1,721,019 research outputs found
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Self-organization in interface dynamics and urban development
Full text linkThe view of the urban environment as an extended nonlinear system introduces new concepts, motivates new questions, and suggests new methodologies in the study of urban dynamics. A review of recent results on interface dynamics in nonequilibrium physical systems is presented, and possible implications on the urban environment are discussed. It is suggested that the growth modes of specific urban zones (e.g. residential, commercial, or industrial) and the factors affecting them can be studied using mathematical models that capture two generic interface instabilities
From Patterns to Function in Living Systems: Dryland Ecosystems as a Case Study
No full text Spatial patterns are ubiquitous in animate matter. Besides their intricate structure and beauty they generally play functional roles. The capacity of living systems to remain functional in changing environments is a question of utmost importance, but its intimate relationship to pattern formation is largely unexplored. Here, we address this relationship using dryland vegetation as a case study. Following a brief introduction to pattern-formation theory, we describe a mathematical model that captures several mechanisms of vegetation pattern formation and discuss ecological contexts that showcase different mechanisms. Using this model, we unravel the different vegetation patterns that keep dryland ecosystems viable along the rainfall gradient, identify multistability ranges where fronts separating domains of alternative stable states exist, and highlight the roles of front dynamics in mitigating or reversing desertification. The utility of satellite images in testing model predictions is discussed. An outlook on outstanding open problems concludes this paper. </jats:p
Phase fronts and synchronization patterns in forced oscillatory systems
No full textThis is a review of recent studies of extended oscillatory systems that are subjected to periodic temporal forcing. The periodic forcing breaks the continuous time translation symmetry and leaves a discrete set of stable uniform phase states. The multiplicity of phase states allows for front structures that shift the oscillation phase by π/n where n=1,2,…,
hereafter π/n-fronts. The main concern here is with front instabilities and their implications on pattern formation. Most theoretical studies have focused on the 2:1 resonance where the system oscillates at half the driving frequency. All front solutions in this case are π-fronts. At high forcing strengths only stationary fronts exist. Upon decreasing the forcing strength the stationary fronts lose stability to pairs of counter-propagating fronts. The coexistence of counter-propagating fronts allows for traveling domains and spiral waves. In the 4:1
resonance stationary π-fronts coexist with π/2-fronts. At high forcing strengths the stationary π-fronts are stable and standing two-phase waves, consisting of successive oscillatory domains whose phases differ by π,, prevail. Upon decreasing the forcing strength the stationary π-fronts lose stability and decompose into pairs of propagating π/2-fronts. The instability designates a transition from standing two-phase waves to traveling four-phase waves. Analogous decomposition instabilities have been found numerically in higher 2n:1 resonances. The available theory is used to account for a few experimental observations made on the photosensitive Belousov–Zhabotinsky reaction subjected to periodic illumination. Observations not accounted for by the theory are pointed out
ChemInform Abstract: Phase Fronts and Synchronization Patterns in Forced Oscillatory Systems
No full textVariations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
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