Stochastic user equilibrium in the presence of state dependence

We consider the following two state-dependent effects at the level of route choice: inertia to change and, as a consequence of experience, lower perception variance for the currently used route. A heteroscedastic extreme value model embodying heterogeneity across alternatives in the mean of the random terms is used. Estimations based on stated preference data confirm the presence of both state-dependent effects. We introduce a new class of stochastic user equilibrium (SUE) models that take state-dependent effects into account. The class includes conventional SUE as special case. The equilibrium conditions are formulated as fixed-point states of deterministic day-to-day assignment processes. At the equilibrium (1) no user can improve her/his utility by unilaterally changing route, and (2) if each user shifts from her/his current route to her/his newly chosen route the observed route flows do not change. The existence of the equilibrium is guaranteed under usually satisfied conditions. A modified method of successive averages is proposed for solution. Examples related to a two arc network and to the Nguyen-Dupuis network illustrate the model

Reference-Dependent Stochastic User Equilibrium with Endogenous Reference Points

We consider the application of reference-dependent consumer choice theory to traffic assignment on transportation networks. Route choice is modelled based on random utility maximisation with systematic utility embodying loss aversion for the travel time and money expenditure attributes. Stochastic user equilibrium models found in the literature have considered exogenously given reference points. The paper proposes a model where reference points are determined consistently with the equilibrium flows and travel times. The referencedependent stochastic user equilibrium (RDSUE) is defined as the condition where (i) no user can improve her utility by unilaterally changing path, (ii) each user has as reference point the current travel time and the money expenditure of one of the available paths, and (iii) if each user updates the reference point to her current path the observed path flows do not change. These conditions are formally equivalent to a multi-class stochastic equilibrium where each class is associated with a path and has as reference point the current state on the path, and the number of users in each class equals the current flow on the path. The RDSUE is formulated as a fixed point problem in the path flows. Existence of RDSUE is guaranteed under usual assumptions. A heuristic algorithm based on the method of successive averages is proposed to solve the problem. The model is illustrated by two numerical examples, one relates to a two-link network and another to the Nguyen-Dupuit network. A reference-dependent route choice model calibrated on stated preference data is used. The second example serves also to demonstrate the algorithm. The impact on the equilibrium of different assumptions on the degree of loss aversion with respect to the travel time attribute are investigated

Genomic and physiological characterization of Bacilli isolated from salt-pans with plant growth promoting features

© The Author(s), 2021. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Petrillo, C., Castaldi, S., Lanzilli, M., Selci, M., Cordone, A., Giovannelli, D., & Isticato, R. Genomic and physiological characterization of Bacilli isolated from salt-pans with plant growth promoting features. Frontiers in Microbiology, 12, (2021): 715678, https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2021.715678.Massive application of chemical fertilizers and pesticides has been the main strategy used to cope with the rising crop demands in the last decades. The indiscriminate use of chemicals while providing a temporary solution to food demand has led to a decrease in crop productivity and an increase in the environmental impact of modern agriculture. A sustainable alternative to the use of agrochemicals is the use of microorganisms naturally capable of enhancing plant growth and protecting crops from pests known as Plant-Growth-Promoting Bacteria (PGPB). Aim of the present study was to isolate and characterize PGPB from salt-pans sand samples with activities associated to plant fitness increase. To survive high salinity, salt-tolerant microbes produce a broad range of compounds with heterogeneous biological activities that are potentially beneficial for plant growth. A total of 20 halophilic spore-forming bacteria have been screened in vitro for phyto-beneficial traits and compared with other two members of Bacillus genus recently isolated from the rhizosphere of the same collection site and characterized as potential biocontrol agents. Whole-genome analysis on seven selected strains confirmed the presence of numerous gene clusters with PGP and biocontrol functions and of novel secondary-metabolite biosynthetic genes, which could exert beneficial impacts on plant growth and protection. The predicted biocontrol potential was confirmed in dual culture assays against several phytopathogenic fungi and bacteria. Interestingly, the presence of predicted gene clusters with known biocontrol functions in some of the isolates was not predictive of the in vitro results, supporting the need of combining laboratory assays and genome mining in PGPB identification for future applications

The Italian TREETALKER NETWORK (ITT-Net): continuous large scale monitoring of tree functional traits and vulnerabilities to climate change

20openItalian coauthor/editorThe Italian TREETALKER NETWORK (ITT-Net) aims to respond to one of the grand societal challenges: the impact of climate changes on forests ecosystem services and forest dieback. The comprehension of the link between these phenomena requires to complement the most classical approaches with a new monitoring paradigm based on large scale, single tree, high frequency and long-term monitoring tree physiology, which, at present, is limited by the still elevated costs of multi-sensor devices, their energy demand and maintenance not always suitable for monitoring in remote areas. The ITT-Net network will be a unique and unprecedented worldwide example of real time, large scale, high frequency and long-term monitoring of tree physiological parameters. By spring 2020, as part of a national funded project (PRIN) the network will have set 37 sites from the north-east Alps to Sicily where a new low cost, multisensor technology “the TreeTalker®” equipped to measure tree radial growth, sap flow, transmitted light spectral components related to foliage dieback and physiology and plant stability (developed by Nature 4.0), will monitor over 600 individual trees. A radio LoRa protocol for data transmission and access to cloud services will allow to transmit in real time high frequency data on the WEB cloud with a unique IoT identifier to a common database where big data analysis will be performed to explore the causal dependency of climate events and environmental disturbances with tree functionality and resilience. With this new network, we aim to create a new knowledge, introducing a massive data observation and analysis, about the frequency, intensity and dynamical patterns of climate anomalies perturbation on plant physiological response dynamics in order to: 1) characterize the space of “normal or safe tree operation mode” during average climatic conditions; 2) identify the non-linear tree responses beyond the safe operation mode, induced by extreme events, and the tipping points; 3) test the possibility to use a high frequency continuous monitoring system to identify early warning signals of tree stress which might allow to follow tree dynamics under climate change in real time at a resolution and accuracy that cannot always be provided through forest inventories or remote sensing technologies.openCastaldi, S.; Antonucci, S.; Asgharina, S.; Battipaglia, G.; Belelli Marchesini, L.; Cavagna, M.; Chini, I.; Cocozza, C.; Gianelle, D.; La Mantia, T.; Motisi, A.; Niccoli, F.; Pacheco Solana, A.; Sala, G.; Santopuoli, G.; Tonon, G.; Tognetti, R.; Zampedri, R.; Zorzi, I.; Valentini, R.Castaldi, S.; Antonucci, S.; Asgharina, S.; Battipaglia, G.; Belelli Marchesini, L.; Cavagna, M.; Chini, I.; Cocozza, C.; Gianelle, D.; La Mantia, T.; Motisi, A.; Niccoli, F.; Pacheco Solana, A.; Sala, G.; Santopuoli, G.; Tonon, G.; Tognetti, R.; Zampedri, R.; Zorzi, I.; Valentini, R

Optimasi Portofolio Resiko Menggunakan Model Markowitz MVO Dikaitkan dengan Keterbatasan Manusia dalam Memprediksi Masa Depan dalam Perspektif Al-Qur`an

Risk portfolio on modern finance has become increasingly technical, requiring the use of sophisticated mathematical tools in both research and practice. Since companies cannot insure themselves completely against risk, as human incompetence in predicting the future precisely that written in Al-Quran surah Luqman verse 34, they have to manage it to yield an optimal portfolio. The objective here is to minimize the variance among all portfolios, or alternatively, to maximize expected return among all portfolios that has at least a certain expected return. Furthermore, this study focuses on optimizing risk portfolio so called Markowitz MVO (Mean-Variance Optimization). Some theoretical frameworks for analysis are arithmetic mean, geometric mean, variance, covariance, linear programming, and quadratic programming. Moreover, finding a minimum variance portfolio produces a convex quadratic programming, that is minimizing the objective function ðð¥with constraintsð ð 𥠥 ðandð´ð¥ = ð. The outcome of this research is the solution of optimal risk portofolio in some investments that could be finished smoothly using MATLAB R2007b software together with its graphic analysis

Differential cross section measurements for the production of a W boson in association with jets in proton–proton collisions at √s = 7 TeV

Measurements are reported of differential cross sections for the production of a W boson, which decays into a muon and a neutrino, in association with jets, as a function of several variables, including the transverse momenta (pT) and pseudorapidities of the four leading jets, the scalar sum of jet transverse momenta (HT), and the difference in azimuthal angle between the directions of each jet and the muon. The data sample of pp collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 7 TeV was collected with the CMS detector at the LHC and corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 5.0 fb[superscript −1]. The measured cross sections are compared to predictions from Monte Carlo generators, MadGraph + pythia and sherpa, and to next-to-leading-order calculations from BlackHat + sherpa. The differential cross sections are found to be in agreement with the predictions, apart from the pT distributions of the leading jets at high pT values, the distributions of the HT at high-HT and low jet multiplicity, and the distribution of the difference in azimuthal angle between the leading jet and the muon at low values.United States. Dept. of EnergyNational Science Foundation (U.S.)Alfred P. Sloan Foundatio

Juxtaposing BTE and ATE – on the role of the European insurance industry in funding civil litigation

One of the ways in which legal services are financed, and indeed shaped, is through private insurance arrangement. Two contrasting types of legal expenses insurance contracts (LEI) seem to dominate in Europe: before the event (BTE) and after the event (ATE) legal expenses insurance. Notwithstanding institutional differences between different legal systems, BTE and ATE insurance arrangements may be instrumental if government policy is geared towards strengthening a market-oriented system of financing access to justice for individuals and business. At the same time, emphasizing the role of a private industry as a keeper of the gates to justice raises issues of accountability and transparency, not readily reconcilable with demands of competition. Moreover, multiple actors (clients, lawyers, courts, insurers) are involved, causing behavioural dynamics which are not easily predicted or influenced. Against this background, this paper looks into BTE and ATE arrangements by analysing the particularities of BTE and ATE arrangements currently available in some European jurisdictions and by painting a picture of their respective markets and legal contexts. This allows for some reflection on the performance of BTE and ATE providers as both financiers and keepers. Two issues emerge from the analysis that are worthy of some further reflection. Firstly, there is the problematic long-term sustainability of some ATE products. Secondly, the challenges faced by policymakers that would like to nudge consumers into voluntarily taking out BTE LEI

Penilaian Kinerja Keuangan Koperasi di Kabupaten Pelalawan

This paper describe development and financial performance of cooperative in District Pelalawan among 2007 - 2008. Studies on primary and secondary cooperative in 12 sub-districts. Method in this stady use performance measuring of productivity, efficiency, growth, liquidity, and solvability of cooperative. Productivity of cooperative in Pelalawan was highly but efficiency still low. Profit and income were highly, even liquidity of cooperative very high, and solvability was good

Search for stop and higgsino production using diphoton Higgs boson decays

Results are presented of a search for a "natural" supersymmetry scenario with gauge mediated symmetry breaking. It is assumed that only the supersymmetric partners of the top-quark (stop) and the Higgs boson (higgsino) are accessible. Events are examined in which there are two photons forming a Higgs boson candidate, and at least two b-quark jets. In 19.7 inverse femtobarns of proton-proton collision data at sqrt(s) = 8 TeV, recorded in the CMS experiment, no evidence of a signal is found and lower limits at the 95% confidence level are set, excluding the stop mass below 360 to 410 GeV, depending on the higgsino mass