Evaluating the Java Virtual Machine as a Target for Languages Other Than Java

The portability and runtime safety of programs which are executed on the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) makes the JVM an attractive target for compilers of languages other than Java. Unfortunately, the JVM was designed with language Java in mind, and lacks many of the primitives required for a straighforward implementation of other languages. Here, we discuss how the JVM may be used to implement other object-oriented languages. As a practical example of the possibilities, we report on a comprehensive case study. The open source Gardens Point Component Pascal compiler compiles the entire Component Pascal language, a dialect of Oberon-2, to JVM bytecodes. This compiler achieves runtime efficiencies which are comparable to native-code implementations of procedural languages.

Implementing languages other than Java on the Java Virtual Machine

The portability and runtime safety of programs which are executed on the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) makes the JVM an attractive target for compilers of languages other than Java. Unfortunately, the JVM was designed with language Java in mind, and lacks many of the primitives required for a straight forward implementation of other languages. Here, we discuss how the JVM may be used to implement other object oriented languages. As a practical example of the possibilities, we report on a comprehensive case study. The open source Gardens Point Component Pascal compiler compiles the entire Component Pascal language, a dialect of Oberon 2, to JVM bytecodes. This compiler achieves runtime efficiencies which are comparable to native code implementations of procedural languages.

Demo Abstract: A Java compatible virtual machine for wireless sensor nodes

The Java programming language has potentially significant advantages for wireless sensor nodes but there is currently no feature-rich, open source virtual machine available. In this paper we present Darjeeling, a system comprising offline tools and a memory efficient run-time. The offline post-compiler tool analyzes, links and consolidates Java class files into loadable modules. The runtime implements a modified Java VM that supports multithreading and is designed specifically to operate in constrained execution environments such as wireless sensor network nodes and supports inheritance, threads, garbage collection, and loadable modules. We have demonstrated Java running on AVR128 and MSP430 microcontrollers at speeds of up to 70,000 JVM instructions per second.

Darjeeling, a Java compatible virtual machine for microcontrollers

The Java programming language enjoys widespread popularity on platforms ranging from servers to mobile phones. While efforts have been made to run Java on microcontroller platforms, there is currently no feature-rich, open source virtual machine available. In this paper we present Darjeeling, a system comprising offline tools and a memory efficient runtime. The offline post-compiler tool analyzes, links and consolidates Java class files into loadable modules. The runtime implements a modified Java VM that supports multithreading and is designed specifically to operate in constrained execution environments such as wireless sensor network nodes. Darjeeling improves upon existing work by supporting inheritance, threads, garbage collection, and loadable modules while keeping memory usage to a minimum. We have demonstrated Java running on AVR128 and MSP430 micro-controllers at speeds of up to 70,000 JVM instructions per second.

A secure framework and related protocols for ubiquitous access to electronic health records using Java sim cards

Ubiquitous access to patient medical records is an important aspect of caring for patient safety. Unavailability of sufficient medical information at the point-ofcare could possibly lead to a fatality. The U.S. Institute of Medicine has reported that between 44,000 and 98,000 people die each year due to medical errors, such as incorrect medication dosages, due to poor legibility in manual records, or delays in consolidating needed information to discern the proper intervention. In this research we propose employing emergent technologies such as Java SIM Cards (JSC), Smart Phones (SP), Next Generation Networks (NGN), Near Field Communications (NFC), Public Key Infrastructure (PKI), and Biometric Identification to develop a secure framework and related protocols for ubiquitous access to Electronic Health Records (EHR). A partial EHR contained within a JSC can be used at the point-of-care in order to help quick diagnosis of a patient’s problems. The full EHR can be accessed from an Electronic Health Records Centre (EHRC) when time and network availability permit. Moreover, this framework and related protocols enable patients to give their explicit consent to a doctor to access their personal medical data, by using their Smart Phone, when the doctor needs to see or update the patient’s medical information during an examination. Also our proposed solution would give the power to patients to modify the Access Control List (ACL) related to their EHRs and view their EHRs through their Smart Phone. Currently, very limited research has been done on using JSCs and similar technologies as a portable repository of EHRs or on the specific security issues that are likely to arise when JSCs are used with ubiquitous access to EHRs. Previous research is concerned with using Medicare cards, a kind of Smart Card, as a repository of medical information at the patient point-of-care. However, this imposes some limitations on the patient’s emergency medical care, including the inability to detect the patient’s location, to call and send information to an emergency room automatically, and to interact with the patient in order to get consent. The aim of our framework and related protocols is to overcome these limitations by taking advantage of the SIM card and the technologies mentioned above. Briefly, our framework and related protocols will offer the full benefits of accessing an up-to-date, precise, and comprehensive medical history of a patient, whilst its mobility will provide ubiquitous access to medical and patient information everywhere it is needed. The objective of our framework and related protocols is to automate interactions between patients, healthcare providers and insurance organisations, increase patient safety, improve quality of care, and reduce the costs.

A secure framework and related protocols for ubiquitous access to electronic health records using Java SIM cards

Ubiquitous access to patient medical records is an important aspect of caring for patient safety. Unavailability of sufficient medical information at the patient point-of-care could possibly lead to a fatality. In this paper we propose employing emergent technologies such as Java SIM Cards (JSC),Smart Phones (SP), Next Generation Networks (NGN), Near Field Communications (NFC), Public Key Infrastructure (PKI), and Biometric Identification to develop a secure framework and related protocols for ubiquitous access to Electronic Health Records (EHRs). A partial EHR contained within a JSC can be used at the patient point-of-care in order to help quick diagnosis of a patient’s problems. The full EHR can be accessed from an Electronic Healthcare Records Centre (EHRC).

Fast rates for estimation error and oracle inequalities for model section

We consider complexity penalization methods for model selection. These methods aim to choose a model to optimally trade off estimation and approximation errors by minimizing the sum of an empirical risk term and a complexity penalty. It is well known that if we use a bound on the maximal deviation between empirical and true risks as a complexity penalty, then the risk of our choice is no more than the approximation error plus twice the complexity penalty. There are many cases, however, where complexity penalties like this give loose upper bounds on the estimation error. In particular, if we choose a function from a suitably simple convex function class with a strictly convex loss function, then the estimation error (the difference between the risk of the empirical risk minimizer and the minimal risk in the class) approaches zero at a faster rate than the maximal deviation between empirical and true risks. In this paper, we address the question of whether it is possible to design a complexity penalized model selection method for these situations. We show that, provided the sequence of models is ordered by inclusion, in these cases we can use tight upper bounds on estimation error as a complexity penalty. Surprisingly, this is the case even in situations when the difference between the empirical risk and true risk (and indeed the error of any estimate of the approximation error) decreases much more slowly than the complexity penalty. We give an oracle inequality showing that the resulting model selection method chooses a function with risk no more than the approximation error plus a constant times the complexity penalty.

An automated tool for assessing security-critical designs and programs

This paper describes in detail our Security-Critical Program Analyser (SCPA). SCPA is used to assess the security of a given program based on its design or source code with regard to data flow-based metrics. Furthermore, it allows software developers to generate a UML-like class diagram of their program and annotate its confidential classes, methods and attributes. SCPA is also capable of producing Java source code for the generated design of a given program. This source code can then be compiled and the resulting Java bytecode program can be used by the tool to assess the program's overall security based on our security metrics.

Security assessment of code refactoring rules

Refactoring is a common approach to producing better quality software. Its impact on many software quality properties, including reusability, maintainability and performance, has been studied and measured extensively. However, its impact on the information security of programs has received relatively little attention. In this work, we assess the impact of a number of the most common code-level refactoring rules on data security, using security metrics that are capable of measuring security from the viewpoint of potential information flow. The metrics are calculated for a given Java program using a static analysis tool we have developed to automatically analyse compiled Java bytecode. We ran our Java code analyser on various programs which were refactored according to each rule. New values of the metrics for the refactored programs then confirmed that the code changes had a measurable effect on information security.

How to design extended finite state machine test models in Java

This chapter is a tutorial that teaches you how to design extended finite state machine (EFSM) test models for a system that you want to test. EFSM models are more powerful and expressive than simple finite state machine (FSM) models, and are one of the most commonly used styles of models for model-based testing, especially for embedded systems. There are many languages and notations in use for writing EFSM models, but in this tutorial we write our EFSM models in the familiar Java programming language. To generate tests from these EFSM models we use ModelJUnit, which is an open-source tool that supports several stochastic test generation algorithms, and we also show how to write your own model-based testing tool. We show how EFSM models can be used for unit testing and system testing of embedded systems, and for offline testing as well as online testing.

An exploration of the roles of nurses working in emergency care services in general hospitals in West Java, Indonesia : a grounded theory study

A review of literature on the role of emergency nurses in Indonesia revealed a dearth of research. Anecdotal evidence suggests a lack of clarity in role definition which has led to uncertainty and role ambiguity. Despite advances in the development of specialist nursing roles in Indonesia, that of the emergency nurse remains unclear. This study explored the role of nurses working in emergency care services in three general hospitals in West Java, Indonesia. The theoretical framework is grounded in Charmaz’s constructivist grounded theory. Data collection methods were observation, in-depth interviews and interrogation of related documents. Phase one of data collection involved 74 h of observation and nterviews with 35 nurses working in the three ED settings. For the purposes of theoretical sampling, a second phase of data collection was conducted. This involved a second nterview with eight participants from the three EDs. nterviews were also undertaken with the three key informants of nursing management of three related hospitals; key informants from the Indonesian Nurses Association; the Directorate of Nursing, Ministry of Health; and from the organization for ED nurses. Data analysis drew on Charmaz’s constructivist approach and the concepts of simultaneous data collection and analysis, constant comparison, coding, and theoretical sampling. The analysis generated four theoretical concepts that characterized the role of the emergency nurse: An arbitrary scope of practice, Struggling for recognition, Learning on the job and Looking to better practice. These concepts provided analytical direction for an exploration of the clinical and political dimensions of the role of the emergency nurse in Indonesia.

Security metrics for Java bytecode programs

Although there are many approaches for developing secure programs, they are not necessarily helpful for evaluating the security of a pre-existing program. Software metrics promise an easy way of comparing the relative security of two programs or assessing the security impact of modifications to an existing one. Most studies in this area focus on high level source code but this approach fails to take compiler-specific code generation into account. In this work we describe a set of object-oriented Java bytecode security metrics which are capable of assessing the security of a compiled program from the point of view of potential information flow. These metrics can be used to compare the security of programs or assess the effect of program modifications on security using a tool which we have developed to automatically measure the security of a given Java bytecode program in terms of the accessibility of distinguished ‘classified’ attributes.