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To advance Java programming educations, the authors have developed a Java Programming Learning Assistant System (JPLAS) as a web application system. JPLAS provides fill-in-blank problems for novices to study the grammar and basic programming skills through code reading.

To select the blank elements with grammatically correct and unique answers from a given Java code, the authors have proposed the graph-based blank element selection algorithm. Then, the code for this problem should be highly readable to encourage novice students to study it. Because code readability can be improved by proper names for identifiers, the authors have also proposed the naming rule testing algorithm to identify codes with correct names.

In this paper, the authors present a fill-in-blank problem workbook by collecting suitable Java codes from textbooks and Web sites and applying these algorithms with several extensions. The workbook consists of 16 categories with a considerable number of problems that follow the conventional learning order of Java programming.

The proper set of ready-made fill-in-blank problems is effective in enhancing the usability of JPLAS both for teachers and students. For the preliminary evaluation, the authors assign a few problems to students. In coming semesters, the authors will use this workbook in the course to verify the adequacy of the proposal for novices.

To advance Java programming educations, the authors have developed a Web-based Java programming learning assistant system (JPLAS). It offers the element fill-in-blank problem (EFP) for novice students to study Java grammar and basic programming skills by filling in the missing elements in a source code. An EFP instance can be generated by selecting an appropriate code, and applying the blank element selection algorithm. As it is expected to cover broad grammar topics, a number of EFP instances have been generated. This paper aims to propose a recommendation function to guide a student solving the proper EFP instances among them.

This function considers the difficulty level of the EFP instance and the grammar topics that have been correctly answered by the student, and is implemented at the offline answering function of JPLAS using JavaScript so that students can use it even without the Internet connections.

To evaluate the effectiveness of the proposal, 85 EFP instances are prepared to cover various grammar topics, and are assigned to a total of 92 students in two universities in Myanmar and Indonesia to solve them using the recommendation function. Their solution results confirmed the effectiveness of the proposal.

The concept of the difficulty level for an EFP instance is newly defined for the proper recommendation, and the accuracy in terms of the average numbers of answer submission times among the students is verified.

Addresses the standardization of the measurements and the labels for concepts commonly used in the study of work organizations. As a reference handbook and research tool, seeks to improve measurement in the study of work organizations and to facilitate the teaching of introductory courses in this subject. Focuses solely on work organizations, that is, social systems in which members work for money. Defines measurement and distinguishes four levels: nominal, ordinal, interval and ratio. Selects specific measures on the basis of quality, diversity, simplicity and availability and evaluates each measure for its validity and reliability. Employs a set of 38 concepts ‐ ranging from “absenteeism” to “turnover” as the handbook’s frame of reference. Concludes by reviewing organizational measurement over the past 30 years and recommending future measurement reseach.

Nowadays there is a trend in industry to optimize processes through computerization. In the field of machining, computer assistance is available to design and describe the product, analyze and simulate its behaviour, describe the manufacturing conditions and generate the corresponding orders. These are the CAD, CAM and computer aided process planning systems. However, there are no computer applications for machining processes that offer assistance to determine the characteristics of the blank. This task is usually done by workshop operators, numerical control programmers, process planners or other professionals whose knowledge and, especially, experience allow them to carry it out. This paper aims to present a computer application that provides assistance to select the characteristics of the blanks used in machining processes.

The methodology applied consists of studying the methods experts use to choose blanks, analyzing the variety of parts that are currently machined in the workshops, designing the application and then implementing and validating it.

The system developed calculates the characteristics of the blank and optimizes the decision according to the experience, knowledge and methods of the experts. This application can carry out calculations for any of the parts that are usually manufactured in a workshop. The solutions that the programme offers can be developed using current‐cutting techniques or the profiles that suppliers sell in the market. The paper includes a case study to demonstrate how the tool is used. Implementation of this computer application brings the present industry closer to production optimization and computerization of the processes (computer integrated manufacturing).

This is the first time the knowledge and the reasoning methods of experts have been analyzed and implemented in a computer tool that gives assistance to determine the characteristics of the blank.

Two mesh refinement indicators based on the gradients of effective stress (GSIG) and effective plastic strain (GEPS), respectively, are proposed for adaptive finite element analysis of the large deformation, quasi‐static or dynamic response of shell structures. The mesh refinement indicators are based on equi‐distributing the variation of stresses or plastic strains over the elements of the mesh. A program module is developed and implemented in the non‐linear explicit finite element code LS‐DYNA. This module provides element‐wise refinement evaluations so that selective mesh refinements are carried out in regions of the mesh where the values of local indicators exceed a user‐specified tolerance. The FE model of a conventional deep drawing process is used as a numerical model, including both material and geometrical non‐linearities, in order to demonstrate the versatility of the two refinement indicators. Four different refinement indicators, based on angle change, thickness change, GSIG and GEPS, are applied in this investigation. The numerical results are compared with experimental results regarding the thickness distribution versus cup height, cup height variation versus circumference angle, effective plastic strain in the deformed sheet and punch force. It is shown that the proposed indicators can identify finite elements which have high gradients of effective stress or effective plastic strain so that the mesh is refined in the regions undergoing the most severe deformations and the numerical results are improved.

THE modern aeroplane is constructed largely from sheet metal. As such, the most important production problems are those of sheet metal forming, and assembling. Production is here considered as not only the act of forming and assembling the required number of parts, but also the making of forming tools, and all processing of parts such as heat‐treating. Only that phase of the above concept of production which deals with the tooling for production and the forming and heat‐treating will be considered here. The design of the aircraft parts will also be discussed somewhat, for it is obvious that the design of the part (designed shape and materials used) frequently determines whether the part can or cannot be readily made.

This paper gives a review of the finite element techniques (FE) applied in the area of material processing. The latest trends in metal forming, non‐metal forming and powder metallurgy are briefly discussed. The range of applications of finite elements on the subjects is extremely wide and cannot be presented in a single paper; therefore the aim of the paper is to give FE users only an encyclopaedic view of the different possibilities that exist today in the various fields mentioned above. An appendix included at the end of the paper presents a bibliography on finite element applications in material processing for the last five years, and more than 1100 references are listed.

This chapter proposes the development of a compound personality trait termed “goal propensity”. Motivation is a key determinant of performance in virtually all contexts, and personality has long been viewed as an important influence on motivation. Despite the long history of exploring how personality influences motivation, we do not have a clear understanding of the linkage between individual differences in personality and work motivation or the tools to reliably and accurately predict individual differences in motivation. Advances in our understanding of personality and the convergence of motivation theories around models of self-regulation present the opportunity to achieve that understanding and predictive efficacy. Goal propensity would be a theoretically derived trait that would explain the role of personality in self-regulation models of motivation as well as allow the prediction of tendencies to engage in self-regulation. This chapter provides the rationale for the development of this construct, articulates the nature of the proposed goal propensity construct, and explores the value of such a construct for theory, future research, and human resource practice.

Numerical simulation of the single point incremental forming (SPIF) processes can be very demanding and time consuming due to the constantly changing contact conditions between the tool and the sheet surface, as well as the nonlinear material behaviour combined with non-monotonic strain paths. The purpose of this paper is to propose an adaptive remeshing technique implemented in the in-house implicit finite element code LAGAMINE, to reduce the simulation time. This remeshing technique automatically refines only a portion of the sheet mesh in vicinity of the tool, therefore following the tool motion. As a result, refined meshes are avoided and consequently the total CPU time can be drastically reduced.

SPIF is a dieless manufacturing process in which a sheet is deformed by using a tool with a spherical tip. This dieless feature makes the process appropriate for rapid-prototyping and allows for an innovative possibility to reduce overall costs for small batches, since the process can be performed in a rapid and economic way without expensive tooling. As a consequence, research interest related to SPIF process has been growing over the last years.

In this work, the proposed automatic refinement technique is applied within a reduced enhanced solid-shell framework to further improve numerical efficiency. In this sense, the use of a hexahedral finite element allows the possibility to use general 3D constitutive laws. Additionally, a direct consideration of thickness variations, double-sided contact conditions and evaluation of all components of the stress field are available with solid-shell and not with shell elements. Additionally, validations by means of benchmarks are carried out, with comparisons against experimental results.

It is worth noting that no previous work has been carried out using remeshing strategies combined with hexahedral elements in order to improve the computational efficiency resorting to an implicit scheme, which makes this work innovative. Finally, it has been shown that it is possible to perform accurate and efficient finite element simulations of SPIF process, resorting to implicit analysis and continuum elements. This is definitively a step-forward on the state-of-art in this field.