Disruptive events in high-density cellular networks

Stochastic geometry models are used to study wireless networks, particularly cellular phone networks, but most of the research focuses on the typical user, often ignoring atypical events, which can be highly disruptive and of interest to network operators. We examine atypical events when a unexpected large proportion of users are disconnected or connected by proposing a hybrid approach based on ray launching simulation and point process theory. This work is motivated by recent results using large deviations theory applied to the signal-to-interference ratio. This theory provides a tool for the stochastic analysis of atypical but disruptive events, particularly when the density of transmitters is high. For a section of a European city, we introduce a new stochastic model of a single network cell that uses ray launching data generated with the open source RaLaNS package, giving deterministic path loss values. We collect statistics on the fraction of (dis)connected users in the uplink, and observe that the probability of an unexpected large proportion of disconnected users decreases exponentially when the transmitter density increases. This observation implies that denser networks become more stable in the sense that the probability of the fraction of (dis)connected users deviating from its mean, is exponentially small. We also empirically obtain and illustrate the density of users for network configurations in the disruptive event, which highlights the fact that such bottleneck behaviour not only stems from too many users at the cell boundary, but also from the near-far effect of many users in the immediate vicinity of the base station. We discuss the implications of these findings and outline possible future research directions.Comment: 8 pages, 11 figure

Coverage probability in wireless networks with determinantal scheduling

We propose a new class of algorithms for randomly scheduling network transmissions. The idea is to use (discrete) determinantal point processes (subsets) to randomly assign medium access to various {\em repulsive} subsets of potential transmitters. This approach can be seen as a natural extension of (spatial) Aloha, which schedules transmissions independently. Under a general path loss model and Rayleigh fading, we show that, similarly to Aloha, they are also subject to elegant analysis of the coverage probabilities and transmission attempts (also known as local delay). This is mainly due to the explicit, determinantal form of the conditional (Palm) distribution and closed-form expressions for the Laplace functional of determinantal processes. Interestingly, the derived performance characteristics of the network are amenable to various optimizations of the scheduling parameters, which are determinantal kernels, allowing the use of techniques developed for statistical learning with determinantal processes. Well-established sampling algorithms for determinantal processes can be used to cope with implementation issues, which is is beyond the scope of this paper, but it creates paths for further research.Comment: 8 pages. 2 figure

Bose-Einstein Correlations of Three Charged Pions in Hadronic Z^0 Decays

Bose-Einstein Correlations (BEC) of three identical charged pions were studied in 4 x 10^6 hadronic Z^0 decays recorded with the OPAL detector at LEP. The genuine three-pion correlations, corrected for the Coulomb effect, were separated from the known two-pion correlations by a new subtraction procedure. A significant genuine three-pion BEC enhancement near threshold was observed having an emitter source radius of r_3 = 0.580 +/- 0.004 (stat.) +/- 0.029 (syst.) fm and a strength of \lambda_3 = 0.504 +/- 0.010 (stat.) +/- 0.041 (syst.). The Coulomb correction was found to increase the \lambda_3 value by \~9% and to reduce r_3 by ~6%. The measured \lambda_3 corresponds to a value of 0.707 +/- 0.014 (stat.) +/- 0.078 (syst.) when one takes into account the three-pion sample purity. A relation between the two-pion and the three-pion source parameters is discussed.Comment: 19 pages, LaTeX, 5 eps figures included, accepted by Eur. Phys. J.

Multilocation Corn Stover Harvest Effects on Crop Yields and Nutrient Removal

Corn (Zea mays L.) stover was identified as an important feedstock for cellulosic bioenergy production because of the extensive area upon which the crop is already grown. This report summarizes 239 site-years of field research examining effects of zero, moderate, and high stover removal rates at 36 sites in seven different states. Grain and stover yields from all sites as well as N, P, and K removal from 28 sites are summarized for nine longitude and six latitude bands, two tillage practices (conventional vs no tillage), two stover-harvest methods (machine vs calculated), and two crop rotations {continuous corn (maize) vs corn/soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.]}. Mean grain yields ranged from 5.0 to 12.0 Mg ha−1 (80 to 192 bu ac−1). Harvesting an average of 3.9 or 7.2 Mg ha−1(1.7 or 3.2 tons ac−1) of the corn stover resulted in a slight increase in grain yield at 57 and 51 % of the sites, respectively. Average no-till grain yields were significantly lower than with conventional tillage when stover was not harvested, but not when it was collected. Plant samples collected between physiological maturity and combine harvest showed that compared to not harvesting stover, N, P, and K removal was increased by 24, 2.7, and 31 kg ha−1, respectively, with moderate (3.9 Mg ha−1) harvest and by 47, 5.5, and 62 kg ha−1, respectively, with high (7.2 Mg ha−1) removal. This data will be useful for verifying simulation models and available corn stover feedstock projections, but is too variable for planning site-specific stover harvest

Closed-Form transformation between geodetic and ellipsoidal coordinates

We present formulas for direct closed-form transformation between geodetic coordinates(Φ, λ, h) and ellipsoidal coordinates (β, λ, u) for any oblate ellipsoid of revolution.These will be useful for those dealing with ellipsoidal representations of the Earth's gravityfield or other oblate ellipsoidal figures. The numerical stability of the transformations for nearpolarand near-equatorial regions is also considered

A Recombinant Avian Infectious Bronchitis Virus Expressing a Heterologous Spike Gene Belonging to the 4/91 Serotype

We have shown previously that replacement of the spike (S) gene of the apathogenic IBV strain Beau-R with that from the pathogenic strain of the same serotype, M41, resulted in an apathogenic virus, BeauR-M41(S), that conferred protection against challenge with M41 [1]. We have constructed a recombinant IBV, BeauR-4/91(S), with the genetic backbone of Beau-R but expressing the spike protein of the pathogenic IBV strain 4/91(UK), which belongs to a different serogroup as Beaudette or M41. Similar to our previous findings with BeauR-M41(S), clinical signs observations showed that the S gene of the pathogenic 4/91 virus did not confer pathogenicity to the rIBV BeauR-4/91(S). Furthermore, protection studies showed there was homologous protection; BeauR-4/91(S) conferred protection against challenge with wild type 4/91 virus as shown by the absence of clinical signs, IBV RNA assessed by qRT-PCR and the fact that no virus was isolated from tracheas removed from birds primarily infected with BeauR-4/91(S) and challenged with IBV 4/91(UK). A degree of heterologous protection against M41 challenge was observed, albeit at a lower level

Measurement of the Production Rate of Charm Quark Pairs from Gluons in Hadronic Z0Z^{0} Decays

The rate of secondary charm-quark-pair production has been measured in 4.4 million hadronic Z0 decays collected by OPAL. By selecting events with three jets and tagging charmed hadrons in the gluon jet candidate using leptons and charged D* mesons, the average number of secondary charm-quark pairs per hadronic event is found to be (3.20+-0.21+-0.38)x10-2