Mutualistic networks are vital ecological and social systems shaped by adaptation and evolution. They involve bipartite cooperation via the exchange of goods or services between actors of different types. Empirical observations of mutualistic networks across genres and geographic conditions reveal correlated nested and modular patterns. Yet, the underlying mechanism for the network assembly remains unclear. We propose a niche-based adaptive mechanism where both nestedness and modularity emerge simultaneously as complementary facets of an optimal niche structure. Key dynamical properties are revealed at different timescales. Foremost, mutualism can either enhance or reduce the network stability, depending on competition intensity. Moreover, structural adaptations are asymmetric, exhibiting strong hysteresis in response to environmental change. Finally, at the evolutionary timescale we show that the adaptive mechanism plays a crucial role in preserving the distinctive patterns of mutualism under species invasions and extinctions.

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Orthotropic, polymeric tubes subjected to internal pressure may undergo large deformations while maintaining linear moment-curvature behavior. Such tubes are modeled herein as inertialess, elastic cantilever beams (the elastica) with a payload mass at the tip and with internal pressure as the eccentric tip follower loading that drives the configurations through large deformations. From the nonlinear equations of motion, dynamic beam trajectories are calculated over a range of system parameters for the special case of a point mass at the tip and a terminated ramp pressure loading. The dynamic responses, which are unique because the loading history and the range of motion are fully defined, are presented in nondimensional form and are compared to static responses presented in a companion study. These results are applicable to the dynamic design of high flexure, tube-type, robotic manipulator arms.

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Complex natural and engineered systems are ubiquitous, and their behavior is challenging to characterize and control. We examine the design of the entrainment process for an uncountably infinite collection of coupled phase oscillators that are all subject to the same periodic driving signal. In the absence of coupling, an appropriately designed input can result in each oscillator attaining the frequency of the driving signal, with a phase offset determined by its natural frequency. We consider a special case of interacting oscillators in which the coupling tends to destabilize the phase configuration to which the driving signal would send the collection in the absence of coupling. In this setting, we derive stability results that characterize the trade-off between the effects of driving and coupling, and compare these results to the well-known Kuramoto model of a collection of free-running coupled oscillators.