Network Of Excellence Research Articles

AECCTECH_NET, a network of University Laboratories and Industry R&D Laboratories to face the challenges of the European Commission’s 6th and future 7th Framework Programmes

AECCTECH_NET, a network of University Laboratories and Industry R&D Laboratories to face the challenges of the European Commission’s 6th and future 7th Framework Programmes

Location-Aided Planning in Mobile Network—Trial Results

Location-Aided Planning (LAP) technique provides possibility to use mobile phone measurements for monitoring network performance and traffic conditions. It enables detection of problem areas in the network, creation of alternative network plans for various traffic conditions as well as tuning and validation of propagation models with measurement data retrieved from the network. The paper reports results of a trial validating the LAP concept performed in standard GSM 1800 network in the frame of the EU IST project Cellular Network Optimization Based on Mobile Location (CELLO) [1]. During the trial, the accuracy of four selected location methods was evaluated. The measurements done during the trial were additionally used for assessment of the propagation model based on the well-known Okumura–Hata model with some corrections due to diffraction, building and land cover effects.

A formal analysis of a car periphery supervison system

This paper presents a formal model of the real-time service allocation unit or the Car Periphery Supervision (CPS) system—a case study proposed by Robert Bosch GmbH in the context of the EU IST project AMETIST. The CPS system is a hybrid system, which is modeled in terms of timed automata. It is done by splitting the values of nonlinear continuous variables into £nite set of regions and over-approximating the constraints on continuous variables into clock constraints. Safety properties of the timed model have been veri£ed using UPPAAL. This is a sufficient condition for validating the corresponding safety properties of the initial hybrid system. The difference in time scale between the CPS components have also been taken care of by over-approximating the timed model using the convex-hull over-approximation feature available in UPPAAL.

Data Mining Approach To StudyQuality Of Voice Over IP Applications

Patterns focus on “interesting” structures in data behaviour, which can be abstracted and used for efficient understanding and analysis. This paper presents a data mining technology aimed to assess characteristics of network connections for Voice over IP (VoIP) communication based on analysis of structures of Quality of Service (QoS) parameter time series data (end-to-end delay and packet loss). The data mining approach for QoS parameter data is designed and developed in the framework of EU IST INTERMON project [1]. It is used for spatio-temporal analysis in the large scale inter-domain Internet. We propose automated techniques to study network QoS parameter patterns for VoIP communication, such as: “Outliers” defining QoS parameter values exceeding “thresholds” corresponding to the rating factor R of the ITU-T E-model. End-to-end delay structures, used for appropriate choice of playback delay adjustment algorithms. Based on patterns, the network administrator can automatically evaluate the ability of network connections for VoIP communication, and select appropriate parameters for playback algorithms. The discussed data mining facilities for the QoS parameter study for VoIP applications are shown using real measurement data for inter-domain Internet connections collected in the INTERMON data base.

Role of geology in diamond project development

For a mining operation to be successful, it is important to bring fundamental and applied science together. The mining engineer needs to understand the importance of geology, mineralogy and petrography, and how projects can benefit from the data collected during the exploration and pre-exploration stage. Geological scientists also need to understand the process of project development from the exploration stage through mine design and operation to mine closure. Kimberlite pipe or dyke emplacement, geology and petrology/mineralogy are three areas that illustrate how information obtained from the geological studies could directly influence the mining method selection and the project strategy and design. Kimberlite emplacement is one of the fundamental processes that rely on knowledge of the kimberlite body geology. Although the importance of the emplacement model is commonly recognized in the resource geology, mining engineers do not always appreciate its importance to the mine design. The knowledge of the orebody geometry, character of the contact zones, internal structures and distribution of inclusions could directly influence pit wall stability (thus strip ratio), underground mining method selection, dilution, treatability, and the dewatering strategy. Understanding the internal kimberlite geology mainly includes the geometry and character of individual phases, and the orientation and character of internal structures that transect the rock mass. For any mining method it is important to know “where the less and where the more competent rocks are located” to achieve stability. On the other hand, the detailed facies studies may not be important for the resource and mine design if the rock types have similar physical properties and diamond content. A good understanding of the kimberlite petrology and mineralogy could be crucial not only to the treatability (namely diamond damage and liberation), but also to the pit wall and underground excavation stability, support design, mine safety (mudrush risk assessment) and mine dewatering. There is no doubt that a better understanding of the kimberlite and country rock geology has a direct impact on the safety and economics of the mining operations. The process of mine design can start at the beginning of kimberlite discovery by incorporating the critical geological information without necessarily increasing the exploration budget. It is important to appreciate the usefulness of fundamental geological research and its impact on increased confidence in the mine design. Such studies should be viewed as worthwhile investments, not as cost items.

MEDICAL AID AND RESEARCH PROJECTS FROM NAGASAKI ON RADIATION HEALTH EFFECTS AROUND CHERNOBYL

The medical cooperative projects from Nagasaki to the former USSR have been performed in mainly two regions: Chernobyl and Semipalatinsk since 1990 and 1995, respectively. What we should do here in Nagasaki and also from Nagasaki will be discussed at the standpoint of humanitarian medical aid and scientific research collaboration usinsgt different channels of governmental and non-governmental cooperative linkages. The 21st Center of Excellence (COE) program of «International Consortium for Medical Care of Hibakusha and Radiation Life Science» established in Nagasaki University can serve our knowledge and experience much more directly in relation to the radiocontaminated areas in the world, and indeed contribute to the lessons learned from Chernobyl and also to the newly establishme of Network of Excellence (NOE) for Radiation Emergency Medicine under the auspices of the WHO-REMPAN. Within the frame of the International Consortium of Radiation Research, a molecular epidemiology of thyroid diseases has now been conducted in our departments. The clue of radiation-associated thyroid carcinogenesis may give us a new concept on experimental and epidemiological approaches to low dose radiation effects on human health, including internal radiation exposure.

Intelligibility of an ASR-controlled synthetic talking face

The goal of the SYNFACE project is to develop a multilingual synthetic talking face, driven by an automatic speech recognizer (ASR), to assist hearing-impaired people with telephone communication. Previous multilingual experiments with the synthetic face have shown that time-aligned synthesized visual face movements can enhance speech intelligibility in normal-hearing and hearing-impaired users [C. Siciliano et al., Proc. Int. Cong. Phon. Sci. (2003)]. Similar experiments are in progress to examine whether the synthetic face remains intelligible when driven by ASR output. The recognizer produces phonetic output in real time, in order to drive the synthetic face while maintaining normal dialogue turn-taking. Acoustic modeling was performed with a neural network, while an HMM was used for decoding. The recognizer was trained on the SpeechDAT telephone speech corpus. Preliminary results suggest that the currently achieved recognition performance of around 60% frames correct limits the usefulness of the synthetic face movements. This is particularly true for consonants, where correct place of articulation is especially important for visual intelligibility. Errors in the alignment of phone boundaries representative of those arising in the ASR output were also shown to decrease audio-visual intelligibility. [Work supported by the EU IST Project 2001-33327.]

European Approach on Interoperability of Enterprise Applications - Thematic Network, Integrated Project and Network of Excellence

This paper aims at presenting an overview of a European approach to develop interoperability of enterprise applications and software. The originality of the approach is to address the interoperability problems in an integrated way by bringing together the expertise/knowledge of the three relevant domains: Enterprise Modelling, Architecture & Platform, and Ontology. The paper reviews user requirement, vision and state-of-the-art as well as the gap analysis performed by IDEAS Thematic Network and the resulting roadmaps to develop interoperability. Then the ATHENA Integrated Project (IP) will be outlined and its R&D projects detailed. The INTEROP Network of Excellence (NoE) will be described in the third part of the paper. The complementarities with ATHENA will be discussed and the NoE activities addressed.

The need for a digital rights management framework for the next generation of e-government services

The amount of government information is huge and relies mostly on traditional systems, inaccessible to citizens and often to government departments. In today's digital era, most of this content can be more intelligently processed and integrated within e-government. In the world of the future, where ambient intelligence and e-governments are a reality, citizens will interact with the available services in all areas of their lives; a situation that presents new challenges in the area of Digital Rights Management (DRM). Taking into account the nature of the information and the needs of different governmental departments and citizens, any e-government research must give full attention to DRM. In the process towards successful e-government, properly handling privacy, security and trust is an indispensable precondition for reliable legal safeguards, reliable technology and secure business, and for achieving acceptance by citizens. Therefore, we propose to establish a Network of Excellence (NoE) for a framework for policy, privacy, security, trust and risk management for DRM. The NoE will consist of experts from various disciplines and will conduct and guide on-going and future high quality research on e-government related domains.

Towards a European Clinical Research Infrastructures Network: The ECRIN Programme

On the basis of the interconnection of national networks of clinical research centres (CRCs) and clinical trials units (CTUs), the European Clinical Research Infrastructures Network (ECRIN) programme aims to develop an infrastructure allowing for bottom-up harmonisation of the support and training for, and practice of, clinical research, and to provide public sponsors for biotechnology small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) with support for translational research and multicentre clinical studies in Europe. This will be achieved through an application to the next FP6 ‘Integrated Infrastructure Initiatives’ call. However, prior work is required to improve the reciprocal knowledge of partners in the ECRIN consortium and, as a first step, country-specific workshops will be organised by national networks in order to address the organisation of CRC/CTUs and national networks, and their interaction with the national environment of clinical research; this will enable in-depth discussion addressing the bottlenecks hampering transnational studies.

Privacy and personalisation in a smart space for learning

Adaptive learning systems typically involve learner profiles with sensitive information and activities that might breach learner's privacy, such as tracking, profiling or collaborative filtering. In this paper we discuss privacy aspects of personalisation and adaptation in smart spaces for learning. A smart space for learning is a system for mediation of learning services, which is being developed in the EU IST ELENA project. We present privacy threats and requirements in smart spaces for learning with focus on a learner, we model learner profile data that are necessary for privacy protection, and propose privacy-enhancing technology based solutions.

Application of multimedia techniques in the physical rehabilitation of Parkinson's patients

AbstractThis paper presents and discusses some experiments having the purpose of planning, developing and validating aesthetically resonant environments for different types of sensorimotor impairments which affect Parkinson's patients. From a technical point of view the aim is to develop a computational open architecture in which it is possible to integrate modules for gesture analysis and recognition and for interactive construction of therapeutic exercises based on multimedia stimulation in real time. The clinical objective is to experiment with a device of sensorimotor stimulation that supports akinesia compensation by controlling movement rhythmic structures in subjects with Parkinson's disease. The EyesWeb open architecture has been used to analyse patients' motion and to produce visual feedback during therapy sessions in real time. A pilot study has been conducted on two Parkinson's disease patients in the framework of the EU IST project CARE‐HERE. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Current situation and future planning of molecular epidemiology of radiation health effects around Chernobyl and Semipalatinsk

The medical cooperative projects from Nagasaki University to the former USSR have been performed in mainly two regions: Chernobyl and Semipalatinsk since 1990 and 1995, respectively. What we should do here in Nagasaki and also from Nagasaki will be discussed from the standpoint of humanitarian medical aid and scientific research collaboration using different channels of governmental and nongovernmental cooperative linkages. The 21st Century Center of Excellence (COE) program of “International Consortium for Medical Care of Hibakusha and Radiation Life Science” newly established in Nagasaki University can serve our knowledge and experience much more directly in relation to the radiocontaminated areas in the world, and indeed contribute to the lessons learned from Chernobyl and also to the future planning of the Network of Excellence (NOE) for Radiation Emergency Medical Preparedness and Assistance under the auspices of the WHO-REMPAN. Within the frame of the International Consortium of Radiation Research, a molecular epidemiology of thyroid diseases has now been conducted in our departments in addition to international medical assistance. The clue of radiation-associated thyroid carcinogenesis may give us a new concept on experimental and epidemiological approaches to low-dose radiation effects on human health, including internal radiation exposure.

A WIND-FLEX: Developing a novel testbed for exploring flexible radio concepts in an indoor environment

We describe the essential features of a novel testbed, code-named WIND-FLEX and developed under the auspices of the EU IST research program, whose primary goal has been to define and explore concepts related to radio flexibility, with application to an OFDM-based short-range indoor radio transceiver design. The emphasis has been on the profitable use of software and DSP tools for the purpose of demonstrating adaptivity and reconfigurability features, primarily for the lower layers (i.e., PHY and DLC/MAC layers). The topics covered briefly herein include the meaning of the terms in the present context, their instantiation in the design, their contribution to an optimized low-transmit-power scheme, the novel elements required in order to achieve it, the contribution to a guaranteed QoS philosophy, and the relationship of the testbed to broader software-defined-radio concepts.

When Cyclic Modules Have Σ-Injective Hulls#

A theorem of Cartan-Eilenberg (Cartan, H., Eilenberg, S. (1956). Homological Algebra. Princeton: Princeton University Press, pp. 390.) states that a ring Ris right Noetherian iff every injective right module is Σ-incentive. The purpose of this paper is to study rings with the property, called right CSI, that, all cyclic right R-modules have Σ-injective hulls, i.e., injective hulls of cyclic right R-modules are Σ-injective. In this case, all finitely generated right R-modules have Σ-injective hulls, and this implies that Ris right Noetherian for a lengthy list of rings, most notably, for Rcommutative, or when Rhas at most finitely many simple right R-modules, e.g., when Ris semilocal. Whether all right CSIrings are Noetherian is an open question. However, if in addition, R/rad Ris either right Kasch or von Neuman regular (=VNR), or if all countably generated (sermisimple) right R-modules have Σ-injective hulls then the answer is affirmative. (See Theorem A.) We also prove the dual theorems for Δ-injective modules. Dedicated to Ahmad Shamsuddin (1951–2001), in memoriam.

The 𝒥-Radical and the Pierce Radicals of a Lattice-Ordered Ring

The 𝒥-radical of a lattice-ordered ring Ris the ℓ-ring analogue of the Jacobson radical of a ring. It is shown that if the matrix ring R n has the usual lattice order, then 𝒥(R n ) = 𝒥(R) n . The connection between an element abeing right ℓ-quasi-regular and the inequality a ○ x ≤ 0 is also investigated. For squares in an f-ring the connection is an equivalence. In general it is still an equivalence provided xis the sum of elements from a larger f-ring whose absolute values lie in R. It is also shown that the vanishing of annihilators in an f-ring is inherited by enough totally ordered homomorphic images to give a subdirect product decomposition.

Finitely Generated Flat Modules and a Characterization of Semiperfect Rings#

For a ring S, let K 0(FGFl(S)) and K 0(FGPr(S)) denote the Grothendieck groups of the category of all finitely generated flat S-modules and the category of all finitely generated projective S-modules respectively. We prove that a semilocal ring Ris semiperfect if and only if the group homomorphism K 0(FGFl(R)) → K 0(FGFl(R/J(R))) is an epimorphism and K 0(FGFl(R)) = K 0(FGPr(R)). Dedicated to the memory of Professor Ahmad Shamsuddin.

Dedekind Finite Rings and a Theorem of Kaplansky#

A ring Ris Dedekind Finite(=DF) if xy = 1 implies yx = 1 for all x, yin R. Obviously any subring of a DFring Ris DF. The object of the paper is to generalize, and give a radically new proof of a theorem of Kaplansky on group algebras that are Dedekind finite. We shall prove that all right subrings of right and left self-injective (in fact, continuous) rings are DF. Dedicated to Ahmad Shamsuddin (1991–2001), in memoriam.

Strategic resolution of policy, environmental and socio-economic impacts in Canadian Arctic diamond mining: BHP's NWT diamond project

BHP's Northwest Territories Diamond Project (EKATI™) illustrates how a two-step process consisting of an environmental impact assessment review followed by parallel permitting and negotiated agreements resolved an array of interdependent policy, environmental, social-impact, legal/administrative and economic issues in the remote Canadian Arctic. The process bridged problems of intercultural communications between a multinational corporation, four small Aboriginal groups and officials working in a period of transition within government. The proposal proceeded because of participants' good faith, good science, public consultation, sound process management, mitigable impacts and shrewd ministerial handling.

A Geometric Semantics for Dialogue Game Protocols for Autonomous Agent Interactions

Formal dialogue games studied by philosophers since the time of Aristotle have recently found application in Artificial Intelligence as the basis for protocols for interactions between autonomous software agents. For instance, game protocols have been proposed for agent dialogues involving team formation, persuasion, negotiation and deliberation. There is yet, however, no formal, mathematical theory of dialogue game protocols with which to compare two protocols or to study their formal properties. In this paper,11Partly funded by the EU IST Programme through the Sustainable Lifecycles in Information Ecosystems (SLIE) Project (IST-1999–10948) and by the British Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) through a PhD studentship. We are also grateful for comments from the anonymous referees, the audience at the GETCO-2001 workshop in Aalborg, Mark Johnson and Grant Malcolm. we present preliminary work towards such a theory, in which we develop a geometric semantics for these protocols and, with it, define a notion of equivalence between two protocols. We then demonstrate an algebraic property of protocol equivalence, and use this to show the non-equivalence of two similar generic protocols. We also explore the relationship between finite and infinite dialogues, motivated by the Ehrenfeucht-Fraïssé games of model theory. Our results have implications for the design and evaluation of agent dialogue-game protocols.