Many scholars have used different metrics to quantify power grid vulnerability in the literature, but how correlated these metrics are is an interesting topic. This paper defines vulnerability as the performance drop of a power grid under a disruptive event, and selects six frequently used...

Many scholars have applied complex network based models to investigate power grid vulnerability, but how effective are these models to capture the real performance is an interesting topic. This paper selects two typical complex network based models, including a purely topological model (PTM) and...

Focusing on China’s medical insurance scheme which covers all employers and employees in urban areas, this research aims to assess the distributional impacts of medical insurance policies and to predict medical expenses by using microsimulation techniques. As an important part of the project,...

This paper investigates robust and fast consensus of multi-agent systems subject to external attacks. The strategy of connecting neighbor set is proposed to recover the connectivity of the resulting interconnected network, to improve the robustness against next external attacks, and to guarantee...

Recently, cities have become larger and larger, and more and more people are living in large cities. This phenomenon has caused serious traffic congestion which is very detrimental to the development of large cities. In this context, the subway has become the most effective solution for...

Infrastructure systems such as power and water supplies make up the cornerstone of modern society which is essential for the functioning of a society and its economy. They become more and more interconnected and interdependent with the development of scientific technology and social economy....

Automated negotiation through autonomous agents has become increasingly important since the advent of e-marketplace. A deadlock may arise in which both negotiators refuse to disclose more information; then, mediation is required. We propose an agent-based sealed-bid design in which both agents...

In June 1983, the Sichuan provincial party committee's work conference on the Pengzhou mountain region passed a resolution stating: "Peasants in grain-scarce production brigades in mountainous areas who wish to pay cash in lieu of selling the requisite quotas of grain to the state may do so,...

In the late 1990s, the Chinese government established the medical insurance scheme for urban employees and retirees. Given China's considerable size and diversity, the reform of the medical care system faces many challenges. It is important to analyse and evaluate the impact of the reform on...

Conflicts of interest between insiders (e.g, controlling shareholders) and outsiders (e.g., minority shareholders) are central to the analysis of modern corporation. In an integrated continuous-time contingent claims framework with imperfect corporate governance, we examine a controlling...