Interference and communications among active network applications

This paper focuses on active networks applications and in particular on the possible interactions among these applications. Active networking is a very promising research field which has been developed recently, and which poses several interesting challenges to network designers. A number of proposals for e±cient active network architectures are already to be found in the literature. However, how two or more active network applications may interact has not being investigated so far. In this work, we consider a number of applications that have been designed to exploit the main features of active networks and we discuss what are the main benefits that these applications may derive from them. Then, we introduce some forms of interaction including interference and communications among applications, and identify the components of an active network architecture that are needed to support these forms of interaction. We conclude by presenting a brief example of an active network application exploiting the concept of interaction

Socio-Technological Aspects of Knowledge Disclosure: The Relevance of Storytelling in Knowledge Ecology Based Organizations

IT has become an essential enabler of community members finding, disseminating, and applying knowledge. While most KM champions agree that the key lies in focusing on building an integrated Information Management System (IMS) that will allow a community to thrive under any circumstance is key, we feel that it is fundamental to focus on the social aspects of sharing knowledge. The purpose of our research is to highlight the role of the triple network - knowledge, people, technology - and more specifically, with the adoption of the Actor Network Theory, to understand how storytelling can help organizational competence to emerge from a knowledge ecosystem (which can be understood as people networks creating knowledge networks, supported by technology networks). In this sense, social computing can be seen as the way to link digital systems with social information and context to enhance the activity and performance of people, organizations, and systems

Multi-Valley Superconductivity In Ion-Gated MoS2 Layers

Layers of transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) combine the enhanced effects of correlations associated with the two-dimensional limit with electrostatic control over their phase transitions by means of an electric field. Several semiconducting TMDs, such as MoS$_2$, develop superconductivity (SC) at their surface when doped with an electrostatic field, but the mechanism is still debated. It is often assumed that Cooper pairs reside only in the two electron pockets at the K/K' points of the Brillouin Zone. However, experimental and theoretical results suggest that a multi-valley Fermi surface (FS) is associated with the SC state, involving 6 electron pockets at the Q/Q' points. Here, we perform low-temperature transport measurements in ion-gated MoS$_2$ flakes. We show that a fully multi-valley FS is associated with the SC onset. The Q/Q' valleys fill for doping$\gtrsim2\cdot10^{13}$cm$^{-2}$, and the SC transition does not appear until the Fermi level crosses both spin-orbit split sub-bands Q$_1$ and Q$_2$. The SC state is associated with the FS connectivity and promoted by a Lifshitz transition due to the simultaneous population of multiple electron pockets. This FS topology will serve as a guideline in the quest for new superconductors.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figure

Small diameter vascular grafts coated with gelatin

In the field of tissue engineering, there is an increased demand for small diameter vascular grafts to treat peripheral vascular pathologies and ischemic heart diseases. The limited availability of suitable autogenous veins and the drawbacks related to the use of synthetic materials, such as polyethylene terephthalate (Dacron\uc2\uae) and expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE), especially when they are used as substitutes for small diameter vessels, have attracted several investigators turning their attention toward the fabrication of alternative biocompatible grafts. In this study, small diameter tubular grafts (2 mm), made of poly (\ucf\ub5-caprolactone) (PCL) and poly (glycerol sebacate) (PGS) at a ratio of 1:1 (v/v) were obtained by electrospinning. With the aim to reduce water permeability, their surface was modified by dynamic coating of gelatin at 37 \uc2\ub0C for 1 h, followed by UV-irradiation. Thickness, fiber diameters, porosity, mass loss, fluid uptake, water permeability, gelatin release, mechanical properties, cytotoxicity, and hemocompatibility of gelatin-coated electrospun scaffolds (GCS) were studied and compared with uncoated scaffolds (UCS). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images showed that the gelatin surface modification did not affect the 3D structure and pore interconnectivity of the scaffolds. A significant decrease in the water permeability was noticed when gelatin was used as coating agent. The results of this study highlighted the importance of a very low cost surface treatment with gelatin to improve the properties of PCL:PGS electrospun grafts. In conclusion, these gelatin-coated prostheses could be considered as a good candidate for vascular replacement in tissue engineering

potential of the virtual blade model in the analysis of wind turbine wakes using wind tunnel blind tests

Abstract The present research frontier on wind turbine wake analysis is leading to a massive use of large-eddy simulations to completely solve the flow field surrounding the rotors; on the other hand, there is still room for lower-fidelity models with a more affordable computational cost to be used in extended optimization analyses, e.g. for a park layout definition. In this study, a customized version of the Virtual Blade Model (VBM) for ANSYS ® FLUENT ® is presented. The model allows a hybrid solution of the flow, in which the surrounding environment is simulated through a conventional RANS approach, while blades are replaced by a body force, calculated by a simplified version of the Blade Element Theory. The potential of the newly-customized VBM was evaluated by applying it to the famous NOWITECH-NORCOWE blind tests for horizontal axis wind turbines. Several test cases were analyzed and discussed including: 1) a single turbine; 2) an array of two turbines with one rotor working in the wake of the other one; 3) an array of two staggered rotors; 4) several configurations of rotors working in yawed-flow. The study proves that the VBM model can represent a valuable tool for the analysis of wind turbines wakes and of their interaction with near rotors

Use of Knee Fractures Physical Replicas for Surgical Training and Rehearsal: Proof of Concept Study

In the last years also in orthopedic surgery, there was an increasing interest in the development of surgical simulators using methods of additive manufacturing combined or not with augmented reality systems (hybrid simulators). Aim of this work was to evaluate the use of a new patient’s specific tibial plateau fractures simulator for surgical training of young resident surgeons in fracture fixation with an external fixator. The simulator is a realistic knee phantom including a patient-specific replica of a fractured tibia and fibula, obtained by CT segmentation and rapid prototyping techniques. Each training session started with the presentation, and planning, of the surgical case that it was followed by the external fixation session on the simulator. At the end of each session, all participants were asked to fill out a questionnaire, concerning the phantom realism and appropriateness as a teaching modality. The results of the Likert Questionnaire indicating that there is an overall significant agreement with the phantom realism and its appropriateness as a teaching modality. The solid model of the patient’s anatomy can faithfully reproduce the surgical complexity of the patient and it allows to generate surgical simulators with an increasing difficulty to perform structured training paths: from the "simple" case to the "complex" case. The use of simulators based on 3D models has proved to be a very useful tool both for didactic and surgical training purposes, allowing surgeons to perform a real procedure simulation outside the surgical room

Working-Set-Like Memory Management Algorithms

This paper considers the design and evaluation of memory management algorithms to be applied to multiprogramming computer systems with virtual memory. The operation of the Denning working set algorithm is studied and is recognized to be a replacement process of time indices based on a rule closely related to the replacement rule of the First-In-First-Out replacement algorithm. Basing on these analyses, a framework in the time domain is then proposed. A duality rule capable of transforming a replacement algorithm in the space domain into a working-set-like algorithm (retention algorithm) in the time domain is designed. Some properties of these newly-designed retention algorithms are derived. The performances of some retention algorithms with respect to their space duals are experimentally studied by simulation. Results show generally better performance for retention algorithms than for their space dual replacement algorithms

A pediatric case of Miller Fisher syndrome with central involvement.

no abstract availabl