This paper introduces a general methodology for the development and study of conversational systems. Closer coupling of linguistic and psycholinguistic theories about dialogue with the development of dialogue systems allows each to inform the other more fully. Three activities support our goals. We develop theories through the empirical investigation of dialogue in conversational settings. We u...

In a (t,n) secret sharing scheme, a mutually trusted dealer divides a secret into n shares in such a way that any t or more than t shares can reconstruct the secret, but fewer than t shares cannot reconstruct the secret. When there is no mutually trusted dealer, a (n,t,n) secret sharing scheme can be used to set up a (t,n) secret sharing because each shareholder also acts as a dealer to decide ...

Topologists are sometimes interested in space-valued diagrams over a given index category, but it is tricky to say what such a diagram even is if we look for a notion that is stable under equivalence. The same happens in (homotopy) type theory, where it is known only for special cases how one can define a type of type-valued diagrams over a given index category. We offer several constructions. ...

The optical bistability in a composite, composed of nonlinear metallic particles (spherical or cylindrical) with interfacial layers randomly embedded in a linear dielectric host, is investigated theoretically. It is shown that both interfacial property and the size of metallic particles can dramatically a!ect the optical bistable behavior, and the threshold value is more less in three dimension...