Cooperative Coding Research Articles

Genetic Algorithm-Based Cooperative Coding and Caching Data Dissemination Scheme in Multi-UAV-Enabled Internet of Vehicles.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have emerged as efficient tools in disaster-stricken areas, facilitating efficient data dissemination for post-disaster rescue operations. However, the limited onboard energy of UAVs imposes significant constraints on their operational lifespan, thereby presenting substantial challenges for efficient data dissemination. Therefore, this work investigates a data dissemination scheme to enhance the UAVs' bandwidth efficiency in multi-UAV-enabled Internet of Vehicles, thereby reducing UAVs' energy consumption and improving overall system performance when UAVs hover along designated flight trajectories for data dissemination. Specifically, first, we present a software-defined network-based framework for data dissemination in multi-UAV-enabled IoV. According to this framework, we formulate a problem called C2BS (Coding-based Cooperative Broadcast Scheduling) that focuses on optimizing the UAVs' bandwidth efficiency by leveraging the combined benefits of coding and caching. Furthermore, we demonstrate the NP-hardness of the C2BS problem by employing a polynomial time reduction technique on the simultaneous matrix completion problem. Then, inspired by the benefits offered by genetic algorithms, we propose a novel approach called the Genetic algorithm-based Cooperative Scheduling (GCS) algorithm to address the C2BS problem. This approach encompasses a coding scheme for representing individuals, a fitness function for assessing individuals, operators (i.e., crossover and mutation) for generating offspring, a local search technique to enhance search performance, and a repair operator employed to rectify infeasible solutions. Additionally, we present an analysis of the time complexity for the GCS algorithm. Finally, we present a simulation model to evaluate the performance. Experimental findings provide evidence of the excellence of the proposed scheme.

FOREIGN EXPERIENCE OF DEVELOPMENT AND LEGAL REGULATION OF THE AGRICULTURAL COOPERATION

The article is devoted to the study of development and legal regulation of the agricultural cooperation in foreign countries. Despite the adoption of the Law of Ukraine «On agricultural cooperation» in the new edition the development of agricultural cooperation continues to be restrained, that indicates the presence of shortcomings in the legislative base. The relevance of the chosen topic is determined by the fact that nowadays in the conditions of European integration Ukraine needs an urgent solution to solve the problem of modermizing the Ukrainian cooperative legislation, taking into account the world experience, which will ensure the development of Ukrainian agricultural cooperatives. This article highlights proposals for modernizing the Ukrainian cooperative legislation by using international experience. The positive experience of Georgia in the field of monitoring the activities of the agricultural cooperatives is proposed to be received by Ukraine. The need to pay attention to the issue of gender equality in the agricultural cooperatives using the example of the Kingdom of Spain is emphasized. The author’s concept of «the principle of gender equality and gender integration in the agricultural cooperative» is formed in the article, which is proposed to supplement the cooperative legislation of Ukraine in order to ensure the equality of women and men in the agricultural cooperatives. The article provides the main directions for achieving gender equality and gender integration in agricultural cooperatives (cooperatives). Several approaches or models of the legal regulation of the creation and activity of cooperatives in the world are singled out. The expediency of introducing a model of general legal regulation of the cooperation in Ukraine, which will be based on a single conceptual codified act – the cooperative code of Ukraine, is substantiated.

Social Audit Performance of Cooperatives in Northeastern Cagayan, Philippines: A Study on Compliance with RA 9520

Objective: This research aimed to evaluate the social audit performance of cooperatives in Northeastern Cagayan, Philippines, focusing on their compliance with RA 9520, the Philippine Cooperative Code of 2008. The study assessed cooperatives' fulfillment of social responsibility and governance obligations. Theoretical framework: The study was based on the principles of social responsibility and cooperative governance. It aimed to explore how cooperatives in the region integrate these principles into their operations and assess their compliance with the legal requirements outlined in RA 9520. Method: The study employed a descriptive research design, utilizing survey questionnaires and interviews with cooperative officers to collect data from cooperatives in Northeastern Cagayan. This approach provided a comprehensive assessment of the cooperatives' social audit performance. Results and conclusion: The study found that most of the cooperatives in Northeastern Cagayan were micro cooperatives with a focus on clean and green initiatives, health and sanitation, and providing goods to the indigent. However, only 80% had allocated a budget for social audit requirements, and lack of sincerity and budget constraints were identified as main challenges in implementing social responsibility programs. Implications of the research: The study's practical implications for cooperatives include code compliance and social responsibility programs. Adequate budget allocation and sincere implementation promote sustainable development. Cooperatives play a vital role in this endeavor. Originality and Value: This study adds to literature by examining social audit performance of cooperatives in Northeastern Cagayan, focusing on compliance with RA 9520 and effectiveness of social responsibility programs. Findings guide future research in this area.

Source Coding With a Listening-Helper

We consider the cooperative coding of a pair of correlated memoryless source and side-information sequences wherein an encoder assisted by a side-information aided listening-helper describe the source and side-information to a receiver. We obtain a single-letter characterization of the rate region in both cases: when the decoder reconstructs just the source and when it reconstructs both the source and side-information. In the quadratic Gaussian setting we determine the optimal law characterizing the rate region using a technique introduced by Courtade in combination with a conditional version of the converse for the Gaussian CEO problem.

Generalized Distributed Multiple Turbo Coded Cooperative Differential Spatial Modulation

Generalized Distributed Multiple Turbo Coded Cooperative Differential Spatial Modulation

Polar Coded Cooperative Differential Spatial Modulation Based on Plotkin Construction and Quasi-Uniform Puncturing

Coded-cooperation combines virtual MIMO transmission and channel coding to achieve forward error correction while achieving diversity gain. It is a promising technology in 5G communications. The polar code is the only channel coding technology that can theoretically achieve Shannon limit transmission, which make it the preferred coding technology in cooperative communication. In this paper, we proposed a new wireless communication scheme, which is a polar coded cooperative spatial modulation schemes based on Plotkin construction and Quasi-uniform puncturing (QUP). First, we adopt Plotkin construction based on the inverted codeword of the polar code to get a cooperation method, which offer a significant improvement in performance on the polar code cooperation under fading channels. We analyze the decoding characteristics of the inverted codewords and then introduces the QUP method to improve the cooperation benefits. At the same time, we extend the cooperation scheme with differential spatial modulation for the proposed coded cooperative schemes. The new coded-cooperation scheme outperforms its coded non-cooperative counterpart schemes under identical conditions, as expected. Monte Carlo simulated results show that the proposed cooperative schemes outperform their corresponding non-cooperative counterpart schemes, by the gain of 2.5 dB with 1024 code length and 0.25 code rate under identical conditions.

Cooperatives and the Use of Artificial Intelligence: A Critical View

Digital Transformation (DT) has become an important issue for organisations. It is proven that DT fuels Digital Innovation in organisations. It is well-known that technologies and practices such as distributed ledger technologies, open source, analytics, big data, and artificial intelligence (AI) enhance DT. Among those technologies, AI provides tools to support decision-making and automatically decide. Cooperatives are organisations with a mutualistic scope and are characterised by having participatory cooperative governance due to the principle of democratic control by the members. In a context where DT is here to stay, where the dematerialisation of processes can bring significant advantages to any organisation, this article presents a critical reflection on the dangers of using AI technologies in cooperatives. We base this reflection on the Portuguese cooperative code. We emphasise that this code is not very different from the ones of other countries worldwide as they are all based on the Statement of Cooperative Identity defined by the International Cooperative Alliance. We understand that we cannot stop the entry of AI technologies into the cooperatives. Therefore, we present a framework for using AI technologies in cooperatives to avoid damaging the principles and values of this type of organisations.

Analysis of Drone Assisted Network Coded Cooperation for LoS Environments

Analysis of Drone Assisted Network Coded Cooperation for LoS Environments

Identifying and Addressing Institutional Problems Constraining the Financial Performance of Rice Cooperatives in the Philippines

Farmer-controlled cooperatives contribute significantly to the growth of the rice sector in the Philippines, the country’s most important agricultural sector. Despite ongoing financial support from various government agencies, many of the country’s rice cooperatives struggle to remain viable. Cooperative failure is often attributed to poor management, inadequate capital, and opportunistic side selling by members. However, a growing body of literature views these problems as symptoms of much more fundamental flaws in the institutional arrangements that characterize traditional cooperatives. Relationships between indicators of financial performance and institutional attributes observed in case studies of four Philippine rice farmer cooperatives were identified using hierarchical cluster analysis. The results of this analysis were interpreted against causal relationships predicted by the New Institutional Economics theory. Financial performance improves when cooperatives require their members to invest in proportion to their patronage, allow members to adjust their shareholding, and periodically redeem members’ shares. Other performance-enhancing institutional arrangements could be adopted if the Philippine Cooperative Code authorized directors to issue class B shares. The findings also highlight operational and governance practices that improve financial performance, which directors can and should apply.

Modes of action of the methanol extract and 3-O-[β-galactopyranosyl-(1→4)-β-D-galactopyranosyl]-oleanolic acid from Acacia polyacantha against multi-resistant Gram-negative bacteria

Background: Bacterial infections, especially those caused by multidrug-resistant (MDR) Gram-negative bacteria, remain a global health concern. Previous studies have reported the antibacterial activities of the methanol extract of the leaves of Acacia polyacantha Willd. (Fabaceae) (APL) as well as some of its phytoconstituents. In this study, APL and its constituent, 3-O-[β-galactopyranosyl-(1→4)-β-D-galactopyranosyl]-oleanolic acid (GGOA) were evaluated on growth kinetics, bacterial membrane, and H+-ATPase proton pumps. The acute toxicity of APL was also studied. Methods: The effects of APL and GGOA on bacterial growth kinetics and the bacterial membrane was determined using spectrophotometric methods. Their effects on the bacterial H+-ATPase proton pumps were evaluated through the acidification of the bacterial external environment using a pH-meter. The acute toxicity of APL was determined using the standard limit test method described by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) code 425. Results: APL and GGOA modified the bacterial kinetics of Providencia stuartii ATCC29916 with emphasis on the latent phase. They blocked the proton pumps of this bacterium and destroy the bacterial membrane. The medium lethal dose (LD50) of APL was greater than 5000 mg/kg body weight (b.w.). Conclusion: The results of the present study provide important and complementary information on APL and GGOA as good antibacterial candidates for combating infections due to MDR Gram-negative bacteria. Keywords: 3-O-[β-galactopyranosyl-(1→4)-β-D-galactopyranosyl]-oleanolic acid; Acacia polyacantha; acute toxicity; Gram-negative bacteria; mode of action; multidrug resistance.

Triggers and creation processes of national governance codes for cooperative enterprises

During the last couple of decades, codes of governance have mushroomed in response to corporate scandals, the transformation of ownership and globalization. While most of these codes have been developed with the conventional firm as reference, some countries have recently witnessed the development of specific codes for cooperatives. Acknowledging the differences between conventional and cooperative governance, this paper explores how codes of governance found their way into the cooperative sector. With the help of qualitative semistructured interviews, we highlight the distinct challenges triggering code creation in a cooperative context namely, creating a shared purpose and managing member participation. Additionally we uncover two mechanisms of cooperative code creation within the sector: one that revolves around adoption, and another that originates from co-creation. We contribute to the literature by not solely focusing on the diffusion of codes, but especially in uncovering how alternative organizational forms such as cooperatives go through a phase of adaption in order to establish a code that meets their distinct governance nature.

Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning for Cooperative Coded Caching via Homotopy Optimization

Introducing cooperative coded caching into small cell networks is a promising approach to reducing traffic loads. By encoding content via maximum distance separable (MDS) codes, coded fragments can be collectively cached at small-cell base stations (SBSs) to enhance caching efficiency. However, content popularity is usually time-varying and unknown in practice. As a result, cached content is anticipated to be intelligently updated by taking into account limited caching storage and interactive impacts among SBSs. In response to these challenges, we propose a multi-agent deep reinforcement learning (DRL) framework to intelligently update cached content in dynamic environments. With the goal of minimizing long-term expected fronthaul traffic loads, we first model dynamic coded caching as a cooperative multi-agent Markov decision process. Owing to the use of MDS coding, the resulting decision-making falls into a class of constrained reinforcement learning problems with continuous decision variables. To deal with this difficulty, we custom-build a novel DRL algorithm by embedding homotopy optimization into a deep deterministic policy gradient formalism. Next, to empower the caching framework with an effective trade-off between complexity and performance, we propose centralized, and partially and fully decentralized caching controls by applying the derived DRL approach. Simulation results demonstrate the superior performance of the proposed multi-agent framework.

Uloga Državne revizorske institucije u Srbiji

The topic of this paper is introduction to the importance of the State Audit Institution, its role and competencies, organization, Code of Ethics and international cooperation. The State Audit Institution (SAI) is the supreme authority for auditing of public funds in the Republic of Serbia. It was founded in 2005pursuant to the Law on State Audit Institution. The State Audit Institution is an independent and autonomous state authority. For performance of activities within its competence, the State Audit Institution is accountable to the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia. SAI performs the activities within its competence pursuant to the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia, Law on State Audit Institution and Rules of Procedure of the State Audit Institution which, in compliance with the Law, regulate more closely the audit procedure conducted by SAI, the manner of ensuring transparency in work, decision-making process and other issues established by the Law that are relevant for operations of SAI.

Design and Identification of Cooperative Coded Targets

Design and Identification of Cooperative Coded Targets

Adaptive and Heterogeneity-Aware Coded Cooperative Computation at the Edge

Cooperative computation is a promising approach for localized data processing at the edge, e.g., for Internet of Things(IoT). Cooperative computation advocates that computationally intensive tasks in a device could be divided into sub-tasks, and offloaded to other devices or servers in close proximity. However, exploiting the potential of cooperative computation is challenging mainly due to the heterogeneous and time-varying nature of edge devices. Coded computation, which advocates mixing data in sub-tasks by employing erasure codes and offloading these sub-tasks to other devices for computation, is recently gaining interest, thanks to its higher reliability, smaller delay, and lower communication costs. In this paper, we develop a coded cooperative computation framework, which we name Coded Cooperative Computation Protocol (C3P), by taking into account the heterogeneous and time-varying resources of edge devices. C3P dynamically offloads coded sub-tasks to helpers and is adaptive to time-varying resources. We show that (i) task completion delay of C3P is very close to optimal coded cooperative computation solutions, (ii) the efficiency of C3P in terms of resource utilization is higher than 99%, and (iii) C3P improves task completion delay significantly as compared to baselines via both simulations and in a testbed consisting of real Android-based smartphones.

Codes With Minimum Bandwidth Cooperative Local Regeneration

Locally recoverable codes (LRCs) are known to reduce the repair locality, i.e., the number of nodes accessed during node repair, in distributed storage systems. Regenerating codes, on the other hand, offer a decreased repair bandwidth, which is the repair traffic incurred during node repairs. Locally regenerating codes (LRGCs), which are constructed via intertwining regenerating codes of smaller block lengths, simultaneously offer a small repair locality and repair bandwidth. In this letter, we construct a family of LRGCs where the constituent codes are bandwidth-efficient, minimum bandwidth cooperative regenerating codes. The newly constructed LRGCs are optimal with respect to both minimum distance and rate.

Split labeling diversity for wireless half-duplex relay assisted cooperative communication systems

Labeling diversity (LD) is a well-known technique proposed for multi-antenna Wireless local area network (WLAN) applications . In this paper, we propose LD for three-terminal cooperative communication schemes i.e., Decode and Forward (DF) and Coded-cooperative (CC) schemes with each terminal using a single antenna for transmission. The Boosted space-time codeword is jointly constructed by source and a relay node in two phases and joint iterative detection and decoding are used at the destination node. This technique shows that the gains from LD can be further enhanced when used in cooperative communication schemes. Numerical analysis reveal that the proposed schemes DF and CC provide full diversity gains, over non-cooperative schemes, later scheme being the most successful one, under identical conditions using less number of antennas at each communication node and with reduced receiver complexity.

Cooperative coding and caching scheduling via binary particle swarm optimization in software-defined vehicular networks

With recent development in vehicular communication technologies, much attention has been paid to data dissemination in vehicular networks. In particular, the infrastructure-to-vehicle (I2V) communication is one of the primary technologies to provide a variety of information services. To enhance the bandwidth efficiency of I2V communication, this work considers in a software-defined vehicular networks (SDVN), aiming at exploiting synergistic effects of network coding and vehicular caching. First, we consider a data service scenario in which roadside unites (RSUs) are connected with the controller, which exercises scheduling decisions based on service requests received from vehicles. On this basis, we formulate a cooperative coding and caching scheduling problem with the objective of maximizing the bandwidth efficiency of I2V communication. Then, we propose a binary particle swarm optimization (BPSO)-based coding scheduling (BPSO_CS) algorithm. Finally, we build the simulation model and give a comprehensive performance evaluation. The results conclusively demonstrate the superiority of the proposed solution.

Reinforcement Learning Based Cooperative Coded Caching Under Dynamic Popularities in Ultra-Dense Networks

For ultra-dense networks with wireless backhaul, caching strategy at small base stations (SBSs), usually with limited storage, is critical to meet massive high data rate requests. Since the content popularity profile varies with time in an unknown way, we exploit reinforcement learning (RL) to design a cooperative caching strategy with maximum-distance separable (MDS) coding. We model the MDS coding based cooperative caching as a Markov decision process to capture the popularity dynamics and maximize the long-term expected cumulative traffic load served directly by the SBSs without accessing the macro base station. For the formulated problem, we first find the optimal solution for a small-scale system by embedding the cooperative MDS coding into Q-learning. To cope with the large-scale case, we approximate the state-action value function heuristically. The approximated function includes only a small number of learnable parameters and enables us to propose a fast and efficient action-selection approach, which dramatically reduces the complexity. Numerical results verify the optimality/near-optimality of the proposed RL based algorithms and show the superiority compared with the baseline schemes. They also exhibit good robustness to different environments.

POR UMA GESTÃO DEMOCRÁTICA INDIRETA DAS COOPERATIVAS: COMENTÁRIO AO ACÓRDÃO DO TRIBUNAL DA RELAÇÃO DE GUIMARÃES DE 18 DE OUTUBRO DE 2018

O presente comentário visa, partindo do percurso mental seguido pelo Tribunal da Relação de Guimarães, analisar criticamente a figura das assembleias gerais de delegados. No acórdão em anotação, o Tribunal foi chamado a apreciar os estatutos de uma Cooperativa que preveem que a assembleia geral se realize com a presença, não dos cooperadores, mas de delegados por aqueles eleitos nas suas diversas secções. O cerne da questão passa por aferir a compatibilidade desta solução com o princípio da gestão democrática, tal como vertido no artigo 3.º do Código Cooperativo. Para o efeito, importará compreender a teleologia subjacente ao princípio, aferindo se ele consente a existência deste tipo de participação indireta ou representada dos cooperadores.