Mapping Brexit II

An updated map of Monday’s Indicative Votes but including last week’s votes for the Withdrawal Agreement. Note more analysis here: https://duncanrobertson.com/2019/03/28/mapping-brexit/ This network map shows each MP that voted for each of 5 propositions: Parliamentary Sovereignty, Confirmatory Public Vote, Customs Union, Common Market 2.0, or the Withdrawal Agreement. The large dots show the number of …

Spatial Transmission Models: A Taxonomy and Framework

This paper , published in the journal Risk Analysis, sets out a review of the different methods used for modelling the spread of an idea, disease, etc. over space. ABSTRACT Within risk analysis and more broadly, the decision behind the choice of which modelling technique to use to study the spread of disease, epidemics, fires, technology, rumors, or …

PhD Studentship in Modelling Dynamic Responses to Dynamic Threats at Loughborough University [applications now closed]

I am co-supervising the following PhD project – the application link and further details can be found here: http://www.lboro.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/research-degrees/funded/modelling-dynamic-responses/ .  The closing date is 14 December 2017.  Please get in touch if you would like to discuss this opportunity. One of the most challenging issues for policy makers dealing with bio-security threats is their dynamic …

Why The Mayor of Houston Was Right to Not Evacuate the City

Right now, Houston is going through one of the most severe storms ever to hit the USA.  The main conversation on today’s news was whether the Mayor (who has authority to do such things) should have evacuated the City prior to the arrival of Hurricane Harvey. For a start, NOAA did not forecast a direct …

Two Funded PhD Studentships in Agent-Based Modelling at Loughborough University School of Business and Economics [applications now closed]

I am looking for high quality, numerate, candidates to fill these exciting PhD studentships with me as a (co-) supervisor at Loughborough’s School of Business and Economics.  Please note that this post has been updated with new links (in blue, below). The first is modelling dynamic responses to dynamic threats; the second is using analytics …

Agent-Based Models for Simulating Human Behavior: IFORS Conference 2017

This presentation including joint work with Alberto Franco, was presented at the IFORS (International Federation of Operational Research Societies) conference in Quebec City, QC, Canada.  We present two different agent-based models for simulating human behavior. We use the example of group decision making. The first model uses a cognitive fitness landscape to model the quality …

The Conservative Manifesto: Care Fees as a Percentage of Initial Wealth

The Conservative Party have announced their manifesto for the 2017 General Election.  Included in this (on page 64-65) is proposed We will introduce a single capital floor, set at £100,000, more than four times the current means test threshold. This will ensure that, no matter how large the cost of care turns out to be, …

What does the ℮ mark mean on packaging?

The ‘℮’ symbol, or the ‘e-mark’ is a symbol you will see on packaging such as tins or packets in Europe.  Millions of us will see this symbol every day, but what does it actually mean? The raison d’etre for the e-mark comes from the problem of selling goods to the public.  We would all like to …

Eight Mile and the Emergence of Segregation

Eight Mile, epitomized by Eminem in the film of the same name, is a street in Detroit that marks the boundary between the majority white northern suburbs and the majority black neighborhoods closer to the inner city. But what causes this segregation in the first place? Hypothesis 1: The Central Planner In Detroit’s case, as …