Modern Actuarial Risk Theory : Using R
"The book gives a comprehensive survey of non-life insurance mathematics. … Originally written for use with the actuarial science programs at the Universities of Amsterdam and Leuven, it is now in use at many other universities as well as for the non-academic actuarial education program organized by the Dutch Actuarial Society. The methods presented can not only be used in non-life insurance, but also in other branches of actuarial science, as well as in actuarial practice. (Pavel Stoynov, Zentralblatt MATH, Vol. 1148, 2008). This book gives an introduction to non-life insurance mathematics. … Throughout the book, the software R is used for the implementation of the techniques presented. One finds also many exercises with hints for their solution in an appendix.
Models in Cooperative Game Theory : Crisp, Fuzzy, and Multi-Choice Games
This book investigates the classical model of cooperative games with transfer able utility (TU-games) and models in which the players have the possibility to cooperate partially, namely fuzzy and multichoice games. In a crisp game the agents are either fully involved or not involved at all in cooperation with some other agents, while in a fuzzy game players are allowed to cooperate with infinitely many different participation levels, varying from non-cooperation to full cooperation. A multichoice game describes an intermediate case in which each player may have a fixed number of activity levels. Part I of the book is devoted to the most developed model in the theory of cooperative games, that of a classical TU-game with crisp coalitions, which we refer to as crisp game along the book. It presents basic notions, solutions concepts and classes of cooperative crisp games in such a way that allows the reader to use this part as a reference toolbox when studying the corresponding concepts from the theory of fuzzy games (Part II) and from the theory of multichoice games (Part III).
Models in Cooperative Game Theory
Cooperative game theory is a booming research area with many new developments in the last few years. So, our main purpose when prep- ing the second edition was to incorporate as much of these new dev- opments as possible without changing the structure of the book. First, this o?ered us the opportunity to enhance and expand the treatment of traditional cooperative games, called here crisp games, and, especially, that of multi-choice games, in the idea to make the three parts of the monograph more balanced. Second, we have used the opportunity of a second edition to update and enlarge the list of references regarding the three models of cooperative games. Finally, we have benefited from this opportunity by removing typos and a few less important results from the ?rst edition of the book, and by slightly polishing the English style and the punctuation, for the sake of consistency along the monograph.
Modelling Regional Scenarios for the Enlarged Europe : European Competitiveness and Global Strategies
The aim of this book is to tackle the question of what the European territory will look like over the next fifteen years by providing quali-quantitative territorial scenarios for the enlarged Europe, under different assumptions on future globalisation strategies of BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) and East and West European countries. The approach is as neutral as possible vis-à-vis the results, leaving to a new forecasting model, the MASST model, built by the authors, to produce the tendencies and behavioural paths of regional GDP and population growth in each individual European region under alternative assumptions on the competitiveness strategies of different blocks of countries. The results are accompanied by strong policy messages intended to encourage long-term strategic thinking among a wide range of actors, scientists and policy makers in response to the risks and opportunities that the European territory will face.
Modeling Performance Measurement : Applications and Implementation Issues in DEA
MODELING PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT: Applications and Implementation Issues in DEA presents unified results from authors’ recent DEA research. These new DEA methodology and techniques are developed in application-driven scenarios that go beyond the identification of the best-practice frontier and seek solutions to aid managerial decisions. These new DEA developments are well-grounded in real world applications. Both DEA researchers and practitioners will find this book helpful. Theory is provided for DEA researchers for further development and possible extensions. However, it should also be mentioned that each theory is presented in practical terms with numerical examples, simple real management cases and verbal descriptions. It is felt that these concrete examples will be of value to researchers, students, and practitioners , This book also provides an easy-to-use DEA software — DEAFrontier (www.deafrontier.com). This DEA software is an Add-In for Microsoft Excel and provides a custom menu of DEA approaches The DEAFrontier does not set limit on the number of units, inputs or outputs.
Modeling Income Distributions and Lorenz Curves
The parameterization of income distributions and Lorenz Curves is a useful approach for representing how income is distributed within a given population. It provides a way of describing how the data are generated, why the level of inequality is what it is, and what happens to the poorer sections of the population. This book brings together classic papers in the field, including Camilo Dagum’s most influential contribution, survey papers outlining the state-of-the-art of the field, and cutting-edge research contributions. While providing a thorough overview of the methodology of income distribution modeling, the book emphasizes its relevance on development economics and its importance for policy makers who design and assess poverty alleviation and income redistribution policies.
Modeling Foundations of Economic Property Rights Theory : An Axiomatic Analysis of Economic Agreements
The idea is to construct a kind of mathematical application in which any fundamental formal entity and/or operation has an empirical economic interpretation. This approach is seen as a way to cope with an extreme c- plexity of economic phenomena under consideration and requests for precise formulationofmodelswheremeaningfulanswersandsolutionsofproblemsare only those which are obtained rigorously. The proposed extensions in ma- ematical economics and property rights theory are to provide rich enough foundations to follow complexity of economic property rights in the exact way, and to identify where there is an appropriate method providing a- quate solution, and also to ?nd problems where in general there is no such methodology.
Modeling Data Irregularities and Structural Complexities in Data Envelopment Analysis
DEA is computational at its core and this book by Zhu and Cook deals with the micro aspects of handling and modeling data issues in modeling DEA problems. DEA's use has grown with its capability of dealing with complex "service industry" and the "public service domain" types of problems that require modeling both qualitative and quantitative data. It is a handbook treatment dealing with specific data problems including the following: (1) imprecise data, (2) inaccurate data, (3) missing data, (4) qualitative data, (5) outliers, (6) undesirable outputs, (7) quality data, (8) statistical analysis, (9) software and other data aspects of modeling complex DEA problems. In addition, the book demonstrates how to visualize DEA results when the data is more than 3-dimensional, and how to identify efficiency units quickly and accurately.
Mobile Virtual Work : A New Paradigm?
This is a book about mobile virtual work. It aims at clarifying the basic concepts and showing present practices and future challenges. With this book we realise our intention to present a ‘state of the art’ collection of knowledge on this subject. We very much hope that you will find the discussion about present day reality and future challenges of mobile virtual work as exciting as we do. It is possibly a new paradigm.
Mobile Service Innovation and Business Models
Modern economies depend on innovation in services for their future growth. Service innovation increasingly depends on information technology and digitization of information processes. Designing new services is a complex matter, since collaboration with other companies and organizations is necessary. Service innovation is directly related to business models that support these services, i.e. services can only be successful in the long run with a viable business model that creates value for its customers and providers. This book presents a theoretically grounded yet practical approach to designing viable business models for electronic services, including mobile ones, i.e. the STOF model and – based on it – the STOF method. The STOF model provides a ‘holistic’ view on business models with four interrelated perspectives, i.e., Service, Technology, Organization and Finance. It elaborates on critical design issues that ultimately shape the business model and drive its viability.
Microfinance Investment Funds : leveraging private capital for economic growth and poverty reduction
The surge in new investment funds - nearly 60 funds at last count - is an exciting sign that microfinance is attracting mainstream financial markets. Foreign investors bridge a crucial gap for MFIs and greenfield banks not yet able to attract deposits, debt or equity from local sources. Recognizing the ultimate goal of building those local financial markets that serve the poor, some foreign investors and funds are facilitating local intermediation with incentives like guarantees for local banks to lend to MFIs in local currency. Such contributions to local market building, combined with strengthening governance, increasing transparency and rigor make the new funds potentially very positive forces in microfinance.
Microeconometric Evaluation of Labour Market Policies
This study was accepted as a doctoral thesis by the Department of E- nomics of the Johann Wolfgang Goethe-University in Frankfurt/Main. It was undertaken within the research project 'The Efects of Job Creation and Structural Adjustment Schemes on the Participating Individuals', which was conducted by the Institute of Statistics and Econometrics (Empirical E- nomic Research) in cooperation with the Institute for Employment Research in Nuremberg.
Methods and Models in Transport and Telecommunications : Cross Atlantic Perspectives
One aspect of the new economy is a transition to a networked society, and the emergence of a highly interconnected, interdependent and complex system of networks to move people, goods and information. An example of this is the in creasing reliance of networked systems (e. g. , air transportation networks, electric power grid, maritime transport, etc. ) on telecommunications and information in frastructure. Many of the networks that evolved today have an added complexity in that they have both a spatial structure , they are located in physical space but also an a spatial dimension brought on largely by their dependence on infor mation technology. They are also often just one component of a larger system of geographically integrated and overlapping networks operating at different spatial levels. An understanding of these complexities is imperative for the design of plans and policies that can be used to optimize the efficiency, performance and safety of transportation, telecommunications and other networked systems. In one sense, technological advances along with economic forces that encourage the clustering of activities in space to reduce transaction costs have led to more efficient network structures.
Metaheuristics : Progress in Complex Systems Optimization
The aim of METAHEURISTICS: Progress in Complex Systems Optimization is to provide several different kinds of information: a delineation of general metaheuristics methods, a number of state-of-the-art articles from a variety of well-known classical application areas as well as an outlook to modern computational methods in promising new areas. Therefore, this book may equally serve as a textbook in graduate courses for students, as a reference book for people interested in engineering or social sciences, and as a collection of new and promising avenues for researchers working in this field.
Metaheuristics : Progress as Real Problem Solvers
Metaheuristics: Progress as Real Problem Solvers is a peer-reviewed volume of eighteen current, cutting-edge papers by leading researchers in the field. Included are an invited paper by F. Glover and G. Kochenberger, which discusses the concept of Metaheuristic agent processes, and a tutorial paper by M.G.C. Resende and C.C. Ribeiro discussing GRASP with path-relinking. Other papers discuss problem-solving approaches to timetabling, automated planograms, elevators, space allocation, shift design, cutting stock, flexible shop scheduling, colorectal cancer and cartography. A final group of methodology papers clarify various aspects of Metaheuristics from the computational view point
Metaheuristic Procedures for Training Neural Networks
Metaheuristic Procedures For Training Neural Networks provides successful implementations of metaheuristic methods for neural network training. Apart from Chapter 1, which reviews classical training methods, the chapters are divided into three main categories. The first one is devoted to local search based methods, including Simulated Annealing, Tabu Search, and Variable Neighborhood Search.
Metagraphs and Their Applications
The graph is a critical and useful concept in designing many information processing systems. Systems such as transaction processing systems, decision support systems, and workflow systems are all helped immensely by a graphical structure. Simple graphs and digraphs allow for the construction of a variety of system design tools that provide a convenient and appealing format for illustrating information infrastructures, while allowing any subsequent analyses to be performed by the user. However, the metagraph, a new graphical structure that is developed in this book, goes beyond the representational and provides Information Systems with a robust, analytical modeling graphic tool.
Measuring the Value of Culture : Methods and Examples in Cultural Economics
Acknowledgement of the value of culture and cultural goods is increasing world-wide. So too is interest in finding methods to quantify this value so that governments and private sponsors can make efficient funding decisions. "Measuring the Value of Culture" documents methods that can be used to put a price on the arts and cultural goods, including theatre, heritage, cultural events (like arts festivals), museums, archaeological sites and libraries. The methods discussed include economic impact studies, which use market data, as well as non-market valuation techniques, like willingness to pay studies, and the newer choice experiments. In addition, advances in more qualitative valuation methods are considered.
Measuring Globalisation : Gauging Its Consequences
Globalization a timely and controversial topic Presents comprehensive synthesis/overview of perspectives/approaches to "globalization", defines the term in more objective, scientific terms Presents rigorous empirical measures of globalization and its economic, political and social impact, w/implications for management and policy Authors represent different theoretical perspectives; are prolific and well-respected in the field
Measuring Entrepreneurship : Building a Statistical System
This volume provides a comprehensive review of the theoretical concepts and empirical models of entrepreneurship from a non-conventional perspective. Its main purpose is to contribute to the design of an efficient system of indicators of entrepreneurship and competitiveness. The existence of a gap between the theory of entrepreneurship and the methods and data available for testing its main propositions has been widely recognized. Hence, some of the most prestigious researchers have collaborated to review and develop the statistical sources, indicators and proxies currently available for empirical studies on the phenomena of entrepreneurship. The book thereby makes recent advances in the theory and application of the economics of entrepreneurship accessible to a wider audience, including policy makers, emphasizing data requirements to advance the future research agenda and to allow for a better design and monitoring of entrepreneurial policy.



















