Maximizing PageRank via outlinks

We analyze linkage strategies for a set I of webpages for which the webmaster wants to maximize the sum of Google's PageRank scores. The webmaster can only choose the hyperlinks starting from the webpages of I and has no control on the hyperlinks from other webpages. We provide an optimal linkage strategy under some reasonable assumptions.Comment: 27 pages, 14 figures, submitted to Linear Algebra App

"Dedoublement": the negotiation of gender in transvestism

This thesis is intended to contribute to anthropological and sociological debates on the sources of gender identity and the strategies that are entailed in its management. Cross-dressing among men in western societies has been studied from two major perspectives. One comes from behavioural psychologists and psychiatrists who regard transvestism as deviant behaviour that requires counselling and treatment. This medical model has limited use and is not acceptable to transvestites. Cross-dressing has also been studied from a social scientific perspective that views transvestism in relation to the performance of gender. It is within this perspective that the results of my research are primarily located. The example of male transvestism is particularly instructive because it demonstrates a creative play within shifting sexual boundaries. Male transvestites challenge assumptions about gender practices in the context of every day life when expressing their 'dedoublement' that juxtapose masculinity and femininity. Transvestism is thus an attack on the very notion of gender deviance, which is being mounted by small groups of otherwise very 'ordinary' men. These men also have a developed masculine image reflecting a specifically regional discourse of masculinity that has its origin in socio-economic backgrounds based on heavy industry and its collapse in the 1960s. A similar masculine ideology is present in both areas of my research: the North East of England and Liege in Belgium. Transvestites, by asserting 'feminine within the masculine', seriously transgress this ideology. Transvestites are often rejected on the basis of their non-normative behaviour. The boundaries between 'normal' and 'deviant' are reinforced on a daily basis through, among others factors, the media. To avoid being labelled 'deviant', transvestites tend to keep their behaviour secret or meet with others in groups that have recently began to flourish

Local Leaders in Random Networks

We consider local leaders in random uncorrelated networks, i.e. nodes whose degree is higher or equal than the degree of all of their neighbors. An analytical expression is found for the probability of a node of degree $k$ to be a local leader. This quantity is shown to exhibit a transition from a situation where high degree nodes are local leaders to a situation where they are not when the tail of the degree distribution behaves like the power-law $\sim k^{-\gamma_c}$ with $\gamma_c=3$. Theoretical results are verified by computer simulations and the importance of finite-size effects is discussed.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figure

Who Funds Re/integration? Ensuring sustainable services for trafficking victims

This article discusses the critical importance of re/integration services in the lives of trafficked persons and as central to an effective anti-trafficking response. It outlines how support and resources for re/integration services have so far not been widely available and the impact of this on trafficked persons. The article also discusses different strategies used within one re/integration initiative—the Trafficking Victims Re/integration Programme (TVRP)—to promote sustainable re/integration services given the limited (and now declining) funding for re/integration in the Balkans. These strategies, which have met varying degrees of success, include: (1) advocating for government funding; (2) leveraging private-sector funding and contributions; and (3) establishing social enterprises to fund re/integration services. The article concludes by advocating greater attention to re/integration services for trafficked persons, including working creatively and collaboratively with civil society, government, the private sector and donors, to ensure that re/integration services are conceptualised, implemented and funded in ways that are sustainable and, thus, offer critical support to trafficked persons.¿Quién financia la re/integración? Asegurando servicios sostenibles para las víctimas de trataResumenEste artículo estudia la importancia de los servicios de re/integración en las vidas de las personas objeto de la trata como un aspecto central en la respuesta efectiva a este fenómeno. Se parte de la idea de que los recursos y la asistencia en los servicios de re/integración no han estado abiertamente disponibles y cómo este hecho ha afectado a las víctimas. El texto también expone diferentes estrategias que se han utilizado en una iniciativa de re/integración -el Programa de Re/integración de Víctimas de Trata (TVRP por sus siglas en inglés)- para promover la sostenibilidad de los servicios de re/integración, teniendo en cuenta la limitada (y ahora en descenso) financiación para la re/integración en los Balcanes. Estas estrategias, que han incluido diversos niveles de éxito, incluyen: 1) abogar por la financiación gubernamental; 2) potenciar la contribución y financiación por parte del sector privado; y 3) establecer empresas sociales para financiar los servicios de re/integración. El artículo concluye defendiendo una mayor atención a los servicios de re/integración para las personas objeto de la trata, incluyendo propuestas de trabajo creativas y en colaboración con la sociedad civil, gobiernos, sector privado y donantes, para asegurar que los servicios de re/integración sean conceptualizados, implementados y financiados de forma sostenible y, por tanto, sean capaces de ofrecer una asistencia imprescindible a las personas objeto de la trata