Evaluation of the Continuous Specification Method for Requirements of Data-Driven Software Systems.

• Grant number: 24/20302-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: December 22, 2024
• End date: March 21, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Computer Science - Computing Methodologies and Techniques
• Principal Investigator: Elisa Yumi Nakagawa
• Grantee: Bruno Garcia de Oliveira Breda
• Supervisor: Damian Andrew Tamburri
• Host Institution: Instituto de Ciências Matemáticas e de Computação (ICMC). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Carlos , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Jheronimus Academy Of Data Science, Netherlands
• Associated to the scholarship: 24/00292-6 - Continuous Specification of Requirements of Data-driven Software Systems, BP.IC

Abstract

Data-driven software systems have been increasingly adopted to solve problems in diverse application domains, including medicine and the automotive sector. Implementing machine learning (ML) techniques, such systems have brought considerable challenges to software engineering (SE) in ensuring qualities such as reliability, including how to address the requirements of these systems, particularly when such requirements emerge continuously while the systems are developed. Hence, the scientific initialization project being conducted by the student aims to define a method for the continuous specification of requirements (functional and non-functional) of data-driven software systems. Complementing that project, during the 3-month visit abroad, the main goal is to evaluate this method, counting on the expertise of the research group in the Jheronimus Academy of Data Science (JADS), led by Prof. Dr. Damian Tamburri. To this end, two evaluation methods will be applied: interviews with experts in developing data-driven software systems and field observation intending to observe how the research group manages the requirements of those systems. After the results analysis, the method will be refined based on such results. As one of the main results of this 3-month visit, we intend to have a paper written to be submitted to a journal or a good conference in the area. Moreover, our method will be particularly important to the Thematic Project in which the scientific initialization project and this visit take part. This is because the Thematic Project has developed data-driven software systems, which are core elements for conducting all the research on biomarkers for respiratory conditions.