ppxscal/embedding_network huggingface dataset:
Estimating aerosol parameters above the ocean from MERIS observations using topological maps
Authors: J. Brajard, A. Niang, S. Sawadogo, F. Fell, R. Santer, S. Thiria
Venue: International Journal of Remote Sensing (2007)

A topological Neural Network (Kohonen map) was used here to retrieve the aerosol optical properties over ocean case 1 waters from the MEdium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) observations. The Kohonen map was first used to aggregate similar spectral MERIS signatures in 400 pertinent groups without any a priori information on the corresponding optical properties of atmosphere and ocean. For this purpose, more than 148.000 spectra taken from 85 MERIS images collected in 2003 and 2004 over the Mediterranean Sea were processed to train the Kohonen map. The 400 groups were then labelled using synthetic spectra (of which the corresponding optical properties are known) generated by the MOMO (Matrix Operator MethOd) code. This algorithm was successfully applied to a set of 5 MERIS images representative of the conditions prevailing in the Eastern Mediterranean. The good spatial homogeneity of the level-2 atmospheric products-the atmospheric reflectance and the aerosol optical thickness (AOT)-is a first indication of the potential of the presented method. Ground based measurements of the AOT provided by the AERONET (AErosol RObotic NEtwork) program, collected on a small island (Lampedusa) in the Mediterranean Sea, validated our method for the five selected days.
Agnostically learning decision trees
Authors: Parikshit Gopalan, Adam Tauman Kalai, Adam R. Klivans
Venue: Proceedings of the 40th annual ACM symposium on Theory of computing (2008)

We give a query algorithm for agnostically learning decision trees with respect to the uniform distribution on inputs. Given black-box access to an *arbitrary* binary function f on the n-dimensional hypercube, our algorithm finds a function that agrees with f on almost (within an epsilon fraction) as many inputs as the best size-t decision tree, in time poly(n,t,1ε). This is the first polynomial-time algorithm for learning decision trees in a harsh noise model. We also give a *proper* agnostic learning algorithm for juntas, a sub-class of decision trees, again using membership queries. Conceptually, the present paper parallels recent work towards agnostic learning of halfspaces (Kalai et al, 2005); algorithmically, it is more challenging. The core of our learning algorithm is a procedure to implicitly solve a convex optimization problem over the L1 ball in 2n dimensions using an approximate gradient projection method.
DVFS in loop accelerators using BLADES
Authors: Ganesh Dasika, Shidhartha Das, Kevin Fan, Scott Mahlke, David Bull
Venue: Proceedings of the 45th annual Design Automation Conference (2008)

Hardware accelerators are common in embedded systems that have high performance requirements but must still operate within stringent energy constraints. To facilitate short time-to-market and reduced non-recurring engineering costs, automatic systems that can rapidly generate hardware bearing both power and performance in mind are extremely attractive. This paper proposes the BLADES (Better-than-worst-case Loop Accelerator Design) system for automatically designing self-tuning hardware accelerators that dynamically select their best operating frequency and voltage based on environmental conditions, silicon variation, and input data characteristics. Errors in operation are detected by Razor flip-flops, and recovery is initiated. The architecture efficiently supports detection, rollback, and recovery to provide a highly adaptable and configurable loop accelerator. The overhead of deploying Razor flip-flops is significantly reduced by automatically chaining primitive computation operations together. Results on a range of loop accelerators show average energy savings of 32% gained by voltage scaling below the nominal supply voltage.
Voice-enabled IT transformation: the new voice technologies
Authors: J. Christensen, B. Hughes
Venue: IBM Systems Journal (2007)

Voice technologies can enrich the ways in which people communicate and enable novel modes of collaboration, such as integrated voice- and text-based communication services, social and business networking facilities, and the evolving Internet technologies (collectively known as the Web 2.0 technologies). These new technologies can alleviate many problems in interpersonal communications, including those affecting person-to-person, online meeting, contact center, and business-process scenarios. In this paper, we identify some of the new challenges enterprise employees face and discuss the potential of voice technologies to help with these challenges. We also examine the new business environment, the communication services it demands, and the challenges enterprises face in delivering these services.
Sliding mode parameter identification of systems with measurement noise
Authors: S. Baev, I. Shkolnikov, Y. Shtessel, A. Poznyak
Venue: International Journal of Systems Science (2007)

Identification problem in a nonlinear system with constant coefficients is addressed via traditional and high-order sliding mode parameter observer based on the least-squares continuous-time technique. Measurement noise effects on the parameter estimation algorithm are analyzed. The effectiveness of the proposed method is verified via the parameter estimation in a second-order system with noisy measurement.
Federated database services for wind tunnel experiment workflows
Authors: A. Paventhan, Kenji Takeda, Simon J. Cox, Denis A. Nicole
Venue: Scientific Programming (2006)

Enabling the full life cycle of scientific and engineering workflows requires robust middleware and services that support effective data management, near-realtime data movement and custom data processing. Many existing solutions exploit the database as a passive metadata catalog. In this paper, we present an approach that makes use of federation of databases to host data-centric wind tunnel application workflows. The user is able to compose customized application workflows based on database services. We provide a reference implementation that leverages typical business tools and technologies: Microsoft SQL Server for database services and Windows Workflow Foundation for workflow services. The application data and user's code are both hosted in federated databases. With the growing interest in XML Web Services in scientific Grids, and with databases beginning to support native XML types and XML Web services, we can expect the role of databases in scientific computation to grow in importance.
Solution of moving-boundary problems by the spectral element method
Authors: Nicolas Bodard, Roland Bouffanais, Michel O. Deville
Venue: Applied Numerical Mathematics (2008)

This paper describes a novel numerical model aiming at solving moving-boundary problems such as free-surface flows or fluid-structure interaction. This model uses a moving-grid technique to solve the Navier-Stokes equations expressed in the arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian kinematics. The discretization in space is based on the spectral element method. The coupling of the fluid equations and the moving-grid equations is essentially done through the conditions on the moving boundaries. Two- and three-dimensional simulations are presented: translation and rotation of a cylinder in a fluid, and large-amplitude sloshing in a rectangular tank. The accuracy and robustness of the present numerical model is studied and discussed.
A method for analyzing reading comprehension in computer science courses
Authors: Ananda Gunawardena, John Barr, Andrew Owens
Venue: ACM SIGCSE Bulletin (2008)

Reading has traditionally been seen as an essential component in learning, especially at the university level. However, many instructors in higher education, especially in technical courses, do not emphasize reading or try to evaluate it. In this abstract we present an automated system designed to measure and improve reading comprehension and describe preliminary results using the system.
Towards a Model-Based Approach for Context-Aware Composition and Adaptation: A Case Study using WF/.NET
Authors: Javier Cubo, Carlos Canal, Ernesto Pimentel
Venue: Proceedings of the 2008 5th International Workshop on Model-based Methodologies for Pervasive and Embedded Software (2008)

Developing software systems by assembling pre-existingsoftware components (COTS), requires a composition andadaptation process of the component interfaces to solveboth syntactical and behavioural mismatches. The useof context-aware computing is important in applicationswhere the context changes depending on the conditions ofthe environment, as is the case in mobile and pervasive computing. These conditions are likely to change at run-time, therefore the systems developed must be able to alter their behaviour at run-time. In our proposal we outline an approach which supports model-based context-aware composition and adaptation of software components and services implemented usingWindowsWorkflow Foundation (WF). To illustrate the proposal we depict a realistic and complex case study applied to mobile devices.
APEX protocol implementation on a lab-on-a-chip for SNPs detection
Authors: S. L. Marasso, G. Canavese, M. Cocuzza, A. Ferrarini, E. Giuri, S. Lo Bartolo, G. Mantero, D. Perrone, M. Quaglio, I. Vallini
Venue: Microelectronic Engineering (2008)

In this work a detection module for the single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) detection was realised. In particular arrayed primer extension (APEX) was selected as innovative method for SNPs detection and this protocol was scaled down following a micro total analysis approach in order to fabricate a lab-on-a-chip (LOC). Finite element analysis and behavioural simulations with commercial tools to properly design the microfluidic circuitry have preceded the technological processes for the production of the device. The fluidic was designed to contain 5@ml of DNA and reagents that are inserted through three inlets. The layout includes two mixers and a sealed reaction chamber. Glass/silicon prototypes were fabricated with the employment of micro-electro-mechanical-system (MEMS) processes. The devices were tested with APEX biological protocols customized for the scaled volumes. Furthermore, in order to demonstrate the absence of any negative interaction between the chip and the APEX reagents, different chips were tested in intermediate steps together with the protocol executed in standard conditions. The final result demonstrates that the thermo sequenase extended the probes with the dideoxynucleotides modified with Cy5 fluorophore, thus indicating the possibility of implementation of the APEX protocol on LOC devices.
Existence of crystal bases for Kirillov-Reshetikhin modules of type D
Authors: Masato Okado
Venue: Publications of the Research Institute for Mathematical Sciences (2007)

We show that a crystal base exists for any Kirillov-Reshetikhin module of type Dn(1), generalizing the result of Kang et al. for the end nodes of the Dynkin diagram of Dn.
Evaluating the effectiveness of term frequency histograms for supporting interactive web search tasks
Authors: Orland Hoeber, Xue Dong Yang
Venue: Proceedings of the 7th ACM conference on Designing interactive systems (2008)

Throughout many of the different types of Web searches people perform, the primary tasks are to first craft a query that effectively captures their information needs, and then evaluate the search results seeking relevant documents. However, the top Web search engines generally provide little support for users in these tasks. WordBars is a next-generation Web search interface that provides an interactive histogram representation of the most frequently appearing terms within the titles and snippets of the top 100 search results. In this paper, the results of a user study are presented in which the ability of the participants to find relevant documents using the features of WordBars is measured. Most participants were able to find more relevant documents using WordBars when compared to the original order of the search results. Subjective reactions were very positive, with all the participants rating the interactive features of WordBars highly.
Beyond competitive analysis [on-line algorithms]
Authors: E. Koutsoupias
Venue: Proceedings of the 35th Annual Symposium on Foundations of Computer Science (1994)

The competitive analysis of on-line algorithms has been criticized as being too crude and unrealistic. We propose two refinements of competitive analysis an two directions: The first restricts the power of the adversary by allowing only certain input distributions, while the other allows for comparisons between information regimes for on-line decision-making. We illustrate the first with an application to the paging problem; as a by product we characterize completely the work functions of this important special case of the k-server problem. We use the second refinement to explore the power of lookahead in server systems, and the power of visual sensors in robot navigation.
Measuring deep metastability and its effect on synchronizer performance
Authors: David J. Kinniment, Charles E. Dike, Keith Heron, Gordon Russell, Alexandre V. Yakovlev
Venue: IEEE Transactions on Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) Systems (2007)

Present measurement techniques do not allow synchronizer reliability to be measured in the region of most interest, that is, beyond the first half cycle of the synchronizer clock. We describe methods of extending the measurement range, in which the number of metastable events generated is increased by four orders of magnitude and events with long metastable times are selected from the large number of more normal events. The relationship found between input times and the resulting output times is dependent on accurate measurement of input time distributions with deviations of less than 10 ps. We show how the distribution of D to clock times at the input can be characterized in the presence of noise and how predictions of failure rates for long synchronizer times can be made. Anomalies such as the increased failure rates in a master-slave synchronizer produced by the back edge of the clock are explained and demonstrated.
What's in a Name? Distinguishing between SaaS and SOA
Authors: Phillip A. Laplante, Jia Zhang, Jeffrey Voas
Venue: IT Professional (2008)

Considerable confusion arises in distinguishing between software as a service (SaaS) and service-oriented architecture (SOA). Zachman's framework can help to try to make sense of the alphabet soup of Web services and utilities that form the basis for both SOA and SaaS.
Protection against unauthorized access and computer crime in Norwegian enterprises
Authors: Janne Merete Hagen, Tormod Kalberg Sivertsen, Chunming Rong
Venue: Journal of Computer Security (2008)

Computer Crime Surveys are important inputs to management and authorities, providing information on the national IT security status. Such measurement instruments are increasingly valuable as more and more enterprises become critically dependent on IT and the Internet. The article presents a selection of findings from the Norwegian Computer Crime and Security Survey 2006 and discusses strengths and weaknesses of the survey. The survey reveals that next to malware infection and theft of IT equipment, hacking is the most commonly reported computer crime incident. The findings also document that there are large differences in security practices between large and small enterprises, even when it comes to measures one would have thought that all enterprises independent of size would have implemented. This practice may put small enterprises in a position of high risk. This is also worrying in a national context as small enterprises make up the majority of the total number of enterprises. Similar to previous surveys, the 2006 survey shows that the number of reported computer crime incidents is low because of weak detection mechanisms. Finally, a SWOT analysis of the 2006 survey is conducted to review improvements of the survey as a measurement tool.
An Authenticated 3-Round Identity-Based Group Key Agreement Protocol
Authors: Gang Yao, Hongji Wang, Qingshan Jiang
Venue: Proceedings of the 2008 Third International Conference on Availability, Reliability and Security (2008)

Key agreement protocols allow two or more participants exchang information over an open network with each other. In modern collaborative and distributed applications, authenticated group key agreement is one of the important issues. Recently identity-based authenticated key agreement protocol has been increasingly investigated because of the simplicity of a public key management. In this paper, we propose an authenticated three-round identity-based group key agreement protocol. The first round is for identity authentication, the second round is for key agreement, and the third round is for key confirmation. The proposed protocol is based on the protocol of Burmester and Desmedt, and the protocol is provably-secure in the random oracle model. In particular, the proposed authenticated identity-based group key agreement protocol provides a batch verification technique, which verifies the validity of transcripts from other group players simultaneously.
Temporal and spatial variations in presence: Qualitative analysis of interviews from an experiment on breaks in presence
Authors: Maia Garau Doron Friedman Hila Ritter Widenfeld Angus Antley Andrea Brogni, Mel Slater
Venue: Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments (2008)

This paper presents qualitative findings from an experiment designed to investigate breaks in presence. Participants spent approximately five minutes in an immersive Cave-like system depicting a virtual bar with five virtual characters. On four occasions the projections were made to go white to trigger clearly identifiable anomalies in the audiovisual experience. Participants' physiological responses were measured throughout to investigate possible physiological correlates of these experienced anomalies. Analysis of subsequent interviews with participants suggests that these anomalies were subjectively experienced as breaks in presence. This is significant in the context of our research approach, which considers presence as a multilevel construct ranging from higher-level subjective responses to lower-level behavioral and automatic responses. The fact that these anomalies were also associated with an identifiable physiological signature suggests future avenues for exploring less intrusive ways of studying temporal fluctuations in presence during the course of the mediated experience itself. The findings also reveal that breaks in presence have multiple causes and can range in intensity, resulting in varying recovery times. In addition, presence can vary in intensity within the same space, suggesting that presence in an immersive virtual environment can fluctuate temporally and that spatial behavior is consistent with what would be expected in an equivalent real environment.
Ultrasound Pulse-Echo Imaging with an Optimized Propagator
Authors: Lianjie Huang, Youli Quan, Cuiping Li, Neb Duric, Kenneth M. Hanson
Venue: Proceedings of the 2008 International Conference on BioMedical Engineering and Informatics - Volume 02 (2008)

Properly accounting for ultrasound scattering from heterogeneities within the breast is essential for high-resolution ultrasound breast imaging. This requires a reflectivity image reconstruction method capable of accurately handling ultrasound scattering. We develop an optimized ultrasound-wave propagator for reflectivity image reconstruction using pulse-echo ultrasound signals. The method is based on a solution of one-way wave equation and recursive inward continuation of ultrasound wavefields in the frequency-space and frequency-wavenumber domains using a heterogeneous sound-speed model of the breast obtained from tomography. It minimizes ultrasound phase errors during wavefield inward continuation while maintaining the advantage of high computational efficiency. Pulse-echo ultrasound imaging tests for a numerical breast phantom demonstrate that our optimized method has the potential to improve the reliability and accuracy of ultrasound breast imaging.
An OSGi middleware for mobile digital TV applications
Authors: Kiev Santos da Gama
Venue: Proceedings of the 4th international conference on mobile technology, applications, and systems and the 1st international symposium on Computer human interaction in mobile technology (2007)

Mobile TV is gradually moving from 3G and 4G video on demand model to a Mobile Digital TV broadcast model. Currently there is no widely adopted standardized middleware for broadcasted mobile Digital TV as it already happens with home Digital TV. Solutions for mobiles that handle broadcasted Digital TV today are commercial and proprietary frameworks. As an alternative to such frameworks for Mobile Digital TV, this paper envisions a middleware architecture that utilizes technologies publicly available --- Java MIDP/CLDC and the OSGi framework --- to provide a solution that would enable the usage of either custom or third party pluggable components. This solution would combine CLDC targeted APIs with OSGi to deliver Mobile DTV on handheld devices. Such combination would enable to load and display interactive applications that are transmitted along with the Digital TV broadcast stream. An overview of the concept for the architecture and the applications loading mechanism is presented. Necessary adjustments on the Java Virtual Machine and CLDC runtime will be pointed out to enable the proposed middleware behavior.
Behavior of Evolutionary Many-Objective Optimization
Authors: Hisao Ishibuchi, Noritaka Tsukamoto, Yusuke Nojima
Venue: Proceedings of the Tenth International Conference on Computer Modeling and Simulation (2008)

Evolutionary multiobjective optimization (EMO) is one of the most active research areas in the field of evolutionary computation. Whereas EMO algorithms have been successfully used in various application tasks, it has also been reported that they do not work well on many-objective problems. In this paper, first we examine the behavior of the most well-known and frequently-used EMO algorithm on many-objective 0/1 knapsack problems. Next we briefly review recent proposals for the scalability improvement of EMO algorithms to many-objective problems. Then their effects on the search ability of EMO algorithms are examined. Experimental results show that the increase in the convergence of solutions to the Pareto front often leads to the decrease in their diversity. Based on this observation, we suggest future research directions in evolutionary many-objective optimization.
A Microarray Information Database
Authors: Joel P. Arrais, Laura Carreto, Manuel A. Santos, José L. Oliveira
Venue: Proceedings of the 2008 International Conference on Biocomputation, Bioinformatics, and Biomedical Technologies (2008)

The development of microarray technology has been phenomenal, during the past years, and it is becoming a daily tool in many genomics research laboratories. However, the multi-step and data-intensive nature of this technology has created an unprecedented computational challenge. In fact, the full power of microarrays technology can only be achieved if researchers are able to efficiently store, analyse and share their results. In this article we describe a flexible and extensible platform that can be used to gather the natural workflow of microarray experiments. It is an open-source web-based information system that also integrates a set of statistical and processing methods to analyse and visualize the data. By doing this integration in a single system, we hope to speed up the research and discovery processes.