Implicit Simulations using Messaging Protocols

A novel algorithm for performing parallel, distributed computer simulations on the Internet using IP control messages is introduced. The algorithm employs carefully constructed ICMP packets which enable the required computations to be completed as part of the standard IP communication protocol. After providing a detailed description of the algorithm, experimental applications in the areas of stochastic neural networks and deterministic cellular automata are discussed. As an example of the algorithms potential power, a simulation of a deterministic cellular automaton involving 10^5 Internet connected devices was performed.Comment: 14 pages, 3 figure

Supporting proactive management in the context of climate change: Prioritizaing range-shifting invasive plants based on impact

Non-native, invasive plants are projected to shift their ranges with climate change, creating hotspots of risk where a multitude of novel species may soon establish and spread. The Northeast U.S. is one such hotspot. However, because monitoring for novel species is costly, these range-shifting invasive plants need to be prioritized. Preventing negative impacts is a key goal of management, thus, comparing the potential impacts of range-shifting invasive species could inform this prioritization. Here, we adapted the Environmental Impacts Classification for Alien Taxa (EICAT) protocol to evaluate potential impacts of 100 invasive plants that could establish either currently or by 2050 in the states of New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, or Rhode Island. We searched Web of Science for each species and identified papers reporting ecological, economic, human health, or agricultural impacts. We scored ecological impacts from 1 (‘minimal concern’) to 4 (‘major’) and socio-ecological impacts as present or absent. We evaluated 865 impact studies and categorized 20 species as high-impact, 36 as medium-impact, and 26 as low-impact. We further refined high-impact invasive species based on whether major impacts affect ecosystems found in Northeast U.S. and identified five high-priority species: Anthriscus caucalis, Arundo donax, Avena barbata, Ludwigia grandiflora, and Rubus ulmifolius. Additional research is needed for 18 data-deficient species, which had no studies reporting impacts. Identifying and prioritizing range-shifting invasive plants provides a unique opportunity for early detection and rapid response that targets future problem species before they can establish and spread. This research illustrates the feasibility of using impacts assessments on range-shifting invasive species in order to inform proactive policy and management

Regional Invasive Species & Climate Change Management Challenge: Prioritizing range-shifting invasive plants High-impact species coming to the Northeast

Prevention of new invasions is a cost-effective way to manage invasive species and is most effective when emerging invaders are identified and prioritized before they arrive. Climate change is projected to bring nearly 100 new invasive plants to the Northeast. However, these plants are likely to have different types of impacts, making some a higher concern than others. Here, we summarize the results of original RISCC research that identifies high priority, range-shifting invasive plants based on their potential impacts

The City of Glasgow Bank failure and the case for liability reform

The City of Glasgow Bank failure in 1878, which led to large numbers of shareholders becoming insolvent, generated great public concern about their plight, and led directly to the 1879 Companies Act, which paved the way for the adoption of limited liability for all shareholders. In this paper, we focus on the question of why the opportunity was not taken to distinguish between the appropriate liability for ‘insiders,’ i.e. those with direct access to information and power over decisions, as contrasted with ‘outsiders.’ We record that such issues were raised and discussed at the time, and we report why proposals for any such graded liability were turned down. We argue that the reasons for rejecting graded liability for insiders were overstated, both then and subsequently. While we believe that the case for such graded liability needs reconsideration, it does remain a complex matter, as discussed in Section 4

Comparative analysis of tunisian sheep-like virus, bungowannah virus and border disease virus infection in the porcine host

Apart from the established pestivirus species Pestivirus A to Pestivirus K novel species emerged. Pigs represent not only hosts for porcine pestiviruses, but are also susceptible to bovine viral diarrhea virus, border disease virus (BDV) and other ruminant pestiviruses. The present study focused on the characterization of the ovine Tunisian sheep-like virus (TSV) as well as Bungowannah virus (BuPV) and BDV strain Frijters, which were isolated from pigs. For this purpose, we performed genetic characterization based on complete coding sequences, studies on virus replication in cell culture and in domestic pigs, and cross-neutralization assays using experimentally derived sera. TSV forms a distinct phylogenetic group more closely related to Pestivirus C (classical swine fever virus, CSFV) than to Pestivirus D (BDV). In contrast to BDV and BuPV, TSV replicates by far more efficiently on ovine than on porcine cells. Nevertheless, pigs were susceptible to TSV. As a consequence of close antigenic relatedness of TSV to CSFV, cross-reactivity was detected in CSFV-specific antibody assays. In conclusion, TSV is genetically closely related to CSFV and can replicate in domestic pigs. Due to close antigenic relatedness, field infections of pigs with TSV and other ruminant pestiviruses can interfere with serological diagnosis of classical swine fever

Infrared and sub-mm observations of outbursting young stars with Herschel and Spitzer

Episodic accretion plays an important role in the evolution of young stars. Although it has been under investigation for a long time, the origin of such episodic accretion events is not yet understood. We investigate the dust and gas emission of a sample of young outbursting sources in the infrared to get a better understanding of their properties and circumstellar material, and we use the results in a further work to model the objects. We used Herschel data, from our PI program of 12 objects and complemented with archival observations to obtain the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) and spectra of our targets. We report here the main characteristics of our sample, focussing on the SED properties and on the gas emission lines detected in the PACS and SPIRE spectra. The SEDs of our sample show the diversity of the outbursting sources, with several targets showing strong emission in the far-infrared from the embedded objects. Most of our targets reside in a complex environment, which we discuss in detail. We detected several atomic and molecular lines, in particular rotational CO emission from several transitions from J=38-37 to J=4-3. We constructed rotational diagrams for the CO lines, and derived in three domains of assumed local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE) temperatures and column densities, ranging mainly between 0-100 K and 400-500K. We confirm correlation in our sample between intense CO $J=16-15$ emission and the column density of the warm domain of CO, N(warm). We notice a strong increase in luminosity of HH 381 IRS and a weaker increase for PP 13 S, which shows the beginning of an outburst.Comment: 23 pages, 17 figures, A&A accepte

River Restoration in the Twenty-First Century: Data and Experiential Knowledge to Inform Future Efforts

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/71999/1/j.1526-100X.2007.00243.x.pd

An Augmented OxRAM Synapse for Spiking Neural Network (SNN) Circuits

International audienceIn this paper, the conductance modulation of OxRAM memristive devices is evaluated based on experimental data to reveal the memristor inherent analog synaptic behavior. Simulation results are presented to validate the use of OxRAMs as synapses at a circuit level in a spiking neural network context. In the proposed approach, the OxRAM synapse is augmented with a shift register associated with current compliance control transistors to provide an efficient monitoring of the OxRAM conductance

Climatology of Rossby wave breaking along the subtropical tropopause

ABSTRACT Ten years of global analyses from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts are used to investigate the temporal and spatial distributions of Rossby wave breaking (RWB) at 350 K along the tropopause, herein defined by the Ϯ1.5 potential vorticity (PV) unit (10 Ϫ6 K m 2 s Ϫ1 kg Ϫ1 ) contours. Though many studies acknowledge RWB as an important contributor to the complex of mixing processes in the atmosphere, there exists no prior climatological study of its distribution near the tropopause. As in previous studies, RWB is identified in the global analyses by southward directed PV gradients. At 350 K, RWB along the tropopause occurs preferentially during summer over the midoceans, in relative proximity to the planetary-scale high pressure systems in the subtropics. Isentropic trajectories at 350 K show that outflow from the tops of these subtropical highs directly participates in RWB over the adjacent, downstream oceanic regions. Two regions are highlighted in this study: the North Pacific during boreal summer and the South Atlantic during austral summer. Synoptic maps of breaking Rossby waves in these regions are provided to reveal the acute tropopause folding in the meridional plane, which characteristically accompanies RWB. The rich interaction between the tropical flow and the extratropical westerly current exhibited by these cases suggests that the subtropical highs serve as important agents in the coupling between the tropical troposphere and the extratropical stratosphere. As expected from theoretical considerations, the locations where RWB occurs most frequently, known as ''surf zones,'' are shown to coexist with regionally weak time-mean wind speeds and horizontal gradients of PV at 350 K