Threads, objects and the tapestry of the mind

The brain is essentially a multiprocessor computer employing large-scale multithreading. Extending previous work, (Arun, C.P. European Psychiatry 2009 and 2010) we examine whether process threads and objects can simulate diverse mental illnesses. We used Java 6, an object oriented programming language to simulate thread and object generation in the mind. Process threads were programmed to allow control of(1)the clock speed’ of the brain's internal clock(2)duration of thread life and efficiency of garbage collection’(3)integrity of internal objects and(4)assignment of salience.A few examples of the results are mentioned here. A fast clock speed led to the rapid generation of threads causing a rapid switch from one task/topic, manifesting among others, as a shortened attention span and flight of ideas (mania). Slow thread formation led to psychomotor agitation as well as a slow rate of speech output (depression). Failure to reign in (’garbage collect’) threads caused them to persist and led to many short and recurrent thoughts/actions (as in anxiety). Disordered weighting of threads and/or damage to objects led to the assignment of salience inappropriately (the hallmark of the psychoses). The failure to generate enough threads (’ loss of multithreading’) led to problems with complex tasks (like ability to recognise facial cues) and recurrent thread generation without variety, led to repetitive behaviour, hyperstimulation, etc (autism spectrum disorders). Studying Threads and Objects as integral parts of the computational Tapestry of the Mind provides rich insights into mental functions in health as well as illness.</jats:p

Brain modeling - from electrical and electronic circuits and modules to objects and threads: Application to Tourette’s Syndrome

From the time of the discovery of electricity, scientists have actively borrowed ideas from technology to help understand brain function. The earliest ‘models’ depicted connexions between various parts of the nervous system as if they were electrical circuits. With the development of valve and transistor technology, excitatory, inhibitory circuits (and the actions of receptors and ligands) and neural loops came into fashion. Integrated Circuit (IC) hardware technology and modular software design (e.g. in languages such as C and FORTRAN) no doubt ushered in the move towards ‘modularity’. A review of the literature has revealed that multithreading, a key feature of modern software design has not been applied to modeling movement disorders. We aimed to model the clinical phenomena in Tourette’s Syndrome (TS) using multithreading. Using the programming language Java 6, we modelled motor and verbal tics as running on different threads. Tics were reproduced by impulsive generation of motivational threads for motor or verbal actions which were subject to voluntary control. Voluntary suppression was implemented using a ‘psychic threshold score’ which if exceeded allowed the motivational thread to initiate a motor thread which is turn was under some voluntary control. We find that from an internal representation standpoint (’software’) for the brain, motor and verbal tics are identical phenomena: only the peripheral manifestations are different. Various clinical phenomena such as tic suggestibility, suppression, release, etc can be demonstrated. Our experience of modeling TS leads us to recommend threads as the means to model other movement disorders and neuropsychiatric conditions.</jats:p

Horizontal Scaling of Online Learning in the Post-COVID19 Society: Reflections from Kerala

Chapter of the following book: Moving Horizontally: The New Dimensions of At-Scale Learning at the Time of COVID-19, edited by Yakut Gazi and Nelson BakerIndia’s nation-wide COVID-19 lockdown, which began on March 24, 2020, was relaxed in June with the exception of educational institutions. However, the Government of the Kerala state took a decision to reopen the schools as per the regular academic calendar on June 1st through online mode. This massive horizontal scaling drive of online education, named ‘First Bell’, brought all the research and extension agencies under the General Education Department together with the Kerala Infrastructure and Technology for Education (KITE). This chapter examines the First Bell initiative on the larger back drop of exploring the genealogy of the horizontality and scaling of education in Kerala

An Automated Testing Model using Test Driven Development Approach

Today we live in the era of software and web applications. Software is used in every minor and major field. In defense, medical, education, research, government, administration and much other field software became a necessary part. Software also brings transparency in the systems. Software also makes people’s life easy and comfortable. Software testing is a very important part of any software development process. Software testing requires approximately forty percent budget of any software development process. Like in an automobile industry every vehicle is tested before it goes to the customer. Also in software testing it is must to test the software before deployment. Because if software deployed without testing then user will face the bug and user will be unhappy with the software. In this paper we compare manual and automated testing and proposed an automated testing model with test driven development (TDD).</jats:p

Prioritizing cropping alternatives based on attribute specification and comparison using MADM models

This paper presents a logical procedure and its effectiveness to handle set of alternatives for attaining rabi cropping pattern by multiple attribute decision making (MADM) approach which includes methods viz. simple additive weighting (SAW), weighted product method (WPM), technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) and preference ranking organization method for enrichment evaluations (PROMEHTEE). The study area is concerned with banahil distributary of akaltara branch canal of Hasdeo Bango irrigation command, Janjgir-Champa district, Chattisgarh, India. It covers 8 villages of Akaltara Block and 14 villages of Pamgarh Block in Janjgir-Champa District. Information on various attributes/criteria like type of crops (wheat, mustard, gram, safflower, sunflower), type of soil (clay, clay loam, sandy loam) cropped area, water usage, cost of production, cost of cultivation (including irrigation cost) and sale price of crops had been collected from various government departments (Agriculture and Water Resources) etc. and group of farmers from the local command area. Results obtained with MADM approach is compared with the non-linear optimization model (NLP) developed using LINGO standard optimization package. Based on the above decision making method and LINGO model results, wheat is found to be most profitable crop followed by sunflower. Performance of MADM is found to be satisfactory and ranking had been obtained for the crops considered in the study. Keywords: Cropping pattern, Decision making models, Water management, Rankin