Testing systems of identical components

We consider the problem of testing sequentially the components of a multi-component reliability system in order to figure out the state of the system via costly tests. In particular, systems with identical components are considered. The notion of lexicographically large binary decision trees is introduced and a heuristic algorithm based on that notion is proposed. The performance of the heuristic algorithm is demonstrated by computational results, for various classes of functions. In particular, in all 200 random cases where the underlying function is a threshold function, the proposed heuristic produces optimal solutions

Hotspots of change in use of public transport to work: A geospatial mixed method study

Introduction: Several studies have supported the role of public transport in encouraging active transport through commuting. Investigating actual increases in public transport use within focussed local areas can help unravel what causes such increases. Methods: In this study, we investigated factors related to the increase in public transport use in focussed local areas (hotspots) through a geospatial mixed-method approach using data from South Western Sydney, Australia, spatial cluster detection, and local stakeholder interviews. We also examined areas with low levels of public transport use. Results: We found that while distance to train station is a significant predictor of usage, other important factors include the professional and socioeconomic profile of the neighbourhood around the train station, the train line's deemed attractiveness and parking availability. Conclusions: Thus, researchers and planners must consider a range of built environment factors when planning for changes that encourage public transport use. In addition, focusing on small local areas utilising geospatial mixed methods can provide important insights into the local drivers of public transport use

GCI: a Tool for Developing Interactive CAD User Interfaces

GCI is a Unix based tool for developing interactive CAD programs. By separating command/menu definitions from the program, GCI makes it easier to change and extend the user interface. The language provided by GCI is used to define syntax of commands, menus, messages, and help text. Generally, GCI supports a static hierarchical structure of commands and menus. However, through a program interface, an application program has the freedom to change environments, commands and menus. This flexibility of run-time control of the user interface is essential for developing highly responsive interfaces in a CAD environment. This paper presents the main concepts and definition language of GCI. It then discusses architectural and implementation issues, and finally presents a typical application's view of using the too

Distributed Constraint Satisfaction Problems -- A Model and Application

A canonical model for distributed constraint satisfaction problems (DCSP) is presented and algorithms for processing constraints on a DCSP are described. The central idea behind a constraint network that is given as a DCSP is the existence of large differences between the cost of message passing among different components of a DCSP and the cost of local consistency checks within each component. Therefore, algorithms which operate in a multi-agent environment to solve these problems are required to take into consideration these differences. Four basic algorithms for solving DCSPs that are sound and complete are proposed. Two of these algorithms are sequential and two algorithms operate in parallel and are inherently distributed. The behavior of the proposed algorithms was tested by generating and solving a set of random DCSPs (for a variety of parameters of density and homogeneity ). The results show the superiority of the parallel algorithms when the cost variances are large. A serie..

GIS on the Web for public participation in planning

Planning in Israel was often affected, in the recent years, by the public reactions, Traditionally Public Participations (PP) is very limited and can lead to conflicts between different interest groups. The main goal of this research is to examine the quantitative contribution and the added value of using PPGIS on the Web as, compared to the use of traditionally methods (meetings) in PP process. The PPGIS on the WEB system enable the public, to participate actively in the process of planning a master plan for the “Shapira Neighbourhood” in Tel-Aviv, Israel. The PPGIS on the WEB system composed from a Regular HTML website and GIS website, based on ArcIMS server. The site enables the public to participate in the process, everywhere and anytime. It enables viewing extensive amount of GIS-based data from surveys, and statistical analysis on the internet. In addition, the public will be able to response and comment to the planning team. This study is still in processing, the system supervise on the PP continuous. Further results and conclusions will be presented in the conference lecture

Rethinking health planning: A framework for organising information to underpin collaborative health planning

The field of collaborative health planning faces significant challenges created by the narrow focus of the available information, the absence of a framework to organise that information and the lack of systems to make information accessible and guide decision-making. These challenges have been magnified by the rise of the ‘healthy communities movement’, resulting in more frequent calls for localised, collaborative and evidence-driven health related decision-making. This paper discusses the role of decision support systems as a mechanism to facilitate collaborative health decision-making. The paper presents a potential information management framework to underpin a health decision support system and describes the participatory process that is currently being used to create an online tool for health planners using geographic information systems. The need for a comprehensive information management framework to guide the process of planning for healthy communities has been emphasised. The paper also underlines the critical importance of the proposed framework not only in forcing planners to engage with the entire range of health determinants, but also in providing sufficient flexibility to allow exploration of the local setting-based determinants of health