Towards the development of a conceptual distance metric for the UMLS The objective of this work is to investigate the feasibility of conceptual similarity metrics in the framework of the Unified Medical Language System (UMLS). We have investigated an approach based on the minimum number of parent links between concepts, and evaluated its performance relative to human expert estimates on three sets of concepts for three terminologies within the UMLS (i.e., MeSH, ICD9CM, and SNOMED). The resulting quantitative metric enables computer-based applications that use decision thresholds and approximate matching criteria. The proposed conceptual matching supports problem solving and inferencing (using high-level, generic concepts) based on readily available data (typically represented as low-level, specific concepts). Through the identification of semantically similar concepts, conceptual matching also enables reasoning in the absence of exact, or even approximate, lexical matching. Finally, conceptual matching is relevant for terminology development and maintenance, machine learning research, decision support system development, and data mining research in biomedical informatics and other fields.

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

conceptual metrics
semantic distance
medical terminology


semPLS: Structural Equation Modeling Using Partial Least Squares Structural equation models (SEM) are very popular in many disciplines. The partial least squares (PLS) approach to SEM offers an alternative to covariance-based SEM, which is especially suited for situations when data is not normally distributed. PLS path modelling is referred to as soft-modeling-technique with minimum demands regarding measurement scales, sample sizes and residual distributions. These m PLS package provides the capability to estimate PLS path models within the R programming environment. Different setups for the estimation of factor scores can be used. Furthermore it contains modular methods for computation of bootstrap confidence intervals, model parameters and several quality indices. Various plot functions help to evaluate the model. The well known mobile phone dataset from marketing research is used to demonstrate the features of the package.

O O O O O B I I 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 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


A

new

reengineering

methodology

for

the

product-driven

system

applied

to

the

medication-use

process

The

aim

of

the

medication-use

process

(MUP)

of

a

hospital

consists

in

preparing

the

medicines

for

each

patient

every

day.

The

reengineering

of

the

MUP

is

an

important

challenge

in

order

to

reduce

medication

errors

and

costs

for

the

pharmacy.

This

paper

deals

with

a

new

methodology

of

modeling

the

interactions

with

the

hospital

information

system

(HIS).

This

methodology

is

inspired

by

component-based

approach,

the

paradigm

of

system

of

systems

(SoS)

and

the

methodology

ASDI

(analysisspecificationdesignimplementation).

First,

the

paper

shows

how

the

MUP

can

be

compared

to

a

holonic

manufacturing

system

(HMS).

So

then,

the

goal

of

the

new

methodology

proposed

consists

of

designing

easily

a

library

of

components

for

an

HMS

and

more

specifically

for

a

MUP

in

a

hospital.

Finally,

an

example

of

the

application

of

this

modeling

to

the

hospital

of

Clermont-Ferrand

is

presented.

The

goal

is

to

help

the

pharmacists

to

make

up

their

decisions

in

order

to

reorganize

and

design

a

new

pharmacy

of

a

hospital.

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

holonic manufacturing system
hospital information system
system of systems

medication-use process
product-driven system


on the effect of the deployment setting on broadcasting in euclidean radio networks The paper studies broadcasting in radio networks whose stations are represented by points in the Euclidean plane. In any given time step, a station can either receive or transmit . A message transmitted from station (v) is delivered to every station (u) at distance at most (1) from (v), but (u) successfully hears the message if and only if (v) is the only station at distance at most (1) from (u) that transmitted in this time step. A designated source station has a message that should be disseminated throughout the network. All stations other than the source are initially idle and wake up upon the first time they hear the source message. It is shown in [11] that the time complexity of broadcasting depends on two parameters of the network, namely, its diameter (in hops) (D) and a lower bound (d) on the Euclidean distance between any two stations. The inverse of (d) is called the granularity of the network, denoted by (g). Specifically, the authors of [11] present a broadcasting algorithm that works in time (O (D g)) and prove that every broadcasting algorithm requires ? (D ?g) time. In this paper, we distinguish between the arbitrary deployment setting , originally studied in [11], in which stations can be placed everywhere in the plane, and the new grid deployment setting , in which stations are only allowed to be placed on a (d)-spaced grid . Does the latter (more restricted) setting provides any speedup in broadcasting time complexity? Although the (O (D g)) broadcasting algorithm of [11] works under the (original) arbitrary deployment setting, it turns out that the ? (D ?g) lower bound remains valid under the grid deployment setting. Still, the above question is left unanswered. The current paper answers this question affirmatively by presenting a provable separation between the two deployment settings. We establish a tight lower bound on the time complexity of broadcasting under the arbitrary deployment setting proving that broadcasting cannot be completed in less than ? ( D ?g) time. For the grid deployment setting, we develop a broadcasting algorithm that runs in time O ( D g 5 / 6 log g), thus breaking the linear dependency on (g).

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


Software Architecture Reconstruction: A Process-Oriented Taxonomy To maintain and understand large applications, it is important to know their architecture. The first problem is that unlike classes and packages, architecture is not explicitly represented in the code. The second problem is that successful applications evolve over time, so their architecture inevitably drifts. Reconstructing the architecture and checking whether it is still valid is therefore an important aid. While there is a plethora of approaches and techniques supporting architecture reconstruction, there is no comprehensive software architecture reconstruction state of the art and it is often difficult to compare the approaches. This paper presents a state of the art in software architecture reconstruction approaches.

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 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


Simulating solid colloidal particles using the lattice-Boltzmann method The lattice-Boltzmann method is a technique for simulating the time-dependent motions of a simple fluid. Introducing rigid particles and imposing the correct boundary conditions at the solid/fluid interface allows the many-body, time-dependent hydrodynamic interactions between particles to be computed. Rather than simulating truly solid particles, a computationally convenient method for doing this uses hollow objects filled with the model fluid. We propose a simple modification of this "internal fluid" method. For computational convenience our method keeps the fluid inside the object. Its behaviour is modified, however, in such a way that it does nor perturb the dynamics of the particle. The equations of motion for the solid particles are then modified in such a way that the microscopic conservation laws for mass and momentum are satisfied. Comparing both the time-dependent (rotational and translational) motion of an isolated spherical particle and the viscosity of a concentrated suspension of hard spheres against known results for solid particles, we examine artifacts attributable to the "internal" fluid. Using our modified approach, we show that these artifacts are no longer present and the behaviour of truly solid particles is recovered. (C) 2000 Academic Press.

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

colloidal suspensions
computer simulations


Computer-based self-organized tectonic zoning: a tentative pattern recognition for Iran Conventional methods of tectonic zoning are frequently characterized by two deficiencies. The first one is the large uncertainty involved in tectonic zoning based on non-quantitative and subjective analysis. Failure to interpret accurately a large amount of data by eye is the second. In order to alleviate each of these deficiencies, the multivariate statistical method of cluster analysis has been utilized to seek and separate zones with similar tectonic pattern and construct automated self-organized multivariate tectonic zoning maps. This analytical method of tectonic regionalization is particularly useful for showing trends in tectonic evolution of a region that could not be discovered by any other means. To illustrate, this method has been applied for producing a general-purpose numerical tectonic zoning map of Iran. While there are some similarities between the self-organized multivariate numerical maps and the conventional maps, the cluster solution maps reveal some remarkable features that cannot be observed on the current tectonic maps. The following specific examples need to be noted: (1) The much disputed extent and rigidity of the Lut Rigid Block, described as the microplate of east Iran, is clearly revealed on the self-organized numerical maps. (2) The cluster solution maps reveal a striking similarity between this microplate and the northern Central Iranincluding the Great Kavir region. (3) Contrary to the conventional map, the cluster solution maps make a clear distinction between the East Iranian Ranges and the Makran Mountains. (4) Moreover, an interesting similarity between the Azarbaijan region in the northwest and the Makran Mountains in the southeast and between the Kopet Dagh Ranges in the northeast and the Zagros Folded Belt in the southwest of Iran are revealed in the clustering process. This new approach to tectonic zoning is a starting point and is expected to be improved and refined by collection of new data. The method is also a useful tool in studying neotectonics, seismotectonics, seismic zoning, and hazard estimation of the seismogenic regions.

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

cluster analysis
neotectonics
seismotectonics
seismic zoning


accessing probabilistic quorums in dynamic networks Quorums are a fundamental building block for solving various fundamental problems such as consensus, distributed dictionaries, distributed storage, among others. In particular, probabilistic quorums have shown to be scalable, efficient, and suitable for dynamic environments [12]. Unfortunately, most existent analytic results for accessing probabilistic quorums are tailored to static networks [8]. However, we believe that the correct functioning of such systems must be assured in a much wider range of scenarios. In this paper, we discuss the random walk based scheme for accessing probabilistic quorums in dynamic networks where an oblivious adversary changes the communication links arbitrarily in each round. We show that O ( n 3 log n ) communication steps are needed to access a probabilistic quorum under these conditions.

O O B O B I B 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 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 B 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


Design of multipurpose production facilities: A RTN decomposition-based algorithm A general mathematical formulation for the design of multipurpose facilities has recently been presented by Barbosa-Povoa and Pantelides (1997). The model proposed permits a detailed consideration of the design problem taking account of trade-offs between capital costs, revenues and operational flexibility. The optimal solution involves the selection of the required processing and storage equipment items and the required levels of provision of other production resources such as utilities, manpower, cleaning and transportation equipment. In order to guarantee solution optimality, the above design formulation has to consider a large number of equipment items, out of which it will select the ones that will actually be incorporated in the plant. This may result in large mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) problems that are expensive to solve. This paper presents a decomposition approach for the solution of large batch process design problems. The approach involves the iterative solution of a master problem (representing a relaxation of the original design problem) and a design sub-problem tin which several of the design decisions are already fixed). An example illustrating the effectiveness of the proposed decomposition approach is presented.

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


A numerical study for the performance of the RungeKutta discontinuous Galerkin method based on different numerical fluxes RungeKutta discontinuous Galerkin (RKDG) method is a high order finite element method for solving hyperbolic conservation laws employing useful features from high resolution finite volume schemes, such as the exact or approximate Riemann solvers serving as numerical fluxes, TVD RungeKutta time discretizations, and limiters. In most of the RKDG papers in the literature, the LaxFriedrichs numerical flux is used due to its simplicity, although there are many other numerical fluxes which could also be used. In this paper, we systematically investigate the performance of the RKDG method based on different numerical fluxes, including the first-order monotone fluxes such as the Godunov flux, the EngquistOsher flux, etc., and second-order TVD fluxes, with the objective of obtaining better performance by choosing suitable numerical fluxes. The detailed numerical study is mainly performed for the one dimensional system case, addressing the issues of CPU cost, accuracy, non-oscillatory property, and resolution of discontinuities. Numerical tests are also performed for two dimensional systems.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 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 triple-mode sigma-delta modulator for multi-standard wireless radio receivers A 1.8 V sigma-delta modulator with a 4 bit quantizer has been designed for GSM/WCDMA/WLAN receivers in a 0.18 um CMOS process. The modulator makes use of low-distortion sigma-delta modulator architecture and Pseudo-Data-Weighted-Averaging technique to attain high linearity over a wide bandwidth. Power dissipation is minimized by optimizing the architecture and by a careful design of analog circuitry. In GSM mode, the modulator achieves 96/104 dB peak SNR/SFDR over 100 kHz bandwidth and dissipates 18 mW at a sampling frequency of 32 MHz. The modulator achieves 92/68 dB peak SFDR and 77/54 dB peak SNR over a 2 MHz/10 MHz bandwidth and dissipates 23/39 mW at a sampling frequency of 64 MHz/160 MHz in WCDMA/WLAN.

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

analog-to-digital conversion
triple-mode
sigma-delta modulator
feedforward path
multi-standard
wireless radio receiver


CENTORI: A global toroidal electromagnetic two-fluid plasma turbulence code A new global two-fluid electromagnetic turbulence code, CENTORI, has been developed for the purpose of studying magnetically-confined fusion plasmas on energy confinement timescales. This code is used to evolve the combined system of electron and ion fluid equations and Maxwell equations in toroidal configurations with axisymmetric equilibria. Uniquely, the equilibrium is co-evolved with the turbulence, and is thus modified by it. CENTORI is applicable to tokamaks of arbitrary aspect ratio and high plasma beta. A predictorcorrector, semi-implicit finite difference scheme is used to compute the time evolution of fluid quantities and fields. Vector operations and the evaluation of flux surface averages are speeded up by choosing the Jacobian of the transformation from laboratory to plasma coordinates to be a function of the equilibrium poloidal magnetic flux. A subroutine, GRASS, is used to co-evolve the plasma equilibrium by computing the steady-state solutions of a diffusion equation with a pseudo-time derivative. The code is written in Fortran 95 and is efficiently parallelised using Message Passing Interface (MPI). Illustrative examples of output from simulations of a tearing mode in a large aspect ratio tokamak plasma and of turbulence in an elongated conventional aspect ratio tokamak plasma are provided.

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 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

two-fluid and multi-fluid plasmas
drift waves
spherical tokamaks
magnetohydrodynamic and fluid equations


Towards invariant face recognition A face recognition method that can cope with the variations due to the changes in lighting and pose is presented in this paper. This system uses the output of a face detection module that extracts human faces within an input scene image. To compensate for illumination effects, an algorithm is proposed which applies an embossing operator to the detected face images to remove the illumination effects. Next, variations in the face images due to changes in pose are compensated for by using an algorithm that generates corresponding front-view face images of the detected face images; thus the perspective invariant recognition of the input face image becomes feasible. This algorithm first calculates a 3D head model from a 2D input face image. Once a 3D head is found, 2D face images can be rendered under different pose and lighting effects. For face recognition, a front-view face image is rendered. The resulting front-view face image is then directed to a fractal-based recognition algorithm. Three different experiments are carried out on a large collection of face images. The results are presented and discussed.

O O B I 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 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

illumination compensation
pose compensation


A generalized super-memory gradient projection method of strongly sub-feasible directions with strong convergence for nonlinear inequality constrained optimization In this work, combining the properties of the generalized super-memory gradient projection methods with the ideas of the strongly sub-feasible directions methods, we present a new algorithm with strong convergence for nonlinear inequality constrained optimization. At each iteration, the proposed algorithm can sufficiently use the information of the previous t steps' iterations to generate a new iterative point. Particularly, the intervals of parameters in the super-memory gradient projection direction are adjustable. The main properties of the new algorithm are described as follows: (i) the improving super-memory gradient projection direction is a combination of the generalized gradient projection and the t steps' super-memory gradients, which include both the previous I steps' search directions and gradients; moreover, only the gradients associated with a generalized active constrained set are dealt with rather than the gradients of all constraints; (ii) the initial point can be chosen arbitrarily, and at each iteration, the number of the functions satisfying the inequality constraints is nondecreasing. Especially, once a feasible iteration is obtained, then the subsequent iterations are also feasible; (iii) under suitable assumptions, it possesses global and strong convergence. Finally, some preliminary numerical results show that the proposed algorithm is promising. (c) 2007 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

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

inequality constrained optimization
strong convergence

super-memory gradient method
strongly sub-feasible directions
global convergence


Design considerations for integrated CMOS reflective-type phase shifters An analysis of reflective-type phase shifters with transformed single-resonant loads for integrated CMOS phased-array implementations is presented. Several components of the standard lumped-element coupler can be eliminated without significant performance degradation, to allow more compact implementations. It is found that the varactor should be chosen as small as feasible to minimize sensitivity to parasitic resistance. Larger varactors reduce sensitivity to parasitic capacitance, but this can be compensated for in the phase shifter design. A general design procedure for reflective-type phase shifters is given. A phase shifter operating at 2.0 GHz has been designed and implemented in a 0.18 mu m CMOS process using the design procedures outlined, and it occupies an area of 0.75 mm(2) and consumes 6.8 mW of power. The measured phase shift range is 308 degrees for a control voltage varying from 0-1.8 V, which to our knowledge is the largest phase shift range of any CMOS reflective-type phase shifter reported to date.

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


Sampling from compositional and directional distributions This paper describes a method for sampling from a non-standard distribution which is important in both population genetics and directional statistics. Current approaches rely on complicated procedures which do not work well, if at all, in high dimensions and usual parameter set-ups. We use a Gibbs sampler which seems necessary in practical situations of high dimensions.

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 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

directional statistics
population genetics


Frequency performance compensation of operational amplifiers with the 'T' feedback network A simple 'T' network can be used in the feedback path of a conventional voltage feedback operational amplifier (VFOA) to avoid using a large feedback resistor. However detailed analysis shows that the bandwidth of amplifier will be degraded. In this paper, a capacitive compensation method for the 'T' network is described which yields a significant improvement in closed-loop bandwidth of the amplifier.

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


The CART decision tree for mining data streams One of the most popular tools for mining data streams are decision trees. In this paper we propose a new algorithm, which is based on the commonly known CART algorithm. The most important task in constructing decision trees for data streams is to determine the best attribute to make a split in the considered node. To solve this problem we apply the Gaussian approximation. The presented algorithm allows to obtain high accuracy of classification, with a short processing time. The main result of this paper is the theorem showing that the best attribute computed in considered node according to the available data sample is the same, with some high probability, as the attribute derived from the whole data stream.

O B 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 O O O O O O O O O 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

decision tree
cart
gaussian approximation


How people use presentation to search for a link: expanding the understanding of accessibility on the Web It is well known that many Web pages are difficult to use for visually disabled people. Without access to a rich visual display, the intended structure and organisation of the page is obscured. To fully understand what is missing from the experience of visually disabled users, it is pertinent to ask how the presentation of Web pages on a standard display makes them easier for sighted people to use. This paper reports on an exploratory eye tracking study that addresses this issue by investigating how sighted readers use the presentation of the BBC News Web page to search for a link. The standard page presentation is compared with a text-only version, demonstrating both qualitatively and quantitatively that the removal of the intended presentation alters reading behaviours. The demonstration that the presentation of information assists task completion suggests that it should be re-introduced to non-visual presentations if the Web is to become more accessible. The conducted study also explored the extent to which algorithms that generate maps of what is perceptually salient on a page match the gaze data recorded in the eye tracking study. The correspondence between a pages presentation, knowledge of what is visually salient, and how people use these features to complete a task might offer an opportunity to re-model a Web page to maximise access to its most important parts.

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 B 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 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 B 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 B I 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


Internet-based Virtual Computing Environment: Beyond the data center as a computer The two dominating characteristics of new and emerging Internet applications are ultra-large scales and utility. Centralized data centers alone are often inadequate for running such applications. In this paper we introduce the concept of an Internet-based Virtual Computing Environment (iVCE), which aims to provide Cloud services by a dynamic combination of data centers and other multi-scale computing resources on the Internet. We present a model that addresses two critical challenges in iVCE: multi-scale resource aggregation and elastic binding. We then describe the design and implementation of our iVCE software platform that embodies the model. Comprehensive experiments show that iVCE provides a novel, promising way to deal with scalability and utility, thereby enabling economical and elastic Cloud Computing.

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 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 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 B I

cloud computing
elastic binding
virtual computing environment


Evidence-based modelling of strategic fit: An introduction to RCaRBS This paper presents an important development of a novel non-parametric object classification technique, namely CaRBS (Classification and Ranking Belief Simplex), to enable regression-type analyses. Termed RCaRBS, it is, as with CaRBS, an evidence-based technique, with its mathematical operations based on the DempsterShafer theory of evidence. Its exposition is demonstrated here by modelling the strategic fit of a set of public organizations. In addition to the consideration of the predictive fit of a series of models, graphical exploration of the contribution of individual variables in the derived models is also undertaken when using RCaRBS. Comparison analyses, including through fivefold cross-validation, are carried out using multiple regression and neural networks models. The findings highlight that RCaRBS achieves parity of test set predictive fit with regression and better fit than neural networks. The RCaRBS technique can also enable researchers to explore non-linear relationships (contributions) between variables in greater detail than either regression or neural networks models.

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

decision analysis
evidence theory
trigonometric differential evolution


Circadian Rhythms Circadian rhythms are driven by biological clocks and are endogenous in origin. Therefore, circadian changes in the metabolism or secretion of endogenous glucocorticoids are certainly responsible in part for the time-dependent changes observed in the inflammatory response and arthritis. More recently, melatonin (MLT), another circadian hormone that is the secretory product of the pineal gland, has been found implicated in the time-dependent inflammatory reaction with effects opposite those of cortisol. Interestingly, cortisol and MLT show an opposite response to the light. The light conditions in the early morning have a strong impact on the morning cortisol peak, whereas MLT is synthesized in a strictly nocturnal pattern. Recently, a diurnal rhythmicity in healthy humans between cellular (Th1 type) or humoral (Th2 type) immune responses has been found and related to immunomodulatory actions of cortisol and MLT. The interferon (IFN)-?/interleukin (IL)-10 ratio peaked during the early morning and correlated negatively with plasma cortisol and positively with plasma MLT. Accordingly, the intensity of the arthritic pain varies consistently as a function of the hour of the da

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

circadian rhythms
glucocorticoids
melatonin

rheumatoid arthritis
tumor necrosis factor (tnf)-?
th1 cytokines
th2 cytokines
hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (hpa)


an inexpensive hand-eye system for undergraduate robotics instruction Hand-eye systems combine computer vision with kinematics and dynamics calculations to achieve dexterous manipulation. These versatile platforms for teaching robotics principles have not been widely used in undergraduate laboratories due to cost. We describe a new hand-eye system constructed from Robotis Dynamixel servos, a USB interface module, and a webcam, that can be built for under $500 and run by a PC using the Tekkotsu open source software framework. A suggested curriculum is outlined.

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 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 B O O O O O O O O O


An effective web document clustering algorithm based on bisection and merge To cluster web documents, all of which have the same name entities, we attempted to use existing clustering algorithms such as K-means and spectral clustering. Unexpectedly, it turned out that these algorithms are not effective to cluster web documents. According to our intensive investigation, we found that clustering such web pages is more complicated because (1) the number of clusters (known as ground truth) is larger than two or three clusters as in general clustering problems and (2) clusters in the data set have extremely skewed distributions of cluster sizes. To overcome the aforementioned problem, in this paper, we propose an effective clustering algorithm to boost up the accuracy of K-means and spectral clustering algorithms. In particular, to deal with skewed distributions of cluster sizes, our algorithm performs both bisection and merge steps based on normalized cuts of the similarity graph G to correctly cluster web documents. Our experimental results show that our algorithm improves the performance by approximately 56% compared to spectral bisection and 36% compared to K-means.

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 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 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 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 B 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 I O O O O O


The transient combinator, higher-order strategies, and the distributed data problem The distributed data problem is characterized by the desire to bring together semantically related data from syntactically unrelated portions of a term. A strategic combinator called transient and a strategic constant called skip are introduced in the context of a higher-order strategic framework. The notion of traversal is lifted to the higher order as well. The resulting framework allows the manipulation of data to be expressed directly in strategic terms. The impact of this dynamic approach to strategy creation is then explored for several instances of the distributed data problem. Problems considered include three strategic benchmarks as well as two transformations that arise within a class loader for the Java virtual machine.

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

distributed data problem
transient combinator
strategic benchmarks
java virtual machine

strategic programming
higher-order strategic programming
higher-order traversal
one-layer higher-order traversals
transformation
program transformation
rewriting
higher-order rewriting
skip strategy
tl
hats
table normalization
java class loader
sandia secure processor


Computer-aided periodontal disease diagnosis using computer vision Periodontal diseases are the major cause of tooth loss. The study of the evolution of these diseases is crucial to achieve adequate planning and treatment. Depth probing is essential to know the periodontal disease stage. In this paper we present a new system for Computer-Aided Periodontal Disease Diagnosis using computer vision. The system automates the depth probing and incorporates a colour camera fitted together with a plastic probe that automatically and exactly obtains the depth probing measure. The system has been tested by several periodontists and with 125 teeth of different patients. The differences between the values taken by the system and two periodontists have not been significant.

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

automatic depth probing
voice
periodontitis
gingivitis
digital colour image
probe mark


Using balanced scorecards for the evaluation of Software-as-a-service To overcome the problem of limited resources, increasing numbers of small- and medium-sized companies (SMEs) are adopting Software-as-a-service (Saas) as an efficient tool for IS implementation. The balanced scorecard (BSC) has been adopted by SMEs to evaluate Saas via four measures: learning and growth, internal business processes, customer performance, and financial performance. The survey results for 101 Software-as-a-service adopters indicate that learning and growth, internal business processes, and customer performance are causally related to financial performance. The results show that these four key elements for Saas success are interrelated, supporting the core premise of the BSC.

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

software-as-a-service (saas)
balanced scorecard (bsc)
causal relationships


ELIMINATION OF TIME DELAY IN DIGITAL CONTROL LOOP OF SWITCHING DC-DC CONVERTERS Time delay introduced by sampling and calculation exists between the perturbation and the duty ratio updating in the digital control loop. This time delay degrades the transient performance of digital control switching power supplies. By overcoming the sampling and calculation time effect and to calibrate the ripple that occurs during switching cycles, new control algorithm is proposed in this paper to improve the transient performance of switching power supplies by eliminating the time delay in the control loop. Simulation results show the improvement of load transient performance by the proposed algorithms. Experimental system is also set up to verify the analysis and computer simulation results.

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


Modeling and analysis of the compatibility of polystyrene/poly(methyl methacrylate) blends with four inducing effects The compatibility of polystyrene (PS) and poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) blends was studied over a wide range of compositions at 383, 413 and 443 K, respectively, by atomistic and mesoscopic modeling. All the calculated Flory-Huggins interaction parameters showed positive values; furthermore, they were all above the critical Flory-Huggins interaction parameter value, which means that the PS/PMMA blends were immiscible. Both the addition of a block copolymer and the introduction of a shear field influenced the phase morphologies of the blends, while the degree of influence depended on the compositions of the blends. The study of PS/PMMA blends doped with nanoparticles showed that the mesoscopic phase was influenced by not only the properties of the nanoparticles, such as their size, number and number density, but also the compositions of the blends. The effect of the surface roughness of the planes on the phase separation of the blends was also studied.

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

ps/pmma blend
inducing effect
phase morphology
nanoparticle


A genetic-fuzzy system for optimising agent steering Fuzzy controllers are a popular method for animated character perception and control. A drawback of fuzzy systems is that time intensive manual calibration of system parameters is required. We introduce a new Genetic-Fuzzy System (GFS) that automates the tuning process of rules for animated character steering. An advantage of our GFS is that it is able to adapt the rules for steering behaviour during run time. We explore the parameter space of the new GFS, and discuss how the GFS can be implemented to run as a background process during normal execution of a simulation. Copyright (C) 2010 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 O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

agent navigation and steering
genetic algorithms
fuzzy logic


a multimodal guide for the augmented campus The use of Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) with ad-hoc built-in information retrieval and auto-localization functionalities can help people navigating an environment in a more natural manner compared to traditional audio/visual pre-recorded guides. In this work we propose and discuss a user-friendly, multi-modal guide system for pervasive context-aware service provision within augmented environments. The proposed system is adaptable to the user needs of mobility within a given environment; it is usable on different mobile devices and in particular on PDAs, which are used as advanced adaptive HEI (human-environment interaction) interfaces. An information retrieval service is provided that is easily accessible through spoken language interaction in cooperation with an auto-localization service. The interaction is enabled by speech recognition and synthesis technologies, and by a ChatBot system, endowed with common sense reasoning capabilities to properly interpret user speech and provide him with the requested information. This interaction mode turns to be more natural, and users are required to have only basic skills on the use of PDAs. The auto-localization service relies on a RFID-based framework, which resides partly in the mobile side of the entire system (PDAs), and partly in the environment side. In particular, RFID technology allows the system to provide users with context-related information. An implemented case study is showed that illustrates service provision in an augmented environment within university campus settings (termed "Augmented Campus"). Lastly, a discussion about user experiences while using trial services within the Augmented Campus is given.

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

pervasive services
human-environment interfaces
multimodal guides


determinants and patterns of control over technology in a computerized meeting room Groups completed a prioritization task in a low structure computerized meeting room. All group members had equal access to a public screen used to complete the task. How groups distributed control of the technology, the determinants of which group members took control, and the consequences of control were studied. Groups adopted either a dedicated scribe strategy, where one group member controls the public screen throughout the session, or a non-dedicated scribe strategy, where more than one member takes control of the screen during the session. Proficiency with the computer interface and social influence within a group are factors that predict whether a given member will take control of the technology. Dedicated scribe groups scored better on the task but reported a smaller increase in satisfaction after working in the room than non-dedicated scribe groups.

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

task
structure
meeting
public
prioritization
group
distributed
access
control
social influence
predict

strategies technologies determinism factor computation interfaces completeness pattern


The effects of physical prototyping and group work on the reduction of design fixation Innovation is important for successful designs, but design fixation likely prevents designers from reaching their innovative potential. Participants in this study were 120 students, 80 of which had design backgrounds. Participants saw an example tool, and then worked alone or in small groups to design two new tools using a construction set. All participants designed two tools: one in a physical prototyping environment and one in an environment without physical prototyping. Results showed that designs were better and contained fewer fixations to the example tool when designed in the physical prototyping environment, but that groups designed better tools than individuals or nominal groups when no physical prototyping was available. These results underscore the importance of physical prototyping in design.

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


Minimum-phase criterion on sampling time for sampled-data interval systems using genetic algorithms In this paper, a genetic algorithm-based approach is proposed to determine a desired sampling-time range which guarantees minimum phase behaviour for the sampled-data system of an interval plant preceded by a zero-order hold (ZOH). Based on a worst-case analysis, the identification problem of the sampling-time range is first formulated as an optimization problem, which is subsequently solved under a GA-based framework incorporating two genetic algorithms. The first genetic algorithm searches both the uncertain plant parameters and sampling time to dynamically reduce the search range for locating the desired sampling-time boundaries based on verification results from the second genetic algorithm. As a result, the desired sampling-time range ensuring minimum phase behaviour of the sampled-data interval system can be evolutionarily obtained. Because of the time-consuming process that genetic algorithms generally exhibit, particularly the problem nature which requires undertaking a large number of evolution cycles, parallel computation for the proposed genetic algorithm is therefore proposed to accelerate the derivation process. Illustrated examples in this paper have demonstrated that the proposed GA-based approach is capable of accurately locating the boundaries of the desired sampling-time range.

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

genetic algorithms
interval plant
parallel computation

minimum-phase
uncertain systems
sampled-data systems
discretization


matching resumes and jobs based on relevance models We investigate the difficult problem of matching semi-structured resumes and jobs in a large scale real-world collection. We compare standard approaches to Structured Relevance Models (SRM), an extensionof relevance-based language model for modeling and retrieving semi-structured documents. Preliminary experiments show that the SRM approach achieved promising performance and performed better than typical unstructured relevance models.

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 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


A machine learning approach to Cepheid variable star classification using data alignment and maximum likelihood Our study centers on the classification of two subtypes of Cepheid variable stars. Such a classification is relatively easy to obtain for nearby galaxies, but as we incorporate new galaxies, the cost of labeling stars calls for some form of model adaptation. Adapting a predictive model to differentiate Cepheids across galaxies is difficult because of the sample bias problem in star distribution (due to the limitation of telescopes in observing faint stars as we try to reach distant galaxies). In addition, estimating the luminosity of a star as we reach distant galaxies carries some inevitable shift in the data distribution. We propose an approach to predict the class of Cepheid stars on a target domain, by first building a model on an anchor source domain. Our methodology then shifts the target data until it is well aligned with the source data by maximizing two different likelihood functions. Experimental results with two galaxy datasets (Large Magellanic Cloud as the source domain, and M33 as the target domain), show the efficacy of the proposed method.

O B I 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 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 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

machine learning
classification
cepheid stars


The Architecture and Traffic Management of Wireless Collaborated Hybrid Data Center Network This paper introduces a novel wireless collaborated hybrid data center architecture called RF-HYBRID that could optimize the effect of wireless transmission while reduce the complexity of wired network. RF-HYBRID improves throughput and packet delivery latency through flexible wireless detours and shortcuts, with a comprehensive routing and congestion control method.

O O O O B 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


Application of evolutionary strategies for 3D graphical model categorization and retrieval In multimedia information processing, while the previous focus was on image/video retrieval, content-based categorization and retrieval of 3D computer graphics model is becoming increasingly important. This is due to the increased adoption of 3D graphics representations in multimedia applications and the resulting need for rapid virtual scene assembly from a repository of 3D models. Motivated by these requirements, the main focus of this paper is on the content-based classification and retrieval of 3D computer graphics models based on a histogram feature representation, and the search for an adaptive transformation of this representation such that the resulting classification and retrieval accuracies are optimized. Observing that a histogram is basically an approximation of the probability density function of an underlying random variable, and that a suitable transformation, when applied to the random variable, will allow the classifier to attain better accuracy based on this new representation, we propose an evolutionary optimization approach to search for this set of optimal transformations due to the large size of the search space. In particular, we consider the special class of transformations that take the form of a piecewise continuous mapping. In this case, the transformed variable is a mixed random variable, with both discrete and continuous components, which provides added flexibility for modeling a number of more diverse random variable types. With a suitably defined fitness function for evolutionary strategies (ES) that measures the capability of the transformed histogram representation to induce the correct class structure, our proposed approach is capable of improving the head model classification performance, which in turn allows, in the case of content-based retrieval, the correct preassignment of a query object to its correct class for more efficient search, even in those cases where the query is ambiguous and difficult to characterize.

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

pattern classification
3d head model
evolutionary computation
multiple classifier system


iPCA: an integration information system for patient controlled analgesia using wireless techniques Recently, pain management has become an important aspect of medical care. Patient Controlled Analgesia (PCA) is a particularly effective and flexible treatment that allows patients to adjust the dosages of the analgesics that control their pain after surgery. However, PCA requires manual operation for sustained attention, and should be analysed with other pathology information for synergic usage. In this paper, we propose an integrated information system for pain management, called Integrated Patient Controlled Analgesia (iPCA). The system integrates various PCA-related devices by wireless techniques to provide real-time information for medial staffs, and offer more efficient and convenient pain control for both in-hospital and at-home patients. To evaluate our system, we have developed a prototype and conducted a series of field trails at a large private hospital in southern Taiwan. The results show that the iPCA system indeed works well with patients, and can provide better post-operative pain control by efficiently collecting PCA usage information.

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 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 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

wireless sensor networks
network integration
home healthcare
data mining


Regularized Interpolation for Noisy Images Interpolation is the means by which a continuously defined model is fit to discrete data samples. When the data samples are exempt of noise, it seems desirable to build the model by fitting them exactly. In medical imaging, where quality is of paramount importance, this ideal situation unfortunately does not occur. In this paper, we propose a scheme that improves on the quality by specifying a tradeoff between fidelity to the data and robustness to the noise. We resort to variational principles, which allow us to impose smoothness constraints on the model for tackling noisy data. Based on shift-, rotation-, and scale-invariant requirements on the model, we show that the L(p)-norm of an appropriate vector derivative is the most suitable choice of regularization for this purpose. In addition to Tikhonov-like quadratic regularization, this includes edge-preserving total-variation-like (TV) regularization. We give algorithms to recover the continuously defined model from noisy samples and also provide a data-driven scheme to determine the optimal amount of regularization. We validate our method with numerical examples where we demonstrate its superiority over an exact fit as well as the benefit of TV-like nonquadratic regularization over Tikhonov-like quadratic regularization.

O B 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 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 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 B O O O B

regularization parameter
splines
tikhonov functional
total-variation functional


Providing ranked cooperative query answers using the metricized knowledge abstraction hierarchy Cooperative query answering supports query relaxation and provides approximate answers as well as exact answers. To facilitate the query relaxation, a knowledge representation framework has been widely adopted, which accommodates semantic relationships or distance metrics to represent similarities among data values. In this paper, we propose a metricized knowledge abstraction hierarchy (MKAH) that supports multi-level data abstraction hierarchy and distance metric among data values. We show that the abstraction hierarchy is useful in representing the semantic relationship, and the abstraction hierarchy can provide data values with different scope according to their abstraction levels. The distance metric expresses the semantic similarity among data values with quantitative measure, and thus it enables query results to be ranked. To verify the practicality and effectiveness of the MKAH, we have implemented a prototype system in the area of career job search. Through various experiments, we show that the MKAH provides rich semantic representation and high quality distance measure. Furthermore, the experiments confirm that the domain adopting the MKAH can be compatible with other numeric domains, and that is advantageous in building up large scaled systems.

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

cooperative query answering
abstraction hierarchy


Algorithm 801: POLSYS_PLP: A partitioned linear product homotopy code for solving polynomial systems of equations Globally convergent, probability-one homotopy methods have proven to be very effective for finding all the isolated solutions to polynomial systems of equations. After many years of development, homotopy path trackers based on probability-one homotopy methods are reliable and fast. Now, theoretical advances reducing the number of homotopy paths that must be tracked, and in the handling of singular solutions, have made probability-one homotopy methods even more practical. POLSYS-PLP consists of Fortran 90 modules for finding all isolated solutions of a complex coefficient polynomial system of equations. The package is intended to be used in conjunction with HOMPACK90 (Algorithm 777) and makos extensive use of Fortran 90 derived data types to support a partitioned linear product (PLP) polynomial system structure. PLP structure is a generalization of m-homogeneous structure, whereby each component of the system can have a different m-homogeneous structure. The code requires a PLP structure as input, and although finding the optimal PLP structure is a difficult combinatorial problem, generally physical or engineering intuition about a problem yields a very good PLP structure. POLSYS-PLP employs a sophisticated power series end game for handling singular solutions, and provides support for problem definition both at a high level and via hand-crafted code. Different PLP structures and their corresponding Bezout numbers can be systematically explored before committing to root finding.

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

globally convergent
homotopy methods
partitioned linear product

algorithms
chow-yorke algorithm
curve tracking
fixed point
m-homogeneous
probability-one
zero


Adaptive variational multiscale methods based on a posteriori error estimation: Energy norm estimates for elliptic problems We develop a new adaptive multiscale finite element method using the variational multiscale framework together with a systematic technique for approximation of the fine scale part of the solution. The fine scale is approximated by a sum of solutions to decoupled localized problems, which are solved numerically on a fine grid partition of a patch of coarse grid elements. The sizes of the patches of elements may be increased to control the error caused by localization. We derive an a posteriori error estimate in the energy norm which captures the dependency of the crucial discretization parameters: the coarse grid mesh size, the fine grid mesh size, and the sizes of the patches. Based on the a posteriori error estimate we present an adaptive algorithm that automatically tunes these parameters. Finally, we show how the method works in practice by presenting various numerical examples.

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

a posteriori error estimation
finite element method
energy norm

variational multiscale method
adaptivity
poisson equation


Automatic Transfer Function Specification for Visual Emphasis of Coronary Artery Plaque Cardiovascular imaging with current multislice spiral computed tomography (MSCT) technology enables a non-invasive evaluation of the coronary arteries. Contrast-enhanced MSCT angiography with high spatial resolution allows for a segmentation of the coronary artery tree. We present an automatically adapted transfer function (TF) specification to highlight pathologic changes of the vessel wall based on the segmentation result of the coronary artery tree. The TFs are combined with common visualization techniques, such as multiplanar reformation and direct volume rendering for the evaluation of coronary arteries in MSCT image data. The presented TF-based mapping of CT values in Hounsfield Units (HU) to color and opacity leads to a different color coding for different plaque types. To account for varying HU values of the vessel lumen caused by the contrast medium, the TFs are adapted to each dataset by local histogram analysis. We describe an informal evaluation with three board-certified radiologists which indicates that the represented visualizations guide the user's attention to pathologic changes of the vessel wall as well as provide an overview about spatial variations.

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 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


Approximating the sheep milk production curve through the use of artificial neural networks and genetic algorithms This paper examines the potential of a neural network coupled with genetic algorithms to recognize the parameters that define the production curve of sheep milk, in which production is time-dependent, using solely the data registered in the animals first controls. This enables the productive capacity of the animal to be identified more rapidly and leads to a faster selection process in determining the best producers. For this purpose we employ a network with a single hidden layer, using the property of universal approximation. To find the number of nodes to be included in this layer, genetic and pruning algorithms are applied. Results thus obtained applying genetic and pruning algorithms are found to be better than other models which exclusively apply the classical learning algorithm Extended-Delta-Bar-Delta.

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

artificial neural networks
genetic algorithms
pruning algorithms

non-linear regression
extended-delta-bar-delta
gamma function


Automatically recognizing places of interest from unreliable GPS data using spatio-temporal density estimation and line intersections Stay points are important for recognizing significant places from a mobile users GPS trajectory. Such places are often located indoors and in urban canyons, where GPS is unreliable. Consequently, mapping a users stay point to a Place of Interest (POI) using only GPS data is particularly challenging. Our novel algorithm employs both spatio-temporal density estimation and line count inference to predict and rank a users POI(s) at building level accuracy from noisy time-annotated GPS data points. An experimental study demonstrates the superiority of our algorithm against several baseline approaches with a recall of 96.5% for the top 5 retrieved locations.

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


xml visualization using tree rewriting In many applications complex structured data have been used. Visualization of these data structures allows a user to get better insight both in the data structure and in the application itself. We present a visualization technique of structured data-oriented XML formats. Customizable visualization is done by means of tree rewriting. This allows for an efficient filtration and transformation of the document tree to fit particular user needs as well as a transformation to a structure with a predefined graphical interpretation. A graphical representation of the tree rewriting rules for an interactive manipulation is presented, so the system itself can be considered a graphical language. The graphical representation is based on tree maps.

B I 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 O O 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


scheduling considerations for building dynamic verification tools for mpi Dynamic verification methods are the natural choice for formally verifying real world programs when model extraction and maintenance are expensive. Message passing programs written using the MPI library often fall under this category, especially when these programs have to be verified after being ported to new platforms and iteratively optimized. However, implementing dynamic verification tools for MPI requires solving many problems pertaining to the scheduling realities of the MPI runtime. In this paper, we describe the progression of our ideas during the development of our dynamic verification tool for MPI programs, called in-situ partial order (ISP). Each idea developed in this progression relates to our dual goals of ensuring full coverage of all representative interleavings (in the sense of partial order reduction) among MPI processes, and forcing the MPI runtime to affect these interleavings. We briefly examine similar issued faced by other builders of dynamic verification tools. We conclude with observations backing the growing importance of addressing scheduling issues in future dynamic verification tools for various concurrency APIs.

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

mpi
partial order reduction
message passing
dynamic verification


fast, flexible, and highly resilient genuine fifo and causal multicast algorithms We study the fifo and causal multicast problem, two group-communication abstractions that deliver messages in an order consistent with their context. With fifo multicast, the context of a message m at a process p is all messages that were previously multicast by m 's sender and addressed to p . Causal multicast extends the notion of context to all messages that are causally linked to m by a chain of multicast and delivery events. We propose multicast algorithms for systems composed of a set of disjoint groups of processes : server racks or data centers. These algorithms offer several desirable properties: (i) the protocols are latency-optimal, (ii) to deliver a message m only m 's sender and addressees communicate, (iii) messages can be addressed to any subset of groups, and (iv) these algorithms are highly resilient: an arbitrary number of process failures is tolerated and we only require the network to be quasi-reliable , i.e., a message m is guaranteed to be received only if the sender and receiver of m are always up. To the best of our knowledge, these are the first multicast protocols to offer all of these properties at the same time.

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

unreliable networks
crash-stop failures
latency-optimality


Automata-based refinement checking for real-time systems Todays mechatronic systems are increasingly interconnected using communication protocols for realizing advanced functionality. Communication protocols underlie hard real-time constraints and need to meet high quality standards for ensuring the safety of the system. A common approach for achieving their necessary quality and mastering their impending complexity is model-driven development. Applying this approach, a developer builds formal models of the communication protocols and applies formal verification techniques (e.g., model checking) for proving that the communication is safe. However, these techniques typically face the state-explosion problem that prevents proofs for large systems like interconnected mechatronic systems. In previous publications, we introduced the MechatronicUML method that provides a compositional verification approach for tackling the state-explosion problem. A key enabler for such an approach is a definition of refinement. In this paper, we extend the compositional verification approach of MechatronicUML in particular by using different kinds of refinement definitions including an automatic selection of the most suitable refinement definition. In addition, we significantly extend an existing approach of test automata construction for refinement checking. Using this approach we can also guarantee that a refined model is constructed correctly concerning the selected and applied refinement definition. We evaluate our approach by an example of an advanced railway transportation system.

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

mechatronic systems
communication protocols
model checking
compositional verification
refinement
mechatronicuml


Tight bounds for connecting sites across barriers Given m points (sites) and n obstacles (barriers) in the plane, we address the problem of finding a straight line minimum cost spanning tree on the sites, where the cost is proportional to the number of intersections (crossings) between tree edges and barriers. If the barriers are infinite lines, it is known that there is a spanning tree such that every barrier is crossed by O(root m) tree edges, and this bound is asymptotically optimal. Asano et al. showed that if the barriers are pairwise disjoint line segments, then there is a spanning tree such that every barrier crosses at most 4 tree edges and so the total cost is at most 4n. Lower bound constructions are known with 3 crossings per barrier and 2n total cost. We obtain tight bounds on the minimum cost of spanning trees in the special case where the barriers are interior disjoint line segments that form a convex subdivision of the plane and there is a point in every cell of the subdivision. In particular, we show that there is a spanning tree such that every barrier crosses at most 2 tree edges, and there is a spanning tree of total cost 5n/3. Both bounds are the best possible.

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


Thymectomy and Antimuscle Antibodies in Nonthymomatous Myasthenia Gravis The clinical effect of thymectomy in early- and late-onset myasthenia gravis (MG) and the correlation to MG severity, pharmacological treatment, and antimuscle antibodies were examined in two series of consecutive acetylcholine receptor (AChR) antibody-positive nonthymoma MG patients. The results indicate a benefit of thymectomy in early-onset MG, but no obvious clinical benefit in late-onset MG. The presence of muscle autoantibodies did not influence the outcome of thymectomy in early-onset MG. In late-onset MG, improvement is least likely in patients with titin and/or RyR antibodies. Thymectomy should always be considered shortly after MG onset in early-onset MG patients and might only be considered in late-onset patients who have early-onset-like immunological characteristics.

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

thymectomy
myasthenia gravis
muscle autoantibodies


Toward a formal philosophy of hypercomputation Does what guides a pastry chef stand on par, from the standpoint of contemporary computer science, with what guides a supercomputer? Did Betty Crocker, when telling us how to bake a cake, provide an effective procedure, in the sense of `effective' used in computer science? According to Cleland, the answer in both cases is ``Yes''. One consequence of Cleland's affirmative answer is supposed to be that hypercomputation is, to use her phrase, ``theoretically viable''. Unfortunately, though we applaud Cleland's ``gadfly philosophizing'' (as, in fact, seminal), we believe that unless such a modus operandi is married to formal philosophy, nothing conclusive will be produced (as evidenced by the problems plaguing Cleland's work that we uncover). Herein, we attempt to pull off not the complete marriage for hypercomputation, but perhaps at least the beginning of a courtship that others can subsequently help along.

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

classical and constructivist mathematics


Dependence of densities on a parameter In the paper relations between weighted asymptotic fuzzy measures determined by weights n p , p ? [ - 1 , ? ) are investigated. Some previously published results are improved and a conjecture on possibility of simultaneous prescription of the values of these measures for two values of parameters is proved.

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

universal fuzzy measure
asymptotic fuzzy measure
weighted density


Myasthenia Gravis and the Tops and Bottoms of AChRs The main immunogenic region (MIR), against which half or more of the autoantibodies to acetylcholine receptors (AChRs) in myasthenia gravis (MG) or experimental autoimmune MG (EAMG) are directed, is located at the extracellular end of ?1 subunits. Rat monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) to the MIR efficiently compete with MG patient autoantibodies for binding to human muscle AChRs. Antibodies bound to the MIR do not interfere with cholinergic ligand binding or AChR function, but target complement and trigger antigenic modulation. Rat mAbs to the MIR also bind to human ganglionic AChR ?3 subunits, but MG patient antibodies do not. By making chimeras of ?1 subunits with ?7 subunits or ACh binding protein, the structure of the MIR and its functional effects are being investigated. Many mAbs to the MIR bind only to the native conformation of ?1 subunits because they bind to sequences that are adjacent only in the native structure. The MIR epitopes recognized by these mAbs are not recognized by most patient antibodies whose epitopes must be nearby. The presence of the MIR epitopes in ?1/?7 chimeras greatly promotes AChR expression and sensitivity to activation. EAMG can be suppressed by treatment with denatured, bacterially expressed mixtures of extracellular and cytoplasmic domains of human ?1, ?1, ?, ?, and ? subunits. A mixture of only the cytoplasmic domains not only avoids the potential liability of provoking formation antibodies to pathologically significant epitopes on the extracellular surface, but also potently suppresses the development of EAMG.

B I 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 B O O O B 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 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 B 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 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 O O B

achr
myasthenia gravis
mg
main immunogenic region
eamg

experimental autoimmune myasthenia gravis


Global software testing under deadline pressure: Vendor-side experiences ? In the era of globally-distributed software engineering, the practice of global software testing (GST) has witnessed increasing adoption. Although there have been ethnographic studies of the development aspects of global software engineering, there have been fewer studies of GST, which, to succeed, can require dealing with unique challenges. To address this limitation of existing studies, we conducted, and in this paper, report the findings of, a study of a vendor organization involved in one kind of GST practice: outsourced, offshored software testing. We conducted an ethnographically-informed study of three vendor-side testing teams over a period of 2months. We used methods, such as interviews and participant observations, to collect the data and the thematic-analysis approach to analyze the data. Our findings describe how the participant test engineers perceive software testing and deadline pressures, the challenges that they encounter, and the strategies that they use for coping with the challenges. The findings reveal several interesting insights. First, motivation and appreciation play an important role for our participants in ensuring that high-quality testing is performed. Second, intermediate onshore teams increase the degree of pressure experienced by the participant test engineers. Third, vendor team participants perceive productivity differently from their client teams, which results in unproductive-productivity experiences. Lastly, participants encounter quality-dilemma situations for various reasons. The study findings suggest the need for (1) appreciating test engineers efforts, (2) investigating the team structures influence on pressure and the GST practice, (3) understanding cultures influence on other aspects of GST, and (4) identifying and addressing quality-dilemma situations.

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 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 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 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

software testing
global software engineering


Accepting networks of evolutionary processors with filtered connections In this paper we simplify a recent model of computation considered in [Margenstern et al. 2005], namely accepting network of evolutionary processors, by moving the filters from the nodes to the edges. Each edge is viewed as a two-way channel such that input and output filters, respectively, of the two nodes connected by the edge coincide. Thus, the possibility of controlling the computation in such networks seems to be diminished. In spite of this observation these simplified networks have the same computational power as accepting networks of evolutionary processors, that is they are computationally complete. As a consequence, we propose characterizations of two complexity classes, namely NP and PSPACE, in terms of accepting networks of evolutionary processors with filtered connections.

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

evolutionary processor
turing machine
complexity class


Generalized spatial dynamic factor models This paper introduces a new class of spatio-temporal models for measurements belonging to the exponential family of distributions. In this new class, the spatial and temporal components are conditionally independently modeled via a latent factor analysis structure for the (canonical) transformation of the measurements mean function. The factor loadings matrix is responsible for modeling spatial variation, while the common factors are responsible for modeling the temporal variation. One of the main advantages of our model with spatially structured loadings is the possibility of detecting similar regions associated to distinct dynamic factors. We also show that the new class outperforms a large class of spatial-temporal models that are commonly used in the literature. Posterior inference for fixed parameters and dynamic latent factors is performed via a custom tailored Markov chain Monte Carlo scheme for multivariate dynamic systems that combines extended Kalman filter-based MetropolisHastings proposal densities with block-sampling schemes. Factor model uncertainty is also fully addressed by a reversible jump Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithm designed to learn about the number of common factors. Three applications, two based on synthetic Gamma and Bernoulli data and one based on real Bernoulli data, are presented in order to illustrate the flexibility and generality of the new class of models, as well as to discuss features of the proposed MCMC algorithm.

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 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 B I 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

exponential family
factor model
markov chain monte carlo
reversible jump


Temporal synchronization of non-overlapping videos using known object motion This paper presents a robust technique for temporally aligning multiple video sequences that have no spatial overlap between their fields of view. It is assumed that (i) a moving target with known trajectory is viewed by all cameras at non-overlapping periods in time, (ii) the target trajectory is estimated with a limited error at a constant sampling rate, and (iii) the sequences are recorded by stationary cameras with constant frame rates and fixed intrinsic and extrinsic parameters. The proposed approach reduces the problem of synchronizing N non-overlapping sequences to the problem of robustly estimating a single line from a set of appropriately-generated points in RN+1 R N + 1 . This line describes all temporal relations between the N sequences and the moving target. Our technique can handle arbitrarily-large misalignments between the sequences and does not require any a priori information about their temporal relations. Experimental results with real-world and synthetic sequences demonstrate that our method can accurately align the videos.

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

video synchronization
temporal alignment
non-overlapping fields of view


inductive methods of teaching programming languages In this cult, computer programming is one of the most modern needs in every academic discipline. Students majoring in various subjects are inclined spontaneously to take at least the first course of computer programming with an expectation that they will be capable of writing programs in their special fields of interest. What they mostly learn is the structure of the language and the basic rules and regulations governing its use. Possibly they write few programs, usually similar to those discussed in the classroom. The students' expectations were not fulfilled and their enthusiasm in programming fades.

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

use
structure
language
teaching
writing
rules
computer programming

program
method
regulation
learning
inductance
programming language
student


foundations for the arcadia environment architecture Early software environments have supported a narrow range of activities ( programming environments) or else been restricted to a single hard-wired software development process. The Arcadia research project is investigating the construction of software environments that are tightly integrated, yet flexible and extensible enough to support experimentation with alternative software processes and tools. This has led us to view an environment as being composed of two distinct, cooperating parts. One is the variant part, consisting of process programs and the tools and objects used and defined by those programs. The other is the fixed part, or infrastructure , supporting creation, execution, and change to the constituents of the variant part. The major components of the infrastructure are a process programming language and interpreter, object management system, and user interface management system. Process programming facilitates precise definition and automated support of software development and maintenance activities. The object management system provides typing, relationships, persistence, distribution and concurrency control capabilities. The user interface management system mediates communication between human users and executing processes, providing pleasant and uniform access to all facilities of the environment. Research in each of these areas and the interaction among them is described.

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

communication
precise
user interface management system
software processes
concurrency control
software development
definition
human
object
project
access
infrastructure
management
change
interaction
software
persistence
research
relationships
capabilities
experimentation
users
environments
maintenance
architecture
process
support
tools
programming language

activation
flexibility
extensibility
automation
component
program
software development process
systems
interpretation
distributed
integrability


Fabrication tolerance analysis of grating mask for pattern-specific off-axis illumination In this paper, the effectiveness of grating mask proposed previously was evaluated for line and space patterns, and its fabrication tolerance was analyzed with aerial image simulation. The structure of grating mask was determined from the local features of Cr patterns. It was verified that grating mask could provide locally matched oblique illumination for specific patterns written on the Cr mask. When the fabrication errors of 10% were randomly introduced into both the widths and the phases of phase gratings in the grating mask, the resulting aerial image showed the CD variation of 15.5%. In order to reduce CD variation to 5% and less, width and phase errors should be maintained to be less than 3.2% and 7.2%, respectively.

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 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 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

off-axis illumination
optical lithography
resolution enhancement


Cross-scale analysis of cluster correspondence using different operational neighborhoods Cluster correspondence analysis examines the spatial autocorrelation of multi-location events at the local scale. This paper argues that patterns of cluster correspondence are highly sensitive to the definition of operational neighborhoods that form the spatial units of analysis. A subset of multi-location events is examined for cluster correspondence if they are associated with the same operational neighborhood. This paper discusses the construction of operational neighborhoods for cluster correspondence analysis based on the spatial properties of the underlying zoning system and the scales at which the zones are aggregated into neighborhoods. Impacts of this construction on the degree of cluster correspondence are also analyzed. Empirical analyses of cluster correspondence between paired vehicle theft and recovery locations are conducted on different zoning methods and across a series of geographic scales and the dynamics of cluster correspondence patterns are discussed.

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

cluster correspondence
operational neighborhood


Auditory-motivated Gammatone wavelet transform We propose the construction of a continuous wavelet transform motivated by the human auditory system. A family of wavelets are derived from the popular Gammatone function model for the auditory impulse response, via repeated differentiation. The wavelets have a time-bandwidth product close to 0.5, in addition to being causal. We investigate the vanishing moments property of the proposed Gammatone wavelets. We show the application of the proposed wavelets to singularity and transient detection.

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

continuous wavelet transform
gammatone function
vanishing moments


SimMan-A simulation model for workforce capacity planning Motivated by the difficulty in predicting the actual performance of workforce capacity planning solutions obtained from mathematical models, we develop a simulator, SimMan. to serve as a test bed for evaluating the effectiveness and robustness of different planning options and assignment rules. To facilitate the ease of use, the simulator is developed in C++ language with a modular structure so that different users or planners can customize the modules according to their specifications. We further develop a mathematical model for the workforce capacity planning problem, where the uncertainty of the demand is handled by the safety stock concepts. We also suggest a number of practical planning alternatives and assignment rules based on information from IBM. These rules are implemented as modules in SimMan and tested numerically to provide managerial insights. (c) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

O B O O B I I 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 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


Leakage and Aging Optimization Using Transmission Gate-Based Technique Negative bias temperature instability (NBTI), which can degrade the switching speed of PMOS transistors, has become a major reliability challenge. Reducing leakage consumption is one of the major design goals. The gate replacement (GR) technique is an effective way to reduce both the NBTI effect and leakage. This technique, however, has less flexibility because the replaced gate can only produce one output value and careful algorithms are needed to decide the output value of the replaced gate. In this paper, we propose a novel transmission gate-based technique to minimize NBTI-induced degradation and leakage. This technique, which can offer logic 1 for NBTI mitigation and logic 0 for leakage reduction, provides higher flexibility, as compared to the GR technique. Simulation results show that our proposed technique has up to 20x and 2.16x, on average, improvement on NBTI-induced degradation with comparable leakage power reduction. With a 19.19% area penalty, combining our technique and the GR can reduce 17.92% of the total leakage power and 32.36% of NBTI-induced circuit degradation.

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 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

negative bias temperature instability (nbti)