Fundamental Design Features Research Articles

The RAS Paradigm in Mainframe Systems: A Comprehensive Analysis of Design Principles and Operational Benefits

This article examines the critical role of Reliability, Availability, and Serviceability (RAS) in mainframe computing systems. We explore how RAS principles have become fundamental design features in modern mainframes, enhancing their ability to meet the demanding requirements of enterprise-level data processing. The article provides an in-depth analysis of each RAS component, detailing how reliability is achieved through robust hardware self-checking and extensive software testing, availability is maintained via seamless component failover and layered error recovery, and serviceability is ensured through advanced diagnostic capabilities and modular replacement units. We argue that the holistic integration of RAS principles in mainframe architecture not only maximizes system uptime and operational continuity but also significantly impacts application design and overall system efficiency. Through a comprehensive review of current mainframe technologies and industry practices, this article highlights the enduring importance of RAS in an era of increasing computational complexity and datadriven decision making. Our findings suggest that RAS principles will continue to evolve, playing a crucial role in shaping the future of high-performance, mission-critical computing systems.

Machine learning-based modelling, feature importance and Shapley additive explanations analysis of variable-stiffness composite beam structures

In the current work, the displacement and inner stress state of orthotropic, composite, variable-stiffness beam structures is investigated, combining the extended Kantorovich method (EKM) with machine learning (ML) modeling and explainable artificial intelligence (AI) techniques. The complete displacement and inner stress fields of variable stiffness (VS) composite beams with a through-thickness variation of their material properties are computed for different orthotropy, material gradation and slenderness attributes. Both deep learning and tree-based machine learning architectures are considered, identifying high accuracy and low computational cost modeling architectures. Thereupon, the significance of underlying fundamental design features is assessed, classifying their importance for the first time. In particular, material orthotropy, stiffness gradation and slenderness are analyzed for different boundary conditions, elucidating their interdependence and relative significance. It is shown that reduced end kinematic constraints overall favor the importance of stiffness gradation. Differences in the importance of each design feature for the transverse displacement and inner normal and shear stress fields are identified and quantified using Shapley additive explanations (SHAP) analysis. It is found that material orthotropy is more important than stiffness gradation for the transverse displacement rather than for the normal or shear stress fields developed, for which their relative importance is inverted. What is more, evidence is provided that increased gradation and orthotropy values have opposite signed contributions to the stress fields developed at critical positions of the VS composite, while they uniquely yield equal-signed contributions to the transverse displacement field.

A Backend-agnostic, Quantum-classical Framework for Simulations of Chemistry in C ++

As quantum computing hardware systems continue to advance, the research and development of performant, scalable, and extensible software architectures, languages, models, and compilers is equally as important to bring this novel coprocessing capability to a diverse group of domain computational scientists. For the field of quantum chemistry, applications and frameworks exist for modeling and simulation tasks that scale on heterogeneous classical architectures, and we envision the need for similar frameworks on heterogeneous quantum-classical platforms. Here, we present the XACC system-level quantum computing framework as a platform for prototyping, developing, and deploying quantum-classical software that specifically targets chemistry applications. We review the fundamental design features in XACC, with special attention to its extensibility and modularity for key quantum programming workflow interfaces and provide an overview of the interfaces most relevant to simulations of chemistry. A series of examples demonstrating some of the state-of-the-art chemistry algorithms currently implemented in XACC are presented, while also illustrating the various APIs that would enable the community to extend, modify, and devise new algorithms and applications in the realm of chemistry.

Attitudes toward the design of Islamic mobile shopping apps in Turkey: the case of hijab clothing mobile apps from the perspective of conservative consumers

PurposeThis study aims to determine the attitudes of Turkish consumers toward Islamic mobile shopping apps and discuss whether these apps will need to be designed in accordance with Islamic rules in Muslim countries or not in the sample of Turkey.Design/methodology/approachA descriptive study was used. The data was collected online through a questionnaire form. The one-sample t-test and univariate analysis of variance were used to analyze the data obtained from 379 individuals.FindingsThe results show that Turkish customers have mostly positive attitudes toward Islamic mobile shopping apps and demand that the pictures, videos and advertisements used on mobile shopping apps be in concordance with Islamic rules. As a result of this study, consumers do not mind the colors or lean toward the use of models on Islamic mobile shopping apps. Furthermore, there are differences between gender with regard to using Islamic mobile shopping apps, showing that male consumers have a more positive attitude toward Islamic mobile shopping apps compared with female consumers.Research limitations/implicationsLike many previous empirical studies, this study has limited its context to capture a particular geographical area. Moreover, in this study, the data are obtained by judgmental sampling as a nonrandom sampling method. The contributions of the current study are restricted to Islamic mobile apps for the hijab clothing sector in Turkey.Practical implicationsThe results obtained can become a yardstick to measure consumer attitudes toward Islamic mobile apps’ attributes.Originality/valueThe primary benefit is to call the attention of mobile app designers to the design features of mobile shopping apps aimed at Muslim users. The second benefit is to determine the expectations of Muslim users regarding the design of Islamic mobile shopping apps, and eventually establish the fundamental Islamic design features needed to be available on new Islamic mobile shopping apps.

Designing and scaling up integrated youth mental health care.

Mental ill-health represents the main threat to the health, survival and future potential of young people around the world. There are indications that this is a rising tide of vulnerability and need for care, a trend that has been augmented by the COVID-19 pandemic. It represents a global public health crisis, which not only demands a deep and sophisticated understanding of possible targets for prevention, but also urgent reform and investment in the provision of developmentally appropriate clinical care. Despite having the greatest level of need, and potential to benefit, adolescents and emerging adults have the worst access to timely and quality mental health care. How is this global crisis to be addressed? Since the start of the century, a range of co-designed youth mental health strategies and innovations have emerged. These range from digital platforms, through to new models of primary care to new services for potentially severe mental illness, which must be locally adapted according to the availability of resources, workforce, cultural factors and health financing patterns. The fulcrum of this progress is the advent of broad-spectrum, integrated primary youth mental health care services. They represent a blueprint and beach-head for an overdue global system reform. While resources will vary across settings, the mental health needs of young people are largely universal, and underpin a set of fundamental principles and design features. These include establishing an accessible, "soft entry" youth primary care platform with digital support, where young people are valued and essential partners in the design, operation, management and evaluation of the service. Global progress achieved to date in implementing integrated youth mental health care has highlighted that these services are being accessed by young people with genuine and substantial mental health needs, that they are benefiting from them, and that both these young people and their families are highly satisfied with the services they receive. However, we are still at base camp and these primary care platforms need to be scaled up across the globe, complemented by prevention, digital platforms and, crucially, more specialized care for complex and persistent conditions, aligned to this transitional age range (from approximately 12 to 25 years). The rising tide of mental ill-health in young people globally demands that this focus be elevated to a top priority in global health.

Consideration of Distinguishing Design Features of Gas-Turbine and Gas-Reciprocating Units in Design of Emergency Control Systems

Modern gas-turbine units (GTUs) and gas-reciprocating units (GRUs) have found a wide use at power plants, including distributed generation facilities, running on gaseous fuel. The design features of these generating units have a considerable effect on the nature and parameters of transient processes due to emergency disturbances in the adjacent network. The study shows that single-shaft gas-turbine and gas-reciprocating units do not allow even short-term considerable frequency drops. These schemes and operating conditions arise due to emergency active power shortages when the connection between the power plant and the power system weakens due to repair conditions or islanded operation. The paper presents the results of transient process calculations for operating power plants (distributed generation facilities), which make it possible to identify the unfavorable properties of GTUs and GRUs. The results show that two-shaft (three-shaft) GTUs and GRUs can switch to out-of-step conditions even when short-circuits in the adjacent network are cleared with high-speed relay protection devices. The features of out-of-step conditions and the admissibility of their short-term duration for the spontaneous restoration of generators’ synchronization are considered. The findings suggest that considering the fundamental design features of generating units provides informed technical decisions on equipping power plants (distributed generation (DG) facilities) and the adjacent network with efficient emergency control systems.

Cognitive approach in teaching foreign languages

In this article are represent new approaches in studying foreign languages, on the example of cognitive linguistics, because language offers a window into cognitive function, providing insights into the nature, structure and organization of thoughts and ideas. The most important way in which cognitive linguistics differs from other approaches to the study of language, then, is that language is assumed to reflect certain fundamental properties and design features of the human mind.

The implementation of complex social policy: Institutional layering and unintended consequences in the National Disability Insurance Scheme

AbstractIn this article, we identify the unfolding unintended consequences which flow from one instance of policy layering in Australia's National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). We show how use of a causal diagram, which highlights feedback loops and emergent properties, to map complex chains of causal factors can assist policy scholars and policy practitioners to understand the likely direction of change and possible responses. In the case of Australia's National Disability Insurance Scheme, our analysis suggests that the likely direction of change will work against two of the fundamental design features of the NDIS: providing participants with more choice and control, and ensuring all eligible Australians are able to access appropriate services and supports regardless of where they live. Our analysis points to the use of price regulation as the site of potential intervention because of the role it plays in subsequent feedback loops and the development of the two, unwelcome, emergent properties.

Macromolecules with programmable shape, size, and chemistry

Shape, size, and composition are the most fundamental design features, enabling highly complex functionalities. Despite recent advances, the independent control of shape, size, and chemistry of macromolecules remains a synthetic challenge. We report a scalable methodology to produce large, well-defined macromolecules with programmable shape, size, and chemistry that combines reactor engineering principles and controlled polymerizations. Specifically, bottlebrush polymers with conical, ellipsoidal, and concave architectures are synthesized using two orthogonal polymerizations. The chemical versatility is highlighted by the synthesis of a compositional asymmetric cone. The strong agreement between predictions and experiments validates the precision that this methodology offers.

Methods for the Simulation of the Aerodynamic Heating Conditions of the Structural Elements of Space Shuttles

The paper considers the problem of creating and operating products of reusable space-rocket hardware, in particular with respect to ensuring the integrity of structural elements and safe return to Earth under aerodynamic heating conditions. This problem has two aspects, which differ in specificity of the approaches to designing the elements of space shuttle systems (SSS). The first aspect is associated with ensuring the reliable functioning of the most thermally stressed elements of the re-entry glider, which are structures with large angles of attack, such as fuselage nose and leading edge, wing loading edge, elevators and air intake edges. The second aspect mainly concerns ensuring the allowable temperature level of the spacecraft pressure shell on all flight path segments, especially during re-entry in the Earth’s atmosphere. In view of this, one of the main goals in creating SSSs is to develop a reliable heat shield having acceptable size and weight parameters, and cost. The successful solution of these problems is determined in many respects by the optimal choice of appropriate classes of materials: special high-temperature alloys, structural ceramics, highmelting-point metallic and polymeric composite materials. For the modern structures of SSSs, the use of structural metallic materials is worth-while in many respects. Rig test procedures are proposed. A complex of gas-dynamic test rigs was used as the basic equipment, whose fundamental design features and methodological solutions ensure the complete rig test cycle for the solution of problems in both directions. The methodological basis of rig tests is a set of specialized procedures for the simulation of thermally stressed states of the material and the intesity of the external action of the environment, which provide the equivalence of material damage processes and the limit state of the structural element under investigation under model and full-scale conditions. The fundamental basis of these approaches is the classical similarity and dimensional theories, the main postulates of which have been transformed and adapted to the problems of the study of the strength of materials and damageability of structural elements under thermal cyclic loading in corrosive environments. The developed procedures and experimental means allowed the modeling of aerodynamic heating processes of the structural elements of space shuttles. It has been shown that the implemented methods enable the evaluation of functional characteristics, determination of a set of properties and refinement of the technology for the formation of structural elements of aerospace vehicles operating under the conditions of aerodynamic heating to extremely high temperatures.

Editorial: Is the Language Faculty Nonlinguistic?

Editorial: Is the Language Faculty Nonlinguistic?

The Centrality of Language in Human Cognition

The emergence of language—a productive and combinatorial system of communication—has been hailed as one of the major transitions in evolution. By enabling symbolic culture, language allows humans to draw on and expand on the knowledge of their ancestors and peers. A common assumption among linguists and psychologists is that although language is critical to our ability to share our thoughts, it plays a minor, if any, role in generating, controlling, and structuring them. I examine some assumptions that led to this view of language and discuss an alternative according to which normal human cognition is language‐augmented cognition. I focus on one of the fundamental design features of language—the use of words as symbolic cues—and argue that language acts as a high‐level control system for the mind, allowing individuals to sculpt mental representations of others as well as their own.

A Neural Framework for Organization and Flexible Utilization of Episodic Memory in Cumulatively Learning Baby Humanoids

Cumulatively developing robots offer a unique opportunity to reenact the constant interplay between neural mechanisms related to learning, memory, prospection, and abstraction from the perspective of an integrated system that acts, learns, remembers, reasons, and makes mistakes. Situated within such interplay lie some of the computationally elusive and fundamental aspects of cognitive behavior: the ability to recall and flexibly exploit diverse experiences of one's past in the context of the present to realize goals, simulate the future, and keep learning further. This article is an adventurous exploration in this direction using a simple engaging scenario of how the humanoid iCub learns to construct the tallest possible stack given an arbitrary set of objects to play with. The learning takes place cumulatively, with the robot interacting with different objects (some previously experienced, some novel) in an open-ended fashion. Since the solution itself depends on what objects are available in the "now," multiple episodes of past experiences have to be remembered and creatively integrated in the context of the present to be successful. Starting from zero, where the robot knows nothing, we explore the computational basis of organization episodic memory in a cumulatively learning humanoid and address (1) how relevant past experiences can be reconstructed based on the present context, (2) how multiple stored episodic memories compete to survive in the neural space and not be forgotten, (3) how remembered past experiences can be combined with explorative actions to learn something new, and (4) how multiple remembered experiences can be recombined to generate novel behaviors (without exploration). Through the resulting behaviors of the robot as it builds, breaks, learns, and remembers, we emphasize that mechanisms of episodic memory are fundamental design features necessary to enable the survival of autonomous robots in a real world where neither everything can be known nor can everything be experienced.

A Tribute to a Remarkably Sound Solution

For their work on the development of the modern cochlear implant, which bestows hearing to individuals with profound deafness, Ingeborg Hochmair, Graeme Clark, and Blake Wilson are the 2013 recipients of the Lasker∼DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award.

Continuously-stirred anaerobic digester to convert organic wastes into biogas: system setup and basic operation.

Anaerobic digestion (AD) is a bioprocess that is commonly used to convert complex organic wastes into a useful biogas with methane as the energy carrier. Increasingly, AD is being used in industrial, agricultural, and municipal waste(water) treatment applications. The use of AD technology allows plant operators to reduce waste disposal costs and offset energy utility expenses. In addition to treating organic wastes, energy crops are being converted into the energy carrier methane. As the application of AD technology broadens for the treatment of new substrates and co-substrate mixtures, so does the demand for a reliable testing methodology at the pilot- and laboratory-scale. Anaerobic digestion systems have a variety of configurations, including the continuously stirred tank reactor (CSTR), plug flow (PF), and anaerobic sequencing batch reactor (ASBR) configurations. The CSTR is frequently used in research due to its simplicity in design and operation, but also for its advantages in experimentation. Compared to other configurations, the CSTR provides greater uniformity of system parameters, such as temperature, mixing, chemical concentration, and substrate concentration. Ultimately, when designing a full-scale reactor, the optimum reactor configuration will depend on the character of a given substrate among many other nontechnical considerations. However, all configurations share fundamental design features and operating parameters that render the CSTR appropriate for most preliminary assessments. If researchers and engineers use an influent stream with relatively high concentrations of solids, then lab-scale bioreactor configurations cannot be fed continuously due to plugging problems of lab-scale pumps with solids or settling of solids in tubing. For that scenario with continuous mixing requirements, lab-scale bioreactors are fed periodically and we refer to such configurations as continuously stirred anaerobic digesters (CSADs). This article presents a general methodology for constructing, inoculating, operating, and monitoring a CSAD system for the purpose of testing the suitability of a given organic substrate for long-term anaerobic digestion. The construction section of this article will cover building the lab-scale reactor system. The inoculation section will explain how to create an anaerobic environment suitable for seeding with an active methanogenic inoculum. The operating section will cover operation, maintenance, and troubleshooting. The monitoring section will introduce testing protocols using standard analyses. The use of these measures is necessary for reliable experimental assessments of substrate suitability for AD. This protocol should provide greater protection against a common mistake made in AD studies, which is to conclude that reactor failure was caused by the substrate in use, when really it was improper user operation.

A Deference to Protocol: Fashioning a Three-Dimensional Public Policy Framework for the Internet Era

A Deference to Protocol: Fashioning a Three-Dimensional Public Policy Framework for the Internet Era

Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation

Surgical aortic valve replacement (AVR) is the conventional treatment for severe aortic stenosis (AS). However, a high operative mortality of 7% to 10% is well recognized in high-risk groups.1,2 Risk of AVR is increased by a number of factors, including increasing age, and comorbidities, such as heart failure, respiratory and renal disease, prior cardiac surgery, and need for concomitant coronary revascularization.3 As a result, 30% to 40% of elderly patients do not have surgery because of 1 or more of the following reasons: (1) The patient is not referred for AVR by the cardiology team, (2) the patient is not accepted for an operation by the cardiothoracic team, and (3) the patient declines AVR.4,5 Additionally, surgery is more likely to be denied in patients who are elderly and who have left ventricular (LV) dysfunction or multiple comorbidities5 and is contraindicated in cases of porcelain aorta, radiation dermatitis, and liver cirrhosis.6 However, conservative management of patients with severe AS is known to have a poor prognosis.7 Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) was developed to address this unmet need. After the demonstration of feasibility of TAVI in 2002,8 it is now widely practiced, with >20 000 patients treated worldwide, and the technique has been recommended as an alternative strategy for patients in high-risk surgical groups.9 Currently, there are 2 CE marked devices with some similar fundamental design features: the self-expanding CoreValve ReValving system (Medtronic Inc; Minneapolis, MN) and the balloon-expandable Edwards SAPIEN prosthesis (Edward Lifesciences Inc; Irvine, CA), which is now available as the new generation, smaller profile, balloon-expandable Edwards SAPIEN XT prosthesis. The CoreValve is available in 2 inflow diameter sizes, 26 and 29 mm, whereas the Edwards SAPIEN and Edwards SAPIEN XT valves are available in 23- and …

Randomized Trial Reporting in General Endocrine Journals: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

It is worth remembering that the primary purpose of clinical research is to improve the health of individuals or a population. There is general agreement that the gold standard for clinical research, particularly for new treatments, is the well designed, adequately powered randomized controlled trial (RCT). An area that has received less attention is how those trials are reported and disseminated to healthcare professionals and policymakers who directly or indirectly influence patient care as well as the potential consequences of suboptimal trial reporting. In this issue of the Journal, Rios et al. (1) describe the quality of RCT reporting in three general endocrinology journals (The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, Clinical Endocrinology, and the European Journal of Endocrinology). In this study, all treatment or prevention RCTs published in 2005 and 2006 in those journals were identified and independently reviewed by two investigators using established criteria. The criteria, developed and published by the Consolidated Standards for Reporting Trials (CONSORT) group (2), assess the fundamental design and analytic features that constitute high quality reporting of RCTs. Two primary outcomes were considered, a 15-point overall reporting quality score (OQS) based upon the presence or absence of 15 elements (such as a clear description of the inclusion criteria, precise details of the interventions, and inclusion of a flowchart of participants at each stage of the study) and a key score based upon three critical elements: allocation concealment (i.e. ensuring that investigators and subjects remain unaware of upcoming assignments), blinding, and use of intention-totreat analysis. The results of the study were not encouraging; the mean overall reporting quality score of the reviewed trials was only10 of 15 points (interquartile range 2), and the rates of adequate reporting of allocation concealment (10%), blinding (20%), and intention-to-treat analysis (16%) were shockingly low. An important detail is that of the 89 trials reviewed, 71 were published in the journal with the highest impact factor and widest readership (The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism). The authors correctly conclude that the reporting of RCTs in those general endocrine journals is suboptimal. Although the study appears to be rigorously designed and conducted, Rios et al. (1) are also guilty of reporting deficiencies, which may or may not reflect design flaws. For example, it is not stated whether the investigators reviewing and assessing trial quality criteria were masked to the identity of the authors or journal that published the trial. Such masking reduces the likelihood of bias. In fact, criteria similar to CONSORT but designed to judge the quality of reporting for observational studies have been published (3). Furthermore, as noted by Rios and others (4), inadequate reporting does not necessarily imply inadequate trial design and conduct, although it seems likely that that the two are correlated. Although discouraging, the results of the Rios study are not surprising. Using a variety of criteria, others have found that RCT reporting is suboptimal in journals devoted to surgery, nursing, and general medicine (5–7). It is likely that endocrinologists are no better or no worse than other specialists when reporting RCT results, and it should be acknowledged that the study by Rios et al. (1) did not include important endocrine trials reported in the New England Journal of Medicine and Journal of the American Medical Association, which have adopted the CONSORT guidelines as a requirement for publication. Who is to blame for the poor quality of RCT reporting in general endocrine journals? Although authors should strive to submit the best possible manuscript possible, journal editors are ultimately responsible for the quality of the manuscripts they publish. In turn, editorial decisions are strongly influenced by external reviewers. Both editors and peer-reviewers must better equip themselves with the necessary skills to identify reporting deficiencies and demand they be addressed before publication. Fortunately, there is a proven method to improve the qual-

Landscape Planning for Agricultural Non–Point Source Pollution Reduction. II. Balancing Watershed Size, Number of Watersheds, and Implementation Effort

Agricultural non-point source (NPS) pollution poses a severe threat to water quality and aquatic ecosystems. In response, tremendous efforts have been directed toward reducing these pollution inputs by implementing agricultural conservation practices. Although conservation practices reduce pollution inputs from individual fields, scaling pollution control benefits up to the watershed level (i.e., improvements in stream water quality) has been a difficult challenge. This difficulty highlights the need for NPS reduction programs that focus efforts within target watersheds and at specific locations within target watersheds, with the ultimate goal of improving stream water quality. Fundamental program design features for NPS control programs--i.e., number of watersheds in the program, total watershed area, and level of effort expended within watersheds--have not been considered in any sort of formal analysis. Here, we present an optimization model that explores the programmatic and environmental trade-offs between these design choices. Across a series of annual program budgets ranging from $2 to $200 million, the optimal number of watersheds ranged from 3 to 27; optimal watershed area ranged from 29 to 214 km(2); and optimal expenditure ranged from $21,000 to $35,000/km(2). The optimal program configuration was highly dependent on total program budget. Based on our general findings, we delineated hydrologically complete and spatially independent watersheds ranging in area from 20 to 100 km(2). These watersheds are designed to serve as implementation units for a targeted NPS pollution control program currently being developed in Wisconsin.

Response to Comment on "Children Creating Core Properties of Language: Evidence from an Emerging Sign Language in Nicaragua"

In our recent study ([ 1 ][1]), we argued that the analytical approach that children apply to language learning can generate fundamental design features of language. We observed combinatorial linear structure within motion event expressions, particularly in those who learned Nicaraguan Sign Language