3,003 research outputs found
Efficient algorithms for pairing-based cryptosystems
We describe fast new algorithms to implement recent cryptosystems based on the Tate pairing. In particular, our techniques improve pairing evaluation speed by a factor of about 55 compared to previously known methods in characteristic 3, and attain performance comparable
to that of RSA in larger characteristics.We also propose faster algorithms for scalar multiplication in characteristic 3 and square root extraction
over Fpm, the latter technique being also useful in contexts other than that of pairing-based cryptography
An Economic Study of the Effect of Android Platform Fragmentation on Security Updates
Vendors in the Android ecosystem typically customize their devices by
modifying Android Open Source Project (AOSP) code, adding in-house developed
proprietary software, and pre-installing third-party applications. However,
research has documented how various security problems are associated with this
customization process.
We develop a model of the Android ecosystem utilizing the concepts of game
theory and product differentiation to capture the competition involving two
vendors customizing the AOSP platform. We show how the vendors are incentivized
to differentiate their products from AOSP and from each other, and how prices
are shaped through this differentiation process. We also consider two types of
consumers: security-conscious consumers who understand and care about security,
and na\"ive consumers who lack the ability to correctly evaluate security
properties of vendor-supplied Android products or simply ignore security. It is
evident that vendors shirk on security investments in the latter case.
Regulators such as the U.S. Federal Trade Commission have sanctioned Android
vendors for underinvestment in security, but the exact effects of these
sanctions are difficult to disentangle with empirical data. Here, we model the
impact of a regulator-imposed fine that incentivizes vendors to match a minimum
security standard. Interestingly, we show how product prices will decrease for
the same cost of customization in the presence of a fine, or a higher level of
regulator-imposed minimum security.Comment: 22nd International Conference on Financial Cryptography and Data
Security (FC 2018
Pasture Land Management System Decision Support Software
Controlled or rotational grazing provides benefits to producers and society through profitable and sound management of grazing land and livestock. Pasture land management system (PLMS) is a decision support system developed to help university, government, and professionals provide technical pasture management assistance to beef and dairy producers. The PLMS focuses on the balance between seasonal forage supply and nutrient demand in a dairy or beef cattle operation. It allows users to explore and compare alternatives (dividing fields into multiple paddocks, changing stocking rates, and forage species) through a visual display and embedded simulation. Users enter a description of the farm by drawing a map. Maps can be drawn freehand, traced over a scanned image, or GIS data may be incorporated. Once map and field data are entered the grazing options are specified via input screens. Grazing systems can be easily compared without economic risk and with almost immediate feedback on how these alternative systems affect variables like milk production and pounds of beef sold. PLMS serves as both an educational tool and a strategic planning tool for evaluating alternative grazing operations and management related investments (website: http://clic.cses.vt.edu/PLMS/)
A Novel Device for the Measurement of the Mechanical and Magnetic Axes of Superconducting Magnet Assemblies for Accelerators
In the context of the LHC superconducting magnet production, especially for dipoles and quadrupoles due to their complexity, it is foreseen to perform acceptance tests, at an early production stage, to detect possible significant deviations from the design values. The knowledge of the magnetic field geometry is very important, especially for the main magnets. In order to get this information a new device has been conceived that measures the magnets at room temperature during different stages of construction. This device incorporates a sensitive measuring probe and an efficient data acquisition system because the coils are only powered at about 10-5 of the nominal D.C. current. It is dedicated to Quadrupole and Dipole (by using Quadrupole-Configured Dipole (QCD) transformation) magnets, but is also easily adaptable to higher order magnets (n = 3, 4 and 5) by specific orientation of the search coils. It is equipped with magnetic sensors (4 fixed tangential coils and AC excitation current for the magnet) and position sensors (3D-laser tracker and light reflector) that allow the simultaneous detection of the magnetic field axis and the cold bore axis. It is equipped as well with a set of 4 LEDs and associated with a CCD camera that allows both the measurement of the cold bore diameter and its position with respect to the mole. This paper describes the system and reports the first results measured on the pre-series magnets recently assembled
Communication: XUV transient absorption spectroscopy of iodomethane and iodobenzene photodissociation
Time-resolved extreme ultraviolet (XUV) transient absorption spectroscopy of
iodomethane and iodobenzene photodissociation at the iodine pre-N4,5 edge is
presented, using femtosecond UV pump pulses and XUV probe pulses from high
harmonic generation. For both molecules the molecular core-to-valence
absorption lines fade immediately, within the pump-probe time-resolution.
Absorption lines converging to the atomic iodine product emerge promptly in
CH3I but are time-delayed in C6H5I. We attribute this delay to the initial Ï â
Ï* excitation in iodobenzene, which is distant from the iodine reporter atom.
We measure a continuous shift in energy of the emerging atomic absorption
lines in CH3I, attributed to relaxation of the excited valence shell. An
independent particle model is used to rationalize the observed experimental
findings
Control of rotorcraft retreating blade stall using air-jet vortex generators
A series of low-speed wind tunnel tests were carried out on an oscillating airfoil fitted with two rows of air-jet vortex generators (AJVGs). The airfoil used had an RAE 9645 section and the two spanwise arrays of AJVGs were located at x/c=0.12 and 0.62. The devices and their distribution were chosen to assess their ability to modify/control dynamic stall; the goal being to enhance the aerodynamic performance of helicopter rotors on the retreating blade side of the disc. The model was pitched about the quarter chord with a reduced frequency
(k) of 0.1 in a sinusoidal motion defined by a=15o+10sin_ t. The measured data indicate that, for continuous blowing from the front row of AJVGs with a momentum blowing coefficient (C μ) greater than 0.008, modifications to the stalling process are encouraging. In particular, the pitching moment behavior exhibits delayed stall and there is a marked reduction in the normal force hysteresis
Analysis of model rotor blade pressures during parallel interaction with twin vortices
This paper presents and provides analysis of unsteady surface pressures measured on a model rotor blade as the blade experienced near parallel blade vortex interaction with a twin vortex system. To provide a basis for analysis, the vortex system was characterized by hot-wire measurements made in the interaction plane but in the absence of the rotor. The unsteady pressure response resulting from a single vortex interaction is then presented to provide a frame of reference for the twin vortex results. A series of twin vortex interaction cases are then presented and analyzed. It is shown that the unsteady blade pressures and forces are very sensitive to the inclination angle and separation distance of the vortex pair. When the vortex cores lie almost parallel to the blade chord, the interaction is characterized by a two-stage response associated with the sequential passage of the two cores. Conversely, when the cores lie on a plane that is almost perpendicular to the blade chord, the response is similar to that of a single vortex interaction. In all cases, the normal force response is consistent with the distribution of vertical velocity in the flow field of the vortex system. The pitching moment response, on the other hand, depends on the localized suction associated with the vortex cores as they traverse the blade chord
Models and experimental results from the wide aperture Nb-Ti magnets for the LHC upgrade
MQXC is a Nb-Ti quadrupole designed to meet the accelerator quality
requirements needed for the phase-1 LHC upgrade, now superseded by the high
luminosity upgrade foreseen in 2021. The 2-m-long model magnet was tested at
room temperature and 1.9 K. The technology developed for this magnet is
relevant for other magnets currently under development for the high-luminosity
upgrade, namely D1 (at KEK) and the large aperture twin quadrupole Q4 (at CEA).
In this paper we present MQXC test results, some of the specialized heat
extraction features, spot heaters, temperature sensor mounting and voltage tap
development for the special open cable insulation. We look at some problem
solving with noisy signals, give an overview of electrical testing, look at how
we calculate the coil resistance during at quench and show that the heaters are
not working We describe the quench signals and its timing, the development of
the quench heaters and give an explanation of an Excel quench calculation and
its comparison including the good agreement with the MQXC test results. We
propose an improvement to the magnet circuit design to reduce voltage to ground
values by factor 2. The program is then used to predict quench Hot-Spot and
Voltages values for the D1 dipole and the Q4 quadrupole.Comment: 8 pages, Contribution to WAMSDO 2013: Workshop on Accelerator Magnet,
Superconductor, Design and Optimization; 15 - 16 Jan 2013, CERN, Geneva,
Switzerlan
Statistics for Fission-Track Thermochronology
This chapter introduces statistical tools to extract geologically meaningful information from fission-track (FT) data using both the external detector and LA-ICP-MS methods. The spontaneous fission of 238U is a Poisson process resulting in large single-grain age uncertainties. To overcome this imprecision, it is nearly always necessary to analyse multiple grains per sample. The degree to which the analytical uncertainties can explain the observed scatter of the single-grain data can be visually assessed on a radial plot and objectively quantified by a chi-square test. For sufficiently low values of the chi-square statistic (or sufficiently high p values), the pooled age of all the grains gives a suitable description of the underlying âtrueâ age population. Samples may fail the chi-square test for several reasons. A first possibility is that the true age population does not consist of a single discrete age component, but is characterised by a continuous range of ages. In this case, a ârandom effectsâ model can constrain the true age distribution using two parameters: the âcentral ageâ and the â(over)dispersionâ. A second reason why FT data sets might fail the chi-square test is if they are underlain by multimodal age distributions. Such distributions may consist of discrete age components, continuous age distributions, or a combination of the two. Formalised statistical tests such as chi-square can be useful in preventing overfitting of relatively small data sets. However, they should be used with caution when applied to large data sets (including length measurements) which generate sufficient statistical âpowerâ to reject any simple yet geologically plausible hypothesis
Levinson's theorem and scattering phase shift contributions to the partition function of interacting gases in two dimensions
We consider scattering state contributions to the partition function of a
two-dimensional (2D) plasma in addition to the bound-state sum. A partition
function continuity requirement is used to provide a statistical mechanical
heuristic proof of Levinson's theorem in two dimensions. We show that a proper
account of scattering eliminates singularities in thermodynamic properties of
the nonideal 2D gas caused by the emergence of additional bound states as the
strength of an attractive potential is increased. The bound-state contribution
to the partition function of the 2D gas, with a weak short-range attraction
between its particles, is found to vanish logarithmically as the binding energy
decreases. A consistent treatment of bound and scattering states in a screened
Coulomb potential allowed us to calculate the quantum-mechanical second virial
coefficient of the dilute 2D electron-hole plasma and to establish the
difference between the nearly ideal electron-hole gas in GaAs and the strongly
correlated exciton/free-carrier plasma in wide-gap semiconductors such as ZnSe
or GaN.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures; new version corrects some minor typo
- âŠ