On the Expected Performance of Systems with Complex Interactions Among Components
Daniel Solow
Electronic mail address: dxs8@po.cwru.edu.
Apostolos Burnetas
Electronic mail address: atb4@po.cwru.edu.
Department of Operations,
Case Western Reserve University,
Cleveland, OH 44106
Ming-chi Tsai
Department of Management Science,
Chinese Military Academy,
Taiwan, 830, R.O.C.
Neil S. Greenspan
Electronic mail address: nsg@po.cwru.edu.
Institute of Pathology,
Case Western Reserve University,
Cleveland, OH 44106
Abstract
A class of combinatorial optimization models is presented for studying certain systems that arise in biology, physics, business, and elsewhere. These systems consist of a finite number of parts. For each part, it is necessary to choose one of several interchangeable components so as to maximize a performance measure of the resulting system that depends on how the chosen parts interact with each other. Probabilistic analysis and computer simulations provide insight into some factors that affect the expected performance of such systems. These models provide the ability to control the interactions among the components and to study the effect of replacing a single component in the system.
