A branch-and-price algorithm to solve the molten iron allocation problem in iron and steel industry

The molten iron allocation problem (MIAP) is to allocate molten iron from blast furnaces to steel-making furnaces. The allocation needs to observe the release times of the molten iron defined by the draining plan of the blast furnaces and the transport time between the iron-making and steel-making stages. Time window constraints for processing the molten iron must be satisfied to avoid freezing. The objective is to find a schedule with minimum total weighted completion time. This objective reflects the practical consideration of improving steel-making efficiency and reducing operation cost caused by the need for reheating. Such a problem can be viewed as a parallel machine scheduling problem with time windows which is known to be NP-hard. In this paper, we first formulate the molten iron allocation problem as an integer programming model and then reformulate it as a set partitioning model by applying the Dantzig–Wolfe decomposition. We solve the problem using a column generation-based branch-and-price algorithm. Since the subproblem of column generation is still NP-hard, we propose a state-space relaxation-based dynamic programming algorithm for the subproblem. Computational experiments demonstrate that the proposed algorithm is capable of solving problems with up to 100 jobs to optimality within a reasonable computation time.     

Stability analysis of network-based cooperative resource allocation strategies

Resource allocation involves deciding how to divide a resource of limited availability among multiple demands in a way that optimizes current objectives. In this brief paper we focus on one type of distributed resource allocation problem where via an imperfect communication network multiple processors can share the load presented by multiple task types. We introduce asynchronous “cooperative” resource allocation strategies, and show that they lead to a bounded cumulative demand.     

长治市水资源优化配置及对策

文中介绍了长治市水资源的特点和水资源开发利用现状，并总结了长治市水资源开发利用中存在的问题。针对性地提出了合理配置水资源、建设节水型社会、开发新水源、建立高效运行管理体制、运用市场经济机制以及改革现行的水价政策等一系列措施．从而实现全市水资源的优化配置和合理使用，促进全市经济的全面发展。     

Memory organization of action events and its relationship to memory performance.

Previous research yielded inconsistent results regarding the memory organization of self-performed actions. The authors propose that task performance changes the very basis of memory organization. Enactment during study and test (Experiment 1) yielded stronger enactive clustering (based on motor-movement similarities), whereas verbal encoding yielded stronger conceptual clustering (based on semantic-episodic similarities). Enactment enhanced memory quantity and memory accuracy. Both measures increased with enactive clustering under self-performance instructions but with conceptual clustering under verbal instructions. Enactment only during study (Experiment 2) or only during testing (Experiment 3) also enhanced enactive clustering. It is proposed that different conditions affect the relative salience of different types of memory organization and their relative contribution to recall. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On the Locus of Speed-Accuracy Trade-Off in Reaction Time: Inferences From the Lateralized Readiness Potential.

Lateralized readiness potentials (LRPs) were used to determine the stage(s) of reaction time (RT) responsible for speed-accuracy trade-offs (SATs). Speeded decisions based on several types of information were examined in 3 experiments, involving, respectively, a line discrimination task, lexical decisions, and an Erikson flanker task. Three levels of SAT were obtained in each experiment by adjusting response deadlines with an adaptive tracking algorithm. Speed stress affected the duration of RT stages both before and after the start of the LRP in all experiments. The latter effect cannot be explained by guessing strategies, by variations in response force, or as an indirect consequence of the pre-LRP effect. Contrary to most models, it suggests that SAT can occur at a late postdecisional stage. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-regulation and extended now: Controlling the self alters the subjective experience of time.

These studies investigated self-regulation and subjective experience of time from the perspective of the regulatory resource model. Studies 1-2 showed that participants who were instructed to regulate their emotions while viewing a film clip perceived that the film lasted longer than participants who did not regulate their emotions. In Study 3, participants provided time estimates during a resource-depleting or nondepleting task. Subsequent task persistence was measured. Time perceptions mediated the effect of initial self-regulation on subsequent self-regulated performance. In Study 4, participants performed either a resource-depleting or a nondepleting thought-listing task and then performed a different regulatory task. Compared with nondepleted participants, depleted participants persisted less on the 2nd task but estimated that they had persisted longer. Subjective time estimates statistically accounted for reduced persistence after depletion. Together, results indicate people believe that self-regulatory endeavors last overly long, a belief that may result in abandonment of further self-control. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Short cue presentations encourage advance task preparation: A recipe to diminish the residual switch cost.

In the task-switching literature, it has frequently been demonstrated that although advance task preparation reduces the switch cost, it never really eliminates the switch cost. This remaining residual switch cost received much attention, and it has been argued that advance preparation is restricted in nature. In the present study, the role of task-cue presentation in the establishment of the residual switch cost was investigated. In 4 experiments, the cue was removed during the preparation interval, and it was hypothesized that this would encourage participants to complete advance task preparation. The results of all 4 experiments provided support for this hypothesis: When the cue was presented for a short time and then removed, the residual switch cost completely disappeared. This was found for different cue types. Furthermore, Experiment 3 demonstrated that it was not the presence of the cue itself but merely differences in advance task preparation that caused the effects. This suggests that advance task preparation is not as restricted in nature as previously assumed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

一个任务导向的装配机器人多传感器系统方法

本文介绍了一个用于装配机器人的多传感器系统的设计思想和实现方案.提出了在装配任务导向下的监测任务规划模型,讨论了多物理传感器信息融合方法,多目标三层次感知信息决策模型,以及相应的实现系统层次结构.目的是在目标级上实现装配机器人系统的动态闭环.     

Bandwidth allocation algorithms for weighted maximum rate constrained link sharing policy

This paper addresses the problem of bandwidth allocation under the weighted maximum rate constrained link sharing policy and proves a key theory in the condition of allocation termination. We propose several algorithms with various worst-case and average-case time complexities, and evaluate their computation elapse times.     

An evaluation of possible EU air transport emissions trading scheme allocation methods

The European Commission has been requested by member states to study the incorporation of air transport into their existing emissions trading scheme (ETS). Only CO₂ is to be included, at least initially.