Concentrations and abundance ratios of long-chain alkenones and glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers in sinking particles south of Java

In this study, we obtained concentrations and abundance ratios of long-chain alkenones and glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs) in a one-year time-series of sinking particles collected with a sediment trap moored from December 2001 to November 2002 at 2200 m water depth south of Java in the eastern Indian Ocean. We investigate the seasonality of alkenone and GDGT fluxes as well as the potential habitat depth of the Thaumarchaeota producing the GDGTs entrained in sinking particles. The alkenone flux shows a pronounced seasonality and ranges from 1 µg m-**2 d**-1 to 35 µg m**-2 d**-1. The highest alkenone flux is observed in late September during the Southeast monsoon, coincident with high total organic carbon fluxes as well as high net primary productivity. Flux-weighted mean temperature for the high flux period using the alkenone-based sea-surface temperature (SST) index UK'37 is 26.7°C, which is similar to satellite-derived Southeast (SE) monsoon SST (26.4°C). The GDGT flux displays a weaker seasonality than that of the alkenones. It is elevated during the SE monsoon period compared to the Northwest (NW) monsoon and intermonsoon periods (approximately 2.5 times), which is probably related to seasonal variation of the abundance of Thaumarchaeota, or to enhanced export of GDGTs by aggregation with sinking phytoplankton detritus. Flux-weighted mean temperature inferred from the GDGT-based TEXH86 index is 26.2°C, which is 1.8 °C lower than mean annual (ma) SST but similar to SE monsoon SST. As the time series of TEXH86 temperature estimates, however, does not record a strong seasonal amplitude, we infer that TEXH86 reflects ma upper thermocline temperature at approximately 50 m water depth.

Jigsaw Java: Intelligent, Automated Marking

The popularity of Computing degrees in the UK has been increasing significantly over the past number of years. In Northern Ireland, from 2007 to 2015, there has been a 40% increase in acceptances to Computer Science degrees with England seeing a 60% increase over the same period (UCAS, 2016). However, this is tainted as Computer Science degrees also continue to maintain the highest dropout rates.
In Queen’s University Belfast we currently have a Level 1 intake of over 400 students across a number of computing pathways. Our drive as staff is to empower and motivate the students to fully engage with the course content. All students take a Java programming module the aim of which is to provide an understanding of the basic principles of object-oriented design. In order to assess these skills, we have developed Jigsaw Java as an innovative assessment tool offering intelligent, semi-supervised automated marking of code.
Jigsaw Java allows students to answer programming questions using a drag-and-drop interface to place code fragments into position. Their answer is compared to the sample solution and if it matches, marks are allocated accordingly. However, if a match is not found then the corresponding code is executed using sample data to determine if its logic is acceptable. If it is, the solution is flagged to be checked by staff and if satisfactory is saved as an alternative solution. This means that appropriate marks can be allocated and should another student have submitted the same placement of code fragments this does not need to be executed or checked again. Rather the system now knows how to assess it.
Jigsaw Java is also able to consider partial marks dependent on code placement and will “learn” over time. Given the number of students, Jigsaw Java will improve the consistency and timeliness of marking.

Towards automated Android app collusion detection

Android OS supports multiple communication methods between apps. This opens the possibility to carry out threats in a collaborative fashion, c.f. the Soundcomber example from 2011. In this paper we provide a concise definition of collusion and report on a number of automated detection approaches, developed in co-operation with Intel Security.

N-opcode analysis for android malware classification and categorization

Malware detection is a growing problem particularly on the Android mobile platform due to its increasing popularity and accessibility to numerous third party app markets. This has also been made worse by the increasingly sophisticated detection avoidance techniques employed by emerging malware families. This calls for more effective techniques for detection and classification of Android malware. Hence, in this paper we present an n-opcode analysis based approach that utilizes machine learning to classify and categorize Android malware. This approach enables automated feature discovery that eliminates the need for applying expert or domain knowledge to define the needed features. Our experiments on 2520 samples that were performed using up to 10-gram opcode features showed that an f-measure of 98% is achievable using this approach.

Dynalog: an automated dynamic analysis framework for characterizing android applications

Android is becoming ubiquitous and currently has the largest share of the mobile OS market with billions of application downloads from the official app market. It has also become the platform most targeted by mobile malware that are becoming more sophisticated to evade state-of-the-art detection approaches. Many Android malware families employ obfuscation techniques in order to avoid detection and this may defeat static analysis based approaches. Dynamic analysis on the other hand may be used to overcome this limitation. Hence in this paper we propose DynaLog, a dynamic analysis based framework for characterizing Android applications. The framework provides the capability to analyse the behaviour of applications based on an extensive number of dynamic features. It provides an automated platform for mass analysis and characterization of apps that is useful for quickly identifying and isolating malicious applications. The DynaLog framework leverages existing open source tools to extract and log high level behaviours, API calls, and critical events that can be used to explore the characteristics of an application, thus providing an extensible dynamic analysis platform for detecting Android malware. DynaLog is evaluated using real malware samples and clean applications demonstrating its capabilities for effective analysis and detection of malicious applications.

AR-park för Android : Augmented Reality park i Sundsvall

Målet med detta projekt är att ta fram en applikationsprototyp för Androidenheter som ska locka användare av applikationen till och tillbaka till broparken i Skönsberg med hjälp av augmented-reality. Applikationen ska känna av om användaren befinner sig inom eller utanför parkens område och visa olika bilder/modeller på specifika GPS-koordinater i det digitala lagret beroende på användarens positionering. Arbetet har genomförts i samarbete med Dohi på uppdrag av Sundsvalls kommun där regelbundna möten hafts med uppdragsgivaren. Utvecklingen av applikationen sker i PhoneGap med Wikitude-plugin. Projektet har resulterat i en applikationsprototyp som använder ActionRanges, som är en typ av GeoFence, för att presentera olika bilder hämtade från en egen server i det digitala lagret beroende på användarens position. Användarna har inom parkens område möjlighet att själv påverka de bilder som visas i det digitala lagret genom att i applikationen ta en bild som laddas upp till servern där bilderna lagras och där bilden som tagits även visar det digitala lagret.

Cartographer : En kartbaserad friluftsapplikation

Målet med det här arbetet har varit att utveckla en friluftsapplikation för människor som rör sig i skog och mark antingen i arbetet eller i privatlivet. Med syfte att låta de skapa och placera ut markörer på en karta med aktivt uppdaterande gps positionering. För att uppnå detta har Google Maps använts som gränssnitt för att hämta och hantera kartinformation och en applikation har designats i flödesscheman utefter kravspecifikationen och i enlighet med Jacob Nielsens användbarhetsprinciper. Hallway test metoden har använts för att utvärdera hur väl användbarhetsdesignen har uppnått sina mål. Applikationen har sedan konstruerats i Java och Android Studio mot Androids mobila plattform. Utvecklingen har följt den planerade designen och uppnått samtliga konkreta mål som specificerades och i synnerhet användbarhetsmålen. Flera funktionella mål har identifierats att kunna optimeras ytterligare och en rad förslag på vidareutveckling av applikationen har tagits fram för eventuella framtida arbeten.

JCML: A specification language for the runtime verification of Java Card programs

COSTA, Umberto Souza; MOREIRA, Anamaria Martins; MUSICANTE, Matin A.; SOUZA NETO, Plácido A. JCML: A specification language for the runtime verification of Java Card programs. Science of Computer Programming. [S.l]: [s.n], 2010.

Specification and Runtime Verification of Java Card Programs

COSTA, Umberto Souza da; MOREIRA, Anamaria Martins; MUSICANTE, Martin A. Specification and Runtime Verification of Java Card Programs. Electronic Notes in Theoretical Computer Science. [S.l:s.n], 2009.

Desenvolvimento de um dispensador automático de medicamentos e controlo através de uma plataforma móvel Android

O incumprimento na ingestão da medicação é um dos principais fatores para o insucesso no tratamento de diversas doenças e uma das principais dificuldades para controlar enfermidades crónicas [1], cardiovasculares [1, 3, 4] e psiquiátricas [4] que necessitam de uma ingestão correta e constante dos medicamentos. Estas tomas irregulares acabam por provocar desperdícios e gastos adicionais em tratamentos complementares e mais exames para análise do atual estado da doença [5]. De forma a prevenir falhas de adesão à terapêutica, foram desenvolvidos diversos equipamentos que ajudam os pacientes a gerir a sua medicação diária. No entanto estes dispositivos apresentam ainda algumas limitações, nomeadamente, ao permitirem apenas um utilizador e necessitarem da preparação prévia das tomas. Ao longo deste projeto foi desenvolvido um sistema de dispensa automática de medicamentos, assim como a plataforma de controlo através de um dispositivo móvel Android. As principais vantagens deste equipamento são o seu funcionamento em modo multiutilizador e a combinação automática de medicamentos para cumprir as tomas prescritas pelo médico. O dispositivo desenvolvido e a sua utilização foi validado durante 5 dias no Centro Clínico-Académico do Hospital de Braga recorrendo a utentes de várias faixas etárias, bem como em casa de 2 participantes num caso de estudo. O sistema de dispensa automático de medicamentos foi testado em ambos os perfis de utilizadores: utente e cuidador. Foram criados registos de novos utentes e efetuadas várias dispensas de medicamentos de forma a testar a fiabilidade do dispositivo para utilização em contexto real. Os resultados destes testes permitiram comprovar a funcionalidade e fiabilidade do sistema desenvolvido.

Sviluppo di una app di ausilio per persone non vedenti per Android

La tesi prevede lo sviluppo di una app di ausilio per persone non vedenti per ambiente Android. L'applicazione ha due scopi principali: rilevazione degli ostacoli che l'utente incontra nel proprio cammino, tramite un apposito visore, con successivo invio di informazioni sugli ostacoli rilevati tramite output audio e tattili e realizzazione di una versione personalizzata di Google Maps che l'utente può utilizzare nella maniera più comoda e sicura possibile.

Control de interrupciones de vídeo streaming móvil en arquitecturas Android usando técnicas de realidad aumentada y WebRTC

Programa de doctorado: Tecnología de la Información y sus aplicaciones. La fecha de publicación es la fecha de lectura