As an advanced network calculation mode, cloud computing is becoming more and more popular. However, with the proliferation of large data centers hosting cloud applications, the growth of energy consumption has been explosive. Surveys show that a remarkable part of the large energy consumed in data center results from over-provisioning of the network resource to meet requests during peak demand times. In this paper, we propose a solution to this problem by constructing a dynamic energy-efficient resource management scheme. As a (...) way of saving energy as well as maintaining cloud user’s quality of experience, the scheme presents a multitier cloud architecture by configuring physical machines into two pools: a hot pool and a warm pool. Each PM is configured with a resource search engine that finds an available virtual machine for the request, and a synchronous sleep mechanism is introduced to the warm pool. To analyze the end-to-end performance of the cloud system’s service with the proposed scheme, we establish a hybrid queueing system composed of three stochastic submodels by using a matrix-geometric solution. Accordingly, the average latency of requests and the energy-saving rate of the system are derived. Through numerical results, we show the influence of the synchronous sleep mechanism on the system performance. Moreover, from the perspective of economics, we build a system cost function to study the trade-off between different performance measures. An improved Salp Swarm Algorithm is presented to minimize the system cost and optimize the sleep parameter. (shrink)

As humans, we constantly change our movement strategies to adapt to changes in physical functions and the external environment. We have to walk very slowly in situations with a high risk of falling, such as walking on slippery ice, carrying an overflowing cup of water, or muscle weakness owing to aging or motor deficit. However, previous studies have shown that a normal gait pattern at low speeds results in reduced efficiency and stability in comparison with those at a normal speed. (...) Another possible strategy is to change the gait pattern from normal to step-to gait, in which the other foot is aligned with the first swing foot. However, the efficiency and stability of the step-to gait pattern at low speeds have not been investigated yet. Therefore, in this study, we compared the efficiency and stability of the normal and step-to gait patterns at intermediate, low, and very low speeds. Eleven healthy participants were asked to walk with a normal gait and step-to gait on a treadmill at five different speeds, ranging from very low to normal walking speed. The efficiency parameters and stability parameters were analyzed from the motion capture data and then compared for the two gait patterns. The results suggested that step-to gait had a more efficient gait pattern at very low speeds of 10–30 m/min, with a larger percent recovery, and was more stable at 10–60 m/min in comparison with a normal gait. However, the efficiency of the normal gait was better than that of the step-to gait pattern at 60 m/min. Therefore, step-to gait is effective in improving gait efficiency and stability when faced with situations that force us to walk slowly or hinder quick walking because of muscle weakness owing to aging or motor deficit along with a high risk of falling. (shrink)

This article develops an axiom system to justify an additive representation for a preference relation ${\succsim}$ on the product ${\prod_{i=1}^{n}A_{i}}$ of extensive structures. The axiom system is basically similar to the n-component (n ≥ 3) additive conjoint structure, but the independence axiom is weakened in the system. That is, the axiom exclusively requires the independence of the order for each of single factors from fixed levels of the other factors. The introduction of a concatenation operation on each factor A i (...) makes it possible to yield a special type of restricted solvability, i.e., additive solvability and the usual cancellation on ${\prod_{i=1}^{n}A_{i}}$ . In addition, the assumption of continuity and completeness for A i implies a stronger type of solvability on A i . The additive solvability, cancellation, and stronger solvability axioms allow the weakened independence to be effective enough in constructing the additive representation. (shrink)

昨今の脳神経科学的知見からは、刑法的な責任も再検討を迫られる。現代的な視点から法哲学と法理論の融合を試みる「法倫理学」へ。.

Under the presupposition that human time perception is distorted in intertemporal choice, this study constructs a time scale in the framework of axiomatic measurement. First, the conditions (homogeneity of degree one or two) to identify the form of a time scale are proposed so that one can determine whether the hyperbolic or exponential is a more suitable function for modeling people’s discounting. Homogeneity of degree one implies that subjective time delay is measured by a power scale and its discount function (...) becomes a power-exponential type, whereas homogeneity of degree two implies that subjective time delay is measured by a log scale and its discount function becomes a hyperbolic type. Second, a method is shown for constructing a model that can reflect subadditive and superadditive discounting. A non-commutative and non-associative concatenation operation is provided to generate a time string consisting of subdivided durations that incorporates the effect of repeated delay with a subdivided duration. The discounting model is yielded by substituting these strings in an exponential model equipped with a generalized time scale, and the determination of subadditivity or superadditivity depends on whether the discount function value of a product by the non-commutative and non-associative operation is, respectively, smaller or greater than that of a product by an operation of the usual extensive structure. (shrink)

Hegel, in his work _Philosophy of Right_, defines ownership through three elements: acquisition by occupation, use, and transfer. To own something involves mere acquisition and encompasses its appropriate use and potential transfer to others. Subsequently, the final aspect mentioned was the concept of infinite judgement. The acts of owning and transferring to others are diametrically opposed, and Hegel’s unique logic forcibly connects these opposing concepts. This form of infinite judgement was advocated by the young Hegel during the era of _Phenomenology (...) of Spirit_. There, he stated, “Spirit is a bone”. However, when he later wrote _Science of Logic_ or _Encyclopedia_, the formulation of infinite judgement changed to “Spirit is not something that is bone”. This shift was influenced by Kant. In _Logic_, the discourse advances into syllogism, inferential theory, leading to “Spirit is a bone for such-and-such reasons”. In essence, Hegel binarily connected spirit and bone in his youth and introduced a mediating term in this connection later in his life, establishing inferential links. However, the notion of forcibly connecting opposing concepts remains. Therefore, the statement “Ownership is transfer” represents an infinite judgement while simultaneously signifying syllogism that “I truly own this object if I can transfer it to others”. This contributes to the reasoning that “I and objects can be connected through the intermediary of others”, progressing to the inference that “I and others can be connected through objects”, thereby laying the foundation for society. (shrink)

During 1980–90, Japan's annual real GDP growth rate was 4.6%, but which declined to 1.2% in the 1990s. While the drop in itself is a problem, at the same time it exacerbated many other problems, namely inequality, budget deficits, and the increasing burden of an aging society.

Recently, agent technologies have attracted a lot of interest as an emerging programming paradigm. With such agent technologies, services are provided through collaboration among agents. At the same time, the spread of mobile technologies and communication infrastructures has made it possible to access the network anytime and from anywhere. Using agents and mobile technologies to realize ubiquitous computing systems, we propose a new framework based on KODAMA and VPC. KODAMA provides distributed management mechanisms by using the concept of community and (...) communication infrastructure to deliver messages among agents without agents being aware of the physical network. VPC provides a method of defining peer-to-peer services based on agent communication with policy packages. By merging the characteristics of both KODAMA and VPC functions, we propose a new framework for ubiquitous computing environments. It provides distributed management functions according to the concept of agent communities, agent communications which are abstracted from the physical environment, and agent collaboration with policy packages. Using our new framework, we conducted a large-scale experiment in shopping malls in Nagoya, which sent advertisement e-mails to users' cellular phones according to user location and attributes. The empirical results showed that our new framework worked effectively for sales in shopping malls. (shrink)

哲学というととかく難しく分かりにくいように思われがちだが、哲学者にはまずはじめにイメージがあり、術語による概念化はそのあとのことだと著者は言う。さまざまな哲学者が差し出した寓意や比喩を蒐集し、それらを もとにイメージの系譜学とでもいうべきものを作ろうとしたのが本書である。プラトンからヘーゲルまでの哲学の歴史を徹底的に噛み砕き、しかも原典に忠実に解説している。この以上分かりやすい哲学史の概説書は他にな い。.

The measurement of pain depends upon subjective reports, but we know very little about how research subjects or pain patients produce self-reported judgments. Representationalist assumptions dominate the field of pain research and lead to the critical conjecture that the person in pain examines the contents of consciousness before making a report about the sensory or affective magnitude of pain experience as well as about its nature. Most studies to date have investigated what Fechner termed “outer psychophysics”: the relationship between characteristics (...) of an external stimulus and the magnitude and nature of pain experience. In contrast, Fechner originally envisioned that “inner psychophysics” should investigate the relationship between physiological states and subjective experience. Despite the lack of established research tradition, inner psychophysics has a potential utility in elucidating underlying mechanisms for the production of phenomenal self-report. We illustrate this, using causal modeling analyses of the accuracy of self-reported pain ratings from our laboratory. We submit that the results are inconsistent with representationalist assumptions. Converging trends from several domains of consciousness studies seem to suggest that we need to abandon the unquestioned doctrine of representationalism and search for a more viable framework for understanding the generation of subjective self-report. (shrink)

It is shown that there is a Kripke incomplete logic in NExt(KTB ⊕ □2 p → □3 p). Furthermore, it is also shown that there exists a continuum of Kripke incomplete logics in NExt(KTB ⊕ □5 p → □6 p).

The scientific, ethical, and policy issues raised by research involving the engraftment of human neural stem cells into the brains of nonhuman primates are explored by an interdisciplinary working group in this Policy Forum. The authors consider the possibility that this research might alter the cognitive capacities of recipient great apes and monkeys, with potential significance for their moral status.

Pain is an important focus for consciousness research because it is an avenue for exploring somatic awareness, emotion, and the genesis of subjectivity. In principle, pain is awareness of tissue trauma, but pain can occur in the absence of identifiable injury, and sometimes substantive tissue injury produces no pain. The purpose of this paper is to help bridge pain research and consciousness studies. It reviews the basic sensory neurophysiology associated with tissue injury, including transduction, transmission, modulation, and central representation. In (...) addition, it highlights the central mechanisms for the emotional aspects of pain, demonstrating the physiological link between tissue trauma and mechanisms of emotional arousal. Finally, we discuss several current issues in the field of pain research that bear on central issues in consciousness studies, such as sickness and sense of self. (shrink)

First published in 1928, this book discusses 'the groundwork and skeleton of the common intellectual life of the people' of Japan.

This paper presents an ethnomethodological analysis of the representation of space in hand-drawn maps. The rendering practice of hand drawn maps includes some systematic devices by which real space is transformed into two-dimensional space on paper and a map is recognized as the map representing a certain space. In other words, members use these devices not only to trace real space but also to enable the recognition of space in a specific mode. The paper deals with three distinctive patterns affording (...) accountability of geographical features: retention of the three-dimensionality of real space; formal resemblance with intertextuality; and identification of space by means of words. Retention of the 3D of space on map is the device that assigns 3D effect to maps and contributes to the perception of the figure as being similar to real space. Intertextuality bestows formal resemblance on various maps to secure the intersubjectivity and scientific objectivity of maps. Words entered on hand-drawn maps enable a reading of a correspondence of maps with real space. The representation of space makes sense by virtue of these devices that accomplish the recognizability of space between the drawers and readers of hand-drawn maps. (shrink)

Japanese prefer odd numbers, whereas Westerners emphasize even numbers, an observation that is clear from the distribution of number-related words in Japanese and English dictionaries. In this article, the author explains why these two cultures differ by surveying the history of numbers, including yin-yang thought from ancient China, ancient Greek philosophy, and modern European mathematics. The author also mentions that oddness and evenness are only mathematical concepts, but understanding the cultures and histories of individual countries contributes to world peace.

After touching on the three most common misconceptions regarding boomerangs, the author goes on to explain why a boomerang is crescent shaped.The author explains, using the principle of precession motion, why a boomerang turns leftward and why it falls sideways; and he performs a comprehensive analysis through the “right-hand rule,” using the example of a gyro top.The author also explains how to make and fly the boomerang he invented—one that can fly inside a room and come back correctly.