eXfiltration Advanced Persistent Threats (XAPTs) increasingly account for incidents concerned with critical information exfiltration from High Valued Targets (HVT's) by terrorists, cyber criminals or enemy states. Existing Cyber Defence frameworks and data fusion models do not adequately address (i) the multi-stage nature of XAPTs and (ii) the uncertainty and conflicting information associated with XAPTs. A new data fusion theory, called the Markov Multi-phase Transferable Belief Model (MM-TBM) is developed, for tracking and predicting XAPTs. MM-TBM expands the attack kill-chain model to attack trees and introduces a novel approach for combining various sources of cyber evidence, which takes into account the multi-phased nature of XAPTs and the characteristics of the cyberspace. As a data fusion theory, MM-TBM constitutes a novel approach for performing hypothesis assessment and evidence combination across phases, by means of a new combination rule, called the Multi-phase Combination Rule with conflict Reset (MCR2). This is the first combination rule in the field of data fusion that formalises a new method for combining evidence from multiple, causally connected hypotheses spaces and eliminating the bias from preceding phases of the kill-chain. Moreover, this is the first time a data fusion theory utilises the conflict mass m(Ø) for identifying paradoxes. In addition, a diagnostic formula for managing missing pieces of evidence within attack trees is presented. MM-TBM is designed, developed and evaluated using a Design Science Research approach within two iterations. Evaluation is conducted in a relevant computer network environment using scenario-based testing. The experimental design has been reviewed and approved by Cyber Security Subject Matter Experts from MoD’s Defence Science Technology Laboratory and Airbus Group. The experimental results validate the novel capabilities introduced by the new MM-TBM theory to Cyber Defence in the presence of information clutter, conflict and congestion. Furthermore, the results underpin the importance of selecting an optimal sampling policy to effectively track and predict XAPTs. This PhD bridges the gaps in the body of knowledge concerned with multi-phase fusion under uncertainty and Cyber SA against XAPTs. MM-TBM is a novel mathematical fusion theory for managing applications that existing fusion models do not address. This research has demonstrated MM-TBM enables the successful Tracking and Prediction of XAPTs to deliver an enhanced Cyber SA capability.

In order to store and process natural phenomena in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) it is necessary to model the real world to form computational representation. Since classical set theory is used in conventional GIS software systems to model uncertain real world, the natural variability in the environmental phenomena can not be modeled appropriately. Because, pervasive imprecision of the real world is unavoidably reduced to artificially precise spatial entities when the conventional crisp logic is used for modeling. An alternative approach is the fuzzy set theory, which provides a formal framework to represent and reason with uncertain information. In addition, linguistic variable concept in a fuzzy logic system is useful for communicating concepts and knowledge with human beings. In this thesis, a system to enhance commercial GIS software, namely ArcGIS, with fuzzy set theory is designed and implemented. The proposed system allows users to (a) incorporate human knowledge and experience in the form of linguistically defined variables into GIS-based spatial analyses, (b) handle impreiii cision in the decision-making processes, and (c) approximate complex ill-defined problems in decision-making processes and classification. The operation of the proposed system is presented through case studies, which demonstrate its application for classification and decision-making processes. This thesis shows how fuzzy logic approach may contribute to a better representation and reasoning with imprecise concepts, which are inherent characteristics of geographic data stored and processed in GIS.

In this study we address a periodic review capacitated inventory system with supply uncertainty where advance demand information is available. A stochastic dynamic programming formulation is applied with the objective of minimizing the expected inventory related costs over a finite horizon. Three different supply processes are assumed. Under the all-or-nothing type supply process and partially available supply process, the structure of optimal policy is proved to be a base stock policy and numerical examples are given to demonstrate the effects of system parameters. Under Binomially distributed supply process it is shown that a simple base stock policy is not optimal.

A presente tese refere-se a uma proposta de abordagem geoarqueológica voltada ao estudo de sítios arqueológicos costeiros, enfocando pressupostos teóricos e metodológicos ligados à uma aproximação entre a Arqueologia, Geociências e Ciências da Informação. Objetivou em um primeiro momento, inserir questões e problemáticas relativas a necessidade de inclusão da incerteza no raciocínio e práticas arqueológicas, vislumbrando as possibilidades de seu tratamento. Neste sentido, a percepção do \"problema da não informação\" constituiu o argumento conceitual para a elaboração de um modelo de raciocínio dialético sobre a aquisição, geração, seleção e transmissão de informações na disciplina. Nessa perspectiva, sobreveio a necessidade da interação constante entre Teorias de Formação e de Recuperação, como passo essencial ao controle das perdas e ganhos informacionais e, ao tratamento das imperfeições, incompletudes, imprecisões e ambiguidades ligadas aos fenômenos arqueológicos e seu registro científico. Um dos aspectos explorados refere-se à percepção das incertezas e vieses envolvidos na interpretação das ocupações costeiras, notadamente quanto às problemáticas de origem e migração das primeiras populações nessas áreas. Em um modelo atual dicotômico entre o interior e o litoral, onde mesmo os sítios mais antigos (somente sambaquis) acham-se dispostos sobre a superfície dos terrenos, a percepção da dinâmica e complexidade dos sistemas costeiros, fica restrita ao enquadramento desses sítios em sucessões de cenários geomórficos e paeogeográficos. Deste modo, pouca atenção é dada às conseqüências de agentes dinâmicos sobre a configuração e seleção de sítios na atual paisagem costeira, bem como, à possibilidade de ocorrência e detecção de diferentes classes de sítios, que foram preservados em profundidade por meio de processos de capeamento sedimentar. Assim, em um segundo momento, foi proposto à utilização do conceito de \"Controles Geoarquelógicos\" (CG) no estudo e explicitação dos condicionantes naturais e analíticos envolvidos em uma pesquisa de caráter regional, cujo enfoque está nas relações informacionais estabelecidas entre sítios arqueológicos e meio (natural e analítico), e cujo resultado (síntese dialética) compreenderia a noção de evento arqueológico. Diante da explicitação da variabilidade envolvida na caracterização do Registro Arqueológico Regional (RAR), bem como, dos condicionantes complexos derivados da estrutura, dinâmica e evolução da paisagem, o evento arqueológico considerado na tese, compreendeu a investigação da probabilidade de preservação de sítios costeiros antigos (teoria de formação) e do seu potencial de detecção (teoria de recuperação). Neste sentido foi utilizado o raciocínio abdutivo para gerar hipóteses sobre a preservação ou não de sítios encobertos, tendo por base os modelos sedimentares e morfoestratigraficos produzidos para a costa sul-sudeste. Por sua vez, a busca de indicadores nas planícies costeiras de Guaratuba-PR e de Caraguatatuba SP, possibilitou apontar condicionantes (variáveis) favoráveis a geração de um modelo de trapeamento de sítios (capeamento e preservação sedimentar) para a região da Baía de Guaratuba. Por fim, foi testado o raciocínio probabilístico Bayesiano e a Teoria de Evidências (Dempster-Shafer) para a inclusão e representação da incerteza na pesquisa de sambaquis, visualizando um método de tratamento das evidências e inferências geradas em sistemas baseados em conhecimento. Esses mesmos métodos também permitiram determinar os pesos para os diferentes indicadores, e as condições de necessidade, suficiência e ambigüidade das variáveis na geração de mapas aplicados à predição da favorabilidade e suscetibilidade de sítios arqueológicos enterrados na planície costeira de Guaratuba. / This thesis refers to a proposal for a geoarchaeological approach focused on the study of coastal archaeological sites, concentrating on theoretical and methodological assumptions related to a closeness between the archeology, the Information Sciences and Geosciences. It aimed in a first moment, to insert issues and problems concerning the need for inclusion of uncertainty in archaeological reasoning and practice, foreseeing the possibilities of their treatment. In this sense, the perception of the \"no information problem\" was the argument for the conceptual development of a model of dialectical thinking about the acquisition, generation, selection and transmission of information in the discipline. Accordingly, the need for constant interaction between Formation and Recovery Theories became an essential step to the control of informational losses and gains, and the treatment of imperfections, incompleteness, inaccuracies and ambiguities relating to archaeological phenomena and their scientific record. One of the aspects exploited, is the perception of slants and uncertainties involved in the interpretation of coastal activities, notably on issues of origin and migration of the first people in those areas. In a current dichotomic model between the interior and the coast, where even the oldest sites (only sambaquis) are found placed on the surface of the land, the perception of the complexity and dynamics of the coastal systems, is restricted to the framework of these sites in a succession of geomorphic and paleogeographics \"scenarios\". Thus, little attention is given to the dynamic agents consequences on the configuration and selection of sites in the coastal landscape, and the possibility of occurrence and detection of different classes of sites, which were preserved indepth by a sedimental capstone process. Therefore, in a second moment, it was proposed to use the concept of \"geoarchaeological control \" (GC) in the study and explanation of natural and analytical conditions involved in a research of regional manner, whose focus is on the informational relations established between archaeological sites and the environment (natural and analytical), whose result (dialectical synthesis) understand the concept of the archaeological event. Given the explicit characterization of the variability involved in the Regional Archaeological Record (RAR), as well as the complex condition agent derived from the structure, dynamics and evolution of the landscape, the archaeological event considered in the thesis, understand the research of the probability of preservation of ancient coastal sites (formation theory) and its potential for detection (recovery theory). In this sense abdutive reasoning was used to generate hypotheses about the preservation or not of covered sites, based on the sedimentary and morphostratigraphic models produced for the south-southeast coast. In turn, the search for indicators in the coastal plains of Guaratuba- PR and Caraguatatuba-SP, it made possible to point constraints (variables) favorable to the generation of a trap model for sites (sedimental capstone and preservation) for the region of Guaratuba Bay. Finally it was tested the probabilistic bayesian reasoning and Evidence Theory (Dempster-Shafer) for the inclusion and representation of uncertainty in the research of sambaquis foreseeing a method of treatment of the evidence and inferences generated by knowledge-based systems. These methods also allowed to determine the weights for different indicators, and the conditions of necessity, sufficiency and ambiguity of the variables in the generation of maps applied to the prediction of favorability and susceptibility of buried archaeological sites in the coastal plain of Guaratuba.

A presente tese refere-se a uma proposta de abordagem geoarqueológica voltada ao estudo de sítios arqueológicos costeiros, enfocando pressupostos teóricos e metodológicos ligados à uma aproximação entre a Arqueologia, Geociências e Ciências da Informação. Objetivou em um primeiro momento, inserir questões e problemáticas relativas a necessidade de inclusão da incerteza no raciocínio e práticas arqueológicas, vislumbrando as possibilidades de seu tratamento. Neste sentido, a percepção do \"problema da não informação\" constituiu o argumento conceitual para a elaboração de um modelo de raciocínio dialético sobre a aquisição, geração, seleção e transmissão de informações na disciplina. Nessa perspectiva, sobreveio a necessidade da interação constante entre Teorias de Formação e de Recuperação, como passo essencial ao controle das perdas e ganhos informacionais e, ao tratamento das imperfeições, incompletudes, imprecisões e ambiguidades ligadas aos fenômenos arqueológicos e seu registro científico. Um dos aspectos explorados refere-se à percepção das incertezas e vieses envolvidos na interpretação das ocupações costeiras, notadamente quanto às problemáticas de origem e migração das primeiras populações nessas áreas. Em um modelo atual dicotômico entre o interior e o litoral, onde mesmo os sítios mais antigos (somente sambaquis) acham-se dispostos sobre a superfície dos terrenos, a percepção da dinâmica e complexidade dos sistemas costeiros, fica restrita ao enquadramento desses sítios em sucessões de cenários geomórficos e paeogeográficos. Deste modo, pouca atenção é dada às conseqüências de agentes dinâmicos sobre a configuração e seleção de sítios na atual paisagem costeira, bem como, à possibilidade de ocorrência e detecção de diferentes classes de sítios, que foram preservados em profundidade por meio de processos de capeamento sedimentar. Assim, em um segundo momento, foi proposto à utilização do conceito de \"Controles Geoarquelógicos\" (CG) no estudo e explicitação dos condicionantes naturais e analíticos envolvidos em uma pesquisa de caráter regional, cujo enfoque está nas relações informacionais estabelecidas entre sítios arqueológicos e meio (natural e analítico), e cujo resultado (síntese dialética) compreenderia a noção de evento arqueológico. Diante da explicitação da variabilidade envolvida na caracterização do Registro Arqueológico Regional (RAR), bem como, dos condicionantes complexos derivados da estrutura, dinâmica e evolução da paisagem, o evento arqueológico considerado na tese, compreendeu a investigação da probabilidade de preservação de sítios costeiros antigos (teoria de formação) e do seu potencial de detecção (teoria de recuperação). Neste sentido foi utilizado o raciocínio abdutivo para gerar hipóteses sobre a preservação ou não de sítios encobertos, tendo por base os modelos sedimentares e morfoestratigraficos produzidos para a costa sul-sudeste. Por sua vez, a busca de indicadores nas planícies costeiras de Guaratuba-PR e de Caraguatatuba SP, possibilitou apontar condicionantes (variáveis) favoráveis a geração de um modelo de trapeamento de sítios (capeamento e preservação sedimentar) para a região da Baía de Guaratuba. Por fim, foi testado o raciocínio probabilístico Bayesiano e a Teoria de Evidências (Dempster-Shafer) para a inclusão e representação da incerteza na pesquisa de sambaquis, visualizando um método de tratamento das evidências e inferências geradas em sistemas baseados em conhecimento. Esses mesmos métodos também permitiram determinar os pesos para os diferentes indicadores, e as condições de necessidade, suficiência e ambigüidade das variáveis na geração de mapas aplicados à predição da favorabilidade e suscetibilidade de sítios arqueológicos enterrados na planície costeira de Guaratuba. / This thesis refers to a proposal for a geoarchaeological approach focused on the study of coastal archaeological sites, concentrating on theoretical and methodological assumptions related to a closeness between the archeology, the Information Sciences and Geosciences. It aimed in a first moment, to insert issues and problems concerning the need for inclusion of uncertainty in archaeological reasoning and practice, foreseeing the possibilities of their treatment. In this sense, the perception of the \"no information problem\" was the argument for the conceptual development of a model of dialectical thinking about the acquisition, generation, selection and transmission of information in the discipline. Accordingly, the need for constant interaction between Formation and Recovery Theories became an essential step to the control of informational losses and gains, and the treatment of imperfections, incompleteness, inaccuracies and ambiguities relating to archaeological phenomena and their scientific record. One of the aspects exploited, is the perception of slants and uncertainties involved in the interpretation of coastal activities, notably on issues of origin and migration of the first people in those areas. In a current dichotomic model between the interior and the coast, where even the oldest sites (only sambaquis) are found placed on the surface of the land, the perception of the complexity and dynamics of the coastal systems, is restricted to the framework of these sites in a succession of geomorphic and paleogeographics \"scenarios\". Thus, little attention is given to the dynamic agents consequences on the configuration and selection of sites in the coastal landscape, and the possibility of occurrence and detection of different classes of sites, which were preserved indepth by a sedimental capstone process. Therefore, in a second moment, it was proposed to use the concept of \"geoarchaeological control \" (GC) in the study and explanation of natural and analytical conditions involved in a research of regional manner, whose focus is on the informational relations established between archaeological sites and the environment (natural and analytical), whose result (dialectical synthesis) understand the concept of the archaeological event. Given the explicit characterization of the variability involved in the Regional Archaeological Record (RAR), as well as the complex condition agent derived from the structure, dynamics and evolution of the landscape, the archaeological event considered in the thesis, understand the research of the probability of preservation of ancient coastal sites (formation theory) and its potential for detection (recovery theory). In this sense abdutive reasoning was used to generate hypotheses about the preservation or not of covered sites, based on the sedimentary and morphostratigraphic models produced for the south-southeast coast. In turn, the search for indicators in the coastal plains of Guaratuba- PR and Caraguatatuba-SP, it made possible to point constraints (variables) favorable to the generation of a trap model for sites (sedimental capstone and preservation) for the region of Guaratuba Bay. Finally it was tested the probabilistic bayesian reasoning and Evidence Theory (Dempster-Shafer) for the inclusion and representation of uncertainty in the research of sambaquis foreseeing a method of treatment of the evidence and inferences generated by knowledge-based systems. These methods also allowed to determine the weights for different indicators, and the conditions of necessity, sufficiency and ambiguity of the variables in the generation of maps applied to the prediction of favorability and susceptibility of buried archaeological sites in the coastal plain of Guaratuba.

Die Forschungsarbeit beabsichtigte den Zusammenhang zwischen Kultur und der wahrgenommenen Bedienbarkeit der PIM Software seitens deutscher und indonesischer Anwender, welcher in zwei Experimenten untersucht wurde, zu erforschen. Die Entwicklung der PIM Technologie in beiden Ländern, sowie deren kultureller Wert, insbesondere Unsicherheitsvermeidung (UA) und Individualismus-Kollektivismus (INCOL), repräsentieren die zentralen Beweggründe der vorliegenden Untersuchung. Der betrachtete kulturelle Hintergrund und die verwendete Methodik stellen die Verbindung zwischen der ersten und zweiten Studie dar. Die Experimente waren in zwei Studien aufgeteilt, da jeder kulturelle Hintergrund ein unterschiedliches Erhebungsdesign benötigt: UA steht in Beziehung mit der ersten vs. der zweiten Aufgabe und INCOL wurde mittels zwei verschiedenen Wegen der Vervollständigung erfasst (Individual- vs. Gruppenaufgabe). Während sich der Fokus der ersten Studie auf den Vergleich zwischen der deutschen und indonesischen Kultur richtet, konzentrierte sich die zweite Studie auf Kulturen zwischen (Deutschland vs. Indonesien) und innerhalb eines Landes (Individualismus vs. Kollektivismus). Die Ergebnisse legen dar, dass deutsche Anwender ein höheres Level an Unsicherheitsvermeidung als indonesische Anwender zeigen. Lediglich hinsichtlich der Zufriedenheit weisen indonesische, verglichen zu deutschen Benutzern, einen höheren Wert auf, wobei der Haupteffekt der Zeit nur bezüglich der Höhe der Effizienz signifikant ist. Es zeigte sich außerdem ein positiver Zusammenhang zwischen UA und der Effizienz beider Aufgaben, sowie eine negative Korrelation zwischen UA und der berichteten Zufriedenheit. Hinsichtlich der Höhe von UA und der Effektivität ließ sich kein negativer Zusammenhang nachweisen. Desweiteren, betreffend INCOL, lässt sich zusammenfassen, dass der Hauptinteraktionseffekt Aufgabe*INCOL statistisch signifikant ist. Bezüglich Effizienz und Zufriedenheit ist entscheidend, dass, je höher die Ausprägung von Individualismus und Kollektivismus auf Seiten der Anwender ist, desto weniger Zeit beanspruchen diese für die Ausführung individueller Aufgaben und desto zufriedener wenden die Benutzer das PIM und GIM Tool an. Mit eingeschlossen ist jedoch, dass sich zwischen Individualismus und Kollektivismus deutscher und indonesischer Bediener kein Zusammenhang mit der Höhe der Effektivität darstellen lasst. Zusammenfassend ist festzuhalten, dass die Entwickler der PIM Software mit einer internationalen Anwendergruppe beachten sollten, dass die Ergebnisse von Usability Messungen seitens Benutzeranfänger in verschiedenen Kulturen unterschiedlich sein können.:1. Abstract 2. Chapter 1: Introduction 3. Chapter 2: Research Paradigm 4. Chapter 3: Uncertainty Avoidance and Usability of Personal Information Management 5. Chapter 4: Do Individualistic and Collective Persons Measure Usability of Personal and Group Information Management differently? A Culturability Study with German and Indonesian Users 6. Chapter 5: Summary and Conclusion 7. References