A Review of Platforms for the Development of Agent Systems

Agent-based computing is an active field of research with the goal of building autonomous software of hardware entities. This task is often facilitated by the use of dedicated, specialized frameworks. For almost thirty years, many such agent platforms have been developed. Meanwhile, some of them have been abandoned, others continue their development and new platforms are released. This paper presents a up-to-date review of the existing agent platforms and also a historical perspective of this domain. It aims to serve as a reference point for people interested in developing agent systems. This work details the main characteristics of the included agent platforms, together with links to specific projects where they have been used. It distinguishes between the active platforms and those no longer under development or with unclear status. It also classifies the agent platforms as general purpose ones, free or commercial, and specialized ones, which can be used for particular types of applications.Comment: 40 pages, 2 figures, 9 tables, 83 reference

Human-carnivore coexistence and the responses of spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta) to anthropogenic activity in Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania

Human-wildlife coexistence requires rigorous, interdisciplinary evidence that promotes effective conservation and management actions. Such evidence-based approaches are conducive to coexistence between local communities and conflict-prone wildlife, such as large carnivores. Yet, little is known about the best path to gaining local community acceptance of large carnivore management strategies, the effects of anthropogenic activity on the persistence of large carnivores, and the way large carnivores interact with Threatened wildlife and local communities. This dissertation focuses on the applied ecology and conservation of large carnivores in Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA), Tanzania, a multi-use protected area where the local Maasai community lives alongside wildlife. The three objectives of this dissertation are to: (i) identify the best predictors of the acceptance of large carnivore management strategies by local community members, (ii) assess the effects of anthropogenic activity on large carnivore fitness and physiology, and (iii) understand how large carnivores interact with Threatened wildlife and local communities in multi-use protected areas. I use an interdisciplinary approach by combining socio-psychological data from the Maasai community with long-term data on the diet, fitness, and physiology of free-ranging spotted hyenas in the NCA. In Chapter 2, I show that emotions towards and the cultural importance of large carnivores (spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta), lions (Panthera leo), and leopards (Panthera pardus)) are much stronger predictors of the acceptance of large carnivore management strategies than livestock depredation is. I also show that depredation by large carnivores is a much smaller source of livestock death than disease and drought are. I demonstrate that spotted hyenas are viewed less positively than both lions and leopards are, though invasive strategies are not accepted for all three species. The results demonstrate that conservation practitioners may focus too much on livestock depredation as the main impediment to coexistence; rather, they may need to target the respectful fostering of positive emotions through community engagement, while accounting for how different species are viewed. In Chapter 3, I investigate the effect of diurnal pastoralism on fitness and physiology in the Ngorongoro Crater spotted hyena population over a 24-year period by exploiting a natural experiment: two of the Crater’s eight spotted hyena clans were exposed to the pastoralism, while the other six were not. By directly measuring the effects of pastoralism on fitness and physiology, I quantify how an anthropogenic activity affects highly conservation-relevant traits. I found no detectable difference in juvenile recruitment (fitness) nor allostatic load (physiology) between the exposed and unexposed clans, indicating that the pastoralism had no major deleterious effect on the spotted hyenas. These results suggest that exposure to anthropogenic activity may be compatible with the persistence of group-living large carnivores, if spatiotemporal overlap between the species’ key behaviors and the activity is limited. Finally, in Chapter 4, I use fecal DNA metabarcoding to show that the Ngorongoro Crater spotted hyena population does not regularly consume the black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis), a Critically Endangered species. I also show that spotted hyenas at least occasionally leave the Crater to forage, based on detections of both Maasai giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchi) and domestic animals. Furthermore, I found a positive association between spotted hyena age and the propensity to consume domestic animals, which has implications for conflict mitigation. This dissertation sheds light on (i) the most important variables to target when seeking to gain local acceptance for large carnivore management strategies, (ii) the effects of anthropogenic activity on the fitness and physiology of large carnivores, and (iii) how large carnivores interact with Threatened wildlife and local communities in multi-use protected areas. Altogether, this dissertation is expected to provide valuable knowledge for the optimization of evidence-based large carnivore conservation and human-carnivore coexistence.Die Koexistenz von Menschen und Wildtieren erfordert gezielte, interdisziplinäre Evidenz, um effektive Schutz- und Bewirtschaftungsmaßnahmen zu etablieren. Solche evidenzbasierten Ansätze sind von zentraler Bedeutung um die Koexistenz zwischen lokalen Gemeinschaften und zu Konflikten neigenden Wildtieren, wie z. B. Großraubtieren zu verbessern. Es ist jedoch nur wenig darüber bekannt, wie die Akzeptanz der lokalen Bevölkerung für Strategien zur Bewirtschaftung von Großraubtieren am besten erreicht werden kann, welche Auswirkungen anthropogene Aktivitäten auf den Fortbestand von Großraubtieren haben und wie Großraubtiere mit bedrohten Arten und lokalen Gemeinschaften interagieren. Diese Dissertation konzentriert sich auf die angewandte Ökologie und den Schutz Großraubtiere in der Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA), Tansania, eine vielseitig genutzte Landschaft, in dem die lokalen Gemeinschaften von Massai-Hirten neben Wildtieren lebt. Die drei Hauptziele der Dissertation beschäftigen sich mit: (i) der Identifizierung der besten Prädiktoren für die Akzeptanz verschiedener Managementstrategien für Großraubtiere bei Mitgliedern der lokalen Gemeinschaft, (ii) der Bestimmung des Einflusses tageszeitlicher Weidehaltung auf die Fortpflanzungserfolg und Physiologie in Gruppen lebenden Großraubtiere, (iii) verstehen wie Großraubtiere mit bedrohten Arten und lokalen Gemeinschaften in vielseitig genutzten Landschaften interagieren. In dieser Dissertation verwende ich einen interdisziplinären Ansatz, indem ich sozio-psychologische Daten der Massai-Gemeinschaft mit Langzeitdaten über die Ernährung, Fortpflanzungserfolg und Physiologie von Tüpfelhyänen aus einer freilebenden Population in der NCA kombiniere. In Kapitel 2 zeige ich, dass die Emotionen gegenüber und die kulturelle Bedeutung von Großraubtieren (Tüpfelhyänen, Löwen (Panthera leo) und Leoparden (Panthera pardus)) weitaus mehr Einfluss auf die Akzeptanz von Managementmaßnahmen für Großraubtiere haben als es die Gefährdung von Viehbeständen hat. Ich zeige auch, dass die Verluste durch Großraubtiere eine deutlich seltenere Ursache für den Tod von Nutztieren sind als Krankheiten und Dürre. Insgesamt wurden Tüpfelhyänen weniger positiv bewertet als Löwen und Leoparden, obwohl invasive Strategien bei allen drei Arten abgelehnt wurde. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass sich Naturschützer möglicherweise zu sehr auf die Viehtötung als Haupthindernis für die Koexistenz konzentrieren; stattdessen wäre es möglicherweise besser sich auf eine respektvolle Stärkung positiver Emotionen durch das Engagement der Gemeinschaft zu konzentrieren und dabei zu berücksichtigen, wie die verschiedenen Arten von der lokalen Gemeinschaft angesehen werden. In Kapitel 3 untersuche ich die Auswirkungen der Tagesweidehaltung auf die Rekrutierung von Jungtieren und die allostatische Belastung der Tupfelhyänenpopulation im Ngorongoro-Krater über einen Zeitraum von 24 Jahren, indem ich ein natürliches Experiment nutze: zwei der acht Tupfelhyänen Clans im Krater waren der Weidehaltung ausgesetzt, die anderen sechs nicht. Durch die direkte Messung der Auswirkungen der Weidewirtschaft auf den Fortpflanzungserfolg und die physiologischen Merkmale quantifiziere ich, wie sich eine anthropogene Aktivität auf äußerst naturschutzrelevante Eigenschaften der Tupfelhyänen auswirkt. Ich konnte keinen nachweisbaren Unterschied bei der Rekrutierung von Jungtieren (Fitness) oder der allostatischen Belastung (Physiologie) zwischen den exponierten und den nicht exponierten Clans feststellen. Dies deutet darauf hin, dass die Weidewirtschaft keine wesentlichen nachteiligen Auswirkungen auf die Tüpfelhyänen hatte. Diese Ergebnisse lassen darauf schließen, dass die Exposition gegenüber anthropogenen Aktivitäten mit dem Fortbestand gruppenlebender Großraubtiere vereinbar sein kann, wenn die räumlich-zeitliche Überlappung zwischen den wichtigsten Verhaltensweisen der Art und den anthropogenen Aktivitäten begrenzt ist. In Kapitel 4 schließlich zeige ich anhand von fäkalen DNA-Metabarkodierungen, dass die Tüpfelhyänenpopulation im Ngorongoro-Krater nicht regelmäßig vom Aussterben bedrohte Arten wie Spitzmaulnashörner (Diceros bicornis), fressen. Basierend auf DNA-Nachweisen von Massai-Giraffen (Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchi) und Haustieren in den Kotproben, zeige ich außerdem, dass Tüpfelhyänen zumindest gelegentlich den Krater zur Nahrungssuche verlassen. Darüber hinaus wurde ein positiver Zusammenhang zwischen dem Alter der Tupfelhyänen und der Neigung zum Verzehr von Haustieren festgestellt, was Hinweise zum für das Konfliktmanagement liefert. Diese Dissertation gibt Aufschluss über (i) die wichtigsten Variablen zur Verbesserung der lokalen Akzeptanz von Managementstrategien für Großraubtiere, (ii) die Auswirkungen anthropogener Aktivitäten auf den Fortpflanzungserfolg und Physiologie von Großraubtieren und (iii) die Art und Weise, wie Großraubtiere mit bedrohten Arten und lokalen Gemeinschaften in vielseitig genutzten Landschaften interagieren. Zusammenfassend sollte diese Dissertation wertvolles Wissen für die Optimierung des evidenzbasierten Großraubtierschutzes und die Koexistenz von lokalen Gemeinschaften und Raubtieren

Bridging the Disciplines: Student Academic Conference

Moorhead State University Student Academic Conference abstract book.https://red.mnstate.edu/sac-book/1000/thumbnail.jp

The application of modified adaptive landscapes to heuristic modelling of engine concept designs using sparse data

The automotive internal combustion engine industry operates in a sector that relies on high production volumes for economies of scale, and dedicated production equipment for efficiency of operations and control of quality, yet is subject to the vagaries of a dynamic marketplace, with the need for constant change. These circumstances place pressure on engine designs to be optimised at launch to be competitive and meet market needs, yet be adaptable to uncertain requirements for change over their production life. Engine designers therefore need concept configuration evaluation tools that can assess architectures for resilience to geometric change over the production life of the product. The problem of being resource efficient whilst having the capacity to adapt tochanging environments is one that has been addressed in nature. Natural systems have evolved strategies of satisficing conflicting requirements whilst being resource efficient. The theory of adaptive landscapes helps us to visualise the adaptive capacity of potential morphological forms. A concept attribute analysis methodology based on satisficing and adaptive landscapes has been developed and tested for application to engine concept design. The Plateau, Flooded Adaptive Landscape technique (PFAL),has been evaluated against exemplar engine life histories and shows merit in aiding the decision-making process for concept designers working with sparse data. The process lets the designer visualise the attribute map, enabling them to make better trade-off decisions and share these with non-expert stakeholders to gain their input in final concept choices

The Dinosaur in the Living Room: A Proposal to Enable Academic Access to Fossils Discovered on Private Land

The United States has been a major source of scientifically significant paleontological discoveries over the course of its history. In addition to invaluable primary source material for the study of evolution and climate change, American paleontology has additionally been invoked as symbols of American power since the founding of the country. Even though fossils are prominent national heritage, the United States today only uniformly regulates their excavation and use on federal public lands through the Paleontological Resources Preservation Act. When fossils are discovered on private land, landowners and those with whom they contract often sell them to private collectors, which can lead to research quality specimens becoming inaccessible to museums and universities seeking to research or publicly display them. This Note will use the discovery and litigation over the Dueling Dinosaurs, fossils of two dinosaurs preserved in combat, as a case study to demonstrate the current futility of legal action in providing for scientific access. This Note will argue that the federal government should pass a Model Act that provides universities and museums the opportunity to appeal for a delay in the sale for scientifically significant specimens that would allow an institution to have temporary custody over the material. Such a proposal should not be subject to just compensation under eminent domain law because of the financial benefit landowners should receive from affiliation with and analysis from such an institution

How Collective Personality, Behavioral Plasticity, Information, and Fear Shape Collective Hunting in a Spider Society

The field of animal personality seeks to understand the potential adaptive value of temporally consistent inter-individual differences in behavior. Over the past several decades, this personality framework has helped behavioral ecologists better understand how social groups structure themselves behaviorally, and how intra-colony variation in personality can shape the emergent collective behavior of groups. While studies investigating how collective personalities interact with their environments and influence group survival are becoming more prevalent, research on this topic is still relatively scant. One important aspect of collective personality yet to be given attention is how group personality composition may influence a group’s response to invasion by a predator, or how the mere threat of predation can alter the collective behavioral phenotypes of groups. Given the near ubiquity of predation as a selective force in nature, it is important to incorporate both the direct and indirect effects of predators on collective behavior. This will lead to a better understanding about the environmental factors that shape the expression of group personality. This dissertation approaches these questions using three experiments. The first investigates how the behavioral distribution of colony constituents influences collective behavior in the context of colony defense. This study found that colonies of mixed personality composition exhibited twice as much defensive behavior as other compositions, and that bold compositions were displayed high degrees of behavioral flexibility relative to mixed and shy compositions. The second study observed how prolonged exposure to predators feeds back to determine the collective behavior of groups, and showed that colonies exposed to predators decreased overall collective aggressiveness by half, and eliminated the relationship between personality composition and aggressiveness. The last study investigated how groups prioritize information regarding predator presence when that information is possessed by the majority, or singleton immigrants that vary in leadership traits. This experiment found that groups operate under a “better-safe-than-sorry” strategy, and exhibit cautious collective behavior when any member of their group had been previously exposed to predators. Together, these experiments demonstrate that collective personality is a highly plastic and complex trait, that is determined by a combination if internal (group behavioral composition) and external (environmental risk) factors. Finally, I conclude this dissertation with a comprehensive review on the current state of collective personality research in insects and arachnids

Population-level consequences of seismic surveys on fishes : an interdisciplinary challenge

Offshore activities elevate ambient sound levels at sea, which may affect marine fauna. We reviewed the literature about impact of airgun acoustic exposure on fish in terms of damage, disturbance and detection and explored the nature of impact assessment at population level. We provided a conceptual framework for how to address this interdisciplinary challenge, and we listed potential tools for investigation. We focused on limitations in data currently available, and we stressed the potential benefits from cross‐species comparisons. Well‐replicated and controlled studies do not exist for hearing thresholds and dose–response curves for airgun acoustic exposure. We especially lack insight into behavioural changes for free‐ranging fish to actual seismic surveys and on lasting effects of behavioural changes in terms of time and energy budgets, missed feeding or mating opportunities, decreased performance in predator‐prey interactions, and chronic stress effects on growth, development and reproduction. We also lack insight into whether any of these effects could have population‐level consequences. General “population consequences of acoustic disturbance” (PCAD) models have been developed for marine mammals, but there has been little progress so far in other taxa. The acoustic world of fishes is quite different from human perception and imagination as fish perceive particle motion and sound pressure. Progress is therefore also required in understanding the nature and extent to which fishes extract acoustic information from their environment. We addressed the challenges and opportunities for upscaling individual impact to the population, community and ecosystem level and provided a guide to critical gaps in our knowledge.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Understanding Behavioral Antitrust

Behavioral antitrust – the application to antitrust analysis of empirical evidence of robust behavioral deviations from strict rationality – is increasingly popular and hotly debated by legal scholars and the enforcement agencies alike. This Article shows, however, that both proponents and opponents of behavioral antitrust frequently and fundamentally misconstrue its methodology, treating concrete empirical phenomena as if they were broad hypothetical assumptions. Because of this fundamental methodological error, scholars often make three classes of mistakes in behavioral antitrust analyses: First, they fail to appreciate the variability and heterogeneity of behavioral phenomena; second, they disregard the concrete ways in which markets, firms, and other institutions both facilitate and inhibit rational behavior by antitrust actors; and, third, they erroneously equate all deviations from standard rationality with harm to competition. After establishing the central role of rationality assumptions in present-day antitrust and reviewing illustrative behavioral analyses across the field – from horizontal and vertical restraints, through monopolization, to merger enforcement practices – the Article examines the three classes of mistakes, their manifestation, and their consequences in antitrust scholarship. It concludes by offering two sets of essential lessons that the behavioral approach already can offer to make antitrust law and policy more realistic and effective in protecting competition: One concerning the value of case-specific evidence in antitrust adjudication and enforcement, the other showing how antitrust law can and should account for systematic and predictable boundedly rational behavior that is neither constant nor uniform

Proceedings, MSVSCC 2012

Proceedings of the 6th Annual Modeling, Simulation & Visualization Student Capstone Conference held on April 19, 2012 at VMASC in Suffolk, Virginia