The game of chess has many times been discussed and used for test purpose by science departments of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Although the technique of agent and as well multi-agent systems is quite old, the use of these offspring of AI within chess is limited. This report describes the project performed applying the use of agents to a chess program. To measure the performance of the logic has tests between the developed program main parts been performed. Further tests against a traditional chess program as well to position test suites have been done. The results and the impact of the different logic parts is presented and discussed. The aim of the project is to take the use of agents in chess a step forward.

<p> Steady state heat and mass balancing around an ethylene/ethane distillation unit at Polymer Corporation, Sarnia is studied using the CHESS simulation executive system.</p> <p> The unit involves a single column with reboiler heat provided by recompression of the overhead vapor stream.</p> <p> A new column model is developed, based on the approximate pseudo-binary method of Hengstebeck, and is shown to give good results with marked savings in computation time over the conventional tray to tray methods. Models for vapor compression and heat exchange are also presented.</p> <p> The system model is fitted to plant data and a routine developed to obtain satisfactory system convergence.</p> <p> A parametric study is carried out in which column pressure and distillate product enthalpy are varied to demonstrate significant improvements in plant operation.</p> <p> An evaluation of the CHESS simulation system is presented.</p> / Thesis / Master of Engineering (MEngr)

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This thesis investigates an intelligent system that can in real time infer the course of action of a human opponent in a competitive environment. Such an achievement would indicate the possibility that machines can not only interpret human behavior as it happens, but also predict the future course of action that a human might take. This thesis first examines several different application of intention recognition, describes the approach of Template Based Interpretation (TBI), and details the process of creating an efficient and accurate intention recognition system. The domain chosen is chess. The system's objective was to discern the opponent's strategy. It is able to use the board positions and other relevant data of the current state to gain an understanding of the movement patterns of the opposition.

This study explores the way imperfect information affects chess gameplay in players with different skill levels. To explore the effects of removing information from a perfect system we used both chess and a variant of chess known as dark chess or fog of war chess. With a sample size of eight players organised into four pairs, we gathered both quantitative data from the moves made in the chess matches and qualitative data from interviews with the participants. The findings of this research may be useful to chess enthusiasts and players who wish to study perfect and imperfect information systems in games, as well as game designers and game researchers who are studying the effects of hidden information on gameplay and strategy. Our findings show no relation between ratings and performance in dark chess but instead show a relation between strategies chosen by players and the outcome of dark chess games.

Afin d’évaluer les performances du combustible irradié en situation de stockage géologique, des recherches sont menées sur le comportement à long terme des combustibles irradiés (UOx et MOx) en conditions environnementales se rapprochant de celles du site de stockage français. L’objectif de cette thèse est de déterminer si la géochimie de la couche géologique d'argilites du Callovo-Oxfordien (COx) et la corrosion des conteneurs en acier (produisant du fer et de l'hydrogène) ont un impact sur la dissolution oxydante de la matrice (U,Pu)O2 sous radiolyse alpha de l’eau.Des expériences de lixiviation ont été réalisées avec des pastilles de UO2 dopées en émetteurs alpha (Pu) et du combustible MOx MIMAS (non irradié ou irradié en réacteur) afin de mettre en évidence l’influence de l’eau du COx et de la présence de fer métallique sur la dissolution oxydante de ces différents matériaux induite par la radiolyse de l’eau. Les résultats indiquent un effet inhibiteur de l’eau du COx sur la dissolution oxydante de la matrice UO2. D’autre part en présence de fer, deux régimes différents sont observés. Sous irradiation alpha dominante telle que celle attendue en stockage géologique, la dissolution oxydante de la matrice UO2 et du combustible MOx est très fortement inhibée du fait de la consommation des espèces radiolytiques oxydantes par le fer en solution avec précipitation d’hydroxydes de Fe(III) à la surface des pastilles. En revanche, sous forte irradiation beta/gamma comme dans le cas du combustible irradié, les traceurs de l’altération indiquent que celle-ci se poursuit en présence de fer tandis que la concentration en uranium en solution est contrôlée par la solubilité de UO2(am,hyd). Ceci est expliqué par le déplacement du front redox de la surface du combustible vers la solution homogène ne protégeant plus le combustible. Les modèles géochimique (code CHESS) et de transport réactif (code HYTEC) développés représentent correctement les principaux résultats et mécanismes mis en jeu. / To assess the performance of direct disposal of spent fuel in a nuclear waste repository, researches are performed on the long-term behavior of spent fuel (UOx and MOx) under environmental conditions close to those of the French disposal site. The objective of this study is to determine whether the geochemistry of the Callovian-Oxfordian (COx) clay geological formation and the steel overpack corrosion (producing iron and hydrogen) have an impact on the oxidative dissolution of the (U,Pu)O2 matrix under alpha radiolysis of water.Leaching experiments have been performed with UO2 pellets doped with alpha emitters (Pu) and MIMAS MOx fuel (un-irradiated or spent fuel) to study the effect of the COx groundwater and of the presence of metallic iron upon the oxidative dissolution of these materials induced by the radiolysis of water. Results indicate an inhibiting effect of the COx water on the oxidative dissolution. In the presence of iron, two different behaviors are observed. Under alpha irradiation as the one expected in the geological disposal, the alteration of UO2 matrix and MOx fuel is very strongly inhibited because of the consumption of radiolytic oxidative species by iron in solution leading to the precipitation of Fe(III)-hydroxides on the pellets surface. On the contrary, under a strong beta/gamma irradiation field, alteration tracers indicate that the oxidative dissolution goes on and that uranium concentration in solution is controlled by the solubility of UO2(am,hyd). This is explained by the shifting of the redox front from the fuel surface to the bulk solution not protecting the fuel anymore. The developed geochemical (CHESS) and reactive transport (HYTEC) models correctly represent the main results and occurring mechanisms.

Text in English / The literature review indicated similarities between education and chess playing and possible transfer of knowledge between these two different domains. A link was then suggested between some aspects of intellectual abilities and chess instruction in children, but not in adults (Frydman & Lynn, 1992; Waters, Doll & Mayr, 1987). In this research study the aim was to explore the relationship between chess playing and cognitive and intellectual development in Grade R learners at Garsieland. Therefore the positive influence that chess playing brings to bear on the intelligence of 64 Grade R learners (as measured on intelligence scales) was investigated. The data was collected through short biographical questionnaires and psychometric tests and the participants in both groups were assessed on two occasions. The study suggested that chess instruction exerted a positive (small) effect on Performance intelligence and subsequently on the Global scale of the Junior South African Intelligence Scales. The children in both groups also exhibited improved cognitive development after the 40 week period during 2009. / Psychology / M.A. (Psychology)

M.Sc. / Grid computing is a technology concerned with harvesting idle resources of geographically distributed and interconnected computers. It solves problems regarded as too complex or large to be solved by a single computer. Furthermore, economic grid computing is becoming the most dominant form of grid computing. It enables some form of payment to occur between resource producers and resource consumers in grid computing. Mobile devices and mobile telecommunication services, a relatively new field of technology, are rapidly increasing in popularity, size, strength and application. At the end of 2006, there were approximately 2.7 billion global active mobile users utilising mobile devices and mobile telecommunication services [Aho07]. At the end of 2007 this number had grown to 3.3 billion mobile users, more than half a billion additional mobile users in a period of one year [McN07]. With such large numbers, grid computing can benefit from the clustering of mobile devices forming a mobile grid computing model. However, there are many inherent disadvantages concerning mobile devices, such as low processing capabilities, unpredictable network connections and battery utilisation. Such hurdles must be addressed and solved if a mobile computing infrastructure or architecture is ever to be considered. This dissertation proposes the implementation of an economic mobile computing solution: Mobile Agents for Global Mobile Device Grid Infrastructure Enterprises, or MAGGIE. MAGGIE is concerned with harvesting idle mobile device resources by implementing the supply and demand economic model, aiming to create a healthy competitive economic market environment. MAGGIE implements agent and mobile agent technology to compensate for the hurdles introduced by mobile devices and mobile device software development platforms. It is targeted at both Sun Microsystems’s J2ME MIDP 2.0 and Microsoft’s .NET Compact Framework, enabling lower-end and higher-end mobile devices to contribute mobile computing services and resources for utilisation by other mobile device users. The primary goal of MAGGIE is to produce an architecture as generic as possible regarding the development and implementation of MAGGIE services. MAGGIE allows third-party application developers to seamlessly implement an array of MAGGIE services, without indepth prior knowledge of the architecture and technical aspects of MAGGIE. Finally, MAGGIE’s capabilities are demonstrated by implementing a distributed mobile chess service known as the MAGGIE Chess Service. The MAGGIE Chess Service enables a collection of distributed mobile devices in determining the best move originating from a chessboard position.

Acredita-se que a polaridade do jogo de xadrez encontra-se enraizada na matéria ficcional de Guimarães Rosa sob matizes diversificados, desdobrando-se em outros jogos, como o do olhar, que delineia, por sua vez, interesses variados, relacionados ao amor, à sedução, ao erotismo, ao interesse político e ao interesse privado, sendo o jogo da linguagem aquele que alicerça a todos. A análise desse discurso ideológico priorizou dois contos de momentos enunciativos distintos (1946 e 1956, respectivamente) na produção rosiana, justamente para tentar aclarar a perspectiva enxadrística de uma maneira mais enfática em um, e mais subjacente em outro: Minha gente e Buriti. No tabuleiro destas duas estórias, o viés mítico, atado ao feminino, e o psicanalítico freudiano, em especial, aparecem, quando convocados pelo texto literário, para embasar a análise. / It is believed that the polarity of a game of chess is embedded in the fictional work of Guimarães Rosa under varied hues, unfolding in other games, as the eye that outlines, in turn, varied interests, related, for example, to love, to seduction, to eroticism, to the political interest, to the private interest, while the game of the language underpins all of them. The analysis of the mechanisms of this discourse of aesthetic and ideological implications prioritized two tales of distinct moments (1946 and 1956 respectively) in Rosa\'s production, in order to clarify the white side and the black side from the dynamic of a game of chess: Minha genteand Buriti. In the board of these two stories, the mythical bias, attached to the female, and in special the Freudian psychoanalytic appear, when convened by the literary text, to support the analysis.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-10T10:34:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Wesley Rodrigues Rocha.pdf: 461326 bytes, checksum: 6bdd8af6cf4e5ecab2fea8efd2b7eadd (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-09-09 / This paper analyzes the game and discusses about it as a part of culture and as a historical phenomenon. By considering culture as the set of significations produced by men throughout history, and the game as an element of a culture codified universe, it analyzes the relationship between game practice and the values of societies that adopt them. It also analyzes games in general and highlights the chess game, more specifically, as a representative side view of the relationship society/game. This work presents an overview of the chess game history, which began in the sixth century, and investigates its development, noticing changes that were made and metaphors that were produced throughout history, especially the representation of the old war and of the medieval society, showing how social changes influenced in many ways on this game, which is very antique. It discusses the importance of chess competitions during the Cold War period, showing how the communist and the U.S. governments valued their players victories. It also relates how this game was emphasized in the National Curricular Parameters (PCNs) and how the chess game has been used in schools as a pedagogical tool. Analyses are based on concepts developed by Huizinga (2007), especially in his book Homo ludens: game as a part of culture ( Homo ludens: o jogo como elemento da cultura ), published in 1938, in which the author considers the game as a primary category of life, from which culture arises in the form of language and poetry, and of rituals and sacred things, noticing, therefore, its importance to reasoning (homo sapiens) and construction of tools (homo faber). This study notices Huizinga's thesis about the decline of the playfulness factor in society by observing practices and highlights that are provided to contemporary competitions, such as the Olympics and world tournaments. It shows that in modern and contemporary society, the game has followed culture much more in the sense of one of its main features, the competition, rather than in the sense of the playfulness factor, as Huizinga argues. However, regarding the chess game, this study supports the idea that, despite the seriousness nature of tournaments and its pedagogical use, often as a compulsory subject in school curricula, the practice of chess playing is still encouraged by the playful competition. Another idea that is supported in this work is the fact that the seriousness of chess matches favors the playfulness factor, whether in school, where people seek to show citizenship attitudes through the game practice, or in matches that are played by amateurs and scholars. / Este trabalho analisa e discute o jogo como elemento da cultura e como fenômeno histórico. Considerando a cultura como o conjunto de significações produzidas pelos homens no transcorrer da história, e o jogo como um elemento no universo codificado de uma cultura, procura analisar a relação existente entre a prática dos jogos e os valores das sociedades que os adotam. Analisa os jogos de uma maneira geral e destaca como recorte representativo dessa relação sociedade/jogo mais especificamente o jogo de xadrez. Apresenta uma visão geral da história do jogo de Xadrez, cujas origens datam do século VI e investiga o seu desenvolvimento, observando as mudanças sofridas e as metáforas produzidas no transcorrer da história, principalmente a da representação da guerra antiga e da sociedade medieval, mostrando como as transformações sociais exerceram influências de diversas ordens sobre esse jogo de origens tão antigas. Discute a importância atribuída às competições de xadrez durante o período da Guerra Fria, mostrando a valorização dada pelo governo comunista e norte-americano às vitórias de seus jogadores. Comenta também o destaque dado ao jogo nos PCN s e o uso que se tem feito do Xadrez nas escolas como instrumento pedagógico. As análises fundamentam-se nos conceitos elaborados por Huizinga (2007), especialmente em seu livro Homo ludens: o jogo como elemento da cultura , publicado em 1938, em que o autor considera o jogo como uma categoria primária da vida, de onde nasce a cultura sob a forma de linguagem e poesia, de ritual e de sagrado, considerando, assim, sua importância junto ao raciocínio (homo sapiens) e à construção de ferramentas (homo faber). Este estudo considera a tese huizinguiana do declínio do fator lúdico na sociedade ao observar as práticas e os destaques dados às competições contemporâneas como as Olimpíadas e os torneios mundiais. Mostra o fato de que, na sociedade moderna e contemporânea, o jogo tem acompanhado a cultura muito mais no sentido de uma de suas principais características, a competição, em detrimento do fator lúdico, tal como defende Huizinga. Todavia, em relação ao jogo de Xadrez este estudo defende a idéia de que, apesar do caráter de seriedade de que se revestem os torneios e de seu uso pedagógico, muitas vezes como disciplina obrigatória nos currículos escolares, a prática do enxadrismo é ainda fomentada pela competição lúdica. Outro aspecto que é defendido neste trabalho é o fato de que a seriedade que envolve as partidas de xadrez favorece o fator lúdico, quer seja na escola, em que se procura mostrar atitudes de cidadania por meio da prática do jogo, quer seja em partidas disputadas por amadores e estudiosos.