Data-parallel computation in parallel and distributed environments

The past few decades have seen a considerable increase in the number of parallel and distributed systems. With the development of more complex applications, the need for more powerful systems has emerged and various parallel and distributed environments have been designed and implemented. Each of the environments, including hardware and software, has unique strengths and weaknesses. There is no single parallel environment that can be identified as the best environment for all applications with respect to hardware and software properties. The main goal of this thesis is to provide a novel way of performing data-parallel computation in parallel and distributed environments by utilizing the best characteristics of difference aspects of parallel computing. For the purpose of this thesis, three aspects of parallel computing were identified and studied. First, three parallel environments (shared memory, distributed memory, and a network of workstations) are evaluated to quantify theirsuitability for different parallel applications. Due to the parallel and distributed nature of the environments, networks connecting the processors in these environments were investigated with respect to their performance characteristics. Second, scheduling algorithms are studied in order to make them more efficient and effective. A concept of application-specific information scheduling is introduced. The application- specific information is data about the workload extractedfrom an application, which is provided to a scheduling algorithm. Three scheduling algorithms are enhanced to utilize the application-specific information to further refine their scheduling properties. A more accurate description of the workload is especially important in cases where the workunits are heterogeneous and the parallel environment is heterogeneous and/or non-dedicated. The results obtained show that the additional information regarding the workload has a positive impact on the performance of applications. Third, a programming paradigm for networks of symmetric multiprocessor (SMP) workstations is introduced. The MPIT programming paradigm incorporates the Message Passing Interface (MPI) with threads to provide a methodology to write parallel applications that efficiently utilize the available resources and minimize the overhead. The MPIT allows for communication and computation to overlap by deploying a dedicated thread for communication. Furthermore, the programming paradigm implements an application-specific scheduling algorithm. The scheduling algorithm is executed by the communication thread. Thus, the scheduling does not affect the execution of the parallel application. Performance results achieved from the MPIT show that considerable improvements over conventional MPI applications are achieved.

GIS and geodatabases application to global scale plate tectonics modelling

Les reconstructions palinspastiques fournissent le cadre idéal à de nombreuses études géologiques, géographiques, océanographique ou climatiques. En tant qu?historiens de la terre, les "reconstructeurs" essayent d?en déchiffrer le passé. Depuis qu?ils savent que les continents bougent, les géologues essayent de retracer leur évolution à travers les âges. Si l?idée originale de Wegener était révolutionnaire au début du siècle passé, nous savons depuis le début des années « soixante » que les continents ne "dérivent" pas sans but au milieu des océans mais sont inclus dans un sur-ensemble associant croûte « continentale » et « océanique »: les plaques tectoniques. Malheureusement, pour des raisons historiques aussi bien que techniques, cette idée ne reçoit toujours pas l'écho suffisant parmi la communauté des reconstructeurs. Néanmoins, nous sommes intimement convaincus qu?en appliquant certaines méthodes et certains principes il est possible d?échapper à l?approche "Wégenerienne" traditionnelle pour enfin tendre vers la tectonique des plaques. Le but principal du présent travail est d?exposer, avec tous les détails nécessaires, nos outils et méthodes. Partant des données paléomagnétiques et paléogéographiques classiquement utilisées pour les reconstructions, nous avons développé une nouvelle méthodologie replaçant les plaques tectoniques et leur cinématique au coeur du problème. En utilisant des assemblages continentaux (aussi appelés "assemblées clés") comme des points d?ancrage répartis sur toute la durée de notre étude (allant de l?Eocène jusqu?au Cambrien), nous développons des scénarios géodynamiques permettant de passer de l?une à l?autre en allant du passé vers le présent. Entre deux étapes, les plaques lithosphériques sont peu à peu reconstruites en additionnant/ supprimant les matériels océaniques (symbolisés par des isochrones synthétiques) aux continents. Excepté lors des collisions, les plaques sont bougées comme des entités propres et rigides. A travers les âges, les seuls éléments évoluant sont les limites de plaques. Elles sont préservées aux cours du temps et suivent une évolution géodynamique consistante tout en formant toujours un réseau interconnecté à travers l?espace. Cette approche appelée "limites de plaques dynamiques" intègre de multiples facteurs parmi lesquels la flottabilité des plaques, les taux d'accrétions aux rides, les courbes de subsidence, les données stratigraphiques et paléobiogéographiques aussi bien que les évènements tectoniques et magmatiques majeurs. Cette méthode offre ainsi un bon contrôle sur la cinématique des plaques et fournit de sévères contraintes au modèle. Cette approche "multi-source" nécessite une organisation et une gestion des données efficaces. Avant le début de cette étude, les masses de données nécessaires était devenues un obstacle difficilement surmontable. Les SIG (Systèmes d?Information Géographiques) et les géo-databases sont des outils informatiques spécialement dédiés à la gestion, au stockage et à l?analyse des données spatialement référencées et de leurs attributs. Grâce au développement dans ArcGIS de la base de données PaleoDyn nous avons pu convertir cette masse de données discontinues en informations géodynamiques précieuses et facilement accessibles pour la création des reconstructions. Dans le même temps, grâce à des outils spécialement développés, nous avons, tout à la fois, facilité le travail de reconstruction (tâches automatisées) et amélioré le modèle en développant fortement le contrôle cinématique par la création de modèles de vitesses des plaques. Sur la base des 340 terranes nouvellement définis, nous avons ainsi développé un set de 35 reconstructions auxquelles est toujours associé un modèle de vitesse. Grâce à cet ensemble de données unique, nous pouvons maintenant aborder des problématiques majeurs de la géologie moderne telles que l?étude des variations du niveau marin et des changements climatiques. Nous avons commencé par aborder un autre problème majeur (et non définitivement élucidé!) de la tectonique moderne: les mécanismes contrôlant les mouvements des plaques. Nous avons pu observer que, tout au long de l?histoire de la terre, les pôles de rotation des plaques (décrivant les mouvements des plaques à la surface de la terre) tendent à se répartir le long d'une bande allant du Pacifique Nord au Nord de l'Amérique du Sud, l'Atlantique Central, l'Afrique du Nord, l'Asie Centrale jusqu'au Japon. Fondamentalement, cette répartition signifie que les plaques ont tendance à fuir ce plan médian. En l'absence d'un biais méthodologique que nous n'aurions pas identifié, nous avons interprété ce phénomène comme reflétant l'influence séculaire de la Lune sur le mouvement des plaques. La Lune sur le mouvement des plaques. Le domaine océanique est la clé de voute de notre modèle. Nous avons attaché un intérêt tout particulier à le reconstruire avec beaucoup de détails. Dans ce modèle, la croûte océanique est préservée d?une reconstruction à l?autre. Le matériel crustal y est symbolisé sous la forme d?isochrones synthétiques dont nous connaissons les âges. Nous avons également reconstruit les marges (actives ou passives), les rides médio-océaniques et les subductions intra-océaniques. En utilisant ce set de données très détaillé, nous avons pu développer des modèles bathymétriques 3-D unique offrant une précision bien supérieure aux précédents.<br/><br/>Palinspastic reconstructions offer an ideal framework for geological, geographical, oceanographic and climatology studies. As historians of the Earth, "reconstructers" try to decipher the past. Since they know that continents are moving, geologists a trying to retrieve the continents distributions through ages. If Wegener?s view of continent motions was revolutionary at the beginning of the 20th century, we know, since the Early 1960?s that continents are not drifting without goal in the oceanic realm but are included in a larger set including, all at once, the oceanic and the continental crust: the tectonic plates. Unfortunately, mainly due to technical and historical issues, this idea seems not to receive a sufficient echo among our particularly concerned community. However, we are intimately convinced that, by applying specific methods and principles we can escape the traditional "Wegenerian" point of view to, at last, reach real plate tectonics. This is the main aim of this study to defend this point of view by exposing, with all necessary details, our methods and tools. Starting with the paleomagnetic and paleogeographic data classically used in reconstruction studies, we developed a modern methodology placing the plates and their kinematics at the centre of the issue. Using assemblies of continents (referred as "key assemblies") as anchors distributed all along the scope of our study (ranging from Eocene time to Cambrian time) we develop geodynamic scenarios leading from one to the next, from the past to the present. In between, lithospheric plates are progressively reconstructed by adding/removing oceanic material (symbolized by synthetic isochrones) to major continents. Except during collisions, plates are moved as single rigid entities. The only evolving elements are the plate boundaries which are preserved and follow a consistent geodynamical evolution through time and form an interconnected network through space. This "dynamic plate boundaries" approach integrates plate buoyancy factors, oceans spreading rates, subsidence patterns, stratigraphic and paleobiogeographic data, as well as major tectonic and magmatic events. It offers a good control on plate kinematics and provides severe constraints for the model. This multi-sources approach requires an efficient data management. Prior to this study, the critical mass of necessary data became a sorely surmountable obstacle. GIS and geodatabases are modern informatics tools of specifically devoted to store, analyze and manage data and associated attributes spatially referenced on the Earth. By developing the PaleoDyn database in ArcGIS software we converted the mass of scattered data offered by the geological records into valuable geodynamical information easily accessible for reconstructions creation. In the same time, by programming specific tools we, all at once, facilitated the reconstruction work (tasks automation) and enhanced the model (by highly increasing the kinematic control of plate motions thanks to plate velocity models). Based on the 340 terranes properly defined, we developed a revised set of 35 reconstructions associated to their own velocity models. Using this unique dataset we are now able to tackle major issues of the geology (such as the global sea-level variations and climate changes). We started by studying one of the major unsolved issues of the modern plate tectonics: the driving mechanism of plate motions. We observed that, all along the Earth?s history, plates rotation poles (describing plate motions across the Earth?s surface) tend to follow a slight linear distribution along a band going from the Northern Pacific through Northern South-America, Central Atlantic, Northern Africa, Central Asia up to Japan. Basically, it sighifies that plates tend to escape this median plan. In the absence of a non-identified methodological bias, we interpreted it as the potential secular influence ot the Moon on plate motions. The oceanic realms are the cornerstone of our model and we attached a particular interest to reconstruct them with many details. In this model, the oceanic crust is preserved from one reconstruction to the next. The crustal material is symbolised by the synthetic isochrons from which we know the ages. We also reconstruct the margins (active or passive), ridges and intra-oceanic subductions. Using this detailed oceanic dataset, we developed unique 3-D bathymetric models offering a better precision than all the previously existing ones.

Messaging Application Engine for Symbian Platform

Tämä diplomityö kuvaa viestintä sovelluksen ytimen kehitystyön Symbian-alustalle. Koko sovelluksen vaatimuksena oli vastaamattomiin puheluihin vastaaminen ennalta määritellyillä tekstiviesteillä käyttäjän määrittelemien sääntöjen mukaisesti. Ei-toiminnallisia vaatimuksia olivat resurssien käytön vähentäminen ja uudelleenkäytön mahdollistaminen. Täten tämän työn tavoitteena oli kehittää ydin, joka kapseloi sovelluksen sellaisen toiminnallisuuden, joka on käyttöliittymästä riippumatonta ja uudelleenkäytettävää. Kehitystyössä ohjasi Unified Process, joka on iteroiva, käyttötapauksien ohjaama ja arkkitehtuurikeskeinen ohjelmistoprosessi. Se kannusti käyttämään myös muita teollisuudenalan vakiintuneita menetelmiä, kuten suunnittelumalleja ja visuaalista mallintamista käyttäen Unified Modelling Languagea. Suunnittelumalleja käytettiin kehitystyön aikana ja ohjelmisto mallinnettiin visuaalisesti suunnittelun edistämiseksi ja selkiyttämiseksi. Alustan palveluita käytettiin hyväksi kehitysajan ja resurssien käytön minimoimiseksi. Ytimen päätehtäviksi määrättiin viestien lähettäminen sekä sääntöjen talletus ja tarkistaminen. Sovelluksen eri alueet, eli sovelluspalvelin ja käyttöliittymää, pystyivät käyttämään ydintä ja sillä ei ollut riippuvuuksia käyttöliittymätasolle. Täten resurssien käyttö väheni ja uudelleenkäytettävyys lisääntyi. Viestien lähettäminen toteutettiin Symbian-alustan menetelmin. Sääntöjen tallettamiseen tehtiin tallennuskehys, joka eristää sääntöjen sisäisen ja ulkoisen muodon. Tässä tapauksessa ulkoiseksi tallennustavaksi valittiin relaatiotietokanta. Sääntöjen tarkastaminen toteutettiin tavanomaisella olioiden yhteistoiminnalla. Päätavoite saavutettiin. tämä ja muut hyviksi arvioidut lopputulokset, kuten uudelleenkäytettävyys ja vähentynyt resurssien käyttö, arveltiin juontuvan suunnittelumallien ja Unified Processin käytöstä. Kyseiset menetelmät osoittivat mukautuvansa pieniinkin projekteihin. Menetelmien todettiin myös tukevan ja kannustavan kehitystyön aikaista oppimista, mikä oli välttämätöntä tässä tapauksessa.

Porting a Java library to different platforms

Viime aikoina matkapuhelimet ovat alkaneet tukea Javaa matkapuhelinsovellusten ohjelmointikielenä. Javan perusajatus on, että kerran käännetty sovellus voidaan suorittaa useilla laitealustoilla ilman uudelleenkääntämisen tarvetta. Jotta sovellukset voisivat toimia uudella alustalla, niiden käyttämät kirjastot tulee siirtää uudelle alustalle. Tämä diplomityö tutkii tämänkaltaiseen siirtoprojektiin liittyviä asioita. Diplomityön aikana käyttöliittymäkirjasto siirrettiin olemassa olleelta alustalta kahdelle uudelle alustalle. Toinen uusista alustoista oli vanhan alustan uusi versio, ja toinen oli kokonaan uusi alusta. Ohjelmiston siirtämistä helpottaa jos alkuperäinen ohjelmisto on suunniteltu siirrettävyyttä silmälläpitäen. Varsinaiset ohjelmaan tehtävät muutokset ovat tällöin helppoja tehdä. Hyvälaatuisen lopputuloksen saaminen vaatii kuitenkin aina että ohjelmisto myös testataan huolellisesti.

Simulation Supported Robot Programming using XML

The main objective of this master's thesis is to study robot programming using simulation software, and also how to embed the simulation software into company's own robot controlling software. The further goal is to study a new communication interface to the assembly line's components -more precisely how to connect the robot cell into this new communication system. Conveyor lines are already available where the conveyors use the new communication standard. The robot cell is not yet capable of communicating with to other devices using the new communication protocols. The main problem among robot manufacturers is that they all have their own communication systems and programming languages. There has not been any common programming language to program all the different robot manufacturers robots, until the RRS (Realistic Robot Simulation) standards were developed. The RRS - II makes it possible to create the robot programs in the simulation software and it gives a common user interface for different robot manufacturers robots. This thesis will present the RRS - II standard and the robot manufacturers situation for the RRS - II support. Thesis presents how the simulation software can be embedded into company's own robot controlling software and also how the robot cell can be connected to the CAMX (Computer Aided Manufacturing using XML) communication system.

Application of Neural Network Methods in the Prediction of Stock Markets

The purpose of the research is to define practical profit which can be achieved using neural network methods as a prediction instrument. The thesis investigates the ability of neural networks to forecast future events. This capability is checked on the example of price prediction during intraday trading on stock market. The executed experiments show predictions of average 1, 2, 5 and 10 minutes’ prices based on data of one day and made by two different types of forecasting systems. These systems are based on the recurrent neural networks and back propagation neural nets. The precision of the predictions is controlled by the absolute error and the error of market direction. The economical effectiveness is estimated by a special trading system. In conclusion, the best structures of neural nets are tested with data of 31 days’ interval. The best results of the average percent of profit from one transaction (buying + selling) are 0.06668654, 0.188299453, 0.349854787 and 0.453178626, they were achieved for prediction periods 1, 2, 5 and 10 minutes. The investigation can be interesting for the investors who have access to a fast information channel with a possibility of every-minute data refreshment.

Implementation of CORBA interface in a wireless device

CORBA (Common Object Request Broker Architecture) on laajalle levinnyt ja teollisuudessa yleisesti käytetty hajautetun tietojenkäsittelyn arkkitehtuuri. CORBA skaalautuu eri kokoisiin tarpeisiin ja sitä voidaan hyödynntää myös sulautetuissa langattomissa laitteissa. Oleellista sulautetussa ympäristössä on rakentaa rajapinnat kevytrakenteisiksi, pysyviksi ja helposti laajennettaviksi ilman että yhteensopivuus aikaisempiin rajapintoihin olisi vaarassa. Langattomissa laitteissa resurssit, kuten muistin määrä ja prosessointiteho, ovat hyvin rajalliset, joten rajapinta tulee suunnitella ja toteuttaa optimaalisesti. Palveluiden tulee ottaa huomioon myös langattomuuden rajoitukset, kuten hitaat tiedonsiirtonopeudet ja tiedonsiirron yhteydettömän luonteen. Työssä suunniteltiin ja toteutettiin CORBA-rajapinta GSM-päätelaitteeseen, jonka on todettu täyttävän sille asetetut tavoitteet. Rajapinta tarjoaa kaikki yleisimmät GSM-terminaalin ominaisuudet ja on laajennettavissa tulevia tuotteita ja verkkotekniikoita varten. Laajennettavuutta saavutetaan esimerkiksi kuvaamalla terminaalin ominaisuudet yleisellä kuvauskielellä, kuten XML:lla (Extensible Markup Language).

Programming Hippocampal Neural Stem/Progenitor Cells into Oligodendrocytes Enhances Remyelination in the Adult Brain after Injury.

Demyelinating diseases are characterized by a loss of oligodendrocytes leading to axonal degeneration and impaired brain function. Current strategies used for the treatment of demyelinating disease such as multiple sclerosis largely rely on modulation of the immune system. Only limited treatment options are available for treating the later stages of the disease, and these treatments require regenerative therapies to ameliorate the consequences of oligodendrocyte loss and axonal impairment. Directed differentiation of adult hippocampal neural stem/progenitor cells (NSPCs) into oligodendrocytes may represent an endogenous source of glial cells for cell-replacement strategies aiming to treat demyelinating disease. Here, we show that Ascl1-mediated conversion of hippocampal NSPCs into mature oligodendrocytes enhances remyelination in a diphtheria-toxin (DT)-inducible, genetic model for demyelination. These findings highlight the potential of targeting hippocampal NSPCs for the treatment of demyelinated lesions in the adult brain.

WWW-pohjaisen sovelluksen automatisoitu testaus ja sitä edistävät ohjelmointikäytännöt

Ohjelmistotestauksen avulla voidaan tarkastella sovelluksen vastaavuutta vaatimuksiin. Tavoitteena on löytää sovelluksesta virheitä, ja siten parantaa sovelluksen laatua. Sovelluksen laatu voidaan määritellä useilla mittareilla, kuten esimerkiksi testattavuudella. Tässä työssä tarkastellaan WWW-sovelluksen automatisoidun testauksen toteutusta, jossa käytetään apuna testauskehystä. Automatisoituun testaukseen kuuluu testitapausten suunnittelu sekä toteutus, joiden lopputuloksena on uudelleenajettavia testitapauksia. Testaus keskittyy sovelluksen toiminnallisuuteen ja jättää tietokantaan päivitettävien tietojen tarkastamisen tekemättä. Testaus suoritetaan ilman tarkempaa tietoa sovelluksen sisäisestä toiminnasta. Testattava sovellus on Mobilding-hankkeessa toteutettu WWW-sovellus, jonka avulla hallinnoidaan rakennuksen elementtejä. Työssä vertaillaan WWW-sovelluksen käyttöliittymän testaukseen soveltuvia testauskehyksiä, ja pyritään tuomaan esille niiden ominaispiirteitä. Työn tuloksena on uudelleensuoritettavia testitapahtumia. Lisäksi pohditaan ohjelmointikäytäntöjä, joilla voidaan edistää automatisoitua testausta. Ohjelmointikäytännöt perustuvat työn toteutuksen aikana havaittuihin ongelmiin.

Prototype of a web-based participative decision support platform in natural hazards and risk management

This paper presents the current state and development of a prototype web-GIS (Geographic Information System) decision support platform intended for application in natural hazards and risk management, mainly for floods and landslides. This web platform uses open-source geospatial software and technologies, particularly the Boundless (formerly OpenGeo) framework and its client side software development kit (SDK). The main purpose of the platform is to assist the experts and stakeholders in the decision-making process for evaluation and selection of different risk management strategies through an interactive participation approach, integrating web-GIS interface with decision support tool based on a compromise programming approach. The access rights and functionality of the platform are varied depending on the roles and responsibilities of stakeholders in managing the risk. The application of the prototype platform is demonstrated based on an example case study site: Malborghetto Valbruna municipality of North-Eastern Italy where flash floods and landslides are frequent with major events having occurred in 2003. The preliminary feedback collected from the stakeholders in the region is discussed to understand the perspectives of stakeholders on the proposed prototype platform.

Combined dielectrophoretic and impedance system for on-chip controlled bacteria concentration: Application to Escherichia coli

The present paper reports a bacteria autonomous controlled concentrator prototype with a user-friendly interface for bench-top applications. It is based on a micro-fluidic lab-on-a-chip and its associated custom instrumentation, which consists in a dielectrophoretic actuator, to pre-concentrate the sample, and an impedance analyser, to measure concentrated bacteria levels. The system is composed by a single micro-fluidic chamber with interdigitated electrodes and a instrumentation with custom electronics. The prototype is supported by a real-time platform connected to a remote computer, which automatically controls the system and displays impedance data used to monitor the status of bacteria accumulation on-chip. The system automates the whole concentrating operation. Performance has been studied for controlled volumes of Escherichia coli (E. coli) samples injected into the micro-fluidic chip at constant flow rate of 10 μL/min. A media conductivity correcting protocol has been developed, as the preliminary results showed distortion of the impedance analyser measurement produced by bacterial media conductivity variations through time. With the correcting protocol, the measured impedance values were related to the quantity of bacteria concentrated with a correlation of 0.988 and a coefficient of variation of 3.1%. Feasibility of E. coli on-chip automated concentration, using the miniaturized system, has been demonstrated. Furthermore, the impedance monitoring protocol had been adjusted and optimized, to handle changes in the electrical properties of the bacteria media over time.

Web Application Performance Testing

Web application performance testing is an emerging and important field of software engineering. As web applications become more commonplace and complex, the need for performance testing will only increase. This paper discusses common concepts, practices and tools that lie at the heart of web application performance testing. A pragmatic, hands-on approach is assumed where applicable; real-life examples of test tooling, execution and analysis are presented right next to the underpinning theory. At the client-side, web application performance is primarily driven by the amount of data transmitted over the wire. At the server-side, selection of programming language and platform, implementation complexity and configuration are the primary contributors to web application performance. Web application performance testing is an activity that requires delicate coordination between project stakeholders, developers, system administrators and testers in order to produce reliable and useful results. Proper test definition, execution, reporting and repeatable test results are of utmost importance. Open-source performance analysis tools such as Apache JMeter, Firebug and YSlow can be used to realise effective web application performance tests. A sample case study using these tools is presented in this paper. The sample application was found to perform poorly even under the moderate load incurred by the sample tests.

Improving and User Interface to E-Procurement Software Used in Asset Accounting and Investigating Effects to Efficiency

This diploma thesis has been done to international organization which takes care from the accounting actions of two major companies. In this organization are used three different purchasing tools which are used when new asset master data is wanted to input to SAP R/3- system. The aim of this thesis is to find out how much changing the user interface of one of these three e-procurement programs will affect to overall efficiency in asset accounting. As an addition will be introduced project framework which can be used in future projects and which help to avoid certain steps in the development process. At the moment data needs to be inputted manually with many useless mouse clicks and data needs to be searched from many various resources which slow down the process. Other organization has better tools at the moment than the myOrders system which is under investigation Research was started by exploring the main improvement areas. After this possible defects were traced. Suggested improvements were thought by exploring literature which has been written from usability design and research. Meanwhile also directional calculations from the benefits of the project were done alongside with the analysis of the possible risks and threats. After this NSN IT approved the changes which they thought was acceptable. The next step was to program them into tool and test them before releasing to production environment. The calculations were made also from implemented improvements and compared them to planned ones From whole project was made a framework which can be utilized also to other similar projects. The complete calculation was not possible because of time schedule of the project. Important observation in the project was that efficiency is not improved not only by changing the GUI but also improving processes without any programming. Feedback from end user should be also listened more in development process. End-user is after all the one who knows the best how the program should look like.

Mobiilin työajanhallinnan ohjelmistokehitys

Työajan seuranta ja kohdistaminen oikeisiin kustannuslajeihin on yrityksen suorituskyvyn ja kasvun kannalta usein välttämättömyys. Tässä työssä tutkitaan mobiiliteknologioiden mahdollisuuksia ja soveltuvuutta tuottaa palveluita työajan hallinnointiin, valitaan sopiva arkkitehtuuri ja kehitetään Java ME –teknologialla prototyyppi, joka on helposti integroitavissa yrityksen nykyisiin palvelinpuolen järjestelmiin ja tietokantoihin. Työn sovellusosuudessa kuvataan prototyypin ohjelmoinnissa käytetyt työkalut, menetelmät, ongelmakohdat sekä niiden ratkaisut. Suunnitelluissa käyttötapauksissa tapahtumatiedot syötetään manuaalisesti puhelimen käyttöliittymän kautta tai automatisoidummin kerätään kustannuskohdistetietoa työkohteisiin sijoitetuista NFC-tageista. Työaikaleimaamista testattiin emulaattorilla ja oikealla matkapuhelimella. Lopputuloksena asiakkaan työajanhallinnan tapahtumat siirtyvät langattomasti ja reaaliaikaisesti yrityksen webpalvelimelle JSON-formaatissa.

Teaching mathematics and programming : new approaches with empirical evaluation

Programming and mathematics are core areas of computer science (CS) and consequently also important parts of CS education. Introductory instruction in these two topics is, however, not without problems. Studies show that CS students find programming difficult to learn and that teaching mathematical topics to CS novices is challenging. One reason for the latter is the disconnection between mathematics and programming found in many CS curricula, which results in students not seeing the relevance of the subject for their studies. In addition, reports indicate that students' mathematical capability and maturity levels are dropping. The challenges faced when teaching mathematics and programming at CS departments can also be traced back to gaps in students' prior education. In Finland the high school curriculum does not include CS as a subject; instead, focus is on learning to use the computer and its applications as tools. Similarly, many of the mathematics courses emphasize application of formulas, while logic, formalisms and proofs, which are important in CS, are avoided. Consequently, high school graduates are not well prepared for studies in CS. Motivated by these challenges, the goal of the present work is to describe new approaches to teaching mathematics and programming aimed at addressing these issues: Structured derivations is a logic-based approach to teaching mathematics, where formalisms and justifications are made explicit. The aim is to help students become better at communicating their reasoning using mathematical language and logical notation at the same time as they become more confident with formalisms. The Python programming language was originally designed with education in mind, and has a simple syntax compared to many other popular languages. The aim of using it in instruction is to address algorithms and their implementation in a way that allows focus to be put on learning algorithmic thinking and programming instead of on learning a complex syntax. Invariant based programming is a diagrammatic approach to developing programs that are correct by construction. The approach is based on elementary propositional and predicate logic, and makes explicit the underlying mathematical foundations of programming. The aim is also to show how mathematics in general, and logic in particular, can be used to create better programs.