Paper submission deadline is extended to Sep. 16

Mobile Agents and Systems Track

An agent is a computational entity that interacts with one or more counterparts or real-world systems with the following key features to varying degrees: (a) autonomy, (b) reactiveness, (c) pro-activeness, and (d) social abilities. An agent may also be mobile, in which case the agent migrates along with its associated data, state and logic to another host to interact with local resources, other agents, and remote hosts to perform a given task. Mobile agents offer several capabilities such as bandwidth-efficient and low latency communication, disconnected operation, and support for development of highly dynamic and flexible systems. Several agents can collectively form a multi-agent system with decentralized data and a varying degree of global system control (potentially none at all). In this track we are interested in the combined issues of mobile and multi-agent systems (MMS) viewed from an applied perspective.

Issues of interactions between individual human-agent, agent-agent, or groups is of interest. Agents have to be designed to account for other agents and infrastructures have to be deigned to facilitate such interaction. Although theories and models are important, much can be gained from applied work and interesting domains. Examples of naturally occurring and man-made multi-agent systems and domains are e-commerce, complex space missions, the game of soccer, and ant colonies. Business benefits from study of multi-agency include (a) tools and techniques for modeling existing organizations and their dynamics by modeling the interactions among individuals, (b) approaches to modeling and engineering electronic societies that extend automation in service of mankind, and (c) new tools for distributed knowledge-ware. While considered by many to be one of the more interesting approaches to the development and implementation of large complex systems, MMS are still controversial. There are those who view them as just a fad that in the long run will not be able to bring a significant breakthrough in the development of large complex systems. Finally, there are those who believe that these systems are just a repackaging of old ideas, and claim that while nothing particularly new is being brought to the table, there is potential in this approach from the application developer’s viewpoint. We look forward to well developed contrary points of view.

Track Program Chairs

Shahram Rahimi - Southern Illinois University, rahimi@cs.siu.edu
Costin Badica - University of Craiova, badica_costin@software.ucv.ro
Maria Ganzha - EUH-E and IBS PAN, Maria.Ganzha@ibspan.waw.pl
Marcin Paprzycki - SWPS and IBS PAN, mpaprzycki@swps.edu.pl
Yung-Chuan Alex Lee - Southern Illinois University, ylee@cs.siu.edu