A simple weakly frequency dependent model for the dynamics of a population with a finite number of types is proposed, based upon an advantage of being rare. In the infinite population limit, this model gives rise to a non-smooth dynamical system that reaches its globally stable equilibrium in finite time. This dynamical system is sufficiently simple to permit an explicit solution, built piecewise from solutions of the logistic equation in continuous time. It displays an interesting tree-like structure of coalescing components.

The low-velocity impact of two convex surfaces comprised of identical material, which approach each other along the direction of the normal at first contact, and obey a J2 = k2 plastic yield condition, is shown for very early times to satisfy the following conditions: the interior surface which separates the two bodies is equivalent to either the locus of points formed by the intersecting curves resulting from moving the two bodies towards each other along their normal; or to the locus of points formed from the level surfaces (suitably parametrized) drawn about each body at the time of first contact. This separating surface lies midway between the geometrical overlap of the two approaching surfaces for times sufficiently short for inertial effects not to significantly affect the approaching velocities.

The interest in retrial queueing systems mainly lies in their application to telephone systems. This paper studies multiserver retrial queueing systems with n servers. The arrival process is a quite general point process. An arriving customer occupies one of the free servers. If upon arrival all servers are busy, then the customer waits for his service in orbit, and after a random time retries in order to occupy a server. The orbit has one waiting space only, and an arriving customer, who finds all servers busy and the waiting space occupied, is lost from the system. Time intervals between possible retrials are assumed to have arbitrary distribution (the retrial scheme is explained more precisely in the paper). The paper provides analysis of this system. Specifically the paper studies the optimal number of servers to decrease the loss proportion to a given value. The representation obtained for the loss proportion enables us to solve the problem numerically. The algorithm for numerical solution includes effective simulation, which meets the challenge of a rare events problem in simulation.

We describe a computer proof of the 17-point version of a conjecture originally made by Klein-Szekeres in 1932 (now commonly known as the “Happy End Problem”) that a planar configuration of 17 points, no 3 points collinear, always contains a convex 6-subset. The proof makes use of a combinatorial model of planar configurations, expressed in terms of signature functions satisfying certain simple necessary conditions. The proof is more general than the original conjecture as the signature functions examined represent a larger set of configurations than those which are realisable. Three independent implementations of the computer proof have been developed, establishing that the result is readily reproducible.

The high Reynolds number flow past a circular cylinder with a trailing wake region is considered when the wake region is bounded and contains uniform vorticity. The formulation allows only for a single vortex pair trapped behind the cylinder, but calculates solutions over a range of values of vorticity. The separation point and length of the region are determined as outputs. It was found that using this numerical method there is an upper bound on the vorticity for which solutions can be calculated for a given arclength of the cavity. In some cases with shorter cavities, the limiting solutions coincide with the formation of a stagnation point in the outer flow at both separation from the cylinder and reattachment at the end of the cavity.

Facility location problems are one of the most common applications of optimization methods. Continuous formulations are usually more accurate, but often result in complex problems that cannot be solved using traditional optimization methods. This paper examines theuse of a global optimization method—AGOP—for solving location problems where the objective function is discontinuous. This approach is motivated by a real-world application in wireless networks design.

In this paper we consider simplifying a model of the nitrogen cycle in Port Phillip Bay, Victoria, Australia. The approach taken is to aggregate state variables that are linearly related using a projection in state space. The technique involved is a modification of proper orthogonal decomposition and was developed so that a resulting simplified model retains an ecological interpretation. It can be applied automatically, and enables insights into the system to be gained that were not obvious beforehand. In the case of the Port Phillip Bay model, we find that the variables representing water and sand are unaffected by the remaining variables, while only variables on the same trophic level can be grouped together. The validity of the aggregation under several nutrient loads is also discussed.

Sparse grids are the basis for efficient high dimensional approximation and have recently been applied successfully to predictive modelling. They are spanned by a collection of simpler function spaces represented by regular grids. The sparse grid combination technique prescribes how approximations on a collection of anisotropic grids can be combined to approximate high dimensional functions.

In this paper we study the parallelisation of fitting data onto a sparse grid. The computation can be done entirely by fitting partial models on a collection of regular grids. This allows parallelism over the collection of grids. In addition, each of the partial grid fits can be parallelised as well, both in the assembly phase, where parallelism is done over the data, and in the solution stage using traditional parallel solvers for the resulting PDEs. Using a simple timing model we confirm that the most effective methods are obtained when both types of parallelism are used.

In this work we use the Discrete Wavelet Transform in watermarking applications for digital BMP images with the objective is to guarantee some level of security for the copyright. We also compare the results with the Discrete Cosine Transform for the same application. Results are obtained from a number of tests, primarily in order to validate the security level and the robustness of the watermark, but also to prove that the original image suffers only very small variations after the watermark is embedded. We also show how to embed the watermark, where to insert it and the capacity supported for inserting an image.

The Faà di Bruno formulæ for higher-order derivatives of a composite function are important in analysis for a variety of applications. There is a substantial literature on the univariate case, but despite significant applications the multivariate case has until recently received limited study. We present a succinct result which is a natural generalization of the univariate version. The derivation makes use of an explicit integralform of the remainder term for multivariate Taylor expansions.

In this paper we study a variational inequality in which the principal operator is a generalised Laplacian with fast growth at infinity and slow growth at 0. By defining appropriate sub-and super-solutions, we show the existence of solutions and extremal solutions of this inequality above the subsolutions or between the sub- and super-solutions.

In 2002 the Mathematics in Industry Study Group (MISG) investigated the question of optimally scheduling cyclic production in a battery charging and finishing facility. The facility produces various types of battery and the scheduling objective is to maximize battery throughout subject to achieving a pre-specified product-mix. In this paper we investigate the robustness of such schedules using simulation experiments that span multiple production cycles. We simulate random variations (delays) in battery charging time and find that an optimal off-line schedule yields higher throughput in comparison to a common on-line dispatching rule. This result has been found to hold for a range of expected charging-time delays and has significant practical implications for scheduling battery charging and finishing facilities.

This paper investigates the Cauchy problem for two classes of parabolic systems with localised sources. We first give the blowup criterion, and then deal with the possibilities of simultaneous blowup or non-simultaneous blowup under some suitable assumptions. Moreover, when simultaneous blowup occurs, we also establish precise blowup rate estimates. Finally, using similar ideas and methods, we shall consider several nonlocal problems with homogeneous Neumann boundary conditions.

We study the dynamics of a family of third-order iterative methods that are used to find roots of nonlinear equations applied to complex polynomials of degrees three and four. This family includes, as particular cases, the Chebyshev, the Halley and the super-Halleyroot-finding algorithms, as well as the so-called c-methods. The conjugacy classes of theseiterative methods are found explicitly.

We present an alternative matrix mnemonic for the basic equations of simple thermodynamics. When normalized, this permits an explicit generalized inverse, allowing inversion of the mechanical and chemical thermodynamic equations. As an application, the natural variables S, V, P and T are derived from the four energies E (internal), F (free), G (Gibbs) and H (enthalpy).

A simple lumped hydraulic model of knee drainage following arthroplasty is developed incorporating a pressure-volume equation of state for the knee capsule and a wound healing rate dynamically retarded by the blood flow-induced shear stress. The resulting second-order nonlinear ordinary differential system is examined numerically and qualitatively to map the parameter space. In the model, moderate suction or a slight back-pressure promotes gradual drainage and healing whereas excessive suction can lead to a bifurcation in which healing is retarded or even prevented. Guided, then, by the model, the literature, and experience, continuous drainage with a small constant back-pressure appeared beneficial so we prospectively evaluated a series of ten patients. The results are consistent with the model and promising.

Conditions are given for a Ck map T to be a Newton map, that is, the map associated with a differentiable real-valued function via Newton's method. For finitely differentiable maps and functions, these conditions are only necessary, but in the smooth case, that is, for k = ∞, they are also sufficient. The characterisation rests upon the structure of the fixed point set of T and the value of the derivative T′ there, and it is best possible as is demonstrated through examples.

Under the assumptions that the spatial variable is one dimensional and the distributed delay kernel is the general Gamma distributed delay kernel, when the average delay is small, the existence of travelling wave solutions for the population genetics model with distributed delay is obtained by using the linear chain trick and geometric singular perturbation theory. On the other hand, for the population genetics model with small discrete delay, the existence of travelling wave solutions is obtained by employing a technique which is based on a result concerning the existence of the inertial manifold for small discrete delay equations.

It is well known that spectral methods (tau, Galerkin, collocation) have a condition number of O(N4) where N is the number of retained modes of polynomial approximations. This paper presents some efficient spectral algorithms, which have a condition number of O(N2), based on the ultraspherical-Galerkin methods for the integrated forms of second-order elliptic equations in one and two space variables. The key to the efficiency of these algorithms is to construct appropriate base functions, which lead to systems with specially structured matrices that can be efficiently inverted. The complexities of the algorithms are a small multiple of Nd+1 operations for a d-dimensional domain with (N – 1)d unknowns, while the convergence rates of the algorithms are exponentials with smooth solutions.

The diffusion equation is used to model and analyze sorption, a process used in the purification or separation of fluids. For the diffusion inside a spherical porous solid immersed in a limited-volume and well-stirred fluid, Ruthven [5], Crank [3] and, for the analogous flow of heat, Carslaw and Jaeger [2] give an eigenfunction expansion solution to the diffusion equation that provides accurate long-time solutions when only a few terms are used. However, to obtain the same accuracy for short-time solutions the number of eigenfunction terms required increases exponentially. An alternative error function solution of Carman and Haul [1] is accurate for sufficiently short times but not for long times. Although their solution is well quoted [3, 4, 6], Carman and Haul do not provide a derivation in their paper. This paper provides a full derivation of the short-time solution of Carman and Haul that uses only the first term of a negative exponential series in the Laplace domain. It is shown that the accuracy and range of the short-time result is improved by the inclusion of additional terms of the negative exponential series. An analysis of short-time and long-time resultsis presented, together with recommendations as to their use.