Structural properties of 1-planar graphs and an application to acyclic edge coloring

A graph is called 1-planar if it can be drawn on the plane so that each edge is crossed by at most one other edge. In this paper, we establish a local property of 1-planar graphs which describes the structure in the neighborhood of small vertices (i.e. vertices of degree no more than seven). Meanwhile, some new classes of light graphs in 1-planar graphs with the bounded degree are found. Therefore, two open problems presented by Fabrici and Madaras [The structure of 1-planar graphs, Discrete Mathematics, 307, (2007), 854-865] are solved. Furthermore, we prove that each 1-planar graph $G$ with maximum degree $\Delta(G)$ is acyclically edge $L$-choosable where $L=\max\{2\Delta(G)-2,\Delta(G)+83\}$.Comment: Please cite this published article as: X. Zhang, G. Liu, J.-L. Wu. Structural properties of 1-planar graphs and an application to acyclic edge coloring. Scientia Sinica Mathematica, 2010, 40, 1025--103

A Method to Identify and Analyze Biological Programs through Automated Reasoning.

Predictive biology is elusive because rigorous, data-constrained, mechanistic models of complex biological systems are difficult to derive and validate. Current approaches tend to construct and examine static interaction network models, which are descriptively rich but often lack explanatory and predictive power, or dynamic models that can be simulated to reproduce known behavior. However, in such approaches implicit assumptions are introduced as typically only one mechanism is considered, and exhaustively investigating all scenarios is impractical using simulation. To address these limitations, we present a methodology based on automated formal reasoning, which permits the synthesis and analysis of the complete set of logical models consistent with experimental observations. We test hypotheses against all candidate models, and remove the need for simulation by characterizing and simultaneously analyzing all mechanistic explanations of observed behavior. Our methodology transforms knowledge of complex biological processes from sets of possible interactions and experimental observations to precise, predictive biological programs governing cell function

On defensive alliances and line graphs

Let $\Gamma$ be a simple graph of size $m$ and degree sequence $\delta_1\ge \delta_2\ge ... \ge \delta_n$. Let ${\cal L}(\Gamma)$ denotes the line graph of $\Gamma$. The aim of this paper is to study mathematical properties of the alliance number, ${a}({\cal L}(\Gamma)$, and the global alliance number, $\gamma_{a}({\cal L}(\Gamma))$, of the line graph of a simple graph. We show that $\lceil\frac{\delta_{n}+\delta_{n-1}-1}{2}\rceil \le {a}({\cal L}(\Gamma))\le \delta_1.$ In particular, if $\Gamma$ is a $\delta$-regular graph ($\delta>0$), then $a({\cal L}(\Gamma))=\delta$, and if $\Gamma$ is a $(\delta_1,\delta_2)$-semiregular bipartite graph, then $a({\cal L}(\Gamma))=\lceil \frac{\delta_1+\delta_2-1}{2} \rceil$. As a consequence of the study we compare $a({\cal L}(\Gamma))$ and ${a}(\Gamma)$, and we characterize the graphs having $a({\cal L}(\Gamma))<4$. Moreover, we show that the global-connected alliance number of ${\cal L}(\Gamma)$ is bounded by $\gamma_{ca}({\cal L}(\Gamma)) \ge \lceil\sqrt{D(\Gamma)+m-1}-1\rceil,$ where $D(\Gamma)$ denotes the diameter of $\Gamma$, and we show that the global alliance number of ${\cal L}(\Gamma)$ is bounded by $\gamma_{a}({\cal L}(\Gamma))\geq \lceil\frac{2m}{\delta_{1}+\delta_{2}+1}\rceil$. The case of strong alliances is studied by analogy

Fire behaviour of concrete filled elliptical steel columns

In this work, a non-linear three-dimensional finite element model is presented in order to study the behaviour of axially loaded concrete filled elliptical hollow section (CFEHS) columns exposed to fire. This study builds on previous work carried out by the authors on concrete filled circular hollow section (CFCHS) columns both at room temperature and in fire. The numerical model is first validated at room temperature against a series of experiments on CFEHS stub columns available in the literature and subsequently extended to study the performance of slender columns at elevated temperatures. The aim of this work is to understand and represent the behaviour of axially loaded CFEHS columns in fire situations and to compare their effectiveness with that of the circular concrete filled tubular (CFT) columns. Parametric studies to explore the influence of variation in global member slenderness, load level, cross-section slenderness and section size are presented. Finally, guidance on the fire design of CFEHS columns is proposed: it is recommended to follow the guidelines of Clause 4.3.5.1 in EN 1994-1-2, but employing the flexural stiffness reduction coefficients established in the French National Annex with an equivalent EHS diameter equal to P/¿, where P is the perimeter of the ellipse.The authors would also like to acknowledge Universidad Politecnica de Valencia for providing fellowship funding for the first author's stay as a visiting academic at Imperial College London.Espinós Capilla, A.; Gardner, L.; Romero, ML.; Hospitaler Pérez, A. (2011). Fire behaviour of concrete filled elliptical steel columns. Thin-Walled Structures. 49(2):239-255. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tws.2010.10.008S23925549