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Data hiding in digital images is a promising direction of cybersecurity. Digital steganography methods provide imperceptible transmission of secret data over an open communication channel. The information embedding efficiency depends on the embedding imperceptibility, capacity, and robustness. These quality criteria are mutually inverse, and the improvement of one indicator usually leads to the deterioration of the others. A balance between them can be achieved using metaheuristic optimization. Metaheuristics are a class of optimization algorithms that find an optimal, or close to an optimal solution for a variety of problems, including those that are difficult to formalize, by simulating various natural processes, for example, the evolution of species or the behavior of animals. In this study, we propose an approach to data hiding in the hybrid spatial-frequency domain of digital images based on metaheuristic optimization. Changing a block of image pixels according to some change matrix is considered as an embedding operation. We select the change matrix adaptively for each block using metaheuristic optimization algorithms. In this study, we compare the performance of three metaheuristics such as genetic algorithm, particle swarm optimization, and differential evolution to find the best change matrix. Experimental results showed that the proposed approach provides high imperceptibility of embedding, high capacity, and error-free extraction of embedded information. At the same time, storage of change matrices for each block is not required for further data extraction. This improves user experience and reduces the chance of an attacker discovering the steganographic attachment. Metaheuristics provided an increase in imperceptibility indicator, estimated by the PSNR metric, and the capacity of the previous algorithm for embedding information into the coefficients of the discrete cosine transform using the QIM method [Evsutin, Melman, Meshcheryakov, 2021] by 26.02% and 30.18%, respectively, for the genetic algorithm, 26.01% and 19.39% for particle swarm optimization, 27.30% and 28.73% for differential evolution.

The work solves the problem of establishing the dependence of the potential for spatial selection of useful and interfering signals according to the signal-to-interference ratio criterion on the positioning error of user equipment during beamforming by their location at a base station, equipped with an antenna array. Configurable simulation parameters include planar antenna array with a different number of antenna elements, movement trajectory, as well as the accuracy of user equipment location estimation using root mean square error of coordinate estimates. The model implements three algorithms for controlling the shape of the antenna radiation pattern: 1) controlling the beam direction for one maximum and one zero; 2) controlling the shape and width of the main beam; 3) adaptive beamforming. The simulation results showed, that the first algorithm is most effective, when the number of antenna array elements is no more than 5 and the positioning error is no more than 7 m, and the second algorithm is appropriate to employ, when the number of antenna array elements is more than 15 and the positioning error is more than 5 m. Adaptive beamforming is implemented using a training signal and provides optimal spatial selection of useful and interfering signals without device location data, but is characterized by high complexity of hardware implementation. Scripts of the developed models are available for verification. The results obtained can be used in the development of scientifically based recommendations for beam control in ultra-dense millimeter-wave radio access networks of the fifth and subsequent generations.

This paper studies a model of a population with non-overlapping generations and density-dependent regulation of birth rate. The population breeds seasonally, and its reproductive potential is determined genetically. The model proposed combines an ecological dynamic model of a limited population with non-overlapping generations and microevolutionary model of its genetic structure dynamics for the case when adaptive trait of birth rate controlled by a single diallelic autosomal locus with allelomorphs A and a. The study showed the genetic composition of the population, namely, will it be polymorphic or monomorphic, is mainly determined by the values of the reproductive potentials of heterozygote and homozygotes. Moreover, the average reproductive potential of mature individuals and intensity of self-regulation processes determine population dynamics. In particularly, increasing the average value of the reproductive potential leads to destabilization of the dynamics of age group sizes. The intensity of self-regulation processes determines the nature of emerging oscillations, since scenario of stability loss of fixed points depends on the values of this parameter. It is shown that patterns of occurrence and evolution of cyclic dynamics regimes are mainly determined by the features of life cycle of individuals in population. The life cycle leading to existence of non-overlapping generation gives isolated subpopulations in different years, which results in the possibility of independent microevolution of these subpopulations and, as a result, the complex dynamics emergence of both stage structure and genetic one. Fixing various adaptive mutations will gradually lead to genetic (and possibly morphological) differentiation and to differences in the average reproductive potentials of subpopulations that give different values of equilibrium subpopulation sizes. Further evolutionary growth of reproductive potentials of limited subpopulations leads to their number fluctuations which can differ in both amplitude and phase.

In the first part of the paper we present convergence analysis of AGMsDR method on a new class of functions — in general non-convex with $M$-Lipschitz-continuous gradients that satisfy Polyak – Lojasiewicz condition. Method does not need the value of $\mu^{PL}>0$ in the condition and converges linearly with a scale factor $\left(1 - \frac{\mu^{PL}}{M}\right)$. It was previously proved that method converges as $O\left(\frac1{k^2}\right)$ if a function is convex and has $M$-Lipschitz-continuous gradient and converges linearly with a~scale factor $\left(1 - \sqrt{\frac{\mu^{SC}}{M}}\right)$ if the value of strong convexity parameter $\mu^{SC}>0$ is known. The novelty is that one can save linear convergence if $\frac{\mu^{PL}}{\mu^{SC}}$ is not known, but without square root in the scale factor.

The second part presents modification of AGMsDR method for solving problems that allow alternating minimization (Alternating AGMsDR). The similar results are proved.

As the result, we present adaptive accelerated methods that converge as $O\left(\min\left\lbrace\frac{M}{k^2},\,\left(1-{\frac{\mu^{PL}}{M}}\right)^{(k-1)}\right\rbrace\right)$ on a class of convex functions with $M$-Lipschitz-continuous gradient that satisfy Polyak – Lojasiewicz condition. Algorithms do not need values of $M$ and $\mu^{PL}$. If Polyak – Lojasiewicz condition does not hold, the convergence is $O\left(\frac1{k^2}\right)$, but no tuning needed.

We also consider the adaptive catalyst envelope of non-accelerated gradient methods. The envelope allows acceleration up to $O\left(\frac1{k^2}\right)$. We present numerical comparison of non-accelerated adaptive gradient descent which is accelerated using adaptive catalyst envelope with AGMsDR, Alternating AGMsDR, APDAGD (Adaptive Primal-Dual Accelerated Gradient Descent) and Sinkhorn's algorithm on the problem dual to the optimal transport problem.

Conducted experiments show faster convergence of alternating AGMsDR in comparison with described catalyst approach and AGMsDR, despite the same asymptotic rate $O\left(\frac1{k^2}\right)$. Such behavior can be explained by linear convergence of AGMsDR method and was tested on quadratic functions. Alternating AGMsDR demonstrated better performance in comparison with AGMsDR.

Studies of the crisis socio-demographic situation in the Russian Far East require not only the use of traditional statistical methods, but also a conceptual analysis of possible development scenarios based on the synergy principles. The article is devoted to the analysis and modeling of the number of employed, unemployed and economically inactive population using nonlinear autonomous differential equations. We studied a basic mathematical model that takes into account the principle of pair interactions, which is a special case of the model for the struggle between conditional information of D. S. Chernavsky. The point estimates for the parameters are found using least squares method adapted for this model. The average approximation error was no more than 5.17%. The calculated parameter values correspond to the unstable focus and the oscillations with increasing amplitude of population number in the asymptotic case, which indicates a gradual increase in disparities between the employed, unemployed and economically inactive population and a collapse of their dynamics. We found that in the parametric space, not far from the inertial scenario, there are domains of blow-up and chaotic regimes complicating the ability to effectively manage. The numerical study showed that a change in only one model parameter (e.g. migration) without complex structural socio-economic changes can only delay the collapse of the dynamics in the long term or leads to the emergence of unpredictable chaotic regimes. We found an additional set of the model parameters corresponding to sustainable dynamics (stable focus) which approximates well the time series of the considered population groups. In the mathematical model, the bifurcation parameters are the outflow rate of the able-bodied population, the fertility (“rejuvenation of the population”), as well as the migration inflow rate of the unemployed. We found that the transition to stable regimes is possible with the simultaneous impact on several parameters which requires a comprehensive set of measures to consolidate the population in the Russian Far East and increase the level of income in terms of compensation for infrastructure sparseness. Further economic and sociological research is required to develop specific state policy measures.

Although each task of recreating artifacts is truly unique, the modeling process for façades, foundations and building elements can be parametrized. This paper is focused on a complex of the existing programming libraries and solutions that need to be united into a single computer system to solve such a task. An algorithm of generating 3D filling of objects under reconstruction is presented. The solution architecture necessary for the system's adaptation for a cloud environment is studied.

Efficiency and completeness of the numerical simulation in oceanography and hydrometeorology are entirely determined by algorithmic features of the construction of an interactive computer simulations in the scale of the oceans with adaptive coated closed seas and coastal waters refined mathematical models, with the possibility of specifying software parallelization calculations near the concrete — the protected areas of the sea coast. An important component of the research is continuous graphical visualization techniques in the course of calculations, including those undertaken in parallel processes with shared RAM or test points on the external media. The results of computational experiments are used in the description of hydrodynamic processes near the coast, which is important in keeping the organization of sea control services and forecasting marine hazards.

The CERN cloud technologies (the CernVM project) give a new possibility for the software developers. The participation of the JINR ATLAS TDAQ working group in the software development for distributed data acquisition and processing system (TDAQ) of the ATLAS experiment (CERN) involves the work in the condition of the dynamically developing system and its infrastructure. The CERN cloud technologies, especially CernVM, provide the most effective access as to the TDAQ software as to the third-part software used in ATLAS. The access to the Scientific Linux environment is provided by CernVM virtual machines and the access software repository — by CernVM-FS. The problem of the functioning of the TDAQ middleware in the CernVM environment was studied in this work. The CernVM usage is illustrated on three examples: the development of the packages Event Dump and Webemon, and the adaptation of the data quality auto checking system of the ATLAS TDAQ (Data Quality Monitoring Framework) for the radar data assessment.

The paper discusses the design and verification stages in the development of complex numerical algorithms to create direct computational experiments in fluid mechanics. The modeling of physical fields and nonstationary processes of continuum mechanics, it is desirable to rely on strict rules of construction the numerical objects and related computational algorithms. Synthesis of adaptive the numerical objects and effective arithmetic- logic operations can serve to optimize the whole computing tasks, provided strict following and compliance with the original of the laws of fluid mechanics. The possibility of using ternary logic enables to resolve some contradictions of functional and declarative programming in the implementation of purely applied problems of mechanics. Similar design decisions lead to new numerical schemes tensor mathematics to help optimize effectiveness and validate correctness the simulation results. The most important consequence is the possibility of using interactive graphical techniques for the visualization of intermediate results of modeling, as well as managed to influence the course of computing experiment under the supervision of engineers aerohydrodynamics– researchers.