Simulating spatial market share patterns for impacts analysis of large-scale shopping centers on downtown revitalization

The decline of the downtown has been observed in many cities across the world. In response, many small cities in Japan, for example, have been making regeneration efforts including development controls on large-scale shopping centers. It is extremely useful to analyze the potential effects of relevant planning policies before implementation. We developed an urban planning support tool, a multiagent simulation (MAS) model called Shopsim-MAS, to investigate the impacts of some downtown revitalization policies through consequent spatial dynamics of shop market shares. We discuss methods to model household behavior and to understand the market area dynamics of shops. The Shopsim-MAS model developed in this project has proven to be a useful means to analyze the impact of downtown revitalization policies in Japan. It is also expected to be further expanded for impact analysis of similar or more sophisticated urban policies in other parts of the world.

Small-molecule mimicry hunting strategy in the imperial cone snail, Conus imperialis

Venomous animals hunt using bioactive peptides, but relatively little is known about venom small molecules and the resulting complex hunting behaviors. Here, we explored the specialized metabolites from the venom of the worm-hunting cone snail, Conus imperialis. Using the model polychaete worm Platynereis dumerilii, we demonstrate that C. imperialis venom contains small molecules that mimic natural polychaete mating pheromones, evoking the mating phenotype in worms. The specialized metabolites from different cone snails are species-specific and structurally diverse, suggesting that the cones may adopt many different prey-hunting strategies enabled by small molecules. Predators sometimes attract prey using the prey\u27s own pheromones, in a strategy known as aggressive mimicry. Instead, C. imperialis uses metabolically stable mimics of those pheromones, indicating that, in biological mimicry, even the molecules themselves may be disguised, providing a twist on fake news in chemical ecology