Epidemic and Cascading Survivability of Complex Networks

Our society nowadays is governed by complex networks, examples being the power grids, telecommunication networks, biological networks, and social networks. It has become of paramount importance to understand and characterize the dynamic events (e.g. failures) that might happen in these complex networks. For this reason, in this paper, we propose two measures to evaluate the vulnerability of complex networks in two different dynamic multiple failure scenarios: epidemic-like and cascading failures. Firstly, we present \emph{epidemic survivability} ($ES$), a new network measure that describes the vulnerability of each node of a network under a specific epidemic intensity. Secondly, we propose \emph{cascading survivability} ($CS$), which characterizes how potentially injurious a node is according to a cascading failure scenario. Then, we show that by using the distribution of values obtained from $ES$ and $CS$ it is possible to describe the vulnerability of a given network. We consider a set of 17 different complex networks to illustrate the suitability of our proposals. Lastly, results reveal that distinct types of complex networks might react differently under the same multiple failure scenario

Strengthening International Research in Long-Term Care: Recommended Common Data Elements to Support Workforce Training

The purpose of this study is to develop candidate common data element (CDE) items related to clinical staff training in long-term care (LTC) homes that can be used to enable international comparative research. This paper is part of the WE-THRIVE (Worldwide Elements to Harmonize Research in Long-Term Care Living Environments) group’s initiative which aims to improve international academic collaboration. We followed best practices to develop CDEs by conducting a literature review of clinical staff (i.e., Regulated Nurses, Health Care Aides) training measures, and convening a subgroup of WE-THRIVE experts to review the literature review results to develop suitable CDEs. The international expert panel discussed and critically reflected on the current knowledge gaps from the literature review results. The panel proposed three candidate CDEs which focused on the presence of and the measurement of training. These three proposed CDEs seek to facilitate international research as well as assist in policy and decision-making regarding LTC homes worldwide. This study is a critical first step to develop candidate CDE items to measure staff training internationally. Further work is required to get feedback from other researchers about the proposed CDEs, and assess the feasibility of these CDEs in high and low resourced settings

Experimental Demonstration of Multidimensional Switching Nodes for All-Optical Data Center Networks

This paper reports on a novel ring-based data center architecture composed of multidimensional switching nodes. The nodes are interconnected with multicore fibers and can provide switching in three different physical, hierarchically overlaid dimensions (space, wavelength, and time). The proposed architecture allows for scaling in different dimensions while at the same time providing support for connections with different granularity. The ring topology reduces the number of different physical links required, leading to simplified cabling and easier link management, while optical bypass holds the prospect of low latency and low-power consumption. The performance of the multidimensional switching nodes has been investigated in an experimental demonstration comprising three network nodes connected with multicore fibers. Both high capacity wavelength connections and time-shared subwavelength connections have been established for connecting different nodes by switching in different physical dimensions. Error-free performance (BER < 10-9) has been achieved for all the connections with various granularity in all the investigated switching scenarios. The scalability of the system has been studied by increasing the transmission capacity to 1 Tbit/s/core equivalent to 7 Tbit/s total throughput in a single seven-core multicore fiber. The error-free performance (BER < 10-9) for all the connections confirms that the proposed architecture can meet the existing demands in data centers and accommodate the future traffic growth

Epidemic and Cascading Survivability of Complex Networks

Our society nowadays is governed by complex networks, examples being the power grids, telecommunication networks, biological networks, and social networks. It has become of paramount importance to understand and characterize the dynamic events (e.g. failures) that might happen in these complex networks. For this reason, in this paper, we propose two measures to evaluate the vulnerability of complex networks in two different dynamic multiple failure scenarios: epidemic-like and cascading failures. Firstly, we present epidemic survivability (ES), a new network measure that describes the vulnerability of each node of a network under a specific epidemic intensity. Secondly, we propose cascading survivability (CS), which characterizes how potentially injurious a node is according to a cascading failure scenario. Then, we show that by using the distribution of values obtained from ES and CS it is possible to describe the vulnerability of a given network. We consider a set of 17 different complex networks to illustrate the suitability of our proposals. Lastly, results reveal that distinct types of complex networks might react differently under the same multiple failure scenarioThis work is partially supported by Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation projects TEC 2012-32336 and MTM 2011-27739-C04-03, SGR-1202, AGAUR FI-DGR 2012 and BE-DGR 2012 grants (M. M.

Experimental Demonstration of Multidimensional Switching Nodes for All-Optical Data Center Networks

This paper reports on a novel ring-based data center architecture composed of multidimensional switching nodes. The nodes are interconnected with multicore fibers and can provide switching in three different physical, hierarchically overlaid dimensions (space, wavelength, and time). The proposed architecture allows for scaling in different dimensions while at the same time providing support for connections with different granularity. The ring topology reduces the number of different physical links required, leading to simplified cabling and easier link management, while optical bypass holds the prospect of low latency and low-power consumption. The performance of the multidimensional switching nodes has been investigated in an experimental demonstration comprising three network nodes connected with multicore fibers. Both high capacity wavelength connections and time-shared subwavelength connections have been established for connecting different nodes by switching in different physical dimensions. Error-free performance (BER < 10-9) has been achieved for all the connections with various granularity in all the investigated switching scenarios. The scalability of the system has been studied by increasing the transmission capacity to 1 Tbit/s/core equivalent to 7 Tbit/s total throughput in a single seven-core multicore fiber. The error-free performance (BER < 10-9) for all the connections confirms that the proposed architecture can meet the existing demands in data centers and accommodate the future traffic growth