A Multi-tier Inspection Queueing System with Finite Capacity for Differentiated Border Control Measures

COVID-19 has raised many challenges in terms of applying Australian copyright legislation and related policies to higher education context. This paper describes the experience of Copyright Officers at Curtin University and Murdoch University from the initial stages of border-control measures affecting delivery of learning materials to students in China, to the wider disruption of the pandemic with many countries implementing lockdown measures, to the current environment where remote delivery is the “new normal.” The Australian Copyright Act 1968 (Commonwealth of Australia) provides narrow fair dealing exceptions (sections 40 and 41) and broader but more uncertain flexible dealing exceptions (section 200AB), creating a barrier for educators providing access to the information resources needed for teaching, learning, and research. The uncertainty of applying section 200AB was exacerbated by the conditions caused by the pandemic. The authors describe their experiences in providing copyright support during the pandemic as well as how the copyright services adapted to meet requirements.

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Air travel will rebound by 2023 amid structural shifts

Emerald Expert Briefings ◽

10.1108/oxan-db260246 ◽

2021 ◽

Keyword(s):

Air Travel ◽

Control Measures ◽

Border Control ◽

Online Retailing ◽

Commercial Aviation ◽

Business Travel ◽

Content Type ◽

Leisure Travel ◽

National Governments ◽

Structural Shifts

Significance While consumers are regaining confidence, demand for international air travel is stagnant as most countries have border control measures in place. The relaunch of commercial aviation is in the hands of national governments. Impacts Mandatory pre-flight screening will gradually disappear, replaced by a structured exchange of passengers’ health information data. Business travel will be at least 10-20% lower, and more remote working will blur distinctions between business and leisure travel. Traditional carriers will refocus their strategies on long-haul and online retailing while developing new capacity for cargo. Punctuality will lose relevance as new metrics are adopted to measure sanitisation and cabin cleanliness.

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PERFORMANCE MEASURES FOR THE TWO-NODE QUEUE WITH FINITE BUFFERS

Probability in the Engineering and Informational Sciences ◽

10.1017/s0269964819000238 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 34 (4) ◽

pp. 522-549

Author(s):

Yanting Chen ◽

Xinwei Bai ◽

Richard J. Boucherie ◽

Jasper Goseling

Keyword(s):

Random Walk ◽

Performance Measures ◽

Approximation Scheme ◽

Queueing System ◽

Original Model ◽

Finite Capacity ◽

Tandem Queue ◽

Finite Buffers ◽

Perturbed Random Walk ◽

Markov Reward

We consider a two-node queue modeled as a two-dimensional random walk. In particular, we consider the case that one or both queues have finite buffers. We develop an approximation scheme based on the Markov reward approach to error bounds in order to bound performance measures of such random walks. The approximation scheme is developed in terms of a perturbed random walk in which the transitions along the boundaries are different from those in the original model and the invariant measure of the perturbed random walk is of product-form. We then apply this approximation scheme to a tandem queue and some variants of this model, for the case that both buffers are finite. The modified approximation scheme and the corresponding applications for a two-node queueing system in which only one of the buffers has finite capacity have also been discussed.

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Finite capacity M/M/r queueing system with queue-dependent servers

Computers & Mathematics with Applications ◽

10.1016/j.camwa.2004.11.018 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 50 (1-2) ◽

pp. 187-199 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

M. Jain

Keyword(s):

Queueing System ◽

Finite Capacity

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Bias optimal admission control policies for a multiclass nonstationary queueing system

Journal of Applied Probability ◽

10.1017/s0021900200021483 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 39 (01) ◽

pp. 20-37 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Mark E. Lewis ◽

Hayriye Ayhan ◽

Robert D. Foley

Keyword(s):

Optimal Policy ◽

Queueing System ◽

Sufficient Conditions ◽

System Capacity ◽

Average Reward ◽

Finite Capacity ◽

Long Run ◽

Optimal Policies ◽

Service Rates ◽

Long Run Average Reward

We consider a finite-capacity queueing system where arriving customers offer rewards which are paid upon acceptance into the system. The gatekeeper, whose objective is to ‘maximize’ rewards, decides if the reward offered is sufficient to accept or reject the arriving customer. Suppose the arrival rates, service rates, and system capacity are changing over time in a known manner. We show that all bias optimal (a refinement of long-run average reward optimal) policies are of threshold form. Furthermore, we give sufficient conditions for the bias optimal policy to be monotonic in time. We show, via a counterexample, that if these conditions are violated, the optimal policy may not be monotonic in time or of threshold form.

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Epidemiological characteristics of the first 100 cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China, a city with a stringent containment policy

International Journal of Epidemiology ◽

10.1093/ije/dyaa106 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 49 (4) ◽

pp. 1096-1105 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Christopher K C Lai ◽

Rita W Y Ng ◽

Martin C S Wong ◽

Ka Chun Chong ◽

Yun Kit Yeoh ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hong Kong ◽

Incubation Period ◽

Mainland China ◽

Control Measures ◽

Contact Tracing ◽

Border Control ◽

Government Information ◽

Epidemic Curve ◽

Containment Policy ◽

Epidemiological Characteristics

Abstract Background Hong Kong (HK) is a densely populated city near the epicentre of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak. Stringent border control together with aggressive case finding, contact tracing, social distancing and quarantine measures were implemented to halt the importation and spread of the virus. Methods We performed an epidemiological study using government information covering the first 100 confirmed cases to examine the epidemic curve, incidence, clusters, reproduction number (Rt), incubation period and time to containment. Results A total of 93 of the 100 cases were HK residents (6 infected in Mainland China, 10 on the Diamond Princess Cruise). Seven were visitors infected in Mainland China before entering HK. The majority (76%) were aged ≥45 years, and the incidence increased with age (P < 0.001). Escalation of border control measures correlated with a decrease in the proportion (62.5% to 0%) of cases imported from Mainland China, and a reduction in Rt (1.07 to 0.75). The median incubation period was 4.2 days [95% confidence interval (CI), 4.0–4.5; 5th and 95th percentiles: 1.3 and 14.0). Most clusters with identifiable epidemiological links were households involving 2–4 people. Three medium-spreading events were identified: two from New Year gatherings (6–11 people), and another from environmental contamination of a worship hall (12 people). Despite intensified contact tracing, containment was delayed in 78.9% of cases (mean = 5.96 days, range = 0–24 days). An unusual transmission in a multi-storey building via faulty toilet plumbing was suspected with >100 residents evacuated overnight. Our analysis indicated that faulty plumbing was unlikely to be the source of this transmission. Conclusion Timely stringent containment policies minimized the importation and transmission of COVID-19 in HK.

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