a b s t r a c tClassic methods such as A ⁄ and IDA ⁄ are a popular and successful choice for one-player games. However, without an accurate admissible evaluation function, they fail. In this article we investigate whether Monte-Carlo tree search (MCTS) is an interesting alternative for one-player games where A ⁄ and IDA ⁄ methods do not perform well. Therefore, we propose a new MCTS variant, called single-player MonteCarlo tree search (SP-MCTS). The selection and backpropagation strategy in SP-MCTS are different from standard MCTS. Moreover, SP-MCTS makes use of randomized restarts. We tested IDA ⁄ and SP-MCTS on the puzzle SameGame and used the cross-entropy method to tune the SP-MCTS parameters. It turned out that our SP-MCTS program is able to score a substantial number of points on the standardized test set.
This paper deals with the optimization of the flow of sterile instruments in hospitals which takes place between the sterilization department and the operating theatre. This topic is especially of interest in view of the current attempts of hospitals to cut cost by outsourcing sterilization tasks. Oftentimes, outsourcing implies placing the sterilization unit at a larger distance, hence introducing a longer logistic loop, which may result in lower instrument availability, and higher cost. This paper discusses the optimization problems that have to be solved when redesigning processes so as to improve material availability and reduce cost. We consider changing the logistic management principles, use of visibility information, and optimizing the composition of the nets of sterile materials.
This article describes a new, game-independent forward-pruning technique for EXPECTIMAX, called CHAN-CEPROBCUT. It is the first technique to forward prune in chance nodes. Based on the strong correlation between evaluations obtained from searches at different depths, the technique prunes chance events if the result of the chance node is likely to fall outside the search window. In this article, CHANCEPROBCUT is tested in two games, i.e., Stratego and Dice. Experiments reveal that the technique is able to reduce the search tree significantly without a loss of move quality. Moreover, in both games there is also an increase of playing performance.
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