Eizo Hideshima

Experimental results on large-scale cyber-physical hybrid discussion support

Purpose This paper aims to present a preliminary experimental result on a large-scale experiment on a cyber-physical hybrid discussion support environment in a panel discussion session in an international conference. Design/methodology/approach In this paper, the authors propose a hybrid (cyber-physical) environment in which people can discuss online and also offline simultaneously. The authors conducted a large-scale experiment in a panel discussion session in an international conference where participants can discuss by using their online discussion support system and by physical communications as usual. Findings The authors analyzed the obtained date from the following three viewpoints: participants’ cyber-physical attention, keywords cyber-physical linkage and cyber-physical discussion flow. These three viewpoints indicate that the methodology of the authors can be effective to support hybrid large-scale discussions. Originality/value Online large-scale discussion has been focused as a new methodology that enable people to discuss, argue and make consensus in terms of political issues, social complex problems (like climate change), city planning and so on. In several cases, the authors found that online discussions are very effective to gather people opinions and discussions so far. Moreover, this paper proposes a hybrid (cyber-physical) environment in which people can discuss online and also offline simultaneously.

An analysis for privatization process of tram and bus lines as a leader-follower game in product differentiation

Many municipalities deregulate and privatize in public transportation services. Public transportation agency confronts with alternative enterprises but it might be an uneven competition. The agency has initially set about the lines so as to improve the social welfare of the municipality, while private enterprises are not obliged to assure the welfare and are free of entry time, with little investment. Citizens should choose whether they trust that tax payment may increase the welfare as a whole in the municipality or they expect the efficiency of profit-maximizing company sharing a part of lines. If it is assumed that the average expenditure of citizens equals no matter how they pay tax or fare in transportation, a leader-follower game in a differentiated product market is found, in which a private enterprise newly enters the territorial network of the public dominant. This paper firstly formulates the leader-follower game model, and then considers scopes of strategies, differentiation in transportation network complexity, and so forth.

Core time mechanism for managing large-scale internet-based discussions on COLLAGREE

Much attention has been focused on the internet-based discussions of crowd. In our previous work, we developed an open web-based forum system called COLLAGREE that has facilitator support functions and deployed. We clarified the importance of a COLLAGREE-type internet based town meeting and the facilitator role, which is one mechanism that can manage inflammatory language and encourage positive discussions. However, we found a problem that the number of posts and views decreased with a time lapse. In our work, we propose the core time mechanism to solve the problem. The core time mechanism provides setting of time for facilitator and participant to gather and discuss. By presenting the core time to the participants, there is expectation to encourage participation of discussion at that timing. We conducted a large-scale experiment for Aichi prefecture in 2016. We found that core time mechanism effects that discussion was continuously activated until the end.

How to Support Decision Making of Local Government in Prioritising Policy Menu Responding to Citizens’ Views: An Exploratory Study of Text Mining Approach to Attain Cognitive Map Based on Citizen Survey Data

It has been on the political agenda for the local governments how to satisfy their citizens to enhance their commitment and contribution to the communities. Especially in this ageing population era with tight fiscal conditions, it is essential for the government to know the prioritised policy menu in realising citizen satisfaction. This study aims to explore an applicable system based on citizen survey result. In our study, following literature review, we conducted focus group discussions to explore citizens’ willingness to participate in local policy design, which leads us to be convinced that some activated citizens are supportive to the local governmental policy decision. Based on this qualitative result, we tried to make a cognitive map which indicated which policy fields are prioritised by citizens. Throughout this procedure, we validate the feasible practice to support local governmental decision making based on the result of citizen survey.

Coalition formation among regions to the reuse of waste soil for construction

Many cities face the issue of waste disposal in Japan. Wastes, particularly the surplus soil at construction sites, used to be dumped straightly to a stockyard like a reclaimed land but it becomes difficult to find other yards in and near the urban area. They necessarily choose another way of disposal, such as reduction, reuse and/or reform of wastes. Some regions may cooperate with others, considering the efficiency of the (cooperative) disposal process and the bad effect of undisposed polluted soils. The study provides a game-theoretic framework of analyzing the formation of such coalitions among regions for the reuse of waste soil for construction. The consequence of coalition formation is concerned with the local policies of how each region regulates and/or supports the related agents (i.e., dischargers). We also analyze the possibility of extending coalitions by a private agent to charge regions for participation.

Implementation of Web-based Consensus Support System for Campus Greening Project: Preliminary Results

In this paper, we present an implementation of a web-based consensus support system for the campus greening project at the Nagoya Institute of Technology. Recently, WWW technology has enabled us to share information and gather opinions on the Internet. However, on such systems, it is difficult to get a consensus because there is less focus on converging discussions and arguments. Thus, there is a lot of need to support gathering and converging of opinions to facilitate forming a consensus on the WWW. On the other hand, in the field of civil engineering, e.g., city planning and public enterprises, a lot of workshops have been held to gather opinions not only from experts but from civilians as well. The problem with such workshops is that there are concrete limitations with time, space, and cost. Thus, in this paper, we propose using a web-based system that can overcome such limitations as an alternative methodology to workshops. In this paper, we focus on support for the Campus Greening Project at the Nagoya Institute of Technology, where students and teachers are collaboratively planning to place high-tech grass panels on the campus. The system supports them in forming a consensus on where to put the grass panels. Concretely, in this system we utilize Rich Internet Application (RIA) technologies and Google Maps API so that the participants can intuitively operate the system. Here the system can effectively support creating and evaluating alternatives, and voting on the final agreement. This system enables us to clarify the evaluations of the participants and show the final agreement while considering the entire cost. Our experimentation demonstrates that our system can effectively support forming a consensus and has sufficient usability.

The effects of visual materials on district residents upon recalling their recognized space configuration

District residents know well about the problems faced by their own district. However, it is not easy to bring on a concrete discussion concerning space configuration. The space image drawn in each persons mind is different, and therefore, it is difficult to arrive at a consensus building. In this study, it was clarified by an experiment that ones memory can be incorrect, even for someplace quite familiar. Moreover, it was also clarified that the understanding of the space configuration could be deepened by presenting visual information.

A Decision-making Model for Train Evacuation Plan against Urban Flood

It is pointed out that underground space is very vulnerable to water invasion by the so-called “urban flood”. This study provides a time-series model connecting hydraulic process and train evacuation process so as to derive the best action at the train evacuation phase in any cases of water invasion. The model is verified by an example of the Tsurumai subway line of Nagoya City for implementing rational disaster prevention planning of subway.

The local best mixture of municipal bus and club one in the long run

Unlicensed membership buses have run over the geographical niches only in rush hour in some cities of Brazil. The municipal one then shifts to play the role of satisfying the civil minimum. Some users may think of reserving the membership or not for only the daily use, while they would pay the tax regardless of using the municipal ones. The portion of the two types can equilibrate according to the demands and capacities. We formulate a game model to track the process of market change, and then clarify whether the city may achieve the best mixture of bus service.

Train operation with arranging conflicts between commuters and travelers in railroad transport to and from a metropolitan airport

Existing railroad lines for commuters and shoppers are sometimes used for access to an airport from a metropolitan area. If express trains run on such a line, conflicts arise between the convenience of regular users and airport users. This study considers how to operate trains in order to resolve the conflicts in railroad services to and from an airport. We first interview commuters on factors such as fares, congestion, speed, frequency, and choice of type of train, and formulate a discrete choice model for commuters with respect to a line to Chubu International Airport (under construction). Discrete choice models are certainly useful for explaining individual choice behavior but mutually affecting behavior is not revealed explicitly. Then, we make an aggregate analysis of train choice for the two types of users. The results suggest how to provide a fair and efficient service on the airport railroad line.