Rethinking benchmark dates in international relations

International Relations has an ‘orthodox set’ of benchmark dates by which much of its research and teaching is organized: 1500, 1648, 1919, 1945 and 1989. This article argues that International Relations scholars need to question the ways in which these orthodox dates serve as internal and external points of reference, think more critically about how benchmark dates are established, and generate a revised set of benchmark dates that better reflects macro-historical international dynamics. The first part of the article questions the appropriateness of the orthodox set of benchmark dates as ways of framing the discipline’s self-understanding. The second and third sections look at what counts as a benchmark date, and why. We systematize benchmark dates drawn from mainstream International Relations theories (realism, liberalism, constructivism/English School and sociological approaches) and then aggregate their criteria. The fourth section of the article uses this exercise to construct a revised set of benchmark dates which can widen the discipline’s theoretical and historical scope. We outline a way of ranking benchmark dates and suggest a means of assessing recent candidates for benchmark status. Overall, the article delivers two main benefits: first, an improved heuristic by which to think critically about foundational dates in the discipline; and, second, a revised set of benchmark dates which can help shift International Relations’ centre of gravity away from dynamics of war and peace, and towards a broader range of macro-historical dynamics

Simulation techniques in an artificial society model

Artificial society refers to a generic class of agent-based simulation models used to discover global social structures and collective behavior produced by simple local rules and interaction mechanisms. Artificial society models are applicable in a variety of disciplines, including the modeling of chemical and biological processes, natural phenomena, and complex adaptive systems. We focus on the underlying simulation techniques used in artificial society discrete-event simulation models, including model time evolution and computational performance.;Although for some applications synchronous time evolution is the correct modeling approach, many other applications are better represented using asynchronous time evolution. We claim that asynchronous time evolution can eliminate potential simulation artifacts produced using synchronous time evolution. Using an adaptation of a popular artificial society model, we show that very different output can result based solely on the choice of asynchronous or synchronous time evolution. Based on the event list implementation chosen, the use of discrete-event simulation to incorporate asynchronous time evolution can incur a substantial loss in computational performance. Accordingly, we evaluate select event list implementations within the artificial society simulation model and demonstrate that acceptable performance can be achieved.;In addition to the artificial society model, we show that transforming from a synchronous to an asynchronous system proves beneficial for scheduling resources in a parallel system. We focus on non-FCFS job scheduling policies that permit jobs to backfill, i.e., to move ahead in the queue, given that they do not delay certain previously submitted jobs. Instead of using a single queue of jobs, we propose a simple yet effective backfilling scheduling policy that effectively separates short from long jobs by incorporating multiple queues. By monitoring system performance, our policy adapts its configuration parameters in response to severe changes in the job arrival pattern and/or resource demands. Detailed performance comparisons via simulation using actual parallel workload traces indicate that our proposed policy consistently outperforms traditional backfilling in a variety of contexts

Regional collective learning processes, innovation and growth of high technology SMEs: The case of the Cambridge region

Recent theoretical research on the technological development of dynamic European regions has drawn attention to the supposedly key role of "untraded interdependencies" between local firms and other organisations (Storper, 1995), involving informal inter-firm networking (Yeung, 1994) and processes of "collective learning" (Camagni, 1991, Lorenz, 1992). These processes, which involve exchange and development of technological expertise, are seen as being based on relationships of trust and reciprocity, while the networks and processes themselves are viewed as influential in the recent evolution of dynamic regional clusters of innovative small and medium sized enterprises. The paper will attempt to assess the extent, importance and nature of collective learning processes in the specific caseof technology-intensive firms in the Cambridge region recenty descried as the "nearest thing in Europe to Silicon Valley" (Martin 1996). Based on an original interview survey of technology-based enterprises, the paper will asses the role of technology firm spin-off and acquistion, inter-firm research and technology collaboration, and scientific and professional labour market recruitment, in the development of local technological competencies and collective learning capabilities. Alltention will also be paid to the role of key local instiutions and supporting business services in this regard. The paper will conclude by condsidering implications for policy.

The global transformation: history, modernity and the making of international relations

The 'long nineteenth century' (1776–1914) was a period of political, economic, military and cultural revolutions that re-forged both domestic and international societies. Neither existing international histories nor international relations texts sufficiently register the scale and impact of this 'global transformation', yet it is the consequences of these multiple revolutions that provide the material and ideational foundations of modern international relations. Global modernity reconstituted the mode of power that underpinned international order and opened a power gap between those who harnessed the revolutions of modernity and those who were denied access to them. This gap dominated international relations for two centuries and is only now being closed. By taking the global transformation as the starting point for international relations, this book repositions the roots of the discipline and establishes a new way of both understanding and teaching the relationship between world history and international relations

Twentieth century benchmark dates in international relations:the three world wars in historical perspective

This paper builds on the author’s earlier work on benchmark dates in International Relations. The Introduction summarises this work and explains how this paper extends the analysis from suggestions made, but not developed, in earlier publications. The second section looks in detail at 20th century benchmark dates centred on the three world wars (First, Second and Cold). It argues that the changes clustered around the Second World War are both deeper and more extensive than those clustered around either the First World War or the Cold War. The third section uses these insights to open-up a macro-historical perspective on the 20th century, demonstrating the ways in which choices in relation to both time and scale affect the construction of macro-historical perspectives. The fourth section demonstrates the advantages of a two-century perspective on the 20th century. Here, and in the conclusion, we argue that the key issues that underpinned world politics in the 20th century are best seen as the downstream consequences of the dynamics and challenges ushered in by the 19th century “global transformation.

Theory, history, and the global transformation

This response concentrates on two sets of issues raised by the contributors to the symposium: the first centers around theory, the second around history. On the former, our argument is that, contrary to some of the comments made by our interlocutors, the book contributes to theoretical debates ranging from issues of causation to those concerning history as a theoretical enterprise. We use these arguments to engage with, and extend, historical questions raised about the book, paying particular attention to the issue of comparisons across time. Our overarching reaction to the symposium is positive – the book has generated an exciting range of responses. This makes us hopeful that The Global Transformation will stimulate both intra- and inter-disciplinary conversations, even if these conversations sometimes emerge from frustration with paths not taken and issues not addressed

The impact of the ‘global transformation’ on uneven and combined development

This paper focuses on the impact of the 19th century ‘global transformation’ on uneven and combined development (UCD). It argues that the intensification of UCD by the global transformation led first to a much more uneven and more combined world order, and subsequently to a less uneven but increasingly combined world order. The consequence of this intense period in the history of UCD was a highly centred, core-periphery global order during the 19th century and much of the 20th century. However, since the middle part of the 20th century, and more obviously since the early part of the 21st century, this is giving way to an increasingly decentred global order, still highly combined, but with a marked diffusion in the distribution of the modern ‘mode of power’. The result is a reduction in the extreme unevenness of power, wealth and status that characterized the initial phases of global modernity

The English School: history and primary institutions as empirical IR theory?

This paper examines what space there is to think of English School work as part of Empirical International Relations (IR) theory. The English School depends heavily on historical accounts, and the chapter makes the case that history and theory should be seen as co-constitutive rather than as separate enterprises. Empirical IR theorists need to think about their own relationship to this question, and clarify what “historical sensitivity” means to them. The English School offers both distinctive taxonomies for understanding the structure of international society, and an empirically constructed historical approach to identifying the primary institutions that define international society. If Empirical IR is open to historical-interpretive accounts, then its links to the English School are in part strong, because English School structural accounts would qualify, and in part weak, because the normative theory part of the English School would not qualify. Lying behind this judgement is a deeper issue: if Empirical IR theory confines itself to regularity-deterministic causal accounts, then there can be no links to English School work. As such, this chapter demonstrates how taking English School insights seriously helps to open up a wider view of Empirical IR theory

A Hybrid Agent-based and Differential Equations Model for Simulating Antibiotic Resistance in a Hospital Ward

Serious infections due to antibiotic-resistant bacteria are pervasive, and of particular concern within hospital units due to frequent interaction among health-care workers and patients. Such nosocomial infections are difficult to eliminate because of inconsistent disinfection procedures and frequent interactions among infected persons, and because ill-chosen antibiotic treatment strategies can lead to a growth of resistant bacterial strains. Clinical studies to address these concerns have several issues, but chief among them are the effects on the patients involved. Realistic simulation models offer an attractive alternative. This paper presents a hybrid simulation model of antibiotic resistant infections in a hospital ward, combining agent-based simulation to model the inter-host interactions of patients and health-care workers with a detailed differential equations and probabilistic model of intra-host bacterial and antibiotic dynamics. Initial results to benchmark the model demonstrate realistic behavior and suggest promising extensions to achieve a highly-complex yet accurate mechanism for testing antibiotic strategies