This book is devoted to a specific problem in the general theory of automatic control -- sequential control under conditions of incomplete information. The main results concern the case in which at each moment of (continuous) time only a finite number of controls are admissible and the results of control action are represented by realizations of random variables whose distributions at a given control correspond to one of several alternative hypotheses. The analysis is conducted in a Bayesian framework.
Stochastic Economics: Stochastic Processes, Control, and Programming presents some aspects of economics from a stochastic or probabilistic point of view. The application of stochastic processes to the theory of economic development, stochastic control theory, and various aspects of stochastic programming is discussed. Comprised of four chapters, this book begins with a short survey of the stochastic view in economics, followed by a discussion on discrete and continuous stochastic models of economic development. The next chapter focuses on methods of stochastic control and their application to dynamic economic models, with emphasis on those aspects connected especially with the theory of quantitative economic policy. Some basic operational problems of applying stochastic control, particularly in economic systems and organizations for problems such as dynamic resource allocation, growth planning, and economic coordination are considered. The last chapter is devoted to stochastic programming, paying particular attention to the decision rule theory of operations research under the chance-constrained model and a method of incorporating reliability measures into a systems reliability model. This book will be of interest to economists, statisticians, applied mathematicians, operations researchers, and systems engineers.
In The Economics of Inaction, leading economist Nancy Stokey shows how the tools of stochastic control can be applied to dynamic problems of decision making under uncertainty when fixed costs are present. Stokey provides a self-contained, rigorous, and clear treatment of two types of models, impulse and instantaneous control. She presents the relevant results about Brownian motion and other diffusion processes, develops methods for analyzing each type of problem, and discusses applications to price setting, investment, and durable goods purchases."--Pub. desc.
The second edition of a rigorous and example-driven introduction to topics in economic dynamics that emphasizes techniques for modeling dynamic systems. This text provides an introduction to the modern theory of economic dynamics, with emphasis on mathematical and computational techniques for modeling dynamic systems. Written to be both rigorous and engaging, the book shows how sound understanding of the underlying theory leads to effective algorithms for solving real-world problems. The material makes extensive use of programming examples to illustrate ideas, bringing to life the abstract concepts in the text. Key topics include algorithms and scientific computing, simulation, Markov models, and dynamic programming. Part I introduces fundamentals and part II covers more advanced material. This second edition has been thoroughly updated, drawing on recent research in the field. New for the second edition: “Programming-language agnostic” presentation using pseudocode. New chapter 1 covering conceptual issues concerning Markov chains such as ergodicity and stability. New focus in chapter 2 on algorithms and techniques for program design and high-performance computing. New focus on household problems rather than optimal growth in material on dynamic programming. Solutions to many exercises, code, and other resources available on a supplementary website.
This book analyses stochastic dynamic systems across a broad spectrum in economics and finance. The major unifying theme is the coherent and rigorous treatment of uncertainty and its implications for describing stochastic processes by the stochastic differential equations of the fundamental models in various fields. Pertinent subjects are interrelated, juxtaposed, and examined for consistency in theoretical and empirical contexts. The volume consists of three parts: Developments in Stochastic Dynamics; Stochastic Dynamics in Basic Economic Growth Models; Intertemporal Optimisation in Consumption, Finance, and Growth. Key topics include: fractional Brownian motion in finance; moment evolution of Gaussian and geometric Wiener diffusions; stochastic kinematics and stochastic mechanics; stochastic growth in continuous time; time delays and Hopf bifurcation; consumption and investment strategies; differential systems in finance and life insurance; uncertainty of technological innovations; investment and employment cycles; stochastic control theory; and risk aversion. The works collected in this book serves to bridge the "old" deterministic dynamics and the "new" stochastic dynamics. The collection is important for scholars and advanced graduate students of economics, statistics, and applied mathematics.
Applied Stochastic Models and Control for Finance and Insurance presents at an introductory level some essential stochastic models applied in economics, finance and insurance. Markov chains, random walks, stochastic differential equations and other stochastic processes are used throughout the book and systematically applied to economic and financial applications. In addition, a dynamic programming framework is used to deal with some basic optimization problems. The book begins by introducing problems of economics, finance and insurance which involve time, uncertainty and risk. A number of cases are treated in detail, spanning risk management, volatility, memory, the time structure of preferences, interest rates and yields, etc. The second and third chapters provide an introduction to stochastic models and their application. Stochastic differential equations and stochastic calculus are presented in an intuitive manner, and numerous applications and exercises are used to facilitate their understanding and their use in Chapter 3. A number of other processes which are increasingly used in finance and insurance are introduced in Chapter 4. In the fifth chapter, ARCH and GARCH models are presented and their application to modeling volatility is emphasized. An outline of decision-making procedures is presented in Chapter 6. Furthermore, we also introduce the essentials of stochastic dynamic programming and control, and provide first steps for the student who seeks to apply these techniques. Finally, in Chapter 7, numerical techniques and approximations to stochastic processes are examined. This book can be used in business, economics, financial engineering and decision sciences schools for second year Master's students, as well as in a number of courses widely given in departments of statistics, systems and decision sciences.
Extends the optimization techniques, in a form that may be adopted for modeling social choice problems. The models in this book provide possible models for a society's social choice for an allocation that maximizes welfare and utilization of resources. A computer program SCOM is presented here for computing social choice models by optimal control.
This is an introduction to the theory of security markets, dealing principally with the allocational role and valuation of financial securities in a competitive setting.
In Part I, the fundamentals of financial thinking and elementary mathematical methods of finance are presented. The method of presentation is simple enough to bridge the elements of financial arithmetic and complex models of financial math developed in the later parts. It covers characteristics of cash flows, yield curves, and valuation of securities. Part II is devoted to the allocation of funds and risk management: classics (Markowitz theory of portfolio), capital asset pricing model, arbitrage pricing theory, asset & liability management, value at risk. The method explanation takes into account the computational aspects. Part III explains modeling aspects of multistage stochastic programming on a relatively accessible level. It includes a survey of existing software, links to parametric, multiobjective and dynamic programming, and to probability and statistics. It focuses on scenario-based problems with the problems of scenario generation and output analysis discussed in detail and illustrated within a case study.
