Collaboration in the Semantic Grid: a Basis for e-Learning

The CoAKTinG project aims to advance the state of the art in collaborative mediated spaces for the Semantic Grid. This paper presents an overview of the hypertext and knowledge based tools which have been deployed to augment existing collaborative environments, and the ontology which is used to exchange structure, promote enhanced process tracking, and aid navigation of resources before, after, and while a collaboration occurs. While the primary focus of the project has been supporting e-Science, this paper also explores the similarities and application of CoAKTinG technologies as part of a human-centred design approach to e-Learning

Proceedings ICPW'07: 2nd International Conference on the Pragmatic Web, 22-23 Oct. 2007, Tilburg: NL

Proceedings ICPW'07: 2nd International Conference on the Pragmatic Web, 22-23 Oct. 2007, Tilburg: N

Proceedings of the third International Workshop of the IFIP WG5.7

Contents of the papers presented at the international workshop deal with the wide variety of new and computer-based techniques for production planning and control that has become available to the scientific and industrial world in the past few years: formal modeling techniques, artificial neural networks, autonomous agent theory, genetic algorithms, chaos theory, fuzzy logic, simulated annealing, tabu search, simulation and so on. The approach, while being scientifically rigorous, is focused on the applicability to industrial environment

Automated Algorithmic Machine-to-Machine Negotiation for Lane Changes Performed by Driverless Vehicles at the Edge of the Internet of Things

This dissertation creates and examines algorithmic models for automated machine-to-machine negotiation in localized multi-agent systems at the edge of the Internet of Things. It provides an implementation of two such models for unsupervised resource allocation for the application domain of autonomous vehicle traffic as it pertains to lane changing and speed setting selection. The first part concerns negotiation via abstract argumentation. A general model for the arbitration of conflict based on abstract argumentation is outlined and then applied to a scenario where autonomous vehicles on a multi-lane highway use expert systems in consultation with private objectives to form arguments and use them to compete for lane positions. The conflict resolution component of the resulting argumentation framework is augmented with social voting to achieve a community supported conflict-free outcome. The presented model heralds a step toward independent negotiation through automated argumentation in distributed multi-agent systems. Many other cyber-physical environments embody stages for opposing positions that may benefit from this type of tool for collaboration. The second part deals with game-theoretic negotiation through mechanism design. It outlines a mechanism providing resource allocation for a fee and applies it to autonomous vehicle traffic. Vehicular agents apply for speed and lane assignments with sealed bids containing their private feasible action valuations determined within the context of their governing objective. A truth-inducing mechanism implementing an incentive-compatible strategyproof social choice functions achieves a socially optimal outcome. The model can be adapted to many application fields through the definition of a domain-appropriate operation to be used by the allocation function of the mechanism. Both presented prototypes conduct operations at the edge of the Internet of Things. They can be applied to agent networks in just about any domain where the sharing of resources is required. The social voting argumentation approach is a minimal but powerful tool facilitating the democratic process when a community makes decisions on the sharing or rationing of common-pool assets. The mechanism design model can create social welfare maximizing allocations for multiple or multidimensional resources

PeMMAS: A Tool for Studying the Performance of Multiagent Systems Developed in JADE

This paper describes the performance measurement for multiagent systems (PeMMAS) tool, a system designed to study and measure the performance of any multiagent system (MAS) de-veloped in JADE. The tool itself is another MAS which is deployed and coexists alongside the one being studied. This characteristic allows us to adapt PeMMAS to any scenario in which MAS de-ployment in JADE is used. PeMMAS extracts information from the target MAS regarding the use of system resources, the flight time for comprehensive messages according to agent type, as well as the processing time for actions. After processing this information, PeMMAS sends a report to the final user for subsequent analysis

Multi-Agent Systems

A multi-agent system (MAS) is a system composed of multiple interacting intelligent agents. Multi-agent systems can be used to solve problems which are difficult or impossible for an individual agent or monolithic system to solve. Agent systems are open and extensible systems that allow for the deployment of autonomous and proactive software components. Multi-agent systems have been brought up and used in several application domains

Efficient Decision Support Systems

This series is directed to diverse managerial professionals who are leading the transformation of individual domains by using expert information and domain knowledge to drive decision support systems (DSSs). The series offers a broad range of subjects addressed in specific areas such as health care, business management, banking, agriculture, environmental improvement, natural resource and spatial management, aviation administration, and hybrid applications of information technology aimed to interdisciplinary issues. This book series is composed of three volumes: Volume 1 consists of general concepts and methodology of DSSs; Volume 2 consists of applications of DSSs in the biomedical domain; Volume 3 consists of hybrid applications of DSSs in multidisciplinary domains. The book is shaped upon decision support strategies in the new infrastructure that assists the readers in full use of the creative technology to manipulate input data and to transform information into useful decisions for decision makers

Adaptive Planning and Prediction in Agent-Supported Distributed Collaboration.

Agents that act as user assistants will become invaluable as the number of information sources continue to proliferate. Such agents can support the work of users by learning to automate time-consuming tasks and filter information to manageable levels. Although considerable advances have been made in this area, it remains a fertile area for further development. One application of agents under careful scrutiny is the automated negotiation of conflicts between different user's needs and desires. Many techniques require explicit user models in order to function. This dissertation explores a technique for dynamically constructing user models and the impact of using them to anticipate the need for negotiation. Negotiation is reduced by including an advising aspect to the agent that can use this anticipation of conflict to adjust user behavior

Argumentation In The Resolution Of Passenger Problems using Mobile Devices

Numa companhia aérea, o planeamento e consequente monitorização de voos é um problemacomplexo, pois implica a consideração de múltiplos e dispendiosos recursos e suas dependências.Eventos inesperados obrigam a alterações nos planos inicialmente previstos, pelo que se tornanecessário existir uma entidade responsável pela resolução dos possíveis problemas que eventuaisirregularidades provocam.O Centro de Controlo Operacional (CCO) é a entidade que gere a operação de uma companhiaaérea nos momentos que antecedem a realização dos voos, tendo como principal objetivo solu-cionar eventuais problemas minimizando tanto quanto possível o seu impacto em custo e atraso.Três grandes consequências destas irregularidades são os atrasos, cancelamentos dos voos e perdasde ligações dos passageiros em trânsito para outros destinos.A resolução de uma irregularidade tem normalmente impacto em 3 dimensões: os recursosdo avião, os passageiros, e a tripulação. No caso de o afetado ser o passageiro, este é geralmenteinformado pela companhia aérea do itinerário alternativo como sendo um fato consumado e, naeventualidade de não concordar com a solução dada, terá de se dirigir ao balcão de irregularidadesou telefonar, para tentar ver o seu inconveniente resolvido de outra forma.Nesta dissertação é proposto um sistema onde seja possível a participação ativa do passageirona resolução do problema, através de uma aplicação móvel, tentando deste modo aumentar asatisfação do mesmo, minimizando os inconvenientes inerentemente existentes, pela obtenção deuma solução personalizada.O passageiro humano (doravante denominado simplesmente passageiro) irá trocar mensagenscom um agente de software (doravante denominado agente passageiro) através de um protocolode negociação baseado em argumentação de forma a que a solução resultante seja de acordo comas suas preferências. Através do uso de argumentação e baseado na informação que o agentepassageiro possui relativamente quer ao passageiro quer ao ambiente que o rodeia é permitido,para além de justificar de forma mais verbal e clara a escolha da proposta atual, encontrar umasolução o mais próxima possível das necessidades e dos critérios de cada passageiro lesado com omínimo custo para a companhia aérea.O agente passageiro deverá ser capaz de entender os argumentos do passageiro (humano) e formular novos argumentos para rebater os recebidos, apresentando assim contra-propostas.Aliado a estas funcionalidades, a possibilidade de uso do dispositivo móvel e das comodi-dades que deste advém (deslocações, morosidade, ..) torna possível a realização deste processoremotamente sem a necessidade de deslocação ao balcão de irregularidades.In an airline company, the planning and subsequent monitorization of flights is a complex problembecause it involves the consideration of multiple and costly resources and their dependencies.Unexpected events force a change in the previously envisaged plans, making it necessary to existsome entity responsible for the resolution of possible problems that occasional irregularities mightprovoke.The Operational Control Center (OCC) is the entity that manages the operations of an airlinecompany in the moments that precede the realization of flights, having as the primary objectiveto solve eventual problems minimizing as much as possible their impact in cost or delays. Threemajor consequences of this irregularities are the delays and cancellation of flights and the loss oftransfers from passengers in transit to other destinations.The resolution of a irregularity has normally three major dimensions: the plane resources, thepassengers and the crew. If one of the affected dimensions is the passenger, currently it is informedby the company of an alternative route as being a consumed fact, and if eventually he disagreeswith the given solution he must head for the irregularities desk or call the company in order to fixit in some other way.This dissertation proposes a system where is possible an active participation of the passengerin the resolution of the problem through a mobile device, thereby trying to increase both thesatisfaction and the commodity of the customer, minimizing the inherently existing drawbacks, byobtaining a custom solution.The human passenger (hereinafter referred to simply as passenger) will exchange messageswith a software agent (hereinafter passenger agent) through a negotiation protocol based on argu-ments such that the resulting solution is according to its preferences. Through the use of Argumen-tation and based on the information the passenger agent has relatively whether to the passenger orto the environment that surrounds it, is allowed, in addition to justify more verbally and clearly thechoice of the current proposal, find the closest possible solution to the needs and criteria of eachaffected passenger with minimal cost to the airline.The passenger agent should be able to understand the passenger (human) arguments and formulate new arguments to rebut the received ones, thus presenting counter-proposals. Allied to these features, the possible use of the mobile phone and the commodities that come along with it (traveling costs, length, time ..) makes it possible to carry out this process remotely without the need to move to irregularities desk

Computer Science and Technology Series : XV Argentine Congress of Computer Science. Selected papers

CACIC'09 was the fifteenth Congress in the CACIC series. It was organized by the School of Engineering of the National University of Jujuy. The Congress included 9 Workshops with 130 accepted papers, 1 main Conference, 4 invited tutorials, different meetings related with Computer Science Education (Professors, PhD students, Curricula) and an International School with 5 courses. CACIC 2009 was organized following the traditional Congress format, with 9 Workshops covering a diversity of dimensions of Computer Science Research. Each topic was supervised by a committee of three chairs of different Universities. The call for papers attracted a total of 267 submissions. An average of 2.7 review reports were collected for each paper, for a grand total of 720 review reports that involved about 300 different reviewers. A total of 130 full papers were accepted and 20 of them were selected for this book.Red de Universidades con Carreras en Informática (RedUNCI