3,934 research outputs found
Holistic Influence Maximization: Combining Scalability and Efficiency with Opinion-Aware Models
The steady growth of graph data from social networks has resulted in
wide-spread research in finding solutions to the influence maximization
problem. In this paper, we propose a holistic solution to the influence
maximization (IM) problem. (1) We introduce an opinion-cum-interaction (OI)
model that closely mirrors the real-world scenarios. Under the OI model, we
introduce a novel problem of Maximizing the Effective Opinion (MEO) of
influenced users. We prove that the MEO problem is NP-hard and cannot be
approximated within a constant ratio unless P=NP. (2) We propose a heuristic
algorithm OSIM to efficiently solve the MEO problem. To better explain the OSIM
heuristic, we first introduce EaSyIM - the opinion-oblivious version of OSIM, a
scalable algorithm capable of running within practical compute times on
commodity hardware. In addition to serving as a fundamental building block for
OSIM, EaSyIM is capable of addressing the scalability aspect - memory
consumption and running time, of the IM problem as well.
Empirically, our algorithms are capable of maintaining the deviation in the
spread always within 5% of the best known methods in the literature. In
addition, our experiments show that both OSIM and EaSyIM are effective,
efficient, scalable and significantly enhance the ability to analyze real
datasets.Comment: ACM SIGMOD Conference 2016, 18 pages, 29 figure
Antecedents and outcomes of enabling HR practices: The paradox of consistency and flexibility
Reconciling competing demands for consistent HR implementation and providing individualized supervisor support to employees has always been a challenge in strategic human resource management. Given that there is burgeoning evidence that frontline managers (FLMs) are at the center of HR implementation, we examine how the organization helps FLMs reconcile demands for consistent HR implementation and deliver individualized support to those under their supervision. With the data from 181 FLMs and 311 employees reported to these FLMs, we find that FLMs' perceived enabling HR practices mediate the relationship between high-performance work systems and FLMs' willingness to be flexible (WTBF). Furthermore, WTBF mediates the relationship between FLMs' perceived enabling HR practices and consistent HR implementation and between FLMs' perceived enabling HR practices and employees' individualized support. Our study offers new insights by highlighting that an effective HR system is not merely improving FLMs' HR competency and knowledge but capturing FLMs' WTBF in carrying on a broad range of HR tasks. Furthermore, our study provides an expanded and novel understanding that FLMs will likely face two opposite HR tasks that coexist and should be dealt with simultaneously as a pair. We then discuss the theoretical and practical implications of our findings and suggest future research directions
Universal Robotic Gripper based on the Jamming of Granular Material
Gripping and holding of objects are key tasks for robotic manipulators. The
development of universal grippers able to pick up unfamiliar objects of widely
varying shape and surface properties remains, however, challenging. Most
current designs are based on the multi-fingered hand, but this approach
introduces hardware and software complexities. These include large numbers of
controllable joints, the need for force sensing if objects are to be handled
securely without crushing them, and the computational overhead to decide how
much stress each finger should apply and where. Here we demonstrate a
completely different approach to a universal gripper. Individual fingers are
replaced by a single mass of granular material that, when pressed onto a target
object, flows around it and conforms to its shape. Upon application of a vacuum
the granular material contracts and hardens quickly to pinch and hold the
object without requiring sensory feedback. We find that volume changes of less
than 0.5% suffice to grip objects reliably and hold them with forces exceeding
many times their weight. We show that the operating principle is the ability of
granular materials to transition between an unjammed, deformable state and a
jammed state with solid-like rigidity. We delineate three separate mechanisms,
friction, suction and interlocking, that contribute to the gripping force.
Using a simple model we relate each of them to the mechanical strength of the
jammed state. This opens up new possibilities for the design of simple, yet
highly adaptive systems that excel at fast gripping of complex objects.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figure
Quantitative assessment of cell fate decision between autophagy and apoptosis
Abstract Autophagy and apoptosis are cellular processes that regulate cell survival and death, the former by eliminating dysfunctional components in the cell, the latter by programmed cell death. Stress signals can induce either process, and it is unclear how cells ‘assess’ cellular damage and make a ‘life’ or ‘death’ decision upon activating autophagy or apoptosis. A computational model of coupled apoptosis and autophagy is built here to analyze the underlying signaling and regulatory network dynamics. The model explains the experimentally observed differential deployment of autophagy and apoptosis in response to various stress signals. Autophagic response dominates at low-to-moderate stress; whereas the response shifts from autophagy (graded activation) to apoptosis (switch-like activation) with increasing stress intensity. The model reveals that cytoplasmic Ca2+ acts as a rheostat that fine-tunes autophagic and apoptotic responses. A G-protein signaling-mediated feedback loop maintains cytoplasmic Ca2+ level, which in turn governs autophagic response through an AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK)-mediated feedforward loop. Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent kinase kinase β (CaMKKβ) emerges as a determinant of the competing roles of cytoplasmic Ca2+ in autophagy regulation. The study demonstrates that the proposed model can be advantageously used for interrogating cell regulation events and developing pharmacological strategies for modulating cell decisions
Azimuthal anisotropy: transition from hydrodynamic flow to jet suppression
Measured 2nd and 4th azimuthal anisotropy coefficients v_{2,4}(N_{part}),
p_T) are scaled with the initial eccentricity \varepsilon_{2,4}(N_{part}) of
the collision zone and studied as a function of the number of participants
N_{part} and the transverse momenta p_T. Scaling violations are observed for
p_T \alt 3 GeV/c, consistent with a dependence of viscous corrections
and a linear increase of the relaxation time with . These empirical
viscous corrections to flow and the thermal distribution function at freeze-out
constrain estimates of the specific viscosity and the freeze-out temperature
for two different models for the initial collision geometry. The apparent
viscous corrections exhibit a sharp maximum for p_T \agt 3 GeV/c, suggesting
a breakdown of the hydrodynamic ansatz and the onset of a change from
flow-driven to suppression-driven anisotropy.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figs; submitted for publicatio
Topology in Physics - A Perspective
This article, written in honor of Fritz Rohrlich, briefly surveys the role of
topology in physics.Comment: 16pp, 2 figures included (encapsulated postscript
Unparticle Physics in Single Top Signals
We study the single production of top quarks in and
collisions in the context of unparticle physics through the Flavor Violating
(FV) unparticle vertices and compute the total cross sections for single top
production as functions of scale dimension d_{\U}. We find that among all,
LHC is the most promising facility to probe the unparticle physics via single
top quark production processes.Comment: 14 pages, 10 figure
Dynamic Centrifuge Experiment on a Cantilever Retaining Wall
Seismic loads on a tall, cantilever retaining wall were studied using centrifuge modeling. An aluminum wall (55\u27 prototype) retaining dry, cohesionless backfill was subjected to two successive dynamic events. The backfill surface was horizontal and even with the top of the wall. The input motion was supplied via a servo-controlled, electro-hydraulic shake table. The input motion was roughly sinusoidal with peak horizontal accelerations of approximately 0.2g and 0.4g for the first and second dynamic events, respectively. The input motion frequency was 1 hz at prototype scale. Lateral earth pressures on the wall, wall displacement, and accelerations of the wall and backfill soil were measured. Pressure transducers were used to directly measure lateral earth pressures on the wall. The magnitudes of the lateral earth pressures were compared with values calculated using the Mononobe-Okabe method. Preliminary results indicate that calculated pressures are higher than the measured pressures
Unparticle physics in top pair signals at the LHC and ILC
We study the effects of unparticle physics in the pair productions of top
quarks at the LHC and ILC. By considering vector, tensor and scalar unparticle
operators, as appropriate, we compute the total cross sections for pair
production processes depending on scale dimension d_{\U}. We find that the
existence of unparticles would lead to measurable enhancements on the SM
predictions at the LHC. In the case of ILC this may become two orders of
magnitude larger than that of SM, for smaller values of d_\U, a very striking
signal for unparticles.Comment: 19 pages, 9 figures, analysis for ILC has been adde
Exact expression for the diffusion propagator in a family of time-dependent anharmonic potentials
We have obtained the exact expression of the diffusion propagator in the
time-dependent anharmonic potential . The
underlying Euclidean metric of the problem allows us to obtain analytical
solutions for a whole family of the elastic parameter a(t), exploiting the
relation between the path integral representation of the short time propagator
and the modified Bessel functions. We have also analyzed the conditions for the
appearance of a non-zero flow of particles through the infinite barrier located
at the origin (b<0).Comment: RevTex, 19 pgs. Accepted in Physical Review
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