Systems Today

Airline Command: A Basic Decision Making Model

2011-12-19T12:08:00.000-05:00

Airline Command: A Basic Decision Making Model:

'via Blog this'

Count von Count - Muppet Wiki

2011-09-25T02:17:00.000-04:00

Count von Count - Muppet Wiki:

his'

It's Called a Systemigram

2011-09-22T05:32:00.000-04:00

DM2 - The DoDAF Conceptual Data Model:

'via Blog this'

Browsing around, I found somebody drawing a systemigram, and not making any acknowledgements regrarding the name. I think they should be noticed.

An explanation of Multi Criteria Analysis

2011-08-28T03:24:00.000-04:00

Making Objective Project Comparisons and Rankings

2011-08-28T03:19:00.000-04:00

Test Statistic?

2011-02-07T06:28:00.001-05:00

A statistic is calculated from the sample. To begin with we assume that the hypothesis about the population parameter is true. We compare the value of the statistic with the hypothetical value of the parameter. If the difference between them is small, the hypothesis is accepted and if the difference between them is large, the hypothesis is rejected. A statistic on which the decision can be based whether to accept or reject a hypothesis is called test statistic. It is important to remember that a test-statistic does not prove the hypothesis to be correct but if furnishes as evidence against the hypothesis. Some of the test statistics to be discussed later are Z, t and Chi – Square.

The Way Forward: The View from the NASA Chief Technologist

2011-01-05T17:49:00.000-05:00

Fuzzy Logic Explained

2011-01-04T17:01:00.001-05:00

Today, I was reading a very short tutorial about Fuzzy Logic. It was particularly interesting because it was lecture notes from 1997, and despite the age, it was fresh and crisp and clear. Crisp, huh, what an interesting word to choose.

So the author explained fuzzy systems by a great example: lawn sprinkler system. I'm going to give you my 2 cent, quick summary of the paper.
1- you need two inputs. Example: a) outdoor air temperature b) soil moisture
2- Knowledge Base
a. Create membership function: For example. Cold is 30-47, Cool=40-70, normal=60-84,warm=75-94, hot=90-110
So one temperature membership function, and one moisture membership function. What's interesting here is that both these axis are calibrated to a y axis, called mu.

b. Make if then rules. The rule base needs to be verified by some sort of validated knowledge.

c. Fuzzification Module:
The name itself tells you alot about what is happeneing. Fuzzification of crisp inputs are made to fuzzy inputs. For example, outside temperature of 90 degrees would be transformed to 0.23 of "warm" in fuzzy terms.

d.Now it's time for decision making(rule strength). We use Min Max to make decisions.
example: if temp is hot (0.6) and soil is dry(0.27), then water duration is long. RS=0.27

e.Determine Fuzzy output: So if you have four outputs from D, then you go with majority. So if you have 2 long, and 2 mediums, your fuzzy output is long! The max of the rule strengths!

f. Lastly, it's time for Defuzzification: The purpose is to take the output of step e( fuzzy output), and come up with a crisp value. There are 4-5 methods to come up with a value, but in the lecture note, they use Center OF GRAVITY.

COG takes the area in abcdef, and finds the center of gravity. I'll hopefully have some time to add more ways to find the center of gravity.

The entire process is best captured in this diagram that I found on the internet.

2011, and back up again

2011-01-04T12:52:00.000-05:00

After some trouble with the blogger skin that disabled the contents to each post, I went to choose a blogger template that would no longer hassle or hinder the mission of this blog. Please check frequently for updates.

Vitech Core, a new practice to implement the DoDAF Feature

2011-01-04T12:48:00.000-05:00

Based on my understanding of how Core Vitech works with DoDAF, I can see that the services are provided in the columbs in the left. This is an intelligent and functional way to approach DoDAF and the information that can be provided and sought after in DoDAF.

In Rational Rhapsody, erveything is captured in the model. So each model represents the activity. It’s more image based, but Core does not work on any images at all. It’s all about relationships and hierarchy. But that might be because that I’m looking in ER diagram.

This doesn't mean that one is better than other, i just think of it as another approach. Obviously I find Rational Rhapsody's approach more intuitive for the goals of DoDAF, but then Core does it differently. I need to spend more time and do more in analysis.

So Far, this is my candid assessment.

Definition of System Engieering by John A. Thomas

2010-06-18T01:23:00.001-04:00

http://www.youtube.com/v/1QRFk9f7rrU&amp

Challenges of acquiring a PhD

2010-05-24T12:09:00.001-04:00

PhD students have to take responsibility managing their own learning and getting a PhD. They are also responsible for determining what is required as well as for carrying it out, and must always keep in touch in regular meetings with the supervisor. The student is the main person responsible for his/her PhD research. Doing a PhD clearly indicates that this is a student’s own research and work. The actual research to be reported used the case study method. Three Malaysian PhD students from three major disciplines of study, arts, science and social science, were interviewed in depth several times within a year. However only one case study which focusing on Science discipline will be presented in this article in order to achieve a better understanding of the story. All three case studies would make the present article too long. The objective of this research is to provide better guidelines for effective roles of a PhD Science student especially the foreign student. As a result, the research had developed the best effective roles in order for students to success in their study.

Geminoid F Robot

2010-04-05T16:23:00.001-04:00

Reading the article about the female Geminoid F Robot makes me think about their value in the system, especially in an Enterprise where the behavior of the humans are not well understood, but the behavior of the Geminoid could be.

The coverage of this news shows that we are not too far from having gynoid and androids living with us. This would be an interesting stir to our social medium and it would be interesting to see how this is going to change the direction of humans.

As exciting as this news is, I still can’t stop thinking about the scifi movies where the robots eventually group up against humans and become detrimental to humans. Again, this is another problem System Engineers need to look out for, especially in a System of System, where the whole is greater than the sum of its comprising systems.

http://www.fastcompany.com/1607031/android-robots-human-robotics-gynoid-augmented-reality-augmented-humans-science

Modeling from a System Engineering viewpoint

2010-03-10T00:10:00.001-05:00

Following is a summary from readings of a book that I consider important.

· A model is any incomplete representation of reality, an abstraction

· Models could be mathematical(quantitative), physical, mental, or a qualitative. Nonetheless, the essence is the question/s that the model can reliably answer for us.

· Sample of modeling languages developed as part of the IDEF family

o IDEF0-Focus is a functional or process model of a system

o IDEF1- Focus is an informational model of the information needed to support the functions of a system

o IDEF1X- Focus is a semantic data model using relational theory and an entity-relationship modeling technique

o IDEF2- Focus is a dynamic model of the system

o IDEF3- focus is both process and object state transition model of a system

· 3 types of questions:

o Descriptive: most commonly used in science and engineering. A descriptive model attempts to predict answers to questions which the truth may or may not be obtained in the future. Descriptive models are measured by the power or richness, understandability to both wide and narrow audiences, and precision with which they can be used to define the relative entity.

o Normative: can not be tested but are judged on their understandability and appeal across deciplines they can be used. Either it’s logical, or it should be refuted logically.

o Definitive: how should a concept be defined.

· Most effective process for developing and using a model is to begin by defining the questions the model should be able to answer.

· Models should be developed, tested, and refined.

· System validity addresses whether we have built the right system.

· IDEF0 Page Hierarchy

o A-0: Context or system function diagram ( contains A0)

o A0 : Level 0 diagram with first tier functions specified

Verification vs. Validateion

2010-03-02T14:56:00.001-05:00

Verfication: Did I build the right system?

Validation: Did I design the system right?

A good Architecture?

2010-02-28T03:58:00.001-05:00

A good system architecture exhibits conceptual integrity; that is, it comes equipped with a set of design rules that aid in reducing complexity and that can be used as guidance in detailed design and in system verification. The rules may be represented as a pattern, such as pipes and filters. In the best case there are verifiable rules, such as “any virtual device of the same type may replace any other virtual device of the same type in the event of device failure,” or “all processes contending for the same resource must have the same scheduling priority.”

A contemporary architect might say that the object or system under construction must have the following characteristics.

· It has the functionality required by the customer.

· It is safely buildable on the required schedule.

· It performs adequately.

· It is reliable.

· It is usable and safe to use.

· It is secure.

· It is affordable.

· It conforms to legal standards.

· It will outlast its predecessors and its competitors.

Architecture: General abstract from this world

2010-02-28T03:54:00.001-05:00

A building is very different from a symphony, but both have architectures. Further, all architects talk about beauty in their work and its results. A building architect might say that a building should provide an environment suitable for working or living, and that it should be beautiful to behold; a musician that the music should be playable, with a discernible theme, and that it should be beautiful to the ear; a software architect that the system should be friendly and responsive to the user, maintainable, free of critical errors, easy to install, reliable, that it should communicate in standard ways with other systems, and that it, too, should be beautiful.

An architecture can help assure that the system satisfies the concerns of its stakeholders, and it can help deal with the complexity of conceiving, planning, building, and maintaining the system.

In our discussion we will use “architecture” as a noun to denote a set of artifacts, including documentation such as blueprints and building specifications that describe the object to be built, wherein the object is viewed as a set of structures.

NSF Proposals

2010-02-27T16:38:00.001-05:00

Here are a couple of interesting pointers for submitting an NSF proposal. This is not a comprehensive and complete list, but it does touch upon some of the important features that a proposal should contain.

1- The proposal should not be an abstract, but a self-contained description of the activity if the proposal was funded.

2- broader impacts should be described, which show the implications of advancing this research

3- Details should be understandable to people who are not in the field, but technical enough to convey the importance of the research.

CSER Conference- March 17-19

2010-02-24T23:00:00.002-05:00

The Conference on Systems Engineering Research (CSER) is to be held at Stevens from March 17th – 19th, 2010.

For more information, visit:

http://sse.stevens.edu/research/sponsored-conferences/cser/

You can read the Conference brochure at: (pdf format)

http://sse.stevens.edu/fileadmin/sse/research/sponsored_conferences/CSER_2010_CFP_FINAL_.pdf

Governance vs. Management

2010-02-23T21:18:00.001-05:00

In Governance, the weak line of control would spread horizontal, where in Management, it would be going top down.

DSM: A tool for complexity management

2010-02-17T01:17:00.001-05:00

Research on matrix based complexity management has come a long way. Originating from a process focus with the first published formulation of a Design Structure Matrix (DSM) by Don Steward in 1981 , a whole community has developed around this research. The DSM is able to model and analyze dependencies of one single type within one single domain. For a product, e.g. the domain “components” can be regarded.

The figure shows a simple process consisting of six tasks that are shown as a flow chart on the right hand side and a DSM representing that process on the left hand side. There are numerous algorithms to analyze the overall structure of the relationships within a DSM, e.g. tearing, banding and partitioning, or the analysis for different structural properties (see DSM tutorial).

Figures: Actually the figures makes all this make sense. The website does an excellent job at making this confusing and mind-boggling as much as possible. Who in the world explains DSM in two paragraphs? lol.... he he... But that's right, because I can do it... pshhh...

Some Basics of Systems Engineering

2010-02-10T01:54:00.000-05:00

These are my notes from reading some books, and I find these as important concepts that should always have attention focused on them.

1- Never forget that the system being addressed by one group of engineers is the subsystem of another group and the supersystem of yet a third group. ( elevating the idea of Enterprise Systems)

2- System Engineers must identify the stakeholders needs throughout the system's lifecylce and define objects in the triad of cost, schedule, and performance ---- cheaper, faster, and better.

3- Design during the engineering of a system is the preliminary activity that has the purpose of satisfying the stakeholders requirements, and begins in the mind of the system engineer, and has to be transformed into models employing visual formats in a highly skilled manner for success to be achieved.

4- One of the legends of Systems Engineering to me could be Joe Shea, his involvement in large scale projects, definition of Systems Engineering, dedication shown by working three shifts, SE fashion icon by wearing red socks, and finally nervous breakdown for overworking himself ( duuhh!!!), but we salute him for his hard work.

5- Requirement vs Specification: Specification is a collection of requirements that completely define the constraints and performance requirements for a specific physical entity that is part of the system.

6- Design Decomposition of Architectures and Specs:
  Operational Req
  Sys Op Arch (Segment specs)
  Segment Operational Arch (element spec)
  Element Operational Architecture ( Component Specs)
  Component Operational Architecture ( CI specs)

7- Originating Requirements are found in Operational needs, or operational requirements Document, (ORD), and the restatement and derivation of the system requirements becomes System Requirement Document (SRD).

Complex Systems

2010-01-27T16:25:00.001-05:00

A quick run through by Wikipedia:

A complex system is a system composed of interconnected parts that as a whole exhibit one or more properties (behavior among the possible properties) not obvious from the properties of the individual parts.^{[citation needed]} This characteristic of every system is called emergence and is true of any system, not just complex ones^{[citation needed]}.

A system’s complexity may be of one of two forms: disorganized complexity and organized complexity.^[1] In essence, disorganized complexity is a matter of a very large number of parts, and organized complexity is a matter of the subject system (quite possibly with only a limited number of parts) exhibiting emergent properties.

Examples of complex systems include ant colonies, human economies and social structures, climate, nervous systems, cells and living things, including human beings, as well as modern energy or telecommunication infrastructures. Indeed, many systems of interest to humans are complex systems.

Complex systems are studied by many areas of natural science, mathematics, and social science. Fields that specialize in the interdisciplinary study of complex systems includesystems theory, complexity theory, systems ecology, and cybernetics.

Complex Systems in Searching

2010-01-25T16:02:00.001-05:00

Well, Stephen Wolfram might have done something that needs further insight and attention. What google has done for the search arena is spectacular, but what Wolfram Alpha is doing is perhaps more praise worthy. Part of the fascination lies in the NKS which Stephen developed. I personally like this notion, and find his thinking and thought pattern as a necessity or a gift for people in the field of system. I mean the reason that we aren’t able to properly solve or tackle a problem is because we’ve exhausted all channels that could be used under the traditional method, but with NKS, well, you are talking about a whole new paradigm.

When asked about Wolfram Alpha and Googles difference, Stephen gave the best answer:

"You would probably not use Wolfram Alpha to shop for a new car, find blog posts about a topic, or to choose a resort for your honeymoon. It is not a system that will understand the nuances of what you consider to be the perfect romantic getaway, for example--there is still no substitute for manual human-guided search for that. Where it appears to excel is when you want facts about something, or when you need to compute a factual answer to some set of questions about factual data."

Stephen Wolfram

2010-01-21T21:33:00.001-05:00

Stephen Wolfram is a distinguished scientist, inventor, author, and business leader. He is the creator of Mathematica, the author of A New Kind of Science, the creator ofWolfram|Alpha, and the founder and CEO of Wolfram Research. His career has been characterized by a sequence of original and significant achievements.

Born in London in 1959, Wolfram was educated at Eton, Oxford, and Caltech. He published his first scientific paper at the age of 15, and had received his PhD in theoretical physics from Caltech by the age of 20. Wolfram's early scientific work was mainly in high-energy physics, quantum field theory, and cosmology, and included several now-classic results. Having started to use computers in 1973, Wolfram rapidly became a leader in the emerging field of scientific computing, and in 1979 he began the construction of SMP—the first modern computer algebra system—which he released commercially in 1981.

In recognition of his early work in physics and computing, Wolfram became in 1981 the youngest recipient of a MacArthur Prize Fellowship. Late in 1981 Wolfram then set out on an ambitious new direction in science aimed at understanding the origins of complexity in nature. Wolfram's first key idea was to use computer experiments to study the behavior of simple computer programs known as cellular automata. And starting in 1982 this allowed him to make a series of startling discoveries about the origins of complexity. The papers Wolfram published quickly had a major impact, and laid the groundwork for the emerging field that Wolfram called "complex systems research."

Through the mid-1980s, Wolfram continued his work on complexity, discovering a number of fundamental connections between computation and nature, and inventing such concepts as computational irreducibility. Wolfram's work led to a wide range of applications—and provided the main scientific foundations for such initiatives as complexity theory and artificial life. Wolfram himself used his ideas to develop a new randomness generation system and a new approach to computational fluid dynamics—both of which are now in widespread use.

Following his scientific work on complex systems research, in 1986 Wolfram founded the first research center and the first journal in the field, Complex Systems. Then, after a highly successful career in academia—first at Caltech, then at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, and finally as Professor of Physics, Mathematics, and Computer Science at the University of Illinois—Wolfram launched Wolfram Research, Inc.

Wolfram began the development of Mathematica in late 1986. The first version of Mathematica was released on June 23, 1988, and was immediately hailed as a major advance in computing. In the years that followed, the popularity of Mathematica grew rapidly, and Wolfram Research became established as a world leader in the software industry, widely recognized for excellence in both technology and business.

Following the release of Mathematica Version 2 in 1991, Wolfram began to divide his time between Mathematica development and scientific research. Building on his work from the mid-1980s, and now with Mathematica as a tool, Wolfram made a rapid succession of major new discoveries. By the mid-1990s his discoveries led him to develop a fundamentally new conceptual framework, which he then spent the remainder of the 1990s applying not only to new kinds of questions, but also to many existing foundational problems in physics, biology, computer science, mathematics, and several other fields.

After more than ten years of highly concentrated work, Wolfram finally described his achievements in his 1200-page book A New Kind of Science. Released on May 14, 2002, the book was widely acclaimed and immediately became a bestseller. Its publication has been seen as initiating a paradigm shift of historic importance in science, with new implications emerging at an increasing rate every year.

Wolfram has been president and CEO of Wolfram Research since its founding in 1987. In addition to his business leadership, Wolfram is deeply involved in the development of the company's technology, and continues to be personally responsible for overseeing all aspects of the functional design of the coreMathematica system.

Wolfram has a lifelong commitment to research and education. In addition to providing software for a generation of scientists and students, Wolfram's company maintains some of the web's most visited sites for technical information. Wolfram is also increasingly active in defining new directions for education, especially in the science he has created.

Building on Mathematica, A New Kind of Science, and the success of Wolfram Research, Wolfram in May 2009 launched Wolfram|Alpha—an ambitious, long-term project to make as much of the world's knowledge as possible computable, and accessible to everyone.

Systems in Obama's World

2010-01-21T12:44:00.004-05:00

A couple of months ago, I attended a lecture, where the guest lecture, Jon Wade, was talking about the importance of System Engineering in solving tomorrows problems. It made total sense, a lot of the challenges that America is facing in this new decade and century are systematic challenges.

For example, when the Christmas day suspect terrorist was able to board the plane, Obama said: “ System Failed in a major way”(SILOBreaker). He did not mention a particular agency or entity for the failure, like the CIA or HLS agency, but he mentioned a system level failure. That is because times have changed and true essence of synergy is shaping more as a reality than a myth. As Aristotle once said it, the whole is the sum of its parts, and that is a challenge that we are still facing and where Systems Engineer would have a big impact.

The same goes for the solution to the Health care reform or starting the green technology revolution for the future. As the complexitiy of problems increase, there needs to be a new set of tools and methods to approach these problems, and that is what Systems Engineers need to think about.

Secret Signals

2009-12-14T18:16:00.001-05:00

Well, I haven’t found the proper term to associate the secret codes that CIA folks have used; however, I would like to think of them as in terms of System. Perhaps you can come up with a way to give it a “system” name.

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/CIA_illusion?pg=3

Time for Publications

2009-12-12T20:06:00.002-05:00

There comes a time during your PhD where you would have to write technical documents, and publish your work. The whole process of getting your paper published isn’t an easy one step process. As a matter of fact, its far from a 1 step process. There is so much to learn, and that was the purpose and main discussion for this class I took this semester, SYS 710: Research Methods. Not only does this class open your eyes on the process of writing a paper, but the professor encourages you to submit your work to a publication.

A couple of days ago, a great friend and mentor directed my attention to a great article that helped fixate my ideas on how to organize my paper. I’d like to share that with all you out there who are either performing research, or thinking on how to organize your paper so that it would meet the standards of a publication.

http://sse.stevens.edu/fileadmin/sse/academics/resources/Appendix2_MastersProjects_Thesis_Guidelines.pdf

Actually, when you think you over, there are more rules and guidelines that you would need to follow to have your paper accepted. That is the guidelines for the conference/publication. In that guidline, you would have the format specified, as well as the length and the procedure on how to do the work. I’ve attached the link to the CSER paper requirements, which you can find at the bottom of the page. This will give you a pretty good idea of what is expected.

http://sse.stevens.edu/research/sponsored-conferences/cser/2010/call-for-papers/

-Matin

System Readiness Level explained in a different context

2009-12-08T13:29:00.001-05:00

I found this page from UK MOD Defence Acquisition website (N.American spelling is Defense), which actually does shed light on Readiness Level from a new perspective. I have never thought of combining the V-model of systems engineering to the nine levels of technology maturity.

I would like to reiterate that although this article explains System Readiness Level, it comes to show that this concept has not been coined as one unique tool yet. However, it is interesting to look and browse around to see what our friends in UK think about these System Engineering stuff.

http://aof.mod.uk/aofcontent/tactical/techman/content/srl_whatarethey.htm

IDEF-0 diagram

2009-12-02T16:38:00.001-05:00

Well,

One person asked me what an IDEF-0 or A-0 diagram input and requests come from?

This question has came up time and after time, and I think it’s a good thing to break this down to the simple terms, and what better way than a diagram?

So here it is. Hope this addresses many of your questions

How to do a QFD

2009-11-30T00:57:00.001-05:00

Or as its also called, The house of Quality, is a “method to transform user demands into design quality, to deploy the functions forming quality, and to deploy methods for achieving the design quality into subsystems and component parts, and ultimately to specific elements of the manufacturing process.

First described by Dr. Yoji Akao, who originally developed QFD in Japan in 1966.

Architecture Modeling of Cost Acquisition

2009-11-24T13:10:00.001-05:00

One of the major problems in the engineering world out there is talking apples and apples. This simply applies to not only simple daily conversations, but cost acquisition programs, where you would have the sales team of a company work with a customer and try to break down the proposed cost. After the breakdown, and understanding of the different elements, and the inherent risk is where you realize that value of the service/product.

As UML 2.1 picks up in momentum, it would be a good time to look into utilizing this powerful tool to bridge this everlasting problem of misconception. I think if one can model a clear cost model for a product, then that creates a dialog medium, which will save lots of time/effort/resources and adds credibility/transparency/detail to the bidirectional conversation.

The only problem I see is that this methodology is easier said than done. Although I’m slowly preparing myself for all this model analysis and architecture analysis work, it is not very clear how I would go forward, even with all the software packages and modules out there. However, I do think that being in Stevens would prosper my chances of arriving at this delicious answer.

Enterprise Architecture : From where?

2009-11-14T18:57:00.001-05:00

Many organisations today are establishing an Enterprise Architecture (EA) business function.
However the knowledge about enterprise architecture concepts, framework and processes within many organisations is still quite limited and at a low level of maturity.
Very often there is a good understanding of the technology and infrastructure architecture and the to a lesser extent of the application architecture but far less understanding of the enterprise architecture discipline.

The concept of enterprise architecture has evolved considerably from John Zachman’s original work in the 1980’s on his Framework for Information Systems Architecture.
The Zachman Framework has provided the basis for many more recent enterprise architecture frameworks and associated processes that are now available.

According to many surveys, the majority of organisations usually choose to create their own EA framework rather than adopt any existing one.
The reasons for this vary, from the requirement to support a service oriented architecture, object orientation and component based development viewpoints, to a simple desire to use a different terminology that is tailored to the language used within the organisation.

System's Engineering

2009-11-08T20:27:00.001-05:00

Systems engineering integrates two disciplines: Engineering, the technical knowledge domain, and Systems which is an interconnected composite of people with tools and process that create a capability to meet an objective.

Some people think of software when I tell them about system’s engineering. Well, here is something on the line of software architecture that I found interesting a couple of days ago.

http://www.codingthearchitecture.com/pages/book/software-architecture-document-guidelines.html

INCOSE Code of Ethics

2009-11-07T18:16:00.001-05:00

This information is retrieved from INCOSE’s website on Nov 7^th,2009.

This Code is concerned with how certain fundamental imperatives apply to one's conduct as an engineering professional. These imperatives are expressed in a general form to emphasize that principles which apply to engineering ethics are derived from more general ethical principles.

It is understood that some words and phrases in a code of ethics are subject to varying interpretations, and that any ethical principle may conflict with other ethical principles in specific situations. Questions related to ethical conflicts can best be answered by thoughtful consideration of fundamental principles, rather than reliance on detailed regulations.

Preamble

Engineering is a profession that requires its practitioners to be well educated and knowledgeable. Systems Engineering, in particular, is a unique discipline in that 1) it is highly integrative, spanning elements of many activities, 2) often provides representation of stakeholders' interests other than employer or client, and 3) operates in largely international arenas where value systems, beliefs and customs vary widely. The practice of Systems Engineering can result in significant social and environmental benefits, but only if unintended and undesired effects are considered and mitigated.

Fundamental Principles

Systems Engineers uphold and advance the integrity, honor and dignity of the engineering profession by:

Being honest and impartial;
Maintaining the highest levels of integrity and keeping abreast of the knowledge of their disciplines;
Striving to increase the competence and prestige of the engineering profession; and
Supporting the educational institutions, the professional societies and technical societies of their disciplines.

Fundamental Duties to Society and Public Infrastructure

Guard the public interest and protect the environment, safety and welfare of those affected by engineering activities and technological artifacts.
Accept responsibility for your actions and engineering results, including being open to ethical scrutiny and assessment.
Proactively mitigate unsafe practice.
Manage risk using knowledge granted by a whole system viewpoint and understanding of systemic interfaces.
Promote the understanding, implementation, and acceptance of prudent Systems Engineering measures .

Rules of Practice

Act legally, honorably, honestly, justly, and responsibly.
Respect, protect, and preserve the intellectual properties of others.
Honor all legal contracts and agreements.
Treat all constituents fairly.
Give prudent advice. Be truthful, objective, and maintain your professional and technical integrity.
Provide diligent and competent services to the best of your ability.
Respect the trust and the privileges granted to you.
Avoid conflicts of interest and the appearance thereof.

SysML seminar at Stevens

2009-11-05T21:21:00.000-05:00

INCOSE will host the main guy who has been SysML. This lecture which is hostel by INCOSE will have a day seminar on SysML which is something that Stevens currently lacks. I am going to attend this seminar, and find out more detail about it. It should be around NOV 20^th.

For the exact date, contact me: hellomatin@gmail.com

Basics: Sequence Diagram

2009-11-04T16:07:00.001-05:00

Undoubtedly useful, but what does it look like?

An excellent guide to SysML

2009-11-04T01:01:00.001-05:00

Read the Incose 2008 OMGSysML tutorial that is published in PDF format.

Not only does this explain SysML in the simplest terms, it is probably one of

The best sources to learn SysML thoroughly.

You can obtain a copy of this document at this website ( if it’s still hosted when you visit the site of course)

http://www.sysmlforum.com/training.htm

Enjoy.

Systomics: Where to look for failures

2009-11-02T14:53:00.001-05:00

http://systomicslab.com/

Systomics is the foundational science of systems thinking. It asks and seeks to answer these two key questions: ‘What is a system (in the abstract)?’, and, ‘What is the meaning of this (particular) system?’ Systems thinking is itself an applied science asking ‘How can the notion of system be used to make sense of or to improve reality?’ Applied systems thinking benefits a wide range of domains and thereby provides testimony and future insights for systomics.

At Stevens Institute of Technology within the School of Systems and Enterprises (SSE), the Systomics Laboratory has been established to study the science of systems thinking so we may look at systems over space and time and may find the true systemic remedies to systemic failures.

NYC transit

2009-11-01T11:33:00.000-05:00

Modeling an enterprise

2009-10-30T15:52:00.004-04:00

Many reasons why, 1) to preserve knowledge 2) identify teams that help the

enterprise achieve it's goals 3) compliance requirements 4) dates and more

Vensim: a soft system Diagram

2009-10-28T20:46:00.004-04:00

Ventana Systems, Inc. provides products and services to solve hard problems and improve organizational performance. Ventana publishes Vensim which is used for constructing models of business, scientific, environmental, and social systems.

This is an excellent tool that I learned for my Systems 710 class. It's in some way a brainstorming tool that would eventually organize your thoughts. It also links individual states to each other, to show a positive or negative association to one another.

I'm planning to use this to depict the obstacles to earning my PhD at Stevens with this tool. I'm sure the outcome will be beneficial, one way or another.

Heterogeneity

2009-10-28T17:41:00.001-04:00

Heterogeneous is an adjective used to describe an object or system consisting of multiple items having a large number of structural variations. It is the opposite of homogeneous, which means that an object or system consists of multiple identical items.

In the world of enterprise computing, heterogeneous data is a mix of data from two or more sources, often of two or more formats, e.g., SQL and XML. Distributed systems are called heterogeneous if they contain many different types of hardware and software. heterogeneity of the system means the ability of that system to work with different systems

A champion in Systems Engineering

2009-10-28T16:48:00.002-04:00

Lecturers and Instructors have the important responcibility of educating others. There are poeple who do the work, and there are others who DO IT RIGHT. Eirik Hole, a lecturer at Stevens Inst of Technology, is a well spoken and detail oriented individual with a sharp eye for Systems.

He has the knowledge and capability to instruct a diverse class, and brings excitement and enthusiasm to the class environment. Given the criticality of Systems Engineering in the next decade, it is vital to keep up with todays current events, and prepare for a System Oriented mindset of tomorrow.

Money/Payscale's Best Jobs Survey

2009-10-27T01:55:00.000-04:00

From CNN Money:
#1 Job: Systems Engineering!!!!!!
What they do: They're the "big think" managers on large, complex projects, from major transportation networks to military defense programs. They figure out the technical specifications required and coordinate the efforts of lower-level engineers working on specific aspects of the project.

Why it's great: Demand is soaring for systems engineers, as what was once a niche job in the aerospace and defense industries becomes commonplace among a diverse and expanding universe of employers, from medical device makers to corporations like Xerox and BMW.

Pay can easily hit six figures for top performers, and there's ample opportunity for advancement. But many systems engineers say they most enjoy the creative aspects of the job and seeing projects come to life. "The transit system I work on really makes a tangible difference to people," says Anne O'Neil, chief systems engineer for the New York City Transit Authority.

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bestjobs/2009/snapshots/1.html

Systems thinking and keywords in the area

2009-10-26T19:01:00.000-04:00

According to managementhelp.org, systems thinking is a way of helping a person to view systems from a broad perspective that includes seeing overall structures, patterns and cycles in systems, rather than seeing only specific events in the system. This broad view can help you to quickly identify the real causes of issues in organizations and know just where to work to address them. Systems thinking has produced a variety of principles and tools for analyzing and changing systems.

By focusing on the entire system, consultants can attempt to identify solutions that address as many problems as possible in the system. The positive effect of those solutions leverages improvement throughout the system. Thus, they are called “leverage points” in the system. This priority on the entire system and its leverage points is called whole systems thinking.

Also look at :http://www.pegasuscom.com/systems-thinking.html

Keywords: Links, Scopes, Principles of Change,Causal Loop Diagrams, Systems Diagrams, Five Disciplines of Systems Thinking,Chaos Theory

History of Use Cases

2009-10-26T18:42:00.000-04:00

A use case in software engineering and systems engineering is a description of a system’s behavior as it responds to a request that originates from outside of that system. In other words, a use case describes "who" can do "what" with the system in question. The use case technique is used to capture a system's behavioral requirements by detailing scenario-driven threads through the functional requirements.

In 1986, Ivar Jacobson, later an important contributor to both the Unified Modeling Language (UML) and the Rational Unified Process (RUP), first formulated the visual modeling technique for specifying use cases. Originally he used the terms usage scenarios and usage case, but found that neither of these terms sounded natural in English, and eventually he settled on the term use case. During the 1990s use cases became one of the most common practices for capturing functional requirements. This is especially the case within the object-oriented community where they originated, but their applicability is not restricted to object-oriented systems, because use cases are not object-oriented in nature.

Project Management: Solar Tower

2009-10-20T20:11:00.000-04:00

An example of excellent project Management in my opinion. I will post more about this in the near future, as I am doing an extensive case study on the Seville Solar Power. This is an awesome project that deserves way more attention as it has been getting. So I'm going to contribute to the body of works that has been published out there.

A great Systems Software

2009-10-19T11:40:00.001-04:00

Hello and Welcome

2009-10-19T11:17:00.000-04:00

Hello,
Thank you for checking out this blog. It is my intent to share interesting discussions that relate to the world of Systems.

Please bookmark and check these pages often.

Yours,
Matin Sarfaraz