DRUM-II : efficient model based diagnosis of technical systems

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The sources of profitability

This paper is built around a theorem proved analytically and exemplified empirically in Flaschel, Franke and Veneziani (2010) which states that profitable capital-using labor-saving technical change is under mild conditions always reducing the labor content of commodities. This type of technical change therefore increases Marx’s value rate of profit in a systematic way. Against this background the paper studies the relationship between the actual value and price rate of profit and derives expressions that show that the deviation between them may be of a secondary and unsystematic nature. This result is then exemplified empirically using flow as well as stock matrix data for the German economy. The paper argues on this basis that prices of production are in fact of a questionable nature and an unnecessary detour in the input-output oriented analysis of the profitability nexus between total labor costs and the actual prices of the considered commodities.Labor values, profit rates, input-output models

Understanding cities and citizens: Developing novel participatory development methods and public service concepts

The European Commission (EC) aims to facilitate bottom-up initiatives to speed up economic growth. For that it is necessary to empower citizens and businesses. Open data is key to this, as easy access to the right data opens the door for them to contribute as active and efficient actors in European cities. The EC-funded project Smarticipate , which is driven by the pilot cities of Hamburg, Rome and London, will foster citizen involvement on four levels: to join forces of committed key stakeholders, to gather local knowledge, to enable exploratory planning exercises and to create new public services. This will be realized by innovative tools, designed within Smarticipate, that provide immediate context-tailored feedback to each contribution made by citizens via online participation services. This paper outlines a novel methodology that is currently being developed within the project to co-design new public services. Our methodology enables close coordination via an iterative process with diverse urban stakeholders and end users. Citizens and businesses can create and plug their own apps for new public services into the Smarticipate platform we are developing. The overall principle is to interact in co-creation with the cities and citizens of Hamburg, Rome and London and adjust our planning and products directly to their needs. An iterative process is being carried out on three levels: participatory urban planning, user-centered design of applications and user interfaces & software engineering. The first results of this process are presented in this paper, along with an outline of the next steps

Field Strength and Monopoles in Dual U(1) Lattice Gauge Theory

In any Abelian gauge theory with an action periodic in the link variables one can perform a duality transformation not only in the partition function, but also in correlation functions including Polyakov loops. The calculation of expectation values in the confinement phase, like electric field strength or monopole currents in the presence of external charges, becomes significantly more efficient simulating the dual theory. We demonstrate this using the ordinary Wilson action. This approach also allows a quantitative analysis of the dual superconductor model, because the dual transformed U(1) theory can be regarded as limit of a dual non-compact Abelian Higgs model. In this way we also try to interpret the behaviour of monopole condensate and string fluctuations. Finally we present some applications for simulating the dual U(1) gauge theory.Comment: Talk presented at LATTICE96(topology) ; 3 pages, latex, 4 figures; complete postscript file also available at ftp://is1.kph.tuwien.ac.at/pub/zach/stl96.ps.g

Experiences from a Living Lab trialling a mobile participation platform

The project b-Part adresses the currently low level of participation by introducing and evaluating a novel participation prototype utilizing contemporary mobile technology. As pervasive participation methods eliminate spatial and temporal barriers, it is anticipated that people are more inclined to engage in decision-making processes than with traditional forms (e.g. townhall meetings). Based on these considerations we developed a mobile participation platform that was evaluated in a real-world scenario over the duration of five months. This paper describes our methodology focusing on the conducted Living Lab and reports on experiences made during the runtime of the project. We hereby distinguish between experiences made by citizens and the authorites’ view on the whole participatory process. Our findings show that there is a high acceptance of mobile participation methods among citizens and they want to have it developed even further. On the other hand, although city administration is often enthusiastic about novel participation formats, there are still challenges to meet regarding the definition of suitable topics for participation, a match between needs of citizens and city officials, the mapping of organisational responsibilities and long-term commitment to active participation

Quantum Monte Carlo results for bipolaron stability in quantum dots

Bipolaron formation in a two-dimensional lattice with harmonic confinement, representing a simplified model for a quantum dot, is investigated by means of quantum Monte Carlo simulations. This method treats all interactions exactly and takes into account quantum lattice fluctuations. Calculations of the bipolaron binding energy reveal that confinement opposes bipolaron formation for weak electron-phonon coupling, but abets a bound state at intermediate to strong coupling. Tuning the system from weak to strong confinement gives rise to a small reduction of the minimum Frohlich coupling parameter for the existence of a bound state.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, final version to appear in Phys. Rev.

Flux tubes and their interaction in U(1) lattice gauge theory

We investigate singly and doubly charged flux tubes in U(1) lattice gauge theory. By simulating the dually transformed path integral we are able to consider large flux tube lengths, low temperatures, and multiply charged systems without loss of numerical precision. We simulate flux tubes between static sources as well as periodically closed flux tubes, calculating flux tube profiles, the total field energy and the free energy. Our main results are that the string tension in both three and four dimensions scales proportionally to the charge -- which is in contrast to previous lattice results -- and that in four-dimensional U(1) there is an attractive interaction between flux tubes for beta approaching the phase transition.Comment: 19 pages, latex2e with tex- and eps-figures; complete postscript file also available at ftp://is1.kph.tuwien.ac.at/pub/zach/np97.ps.g

Identifizierung der endo- und ectosymbiontischen Bakterien und cellulolytischen Aktivitäten der symbiontischen Flagellaten der australischen Termite Mastotermes darwiniensis

The lower wood-feeding Australian termite Mastotermes darwiniensis Froggatt (Fig. 1) is the only living member of the family Mastotermitidae. The complex symbiotic hindgut flora consists of protozoa (formerly named Archaezoa; Cleveland & Grimstone 1964; Brugerolle & al. 1994; Berchtold & König 1995; Fröhlich & König 1999a, b), bacteria (Berchtold & König 1996; Berchtold & al. 1999), archaea (Fröhlich & König 1999a, b) and yeasts (Prillinger & al. 1996; Schäfer & al. 1996). The digestive system of Mastotermes darwiniensis consists of the foregut with the crop and the gizzard, the midgut, and the hindgut (Noirot & Noirot-Timothée 1969; 1995). The hindgut consists of five segments (P1 – P5): the proctodeal segment, the enteric valve, the paunch, the colon and the rectum. The paunch is the main microbial fermentation chamber, but the colon also contains microorganisms. The paunch is subdivided into a dilated thin-walled region (P3a) and a thick walled more tubular region (P3b) (Fig. 1c). In the case of Mastotermes darwiniensis oxygen diffusion gradients could be detected up to 100 μm below the epithelium (Berchtold & al., 1999).Termiten sind mit die wichtigsten holzabbauenden Insekten. Die Darmmikrobiota spielt eine unverzichtbare Rolle im Abbau der Nahrung. Sie besteht aus Bakterien, Archaebakterien (Archaea), Flagellaten und Hefen. Die einzigartigen Flagellaten der Termiten sind sehr früh in der Evolution der Eukaryoten abgezweigte Einzeller, die zu den Preaxostyla (Oxymonadida) und Parabasalia (Cristamonadida, Spirotrichonymphida, Trichomonadida, Trichonymphida) gehören. Die australische Termite Mastotermes darwiniensis ist die einzige heute noch lebende Art der primitiven Termitenfamilie Mastotermitidae. In der Gärkammer im Hinterdarm leben die vier größeren Flagellaten Koruga bonita, Deltotrichonympha nana, Deltotrichonympha operculata und Mixotricha paradoxa. Weiterhin kommen die zwei kleineren Flagellaten Metadevescovina extranea (Cristamonaden) und Pentatrichomonoides scroa (Trichomonaden) vor. Die Flagellaten selbst sind Wirte von ecto- und endosymbiontischen Prokaryoten. Von Zellextrakten der nichtkultivierbaren größeren Flagellaten wurden zwei Endoglucanasen mit einer ähnlichen apparenten Masse von 36 kD isoliert. Sie zeigten signifikante Homologie zu termiteneigenen Cellulasen. Die entsprechenden Gene wurden nicht im mRNA-Pool der Flagellaten gefunden, sondern in den Speicheldrüsen von Mastotermes darwiniensis. Das deutet darauf hin, dass die intestinalen Flagellaten auch die Wirtsenzyme für die Cellulosehydrolyse benutzten. Andererseits besitzen mindestens Koruga- und Deltotrichonympha-Species auch eigene Cellulasegene. Im Darminhalt der Termiten wurden allerdings auch drei Cellulasen nachgewiesen, die von den Flagellaten stammen sollten

Asymptotically free theories based on discrete subgroups

We study the critical behavior of discrete spin models related to the 2d O(3) non-linear sigma model. Precise numerical results suggest that models with sufficiently large discrete subgroups are in the same universality class as the original sigma model. We observe that at least up to correlation lengths $\xi\approx 300$ the cut-off effects follow effectively an $\propto a$ behaviour both in the O(3) and in the dodecahedron model.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, Lattice 2000 (Spin Models