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Piecewise-constant Valuation
A piecewise-constant valuation is a kind of a function that represents the utility of an agent over a continuous resource, such as land. It occurs when the resource can be partitioned into a finite number of regions, and in each region, the value-density of the agent is constant. A piecewise-uniform valuation is a piecewise-constant valuation in which the constant is the same in all regions. Piecewise-constant and piecewise-uniform valuations are particularly useful in algorithms for fair cake-cutting Fair cake-cutting is a kind of fair division problem. The problem involves a ''heterogeneous'' resource, such as a cake with different toppings, that is assumed to be ''divisible'' – it is possible to cut arbitrarily small pieces of it without .... Formal definition There is a ''resource'' represented by a set ''C.'' There is a ''valuation'' over the resource, defined as a continuous measure V: 2^C\to \mathbb. The measure ''V'' can be represented by a ''value-density function ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Utility
In economics, utility is a measure of a certain person's satisfaction from a certain state of the world. Over time, the term has been used with at least two meanings. * In a normative context, utility refers to a goal or objective that we wish to maximize, i.e., an objective function. This kind of utility bears a closer resemblance to the original utilitarian concept, developed by moral philosophers such as Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill. * In a descriptive context, the term refers to an ''apparent'' objective function; such a function is revealed by a person's behavior, and specifically by their preferences over lotteries, which can be any quantified choice. The relationship between these two kinds of utility functions has been a source of controversy among both economists and ethicists, with most maintaining that the two are distinct but generally related. Utility function Consider a set of alternatives among which a person has a preference ordering. A utility fu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fair Cake-cutting
Fair cake-cutting is a kind of fair division problem. The problem involves a ''heterogeneous'' resource, such as a cake with different toppings, that is assumed to be ''divisible'' – it is possible to cut arbitrarily small pieces of it without destroying their value. The resource has to be divided among several partners who have different preferences over different parts of the cake, i.e., some people prefer the chocolate toppings, some prefer the cherries, some just want as large a piece as possible. The division should be ''unanimously'' fair – each person should receive a piece believed to be a fair share. The "cake" is only a metaphor; procedures for fair cake-cutting can be used to divide various kinds of resources, such as land estates, advertisement space or broadcast time. The prototypical procedure for fair cake-cutting is divide and choose, which is mentioned in the book of Book of Genesis, Genesis to resolve Abraham and Lot's conflict. This procedure solves the fa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Measure (mathematics)
In mathematics, the concept of a measure is a generalization and formalization of geometrical measures (length, area, volume) and other common notions, such as magnitude, mass, and probability of events. These seemingly distinct concepts have many similarities and can often be treated together in a single mathematical context. Measures are foundational in probability theory, integration theory, and can be generalized to assume negative values, as with electrical charge. Far-reaching generalizations (such as spectral measures and projection-valued measures) of measure are widely used in quantum physics and physics in general. The intuition behind this concept dates back to Ancient Greece, when Archimedes tried to calculate the area of a circle. But it was not until the late 19th and early 20th centuries that measure theory became a branch of mathematics. The foundations of modern measure theory were laid in the works of Émile Borel, Henri Lebesgue, Nikolai Luzin, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Piecewise Constant Function
In mathematics, a function on the real numbers is called a step function if it can be written as a finite linear combination of indicator functions of intervals. Informally speaking, a step function is a piecewise constant function having only finitely many pieces. Definition and first consequences A function f\colon \mathbb \rightarrow \mathbb is called a step function if it can be written as :f(x) = \sum\limits_^n \alpha_i \chi_(x), for all real numbers x where n\ge 0, \alpha_i are real numbers, A_i are intervals, and \chi_A is the indicator function of A: :\chi_A(x) = \begin 1 & \text x \in A \\ 0 & \text x \notin A \\ \end In this definition, the intervals A_i can be assumed to have the following two properties: # The intervals are pairwise disjoint: A_i \cap A_j = \emptyset for i \neq j # The union of the intervals is the entire real line: \bigcup_^n A_i = \mathbb R. Indeed, if that is not the case to start with, a different set of intervals can be picked for w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Utility Function Types
In economics, utility is a measure of a certain person's satisfaction from a certain state of the world. Over time, the term has been used with at least two meanings. * In a normative context, utility refers to a goal or objective that we wish to maximize, i.e., an objective function. This kind of utility bears a closer resemblance to the original utilitarian concept, developed by moral philosophers such as Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill. * In a descriptive context, the term refers to an ''apparent'' objective function; such a function is revealed by a person's behavior, and specifically by their preferences over lotteries, which can be any quantified choice. The relationship between these two kinds of utility functions has been a source of controversy among both economists and ethicists, with most maintaining that the two are distinct but generally related. Utility function Consider a set of alternatives among which a person has a preference ordering. A utility func ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
