This paper proposes several statistical tests for finite state Markov games to examine the null hypothesis that the data are generated from a single equilibrium. We formulate tests of (i) the conditional choice probabilities, (ii) the steady-state distribution of states and (iii) the conditional distribution of states conditional on an initial state. In a Monte Carlo study we find that the chi-...

Power-divergence statistics are proposed for grouped survival data. They are analogous to the power-divergence family of statistics proposed and studied in detail by Read and Cressie (1988) and Cressie and Read (1984) for contingency tables. The proposed statistics are useful for testing validity of parametric model assumptions in analyses of survival data. It is shown that these statistics hav...

A methodology for the concurrent optimization of beam orientations and beam weights in conformal radiotherapy treatment planning has been developed and tested on a cohort of five patients. The algorithm is based on a beam-weight optimization scheme with a downhill simplex optimization engine. The use of random voxels in the dose calculation provides much of the required speed up in the optimiza...

We propose a test for the order of integration of the univariate components of a vector process integrated of order two, i.e. an I(2) process, given by an autoregressive model. The null hypothesis of the test is that the particular univariate time series is an I(1) process. The hypotheses are formulated as linear restrictions on the directions orthogonal to the I(1) cointegration space. The sta...

BACKGROUND Inter-observer delineation variation has been detailed for many years in almost every tumor location. Inadequate delineation can impair the chance of cure and/or increase toxicity. The aim of our original work was to prospectively improve the homogeneity of delineation among all of the senior radiation oncologists in the Nord-Pas de Calais region, irrespective of the conditions of pr...

Many transport policies and innovations are liable to have implications for human health and safety. How should such implications be weighed against the other costs and benefits? In particular, when policy makers are undertaking social cost-benefit analysis, what monetary value should be attached to any health or safety components? Standard welfare economics suggests that the answer should refl...

While the Periotest continues to be used in assessing the integrity of implants, there are numerous reports of its inconsistencies. To understand more precisely what the Periotest is actually measuring, a mathematical model was developed that illustrates the effect that various geometric and clinical parameters have on the Periotest value (PTV). In addition, the model was validated with an in v...

Discrete-choice experiments, while becoming increasingly popular, have rarely been tested for validity and reliability. This contribution purports to provide some evidence of a rather unique type. Two surveys designed to measure willingness-to-accept (WTA) for reform options in Swiss health care and health insurance are used to provide independent information with regard to two elements of refo...

The economic value of environmental goods is commonly determined using the concepts of willingness to pay (WTP) or willingness to accept (WTA). However, the WTP/WTA observed in different countries (or between individuals) will differ according to socio-economic characteristics, in particular income. This notion of differentiated values for otherwise identical goods (say, a given reduction in mo...

Maintaining drinking water quality is essential to water companies and their customers. However, agricultural non-point source pollution of waterways is a major cause of water quality degradation. In this paper we examine the feasibility of using payments financed by a water company to pay farmers to adjust agricultural land management practices to protect water quality. We use the choice exper...