Sharp non-parametric bounds on the winner’s curse effects (the difference between the mean value and the mean value conditional on winning) are derived for sealed-bid auctions with affiliated values. Both firstand second-price formats are considered. In addition, sharp bounds are derived on the competitive effect, the difference between the mean value conditional on winning and the mean bid. Al...

Machine learning’s advances have led to new ideas about the feasibility and importance of machine ethics keeping pace, with increasing emphasis on safety, containment, and alignment. This paper addresses a recent suggestion that inverse reinforcement learning (IRL) could be a means to so-called “value alignment.” We critically consider how such an approach can engage the social, norm-infused na...

We consider equilibrium bidding behavior in a dynamic second price auction where agents have the option to increase bids at random times and values follow a Markov process. We prove that equilibrium exists and is unique and give an algorithm to solve for bids as a function of time and values. Equilibrium bids equal the expected final value conditional on the bid placed being the final one, mean...

The standard treatment of conditional probability leaves conditional probability undefined when the conditioning proposition has zero probability. Nonetheless, some find the option of extending the scope of conditional probability to include zero-probability conditions attractive or even compelling. This articles reviews some of the pitfalls associated with this move, and concludes that, for th...

Intellectual Capital Management (ICM) and Knowledge Management (KM), two highly popular topics in current management discussions, are often bracketed together. The common understanding of ICM is that concepts of measurement, reporting and valuation most distinctively define this perspective, whereas KM connects debates about organizational knowledge with possibilities and limitations of managem...

There is a compelling need to accurately and efficiently compute option values. Existing literature shows that models based on constant stock volatilities have been widely used in option valuation. However, stock volatilities change constantly in real life situations. The introduction of the Auto Regressive Conditional Heteroskedasticity (ARCH) model and subsequently, the Generalized Auto Regre...

The so-called ̳Adams‘ Thesis‘ is often understood as the claim that the assertibility of an indicative conditional equals the corresponding conditional probability—schematically: (AT) As(A  B) = P(B | A), provided P(A) ≠ 0. The Thesis is taken by many to be a touchstone of any theorizing about indicative conditionals. Yet it is unclear exactly what the Thesis is. I suggest some precise stateme...

Clusters of galaxies contain a fair sample of the universal baryonic mass fraction. A combined analysis of the intracluster medium (ICM) within their hydrostatic regions, as derived from both Sunyaev-Zeldovich effect (SZE) measurements and X-ray images, makes it possible to constrain the cosmological parameters. We consider both gas fraction estimates and angular diameter distance measurements....