Cognitive radio paradigm and recent trends of antenna systems in the UWB 3.1–10.6 GHz

Wireless Networks - This article mainly focuses on the concept of cognitive radio paradigm in the ultra-wideband 3.1–10.6 GHz and recent trends of various antenna systems required...     

Involved,Transported, or Emotional? Exploring the Determinants of Change in Knowledge,Attitudes, and Behavior in Entertainment‐Education

This study examined how 3 constructs—involvement with a specific character, involvement with the narrative (Green and Brock's construct of transportation), and viewers' emotional reaction to the narrative—produce entertainment‐education (EE) effects. A pretest/posttest survey of 167 regular viewers measured the effects of exposure to a lymphoma storyline on a television drama, Desperate Housewives. Transportation or involvement with the narrative was the best predictor of change in relevant knowledge, attitudes, and behavior. Although involvement with a specific character has been hailed an important direct predictor of EE effects, a structural equation model indicated that character involvement may be more important for its ability to heighten transportation and emotion, which, in turn, produce changes in viewers' knowledge, attitudes, and behavior.     

ICANN – EU can't: Internet governance and Europe's role in the formation of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN)

This paper analyzes the policy process that led to the formation of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), focusing on the actions of the European Commission. The analysis of the relevant documents shows the difference between the regulatory ideas in the US and the EU. The European Commission would have preferred an institutional framework with a prominent role for public actors, but had to accept the preference of the US Government, which directed the institutionalization of a private regime for the management of Internet addresses and names. Nevertheless, the Commission managed to establish itself as a major player in the emerging field of Internet governance.     

Should mobile Internet be an extension to the fixed web? Fixed-mobile reinforcement as mediator between context of use and future use

As the fixed and mobile Internet are converging, the question emerges whether consumers expect mobile Internet services to replicate services they know from the fixed Internet. Literature on reinforcement and displacement suggests that the use of new media depends on whether users are inclined to replace or reinforce their existing media use on a new device. This paper analyzes whether the importance that users attribute to using similar services on their mobile phone as on the fixed Internet can explain the intention to adopt mobile services. Specifically, we investigate if such fixed-mobile reinforcement could mediate the impact of personal innovativeness and several dimensions of context. We compare basic Internet services, entertainment services and transaction services. We find that especially the intention to adopt basic Internet services largely depends on the importance of using similar services in the mobile domain as on the fixed Internet. Several context-of-use predictors are partially or even fully mediated by fixed-mobile reinforcement. The results convey a positive message to operators that are betting on converged multimedia services that can be accessed from any device and from any fixed or mobile network.     

Design of a 65?nm CMOS 8?GHz wideband: track-and-hold, for radio astronomy and cosmology applications

In modern millimeter and sub-millimeter communication systems, particle physics, neutrino astronomy, and for passive applications in radio astronomy or remote atmospheric sensing, the trend is to eliminate analog functional blocks, such as mixers and filters, by converting the signal into the digital domain as early as possible in the processing chain. Therefore, fast analog-to-digital converters (ADC) are needed. Track-and-hold (TAH) circuits can reduce time constraints by holding the analog input value while comparators are sampled, in order to minimize the aperture time errors. This article describes the design of a TAH using the 65?nm CMOS technology from STMicroelectronics. A fully differential architecture has been adopted. The circuit exhibits a ?3?dB input bandwidth wider than 8?GHz. At 8?GHz, the maximum sampling frequency, the measured overall power consumption and gain are 178?mW and ?2?dB, respectively. The TAH core dissipates around 40?mW. The measured total harmonic distortion (THD) at Nyquist sampling conditions is about ?37?dB. The circuit die area is 1.1?mm2.     

The Internet: Is it a replicable technological and social phenomenon for central Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States?

The Internet is more than just inter-connectivity between computers across geo-political boundaries. The Internet is also a means of exchanging ideas to augment human endeavor. This paper explores conditions for, and possible benefits of, the evolution of the Internet in Central and Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States.     

Analysis and modelling the effects of mobility,Churn rate,node’s life span,intermittent bandwidth and stabilization cost of finger table in structured mobile P2P networks

Today P2P (Peer-to-Peer) networks are gaining popularity for sharing the contents. Due to massive spreading of Internet, these networks are also growing fast. MP2P (Mobile P2P) networks are attracting many users due to increase in the Internet-based mobile applications. These networks suffer from many challenges which are not considered for analysis and modelling adequately. We focus on few challenges like mobility of users, churn rate, intermittent bandwidth, shorter life span of mobile nodes, stabilization of finger table, etc. in this paper. We analytically analyse these challenges and define the effects of different parameters over the performance. Traditional P2P protocols are designed for wired networks and when these are implemented for mobile networks then mobility effect of users adds more challenge for researchers. We select two types of mobility models namely FF (Fluid Flow) and RWP (Random Waypoint) models to model the users’ mobility. The churn rate of the mobile nodes makes network overlay management and content searching more difficult in MP2P networks. We select finger table-based protocols which are widely deployed in the P2P networks. But these protocols can’t perform well in the mobile P2P networks due to mobility of the users. The mobility of the users and churn rate of the mobile nodes create failure in lookup of finger table and induce more cost to update the finger table. We consider these challenges and quantify the failure rate of mobile nodes, life span of mobile nodes, available bandwidth, cost of stabilization of finger table per node, etc. in this proposal. The proposed model is useful for modelling the performance of MP2P networks performance in various wireless environments like Mobile Ad hoc Networks (MANETs), Wireless Mesh Networks (WMNs), Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs), Vehicular Ad hoc Networks (VANETs), Wireless LAN (WLAN), Wireless MAN (WMAN), etc.

     

Systematic features of the variation in the crystal-chemical, electrical, and surface physicochemical properties of A X B8 ? X materials on the energy of the inverse adsorption piezoelectric effect

Based on the generalization of experimental data on the structure, properties, adsorption and electrical properties of diamond-like semiconductors, the systematic features of variation in their crystalchemical, electrical, and surface (adsorption and electrical) properties depending on the energy of the reverse adsorption piezoelectric effect is established for the first time. It is noted that this energy coincides with the energy of formation and annihilation of point defects in solids, which is determined by the dilatometric and calorimetric methods. Empirical formulas for variation in the band gap, melting point, and microhardness depending on the energy density in oxygen are found for II?CVI compounds. Based on the found systematic feature, the values of the microhardness for the semiconductor materials HgS, HgSe, and Cd_0.12Hg_0.88Te, which are lacking in published data, are found.     

Digital technology and innovation trajectories in the Mediterranean region: A casualty of or an antidote to the economic crisis?

Weak macroeconomic conditions mean admittedly that government spending on Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) is reduced and consequently that ICT-related policies are scrutinized for their necessity, efficiency and impact on growth. At the same time, such conditions bring into the spotlight and set priority to measures targeting the ICT sector and promoting ICT-based innovation as a means of pursuing economic recovery. The 2008 financial crisis affected severely several parts of the world and particularly the Mediterranean region, where, even today, several years after the start of this economic turmoil in Europe, finding an effective response to mitigating the consequences of recession is still pertinent. Building on previous literature that recognizes ICT-based innovation as a crisis mitigation enabler, this paper propels discussion on the association among ICT- and innovation-oriented indicators and the economic crisis context in four Mediterranean countries, namely Spain, Greece, Italy and Cyprus. In this respect, it leverages a set of open and credible indicators of both technological and economic character and attempts to reflect on the effects of the crisis on ICT or conversely seen the potential of the latter to enable the affected countries to come out of the crisis.     

How does Facebook news use lead to actions in South Korea? The role of Facebook discussion network heterogeneity,political interest,and conflict avoidance in predicting political participation

Employing survey data collected in South Korea (N?=?470), this study investigated whether and how Facebook users’ news use promotes their offline political participation. Results showed that Facebook news use indirectly influenced political participation through discussion network heterogeneity. This indirect relationship was conditional on Facebook users’ political interest and conflict avoidance. For people who are highly interested in politics but less conflict avoidant, the frequency of Facebook news use is more likely to boost political discussions with heterogeneous others, which contributes to facilitating their participation in offline political activities. The implications of these results were discussed.     

Gibbs random fields on a lattice: Definitions,existence, uniqueness,and phase transitions (a review of proceedings of the seminar on statistical physics at the faculty of mechanics and mathematics of the Moscow state university in 1962–1994)

The Moscow Grand Seminar on Statistical Physics is one of the first seminars in the world devoted to rigorous methods in statistical physics. The achievements of the seminar can be appreciated in full measure from publications by the leaders of the seminar (R.L. Dobrushin, V.A. Malyshev, R.A. Minlos, Ya.G. Sinai). This paper presents a review (far from complete) of the proceedings of the seminar. The emphasis is made on the fundamental definitions and most important results.     

Scanning electron microscopic changes in the morphology of rabbit pulmonary tissue biopsied following ischemia and reperfusion: a window of opportunity?

Reperfusion is known to cause tissue damage in ischemic pulmonary tissue. We investigated the time frame of this occurrence by examining electron microscopic changes in lung tissue. Isolated, perfused, and ventilated rabbit lungs (and heart) were placed en bloc in a 37 degrees C chamber and perfused through the pulmonary artery at 15 mm Hg pressure with oxygenated Krebs-Henseleit buffer, pH 7.4, 70 ml min(-1), for 20 min and the pulmonary pump and ventilator were stopped. The resultant ischemic state was maintained for 2 h, and reperfusion resumed with the same buffer. The lungs of four groups of rabbits (n = 5 per group) were each subjected to 30 min, 1, 2, and 4 h of reperfusion respectively. Upon completion, lungs were biopsied for scanning electron microscopy. Ischemic damage including the loss of lung architecture, and edema were seen. Reperfusion restored some of the tissue anatomy and the return to normalcy increased up to 1 h of reperfusion after which the damage increased with time. Results suggest that damage due to ischemia alone may be reversible. Initial recovery is due to the re-establishment of circulation. However, with time, the damage seen may be due to free radicals and with 4 h of reperfusion, cell death may have occurred.     

Wıreless Communıcatıons Beyond 5 g: Teraherzwaves,Nano-Communıcatıons and the Internet of Bıo-Nano-Thıngs

Two promising technologies cosidered for the Beyond 5G networks are the terahertz and nano-technologies. Besides other possible application areas they hold the commitment to numerous new nano-scale solutions in the biomedical field. Nano-technology, as the name implies, examines the construction and design of nano-sized materials. These two interconnected emerging technologies have the potential to find application in quite many areas, one of the most importan being healthcare. This overview paper discusses the specifics of these technologies, their most important characteristics and introduces some of the trends for their application in the healthcare sector. In the first section terahertz frequency radio waves and their specific properties depending on the surrounding environment are discussed, followed by an introduction to nano-scale communications. Terahertz waves mandate the use of nano-scale antennas, which in turn brings us to the concept of nano-scale nodes. Nano-scale nodes are units that can perform the most basic functions of nano-machines and inter-nano-machine communications, which allow distributed nano-machines to perform more complex functions. Beyond 5G the development of these nano-communications is expected to lead to the emergence of new complex network systems. In the second part of this paper the paradigms of the Internet of Nano Things, molecular commnications and the Internet of Bio-Nano Things are discussed followed by details on their integration in healthcare related applications. The main goal of the article is to provide an introduction to these intriguing issues discussing advanced nano-technology enablers for Beyond 5G networks such as terahertz and molecular communications, nano-communications between nano-machines and the Internet of Bio-Nano-Things in light of health related applications.

     

Who finds value in news comment communities? An analysis of the influence of individual user,perceived news site quality,and site type factors

User commenting forums are a ubiquitous interactive feature offered by news organizations. Despite their popularity, research has generally failed to investigate extent to which news readers themselves find any redeeming value in news comment communities and, therein, the factors that serve as antecedents to such value perceptions. In light of this gap in the literature, this study set out to determine the factors associated with news community value. Using a sample of over 500 news consumers, we explored the impact of individual user, site quality, and site type factors. The results suggested that perceived news community value was highest among those with high levels of self-efficacy and those who use the Internet for civic purposes. The data indicated also that value perceptions were highest for those news sites that were understood to be interactive and aesthetically pleasing. Finally, perceived news community value was highest on sites that were both non-traditional and non-partisan in nature.     

Participation – In what? Radio,convergence and the corporate logic of audience input through new media in Zambia

Recent literature has pointed to the way in which new media such as the internet and mobile phones have the capacity to enable more participatory and interactive communication, either through user-generated content or through a broader participation of audiences in mainstream media’s content production. This potential is celebrated even more in contexts in which there is deemed to be a lack of political accountability or limited consultation of citizens by government. This article investigates the extent to which new technologies have changed the quality of audience participation in radio content production in Zambia. Engaging with literature on participation in media studies as well as development studies and based on interviews with station managers, producers and presenters of six radio stations in Zambia, the article examines both the opportunities and limits of the use of internet and mobile phones in audience participation. It argues that there is a need to situate these practices within a broader corporate logic in which participation is not merely about adding more voices but also feeds into radio stations’ commercial strategies of increasing revenue and accessing personal data of listeners through SMS and social media.