445,861 research outputs found

    Socially-Aware Network Design Games

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    In many scenarios network design is not enforced by a central authority, but arises from the interactions of several self-interested agents. This is the case of the Internet, where connectivity is due to Autonomous Systems' choices, but also of overlay networks, where each user client can decide the set of connections to establish. Recent works have used game theory, and in particular the concept of Nash Equilibrium, to characterize stable networks created by a set of selfish agents. The majority of these works assume that users are completely non-cooperative, leading, in most cases, to inefficient equilibria. To improve efficiency, in this paper we propose two novel socially-aware network design games. In the first game we incorporate a socially-aware component in the users' utility functions, while in the second game we use additionally a Stackelberg (leader-follower) approach, where a leader (e.g., the network administrator) architects the desired network buying an appropriate subset of network's links, driving in this way the users to overall efficient Nash equilibria. We provide bounds on the Price of Anarchy and other efficiency measures, and study the performance of the proposed schemes in several network scenarios, including realistic topologies where players build an overlay on top of real Internet Service Provider networks. Numerical results demonstrate that (1) introducing some incentives to make users more socially-aware is an effective solution to achieve stable and efficient networks in a distributed way, and (2) the proposed Stackelberg approach permits to achieve dramatic performance improvements, designing almost always the socially optimal network

    Relationship Design for Socially-Aware Behavior in Static Games

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    Autonomous agents can adopt socially-aware behaviors to reduce social costs, mimicking the way animals interact in nature and humans in society. We present a new approach to model socially-aware decision-making that includes two key elements: bounded rationality and inter-agent relationships. We capture the interagent relationships by introducing a novel model called a relationship game and encode agents' bounded rationality using quantal response equilibria. For each relationship game, we define a social cost function and formulate a mechanism design problem to optimize weights for relationships that minimize social cost at the equilibrium. We address the multiplicity of equilibria by presenting the problem in two forms: Min-Max and Min-Min, aimed respectively at minimization of the highest and lowest social costs in the equilibria. We compute the quantal response equilibrium by solving a least-squares problem defined with its Karush-Kuhn-Tucker conditions, and propose two projected gradient descent algorithms to solve the mechanism design problems. Numerical results, including two-lane congestion and congestion with an ambulance, confirm that these algorithms consistently reach the equilibrium with the intended social costs

    Creating an iDTV Application from Inside a TV Company: A Situated and Participatory Approach

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    Part 2: Organizational Semiotics and ApplicationsInternational audienceTV is a highly social and massive media that is worldwide available. The Interactive Digital TV represents a new device that is still constructing its identity. Designing applications for it is a challenging task, partially because of its intrinsic complex context and the lack of theoretical and methodological referential to support design activities. In this paper, we argue for a Socially Aware Computing approach to the design of iDTV applications, articulating artifacts and methods from Organizational Semiotics and Participatory Design. A case study on requirements for the design of an iDTV application is situated in the practical context of a Brazilian broadcasting TV Company. The results show benefits of using informed artifacts and methods in participatory and situated practices, indicating that it is possible and viable to make socially aware design in industrial settings

    Socially-Aware Distributed Hash Tables for Decentralized Online Social Networks

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    Many decentralized online social networks (DOSNs) have been proposed due to an increase in awareness related to privacy and scalability issues in centralized social networks. Such decentralized networks transfer processing and storage functionalities from the service providers towards the end users. DOSNs require individualistic implementation for services, (i.e., search, information dissemination, storage, and publish/subscribe). However, many of these services mostly perform social queries, where OSN users are interested in accessing information of their friends. In our work, we design a socially-aware distributed hash table (DHTs) for efficient implementation of DOSNs. In particular, we propose a gossip-based algorithm to place users in a DHT, while maximizing the social awareness among them. Through a set of experiments, we show that our approach reduces the lookup latency by almost 30% and improves the reliability of the communication by nearly 10% via trusted contacts.Comment: 10 pages, p2p 2015 conferenc

    Pledges and how social influence shapes their effectiveness

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    Pledges are used to signal the intention to act in a socially desirable way. In this study, we examine what role social influence plays in the decision to pledge. In a laboratory experiment, subjects can make a pledge to contribute to a public good in the socially optimal way. Across treatment conditions, we vary the way in which the pledges are elicited. Hence, the degree of social influence on pledge-making is manipulated and its impact can be examined. We find that when individuals are aware that the majority of other subjects decided to pledge, they are likely to conform and also make the pledge. The emergence of such a critical mass can be stimulated by (institutional) design, namely by determining the elicitation order on the basis of previous behavior. Overall, this commitment nudge is effective. Both socially-oriented and previously not socially-oriented subjects modify their behavior after the pledge

    The Power Of Perspective Dialogue: Unlocking Transformative Reflection In Engineering Education (Practice)

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    Engineers need to be socially responsible, ethically aware and deliver positive contributions to the wicked problems2 of today\u27s global challenges. In navigating these challenges, being able to reflect is a necessary prerequisite. But if we simply ask students reflective questions, they tend to give us mostly socially desirable answers. Our university initiated an institute-wide program focused on creating learning experiences and environments for transformative reflection instead of superficial reflection. In this paper we present design principles for transformative reflection based on a literature overview and the program\u27s accumulated experience. The principles are I) Six domains for reflection on engineering issues, II) The differentiation between the internal and external perspectives, III) Our approach to design for context-specificity of transformative reflective experiences, and IV) Four mechanisms that foster transformative reflection

    Wireless Network Design and Optimization: From Social Awareness to Security

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    abstract: A principal goal of this dissertation is to study wireless network design and optimization with the focus on two perspectives: 1) socially-aware mobile networking and computing; 2) security and privacy in wireless networking. Under this common theme, this dissertation can be broadly organized into three parts. The first part studies socially-aware mobile networking and computing. First, it studies random access control and power control under a social group utility maximization (SGUM) framework. The socially-aware Nash equilibria (SNEs) are derived and analyzed. Then, it studies mobile crowdsensing under an incentive mechanism that exploits social trust assisted reciprocity (STAR). The efficacy of the STAR mechanism is thoroughly investigated. Next, it studies mobile users' data usage behaviors under the impact of social services and the wireless operator's pricing. Based on a two-stage Stackelberg game formulation, the user demand equilibrium (UDE) is analyzed in Stage II and the optimal pricing strategy is developed in Stage I. Last, it studies opportunistic cooperative networking under an optimal stopping framework with two-level decision-making. For both cases with or without dedicated relays, the optimal relaying strategies are derived and analyzed. The second part studies radar sensor network coverage for physical security. First, it studies placement of bistatic radar (BR) sensor networks for barrier coverage. The optimality of line-based placement is analyzed, and the optimal placement of BRs on a line segment is characterized. Then, it studies the coverage of radar sensor networks that exploits the Doppler effect. Based on a Doppler coverage model, an efficient method is devised to characterize Doppler-covered regions and an algorithm is developed to find the minimum radar density required for Doppler coverage. The third part studies cyber security and privacy in socially-aware networking and computing. First, it studies random access control, cooperative jamming, and spectrum access under an extended SGUM framework that incorporates negative social ties. The SNEs are derived and analyzed. Then, it studies pseudonym change for personalized location privacy under the SGUM framework. The SNEs are analyzed and an efficient algorithm is developed to find an SNE with desirable properties.Dissertation/ThesisDoctoral Dissertation Electrical Engineering 201

    The powerless engineer: questioning approaches to teaching social responsibility

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    In recent years there has been growing emphasis on the requirement for engineers to contribute toward the complex socio-technological challenges confronted by society. The need for a more holistic understanding of the societal impact of engineering has been highlighted by government, professional institutions and industry, and has strengthened calls for a widening of engineering curricula. Despite this, there is evidence to suggest that the higher education (HE) sector is not producing socially responsible engineering graduates. This study explores potential barriers to the development of socially responsible, culturally aware engineers. In so doing, it draws upon student feedback and reflections from a UK based engineering design course which makes use of the Engineers Without Borders UK Design for People Challenge, and which focuses on human centered, sustainable design. The findings are discussed in the context of theories of reasoned action and planned behaviour. It is argued that engineering culture and curriculum act to discourage alternative modes of thought which leave students powerless in their ability to enact meaningful change. Alternative modes of teaching and learning are discussed
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