scholarly journals How signalling games explain mimicry at many levels: from viral epidemiology to human sociology

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (175) ◽  
pp. 20200689
Author(s):  
William Casey ◽  
Steven E Massey ◽  
Bud Mishra
Keyword(s):  
Conflict Of Interest ◽  
Multiple Scales ◽  
Molecular Mimicry ◽  
Common Interest ◽  
Human Society ◽  
Müllerian Mimicry ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Mullerian Mimicry ◽  
Oscillatory Instabilities ◽  
Signalling Games

Mimicry is exhibited in multiple scales, ranging from molecular, to organismal, and then to human society. ‘Batesian’-type mimicry entails a conflict of interest between sender and receiver, reflected in a deceptive mimic signal. ‘Müllerian’-type mimicry occurs when there is perfect common interest between sender and receiver in a particular type of encounter, manifested by an honest co-mimic signal. Using a signalling games approach, simulations show that invasion by Batesian mimics will make Müllerian mimicry unstable, in a coevolutionary chase. We use these results to better understand the deceptive strategies of SARS-CoV-2 and their key role in the COVID-19 pandemic. At the biomolecular level, we explain how cellularization promotes Müllerian molecular mimicry, and discourages Batesian molecular mimicry. A wide range of processes analogous to cellularization are presented; these might represent a manner of reducing oscillatory instabilities. Lastly, we identify examples of mimicry in human society that might be addressed using a signalling game approach.

scholarly journals How Signaling Games Explain Mimicry at Many Levels: From Viral Epidemiology to Human Sociology

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Casey ◽  
Steven Massey ◽  
Bud Mishra
Keyword(s):  
Conflict Of Interest ◽  
Multiple Scales ◽  
Molecular Mimicry ◽  
Common Interest ◽  
Signaling Games ◽  
Signaling Game ◽  
Human Society ◽  
Müllerian Mimicry ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Oscillatory Instabilities

Abstract Mimicry is exhibited in multiple scales, ranging from molecular, to organismal, and then to human society. ‘Batesian’ type mimicry entails a conflict of interest between sender and receiver, reflected in a deceptive mimic signal. ‘Mullerian’ type mimicry occurs when there is perfect common interest between sender and receiver, manifested by an honest co-mimic signal. Using a signaling games approach, simulations show that invasion by Batesian mimics will make Mullerian mimicry unstable, in a coevolutionary chase. We use these results to better understand the deceptive strategies of SARS-CoV-2 and their key role in the COVID-19 pandemic. At the biomolecular level, we explain how cellularization promotes Mullerian molecular mimicry, and discourages Batesian molecular mimicry. A wide range of processes analogous to cellularization are presented; these might represent a manner of reducing oscillatory instabilities. Lastly, we identify examples of mimicry in human society, that might be addressed using a signaling game approach.

scholarly journals Towards the Dependence on Parameters for the Solution of the Thermostatted Kinetic Framework

Axioms ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 59
Author(s):  
Bruno Carbonaro ◽  
Marco Menale
Keyword(s):  
Complex System ◽  
Continuous Dependence ◽  
Social Role ◽  
Probability Distributions ◽  
Functional Dependence ◽  
Transition Probability ◽  
Classical Mechanics ◽  
Human Society ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Probability Densities

A complex system is a system involving particles whose pairwise interactions cannot be composed in the same way as in classical Mechanics, i.e., the result of interaction of each particle with all the remaining ones cannot be expressed as a sum of its interactions with each of them (we cannot even know the functional dependence of the total interaction on the single interactions). Moreover, in view of the wide range of its applications to biologic, social, and economic problems, the variables describing the state of the system (i.e., the states of all of its particles) are not always (only) the usual mechanical variables (position and velocity), but (also) many additional variables describing e.g., health, wealth, social condition, social rôle ⋯, and so on. Thus, in order to achieve a mathematical description of the problems of everyday’s life of any human society, either at a microscopic or at a macroscpoic scale, a new mathematical theory (or, more precisely, a scheme of mathematical models), called KTAP, has been devised, which provides an equation which is a generalized version of the Boltzmann equation, to describe in terms of probability distributions the evolution of a non-mechanical complex system. In connection with applications, the classical problems about existence, uniqueness, continuous dependence, and stability of its solutions turn out to be particularly relevant. As far as we are aware, however, the problem of continuous dependence and stability of solutions with respect to perturbations of the parameters expressing the interaction rates of particles and the transition probability densities (see Section The Basic Equations has not been tackled yet). Accordingly, the present paper aims to give some initial results concerning these two basic problems. In particular, Theorem 2 reveals to be stable with respect to small perturbations of parameters, and, as far as instability of solutions with respect to perturbations of parameters is concerned, Theorem 3 shows that solutions are unstable with respect to “large” perturbations of interaction rates; these hints are illustrated by numerical simulations that point out how much solutions corresponding to different values of parameters stay away from each other as t→+∞.

scholarly journals THE EXISTENCE OF MÜLLERIAN MIMICRY

Evolution ◽  
1977 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 452-453
Author(s):  
P. M. Sheppard ◽  
J. R. G. Turner
Keyword(s):  
Müllerian Mimicry ◽  
Mullerian Mimicry

scholarly journals Urban rats have less variable, higher protein diets

2018 ◽  
Vol 285 (1889) ◽  
pp. 20181441 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Guiry ◽  
M. Buckley
Keyword(s):  
Urban Ecology ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Conservation Strategies ◽  
Human Society ◽  
Animal Management ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Brown Rat ◽  
Dietary Niche ◽  
Urban And Rural Areas

Over the past 1000 years, rats ( Rattus spp.) have become one of the most successful and prolific pests in human society. Despite their cosmopolitan distribution across six continents and ubiquity throughout the world's cities, rat urban ecology remains poorly understood. We investigate the role of human foods in brown rat ( Rattus norvegicus ) diets in urban and rural areas over a 100 year period ( ca AD 1790–1890) in Toronto, Canada using stable carbon ( δ 13 C) and nitrogen ( δ 15 N) isotope analyses of archaeological remains. We found that rat diets from urban sites were of higher quality and were more homogeneous and stable over time. By contrast, in rural areas, they show a wide range of dietary niche specializations that directly overlap, and probably competed, with native omnivorous and herbivorous species. These results demonstrate a link between rodent diets and human population density, providing, to our knowledge, the first long-term dietary perspective on the relative value of different types of human settlements as rodent habitat. This study highlights the potential of using the historical and archaeological record to provide a retrospective on the urban ecology of commensal and synanthropic animals that could be useful for improving animal management and conservation strategies in urban areas.

scholarly journals A political ecology of transdisciplinary research

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 500
Author(s):  
Hali Healy
Keyword(s):  
Political Ecology ◽  
Multiple Scales ◽  
Research Policy ◽  
Transdisciplinary Research ◽  
European Research ◽  
Horizon 2020 ◽  
Ex Post ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Sustainability Problems ◽  
Science In Society

Transdisciplinary research (TDR) is widely regarded as a promising, and even essential, means of addressing complex sustainability problems, whilst delivering beneficial outcomes for scientists and the non-academic actors with whom they engage. Premised on the 'ecological modernisation' of Europe, regional funding for TDR under Framework Programmes such as FP7 and more recently Horizon 2020 have sought to support academic engagement with a wide range of research stakeholders through calls for transdisciplinary research  in order to better address Europe's "grand societal challenges" (EC 2013). This article, based on doctoral research, consists of an ex-post study of three European Union funded transdisciplinary projects (CREPE, EJOLT and GAP2) implemented under the Seventh Framework's (2007-2013) Science in Society program. Its focus is on how issues of power and governance permeate TDR projects, giving rise to tensions, challenges and ultimately struggles over the very meaning of official projects and their outcomes, despite the most egalitarian of intentions and underlying principles of mutual benefit. These tensions, this article argues, should be understood not merely as cultural, methodological or cognitive challenges, but as essentially political conflicts that manifest and flow across multiple scales. In light of these inherent challenges, the article argues that TDR is always conducted on a terrain of political ecology, and concludes by making recommendations for potential collaborators, as well as for European research policy makers, with the objective of enabling participants and funders alike to realise the transformative potential of this promising mode of research.<p><strong>Keywords</strong>: Political ecology of transdisciplinary research, power, governance, Science in Society, European research agenda, agro-ecology, environmental justice, fisheries          </p>

scholarly journals A protocol for an intercomparison of biodiversity and ecosystem services models using harmonized land-use and climate scenarios

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 4537-4562 ◽  
Author(s):  
HyeJin Kim ◽  
Isabel M. D. Rosa ◽  
Rob Alkemade ◽  
Paul Leadley ◽  
George Hurtt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Land Use ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Biological Diversity ◽  
Multiple Scales ◽  
Convention On Biological Diversity ◽  
Second Phase ◽  
Intergovernmental Panel ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Global Impacts

Abstract. To support the assessments of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), the IPBES Expert Group on Scenarios and Models is carrying out an intercomparison of biodiversity and ecosystem services models using harmonized scenarios (BES-SIM). The goals of BES-SIM are (1) to project the global impacts of land-use and climate change on biodiversity and ecosystem services (i.e., nature's contributions to people) over the coming decades, compared to the 20th century, using a set of common metrics at multiple scales, and (2) to identify model uncertainties and research gaps through the comparisons of projected biodiversity and ecosystem services across models. BES-SIM uses three scenarios combining specific Shared Socio-economic Pathways (SSPs) and Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs) – SSP1xRCP2.6, SSP3xRCP6.0, SSP5xRCP8.6 – to explore a wide range of land-use change and climate change futures. This paper describes the rationale for scenario selection, the process of harmonizing input data for land use, based on the second phase of the Land Use Harmonization Project (LUH2), and climate, the biodiversity and ecosystem services models used, the core simulations carried out, the harmonization of the model output metrics, and the treatment of uncertainty. The results of this collaborative modeling project will support the ongoing global assessment of IPBES, strengthen ties between IPBES and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) scenarios and modeling processes, advise the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) on its development of a post-2020 strategic plans and conservation goals, and inform the development of a new generation of nature-centred scenarios.

scholarly journals Prediction of epileptic seizures based on multivariate multiscale modified-distribution entropy

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. e744
Author(s):  
Si Thu Aung ◽  
Yodchanan Wongsawat
Keyword(s):  
Time Series ◽  
Data Analysis ◽  
Performance Measures ◽  
Multiple Scales ◽  
Multivariate Time Series ◽  
World Population ◽  
Prediction System ◽  
Seizure Prediction ◽  
Feature Extraction Method ◽  
Wide Range

Epilepsy is a common neurological disease that affects a wide range of the world population and is not limited by age. Moreover, seizures can occur anytime and anywhere because of the sudden abnormal discharge of brain neurons, leading to malfunction. The seizures of approximately 30% of epilepsy patients cannot be treated with medicines or surgery; hence these patients would benefit from a seizure prediction system to live normal lives. Thus, a system that can predict a seizure before its onset could improve not only these patients’ social lives but also their safety. Numerous seizure prediction methods have already been proposed, but the performance measures of these methods are still inadequate for a complete prediction system. Here, a seizure prediction system is proposed by exploring the advantages of multivariate entropy, which can reflect the complexity of multivariate time series over multiple scales (frequencies), called multivariate multiscale modified-distribution entropy (MM-mDistEn), with an artificial neural network (ANN). The phase-space reconstruction and estimation of the probability density between vectors provide hidden complex information. The multivariate time series property of MM-mDistEn provides more understandable information within the multichannel data and makes it possible to predict of epilepsy. Moreover, the proposed method was tested with two different analyses: simulation data analysis proves that the proposed method has strong consistency over the different parameter selections, and the results from experimental data analysis showed that the proposed entropy combined with an ANN obtains performance measures of 98.66% accuracy, 91.82% sensitivity, 99.11% specificity, and 0.84 area under the curve (AUC) value. In addition, the seizure alarm system was applied as a postprocessing step for prediction purposes, and a false alarm rate of 0.014 per hour and an average prediction time of 26.73 min before seizure onset were achieved by the proposed method. Thus, the proposed entropy as a feature extraction method combined with an ANN can predict the ictal state of epilepsy, and the results show great potential for all epilepsy patients.

scholarly journals Welcome to the Ziggurat Journal of Materials Technology - a New Open Access Journal

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jürgen Bast
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Technological Progress ◽  
High Stress ◽  
Scientific Work ◽  
Open Access Journal ◽  
Human Society ◽  
New Materials ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Global Population

Dear readers, authors and colleagues, Technological progress plays an essential role in the development of human society. The increasing global population and its mobility, the expansion of urban areas, climate protection and the conservation of fossil resources present challenges that can only be overcome by the improvement of existing resources and the development of new components, materials and production processes. Conventional materials have quickly reached their limit as new mechanisms are developed. These fields of application require the supply of new materials working in aggressive environments at extreme temperatures and high stress. These new materials are also expected to automatically alert us when critical loads are reached to avoid accidents caused by failures. This is the first issue of the Ziggurat Journal of Materials Technology, and we hope that you are satisfied with the content. The title of the journal primarily suggests materials technology; however, we strive to present a broad range of topics, including questions about the interaction between design, material, manufacturing and energy. The efficient interaction between these parameters results in components that are optimally designed and economically feasible. The idea for this journal resulted from the editors' realisation of the large knowledge potential that is being developed at colleges and universities around the world by scholars and PhD students. These clients must have the opportunity to publish their work and get in touch with other scientists. We want to reach out to young researchers and encourage them to present their work to a wide range of readers. Furthermore, a scientific career today requires evidence of publications that withstand the corresponding assessments of specialist colleagues and meet the criteria of good scientific work. In this context, the submitted articles will be subjected to a strict review. The principal objective is not to criticise work but rather to provide advice on how to improve the quality of the work presented. With this in mind, we would like to invite you to submit articles and use this journal as a reference for your ongoing scientific work.

scholarly journals The problem of human tragedy in the genre of science fiction (on the example of R. Bradbury’s works "Tomorrow's Child" and "The Veldt")

2021 ◽  
pp. 78-87
Author(s):  
O. M. Byndas ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Science Fiction ◽  
English Language ◽  
Human Society ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Fantastic Fiction ◽  
The Future ◽  
Absolute Dependence ◽  
Inner World ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Definition Of

This article deals with the problem of relationships among people in the future, which are based not on respect and understanding of each other's value, but on absolute dependence on technical progress. The purpose of this work is to highlight the problem of humanity’s tragedy in the genre of science fiction, using the example of Ray Bradbury’s works „Tomorrow's Child” and „The Veldt”. Firstly, it is noted that the difference and, accordingly, the problem begins immediately with terminology, because there is no single stable definition of the term „fantasy” (as a generic phenomenon) in English-language science. The options offered by scientists are speculative fiction, fantastic fiction, fantasy literature. The author notes that science fiction (Sci-Fi) describes many different super important problems of the human society: technological progress, information wars, the desire of people to be immortal, powerful, rich, possessing the Universe. In fact, the tragedy of humanity begins from these desires. However, R. Bradbury’s works „Tomorrow's Child” and „The Veldt” have a wide range of topics, affecting aesthetic, intellectual, moral and scientific problems. In addition, the science fiction writer reveals his special interest in the inner world of the child. In the mentioned-above stories, the idea of the coexistence of people and the techno world is traced, which leads to a tragic situation. Covering the problem of humanity’s tragedy in the future, described back in the distant 1950s, R. Bradbury aims to present another idea of the future, he describes, at the same time, possible threats to us, and shows what significant consequences this can lead to.

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