Large Scale Networks

This edited volume provides insights into and tools for the modeling, analysis, optimization, and control of large-scale networks in the life sciences and in engineering. Large-scale systems are often the result of networked interactions between a large number of subsystems, and their analysis and control are becoming increasingly important. The chapters of this book present the basic concepts and theoretical foundations of network theory and discuss its applications in different scientific areas such as biochemical reactions, chemical production processes, systems biology, electrical circuits, and mobile agents. The aim is to identify common concepts, to understand the underlying mathematical ideas, and to inspire discussions across the borders of the various disciplines. The book originates from the interdisciplinary summer school “Large Scale Networks in Engineering and Life Sciences” hosted by the International Max Planck Research School Magdeburg, September 26-30, 2011, and will therefore be of interest to mathematicians, engineers, physicists, biologists, chemists, and anyone involved in the network sciences. In particular, due to their introductory nature the chapters can serve individually or as a whole as the basis of graduate courses and seminars, future summer schools, or as reference material for practitioners in the network sciences.

This book is the culmination of three years of research effort on a multidisciplinary project in which physicists, mathematicians, computer scientists and social scientists worked together to arrive at a unifying picture of complex networks. The contributed chapters form a reference for the various problems in data analysis visualization and modeling of complex networks.

Sets out the design and management principles of large-scale IP networks by weaving together theory and practice.

Fundamentals of Brain Network Analysis is a comprehensive and accessible introduction to methods for unraveling the extraordinary complexity of neuronal connectivity. From the perspective of graph theory and network science, this book introduces, motivates and explains techniques for modeling brain networks as graphs of nodes connected by edges, and covers a diverse array of measures for quantifying their topological and spatial organization. It builds intuition for key concepts and methods by illustrating how they can be practically applied in diverse areas of neuroscience, ranging from the analysis of synaptic networks in the nematode worm to the characterization of large-scale human brain networks constructed with magnetic resonance imaging. This text is ideally suited to neuroscientists wanting to develop expertise in the rapidly developing field of neural connectomics, and to physical and computational scientists wanting to understand how these quantitative methods can be used to understand brain organization. Winner of the 2017 PROSE Award in Biomedicine & Neuroscience and the 2017 British Medical Association (BMA) Award in Neurology Extensively illustrated throughout by graphical representations of key mathematical concepts and their practical applications to analyses of nervous systems Comprehensively covers graph theoretical analyses of structural and functional brain networks, from microscopic to macroscopic scales, using examples based on a wide variety of experimental methods in neuroscience Designed to inform and empower scientists at all levels of experience, and from any specialist background, wanting to use modern methods of network science to understand the organization of the brain

This book offers a rigorous analysis of the achievements in the field of traffic control in large networks, oriented on two main aspects: the self-similarity in traffic behaviour and the scale-free characteristic of a complex network. Additionally, the authors propose a new insight in understanding the inner nature of things, and the cause-and-effect based on the identification of relationships and behaviours within a model, which is based on the study of the influence of the topological characteristics of a network upon the traffic behaviour. The effects of this influence are then discussed in order to find new solutions for traffic monitoring and diagnosis and also for traffic anomalies prediction. Although these concepts are illustrated using highly accurate, highly aggregated packet traces collected on backbone Internet links, the results of the analysis can be applied for any complex network whose traffic processes exhibit asymptotic self-similarity, perceived as an adaptability of traffic in networks. However, the problem with self-similar models is that they are computationally complex. Their fitting procedure is very time-consuming, while their parameters cannot be estimated based on the on-line measurements. In this aim, the main objective of this book is to discuss the problem of traffic prediction in the presence of self-similarity and particularly to offer a possibility to forecast future traffic variations and to predict network performance as precisely as possible, based on the measured traffic history.

This book offers a rigorous analysis of the achievements in the field of traffic control in large networks, oriented on two main aspects: the self-similarity in traffic behaviour and the scale-free characteristic of a complex network. Additionally, the authors propose a new insight in understanding the inner nature of things, and the cause-and-effect based on the identification of relationships and behaviours within a model, which is based on the study of the influence of the topological characteristics of a network upon the traffic behaviour. The effects of this influence are then discussed in order to find new solutions for traffic monitoring and diagnosis and also for traffic anomalies prediction. Although these concepts are illustrated using highly accurate, highly aggregated packet traces collected on backbone Internet links, the results of the analysis can be applied for any complex network whose traffic processes exhibit asymptotic self-similarity, perceived as an adaptability of traffic in networks. However, the problem with self-similar models is that they are computationally complex. Their fitting procedure is very time-consuming, while their parameters cannot be estimated based on the on-line measurements. In this aim, the main objective of this book is to discuss the problem of traffic prediction in the presence of self-similarity and particularly to offer a possibility to forecast future traffic variations and to predict network performance as precisely as possible, based on the measured traffic history.

An integrative overview of network approaches to neuroscience explores the origins of brain complexity and the link between brain structure and function. Over the last decade, the study of complex networks has expanded across diverse scientific fields. Increasingly, science is concerned with the structure, behavior, and evolution of complex systems ranging from cells to ecosystems. In Networks of the Brain, Olaf Sporns describes how the integrative nature of brain function can be illuminated from a complex network perspective. Highlighting the many emerging points of contact between neuroscience and network science, the book serves to introduce network theory to neuroscientists and neuroscience to those working on theoretical network models. Sporns emphasizes how networks connect levels of organization in the brain and how they link structure to function, offering an informal and nonmathematical treatment of the subject. Networks of the Brain provides a synthesis of the sciences of complex networks and the brain that will be an essential foundation for future research.

This book has brought together leading investigators who work in the new arena of brain connectomics. This includes ‘macro-connectome’ efforts to comprehensively chart long-distance pathways and functional networks; ‘micro-connectome’ efforts to identify every neuron, axon, dendrite, synapse, and glial process within restricted brain regions; and ‘meso-connectome’ efforts to systematically map both local and long-distance connections using anatomical tracers. This book highlights cutting-edge methods that can accelerate progress in elucidating static ‘hard-wired’ circuits of the brain as well as dynamic interactions that are vital for brain function. The power of connectomic approaches in characterizing abnormal circuits in the many brain disorders that afflict humankind is considered. Experts in computational neuroscience and network theory provide perspectives needed for synthesizing across different scales in space and time. Altogether, this book provides an integrated view of the challenges and opportunities in deciphering brain circuits in health and disease.