Generalized Opinion Dynamics from Local Optimization Rules

We study generalizations of the Hegselmann-Krause (HK) model for opinion dynamics, incorporating features and parameters that are natural components of observed social systems. The first generalization is one where the strength of influence depends on the distance of the agents' opinions. Under this setup, we identify conditions under which the opinions converge in finite time, and provide a qualitative characterization of the equilibrium. We interpret the HK model opinion update rule as a quadratic cost-minimization rule. This enables a second generalization: a family of update rules which possess different equilibrium properties. Subsequently, we investigate models in which a external force can behave strategically to modulate/influence user updates. We consider cases where this external force can introduce additional agents and cases where they can modify the cost structures for other agents. We describe and analyze some strategies through which such modulation may be possible in an order-optimal manner. Our simulations demonstrate that generalized dynamics differ qualitatively and quantitatively from traditional HK dynamics.Comment: 20 pages, under revie

An Opportunistic-Non Orthogonal Multiple Access based Cooperative Relaying system over Rician Fading Channels

Non-orthogonal Multiple Access (NOMA) has become a salient technology for improving the spectral efficiency of the next generation 5G wireless communication networks. In this paper, the achievable average rate of an Opportunistic Non-Orthogonal Multiple Access (O-NOMA) based Cooperative Relaying System (CRS) is studied under Rician fading channels with Channel State Information (CSI) available at the source terminal. Based on CSI, for opportunistic transmission, the source immediately chooses either the direct transmission or the cooperative NOMA transmission using the relay, which can provide better achievable average rate performance than the existing Conventional-NOMA (C-NOMA) based CRS with no CSI at the source node. Furthermore, a mathematical expression is also derived for the achievable average rate and the results are compared with C-NOMA based CRS with no CSI at the transmitter end, over a range of increasing power allocation coefficients, transmit Signal-to-Noise Ratios (SNRs) and average channel powers. Numerical results show that the CRS using O-NOMA with CSI achieves better spectral efficiency in terms of the achievable average rate than the Conventional-NOMA based CRS without CSI. To check the consistency of the derived analytical results, Monte Carlo simulations are performed which verify that the results are consistent and matched well with the simulation results.Comment: arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1709.0822

Performance analysis of FSO using relays and spatial diversity under log-normal fading channel

The performance analysis of free space optical communication (FSO) system using relays and spatial diversity at the source is studied in this paper. The effect of atmospheric turbulence and attenuation, caused by different weather conditions and geometric losses, has also been considered for analysis. The exact closed-form expressions are presented for bit error rate (BER) of M-ary quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM) technique for multi-hop multiple-input single-output (MISO) FSO system under log-normal fading channel. Furthermore, the link performance of multi-hop MISO and multi-hop single-input and single-output (SISO) FSO systems are compared to the different systems using on-off keying (OOK), repetition codes (RCs) and M-ary pulse amplitude modulation (M-PAM) techniques. A significant performance enhancement in terms of BER analysis and SNR gains is shown for multi-hop MISO and multi-hop SISO FSO systems with M-QAM over other existing systems with different modulation schemes. Moreover, Monte-Carlo simulations are used to validate the accuracy and consistency of the derived analytical results. Numerical results show that M-QAM modulated multi-hop MISO and multi-hop SISO FSO system with relays and spatial diversity outperforms other systems while having the same spectral efficiency of each system.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, 4th International Conference on Electrical Energy Systems (ICEES), Feb. 7-9, 2018, SSNCE, Chennai, TN, INDI

Investor Behavior in the Mutual Fund Industry: Evidence from Gross Flows

Using a large sample of monthly gross flows from 1997 to 2003, we uncover several previously undocumented regularities in investor behavior. First, investor purchases and sales produce fund-level gross flows that are highly persistent. Persistence in fund flows dominates performance as a predictor of future fund flows. More importantly, failing to account for flow persistence leads to incorrect inferences with respect to the relation between performance and flows. Second, we document that investors react differently to performance depending on the type of fund, and that investor trading activity produces meaningful differences in the persistence of fund flows across mutual fund types. Third, at least some investors appear to evaluate and respond to mutual fund performance over much shorter time spans than previously assessed. Additionally, we document differences in the speed and magnitude of investors’ purchase and sales responses to performance