Warning: Discretize with Care
Working Paper No QM 93-02
Posted: 14 Jun 2000
Abstract
Decision analysts commonly use low-order discrete approximation of probability distributions to reduce computational effort. We have found that three popular discretization methods can lead to serious errors in certain applications, among them, news vendor problem and scheduling decisions for service-facilities. We demonstrate that the moment-matching approach to discretization can be particularly poor, and discuss how one might uncover potential problems due to discretization.
JEL Classification: G00
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
Braden, David J. and Groenevelt, Harry, Warning: Discretize with Care. Working Paper No QM 93-02, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=6156
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