-01

The "Provincial Space Plan Pilot Program" issued in December 2016 pointed out that the existing space management and control information management platforms of various departments were integrated, and a spatial planning information management platform was established to integrate basic data, target indicators, space coordinates, and technical specifications. The planning and preparation will provide supportive decision support, digital monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of the plan, implementation of various types of investment projects and space management and control departments involved in military construction projects in parallel to approve and approve, and improve the efficiency of administrative approval. The space planning system should be set up to delimit the control limits for the development of production, life and ecological space, and the control of use is implemented. On the one hand, it is necessary to clarify the functional orientation between various kinds of planning space. On the other hand, it is necessary to achieve "multi-compliance" of various space planning. Multiple spatial planning intergration need unified and standard basic map(geographic database and technical specificaton) to division of urban, agricultural, ecological three types of space and provide technical support for the refinement of the space control zoning for the relevant planning. The article analysis the main space datum, the land use classification standards, base map planning, planning basic platform main technical problems. Based on the geographic conditions, the results of the census preparation of spatial planning map, and Heilongjiang, Hainan many rules combined with a pilot application.

Multi-agent integrated password management (MIPM) application secured with encryption

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Awang, Norkhushaini; Zukri, Nurul Hidayah Ahmad; Rashid, Nor Aimuni Md; Zulkifli, Zuhri Arafah; Nazri, Nor Afifah Mohd

2017-10-01

Users use weak passwords and reuse them on different websites and applications. Password managers are a solution to store login information for websites and help users log in automatically. This project developed a system that acts as an agent managing passwords. Multi-Agent Integrated Password Management (MIPM) is an application using encryption that provides users with secure storage of their login account information such as their username, emails and passwords. This project was developed on an Android platform with an encryption agent using Java Agent Development Environment (JADE). The purpose of the embedded agents is to act as a third-party software to ease the encryption process, and in the future, the developed encryption agents can form part of the security system. This application can be used by the computer and mobile users. Currently, users log into many applications causing them to use unique passwords to prevent password leaking. The crypto agent handles the encryption process using an Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) 128-bit encryption algorithm. As a whole, MIPM is developed on the Android application to provide a secure platform to store passwords and has high potential to be commercialised for public use.

The PERSONA Service Platform for AAL Spaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tazari, Mohammad-Reza; Furfari, Francesco; Ramos, Juan-Pablo Lázaro; Ferro, Erina

The project PERSONA aims at advancing the paradigm of Ambient Intelligence through the harmonization of Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) Technologies and concepts for the development of sustainable and affordable solutions for the independent living of senior citizens. PERSONA is one of the integrated projects funded by the European Commission within the 6th Framework Program for IST (Information Society Technologies) on AAL for the Aging Society. It involves the participation of 21 partners, from Italy, Spain, Germany, Greece, Norway and Denmark, with a total budget of around 12 million Euros.

PEP Run Report for Integrated Test A, Caustic Leaching in UFP-VSL-T01A, Oxidative Leaching in UFP-VSL-T02A

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Guzman-Leong, Consuelo E.; Bredt, Ofelia P.; Burns, Carolyn A.

2009-12-04

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) was tasked by Bechtel National Inc. (BNI) on the River Protection Project-Hanford Tank Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (RPP-WTP) project to perform research and development activities to resolve technical issues identified for the Pretreatment Facility (PTF). The Pretreatment Engineering Platform (PEP) was designed and constructed and operated as part of a plan to respond to issue M12, “Undemonstrated Leaching Processes.”(a) The PEP, located in the Process Engineering Laboratory-West (PDLW) located in Richland, Washington, is a 1/4.5-scale test platform designed to simulate the WTP pretreatment caustic leaching, oxidative leaching, ultrafiltration solids concentration, and slurry washing processes.more » The PEP replicates the WTP leaching processes using prototypic equipment and control strategies. The PEP also includes non-prototypic ancillary equipment to support the core processing.« less

Floating Offshore WTG Integrated Load Analysis & Optimization Employing a Tuned Mass Damper

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rodriguez Tsouroukdissian, Arturo; Lackner, Matt; Cross-Whiter, John

2015-09-25

Floating offshore wind turbines (FOWTs) present complex design challenges due to the coupled dynamics of the platform motion, mooring system, and turbine control systems, in response to wind and wave loading. This can lead to higher extreme and fatigue loads than a comparable fixed bottom or onshore system. Previous research[1] has shown the potential to reduced extreme and fatigue loads on FOWT using tuned mass dampers (TMD) for structural control. This project aims to reduce maximum loads using passive TMDs located at the tower top during extreme storm events, when grid supplied power for other controls systems may not bemore » available. The Alstom Haliade 6MW wind turbine is modelled on the Glosten Pelastar tension-leg platform (TLP). The primary objectives of this project are to provide a preliminary assessment of the load reduction potential of passive TMDs on real wind turbine and TLP designs.« less

The p-medicine portal—a collaboration platform for research in personalised medicine

PubMed Central

Schera, Fatima; Weiler, Gabriele; Neri, Elias; Kiefer, Stephan; Graf, Norbert

2014-01-01

The European project p-medicine creates an information technology infrastructure that facilitates the development from current medical practice to personalised medicine. The main access point to this infrastructure is the p-medicine portal that provides clinicians, patients, and researchers a platform to collaborate, share data and expertise, and use tools and services to improve personalised treatments of patients. In this document, we describe the community-based structure of the p-medicine portal and provide information about the p-medicine security framework implemented in the portal. Finally, we show the user interface and describe the p-medicine tools and services integrated in the portal. PMID:24567755

TM grating coupler on low-loss LPCVD based Si3N4 waveguide platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dabos, G.; Manolis, A.; Giesecke, A. L.; Porschatis, C.; Chmielak, B.; Wahlbrink, T.; Pleros, N.; Tsiokos, D.

2017-12-01

We demonstrate, for the first time to our knowledge, a fully etched TM grating coupler for low-loss Low-Pressure-Chemical-Vapor-Deposition (LPCVD) based silicon nitride platform with a coupling loss of 6.5 dB at 1541 nm and a 1 dB bandwidth of 55 nm, addressing applications where TM polarization is a pre-requisite. The proposed GC and the 360 nm × 800 nm strip based Si3N4 waveguides have been fabricated by optical projection lithography using an i-line stepper tool enabling low-cost and mass manufacturing of photonic-integrated-circuits.

Development of fast wireless detection system for fixed offshore platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Zhigang; Yu, Yan; Jiao, Dong; Wang, Jie; Li, Zhirui; Ou, Jinping

2011-04-01

Offshore platforms' security is concerned since in 1950s and 1960s, and in the early 1980s some important specifications and standards are built, and all these provide technical basis of fixed platform design, construction, installation and evaluation. With the condition that more and more platforms are in serving over age, the research about the evaluation and detection technology of offshore platform has been a hotspot, especially underwater detection, and assessment method based on the finite element calculation. For fixed platform structure detection, conventional NDT methods, such as eddy current, magnetic powder, permeate, X-ray and ultrasonic, etc, are generally used. These techniques are more mature, intuitive, but underwater detection needs underwater robot, the necessary supporting tools of auxiliary equipment, and trained professional team, thus resources and cost used are considerable, installation time of test equipment is long. This project presents a new kind of fast wireless detection and damage diagnosis system for fixed offshore platform using wireless sensor networks, that is, wireless sensor nodes can be put quickly on the offshore platform, detect offshore platform structure global status by wireless communication, and then make diagnosis. This system is operated simply, suitable for offshore platform integrity states rapid assessment. The designed system consists in intelligence acquisition equipment and 8 wireless collection nodes, the whole system has 64 collection channels, namely every wireless collection node has eight 16-bit accuracy of A/D channels. Wireless collection node, integrated with vibration sensing unit, embedded low-power micro-processing unit, wireless transceiver unit, large-capacity power unit, and GPS time synchronization unit, can finish the functions such as vibration data collection, initial analysis, data storage, data wireless transmission. Intelligence acquisition equipment, integrated with high-performance computation unit, wireless transceiver unit, mobile power unit and embedded data analysis software, can totally control multi-wireless collection nodes, receive and analyze data, parameter identification. Data is transmitted at the 2.4GHz wireless communication channel, every sensing data channel in charge of data transmission is in a stable frequency band, control channel responsible for the control of power parameters is in a public frequency band. The test is initially conducted for the designed system, experimental results show that the system has good application prospects and practical value with fast arrangement, high sampling rate, high resolution, capacity of low frequency detection.

DISTANT EARLY WARNING SYSTEM for Tsunamis - A wide-area and multi-hazard approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hammitzsch, Martin; Lendholt, Matthias; Wächter, Joachim

2010-05-01

The DEWS (Distant Early Warning System) [1] project, funded under the 6th Framework Programme of the European Union, has the objective to create a new generation of interoperable early warning systems based on an open sensor platform. This platform integrates OGC [2] SWE [3] compliant sensor systems for the rapid detection of hazardous events, like earthquakes, sea level anomalies, ocean floor occurrences, and ground displacements in the case of tsunami early warning. Based on the upstream information flow DEWS focuses on the improvement of downstream capacities of warning centres especially by improving information logistics for effective and targeted warning message aggregation for a multilingual environment. Multiple telecommunication channels will be used for the dissemination of warning messages. Wherever possible, existing standards have been integrated. The Command and Control User Interface (CCUI), a rich client application based on Eclipse RCP (Rich Client Platform) [4] and the open source GIS uDig [5], integrates various OGC services. Using WMS (Web Map Service) [6] and WFS (Web Feature Service) [7] spatial data are utilized to depict the situation picture and to integrate a simulation system via WPS (Web Processing Service) [8] to identify affected areas. Warning messages are compiled and transmitted in the OASIS [9] CAP (Common Alerting Protocol) [10] standard together with addressing information defined via EDXL-DE (Emergency Data Exchange Language - Distribution Element) [11]. Internal interfaces are realized with SOAP [12] web services. Based on results of GITEWS [13] - in particular the GITEWS Tsunami Service Bus [14] - the DEWS approach provides an implementation for tsunami early warning systems but other geological paradigms are going to follow, e.g. volcanic eruptions or landslides. Therefore in future also multi-hazard functionality is conceivable. The specific software architecture of DEWS makes it possible to dock varying sensors to the system and to extend the CCUI with hazard specific functionality. The presentation covers the DEWS project, the system architecture and the CCUI in conjunction with details of information logistics. The DEWS Wide Area Centre connecting national centres to allow the international communication and warning exchange is presented also. REFERENCES: [1] DEWS, www.dews-online.org [2] OGC, www.opengeospatial.org [3] SWE, www.opengeospatial.org/projects/groups/sensorweb [4] Eclipse RCP, www.eclipse.org/home/categories/rcp.php [5] uDig, udig.refractions.net [6] WMS, www.opengeospatial.org/standards/wms [7] WFS, www.opengeospatial.org/standards/wfs [8] WPS, www.opengeospatial.org/standards/wps [9] OASIS, www.oasis-open.org [10] CAP, www.oasis-open.org/specs/#capv1.1 [11] EDXL-DE, www.oasis-open.org/specs/#edxlde-v1.0 [12] SOAP, www.w3.org/TR/soap [13] GITEWS (German Indonesian Tsunami Early Warning System) is a project of the German Federal Government to aid the recon¬struction of the tsunami-prone Indian Ocean region, www.gitews.org [14] The Tsunami Service Bus is the GITEWS sensor system integration platform offering standardised services for the detection and monitoring of tsunamis

Online Platform as a Tool to Support Postgraduate Training in General Practice – A Case Report

PubMed Central

Dini, Lorena; Galanski, Claire; Döpfmer, Susanne; Gehrke-Beck, Sabine; Bayer, Gudrun; Boeckle, Martin; Micheel, Isabel; Novak, Jasminko; Heintze, Christoph

2017-01-01

Objective: Physicians in postgraduate training (PPT) in General Practice (GP) typically have very little interaction with their peers, as there is usually only one resident physician working in their respective department or GP office at a given time. Therefore, the online platform KOLEGEA, presented here, aims to support postgraduate training in general practice (PT in GP) in Germany through virtual interaction. Methodology: In 2012, the interdisciplinary research project KOLEGEA set up an online platform that any physicians in PT in GP can use for free after registration with their unitary continuous education number (Einheitliche Fortbildungsnummer, EFN). It offers problem-based learning and allows to discuss self-published anonymized patient cases with the community that can be classified and discussed with experienced mentors (specialists in general practice - GPs) in small virtual groups. Results: An anonymous online survey carried out as part of the 2014 project evaluation showed a good acceptance of the platform, even though shortage of time was mentioned as a limiting factor for its use. Data analysis showed that KOLEGEA was used by PPT in GP in all federal states. Patterns of passive use were predominant (90%). This report also describes the further development of the platform (in 2015 and 2016) that integrates an activity monitor as part of a gamification concept. Conclusions: Due to a low response rate of the 2014 online survey and the preliminary evaluations of usage patterns we could identify only initial trends regarding the role of KOLEGEA in supporting PPT. The platform was perceived as a helpful supplement to better structure PT in GP. PMID:29226227

Process-Based Cost Modeling of Photonics Manufacture: The Cost Competitiveness of Monolithic Integration of a 1550-nm DFB Laser and an Electroabsorptive Modulator on an InP Platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fuchs, Erica R. H.; Bruce, E. J.; Ram, R. J.; Kirchain, Randolph E.

2006-08-01

The monolithic integration of components holds promise to increase network functionality and reduce packaging expense. Integration also drives down yield due to manufacturing complexity and the compounding of failures across devices. Consensus is lacking on the economically preferred extent of integration. Previous studies on the cost feasibility of integration have used high-level estimation methods. This study instead focuses on accurate-to-industry detail, basing a process-based cost model of device manufacture on data collected from 20 firms across the optoelectronics supply chain. The model presented allows for the definition of process organization, including testing, as well as processing conditions, operational characteristics, and level of automation at each step. This study focuses on the cost implications of integration of a 1550-nm DFB laser with an electroabsorptive modulator on an InP platform. Results show the monolithically integrated design to be more cost competitive over discrete component options regardless of production scale. Dominant cost drivers are packaging, testing, and assembly. Leveraging the technical detail underlying model projections, component alignment, bonding, and metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) are identified as processes where technical improvements are most critical to lowering costs. Such results should encourage exploration of the cost advantages of further integration and focus cost-driven technology development.

The Planteome database: an integrated resource for reference ontologies, plant genomics and phenomics

PubMed Central

Cooper, Laurel; Meier, Austin; Laporte, Marie-Angélique; Elser, Justin L; Mungall, Chris; Sinn, Brandon T; Cavaliere, Dario; Carbon, Seth; Dunn, Nathan A; Smith, Barry; Qu, Botong; Preece, Justin; Zhang, Eugene; Todorovic, Sinisa; Gkoutos, Georgios; Doonan, John H; Stevenson, Dennis W; Arnaud, Elizabeth

2018-01-01

Abstract The Planteome project (http://www.planteome.org) provides a suite of reference and species-specific ontologies for plants and annotations to genes and phenotypes. Ontologies serve as common standards for semantic integration of a large and growing corpus of plant genomics, phenomics and genetics data. The reference ontologies include the Plant Ontology, Plant Trait Ontology and the Plant Experimental Conditions Ontology developed by the Planteome project, along with the Gene Ontology, Chemical Entities of Biological Interest, Phenotype and Attribute Ontology, and others. The project also provides access to species-specific Crop Ontologies developed by various plant breeding and research communities from around the world. We provide integrated data on plant traits, phenotypes, and gene function and expression from 95 plant taxa, annotated with reference ontology terms. The Planteome project is developing a plant gene annotation platform; Planteome Noctua, to facilitate community engagement. All the Planteome ontologies are publicly available and are maintained at the Planteome GitHub site (https://github.com/Planteome) for sharing, tracking revisions and new requests. The annotated data are freely accessible from the ontology browser (http://browser.planteome.org/amigo) and our data repository. PMID:29186578

qPortal: A platform for data-driven biomedical research.

PubMed

Mohr, Christopher; Friedrich, Andreas; Wojnar, David; Kenar, Erhan; Polatkan, Aydin Can; Codrea, Marius Cosmin; Czemmel, Stefan; Kohlbacher, Oliver; Nahnsen, Sven

2018-01-01

Modern biomedical research aims at drawing biological conclusions from large, highly complex biological datasets. It has become common practice to make extensive use of high-throughput technologies that produce big amounts of heterogeneous data. In addition to the ever-improving accuracy, methods are getting faster and cheaper, resulting in a steadily increasing need for scalable data management and easily accessible means of analysis. We present qPortal, a platform providing users with an intuitive way to manage and analyze quantitative biological data. The backend leverages a variety of concepts and technologies, such as relational databases, data stores, data models and means of data transfer, as well as front-end solutions to give users access to data management and easy-to-use analysis options. Users are empowered to conduct their experiments from the experimental design to the visualization of their results through the platform. Here, we illustrate the feature-rich portal by simulating a biomedical study based on publically available data. We demonstrate the software's strength in supporting the entire project life cycle. The software supports the project design and registration, empowers users to do all-digital project management and finally provides means to perform analysis. We compare our approach to Galaxy, one of the most widely used scientific workflow and analysis platforms in computational biology. Application of both systems to a small case study shows the differences between a data-driven approach (qPortal) and a workflow-driven approach (Galaxy). qPortal, a one-stop-shop solution for biomedical projects offers up-to-date analysis pipelines, quality control workflows, and visualization tools. Through intensive user interactions, appropriate data models have been developed. These models build the foundation of our biological data management system and provide possibilities to annotate data, query metadata for statistics and future re-analysis on high-performance computing systems via coupling of workflow management systems. Integration of project and data management as well as workflow resources in one place present clear advantages over existing solutions.

The IAOOS arctic network project, status and prospect

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pelon, J.; Provost, C.; Sennechael, N.; Calzas, M.; Blouzon, F.; Gascard, J. C.

2015-12-01

It is quite clear that for studying Arctic climate changes, and better understand interacting processes it is essential to follow an integrated approach for observing and modeling the whole Arctic system encompassing the atmosphere, the ocean and sea-ice at once. Due to the difficulties in retrieving key parameters, satellite observations alone are not the right answer. The project we are developing, is an attempt to tackle this challenge by providing and maintaining a new integrated observing network of instrumented buoys over the Arctic Ocean in order to collect simultaneously and in real time information related to the state of the upper Ocean, the lower Atmosphere and the Arctic sea-ice/snow. It is planned to operate several autonomous platforms in a network in the Arctic Ocean for a period of at least 5 years. Each platform is equipped to vertically sense and profile key variables in the ocean, sea-ice and atmosphere using - CTD (conductivity, temperature, depth) vertical profilers sensors collecting ocean temperature and salinity down to 800m depth, - Temperature and heat conductivity in snow and ice from ice-mass-balance systems - Cloud and aerosol lidar profiling of the lower atmosphere - Diffuse and direct solar flux using wide angle radiometer - Meteorological standard parameters at the surface Platforms allow measurements to be transmitted in near real time via Iridium satellites. As they will be drifting, it is planned to replace part of them every year. Major tests were performed deploying progressively fully equipped IAOOS platform at the North Pole in April 2012, 2013 and 2014. These platforms drifted from the North Pole in April to Fram Strait (September, October) providing spring summer and fall field data. Important fieldwork for IAOOS was also taking place within the Norwegian ice camp on board R/V Lance organized by the Norsk Polar Institute from January to June 2015, as part of the Norwegian young ICE (N-ICE 2015) cruise project. These intensive tests were very timely. The first IAOOS array deployment will start in August 2015 from R/V Araon during the Korean cruise organized by the KOPRI in the Canadian Basin and from R/V Polarstern during the German cruise TRANSARC II organized by the Alfred Wegener Institute in the Eurasian Basin. First results obtained in the frame of IAOOS will be presented and discussed.

TCGA4U: A Web-Based Genomic Analysis Platform To Explore And Mine TCGA Genomic Data For Translational Research.

PubMed

Huang, Zhenzhen; Duan, Huilong; Li, Haomin

2015-01-01

Large-scale human cancer genomics projects, such as TCGA, generated large genomics data for further study. Exploring and mining these data to obtain meaningful analysis results can help researchers find potential genomics alterations that intervene the development and metastasis of tumors. We developed a web-based gene analysis platform, named TCGA4U, which used statistics methods and models to help translational investigators explore, mine and visualize human cancer genomic characteristic information from the TCGA datasets. Furthermore, through Gene Ontology (GO) annotation and clinical data integration, the genomic data were transformed into biological process, molecular function, cellular component and survival curves to help researchers identify potential driver genes. Clinical researchers without expertise in data analysis will benefit from such a user-friendly genomic analysis platform.

Optical MEMS platform for low-cost on-chip integration of planar light circuits and optical switching

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

German, Kristine A.; Kubby, Joel; Chen, Jingkuang; Diehl, James; Feinberg, Kathleen; Gulvin, Peter; Herko, Larry; Jia, Nancy; Lin, Pinyen; Liu, Xueyuan; Ma, Jun; Meyers, John; Nystrom, Peter; Wang, Yao Rong

2004-07-01

Xerox Corporation has developed a technology platform for on-chip integration of latching MEMS optical waveguide switches and Planar Light Circuit (PLC) components using a Silicon On Insulator (SOI) based process. To illustrate the current state of this new technology platform, working prototypes of a Reconfigurable Optical Add/Drop Multiplexer (ROADM) and a l-router will be presented along with details of the integrated latching MEMS optical switches. On-chip integration of optical switches and PLCs can greatly reduce the size, manufacturing cost and operating cost of multi-component optical equipment. It is anticipated that low-cost, low-overhead optical network products will accelerate the migration of functions and services from high-cost long-haul markets to price sensitive markets, including networks for metropolitan areas and fiber to the home. Compared to the more common silica-on-silicon PLC technology, the high index of refraction of silicon waveguides created in the SOI device layer enables miniaturization of optical components, thereby increasing yield and decreasing cost projections. The latching SOI MEMS switches feature moving waveguides, and are advantaged across multiple attributes relative to alternative switching technologies, such as thermal optical switches and polymer switches. The SOI process employed was jointly developed under the auspice of the NIST APT program in partnership with Coventor, Corning IntelliSense Corp., and MicroScan Systems to enable fabrication of a broad range of free space and guided wave MicroOptoElectroMechanical Systems (MOEMS).

The TRAINS project: A case study in building a conversational planning agent

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Allen, James F.; Schubert, Lenhart K.; Ferguson, George; Heeman, Peter; Hwang, Chung Hee; Kato, Tsuneaki; Light, Marc; Martin, Nathaniel G.; Miller, Bradford W.; Poesio, Massimo

1994-09-01

The TRAINS project is an effort to build a conversationally proficient planning assistant. A key part of the project is the construction of the TRAINS system, which provides the research platform for a wide range of issues in natural language understanding, mixed-initiative planning systems, and representing and reasoning about time, actions and events. Four years have not passed since the beginning of the project. Each year, we produced a demonstration system that focused on a dialog that illustrated particular aspects of our research. The commitment to building complete integrated systems is a significant overhead on the research, but we feel it is essential to guarantee that the results constitute real progress in the field. This paper describes the goals of the project, and our experience with the effort so far.

Experiences integrating autonomous components and legacy systems into tsunami early warning systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reißland, S.; Herrnkind, S.; Guenther, M.; Babeyko, A.; Comoglu, M.; Hammitzsch, M.

2012-04-01

Fostered by and embedded in the general development of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) the evolution of Tsunami Early Warning Systems (TEWS) shows a significant development from seismic-centred to multi-sensor system architectures using additional sensors, e.g. sea level stations for the detection of tsunami waves and GPS stations for the detection of ground displacements. Furthermore, the design and implementation of a robust and scalable service infrastructure supporting the integration and utilisation of existing resources serving near real-time data not only includes sensors but also other components and systems offering services such as the delivery of feasible simulations used for forecasting in an imminent tsunami threat. In the context of the development of the German Indonesian Tsunami Early Warning System (GITEWS) and the project Distant Early Warning System (DEWS) a service platform for both sensor integration and warning dissemination has been newly developed and demonstrated. In particular, standards of the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) and the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS) have been successfully incorporated. In the project Collaborative, Complex, and Critical Decision-Support in Evolving Crises (TRIDEC) new developments are used to extend the existing platform to realise a component-based technology framework for building distributed TEWS. This talk will describe experiences made in GITEWS, DEWS and TRIDEC while integrating legacy stand-alone systems and newly developed special-purpose software components into TEWS using different software adapters and communication strategies to make the systems work together in a corporate infrastructure. The talk will also cover task management and data conversion between the different systems. Practical approaches and software solutions for the integration of sensors, e.g. providing seismic and sea level data, and utilisation of special-purpose components, such as simulation systems, in TEWS will be presented.

Building the Joint Battlespace Infosphere. Volume 1: Summary

DTIC Science & Technology

1999-12-17

Integrity guarantees. The information staff will conduct audits and other routine procedures to ensure that the JBI platform and its clients are...delete the object; thereafter, the object will not be available to other JBI clients, but it will have been saved in an archive for auditing or...this project are maintaining multiyear, multilocation programs in nomadic networking and assuring quality of service in emerging networks. Dynamic

Common Data Servers as a Foundation for Specialized Services

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burger, E. F.; Schweitzer, R.; O'Brien, K.; Manke, A. B.; Smith, K. M.

2017-12-01

NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL) hosts a broad range of research efforts that span many scientific and environmental research disciplines. Many of these research projects have their own data streams that are as diverse as the research. Data are collected using various platforms, including innovative new platforms such as Saildrones and autonomous profilers. With its requirements for public access to federally funded research results and data, the 2013 White House Office of Science and Technology memo on Public Access to Research Results (PARR) changed the data landscape for Federal agencies. In 2015, with support from the PMEL Director, the PMEL Science Data Integration Group (SDIG) initiated a multi-year effort to formulate and implement an integrated data-management strategy for PMEL research efforts. The PMEL integrated data management strategy will provide data access, visualization and some archive services to PMEL data and use existing and proven frameworks for this capability. In addition to these foundational data services, these data access and visualization frameworks are also leveraged to provide enhanced services to scientists. One enhanced service developed is a data management "dashboard". This application provides scientists with a snapshot of their data assets, access to these data, a map view of data locations, and information on the archival status. Ideally, information on the dashboard continually updates to accurately reflect the project's data asset status. This poster explains how frameworks such as ERDDAP and LAS were used as a foundation for the development of custom services, as well as an explanation of the PMEL data management dashboard functionality. We will also highlight accomplishments of the PMEL Integrated data management strategy implementation.

Assessing students' sentiments towards the use of a Building Information Modelling (BIM) learning platform in a construction project management course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suwal, Sunil; Singh, Vishal

2018-07-01

Building Information Modelling (BIM) tools and processes are increasingly adopted and implemented in the construction industry. Consequently, BIM education is considered increasingly important in Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) education. While most of the research and literature on BIM education in engineering studies has focused on BIM implementation strategies, processes, benefits, and challenges, there is limited study on students' perception towards the implementation of BIM courses, or about online BIM learning platforms, or about the BIM tools themselves. Therefore, this paper takes the first steps towards addressing this gap. This study analyses students' (57 students) perception and sentiments towards the use of an online BIM learning platform and explores the potential implications of the findings for BIM education. The findings suggest that online BIM learning platforms are highly rated by students as a positive learning experience, indicating the need for greater integration of such tools and approaches in AEC courses.

NREL Topic 1 Final Report: Cohesive Application of Standards-Based Connected Devices to Enable Clean Energy Technologies

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hudgins, Andrew P.; Sparn, Bethany F.; Jin, Xin

This document is the final report of a two-year development, test, and demonstration project entitled 'Cohesive Application of Standards-Based Connected Devices to Enable Clean Energy Technologies.' The project was part of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL) Integrated Network Test-bed for Energy Grid Research and Technology (INTEGRATE) initiative. The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and a team of partners were selected by NREL to carry out a project to develop and test how smart, connected consumer devices can act to enable the use of more clean energy technologies on the electric power grid. The project team includes a set ofmore » leading companies that produce key products in relation to achieving this vision: thermostats, water heaters, pool pumps, solar inverters, electric vehicle supply equipment, and battery storage systems. A key requirement of the project was open access at the device level - a feature seen as foundational to achieving a future of widespread distributed generation and storage. The internal intelligence, standard functionality and communication interfaces utilized in this project result in the ability to integrate devices at any level, to work collectively at the level of the home/business, microgrid, community, distribution circuit or other. Collectively, the set of products serve as a platform on which a wide range of control strategies may be developed and deployed.« less

Framework Design of Unified Cross-Authentication Based on the Fourth Platform Integrated Payment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yong, Xu; Yujin, He

The essay advances a unified authentication based on the fourth integrated payment platform. The research aims at improving the compatibility of the authentication in electronic business and providing a reference for the establishment of credit system by seeking a way to carry out a standard unified authentication on a integrated payment platform. The essay introduces the concept of the forth integrated payment platform and finally put forward the whole structure and different components. The main issue of the essay is about the design of the credit system of the fourth integrated payment platform and the PKI/CA structure design.

Integrated platform for optimized solar PV system design and engineering plan set generation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Adeyemo, Samuel

2015-12-30

The Aurora team has developed software that allows users to quickly generate a three-dimensional model for a building, with a corresponding irradiance map, from any two-dimensional image with associated geo-coordinates. The purpose of this project is to build upon that technology by developing and distributing to solar installers a software platform that automatically retrieves engineering, financial and geographic data for a specific site, and quickly generates an optimal customer proposal and corresponding engineering plans for that site. At the end of the project, Aurora’s optimization platform would have been used to make at least one thousand proposals from at leastmore » ten unique solar installation companies, two of whom would sign economically viable contracts to use the software. Furthermore, Aurora’s algorithms would be tested to show that in at least seventy percent of cases, Aurora automatically generated a design equivalent to or better than what a human could have done manually. A ‘better’ design is one that generates more energy for the same cost, or that generates a higher return on investment, while complying with all site-specific aesthetic, electrical and spatial requirements.« less

The Confluence of GIS, Cloud and Open Source, Enabling Big Raster Data Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plesea, L.; Emmart, C. B.; Boller, R. A.; Becker, P.; Baynes, K.

2016-12-01

The rapid evolution of available cloud services is profoundly changing the way applications are being developed and used. Massive object stores, service scalability, continuous integration are some of the most important cloud technology advances that directly influence science applications and GIS. At the same time, more and more scientists are using GIS platforms in their day to day research. Yet with new opportunities there are always some challenges. Given the large amount of data commonly required in science applications, usually large raster datasets, connectivity is one of the biggest problems. Connectivity has two aspects, one being the limited bandwidth and latency of the communication link due to the geographical location of the resources, the other one being the interoperability and intrinsic efficiency of the interface protocol used to connect. NASA and Esri are actively helping each other and collaborating on a few open source projects, aiming to provide some of the core technology components to directly address the GIS enabled data connectivity problems. Last year Esri contributed LERC, a very fast and efficient compression algorithm to the GDAL/MRF format, which itself is a NASA/Esri collaboration project. The MRF raster format has some cloud aware features that make it possible to build high performance web services on cloud platforms, as some of the Esri projects demonstrate. Currently, another NASA open source project, the high performance OnEarth WMTS server is being refactored and enhanced to better integrate with MRF, GDAL and Esri software. Taken together, the GDAL, MRF and OnEarth form the core of an open source CloudGIS toolkit that is already showing results. Since it is well integrated with GDAL, which is the most common interoperability component of GIS applications, this approach should improve the connectivity and performance of many science and GIS applications in the cloud.

A web platform for integrated surface water - groundwater modeling and data management

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fatkhutdinov, Aybulat; Stefan, Catalin; Junghanns, Ralf

2016-04-01

Model-based decision support systems are considered to be reliable and time-efficient tools for resources management in various hydrology related fields. However, searching and acquisition of the required data, preparation of the data sets for simulations as well as post-processing, visualization and publishing of the simulations results often requires significantly more work and time than performing the modeling itself. The purpose of the developed software is to combine data storage facilities, data processing instruments and modeling tools in a single platform which potentially can reduce time required for performing simulations, hence decision making. The system is developed within the INOWAS (Innovative Web Based Decision Support System for Water Sustainability under a Changing Climate) project. The platform integrates spatially distributed catchment scale rainfall - runoff, infiltration and groundwater flow models with data storage, processing and visualization tools. The concept is implemented in a form of a web-GIS application and is build based on free and open source components, including the PostgreSQL database management system, Python programming language for modeling purposes, Mapserver for visualization and publishing the data, Openlayers for building the user interface and others. Configuration of the system allows performing data input, storage, pre- and post-processing and visualization in a single not disturbed workflow. In addition, realization of the decision support system in the form of a web service provides an opportunity to easily retrieve and share data sets as well as results of simulations over the internet, which gives significant advantages for collaborative work on the projects and is able to significantly increase usability of the decision support system.

Electronic warfare microwave components

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cosby, L. A.

1984-09-01

The current and projected state-of-the-art for electronic warfare (EW) microwave components is reviewed, with attention given to microwave components used extensively in EW systems for reconnaissance, threat warning, direction finding, and repeater jamming. It is emphasized that distributed EW systems must be able to operate from manned tactical and strategic platforms, with requirements including remote aerospace and space elements, as well as the need for expandable devices for detection, location, and denial/deception functions. EW coordination, or battle management, across a distributed system is a rapidly emerging requirement that must be integrated into current and projected command-and-control programs.

cFE/CFS (Core Flight Executive/Core Flight System)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wildermann, Charles P.

2008-01-01

This viewgraph presentation describes in detail the requirements and goals of the Core Flight Executive (cFE) and the Core Flight System (CFS). The Core Flight Software System is a mission independent, platform-independent, Flight Software (FSW) environment integrating a reusable core flight executive (cFE). The CFS goals include: 1) Reduce time to deploy high quality flight software; 2) Reduce project schedule and cost uncertainty; 3) Directly facilitate formalized software reuse; 4) Enable collaboration across organizations; 5) Simplify sustaining engineering (AKA. FSW maintenance); 6) Scale from small instruments to System of Systems; 7) Platform for advanced concepts and prototyping; and 7) Common standards and tools across the branch and NASA wide.

TERSSE. Definition of the total earth resources system for the shuttle era. Volume 9: Earth resources shuttle applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alverado, U.

1975-01-01

The use of the space shuttle for the Earth Resources Program is discussed. Several problems with respect to payload selection, integration, and mission planning were studied. Each of four shuttle roles in the sortie mode were examined and projected into an integrated shuttle program. Several representative Earth Resources missions were designed which would use the shuttle sortie as a platform and collectively include the four shuttle roles. An integrated flight program based on these missions was then developed for the first two years of shuttle flights. A set of broad implications concerning the uses of the shuttle for Earth Resources studies resulted.

EXODUS: Integrating intelligent systems for launch operations support

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Adler, Richard M.; Cottman, Bruce H.

1991-01-01

Kennedy Space Center (KSC) is developing knowledge-based systems to automate critical operations functions for the space shuttle fleet. Intelligent systems will monitor vehicle and ground support subsystems for anomalies, assist in isolating and managing faults, and plan and schedule shuttle operations activities. These applications are being developed independently of one another, using different representation schemes, reasoning and control models, and hardware platforms. KSC has recently initiated the EXODUS project to integrate these stand alone applications into a unified, coordinated intelligent operations support system. EXODUS will be constructed using SOCIAL, a tool for developing distributed intelligent systems. EXODUS, SOCIAL, and initial prototyping efforts using SOCIAL to integrate and coordinate selected EXODUS applications are described.

PICASSO VISION instrument design, engineering model test results, and flight model development status

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Näsilä, Antti; Holmlund, Christer; Mannila, Rami; Näkki, Ismo; Ojanen, Harri J.; Akujärvi, Altti; Saari, Heikki; Fussen, Didier; Pieroux, Didier; Demoulin, Philippe

2016-10-01

PICASSO - A PICo-satellite for Atmospheric and Space Science Observations is an ESA project led by the Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy, in collaboration with VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd, Clyde Space Ltd. (UK) and Centre Spatial de Liège (BE). The test campaign for the engineering model of the PICASSO VISION instrument, a miniaturized nanosatellite spectral imager, has been successfully completed. The test results look very promising. The proto-flight model of VISION has also been successfully integrated and it is waiting for the final integration to the satellite platform.

Assessing Sonar Performance in Realistic Environments

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-10-01

ASPIRE project, a number of shortcomings were identified in conjunction with RCN partners in the 1C (Underwater Warfare) Thrust. These were: • There is...and the algorithms and models integrated into it to be tested on non-research platforms such as RCN ships. Much of the work undertaken in WBE 2...Sensitivity and Transmission Estimation Tool R & D Research and Development RCN Royal Canadian Navy REA Rapid Environmental Assessment REP Recognized

Learning Management Platform for CyberCIEGE

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-12-01

developments were done using the NetBeans Integrated Development Environment (IDE) 7.0, which is a free and open source IDE. Some of these...developments could be implemented using the GUI design features of NetBeans . However, it was not done so because the existing Campaign Analyzer code base...directory through a dialog window. Also, the existing directory structures are not consistent with NetBeans project management assumptions and thus

Enhancing Soldier-Centered Learning with Emerging Training Technologies and Integrated Assessments

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-12-01

classroom and game -based training platform. The mobile training focuses on declarative knowledge and covers basic terminology and principles for...International, has over 20 years of experience in instructional design with focus on game -based training for Defense-related projects. Jessie Hyland...training content, which teaches Soldiers how to operate a common piece of signal equipment, is delivered via a mobile device, virtual classroom and game

EMSODEV and EPOS-IP: key findings for effective management of EU research infrastructure projects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Materia, Paola; Bozzoli, Sabrina; Beranzoli, Laura; Cocco, Massimo; Favali, Paolo; Freda, Carmela; Sangianantoni, Agata

2017-04-01

EMSO (European Multidisciplinary Seafloor and water-column Observatory, http://www.emso-eu.org) and EPOS (European Plate Observing System, https://www.epos-ip.org) are pan-European Research Infrastructures (RIs) in the ESFRI 2016 Roadmap. EMSO has recently become an ERIC (European Research Infrastructure Consortium), whilst EPOS application is in progress. Both ERICs will be hosted in Italy and the "Representing Entity" is INGV. EMSO consists of oceanic environment observation systems spanning from the Arctic through the Atlantic and Mediterranean, to the Black Sea for long-term, high-resolution, real-time monitoring of natural and man-induced processes such as hazards, climate, and marine ecosystems changes to study their evolution and interconnections. EPOS aims at creating a pan-European infrastructure for solid Earth science to support a safe and sustainable society. EPOS will enable innovative multidisciplinary research for a better understanding of Earth's physical and chemical processes controlling earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, ground instability, tsunami, and all those processes driving tectonics and Earth's surface dynamics. Following the conclusion of their Preparatory Phases the two RIs are now in their Implementation Phase still supported by the EC through the EMSODEV and EPOS-IP projects, both run by dedicated Project Management Offices at INGV with sound experience in EU projects. EMSODEV (H2020 project, 2015-2018) involves 11 partners and 9 associate partners and aims at improving the harmonization among the EMSO ERIC observation systems through the realization of EMSO Generic Instrument Modules (EGIMs), and a Data Management Platform (DMP) to implement interoperability and standardization. The DMP will provide access to data from all EMSO nodes, providing a unified, homogeneous, infrastructure-scale and user-oriented platform integrated with the increased measurement capabilities and functions provided by the EGIMs. EPOS IP (H2020 project, 2015-2019) is a project of 47 partners, 6 associate partners and several international organizations for a total of 25 countries involved. EPOS IP is a key step in EPOS' mission of a pan-European Earth science integrated platform. It will deliver not only a suite of domain-specific and multidisciplinary data and services in one platform, but also the legal, governance and financial frameworks to ensure the infrastructure future operation and sustainability (EPOS ERIC). INGV experience over the years indicates that effective management of EU RIs projects should contain 5 basic elements: 1.Defined life cycle and milestones: Map of phases, deliverables, key milestones and sufficiency criteria for each group involved in the project using project management tools and software. 2.Shared organization, systems, roles: Defined roles for team members and responsibilities for functional managers are crucial. Similarly, a system of communication and team involvement is essential to success. Leadership and interpersonal/organizational skills are also important. 3.Quality assurance: Quality dimension should be aligned to the project objectives and specific criteria should be identified for each phase of the project. 4.Tracking and variance analysis: Regular reports and periodic meetings of the teams are crucial to identify when things are off target. Schedule slips, cost overruns, open issues, new risks and problems must be dealt with as early as possible. 5.Impact assessment by monitoring the achievement of results and socio-economic impact.

Integrating Urban Infrastructure and Health System Impact Modeling for Disasters and Mass-Casualty Events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balbus, J. M.; Kirsch, T.; Mitrani-Reiser, J.

2017-12-01

Over recent decades, natural disasters and mass-casualty events in United States have repeatedly revealed the serious consequences of health care facility vulnerability and the subsequent ability to deliver care for the affected people. Advances in predictive modeling and vulnerability assessment for health care facility failure, integrated infrastructure, and extreme weather events have now enabled a more rigorous scientific approach to evaluating health care system vulnerability and assessing impacts of natural and human disasters as well as the value of specific interventions. Concurrent advances in computing capacity also allow, for the first time, full integration of these multiple individual models, along with the modeling of population behaviors and mass casualty responses during a disaster. A team of federal and academic investigators led by the National Center for Disaster Medicine and Public Health (NCDMPH) is develoing a platform for integrating extreme event forecasts, health risk/impact assessment and population simulations, critical infrastructure (electrical, water, transportation, communication) impact and response models, health care facility-specific vulnerability and failure assessments, and health system/patient flow responses. The integration of these models is intended to develop much greater understanding of critical tipping points in the vulnerability of health systems during natural and human disasters and build an evidence base for specific interventions. Development of such a modeling platform will greatly facilitate the assessment of potential concurrent or sequential catastrophic events, such as a terrorism act following a severe heat wave or hurricane. This presentation will highlight the development of this modeling platform as well as applications not just for the US health system, but also for international science-based disaster risk reduction efforts, such as the Sendai Framework and the WHO SMART hospital project.

Improving the physiological realism of experimental models.

PubMed

Vinnakota, Kalyan C; Cha, Chae Y; Rorsman, Patrik; Balaban, Robert S; La Gerche, Andre; Wade-Martins, Richard; Beard, Daniel A; Jeneson, Jeroen A L

2016-04-06

The Virtual Physiological Human (VPH) project aims to develop integrative, explanatory and predictive computational models (C-Models) as numerical investigational tools to study disease, identify and design effective therapies and provide an in silico platform for drug screening. Ultimately, these models rely on the analysis and integration of experimental data. As such, the success of VPH depends on the availability of physiologically realistic experimental models (E-Models) of human organ function that can be parametrized to test the numerical models. Here, the current state of suitable E-models, ranging from in vitro non-human cell organelles to in vivo human organ systems, is discussed. Specifically, challenges and recent progress in improving the physiological realism of E-models that may benefit the VPH project are highlighted and discussed using examples from the field of research on cardiovascular disease, musculoskeletal disorders, diabetes and Parkinson's disease.

An Efficient Method for Electroporation of Small Interfering RNAs into ENCODE Project Tier 1 GM12878 and K562 Cell Lines.

PubMed

Muller, Ryan Y; Hammond, Ming C; Rio, Donald C; Lee, Yeon J

2015-12-01

The Encyclopedia of DNA Elements (ENCODE) Project aims to identify all functional sequence elements in the human genome sequence by use of high-throughput DNA/cDNA sequencing approaches. To aid the standardization, comparison, and integration of data sets produced from different technologies and platforms, the ENCODE Consortium selected several standard human cell lines to be used by the ENCODE Projects. The Tier 1 ENCODE cell lines include GM12878, K562, and H1 human embryonic stem cell lines. GM12878 is a lymphoblastoid cell line, transformed with the Epstein-Barr virus, that was selected by the International HapMap Project for whole genome and transcriptome sequencing by use of the Illumina platform. K562 is an immortalized myelogenous leukemia cell line. The GM12878 cell line is attractive for the ENCODE Projects, as it offers potential synergy with the International HapMap Project. Despite the vast amount of sequencing data available on the GM12878 cell line through the ENCODE Project, including transcriptome, chromatin immunoprecipitation-sequencing for histone marks, and transcription factors, no small interfering siRNA-mediated knockdown studies have been performed in the GM12878 cell line, as cationic lipid-mediated transfection methods are inefficient for lymphoid cell lines. Here, we present an efficient and reproducible method for transfection of a variety of siRNAs into the GM12878 and K562 cell lines, which subsequently results in targeted protein depletion.

Serving the enterprise and beyond with informatics for integrating biology and the bedside (i2b2)

PubMed Central

Weber, Griffin; Mendis, Michael; Gainer, Vivian; Chueh, Henry C; Churchill, Susanne; Kohane, Isaac

2010-01-01

Informatics for Integrating Biology and the Bedside (i2b2) is one of seven projects sponsored by the NIH Roadmap National Centers for Biomedical Computing (http://www.ncbcs.org). Its mission is to provide clinical investigators with the tools necessary to integrate medical record and clinical research data in the genomics age, a software suite to construct and integrate the modern clinical research chart. i2b2 software may be used by an enterprise's research community to find sets of interesting patients from electronic patient medical record data, while preserving patient privacy through a query tool interface. Project-specific mini-databases (“data marts”) can be created from these sets to make highly detailed data available on these specific patients to the investigators on the i2b2 platform, as reviewed and restricted by the Institutional Review Board. The current version of this software has been released into the public domain and is available at the URL: http://www.i2b2.org/software. PMID:20190053

Getting expert systems off the ground: Lessons learned from integrating model-based diagnostics with prototype flight hardware

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stephan, Amy; Erikson, Carol A.

1991-01-01

As an initial attempt to introduce expert system technology into an onboard environment, a model based diagnostic system using the TRW MARPLE software tool was integrated with prototype flight hardware and its corresponding control software. Because this experiment was designed primarily to test the effectiveness of the model based reasoning technique used, the expert system ran on a separate hardware platform, and interactions between the control software and the model based diagnostics were limited. While this project met its objective of showing that model based reasoning can effectively isolate failures in flight hardware, it also identified the need for an integrated development path for expert system and control software for onboard applications. In developing expert systems that are ready for flight, artificial intelligence techniques must be evaluated to determine whether they offer a real advantage onboard, identify which diagnostic functions should be performed by the expert systems and which are better left to the procedural software, and work closely with both the hardware and the software developers from the beginning of a project to produce a well designed and thoroughly integrated application.

The contribution of the Geohazards Exploitation Platform for the GEO Supersites community

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manunta, Michele; Caumont, Hervé; Mora, Oscar; Casu, Francesco; Zinno, Ivana; De Luca, Claudio; Pepe, Susi; Pepe, Antonio; Brito, Fabrice; Romero, Laia; Stumpf, Andre; Malet, Jean-Philippe; Brcic, Ramon; Rodriguez Gonzalez, Fernando; Musacchio, Massimo; Buongiorno, Fabrizia; Briole, Pierre

2016-04-01

The European Space Agency (ESA) initiative for the creation of an ecosystem of Thematic Exploitation Platforms (TEP) focuses on the capitalization of Ground Segment capabilities and ICT technologies to maximize the exploitation of EO data from past and future missions. A TEP refers to a computing platform that complies to a set of exploitation scenarios involving scientific users, data providers and ICT providers, aggregated around an Earth Science thematic area. The Exploitation Platforms are targeted to cover different capacities and they define, implement and validate a platform for effective data exploitation of EO data sources in a given thematic area. In this framework, the Geohazards Thematic Exploitation Platform or Geohazards TEP (GEP) aims at providing on-demand processing services for specific user needs as well as systematic processing services to address the need of the geohazards community for common information layers and, finally, to integrate newly developed processors for scientists and other expert users. The GEP has now on-boarded over 40 European early adopters and will transition during 2016 to pre-operations by developing six new Pilot applications that will significantly augment the Platform's capabilities for systematic production and community building. Each project on the Platform is concerned with either integrating an application, running on demand processing using an application available in the platform or systematically generating a new product collection. The platform will also expand its user base in 2016, to gradually reach a total of about 65 individual users. Under a Consortium lead by Terradue Srl, six new pilot projects have been taken on board: photogrammetric processing using optical EO data with University of Strasbourg (FR), optical based processing method for volcanic hazard monitoring with INGV (IT), systematic generation of deformation time-series with Sentinel-1 data with CNR IREA (IT), systematic processing of Sentinel-1 interferometric imagery with DLR (DE), precise terrain motion mapping with SPN Persistent Scatterers Interferometric chain of Altamira Information (ES) and a campaign to test and exploit GEP applications with the Corinth Rift Laboratory in which Greek and French experts of seismic hazards are engaged. The consortium is in charge of the resources and services management under a sustainable and fair governance model to ensure alignment of the Platform with user community needs, broad collaboration with main data and service providers in the domain, and excellence among user initiatives willing to contribute. In this work we show how the GEO Geohazards Supersites community can fully benefit from availability of an advanced IT infrastructure, where satellite and in-situ data, processing tools and web-based visualization instruments are at the disposal of users to address scientific questions. In particular, we focus on the contributions provided by GEP for the management of EO data, for the implementation of a European e-infrastructure, and for the monitoring and modelling of ground deformations and seismic activity.

Videoexoscopic real-time intraoperative navigation for spinal neurosurgery: a novel co-adaptation of two existing technology platforms, technical note.

PubMed

Huang, Meng; Barber, Sean Michael; Steele, William James; Boghani, Zain; Desai, Viren Rajendrakumar; Britz, Gavin Wayne; West, George Alexander; Trask, Todd Wilson; Holman, Paul Joseph

2018-06-01

Image-guided approaches to spinal instrumentation and interbody fusion have been widely popularized in the last decade [1-5]. Navigated pedicle screws are significantly less likely to breach [2, 3, 5, 6]. Navigation otherwise remains a point reference tool because the projection is off-axis to the surgeon's inline loupe or microscope view. The Synaptive robotic brightmatter drive videoexoscope monitor system represents a new paradigm for off-axis high-definition (HD) surgical visualization. It has many advantages over the traditional microscope and loupes, which have already been demonstrated in a cadaveric study [7]. An auxiliary, but powerful capability of this system is projection of a second, modifiable image in a split-screen configuration. We hypothesized that integration of both Medtronic and Synaptive platforms could permit the visualization of reconstructed navigation and surgical field images simultaneously. By utilizing navigated instruments, this configuration has the ability to support live image-guided surgery or real-time navigation (RTN). Medtronic O-arm/Stealth S7 navigation, MetRx, NavLock, and SureTrak spinal systems were implemented on a prone cadaveric specimen with a stream output to the Synaptive Display. Surgical visualization was provided using a Storz Image S1 platform and camera mounted to the Synaptive robotic brightmatter drive. We were able to successfully technically co-adapt both platforms. A minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MIS TLIF) and an open pedicle subtraction osteotomy (PSO) were performed using a navigated high-speed drill under RTN. Disc Shaver and Trials under RTN were implemented on the MIS TLIF. The synergy of Synaptive HD videoexoscope robotic drive and Medtronic Stealth platforms allow for live image-guided surgery or real-time navigation (RTN). Off-axis projection also allows upright neutral cervical spine operative ergonomics for the surgeons and improved surgical team visualization and education compared to traditional means. This technique has the potential to augment existing minimally invasive and open approaches, but will require long-term outcome measurements for efficacy.

TriPleX: a versatile dielectric photonic platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wörhoff, Kerstin; Heideman, René G.; Leinse, Arne; Hoekman, Marcel

2015-04-01

Photonic applications based on planar waveguide technology impose stringent requirements on properties such as optical propagation losses, light coupling to optical fibers, integration density, as well as on reliability and reproducibility. The latter is correlated to a high level of control of the refractive index and waveguide geometry. In this paper, we review a versatile dielectric waveguide platform, called TriPleX, which is based on alternating silicon nitride and silicon dioxide films. Fabrication with CMOS-compatible equipment based on low-pressure chemical vapor deposition enables the realization of stable material compositions being a prerequisite to the control of waveguide properties and modal shape. The transparency window of both materials allows for the realization of low-loss waveguides over a wide wavelength range (400 nm-2.35 μm). Propagation losses as low as 5×10-4 dB/cm are reported. Three basic geometries (box shell, double stripe, and filled box) can be distinguished. A specific tapering technology is developed for on-chip, low-loss (<0.1 dB) spotsize convertors, allowing for combining efficient fiber to chip coupling with high-contrast waveguides required for increased functional complexity as well as for hybrid integration with other photonic platforms such as InP and SOI. The functionality of the TriPleX platform is captured by verified basic building blocks. The corresponding library and associated design kit is available for multi-project wafer (MPW) runs. Several applications of this platform technology in communications, biomedicine, sensing, as well as a few special fields of photonics are treated in more detail.

Managing integrated oncology treatment in virtual networks.

PubMed

Stanicki, Verena; Becker, Matthias; Böckmann, Britta

2015-01-01

Interdisciplinary and intersectoral coordinated healthcare management based on Clinical Practice Guidelines is essential to achieve high quality in oncological networks. The objective of our research project is to create a cookbook, which can be used by oncological networks as a template. The cookbook is based on guideline-compliant care processes. To develop these care processes, the three S3-guidelines breast, colon and prostate carcinoma have been formalized. The thus-obtained platform-independent process fragments were transformed into an underlying metamodel, which is based on HL7 and can be used for modeling clinical pathways. Additional, qualitative guided interviews were chosen to capitalize on the experts' (e.g. chief residents, resident specialists) wide knowledge and experience in oncological health care management. One of these use cases (tumor board scheduling) is developed for a healthcare management platform which is linked to a national electronic case record. The projected result of our approach is a cookbook which shows, how the treatment can be controlled by interdisciplinary and intersectoral care processes in an oncological network.

Maintaining Situation Awareness with Autonomous Airborne Observation Platforms

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Freed, Michael; Fitzgerald, Will

2005-01-01

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) offer tremendous potential as intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) platforms for early detection of security threats and for acquisition and maintenance of situation awareness in crisis conditions. However, using their capabilities effectively requires addressing a range of practical and theoretical problems. The paper will describe progress by the "Autonomous Rotorcraft Project," a collaborative effort between NASA and the U.S. Army to develop a practical, flexible capability for UAV-based ISR. Important facets of the project include optimization methods for allocating scarce aircraft resources to observe numerous, distinct sites of interest; intelligent flight automation software than integrates high-level plan generation capabilities with executive control, failure response and flight control functions; a system architecture supporting reconfiguration of onboard sensors to address different kinds of threats; and an advanced prototype vehicle designed to allow large-scale production at low cost. The paper will also address human interaction issues including an empirical method for determining how to allocate roles and responsibilities between flight automation and human operations.

Portable Virtual Training Units

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Malone, Reagan; Johnston, Alan

2015-01-01

The Mission Operations Lab initiated a project to design, develop, deliver, test, and validate a unique training system for astronaut and ground support personnel. In an effort to keep training costs low, virtual training units (VTUs) have been designed based on images of actual hardware and manipulated by a touch screen style interface for ground support personnel training. This project helped modernized the training system and materials by integrating them with mobile devices for training when operators or crew are unavailable to physically train in the facility. This project also tested the concept of a handheld remote device to control integrated trainers using International Space Station (ISS) training simulators as a platform. The portable VTU can interface with the full-sized VTU, allowing a trainer co-located with a trainee to remotely manipulate a VTU and evaluate a trainee's response. This project helped determine if it is useful, cost effective, and beneficial for the instructor to have a portable handheld device to control the behavior of the models during training. This project has advanced NASA Marshall Space Flight Center's (MSFC's) VTU capabilities with modern and relevant technology to support space flight training needs of today and tomorrow.

Geo-spatial Service and Application based on National E-government Network Platform and Cloud

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meng, X.; Deng, Y.; Li, H.; Yao, L.; Shi, J.

2014-04-01

With the acceleration of China's informatization process, our party and government take a substantive stride in advancing development and application of digital technology, which promotes the evolution of e-government and its informatization. Meanwhile, as a service mode based on innovative resources, cloud computing may connect huge pools together to provide a variety of IT services, and has become one relatively mature technical pattern with further studies and massive practical applications. Based on cloud computing technology and national e-government network platform, "National Natural Resources and Geospatial Database (NRGD)" project integrated and transformed natural resources and geospatial information dispersed in various sectors and regions, established logically unified and physically dispersed fundamental database and developed national integrated information database system supporting main e-government applications. Cross-sector e-government applications and services are realized to provide long-term, stable and standardized natural resources and geospatial fundamental information products and services for national egovernment and public users.

Student-to-Scientist (S2S) via the PACA Project: Connecting Astronomers, Educators and Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yanamandra-Fisher, P. A.

2015-12-01

Student to Scientist (S2S), provides pathways for observational and research tools for K-12 and undergraduate students to improve science proficiency through conducting real scientific observations. Our approach lies in the integration of professional and amateur astronomers, educators, students, and communicators to identify multiple paths for the student to become a scientist. I report on the ensuing project, also known as the PACA Project, which is an ecosystem of various activities that take advantage of the social media and immediate connectivity amongst amateur astronomers worldwide and that can be galvanized to participate in a given observing campaign. The PACA Project has participated in organized campaigns such as NASA Comet ISON Observing Campaign in 2013; NASA Comet Integrated Observations Campaign to observe Comet Siding Spring as it flew by very close to Mars on 19 October 2014. Currently the PACA Project is involved in the Ground-based Amateur campaign to observer ESA/Rosetta mission's target, 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (CG) that is en route to its perihelion on 13 August 2015 (at the time of abstract submission). The PACA Project provides access to the professional community and the student/educator and informal/public communities via various social media like Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Pinterest, Vimeo, Google+. With the popularity of mobile platforms and instant connections with other peers globally, the multi-faceted social universe has become a vital part of engagement of multiple communities. The PACA project currently has initiated a Comet Tails and Disconnection Events campaign to relate to the changing solar wind conditions. Other PACA projects include Saturn Solstice 2017 and outreach projects with Astroproject (India). These and other citizen-science enabled activities and their integration with S2S project will be discussed.

Apparatus, method and system to control accessibility of platform resources based on an integrity level

DOEpatents

Jenkins, Chris; Pierson, Lyndon G.

2016-10-25

Techniques and mechanism to selectively provide resource access to a functional domain of a platform. In an embodiment, the platform includes both a report domain to monitor the functional domain and a policy domain to identify, based on such monitoring, a transition of the functional domain from a first integrity level to a second integrity level. In response to a change in integrity level, the policy domain may configure the enforcement domain to enforce against the functional domain one or more resource accessibility rules corresponding to the second integrity level. In another embodiment, the policy domain automatically initiates operations in aid of transitioning the platform from the second integrity level to a higher integrity level.

Design of underwater robot lines based on a hybrid automatic optimization strategy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lyu, Wenjing; Luo, Weilin

2014-09-01

In this paper, a hybrid automatic optimization strategy is proposed for the design of underwater robot lines. Isight is introduced as an integration platform. The construction of this platform is based on the user programming and several commercial software including UG6.0, GAMBIT2.4.6 and FLUENT12.0. An intelligent parameter optimization method, the particle swarm optimization, is incorporated into the platform. To verify the strategy proposed, a simulation is conducted on the underwater robot model 5470, which originates from the DTRC SUBOFF project. With the automatic optimization platform, the minimal resistance is taken as the optimization goal; the wet surface area as the constraint condition; the length of the fore-body, maximum body radius and after-body's minimum radius as the design variables. With the CFD calculation, the RANS equations and the standard turbulence model are used for direct numerical simulation. By analyses of the simulation results, it is concluded that the platform is of high efficiency and feasibility. Through the platform, a variety of schemes for the design of the lines are generated and the optimal solution is achieved. The combination of the intelligent optimization algorithm and the numerical simulation ensures a global optimal solution and improves the efficiency of the searching solutions.

Model Developments for Development of Improved Emissions Scenarios: Developing Purchasing-Power Parity Models, Analyzing Uncertainty, and Developing Data Sets for Gridded Integrated Assessment Models

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yang, Zili; Nordhaus, William

2009-03-19

In the duration of this project, we finished the main tasks set up in the initial proposal. These tasks include: setting up the basic platform in GAMS language for the new RICE 2007 model; testing various model structure of RICE 2007; incorporating PPP data set in the new RICE model; developing gridded data set for IA modeling.

First experience with particle-in-cell plasma physics code on ARM-based HPC systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sáez, Xavier; Soba, Alejandro; Sánchez, Edilberto; Mantsinen, Mervi; Mateo, Sergi; Cela, José M.; Castejón, Francisco

2015-09-01

In this work, we will explore the feasibility of porting a Particle-in-cell code (EUTERPE) to an ARM multi-core platform from the Mont-Blanc project. The used prototype is based on a system-on-chip Samsung Exynos 5 with an integrated GPU. It is the first prototype that could be used for High-Performance Computing (HPC), since it supports double precision and parallel programming languages.

Integrating Multimodal Radiation Therapy Data into i2b2.

PubMed

Zapletal, Eric; Bibault, Jean-Emmanuel; Giraud, Philippe; Burgun, Anita

2018-04-01

 Clinical data warehouses are now widely used to foster clinical and translational research and the Informatics for Integrating Biology and the Bedside (i2b2) platform has become a de facto standard for storing clinical data in many projects. However, to design predictive models and assist in personalized treatment planning in cancer or radiation oncology, all available patient data need to be integrated into i2b2, including radiation therapy data that are currently not addressed in many existing i2b2 sites.  To use radiation therapy data in projects related to rectal cancer patients, we assessed the feasibility of integrating radiation oncology data into the i2b2 platform.  The Georges Pompidou European Hospital, a hospital from the Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Paris group, has developed an i2b2-based clinical data warehouse of various structured and unstructured clinical data for research since 2008. To store and reuse various radiation therapy data-dose details, activities scheduling, and dose-volume histogram (DVH) curves-in this repository, we first extracted raw data by using some reverse engineering techniques and a vendor's application programming interface. Then, we implemented a hybrid storage approach by combining the standard i2b2 "Entity-Attribute-Value" storage mechanism with a "JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) document-based" storage mechanism without modifying the i2b2 core tables. Validation was performed using (1) the Business Objects framework for replicating vendor's application screens showing dose details and activities scheduling data and (2) the R software for displaying the DVH curves.  We developed a pipeline to integrate the radiation therapy data into the Georges Pompidou European Hospital i2b2 instance and evaluated it on a cohort of 262 patients. We were able to use the radiation therapy data on a preliminary use case by fetching the DVH curve data from the clinical data warehouse and displaying them in a R chart.  By adding radiation therapy data into the clinical data warehouse, we were able to analyze radiation therapy response in cancer patients and we have leveraged the i2b2 platform to store radiation therapy data, including detailed information such as the DVH to create new ontology-based modules that provides research investigators with a wider spectrum of clinical data. Schattauer GmbH Stuttgart.

Digital patient: Personalized and translational data management through the MyHealthAvatar EU project.

PubMed

Kondylakis, Haridimos; Spanakis, Emmanouil G; Sfakianakis, Stelios; Sakkalis, Vangelis; Tsiknakis, Manolis; Marias, Kostas; Xia Zhao; Hong Qing Yu; Feng Dong

2015-08-01

The advancements in healthcare practice have brought to the fore the need for flexible access to health-related information and created an ever-growing demand for the design and the development of data management infrastructures for translational and personalized medicine. In this paper, we present the data management solution implemented for the MyHealthAvatar EU research project, a project that attempts to create a digital representation of a patient's health status. The platform is capable of aggregating several knowledge sources relevant for the provision of individualized personal services. To this end, state of the art technologies are exploited, such as ontologies to model all available information, semantic integration to enable data and query translation and a variety of linking services to allow connecting to external sources. All original information is stored in a NoSQL database for reasons of efficiency and fault tolerance. Then it is semantically uplifted through a semantic warehouse which enables efficient access to it. All different technologies are combined to create a novel web-based platform allowing seamless user interaction through APIs that support personalized, granular and secure access to the relevant information.

BioAcoustica: a free and open repository and analysis platform for bioacoustics

PubMed Central

Baker, Edward; Price, Ben W.; Rycroft, S. D.; Smith, Vincent S.

2015-01-01

We describe an online open repository and analysis platform, BioAcoustica (http://bio.acousti.ca), for recordings of wildlife sounds. Recordings can be annotated using a crowdsourced approach, allowing voice introductions and sections with extraneous noise to be removed from analyses. This system is based on the Scratchpads virtual research environment, the BioVeL portal and the Taverna workflow management tool, which allows for analysis of recordings using a grid computing service. At present the analyses include spectrograms, oscillograms and dominant frequency analysis. Further analyses can be integrated to meet the needs of specific researchers or projects. Researchers can upload and annotate their recordings to supplement traditional publication. Database URL: http://bio.acousti.ca PMID:26055102

DG Connect Funded Projects on Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) for Old Age People: Beyond Silos, CareWell and SmartCare.

PubMed

Keijser, W; de Manuel-Keenoy, E; d'Angelantonio, M; Stafylas, P; Hobson, P; Apuzzo, G; Hurtado, M; Oates, J; Bousquet, J; Senn, A

2016-01-01

Information and communication technologies (ICT) are promising for the long-term care of older and frequently frail people. These innovations can improve health outcomes, quality of life and efficiency of care processes, while supporting independent living. However, they may be disruptive innovations. As all European member states are facing an increasing complexity of health and social care, good practices in ICT should be identified and evaluated. Three projects funded by DG CNECT are related to Active and Healthy Ageing (AHA) and frailty: (i) BeyondSilos, dealing with independent living and integrated services, (ii) CareWell, providing integrated care coordination, patient empowerment and home support and (iii) SmartCare, proposing a common set of standard functional specifications for an ICT platform enabling the delivery of integrated care to older patients. The three projects described in this paper provide a unique pan-European research field to further study implementation efforts and outcomes of new technologies. Below, based on a description of the projects, the authors display four domains that are in their views fundamental for in-depth exploration of heterogeneity in the European context: 1. Definition of easily transferable, high level pathways with solid evidence-base; 2. Change management in implementing ICT enabled integrated care; 3. Evaluation and data collection methodologies based on existing experience with MAST and MEDAL methodologies; and 4. Construction of new models for delivery of health and social care. Understanding complementarity, synergies and differences between the three unique projects can help to identify a more effective roll out of best practices within a varying European context.

SSE software test management STM capability: Using STM in the Ground Systems Development Environment (GSDE)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Church, Victor E.; Long, D.; Hartenstein, Ray; Perez-Davila, Alfredo

1992-01-01

This report is one of a series discussing configuration management (CM) topics for Space Station ground systems software development. It provides a description of the Software Support Environment (SSE)-developed Software Test Management (STM) capability, and discusses the possible use of this capability for management of developed software during testing performed on target platforms. This is intended to supplement the formal documentation of STM provided by the SEE Project. How STM can be used to integrate contractor CM and formal CM for software before delivery to operations is described. STM provides a level of control that is flexible enough to support integration and debugging, but sufficiently rigorous to insure the integrity of the testing process.

NCBI BLAST+ integrated into Galaxy.

PubMed

Cock, Peter J A; Chilton, John M; Grüning, Björn; Johnson, James E; Soranzo, Nicola

2015-01-01

The NCBI BLAST suite has become ubiquitous in modern molecular biology and is used for small tasks such as checking capillary sequencing results of single PCR products, genome annotation or even larger scale pan-genome analyses. For early adopters of the Galaxy web-based biomedical data analysis platform, integrating BLAST into Galaxy was a natural step for sequence comparison workflows. The command line NCBI BLAST+ tool suite was wrapped for use within Galaxy. Appropriate datatypes were defined as needed. The integration of the BLAST+ tool suite into Galaxy has the goal of making common BLAST tasks easy and advanced tasks possible. This project is an informal international collaborative effort, and is deployed and used on Galaxy servers worldwide. Several examples of applications are described here.

INDIGO: Building a DataCloud Framework to support Open Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Yin; de Lucas, Jesus Marco; Aguilar, Fenando; Fiore, Sandro; Rossi, Massimiliano; Ferrari, Tiziana

2016-04-01

New solutions are required to support Data Intensive Science in the emerging panorama of e-infrastructures, including Grid, Cloud and HPC services. The architecture proposed by the INDIGO-DataCloud (INtegrating Distributed data Infrastructures for Global ExplOitation) (https://www.indigo-datacloud.eu/) H2020 project, provides the path to integrate IaaS resources and PaaS platforms to provide SaaS solutions, while satisfying the requirements posed by different Research Communities, including several in Earth Science. This contribution introduces the INDIGO DataCloud architecture, describes the methodology followed to assure the integration of the requirements from different research communities, including examples like ENES, LifeWatch or EMSO, and how they will build their solutions using different INDIGO components.

A feasibility study for the provision of electronic healthcare tools and services in areas of Greece, Cyprus and Italy

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background Through this paper, we present the initial steps for the creation of an integrated platform for the provision of a series of eHealth tools and services to both citizens and travelers in isolated areas of thesoutheast Mediterranean, and on board ships travelling across it. The platform was created through an INTERREG IIIB ARCHIMED project called INTERMED. Methods The support of primary healthcare, home care and the continuous education of physicians are the three major issues that the proposed platform is trying to facilitate. The proposed system is based on state-of-the-art telemedicine systems and is able to provide the following healthcare services: i) Telecollaboration and teleconsultation services between remotely located healthcare providers, ii) telemedicine services in emergencies, iii) home telecare services for "at risk" citizens such as the elderly and patients with chronic diseases, and iv) eLearning services for the continuous training through seminars of both healthcare personnel (physicians, nurses etc) and persons supporting "at risk" citizens. These systems support data transmission over simple phone lines, internet connections, integrated services digital network/digital subscriber lines, satellite links, mobile networks (GPRS/3G), and wireless local area networks. The data corresponds, among others, to voice, vital biosignals, still medical images, video, and data used by eLearning applications. The proposed platform comprises several systems, each supporting different services. These were integrated using a common data storage and exchange scheme in order to achieve system interoperability in terms of software, language and national characteristics. Results The platform has been installed and evaluated in different rural and urban sites in Greece, Cyprus and Italy. The evaluation was mainly related to technical issues and user satisfaction. The selected sites are, among others, rural health centers, ambulances, homes of "at-risk" citizens, and a ferry. Conclusions The results proved the functionality and utilization of the platform in various rural places in Greece, Cyprus and Italy. However, further actions are needed to enable the local healthcare systems and the different population groups to be familiarized with, and use in their everyday lives, mature technological solutions for the provision of healthcare services. PMID:21649924

Strategic Integration of Multiple Bioinformatics Resources for System Level Analysis of Biological Networks.

PubMed

D'Souza, Mark; Sulakhe, Dinanath; Wang, Sheng; Xie, Bing; Hashemifar, Somaye; Taylor, Andrew; Dubchak, Inna; Conrad Gilliam, T; Maltsev, Natalia

2017-01-01

Recent technological advances in genomics allow the production of biological data at unprecedented tera- and petabyte scales. Efficient mining of these vast and complex datasets for the needs of biomedical research critically depends on a seamless integration of the clinical, genomic, and experimental information with prior knowledge about genotype-phenotype relationships. Such experimental data accumulated in publicly available databases should be accessible to a variety of algorithms and analytical pipelines that drive computational analysis and data mining.We present an integrated computational platform Lynx (Sulakhe et al., Nucleic Acids Res 44:D882-D887, 2016) ( http://lynx.cri.uchicago.edu ), a web-based database and knowledge extraction engine. It provides advanced search capabilities and a variety of algorithms for enrichment analysis and network-based gene prioritization. It gives public access to the Lynx integrated knowledge base (LynxKB) and its analytical tools via user-friendly web services and interfaces. The Lynx service-oriented architecture supports annotation and analysis of high-throughput experimental data. Lynx tools assist the user in extracting meaningful knowledge from LynxKB and experimental data, and in the generation of weighted hypotheses regarding the genes and molecular mechanisms contributing to human phenotypes or conditions of interest. The goal of this integrated platform is to support the end-to-end analytical needs of various translational projects.

A platform to integrate climate information and rural telemedicine in Malawi

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lowe, R.; Chadza, T.; Chirombo, J.; Fonda, C.; Muyepa, A.; Nkoloma, M.; Pietrosemoli, E.; Radicella, S. M.; Tompkins, A. M.; Zennaro, M.

2012-04-01

It is commonly accepted that climate plays a role in the transmission of many infectious diseases, particularly those transmitted by mosquitoes such as malaria, which is one of the most important causes of mortality and morbidity in developing countries. Due to time lags involved in the climate-disease transmission system, lagged observed climate variables could provide some predictive lead for forecasting disease epidemics. This lead time could be extended by using forecasts of the climate in disease prediction models. This project aims to implement a platform for the dissemination of climate-driven disease risk forecasts, using a telemedicine approach. A pilot project has been established in Malawi, where a 162 km wireless link has been installed, spanning from Blantyre City to remote health facilities in the district of Mangochi in the Southern region, bordering Lake Malawi. This long Wi-Fi technology allows rural health facilities to upload real-time disease cases as they occur to an online health information system (DHIS2); a national medical database repository administered by the Ministry of Health. This technology provides a real-time data logging system for disease incidence monitoring and facilitates the flow of information between local and national levels. This platform allows statistical and dynamical disease prediction models to be rapidly updated with real-time climate and epidemiological information. This permits health authorities to target timely interventions ahead of an imminent increase in malaria incidence. By integrating meteorological and health information systems in a statistical-dynamical prediction model, we show that a long-distance Wi-Fi link is a practical and inexpensive means to enable the rapid analysis of real-time information in order to target disease prevention and control measures and mobilise resources at the local level.

Cancer Genomic Resources and Present Needs in the Latin American Region.

PubMed

Torres, Ángela; Oliver, Javier; Frecha, Cecilia; Montealegre, Ana Lorena; Quezada-Urbán, Rosalía; Díaz-Velásquez, Clara Estela; Vaca-Paniagua, Felipe; Perdomo, Sandra

2017-01-01

In Latin America (LA), cancer is the second leading cause of death, and little is known about the capacities and needs for the development of research in the field of cancer genomics. In order to evaluate the current capacity for and development of cancer genomics in LA, we collected the available information on genomics, including the number of next-generation sequencing (NGS) platforms, the number of cancer research institutions and research groups, publications in the last 10 years, educational programs, and related national cancer control policies. Currently, there are 221 NGS platforms and 118 research groups in LA developing cancer genomics projects. A total of 272 articles in the field of cancer genetics/genomics were published by authors affiliated to Latin American institutions. Educational programs in genomics are scarce, almost exclusive of graduate programs, and only few are concerning cancer. Only 14 countries have national cancer control plans, but all of them consider secondary prevention strategies for early diagnosis, opportune treatment, and decreasing mortality, where genomic analyses could be implemented. Despite recent advances in introducing knowledge about cancer genomics and its application to LA, the region lacks development of integrated genomic research projects, improved use of NGS platforms, implementation of associated educational programs, and health policies that could have an impact on cancer care. © 2017 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Research of B2B e-Business Application and Development Technology Based on SOA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xian, Li Liang

Today, the B2B e-business systems in most enterprises usually have multiple heterogeneous and independent systems which are based on different platforms and operate in different functional departments. To deal with the increased services in future, an enterprise needs to expand its system continuously. This, however, will cause great inconvenience to the future system maintenance. To implement e-business successfully, a unified internal e-business integration environment must be established to integrate the internal system and thus realize a unified internal mechanism within the enterprise e-business system. The SOA (service-oriented architecture), however, can well meet the above requirements. The integration of SOA-based applications can reduce the dependency of different types of IT systems, reduce the cost of system maintenance and the complexity of the IT system operation, increase the flexibility of the system deployment, and at the same time exclude the barrier of service innovation. Research and application of SOA-based enterprise application systems has become a very important research project at present. Based on SOA, this document designs an enterprise e-business application model and realizes a flexible and expandable e-business platform.

Mode-locked laser with pulse interleavers in a monolithic photonic integrated circuit for millimeter wave and terahertz carrier generation.

PubMed

Lo, Mu-Chieh; Guzmán, Robinson; Gordón, Carlos; Carpintero, Guillermo

2017-04-15

This Letter presents a photonics-based millimeter wave and terahertz frequency synthesizer using a monolithic InP photonic integrated circuit composed of a mode-locked laser (MLL) and two pulse interleaver stages to multiply the repetition rate frequency. The MLL is a multiple colliding pulse MLL producing an 80 GHz repetition rate pulse train. Through two consecutive monolithic pulse interleaver structures, each doubling the repetition rate, we demonstrate the achievement of 160 and 320 GHz. The fabrication was done on a multi-project wafer run of a generic InP photonic technology platform.

Grid-wide neuroimaging data federation in the context of the NeuroLOG project

PubMed Central

Michel, Franck; Gaignard, Alban; Ahmad, Farooq; Barillot, Christian; Batrancourt, Bénédicte; Dojat, Michel; Gibaud, Bernard; Girard, Pascal; Godard, David; Kassel, Gilles; Lingrand, Diane; Malandain, Grégoire; Montagnat, Johan; Pélégrini-Issac, Mélanie; Pennec, Xavier; Rojas Balderrama, Javier; Wali, Bacem

2010-01-01

Grid technologies are appealing to deal with the challenges raised by computational neurosciences and support multi-centric brain studies. However, core grids middleware hardly cope with the complex neuroimaging data representation and multi-layer data federation needs. Moreover, legacy neuroscience environments need to be preserved and cannot be simply superseded by grid services. This paper describes the NeuroLOG platform design and implementation, shedding light on its Data Management Layer. It addresses the integration of brain image files, associated relational metadata and neuroscience semantic data in a heterogeneous distributed environment, integrating legacy data managers through a mediation layer. PMID:20543431

MutAid: Sanger and NGS Based Integrated Pipeline for Mutation Identification, Validation and Annotation in Human Molecular Genetics.

PubMed

Pandey, Ram Vinay; Pabinger, Stephan; Kriegner, Albert; Weinhäusel, Andreas

2016-01-01

Traditional Sanger sequencing as well as Next-Generation Sequencing have been used for the identification of disease causing mutations in human molecular research. The majority of currently available tools are developed for research and explorative purposes and often do not provide a complete, efficient, one-stop solution. As the focus of currently developed tools is mainly on NGS data analysis, no integrative solution for the analysis of Sanger data is provided and consequently a one-stop solution to analyze reads from both sequencing platforms is not available. We have therefore developed a new pipeline called MutAid to analyze and interpret raw sequencing data produced by Sanger or several NGS sequencing platforms. It performs format conversion, base calling, quality trimming, filtering, read mapping, variant calling, variant annotation and analysis of Sanger and NGS data under a single platform. It is capable of analyzing reads from multiple patients in a single run to create a list of potential disease causing base substitutions as well as insertions and deletions. MutAid has been developed for expert and non-expert users and supports four sequencing platforms including Sanger, Illumina, 454 and Ion Torrent. Furthermore, for NGS data analysis, five read mappers including BWA, TMAP, Bowtie, Bowtie2 and GSNAP and four variant callers including GATK-HaplotypeCaller, SAMTOOLS, Freebayes and VarScan2 pipelines are supported. MutAid is freely available at https://sourceforge.net/projects/mutaid.

MutAid: Sanger and NGS Based Integrated Pipeline for Mutation Identification, Validation and Annotation in Human Molecular Genetics

PubMed Central

Pandey, Ram Vinay; Pabinger, Stephan; Kriegner, Albert; Weinhäusel, Andreas

2016-01-01

Traditional Sanger sequencing as well as Next-Generation Sequencing have been used for the identification of disease causing mutations in human molecular research. The majority of currently available tools are developed for research and explorative purposes and often do not provide a complete, efficient, one-stop solution. As the focus of currently developed tools is mainly on NGS data analysis, no integrative solution for the analysis of Sanger data is provided and consequently a one-stop solution to analyze reads from both sequencing platforms is not available. We have therefore developed a new pipeline called MutAid to analyze and interpret raw sequencing data produced by Sanger or several NGS sequencing platforms. It performs format conversion, base calling, quality trimming, filtering, read mapping, variant calling, variant annotation and analysis of Sanger and NGS data under a single platform. It is capable of analyzing reads from multiple patients in a single run to create a list of potential disease causing base substitutions as well as insertions and deletions. MutAid has been developed for expert and non-expert users and supports four sequencing platforms including Sanger, Illumina, 454 and Ion Torrent. Furthermore, for NGS data analysis, five read mappers including BWA, TMAP, Bowtie, Bowtie2 and GSNAP and four variant callers including GATK-HaplotypeCaller, SAMTOOLS, Freebayes and VarScan2 pipelines are supported. MutAid is freely available at https://sourceforge.net/projects/mutaid. PMID:26840129

Improving the physiological realism of experimental models

PubMed Central

Vinnakota, Kalyan C.; Cha, Chae Y.; Rorsman, Patrik; Balaban, Robert S.; La Gerche, Andre; Wade-Martins, Richard; Beard, Daniel A.

2016-01-01

The Virtual Physiological Human (VPH) project aims to develop integrative, explanatory and predictive computational models (C-Models) as numerical investigational tools to study disease, identify and design effective therapies and provide an in silico platform for drug screening. Ultimately, these models rely on the analysis and integration of experimental data. As such, the success of VPH depends on the availability of physiologically realistic experimental models (E-Models) of human organ function that can be parametrized to test the numerical models. Here, the current state of suitable E-models, ranging from in vitro non-human cell organelles to in vivo human organ systems, is discussed. Specifically, challenges and recent progress in improving the physiological realism of E-models that may benefit the VPH project are highlighted and discussed using examples from the field of research on cardiovascular disease, musculoskeletal disorders, diabetes and Parkinson's disease. PMID:27051507

Integration of cognitive and physical training in a smart home environment for the elderly people.

PubMed

Konstantinidis, Evdokimos I; Billis, Antonis; Hlauschek, Walter; Panek, Paul; Bamidis, Panagiotis D

2010-01-01

Our research work is towards a service that can support senior citizens towards their independent living and active ageing. As it is suggested, physical and cognitive exercise training can contribute to a significant prolongation of personal autonomy and participation in society across prevailing age-related impairments such as cognitive decline. In the current paper, the approach of combination of both physical and cognitive training--adopted by LLM project--is discussed related to other similar projects that have taken place in the area of elderly home care and training. The aim of this work is to describe the technical design details of the integration process of the LLM service, which is based on a Web service architecture and to discuss alternative interface elements to be included in the LLM platform in terms of enabling user accessibility and acceptance.

The Osseus platform: a prototype for advanced web-based distributed simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Franceschini, Derrick; Riecken, Mark

2016-05-01

Recent technological advances in web-based distributed computing and database technology have made possible a deeper and more transparent integration of some modeling and simulation applications. Despite these advances towards true integration of capabilities, disparate systems, architectures, and protocols will remain in the inventory for some time to come. These disparities present interoperability challenges for distributed modeling and simulation whether the application is training, experimentation, or analysis. Traditional approaches call for building gateways to bridge between disparate protocols and retaining interoperability specialists. Challenges in reconciling data models also persist. These challenges and their traditional mitigation approaches directly contribute to higher costs, schedule delays, and frustration for the end users. Osseus is a prototype software platform originally funded as a research project by the Defense Modeling & Simulation Coordination Office (DMSCO) to examine interoperability alternatives using modern, web-based technology and taking inspiration from the commercial sector. Osseus provides tools and services for nonexpert users to connect simulations, targeting the time and skillset needed to successfully connect disparate systems. The Osseus platform presents a web services interface to allow simulation applications to exchange data using modern techniques efficiently over Local or Wide Area Networks. Further, it provides Service Oriented Architecture capabilities such that finer granularity components such as individual models can contribute to simulation with minimal effort.

Leveraging social media for flood emergency management: an experience in Campania region (southern Italy)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Biafore, Mauro

2017-04-01

Campania is the Italian region with the highest population density (419 inhabitants/km2). Almost 20% of its territory (13669 km2) is exposed to severe hydrogeological risk scenarios, triggered by extreme rainfall events with duration ranging from a few tens of minutes to several hours. Many of these risk scenarios can only be mitigated by non-structural measures, which are mainly designed to increase the resilience of the exposed communities. Several studies have evidenced that the effectiveness of civil protection actions can be enhanced by using social media for disseminating and collecting information relevant for crisis preparedness, response and recovery. However, the application of social media in the management of hydrogeological risks is still in its infancy. The civil protection of Campania Region, as part of a FP7 project called SUPER (Social sensors for secUrity Assessments and Proactive EmeRgencies management), has been validating an integrated framework enabling optimal blending of social media in the emergency management processes. The SUPER project is a joint effort of social media experts (including social network providers) and security experts (including security and civil protection agencies), towards introducing an integrated and privacy-friendly approach to the use of social media in emergencies and security incidents. As part of the project outcomes, the "SUPER platform" has been developed. It consists of a set of social media processing components integrated in a Common Operational Picture, designed for supporting security and emergency management. A demonstration was primarily setup to evaluate how the SUPER platform can effectively facilitate the exploitation of social media data for improving civil protection actions during a simulated emergency scenario. To this purpose, a civil protection exercise took place in the city of Sorrento (Naples, Italy), involving tens of volunteers and emergency operators. The simulated emergency scenario was represented by simultaneous flash floods associated with shallow landslides, triggered by a severe thunderstorm in the city centre of Sorrento. Volunteers on the field simulated the social media engagement during such an event. The SUPER platform was successfully evaluated with respect to the following real-time operations: i) filtering the relevant information posted on Twitter during the simulated emergency; ii) geo-localising the relevant information within the Command Operational Picture; iii) enhancing the situation awareness at Command and Control level.

The Earth System (ES-DOC) Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Greenslade, Mark; Murphy, Sylvia; Treshansky, Allyn; DeLuca, Cecilia; Guilyardi, Eric; Denvil, Sebastien

2014-05-01

ESSI1.3 New Paradigms, Modelling, and International Collaboration Strategies for Earth System Sciences Earth System Documentation (ES-DOC) is an international project supplying tools & services in support of earth system documentation creation, analysis and dissemination. It is nurturing a sustainable standards based documentation eco-system that aims to become an integral part of the next generation of exa-scale dataset archives. ES-DOC leverages open source software and places end-user narratives at the heart of all it does. ES-DOC has initially focused upon nurturing the Earth System Model (ESM) documentation eco-system. Within this context ES-DOC leverages emerging documentation standards and supports the following projects: Coupled Model Inter-comparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5); Dynamical Core Model Inter-comparison Project (DCMIP); National Climate Predictions and Projections Platforms Quantitative Evaluation of Downscaling Workshop. This presentation will introduce the project to a wider audience and demonstrate the range of tools and services currently available for use. It will also demonstrate how international collaborative efforts are essential to the success of ES-DOC.

A service platform architecture design towards a light integration of heterogeneous systems in the wellbeing domain.

PubMed

Yang, Yaojin; Ahtinen, Aino; Lahteenmaki, Jaakko; Nyman, Petri; Paajanen, Henrik; Peltoniemi, Teijo; Quiroz, Carlos

2007-01-01

System integration is one of the major challenges for building wellbeing or healthcare related information systems. In this paper, we are going to share our experiences on how to design a service platform called Nuadu service platform, for providing integrated services in occupational health promotion and health risk management through two heterogeneous systems. Our design aims for a light integration covering the layers, from data through service up to presentation, while maintaining the integrity of the underlying systems.

Integrated Building Management System (IBMS)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Anita Lewis

This project provides a combination of software and services that more easily and cost-effectively help to achieve optimized building performance and energy efficiency. Featuring an open-platform, cloud- hosted application suite and an intuitive user experience, this solution simplifies a traditionally very complex process by collecting data from disparate building systems and creating a single, integrated view of building and system performance. The Fault Detection and Diagnostics algorithms developed within the IBMS have been designed and tested as an integrated component of the control algorithms running the equipment being monitored. The algorithms identify the normal control behaviors of the equipment withoutmore » interfering with the equipment control sequences. The algorithms also work without interfering with any cooperative control sequences operating between different pieces of equipment or building systems. In this manner the FDD algorithms create an integrated building management system.« less

Data Mining for ISHM of Liquid Rocket Propulsion Status Update

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Srivastava, Ashok; Schwabacher, Mark; Oza, Nijunj; Martin, Rodney; Watson, Richard; Matthews, Bryan

2006-01-01

This document consists of presentation slides that review the current status of data mining to support the work with the Integrated Systems Health Management (ISHM) for the systems associated with Liquid Rocket Propulsion. The aim of this project is to have test stand data from Rocketdyne to design algorithms that will aid in the early detection of impending failures during operation. These methods will be extended and improved for future platforms (i.e., CEV/CLV).

A Robotic Solution for Assisting People with MCI at Home: Preliminary Tests of the ENRICHME System.

PubMed

Salatino, Claudia; Pigini, Lucia; Van Kol, Marlies Maria Elisabeth; Gower, Valerio; Andrich, Renzo; Munaro, Giulia; Rosso, Roberto; Castellani, Angelo P; Farina, Elisabetta

2017-01-01

Robots have the potential to support care and independence of older adults. The ENRICHME project is developing an integrated system composed of a robot, sensors and a networking care platform, aiming at assisting older adults with MCI in their home environment. This paper reports findings of the tests performed on a sample of MCI users and their caregivers, with the first version of the ENRICHME system, in a controlled environment.

Commercial-scale biotherapeutics manufacturing facility for plant-made pharmaceuticals.

PubMed

Holtz, Barry R; Berquist, Brian R; Bennett, Lindsay D; Kommineni, Vally J M; Munigunti, Ranjith K; White, Earl L; Wilkerson, Don C; Wong, Kah-Yat I; Ly, Lan H; Marcel, Sylvain

2015-10-01

Rapid, large-scale manufacture of medical countermeasures can be uniquely met by the plant-made-pharmaceutical platform technology. As a participant in the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Blue Angel project, the Caliber Biotherapeutics facility was designed, constructed, commissioned and released a therapeutic target (H1N1 influenza subunit vaccine) in <18 months from groundbreaking. As of 2015, this facility was one of the world's largest plant-based manufacturing facilities, with the capacity to process over 3500 kg of plant biomass per week in an automated multilevel growing environment using proprietary LED lighting. The facility can commission additional plant grow rooms that are already built to double this capacity. In addition to the commercial-scale manufacturing facility, a pilot production facility was designed based on the large-scale manufacturing specifications as a way to integrate product development and technology transfer. The primary research, development and manufacturing system employs vacuum-infiltrated Nicotiana benthamiana plants grown in a fully contained, hydroponic system for transient expression of recombinant proteins. This expression platform has been linked to a downstream process system, analytical characterization, and assessment of biological activity. This integrated approach has demonstrated rapid, high-quality production of therapeutic monoclonal antibody targets, including a panel of rituximab biosimilar/biobetter molecules and antiviral antibodies against influenza and dengue fever. © 2015 Society for Experimental Biology, Association of Applied Biologists and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Scoping Review and Evaluation of SMS/text Messaging Platforms for mHealth Projects or Clinical Interventions

PubMed Central

Iribarren, Sarah; Brown, William; Giguere, Rebecca; Stone, Patricia; Schnall, Rebecca; Staggers, Nancy; Carballo-Diéguez, Alex

2017-01-01

Objectives Mobile technology supporting text messaging interventions (TMIs) continues to evolve, presenting challenges for researchers and healthcare professionals who need to choose software solutions to best meet their program needs. The objective of this review was to systematically identify and compare text messaging platforms and to summarize their advantages and disadvantages as described in peer-reviewed literature. Methods A scoping review was conducted using four steps: 1) identify currently available platforms through online searches and in mHealth repositories; 2) expand evaluation criteria of an mHealth mobile messaging toolkit and prior user experiences as researchers; 3) evaluate each platform’s functions and features based on the expanded criteria and a vendor survey; and 4) assess the documentation of platform use in the peer-review literature. Platforms meeting inclusion criteria were assessed independently by three reviewers and discussed until consensus was reached. The PRISMA guidelines were followed to report findings. Results Of the 1041 potentially relevant search results, 27 platforms met inclusion criteria. Most were excluded because they were not platforms (e.g., guides, toolkits, reports, or SMS gateways). Of the 27 platforms, only 12 were identified in existing mHealth repositories, 10 from Google searches, while five were found in both. The expanded evaluation criteria included 22 items. Results indicate no uniform presentation of platform features and functions, often making these difficult to discern. Fourteen of the platforms were reported as open source, 10 focused on health care and 16 were tailored to meet needs of low resource settings (not mutually exclusive). Fifteen platforms had do-it-yourself setup (programming not required) while the remainder required coding/programming skills or setups could be built to specification by the vendor. Frequently described features included data security and access to the platform via cloud-based systems. Pay structures and reported targeted end-users varied. Peer-reviewed publications listed only 6 of the 27 platforms across 21 publications. The majority of these articles reported the name of the platform used but did not describe advantages or disadvantages. Conclusions Searching for and comparing mHealth platforms for TMIs remains a challenge. The results of this review can serve as a resource for researchers and healthcare professionals wanting to integrate TMIs into health interventions. Steps to identify, compare and assess advantages and disadvantages are outlined for consideration. Expanded evaluation criteria can be used by future researchers. Continued and more comprehensive platform tools should be integrated into mHealth repositories. Detailed descriptions of platform advantages and disadvantages are needed when mHealth researchers publish findings to expand the body of research on texting-based tools for healthcare. Standardized descriptions and features are recommended for vendor sites. PMID:28347445

An integrated platform enabling optogenetic illumination of Caenorhabditis elegans neurons and muscular force measurement in microstructured environments

PubMed Central

Qiu, Zhichang; Tu, Long; Huang, Liang; Zhu, Taoyuanmin; Nock, Volker; Yu, Enchao; Liu, Xiao; Wang, Wenhui

2015-01-01

Optogenetics has been recently applied to manipulate the neural circuits of Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) to investigate its mechanosensation and locomotive behavior, which is a fundamental topic in model biology. In most neuron-related research, free C. elegans moves on an open area such as agar surface. However, this simple environment is different from the soil, in which C. elegans naturally dwells. To bridge up the gap, this paper presents integration of optogenetic illumination of C. elegans neural circuits and muscular force measurement in a structured microfluidic chip mimicking the C. elegans soil habitat. The microfluidic chip is essentially a ∼1 × 1 cm2 elastomeric polydimethylsiloxane micro-pillar array, configured in either form of lattice (LC) or honeycomb (HC) to mimic the environment in which the worm dwells. The integrated system has four key modules for illumination pattern generation, pattern projection, automatic tracking of the worm, and force measurement. Specifically, two optical pathways co-exist in an inverted microscope, including built-in bright-field illumination for worm tracking and pattern generation, and added-in optogenetic illumination for pattern projection onto the worm body segment. The behavior of a freely moving worm in the chip under optogenetic manipulation can be recorded for off-line force measurements. Using wild-type N2 C. elegans, we demonstrated optical illumination of C. elegans neurons by projecting light onto its head/tail segment at 14 Hz refresh frequency. We also measured the force and observed three representative locomotion patterns of forward movement, reversal, and omega turn for LC and HC configurations. Being capable of stimulating or inhibiting worm neurons and simultaneously measuring the thrust force, this enabling platform would offer new insights into the correlation between neurons and locomotive behaviors of the nematode under a complex environment. PMID:25759756

An FP7 "Space" project: Aphorism "Advanced PRocedures for volcanic and Seismic Monitoring"

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Di Iorio, A., Sr.; Stramondo, S.; Bignami, C.; Corradini, S.; Merucci, L.

2014-12-01

APHORISM project proposes the development and testing of two new methods to combine Earth Observation satellite data from different sensors, and ground data. The aim is to demonstrate that this two types of data, appropriately managed and integrated, can provide new improved GMES products useful for seismic and volcanic crisis management. The first method, APE - A Priori information for Earthquake damage mapping, concerns the generation of maps to address the detection and estimate of damage caused by a seism. The use of satellite data to investigate earthquake damages is not an innovative issue. We can find a wide literature and projects concerning such issue, but usually the approach is only based on change detection techniques and classifications algorithms. The novelty of APE relies on the exploitation of a priori information derived by InSAR time series to measure surface movements, shake maps obtained from seismological data, and vulnerability information. This a priori information is then integrated with change detection map to improve accuracy and to limit false alarms. The second method deals with volcanic crisis management. The method, MACE - Multi-platform volcanic Ash Cloud Estimation, concerns the exploitation of GEO (Geosynchronous Earth Orbit) sensor platform, LEO (Low Earth Orbit) satellite sensors and ground measures to improve the ash detection and retrieval and to characterize the volcanic ash clouds. The basic idea of MACE consists of an improvement of volcanic ash retrievals at the space-time scale by using both the LEO and GEO estimations and in-situ data. Indeed the standard ash thermal infrared retrieval is integrated with data coming from a wider spectral range from visible to microwave. The ash detection is also extended in case of cloudy atmosphere or steam plumes. APE and MACE methods have been defined in order to provide products oriented toward the next ESA Sentinels satellite missions.The project is funded under the European Union FP7 program and the Kick-Off meeting has been held at INGV premises in Rome on 18th December 2013.

Contributions of international cooperation projects to the HIV/AIDS response in China.

PubMed

Sun, Jiangping; Liu, Hui; Li, Hui; Wang, Liqiu; Guo, Haoyan; Shan, Duo; Bulterys, Marc; Korhonen, Christine; Hao, Yang; Ren, Minghui

2010-12-01

For 20 years, China has participated in 267 international cooperation projects against the HIV/AIDS epidemic and received ∼526 million USD from over 40 international organizations. These projects have played an important role by complementing national efforts in the fight against HIV/AIDS in China. The diverse characteristics of these projects followed three phases over 20 years. Initially, stand-alone projects provided technical support in surveillance, training or advocacy for public awareness. As the epidemic spread across China, projects became a part of the comprehensive and integrated national response. Currently, international best practices encourage the inclusion of civil society and non-governmental organizations in an expanded response to the epidemic. Funding from international projects has accounted for one-third of the resources provided for the HIV/AIDS response in China. Beyond this strong financial support, these programmes have introduced best practices, accelerated the introduction of AIDS policies, strengthened capacity, improved the development of grassroots social organizations and established a platform for communication and experience sharing with the international community. However, there are still challenges ahead, including integrating existing resources and exploring new programme models. The National Centre for AIDS/STD Control and Prevention (NCAIDS) in China is consolidating all international projects into national HIV prevention, treatment and care activities. International cooperation projects have been an invaluable component of China's response to HIV/AIDS, and China has now been able to take this information and share its experiences with other countries with the help of these same international programmes.

3D-Lab: a collaborative web-based platform for molecular modeling.

PubMed

Grebner, Christoph; Norrby, Magnus; Enström, Jonatan; Nilsson, Ingemar; Hogner, Anders; Henriksson, Jonas; Westin, Johan; Faramarzi, Farzad; Werner, Philip; Boström, Jonas

2016-09-01

The use of 3D information has shown impact in numerous applications in drug design. However, it is often under-utilized and traditionally limited to specialists. We want to change that, and present an approach making 3D information and molecular modeling accessible and easy-to-use 'for the people'. A user-friendly and collaborative web-based platform (3D-Lab) for 3D modeling, including a blazingly fast virtual screening capability, was developed. 3D-Lab provides an interface to automatic molecular modeling, like conformer generation, ligand alignments, molecular dockings and simple quantum chemistry protocols. 3D-Lab is designed to be modular, and to facilitate sharing of 3D-information to promote interactions between drug designers. Recent enhancements to our open-source virtual reality tool Molecular Rift are described. The integrated drug-design platform allows drug designers to instantaneously access 3D information and readily apply advanced and automated 3D molecular modeling tasks, with the aim to improve decision-making in drug design projects.

Leveraging Available Technologies for Improved Interoperability and Visualization of Remote Sensing and In-situ Oceanographic data at the PO.DAAC

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tsontos, V. M.; Arms, S. C.; Thompson, C. K.; Quach, N.; Lam, T.

2016-12-01

Earth science applications increasingly rely on the integration of multivariate data from diverse observational platforms. Whether for satellite mission cal/val, science or decision support, the coupling of remote sensing and in-situ field data is integral also to oceanographic workflows. This has prompted archives such as the PO.DAAC, NASA's physical oceanographic data archive, that historically has had a remote sensing focus, to adapt to better accommodate complex field campaign datasets. However, the inherent heterogeneity of in-situ datasets and their variable adherence to meta/data standards poses a significant impediment to interoperability, a problem originating early in the data lifecycle and significantly impacting stewardship and usability of these data long-term. Here we introduce a new initiative underway at PO.DAAC that seeks to catalyze efforts to address these challenges. It involves the enhancement and integration of available high TRL (Technology Readiness level) components for improved interoperability and support of in-situ data with a focus on a novel yet representative class of oceanographic field data: data from electronic tags deployed on a variety of marine species as biological sampling platforms in support of fisheries management and ocean observation efforts. This project seeks to demonstrate, deliver and ultimately sustain operationally a reusable and accessible set of tools to: 1) mediate reconciliation of heterogeneous source data into a tractable number of standardized formats consistent with earth science data standards; 2) harmonize existing metadata models for satellite and field datasets; 3) demonstrate the value added of integrated data access via a range of available tools and services hosted at the PO.DAAC, including a web-based visualization tool for comprehensive mapping of satellite and in-situ data. An innovative part of our project plan involves partnering with the leading electronic tag manufacturer to promote the adoption of appropriate data standards in their processing software. The proposed project thus adopts a model lifecycle approach complimented by broadly applicable technologies to address key data management and interoperability issues for in-situ data

The Bering Sea Project Archive: a Prototype for Improved Discovery and Access

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stott, D.; Mayernik, M. S.; Daniels, M. D.; Moore, J. A.; Williams, S. F.; Allison, J.

2015-12-01

The Bering Sea Project was a research program from 2007 through 2012 that sought to understand the impacts of climate change and dynamic sea ice cover on the eastern Bering Sea ecosystem. More than 100 scientists engaged in field data collection, original research, and ecosystem modeling to link climate, physical oceanography, plankton, fishes, seabirds, marine mammals, humans, traditional knowledge and economic outcomes. Over the six-year period of the program hundreds of multidisciplinary datasets coming from a variety of instrumentation and measurement platforms within thirty-one categories of research were processed and curated by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Earth Observing Laboratory (EOL). For the investigator proposing a field project, the researcher performing synthesis, or the modeler seeking data for verification, the easy discovery and access to the most relevant data is of prime importance. The heterogeneous products of oceanographic field programs such as the Bering Sea Project challenge the ability of researchers to identify which data sets, people, or tools might be relevant to their research, and to understand how certain data, instruments, or methods were used to produce particular results.EOL, as a partner in the NSF funded EarthCollab project, is using linked open data to permit the direct interlinking of information and data across platforms and projects. We are leveraging an existing open-source semantic web application, VIVO, to address connectivity gaps across distributed networks of researchers and resources and identify relevant content, independent of location. We will present our approach in connecting ontologies and integrating them within the VIVO system, using the Bering Sea Project datasets as a case study, and will provide insight into how the geosciences can leverage linked data to produce more coherent methods of information and data discovery across large multi-disciplinary projects.

Communication, coordination and cooperation in construction projects: business environment and human behaviours

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Salah Alaloul, Wesam; Shahir Liew, Mohd; Zawawi, Noor Amila Wan

2017-12-01

The accomplishment of construction projects is extremely dependent on the integration of several stakeholders; therefore none of them has the control or the ability to accomplish the project alone. Each of them may influence and be influenced by the project management approach. There is no comprehensive theoretical platform for defining Communication, Coordination and Cooperation (3Cs) in the management of construction project. This paper deliberates the function of the 3Cs different theoretical perceptions. Through an analysis of selected articles from reputable academic journals in construction management, the business environment and human behaviour were identified as two main parts. A little has been done so far about the 3Cs, and how they are correlated with construction projects performance. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to explain the definitions and the association between the 3Cs. There is a significant link between communication and coordination. Coordination alternatively, is trust-based a logic of mutual and exchange. Consequently, cooperation is much more sophisticated, which needing more time and attempts.

PIPER: Performance Insight for Programmers and Exascale Runtimes: Guiding the Development of the Exascale Software Stack

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mellor-Crummey, John

The PIPER project set out to develop methodologies and software for measurement, analysis, attribution, and presentation of performance data for extreme-scale systems. Goals of the project were to support analysis of massive multi-scale parallelism, heterogeneous architectures, multi-faceted performance concerns, and to support both post-mortem performance analysis to identify program features that contribute to problematic performance and on-line performance analysis to drive adaptation. This final report summarizes the research and development activity at Rice University as part of the PIPER project. Producing a complete suite of performance tools for exascale platforms during the course of this project was impossible since bothmore » hardware and software for exascale systems is still a moving target. For that reason, the project focused broadly on the development of new techniques for measurement and analysis of performance on modern parallel architectures, enhancements to HPCToolkit’s software infrastructure to support our research goals or use on sophisticated applications, engaging developers of multithreaded runtimes to explore how support for tools should be integrated into their designs, engaging operating system developers with feature requests for enhanced monitoring support, engaging vendors with requests that they add hardware measure- ment capabilities and software interfaces needed by tools as they design new components of HPC platforms including processors, accelerators and networks, and finally collaborations with partners interested in using HPCToolkit to analyze and tune scalable parallel applications.« less

Envri Cluster - a Community-Driven Platform of European Environmental Researcher Infrastructures for Providing Common E-Solutions for Earth Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Asmi, A.; Sorvari, S.; Kutsch, W. L.; Laj, P.

2017-12-01

European long-term environmental research infrastructures (often referred as ESFRI RIs) are the core facilities for providing services for scientists in their quest for understanding and predicting the complex Earth system and its functioning that requires long-term efforts to identify environmental changes (trends, thresholds and resilience, interactions and feedbacks). Many of the research infrastructures originally have been developed to respond to the needs of their specific research communities, however, it is clear that strong collaboration among research infrastructures is needed to serve the trans-boundary research requires exploring scientific questions at the intersection of different scientific fields, conducting joint research projects and developing concepts, devices, and methods that can be used to integrate knowledge. European Environmental research infrastructures have already been successfully worked together for many years and have established a cluster - ENVRI cluster - for their collaborative work. ENVRI cluster act as a collaborative platform where the RIs can jointly agree on the common solutions for their operations, draft strategies and policies and share best practices and knowledge. Supporting project for the ENVRI cluster, ENVRIplus project, brings together 21 European research infrastructures and infrastructure networks to work on joint technical solutions, data interoperability, access management, training, strategies and dissemination efforts. ENVRI cluster act as one stop shop for multidisciplinary RI users, other collaborative initiatives, projects and programmes and coordinates and implement jointly agreed RI strategies.

Towards the Geospatial Web: Media Platforms for Managing Geotagged Knowledge Repositories

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scharl, Arno

International media have recognized the visual appeal of geo-browsers such as NASA World Wind and Google Earth, for example, when Web and television coverage on Hurricane Katrina used interactive geospatial projections to illustrate its path and the scale of destruction in August 2005. Yet these early applications only hint at the true potential of geospatial technology to build and maintain virtual communities and to revolutionize the production, distribution and consumption of media products. This chapter investigates this potential by reviewing the literature and discussing the integration of geospatial and semantic reference systems, with an emphasis on extracting geospatial context from unstructured text. A content analysis of news coverage based on a suite of text mining tools (webLyzard) sheds light on the popularity and adoption of geospatial platforms.

Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative model of drug development for neglected diseases: current status and future challenges.

PubMed

Ioset, Jean-Robert; Chang, Shing

2011-09-01

The Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) is a patients' needs-driven organization committed to the development of new treatments for neglected diseases. Created in 2003, DNDi has delivered four improved treatments for malaria, sleeping sickness and visceral leishmaniasis. A main DNDi challenge is to build a solid R&D portfolio for neglected diseases and to deliver preclinical candidates in a timely manner using an original model based on partnership. To address this challenge DNDi has remodeled its discovery activities from a project-based academic-bound network to a fully integrated process-oriented platform in close collaboration with pharmaceutical companies. This discovery platform relies on dedicated screening capacity and lead-optimization consortia supported by a pragmatic, structured and pharmaceutical-focused compound sourcing strategy.

BIAS: Bioinformatics Integrated Application Software.

PubMed

Finak, G; Godin, N; Hallett, M; Pepin, F; Rajabi, Z; Srivastava, V; Tang, Z

2005-04-15

We introduce a development platform especially tailored to Bioinformatics research and software development. BIAS (Bioinformatics Integrated Application Software) provides the tools necessary for carrying out integrative Bioinformatics research requiring multiple datasets and analysis tools. It follows an object-relational strategy for providing persistent objects, allows third-party tools to be easily incorporated within the system and supports standards and data-exchange protocols common to Bioinformatics. BIAS is an OpenSource project and is freely available to all interested users at http://www.mcb.mcgill.ca/~bias/. This website also contains a paper containing a more detailed description of BIAS and a sample implementation of a Bayesian network approach for the simultaneous prediction of gene regulation events and of mRNA expression from combinations of gene regulation events. hallett@mcb.mcgill.ca.

DEEP SPACE: High Resolution VR Platform for Multi-user Interactive Narratives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuka, Daniela; Elias, Oliver; Martins, Ronald; Lindinger, Christopher; Pramböck, Andreas; Jalsovec, Andreas; Maresch, Pascal; Hörtner, Horst; Brandl, Peter

DEEP SPACE is a large-scale platform for interactive, stereoscopic and high resolution content. The spatial and the system design of DEEP SPACE are facing constraints of CAVETM-like systems in respect to multi-user interactive storytelling. To be used as research platform and as public exhibition space for many people, DEEP SPACE is capable to process interactive, stereoscopic applications on two projection walls with a size of 16 by 9 meters and a resolution of four times 1080p (4K) each. The processed applications are ranging from Virtual Reality (VR)-environments to 3D-movies to computationally intensive 2D-productions. In this paper, we are describing DEEP SPACE as an experimental VR platform for multi-user interactive storytelling. We are focusing on the system design relevant for the platform, including the integration of the Apple iPod Touch technology as VR control, and a special case study that is demonstrating the research efforts in the field of multi-user interactive storytelling. The described case study, entitled "Papyrate's Island", provides a prototypical scenario of how physical drawings may impact on digital narratives. In this special case, DEEP SPACE helps us to explore the hypothesis that drawing, a primordial human creative skill, gives us access to entirely new creative possibilities in the domain of interactive storytelling.

A Tactile Sensor Network System Using a Multiple Sensor Platform with a Dedicated CMOS-LSI for Robot Applications †

PubMed Central

Shao, Chenzhong; Tanaka, Shuji; Nakayama, Takahiro; Hata, Yoshiyuki; Bartley, Travis; Muroyama, Masanori

2017-01-01

Robot tactile sensation can enhance human–robot communication in terms of safety, reliability and accuracy. The final goal of our project is to widely cover a robot body with a large number of tactile sensors, which has significant advantages such as accurate object recognition, high sensitivity and high redundancy. In this study, we developed a multi-sensor system with dedicated Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (CMOS) Large-Scale Integration (LSI) circuit chips (referred to as “sensor platform LSI”) as a framework of a serial bus-based tactile sensor network system. The sensor platform LSI supports three types of sensors: an on-chip temperature sensor, off-chip capacitive and resistive tactile sensors, and communicates with a relay node via a bus line. The multi-sensor system was first constructed on a printed circuit board to evaluate basic functions of the sensor platform LSI, such as capacitance-to-digital and resistance-to-digital conversion. Then, two kinds of external sensors, nine sensors in total, were connected to two sensor platform LSIs, and temperature, capacitive and resistive sensing data were acquired simultaneously. Moreover, we fabricated flexible printed circuit cables to demonstrate the multi-sensor system with 15 sensor platform LSIs operating simultaneously, which showed a more realistic implementation in robots. In conclusion, the multi-sensor system with up to 15 sensor platform LSIs on a bus line supporting temperature, capacitive and resistive sensing was successfully demonstrated. PMID:29061954

A Tactile Sensor Network System Using a Multiple Sensor Platform with a Dedicated CMOS-LSI for Robot Applications.

PubMed

Shao, Chenzhong; Tanaka, Shuji; Nakayama, Takahiro; Hata, Yoshiyuki; Bartley, Travis; Nonomura, Yutaka; Muroyama, Masanori

2017-08-28

Robot tactile sensation can enhance human-robot communication in terms of safety, reliability and accuracy. The final goal of our project is to widely cover a robot body with a large number of tactile sensors, which has significant advantages such as accurate object recognition, high sensitivity and high redundancy. In this study, we developed a multi-sensor system with dedicated Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (CMOS) Large-Scale Integration (LSI) circuit chips (referred to as "sensor platform LSI") as a framework of a serial bus-based tactile sensor network system. The sensor platform LSI supports three types of sensors: an on-chip temperature sensor, off-chip capacitive and resistive tactile sensors, and communicates with a relay node via a bus line. The multi-sensor system was first constructed on a printed circuit board to evaluate basic functions of the sensor platform LSI, such as capacitance-to-digital and resistance-to-digital conversion. Then, two kinds of external sensors, nine sensors in total, were connected to two sensor platform LSIs, and temperature, capacitive and resistive sensing data were acquired simultaneously. Moreover, we fabricated flexible printed circuit cables to demonstrate the multi-sensor system with 15 sensor platform LSIs operating simultaneously, which showed a more realistic implementation in robots. In conclusion, the multi-sensor system with up to 15 sensor platform LSIs on a bus line supporting temperature, capacitive and resistive sensing was successfully demonstrated.

An Open Platform for Seamless Sensor Support in Healthcare for the Internet of Things

PubMed Central

Miranda, Jorge; Cabral, Jorge; Wagner, Stefan Rahr; Fischer Pedersen, Christian; Ravelo, Blaise; Memon, Mukhtiar; Mathiesen, Morten

2016-01-01

Population aging and increasing pressure on health systems are two issues that demand solutions. Involving and empowering citizens as active managers of their health represents a desirable shift from the current culture mainly focused on treatment of disease, to one also focused on continuous health management and well-being. Current developments in technological areas such as the Internet of Things (IoT), lead to new technological solutions that can aid this shift in the healthcare sector. This study presents the design, development, implementation and evaluation of a platform called Common Recognition and Identification Platform (CRIP), a part of the CareStore project, which aims at supporting caregivers and citizens to manage health routines in a seamless way. Specifically, the CRIP offers sensor-based support for seamless identification of users and health devices. A set of initial requirements was defined with a focus on usability limitations and current sensor technologies. The CRIP was designed and implemented using several technologies that enable seamless integration and interaction of sensors and people, namely Near Field Communication and fingerprint biometrics for identification and authentication, Bluetooth for communication with health devices and web services for wider integration with other platforms. Two CRIP prototypes were implemented and evaluated in laboratory during a period of eight months. The evaluations consisted of identifying users and devices, as well as seamlessly configure and acquire vital data from the last. Also, the entire Carestore platform was deployed in a nursing home where its usability was evaluated with caregivers. The evaluations helped assess that seamless identification of users and seamless configuration and communication with health devices is feasible and can help enable the IoT on healthcare applications. Therefore, the CRIP and similar platforms could be transformed into a valuable enabling technology for secure and reliable IoT deployments on the healthcare sector. PMID:27941656

Development of an Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) for Scaling Terrestrial Ecosystem Traits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meng, R.; McMahon, A. M.; Serbin, S.; Rogers, A.

2015-12-01

The next generation of Ecosystem and Earth System Models (EESMs) will require detailed information on ecosystem structure and function, including properties of vegetation related to carbon (C), water, and energy cycling, in order to project the future state of ecosystems. High spatial-temporal resolution measurements of terrestrial ecosystem are also important for EESMs, because they can provide critical inputs and benchmark datasets for evaluation of EESMs simulations across scales. The recent development of high-quality, low-altitude remote sensing platforms or small UAS (< 25 kg) enables measurements of terrestrial ecosystems at unprecedented temporal and spatial scales. Specifically, these new platforms can provide detailed information on patterns and processes of terrestrial ecosystems at a critical intermediate scale between point measurements and suborbital and satellite platforms. Given their potential for sub-decimeter spatial resolution, improved mission safety, high revisit frequency, and reduced operation cost, these platforms are of particular interest in the development of ecological scaling algorithms to parameterize and benchmark EESMs, particularly over complex and remote terrain. Our group is developing a small UAS platform and integrated sensor package focused on measurement needs for scaling and informing ecosystem modeling activities, as well as scaling and mapping plant functional traits. To do this we are developing an integrated software workflow and hardware package using off-the-shelf instrumentation including a high-resolution digital camera for Structure from Motion, spectroradiometer, and a thermal infrared camera. Our workflow includes platform design, measurement, image processing, data management, and information extraction. The fusion of 3D structure information, thermal-infrared imagery, and spectroscopic measurements, will provide a foundation for the development of ecological scaling and mapping algorithms. Our initial focus is in temperate forests but near-term research will expand into the high-arctic and eventually tropical systems. The results of this prototype study show that off-the-shelf technology can be used to develop a low-cost alternative for mapping plant traits and three-dimensional structure for ecological research.

An Open Platform for Seamless Sensor Support in Healthcare for the Internet of Things.

PubMed

Miranda, Jorge; Cabral, Jorge; Wagner, Stefan Rahr; Fischer Pedersen, Christian; Ravelo, Blaise; Memon, Mukhtiar; Mathiesen, Morten

2016-12-08

Population aging and increasing pressure on health systems are two issues that demand solutions. Involving and empowering citizens as active managers of their health represents a desirable shift from the current culture mainly focused on treatment of disease, to one also focused on continuous health management and well-being. Current developments in technological areas such as the Internet of Things (IoT), lead to new technological solutions that can aid this shift in the healthcare sector. This study presents the design, development, implementation and evaluation of a platform called Common Recognition and Identification Platform (CRIP), a part of the CareStore project, which aims at supporting caregivers and citizens to manage health routines in a seamless way. Specifically, the CRIP offers sensor-based support for seamless identification of users and health devices. A set of initial requirements was defined with a focus on usability limitations and current sensor technologies. The CRIP was designed and implemented using several technologies that enable seamless integration and interaction of sensors and people, namely Near Field Communication and fingerprint biometrics for identification and authentication, Bluetooth for communication with health devices and web services for wider integration with other platforms. Two CRIP prototypes were implemented and evaluated in laboratory during a period of eight months. The evaluations consisted of identifying users and devices, as well as seamlessly configure and acquire vital data from the last. Also, the entire Carestore platform was deployed in a nursing home where its usability was evaluated with caregivers. The evaluations helped assess that seamless identification of users and seamless configuration and communication with health devices is feasible and can help enable the IoT on healthcare applications. Therefore, the CRIP and similar platforms could be transformed into a valuable enabling technology for secure and reliable IoT deployments on the healthcare sector.

Structurally Integrated Photoluminescent Chemical and Biological Sensors: An Organic Light-Emitting Diode-Based Platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shinar, J.; Shinar, R.

The chapter describes the development, advantages, challenges, and potential of an emerging, compact photoluminescence-based sensing platform for chemical and biological analytes, including multiple analytes. In this platform, the excitation source is an array of organic light-emitting device (OLED) pixels that is structurally integrated with the sensing component. Steps towards advanced integration with additionally a thin-film-based photodetector are also described. The performance of the OLED-based sensing platform is examined for gas-phase and dissolved oxygen, glucose, lactate, ethanol, hydrazine, and anthrax lethal factor.

Librarians as Part of Cross-Disciplinary, Multi-Institutional Team Projects: Experiences from the VIVO Collaboration

PubMed Central

Garcia-Milian, Rolando; Norton, Hannah F.; Auten, Beth; Davis, Valrie I.; Holmes, Kristi L.; Johnson, Margeaux; Tennant, Michele R.

2013-01-01

Cross-disciplinary, team-based collaboration is essential for addressing today’s complex research questions, and librarians are increasingly entering into such collaborations. This study identifies skills needed as librarians integrate into cross-disciplinary teams, based on the experiences of librarians involved in the development and implementation of VIVO, a research discovery and collaboration platform. Participants discussed the challenges, skills gained, and lessons learned throughout the project. Their responses were analyzed in the light of the science of team science literature, and factors affecting collaboration on the VIVO team were identified. Skills in inclusive thinking, communication, perseverance, adaptability, and leadership were found to be essential. PMID:23833333

D Modelling and Visualization Based on the Unity Game Engine - Advantages and Challenges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buyuksalih, I.; Bayburt, S.; Buyuksalih, G.; Baskaraca, A. P.; Karim, H.; Rahman, A. A.

2017-11-01

3D City modelling is increasingly popular and becoming valuable tools in managing big cities. Urban and energy planning, landscape, noise-sewage modelling, underground mapping and navigation are among the applications/fields which really depend on 3D modelling for their effectiveness operations. Several research areas and implementation projects had been carried out to provide the most reliable 3D data format for sharing and functionalities as well as visualization platform and analysis. For instance, BIMTAS company has recently completed a project to estimate potential solar energy on 3D buildings for the whole Istanbul and now focussing on 3D utility underground mapping for a pilot case study. The research and implementation standard on 3D City Model domain (3D data sharing and visualization schema) is based on CityGML schema version 2.0. However, there are some limitations and issues in implementation phase for large dataset. Most of the limitations were due to the visualization, database integration and analysis platform (Unity3D game engine) as highlighted in this paper.

An Interdisciplinary Approach Between Medical Informatics and Social Sciences to Transdisciplinary Requirements Engineering for an Integrated Care Setting.

PubMed

Vielhauer, Jan; Böckmann, Britta

2017-01-01

Requirements engineering of software products for elderly people faces some special challenges to ensure a maximum of user acceptance. Within the scope of a research project, a web-based platform and a mobile app are approached to enable people to live in their own home as long as possible. This paper is about a developed method of interdisciplinary requirements engineering by a team of social scientists in cooperation with computer scientists.

Modeling Trust in ELICIT-WEL to Capture the Impact of Organization Structure on the Agility of Complex Networks

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-06-01

Topic 8: Networks and Networking Name of Author(s) Kevin Chan, US Army Research Laboratory Mary Ruddy, Azigo Point of Contact Kevin Chan RDRL-CIN...framework. The enhanced integrated emulation platform is then used to conduct a series of agent-based ELICIT experiments whose design is informed by...NUMBER 6. AUTHOR(S) 5d. PROJECT NUMBER 5e. TASK NUMBER 5f. WORK UNIT NUMBER 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) US Army Research

Early Life Stress and Sleep Restriction as Risk Factors in PTSD: An Integrative Pre-Clinical Approach

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-04-01

potential risk factors, with high relevance to soldiers. The primary aims of the project are thus. 1) To establish an effective animal model of PTSD that...develop the model as a platform for pharmacological testing of novel targets for drug development 5) As an additional aim – once an effective animal model...thus: 1) To establish an effective animal model of PTSD that would take into consideration the contribution of risk factors to the induction of the

SERS diagnostic platforms, methods and systems microarrays, biosensors and biochips

DOEpatents

Vo-Dinh, Tuan [Knoxville, TN

2007-09-11

A Raman integrated sensor system for the detection of targets including biotargets includes at least one sampling platform, at least one receptor probe disposed on the sampling platform, and an integrated circuit detector system communicably connected to the receptor. The sampling platform is preferably a Raman active surface-enhanced scattering (SERS) platform, wherein the Raman sensor is a SERS sensor. The receptors can include at least one protein receptor and at least one nucleic acid receptor.

A Computational Systems Biology Software Platform for Multiscale Modeling and Simulation: Integrating Whole-Body Physiology, Disease Biology, and Molecular Reaction Networks

PubMed Central

Eissing, Thomas; Kuepfer, Lars; Becker, Corina; Block, Michael; Coboeken, Katrin; Gaub, Thomas; Goerlitz, Linus; Jaeger, Juergen; Loosen, Roland; Ludewig, Bernd; Meyer, Michaela; Niederalt, Christoph; Sevestre, Michael; Siegmund, Hans-Ulrich; Solodenko, Juri; Thelen, Kirstin; Telle, Ulrich; Weiss, Wolfgang; Wendl, Thomas; Willmann, Stefan; Lippert, Joerg

2011-01-01

Today, in silico studies and trial simulations already complement experimental approaches in pharmaceutical R&D and have become indispensable tools for decision making and communication with regulatory agencies. While biology is multiscale by nature, project work, and software tools usually focus on isolated aspects of drug action, such as pharmacokinetics at the organism scale or pharmacodynamic interaction on the molecular level. We present a modeling and simulation software platform consisting of PK-Sim® and MoBi® capable of building and simulating models that integrate across biological scales. A prototypical multiscale model for the progression of a pancreatic tumor and its response to pharmacotherapy is constructed and virtual patients are treated with a prodrug activated by hepatic metabolization. Tumor growth is driven by signal transduction leading to cell cycle transition and proliferation. Free tumor concentrations of the active metabolite inhibit Raf kinase in the signaling cascade and thereby cell cycle progression. In a virtual clinical study, the individual therapeutic outcome of the chemotherapeutic intervention is simulated for a large population with heterogeneous genomic background. Thereby, the platform allows efficient model building and integration of biological knowledge and prior data from all biological scales. Experimental in vitro model systems can be linked with observations in animal experiments and clinical trials. The interplay between patients, diseases, and drugs and topics with high clinical relevance such as the role of pharmacogenomics, drug–drug, or drug–metabolite interactions can be addressed using this mechanistic, insight driven multiscale modeling approach. PMID:21483730

Shared Medical Imaging Repositories.

PubMed

Lebre, Rui; Bastião, Luís; Costa, Carlos

2018-01-01

This article describes the implementation of a solution for the integration of ownership concept and access control over medical imaging resources, making possible the centralization of multiple instances of repositories. The proposed architecture allows the association of permissions to repository resources and delegation of rights to third entities. It includes a programmatic interface for management of proposed services, made available through web services, with the ability to create, read, update and remove all components resulting from the architecture. The resulting work is a role-based access control mechanism that was integrated with Dicoogle Open-Source Project. The solution has several application scenarios like, for instance, collaborative platforms for research and tele-radiology services deployed at Cloud.

Development of a decision support system for monitoring, reporting and forecasting ecological conditions of the Appalachian Trail

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wang, Yeqiao; Nemani, Ramakrishna; Dieffenbach, Fred; Stolte, Kenneth; Holcomb, Glenn B.; Robinson, Matt; Reese, Casey C.; McNiff, Marcia; Duhaime, Roland; Tierney, Geri; Mitchell, Brian; August, Peter; Paton, Peter; LaBash, Charles

2010-01-01

This paper introduces a collaborative multi-agency effort to develop an Appalachian Trail (A.T.) MEGA-Transect Decision Support System (DSS) for monitoring, reporting and forecasting ecological conditions of the A.T. and the surrounding lands. The project is to improve decisionmaking on management of the A.T. by providing a coherent framework for data integration, status reporting and trend analysis. The A.T. MEGA-Transect DSS is to integrate NASA multi-platform sensor data and modeling through the Terrestrial Observation and Prediction System (TOPS) and in situ measurements from A.T. MEGA-Transect partners to address identified natural resource priorities and improve resource management decisions.

Enabling the democratization of the genomics revolution with a fully integrated web-based bioinformatics platform

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Li, Po-E; Lo, Chien -Chi; Anderson, Joseph J.

Continued advancements in sequencing technologies have fueled the development of new sequencing applications and promise to flood current databases with raw data. A number of factors prevent the seamless and easy use of these data, including the breadth of project goals, the wide array of tools that individually perform fractions of any given analysis, the large number of associated software/hardware dependencies, and the detailed expertise required to perform these analyses. To address these issues, we have developed an intuitive web-based environment with a wide assortment of integrated and cutting-edge bioinformatics tools in pre-configured workflows. These workflows, coupled with the easemore » of use of the environment, provide even novice next-generation sequencing users with the ability to perform many complex analyses with only a few mouse clicks and, within the context of the same environment, to visualize and further interrogate their results. As a result, this bioinformatics platform is an initial attempt at Empowering the Development of Genomics Expertise (EDGE) in a wide range of applications for microbial research.« less

An Architecture for the Integration of Clinical Data from a PEHR in a Regional Research Platform.

PubMed

Schreiweis, Björn; Bronsch, Tobias; Stein, Katharina E; Nöst, Stefan; Aguduri, Lakshmi S; Brandner, Antje; Pensold, Peter; Weiss, Nicolas; Yüksekogul, Nilay; Bergh, Björn; Heinze, Oliver

2016-01-01

Making clinical information available for research is not only relevant for healthcare institutions, but also for regional EHRs, as cross-sectorial information can be made accessible. In the INFOPAT (INFOrmation technology for PATient-oriented health care in the Rhine-Neckar metropolitan region) project we are thus implementing both, a regional personal cross-enterprise electronic health record (PEHR) and a regional research platform (RRP) based on information from the PEHR. IHE profiles are implemented to achieve interoperability between healthcare institutions electronic medical records (EMR) and PEHR on the one hand, as well as PEHR and RRP on the other hand. The use case for the RRP is cross-sectorial quality assessment and improvement for colorectal cancer based on a quality indicator (QI) approach including patients' perspectives. For semantic interoperability the responses are transferred in the form of HL7 CDA L2 documents. The resulting architecture for a RRP shows that implementing a PEHR in combination with a RRP based on international communication standards is possible. Also IHE XDS can be used for integration of patient care and biomedical research infrastructures.

Engineering Internship Program Report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bosch, Brian Y.

1994-01-01

Towards the end of the summer, I prepared for a presentation to the chief of the Flight Crew Support Division to obtain funding for Phase 1 of the project. I presented information on the tracking systems, David Ray presented on the POGO and PABF and the integration of the virtual reality systems, and Mike Van Chau talked about other hardware issues such as head-mounted display, 3-D sound, gloves, graphics platforms, and other peripherals. The funding was approved, and work was to begin at the end of August in evaluating a couple of the tracking systems, to integrate the graphics platform and video equipment with the POGO, and to build a larger gantry for the POGO. This tour I learned how to effectively gather information and present them in a convincible form to gain funding. I explored a entirely new area of technology, that being virtual reality from the most general form down to finer details in its tracking systems. The experiences over the summer have added a lot of detail to work at the Johnson Space Center, life within NASA, and to the many possibilities for becoming involved with the space program.

Extending XNAT Platform with an Incremental Semantic Framework

PubMed Central

Timón, Santiago; Rincón, Mariano; Martínez-Tomás, Rafael

2017-01-01

Informatics increases the yield from neuroscience due to improved data. Data sharing and accessibility enable joint efforts between different research groups, as well as replication studies, pivotal for progress in the field. Research data archiving solutions are evolving rapidly to address these necessities, however, distributed data integration is still difficult because of the need of explicit agreements for disparate data models. To address these problems, ontologies are widely used in biomedical research to obtain common vocabularies and logical descriptions, but its application may suffer from scalability issues, domain bias, and loss of low-level data access. With the aim of improving the application of semantic models in biobanking systems, an incremental semantic framework that takes advantage of the latest advances in biomedical ontologies and the XNAT platform is designed and implemented. We follow a layered architecture that allows the alignment of multi-domain biomedical ontologies to manage data at different levels of abstraction. To illustrate this approach, the development is integrated in the JPND (EU Joint Program for Neurodegenerative Disease) APGeM project, focused on finding early biomarkers for Alzheimer's and other dementia related diseases. PMID:28912709

Extending XNAT Platform with an Incremental Semantic Framework.

PubMed

Timón, Santiago; Rincón, Mariano; Martínez-Tomás, Rafael

2017-01-01

Informatics increases the yield from neuroscience due to improved data. Data sharing and accessibility enable joint efforts between different research groups, as well as replication studies, pivotal for progress in the field. Research data archiving solutions are evolving rapidly to address these necessities, however, distributed data integration is still difficult because of the need of explicit agreements for disparate data models. To address these problems, ontologies are widely used in biomedical research to obtain common vocabularies and logical descriptions, but its application may suffer from scalability issues, domain bias, and loss of low-level data access. With the aim of improving the application of semantic models in biobanking systems, an incremental semantic framework that takes advantage of the latest advances in biomedical ontologies and the XNAT platform is designed and implemented. We follow a layered architecture that allows the alignment of multi-domain biomedical ontologies to manage data at different levels of abstraction. To illustrate this approach, the development is integrated in the JPND (EU Joint Program for Neurodegenerative Disease) APGeM project, focused on finding early biomarkers for Alzheimer's and other dementia related diseases.

Agent-Based Intelligent Interface for Wheelchair Movement Control

PubMed Central

Barriuso, Alberto L.; De Paz, Juan F.

2018-01-01

People who suffer from any kind of motor difficulty face serious complications to autonomously move in their daily lives. However, a growing number research projects which propose different powered wheelchairs control systems are arising. Despite of the interest of the research community in the area, there is no platform that allows an easy integration of various control methods that make use of heterogeneous sensors and computationally demanding algorithms. In this work, an architecture based on virtual organizations of agents is proposed that makes use of a flexible and scalable communication protocol that allows the deployment of embedded agents in computationally limited devices. In order to validate the proper functioning of the proposed system, it has been integrated into a conventional wheelchair and a set of alternative control interfaces have been developed and deployed, including a portable electroencephalography system, a voice interface or as specifically designed smartphone application. A set of tests were conducted to test both the platform adequacy and the accuracy and ease of use of the proposed control systems yielding positive results that can be useful in further wheelchair interfaces design and implementation. PMID:29751603

The road map towards providing a robust Raman spectroscopy-based cancer diagnostic platform and integration into clinic

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lau, Katherine; Isabelle, Martin; Lloyd, Gavin R.; Old, Oliver; Shepherd, Neil; Bell, Ian M.; Dorney, Jennifer; Lewis, Aaran; Gaifulina, Riana; Rodriguez-Justo, Manuel; Kendall, Catherine; Stone, Nicolas; Thomas, Geraint; Reece, David

2016-03-01

Despite the demonstrated potential as an accurate cancer diagnostic tool, Raman spectroscopy (RS) is yet to be adopted by the clinic for histopathology reviews. The Stratified Medicine through Advanced Raman Technologies (SMART) consortium has begun to address some of the hurdles in its adoption for cancer diagnosis. These hurdles include awareness and acceptance of the technology, practicality of integration into the histopathology workflow, data reproducibility and availability of transferrable models. We have formed a consortium, in joint efforts, to develop optimised protocols for tissue sample preparation, data collection and analysis. These protocols will be supported by provision of suitable hardware and software tools to allow statistically sound classification models to be built and transferred for use on different systems. In addition, we are building a validated gastrointestinal (GI) cancers model, which can be trialled as part of the histopathology workflow at hospitals, and a classification tool. At the end of the project, we aim to deliver a robust Raman based diagnostic platform to enable clinical researchers to stage cancer, define tumour margin, build cancer diagnostic models and discover novel disease bio markers.

Enabling the democratization of the genomics revolution with a fully integrated web-based bioinformatics platform

PubMed Central

Li, Po-E; Lo, Chien-Chi; Anderson, Joseph J.; Davenport, Karen W.; Bishop-Lilly, Kimberly A.; Xu, Yan; Ahmed, Sanaa; Feng, Shihai; Mokashi, Vishwesh P.; Chain, Patrick S.G.

2017-01-01

Continued advancements in sequencing technologies have fueled the development of new sequencing applications and promise to flood current databases with raw data. A number of factors prevent the seamless and easy use of these data, including the breadth of project goals, the wide array of tools that individually perform fractions of any given analysis, the large number of associated software/hardware dependencies, and the detailed expertise required to perform these analyses. To address these issues, we have developed an intuitive web-based environment with a wide assortment of integrated and cutting-edge bioinformatics tools in pre-configured workflows. These workflows, coupled with the ease of use of the environment, provide even novice next-generation sequencing users with the ability to perform many complex analyses with only a few mouse clicks and, within the context of the same environment, to visualize and further interrogate their results. This bioinformatics platform is an initial attempt at Empowering the Development of Genomics Expertise (EDGE) in a wide range of applications for microbial research. PMID:27899609

Fully integrated multiplexed lab-on-a-card assay for enteric pathogens

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weigl, B. H.; Gerdes, J.; Tarr, P.; Yager, P.; Dillman, L.; Peck, R.; Ramachandran, S.; Lemba, M.; Kokoris, M.; Nabavi, M.; Battrell, F.; Hoekstra, D.; Klein, E. J.; Denno, D. M.

2006-01-01

Under this NIH-funded project, we are developing a lab-on-a-card platform to identify enteric bacterial pathogens in patients presenting with acute diarrhea, with special reference to infections that might be encountered in developing countries. Component functions that are integrated on this platform include on-chip immunocapture of live or whole pathogens, multiplexed nucleic acid amplification and on-chip detection, sample processing to support direct use of clinical specimens, and dry reagent storage and handling. All microfluidic functions are contained on the lab card. This new diagnostic test will be able to rapidly identify and differentiate Shigella dysenteriae serotype 1, Shigella toxin-producing Escherichia coli, E. coli 0157, Campylobacter jejuni, and Salmonella and Shigella species. This presentation will report on progress to date on sample and bacteria processing methodologies, identification and validation of capture antibodies and strategy for organism immunocapture, identification and validation of specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR) primer sequences for over 200 clinical isolates of enteric pathogens, and implementation of on-chip nucleic acid extraction for a subset of those pathogens.

Enabling the democratization of the genomics revolution with a fully integrated web-based bioinformatics platform

DOE PAGES

Li, Po-E; Lo, Chien -Chi; Anderson, Joseph J.; ...

2016-11-24

Continued advancements in sequencing technologies have fueled the development of new sequencing applications and promise to flood current databases with raw data. A number of factors prevent the seamless and easy use of these data, including the breadth of project goals, the wide array of tools that individually perform fractions of any given analysis, the large number of associated software/hardware dependencies, and the detailed expertise required to perform these analyses. To address these issues, we have developed an intuitive web-based environment with a wide assortment of integrated and cutting-edge bioinformatics tools in pre-configured workflows. These workflows, coupled with the easemore » of use of the environment, provide even novice next-generation sequencing users with the ability to perform many complex analyses with only a few mouse clicks and, within the context of the same environment, to visualize and further interrogate their results. As a result, this bioinformatics platform is an initial attempt at Empowering the Development of Genomics Expertise (EDGE) in a wide range of applications for microbial research.« less

Research on application information system integration platform in medicine manufacturing enterprise.

PubMed

Deng, Wu; Zhao, Huimin; Zou, Li; Li, Yuanyuan; Li, Zhengguang

2012-08-01

Computer and information technology popularizes in the medicine manufacturing enterprise for its potentials in working efficiency and service quality. In allusion to the explosive data and information of application system in current medicine manufacturing enterprise, we desire to propose a novel application information system integration platform in medicine manufacturing enterprise, which based on a combination of RFID technology and SOA, to implement information sharing and alternation. This method exploits the application integration platform across service interface layer to invoke the RFID middleware. The loose coupling in integration solution is realized by Web services. The key techniques in RFID event components and expanded role-based security access mechanism are studied in detail. Finally, a case study is implemented and tested to evidence our understanding on application system integration platform in medicine manufacturing enterprise.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kisner, R.; Melin, A.; Burress, T.

The objective of this project is to demonstrate improved reliability and increased performance made possible by deeply embedding instrumentation and controls (I&C) in nuclear power plant (NPP) components and systems. The project is employing a highly instrumented canned rotor, magnetic bearing, fluoride salt pump as its I&C technology demonstration platform. I&C is intimately part of the basic millisecond-by-millisecond functioning of the system; treating I&C as an integral part of the system design is innovative and will allow significant improvement in capabilities and performance. As systems become more complex and greater performance is required, traditional I&C design techniques become inadequate andmore » more advanced I&C needs to be applied. New I&C techniques enable optimal and reliable performance and tolerance of noise and uncertainties in the system rather than merely monitoring quasistable performance. Traditionally, I&C has been incorporated in NPP components after the design is nearly complete; adequate performance was obtained through over-design. By incorporating I&C at the beginning of the design phase, the control system can provide superior performance and reliability and enable designs that are otherwise impossible. This report describes the progress and status of the project and provides a conceptual design overview for the platform to demonstrate the performance and reliability improvements enabled by advanced embedded I&C.« less

Implementation of a near-real time cross-border web-mapping platform on airborne particulate matter (PM) concentration with open-source software

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knörchen, Achim; Ketzler, Gunnar; Schneider, Christoph

2015-01-01

Although Europe has been growing together for the past decades, cross-border information platforms on environmental issues are still scarce. With regard to the establishment of a web-mapping tool on airborne particulate matter (PM) concentration for the Euregio Meuse-Rhine located in the border region of Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands, this article describes the research on methodical and technical backgrounds implementing such a platform. An open-source solution was selected for presenting the data in a Web GIS (OpenLayers/GeoExt; both JavaScript-based), applying other free tools for data handling (Python), data management (PostgreSQL), geo-statistical modelling (Octave), geoprocessing (GRASS GIS/GDAL) and web mapping (MapServer). The multilingual, made-to-order online platform provides access to near-real time data on PM concentration as well as additional background information. In an open data section, commented configuration files for the Web GIS client are being made available for download. Furthermore, all geodata generated by the project is being published under public domain and can be retrieved in various formats or integrated into Desktop GIS as Web Map Services (WMS).

An integrative solution for managing, tracing and citing sensor-related information

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koppe, Roland; Gerchow, Peter; Macario, Ana; Schewe, Ingo; Rehmcke, Steven; Düde, Tobias

2017-04-01

In a data-driven scientific world, the need to capture information on sensors used in the data acquisition process has become increasingly important. Following the recommendations of the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC), we started by adopting the SensorML standard for describing platforms, devices and sensors. However, it soon became obvious to us that understanding, implementing and filling such standards costs significant effort and cannot be expected from every scientist individually. So we developed a web-based sensor management solution (https://sensor.awi.de) for describing platforms, devices and sensors as hierarchy of systems which supports tracing changes to a system whereas hiding complexity. Each platform contains devices where each device can have sensors associated with specific identifiers, contacts, events, related online resources (e.g. manufacturer factsheets, calibration documentation, data processing documentation), sensor output parameters and geo-location. In order to better understand and address real world requirements, we have closely interacted with field-going scientists in the context of the key national infrastructure project "FRontiers in Arctic marine Monitoring ocean observatory" (FRAM) during the software development. We learned that not only the lineage of observations is crucial for scientists but also alert services using value ranges, flexible output formats and information on data providers (e.g. FTP sources) for example. Mostly important, persistent and citable versions of sensor descriptions are required for traceability and reproducibility allowing seamless integration with existing information systems, e.g. PANGAEA. Within the context of the EU-funded Ocean Data Interoperability Platform project (ODIP II) and in cooperation with 52north we are proving near real-time data via Sensor Observation Services (SOS) along with sensor descriptions based on our sensor management solution. ODIP II also aims to develop a harmonized SensorML profile for the marine community which we will be adopting in our solution as soon as available. In this presentation we will show our sensor management solution which is embedded in our data flow framework to offer out-of-the-box interoperability with existing information systems and standards. In addition, we will present real world examples and challenges related to the description and traceability of sensor metadata.

Development of Climate Change Adaptation Platform using Spatial Information

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, J.; Oh, K. Y.; Lee, M. J.; Han, W. J.

2014-12-01

Climate change adaptation has attracted growing attention with the recent extreme weather conditions that affect people around the world. More and more countries, including the Republic of Korea, have begun to hatch adaptation plan to resolve these matters of great concern. They all, meanwhile, have mentioned that it should come first to integrate climate information in all analysed areas. That's because climate information is not independently made through one source; that is to say, the climate information is connected one another in a complicated way. That is the reason why we have to promote integrated climate change adaptation platform before setting up climate change adaptation plan. Therefore, the large-scaled project has been actively launched and worked on. To date, we researched 620 literatures and interviewed 51 government organizations. Based on the results of the researches and interviews, we obtained 2,725 impacts about vulnerability assessment information such as Monitoring and Forecasting, Health, Disaster, Agriculture, Forest, Water Management, Ecosystem, Ocean/Fisheries, Industry/Energy. Among 2,725 impacts, 995 impacts are made into a database until now. This database is made up 3 sub categories like Climate-Exposure, Sensitivity, Adaptive capacity, presented by IPCC. Based on the constructed database, vulnerability assessments were carried out in order to evaluate climate change capacity of local governments all over the country. These assessments were conducted by using web-based vulnerability assessment tool which was newly developed through this project. These results have shown that, metropolitan areas like Seoul, Pusan, Inchon, and so on have high risks more than twice than rural areas. Acknowledgements: The authors appreciate the support that this study has received from "Development of integrated model for climate change impact and vulnerability assessment and strengthening the framework for model implementation ", an initiative of the Korea Environmental & Industry Technology Institute .

Building an International Geosciences Network (i-GEON) for cyberinfrastructure-based Research and Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seber, D.; Baru, C.

2007-05-01

The Geosciences Network (GEON) project is a collaboration among multiple institutions to develop a cyberinfrastructure (CI) platform in support of integrative geoscience research activities. Taking advantage of the state-of-the-art information technology resources GEON researchers are building a cyberinfrastructure designed to enable data sharing, resource discovery, semantic data integration, high-end computations and 4D visualization in an easy-to-use web-based environment. The cyberinfrastructure in GEON is required to support an inherently distributed system, since the scientists, who are users as well as providers of resources, are themselves distributed. International collaborations are a natural extension of GEON; the geoscience research requires strong international collaborations. The goals of the i-GEON activities are to collaborate with international partners and jointly build a cyberinfrastructure for the geosciences to enable collaborative work environments. International partners can participate in GEON efforts, establish GEON nodes at their universities, institutes, or agencies and also contribute data and tools to the network. Via jointly run cyberinfrastructure workshops, the GEON team also introduces students, scientists, and research professionals to the concepts of IT-based geoscience research and education. Currently, joint activities are underway with the Chinese Academy of Sciences in China, the GEO Grid project at AIST in Japan, and the University of Hyderabad in India (where the activity is funded by the Indo-US Science and Technology Forum). Several other potential international partnerships are under consideration. iGEON is open to all international partners who are interested in working towards the goal of data sharing, managing and integration via IT-based platforms. Information about GEON and its international activities can be found at http:www.geongrid.org/

Use Of The Operational Air Quality Monitor (AQM) For In-Flight Water Testing Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Macatangay, Ariel

2014-01-01

A primary requirement for manned spaceflight is Environmental Health which ensures air and water contaminants, acoustic profiles, microbial flora, and radiation exposures within the cabin are maintained to levels needed for crew health and for vehicle system functionality. The reliance on ground analyses of returned samples is a limitation in the current environmental monitoring strategy that will prevent future Exploration missions beyond low-Earth orbit. This proposal attempts to address this shortcoming by advancing in-flight analyses of water and air. Ground analysis of in-flight, air and water samples typically employ vapor-phase analysis by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to identify and quantify organic compounds present in the samples. We envision the use of newly-developed direct ionization approaches as the most viable avenue leading towards an integrated analytical platform for the monitoring of water, air, and, potentially bio-samples in the cabin environment. Development of an in-flight instrument capable of analyzing air and water samples would be the logical next step to meeting the environmental monitoring needs of Exploration missions. Currently, the Air Quality Monitor (AQM) on-board ISS provides this specific information for a number of target compounds in the air. However, there is a significant subset of common target compounds between air and water. Naturally, the following question arises, "Can the AQM be used for both air and water quality monitoring?" Previous directorate-level IR&D funding led to the development of a water sample introduction method for mass spectrometry using electrothermal vaporization (ETV). This project will focus on the integration of the ETV with a ground-based AQM. The capabilities of this integrated platform will be evaluated using a subset of toxicologically important compounds.

MEMOSys: Bioinformatics platform for genome-scale metabolic models

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background Recent advances in genomic sequencing have enabled the use of genome sequencing in standard biological and biotechnological research projects. The challenge is how to integrate the large amount of data in order to gain novel biological insights. One way to leverage sequence data is to use genome-scale metabolic models. We have therefore designed and implemented a bioinformatics platform which supports the development of such metabolic models. Results MEMOSys (MEtabolic MOdel research and development System) is a versatile platform for the management, storage, and development of genome-scale metabolic models. It supports the development of new models by providing a built-in version control system which offers access to the complete developmental history. Moreover, the integrated web board, the authorization system, and the definition of user roles allow collaborations across departments and institutions. Research on existing models is facilitated by a search system, references to external databases, and a feature-rich comparison mechanism. MEMOSys provides customizable data exchange mechanisms using the SBML format to enable analysis in external tools. The web application is based on the Java EE framework and offers an intuitive user interface. It currently contains six annotated microbial metabolic models. Conclusions We have developed a web-based system designed to provide researchers a novel application facilitating the management and development of metabolic models. The system is freely available at http://www.icbi.at/MEMOSys. PMID:21276275

A review of Integrated Vehicle Health Management tools for legacy platforms: Challenges and opportunities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Esperon-Miguez, Manuel; John, Philip; Jennions, Ian K.

2013-01-01

Integrated Vehicle Health Management (IVHM) comprises a set of tools, technologies and techniques for automated detection, diagnosis and prognosis of faults in order to support platforms more efficiently. Specific challenges are faced when IVHM tools are to be retrofitted into legacy vehicles since major modifications are much more challenging than with platforms whose design can still be modified. The topics covered in this Review Paper include the state of the art of IVHM tools and how their characteristics match the requirements of legacy aircraft, a summary of problems faced in the past trying to retrofit IVHM tools both from a technical and organisational perspective and the current level of implementation of IVHM in industry. Although the technology has not reached the level necessary to implement IVHM to its full potential on every kind of component, significant progress has been achieved on rotating equipment, structures or electronics. Attempts to retrofit some of these tools in the past faced both technical difficulties and opposition by some stakeholders, the later being responsible for the failure of technically sound projects in more than one occasion. Nevertheless, despite these difficulties, products and services based on IVHM technology have started to be offered by the manufacturers and, what is more important, demanded by the operators, providing guidance on what the industry would demand from IVHM on legacy aircraft.

Readiness of Sub-Saharan Africa Healthcare Systems for the New Pandemic, Diabetes: A Systematic Review

PubMed Central

2018-01-01

Background Effective health systems are needed to care for the coming surge of diabetics in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Objective We conducted a systematic review of literature to determine the capacity of SSA health systems to manage diabetes. Methodology We used three different databases (Embase, Scopus, and PubMed) to search for studies, published from 2004 to 2017, on diabetes care in SSA. Results Fifty-five articles met the inclusion criteria, covering the different aspects related to diabetes care such as availability of drugs and diagnostic tools, the capacity of healthcare workers, and the integration of diabetes care into HIV and TB platforms. Conclusion Although chronic care health systems in SSA have developed significantly in the last decade, the capacity for managing diabetes remains in its infancy. We identified pilot projects to enhance these capacities. The scale-up of these pilot interventions and the integration of diabetes care into existing robust chronic disease platforms may be a feasible approach to begin to tackle the upcoming pandemic in diabetes. Nonetheless, much more work needs to be done to address the health system-wide deficiencies in diabetes care. More research is also needed to determine how to integrate diabetes care into the healthcare system in SSA. PMID:29670916

The SPOT Project (Potentially Triggerable Offshore Seismicity and Tsunamis): a First Appraisal of the Possible Impact of Oil and Gas Platforms on the Seismic and Tsunami Risks along the Italian Coasts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Basili, R.; Di Bucci, D.; Antoncecchi, I.; Ciccone, F.; Teofilo, G.; Argnani, A.; Rovere, M.; Ligi, M.; Coltelli, M.; Lorito, S.; Borzi, B.; Germagnoli, F.; Di Ludovico, M.; Lignola, G. P.; Prota, A.

2017-12-01

The majority of oil and gas production in Europe takes place offshore and Italy is one of the European countries with the longest coastlines facing these operations. Given the generally growing energy demand, and the increasing concern toward human-driven hazards, scientists are called to provide background information for helping ensure a safe energy supply. We here present the activities of the project SPOT, which is aimed to help Italian authorities comply with the application of the Safety of Offshore Oil and Gas Operations European Directive (2013/30/EU) and the ensuing Italian codes. We carry out a reconstruction of offshore geological structures to assess the existence of potentially seismogenic faults in the surroundings of off-shore platforms. This study is a propaedeutic step for the assessment of potentially triggered seismicity connected with operations on such platforms. The descriptive parameters (3D geometry and behavior) of the identified faults will be used to estimate their natural earthquake rates. The impact of these natural earthquakes along the coasts will then be modeled in terms of expected ground shaking and tsunamis. The tsunamis potentially generated by submarine landslides induced by earthquake shaking will also be analyzed. In turn, these models will be used to estimate potential human and economic losses in a multi-hazard approach to risk assessment. Wherever the combined earthquake and tsunami modeling indicates a relevant impact along the coasts, a more detailed analysis will be carried out, also involving the operators of the related platforms, to perform specific models which also take into account production and/or storage data. Activities with a consolidated background, such as those concerning the impact scenarios of earthquakes, and more innovative activities, such as those dedicated to build up the first vulnerability/fragility curves related to tsunamis for the Italian building stock, will be integrated within the project. The details of the project workflow, along with the preliminary results of the first leg of activities will be presented. The SPOT project has been conceived and funded by the Italian Ministry of Economic Development, with the technical support of the National Department of Civil Protection, following auspices of the Italian Major Risk Commission.

Boutiques: a flexible framework to integrate command-line applications in computing platforms.

PubMed

Glatard, Tristan; Kiar, Gregory; Aumentado-Armstrong, Tristan; Beck, Natacha; Bellec, Pierre; Bernard, Rémi; Bonnet, Axel; Brown, Shawn T; Camarasu-Pop, Sorina; Cervenansky, Frédéric; Das, Samir; Ferreira da Silva, Rafael; Flandin, Guillaume; Girard, Pascal; Gorgolewski, Krzysztof J; Guttmann, Charles R G; Hayot-Sasson, Valérie; Quirion, Pierre-Olivier; Rioux, Pierre; Rousseau, Marc-Étienne; Evans, Alan C

2018-05-01

We present Boutiques, a system to automatically publish, integrate, and execute command-line applications across computational platforms. Boutiques applications are installed through software containers described in a rich and flexible JSON language. A set of core tools facilitates the construction, validation, import, execution, and publishing of applications. Boutiques is currently supported by several distinct virtual research platforms, and it has been used to describe dozens of applications in the neuroinformatics domain. We expect Boutiques to improve the quality of application integration in computational platforms, to reduce redundancy of effort, to contribute to computational reproducibility, and to foster Open Science.

VA's Integrated Imaging System on three platforms.

PubMed

Dayhoff, R E; Maloney, D L; Majurski, W J

1992-01-01

The DHCP Integrated Imaging System provides users with integrated patient data including text, image and graphics data. This system has been transferred from its original two screen DOS-based MUMPS platform to an X window workstation and a Microsoft Windows-based workstation. There are differences between these various platforms that impact on software design and on software development strategy. Data structures and conventions were used to isolate hardware, operating system, imaging software, and user-interface differences between platforms in the implementation of functionality for text and image display and interaction. The use of an object-oriented approach greatly increased system portability.

VA's Integrated Imaging System on three platforms.

PubMed Central

Dayhoff, R. E.; Maloney, D. L.; Majurski, W. J.

1992-01-01

The DHCP Integrated Imaging System provides users with integrated patient data including text, image and graphics data. This system has been transferred from its original two screen DOS-based MUMPS platform to an X window workstation and a Microsoft Windows-based workstation. There are differences between these various platforms that impact on software design and on software development strategy. Data structures and conventions were used to isolate hardware, operating system, imaging software, and user-interface differences between platforms in the implementation of functionality for text and image display and interaction. The use of an object-oriented approach greatly increased system portability. PMID:1482983

United States Naval Academy Polar Science Program's Visual Arctic Observing Platforms; IceGoat and IceKids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Woods, J. E.; Rigor, I. G.; Valentic, T. A.

2013-12-01

The U.S. Naval Academy Oceanography Department currently has a curriculum based Polar Science Program (USNA PSP). Within the PSP there is an Arctic Buoy Program (ABP) student research component that will include the design, build, testing and deployment of Arctic Observing Platforms. Establishing an active, field-research program in Polar Science will greatly enhance Midshipman education and research, as well as introduce future Naval Officers to the Arctic environment. The Oceanography Department has engaged the USNA Engineering Departments, and in close collaboration with SRI International, developed the USNA Visual Arctic Observing Platforms. The experience gained through Polar field studies and data derived from these platforms will be used to enhance course materials and laboratories and will also be used directly in Midshipman independent research projects. The USNA PSP successfully deployed IceGoat1 (IG1) off the USCGC HEALY in September, 2012. IG1 suffered a malfunction to its solar powered webcam system upon deployment, but is still reporting via ARGOS SATCOM systems basic weather parameters of air temperature, pressure, and position. USNA PSP attempted to build a less robust, but more economical system integrating similar low power observing platforms housed in heavy duty coolers. This allowed for a streamlined process to get a complete system completed in one academic year. IceKids (IK) are similar observing platforms, just not designed to float once the sea ice melts. IK1 was deployed to Antarctica from October 2012 through January 2013 and captured over 11,000 web cam images in near real time of two remote environmental monitoring stations. IK2A and IK3T were built to be deployed at the Naval Academy Ice Experiment in Barrow, AK in March 2013. IK2A was unique in trying to collect and transmit underwater acoustic signals in near real time. The system integrated a passive hydrophone into the already developed low power data transport system. Unfortunately a malfunction occurred post deployment and only a few hours of data was collected while under the ice. IK3T integrated a Vaisala all in one weather station for very accurate Air Temperature, Pressure, and Wind measurements. IK3T is still operating in Barrow, AK as part of the University of Washington's Arctic Observing Experiment (AOX) where very precise temperature measurements are being collected for validation studies.

"Heidelberg standard examination" and "Heidelberg standard procedures" - Development of faculty-wide standards for physical examination techniques and clinical procedures in undergraduate medical education.

PubMed

Nikendei, C; Ganschow, P; Groener, J B; Huwendiek, S; Köchel, A; Köhl-Hackert, N; Pjontek, R; Rodrian, J; Scheibe, F; Stadler, A-K; Steiner, T; Stiepak, J; Tabatabai, J; Utz, A; Kadmon, M

2016-01-01

The competent physical examination of patients and the safe and professional implementation of clinical procedures constitute essential components of medical practice in nearly all areas of medicine. The central objective of the projects "Heidelberg standard examination" and "Heidelberg standard procedures", which were initiated by students, was to establish uniform interdisciplinary standards for physical examination and clinical procedures, and to distribute them in coordination with all clinical disciplines at the Heidelberg University Hospital. The presented project report illuminates the background of the initiative and its methodological implementation. Moreover, it describes the multimedia documentation in the form of pocketbooks and a multimedia internet-based platform, as well as the integration into the curriculum. The project presentation aims to provide orientation and action guidelines to facilitate similar processes in other faculties.

Earth Observation oriented teaching materials development based on OGC Web services and Bashyt generated reports

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stefanut, T.; Gorgan, D.; Giuliani, G.; Cau, P.

2012-04-01

Creating e-Learning materials in the Earth Observation domain is a difficult task especially for non-technical specialists who have to deal with distributed repositories, large amounts of information and intensive processing requirements. Furthermore, due to the lack of specialized applications for developing teaching resources, technical knowledge is required also for defining data presentation structures or in the development and customization of user interaction techniques for better teaching results. As a response to these issues during the GiSHEO FP7 project [1] and later in the EnviroGRIDS FP7 [2] project, we have developed the eGLE e-Learning Platform [3], a tool based application that provides dedicated functionalities to the Earth Observation specialists for developing teaching materials. The proposed architecture is built around a client-server design that provides the core functionalities (e.g. user management, tools integration, teaching materials settings, etc.) and has been extended with a distributed component implemented through the tools that are integrated into the platform, as described further. Our approach in dealing with multiple transfer protocol types, heterogeneous data formats or various user interaction techniques involve the development and integration of very specialized elements (tools) that can be customized by the trainers in a visual manner through simple user interfaces. In our concept each tool is dedicated to a specific data type, implementing optimized mechanisms for searching, retrieving, visualizing and interacting with it. At the same time, in each learning resource can be integrated any number of tools, through drag-and-drop interaction, allowing the teacher to retrieve pieces of data of various types (e.g. images, charts, tables, text, videos etc.) from different sources (e.g. OGC web services, charts created through Bashyt application, etc.) through different protocols (ex. WMS, BASHYT API, FTP, HTTP etc.) and to display them all together in a unitary manner using the same visual structure [4]. Addressing the High Power Computation requirements that are met while processing environmental data, our platform can be easily extended through tools that connect to GRID infrastructures, WCS web services, Bashyt API (for creating specialized hydrological reports) or any other specialized services (ex. graphics cluster visualization) that can be reached over the Internet. At run time, on the trainee's computer each tool is launched in an asynchronous running mode and connects to the data source that has been established by the teacher, retrieving and displaying the information to the user. The data transfer is accomplished directly between the trainee's computer and the corresponding services (e.g. OGC, Bashyt API, etc.) without passing through the core server platform. In this manner, the eGLE application can provide better and more responsive connections to a large number of users.

Architectural Blueprint for Plate Boundary Observatories based on interoperable Data Management Platforms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kerschke, D. I.; Häner, R.; Schurr, B.; Oncken, O.; Wächter, J.

2014-12-01

Interoperable data management platforms play an increasing role in the advancement of knowledge and technology in many scientific disciplines. Through high quality services they support the establishment of efficient and innovative research environments. Well-designed research environments can facilitate the sustainable utilization, exchange, and re-use of scientific data and functionality by using standardized community models. Together with innovative 3D/4D visualization, these concepts provide added value in improving scientific knowledge-gain, even across the boundaries of disciplines. A project benefiting from the added value is the Integrated Plate boundary Observatory in Chile (IPOC). IPOC is a European-South American network to study earthquakes and deformation at the Chilean continental margin and to monitor the plate boundary system for capturing an anticipated great earthquake in a seismic gap. In contrast to conventional observatories that monitor individual signals only, IPOC captures a large range of different processes through various observation methods (e.g., seismographs, GPS, magneto-telluric sensors, creep-meter, accelerometer, InSAR). For IPOC a conceptual design has been devised that comprises an architectural blueprint for a data management platform based on common and standardized data models, protocols, and encodings as well as on an exclusive use of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) including visualization components. Following the principles of event-driven service-oriented architectures, the design enables novel processes by sharing and re-using functionality and information on the basis of innovative data mining and data fusion technologies. This platform can help to improve the understanding of the physical processes underlying plate deformations as well as the natural hazards induced by them. Through the use of standards, this blueprint can not only be facilitated for other plate observing systems (e.g., the European Plate Observing System EPOS), it also supports integrated approaches to include sensor networks that provide complementary processes for dynamic monitoring. Moreover, the integration of such observatories into superordinate research infrastructures (federation of virtual observatories) will be enabled.

A semantic proteomics dashboard (SemPoD) for data management in translational research.

PubMed

Jayapandian, Catherine P; Zhao, Meng; Ewing, Rob M; Zhang, Guo-Qiang; Sahoo, Satya S

2012-01-01

One of the primary challenges in translational research data management is breaking down the barriers between the multiple data silos and the integration of 'omics data with clinical information to complete the cycle from the bench to the bedside. The role of contextual metadata, also called provenance information, is a key factor ineffective data integration, reproducibility of results, correct attribution of original source, and answering research queries involving "What", "Where", "When", "Which", "Who", "How", and "Why" (also known as the W7 model). But, at present there is limited or no effective approach to managing and leveraging provenance information for integrating data across studies or projects. Hence, there is an urgent need for a paradigm shift in creating a "provenance-aware" informatics platform to address this challenge. We introduce an ontology-driven, intuitive Semantic Proteomics Dashboard (SemPoD) that uses provenance together with domain information (semantic provenance) to enable researchers to query, compare, and correlate different types of data across multiple projects, and allow integration with legacy data to support their ongoing research. The SemPoD platform, currently in use at the Case Center for Proteomics and Bioinformatics (CPB), consists of three components: (a) Ontology-driven Visual Query Composer, (b) Result Explorer, and (c) Query Manager. Currently, SemPoD allows provenance-aware querying of 1153 mass-spectrometry experiments from 20 different projects. SemPod uses the systems molecular biology provenance ontology (SysPro) to support a dynamic query composition interface, which automatically updates the components of the query interface based on previous user selections and efficiently prunes the result set usinga "smart filtering" approach. The SysPro ontology re-uses terms from the PROV-ontology (PROV-O) being developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) provenance working group, the minimum information required for reporting a molecular interaction experiment (MIMIx), and the minimum information about a proteomics experiment (MIAPE) guidelines. The SemPoD was evaluated both in terms of user feedback and as scalability of the system. SemPoD is an intuitive and powerful provenance ontology-driven data access and query platform that uses the MIAPE and MIMIx metadata guideline to create an integrated view over large-scale systems molecular biology datasets. SemPoD leverages the SysPro ontology to create an intuitive dashboard for biologists to compose queries, explore the results, and use a query manager for storing queries for later use. SemPoD can be deployed over many existing database applications storing 'omics data, including, as illustrated here, the LabKey data-management system. The initial user feedback evaluating the usability and functionality of SemPoD has been very positive and it is being considered for wider deployment beyond the proteomics domain, and in other 'omics' centers.

Scientific Platform as a Service - Tools and solutions for efficient access to and analysis of oceanographic data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vines, Aleksander; Hansen, Morten W.; Korosov, Anton

2017-04-01

Existing infrastructure international and Norwegian projects, e.g., NorDataNet, NMDC and NORMAP, provide open data access through the OPeNDAP protocol following the conventions for CF (Climate and Forecast) metadata, designed to promote the processing and sharing of files created with the NetCDF application programming interface (API). This approach is now also being implemented in the Norwegian Sentinel Data Hub (satellittdata.no) to provide satellite EO data to the user community. Simultaneously with providing simplified and unified data access, these projects also seek to use and establish common standards for use and discovery metadata. This then allows development of standardized tools for data search and (subset) streaming over the internet to perform actual scientific analysis. A combinnation of software tools, which we call a Scientific Platform as a Service (SPaaS), will take advantage of these opportunities to harmonize and streamline the search, retrieval and analysis of integrated satellite and auxiliary observations of the oceans in a seamless system. The SPaaS is a cloud solution for integration of analysis tools with scientific datasets via an API. The core part of the SPaaS is a distributed metadata catalog to store granular metadata describing the structure, location and content of available satellite, model, and in situ datasets. The analysis tools include software for visualization (also online), interactive in-depth analysis, and server-based processing chains. The API conveys search requests between system nodes (i.e., interactive and server tools) and provides easy access to the metadata catalog, data repositories, and the tools. The SPaaS components are integrated in virtual machines, of which provisioning and deployment are automatized using existing state-of-the-art open-source tools (e.g., Vagrant, Ansible, Docker). The open-source code for scientific tools and virtual machine configurations is under version control at https://github.com/nansencenter/, and is coupled to an online continuous integration system (e.g., Travis CI).

All-optical SR flip-flop based on SOA-MZI switches monolithically integrated on a generic InP platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pitris, St.; Vagionas, Ch.; Kanellos, G. T.; Kisacik, R.; Tekin, T.; Broeke, R.; Pleros, N.

2016-03-01

At the dawning of the exaflop era, High Performance Computers are foreseen to exploit integrated all-optical elements, to overcome the speed limitations imposed by electronic counterparts. Drawing from the well-known Memory Wall limitation, imposing a performance gap between processor and memory speeds, research has focused on developing ultra-fast latching devices and all-optical memory elements capable of delivering buffering and switching functionalities at unprecedented bit-rates. Following the master-slave configuration of electronic Flip-Flops, coupled SOA-MZI based switches have been theoretically investigated to exceed 40 Gb/s operation, provided a short coupling waveguide. However, this flip-flop architecture has been only hybridly integrated with silica-on-silicon integration technology exhibiting a total footprint of 45x12 mm2 and intra-Flip-Flop coupling waveguide of 2.5cm, limited at 5 Gb/s operation. Monolithic integration offers the possibility to fabricate multiple active and passive photonic components on a single chip at a close proximity towards, bearing promises for fast all-optical memories. Here, we present for the first time a monolithically integrated all-optical SR Flip-Flop with coupled master-slave SOA-MZI switches. The photonic chip is integrated on a 6x2 mm2 die as a part of a multi-project wafer run using library based components of a generic InP platform, fiber-pigtailed and fully packaged on a temperature controlled ceramic submount module with electrical contacts. The intra Flip-Flop coupling waveguide is 5 mm long, reducing the total footprint by two orders of magnitude. Successful flip flop functionality is evaluated at 10 Gb/s with clear open eye diagram, achieving error free operation with a power penalty of 4dB.

HDU Deep Space Habitat (DSH) Overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kennedy, Kriss J.

2011-01-01

This paper gives an overview of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) led multi-center Habitat Demonstration Unit (HDU) project Deep Space Habitat (DSH) analog that will be field-tested during the 2011 Desert Research and Technologies Studies (D-RATS) field tests. The HDU project is a technology pull project that integrates technologies and innovations from multiple NASA centers. This project will repurpose the HDU Pressurized Excursion Module (PEM) that was field tested in the 2010 D-RATS, adding habitation functionality to the prototype unit. The 2010 configuration of the HDU-PEM consisted of a lunar surface laboratory module that was used to bring over 20 habitation-related technologies together in a single platform that could be tested as an advanced habitation analog in the context of mission architectures and surface operations. The 2011 HDU-DSH configuration will build upon the PEM work, and emphasize validity of crew operations (habitation and living, etc), EVA operations, mission operations, logistics operations, and science operations that might be required in a deep space context for Near Earth Object (NEO) exploration mission architectures. The HDU project consists of a multi-center team brought together in a skunkworks approach to quickly build and validate hardware in analog environments. The HDU project is part of the strategic plan from the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD) Directorate Integration Office (DIO) and the Exploration Mission Systems Office (EMSO) to test destination elements in analog environments. The 2011 analog field test will include Multi Mission Space Exploration Vehicles (MMSEV) and the DSH among other demonstration elements to be brought together in a mission architecture context. This paper will describe overall objectives, various habitat configurations, strategic plan, and technology integration as it pertains to the 2011 field tests.

Contributions of international cooperation projects to the HIV/AIDS response in China

PubMed Central

Sun, Jiangping; Liu, Hui; Li, Hui; Wang, Liqiu; Guo, Haoyan; Shan, Duo; Bulterys, Marc; Korhonen, Christine; Hao, Yang; Ren, Minghui

2010-01-01

Background For 20 years, China has participated in 267 international cooperation projects against the HIV/AIDS epidemic and received ∼526 million USD from over 40 international organizations. These projects have played an important role by complementing national efforts in the fight against HIV/AIDS in China. Methods The diverse characteristics of these projects followed three phases over 20 years. Initially, stand-alone projects provided technical support in surveillance, training or advocacy for public awareness. As the epidemic spread across China, projects became a part of the comprehensive and integrated national response. Currently, international best practices encourage the inclusion of civil society and non-governmental organizations in an expanded response to the epidemic. Results Funding from international projects has accounted for one-third of the resources provided for the HIV/AIDS response in China. Beyond this strong financial support, these programmes have introduced best practices, accelerated the introduction of AIDS policies, strengthened capacity, improved the development of grassroots social organizations and established a platform for communication and experience sharing with the international community. However, there are still challenges ahead, including integrating existing resources and exploring new programme models. The National Centre for AIDS/STD Control and Prevention (NCAIDS) in China is consolidating all international projects into national HIV prevention, treatment and care activities. Conclusion International cooperation projects have been an invaluable component of China’s response to HIV/AIDS, and China has now been able to take this information and share its experiences with other countries with the help of these same international programmes. PMID:21113032

An integrated Diet Monitoring Solution for nutrigenomic research.

PubMed

Conti, Costanza; Rossi, Elena; Marceglia, Sara; Tauro, Vittorio; Rizzi, Federica; Lazzaroni, Monica; Barlassina, Cristina; Soldati, Laura; Cusi, Daniele

2015-01-01

The emergence of evidence pointing at diet as key risk factor for chronic diseases and at gene-diet interactions as key elements in the interplay between an individual genetic background and his/her lifestyle, pave the way for studies in nutrigenomics. Such studies need an integrated solution to collect, monitor and analyse a large set of data. In the frame of ATHENA, a European Commission FP7 project, we developed an integrated platform, called Dietary Monitoring Solution enabling the collection of phenotypic, genetic and lifestyle information, linked to a mHealth application tool. The data collection solution allows maintaining anonymized information and supports a number of features making it particularly suited for multicentre studies. The mHealth application was designed to translate the knowledge generated from research into a personalised prevention programme and to support the patient adherence to the programme.

A Digital Knowledge Preservation Platform for Environmental Sciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aguilar Gómez, Fernando; de Lucas, Jesús Marco; Pertinez, Esther; Palacio, Aida; Perez, David

2017-04-01

The Digital Knowledge Preservation Platform is the evolution of a pilot project for Open Data supporting the full research data life cycle. It is currently being evolved at IFCA (Instituto de Física de Cantabria) as a combination of different open tools that have been extended: DMPTool (https://dmptool.org/) with pilot semantics features (RDF export, parameters definition), INVENIO (http://invenio-software.org/ ) customized version to integrate the entire research data life cycle and Jupyter (http://jupyter.org/) as processing tool and reproducibility environment. This complete platform aims to provide an integrated environment for research data management following the FAIR+R principles: -Findable: The Web portal based on Invenio provides a search engine and all elements including metadata to make them easily findable. -Accessible: Both data and software are available online with internal PIDs and DOIs (provided by Datacite). -Interoperable: Datasets can be combined to perform new analysis. The OAI-PMH standard is also integrated. -Re-usable: different licenses types and embargo periods can be defined. -+Reproducible: directly integrated with cloud computing resources. The deployment of the entire system over a Cloud framework helps to build a dynamic and scalable solution, not only for managing open datasets but also as a useful tool for the final user, who is able to directly process and analyse the open data. In parallel, the direct use of semantics and metadata is being explored and integrated in the framework. Ontologies, being a knowledge representation, can contribute to define the elements and relationships of the research data life cycle, including DMP, datasets, software, etc. The first advantage of developing an ontology of a knowledge domain is that they provide a common vocabulary hierarchy (i.e. a conceptual schema) that can be used and standardized by all the agents interested in the domain (either humans or machines). This way of using ontologies is one of the basis of the Semantic Web, where ontologies are set to play a key role in establishing a common terminology between agents. To develop the ontology we are using a graphical tool called Protégé. Protégé is a graphical ontology-development tool which supports a rich knowledge model and it is open-source and freely available. However in order to process and manage the ontology from the web framework, we are using Semantic MediaWiki, which is able to process queries. Semantic MediaWiki is an extension of MediaWiki where we can do semantic search and export data in RDF and CSV format. This system is used as a testbed for the potential use of semantics in a more general environment. This Digital Knowledge Preservation Platform is very closed related to INDIGO-DataCloud project (https://www.indigo-datacloud.eu) since the same data life cycle approach is taking into account (Planning, Collect, Curate, Analyze, Publish, Preserve). INDIGO-DataCloud solutions will be able to support all the different elements in the system, as we showed in the last Research Data Alliance Plenary. This presentation will show the different elements on the system and how they work, as well as the roadmap of their continuous integration.

BanTeC: a software tool for management of corneal transplantation.

PubMed

López-Alvarez, P; Caballero, F; Trias, J; Cortés, U; López-Navidad, A

2005-11-01

Until recently, all cornea information at our tissue bank was managed manually, no specific database or computer tool had been implemented to provide electronic versions of documents and medical reports. The main objective of the BanTeC project was therefore to create a computerized system to integrate and classify all the information and documents used in the center in order to facilitate management of retrieved, transplanted corneal tissues. We used the Windows platform to develop the project. Microsoft Access and Microsoft Jet Engine were used at the database level and Data Access Objects was the chosen data access technology. In short, the BanTeC software seeks to computerize the tissue bank. All the initial stages of the development have now been completed, from specification of needs, program design and implementation of the software components, to the total integration of the final result in the real production environment. BanTeC will allow the generation of statistical reports for analysis to improve our performance.

Intelligent Resource Management for Local Area Networks: Approach and Evolution

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Meike, Roger

1988-01-01

The Data Management System network is a complex and important part of manned space platforms. Its efficient operation is vital to crew, subsystems and experiments. AI is being considered to aid in the initial design of the network and to augment the management of its operation. The Intelligent Resource Management for Local Area Networks (IRMA-LAN) project is concerned with the application of AI techniques to network configuration and management. A network simulation was constructed employing real time process scheduling for realistic loads, and utilizing the IEEE 802.4 token passing scheme. This simulation is an integral part of the construction of the IRMA-LAN system. From it, a causal model is being constructed for use in prediction and deep reasoning about the system configuration. An AI network design advisor is being added to help in the design of an efficient network. The AI portion of the system is planned to evolve into a dynamic network management aid. The approach, the integrated simulation, project evolution, and some initial results are described.

Certified Integral Programme Management for R&D European Projects in Marine Sciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Castro, Ayoze; Hildebrandt, silvia; Quevedo, Eduardo; Meme, Simone; Loustau, Josefina; Hernandez-Brito, Joaquin; Llinás, Octavio

2017-04-01

The Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands (PLOCAN) is a multipurpose service centre with novel land-based and sea-based infrastructures to support research, technology development an innovation in the marine and maritime sectors. Its mission is to promote long-term observation and sustainability of the ocean, providing a cost-effective combination of services, such as observatories, test site, base for underwater vehicles, training and innovation hub. PLOCAN has been actively participating in the European Commission Blue Growth strategy to support sustainable growth in the marine and maritime sectors as a whole. As a result, during the period 2014-2016, there has been a particularly high increase in the number of projects in execution in the organization. In order to successfully manage this situation, the development of a robust, effective and certified programme management system has turned out to be essential. To do so, an integral management methodology was specifically created and has successfully passed the ISO 9001:2008 certification in 2016.

FORCEnet Net Centric Architecture - A Standards View

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-06-01

SHARED SERVICES NETWORKING/COMMUNICATIONS STORAGE COMPUTING PLATFORM DATA INTERCHANGE/INTEGRATION DATA MANAGEMENT APPLICATION...R V I C E P L A T F O R M S E R V I C E F R A M E W O R K USER-FACING SERVICES SHARED SERVICES NETWORKING/COMMUNICATIONS STORAGE COMPUTING PLATFORM...E F R A M E W O R K USER-FACING SERVICES SHARED SERVICES NETWORKING/COMMUNICATIONS STORAGE COMPUTING PLATFORM DATA INTERCHANGE/INTEGRATION

Introducing WISDEM:An Integrated System Modeling for Wind Turbines and Plant (Presentation)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dykes, K.; Graf, P.; Scott, G.

2015-01-01

The National Wind Technology Center wind energy systems engineering initiative has developed an analysis platform to leverage its research capabilities toward integrating wind energy engineering and cost models across wind plants. This Wind-Plant Integrated System Design & Engineering Model (WISDEM) platform captures the important interactions between various subsystems to achieve a better National Wind Technology Center wind energy systems engineering initiative has developed an analysis platform to leverage its research capabilities toward integrating wind energy engineering and cost models across wind plants. This Wind-Plant Integrated System Design & Engineering Model (WISDEM) platform captures the important interactions between various subsystems tomore » achieve a better understanding of how to improve system-level performance and achieve system-level cost reductions. This work illustrates a few case studies with WISDEM that focus on the design and analysis of wind turbines and plants at different system levels.« less

Development of "Remotely Operated Vehicles for Education and Research" (ROVERs)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gaines, J. E.; Bland, G.; Bydlowski, D.

2017-12-01

The University of South Florida is a team member for the AREN project which develops educational technologies for data acquisition. "Remotely Operated Vehicles for Education and Research" (ROVERs) are floatable data acquisition systems used for Earth science measurements. The USF partnership was productive in the first year, resulting in new autonomous ROVER platforms being developed and used during a 5 week STEM summer camp by middle school youth. ROVERs were outfitted with GPS and temperature sensors and programmed to move forward, backwards, and to turn autonomously using the National Instruments myRIO embedded system. GLOBE protocols were used to collect data. The outreach program's structure lended itself to accomplishing an essential development effort for the AREN project towards the use of the ROVER platform in informal educational settings. A primary objective of the partnership is curriculum development to integrate GLOBE protocols and NASA technology and hardware/ROVER development wher new ROVER platforms are explored. The USF partnership resulted in two design prototypes for ROVERs, both of which can be created from recyclable materials for flotation and either 3D printed or laser cut components. In addition, both use the National Instruments myRIO for autonomous control. We will present two prototypes designed for use during the USF outreach program, the structure of the program, and details on the fabrication of prototype Z during the program by middle school students. Considering the 5-year objective of the AREN project is to "develop approaches, learning plans, and specific tools that can be affordably implemented nationwide (globally)", the USF partnership is key as it contributes to each part of the objective in a unique and impactful way.

Monolithically Integrated Reconfigurable Filters for Microwave Photonic Links

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Norberg, Erik J.

For the purposes of commercial communication and military electronic warfare and radar alike, there is an increasing interest in RF systems that can handle very wide instantaneous bandwidths at high center frequencies. Optical signal processing has the capability to reduce latency, improve size, weight and power (SwAP) performance, and overcome the inherent bandwidth limitations of electronic counterparts. By rapidly pre-filtering wide bandwidth microwave signals in the optical domain, the analog-to-digital conversion (ADC) and subsequent digital signal processing (DSP) can be significantly relieved. Compared to channelizing and add/drop filters for wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) applications, the microwave filter application is much more challenging as it requires a more versatile filter, ideally with tunability in both frequency and bandwidth. In this work such a filter was developed using integrated photonics. By integrating the filter on a single InP chip, the stability required for coherent filtering is met, while the active integration platform offers a flexible filter design and higher tolerance in the coupler and fabrication specifications. Using an entirely deep etched fabrication with a single blanket regrowth, a simple fabrication with high yield is achieved. The reconfigurable filter is designed as an array of uncoupled filter stages with each filter stage reconfigurable as a filter pole or zero with arbitrary magnitude and phase. This gives rise to a flexible ffilter synthesis, much like an optical version of DSP filters. Flat-topped bandpass filters are demonstrated with frequency tunability over 30 GHz, bandwidth adjustable between 1.9 and 5.4 GHz, and stopband rejection >32 dB. In order to meet the stringent spurious-free dynamic range (SFDR) requirements of the microwave application, a novel epitaxial layer integration platform is developed. Optimized for high optical saturation power and low propagation loss, it produces semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOAs) with low distortion and noise. Utilizing a novel characterization method of RF signal distortion for photonic devices, SOAs with state-of-the art SFDR in the range of 115 dB--Hz2/3 and a noise figure of 3.8 dB for 6 dB gain, is demonstrated. It is projected that this platform could ultimately provide integration for photonic microwave filter applications.

Boutiques: a flexible framework to integrate command-line applications in computing platforms

PubMed Central

Glatard, Tristan; Kiar, Gregory; Aumentado-Armstrong, Tristan; Beck, Natacha; Bellec, Pierre; Bernard, Rémi; Bonnet, Axel; Brown, Shawn T; Camarasu-Pop, Sorina; Cervenansky, Frédéric; Das, Samir; Ferreira da Silva, Rafael; Flandin, Guillaume; Girard, Pascal; Gorgolewski, Krzysztof J; Guttmann, Charles R G; Hayot-Sasson, Valérie; Quirion, Pierre-Olivier; Rioux, Pierre; Rousseau, Marc-Étienne; Evans, Alan C

2018-01-01

Abstract We present Boutiques, a system to automatically publish, integrate, and execute command-line applications across computational platforms. Boutiques applications are installed through software containers described in a rich and flexible JSON language. A set of core tools facilitates the construction, validation, import, execution, and publishing of applications. Boutiques is currently supported by several distinct virtual research platforms, and it has been used to describe dozens of applications in the neuroinformatics domain. We expect Boutiques to improve the quality of application integration in computational platforms, to reduce redundancy of effort, to contribute to computational reproducibility, and to foster Open Science. PMID:29718199

Aluminum nitride integrated photonics platform for the ultraviolet to visible spectrum.

PubMed

Lu, Tsung-Ju; Fanto, Michael; Choi, Hyeongrak; Thomas, Paul; Steidle, Jeffrey; Mouradian, Sara; Kong, Wei; Zhu, Di; Moon, Hyowon; Berggren, Karl; Kim, Jeehwan; Soltani, Mohammad; Preble, Stefan; Englund, Dirk

2018-04-30

We demonstrate a wide-bandgap semiconductor photonics platform based on nanocrystalline aluminum nitride (AlN) on sapphire. This photonics platform guides light at low loss from the ultraviolet (UV) to the visible spectrum. We measure ring resonators with intrinsic quality factor (Q) exceeding 170,000 at 638 nm and Q >20,000 down to 369.5 nm, which shows a promising path for low-loss integrated photonics in UV and visible spectrum. This platform opens up new possibilities in integrated quantum optics with trapped ions or atom-like color centers in solids, as well as classical applications including nonlinear optics and on-chip UV-spectroscopy.

Empowering pharmacoinformatics by linked life science data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goldmann, Daria; Zdrazil, Barbara; Digles, Daniela; Ecker, Gerhard F.

2017-03-01

With the public availability of large data sources such as ChEMBLdb and the Open PHACTS Discovery Platform, retrieval of data sets for certain protein targets of interest with consistent assay conditions is no longer a time consuming process. Especially the use of workflow engines such as KNIME or Pipeline Pilot allows complex queries and enables to simultaneously search for several targets. Data can then directly be used as input to various ligand- and structure-based studies. In this contribution, using in-house projects on P-gp inhibition, transporter selectivity, and TRPV1 modulation we outline how the incorporation of linked life science data in the daily execution of projects allowed to expand our approaches from conventional Hansch analysis to complex, integrated multilayer models.

Evolutionary space platform concept study. Volume 3: Programmatics for manned space platform concepts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1982-01-01

The programmatic data for the reference concept of the Manned Space Platform is presented. Details regarding work breakdown structure (WBS) and dictionary, the facilities and equipment required to produce the modules, the project schedule and logic diagram, a preliminary assessment of environmental impacts and details regarding the estimated costs for the reference concept are included. The proposed WBS which was developed to provide summary and system level segregation of the nonrecurring and recurring portions of the Manned Space Platform project is also included. The accompanying dictionary outlines the function and activities contained within each WBS element. The facility and equipment required to produce the various modules is discussed. Generally, required equipment is within the existing state of the art although the size of some of the items to be manufactured is a consideration. A preliminary manufacturing flow was also provided. The project schedules presented consist of the Master Project Summary Schedule, the Master Project Phasing Chart and the Logic Network.

SWARMS Early Trials Management for The SWARMs ECSEL-H2020 Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alcaraz, Daniel; Morales, Tania; Castro, Ayoze; Barrera, Carlos; Hernández, Joaquín; Llinás, Octavio

2017-04-01

The work presented on this paper is aimed to explain how the Early Trials of the Project SWARMS were managed in order to complete the first field demonstrations on real environment. SWARMs aims to reduce the operational cost in the use of maritime robots and vehicles, in order to increase the safety of tasks and reduce profesional divers risks. This will be achieved enabling the AUVs/ROVs to work in a cooperative mesh. The challenge is to design and develop an integrated platform (a set of Software/Hardware components), incorporated into the current generation of underwater vehicles in order to improve autonomy, cooperation, robustness, cost-effectiveness, and reliability of the offshore operations. The first demonstration of the project has been performed at PLOCAN (The Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands) where these technologies were validated on its first stage. The Early Trials have represented the first in situ deployment and test of the novel technologies developed during the initial 14 months of the Project. Going into the sea supposed a huge challenge also in terms of management. The 32 partners of SWARMS had very different requirements (logistics, technical needs, software/computation needs, etc.), and a limited time frame to test and prove their individual developments. In order to fullfill the project objectives, all these tests were divided in 7 missions that were aimed to cover this early demonstration requiements. From PLOCAN, a management protocol was designed in order to cover all the partners needs and make an efficient resource asignment from the begining. These results will be extended to other two demonstrations of the project that forseen to be held in Romania (2017) and Norway (2018).

The Tailoring of Traditional Systems Engineering for the Morpheus Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Devolites, Jennifer L.; Hart, Jeremy J.

2013-01-01

NASA's Morpheus Project has developed and tested a prototype planetary lander capable of vertical takeoff and landing that is designed to serve as a testbed for advanced spacecraft technologies. The lander vehicle, propelled by a LOX/Methane engine and sized to carry a 500kg payload to the lunar surface, provides a platform for bringing technologies from the laboratory into an integrated flight system at relatively low cost. From the beginning, one of goals for the Morpheus Project was to streamline agency processes and practices. The Morpheus project accepted a challenge to tailor the traditional NASA systems engineering approach in a way that would be appropriate for a lower cost, rapid prototype engineering effort, but retain the essence of the guiding principles. The team has produced innovative ways to create an infrastructure and approach that would challenge existing systems engineering processes while still enabling successful implementation of the current Morpheus Project. This paper describes the tailored systems engineering approach for the Morpheus project, including the processes, tools, and amount of rigor employed over the project's multiple lifecycles since the project began in FY11. Lessons learned from these trials have the potential to be scaled up and improve efficiency on a larger projects or programs.

An integrated, open-source set of tools for urban vulnerability monitoring from Earth observation data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

De Vecchi, Daniele; Harb, Mostapha; Dell'Acqua, Fabio; Aurelio Galeazzo, Daniel

2015-04-01

Aim: The paper introduces an integrated set of open-source tools designed to process medium and high-resolution imagery with the aim to extract vulnerability indicators [1]. Problem: In the context of risk monitoring [2], a series of vulnerability proxies can be defined, such as the extension of a built-up area or buildings regularity [3]. Different open-source C and Python libraries are already available for image processing and geospatial information (e.g. OrfeoToolbox, OpenCV and GDAL). They include basic processing tools but not vulnerability-oriented workflows. Therefore, it is of significant importance to provide end-users with a set of tools capable to return information at a higher level. Solution: The proposed set of python algorithms is a combination of low-level image processing and geospatial information handling tools along with high-level workflows. In particular, two main products are released under the GPL license: source code, developers-oriented, and a QGIS plugin. These tools were produced within the SENSUM project framework (ended December 2014) where the main focus was on earthquake and landslide risk. Further development and maintenance is guaranteed by the decision to include them in the platform designed within the FP 7 RASOR project . Conclusion: With the lack of a unified software suite for vulnerability indicators extraction, the proposed solution can provide inputs for already available models like the Global Earthquake Model. The inclusion of the proposed set of algorithms within the RASOR platforms can guarantee support and enlarge the community of end-users. Keywords: Vulnerability monitoring, remote sensing, optical imagery, open-source software tools References [1] M. Harb, D. De Vecchi, F. Dell'Acqua, "Remote sensing-based vulnerability proxies in the EU FP7 project SENSUM", Symposium on earthquake and landslide risk in Central Asia and Caucasus: exploiting remote sensing and geo-spatial information management, 29-30th January 2014, Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic. [2] UNISDR, "Living with Risk", Geneva, Switzerland, 2004. [3] P. Bisch, E. Carvalho, H. Degree, P. Fajfar, M. Fardis, P. Franchin, M. Kreslin, A. Pecker, "Eurocode 8: Seismic Design of Buildings", Lisbon, 2011. (SENSUM: www.sensum-project.eu, grant number: 312972 ) (RASOR: www.rasor-project.eu, grant number: 606888 )

A practical data processing workflow for multi-OMICS projects.

PubMed

Kohl, Michael; Megger, Dominik A; Trippler, Martin; Meckel, Hagen; Ahrens, Maike; Bracht, Thilo; Weber, Frank; Hoffmann, Andreas-Claudius; Baba, Hideo A; Sitek, Barbara; Schlaak, Jörg F; Meyer, Helmut E; Stephan, Christian; Eisenacher, Martin

2014-01-01

Multi-OMICS approaches aim on the integration of quantitative data obtained for different biological molecules in order to understand their interrelation and the functioning of larger systems. This paper deals with several data integration and data processing issues that frequently occur within this context. To this end, the data processing workflow within the PROFILE project is presented, a multi-OMICS project that aims on identification of novel biomarkers and the development of new therapeutic targets for seven important liver diseases. Furthermore, a software called CrossPlatformCommander is sketched, which facilitates several steps of the proposed workflow in a semi-automatic manner. Application of the software is presented for the detection of novel biomarkers, their ranking and annotation with existing knowledge using the example of corresponding Transcriptomics and Proteomics data sets obtained from patients suffering from hepatocellular carcinoma. Additionally, a linear regression analysis of Transcriptomics vs. Proteomics data is presented and its performance assessed. It was shown, that for capturing profound relations between Transcriptomics and Proteomics data, a simple linear regression analysis is not sufficient and implementation and evaluation of alternative statistical approaches are needed. Additionally, the integration of multivariate variable selection and classification approaches is intended for further development of the software. Although this paper focuses only on the combination of data obtained from quantitative Proteomics and Transcriptomics experiments, several approaches and data integration steps are also applicable for other OMICS technologies. Keeping specific restrictions in mind the suggested workflow (or at least parts of it) may be used as a template for similar projects that make use of different high throughput techniques. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Computational Proteomics in the Post-Identification Era. Guest Editors: Martin Eisenacher and Christian Stephan. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Searching Lost People with Uavs: the System and Results of the Close-Search Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Molina, P.; Colomina, I.; Vitoria, T.; Silva, P. F.; Skaloud, J.; Kornus, W.; Prades, R.; Aguilera, C.

2012-07-01

This paper will introduce the goals, concept and results of the project named CLOSE-SEARCH, which stands for 'Accurate and safe EGNOS-SoL Navigation for UAV-based low-cost Search-And-Rescue (SAR) operations'. The main goal is to integrate a medium-size, helicopter-type Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), a thermal imaging sensor and an EGNOS-based multi-sensor navigation system, including an Autonomous Integrity Monitoring (AIM) capability, to support search operations in difficult-to-access areas and/or night operations. The focus of the paper is three-fold. Firstly, the operational and technical challenges of the proposed approach are discussed, such as ultra-safe multi-sensor navigation system, the use of combined thermal and optical vision (infrared plus visible) for person recognition and Beyond-Line-Of-Sight communications among others. Secondly, the implementation of the integrity concept for UAV platforms is discussed herein through the AIM approach. Based on the potential of the geodetic quality analysis and on the use of the European EGNOS system as a navigation performance starting point, AIM approaches integrity from the precision standpoint; that is, the derivation of Horizontal and Vertical Protection Levels (HPLs, VPLs) from a realistic precision estimation of the position parameters is performed and compared to predefined Alert Limits (ALs). Finally, some results from the project test campaigns are described to report on particular project achievements. Together with actual Search-and-Rescue teams, the system was operated in realistic, user-chosen test scenarios. In this context, and specially focusing on the EGNOS-based UAV navigation, the AIM capability and also the RGB/thermal imaging subsystem, a summary of the results is presented.

COBALT CoOperative Blending of Autonomous Landing Technology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carson, John M. III; Restrepo, Carolina I.; Robertson, Edward A.; Seubert, Carl R.; Amzajerdian, Farzin

2016-01-01

COBALT is a terrestrial test platform for development and maturation of GN&C (Guidance, Navigation and Control) technologies for PL&HA (Precision Landing and Hazard Avoidance). The project is developing a third generation, Langley Navigation Doppler Lidar (NDL) for ultra-precise velocity and range measurements, which will be integrated and tested with the JPL Lander Vision System (LVS) for Terrain Relative Navigation (TRN) position estimates. These technologies together provide navigation that enables controlled precision landing. The COBALT hardware will be integrated in 2017 into the GN&C subsystem of the Xodiac rocket-propulsive Vertical Test Bed (VTB) developed by Masten Space Systems (MSS), and two terrestrial flight campaigns will be conducted: one open-loop (i.e., passive) and one closed-loop (i.e., active).

The Sensor Management for Applied Research Technologies (SMART) Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goodman, Michael; Jedlovec, Gary; Conover, Helen; Botts, Mike; Robin, Alex; Blakeslee, Richard; Hood, Robbie; Ingenthron, Susan; Li, Xiang; Maskey, Manil;

Assessment of the State of the Art of Integrated Vehicle Health Management Technologies as Applicable to Damage Conditions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Reveley, Mary S.; Kurtoglu, Tolga; Leone, Karen M.; Briggs, Jeffrey L.; Withrow, Colleen A.

2010-01-01

A survey of literature from academia, industry, and other Government agencies assessed the state of the art in current integrated vehicle health management (IVHM) aircraft technologies. These are the technologies that are used for assessing vehicle health at the system and subsystem level. This study reports on how these technologies are employed by major military and commercial platforms for detection, diagnosis, prognosis, and mitigation. Over 200 papers from five conferences from the time period of 2004 to 2009 were reviewed. Over 30 of these IVHM technologies are then mapped into the 17 different adverse event damage conditions identified in a previous study. This study illustrates existing gaps and opportunities for additional research by the NASA IVHM Project.

Near-to-eye electroholography via guided-wave acousto-optics for augmented reality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jolly, Sundeep; Savidis, Nickolaos; Datta, Bianca; Smalley, Daniel; Bove, V. Michael

2017-03-01

Near-to-eye holographic displays act to directly project wavefronts into a viewer's eye in order to recreate 3-D scenes for augmented or virtual reality applications. Recently, several solutions for near-to-eye electroholography have been proposed based on digital spatial light modulators in conjunction with supporting optics, such as holographic waveguides for light delivery; however, such schemes are limited by the inherent low space-bandwidth product available with current digital SLMs. In this paper, we depict a fully monolithic, integrated optical platform for transparent near-to-eye holographic display requiring no supporting optics. Our solution employs a guided-wave acousto-optic spatial light modulator implemented in lithium niobate in conjunction with an integrated Bragg-regime reflection volume hologram.

Complexiton and solitary wave solutions of the coupled nonlinear Maccari’s system using two integration schemes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Inc, Mustafa; Aliyu, Aliyu Isa; Yusuf, Abdullahi; Baleanu, Dumitru; Nuray, Elif

2018-01-01

In this paper, we consider a coupled nonlinear Maccari’s system (CNMS) which describes the motion of isolated waves localized in a small part of space. There are some integration tools that are adopted to retrieve the solitary wave solutions. They are the modified F-Expansion and the generalized projective Riccati equation methods. Topological, non-topological, complexiton, singular and trigonometric function solutions are derived. A comparison between the results in this paper and the well-known results in the literature is also given. The derived structures of the obtained solutions offer a rich platform to study the nonlinear CNMS. Numerical simulation of the obtained solutions are presented with interesting figures showing the physical meaning of the solutions.

Simulation of Conformal Spiral Slot Antennas on Composite Platforms

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Volakis, J. L.; Nurnberger, M. W.; Ozdemir,T.

1998-01-01

During the course of the grant, we wrote and distributed about 12 reports and an equal number of journal papers supported fully or in part by this grant. The list of reports (title & abstract) and papers are given in Appendices A and B. This grant has indeed been instrumental in developing a robust hybrid finite element method for the analysis of complex broadband antennas on doubly curved platforms. Previous to the grant, our capability was limited to simple printed patch antennas on mostly planar platforms. More specifically: (1) mixed element formulations were developed and new edge-based prisms were introduced; (2) these elements were important in permitting flexibility in geometry gridding for most antennas of interest; (3) new perfectly matched absorbers were introduced for mesh truncations associated with highly curved surfaces; (4) fast integral algorithms were introduced for boundary integral truncations reducing CPU time from O(N-2) down to O(N-1.5) or less; (5) frequency extrapolation schemes were developed for efficient broadband performance evaluations. This activity has been successfully continued by NASA researchers; (6) computer codes were developed and extensively tested for several broadband configurations. These include FEMA-CYL, FEMA-PRISM and FEMA-TETRA written by L. Kempel, T. Ozdemir and J. Gong, respectively; (7) a new infinite balun feed was designed nearly constant impedance over the 800-3000 MHz operational band; (8) a complete slot spiral antenna was developed, fabricated and tested at NASA Langley. This new design is a culmination of the projects goals and integrates the computational and experimental efforts. this antenna design resulted in a U.S. patent and was revised three times to achieve the desired bandwidth and gain requirements from 800-3000 MHz.

Learning by Doing: How to Develop a Cross-Platform Web App

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huynh, Minh; Ghimire, Prashant

2015-01-01

As mobile devices become prevalent, there is always a need for apps. How hard is it to develop an app, especially a cross-platform app? The paper shares an experience in a project that involved the development of a student services web app that can be run on cross-platform mobile devices. The paper first describes the background of the project,…

By land, sea and air (and space): Verifying UK methane emissions at a range of scales by integrating multiple measurement platforms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rigby, M. L.; Lunt, M. F.; Ganesan, A.

2015-12-01

The Greenhouse gAs Uk and Global Emissions (GAUGE) programme and Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) network aim to quantify the magnitude and uncertainty of UK greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions at a resolution and accuracy higher than has previously been possible. The on going DECC tall tower network consists of three sites, and an eastern background site in Ireland. The GAUGE project includes instruments at two additional tall tower sites, a high-density measurement network over agricultural land in eastern England, a ferry that performs near-daily transects along the east coast of the UK, and a research aircraft that has been deployed on a campaign basis. Together with data collected by the GOSAT satellite, these data represent the GAUGE/DECC GHG measurement network that is being used to quantify UK GHG fluxes. As part of the wider GAUGE modelling efforts, we have derived methane flux estimates for the UK and northwest Europe using the UK Met Office NAME atmospheric transport model and a novel hierarchical Bayesian "trans-dimensional" inversion framework. We will show that our estimated fluxes for the UK as a whole are largely consistent between individual measurement platforms, albeit with very different uncertainties. Our novel inversion approach uses the data to objectively determine the extent to which we can further refine our national estimates to the level of large urban areas, major hotspots or larger sub-national regions. In this talk, we will outline some initial findings of the GAUGE project, tackling questions such as: At what spatial scale can we effectively derive greenhouse gas fluxes with a dense, multi-platform national network? Can we resolve individual metropolitan areas or major hotspots? What is relative impact of individual stations, platforms and network configurations on flux estimates for a country of the size of the UK? How can we effectively use multi-platform observations to cross-validate flux estimates and determine likely errors in model transport?

A whole-process progressive training mode to foster optoelectronic students' innovative practical ability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhong, Hairong; Xu, Wei; Hu, Haojun; Duan, Chengfang

2017-08-01

This article analyzes the features of fostering optoelectronic students' innovative practical ability based on the knowledge structure of optoelectronic disciplines, which not only reveals the common law of cultivating students' innovative practical ability, but also considers the characteristics of the major: (1) The basic theory is difficult, and the close combination of science and technology is obvious; (2)With the integration of optics, mechanics, electronics and computer, the system technology is comprehensive; (3) It has both leading-edge theory and practical applications, so the benefit of cultivating optoelectronic students is high ; (4) The equipment is precise and the practice is costly. Considering the concept and structural characteristics of innovative and practical ability, and adhering to the idea of running practice through the whole process, we put forward the construction of three-dimensional innovation and practice platform which consists of "Synthetically Teaching Laboratory + Innovation Practice Base + Scientific Research Laboratory + Major Practice Base + Joint Teaching and Training Base", and meanwhile build a whole-process progressive training mode to foster optoelectronic students' innovative practical ability, following the process of "basic experimental skills training - professional experimental skills training - system design - innovative practice - scientific research project training - expanded training - graduation project": (1) To create an in - class practical ability cultivation environment that has distinctive characteristics of the major, with the teaching laboratory as the basic platform; (2) To create an extra-curricular innovation practice activities cultivation environment that is closely linked to the practical application, with the innovation practice base as a platform for improvement; (3) To create an innovation practice training cultivation environment that leads the development of cutting-edge, with the scientific research laboratory as a platform to explore; (4) To create an out-campus expanded training environment of optoelectronic major practice and optoelectronic system teaching and training, with the major practice base as an expansion of the platform; (5) To break students' "pre-job training barriers" between school and work, with graduation design as the comprehensive training and testing link.

Ascent/Descent Software

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brown, Charles; Andrew, Robert; Roe, Scott; Frye, Ronald; Harvey, Michael; Vu, Tuan; Balachandran, Krishnaiyer; Bly, Ben

2012-01-01

The Ascent/Descent Software Suite has been used to support a variety of NASA Shuttle Program mission planning and analysis activities, such as range safety, on the Integrated Planning System (IPS) platform. The Ascent/Descent Software Suite, containing Ascent Flight Design (ASC)/Descent Flight Design (DESC) Configuration items (Cis), lifecycle documents, and data files used for shuttle ascent and entry modeling analysis and mission design, resides on IPS/Linux workstations. A list of tools in Navigation (NAV)/Prop Software Suite represents tool versions established during or after the IPS Equipment Rehost-3 project.

CubeSat Remote Sensing: A Survey of Current Capabilities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hegel, D.

2014-12-01

Recent years have seen dramatic growth in the availability and capability of very small satellites for atmospheric sensing, and other space-based science, as the simplicity of integration and low cost of these platforms enables projects that would otherwise be prohibitively expensive, or demand excessive expertise/infrastructure to execute. This paper surveys the current state-of-the-art for CubeSat performance, including pointing accuracy, geolocation, available power, and data downlink capacity. Applications for up-coming missions, such as CeREs, MinXSS, and HARP will also be discussed.

Flexible Software Architecture for Visualization and Seismic Data Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Petunin, S.; Pavlov, I.; Mogilenskikh, D.; Podzyuban, D.; Arkhipov, A.; Baturuin, N.; Lisin, A.; Smith, A.; Rivers, W.; Harben, P.

2007-12-01

Research in the field of seismology requires software and signal processing utilities for seismogram manipulation and analysis. Seismologists and data analysts often encounter a major problem in the use of any particular software application specific to seismic data analysis: the tuning of commands and windows to the specific waveforms and hot key combinations so as to fit their familiar informational environment. The ability to modify the user's interface independently from the developer requires an adaptive code structure. An adaptive code structure also allows for expansion of software capabilities such as new signal processing modules and implementation of more efficient algorithms. Our approach is to use a flexible "open" architecture for development of geophysical software. This report presents an integrated solution for organizing a logical software architecture based on the Unix version of the Geotool software implemented on the Microsoft NET 2.0 platform. Selection of this platform greatly expands the variety and number of computers that can implement the software, including laptops that can be utilized in field conditions. It also facilitates implementation of communication functions for seismic data requests from remote databases through the Internet. The main principle of the new architecture for Geotool is that scientists should be able to add new routines for digital waveform analysis via software plug-ins that utilize the basic Geotool display for GUI interaction. The use of plug-ins allows the efficient integration of diverse signal-processing software, including software still in preliminary development, into an organized platform without changing the fundamental structure of that platform itself. An analyst's use of Geotool is tracked via a metadata file so that future studies can reconstruct, and alter, the original signal processing operations. The work has been completed in the framework of a joint Russian- American project.

Morpheus Vertical Test Bed Flight Testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hart, Jeremy; Devolites, Jennifer

2014-01-01

NASA's Morpheus Project has developed and tested a prototype planetary lander capable of vertical takeoff and landing, that is designed to serve as a testbed for advanced spacecraft technologies. The lander vehicle, propelled by a LOX/Methane engine and sized to carry a 500kg payload to the lunar surface, provides a platform for bringing technologies from the laboratory into an integrated flight system at relatively low cost. Morpheus onboard software is autonomous from ignition all the way through landing, and is designed to be capable of executing a variety of flight trajectories, with onboard fault checks and automatic contingency responses. The Morpheus 1.5A vehicle performed 26 integrated vehicle test flights including hot-fire tests, tethered tests, and two attempted freeflights between April 2011 and August 2012. The final flight of Morpheus 1.5A resulted in a loss of the vehicle. In September 2012, development began on the Morpheus 1.5B vehicle, which subsequently followed a similar test campaign culminating in free-flights at a simulated planetary landscape built at Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility. This paper describes the integrated test campaign, including successes and setbacks, and how the system design for handling faults and failures evolved over the course of the project.

Architectural approaches for HL7-based health information systems implementation.

PubMed

López, D M; Blobel, B

2010-01-01

Information systems integration is hard, especially when semantic and business process interoperability requirements need to be met. To succeed, a unified methodology, approaching different aspects of systems architecture such as business, information, computational, engineering and technology viewpoints, has to be considered. The paper contributes with an analysis and demonstration on how the HL7 standard set can support health information systems integration. Based on the Health Information Systems Development Framework (HIS-DF), common architectural models for HIS integration are analyzed. The framework is a standard-based, consistent, comprehensive, customizable, scalable methodology that supports the design of semantically interoperable health information systems and components. Three main architectural models for system integration are analyzed: the point to point interface, the messages server and the mediator models. Point to point interface and messages server models are completely supported by traditional HL7 version 2 and version 3 messaging. The HL7 v3 standard specification, combined with service-oriented, model-driven approaches provided by HIS-DF, makes the mediator model possible. The different integration scenarios are illustrated by describing a proof-of-concept implementation of an integrated public health surveillance system based on Enterprise Java Beans technology. Selecting the appropriate integration architecture is a fundamental issue of any software development project. HIS-DF provides a unique methodological approach guiding the development of healthcare integration projects. The mediator model - offered by the HIS-DF and supported in HL7 v3 artifacts - is the more promising one promoting the development of open, reusable, flexible, semantically interoperable, platform-independent, service-oriented and standard-based health information systems.

“Heidelberg standard examination” and “Heidelberg standard procedures” – Development of faculty-wide standards for physical examination techniques and clinical procedures in undergraduate medical education

PubMed Central

Nikendei, C.; Ganschow, P.; Groener, J. B.; Huwendiek, S.; Köchel, A.; Köhl-Hackert, N.; Pjontek, R.; Rodrian, J.; Scheibe, F.; Stadler, A.-K.; Steiner, T.; Stiepak, J.; Tabatabai, J.; Utz, A.; Kadmon, M.

2016-01-01

The competent physical examination of patients and the safe and professional implementation of clinical procedures constitute essential components of medical practice in nearly all areas of medicine. The central objective of the projects “Heidelberg standard examination” and “Heidelberg standard procedures”, which were initiated by students, was to establish uniform interdisciplinary standards for physical examination and clinical procedures, and to distribute them in coordination with all clinical disciplines at the Heidelberg University Hospital. The presented project report illuminates the background of the initiative and its methodological implementation. Moreover, it describes the multimedia documentation in the form of pocketbooks and a multimedia internet-based platform, as well as the integration into the curriculum. The project presentation aims to provide orientation and action guidelines to facilitate similar processes in other faculties. PMID:27579354

Distinction of Concept and Discussion on Construction Idea of Smart Water Grid Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ye, Y.; Yizi, S., Sr.; Lili, L., Sr.; Sang, X.; Zhai, J.

2016-12-01

Smart water grid project includes construction of water physical grid consisting of various flow regulating infrastructures, construction of water information grid in line with the trend of intelligent technology and construction of water management grid featured by system & mechanism construction and systemization of regulation decision-making. It is the integrated platform and comprehensive carrier for water conservancy practices. Currently, there still is dispute over engineering construction idea of smart water grid which, however, represents the future development trend of water management and is increasingly emphasized. The paper, based on distinction of concept of water grid and water grid engineering, explains the concept of water grid intelligentization, actively probes into construction idea of Smart water grid project in our country and presents scientific problems to be solved as well as core technologies to be mastered for smart water grid construction.

Building thematic and integrated services for solid Earth sciences: the EPOS integrated approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cocco, Massimo; Consortium, Epos

2016-04-01

EPOS has been designed with the vision of creating a pan-European infrastructure for solid Earth science to support a safe and sustainable society. In accordance with this scientific vision, the EPOS mission is to integrate the diverse and advanced European Research Infrastructures for solid Earth science relying on new e-science opportunities to monitor and unravel the dynamic and complex Earth System. EPOS will enable innovative multidisciplinary research for a better understanding of the Earth's physical and chemical processes that control earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, ground instability and tsunami as well as the processes driving tectonics and Earth's surface dynamics. To accomplish its mission, EPOS is engaging different stakeholders, not limited to scientists, to allow the Earth sciences to open new horizons in our understanding of the planet. EPOS also aims at contributing to prepare society for geo-hazards and to responsibly manage the exploitation of geo-resources. Through integration of data, models and facilities, EPOS will allow the Earth science community to make a step change in developing new concepts and tools for key answers to scientific and socio-economic questions concerning geo-hazards and geo-resources as well as Earth sciences applications to the environment and human welfare. A long-term integration plan is necessary to accomplish the EPOS mission. EPOS is presently in its implementation phase further extending its pan-European dimension. The EPOS Implementation Phase builds on the achievements of the successful EPOS Preparatory Phase project and consists of two key activities: the legal establishment of the EPOS-ERIC and the EPOS IP project. The EPOS implementation phase will last from 2015 to 2019. Key objectives of the project are: implementing Thematic Core Services (TCS), the domain-specific service hubs for coordinating and harmonizing national resources/plans with the European dimension of EPOS; building the Integrated Core Services (ICS) to provide a novel research platform to different stakeholders; designing the access to distributed computational resources (ICS-d); ensuring sustainability and governance of TCS and EPOS-ERIC. The research infrastructures (RIs) that EPOS is coordinating include: i) distributed geophysical observing systems (seismological and geodetic networks); ii) local observatories (including geomagnetic, near-fault and volcano observatories); iii) analytical and experimental laboratories; iv) integrated satellite data and geological information services; v) new services for natural and anthropogenic hazards; vi) access to geo-energy test beds. Here we present the activities planned for the implementation phase focusing on the TCS, the ICS and on their interoperability. We will discuss the data, data-products, software and services (DDSS) presently under implementation, which will be validated and tested during the project lifetime. Particular attention will be given to showing the progress toward the establishment of EPOS-ERIC Headquarter, to coordinate and harmonize national RIs and EPOS services, and the ICS central hub as a key contribution for providing multidisciplinary services for solid Earth science as well as the glue to keep ICT aspects integrated and rationalized across EPOS. It will be an important and timely opportunity to discuss the EPOS roadmap toward the operation of the novel multidisciplinary platform for discoveries to foster scientific excellence in solid Earth science.

GridAPPS-D Conceptual Design v1.0

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Melton, Ronald B.; Schneider, Kevin P.; McDermott, Thomas E.

2017-05-31

The purpose of this document is to provide a conceptual design of the distribution system application development platform being developed for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Distribution Management System (ADMS) Program by the Grid Modernization Laboratory Consortium project GM0063. The platform will be referred to as GridAPPS-D. This document provides a high level, conceptual view of the platform and provides related background and contextual information. This document is intended to both educate readers about the technical work of the project and to serve as a point of reference for the project team. The document will be updated as themore » project progresses.« less

Shedding New Light on Exploding Stars: Terascale Simulations of Nuetrino-Dreiven Supernovas and Their Nucleosynthesis

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dennis C. Smolarski, S.J.

Project Abstract This project was a continuation of work begun under a subcontract issued off of TSI-DOE Grant 1528746, awarded to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Anthony Mezzacappa is the Principal Investigator on the Illinois award. A separate award was issued to Santa Clara University to continue the collaboration during the time period May 2003 ? 2004. Smolarski continued to work on preconditioner technology and its interface with various iterative methods. He worked primarily with F. Dough Swesty (SUNY-Stony Brook) in continuing software development started in the 2002-03 academic year. Special attention was paid to the development and testingmore » of difference sparse approximate inverse preconditioners and their use in the solution of linear systems arising from radiation transport equations. The target was a high performance platform on which efficient implementation is a critical component of the overall effort. Smolarski also focused on the integration of the adaptive iterative algorithm, Chebycode, developed by Tom Manteuffel and Steve Ashby and adapted by Ryan Szypowski for parallel platforms, into the radiation transport code being developed at SUNY-Stony Brook.« less

The climate4impact platform: Providing, tailoring and facilitating climate model data access

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pagé, Christian; Pagani, Andrea; Plieger, Maarten; Som de Cerff, Wim; Mihajlovski, Andrej; de Vreede, Ernst; Spinuso, Alessandro; Hutjes, Ronald; de Jong, Fokke; Bärring, Lars; Vega, Manuel; Cofiño, Antonio; d'Anca, Alessandro; Fiore, Sandro; Kolax, Michael

2017-04-01

One of the main objectives of climate4impact is to provide standardized web services and tools that are reusable in other portals. These services include web processing services, web coverage services and web mapping services (WPS, WCS and WMS). Tailored portals can be targeted to specific communities and/or countries/regions while making use of those services. Easier access to climate data is very important for the climate change impact communities. To fulfill this objective, the climate4impact (http://climate4impact.eu/) web portal and services has been developed, targeting climate change impact modellers, impact and adaptation consultants, as well as other experts using climate change data. It provides to users harmonized access to climate model data through tailored services. It features static and dynamic documentation, Use Cases and best practice examples, an advanced search interface, an integrated authentication and authorization system with the Earth System Grid Federation (ESGF), a visualization interface with ADAGUC web mapping tools. In the latest version, statistical downscaling services, provided by the Santander Meteorology Group Downscaling Portal, were integrated. An innovative interface to integrate statistical downscaling services will be released in the upcoming version. The latter will be a big step in bridging the gap between climate scientists and the climate change impact communities. The climate4impact portal builds on the infrastructure of an international distributed database that has been set to disseminate the results from the global climate model results of the Coupled Model Intercomparison project Phase 5 (CMIP5). This database, the ESGF, is an international collaboration that develops, deploys and maintains software infrastructure for the management, dissemination, and analysis of climate model data. The European FP7 project IS-ENES, Infrastructure for the European Network for Earth System modelling, supports the European contribution to ESGF and contributes to the ESGF open source effort, notably through the development of search, monitoring, quality control, and metadata services. In its second phase, IS-ENES2 supports the implementation of regional climate model results from the international Coordinated Regional Downscaling Experiments (CORDEX). These services were extended within the European FP7 Climate Information Portal for Copernicus (CLIPC) project, and some could be later integrated into the European Copernicus platform.

Integrating data infrastructure to facilitate holistic approach to the investigations of anthropogenic hazards evoked by exploration and exploitation of geo-resources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Orlecka-Sikora, Beata; Kwiatek, Grzegorz; Olszewska, Dorota; Lasocki, Stanisław; Gasparini, Paolo; Kozlovskaya, Elena; Nevalainen, Jouni; Schmittbuhl, Jean; Grasso, Jean Robert; Schaming, Marc; Biggare, Pascal; Saccarotti, Gilberto; Garcia, Alexander; Cassidy, Nigel; Toon, Sam; Mutke, Grzegorz; Sterzel, Mariusz; Szepieniec, Tomasz

2016-04-01

The EPOS integration plan assumes a significant contribution to the research on anthropogenic hazards (AH) associated with the exploration and exploitation of geo-resources. These problems will be dealt in Thematic Core Service "Anthropogenic Hazards" (TCS AH). TCS AH is based on the prototype built in the framework of the IS-EPOS platform project (https://tcs.ah-epos.eu/), financed from Polish structural funds (POIG.02.03.00-14-090/13-00), with will be further developed within EPOS IP project (H2020-INFRADEV-1-2015-1, INFRADEV-3-2015). TCS AH aims to have a measurable impact on innovative research and development as well as on society by providing comprehensive, wide-scale and high quality AH research infrastructure. One of the main deliverables are numerous comprehensive induced seismicity datasets called "episodes". The episode is a comprehensive data description of a geophysical process, induced or triggered by technological activity, which under certain circumstances can become hazardous for people, infrastructure and the environment. In addition to the six episodes already implemented during the mentioned IS-EPOS project, at least 20 new episodes related to conventional hydrocarbon extraction, reservoir treatment, underground mining and geothermal energy production are being integrated into the e-environment of the TCS AH. The heterogeneous multi-disciplinary data are transformed to unified structures developed within IS-EPOS project, to form integrated and validated datasets. Dedicated visualization tools for multidisciplinary data comprising episodes are also implemented. These tools are capable to aggregate and combine different data types and facilitating specific visualization possibilities (e.g. combining seismic and technological information). The implementation process, tailored for each episode, consists of four steps: (i) Data revision, determination of its accuracy and limitations; (ii) Data preparation and homogenization to follow the TCS AH standards; (iii) Data collection - uploading the data to local data centres and (iv) Metadata preparation. Some web services for efficient data integration and reduction of the possible mistakes, have been already developed. The data sets will be also passing through quality control according to the established quality control scheme. The data quality control workflow includes five steps; the first three are done in the episode provider's local data centre, whereas the next two are accomplished on the TCS AH side: (1) Episode data are transferred to the local data centre; the control group roles are distributed and the workflow observer is appointed; (2) The data are standardized and formats are validated; the completeness and quality of the data is checked; (3) Metadata are prepared according to TCS AH metadata scheme; the published data and metadata are checked; (4) Contextual quality of the data is analysed and episode appears in TCS AH maintenance area; (5) The new episode data is available in TCS AH. TCS AH will also serve as an integration platform for the episodes gathered in the framework of "Shale gas exploration and exploitation induced risks" project (Horizon 2020, call LCE 16-2014).

NASA Earth Science Research and Applications Using UAVs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Guillory, Anthony R.

2003-01-01

The NASA Earth Science Enterprise sponsored the UAV Science Demonstration Project, which funded two projects: the Altus Cumulus Electrification Study (ACES) and the UAV Coffee Harvest Optimization experiment. These projects were intended to begin a process of integrating UAVs into the mainstream of NASA s airborne Earth Science Research and Applications programs. The Earth Science Enterprise is moving forward given the positive science results of these demonstration projects to incorporate more platforms with additional scientific utility into the program and to look toward a horizon where the current piloted aircraft may not be able to carry out the science objectives of a mission. Longer duration, extended range, slower aircraft speed, etc. all have scientific advantages in many of the disciplines within Earth Science. The challenge we now face are identifying those capabilities that exist and exploiting them while identifying the gaps. This challenge has two facets: the engineering aspects of redesigning or modifying sensors and a paradigm shift by the scientists.

An Online Prediction Platform to Support the Environmental ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Historical QSAR models are currently utilized across a broad range of applications within the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). These models predict basic physicochemical properties (e.g., logP, aqueous solubility, vapor pressure), which are then incorporated into exposure, fate and transport models. Whereas the classical manner of publishing results in peer-reviewed journals remains appropriate, there are substantial benefits to be gained by providing enhanced, open access to the training data sets and resulting models. Benefits include improved transparency, more flexibility to expand training sets and improve model algorithms, and greater ability to independently characterize model performance both globally and in local areas of chemistry. We have developed a web-based prediction platform that uses open-source descriptors and modeling algorithms, employs modern cheminformatics technologies, and is tailored for ease of use by the toxicology and environmental regulatory community. This tool also provides web-services to meet both EPA’s projects and the modeling community at-large. The platform hosts models developed within EPA’s National Center for Computational Toxicology, as well as those developed by other EPA scientists and the outside scientific community. Recognizing that there are other on-line QSAR model platforms currently available which have additional capabilities, we connect to such services, where possible, to produce an integrated

Power in the bucket and angle of arrival modelling in the presence of an airborne platform-induced turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Velluet, Marie-Thérèse

2017-10-01

In the framework of a European collaborative research project called ALWS (Airborne platform effects on lasers and Warning Sensors), the effects of platform-related turbulence on MAWS (missile approach warning systems) and DIRCM (directed infrared countermeasures) performance are investigated. Field trials have been conducted to study the turbulence effects around a hovering helicopter and behind a turboprop aircraft on the ground, with engines running. The time dependence of the power in the bucket and the amplitude of the angle of arrival have been characterized during the trial. Temporal spectra of these two parameters present an asymptotic behavior typical of optical beams propagating through developed turbulence (Kolmogorov). Based on the formalism developed in the case of propagation through atmospheric turbulence, we have first estimated turbulence strength and wind velocity inside plume for different flight conditions. We have then proposed an approach to simulate times series of these two quantities in the same conditions. These simulated time series have been compared with the recorded data to assess their validity domain. This model will be integrated in a simulator to estimate the impact of the turbulence induced by the platform and calculate the system performance. In this model dedicated to plume and downwash effects, aero-optical effects are not taken into account.

Agile data management for curation of genomes to watershed datasets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Varadharajan, C.; Agarwal, D.; Faybishenko, B.; Versteeg, R.

2015-12-01

A software platform is being developed for data management and assimilation [DMA] as part of the U.S. Department of Energy's Genomes to Watershed Sustainable Systems Science Focus Area 2.0. The DMA components and capabilities are driven by the project science priorities and the development is based on agile development techniques. The goal of the DMA software platform is to enable users to integrate and synthesize diverse and disparate field, laboratory, and simulation datasets, including geological, geochemical, geophysical, microbiological, hydrological, and meteorological data across a range of spatial and temporal scales. The DMA objectives are (a) developing an integrated interface to the datasets, (b) storing field monitoring data, laboratory analytical results of water and sediments samples collected into a database, (c) providing automated QA/QC analysis of data and (d) working with data providers to modify high-priority field and laboratory data collection and reporting procedures as needed. The first three objectives are driven by user needs, while the last objective is driven by data management needs. The project needs and priorities are reassessed regularly with the users. After each user session we identify development priorities to match the identified user priorities. For instance, data QA/QC and collection activities have focused on the data and products needed for on-going scientific analyses (e.g. water level and geochemistry). We have also developed, tested and released a broker and portal that integrates diverse datasets from two different databases used for curation of project data. The development of the user interface was based on a user-centered design process involving several user interviews and constant interaction with data providers. The initial version focuses on the most requested feature - i.e. finding the data needed for analyses through an intuitive interface. Once the data is found, the user can immediately plot and download data through the portal. The resulting product has an interface that is more intuitive and presents the highest priority datasets that are needed by the users. Our agile approach has enabled us to build a system that is keeping pace with the science needs while utilizing limited resources.

Integrated Health Care Barcelona Esquerra (Ais-Be): A Global View of Organisational Development, Re-Engineering of Processes and Improvement of the Information Systems. The Role of the Tertiary University Hospital in the Transformation

PubMed Central

Escarrabill, Joan; Gómez, Mónica; Ruiz, Rafael; Enfedaque, Belén; Altimiras, Xavier

2016-01-01

The Integrated Health Area “Barcelona Esquerra” (Área Integral de Salud de Barcelona Esquerra – AIS-BE), which covers a population of 524,000 residents in Barcelona city, is running a project to improve healthcare quality and efficiency based on co-ordination between the different suppliers in its area through the participation of their professionals. Endowed with an Organisational Model that seeks decision-taking that starts out from clinical knowledge and from Information Systems tools that facilitate this co-ordination (an interoperability platform and a website) it presents important results in its structured programmes that have been implemented such as the Reorganisation of Emergency Care, Screening for Colorectal Cancer, the Onset of type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, Teledermatology and the Development of Cross-sectional Healthcare Policies for Care in Chronicity. PMID:27616964

Integrated Health Care Barcelona Esquerra (Ais-Be): A Global View of Organisational Development, Re-Engineering of Processes and Improvement of the Information Systems. The Role of the Tertiary University Hospital in the Transformation.

PubMed

Font, David; Escarrabill, Joan; Gómez, Mónica; Ruiz, Rafael; Enfedaque, Belén; Altimiras, Xavier

2016-05-23

The Integrated Health Area "Barcelona Esquerra" (Área Integral de Salud de Barcelona Esquerra - AIS-BE), which covers a population of 524,000 residents in Barcelona city, is running a project to improve healthcare quality and efficiency based on co-ordination between the different suppliers in its area through the participation of their professionals. Endowed with an Organisational Model that seeks decision-taking that starts out from clinical knowledge and from Information Systems tools that facilitate this co-ordination (an interoperability platform and a website) it presents important results in its structured programmes that have been implemented such as the Reorganisation of Emergency Care, Screening for Colorectal Cancer, the Onset of type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, Teledermatology and the Development of Cross-sectional Healthcare Policies for Care in Chronicity.

Bacterial cell-free expression technology to in vitro systems engineering and optimization.

PubMed

Caschera, Filippo

2017-06-01

Cell-free expression system is a technology for the synthesis of proteins in vitro . The system is a platform for several bioengineering projects, e.g. cell-free metabolic engineering, evolutionary design of experiments, and synthetic minimal cell construction. Bacterial cell-free protein synthesis system (CFPS) is a robust tool for synthetic biology. The bacteria lysate, the DNA, and the energy module, which are the three optimized sub-systems for in vitro protein synthesis, compose the integrated system. Currently, an optimized E. coli cell-free expression system can produce up to ∼2.3 mg/mL of a fluorescent reporter protein. Herein, I will describe the features of ATP-regeneration systems for in vitro protein synthesis, and I will present a machine-learning experiment for optimizing the protein yield of E. coli cell-free protein synthesis systems. Moreover, I will introduce experiments on the synthesis of a minimal cell using liposomes as dynamic containers, and E. coli cell-free expression system as biochemical platform for metabolism and gene expression. CFPS can be further integrated with other technologies for novel applications in environmental, medical and material science.

An integrated telemedicine platform for the assessment of affective physiological states

PubMed Central

Katsis, Christos D; Ganiatsas, George; Fotiadis, Dimitrios I

2006-01-01

AUBADE is an integrated platform built for the affective assessment of individuals. The system performs evaluation of the emotional state by classifying vectors of features extracted from: facial Electromyogram, Respiration, Electrodermal Activity and Electrocardiogram. The AUBADE system consists of: (a) a multisensorial wearable, (b) a data acquisition and wireless communication module, (c) a feature extraction module, (d) a 3D facial animation module which is used for the projection of the obtained data through a generic 3D face model; whereas the end-user will be able to view the facial expression of the subject in real time, (e) an intelligent emotion recognition module, and (f) the AUBADE databases where the acquired signals along with the subject's animation videos are saved. The system is designed to be applied to human subjects operating under extreme stress conditions, in particular car racing drivers, and also to patients suffering from neurological and psychological disorders. AUBADE's classification accuracy into five predefined emotional classes (high stress, low stress, disappointment, euphoria and neutral face) is 86.0%. The pilot system applications and components are being tested and evaluated on Maserati's car. racing drivers. PMID:16879757

Enabling the democratization of the genomics revolution with a fully integrated web-based bioinformatics platform.

PubMed

Li, Po-E; Lo, Chien-Chi; Anderson, Joseph J; Davenport, Karen W; Bishop-Lilly, Kimberly A; Xu, Yan; Ahmed, Sanaa; Feng, Shihai; Mokashi, Vishwesh P; Chain, Patrick S G

2017-01-09

Continued advancements in sequencing technologies have fueled the development of new sequencing applications and promise to flood current databases with raw data. A number of factors prevent the seamless and easy use of these data, including the breadth of project goals, the wide array of tools that individually perform fractions of any given analysis, the large number of associated software/hardware dependencies, and the detailed expertise required to perform these analyses. To address these issues, we have developed an intuitive web-based environment with a wide assortment of integrated and cutting-edge bioinformatics tools in pre-configured workflows. These workflows, coupled with the ease of use of the environment, provide even novice next-generation sequencing users with the ability to perform many complex analyses with only a few mouse clicks and, within the context of the same environment, to visualize and further interrogate their results. This bioinformatics platform is an initial attempt at Empowering the Development of Genomics Expertise (EDGE) in a wide range of applications for microbial research. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

Nephele: a cloud platform for simplified, standardized and reproducible microbiome data analysis.

PubMed

Weber, Nick; Liou, David; Dommer, Jennifer; MacMenamin, Philip; Quiñones, Mariam; Misner, Ian; Oler, Andrew J; Wan, Joe; Kim, Lewis; Coakley McCarthy, Meghan; Ezeji, Samuel; Noble, Karlynn; Hurt, Darrell E

2018-04-15

Widespread interest in the study of the microbiome has resulted in data proliferation and the development of powerful computational tools. However, many scientific researchers lack the time, training, or infrastructure to work with large datasets or to install and use command line tools. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) has created Nephele, a cloud-based microbiome data analysis platform with standardized pipelines and a simple web interface for transforming raw data into biological insights. Nephele integrates common microbiome analysis tools as well as valuable reference datasets like the healthy human subjects cohort of the Human Microbiome Project (HMP). Nephele is built on the Amazon Web Services cloud, which provides centralized and automated storage and compute capacity, thereby reducing the burden on researchers and their institutions. https://nephele.niaid.nih.gov and https://github.com/niaid/Nephele. darrell.hurt@nih.gov.

Nephele: a cloud platform for simplified, standardized and reproducible microbiome data analysis

PubMed Central

Weber, Nick; Liou, David; Dommer, Jennifer; MacMenamin, Philip; Quiñones, Mariam; Misner, Ian; Oler, Andrew J; Wan, Joe; Kim, Lewis; Coakley McCarthy, Meghan; Ezeji, Samuel; Noble, Karlynn; Hurt, Darrell E

2018-01-01

Abstract Motivation Widespread interest in the study of the microbiome has resulted in data proliferation and the development of powerful computational tools. However, many scientific researchers lack the time, training, or infrastructure to work with large datasets or to install and use command line tools. Results The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) has created Nephele, a cloud-based microbiome data analysis platform with standardized pipelines and a simple web interface for transforming raw data into biological insights. Nephele integrates common microbiome analysis tools as well as valuable reference datasets like the healthy human subjects cohort of the Human Microbiome Project (HMP). Nephele is built on the Amazon Web Services cloud, which provides centralized and automated storage and compute capacity, thereby reducing the burden on researchers and their institutions. Availability and implementation https://nephele.niaid.nih.gov and https://github.com/niaid/Nephele Contact darrell.hurt@nih.gov PMID:29028892

The Ettention software package.

PubMed

Dahmen, Tim; Marsalek, Lukas; Marniok, Nico; Turoňová, Beata; Bogachev, Sviatoslav; Trampert, Patrick; Nickels, Stefan; Slusallek, Philipp

2016-02-01

We present a novel software package for the problem "reconstruction from projections" in electron microscopy. The Ettention framework consists of a set of modular building-blocks for tomographic reconstruction algorithms. The well-known block iterative reconstruction method based on Kaczmarz algorithm is implemented using these building-blocks, including adaptations specific to electron tomography. Ettention simultaneously features (1) a modular, object-oriented software design, (2) optimized access to high-performance computing (HPC) platforms such as graphic processing units (GPU) or many-core architectures like Xeon Phi, and (3) accessibility to microscopy end-users via integration in the IMOD package and eTomo user interface. We also provide developers with a clean and well-structured application programming interface (API) that allows for extending the software easily and thus makes it an ideal platform for algorithmic research while hiding most of the technical details of high-performance computing. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Math Machines: Using Actuators in Physics Classes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thomas, Frederick J.; Chaney, Robert A.; Gruesbeck, Marta

2018-01-01

Probeware (sensors combined with data-analysis software) is a well-established part of physics education. In engineering and technology, sensors are frequently paired with actuators—motors, heaters, buzzers, valves, color displays, medical dosing systems, and other devices that are activated by electrical signals to produce intentional physical change. This article describes how a 20-year project aimed at better integration of the STEM disciplines (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) uses brief actuator activities in physics instruction. Math Machines "actionware" includes software and hardware that convert virtually any free-form, time-dependent algebraic function into the dynamic actions of a stepper motor, servo motor, or RGB (red, green, blue) color mixer. With wheels and a platform, the stepper motor becomes LACI, a programmable vehicle. Adding a low-power laser module turns the servo motor into a programmable Pointer. Adding a gear and platform can transform the Pointer into an earthquake simulator.

Work Experience Report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Guo, Daniel

2017-01-01

The NASA Platform for Autonomous Systems (NPAS) toolkit is currently being used at the NASA John C. Stennis Space Center (SSC) to develop the INSIGHT program, which will autonomously monitor and control the Nitrogen System of the High Pressure Gas Facility (HPGF) on site. The INSIGHT program is in need of generic timing capabilities in order to perform timing based actions such as pump usage timing and sequence step timing. The purpose of this project was to develop a timing module that could fulfill these requirements and be adaptable for expanded use in the future. The code was written in Gensym G2 software platform, the same as INSIGHT, and was written generically to ensure compatibility with any G2 program. Currently, the module has two timing capabilities, a stopwatch function and a countdown function. Although the module has gone through some functionality testing, actual integration of the module into NPAS and the INSIGHT program is contingent on the module passing later checks.

Knowledge Framework Implementation with Multiple Architectures - 13090

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Upadhyay, H.; Lagos, L.; Quintero, W.

2013-07-01

Multiple kinds of knowledge management systems are operational in public and private enterprises, large and small organizations with a variety of business models that make the design, implementation and operation of integrated knowledge systems very difficult. In recent days, there has been a sweeping advancement in the information technology area, leading to the development of sophisticated frameworks and architectures. These platforms need to be used for the development of integrated knowledge management systems which provides a common platform for sharing knowledge across the enterprise, thereby reducing the operational inefficiencies and delivering cost savings. This paper discusses the knowledge framework andmore » architecture that can be used for the system development and its application to real life need of nuclear industry. A case study of deactivation and decommissioning (D and D) is discussed with the Knowledge Management Information Tool platform and framework. D and D work is a high priority activity across the Department of Energy (DOE) complex. Subject matter specialists (SMS) associated with DOE sites, the Energy Facility Contractors Group (EFCOG) and the D and D community have gained extensive knowledge and experience over the years in the cleanup of the legacy waste from the Manhattan Project. To prevent the D and D knowledge and expertise from being lost over time from the evolving and aging workforce, DOE and the Applied Research Center (ARC) at Florida International University (FIU) proposed to capture and maintain this valuable information in a universally available and easily usable system. (authors)« less

SIMBA: a web tool for managing bacterial genome assembly generated by Ion PGM sequencing technology.

PubMed

Mariano, Diego C B; Pereira, Felipe L; Aguiar, Edgar L; Oliveira, Letícia C; Benevides, Leandro; Guimarães, Luís C; Folador, Edson L; Sousa, Thiago J; Ghosh, Preetam; Barh, Debmalya; Figueiredo, Henrique C P; Silva, Artur; Ramos, Rommel T J; Azevedo, Vasco A C

2016-12-15

The evolution of Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) has considerably reduced the cost per sequenced-base, allowing a significant rise of sequencing projects, mainly in prokaryotes. However, the range of available NGS platforms requires different strategies and software to correctly assemble genomes. Different strategies are necessary to properly complete an assembly project, in addition to the installation or modification of various software. This requires users to have significant expertise in these software and command line scripting experience on Unix platforms, besides possessing the basic expertise on methodologies and techniques for genome assembly. These difficulties often delay the complete genome assembly projects. In order to overcome this, we developed SIMBA (SImple Manager for Bacterial Assemblies), a freely available web tool that integrates several component tools for assembling and finishing bacterial genomes. SIMBA provides a friendly and intuitive user interface so bioinformaticians, even with low computational expertise, can work under a centralized administrative control system of assemblies managed by the assembly center head. SIMBA guides the users to execute assembly process through simple and interactive pages. SIMBA workflow was divided in three modules: (i) projects: allows a general vision of genome sequencing projects, in addition to data quality analysis and data format conversions; (ii) assemblies: allows de novo assemblies with the software Mira, Minia, Newbler and SPAdes, also assembly quality validations using QUAST software; and (iii) curation: presents methods to finishing assemblies through tools for scaffolding contigs and close gaps. We also presented a case study that validated the efficacy of SIMBA to manage bacterial assemblies projects sequenced using Ion Torrent PGM. Besides to be a web tool for genome assembly, SIMBA is a complete genome assemblies project management system, which can be useful for managing of several projects in laboratories. SIMBA source code is available to download and install in local webservers at http://ufmg-simba.sourceforge.net .

The Earth System Documentation (ES-DOC) project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Murphy, S.; Greenslade, M. A.; Treshansky, A.; DeLuca, C.; Guilyardi, E.; Denvil, S.

2013-12-01

Earth System Documentation (ES-DOC) is an international project supplying high quality tools and services in support of Earth system documentation creation, analysis and dissemination. It is nurturing a sustainable standards based documentation ecosystem that aims to become an integral part of the next generation of exa-scale dataset archives. ES-DOC leverages open source software, and applies a software development methodology that places end-user narratives at the heart of all it does. ES-DOC has initially focused upon nurturing the Earth System Model (ESM) documentation eco-system. Within this context ES-DOC leverages the emerging Common Information Model (CIM) metadata standard, which has supported the following projects: ** Coupled Model Inter-comparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5); ** Dynamical Core Model Inter-comparison Project (DCMIP-2012); ** National Climate Predictions and Projections Platforms (NCPP) Quantitative Evaluation of Downscaling Workshop (QED-2013). This presentation will introduce the project to a wider audience and will demonstrate the current production level capabilities of the eco-system: ** An ESM documentation Viewer embeddable into any website; ** An ESM Questionnaire configurable on a project by project basis; ** An ESM comparison tool reusable across projects; ** An ESM visualization tool reusable across projects; ** A search engine for speedily accessing published documentation; ** Libraries for streamlining document creation, validation and publishing pipelines.

Project Morpheus: Lessons Learned in Lander Technology Development

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Olansen, Jon B.; Munday, Stephen R.; Mitchell, Jennifer D.

2013-01-01

NASA's Morpheus Project has developed and tested a prototype planetary lander capable of vertical takeoff and landing, that is designed to serve as a testbed for advanced spacecraft technologies. The lander vehicle, propelled by a LOX/Methane engine and sized to carry a 500kg payload to the lunar surface, provides a platform for bringing technologies from the laboratory into an integrated flight system at relatively low cost. Designed, developed, manufactured and operated in-house by engineers at Johnson Space Center, the initial flight test campaign began on-site at JSC less than one year after project start. After two years of testing, including two major upgrade periods, and recovery from a test crash that caused the loss of a vehicle, flight testing will evolve to executing autonomous flights simulating a 500m lunar approach trajectory, hazard avoidance maneuvers, and precision landing, incorporating the Autonomous Landing and Hazard Avoidance (ALHAT) sensor suite. These free-flights are conducted at a simulated planetary landscape built at Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility. The Morpheus Project represents a departure from recent NASA programs and projects that traditionally require longer development lifecycles and testing at remote, dedicated testing facilities. This paper expands on the project perspective that technologies offer promise, but capabilities offer solutions. It documents the integrated testing campaign, the infrastructure and testing facilities, and the technologies being evaluated in this testbed. The paper also describes the fast pace of the project, rapid prototyping, frequent testing, and lessons learned during this departure from the traditional engineering development process at NASA's Johnson Space Center.

New concept on an integrated interior magnetic resonance imaging and medical linear accelerator system for radiation therapy.

PubMed

Jia, Xun; Tian, Zhen; Xi, Yan; Jiang, Steve B; Wang, Ge

2017-01-01

Image guidance plays a critical role in radiotherapy. Currently, cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) is routinely used in clinics for this purpose. While this modality can provide an attenuation image for therapeutic planning, low soft-tissue contrast affects the delineation of anatomical and pathological features. Efforts have recently been devoted to several MRI linear accelerator (LINAC) projects that lead to the successful combination of a full diagnostic MRI scanner with a radiotherapy machine. We present a new concept for the development of the MRI-LINAC system. Instead of combining a full MRI scanner with the LINAC platform, we propose using an interior MRI (iMRI) approach to image a specific region of interest (RoI) containing the radiation treatment target. While the conventional CBCT component still delivers a global image of the patient's anatomy, the iMRI offers local imaging of high soft-tissue contrast for tumor delineation. We describe a top-level system design for the integration of an iMRI component into an existing LINAC platform. We performed numerical analyses of the magnetic field for the iMRI to show potentially acceptable field properties in a spherical RoI with a diameter of 15 cm. This field could be shielded to a sufficiently low level around the LINAC region to avoid electromagnetic interference. Furthermore, we investigate the dosimetric impacts of this integration on the radiotherapy beam.

Integrated optical sensors for 2D spatial chemical mapping (Conference Presentation)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flores, Raquel; Janeiro, Ricardo; Viegas, Jaime

2017-02-01

Sensors based on optical waveguides for chemical sensing have attracted increasing interest over the last two decades, fueled by potential applications in commercial lab-on-a-chip devices for medical and food safety industries. Even though the early studies were oriented for single-point detection, progress in device size reduction and device yield afforded by photonics foundries have opened the opportunity for distributed dynamic chemical sensing at the microscale. This will allow researchers to follow the dynamics of chemical species in field of microbiology, and microchemistry, with a complementary method to current technologies based on microfluorescence and hyperspectral imaging. The study of the chemical dynamics at the surface of photoelectrodes in water splitting cells are a good candidate to benefit from such optochemical sensing devices that includes a photonic integrated circuit (PIC) with multiple sensors for real-time detection and spatial mapping of chemical species. In this project, we present experimental results on a prototype integrated optical system for chemical mapping based on the interaction of cascaded resonant optical devices, spatially covered with chemically sensitive polymers and plasmon-enhanced nanostructured metal/metal-oxide claddings offering chemical selectivity in a pixelated surface. In order to achieve a compact footprint, the prototype is based in a silicon photonics platform. A discussion on the relative merits of a photonic platform based on large bandgap metal oxides and nitrides which have higher chemical resistance than silicon is also presented.

The partial coherence modulation transfer function in testing lithography lens

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Jiun-Woei

2018-03-01

Due to the lithography demanding high performance in projection of semiconductor mask to wafer, the lens has to be almost free in spherical and coma aberration, thus, in situ optical testing for diagnosis of lens performance has to be established to verify the performance and to provide the suggesting for further improvement of the lens, before the lens has been build and integrated with light source. The measurement of modulation transfer function of critical dimension (CD) is main performance parameter to evaluate the line width of semiconductor platform fabricating ability for the smallest line width of producing tiny integrated circuits. Although the modulation transfer function (MTF) has been popularly used to evaluation the optical system, but in lithography, the contrast of each line-pair is in one dimension or two dimensions, analytically, while the lens stand along in the test bench integrated with the light source coherent or near coherent for the small dimension near the optical diffraction limit, the MTF is not only contributed by the lens, also by illumination of platform. In the study, the partial coherence modulation transfer function (PCMTF) for testing a lithography lens is suggested by measuring MTF in the high spatial frequency of in situ lithography lens, blended with the illumination of partial and in coherent light source. PCMTF can be one of measurement to evaluate the imperfect lens of lithography lens for further improvement in lens performance.

Photonic Integrated Circuits

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Krainak, Michael; Merritt, Scott

2016-01-01

Integrated photonics generally is the integration of multiple lithographically defined photonic and electronic components and devices (e.g. lasers, detectors, waveguides passive structures, modulators, electronic control and optical interconnects) on a single platform with nanometer-scale feature sizes. The development of photonic integrated circuits permits size, weight, power and cost reductions for spacecraft microprocessors, optical communication, processor buses, advanced data processing, and integrated optic science instrument optical systems, subsystems and components. This is particularly critical for small spacecraft platforms. We will give an overview of some NASA applications for integrated photonics.

Integrated testing system FiTest for diagnosis of PCBA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bogdan, Arkadiusz; Lesniak, Adam

2016-12-01

This article presents the innovative integrated testing system FiTest for automatic, quick inspection of printed circuit board assemblies (PCBA) manufactured in Surface Mount Technology (SMT). Integration of Automatic Optical Inspection (AOI), In-Circuit Tests (ICT) and Functional Circuit Tests (FCT) resulted in universal hardware platform for testing variety of electronic circuits. The platform provides increased test coverage, decreased level of false calls and optimization of test duration. The platform is equipped with powerful algorithms performing tests in a stable and repetitive way and providing effective management of diagnosis.

High-performance silicon photonics technology for telecommunications applications.

PubMed

Yamada, Koji; Tsuchizawa, Tai; Nishi, Hidetaka; Kou, Rai; Hiraki, Tatsurou; Takeda, Kotaro; Fukuda, Hiroshi; Ishikawa, Yasuhiko; Wada, Kazumi; Yamamoto, Tsuyoshi

2014-04-01

By way of a brief review of Si photonics technology, we show that significant improvements in device performance are necessary for practical telecommunications applications. In order to improve device performance in Si photonics, we have developed a Si-Ge-silica monolithic integration platform, on which compact Si-Ge-based modulators/detectors and silica-based high-performance wavelength filters are monolithically integrated. The platform features low-temperature silica film deposition, which cannot damage Si-Ge-based active devices. Using this platform, we have developed various integrated photonic devices for broadband telecommunications applications.

High-performance silicon photonics technology for telecommunications applications

PubMed Central

Yamada, Koji; Tsuchizawa, Tai; Nishi, Hidetaka; Kou, Rai; Hiraki, Tatsurou; Takeda, Kotaro; Fukuda, Hiroshi; Ishikawa, Yasuhiko; Wada, Kazumi; Yamamoto, Tsuyoshi

2014-01-01

By way of a brief review of Si photonics technology, we show that significant improvements in device performance are necessary for practical telecommunications applications. In order to improve device performance in Si photonics, we have developed a Si-Ge-silica monolithic integration platform, on which compact Si-Ge–based modulators/detectors and silica-based high-performance wavelength filters are monolithically integrated. The platform features low-temperature silica film deposition, which cannot damage Si-Ge–based active devices. Using this platform, we have developed various integrated photonic devices for broadband telecommunications applications. PMID:27877659

High-performance silicon photonics technology for telecommunications applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yamada, Koji; Tsuchizawa, Tai; Nishi, Hidetaka; Kou, Rai; Hiraki, Tatsurou; Takeda, Kotaro; Fukuda, Hiroshi; Ishikawa, Yasuhiko; Wada, Kazumi; Yamamoto, Tsuyoshi

2014-04-01

By way of a brief review of Si photonics technology, we show that significant improvements in device performance are necessary for practical telecommunications applications. In order to improve device performance in Si photonics, we have developed a Si-Ge-silica monolithic integration platform, on which compact Si-Ge-based modulators/detectors and silica-based high-performance wavelength filters are monolithically integrated. The platform features low-temperature silica film deposition, which cannot damage Si-Ge-based active devices. Using this platform, we have developed various integrated photonic devices for broadband telecommunications applications.

Proba-V Mission Exploitation Platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goor, E.

2017-12-01

VITO and partners developed the Proba-V Mission Exploitation Platform (MEP) as an end-to-end solution to drastically improve the exploitation of the Proba-V (an EC Copernicus contributing mission) EO-data archive, the past mission SPOT-VEGETATION and derived vegetation parameters by researchers, service providers (e.g. the EC Copernicus Global Land Service) and end-users. The analysis of time series of data (PB range) is addressed, as well as the large scale on-demand processing of near real-time data on a powerful and scalable processing environment. New features are still developed, but the platform is yet fully operational since November 2016 and offers A time series viewer (browser web client and API), showing the evolution of Proba-V bands and derived vegetation parameters for any country, region, pixel or polygon defined by the user. Full-resolution viewing services for the complete data archive. On-demand processing chains on a powerfull Hadoop/Spark backend. Virtual Machines can be requested by users with access to the complete data archive mentioned above and pre-configured tools to work with this data, e.g. various toolboxes and support for R and Python. This allows users to immediately work with the data without having to install tools or download data, but as well to design, debug and test applications on the platform. Jupyter Notebooks is available with some examples python and R projects worked out to show the potential of the data. Today the platform is already used by several international third party projects to perform R&D activities on the data, and to develop/host data analysis toolboxes. From the Proba-V MEP, access to other data sources such as Sentinel-2 and landsat data is also addressed. Selected components of the MEP are also deployed on public cloud infrastructures in various R&D projects. Users can make use of powerful Web based tools and can self-manage virtual machines to perform their work on the infrastructure at VITO with access to the complete data archive. To realise this, private cloud technology (openStack) is used and a distributed processing environment is built based on Hadoop. The Hadoop ecosystem offers a lot of technologies (Spark, Yarn, Accumulo) which we integrate with several open-source components (e.g. Geotrellis).

A Recipe for Streamlining Mission Management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mitchell, Andrew E.; Semancik, Susan K.

2004-01-01

This paper describes a project's design and implementation for streamlining mission management with knowledge capture processes across multiple organizations of a NASA directorate. Thc project's focus is on standardizing processes and reports; enabling secure information access and case of maintenance; automating and tracking appropriate workflow rules through process mapping; and infusing new technologies. This paper will describe a small team's experiences using XML technologies through an enhanced vendor suite of applications integrated on Windows-based platforms called the Wallops Integrated Scheduling and Document Management System (WISDMS). This paper describes our results using this system in a variety of endeavors, including providing range project scheduling and resource management for a Range and Mission Management Office; implementing an automated Customer Feedback system for a directorate; streamlining mission status reporting across a directorate; and initiating a document management, configuration management and portal access system for a Range Safety Office's programs. The end result is a reduction of the knowledge gap through better integration and distribution of information, improved process performance, automated metric gathering, and quicker identification of problem areas and issues. However, the real proof of the pudding comes through overcoming the user's reluctance to replace familiar, seasoned processes with new technology ingredients blended with automated procedures in an untested recipe. This paper shares some of the team's observations that led to better implementation techniques, as well as an IS0 9001 Best Practices citation. This project has provided a unique opportunity to advance NASA's competency in new technologies, as well as to strategically implement them within an organizational structure, while wetting the appetite for continued improvements in mission management.

Evaluation of the Earth System CoG Infrastructure in Supporting a Model Intercomparison Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wallis, J. C.; Rood, R. B.; Murphy, S.; Cinquini, L.; DeLuca, C.

2013-12-01

Earth System CoG is a web-based collaboration environment that combines data services with metadata and project management services. The environment is particularly suited to support software development and model intercomparison projects. CoG was recently used to support the National Climate Predictions and Projections Platform (NCPP) Quantitative Evaluation of Downscaling (QED-2013) workshop. QED-2013 was a workshop with a community approach for the objective, quantitative evaluation of techniques to downscale climate model predictions and projections. This paper will present a brief introduction to CoG, QED-2013, and findings from an ethnographic evaluation of how CoG supported QED-2013. The QED-2013 workshop focused on real-world application problems drawn from several sectors, and contributed to the informed use of downscaled data. This workshop is a part of a larger effort by NCPP and partner organizations to develop a standardized evaluation framework for local and regional climate information. The main goals of QED-2013 were to a) coordinate efforts for quantitative evaluation, b) develop software infrastructure, c) develop a repository of information, d) develop translational and guidance information, e) identify and engage key user communities, and f) promote collaboration and interoperability. CoG was a key player in QED-2013 support. NCPP was an early adopter of the CoG platform, providing valuable recommendations for overall development plus specific workshop-related requirements. New CoG features developed for QED-2013 included: the ability to publish images and associated metadata contained within XML files to its associated data node combine both artifacts into an integrated display. The ability to modify data search facets into scientifically relevant groups and display dynamic lists of workshop participants and their interests was also added to the interface. During the workshop, the QED-2013 project page on CoG provided meeting logistics, meeting materials, shared spaces and resources, and data services. The evaluation of CoG tools was focused on the usability of products rather than metrics, such as number of independent hits to a web site. We wanted to know how well CoG tools supported the workshop participants and their tasks. For instance, what workshop tasks could be performed within the CoG environment? Were these tasks performed there or with alternative tools? And do participants plan to use the tools after the workshop for other projects? Ultimately, we wanted to know if CoG contributed to NCPP's need for a flexible and extensible evaluation platform, and did it support the integration of dispersed resources, quantitative evaluation of climate projections, and the generation and management of interpretive information. Evaluation of the workshop and activity occurred during, at the end of, and after the workshop. During the workshop, an ethnographer observed and participated in the workshop, and collected short, semi-structured interviews with a subset of the participants. At the end of the workshop, an exit survey was administered to all the participants. After the workshop, a variety of methods were used to capture the impact of the workshop.

Design of a photonic integrated based optical interrogator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ibrahim, Selwan K.; Farnan, Martin; Karabacak, Devrez M.

2017-02-01

Optical sensors based on Fiber Bragg Gratings (FBGs) are used in several applications and industries. In order for fiber optic sensors to compete with electrical sensors, several critical parameters of both the sensors and sensor interrogators need to be in place such as performance, cost, size, reliability relevant to the target application. Here we have developed a tunable laser based optical interrogator which delivers high performance (up to 8kHz sweep-rate and 120dB dynamic range) and precision (<100fm) by optimizing the laser calibration of a telecom tunable laser and incorporating optical periodic wavelength references (e.g. MZI) to correct and compensate for wavelength non-linearity and noise during operation. Scaling up optical sensing systems to deliver high level of performance over a large number of sensors is enabled by synchronizing multiple interrogators. Further improvements can be achieved by using photonic integrated circuit (PIC) technology which reduces the footprint, cost, and improves performance. There exists several PIC technology platforms (e.g. InP, Si, TriPlex) that could be used to develop different optical building blocks used in the interrogator. Such building blocks include the tunable laser, couplers, photodiodes, MZIs, etc. are available on the InP platform. Here we have demonstrated the operation of an interrogator using PIC technology to replace many of the discrete optical components. The design and chip manufacturing was carried out as part of an InP multi-project wafer (MPW) run under the EU PARADIGM project. A custom package supporting fiber arrays was designed and manufactured to demonstrate the PIC functionality in an optical interrogator.

Water resources sensitivity to the isolated effects of land use, water demand and climate change under 2 degree global warming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bisselink, Berny; Bernhard, Jeroen; de Roo, Ad

2017-04-01

One of the key impacts of global change are the future water resources. These water resources are influenced by changes in land use (LU), water demand (WD) and climate change. Recent developments in scenario modelling opened new opportunities for an integrated assessment. However, for identifying water resource management strategies it is helpful to focus on the isolated effects of possible changes in LU, WD and climate that may occur in the near future. In this work, we quantify the isolated contribution of LU, WD and climate to the integrated total water resources assuming a linear model behavior. An ensemble of five EURO-CORDEX RCP8.5 climate projections for the 31-year periods centered on the year of exceeding the global-mean temperature of 2 degree is used to drive the fully distributed hydrological model LISFLOOD for multiple river catchments in Europe. The JRC's Land Use Modelling Platform LUISA was used to obtain a detailed pan-European reference land use scenario until 2050. Water demand is estimated based on socio-economic (GDP, population estimates etc.), land use and climate projections as well. For each climate projection, four model runs have been performed including an integrated (LU, WD and climate) simulation and other three simulations to isolate the effect of LU, WD and climate. Changes relative to the baseline in terms of water resources indicators of the ensemble means of the 2 degree warming period and their associated uncertainties will reveal the integrated and isolated effect of LU, WD and climate change on water resources.

Design and control of multifunctional sorting and training platform based on PLC control

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wan, Hongqiang; Ge, Shuai; Han, Peiying; Li, Fancong; Zhang, Simiao

2018-05-01

Electromechanical integration, as a multi-disciplinary subject, has been paid much attention by universities and is widely used in the automation production of enterprises. Aiming at the problem of the lack of control among enterprises and the lack of training among colleges and universities, this paper presents a design of multifunctional sorting training platform based on PLC control. Firstly, the structure of the platform is determined and three-dimensional modeling is done. Then design the platform's aerodynamic control and electrical control. Finally, realize the platform sorting function through PLC programming and configuration software development. The training platform can be used to design the practical training experiment, which has a strong advance and pertinence in the electromechanical integration teaching. At the same time, the platform makes full use of modular thinking to make the sorting modules more flexible. Compared with the traditional training platform, its teaching effect is more significant.

Integrated protein analysis platform based on column switch recycling size exclusion chromatography, microenzymatic reactor and microRPLC-ESI-MS/MS.

PubMed

Yuan, Huiming; Zhou, Yuan; Zhang, Lihua; Liang, Zhen; Zhang, Yukui

2009-10-30

An integrated platform with the combination of proteins and peptides separation was established via the unit of on-line proteins digestion, by which proteins were in sequence separated by column switch recycling size exclusion chromatography (csrSEC), on-line digested by an immobilized trypsin microreactor, trapped and desalted by two parallel C8 precolumns, separated by microRPLC with the linear gradient of organic modifier concentration, and identified by ESI-MS/MS. A 6-protein mixture, with Mr ranging from 10 kDa to 80 kDa, was used to evaluate the performance of the integrated platform, and all proteins were identified with sequence coverage over 5.67%. Our experimental results demonstrate that such an integrated platform is of advantages such as good time compatibility, high peak capacity, and facile automation, which might be a promising approach for proteome study.

Transport infrastructure surveillance and monitoring by electromagnetic sensing: the ISTIMES project.

PubMed

Proto, Monica; Bavusi, Massimo; Bernini, Romeo; Bigagli, Lorenzo; Bost, Marie; Bourquin, Frédrèric; Cottineau, Louis-Marie; Cuomo, Vincenzo; Della Vecchia, Pietro; Dolce, Mauro; Dumoulin, Jean; Eppelbaum, Lev; Fornaro, Gianfranco; Gustafsson, Mats; Hugenschmidt, Johannes; Kaspersen, Peter; Kim, Hyunwook; Lapenna, Vincenzo; Leggio, Mario; Loperte, Antonio; Mazzetti, Paolo; Moroni, Claudio; Nativi, Stefano; Nordebo, Sven; Pacini, Fabrizio; Palombo, Angelo; Pascucci, Simone; Perrone, Angela; Pignatti, Stefano; Ponzo, Felice Carlo; Rizzo, Enzo; Soldovieri, Francesco; Taillade, Fédrèric

2010-01-01

The ISTIMES project, funded by the European Commission in the frame of a joint Call "ICT and Security" of the Seventh Framework Programme, is presented and preliminary research results are discussed. The main objective of the ISTIMES project is to design, assess and promote an Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)-based system, exploiting distributed and local sensors, for non-destructive electromagnetic monitoring of critical transport infrastructures. The integration of electromagnetic technologies with new ICT information and telecommunications systems enables remotely controlled monitoring and surveillance and real time data imaging of the critical transport infrastructures. The project exploits different non-invasive imaging technologies based on electromagnetic sensing (optic fiber sensors, Synthetic Aperture Radar satellite platform based, hyperspectral spectroscopy, Infrared thermography, Ground Penetrating Radar-, low-frequency geophysical techniques, Ground based systems for displacement monitoring). In this paper, we show the preliminary results arising from the GPR and infrared thermographic measurements carried out on the Musmeci bridge in Potenza, located in a highly seismic area of the Apennine chain (Southern Italy) and representing one of the test beds of the project.

Computer-Aided Systems Engineering for Flight Research Projects Using a Workgroup Database

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mizukami, Masahi

2004-01-01

An online systems engineering tool for flight research projects has been developed through the use of a workgroup database. Capabilities are implemented for typical flight research systems engineering needs in document library, configuration control, hazard analysis, hardware database, requirements management, action item tracking, project team information, and technical performance metrics. Repetitive tasks are automated to reduce workload and errors. Current data and documents are instantly available online and can be worked on collaboratively. Existing forms and conventional processes are used, rather than inventing or changing processes to fit the tool. An integrated tool set offers advantages by automatically cross-referencing data, minimizing redundant data entry, and reducing the number of programs that must be learned. With a simplified approach, significant improvements are attained over existing capabilities for minimal cost. By using a workgroup-level database platform, personnel most directly involved in the project can develop, modify, and maintain the system, thereby saving time and money. As a pilot project, the system has been used to support an in-house flight experiment. Options are proposed for developing and deploying this type of tool on a more extensive basis.

Transport Infrastructure Surveillance and Monitoring by Electromagnetic Sensing: The ISTIMES Project

PubMed Central

Proto, Monica; Bavusi, Massimo; Bernini, Romeo; Bigagli, Lorenzo; Bost, Marie; Bourquin, Frédrèric.; Cottineau, Louis-Marie; Cuomo, Vincenzo; Vecchia, Pietro Della; Dolce, Mauro; Dumoulin, Jean; Eppelbaum, Lev; Fornaro, Gianfranco; Gustafsson, Mats; Hugenschmidt, Johannes; Kaspersen, Peter; Kim, Hyunwook; Lapenna, Vincenzo; Leggio, Mario; Loperte, Antonio; Mazzetti, Paolo; Moroni, Claudio; Nativi, Stefano; Nordebo, Sven; Pacini, Fabrizio; Palombo, Angelo; Pascucci, Simone; Perrone, Angela; Pignatti, Stefano; Ponzo, Felice Carlo; Rizzo, Enzo; Soldovieri, Francesco; Taillade, Fédrèric

2010-01-01

The ISTIMES project, funded by the European Commission in the frame of a joint Call “ICT and Security” of the Seventh Framework Programme, is presented and preliminary research results are discussed. The main objective of the ISTIMES project is to design, assess and promote an Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)-based system, exploiting distributed and local sensors, for non-destructive electromagnetic monitoring of critical transport infrastructures. The integration of electromagnetic technologies with new ICT information and telecommunications systems enables remotely controlled monitoring and surveillance and real time data imaging of the critical transport infrastructures. The project exploits different non-invasive imaging technologies based on electromagnetic sensing (optic fiber sensors, Synthetic Aperture Radar satellite platform based, hyperspectral spectroscopy, Infrared thermography, Ground Penetrating Radar-, low-frequency geophysical techniques, Ground based systems for displacement monitoring). In this paper, we show the preliminary results arising from the GPR and infrared thermographic measurements carried out on the Musmeci bridge in Potenza, located in a highly seismic area of the Apennine chain (Southern Italy) and representing one of the test beds of the project. PMID:22163489

Overcoming Dietary Assessment Challenges in Low-Income Countries: Technological Solutions Proposed by the International Dietary Data Expansion (INDDEX) Project.

PubMed

Coates, Jennifer C; Colaiezzi, Brooke A; Bell, Winnie; Charrondiere, U Ruth; Leclercq, Catherine

2017-03-16

An increasing number of low-income countries (LICs) exhibit high rates of malnutrition coincident with rising rates of overweight and obesity. Individual-level dietary data are needed to inform effective responses, yet dietary data from large-scale surveys conducted in LICs remain extremely limited. This discussion paper first seeks to highlight the barriers to collection and use of individual-level dietary data in LICs. Second, it introduces readers to new technological developments and research initiatives to remedy this situation, led by the International Dietary Data Expansion (INDDEX) Project. Constraints to conducting large-scale dietary assessments include significant costs, time burden, technical complexity, and limited investment in dietary research infrastructure, including the necessary tools and databases required to collect individual-level dietary data in large surveys. To address existing bottlenecks, the INDDEX Project is developing a dietary assessment platform for LICs, called INDDEX24, consisting of a mobile application integrated with a web database application, which is expected to facilitate seamless data collection and processing. These tools will be subject to rigorous testing including feasibility, validation, and cost studies. To scale up dietary data collection and use in LICs, the INDDEX Project will also invest in food composition databases, an individual-level dietary data dissemination platform, and capacity development activities. Although the INDDEX Project activities are expected to improve the ability of researchers and policymakers in low-income countries to collect, process, and use dietary data, the global nutrition community is urged to commit further significant investments in order to adequately address the range and scope of challenges described in this paper.

FOSS Tools for Research Data Management

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stender, Vivien; Jankowski, Cedric; Hammitzsch, Martin; Wächter, Joachim

2017-04-01

Established initiatives and organizations, e.g. the Initiative for Scientific Cyberinfrastructures (NSF, 2007) or the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI, 2008), promote and foster the development of sustainable research infrastructures. These infrastructures aim the provision of services supporting scientists to search, visualize and access data, to collaborate and exchange information, as well as to publish data and other results. In this regard, Research Data Management (RDM) gains importance and thus requires the support by appropriate tools integrated in these infrastructures. Different projects provide arbitrary solutions to manage research data. However, within two projects - SUMARIO for land and water management and TERENO for environmental monitoring - solutions to manage research data have been developed based on Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) components. The resulting framework provides essential components for harvesting, storing and documenting research data, as well as for discovering, visualizing and downloading these data on the basis of standardized services stimulated considerably by enhanced data management approaches of Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDI). In order to fully exploit the potentials of these developments for enhancing data management in Geosciences the publication of software components, e.g. via GitHub, is not sufficient. We will use our experience to move these solutions into the cloud e.g. as PaaS or SaaS offerings. Our contribution will present data management solutions for the Geosciences developed in two projects. A sort of construction kit with FOSS components build the backbone for the assembly and implementation of projects specific platforms. Furthermore, an approach is presented to stimulate the reuse of FOSS RDM solutions with cloud concepts. In further projects specific RDM platforms can be set-up much faster, customized to the individual needs and tools can be added during the run-time.

Overcoming Dietary Assessment Challenges in Low-Income Countries: Technological Solutions Proposed by the International Dietary Data Expansion (INDDEX) Project

PubMed Central

Coates, Jennifer C.; Colaiezzi, Brooke A.; Bell, Winnie; Charrondiere, U. Ruth; Leclercq, Catherine

2017-01-01

An increasing number of low-income countries (LICs) exhibit high rates of malnutrition coincident with rising rates of overweight and obesity. Individual-level dietary data are needed to inform effective responses, yet dietary data from large-scale surveys conducted in LICs remain extremely limited. This discussion paper first seeks to highlight the barriers to collection and use of individual-level dietary data in LICs. Second, it introduces readers to new technological developments and research initiatives to remedy this situation, led by the International Dietary Data Expansion (INDDEX) Project. Constraints to conducting large-scale dietary assessments include significant costs, time burden, technical complexity, and limited investment in dietary research infrastructure, including the necessary tools and databases required to collect individual-level dietary data in large surveys. To address existing bottlenecks, the INDDEX Project is developing a dietary assessment platform for LICs, called INDDEX24, consisting of a mobile application integrated with a web database application, which is expected to facilitate seamless data collection and processing. These tools will be subject to rigorous testing including feasibility, validation, and cost studies. To scale up dietary data collection and use in LICs, the INDDEX Project will also invest in food composition databases, an individual-level dietary data dissemination platform, and capacity development activities. Although the INDDEX Project activities are expected to improve the ability of researchers and policymakers in low-income countries to collect, process, and use dietary data, the global nutrition community is urged to commit further significant investments in order to adequately address the range and scope of challenges described in this paper. PMID:28300759

Technologies and standards in the information systems of the soil-geographic database of Russia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Golozubov, O. M.; Rozhkov, V. A.; Alyabina, I. O.; Ivanov, A. V.; Kolesnikova, V. M.; Shoba, S. A.

2015-01-01

The achievements, problems, and challenges of the modern stage of the development of the Soil-Geographic Database of Russia (SGDBR) and the history of this project are outlined. The structure of the information system of the SGDBR as an internet-based resource to collect data on soil profiles and to integrate the geographic and attribute databases on the same platform is described. The pilot project in Rostov oblast illustrates the inclusion of regional information in the SGDBR and its application for solving practical problems. For the first time in Russia, the GeoRSS standard based on the structured hypertext representation of the geographic and attribute information has been applied in the state system for the agromonitoring of agricultural lands in Rostov oblast and information exchange through the internet.

CHARM: A CubeSat Water Vapor Radiometer for Earth Science

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lim, Boon; Mauro, David; DeRosee, Rodolphe; Sorgenfrei, Matthew; Vance, Steve

2012-01-01

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and Ames Research Center (ARC) are partnering in the CubeSat Hydrometric Atmospheric Radiometer Mission (CHARM), a water vapor radiometer integrated on a 3U CubeSat platform, selected for implementation under NASA Hands-On Project Experience (HOPE-3). CHARM will measure 4 channels at 183 GHz water vapor line, subsets of measurements currently performed by larger and more costly spacecraft (e.g. ATMS, AMSU-B and SSMI/S). While flying a payload that supports SMD science objectives, CHARM provides a hands-on opportunity to develop technical, leadership, and project skills. CHARM will furthermore advance the technology readiness level (TRL) of the 183 GHz receiver subsystem from TRL 4 to TRL 6 and the CubeSat 183 GHz radiometer system from TRL 4 to TRL 7.

Integrating UIMA annotators in a web-based text processing framework.

PubMed

Chen, Xiang; Arnold, Corey W

2013-01-01

The Unstructured Information Management Architecture (UIMA) [1] framework is a growing platform for natural language processing (NLP) applications. However, such applications may be difficult for non-technical users deploy. This project presents a web-based framework that wraps UIMA-based annotator systems into a graphical user interface for researchers and clinicians, and a web service for developers. An annotator that extracts data elements from lung cancer radiology reports is presented to illustrate the use of the system. Annotation results from the web system can be exported to multiple formats for users to utilize in other aspects of their research and workflow. This project demonstrates the benefits of a lay-user interface for complex NLP applications. Efforts such as this can lead to increased interest and support for NLP work in the clinical domain.

Human Connectome Project Informatics: quality control, database services, and data visualization

PubMed Central

Marcus, Daniel S.; Harms, Michael P.; Snyder, Abraham Z.; Jenkinson, Mark; Wilson, J Anthony; Glasser, Matthew F.; Barch, Deanna M.; Archie, Kevin A.; Burgess, Gregory C.; Ramaratnam, Mohana; Hodge, Michael; Horton, William; Herrick, Rick; Olsen, Timothy; McKay, Michael; House, Matthew; Hileman, Michael; Reid, Erin; Harwell, John; Coalson, Timothy; Schindler, Jon; Elam, Jennifer S.; Curtiss, Sandra W.; Van Essen, David C.

2013-01-01

The Human Connectome Project (HCP) has developed protocols, standard operating and quality control procedures, and a suite of informatics tools to enable high throughput data collection, data sharing, automated data processing and analysis, and data mining and visualization. Quality control procedures include methods to maintain data collection consistency over time, to measure head motion, and to establish quantitative modality-specific overall quality assessments. Database services developed as customizations of the XNAT imaging informatics platform support both internal daily operations and open access data sharing. The Connectome Workbench visualization environment enables user interaction with HCP data and is increasingly integrated with the HCP's database services. Here we describe the current state of these procedures and tools and their application in the ongoing HCP study. PMID:23707591

Development of a computer model to predict platform station keeping requirements in the Gulf of Mexico using remote sensing data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barber, Bryan; Kahn, Laura; Wong, David

1990-01-01

Offshore operations such as oil drilling and radar monitoring require semisubmersible platforms to remain stationary at specific locations in the Gulf of Mexico. Ocean currents, wind, and waves in the Gulf of Mexico tend to move platforms away from their desired locations. A computer model was created to predict the station keeping requirements of a platform. The computer simulation uses remote sensing data from satellites and buoys as input. A background of the project, alternate approaches to the project, and the details of the simulation are presented.

A semantic problem solving environment for integrative parasite research: identification of intervention targets for Trypanosoma cruzi.

PubMed

Parikh, Priti P; Minning, Todd A; Nguyen, Vinh; Lalithsena, Sarasi; Asiaee, Amir H; Sahoo, Satya S; Doshi, Prashant; Tarleton, Rick; Sheth, Amit P

2012-01-01

Research on the biology of parasites requires a sophisticated and integrated computational platform to query and analyze large volumes of data, representing both unpublished (internal) and public (external) data sources. Effective analysis of an integrated data resource using knowledge discovery tools would significantly aid biologists in conducting their research, for example, through identifying various intervention targets in parasites and in deciding the future direction of ongoing as well as planned projects. A key challenge in achieving this objective is the heterogeneity between the internal lab data, usually stored as flat files, Excel spreadsheets or custom-built databases, and the external databases. Reconciling the different forms of heterogeneity and effectively integrating data from disparate sources is a nontrivial task for biologists and requires a dedicated informatics infrastructure. Thus, we developed an integrated environment using Semantic Web technologies that may provide biologists the tools for managing and analyzing their data, without the need for acquiring in-depth computer science knowledge. We developed a semantic problem-solving environment (SPSE) that uses ontologies to integrate internal lab data with external resources in a Parasite Knowledge Base (PKB), which has the ability to query across these resources in a unified manner. The SPSE includes Web Ontology Language (OWL)-based ontologies, experimental data with its provenance information represented using the Resource Description Format (RDF), and a visual querying tool, Cuebee, that features integrated use of Web services. We demonstrate the use and benefit of SPSE using example queries for identifying gene knockout targets of Trypanosoma cruzi for vaccine development. Answers to these queries involve looking up multiple sources of data, linking them together and presenting the results. The SPSE facilitates parasitologists in leveraging the growing, but disparate, parasite data resources by offering an integrative platform that utilizes Semantic Web techniques, while keeping their workload increase minimal.

Shared Platform for South African Earth and Environmental Observation Systems: Recent Developments and Improvements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hugo, Wim

2013-04-01

Over the past 3 years, SAEON has worked with a number of stakeholders and funders to establish a shared platform for the management of dissemination of E&EO research outputs, data sets, and services. This platform is strongly aligned with GEO principles and architecture, allowing direct integration with the GEOSS Broker. The platform has two important characteristics: 1. It reduces the cost and lead time of provision of similar infrastructure for future initiatives. 2. The platform is domain-agnostic to some degree, and can be used for non E&EO applications. Projects to achive this is under way at present. The paper describes the application of the platform for a variety of user communities and initiatives (SAEON Data Portal, South African Earth Observation System, Risk and Vulnerability Atlas, BioEnergy Atlas, National Spatial Information Framework, ICSU World Data System Components, and many more), and demonstrates use cases utilising a distributed, service oriented architecture. Significant improvements have been made to the interoperability functions available to end users and content providers, and these are demonstrated and discussed in detail. Functions include • Creation and persistence of composite maps, as well as time series or scatter charts, supporting a variety of standardized data sources. • Search facilities have been extended to allow analysis and filtering of primary search results, and to deal with large meta-data collections. • In addition, data sources, data listings, news items, images, search results, and other platform content can, with increasing flexibility, be accessed as standardized services that are processed in standardized clients, allowing creation of a rich user interface, and permitting the inclusion of platform functionality into external websites and resources. This shift to explicit service-oriented, peer-to-peer architecture is a preparation for increased distributed processing and content composition, and will support the concept of virtualization of 'science gateways' based on the platform, in support of a growing number of domains and initiatives.

Enhancing Mobility: Integrating New Services into Your Library's Mobile Platform to Increase Traffic

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Felts, John W., Jr.

2014-01-01

Kimbel Library launched its mobile environment and ran it in full production for several months yet usage patterns were quite low and flat. The library only saw a substantial increase in usage when new, value-added services were integrated into this platform. Upon implementing and integrating discovery services, chat and SMS capabilities, and…

High Level of Integration in Integrated Disease Management Leads to Higher Usage in the e-Vita Study: Self-Management of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease With Web-Based Platforms in a Parallel Cohort Design

PubMed Central

Verdijk, Noortje A; Kasteleyn, Marise J; Harmans, Lara M; Talboom, Irvin JSH; Numans, Mattijs E; Chavannes, Niels H

2017-01-01

Background Worldwide, nearly 3 million people die of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) every year. Integrated disease management (IDM) improves disease-specific quality of life and exercise capacity for people with COPD, but can also reduce hospital admissions and hospital days. Self-management of COPD through eHealth interventions has shown to be an effective method to improve the quality and efficiency of IDM in several settings, but it remains unknown which factors influence usage of eHealth and change in behavior of patients. Objective Our study, e-Vita COPD, compares different levels of integration of Web-based self-management platforms in IDM in three primary care settings. The main aim of this study is to analyze the factors that successfully promote the use of a self-management platform for COPD patients. Methods The e-Vita COPD study compares three different approaches to incorporating eHealth via Web-based self-management platforms into IDM of COPD using a parallel cohort design. Three groups integrated the platforms to different levels. In groups 1 (high integration) and 2 (medium integration), randomization was performed to two levels of personal assistance for patients (high and low assistance); in group 3 there was no integration into disease management (none integration). Every visit to the e-Vita and Zorgdraad COPD Web platforms was tracked objectively by collecting log data (sessions and services). At the first log-in, patients completed a baseline questionnaire. Baseline characteristics were automatically extracted from the log files including age, gender, education level, scores on the Clinical COPD Questionnaire (CCQ), dyspnea scale (MRC), and quality of life questionnaire (EQ5D). To predict the use of the platforms, multiple linear regression analyses for the different independent variables were performed: integration in IDM (high, medium, none), personal assistance for the participants (high vs low), educational level, and self-efficacy level (General Self-Efficacy Scale [GSES]). All analyses were adjusted for age and gender. Results Of the 702 invited COPD patients, 215 (30.6%) registered to a platform. Of the 82 patients in group 1 (high integration IDM), 36 were in group 1A (personal assistance) and 46 in group 1B (low assistance). Of the 96 patients in group 2 (medium integration IDM), 44 were in group 2A (telephone assistance) and 52 in group 2B (low assistance). A total of 37 patients participated in group 3 (no integration IDM). In all, 107 users (49.8%) visited the platform at least once in the 15-month period. The mean number of sessions differed between the three groups (group 1: mean 10.5, SD 1.3; group 2: mean 8.8, SD 1.4; group 3: mean 3.7, SD 1.8; P=.01). The mean number of sessions differed between the high-assistance and low-assistance groups in groups 1 and 2 (high: mean 11.8, SD 1.3; low: mean 6.7, SD 1.4; F1,80=6.55, P=.01). High-assistance participants used more services (mean 45.4, SD 6.2) than low-assistance participants (mean 21.2, SD 6.8; F1,80=6.82, P=.01). No association was found between educational level and usage and between GSES and usage. Conclusions Use of a self-management platform is higher when participants receive adequate personal assistance about how to use the platform. Blended care, where digital health and usual care are integrated, will likely lead to increased use of the online program. Future research should provide additional insights into the preferences of different patient groups. Trial Registration Nederlands Trial Register NTR4098; http://www.trialregister.nl/trialreg/admin/rctview.asp?TC=4098 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6qO1hqiJ1) PMID:28566268

An open platform for promoting interoperability in solar system sciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Csillaghy, André; Aboudarham, Jean; Berghmans, David; Jacquey, Christian

2013-04-01

The European coordination project CASSIS is promoting the creation of an integrated data space that will facilitate science across community boundaries in solar system sciences. Many disciplines may need to use the same data set to support scientific research, although the way they are used may depend on the project and on the particular piece of science. Often, access is hindered because of differences in the way the different communities describe, store their data, as well as how they make them accessible. Working towards this goal, we have set up an open collaboration platform, www.explorespace.eu, that can serve as a hub for discovering and developing interoperability resources in the communities involved. The platform is independent of the project and will be maintained well after the end of the funding. As a first step, we have captured the description of services already provided by the community. The openness of the collaboration platform should allow to discuss with all stakeholders ways to make key types of metadata and derived products more complete and coherent and thus more usable across the domain boundaries. Furthermore, software resources and discussions should help facilitating the development of interoperable services. The platform, along with the database of services, address the following questions, which we consider crucial for promoting interoperability: • Current extent of the data space coverage: What part of the common data space is already covered by the existing interoperable services in terms of data access. In other words, what data, from catalogues as well as from raw data, can be reached by an application through standard protocols today? • Needed extension of the data space coverage: What would be needed to extend the data space coverage? In other words, how can the currently accessible data space be extended by adding services? • Missing services: What applications / services are still missing and need to be developed? This is not a trivial question, as the generation of the common data space in itself creates new requirements on overarching applications that might be necessary to provide a unified access to all the services. As an example, one particular aspect discussed in the platform is the design of web services. Applications of today are mainly human centred while interoperability must happen one level below and the back ends (databases) must be generic, i.e. independent from the applications. We intent our effort to provide to developers resources that disentangle user interfaces from data services. Many activities are challenging and we hope they will be discussed on our platform. In particular, the quality of the services, the data space and the needs of interdisciplinary approaches are serious concerns for instruments such as ATST and EST or the ones onboard SDO and, in the future, Solar Orbiter. We believe that our platform might be useful as a kind of guide that would allow groups of not having to reinvent the wheel for each new instrument.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Magee, Thoman

The Consolidated Edison, Inc., of New York (Con Edison) Secure Interoperable Open Smart Grid Demonstration Project (SGDP), sponsored by the United States (US) Department of Energy (DOE), demonstrated that the reliability, efficiency, and flexibility of the grid can be improved through a combination of enhanced monitoring and control capabilities using systems and resources that interoperate within a secure services framework. The project demonstrated the capability to shift, balance, and reduce load where and when needed in response to system contingencies or emergencies by leveraging controllable field assets. The range of field assets includes curtailable customer loads, distributed generation (DG), batterymore » storage, electric vehicle (EV) charging stations, building management systems (BMS), home area networks (HANs), high-voltage monitoring, and advanced metering infrastructure (AMI). The SGDP enables the seamless integration and control of these field assets through a common, cyber-secure, interoperable control platform, which integrates a number of existing legacy control and data systems, as well as new smart grid (SG) systems and applications. By integrating advanced technologies for monitoring and control, the SGDP helps target and reduce peak load growth, improves the reliability and efficiency of Con Edison’s grid, and increases the ability to accommodate the growing use of distributed resources. Con Edison is dedicated to lowering costs, improving reliability and customer service, and reducing its impact on the environment for its customers. These objectives also align with the policy objectives of New York State as a whole. To help meet these objectives, Con Edison’s long-term vision for the distribution grid relies on the successful integration and control of a growing penetration of distributed resources, including demand response (DR) resources, battery storage units, and DG. For example, Con Edison is expecting significant long-term growth of DG. The SGDP enables the efficient, flexible integration of these disparate resources and lays the architectural foundations for future scalability. Con Edison assembled an SGDP team of more than 16 different project partners, including technology vendors, and participating organizations, and the Con Edison team provided overall guidance and project management. Project team members are listed in Table 1-1.« less

Autonomous Vehicles for Wave Energy Site Characterisation and monitoring in the Atlantic areas: North Scotland and Portugal

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McIlvenny, J.; Campuzano, F.; Goddijn-Murphy, L.

2016-02-01

Surface autonomous marine robots allow the collection of environmental data for weeks or months at a time in difficult to reach or extreme oceanic environments. Wave glider technology has improved in recent years and is now capable of carrying instruments from different manufacturers1, such as ADCP, wave modules, and acoustic sensors2. Here we investigate the suitability of surface based robotic platforms for the collection of environmental data for the renewable energy industry. The Waveglider robotic platform was chosen for this study, representing one of the most advanced platforms in its class. Two sites were chosen: Farr point in North Scotland and Nazare in Portugal. Both study sites are potential locations for wave energy development. We present the results of two simultaneous field campaigns using Waveglider technology. Of particular importance to the study were data integrity and accuracy, platform ability, performance and durability and risk. The project's main aims were to test the platform's capabilities and collect wave data from two wave energy lease sites. The wave data from the Waveglider are compared to nearshore wave height and period data from simultaneous overhead passes by the altimeter satellite AltiKa3. In addition, Waverider buoys were also deployed and recording wave characteristics at both sites visited by the Waveglider. We present the preliminary inter-comparison between the three wave datasets at both sites and assess the performance of the Waveglider technology.

Platform based design of EAP transducers in Danfoss PolyPower A/S

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sarban, Rahimullah; Gudlaugsson, Tómas V.

2013-04-01

Electroactive Polymer (EAP) has gained increasing focus, in research communities, in last two decades. Research within the field of EAP has, so far, been mainly focused on material improvements, characterization, modeling and developing demonstrators. As the EAP technology matures, the need for a new area of research namely product development emerges. Product development can be based on an isolated design and production for a single product or platform design where a product family is developed. In platform design the families of products exploits commonality of platform modules while satisfying a variety of different market segments. Platform based approach has the primary benefit of being cost efficient and short lead time to market when new products emerges. Products development based on EAP technology is challenging both technologically as well as from production and processing point of view. Both the technological and processing challenges need to be addressed before a successful implementation of EAP technology into products. Based on this need Danfoss PolyPower A/S has, in 2011, launched a EAP platform project in collaboration with three Danish universities and three commercial organizations. The aim of the project is to develop platform based designs and product family for the EAP components to be used in variety of applications. This paper presents the structure of the platform project as a whole and specifically the platform based designs of EAP transducers. The underlying technologies, essential for EAP transducers, are also presented. Conceptual design and solution for the concepts are presented as well.

A remark on copy number variation detection methods.

PubMed

Li, Shuo; Dou, Xialiang; Gao, Ruiqi; Ge, Xinzhou; Qian, Minping; Wan, Lin

2018-01-01

Copy number variations (CNVs) are gain and loss of DNA sequence of a genome. High throughput platforms such as microarrays and next generation sequencing technologies (NGS) have been applied for genome wide copy number losses. Although progress has been made in both approaches, the accuracy and consistency of CNV calling from the two platforms remain in dispute. In this study, we perform a deep analysis on copy number losses on 254 human DNA samples, which have both SNP microarray data and NGS data publicly available from Hapmap Project and 1000 Genomes Project respectively. We show that the copy number losses reported from Hapmap Project and 1000 Genome Project only have < 30% overlap, while these reports are required to have cross-platform (e.g. PCR, microarray and high-throughput sequencing) experimental supporting by their corresponding projects, even though state-of-art calling methods were employed. On the other hand, copy number losses are found directly from HapMap microarray data by an accurate algorithm, i.e. CNVhac, almost all of which have lower read mapping depth in NGS data; furthermore, 88% of which can be supported by the sequences with breakpoint in NGS data. Our results suggest the ability of microarray calling CNVs and the possible introduction of false negatives from the unessential requirement of the additional cross-platform supporting. The inconsistency of CNV reports from Hapmap Project and 1000 Genomes Project might result from the inadequate information containing in microarray data, the inconsistent detection criteria, or the filtration effect of cross-platform supporting. The statistical test on CNVs called from CNVhac show that the microarray data can offer reliable CNV reports, and majority of CNV candidates can be confirmed by raw sequences. Therefore, the CNV candidates given by a good caller could be highly reliable without cross-platform supporting, so additional experimental information should be applied in need instead of necessarily.

Deep Lake Explorer: Bringing citizen scientists to the underwater world of the Great Lakes

EPA Science Inventory

Deep Lake Explorer is a web application hosted on the Zooniverse platform that allows the public to interpret underwater video collected in the Great Lakes. Crowdsourcing image interpretation using the Zooniverse platform has proven successful for many projects, but few projects ...

Evaluation of Variable Refrigerant Flow Systems Performance on Oak Ridge National Laboratory s Flexible Research Platform: Part 3 Simulation Analysis

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Im, Piljae; Cho, Heejin; Kim, Dongsu

2016-08-01

This report provides second-year project simulation results for the multi-year project titled “Evaluation of Variable Refrigeration Flow (VRF) system on Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)’s Flexible Research Platform (FRP).”

Development of a Modular Research Platform to Create Medical Observational Studies for Mobile Devices.

PubMed

Zens, Martin; Grotejohann, Birgit; Tassoni, Adrian; Duttenhoefer, Fabian; Südkamp, Norbert P; Niemeyer, Philipp

2017-05-23

Observational studies have proven to be a valuable resource in medical research, especially when performed on a large scale. Recently, mobile device-based observational studies have been discovered by an increasing number of researchers as a promising new source of information. However, the development and deployment of app-based studies is not trivial and requires profound programming skills. The aim of this project was to develop a modular online research platform that allows researchers to create medical studies for mobile devices without extensive programming skills. The platform approach for a modular research platform consists of three major components. A Web-based platform forms the researchers' main workplace. This platform communicates via a shared database with a platform independent mobile app. Furthermore, a separate Web-based login platform for physicians and other health care professionals is outlined and completes the concept. A prototype of the research platform has been developed and is currently in beta testing. Simple questionnaire studies can be created within minutes and published for testing purposes. Screenshots of an example study are provided, and the general working principle is displayed. In this project, we have created a basis for a novel research platform. The necessity and implications of a modular approach were displayed and an outline for future development given. International researchers are invited and encouraged to participate in this ongoing project. ©Martin Zens, Birgit Grotejohann, Adrian Tassoni, Fabian Duttenhoefer, Norbert P Südkamp, Philipp Niemeyer. Originally published in JMIR Research Protocols (http://www.researchprotocols.org), 23.05.2017.

Integrated vehicle-based safety systems (IVBSS) : light vehicle platform field operational test data analysis plan.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2009-12-22

This document presents the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institutes plan to : perform analysis of data collected from the light vehicle platform field operational test of the : Integrated Vehicle-Based Safety Systems (IVBSS) progr...

Integrated Proteomic Approaches for Understanding Toxicity of Environmental Chemicals

EPA Science Inventory

To apply quantitative proteomic analysis to the evaluation of toxicity of environmental chemicals, we have developed an integrated proteomic technology platform. This platform has been applied to the analysis of the toxic effects and pathways of many important environmental chemi...

Integrated vehicle-based safety systems (IVBSS) : heavy truck platform field operational test data analysis plan.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2009-11-23

This document presents the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institutes plan to perform : analysis of data collected from the heavy truck platform field operational test of the Integrated Vehicle- : Based Safety Systems (IVBSS) progra...

JBioWH: an open-source Java framework for bioinformatics data integration

PubMed Central

Vera, Roberto; Perez-Riverol, Yasset; Perez, Sonia; Ligeti, Balázs; Kertész-Farkas, Attila; Pongor, Sándor

2013-01-01

The Java BioWareHouse (JBioWH) project is an open-source platform-independent programming framework that allows a user to build his/her own integrated database from the most popular data sources. JBioWH can be used for intensive querying of multiple data sources and the creation of streamlined task-specific data sets on local PCs. JBioWH is based on a MySQL relational database scheme and includes JAVA API parser functions for retrieving data from 20 public databases (e.g. NCBI, KEGG, etc.). It also includes a client desktop application for (non-programmer) users to query data. In addition, JBioWH can be tailored for use in specific circumstances, including the handling of massive queries for high-throughput analyses or CPU intensive calculations. The framework is provided with complete documentation and application examples and it can be downloaded from the Project Web site at http://code.google.com/p/jbiowh. A MySQL server is available for demonstration purposes at hydrax.icgeb.trieste.it:3307. Database URL: http://code.google.com/p/jbiowh PMID:23846595

Electrophysiological signal analysis and visualization using Cloudwave for epilepsy clinical research.

PubMed

Jayapandian, Catherine P; Chen, Chien-Hung; Bozorgi, Alireza; Lhatoo, Samden D; Zhang, Guo-Qiang; Sahoo, Satya S

2013-01-01

Epilepsy is the most common serious neurological disorder affecting 50-60 million persons worldwide. Electrophysiological data recordings, such as electroencephalogram (EEG), are the gold standard for diagnosis and pre-surgical evaluation in epilepsy patients. The increasing trend towards multi-center clinical studies require signal visualization and analysis tools to support real time interaction with signal data in a collaborative environment, which cannot be supported by traditional desktop-based standalone applications. As part of the Prevention and Risk Identification of SUDEP Mortality (PRISM) project, we have developed a Web-based electrophysiology data visualization and analysis platform called Cloudwave using highly scalable open source cloud computing infrastructure. Cloudwave is integrated with the PRISM patient cohort identification tool called MEDCIS (Multi-modality Epilepsy Data Capture and Integration System). The Epilepsy and Seizure Ontology (EpSO) underpins both Cloudwave and MEDCIS to support query composition and result retrieval. Cloudwave is being used by clinicians and research staff at the University Hospital - Case Medical Center (UH-CMC) Epilepsy Monitoring Unit (EMU) and will be progressively deployed at four EMUs in the United States and the United Kingdomas part of the PRISM project.

JBioWH: an open-source Java framework for bioinformatics data integration.

PubMed

Vera, Roberto; Perez-Riverol, Yasset; Perez, Sonia; Ligeti, Balázs; Kertész-Farkas, Attila; Pongor, Sándor

2013-01-01

The Java BioWareHouse (JBioWH) project is an open-source platform-independent programming framework that allows a user to build his/her own integrated database from the most popular data sources. JBioWH can be used for intensive querying of multiple data sources and the creation of streamlined task-specific data sets on local PCs. JBioWH is based on a MySQL relational database scheme and includes JAVA API parser functions for retrieving data from 20 public databases (e.g. NCBI, KEGG, etc.). It also includes a client desktop application for (non-programmer) users to query data. In addition, JBioWH can be tailored for use in specific circumstances, including the handling of massive queries for high-throughput analyses or CPU intensive calculations. The framework is provided with complete documentation and application examples and it can be downloaded from the Project Web site at http://code.google.com/p/jbiowh. A MySQL server is available for demonstration purposes at hydrax.icgeb.trieste.it:3307. Database URL: http://code.google.com/p/jbiowh.

The PartnerWeb Project: a component-based approach to enterprise-wide information integration and dissemination.

PubMed Central

Karson, T. H.; Perkins, C.; Dixon, C.; Ehresman, J. P.; Mammone, G. L.; Sato, L.; Schaffer, J. L.; Greenes, R. A.

1997-01-01

A component-based health information resource, delivered on an intranet and the Internet, utilizing World Wide Web (WWW) technology, has been built to meet the needs of a large integrated delivery network (IDN). Called PartnerWeb, this resource is intended to provide a variety of health care and reference information to both practitioners and consumers/patients. The initial target audience has been providers. Content management for the numerous departments, divisions, and other organizational entities within the IDN is accomplished by a distributed authoring and editing environment. Structured entry using a set of form tools into databases facilitates consistency of information presentation, while empowering designated authors and editors in the various entities to be responsible for their own materials, but not requiring them to be technically skilled. Each form tool manages an encapsulated component. The output of each component can be a dynamically generated display on WWW platforms, or an appropriate interface to other presentation environments. The PartnerWeb project lays the foundation for both an internal and external communication infrastructure for the enterprise that can facilitate information dissemination. PMID:9357648

XML-based scripting of multimodality image presentations in multidisciplinary clinical conferences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ratib, Osman M.; Allada, Vivekanand; Dahlbom, Magdalena; Marcus, Phillip; Fine, Ian; Lapstra, Lorelle

2002-05-01

We developed a multi-modality image presentation software for display and analysis of images and related data from different imaging modalities. The software is part of a cardiac image review and presentation platform that supports integration of digital images and data from digital and analog media such as videotapes, analog x-ray films and 35 mm cine films. The software supports standard DICOM image files as well as AVI and PDF data formats. The system is integrated in a digital conferencing room that includes projections of digital and analog sources, remote videoconferencing capabilities, and an electronic whiteboard. The goal of this pilot project is to: 1) develop a new paradigm for image and data management for presentation in a clinically meaningful sequence adapted to case-specific scenarios, 2) design and implement a multi-modality review and conferencing workstation using component technology and customizable 'plug-in' architecture to support complex review and diagnostic tasks applicable to all cardiac imaging modalities and 3) develop an XML-based scripting model of image and data presentation for clinical review and decision making during routine clinical tasks and multidisciplinary clinical conferences.

Data Flow Infrastructure Initiative (DFII): Coupling Inventory Practices and Data collection Technology to Enhance Research Productivity and Information Access

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meyer, K.; Malin, R.; Rich, R. L.; Pierce, S. A.

2011-12-01

Shortening the cycle from data collection to research publications is a competitive advantage for researchers. Existing technologies for inventory systems such as UPC barcoding systems can be coupled with flexible mobile or handheld devices to advance efficiency, productivity, automation, and integrity in data flows, from data collection to sample processing to database management and analysis, and finally publication. At the University of Texas, the Data Flow Infrastructure Initiative (DFII) has introduced handheld devices with integrated barcode scanners as a mechanism to enhance research productivity and information access. These devices are established technology and provide a flexible but consistent platform for research data collection and data management. They are not in widespread use yet in the research community. Additional application benefits will accrue by using handheld devices to deliver data on demand in teaching applications. Introducing research scientists, graduate students, and the UT community to the merits and flexibility of these data collection technologies will provide avenues for innovation as well as improving efficiency. The objective of this project is to bring the technology and expertise with handheld systems to a diverse set of pilot projects and establish proficiency at The University of Texas at Austin necessary for widespread application. We have implemented a pilot project in three research labs covering the fields of microbial ecology, water resources decision support, and biogeochemistry to introduce these technologies. We used NautizX5 handheld devices that feature: barcode scanning, bluetooth, stylus, and keypad data inputs coupled with Pendragon Forms Software, a program that allows users to create custom data collection forms structured into an SQL or Access platform thus allowing concurrent data management, data collection and analysis in field and lab settings. Results include the elimination of most manual data entry, reducing data entry error, tracking effectiveness at data collection, and increased sampling efficiency and consistency over multi-year experiments.

Climate Change Tower Integrated Project (CCT-IP) A scientific platform to investigate processes at the surface and in the low troposphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vitale, Vito; Udisti, Roberto

2010-05-01

V.Vitale, R.Udisti, A.Viola, S.Argentini, M.Nardino, C.Lanconelli, M. Mazzola, T.Georgiadis, R.Salvatori, A.Ianniello, C.Turetta, C.Barbante, F.Spataro, M.Valt, F.Cairo, L.Diliberto, S.Becagli, R.Sparapani, R. Casacchia ************************************************************************ To improve parameterization and reduce uncertainties in climate models, experimental measurements are needed to deep the knowledge on the complex physico-chemical process that characterize the Arctic troposphere and the air-sea-land interaction. Svalbard Islands, located at the northernmost margin of the southern warm current of the Atlantic Ocean, lies in an ideal position to study the combined effects of climate change affecting the atmosphere, as well as the ocean and land. Furthermore, Ny-Ålesund represents a unique site, where international cooperation among countries can allow the monitoring of a greater number of key parameters of the Arctic physical and chemical systems. Based on these remarks, since 2008, CNR Earth and Environment Department sustained and funded the Climate Change Integrate Project ( CCT-IP) in the Kongsfjorden area, aiming to setup a scientific platform at the Italian station "Dirigibile Italia", in Ny Alesund. This platform will be able to complement research activities provided by other national (MIUR-PRIN07) and international research programs. In the framework of this project, it was planned obtaining a comprehensive data set of physical and chemical atmospheric parameters, useful to determine all components of the energy budget at the surface, their temporal variations, and role played by different processes involving air, aerosol, snow, ice and land (permafrost and vegetation). Key element of such platform is the new 32 m high Admundsen-Nobile Climate Change Tower (CCT) that will allow to deeply investigate energy budget and the atmospheric boundary layer dynamics and exchange fluxes (heat, momentum, chemical substances) at the surface. A first set of instruments to measure the radiation balance, surface albedo, the vertical profile of meteorological parameters and the heat flux at the air -snow interface has been installed in September 2009. The on-site measurements are continously running and the data are sent in Italy via a internet connection and stored in a comprehensive database A six months intensive field campaign will start in March 2010 to measure physical characteristics and chemical composition of the aerosol and snow, the down and upwelling mass fluxes of aerosols and gaseous substances and short-lived pollutants (SLPs). These measurements will improve our knowledge on the processes controlling sources, transport processes and atmospheric transformation of chemical compound in snow and aerosol, useful as environmental and climatic marker, and will highlight the importance of local surface processes with respect of large scale transport processes.

Exploration and implementation of ontology-based cultural relic knowledge map integration platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Weiqiang; Dong, Yiqiang

2018-05-01

To help designers to better carry out creative design and improve the ability of searching traditional cultural relic information, the ontology-based knowledge map construction method was explored and an integrated platform for cultural relic knowledge map was developed. First of all, the construction method of the ontology of cultural relics was put forward, and the construction of the knowledge map of cultural relics was completed based on the constructed cultural relic otology. Then, a personalized semantic retrieval framework for creative design was proposed. Finally, the integrated platform of the knowledge map of cultural relics was designed and realized. The platform was divided into two parts. One was the foreground display system, which was used for designers to search and browse cultural relics. The other was the background management system, which was for cultural experts to manage cultural relics' knowledge. The research results showed that the platform designed could improve the retrieval ability of cultural relic information. To sum up, the platform can provide a good support for the designer's creative design.

Linking earth science informatics resources into uninterrupted digital value chains

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Woodcock, Robert; Angreani, Rini; Cox, Simon; Fraser, Ryan; Golodoniuc, Pavel; Klump, Jens; Rankine, Terry; Robertson, Jess; Vote, Josh

2015-04-01

The CSIRO Mineral Resources Flagship was established to tackle medium- to long-term challenges facing the Australian mineral industry across the value chain from exploration and mining through mineral processing within the framework of an economically, environmentally and socially sustainable minerals industry. This broad portfolio demands collaboration and data exchange with a broad range of participants and data providers across government, research and industry. It is an ideal environment to link geoscience informatics platforms to application across the resource extraction industry and to unlock the value of data integration between traditionally discrete parts of the minerals digital value chain. Despite the potential benefits, data integration remains an elusive goal within research and industry. Many projects use only a subset of available data types in an integrated manner, often maintaining the traditional discipline-based data 'silos'. Integrating data across the entire minerals digital value chain is an expensive proposition involving multiple disciplines and, significantly, multiple data sources both internal and external to any single organisation. Differing vocabularies and data formats, along with access regimes to appropriate analysis software and equipment all hamper the sharing and exchange of information. AuScope has addressed the challenge of data exchange across organisations nationally, and established a national geosciences information infrastructure using open standards-based web services. Federated across a wide variety of organisations, the resulting infrastructure contains a wide variety of live and updated data types. The community data standards and infrastructure platforms that underpin AuScope provide important new datasets and multi-agency links independent of software and hardware differences. AuScope has thus created an infrastructure, a platform of technologies and the opportunity for new ways of working with and integrating disparate data at much lower cost. An early example of this approach is the value generated by combining geological and metallurgical data sets as part of the rapidly growing field of geometallurgy. This not only provides a far better understanding of the impact of geological variability on ore processing but also leads to new thinking on the types and characteristics of data sets collected at various stages of the exploration and mining process. The Minerals Resources Flagship is linking its research activities to the AuScope infrastructure, exploiting the technology internally to create a platform for integrated research across the minerals value chain and improved interaction with industry. Referred to as the 'Early Access Virtual Lab', the system will be fully interoperable with AuScope and international infrastructures using open standards like GeosciML. Secured access is provided to allow confidential collaboration with industry when required. This presentation will discuss how the CSIRO Mineral Resources Flagship is building on the AuScope infrastructure to transform the way that data and data products are identified, shared, integrated, and reused, to unlock the benefits of true integration of research efforts across the minerals digital value chain.

Efficient Parallel Engineering Computing on Linux Workstations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lou, John Z.

2010-01-01

A C software module has been developed that creates lightweight processes (LWPs) dynamically to achieve parallel computing performance in a variety of engineering simulation and analysis applications to support NASA and DoD project tasks. The required interface between the module and the application it supports is simple, minimal and almost completely transparent to the user applications, and it can achieve nearly ideal computing speed-up on multi-CPU engineering workstations of all operating system platforms. The module can be integrated into an existing application (C, C++, Fortran and others) either as part of a compiled module or as a dynamically linked library (DLL).

Analysis pipelines and packages for Infinium HumanMethylation450 BeadChip (450k) data

PubMed Central

Morris, Tiffany J.; Beck, Stephan

2015-01-01

The Illumina HumanMethylation450 BeadChip has become a popular platform for interrogating DNA methylation in epigenome-wide association studies (EWAS) and related projects as well as resource efforts such as the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) and the International Human Epigenome Consortium (IHEC). This has resulted in an exponential increase of 450k data in recent years and triggered the development of numerous integrated analysis pipelines and stand-alone packages. This review will introduce and discuss the currently most popular pipelines and packages and is particularly aimed at new 450k users. PMID:25233806

Interactive target tracking for persistent wide-area surveillance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ersoy, Ilker; Palaniappan, Kannappan; Seetharaman, Guna S.; Rao, Raghuveer M.

2012-06-01

Persistent aerial surveillance is an emerging technology that can provide continuous, wide-area coverage from an aircraft-based multiple-camera system. Tracking targets in these data sets is challenging for vision algorithms due to large data (several terabytes), very low frame rate, changing viewpoint, strong parallax and other imperfections due to registration and projection. Providing an interactive system for automated target tracking also has additional challenges that require online algorithms that are seamlessly integrated with interactive visualization tools to assist the user. We developed an algorithm that overcomes these challenges and demonstrated it on data obtained from a wide-area imaging platform.

Control and Non-Payload Communications (CNPC) Prototype Radio - Generation 2 Security Architecture Lab Test Report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Iannicca, Dennis C.; McKim, James H.; Stewart, David H.; Thadhani, Suresh K.; Young, Daniel P.

2015-01-01

NASA Glenn Research Center, in cooperation with Rockwell Collins, is working to develop a prototype Control and Non-Payload Communications (CNPC) radio platform as part of NASA Integrated Systems Research Program's (ISRP) Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Integration in the National Airspace System (NAS) project. A primary focus of the project is to work with the FAA and industry standards bodies to build and demonstrate a safe, secure, and efficient CNPC architecture that can be used by industry to evaluate the feasibility of deploying a system using these technologies in an operational capacity. GRC has been working in conjunction with these groups to assess threats, identify security requirements, and to develop a system of standards-based security controls that can be applied to the current GRC prototype CNPC architecture as a demonstration platform. The security controls were integrated into a lab test bed mock-up of the Mobile IPv6 architecture currently being used for NASA flight testing, and a series of network tests were conducted to evaluate the security overhead of the controls compared to the baseline CNPC link without any security. The aim of testing was to evaluate the performance impact of the additional security control overhead when added to the Mobile IPv6 architecture in various modes of operation. The statistics collected included packet captures at points along the path to gauge packet size as the sample data traversed the CNPC network, round trip latency, jitter, and throughput. The effort involved a series of tests of the baseline link, a link with Robust Header Compression (ROHC) and without security controls, a link with security controls and without ROHC, and finally a link with both ROHC and security controls enabled. The effort demonstrated that ROHC is both desirable and necessary to offset the additional expected overhead of applying security controls to the CNPC link.

Get Networked and Spy Your Languages

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rico, Mercedes; Ferreira, Paula; Dominguez, Eva M.; Coppens, Julian

2012-01-01

Our proposal describes ISPY, a multilateral European K2 language project based on the development of an Online Networking Platform for Language Learning (http://www.ispy-project.com/). Supported by the Lifelong Learning European Programme, the platform aims to help young adults across Europe, secondary and vocational school programs, learn a new…

Operational integration in primary health care: patient encounters and workflows.

PubMed

Sifaki-Pistolla, Dimitra; Chatzea, Vasiliki-Eirini; Markaki, Adelais; Kritikos, Kyriakos; Petelos, Elena; Lionis, Christos

2017-11-29

Despite several countrywide attempts to strengthen and standardise the primary healthcare (PHC) system, Greece is still lacking a sustainable, policy-based model of integrated services. The aim of our study was to identify operational integration levels through existing patient care pathways and to recommend an alternative PHC model for optimum integration. The study was part of a large state-funded project, which included 22 randomly selected PHC units located across two health regions of Greece. Dimensions of operational integration in PHC were selected based on the work of Kringos and colleagues. A five-point Likert-type scale, coupled with an algorithm, was used to capture and transform theoretical framework features into measurable attributes. PHC services were grouped under the main categories of chronic care, urgent/acute care, preventive care, and home care. A web-based platform was used to assess patient pathways, evaluate integration levels and propose improvement actions. Analysis relied on a comparison of actual pathways versus optimal, the latter ones having been identified through literature review. Overall integration varied among units. The majority (57%) of units corresponded to a basic level. Integration by type of PHC service ranged as follows: basic (86%) or poor (14%) for chronic care units, poor (78%) or basic (22%) for urgent/acute care units, basic (50%) for preventive care units, and partial or basic (50%) for home care units. The actual pathways across all four categories of PHC services differed from those captured in the optimum integration model. Certain similarities were observed in the operational flows between chronic care management and urgent/acute care management. Such similarities were present at the highest level of abstraction, but also in common steps along the operational flows. Existing patient care pathways were mapped and analysed, and recommendations for an optimum integration PHC model were made. The developed web platform, based on a strong theoretical framework, can serve as a robust integration evaluation tool. This could be a first step towards restructuring and improving PHC services within a financially restrained environment.

System engineering at the MEGARA project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pérez-Calpena, A.; García-Vargas, María. Luisa; Gil de Paz, A.; Gallego Maestro, J.; Carrasco Licea, E.; Sánchez Moreno, F.; Iglesias-Páramo, J.

2014-08-01

MEGARA (Multi-Espectrógrafo en GTC de Alta Resolución para Astronomía) is a facility instrument of the 10.4m GTC (La Palma, Spain) working at optical wavelengths that provides both Integral-Field Unit (IFU) and Multi- Object Spectrograph (MOS) capabilities at resolutions in the range R=6,000-20,000. The MEGARA focal plane subsystems are located at one of the GTC focal stations, while the MEGARA refractive VPH based spectrograph is located at one of the Nasmyth platforms. The fiber bundles conduct the light from the focal plane subsystems to the pseudo-slits at the entrance of the spectrograph. The project is an initiative led by Universidad Complutense de Madrid (Spain) in collaboration with INAOE (Mexico), IAA-CSIC (Spain) and Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (Spain) and is developed under contract with GRANTECAN. The project is carried out by a multidisciplinary and geographically distributed team, which includes the in-kind contributions of the project partners and personnel from several private companies. The MEGARA system-engineering plan has been tailored to the project and is being applied to ensure the technical control of the project in order to finally meet the science high-level requirements and GTC constrains.

Crossing Science-Policy-Societal Boundaries to Reduce Scientific and Institutional Uncertainty in Small-Scale Fisheries.

PubMed

Sutton, Abigail M; Rudd, Murray A

2016-10-01

The governance of small-scale fisheries (SSF) is challenging due to the uncertainty, complexity, and interconnectedness of social, political, ecological, and economical processes. Conventional SSF management has focused on a centralized and top-down approach. A major criticism of conventional management is the over-reliance on 'expert science' to guide decision-making and poor consideration of fishers' contextually rich knowledge. That is thought to exacerbate the already low governance potential of SSF. Integrating scientific knowledge with fishers' knowledge is increasingly popular and is often assumed to help reduce levels of biophysical and institutional uncertainties. Many projects aimed at encouraging knowledge integration have, however, been unsuccessful. Our objective in this research was to assess factors that influence knowledge integration and the uptake of integrated knowledge into policy-making. We report results from 54 semi-structured interviews with SSF researchers and practitioners from around the globe. Our analysis is framed in terms of scientific credibility, societal legitimacy, and policy saliency, and we discuss cases that have been partially or fully successful in reducing uncertainty via push-and-pull-oriented boundary crossing initiatives. Our findings suggest that two important factors affect the science-policy-societal boundary: a lack of consensus among stakeholders about what constitutes credible knowledge and institutional uncertainty resulting from shifting policies and leadership change. A lack of training for scientific leaders and an apparent 'shelf-life' for community organizations highlight the importance of ongoing institutional support for knowledge integration projects. Institutional support may be enhanced through such investments, such as capacity building and specialized platforms for knowledge integration.

Crossing Science-Policy-Societal Boundaries to Reduce Scientific and Institutional Uncertainty in Small-Scale Fisheries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sutton, Abigail M.; Rudd, Murray A.

2016-10-01

The governance of small-scale fisheries (SSF) is challenging due to the uncertainty, complexity, and interconnectedness of social, political, ecological, and economical processes. Conventional SSF management has focused on a centralized and top-down approach. A major criticism of conventional management is the over-reliance on `expert science' to guide decision-making and poor consideration of fishers' contextually rich knowledge. That is thought to exacerbate the already low governance potential of SSF. Integrating scientific knowledge with fishers' knowledge is increasingly popular and is often assumed to help reduce levels of biophysical and institutional uncertainties. Many projects aimed at encouraging knowledge integration have, however, been unsuccessful. Our objective in this research was to assess factors that influence knowledge integration and the uptake of integrated knowledge into policy-making. We report results from 54 semi-structured interviews with SSF researchers and practitioners from around the globe. Our analysis is framed in terms of scientific credibility, societal legitimacy, and policy saliency, and we discuss cases that have been partially or fully successful in reducing uncertainty via push-and-pull-oriented boundary crossing initiatives. Our findings suggest that two important factors affect the science-policy-societal boundary: a lack of consensus among stakeholders about what constitutes credible knowledge and institutional uncertainty resulting from shifting policies and leadership change. A lack of training for scientific leaders and an apparent `shelf-life' for community organizations highlight the importance of ongoing institutional support for knowledge integration projects. Institutional support may be enhanced through such investments, such as capacity building and specialized platforms for knowledge integration.

Open Software Tools Applied to Jordan's National Multi-Agent Water Management Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knox, Stephen; Meier, Philipp; Harou, Julien; Yoon, Jim; Selby, Philip; Lachaut, Thibaut; Klassert, Christian; Avisse, Nicolas; Khadem, Majed; Tilmant, Amaury; Gorelick, Steven

2016-04-01

Jordan is the fourth most water scarce country in the world, where demand exceeds supply in a politically and demographically unstable context. The Jordan Water Project (JWP) aims to perform policy evaluation by modelling the hydrology, economics, and governance of Jordan's water resource system. The multidisciplinary nature of the project requires a modelling software system capable of integrating submodels from multiple disciplines into a single decision making process and communicating results to stakeholders. This requires a tool for building an integrated model and a system where diverse data sets can be managed and visualised. The integrated Jordan model is built using Pynsim, an open-source multi-agent simulation framework implemented in Python. Pynsim operates on network structures of nodes and links and supports institutional hierarchies, where an institution represents a grouping of nodes, links or other institutions. At each time step, code within each node, link and institution can executed independently, allowing for their fully autonomous behaviour. Additionally, engines (sub-models) perform actions over the entire network or on a subset of the network, such as taking a decision on a set of nodes. Pynsim is modular in design, allowing distinct modules to be modified easily without affecting others. Data management and visualisation is performed using Hydra (www.hydraplatform.org), an open software platform allowing users to manage network structure and data. The Hydra data manager connects to Pynsim, providing necessary input parameters for the integrated model. By providing a high-level portal to the model, Hydra removes a barrier between the users of the model (researchers, stakeholders, planners etc) and the model itself, allowing them to manage data, run the model and visualise results all through a single user interface. Pynsim's ability to represent institutional hierarchies, inter-network communication and the separation of node, link and institutional logic from higher level processes (engine) suit JWP's requirements. The use of Hydra Platform and Pynsim helps make complex customised models such as the JWP model easier to run and manage with international groups of researchers.

Integrated Metamaterials and Nanophotonics in CMOS-Compatible Materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reshef, Orad

This thesis explores scalable nanophotonic devices in integrated, CMOS-compatible platforms. Our investigation focuses on two main projects: studying the material properties of integrated titanium dioxide (TiO2), and studying integrated metamaterials in silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technologies. We first describe the nanofabrication process for TiO2 photonic integrated circuits. We use this procedure to demonstrate polycrystalline anatase TiO2 ring resonators with high quality factors. We measure the thermo-optic coefficient of TiO2 and determine that it is negative, a unique property among CMOS-compatible dielectric photonic platforms. We also derive a transfer function for ring resonators in the presence of reflections and demonstrate using full-wave simulations that these reflections produce asymmetries in the resonances. For the second half of the dissertation, we design and demonstrate an SOI-based photonic-Dirac-cone metamaterial. Using a prism composed of this metamaterial, we measure its index of refraction and unambiguously determine that it is zero. Next, we take a single channel of this metamaterial to form a waveguide. Using interferometry, we independently confirm that the waveguide in this configuration preserves the dispersion profile of the aggregate medium, with a zero phase advance. We also characterize the waveguide, determining its propagation loss. Finally, we perform simulations to study nonlinear optical phenomena in zero-index media. We find that an isotropic refractive index near zero relaxes certain phase-matching constraints, allowing for more flexible configurations of nonlinear devices with dramatically reduced footprints. The outcomes of this work enable higher quality fabrication of scalable nanophotonic devices for use in nonlinear applications with passive temperature compensation. These devices are CMOS-compatible and can be integrated vertically for compact, device-dense industrial applications. It also provides access to a versatile, scalable and integrated medium with a refractive index that can be continuously engineered between n = -0.20 and n = +0.50. This opens the door to applications in high-precision interferometry, sensing, quantum information technologies and compact nonlinear applications.

Integrated microfluidic platforms for investigating neuronal networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Hyung Joon

This dissertation describes the development and application of integrated microfluidics-based assay platforms to study neuronal activities in the nervous system in-vitro. The assay platforms were fabricated using soft lithography and micro/nano fabrication including microfluidics, surface patterning, and nanomaterial synthesis. The use of integrated microfluidics-based assay platform allows culturing and manipulating many types of neuronal tissues in precisely controlled microenvironment. Furthermore, they provide organized multi-cellular in-vitro model, long-term monitoring with live cell imaging, and compatibility with molecular biology techniques and electrophysiology experiment. In this dissertation, the integrated microfluidics-based assay platforms are developed for investigation of neuronal activities such as local protein synthesis, impairment of axonal transport by chemical/physical variants, growth cone path finding under chemical/physical cues, and synaptic transmission in neuronal circuit. Chapter 1 describes the motivation, objectives, and scope for developing in-vitro platform to study various neuronal activities. Chapter 2 introduces microfluidic culture platform for biochemical assay with large-scale neuronal tissues that are utilized as model system in neuroscience research. Chapter 3 focuses on the investigation of impaired axonal transport by beta-Amyloid and oxidative stress. The platform allows to control neuronal processes and to quantify mitochondrial movement in various regions of axons away from applied drugs. Chapter 4 demonstrates the development of microfluidics-based growth cone turning assay to elucidate the mechanism underlying axon guidance under soluble factors and shear flow. Using this platform, the behaviors of growth cone of mammalian neurons are verified under the gradient of inhibitory molecules and also shear flow in well-controlled manner. In Chapter 5, I combine in-vitro multicellular model with microfabricated MEA (multielectrode array) or nanowire electrode array to study electrophysiology in neuronal network. Also, "diode-like" microgrooves to control the number of neuronal processes is embedded in this platform. Chapter 6 concludes with a possible future direction of this work. Interfacing micro/nanotechnology with primary neuron culture would open many doors in fundamental neuroscience research and also biomedical innovation.

Revel8or: Model Driven Capacity Planning Tool Suite

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhu, Liming; Liu, Yan; Bui, Ngoc B.

2007-05-31

Designing complex multi-tier applications that must meet strict performance requirements is a challenging software engineering problem. Ideally, the application architect could derive accurate performance predictions early in the project life-cycle, leveraging initial application design-level models and a description of the target software and hardware platforms. To this end, we have developed a capacity planning tool suite for component-based applications, called Revel8tor. The tool adheres to the model driven development paradigm and supports benchmarking and performance prediction for J2EE, .Net and Web services platforms. The suite is composed of three different tools: MDAPerf, MDABench and DSLBench. MDAPerf allows annotation of designmore » diagrams and derives performance analysis models. MDABench allows a customized benchmark application to be modeled in the UML 2.0 Testing Profile and automatically generates a deployable application, with measurement automatically conducted. DSLBench allows the same benchmark modeling and generation to be conducted using a simple performance engineering Domain Specific Language (DSL) in Microsoft Visual Studio. DSLBench integrates with Visual Studio and reuses its load testing infrastructure. Together, the tool suite can assist capacity planning across platforms in an automated fashion.« less

A new performance index for the repetitive motion of mobile manipulators.

PubMed

Xiao, Lin; Zhang, Yunong

2014-02-01

A mobile manipulator is a robotic device composed of a mobile platform and a stationary manipulator fixed to the platform. To achieve the repetitive motion control of mobile manipulators, the mobile platform and the manipulator have to realize the repetitive motion simultaneously. To do so, a novel quadratic performance index is, for the first time, designed and presented in this paper, of which the effectiveness is analyzed by following a neural dynamics method. Then, a repetitive motion scheme is proposed by combining the criterion, physical constraints, and integrated kinematical equations of mobile manipulators, which is further reformulated as a quadratic programming (QP) subject to equality and bound constraints. In addition, two important Bridge theorems are established to prove that such a QP can be converted equivalently into a linear variational inequality, and then equivalently into a piecewise-linear projection equation (PLPE). A real-time numerical algorithm based on PLPE is thus developed and applied for the online solution of the resultant QP. Two tracking-path tasks demonstrate the effectiveness and accuracy of the repetitive motion scheme. In addition, comparisons between the nonrepetitive and repetitive motion further validate the superiority and novelty of the proposed scheme.

Ocean Data Interoperability Platform (ODIP): developing a common global framework for marine data management through international collaboration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Glaves, Helen

2015-04-01

Marine research is rapidly moving away from traditional discipline specific science to a wider ecosystem level approach. This more multidisciplinary approach to ocean science requires large amounts of good quality, interoperable data to be readily available for use in an increasing range of new and complex applications. Significant amounts of marine data and information are already available throughout the world as a result of e-infrastructures being established at a regional level to manage and deliver marine data to the end user. However, each of these initiatives has been developed to address specific regional requirements and independently of those in other regions. Establishing a common framework for marine data management on a global scale necessitates that there is interoperability across these existing data infrastructures and active collaboration between the organisations responsible for their management. The Ocean Data Interoperability Platform (ODIP) project is promoting co-ordination between a number of these existing regional e-infrastructures including SeaDataNet and Geo-Seas in Europe, the Integrated Marine Observing System (IMOS) in Australia, the Rolling Deck to Repository (R2R) in the USA and the international IODE initiative. To demonstrate this co-ordinated approach the ODIP project partners are currently working together to develop several prototypes to test and evaluate potential interoperability solutions for solving the incompatibilities between the individual regional marine data infrastructures. However, many of the issues being addressed by the Ocean Data Interoperability Platform are not specific to marine science. For this reason many of the outcomes of this international collaborative effort are equally relevant and transferable to other domains.

Ultra-Low Loss Waveguides with Application to Photonic Integrated Circuits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bauters, Jared F.

The integration of photonic components using a planar platform promises advantages in cost, size, weight, and power consumption for optoelectronic systems. Yet, the typical propagation loss of 5-10 dB/m in a planar silica waveguide is nearly five orders-of-magnitude larger than that in low loss optical fibers. For some applications, the miniaturization of the photonic system and resulting smaller propagation lengths from integration are enough to overcome the increase in propagation loss. For other more demanding systems or applications, such as those requiring long optical time delays or high-quality-factor (Q factor) resonators, the high propagation loss can degrade system performance to a degree that trumps the potential advantages offered by integration. Thus, the reduction of planar waveguide propagation loss in a Si3-N4 based waveguide platform is a primary focus of this dissertation. The ultra-low loss stoichiometric Si3-N4 waveguide platform offers the additional advantages of fabrication process stability and repeatability. Yet, active devices such as lasers, amplifiers, and photodetectors have not been monolithically integrated with ultra-low loss waveguides due to the incompatibility of the active and ultra-low loss processing thermal budgets (ultra-low loss waveguides are annealed at temperatures exceeding 1000 °C in order to drive out impurities). So a platform that enables the integration of active devices with the ultra-low losses of the Si3- N4 waveguide platform is this dissertation's second focus. The work enables the future fabrication of sensor, gyroscope, true time delay, and low phase noise oscillator photonic integrated circuits.

Sensor Management for Applied Research Technologies (SMART)-On Demand Modeling (ODM) Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goodman, M.; Blakeslee, R.; Hood, R.; Jedlovec, G.; Botts, M.; Li, X.

2006-01-01

NASA requires timely on-demand data and analysis capabilities to enable practical benefits of Earth science observations. However, a significant challenge exists in accessing and integrating data from multiple sensors or platforms to address Earth science problems because of the large data volumes, varying sensor scan characteristics, unique orbital coverage, and the steep learning curve associated with each sensor and data type. The development of sensor web capabilities to autonomously process these data streams (whether real-time or archived) provides an opportunity to overcome these obstacles and facilitate the integration and synthesis of Earth science data and weather model output. A three year project, entitled Sensor Management for Applied Research Technologies (SMART) - On Demand Modeling (ODM), will develop and demonstrate the readiness of Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) Sensor Web Enablement (SWE) capabilities that integrate both Earth observations and forecast model output into new data acquisition and assimilation strategies. The advancement of SWE-enabled systems (i.e., use of SensorML, sensor planning services - SPS, sensor observation services - SOS, sensor alert services - SAS and common observation model protocols) will have practical and efficient uses in the Earth science community for enhanced data set generation, real-time data assimilation with operational applications, and for autonomous sensor tasking for unique data collection.

European security framework for healthcare.

PubMed

Ruotsalainen, Pekka; Pohjonen, Hanna

2003-01-01

eHealth and telemedicine services are promising business areas in Europe. It is clear that eHealth products and services will be sold and ordered from a distance and over national borderlines in the future. However, there are many barriers to overcome. For both national and pan-European eHealth and telemedicine applications a common security framework is needed. These frameworks set security requirements needed for cross-border eHealth services. The next step is to build a security infrastructure which is independent of technical platforms. Most of the European eHealth platforms are regional or territorial. Some countries are looking for a Public Key Infrastructure, but no large scale solutions do exist in healthcare. There is no clear candidate solution for European-wide interoperable eHealth platform. Gross-platform integration seems to be the most practical integration method at a European level in the short run. The use of Internet as a European integration platform is a promising solution in the long run.

Earth Observation-Supported Service Platform for the Development and Provision of Thematic Information on the Built Environment - the Tep-Urban Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Esch, T.; Asamer, H.; Boettcher, M.; Brito, F.; Hirner, A.; Marconcini, M.; Mathot, E.; Metz, A.; Permana, H.; Soukop, T.; Stanek, F.; Kuchar, S.; Zeidler, J.; Balhar, J.

2016-06-01

The Sentinel fleet will provide a so-far unique coverage with Earth observation data and therewith new opportunities for the implementation of methodologies to generate innovative geo-information products and services. It is here where the TEP Urban project is supposed to initiate a step change by providing an open and participatory platform based on modern ICT technologies and services that enables any interested user to easily exploit Earth observation data pools, in particular those of the Sentinel missions, and derive thematic information on the status and development of the built environment from these data. Key component of TEP Urban project is the implementation of a web-based platform employing distributed high-level computing infrastructures and providing key functionalities for i) high-performance access to satellite imagery and derived thematic data, ii) modular and generic state-of-the art pre-processing, analysis, and visualization techniques, iii) customized development and dissemination of algorithms, products and services, and iv) networking and communication. This contribution introduces the main facts about the TEP Urban project, including a description of the general objectives, the platform systems design and functionalities, and the preliminary portfolio products and services available at the TEP Urban platform.

PlanetSense: A Real-time Streaming and Spatio-temporal Analytics Platform for Gathering Geo-spatial Intelligence from Open Source Data

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Thakur, Gautam S; Bhaduri, Budhendra L; Piburn, Jesse O

Geospatial intelligence has traditionally relied on the use of archived and unvarying data for planning and exploration purposes. In consequence, the tools and methods that are architected to provide insight and generate projections only rely on such datasets. Albeit, if this approach has proven effective in several cases, such as land use identification and route mapping, it has severely restricted the ability of researchers to inculcate current information in their work. This approach is inadequate in scenarios requiring real-time information to act and to adjust in ever changing dynamic environments, such as evacuation and rescue missions. In this work, wemore » propose PlanetSense, a platform for geospatial intelligence that is built to harness the existing power of archived data and add to that, the dynamics of real-time streams, seamlessly integrated with sophisticated data mining algorithms and analytics tools for generating operational intelligence on the fly. The platform has four main components i) GeoData Cloud a data architecture for storing and managing disparate datasets; ii) Mechanism to harvest real-time streaming data; iii) Data analytics framework; iv) Presentation and visualization through web interface and RESTful services. Using two case studies, we underpin the necessity of our platform in modeling ambient population and building occupancy at scale.« less

Study on the E-commerce platform based on the agent

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fu, Ruixue; Qin, Lishuan; Gao, Yinmin

2011-10-01

To solve problem of dynamic integration in e-commerce, the Multi-Agent architecture of electronic commerce platform system based on Agent and Ontology has been introduced, which includes three major types of agent, Ontology and rule collection. In this architecture, service agent and rule are used to realize the business process reengineering, the reuse of software component, and agility of the electronic commerce platform. To illustrate the architecture, a simulation work has been done and the results imply that the architecture provides a very efficient method to design and implement the flexible, distributed, open and intelligent electronic commerce platform system to solve problem of dynamic integration in ecommerce. The objective of this paper is to illustrate the architecture of electronic commerce platform system, and the approach how Agent and Ontology support the electronic commerce platform system.

Participatory Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation of Multi-Stakeholder Platforms in Integrated Landscape Initiatives.

PubMed

Kusters, Koen; Buck, Louise; de Graaf, Maartje; Minang, Peter; van Oosten, Cora; Zagt, Roderick

2018-07-01

Integrated landscape initiatives typically aim to strengthen landscape governance by developing and facilitating multi-stakeholder platforms. These are institutional coordination mechanisms that enable discussions, negotiations, and joint planning between stakeholders from various sectors in a given landscape. Multi-stakeholder platforms tend to involve complex processes with diverse actors, whose objectives and focus may be subjected to periodic re-evaluation, revision or reform. In this article we propose a participatory method to aid planning, monitoring, and evaluation of such platforms, and we report on experiences from piloting the method in Ghana and Indonesia. The method is comprised of three components. The first can be used to look ahead, identifying priorities for future multi-stakeholder collaboration in the landscape. It is based on the identification of four aspirations that are common across multi-stakeholder platforms in integrated landscape initiatives. The second can be used to look inward. It focuses on the processes within an existing multi-stakeholder platform in order to identify areas for possible improvement. The third can be used to look back, identifying the main outcomes of an existing platform and comparing them to the original objectives. The three components can be implemented together or separately. They can be used to inform planning and adaptive management of the platform, as well as to demonstrate performance and inform the design of new interventions.

Open Targets: a platform for therapeutic target identification and validation

PubMed Central

Koscielny, Gautier; An, Peter; Carvalho-Silva, Denise; Cham, Jennifer A.; Fumis, Luca; Gasparyan, Rippa; Hasan, Samiul; Karamanis, Nikiforos; Maguire, Michael; Papa, Eliseo; Pierleoni, Andrea; Pignatelli, Miguel; Platt, Theo; Rowland, Francis; Wankar, Priyanka; Bento, A. Patrícia; Burdett, Tony; Fabregat, Antonio; Forbes, Simon; Gaulton, Anna; Gonzalez, Cristina Yenyxe; Hermjakob, Henning; Hersey, Anne; Jupe, Steven; Kafkas, Şenay; Keays, Maria; Leroy, Catherine; Lopez, Francisco-Javier; Magarinos, Maria Paula; Malone, James; McEntyre, Johanna; Munoz-Pomer Fuentes, Alfonso; O'Donovan, Claire; Papatheodorou, Irene; Parkinson, Helen; Palka, Barbara; Paschall, Justin; Petryszak, Robert; Pratanwanich, Naruemon; Sarntivijal, Sirarat; Saunders, Gary; Sidiropoulos, Konstantinos; Smith, Thomas; Sondka, Zbyslaw; Stegle, Oliver; Tang, Y. Amy; Turner, Edward; Vaughan, Brendan; Vrousgou, Olga; Watkins, Xavier; Martin, Maria-Jesus; Sanseau, Philippe; Vamathevan, Jessica; Birney, Ewan; Barrett, Jeffrey; Dunham, Ian

2017-01-01

We have designed and developed a data integration and visualization platform that provides evidence about the association of known and potential drug targets with diseases. The platform is designed to support identification and prioritization of biological targets for follow-up. Each drug target is linked to a disease using integrated genome-wide data from a broad range of data sources. The platform provides either a target-centric workflow to identify diseases that may be associated with a specific target, or a disease-centric workflow to identify targets that may be associated with a specific disease. Users can easily transition between these target- and disease-centric workflows. The Open Targets Validation Platform is accessible at https://www.targetvalidation.org. PMID:27899665

A method and software framework for enriching private biomedical sources with data from public online repositories.

PubMed

Anguita, Alberto; García-Remesal, Miguel; Graf, Norbert; Maojo, Victor

2016-04-01

Modern biomedical research relies on the semantic integration of heterogeneous data sources to find data correlations. Researchers access multiple datasets of disparate origin, and identify elements-e.g. genes, compounds, pathways-that lead to interesting correlations. Normally, they must refer to additional public databases in order to enrich the information about the identified entities-e.g. scientific literature, published clinical trial results, etc. While semantic integration techniques have traditionally focused on providing homogeneous access to private datasets-thus helping automate the first part of the research, and there exist different solutions for browsing public data, there is still a need for tools that facilitate merging public repositories with private datasets. This paper presents a framework that automatically locates public data of interest to the researcher and semantically integrates it with existing private datasets. The framework has been designed as an extension of traditional data integration systems, and has been validated with an existing data integration platform from a European research project by integrating a private biological dataset with data from the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Web Based Projects Enhancing English Language and Generic Skills Development for Asian Hospitality Industry Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Mei-jung

2009-01-01

This study investigated hospitality students' responses toward their learning experiences from undertaking group projects based upon a College web platform, the "Ubiquitous Hospitality English Learning Platform" (U-HELP). Twenty-six students in the Department of Applied Foreign Languages participated in this study. Their attitudes toward…

Encounters with Authority: Tactics and Negotiations at the Periphery of Participatory Platforms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mugar, Gabriel

2017-01-01

Digital participatory platforms like Wikipedia are often celebrated as projects that allow anyone to contribute. Any user can sign up and start contributing immediately. Similarly, projects that engage volunteers in the production of scientific knowledge create easy points of entry to make contributions. These low barriers to entry are a hallmark…

The Undergraduate Student Instrument Project (USIP) - building the STEM workforce by providing exciting, multi-disciplinary, student-led suborbital flight projects.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dingwall, B. J.

2015-12-01

NASA's Science Mission Directorate (SMD) recognizes that suborbital carriers play a vital role in training our country's future science and technology leaders. SMD created the Undergraduate Student Instrument Project (USIP) to offer students the opportunity to design, build, and fly instruments on NASA's unique suborbital research platforms. This paper explores the projects, the impact, and the lessons learned of USIP. USIP required undergraduate teams to design, build, and fly a scientific instrument in 18 months or less. Students were required to form collaborative multidisciplinary teams to design, develop and build their instrument. Teams quickly learned that success required skills often overlooked in an academic environment. Teams quickly learned to share technical information in a clear and concise manner that could be understood by other disciplines. The aggressive schedule required team members to hold each other accountable for progress while maintaining team unity. Unanticipated problems and technical issues led students to a deeper understanding of the need for schedule and cost reserves. Students exited the program with a far deeper understanding of project management and team dynamics. Through the process of designing and building an instrument that will enable new research transforms students from textbook learners to developers of new knowledge. The initial USIP project funded 10 undergraduate teams that flew a broad range of scientific instruments on scientific balloons, sounding rockets, commercial rockets and aircraft. Students were required to prepare for and conduct the major reviews that are an integral part of systems development. Each project conducted a Preliminary Design Review, Critical Design Review and Mission Readiness review for NASA officials and flight platform providers. By preparing and presenting their designs to technical experts, the students developed a deeper understanding of the technical and programmatic project pieces that were necessary for success. A student survey was conducted to assess the impact of USIP. Over 90% of students reported a significant improvement in their technical and project management skills. Perhaps more importantly, 88% of students reported that they have a far better appreciation for the value of multi-disciplinary teams.

Analyzing large scale genomic data on the cloud with Sparkhit

PubMed Central

Huang, Liren; Krüger, Jan

2018-01-01

Abstract Motivation The increasing amount of next-generation sequencing data poses a fundamental challenge on large scale genomic analytics. Existing tools use different distributed computational platforms to scale-out bioinformatics workloads. However, the scalability of these tools is not efficient. Moreover, they have heavy run time overheads when pre-processing large amounts of data. To address these limitations, we have developed Sparkhit: a distributed bioinformatics framework built on top of the Apache Spark platform. Results Sparkhit integrates a variety of analytical methods. It is implemented in the Spark extended MapReduce model. It runs 92–157 times faster than MetaSpark on metagenomic fragment recruitment and 18–32 times faster than Crossbow on data pre-processing. We analyzed 100 terabytes of data across four genomic projects in the cloud in 21 h, which includes the run times of cluster deployment and data downloading. Furthermore, our application on the entire Human Microbiome Project shotgun sequencing data was completed in 2 h, presenting an approach to easily associate large amounts of public datasets with reference data. Availability and implementation Sparkhit is freely available at: https://rhinempi.github.io/sparkhit/. Contact asczyrba@cebitec.uni-bielefeld.de Supplementary information Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. PMID:29253074

Global Health Innovation Technology Models.

PubMed

Harding, Kimberly

2016-01-01

Chronic technology and business process disparities between High Income, Low Middle Income and Low Income (HIC, LMIC, LIC) research collaborators directly prevent the growth of sustainable Global Health innovation for infectious and rare diseases. There is a need for an Open Source-Open Science Architecture Framework to bridge this divide. We are proposing such a framework for consideration by the Global Health community, by utilizing a hybrid approach of integrating agnostic Open Source technology and healthcare interoperability standards and Total Quality Management principles. We will validate this architecture framework through our programme called Project Orchid. Project Orchid is a conceptual Clinical Intelligence Exchange and Virtual Innovation platform utilizing this approach to support clinical innovation efforts for multi-national collaboration that can be locally sustainable for LIC and LMIC research cohorts. The goal is to enable LIC and LMIC research organizations to accelerate their clinical trial process maturity in the field of drug discovery, population health innovation initiatives and public domain knowledge networks. When sponsored, this concept will be tested by 12 confirmed clinical research and public health organizations in six countries. The potential impact of this platform is reduced drug discovery and public health innovation lag time and improved clinical trial interventions, due to reliable clinical intelligence and bio-surveillance across all phases of the clinical innovation process.

Global Health Innovation Technology Models

PubMed Central

Harding, Kimberly

2016-01-01

Chronic technology and business process disparities between High Income, Low Middle Income and Low Income (HIC, LMIC, LIC) research collaborators directly prevent the growth of sustainable Global Health innovation for infectious and rare diseases. There is a need for an Open Source-Open Science Architecture Framework to bridge this divide. We are proposing such a framework for consideration by the Global Health community, by utilizing a hybrid approach of integrating agnostic Open Source technology and healthcare interoperability standards and Total Quality Management principles. We will validate this architecture framework through our programme called Project Orchid. Project Orchid is a conceptual Clinical Intelligence Exchange and Virtual Innovation platform utilizing this approach to support clinical innovation efforts for multi-national collaboration that can be locally sustainable for LIC and LMIC research cohorts. The goal is to enable LIC and LMIC research organizations to accelerate their clinical trial process maturity in the field of drug discovery, population health innovation initiatives and public domain knowledge networks. When sponsored, this concept will be tested by 12 confirmed clinical research and public health organizations in six countries. The potential impact of this platform is reduced drug discovery and public health innovation lag time and improved clinical trial interventions, due to reliable clinical intelligence and bio-surveillance across all phases of the clinical innovation process.

MicroScope—an integrated microbial resource for the curation and comparative analysis of genomic and metabolic data

PubMed Central

Vallenet, David; Belda, Eugeni; Calteau, Alexandra; Cruveiller, Stéphane; Engelen, Stefan; Lajus, Aurélie; Le Fèvre, François; Longin, Cyrille; Mornico, Damien; Roche, David; Rouy, Zoé; Salvignol, Gregory; Scarpelli, Claude; Thil Smith, Adam Alexander; Weiman, Marion; Médigue, Claudine

2013-01-01

MicroScope is an integrated platform dedicated to both the methodical updating of microbial genome annotation and to comparative analysis. The resource provides data from completed and ongoing genome projects (automatic and expert annotations), together with data sources from post-genomic experiments (i.e. transcriptomics, mutant collections) allowing users to perfect and improve the understanding of gene functions. MicroScope (http://www.genoscope.cns.fr/agc/microscope) combines tools and graphical interfaces to analyse genomes and to perform the manual curation of gene annotations in a comparative context. Since its first publication in January 2006, the system (previously named MaGe for Magnifying Genomes) has been continuously extended both in terms of data content and analysis tools. The last update of MicroScope was published in 2009 in the Database journal. Today, the resource contains data for >1600 microbial genomes, of which ∼300 are manually curated and maintained by biologists (1200 personal accounts today). Expert annotations are continuously gathered in the MicroScope database (∼50 000 a year), contributing to the improvement of the quality of microbial genomes annotations. Improved data browsing and searching tools have been added, original tools useful in the context of expert annotation have been developed and integrated and the website has been significantly redesigned to be more user-friendly. Furthermore, in the context of the European project Microme (Framework Program 7 Collaborative Project), MicroScope is becoming a resource providing for the curation and analysis of both genomic and metabolic data. An increasing number of projects are related to the study of environmental bacterial (meta)genomes that are able to metabolize a large variety of chemical compounds that may be of high industrial interest. PMID:23193269

The ARGO Project: assessing NA-TECH risks on off-shore oil platforms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Capuano, Paolo; Basco, Anna; Di Ruocco, Angela; Esposito, Simona; Fusco, Giannetta; Garcia-Aristizabal, Alexander; Mercogliano, Paola; Salzano, Ernesto; Solaro, Giuseppe; Teofilo, Gianvito; Scandone, Paolo; Gasparini, Paolo

2017-04-01

ARGO (Analysis of natural and anthropogenic risks on off-shore oil platforms) is a 2 years project, funded by the DGS-UNMIG (Directorate General for Safety of Mining and Energy Activities - National Mining Office for Hydrocarbons and Georesources) of Italian Ministry of Economic Development. The project, coordinated by AMRA (Center for the Analysis and Monitoring of Environmental Risk), aims at providing technical support for the analysis of natural and anthropogenic risks on offshore oil platforms. In order to achieve this challenging objective, ARGO brings together climate experts, risk management experts, seismologists, geologists, chemical engineers, earth and coastal observation experts. ARGO has developed methodologies for the probabilistic analysis of industrial accidents triggered by natural events (NA-TECH) on offshore oil platforms in the Italian seas, including extreme events related to climate changes. Furthermore the environmental effect of offshore activities has been investigated, including: changes on seismicity and on the evolution of coastal areas close to offshore platforms. Then a probabilistic multi-risk framework has been developed for the analysis of NA-TECH events on offshore installations for hydrocarbon extraction.

Interfaces and Integration of Medical Image Analysis Frameworks: Challenges and Opportunities.

PubMed

Covington, Kelsie; McCreedy, Evan S; Chen, Min; Carass, Aaron; Aucoin, Nicole; Landman, Bennett A

2010-05-25

Clinical research with medical imaging typically involves large-scale data analysis with interdependent software toolsets tied together in a processing workflow. Numerous, complementary platforms are available, but these are not readily compatible in terms of workflows or data formats. Both image scientists and clinical investigators could benefit from using the framework which is a most natural fit to the specific problem at hand, but pragmatic choices often dictate that a compromise platform is used for collaboration. Manual merging of platforms through carefully tuned scripts has been effective, but exceptionally time consuming and is not feasible for large-scale integration efforts. Hence, the benefits of innovation are constrained by platform dependence. Removing this constraint via integration of algorithms from one framework into another is the focus of this work. We propose and demonstrate a light-weight interface system to expose parameters across platforms and provide seamless integration. In this initial effort, we focus on four platforms Medical Image Analysis and Visualization (MIPAV), Java Image Science Toolkit (JIST), command line tools, and 3D Slicer. We explore three case studies: (1) providing a system for MIPAV to expose internal algorithms and utilize these algorithms within JIST, (2) exposing JIST modules through self-documenting command line interface for inclusion in scripting environments, and (3) detecting and using JIST modules in 3D Slicer. We review the challenges and opportunities for light-weight software integration both within development language (e.g., Java in MIPAV and JIST) and across languages (e.g., C/C++ in 3D Slicer and shell in command line tools).

National healthcare information system in Croatian primary care: the foundation for improvement of quality and efficiency in patient care.

PubMed

Gvozdanović, Darko; Koncar, Miroslav; Kojundzić, Vinko; Jezidzić, Hrvoje

2007-01-01

In order to improve the quality of patient care, while at the same time keeping up with the pace of increased needs of the population for healthcare services that directly impacts on the cost of care delivery processes, the Republic of Croatia, under the leadership of the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, has formed a strategy and campaign for national public healthcare system reform. The strategy is very comprehensive and addresses all niches of care delivery processes; it is founded on the enterprise information systems that will aim to support end-to-end business processes in the healthcare domain. Two major requirements are in focus: (1) to provide efficient healthcare-related data management in support of decision-making processes; (2) to support a continuous process of healthcare resource spending optimisation. The first project is the Integrated Healthcare Information System (IHCIS) on the primary care level; this encompasses the integration of all primary point-of-care facilities and subjects with the Croatian Institute for Health Insurance and Croatian National Institute of Public Health. In years to come, IHCIS will serve as the main integration platform for connecting all other stakeholders and levels of health care (that is, hospitals, pharmacies, laboratories) into a single enterprise healthcare network. This article gives an overview of Croatian public healthcare system strategy aims and goals, and focuses on properties and characteristics of the primary care project implementation that started in 2003; it achieved a major milestone in early 2007 - the official grand opening of the project with 350 GPs already fully connected to the integrated healthcare information infrastructure based on the IHCIS solution.

Developing translational research infrastructure and capabilities associated with cancer clinical trials.

PubMed

Hall, Jacqueline A; Brown, Robert

2013-09-27

The integration of molecular information in clinical decision making is becoming a reality. These changes are shaping the way clinical research is conducted, and as reality sets in, the challenges in conducting, managing and organising multi-disciplinary research become apparent. Clinical trials provide a platform to conduct translational research (TR) within the context of high quality clinical data accrual. Integrating TR objectives in trials allows the execution of pivotal studies that provide clinical evidence for biomarker-driven treatment strategies, targeting early drug development trials to a homogeneous and well defined patient population, supports the development of companion diagnostics and provides an opportunity for deepening our understanding of cancer biology and mechanisms of drug action. To achieve these goals within a clinical trial, developing translational research infrastructure and capabilities (TRIC) plays a critical catalytic role for translating preclinical data into successful clinical research and development. TRIC represents a technical platform, dedicated resources and access to expertise promoting high quality standards, logistical and operational support and unified streamlined procedures under an appropriate governance framework. TRIC promotes integration of multiple disciplines including biobanking, laboratory analysis, molecular data, informatics, statistical analysis and dissemination of results which are all required for successful TR projects and scientific progress. Such a supporting infrastructure is absolutely essential in order to promote high quality robust research, avoid duplication and coordinate resources. Lack of such infrastructure, we would argue, is one reason for the limited effect of TR in clinical practice beyond clinical trials.

New concept on an integrated interior magnetic resonance imaging and medical linear accelerator system for radiation therapy

PubMed Central

Jia, Xun; Tian, Zhen; Xi, Yan; Jiang, Steve B.; Wang, Ge

2017-01-01

Abstract. Image guidance plays a critical role in radiotherapy. Currently, cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) is routinely used in clinics for this purpose. While this modality can provide an attenuation image for therapeutic planning, low soft-tissue contrast affects the delineation of anatomical and pathological features. Efforts have recently been devoted to several MRI linear accelerator (LINAC) projects that lead to the successful combination of a full diagnostic MRI scanner with a radiotherapy machine. We present a new concept for the development of the MRI-LINAC system. Instead of combining a full MRI scanner with the LINAC platform, we propose using an interior MRI (iMRI) approach to image a specific region of interest (RoI) containing the radiation treatment target. While the conventional CBCT component still delivers a global image of the patient’s anatomy, the iMRI offers local imaging of high soft-tissue contrast for tumor delineation. We describe a top-level system design for the integration of an iMRI component into an existing LINAC platform. We performed numerical analyses of the magnetic field for the iMRI to show potentially acceptable field properties in a spherical RoI with a diameter of 15 cm. This field could be shielded to a sufficiently low level around the LINAC region to avoid electromagnetic interference. Furthermore, we investigate the dosimetric impacts of this integration on the radiotherapy beam. PMID:28331888

Resilient and Robust High Performance Computing Platforms for Scientific Computing Integrity

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Jin, Yier

As technology advances, computer systems are subject to increasingly sophisticated cyber-attacks that compromise both their security and integrity. High performance computing platforms used in commercial and scientific applications involving sensitive, or even classified data, are frequently targeted by powerful adversaries. This situation is made worse by a lack of fundamental security solutions that both perform efficiently and are effective at preventing threats. Current security solutions fail to address the threat landscape and ensure the integrity of sensitive data. As challenges rise, both private and public sectors will require robust technologies to protect its computing infrastructure. The research outcomes from thismore » project try to address all these challenges. For example, we present LAZARUS, a novel technique to harden kernel Address Space Layout Randomization (KASLR) against paging-based side-channel attacks. In particular, our scheme allows for fine-grained protection of the virtual memory mappings that implement the randomization. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach by hardening a recent Linux kernel with LAZARUS, mitigating all of the previously presented side-channel attacks on KASLR. Our extensive evaluation shows that LAZARUS incurs only 0.943% overhead for standard benchmarks, and is therefore highly practical. We also introduced HA2lloc, a hardware-assisted allocator that is capable of leveraging an extended memory management unit to detect memory errors in the heap. We also perform testing using HA2lloc in a simulation environment and find that the approach is capable of preventing common memory vulnerabilities.« less

Flexible and Stretchable Physical Sensor Integrated Platforms for Wearable Human-Activity Monitoringand Personal Healthcare.

PubMed

Trung, Tran Quang; Lee, Nae-Eung

2016-06-01

Flexible and stretchable physical sensors that can measure and quantify electrical signals generated by human activities are attracting a great deal of attention as they have unique characteristics, such as ultrathinness, low modulus, light weight, high flexibility, and stretchability. These flexible and stretchable physical sensors conformally attached on the surface of organs or skin can provide a new opportunity for human-activity monitoring and personal healthcare. Consequently, in recent years there has been considerable research effort devoted to the development of flexible and stretchable physical sensors to fulfill the requirements of future technology, and much progress has been achieved. Here, the most recent developments of flexible and stretchable physical sensors are described, including temperature, pressure, and strain sensors, and flexible and stretchable sensor-integrated platforms. The latest successful examples of flexible and stretchable physical sensors for the detection of temperature, pressure, and strain, as well as their novel structures, technological innovations, and challenges, are reviewed first. In the next section, recent progress regarding sensor-integrated wearable platforms is overviewed in detail. Some of the latest achievements regarding self-powered sensor-integrated wearable platform technologies are also reviewed. Further research direction and challenges are also proposed to develop a fully sensor-integrated wearable platform for monitoring human activity and personal healthcare in the near future. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Health care transformation through collaboration on open-source informatics projects: integrating a medical applications platform, research data repository, and patient summarization.

PubMed

Klann, Jeffrey G; McCoy, Allison B; Wright, Adam; Wattanasin, Nich; Sittig, Dean F; Murphy, Shawn N

2013-05-30

The Strategic Health IT Advanced Research Projects (SHARP) program seeks to conquer well-understood challenges in medical informatics through breakthrough research. Two SHARP centers have found alignment in their methodological needs: (1) members of the National Center for Cognitive Informatics and Decision-making (NCCD) have developed knowledge bases to support problem-oriented summarizations of patient data, and (2) Substitutable Medical Apps, Reusable Technologies (SMART), which is a platform for reusable medical apps that can run on participating platforms connected to various electronic health records (EHR). Combining the work of these two centers will ensure wide dissemination of new methods for synthesized views of patient data. Informatics for Integrating Biology and the Bedside (i2b2) is an NIH-funded clinical research data repository platform in use at over 100 sites worldwide. By also working with a co-occurring initiative to SMART-enabling i2b2, we can confidently write one app that can be used extremely broadly. Our goal was to facilitate development of intuitive, problem-oriented views of the patient record using NCCD knowledge bases that would run in any EHR. To do this, we developed a collaboration between the two SHARPs and an NIH center, i2b2. First, we implemented collaborative tools to connect researchers at three institutions. Next, we developed a patient summarization app using the SMART platform and a previously validated NCCD problem-medication linkage knowledge base derived from the National Drug File-Reference Terminology (NDF-RT). Finally, to SMART-enable i2b2, we implemented two new Web service "cells" that expose the SMART application programming interface (API), and we made changes to the Web interface of i2b2 to host a "carousel" of SMART apps. We deployed our SMART-based, NDF-RT-derived patient summarization app in this SMART-i2b2 container. It displays a problem-oriented view of medications and presents a line-graph display of laboratory results. This summarization app can be run in any EHR environment that either supports SMART or runs SMART-enabled i2b2. This i2b2 "clinical bridge" demonstrates a pathway for reusable app development that does not require EHR vendors to immediately adopt the SMART API. Apps can be developed in SMART and run by clinicians in the i2b2 repository, reusing clinical data extracted from EHRs. This may encourage the adoption of SMART by supporting SMART app development until EHRs adopt the platform. It also allows a new variety of clinical SMART apps, fueled by the broad aggregation of data types available in research repositories. The app (including its knowledge base) and SMART-i2b2 are open-source and freely available for download.

Project FLOSSIE: Marine Data Stewardship at the Waterline

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bouchard, R. H.; Jensen, R. E.; Riley, R. E.

2016-02-01

There are more than 10 million wave records from platforms of the National Data Buoy Center (NDBC) that are archived by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). A considerable number of these were measured from the 61 NOMAD (Navy Oceanographic Meteorological Automatic Device) hulls that NDBC has used to make wave measurements since October 1979. Many of these measurements were made before the era of modern marine data stewardship. These long records lend themselves to investigations of climate trends and variability either directly by the measurements themselves, or indirectly by validating long-term numerical wave models or remote sensing applications. However studies (e.g., Gemmrich et al. 2011) indicate that discontinuities and increased variability of the measurements can arise from changing wave systems and platforms. The value of these records is undermined by the lack of understanding or documentation of technology changes - a critical component of data stewardship. To support its mission of long-term understanding of coastal waves and wave models, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Coastal Hydraulics Laboratory (CHL) sponsored the FLOSSIE Project to gage the effects of technology changes on the long-term wave measurements from NOMAD hulls. On behalf of CHL, NDBC engineering and operations integrated old, new, and leading edge technologies on one NOMAD hull. The hull was successfully deployed in July 2015 at the Wave Evaluation and Testing area off of Monterey Bay, CA. The area hosts an NDBC 3-m hull with cross-generational-technologies and a reference standard in a Datawell Waverider buoy. Thus cross-generational and cross-platform inter-comparisons can be performed simultaneously to an accepted standard. The analysis goes beyond the bulk wave parameters. The analysis will examine the energy and directional distributions over the frequency range of wind-generated waves. The project is named in honor of the pioneering World War II Naval meteorologist, Commander Florence (Flossie) Van Straten (1913 - 1992), USNR, who coined the acronym for NOMAD. This paper will discuss the goals of the project, present preliminary data results and application to the long-term measurements, and outline the plans incorporating Best Practices of Marine Data Stewardship for the resulting datasets.

Changing the paradigm for marine data production, dissemination and validation with Collaborative Platforms. The GlobColour webservice, a prime example which leads to the integration of CWE technologies to build-up virtual research centres.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fanton d'Andon, Odile; Martin-Lauzer, François-Regis; Mangin, Antoine; Barrot, Gilbert; Clouaire, Stephane; Sardou, Olivier; Demaria, Julien; Serra, Romain

2015-04-01

The GlobColour webservice provides a rich dataset of marine bio-geochemical information for research and education purposes. We report on recent evolutions to improve the functionalities of the service to access EO and in-situ data and check information quality. In addition, a new concept, the Collaborative Platform, support the processing of bespoke information for remote users. At the root of the service is an integrated and automated production chain, processing not only EO satellite data but also in-situ measurements from bio-Argo floats. This production chain provides daily updated bio-geochemical data and performs automated data analysis (merging of sensors, temporal and spatial binning). The GlobColour webservice has been recently upgraded to provide improved navigation and selection capabilities. These evolutions were necessary as the catalogue of EO products has been significantly increased, with many new parameters, new spatial resolution (1 km over Europe in addition to 4 km global products) and projections (rectangular grid in addition to sinus grid). The validation and quality control of the information is essential to demonstrate the fitness-for-purpose of the service. Match-ups between in-situ measurements and EO data are a key element to establish the validity of the information. The standard approach is to perform these match-ups off-line using a database of in-situ measurements, and report the results in a validation document. Two innovations are introduced which greatly increase the value for the user: • An interactive navigation tool allows a detailed analysis the results of the match-ups, with temporal and geographical selection capabilities. Background information for each match-up can be easily retrieved, both for in-situ (measurement identification) and for satellite data (context retrieval, providing information such as cloud coverage and spatial variability). This allows users to get a better insight into the validity of the retrieved data for their particular applications. • Match-ups using real-time EO data and data collected from bio-Argo floats are processed automatically on-the-fly. • This is possible because quality control of the bio-Argo float data is also automated. A dedicated interface has been set-up to monitor the whole fleet of Bio-Argo floats, and access detailed information from each acquired profile. Finally, a Collaborative Platform has been developed to support R&D activities in parallel to the standard production chain, enabling users to work remotely within a dedicated production environment in order to develop new algorithms and methods. The Collaborative Platform is based on a Collaborative Working Environment, a secured IT environment mixing hardware and software elements. It provides access to raw data, to processing and storage facilities, to specific applicative software (e.g. visualisation and post-processing tools). In addition, collaborative tools to exchange data, information and ideas between participants (through forums, web-conferencing…) contribute to create a "Virtual Research Centre" preparing future evolutions of the service. Acknowledgements: This research received funding from the following projects: • MCGS project funded by the Fonds Unique Interministériel, French regional funds PACA and Bretagne, the Fonds Européen de Développement Régional • FP7 Copernicus projects OSS2015 (grant n° 282723) and E-AIMS (grant n° 312642). • The French EQUIPEX project NAOS

The SCEC Broadband Platform: A Collaborative Open-Source Software Package for Strong Ground Motion Simulation and Validation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Silva, F.; Maechling, P. J.; Goulet, C. A.; Somerville, P.; Jordan, T. H.

2014-12-01

The Southern California Earthquake Center (SCEC) Broadband Platform is a collaborative software development project involving geoscientists, earthquake engineers, graduate students, and the SCEC Community Modeling Environment. The SCEC Broadband Platform (BBP) is open-source scientific software that can generate broadband (0-100Hz) ground motions for earthquakes, integrating complex scientific modules that implement rupture generation, low and high-frequency seismogram synthesis, non-linear site effects calculation, and visualization into a software system that supports easy on-demand computation of seismograms. The Broadband Platform operates in two primary modes: validation simulations and scenario simulations. In validation mode, the Platform runs earthquake rupture and wave propagation modeling software to calculate seismograms for a well-observed historical earthquake. Then, the BBP calculates a number of goodness of fit measurements that quantify how well the model-based broadband seismograms match the observed seismograms for a certain event. Based on these results, the Platform can be used to tune and validate different numerical modeling techniques. In scenario mode, the Broadband Platform can run simulations for hypothetical (scenario) earthquakes. In this mode, users input an earthquake description, a list of station names and locations, and a 1D velocity model for their region of interest, and the Broadband Platform software then calculates ground motions for the specified stations. Working in close collaboration with scientists and research engineers, the SCEC software development group continues to add new capabilities to the Broadband Platform and to release new versions as open-source scientific software distributions that can be compiled and run on many Linux computer systems. Our latest release includes 5 simulation methods, 7 simulation regions covering California, Japan, and Eastern North America, the ability to compare simulation results against GMPEs, and several new data products, such as map and distance-based goodness of fit plots. As the number and complexity of scenarios simulated using the Broadband Platform increases, we have added batching utilities to substantially improve support for running large-scale simulations on computing clusters.

A Collaborative Extensible User Environment for Simulation and Knowledge Management

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Freedman, Vicky L.; Lansing, Carina S.; Porter, Ellen A.

2015-06-01

In scientific simulation, scientists use measured data to create numerical models, execute simulations and analyze results from advanced simulators executing on high performance computing platforms. This process usually requires a team of scientists collaborating on data collection, model creation and analysis, and on authorship of publications and data. This paper shows that scientific teams can benefit from a user environment called Akuna that permits subsurface scientists in disparate locations to collaborate on numerical modeling and analysis projects. The Akuna user environment is built on the Velo framework that provides both a rich client environment for conducting and analyzing simulations andmore » a Web environment for data sharing and annotation. Akuna is an extensible toolset that integrates with Velo, and is designed to support any type of simulator. This is achieved through data-driven user interface generation, use of a customizable knowledge management platform, and an extensible framework for simulation execution, monitoring and analysis. This paper describes how the customized Velo content management system and the Akuna toolset are used to integrate and enhance an effective collaborative research and application environment. The extensible architecture of Akuna is also described and demonstrates its usage for creation and execution of a 3D subsurface simulation.« less

NEON's Mobile Deployment Platform: A research tool for integrating ecological processes across scales

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sanclements, M.

2016-12-01

Here we provide an update on construction of the five NEON Mobile Deployment Platforms (MDPs) as well as a description of the infrastructure and sensors available to researchers in the near future. Additionally, we include information (i.e. timelines and procedures) on requesting MDPs for PI led projects. The MDPs will provide the means to observe stochastic or spatially important events, gradients, or quantities that cannot be reliably observed using fixed location sampling (e.g. fires and floods). Due to the transient temporal and spatial nature of such events, the MDPs are designed to accommodate rapid deployment for time periods up to 1 year. Broadly, the MDPs are comprised of infrastructure and instrumentation capable of functioning individually or in conjunction with one another to support observations of ecological change, as well as education, training and outreach. More specifically, the MDPs include the capability to make tower based measures of ecosystem exchange, radiation, and precipitation in conjunction with baseline soils data such as CO2 flux, and soil temperature and moisture. An aquatics module is also available with the MDP to facilitate research integrating terrestrial and aquatic processes. Ultimately, the NEON MDPs provides a tool for linking PI led research to the continental scale data sets collected by NEON.

Recent developments of DMI's operational system: Coupled Ecosystem-Circulation-and SPM model.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Murawski, Jens; Tian, Tian; Dobrynin, Mikhail

2010-05-01

ECOOP is a pan- European project with 72 partners from 29 countries around the Baltic Sea, the North Sea, the Iberia-Biscay-Ireland region, the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea. The project aims at the development and the integration of the different coastal and regional observation and forecasting systems. The Danish Meteorological Institute DMI coordinates the project and is responsible for the Baltic Sea regional forecasting System. Over the project period, the Baltic Sea system was developed from a purely hydro dynamical model (version V1), running operationally since summer 2009, to a coupled model platform (version V2), including model components for the simulation of suspended particles, data assimilation and ecosystem variables. The ECOOP V2 model is currently tested and validated, and will replace the V1 version soon. The coupled biogeochemical- and circulation model runs operationally since November 2009. The daily forecasts are presented at DMI's homepage http:/ocean.dmi.dk. The presentation includes a short description of the ECOOP forecasting system, discusses the model results and shows the outcome of the model validation.

Parallelization of Rocket Engine System Software (Press)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cezzar, Ruknet

1996-01-01

The main goal is to assess parallelization requirements for the Rocket Engine Numeric Simulator (RENS) project which, aside from gathering information on liquid-propelled rocket engines and setting forth requirements, involve a large FORTRAN based package at NASA Lewis Research Center and TDK software developed by SUBR/UWF. The ultimate aim is to develop, test, integrate, and suitably deploy a family of software packages on various aspects and facets of rocket engines using liquid-propellants. At present, all project efforts by the funding agency, NASA Lewis Research Center, and the HBCU participants are disseminated over the internet using world wide web home pages. Considering obviously expensive methods of actual field trails, the benefits of software simulators are potentially enormous. When realized, these benefits will be analogous to those provided by numerous CAD/CAM packages and flight-training simulators. According to the overall task assignments, Hampton University's role is to collect all available software, place them in a common format, assess and evaluate, define interfaces, and provide integration. Most importantly, the HU's mission is to see to it that the real-time performance is assured. This involves source code translations, porting, and distribution. The porting will be done in two phases: First, place all software on Cray XMP platform using FORTRAN. After testing and evaluation on the Cray X-MP, the code will be translated to C + + and ported to the parallel nCUBE platform. At present, we are evaluating another option of distributed processing over local area networks using Sun NFS, Ethernet, TCP/IP. Considering the heterogeneous nature of the present software (e.g., first started as an expert system using LISP machines) which now involve FORTRAN code, the effort is expected to be quite challenging.

The Importance of Biodiversity E-infrastructures for Megadiverse Countries

PubMed Central

Canhos, Dora A. L.; Sousa-Baena, Mariane S.; de Souza, Sidnei; Maia, Leonor C.; Stehmann, João R.; Canhos, Vanderlei P.; De Giovanni, Renato; Bonacelli, Maria B. M.; Los, Wouter; Peterson, A. Townsend

2015-01-01

Addressing the challenges of biodiversity conservation and sustainable development requires global cooperation, support structures, and new governance models to integrate diverse initiatives and achieve massive, open exchange of data, tools, and technology. The traditional paradigm of sharing scientific knowledge through publications is not sufficient to meet contemporary demands that require not only the results but also data, knowledge, and skills to analyze the data. E-infrastructures are key in facilitating access to data and providing the framework for collaboration. Here we discuss the importance of e-infrastructures of public interest and the lack of long-term funding policies. We present the example of Brazil’s speciesLink network, an e-infrastructure that provides free and open access to biodiversity primary data and associated tools. SpeciesLink currently integrates 382 datasets from 135 national institutions and 13 institutions from abroad, openly sharing ~7.4 million records, 94% of which are associated to voucher specimens. Just as important as the data is the network of data providers and users. In 2014, more than 95% of its users were from Brazil, demonstrating the importance of local e-infrastructures in enabling and promoting local use of biodiversity data and knowledge. From the outset, speciesLink has been sustained through project-based funding, normally public grants for 2–4-year periods. In between projects, there are short-term crises in trying to keep the system operational, a fact that has also been observed in global biodiversity portals, as well as in social and physical sciences platforms and even in computing services portals. In the last decade, the open access movement propelled the development of many web platforms for sharing data. Adequate policies unfortunately did not follow the same tempo, and now many initiatives may perish. PMID:26204382

The Importance of Biodiversity E-infrastructures for Megadiverse Countries.

PubMed

Canhos, Dora A L; Sousa-Baena, Mariane S; de Souza, Sidnei; Maia, Leonor C; Stehmann, João R; Canhos, Vanderlei P; De Giovanni, Renato; Bonacelli, Maria B M; Los, Wouter; Peterson, A Townsend

2015-07-01

Addressing the challenges of biodiversity conservation and sustainable development requires global cooperation, support structures, and new governance models to integrate diverse initiatives and achieve massive, open exchange of data, tools, and technology. The traditional paradigm of sharing scientific knowledge through publications is not sufficient to meet contemporary demands that require not only the results but also data, knowledge, and skills to analyze the data. E-infrastructures are key in facilitating access to data and providing the framework for collaboration. Here we discuss the importance of e-infrastructures of public interest and the lack of long-term funding policies. We present the example of Brazil's speciesLink network, an e-infrastructure that provides free and open access to biodiversity primary data and associated tools. SpeciesLink currently integrates 382 datasets from 135 national institutions and 13 institutions from abroad, openly sharing ~7.4 million records, 94% of which are associated to voucher specimens. Just as important as the data is the network of data providers and users. In 2014, more than 95% of its users were from Brazil, demonstrating the importance of local e-infrastructures in enabling and promoting local use of biodiversity data and knowledge. From the outset, speciesLink has been sustained through project-based funding, normally public grants for 2-4-year periods. In between projects, there are short-term crises in trying to keep the system operational, a fact that has also been observed in global biodiversity portals, as well as in social and physical sciences platforms and even in computing services portals. In the last decade, the open access movement propelled the development of many web platforms for sharing data. Adequate policies unfortunately did not follow the same tempo, and now many initiatives may perish.

GeoChronos: An On-line Collaborative Platform for Earth Observation Scientists

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gamon, J. A.; Kiddle, C.; Curry, R.; Markatchev, N.; Zonta-Pastorello, G., Jr.; Rivard, B.; Sanchez-Azofeifa, G. A.; Simmonds, R.; Tan, T.

2009-12-01

Recent advances in cyberinfrastructure are offering new solutions to the growing challenges of managing and sharing large data volumes. Web 2.0 and social networking technologies, provide the means for scientists to collaborate and share information more effectively. Cloud computing technologies can provide scientists with transparent and on-demand access to applications served over the Internet in a dynamic and scalable manner. Semantic Web technologies allow for data to be linked together in a manner understandable by machines, enabling greater automation. Combining all of these technologies together can enable the creation of very powerful platforms. GeoChronos (http://geochronos.org/), part of a CANARIE Network Enabled Platforms project, is an online collaborative platform that incorporates these technologies to enable members of the earth observation science community to share data and scientific applications and to collaborate more effectively. The GeoChronos portal is built on an open source social networking platform called Elgg. Elgg provides a full set of social networking functionalities similar to Facebook including blogs, tags, media/document sharing, wikis, friends/contacts, groups, discussions, message boards, calendars, status, activity feeds and more. An underlying cloud computing infrastructure enables scientists to access dynamically provisioned applications via the portal for visualizing and analyzing data. Users are able to access and run the applications from any computer that has a Web browser and Internet connectivity and do not need to manage and maintain the applications themselves. Semantic Web Technologies, such as the Resource Description Framework (RDF) are being employed for relating and linking together spectral, satellite, meteorological and other data. Social networking functionality plays an integral part in facilitating the sharing of data and applications. Examples of recent GeoChronos users during the early testing phase have included the IAI International Wireless Sensor Networking Summer School at the University of Alberta, and the IAI Tropi-Dry community. Current GeoChronos activities include the development of a web-based spectral library and related analytical and visualization tools, in collaboration with members of the SpecNet community. The GeoChronos portal will be open to all members of the earth observation science community when the project nears completion at the end of 2010.

Airborne laser-diode-array illuminator assessment for the night vision's airborne mine-detection arid test

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stetson, Suzanne; Weber, Hadley; Crosby, Frank J.; Tinsley, Kenneth; Kloess, Edmund; Nevis, Andrew J.; Holloway, John H., Jr.; Witherspoon, Ned H.

2004-09-01

The Airborne Littoral Reconnaissance Technologies (ALRT) project has developed and tested a nighttime operational minefield detection capability using commercial off-the-shelf high-power Laser Diode Arrays (LDAs). The Coastal System Station"s ALRT project, under funding from the Office of Naval Research (ONR), has been designing, developing, integrating, and testing commercial arrays using a Cessna airborne platform over the last several years. This has led to the development of the Airborne Laser Diode Array Illuminator wide field-of-view (ALDAI-W) imaging test bed system. The ALRT project tested ALDAI-W at the Army"s Night Vision Lab"s Airborne Mine Detection Arid Test. By participating in Night Vision"s test, ALRT was able to collect initial prototype nighttime operational data using ALDAI-W, showing impressive results and pioneering the way for final test bed demonstration conducted in September 2003. This paper describes the ALDAI-W Arid Test and results, along with processing steps used to generate imagery.

Technology for On-Chip Qubit Control with Microfabricated Surface Ion Traps

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Highstrete, Clark; Scott, Sean Michael; Nordquist, Christopher D.

2013-11-01

Trapped atomic ions are a leading physical system for quantum information processing. However, scalability and operational fidelity remain limiting technical issues often associated with optical qubit control. One promising approach is to develop on-chip microwave electronic control of ion qubits based on the atomic hyperfine interaction. This project developed expertise and capabilities at Sandia toward on-chip electronic qubit control in a scalable architecture. The project developed a foundation of laboratory capabilities, including trapping the 171Yb + hyperfine ion qubit and developing an experimental microwave coherent control capability. Additionally, the project investigated the integration of microwave device elements with surface ionmore » traps utilizing Sandia’s state-of-the-art MEMS microfabrication processing. This effort culminated in a device design for a multi-purpose ion trap experimental platform for investigating on-chip microwave qubit control, laying the groundwork for further funded R&D to develop on-chip microwave qubit control in an architecture that is suitable to engineering development.« less

Millimeter-wave signal generation for a wireless transmission system based on on-chip photonic integrated circuit structures.

PubMed

Guzmán, R; Carpintero, G; Gordon, C; Orbe, L

2016-10-15

We demonstrate and compare two different photonic-based signal sources for generating the carrier wave in a wireless communication link operating in the millimeter-wave range. The first signal source uses the optical heterodyne technique to generate a 113 GHz carrier wave frequency, while the second employs a different technique based on a pulsed mode-locked source with 100 GHz repetition rate frequency. The two optical sources were fabricated in a multi-project wafer run from an active/passive generic integration platform process using standardized building blocks, including multimode interference reflectors which allow us to define the structures on chip, without the need for cleaved facet mirrors. We highlight the superior performance of the mode-locked sources over an optical heterodyne technique. Error-free transmission was achieved in this experiment.

Cobalt: Development and Maturation of GN&C Technologies for Precision Landing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carson, John M.; Restrepo, Carolina; Seubert, Carl; Amzajerdian, Farzin

2016-01-01

The CoOperative Blending of Autonomous Landing Technologies (COBALT) instrument is a terrestrial test platform for development and maturation of guidance, navigation and control (GN&C) technologies for precision landing. The project is developing a third-generation Langley Research Center (LaRC) navigation doppler lidar (NDL) for ultra-precise velocity and range measurements, which will be integrated and tested with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) lander vision system (LVS) for terrain relative navigation (TRN) position estimates. These technologies together provide precise navigation knowledge that is critical for a controlled and precise touchdown. The COBALT hardware will be integrated in 2017 into the GN&C subsystem of the Xodiac rocket-propulsive vertical test bed (VTB) developed by Masten Space Systems, and two terrestrial flight campaigns will be conducted: one open-loop (i.e., passive) and one closed-loop (i.e., active).

Astro-geodetic platform for high accuracy geoid determinat ion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bǎdescu, Octavian; Nedelcu, Dan Alin; Cǎlin, Alexandru; Dumitru, Paul Daniel; Cǎlin, Lavinia A.; Popescu, Marcel

The paper presents first technical realizations of a mobile platform for vertical deviation determination at a satisfactory precision and low cost. The conception of the platform was made in the framework of a project regarding CCD astro-geodetic vertical deviation for geoid determination or geoid modeling. The project with the acronym A-GEO represents a collaboration between Technical University of Civil Engineering Bucharest - Faculty of Geodesy, (TUCEB-FG), Astronomical Institute of the Romanian academy (AIRA), and a private partner GeoGIS Proiect S.R.L. The paper presents some hardware and software aspects regarding design, development, and automation of the platform, based on an electro-optical geodetic instrument, CCD observations and satellite time synchronization for astro-geodetic measurements.

TP Atlas: integration and dissemination of advances in Targeted Proteins Research Program (TPRP)-structural biology project phase II in Japan.

PubMed

Iwayanagi, Takao; Miyamoto, Sei; Konno, Takeshi; Mizutani, Hisashi; Hirai, Tomohiro; Shigemoto, Yasumasa; Gojobori, Takashi; Sugawara, Hideaki

2012-09-01

The Targeted Proteins Research Program (TPRP) promoted by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan is the phase II of structural biology project (2007-2011) following the Protein 3000 Project (2002-2006) in Japan. While the phase I Protein 3000 Project put partial emphasis on the construction and maintenance of pipelines for structural analyses, the TPRP is dedicated to revealing the structures and functions of the targeted proteins that have great importance in both basic research and industrial applications. To pursue this objective, 35 Targeted Proteins (TP) Projects selected in the three areas of fundamental biology, medicine and pharmacology, and food and environment are tightly collaborated with 10 Advanced Technology (AT) Projects in the four fields of protein production, structural analyses, chemical library and screening, and information platform. Here, the outlines and achievements of the 35 TP Projects are summarized in the system named TP Atlas. Progress in the diversified areas is described in the modules of Graphical Summary, General Summary, Tabular Summary, and Structure Gallery of the TP Atlas in the standard and unified format. Advances in TP Projects owing to novel technologies stemmed from AT Projects and collaborative research among TP Projects are illustrated as a hallmark of the Program. The TP Atlas can be accessed at http://net.genes.nig.ac.jp/tpatlas/index_e.html .

Citizen Sensors for SHM: Towards a Crowdsourcing Platform

PubMed Central

Ozer, Ekin; Feng, Maria Q.; Feng, Dongming

2015-01-01

This paper presents an innovative structural health monitoring (SHM) platform in terms of how it integrates smartphone sensors, the web, and crowdsourcing. The ubiquity of smartphones has provided an opportunity to create low-cost sensor networks for SHM. Crowdsourcing has given rise to citizen initiatives becoming a vast source of inexpensive, valuable but heterogeneous data. Previously, the authors have investigated the reliability of smartphone accelerometers for vibration-based SHM. This paper takes a step further to integrate mobile sensing and web-based computing for a prospective crowdsourcing-based SHM platform. An iOS application was developed to enable citizens to measure structural vibration and upload the data to a server with smartphones. A web-based platform was developed to collect and process the data automatically and store the processed data, such as modal properties of the structure, for long-term SHM purposes. Finally, the integrated mobile and web-based platforms were tested to collect the low-amplitude ambient vibration data of a bridge structure. Possible sources of uncertainties related to citizens were investigated, including the phone location, coupling conditions, and sampling duration. The field test results showed that the vibration data acquired by smartphones operated by citizens without expertise are useful for identifying structural modal properties with high accuracy. This platform can be further developed into an automated, smart, sustainable, cost-free system for long-term monitoring of structural integrity of spatially distributed urban infrastructure. Citizen Sensors for SHM will be a novel participatory sensing platform in the way that it offers hybrid solutions to transitional crowdsourcing parameters. PMID:26102490

Automatic and integrated micro-enzyme assay (AIμEA) platform for highly sensitive thrombin analysis via an engineered fluorescence protein-functionalized monolithic capillary column.

PubMed

Lin, Lihua; Liu, Shengquan; Nie, Zhou; Chen, Yingzhuang; Lei, Chunyang; Wang, Zhen; Yin, Chao; Hu, Huiping; Huang, Yan; Yao, Shouzhuo

2015-04-21

Nowadays, large-scale screening for enzyme discovery, engineering, and drug discovery processes require simple, fast, and sensitive enzyme activity assay platforms with high integration and potential for high-throughput detection. Herein, a novel automatic and integrated micro-enzyme assay (AIμEA) platform was proposed based on a unique microreaction system fabricated by a engineered green fluorescence protein (GFP)-functionalized monolithic capillary column, with thrombin as an example. The recombinant GFP probe was rationally engineered to possess a His-tag and a substrate sequence of thrombin, which enable it to be immobilized on the monolith via metal affinity binding, and to be released after thrombin digestion. Combined with capillary electrophoresis-laser-induced fluorescence (CE-LIF), all the procedures, including thrombin injection, online enzymatic digestion in the microreaction system, and label-free detection of the released GFP, were integrated in a single electrophoretic process. By taking advantage of the ultrahigh loading capacity of the AIμEA platform and the CE automatic programming setup, one microreaction column was sufficient for many times digestion without replacement. The novel microreaction system showed significantly enhanced catalytic efficiency, about 30 fold higher than that of the equivalent bulk reaction. Accordingly, the AIμEA platform was highly sensitive with a limit of detection down to 1 pM of thrombin. Moreover, the AIμEA platform was robust and reliable to detect thrombin in human serum samples and its inhibition by hirudin. Hence, this AIμEA platform exhibits great potential for high-throughput analysis in future biological application, disease diagnostics, and drug screening.

Observation infrastructure for airborne hazards in the framework of the EUNADICS-AV project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mona, Lucia; Pappalardo, Gelsomina; Stammes, Piet; Lihavainen, Heikki; Paatero, Jussi; Hirtl, Marcus; Schlager, Hans; Graf, Kaspar; Hedelt, Pascal; Theys, Nicolas; Coltelli, Mauro; Vargas, Arturo; Clarisse, Lieven; Nína Petersen, Guðrún; de Leeuw, Gerrit; Papagiannopoulos, Nikolaos; Apituley, Arnoud; Haefele, Alexander; Delcloo, Andy; Wotawa, Gerhard

2017-04-01

During the 2010 and 2011 Icelandic volcanic eruptions, the availability of integrated, validated data sets was identified as a major challenge in the effort to gain a rapid situation assessment. These environmental crisis situations may happen again, also from other types ofairborne hazards, like big fires. Currently, the issue is not so much that data and observations do not exist, it is rather the rapid accessibility, the cross-calibration of different sensors, the integration of new platforms and the harmonization of standards and protocols that needs further work and attention. A specific activity is planned within the H-2020 project EUNADICS -AV ("European Natural Disaster Coordination and Information System for Aviation") for addressing this critical issue. In order to achieve the rapid data accessibility, work will be carried out with full consideration of the main European Research Infrastructures, projects and national/international monitoring networks that are able to provide crucial information related to the dispersion of airborne hazards. The integrated data sets are based on satellite and ground-based remote sensing as well as in situ ground-based and aircraft observations. Networks of ground based remote sensing of atmospheric profiles are particularly important, since these will provide the needed height information that cannot be obtained unambiguously from the vast majority of space borne sensors. A new aspect not treated in any project and initiative so far is the integration of special crisis measurements, for example by aircraft or UAV systems. Particularly suited for the purposes of the project are satellite data from operational sensors aboard EUMETSAT and ESA satellites. Improved retrievals are investigated, and the new generation of Sentinel satellites currently being launched under the Copernicus umbrella and their added value are considered. Especially when the ground based and space borne observations are combined, the much needed spatial-temporal developments of the dispersion of atmospheric plumes can be followed. This capability will further be augmented by data assimilation, such that better homogeneity and reliability of data is assured where data is available and gaps can be identified. This integration initiative not only assures that such data can be used in the models during a crisis, but helps towards deploying such systems in a way that the added value can be maximised. Acknowledgments: EUNADICS-AV Project is funded by the European Union's Horizon 2020 research programme for Societal challenges - smart, green and integrated transport under grant agreement no. 723986.

77 FR 76588 - Request for Proposal Platform Pilot

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-12-28

...The Small Business Administration (SBA) is announcing a pilot where federal agencies will test a new request for proposal (RFP) platform (RFP-EZ) to streamline the process through which the government buys web design and related technology services from small businesses for acquisitions valued at or below the simplified acquisition threshold (SAT). RFP-EZ is one of five projects sponsored by the Office of Science and Technology Policy's Presidential Innovation Fellows Program, which leverages the ingenuity of leading problem solvers from across America together with federal innovators to tackle projects that aim to fuel job creation, save taxpayers money, and significantly improve how the federal government serves the American people. Under the RFP-EZ pilot, which will initially run from December 28, 2012 through May 1, 2013, agencies will identify individual procurements valued at or below the simplified acquisition threshold that can be set aside for small businesses to test a suite of functional tools for: (1) Simplifying the development of statements of work, (2) improving agency access to information about small businesses, (3) enabling small businesses to submit quotes, bids or proposals (collectively referred to as proposals) electronically in response to a solicitation posted on Federal Business Opportunities (FedBizOpps); (4) enhancing efficiencies for evaluating proposals, and (5) improving how information (including prices paid by federal agencies) is captured and stored. The pilot will be conducted in accordance with existing laws and regulations. Interested parties are encouraged to review and comment on the functionality of RFP-EZ, as described at www.sba.gov/rfpez and highlighted in this notice. Responses to this notice will be considered for possible refinements to the RFP-EZ platform during the pilot and as part of the evaluation of the benefits and costs of making RFP-EZ a permanent platform fully integrated with FedBizOpps, the System for Award Management and agency contract writing systems.

EMPOWER-support of patient empowerment by an intelligent self-management pathway for patients: study protocol.

PubMed

Mantwill, Sarah; Fiordelli, Maddalena; Ludolph, Ramona; Schulz, Peter J

2015-03-20

Diabetes education together with patient empowerment has shown to be key to effective self-management behavior. When delivered through information and communication technologies (ICT), this solution has shown to lead to better health outcomes. However, the potential of ICT and their integration into the healthcare environment have not yet been fully exploited. ICT should be in particular used to facilitate communication and information exchange between patient and healthcare providers. In addition, systems should include components facilitating behavior change using empowerment approaches such as goal-setting. Funded by the European Commission (FP7-ICT-2011-288209) a web/mobile based platform (EMPOWER) has been developed, which aims at supporting self-management activities of diabetes patients and their treating physicians in Germany and Turkey. The platform semantically integrates multiple information sources, such as electronic and personal health records (EHR/PHR). Patients can register patterns of daily living, record blood glucose levels, design disease management plans and set long- and short-term goals. The project actively involves the treating physician, who has the possibility to set recommendations for the patient and to monitor his/her progress on the platform. In the test-phase of EMPOWER, patients will be assigned to an intervention group and a control group. Data will be collected at baseline and three months after the intervention started. In addition, qualitative interviews will be conducted to collect extra information on usability and usefulness. Outcome measures include amongst others the Problem Areas in Diabetes questionnaire (PAID), the Summary of Diabetes Self-Care Activities and scales evaluating doctor-patient interaction. Physiological parameters, such as physical activity or blood glucose levels will be collected via the platform. Further, log files and number of logins will serve as independent variables. The interplay between multiple sources, including EHR, patients' own registered information and physicians' recommendations on one platform can have important practice implications. It might not only improve self-management activities in diabetes patients but it will also facilitate physician's work, and ultimately the physician patient relationship. The trial has been registered with Deutsches Register Klinischer Studien (German register of clinical trials) under DRKS00007699 on January 30, 2015.

Using realist review to inform intervention development: methodological illustration and conceptual platform for collaborative care in offender mental health.

PubMed

Pearson, M; Brand, S L; Quinn, C; Shaw, J; Maguire, M; Michie, S; Briscoe, S; Lennox, C; Stirzaker, A; Kirkpatrick, T; Byng, R

2015-09-28

This paper reports how we used a realist review, as part of a wider project to improve collaborative mental health care for prisoners with common mental health problems, to develop a conceptual platform. The importance of offenders gaining support for their mental health, and the need for practitioners across the health service, the criminal justice system, and the third sector to work together to achieve this is recognised internationally. However, the literature does not provide coherent analyses of how these ambitions can be achieved. This paper demonstrates how a realist review can be applied to inform complex intervention development that spans different locations, organisations, professions, and care sectors. We applied and developed a realist review for the purposes of intervention development, using a three-stage process. (1) An iterative database search strategy (extending beyond criminal justice and offender health) and groups of academics, practitioners, and people with lived experience were used to identify explanatory accounts (n = 347). (2) From these accounts, we developed consolidated explanatory accounts (n = 75). (3) The identified interactions between practitioners and offenders (within their organisational, social, and cultural contexts) were specified in a conceptual platform. We also specify, step by step, how these explanatory accounts were documented, consolidated, and built into a conceptual platform. This addresses an important methodological gap for social scientists and intervention developers about how to develop and articulate programme and implementation theory underpinning complex interventions. An integrated person-centred system is proposed to improve collaborative mental health care for offenders with common mental health problems (near to and after release) by achieving consistency between the goals of different sectors and practitioners, enabling practitioners to apply scientific and experiential knowledge in working judiciously and reflectively, and building systems and aligning resources that are centred on offenders' health and social care needs. As part of a broader programme of work, a realist review can make an important contribution to the specification of theoretically informed interventions that have the potential to improve health outcomes. Our conceptual platform has potential application in related systems of health and social care where integrated, and person-centred care is a goal.

High Level of Integration in Integrated Disease Management Leads to Higher Usage in the e-Vita Study: Self-Management of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease With Web-Based Platforms in a Parallel Cohort Design.

PubMed

Talboom-Kamp, Esther Pwa; Verdijk, Noortje A; Kasteleyn, Marise J; Harmans, Lara M; Talboom, Irvin Jsh; Numans, Mattijs E; Chavannes, Niels H

2017-05-31

Worldwide, nearly 3 million people die of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) every year. Integrated disease management (IDM) improves disease-specific quality of life and exercise capacity for people with COPD, but can also reduce hospital admissions and hospital days. Self-management of COPD through eHealth interventions has shown to be an effective method to improve the quality and efficiency of IDM in several settings, but it remains unknown which factors influence usage of eHealth and change in behavior of patients. Our study, e-Vita COPD, compares different levels of integration of Web-based self-management platforms in IDM in three primary care settings. The main aim of this study is to analyze the factors that successfully promote the use of a self-management platform for COPD patients. The e-Vita COPD study compares three different approaches to incorporating eHealth via Web-based self-management platforms into IDM of COPD using a parallel cohort design. Three groups integrated the platforms to different levels. In groups 1 (high integration) and 2 (medium integration), randomization was performed to two levels of personal assistance for patients (high and low assistance); in group 3 there was no integration into disease management (none integration). Every visit to the e-Vita and Zorgdraad COPD Web platforms was tracked objectively by collecting log data (sessions and services). At the first log-in, patients completed a baseline questionnaire. Baseline characteristics were automatically extracted from the log files including age, gender, education level, scores on the Clinical COPD Questionnaire (CCQ), dyspnea scale (MRC), and quality of life questionnaire (EQ5D). To predict the use of the platforms, multiple linear regression analyses for the different independent variables were performed: integration in IDM (high, medium, none), personal assistance for the participants (high vs low), educational level, and self-efficacy level (General Self-Efficacy Scale [GSES]). All analyses were adjusted for age and gender. Of the 702 invited COPD patients, 215 (30.6%) registered to a platform. Of the 82 patients in group 1 (high integration IDM), 36 were in group 1A (personal assistance) and 46 in group 1B (low assistance). Of the 96 patients in group 2 (medium integration IDM), 44 were in group 2A (telephone assistance) and 52 in group 2B (low assistance). A total of 37 patients participated in group 3 (no integration IDM). In all, 107 users (49.8%) visited the platform at least once in the 15-month period. The mean number of sessions differed between the three groups (group 1: mean 10.5, SD 1.3; group 2: mean 8.8, SD 1.4; group 3: mean 3.7, SD 1.8; P=.01). The mean number of sessions differed between the high-assistance and low-assistance groups in groups 1 and 2 (high: mean 11.8, SD 1.3; low: mean 6.7, SD 1.4; F1,80=6.55, P=.01). High-assistance participants used more services (mean 45.4, SD 6.2) than low-assistance participants (mean 21.2, SD 6.8; F1,80=6.82, P=.01). No association was found between educational level and usage and between GSES and usage. Use of a self-management platform is higher when participants receive adequate personal assistance about how to use the platform. Blended care, where digital health and usual care are integrated, will likely lead to increased use of the online program. Future research should provide additional insights into the preferences of different patient groups. Nederlands Trial Register NTR4098; http://www.trialregister.nl/trialreg/admin/rctview.asp?TC=4098 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6qO1hqiJ1). ©Esther PWA Talboom-Kamp, Noortje A Verdijk, Marise J Kasteleyn, Lara M Harmans, Irvin JSH Talboom, Mattijs E Numans, Niels H Chavannes. Originally published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (http://www.jmir.org), 31.05.2017.

A hybrid approach to device integration on a genetic analysis platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brennan, Des; Jary, Dorothee; Kurg, Ants; Berik, Evgeny; Justice, John; Aherne, Margaret; Macek, Milan; Galvin, Paul

2012-10-01

Point-of-care (POC) systems require significant component integration to implement biochemical protocols associated with molecular diagnostic assays. Hybrid platforms where discrete components are combined in a single platform are a suitable approach to integration, where combining multiple device fabrication steps on a single substrate is not possible due to incompatible or costly fabrication steps. We integrate three devices each with a specific system functionality: (i) a silicon electro-wetting-on-dielectric (EWOD) device to move and mix sample and reagent droplets in an oil phase, (ii) a polymer microfluidic chip containing channels and reservoirs and (iii) an aqueous phase glass microarray for fluorescence microarray hybridization detection. The EWOD device offers the possibility of fully integrating on-chip sample preparation using nanolitre sample and reagent volumes. A key challenge is sample transfer from the oil phase EWOD device to the aqueous phase microarray for hybridization detection. The EWOD device, waveguide performance and functionality are maintained during the integration process. An on-chip biochemical protocol for arrayed primer extension (APEX) was implemented for single nucleotide polymorphism (SNiP) analysis. The prepared sample is aspirated from the EWOD oil phase to the aqueous phase microarray for hybridization. A bench-top instrumentation system was also developed around the integrated platform to drive the EWOD electrodes, implement APEX sample heating and image the microarray after hybridization.

Dynamic Gaming Platform (DGP)

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-04-01

GAMING PLATFORM (DGP) Lockheed Martin Corporation...YYYY) APR 09 2. REPORT TYPE Final 3. DATES COVERED (From - To) Jul 07 – Mar 09 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE DYNAMIC GAMING PLATFORM (DGP) 5a...CMU Carnegie Mellon University DGP Dynamic Gaming Platform GA Genetic Algorithm IARPA Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity LM ATL Lockheed Martin Advanced Technology Laboratories PAINT ProActive INTelligence

DAPHNE silicon photonics technological platform for research and development on WDM applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baudot, Charles; Fincato, Antonio; Fowler, Daivid; Perez-Galacho, Diego; Souhaité, Aurélie; Messaoudène, Sonia; Blanc, Romuald; Richard, Claire; Planchot, Jonathan; De-Buttet, Come; Orlando, Bastien; Gays, Fabien; Mezzomo, Cécilia; Bernard, Emilie; Marris-Morini, Delphine; Vivien, Laurent; Kopp, Christophe; Boeuf, Frédéric

2016-05-01

A new technological platform aimed at making prototypes and feasibility studies has been setup at STMicroelectronics using 300mm wafer foundry facilities. The technology, called DAPHNE (Datacom Advanced PHotonic Nanoscale Environment), is devoted at developing and evaluating new devices and sub-systems in particular for wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) applications and ring resonator based applications. Developed in the course of PLAT4MFP7 European project, DAPHNE is a flexible platform that fits perfectly R&D needs. The fabrication flow enables the processing of photonic integrated circuits using a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) of 300nm, partial etches of 150nm and 50nm and a total silicon etching. Consequently, two varieties of rib waveguides and one strip waveguide can be fabricated simultaneously with auto-alignment properties. The process variability on the 150nm partially etched silicon and the thin 50nm slab region are both less than 6 nm. Using a variety of different implantation configurations and a back-end of line of 5 metal layers, active devices are fabricated both in germanium and silicon. An available far back-end of line process consists of making 20 μm diameter copper posts on top of the electrical pads so that an electronic integrated circuit can be bonded on top the photonic die by 3D integration. Besides having those fabrication process options, DAPHNE is equipped with a library of standard cells for optical routing and multiplexing. Moreover, typical Mach-Zehnder modulators based on silicon pn junctions are also available for optical signal modulation. To achieve signal detection, germanium photodetectors also exist as standard cells. The measured single-mode propagation losses are 3.5 dB/cm for strip, 3.7 dB/cm for deep-rib (50nm slab) and 1.4 dB/cm for standard rib (150nm slab) waveguides. Transition tapers between different waveguide structures are as low as 0.006 dB.

Imaging informatics-based multimedia ePR system for data management and decision support in rehabilitation research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Ximing; Verma, Sneha; Qin, Yi; Sterling, Josh; Zhou, Alyssa; Zhang, Jeffrey; Martinez, Clarisa; Casebeer, Narissa; Koh, Hyunwook; Winstein, Carolee; Liu, Brent

2013-03-01

With the rapid development of science and technology, large-scale rehabilitation centers and clinical rehabilitation trials usually involve significant volumes of multimedia data. Due to the global aging crisis, millions of new patients with age-related chronic diseases will produce huge amounts of data and contribute to soaring costs of medical care. Hence, a solution for effective data management and decision support will significantly reduce the expenditure and finally improve the patient life quality. Inspired from the concept of the electronic patient record (ePR), we developed a prototype system for the field of rehabilitation engineering. The system is subject or patient-oriented and customized for specific projects. The system components include data entry modules, multimedia data presentation and data retrieval. To process the multimedia data, the system includes a DICOM viewer with annotation tools and video/audio player. The system also serves as a platform for integrating decision-support tools and data mining tools. Based on the prototype system design, we developed two specific applications: 1) DOSE (a phase 1 randomized clinical trial to determine the optimal dose of therapy for rehabilitation of the arm and hand after stroke.); and 2) NEXUS project from the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center(RERC, a NIDRR funded Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center). Currently, the system is being evaluated in the context of the DOSE trial with a projected enrollment of 60 participants over 5 years, and will be evaluated by the NEXUS project with 30 subjects. By applying the ePR concept, we developed a system in order to improve the current research workflow, reduce the cost of managing data, and provide a platform for the rapid development of future decision-support tools.

Selling science 2.0: What scientific projects receive crowdfunding online?

PubMed

Schäfer, Mike S; Metag, Julia; Feustle, Jessica; Herzog, Livia

2016-09-19

Crowdfunding has emerged as an additional source for financing research in recent years. The study at hand identifies and tests explanatory factors influencing the success of scientific crowdfunding projects by drawing on news value theory, the "reputation signaling" approach, and economic theories of online payment. A standardized content analysis of 371 projects on English- and German-language platforms reveals that each theory provides factors influencing crowdfunding success. It shows that projects presented on science-only crowdfunding platforms have a higher success rate. At the same time, projects are more likely to be successful if their presentation includes visualizations and humor, the lower their targeted funding is, the less personal data potential donors have to relinquish and the more interaction between researchers and donors is possible. This suggests that after donors decide to visit a scientific crowdfunding platform, factors unrelated to science matter more for subsequent funding decisions, raising questions about the potential and implications of crowdfunding science. © The Author(s) 2016.

Solutions for Digital Video Transmission Technology Final Report CRADA No. TC02068.0

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Smith, A. T.; Rivers, W.

This Project aimed at development of software for seismic data processing based on the Geotool code developed by the American company Multimax., Inc. The Geotool code was written in early 90-es for the UNIX platform. Under Project# 2821, functions of the old Geotool code were transferred into a commercial version for the Microsoft XP and Vista platform with addition of new capabilities on visualization and data processing. The developed new version of the Geotool+ was implemented using the up-to-date tool Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 and uses capabilities of the .NET platform. C++ was selected as the main programming language formore » the Geotool+. The two-year Project was extended by six months and funding levels increased from 600,000 to $670,000. All tasks were successfully completed and all deliverables were met for the project even though both the industrial partner and LLNL principal investigator left the project before its final report.« less

Content Management System for Developing a Virtual Platform for Association of Women's Aid with Lack of Resources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sainz de Abajo, Beatriz; Flores García, Alberto; García Salcines, Enrique; Burón Fernández, F. Javier; López Coronado, Miguel; de Castro Lozano, Carlos

In this paper we show a Virtual Platform for an Association of Women's Aid called Centro Integral de Ayuda a la Mujer (CIAM). After analyzing different Content Management Systems (CMS) and the benefits that its use would contribute to the development of the Virtual Platform, taking into account the needs and requirements set by CIAM, we have opted for the use of Joomla!. This free CMS, for its characteristics, is the most benefits provided us. The virtual platform design has been developed following customer specifications, to have understood the simplicity and easy handling of the resulting platform. This platform will be integrated into the Web portal that has the Amarex Association and it will be able to be administrates from the CIAM without specific knowledge of programming languages. If new services were necessary, they would be easily implemented, adding new modules and components to perform these services.

Visualization of Vgi Data Through the New NASA Web World Wind Virtual Globe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brovelli, M. A.; Kilsedar, C. E.; Zamboni, G.

2016-06-01

GeoWeb 2.0, laying the foundations of Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI) systems, has led to platforms where users can contribute to the geographic knowledge that is open to access. Moreover, as a result of the advancements in 3D visualization, virtual globes able to visualize geographic data even on browsers emerged. However the integration of VGI systems and virtual globes has not been fully realized. The study presented aims to visualize volunteered data in 3D, considering also the ease of use aspects for general public, using Free and Open Source Software (FOSS). The new Application Programming Interface (API) of NASA, Web World Wind, written in JavaScript and based on Web Graphics Library (WebGL) is cross-platform and cross-browser, so that the virtual globe created using this API can be accessible through any WebGL supported browser on different operating systems and devices, as a result not requiring any installation or configuration on the client-side, making the collected data more usable to users, which is not the case with the World Wind for Java as installation and configuration of the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) is required. Furthermore, the data collected through various VGI platforms might be in different formats, stored in a traditional relational database or in a NoSQL database. The project developed aims to visualize and query data collected through Open Data Kit (ODK) platform and a cross-platform application, where data is stored in a relational PostgreSQL and NoSQL CouchDB databases respectively.

Researcher and Author Profiles: Opportunities, Advantages, and Limitations

PubMed Central

2017-01-01

Currently available online profiling platforms offer various services for researchers and authors. Opening an individual account and filling it with scholarly contents increase visibility of research output and boost its impact. This article overviews some of the widely used and emerging profiling platforms, highlighting their tools for sharing scholarly items, crediting individuals, and facilitating networking. Global bibliographic databases and search platforms, such as Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, and Google Scholar, are widely used for profiling authors with indexed publications. Scholarly networking websites, such as ResearchGate and Academia.edu, provide indispensable services for researchers poorly visible elsewhere on the Internet. Several specialized platforms are designed to offer profiling along with their main functionalities, such as reference management and archiving. The Open Researcher and Contributor Identification (ORCID) project has offered a solution to the author name disambiguation. It has been integrated with numerous bibliographic databases, platforms, and manuscript submission systems to help research managers and journal editors select and credit the best reviewers, and other scholarly contributors. Individuals with verifiable reviewer and editorial accomplishments are also covered by Publons, which is an increasingly recognized service for publicizing and awarding reviewer comments. Currently available profiling formats have numerous advantages and some limitations. The advantages are related to their openness and chances of boosting the researcher impact. Some of the profiling websites are complementary to each other. The underutilization of various profiling websites and their inappropriate uses for promotion of ‘predatory’ journals are among reported limitations. A combined approach to the profiling systems is advocated in this article. PMID:28960025

Integration of robotic resources into FORCEnet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nguyen, Chinh; Carroll, Daniel; Nguyen, Hoa

2006-05-01

The Networked Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (NISR) project integrates robotic resources into Composeable FORCEnet to control and exploit unmanned systems over extremely long distances. The foundations are built upon FORCEnet-the U.S. Navy's process to define C4ISR for net-centric operations-and the Navy Unmanned Systems Common Control Roadmap to develop technologies and standards for interoperability, data sharing, publish-and-subscribe methodology, and software reuse. The paper defines the goals and boundaries for NISR with focus on the system architecture, including the design tradeoffs necessary for unmanned systems in a net-centric model. Special attention is given to two specific scenarios demonstrating the integration of unmanned ground and water surface vehicles into the open-architecture web-based command-and-control information-management system of Composeable FORCEnet. Planned spiral development for NISR will improve collaborative control, expand robotic sensor capabilities, address multiple domains including underwater and aerial platforms, and extend distributive communications infrastructure for battlespace optimization for unmanned systems in net-centric operations.

On TTEthernet for Integrated Fault-Tolerant Spacecraft Networks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Loveless, Andrew

2015-01-01

There has recently been a push for adopting integrated modular avionics (IMA) principles in designing spacecraft architectures. This consolidation of multiple vehicle functions to shared computing platforms can significantly reduce spacecraft cost, weight, and de- sign complexity. Ethernet technology is attractive for inclusion in more integrated avionic systems due to its high speed, flexibility, and the availability of inexpensive commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components. Furthermore, Ethernet can be augmented with a variety of quality of service (QoS) enhancements that enable its use for transmitting critical data. TTEthernet introduces a decentralized clock synchronization paradigm enabling the use of time-triggered Ethernet messaging appropriate for hard real-time applications. TTEthernet can also provide two forms of event-driven communication, therefore accommodating the full spectrum of traffic criticality levels required in IMA architectures. This paper explores the application of TTEthernet technology to future IMA spacecraft architectures as part of the Avionics and Software (A&S) project chartered by NASA's Advanced Exploration Systems (AES) program.

Governmental Partnerships for Language Learning: A Commercial Language Platform for Young Workers in Colombia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

García Botero, Gustavo; García Botero, Jacqueline; Questier, Frederik

2017-01-01

In June 2015, the Colombian government via the Labor Ministry announced a project for young workers called "40.000 Primeros Empleos". In the framework of this project, the Ministry of Labor signed an alliance with the language platform Duolingo as a strategy to provide participants with English learning opportunities and a free language…

Integrated Spintronic Platforms for Biomolecular Recognition Detection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martins, V. C.; Cardoso, F. A.; Loureiro, J.; Mercier, M.; Germano, J.; Cardoso, S.; Ferreira, R.; Fonseca, L. P.; Sousa, L.; Piedade, M. S.; Freitas, P. P.

2008-06-01

This paper covers recent developments in magnetoresistive based biochip platforms fabricated at INESC-MN, and their application to the detection and quantification of pathogenic waterborn microorganisms in water samples for human consumption. Such platforms are intended to give response to the increasing concern related to microbial contaminated water sources. The presented results concern the development of biological active DNA chips and protein chips and the demonstration of the detection capability of the present platforms. Two platforms are described, one including spintronic sensors only (spin-valve based or magnetic tunnel junction based), and the other, a fully scalable platform where each probe site consists of a MTJ in series with a thin film diode (TFD). Two microfluidic systems are described, for cell separation and concentration, and finally, the read out and control integrated electronics are described, allowing the realization of bioassays with a portable point of care unit. The present platforms already allow the detection of complementary biomolecular target recognition with 1 pM concentration.

Biomedical informatics: development of a comprehensive data warehouse for clinical and genomic breast cancer research.

PubMed

Hu, Hai; Brzeski, Henry; Hutchins, Joe; Ramaraj, Mohan; Qu, Long; Xiong, Richard; Kalathil, Surendran; Kato, Rand; Tenkillaya, Santhosh; Carney, Jerry; Redd, Rosann; Arkalgudvenkata, Sheshkumar; Shahzad, Kashif; Scott, Richard; Cheng, Hui; Meadow, Stephen; McMichael, John; Sheu, Shwu-Lin; Rosendale, David; Kvecher, Leonid; Ahern, Stephen; Yang, Song; Zhang, Yonghong; Jordan, Rick; Somiari, Stella B; Hooke, Jeffrey; Shriver, Craig D; Somiari, Richard I; Liebman, Michael N

2004-10-01

The Windber Research Institute is an integrated high-throughput research center employing clinical, genomic and proteomic platforms to produce terabyte levels of data. We use biomedical informatics technologies to integrate all of these operations. This report includes information on a multi-year, multi-phase hybrid data warehouse project currently under development in the Institute. The purpose of the warehouse is to host the terabyte-level of internal experimentally generated data as well as data from public sources. We have previously reported on the phase I development, which integrated limited internal data sources and selected public databases. Currently, we are completing phase II development, which integrates our internal automated data sources and develops visualization tools to query across these data types. This paper summarizes our clinical and experimental operations, the data warehouse development, and the challenges we have faced. In phase III we plan to federate additional manual internal and public data sources and then to develop and adapt more data analysis and mining tools. We expect that the final implementation of the data warehouse will greatly facilitate biomedical informatics research.

COSBID-M3: a platform for multimodal monitoring, data collection, and research in neurocritical care.

PubMed

Wilson, J Adam; Shutter, Lori A; Hartings, Jed A

2013-01-01

Neuromonitoring in patients with severe brain trauma and stroke is often limited to intracranial pressure (ICP); advanced neuroscience intensive care units may also monitor brain oxygenation (partial pressure of brain tissue oxygen, P(bt)O(2)), electroencephalogram (EEG), cerebral blood flow (CBF), or neurochemistry. For example, cortical spreading depolarizations (CSDs) recorded by electrocorticography (ECoG) are associated with delayed cerebral ischemia after subarachnoid hemorrhage and are an attractive target for novel therapeutic approaches. However, to better understand pathophysiologic relations and realize the potential of multimodal monitoring, a common platform for data collection and integration is needed. We have developed a multimodal system that integrates clinical, research, and imaging data into a single research and development (R&D) platform. Our system is adapted from the widely used BCI2000, a brain-computer interface tool which is written in the C++ language and supports over 20 data acquisition systems. It is optimized for real-time analysis of multimodal data using advanced time and frequency domain analyses and is extensible for research development using a combination of C++, MATLAB, and Python languages. Continuous streams of raw and processed data, including BP (blood pressure), ICP, PtiO2, CBF, ECoG, EEG, and patient video are stored in an open binary data format. Selected events identified in raw (e.g., ICP) or processed (e.g., CSD) measures are displayed graphically, can trigger alarms, or can be sent to researchers or clinicians via text message. For instance, algorithms for automated detection of CSD have been incorporated, and processed ECoG signals are projected onto three-dimensional (3D) brain models based on patient magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomographic (CT) scans, allowing real-time correlation of pathoanatomy and cortical function. This platform will provide clinicians and researchers with an advanced tool to investigate pathophysiologic relationships and novel measures of cerebral status, as well as implement treatment algorithms based on such multimodal measures.