System-initiated digressive proposals may be used to introduce new and unexpected information into automated telephone services. These digressions may be viewed as particularly pronounced forms of unsolicited interruptions as they contain information not directly related to the caller’s intended activity. In human–human conversation, interruptions are considered to be speech acts which intrinsi...

In this paper, the effects of rewarding on social dilemma outcomes are investigated by means of an economic experiment. The social dilemma that is considered, is the so called Common Pool Resource (CPR) game, in which individuals make investment decisions which have negative externalities. After each investment decision, subjects have two rounds in which they can reward each other. We find that...

We consider an optimal investment problem when a firm such as an electric power company has the operational flexibility to expand and contract capacity with fixed cost. This problem is formulated as an impulse control problem combined with optimal stopping. Consequently, we obtain optimal investment timing, optimal capacity expansion and contraction timing, and the investment value. We also sho...

Current Content Distribution Networks (CDN) deployment requires heavy infrastructure investment since a large number of servers have to be deployed over a wide area. This paper proposes a new paradigm where future CDNs are to be deployed over a leased server and network infrastructure. While this paradigm shift introduces a new dimension of flexibility, it requires the resource provisioning and...

This paper presents an experimental investigation of the Sounds of Silence (SoS) harmony search metaheuristic for the multi-mode resource-constrained project scheduling problem (MRCPSP) using a pre-optimized starting repertoire. The presented algorithm is based on the time oriented version of the SoS harmony search metaheuristic developed by Csébfalvi et al. [1] for the single-mode resource-con...

We demonstrate a density projection approximation method for solving resource management problems with imperfect state information. The method expands the set of partiallyobserved Markov decision process (POMDP) problems that can be solved with standard dynamic programming tools by addressing dimensionality problems in the decision maker's belief state. Density projection is suitable for uncert...

Expectancy value models of attitude have become increasingly popular in recent years and have inspired a large and growing body of research. The models to date are largely based on interpretations of Rosenberg's [13] or Fishbein's [6] model of attitudes. Although the literature has discussed different scaling procedures, most researchers employ fiveto sevenpoint Likert or bipolar type scales fo...

In 1981, Paris and Wilkie [28] indicated it was an open question whether IΣ0 would satisfy the Second Incompleteness Theorem for Herbrand deduction. We will show that some specially formulated axiomizations for IΣ0 can evade the Herbrandized version of the Second Incompleteness Theorem.

We consider a resource allocation problem, where a rational agent has to decide how to share a limited amount of resources among different companies that might be facing financial difficulties. The objective is to minimize the total long term cost incurred by the economy due to default events. Using the framework of multiarmed restless bandits and, assuming a two-state evolution of the default ...

Natural gas hydrate, also known as combustible ice, and mainly composed of methane, is identified as a potential clean energy for the 21st century. Due to its large reserves, gas hydrate can ease problems caused by energy resource shortage and has gained attention around the world. In this paper, we focus on the exploration and development of gas hydrate as well as discussing its status and fut...