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In blockchain-based systems whose consensus mechanisms resort to Proof-of-Work (PoW), it is expected that a miner’s share of total block revenue is proportional to their share of hashing power with respect to the rest of the network. The protocol relies on the immediate broadcast of blocks by miners, to earn precedence in peers’ local blockchains. However, a deviation from this strategy named selfish mining (SM), may lead miners to earn more than their “fair share”. In this paper, we introduce an agent-based model to simulate the dynamics of SM behaviour by a single miner as well as mining pools to understand the influence of (a) mining power distribution, (b) overlay network topology, (c) positioning of the selfish nodes within the peer to peer network. Our minimalistic model allows us to find that in high levels of latency, SM is always a more profitable strategy; our results are very robust to different network topologies and mining nodes’ centrality in the network. Moreover, the power-law distribution of the miners’ hashing power can make it harder for a selfish miner to be profitable. In addition, we analyze the effect of SM on system global efficiency and fairness. Our analysis confirms that SM is always more profitable for hashing powers representing more than one-third of the total computing power. Further, it also confirms that SM behaviour could cause a statistically significant high probability of continuously mined blocks opening the door for empirical verification of the phenomenon.

Quantum dot light-emitting diodes (QLEDs) have been identified as a next-generation display technology owing to their low-cost manufacturing, wide color gamut, and electrically driven self-emission properties. However, the efficiency and stability of blue QLEDs still pose a significant challenge, limiting their production and potential application. This review aims to analyse the factors leading to the failure of blue QLEDs and presents a roadmap to accelerate their development based on the progress made in the synthesis of II-VI (CdSe, ZnSe) quantum dots (QDs), III-V (InP) QDs, carbon dots, and perovskite QDs. The proposed analysis will include discussions on material synthesis, core-shell structures, ligand interactions, and device fabrication, providing a comprehensive overview of these materials and their development.

In this study, the influence of fly ash (FA) content (0%, 10%, 20%, and 30%) on the alteration in the physical and mechanical parameters of loess is investigated. The influences of curing time (0, 14, and 28 days) and submergence and non-submergence conditions are analyzed as well. Analysis considers the variation in Atterberg limits (liquid limit, plastic limit, and plasticity index), compaction parameters (optimum moisture content (OMC), and maximum dry density (MDD)), unconfined compressive strength (UCS) stress, UCS strain, California bearing ratio (CBR) value, and swell potential. Results show that the application of FA-stabilized loess (FASL) is effective. Specifically, the MDD decreases and the OMC increases, the UCS stress increases and the UCS strain decreases, the CBR value improves and the swell potential declines, but Atterberg limits are insignificantly changed by the increase in the FA ratio compared with those of untreated loess. The UCS stress and CBR value are improved with the increase in curing time, whereas the UCS strain is negligible. FASL under submergence condition plays an important role in improving the effect of FA on the UCS stress and CBR value compared with that under non-submergence condition. The UCS stress and CBR value are more increased and more decreased than the UCS strain in submerged samples. Therefore, the application of FASL in flood areas is important for obtaining sustainable construction materials and ensuring environmental protection.

Background: With the progress of urbanization, the mobility of people has gradually increased, which has led to the further spread of dengue fever. This study evaluated the transmissibility of dengue fever within districts and between different districts in Zhanjiang City to provide corresponding advice for cross-regional prevention and control. Methods: A mathematical model of transmission dynamics was developed to explore the transmissibility of the disease and to compare that between different regions. Results: A total of 467 DF cases (6.38 per 100,000 people) were reported in Zhanjiang City in 2018. In the model, without any intervention, the number of simulated cases in this epidemic reached about 950. The dengue fever transmissions between districts varied within and between regions. When the spread of dengue fever from Chikan Districts to other districts was cut off, the number of cases in other districts dropped significantly or even to zero. When the density of mosquitoes in Xiashan District was controlled, the dengue fever epidemic in Xiashan District was found to be significantly alleviated. Conclusions: When there is a dengue outbreak, timely measures can effectively control it from developing into an epidemic. Different prevention and control measures in different districts could efficiently reduce the risk of disease transmission.

Mapping deformation field time-series, including vertical and horizontal motions, is vital for landslide monitoring and slope safety assessment. However, the conventional differential synthetic aperture radar interferometry (DInSAR) technique can only detect the displacement component in the satellite-to-ground direction, i.e., line-of-sight (LOS) direction displacement. To overcome this constraint, a new method was developed to obtain the displacement field time series of a slope by coupling DInSAR based small baseline subset approach (DInSAR-SBAS) with multiple-aperture InSAR (MAI) based small baseline subset approach (MAI-SBAS). This novel method has been applied to a set of 11 observations from the phased array type L-band synthetic aperture radar (PALSAR) sensor onboard the advanced land observing satellite (ALOS), spanning from 2007 to 2011, of two large-scale north–south slopes of the largest Asian open-pit mine in the Northeast of China. The retrieved displacement time series showed that the proposed method can detect and measure the large displacements that occurred along the north–south direction, and the gradually changing two-dimensional displacement fields. Moreover, we verified this new method by comparing the displacement results to global positioning system (GPS) measurements.