Name: Physics of Distributed Information Systems (PhysDIS)
Start: 2008-05-05T08:00:00+02:00
End: 2008-05-31T17:00:00+02:00
Location: NORDITA

Monday, 5 May 2008
13:00 Opening of the program - Erik Aurell (KTH) Mikko Alava (HUT, Espoo, Finland)
Opening of the program
- Erik Aurell (KTH)
- Mikko Alava (HUT, Espoo, Finland)
13:00 - 14:00
Tuesday, 6 May 2008
13:00 Sequence evolution in phenotypic space: An overview - Luca Peliti (Naples)
Sequence evolution in phenotypic space: An overview
- Luca Peliti (Naples)
13:00 - 14:00
While most of the genetic information is coded in the DNA sequence, the selection process acts on phenotypic traits. It may well be the case that, while mutations affect independently these traits, the selective effect (fitness) is a nonlinear function of the traits themselves. I shall recall a general approach to the description of this two-layered evolution process, and I shall discuss recent works in which evidence has been collected for it to take place in the evolutionary dynamics of transcription factor binding sites.
Wednesday, 7 May 2008
10:00 On the scaling properties of 2d randomly stirred Navier–Stokes equation - Paolo Muratore-Ginanneschi (University of Helsinki)
On the scaling properties of 2d randomly stirred Navier–Stokes equation
- Paolo Muratore-Ginanneschi (University of Helsinki)
10:00 - 11:00
We inquire the scaling properties of the 2d Navier-Stokes equation sustained by a forcing field with Gaussian statistics, white-noise in time and with power-law correlation in momentum space of degree 2-2*epsilon. This is at variance with the setting usually assumed to derive Kraichan's classical theory. We contrast accurate numerical experiments with the different predictions provided for the small epsilon regime by Kraichnan's double cascade theory and by renormalization group (RG) analysis. We give clear evidence that for all epsilon Kraichnan's theory is consistent with the observed phenomenology. Our results call for a revision in the RG analysis of (2d) fully developed turbulence.
13:00 Self-organized Synchronization in Wireless Networks - Olav Tirkkonen (TKK)
Self-organized Synchronization in Wireless Networks
- Olav Tirkkonen (TKK)
13:00 - 14:00
In wireless networks it is beneficial for the nodes to share a notion of time, at least in a periodic (clock) sense. In existing cellular networks, nodes may get their timing from a centralized server. In networks without centralized control, however, such as ad hoc and sensor networks, time synchrony has to be generated in a self-organized manner. Each node decides its preferred timing based on information on the timings of other nodes. In the literature, synchronization algorithms based on (pulse) coupled oscillators have been widely studied, mostly in the setting of a fully connected network. In this talk, synchronization in networks with nearest neighbor coupling is studied. Synchronizatino based on pulse coupled oscillators is compared to simple cyclic averaging algorithms.
Thursday, 8 May 2008
13:00 Languages along the Silk Road - Joakim Enwall (Uppsala University)
Languages along the Silk Road
- Joakim Enwall (Uppsala University)
13:00 - 14:00
The paper is focused on the part of the Silk Road in the Tarim Basin and adjacent areas. Today this region is located mostly within the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People’s Republic of China, but in historical times it has been contested by many states and power structures and has served as a melting pot for many peoples, cultures and languages. The relatively modern concept of the Silk Road has been applied to the various trading routes linking China with the Western World, although it served more as a link between China and Central Asia. Since the latter part of the 19th century remarkable archaeological finds have given rise to new approaches to the study of Silk Road history, especially in the form of manuscripts in previously unknown languages like Tokharian and Saka. In this region, well-preserved mummies of Caucasian origin have been found, and this has led to wide-spread speculations about the migrations of mankind in this area, one of the last to the permanently settled in the world due to its harsh climatic conditions. Furthermore, the various interpretations of the history of this region have further deepened the ideological conflicts between the present-day majority population of the area, the Uyghurs, and the soon-to-be majority, the Han Chinese.
15:15 The puzzle of the evolutionary dynamics of influenza - Luca Peliti (Naples)
The puzzle of the evolutionary dynamics of influenza
- Luca Peliti (Naples)
15:15 - 16:15
Room: Klein Auditorium Influenza exhibits two apparently contradictory features: on the one hand, any given individual can get infected with the disease over and over again, since the virus mutates fast enough to escape acquired immunity; on the other hand, on any given epidemic season, the viral strain is sufficiently well-defined, so that an effective vaccine can be identified. It represents a problem in evolutionary dynamics in which the molecular level and the epidemiological level are tightly bound. Several mechanisms have been proposed to explain this behavior, but a satisfactory answer is still lacking. I shall review the recent debate on the subject and point out the most promising directions of research.
Friday, 9 May 2008
13:00 Large Deviation of the Top Eigenvalue of a Random Matrix - Satya Majumdar (Directeur de Recherche, CNRS, Universite Paris-Sud (ORSAY), FRANCE.)
Large Deviation of the Top Eigenvalue of a Random Matrix
- Satya Majumdar (Directeur de Recherche, CNRS, Universite Paris-Sud (ORSAY), FRANCE.)
13:00 - 14:00
The statistical properties of the largest eigenvalue of a random matrix are of interest in diverse fields ranging from disordered systems to statistical data analysis and even to string theory. In this talk I'll discuss some recent developements on the theory of extremely rare fluctuations of the largest eigenvalue and its various applications.
15:00 Program reception
Program reception
15:00 - 17:00
Saturday, 10 May 2008
Sunday, 11 May 2008