ppxscal/embedding_network huggingface dataset:
Testing across the curriculum: square one!
Authors: Chuck Leska
Venue: Journal of Computing Sciences in Colleges (2004)

Software quality assurance activities typically do not receive much attention in the undergraduate computer science curriculum. This paper endeavors to provide a stepping- stone for incorporating these activities into courses across-the-curriculum. In the paper we delineate a set of quality assurance activities that we were able to incorporate into a CS 1 course. In addition, we reflect on the impact of the inclusion of these activities in terms of coverage of topics and on student performance.
Dynamic Task Scheduling with Security Awareness in Real-Time Systems
Authors: Tao Xie, Andrew Sung, Xiao Qin
Venue: Proceedings of the 19th IEEE International Parallel and Distributed Processing Symposium (IPDPS'05) - Workshop 15 - Volume 16 (2005)

An increasing number of real-time applications, such as aircraft control and medical electronics systems, require high quality of security to assure confidentiality, authenticity and integrity of information. However, most existing algorithms for scheduling independent tasks in real-time systems do not adequately consider security requirements of real-time tasks. In recognition of this problem we propose a novel dynamic scheduling algorithm with security awareness, which is capable of achieving high quality of security for real-time tasks while improving resource utilization. We have conducted extensive simulation experiments to quantitatively evaluate the performance of our approach. Specifically, experimental results show that compared with three heuristic algorithms, the proposed algorithm can consistently improve overall system performance in terms of quality of security and system guarantee ratio under a wide range of workload characteristics.
Hardware Implementation of Automated Sensor Self-Validation System for Cupola Furnaces
Authors: Wagdy H. Mahmoud, Roger L. Haggard, Mohamed Abdelrahman
Venue: Proceedings of the the 9th Annual IEEE Symposium on Field-Programmable Custom Computing Machines (2001)

Custom Computing Machines have demonstrated their superiority over general-purpose processors in computation-intense applications. In this paper, we investigate the use of an FPGA system to implement an automated sensor self-validation algorithm for the Cupola furnaces. The details of the software algorithm and the hardware implementations are presented. The advantages and disadvantages of the implementation are discussed.
Adapting Web Content to Mobile User Agents
Authors: Timo Laakko, Tapio Hiltunen
Venue: IEEE Internet Computing (2005)

More and more content is now available on the Internet, and there's a growing need for mobile users to be able to access it. The authors describe their adaptation proxy, which lets mobile users access Web content that's not directly targeted to user agents of mobile devices. The adaptation proxy can adapt Extensible Hypertext Markup Language (XHTML) documents into XHTML mobile profile (XHTML MP) and Wireless Markup Language (WML), and can perform media adaptation. At the systemýs core is an adaptation framework to which new source and target XML languages can be introduced with relatively little effort.
A Note on K-modes Clustering
Authors: Zhexue Huang, Michael K. Ng
Venue: Journal of Classification (2003)

Recently, Chaturvedi, Green and Carroll (2001) presented a nonparametric approach to deriving clusters from categorical data using a new clustering procedure called K-modes. Huang (1998) proposed the K-modes clustering algorithm. In this note, we demonstrate the equivalence of the two K-modes procedures.
Fuzzy Spatial Objects: An Algebra Implementation in SECONDO
Authors: Thomas Behr, Ralf Hartmut Guting
Venue: Proceedings of the 21st International Conference on Data Engineering (2005)

This paper describes a data model for fuzzy spatial objects implemented as an algebra module in SECONDO. Furthermore, the graphical representation of such objects is discussed.
Weighted waypoint mobility model and its impact on ad hoc networks
Authors: Wei-jen Hsu, Kashyap Merchant, Haw-wei Shu, Chih-hsin Hsu, Ahmed Helmy
Venue: ACM SIGMOBILE Mobile Computing and Communications Review (2005)

To realistically evaluate performance of ad hoc networks we propose a generic framework called the Weighted Way Point (WWP) mobility model. WWP model captures preferences in choosing destinations of pedestrian mobility patterns in a campus environment. We estimate the parameters of this model using mobility survey data for the USC campus. We further compare WWP model with widely used Random Waypoint (RWP) model and demonstrate that in the WWP model mobile nodes display uneven (clustering), time-varying spatial distribution. WWP model is also less mobile than RWP model with typical parameter settings. The clustering effect can cause lower success rate of route discovery in ad hoc networks.
Single-Machine Scheduling with Exponential Processing Times and General Stochastic Cost Functions
Authors: Xiaoqiang Cai, Xian Zhou
Venue: Journal of Global Optimization (2005)

We study a single-machine stochastic scheduling problem with n jobs, in which each job has a random processing time and a general stochastic cost function which may include a random due date and weight. The processing times are exponentially distributed, whereas the stochastic cost functions and the due dates may follow any distributions. The objective is to minimize the expected sum of the cost functions. We prove that a sequence in an order based on the product of the rate of processing time with the expected cost function is optimal, and under certain conditions, a sequence with the weighted shortest expected processing time first (WSEPT) structure is optimal. We show that this generalizes previous known results to more general situations. Examples of applications to practical problems are also discussed.
Isometric-path numbers of block graphs
Authors: Jun-Jie Pan, Gerard J. Chang
Venue: Information Processing Letters (2005)

An isometric path between two vertices in a graph G is a shortest path joining them. The isometric-path number of G, denoted by ip(G), is the minimum number of isometric paths required to cover all vertices of G. In this paper, we determine exact values of isometric-path numbers of block graphs. We also give a linear-time algorithm for finding the corresponding paths.
A framework towards Web services composition modeling and execution
Authors: Muhammad Adeel Talib, Zongkai Yang, Qazi Mudassir Ilyas
Venue: Proceedings of the IEEE EEE05 international workshop on Business services networks (2005)

The biggest challenge of business process management is the provision of non-technical tools, based on implementation standards, which swing control of business processes away from technical departments and towards the business process owners themselves. These tools aid business users in designing high level process models using graphical notations which can then be mapped to lower level implementation models for execution. In this paper we propose a framework leading to a tool that aids business user in designing Web service based process (or in other words, Web service compositions) in BPEL4WS. Unlike graphical modeling approaches, we adopt interactive design methodology wherein the user interacts with a graphical interface at runtime to capture the choreographic details. We elaborate what information is required from the user in order to model the composition and how the syntactic details of BPEL4WS can be hidden from her. It is our conjecture that such tool will facilitate Web service composition design and development by giving an upper hand to business users --- the people who actually conceptualize the processes.
The Value of Zero-Sum Stopping Games in Continuous Time
Authors: Rida Laraki, Eilon Solan
Venue: SIAM Journal on Control and Optimization (2005)

We study two-player zero-sum stopping games in continuous time and infinite horizon. We prove that the value in randomized stopping times exists as soon as the payoff processes are right-continuous. In particular, as opposed to existing literature, we do not assume any conditions on the relations between the payoff processes.
The Space Simulator: Modeling the Universe from Supernovae to Cosmology
Authors: Michael S. Warren, Chris L. Fryer, M. Patrick Goda
Venue: Proceedings of the 2003 ACM/IEEE conference on Supercomputing (2003)

The Space Simulator is a 294-processor Beowulf cluster with theoretical peak performance just below 1.5 Teraflop/s. It is based on the Shuttle XPC SS51G mini chassis. Each node consists of a 2.53 GHz Pentium 4 processor, 1 Gb of 333 MHz DDR SDRAM, an 80 Gbyte Maxtor hard drive, and a 3Com 3C996B-T gigabit ethernet card. The network is made up of a Foundry FastIron 1500 and 800 Gigabit Ethernet switch. Each individual node cost less than $1000, and the entire system cost under $500,000. The cluster achieved Linpack performance of 665.1 Gflop/s on 288 processors in October 2002, making it the 85th fastest computer in the world according to the 20th TOP500 list. Performance has since improved to 757.1 Linpack Gflop/s, ranking at #88 on the 21st TOP500 list. This is the first machine in the TOP500 to surpass Linpack price/performance of 1 dollar per Mflop/s.
Issues in relationship management for obtaining the benefits of a shared service center
Authors: Marijn Janssen, Anton Joha
Venue: Proceedings of the 6th international conference on Electronic commerce (2004)

Shared service centers (SSCs) are gaining importance in public administration as a means to innovate, reduce costs and increase service levels. By unbundling and concentrating activities, the basis premise for a SSC seems to be that services provided by one local department can be provided to others with relatively few efforts. Within public agencies there is a debate about how to manage SSCs to gain the benefits expected. The goal of this research is to investigate how to deal with management issues to obtain the promised benefits. It is likely that many of the issues and managerial problems can be associated with more traditional forms of outsourcing. Therefore we investigate a case study based on insights from outsourcing literature and the framework of Kern and Willcocks proposed in the relationship advantage. The framework was found to be appropriate for analyzing our case study. The management of a SSC demands complicated relationships consisting of a mix of cooperative and competitive characteristics. The outcomes of this case study have resulted in a number of observations about SSCs and also about the differences between the management of relationships in SSCs and outsourcing.
Pose Estimation of 3D Free-Form Contours
Authors: Bodo Rosenhahn, Christian Perwass, Gerald Sommer
Venue: International Journal of Computer Vision (2005)

In this article we discuss the 2D-3D pose estimation problem of 3D free-form contours. In our scenario we observe objects of any 3D shape in an image of a calibrated camera. Pose estimation means to estimate the relative position and orientation (containing a rotation and translation) of the 3D object to the reference camera system. The fusion of modeling free-form contours within the pose estimation problem is achieved by using the conformal geometric algebra. The conformal geometric algebra is a geometric algebra which models entities as stereographically projected entities in a homogeneous model. This leads to a linear description of kinematics on the one hand and projective geometry on the other hand. To model free-form contours in the conformal framework we use twists to model cycloidal curves as twist-depending functions and interpret n-times nested twist generated curves as functions generated by 3D Fourier descriptors. This means, we use the twist concept to apply a spectral domain representation of 3D contours within the pose estimation problem. We will show that twist representations of objects can be numerically efficient and easily be applied to the pose estimation problem. The pose problem itself is formalized as implicit problem and we gain constraint equations, which have to be fulfilled with respect to the unknown rigid body motion. Several experiments visualize the robustness and real-time performance of our algorithms.
Application Fault Tolerance with Armor Middleware
Authors: Zbigniew Kalbarczyk, Ravishankar K. Iyer, Long Wang
Venue: IEEE Internet Computing (2005)

Many current approaches to software-implemented fault tolerance (SIFT) rely on process replication, which is often prohibitively expensive for practical use due to its high performance overhead and cost. The Adaptive Reconfigurable Mobile Objects of Reliability (Armor) middleware architecture offers a scalable low-overhead way to provide high-dependability services to applications. It uses coordinated multithreaded processes to manage redundant resources acrossinterconnected nodes, detect errors in user applications and infrastructural components, and provide failure recovery. The authors describe their experiences and lessons learned in deploying Armor in several diverse fields.
Research in knowledge representation for natural language understanding: Bolt, Beranek, and Newman
Authors: Madeleine Bates, Robert J. Bobrow, Brad Goodman, David J. Israel, Jim Schmolze, Candy Sidner, W. A. Woods
Venue: Issue 79 (January 1982) (1982)

BBN's project in Knowledge Representation for Natural Language Understanding is developing techniques for computer assistance to a decision maker who is collecting information about and making choices in a complex situation. In particular, we are designing a system for natural language control of an intelligent graphics display. This system is intended for use in situation assessment and information management. We believe that the decision maker needs an extremely flexible system, capable of manipulating large amounts of data and presenting it on a graphical display in a variety of ways until he feels satisfied that he has a grasp of his situation.
Assessing the IT training and development climate: an application of the Q-methodology
Authors: Stephen C. Wingreen, J. Ellis Blanton, Sandra K. Newton, Madeline Domino
Venue: Proceedings of the 2005 ACM SIGMIS CPR conference on Computer personnel research (2005)

The Q-methodology was employed to address the managerial problem of deciding which of the firm's personnel development resources should be aimed at which personnel, or groups of personnel, through the various venues of development that are available to the firm for the development of its IT workforce. The procedure identified six interpretable groups of IT professionals that seem to be associated with the development priorities of the IT management, analytical, development & programming, and operations functions. Opportunities are identified for both future research and the practical application of the Q-methodology, its associated instrumentation, and analytical procedure as a managerial decision tool in the context of the internal development of the firm's IT personnel to meet the firm's goals.
Regular expression types for XML
Authors: Haruo Hosoya, Jérôme Vouillon, Benjamin C. Pierce
Venue: ACM Transactions on Programming Languages and Systems (TOPLAS) (2005)

We propose regular expression types as a foundation for statically typed XML processing languages. Regular expression types, like most schema languages for XML, introduce regular expression notations such as repetition (&ast;), alternation (&verbar;), etc., to describe XML documents. The novelty of our type system is a semantic presentation of subtyping, as inclusion between the sets of documents denoted by two types. We give several examples illustrating the usefulness of this form of subtyping in XML processing.The decision problem for the subtype relation reduces to the inclusion problem between tree automata, which is known to be EXPTIME-complete. To avoid this high complexity in typical cases, we develop a practical algorithm that, unlike classical algorithms based on determinization of tree automata, checks the inclusion relation by a top-down traversal of the original type expressions. The main advantage of this algorithm is that it can exploit the property that type expressions being compared often share portions of their representations. Our algorithm is a variant of Aiken and Murphy's set-inclusion constraint solver, to which are added several new implementation techniques, correctness proofs, and preliminary performance measurements on some small programs in the domain of typed XML processing.
A critical computer literacy course
Authors: Mark Hoffman, Jonathan Blake, Jill McKeon, Scott Leone, Maureen Schorr
Venue: Journal of Computing Sciences in Colleges (2005)

What we consider computer literacy is changing as the Internet, accessible through high speed and wireless connections, becomes pervasive. We might choose to teach advanced or new applications in a manner similar to what has been popular since the advent of personal computers last changed the nature of computer literacy, or we can consider a different approach. This latter approach incorporates the way the Internet is changing how we access information and how we communicate. In this paper we describe three years of experience developing a critical computer literacy course based on this new approach. We discuss how the course has developed, as well as its objectives, textbooks, and instructor support. Three course instructors detail their experience teaching the course. Preliminary results of formal student evaluations are also included.
Perceptual audio modeling with exponentially damped sinusoids
Authors: Kris Hermus, Werner Verhelst, Philippe Lemmerling, Patrick Wambacq, Sabine Van Huffel
Venue: Signal Processing (2005)

This paper presents the derivation of a new perceptual model that represents speech and audio signals by a sum of exponentially damped sinusoids. Compared to a traditional sinusoidal model, the exponential sinusoidal model (ESM) is better suited to model transient segments that are readily found in audio signals.Total least squares (TLS) algorithms are applied for the automatic extraction of the modeling parameters in the ESM, i.e. the amplitude, phase, frequency and damping factors of a user-defined number of damped sinusoids. In order to turn the SNR optimization criterion of these TLS algorithms into a perceptual modeling strategy, we use the psychoacoustic model of MPEG-1 Layer 1 in a subband TLS-ESM scheme. This allows us to model each subband signal in accordance with its perceptual relevance, thereby lowering the number of required modeling components for a given modeling quality. Simulations and listening tests confirm that perceptual ESM achieves the same perceived quality as plain ESM while using substantially less components, and provide support for applying the new model in the fields of parametric audio processing and coding.
Grid-Filtered Region-Based Data Distribution Management in Large-Scale Distributed Simulation Systems
Authors: Azzedine Boukerche, Nathan J. McGraw, Caron Dzermajko, Kaiyuan Lu
Venue: Proceedings of the 38th annual Symposium on Simulation (2005)

In a large-scale distributed simulation, participating federates receive and send messages to share state data and update subscription and publication regions. The focus of Data DistributionManagement (DDM), a High Level Architecture (HLA) Run-Time Infrastructure (RTI) service, is limiting and controlling the volume of data, regarding simulated entities, exchanged between participating hosts. One of the key factors in many large-scale distributed simulations is the ability to see or be seen by other participants in the simulation. Several DDM methods have been introduced, but time performance, message volume and resource usage continue to be the factors in the practical application of these methods. In an effort to offer a more efficient and more scalable solution to DDM, we propose an algorithm which we refer to as Grid-Filtered Region-Based DDM, that utilizes a grid overlay on the virtual space, determines the percentage of grid covered by the subscription or publication region and further filters, based on a percentage threshold, using a matching technique, like that of the Region-Based DDM scheme. We present the implementation details of our scheme and report on our set of experiments we have carried out to evaluate its performance.
A spectroscopy of texts for effective clustering
Authors: Wenyuan Li, Wee-Keong Ng, Kok-Leong Ong, Ee-Peng Lim
Venue: Proceedings of the 8th European Conference on Principles and Practice of Knowledge Discovery in Databases (2004)

For many clustering algorithms, such as k-means, EM, and CLOPE, there is usually a requirement to set some parameters. Often, these parameters directly or indirectly control the number of clusters to return. In the presence of different data characteristics and analysis contexts, it is often difficult for the user to estimate the number of clusters in the data set. This is especially true in text collections such as Web documents, images or biological data. The fundamental question this paper addresses is: "How can we effectively estimate the natural number of clusters in a given text collection?". We propose to use spectral analysis, which analyzes the eigenvalues (not eigenvectors) of the collection, as the solution to the above. We first present the relationship between a text collection and its underlying spectra. We then show how the answer to this question enhances the clustering process. Finally, we conclude with empirical results and related work.
Interactive search in large video collections
Authors: Andreas Girgensohn, John Adcock, Matthew Cooper, Lynn Wilcox
Venue: CHI '05 extended abstracts on Human factors in computing systems (2005)

We present a search interface for large video collections with time-aligned text transcripts. The system is designed for users such as intelligence analysts that need to quickly find video clips relevant to a topic expressed in text and images. A key component of the system is a powerful and flexible user interface that incorporates dynamic visualizations of the underlying multimedia objects. The interface displays search results in ranked sets of story keyframe collages, and lets users explore the shots in a story. By adapting the keyframe collages based on query relevance and indicating which portions of the video have already been explored, we enable users to quickly find relevant sections. We tested our system as part of the NIST TRECVID interactive search evaluation, and found that our user interface enabled users to find more relevant results within the allotted time than those of many systems employing more sophisticated analysis techniques.
Using hybrid alignment for iterative sequence database searches: Research Articles
Authors: Yuheng Li, Mario Lauria, Ralf Bundschuh
Venue: Concurrency and Computation: Practice Experience (2004)

Progressive sequence model refinement by means of iterative searches is an effective technique for high sensitivity database searches and is currently employed in popular tools such as PSI-BLAST and SAM. Recently, a novel alignment algorithm has been proposed that offers features expected to improve the sensitivity of such iterative approaches, specifically a well-characterized theory of its statistics even in the presence of position-specific gap costs. Here, we demonstrate that the new hybrid alignment algorithm is ready to be used as the alignment core of PSI-BLAST. In addition, we evaluate the accuracy of two proposed approaches to edge effect correction in short sequence alignment statistics that turns out to be one of the crucial issues in developing a hybrid-alignment based version of PSI-BLAST. Copyright &copy; 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.