Relaxed sequencing games have a nonempty core

We study sequencing situations with a fixed initial order and linear cost functions. Cost savings can be obtained by rearranging jobs. Next to finding an optimal order, an additional issue is formed by the division of these savings. Cooperative game theory studies this issue. A common assumption states that cooperation between players is restricted to groups that are connected according to the initial order. The value of disconnected groups is defined additively over their connected components. In this paper we allow players in disconnected coalitions to switch places as long as they do not hurt the players not in the coalition under consideration. The resulting games are called relaxed sequencing games. Although they have been studied before, no general results on stable profit divisions have been derived so far. In this paper we prove that relaxed sequencing games have a nonempty core, i.e., they all have stable profit divisions. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2006     

Approximation algorithms for minimizing total weighted completion time of orders on identical machines in parallel

We consider the problem of scheduling orders on identical machines in parallel. Each order consists of one or more individual jobs. A job that belongs to an order can be processed by any one of the machines. Multiple machines can process the jobs of an order concurrently. No setup is required if a machine switches over from one job to another. Each order is released at time zero and has a positive weight. Preemptions are not allowed. The completion time of an order is the time at which all jobs of that order have been completed. The objective is to minimize the total weighted completion time of the orders. The problem is NP‐hard for any fixed number (≥2) of machines. Because of this, we focus our attention on two classes of heuristics, which we refer to as sequential two‐phase heuristics and dynamic two‐phase heuristics. We perform a worst case analysis as well as an empirical analysis of nine heuristics. Our analyses enable us to rank these heuristics according to their effectiveness, taking solution quality as well as running time into account. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2006     

Maximizing project cash availability

Consider a project during the life cycle of which there are cash payouts and in‐flows. To better meet his financial commitments, the project owner would like to meet all deadlines without running out of cash. We show that the cash availability objective is similar to the total weighted flowtime used to measure work‐in‐progress performance in the scheduling and inventory control literatures. In this article we provide several specialized solution methods for the problem of minimizing total weighted flowtime in an arbitrary acyclic project network, subject to activity release times and due dates, where the activity weights may be positive or negative and represent cash in‐ and out‐flows. We describe the structure of an optimal solution and provide several efficient algorithms and their complexity based on mincost and maxflow formulations. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2006     

影响柴油机喷雾数值模拟精度的若干因素分析

为探明影响柴油机喷雾数值模拟精度的若干因素,采用通用商业软件FLUENT对柴油机喷雾特性进行了CFD模拟计算,分别研究了网格尺寸、喷雾粒子数和最大时间步长对油束几何形状及油束贯穿距的影响.结果表明,网格划分的精度和喷雾粒子数量的多少对计算结果的正确性和油束的几何形状有直接的影响,网格尺寸过大或喷雾粒子数过少则喷雾几何形状失真.最大时间步长对数值模拟的精度在一定的范围内影响是比较小的.     

一种基于变权的军事决策模型

根据军队信息化建设所需全面型和专长型军事人才的特点,需要采取一定的方法选拔不同岗位所需的人才.该文试图利用变权理论,采取惩罚型状态变权向量和激励型状态变权向量,完成因素之间权重的转移,进而实现因素之间的均衡或突出某些因素的作用,由此建立了一个不同岗位需求的军事人才选优的综合决策模型.     

基于蚁群算法的试验流程优化研究

水中兵器的海上试验涉及许多人员、兵力、被试产品、测量设备等,试验周期长、消耗大,因此如何缩短试验周期是亟待研究解决的问题.文中首先将试验流程优化问题转化为车间调度问题,建立了相应的数学模型,再应用蚁群算法转移规则得到中间结果并进行排队以对各种资源约束进行处理.最后将结果利用局部搜索算法优化后作为蚁群算法信息素更新的基础.实例计算结果表明,该方法优化效果良好.     

动态灰色时序系统 DGTS 及其在安全策略规范中的应用

设计安全策略模型时应考虑安全策略的时序特性和灰色特性,还应综合考虑保密性、完整性和可用性三方面的需求。已有的安全模型没有描述时序性和灰色特性,而且一般只侧重描述保密性或完整性。为此,本文提出了动态灰色时序系统（简称ＤＧＴＳ）。本文详细描述了ＤＧＴＳ,以及基于ＤＧＴＳ的动态语义设计的灰色时序安全策略规范语言ＧＴＳＬ。     

Defence industries adjusting to change 1

This paper analyses the impact of terrorist activity on international tourist flows. To this end, we have estimated a cross‐sectional gravity equation for tourism from the G‐7 countries to a sample of 134 destinations over the period 2001–2003. Within this framework, we evaluate the deviation from ‘normal’ tourist flows due to terrorist activity, which is considered as negative advertising for the affected country. The analysis suggests that both domestic victims and international attacks are relevant factors when foreign tourists make their choice. This result is robust under alternative specifications. Moreover, the impact of terrorism is more severe in developing countries.     

TERRORIST THREATS AND TRANSITIONAL DYNAMICS IN AN OVERLAPPING GENERATIONS MODEL

Previous research has shown that the duration of a civil war is in part a function of how it ends: in government victory, rebel victory, or negotiated settlement. We present a model of how protagonists in a civil war choose to stop fighting. Hypotheses derived from this theory relate the duration of a civil war to its outcome as well as characteristics of the civil war and the civil war nation. Findings from a competing risk model reveal that the effects of predictors on duration vary according to whether the conflict ended in government victory, rebel victory, or negotiated settlement.     

Estimating defence budget saving from disarmament: the United States’ case

Probing the technology in the production of US national defence by using a dynamic cost‐function model with adjustment costs, this paper evaluates the effect of reducing the level of national defence on the defence budget saving. Our inquiry involves estimating the defence production structure without output data for non‐market goods that are normally unavailable. Our findings include: (i) the United States behaves rationally to minimize cost in the production of national defence; (ii) the adjustment costs are larger in disarmament than in military build‐up; (iii) due to the adjustment costs peculiar to disarmament, the defence budget saving from disarmament appears small, but cutbacks allow great savings on the defence budget.