Strategic Interaction and Networks

This paper brings a general network analysis to a wide class of economic games. A network, or interaction matrix, tells who directly interacts with whom. A major challenge is determining how network structure shapes overall outcomes. We have a striking result. Equilibrium conditions depend on a single number: the lowest eigenvalue of a network matrix. Combining tools from potential games, optimization, and spectral graph theory, we study games with linear best replies and characterize the Nash and stable equilibria for any graph and for any impact of players’ actions. When the graph is sufficiently absorptive (as measured by this eigenvalue), there is a unique equilibrium. When it is less absorptive, stable equilibria always involve extreme play where some agents take no actions at all. This paper is the first to show the importance of this measure to social and economic outcomes, and we relate it to different network link patterns.Networks, potential games, lowest eigenvalue, stable equilibria, asymmetric equilibria

Planning Solar in Energy-managed Cellular Networks

There has been a lot of interest recently on the energy efficiency and environmental impact of wireless networks. Given that the base stations are the network elements that use most of this energy, much research has dealt with ways to reduce the energy used by the base stations by turning them off during periods of low load. In addition to this, installing a solar harvesting sys- tem composed of solar panels, batteries, charge con- trollers and inverters is another way to further reduce the network environmental impact and some research has been dealing with this for individual base stations. In this paper, we show that both techniques are tightly coupled. We propose a mathematical model that captures the synergy between solar installation over a network and the dynamic operation of energy-managed base stations. We study the interactions between the two methods for networks of hundreds of base stations and show that the order in which each method is intro- duced into the system does make a difference in terms of cost and performance. We also show that installing solar is not always the best solution even when the unit cost of the solar energy is smaller than the grid cost. We conclude that planning the solar installation and energy management of the base stations have to be done jointly

Fast Decoder for Overloaded Uniquely Decodable Synchronous Optical CDMA

In this paper, we propose a fast decoder algorithm for uniquely decodable (errorless) code sets for overloaded synchronous optical code-division multiple-access (O-CDMA) systems. The proposed decoder is designed in a such a way that the users can uniquely recover the information bits with a very simple decoder, which uses only a few comparisons. Compared to maximum-likelihood (ML) decoder, which has a high computational complexity for even moderate code lengths, the proposed decoder has much lower computational complexity. Simulation results in terms of bit error rate (BER) demonstrate that the performance of the proposed decoder for a given BER requires only 1-2 dB higher signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) than the ML decoder.Comment: arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1806.0395

Crashworthiness of aluminium tubes ; Part 1 : Hydroforming at different corner-fill radii and end feeding levels

The automotive industry, with an increasing demand to reduce vehicle weight through the adoption of lightweight materials, requires a search of efficient methods that suit these materials. One attractive concept is to use hydroforming of aluminium tubes. By using FE simulations, the process can be optimized to reduce the risk for failure while maintaining energy absorption and component integrity under crash conditions. It is important to capture the level of residual ductility after forming to allow proper design for crashworthiness. This paper presents numerical and experimental studies that have been carried out for high pressure hydroforming operations to study the influence of the tube corner radius, end feeding, material thinning, and work hardening in 76.2 mm diameter, 3 mm wall thickness AA5754 aluminium alloy tube. End feeding was used to increase the formability of the tubes. The influence of the end feed displacement versus tube forming pressure schedule was studied to optimize the forming process operation to reduce thinning. Validation of the numerical simulations was performed by comparison of the predicted strain distributions and thinning, with measured quantities. The effect of element formulation (thin shell versus solid elements) was also considered in the models

Integrated methodological frameworks for modelling agent-based advanced supply chain planning systems: a systematic literature review

Purpose: The objective of this paper is to provide a systematic literature review of recent developments in methodological frameworks for the modelling and simulation of agent-based advanced supply chain planning systems. Design/methodology/approach: A systematic literature review is provided to identify, select and make an analysis and a critical summary of all suitable studies in the area. It is organized into two blocks: the first one covers agent-based supply chain planning systems in general terms, while the second one specializes the previous search to identify those works explicitly containing methodological aspects. Findings: Among sixty suitable manuscripts identified in the primary literature search, only seven explicitly considered the methodological aspects. In addition, we noted that, in general, the notion of advanced supply chain planning is not considered unambiguously, that the social and individual aspects of the agent society are not taken into account in a clear manner in several studies and that a significant part of the works are of a theoretical nature, with few real-scale industrial applications. An integrated framework covering all phases of the modelling and simulation process is still lacking in the literature visited. Research limitations/implications: The main research limitations are related to the period covered (last four years), the selected scientific databases, the selected language (i.e. English) and the use of only one assessment framework for the descriptive evaluation part. Practical implications: The identification of recent works in the domain and discussion concerning their limitations can help pave the way for new and innovative researches towards a complete methodological framework for agent-based advanced supply chain planning systems. Originality/value: As there are no recent state-of-the-art reviews in the domain of methodological frameworks for agent-based supply chain planning, this paper contributes to systematizing and consolidating what has been done in recent years and uncovers interesting research gaps for future studies in this emerging fieldPeer Reviewe

Evaluating the integration of supply chain information systems: A case study

Supply chain management (SCM) is the integrated management of business links, information flows and people. It is with this frame of reference that information systems integration from both intra- and inter-organisational levels becomes significant. Enterprise application integration (EAI) has emerged as software technologies to address the issue of integrating the portfolio of SCM components both within organisations and through cross-enterprises. EAI is based on a diversity of integration technologies (e.g. message brokers, ebXML) that differ in the type and level of integration they offer. However, none of these technologies claim to be a panacea to overcoming all integration problems but rather, need to be pieced together to support the linking of diverse applications that often exist within supply chains. In exploring the evaluation of supply chain integration, the authors propose a framework for evaluating the portfolio of integration technologies that are used to unify inter-organisational and intra-organisational information systems. The authors define and classify the permutations of information systems available according to their characteristics and integration requirements. These, classifications of system types are then adopted as part of the evaluation framework and empirically tested within a case study

Interplay of Mre11 Nuclease with Dna2 plus Sgs1 in Rad51-Dependent Recombinational Repair

The Mre11/Rad50/Xrs2 complex initiates IR repair by binding to the end of a double-strand break, resulting in 5′ to 3′ exonuclease degradation creating a single-stranded 3′ overhang competent for strand invasion into the unbroken chromosome. The nuclease(s) involved are not well understood. Mre11 encodes a nuclease, but it has 3′ to 5′, rather than 5′ to 3′ activity. Furthermore, mutations that inactivate only the nuclease activity of Mre11 but not its other repair functions, mre11-D56N and mre11-H125N, are resistant to IR. This suggests that another nuclease can catalyze 5′ to 3′ degradation. One candidate nuclease that has not been tested to date because it is encoded by an essential gene is the Dna2 helicase/nuclease. We recently reported the ability to suppress the lethality of a dna2Δ with a pif1Δ. The dna2Δ pif1Δ mutant is IR-resistant. We have determined that dna2Δ pif1Δ mre11-D56N and dna2Δ pif1Δ mre11-H125N strains are equally as sensitive to IR as mre11Δ strains, suggesting that in the absence of Dna2, Mre11 nuclease carries out repair. The dna2Δ pif1Δ mre11-D56N triple mutant is complemented by plasmids expressing Mre11, Dna2 or dna2K1080E, a mutant with defective helicase and functional nuclease, demonstrating that the nuclease of Dna2 compensates for the absence of Mre11 nuclease in IR repair, presumably in 5′ to 3′ degradation at DSB ends. We further show that sgs1Δ mre11-H125N, but not sgs1Δ, is very sensitive to IR, implicating the Sgs1 helicase in the Dna2-mediated pathway

Identifying patients at risk for high-grade intra-abdominal hypertension following trauma laparotomy

Background: Abdominal Compartment Syndrome (ACS) is an uncommon but deleterious complication after trauma laparotomy. Early recognition of patients at risk of developing ACS is crucial for their outcome. The aim of this study was to compare the characteristics of patients who developed high-grade intra-abdominal hypertension (IAH) (i.e., grade III or IV; intra-abdominal pressure, IAP >20. mmHg) following an injury-related laparotomy versus those who did not (i.e., IAP ≤20. mmHg). Methods: A retrospective analysis of consecutive trauma patients admitted to a level 1 trauma centre in Australia between January 1, 1995 and January 31, 2010 was performed. A comparison was made between characteristics of patients who developed high-grade IAH following trauma laparotomy versus those who did not. Results: A total of 567 patients (median age 31 years) were included in this study. Of these patients 10.2% (58/567) developed high-grade IAH of which 51.7% (30/58) developed ACS. Patients with high-grade IAH were older (p <. 0.001), had a higher Injury Severity Score (p <. 0.001), larger base deficit (p <. 0.001) and lower temperature at admission (p = 0.011). In the first 24. h of admission, patients with high-grade IAH received larger volumes of crystalloids (p <. 0.001), larger volumes of colloids (p <. 0.001) and more units of packed red blood cells (p <. 0.001). Following surgery prolonged prothrombin (p <. 0.001) and partial thromboplastin times (p <. 0.001) were seen. The patients with high-grade IAH suffered higher mortality rates (25.9% (15/58) vs. 12.2% (62/509); p = 0.012). Conclusion: Of all patients who underwent a trauma laparotomy, 10.2% developed high-grade IAH, which increases the risk of mortality. Patients with acidosis, coagulopathy, and hypothermia were especially at risk. In these patients, the abdomen should be left open until adequate resuscitation has been achieved, allowing for definitive surgery. Level of evidence: This is a level III retrospective study

Impacts de systèmes culturaux biologiques sur les émissions de gaz à effet de serre, l’azote minéral du sol et les rendements en grandes cultures au Québec

L'agriculture biologique vise à améliorer la durabilité des systèmes culturaux, cependant, certaines pratiques de conservation des sols utilisées peuvent augmenter les émissions de gaz à effet de serre (GES), sous certaines conditions environnementales. L'objectif de ce projet était de déterminer l'effet de différents systèmes culturaux en grandes cultures biologiques sur les émissions de GES et sur le rendement des cultures. Un essai au champ a été réalisé à l'Institut national d'agriculture biologique, au cours de deux saisons de croissance (26 avril au 31 octobre 2019 et 29 avril au 12 novembre 2020), sur un loam sableux. Le dispositif expérimental en blocs complets aléatoire incluait deux témoins comparatifs (prairie permanente et jachère en sol nu [JSN]) et cinq systèmes culturaux combinant différentes (i) séquences culturales (orge [Hordeum vulgare L.]-maïs [Zea mays L.], soya [Glycine max (L.) Merr.]-blé de printemps [Triticum aestivum L.], maïs-soya); (ii) sources fertilisantes (fumier de poulet [FP] et/ou engrais vert en dérobée [EV] ou aucun apport); et (iii) intensités de travail primaire du sol (labour avec charrue à versoirs [LB] ou chisel [CH]). La température, la teneur en eau et les concentrations en azote minéral du sol ont été mesurées périodiquement, de même que les émissions de protoxyde d'azote (N₂O) et méthane (CH₄) à l'aide de chambres statiques à régime variable. Le système CH-EV a généré les plus faibles émissions de N₂O cumulatives en 2019 et 2020 et les systèmes LB-FP en 2019 et JSN en 2020 ont généré les émissions les plus élevées. Les émissions de CH₄ ont été équivalentes entre les différents systèmes. Le système CH-EV a minimisé les émissions de N₂O à l'échelle de la superficie sans augmenter les émissions de N₂O à l'échelle du rendement. Cependant, l'évaluation à long terme de ces systèmes culturaux est nécessaire pour déterminer les bénéfices agronomiques, économiques et environnementaux.Organic farming aims to enhance the sustainability of cropping systems, but some soil conservation practices implemented may increase greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The main objective of this study was to determine the effects of various organic cropping systems on GHG emissions and crop yields, in Québec, Canada. A field experiment was conducted at the Institut national d'agriculture biologique, over two growing seasons (26 April to 31 October 2019 and 29 April to 12 November 2020), on a sandy loam soil. The randomized complete block design included two controls (perennial forage and bare fallow [BF]) and five organic cropping systems combining different: (i) crop sequences (barley [Hordeum vulgare L.]- grain corn [Zea mays L.], soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.]- spring wheat [Triticum aestivum L.], grain corn-soybean); (ii) sources of fertilizers (poultry manure [PM] and/or a fall-seeded green manure [GM] or no source); and (iii) primary tillage intensities (moldboard plough [MP] or chisel plough [CP]). Soil temperature, water content, and mineral N concentrations were evaluated periodically, as well as direct nitrous oxide (N₂O) and methane (CH₄) emissions, which were quantified using non-flow-through non-steady-state chambers and gas chromatography. The lowest cumulative N₂O emissions were found in CP-GM (0.52 ± 0.11 and 3.55 ± 0.72 kg N ha⁻¹ in 2019 and 0.47 ± 0.06 kg N ha⁻¹ in 2020), whereas the highest emissions were found in MP-PM in 2019 (3.55 ± 0.72 kg N ha⁻¹) and BF in 2020 (1.44 ± 0.20 kg N ha⁻¹). During both years, CH₄ emissions varied from -0.65 to +0.18 kg C ha⁻¹ and were similar between cropping systems. Organic cropping system CP-GM minimized the area-scaled N₂O emissions without increasing the yield-scaled N₂O emissions. However, long-term assessment is necessary to determine the agronomic, economic, and environmental benefits of these cropping systems