Networked Cooperative Autonomous Munitions Digital Twin Modeling Utilizing Model Based Systems Engineering

An example of a high-complexity system is a swarm of Networked Cooperative Autonomous Munitions (NCAM) that prioritize wide area search and multiple view target confirmation. First, this research discusses methods toward building behavioral models within a Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) tool. Then, this research presents the parallel modeling effort of NCAM in two environments: the MBSE model in Cameo Systems Modeler, and a physics-based model in the Advanced Framework for Simulation, Integration, and Modeling (AFSIM). Each digital model in its environment provides distinct benefits to the stakeholders of the design process, so the models must present consistent and parallel information. Thus, this research also presents automated methods to translate design information between models. Overall, the pair of models working in concert build trust with decision making authorities through understanding of the autonomous processes through systems cognition and digital scenario simulation

Jack of All Trades or Master of One? Specialization, Trade and Money

We consider a model of decentralized exchange where individuals choose the set of goods they produce. Specialization involves producing a smaller set of goods and doing it more proÞciently. In doing so, agents reduce production costs, but also reduce the ease of trading their output. We derive the equilibrium degree of specialization and examine how it is affected by underlying fundamentals. Due to the existence of a hold-up problem, individuals specialize too little relative to the social optimum. Introducing money leads to more specialization relative to barter and increases welfare

Jack of All Trades or Master of One? Specialization, Trade and Money

We consider a model of decentralized exchange where individuals choose the set of goods they produce. Specialization involves producing a smaller set of goods and doing it more proÞciently. In doing so, agents reduce production costs, but also reduce the ease of trading their output. We derive the equilibrium degree of specialization and examine how it is affected by underlying fundamentals. Due to the existence of a hold-up problem, individuals specialize too little relative to the social optimum. Introducing money leads to more specialization relative to barter and increases welfare

Probability distributions of smeared quantum stress tensors

We obtain in closed form the probability distribution for individual measurements of the stress-energy tensor of two-dimensional conformal field theory in the vacuum state, smeared in time against a Gaussian test function. The result is a shifted Gamma distribution with the shift given by the previously known optimal quantum inequality bound. For small values of the central charge it is overwhelmingly likely that individual measurements of the sampled energy density in the vacuum give negative results. For the case of a single massless scalar field, the probability of finding a negative value is 84%. We also report on computations for four-dimensional massless scalar fields showing that the probability distribution of the smeared square field is also a shifted Gamma distribution, but that the distribution of the energy density is not.Comment: 9 pages, 1 figure. Minor edits implemente

Commons: Governance of Shared Assets [PDF Version]

Abstract & Contents The idea for this book came slowly following a gradual collection of blog posts on the CCRI website in recent years. The posts centred around the general theme of how we manage shared assets and what alternative approaches there might be, informed by research and practice in the governance of commons resources. The whole area of commons and management of common pool resources has become more topical over the last 6 years following the award of the Nobel Prize for Economics to Elinor Ostrom, for her work on commons. Commons has long been an element of research within CCRI, particularly in relation to Common Land and Town and village Greens in England and Wales. Chris Short organised annual conferences on common land management from 1999-2010 which attracted over 1,500 delegates and sponsorship from the Countryside Agency, Defra, Natural England and the Countryside Council for Wales. This book is no more than a set of ‘musings’ or collected thoughts about a range of issues which we have addressed in our professional activities. It does not claim to address all aspects of an issue, or to present a balanced view of research findings. The aim is simply to present some of our ideas about management and governance of a range of resources that can be perceived in some way as ‘shared assets’. The resources addressed range from the local to the global, and encompass what have been termed traditional commons (such as fisheries, pasture, water) and ‘new’ commons such as the internet and urban areas. Our purpose in producing this book is to raise awareness of the principles of commons governance. Our aim is to encourage thinking about the ways in which application of these principles might open up alternative solutions to achieving long-term and sustainable management of the many assets that we share in common. Contents • COP21 - ‘Gentlemen’s Agreement’ or new approach? • Cities and the concept of ‘urban commons’ • Designing the urban commons • Urban commons - the view from beneath • What value street art? • Marine fisheries • What future for Lowland commons? • Peatlands • Climbing the wall • The Internet is not a commons? • Final thought

Ultrastructural study of Rift Valley fever virus in the mouse model

AbstractDetailed ultrastructural studies of Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) in the mouse model are needed to develop and characterize a small animal model of RVF for the evaluation of potential vaccines and therapeutics. In this study, the ultrastructural features of RVFV infection in the mouse model were analyzed. The main changes in the liver included the presence of viral particles in hepatocytes and hepatic stem cells accompanied by hepatocyte apoptosis. However, viral particles were observed rarely in the liver; in contrast, particles were extremely abundant in the CNS. Despite extensive lymphocytolysis, direct evidence of viral replication was not observed in the lymphoid tissue. These results correlate with the acute-onset hepatitis and delayed-onset encephalitis that are dominant features of severe human RVF, but suggest that host immune-mediated mechanisms contribute significantly to pathology. The results of this study expand our knowledge of RVFV–host interactions and further characterize the mouse model of RVF