A neural network model of a communication network with information servers

This paper models information flow in a communication network. The network consists of nodes that communicate with each other, and information servers that have a predominantly one-way communication to their customers. A neural network is used as a model for the communication network. The existence of multiple equilibria in the communication network is established. The network operator observes only one equilibrium, but if he knows the other equilibria, he can influence the free parameters, for example by providing extra bandwidth, so that the network settles in another equilibrium that is more profitable for the operator. The influence of several network parameters on the dynamics is studied both by simulation and by theoretical methods.The author was with the Intelligent Systems Unit, BT Laboratories, Martlesham Heath, Ipswich IP5 7RE, UK.     

How older people account for their experiences with interactive technology

We present a qualitative study, undertaken over a period of nine months, of older people facing the challenges of learning to use interactive technology, specifically personal computers (PCs) and the internet. We examine the range of causal explanations (attributions) voiced by the group in accounting for their difficulties with it. A discourse analysis of these data reveals some factors (anxiety, age-related issues, being too busy to learn and the need for a purpose for the new tools) that support the work of other researchers, while other themes (issues around alienation, identity and agency) deepen understanding of this domain. The implications of the results for how we approach understanding the difficulties faced by older people in this context are discussed.     

Dynamical geometry for multiscale dissipative particle dynamics

In this paper, we review the computational aspects of a multiscale dissipative particle dynamics model for complex fluid simulations based on the feature-rich geometry of the Voronoi tessellation. The geometrical features of the model are critical since the mesh is directly connected to the physics by the interpretation of the Voronoi volumes of the tessellation as coarse-grained fluid clusters. The Voronoi tessellation is maintained dynamically in time to model the fluid in the Lagrangian frame of reference, including imposition of periodic boundary conditions. Several algorithms to construct and maintain the periodic Voronoi tessellation are reviewed in two and three spatial dimensions and their parallel performance discussed. The insertion of polymers and colloidal particles in the fluctuating hydrodynamic solvent is described using surface boundaries.     

Coprimeness properties of nonlinear fractional system realizations

In this paper, the relationship between the Bezout and the set-theoretic approaches to left coprimeness is studied. It is shown that left coprimeness in the set-theoretic sense implies left coprimeness in the Bezout sense. In addition to these results, we investigate whether some properties for linear left coprime realizations carry over to the nonlinear case, for example we examine the relations between two left coprime realizations of the same system.     

Kalman filtering with constrained output injection

In applications involving large scale systems such as discretized partial differential equations, it is often of interest to use data to estimate state variables associated with a subregion of the spatial domain. In this paper we derive an extension of the classical Kalman filter in which data injection is confined to a subspace of the system states.     

The Global Rain Forest Mapping project - A review

The Global Rain Forest Mapping (GRFM) project is an international endeavour led by the National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA), with the aim of producing spatially and temporally contiguous Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data sets over the tropical belt on the Earth by use of the JERS-1 L-band SAR, through the generation of semi-continental, 100 m resolution, image mosaics. The GRFM project relies on extensive collaboration with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission (JRC) and the Japanese Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) for data acquisition, processing, validation and product generation. A science programme is underway in parallel with product generation. This involves the agencies mentioned above, as well as a large number of international organizations, universities and individuals to perform field activities and data analysis at different levels. The GRFM project was initiated in 1995 and, through a dedicated data acquisition policy by NASDA, data acquisitions could be completed within a 1.5-year period, resulting in a spatially and temporally homogeneous coverage to encompass the entire Amazon Basin from the Atlantic to the Pacific; Central America up to the Yucatan Peninsular in Mexico; equatorial Africa from Madagascar and Kenya in the east to Sierra Leone in the west; and south-east Asia, including Papua New Guinea and northern Australia. Over the Amazon and Congo river basins, the project aimed to provide complete cover at two different seasons, featuring the basins at high and low water. In total, the GRFM acquisitions comprise some 13000 SAR scenes, which are currently in the course of being processed and compiled into image mosaics. In March 1999, SAR mosaics over the Amazon Basin (one out of two seasonal coverages) and equatorial Africa (both seasonal coverages) were completed; the data are available on CD-ROM and, at a coarser resolution, via the Internet. Coverage of the second-season Amazon and Central America will be completed during 1999, with the south-east Asian data sets following thereafter. All data are being provided free of charge to the international science community for research and educational purposes.     

SUFFICIENT CONDITIONS FOR α-STABILITY OF LINEAR TIME-DELAY SYSTEMS

The asymptotic stability of time-delayed systems subject to multiple bounded point delays has received important attention in past years (see, for instance, Bourles, H. 1994. International Journal of Control , 59(2): 529-541; De la Sen, M. 2000. Electronics Letters , 36(4): 373-374; Xu, B. 2000. Journal of Mathematical Analysis and Applications , 282: 484-494). It is basically proved that the local f -stability in the delays (i.e., all the eigenvalues have prefixed strictly negative real parts located in Re s h - f < 0) may be tested for a set of admissible delays including possible zero delays either through a set of Lyapunov matrix inequalities or, equivalently, by checking that an identical number of matrices related to the delayed dynamics are all stability matrices. The result may be easily extended to check the k -asymptotic stability, independent of the delays; that is, for all the delays having any values, the eigenvalues are stable and located in Re s h k M 0 - (De la Sen, 2000; Xu, 2000). This number is 2 r for a set of r distinct point delays and includes all possible cases of alternate signs for summations for all the matrices of delayed dynamics (Xu, 2000).     

Extended H 2 and H norm characterizations and controller parametrizations for discrete-time systems

This paper presents new synthesis procedures for discrete-time linear systems. It is based on a recently developed stability condition which contains as particular cases both the celebrated Lyapunov theorem for precisely known systems and the quadratic stability condition for systems with uncertain parameters. These new synthesis conditions have some nice properties: (a) they can be expressed in terms of LMI (linear matrix inequalities) and (b) the optimization variables associated with the controller parameters are independent of the symmetric matrix that defines a quadratic Lyapunov function used to test stability. This second feature is important for several reasons. First, structural constraints, as those appearing in the decentralized and static output-feedback control design, can be addressed less conservatively. Second, parameter dependent Lyapunov function can be considered with a very positive impact on the design of robust H 2 and H X control problems. Third, the design of controller with mixed objectives (also gain-scheduled controllers) can be addressed without employing a unique Lyapunov matrix to test all objectives (scheduled operation points). The theory is illustrated by several numerical examples.     

C2OF2N: a low power cooperative code offloading method for femtolet-based fog network

Power and delay aware cloud service provisioning to mobile devices has become a promising domain today. This paper proposes and implements a cooperative offloading approach for indoor mobile cloud network. In the proposed work mobile devices register under femtolet which is a home base station with computation and data storage facilities. The resources of the mobile devices are collaborated in such a way that different mobile devices can execute different types of computations based on cooperative federation. The proposed offloading scheme is referred as cooperative code offloading in femtolet-based fog network. If none of the mobile device can execute the requested computation, then femtolet executes the computation. Use of femtolet provides the mobile devices voice call service as well as cloud service access. Femtolet is used as the fog device in our approach. The proposed model is simulated using Qualnet version 7. The simulation results demonstrate that the proposed scheme minimizes the energy by 15% and average delay up to 12% approximately than the existing scheme. Hence, the proposed model is referred as a low power offloading approach.     

Finite-Horizon Min–Max Control of Max-Plus-Linear Systems

In this note, we provide a solution to a class of finite-horizon min-max control problems for uncertain max-plus-linear systems where the uncertain parameters are assumed to lie in a given convex and compact set, and it is required that the closed-loop input and state sequence satisfy a given set of linear inequality constraints for all admissible uncertainty realizations. We provide sufficient conditions such that the value function is guaranteed to be convex and continuous piecewise affine, and such that the optimal control policy is guaranteed to be continuous and piecewise affine on a polyhedral domain.