Christian Disco (Terminator)

Single screen video projection installation with asynchronous sound loops

Search, choice, and revealed preference

With complete information, choice of one option over another conveys preference. Yet when search is incomplete, this is not necessarily the case. It may instead reflect unawareness that a superior alternative was available. To separate these phenomena, we consider non-standard data on the evolution of provisional choices with contemplation time. We characterize precisely when the resulting data could have been generated by a general form of sequential search. We characterize also search that terminates based on a reservation utility stopping rule. We outline an experimental design that captures provisional choices in the pre-decision period.Revealed preference, search theory, stochastic choice

Growing the Social Security Crisis: The Social Security Administration's Poverty Rate Projections

This paper enumerates the flaws in a recent study by the Social Security Administration that relied on questionable assumptions to conclude that a projected shortfall in Social Security in 2042 would double the senior poverty rate from 2 to 4 percent.

Testing for Rationality with Consumption Data: Demographics and Heterogeneity

In this paper, we introduce a new measure of how close a set of choices are to satisfying the observable implications of rational choice, and apply it to a large balanced panel of household level consumption data. We use this method to answer three related questions: (i) "How close are individual consumption choices to satisfying the model of utility maximization?" (ii) "Are there di¤erences in rationality between di¤erent demographic groups?" (iii) "Can choices be aggregated across individuals under the assumption of homogeneous preferences?" Crucially, in answering these questions, we take into account the power of budget sets faced by each household to expose failures of rationality. To summarize our results we ?nd that: (i) while observed violations of rationality are small in absolute terms, our households are only moderately more rational than the benchmark of random choice; (ii) there are signi?cant di¤erences in the rationality of di¤erent groups, with multi-head households more rational than single head households, and the youngest households more rational than middle age households; (iii) the assumption of homogenous preferences is strongly rejected: choice data that is aggregated across households exhibits high levels of irrationality.#

Approximation algorithms for planning and control

A control system operating in a complex environment will encounter a variety of different situations, with varying amounts of time available to respond to critical events. Ideally, such a control system will do the best possible with the time available. In other words, its responses should approximate those that would result from having unlimited time for computation, where the degree of the approximation depends on the amount of time it actually has. There exist approximation algorithms for a wide variety of problems. Unfortunately, the solution to any reasonably complex control problem will require solving several computationally intensive problems. Algorithms for successive approximation are a subclass of the class of anytime algorithms, algorithms that return answers for any amount of computation time, where the answers improve as more time is allotted. An architecture is described for allocating computation time to a set of anytime algorithms, based on expectations regarding the value of the answers they return. The architecture described is quite general, producing optimal schedules for a set of algorithms under widely varying conditions

Development of an in-situ pressurised fluid extraction method for the extraction of PAHs prior to GC-MS analysis

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are derived from a number of sources including anthropogenic (i.e. industrial processes and combustion of fossil fuels) or natural (i.e. forest fires, volcanic activity and geological sources). The 16 PAH priority pollutants are known for their carcinogenic effect and mutagenic characteristics. Previous studies describe pressurised fluid extraction (PFE) as an effective way to extract components from soils, compared to other extraction methods, such as microwave, ultrasonic and Soxhlet extraction.1 In this study column chromatography has been evaluated for soil clean-up following PFE. The influence of two different absorbents (florisil and alumina) on extract clean-up have been investigated with respect to PAH recovery. This approach has been compared with an in-situ PFE procedure.2 The aim of this work is to establish a robust and effective procedure for the recovery of PAHs from contaminated soil prior to analysis by gas chromatography - mass spectrometry (GC-MS)

Refining personal and social presence in virtual meetings

Virtual worlds show promise for conducting meetings and conferences without the need for physical travel. Current experience suggests the major limitation to the more widespread adoption and acceptance of virtual conferences is the failure of existing environments to provide a sense of immersion and engagement, or of ‘being there’. These limitations are largely related to the appearance and control of avatars, and to the absence of means to convey non-verbal cues of facial expression and body language. This paper reports on a study involving the use of a mass-market motion sensor (Kinect™) and the mapping of participant action in the real world to avatar behaviour in the virtual world. This is coupled with full-motion video representation of participant’s faces on their avatars to resolve both identity and facial expression issues. The outcomes of a small-group trial meeting based on this technology show a very positive reaction from participants, and the potential for further exploration of these concepts

RURAL CREDIT MARKETS OF THE FUTURE: OBSTACLES AND OPPORTUNITIES

Agricultural and Food Policy,

Scorecard on Development: 25 Years of Diminished Progress

This report looks at available data on economic growth and various social indicators - including health outcomes and education - in low- and middle-income countries over the last 25 years.