Medical informatics and the quality of health: New approaches to support patient care - Findings from the IMIA Yearbook of Medical Informatics 2003 Objectives: The Yearbook of Medical Informatics is published annually by the International Medical Informatics Association (IMIA) and contains a selection of excellent papers on medical informatics research which have been recently published (http://www.yearbook.uni-hd.de). The 2003 Yearbook of Medical Informatics took as its theme the role of medical informatics for the quality of health care. In this paper, we will discuss challenges for health care, and the lessons learned from editing IMIA Yearbook 2003. Results and Conclusions: Modern information processing methodology and information and communication technology have strongly influenced our societies and health care. As a consequence of this, medicallion-formatics as a discipline has taken a leading role in the further development of health care. This involves developing information systems that enhance opportunities for global access to health services and medical knowledge. Informatics methodology and technology will facilitate high quality of care in aging societies, and will decrease the possibilities of health care errors. It will also enable the dissemination of the latest medical and health information on the web to consumers and health care providers alike. The selected papers of the IMIA Yearbook 2003 present clear examples and future challenges, and they highlight how various sub-disciplines of medical informatics can contribute to this.

B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O B I O O O O O B I O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O B I O O B I I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O

medical informatics
imia yearbook
quality of health care


External collaboration patterns of research institutions using shared publications in the Web of Science Purpose - During recent decades, research institutions have increased collaboration with other institutions since it is recognized as a good practice that improves their performance. However, they do not usually consider external collaborations as a strategic issue despite their benefits. The purpose of this paper consists of identifying different patterns of collaboration and internationalization of universities, with the aim of helping managers and policy makers to take decisions related to their national research policies. Design/methodology/approach - Co-authorship analysis has been used in conjunction with social network analysis to model inter-institutional collaborations as networks, extracting these collaborations from the Web of Science database. Using several structural properties of the extracted networks and applying a statistical treatment, the main profiles of collaborations and internationalization have been obtained. Findings - Obtained results distinguish three patterns of collaborations according to the intensity and scope of collaborations. The statistical treatment also provides a segmentation of universities according to their collaboration profiles. Finally, universities are represented in hi-dimensional maps using external collaborations as a measure of similarity. Research limitations/implications - Although this study is restricted to English universities, it could probably be extended at least to other countries in the European Union or even other developed countries. Practical implications - Research and institutions productivity are usually linked to the amount of received funding. The use of indicators related to internationalization of institutions can help to avoid a bias in favour of research quantity rather than quality, and towards a short-term performance rather than a long-term research capacity. Originality/value - As a difference to previous works, this paper analyses networks of collaboration from the viewpoint of institutions. More specifically, the combination of social network analysis and factor analysis is used to identify patterns of collaboration among institutions. A longitudinal study is also included to demonstrate that the obtained categorization of universities is maintained over time.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O B O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O

external collaborations
internationalization
social network analysis
universities

knowledge networks
bibliometrics
collaborative research networks
united kingdom


Reduced PCR/PLSR models by subspace projections Latent variables models used in principal component regression (PCR) or partial least squares regression (PLSR) often use a high number of components, and this makes interpretation of score and loading plots difficult. These plots are essential parts of multivariate modeling, and there is therefore a need for a reduction of the number of components without loss of prediction power. In this work, it is shown that such reductions of PCR models with a common number of components for all responses, as well as of PLSR (PLS1 and PLS2) models, may be obtained by projection of the X modeling objects onto a subspace containing the estimators (b) over cap (i) for the different responses y(i). The theoretical results are substantiated in three real world data set examples, also showing that the presented model reduction method may work quite well also for PCR models with different numbers of components for different responses, as well as for a set of individual PLSR (PLS1) models. Examples of interpretational advantages of reduced models in process monitoring applications are included. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O


Secure and self-stabilizing clock synchronization in sensor networks In sensor networks, correct clocks have arbitrary starting offsets and nondeterministic fluctuating skews. We consider an adversary that aims at tampering with the clock synchronization by intercepting messages, replaying intercepted messages (after the adversary's choice of delay), and capturing nodes (i.e., revealing their secret keys and impersonating them). We present an efficient clock sampling algorithm which tolerates attacks by this adversary, collisions, a bounded amount of losses due to ambient noise, and a bounded number of captured nodes that can jam, intercept, and send fake messages. The algorithm is self-stabilizing, so if these bounds are temporarily violated, the system can efficiently stabilize back to a correct state. Using this clock sampling algorithm, we construct the first self-stabilizing algorithm for secure clock synchronization in sensor networks that is resilient to the aforementioned adversarial attacks. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

secure and resilient computer systems
sensor-network systems
clock-synchronization
self-stabilization


An individualistic approach to social action in multi-agent systems In this paper, we propose an individualistic formal model of coordination and social action in Multi-Agent Systems (MAS). In the first stage, the agents recognize potential for cooperation by reasoning about how they depend on each other. In the second phase, the agents negotiate directly: Following 'social' strategies, the agents propose, accept or refuse different offers until they reach a 'fair' agreement. The process itself is seen as an exchange of commissive speech acts, through which the agents adopt social commitments. Finally, joint commitments and societies are defined in individual terms. Joint plans are seen as deals and team activity as a special case of social activity. Moreover, agents are allowed to relax their initial goals and negotiate over compatible subgoals. They will cooperate as long as they have common interests. This approach improves previous models of coordination in three ways: (a) it is simpler, because team and plan formation are considered in the same stage; (b) it is clearer, because there are not representational gaps along the coordination process; (c) it is more comprehensive, because it is applicable to MAS in general, not only to Cooperative Problem Solving (CPS).

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O


UV-induced modification of fluorocarbon for improvement of subsequent wet removal ? We studied the effect of UV exposure parameters on a model CFx polymer. A partial removal of CFx (x=13) and CF CF2 groups occurred during the UV irradiation in oxygen. The extent of the polymer modification during UV exposure determined the removal efficiency in the subsequent wet clean. The UV dose and the atmosphere in which the UV pre-treatment is carried out represent the most critical parameters. Good compatibility of the UV process with a 2.0 low-k material (?k?0.1), except for PO2>100Torr at high dose.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

fluorocarbon polymer
uv treatment
post-etch residue removal
2.0 low-k dielectrics


A Bayesian inversion method for estimating the particle size distribution of latexes from multiangle dynamic light scattering measurements A statistical Bayesian method is proposed for estimating the particle size distribution (PSD) of polymeric latexes from multiangle dynamic light scattering (MDLS) measurements. The procedure includes two main steps: 1) the calculation of the angle-dependent average diameters of the PSD from the MDLS autocorrelation measurements, and 2) the PSD estimation through a Bayesian method (that is solved with a Markov chain Monte Carlo sampling strategy implemented in the form of a Metropolis-Hasting algorithm). First, the method was evaluated through two simulated examples that involved unimodal and bimodal PSDs of different shapes. Then, the method was employed for estimating two bimodal PSDs obtained by mixing two narrow polystyrene standards. For comparison, all examples were also solved by numerical inversion of the raw MDLS autocorrelation measurements through a classical regularization technique typically used for inverting ill-conditioned linear problems. The proposed method appears as an effective and robust tool for characterizing unimodal or multimodal PSDs without requiring any a priori assumption on the number of modes or on their shapes. For unimodal PSDs exhibiting high asymmetries and for bimodal PSDs with modes of different particle concentration, the Bayesian method produced more accurate results than those obtained with the classical regularization technique. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

O O O O O O O B I I O O O O B I I O O O B I O O O O O B I I O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

particle size distribution
dynamic light scattering
bayesian method

latex
inverse problem
regularization techniques


An efficient hybrid Taguchi-genetic algorithm for protein folding simulation Given the amino-acid sequence of a protein, the prediction of a proteins tertiary structure is known as the protein folding problem. The protein folding problem in the hydrophobichydrophilic lattice model is to find the lowest energy conformation. In order to enhance the performance of predicting protein structure, in this paper we propose an efficient hybrid Taguchi-genetic algorithm that combines genetic algorithm, Taguchi method, and particle swarm optimization (PSO). The GA has the capability of powerful global exploration, while the Taguchi method can exploit the optimum offspring. In addition, we present the PSO inspired by a mutation mechanism in a genetic algorithm. We demonstrate that our algorithm can be applied successfully to the protein folding problem based on the hydrophobic-hydrophilic lattice model. Simulation results indicate that our approach performs very well against existing evolutionary algorithm.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I B I O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

genetic algorithm
taguchi method
particle swarm optimization

protein structure prediction
hp lattice model


analytical modeling of lock-based concurrency control with arbitrary transaction data access patterns Nowadays the 2-Phase-Locking (2PL) concurrency control algorithm still plays a core rule in the construction of transactional systems (e.g. database systems and transactional memories). Hence, any technique allowing accurate analysis and prediction of the performance of 2PL based systems can be of wide interest and applicability. In this article we present an accurate analytical model of 2PL concurrency control, which overcomes several limitations of preexisting analytical results. In particular our model captures relevant features of realistic data access patterns, by taking into account access distributions that depend on transactions' execution phases. Also, our model provides significantly more accurate performance predictions in heavy contention scenarios, where the number of transactions enqueued due to conflicting lock requests is expected to be non-minimal. The accuracy of our model has been verified against simulation results based on both synthetic data access patterns and patterns derived from the TPC-C benchmark.

O O O O B I O O O B I I O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O

data access patterns
concurrency control


Measurement protocol of womens nude breasts using a 3D scanning technique It has been difficult to obtain accurate surface data for womens breasts, since the borderline of the breast is ambiguous at the skin surface. In this paper, we scanned 37 womens nude breasts using 3D phase shifting moir and explored a measurement protocol to get a reliable boundary of the breast and thereby provided new shape parameters for breasts. The folding line method was useful for finding a continuous and natural boundary for the breasts, so that the breasts base and volume could be measured more accurately. The global average radius of the curvature of the bottom breast line was suggested as a useful shape parameter for the design of a comfortable and form-fitting brassiere, especially for those who have a skewed bottom breast curve. It is also expected that data on breast volume based on natural anatomy would be a useful reference for surgical operation on the breast.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

3d scanning of nude breasts
radius of curvature


finite-grain message passing concurrent computers Fine-grain concurrent computers, by operating at a fine grain, increase the amount of concurrency that can be efficiently exploited in a given problem. Programming is simplified because programs may be partitioned into natural units of methods and objects and these objects are addressed uniformly whether they are local or remote. The construction of these machines poses challenging problems in reducing overhead, increasing communication bandwidth, and developing resource management techniques. This paper describes this class of machines, the challenges posed by their construction, and recent progress toward meeting these challenges.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B B O O B I O O B O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O

communication
meeting
concurrency
bandwidth
paper
resource management
class

challenge program method computation object operability message-passing locality


Wine Polyphenols and Optimal Nutrition One of the key elements of Mediterranean diet is the use of wine, usually taken with foods. Besides the evidence from human experience and ancient medicine, modern experimental data support the notion that the most striking effect of wine in protecting against cardiovascular disease involves the reduction of oxidative damage to plasma lipoproteins. This oxidative damage is thought to be mediated by eating foods containing oxidized lipids. In fact, eating a meal containing oxidized lipids increases the plasma level of lipid hydroperoxides and increases the susceptibility to oxidation of LDL. The postprandial increase of LDL-, an oxidatively modified form of LDL, where apoB is unfolded and sinking in the core of the particle, is a valuable biomarker for this food-derived oxidative stress in plasma. Wine, taken with foods minimizes the postprandial rise of lipid hydroperoxides and LDL- and abolishes the increase of LDL oxidability. Among wine antioxidants, the best candidates for providing an antioxidant effect are procyanidins. These compounds are considered better antioxidants than the corresponding monomers containing catechol groups. This is due to the hydrogen transfer mechanism for the radical-scavenging reaction, which renders the reaction more specific for peroxyl radicals and pH independent. Moreover, the fast intramolecular disproportion among aroxyl radicals pulls the antioxidant reaction by both decreasing the oxidation potential and increasing the rate of the reaction. Apparently, wine procyanidins are active in preventing lipid oxidation of foods while in the digestive tract, thus preventing the postprandial plasma rise in oxidants. The likely limited bioavailability of these compounds, therefore, does not affect their relevance as key elements for optimizing nutrition and reducing risk of atherogenesis. Accordingly, studies with rabbits fed a high cholesterol diet show that grapeseed procyanidins are strongly protective not only in terms of reducing plasma lipid peroxides, but they also markedly inhibit lipid-laden foam-cell deposition. Drinking wine at meals provides this kind of protection, and the final benefits are realized by the prevention of the development of atheromatous lesions even under conditions of hypercholesterolemia.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

atherosclerosis
ldl (modified)
cholesterol (efflux)


Numerical dispersion analysis of a multi-symplectic scheme for the three dimensional Maxwell's equations In this paper, we study a multi-symplectic scheme for three dimensional Maxwell's equations in a simple medium. This is a system of PDEs with multi-symplectic structures. We prove that this multi-symplectic scheme preserves the discrete version of local and global energy conservation law and the discrete divergence. Furthermore, we extend the discussion to several dispersion properties of the multi-symplectic scheme including the numerical dispersion relation, the numerical group velocity, the effect of large time steps and the CFL condition. (C) 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

conservation law
dispersion relation
group velocity

maxwell's equations
multi-symplectic scheme


Theoretical study of the water exchange reaction on divalent zinc ion using density functional theory Recent ab initio studies reported in the literature have challenged the mechanistic assignments made on the basis of volume of activation data [1,2]. In addition to that ab initio molecular orbital calculations on hydrated zinc(II)-ions were used to elucidate the general role of this ion in metalloproteins [3]. Due to our interest in both inorganic reaction mechanisms and enzymatic catalysis we started a systematic investigation of solvent exchange processes on divalent zinc-ion using density functional calculations. Our investigations cover aqua complexes of the general form [Zn(H2O)(n)](2+). mH(2)O with n=3-6 and m=0-2, where n and m represent the number of water molecules in the coordination and solvation sphere, respectively. The complexes [Zn(H2O)(5)](2+). 2H(2)O and [Zn(H2O)(4)](2+). 2H(2)O turnend out to be the most stable zinc complexes with seven and six water molecules, respectively. This implies that a heptacoordinated zinc(II) complex, where all water molecules are located in the co-ordination sphere, should be energetically highly unfavorable and that [Zn(H2O)(6)](2+) can quite readily push two coordinated water molecules into the solvation sphere. For the pentaqua complex [Zn(H2O)(5)](2+) only one water molecule is easily lost to the solvation sphere, which makes the [Zn(H2O)(4)](2+). H2O complex the most favorable in order to consider the limiting dissociative and associative water exchange process of hexacoordinated zinc(II). The dehydration and hydration energies using the most stable zinc(II) complexes [Zn(H2O)(4)](2+). 2H(2)O, [Zn(H2O)(5)](2+). 2H(2)O and [Zn(H2O)(4)](2+). H2O were calculated to be 24.1 and -21.0 kcal/mol, respectively.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

ab initio
zinc complexes
hydration energies


Generalized discrete event simulation of dynamic systems Given a process whose output is a dynamic function of time, the traditional discrete event abstraction approximates the input, output, and state trajectories through piecewise constant segments. For processes that defy accurate modeling through piecewise constant segments, this paper presents GDEVS, a Generalized Discrete Event Specification, wherein the trajectories are organized through piecewise polynomial segments. The utilization of arbitrary polynomial functions for segments promises higher accuracies in modeling continuous processes as discrete event abstractions that, in turn, permit faster execution on host computers in contrast to continuous simulations. A key contribution of GDEVS is that it permits the development of a uniform simulation environment for hybrid, i.e., both continuous and discrete, systems. For complex systems that employ hierarchical descriptions, the need to interconnect models at different levels of abstraction gives rise to the issue of coupled models in GDEVS. This paper introduces the notion of a coupled model and illustrates with examples of GDEVS simulations of continuous systems.

O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O

discrete event model
devs
hybrid systems


Classifying metrics for assessing Object-Oriented Software Maintainability: A family of metrics catalogs OOSM metrics categorization was proposed: 7 categories and 17 subcategories. The categories were used as engine of the generation of OOSM metrics catalogs. A family of OOSM metrics catalogs was proposed. Coverage indexes defined to assess our approach were greater than 90.

O B O O O B I O O O B O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O


A biologically constrained model of the whole basal ganglia addressing the paradoxes of connections and selection The basal ganglia nuclei form a complex network of nuclei often assumed to perform selection, yet their individual roles and how they influence each other is still largely unclear. In particular, the ties between the external and internal parts of the globus pallidus are paradoxical, as anatomical data suggest a potent inhibitory projection between them while electrophysiological recordings indicate that they have similar activities. Here we introduce a theoretical study that reconciles both views on the intra-pallidal projection, by providing a plausible characterization of the relationship between the external and internal globus pallidus. Specifically, we developed a mean-field model of the whole basal ganglia, whose parameterization is optimized to respect best a collection of numerous anatomical and electrophysiological data. We first obtained models respecting all our constraints, hence anatomical and electrophysiological data on the intrapallidal projection are globally consistent. This model furthermore predicts that both aforementioned views about the intra-pallidal projection may be reconciled when this projection is weakly inhibitory, thus making it possible to support similar neural activity in both nuclei and for the entire basal ganglia to select between actions. Second, we predicts that afferent projections are substantially unbalanced towards the external segment, as it receives the strongest excitation from STN and the weakest inhibition from the striatum. Finally, our study strongly suggests that the intrapallidal connection pattern is not focused but diffuse, as this latter pattern is more efficient for the overall selection performed in the basal ganglia.

O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I

multiobjective evolutionary algorithms
mean-field models
single-axon tracing studies
antagonist deactivations


A FINE-GRAINED ARC-CONSISTENCY ALGORITHM FOR NON-NORMALIZED CONSTRAINT SATISFACTION PROBLEMS Constraint programming is a powerful software technology for solving numerous real-life problems. Many of these problems can be modeled as Constraint Satisfaction Problems (CSPs) and solved using constraint programming techniques. However, solving a CSP is NP-complete so filtering techniques to reduce the search space are still necessary. Arc-consistency algorithms are widely used to prune the search space. The concept of arc-consistency is bidirectional, i.e., it must be ensured in both directions of the constraint (direct and inverse constraints). Two of the most well-known and frequently used arc-consistency algorithms for filtering CSPs are AC3 and AC4. These algorithms repeatedly carry out revisions and require support checks for identifying and deleting all unsupported values from the domains. Nevertheless, many revisions are ineffective, i.e., they cannot delete any value and consume a lot of checks and time. In this paper, we present AC4-OP, an optimized version of AC4 that manages the binary and non-normalized constraints in only one direction, storing the inverse founded supports for their later evaluation. Thus, it reduces the propagation phase avoiding unnecessary or ineffective checking. The use of AC4-OP reduces the number of constraint checks by 50% while pruning the same search space as AC4. The evaluation section shows the improvement of AC4-OP over AC4, AC6 and AC7 in random and non-normalized instances.

O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

constraint satisfaction problems
filtering techniques


Mini-slot scheduling for IEEE 802.16d chain and grid mesh networks This work considers the mini-slot scheduling problem in IEEE 802.16d wireless mesh networks (WMNs) An efficient mini-slot scheduling needs to take into account the transmission overhead, the scheduling complexity, and the signaling overhead to broadcast the scheduling results We are interested in chain and grid WMNs, which are the basic topologies of many applications We propose scheduling schemes that are featured by low complexity and low signaling overhead. Compared to existing works, this work contributes in developing low-cost schemes to find periodical and regular schedules that achieve near-optimal transmission latencies by balancing between transmission overhead and pipeline efficiency and that are more practical and easier to implement To minimize the transmission latency, we model the transmission latency as a function of the transmission size and the subscriber stations' traffic demands, and take the first-order derivative of the transmission size to find the minimum latency Simulation results show that our schemes significantly improve over existing works in computational complexity while maintain similar or better transmission latencies (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V All rights reserved.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

ieee 802 16
routing tree
mini-slot scheduling
wimax
wireless mesh network


Environmental health risk detection with GeogDetector Human health is affected by many environmental factors. Geographical detector is software based on spatial variation analysis of the geographical strata of variables to assess the environmental risks to human health: the risk detector indicates where the risk areas are; the factor detector identifies which factors are responsible for the risk; the ecological detector discloses the relative importance of the factors; and the interaction detector reveals whether the risk factors interact or lead independently to disease.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

spatial heterogeneity
consistence of spatial patterns
interaction effect


Chordal Graph Models of Contingency Tables Chordal graph theory has recently found application by statisticians in the analysis of contingency tables. Specifically, what are called decomposable loglinear models correspond exactly to chordal graphs. We survey these results, translating the statistical application into conventional graph theory.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O

interaction graphs
probability models
graphical models
decomposable models


Improved Algorithms for Parsing ESLTAGs: A Grammatical Model Suitable for RNA Pseudoknots Formal grammars have been employed in biology to solve various important problems. In particular, grammars have been used to model and predict RNA structures. Two such grammars are Simple Linear Tree Adjoining Grammars (SLTAGs) and Extended SLTAGs (ESLTAGs). Performances of techniques that employ grammatical formalisms critically depend on the efficiency of the underlying parsing algorithms. In this paper, we present efficient algorithms for parsing SLTAGs and ESLTAGs. Our algorithm for SLTAGs parsing takes O(min{m, n(4)}) time and O(min{m, n(4)}) space, where m is the number of entries that will ever be made in the matrix M (that is normally used by TAG parsing algorithms). Our algorithm for ESLTAGs parsing takes O(nmin{m, n(4)}) time and O(min{m, n(4)}) space. We show that these algorithms perform better, in practice, than the algorithms of Uemura et al. [21].

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

tree adjoining grammars
parsing algorithms


Shock wave simulations using Sinc Differential Quadrature Method Purpose - This paper aims to present a numerical solution of non-linear Burger's equation using differential quadrature method based on sinc functions. Design/methodology/approach - Sinc Differential Quadrature Method is used for space discretization and four stage Runge-Kutta algorithm is used for time discretization. A rate of convergency analysis is also performed for shock-like solution. Numerical stability analysis is performed. Findings - Sinc Differential Quadrature Method generates more accurate solutions of Burgers' equation when compared with the other methods.. Originality/value - This combination, Sinc Differential Quadrature and Runge-Kutta of order four, has not been used to obtain numerical solutions of Burgers' equation.

O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O B I O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

sinc functions
differential quadrature method

burgers' equation
shock waves
number theory
heat conduction


Less safe - The dismantling of public information systems after 9/11 Since the terrorist attacks of 9/11, there has been a tightening of public access. In response to perceived security threats, government agencies have taken information down from web sites, curtailed or restricted access to electronic sources of information, broadened the interpretation of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) exemptions, created or augmented new categories of restricted information, and prohibited public access for critical infrastructure information. These policy responses have been based on the perceived security threat and an inhospitable attitude toward open government on the part of the Bush administration.

O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

public information
web sites
critical infrastructure information

freedom of information act (foia)
sensitive but unclassified
state secrets privilege
classification
information policy


Rofe-Beketov's formula on time scales We establish the Rofe-Beketov formula for the second order Sturm-Liouville dynamic equation on time scales. This formula shows how to express a second linearly independent solution of this equation if one solution is known. In contrast to the D'Alembert formula (sometimes also called the reduction of order formula), no restriction on the oscillatory behavior of the known solution is needed. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O


positive user experience and medical adherence Nonadherence with medical regimens is a life-threatening problem. This paper discusses how designing positive user experiences can lead to increased patient adherence to medical regimens.The importance of positive affect in relationship to medical adherence is well documented within the discipline of Health Psychology. Therefore, when designers are called on to positively shape a user's experience with technology-based medical devices, principles from this body of knowledge can provide a framework for designing products that increase the user's adherence to medical recommendations. From the Health Psychology discipline, Howard Leventhal's Dual Process Model provides a framework for understanding a patient's cognitive and emotional responses to medical advice. From the Design discipline Patrick Jordan's definition of product pleasure contains practical and emotional components. Parallels of these two approaches are discussed as examples of links between the Health Psychology and Design disciplines. Considering these commonalities in approach can help product designers create medical tools that lead to greater adherence.

O O O O B I O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

medical regimens
medical adherence
affect

interaction design
experience design
information design
industrial design


sketch-based dynamic illustration of fluid systems This paper presents a lightweight sketching system that enables interactive illustration of complex fluid systems. Users can sketch on a 2.5-dimensional (2.5D) canvas to design the shapes and connections of a fluid circuit. These input sketches are automatically analyzed and abstracted into a hydraulic graph, and a new hybrid fluid model is used in the background to enhance the illustrations. The system provides rich simple operations for users to edit the fluid system incrementally, and the new internal flow patterns can be simulated in real time. Our system is used to illustrate various fluid systems in medicine, biology, and engineering. We asked professional medical doctors to try our system and obtained positive feedback from them.

O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

sketch interface
real-time fluid simulation


Gaussian kernel optimization: Complex problem and a simple solution The Gaussian kernel function implicitly defines the feature space of an algorithm and plays an essential role in the application of kernel methods. The parameter of Gaussian kernel function is a scalar that has significant influences on final results. However, until now, it is still unclear how to choose an optimal kernel parameter. In this paper, we propose a novel data-driven method to optimize the Gaussian kernel parameter, which only depends on the original dataset distribution and yields a simple solution to this complex problem. The proposed method is task irrelevant and can be used in any Gaussian kernel-based approach, including supervised and unsupervised machine learning. Simulation experiments demonstrate the efficacy of the obtained results. A user-friendly online calculator is implemented at: www.csbio.sjtu.edu.cn/bioinf/kernel/ for public use.

O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

noncentral chi-square distribution
supervised learning
unsupervised learning


a vision for information visualization in information science This paper presents the case for Information Visualization (IV) to be a central, integrated component of study in Information Science. We summarize the current state of IV within iSchools, the market demand for IV skills, the intellectual contributions of IV to the field of Information Science and the potential intellectual contributions of Information Science to the field of IV. We conclude with three, non-exclusive scenarios for the inclusion of IV into the iSchool curriculum as first steps toward realizing this: integration throughout the curriculum, a core course, and a specialization tract.

O O O B I O B I O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O

curriculum
ischools
information science
information visualization


awesim: asymptotic waveform evaluation for timing analysis Most timing analyzers rely upon a linear approximate interconnect model, typically an RC tree, to estimate efficiently the propagation delays for digital MOS integrated circuits. RC tree methods are adequate to analyze a large class of MOS circuits, but are not sufficient in general for high speed, dynamic and precharge MOS circuits. In addition bipolar logic and board level digital systems can have interconnect models which may not be compatible with RC tree topologies. In this paper we describe AWEsim, a variable refinement waveform estimator for generalized linear RLC approximate interconnect models.

O O O B O B O O B O O O O O O B B O O O B O O O O B O O O O O B O B O O O O O O O B O O B O O O O O B O O O B O O O B O O O B O O O O B O O B O O O O O O O O B B O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O

tree systems dynamic topologies interconnect logic general timing paper model evaluation class circuits propagation

digitize
variability
time analysis
estimates
method
approximation
delay
integrated circuit
refine


Accurately predicting the success of B2B e-commerce in small and medium enterprises Since implementing B2B e-commerce in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) is a long-term commitment and such enterprises are more limited in terms of resources than large enterprises, the predicted value of successful implementation is extremely useful in deciding whether to initiate B2B e-commerce. This investigation establishes an analytical hierarchy framework to help SMEs predicting implementation success as well as identifying the actions necessary before implementing B2B e-commerce to increase e-commerce initiative feasibility. The consistent fuzzy preference relation is used to improve decision-making consistency and effectiveness. A case study involving six influences solicited from a Taiwanese steel company is used to illustrate the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed approach. The analytical results show that the three most influential factors are management support, industry characteristics and government policies; meanwhile, the three least influential factors are organizational culture, IT integration and firm size.

O O O O O O O O B I I I O O O O O B I I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

small and medium enterprises
consistent fuzzy preference relation

b2b e-commerce
multi-criteria decision-making


Constructions of Difference Systems of Sets From Finite Projective Geometry Difference systems of sets (DSSs) are combinatorial structures introduced by Levenshtein in connection with code synchronization. In this paper, some recursive constructions of DSSs obtained from finite projective geometry are presented. As a consequence, new infinite families of optimal DSSs are obtained.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O

difference system of sets
f-flat
finite projective space


In silico binding characteristics between human histamine H-1 receptor and antagonists It is widely acknowledged that the H-1 receptor antagonists have important therapeutic significance in the treatment of various allergic disorders, but little was known about the binding mode between the receptor and antagonists since the crystal structure of G-protein coupling receptors (GPCRs) were hard to obtain. In this paper, a theoretical three-dimensional model of human histamine H-1 receptor (HHR1) was developed on the basis of recently reported high resolution structures of human A(2A) adenosine receptor, human beta(2)-adrenoceptor and turkey beta(1)-adrenoceptor. Furthermore, three representative H-1 receptor antagonists were chosen for docking studies. Subsequently, a qualitative pharmacophore model was developed by Hiphop algorithm based on the docking conformations of these three antagonists. In this paper, active environment, certain key residues, and the corresponding pharmacophore features of H-1 receptor were identified by such combinations of receptor-based and ligand-based approaches, which would give sufficient guidance for the rational design of novel antihistamine agents.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

h-1 receptor
homology modeling
molecular dynamics
pharmacophore modeling


Software mutational robustness Neutral landscapes and mutational robustness are believed to be important enablers of evolvability in biology. We apply these concepts to software, defining mutational robustness to be the fraction of random mutations to program code that leave a programs behavior unchanged. Test cases are used to measure program behavior and mutation operators are taken from earlier work on genetic programming. Although software is often viewed as brittle, with small changes leading to catastrophic changes in behavior, our results show surprising robustness in the face of random software mutations. The paper describes empirical studies of the mutational robustness of 22 programs, including 14 production software projects, the Siemens benchmarks, and four specially constructed programs. We find that over 30% of random mutations are neutral with respect to their test suite. The results hold across all classes of programs, for mutations at both the source code and assembly instruction levels, across various programming languages, and bear only a limited relation to test suite coverage. We conclude that mutational robustness is an inherent property of software, and that neutral variants (i.e., those that pass the test suite) often fulfill the programs original purpose or specification. Based on these results, we conjecture that neutral mutations can be leveraged as a mechanism for generating software diversity. We demonstrate this idea by generating a population of neutral program variants and showing that the variants automatically repair latent bugs. Neutral landscapes also provide a partial explanation for recent results that use evolutionary computation to automatically repair software bugs.

O B I B I O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

mutational robustness
genetic programming
neutral landscapes

mutation testing
proactive diversity
n-version programming


Passivity-Based Controller and Online Algebraic Estimation of the Load Parameter of the DC-to-DC Power Converter Cuk Type This paper presents an exact static error dynamics passive output feedback controller to regulate the output voltage of the DC-to-DC power converter Cuk type; this controller is obtained from the error dynamics of the nonlinear average model of the converter. In order to compensate the effects of sudden changes in the load resistance, the desired reference variables for the regulation task are calculated using the estimated load value obtained via an algebraic estimator. The results are validated in an experimental laboratory setup.

O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O


The characterization of a measure of information discrepancy A Function of Degree of Disagreement (FDOD) function has been introduced in the study of information discrepancies among multiple information sources [W. Fang, Mathematical Social Sciences 28 (2) (1994) 85-111; J. Global Optim. 11 (1997) 387-408]. It possesses some peculiar properties and can be applied in some areas, in which the traditional measures of information discrepancy are not valid, for example, in the study of multiple DNA sequence comparison. In this paper, based on the ideas concerned with Shannon entropy and measures of difference, we investigate its characterization. The final results and even intermediate results show a close connection between the FDOD function and Shannon entropy. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.

O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O


The design and evaluation of an end-to-end handoff management protocol We introduce an efficient protocol for end-to-end handoff management in heterogeneous wireless IP-based networks. The protocol is based on the stream control transmission protocol (SCTP), and employs a soft-handoff mechanism that uses end-to-end semantics for signaling handoffs and for transmitting control messages. The design goal of this protocol is twofold-first, to reduce the home registration delay, and, second, to eliminate the tunnelling cost which exists in current proposals, such as Mobile IP and its derivatives. Furthermore, we propose successive enhancements to the initial mobility management framework for achieving better scalability. We present strong analytical and simulation-based results that show performance improvements over existing approaches.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O


Layout-aware scientific computing: A case study using the MILC code We conduct comprehensive analysis of the layout of the MILC code. We identify the key factors that determine the communication cost of the MILC code. To find optimal layouts, we develop a model to estimate communication cost of MILC. Our experimental results show that the performance improvement can reach up to 31%.

O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O B O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O B O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O


Scale & affine invariant interest point detectors In this paper we propose a novel approach for detecting interest points invariant to scale and affine transformations. Our scale and affine invariant detectors are based on the following recent results: (1) Interest points extracted with the Harris detector can be adapted to affine transformations and give repeatable results (geometrically stable). (2) The characteristic scale of a local structure is indicated by a local extremum over scale of normalized derivatives (the Laplacian). (3) The affine shape of a point neighborhood is estimated based on the second moment matrix. Our scale invariant detector computes a multi-scale representation for the Harris interest point detector and then selects points at which a local measure (the Laplacian) is maximal over scales. This provides a set of distinctive points which are invariant to scale, rotation and translation as well as robust to illumination changes and limited changes of viewpoint. The characteristic scale determines a scale invariant region for each point. We extend the scale invariant detector to affine invariance by estimating the affine shape of a point neighborhood. An iterative algorithm modifies location, scale and neighborhood of each point and converges to affine invariant points. This method can deal with significant affine transformations including large scale changes. The characteristic scale and the affine shape of neighborhood determine an affine invariant region for each point. We present a comparative evaluation of different detectors and show that our approach provides better results than existing methods. The performance of our detector is also confirmed by excellent matching results; the image is described by a set of scale/affine invariant descriptors computed on the regions associated with our points.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

interest points
affine invariance
matching

local features
scale invariance
recognition


automated composition of hardware components In order to automate design reuse, methods for composing system components must be developed. The goal of this research is to automate the process of generating interfaces between hardware subsystems. The algorithms presented here can be used to generate a cycle-accurate, synchronous interface between two hardware subsystems given an HDL model of each subsystem. These algorithms have been implemented in the POLARIS hardware composition tool and have been used to generate an interface between a MIPS microprocessor and the SRAM that comprises its secondary cache. Interface generation for the MIPS R4000 is described .

O O O B O O B O O B B O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O B O O B O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O B O B O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O B O B O O O O O O O

cache order reuse generation research microprocessor design tool process interfaces hardware model

reconstruction
method
systems
synchronization
visibility
emulation
algorithm
functional simulation
automation
compositing
component


evaluation of an ontology-content based filtering method for a personalized newspaper A new ontological-content-based method for ranking the relevancy of items in the electronic newspapers domain is proposed. The method is being implemented in ePaper, a personalized electronic newspaper research project. The content-based part of the filtering method of ePaper utilizes a hierarchical ontology of news items. The method considers common and "close" ontology concepts appearing in the user's profile and in the item's profile, measuring the hierarchical distance between concepts in the two profiles. Based on the number of common and related concepts, and their distances from each other, the filtering algorithm computes the similarity between items and users, and rank-orders the news items according to their relevancy to each user, thus providing a personalized newspaper. We have conducted evaluations of the filtering method, examining various parameters. A group of subjects, each having defined an initial content-based profile using the news ontology concepts, read news items from a certain electronic newspaper and expressed the relevancy of each item to them. In different runs of the algorithm on the same data, we changed several parameters of the algorithm, and compared the results with the users' ratings. We discovered that the filtering method, which considers not only common concepts but also hierarchically related concepts, yields significantly better quality of filtering compared to using only common concepts. Moreover, we were able to find optimal values of similarity scores according to the hierarchical distance between related concepts.

B O O O O B B O O O O O O O B O B O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O B I B B O O O O O B B O O O O O B O B O O B O O O O B O O O O B O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B B O O B O O O B O O O B O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O B B O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O B B O B B O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O B O O O O O O B O O O O O O B O O O O O B B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O B O O O O O B O O O

news
quality
electronic newspaper
project
group
filtering
read
evaluation
user
distance
research
method
values
users
data
similarity
algorithm
profiles
ranking
ontology

measurement
concept
personalization
relevance
content-based filtering
contention
hierarchic
optimality


Investigating reaction pathways in rare events simulations of antibiotics diffusion through protein channels In Gram-negative bacteria, outer-membrane protein channels, such as OmpF of Escherichia coli, constitute the entry point of various classes of antibiotics. While antibacterial research and development is declining, bacterial resistance to antibiotics is rising and there is an emergency call for a new way to develop potent antibacterial agents and to bring them to the market faster and at reduced cost. An emerging strategy is to follow a bottom-up approach based on microscopically founded computational based screening, however such strategy needs better-tuned methods. Here we propose to use molecular dynamics (MD) simulations combined with the metadynamics algorithm, to study antibiotic translocation through OmpF at a molecular scale. This recently designed algorithm overcomes the time scale problem of classical MD by accelerating some reaction coordinates. It is expected that the initial assumption of the reaction coordinates is a key determinant for the efficiency and accuracy of the simulations. Previous studies using different computational schemes for a similar process only used one reaction coordinate, which is the directionality. Here we go further and see how it is possible to include more informative reaction coordinates, accounting explicitly for: (i) the antibiotic flexibility and (ii) interactions with the channel. As model systems, we select two compounds covering the main classes of antibiotics, ampicillin and moxifloxacine. We decipher the molecular mechanism of translocation of each antibiotic and highlight the important parameters that should be taken into account for improving further simulations. This will benefit the screening and design for antibiotics with better permeation properties.

O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

accelerated molecular dynamics
antibacterial design
antibiotics uptake
bacterial porins
free energy


Bundle Methods for Regularized Risk Minimization A wide variety of machine learning problems can be described as minimizing a regularized risk functional, with different algorithms using different notions of risk and different regularizers. Examples include linear Support Vector Machines (SVMs), Gaussian Processes, Logistic Regression, Conditional Random Fields (CRFs), and Lasso amongst others. This paper describes the theory and implementation of a scalable and modular convex solver which solves all these estimation problems. It can be parallelized on a cluster of workstations, allows for data-locality, and can deal with regularizers such as L(1) and L(2) penalties. In addition to the unified framework we present tight convergence bounds, which show that our algorithm converges in O(1/epsilon) steps to e precision for general convex problems and in O(log(1/epsilon)) steps for continuously differentiable problems. We demonstrate the performance of our general purpose solver on a variety of publicly available data sets.

B I O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

bundle methods
regularized risk minimization

optimization
subgradient methods
cutting plane method
parallel optimization


The effect of a lower extremity kinematic constraint on lifting biomechanics Leaning against a stationary barrier during manual materials handling tasks is observed in many industrial environments, but the effects of this kinematic constraint on low back mechanics are unknown. Thirteen participants performed two-handed lifting tasks using both a leaning posture and no leaning posture while trunk kinematics, muscle activity and ground reaction force were monitored. Results revealed that lifting with the leaning posture required significantly less activity in erector spinae (26% vs. 36% MVC) and latissimus dorsi (8% vs. 14% MVC), and less passive tissue moment compared with the no leaning posture. Peak sagittal accelerations were lower when leaning, but the leaning posture also had significantly higher slip potential as measured by required coefficient of friction (0.05 vs. 0.36). The results suggested that the leaning lifting strategy provides reduced low back stress, but does so at the cost of increased slip potential.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O


Fabrication and application of metallic nano-cantilevers A new approach was developed in this work to fabricate metallic nano-cantilevers using a one-mask process and a deep reactive ion etch (DRIE) technique. 40-nm-thick Al and 70-nm-thick Au cantilevers of lengths from 5?m and widths in the range of 200300nm were fabricated on a silicon substrate. The silicon underneath the suspended beams was completely etched. Short Al nano-cantilevers were used to find local residual stress induced in rapid thermal oxidation and the oxidized spots according to the deflection profiles of the nano-cantilevers. The deflection profiles were determined with the aid of a scanning electron microscope (SEM). Compared with a single feedback in the existing cantilever-based static methods, i.e., the deflection of the open end of a cantilever, the whole deflection profile provides more information regarding the effect of surface stresses on a cantilever.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O


low-connectivity and full-coverage three dimensional wireless sensor networks Low-connectivity and full-coverage three dimensional Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) have many real-world applications. By low connectivity, we mean there are at least k disjoint paths between any two sensor nodes in a WSN, where k ? 4. In this paper, we design a set of patterns for these networks. In particular, we design and prove the optimality of 1 - and 2 -connectivity patterns under any value of the ratio of communication range r c over sensing range r s , among regular lattice deployment patterns. We further propose a set of patterns to achieve 3 - and 4 -connectivity patterns and investigate the evolutions among all the proposed low-connectivity patterns. Finally, we study the proposed patterns under several practical settings.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

wireless sensor network topology
optimal deployment pattern
coverage


Active subspaces for sensitivity analysis and dimension reduction of an integrated hydrologic model Active subspaces identify important input parameters and how they relate to output. Proof-of-concept domains show potential for dimension reduction of land surface. Important land surface parameters depend on land cover and flux type. Land surface inputs and energy flux outputs can be related by a quadratic polynomial. Lateral flow has negligible effect on the land surface parameterflux relationship.

B I O B O O B I O O O B I B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

active subspaces
dimension reduction
energy flux
hydrologic model
sensitivity


Mean and Variance of the Sampling Distribution of Particle Swarm Optimizers During Stagnation Several theoretical analyses of the dynamics of particle swarms have been offered in the literature over the last decade. Virtually all rely on substantial simplifications, often including the assumption that the particles are deterministic. This has prevented the exact characterization of the sampling distribution of the particle swarm optimizer (PSO). In this paper we introduce a novel method that allows us to exactly determine all the characteristics of a PSO sampling distribution and explain how it changes over any number of generations, in the presence stochasticity. The only assumption we make is stagnation, i.e., we study the sampling distribution produced by particles in search for a better personal best. We apply the analysis to the PSO with inertia weight, but the analysis is also valid for the PSO with constriction and other forms of PSO.

O O O O O B I O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O


Minimizing the flow time without migration We consider the classical problem of scheduling jobs in a multiprocessor setting in order to minimize the flow time (total time in the system). The performance of the algorithm, both in online and online settings, can be significantly improved if we allow preemption, i.e., interrupt a job and later continue its execution, perhaps migrating it to a different machine. Preemption is inherent to make a scheduling algorithm efficient. While in the case of a single processor most operating systems can easily handle preemptions, migrating a job to a different machine results in a huge overhead. Thus, it is not commonly used in most multiprocessor operating systems. The natural question is whether migration is an inherent component for an efficient scheduling algorithm in either the online or online setting. Leonardi and Raz [Proceedings of the Twenty-Ninth Annual ACM Symposium on Theory of Computing, El Paso, TX, 1997, pp. 110 119] showed that the well-known algorithm, shortest remaining processing time (SRPT), performs within a logarithmic factor of the optimal online algorithm. Note that SRPT must use both preemption and migration to schedule the jobs. It is not known if better approximation factors can be reached and thus SRPT, although it is an online algorithm, becomes the best known algorithm in the online setting. In fact, in the online setting, Leonardi and Raz showed that no algorithm can achieve a better bound. Without migration, no (online or online) approximations are known. This paper introduces a new algorithm that does not use migration, works online, and is just as effective ( in terms of approximation ratio) as the best known online algorithm that uses migration.

O O B I O B O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O B O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O B O O O O B O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O B O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O B O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O B O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O B O O O B

scheduling
flow time
migration
approximation
online


Segment-Based Protection of Multicast Connections in Metropolitan Area Optical Networks With Quality-of-Transmission Considerations This paper investigates the problem of protecting multicast sessions in optical networks utilizing a novel segment-based protection heuristic algorithm called LP (level protection). The proposed scheme exhibits improved performance in terms of blocking probability compared to other traditional segment-based multicast protection schemes, especially when sharing techniques are also utilized. Furthermore, when physical layer impairments are also taken into account for the calculation of the working and protection light-trees, it is shown that the LP technique presents significant improvement in performance compared to the other commonly used protection techniques.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

failure recovery
multicasting
quality of transmission
segment protection


experimental comparisons between saodv and aodv routing protocols There have been various secure routing protocols proposed for mobile ad hoc networks. Most of these protocols are analyzed by two standard techniques: simulation and security analysis. There has been a lack of work related to the performance of secure routing protocols in real network testbed. In this paper, we present quantitative results for the performance comparisons between AODV and SAODV routing protocols by using a small-scale experimental testbed, which consists of 10 laptops within a 250 m by 100 m rugby field. Apart from outdoor testing, we also compare the results with those obtained via simulation and indoor emulation. The workload includes both UDP and TCP traffic. Results show that SAODV is effective in preventing routing message tampering and data dropping attacks. For outdoor experiments, we also estimate the average distance within a communication gray zone under different bit rates.

O O O O O O B O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O


Supporting business process redesign using cognitive maps Turbulent changes and competitive pressures have forced organizations to constantly change. Business process redesign (BPR) has been widely adopted as an organizational change method in the 1990s. Although BPR projects provide the possibility of dramatic performance improvement, many organizations have encountered serious problems due to the lack of commitment to such projects and the difficulty of systematic targeting of critical processes. By identifying the causeeffect relationships within an organization, we try to address these issues. We propose a cognitive map based method, called two-phase cognitive modeling (TCM), to help organizational members identify potential organizational conflicts, capture core business activities, and suggest ways to support the necessary organizational change. To apply the method in the real world context, we developed a prototype modeling tool, called two-phase cognitive modeling facility (TCMF). Working procedures of the TCM method and TCMF features are illustrated with their application to the real BPR project of a dairy company.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

business process redesign (bpr)
core business activity
conflict


memory testing with a risc microcontroller Many systems are based on embedded microcontrollers. Applications demand for production and Power-On testing, including memory testing. Because low-end microcontrollers may not have memory BIST, the CPU will be the only resource to perform at least the Power-On tests. This paper shows the problems, solutions and limitations of CPU-based at-speed memory testing, illustrated with examples from the ATMEL RISC microcontroller.

B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O B I I

atmel risc microcontroller
memory testing

assembler language
cpu-based memory testing


Hierarchical transmission of DCT coefficients using multi-code DS/SS modulation We propose a novel hierarchical transmission method of DCT coefficients using multi-code DS/SS modulation. For low resolution image transmission over noisy channel, an error resilient and graceful degradation technique is necessary. Here, the DCT coefficients are divided into each stratum (a branch of multi-code DS/SS) and transmitted simultaneously through a noisy channel. By assigning an appropriate transmission energy that corresponds to their source energy variances, energy assignment, it is possible to maintain picture quality effectively even in a noisy channel. Analysis of this method was performed using an image data model, 2-D Gauss-Markov random field, which showed that picture quality is maintained even in the noisy channel condition.

B I O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O


A dynamic knowledge modeler This paper presents the development and application of a software tool for modeling knowledge to be used in knowledge-based systems or the Semantic Web. The inferential modeling technique, which is a technique for modeling the static and dynamic knowledge elements of a problem domain, provided the basis for the tool. A survey of existing knowledge modeling tools revealed they typically failed to provide support in four main areas: Support for an ontological engineering methodology or technique, support for dynamic knowledge modeling, support for dynamic knowledge testing, and support for ontology management. Dyna, a Protege Plug-in, has been developed, which supports the Inferential Modeling Technique, dynamic knowledge modeling, and dynamic knowledge testing. Protege and Dyna are applied for constructing an ontological model in the domain of selecting a remediation technology for petroleum contaminated sites. Dynamic knowledge testing in Dyna enabled creation of a more complete knowledge model.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

knowledge engineering
software engineering


Multi-instance multi-label image classification: A neural approach In this paper, a multi-instance multi-label algorithm based on neural networks is proposed for image classification. The proposed algorithm, termed multi-instance multi-label neural network (MIMLNN), consists of two stages of MultiLayer Perceptrons (MLP). For multi-instance multi-label image classification, all the regional features are fed to the first-stage MLP, with one MLP copy processing one image region. After that, the MLP in the second stage incorporates the outputs of the first-stage MLPs to produce the final labels for the input image. The first-stage MLP is expected to model the relationship between regions and labels, while the second-stage MLP aims at capturing the label correlation for classification refinement. Error Back-Propagation (BP) approach is adopted to tune the parameters of MIMLNN. In view of that traditional gradient descent algorithm suffers from long-term dependency problem, a refined BP algorithm named Rprop is extended to effectively train MIMLNN. The experiments are conducted on a synthetic dataset and the Corel dataset. Experimental results demonstrate the superior performance of MIMLNN comparing with state-of-the-art algorithms for multi-instance multi-label image classification.

O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I

multi-instance multi-label learning
synthetic data


A new training strategy for neural network using shuffled frog-leaping algorithm and application to channel equalization This paper makes use of shuffled frog-leaping algorithm (SFLA) as a training algorithm to train multi-layer artificial neural network (ANN). Next, The SFLA ANNs are used for channel equalization. We, in this paper, also introduce SFLA for channel equalization that is formulated as an optimization problem. In short, this paper introduces a novel strategy for training of ANN and also proposes two novel approaches for channel equalization problem using shuffled frog-leaping algorithm (SFLA). The proposed strategies are tested both in time-invariant and time varying channels and interestingly yield better performance than contemporary approaches as evidenced by simulation results.

O O O O O B I O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O


performance characteristics of gang scheduling in multiprogrammed environments Gang scheduling provides both space-slicing and time-slicing of computer resources for parallel programs. Each thread of execution from a parallel job is concurrently scheduled on an independent processor in order to achieve an optimal level of program performance. Time-slicing of parallel jobs provides for better overall system responsiveness and utilization than otherwise possible. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory has deployed three generations of its gang scheduler on a variety of computing platforms. Results indicate the potential benefits of this technology to parallel processing are no less significant than time-sharing was in the 1960's.

O O O B I O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

space-slicing
time-slicing
parallel system
scheduling
multiprogramming


Detecting global predicates in distributed systems with clocks This paper proposes a framework for detecting global state predicates in systems of processes with approximately-synchronized real-time clocks. Timestamps from these clocks are used to define two orderings on events: "definitely occurred before" and "possibly occurred before". These orderings lead naturally to definitions of 3 distinct detection modalities, i.e., 3 meanings of "predicate Phi held during a computation", namely: Poss (db) Phi ("Phi, possibly held"), Def (db) Phi, ("Phi definitely held"), and Inst Phi ("Phi definitely held in a specific global state"). This paper defines these modalities and gives efficient algorithms for detecting them. The algorithms an: based on algorithms of Garg and Waldecker, Alagar and Venkatesan, Cooper and Marzullo, and Fromentin and Raynal. Complexity analysis shows that under reasonable assumptions, these real-time-clock-based detection algorithms are less expensive than detection algorithms based on Lamport's happened-before ordering. Sample applications are given to illustrate the benefits of this approach.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

global predicate detection
consistent global states
distributed debugging
real-time monitoring


Long-term effects of computer training of phonological awareness in kindergarten The present study examined the long-term effects of a computer intervention for the development of phonological awareness in Dutch kindergartners. Native Dutch and immigrant children worked with the software 15min/week during one school year. Following a pretest interim test post-test retention test design, the effects on rhyming, phonemic segmentation, auditory blending, and grapheme knowledge were assessed. The intervention showed significant immediate effects on rhyming and grapheme knowledge. The time spent on the computer games also correlated with the learning gains for the experimental group. In the first grade, retention effects were demonstrated after 4 months of formal reading education.

O O O O O O B I O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

cd-rom
control group
experiment
multimedia
second language learning


le web de demain Web technologies change very rapidly. Even if the latest developments are not yet visible in our day-to-day use, founding technologies of tomorrow's Web can already be identified. The XML revolution opens the door to new perspectives, specifically for presenting information and for interacting with Web applications and services. This article analyzes the most recent work related to Web multimedia, support for different devices, new interaction modes, and some other trends that will significantly change the way we use the Web.

O B O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O B B O O O O O B O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B


Symmetry-driven shape description for image retrieval We propose a novel symmetry-driven Bayesian framework to incorporate structural shape into conventional geometrical shape descriptor of an image indexing and retrieval. We use rotation and reflection symmetries for structural shape description. Symmetry detection on each shape image provides a qualitative and a quantitative categorization of the types and the degrees of symmetry level. The posterior shape similarity enhances the shape matching performance based on the symmetry structural discrimination. Experimental results show statistically significant improvement on retrieval accuracy over the state of the art methods on MPEG-7 data set. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O


Topology optimization with multiple phase projection Topology optimization is a powerful tool capable of generating new solutions to engineering design problems. While these designs may offer optimal performance in a computational setting, it is not uncommon for them to be impractical or unrealizable from engineering or fabrication points-of-view. This challenge motivates the present work. A methodology is proposed for restricting the minimum length scale of each material phase used in the design. The technique allows a designer to, for example, prescribe a minimum allowable length scale of structural members (solid phase) as well as the minimum allowable length scale on holes (void phase). The proposed approach utilizes the Heaviside Projection Method (HPM) to continuum topology optimization. Each material phase is associated with a design variable field that is projected onto element space using regularized Heaviside functions. The fields are independently projected and the resulting distributions are assembled to yield topology. The technique is demonstrated on classic topology optimization problems including minimum compliance, heat conduction, and compliant mechanisms. Solutions are shown to be near-discrete topologies satisfying minimum length scale criterion placed on each phase. Control over length scale is achieved implicitly and therefore the technique does not require additional constraints.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

minimum length scale
heaviside projection method

manufacturability
filters
projection functions
simp


Fast analysis for electromagnetic band gap waveguides using compact finite-difference-time-domain method A fast analysis method, cell modified compact finite-difference time-domain method (CMC-FDTD), is presented to analyze the performance of electromagnetic band gap waveguides. The method calculates band diagrams in orthogonal coordinate system by translating nonorthogonal lattice to orthogonal lattice. It has highly stability for calculating dielectric and metallic material, either TE or TM mode, and reduces the requirement for memory. The comparisons are made among two numerical results and experimental one to validate the method.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O


Finding Y-relevant part of X by use of PCR and PLSR model reduction methods The paper is considering the following question: using principal component regression (PCR) or partial least squares regression (PLSR), how much data can be removed from X while retaining the original ability to predict Y? Two model reduction methods using similarity transformations are discussed, one giving projections of original loadings onto the column space of the fitted response matrix (Y) over cap (essentially the orthogonal signal correction (OSC) methods), and one giving projections of original scores onto the column space of the coefficient matrix h (essentially the net analyte signal (NAS) methods). The loading projection method gives model residuals that are orthogonal to Y and (Y) over cap, which is valuable in certain applications. The score projection method, on the other hand, gives model residuals that are orthogonal to (B) over cap, which is essential in other applications. It is shown that the reduced matrix X-Y(S) from the score projection method is a subset of the reduced Matrix X-Y(L) from the loading projection method. It therefore has the smallest Frobenius norm, and thus the smallest total column variance, assuming centered data. Copyright (C) 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

similarity transformations
frobenius norm

pcr/plsr model reduction
opls, nas
minimum y-relevant part


aspect-oriented relational algebra In this paper we apply the aspect-oriented programming (AOP) paradigm to the relational algebra. AOP is a way to add support for cross-cutting concerns to existing code without directly modifying that code. Data, like code, also has cross-cutting concerns such as versioning, privacy, and reliability. AOP techniques can be used to weave metadata around an application's data. The metadata imbues the data with additional semantics that must be observed in constraint and query processing. In this paper we show how to modify the relational algebra to process data woven together with metadata. We also analyze the overhead on evaluating an aspect-enhanced query.

O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O


Off line Arabic character recognition - A review Off-line recognition requires transferring the text under consideration into an image file. This represents the only available solution to bring the printed materials to the electronic media. However, the transferring process causes the system to lose the temporal information of that text. Other complexities that an off-line recognition system has to deal with are the lower resolution of the document and the poor binarisation, which can contribute to readability when essential features of the characters are deleted or obscured. Recognising Arabic script presents two additional challenges: orthography is cursive and letter shape is context sensitive. Certain character combinations form new ligature shapes, which are often font-dependent. Some ligatures involve vertical stacking of characters. Since not all letters connect, word boundary location becomes an interesting problem, as spacing may separate not only words, but also certain characters within a word. Various techniques have been implemented to achieve high recognition rates. These techniques have tackled different aspects of the recognition system. This review is organised into five major sections, covering a general overview, Arabic writing characteristics, Arabic text recognition system, Arabic OCR software and conclusions.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O

feature extraction
fourier transform
hidden markov models
horizontal projection
hough transform
neural networks
off-line recognition
preprocessing segmentation
vertical projection


Drug prescription behavior and decision support systems Adverse drug events plague the outcomes of health care services. In this research, we propose a clinical learning model that incorporates the use of a decision support system (DSS) in drug prescriptions to improve physicians' decisions about the initial drug selection and administration. The model allows for both the analytical investigation of the effects of different DSS features on clinical learning and the estimation of the physician learning behavior given a panel data set. The analytical results suggest that using a DSS to improve physicians' prescription decisions would positively influence their clinical learning. Conversely, without improvements in successful drug selection, the use of a DSS would negatively affect clinical learning. The empirical results provide further evidence on the factors that drive physicians' responses to information sources and the extent to which they rely on clinical experience in prescribing drugs.

O O O O B I I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

computerized physician order entry
adverse drug event
prescription error
drug administration
dosage


Shape and cross-section optimisation of a truss structure This article presents a method for the identification of the optimum shape and cross-sections of a plane truss structure under stress and geometrical constraints. The shape design problem is defined by the unknown nodal co-ordinates and is combined with a parametric design problem defined by the cross-sections. The method includes a new approach to merge these two problems and thus resolves the difficulties that arise when combining the optimisation of variables of such different nature. The methodology combines a full stress design optimisation with a conjugates gradient optimisation. The results are compared to steel bridge constructions built at the beginning of the century, when saving material was of great importance.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O


A single-item economic lot-sizing problem with a non-uniform resource: Approximation We study a generalization of the classical single-item capacitated economic lot-sizing problem to the case of a non-uniform resource usage for production. The general problem and several special cases are shown to be non-approximable with any polynomially computable relative error in polynomial time. An optimal dynamic programming algorithm and its approximate modification are presented for the general problem. Fully polynomial time approximation schemes are developed for two NP-hard special cases: (1) cost functions of total production are separable and holding and backlogging cost functions are linear with polynomially related slopes, and (2) all holding costs are equal to zero.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O B I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

fully polynomial time approximation scheme