The importance of social learning for non-market valuation

Neoclassical valuation methods often measure the contribution that non-market goods make to utility as income compensations. This circumvents Arrow's impossibility (AI) –a theoretical proof establishing the impossibility of social preferences – but those methods cannot be used in all settings. We build on Arrow's original proof,showing that with two additional axioms that allow for social learning, a second round of preference elicitation with a social announcement after the first, generates logically consistent social preferences. In short: deliberation leads to convergence. A ‘web-game’ aligning with this is trialed to select real world projects, in a deliberative way, with the board of an Australian Aboriginal Corporation. Analysis of the data collected in the trial validates our theory; our test for convergence is statistically significant at the 1% level. Our results also suggest complex social goods are relatively undervalued without deliberation. Most non-market valuation methods could be easily adapted to facilitate social learnin

Bit Representation Can Improve SDP Relaxations of Mixed-Integer Quadratic Programs

A standard trick in integer programming is to replace bounded integer variables with binary variables, using a bit representation. In a previous paper, we showed that this process can be used to improve linear programming relaxations of mixed-integer quadratic programs. In this paper, we show that it can also be used to improve {\em semidefinite}\/ programming relaxations

A simple decision market model

Economic modeling of decision markets has mainly considered the market scoring rule setup. Literature has made reference to the alternative, joint elicitation type decision market, but no in depth analysis of it appears to have been published. This paper develops a simple decision market model of the joint elicitation type, that provides a specific decision market nomenclature on which to base future analysis.A generally accepted prediction market model is modified, by introducing two additional concepts: “proper information market” and “relevant information”. Our work then provides original contributions to the theoretical discourse on information markets, including finding the sufficient and necessary condition for convergence to the best possible prediction. It is shown in our new prediction market model that “all agents express relevant information” is a sufficient and necessary condition for convergence to the direct communication equilibrium in a proper information (prediction) market.Our new prediction market model is used to formulate a simple decision market model of the joint elicitation market type. It is shown that our decision market will select the best decision if a specific selection and payout rule is defined. Importantly, our decision market model does not need to delay payment of any contracts to the observation of the desired outcome. Therefore, when dealing with long-term outcome projects, our decision market does not need to be a long running market. Future work will test for the statistical significance of relevant information (identified as important in our idealized decision market model) in laboratory and real world settings

the case of Agelastes meleagrides, a western African forest endemic

The data analyzed during the current study are available in the following databases: the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF; https ://www.gbif.org). Data from surveys in Sapo National Park in Liberia and Gola Rainforest National Park in Sierra Leone are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request. Environmental datasets are available at https ://terra .nasa.gov/data and http://www.worldclim.org.Background:Understanding geographic distributions of species is a crucial step in spatial planning for biodiversity conservation, particularly as regards changes in response to global climate change. This information is especially important for species of global conservation concern that are susceptible to the effects of habitat loss and climate change. In this study, we used ecological niche modeling to assess the current and future geographic distributional potential of White‑breasted Guineafowl (Agelastes meleagrides) (Vulnerable) across West Africa.Methods:We used primary occurrence data obtained from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility and national parks in Liberia and Sierra Leone, and two independent environmental datasets (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer normalized difference vegetation index at 250 m spatial resolution, and Worldclim climate data at 2.5′ spatial resolution for two representative concentration pathway emissions scenarios and 27 general circulation models for 2050) to build ecological niche models in Maxent.Results:From the projections, White‑breasted Guineafowl showed a broader potential distribution across the region compared to the current IUCN range estimate for the species. Suitable areas were concentrated in the Gola rainforests in northwestern Liberia and southeastern Sierra Leone, the Tai‑Sapo corridor in southeastern Liberia and southwest‑ern Côte d’Ivoire, and the Nimba Mountains in northern Liberia, southeastern Guinea, and northwestern Côte d’Ivoire. Future climate‑driven projections anticipated minimal range shifts in response to climate change.Conclusions:By combining remotely sensed data and climatic data, our results suggest that forest cover, rather than climate is the major driver of the species’ current distribution. Thus, conservation efforts should prioritize forest protec‑tion and mitigation of other anthropogenic threats (e.g. hunting pressure) affecting the species.Conservation InternationalGlobal Environment Facility-funded Grant # GEF-581

Economic values and Indigenous Protected Areas across Northern Australia. Final report

We undertook a systematic review of the empirical valuation literature relating to benefits associated with Indigenous protected Areas (IPAs), revealing that some benefits are quantified in monetary terms more frequently than others, both in Australia and elsewhere. This does not mean that the quantified benefits are more important than other benefits. Instead it indicates that they are easier to quantify. As a result, there are substantive gaps in our understanding of numerous benefits – of their value to different people, in different contexts, in their entirety, and relative to other benefits (Section 5). Our research indicated that while a lack of price does not mean lack of value, it often means lack of ‘visibility’ or ‘presence’. So, vitally important non-market goods and services associated with IPAs may be overlooked, particularly by decision-makers who are driven by quantitative and/or economic data. It is important to find ways of highlighting the importance of those non-market benefits, so that resources can be directed in a manner that generates most benefit per dollar spent

A note on representations of linear inequalities in non-convex mixed-integer quadratic programs

In the literature on the quadratic 0-1 knapsack problem, several alternative ways have been given to represent the knapsack constraint in the quadratic space. We extend this work by constructing analogous representations for arbitrary linear inequalities for arbitrary nonconvex mixed-integer quadratic programs with bounded variables

Multiple co-benefits of Indigenous land and sea management programs across northern Australia: final report

Our aim is to generate information that can be used to help design, monitor, and/or select ILSMPs to help meet the goals of key stakeholders. We focus on goals above and beyond environmental goals – i.e. those that can be considered to be co-benefits. These diverse goals include seeking to enhance individual wellbeing, help communities meet their aspirations, support the development of Indigenous businesses and/or promote regional economic development. When determining what an ‘Indigenous land and sea management program’ is, we visualise a Venn diagram with intersecting sets. • Set one: There are innumerable traditional Indigenous land and sea management activities or practices that have been going on for tens of thousands of years – these include, but are not limited to getting out on country, looking after waterholes, hunting and burning (Section 2.1.1). • Set two: Government and non-government organisations fund a variety of different programs, some of which support Indigenous people and some of which support land management (Section 2.1.2). Not all land mangagement programs facilitate Indigenous practices, and not all Indigenous programs facilitate land management. For the purposes of this project, we focus on the intersection of those two sets, defining an ILSMP as a program that funds or supports traditional Indigenous land management activities

Australian Indigenous insights into ecosystem services: beyond services towards connectedness – people, place and time

The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment focused attention on benefit flows from ecosystems to humans, although nowadays, ecosystem service (ES) researchers typically acknowledge reciprocal flows from humans to nature and there is growing recognition of the need to better incorporate insights from other cultures. We set out to do this, giving primacy to the voice of an Australian Aboriginal group during a workshop that developed an (Aboriginal) model of the nature-people relationship. ES were a component of the model, but the Aboriginal model was not ‘atomistic’ (with separable parcels of land, separable ES, or separable individuals who are not part of community); it focused primarily on connections between and within the human and natural systems. Temporal dimensions were considerably longer than those commonly considered by Western scientists, feelings and spirituality were central, and stewardship activities were highlighted as not only improving the environment but also directly improving wellbeing. Evidently, Country needs to be looked after the ‘right way’; it is not enough to simply account for the ES values that are generated or the stewardship activities that are undertaken (e.g. controlling weeds); one also needs to record how this is done (e.g. with respect) and by whom (e.g. traditional owners)

A high-resolution pointing system for fast scanning platforms: The EBEX example

The E and B experiment (EBEX) is a balloon-borne telescope designed to measure the polarization of the cosmic microwave background with 8' resolution employing a gondola scanning with speeds of order degree per second. In January 2013, EBEX completed 11 days of observations in a flight over Antarctica covering $\sim$ 6000 square degrees of the sky. The payload is equipped with two redundant star cameras and two sets of three orthogonal gyroscopes to reconstruct the telescope attitude. The EBEX science goals require the pointing to be reconstructed to approximately 10" in the map domain, and in-flight attitude control requires the real time pointing to be accurate to $\sim$ 0.5$^{\circ}$ . The high velocity scan strategy of EBEX coupled to its float altitude only permits the star cameras to take images at scan turnarounds, every $\sim$ 40 seconds, and thus requires the development of a pointing system with low noise gyroscopes and carefully controlled systematic errors. Here we report on the design of the pointing system and on a simulation pipeline developed to understand and minimize the effects of systematic errors. The performance of the system is evaluated using the 2012/2013 flight data, and we show that we achieve a pointing error with RMS=25" on 40 seconds azimuth throws, corresponding to an error of $\sim$ 4.6" in the map domain.Comment: 14 pages, Proceedings of the 2015 IEEE Aerospace Conferenc

Advanced Magnetics for Power and Energy Development - A Multidisciplinary Consortium between the University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon University, and North Carolina State University

Emerging societal trends drive the need for advanced magnetic materials and power magnetic components including the electrification of domestic and military transportation; the emergence of solid state transformers as a practical and viable alternative to conventional transformers; increased penetration of renewables and other distributed energy resources which require power electronics converters and novel electric machines for grid integration. A historical gap in research and development funding for advanced power magnetics has created a severe shortfall in the necessary workforce required to support these quickly emerging areas within both nascent and established industries in the electric power sector. Since January 2020, faculty members in the engineering school having been establishing a consortium called Advanced Magnetics for Power and Energy Development (AMPED). The consortium will focus on magnetic materials development, manufacturing techniques, and their utilization in power electronic systems at medium frequency and medium power levels. Other AMPED university partners include North Carolina State University and Carnegie Mellon University. Faculty from the School of Engineering will lead this proposal effort with support from the Katz School of Business and School of Computing and Information Science. Faculty from the Katz School of Business will offer expertise in technology-to-market planning and competitive analysis, and faculty from the School of Computing and Information will aid in the development of novel algorithms for optimizing magnetics and power electronics technology like transformers, inductors, and electric motors given cost, weight, performance and volume constraints. The faculty received $60,000 to establish synergies through facilitated team collaborations, supporting graduate student stipends, and investing into laboratory space at the Energy GRID Institute. The first goal will be to submit concept papers followed by full proposals for attracting federal dollars from the DoE, DoD, or NSF. The second goal will be to attract$100,000 in company investment for AMPED through the membership model