8792186
Artificial Immune Systems and the Grand Challenge for Non-classical Computation
The UK Grand Challenges for Computing Research is an initiative to map out certain key areas that could be used to help drive research over the next 10–15 years. One of the identified Grand Challenges is Non-Classical Computation, which examines many of the fundamental assumptions of Computer Science, and asks what would result if they were systematically broken. In this discussion paper, we explain how the sub-discipline of Artificial Immune Systems sits squarely in the province of this particular Grand Challenge, and we identify certain key questions.
30236643
Towards a Prehistory of Evolutionary and Adaptive Computation in Music
A number of systems have been created which apply genetic algorithms, cellular automata, artificial life, agents, and other evolutionary and adaptive computation ideas in the creation of music. The aim of this paper is to examine the context in which such systems arose by looking for features of experimental music which prefigure the ideas used in such systems. A number of ideas are explored: the use of randomness in music, the view of compositions as parameterized systems, the idea of emergent structure in music and the idea of musicians performing the role of reactive agents.
15050037
Journeys in non-classical computation I: A grand challenge for computing research
1. The challengeA gateway event [35] is a change to a system that leads to the possibility of huge increases inkinds and levels of complexity. It opens up a whole new kind of phase space to the system’sdynamics.Gatewayeventsduringevolutionoflifeonearthincludetheappearanceofeukaryotes(organisms with a cell nucleus), an oxygen atmosphere, multi-cellular organisms and grass.Gatewayeventsduringthedevelopmentofmathematicsincludeeachinventionofanewclassofnumbers (negative, irrational, imaginary, ...), and dropping Euclid’s parallel postulate.A gateway event produces a profound and fundamental change to the system: Oncethrough the gateway, life is never the same again. We are currently poised on the threshold ofa signiﬁcant gateway event in computation: That of breaking free from many of our current“classical computational” assumptions. Our Grand Challenge for computer science isto journey through the gateway event obtained by breaking our current classicalcomputational assumptions, and thereby develop a mature science of Non-ClassicalComputation2. Journeys versus goals
9129216
A formal and structured approach to the use of task analysis in accident modelling
Recent work (Telford & Johnson, 1996; Johnson, 1997), involving the application of formal notations to analyse accident reports has shown that the quality of these accident reports is poor, so much so that their conclusions can be misleading. The proposed solution has been to use formal notations in combination with traditional analysis to produce a report, the conclusions of which can be verified by formal reasoning. However, there are weaknesses with the formal notations used up until now. Firstly, they have not allowed the representation of all aspects of an accident or incident. For example, human factors have either not been represented or not clearly delineated from system factors. In particular, there has not been an attempt to provide a task analysis of the incident. Secondly, the notations used do not easily facilitate the system engineering concepts of modularity, encapsulation or scalability. In consequence, it is difficult to model different aspects of an accident, compose these different aspects to build up the model or make changes to parts of the model without affecting the rest of the model. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how a formal object-oriented specification language can be used to provide the benefits offered by an engineering approach and in particular, by using this approach, how a task analysis model can be constructed. The task analysis incorporates Hollnagel's (1993) classification of erroneous actions, so that scenarios, deriving from human error, can be reasoned about. An air accident investigation report, issued by the UK Civil Aviation Authority, is used as a case study.
17022793
Biomedical computing and visualization software environments
Problem-solving environments and advanced visualization take on the complexity of biomedical computing, improving its utility to scientists and clinicians alike.
8317114
Decision theory and safety-critical interfaces
Risk assessment techniques are being used to support the engineering of complex, safety-critical systems. They help to identify those situations that pose the greatest threat to an application. They can also be used to inform interface development. For example, operators must be presented with additional contextual information during infrequent, high-cost failures. Many risk assessment techniques cannot represent the temporal properties that affect usability. Few techniques provide means of reasoning about user input or output. This paper presents means of overcoming these limitations. It is argued that temporal logic can be used to represent sequential and concurrent properties of interaction. The same notation can also be used to specify presentation requirements. Temporal logic does not, however, provide means of representing risk. Decision theory is recruited to introduce probability and cost into the notation. The logic is then applied to reason about the different effects that low frequency, high cost failures have upon a user interface. A limitation of this approach is that the extended logic provides little impression of what it would be like to interact with a stochastic application. Simulation tools have been developed to avoid this limitation.
8344660
Top Scientific Visualization Research Problems
Scientific visualization as currently understood and practiced is still a relatively new discipline. As a result, we visualization researches are not necessarily accustomed to undertaking the sorts of self-examinations that other scientists routinely undergo in relation to their work. Yet if we are to creat a disciplinary culture focused on matters of real scientific importance and committed to real progress, it is essential that we ask ourselves hard questions on an ongoing basis. What are the most important research issues facing us? What underlying assumptions needs to be challenged and perhaps abandoned? What practices need to be reviewed? In this article, I attempt to start a discussion of these issues by proposing a list of top research problems and issues in scientific visualization.
14968728
Using Temporal Logic to Support the Specification and Prototyping of Interactive Control Systems
Abstract Accidents at Flixborough, Seveso, Bhopal, Three Mile Island, Windscale and Chernobyl have led to increasing concern over the safety and reliability of control systems. Human factors specialists have responded to this concern and have proposed a number of techniques which support the operator of such applications. Unfortunately, this work has not been accompanied by the provision of adequate tools which might enable a designer to carry it beyond the “laboratory bench” and on to the “shop floor”. The following paper exploits formal, mathematically based specification techniques to provide such a tool. Previous weaknesses of abstract specifications are identified and resolved. In particular, they have failed to capture the temporal properties which human factors specialists identify as crucial to the success or failure of interactive control systems. They also provide the non-formalist with an extremely poor impression of what it would be to like to interact with potential implementations. Temporal logic avoids these deficiencies. It can make explicit the sequential information which may be implicit within a design. Executable subsets of this formalization support prototyping and this provides a means of assessing the qualitative “look and feel” of potential implementations. A variety of presentation strategies, including structural decomposition and dialogue cycles, have been specified and incorporated directly into prototypes using temporal logic. Prelog, a tool for the Presentation and REndering of LOGic specifications, has been developed and its implementation is described.