Slogans of Change : Three Outlooks on Finnish Television

The study Slogans of Change. Three Outlooks on Finnish Television Contents is concerned with alleged changes of television contents during the 1990s and 2000s, such as dumbing down, tabloidisation, entertainisation , and the like. Specifically, the focus is on the ways these changes might manifest in Finnish television. The aim of the study has been threefold: 1. To operationalise public and academic discussions about changes via specific slogans emerging from the debates; 2. Consequently, to study the slogans empirically and reflect on the findings with earlier research, including studies on institutional and audience-related aspects; 3. Finally, to suggest what the findings might mean regarding discussions about television s role, and what kinds of slogans or concepts might best serve future discussions and research. The empirical outlooks presented in this study offer analyses with three different sets of opposing slogans of change. The outlooks also follow three different traditions of the study of television. The first outlook focuses on quantity, as it gives a longitudinal (1993-2004), macro-level view on programme structures. The methodological approach is derived from media economic and policy studies. The claims that frame the analysis are convergence versus diversification of programme structures. The second outlook provides quantitative and qualitative views on the characteristics and quality  the term signifying essence as well as worth  of Finnish television journalism during sample weeks from the years 2002 and 2003. This outlook follows the traditions of quantitative content analysis found in journalism studies coupled with descriptive qualitative content analyses. The slogans reflected in this section are the lightening or widening of journalism. The third outlook narrows down the material and focuses at a micro-level on form; that is, communicative conventions in a small array of selected programmes in 1993, 2000 and during 2002-2004. The analyses have been inspired by the method of conversation analysis of verbal interaction, and coupled with qualitative close readings, with the focus of different communicative situations in the programmes. The catchphrases employed in this part are emotainment versus democratainment, coupled with more specific claims of discursive hybridisation and conversationalisation. The findings depict that, empirically, changes in Finnish television contents are not clear linear trends and cannot easily be moulded into neat slogans. The quantitative outlook on programme output during 1993-2004 depicts a tendency towards differentiation of channels, paving the way for the multi-channel digital system. The change in programme structures, however, is not dramatic on the level of total output. The second outlook suggests that the dualistic concepts, such as the pair information-entertainment, are not sufficient in understanding the array and changes of programmes that could be called journalism. The outlook on communicative conventions highlights hybridisation in the manner of television talk and its relation to broader debates on contents. Despite the three dissimilar empirical approaches, unifying aspects emerge. The outlooks suggest, albeit in different ways, tendencies toward distinction and polarisation. This study proposes that in order to facilitate a more nuanced understanding of the changes in television contents, dualistic slogans should be replaced with a multi-dimensional understanding of the concept of diversity.

Why Do Russians Support Censorship of the Media?

This article analyses support for censorship in Russia as part of the democratization process. Censorship has been an important part of Russian history and it was strengthened during the Soviet era. After the collapse of the Soviet system formal censorship was banned even though the reality has been different. Therefore it is not strange that many Russians would like to limit the freedom of the media and to censor certain topics. The views of Russians on censorship have been studied on the basis of a survey carried out in 2007. According to the results, three different dimensions of censorship were found. These dimensions include moral censorship, political censorship, and censorship of religious materials. Support for these dimensions varies on the basis of socio-demographic characteristics and media use. The article concludes that many Russians reject new phenomena, while support for the censorship of political criticism is not as high, but political censorship seems to enjoy more support among elites than among the common people.

Communication pathways from the anti-codon region to the aminoacylation site in Methionyl tRNA Synthetase: Molecular dynamics simulations and the structure network analysis

The enzymes of the family of tRNA synthetases perform their functions with high precision by synchronously recognizing the anticodon region and the aminoacylation region, which are separated by ?70 in space. This precision in function is brought about by establishing good communication paths between the two regions. We have modeled the structure of the complex consisting of Escherichia coli methionyl-tRNA synthetase (MetRS), tRNA, and the activated methionine. Molecular dynamics simulations have been performed on the modeled structure to obtain the equilibrated structure of the complex and the cross-correlations between the residues in MetRS have been evaluated. Furthermore, the network analysis on these simulated structures has been carried out to elucidate the paths of communication between the activation site and the anticodon recognition site. This study has provided the detailed paths of communication, which are consistent with experimental results. Similar studies also have been carried out on the complexes (MetRS + activated methonine) and (MetRS + tRNA) along with ligand-free native enzyme. A comparison of the paths derived from the four simulations clearly has shown that the communication path is strongly correlated and unique to the enzyme complex, which is bound to both the tRNA and the activated methionine. The details of the method of our investigation and the biological implications of the results are presented in this article. The method developed here also could be used to investigate any protein system where the function takes place through long-distance communication.

Sequential Assembly of an Active RNA Polymerase Molecule at the Air-Water Interface

At the heart of understanding cellular processes lies our ability to explore the specific nature of communication between sequential information carrying biopolymers. However, the data extracted from conventional solution phase studies may not reflect the dynamics of communication between recognized partners as they occur in the crowded cellular milieu. We use the principle of immobilization of histidine-tagged biopolymers at a Ni(II)-encoded Langmuir monolayer to study sequence-specific protein-protein interactions in an artificially crowded environment The advantage of this technique lies in increasing the surface density of one of the interacting partners that allows us to study macromolecular interactions in a controlled crowded environment, but without compromising the speed of the reactions. We have taken advantage of this technique to follow the sequential assembly process of the multiprotein complex Escherichia coil RNA polymerase at the interface and also deciphered the role of one of the proteins, omega (omega), in the assembly pathway. Our reconstitution studies indicate that in the absence of molecular chaperones or other cofactors, omega (omega) plays a decisive role in refolding the largest protein beta prime (beta') and its recruitment into the multimeric assembly to reconstitute an active RNA polymerase. It was also observed that the monolayer had the ability to distinguish between sequence-specific and -nonspecific interactions despite the immobilization of one of the biomacromolecules. The technique provides a universal two-dimensional template for studying protein-ligand interactions while mimicking molecular crowding.

Access Control in Communication Systems

Access control is an important component in the security of communication systems. While cryptography has rightfully been a significant component in the design of large scale communication systems, its relation to access control, especially its complementarity, has not often been brought out in full. With the wide availability of SELinux, a comprehensive model of access control has all the more become important. In many large scale systems, access control and trust management have become important components in the design. In survivable systems, models of group communication systems may have to be integrated with access control models. In this paper, we discuss the problem of integrating various formalisms often encountered in large scale communication systems, especially in connection with dynamic access control policies as well as trust management

Information-theoretic and communication-theoretic optimal power allocation for fading channels

In this paper we review the most peculiar and interesting information-theoretic and communications features of fading channels. We first describe the statistical models of fading channels which are frequently used in the analysis and design of communication systems. Next, we focus on the information theory of fading channels, by emphasizing capacity as the most important performance measure. Both single-user and multiuser transmission are examined. Further, we describe how the structure of fading channels impacts code design, and finally overview equalization of fading multipath channels.

Multiple transmitter localization and communication footprint identification using sparse reconstruction techniques

This paper considers the problem of identifying the footprints of communication of multiple transmitters in a given geographical area. To do this, a number of sensors are deployed at arbitrary but known locations in the area, and their individual decisions regarding the presence or absence of the transmitters' signal are combined at a fusion center to reconstruct the spatial spectral usage map. One straightforward scheme to construct this map is to query each of the sensors and cluster the sensors that detect the primary's signal. However, using the fact that a typical transmitter footprint map is a sparse image, two novel compressive sensing based schemes are proposed, which require significantly fewer number of transmissions compared to the querying scheme. A key feature of the proposed schemes is that the measurement matrix is constructed from a pseudo-random binary phase shift applied to the decision of each sensor prior to transmission. The measurement matrix is thus a binary ensemble which satisfies the restricted isometry property. The number of measurements needed for accurate footprint reconstruction is determined using compressive sampling theory. The three schemes are compared through simulations in terms of a performance measure that quantifies the accuracy of the reconstructed spatial spectral usage map. It is found that the proposed sparse reconstruction technique-based schemes significantly outperform the round-robin scheme.

Method of designing an access mechanism for social networks

The rapid development of communication and networking has lessened geographical boundaries among actors in social networks. In social networks, actors often want to access databases depending upon their access rights, privacy, context, privileges, etc. Managing and handling knowledge based access of actors is complex and hard for which broad range of technologies need to be called. Access based on dynamic access rights and circumstances of actors impose major tasks on access systems. In this paper, we present an Access Mechanism for Social Networks (AMSN) to render access to actors over databases taking privacy and status of actors into consideration. The designed AMSN model is tested over an Agriculture Social Network (ASN) which utilises distinct access rights and privileges of actors related to the agriculture occupation, and provides access to actors over databases.

Modified current space vector based powerline communication method for distributed inverters interfaced smart grids

The following paper presents a Powerline Communication (PLC) Method for grid interfaced inverters, for smart grid application. The PLC method is based on the concept of the composite vector which involves multiple components rotating at different harmonic frequencies. The pulsed information is modulated on the fundamental component of the grid current as a specific repeating sequence of a particular harmonic. The principle of communication is same as that of power flow, thus reducing the complexity. The power flow and information exchange are simultaneously accomplished by the interfacing inverters based on current programmed vector control, thus eliminating the need for dedicated hardware. Simulation results have been shown for inter-inverter communication, both under ideal and distorted conditions, using various harmonic modulating signals.

A Networked Control Systems Perspective for Wide-Area Monitoring Control of Smart Power Grids

This paper presents a networked control systems (NCS) framework for wide area monitoring control of smart power grids. We consider a scenario in which wide area measurements are transmitted to controllers at remote locations. We model the effects of delays and packet dropouts due to limited communication capabilities in the grid. We also design a robust networked controller to damp wide-area oscillations based on information obtained from Wide Area Monitoring Systems (WAMS), and analyze the improvement in system stability due to networked control. With communication integration being an important feature of the smart grid, detailed consideration of the effects of communication is essential in the control design for future power systems. We believe that this work is an essential step in this direction.

Proceedings of the International Workshop responding to HIV and AIDS in the fishery sector in Africa, Lusaka, Zambia, 21-22 February 2006

The purpose of the workshop was to enable professionals and organizations working with fishing communities in response to HIV and AIDS in Africa to share experiences, appraise the efficacy of their approaches and identify actions in research and development that will further improve their impact. The workshop pursued and achieved the following objectives: 1)Review and compare research findings and approaches applied in response to HIV and AIDS in fishing communities and the wider fishery sector. 2)Identify good practice examples for wider application. 3)Identify next steps in development and research to scale up these examples. 4)Initiate a network of practitioners in Africa for capacity building, scaling-up and further development of approaches. The range of papers presented at the conference reveals the diversity of responses to HIV and AIDS in the fishery sector at all levels. The papers discussed a range of issues within this broad remit, from community level impacts of disease to policy implementation, from spatial mapping to theatre as a mode of communication. (Document contains 92 pages)

Somatisation in primary care: experiences of primary care physicians involved in a training program and in a randomised controlled trial

Background: A new intervention aimed at managing patients with medically unexplained symptoms (MUS) based on a specific set of communication techniques was developed, and tested in a cluster randomised clinical trial. Due to the modest results obtained and in order to improve our intervention we need to know the GPs' attitudes towards patients with MUS, their experience, expectations and the utility of the communication techniques we proposed and the feasibility of implementing them. Physicians who took part in 2 different training programs and in a randomised controlled trial (RCT) for patients with MUS were questioned to ascertain the reasons for the doctors' participation in the trial and the attitudes, experiences and expectations of GPs about the intervention. Methods: A qualitative study based on four focus groups with GPs who took part in a RCT. A content analysis was carried out. Results: Following the RCT patients are perceived as true suffering persons, and the relationship with them has improved in GPs of both groups. GPs mostly valued the fact that it is highly structured, that it made possible a more comfortable relationship and that it could be applied to a broad spectrum of patients with psychosocial problems. Nevertheless, all participants consider that change in patients is necessary; GPs in the intervention group remarked that that is extremely difficult to achieve. Conclusion: GPs positively evaluate the communication techniques and the interventions that help in understanding patient suffering, and express the enormous difficulties in handling change in patients. These findings provide information on the direction in which efforts for improving intervention should be directed.

Impact of radio broadcast on fish production and conservation in Kainji Lake basin

The decline in fishermen catches of Lake kainji, which went down from 28,639.6t in 1970 to 6.048t in 1974 (Ita 1982) prompted the promulgation of fisheries edict banning beach seines and other obnoxious fishing gear by Kebbi and Niger State governments in 1997 as a measure to prevent depletion of fisheries resources in the lake. Radio as a medium of communication was adopted as the method to disseminate information in the fisheries edict to the fisherfolks in order to bring about positive changes. Radio Niger, Koro station, was involved in the broadcast. Fisherfolk listened to the broadcast 32 times a week. Frame survey data and radio impact assessment studies were used to assess the effect of the broadcast on the number of beach seines and other obnoxious fishing gears on the lake which were banned in the fisheries edicts. It was revealed that the number of beach decreased drastically from 582 in 1997 to 122 in 1999 and to only 17 in 2001

Distributed Control and Optimization for Communication and Power Systems

We are at the cusp of a historic transformation of both communication system and electricity system. This creates challenges as well as opportunities for the study of networked systems. Problems of these systems typically involve a huge number of end points that require intelligent coordination in a distributed manner. In this thesis, we develop models, theories, and scalable distributed optimization and control algorithms to overcome these challenges.

This thesis focuses on two specific areas: multi-path TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) and electricity distribution system operation and control. Multi-path TCP (MP-TCP) is a TCP extension that allows a single data stream to be split across multiple paths. MP-TCP has the potential to greatly improve reliability as well as efficiency of communication devices. We propose a fluid model for a large class of MP-TCP algorithms and identify design criteria that guarantee the existence, uniqueness, and stability of system equilibrium. We clarify how algorithm parameters impact TCP-friendliness, responsiveness, and window oscillation and demonstrate an inevitable tradeoff among these properties. We discuss the implications of these properties on the behavior of existing algorithms and motivate a new algorithm Balia (balanced linked adaptation) which generalizes existing algorithms and strikes a good balance among TCP-friendliness, responsiveness, and window oscillation. We have implemented Balia in the Linux kernel. We use our prototype to compare the new proposed algorithm Balia with existing MP-TCP algorithms.

Our second focus is on designing computationally efficient algorithms for electricity distribution system operation and control. First, we develop efficient algorithms for feeder reconfiguration in distribution networks. The feeder reconfiguration problem chooses the on/off status of the switches in a distribution network in order to minimize a certain cost such as power loss. It is a mixed integer nonlinear program and hence hard to solve. We propose a heuristic algorithm that is based on the recently developed convex relaxation of the optimal power flow problem. The algorithm is efficient and can successfully computes an optimal configuration on all networks that we have tested. Moreover we prove that the algorithm solves the feeder reconfiguration problem optimally under certain conditions. We also propose a more efficient algorithm and it incurs a loss in optimality of less than 3% on the test networks.

Second, we develop efficient distributed algorithms that solve the optimal power flow (OPF) problem on distribution networks. The OPF problem determines a network operating point that minimizes a certain objective such as generation cost or power loss. Traditionally OPF is solved in a centralized manner. With increasing penetration of volatile renewable energy resources in distribution systems, we need faster and distributed solutions for real-time feedback control. This is difficult because power flow equations are nonlinear and kirchhoff's law is global. We propose solutions for both balanced and unbalanced radial distribution networks. They exploit recent results that suggest solving for a globally optimal solution of OPF over a radial network through a second-order cone program (SOCP) or semi-definite program (SDP) relaxation. Our distributed algorithms are based on the alternating direction method of multiplier (ADMM), but unlike standard ADMM-based distributed OPF algorithms that require solving optimization subproblems using iterative methods, the proposed solutions exploit the problem structure that greatly reduce the computation time. Specifically, for balanced networks, our decomposition allows us to derive closed form solutions for these subproblems and it speeds up the convergence by 1000x times in simulations. For unbalanced networks, the subproblems reduce to either closed form solutions or eigenvalue problems whose size remains constant as the network scales up and computation time is reduced by 100x compared with iterative methods.