On Byzantine Broadcast in Loosely Connected Networks

We consider the problem of reliably broadcasting information in a multihop asynchronous network that is subject to Byzantine failures. Most existing approaches give conditions for perfect reliable broadcast (all correct nodes deliver the authentic message and nothing else), but they require a highly connected network. An approach giving only probabilistic guarantees (correct nodes deliver the authentic message with high probability) was recently proposed for loosely connected networks, such as grids and tori. Yet, the proposed solution requires a specific initialization (that includes global knowledge) of each node, which may be difficult or impossible to guarantee in self-organizing networks - for instance, a wireless sensor network, especially if they are prone to Byzantine failures. In this paper, we propose a new protocol offering guarantees for loosely connected networks that does not require such global knowledge dependent initialization. In more details, we give a methodology to determine whether a set of nodes will always deliver the authentic message, in any execution. Then, we give conditions for perfect reliable broadcast in a torus network. Finally, we provide experimental evaluation for our solution, and determine the number of randomly distributed Byzantine failures than can be tolerated, for a given correct broadcast probability.Comment: 1

A Scalable Byzantine Grid

Modern networks assemble an ever growing number of nodes. However, it remains difficult to increase the number of channels per node, thus the maximal degree of the network may be bounded. This is typically the case in grid topology networks, where each node has at most four neighbors. In this paper, we address the following issue: if each node is likely to fail in an unpredictable manner, how can we preserve some global reliability guarantees when the number of nodes keeps increasing unboundedly ? To be more specific, we consider the problem or reliably broadcasting information on an asynchronous grid in the presence of Byzantine failures -- that is, some nodes may have an arbitrary and potentially malicious behavior. Our requirement is that a constant fraction of correct nodes remain able to achieve reliable communication. Existing solutions can only tolerate a fixed number of Byzantine failures if they adopt a worst-case placement scheme. Besides, if we assume a constant Byzantine ratio (each node has the same probability to be Byzantine), the probability to have a fatal placement approaches 1 when the number of nodes increases, and reliability guarantees collapse. In this paper, we propose the first broadcast protocol that overcomes these difficulties. First, the number of Byzantine failures that can be tolerated (if they adopt the worst-case placement) now increases with the number of nodes. Second, we are able to tolerate a constant Byzantine ratio, however large the grid may be. In other words, the grid becomes scalable. This result has important security applications in ultra-large networks, where each node has a given probability to misbehave.Comment: 17 page

OVERVIEW OF TICK-ASSOCIATED RICKETTSIALES BACTERIA IN JAPAN

Rickettsiales bacteria are obligatory intracellular parasites in vertebrates and/or invertebrates, and some cause severe febrile illness in humans as well as livestock. In Japan, "Rickettsia japonica" and "Orientia tsutsugamushi" are well known as causative agents for "Japanese spotted fever" transmitted by ticks and. "Tsutsugamushi disease" transmitted by mites, respectively. In recent years, many researchers have reported the presence of several tick-associated. Rickettsiales bacteria in Japan, mostly by molecular-based analyses. Some of these might be public health or veterinary significance. Such. Rickettsiales bacteria include spotted fever group rickettsiae other than R. japonica, Ehrlichia spp., Anaplasma spp., and. Neoehrlichia sp. We will summarize and. introduce the representatives of these Rickettsiales bacteria present in Japan

Laser Machining by short and ultrashort pulses, state of the art and new opportunities in the age of the photons

An overview is given of the applications of short and ultrashort lasers in material processing. Shorter pulses reduce heat-affected damage of the material and opens new ways for nanometer accuracy. Even forty years after the development of the laser there is a lot of effort in developing new and better performing lasers. The driving force is higher accuracy at reasonable cost, which is realised by compact systems delivering short laser pulses of high beam quality. Another trend is the shift towards shorter wavelengths, which are better absorbed by the material and which allows smaller feature sizes to be produced. Examples of new products, which became possible by this technique, are given. The trends in miniaturization as predicted by Moore and Taniguchi are expected to continue over the next decade too thanks to short and ultrashort laser machining techniques. After the age of steam and the age of electricity we have entered the age of photons now

Preliminary Biomarkers for Identification of Human Ascending Thoracic Aortic Aneurysm

Background: Human ascending thoracic aortic aneurysms (ATAAs) are life threatening and constitute a leading cause of mortality in the United States. Previously, we demonstrated that collagens α2(V) and α1(XI) mRNA and protein expression levels are significantly increased in ATAAs. Methods and Results: In this report, the authors extended these preliminary studies using high‐throughput proteomic analysis to identify additional biomarkers for use in whole blood real‐time RT‐PCR analysis to allow for the identification of ATAAs before dissection or rupture. Human ATAA samples were obtained from male and female patients aged 65±14 years. Both bicuspid and tricuspid aortic valve patients were included and compared with nonaneurysmal aortas (mean diameter 2.3 cm). Five biomarkers were identified as being suitable for detection and identification of ATAAs using qRT‐PCR analysis of whole blood. Analysis of 41 samples (19 small, 13 medium‐sized, and 9 large ATAAs) demonstrated the overexpression of 3 of these transcript biomarkers correctly identified 79.4% of patients with ATAA of ≥4.0 cm (P<0.001, sensitivity 0.79, CI=0.62 to 0.91; specificity 1.00, 95% CI=0.42 to 1.00). Conclusion: A preliminary transcript biomarker panel for the identification of ATAAs using whole blood qRT‐PCR analysis in men and women is presented

Measurement of a small atmospheric νμ/νe\nu_\mu/\nu_e ratio

From an exposure of 25.5~kiloton-years of the Super-Kamiokande detector, 900 muon-like and 983 electron-like single-ring atmospheric neutrino interactions were detected with momentum $p_e > 100$ MeV/$c$, $p_\mu > 200$ MeV/$c$, and with visible energy less than 1.33 GeV. Using a detailed Monte Carlo simulation, the ratio $(\mu/e)_{DATA}/(\mu/e)_{MC}$ was measured to be $0.61 \pm 0.03(stat.) \pm 0.05(sys.)$, consistent with previous results from the Kamiokande, IMB and Soudan-2 experiments, and smaller than expected from theoretical models of atmospheric neutrino production.Comment: 14 pages with 5 figure

Measurements of the DsJD_{sJ} resonance properties

We report measurements of the properties of the $D_{sJ}^+(2317)$ and $D_{sJ}^+(2457)$ resonances produced in continuum $e^+ e^-$ annihilation near $\sqrt{s}=10.6 \mathrm{GeV}$. The analysis is based on an $86.9 \mathrm{fb^{-1}}$ data sample collected %at and 60 MeV below the $\Upsilon(4S)$ resonance with with the Belle detector at KEKB. We determine the masses to be $M(D_{sJ}^+(2317)) = 2317.2 \pm 0.5(\mathrm{stat}) \pm 0.9(\mathrm{syst}) \mathrm{MeV}/c^2$ and $M(D_{sJ}^+(2457))=2456.5 \pm 1.3(\mathrm{stat}) \pm 1.3(\mathrm{syst}) \mathrm{MeV}/c^2$. We observe the radiative decay mode $D_{sJ}^+(2457) \to D_s^+ \gamma$ and the dipion decay mode $D_{sJ}^+(2457) \to D_s^+ \pi^+ \pi^-$, and determine their branching fractions. No corresponding decays are observed for the $D_{sJ}(2317)$ state. These results are consistent with the spin-parity assignments of $0^+$ for the $D_{sJ}(2317)$ and $1^+$ for the $D_{sJ}(2457)$.Comment: 5 pages, 6 figures; Added content, updated and paper submitted to PR

Observation of the DsJ(2317) and DsJ(2457) in B decays

We report the first observation of the B --> Dbar DsJ(2317) and B --> Dbar DsJ(2457) decays based on 123.8 10^6 BBar events collected with the Belle detector at KEKB. We observe the DsJ(2317) decay to Ds pi0 and DsJ(2457) decay to the Ds* pi0 and Ds gamma final states. We also set 90% CL upper limits for the decays DsJ(2317) --> Ds* gamma, DsJ(2457) --> Ds* gamma, DsJ(2457) --> Ds pi0 and DsJ(2457) --> Ds pi+ pi-.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures. A few minor corrections. Replaced by version accepted to publication in Phys. Rev. Let