Intimacy For Sale: The Interior Landscape of Social Media

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Arts of Bard College

Is the Web ready for HTTP/2 Server Push?

HTTP/2 supersedes HTTP/1.1 to tackle the performance challenges of the modern Web. A highly anticipated feature is Server Push, enabling servers to send data without explicit client requests, thus potentially saving time. Although guidelines on how to use Server Push emerged, measurements have shown that it can easily be used in a suboptimal way and hurt instead of improving performance. We thus tackle the question if the current Web can make better use of Server Push. First, we enable real-world websites to be replayed in a testbed to study the effects of different Server Push strategies. Using this, we next revisit proposed guidelines to grasp their performance impact. Finally, based on our results, we propose a novel strategy using an alternative server scheduler that enables to interleave resources. This improves the visual progress for some websites, with minor modifications to the deployment. Still, our results highlight the limits of Server Push: a deep understanding of web engineering is required to make optimal use of it, and not every site will benefit.Comment: More information available at https://push.netray.i

The stability of a graph partition: A dynamics-based framework for community detection

Recent years have seen a surge of interest in the analysis of complex networks, facilitated by the availability of relational data and the increasingly powerful computational resources that can be employed for their analysis. Naturally, the study of real-world systems leads to highly complex networks and a current challenge is to extract intelligible, simplified descriptions from the network in terms of relevant subgraphs, which can provide insight into the structure and function of the overall system. Sparked by seminal work by Newman and Girvan, an interesting line of research has been devoted to investigating modular community structure in networks, revitalising the classic problem of graph partitioning. However, modular or community structure in networks has notoriously evaded rigorous definition. The most accepted notion of community is perhaps that of a group of elements which exhibit a stronger level of interaction within themselves than with the elements outside the community. This concept has resulted in a plethora of computational methods and heuristics for community detection. Nevertheless a firm theoretical understanding of most of these methods, in terms of how they operate and what they are supposed to detect, is still lacking to date. Here, we will develop a dynamical perspective towards community detection enabling us to define a measure named the stability of a graph partition. It will be shown that a number of previously ad-hoc defined heuristics for community detection can be seen as particular cases of our method providing us with a dynamic reinterpretation of those measures. Our dynamics-based approach thus serves as a unifying framework to gain a deeper understanding of different aspects and problems associated with community detection and allows us to propose new dynamically-inspired criteria for community structure.Comment: 3 figures; published as book chapte

Great cities look small

Great cities connect people; failed cities isolate people. Despite the fundamental importance of physical, face-to-face social-ties in the functioning of cities, these connectivity networks are not explicitly observed in their entirety. Attempts at estimating them often rely on unrealistic over-simplifications such as the assumption of spatial homogeneity. Here we propose a mathematical model of human interactions in terms of a local strategy of maximising the number of beneficial connections attainable under the constraint of limited individual travelling-time budgets. By incorporating census and openly-available online multi-modal transport data, we are able to characterise the connectivity of geometrically and topologically complex cities. Beyond providing a candidate measure of greatness, this model allows one to quantify and assess the impact of transport developments, population growth, and other infrastructure and demographic changes on a city. Supported by validations of GDP and HIV infection rates across United States metropolitan areas, we illustrate the effect of changes in local and city-wide connectivities by considering the economic impact of two contemporary inter- and intra-city transport developments in the United Kingdom: High Speed Rail 2 and London Crossrail. This derivation of the model suggests that the scaling of different urban indicators with population size has an explicitly mechanistic origin.Comment: 19 pages, 8 figure

Intuitive assessment of spatial navigation beyond episodic memory: Feasibility and proof of concept in middle-aged and elderly individuals

Deficits in spatial navigation in three-dimensional space are prevalent in various neurological disorders and are a sensitive cognitive marker for prodromal Alzheimer’s disease, but are also associated with non-pathological aging. However, standard neuropsychological tests used in clinical settings lack ecological validity to adequately assess spatial navigation. Experimental paradigms, on the other hand, are often too difficult for seniors or patients with cognitive or motor impairments since most require operating a human interface device (HID) or use complex episodic memory tasks. Here, we introduce an intuitive navigation assessment, which is conceptualized using cognitive models of spatial navigation and designed to account for the limited technical experience and diverging impairments of elderly participants and neurological patients. The brief computer paradigm uses videos of hallways filmed with eye tracking glasses, without employing an episodic memory task or requiring participants to operate a HID. Proof of concept data from 34 healthy, middle-aged and elderly participants (56–78 years) provide evidence for the assessment’s feasibility and construct validity as a navigation paradigm. Test performance showed normal distribution and was sensitive to age and education, which needs to be considered when investigating the assessment’s psychometric properties in larger samples and clinical populations. Correlations of the navigation assessment with other neuropsychological tests confirmed its dependence on visuospatial skills rather than visual episodic memory, with age driving the association with working memory. The novel paradigm is suitable for a differentiated investigation of spatial navigation in elderly individuals and promising for experimental research in clinical settings

Effects of Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) vapor inhalation in Sprague-Dawley and Wistar rats.

An inhalation system based on e-cigarette technology produces hypothermic and antinociceptive effects of Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in rats. Indirect comparison of some prior investigations suggested differential impact of inhaled THC between Wistar (WI) and Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats; thus, this study was conducted to directly compare the strains across inhaled and injected routes of administration. Groups (N = 8 per strain) of age-matched male SD and WI rats were prepared with radiotelemetry devices to measure temperature and then exposed to vapor from the propylene glycol (PG) vehicle or THC (25-200 mg/mL of PG) for 30 or 40 min. Additional studies evaluated effects of THC inhalation on plasma THC (50-200 mg/mL) and nociception (100-200 mg/mL) as well as the thermoregulatory effect of intraperitoneal injection of THC (5-30 mg/kg). Hypothermic effects of THC were more pronounced in SD rats, where plasma levels of THC were identical across strains, under either fixed inhalation conditions or injection of a mg/kg equivalent dose. Strain differences in hypothermia were largest after i.p. injection of THC, with SD rats exhibiting dose-dependent temperature reduction after 5 or 10 mg/kg, i.p. and the WI rats only exhibiting significant hypothermia after 20 mg/kg, i.p. The antinociceptive effects of inhaled THC (100, 200 mg/mL) did not differ significantly across the strains. These studies confirm an insensitivity of WI rats, compared with SD rats, to hypothermia induced by THC following inhalation conditions that produced identical plasma THC and antinociception. Thus, quantitative, albeit not qualitative, strain differences may be obtained when studying thermoregulatory effects of THC. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved)

MDOCS Poster-2015-11-03, Bill Daniel- General Poster

Bill Daniel, artist, photographer, documentary and Guggenheim Fellow (2008) visited MDOCS on November 3-4, 2015. A multi-disciplinary activist and self-described hobo filmmaker and phototramp, Daniel offers reporting from the margins in a film screening and pop-up exhibit, and lessons on how to build your own vision and opportunities with a workshop on DIY Touring & Exhibition Strategies for Visual and Media Artists. Event details: 11/3 @ 7pm: Film Screening: Who is Bozo Texino? 11/4 @ 5:30-7pm: Discussion/Workshop: DIY Touring & Exhibition Strategies for Visual and Media Artists 11/4 @ 7-10pm: Pop-Up Photography Exhibit & Concert: TRI-X NOISE, with Zine Exhibition and Musical Performances Bill Daniel Texas-born, San Francisco exiled, and confirmed tramp, Bill Daniel continues to experiment with survivalism and bricolage in his attempts to record and report on the various social margins he finds himself in. Currently based on the Texas gulf coast, Daniel divides his time between Texas and touring. Daniel\u27s work has received awards from Creative Capital, Film Arts Foundation, The Pioneer Fund, Texas Filmmaker Production Fund, the R & B Feder Charitable Foundation, and The Western States Media Alliance. He was a Wattis Foundation artist-in-residence at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, where his installation Souls Harbor was exhibited in Dec. In 1999 he was in-residence at The Headlands Center for the Arts where he produced several multi-projection 16mm film installations, including Trespassing Sign in collaboration with the late Margaret Kilgallen. In 2001 his hobo campfire installation The Girl on the Train in the Moon was included in Widely Unknown at Deitch Projects in New York. A veteran of the touring circuit, Daniel has programmed, booked and exhibited several mobile art shows. In 1997-98 he curated a weekly screening series, Funhouse Cinema, in Austin, that also weekly screened in Houston and San Antonio. Daniel is also recognized for his work as cinematographer and editor for filmmaker Craig Baldwin. Other endeavors include zines--contributing photography to The Western Roundup, a punk fanzine in 1981-82 designed by Michael Nott, and publishing/editing Detour, a situationist journal, in 1986. He is also the creator of an experimental sports league, The Texas Gas-Powered Leaf Blower Hockey Association. Bill Daniel was awarded a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship in 2008. He has exhibited film, photography and installation work at The Museum of Modern Art, New York; Sweets Lounge, Biloxi, MS; The New Museum, New York; Wayward Council, Gainesville, FL; Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco; 24/7 House, Columbus, OH; Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; Beehive Collective, Machias, ME; Walker Arts Center, Minneapolis; Sky High Skateboards, Milwaukee, WI; IFFR, Rotterdam; OKC Infoshop, Oklahoma City; Redcat, Los Angeles; Moose Lodge #1735, Austin, TX; Deitch Projects, New York; Railroad Blues, Alpine, TX; Sluggos, Pensacola, FL; The Smell, Los Angeles; Plan B, New Orleans, and several hundred others. You can see more of his work at his website, billdaniel.net

MDOCS Poster-2015-11-04, Bill Daniel: Tri-X-Noise

Event details: 5:30-7pm: DIY Touring & Exhibition Strategies for Visual and Media Artists Description: Artist Bill Daniel has been touring with bands, film shows, installations and pop-up photo shows for 30 years. In this discussion/workshop, he draws a parallel between DIY music networks and the potential for artists in other disciplines to reach non-traditional art audiences in cities and towns across the US. The logistics of booking and producing road shows will be discussed, as well as designing and developing visual and media-based events that can travel and set up easily. DIY attributes if self-reliance, mutual support and working out side of the corporate-supported art ecology are important points covered. The workshop will take place in the context of a walk-around lectuere/discussion with Daniel\u27s current touring project, Tri-X-Noise, a mobile pop-up photography exhibit that is currently touring the US. 7-10pm: The Exhibit & Performance: Tri-X-Noise pop-up exhibit with \u27zine exhibition Description: Hobo filmmaker/phototramp Bill Daniel is back on the road with a pop-up photo show comprised of 30 years of 35mm photographs beginning with the early 80s punk scene in Texas, featuring all of your favorite old school punk bands. Daniel has continued to document various sub cultures using the same camera/lens/flash, and Kodak Tri-X film for over 30 years. This exhibit, all non-digital darkroom prints, charts a path starting with punk shows in Texas, and crawls through various subcultures from the 90s graffiti scene in San Francisco, freight hopping scenarios, art openings in Los Angeles, house shows in Louisiana, generator shows on the Monongahela River, etc... all seen through Daniel\u27s unique, spelunker flash-lit vision. These shows are all one-night pop-up site-specific events, with a free-standing “gallery” -- a free-standing wall that stands in the middle of a space, with photos on both sides. I bring the lighting, and a sound system. It sets up in all kinds of places--- music venues, warehouses, and occasionally galleries. Musical Performances by: Vampire Belt (Chris Corsano and Bill Nace) Noah Prebish and friends Adam Tinkle with student collaborator

Capacity Fade in Lithium-Ion Batteries and Cyclic Aging over Various State-of-Charge Ranges

In order to develop long-lifespan batteries, it is of utmost importance to identify the relevant aging mechanisms and their relation to operating conditions. The capacity loss in a lithium-ion battery originates from (i) a loss of active electrode material and (ii) a loss of active lithium. The focus of this work is the capacity loss caused by lithium loss, which is irreversibly bound to the solid electrolyte interface (SEI) on the graphite surface. During operation, the particle surface suffers from dilation, which causes the SEI to break and then be rebuilt, continuously. The surface dilation is expected to correspond with the well-known graphite staging mechanism. Therefore, a high-power 2.6 Ah graphite/LiNiCoAlO2 cell (Sony US18650VTC5) is cycled at different, well-defined state-of-charge (SOC) ranges, covering the different graphite stages. An open circuit voltage model is applied to quantify the loss mechanisms (i) and (ii). The results show that the lithium loss is the dominant cause of capacity fade under the applied conditions. They experimentally prove the important influence of the graphite stages on the lifetime of a battery. Cycling the cell at SOCs slightly above graphite Stage II results in a high active lithium loss and hence in a high capacity fade