The New Jersey Families Study; Spring 2024

Newslette

Distributed Compressed Estimation for Wireless Sensor Networks Based on Compressive Sensing

This letter proposes a novel distributed compressed estimation scheme for sparse signals and systems based on compressive sensing techniques. The proposed scheme consists of compression and decompression modules inspired by compressive sensing to perform distributed compressed estimation. A design procedure is also presented and an algorithm is developed to optimize measurement matrices, which can further improve the performance of the proposed distributed compressed estimation scheme. Simulations for a wireless sensor network illustrate the advantages of the proposed scheme and algorithm in terms of convergence rate and mean square error performance

On MMSE Properties of Codes for the Gaussian Broadcast and Wiretap Channels

This work concerns the behavior of "good" (capacity achieving) codes in several multi-user settings in the Gaussian regime, in terms of their minimum mean-square error (MMSE) behavior. The settings investigated in this context include the Gaussian wiretap channel, the Gaussian broadcast channel (BC) and the Gaussian BC with confidential messages (BCC). In particular this work addresses the effects of transmitting such codes on unintended receivers, that is, receivers that neither require reliable decoding of the transmitted messages nor are they eavesdroppers that must be kept ignorant, to some extent, of the transmitted message. This work also examines the effect on the capacity region that occurs when we limit the allowed disturbance in terms of MMSE on some unintended receiver. This trade-off between the capacity region and the disturbance constraint is given explicitly for the Gaussian BC and the secrecy capacity region of the Gaussian BCC

Cooperative Robotic Fabrication for a Circular Economy

In a cooperative robotic fabrication (CRF) framework, multiple industrial robots are specifically sequenced to work together, thus allowing them to execute coordinated processes with greater geometric and structural variation. In the context of the construction industry, agents in a cooperative setup can perform complementary functions such as placing or removing building components while simultaneously providing temporary support to a structure. This approach can reduce, or completely remove, the need for temporary external supports and scaffolding that would typically be required for stability during the construction of geometrically complex spanning spatial structures. For a circular economy, this means overall reductions to primary resource inputs and improvements to the disassembly, reuse, and reassembly potential of a structure at the end of its life. This chapter gives a summary of three projects that successfully demonstrate the use of cooperative robotic fabrication to promote several principles of a circular economy through different scaffold-free construction applications. The topics covered in this chapter will be of interest to researchers and professionals interested in the emergent intersection of digital fabrication, robotics, and sustainability applied to the building industry

Higher emissions scenarios lead to more extreme flooding in the United States

Understanding projected changes in flooding across the contiguous United States (CONUS) helps increase our capability to adapt to and mitigate against this hazard. Here, we assess future changes in flooding across CONUS using outputs from 28 global climate models and four scenarios of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6. We find that CONUS is projected to experience an overall increase in flooding, especially under higher emission scenarios; there are subregional differences, with the Northeast and Southeast (Great Plains of the North and Southwest) showing higher tendency towards increasing (decreasing) flooding due to changes in flood processes at the seasonal scale. Moreover, even though trends may not be detected in the historical period, these projected future trends highlight the current needs for incorporating climate change in the future infrastructure designs and management of the water resources

Recent insights from non-mammalian models of brain injuries: an emerging literature

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major global health concern and is increasingly recognized as a risk factor for neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Repetitive TBIs (rTBIs), commonly observed in contact sports, military service, and intimate partner violence (IPV), pose a significant risk for long-term sequelae. To study the long-term consequences of TBI and rTBI, researchers have typically used mammalian models to recapitulate brain injury and neurodegenerative phenotypes. However, there are several limitations to these models, including: (1) lengthy observation periods, (2) high cost, (3) difficult genetic manipulations, and (4) ethical concerns regarding prolonged and repeated injury of a large number of mammals. Aquatic vertebrate model organisms, including Petromyzon marinus (sea lampreys), zebrafish (Danio rerio), and invertebrates, Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans), and Drosophila melanogaster (Drosophila), are emerging as valuable tools for investigating the mechanisms of rTBI and tauopathy. These non-mammalian models offer unique advantages, including genetic tractability, simpler nervous systems, cost-effectiveness, and quick discovery-based approaches and high-throughput screens for therapeutics, which facilitate the study of rTBI-induced neurodegeneration and tau-related pathology. Here, we explore the use of non-vertebrate and aquatic vertebrate models to study TBI and neurodegeneration. Drosophila, in particular, provides an opportunity to explore the longitudinal effects of mild rTBI and its impact on endogenous tau, thereby offering valuable insights into the complex interplay between rTBI, tauopathy, and neurodegeneration. These models provide a platform for mechanistic studies and therapeutic interventions, ultimately advancing our understanding of the long-term consequences associated with rTBI and potential avenues for intervention

Automating historical centering-minimizing masonry vaulting strategies: Applications to cooperative robotic construction

This paper investigates the feasibility of adapting ancient historical construction techniques to cooperative robotic assembly methods to minimize centering requirements in masonry vaults. First, an overview of seven historical techniques is presented. Next, a classification framework is introduced to evaluate the automation potential of these methods, identifying the rib network as the most promising candidate. This is followed by two computational case studies on the cooperative robotic construction of planar masonry arches and multi-arch rib networks. These studies evaluated the impact of robotic reachability and support payload on the feasibility of centering-free construction. A conclusion based only on these simulation results is that high-payload fixed robots, in comparison to medium-payload mobile setups, allow for the construction of larger and more complex rib structures. This research is of relevance to architects and engineers interested in using a cooperative robotic fabrication framework to reduce centering in masonry vault construction

Relay Control for Full-Duplex Relaying with Wireless Information and Energy Transfer

This study investigates wireless information and energy transfer for dual-hop amplify-and-forward full-duplex relaying systems. By forming energy efficiency (EE) maximization problem into a concave fractional program of transmission power, three relay control schemes are separately designed to enable energy harvesting and full-duplex information relaying. With Rician fading modeled residual self-interference channel, analytical expressions of outage probability and ergodic capacity are presented for the maximum relay, signal-to-interference-plus-noise-ratio (SINR) relay, and target relay. It has shown that EE maximization problem of the maximum relay is concave for time switching factor, so that bisection method has been applied to obtain the optimized value. By incorporating instantaneous channel information, the SINR relay with collateral time switching factor achieves an improved EE over the maximum relay in delay-limited and delay-tolerant transmissions. Without requiring channel information for the second-hop, the target relay ensures a competitive performance for outage probability, ergodic capacity, and EE. Comparing to the direct source-destination transmission, numerical results show that the proposed relaying scheme is beneficial in achieving a comparable EE for low-rate delay-limited transmission

Race, Democracy, and Empire: Delegates to Congress from DC and the Territories

Both democracy and empire are central to American political development. Yet, the role of Congress—that organ of democratic politics—in the expansion of US empire is not well understood. This article explains how and why Congress institutionalized representation from Washington, DC and the US territories in the mid-twentieth century. We uncover the history of a puzzling position: the Congressional delegate, who is permitted to debate, but not vote. Drawing on extensive original archival research and quantitative analysis of legislative voting behavior, this article explicates how racial attitudes structured conflict over the delegate position. We highlight the centrality of racial ideas to the institutional- ization of American empire in the mid-twentieth century