Low Cost Quality of Service Multicast Routing in High Speed Networks

Many of the services envisaged for high speed networks, such as B-ISDN/ATM, will support real-time applications with large numbers of users. Examples of these types of application range from those used by closed groups, such as private video meetings or conferences, where all participants must be known to the sender, to applications used by open groups, such as video lectures, where partcipants need not be known by the sender. These types of application will require high volumes of network resources in addition to the real-time delay constraints on data delivery. For these reasons, several multicast routing heuristics have been proposed to support both interactive and distribution multimedia services, in high speed networks. The objective of such heuristics is to minimise the multicast tree cost while maintaining a real-time bound on delay. Previous evaluation work has compared the relative average performance of some of these heuristics and concludes that they are generally efficient, although some perform better for small multicast groups and others perform better for larger groups. Firstly, we present a detailed analysis and evaluation of some of these heuristics which illustrates that in some situations their average performance is reversed; a heuristic that in general produces efficient solutions for small multicasts may sometimes produce a more efficient solution for a particular large multicast, in a specific network. Also, in a limited number of cases using Dijkstra's algorithm produces the best result. We conclude that the efficiency of a heuristic solution depends on the topology of both the network and the multicast, and that it is difficult to predict. Because of this unpredictability we propose the integration of two heuristics with Dijkstra's shortest path tree algorithm to produce a hybrid that consistently generates efficient multicast solutions for all possible multicast groups in any network. These heuristics are based on Dijkstra's algorithm which maintains acceptable time complexity for the hybrid, and they rarely produce inefficient solutions for the same network/multicast. The resulting performance attained is generally good and in the rare worst cases is that of the shortest path tree. The performance of our hybrid is supported by our evaluation results. Secondly, we examine the stability of multicast trees where multicast group membership is dynamic. We conclude that, in general, the more efficient the solution of a heuristic is, the less stable the multicast tree will be as multicast group membership changes. For this reason, while the hybrid solution we propose might be suitable for use with closed user group multicasts, which are likely to be stable, we need a different approach for open user group multicasting, where group membership may be highly volatile. We propose an extension to an existing heuristic that ensures multicast tree stability where multicast group membership is dynamic. Although this extension decreases the efficiency of the heuristics solutions, its performance is significantly better than that of the worst case, a shortest path tree. Finally, we consider how we might apply the hybrid and the extended heuristic in current and future multicast routing protocols for the Internet and for ATM Networks.

LEPs – living up to the hype? The changing framework for regional economic development and localism in the UK

From when the idea of local enterprise partnerships was first floated in the run-up to the May 2010 general election, there has been fervent discussion and steadfast work by the Coalition government to replace the nine regional development agencies of England with the new LEPS. Vince Cable MP called the decision to abolish the RDAs the Coalition’s “Maoist moment”. Thirteen years of work to establish a comprehensive system of regional development for England has since been abolished and abandoned. The philosophy and rationale for the establishment of the RDAs was set out in the 1997 white paper Building Partnerships for Prosperity: Sustainability, Growth, Competitiveness and Employment in the English Regions. Their main promoter was John Prescott MP, then deputy prime minister under the Blair government. This chapter examines whether LEPs are living up to the hype

A Hybrid Approach to Quality of Service Multicast Routing

Several multicast routing heuristics have been proposed to support multimedia services, both interactive and distribution, in high speed networks such as B-ISDN/ATM. Since such services may have large numbers of members and have real-time constraints, the objective of the heuristics is to minimise the multicast tree cost while maintaining a bound on delay. Previous evaluation work has compared the relative average performance of some of these heuristics and concludes that they are generally efficient, although some perform better for small multicast groups and others perform better for larger groups. We present a detailed analysis and evaluation of some of these heuristics which illustrate that in some situations their average performance is reversed; a heuristic that in general produces efficient solutions for small multicasts may sometimes produce a more efficient solution for a particular large multicast/network combination. Also, in a limited number of cases using Dijkstra's algorithm produces the best result. We conclude that the specific efficiency of a heuristics solution depends on the topology of both the network and the multicast, and that it is difficult to predict. Because of this unpredictability we propose the integration of two heuristics with Dijkstra's shortest path tree algorithm to produce a hybrid that consistently generates efficient multicast solutions for all possible multicast groups in any network. These heuristics are based on Dijkstra's algorithm which maintains acceptable time complexity for the hybrid, and they rarely produce inefficient solutions for the same network/multicast. The resulting performance attained is generally good and in the rare worst cases is that of the shortest path tree. The performance of our proposal is supported by our evaluation results. We conclude by discussing the types of networks for which this method is most appropriate and identifying further work

Repeatability Analysis of 304L Deposition by the LENS® Process

Sandia National Laboratories is currently engaging in an effort to qualify Laser Engineered Net Shaping™ (LENS®) as a repair and modification process for high rigor metal components. As part of that effort, the LENS team has conducted a process repeatability test to help identify variation within the system. This test utilized 304L stainless steel which is a commonly used material at Sandia. Over the course of 12 weeks, 3/8”x3/8”x2” towers were built in sets of 3 with a total of 30 towers completed. A random sampling of 10 of these towers (1 from each set of 3) had been identified before depositing the towers, and these towers were used for tensile testing and metallographic testing. The testing showed the ultimate and yield strengths of all samples to be well above those of annealed 304L. This is expected because of the rapid melt pool solidification present in the LENS process and the resulting grain refinement. The ductility, which usually remains on par with annealed 304L, was found to be lower. The final cause of this loss of ductility was determined to be inter-layer separation due to loose wires in the closed loop melt pool control system.Englis

Delay-rate tradeoff for ergodic interference alignment in the Gaussian case

In interference alignment, users sharing a wireless channel are each able to achieve data rates of up to half of the non-interfering channel capacity, no matter the number of users. In an ergodic setting, this is achieved by pairing complementary channel realizations in order to amplify signals and cancel interference. However, this scheme has the possibility for large delays in decoding message symbols. We show that delay can be mitigated by using outputs from potentially more than two channel realizations, although data rate may be reduced. We further demonstrate the tradeoff between rate and delay via a time-sharing strategy. Our analysis considers Gaussian channels; an extension to finite field channels is also possible.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figures, presented at 48th Allerton Conference on Communication Control and Computing, 2010. Includes appendix detailing Markov chain analysi

Evidence submitted to the BIS Select Committee consultation on Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) and the Regional Growth Fund (RGF)

The evidence summarised in this submission is based on the national research project: From Regionalism to Localism: Cross Country LEPs. The aim of this research is to monitor what steps are being taken by LEPs to support businesses to create jobs and support the development of local economies. The research explores the issues arising from the formation of the LEPs over their first three years, 2010-2013 and is monitoring the journey of the LEPs nationally. LEPs are the chief vehicle for economic development within the context of localism but are delivering national level initiatives, such as Enterprise Zones. Indeed, they have been set a considerable challenge – uniting business, public and community interests in a way that enables the economic regeneration and growth of local places. The research drills-down to focus on four particular ‘regions’: the North East; Yorkshire and the Humber; the West Midlands and the South West. Some of the project team’s initial and emerging research outputs are appended to this submission

A note on extending Euler's connection between continued fractions and power series

AbstractEuler's Connection describes an exact equivalence between certain continued fractions and power series. If the partial numerators and denominators of the continued fractions are perturbed slightly, the continued fractions equal power series plus easily computed error terms. These continued fractions may be integrated by the series with another easily computed error term

Compositions of analytic functions of the form Fn(z) = Fn−1(fn(z)), fn(z) → f(z)

AbstractFrequently, in applications, a function is iterated in order to determine its fixed point, which represents the solution of some problem. In the variation of iteration presented in this paper fixed points serve a different purpose. The sequence {Fn(z)} is studied, where F1(z) = f1(z) and Fn(z) = Fn−1(fn(z)), with fn → f. Many infinite arithmetic expansions exhibit this form, and the fixed point, α, of f may be used as a modifying factor (z = α) to influence the convergence behaviour of these expansions. Thus one employs, rather than seeks the fixed point of the function f

A note on bounds for the derivatives of continued fractions

AbstractAlthough it is difficult to differentiate analytic functions defined by continued fractions, it is relatively easy in some cases to determine uniform bounds on such derivatives by perceiving the continued fraction as an infinite composition of linear fractional transformations and applying an infinite chain rule for differentiation