OpenRaiser/Intern-Atlas huggingface dataset:
Vision Superalignment: Weak-to-Strong Generalization for Vision Foundation Models
Venue: arXiv cs.CV 2024
Year: 2024

Recent advancements in large language models have sparked interest in their extraordinary and near-superhuman capabilities, leading researchers to explore methods for evaluating and optimizing these abilities, which is called superalignment. In this context, our paper delves into the realm of vision foundation models, focusing on the concept of weak-to-strong generalization, which involves using a weaker model to supervise a stronger one, aiming to enhance the latter's capabilities beyond the former's limits. We introduce a novel and adaptively adjustable loss function for weak-to-strong supervision. Our comprehensive experiments span various scenarios, including few-shot learning, transfer learning, noisy label learning, and common knowledge distillation settings. The results are striking: our approach not only exceeds the performance benchmarks set by strong-to-strong generalization but also surpasses the outcomes of fine-tuning strong models with whole datasets. This compelling evidence underscores the significant potential of weak-to-strong generalization, showcasing its capability to substantially elevate the performance of vision foundation models. The code is available at https://github.com/ggjy/vision_weak_to_strong.
Misinformation and Polarization around COVID-19 vaccines in France, Germany, and Italy
Venue: arXiv cs.SI 2024
Year: 2024

The kick-off of vaccination campaigns in Europe, starting in late December 2020, has been followed by the online spread of controversies and conspiracies surrounding vaccine validity and efficacy. We study Twitter discussions in three major European languages (Italian, German, and French) during the vaccination campaign. Moving beyond content analysis to explore the structural aspects of online discussions, our investigation includes an analysis of polarization and the potential formation of echo chambers, revealing nuanced behavioral and topical differences in user interactions across the analyzed countries. Notably, we identify strong anti- and pro-vaccine factions exhibiting heterogeneous temporal polarization patterns in different countries. Through a detailed examination of news-sharing sources, we uncover the widespread use of other media platforms like Telegram and YouTube for disseminating low-credibility information, indicating a concerning trend of diminishing news credibility over time. Our findings on Twitter discussions during the COVID-19 vaccination campaign in major European languages expose nuanced behavioral distinctions, revealing the profound impact of polarization and the emergence of distinct anti-vaccine and pro-vaccine advocates over time.
Fed-CVLC: Compressing Federated Learning Communications with Variable-Length Codes
Venue: arXiv cs.LG 2024
Year: 2024

In Federated Learning (FL) paradigm, a parameter server (PS) concurrently communicates with distributed participating clients for model collection, update aggregation, and model distribution over multiple rounds, without touching private data owned by individual clients. FL is appealing in preserving data privacy; yet the communication between the PS and scattered clients can be a severe bottleneck. Model compression algorithms, such as quantization and sparsification, have been suggested but they generally assume a fixed code length, which does not reflect the heterogeneity and variability of model updates. In this paper, through both analysis and experiments, we show strong evidences that variable-length is beneficial for compression in FL. We accordingly present Fed-CVLC (Federated Learning Compression with Variable-Length Codes), which fine-tunes the code length in response of the dynamics of model updates. We develop optimal tuning strategy that minimizes the loss function (equivalent to maximizing the model utility) subject to the budget for communication. We further demonstrate that Fed-CVLC is indeed a general compression design that bridges quantization and sparsification, with greater flexibility. Extensive experiments have been conducted with public datasets to demonstrate that Fed-CVLC remarkably outperforms state-of-the-art baselines, improving model utility by 1.50%-5.44%, or shrinking communication traffic by 16.67%-41.61%.
Learning a Decision Tree Algorithm with Transformers
Venue: arXiv cs.LG 2024
Year: 2024

Decision trees are renowned for their ability to achieve high predictive performance while remaining interpretable, especially on tabular data. Traditionally, they are constructed through recursive algorithms, where they partition the data at every node in a tree. However, identifying a good partition is challenging, as decision trees optimized for local segments may not yield global generalization. To address this, we introduce MetaTree, a transformer-based model trained via meta-learning to directly produce strong decision trees. Specifically, we fit both greedy decision trees and globally optimized decision trees on a large number of datasets, and train MetaTree to produce only the trees that achieve strong generalization performance. This training enables MetaTree to emulate these algorithms and intelligently adapt its strategy according to the context, thereby achieving superior generalization performance.
Large Language Models As MOOCs Graders
Venue: arXiv cs.CL 2024
Year: 2024

Massive open online courses (MOOCs) unlock the doors to free education for anyone around the globe with access to a computer and the internet. Despite this democratization of learning, the massive enrollment in these courses means it is almost impossible for one instructor to assess every student's writing assignment. As a result, peer grading, often guided by a straightforward rubric, is the method of choice. While convenient, peer grading often falls short in terms of reliability and validity. In this study, using 18 distinct settings, we explore the feasibility of leveraging large language models (LLMs) to replace peer grading in MOOCs. Specifically, we focus on two state-of-the-art LLMs: GPT-4 and GPT-3.5, across three distinct courses: Introductory Astronomy, Astrobiology, and the History and Philosophy of Astronomy. To instruct LLMs, we use three different prompts based on a variant of the zero-shot chain-of-thought (Zero-shot-CoT) prompting technique: Zero-shot-CoT combined with instructor-provided correct answers; Zero-shot-CoT in conjunction with both instructor-formulated answers and rubrics; and Zero-shot-CoT with instructor-offered correct answers and LLM-generated rubrics. Our results show that Zero-shot-CoT, when integrated with instructor-provided answers and rubrics, produces grades that are more aligned with those assigned by instructors compared to peer grading. However, the History and Philosophy of Astronomy course proves to be more challenging in terms of grading as opposed to other courses. Finally, our study reveals a promising direction for automating grading systems for MOOCs, especially in subjects with well-defined rubrics.
OASim: an Open and Adaptive Simulator based on Neural Rendering for Autonomous Driving
Venue: arXiv cs.CV 2024
Year: 2024

With deep learning and computer vision technology development, autonomous driving provides new solutions to improve traffic safety and efficiency. The importance of building high-quality datasets is self-evident, especially with the rise of end-to-end autonomous driving algorithms in recent years. Data plays a core role in the algorithm closed-loop system. However, collecting real-world data is expensive, time-consuming, and unsafe. With the development of implicit rendering technology and in-depth research on using generative models to produce data at scale, we propose OASim, an open and adaptive simulator and autonomous driving data generator based on implicit neural rendering. It has the following characteristics: (1) High-quality scene reconstruction through neural implicit surface reconstruction technology. (2) Trajectory editing of the ego vehicle and participating vehicles. (3) Rich vehicle model library that can be freely selected and inserted into the scene. (4) Rich sensors model library where you can select specified sensors to generate data. (5) A highly customizable data generation system can generate data according to user needs. We demonstrate the high quality and fidelity of the generated data through perception performance evaluation on the Carla simulator and real-world data acquisition. Code is available at https://github.com/PJLab-ADG/OASim.
Shifting social norms as a driving force for linguistic change: Struggles about language and gender in the German Bundestag
Venue: arXiv cs.CL 2024
Year: 2024

This paper focuses on language change based on shifting social norms, in particular with regard to the debate on language and gender. It is a recurring argument in this debate that language develops "naturally" and that "severe interventions" - such as gender-inclusive language is often claimed to be - in the allegedly "organic" language system are inappropriate and even "dangerous". Such interventions are, however, not unprecedented. Socially motivated processes of language change are neither unusual nor new. We focus in our contribution on one important political-social space in Germany, the German Bundestag. Taking other struggles about language and gender in the plenaries of the Bundestag as a starting point, our article illustrates that language and gender has been a recurring issue in the German Bundestag since the 1980s. We demonstrate how this is reflected in linguistic practices of the Bundestag, by the use of a) designations for gays and lesbians; b) pair forms such as Bürgerinnen und Bürger (female and male citizens); and c) female forms of addresses and personal nouns ('Präsidentin' in addition to 'Präsident'). Lastly, we will discuss implications of these earlier language battles for the currently very heated debate about gender-inclusive language, especially regarding new forms with gender symbols like the asterisk or the colon (Lehrer*innen, Lehrer:innen; male*female teachers) which are intended to encompass all gender identities.
Network Analysis of U.S. Non-Fatal Opioid-Involved Overdose Journeys, 2018-2023
Venue: arXiv cs.SI 2024
Year: 2024

We present a nation-wide network analysis of non-fatal opioid-involved overdose journeys in the United States. Leveraging a unique proprietary dataset of Emergency Medical Services incidents, we construct a journey-to-overdose geospatial network capturing nearly half a million opioid-involved overdose events spanning 2018-2023. We analyze the structure and sociological profiles of the nodes, which are counties or their equivalents, characterize the distribution of overdose journey lengths, and investigate changes in the journey network between 2018 and 2023. Our findings include that authority and hub nodes identified by the HITS algorithm tend to be located in urban areas and involved in overdose journeys with particularly long geographical distances.
Capturing the Unseen: Vision-Free Facial Motion Capture Using Inertial Measurement Units
Venue: arXiv cs.CV 2024
Year: 2024

We present Capturing the Unseen (CAPUS), a novel facial motion capture (MoCap) technique that operates without visual signals. CAPUS leverages miniaturized Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs) as a new sensing modality for facial motion capture. While IMUs have become essential in full-body MoCap for their portability and independence from environmental conditions, their application in facial MoCap remains underexplored. We address this by customizing micro-IMUs, small enough to be placed on the face, and strategically positioning them in alignment with key facial muscles to capture expression dynamics. CAPUS introduces the first facial IMU dataset, encompassing both IMU and visual signals from participants engaged in diverse activities such as multilingual speech, facial expressions, and emotionally intoned auditions. We train a Transformer Diffusion-based neural network to infer Blendshape parameters directly from IMU data. Our experimental results demonstrate that CAPUS reliably captures facial motion in conditions where visual-based methods struggle, including facial occlusions, rapid movements, and low-light environments. Additionally, by eliminating the need for visual inputs, CAPUS offers enhanced privacy protection, making it a robust solution for vision-free facial MoCap.
Using metaheuristics for the location of bicycle stations
Venue: arXiv cs.NE 2024
Year: 2024

In this work, we solve the problem of finding the best locations to place stations for depositing/collecting shared bicycles. To do this, we model the problem as the p-median problem, that is a major existing localization problem in optimization. The p-median problem seeks to place a set of facilities (bicycle stations) in a way that minimizes the distance between a set of clients (citizens) and their closest facility (bike station). We have used a genetic algorithm, iterated local search, particle swarm optimization, simulated annealing, and variable neighbourhood search, to find the best locations for the bicycle stations and study their comparative advantages. We use irace to parameterize each algorithm automatically, to contribute with a methodology to fine-tune algorithms automatically. We have also studied different real data (distance and weights) from diverse open data sources from a real city, Malaga (Spain), hopefully leading to a final smart city application. We have compared our results with the implemented solution in Malaga. Finally, we have analyzed how we can use our proposal to improve the existing system in the city by adding more stations.
Smoothed analysis of deterministic discounted and mean-payoff games
Venue: arXiv cs.GT 2024
Year: 2024

We devise a policy-iteration algorithm for deterministic two-player discounted and mean-payoff games, that runs in polynomial time with high probability, on any input where each payoff is chosen independently from a sufficiently random distribution. This includes the case where an arbitrary set of payoffs has been perturbed by a Gaussian, showing for the first time that deterministic two-player games can be solved efficiently, in the sense of smoothed analysis. More generally, we devise a condition number for deterministic discounted and mean-payoff games, and show that our algorithm runs in time polynomial in this condition number. Our result confirms a previous conjecture of Boros et al., which was claimed as a theorem and later retracted. It stands in contrast with a recent counter-example by Christ and Yannakakis, showing that Howard's policy-iteration algorithm does not run in smoothed polynomial time on stochastic single-player mean-payoff games. Our approach is inspired by the analysis of random optimal assignment instances by Frieze and Sorkin, and the analysis of bias-induced policies for mean-payoff games by Akian, Gaubert and Hochart.
Examining Rail Transportation Route of Crude Oil in the United States Using Crowdsourced Social Media Data
Venue: arXiv cs.SI 2024
Year: 2024

Safety issues associated with transporting crude oil by rail have been a concern since the boom of US domestic shale oil production in 2012. During the last decade, over 300 crude oil by rail incidents have occurred in the US. Some of them have caused adverse consequences including fire and hazardous materials leakage. However, only limited information on the routes of crude-on-rail and their associated risks is available to the public. To this end, this study proposes an unconventional way to reconstruct the crude-on-rail routes using geotagged photos harvested from the Flickr website. The proposed method links the geotagged photos of crude oil trains posted online with national railway networks to identify potential railway segments those crude oil trains were traveling on. A shortest path-based method was then applied to infer the complete crude-on-rail routes, by utilizing the confirmed railway segments as well as their movement direction information. Validation of the inferred routes was performed using a public map and official crude oil incident data. Results suggested that the inferred routes based on geotagged photos have high coverage, with approximately 96% of the documented crude oil incidents aligned with the reconstructed crude-on-rail network. The inferred crude oil train routes were found to pass through many metropolitan areas with dense populations, who are exposed to potential risk. This finding could improve situation awareness for policymakers and transportation planners. In addition, with the inferred routes, this study establishes a good foundation for future crude oil train risk analysis along the rail route.
Google Translate Error Analysis for Mental Healthcare Information: Evaluating Accuracy, Comprehensibility, and Implications for Multilingual Healthcare Communication
Venue: arXiv cs.CL 2024
Year: 2024

This study explores the use of Google Translate (GT) for translating mental healthcare (MHealth) information and evaluates its accuracy, comprehensibility, and implications for multilingual healthcare communication through analysing GT output in the MHealth domain from English to Persian, Arabic, Turkish, Romanian, and Spanish. Two datasets comprising MHealth information from the UK National Health Service website and information leaflets from The Royal College of Psychiatrists were used. Native speakers of the target languages manually assessed the GT translations, focusing on medical terminology accuracy, comprehensibility, and critical syntactic/semantic errors. GT output analysis revealed challenges in accurately translating medical terminology, particularly in Arabic, Romanian, and Persian. Fluency issues were prevalent across various languages, affecting comprehension, mainly in Arabic and Spanish. Critical errors arose in specific contexts, such as bullet-point formatting, specifically in Persian, Turkish, and Romanian. Although improvements are seen in longer-text translations, there remains a need to enhance accuracy in medical and mental health terminology and fluency, whilst also addressing formatting issues for a more seamless user experience. The findings highlight the need to use customised translation engines for Mhealth translation and the challenges when relying solely on machine-translated medical content, emphasising the crucial role of human reviewers in multilingual healthcare communication.
An Optimal House Price Prediction Algorithm: XGBoost
Venue: arXiv cs.LG 2024
Year: 2024

An accurate prediction of house prices is a fundamental requirement for various sectors including real estate and mortgage lending. It is widely recognized that a property value is not solely determined by its physical attributes but is significantly influenced by its surrounding neighbourhood. Meeting the diverse housing needs of individuals while balancing budget constraints is a primary concern for real estate developers. To this end, we addressed the house price prediction problem as a regression task and thus employed various machine learning techniques capable of expressing the significance of independent variables. We made use of the housing dataset of Ames City in Iowa, USA to compare support vector regressor, random forest regressor, XGBoost, multilayer perceptron and multiple linear regression algorithms for house price prediction. Afterwards, we identified the key factors that influence housing costs. Our results show that XGBoost is the best performing model for house price prediction.
Cooperation and profit allocation in distribution chains
Venue: arXiv cs.GT 2024
Year: 2024

We study the coordination of actions and the allocation of profit in supply chains under decentralized control in which a single supplier supplies several retailers with goods for replenishment of stocks. The goal of the supplier and the retailers is to maximize their individual profits. Since the outcome under decentralized control is inefficient, cooperation among firms by means of coordination of actions may improve the individual profits. Cooperation is studied by means of cooperative game theory. Among others we show that the corresponding games are balanced and we propose a stable solution concept for these games.
Acceleration and energy consumption optimization in cascading classifiers for face detection on low-cost ARM big.LITTLE asymmetric architectures
Venue: arXiv cs.PF 2024
Year: 2024

This paper proposes a mechanism to accelerate and optimize the energy consumption of a face detection software based on Haar-like cascading classifiers, taking advantage of the features of low-cost Asymmetric Multicore Processors (AMPs) with limited power budget. A modelling and task scheduling/allocation is proposed in order to efficiently make use of the existing features on big.LITTLE ARM processors, including: (I) source-code adaptation for parallel computing, which enables code acceleration by applying the OmpSs programming model, a task-based programming model that handles data-dependencies between tasks in a transparent fashion; (II) different OmpSs task allocation policies which take into account the processor asymmetry and can dynamically set processing resources in a more efficient way based on their particular features. The proposed mechanism can be efficiently applied to take advantage of the processing elements existing on low-cost and low-energy multi-core embedded devices executing object detection algorithms based on cascading classifiers. Although these classifiers yield the best results for detection algorithms in the field of computer vision, their high computational requirements prevent them from being used on these devices under real-time requirements. Finally, we compare the energy efficiency of a heterogeneous architecture based on asymmetric multicore processors with a suitable task scheduling, with that of a homogeneous symmetric architecture.
VRMM: A Volumetric Relightable Morphable Head Model
Venue: arXiv cs.CV 2024
Year: 2024

In this paper, we introduce the Volumetric Relightable Morphable Model (VRMM), a novel volumetric and parametric facial prior for 3D face modeling. While recent volumetric prior models offer improvements over traditional methods like 3D Morphable Models (3DMMs), they face challenges in model learning and personalized reconstructions. Our VRMM overcomes these by employing a novel training framework that efficiently disentangles and encodes latent spaces of identity, expression, and lighting into low-dimensional representations. This framework, designed with self-supervised learning, significantly reduces the constraints for training data, making it more feasible in practice. The learned VRMM offers relighting capabilities and encompasses a comprehensive range of expressions. We demonstrate the versatility and effectiveness of VRMM through various applications like avatar generation, facial reconstruction, and animation. Additionally, we address the common issue of overfitting in generative volumetric models with a novel prior-preserving personalization framework based on VRMM. Such an approach enables high-quality 3D face reconstruction from even a single portrait input. Our experiments showcase the potential of VRMM to significantly enhance the field of 3D face modeling.