pwc-archive/papers-with-abstracts huggingface dataset:
Source Separation & Automatic Transcription for Music
Authors: Bradford Derby, Lucas Dunker, Samarth Galchar, Shashank Jarmale, Akash Setti
Date: 2024-12-09 00:00:00
Tasks: Music Transcription, Speech Enhancement

Source separation is the process of isolating individual sounds in an auditory mixture of multiple sounds [1], and has a variety of applications ranging from speech enhancement and lyric transcription [2] to digital audio production for music. Furthermore, Automatic Music Transcription (AMT) is the process of converting raw music audio into sheet music that musicians can read [3]. Historically, these tasks have faced challenges such as significant audio noise, long training times, and lack of free-use data due to copyright restrictions. However, recent developments in deep learning have brought new promising approaches to building low-distortion stems and generating sheet music from audio signals [4]. Using spectrogram masking, deep neural networks, and the MuseScore API, we attempt to create an end-to-end pipeline that allows for an initial music audio mixture (e.g...wav file) to be separated into instrument stems, converted into MIDI files, and transcribed into sheet music for each component instrument.
Digital Transformation in the Water Distribution System based on the Digital Twins Concept
Authors: MohammadHossein Homaei, Agustín Javier Di Bartolo, Mar Ávila, Óscar Mogollón-Gutiérrez, Andrés Caro
Date: 2024-12-09 00:00:00
Tasks: Decision Making, Scheduling

Digital Twins have emerged as a disruptive technology with great potential; they can enhance WDS by offering real-time monitoring, predictive maintenance, and optimization capabilities. This paper describes the development of a state-of-the-art DT platform for WDS, introducing advanced technologies such as the Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence, and Machine Learning models. This paper provides insight into the architecture of the proposed platform-CAUCCES-that, informed by both historical and meteorological data, effectively deploys AI/ML models like LSTM networks, Prophet, LightGBM, and XGBoost in trying to predict water consumption patterns. Furthermore, we delve into how optimization in the maintenance of WDS can be achieved by formulating a Constraint Programming problem for scheduling, hence minimizing the operational cost efficiently with reduced environmental impacts. It also focuses on cybersecurity and protection to ensure the integrity and reliability of the DT platform. In this view, the system will contribute to improvements in decision-making capabilities, operational efficiency, and system reliability, with reassurance being drawn from the important role it can play toward sustainable management of water resources.
OmniEvalKit: A Modular, Lightweight Toolbox for Evaluating Large Language Model and its Omni-Extensions
Authors: Yi-Kai Zhang, Xu-Xiang Zhong, Shiyin Lu, Qing-Guo Chen, De-Chuan Zhan, Han-Jia Ye
Date: 2024-12-09 00:00:00
Tasks: Benchmarking, Language Modeling, Language Modelling, Large Language Model

The rapid advancements in Large Language Models (LLMs) have significantly expanded their applications, ranging from multilingual support to domain-specific tasks and multimodal integration. In this paper, we present OmniEvalKit, a novel benchmarking toolbox designed to evaluate LLMs and their omni-extensions across multilingual, multidomain, and multimodal capabilities. Unlike existing benchmarks that often focus on a single aspect, OmniEvalKit provides a modular, lightweight, and automated evaluation system. It is structured with a modular architecture comprising a Static Builder and Dynamic Data Flow, promoting the seamless integration of new models and datasets. OmniEvalKit supports over 100 LLMs and 50 evaluation datasets, covering comprehensive evaluations across thousands of model-dataset combinations. OmniEvalKit is dedicated to creating an ultra-lightweight and fast-deployable evaluation framework, making downstream applications more convenient and versatile for the AI community.
Policy Agnostic RL: Offline RL and Online RL Fine-Tuning of Any Class and Backbone
Authors: Max Sobol Mark, Tian Gao, Georgia Gabriela Sampaio, Mohan Kumar Srirama, Archit Sharma, Chelsea Finn, Aviral Kumar
Date: 2024-12-09 00:00:00
Tasks: global-optimization, Imitation Learning, Offline RL, Reinforcement Learning (RL), Re-Ranking

Recent advances in learning decision-making policies can largely be attributed to training expressive policy models, largely via imitation learning. While imitation learning discards non-expert data, reinforcement learning (RL) can still learn from suboptimal data. However, instantiating RL training of a new policy class often presents a different challenge: most deep RL machinery is co-developed with assumptions on the policy class and backbone, resulting in poor performance when the policy class changes. For instance, SAC utilizes a low-variance reparameterization policy gradient for Gaussian policies, but this is unstable for diffusion policies and intractable for autoregressive categorical policies. To address this issue, we develop an offline RL and online fine-tuning approach called policy-agnostic RL (PA-RL) that can effectively train multiple policy classes, with varying architectures and sizes. We build off the basic idea that a universal supervised learning loss can replace the policy improvement step in RL, as long as it is applied on "optimized" actions. To obtain these optimized actions, we first sample multiple actions from a base policy, and run global optimization (i.e., re-ranking multiple action samples using the Q-function) and local optimization (i.e., running gradient steps on an action sample) to maximize the critic on these candidates. PA-RL enables fine-tuning diffusion and transformer policies with either autoregressive tokens or continuous action outputs, at different sizes, entirely via actor-critic RL. Moreover, PA-RL improves the performance and sample-efficiency by up to 2 times compared to existing offline RL and online fine-tuning methods. We show the first result that successfully fine-tunes OpenVLA, a 7B generalist robot policy, autonomously with Cal-QL, an online RL fine-tuning algorithm, improving from 40% to 70% in the real world in 40 minutes.
Toward LLM-Agent-Based Modeling of Transportation Systems: A Conceptual Framework
Authors: Tianming Liu, Jirong Yang, Yafeng Yin
Date: 2024-12-09 00:00:00
Tasks: Decision Making

In transportation system demand modeling and simulation, agent-based models and microsimulations are current state-of-the-art approaches. However, existing agent-based models still have some limitations on behavioral realism and resource demand that limit their applicability. In this study, leveraging the emerging technology of large language models (LLMs) and LLM-based agents, we propose a general LLM-agent-based modeling framework for transportation systems. We argue that LLM agents not only possess the essential capabilities to function as agents but also offer promising solutions to overcome some limitations of existing agent-based models. Our conceptual framework design closely replicates the decision-making and interaction processes and traits of human travelers within transportation networks, and we demonstrate that the proposed systems can meet critical behavioral criteria for decision-making and learning behaviors using related studies and a demonstrative example of LLM agents' learning and adjustment in the bottleneck setting. Although further refinement of the LLM-agent-based modeling framework is necessary, we believe that this approach has the potential to improve transportation system modeling and simulation.
Semantic Search and Recommendation Algorithm
Authors: Aryan Duhan, Aryan Singhal, Shourya Sharma, Neeraj, Arti MK
Date: 2024-12-09 00:00:00
Tasks: Information Retrieval, Retrieval

This paper introduces a new semantic search algorithm that uses Word2Vec and Annoy Index to improve the efficiency of information retrieval from large datasets. The proposed approach addresses the limitations of traditional search methods by offering enhanced speed, accuracy, and scalability. Testing on datasets up to 100GB demonstrates the method's effectiveness in processing vast amounts of data while maintaining high precision and performance.
Detecting Facial Image Manipulations with Multi-Layer CNN Models
Authors: Alejandro Marco Montejano, Angela Sanchez Perez, Javier Barrachina, David Ortiz-Perez, Manuel Benavent-Lledo, Jose Garcia-Rodriguez
Date: 2024-12-09 00:00:00
Tasks: Image Manipulation

The rapid evolution of digital image manipulation techniques poses significant challenges for content verification, with models such as stable diffusion and mid-journey producing highly realistic, yet synthetic, images that can deceive human perception. This research develops and evaluates convolutional neural networks (CNNs) specifically tailored for the detection of these manipulated images. The study implements a comparative analysis of three progressively complex CNN architectures, assessing their ability to classify and localize manipulations across various facial image modifications. Regularization and optimization techniques were systematically incorporated to improve feature extraction and performance. The results indicate that the proposed models achieve an accuracy of up to 76\% in distinguishing manipulated images from genuine ones, surpassing traditional approaches. This research not only highlights the potential of CNNs in enhancing the robustness of digital media verification tools, but also provides insights into effective architectural adaptations and training strategies for low-computation environments. Future work will build on these findings by extending the architectures to handle more diverse manipulation techniques and integrating multi-modal data for improved detection capabilities.
Beyond Scalars: Concept-Based Alignment Analysis in Vision Transformers
Authors: Johanna Vielhaben, Dilyara Bareeva, Jim Berend, Wojciech Samek, Nils Strodthoff
Date: 2024-12-09 00:00:00

Vision transformers (ViTs) can be trained using various learning paradigms, from fully supervised to self-supervised. Diverse training protocols often result in significantly different feature spaces, which are usually compared through alignment analysis. However, current alignment measures quantify this relationship in terms of a single scalar value, obscuring the distinctions between common and unique features in pairs of representations that share the same scalar alignment. We address this limitation by combining alignment analysis with concept discovery, which enables a breakdown of alignment into single concepts encoded in feature space. This fine-grained comparison reveals both universal and unique concepts across different representations, as well as the internal structure of concepts within each of them. Our methodological contributions address two key prerequisites for concept-based alignment: 1) For a description of the representation in terms of concepts that faithfully capture the geometry of the feature space, we define concepts as the most general structure they can possibly form - arbitrary manifolds, allowing hidden features to be described by their proximity to these manifolds. 2) To measure distances between concept proximity scores of two representations, we use a generalized Rand index and partition it for alignment between pairs of concepts. We confirm the superiority of our novel concept definition for alignment analysis over existing linear baselines in a sanity check. The concept-based alignment analysis of representations from four different ViTs reveals that increased supervision correlates with a reduction in the semantic structure of learned representations.
Fundus Image-based Visual Acuity Assessment with PAC-Guarantees
Authors: Sooyong Jang, Kuk Jin Jang, Hyonyoung Choi, Yong-Seop Han, Seongjin Lee, Jin-hyun Kim, Insup Lee
Date: 2024-12-09 00:00:00
Tasks: Conformal Prediction, Prediction, Prediction Intervals

Timely detection and treatment are essential for maintaining eye health. Visual acuity (VA), which measures the clarity of vision at a distance, is a crucial metric for managing eye health. Machine learning (ML) techniques have been introduced to assist in VA measurement, potentially alleviating clinicians' workloads. However, the inherent uncertainties in ML models make relying solely on them for VA prediction less than ideal. The VA prediction task involves multiple sources of uncertainty, requiring more robust approaches. A promising method is to build prediction sets or intervals rather than point estimates, offering coverage guarantees through techniques like conformal prediction and Probably Approximately Correct (PAC) prediction sets. Despite the potential, to date, these approaches have not been applied to the VA prediction task.To address this, we propose a method for deriving prediction intervals for estimating visual acuity from fundus images with a PAC guarantee. Our experimental results demonstrate that the PAC guarantees are upheld, with performance comparable to or better than that of two prior works that do not provide such guarantees.
Towards Controllable Speech Synthesis in the Era of Large Language Models: A Survey
Authors: Tianxin Xie, Yan Rong, Pengfei Zhang, Wenwu Wang, Li Liu
Date: 2024-12-09 00:00:00
Tasks: Speech Synthesis, Survey, text-to-speech, Text to Speech

Text-to-speech (TTS), also known as speech synthesis, is a prominent research area that aims to generate natural-sounding human speech from text. Recently, with the increasing industrial demand, TTS technologies have evolved beyond synthesizing human-like speech to enabling controllable speech generation. This includes fine-grained control over various attributes of synthesized speech such as emotion, prosody, timbre, and duration. In addition, advancements in deep learning, such as diffusion and large language models, have significantly enhanced controllable TTS over the past several years. In this work, we conduct a comprehensive survey of controllable TTS, covering approaches ranging from basic control techniques to methods utilizing natural language prompts, aiming to provide a clear understanding of the current state of research. We examine the general controllable TTS pipeline, challenges, model architectures, and control strategies, offering a comprehensive and clear taxonomy of existing methods. Additionally, we provide a detailed summary of datasets and evaluation metrics and shed some light on the applications and future directions of controllable TTS. To the best of our knowledge, this survey paper provides the first comprehensive review of emerging controllable TTS methods, which can serve as a beneficial resource for both academic researchers and industrial practitioners.
Advancing Music Therapy: Integrating Eastern Five-Element Music Theory and Western Techniques with AI in the Novel Five-Element Harmony System
Authors: Yubo Zhou, Weizhen Bian, Kaitai Zhang, Xiaohan Gu
Date: 2024-12-09 00:00:00

In traditional medical practices, music therapy has proven effective in treating various psychological and physiological ailments. Particularly in Eastern traditions, the Five Elements Music Therapy (FEMT), rooted in traditional Chinese medicine, possesses profound cultural significance and unique therapeutic philosophies. With the rapid advancement of Information Technology and Artificial Intelligence, applying these modern technologies to FEMT could enhance the personalization and cultural relevance of the therapy and potentially improve therapeutic outcomes. In this article, we developed a music therapy system for the first time by applying the theory of the five elements in music therapy to practice. This innovative approach integrates advanced Information Technology and Artificial Intelligence with Five-Element Music Therapy (FEMT) to enhance personalized music therapy practices. As traditional music therapy predominantly follows Western methodologies, the unique aspects of Eastern practices, specifically the Five-Element theory from traditional Chinese medicine, should be considered. This system aims to bridge this gap by utilizing computational technologies to provide a more personalized, culturally relevant, and therapeutically effective music therapy experience.
EmoSpeech: A Corpus of Emotionally Rich and Contextually Detailed Speech Annotations
Authors: Weizhen Bian, Yubo Zhou, Kaitai Zhang, Xiaohan Gu
Date: 2024-12-09 00:00:00
Tasks: text-to-speech, Text to Speech

Advances in text-to-speech (TTS) technology have significantly improved the quality of generated speech, closely matching the timbre and intonation of the target speaker. However, due to the inherent complexity of human emotional expression, the development of TTS systems capable of controlling subtle emotional differences remains a formidable challenge. Existing emotional speech databases often suffer from overly simplistic labelling schemes that fail to capture a wide range of emotional states, thus limiting the effectiveness of emotion synthesis in TTS applications. To this end, recent efforts have focussed on building databases that use natural language annotations to describe speech emotions. However, these approaches are costly and require more emotional depth to train robust systems. In this paper, we propose a novel process aimed at building databases by systematically extracting emotion-rich speech segments and annotating them with detailed natural language descriptions through a generative model. This approach enhances the emotional granularity of the database and significantly reduces the reliance on costly manual annotations by automatically augmenting the data with high-level language models. The resulting rich database provides a scalable and economically viable solution for developing a more nuanced and dynamic basis for developing emotionally controlled TTS systems.
ProcessBench: Identifying Process Errors in Mathematical Reasoning
Authors: Chujie Zheng, Zhenru Zhang, Beichen Zhang, Runji Lin, Keming Lu, Bowen Yu, Dayiheng Liu, Jingren Zhou, Junyang Lin
Date: 2024-12-09 00:00:00
Tasks: GSM8K, Math, Mathematical Reasoning

As language models regularly make mistakes when solving math problems, automated identification of errors in the reasoning process becomes increasingly significant for their scalable oversight. In this paper, we introduce ProcessBench for measuring the ability to identify erroneous steps in mathematical reasoning. It consists of 3,400 test cases, primarily focused on competition- and Olympiad-level math problems. Each test case contains a step-by-step solution with error location annotated by human experts. Models are required to identify the earliest step that contains an error, or conclude that all steps are correct. We conduct extensive evaluation on ProcessBench, involving two types of models: process reward models (PRMs) and critic models, where for the latter we prompt general language models to critique each solution step by step. We draw two main observations: (1) Existing PRMs typically fail to generalize to more challenging math problems beyond GSM8K and MATH. They underperform both critic models (i.e., prompted general language models) and our own trained PRM that is straightforwardly fine-tuned on the PRM800K dataset. (2) The best open-source model, QwQ-32B-Preview, has demonstrated the critique capability competitive with the proprietary model GPT-4o, despite that it still lags behind the reasoning-specialized o1-mini. We hope ProcessBench can foster future research in reasoning process assessment, paving the way toward scalable oversight of language models.
Sloth: scaling laws for LLM skills to predict multi-benchmark performance across families
Authors: Felipe Maia Polo, Seamus Somerstep, Leshem Choshen, Yuekai Sun, Mikhail Yurochkin
Date: 2024-12-09 00:00:00
Tasks: Emotional Intelligence, Instruction Following

Scaling laws for large language models (LLMs) predict model performance based on parameters like size and training data. However, differences in training configurations and data processing across model families lead to significant variations in benchmark performance, making it difficult for a single scaling law to generalize across all LLMs. On the other hand, training family-specific scaling laws requires training models of varying sizes for every family. In this work, we propose Skills Scaling Laws (SSLaws, pronounced as Sloth), a novel scaling law that leverages publicly available benchmark data and assumes LLM performance is driven by low-dimensional latent skills, such as reasoning and instruction following. These latent skills are influenced by computational resources like model size and training tokens but with varying efficiencies across model families. Sloth exploits correlations across benchmarks to provide more accurate and interpretable predictions while alleviating the need to train multiple LLMs per family. We present both theoretical results on parameter identification and empirical evaluations on 12 prominent benchmarks, from Open LLM Leaderboard v1/v2, demonstrating that Sloth predicts LLM performance efficiently and offers insights into scaling behaviors for downstream tasks such as coding and emotional intelligence applications.
Unraveling the Complexity of Memory in RL Agents: an Approach for Classification and Evaluation
Authors: Egor Cherepanov, Nikita Kachaev, Artem Zholus, Alexey K. Kovalev, Aleksandr I. Panov
Date: 2024-12-09 00:00:00
Tasks: Reinforcement Learning (RL)

The incorporation of memory into agents is essential for numerous tasks within the domain of Reinforcement Learning (RL). In particular, memory is paramount for tasks that require the utilization of past information, adaptation to novel environments, and improved sample efficiency. However, the term ``memory'' encompasses a wide range of concepts, which, coupled with the lack of a unified methodology for validating an agent's memory, leads to erroneous judgments about agents' memory capabilities and prevents objective comparison with other memory-enhanced agents. This paper aims to streamline the concept of memory in RL by providing practical precise definitions of agent memory types, such as long-term versus short-term memory and declarative versus procedural memory, inspired by cognitive science. Using these definitions, we categorize different classes of agent memory, propose a robust experimental methodology for evaluating the memory capabilities of RL agents, and standardize evaluations. Furthermore, we empirically demonstrate the importance of adhering to the proposed methodology when evaluating different types of agent memory by conducting experiments with different RL agents and what its violation leads to.