The Chinese Room Argument Essay - 906 Words

John Searle formulated the Chinese Room Argument in the early 80’s as an attempt to prove that computers are not cognitive operating systems. In short though the immergence of artificial and computational systems has rapidly increased the infinite possibility of knowledge, Searle uses the Chinese room argument to shown that computers are not cognitively independent. John Searle developed two areas of thought concerning the independent cognition of computers. These ideas included the definition of a weak AI and a strong AI. In essence, these two types of AI have their fundamental differences. The weak AI was defined as a system, which simply were systems that simulations of the human mind and AI systems that were characterized as an†¦show more content†¦The assumption is that the person is capable of understanding Chinese, simply because he can manage to assemble a set of answers to questions that would be indistiquishable from a person who speaks Chinese. The prob lem is that the person in the room does not understand any of the answers, but is simply following instructions. Searle utilizes a system’s ability to pass the Turing test as a parameter in the study, though the person would still indeed not understand Chinese. Searle proceeds to refute the claims of strong AI one at a time, by positioning himself as the one who manipulates the Chinese symbols. The first claim is that a system, which can pass the Turing test, understands the input and output. Searle replies that as the computer in the Chinese room, he gains no understanding of Chinese by simply manipulating the symbols according to the formal program, in this case being the complex rules. (Searle, 1980) It was not necessary for the operator to have any understanding of what the interviewer is asking, or the replies that produced. He may not even know that there is a question and answer session going on outside the room. The second claim of strong AI, which Searle objects to, is the claim that the system explains human understanding. Searle asserts that since the system is functioning, in this case passing the Turing Test, (Brigeman, 1980) thereShow MoreRelatedThe Chinese Room Argument1272 Words   |  6 Pagesâ€Å"the Chinese Room Argument†. The basics of the Chinese Room Argument is simply imagining someone, who does not understand Chinese, inside a room with a large number of Chinese symbols and a book for instructions in how to manipulate the Chinese symbols. People from outside the room might send in more Chinese symbols to the person inside the room, not even knowing that the Chinese symbols are questions. By using the book of instructions, the person inside the room can manipulate the Chinese symbolsRead MoreA Critique Of The Chinese Room Argument2056 Words   |  9 Pages(Not) Mere Semantics: A Critique of the Chinese Room The Roman Stoic, Seneca, is oft quoted that it is the power of the mind to be unconquerable (Seneca, 1969). And so seems that, in recent times, Searle has produced a similar rhetoric. (At least insofar as strong AI might ‘conquer’ and reducibly explain mental states). This essay will attempt to do two things: 1) Examine three central objections to Searle’s Chinese Room Argument (CRA); these being the Systems Reply (SR), Deviant Causal Chain (DCC)Read MoreAnalysis Of Searle s The Chinese Room Argument Essay1597 Words   |  7 PagesSearle’s, The Chinese Room Argument, asks, if a computer can use data to output answers does that computer understand? In Searle’s experiment, he acts as a computer and is given translations of Chinese symbols. He states that even though he can find the appropriate translations for the symbols and output answers he still does not understand Chinese. Prior to my previous argument, I look to investigate in what instance ca n the computer be thought of as an understanding machine. In order to do thisRead MoreEssay about John Searles Chinese Room Argument2000 Words   |  8 PagesJohn Searles Chinese Room Argument The purpose of this paper is to present John Searle’s Chinese room argument in which it challenges the notions of the computational paradigm, specifically the ability of intentionality. Then I will outline two of the commentaries following, the first by Bruce Bridgeman, which is in opposition to Searle and uses the super robot to exemplify his point. Then I will discuss John Eccles’ response, which entails a general agreement with Searle with a few objectionsRead MoreMinds, Brains, and Science by John R. Searle1815 Words   |  7 PagesBerkeley (â€Å"John R. Searle,† 2014). Searle earned his Ph.D. in philosophy at Oxford, and has made several contributions to his field on topics, such as consciousness, artificial intelligence, and the problem of free will (â€Å"John R. Searle,† 2014). His â€Å"Chinese Room† experiment is known as one of the main critiques to the concept of artificial intelligence. In Searle’s book, Searle describes his thought process into this experiment during the second chapter, titled â€Å"Can Computers Think?† Searle’s purpose ofRead MoreWhy Functionalism Is A Better Theory Than Identity Theory1231 Words   |  5 Pagesto humans, so would count as having mental states. Therefore functionalists are saying that machines are conscious. But surely, only biologically living organisms have the platform to obtain a conscious mind, which is the brain. The absent qualia argument was raised by philosopher Ned Block against functionalism (Block, 1978). Qualia are our private experiences and sensations that are infallible and cannot be explained by words, like the smell of fresh coffee, or the sensation of pain, and thus theyRead MoreComputing Machinery And Intelligence By Alan Turing1469 Words   |  6 Pagesnature of machines’ capacity for thought or consciousness, such as John Searle. In his Chinese room thought experiment, Searle outlines a scenario that implies machinesâ€⠄¢ apparent replication of human cognition does not yield conscious understanding. While Searle’s Chinese thought experiment demonstrates how a Turing test is not sufficient to establish that a machine can possess consciousness or thought, this argument does not prove that machines are absolutely incapable of consciousness or thought. RatherRead MoreChinese Room Scenario by John R. Searle Essay531 Words   |  3 PagesChinese Room Scenario by John R. Searle Through the use of his famous Chinese room scenario, John R. Searle tries to prove there is no way artificial intelligence can exist. This means that machines do not posses minds. The debate between those who are in favor of strong and weak artificial intelligence (AI) is directly related to the philosophy of mind. The claim of weak AI is that it is possible to run a program on a machine, which will behave as if it were a thinking thing. BelieversRead MoreDualism Provides An Explanation For The Mind1100 Words   |  5 Pages Dualism provides an explanation for the relationship to the mind in several ways. The relationship between the two is a compelling argument that several philosophers make. Although the body is a psychical existence the mind is utterly non-psychical. The body and mind are innately different beings and we cannot perceive mind-body dualism with our senses. Humans are aware that individuals hold psychical and mental entities traced back to psychical sciences including size and color. Additionally,Read MoreThe Mind Brain Identity Theory1689 Words   |  7 PagesIn the article â€Å"The Nature of Mental States† Hillary Putnam presents a compelling argument that dealt a â€Å"considerable blow† to the Mind-Brain Identity Theory—a theory developed by J.C.C Smart—in which he [Putnam] stated â€Å"mental states are multiply realizable.† His argument is driven by functionalism. His functionalist account of mental states like pain differs from what is explained by the Mind-Brain Identity Theory. In turn, he also avoids the issue of multiple realizability, an issue that was proven

Price Volatility and Market Efficiency †Free Samples to Students

Question: Discuss about the Price Volatility and Market Efficiency. Answer: Introduction: From the overall evaluation of the spreadsheet, it could be understood that the NPV of the new project designed by Riverlea is relatively adequate. From the valuation it could be understood that the company's overall value will mainly increase by 86,942.60, as this is the NPV, which will we obtained by the company. However, the additional cash inflow that will be obtained by the company after incorporating the new project is 333,000 every year. This additional amount could eventually help the company obtain higher revenue and increase its value in future Management. This cash flow has been obtained by deducting all the cash outflows from the inflows provided by the new project (Baum and Crosby 2014).Calculation also, dates all the relevant reductions in revenue, which is obtained due to the commencement of the overall new project. The initial investment and cash inflows are relatively adequate as it might provide the company with relevant funds to support its future endeavours. Almar ri and Blackwell (2014) mentioned that derivation of NPV valuation mainly allows companies to adequate make decision regarding viability of a set investment opportunity. Particulars Value Beta 1.2 ASX200 15% 90-day bill 4.50% CAPM Rf + Beta*(Rm-Rf) CAPM 4.50% + 1.2 * (15%-4.5%) CAPM 17.10% Table 1: Depicting the expected returns of the company (Source: As created by the author) The overall NPV is mainly calculated by deriving the expected returns of the company, which is mainly at 17.10%. This expected return is mainly helpful in deriving the overall NPV of the project, as all the relevant future cash flows will be discounted. This discounting could eventually help in identifying the overall viability of the project. Eliasson and Brjesson (2014) stated that use of NPV allows companies to accommodate time value of money, which is essential to accommodate inflation. Optimistic Normal Pessimistic Optimistic - Pessimistic Probability 20% 100% 30% NPV 233,073.03 86,942.90 (59,187.23) Sensitivity 46,614.61 86,942.90 (17,756.17) 64,370.78 Table 2: Depicting the NPV of the project and sensitivity analysis (Source: As created by the author) The table 2 also states the overall sensitivity of the project, which might hamper the relative income that is being portrayed from the new investment. According to the overall probability of 30%, 20% of income might be lower from the sixth year. This decline in revenue could eventually reduce the overall NPV value and portray a loss of 17,756.17. However, with the probability of 20%, relative income might increase by 20% making the overall NPV to 233,073.03, which could eventually help in improving the return from investment. The company's over optimistic views could be achieved according to the circumstances that come during the investment. The rate of decline in revenue could also lead to decline and cost, which in turn might help in supporting the future NPV. Dyson and Berry (2014) stated that use of sensitivity analysis allows companies to evaluate two different scenarios, which could happen during the commencement of the business. Gotze, Northcott and Schuster (2015) argued tha t without relevant information and research investments should not be considered, as it might increase risk and reduce the overall capital investment. From the overall evaluation of the new project, it is advisable to CEO for commencing Management the new project, as it might help in increasing revenue of the company. All the relevant information regarding cash inflows is effectively represented within the confinements of the spreadsheet. The overall project is providing a positive view of the investments, which could eventually help in increasing the overall value of the firm (Lakew and Rao 2015). This could eventually increase the overall return and firm value of the company in your future. Lastly, it could be understood that supply of private label confectionery to Wowcoles could eventually help the company in attain higher income in future. This could eventually help in improving share price of the company after the overall announcement of the new revenue stream. Thus, it is advisable to the CEO to adopt the investment proposal and increase return from investment (Guerra, Magni and Stefanini 2014). Discussing the price behaviour of Riverlea before, during and after the announcement: The above figure mainly depicts the overall price change, which is witnessed before and after the announcement. Relative search from the previous day of announcement could be witnessed this search mainly represents the total return of 79.63% on the day of announcement. However, relative increment before the announcement date could be seen, which depicts expectation of investors regarding some news. In addition, the price movement after the announcement date mainly declined and provided the negative return (Seng, Wu and Yang 2016). Furthermore, down the line from two to three days the price movement has not rusted adequately however it has rapidly declined from the announcement date.This decline in value could be witnessed after the announcement date until day 5. This decline in Share price mainly depicts the relevant impact of Semi strong form of market efficiency, which increases the chance of mispricing opportunities. According to the new investment opportunity, the company is over revenue growth will only group by 86,942.90, whereas any change in revenue could decrease viability of the investment. This information could not have adequately increased the share price that exponentially, which was witnessed in announcement date. Adam, Marcet and Nicolini (2016) argued that due to market sentiment huge price fluctuations could be seen and inflammatory value of the stocks could be witnessed. Relative trading strategies could be developed for contemplating pricing opportunity, which is different from the announcement. After evaluating the new project, trading strategy could be adopted where the high-obtained share price obtained in the announcement date might be shorted for next 5 to 10 days in the anticipation of declining share price. The market is currently at semi strong variation where adequate news is not travelling to the investor and stocks is not adequately being discounted according to the news (Lee, Stevenson and Lee 2014). This semi strong variation of market efficiency is mainly opening shorting opportunity, which could be utilised by the investor to have diminutive gains. Reference: Adam, K., Marcet, A. and Nicolini, J.P., 2016. Stock market volatility and learning.The Journal of Finance,71(1), pp.33-82. Almarri, K. and Blackwell, P., 2014. Improving risk sharing and investment appraisal for PPP procurement success in large green projects.Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences,119, pp.847-856. Baum, A.E. and Crosby, N., 2014.Property investment appraisal. John Wiley Sons. Dyson, R.G. and Berry, R.H., 2014. Capital investment appraisal.Developments in Operational Research: Frontiers of Operational Research and Applied Systems Analysis, p.59. Eliasson, J. and Brjesson, M., 2014. On timetable assumptions in railway investment appraisal.Transport Policy,36, pp.118-126. Gtze, U., Northcott, D. and Schuster, P., 2015. Selected Further Applications of Investment Appraisal Methods. InInvestment Appraisal(pp. 105-159). Springer Berlin Heidelberg. Guerra, M.L., Magni, C.A. and Stefanini, L., 2014. Interval and fuzzy average internal rate of return for investment appraisal.Fuzzy Sets and Systems,257, pp.217-241. Lakew, D.M. and Rao, D.P., 2015. Financial Appraisal of Long Term Investment Projects: Evidence from Ethiopia.Asian Journal of Research in Business Economics and Management,5(2), pp.1-16. Lee, C.L., Stevenson, S. and Lee, M.L., 2014. Futures trading, spot price volatility and market efficiency: evidence from European real estate securities futures.The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics,48(2), pp.299-322. Seng, J.L., Wu, Y.H. and Yang, H.F., 2016. Conference Calls News Analysis and Stock Price Volatility. InRecent Developments in Intelligent Information and Database Systems(pp. 255-262). Springer International Publishing.

Modified Invasive Weed Optimization with Dual Mutation Technique for Dynamic Economic Dispatch Essay Example

Modified Invasive Weed Optimization with Dual Mutation Technique for Dynamic Economic Dispatch Essay Dynamic economic dispatch (DED) is one of the main functions of power system operation and control. It determines the optimal operation of units with predicted load demands over a certain period of time with an objective to minimize total production cost while the system is operating within its ramp rate limits.This paper presents DED based on Invasive Weed Optimization (IWO) technique for the determination of the global or near global optimum dispatch solution. In the present case, load balance constraints, operating limits, valve-point loading, ramp constraints, and network losses using loss coefficients are incorporated. Numerical results for a sample test system (10- unit) have been presented to demonstrate the performance and applicability of the proposed method. Index Terms dynamic economic dispatch, invasive weed optimization algorithm, non-smooth cost function, valvepoint effect.I. INTRODUCTION NE of the most important aspects of power system operation is its obligation to su pply power to the customers economically [1]. Power system economic load dispatch is the process of allocating generation among the available generating units subject to load and other operational constraints such that the cost of operation is minimum [2], [3]. And now a day’s quality requirements of power utilities are so severe, that the operators have to sort out possible means of minimizing the production cost so as to offer the most competitive price to its customers.This has led to the adoption of system models and other operational constraints more analogous to real life situations. Traditional optimization techniques can never accurately model the system according to mathematical solutions [4],[5]. To solve the DED problem, it is assumed that a thermal unit commitment has been *Corresponding Author Renu Sharma is with Dept of ICE, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan University1, Bhubaneswar, Orissa, 751030 INDIA(e-mail: [emailprotected] com) Niranjan Nayak is with Elec trical Engg Dept, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan University1,Bhubaneswar,Orissa,751030INDIA(e-mail: iranjannayak. el. [emailprotected] com) Krishnanand K. R is with MDRC, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan University1, Bhubaneswar, Orissa, 751030 INDIA(e-mail: [emailprotected] com), P. K. Rout is with Dept of EEE, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan University1, Bhubaneswar, Orissa, 751030 INDIA(e-mail: [emailprotected] com), O 978-1-4673-0136-7/11/$26. 00  ©2011 IEEE previously determined [6]. DED considers the constraints imposed on the systems by the generator ramp rate limits because mathematically DED is considered as second–order dynamic optimization problem [6].To extend the life of equipments, the gradients for temperature and pressure inside the boiler and turbine should be kept within the limit. This mechanical constraint is transformed into a limit on the rate of increase or decrease of electrical power output . This limit is called ramp rate limit which disti nguishes DED from static economic dispatch problem [7]. The DED can be solved by dividing the total load dispatch period into a number of small intervals, during that period load demand is assumed to be constant, and the system is considered to be time invariant for that period.Traditional approach of a DED with N units and T time intervals would require the solution of an optimization problem of size N? T— a considerably more complex task. Recently, hybrid EPsequential quadratic programming (SQP) [6], deterministically guided PSO [8], and hybrid PSO-SQP [9] methods were proposed to solve the DED problem with non-smooth fuel cost functions. Simulated Annealing (SA) [10] has also been employed for the solution of the DED problem.The DED problem becomes heavily constrained as these utilize the traditional approach of a DED, in which power generation is coordinated for the entire dispatch period. Differential Evolution (DE) is also applied to solve these DED problems [11]. It is also a stochastic method to solve multi dimensional problems to find the global optimum value. The Invasive Weed Optimization technique [12] is a stochastic optimization method that is based on the simulation of production, mutation and spatial propagation of weeds. The philosophy behind the technique is justified by the fact that eeds exhibit uncanny adaptability and persistence in reproduction despite imposition of adverse conditions, including many methods to destroy them. It applies the seeding and mutation of the parent plant with varying the standard deviation keeping the mean at the parent plant. The dual mutation presented in this paper removes the monotony of the conventional weed optimization algorithm and causes multiple mutation distributions to contribute to the variety of the seeds produced in parallel in a particular iteration step.This causes the algorithm to search for global optimum through the hyperspace created by the problem at hand more stochastically. Even th e selection of the mutation process for a particular plant at a particular iteration has been randomized to overcome the demerit of single distribution method used in conventional IWO. The proposed time-varying process of mutation is such that there is very less chance of missing the global optimum value for high dimensional problems and also make searching very fast. A high dimensional problem, in hich each parameter has a different impact numerically on the total output of the system, is not vulnerable to yielding solutions easily to an algorithm that follows a definite distribution. So, a dual mutation technique can yield better solutions than a single one for problems like DED. instantaneous. However, under practical circumstances ramp rate limit restricts the operating range of all the online units for adjusting the generator operation between two operating periods. The generation may increase or decrease with corresponding upper and downward ramp rate limits.So, units are cons trained due to these ramp rate limits as mentioned below. If power generation increases, P ih Ph i 1 (7) If power generation decreases, A. Problem formulation (8) P h 1 P d DRi i ih The objective function corresponding to the production cost where P h-1 is the power generation of unit i at previous hour i can be approximated to be a quadratic function of the active and UR and DR are the upper and lower ramp rate limits i i power outputs from the generating units. Symbolically, it is respectively.The inclusion of ramp rate limits modifies the represented as generator operation constraints (6) as follows. Minimize Fc where II. FORMULATION OF THE PROBLEM d URi  ¦Ã‚ ¦ F k 1 i 1 T NG ih (Pih ) $ (1) Fi h (Pi h ) a i Pi2h bi Pi h ci , i 1,2,3, , NG (2) dispatch. The cost function for unit with valve point loading effect is calculated by using is the expression for cost function Fi h (Pi h ) a i Pi2h b i Pi h c i e i sin f i h Pimin h Pi h (3) Where ei and fi are the cost coefficients c orresponding to valve point oading effect. Due to the valve point loading the solution may be trapped in the local minima and it also increases the non-linearity in the system. This constrained DED problem is subjected to a variety of constraints depending upon assumptions and practical implications. These include power balance constraints to take into account the energy balance; ramp rate limits to incorporate dynamic nature of DED problem and prohibited operating zones. These constraints are discussed as under. A. )Power Balance Constraints or Demand Constraints: This constraint is based on the principle of equilibrium between total system generation (? ) and total system loads (PD) and losses (PL). That is,  ¦P i 1 NG ih P Dh P Lh (4) where PLh is obtained using B- coefficients, given by PLh  ¦Ã‚ ¦ P B P ih ij i 1 j 1 NG NG jh (5) A. 2)The Generator Constraints: The output power of each generating unit has a lower and upper bound so that it lies in between these bounds. This constraint is represented by a pair of inequality constraints as follows: Pi min d Pih d Pi max 6) where, Pimin and Pimax are lower and upper bounds for power outputs of the ith generating unit in MW. A. 3) The Ramp Rate Limits: One of unpractical assumption that prevailed for simplifying the problem in many of the earlier research is that the adjustments of the power output are max( , ? ) ? min( , ? ) (9) A. 4) Fitness Function To evaluate the fitness of each individual in the population in order to minimize the fuel costs while satisfying unit and system constraints, the following fitness-function model is adopted for simulation in this article: ?F (P ) + ? ? ? P ? f =? 2 2 ? P ? P P . +? ? (10) . . . where ? and ? are penalty parameters. The penalty term reflects the violation of the equality constraint and assigns a high cost of penalty function. The Prlim is defined by P ( ) ? DR , P lt; P ( ) ? DR P ( ) + UR , P gt; P ( ) + UR P = P , otherwise (11) III MODIFIED INVASIVE WEED OPTIMIZATION Invasive Weed Optimization is a numerical stochastic search algorithm simulating the natural behaviour of weed colonizing in search domains for optimization of mathematically modeled systems.Adapting with their environments, invasive weed cover spaces of opportunity left behind by improper tillage; followed by enduring occupation of the field. They reproduce rapidly by making seeds and raise their population. Their behaviour changes with time as the colony become dense leaving lesser opportunity of life for the ones with lesser fitness. B. Details about the algorithm: B. 1 Initialization A random initial population is being dispersed over the D dimensional problem space uniformly within the lower and the upper limit which is considered as the initial solution.B. 2 Reproduction A potential solution represented by a row vector in the population of weeds (represented by the whole matrix) is allowed to produce seeds depending on its own fitness as compared to the lowest and highest fitness in the population at that iteration point. The number of seeds shows linear increase in production from minimum possible seed production to its maximum being a function of the fitness of the plant. So, a plant will produce seeds based on its fitness, the colonys lowest fitness and highest which increases linearly as shown in the figure 1. Fig. Reproduction of seeds in proposed invasive weed optimization algorithm nonlinear modulation index. ?initial(k) and ? final(k) are initial and final standard deviations respectively. The conventional IWO follows a singular mutation process. The mutated plants are obtained from parent plants which act as the mean of the normal distribution. ?m M ? ,? t (15) The equation describing this behavior is: ?plant ?min  § ? ceil ? ? plant u max ? ? max  © ?min ? min  · ? ? ? (12) where ? min and ? max are the set values for minimum and maximum number of seeds which can be produced, respectively. ?min and ? ax are the minimum and ma ximum of the objective function values for a particular set of population for a given iteration, respectively. ?plant is the number of seeds to be produced for a given plant whose objective function value is ? plant. This makes the procedure to concentrate on the highest fitness values in the search domain and hence increases convergence towards the group best value. The fittest weeds survive and reproduce in the next generation whereas the worst ones are eliminated from the growth process. B. 3 Spatial Dispersal Randomness and adaptation in the algorithm is provided in this part.The generated seeds are being randomly distributed over the D dimensional search space by normally distributed random numbers with mean equal to zero; but varying variance. The well-known normal distribution has a probability density function which can be represented as (x ? )2 where ? mis the mutated plant, ? is a random number which follows normal distribution with mean as ? and standard deviations as in the set of ? t. In this modified Invasive Weed algorithm, the mutation follows a dual strategy. The mutation strategy is selected randomly using a uniform random variable.A mutation process selection factor (Pm) is used to bias the mutation towards a particular distribution. For mutation of the seed, the parent weed of that seed itself is the mean for the normal distribution and the standard deviation of the random function used is given by ? t(k) which is time-varying with respect to time step t. The seeds (or vectors) that satisfy the selection using Pm undergo either the simple Gaussian mutation or they are mutated by a shifted and scaled Gaussian mutation operation. This operation gives a parallel probable search strategy to the algorithm.The mutated seeds produced by both the methods carry out parallel search in the D dimensional search space following their respective probabilistic mutation distributions. ?m ( 1 ? t )? ?M(? t )? t? (16) y f ( x) e 2? ? 2? 2 (13) where x is the random variable,  µ is the mean and ? is the standard deviation. This means that seeds will be randomly distributed such that they abode near to the parent plant which results in a thorough search around the parental domain. However, standard deviation (? ), of the random function will be reduced from a previously defined initial value, ? initial, to a final value, ? inal, for each variable in every generation as the procedure converges to the best fitness value. For each variable in the kth position of the weed, standard deviation is given by ? t(k) (itermax t)n (itermax )n (? initial(k) ? final(k) ) ? final(k) (14) where itermax is the maximum number of iterations, ? t(k) is the standard deviation at the present time step (t) and n is the where ? m is the mutated seed, ? is the original seed of the parent weed , ? is the scaling factor and ? is a random number which follows normal distribution with mean as zero and standard deviations as in the set of ? . The shifting and scali ng being dependent on the number of iterations completed makes the algorithm more explorative in the beginning of the iteration. This implies that the mutated seed dispersion is well spread all across the D dimensional space limited by ? min and ? max in the beginning. Later, as the iteration progresses, the standard deviation value gradually decreases and the algorithm becomes more exploitative in nature, thereby making maximum use of the existing superior solutions for local search. The seeds are now considered as grown weed plants which have undergone mutation.B. 4 Selection If the plant produce inferior seeds, then it would not survive, otherwise the seeds which are superior among their population, can cover a large area in huge numbers. Thus, there is a need of some kind of competition between plants for limiting maximum number of plants in a colony for practical implementation of the algorithm in a machine with limited memory. After passing a few iterations, the number of plan ts in a colony will reach its maximum by fast reproduction, however, it is expected that the fitter plants have been reproduced more than undesirable plants.By reaching the maximum number of plants in the colony, Pmax, a mechanism for eliminating the plants with poor fitness in the generation is applied. When the maximum number of weeds in a colony is reached, each weed is allowed to produce seed as mentioned in reproduction. The produced seeds are then allowed to spread over the search area. When all seeds have found their position in the search area they are ranked together with their parents (as a colony of weeds). Next, weeds with lower fitness are eliminated to reach the maximum allowable population in a colony.In this way, plants and offspring are ranked together and the ones with better fitness survive and are allowed to replicate. This mechanism gives a chance to the plants with lower fitness to reproduce, and if their offspring has a good fitness in the colony then they can survive. The population control mechanism also is applied to their offspring to the end of a given run, realizing competitive exclusion and better selection. C. Invasive Weed Optimization for solving DED problem The IWO algorithm applied for solving the DED problem is summarized below: C. Generation of initial Condition: Within the range specified for each generating unit, initial conditions have to be generated randomly. In the DED problem, the initial population is the initial random real power outputs of the generators. The population is denoted as Pik, where N is the total number of generating units (i = 1,2,†¦N) and k shows the time intervals (in hours) (k = 1,2†¦. 24). A single potential schedule can be denoted as: Potential Schedule PN ,1 ? (17)  »  » P , k PN , k  » i  »  » P ,24 PN ,24  » i ?A single schedule can be passed to the objective function to estimate the cost per day using the mathematical input-output relations of the system. To ac commodate each schedule as a row vector in the population, the schedules are reshaped as row vectors and a population of such row vectors is formed as given below. Population P ,1 i 1 1 1 ? P 11 PN ,1 P 1k PN , k P 124 PN , 24 ? 1, 1, 1,  »  «  »  « r r r  « P ,r1 PN ,1 P ,rk PN , k P ,r24 PN , 24  » 1 1 1  »  «  »  «  « P NP P NP P NP P NP P NP P NP  » 1,1 1, k 1, 24 N ,1 N ,k N , 24 ?  ¬ (18) where NP is the population size (r = 1, 2, †¦, NP). After generating initial population each individual (each row) is evaluated by passing to the fitness function and the cost is calculated. C. 2 Reproduction: After calculating the cost of each individual, the individual (the row) which gives the minimum cost and satisfies all the constraints is selected as the best individual. The individual having the highest objective value including the penalties is considered as the most inferior solution.Then a linear slope is computed accordin g to which the plants in the population reproduce. The individual giving less cost will reproduce more and the individual giving high cost will reproduce less. C. 3Mutation and dispersal: The feasible solutions for the generating units are mutated using the probabilistic dual mutation so that the new generating units will satisfy all the constraints and get the least cost. The mutation is done according to the time-varying standard deviation. The mutation process should be such that the new generating unit should not deviate much from the parent. C. Evaluation of each plant: Each individual or plant in the population is evaluated using the fitness function of the problem to minimize the fuel-cost function. The automatic satisfaction of power balance constraint is attempted by allocating the biggest generator the mismatched power. This step is applied only when the loss coefficients are not considered. In case of transmission losses, the loss itself being a function of generated powe r cannot be used easily to find the mismatched power. Equation (10) is used to evaluate the schedule inclusive of penalty for each schedule in the population.C. 5Termination Criteria: When the iterations are completed, the program is terminated and the best dispatch schedule is stored which satisfies all the constraints. IV SIMULATION RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS Here the IWO technique is applied to solve the DED for 10 unit system to validate the effectiveness of the algorithm. The experiment is carried out on a computer having Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 3 GHz clock-speed and 3GB RAM. The simulation software used for this purpose was MATLAB 7. 7. The data for the simulation of DED problem was taken from [13].The proposed IWO algorithm uses 8 control parameters like initial population size, maximum seed population, minimum seed population, modulation index(n), mutation process selection factor (Pm), initial standard deviation , final standard deviation and number of generations. By taking 25 trials, the best solution obtained for the problem is compared with the recently reported best results. The parameters taken for the IWO algorithms are: Initial population size(NP) = 20, maximum seed population(? max) = 10, minimum seed population(? in) = 4, modulation index(n) = 3, mutation process selection factor (Pm)= 0. 5, initial standard deviation(? initial) = 5, final standard deviation(? final) = 10-2 and number of generations(itermax)= 1000. Problem : Ten Unit System The 10 unit DED is done using this method to validate the effectiveness of the algorithm. The results are compared with the results given in [14]. The data for this is taken as given in [13]. The dispatch horizon is chosen as one day with 24 intervals. The parameters taken for this problem are P = 20, Max_P = 10, Min_P = 4, NG = 1000.The DED problem of the ten-unit system is solved by the proposed method in order to compare the results of the proposed method with Artificial Immune System (AIS) optimi zation as reported in the literature [14]. The load demand of the system is divided in the 24 intervals. The system data for the ten-unit system is taken from [13]. The simulation results are tabulated in Table 1. Table 2 provides comparison of the optimal system costs obtained from ?P 1,1  «  «  «Pk 1,  «  «  «P  ¬ 1,24 cost value $/h different methods. The convergence curve for the best solution of proposed IWO approach is shown in Fig 2.For the scalability of the problem the loss component B is taken into account and hence the equality constraint becomes more difficult to handle. The total time interval is divided into 24 hours and load pattern is taken according to that. The minimum total fuel cost obtained by the proposed method is 2,519,528$/24 hr compare to the best result so far by AIS as 2,519,700 $/24 hour with a difference of saving 172. 0 $/24 hr. generation schedule which results in lower generating cost per day. . x 10 7 7 6 IWO Convergence curve 5 4V C ONCLUSION 3 Dynamic Economic Dispatch is a complex optimization problem whose importance may increase as competition in 2 power generation intensifies due to deregulated power markets. This paper introduces a new modified IWO method 1 for the ramp rate limits and valve-point effect constrained 0 DED problem solution. The modified invasive optimization 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000 4500 No. of iterations implements dual probabilistic mutation and achieves better optimization by stochastically covering the hyperspace to Fig. 2. Simulation result of 10-generators system search.The comparisons of the results with other published techniques are reported in the literature. The results clearly indicate the superiority of the proposed technique in obtaining Table 1. Best solution of the proposed method Hours 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 P1(MW) 150. 4915 151. 0248 155. 2633 159. 7511 153. 4732 153. 2182 204. 7939 195. 8612 272. 4122 297. 0429 319. 9452 385. 5101 313. 0808 234. 2543 184. 2666 151. 6680 154. 6041 162. 0087 240. 4552 310. 5014 258. 4640 181. 6952 150. 3830 150. 2623 P2(MW) 135. 1026 135. 0950 143. 0757 144. 3443 140. 9293 175. 776 174. 3308 252. 7589 326. 0599 399. 7379 469. 1870 464. 6516 428. 3641 355. 0360 279. 4530 202. 1231 140. 3212 186. 1483 255. 0652 330. 0797 318. 5077 241. 5924 174. 7700 136. 0135 P3(MW) 150. 2901 177. 6299 251. 5504 311. 8992 281. 3345 333. 7739 336. 7093 338. 2089 338. 9737 336. 7214 338. 6820 337. 5278 339. 1240 339. 9914 339. 9695 306. 4620 283. 4979 304. 0022 311. 6329 339. 9473 338. 8327 259. 7133 228. 2250 153. 5858 P4(MW) 98. 7395 111. 1656 156. 9066 199. 1548 249. 0843 283. 4221 291. 9328 298. 8934 298. 1071 299. 6439 299. 3690 294. 7837 295. 8531 295. 9855 295. 8928 281. 926 261. 6619 288. 1384 299. 1992 291. 5209 299. 9920 260. 7732 246. 8937 240. 0228 P5(MW) 121. 4557 169. 9773 179. 2562 188. 7567 227. 5455 225. 7110 234. 1186 226. 3429 242. 6844 240. 9616 242. 9848 229. 4 335 240. 1859 227. 1472 242. 4442 240. 8853 235. 3062 235. 3486 231. 5476 242. 3394 242. 1989 237. 9403 189. 6318 140. 3746 P6(MW) 98. 3668 121. 7723 109. 5705 149. 3983 137. 0117 153. 2218 156. 2518 156. 3649 157. 5010 159. 0699 159. 4658 155. 8409 159. 8308 159. 9426 157. 2568 109. 0791 140. 0261 154. 0252 153. 5088 159. 2086 158. 2292 150. 6278 108. 5308 126. 6570 P7(MW) 101. 6669 125. 648 129. 1000 117. 4661 127. 3838 129. 4003 125. 2603 129. 1870 129. 8214 125. 5839 125. 6191 129. 6900 129. 8789 129. 2933 129. 9828 105. 1355 122. 7111 129. 9112 126. 4452 129. 0948 128. 3704 129. 7649 122. 1082 109. 8106 P8(MW) 81. 1441 61. 0316 76. 2356 83. 2820 98. 8998 105. 5534 119. 0414 104. 9613 118. 1167 119. 5519 116. 3985 119. 6392 116. 5446 119. 9611 93. 6535 118. 0159 90. 5640 112. 0406 106. 4538 115. 1262 119. 9239 105. 6221 83. 2299 72. 3638 P9(MW) 76. 6946 49. 8180 44. 1354 54. 6277 59. 9467 73. 0904 71. 2933 78. 4389 56. 4680 69. 5797 78. 5597 75. 6848 79. 8530 78. 4228 62. 935 51 . 3785 42. 2058 65. 9938 56. 7163 79. 6004 78. 6781 62. 4106 36. 7102 43. 8847 41. 7367 29. 8035 41. 7912 33. 3706 44. 0918 43. 3930 41. 7012 53. 9213 54. 8869 54. 1215 44. 2887 50. 5046 54. 0427 54. 9820 50. 0674 32. 3056 48. 8717 38. 8290 54. 3642 49. 8063 51. 5183 46. 9295 23. 9500 36. 4389 5000 P10(MW)) Table 2. Comparison of results for problem Total fuel cost ($/24hr) 2,519,528 2,519,700 2,572,200 2,585,400 Cost difference with proposed approach ($/24 hr) -172 52672 65872 [14] M. Basu, Artificial immune system for dynamic economic dispatch, Electrical Power and Energy Systems, vol. 3, pp. 131-136,2011. VII BIOGRAPHIES Prof. Renu Sharma received her BE in Electrical and Electronics from BIET,Davangere, Karnataka and MEE degree from the Jadavpur University, India in 1998 and in 2006 respectively. Presently, she is working as an Associate Professor and HOD in the ICE Department, ITER, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan University. She is pursuing her PhD in Power Systems and her field of interest includes Evolutionary Computation, Biomedical Instrumentation and Soft Computing Techniques Applied to Power System Optimisation. Prof Niranjan Nayak received his M. Tech. egree from VSSUT, Burla in the Power System Engg Presently, he is working as an Asst. Professor and in the Electrical Engg Department, ITER, Siksha ‘O’Anusandhan University. He ispursuing his PhD inControl Systems and his field of interest includes Soft Computing Application to Power System Control , Power Quality and Renewable Energy. Method Proposed IWO AIS [14] PSO[14] EP[14] VI REFERENCES [1]. K. P. Wong and Y. W. Wong, â€Å"Genetic and genetic/simulated-annealing approaches to economic dispatch,† IEE Proc. Gener. Transm. Distrib. , vol. 141, no. 5, September 1994. K. P. Wong and C.C. Fung, â€Å"Simulated annealing based economic dispatch algorithm,† IEE Proc. -C, vol. 140, no. 6, November 1993. W. G. Wood, â€Å"Spinning reserve constrained static and dynamic ec onomic dispatch,† IEEE Trans. PAS, pp. 381, February 1982. X. S. Han, H. B. Gooi and D. S. Kirschen,â€Å"Dynamic economic dispatch: Feasible and optimal solutions,† IEEE Trans. Power Systems, vol. 16, no. 1, pp. 22–28, February 2001. S. Kirkpatrick, G. D. Gelatt, Jr. , and M. P. Vecchi, â€Å"Optimization by simulated annealing,† Science, vol. 220, pp. 671–680, 1983. P. Attaviriyanupap, H. ,Kita, E. Tanaka, and J.Hasegawa, â€Å"A hybrid EP and SQP for dynamic economic dispatch with nonsmooth fuel cost function,† IEEE Trans. Power Syst. , vol. 17, no. 2, pp. 411–416, May 2002. D. W. Ross and S. Kim, â€Å"Dynamic economic dispatch of generation,† IEEE Trans. PAS,p. 2060, November/December 1980. T. A. A. Victoire, and A. E. Jeyakumar, â€Å"Deterministically guided PSO for dynamic dispatch considering valvepoint effect,† Elect. Power Syst. Res. , vol. 73, no. 3, pp. 313–322, March 2005. T. A. A. Victoire, and A. E. , Jeyakumar, â€Å"Reserve constrained dynamic dispatch of units with valve-point effects,† IEEE Trans. Power Syst. vol. 20, no. 3, pp. 1273–1282, August 2005. C. K. Panigrahi, P. K. Chattopadhyay, R. N. Chakrabarti, and M. Basu, â€Å"Simulated annealing technique for dynamic economic dispatch,† Elect. Power Compon. Syst. , vol. 34, no. 5, pp. 577–586, May 2006. R. Balamurugan and S. Subramanian,â€Å"Differential Evolution-based Dynamic Economic Dispatch of Generating Units with Valve-point Effects†, Electric Power Components and Systems,vol. 36:pp. 828–843, 2008. A. R. Mehhrabian, C. Lucas, A novel numerical optimization algorithm inspired from weed colonization, Ecological Informatics, Elsevier Science, vol. , pp. 355-366, 2006. M. Basu, Dynamic economic emission dispatch using nondominated sorting genetic algorithm- II, Electrical Power and Energy Systems vol. 30 ,pp. 140-149, 2008. [2]. [3]. [4]. [5]. [6]. Krishnanand K. R. received h is BTech in Electrical and Electronics from the Biju Patnaik University of Technology and is currently working as a Senior Research Associate (SRA) in Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan University. His field of interest includes Evolutionary Computation, Digital Protection, Power Quality and Application of Soft Computing Techniques to Power System Optimisation. 7] [8] [9] Dr(Prof)P. K. Rout received his ME degree from the Thiagarajar College of Engineering, Madurai, Tamilnadu, India in 1995 and PhD from the Biju Patnaik University of Technology, Rourkela, Orissa, India in 2010. Presently, he is working as a Professor and HOD in the Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, SOA University, Bhubaneswar, Orissa, India. His interests are in Soft Computing Applications to Power System Control, Power Quality and Renewable Energy. [10] [11] [12] [13]

A critical analysis of the role of arbitrators in international commercial arbitration The WritePass Journal

A critical analysis of the role of arbitrators in international commercial arbitration Abstract A critical analysis of the role of arbitrators in international commercial arbitration Abstract1. Introduction2.Key findings about Arbitration3.From Court Alternatives to Promotion of Co-operation4. The Threefold Nature of the Sources of Duties for Arbitrators5. The Role of Arbitrators as Imposed by Applicable Law or Rules5.1   The Need to Ensure Neutrality, Independence, and Impartiality5.2 The Role of Disclosure of Information5.3 The Role of Effective Dispute Resolution through Valid Award Rendering6. The Role of Conducting Arbitral Proceedings6.1 The Role of Adopting Procedures Suitable for the Specific Case6.2 Ensuring Fairness and Expediency6.3 Maintenance of Confidentiality6.4 Circumstantial Choice of the Language to be Used6.5 Communication of Expert Report6.6 Ensuring ex aequo et bono or as amiable compositeur6.7 The Roles as Imposed by Parties in the Arbitration Agreement6.8 Ethical RolesConclusionReferencesArbico Nigeria Limited v Nigeria Machine Tools Ltd (2002) 15 NWLR 1ATT Corporation v Saudi Cable Co [2000] APP.L.R. 05/15Albert Jan van den Berg, Enforce ment of Arbitral Awards Annulled in Russia: Case Comment on Court of Appeal of Amsterdam April 28, 2009 [(2010) 27(2) Journal of International Arbitration, 179Emmanuel Gaillard, The Meaning of ‘and’ in Article 42(1): The Role of International Law in the ICSID Choice of Law Process [(2003) 18(2) ICSID Review – Foreign Investment Law Journal, p.375]Gabrielle Kaufmann-Kohler, Global Implications of the FAA: the Role of Legislation in International Arbitration (American Arbitration Association Federal Arbitration Act at 80 Anniversary Lecture Series, Dublin, 20 May 2005)Gabrielle Kaufmann-Kohler and Fan Kun, Integrating Mediation into Arbitration: Why It Works in China [(2008) 25(4) Journal of International Arbitration]Jan Paulsson, Arbitration in Three Dimensions, LSE Law [(2010), Society and Economy Working Papers 2/2010, London School of Economics and Political Science, Law Department, published at www.lse.ac.uk/collections/law/wps/wps.htm]Jan Paulsson, Internatio nal Arbitration is Not Arbitration [(2008) Stockholm International Arbitration Review, p. 1]Jan Paulsson, Unlawful Laws and the Authority of International Tribunals (Lalive Lecture, Geneva, 27 May 2009), in 23(2) ICSID Review/FILJ (2008)Karl-Heinz Bà ¶ckstiegel, Past, Present, and Future Perspectives of Arbitration [(2009) 25 Arbitration International, 293]Karl-Heinz Bà ¶ckstiegel, The Role of Arbitration Within Today’s Challenges to the World Community and to International Law [(2006), The Goff Lecture HongKong 2006 in Vol. 22 Arbitration International,   p.165]Michael Hwang, Defining the Indefinable: Practical Problems of Confidentiality in Arbitration [(2009) 26(5), Journal of International Arbitration, pp. 609-645]Related Abstract Arbitration, which creates an internationally enforceable award, has historically been lauded as a confidential, quick and cost effective mechanism for resolving disputes. International commercial arbitration is growing very fast as more businesses seek to settle their commercial disputes out of court in order to save time, money, manpower and sustain healthier business environment. This state of affairs has made the role played by arbitrators in international commercial dispute resolution to be more important than ever before since arbitrators hold the key to the future success and continuity of commercial activities the world over. Arbitration has taken on such prominence in the international context that it has become the first choice for a binding dispute resolution. Over the years these virtues has eroded with the expansion of the number of parties using arbitration and shift in the group serving as arbitrators. With the advent of time arbitration has become costlier as litigati on before courts and even time consuming. Confidentiality associated with awards has eroded due to international conventions and interventions of arbitral institutions. Arbitration awards do not have the same monopoly on streamlined enforcement mechanism.   In the changing scenario what is left to make arbitration preferable to national courts? It is neutrality of forum where the place of dispute resolution does not unfairly benefit parties to the dispute and neutrality of the decision making process that make arbitration preferable to national court. Constructive mechanism for regulating arbitrators conduct and scope to promote the integrity of arbitrations are required. This paper specifically argues that arbitrators in international commercial disputes play a very important role. This line of argument is sustained by way of enumerating and critically analysing some of these roles with a view to contrasting the arbitrator from the judge in a normal court setting. 1. Introduction Dispute resolution in the commercial context continues to be a major challenge facing businesses the world over; and the ability to have alternative ways of resolving them by means other than litigation is a great relief to businesses.[1] With the rather lengthy and costly litigation process involved in seeking legal redress in contemporary commercial disputes, parties to such disputes have invariably chosen to go the private way of resolving their disputes. Furthermore, court processes have been deemed to be not only tedious and time-wasting but also the decisions thence are often disputed by parties for their being alleged partisan. This latter point is especially true of international commercial disputes where decisions taken by the court are largely believed to be biased in favour of the party that hails from the country in which the court is located. And owing to the fact that commercial disputes are a daily occurrence in the world today where globalization has made commercial a ctivities to transcend national borders in a way never before witnessed, the ability to have them resolved amicably and to the satisfaction of both parties is a great milestone in general commercial dispute resolution.[2] Arbitration has come in handy as a favoured choice of an efficient mechanism for resolving international commercial disputes largely because it offers the parties embroiled in a tussle to dispute the opportunity to appoint their own arbitrators and so reduce the likelihood that justice is denied. Arbitration also offers the parties the opportunity to have an expeditious out-of-court settlement; yet the decision made by the arbitrators is legally binding and executable by the courts. Usually, international arbitration will seek to resolve the disputes that arise from the implementation of various international conventions, treaties, and agreements. Since different countries usually have different sets of laws, arbitration helps to overcome the differences that could be brought about by such variation in law as it provides for an amicable resolution of disputes without reference to any one country’s legal system. This helps companies in different court systems to have their disp utes resolved fairly. More importantly, arbitration is faster and cheaper than a court process; and also eliminates chances that a decision taken by foreign courts becomes unenforceable in a given country. A critical and succinct analysis of the role of arbitrators is therefore essential if the process of arbitration in international commercial disputes is to be understood in its entirety. This is partly because arbitrators hold the key to the final outcome of any commercial dispute – meaning that they must not only be fair but also non-partisan. This paper addresses the conception of the proper role of arbitrators, the adjudicatory functions of internal arbitrators; the constructive mechanism for regulating arbitrator conduct and scope to promote integrity of arbitrators.   The importance to enhance the legitimacy of international arbitration is also touched up on. 2.Key findings about Arbitration The importance of arbitration and so of arbitrators in the resolution of international commercial disputes can be better placed into context by considering the views of the public on the matter.[3] That is why in a survey to establish the feasibility of arbitration as a method of resolving international disputes; interesting findings were reached which generally puts the method far ahead of litigation and other legal mechanisms of addressing international commercial disputes. Key among the findings was that about 86% of counsel is in one way or another satisfied with international arbitration; and that most corporations will rather have institutionalized arbitration instead of the ad hoc arbitration. This is largely because close to 86% of awards are known to have been rendered through institutions. A massive 92% of all arbitration disputes are believed to be resolved in a successful manner at some stage along the arbitration process. Furthermore, about 84% of counsel admitted that t he party that failed to prevail in a dispute managed to comply voluntarily in over 76% of cases.[4] As far as recovery by way of settlements is concerned, close to 35% of corporations that were involved in the survey admitted to having recovered at least 76% of the total value of the award they desired.[5] When it comes to efficiency, rapid results – lasting less than a year in at least 57% of cases – were realized through enforcement proceedings. Furthermore, recovery through such enforcement is thought to be high, with about 84% of the corporations surveyed admitting to have recovered over 75% of the total award value.[6] Finally, in cases where corporations experienced enforcement problems, most of them were only circumstantial, stemming from issues such as the lack of traceable assets of the party that did not prevail as opposed to the process of enforcement itself. These findings clearly support the main argument of this paper that arbitration has become a leading and preferred method of commercial dispute resolution particularly on the international arena. By ex tension, therefore, it is important that arbitrators continue to understand the seriousness with which the process is taken and so carry out their duties in a manner that both upholds the dignity of arbitration as a legal process and serves the needs of the antagonists in the dispute.[7] 3.From Court Alternatives to Promotion of Co-operation Prior to considering the actual roles of arbitrators in international commercial disputes, it is critically important to have an understanding of the settings under which the current commercial activities operate or are based.[8] With the increased role that globalisation is playing in world trade and general commercial activities, it has become rather important that commercial activities are secured from the possibility of getting damaged by vested interests. This is in essence indicative of the need for longer, more secure commercial contracts between different players. For instance, the world is now experiencing newfound commercial partnerships between states or corporations that never existed before.[9] In addition, most of the business contracts signed are almost always long-term in order to ensure continuity over a long period of time. For instance, the Russian energy giant Gazprom now insists on long-term gas supply contracts with the EU – contracts extending up to 30 o r 35 years into the future. The aim is to have assurances that the market will be readily available in the future as is today.[10] Therefore, owing to this growing need for long-term commercial contracts between international organizations and other businesses, the mechanisms employed for dispute resolution ought to be capable of not only offering an amicable solution but also ensuring business continuity.[11] Not one business wants to lose business interests just because of a dispute. Since most litigation processes have the likely impact of causing severe damage to commercial contractual partnerships, arbitration has become the most preferred way of resolving commercial disputes on an international scale. But even with arbitration, there have remained concerns about the manner in which an award is rendered.[12] Today, the emphasis has shifted from just rendering an award to settle the dispute to include seeking to preserve the existing relations between the parties to the dispute. This way, future cooperation is assured along with reduced confrontations. Under such circumstances and this context, an arbitrator is expected to play a social-legal role – use the law to resolve the dispute fairly but also ensure that the parties continue to work together in spite of the award rendered.[13] 4. The Threefold Nature of the Sources of Duties for Arbitrators Every party to a dispute has expectations from the arbiter in any commercial dispute. These expectations are largely driven by the need by each party to have a fair and free arbitration process, minimize costs, and earn an award that is not only effective but also binding. To achieve this, therefore, it is upon the arbiter to ensure that the whole process of arbitration is organized and controlled in an efficient manner. The main duties of an arbiter originate from three sources. The first one is the rules and laws that govern the specific arbitration process; the second is the agreement between the parties to the dispute; and the third is the ethical rules. From these three sources, this paper draws on the actual roles of an arbiter and critically analyses each. 5. The Role of Arbitrators as Imposed by Applicable Law or Rules International arbitrators clearly have a more difficult role to play compared to national ones owing to the nature of disputes involved and the parties to those disputes.[14] As a result, there has been a variation between institutional and ad hoc arbitration. Since the international community lacks cross-cutting laws on commercial dispute resolution, not every party that elicits the services of an arbitrator has the laws of arbitration entrenched in its by-laws. Under such circumstances, an ad hoc arbitration has to be followed whereby the rules to be followed have to be set and the other issues like the governing law, the number of arbitrators, and the place where the arbitration will occur have to be resolved prior to the commencement of the arbitration process itself. But whether an ad hoc or institutional arbitration is used, the roles that arbitrators play or are expected to remain more or less the same – and all are very important.[15] But before defining some of these roles, it is worth mentioning here that the changes brought about by a rapidly globalizing world have drastically changed the manner in which arbitration is handled. Today, for instance, arbitration is not just executed by the elderly or more experienced people. Instead, today’s arbitrators are young technocrats who have emerged to serve the ever-rising number of firms seeking international arbitration services. Besides, arbitration has increasingly become an adjudicative process, meaning that it almost lasts just as long as a normal court process. This leaves arbitration with only one key strongpoint – a point that also gives arbitrators their most important role in international commercial dispute resolution. This is that it has the neutrality stemming from the fact that it offers no ‘home court’ advantage and its adjudication process is equally fair. In essence, arbitrators are required to exhibit the highest level of ne utrality and impartiality.[16] 5.1   The Need to Ensure Neutrality, Independence, and Impartiality International arbitrators are selected by the respective parties to a commercial dispute in order to act as their representatives in the matter.[17] These arbitrators are usually served with relevant information regarding the particular dispute by the given parties, arbitration attorneys, after which they have the responsibility of reaching a decision that both parties will abide by. Neutrality in the discharge of one’s duties as an international arbitrator requires that one acts in accordance with the legal requirements of the process of arbitration – in this case in line with the governing law that is agreed upon or that exists.[18] Honouring the expectations of the parties to the dispute is very important in the arbitration process, especially where the stakes involved are very high. The expectations that parties to a dispute have are usually many and, quite unwittingly on their part, they seek to influence the outcome of the arbitration process. Arbitrators must str ive not to bow to any pressure that might be applied by parties or one of them in order to achieve this goal.[19] The main goal of entering into any legal battle between two aggrieved parties is for each to get the arbitral award rendered by the arbitrators.[20] Depending on the nature of the award, different parties will be tempted to influence their representatives on the arbitration tribunal or so that the adjudication process is carried out with favouritism.[21] But this ought not to be the case. It is the duty of the arbitrators to ensure that the adjudication process is fair and neutrality is maintained. In essence, there is no need for any arbitrator to seek to advance the interests of the nominating party – the party that one represents. Instead, it is very important that once one is appointed to arbitrate in any commercial dispute then one must let go of any vested interests and serve the interests of the process. And the process of arbitration seeks to resolve disputes in an amicable and fair manner.[22] Quite often than not, arbitration has been marred with allegations of favou ritism, rendering not only the process itself ineffective but also affecting the legitimacy of international arbitration. Even where institutional arbitration is used, the institution ought to have as arbitrators’ people who are best placed to be neutral, and this is achievable by way of having all people with vested interests in the matter not being appointed to be arbitrators.[23] But the need for neutrality in international mediation is almost paradoxical because of several reasons. First of all, the very essence of arbitration is to have disputing parties legally and fairly resolve their dispute without the need for a court of law.[24] Therefore, each party has the responsibility of working to ensure that the outcome of the arbitration process – the award – is generally acceptable. A prerequisite for acceptability of a decision reached by any arbitrator is evidence that there will be fairness in the process. And this fairness is ensured by having each party appointing a representative to the arbitration tribunal.[25] Otherwise, each party has to consent to a particular agency acting as an arbitrator in the dispute. In the latter case, the agent selected has to prove to be fairly neutral and non-partisan. But the very fact that such an agency has been hired by a certain party means that its ability to remain impartial is compromised. Like arbitr ation attorneys who have the interests of one party at heart, the appointee to an arbitration tribunal almost always seeks to serve the interests of the appointing authority – their client. This drastically limits the ability of the arbitration process to be neutral. Instead, it becomes more like another battle between representatives of the two disputing parties.[26] Without pre-empting anything, many players have taken arbitration to be a rather quasi-legal process, and have almost come to believe that its outcomes can just be contested as one pleases.[27] That is not entirely true; and arbitrators ought to help end this analogy by presiding over arbitration proceedings that are free from controversy and render awards that are binding legally. That arbitration is entrenched in international law means that it is indeed a quasi-legal process in that its outcomes are binding and executable by any court of law yet the process affords the privacy and informality not found in any court of law. But the need for neutrality on the part of the arbitrator is not to be affected in any way by virtue of the process being quasi-legal. In fact neutrality is called for by law – both article 9 and article 10 of the Arbitrations Rules categorically place the role of seeking neutrality on the arbitrator.[28] Further, Section 8 of the Arbitration and Concilia tory Act provides that every arbitrator must strive to be independent and impartial – this includes avoiding engaging in any correspondence or any other form of communication with one party without the knowledge of the other party.[29] This is partly attributed to the norm in legal circles that justice ought to be applied equally and that no one person or individual can be a judge in one’s own cause. Therefore, an arbitrator is bound by law not to favour any party or to be predisposed as regards the question that is under dispute. This is what constitutes impartiality.[30] Independence, on the other hand, is a call to the arbitrator not to have any current or past dependent relationship with one or more of the parties to the dispute.[31] However, this is just as far as the relationship or dependence is deemed to affect or actually affects the freedom of the arbitrator to make a judgment that is free. This point is critical and delicate because any legal judgment must be based on evidence as provided during the proceedings and not from any other source – least of all from the relationship a judge or arbiter has with a party to the case. This is the principle that underlies sound judgment. Any judge must reach a decision based only on evidence implied or expressed by the parties in the dispute. However, any dependence on either party will likely cloud all judgements and so result in a ruling that is at best unfair. 5.2 The Role of Disclosure of Information It is upon the arbitrator in any commercial dispute to ensure that any information that is critical is disclosed to both parties in the dispute. In fact Section 8(1) of the Arbitration and Conciliatory Act requires the arbitrator to disclose every relevant fact that is deemed likely to cause justifiable doubts about the arbitrator’s impartiality and/or independence. Arbitrators must not deliberately conceal information that is relevant to the arbitration proceedings. But disclosure of relevant information or facts is not enough to ensure that the arbitration proceedings are free and fair. Rather, the timing of the disclosure is also very important. In the past, a lot of controversy has arisen from allegations of arbitrators disclosing key information at the wrong time – when the irreparable damage has already been done. The best time to disclose information is at the earliest possible opportunity – preferably before the arbitration proceedings commence. In fact a n arbitrator ought to disclose any important information at the time of one’s interview before one is appointed to take up the role of arbiter. But there has been debate on what exactly is considered relevant information. Some arbitrators have knowingly withheld certain information even when it has been clearly important; and asked later about it they have been quick to point out that they never thought such information was important in the first place. While relevance of information, as required by law, is not clearly defined, it is the duty of the arbiter to judge from the arbitration agreement what might be important and what is not important. The importance extends only to the matter at hand or under deliberation; and it is only the individual concerned that can understand what is likely to cause justifiable doubts on the part of the parties to the dispute. The arbitrator is required to keep revealing any such information even after one’s appointment and all the way through the arbitration proceedings. Once the arbitrator dully carries out this role of disclosure, then neither party is legally capable of contestin g the award on the basis of the disclosure made by the arbiter because every party effectively waives its rights and submits to the arbiter’s jurisdiction once disclosure is made.[37] Lacking proper definition in statute law, disclosure has come to be interpreted based on case law. In the AT T Corporation vs. Saudi Cable Company case, disclosure came to be defined as the real danger there is for bias on the part of the arbitrator.[38] In essence, it is the information that only the arbitrator knows and which, unless disclosed at the right time and in the right manner, has the capacity of making the arbiter to appear as biased or favourably disposed towards one party. It was ruled in the case that disclosure does not mean a reasonable suspicion threshold.[39] In the case, the Chair to the arbitration tribunal had failed to disclose that he was a non-executive member of one of the firms allied to the prevailing party.[40] Although the defendant claimed that the omission of the information, which was supposed to be contained in his CV, was a secretarial error, the plaintiff held that it tantamount to concealment of information because it caused real danger of bias. For the plaintiffs, there was no doubt that such a Chair could discharge his duties fairly and without bias given that he was strongly dependent on one of the parties.[41] However, the court ruled that an inadvertent failure to disclose a given fact that could affect the appointment of the Chair was in itself not sufficient enough to constitute a real danger of bias. Therefore, the court held that the award rendered should be enforced.[42] The basis of the ruling, put more simply, was that the problem was one that could affect the process of appointment of the arbitrator and not the arbitration process itself. Therefore, it was not important what was not disclosed at that time, let alone it having been inadvertently omitted. For the defendants clearly proved that the omission resulted from the Chair’s CV having been printed from a file that did not have the particular information even though a different file stored on a different computer had the Chair’s CV with the said information.[43] Anyone seeking to intentionally conceal a fact cannot have that same fact retained in any other document. Instead, one will have all evidence of the fact cleared as far as possible so that nothing comes to the fore. Therefore, disclosure is so much a role that is executable depending on the arbitrator concerned and not really the parties. For what parties may view as capable of causing real danger of bias might just be re asonable suspicion threshold which is not admissible before court as constituting concealment of information. 5.3 The Role of Effective Dispute Resolution through Valid Award Rendering Every party to a dispute expects to win and get the award. It is the role of the arbitrator to ensure that the rendering of the award is valid, and this is only possible by way of ensuring that the entire process of dispute resolution through arbitration is handled well and resolved effectively. Every arbitration process is only as credible as its outcome; and the rendering of an award is the final yet most important stage in the entire process. For this reason, it is upon the arbitrator to ensure that there are no unnecessary hitches at this all important stage. This might appear to be something rather simple in the eyes of the non-interested, partisan party. However, rendering an award can be the most delicate moment of the arbitration proceedings as it determines not only who wins what award but also whether or not the parties to the dispute are going to work together again or will go separate ways afterwards. It is a time to make that hardest decision without fear of reprisals i n any case the award has to be rendered and as in any dispute one party must win if the other has to lose.Only in exceptional cases does there result a zero sum – there being no winner-take-it-all situation but rather a case of sharing the spoils. So what is the role of the arbitrator in this case? Well, the arbitrator is expected to ensure that all issues that might threaten the validity of the award to be rendered are considered. It is the arbitrator’s role to ensure that the decisions are made not based on matters that are beyond the scope of the submissions made to the arbitration but on those that are within the scope.[47] No party will want a decision on a matter that is not in dispute or contention –that will only serve to curtail the process of arbitration. Furthermore, the conduct of the reference ought not to be afflicted with any form of misconduct – actual or technical – as this would serve as legal basis for the setting aside of any award rendered as this is in contravention of both Section 29 (2) and Section 30 of the Arbitration and Conciliatory Act. The challenge here is that the Arbitration and Conciliatory Act does not contain any clause on the definition of the concept of miscondu ct. Therefore, just like the concept of disclosure, its scope has been determined largely on the basis of case law. Over a time, there has been attempts at drawing up a list of what is deemed to constitute misconduct as it is applicable in the context of arbitration as has been held in past cases; and the list covers a wide array of issues. The first one is where the arbitrator does not comply with the terms of the arbitration agreement. This is regardless of whether it is expressed or implied. This effectively means that it is the role of the arbitrator to ensure that there is full compliance with both the expressed and implied terms of the arbitration agreement. The second case is where an award is made by the arbitrator but on public policy grounds that award ought not to be enforced. Third, there are cases where the arbitrator acts beyond the authority that is conferred by the arbitration agreement, in which case a mistake is made. Since the agreement is like the compass that offers directions all through the arbitration process, the terms therein must be adhered to fully by the arbitrator.Mis conduct is also deemed to have been exhibited where the arbitrator is corrupted or receives a bribe; where all matters referred to the arbitrator are not decided; where the award rendered is either ambiguous or inconsistent; and where the rules of natural justice have been breached or violated. Natural justice violation was the basis for misconduct claims in the Arbico Nigeria Limited v Nigeria Machine Tools Ltd case. Corruption is a means of perverting justice, and bribes always bring about favouritism because they are intended just for that purpose. Both are contrary to the spirit of fairness, impartiality, and neutrality.Misconduct is also evident in cases where an error of law which is apparent of the award face is made by the arbitrator but only in case where the point of the law that was decided erroneously could not be specifically referred for the arbitrator to make a decision on. This was demonstrated in the case of Taylor Woodrow Nigeria Ltd v Etina Werk GMBH.   Finally, misconduct can be cited where evidence that touches on the root of the question that is submitted to the arbitrator is wrongfully admitted and subsequently acted upon by that arbitrator as in the KSUDB v Fanz Construction Company Limited and the Compt. Comm. Ind. Ltd v OGSWC cases.This, however, excludes cases where the arbitrator judicially and honestly decides on what is admissible. In this exceptional case, any aw ard rendered based on such a decision cannot be set aside on the basis of misconduct. Based on these, the arbitrator is tasked with ensuring that the arbitration process remains free and fair at all times; and that what is decided upon is based on the terms of agreement implied and expressed. This ensures that the award rendered at the end stands little or no chance of being challenged in a court of law. By acting in a manner that openly demonstrates that their authority has been exceeded, arbitrators are effectively setting the stage for possible legal challenges to the final award.This is because any aggrieved party might easily prove that the award has dealt with a dispute which does not fall within the terms of the submissions made to the arbitrators in question. Therefore, it is important that the arbitrator focuses on matters that are within one’s jurisdiction as only then will it be difficult for the award to be contested. In any event where an aggrieved party seeks to set aside the award, only that part of the award that has decisions on matters that were not submitted can be set aside. It is therefore critical that the arbitrator clearly draws a distinction between those issues that fall within one’s jurisdiction and those that are not submitted. Such issues of setting aside part of the award because of the arbitrator failing to act within the jurisdiction were witnessed in the Bellview Airlines Limited v. Aluminium City Limited case. There is an interesting twist to the role of arbitrators as effective dispute resolvers by way of rendering valid awards. This is because there is a very big difference, albeit not clearly evident to the lay person, between the validity of an arbitral award and enforceability of the arbitral award. This distinction has been a cause of ripples across many nations as what is valid as an arbitral award may not necessarily be enforceable in every nation of the world. Therefore, it is upon the arbitrators to ensure that they do not overstep their mandate. Therefore, this is an appropriate opportunity to mention that arbitrators have the role of ensuring that an award rendered is valid. However, it is not their role to enforce that award. This is largely because the conditions that call for the enforcement of an award differ from one country to another, meaning that an arbitral award that is valid and enforceable in one country might be unenforceable in another country owing to differences in legal jurisdictions. But even if this is so, the arbitrator has to ensure the validity of the award without caring whether it will be enforced in the required country or not. In fact the arbitrator ought not to care where the award will be enforced and how that will be done. Instead, arbiters have the duty to validate the award and leave the enforcing to the country required. 6. The Role of Conducting Arbitral Proceedings International commercial disputes can take on very different forms – some of which require a lot of patience and tolerance on the part of arbitrators. Furthermore, commercial disputes usually have a lot at stake and any wrong decision made by the arbitrator might prove to be very costly to the non-prevailing party. Besides, the fact that these are cross-cultural deliberations carried out in a private setting means that they have to be conducted in the most open, fair, and free manner in order to be legitimate. Like the umpire who plays a neutral role but presides over hotly contested matches, the arbiter has the role of conducting the arbitral proceedings in such a way that they are concluded without any misgivings on the part of the antagonists. To do this effectively, the arbitrator must be both physically and mentally fit. In fact the Arbitration and Conciliation Act’s (1988) Section 10 (1) (b) expressly provides for the removal of any arbiter that lacks the capabili ty to conduct the arbitral proceedings due to such factors as mental and physical impairment. This removal can occur during the appointment process or even during the arbitral proceedings as long as it is proven that the arbiter can no longer be relied upon to carry out one’s tasks in relation to the reference. Apart from being required to be physically and mentally capable, the arbitrator has the role of ensuring that the arbitral proceedings are expedited so as to reduce the costs associated with arbitration procedures that drag on for too long. In fact, as earlier mentioned, one of the main reasons why arbitration has become one of the leading methods for the resolution of commercial disputes especially on the international level is because litigation seems to drag on forever, increasing the losses that parties incur partly by way of lost business revenue and time; and partly through high legal fees.   Therefore, the faster the process is undertaken the better for the parties involved. This role of arbitrators, however, is not without its own flaws. There are many issues that need to be addressed before this role can be performed effectively. For instance, it is difficult to judge a person’s state of health – both mental and physical – based on medical records available. Many people who outwardly appear sound might not really be capable to deal with commercial disputes of international magnitude. Even the sanest person can easily become incapable of conducting arbitrary proceedings because of the complexity of their nature and the many expectations placed on one. As such, the role of conducting arbitral proceedings ought to include counsels who can step in where they believe the process is not being undertaken in the right way. Counsels have been given limited powers; and in fact it is not mandatory for parties to have them unless they opt to. In the coming days, it ought to be a requirement for all parties to appoint counsels who can ensure th at the process of arbitration remains on course at all times. 6.1 The Role of Adopting Procedures Suitable for the Specific Case Specificity is a concept that is highly regarded in international commercial arbitration. Since arbitration is largely viewed as a method that seeks to bring justice to aggrieved parties in a just and ethical manner, it has been common practice for parties to want to have each case treated differently and approached from a perspective that is only unique to the particular dispute.As an arbiter, one is expected to ensure that this is actually done – that the specific case is treated differently from any other that the same or different arbiter might have participated in. The arbiter is required to conduct the reference skilfully and with reasonable diligence by adopting procedures which have been tailored to that particular dispute. This is a very important role because duplication of decisions as is common with litigation processes can be very disastrous if applied to arbitration. Powers which arbitrators have in determining how to conduct the reference is only an emphasis of the need for treating every dispute uniquely.[68] This power is determined by the ability of the arbiter to act subject to the agreement reached and signed by parties to the dispute and the legal provisions on the matter. That is why it is a provision of the Arbitration and Conciliatory Act’s First Schedule (Article 15(1)) that an arbitral tribunal can conduct the arbitration in the way it deems appropriate as long as each party is treated equally, including being given a fair chance to present its case to the tribunal. Again, it is important for every arbiter to understand that different disputes call for different approaches to their resolution. Therefore, it is the arbitrator’s role to ensure that this is done. 6.2 Ensuring Fairness and Expediency Speed is of the essence in the process of resolving any commercial dispute – international or national. Delays, as earlier mentioned, have the impact of causing many losses in terms of time, revenue, business, and even manpower and capital. While delays might not be avoidable under certain circumstances, undue delays are unnecessary and discredit the arbitration process and the arbiter overseeing it. Sometimes there is a lot of work that an arbiter has to do during the process of the arbitration. In such circumstances, it is the role of the arbitrator to inform the parties in advance of the workload so that they have prior information. This way, they can decide whether or not to appoint such an arbiter. Otherwise, the arbitrator understands clearly that some existing workload will hamper one’s ability to carry out one’s duties expeditiously ought to disqualify oneself from the work if already appointed, or reject it if one is proposed for appointment as arbitrato r. Closely related to speed is fairness in making decisions. Arbitrators must not only speed up the arbitration process but also do it fairly so that the award stands little chance of being contested by the non-prevailing party. According to Section 14 (Cap. A.18) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, every party ought to be given a fair chance to present its case to the arbitration tribunal. This legislation is based on Article 15(1) of the UNCITRAL (United Nations Commission on International Trade Law) Arbitration Rules and Article 18 of the Model Law. They provide that all parties ought to be treated equally and offered the full chance to present their submissions. But fairness can also be and has actually been interpreted differently by different courts in different jurisdictions. The most inclusive meaning of fairness can be traced from the Court of Appeal’s ruling in the cases of Umar v. Onwudiwe and African Assurance Corp. v. Aim Consultant Ltd where fairness in the con text of arbitration process was held to mean two issues. The first is where the arbitrator hears both sides and then considers all the issues that pertain to the case before making a decision; and the second is having the arbitrator according equal opportunity, treatment and consideration to all the parties. The audi alteram partem principle ought to be the guideline for the arbitrator in matters of fairness as it calls on one to hear both sides before making a ruling. This principle ought to be observed by all people who have quasi-judicial as well as judicial functions as is the case of arbiters in commercial disputes at the international level. Fairness is a role that is quite important as it also adds to the legitimacy of the arbitral proceedings. Arbitrators can best ensure fairness by giving every party not just enough and reasonable time to present their submissions but also to respond to the case by the other party. Finally, fairness might also include ensuring that the arbitration fees charged is commensurate with the specific case, taking into account aspects like complexity of the case and the time taken by the parties. 6.3 Maintenance of Confidentiality Arbitration proceedings are only quasi-judicial and they have to enjoy the privilege of not being so public. In fact so keen on confidentiality are commercial firms embroiled in disputes that they desire to maintain their reputation and as much as possible keep their business. Confidentiality is also important as it helps protect the arbitrators themselves from possible kickbacks from the non-prevailing parties and the criticism by international media. Without arbitrators, such a noble role would not be executable, meaning that arbitrators play a most important role in ensuring that confidentiality of the arbitral proceedings is maintained at all times during and even after those proceedings. More importantly, the need for confidentiality is enshrined in the Arbitration Rules’ Article 25(4), requiring that arbitration proceedings be held in camera except in cases where the parties agree to go public. Furthermore, the arbitration agreement always implies that the arbitration proceedings ought to be confidential and private. In discharging one’s duty of preserving privacy and confidentiality of the proceedings, the arbiter strives not to communicate any information, particularly details of names and locations, without the permission – express or implied – of the parties. But common practice has arbitrators treating almost all aspects of the arbitration to be private and so keeping them confidential. However, the most important facts kept secret are the award and the records of the arbitration proceedings. 6.4 Circumstantial Choice of the Language to be Used International commercial disputes can be tricky and difficult to handle especially where the parties do not share a common language. Quite often than not, the parties usually are drawn from very different countries where either several languages are spoken or only one language is used. Once again it is the arbitrator who will have to resolve this problem by considering the relevant circumstances before and when settling on the language for use at the arbitral proceedings. It is upon the arbitrator to consider both parties and the prevailing circumstances before deciding on the language for the arbitral proceedings powers conferred to one by the Arbitration and Conciliatory Act’s Section 18(1).Sometimes, the language to be used can generate a lot of controversy; and the arbitrator has the power to overrule the parties and, based on the circumstances, decide on a language that is to be used even if neither party wants it used. 6.5 Communication of Expert Report Any report which is or might be the basis for the ruling to be made by the arbitrator has to be communicated to the parties, and it is the work of the arbiter to do this. The right to do this is provided for in Section 20(4) of the Arbitration and Conciliatory Act. The importance of this role lies in the truth that parties to a dispute often wish to understand how an award came to be rendered, including the basis for the ruling made. By communicating such a report, the arbiter not only reduces the possibility of contesting the award but also upholds the credibility of the arbitral process. Evidentiary documents and/or expert reports are also very necessary on account of their being the only mechanisms through which parties can reasonably get the opportunity to comment on advice, opinion, and any other information by legal advisors and other experts. Ultimately, arbitrators – by playing this role – set the stage for a fair and equal treatment of every party. These are ve ry important requirements for any credible arbitral proceedings. 6.6 Ensuring ex aequo et bono or as amiable compositeur Both Sections 22(3) and 47(4) of the Arbitration and Conciliatory Act prohibit the arbitration tribunal from deciding ex aequo et bono or as amiable compositeur unless there is prior authority from the parties. In essence, there ought not to be any waiving of the legal, strict rules of interpretation by the arbitral tribunal except when the parties authorise otherwise. This role, also enforceable by arbitrators, is important as it discourages use of extra legal arbitration, minimizing arbitrariness in dispute resolution. As noted in the Orion Espanola De Seguros vs. Belfort Maatshappy Voor Algemene Verzeekgringeen case, only a recognizable and fixed law system ought to be applied. 6.7 The Roles as Imposed by Parties in the Arbitration Agreement Arbitration agreements might be drafted prior to a dispute or when a dispute is already at hand. This means that there is really no specified time for drafting an arbitration agreement – it all depends on the parties involved. Ad hoc arbitrations proceedings are designed to suit a specific dispute, and parties generally tend to prefer it. However, institutionalized arbitration agreements are designed before any dispute emerges and are entered as compulsory arbitration clauses in the laws of firms. Under such cases, the parties to a dispute are expected to adhere to the provisions in the arbitration clause. However, these disputing parties might require specific agreements to be added or removed to the agreement, meaning that arbitrators must be careful to follow what is required by the parties. It means an arbitrator will have to perform duties imposed by the parties to a dispute and all this is very important if the award is going to be acceptable to all parties. Sometimes, parties to a dispute might impose duties on an arbitrator even before the arbitrator is appointed, in which case the arbitrator must have to carefully review the roles one is expected to play before committing oneself to act in that capacity. Quite often than not, organizations that have an arbitration clause in their bylaws usually predetermine the roles that an arbitrator has to play. They duly require, in the event of a dispute, that the arbitrator abides by the provisions in the arbitration agreement. On the other hand, the parties embroiled in a commercial dispute might require that arbitrators adhere to certain rules formulated after the arbitrator has been appointed. In such circumstances, the arbitrator is expected to be part of the agreement setting process so that any role expectations that one finds hard to perform is discussed further; and if one still finds it impossible to perform that role then one must disqualify oneself from being an arbitrator. For instan ce, parties might require that the Chair of an arbitration tribunal must not be in any way a holder of any position in either of the disputing firms. In essence, the Chair must be neutral. So, any arbitrator appointed as Chair of an arbitration tribunal must ensure that that neutrality is maintained at all times during the process of arbitration. Otherwise – in case there are vested interests – one must not Chair such a tribunal. As is clearly implied in the case of ATT Corporation v Saudi Cable Co, the arbitration tribunal’s Chair is a very important personality. In this particularly case, the award issued was contested by the non-prevailing party because the Chair of the arbitration tribunal was allegedly associated with the prevailing side. In essence, the non-prevailing side felt that by having a Chair that had vested interest in the dispute effectively eroded the very principle of neutrality by which all arbitrators ought to abide.Therefore, arbitrators are bound by duty to follow every provision in the agreement or else they must choose to abstain. Having said that, it is very important, even courteous, for parties to have the arbitrator informed about any new roles which they want the arbitrator to undertake. Lack of information or misinformation might work against both parties if not one of them and so compromise the outcome of the arbitration. But more importantly, every arbitrator appointed must prove one’s capability and openly disclose it before agreeing to take up on the role. Arbitration processes are high-stake processes and failure on the part of an arbitrator will go a long way in affecting international commercial activities.For instance, an arbitrator must not seek or even attempt to conceal any information that might be important to the parties. Any concealment of important information erodes the trust that parties have in the process and so in its outcome. 6.8 Ethical Roles Being a quasi-legal process, arbitration requires that ethics be maintained at all times. Arbitrators have to ensure that this happens because moral and ethical issues are very important. In fact some arbitrators, especially the institutionalized ones, have designed their own code of ethics to ensure that parties are treated ethically and morally. This is a very important role because without ethics being incorporated in such heated disputes there would be the risk of disagreements and endless legal battles. Conclusion Arbitration plays a very important role in international dispute resolution. This is largely because commercial disputes have tended to be better resolved in a quasi-legal manner as opposed to strictly legal processes that are not only costly but also time-consuming. The role that arbitrators play in international commercial disputes has increasingly become important in the recent times. While each dispute is unique in its own way, arbitrators have had to grapple with certain issues that keep recurring, giving them roles that are rather standardized. In arguing that arbitrators play a very important role in international commercial disputes, this paper attempts to bring out the roles that arbitrators play, roles that have made arbitration what it is now – not only a cheap, faster, and confidential alternative to litigation but also a real effective means of resolving commercial disputes and enhancing cooperation between the parties so that there is continuity of their business relationship. These important roles played by arbitrators have their origins in three main areas: the role of arbitrators as imposed by applicable law or rules; the roles as imposed by parties in the arbitration agreement; and ethical roles. These roles include ensuring neutrality, independence, and impartiality; disclosure of information; effective dispute resolution through valid award rendering; conducting arbitral proceedings; adopting procedures suitable for the specific case; and ensuring fairness and expediency. Others are maintenance of confidentiality; circumstantial choice of the language to be used; communication of expert report; ensuring ex aequo et bono or as amiable compositeur; and upholding ethics during the arbitration process. All these are very important and suffice to underscore the significant role that arbitrators play in internal commercial dispute resolution. Over the years the role of arbitrators has evolved as the number of commercial disputes continued to increase and the assembly of arbitrators continued to swell. International arbitrators have metamorphosed in to a group who are experts in arbitration procedure and theory. The service they render has to be professionalized. They are the patrons of a system that is indispensable for the growth of international trade. Stipulating the role of arbitrators will promote legitimacy of the system critically impacting the global economy. It is more desirable that parties, arbitrators and professional organisations should clearly give expression to what sort of conduct is expected of international arbitrators and endow with incentives to avoid inapt behaviour. This way it will be possible to promote the ultimate objective of promoting justice, integrity of dispute resolution mechanism with critical international application. 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