Deep Reinforcement Learning-Based Task Offloading and Service Migrating Policies in Service Caching-Assisted Mobile Edge Computing

Emerging mobile edge computing(MEC)is considered a feasible solution for offloading the computation-intensive request tasks generated from mobile wireless equipment(MWE)with limited computational resources and energy.Due to the homogeneity of request tasks from one MWE during a longterm time period,it is vital to predeploy the particular service cachings required by the request tasks at the MEC server.In this paper,we model a service caching-assisted MEC framework that takes into account the constraint on the number of service cachings hosted by each edge server and the migration of request tasks from the current edge server to another edge server with service caching required by tasks.Furthermore,we propose a multiagent deep reinforcement learning-based computation offloading and task migrating decision-making scheme(MBOMS)to minimize the long-term average weighted cost.The proposed MBOMS can learn the near-optimal offloading and migrating decision-making policy by centralized training and decentralized execution.Systematic and comprehensive simulation results reveal that our proposed MBOMS can converge well after training and outperforms the other five baseline algorithms.

Cloud Datacenter Selection Using Service Broker Policies:A Survey

Amid the landscape of Cloud Computing(CC),the Cloud Datacenter(DC)stands as a conglomerate of physical servers,whose performance can be hindered by bottlenecks within the realm of proliferating CC services.A linchpin in CC’s performance,the Cloud Service Broker(CSB),orchestrates DC selection.Failure to adroitly route user requests with suitable DCs transforms the CSB into a bottleneck,endangering service quality.To tackle this,deploying an efficient CSB policy becomes imperative,optimizing DC selection to meet stringent Qualityof-Service(QoS)demands.Amidst numerous CSB policies,their implementation grapples with challenges like costs and availability.This article undertakes a holistic review of diverse CSB policies,concurrently surveying the predicaments confronted by current policies.The foremost objective is to pinpoint research gaps and remedies to invigorate future policy development.Additionally,it extensively clarifies various DC selection methodologies employed in CC,enriching practitioners and researchers alike.Employing synthetic analysis,the article systematically assesses and compares myriad DC selection techniques.These analytical insights equip decision-makers with a pragmatic framework to discern the apt technique for their needs.In summation,this discourse resoundingly underscores the paramount importance of adept CSB policies in DC selection,highlighting the imperative role of efficient CSB policies in optimizing CC performance.By emphasizing the significance of these policies and their modeling implications,the article contributes to both the general modeling discourse and its practical applications in the CC domain.

Spatiotemporal variations in ecosystem services and their trade-offs and synergies against the background of the gully control and land consolidation project on the Loess Plateau,China

Studying the spatiotemporal variations in ecosystem services and their interrelationships on the Loess Plateau against the background of the gully control and land consolidation(GCLC)project has significant implications for ecological protection and quality development of the Yellow River Basin.Therefore,in this study,we took Yan'an City,Shaanxi Province of China,as the study area,selected four typical ecosystem services,including soil conservation service,water yield service,carbon storage service,and habitat quality service,and quantitatively evaluated the spatiotemporal variation characteristics and trade-offs and synergies of ecosystem services from 2010 to 2018 using the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Trade-offs(InVEST)model.We also analysed the relationship between the GCLC project and regional ecosystem service changes in various regions(including 1 city,2 districts,and 10 counties)of Yan'an City and proposed a coordinated development strategy between the GCLC project and the ecological environment.The results showed that,from 2010 to 2018,soil conservation service decreased by 7.76%,while the other three ecosystem services changed relatively little,with water yield service increasing by 0.56% and carbon storage service and habitat quality service decreasing by 0.16% and 0.14%,respectively.The ecological environment of Yan'an City developed in a balanced way between 2010 and 2018,and the four ecosystem services showed synergistic relationships,among which the synergistic relationships between soil conservation service and water yield service and between carbon storage service and habitat quality service were significant.The GCLC project had a negative impact on the ecosystem services of Yan'an City,and the impact on carbon storage service was more significant.This study provides a theoretical basis for the scientific evaluation of the ecological benefits of the GCLC project and the realization of a win-win situation between food security and ecological security.

Growing Market Demand for After-Sales Service Management

With the background of the current economic globalization and informatization,how to improve the quality of after-sales services and meet the diversified needs of consumers has become an important issue that the industry has had to face and solve.Recently,the“report on 2022-2028 after-sales service management industry market competition analysis and development strategic planning assessment forecast”(hereinafter referred to as the“Report”)released by CICC Consulting pointed out that the high penetration rate of electronic information products.

Analysis of the Characteristics and Development Direction of Services Trade in Shandong Province of China

Shandong is a significant province for foreign trade in China;however,it still faces shortcomings in the development of its service trade,as outlined below.Firstly,the scale of service trade is limited.Shandong’s service trade volume ranked sixth in China in 2022,lagging considerably behind Shanghai,Guangdong,Beijing,Zhejiang,and Jiangsu.Secondly,the proportion of service trade in Shandong compared to the overall national services trade volume falls below the national average,with the per capita scale even lower than the national average.Thirdly,Shandong’s service trade accounts for less than 10% of the province’s foreign trade,which is 3 percentage points below the national average.The insufficient development of Shandong’s service trade is mainly attributed to the weak performance of its own service industry and the limited scale of attracting foreign services investment.Accelerating the development of producer services in Shandong,promoting the intelligent upgrading of consumer services,and continuously promoting reform and opening up in the service sector will be conducive to achieving high-quality development of services trade in Shandong.

Bolzano Traffic: An Example of Open ITS Deployment for Advanced Traveller Information Services

This paper aims to present the experience gathered in the Italian alpine city of Bolzano within the project“Bolzano Traffic”whose goal is the introduction of an experimental open ITS platform for local service providers,fostering the diffusion of advanced traveller information services and the future deployment of cooperative mobility systems in the region.Several end-users applications targeted to the needs of different user groups have been developed in collaboration with local companies and research centers;a partnership with the EU Co-Cities project has been activated as well.The implemented services rely on real-time travel and traffic information collected by urban traffic monitoring systems or published by local stakeholders(e.g.public transportation operators).An active involvement of end-users,who have recently started testing these demo applications for free,is actually on-going.

Assessment of International GNSS Service Global Ionosphere Map products over China region based on measurements from the Crustal Movement Observation Network of China

The global ionosphere maps(GIM)provided by the International GNSS Service(IGS)are extensively utilized for ionospheric morphology monitoring,scientific research,and practical application.Assessing the credibility of GIM products in data-sparse regions is of paramount importance.In this study,measurements from the Crustal Movement Observation Network of China(CMONOC)are leveraged to evaluate the suitability of IGS-GIM products over China region in 2013-2014.The indices of mean error(ME),root mean square error(RMSE),and normalized RMSE(NRMSE)are then utilized to quantify the accuracy of IGS-GIM products.Results revealed distinct local time and latitudinal dependencies in IGS-GIM errors,with substantially high errors at nighttime(NRMSE:39%)and above 40°latitude(NRMSE:49%).Seasonal differences also emerged,with larger equinoctial deviations(NRMSE:33.5%)compared with summer(20%).A preliminary analysis implied that the irregular assimilation of sparse IGS observations,compounded by China’s distinct geomagnetic topology,may manifest as error variations.These results suggest that modeling based solely on IGS-GIM observations engenders inadequate representations across China and that a thorough examination would proffer the necessary foundation for advancing regional total electron content(TEC)constructions.

Design and pricing of maintenance service contract based on Nash non-cooperative game approach

Nowadays manufacturers are facing fierce challenge.Apart from the products,providing customers with multiple maintenance options in the service contract becomes more popular,since it can help to improve customer satisfaction,and ultimately promote sales and maximize profit for the manufacturer.By considering the combinations of corrective maintenance and preventive maintenance,totally three types of maintenance service contracts are designed.Moreover,attractive incentive and penalty mechanisms are adopted in the contracts.On this basis,Nash non-cooperative game is applied to analyze the revenue for both the manufacturer and customers,and so as to optimize the pricing mechanism of maintenance service contract and achieve a win-win situation.Numerical experiments are conducted.The results show that by taking into account the incentive and penalty mechanisms,the revenue can be improved for both the customers and manufacturer.Moreover,with the increase of repair rate and improvement factor in the preventive maintenance,the revenue will increase gradually for both the parties.

Influence of varied drought types on soil conservation service within the framework of climate change:insights from the Jinghe River Basin,China

Severe soil erosion and drought are the two main factors affecting the ecological security of the Loess Plateau,China.Investigating the influence of drought on soil conservation service is of great importance to regional environmental protection and sustainable development.However,there is little research on the coupling relationship between them.In this study,focusing on the Jinghe River Basin,China as a case study,we conducted a quantitative evaluation on meteorological,hydrological,and agricultural droughts(represented by the Standardized Precipitation Index(SPI),Standardized Runoff Index(SRI),and Standardized Soil Moisture Index(SSMI),respectively)using the Variable Infiltration Capacity(VIC)model,and quantified the soil conservation service using the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation(RUSLE)in the historical period(2000-2019)and future period(2026-2060)under two Representative Concentration Pathways(RCPs)(RCP4.5 and RCP8.5).We further examined the influence of the three types of drought on soil conservation service at annual and seasonal scales.The NASA Earth Exchange Global Daily Downscaled Projections(NEX-GDDP)dataset was used to predict and model the hydrometeorological elements in the future period under the RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios.The results showed that in the historical period,annual-scale meteorological drought exhibited the highest intensity,while seasonal-scale drought was generally weakest in autumn and most severe in summer.Drought intensity of all three types of drought will increase over the next 40 years,with a greater increase under the RCP4.5 scenario than under the RCP8.5 scenario.Furthermore,the intra-annual variation in the drought intensity of the three types of drought becomes smaller under the two future scenarios relative to the historical period(2000-2019).Soil conservation service exhibits a distribution pattern characterized by high levels in the southwest and southeast and lower levels in the north,and this pattern has remained consistent both in the historical and future periods.Over the past 20 years,the intra-annual variation indicated peak soil conservation service in summer and lowest level in winter;the total soil conservation of the Jinghe River Basin displayed an upward trend,with the total soil conservation in 2019 being 1.14 times higher than that in 2000.The most substantial impact on soil conservation service arises from annual-scale meteorological drought,which remains consistent both in the historical and future periods.Additionally,at the seasonal scale,meteorological drought exerts the highest influence on soil conservation service in winter and autumn,particularly under the RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios.Compared to the historical period,the soil conservation service in the Jinghe River Basin will be significantly more affected by drought in the future period in terms of both the affected area and the magnitude of impact.This study conducted beneficial attempts to evaluate and predict the dynamic characteristics of watershed drought and soil conservation service,as well as the response of soil conservation service to different types of drought.Clarifying the interrelationship between the two is the foundation for achieving sustainable development in a relatively arid and severely eroded area such as the Jinghe River Basin.

Service Function Chain Migration in LEO Satellite Networks

With the advancements of software defined network(SDN)and network function virtualization(NFV),service function chain(SFC)placement becomes a crucial enabler for flexible resource scheduling in low earth orbit(LEO)satellite networks.While due to the scarcity of bandwidth resources and dynamic topology of LEO satellites,the static SFC placement schemes may cause performance degradation,resource waste and even service failure.In this paper,we consider migration and establish an online migration model,especially considering the dynamic topology.Given the scarcity of bandwidth resources,the model aims to maximize the total number of accepted SFCs while incurring as little bandwidth cost of SFC transmission and migration as possible.Due to its NP-hardness,we propose a heuristic minimized dynamic SFC migration(MDSM)algorithm that only triggers the migration procedure when new SFCs are rejected.Simulation results demonstrate that MDSM achieves a performance close to the upper bound with lower complexity.

Multi-scenario Simulation of the Impact of Land Use Change on the Ecosystem Service Value in the Suzhou-Wuxi-Changzhou Metropolitan Area,China

As the most economically developed metropolitan area in China’s Yangtze River Delta,the rapid changing land use patterns of Suzhou-Wuxi-Changzhou(Su-Xi-Chang) metropolitan area have profound impacts on the ecosystem service value(ESV).Based on the patterns of land use change and the ESV change in Su-Xi-Chang metropolitan area from 2000 to 2020,we set up four scenarios:natural development scenario,urban development scenario,arable land protection scenario and ecological protection scenario,and simulated the impact of land use changes on the ESV in these scenarios.The results showed that:1) the area of built-up land in the Su-XiChang metropolitan area increased significantly from 2000 to 2020,and the area of other types of land decreased.Arable land underwent the highest transfer-out area,and was primarily converted into built-up land.The total ESV of Su-Xi-Chang metropolitan area increased initially then declined from 2000–2020,and the value of almost all individual ecosystem services decreased.2) Population density,GDP per area,night lighting intensity,and road network density can negatively impact the ESV.3) The total ESV loss under the natural development and urban development scenarios was high,and the expansion of the built-up land and the drastic shrinkage of the arable land contributed to the ESV decline under both scenarios.The total ESV under arable land protection and ecological protection scenarios increases,and therefore these scenarios are suitable for future land use optimization in Su-Xi-Chang.This study could provide a certain reference for land use planning and allocation,and offer guidance for the rational allocation of land resources.

A Hybrid Machine Learning Approach for Improvised QoE in Video Services over 5G Wireless Networks

Video streaming applications have grown considerably in recent years.As a result,this becomes one of the most significant contributors to global internet traffic.According to recent studies,the telecommunications industry loses millions of dollars due to poor video Quality of Experience(QoE)for users.Among the standard proposals for standardizing the quality of video streaming over internet service providers(ISPs)is the Mean Opinion Score(MOS).However,the accurate finding of QoE by MOS is subjective and laborious,and it varies depending on the user.A fully automated data analytics framework is required to reduce the inter-operator variability characteristic in QoE assessment.This work addresses this concern by suggesting a novel hybrid XGBStackQoE analytical model using a two-level layering technique.Level one combines multiple Machine Learning(ML)models via a layer one Hybrid XGBStackQoE-model.Individual ML models at level one are trained using the entire training data set.The level two Hybrid XGBStackQoE-Model is fitted using the outputs(meta-features)of the layer one ML models.The proposed model outperformed the conventional models,with an accuracy improvement of 4 to 5 percent,which is still higher than the current traditional models.The proposed framework could significantly improve video QoE accuracy.

Spatio-temporal evolution and topographic gradient effect of land use and ecosystem service value in the Lhasa River Basin

The Lhasa River Basin forms an essential human settlement area in the southern part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.This study employed ecosystem service value(ESV)evaluation model,terrain gradient grading,and Geodetector to analyze land use and ESV in the Lhasa River Basin from 1985 to 2020.The findings reveal that:(1)From 1985 to 2020,grassland was the dominant land use.There was a trend of grassland reduction and the expansion of other land types.(2)ESV has increased over the research period(with a total increase of 0.84%),with higher values in the southeast and lower values in the northwest.Grassland contributed the most to ESV,and climate regulation and hydrological regulation were the ecosystem services that contribute the most to ESV.(3)Natural factors like NDVI and altitude,as well as economic factors like population density and distance from roads,influenced the spatial differentiation of ESV,the explanatory power of NDVI reached up to 0.47.The interaction between factors had a greater impact than individual factors.These research results can provide theoretical support for national spatial planning and ecological environment protection in the Lhasa River Basin and other similar areas.

Coupling Coordination Analysis of Cropland Intensification and Agroecosystem Services:Evidence from Loess Plateau in Shaanxi Province,China

One of the greatest challenges in the agroecosystem is to improve cropland intensification while preserving agroecosystem services.While many studies have investigated the effect of cropland intensification on agroecosystem service,the interactive coupling and coordination among these factors remain largely unexplored.In view of this,this study performed a case study of the Loess Plateau in Shaanxi Province,China and constructed comprehensive evaluation models to quantify the cropland intensification and agroecosystem service in this area.Balance analysis and the coupling coordination degree model were used to evaluate the interactive relationship between cropland intensification and agroecosystem service,and statistical analysis and spatial autocorrelation were used to analyze the spatial characteristics and potential mechanism of the coupling coordination.Results show that both the cropland intensification and agroecosystem service in the study area were relatively low yet gradually increased from 2000 to 2020.Agroecosystem service lag was identified as the dominant unbalanced development type.Improving the supply capacity of agroecosystem services plays a key role in the balanced development of cropland in the Loess Plateau.The coupling coordination degree between cropland intensification and agroecosystem service ranges from basic coordination to serious incoordination.Therefore,cropland intensification practices in the area should be optimized to enhance this coordination degree.An upward trend was also observed in the coupling coordination degree from2000 to 2020.The withdrawal of marginal cropland in the Grain for Green program is one of the most important reasons for this trend,especially for the northern region.Around 83.6%of the high-high clusters are concentrated in the southern region of the Loess Plateau,whereas 70.5%of the low-low clusters are distributed in the northern region.These clustering characteristics are mainly attributed to the environmental suitability of these areas for agriculture and their degree of economic development.

The coordinated evolution of ecological environment,public service,and tourism economy along the Silk Road Economic Belt,using the Dual-Carbon Targets

Carbon peak and carbon neutrality(dual-carbon)are important targets for the international response to climate change.The Silk Road Economic Belt is a strategic resource region and is important for future ecological environment and tourism development.Based on the“dual-carbon”targets,the Single index quantification,Multiple index synthesis,and Poly-criteria integration evaluation model were used in this study to measure the coordinated development index of the ecological environment,public service,and tourism economy along the Silk Road Economic Belt and to analyze its spatial and temporal evolution.Further,it explores the dynamic evolution and development trend of the three systems using the Kernel Density and Grey Markov Prediction Model.The results show that the coordinated development index along this region needs to be improved during the study period.Furthermore,the coordinated development index of the Southwest region is relatively higher than that of the Northwest region.From the development trend of the three systems,all of them develop in a stable manner;however,the tourism economy system is easily affected by external disturbances.The coordinated development index of the three systems changes dynamically and tends to be in a good state of coordination.There is a certain spatial and temporal heterogeneity.The gravity center of the coordinated development index has been in the Southwest region.During the forecast period,the coordinated development index along this region will improve significantly,while insufficient and unbalanced development will continue.

Impacts of multi-scenario land use change on ecosystem services and ecological security pattern: A case study of the Yellow River Delta

The Yellow River Delta(YRD), a critical economic zone along China's eastern coast, also functions as a vital ecological reserve in the lower Yellow River. Amidst rapid industrialization and urbanization, the region has witnessed significant land use/cover changes(LUCC), impacting ecosystem services(ES) and ecological security patterns(ESP). Investigating LUCC's effects on ES and ESP in the YRD is crucial for ecological security and sustainable development. This study utilized the PLUS model to simulate 2030 land use scenarios, including natural development(NDS), economic development(EDS), and ecological protection scenarios(EPS). Subsequently, the InVEST model and circuit theory were applied to assess ES and ESP under varying LUCC scenarios from 2010 to 2030. Findings indicate:(1) Notable LUCC from 2010 to 2030, marked by decreasing cropland and increasing construction land and water bodies.(2) From 2010 to 2020, improvements were observed in carbon storage,water yield, soil retention, and habitat quality, whereas 2020–2030 saw increases in water yield and soil retention but declines in habitat quality and carbon storage. Among the scenarios, EPS showed superior performance in all four ES.(3) Between 2010 and 2030, ecological sources, corridors, and pinchpoints expanded, displaying significant spatial heterogeneity. The EPS scenario yielded the most substantial increases in ecological sources,corridors, and pinchpoints, totaling 582.89 km^(2), 645.03 km^(2),and 64.43 km^(2), respectively. This study highlights the importance of EPS, offering insightful scientific guidance for the YRD's sustainable development.

Spatial Distribution Characteristics and Coverage Rate of Commercial Facilities in 15-minute Radius Livelihood Service Circles of Chunshu Street

Building a 15-minute radius livelihood service circle from the needs of residents is a topdown process of optimizing urban layout and promoting high-quality development implemented by the government.In September 2022,Xicheng District of Beijing served as a national pilot of the 15-minute radius livelihood service circle.Based on the data of POI,urban walking network and building outline,this paper studies the coverage of commercial service facilities in the 15-minute radius livelihood service circle of Chunshu Street by using kernel density analysis and urban network analysis tools.The research shows that the commercial facilities are concentrated in Zhuangsheng Square and Dazhalan commercial district.There are large gaps in housekeeping and couriers logistics facilities,which need to be further improved.

Regional Digital Financial Services Security Clinic for Asia Pacific Region

April 24-25, Seoul, Republic of Korea The International Telecommunication Union(ITU) is organizing the Regional Digital Financial Services Security Clinic for Asia Pacific Region on April 24-25, 2024 in Seoul, Republic of Korea. The event is being jointly held with FNSV Korea and the Korean Fintech Center.

The Chinese Consumers’Service Quality Satisfaction Differences of Cruise Tourism and Precision Marketing Strategy

The paper selected Chinese Cruise Line as the case study. Having based on the survey data of Chinese cruise tourism consumers, the factor analysis method, one-way analysis of variances method, cluster analysis method, and other quantitative and qualitative methods were taken to analyze Chinese consumers’ satisfaction differences of cruise tourism service quality with different segmentation markets and clusters markets, and the reasons of satisfaction differences were also explored. Then precision marketing strategy of Chinese cruise tourism with different segmentation markets and clusters markets from the supply-side reform perspective was discussed. The purpose of current research was to provide suggestions of precision management and precision marketing of Chinese cruise tourism for relevant enterprises and government departments.

Effectiveness of Short Message Service Support on Adherence to Chemotherapy Treatment among Patients Attending Cancer Treatment Facilities in Kenya

Introduction: Cancer is a chronic debilitating disease that unnerves patients, communities, and nations. At some point in cancer patient’s disease experience, chemotherapy is used, and the patient is expected to adhere to treatment to improve survival and quality of life. Methods: This multisite Cluster Randomized Trial (CRT) evaluated the effectiveness of mobile phone Short Message Service (SMS) support on the adherence to treatment schedules among adult cancer patients in Kenya. Data was collected using questionnaires. Ethical approvals were obtained from relevant Ethical Review Boards (ERBs). Results: The mean adherence was 83%. There was a significant difference between treatment arms in relation to the adherence. The intervention arm had a higher mean adherence difference, M = 3.913, 95% CI 2.632-5.193, t (402) = 6.006, p ≤ 0.001), with Cohen’s d = 0.60. Although not significant, (χ2dd = 0.151, df = 1, p = 2.064), more women were perfect adheres than males. Perfect adherers were satisfied with SMS support (χ2dd = 7.620, df = 1, p = 0.06), were in the intervention arm (χ2dd = 22.942, df = 1, p ≤ 0.001), and had trust in the care provider (χ2dd = 10.591 p ≤ 0.001). SMS support was not significant in the multivariate analysis but had an estimated effect size of 0.958 (z = 1.424, p = 0.154, CI = 0.242-3.781), indicating that mean adherence was slightly better in the presence of the intervention. Conclusions: SMS-support intervention has demonstrated superiority in influencing adherence. Further, health system-related factors have a significant influence on the adherence to chemotherapy treatment. Interventions to re-design health systems that are responsive to unmet care needs of cancer patients must be explored. .