Workflow scheduling on utility Grids is a complex multi-objective optimization problem which tries to optimize several scheduling criteria such as execution time and cost. One common approach to the problem is to optimize only one criterion, while other criteria are constrained within fixed thresholds. In this paper, we propose a new scheduling algorithm called Budget Partial Critical Path (Bud...

We study the efficiency of mechanisms for allocating a divisible resource. Given scalar signals submitted by all users, such mechanism decides fraction resource that each user will receive and payment be collected from her. Users are self-interested aim to maximize their utility (defined as value they minus payment). Starting with seminal work Johari Tsitsiklis, long list papers studied price a...

SPIDER is a network adapter that provides scalable communication support for point-to-point distributed systems. The device exports an eecient interface to the host processor, provides transparent support for dependable , time-constrained communication, and handles packet routing and switching. The communication support provided by SPIDER exploits concurrency between the independent data channe...

We study repeated zero-sum games against an adversary on a budget. Given that an adversary is constrained by the amount he can play each action, we consider what ought to be the player’s best mixed strategy with knowledge of this budget. We show that, for a general class of normal-form games, the minimax strategy is indeed efficiently computable and relies on a simple random walk.

I study a principal’s optimal choice of constraint for an agent participating in an auction (or auction-like allocation mechanism). I give necessary and sufficient conditions on the principal’s beliefs about the value of the item for a simple budget constraint to be the optimal contract. The results link the observed use of budget constraints to their use in models incorporating budgetconstrain...

This paper applies the theory of the soft budget constraint to explain some stylized facts regarding the outcomes and practice of international aid, including ineffectiveness, white elephants, and volatility. The soft budget constraint can also make aid counterproductive. Nonetheless, actual aid institutions may be constrained optimal responses to soft budgets and commonly suggested reforms suc...