Measuring the effect of conflict on software engineering teams.

This article describes a project that aimed to uncover the effects of different forms of conflict on team performance during the important feasibility, requirements analysis, and design phases of software engineering (SE) projects. The research subjects were master of science students who were working to produce software commissioned by real-world clients. A template was developed that allowed researchers to record details of any conflicts that occurred. It was found that some forms of conflict were more damaging than others and that the frequency and intensity of specific conflicts are important factors to consider. The experience of the researchers when using the final template suggests that it is a valuable weapon to have in one's arsenal if one is interested in observing and recording the details of conflict in either SE teams or teams in different contexts.

Using ethnographic methods to carry out human factors research in software engineering.

This article describes how ethnographic methods were used to observe and analyze student teams working on software engineering (SE) projects. The aim of this research was to uncover the effects of the interplay of different personality types, as measured by a test based on the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), on the workings of an SE team. Using ethnographic methods allowed the researchers to record the effects of personality type on behavior toward teammates and how this related to the amount of disruption and positive ideas brought forward from each member, also examined in detail were issues that were either dogged by disruption or that did not have sufficient discussion devoted to them and the impact that they had on the outcomes of the project. Initial findings indicate that ethnographic methods are a valuable weapon to have in one's arsenal when carrying out research into human factors of SE.

On the abundance and distribution of protozoa and their food in a productive freshwater pond.

We have examined and quantified the protozoa living in a productive freshwater pond during a 2-day period in June 1987. Over 90 species were recognised. The planktonic and benthic communities were dominated by ciliates and heterotrophic flagellates although the large amoeba Pelomyxa palustris was abundant (102 ml(-1)) in anaerobic sediments. Picoplankton averaged 1.4 × 10(7) ml(-1), phototrophic nanoplankton 0.8 × 10(5) ml(-1), heterotrophic nanoplankton 0.9 × 10(5) ml(-1) and planktonic ciliates 1.3 × 10(2) ml(-1). Numbers were about two orders of magnitude higher in the sediment. Protozoan biomass ranged from 3% to 61% of the total plankton biomass. Heterotrophic flagellates were the principal grazers of the picoplankton. Planktonic ciliates fed mainly on phototrophic nanoplankton but they probably also ingested heterotrophic flagellates. Benthic ciliates were predominantly bactivorous. Competition between ciliate species was minimised by both spatial and food niche separation. Ten species of planktonic ciliates appeared to contain algal symbionts: one species (Strombidium viride) contained structures resembling sequestered chloroplasts. These findings concerning the diversity and abundance of protozoa in a freshwater pond are consistent with the consensus opinion expressed in the marine literature that protozoa play a fundamental role in microbial food webs within aquatic ecosystems.