Academic literature on the topic 'Communication Complexity Scale'
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Journal articles on the topic "Communication Complexity Scale"
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Brady, Nancy C., Kandace Fleming, Kathy Thiemann-Bourque, Lesley Olswang, Patricia Dowden, Muriel D. Saunders, and Janet Marquis. "Development of the Communication Complexity Scale." American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology 21, no. 1 (February 2012): 16–28. http://dx.doi.org/10.1044/1058-0360(2011/10-0099).
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Brady, Nancy C., Kandace Fleming, Rebecca Swinburne Romine, Alison Holbrook, Kristen Muller, and Connie Kasari. "Concurrent Validity and Reliability for the Communication Complexity Scale." American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology 27, no. 1 (February 6, 2018): 237–46. http://dx.doi.org/10.1044/2017_ajslp-17-0106.
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Purpose The Communication Complexity Scale (CCS; Brady et al., 2012) was created to fill a void in measures of expressive communication skills in individuals who communicate primarily with presymbolic or early symbolic means. CCS scores reflect expressive communication observed during interactive communication contexts. Method Two studies were completed to examine the reliability and validity of the revised CCS scores. Participants in both studies had minimal verbal skills (i.e., produced less than 20 functional words). Study 1 examined interobserver agreement, test–retest reliability, and concurrent validity for 239 participants with intellectual disabilities between the ages of 3–66 years, assessed with the protocol developed at the University of Kansas (KU CCS). CCS scores were compared with scores from the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales–Second Edition (Sparrow, Cicchetti, & Balla, 2005) and the Communication Matrix (Rowland & Fried-Oken, 2010). Study 2 examined the reliability and concurrent validity for CCS scores derived from 110 children (chronological age = 3–9) with autism from diverse backgrounds. These children were assessed with the Early Social Communication Scale (Mundy et al., 2003). CCS scores were compared with rates of communication derived from the Early Social Communication Scale. Results CCS scores were moderately correlated with scores from existing measures of early communication. In addition, CCS scores from different raters were reliable, and test–retest scores were highly similar. Conclusions These findings support the validity and reliability of the CCS when used with individuals across a wide range of ages and with various types of disabilities. The CCS can be used in research and clinical practice to describe extant communication levels in individuals with minimal verbal skills.
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Atwood, Erin, Nancy C. Brady, and Amy Esplund. "Measuring Early Communication in Spanish Speaking Children: The Communication Complexity Scale in Peru." International Journal of Speech & Language Pathology and Audiology 3, no. 1 (April 30, 2015): 9–19. http://dx.doi.org/10.12970/2311-1917.2015.03.01.2.
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Qian, Kun, Wen-Qin Wang, and Huaizong Shao. "Low-Complexity Transmit Antenna Selection and Beamforming for Large-Scale MIMO Communications." International Journal of Antennas and Propagation 2014 (2014): 1–11. http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/159375.
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Transmit antenna selection plays an important role in large-scale multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communications, but optimal large-scale MIMO antenna selection is a technical challenge. Exhaustive search is often employed in antenna selection, but it cannot be efficiently implemented in large-scale MIMO communication systems due to its prohibitive high computation complexity. This paper proposes a low-complexity interactive multiple-parameter optimization method for joint transmit antenna selection and beamforming in large-scale MIMO communication systems. The objective is to jointly maximize the channel outrage capacity and signal-to-noise (SNR) performance and minimize the mean square error in transmit antenna selection and minimum variance distortionless response (MVDR) beamforming without exhaustive search. The effectiveness of all the proposed methods is verified by extensive simulation results. It is shown that the required antenna selection processing time of the proposed method does not increase along with the increase of selected antennas, but the computation complexity of conventional exhaustive search method will significantly increase when large-scale antennas are employed in the system. This is particularly useful in antenna selection for large-scale MIMO communication systems.
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Brady, Nancy C., Rebecca E. Swinburne Romine, Alison Holbrook, Kandace K. Fleming, and Connie Kasari. "Measuring Change in the Communication Skills of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder Using the Communication Complexity Scale." American Journal on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities 125, no. 6 (November 1, 2020): 481–92. http://dx.doi.org/10.1352/1944-7558-125.6.481.
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Abstract Changes in minimal verbal communication by children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) were measured with the Communication Complexity Scale (CCS) and other communication assessments. The CCS measures complexity of preverbal and beginning verbal communication used to communicate behavior regulation and joint attention. The purpose was to investigate if the CCS was responsive to changes associated with a behavioral intervention aimed at improving communication skills. Changes were detected with CCS scores, rates of initiating joint attention, and the Mullen Scales of Early Learning (MSEL) Expressive Language subscale. Significant changes in CCS scores were also detected for a subgroup of participants who did not show significant changes on the MSEL Expressive Language subscale, demonstrating that CCS scores are sensitive to changes associated with a behavioral intervention.
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Pandurangan, Gopal, Peter Robinson, and Michele Scquizzato. "On the Distributed Complexity of Large-Scale Graph Computations." ACM Transactions on Parallel Computing 8, no. 2 (June 30, 2021): 1–28. http://dx.doi.org/10.1145/3460900.
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Motivated by the increasing need to understand the distributed algorithmic foundations of large-scale graph computations, we study some fundamental graph problems in a message-passing model for distributed computing where k ≥ 2 machines jointly perform computations on graphs with n nodes (typically, n >> k). The input graph is assumed to be initially randomly partitioned among the k machines, a common implementation in many real-world systems. Communication is point-to-point, and the goal is to minimize the number of communication rounds of the computation. Our main contribution is the General Lower Bound Theorem , a theorem that can be used to show non-trivial lower bounds on the round complexity of distributed large-scale data computations. This result is established via an information-theoretic approach that relates the round complexity to the minimal amount of information required by machines to solve the problem. Our approach is generic, and this theorem can be used in a “cookbook” fashion to show distributed lower bounds for several problems, including non-graph problems. We present two applications by showing (almost) tight lower bounds on the round complexity of two fundamental graph problems, namely, PageRank computation and triangle enumeration . These applications show that our approach can yield lower bounds for problems where the application of communication complexity techniques seems not obvious or gives weak bounds, including and especially under a stochastic partition of the input. We then present distributed algorithms for PageRank and triangle enumeration with a round complexity that (almost) matches the respective lower bounds; these algorithms exhibit a round complexity that scales superlinearly in k , improving significantly over previous results [Klauck et al., SODA 2015]. Specifically, we show the following results: PageRank: We show a lower bound of Ὼ(n/k 2 ) rounds and present a distributed algorithm that computes an approximation of the PageRank of all the nodes of a graph in Õ(n/k 2 ) rounds. Triangle enumeration: We show that there exist graphs with m edges where any distributed algorithm requires Ὼ(m/k 5/3 ) rounds. This result also implies the first non-trivial lower bound of Ὼ(n 1/3 ) rounds for the congested clique model, which is tight up to logarithmic factors. We then present a distributed algorithm that enumerates all the triangles of a graph in Õ(m/k 5/3 + n/k 4/3 ) rounds.
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Zhang, Bo, Yu Fei Wang, Tao Zhang, and Yuan Yuan Ma. "A Key Management Scheme for Smart Grid Wireless Terminals." Applied Mechanics and Materials 442 (October 2013): 501–6. http://dx.doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/amm.442.501.
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With the large-scale construction of smart grid, smart grid terminals widely using wireless access technology to communicate to the power systems. For ensuring the communication security, pair-wise key pre-distribution scheme is widely used, however, which introduces the complexity of key management, and insufficient security problems. According to the smart grid terminals wireless communication features, proposes an intelligent grid wireless terminal online key management scheme, which is based on the t rank binary symmetric polynomial and fully homomorphic encryption algorithm. This scheme make the communication key could be established with a few parameters between the communicating parties, which reduces the complexity of key predistribution and the amount of calculation. Moreover, the whole process of the key generation is encrypted by fully homomorphic encryption algorithm, effectively enhances the security of the scheme.
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Fleming, Kandace K., and Nancy C. Brady. "Task and Participant Variables Predict Communication Complexity Scale (CCS) Scores: Closer Examination of the CCS." American Journal on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities 124, no. 6 (November 1, 2019): 483–96. http://dx.doi.org/10.1352/1944-7558-124.6.483.
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Abstract Communication Complexity Scale (CCS) scores for 269 minimally verbal participants were examined to determine if communicator behavior and task and communicator characteristics were related to scores in a manner consistent with theoretical and research evidence expectations. Each participant completed an interactive assessment with 6 joint attention tasks and 6 behavior regulation tasks. Caregivers completed the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales II. Results indicated (a) joint attention tasks yielded lower scores than behavior regulation tasks, (b) older participants had lower scores, (c) individuals with autism spectrum disorder scored more similarly than those without, (d) the difference between joint attention and behavior regulation scores was greater for the autism spectrum disorder group, and (e) adaptive behavior was significantly positively related to complexity scores.
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Cakir, I., H. D. Kaya, I. Dikmen, G. Atasoy, and M. T. Birgonul. "An Exploratory Study on Communication Complexity in Mega Construction Projects." IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science 1101, no. 4 (November 1, 2022): 042045. http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/1101/4/042045.
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Abstract Complexity is the property of a project that makes it difficult to understand, foresee and control its behaviour due to interrelatedness between various project attributes such as tasks, parties, disciplines, and interfaces. Project complexity is an inherent part of mega construction projects due to their large scale, long period, the multiplicity of disciplines, the high number of stakeholders, multi-nationality, and high level of public attention, as well as political interest. This paper depicts findings of a research project that aims to identify characteristics of and factors that contribute to project complexity by referring to the experiences of professionals involved in mega construction projects. For this purpose, data has been collected by interviewing 18 participants from 11 mega construction projects. Communication complexity, which reflects the amount of distributed communication channels between various stakeholders, has been identified as one of the major drivers of project complexity in megaprojects. Based on literature and semi-structured interview findings, a causal structure to represent communication complexity comprising of three components, which are; project, stakeholders, and communication management, was developed. The causal map, which represents the opinions of a limited number of experts, cannot be generalised; however, it can provide useful insights about drivers of communication complexity that can be used to develop strategies to manage complexity.
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Nikodem, Maciej, Mariusz Slabicki, and Marek Bawiec. "Efficient Communication Scheme for Bluetooth Low Energy in Large Scale Applications." Sensors 20, no. 21 (November 8, 2020): 6371. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/s20216371.
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The use of Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) in the Internet-of-Things (IoT) applications has become widespread and popular. This has resulted in the increased number of deployed BLE devices. To ensure energy efficiency, applications use connectionless communication where nodes broadcast information using advertisement messages. As the BLE devices compete for access to spectrum, collisions are inevitable and methods that improve device coexistence are required. This paper proposes a connectionless communication scheme for BLE that improves communication efficiency in IoT applications where a large number of BLE nodes operate in the same area and communicate simultaneously to a central server. The proposed scheme is based on an active scanning mode and is compared with a typical application where passive scanning mode is used. The evaluation is based on numerical simulations and real-life evaluation of a network containing 150 devices. The presented scheme significantly reduces the number of messages transmitted by each node and decreases packet loss ratio. It also improves the energy efficiency and preserves the battery of BLE nodes as they transmit fewer radio messages and effectively spent less time actively communicating. The proposed connectionless BLE communication scheme can be applied to a large variety of IoT applications improving their performance and coexistence with other devices operating in the 2.4 GHz band. Additionally, the implementation complexity and costs of the proposed communication scheme are negligible.
Dissertations / Theses on the topic "Communication Complexity Scale"
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Zhang, Wei Zhang. "Wireless receiver designs from information theory to VLSI implementation /." Diss., Atlanta, Ga. : Georgia Institute of Technology, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/1853/31817.
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Thesis (Ph.D)--Electrical and Computer Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2010.Committee Chair: Ma, Xiaoli; Committee Member: Anderson, David; Committee Member: Barry, John; Committee Member: Chen, Xu-Yan; Committee Member: Kornegay, Kevin. Part of the SMARTech Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Collection.
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Datta, Tanumay. "Low-Complexity Receiver Algorithms in Large-Scale Multiuser MIMO Systems and Generalized Spatial Modulation." Thesis, 2013. http://etd.iisc.ernet.in/2005/3429.
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Multi-antenna wireless systems have become very popular due to their theoretically predicted higher spectral efficiencies and improved performance compared to single-antenna systems. Large-scale multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems refer to wireless systems where communication terminals employ tens to hundreds of antennas to achieve in-creased spectral efficiencies/sum rates, reliability, and power efficiency. Large-scale multi-antenna systems are attractive to meet the increasing wireless data rate requirements, without compromising on the bandwidth. This thesis addresses key signal processing issues in large-scale MIMO systems. Specifically, the thesis investigates efficient algorithms for signal detection and channel estimation in large-scale MIMO systems. It also investigates ‘spatial modulation,’ a multi-antenna modulation scheme that can reduce the number of transmit radio frequency (RF) chains, without compromising much on the spectral efficiency. The work reported in this thesis is comprised of the following two parts:
1 investigation of low-complexity receiver algorithms based on Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) technique, tabu search, and belief propagation for large-scale uplink multiuser MIMO systems, and
2 investigation of achievable rates and signal detection in generalized spatial modulation.
1. Receiver algorithms for large-scale multiuser MIMO systems on the uplink In this part of the thesis, we propose low-complexity algorithms based on MCMC techniques, Gaussian sampling based lattice decoding (GSLD), reactive tabu search (RTS), and factor graph based belief propagation (BP) for signal detection on the uplink in large-scale multiuser MIMO systems. We also propose an efficient channel estimation scheme based on Gaussian sampling.
Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) sampling: We propose a novel MCMC based detection algorithm, which achieves near-optimal performance in large dimensions at low complexities by the joint use of a mixed Gibbs sampling (MGS) strategy and a multiple restart strategy with an efficient restart criterion. The proposed mixed Gibbs sampling distribution is a weighted mixture of the target distribution and uniform distribution. The presence of the uniform component in the sampling distribution allows the algorithm to exit from local traps quickly and alleviate the stalling problem encountered in conventional Gibbs sampling. We present an analysis for the optimum choice of the mixing ratio. The analysis approach is to define an absorbing Markov chain and use its property regarding the expected number of iterations needed to reach the global minima for the first time. We also propose an MCMC based algorithm which exploits the sparsity in uplink multiuser MIMO transmissions, where not all users are active simultaneously. Gaussian sampling based lattice decoding: Next, we investigate the problem of searching the closest lattice point in large dimensional lattices and its use in signal detection in large-scale MIMO systems. Specifically, we propose a Gaussian sampling based lattice decoding (GSLD) algorithm. The novelty of this algorithm is that, instead of sampling from a discrete distribution as in Gibbs sampling, the algorithm iteratively generates samples from a continuous Gaussian distribution, whose parameters are obtained analytically. This makes the complexity of the proposed algorithm to be independent of the size of the modulation alpha-bet. Also, the algorithm is able to achieve near-optimal performance for different antenna and modulation alphabet settings at low complexities. Random restart reactive tabu search (R3TS): Next, we study receiver algorithms based on reactive tabu search (RTS) technique in large-scale MIMO systems. We propose a multiple random restarts based reactive tabu search (R3TS) algorithm that achieves near-optimal performance in large-scale MIMO systems. A key feature of the proposed R3TS algorithm is its performance based restart criterion, which gives very good performance-complexity tradeoff in large-dimension systems. Lower bound on maximum likelihood (ML) bit error rate (BER) performance: We propose an approach to obtain lower bounds on the ML performance of large-scale MIMO systems using RTS simulation. In the proposed approach, we run the RTS algorithm using the transmitted vector as the initial vector, along with a suitable neighborhood definition, and find a lower bound on number of errors in ML solution. We demonstrate that the proposed bound is tight (within about 0.5 dB of the optimal performance in a 16×16MIMO system) at moderate to high SNRs. Factor graph using Gaussian approximation of interference (FG-GAI): Multiuser MIMO channels can be represented by graphical models that are fully/densely connected (loopy graphs), where conventional belief propagation yields suboptimal performance and requires high complexity. We propose a solution to this problem that uses a simple, yet effective, Gaussian approximation of interference (GAI) approach that carries out a linear per-symbol complexity message passing on a factor graph (FG) based graphical model. The proposed algorithm achieves near-optimal performance in large dimensions in frequency-flat as well as frequency-selective channels. Gaussian sampling based channel estimation: Next, we propose a Gaussian sampling based channel estimation technique for large-scale time-division duplex (TDD) MIMO systems. The proposed algorithm refines the initial estimate of the channel by iteratively detecting the data block and using that knowledge to improve the estimated channel knowledge using a Gaussian sampling based technique. We demonstrate that this algorithm achieves near-optimal performance both in terms of mean square error of the channel estimates and BER of detected data in both frequency-flat and frequency-selective channels.
2. Generalized spatial modulation In the second part of the thesis, we investigate generalized spatial modulation (GSM) in point-to point MIMO systems. GSM is attractive because of its ability to work with less number of transmit RF chains compared to traditional spatial multiplexing, without com-promising much on spectral efficiency. In this work, we show that, by using an optimum combination of number of transmit antennas and number of transmit RF chains, GSM can achieve better throughput and/or BER than spatial multiplexing. We compute tight bounds on the maximum achievable rate in a GSM system, and quantify the percentage savings in the number of transmit RF chains as well as the percentage increase in the rate achieved in GSM compared to spatial multiplexing. We also propose a Gibbs sampling based algorithm suited to detect GSM signals, which yields impressive BER performance and complexity results.
Books on the topic "Communication Complexity Scale"
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McGreavy, Bridie, and David Hart. Sustainability Science and Climate Change Communication. Oxford University Press, 2017. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190228620.013.563.
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Direct experience, scientific reports, and international media coverage make clear that the breadth, severity, and multiple consequences from climate change are far-reaching and increasing. Like many places globally, the northeastern United States is already experiencing climate change, including one of the world’s highest rates of ocean warming, reduced durations of winter ice cover on lakes, a marked increase in the frequency of extreme precipitation events, and climate-mediated ecological disruptions of invasive species. Given current and projected changes in ecosystems, communities, and economies, it is essential to find ways to anticipate and reduce vulnerabilities to change and, at the same time, promote sustainable economic development and human well-being.The emerging field of sustainability science offers a promising conceptual and analytic framework for accelerating progress towards sustainable development. Sustainability science aims to be use-inspired and to connect basic and applied knowledge with solutions for societal benefit. This approach draws from diverse disciplines, theories, and methods organized around the broad goal of maintaining and improving life support systems, ecosystem health, and human well-being. Partners in New England have been using sustainability science as a framework for stakeholder-engaged, interdisciplinary research that has generated use-inspired knowledge and multiple solutions for more than a decade. Sustainability science has helped produce a landscape-scale approach to wetland conservation; emergency response plans for invasive species that threaten livelihoods and cultures; decision support tools for improved water quality management and public health for beach use and shellfish consumption; and the development of robust partnership networks across disciplines and institutions. Understanding and reducing vulnerability to climate change is a central motivating factor in this portfolio of projects because linking knowledge about social-ecological systems with effective policy action requires a holistic view that addresses complex intersecting stressors.One common theme in these varied efforts is the way that communication fundamentally shapes collaborative research and social, technical, and policy outcomes from sustainability science. Communication as a discipline has, for more than two thousand years, sought to understand how environments and symbols shape human life, forms of social organization, and collective decision making. The result is a body of scholarship and practical techniques that are diverse and well adapted to meet the complexity of contemporary sustainability challenges. The complexity of the issues that sustainability science aspires to solve requires diversity and flexibility to be able to adapt approaches to the specific needs of a situation. Long-term, cross-scale, and multi-institutional sustainability science collaborations show that communication research and practice can help build communities and networks, and advance technical and policy solutions to confront the challenges of climate change and promote sustainability now and in future.
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Vossen, Piek, and Antske Fokkens, eds. Creating a More Transparent Internet. Cambridge University Press, 2022. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/9781108641104.
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On social media, new forms of communication arise rapidly, many of which are intense, dispersed, and create new communities at a global scale. Such communities can act as distinct information bubbles with their own perspective on the world, and it is difficult for people to find and monitor all these perspectives and relate the different claims made. Within this digital jungle of perspectives on truth, it is difficult to make informed decisions on important things like vaccinations, democracy, and climate change. Understanding and modeling this phenomenon in its full complexity requires an interdisciplinary approach, utilizing the ample data provided by digital communication to offer new insights and opportunities. This interdisciplinary book gives a comprehensive view on social media communication, the different forms it takes, the impact and the technology used to mine it, and defines the roadmap to a more transparent Web.
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Wagenaar, Hendrik, Helga Amesberger, and Sietske Altink. Summary and conclusion. Policy Press, 2017. http://dx.doi.org/10.1332/policypress/9781447324249.003.0007.
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The final chapter of the book summarises its main results and conclusions. It formulates two insights. First, prostitution policy is fragile. Legalisation and decriminalisation are easily reversed, and revert back to criminalisation and heavy-handed regulation and control. This is a complex process that, triggered by the ever present sigma on prostitution and a dominant neo-abolitionist discourse, largely occurs at the local level, thereby deviating from, and even undoing, national policymaking. Second, without a detailed exposition and analysis of the design and implementation of prostitution policy at different scales of governance, statements about its nature or outcomes remain necessarily superficial and are at worst misleading. We conclude with the question: What can policy makers do to negotiate the complexity and unpredictability of the prostitution domain? Stimulating variation, facilitating new communication lines and selecting and promoting solutions that work are general strategies for effectively navigating such complexity. This requires the inclusion of stakeholders, particularly of more vulnerable groups such as sex workers, in policy formulation and implementation.
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Levashov, Vladimir K. The Political Culture of Russian Society (Sociological Analysis). Federal Center of Theoretical and Applied Sociology of the Russian Academy of Sciences (FCTAS RAS), 2020. http://dx.doi.org/10.19181/monogr.978-5-89697-347-8.2021.
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The monograph presents the results of sociological research on the project “The political culture of the Russian society in the transition to a new technological structure and implementation Of the strategy of scientific and technological development of the Russian Federation and the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation from 07.05.2018 № 204 «On national goals and strategic objectives of the Russian Federation for the period up to 2024»”. The all-Russian survey was conducted in May-June 2019 in 22 regions of the Russian Federation. The study of the structure and nature of citizens’ opinions on national development goals and digital society shows that the Russian society has formed the initial elements of the fundamental components of an innovative political culture: knowledge, beliefs and attitudes for the actual behavior of citizens in terms of the introduction and use of information and communication technologies and the implementation of national projects. The problematic situation is identified and described in the monograph, according to the author, requires a thought-out and verified program of political actions, both on the part of the Government of the Russian Federation and on the part of civil society institutions in order to create a high cognitive, labor motivation in this strategically decisive area of life of the Russian society. The urgency, scale and complexity of the tasks require the unification of the efforts of civil society with a leading role and strategic coordination of state actions. The monograph summarizes the results of sociological research on topical issues on the agenda of Russian society and the state, and can be useful for management personnel of state and municipal administration, production organizers, managers of social and educational institutions, researchers, University teachers, graduate students and students.
Book chapters on the topic "Communication Complexity Scale"
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Kim, Duk Su, Young Han Lee, Hong Kook Kim, Song Ha Choi, Ji Woon Kim, and Myeong Bo Kim. "Complexity Reduction of WSOLA-Based Time-Scale Modification Using Signal Period Estimation." In Communication and Networking, 155–61. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg, 2010. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-17604-3_17.
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Burkard, Guido, Hans-Andreas Engel, and Daniel Loss. "Spintronics and Quantum Dots for Quantum Computing and Quantum Communication." In Complexity from Microscopic to Macroscopic Scales: Coherence and Large Deviations, 83–104. Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands, 2002. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-94-010-0419-0_4.
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Sljoka, Adnan. "Structural and Functional Analysis of Proteins Using Rigidity Theory." In Sublinear Computation Paradigm, 337–67. Singapore: Springer Singapore, 2021. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-4095-7_14.
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AbstractOver the past two decades, we have witnessed an unprecedented explosion in available biological data. In the age of big data, large biological datasets have created an urgent need for the development of bioinformatics methods and innovative fast algorithms. Bioinformatics tools can enable data-driven hypothesis and interpretation of complex biological data that can advance biological and medicinal knowledge discovery. Advances in structural biology and computational modelling have led to the characterization of atomistic structures of many biomolecular components of cells. Proteins in particular are the most fundamental biomolecules and the key constituent elements of all living organisms, as they are necessary for cellular functions. Proteins play crucial roles in immunity, catalysis, metabolism and the majority of biological processes, and hence there is significant interest to understand how these macromolecules carry out their complex functions. The mechanical heterogeneity of protein structures and a delicate mix of rigidity and flexibility, which dictates their dynamic nature, is linked to their highly diverse biological functions. Mathematical rigidity theory and related algorithms have opened up many exciting opportunities to accurately analyse protein dynamics and probe various biological enigmas at a molecular level. Importantly, rigidity theoretical algorithms and methods run in almost linear time complexity, which makes it suitable for high-throughput and big-data style analysis. In this chapter, we discuss the importance of protein flexibility and dynamics and review concepts in mathematical rigidity theory for analysing stability and the dynamics of protein structures. We then review some recent breakthrough studies, where we designed rigidity theory methods to understand complex biological events, such as allosteric communication, large-scale analysis of immune system antibody proteins, the highly complex dynamics of intrinsically disordered proteins and the validation of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) solved protein structures.
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Tenhunen, J. D. "Relating Ecosystem Studies to the Management of Resources in Central Europe: A Problem of Complexity, Scales and Communication." In Ecological Studies, 3–15. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg, 2001. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-04504-6_1.
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Huberman, Sean, and Tho Le-Ngoc. "Dynamic Spectrum Management Algorithms for Multiuser Communication Systems." In Advances in Wireless Technologies and Telecommunication, 300–344. IGI Global, 2015. http://dx.doi.org/10.4018/978-1-4666-6571-2.ch012.
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Dynamic Spectrum Management (DSM) is an effective method for reducing the effect of interference in both wireless and wireline communication systems. This chapter discusses various DSM algorithms, including Optimal Spectrum Balancing (OSB), Iterative Spectrum Balancing (ISB), Iterative Water-Filling (IWF), Selective Iterative Water-filling (SIW), Successive Convex Approximation for Low complExity (SCALE), the Difference of Convex functions Algorithm (DCA), Distributed Spectrum Balancing (DSB), Autonomous Spectrum Balancing (ASB), and Constant Offset ASB using Multiple Reference Users (ASB-MRU). They are compared in terms of their performance (achievable data-rate) by extensive simulation results and their computational complexity.
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Yang, Zhe, and Abbas Mohammed. "Reducing Complexity and Achieving Higher Energy Efficiency in Wireless Sensor Network Communications by Using High Altitude Platforms." In Wireless Sensor Networks and Energy Efficiency, 329–38. IGI Global, 2012. http://dx.doi.org/10.4018/978-1-4666-0101-7.ch015.
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In this chapter, a novel approach is explored to employ high-altitude platforms (HAPs) to remove the relaying burden and/or de-centralize coordination from wireless sensor networks (WSNs). The approach can reduce the complexity and achieve energy efficiency in communications of WSNs, whereby applications require a large-scale deployment of low-power and low-cost sustainable sensors. The authors review and discuss the main constraints and problems of energy consumptions and coordination in WSNs. The use of HAPs in WSNs provides favorable communication links via predominantly line of sight propagation due to their unique position and achieves benefits of reduced complexity and high energy efficiency, which are crucial for WSN operations.
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Fuhse, Jan. "Roles and Institutions." In Social Networks of Meaning and Communication, 133–63. Oxford University Press, 2021. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190275433.003.0005.
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This chapter develops a relational sociological account of the interplay of networks of social relationships with wider culture around the notions of role and institution. Roles mediate between the structure of social networks and institutionalized cultural patterns: On the one hand, they can emerge in small-scale network contexts and crystallize as long as the network structure persists. On the other hand, communication draws on institutionalized models to reduce its complexity and uncertainty. Relational institutions thereby imprint social networks by role categories. Such relational institutions include cultural models for actorhood, for social relationships (“relationship frames”), and for patterns of relationships. The chapter combines the general perspective of relational sociology with arguments from social network research, role theory, philosophical anthropology, and neo-institutionalism.
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Targowski, Andrew. "Asymmetric Communication." In Information Technology and Societal Development, 345–62. IGI Global, 2009. http://dx.doi.org/10.4018/978-1-60566-004-2.ch015.
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This chapter defines a framework for the crosscultural communication process, including efficiency and cost. The framework provides some directions for dialogue among civilizations, which is one of the main routes toward creation of the universal civilization. A developed architectural design of the cross-cultural communication process is based on a universal system approach that not only considers the complexities of the various cultural hierarchies and their corresponding communication climates, but also compares and quantifies the cultural-specific attributes with the intention of increasing efficiency levels in crosscultural communication. The attributes for two selected cultures (Western-West and Egyptian) are estimated in a normative way using expert opinions, measuring on a scale from 1 to 5 with 5 as the best value. Quantifying cultural richness (R), cultural efficiency (?), modified cultural differences (DMC, and cultural ability (B) reflects how a given culture’s strength can overcome cultural differences and enhance its competitive advantage (V). Two components of the culture factor cost, explicit (CE) and implicit (CI), are defined, examined and quantified for the purposes not only of controlling the cost of doing business across cultures, but also to determine the amount of investment needed to overcome cultural differences in a global economy. In this new millennium, global organizations will increasingly focus on the critical value of the cross-cultural communication process, its efficiency, its competence, its cost of doing business. In order to successfully communicate crossculturally, knowledge and understanding of such cultural factors as values, attitudes, beliefs and behaviors should be acquired. Because culture is a powerful force that strongly influences communication behavior, culture and communication are inseparably linked. Worldwide, in the last 20 years, countries have experienced a phenomenal growth in international trade and foreign direct investment. Similarly, they have discovered the importance of crosscultural communication. As a result, practitioners and scholars are paying attention to the fact that cultural dimensions influence management practices (Hofstede, 1980; Child, 1981; Triandis, 1982; Adler, 1983; Laurent, 1983; Maruyama, 1984). In recent years, empirical work in the crosscultural arena has focused on the role of culture on employee behavior in communicating within business organizations (Tayeb, 1988). But current 346 Asymmetric Communication work on cross-cultural business communication has paid little attention to either (a) how to adapt these seminal works on general communication to the needs of intercultural business or (b) how to create new models more relevant to cross-cultural business exchanges (Limaye & Victor, 1991, p. 283). There are many focused empirical studies on cross-cultural communication between two specific cultures (e.g., Wong & Hildebrandt, 1983; Halpern, 1983; Victor, 1987; Eiler & Victor, 1988; Varner, 1988; Victor & Danak, 1990), but such results must be arguable when extrapolated across multiple cultures. The prevailing western classical linear and process models of communication (Shannon & Weaver, 1949; Berlo, 1960) neglect the complexity of cross-cultural communication. Targowski and Bowman (1988) developed a layer-based pragmatic communication process model which covered more variables than any previous model and indirectly addressed the role of cultural factors among their layer-based variables. In a similar manner, the channel ratio model for intercultural communication developed by Haworth and Savage (1989) has also failed to account completely for the multiple communication variables in cross-cultural environments. So far, there is no adequate model that can explain the cross-cultural communication process and efficiency, let alone estimate the cost of doing business with other cultures worldwide.
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Meurice, Alice, Véronique Henin, and Marie Van Reet. "Learners’ emotional response to a complex video-creation task." In CALL and complexity – short papers from EUROCALL 2019, 285–90. Research-publishing.net, 2019. http://dx.doi.org/10.14705/rpnet.2019.38.1024.
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We are three teachers of business English in higher education who have developed a project for our second-year management students to co-create their own video document, exploring a business question. Our intention is to determine whether the complexity of our entire teaching sequence, and more specifically the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools for the co-creation of problem-solving content, allowed our learners to experience positive emotions, i.e. enjoyment – vs. anxiety – in the process of Second Language Acquisition (SLA), and whether they perceived the usefulness of the project for their future personal or professional life. Our project took place over the second semester of the 2018-2019 academic year, after which the students answered a questionnaire in their mother tongue with both Likert-scale and open questions. The current paper uses a mixed-methods approach to analyse the results and report on the emotional effect of the teaching sequence on the students.
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Manoufali, Mohamed, Peng-Yong Kong, Shihab Jimaa, and Hamada Alshaer. "Wireless Mesh Communication Technologies and Protocols for a Full-View Camera Sensor Network Used in Maritime Surveillance." In Advances in Human Resources Management and Organizational Development, 125–205. IGI Global, 2018. http://dx.doi.org/10.4018/978-1-5225-5323-6.ch006.
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Maritime oil exploration and transportation has increased more steeply due to the expansion of the world crude oil and natural gas production. The probability of oilrig pollution, burning, and explosion continues to rise. All these factors stimulate a greater danger for vessels, oil operation safety, and maritime environment. The continuous surveillance of the offshore oil fields and container vessels is essential to secure the production flow, avoid trespassing, and prevent vandalism from intruders and pirates. However, developing a large-scale camera sensor network (CSN) for a maritime surveillance is a challenging problem due to the environment complexity and network connectivity. Maritime wireless mesh networks (MWMNs) are envisaged to provide network connectivity in maritime environment and enable users to access the terrestrial communication networks. The high cost and low data-rate of satellite and other legacy maritime communication technologies and systems deployed in MWMNs pose a major limitation to establishing reliable and affordable maritime communications.
Conference papers on the topic "Communication Complexity Scale"
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Rahane, Ameet Annasaheb, and Anbumani Subramanian. "Measures of Complexity for Large Scale Image Datasets." In 2020 International Conference on Artificial Intelligence in Information and Communication (ICAIIC). IEEE, 2020. http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/icaiic48513.2020.9065274.
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Hu, Yuting, Zhongxu Wang, Xinyu Gaol, and Jiaqi Ning. "Low-complexity signal detection using CG method for uplink large-scale MIMO systems." In 2014 IEEE International Conference on Communication Systems (ICCS). IEEE, 2014. http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/iccs.2014.7024849.
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Zhang, Huaibo, Guiqiang Peng, and Leibo Liu. "Low complexity signal detector based on Lanczos method for large-scale MIMO systems." In 2016 6th International Conference on Electronics Information and Emergency Communication (ICEIEC). IEEE, 2016. http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/iceiec.2016.7589675.
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Domouchtsidis, Stavros, Christos Tsinos, Symeon Chatzinotas, and Bjorn Ottersten. "Antenna Selection Symbol-Level Precoding for Low Complexity Large-Scale Antenna Array Systems." In 2018 IEEE 23rd International Workshop on Computer Aided Modeling and Design of Communication Links and Networks (CAMAD). IEEE, 2018. http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/camad.2018.8514977.
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Shen, Shuheng, Linli Xu, Jingchang Liu, Xianfeng Liang, and Yifei Cheng. "Faster Distributed Deep Net Training: Computation and Communication Decoupled Stochastic Gradient Descent." In Twenty-Eighth International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence {IJCAI-19}. California: International Joint Conferences on Artificial Intelligence Organization, 2019. http://dx.doi.org/10.24963/ijcai.2019/637.
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With the increase in the amount of data and the expansion of model scale, distributed parallel training becomes an important and successful technique to address the optimization challenges. Nevertheless, although distributed stochastic gradient descent (SGD) algorithms can achieve a linear iteration speedup, they are limited significantly in practice by the communication cost, making it difficult to achieve a linear time speedup. In this paper, we propose a computation and communication decoupled stochastic gradient descent (CoCoD-SGD) algorithm to run computation and communication in parallel to reduce the communication cost. We prove that CoCoD-SGD has a linear iteration speedup with respect to the total computation capability of the hardware resources. In addition, it has a lower communication complexity and better time speedup comparing with traditional distributed SGD algorithms. Experiments on deep neural network training demonstrate the significant improvements of CoCoD-SGD: when training ResNet18 and VGG16 with 16 Geforce GTX 1080Ti GPUs, CoCoD-SGD is up to 2-3 x faster than traditional synchronous SGD.
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Jacobus, Frank, and Marc Manack. "Remote Control: The Natural Language of Architecture." In 2018 ACSA International Conference. ACSA Press, 2018. http://dx.doi.org/10.35483/acsa.intl.2018.30.
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The architectural design process is a means of translating information into form, and has long relied on indirect (“remote”) control mechanisms for communicating and translating the architect’s authorial intent into a built work. These methods have generally evolved from a more direct, physical basis, as both technology and the discipline have evolved. To communicate design ideas, architects have relied on methodologies that range from an extreme desire for control, to models that attempt to relinquish many controls entirely. Early communication models, in part due to lack of material, form, and program diversity, allowed for a less systematic and complex descriptive method; inscriptions in the earth, physical detail models along with a set of instructions, or simple scale models of the intention were all that was required.2 As cultures and their technologies advanced, communication methods such as scaled orthographic drawings, specifications and other forms of written instructions, and now fully realized Building Information Models, have become normative practice in a profession that looks for total control of the built work before it is physically realized. Apart from the communicative control models mentioned above, there are authorial models which have also progressed in complexity and abstraction alongside societal advancements. In the discipline’s infancy, authorship involved subtle evolutions of proportion and order within a well-established typological system. In modernism, the authorial models evolved as architects experimented with increased typological invention in response to a radically changing technological and social environment. Advancing to the contemporary “digital” moment, architects continue to develop systems to control complexities within the work, mapping strategies that deal with collecting and spatializing data, while others see contemporary design tools as a means to relinquish some design control to outside forces whose unexpected potential is compelling. This paper gives examples of remote communicative and authorial controls, and posits a new theory of the potential meaningful effects of leveraging these control mechanisms in new ways using three projects by SILO AR+D.
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Parra, Humberto, Kristian Mogensen, and Abdulla Alobeidli. "Large Scale Reservoir Simulation Models for Regional Understanding of Inter-Field Communications - A Case Study Offshore Abu Dhabi." In Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition & Conference. SPE, 2021. http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/207526-ms.
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Abstract Reservoir simulation models aim to reproduce at well, sector and field level the pressure and production behavior observed in the historical data. The size and resolution of the models are essentially capped by the computational resources as the numerical computations are quite complex and hardware demanding. For this reason, the use of simulation models to understand inter-field communications at regional level have been always a challenge, rarely pursued, referring those analyses to simple material balance to evaluate influxes, lacking lateral vectors to identify where volumes are coming from, especially on cases of multiple field interactions. The work presented in this paper illustrates the value of merging existing field level simulations models into a large scale regional simulation grids, in order to understand pressure disturbances observed in multiple fields Offshore Abu Dhabi. The process of merging simulation models represents a big challenge considering the high variety of approaches used in the original models, different geology complexity, fluid characteristics, different depletion regimes and field development strategies. In this study, thousands of wells, 6 structures with different fluid and equilibrium regions were used to build the biggest reservoir simulation model in Abu Dhabi. The integration of the data pursues the replication of the existing static and dynamic models, addressing in parallel lateral and vertical upscaling issues when moving from very fine into coarser grids. Implications on the change of scale on the repeatability of the HCIIP volumes and the impact of pseudo relative permeability curves on the history match were carefully analyzed during the process. Evaluation of the impact of the simplifications over the overall quality of the model was of paramount importance, interrogating whether the simplifications affects the capability of the model for assessing the pressure communication and influxes among the fields. The regional simulation model allowed to understand the effects of the peripheral water injection of a giant field on the nearby satellite fields, also the effects of these interactions on the pressure and oil saturation changes through time. Fields and Structures separated way far (20 and 40 Km away) can eventually see pressure disturbances after very long periods of time (up to 300 psi in couple of decades in some cases). Although evidences for changes in pressure are very clear and supported by RFT/MDT time lapsed data, the work also proved that changes on saturations are not very evident or can be considered very marginal on fields separated by large distances. This work represents an alternative and more accurate approach for evaluating nearby field communications and to quantify the boundary conditions to restore models at original stage before nearby interferences, allowing proper initialization of the fine scaled simulation models on pre-production status.
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Bao, Runxue, Xidong Wu, Wenhan Xian, and Heng Huang. "Doubly Sparse Asynchronous Learning for Stochastic Composite Optimization." In Thirty-First International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence {IJCAI-22}. California: International Joint Conferences on Artificial Intelligence Organization, 2022. http://dx.doi.org/10.24963/ijcai.2022/266.
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Parallel optimization has become popular for large-scale learning in the past decades. However, existing methods suffer from huge computational costs, memory usage, and communication burden in high-dimensional scenarios. To address the challenges, we propose a new accelerated doubly sparse asynchronous learning (DSAL) method for stochastic composite optimization, under which two algorithms are proposed on shared-memory and distributed-memory architecture respectively, which only conducts gradient descent on the nonzero coordinates (data sparsity) and active set (model sparsity). The proposed algorithm can converge much faster and achieve significant speedup by simultaneously enjoying the sparsity of the model and data. Moreover, by sending the gradients on the active set only, communication costs are dramatically reduced. Theoretically, we prove that the proposed method achieves the linear convergence rate with lower overall complexity and can achieve the model identification in a finite number of iterations almost surely. Finally, extensive experimental results on benchmark datasets confirm the superiority of our proposed method.
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Narasimhan, Lakshmi, Prapanna Parthasarathy, and Manik Lal Das. "Evaluation of a Suite of Metrics for Component Based Software Engineering (CBSE)." In InSITE 2009: Informing Science + IT Education Conference. Informing Science Institute, 2009. http://dx.doi.org/10.28945/3379.
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Component-Based Software Engineering (CBSE) has shown significant prospects in rapid production of large software systems with enhanced quality, and emphasis on decomposition of the engineered systems into functional or logical components with well-defined interfaces used for communication across the components. In this paper, a series of metrics proposed by various researchers have been analyzed, evaluated and benchmarked using several large-scale publicly available software systems. A systematic analysis of the values for various metrics has been carried out and several key inferences have been drawn from them. A number of useful conclusions have been drawn from various metrics evaluations, which include inferences on complexity, reusability, testability, modularity and stability of the underlying components. The inferences are argued to be beneficial for CBSE-based software development, integration and maintenance.
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Yu, Du, Wen-hua Wu, and Qian-jin Yue. "Prototype Measurement for Deep Water Floating Platforms Based on Monitoring Technology." In ASME 2013 32nd International Conference on Ocean, Offshore and Arctic Engineering. American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 2013. http://dx.doi.org/10.1115/omae2013-10251.
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Due to the complexity of ocean environmental conditions and non-linear structural responses, there are many uncertainties in establishing design of deep-water floating platforms. Traditional hydrodynamic analysis and model test, till now, still can’t provide the long-term safety and reliability for floating structure in harsh environments. Prototype test, as a full-scale experimental method, is carried out on in-service platforms to obtain the real response without simplification and hypothesis. The obtained data can be used not only to reduce uncertainties, but also to verify and further improve design specifications. In this paper, the full-scale measurement technique for floating platforms is discussed. Four monitoring subsystems are built up related to different characteristics of data collection in-service platform. Individual Remote Monitoring System (IRMS) is established to perform the remote communication between platform and land. The full monitoring system is carried out on a FPS in South China Sea, which supported by a joint industry project (JIP). Some useful monitoring results are presented at last to demonstrate the reliability of the whole monitoring systems.
Reports on the topic "Communication Complexity Scale"
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Willis, Craig, Will Hughes, and Sergiusz Bober. ECMI Minorities Blog. National and Linguistic Minorities in the Context of Professional Football across Europe: Five Examples from Non-kin State Situations. European Centre for Minority Issues, December 2022. http://dx.doi.org/10.53779/bvkl7633.
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Football clubs are often analysed by scholars as ‘imagined communities’, for no fan of any team will ever meet, or even be aware of most of their fellow supporters on an individual level. They are also simultaneously one of the most tribal phenomena of the twenty-first century, comparable to religion in terms of the complexity of rituals, their rhythm and overall organizational intricacies, yet equally inseparable from economics and politics. Whilst, superficially, the events of sporting fixtures carry little political significance, for many of Europe’s national and linguistic minorities football fandom takes on an extra dimension of identity – on an individual and collective scale, acting as a defining differentiation from the majority society. This blogpost analyses five clubs from non-kin state settings, with the intention to assess how different aspects of minority identities affect their fan bases, communication policies and other practices.
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Khan, Mahreen. Public Financial Management and Transitioning out of Aid. Institute of Development Studies, September 2022. http://dx.doi.org/10.19088/k4d.2022.145.
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This rapid review found an absence of literature focused specifically on measuring the impact of PFM and governance systems in countries that have transitioned from aid, by moving up the income ladder. However, there are a few academic publications and a limited number of studies by multilateral, such as the World Bank, that examine the role of PFM and governance systems in countries that are transitioning or have moved away from aid. However, the importance of public financial management (PFM) and governance systems in development is well established and seen as a pre-requisite for economic growth. To effectively transition from aid, most low-income countries (LICs) need to upgrade their PFM and governance systems to meet the different scale, resources, accountability mechanisms, and capacity-building requirements of a middle-income country (MIC). The absence of the above empirical evidence may be due to the complexity of measuring the impact of PFM reforms as the results are non-linear, difficult to isolate from other policies to establish causality, and manifest in a longer time frame. However, through comparative country studies, the consequences of deficient PFM and governance have been well documented. So impaired budgetary planning, implementation, and reporting, limited fiscal transparency, weak accountability mechanisms, resource leakage, and inefficient service delivery are well recognised as detrimental to economic growth and development. The literature on transitioning countries focuses predominantly on the impact of aid withdrawal on the social sector, where comparative qualitative data is easier to obtain and the effects are usually more immediate, visible, and may even extend to global health outcomes, such as in AIDS prevention programmes. Thus, tracking the progress of donor-assisted social sector programmes is relatively easier than for PFM and governance reforms. The literature is more abundant on the overall lessons of transitions from aid both for country governments and donors. The key lessons underscore the importance of PFM and governance systems and mechanisms to a successful transition up the income ladder: Planning for transition should be strategic, detailed and specifically geared to mitigate against risks, explicitly assessing the best mix of finance options to mitigate the impact of aid reduction/withdrawal on national budgets. The plan must be led by a working group or ministry and have timelines and milestones; Where PFM and governance is weak transition preparation should include strengthening PFM especially economic and fiscal legislation, administration, and implementation; Stakeholders such as donor partners (DPs) and NGOs should participate in the planning process with clear, open, and ongoing communication channels; Political and economic assessments in the planning and mid-term phases as well as long-term monitoring and evaluation should be instituted; Build financial, technical, and management capacity throughout the plan implementation This helpdesk report draws on academic, policy, and grey sources from the previous seven years rather than the usual K4D five-year window, to account for the two-year disruption of COVID-19. As cross-country studies on PFM and governance are scarce, a few older studies are also referenced to ensure a comprehensive response to the query. The report focuses on low-income countries transitioning from aid due to a change in status to lower-middle-income countries.
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Microbiology in the 21st Century: Where Are We and Where Are We Going? American Society for Microbiology, 2004. http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/aamcol.5sept.2003.
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The American Academy of Microbiology convened a colloquium September 5–7, 2003, in Charleston, South Carolina to discuss the central importance of microbes to life on earth, directions microbiology research will take in the 21st century, and ways to foster public literacy in this important field. Discussions centered on: the impact of microbes on the health of the planet and its inhabitants; the fundamental significance of microbiology to the study of all life forms; research challenges faced by microbiologists and the barriers to meeting those challenges; the need to integrate microbiology into school and university curricula; and public microbial literacy. This is an exciting time for microbiology. We are becoming increasingly aware that microbes are the basis of the biosphere. They are the ancestors of all living things and the support system for all other forms of life. Paradoxically, certain microbes pose a threat to human health and to the health of plants and animals. As the foundation of the biosphere and major determinants of human health, microbes claim a primary, fundamental role in life on earth. Hence, the study of microbes is pivotal to the study of all living things, and microbiology is essential for the study and understanding of all life on this planet. Microbiology research is changing rapidly. The field has been impacted by events that shape public perceptions of microbes, such as the emergence of globally significant diseases, threats of bioterrorism, increasing failure of formerly effective antibiotics and therapies to treat microbial diseases, and events that contaminate food on a large scale. Microbial research is taking advantage of the technological advancements that have opened new fields of inquiry, particularly in genomics. Basic areas of biological complexity, such as infectious diseases and the engineering of designer microbes for the benefit of society, are especially ripe areas for significant advancement. Overall, emphasis has increased in recent years on the evolution and ecology of microorganisms. Studies are focusing on the linkages between microbes and their phylogenetic origins and between microbes and their habitats. Increasingly, researchers are striving to join together the results of their work, moving to an integration of biological phenomena at all levels. While many areas of the microbiological sciences are ripe for exploration, microbiology must overcome a number of technological hurdles before it can fully accomplish its potential. We are at a unique time when the confluence of technological advances and the explosion of knowledge of microbial diversity will enable significant advances in microbiology, and in biology in general, over the next decade. To make the best progress, microbiology must reach across traditional departmental boundaries and integrate the expertise of scientists in other disciplines. Microbiologists are becoming increasingly aware of the need to harness the vast computing power available and apply it to better advantage in research. Current methods for curating research materials and data should be rethought and revamped. Finally, new facilities should be developed to house powerful research equipment and make it available, on a regional basis, to scientists who might otherwise lack access to the expensive tools of modern biology. It is not enough to accomplish cutting-edge research. We must also educate the children and college students of today, as they will be the researchers of tomorrow. Since microbiology provides exceptional teaching tools and is of pivotal importance to understanding biology, science education in schools should be refocused to include microbiology lessons and lab exercises. At the undergraduate level, a thorough knowledge of microbiology should be made a part of the core curriculum for life science majors. Since issues that deal with microbes have a direct bearing on the human condition, it is critical that the public-at-large become better grounded in the basics of microbiology. Public literacy campaigns must identify the issues to be conveyed and the best avenues for communicating those messages. Decision-makers at federal, state, local, and community levels should be made more aware of the ways that microbiology impacts human life and the ways school curricula could be improved to include valuable lessons in microbial science.