On truthfulness and approximation for scheduling selfish tasks

We consider the problem of designing truthful mechanisms for scheduling n tasks on a set of m parallel related machines in order to minimize the makespan. In what follows, we consider that each task is owned by a selfish agent. This is a variant of the KP-model introduced by Koutsoupias and Papadimitriou (Proc. of STACS 1999, pp. 404–413, 1999) (and of the CKN-model of Christodoulou et al. in Proc. of ICALP 2004, pp. 345–357, 2004) in which the agents cannot choose the machine on which their tasks will be executed. This is done by a centralized authority, the scheduler. However, the agents may manipulate the scheduler by providing false information regarding the length of their tasks. We introduce the notion of increasing algorithm and a simple reduction that transforms any increasing algorithm into a truthful one. Furthermore, we show that some of the classical scheduling algorithms are indeed increasing: the LPT algorithm, the PTAS of Graham (SIAM J. Appl. Math. 17(2):416–429, 1969) in the case of two machines, as well as a simple PTAS for the case of m machines, with m a fixed constant. Our results yield a randomized r(1+ε)-approximation algorithm where r is the ratio between the largest and the smallest speed of the related machines. Furthermore, by combining our approach with the classical result of Shmoys et al. (SIAM J. Comput. 24(6):1313–1331, 1995), we obtain a randomized 2r(1+ε)-competitive algorithm. It has to be noticed that these results are obtained without payments, unlike most of the existing works in the field of Mechanism Design. Finally, we show that if payments are allowed then our approach gives a (1+ε)-algorithm for the off-line case with related machines.     

Strategic reasoning about business models: a conceptual modeling approach

Strategic reasoning about business models is an integral part of service design. In fast moving markets, businesses must be able to recognize and respond strategically to disruptive change. They have to answer questions such as: what are the threats and opportunities in emerging technologies and innovations? How should they target customer groups? Who are their real competitors? How will competitive battles take shape? In this paper we define a strategic modeling framework to help understand and analyze the goals, intentions, roles, and the rationale behind the strategic actions in a business environment. This understanding is necessary in order to improve existing or design new services. The key component of the framework is a strategic business model ontology for representing and analyzing business models and strategies, using the i* agent and goal oriented methodology as a basis. The ontology introduces a strategy layer which reasons about alternative strategies that are realized in the operational layer. The framework is evaluated using a retroactive example of disruptive technology in the telecommunication services sector from the literature.     

Mediating Power: Distance Learning Interfaces, Classroom Epistemology, and the Gaze

Distance learning's interfaces—from corresponding through the postal service to the televised talking head—have traditionally been designed from the top down, supporting banking models of learning or, in writing instruction, current-traditional rhetoric pedagogies. Due to temporal and spatial constraints, these interface designs often support (or encourage) one-way communication from the instructor to the student. Students mostly interact with the instructor by asking questions or submitting work, and they tend to have little correspondence with other peers. These methods clearly privilege the instructor's knowledge and evaluation. Furthermore, these interface designs empower the instructor to gaze upon the students and assess them—often not as a corporeal body but as a corpus of texts. Thus, each interface adopted for distance learning sets up a power dynamic in which the capability to share the roles of creating knowledge is juxtaposed with the instructor's capability to normalize the students and reify their own authority through their gaze. In this article we examine the traditional classroom interface through the correspondence course interface, the simulated classroom interface, and the synchronous video interface to raise questions about the infrastructures of distance learning and their implications for student learning.     

The effect of floor slope on sub-maximal lifting capacity and technique

Inclined surfaces, where both the lifter and load are on the slope, may be encountered in a jobsite situation. The purpose of this study was to determine if facing up or down a sloped surface (10 degrees and 20 degrees ) would affect maximal acceptable weights of lift (MAWL) using a 10 min psychophysical approach with symmetric freestyle technique at 4 lifts/min. Seventeen healthy men and 18 women determined floor to knuckle height MAWL while facing uphill, downhill, and on a level surface. Motion capture was also performed to examine sagittal plane joint angles and foot placement relative to a milk crate. Slope did not alter MAWL (p>0.05) with the men lifting more than the women in every condition (p<0.001) (25 kg vs. 15 kg, respectively). Foot placement relative to the box was altered by slope such that both horizontal position behind and vertical position below the box increased as slope changed from the downhill to uphill conditions (both p<0.001). Forward torso lean as well as hip, knee, and ankle (plantar) flexion generally decreased as slope changed from the downhill to uphill conditions (all p<0.001). Torso and knee motion appeared to be protected compared to the other joints, changing the least. Though trends were the same in both sexes, interactions did exist in vertical foot position and hip angle (both p0.001). In conclusion, the body is highly adaptive to floor slope, maintaining MAWL at least in the short term. However, while slight technique differences exist between men and women, care should be taken by all when facing uphill due to the tendency to stand further from the load horizontally and when facing downhill due to increased torso lean.     

不同无线技术能否共存?

新建工厂的无线技术应用已逐步获得认可,然而,还有一些过程工业对采用这项新技术或其它新的解决方案存有疑虑,主要担心多种无线技术互相之间可能存在射频干扰而影响主要通讯的可靠性,例如使用IEEE 802.11b/g和IEEE 802.15.4协议的无线电。因为两种无线电通讯采用的也是用于工业、科技和医疗的2.4GHz波段,业内人士曾     

NETMET: A program for generating and interpreting metaphors

Metaphors have computable semantics. A program called NETMET both generates metaphors and produces partial literal interpretations of metaphors. NETMET is based on Kittay's semantic field theory of metaphor and Black's interaction theory of metaphor. Input to NETMET consists of a list of literal propositions. NETMET creates metaphors by finding topic and source semantic fields, producing an analogical map from source to topic, then generating utterances in which terms in the source are identified with or predicated of terms in the topic. Given a metaphor, NETMET utilizes if-then rules to generate the implication complex of that metaphor. The literal leaves of the implication complex comprise a partial literal interpretation.Eric Steinhart has an MA in philosophy (Boston College) and completed his PhD dissertation (Formal Semantics for Metaphors) at SUNY at Stony Brook. He has written on technology, analogy, metaphor and idealism. His publications include Beyond the Proportional Analogy: A Structural Model of AnalogyPragmatics and Cognition, 2, 1 (1994). He is interested in the application of computational methods to philosophical topics and is working on a computational model of idealistic metaphysics.     

Experience report on the application of genetic algorithms to reduce costs of the software validation process in the automotive sector during an engine control unit project

Software Quality Journal - The number of electronic control units (ECU) installed in vehicles is increasingly high. Manufacturers must improve the software quality and reduce cost by proposing...