This is the expanded second edition of a successful textbook that provides a broad introduction to the important area of stochastic modelling. The original text had been developed from lecture notes for a one-semester course on the topic for third-year science and actuarial students at the University of Melbourne. It reviews the basics of probability theory, and then covers the following topics: Markov chains, Markov decision processes, jump Markov processes, elements of queueing theory, basic renewal theory, elements of time series and simulation. The present edition adds new chapters on...

This is the expanded second edition of a successful textbook that provides a broad introduction to the important area of stochastic modelling. The original text had been developed from lecture notes for a one-semester course on the topic for third-year science and actuarial students at the University of Melbourne. It reviews the basics of probability theory, and then covers the following topics: Markov chains, Markov decision processes, jump Markov processes, elements of queueing theory, basic renewal theory, elements of time series and simulation. The present edition adds new chapters on...