The impact of a conceptual model-based mathematics computer tutor on multiplicative reasoning and problem-solving of students with learning disabilities

The study explored the impact of Please Go Bring Me-COnceptual Model-based Problem Solving (PGBM-COMPS) computer tutoring system on multiplicative reasoning and problem solving of students with learning disabilities. The PGBM-COMPS program focused on enhancing the multiplicative reasoning and problem solving through nurturing fundamental mathematical ideas and moving students above and beyond the concrete level of operation. This is achieved by taking advantages of the constructivist approach from mathematics education and explicit conceptual model-based problem solving approach from special education. Participants were three elementary students with learning disabilities (LD). A mixed method design was employed to investigate the effect of the PGBM-COMPS program on enhancing students’ multiplicative reasoning and problem solving. It was found that the PGBM-COMPS program significantly improved participating students’ problem solving performance not only on researcher developed criterion tests but also on a norm-referenced standardized test. Qualitative and quantities data from this study indicate that, in addition to nurturing fundamental concept of composite units, it is necessary to help students to understand underlying problem structures and move toward mathematical model-based problem representation and solving for generalized problem solving skills.     

On the N-wave equations and soliton interactions in two and three dimensions

Several important examples of the N-wave equations are studied. These integrable equations can be linearized by formulation of the inverse scattering as a local Riemann-Hilbert problem (RHP). Several nontrivial reductions are presented. Such reductions can be applied to the generic N-wave equations but mainly the 3- and 4-wave interactions are presented as examples. Their one and two-soliton solutions are derived and their soliton interactions are analyzed. It is shown that additional reductions may lead to new types of soliton solutions. In particular the 4-wave equations with ?₂ × ?₂ reduction group allow breather-like solitons. Finally it is demonstrated that RHP with sewing function depending on three variables t, x and y provides some special solutions of the N-wave equations in three dimensions.     

The Capacitated Team Orienteering Problem: A Bi-level Filter-and-Fan method

This paper focuses on vehicle routing problems with profits and addresses the so-called Capacitated Team Orienteering Problem. Given a set of customers with a priori known profits and demands, the objective is to find the subset of customers, for which the collected profit is maximized, and to determine the visiting sequence and assignment to vehicle routes assuming capacity and route duration restrictions. The proposed method adopts a hierarchical bi-level search framework that takes advantage of different search landscapes. At the upper level, the solution space is explored on the basis of the collected profit, using a Filter-and-Fan method and a combination of profit oriented neighborhoods, while at the lower level the routing of customers is optimized in terms of traveling distance via a Variable Neighborhood Descent method. Computational experiments on benchmark data sets illustrate the efficiency and effectiveness of the proposed approach. Compared to existing results, new upper bounds are produced with competitive computational times.     

“Painlevé 34” equation: Equivalence test

We give the complete solution of the Equivalence Problem for “Painlevé 34” equation.     

Issues Mapping: A problem structuring method for addressing science and technology conflicts

There are new opportunities for the application of problem structuring methods to address science and technology risk conflicts through stakeholder dialogue. Most previous approaches to addressing risk conflicts have been developed from a traditional risk communication perspective, which tends to construct engagement between stakeholders based on the assumption that scientists evaluate technologies using facts, and lay participants do so based on their values. ‘Understanding the facts’ is generally privileged, so the value framings of experts often remain unexposed, and the perspectives of lay participants are marginalized. When this happens, risk communication methodologies fail to achieve authentic dialogue and can exacerbate conflict. This paper introduces ‘Issues Mapping’, a problem structuring method that enables dialogue by using visual modelling techniques to clarify issues and develop mutual understanding between stakeholders. A case study of the first application of Issues Mapping is presented, which engaged science and community protagonists in the genetic engineering debate in New Zealand. Participant and researcher evaluations suggest that Issues Mapping helped to break down stereotypes of both scientists and environmental activists; increased mutual understanding; reduced conflict; identified common ground; started building trust; and supported the emergence of policy options that all stakeholders in the room could live with. The paper ends with some reflections and priorities for further research.     

Separable programming/duality approach to solving the multi-product Newsboy/Gardener Problem with linear constraints

The Gardener Problem is an extension of the multi-product Newsboy Problem with constraints. It deals with situations where not only the demand is random but also the yield (the supply). Separable programming and duality approaches are utilized to solve the constrained Newsboy/Gardener Problem. The solution methodologies are developed for the common probability distribution functions for the demand, and uniform distribution for the supply, rendering exact and approximate solutions to the problem. Numerical examples are given and when applicable, the performance of the developed approach is compared to those of existing works in this arena. The results reveal that the developed solution methods efficiently converge to the optimal or near optimum solutions. Also, a salient feature of the proposed methodologies is that they can utilize readily available commercial software to solve the considered problems. This feature facilitates the portability of the developed models to the classroom environment.     

Universal conditions for algebraic travelling salesman problems to be efficiently solvable

We consider Travelling Salesman Problems (TSPs) where the cost of a tour is an algebraic composition of the cost coefficients that are elements of a totally ordered, commutative semigroup. Conditions for the cost matrix are stated which allow to solve these problems in polynomial time. In particular, we investigate conditions which guarantee that an optimal tour is pyramidal and can therefore be determined in O(n ²) time. Furthermore, we discuss TSP_s with Brownian as well as those with left-upper-triangular cost matrices.     

How do we know who to include in collaborative research? Toward a method for the identification of experts

Collaborative research, defined as research involving actors participating in the problem situation under study, has an important role in operational research, strategic management and systems thinking. In a recent study, we found that a strong organizational focus incorporated into many soft operational research (OR) approaches is inadequate for studying societal problem situations, which are fragmented and have no clear boundary. Specifically, we failed to find a process of identifying individuals that is capable of representing the perspectives of actors and sufficient for research into societal problem situations. We found no clear terminology accounting for ontological differences between actors, individuals representing them and conceptual representations of acting entities. In response to this gap in the literature, we propose terminology that differentiates among actors (individuals or collective entities in the real world), experts (individuals capable of representing the perspective of an actor) and agents (ideal-typical representations of actors). Based on this terminology, we propose an iterative method to guide the assembly of an expert group to undertake collaborative research into societal problem situations. To demonstrate the application of our method, we present selected insights from our study in an electronic supplement.