ppxscal/embedding_network huggingface dataset:
Business Models and Solution Architectures for SMB Financing in a Supply Chain Ecosystem
Authors: Wei Sun, Jing Li, Dong Liu, Gengzhong Feng, Peng Li
Venue: Proceedings of the E-Commerce Technology for Dynamic E-Business, IEEE International Conference (2004)

In this paper, characteristics of financing requests from SMB supply chain trading partners is investigated, and new financing models are proposed: transaction based credit financing is developed for SMB suppliers to raise financing requests using transaction related documents, risk is mitigated by the credit line transferred from downstream core manufacturer; Mortgage based warehouse financing is explored for SMB dealer and distributor to raise financing requests using stock deposit at the warehouse. In this way risk is reduced by the control of stock. Business integration and risk control related techniques are essential for the proposed business models. Key technologies and architecture that support the proposed financing models are discussed.
An Upper Bound for the Cardinality of an s-Distance Set in Euclidean Space
Authors: Etsuko Bannai, Kazuki Kawasaki, Yusuke Nitamizu, Teppei Sato
Venue: Combinatorica (2003)

In this paper we show that if X is an s-distance set in &#x211d;m and X is on p concentric spheres then $${\left| X \right|} \leqslant {\sum\nolimits_{i = 0}^{2p - 1} {{\left( {\begin{array}{*{20}c} {{m + s - i - 1}} \\ {{s - i}} \\ \end{array} } \right)}} }$$Moreover if X is antipodal, then $${\left| X \right|} \leqslant 2{\sum\nolimits_{i = 0}^{p - 1} {{\left( {\begin{array}{*{20}c} {{m + s - 2i - 2}} \\ {{m - 1}} \\ \end{array} } \right)}} }$$.
El arquero
Venue: ACM SIGGRAPH 2003 video review on Animation theater program: part 1 - Volume 145 (2003)

An archer's wild shot leads to a frantic chase with the constellation Leo. Copyright held by creator.
An Eclipse Plug-in for Model Checking
Venue: Proceedings of the 12th IEEE International Workshop on Program Comprehension (2004)

While model checking has been successful in uncoveringsubtle bugs in code, its adoption in software engineeringpractice has been hampered by the absence of a simpleinterface to the programmer in an integrated developmentenvironment. We describe an integration of the softwaremodel checker BLAST into the Eclipse developmentenvironment. We provide a verification interface for practicalsolutions for some typical program analysis problems -assertion checking, reachability analysis, dead code analysis, and test generation- directly on the source code. Theanalysis is completely automatic, and assumes no knowledgeof model checking or formal notation. Moreover, theinterface supports incremental program verification to supportincremental design and evolution of code.
Building an information retrieval test collection for spontaneous conversational speech
Authors: Douglas W. Oard, Dagobert Soergel, David Doermann, Xiaoli Huang, G. Craig Murray, Jianqiang Wang, Bhuvana Ramabhadran, Martin Franz, Samuel Gustman, James Mayfield, Liliya Kharevych, Stephanie Strassel
Venue: Proceedings of the 27th annual international ACM SIGIR conference on Research and development in information retrieval (2004)

Test collections model use cases in ways that facilitate evaluation of information retrieval systems. This paper describes the use of search-guided relevance assessment to create a test collection for retrieval of spontaneous conversational speech. Approximately 10,000 thematically coherent segments were manually identified in 625 hours of oral history interviews with 246 individuals. Automatic speech recognition results, manually prepared summaries, controlled vocabulary indexing, and name authority control are available for every segment. Those features were leveraged by a team of four relevance assessors to identify topically relevant segments for 28 topics developed from actual user requests. Search-guided assessment yielded sufficient inter-annotator agreement to support formative evaluation during system development. Baseline results for ranked retrieval are presented to illustrate use of the collection.
Query based event extraction along a timeline
Authors: Hai Leong Chieu, Yoong Keok Lee
Venue: Proceedings of the 27th annual international ACM SIGIR conference on Research and development in information retrieval (2004)

In this paper, we present a framework and a system that extracts events relevant to a query from a collection C of documents, and places such events along a timeline. Each event is represented by a sentence extracted from C, based on the assumption that "important" events are widely cited in many documents for a period of time within which these events are of interest. In our experiments, we used queries that are event types ("earthquake") and person names (e.g. "George Bush"). Evaluation was performed using G8 leader names as queries: comparison made by human evaluators between manually and system generated timelines showed that although manually generated timelines are on average more preferable, system generated timelines are sometimes judged to be better than manually constructed ones.
Estimating progress of execution for SQL queries
Authors: Surajit Chaudhuri, Vivek Narasayya, Ravishankar Ramamurthy
Venue: Proceedings of the 2004 ACM SIGMOD international conference on Management of data (2004)

Today's database systems provide little feedback to the user/DBA on how much of a SQL query's execution has been completed. For long running queries, such feedback can be very useful, for example, to help decide whether the query should be terminated or allowed to run to completion. Although the above requirement is easy to express, developing a robust indicator of progress for query execution is challenging. In this paper, we study the above problem and present techniques that can form the basis for effective progress estimation. The results of experimentally validating our techniques in Microsoft SQL Server are promising.
A Failure Recovery Mechanism for Distributed Metadata Servers in DCFS2
Authors: Zhihua Fan, Jin Xiong, Jie Ma
Venue: Proceedings of the High Performance Computing and Grid in Asia Pacific Region, Seventh International Conference (2004)

Distributed metadata servers are required for cluster file system's scalability. However, how to distribute the file system metadata among multiple metadata servers and how to make the file system reliable in case of server failures are two difficult problem. In this paper, we present a journal-based failure-recovery mechanism for distributed metadata servers in the Dawning Cluster File System-DCFS2. The DCFS2 metadata protocol exploits a modified two-phase commit protocol which ensures consistent metadata updates on multiple metadata servers even in case of one server's failure. In this paper we focus on the logging policy and concurrent control policy for metadata updates, and the failure recovery policy. The DCFS2 metadata protocol is compared with the two phase commit protocol and some virtues are shown. Some results of performance experiments on our system are also presented.
Slow Information: Contemplating Time and Space from Newtonian to Leibnizian
Authors: Osamu Katai, Hiroshi Kawakami, Takayuki Shiose, Akira Notsu
Venue: Proceedings of the International Conference on Informatics Research for Development of Knowledge Society Infrastructure (2004)

We introduce a novel notion of flow of information,"Slow Information," which is defined as the flow causingstructural changes to a spatio-temporal structure, theTapestry of Space and Time, of persons or a society. Thisdefinition is based on the Leibnizian conception of Spaceand Time, which contrasts with the common conception:the Newtonian conception of Space and Time. In the latterconception, information flow does not affect the spatio-temporalstructure of persons, while in the former conceptionthe structure may be changed profoundly and slowlyvia the flow of information, Slow Information. Consequentlythis new aspect of information is applied to emvironmentaldesign problems via Alexanderýs Pattern Language. In addition,we discuss its application to caring communicationbased on Nursing Theory and Naïve Psychology.
Towards More Flexible Database Systems: A Logical Framework Based on Extended Possibilistic Truth Values
Authors: Guy de Tre, Rita de Caluwe
Venue: Proceedings of the Database and Expert Systems Applications, 15th International Workshop (2004)

Every database model needs an underlying logical framework in order to support the handling of integrity constraints, database querying, etc.In this paper, it has been discussed how a many-valued logic based on possibility theory, can serve for these purposes and moreover can be advantageously in those cases where one explicitly wants to deal with missing information and/or with imperfect information.The potentials of the logic for both database modelling and database querying have been discussed. Finally, the presented approach has been compared with other existing approaches from both the traditional and the fuzzy database communities.
Weighting Features to Recognize 3D Patterns of Electron Density in X-Ray Protein Crystallography
Authors: Kreshna Gopal, Tod D. Romo, James C. Sacchettini, Thomas R. Ioerger
Venue: Proceedings of the 2004 IEEE Computational Systems Bioinformatics Conference (2004)

Feature selection and weighting are central problems in pattern recognition and instance-based learning. In this work, we discuss the challenges of constructing and weighting features to recognize 3D patterns of electron density to determine protein structures. We present SLIDER, a feature-weighting algorithm that adjusts weights iteratively such that patterns that match query instances are better ranked than mismatching ones. Moreover, SLIDER makes judicious choices of weight values to be considered in each iteration, by examining specific weights at which matching and mismatching patterns switch as nearest neighbors to query instances. This approach reduces the space of weight vectors to be searched. We make the following two main observations: (1) SLIDER efficiently generates weights that contribute significantly in the retrieval of matching electron density patterns; (2) the optimum weight vector is sensitive to the distance metric i.e. feature relevance can be, to a certain extent, sensitive to the underlying metric used to compare patterns.
A real-time terrain visualization algorithm using wavelet-based compression
Authors: Jin Kook Kim, Jong Beom Ra
Venue: The Visual Computer: International Journal of Computer Graphics (2004)

We propose a real-time terrain visualization algorithm combined with wavelet-based compression. Our approach updates a surface mesh model in real time by using wavelet coefficients and height data decoded from a compressed bitstream. To achieve this, a new mesh approximation method using restricted quadtree triangulation is designed on the basis of wavelet coefficients representing surface complexity. Also, a wavelet-based compression having a multiresolution structure is introduced to handle large terrain data interactively. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm is prospective for applications in a network environment where narrow bandwidth and low computational power are usually allowed.
Linear color segmentation and its implementation
Authors: Dmitry P. Nikolaev, Petr P. Nikolayev
Venue: Computer Vision and Image Understanding (2004)

A framework for color image segmentation is presented, which combines color histogram analysis and region merging approach. Its main goal is to segment an image at material boundaries (i.e., discontinuities of reflectance properties) while ignoring spatial color inhomogeneities of uniformly pigmented (colored) objects, caused by accidents of illumination and viewing geometry. Theoretical examination of light spectrum transformations upon light reflection from material surfaces and upon interaction with a sensor system shows that in a wide variety of viewed scenes (even containing interreflections and highlight areas) uniformly pigmented objects are projected to the color space of the sensor as planar, linear, or point-like clusters, depending on lighting and viewing conditions and object geometry. To detect such clusters in the color space, three methods are suggested: Generalized Hough Transform method, gradient descent method, and eigenvectors method. A framework algorithm of color segmentation based on region merging approach is developed, which can use any of these methods. Testing this algorithm with both artificially generated and real images shows quite reliable results.
Robust Aggregation Protocols for Large-Scale Overlay Networks
Authors: Alberto Montresor, Mark Jelasity, Ozalp Babaoglu
Venue: Proceedings of the 2004 International Conference on Dependable Systems and Networks (2004)

Aggregation refers to a set of functions that provideglobal information about a distributed system. These functionsoperate on numeric values distributed over the systemand can be used to count network size, determine extremalvalues and compute averages, products or sums. Aggregationallows important basic functionality to be achieved infully distributed and peer-to-peer networks. For example, ina monitoring application, some aggregate reaching a specificvalue may trigger the execution of certain operations;distributed storage systems may need to know the total freespace available; load-balancing protocols may benefit fromknowing the target average load so as to minimize the transferedload. Building on the simple but efficient idea of anti-entropyaggregation (a scheme based on the anti-entropyepidemic communication model), in this paper we introducepractically applicable robust and adaptive protocolsfor proactive aggregation, including the calculation of average,product and extremal values. We show how the averagingprotocol can be applied to compute further aggregateslike sum, variance and the network size. We present theoreticaland empirical evidence supporting the robustness of theaveraging protocol under different scenarios.
Teaching certificate in computer science: didactics workshop
Authors: Ela Zur, Tamar Vilner
Venue: ACM SIGCSE Bulletin (2004)

Among the prominent characteristics of the Open University of ... is its teaching method: self-study through distance learning. Students from all parts of the country pursue various degrees at the University and the majority utilize advanced technologies for their studies. We will describe the curriculum for a teaching certificate in Computer Science, particularly the course "Methodology of Computer Science Teaching" which utilizes multi-media technologies expressly developed for distance learning.
The application of drop-on-demand ink jet technology to color printing
Authors: F. C. Lee, R. N. Mills, F. E. Talke
Venue: IBM Journal of Research and Development (1984)

The application of drop-on-demand ink jet technology to high-frequency and high-resolution color printing is investigated using an experimental multi-nozzle print head. Cross talk and drop misregistration are examined as a function of drop ejection frequency. Typical print samples from scanned and computer-generated data are obtained and the dependence of print quality on various parameters such as drop ejection frequency, ink composition, and paper quality is discussed.
Visibly pushdown languages
Authors: Rajeev Alur, P. Madhusudan
Venue: Proceedings of the thirty-sixth annual ACM symposium on Theory of computing (2004)

We propose the class of visibly pushdown languages as embeddings of context-free languages that is rich enough to model program analysis questions and yet is tractable and robust like the class of regular languages. In our definition, the input symbol determines when the pushdown automaton can push or pop, and thus the stack depth at every position. We show that the resulting class Vpl of languages is closed under union, intersection, complementation, renaming, concatenation, and Kleene-*, and problems such as inclusion that are undecidable for context-free languages are Exptime-complete for visibly pushdown automata. Our framework explains, unifies, and generalizes many of the decision procedures in the program analysis literature, and allows algorithmic verification of recursive programs with respect to many context-free properties including access control properties via stack inspection and correctness of procedures with respect to pre and post conditions. We demonstrate that the class Vpl is robust by giving two alternative characterizations: a logical characterization using the monadic second order (MSO) theory over words augmented with a binary matching predicate, and a correspondence to regular tree languages. We also consider visibly pushdown languages of infinite words and show that the closure properties, MSO-characterization and the characterization in terms of regular trees carry over. The main difference with respect to the case of finite words turns out to be determinizability: nondeterministic Büchi visibly pushdown automata are strictly more expressive than deterministic Muller visibly pushdown automata.
Efficient orchestration of sub-word parallelism in media processors
Authors: John Oliver, Venkatesh Akella, Frederic Chong
Venue: Proceedings of the sixteenth annual ACM symposium on Parallelism in algorithms and architectures (2004)

Communication and multimedia applications with increased data rates and enhanced functionality continuously raise the bar for the computational requirements of future microprocessors. In order to meet these computational demands it is necessary to exploit sub-word parallelism efficiently. We propose to make sub-word data movement a first-class operation in microprocessor architectures by introducing a Sub-word Permutation Unit (SPU)in the execution pipeline. The SPU is evaluated in the context of the MMX media co-processor for the Intel Pentium architectures, but our results can be extended to any processor that supports sub-word parallelism. We find that the SPU all ws us to orchestrate sub-word data placement prior to computation, thus all wing the MMX functional units to concentrate on performing calculations. Furthermore, we introduce a decoupled SPU control mechanism at the basic block level which allows static optimization to eliminate data-movement verhead in tight loops, where most media and signal processing occurs. We demonstrated that anywhere from 4% to 20% improvement can be obtained on key media and signal processing kernels with as little as 1% increase in hardware resources.
Modelling Downgrading in Information Flow Security
Authors: Annalisa Bossi, Carla Piazza, Sabina Rossi
Venue: Proceedings of the 17th IEEE workshop on Computer Security Foundations (2004)

Information flow security properties such as noninterferenceensure the protection of confidential data by stronglylimiting the flow of sensitive information. However, to dealwith real applications, it is often necessary to admit mechanismsfor downgrading or declassifying information.In this paper we propose a general unwinding frameworkfor formalizing different noninterference properties permittingdowngrading, i.e., allowing information to flow froma higher to a lower security level through a downgrader.The framework is parametric with respect to the observationequivalence used to discriminate between different processbehaviours. We prove general compositionality propertiesand provide conditions under which both horizontaland vertical refinements are preserved under all the securityproperties obtained as instances of the unwinding framework.Finally, we present a decision procedure to check oursecurity properties and prove some complexity results.
Self-Reconfiguration of Communication Interfaces
Authors: Andre Meisel, Markus Visarius, Wolfram Hardt, Stefan Ihmor
Venue: Proceedings of the 15th IEEE International Workshop on Rapid System Prototyping (2004)

Designers of modern system implementations more andmore have to consider the aspect of reconfigurability intheir designs. This systems have to cope with changing environmentsand user requirements. Furthermore, increasingdevelopment costs and the high time-to-market pressurerequire adaptable systems. Introducing reconfigurabilitymechanisms, different applications can be realized.When functionality is reconfigured, the communication aspectbecomes important. In many cases the communicationinterfaces also have to be reconfigured.In our approach we suggest a memory based solutionwhere the interface which is implemented on a Xilinx FPGAis reconfigured by a self triggered reconfiguration process.To realize this process we base our approach on a highlyefficient interface architecture template. First case studiesshow the applicability of our approach.
Community-oriented pedagogy for in-service CS teacher training
Authors: Yifat Ben-David Kolikant, Sarah Pollack
Venue: ACM SIGCSE Bulletin (2004)

In this paper, we examine CS teachers from the aspect of their membership within a community of practice. We show that there is much interaction among the teachers; however, this interaction is merely for exchanging classroom materials and rarely involves a thorough analysis or the design of meaningful pedagogy. Consequently we present, with examples, a community-oriented pedagogical approach for re-designing the interaction to include thorough discussions utilizing a bird's-eye view of the discipline of CS as well as theories of learning in the context of in-class practice. We show that teachers who participated in a course, which was designed according to community-oriented pedagogy, recognized the power of belonging to a community and consequently changed their self-perception of being merely knowledge consumers to being collaborative knowledge producers as well.
Accessing and Extending the Utility of United States Forest Inventory Data
Authors: Patrick D. Miles, Wayne D. Shepperd, Ronald E. McRoberts, John S. Vissage, Kenneth E. Skog, Bryce J. Stokes
Venue: Proceedings of the Database and Expert Systems Applications, 15th International Workshop (2004)

The Forest Inventory and Analysis program of the United States Forest Service has been operational since the 1930ýs. Data collected prior to 1977 is unavailable in electronic format. More recent data is available for downloading from the Internet. Reporting tools such as the Forest Inventory Mapmaker web-application have been developed to generate population estimates of forest area, numbers of trees, timber volume, growth, removals and mortality for a wide variety of stand and/or tree characteristics. The Fuel Treatment Evaluator (FTE) web-application links forest inventory data to both fire hazard and socio-economic geo-spatial data. Linking this information aids planners in identifying potential fire hazard hotspots and evaluating alternative fuel treatment options. The FTE program can also generate inputs to systems such as the Spatial Resouce Support System and growth and yield programs such as the Forest Vegetation Simulator.
A Generalized Solution of an Interactive Goal-Programming Problem
Authors: A. V. Zykina
Venue: Cybernetics and Systems Analysis (2004)

Interactive goal programming is considered as an interactive algorithm of finding generalized solutions of multicriterion problems.