Ecosystem approach and the Fuzzy logic: a dialectical proposal for information on Environmental Health

The ever-growing production and the problematization of Environmental Health have shown the need to apprehend complex realities and deal with uncertainties from the most diversified instruments which may even incorporate local aspects and subjectivities by means of qualitative realities, while broadening the capacity of the information system. This paper presents a view on the reflection upon some challenges and possible convergences between the ecosystemic approach and the Fuzzy logic in the process of dealing with scientific information and decision-making in Environmental Health.

Pretreatment Tables Predicting Pathologic Stage of Locally Advanced Prostate Cancer

BACKGROUND Pretreatment tables for the prediction of pathologic stage have been published and validated for localized prostate cancer (PCa). No such tables are available for locally advanced (cT3a) PCa. OBJECTIVE To construct tables predicting pathologic outcome after radical prostatectomy (RP) for patients with cT3a PCa with the aim to help guide treatment decisions in clinical practice. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This was a multicenter retrospective cohort study including 759 consecutive patients with cT3a PCa treated with RP between 1987 and 2010. INTERVENTION Retropubic RP and pelvic lymphadenectomy. OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS Patients were divided into pretreatment prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and biopsy Gleason score (GS) subgroups. These parameters were used to construct tables predicting pathologic outcome and the presence of positive lymph nodes (LNs) after RP for cT3a PCa using ordinal logistic regression. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS In the model predicting pathologic outcome, the main effects of biopsy GS and pretreatment PSA were significant. A higher GS and/or higher PSA level was associated with a more unfavorable pathologic outcome. The validation procedure, using a repeated split-sample method, showed good predictive ability. Regression analysis also showed an increasing probability of positive LNs with increasing PSA levels and/or higher GS. Limitations of the study are the retrospective design and the long study period. CONCLUSIONS These novel tables predict pathologic stage after RP for patients with cT3a PCa based on pretreatment PSA level and biopsy GS. They can be used to guide decision making in men with locally advanced PCa. PATIENT SUMMARY Our study might provide physicians with a useful tool to predict pathologic stage in locally advanced prostate cancer that might help select patients who may need multimodal treatment.

Hiord: A type-free higher-order logic programming language with predicate abstraction

A new formalism, called Hiord, for defining type-free higherorder logic programming languages with predicate abstraction is introduced. A model theory, based on partial combinatory algebras, is presented, with respect to which the formalism is shown sound. A programming language built on a subset of Hiord, and its implementation are discussed. A new proposal for defining modules in this framework is considered, along with several examples.

Decision-Making Mechanism to Organize the Agenda of a Guide-Robot

One of the major challenges in evolutionary robotics is constituted by the need of the robot being able to make decisions on its own, in accordance with the multiple tasks programmed, optimizing its timings and power. In this paper, we present a new automatic decision making mechanism for a robot guide that allows the robot to make the best choice in order to reach its aims, performing its tasks in an optimal way. The election of which is the best alternative is based on a series of criteria and restrictions of the tasks to perform. The software developed in the project has been verified on the tour-guide robot Urbano. The most important aspect of this proposal is that the design uses learning as the means to optimize the quality in the decision making. The modeling of the quality index of the best choice to perform is made using fuzzy logic and it represents the beliefs of the robot, which continue to evolve in order to match the "external reality”. This fuzzy system is used to select the most appropriate set of tasks to perform during the day. With this tool, the tour guide-robot prepares its agenda daily, which satisfies the objectives and restrictions, and it identifies the best task to perform at each moment. This work is part of the ARABOT project of the Intelligent Control Research Group at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid to create "awareness" in a robot guide.

Logic-Based Outer-Approximation Algorithm for Solving Discrete-Continuous Dynamic Optimization Problems

We present an extension of the logic outer-approximation algorithm for dealing with disjunctive discrete-continuous optimal control problems whose dynamic behavior is modeled in terms of differential-algebraic equations. Although the proposed algorithm can be applied to a wide variety of discrete-continuous optimal control problems, we are mainly interested in problems where disjunctions are also present. Disjunctions are included to take into account only certain parts of the underlying model which become relevant under some processing conditions. By doing so the numerical robustness of the optimization algorithm improves since those parts of the model that are not active are discarded leading to a reduced size problem and avoiding potential model singularities. We test the proposed algorithm using three examples of different complex dynamic behavior. In all the case studies the number of iterations and the computational effort required to obtain the optimal solutions is modest and the solutions are relatively easy to find.

A decision method for elementary algebra and geometry

"This report...was written while the project was a part of Douglas Aircraft Co., inc."

The social background of political decision-makers.

"Sources for tables": p. 63-64. Bibliographical references included in "Footnotes to the study"(p.65-71)

Integrating group Delphi, fuzzy logic and expert systems for marketing strategy development:the hybridisation and its effectiveness

A hybrid approach for integrating group Delphi, fuzzy logic and expert systems for developing marketing strategies is proposed in this paper. Within this approach, the group Delphi method is employed to help groups of managers undertake SWOT analysis. Fuzzy logic is applied to fuzzify the results of SWOT analysis. Expert systems are utilised to formulate marketing strategies based upon the fuzzified strategic inputs. In addition, guidelines are also provided to help users link the hybrid approach with managerial judgement and intuition. The effectiveness of the hybrid approach has been validated with MBA and MA marketing students. It is concluded that the hybrid approach is more effective in terms of decision confidence, group consensus, helping to understand strategic factors, helping strategic thinking, and coupling analysis with judgement, etc.

ICT and internet use at the household levels:a melting pot of sub-optimum decision making in the case of E-Grocery shopping

Research shows that consumers are readily embracing the Internet to buy products. This paper proposes that, in the case of grocery shopping, this may lead to sub-optimal decisions at the household level. Decisions online on what, where and from who to buy are normally taken by one individual. In the case of grocery shopping, decisions, however, need to be ‘vetted’ by ‘other’ individuals within the household. The ‘household wide related’ decisions influence how information technologies and systems for commerce should be designed and managed for optimum decision making. This paper argues, unlike previous research, that e-grocery retailing is failing to grow to its full potential not solely because of the ‘classical’ hazards and perceived risks associated with doing grocery shopping online but because e-grocery retailing strategy has failed to acknowledge the micro-household level specificities that affect decision making. Our exploratory research is based on empirical evidence which were collected through telephone interviews. We offer an insight into how e-grocery ‘fits’ and is ‘disrupted’ by the reality of day to day consumption decision making at the household level. Our main finding is to advocate a more role-neutral, multi-user and multi-technology approach to e-grocery shopping which re-defines the concept of the main shopper/decision maker thereby reconceptualising the ‘shopping logic’ for grocery products.

Real options in management and organizational strategy:a review of decision-making and performance implications

This paper contributes to the debate on the role of real options theory in business strategy and organizational decision-making. It analyses and critiques the decision-making and performance implications of real options within the management theories of the (multinational) firm, reviews and categorizes the organizational, strategic and operational facets of real options management in large business settings. It also presents the views of scholars and practitioners regarding the incorporation and validity of real options in strategy, international management and business processes. The focus is particularly on the decision-making and performance attributes of the real options logic concerning strategic investments, governance modes and multinational operations management. These attributes are examined from both strategic and operating perspectives of decision-making in organizations, also with an overview of the empirical evidence on real options decision-making and performance.

Real options in multinational decision-making:managerial awareness and risk implications

This paper addresses the theme of real options decision-making in multinational corporations (MNCs) and stresses the role of real options attention and managerial learning in company performance. Using a sample of 278 large MNCs with categorised degrees of managerial real options awareness, we examine the risk implications of switching options in multinational operations, and explore the extent to which the real options logic can be classified as “best practice” in decision-making and risk management. Our results reveal that MNCs which have high managerial awareness about their real options are able to reduce their downside risk through multinationality, organisational slack and other firm characteristics. This finding does not apply fully to MNCs without evidence of such an awareness. Also, although real options awareness does not systematically guarantee lower downside risk from operations, supplementary results indicate that MNCs with evidence of significant investment in the acquisition of real options knowledge tend to outperform competitors that are unaware of their real options. This suggests that if real options are explored and exploited appropriately, real options decision-making can result into superior performance for MNCs in the long-term.

Unsupervised KDD to creatively support managers' decision making with fuzzy association rules:a distribution channel application

To be competitive in contemporary turbulent environments, firms must be capable of processing huge amounts of information, and effectively convert it into actionable knowledge. This is particularly the case in the marketing context, where problems are also usually highly complex, unstructured and ill-defined. In recent years, the development of marketing management support systems has paralleled this evolution in informational problems faced by managers, leading to a growth in the study (and use) of artificial intelligence and soft computing methodologies. Here, we present and implement a novel intelligent system that incorporates fuzzy logic and genetic algorithms to operate in an unsupervised manner. This approach allows the discovery of interesting association rules, which can be linguistically interpreted, in large scale databases (KDD or Knowledge Discovery in Databases.) We then demonstrate its application to a distribution channel problem. It is shown how the proposed system is able to return a number of novel and potentially-interesting associations among variables. Thus, it is argued that our method has significant potential to improve the analysis of marketing and business databases in practice, especially in non-programmed decisional scenarios, as well as to assist scholarly researchers in their exploratory analysis. © 2013 Elsevier Inc.

The Fuzzy-Neuro Classifier for Decision Support

This paper aims at development of procedures and algorithms for application of artificial intelligence tools to acquire process and analyze various types of knowledge. The proposed environment integrates techniques of knowledge and decision process modeling such as neural networks and fuzzy logic-based reasoning methods. The problem of an identification of complex processes with the use of neuro-fuzzy systems is solved. The proposed classifier has been successfully applied for building one decision support systems for solving managerial problem.

A decision support system for waste collection management and its potential improvement with Radio-Frequency Identification Technology (RFID)

Due to vigorous globalisation and product proliferation in recent years, more waste has been produced by the soaring manufacturing activities. This has contributed to the significant need for an efficient waste management system to ensure, with all efforts, the waste is properly treated for recycling or disposed. This paper presents a Decision Support System (DSS) framework, based on Constraint Logic Programming (CLP), for the collection management of industrial waste (of all kinds) and discusses the potential employment of Radio-Frequency Identification Technology (RFID) to improve several critical procedures involved in managing waste collection. This paper also demonstrates a widely distributed and semi-structured network of waste producing enterprises (e.g. manufacturers) and waste processing enterprises (i.e. waste recycling/treatment stations) improving their operations planning by means of using the proposed DSS. The potential RFID applications to update and validate information in a continuous manner to bring value-added benefits to the waste collection business are also presented. © 2012 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.

On some Properties of Boolean Functions and Their Binary Decision Diagrams

Иво Й. Дамянов - Манипулирането на булеви функции е основнo за теоретичната информатика, в това число логическата оптимизация, валидирането и синтеза на схеми. В тази статия се разглеждат някои първоначални резултати относно връзката между граф-базираното представяне на булевите функции и свойствата на техните променливи.