Finding checkerboard patterns via fractional 0–1 programming

Biclustering is a data mining technique used to simultaneously partition the set of samples and the set of their attributes (features) into subsets (clusters). Samples and features clustered together are supposed to have a high relevance to each other. In this paper we provide a new mathematical programming formulation for unsupervised biclustering. The proposed model involves the solution of a fractional 0–1 programming problem. A linear-mixed 0–1 reformulation as well as two heuristic-based approaches are developed. Encouraging computational results on clustering real DNA microarray data sets are presented. In addition, we also discuss theoretical computational complexity issues related to biclustering.     

The Structure of Russian Organizations

This paper examines the extent to which the structure of Russian organizations is similar to that observed among organizations in the West. Data were obtained in 1995 from a sample of organizations in the greater Moscow area by means of a structured interview schedule administered to the chief executive officer within each organization. The interview schedule contained measures developed by the Aston Group which have been used widely in previous research. The structure of Russian organizations was evaluated in terms of a causal model based upon consistent findings of previous research in this area. The results suggest that the structure of Russian organizations differs in important ways from the type of structure observed in most Western organizations. The major differences are that size, specialization and formalization are positively associated with centralization in Russian organizations. It is suggested that the historical tradition of centralized rule in Russia and the criminal environment of current Russian organizations are, in part, responsible for this difference.     

Correction to: The impact of parental illness on children’s schooling and labour force participation: evidence from Vietnam

Review of Economics of the Household - The original version of this article unfortunately contained some errors in reference citations and in significance indicators in some of the tables. These...     

Modernization: the burden of the past

Embarking upon modernization, Russia will have to struggle with the debris of a degrading industrial society. The paper employs the concepts of ‘decay energy’ and ‘humanitarian catastrophe’, regarding these phenomena as inseparable from the transitional process. A detailed analysis of various types and forms of decay energy leads the author to the following conclusions: (1) minimization, elimination and/or conversion of disintegration forces and products of decay is an integral part of the modernization project for Russia; (2) this project ought to have an ideology, a leader, social forces supporting it, educational resources, and access to the media; (3) the environmental movement is one of the few collective actors poised to combat the decay forces, which possesses a well‐developed worldwide support network and has created a discourse that is comprehensible to the authorities as well as the business world and lay people; (4) for Russia with its numerous ‘frozen’ and ‘hot’ conflicts, this transition will be especially difficult and costly.     

The Jews and revolution: Russian perspectives, 1881–1918

Contemporaries and historians of the Russian revolutions have often made a great deal of the Jewish role in the events of 1917. In late 1917, for instance, it was commonplace to assert that the Bolsheviks were simply part of a Jewish conspiracy. This paper takes a look at the various Russian perspectives on the revolution and its Jewish aspects, focusing in particular on the views of leading intellectuals, writers and politicians, such as S.M. Dubnov, Maxim Gorkii and Aleksandr Blok. It reveals that attitudes were not always straightforward, even amongst the liberal elements of the intelligentsia.     

THE HURWITZ ZETA DISTRIBUTION

This paper shows that a normalization of the Hurwitz zeta function is a characteristic function. This generalizes the 1938 result of Khinchine about the Riemann zeta function. The paper investigates the infinite divisibility of the resulting distribution.     

Sociology in Russia: Studies in Social Stratification

Sociological Forum -     

Bootstrap Confidence Intervals for Large-scale Multivariate Monotonic Regression Problems

Recently, the methods used to estimate monotonic regression (MR) models have been substantially improved, and some algorithms can now produce high-accuracy monotonic fits to multivariate datasets containing over a million observations. Nevertheless, the computational burden can be prohibitively large for resampling techniques in which numerous datasets are processed independently of each other. Here, we present efficient algorithms for estimation of confidence limits in large-scale settings that take into account the similarity of the bootstrap or jackknifed datasets to which MR models are fitted. In addition, we introduce modifications that substantially improve the accuracy of MR solutions for binary response variables. The performance of our algorithms is illustrated using data on death in coronary heart disease for a large population. This example also illustrates that MR can be a valuable complement to logistic regression.     

Minimum ε-equivalent Circuit Size Problem

For a Boolean function f given by its truth table (of length ) and a parameter s the problem considered is whether there is a Boolean function g -equivalent to f, i.e., , and computed by a circuit of size at most s. In this paper we investigate the complexity of this problem and show that for specific values of it is unlikely to be in P/poly. Under the same assumptions we also consider the optimization variant of the problem and prove its inapproximability.     

Exchanging Knowledge,Enhancing Capacities,Developing Mechanisms: IOM's Role in the Implementation of the EU–Russia Readmission Agreement

Research on European Union (EU)–Russia cooperation in migration issues often neglects important actors involved in these seemingly bilateral arrangements. This paper questions the role that the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has been playing in the EU–Russia cooperation in migration management. The analysis is situated in the theoretical framework describing international organisations (IOs) as bureaucracies and within the discussions about international migration governance and migration management. The paper describes the context of the EU–Russia migration management cooperation and identifies the major activities of IOM in Russia. Treating IOs as bureaucracies that pursue their own interests, the paper argues that, far from being a mere implementing body, IOM is an actor that, to a significant extent, has shaped the outcome of EU–Russia migration dialogue. At the same time, it is the context of this bilateral cooperation that has allowed IOM to strengthen its position vis-à-vis both Russia and the EU and to be successful in the competition with other IOs.