Geometric Distance Estimation for Sensor Networks and Unit Disk Graphs

We present an approach to estimating distances in sensor networks. It works by counting common neighbors, high values indicating closeness. Such distance estimates are needed in many self-localization algorithms. Other than many other approaches, ours does not rely on special equipment in the devices

Gilvocarcin Gene Cluster, Recombinant Production and use Thereof

A nucleic acid molecule encoding the gilvocarcin V gene cluster and subunits thereof. Recombinant vectors and host cells comprising a nucleic acid compound encoding the gilvocarcin V gene cluster or subunits thereof. Host cells comprising recombinant vectors encoding the gilvocarcin polyketide synthase and gilvocarcin post-PKS modifying enzymes from Streptomyces griseoflavus can be used to produce gilvocarcin and functional gilvocarcin mutants, analogs and derivatives thereof with application as antibiotics, anticancer agents, immunosuppressants, antivirals, and neuroprotective agents

Enhanced universal kriging for transformed input parameter spaces

With computational models becoming more expensive and complex, surrogate models have gained increasing attention in many scientific disciplines and are often necessary to conduct sensitivity studies, parameter optimization etc. In the scientific discipline of uncertainty quantification (UQ), model input quantities are often described by probability distributions. For the construction of surrogate models, space-filling designs are generated in the input space to define training points, and evaluations of the computational model at these points are then conducted. The physical parameter space is often transformed into an i.i.d. uniform input space in order to apply space-filling training procedures in a sensible way. Due to this transformation surrogate modeling techniques tend to suffer with regard to their prediction accuracy. Therefore, a new method is proposed in this paper where input parameter transformations are applied to basis functions for universal kriging. To speed up hyperparameter optimization for universal kriging, suitable expressions for efficient gradient-based optimization are developed. Several benchmark functions are investigated and the proposed method is compared with conventional methods

Enhanced Universal Kriging for Transformed Input Parameter Spaces

With computational models becoming more expensive and complex, surrogate models have gained increasing attention in many scientific disciplines and are often necessary to conduct sensitivity studies, parameter optimization etc. In the scientific discipline of uncertainty quantification (UQ), model input quantities are often described by probability distributions. For the construction of surrogate models, space-filling designs are generated in the input space to define training points, and evaluations of the computational model at these points are then conducted. The physical parameter space is often transformed into an i.i.d. uniform input space in order to apply space-filling training procedures in a sensible way. Due to this transformation surrogate modeling techniques tend to suffer with regard to their prediction accuracy. Therefore, a new method is proposed in this paper where input parameter transformations are applied to basis functions for universal kriging. To speed up hyperparameter optimization for universal kriging, suitable expressions for efficient gradient-based optimization are developed. Several benchmark functions are investigated and the proposed method is compared with conventional methods

New Results on the Probabilistic Analysis of Online Bin Packing and its Variants

The classical bin packing problem can be stated as follows: We are given a multiset of items {a1, ..., an} with sizes in [0,1], and want to pack them into a minimum number of bins, each of which with capacity one. There are several applications of this problem, for example in the field of logistics: We can interpret the i-th item as time a package deliverer spends for the i-th tour. Package deliverers have a daily restricted working time, and we want to assign the tours such that the number of package deliverers needed is minimized. Another setup is to think of the items as boxes with a standardized basis, but variable height. Then, the goal is to pack these boxes into a container, which is standardized in all three dimensions. Moreover, applications of variants of the classical bin packing problem arise in cloud computing, when we have to store virtual machines on servers. Besides its practical relevance, the bin packing problem is one of the fundamental problems in theoretical computer science: It was proven many years ago that under standard complexity assumptions it is not possible to compute the value of an optimal packing of the items efficiently - classical bin packing is NP-complete. Computing the value efficiently means that the runtime of the algorithm is bounded polynomially in the number of items we have to pack. Besides the offline version, where we know all items at the beginning, also the online version is of interest: Here, the items are revealed one-by-one and have to be packed into a bin immediately and irrevocably without knowing which and how many items will still arrive in the future. Also this version is of practical relevance. In many situations we do not know the whole input at the beginning: For example we are unaware of the requirements of future virtual machines, which have to be stored, or suddenly some more packages have to be delivered, and some deliverers already started their tour. We can think of the classical theoretical analysis of an online algorithm A as follows: An adversary studies the behavior of the algorithm and afterwards constructs a sequence of items I. Then, the performance is measured by the number of used bins by A performing on I, divided by the value of an optimal packing of the items in I. The adversary tries to choose a worst-case sequence so this way to measure the performance is very pessimistic. Moreover, the chosen sequences I often turn out to be artificial: For example, in many cases the sizes of the items increase monotonically over time. Instances in practice are often subject to random influence and therefore it is likely that they are good-natured. In this thesis we analyze the performance of online algorithms with respect to two stochastic models. The first model is the following: The adversary chooses a set of items SI and a distribution F on SI. Then, the items are drawn independently and identically distributed according to F. In the second model the adversary chooses a finite set of items SI and then these items arrive in random order, that is random with respect to the uniform distribution on the set of all possible permutations of the items. It is possible to show that the adversary in the second stochastic model is at least as powerful as in the first one. We can classify the results in this thesis in three parts: In the first part we consider the complexity of classical bin packing and its variants cardinality-constrained and class-constrained bin packing in both stochastic models. That is, we determine if it is possible to construct algorithms that are in expectation nearly optimal for large instances that are constructed according to the stochastic models or if there exist non-trivial lower bounds. Among other things we show that the complexity of class-constrained bin packing differs in the two models under consideration. In the second part we deal with bounded-space bin packing and the dual maximization variant bin covering. We show that it is possible to overcome classical worst-case bounds in both models. In other words, we see that bounded-space algorithms benefit from randomized instances compared to the worst case. Finally, we consider selected heuristics for class-constrained bin packing and the corresponding maximization variant class-constrained bin covering. Here, we note that the different complexity of class-constrained bin packing with respect to the studied stochastic models observed in the first part is not only a theoretical phenomenon, but also takes place for many common algorithmic approaches. Interestingly, when we apply the same algorithmic ideas to class-constrained bin covering, we benefit from both types of randomization similarly. </ul

Shawn: A new approach to simulating wireless sensor networks

We consider the simulation of wireless sensor networks (WSN) using a new approach. We present Shawn, an open-source discrete-event simulator that has considerable differences to all other existing simulators. Shawn is very powerful in simulating large scale networks with an abstract point of view. It is, to the best of our knowledge, the first simulator to support generic high-level algorithms as well as distributed protocols on exactly the same underlying networks.Comment: 10 pages, 2 figures, 2 tables, Latex, to appear in Design, Analysis, and Simulation of Distributed Systems 200

Paläobiogeographie des Korallenooliths (Mittleres Oxfordium - Unteres Kimmeridgium): Tethyale Faunen- und Florenelement auf höherer Paläobreite

An overview is given here on the palaeobiogeography of the Korallenoolith Formation (middle Oxfordian to early Kimmeridgian) in NW Germany (Lower Saxony Basin). Based on microfacies observations, abundant faunal and floral elements of the tropical tethyan realm are recognized in shallow-marine calcareous sediments of the Korallenoolith Formation. Foraminiferal fauna is both highly diverse and abundant and mostly of mediterranean character. Also, there is a small flora recorded, which includes heavily calcified red algae, aragonitic green algae, and cayeuxiid algae. They display restricted diversity when compared to those of shallow-marine tropical tethyan seas. Chaetetids and diceratids are locally abundant. Lithocodium aggregatum and Bacinella irregularis have been observed in Late Jurassic palaeolatitudes north of the Tethys for the first time. Corals are present in numerous genera and species. Their occurrence is restricted to a few horizons of the Korallenoolith Formation where they build patch reefs, coral biostroms and coral meadows. The overall character of the coral-thrombolite-reefs (florigemma-Bank Member) is very similar to those of the Tethys. The presence of these marine tethyan taxa assigned the position of the Lower Saxony Basin during middle Oxfordian to early Kimmeridgian palaeobiogeographically into the submediterranean province and reflects northward migration of tropical tethyan fauna and flora which reach in the Lower Saxony Basin their northern limit. These biota seem to be biogeo-graphically transitional between communities present in England and the Tethys.Der derzeitige Kenntnisstand zur Paläobiogeographie des Mitteloxfordium- bis Unterkimmeridgium-zeitlichen Korallenooliths (Niedersächsisches Becken, NW-Deutschland) wird zusammengefaßt. Bis vor wenigen Jahren zeichneten sich noch enge Beziehung zu dem borealen englischen Oberjura ab, da tethyale bzw. mediterrane Faunen- und Florenelemente entweder zu fehlen oder nur artenarm aufzutreten schienen. Vor allem mit Hilfe mikrofazielle Arbeitsansätze konnten erstmals zahlreiche „Tethys-Zeiger“ - insbesondere komplex-gebaute Sandschaler und Milioliden, Grünalgen, Lithocodium aggregatum, Bacinella irregularis und Chaetetiden - erstmals für das Niedersächsichen Becken in der Korallenoolith- Fazies nachgewiesen werden. Insgesamt zeigen Fauna und untergeordnet auch Flora (Kalkalgen) des Korallenooliths signifikante Ähnlichkeiten mit einer solchen aus Schelfplattformbereichen der Tethys. Die postulierte sukzessive Verarmung von tethyalen Vertretern (z.B. Riffkorallen oder Nerineen) in Richtung Norden und ihre Verbreitungsgrenzen werden kritisch diskutiert. Ihre angebliche Seltenheit oder das früher vermutete Fehlen läßt sich rückblickend am besten mit dem kursorischen Bearbeitungsstand des Korallenooliths erklären. Die Ergebnisse sprechen für eine enge Bindung des Niedersächsischen Beckens während der Sedimentation des Korallenooliths an den mediterranen Raum, die durch Vorstöße tethyaler Faunen- und Florenelemente belegt sind. Tethyale Elemente rücken somit auch in Ablagerungsräume auf höherer Paläobreite vor, wenn günstige fazielle Gegebenheiten vorliegen