Software product line approaches produce reusable platforms and architectures for products set developed by specific companies. These approaches are strategic in nature requiring coordination, discipline, commonality and communication. The Capability Maturity Model (CMM) contains important guidelines for process improvement, and specifies "what" we must have into account to achieve the discipli...

since the time conscription has become the main source of man power for armies, a development in the relation between the state and the individual has occurred. conscription became an institution for nationalistic re-socialization and a symbol for the equality of citizens. it also played an important role in the expansion of freedoms and universal suffrage. after the world war ii, a new trend t...

Despite advancements in knowledge from more than a century of metastasis research, the genetic programs and molecular mechanisms required for cancer metastasis are still incompletely understood. Genes that specifically regulate the process of metastasis are useful tools to elucidate molecular mechanisms and may become markers and/or targets for antimetastatic therapy. Recently, several noncodin...

How does one’s game character gain value in online multiplayer game? What are the elements that contribute to the overall virtual identity of a player? Throughout the history of Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs) game characters have remained central figures for all types of in-game interaction and value perception. Recently, MMOGs have evolved to a stage where at least parts of one’s i...

The popularity of Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs) has risen greatly over the last few years. To date there has been very little published academic research concerning online gaming and even less on the different types of online games that exist. Given the lack of data, a scoping study was undertaken to examine the extent, range and nature of different MMORPGs. Data wer...

“We are able to predict what a player in a game will do based on his or her previous behavior, with up to 80 percent accuracy,” says Brent Harrison, a Ph.D. student at NC State and co-author of a paper describing the research. The research team developed the data-driven predictive method by analyzing the behavior of 14,000 players in the massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) W...

Cell signaling pathways are sequences of biochemical reactions that propagate an input signal, such as a hormone binding to a cell-surface receptor, into the cell to trigger a reactive process. Assessment of pathway activities is crucial for determining which pathways play roles in disease versus normal conditions. To date various pathway flow/perturbation assessment tools are available, howeve...

This study aims to theoretically explore whether Massively Multiplayer Online Game (MMOG) is an effective collaborative learning platform, empirically examine the occurrence of knowledge creation in MMOG game-play, and conceptually advocate the research potential of MMOG game-based collaborative learning. Although a growing number of researchers have started to use MMOG as a new generation of e...

A description of the way in which children’s play develops is often based on children’s physical environment. Another standard assumption is that small children progress from playing with objects to taking part in role-play. This study focuses on the cultural aspect of play and its aim is to investigate how small children create meaning in their play in dialogue with adults. The study is an edu...

Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games are socio-technical phenomena that are both complex technological systems and complex societies. They are also highly lucrative businesses. In this paper we present initial findings from a case study of the MMORPG TIBIA which explores the business and social relationships generated by cheating practices. We characterize the economy of cheating as a ...