Change-Averse Nash Equilibria in Congestion Games

Εισάγουμε ένα νέο μοντέλο στα Παίγνια Συμφόρησης, όπου οι παίκτες επιλέγουν τη στρατηγική τους σύμφωνα με το νέο κόστος τους, όπως επίσης και με τη διαφορά της υφιστάμενής τους κατάστασης σε σχέση με τη νέα. Το τελευταίο κομμάτι της διαδικασίας απόφασης βασίζεται στην υπόθεση ότι παίκτες που σκέφτονται να κάνουν μια μεγάλη αλλαγή έχουν μικρότερη τάση να την κάνουν, παρά παίκτες με μικρότερη αλλαγή. Αυτό το μοντέλο έχει αναλογίες με τις ε-προσεγγιστικές ισορροπίες. Μπορούμε εύκολα να δούμε ότι το νέο αυτό μοντέλο περιέχει ένα πλουσιότερο σύνολο ισορροπιών σε σχέση με τις ε-προσεγγιστικές ισορροπίες. Ο Χριστοδούλου et al. αποδεικνύουν ότι σε σχέση με γραμμικά παιγνία συμφόρησης, έχουμε καλά φράγματα στο Τίμημα της Αναρχίας. Αποδεικνύουμε ότι όμοια αποτελέσματα ισχύουν και στη δική μας περίπτωση. Επίσης, αποδεικνύουμε ότι οι παίκτες συγκλίνουν σε μια τέτοια ισορροπία και μάλιστα συγκλίνουν με αποδεκτή ταχύτητα.We introduce a new model in Congestion Games, where the players choose their strategy according to the new cost they incur, as well as the difference between their current state and the new state they are considering. The latter part of the decision-making process is based on the assumption that players who are considering a signicant change are less prone to take it, than they do on a similar choice. This model has analogies with ϵ approximate equilibria. We can easily see that this new model provides a richer set of equilibria than approximate equilibria. Christodoulou et al. prove that as far as Linear Congestion Games are concerned, we have good bounds on the Price of Anarchy. We prove that similar results are true in our case. We also prove that players do actually converge on such an equilibrium and relatively quickly

Maritime expressions:a corpus based exploration of maritime metaphors

This study uses a purpose-built corpus to explore the linguistic legacy of Britain’s maritime history found in the form of hundreds of specialised ‘Maritime Expressions’ (MEs), such as TAKEN ABACK, ANCHOR and ALOOF, that permeate modern English. Selecting just those expressions commencing with ’A’, it analyses 61 MEs in detail and describes the processes by which these technical expressions, from a highly specialised occupational discourse community, have made their way into modern English. The Maritime Text Corpus (MTC) comprises 8.8 million words, encompassing a range of text types and registers, selected to provide a cross-section of ‘maritime’ writing. It is analysed using WordSmith analytical software (Scott, 2010), with the 100 million-word British National Corpus (BNC) as a reference corpus. Using the MTC, a list of keywords of specific salience within the maritime discourse has been compiled and, using frequency data, concordances and collocations, these MEs are described in detail and their use and form in the MTC and the BNC is compared. The study examines the transformation from ME to figurative use in the general discourse, in terms of form and metaphoricity. MEs are classified according to their metaphorical strength and their transference from maritime usage into new registers and domains such as those of business, politics, sports and reportage etc. A revised model of metaphoricity is developed and a new category of figurative expression, the ‘resonator’, is proposed. Additionally, developing the work of Lakov and Johnson, Kovesces and others on Conceptual Metaphor Theory (CMT), a number of Maritime Conceptual Metaphors are identified and their cultural significance is discussed