Mixed Data and Classification of Transit Stops

An analysis of the characteristics and behavior of individual bus stops can reveal clusters of similar stops, which can be of use in making routing and scheduling decisions, as well as determining what facilities to provide at each stop. This paper provides an exploratory analysis, including several possible clustering results, of a dataset provided by the Regional Transit Service of Rochester, NY. The dataset describes ridership on public buses, recording the time, location, and number of entering and exiting passengers each time a bus stops. A description of the overall behavior of bus ridership is followed by a stop-level analysis. We compare multiple measures of stop similarity, based on location, route information, and ridership volume over time

Single scalar top production with polarized beams in ep collisions at HERA

From the point of view of the R-parity breaking supersymmetric model, we propose a scalar top (stop) search with longitudinally polarized electron (e-) and positron(e+) beams which will soon be available at the upgraded HERA. Fully polarized e- or e+ beams could produce the stop two times as much as unpolarized beams, while they increase background events due to the process of the standard model by about 30% in comparison with unpolarized ones. We show that right-handed e+ beams at HERA is efficient to produce the stop in the model. With 1 fb**(-1) of integrated luminosity we estimate reach in the coupling constant lambda'(131) for masses of the stop in the range 160-400 GeV. We can set a 95% confidence-level exclusion limit for lambda'(131) > 0.01-0.05 in the stop mass range of 240-280 GeV if no singal of the stop is observed. We also point out that y(=Q**2/sx) distributions of e+ coming from the stop shows the different behavior from those of the standard model.Comment: 12 pages, 6 eps figure

Nonmonotonic settling of a sphere in a cornstarch suspension\ud

Cornstarch suspensions exhibit remarkable behavior. Here, we present two unexpected observations for a sphere settling in such a suspension: In the bulk of the liquid the velocity of the sphere oscillates around a terminal value, without damping. Near the bottom the sphere comes to a full stop, but then accelerates again toward a second stop. This stop-go cycle is repeated several times before the object reaches the bottom. We show that common shear thickening or linear viscoelastic models cannot account for the observed phenomena, and propose a minimal jamming model to describe the behavior at the botto

Memory in an aging molecular glass

The dielectric susceptibility of the molecular liquid sorbitol below its calorimetric glass transition displays memory strikingly similar to that of a variety of glassy materials. During a temporary stop in cooling, the susceptibility changes with time, and upon reheating the susceptibility retraces these changes. To investigate the out-of-equilibrium state of the liquid as it displays this memory, the heating stage of this cycle is interrupted and the subsequent aging characterized. At temperatures above that of the original cooling stop, the liquid enters a state on heating with an effective age that is proportional to the duration of the stop, while at lower temperatures no effective age can be assigned and subtler behavior emerges. These results, which reveal differences with memory displayed by spin glasses, are discussed in the context of the liquid's energy landscape.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures. Significant revisions made to tex

Factors influencing walking distance to the preferred public transport stop in selected urban centres of Czechia

One of the ways of improving the attractiveness of public transport is to bring it closer to its potential users. A long walking distance from a stop is often one of the critical factors limiting its more frequent and extensive use. Studies dealing with the accessibility of transport networks usually work only with the closest stop. This article analyses the actual walking distance from the place of residence to the preferred stop. The survey used a questionnaire method and was conducted in two cities in the Czech Republic-Ostrava and Olomouc. Based on the results of the study, the average walking distance was assessed and the impact of demographic characteristics (gender, age, education, number of members in the household, economic activity, the presence of a child in the household, and car ownership), transport behavior (preferred mode of transportation, car convenience and opinions on public transport), and urban characteristics (prevailing housing type) on the walking distance were analyzed. The main findings prove a significant impact on walking distance by a number of these factors, but the preferred use of a car for commuting or unemployment does not significantly affect walking distance. Highlights for public administration, management and planning: The public transport stop reported as being closest to a respondent's residence was used by only 51% of all respondents in the survey. Another 20% of residents used the second closest stop, 11% the third stop. Travellers select the stop based on number of connections; seamless connection; the speed of connection; potential delays; equipment of stops and nearby areas; the comfort of the vehicle; avoiding overcrowded stop; other personal factors. The average walking distance to the preferred stop is 568 metres in Ostrava while only 439 metres in Olomouc. Significantly shorter distances refer to the female population in Ostrava, retired and unemployed. Assumption of the negative influence of the higher number of family members, higher salaries, car ownership and worse education (blue collar) was not proved.Web of Science131301

Gambling in Contests

This paper presents a strategic model of risk-taking behavior in contests. Formally, we analyze an n-player winner-take-all contest in which each player decides when to stop a privately observed Brownian Motion with drift. A player whose process reaches zero has to stop. The player with the highest stopping point wins. Contrary to the explicit cost for a higher stopping time in a war of attrition, here, higher stopping times are riskier, because players can go bankrupt. We derive a closed-form solution of the unique Nash equilibrium outcome of the game. In equilibrium, the trade-off between risk and reward causes a non-monotonicity: highest expected losses occur if the process decreases only slightly in expectation

Abuse and Neglect of Animals and People, An Update

Veterinarians have noticed for quite some time that individuals who mistreat their animals may not stop there, carrying over their behavior to spouses, parents and others. Research articles and “overview” publications have increased in number, as have advocacy groups and just the beginnings of connections between domestic violence and animal rights groups

Motivational context for response inhibition influences proactive involvement of attention

Motoric inhibition is ingrained in human cognition and implicated in pervasive neurological diseases and disorders. The present electroencephalographic (EEG) study investigated proactive motivational adjustments in attention during response inhibition. We compared go-trial data from a stop-signal task, in which infrequently presented stop-signals required response cancellation without extrinsic incentives ("standard-stop"), to data where a monetary reward was posted on some stop-signals ("rewarded-stop"). A novel EEG analysis was used to directly model the covariation between response time and the attention-related N1 component. A positive relationship between response time and N1 amplitudes was found in the standard-stop context, but not in the rewarded-stop context. Simultaneously, average go-trial N1 amplitudes were larger in the rewarded-stop context. This suggests that down-regulation of go-signal-directed attention is dynamically adjusted in the standard-stop trials, but is overridden by a more generalized increase in attention in reward-motivated trials. Further, a diffusion process model indicated that behavior between contexts was the result of partially opposing evidence accumulation processes. Together these analyses suggest that response inhibition relies on dynamic and flexible proactive adjustments of low-level processes and that contextual changes can alter their interplay. This could prove to have ramifications for clinical disorders involving deficient response inhibition and impulsivity