Resilience of Social-Infrastructural Systems: Functional Interdependencies Analysis

Critical infrastructures serve human activities and play an essential role in societies. Infrastructural systems are not isolated but are interdependent with regard to social systems, including those of public health and economic and sustainable development. In recent years, both social and infrastructural systems have frequently been in dysfunction due to increasing natural or human-made disasters and due to the internal and external dependencies between system components. The interconnectedness between social-infrastructural systems (socio-economic systems and technical-infrastructural systems), implies that the damage to one single system can extend beyond its scope. For that reason, cascading dysfunction can occur and increase system vulnerability. This article aims to study the functional interdependencies between social-infrastructural systems and to propose a methodology to analyse and improve the resilience of these systems. Combining Actor Network Theory and the Functional Models approach, the social-infrastructural Interdependence Resilience (SIIR) framework was proposed. To assess the applicability of the approach, the framework was applied to study the interdependence of a social-infrastructural system in the Nantes Metropolis. The studied system was composed of the local Highway Infrastructure (an infrastructural system) and the Emergency Medical Service (a social system). The results (1) show the feasibility of SIIR for investigating the interdependencies of two urban systems, and (2) provide a guideline for decision-makers to improve the functional interdependencies of urban systems.

On 6G Visions and Requirements

6G represents standardized communication systems that will be commercially available in 2030s. Even if the initial 5G networks, basing on the 3GPP Release 15, have hardly started become commercially available gradually as of 2019 and their large-scale deployment is still years away, industry is already keen to envision the justification and performance of the forthcoming generation. While there are no concrete 6G standards produced at this stage, their planning will benefit from realistic indications of the requirements and type of usage. The task is not straightforward as users, including a variety of verticals with their rather different communication environments, are sometimes not capable of expressing their future needs in technical terms nor industry might be able to prognosticate the demand that has not yet equivalence in preceding systems. This paper analyses some of the most important current visions of key standardization bodies and assesses indications of the industry for the potential requirements, service types, use cases, and architectural and functional models that can serve as a building block for the actual realization of the visions. This paper also presents means that can be applied in further interpretation and assessment of the vertical needs and priorities, with examples reflecting the benefits of Network Slice requirements that the GSMA North Americas Network Slicing Taskforce studied for foreseen near future environment and that may be extended to be utilized also in exploration of 6G requirements.

DEVELOPMENT OF FUNCTIONAL MODELS AND COMPARISON OF AUTOMATED INFORMATION SYSTEMS

Currently, information systems are used in all areas of human society. The main criterion for the optimal operation of an enterprise's information system is full automation. In this regard, the implementation of automated control systems is extremely necessary. They significantly increase efficiency in all spheres of production and improve work productivity of employees. In this case it is necessary to pay special attention not only to the creation of a unified information environment, but also to the possibility of assessing the workload and functionality of its individual components. Such a possibility is provided by the application of the basics of building functional models of subsystems.

Interpersonal, Affective and Compulsive Features of Driven Exercise in Anorexia Nervosa

Background: This preregistered (https://osf.io/g9ajb) study sought to integrate the current literature on trait compulsivity into maintenance models of driven exercise in anorexia nervosa (AN). We tested whether compulsivity increases the likelihood of driven exercise via interpersonal and affect-regulatory pathways. Methods: We used multilevel structural equation modeling to test the hypothesis that trait compulsivity predicts a stronger within-person link between affect-regulatory difficulties or interpersonal sensitivity and driven exercise in female adolescents and adults with AN. We used data from five assessments across inpatient treatment and 6-months follow-up of 207 adult and adolescent patients with AN (1036 datapoints).Results: In line with our hypotheses, patients who generally experienced more affect-regulatory difficulties or stronger interpersonal sensitivity tended to engage in more driven exercise. Moreover, high levels of trait compulsivity amplified the effect of interpersonal sensitivity on driven exercise across time. Contrary to our hypotheses, the link between affect regulation and driven exercise was not moderated by compulsivity. Similar effects on general ED psychopathology were found, but no cross-level moderation of compulsivity.Limitations: Due to sample size, potential age- and subtype-dependent effects were not analyzed. Conclusion: Our results suggest that driven exercise coincides with self-reported experiences of interpersonal sensitivity and that this link varies as a function of compulsivity such that the within-person coupling is stronger among those scoring high on compulsivity. To derive clinically useful functional models of driven exercise, future studies might use ecological momentary assessments to investigate its momentary associations with affect and interpersonal sensitivity in the context of compulsive traits.

How can a Random Phenomenon between Particles be Synchronized Instantaneously and Independently of the Distance Between Said Particles?

Entanglement is a random phenomenon that is instantly synchronized, regardless of the space that mediates between entangled particles. However, the instantaneous transmission of information using entanglement is impossible. This is because the instantaneity in the synchronization of non-local outcomes as a consequence of quantum measurement (after the distribution of the entangled pairs) cannot be used for an entanglement-based communication system to transmit information instantaneously. This impossibility stems from the following two reasons: a) the difficulty of controlling non-local outcomes through local actions without the intervention of an auxiliary channel (classical), and b) regardless of the previous point, no communication system based on entanglement can be instantaneous due to the distribution of an entangled pair at relativistic speeds, necessary to generate the quantum channel, each time a qubit must be transmitted. Three simple experiments help to clarify this controversial point. In fact, this study establishes what is truly responsible for the impossibility to transmit information instantaneously of any communication system based on entanglement. In this respect, functional models of the internal behavior of quantum measurement, and entanglement were developed, which allow analyzing the instantaneity post-distribution of entangled particles, before and after a quantum measurement, as well as the randomness in the results obtained from a quantum measurement of the entanglement. In this sense, this study establishes a debate about three possible responsible for the aforementioned randomness: the quantum measurement itself, entanglement, and the human intervention. Finally, homology between the entanglement and the double-slit experiment is presented.

Modeling of welding arc power supply diagrams in Matlab / Simulink

Purpose. Creation of virtual blocks and simulation laboratory stands for the study and comprehensive research of the dynamic properties of welding power supplies. Methodology. Review of literary sources on the subject, simulation modeling of electromagnetic processes in the MATLAB software environment, comparative analysis of obtained and available data. Findings. The comparative analysis of means of modeling of power sources of a welding arc is executed. One of the main parameters by which the environments were compared is functionality. Among the considered simulators, Simulink of the MATLAB software environment is the most effective one in the considered systems modeling. Using special features, its user can not only simulate, but also analyze the operation of the over time installation. Mathematical and functional models of welding arc power supplies were built using SimPowerSystems elements and blocks from the Simulink library with the involvement of the MATLAB system itself, which significantly expands the possibilities for such systems modeling. Mathematization of certain processes to some extent shows the level of reliability of the results and the degree of their scientific development. The developed models act as a laboratory, which allows you to set and explore any modes and characteristics. Numerical experiments and comparative analysis of numerical and field experiments are given. Experimental verification of the obtained results on specific examples showed the relevance of the problem and the correctness of its solution. Further research is related to the expansion of the range of simulated power sources of the electric arc, a comprehensive study of their dynamic properties and basic characteristics, experimental verification of the developed models, as well as comparative analysis and development of recommendations for model improvement. Originality. The method of circuit modeling of general-purpose electrical and electronic circuits was further developed by extending it to a new class of objects - the power supply system of electrical installations. Practical value. Construction of mathematical and functional models of complex systems with the involvement of MATLAB allows to take into account their main features, significantly expands the possibilities for modeling, study and research of power supplies. Based on the proposed approach, simulation laboratory stands of specific power supplies were developed and built, which allow to set and study any modes and characteristics.

Evaluating Quantitative Measures for Assessing Functional Similarity in Engineering Design

The development of example-based design support tools, such as those used for design-by-analogy, relies heavily on the computation of similarity between designs. Various vector- and graph-based similarity measures operationalize different principles to assess the similarity of designs. Despite the availability of various types of similarity measures and the widespread adoption of some, these measures have not been tested for cross-measure agreement, especially in a design context. In this paper, several vector- and graph-based similarity measures are tested across two datasets of functional models of products to explore the ways in which they find functionally similar designs. The results show that the network-based measures fundamentally operationalize functional similarity in a different way than vector-based measures. Based upon the findings, we recommend a graph-based similarity measure such as NetSimile in the early stages of design when divergence is desirable and a vector-based measure such as cosine similarity in a period of convergence, when the scope of the desired function implementation is clearer.

NR4A3 and CCL20 clusters dominate the genetic networks in CD146+ blood cells during acute myocardial infarction in humans

Background CD146 is a tight junction-associated molecule involved in maintaining endothelial barrier, and balancing immune–inflammation response, in cardiovascular disease. Notably, peripheral CD146+ cells significantly upsurge under vessel dyshomeostasis such as acute myocardial injury (AMI), appearing to be a promising therapeutic target. In this study, with a new view of gene correlation, we aim at deciphering the complex underlying mechanism of CD146+ cells’ impact in the development of AMI. Methods Transcription dataset GSE 66,360 of CD146+ blood cells from clinical subjects was downloaded from NCBI. Pearson networks were constructed and the clustering coefficients were calculated to disclose the differential connectivity genes (DCGs). Analysis of gene connectivity and gene expression were performed to reveal the hub genes and hub gene clusters followed by gene enrichment analysis. Results and conclusions Among the total 23,520 genes, 27 genes out of 126 differential expression genes were identified as DCGs. These DCGs were found in the periphery of the networks under normal condition, but transferred to the functional center after AMI. Moreover, it was revealed that DCGs spontaneously crowded together into two functional models, CCL20 cluster and NR4A3 cluster, influencing the CD146-mediated signaling pathways during the pathology of AMI for the first time.