OR/MS Today articles from October 2002

OR/MS Today archives from October 2002

Twice the payoff with our New Premium Solver Platform.
October 1, 2002... I. Speed Gains Here New Premium Solver Platform Version 5.0 The latest version of the world's leading spreadsheet solver will do more than make your PC faster on optimization problems. It will make building your model -- the really...

Time to celebrate. (Inside Story).
October 1, 2002... The logo says we're "celebrating 50 years of operations research," but we're celebrating more than that in this special issue of OR/MS Today. The 50 years refers to the founding of the Operations Research Society of America in May of 1952,...

OR: past, present and future. (President's Desk).(operations research overview)(Industry Overview)
October 1, 2002... While our field is just over 50 years old, we in operations research can point to a long string of successes. At the beginning of OR during World War II, there were no people trained in operations research, of course. Physicists, engineers and...

OR, computers and the World Wide Web. (INFORMS Online).(operations research tied to computers)(Industry Overview)
October 1, 2002... The history of OR and the history of computing have been closely tied since the early days of both fields. Dantzig's original paper, "Programming in a Linear Structure," appeared in 1948 and the first published benchmark of the simplex method...

Developing social capital online. (Cyberspace).
October 1, 2002... In the April 2002 issue of OR/MS Today, referring to Putnam's "Bowling Alone," Mike Trick wrote about the need for OR/MS professionals to develop social capital. I cannot think of a better example of OR/MS professionals having done so than...

Tossing beanbags. (Issues in Education).(instructions for conducting stastical variability exercise)
October 1, 2002... Management science instructors often use techniques and games to translate theoretical concepts into practical applications, especially those that might directly relate to the student's future employment. A simple experiment that involves the...

Weddings & Workflow. (Was it Something I Said?).
October 1, 2002... A few short weeks from my wedding day. The closer we get, the more "real" it seems. Much has happened since we got engaged: the wedding date has been selected, the site located, the reception facility chosen and booked, and the invitations...

The harbor pilot's parable. (Oracle).(management techniques)
October 1, 2002... The OR/MS analyst and his wife had been on vacation only a few days, but already the charm and slower pace of the city had them feeling relaxed. Now, as they sat on the hotel balcony, watching the ships entering and leaving the harbor and...

Are smart people overrated? (Forum).
October 1, 2002... Deceitful accounting practices, dishonest management and complicit boards of directors are the common reasons cited for the downfall of Enron and the growing lack of confidence in Corporate America. Without doubt these are the most visible...

Problem of the week. (Letters to the Editor).(Letter to the Editor)
October 1, 2002... To the editor: I could not agree more with Dick Larson ("Frame, Forumulate and Solve," ORMS Today, August 2002) and Tom Grossman ("Student Consulting Projects Benefit Faculty and Industry," Interfaces, March-April 2002) who both emphasize...

Great moments histORy. (Celebrating 50 Years of Operations Research).
October 1, 2002... Editor's note: A version of this timeline appears on the CD included in copies of this special anniversary issue mailed to INFORMS members. Plans are underway to publish an annotated version of the timeline. The timeline that begins below and...

The rest of the story. (Letters to the Editor).(management science education)(Brief Article)(Letter to the Editor)
October 1, 2002... To the editor: I read with interest Richard Larson's article in OR/MS Today ("Frame, Formulate and Solve," August 2002). How about a one- or two-hour credit course using Edelman presentations? Each week, the problem faced in a case...

Kudos for Erkut, OR Education. (Letters to the Editor).(Erhan Erkut )(Letter to the Editor)
October 1, 2002... To the editor: I just wanted to reinforce your observations on Erhan Erkut from the University of Alberta School of Business in your August OR/MS Today editorial ("A Passion for Education"). As a former student, I found Erhan's instruction...

OR thrusts Optiant co-founders on 'short list' of top entrepreneurs. (Real World).(John Ruark and Sean Willems )
October 1, 2002... Operations research has helped propel Optiant co-founders John Ruark and Sean Willems on to Harvard Business School Club of New York's "short list" of emerging business leaders. Ruark and Willems were cited for their "outstanding...

'ANTs' make Marine Air operations a picnic. (Real World).(Marine planning software has civilian use)
October 1, 2002... A highly decorated Marine Air Group is streamlining planning and reducing operational risk with a new modular software system developed by the University of Southern California and Vanderbilt University. The software also promises to have a...

Simulate all that you can be. (Real World).(military uses computer games to recruit 17- to 24-year-olds)
October 1, 2002... The military has a long history of using computer simulation to help train servicemen and women for combat. Now the U.S. Army is turning to computer simulation to help recruit young men and women into the service in the first place. ...

War on terrorism: simulation 'game' helps decision-makers prepare for the unimaginable.
October 1, 2002... Imagine the unimaginable: terrorists have released a biological agent throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Key decision-makers and government entities -- including public health officials, law enforcement, emergency management personnel,...

Go for it: Monday morning quarterbacks score points with statistical analyst. (Real World).
October 1, 2002... In the grand scheme of things, winning a football game obviously does not compare in importance to winning the war or terrorism (see Sandia story on page 27). Yeah, right. Try telling that to die-hard 49er, Packer or Redskins fans. Every Sunday...

History in the making. (Celebrating 50 Years of Operations Research).
October 1, 2002... WITH VISIONS OF THEIR FLEDGLING FIELD'S SUCCESS during World War II still dancing in their heads and eager to train their technical talents on peace-time problems in industry and business, 73 individuals from academia, the military and...

Milestone manifesto. (Celebrating 50 Years of Operations Research).(Andrew Vazsonyl)
October 1, 2002... From my point of view, Phil Morse and his disciples seemed too far removed from the day-to-day world of American business. A sense of academic hubris pervaded the early ORSA sessions. Because many of the speakers lacked practical business...

'Frank Parker Fowler Jr. made me do it'. (Reminiscences & Reflections: My First Taste of OR).(Gene Woolsey)
October 1, 2002... In the late 1960s, I was a systems analyst in the mathematics division of Sandia Corporation in Albuquerque, N.M. (Company motto: "Better Bombs For Better Living -- Through Chemistry"). For those of you who don't know what Sandia Corporation...

'I had a helluva big assignment'. (Reminiscences & Reflections: My First Taste of OR).(Andrew Vazsonyl)
October 1, 2002... In 1953, was working at Hughes Aircraft, assigned to write specifications for a digital computer. Prior to this I earned my living masquerading as an engineer because I could not get a job as a mathematician. Dean Wooldridge, the vice president...

'I had never heard of OR'. (Reminiscences & Reflections: My First Taste of OR).(Sid Hess)
October 1, 2002... Because I had one year of graduate chemical engineering education, the U.S. Army assigned me to its Chemical Corps Operations Research Group. I had never heard of operations research, and when I asked about it, I was told, "It's classified, but...

A golden quest: in search of signatures on a very special issue of Operations Research, INFORMS staffers embark on a cross-country, cross-Atlantic adventure. (Celebrating 50 Years of Operations Research).
October 1, 2002... ON NOV. 17, 1952, JOHN MAGEE, WHO WOULD become a leading light at Arthur D. Little, traveled from his Massachusetts home to Washington, D.C., to attend the first conference of the fledgling Operations Research Society of America. In 2002, Magee...

Not a trivial matter: in honor of 50 years of OR, here are 50 questions to test your knowledge of histORy. (Celebrating 50 Years of Operations Research).(Saul Gass questions)(Biography)
October 1, 2002... FOR LONGTIME INFORMS MEMBER SAUL GASS, whose career in operations research dates back to the founding of ORSA in 1952, having a solid grasp of the history of the profession is not a trivial pursuit. Gass wrote the first textbook on linear...

Annual meeting in San Jose: special sessions, events highlight diverse program. (INFORMs News).(Calendar)
October 1, 2002... The INFORMS Annual Meeting 2002 San Jose, set for Nov. 17-20, offers a program that covers the entire landscape of operations research and management science. With 47 tracks and more than 600 sessions to choose from, you can concentrate on one...

The Anderson School at UCLA. (People).(Donald Morrison wins 2002 American Marketing Association! Irwin/McGraw-Hill Distinguished Marketing Educator of the Year Award)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2002... Donald Morrison, a marketing professor at The Anderson School at UCLA, was recently presented with the 2002 American Marketing Association! Irwin/McGraw-Hill Distinguished Marketing Educator of the Year Award, the highest honor a marketing...

The Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at the University of Southern California. (People).(renamed Daniel J. Epstein Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering )(Brief Article)
October 1, 2002... Randolph Hall, chairman of the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at the University of Southern California, recently announced that the department was renamed in honor of one of the school's distinguished alumnus, Daniel J....

The University of Liverpool. (People).(Brian Boffey wins Lifetime Achievement in Location Analysis award)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2002... Brian Boffey of the University of Liverpool (United Kingdom) received the Lifetime Achievement in Location Analysis (LALA) award given by the Section on Location Analysis (SOLA) of INFORMS. The triennial award recognizes one or more individuals...

Stafford Beer: 1926-2002. (In Memoriam).(Obituary)(Biography)
October 1, 2002... Stafford Beer, a key figure in the British operational research community who founded two major pioneering OR groups and was a world leader in the development of systems ideas, died Aug. 23. He was 75. "[Beer] was widely acknowledged as the...

Wanted: creative OR/MS educational materials.(management science)
October 1, 2002... A few years ago, the IFORS Educational Resources Initiative was launched to catalog materials from across the globe so that all faculties could have the benefit of an international perspective and of the creativity of colleagues worldwide when...

INFORMS meetings.(Calendar)
October 1, 2002... 2002 Nov. 17-20 INFORMS Annual Meeting 2002 San Jose San Jose McEnery Convention Center General Co-Chairs: David Conrath and Burton V. Dean San Jose State University College of Business San Jose, CA...

Data Mining Components: Numerical Algorithms Group product offers a range of business applications. (Software Review).
October 1, 2002... LARGE- AND MID-SIZED COMPANIES HAVE expended significant resources in acquiring and maintaining databases and data warehouses for information storage, representation and retrieval. Managers and business planners need tools to extract meaningful...

Modeling, Control and Optimization of Complex Systems. (New Books).(Book Review)
October 1, 2002... Edited by Welbo Gong and Leyuan Shi "Modeling, Control and Optimization of Complex Systems" is a collection of contributions from leading international researchers in the fields of dynamic systems, control theory and modeling. These papers...

Models & Methods for Project Selection: Concepts from Management Science, Finance and Information Technology. (New Books).(Book Review)
October 1, 2002... By Samuel B. Graves and Jeffrey L. Ringuest "Models & Methods for Project Selection" systematically examines the latest work in the field of project selection modeling. The models presented are drawn from mathematical programming, decision...

Multiple Criteria Optimization: State of the Art Annotated Bibliographic Surveys. (New Books).(Book Review)
October 1, 2002... By Matthias Ehrgott Edited by Xavier Gandlbleux The roots of multiple criteria decision-making and multiple criteria optimization were laid by Pareto at the end of the 19th century, and since then the discipline has prospered and grown,...

Operations Research Models and Methods. (New Books).(Book Review)
October 1, 2002... Paul A. Jensen and Jonathan F. Bard The field of operations research comprises a rich collection of analytic techniques that have been developed over the last 50 years to solve complex problems arising in all aspects of human activity. This...

Special issue on service management. (Call for Papers).
October 1, 2002... Papers are requested for a special issue of the journal Decision Sciences that will be dedicated to the theme "Service Management." The submission deadline is Jan. 31, 2003. As the Unites States economy has become more service oriented, so...

Special issue on financial engineering. (Call for Papers).
October 1, 2002... The past two decades have witnessed tremendous research activities in financial engineering amongst the industrial engineering and management communities. Financial engineering addresses models and analysis of financial markets and it has...

Journal of operations management. (Call for Papers).
October 1, 2002... Supply chain management (SCM) is considered a critical strategy for effectively competing in the 21st century. Successful companies are not only able to reduce production cost by eliminating non-value added activities, but also create a new set...

Special issue on quality in supply chain management and logistics. (Call for Papers).
October 1, 2002... Quality management has been a popular topic for researchers and practitioners in the past three decades. The traditional quality wisdom taught by such quality gurus as Deming and Juran has developed into a comprehensive management philosophy...

Frontline releases V5.0 of Premium Solver Platform. (Industry News).
October 1, 2002... Frontline Systems, Inc., developer of the Solver in all three major spreadsheets, released Version 5.0 of the Premium Solver Platform, its "flagship" spreadsheet optimization product for Microsoft Excel. The Platform Version 5.0 includes...

Portability highlights new version of CACI's SIMPROCESS. (Industry News).(Brief Article)
October 1, 2002... CACI International, Inc., released version 3.1 of its SIMPROCESS object-oriented business process simulation tool. The underlying architecture of SIMPROCESS has been redesigned using Java and XML technologies that enable programs to run on...

Top engineering school join Dash's academic program. (Industry News).(Brief Article)
October 1, 2002... Five of the top 10 industrial engineering colleges have signed up for Dash Optimization's Academic Partnership Program. The six-month-old program, designed to encourage academic use of Dash's Xpress-MP modeling and optimization products,...

OptTek Systems, PROMODEL team up for software module. (Industry News).(Brief Article)
October 1, 2002... OptTek Systems and PROMODEL Corporation announced a business alliance to develop and market an optimization software module called OptQuest for PROMODEL. OptQuest for PROMODEL is a robust and powerful add-on for users of ProModel, MedModel and...

Roadmap to the future of your business. (Roadmap Technologies: White Paper).
October 1, 2002... 1. Introduction Forecasting is a business process that is at once reviled for its difficulty and yet revered for its critical importance to an organization's success. In today's business environment, executives need more than ever to...

Calendar.
October 1, 2002... Nov. 28-30 37th Annual Conference of the Operational Research Society of New Zealand University of Auckland, New Zealand The Department of Engineering Science of the University of Auckland will host the 37th annual conference of...