TRAVOS: Trust and Reputation in the Context of Inaccurate Information Sources

In many dynamic open systems, agents have to interact with one another to achieve their goals. Here, agents may be self-interested, and when trusted to perform an action for another, may betray that trust by not performing the action as required. In addition, due to the size of such systems, agents will often interact with other agents with which they have little or no past experience. There is therefore a need to develop a model of trust and reputation that will ensure good interactions among software agents in large scale open systems. Against this background, we have developed TRAVOS (Trust and Reputation model for Agent-based Virtual OrganisationS) which models an agent's trust in an interaction partner. Specifically, trust is calculated using probability theory taking account of past interactions between agents, and when there is a lack of personal experience between agents, the model draws upon reputation information gathered from third parties. In this latter case, we pay particular attention to handling the possibility that reputation information may be inaccurate

Formulation and Evaluation of Controlled-Release Tablet of Zolpidem Tartrate by Melt Granulation Technique

The present investigation describes the influence of the concentration of PEG 6000 as a melt binder and ratio of HPMC K4M : PVP on Zolpidem tartrate controlled-release tablet formulations using 32 full factorial design. The ratio of HPMC K4M and PVP K30 (X1) and the concentration of melt binder (X2) were selected as independent variables, and drug release at 1 hr (Q1), 4 hr (Q4), 8 hr (Q8), diffusion coefficient (n), and release rate constant (K) were selected as a dependent variable. Tablets were prepared by melt granulation technique and evaluated for various evaluation parameters. It was observed that concentration of melt binder had significant effect on Q1, Q4, n, and K Binder concentration 25% w/w was found optimum. Optimized formulation (F7) showed good similarity with theoretical profile of drug. The X2 variable had a significant effect on dependent variables, and the X1 variable had no significant effect on dependent variables

The ART of IAM: The Winning Strategy for the 2006 Competition

In many dynamic open systems, agents have to interact with one another to achieve their goals. Here, agents may be self-interested, and when trusted to perform an action for others, may betray that trust by not performing the actions as required. In addition, due to the size of such systems, agents will often interact with other agents with which they have little or no past experience. This situation has led to the development of a number of trust and reputation models, which aim to facilitate an agent's decision making in the face of uncertainty regarding the behaviour of its peers. However, these multifarious models employ a variety of different representations of trust between agents, and measure performance in many different ways. This has made it hard to adequately evaluate the relative properties of different models, raising the need for a common platform on which to compare competing mechanisms. To this end, the ART Testbed Competition has been proposed, in which agents using different trust models compete against each other to provide services in an open marketplace. In this paper, we present the winning strategy for this competition in 2006, provide an analysis of the factors that led to this success, and discuss lessons learnt from the competition about issues of trust in multiagent systems in general. Our strategy, IAM, is Intelligent (using statistical models for opponent modelling), Abstemious (spending its money parsimoniously based on its trust model) and Moral (providing fair and honest feedback to those that request it)

Reduction of cogging torque of radial flux permanent magnet brushless DC motor by magnet shifting technique

  Introduction. In spite of many advantages of radial flux permanent magnet brushless DC motors it suffers from the distinct disadvantage of high cogging torque. The designer must emphasize to reduce the cogging torque during the design stage. This paper introduces magnet shifting technique to mitigate cogging torque of surface mounted radial flux brushless DC motor. Methodology. Initially 200 W, 1000 rpm surface mounted radial flux permanent magnet brushless DC motor is designed with symmetrical placement of permanent magnets with respect to each other on rotor core. Cogging torque profile of this initial motor is obtained by performing finite element modelling and analysis. Originality. This design has been improved by shifting the position of permanent magnets with respect to adjacent permanent magnets. The effect of magnet shifting on cogging torque has been analyzed by performing finite element analysis. Results. It has been examined that the peak to peak cogging torque is decreased from 1.1 N×m to 0.6 N×m with shifting of permanent magnets respectively.Вступ. Незважаючи на багато переваг безщіткових двигунів постійного струму з радіальним магнітним потоком, вони мають явний недолік, що полягає у високому крутному моменті зубчатої передачі. Проектувальник повинен зосередитись на зниженні крутного моменту зубчатої передачі на етапі проектування. У цій статті представлена методика зсуву магніту для зменшення крутного моменту зубчатої передачі безщіткового двигуна постійного струму з радіальним потоком, встановленого на поверхні. Методологія. Спочатку безщітковий двигун постійного струму з радіальним магнітним потоком потужністю 200 Вт, 1000 об/хв спроектований із симетричним розміщенням постійних магнітів відносно один одного на сердечнику ротора. Розподіл крутного моменту зубчатої передачі цього початкового двигуна отриманий шляхом аналізу методом скінчених елементів (МСЕ). Оригінальність. Ця конструкція була вдосконалена за рахунок зсуву положення постійних магнітів по відношенню до сусідніх постійних магнітів. Вплив зсуву магніту на крутний момент зубчатої передачі було проаналізовано за допомогою аналізу МСЕ. Результати. Досліджено, що піковий крутний  момент зубчатої передачі зменшився з 1,1 Н×м до 0,6 Н×м, відповідно, при зсуві постійних магнітів

Hot Core, Outflows and Magnetic Fields in W43-MM1 (G30.79 FIR 10)

We present submillimeter spectral line and dust continuum polarization observations of a remarkable hot core and multiple outflows in the high-mass star-forming region W43-MM1 (G30.79 FIR 10), obtained using the Submillimeter Array (SMA). A temperature of $\sim$ 400 K is estimated for the hot-core using CH$_3$CN (J=19-18) lines, with detections of 11 K-ladder components. The high temperature and the mass estimates for the outflows indicate high-mass star-formation. The continuum polarization pattern shows an ordered distribution, and its orientation over the main outflow appears aligned to the outflow. The derived magnetic field indicates slightly super-critical conditions. While the magnetic and outflow energies are comparable, the B-field orientation appears to have changed from parsec scales to $\sim$ 0.1 pc scales during the core/star-formation process.Comment: accepted, ApJ Letter

Submillimeter-wave emission of three Galactic red novae: cool molecular outflows produced by stellar mergers

Red novae are optical transients erupting at luminosities typically higher than those of classical novae. Their outbursts are believed to be caused by stellar mergers. We present millimeter/submillimeter-wave observations with ALMA and SMA of the three best known Galactic red novae, V4332 Sgr, V1309 Sco, and V838 Mon. The observations were taken 22, 8, and 14 yr after their respective eruptions and reveal the presence of molecular gas at excitation temperatures of 35-200 K. The gas displays molecular emission in rotational transitions with very broad lines (full width $\sim$400 km\s). We found emission of CO, SiO, SO, SO$_2$ (in all three red novae), H$_2$S (covered only in V838 Mon) and AlO (present in V4332 Sgr and V1309 Sco). No anomalies were found in the isotopic composition of the molecular material and the chemical (molecular) compositions of the three red novae appear similar to those of oxygen-rich envelopes of classical evolved stars (RSGs, AGBs, post-AGBs). The minimum masses of the molecular material that most likely was dispersed in the red-nova eruptions are 0.1, 0.01, and 10$^{-4}$ M$_{\odot}$ for V838 Mon, V4332 Sgr, and V1309 Sco, respectively. The molecular outflows in V4332 Sgr and V1309 Sco are spatially resolved and appear bipolar. The kinematic distances to V1309 Sco and V4332 Sgr are 2.1 and 4.2 kpc, respectively. The kinetic energy stored in the ejecta of the two older red-nova remnants of V838 Mon and V4332 Sgr is of order $10^{46}$ erg, similar to values found for some post-AGB (pre-PN) objects whose bipolar ejecta were also formed in a short-duration eruption. Our observations strengthen the link between these post-AGB objects and red novae and support the hypothesis that some of the post-AGB objects were formed in a common-envelope ejection event or its most catastrophic outcome, a merger.Comment: 19 pages, 13 figures, accepted to A&

Studies on Fruit and Yield Traits in Indigenous Coloured Varieties of Mango (Mangifera indica L.) in South Gujarat, India

An investigation on fruit descriptors and yield in twelve mango varieties was conducted under South Gujarat conditions. Maximum fruit length was recorded in cv. Totapuri (16.23cm). Vanraj showed the highest values for fruit width (11.67cm), fruit circumference (37.37cm), fruit weight (729g), fruit volume (575.59cm3) and fruit pulp (78.93%). Maximum TSS (21.20%), acidity (0.42%) and fruit firmness (7.00 rating) was observed in cvs. Deshi-1, Deshi-3 and Makaram, respectively. 'Totapuri' had maximum total shelf-life (21.33 days), number of fruits per tree (383.00) and fruit yield (236.80kg/tree). The varieties had green to yellow ground-colour of peel. All the varieties had red-blush peel colour, excepting cvs. Dadamio, Makaram and Swarnarekha which were purplish-red. Similarly, pulp colour ranged from light yellow to light orange. Based on overall performance, cvs. Alphonso, Deshi-1, Deshi-2, Kesar, Khandesi Borasio, Totapuri and Vanraj proved to be superior to the other varieties

Formulation and Evaluation of Transdermal Patch of Repaglinide

Repaglinide has the half life of 1 hour, and bioavailability in the body is 56% due to first-pass metabolism. The total daily dose of Repaglinide is 16 mg (e.g., 4 mg four times daily depending on meal patterns); hence, it required frequent dosing. Transdermal patch of Repaglinide was prepared to sustain the release and improve bioavailability of drug and patient compliance. Different formulations were prepared by varying the grades of HPMC and concentration of PVP K30 by solvent casting method. The prepared formulations were evaluated for various parameters like thickness, tensile strength, folding endurance, % elongation, % moisture content, % moisture uptake, % drug content, in vitro drug release, in vitro permeation, and drug excipient compatibility. A 32 full factorial design was applied to check the effect of varying the grades of HPMC (X1) and PVP concentration (X2) on the responses, that is, tensile strength, percentage drug released in 1 hr (Q1), 9 hr (Q9), and diffusion coefficient as a dependent variables. In vitro release data were fitted to various models to ascertain kinetic of drug release. Regression analysis and analysis of variance were performed for dependent variables. The results of the F2 statistics between factorial design batches and theoretical profile were used to select optimized batch. Batch F6 was considered optimum batch which contained HPMC K100 and PVP (1.5%), showed release 92.343% up to 12 hr, and was more similar to the theoretical predicted dissolution profile (f2 = 69.187)