The models under consideration are a class of infinite particle systems which can be written as a superposition of branching random walks. This paper gives some results about the limiting behavior of the number of particles in a compact set as t → ∞ and also gives both sufficient and necessary conditions for the existence of a non-trivial translation-invariant stationary distribution.

The secretary problem refers to a certain class of optimal stopping problems based on relative ranks. To allow a more realistic formulation of the problem, this paper considers an arbitrary loss function. A finite and an infinite problem are defined and the optimal solutions are obtained. The solution for the infinite problem is given by a differential equation while the finite problem is given by a difference equation. Under general conditions, the finite problem tends to the infinite problem. An example involving the secretary problem with interview cost is considered and illustrates the usefulness of the present paper.

The matrix of intensities of a Markov process with discrete state space and continuous time parameter undergoes random changes in time in such a way that it stays constant between random instants. The resulting non-Markovian process is analyzed with the help of supplementary process defined in terms of variations of the intensity matrix. Several examples are presented.

The equilibrium behavior of Jackson queueing networks (Poisson arrivals, exponential servers and Bernoulli switches) has recently been investigated in some detail. In particular, it was found that in equilibrium, the traffic processes on the so-called exit arcs of a Jackson network with single server nodes constitute Poisson processes—a result extending Burke's theorem from single queues to networks of queues.

A conjecture made by Burke and others contends that the traffic processes on non-exit arcs cannot be Poisson in equilibrium. This paper proves this conjecture to be true for a variety of Jackson networks with single server nodes. Subsequently, a number of characterizations of the equilibrium traffic streams on the arcs of open Jackson networks emerge, whereby Poisson-related stochastic properties of traffic streams are shown to be equivalent to a simple graph-theoretical property of the underlying arcs. These results then help to identify some inherent limitations on the feasibility of equilibrium decompositions of Jackson networks, and to point out conditions under which further decompositions are ‘approximately’ valid.

We compare two queueing systems with the same number of servers that differ by having stochastically ordered service times and/or interarrival times as well as different waiting room capacities. We establish comparisons for the sequences of actual-arrival and departure epochs, and demonstrate by counterexample that many stochastic comparisons possible with infinite waiting rooms no longer hold with finite waiting rooms.

We compare two queueing systems with identical general arrival streams, but different numbers of servers, different waiting room capacities, and stochastically ordered service time distributions. Under appropriate conditions, it is possible to construct two new systems on the same probability space so that the new systems are probabilistically equivalent to the original systems and each sample path of the stochastic process representing system size in one system lies entirely below the corresponding sample path in the other system. This construction implies stochastic order for these processes and many associated quantities of interest, such as a busy period, the number of customers lost in any interval, and the virtual waiting time.