Aran Lunzer

Clip, connect, clone: combining application elements to build custom interfaces for information access

Many applications provide a form-like interface for requesting information: the user fills in some fields, submits the form, and the application presents corresponding results. Such a procedure becomes burdensome if (1) the user must submit many different requests, for example in pursuing a trial-and-error search, (2) results from one application are to be used as inputs for another, requiring the user to transfer them by hand, or (3) the user wants to compare results, but only the results from one request can be seen at a time. We describe how users can reduce this burden by creating custom interfaces using three mechanisms: clipping of input and result elements from existing applications to form cells on a spreadsheet; connecting these cells using formulas, thus enabling result transfer between applications; and cloning cells so that multiple requests can be handled side by side. We demonstrate a prototype of these mechanisms, initially specialised for handling Web applications, and show how it lets users build new interfaces to suit their individual needs.

Federation over the Web

Knowledge Look-Up and Matching.- Text Mining Using Markov Chains of Variable Length.- Faster Pattern Matching Algorithm for Arc-Annotated Sequences.- VSOP (Valued-Sum-of-Products) Calculator for Knowledge Processing Based on Zero-Suppressed BDDs.- Knowledge Search and Clustering.- A Method for Pinpoint Clustering of Web Pages with Pseudo-Clique Search.- Specific-Purpose Web Searches on the Basis of Structure and Contents.- Graph Clustering Based on Structural Similarity of Fragments.- Knowledge Mediation.- Connecting Keywords Through Pointer Paths over the Web.- Querying with Preferences in a Digital Library.- Interoperation of Web-Based Resources.- An Enhanced Spreadsheet Supporting Calculation-Structure Variants, and Its Application to Web-Based Processing.- Knowledge Federation over the Web Based on Meme Media Technologies.- Knowledge Evolution.- Towards Understanding Meme Media Knowledge Evolution.- Mechanisms of Knowledge Evolution for Web Information Extraction.

The Technologically Integrated Oncosimulator: Combining Multiscale Cancer Modeling With Information Technology in the In Silico Oncology Context

This paper outlines the major components and function of the technologically integrated oncosimulator developed primarily within the Advancing Clinico Genomic Trials on Cancer (ACGT) project. The Oncosimulator is defined as an information technology system simulating in vivo tumor response to therapeutic modalities within the clinical trial context. Chemotherapy in the neoadjuvant setting, according to two real clinical trials concerning nephroblastoma and breast cancer, has been considered. The spatiotemporal simulation module embedded in the Oncosimulator is based on the multiscale, predominantly top-down, discrete entity-discrete event cancer simulation technique developed by the In Silico Oncology Group, National Technical University of Athens. The technology modules include multiscale data handling, image processing, invocation of code execution via a spreadsheet-inspired environment portal, execution of the code on the grid, and the visualization of the predictions. A refining scenario for the eventual coupling of the oncosimulator with immunological models is also presented. Parameter values have been adapted to multiscale clinical trial data in a consistent way, thus supporting the predictive potential of the oncosimulator. Indicative results demonstrating various aspects of the clinical adaptation and validation process are presented. Completion of these processes is expected to pave the way for the clinical translation of the system.

Stability-indicating derivative spectrophotometry method for the determination of biapenem in the presence of its degradation products

AbstractA first-derivative UV spectrophotometric method, with or without the subtraction technique, was developed for the determination of biapenem in pharmaceutical dosage form in the presence of its degradation products. The method was based on the measurement of first-derivative amplitudes at zero crossing point (λ = 312 nm) and the peak-to-zero technique and validated with regard to linearity, limits of detection and quantitation, selectivity and precision. The observed rate constants for the degradation of biapenem were comparable to those obtained in the stability-indicating HPLC method.

Subjunctive interfaces in exploratory e-learning

E-learning deals with knowledge management, for sure, and knowledge management very frequently results in learning. So far, there is an obviously close relationship between the two disciplines. However, deeper insights do not arise easily. Here we investigate how one approach to enhancing information-access interfaces may inspire an improvement in knowledge management for e-learning. Subjunctive interfaces support users in investigating and visualizing information obtained in parallel through multiple enquiries. A wide spectrum of exploratory e-learning approaches may benefit from adopting and adapting the subjunctive interface concept.

RecipeSheet: creating, combining and controlling information processors

Many tasks require users to extract information from diverse sources, to edit or process this information locally, and to explore how the end results are affected by changes in the information or in its processing. We present the RecipeSheet, a general-purpose tool for assisting users in such tasks. The RecipeSheet lets users create information processors, called recipes, which may take input in a variety of forms such as text, Web pages, or XML, and produce results in a similar variety of forms. The processing carried out by a recipe may be specified using a macro or query language, of which we currently support Rexx, Smalltalk and XQuery, or by capturing the behaviour of a Web application or Web service. In the RecipeSheets spreadsheet-inspired user interface, information appears in cells, with inter-cell dependencies defined by recipes rather than formulas. Users can also intervene manually to control which information flows through the dependency connections. Through a series of examples we illustrate how tasks that would be challenging in existing environments are supported by the RecipeSheet.

Benefits of subjunctive interface support for exploratory access to online resources

When exploring online resources, users often make many separate retrievals – specifying in turn various parameter values to make up a request, and examining the corresponding results. Any interface that supports only one retrieval at a time, i.e., one set of parameter values and the corresponding results, places a heavy burden on a user who wants to compare available results, or simply to try a range of retrievals. A subjunctive-interface approach may reduce this burden. Subjunctive interfaces support the setting up, viewing and adjustment of multiple scenarios in parallel, leading to more efficient iteration through related scenarios, and the opportunity for side-by-side instead of temporally separated viewing. We examine how these facilities can be applied in a range of information-access applications, and the benefits that can be obtained.

Preparing, Exploring and Comparing Cancer Simulation Results within a Large Parameter Space

The ACGT Oncosimulator is an integrated Grid-based system, under development within a 25-partner European-Japanese project, for patient-specific simulation of the response of a tumour and surrounding tissue to various forms of therapy. The validation of the simulation code is an activity requiring extensive human-driven visual investigation of the influence of each of the dozens of parameters to the code, and comparison of the simulation results against the known outcomes of past patient treatments. This activity therefore calls for a visualisation environment that supports users in working with an extremely large potential result space, and in rapidly setting up visualisations that highlight the differences between chosen subsets of available results. We describe the innovative features of the OncoRecipeSheet, an environment designed to meet these requirements.

Chapter 14 – Subjunctive interfaces for the Web

Publisher Summary Data resources and applications accessible through todays Web offer tremendous opportunities for exploration: ask a slightly different question, receive a correspondingly different answer. However, typical browser-based mechanisms for accessing the Web only enable users to pose one such question at a time, placing a heavy operational and cognitive burden on any user who wants to explore and compare alternatives. A subjunctive-interface approach may reduce this burden. Subjunctive interfaces support the setting up, viewing, and adjustment of multiple scenarios in parallel, allowing side-by-side instead of temporally separated viewing, and more efficient iteration through alternatives. A spreadsheet-inspired environment has been implemented where end users can program and use their own Web-access applications that include such multiscenario support. This chapter describes three modes of use of this environment—parallel retrieval, coordinated manipulation, and tentative composition—and explains how these may help to alleviate typical challenges in Web-based tasks. At the same time, one acknowledge that the increased scope for exploration made possible through this environment can itself present a form of cognitive burden to users, and plans were outlined to evaluate the impact of this effect.

Chapter 8 – Clip, connect, clone: Combining application elements to build custom interfaces for information access

Publisher Summary This chapter introduces C3W, a prototype that supports users in creating custom interfaces for accessing information through Web applications. Many applications provide a form-like interface for requesting information: the user fills in some fields, submits the form, and the application presents corresponding results. Such a procedure becomes burdensome if the user must submit many different requests, for example, in pursuing a trial-and-error search; results from one application are to be used as inputs for another, requiring the user to transfer them by hand, or the user wants to compare results, but only the results from one request can be seen at a time. We describe how users can reduce this burden by creating custom interfaces using three mechanisms: clipping of input and result elements from existing applications to form cells on a spreadsheet; connecting these cells using formulas, thus enabling result transfer between applications; and cloning cells so that multiple requests can be handled side by side. Discussion also demonstrates a prototype of these mechanisms, initially specialized for handling Web applications, and show how it lets users to build new interfaces to suit their individual needs. All the previously mentioned development directions will naturally need to be backed up with user evaluations.