A STUDY ON SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT PROJECT RISK, RISK MANAGEMENT, PROJECT OUTCOMES AND THEIR INTER-RELATIONSHIP

This research was undertaken with an objective of studying software development project risk, risk management, project outcomes and their inter-relationship in the Indian context. Validated instruments were used to measure risk, risk management and project outcome in software development projects undertaken in India. A second order factor model was developed for risk with five first order factors. Risk management was also identified as a second order construct with four first order factors. These structures were validated using confirmatory factor analysis. Variation in risk across categories of select organization / project characteristics was studied through a series of one way ANOVA tests. Regression model was developed for each of the risk factors by linking it to risk management factors and project /organization characteristics. Similarly regression models were developed for the project outcome measures linking them to risk factors. Integrated models linking risk factors, risk management factors and project outcome measures were tested through structural equation modeling. Quality of the software developed was seen to have a positive relationship with risk management and negative relationship with risk. The other outcome variables, namely time overrun and cost over run, had strong positive relationship with risk. Risk management did not have direct effect on overrun variables. Risk was seen to be acting as an intervening variable between risk management and overrun variables.

Studies On Classical And Retrial Inventory With Positive Service Time

Department of Mathematics, Cochin University of Science and Technology

High resolution optogalvanic spectrum of N2-rotational structure of (11, 7) band in the first positive system

High resolution optogalvanic spectrum of the (11, 7) band in the first positive system of nitrogen molecule has been recorded from 17179 to 17376 cm- 1. Assignment of 432 rotational lines belonging to the 27 branches of this band has been carried out.

Performance characteristics of positive and negative delayed feedback on chaotic dynamics of directly modulated InGaAsP semiconductor lasers

The chaotic dynamics of directly modulated semiconductor lasers with delayed optoelectronic feedback is studied numerically. The effects of positive and negative delayed optoelectronic feedback in producing chaotic outputs from such lasers with nonlinear gain reduction in its optimum value range is investigated using bifurcation diagrams. The results are confirmed by calculating the Lyapunov exponents. A negative delayed optoelectronic feedback configuration is found to be more effective in inducing chaotic dynamics to such systems with nonlinear gain reduction factor in the practical value range.

Supramolecular Organization of Metal Nanoparticles in Solution and of Phenyleneethynylenes on Surfaces

Most of the procedures reported for the synthesis of metal nanoparticles involve the use of strong reducing agents or elevated temperatures. This limits the possibility of developing metal nanoparticle based sensors for the in situ detection of analytes. One of the objectives of the present investigations is to (i) develop newer methodologies for the synthesis of metal nanoparticles in aqueous medium at ambient conditions and (ii) their use in the detection of metal cations by taking advantage of the unique coordination ability. Ideally, biocompatible molecules which possess both the reducing and stabilizing groups are desirable for such applications. Formation of stable supramolecular assembly, by bringing metal nanoparticles close to each other, results in plasmon coupling and this strategy can be effectively utilized for the development of metal nanoparticle based sensors.Another objective of the present study is to understand the supramolecular organization of molecules on surfaces. Various noncovalent interactions between the molecules and with surface play a decisive role in their organizations. An in-depth understanding of these interactions is essential for device fabrications. Recent photophysical studies have revealed that phenyleneethynylene based molecular systems are ideal for device application. The second objective of the thesis focuses on understanding the (i) organization of phenyleneethynylenes on highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) surface with atomic level precision and (ii) weak intermolecular interactions which drive their organization.

Novel Melt Transurethane Process for Cycloaliphatic Polyurethanes and Their Self-Organization for Nano-Materials

In this introduction part, importance has been given to the elastomeric properties of polyurethanes. Emphasis has been laid to this property based on microphase separation and how this could be modified by modifying the segment lengths, as well as the structure of the segments. Implication was also made on the mechanical and thermal properties of these copolymers based on various analytical methods usually used for characterization of polymers. A brief overview of the challenges faced by the polyurethane chemistry was also done, pointing to the fact that though polyurethane industry is more than 75 years old, still a lot of questions remain unanswered, that too mostly in the synthesis of polyurethanes. A major challenge in this industry is the utilization of more environmental friendly “Green Chemistry Routes” for the synthesis of polyurethanes which are devoid of any isocyanates or harsh solvents.The research work in this thesis was focused to develop non-isocyanate green chemical process for polyurethanes and also self-organize the resultant novel polymers into nano-materials. The thesis was focused on the following three major aspects:(i) Design and development of novel melt transurethane process for polyurethanes under non-isocyanate and solvent free melt condition. (ii) Solvent induced self-organization of the novel cycloaliphatic polyurethanes prepared by the melt transurethane process into microporous templates and nano-sized polymeric hexagons and spheres. (iii) Novel polyurethane-oligophenylenevinylene random block copolymer nano-materials and their photoluminescence properties. The second chapter of the thesis gives an elaborate discussion on the “Novel Melt Transurethane Process ” for the synthesis of polyurethanes under non-isocyanate and solvent free melt condition. The polycondensation reaction was carried out between equimolar amounts of a di-urethane monomer and a diol in the presence of a catalyst under melt condition to produce polyurethanes followed by the removal of low boiling alcohol from equilibrium. The polymers synthesized through this green chemical route were found to be soluble (devoid of any cross links), thermally stable and free from any isocyanate entities. The polymerization reaction was confirmed by various analytical techniques with specific references to the extent of reaction which is the main watchful point for any successful polymerization reaction. The mechanistic aspects of the reaction were another point of consideration for the novel polymerization route which was successfully dealt with by performing various model reactions. Since this route was successful enough in synthesizing polyurethanes with novel structures, they were employed for the solvent induced self-organization which is an important area of research in the polymer world in the present scenario. Chapter three mesmerizes the reader with multitudes of morphologies depending upon the chemical backbone structure of the polyurethane as well as on the nature and amount of various solvents employed for the self-organization tactics. The rationale towards these morphologies-“Hydrogen Bonding ” have been systematically probed by various techniques. These polyurethanes were then tagged with luminescent 0ligo(phenylene vinylene) units and the effects of these OPV blocks on the morphology of the polyurethanes were analyzed in chapter four. These blocks have resulted in the formation of novel “Blue Luminescent Balls” which could find various applications in optoelectronic devices as well as delivery vehicles.

Discrete Time Inventory Models with/without Positive Service Time

In everyday life different flows of customers to avail some service facility or other at some service station are experienced. In some of these situations, congestion of items arriving for service, because an item cannot be serviced Immediately on arrival, is unavoidable. A queuing system can be described as customers arriving for service, waiting for service if it is not immediate, and if having waited for service, leaving the system after being served. Examples Include shoppers waiting in front of checkout stands in a supermarket, Programs waiting to be processed by a digital computer, ships in the harbor Waiting to be unloaded, persons waiting at railway booking office etc. A queuing system is specified completely by the following characteristics: input or arrival pattern, service pattern, number of service channels, System capacity, queue discipline and number of service stages. The ultimate objective of solving queuing models is to determine the characteristics that measure the performance of the system

Studies on coagulase-positive staphylococci and Vibrio parahaemollticus in selected items of fish, crustaceans and fishery products

In India much work has been done on different aspects of quality of processed fish and fishery products (Pillai et al., 1965; Iyer and Chaudhuri, 1966; Iyer et al., 1966; Sreenivasan and Joseph, 1966; Pillai and Rao, 1969; Mathen et al., 1975; Valsan et al., 1985) and standards have been formulated for almost all the fishery products. Quality standards for fresh fish cover only a few fish species available in the markets. For the formulation and recommendation of quality standards for fish and fishery products for domestic trade detailed background informations are necessary. Khot et al., (1982), Valsan et al. J (1985) and Iyer et al. (1986) have reported on the bacterial flora of sea foods at retail level in Bombay. Cochin is a major fish landing centre of the south west coast of India, and an average of 25,000. tonnes of fish/shell fish are landed annually at this harbour which is about 10 percent of the total catch of fish in Kerala (Lakshmanan -et -al., 1984). All the varieties of marine, brackish water and fresh water fishes are available in Cochln throughout the year for catering to Its cosmopolitan. population and informations regarding their bacteriological quality are scanty. Hence the present study was undertaken to investigate the bacteriological quality of fish and fishery products available in the markets and cold storages situated in and around Cochin meant for internal consumption.

Investigations on Stochastic Storage Systems with Positive Service Time

In this thesis the queueing-inventory models considered are analyzed as continuous time Markov chains in which we use the tools such as matrix analytic methods. We obtain the steady-state distributions of various queueing-inventory models in product form under the assumption that no customer joins the system when the inventory level is zero. This is despite the strong correlation between the number of customers joining the system and the inventory level during lead time. The resulting quasi-birth-anddeath (QBD) processes are solved explicitly by matrix geometric methods

Studies on Inventory with Positive Service Time Under Local Purchase Driven by N/T- Policy

In this thesis, certain continuous time inventory problems with positive service time under local purchase guided by N/T-policy are analysed. In most of the cases analysed, we arrive at stochastic decomposition of system states, that is, the joint distribution of the system states is obtained as the product of marginal distributions of the components. The thesis is divided into ve chapters