Reputation based probabilistic resource allocation for avoiding free riding and formation of common interest groups in unstructured P2P networks

Free riding is a major problem in peer-to-peer networks. Reputation management systems are generally employed to overcome this problem. In this paper, a new reputation based scheme called probabilistic resource allocation is proposed. This strategy probabilistically decide whether to provide the resource to requesting peer or not. Aforesaid method gives selection preference to higher reputation peers and at the same time provides some finite probability of interaction between those peers who don’t have good reputation about each other. This avoids disconnection between the aforesaid peers. The proposed scheme also introduces a new mechanism for resource distribution which not only allocates resources based on peers’ reputation but simultaneously maximizes network utility also. Algorithm for formation of interest groups based upon both similarity of interests and reputation between peers is also presented.     

Generic and efficient framework for search trees on flash memory storage systems

Tree index structures are crucial components in data management systems. Existing tree index structure are designed with the implicit assumption that the underlying external memory storage is the conventional magnetic hard disk drives. This assumption is going to be invalid soon, as flash memory storage is increasingly adopted as the main storage media in mobile devices, digital cameras, embedded sensors, and notebooks. Though it is direct and simple to port existing tree index structures on the flash memory storage, that direct approach does not consider the unique characteristics of flash memory, i.e., slow write operations, and erase-before-update property, which would result in a sub optimal performance. In this paper, we introduce FAST (i.e., Flash-Aware Search Trees) as a generic framework for flash-aware tree index structures. FAST distinguishes itself from all previous attempts of flash memory indexing in two aspects: (1) FAST is a generic framework that can be applied to a wide class of data partitioning tree structures including R-tree and its variants, and (2) FAST achieves both efficiency and durability of read and write flash operations through memory flushing and crash recovery techniques. Extensive experimental results, based on an actual implementation of FAST inside the GiST index structure in PostgreSQL, show that FAST achieves better performance than its competitors.     

Walrasian Equilibrium: Hardness,Approximations and Tractable Instances

We study the complexity issues for Walrasian equilibrium in a special case of combinatorial auction, called single-minded auction, in which every participant is interested in only one subset of commodities. Chen et al. (J. Comput. Syst. Sci. 69(4): 675–687, 2004) showed that it is NP-hard to decide the existence of a Walrasian equilibrium for a single-minded auction and proposed a notion of approximate Walrasian equilibrium called relaxed Walrasian equilibrium. We show that every single-minded auction has a relaxed Walrasian equilibrium that satisfies at least two-thirds of the participants, proving a conjecture posed in Chen et al. (J. Comput. Syst. Sci. 69(4): 675–687, 2004). Motivated by practical considerations, we introduce another concept of approximate Walrasian equilibrium called weak Walrasian equilibrium. We show NP-completeness and hardness of approximation results for weak Walrasian equilibria. In search of positive results, we restrict our attention to the tollbooth problem (Guruswami et al. in Proceedings of the Symposium on Discrete Algorithms (SODA), pp. 1164–1173, 2005), where every participant is interested in a single path in some underlying graph. We give a polynomial time algorithm to determine the existence of a Walrasian equilibrium and compute one (if it exists), when the graph is a tree. However, the problem is still NP-hard for general graphs.     

Layered Approach Using Conditional Random Fields for Intrusion Detection

Intrusion detection faces a number of challenges; an intrusion detection system must reliably detect malicious activities in a network and must perform efficiently to cope with the large amount of network traffic. In this paper, we address these two issues of Accuracy and Efficiency using Conditional Random Fields and Layered Approach. We demonstrate that high attack detection accuracy can be achieved by using Conditional Random Fields and high efficiency by implementing the Layered Approach. Experimental results on the benchmark KDD '99 intrusion data set show that our proposed system based on Layered Conditional Random Fields outperforms other well-known methods such as the decision trees and the naive Bayes. The improvement in attack detection accuracy is very high, particularly, for the U2R attacks (34.8 percent improvement) and the R2L attacks (34.5 percent improvement). Statistical Tests also demonstrate higher confidence in detection accuracy for our method. Finally, we show that our system is robust and is able to handle noisy data without compromising performance.     

DeepKnuckle: revealing the human identity

Multimedia Tools and Applications - Identification and authentication are ubiquitous questions which pan across various systems. In certain domains, they are of paramount importance. Like, security...     

Flexible coloring

Motivated by reliability considerations in data deduplication for storage systems, we introduce the problem of flexible coloring. Given a hypergraph H and the number of allowable colors k, a flexible coloring of H is an assignment of one or more colors to each vertex such that, for each hyperedge, it is possible to choose a color from each vertex?s color list so that this hyperedge is strongly colored (i.e., each vertex has a different color). Different colors for the same vertex can be chosen for different incident hyperedges (hence the term flexible). The goal is to minimize color consumption, namely, the total number of colors assigned, counting multiplicities. Flexible coloring is NP-hard and trivially approximable, where s is the size of the largest hyperedge, and n is the number of vertices. Using a recent result by Bansal and Khot, we show that if k is constant, then it is UGC-hard to approximate to within a factor of s−ε, for arbitrarily small constant ε>0. Lastly, we present an algorithm with an approximation ratio, where k^′ is number of colors used by a strong coloring algorithm for H.     

Conductometric Study of Some Metal Halides in Glycerol + Water Mixtures

Electrolytic conductivities of potassium halides, KX (X = Cl⁻, Br⁻, I⁻) have been investigated in 10, 20, and 30 mass% glycerol + H₂O mixtures at 298.0, 308.0, and 318.0 K. The conductance data have been analyzed by the Fuoss-conductance–concentration equation in terms of the limiting molar conductance (Λ⁰), the association constant (K _A ), and the distance of closest approach of ion (R). The association constant (K _A ) tends to increase in the order: 10 mass% < 20 mass% < 30 mass% glycerol + water mixtures, while it decreases with temperature. Thermodynamic parameters ΔH ⁰, ΔG ⁰, and ΔS ⁰ are obtained and discussed. Also, Walden products (Λ⁰η) are reported. The results have been interpreted in terms of ion–solvent interactions and structural changes in the mixed solvents.     

Femtosecond-laser selective printing of graphene oxide and PPV on polymeric microstructures

Direct laser writing techniques are suitable for the high precision-patterning of 2D and 3D micro/nanostructures, featuring a variety of geometries and materials. Here, we demonstrated the use of laser-induced forward transfer with fs-pulses (fs-LIFT) to selectively transfer graphene oxide and poly(p-phenylene vinylene) patterns onto polymeric microstructures, fabricated by two-photon polymerization. The influence of different fs-LIFT experimental parameters on the width and height of the printed patterns was investigated. Upon optimum fs-LIFT parameters, we achieved homogeneous printed areas of both materials onto specific regions of the microstructures. Raman spectroscopy confirmed that fs-LIFT does not change the donor material upon transfer. Overall, this work demonstrates a promising strategy with precise printing capabilities, thus opening new opportunities for the development of photonic and optoelectronic devices.

     

An ultra-low power high-performance CMOS temperature sensor with an inaccuracy of − 0.3 °C/ + 0.1 °C for aerospace applications

Microsystem Technologies - In the current paper, a new temperature sensor with improved temperature inaccuracy and with very low power consumption has been designed for avionic industry. The...