Flexible QoS Support in DVB-RCS2

Postprin

Modeling a new Startup Algorithm for TCP New Reno

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Exploring DSCP modification pathologies in the internet

This work is funded by the European Unions Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement no. 644399 (MONROE) through the Open Call and grant agreement no. 644334 (NEAT). The views expressed are solely those of the author(s). The European Commission is not responsible for any use that may be made of that information.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Reducing the acknowledgement frequency in IETF QUIC

Research Funding European Space Agency University of AberdeenPeer reviewedPublisher PD

Is it possible to extend IPv6?

The IPv6 Hop-by-Hop Options and Destination Options Extension Headers have historically faced challenges in deployment due to a lack of router support coupled with concerns around potential for denial-of-service attacks. However, there has been a renewed interest within the standards community both in simplifying their processing, and in using these extension headers for new applications. Through a wide-scale measurement campaign, we show that many autonomous systems in both access networks and the core of the Internet do permit the traversal of packets that include options, and that the path traversal currently depends on the type of network, size of the option and the transport protocol used, but does not usually depend on the type of included option. This is an encouraging result when considering the extensibility of IPv6. We show that packets that include an extension header can also impact the function of load balancing network devices, and present evidence of equipment mis-configuration, noting that a different path to the same destination can result in a different traversal result. Finally, we outline the current deployment challenges and provide recommendations for how extension headers can utilise options to extend IPv6

On the quest for defining organisational plasticity: a community modelling experiment

Purpose: This viewpoint article is concerned with an attempt to advance organisational plasticity (OP) modelling concepts by using a novel community modelling framework (PhiloLab) from the social simulation community to drive the process of idea generation. In addition, the authors want to feed back their experience with PhiloLab as they believe that this way of idea generation could also be of interest to the wider evidence-based human resource management (EBHRM) community. Design/methodology/approach: The authors used some workshop sessions to brainstorm new conceptual ideas in a structured and efficient way with a multidisciplinary group of 14 (mainly academic) participants using PhiloLab. This is a tool from the social simulation community, which stimulates and formally supports discussions about philosophical questions of future societal models by means of developing conceptual agent-based simulation models. This was followed by an analysis of the qualitative data gathered during the PhiloLab sessions, feeding into the definition of a set of primary axioms of a plastic organisation. Findings: The PhiloLab experiment helped with defining a set of primary axioms of a plastic organisation, which are presented in this viewpoint article. The results indicated that the problem was rather complex, but it also showed good potential for an agent-based simulation model to tackle some of the key issues related to OP. The experiment also showed that PhiloLab was very useful in terms of knowledge and idea gathering. Originality/value: Through information gathering and open debates on how to create an agent-based simulation model of a plastic organisation, the authors could identify some of the characteristics of OP and start structuring some of the parameters for a computational simulation. With the outcome of the PhiloLab experiment, the authors are paving the way towards future exploratory computational simulation studies of OP

Experienced Discrimination in Home Mortgage Lending. A Case of Hospital Employees in Northern Italy

The paper addresses the problem of home mortgage lending discrimination in one of the richest areas of northern Italy, characterized by a strong political support for xenophobic and racist right-wing parties. We conducted interviews with employees of the Varese city hospital to study their perception (or experience) of discriminatory behavior related to home financing. For each individual we have collected information on possible sources of discrimination (e.g., gender, country/region of origin, and family size) and creditworthiness (e.g., income, profession, and age). The analysis follows two steps. The first evaluates self-selection (i.e., the probability that individuals apply), and the second focuses on the likelihood that applications are accepted by the bank. Findings show that discrimination is likely to appear when the applicant\u2019s nationality and/or area of origin are considered

Power analysis for agent-based modeling determining the appropriate number of runs

Agent-based modeling (ABM) is emerging as a powerful tool for the analysis of human behavior in several situations in which direct observation is impossible or unfeasible [4]. This computational simulation technique is still at its early stages in the social sciences [24], with sociology starting before other disciplines [7] and management reluctantly catching up [19]. The enthusiasm that many have shown with ABM is witnessed by the increasing number of scientific outlets that publish such simulations-among many are the journal of Computational and Mathematical Organization Theory and the Journal of Artificial Societies and Social Simulation. It has been pointed out that the diffusion of ABM is to be found, among other aspects, in an increase of available computational power [6], a set of simplified tools for modeling [19], and the ability to create extremely complex and descriptive simulations [5]. As a result, these simulations are usually employed to study configurations, structures, and outcomes that are not directly intelligible by a simple review of the initial conditions of a system. In other words, ABM are a tool to study emergent properties of complex systems among other characteristics. In spite of the very significant use of these simulations, there is still uncertainty on the conditions under which a simulated system produces relevant or irrelevant results-in relation to a given research question. The issue is particularly relevant for the study of emergent properties in that some of them may result from misinterpreting the data of the simulated model. These issues can be divided into two, separate but (probably) interconnected.We write 'probably' because, to our knowledge, there are no studies robustly and soundly connecting these two issues together. The first issue relates to the question: when is it the right time to stop the simulation in a single run? This is a problem concerning the length of a run-some software may call these 'steps'-, given a certain configuration of the simulation's parameters. It can be rephrased as to when it is enough time for emergent properties to emerge. Length may depend on the research question, on the type of simulation, or it can be calculated [20]. To partially address these issues, some propose steady state and stationarity analyses [8]. The second issue relates to the number of runs per configuration of parameters: how many times should one run the simulation for each configuration of parameters? This is a problem of establishing an appropriate number such that the data is not biased or that effects are discarded when they should not. Some have suggested power analysis as a viable technique to tackle with this problem [16, 21, 22]. Given the relevance of this latter issue, this abstract is dedicated to it, in an attempt to link emergent properties of the ABM to the appropriate number of runs to be performed