Multilingual generation of controlled languages

We describe techniques based on natural language generation which allow a user to author a document in controlled language for multiple natural languages. The author is expected to be an expert in the application domain but not in the controlled language or in more than one of the supported natural languages. Because the system can produce multiple expressions of the same input in multiple languages, the author can choose among alternative expressions satisfying the constraints of the controlled language. Because the system offers only legitimate choices of wording, correction is unnecessary. Consequently, acceptance of error reports and corrections by trained authors are non-issues

The Binary Space Partitioning-Tree Process

The Mondrian process represents an elegant and powerful approach for space partition modelling. However, as it restricts the partitions to be axis-aligned, its modelling flexibility is limited. In this work, we propose a self-consistent Binary Space Partitioning (BSP)-Tree process to generalize the Mondrian process. The BSP-Tree process is an almost surely right continuous Markov jump process that allows uniformly distributed oblique cuts in a two-dimensional convex polygon. The BSP-Tree process can also be extended using a non-uniform probability measure to generate direction differentiated cuts. The process is also self-consistent, maintaining distributional invariance under a restricted subdomain. We use Conditional-Sequential Monte Carlo for inference using the tree structure as the high-dimensional variable. The BSP-Tree process's performance on synthetic data partitioning and relational modelling demonstrates clear inferential improvements over the standard Mondrian process and other related methods

Incorporating New Fixed Income Approaches into Commercial Loan Valuation

Growing competition, convergence of the loan and capital markets, and the greater complexity of commercial loan structure have heightened the need for banks to manage their loan portfolios in a more sophisticated way. This is true for the management of individual transactions and for the loan portfolio as a whole. In order to do so, each and every loan must be valued more accurately to account for the credit risk imbedded in the loan, loan migration, its structure and subsequent periodic fees and repricing agreements. In short, loans must be priced in a much more dynamic and complete way than is the case today. To do so, however, requires that banks acquire a deeper understanding of loan valuation and apply the newer techniques of the bond market to the loan market. Specifically, the new standards to credit analysis require the following steps to be taken: Loans must be accurately rated, monitored, and tracked through time. This history will prove important, not only for the existing loan, but also for all subsequent loans that can benefit from the migration pattern that is unique to the specific institution. A. The credit officer must more accurately value the underlying pricing conventions built into the loan market. These are often neglected when loans are priced as bonds. The existence of a repricing grid, a periodic fee structure and various repricing techniques are often neglected in favor of the assertion that loans are merely small bonds. B. Structure must be more accurately priced. Towards this end, it is necessary for the individual institution to recognize that structure has value. It should be quite apparent that the options imbedded in the loan portfolio have value; we have known the value of options imbedded in bonds for some time. As the derivative market has expanded, we trade these options that are part of the collective loan agreement in isolation. It is incumbent upon the banking community to more accurately price these options and to incorporate them into the pricing of loans that have imbedded options. To do all this would result in an improvement in the ability of banking institutions to value their loans, define their required spreads, and to both aggressively and accurately compete. It is often the case that structure and repricing are powerful tools to be employed in the competitive financial community. At the moment, however, structure is often given away and options are often neglected in competitive bidding. Banks can compete more effectively for their customers and have higher yielding loan portfolio to the extent that they have the ability to price the value of these options, to use the repricing of the credit spread and to know the migration of credit quality that is specific to the credit portfolio of their particular bank. There is no question that the market for credits is under severe competitive pressure. In such an environment, knowledge of the underlying portfolio and its value is the only true weapon for successful competition. Those that lag behind will be gamed by competitors and gamed by their customers. They will find they are subject to what academics call "the winner's curse." They will lose the good deals and win the bad ones. In today's world, information about the underlying lending relationship is the only adequate defense for a successful banking firm.

The ‘oldest tricks in the book’ don’t work! Reports of burglary by DUMA detainees in Western Australia

Explores the methods and motivations of those actively involved in committing burglaries. Foreword Research investigating the methods and motivations of burglars has typically focused on incarcerated offenders. The Australian Institute of Criminology’s Drug Use Monitoring in Australia (DUMA) program provided an opportunity for the authors to explore the methods and motivations of those actively involved in committing burglaries, whether or not they had actually been caught or detained for that offence. The findings support Routine Activity Theory, indicating that offenders consider a number of factors in determining whether a property will be targeted for a break and enter offence. As might be expected, opportunistic burglars choose easy to access properties, stay a minimum length of time and take goods that can be disposed of easily. It was concluded that simple prevention strategies could minimise the risk of becoming a victim of opportunistic burglary, which also has implications for law enforcement, the security industry and insurance agencies

Explaining differences in environmental governance patterns between Canada, Italy and the United States.

The objective of the paper is to formulate a hypothesis that can help explain the different patterns of environmental governance in three countries: Canada and the United States (both federal states) and Italy (a decentralized unitary state). To that effect, we will make use of what is a robust theory of the assignment of powers in federal and decentralized unitary states on the role of competition as a driving force in shaping these assignments. The differing patterns of environmental governance we wish to explain are that most environmental policies are enacted and implemented by the national government in the United States, by provincial governments in Canada, and by both national and regional governments in Italy.

Economists, Environmental Policies and Federalism

With global warming, Canadians are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of effective environmental policies. In his paper Anthony Scott, a pioneer in the areas of resource and environmental economics in this country, provides a comprehensive discussion of the role economists can and should play in the development of more effective environmental policies. A key theme of his paper is that environmental policy, particularly in crucial areas like global air pollution, is still in its infancy and effective national institutions to respond to policy challenges are still in the developmental stage. Scott first reviews the history of environmental policy in England, the United States and Canada. He then examines the approaches of economists to environmental issues, including the market failure and ideal output approach, benefit-cost analysis of pollution, and environmental impact assessment, and identifies topics that environmental economists teach and research. The paper then compares what economists do in Canada in the environmental area compared to that in the United States, finding that academic environmental economists in Canada specialize more in theory and show little knowledge or interest in issues directly related to the environmental policy debate in their country of residence.Environment, Climate, Environmental Policy, Canada, United States, United Kingdom, Environmental Economics