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Sample records for greedy randomized adaptive

  1. Optimization by GRASP greedy randomized adaptive search procedures

    CERN Document Server

    Resende, Mauricio G C

    2016-01-01

    This is the first book to cover GRASP (Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedures), a metaheuristic that has enjoyed wide success in practice with a broad range of applications to real-world combinatorial optimization problems. The state-of-the-art coverage and carefully crafted pedagogical style lends this book highly accessible as an introductory text not only to GRASP, but also to combinatorial optimization, greedy algorithms, local search, and path-relinking, as well as to heuristics and metaheuristics, in general. The focus is on algorithmic and computational aspects of applied optimization with GRASP with emphasis given to the end-user, providing sufficient information on the broad spectrum of advances in applied optimization with GRASP. For the more advanced reader, chapters on hybridization with path-relinking and parallel and continuous GRASP present these topics in a clear and concise fashion. Additionally, the book offers a very complete annotated bibliography of GRASP and combinatorial optimizat...

  2. Biclustering of gene expression data using reactive greedy randomized adaptive search procedure.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dharan, Smitha; Nair, Achuthsankar S

    2009-01-30

    Biclustering algorithms belong to a distinct class of clustering algorithms that perform simultaneous clustering of both rows and columns of the gene expression matrix and can be a very useful analysis tool when some genes have multiple functions and experimental conditions are diverse. Cheng and Church have introduced a measure called mean squared residue score to evaluate the quality of a bicluster and has become one of the most popular measures to search for biclusters. In this paper, we review basic concepts of the metaheuristics Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure (GRASP)-construction and local search phases and propose a new method which is a variant of GRASP called Reactive Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure (Reactive GRASP) to detect significant biclusters from large microarray datasets. The method has two major steps. First, high quality bicluster seeds are generated by means of k-means clustering. In the second step, these seeds are grown using the Reactive GRASP, in which the basic parameter that defines the restrictiveness of the candidate list is self-adjusted, depending on the quality of the solutions found previously. We performed statistical and biological validations of the biclusters obtained and evaluated the method against the results of basic GRASP and as well as with the classic work of Cheng and Church. The experimental results indicate that the Reactive GRASP approach outperforms the basic GRASP algorithm and Cheng and Church approach. The Reactive GRASP approach for the detection of significant biclusters is robust and does not require calibration efforts.

  3. A Statistical Model for Uplink Intercell Interference with Power Adaptation and Greedy Scheduling

    KAUST Repository

    Tabassum, Hina

    2012-10-03

    This paper deals with the statistical modeling of uplink inter-cell interference (ICI) considering greedy scheduling with power adaptation based on channel conditions. The derived model is implicitly generalized for any kind of shadowing and fading environments. More precisely, we develop a generic model for the distribution of ICI based on the locations of the allocated users and their transmit powers. The derived model is utilized to evaluate important network performance metrics such as ergodic capacity, average fairness and average power preservation numerically. Monte-Carlo simulation details are included to support the analysis and show the accuracy of the derived expressions. In parallel to the literature, we show that greedy scheduling with power adaptation reduces the ICI, average power consumption of users, and enhances the average fairness among users, compared to the case without power adaptation. © 2012 IEEE.

  4. A Statistical Model for Uplink Intercell Interference with Power Adaptation and Greedy Scheduling

    KAUST Repository

    Tabassum, Hina; Yilmaz, Ferkan; Dawy, Zaher; Alouini, Mohamed-Slim

    2012-01-01

    This paper deals with the statistical modeling of uplink inter-cell interference (ICI) considering greedy scheduling with power adaptation based on channel conditions. The derived model is implicitly generalized for any kind of shadowing and fading environments. More precisely, we develop a generic model for the distribution of ICI based on the locations of the allocated users and their transmit powers. The derived model is utilized to evaluate important network performance metrics such as ergodic capacity, average fairness and average power preservation numerically. Monte-Carlo simulation details are included to support the analysis and show the accuracy of the derived expressions. In parallel to the literature, we show that greedy scheduling with power adaptation reduces the ICI, average power consumption of users, and enhances the average fairness among users, compared to the case without power adaptation. © 2012 IEEE.

  5. Greedy Gossip With Eavesdropping

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ustebay, Deniz; Oreshkin, Boris N.; Coates, Mark J.; Rabbat, Michael G.

    2010-07-01

    This paper presents greedy gossip with eavesdropping (GGE), a novel randomized gossip algorithm for distributed computation of the average consensus problem. In gossip algorithms, nodes in the network randomly communicate with their neighbors and exchange information iteratively. The algorithms are simple and decentralized, making them attractive for wireless network applications. In general, gossip algorithms are robust to unreliable wireless conditions and time varying network topologies. In this paper we introduce GGE and demonstrate that greedy updates lead to rapid convergence. We do not require nodes to have any location information. Instead, greedy updates are made possible by exploiting the broadcast nature of wireless communications. During the operation of GGE, when a node decides to gossip, instead of choosing one of its neighbors at random, it makes a greedy selection, choosing the node which has the value most different from its own. In order to make this selection, nodes need to know their neighbors' values. Therefore, we assume that all transmissions are wireless broadcasts and nodes keep track of their neighbors' values by eavesdropping on their communications. We show that the convergence of GGE is guaranteed for connected network topologies. We also study the rates of convergence and illustrate, through theoretical bounds and numerical simulations, that GGE consistently outperforms randomized gossip and performs comparably to geographic gossip on moderate-sized random geometric graph topologies.

  6. Analysis of Greedy Decision Making for Geographic Routing for Networks of Randomly Moving Objects

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Amber Israr

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available Autonomous and self-organizing wireless ad-hoc communication networks for moving objects consist of nodes, which use no centralized network infrastructure. Examples of moving object networks are networks of flying objects, networks of vehicles, networks of moving people or robots. Moving object networks have to face many critical challenges in terms of routing because of dynamic topological changes and asymmetric networks links. A suitable and effective routing mechanism helps to extend the deployment of moving nodes. In this paper an attempt has been made to analyze the performance of the Greedy Decision method (position aware distance based algorithm for geographic routing for network nodes moving according to the random waypoint mobility model. The widely used GPSR (Greedy Packet Stateless Routing protocol utilizes geographic distance and position based data of nodes to transmit packets towards destination nodes. In this paper different scenarios have been tested to develop a concrete set of recommendations for optimum deployment of distance based Greedy Decision of Geographic Routing in randomly moving objects network

  7. Greedy Local Search and Vertex Cover in Sparse Random Graphs

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Witt, Carsten

    2009-01-01

    . This work starts with a rigorous explanation for this claim based on the refined analysis of the Karp-Sipser algorithm by Aronson et al. Subsequently, theoretical supplements are given to experimental studies of search heuristics on random graphs. For c 1, a greedy and randomized local-search heuristic...... finds an optimal cover in polynomial time with a probability arbitrarily close to 1. This behavior relies on the absence of a giant component. As an additional insight into the randomized search, it is shown that the heuristic fails badly also on graphs consisting of a single tree component of maximum......Recently, various randomized search heuristics have been studied for the solution of the minimum vertex cover problem, in particular for sparse random instances according to the G(n, c/n) model, where c > 0 is a constant. Methods from statistical physics suggest that the problem is easy if c

  8. Greedy Algorithms for Nonnegativity-Constrained Simultaneous Sparse Recovery

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Daeun; Haldar, Justin P.

    2016-01-01

    This work proposes a family of greedy algorithms to jointly reconstruct a set of vectors that are (i) nonnegative and (ii) simultaneously sparse with a shared support set. The proposed algorithms generalize previous approaches that were designed to impose these constraints individually. Similar to previous greedy algorithms for sparse recovery, the proposed algorithms iteratively identify promising support indices. In contrast to previous approaches, the support index selection procedure has been adapted to prioritize indices that are consistent with both the nonnegativity and shared support constraints. Empirical results demonstrate for the first time that the combined use of simultaneous sparsity and nonnegativity constraints can substantially improve recovery performance relative to existing greedy algorithms that impose less signal structure. PMID:26973368

  9. Greedy Oriented Flows

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Faigle, Ulrich; Kern, Walter; Peis, Britta

    We investigate the following greedy approach to attack linear programs of type (Formula presented.) where A has entries in (Formula presented.): The greedy algorithm starts with a feasible solution x and, iteratively, chooses an improving variable and raises it until some constraint becomes tight.

  10. Two-pass greedy regular expression parsing

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Grathwohl, Niels Bjørn Bugge; Henglein, Fritz; Nielsen, Lasse

    2013-01-01

    We present new algorithms for producing greedy parses for regular expressions (REs) in a semi-streaming fashion. Our lean-log algorithm executes in time O(mn) for REs of size m and input strings of size n and outputs a compact bit-coded parse tree representation. It improves on previous algorithms...... by: operating in only 2 passes; using only O(m) words of random-access memory (independent of n); requiring only kn bits of sequentially written and read log storage, where k ... and not requiring it to be stored at all. Previous RE parsing algorithms do not scale linearly with input size, or require substantially more log storage and employ 3 passes where the first consists of reversing the input, or do not or are not known to produce a greedy parse. The performance of our unoptimized C...

  11. Synthesis of Greedy Algorithms Using Dominance Relations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nedunuri, Srinivas; Smith, Douglas R.; Cook, William R.

    2010-01-01

    Greedy algorithms exploit problem structure and constraints to achieve linear-time performance. Yet there is still no completely satisfactory way of constructing greedy algorithms. For example, the Greedy Algorithm of Edmonds depends upon translating a problem into an algebraic structure called a matroid, but the existence of such a translation can be as hard to determine as the existence of a greedy algorithm itself. An alternative characterization of greedy algorithms is in terms of dominance relations, a well-known algorithmic technique used to prune search spaces. We demonstrate a process by which dominance relations can be methodically derived for a number of greedy algorithms, including activity selection, and prefix-free codes. By incorporating our approach into an existing framework for algorithm synthesis, we demonstrate that it could be the basis for an effective engineering method for greedy algorithms. We also compare our approach with other characterizations of greedy algorithms.

  12. Analysis of some greedy algorithms for the single-sink fixed-charge transportation problem

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Görtz, Simon; Klose, Andreas

    2009-01-01

    -charge transportation problem. Nevertheless, just a few methods for solving this problem have been proposed in the literature. In this paper, some greedy heuristic solutions methods for the SSFCTP are investigated. It is shown that two greedy approaches for the SSFCTP known from the literature can be arbitrarily bad......, whereas an approximation algorithm proposed in the literature for the binary min-knapsack problem has a guaranteed worst case bound if adapted accordingly to the case of the SSFCTP....

  13. Improving performances of suboptimal greedy iterative biclustering heuristics via localization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Erten, Cesim; Sözdinler, Melih

    2010-10-15

    Biclustering gene expression data is the problem of extracting submatrices of genes and conditions exhibiting significant correlation across both the rows and the columns of a data matrix of expression values. Even the simplest versions of the problem are computationally hard. Most of the proposed solutions therefore employ greedy iterative heuristics that locally optimize a suitably assigned scoring function. We provide a fast and simple pre-processing algorithm called localization that reorders the rows and columns of the input data matrix in such a way as to group correlated entries in small local neighborhoods within the matrix. The proposed localization algorithm takes its roots from effective use of graph-theoretical methods applied to problems exhibiting a similar structure to that of biclustering. In order to evaluate the effectivenesss of the localization pre-processing algorithm, we focus on three representative greedy iterative heuristic methods. We show how the localization pre-processing can be incorporated into each representative algorithm to improve biclustering performance. Furthermore, we propose a simple biclustering algorithm, Random Extraction After Localization (REAL) that randomly extracts submatrices from the localization pre-processed data matrix, eliminates those with low similarity scores, and provides the rest as correlated structures representing biclusters. We compare the proposed localization pre-processing with another pre-processing alternative, non-negative matrix factorization. We show that our fast and simple localization procedure provides similar or even better results than the computationally heavy matrix factorization pre-processing with regards to H-value tests. We next demonstrate that the performances of the three representative greedy iterative heuristic methods improve with localization pre-processing when biological correlations in the form of functional enrichment and PPI verification constitute the main performance

  14. Quasi-greedy systems of integer translates

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, Morten; Sikic, Hrvoje

    We consider quasi-greedy systems of integer translates in a finitely generated shift invariant subspace of L2(Rd), that is systems for which the thresholding approximation procedure is well behaved. We prove that every quasi-greedy system of integer translates is also a Riesz basis for its closed...

  15. Quasi-greedy systems of integer translates

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, Morten; Sikic, Hrvoje

    2008-01-01

    We consider quasi-greedy systems of integer translates in a finitely generated shift-invariant subspace of L2(Rd), that is systems for which the thresholding approximation procedure is well behaved. We prove that every quasi-greedy system of integer translates is also a Riesz basis for its closed...

  16. From greedy to lazy expansions and their driving dynamics

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Dajani, K.; Kraaikamp, C.

    2001-01-01

    In this paper we study the ergodic properties of non-greedy series expansions to non-integer bases β > 1. It is shown that the so-called 'lazy' expansion is isomorphic to the 'greedy' expansion. Furthermore, a class of expansions to base β > 1, β =2 Z, 'in between' the lazy and the greedy

  17. Adaptive Greedy Dictionary Selection for Web Media Summarization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cong, Yang; Liu, Ji; Sun, Gan; You, Quanzeng; Li, Yuncheng; Luo, Jiebo

    2017-01-01

    Initializing an effective dictionary is an indispensable step for sparse representation. In this paper, we focus on the dictionary selection problem with the objective to select a compact subset of basis from original training data instead of learning a new dictionary matrix as dictionary learning models do. We first design a new dictionary selection model via l 2,0 norm. For model optimization, we propose two methods: one is the standard forward-backward greedy algorithm, which is not suitable for large-scale problems; the other is based on the gradient cues at each forward iteration and speeds up the process dramatically. In comparison with the state-of-the-art dictionary selection models, our model is not only more effective and efficient, but also can control the sparsity. To evaluate the performance of our new model, we select two practical web media summarization problems: 1) we build a new data set consisting of around 500 users, 3000 albums, and 1 million images, and achieve effective assisted albuming based on our model and 2) by formulating the video summarization problem as a dictionary selection issue, we employ our model to extract keyframes from a video sequence in a more flexible way. Generally, our model outperforms the state-of-the-art methods in both these two tasks.

  18. Greedy Algorithms for Reduced Bases in Banach Spaces

    KAUST Repository

    DeVore, Ronald

    2013-02-26

    Given a Banach space X and one of its compact sets F, we consider the problem of finding a good n-dimensional space X n⊂X which can be used to approximate the elements of F. The best possible error we can achieve for such an approximation is given by the Kolmogorov width dn(F)X. However, finding the space which gives this performance is typically numerically intractable. Recently, a new greedy strategy for obtaining good spaces was given in the context of the reduced basis method for solving a parametric family of PDEs. The performance of this greedy algorithm was initially analyzed in Buffa et al. (Modél. Math. Anal. Numér. 46:595-603, 2012) in the case X=H is a Hilbert space. The results of Buffa et al. (Modél. Math. Anal. Numér. 46:595-603, 2012) were significantly improved upon in Binev et al. (SIAM J. Math. Anal. 43:1457-1472, 2011). The purpose of the present paper is to give a new analysis of the performance of such greedy algorithms. Our analysis not only gives improved results for the Hilbert space case but can also be applied to the same greedy procedure in general Banach spaces. © 2013 Springer Science+Business Media New York.

  19. Formal Modeling of Greedy Nodes in 802.15.4 WSN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Youcef Hammal

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available This paper deals with formal specification of the non-slotted CSMA/CA protocol in wireless sensor networks(WSN whose some nodes own a greedy behavior. This protocol requires sensor nodes to wait some time before initiating a transmission, whereas greedy nodes may try to reduce their waiting duration, which may penalize other nodes. To analyze their impact on WSN mode in operation, we use timed automata of the model-checker UPPAAL to capture the abstract behavior of communication medium, sane, and greedy nodes in WSN. This enables the use of analysis tools to check whether these models satisfy intended properties.

  20. Greedy heuristics for minimization of number of terminal nodes in decision trees

    KAUST Repository

    Hussain, Shahid

    2014-10-01

    This paper describes, in detail, several greedy heuristics for construction of decision trees. We study the number of terminal nodes of decision trees, which is closely related with the cardinality of the set of rules corresponding to the tree. We compare these heuristics empirically for two different types of datasets (datasets acquired from UCI ML Repository and randomly generated data) as well as compare with the optimal results obtained using dynamic programming method.

  1. Greedy heuristics for minimization of number of terminal nodes in decision trees

    KAUST Repository

    Hussain, Shahid

    2014-01-01

    This paper describes, in detail, several greedy heuristics for construction of decision trees. We study the number of terminal nodes of decision trees, which is closely related with the cardinality of the set of rules corresponding to the tree. We compare these heuristics empirically for two different types of datasets (datasets acquired from UCI ML Repository and randomly generated data) as well as compare with the optimal results obtained using dynamic programming method.

  2. Greedy algorithms withweights for construction of partial association rules

    KAUST Repository

    Moshkov, Mikhail; Piliszczu, Marcin; Zielosko, Beata Marta

    2009-01-01

    This paper is devoted to the study of approximate algorithms for minimization of the total weight of attributes occurring in partial association rules. We consider mainly greedy algorithms with weights for construction of rules. The paper contains bounds on precision of these algorithms and bounds on the minimal weight of partial association rules based on an information obtained during the greedy algorithm run.

  3. Greedy algorithms withweights for construction of partial association rules

    KAUST Repository

    Moshkov, Mikhail

    2009-09-10

    This paper is devoted to the study of approximate algorithms for minimization of the total weight of attributes occurring in partial association rules. We consider mainly greedy algorithms with weights for construction of rules. The paper contains bounds on precision of these algorithms and bounds on the minimal weight of partial association rules based on an information obtained during the greedy algorithm run.

  4. Design of ACM system based on non-greedy punctured LDPC codes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lu, Zijun; Jiang, Zihong; Zhou, Lin; He, Yucheng

    2017-08-01

    In this paper, an adaptive coded modulation (ACM) scheme based on rate-compatible LDPC (RC-LDPC) codes was designed. The RC-LDPC codes were constructed by a non-greedy puncturing method which showed good performance in high code rate region. Moreover, the incremental redundancy scheme of LDPC-based ACM system over AWGN channel was proposed. By this scheme, code rates vary from 2/3 to 5/6 and the complication of the ACM system is lowered. Simulations show that more and more obvious coding gain can be obtained by the proposed ACM system with higher throughput.

  5. Deterministic Greedy Routing with Guaranteed Delivery in 3D Wireless Sensor Networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Su Xia

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available With both computational complexity and storage space bounded by a small constant, greedy routing is recognized as an appealing approach to support scalable routing in wireless sensor networks. However, significant challenges have been encountered in extending greedy routing from 2D to 3D space. In this research, we develop decentralized solutions to achieve greedy routing in 3D sensor networks. Our proposed approach is based on a unit tetrahedron cell (UTC mesh structure. We propose a distributed algorithm to realize volumetric harmonic mapping (VHM of the UTC mesh under spherical boundary condition. It is a one-to-one map that yields virtual coordinates for each node in the network without or with one internal hole. Since a boundary has been mapped to a sphere, node-based greedy routing is always successful thereon. At the same time, we exploit the UTC mesh to develop a face-based greedy routing algorithm and prove its success at internal nodes. To deliver a data packet to its destination, face-based and node-based greedy routing algorithms are employed alternately at internal and boundary UTCs, respectively. For networks with multiple internal holes, a segmentation and tunnel-based routing strategy is proposed on top of VHM to support global end-to-end routing. As far as we know, this is the first work that realizes truly deterministic routing with constant-bounded storage and computation in general 3D wireless sensor networks.

  6. Heuristic rules analysis on the fuel cells design using greedy search;Analisis de reglas heuristicas en el diseno de celdas de combustible usando busqueda greedy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ortiz, J. J.; Castillo, J. A.; Montes, J. L.; Hernandez, J. L., E-mail: juanjose.ortiz@inin.gob.m [ININ, Carretera Mexico-Toluca s/n, 52750 Ocoyoacac, Estado de Mexico (Mexico)

    2009-10-15

    This work approaches the study of one of the heuristic rules of fuel cells design for boiling water nuclear reactors. This rule requires that the minor uranium enrichment is placed in the corners of the fuel cell. Also the search greedy is applied for the fuel cells design where explicitly does not take in count this rule, allowing the possibility to place any uranium enrichment with the condition that it does not contain gadolinium. Results are shown in the quality of the obtained cell by search greedy when it considers the rule and when not. The cell quality is measured with the value of the power pick factor obtained, as well as of the neutrons multiplication factor in an infinite medium. Cells were analyzed with 1 and 2 gadolinium concentrations low operation conditions at 120% of the nominal power of the reactors of the nuclear power plant of Laguna Verde. The results show that not to consider the rule in cells with a single gadolinium concentration, it has as repercussion that the greedy search has a minor performance. On the other hand with cells of two gadolinium concentrations, the performance of the greedy search was better. (Author)

  7. Comparison of Greedy Algorithms for Decision Tree Optimization

    KAUST Repository

    Alkhalid, Abdulaziz

    2013-01-01

    This chapter is devoted to the study of 16 types of greedy algorithms for decision tree construction. The dynamic programming approach is used for construction of optimal decision trees. Optimization is performed relative to minimal values of average depth, depth, number of nodes, number of terminal nodes, and number of nonterminal nodes of decision trees. We compare average depth, depth, number of nodes, number of terminal nodes and number of nonterminal nodes of constructed trees with minimum values of the considered parameters obtained based on a dynamic programming approach. We report experiments performed on data sets from UCI ML Repository and randomly generated binary decision tables. As a result, for depth, average depth, and number of nodes we propose a number of good heuristics. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2013.

  8. Heuristic rules analysis on the fuel cells design using greedy search

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ortiz, J. J.; Castillo, J. A.; Montes, J. L.; Hernandez, J. L.

    2009-10-01

    This work approaches the study of one of the heuristic rules of fuel cells design for boiling water nuclear reactors. This rule requires that the minor uranium enrichment is placed in the corners of the fuel cell. Also the search greedy is applied for the fuel cells design where explicitly does not take in count this rule, allowing the possibility to place any uranium enrichment with the condition that it does not contain gadolinium. Results are shown in the quality of the obtained cell by search greedy when it considers the rule and when not. The cell quality is measured with the value of the power pick factor obtained, as well as of the neutrons multiplication factor in an infinite medium. Cells were analyzed with 1 and 2 gadolinium concentrations low operation conditions at 120% of the nominal power of the reactors of the nuclear power plant of Laguna Verde. The results show that not to consider the rule in cells with a single gadolinium concentration, it has as repercussion that the greedy search has a minor performance. On the other hand with cells of two gadolinium concentrations, the performance of the greedy search was better. (Author)

  9. Greedy Deep Dictionary Learning

    OpenAIRE

    Tariyal, Snigdha; Majumdar, Angshul; Singh, Richa; Vatsa, Mayank

    2016-01-01

    In this work we propose a new deep learning tool called deep dictionary learning. Multi-level dictionaries are learnt in a greedy fashion, one layer at a time. This requires solving a simple (shallow) dictionary learning problem, the solution to this is well known. We apply the proposed technique on some benchmark deep learning datasets. We compare our results with other deep learning tools like stacked autoencoder and deep belief network; and state of the art supervised dictionary learning t...

  10. Comparison of greedy algorithms for α-decision tree construction

    KAUST Repository

    Alkhalid, Abdulaziz; Chikalov, Igor; Moshkov, Mikhail

    2011-01-01

    A comparison among different heuristics that are used by greedy algorithms which constructs approximate decision trees (α-decision trees) is presented. The comparison is conducted using decision tables based on 24 data sets from UCI Machine Learning Repository [2]. Complexity of decision trees is estimated relative to several cost functions: depth, average depth, number of nodes, number of nonterminal nodes, and number of terminal nodes. Costs of trees built by greedy algorithms are compared with minimum costs calculated by an algorithm based on dynamic programming. The results of experiments assign to each cost function a set of potentially good heuristics that minimize it. © 2011 Springer-Verlag.

  11. Comparison of Greedy Algorithms for Decision Tree Optimization

    KAUST Repository

    Alkhalid, Abdulaziz; Chikalov, Igor; Moshkov, Mikhail

    2013-01-01

    This chapter is devoted to the study of 16 types of greedy algorithms for decision tree construction. The dynamic programming approach is used for construction of optimal decision trees. Optimization is performed relative to minimal values

  12. Tackling Error Propagation through Reinforcement Learning: A Case of Greedy Dependency Parsing

    OpenAIRE

    Le, Minh; Fokkens, Antske

    2017-01-01

    Error propagation is a common problem in NLP. Reinforcement learning explores erroneous states during training and can therefore be more robust when mistakes are made early in a process. In this paper, we apply reinforcement learning to greedy dependency parsing which is known to suffer from error propagation. Reinforcement learning improves accuracy of both labeled and unlabeled dependencies of the Stanford Neural Dependency Parser, a high performance greedy parser, while maintaining its eff...

  13. Sistem Pencarian Hotel Berdasarkan Rute Perjalanan Terpendek Dengan Mempertimbangkan Daya Tarik Wisata Menggunakan Algoritma Greedy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Audrey Maximillian Herli

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available Hotel search was an important thingfor travelers in their traveling journey. Travelers would consider criteria such as class, price and review of the hotel.Beside those things, distance between Hotel and tourist attractionswasalsoimportant factor to be considered. In this research, system was constructed to perform a hotels search by shortest travelling route using Greedy Algorithm. This research was conducted through four stages, the first stage wasdata and information collectingof tourist attraction and hotel. Second stagewasdata analysis with greedy algorithm in purpose to classify the data and implementing greedy algorithm with manual calculation to the problem research. The third stage was the development of the system, and the last stage wasevaluating the system with the experts who are experienced in the field of tourism and the prospective user of this application. Results from this study was the system can provide recommendations and sequence the shortest journey between the hotel and tourist attraction based on the greedy algorithm.

  14. Contemporary Greedy Institutions: An Essay on Lewis Coser’s Concept in Times of the ‘Hive Mind’

    OpenAIRE

    de Campo, Marianne Egger

    2013-01-01

    Lewis Coser perennially discussed various forms and facets of ‘greedy institutions’ with their total grasp on the individual. Coser’s ‘greedy institutions’ demand undivided time and loyalty from the individual who will voluntarily devote him/herself for exclusive benefits only granted to loyal followers. Although the ancient authorities have vanished—princes with their court Jews, masters with their servants, or religious and political missionaries— one can argue that the idea of the greedy i...

  15. Starvation dynamics of a greedy forager

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bhat, U.; Redner, S.; Bénichou, O.

    2017-07-01

    We investigate the dynamics of a greedy forager that moves by random walking in an environment where each site initially contains one unit of food. Upon encountering a food-containing site, the forager eats all the food there and can subsequently hop an additional S steps without food before starving to death. Upon encountering an empty site, the forager goes hungry and comes one time unit closer to starvation. We investigate the new feature of forager greed; if the forager has a choice between hopping to an empty site or to a food-containing site in its nearest neighborhood, it hops preferentially towards food. If the neighboring sites all contain food or are all empty, the forager hops equiprobably to one of these neighbors. Paradoxically, the lifetime of the forager can depend non-monotonically on greed, and the sense of the non-monotonicity is opposite in one and two dimensions. Even more unexpectedly, the forager lifetime in one dimension is substantially enhanced when the greed is negative; here the forager tends to avoid food in its local neighborhood. We also determine the average amount of food consumed at the instant when the forager starves. We present analytic, heuristic, and numerical results to elucidate these intriguing phenomena.

  16. Treatment planning for prostate brachytherapy using region of interest adjoint functions and a greedy heuristic

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yoo, Sua; Kowalok, Michael E; Thomadsen, Bruce R; Henderson, Douglass L

    2003-01-01

    We have developed an efficient treatment-planning algorithm for prostate implants that is based on region of interest (ROI) adjoint functions and a greedy heuristic. For this work, we define the adjoint function for an ROI as the sensitivity of the average dose in the ROI to a unit-strength brachytherapy source at any seed position. The greedy heuristic uses a ratio of target and critical structure adjoint functions to rank seed positions according to their ability to irradiate the target ROI while sparing critical structure ROIs. This ratio is computed once for each seed position prior to the optimization process. Optimization is performed by a greedy heuristic that selects seed positions according to their ratio values. With this method, clinically acceptable treatment plans are obtained in less than 2 s. For comparison, a branch-and-bound method to solve a mixed integer-programming model took more than 50 min to arrive at a feasible solution. Both methods achieved good treatment plans, but the speedup provided by the greedy heuristic was a factor of approximately 1500. This attribute makes this algorithm suitable for intra-operative real-time treatment planning

  17. A Guiding Evolutionary Algorithm with Greedy Strategy for Global Optimization Problems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Leilei Cao

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available A Guiding Evolutionary Algorithm (GEA with greedy strategy for global optimization problems is proposed. Inspired by Particle Swarm Optimization, the Genetic Algorithm, and the Bat Algorithm, the GEA was designed to retain some advantages of each method while avoiding some disadvantages. In contrast to the usual Genetic Algorithm, each individual in GEA is crossed with the current global best one instead of a randomly selected individual. The current best individual served as a guide to attract offspring to its region of genotype space. Mutation was added to offspring according to a dynamic mutation probability. To increase the capability of exploitation, a local search mechanism was applied to new individuals according to a dynamic probability of local search. Experimental results show that GEA outperformed the other three typical global optimization algorithms with which it was compared.

  18. Greedy Algorithms for Reduced Bases in Banach Spaces

    KAUST Repository

    DeVore, Ronald; Petrova, Guergana; Wojtaszczyk, Przemyslaw

    2013-01-01

    family of PDEs. The performance of this greedy algorithm was initially analyzed in Buffa et al. (Modél. Math. Anal. Numér. 46:595-603, 2012) in the case X=H is a Hilbert space. The results of Buffa et al. (Modél. Math. Anal. Numér. 46:595-603, 2012) were

  19. A new greedy search method for the design of digital IIR filter

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ranjit Kaur

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available A new greedy search method is applied in this paper to design the optimal digital infinite impulse response (IIR filter. The greedy search method is based on binary successive approximation (BSA and evolutionary search (ES. The suggested greedy search method optimizes the magnitude response and the phase response simultaneously and also finds the lowest order of the filter. The order of the filter is controlled by a control gene whose value is also optimized along with the filter coefficients to obtain optimum order of designed IIR filter. The stability constraints of IIR filter are taken care of during the design procedure. To determine the trade-off relationship between conflicting objectives in the non-inferior domain, the weighting method is exploited. The proposed approach is effectively applied to solve the multiobjective optimization problems of designing the digital low-pass (LP, high-pass (HP, bandpass (BP, and bandstop (BS filters. It has been demonstrated that this technique not only fulfills all types of filter performance requirements, but also the lowest order of the filter can be found. The computational experiments show that the proposed approach gives better digital IIR filters than the existing evolutionary algorithm (EA based methods.

  20. An Accelerated Greedy Missing Point Estimation Procedure

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zimmermann, Ralf; Willcox, Karen

    2016-01-01

    , without requiring solution of the modified eigenvalue problem. Based on theoretical insights into symmetric rank-one eigenvalue modifications, we derive a variation of the greedy method that is faster than the standard approach and yields better results for the cases studied. The proposed approach...... is illustrated by numerical experiments, where we observe a speed-up by two orders of magnitude when c Read More: http://epubs.siam.org/doi/abs/10.1137/15M1042899...

  1. Application of a greedy algorithm to military aircraft fleet retirements

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Newcamp, J.M.; Verhagen, W.J.C.; Udluft, H.; Curran, Ricky

    2017-01-01

    This article presents a retirement analysis model for aircraft fleets. By employing a greedy algorithm, the presented solution is capable of identifying individually weak assets in a fleet of aircraft with inhomogeneous historical utilization. The model forecasts future retirement scenarios

  2. Sensitivity analysis of a greedy heuristic for knapsack problems

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ghosh, D; Chakravarti, N; Sierksma, G

    2006-01-01

    In this paper, we carry out parametric analysis as well as a tolerance limit based sensitivity analysis of a greedy heuristic for two knapsack problems-the 0-1 knapsack problem and the subset sum problem. We carry out the parametric analysis based on all problem parameters. In the tolerance limit

  3. Hybrid Feature Selection Approach Based on GRASP for Cancer Microarray Data

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Arpita Nagpal

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Microarray data usually contain a large number of genes, but a small number of samples. Feature subset selection for microarray data aims at reducing the number of genes so that useful information can be extracted from the samples. Reducing the dimension of data sets further helps in improving the computational efficiency of the learning model. In this paper, we propose a modified algorithm based on the tabu search as local search procedures to a Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure (GRASP for high dimensional microarray data sets. The proposed Tabu based Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure algorithm is named as TGRASP. In TGRASP, a new parameter has been introduced named as Tabu Tenure and the existing parameters, NumIter and size have been modified. We observed that different parameter settings affect the quality of the optimum. The second proposed algorithm known as FFGRASP (Firefly Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure uses a firefly optimization algorithm in the local search optimzation phase of the greedy randomized adaptive search procedure (GRASP. Firefly algorithm is one of the powerful algorithms for optimization of multimodal applications. Experimental results show that the proposed TGRASP and FFGRASP algorithms are much better than existing algorithm with respect to three performance parameters viz. accuracy, run time, number of a selected subset of features. We have also compared both the approaches with a unified metric (Extended Adjusted Ratio of Ratios which has shown that TGRASP approach outperforms existing approach for six out of nine cancer microarray datasets and FFGRASP performs better on seven out of nine datasets.

  4. Reducing a congestion with introduce the greedy algorithm on traffic light control

    Science.gov (United States)

    Catur Siswipraptini, Puji; Hendro Martono, Wisnu; Hartanti, Dian

    2018-03-01

    The density of vehicles causes congestion seen at every junction in the city of jakarta due to the static or manual traffic timing lamp system consequently the length of the queue at the junction is uncertain. The research has been aimed at designing a sensor based traffic system based on the queue length detection of the vehicle to optimize the duration of the green light. In detecting the length of the queue of vehicles using infrared sensor assistance placed in each intersection path, then apply Greedy algorithm to help accelerate the movement of green light duration for the path that requires, while to apply the traffic lights regulation program based on greedy algorithm which is then stored on microcontroller with Arduino Mega 2560 type. Where a developed system implements the greedy algorithm with the help of the infrared sensor it will extend the duration of the green light on the long vehicle queue and accelerate the duration of the green light at the intersection that has the queue not too dense. Furthermore, the design is made to form an artificial form of the actual situation of the scale model or simple simulator (next we just called as scale model of simulator) of the intersection then tested. Sensors used are infrared sensors, where the placement of sensors in each intersection on the scale model is placed within 10 cm of each sensor and serves as a queue detector. From the results of the test process on the scale model with a longer queue obtained longer green light time so it will fix the problem of long queue of vehicles. Using greedy algorithms can add long green lights for 2 seconds on tracks that have long queues at least three sensor levels and accelerate time at other intersections that have longer queue sensor levels less than level three.

  5. 'Misclassification error' greedy heuristic to construct decision trees for inconsistent decision tables

    KAUST Repository

    Azad, Mohammad; Moshkov, Mikhail

    2014-01-01

    A greedy algorithm has been presented in this paper to construct decision trees for three different approaches (many-valued decision, most common decision, and generalized decision) in order to handle the inconsistency of multiple decisions in a decision table. In this algorithm, a greedy heuristic ‘misclassification error’ is used which performs faster, and for some cost function, results are better than ‘number of boundary subtables’ heuristic in literature. Therefore, it can be used in the case of larger data sets and does not require huge amount of memory. Experimental results of depth, average depth and number of nodes of decision trees constructed by this algorithm are compared in the framework of each of the three approaches.

  6. A note on the Greedy [beta-]transformation with arbitrary digits

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Dajani, K.; Kalle, C.C.C.J.

    2011-01-01

    We consider a generalization of the greedy and lazy [beta]expansions with digit set A = fa0

  7. Performance improvement of multi-class detection using greedy algorithm for Viola-Jones cascade selection

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tereshin, Alexander A.; Usilin, Sergey A.; Arlazarov, Vladimir V.

    2018-04-01

    This paper aims to study the problem of multi-class object detection in video stream with Viola-Jones cascades. An adaptive algorithm for selecting Viola-Jones cascade based on greedy choice strategy in solution of the N-armed bandit problem is proposed. The efficiency of the algorithm on the problem of detection and recognition of the bank card logos in the video stream is shown. The proposed algorithm can be effectively used in documents localization and identification, recognition of road scene elements, localization and tracking of the lengthy objects , and for solving other problems of rigid object detection in a heterogeneous data flows. The computational efficiency of the algorithm makes it possible to use it both on personal computers and on mobile devices based on processors with low power consumption.

  8. Search Greedy for radial fuel optimization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ortiz, J. J.; Castillo, J. A.; Pelta, D. A.

    2008-01-01

    In this work a search algorithm Greedy is presented for the optimization of fuel cells in reactors BWR. As first phase a study was made of sensibility of the Factor of Pick of Local Power (FPPL) of the cell, in function of the exchange of the content of two fuel rods. His way it could settle down that then the rods to exchange do not contain gadolinium, small changes take place in the value of the FPPL of the cell. This knowledge was applied later in the search Greedy to optimize fuel cell. Exchanges of rods with gadolinium takes as a mechanism of global search and exchanges of rods without gadolinium takes as a method of local search. It worked with a cell of 10x10 rods and 2 circular water channels in center of the same one. From an inventory of enrichments of uranium and concentrations of given gadolinium and one distribution of well-known enrichments; the techniques finds good solutions that the FPPL minimizes, maintaining the factor of multiplication of neutrons in a range appropriate of values. In the low part of the assembly of a lot of recharge of a cycle of 18 months the cells were placed. The values of FPPL of the opposing cells are similar or smaller to those of the original cell and with behaviors in the nucleus also comparable to those obtained with the original cell. The evaluation of the cells was made with the code of transport CASMO-IV and the evaluation of the nucleus was made by means of the one simulator of the nucleus SIMULATE-3. (Author)

  9. Prediction based Greedy Perimeter Stateless Routing Protocol for Vehicular Self-organizing Network

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Chunlin; Fan, Quanrun; Chen, Xiaolin; Xu, Wanjin

    2018-03-01

    PGPSR (Prediction based Greedy Perimeter Stateless Routing) is based on and extended the GPSR protocol to adapt to the high speed mobility of the vehicle auto organization network (VANET) and the changes in the network topology. GPSR is used in the VANET network environment, the network loss rate and throughput are not ideal, even cannot work. Aiming at the problems of the GPSR, the proposed PGPSR routing protocol, it redefines the hello and query packet structure, in the structure of the new node speed and direction information, which received the next update before you can take advantage of its speed and direction to predict the position of node and new network topology, select the right the next hop routing and path. Secondly, the update of the outdated node information of the neighbor’s table is deleted in time. The simulation experiment shows the performance of PGPSR is better than that of GPSR.

  10. TH-CD-209-01: A Greedy Reassignment Algorithm for the PBS Minimum Monitor Unit Constraint

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lin, Y; Kooy, H; Craft, D; Depauw, N; Flanz, J; Clasie, B [Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA (United States)

    2016-06-15

    Purpose: To investigate a Greedy Reassignment algorithm in order to mitigate the effects of low weight spots in proton pencil beam scanning (PBS) treatment plans. Methods: To convert a plan from the treatment planning system’s (TPS) to a deliverable plan, post processing methods can be used to adjust the spot maps to meets the minimum MU constraint. Existing methods include: deleting low weight spots (Cut method), or rounding spots with weight above/below half the limit up/down to the limit/zero (Round method). An alternative method called Greedy Reassignment was developed in this work in which the lowest weight spot in the field was removed and its weight reassigned equally among its nearest neighbors. The process was repeated with the next lowest weight spot until all spots in the field were above the MU constraint. The algorithm performance was evaluated using plans collected from 190 patients (496 fields) treated at our facility. The evaluation criteria were the γ-index pass rate comparing the pre-processed and post-processed dose distributions. A planning metric was further developed to predict the impact of post-processing on treatment plans for various treatment planning, machine, and dose tolerance parameters. Results: For fields with a gamma pass rate of 90±1%, the metric has a standard deviation equal to 18% of the centroid value. This showed that the metric and γ-index pass rate are correlated for the Greedy Reassignment algorithm. Using a 3rd order polynomial fit to the data, the Greedy Reassignment method had 1.8 times better metric at 90% pass rate compared to other post-processing methods. Conclusion: We showed that the Greedy Reassignment method yields deliverable plans that are closest to the optimized-without-MU-constraint plan from the TPS. The metric developed in this work could help design the minimum MU threshold with the goal of keeping the γ-index pass rate above an acceptable value.

  11. A comparison of performance measures for online algorithms

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Boyar, Joan; Irani, Sandy; Larsen, Kim Skak

    2009-01-01

    is to balance greediness and adaptability. We examine how these measures evaluate the Greedy Algorithm and Lazy Double Coverage, commonly studied algorithms in the context of server problems. We examine Competitive Analysis, the Max/Max Ratio, the Random Order Ratio, Bijective Analysis and Relative Worst Order...... Analysis and determine how they compare the two algorithms. We find that by the Max/Max Ratio and Bijective Analysis, Greedy is the better algorithm. Under the other measures Lazy Double Coverage is better, though Relative Worst Order Analysis indicates that Greedy is sometimes better. Our results also...... provide the first proof of optimality of an algorithm under Relative Worst Order Analysis....

  12. A greedy heuristic using adjoint functions for the optimization of seed and needle configurations in prostate seed implant

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yoo, Sua [Department of Radiation Oncology, Duke University Medical Center, Box 3295, Durham, NC 27710 (United States); Kowalok, Michael E [Department of Radiation Oncology, Virginia Commonwealth University Health System, 401 College St., PO Box 980058, Richmond, VA 23298-0058 (United States); Thomadsen, Bruce R [Department of Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1530 MSC, 1300 University Ave., Madison, WI 53706 (United States); Henderson, Douglass L [Department of Engineering Physics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 153 Engineering Research Bldg., 1500 Engineering Dr., Madison, WI 53706 (United States)

    2007-02-07

    We continue our work on the development of an efficient treatment-planning algorithm for prostate seed implants by incorporation of an automated seed and needle configuration routine. The treatment-planning algorithm is based on region of interest (ROI) adjoint functions and a greedy heuristic. As defined in this work, the adjoint function of an ROI is the sensitivity of the average dose in the ROI to a unit-strength brachytherapy source at any seed position. The greedy heuristic uses a ratio of target and critical structure adjoint functions to rank seed positions according to their ability to irradiate the target ROI while sparing critical structure ROIs. Because seed positions are ranked in advance and because the greedy heuristic does not modify previously selected seed positions, the greedy heuristic constructs a complete seed configuration quickly. Isodose surface constraints determine the search space and the needle constraint limits the number of needles. This study additionally includes a methodology that scans possible combinations of these constraint values automatically. This automated selection scheme saves the user the effort of manually searching constraint values. With this method, clinically acceptable treatment plans are obtained in less than 2 min. For comparison, the branch-and-bound method used to solve a mixed integer-programming model took close to 2.5 h to arrive at a feasible solution. Both methods achieved good treatment plans, but the speedup provided by the greedy heuristic was a factor of approximately 100. This attribute makes this algorithm suitable for intra-operative real-time treatment planning.

  13. A greedy heuristic using adjoint functions for the optimization of seed and needle configurations in prostate seed implant

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yoo, Sua; Kowalok, Michael E; Thomadsen, Bruce R; Henderson, Douglass L

    2007-01-01

    We continue our work on the development of an efficient treatment-planning algorithm for prostate seed implants by incorporation of an automated seed and needle configuration routine. The treatment-planning algorithm is based on region of interest (ROI) adjoint functions and a greedy heuristic. As defined in this work, the adjoint function of an ROI is the sensitivity of the average dose in the ROI to a unit-strength brachytherapy source at any seed position. The greedy heuristic uses a ratio of target and critical structure adjoint functions to rank seed positions according to their ability to irradiate the target ROI while sparing critical structure ROIs. Because seed positions are ranked in advance and because the greedy heuristic does not modify previously selected seed positions, the greedy heuristic constructs a complete seed configuration quickly. Isodose surface constraints determine the search space and the needle constraint limits the number of needles. This study additionally includes a methodology that scans possible combinations of these constraint values automatically. This automated selection scheme saves the user the effort of manually searching constraint values. With this method, clinically acceptable treatment plans are obtained in less than 2 min. For comparison, the branch-and-bound method used to solve a mixed integer-programming model took close to 2.5 h to arrive at a feasible solution. Both methods achieved good treatment plans, but the speedup provided by the greedy heuristic was a factor of approximately 100. This attribute makes this algorithm suitable for intra-operative real-time treatment planning

  14. Detecting highly overlapping community structure by greedy clique expansion

    OpenAIRE

    Lee, Conrad; Reid, Fergal; McDaid, Aaron; Hurley, Neil

    2010-01-01

    In complex networks it is common for each node to belong to several communities, implying a highly overlapping community structure. Recent advances in benchmarking indicate that existing community assignment algorithms that are capable of detecting overlapping communities perform well only when the extent of community overlap is kept to modest levels. To overcome this limitation, we introduce a new community assignment algorithm called Greedy Clique Expansion (GCE). The algorithm identifies d...

  15. Efficient and accurate Greedy Search Methods for mining functional modules in protein interaction networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    He, Jieyue; Li, Chaojun; Ye, Baoliu; Zhong, Wei

    2012-06-25

    Most computational algorithms mainly focus on detecting highly connected subgraphs in PPI networks as protein complexes but ignore their inherent organization. Furthermore, many of these algorithms are computationally expensive. However, recent analysis indicates that experimentally detected protein complexes generally contain Core/attachment structures. In this paper, a Greedy Search Method based on Core-Attachment structure (GSM-CA) is proposed. The GSM-CA method detects densely connected regions in large protein-protein interaction networks based on the edge weight and two criteria for determining core nodes and attachment nodes. The GSM-CA method improves the prediction accuracy compared to other similar module detection approaches, however it is computationally expensive. Many module detection approaches are based on the traditional hierarchical methods, which is also computationally inefficient because the hierarchical tree structure produced by these approaches cannot provide adequate information to identify whether a network belongs to a module structure or not. In order to speed up the computational process, the Greedy Search Method based on Fast Clustering (GSM-FC) is proposed in this work. The edge weight based GSM-FC method uses a greedy procedure to traverse all edges just once to separate the network into the suitable set of modules. The proposed methods are applied to the protein interaction network of S. cerevisiae. Experimental results indicate that many significant functional modules are detected, most of which match the known complexes. Results also demonstrate that the GSM-FC algorithm is faster and more accurate as compared to other competing algorithms. Based on the new edge weight definition, the proposed algorithm takes advantages of the greedy search procedure to separate the network into the suitable set of modules. Experimental analysis shows that the identified modules are statistically significant. The algorithm can reduce the

  16. A Greedy Approach for Placement of Subsurface Aquifer Wells in an Ensemble Filtering Framework

    KAUST Repository

    El Gharamti, Mohamad; Marzouk, Youssef M.; Huan, Xun; Hoteit, Ibrahim

    2015-01-01

    Optimizing wells placement may help in better understanding subsurface solute transport and detecting contaminant plumes. In this work, we use the ensemble Kalman filter (EnKF) as a data assimilation tool and propose a greedy observational design algorithm to optimally select aquifer wells locations for updating the prior contaminant ensemble. The algorithm is greedy in the sense that it operates sequentially, without taking into account expected future gains. The selection criteria is based on maximizing the information gain that the EnKF carries during the update of the prior uncertainties. We test the efficiency of this algorithm in a synthetic aquifer system where a contaminant plume is set to migrate over a 30 years period across a heterogenous domain.

  17. A Greedy Approach for Placement of Subsurface Aquifer Wells in an Ensemble Filtering Framework

    KAUST Repository

    El Gharamti, Mohamad

    2015-11-26

    Optimizing wells placement may help in better understanding subsurface solute transport and detecting contaminant plumes. In this work, we use the ensemble Kalman filter (EnKF) as a data assimilation tool and propose a greedy observational design algorithm to optimally select aquifer wells locations for updating the prior contaminant ensemble. The algorithm is greedy in the sense that it operates sequentially, without taking into account expected future gains. The selection criteria is based on maximizing the information gain that the EnKF carries during the update of the prior uncertainties. We test the efficiency of this algorithm in a synthetic aquifer system where a contaminant plume is set to migrate over a 30 years period across a heterogenous domain.

  18. An efficient community detection algorithm using greedy surprise maximization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jiang, Yawen; Jia, Caiyan; Yu, Jian

    2014-01-01

    Community detection is an important and crucial problem in complex network analysis. Although classical modularity function optimization approaches are widely used for identifying communities, the modularity function (Q) suffers from its resolution limit. Recently, the surprise function (S) was experimentally proved to be better than the Q function. However, up until now, there has been no algorithm available to perform searches to directly determine the maximal surprise values. In this paper, considering the superiority of the S function over the Q function, we propose an efficient community detection algorithm called AGSO (algorithm based on greedy surprise optimization) and its improved version FAGSO (fast-AGSO), which are based on greedy surprise optimization and do not suffer from the resolution limit. In addition, (F)AGSO does not need the number of communities K to be specified in advance. Tests on experimental networks show that (F)AGSO is able to detect optimal partitions in both simple and even more complex networks. Moreover, algorithms based on surprise maximization perform better than those algorithms based on modularity maximization, including Blondel–Guillaume–Lambiotte–Lefebvre (BGLL), Clauset–Newman–Moore (CNM) and the other state-of-the-art algorithms such as Infomap, order statistics local optimization method (OSLOM) and label propagation algorithm (LPA). (paper)

  19. A greedy algorithm for construction of decision trees for tables with many-valued decisions - A comparative study

    KAUST Repository

    Azad, Mohammad

    2013-11-25

    In the paper, we study a greedy algorithm for construction of decision trees. This algorithm is applicable to decision tables with many-valued decisions where each row is labeled with a set of decisions. For a given row, we should find a decision from the set attached to this row. Experimental results for data sets from UCI Machine Learning Repository and randomly generated tables are presented. We make a comparative study of the depth and average depth of the constructed decision trees for proposed approach and approach based on generalized decision. The obtained results show that the proposed approach can be useful from the point of view of knowledge representation and algorithm construction.

  20. A greedy algorithm for construction of decision trees for tables with many-valued decisions - A comparative study

    KAUST Repository

    Azad, Mohammad; Chikalov, Igor; Moshkov, Mikhail; Zielosko, Beata

    2013-01-01

    In the paper, we study a greedy algorithm for construction of decision trees. This algorithm is applicable to decision tables with many-valued decisions where each row is labeled with a set of decisions. For a given row, we should find a decision from the set attached to this row. Experimental results for data sets from UCI Machine Learning Repository and randomly generated tables are presented. We make a comparative study of the depth and average depth of the constructed decision trees for proposed approach and approach based on generalized decision. The obtained results show that the proposed approach can be useful from the point of view of knowledge representation and algorithm construction.

  1. Fast algorithm of adaptive Fourier series

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gao, You; Ku, Min; Qian, Tao

    2018-05-01

    Adaptive Fourier decomposition (AFD, precisely 1-D AFD or Core-AFD) was originated for the goal of positive frequency representations of signals. It achieved the goal and at the same time offered fast decompositions of signals. There then arose several types of AFDs. AFD merged with the greedy algorithm idea, and in particular, motivated the so-called pre-orthogonal greedy algorithm (Pre-OGA) that was proven to be the most efficient greedy algorithm. The cost of the advantages of the AFD type decompositions is, however, the high computational complexity due to the involvement of maximal selections of the dictionary parameters. The present paper offers one formulation of the 1-D AFD algorithm by building the FFT algorithm into it. Accordingly, the algorithm complexity is reduced, from the original $\\mathcal{O}(M N^2)$ to $\\mathcal{O}(M N\\log_2 N)$, where $N$ denotes the number of the discretization points on the unit circle and $M$ denotes the number of points in $[0,1)$. This greatly enhances the applicability of AFD. Experiments are carried out to show the high efficiency of the proposed algorithm.

  2. Tackling Error Propagation through Reinforcement Learning: A Case of Greedy Dependency Parsing

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Le, M.N.; Fokkens, A.S.

    Error propagation is a common problem in NLP. Reinforcement learning explores erroneous states during training and can therefore be more robust when mistakes are made early in a process. In this paper, we apply reinforcement learning to greedy dependency parsing which is known to suffer from error

  3. Evaluation of a Didactic Method for the Active Learning of Greedy Algorithms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Esteban-Sánchez, Natalia; Pizarro, Celeste; Velázquez-Iturbide, J. Ángel

    2014-01-01

    An evaluation of the educational effectiveness of a didactic method for the active learning of greedy algorithms is presented. The didactic method sets students structured-inquiry challenges to be addressed with a specific experimental method, supported by the interactive system GreedEx. This didactic method has been refined over several years of…

  4. Effective Iterated Greedy Algorithm for Flow-Shop Scheduling Problems with Time lags

    Science.gov (United States)

    ZHAO, Ning; YE, Song; LI, Kaidian; CHEN, Siyu

    2017-05-01

    Flow shop scheduling problem with time lags is a practical scheduling problem and attracts many studies. Permutation problem(PFSP with time lags) is concentrated but non-permutation problem(non-PFSP with time lags) seems to be neglected. With the aim to minimize the makespan and satisfy time lag constraints, efficient algorithms corresponding to PFSP and non-PFSP problems are proposed, which consist of iterated greedy algorithm for permutation(IGTLP) and iterated greedy algorithm for non-permutation (IGTLNP). The proposed algorithms are verified using well-known simple and complex instances of permutation and non-permutation problems with various time lag ranges. The permutation results indicate that the proposed IGTLP can reach near optimal solution within nearly 11% computational time of traditional GA approach. The non-permutation results indicate that the proposed IG can reach nearly same solution within less than 1% computational time compared with traditional GA approach. The proposed research combines PFSP and non-PFSP together with minimal and maximal time lag consideration, which provides an interesting viewpoint for industrial implementation.

  5. GRASP (Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedures) applied to optimization of petroleum products distribution in pipeline networks; GRASP (Greedy Randomized Adaptative Search Procedures) aplicado ao 'scheduling' de redes de distribuicao de petroleo e derivados

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Conte, Viviane Cristhyne Bini; Arruda, Lucia Valeria Ramos de; Yamamoto, Lia [Universidade Tecnologica Federal do Parana (UTFPR), Curitiba, PR (Brazil)

    2008-07-01

    Planning and scheduling of the pipeline network operations aim the most efficient use of the resources resulting in a better performance of the network. A petroleum distribution pipeline network is composed by refineries, sources and/or storage parks, connected by a set of pipelines, which operate the transportation of petroleum and derivatives among adjacent areas. In real scenes, this problem is considered a combinatorial problem, which has difficult solution, which makes necessary methodologies of the resolution that present low computational time. This work aims to get solutions that attempt the demands and minimize the number of batch fragmentations on the sent operations of products for the pipelines in a simplified model of a real network, through by application of the local search metaheuristic GRASP. GRASP does not depend of solutions of previous iterations and works in a random way so it allows the search for the solution in an ampler and diversified search space. GRASP utilization does not demand complex calculation, even the construction stage that requires more computational effort, which provides relative rapidity in the attainment of good solutions. GRASP application on the scheduling of the operations of this network presented feasible solutions in a low computational time. (author)

  6. Greedy algorithms for construction of approximate tests for decision tables with many-valued decisions

    KAUST Repository

    Azad, Mohammad; Chikalov, Igor; Moshkov, Mikhail; Zielosko, Beata

    2012-01-01

    The paper is devoted to the study of a greedy algorithm for construction of approximate tests (super-reducts) This algorithm is applicable to decision tables with many-valued decisions where each row is labeled with a set of decisions For a given

  7. Adaptive random walks on the class of Web graphs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tadić, B.

    2001-09-01

    We study random walk with adaptive move strategies on a class of directed graphs with variable wiring diagram. The graphs are grown from the evolution rules compatible with the dynamics of the world-wide Web [B. Tadić, Physica A 293, 273 (2001)], and are characterized by a pair of power-law distributions of out- and in-degree for each value of the parameter β, which measures the degree of rewiring in the graph. The walker adapts its move strategy according to locally available information both on out-degree of the visited node and in-degree of target node. A standard random walk, on the other hand, uses the out-degree only. We compute the distribution of connected subgraphs visited by an ensemble of walkers, the average access time and survival probability of the walks. We discuss these properties of the walk dynamics relative to the changes in the global graph structure when the control parameter β is varied. For β≥ 3, corresponding to the world-wide Web, the access time of the walk to a given level of hierarchy on the graph is much shorter compared to the standard random walk on the same graph. By reducing the amount of rewiring towards rigidity limit β↦βc≲ 0.1, corresponding to the range of naturally occurring biochemical networks, the survival probability of adaptive and standard random walk become increasingly similar. The adaptive random walk can be used as an efficient message-passing algorithm on this class of graphs for large degree of rewiring.

  8. Hard Real-Time Task Scheduling in Cloud Computing Using an Adaptive Genetic Algorithm

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Amjad Mahmood

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available In the Infrastructure-as-a-Service cloud computing model, virtualized computing resources in the form of virtual machines are provided over the Internet. A user can rent an arbitrary number of computing resources to meet their requirements, making cloud computing an attractive choice for executing real-time tasks. Economical task allocation and scheduling on a set of leased virtual machines is an important problem in the cloud computing environment. This paper proposes a greedy and a genetic algorithm with an adaptive selection of suitable crossover and mutation operations (named as AGA to allocate and schedule real-time tasks with precedence constraint on heterogamous virtual machines. A comprehensive simulation study has been done to evaluate the performance of the proposed algorithms in terms of their solution quality and efficiency. The simulation results show that AGA outperforms the greedy algorithm and non-adaptive genetic algorithm in terms of solution quality.

  9. Comparing imagery in The Greedy Hippo and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    John R. Botha

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available This article used as point of departure the Ngano song-story entitled The Greedy Hippo as developed by Christiaan van der Westhuizen and based on the Tambani embroidery project. This animated interpretation of The Greedy Hippo is used to further the aims of interdisciplinary research as stated by the original project by comparing its fantasy imagery with that of the Chinese film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon by director Ang Lee. The analysis of the images in both works of art has been based on Jungian archetypes, with specific reference to the need for an esoteric and imaginative reading of fantasy in the chosen works of art. Reference was made to the dominant role of realism as style in Western art as opposed to the more esoteric, symbolic, and fantasy imagery of the art of other cultures, with emphasis on China. Chinese landscape painting and even poetry has been briefly contextualised with regards to the chosen works of art. Finally, the different characters of both works of art were analysed within the contexts of their symbolic meanings as based on Jungian archetypes, with particular reference to the scenes where the characters are depicted as flying through the air, which were explained within the contexts of Wu Xia martial arts style films.s.

  10. Greedy algorithms for diffuse optical tomography reconstruction

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dileep, B. P. V.; Das, Tapan; Dutta, Pranab K.

    2018-03-01

    Diffuse optical tomography (DOT) is a noninvasive imaging modality that reconstructs the optical parameters of a highly scattering medium. However, the inverse problem of DOT is ill-posed and highly nonlinear due to the zig-zag propagation of photons that diffuses through the cross section of tissue. The conventional DOT imaging methods iteratively compute the solution of forward diffusion equation solver which makes the problem computationally expensive. Also, these methods fail when the geometry is complex. Recently, the theory of compressive sensing (CS) has received considerable attention because of its efficient use in biomedical imaging applications. The objective of this paper is to solve a given DOT inverse problem by using compressive sensing framework and various Greedy algorithms such as orthogonal matching pursuit (OMP), compressive sampling matching pursuit (CoSaMP), and stagewise orthogonal matching pursuit (StOMP), regularized orthogonal matching pursuit (ROMP) and simultaneous orthogonal matching pursuit (S-OMP) have been studied to reconstruct the change in the absorption parameter i.e, Δα from the boundary data. Also, the Greedy algorithms have been validated experimentally on a paraffin wax rectangular phantom through a well designed experimental set up. We also have studied the conventional DOT methods like least square method and truncated singular value decomposition (TSVD) for comparison. One of the main features of this work is the usage of less number of source-detector pairs, which can facilitate the use of DOT in routine applications of screening. The performance metrics such as mean square error (MSE), normalized mean square error (NMSE), structural similarity index (SSIM), and peak signal to noise ratio (PSNR) have been used to evaluate the performance of the algorithms mentioned in this paper. Extensive simulation results confirm that CS based DOT reconstruction outperforms the conventional DOT imaging methods in terms of

  11. Greedy and metaheuristics for the offline scheduling problem in grid computing

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gamst, Mette

    In grid computing a number of geographically distributed resources connected through a wide area network, are utilized as one computations unit. The NP-hard offline scheduling problem in grid computing consists of assigning jobs to resources in advance. In this paper, five greedy heuristics and two....... All heuristics solve instances with up to 2000 jobs and 1000 resources, thus the results are useful both with respect to running times and to solution values....

  12. AHP 47: THE GREEDY KING AND TRICKY MAN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lcags so lhun 'grub ལྕགས་སོ་ལྷུན་འགྲུབ། (Klu sgrub ཀླུ་སྒྲུབ།

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available Rgya mo skyid (b. 1992 of Mdo ba Town, Reb gong (Thun rin, Tongren County, Rma lho (Huangnan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Mtsho sngon (Qinghai Province, China told me this story in an apartment in Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province on 21 August, 2016. She said, "When I was about five years old, my grandfather (Kun bzang, b. 1939 told me many stories such as this before we went to bed every night. I forgot many stories, but this story is still very clear." There was once a greedy local king who collected taxes monthly. There was also a very poor man known as Tricky Tsag thul. The local king came to Tricky's home to punish him for not paying his taxes for several months. ...

  13. Winning quick and dirty: the greedy random walk

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ben-Naim, E; Redner, S

    2004-01-01

    As a strategy to complete games quickly, we investigate one-dimensional random walks where the step length increases deterministically upon each return to the origin. When the step length after the kth return equals k, the displacement of the walk x grows linearly in time. Asymptotically, the probability distribution of displacements is a purely exponentially decaying function of |x|/t. The probability E(t, L) for the walk to escape a bounded domain of size L at time t decays algebraically in the long-time limit, E(t, L) ∼ L/t 2 . Consequently, the mean escape time (t) ∼ Lln L, while (t n ) ∼ L 2n-1 for n > 1. Corresponding results are derived when the step length after the kth return scales as k α for α > 0

  14. Architecture Synthesis for Cost-Constrained Fault-Tolerant Flow-based Biochips

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Eskesen, Morten Chabert; Pop, Paul; Potluri, Seetal

    2016-01-01

    . This increase in fabrication complexity has led to an increase in defect rates during the manufacturing, thereby motivating the need to improve the yield, by designing these biochips such that they are fault tolerant. We propose an approach based on a Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure (GRASP...

  15. A Greedy Scanning Data Collection Strategy for Large-Scale Wireless Sensor Networks with a Mobile Sink.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Chuan; Zhang, Sai; Han, Guangjie; Jiang, Jinfang; Rodrigues, Joel J P C

    2016-09-06

    Mobile sink is widely used for data collection in wireless sensor networks. It can avoid 'hot spot' problems but energy consumption caused by multihop transmission is still inefficient in real-time application scenarios. In this paper, a greedy scanning data collection strategy (GSDCS) is proposed, and we focus on how to reduce routing energy consumption by shortening total length of routing paths. We propose that the mobile sink adjusts its trajectory dynamically according to the changes of network, instead of predetermined trajectory or random walk. Next, the mobile sink determines which area has more source nodes, then it moves toward this area. The benefit of GSDCS is that most source nodes are no longer needed to upload sensory data for long distances. Especially in event-driven application scenarios, when event area changes, the mobile sink could arrive at the new event area where most source nodes are located currently. Hence energy can be saved. Analytical and simulation results show that compared with existing work, our GSDCS has a better performance in specific application scenarios.

  16. Large Neighborhood Search and Adaptive Randomized Decompositions for Flexible Jobshop Scheduling

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pacino, Dario; Van Hentenryck, Pascal

    2011-01-01

    This paper considers a constraint-based scheduling approach to the flexible jobshop, a generalization of the traditional jobshop scheduling where activities have a choice of machines. It studies both large neighborhood (LNS) and adaptive randomized de- composition (ARD) schemes, using random...

  17. Optimization of wind farm micro-siting for complex terrain using greedy algorithm

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Song, M.X.; Chen, K.; He, Z.Y.; Zhang, X.

    2014-01-01

    An optimization approach based on greedy algorithm for optimization of wind farm micro-siting is presented. The key of optimizing wind farm micro-siting is the fast and accurate evaluation of the wake flow interactions of wind turbines. The virtual particle model is employed for wake flow simulation of wind turbines, which makes the present method applicable for non-uniform flow fields on complex terrains. In previous bionic optimization method, within each step of the optimization process, only the power output of the turbine that is being located or relocated is considered. To aim at the overall power output of the wind farm comprehensively, a dependent region technique is introduced to improve the estimation of power output during the optimization procedure. With the technique, the wake flow influences can be reduced more efficiently during the optimization procedure. During the optimization process, the turbine that is being added will avoid being affected other turbines, and avoid affecting other turbine in the meantime. The results from the numerical calculations demonstrate that the present method is effective for wind farm micro-siting on complex terrain, and it produces better solutions in less time than the previous bionic method. - Highlights: • Greedy algorithm is applied to wind farm micro-siting problem. • The present method is effective for optimization on complex terrains. • Dependent region is suggested to improve the evaluation of wake influences. • The present method has better performance than the bionic method

  18. A simple greedy algorithm for dynamic graph orientation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Berglin, Edvin; Brodal, Gerth Stølting

    2017-01-01

    Graph orientations with low out-degree are one of several ways to efficiently store sparse graphs. If the graphs allow for insertion and deletion of edges, one may have to flip the orientation of some edges to prevent blowing up the maximum out-degree. We use arboricity as our sparsity measure....... With an immensely simple greedy algorithm, we get parametrized trade-off bounds between out-degree and worst case number of flips, which previously only existed for amortized number of flips. We match the previous best worst-case algorithm (in O(log n) flips) for general arboricity and beat it for either constant...... or super-logarithmic arboricity. We also match a previous best amortized result for at least logarithmic arboricity, and give the first results with worst-case O(1) and O(sqrt(log n)) flips nearly matching degree bounds to their respective amortized solutions....

  19. Greedy algorithms for construction of approximate tests for decision tables with many-valued decisions

    KAUST Repository

    Azad, Mohammad

    2012-12-14

    The paper is devoted to the study of a greedy algorithm for construction of approximate tests (super-reducts) This algorithm is applicable to decision tables with many-valued decisions where each row is labeled with a set of decisions For a given row, we should find a decision from the set attached to this row We consider bounds on the precision of this algorithm relative to the cardinality of tests.

  20. Random forests of interaction trees for estimating individualized treatment effects in randomized trials.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Su, Xiaogang; Peña, Annette T; Liu, Lei; Levine, Richard A

    2018-04-29

    Assessing heterogeneous treatment effects is a growing interest in advancing precision medicine. Individualized treatment effects (ITEs) play a critical role in such an endeavor. Concerning experimental data collected from randomized trials, we put forward a method, termed random forests of interaction trees (RFIT), for estimating ITE on the basis of interaction trees. To this end, we propose a smooth sigmoid surrogate method, as an alternative to greedy search, to speed up tree construction. The RFIT outperforms the "separate regression" approach in estimating ITE. Furthermore, standard errors for the estimated ITE via RFIT are obtained with the infinitesimal jackknife method. We assess and illustrate the use of RFIT via both simulation and the analysis of data from an acupuncture headache trial. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  1. A Bayesian sequential design with adaptive randomization for 2-sided hypothesis test.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, Qingzhao; Zhu, Lin; Zhu, Han

    2017-11-01

    Bayesian sequential and adaptive randomization designs are gaining popularity in clinical trials thanks to their potentials to reduce the number of required participants and save resources. We propose a Bayesian sequential design with adaptive randomization rates so as to more efficiently attribute newly recruited patients to different treatment arms. In this paper, we consider 2-arm clinical trials. Patients are allocated to the 2 arms with a randomization rate to achieve minimum variance for the test statistic. Algorithms are presented to calculate the optimal randomization rate, critical values, and power for the proposed design. Sensitivity analysis is implemented to check the influence on design by changing the prior distributions. Simulation studies are applied to compare the proposed method and traditional methods in terms of power and actual sample sizes. Simulations show that, when total sample size is fixed, the proposed design can obtain greater power and/or cost smaller actual sample size than the traditional Bayesian sequential design. Finally, we apply the proposed method to a real data set and compare the results with the Bayesian sequential design without adaptive randomization in terms of sample sizes. The proposed method can further reduce required sample size. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  2. Efficient Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure for the Generalized Regenerator Location Problem

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J.D. Quintana

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Over the years, there has been an evolution in the manner in which we perform traditional tasks. Nowadays, almost every simple action that we can think about involves the connection among two or more devices. It is desirable to have a high quality connection among devices, by using electronic or optical signals. Therefore, it is really important to have a reliable connection among terminals in the network. However, the transmission of the signal deteriorates when increasing the distance among devices. There exists a special piece of equipment that we can deploy in a network, called regenerator, which is able to restore the signal transmitted through it, in order to maintain its quality. Deploying a regenerator in a network is generally expensive, so it is important to minimize the number of regenerators used. In this paper we focus on the Generalized Regenerator Location Problem (GRLP, which tries to innd the minimum number of regenerators that must be deployed in a network in order to have a reliable communication without loss of quality. We present a GRASP metaheuristic in order to innd good solutions for the GRLP. The results obtained by the proposal are compared with the best previous methods for this problem. We conduct an extensive computational experience with 60 large and challenging instances, emerging the proposed method as the best performing one. This fact is innally supported by non-parametric statistical tests.

  3. A greedy double swap heuristic for nurse scheduling

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Murphy Choy

    2012-10-01

    Full Text Available One of the key challenges of nurse scheduling problem (NSP is the number of constraints placed on preparing the timetable, both from the regulatory requirements as well as the patients’ demand for the appropriate nursing care specialists. In addition, the preferences of the nursing staffs related to their work schedules add another dimension of complexity. Most solutions proposed for solving nurse scheduling involve the use of mathematical programming and generally considers only the hard constraints. However, the psychological needs of the nurses are ignored and this resulted in subsequent interventions by the nursing staffs to remedy any deficiency and often results in last minute changes to the schedule. In this paper, we present a staff preference optimization framework solved with a greedy double swap heuristic. The heuristic yields good performance in speed at solving the problem. The heuristic is simple and we will demonstrate its performance by implementing it on open source spreadsheet software.

  4. Bayesian analysis for exponential random graph models using the adaptive exchange sampler

    KAUST Repository

    Jin, Ick Hoon

    2013-01-01

    Exponential random graph models have been widely used in social network analysis. However, these models are extremely difficult to handle from a statistical viewpoint, because of the existence of intractable normalizing constants. In this paper, we consider a fully Bayesian analysis for exponential random graph models using the adaptive exchange sampler, which solves the issue of intractable normalizing constants encountered in Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) simulations. The adaptive exchange sampler can be viewed as a MCMC extension of the exchange algorithm, and it generates auxiliary networks via an importance sampling procedure from an auxiliary Markov chain running in parallel. The convergence of this algorithm is established under mild conditions. The adaptive exchange sampler is illustrated using a few social networks, including the Florentine business network, molecule synthetic network, and dolphins network. The results indicate that the adaptive exchange algorithm can produce more accurate estimates than approximate exchange algorithms, while maintaining the same computational efficiency.

  5. Research on the Random Shock Vibration Test Based on the Filter-X LMS Adaptive Inverse Control Algorithm

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wang Wei

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The related theory and algorithm of adaptive inverse control were presented through the research which pointed out the adaptive inverse control strategy could effectively eliminate the noise influence on the system control. Proposed using a frequency domain filter-X LMS adaptive inverse control algorithm, and the control algorithm was applied to the two-exciter hydraulic vibration test system of random shock vibration control process and summarized the process of the adaptive inverse control strategies in the realization of the random shock vibration test. The self-closed-loop and field test show that using the frequency-domain filter-X LMS adaptive inverse control algorithm can realize high precision control of random shock vibration test.

  6. RARtool: A MATLAB Software Package for Designing Response-Adaptive Randomized Clinical Trials with Time-to-Event Outcomes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ryeznik, Yevgen; Sverdlov, Oleksandr; Wong, Weng Kee

    2015-08-01

    Response-adaptive randomization designs are becoming increasingly popular in clinical trial practice. In this paper, we present RARtool , a user interface software developed in MATLAB for designing response-adaptive randomized comparative clinical trials with censored time-to-event outcomes. The RARtool software can compute different types of optimal treatment allocation designs, and it can simulate response-adaptive randomization procedures targeting selected optimal allocations. Through simulations, an investigator can assess design characteristics under a variety of experimental scenarios and select the best procedure for practical implementation. We illustrate the utility of our RARtool software by redesigning a survival trial from the literature.

  7. Search Greedy for radial fuel optimization; Busqueda Greddy para optimizacion radial de combustible

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ortiz, J. J.; Castillo, J. A. [ININ, 52750 La Marquesa, Estado de Mexico (Mexico); Pelta, D. A. [Universidad de Granada, ETS Ingenieria Informatica y Telecomunicaciones, C/Daniel Saucedo Aranda s/n, 18071 Granada (Spain)]. e-mail: jjortiz@nuclear.inin.mx

    2008-07-01

    In this work a search algorithm Greedy is presented for the optimization of fuel cells in reactors BWR. As first phase a study was made of sensibility of the Factor of Pick of Local Power (FPPL) of the cell, in function of the exchange of the content of two fuel rods. His way it could settle down that then the rods to exchange do not contain gadolinium, small changes take place in the value of the FPPL of the cell. This knowledge was applied later in the search Greedy to optimize fuel cell. Exchanges of rods with gadolinium takes as a mechanism of global search and exchanges of rods without gadolinium takes as a method of local search. It worked with a cell of 10x10 rods and 2 circular water channels in center of the same one. From an inventory of enrichments of uranium and concentrations of given gadolinium and one distribution of well-known enrichments; the techniques finds good solutions that the FPPL minimizes, maintaining the factor of multiplication of neutrons in a range appropriate of values. In the low part of the assembly of a lot of recharge of a cycle of 18 months the cells were placed. The values of FPPL of the opposing cells are similar or smaller to those of the original cell and with behaviors in the nucleus also comparable to those obtained with the original cell. The evaluation of the cells was made with the code of transport CASMO-IV and the evaluation of the nucleus was made by means of the one simulator of the nucleus SIMULATE-3. (Author)

  8. An adaptive random search for short term generation scheduling with network constraints.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J A Marmolejo

    Full Text Available This paper presents an adaptive random search approach to address a short term generation scheduling with network constraints, which determines the startup and shutdown schedules of thermal units over a given planning horizon. In this model, we consider the transmission network through capacity limits and line losses. The mathematical model is stated in the form of a Mixed Integer Non Linear Problem with binary variables. The proposed heuristic is a population-based method that generates a set of new potential solutions via a random search strategy. The random search is based on the Markov Chain Monte Carlo method. The main key of the proposed method is that the noise level of the random search is adaptively controlled in order to exploring and exploiting the entire search space. In order to improve the solutions, we consider coupling a local search into random search process. Several test systems are presented to evaluate the performance of the proposed heuristic. We use a commercial optimizer to compare the quality of the solutions provided by the proposed method. The solution of the proposed algorithm showed a significant reduction in computational effort with respect to the full-scale outer approximation commercial solver. Numerical results show the potential and robustness of our approach.

  9. Optimization of travel salesman problem using the ant colony system and Greedy search

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Esquivel E, J.; Ordonez A, A.; Ortiz S, J. J.

    2008-01-01

    In this paper we present some results obtained during the development of optimization systems that can be used to design refueling and patterns of control rods in a BWR. These systems use ant colonies and Greedy search. The first phase of this project is to be familiar with these optimization techniques applied to the problem of travel salesman problem (TSP). The utility of TSP study is that, like the refueling design and pattern design of control rods are problems of combinative optimization. Even, the similarity with the problem of the refueling design is remarkable. It is presented some results for the TSP with the 32 state capitals of Mexico country. (Author)

  10. The effect of adaptive versus static practicing on student learning - evidence from a randomized field experiment

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Klaveren, Chris; Vonk, Sebastiaan; Cornelisz, Ilja

    2017-01-01

    Schools and governments are increasingly investing in adaptive practice software. To date, the evidence whether adaptivity improves learning outcomes is limited and mixed. A large-scale randomized control trial is conducted in Dutch secondary schools to evaluate the effectiveness of an adaptive

  11. Basis adaptation and domain decomposition for steady-state partial differential equations with random coefficients

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tipireddy, R.; Stinis, P.; Tartakovsky, A. M.

    2017-12-01

    We present a novel approach for solving steady-state stochastic partial differential equations (PDEs) with high-dimensional random parameter space. The proposed approach combines spatial domain decomposition with basis adaptation for each subdomain. The basis adaptation is used to address the curse of dimensionality by constructing an accurate low-dimensional representation of the stochastic PDE solution (probability density function and/or its leading statistical moments) in each subdomain. Restricting the basis adaptation to a specific subdomain affords finding a locally accurate solution. Then, the solutions from all of the subdomains are stitched together to provide a global solution. We support our construction with numerical experiments for a steady-state diffusion equation with a random spatially dependent coefficient. Our results show that highly accurate global solutions can be obtained with significantly reduced computational costs.

  12. Mechanisms within the Parietal Cortex Correlate with the Benefits of Random Practice in Motor Adaptation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Benjamin Thürer

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available The motor learning literature shows an increased retest or transfer performance after practicing under unstable (random conditions. This random practice effect (also known as contextual interference effect is frequently investigated on the behavioral level and discussed in the context of mechanisms of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and increased cognitive efforts during movement planning. However, there is a lack of studies examining the random practice effect in motor adaptation tasks and, in general, the underlying neural processes of the random practice effect are not fully understood. We tested 24 right-handed human subjects performing a reaching task using a robotic manipulandum. Subjects learned to adapt either to a blocked or a random schedule of different force field perturbations while subjects’ electroencephalography (EEG was recorded. The behavioral results showed a distinct random practice effect in terms of a more stabilized retest performance of the random compared to the blocked practicing group. Further analyses showed that this effect correlates with changes in the alpha band power in electrodes over parietal areas. We conclude that the random practice effect in this study is facilitated by mechanisms within the parietal cortex during movement execution which might reflect online feedback mechanisms.

  13. Adaptive importance sampling of random walks on continuous state spaces

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Baggerly, K.; Cox, D.; Picard, R.

    1998-01-01

    The authors consider adaptive importance sampling for a random walk with scoring in a general state space. Conditions under which exponential convergence occurs to the zero-variance solution are reviewed. These results generalize previous work for finite, discrete state spaces in Kollman (1993) and in Kollman, Baggerly, Cox, and Picard (1996). This paper is intended for nonstatisticians and includes considerable explanatory material

  14. A Greedy Algorithm for Neighborhood Overlap-Based Community Detection

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Natarajan Meghanathan

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The neighborhood overlap (NOVER of an edge u-v is defined as the ratio of the number of nodes who are neighbors for both u and v to that of the number of nodes who are neighbors of at least u or v. In this paper, we hypothesize that an edge u-v with a lower NOVER score bridges two or more sets of vertices, with very few edges (other than u-v connecting vertices from one set to another set. Accordingly, we propose a greedy algorithm of iteratively removing the edges of a network in the increasing order of their neighborhood overlap and calculating the modularity score of the resulting network component(s after the removal of each edge. The network component(s that have the largest cumulative modularity score are identified as the different communities of the network. We evaluate the performance of the proposed NOVER-based community detection algorithm on nine real-world network graphs and compare the performance against the multi-level aggregation-based Louvain algorithm, as well as the original and time-efficient versions of the edge betweenness-based Girvan-Newman (GN community detection algorithm.

  15. On local optima in learning bayesian networks

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dalgaard, Jens; Kocka, Tomas; Pena, Jose

    2003-01-01

    This paper proposes and evaluates the k-greedy equivalence search algorithm (KES) for learning Bayesian networks (BNs) from complete data. The main characteristic of KES is that it allows a trade-off between greediness and randomness, thus exploring different good local optima. When greediness...... is set at maximum, KES corresponds to the greedy equivalence search algorithm (GES). When greediness is kept at minimum, we prove that under mild assumptions KES asymptotically returns any inclusion optimal BN with nonzero probability. Experimental results for both synthetic and real data are reported...

  16. An adaptive physical activity intervention for overweight adults: a randomized controlled trial.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marc A Adams

    Full Text Available Physical activity (PA interventions typically include components or doses that are static across participants. Adaptive interventions are dynamic; components or doses change in response to short-term variations in participant's performance. Emerging theory and technologies make adaptive goal setting and feedback interventions feasible.To test an adaptive intervention for PA based on Operant and Behavior Economic principles and a percentile-based algorithm. The adaptive intervention was hypothesized to result in greater increases in steps per day than the static intervention.Participants (N = 20 were randomized to one of two 6-month treatments: 1 static intervention (SI or 2 adaptive intervention (AI. Inactive overweight adults (85% women, M = 36.9 ± 9.2 years, 35% non-white in both groups received a pedometer, email and text message communication, brief health information, and biweekly motivational prompts. The AI group received daily step goals that adjusted up and down based on the percentile-rank algorithm and micro-incentives for goal attainment. This algorithm adjusted goals based on a moving window; an approach that responded to each individual's performance and ensured goals were always challenging but within participants' abilities. The SI group received a static 10,000 steps/day goal with incentives linked to uploading the pedometer's data.A random-effects repeated-measures model accounted for 180 repeated measures and autocorrelation. After adjusting for covariates, the treatment phase showed greater steps/day relative to the baseline phase (p<.001 and a group by study phase interaction was observed (p  .017. The SI group increased by 1,598 steps/day on average between baseline and treatment while the AI group increased by 2,728 steps/day on average between baseline and treatment; a significant between-group difference of 1,130 steps/day (Cohen's d = .74.The adaptive intervention outperformed the static intervention for increasing

  17. Greedy Algorithm for the Construction of Approximate Decision Rules for Decision Tables with Many-Valued Decisions

    KAUST Repository

    Azad, Mohammad

    2016-10-20

    The paper is devoted to the study of a greedy algorithm for construction of approximate decision rules. This algorithm is applicable to decision tables with many-valued decisions where each row is labeled with a set of decisions. For a given row, we should find a decision from the set attached to this row. We consider bounds on the precision of this algorithm relative to the length of rules. To illustrate proposed approach we study a problem of recognition of labels of points in the plain. This paper contains also results of experiments with modified decision tables from UCI Machine Learning Repository.

  18. Greedy Algorithm for the Construction of Approximate Decision Rules for Decision Tables with Many-Valued Decisions

    KAUST Repository

    Azad, Mohammad; Moshkov, Mikhail; Zielosko, Beata

    2016-01-01

    The paper is devoted to the study of a greedy algorithm for construction of approximate decision rules. This algorithm is applicable to decision tables with many-valued decisions where each row is labeled with a set of decisions. For a given row, we should find a decision from the set attached to this row. We consider bounds on the precision of this algorithm relative to the length of rules. To illustrate proposed approach we study a problem of recognition of labels of points in the plain. This paper contains also results of experiments with modified decision tables from UCI Machine Learning Repository.

  19. Predicting adaptive phenotypes from multilocus genotypes in Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis) using random forest.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Holliday, Jason A; Wang, Tongli; Aitken, Sally

    2012-09-01

    Climate is the primary driver of the distribution of tree species worldwide, and the potential for adaptive evolution will be an important factor determining the response of forests to anthropogenic climate change. Although association mapping has the potential to improve our understanding of the genomic underpinnings of climatically relevant traits, the utility of adaptive polymorphisms uncovered by such studies would be greatly enhanced by the development of integrated models that account for the phenotypic effects of multiple single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and their interactions simultaneously. We previously reported the results of association mapping in the widespread conifer Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis). In the current study we used the recursive partitioning algorithm 'Random Forest' to identify optimized combinations of SNPs to predict adaptive phenotypes. After adjusting for population structure, we were able to explain 37% and 30% of the phenotypic variation, respectively, in two locally adaptive traits--autumn budset timing and cold hardiness. For each trait, the leading five SNPs captured much of the phenotypic variation. To determine the role of epistasis in shaping these phenotypes, we also used a novel approach to quantify the strength and direction of pairwise interactions between SNPs and found such interactions to be common. Our results demonstrate the power of Random Forest to identify subsets of markers that are most important to climatic adaptation, and suggest that interactions among these loci may be widespread.

  20. Ship Block Transportation Scheduling Problem Based on Greedy Algorithm

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chong Wang

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available Ship block transportation problems are crucial issues to address in reducing the construction cost and improving the productivity of shipyards. Shipyards aim to maximize the workload balance of transporters with time constraint such that all blocks should be transported during the planning horizon. This process leads to three types of penalty time: empty transporter travel time, delay time, and tardy time. This study aims to minimize the sum of the penalty time. First, this study presents the problem of ship block transportation with the generalization of the block transportation restriction on the multi-type transporter. Second, the problem is transformed into the classical traveling salesman problem and assignment problem through a reasonable model simplification and by adding a virtual node to the proposed directed graph. Then, a heuristic algorithm based on greedy algorithm is proposed to assign blocks to available transporters and sequencing blocks for each transporter simultaneously. Finally, the numerical experiment method is used to validate the model, and its result shows that the proposed algorithm is effective in realizing the efficient use of the transporters in shipyards. Numerical simulation results demonstrate the promising application of the proposed method to efficiently improve the utilization of transporters and to reduce the cost of ship block logistics for shipyards.

  1. A hybrid heuristic algorithm for the open-pit-mining operational planning problem.

    OpenAIRE

    Souza, Marcone Jamilson Freitas; Coelho, Igor Machado; Ribas, Sabir; Santos, Haroldo Gambini; Merschmann, Luiz Henrique de Campos

    2010-01-01

    This paper deals with the Open-Pit-Mining Operational Planning problem with dynamic truck allocation. The objective is to optimize mineral extraction in the mines by minimizing the number of mining trucks used to meet production goals and quality requirements. According to the literature, this problem is NPhard, so a heuristic strategy is justified. We present a hybrid algorithm that combines characteristics of two metaheuristics: Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedures and General Varia...

  2. Walking adaptability therapy after stroke: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Timmermans, Celine; Roerdink, Melvyn; van Ooijen, Marielle W; Meskers, Carel G; Janssen, Thomas W; Beek, Peter J

    2016-08-26

    Walking in everyday life requires the ability to adapt walking to the environment. This adaptability is often impaired after stroke, and this might contribute to the increased fall risk after stroke. To improve safe community ambulation, walking adaptability training might be beneficial after stroke. This study is designed to compare the effects of two interventions for improving walking speed and walking adaptability: treadmill-based C-Mill therapy (therapy with augmented reality) and the overground FALLS program (a conventional therapy program). We hypothesize that C-Mill therapy will result in better outcomes than the FALLS program, owing to its expected greater amount of walking practice. This is a single-center parallel group randomized controlled trial with pre-intervention, post-intervention, retention, and follow-up tests. Forty persons after stroke (≥3 months) with deficits in walking or balance will be included. Participants will be randomly allocated to either C-Mill therapy or the overground FALLS program for 5 weeks. Both interventions will incorporate practice of walking adaptability and will be matched in terms of frequency, duration, and therapist attention. Walking speed, as determined by the 10 Meter Walking Test, will be the primary outcome measure. Secondary outcome measures will pertain to walking adaptability (10 Meter Walking Test with context or cognitive dual-task and Interactive Walkway assessments). Furthermore, commonly used clinical measures to determine walking ability (Timed Up-and-Go test), walking independence (Functional Ambulation Category), balance (Berg Balance Scale), and balance confidence (Activities-specific Balance Confidence scale) will be used, as well as a complementary set of walking-related assessments. The amount of walking practice (the number of steps taken per session) will be registered using the treadmill's inbuilt step counter (C-Mill therapy) and video recordings (FALLS program). This process measure will

  3. A randomized controlled trial of culturally adapted motivational interviewing for Hispanic heavy drinkers: Theory of Adaptation and Study Protocol

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Christina S.; Colby, Suzanne M.; Magill, Molly; Almeida, Joanna; Tavares, Tonya; Rohsenow, Damaris J.

    2016-01-01

    Background The NIH Strategic Plan prioritizes health disparities research for socially disadvantaged Hispanics, to reduce the disproportionate burden of alcohol-related negative consequences compared to other racial/ethnic groups. Cultural adaptation of evidence-based treatments, such as motivational interviewing (MI), can improve access and response to alcohol treatment. However, the lack of rigorous clinical trials designed to test the efficacy and theoretical underpinnings of cultural adaptation has made proof of concept difficult. Objective The CAMI2 (Culturally Adapted Motivational Interviewing) study design and its theoretical model, is described to illustrate how MI adapted to social and cultural factors (CAMI) can be discriminated against non-adapted MI. Methods and Design CAMI2, a large, 12 month randomized prospective trial, examines the efficacy of CAMI and MI among heavy drinking Hispanics recruited from the community (n=257). Outcomes are reductions in heavy drinking days (Time Line Follow-Back) and negative consequences of drinking among Hispanics (Drinkers Inventory of Consequences). A second aim examines perceived acculturation stress as a moderator of treatment outcomes in the CAMI condition. Summary The CAMI2 study design protocol is presented and the theory of adaptation is presented. Findings from the trial described may yield important recommendations on the science of cultural adaptation and improve MI dissemination to Hispanics with alcohol risk. PMID:27565832

  4. Optimization of approximate decision rules relative to number of misclassifications: Comparison of greedy and dynamic programming approaches

    KAUST Repository

    Amin, Talha

    2013-01-01

    In the paper, we present a comparison of dynamic programming and greedy approaches for construction and optimization of approximate decision rules relative to the number of misclassifications. We use an uncertainty measure that is a difference between the number of rows in a decision table T and the number of rows with the most common decision for T. For a nonnegative real number γ, we consider γ-decision rules that localize rows in subtables of T with uncertainty at most γ. Experimental results with decision tables from the UCI Machine Learning Repository are also presented. © 2013 Springer-Verlag.

  5. Public goods games on adaptive coevolutionary networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pichler, Elgar; Shapiro, Avi M.

    2017-07-01

    Productive societies feature high levels of cooperation and strong connections between individuals. Public Goods Games (PGGs) are frequently used to study the development of social connections and cooperative behavior in model societies. In such games, contributions to the public good are made only by cooperators, while all players, including defectors, reap public goods benefits, which are shares of the contributions amplified by a synergy factor. Classic results of game theory show that mutual defection, as opposed to cooperation, is the Nash Equilibrium of PGGs in well-mixed populations, where each player interacts with all others. In this paper, we explore the coevolutionary dynamics of a low information public goods game on a complex network in which players adapt to their environment in order to increase individual payoffs relative to past payoffs parameterized by greediness. Players adapt by changing their strategies, either to cooperate or to defect, and by altering their social connections. We find that even if players do not know other players' strategies and connectivity, cooperation can arise and persist despite large short-term fluctuations.

  6. Adaptive Mean Queue Size and Its Rate of Change: Queue Management with Random Dropping

    OpenAIRE

    Karmeshu; Patel, Sanjeev; Bhatnagar, Shalabh

    2016-01-01

    The Random early detection (RED) active queue management (AQM) scheme uses the average queue size to calculate the dropping probability in terms of minimum and maximum thresholds. The effect of heavy load enhances the frequency of crossing the maximum threshold value resulting in frequent dropping of the packets. An adaptive queue management with random dropping (AQMRD) algorithm is proposed which incorporates information not just about the average queue size but also the rate of change of th...

  7. An Aircraft Service Staff Rostering using a Hybrid GRASP Algorithm

    OpenAIRE

    Cho, Vincent; Wu, Gene Pak Kit; Ip, W.H.

    2009-01-01

    The aircraft ground service company is responsible for carrying out the regular tasks to aircraft maintenace between their arrival at and departure from the airport. This paper presents the application of a hybrid approach based upon greedy randomized adaptive search procedure (GRASP) for rostering technical staff such that they are assigned predefined shift patterns. The rostering of staff is posed as an optimization problem with an aim of minimizing the violations of hard and soft constrain...

  8. Random access with adaptive packet aggregation in LTE/LTE-A.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhou, Kaijie; Nikaein, Navid

    While random access presents a promising solution for efficient uplink channel access, the preamble collision rate can significantly increase when massive number of devices simultaneously access the channel. To address this issue and improve the reliability of the random access, an adaptive packet aggregation method is proposed. With the proposed method, a device does not trigger a random access for every single packet. Instead, it starts a random access when the number of aggregated packets reaches a given threshold. This method reduces the packet collision rate at the expense of an extra latency, which is used to accumulate multiple packets into a single transmission unit. Therefore, the tradeoff between packet loss rate and channel access latency has to be carefully selected. We use semi-Markov model to derive the packet loss rate and channel access latency as functions of packet aggregation number. Hence, the optimal amount of aggregated packets can be found, which keeps the loss rate below the desired value while minimizing the access latency. We also apply for the idea of packet aggregation for power saving, where a device aggregates as many packets as possible until the latency constraint is reached. Simulations are carried out to evaluate our methods. We find that the packet loss rate and/or power consumption are significantly reduced with the proposed method.

  9. Adaptive radial basis function mesh deformation using data reduction

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gillebaart, T.; Blom, D. S.; van Zuijlen, A. H.; Bijl, H.

    2016-09-01

    Radial Basis Function (RBF) mesh deformation is one of the most robust mesh deformation methods available. Using the greedy (data reduction) method in combination with an explicit boundary correction, results in an efficient method as shown in literature. However, to ensure the method remains robust, two issues are addressed: 1) how to ensure that the set of control points remains an accurate representation of the geometry in time and 2) how to use/automate the explicit boundary correction, while ensuring a high mesh quality. In this paper, we propose an adaptive RBF mesh deformation method, which ensures the set of control points always represents the geometry/displacement up to a certain (user-specified) criteria, by keeping track of the boundary error throughout the simulation and re-selecting when needed. Opposed to the unit displacement and prescribed displacement selection methods, the adaptive method is more robust, user-independent and efficient, for the cases considered. Secondly, the analysis of a single high aspect ratio cell is used to formulate an equation for the correction radius needed, depending on the characteristics of the correction function used, maximum aspect ratio, minimum first cell height and boundary error. Based on the analysis two new radial basis correction functions are derived and proposed. This proposed automated procedure is verified while varying the correction function, Reynolds number (and thus first cell height and aspect ratio) and boundary error. Finally, the parallel efficiency is studied for the two adaptive methods, unit displacement and prescribed displacement for both the CPU as well as the memory formulation with a 2D oscillating and translating airfoil with oscillating flap, a 3D flexible locally deforming tube and deforming wind turbine blade. Generally, the memory formulation requires less work (due to the large amount of work required for evaluating RBF's), but the parallel efficiency reduces due to the limited

  10. Greedy Sampling and Incremental Surrogate Model-Based Tailoring of Aeroservoelastic Model Database for Flexible Aircraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Yi; Pant, Kapil; Brenner, Martin J.; Ouellette, Jeffrey A.

    2018-01-01

    This paper presents a data analysis and modeling framework to tailor and develop linear parameter-varying (LPV) aeroservoelastic (ASE) model database for flexible aircrafts in broad 2D flight parameter space. The Kriging surrogate model is constructed using ASE models at a fraction of grid points within the original model database, and then the ASE model at any flight condition can be obtained simply through surrogate model interpolation. The greedy sampling algorithm is developed to select the next sample point that carries the worst relative error between the surrogate model prediction and the benchmark model in the frequency domain among all input-output channels. The process is iterated to incrementally improve surrogate model accuracy till a pre-determined tolerance or iteration budget is met. The methodology is applied to the ASE model database of a flexible aircraft currently being tested at NASA/AFRC for flutter suppression and gust load alleviation. Our studies indicate that the proposed method can reduce the number of models in the original database by 67%. Even so the ASE models obtained through Kriging interpolation match the model in the original database constructed directly from the physics-based tool with the worst relative error far below 1%. The interpolated ASE model exhibits continuously-varying gains along a set of prescribed flight conditions. More importantly, the selected grid points are distributed non-uniformly in the parameter space, a) capturing the distinctly different dynamic behavior and its dependence on flight parameters, and b) reiterating the need and utility for adaptive space sampling techniques for ASE model database compaction. The present framework is directly extendible to high-dimensional flight parameter space, and can be used to guide the ASE model development, model order reduction, robust control synthesis and novel vehicle design of flexible aircraft.

  11. D Semantic Labeling of ALS Data Based on Domain Adaption by Transferring and Fusing Random Forest Models

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, J.; Yao, W.; Zhang, J.; Li, Y.

    2018-04-01

    Labeling 3D point cloud data with traditional supervised learning methods requires considerable labelled samples, the collection of which is cost and time expensive. This work focuses on adopting domain adaption concept to transfer existing trained random forest classifiers (based on source domain) to new data scenes (target domain), which aims at reducing the dependence of accurate 3D semantic labeling in point clouds on training samples from the new data scene. Firstly, two random forest classifiers were firstly trained with existing samples previously collected for other data. They were different from each other by using two different decision tree construction algorithms: C4.5 with information gain ratio and CART with Gini index. Secondly, four random forest classifiers adapted to the target domain are derived through transferring each tree in the source random forest models with two types of operations: structure expansion and reduction-SER and structure transfer-STRUT. Finally, points in target domain are labelled by fusing the four newly derived random forest classifiers using weights of evidence based fusion model. To validate our method, experimental analysis was conducted using 3 datasets: one is used as the source domain data (Vaihingen data for 3D Semantic Labelling); another two are used as the target domain data from two cities in China (Jinmen city and Dunhuang city). Overall accuracies of 85.5 % and 83.3 % for 3D labelling were achieved for Jinmen city and Dunhuang city data respectively, with only 1/3 newly labelled samples compared to the cases without domain adaption.

  12. Micro-Randomized Trials: An Experimental Design for Developing Just-in-Time Adaptive Interventions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Klasnja, Predrag; Hekler, Eric B.; Shiffman, Saul; Boruvka, Audrey; Almirall, Daniel; Tewari, Ambuj; Murphy, Susan A.

    2015-01-01

    Objective This paper presents an experimental design, the micro-randomized trial, developed to support optimization of just-in-time adaptive interventions (JITAIs). JITAIs are mHealth technologies that aim to deliver the right intervention components at the right times and locations to optimally support individuals’ health behaviors. Micro-randomized trials offer a way to optimize such interventions by enabling modeling of causal effects and time-varying effect moderation for individual intervention components within a JITAI. Methods The paper describes the micro-randomized trial design, enumerates research questions that this experimental design can help answer, and provides an overview of the data analyses that can be used to assess the causal effects of studied intervention components and investigate time-varying moderation of those effects. Results Micro-randomized trials enable causal modeling of proximal effects of the randomized intervention components and assessment of time-varying moderation of those effects. Conclusions Micro-randomized trials can help researchers understand whether their interventions are having intended effects, when and for whom they are effective, and what factors moderate the interventions’ effects, enabling creation of more effective JITAIs. PMID:26651463

  13. Heuristics for the economic dispatch problem

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Flores, Benjamin Carpio [Centro Nacional de Controle de Energia (CENACE), Mexico, D.F. (Mexico). Dept. de Planificacion Economica de Largo Plazo], E-mail: benjamin.carpo@cfe.gob.mx; Laureano Cruces, A L; Lopez Bracho, R; Ramirez Rodriguez, J. [Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana (UAM), Mexico, D.F. (Brazil). Dept. de Sistemas], Emails: clc@correo.azc.uam.mx, rlb@correo.azc.uam.mx, jararo@correo.azc.uam.mx

    2009-07-01

    This paper presents GRASP (Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure), Simulated Annealing (SAA), Genetic (GA), and Hybrid Genetic (HGA) Algorithms for the economic dispatch problem (EDP), considering non-convex cost functions and dead zones the only restrictions, showing the results obtained. We also present parameter settings that are specifically applicable to the EDP, and a comparative table of results for each heuristic. It is shown that these methods outperform the classical methods without the need to assume convexity of the target function. (author)

  14. An ILP based memetic algorithm for finding minimum positive influence dominating sets in social networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lin, Geng; Guan, Jian; Feng, Huibin

    2018-06-01

    The positive influence dominating set problem is a variant of the minimum dominating set problem, and has lots of applications in social networks. It is NP-hard, and receives more and more attention. Various methods have been proposed to solve the positive influence dominating set problem. However, most of the existing work focused on greedy algorithms, and the solution quality needs to be improved. In this paper, we formulate the minimum positive influence dominating set problem as an integer linear programming (ILP), and propose an ILP based memetic algorithm (ILPMA) for solving the problem. The ILPMA integrates a greedy randomized adaptive construction procedure, a crossover operator, a repair operator, and a tabu search procedure. The performance of ILPMA is validated on nine real-world social networks with nodes up to 36,692. The results show that ILPMA significantly improves the solution quality, and is robust.

  15. Minimizing the Total Service Time of Discrete Dynamic Berth Allocation Problem by an Iterated Greedy Heuristic

    Science.gov (United States)

    2014-01-01

    Berth allocation is the forefront operation performed when ships arrive at a port and is a critical task in container port optimization. Minimizing the time ships spend at berths constitutes an important objective of berth allocation problems. This study focuses on the discrete dynamic berth allocation problem (discrete DBAP), which aims to minimize total service time, and proposes an iterated greedy (IG) algorithm to solve it. The proposed IG algorithm is tested on three benchmark problem sets. Experimental results show that the proposed IG algorithm can obtain optimal solutions for all test instances of the first and second problem sets and outperforms the best-known solutions for 35 out of 90 test instances of the third problem set. PMID:25295295

  16. Minimizing the Total Service Time of Discrete Dynamic Berth Allocation Problem by an Iterated Greedy Heuristic

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shih-Wei Lin

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Berth allocation is the forefront operation performed when ships arrive at a port and is a critical task in container port optimization. Minimizing the time ships spend at berths constitutes an important objective of berth allocation problems. This study focuses on the discrete dynamic berth allocation problem (discrete DBAP, which aims to minimize total service time, and proposes an iterated greedy (IG algorithm to solve it. The proposed IG algorithm is tested on three benchmark problem sets. Experimental results show that the proposed IG algorithm can obtain optimal solutions for all test instances of the first and second problem sets and outperforms the best-known solutions for 35 out of 90 test instances of the third problem set.

  17. Adaptive Markov Random Fields for Example-Based Super-resolution of Faces

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stephenson Todd A

    2006-01-01

    Full Text Available Image enhancement of low-resolution images can be done through methods such as interpolation, super-resolution using multiple video frames, and example-based super-resolution. Example-based super-resolution, in particular, is suited to images that have a strong prior (for those frameworks that work on only a single image, it is more like image restoration than traditional, multiframe super-resolution. For example, hallucination and Markov random field (MRF methods use examples drawn from the same domain as the image being enhanced to determine what the missing high-frequency information is likely to be. We propose to use even stronger prior information by extending MRF-based super-resolution to use adaptive observation and transition functions, that is, to make these functions region-dependent. We show with face images how we can adapt the modeling for each image patch so as to improve the resolution.

  18. Adaptive Markov Random Fields for Example-Based Super-resolution of Faces

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stephenson, Todd A.; Chen, Tsuhan

    2006-12-01

    Image enhancement of low-resolution images can be done through methods such as interpolation, super-resolution using multiple video frames, and example-based super-resolution. Example-based super-resolution, in particular, is suited to images that have a strong prior (for those frameworks that work on only a single image, it is more like image restoration than traditional, multiframe super-resolution). For example, hallucination and Markov random field (MRF) methods use examples drawn from the same domain as the image being enhanced to determine what the missing high-frequency information is likely to be. We propose to use even stronger prior information by extending MRF-based super-resolution to use adaptive observation and transition functions, that is, to make these functions region-dependent. We show with face images how we can adapt the modeling for each image patch so as to improve the resolution.

  19. 3D SEMANTIC LABELING OF ALS DATA BASED ON DOMAIN ADAPTION BY TRANSFERRING AND FUSING RANDOM FOREST MODELS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. Wu

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Labeling 3D point cloud data with traditional supervised learning methods requires considerable labelled samples, the collection of which is cost and time expensive. This work focuses on adopting domain adaption concept to transfer existing trained random forest classifiers (based on source domain to new data scenes (target domain, which aims at reducing the dependence of accurate 3D semantic labeling in point clouds on training samples from the new data scene. Firstly, two random forest classifiers were firstly trained with existing samples previously collected for other data. They were different from each other by using two different decision tree construction algorithms: C4.5 with information gain ratio and CART with Gini index. Secondly, four random forest classifiers adapted to the target domain are derived through transferring each tree in the source random forest models with two types of operations: structure expansion and reduction-SER and structure transfer-STRUT. Finally, points in target domain are labelled by fusing the four newly derived random forest classifiers using weights of evidence based fusion model. To validate our method, experimental analysis was conducted using 3 datasets: one is used as the source domain data (Vaihingen data for 3D Semantic Labelling; another two are used as the target domain data from two cities in China (Jinmen city and Dunhuang city. Overall accuracies of 85.5 % and 83.3 % for 3D labelling were achieved for Jinmen city and Dunhuang city data respectively, with only 1/3 newly labelled samples compared to the cases without domain adaption.

  20. A GRASP model in network design for two-stage supply chain

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hassan Javanshir

    2011-04-01

    Full Text Available We consider a capacitated facility location problem (CFLP which contains a production facility and distribution centers (DCs supplying retailers' demand. The primary purpose is to locate distribution centres in the network and the objective is the minimization of the sum of fixed facility location, pipeline inventory, safety stock and lost sales. We use Greedy randomized adaptive search procedures (GRASP to solve the model. The preliminary results indicate that the proposed method of this paper could provide competitive results in reasonable amount time.

  1. BILGO: Bilateral greedy optimization for large scale semidefinite programming

    KAUST Repository

    Hao, Zhifeng; Yuan, Ganzhao; Ghanem, Bernard

    2013-01-01

    Many machine learning tasks (e.g. metric and manifold learning problems) can be formulated as convex semidefinite programs. To enable the application of these tasks on a large-scale, scalability and computational efficiency are considered as desirable properties for a practical semidefinite programming algorithm. In this paper, we theoretically analyze a new bilateral greedy optimization (denoted BILGO) strategy in solving general semidefinite programs on large-scale datasets. As compared to existing methods, BILGO employs a bilateral search strategy during each optimization iteration. In such an iteration, the current semidefinite matrix solution is updated as a bilateral linear combination of the previous solution and a suitable rank-1 matrix, which can be efficiently computed from the leading eigenvector of the descent direction at this iteration. By optimizing for the coefficients of the bilateral combination, BILGO reduces the cost function in every iteration until the KKT conditions are fully satisfied, thus, it tends to converge to a global optimum. In fact, we prove that BILGO converges to the global optimal solution at a rate of O(1/k), where k is the iteration counter. The algorithm thus successfully combines the efficiency of conventional rank-1 update algorithms and the effectiveness of gradient descent. Moreover, BILGO can be easily extended to handle low rank constraints. To validate the effectiveness and efficiency of BILGO, we apply it to two important machine learning tasks, namely Mahalanobis metric learning and maximum variance unfolding. Extensive experimental results clearly demonstrate that BILGO can solve large-scale semidefinite programs efficiently.

  2. BILGO: Bilateral greedy optimization for large scale semidefinite programming

    KAUST Repository

    Hao, Zhifeng

    2013-10-03

    Many machine learning tasks (e.g. metric and manifold learning problems) can be formulated as convex semidefinite programs. To enable the application of these tasks on a large-scale, scalability and computational efficiency are considered as desirable properties for a practical semidefinite programming algorithm. In this paper, we theoretically analyze a new bilateral greedy optimization (denoted BILGO) strategy in solving general semidefinite programs on large-scale datasets. As compared to existing methods, BILGO employs a bilateral search strategy during each optimization iteration. In such an iteration, the current semidefinite matrix solution is updated as a bilateral linear combination of the previous solution and a suitable rank-1 matrix, which can be efficiently computed from the leading eigenvector of the descent direction at this iteration. By optimizing for the coefficients of the bilateral combination, BILGO reduces the cost function in every iteration until the KKT conditions are fully satisfied, thus, it tends to converge to a global optimum. In fact, we prove that BILGO converges to the global optimal solution at a rate of O(1/k), where k is the iteration counter. The algorithm thus successfully combines the efficiency of conventional rank-1 update algorithms and the effectiveness of gradient descent. Moreover, BILGO can be easily extended to handle low rank constraints. To validate the effectiveness and efficiency of BILGO, we apply it to two important machine learning tasks, namely Mahalanobis metric learning and maximum variance unfolding. Extensive experimental results clearly demonstrate that BILGO can solve large-scale semidefinite programs efficiently.

  3. Nearest greedy for solving the waste collection vehicle routing problem: A case study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mat, Nur Azriati; Benjamin, Aida Mauziah; Abdul-Rahman, Syariza; Wibowo, Antoni

    2017-11-01

    This paper presents a real case study pertaining to an issue related to waste collection in the northern part of Malaysia by using a constructive heuristic algorithm known as the Nearest Greedy (NG) technique. This technique has been widely used to devise initial solutions for issues concerning vehicle routing. Basically, the waste collection cycle involves the following steps: i) each vehicle starts from a depot, ii) visits a number of customers to collect waste, iii) unloads waste at the disposal site, and lastly, iv) returns to the depot. Moreover, the sample data set used in this paper consisted of six areas, where each area involved up to 103 customers. In this paper, the NG technique was employed to construct an initial route for each area. The solution proposed from the technique was compared with the present vehicle routes implemented by a waste collection company within the city. The comparison results portrayed that NG offered better vehicle routes with a 11.07% reduction of the total distance traveled, in comparison to the present vehicle routes.

  4. Gradual and Cumulative Improvements to the Classical Differential Evolution Scheme through Experiments

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anescu George

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The paper presents the experimental results of some tests conducted with the purpose to gradually and cumulatively improve the classical DE scheme in both efficiency and success rate. The modifications consisted in the randomization of the scaling factor (a simple jitter scheme, a more efficient Random Greedy Selection scheme, an adaptive scheme for the crossover probability and a resetting mechanism for the agents. After each modification step, experiments have been conducted on a set of 11 scalable, multimodal, continuous optimization functions in order to analyze the improvements and decide the new improvement direction. Finally, only the initial classical scheme and the constructed Fast Self-Adaptive DE (FSA-DE variant were compared with the purpose of testing their performance degradation with the increase of the search space dimension. The experimental results demonstrated the superiority of the proposed FSA-DE variant.

  5. Adaptive filtration of speech signals in the presence of correlated noise with random variation of probabilistic characteristics

    OpenAIRE

    M. O. Partala; S. Ya. Zhuk

    2007-01-01

    On the base of mixed Markoff process in discrete time optimal and quasioptimal algorithms is designed for adaptive filtration of speech signals in the presence of correlated noise with random variation of probabilistic characteristics.

  6. Effect of randomness on multi-frequency aeroelastic responses resolved by Unsteady Adaptive Stochastic Finite Elements

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Witteveen, Jeroen A.S.; Bijl, Hester

    2009-01-01

    The Unsteady Adaptive Stochastic Finite Elements (UASFE) method resolves the effect of randomness in numerical simulations of single-mode aeroelastic responses with a constant accuracy in time for a constant number of samples. In this paper, the UASFE framework is extended to multi-frequency responses and continuous structures by employing a wavelet decomposition pre-processing step to decompose the sampled multi-frequency signals into single-frequency components. The effect of the randomness on the multi-frequency response is then obtained by summing the results of the UASFE interpolation at constant phase for the different frequency components. Results for multi-frequency responses and continuous structures show a three orders of magnitude reduction of computational costs compared to crude Monte Carlo simulations in a harmonically forced oscillator, a flutter panel problem, and the three-dimensional transonic AGARD 445.6 wing aeroelastic benchmark subject to random fields and random parameters with various probability distributions.

  7. Opinion dynamics on an adaptive random network

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benczik, I. J.; Benczik, S. Z.; Schmittmann, B.; Zia, R. K. P.

    2009-04-01

    We revisit the classical model for voter dynamics in a two-party system with two basic modifications. In contrast to the original voter model studied in regular lattices, we implement the opinion formation process in a random network of agents in which interactions are no longer restricted by geographical distance. In addition, we incorporate the rapidly changing nature of the interpersonal relations in the model. At each time step, agents can update their relationships. This update is determined by their own opinion, and by their preference to make connections with individuals sharing the same opinion, or rather with opponents. In this way, the network is built in an adaptive manner, in the sense that its structure is correlated and evolves with the dynamics of the agents. The simplicity of the model allows us to examine several issues analytically. We establish criteria to determine whether consensus or polarization will be the outcome of the dynamics and on what time scales these states will be reached. In finite systems consensus is typical, while in infinite systems a disordered metastable state can emerge and persist for infinitely long time before consensus is reached.

  8. On the statistics of uplink inter-cell interference with greedy resource allocation

    KAUST Repository

    Tabassum, Hina

    2012-10-03

    In this paper, we introduce a new methodology to model the uplink inter-cell interference (ICI) in wireless cellular networks. The model takes into account both the effect of channel statistics (i.e., path loss, shadowing, fading) and the resource allocation scheme in the interfering cells. Firstly, we derive a semi-analytical expression for the distribution of the locations of the allocated user in a given cell considering greedy resource allocation with maximum signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) criterion. Based on this, we derive the distribution of the uplink ICI from one neighboring cell. Next, we compute the moment generating function (MGF) of the cumulative ICI observed from all neighboring cells and discuss some examples. Finally, we utilize the derived expressions to evaluate the outage probability in the network. In order to validate the accuracy of the developed semi-analytical expressions, we present comparison results with Monte Carlo simulations. The major benefit of the proposed mechanism is that it helps in estimating the distribution of ICI without the knowledge of instantaneous resource allocations in the neighbor cells. The proposed methodology applies to any shadowing and fading distributions. Moreover, it can be used to evaluate important network performance metrics numerically without the need for time-consuming Monte Carlo simulations. © 2011 IEEE.

  9. On the statistics of uplink inter-cell interference with greedy resource allocation

    KAUST Repository

    Tabassum, Hina; Yilmaz, Ferkan; Dawy, Zaher; Alouini, Mohamed-Slim

    2012-01-01

    In this paper, we introduce a new methodology to model the uplink inter-cell interference (ICI) in wireless cellular networks. The model takes into account both the effect of channel statistics (i.e., path loss, shadowing, fading) and the resource allocation scheme in the interfering cells. Firstly, we derive a semi-analytical expression for the distribution of the locations of the allocated user in a given cell considering greedy resource allocation with maximum signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) criterion. Based on this, we derive the distribution of the uplink ICI from one neighboring cell. Next, we compute the moment generating function (MGF) of the cumulative ICI observed from all neighboring cells and discuss some examples. Finally, we utilize the derived expressions to evaluate the outage probability in the network. In order to validate the accuracy of the developed semi-analytical expressions, we present comparison results with Monte Carlo simulations. The major benefit of the proposed mechanism is that it helps in estimating the distribution of ICI without the knowledge of instantaneous resource allocations in the neighbor cells. The proposed methodology applies to any shadowing and fading distributions. Moreover, it can be used to evaluate important network performance metrics numerically without the need for time-consuming Monte Carlo simulations. © 2011 IEEE.

  10. Self-correcting random number generator

    Science.gov (United States)

    Humble, Travis S.; Pooser, Raphael C.

    2016-09-06

    A system and method for generating random numbers. The system may include a random number generator (RNG), such as a quantum random number generator (QRNG) configured to self-correct or adapt in order to substantially achieve randomness from the output of the RNG. By adapting, the RNG may generate a random number that may be considered random regardless of whether the random number itself is tested as such. As an example, the RNG may include components to monitor one or more characteristics of the RNG during operation, and may use the monitored characteristics as a basis for adapting, or self-correcting, to provide a random number according to one or more performance criteria.

  11. Adaptive Randomization of Neratinib in Early Breast Cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Park, John W; Liu, Minetta C; Yee, Douglas; Yau, Christina; van 't Veer, Laura J; Symmans, W Fraser; Paoloni, Melissa; Perlmutter, Jane; Hylton, Nola M; Hogarth, Michael; DeMichele, Angela; Buxton, Meredith B; Chien, A Jo; Wallace, Anne M; Boughey, Judy C; Haddad, Tufia C; Chui, Stephen Y; Kemmer, Kathleen A; Kaplan, Henry G; Isaacs, Claudine; Nanda, Rita; Tripathy, Debasish; Albain, Kathy S; Edmiston, Kirsten K; Elias, Anthony D; Northfelt, Donald W; Pusztai, Lajos; Moulder, Stacy L; Lang, Julie E; Viscusi, Rebecca K; Euhus, David M; Haley, Barbara B; Khan, Qamar J; Wood, William C; Melisko, Michelle; Schwab, Richard; Helsten, Teresa; Lyandres, Julia; Davis, Sarah E; Hirst, Gillian L; Sanil, Ashish; Esserman, Laura J; Berry, Donald A

    2016-07-07

    The heterogeneity of breast cancer makes identifying effective therapies challenging. The I-SPY 2 trial, a multicenter, adaptive phase 2 trial of neoadjuvant therapy for high-risk clinical stage II or III breast cancer, evaluated multiple new agents added to standard chemotherapy to assess the effects on rates of pathological complete response (i.e., absence of residual cancer in the breast or lymph nodes at the time of surgery). We used adaptive randomization to compare standard neoadjuvant chemotherapy plus the tyrosine kinase inhibitor neratinib with control. Eligible women were categorized according to eight biomarker subtypes on the basis of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) status, hormone-receptor status, and risk according to a 70-gene profile. Neratinib was evaluated against control with regard to 10 biomarker signatures (prospectively defined combinations of subtypes). The primary end point was pathological complete response. Volume changes on serial magnetic resonance imaging were used to assess the likelihood of such a response in each patient. Adaptive assignment to experimental groups within each disease subtype was based on Bayesian probabilities of the superiority of the treatment over control. Enrollment in the experimental group was stopped when the 85% Bayesian predictive probability of success in a confirmatory phase 3 trial of neoadjuvant therapy reached a prespecified threshold for any biomarker signature ("graduation"). Enrollment was stopped for futility if the probability fell to below 10% for every biomarker signature. Neratinib reached the prespecified efficacy threshold with regard to the HER2-positive, hormone-receptor-negative signature. Among patients with HER2-positive, hormone-receptor-negative cancer, the mean estimated rate of pathological complete response was 56% (95% Bayesian probability interval [PI], 37 to 73%) among 115 patients in the neratinib group, as compared with 33% among 78 controls (95% PI, 11 to 54

  12. FOG Random Drift Signal Denoising Based on the Improved AR Model and Modified Sage-Husa Adaptive Kalman Filter.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sun, Jin; Xu, Xiaosu; Liu, Yiting; Zhang, Tao; Li, Yao

    2016-07-12

    In order to reduce the influence of fiber optic gyroscope (FOG) random drift error on inertial navigation systems, an improved auto regressive (AR) model is put forward in this paper. First, based on real-time observations at each restart of the gyroscope, the model of FOG random drift can be established online. In the improved AR model, the FOG measured signal is employed instead of the zero mean signals. Then, the modified Sage-Husa adaptive Kalman filter (SHAKF) is introduced, which can directly carry out real-time filtering on the FOG signals. Finally, static and dynamic experiments are done to verify the effectiveness. The filtering results are analyzed with Allan variance. The analysis results show that the improved AR model has high fitting accuracy and strong adaptability, and the minimum fitting accuracy of single noise is 93.2%. Based on the improved AR(3) model, the denoising method of SHAKF is more effective than traditional methods, and its effect is better than 30%. The random drift error of FOG is reduced effectively, and the precision of the FOG is improved.

  13. A dynamically adaptive wavelet approach to stochastic computations based on polynomial chaos - capturing all scales of random modes on independent grids

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ren Xiaoan; Wu Wenquan; Xanthis, Leonidas S.

    2011-01-01

    Highlights: → New approach for stochastic computations based on polynomial chaos. → Development of dynamically adaptive wavelet multiscale solver using space refinement. → Accurate capture of steep gradients and multiscale features in stochastic problems. → All scales of each random mode are captured on independent grids. → Numerical examples demonstrate the need for different space resolutions per mode. - Abstract: In stochastic computations, or uncertainty quantification methods, the spectral approach based on the polynomial chaos expansion in random space leads to a coupled system of deterministic equations for the coefficients of the expansion. The size of this system increases drastically when the number of independent random variables and/or order of polynomial chaos expansions increases. This is invariably the case for large scale simulations and/or problems involving steep gradients and other multiscale features; such features are variously reflected on each solution component or random/uncertainty mode requiring the development of adaptive methods for their accurate resolution. In this paper we propose a new approach for treating such problems based on a dynamically adaptive wavelet methodology involving space-refinement on physical space that allows all scales of each solution component to be refined independently of the rest. We exemplify this using the convection-diffusion model with random input data and present three numerical examples demonstrating the salient features of the proposed method. Thus we establish a new, elegant and flexible approach for stochastic problems with steep gradients and multiscale features based on polynomial chaos expansions.

  14. Reduced Wiener Chaos representation of random fields via basis adaptation and projection

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tsilifis, Panagiotis, E-mail: tsilifis@usc.edu [Department of Mathematics, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089 (United States); Department of Civil Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089 (United States); Ghanem, Roger G., E-mail: ghanem@usc.edu [Department of Civil Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089 (United States)

    2017-07-15

    A new characterization of random fields appearing in physical models is presented that is based on their well-known Homogeneous Chaos expansions. We take advantage of the adaptation capabilities of these expansions where the core idea is to rotate the basis of the underlying Gaussian Hilbert space, in order to achieve reduced functional representations that concentrate the induced probability measure in a lower dimensional subspace. For a smooth family of rotations along the domain of interest, the uncorrelated Gaussian inputs are transformed into a Gaussian process, thus introducing a mesoscale that captures intermediate characteristics of the quantity of interest.

  15. Continuous grasp algorithm applied to economic dispatch problem of thermal units

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Vianna Neto, Julio Xavier [Pontifical Catholic University of Parana - PUCPR, Curitiba, PR (Brazil). Undergraduate Program at Mechatronics Engineering; Bernert, Diego Luis de Andrade; Coelho, Leandro dos Santos [Pontifical Catholic University of Parana - PUCPR, Curitiba, PR (Brazil). Industrial and Systems Engineering Graduate Program, LAS/PPGEPS], e-mail: leandro.coelho@pucpr.br

    2010-07-01

    The economic dispatch problem (EDP) is one of the fundamental issues in power systems to obtain benefits with the stability, reliability and security. Its objective is to allocate the power demand among committed generators in the most economical manner, while all physical and operational constraints are satisfied. The cost of power generation, particularly in fossil fuel plants, is very high and economic dispatch helps in saving a significant amount of revenue. Recently, as an alternative to the conventional mathematical approaches, modern heuristic optimization techniques such as simulated annealing, evolutionary algorithms, neural networks, ant colony, and tabu search have been given much attention by many researchers due to their ability to find an almost global optimal solution in EDPs. On other hand, continuous GRASP (C-GRASP) is a stochastic local search meta-heuristic for finding cost-efficient solutions to continuous global optimization problems subject to box constraints. Like a greedy randomized adaptive search procedure (GRASP), a C-GRASP is a multi-start procedure where a starting solution for local improvement is constructed in a greedy randomized fashion. The C-GRASP algorithm is validated for a test system consisting of fifteen units, test system that takes into account spinning reserve and prohibited operating zones constrains. (author)

  16. Greedy solution of ill-posed problems: error bounds and exact inversion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Denis, L; Lorenz, D A; Trede, D

    2009-01-01

    The orthogonal matching pursuit (OMP) is a greedy algorithm to solve sparse approximation problems. Sufficient conditions for exact recovery are known with and without noise. In this paper we investigate the applicability of the OMP for the solution of ill-posed inverse problems in general, and in particular for two deconvolution examples from mass spectrometry and digital holography, respectively. In sparse approximation problems one often has to deal with the problem of redundancy of a dictionary, i.e. the atoms are not linearly independent. However, one expects them to be approximatively orthogonal and this is quantified by the so-called incoherence. This idea cannot be transferred to ill-posed inverse problems since here the atoms are typically far from orthogonal. The ill-posedness of the operator probably causes the correlation of two distinct atoms to become huge, i.e. that two atoms look much alike. Therefore, one needs conditions which take the structure of the problem into account and work without the concept of coherence. In this paper we develop results for the exact recovery of the support of noisy signals. In the two examples, mass spectrometry and digital holography, we show that our results lead to practically relevant estimates such that one may check a priori if the experimental setup guarantees exact deconvolution with OMP. Especially in the example from digital holography, our analysis may be regarded as a first step to calculate the resolution power of droplet holography

  17. Aircraft Route Recovery Based on An Improved GRASP Method

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yang He

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Aircrafts maintenance, temporary airport closures are common factors that disrupt normal flight schedule. The aircraft route recovery aims to recover original schedules by some strategies, including flights swaps, and cancellations, which is a NP-hard problem. This paper proposes an improved heuristic procedure based on Greedy Random Adaptive Search Procedure (GRASP to solve this problem. The effectiveness and high global optimization capability of the heuristic is illustrated through experiments based on large-scale problems. Compared to the original one, it is shown that the improved procedure can find feasible flight recovered schedules with lower cost in a short time.

  18. Blind Measurement Selection: A Random Matrix Theory Approach

    KAUST Repository

    Elkhalil, Khalil

    2016-12-14

    This paper considers the problem of selecting a set of $k$ measurements from $n$ available sensor observations. The selected measurements should minimize a certain error function assessing the error in estimating a certain $m$ dimensional parameter vector. The exhaustive search inspecting each of the $n\\\\choose k$ possible choices would require a very high computational complexity and as such is not practical for large $n$ and $k$. Alternative methods with low complexity have recently been investigated but their main drawbacks are that 1) they require perfect knowledge of the measurement matrix and 2) they need to be applied at the pace of change of the measurement matrix. To overcome these issues, we consider the asymptotic regime in which $k$, $n$ and $m$ grow large at the same pace. Tools from random matrix theory are then used to approximate in closed-form the most important error measures that are commonly used. The asymptotic approximations are then leveraged to select properly $k$ measurements exhibiting low values for the asymptotic error measures. Two heuristic algorithms are proposed: the first one merely consists in applying the convex optimization artifice to the asymptotic error measure. The second algorithm is a low-complexity greedy algorithm that attempts to look for a sufficiently good solution for the original minimization problem. The greedy algorithm can be applied to both the exact and the asymptotic error measures and can be thus implemented in blind and channel-aware fashions. We present two potential applications where the proposed algorithms can be used, namely antenna selection for uplink transmissions in large scale multi-user systems and sensor selection for wireless sensor networks. Numerical results are also presented and sustain the efficiency of the proposed blind methods in reaching the performances of channel-aware algorithms.

  19. Limited-memory adaptive snapshot selection for proper orthogonal decomposition

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Oxberry, Geoffrey M. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Kostova-Vassilevska, Tanya [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Arrighi, Bill [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Chand, Kyle [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)

    2015-04-02

    Reduced order models are useful for accelerating simulations in many-query contexts, such as optimization, uncertainty quantification, and sensitivity analysis. However, offline training of reduced order models can have prohibitively expensive memory and floating-point operation costs in high-performance computing applications, where memory per core is limited. To overcome this limitation for proper orthogonal decomposition, we propose a novel adaptive selection method for snapshots in time that limits offline training costs by selecting snapshots according an error control mechanism similar to that found in adaptive time-stepping ordinary differential equation solvers. The error estimator used in this work is related to theory bounding the approximation error in time of proper orthogonal decomposition-based reduced order models, and memory usage is minimized by computing the singular value decomposition using a single-pass incremental algorithm. Results for a viscous Burgers’ test problem demonstrate convergence in the limit as the algorithm error tolerances go to zero; in this limit, the full order model is recovered to within discretization error. The resulting method can be used on supercomputers to generate proper orthogonal decomposition-based reduced order models, or as a subroutine within hyperreduction algorithms that require taking snapshots in time, or within greedy algorithms for sampling parameter space.

  20. Unsupervised quantification of abdominal fat from CT images using Greedy Snakes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Agarwal, Chirag; Dallal, Ahmed H.; Arbabshirani, Mohammad R.; Patel, Aalpen; Moore, Gregory

    2017-02-01

    Adipose tissue has been associated with adverse consequences of obesity. Total adipose tissue (TAT) is divided into subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) and visceral adipose tissue (VAT). Intra-abdominal fat (VAT), located inside the abdominal cavity, is a major factor for the classic obesity related pathologies. Since direct measurement of visceral and subcutaneous fat is not trivial, substitute metrics like waist circumference (WC) and body mass index (BMI) are used in clinical settings to quantify obesity. Abdominal fat can be assessed effectively using CT or MRI, but manual fat segmentation is rather subjective and time-consuming. Hence, an automatic and accurate quantification tool for abdominal fat is needed. The goal of this study is to extract TAT, VAT and SAT fat from abdominal CT in a fully automated unsupervised fashion using energy minimization techniques. We applied a four step framework consisting of 1) initial body contour estimation, 2) approximation of the body contour, 3) estimation of inner abdominal contour using Greedy Snakes algorithm, and 4) voting, to segment the subcutaneous and visceral fat. We validated our algorithm on 952 clinical abdominal CT images (from 476 patients with a very wide BMI range) collected from various radiology departments of Geisinger Health System. To our knowledge, this is the first study of its kind on such a large and diverse clinical dataset. Our algorithm obtained a 3.4% error for VAT segmentation compared to manual segmentation. These personalized and accurate measurements of fat can complement traditional population health driven obesity metrics such as BMI and WC.

  1. Cytopathology whole slide images and adaptive tutorials for postgraduate pathology trainees: a randomized crossover trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van Es, Simone L; Kumar, Rakesh K; Pryor, Wendy M; Salisbury, Elizabeth L; Velan, Gary M

    2015-09-01

    To determine whether cytopathology whole slide images and virtual microscopy adaptive tutorials aid learning by postgraduate trainees, we designed a randomized crossover trial to evaluate the quantitative and qualitative impact of whole slide images and virtual microscopy adaptive tutorials compared with traditional glass slide and textbook methods of learning cytopathology. Forty-three anatomical pathology registrars were recruited from Australia, New Zealand, and Malaysia. Online assessments were used to determine efficacy, whereas user experience and perceptions of efficiency were evaluated using online Likert scales and open-ended questions. Outcomes of online assessments indicated that, with respect to performance, learning with whole slide images and virtual microscopy adaptive tutorials was equivalent to using traditional methods. High-impact learning, efficiency, and equity of learning from virtual microscopy adaptive tutorials were strong themes identified in open-ended responses. Participants raised concern about the lack of z-axis capability in the cytopathology whole slide images, suggesting that delivery of z-stacked whole slide images online may be important for future educational development. In this trial, learning cytopathology with whole slide images and virtual microscopy adaptive tutorials was found to be as effective as and perceived as more efficient than learning from glass slides and textbooks. The use of whole slide images and virtual microscopy adaptive tutorials has the potential to provide equitable access to effective learning from teaching material of consistently high quality. It also has broader implications for continuing professional development and maintenance of competence and quality assurance in specialist practice. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Minimum spanning trees and random resistor networks in d dimensions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Read, N

    2005-09-01

    We consider minimum-cost spanning trees, both in lattice and Euclidean models, in d dimensions. For the cost of the optimum tree in a box of size L , we show that there is a correction of order L(theta) , where theta or =1 . The arguments all rely on the close relation of Kruskal's greedy algorithm for the minimum spanning tree, percolation, and (for some arguments) random resistor networks. The scaling of the entropy and free energy at small nonzero T , and hence of the number of near-optimal solutions, is also discussed. We suggest that the Steiner tree problem is in the same universality class as the minimum spanning tree in all dimensions, as is the traveling salesman problem in two dimensions. Hence all will have the same value of theta=-3/4 in two dimensions.

  3. Accelerating Markov chain Monte Carlo simulation by differential evolution with self-adaptive randomized subspace sampling

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Vrugt, Jasper A [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Hyman, James M [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Robinson, Bruce A [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Higdon, Dave [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Ter Braak, Cajo J F [NETHERLANDS; Diks, Cees G H [UNIV OF AMSTERDAM

    2008-01-01

    Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods have found widespread use in many fields of study to estimate the average properties of complex systems, and for posterior inference in a Bayesian framework. Existing theory and experiments prove convergence of well constructed MCMC schemes to the appropriate limiting distribution under a variety of different conditions. In practice, however this convergence is often observed to be disturbingly slow. This is frequently caused by an inappropriate selection of the proposal distribution used to generate trial moves in the Markov Chain. Here we show that significant improvements to the efficiency of MCMC simulation can be made by using a self-adaptive Differential Evolution learning strategy within a population-based evolutionary framework. This scheme, entitled DiffeRential Evolution Adaptive Metropolis or DREAM, runs multiple different chains simultaneously for global exploration, and automatically tunes the scale and orientation of the proposal distribution in randomized subspaces during the search. Ergodicity of the algorithm is proved, and various examples involving nonlinearity, high-dimensionality, and multimodality show that DREAM is generally superior to other adaptive MCMC sampling approaches. The DREAM scheme significantly enhances the applicability of MCMC simulation to complex, multi-modal search problems.

  4. Multiobjective Variable Neighborhood Search algorithm for scheduling independent jobs on computational grid

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S. Selvi

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available Grid computing solves high performance and high-throughput computing problems through sharing resources ranging from personal computers to super computers distributed around the world. As the grid environments facilitate distributed computation, the scheduling of grid jobs has become an important issue. In this paper, an investigation on implementing Multiobjective Variable Neighborhood Search (MVNS algorithm for scheduling independent jobs on computational grid is carried out. The performance of the proposed algorithm has been evaluated with Min–Min algorithm, Simulated Annealing (SA and Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure (GRASP algorithm. Simulation results show that MVNS algorithm generally performs better than other metaheuristics methods.

  5. Cross-layer based adaptive wireless traffic control for per-flow and per-station fairness

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Siwamogsatham Siwaruk

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract In the IEEE 802.11 wireless LANs, the bandwidth is not fairly shared among stations due to the distributed coordination function (DCF mechanism in the IEEE 802.11 MAC protocol. It introduces the per-flow and per-station unfairness problems between uplink and downlink flows, as the uplink flows usually dominate the downlink flows. In addition, some users may use greedy applications such as video streaming, which may prevent other applications from connecting to the Internet. In this article, we propose an adaptive cross-layer bandwidth allocation mechanism to provide per-station and per-flow fairness. To verify the effectiveness and scalability, our scheme is implemented on a wireless access router and numerous experiments in a typical wireless environment with both TCP and UDP traffic are conducted to evaluate performance of the proposed scheme.

  6. Quasi optimal and adaptive sparse grids with control variates for PDEs with random diffusion coefficient

    KAUST Repository

    Tamellini, Lorenzo

    2016-01-05

    In this talk we discuss possible strategies to minimize the impact of the curse of dimensionality effect when building sparse-grid approximations of a multivariate function u = u(y1, ..., yN ). More precisely, we present a knapsack approach , in which we estimate the cost and the error reduction contribution of each possible component of the sparse grid, and then we choose the components with the highest error reduction /cost ratio. The estimates of the error reduction are obtained by either a mixed a-priori / a-posteriori approach, in which we first derive a theoretical bound and then tune it with some inexpensive auxiliary computations (resulting in the so-called quasi-optimal sparse grids ), or by a fully a-posteriori approach (obtaining the so-called adaptive sparse grids ). This framework is very general and can be used to build quasi-optimal/adaptive sparse grids on bounded and unbounded domains (e.g. u depending on uniform and normal random distributions for yn), using both nested and non-nested families of univariate collocation points. We present some theoretical convergence results as well as numerical results showing the efficiency of the proposed approach for the approximation of the solution of elliptic PDEs with random diffusion coefficients. In this context, to treat the case of rough permeability fields in which a sparse grid approach may not be suitable, we propose to use the sparse grids as a control variate in a Monte Carlo simulation.

  7. Greedy algorithms for high-dimensional non-symmetric linear problems***

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cancès E.

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available In this article, we present a family of numerical approaches to solve high-dimensional linear non-symmetric problems. The principle of these methods is to approximate a function which depends on a large number of variates by a sum of tensor product functions, each term of which is iteratively computed via a greedy algorithm ? . There exists a good theoretical framework for these methods in the case of (linear and nonlinear symmetric elliptic problems. However, the convergence results are not valid any more as soon as the problems under consideration are not symmetric. We present here a review of the main algorithms proposed in the literature to circumvent this difficulty, together with some new approaches. The theoretical convergence results and the practical implementation of these algorithms are discussed. Their behaviors are illustrated through some numerical examples. Dans cet article, nous présentons une famille de méthodes numériques pour résoudre des problèmes linéaires non symétriques en grande dimension. Le principe de ces approches est de représenter une fonction dépendant d’un grand nombre de variables sous la forme d’une somme de fonctions produit tensoriel, dont chaque terme est calculé itérativement via un algorithme glouton ? . Ces méthodes possèdent de bonnes propriétés théoriques dans le cas de problèmes elliptiques symétriques (linéaires ou non linéaires, mais celles-ci ne sont plus valables dès lors que les problèmes considérés ne sont plus symétriques. Nous présentons une revue des principaux algorithmes proposés dans la littérature pour contourner cette difficulté ainsi que de nouvelles approches que nous proposons. Les résultats de convergence théoriques et la mise en oeuvre pratique de ces algorithmes sont détaillés et leur comportement est illustré au travers d’exemples numériques.

  8. A Distributed Routing Scheme for Energy Management in Solar Powered Sensor Networks

    KAUST Repository

    Dehwah, Ahmad H.

    2017-10-11

    Energy management is critical for solar-powered sensor networks. In this article, we consider data routing policies to optimize the energy in solar powered networks. Motivated by multipurpose sensor networks, the objective is to find the best network policy that maximizes the minimal energy among nodes in a sensor network, over a finite time horizon, given uncertain energy input forecasts. First, we derive the optimal policy in certain special cases using forward dynamic programming. We then introduce a greedy policy that is distributed and exhibits significantly lower complexity. When computationally feasible, we compare the performance of the optimal policy with the greedy policy. We also demonstrate the performance and computational complexity of the greedy policy over randomly simulated networks, and show that it yields results that are almost identical to the optimal policy, for greatly reduced worst-case computational costs and memory requirements. Finally, we demonstrate the implementation of the greedy policy on an experimental sensor network.

  9. Adaptive force produced by stress-induced regulation of random variation intensity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shimansky, Yury P

    2010-08-01

    The Darwinian theory of life evolution is capable of explaining the majority of related phenomena. At the same time, the mechanisms of optimizing traits beneficial to a population as a whole but not directly to an individual remain largely unclear. There are also significant problems with explaining the phenomenon of punctuated equilibrium. From another perspective, multiple mechanisms for the regulation of the rate of genetic mutations according to the environmental stress have been discovered, but their precise functional role is not well understood yet. Here a novel mathematical paradigm called a Kinetic-Force Principle (KFP), which can serve as a general basis for biologically plausible optimization methods, is introduced and its rigorous derivation is provided. Based on this principle, it is shown that, if the rate of random changes in a biological system is proportional, even only roughly, to the amount of environmental stress, a virtual force is created, acting in the direction of stress relief. It is demonstrated that KFP can provide important insights into solving the above problems. Evidence is presented in support of a hypothesis that the nature employs KFP for accelerating adaptation in biological systems. A detailed comparison between KFP and the principle of variation and natural selection is presented and their complementarity is revealed. It is concluded that KFP is not a competing alternative, but a powerful addition to the principle of variation and natural selection. It is also shown KFP can be used in multiple ways for adaptation of individual biological organisms.

  10. Adaptive feature selection using v-shaped binary particle swarm optimization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Teng, Xuyang; Dong, Hongbin; Zhou, Xiurong

    2017-01-01

    Feature selection is an important preprocessing method in machine learning and data mining. This process can be used not only to reduce the amount of data to be analyzed but also to build models with stronger interpretability based on fewer features. Traditional feature selection methods evaluate the dependency and redundancy of features separately, which leads to a lack of measurement of their combined effect. Moreover, a greedy search considers only the optimization of the current round and thus cannot be a global search. To evaluate the combined effect of different subsets in the entire feature space, an adaptive feature selection method based on V-shaped binary particle swarm optimization is proposed. In this method, the fitness function is constructed using the correlation information entropy. Feature subsets are regarded as individuals in a population, and the feature space is searched using V-shaped binary particle swarm optimization. The above procedure overcomes the hard constraint on the number of features, enables the combined evaluation of each subset as a whole, and improves the search ability of conventional binary particle swarm optimization. The proposed algorithm is an adaptive method with respect to the number of feature subsets. The experimental results show the advantages of optimizing the feature subsets using the V-shaped transfer function and confirm the effectiveness and efficiency of the feature subsets obtained under different classifiers.

  11. CR-Calculus and adaptive array theory applied to MIMO random vibration control tests

    Science.gov (United States)

    Musella, U.; Manzato, S.; Peeters, B.; Guillaume, P.

    2016-09-01

    Performing Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) tests to reproduce the vibration environment in a user-defined number of control points of a unit under test is necessary in applications where a realistic environment replication has to be achieved. MIMO tests require vibration control strategies to calculate the required drive signal vector that gives an acceptable replication of the target. This target is a (complex) vector with magnitude and phase information at the control points for MIMO Sine Control tests while in MIMO Random Control tests, in the most general case, the target is a complete spectral density matrix. The idea behind this work is to tailor a MIMO random vibration control approach that can be generalized to other MIMO tests, e.g. MIMO Sine and MIMO Time Waveform Replication. In this work the approach is to use gradient-based procedures over the complex space, applying the so called CR-Calculus and the adaptive array theory. With this approach it is possible to better control the process performances allowing the step-by-step Jacobian Matrix update. The theoretical bases behind the work are followed by an application of the developed method to a two-exciter two-axis system and by performance comparisons with standard methods.

  12. A heuristic algorithm for a multi-product four-layer capacitated location-routing problem

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohsen Hamidi

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this study is to solve a complex multi-product four-layer capacitated location-routing problem (LRP in which two specific constraints are taken into account: 1 plants have limited production capacity, and 2 central depots have limited capacity for storing and transshipping products. The LRP represents a multi-product four-layer distribution network that consists of plants, central depots, regional depots, and customers. A heuristic algorithm is developed to solve the four-layer LRP. The heuristic uses GRASP (Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure and two probabilistic tabu search strategies of intensification and diversification to tackle the problem. Results show that the heuristic solves the problem effectively.

  13. Adaptive Algebraic Multigrid for Finite Element Elliptic Equations with Random Coefficients

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kalchev, D

    2012-04-02

    This thesis presents a two-grid algorithm based on Smoothed Aggregation Spectral Element Agglomeration Algebraic Multigrid (SA-{rho}AMGe) combined with adaptation. The aim is to build an efficient solver for the linear systems arising from discretization of second-order elliptic partial differential equations (PDEs) with stochastic coefficients. Examples include PDEs that model subsurface flow with random permeability field. During a Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) simulation process, that draws PDE coefficient samples from a certain distribution, the PDE coefficients change, hence the resulting linear systems to be solved change. At every such step the system (discretized PDE) needs to be solved and the computed solution used to evaluate some functional(s) of interest that then determine if the coefficient sample is acceptable or not. The MCMC process is hence computationally intensive and requires the solvers used to be efficient and fast. This fact that at every step of MCMC the resulting linear system changes, makes an already existing solver built for the old problem perhaps not as efficient for the problem corresponding to the new sampled coefficient. This motivates the main goal of our study, namely, to adapt an already existing solver to handle the problem (with changed coefficient) with the objective to achieve this goal to be faster and more efficient than building a completely new solver from scratch. Our approach utilizes the local element matrices (for the problem with changed coefficients) to build local problems associated with constructed by the method agglomerated elements (a set of subdomains that cover the given computational domain). We solve a generalized eigenproblem for each set in a subspace spanned by the previous local coarse space (used for the old solver) and a vector, component of the error, that the old solver cannot handle. A portion of the spectrum of these local eigen-problems (corresponding to eigenvalues close to zero) form the

  14. SIMULATION AND ANALYSIS OF GREEDY ROUTING PROTOCOL IN VIEW OF ENERGY CONSUMPTION AND NETWORK LIFETIME IN THREE DIMENSIONAL UNDERWATER WIRELESS SENSOR NETWORK

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    SHEENA KOHLI

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Underwater Wireless Sensor Network (UWSN comprises of a number of miniature sized sensing devices deployed in the sea or ocean, connected by dint of acoustic links to each other. The sensors trap the ambient conditions and transmit the data from one end to another. For transmission of data in any medium, routing protocols play a crucial role. Moreover, being battery limited, an unavoidable parameter to be considered in operation and analysis of protocols is the network energy and the network lifetime. The paper discusses the greedy routing protocol for underwater wireless sensor networks. The simulation of this routing protocol also takes into consideration the characteristics of acoustic communication like attenuation, transmission loss, signal to noise ratio, noise, propagation delay. The results from these observations may be used to construct an accurate underwater communication model.

  15. Critical concepts in adaptive clinical trials

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Park JJH

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Jay JH Park,1 Kristian Thorlund,2,3 Edward J Mills2,3 1Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada; 2Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence, and Impact (HEI, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada; 3The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Seattle, WA, USA Abstract: Adaptive clinical trials are an innovative trial design aimed at reducing resources, decreasing time to completion and number of patients exposed to inferior interventions, and improving the likelihood of detecting treatment effects. The last decade has seen an increasing use of adaptive designs, particularly in drug development. They frequently differ importantly from conventional clinical trials as they allow modifications to key trial design components during the trial, as data is being collected, using preplanned decision rules. Adaptive designs have increased likelihood of complexity and also potential bias, so it is important to understand the common types of adaptive designs. Many clinicians and investigators may be unfamiliar with the design considerations for adaptive designs. Given their complexities, adaptive trials require an understanding of design features and sources of bias. Herein, we introduce some common adaptive design elements and biases and specifically address response adaptive randomization, sample size reassessment, Bayesian methods for adaptive trials, seamless trials, and adaptive enrichment using real examples. Keywords: adaptive designs, response adaptive randomization, sample size reassessment, Bayesian adaptive trials, seamless trials, adaptive enrichment

  16. Spin-adapted open-shell random phase approximation and time-dependent density functional theory. I. Theory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Zhendong; Liu, Wenjian

    2010-08-14

    The spin-adaptation of single-reference quantum chemical methods for excited states of open-shell systems has been nontrivial. The primary reason is that the configuration space, generated by a truncated rank of excitations from only one component of a reference multiplet, is spin-incomplete. Those "missing" configurations are of higher ranks and can, in principle, be recaptured by a particular class of excitation operators. However, the resulting formalisms are then quite involved and there are situations [e.g., time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) under the adiabatic approximation] that prevent one from doing so. To solve this issue, we propose here a tensor-coupling scheme that invokes all the components of a reference multiplet (i.e., a tensor reference) rather than increases the excitation ranks. A minimal spin-adapted n-tuply excited configuration space can readily be constructed by tensor products between the n-tuple tensor excitation operators and the chosen tensor reference. Further combined with the tensor equation-of-motion formalism, very compact expressions for excitation energies can be obtained. As a first application of this general idea, a spin-adapted open-shell random phase approximation is first developed. The so-called "translation rule" is then adopted to formulate a spin-adapted, restricted open-shell Kohn-Sham (ROKS)-based TD-DFT (ROKS-TD-DFT). Here, a particular symmetry structure has to be imposed on the exchange-correlation kernel. While the standard ROKS-TD-DFT can access only excited states due to singlet-coupled single excitations, i.e., only some of the singly excited states of the same spin (S(i)) as the reference, the new scheme can capture all the excited states of spin S(i)-1, S(i), or S(i)+1 due to both singlet- and triplet-coupled single excitations. The actual implementation and computation are very much like the (spin-contaminated) unrestricted Kohn-Sham-based TD-DFT. It is also shown that spin-contaminated spin

  17. A simplified method for random vibration analysis of structures with random parameters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ghienne, Martin; Blanzé, Claude

    2016-01-01

    Piezoelectric patches with adapted electrical circuits or viscoelastic dissipative materials are two solutions particularly adapted to reduce vibration of light structures. To accurately design these solutions, it is necessary to describe precisely the dynamical behaviour of the structure. It may quickly become computationally intensive to describe robustly this behaviour for a structure with nonlinear phenomena, such as contact or friction for bolted structures, and uncertain variations of its parameters. The aim of this work is to propose a non-intrusive reduced stochastic method to characterize robustly the vibrational response of a structure with random parameters. Our goal is to characterize the eigenspace of linear systems with dynamic properties considered as random variables. This method is based on a separation of random aspects from deterministic aspects and allows us to estimate the first central moments of each random eigenfrequency with a single deterministic finite elements computation. The method is applied to a frame with several Young's moduli modeled as random variables. This example could be expanded to a bolted structure including piezoelectric devices. The method needs to be enhanced when random eigenvalues are closely spaced. An indicator with no additional computational cost is proposed to characterize the ’’proximity” of two random eigenvalues. (paper)

  18. Minimal Reducts with Grasp

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Iris Iddaly Mendez Gurrola

    2011-03-01

    Full Text Available The proper detection of patient level of dementia is important to offer the suitable treatment. The diagnosis is based on certain criteria, reflected in the clinical examinations. From these examinations emerge the limitations and the degree in which each patient is in. In order to reduce the total of limitations to be evaluated, we used the rough set theory, this theory has been applied in areas of the artificial intelligence such as decision analysis, expert systems, knowledge discovery, classification with multiple attributes. In our case this theory is applied to find the minimal limitations set or reduct that generate the same classification that considering all the limitations, to fulfill this purpose we development an algorithm GRASP (Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure.

  19. An Aircraft Service Staff Rostering using a Hybrid GRASP Algorithm

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    W.H. Ip

    2009-10-01

    Full Text Available The aircraft ground service company is responsible for carrying out the regular tasks to aircraft maintenace between their arrival at and departure from the airport. This paper presents the application of a hybrid approach based upon greedy randomized adaptive search procedure (GRASP for rostering technical staff such that they are assigned predefined shift patterns. The rostering of staff is posed as an optimization problem with an aim of minimizing the violations of hard and soft constraints. The proposed algorithm iteratively constructs a set of solutions by GRASP. Furthermore, with multi-agent techniques, we efficiently identify an optimal roster with minimal constraint violations and fair to employees. Experimental results are included to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.

  20. Magmatically Greedy Reararc Volcanoes of the N. Tofua Segment of the Tonga Arc

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rubin, K. H.; Embley, R. W.; Arculus, R. J.; Lupton, J. E.

    2013-12-01

    Volcanism along the northernmost Tofua Arc is enigmatic because edifices of the arc's volcanic front are mostly, magmatically relatively anemic, despite the very high convergence rate of the Pacific Plate with this section of Tonga Arc. However, just westward of the arc front, in terrain generally thought of as part of the adjacent NE Lau Backarc Basin, lie a series of very active volcanoes and volcanic features, including the large submarine caldera Niuatahi (aka volcano 'O'), a large composite dacite lava flow terrain not obviously associated with any particular volcanic edifice, and the Mata volcano group, a series of 9 small elongate volcanoes in an extensional basin at the extreme NE corner of the Lau Basin. These three volcanic terrains do not sit on arc-perpendicular cross chains. Collectively, these volcanic features appear to be receiving a large proportion of the magma flux from the sub-Tonga/Lau mantle wedge, in effect 'stealing' this magma flux from the arc front. A second occurrence of such magma 'capture' from the arc front occurs in an area just to the south, on southernmost portion of the Fonualei Spreading Center. Erupted compositions at these 'magmatically greedy' volcanoes are consistent with high slab-derived fluid input into the wedge (particularly trace element abundances and volatile contents, e.g., see Lupton abstract this session). It is unclear how long-lived a feature this is, but the very presence of such hyperactive and areally-dispersed volcanism behind the arc front implies these volcanoes are not in fact part of any focused spreading/rifting in the Lau Backarc Basin, and should be thought of as 'reararc volcanoes'. Possible tectonic factors contributing to this unusually productive reararc environment are the high rate of convergence, the cold slab, the highly disorganized extension in the adjacent backarc, and the tear in the subducting plate just north of the Tofua Arc.

  1. Iterated greedy algorithms to minimize the total family flow time for job-shop scheduling with job families and sequence-dependent set-ups

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Ji-Su; Park, Jung-Hyeon; Lee, Dong-Ho

    2017-10-01

    This study addresses a variant of job-shop scheduling in which jobs are grouped into job families, but they are processed individually. The problem can be found in various industrial systems, especially in reprocessing shops of remanufacturing systems. If the reprocessing shop is a job-shop type and has the component-matching requirements, it can be regarded as a job shop with job families since the components of a product constitute a job family. In particular, sequence-dependent set-ups in which set-up time depends on the job just completed and the next job to be processed are also considered. The objective is to minimize the total family flow time, i.e. the maximum among the completion times of the jobs within a job family. A mixed-integer programming model is developed and two iterated greedy algorithms with different local search methods are proposed. Computational experiments were conducted on modified benchmark instances and the results are reported.

  2. Multi-index Stochastic Collocation Convergence Rates for Random PDEs with Parametric Regularity

    KAUST Repository

    Haji Ali, Abdul Lateef; Nobile, Fabio; Tamellini, Lorenzo; Tempone, Raul

    2016-01-01

    We analyze the recent Multi-index Stochastic Collocation (MISC) method for computing statistics of the solution of a partial differential equation (PDE) with random data, where the random coefficient is parametrized by means of a countable sequence of terms in a suitable expansion. MISC is a combination technique based on mixed differences of spatial approximations and quadratures over the space of random data, and naturally, the error analysis uses the joint regularity of the solution with respect to both the variables in the physical domain and parametric variables. In MISC, the number of problem solutions performed at each discretization level is not determined by balancing the spatial and stochastic components of the error, but rather by suitably extending the knapsack-problem approach employed in the construction of the quasi-optimal sparse-grids and Multi-index Monte Carlo methods, i.e., we use a greedy optimization procedure to select the most effective mixed differences to include in the MISC estimator. We apply our theoretical estimates to a linear elliptic PDE in which the log-diffusion coefficient is modeled as a random field, with a covariance similar to a Matérn model, whose realizations have spatial regularity determined by a scalar parameter. We conduct a complexity analysis based on a summability argument showing algebraic rates of convergence with respect to the overall computational work. The rate of convergence depends on the smoothness parameter, the physical dimensionality and the efficiency of the linear solver. Numerical experiments show the effectiveness of MISC in this infinite dimensional setting compared with the Multi-index Monte Carlo method and compare the convergence rate against the rates predicted in our theoretical analysis. © 2016 SFoCM

  3. Multi-index Stochastic Collocation Convergence Rates for Random PDEs with Parametric Regularity

    KAUST Repository

    Haji Ali, Abdul Lateef

    2016-08-26

    We analyze the recent Multi-index Stochastic Collocation (MISC) method for computing statistics of the solution of a partial differential equation (PDE) with random data, where the random coefficient is parametrized by means of a countable sequence of terms in a suitable expansion. MISC is a combination technique based on mixed differences of spatial approximations and quadratures over the space of random data, and naturally, the error analysis uses the joint regularity of the solution with respect to both the variables in the physical domain and parametric variables. In MISC, the number of problem solutions performed at each discretization level is not determined by balancing the spatial and stochastic components of the error, but rather by suitably extending the knapsack-problem approach employed in the construction of the quasi-optimal sparse-grids and Multi-index Monte Carlo methods, i.e., we use a greedy optimization procedure to select the most effective mixed differences to include in the MISC estimator. We apply our theoretical estimates to a linear elliptic PDE in which the log-diffusion coefficient is modeled as a random field, with a covariance similar to a Matérn model, whose realizations have spatial regularity determined by a scalar parameter. We conduct a complexity analysis based on a summability argument showing algebraic rates of convergence with respect to the overall computational work. The rate of convergence depends on the smoothness parameter, the physical dimensionality and the efficiency of the linear solver. Numerical experiments show the effectiveness of MISC in this infinite dimensional setting compared with the Multi-index Monte Carlo method and compare the convergence rate against the rates predicted in our theoretical analysis. © 2016 SFoCM

  4. Derandomizing from random strings

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Buhrman, H.; Fortnow, L.; Koucký, M.; Loff, B.

    2010-01-01

    In this paper we show that BPP is truth-table reducible to the set of Kolmogorov random strings R(K). It was previously known that PSPACE, and hence BPP is Turing-reducible to R(K). The earlier proof relied on the adaptivity of the Turing-reduction to find a Kolmogorov-random string of polynomial

  5. Clinical Marginal and Internal Adaptation of Maxillary Anterior Single All-Ceramic Crowns and 2-year Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Akın, Aslı; Toksavul, Suna; Toman, Muhittin

    2015-07-01

    The aims of this randomized-controlled clinical trial were to compare marginal and internal adaptation of all-ceramic crowns fabricated with CAD/CAM and heat-pressed (HP) techniques before luting and to evaluate the clinical outcomes at baseline and at 6, 12, and 24 months after luting. Fifteen CAD/CAM (CC) and 15 HP all-ceramic crowns were placed in 15 patients. A silicone replica was obtained to measure marginal and internal adaptation of each all-ceramic crown before luting, and they were sectioned buccolingually and mesiodistally. Marginal and internal adaptations were measured using computerized light microscope at 40× magnification. Clinical evaluations took place at baseline (2 days after luting) and at 6, 12, and 24 months after luting. Replica scores were analyzed with Mann-Whitney U and Student's t-test (α = 0.05). Survival rate of crowns was determined using Kaplan-Meier statistical analysis. The median marginal gap for the CC group was 132.2 μm and was 130.2 μm for the HP group. The mean internal adaptation for the CC group was 220.3 ± 51.3 μm and 210.5 ± 31 μm for the HP group. There were no statistically significant differences with respect to marginal opening (Mann-Whitney U test; p = 0.95) and internal adaptation (Student's t-test; p = 0.535) between the 2 groups. Based on modified Ryge criteria, 100% of the crowns were rated satisfactory during the 2-year period. In this in vivo study, CAD/CAM and HP all-ceramic crowns exhibited similar marginal and internal adaptations. A 100% success rate was recorded for the 15 CAD/CAM and for the 15 HP all-ceramic crowns during the 2-year period. © 2014 by the American College of Prosthodontists.

  6. On the Adaptiveness of Quicksort

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Brodal, Gerth Stølting; Fagerberg, Rolf; Moruz, Gabriel

    2005-01-01

    are adaptive, i.e. they have a complexity analysis which is better for inputs which are nearly sorted, according to some specified measure of presortedness. Quicksort is not among these, as it uses Omega(n log n) comparisons even when the input is already sorted. However, in this paper we demonstrate...... empirically that the actual running time of Quicksort is adaptive with respect to the presortedness measure Inv. Differences close to a factor of two are observed between instances with low and high Inv value. We then show that for the randomized version of Quicksort, the number of element swaps performed...... is provably adaptive with respect to the measure Inv. More precisely, we prove that randomized Quicksort performs expected O(n(1+log (1+Inv/n))) element swaps, where Inv denotes the number of inversions in the input sequence. This result provides a theoretical explanation for the observed behavior, and gives...

  7. Proposta e avaliação de heurísticas grasp para o problema da diversidade máxima

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Geiza Cristina da Silva

    2006-08-01

    Full Text Available O Problema da Diversidade Máxima (PDM consiste em, dado um conjunto N composto de n elementos, selecionar um subconjunto M Ì N de forma tal que os elementos de M possuam a maior diversidade possível entre eles. O PDM pertence à classe de problemas NP-Difícil limitando, com isso, o uso exclusivo de métodos exatos e tornando atrativo o desenvolvimento de novos métodos heurísticos na solução aproximada deste problema. Neste trabalho são propostos métodos heurísticos de construção e busca local que, combinados, são usados como base em diferentes versões do algoritmo GRASP (Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure. Incluímos como objetivos analisar o impacto destas heurísticas no desempenho da metaheurística GRASP. Resultados computacionais mostram que os algoritmos propostos sempre alcançam uma solução ótima quando esta é conhecida e, para instâncias maiores, apresentam um desempenho médio superior quando comparados com as melhores heurísticas GRASP da literatura.The Maximum Diversity Problem (MDP consists of, given a set N with n elements, selecting a subset M Ì N such that the elements of M have the most possible diversity among them. The MDP belongs to the class of NP-Hard problems limiting the exclusive use of exact methods and turning attractive the development of heuristics to solve the problem. In this work we propose constructive and local search heuristics which are used in different versions of GRASP (Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure. We also analyze the impact of this heuristics in the GRASP performance. Computational results show that the proposed algorithms always find an optimal solution when this one is known and, for larger instances, produce an average performance better than well known versions of GRASP from the literature.

  8. Adaptive coupling optimized spiking coherence and synchronization in Newman-Watts neuronal networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gong, Yubing; Xu, Bo; Wu, Ya'nan

    2013-09-01

    In this paper, we have numerically studied the effect of adaptive coupling on the temporal coherence and synchronization of spiking activity in Newman-Watts Hodgkin-Huxley neuronal networks. It is found that random shortcuts can enhance the spiking synchronization more rapidly when the increment speed of adaptive coupling is increased and can optimize the temporal coherence of spikes only when the increment speed of adaptive coupling is appropriate. It is also found that adaptive coupling strength can enhance the synchronization of spikes and can optimize the temporal coherence of spikes when random shortcuts are appropriate. These results show that adaptive coupling has a big influence on random shortcuts related spiking activity and can enhance and optimize the temporal coherence and synchronization of spiking activity of the network. These findings can help better understand the roles of adaptive coupling for improving the information processing and transmission in neural systems.

  9. Is prevention of acute pesticide poisoning effective and efficient, with Locally Adapted Personal Protective Equipment? A randomized crossover study among farmers in Chitwan, Nepal

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Varma, Anshu; Neupane, Dinesh; Bonde, Jens Peter Ellekilde

    2016-01-01

    Background: Farmers' risk of pesticide poisoning can be reduced with personal protective equipment but in low-income countries farmers' use of such equipment is limited. Objective: To examine the effectiveness and efficiency of Locally Adapted Personal Protective Equipment to reduce organophosphate...... exposure among farmers. Methods: In a crossover study, 45 male farmers from Chitwan, Nepal, were randomly allocated to work as usual applying organophosphate pesticides wearing Locally Adapted Personal Protective Equipment or Daily Practice Clothing. For seven days before each experiment, each farmer.......08; 0.06]. Wearing the Locally Adapted Personal Protective Equipment versus Daily Practice Clothing gave the following results, respectively: comfort 75.6% versus 100%, sense of heat 64.4% versus 31.3%, other problems 44.4% versus 33.3%, like-ability 95.6% versus 77.8%. Conclusion: We cannot support...

  10. Mad scientists, compassionate healers, and greedy egotists: the portrayal of physicians in the movies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Flores, Glenn

    2002-07-01

    Cinematic depictions of physicians potentially can affect public expectations and the patient-physician relationship, but little attention has been devoted to portrayals of physicians in movies. The objective of the study was the analysis of cinematic depictions of physicians to determine common demographic attributes of movie physicians, major themes, and whether portrayals have changed over time. All movies released on videotape with physicians as main characters and readily available to the public were viewed in their entirety. Data were collected on physician characteristics, diagnoses, and medical accuracy, and dialogue concerning physicians was transcribed. The results showed that in the 131 films, movie physicians were significantly more likely to be male (p film physicians has declined steadily in recent decades. Movie physicians are most commonly surgeons (33%), psychiatrists (26%), and family practitioners (18%). Physicians were portrayed negatively in 44% of movies, and since the 1960s positive portrayals declined while negative portrayals increased. Physicians frequently are depicted as greedy, egotistical, uncaring, and unethical, especially in recent films. Medical inaccuracies occurred in 27% of films. Compassion and idealism were common in early physician movies but are increasingly scarce in recent decades. A recurrent theme is the "mad scientist," the physician-researcher that values research more than patients' welfare. Portrayals of physicians as egotistical and materialistic have increased, whereas sexism and racism have waned. Movies from the past two decades have explored critical issues surrounding medical ethics and managed care. We conclude that negative cinematic portrayals of physicians are on the rise, which may adversely affect patient expectations and the patient-physician relationship. Nevertheless, films about physicians can serve as useful gauges of public opinion about the medical profession, as tools for medical education, and as

  11. Bayesian dose selection design for a binary outcome using restricted response adaptive randomization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meinzer, Caitlyn; Martin, Renee; Suarez, Jose I

    2017-09-08

    In phase II trials, the most efficacious dose is usually not known. Moreover, given limited resources, it is difficult to robustly identify a dose while also testing for a signal of efficacy that would support a phase III trial. Recent designs have sought to be more efficient by exploring multiple doses through the use of adaptive strategies. However, the added flexibility may potentially increase the risk of making incorrect assumptions and reduce the total amount of information available across the dose range as a function of imbalanced sample size. To balance these challenges, a novel placebo-controlled design is presented in which a restricted Bayesian response adaptive randomization (RAR) is used to allocate a majority of subjects to the optimal dose of active drug, defined as the dose with the lowest probability of poor outcome. However, the allocation between subjects who receive active drug or placebo is held constant to retain the maximum possible power for a hypothesis test of overall efficacy comparing the optimal dose to placebo. The design properties and optimization of the design are presented in the context of a phase II trial for subarachnoid hemorrhage. For a fixed total sample size, a trade-off exists between the ability to select the optimal dose and the probability of rejecting the null hypothesis. This relationship is modified by the allocation ratio between active and control subjects, the choice of RAR algorithm, and the number of subjects allocated to an initial fixed allocation period. While a responsive RAR algorithm improves the ability to select the correct dose, there is an increased risk of assigning more subjects to a worse arm as a function of ephemeral trends in the data. A subarachnoid treatment trial is used to illustrate how this design can be customized for specific objectives and available data. Bayesian adaptive designs are a flexible approach to addressing multiple questions surrounding the optimal dose for treatment efficacy

  12. A HYBRID HEURISTIC ALGORITHM FOR THE CLUSTERED TRAVELING SALESMAN PROBLEM

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mário Mestria

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available ABSTRACT This paper proposes a hybrid heuristic algorithm, based on the metaheuristics Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure, Iterated Local Search and Variable Neighborhood Descent, to solve the Clustered Traveling Salesman Problem (CTSP. Hybrid Heuristic algorithm uses several variable neighborhood structures combining the intensification (using local search operators and diversification (constructive heuristic and perturbation routine. In the CTSP, the vertices are partitioned into clusters and all vertices of each cluster have to be visited contiguously. The CTSP is -hard since it includes the well-known Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP as a special case. Our hybrid heuristic is compared with three heuristics from the literature and an exact method. Computational experiments are reported for different classes of instances. Experimental results show that the proposed hybrid heuristic obtains competitive results within reasonable computational time.

  13. Diagnostic criteria of high-altitude de-adaptation for high-altitude migrants returning to the plains: a multicenter, randomized controlled trial

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Qi-quan ZHOU

    2012-02-01

    Full Text Available Objective  To investigate the diagnostic method of high-altitude de-adaptation and constitute the diagnostic criteria of high-altitude de-adaptation for people returning to the plains from high-altitude. Methods  Epidemiological survey and clinical multicenter randomized controlled studies were used to determine/perform blood picture, routine urine analysis, routine stool examination, myocardial enzymes, liver and kidney functions, nerve function, sex hormone, microalbuminuria, ECG, echocardiography, pulmonary function tests, and so on, in 3011 subjects after they returned to the plains from high-altitude. The diagnostic criteria of high-altitude de-adaptation were formulated by a comparative analysis of the obtained data with those of healthy subjects living in the same area, altitude, and age. The regularity and characteristics of high-altitude de-adaptation syndrome were found and diagnostic criteria for high-altitude de-adaptation was established based on the results. Results  The investigative results showed that the incidence of high-altitude de-adaptation syndrome was found in 84.36% of population returning to the plains from high-altitude. About 60% of them were considered to have mild reactions, 30% medium, and only 10% were severe. The lower the altitude they returned to, the longer the duration of stay in highland, and the heavier the labor they engaged in high altitude, the higher the incidence rate of high-altitude de-adaptation syndrome was. Patients with high-altitude de-adaptation syndrome exhibited hematological abnormality and abnormal ventricular function, especially the right ventricular diastolic function after returning for 1 year to 5 years. Long-term hypoxia exposure often caused obvious change in cardiac morphology with left and right ventricular hypertrophy, particularly the right ventricle. In addition, low blood pressure and low pulse pressure were found at times. Microalbuminuria was found in some high-altitude de-adaptation

  14. Effect of Roy's Adaptation Model-Guided Education on Coping Strategies of the Veterans with Lower Extremities Amputation: A Double-Blind Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Farsi, Zahra; Azarmi, Somayeh

    2016-04-01

    Any defect in the extremities of the body can affect different life aspects. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of Roy's adaptation model-guided education on coping strategies of the veterans with lower extremities amputation. In a double-blind randomized controlled clinical trial, 60 veterans with lower extremities amputation referring to Kowsar Orthotics and Prosthetics Center of Veterans Clinic in Tehran, Iran were recruited using convenience method and randomly assigned to intervention and control groups in 2013-2014. Lazarus and Folkman coping strategies questionnaire was used to collect the data. After completing the questionnaires in both groups, maladaptive behaviours were determined in the intervention group and an education program based on Roy's adaptation model was implemented. After 2 months, both groups completed the questionnaires again. Data were analyzed using SPSS software. Independent T-test showed that the score of the dimensions of coping strategies did not have a statistically significant difference between the intervention and control groups in the pre-intervention stage (P>0.05). This test showed a statistically significant difference between the two groups in the post-intervention stage in terms of the scores of different dimensions of coping strategies (P>0.05), except in dimensions of social support seeking and positive appraisal (P>0.05). The findings of this research indicated that the Roy's adaptation model-guided education improved the majority of coping strategies in veterans with lower extremities amputation. It is recommended that further interventions based on Roy's adaptation model should be performed to improve the coping of the veterans with lower extremities amputation. IRCT2014081118763N1.

  15. Roy's Adaptation Model-Guided Education and Promoting the Adaptation of Veterans With Lower Extremities Amputation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Azarmi, Somayeh; Farsi, Zahra

    2015-10-01

    Any defect in extremities of the body can affect different life aspects. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of Roy's adaptation model-guided education on promoting the adaptation of veterans with lower extremities amputation. In a randomized clinical trial, 60 veterans with lower extremities amputation referring to Kowsar Orthotics and Prosthetics Center of veterans clinic in Tehran, Iran, were recruited with convenience method and were randomly assigned to intervention and control groups during 2013 - 2014. For data collection, Roy's adaptation model questionnaire was used. After completing the questionnaires in both groups, maladaptive behaviors were determined in the intervention group and an education program based on Roy's adaptation model was implemented. After two months, both groups completed the questionnaires again. Data was analyzed with SPSS software. Independent t-test showed statistically significant differences between the two groups in the post-test stage in terms of the total score of adaptation (P = 0.001) as well as physiologic (P = 0.0001) and role function modes (P = 0.004). The total score of adaptation (139.43 ± 5.45 to 127.54 ± 14.55, P = 0.006) as well as the scores of physiologic (60.26 ± 5.45 to 53.73 ± 7.79, P = 0.001) and role function (20.30 ± 2.42 to 18.13 ± 3.18, P = 0.01) modes in the intervention group significantly increased, whereas the scores of self-concept (42.10 ± 4.71 to 39.40 ± 5.67, P = 0.21) and interdependence (16.76 ± 2.22 to 16.30 ± 2.57, P = 0.44) modes in the two stages did not have a significant difference. Findings of this research indicated that the Roy's adaptation model-guided education promoted the adaptation level of physiologic and role function modes in veterans with lower extremities amputation. However, this intervention could not promote adaptation in self-concept and interdependence modes. More intervention is advised based on Roy's adaptation model for improving the

  16. Detecting Source Code Plagiarism on .NET Programming Languages using Low-level Representation and Adaptive Local Alignment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Oscar Karnalim

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Even though there are various source code plagiarism detection approaches, only a few works which are focused on low-level representation for deducting similarity. Most of them are only focused on lexical token sequence extracted from source code. In our point of view, low-level representation is more beneficial than lexical token since its form is more compact than the source code itself. It only considers semantic-preserving instructions and ignores many source code delimiter tokens. This paper proposes a source code plagiarism detection which rely on low-level representation. For a case study, we focus our work on .NET programming languages with Common Intermediate Language as its low-level representation. In addition, we also incorporate Adaptive Local Alignment for detecting similarity. According to Lim et al, this algorithm outperforms code similarity state-of-the-art algorithm (i.e. Greedy String Tiling in term of effectiveness. According to our evaluation which involves various plagiarism attacks, our approach is more effective and efficient when compared with standard lexical-token approach.

  17. Adding methylphenidate to prism-adaptation improves outcome in neglect patients. A randomized clinical trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luauté, Jacques; Villeneuve, Laurent; Roux, Adeline; Nash, Stuart; Bar, Jean-Yves; Chabanat, Eric; Cotton, François; Ciancia, Sophie; Sancho, Pierre-Olivier; Hovantruc, Patrick; Quelard, François; Sarraf, Thierry; Cojan, Yann; Hadj-Bouziane, Fadila; Farné, Alessandro; Janoly-Dumenil, Audrey; Boisson, Dominique; Jacquin-Courtois, Sophie; Rode, Gilles; Rossetti, Yves

    2018-04-04

    Spatial neglect is one of the main predictors of poor functional recovery after stroke. Many therapeutic interventions have been developed to alleviate this condition, but to date the evidence of their effectiveness is still scarce. The purpose of this study was to test whether combining prism adaptation (PA) and methylphenidate (MP) could enhance the recovery of neglect patients at a functional level. RITAPRISM is a multicentre, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study comparing PA plus placebo (control) versus PA plus MP. 24 patients were prospectively enrolled (10 in the placebo group and 14 in the MP group). The main result is a long-term functional improvement (on the functional independence measure (FIM) and on Bergego's scale) induced by MP combined with PA. No serious adverse event occurred. The long-term benefit on activities of daily living (ADL) obtained in this randomized controlled trial set this intervention apart from previous attempts and supports with a high level of evidence the value of combining PA and MP in order to improve the autonomy of neglect patients. Further studies will be needed to clarify the mechanism of this improvement. Although not specifically assessed at this stage, a part of the improvement in ADL might be related to the collateral effect of MP on mood, executive functions or fatigue, and/or the combined effect of PA and MP on motor intentional bias of neglect patients. This study provides Class I evidence that adding MP to PA improves the functional outcome of neglect patients. EUCTR2008-000325-20-FR. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. A culturally adapted survivorship programme for Asian early stage breast cancer patients in Singapore: A randomized, controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chan, Alexandre; Gan, Yan Xiang; Oh, Suan Kai; Ng, Terence; Shwe, Maung; Chan, Raymond; Ng, Raymond; Goh, Brandon; Tan, Yee Pin; Fan, Gilbert

    2017-10-01

    As cancer mortality rates improve in Singapore, there is an increasing need to improve the transition to posttreatment survivorship care. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a psychoeducation group (PEG) intervention program compared with usual care to reduce distress for physical symptom and psychological aspects in Asian breast cancer survivors who have completed adjuvant chemotherapy. This was a randomized, controlled trial comprising 72 Asian early stage breast cancer survivors who were randomized into the PEG (n = 34) or the control (n = 38) arm. The participants in the PEG arm underwent a weekly multidisciplinary PEG program delivered in a group format over 3 weeks coupled with cultural adaptation. Both arms were assessed at baseline and 2 months after intervention using the Rotterdam Symptom Checklist, Beck Anxiety Inventory, and EORTC QLQ-C30. A satisfaction questionnaire was also conducted among those survivors who have participated in the PEG program. Effective sizes were calculated using Cohen d. The mean age ± SD of all participants was 53.0 ± 8.9 years, with the majority being Chinese (84.7%) and Malay (6.9%), and clinical characteristics were well balanced in both arms. Compared to the control arm, the PEG arm showed a significantly greater reduction in physical symptom distress (d = 0.76, P = .01) and fatigue (d = 0.49, P = .04). The 82.4% of the participants in the intervention group responded to the satisfaction questionnaire, and the majority (92.9%) agreed that the overall duration of the PEG intervention program was appropriate. A culturally adapted PEG program was effective in reducing physical symptom distress in Asian breast cancer survivors. (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02600299). Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  19. ADAPTIVE ANT COLONY OPTIMIZATION BASED GRADIENT FOR EDGE DETECTION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Febri Liantoni

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available Ant Colony Optimization (ACO is a nature-inspired optimization algorithm which is motivated by ants foraging behavior. Due to its favorable advantages, ACO has been widely used to solve several NP-hard problems, including edge detection. Since ACO initially distributes ants at random, it may cause imbalance ant distribution which later affects path discovery process. In this paper an adaptive ACO is proposed to optimize edge detection by adaptively distributing ant according to gradient analysis. Ants are adaptively distributed according to gradient ratio of each image regions. Region which has bigger gradient ratio, will have bigger number of ant distribution. Experiments are conducted using images from various datasets. Precision and recall are used to quantitatively evaluate performance of the proposed algorithm. Precision and recall of adaptive ACO reaches 76.98 % and 96.8 %. Whereas highest precision and recall for standard ACO are 69.74 % and 74.85 %. Experimental results show that the adaptive ACO outperforms standard ACO which randomly distributes ants.

  20. An Adaptive Data Gathering Scheme for Multi-Hop Wireless Sensor Networks Based on Compressed Sensing and Network Coding.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yin, Jun; Yang, Yuwang; Wang, Lei

    2016-04-01

    Joint design of compressed sensing (CS) and network coding (NC) has been demonstrated to provide a new data gathering paradigm for multi-hop wireless sensor networks (WSNs). By exploiting the correlation of the network sensed data, a variety of data gathering schemes based on NC and CS (Compressed Data Gathering--CDG) have been proposed. However, these schemes assume that the sparsity of the network sensed data is constant and the value of the sparsity is known before starting each data gathering epoch, thus they ignore the variation of the data observed by the WSNs which are deployed in practical circumstances. In this paper, we present a complete design of the feedback CDG scheme where the sink node adaptively queries those interested nodes to acquire an appropriate number of measurements. The adaptive measurement-formation procedure and its termination rules are proposed and analyzed in detail. Moreover, in order to minimize the number of overall transmissions in the formation procedure of each measurement, we have developed a NP-complete model (Maximum Leaf Nodes Minimum Steiner Nodes--MLMS) and realized a scalable greedy algorithm to solve the problem. Experimental results show that the proposed measurement-formation method outperforms previous schemes, and experiments on both datasets from ocean temperature and practical network deployment also prove the effectiveness of our proposed feedback CDG scheme.

  1. GRASP para o PQA: um limite de aceitação para soluções iniciais

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Range Maria Cristina

    2000-01-01

    Full Text Available O Problema Quadrático de Alocação (PQA pertence à classe dos problemas NP-Hard e desafia os pesquisadores tanto em sua teoria quanto em sua parte computacional. Pela sua alta complexidade muitos métodos heurísticos têm sido desenvolvidos para tentar resolvê-lo aproximadamente. A metaheurística GRASP (greedy randomized adaptive search procedures se mostrou bastante eficiente. Neste trabalho, uma proposta para descartar soluções iniciais supostamente ruins é apresentada com base na normalização de custos calculadas num intervalo entre limites de solução. Para este GRASP restrito, foi observada uma redução do tempo computacional para encontrar as soluções ótimas ou soluções viáveis de boa qualidade quando comparado ao GRASP original.

  2. Heuristic Optimization for the Discrete Virtual Power Plant Dispatch Problem

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Petersen, Mette Kirschmeyer; Hansen, Lars Henrik; Bendtsen, Jan Dimon

    2014-01-01

    We consider a Virtual Power Plant, which is given the task of dispatching a fluctuating power supply to a portfolio of flexible consumers. The flexible consumers are modeled as discrete batch processes, and the associated optimization problem is denoted the Discrete Virtual Power Plant Dispatch...... Problem. First NP-completeness of the Discrete Virtual Power Plant Dispatch Problem is proved formally. We then proceed to develop tailored versions of the meta-heuristic algorithms Hill Climber and Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure (GRASP). The algorithms are tuned and tested on portfolios...... of varying sizes. We find that all the tailored algorithms perform satisfactorily in the sense that they are able to find sub-optimal, but usable, solutions to very large problems (on the order of 10 5 units) at computation times on the scale of just 10 seconds, which is far beyond the capabilities...

  3. Fault-Tolerant Topology and Routing Synthesis for IEEE Time-Sensitive Networking

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gavrilut, Voica Maria; Zarrin, Bahram; Pop, Paul

    2017-01-01

    of the applications are satisffied. We propose three approaches to solve this optimization problem: (1) a heuristic solution, (2) a Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure (GRASP) metaheuristic, and (3) a Constraint Programmingbased model. The approaches are evaluated on several test cases, including a test case......Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) is a set of IEEE standards that extend Ethernet for safety-critical and real-time applications. TSN is envisioned to be widely used in several applications areas, from industrial automation to in-vehicle networking. A TSN network is composed of end systems...... interconnected by physical links and bridges (switches). The data in TSN is exchanged via streams. We address safety-critical real-time systems, and we consider that the streams use the Urgency-Based Scheduler (UBS) traffic-type, suitable for hard real-time traffic. We are interested in determining a fault...

  4. Simplifying a hydrological ensemble prediction system with a backward greedy selection of members – Part 1: Optimization criteria

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    D. Brochero

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available Hydrological Ensemble Prediction Systems (HEPS, obtained by forcing rainfall-runoff models with Meteorological Ensemble Prediction Systems (MEPS, have been recognized as useful approaches to quantify uncertainties of hydrological forecasting systems. This task is complex both in terms of the coupling of information and computational time, which may create an operational barrier. The main objective of the current work is to assess the degree of simplification (reduction of the number of hydrological members that can be achieved with a HEPS configured using 16 lumped hydrological models driven by the 50 weather ensemble forecasts from the European Centre for Medium-range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF. Here, Backward Greedy Selection (BGS is proposed to assess the weight that each model must represent within a subset that offers similar or better performance than a reference set of 800 hydrological members. These hydrological models' weights represent the participation of each hydrological model within a simplified HEPS which would issue real-time forecasts in a relatively short computational time. The methodology uses a variation of the k-fold cross-validation, allowing an optimal use of the information, and employs a multi-criterion framework that represents the combination of resolution, reliability, consistency, and diversity. Results show that the degree of reduction of members can be established in terms of maximum number of members required (complexity of the HEPS or the maximization of the relationship between the different scores (performance.

  5. Adaptive importance sampling for probabilistic validation of advanced driver assistance systems

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gietelink, O.J.; Schutter, B. de; Verhaegen, M.

    2006-01-01

    We present an approach for validation of advanced driver assistance systems, based on randomized algorithms. The new method consists of an iterative randomized simulation using adaptive importance sampling. The randomized algorithm is more efficient than conventional simulation techniques. The

  6. Wii Fit® training vs. Adapted Physical Activities: which one is the most appropriate to improve the balance of independent senior subjects? A randomized controlled study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Toulotte, Claire; Toursel, Cindy; Olivier, Nicolas

    2012-09-01

    To compare the effectiveness of three protocols (Adapted Physical Activities, Wii Fit(®), Adapted Physical Activities + Wii Fit(®)) on the balance of independent senior subjects. Case comparison study. Healthy elderly subjects living in independent community dwellings. Thirty-six subjects, average age 75.09 ± 10.26 years, took part in this study, and were randomly assigned to one of the four experimental groups: G1 followed an Adapted Physical Activities training programme, while the second group (G2) participated in Wii Fit(®) training and the third one (G3) combined both methods. There was no training for the fourth group (G4). All subjects trained once a week (1 hour) for 20 weeks and were assessed before and after treatment. The Tinetti test, unipedal tests and the Wii Fit(®) tests. After training, the scores in the Tinetti test decreased significantly (P Wii Fit(®)) and G3 (Adapted Physical Activities and Wii Fit(®)) improved their balance. In addition, G1 and G3 increased their dynamic balance. The findings suggest that Adapted Physical Activities training limits the decline in sensorial functions in the elderly.

  7. Dark adaptation during transient hyperglycemia in type 2 diabetes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Holfort, Stig Kraglund; Jackson, Gregory R; Larsen, Michael

    2010-01-01

    adaptometry was measured in one eye, chosen at random, using a computer-controlled dark adaptometer. Dark adaptation and capillary blood glucose were measured at baseline and 80 minutes into the OGTT/fasting test. Blood glucose remained stable throughout the examination in the 12 fasting subjects, whereas......It was the purpose of the present study to examine dark adaptation in subjects with type 2 diabetes during transient hyperglycemia. Twenty-four subjects with type 2 diabetes and minimal diabetic retinopathy were randomized to undergo an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) or to remain fasting. Dark...... glycemia increased in the 12 OGTT subjects, from 8.6±2.1 at baseline to 21.1±3.6 mM after 80 min. In the OGTT group, four out of seven subjects with delayed dark adaptation at baseline reached normal values during hyperglycemia. All examined aspects of rod adaptation were accelerated by hyperglycemia (time...

  8. Adaptive single-antenna transmit selection with interference suppression

    KAUST Repository

    Radaydeh, Redha Mahmoud Mesleh

    2011-10-01

    This paper studies the performance of adaptive transmit selection with co-channel interference suppression in multipath fading channels. The adaptive selection algorithms are configured for single-antenna bandwidth-efficient or power-efficient transmission with as low transmit channel estimations as possible. Due to the fact that the number of active co-channel interfering signals and their corresponding powers experience random behavior, the adaptation to channels conditions, assuming uniform buffer and traffic loading, is proposed to be jointly based on the transmit channels instantaneous signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) and signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratios (SINRs). Two interference cancelation algorithms are considered. The first algorithm assumes that the receiver eliminates the impact of the strongest subset of interferers, whereas the second algorithm suggests random cancelation of interferers to further reduce processing complexity. The impact of outdated ordering of interferers powers on the efficiency of interference cancelation, and the effect of imperfect prediction of transmit channels for desired user adaptation are investigated. Analytical formulations for various performance measures and comparisons between the performance and processing complexity of different adaptation schemes are presented. © 2011 IEEE.

  9. Affect-Aware Adaptive Tutoring Based on Human-Automation Etiquette Strategies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Euijung; Dorneich, Michael C

    2018-06-01

    We investigated adapting the interaction style of intelligent tutoring system (ITS) feedback based on human-automation etiquette strategies. Most ITSs adapt the content difficulty level, adapt the feedback timing, or provide extra content when they detect cognitive or affective decrements. Our previous work demonstrated that changing the interaction style via different feedback etiquette strategies has differential effects on students' motivation, confidence, satisfaction, and performance. The best etiquette strategy was also determined by user frustration. Based on these findings, a rule set was developed that systemically selected the proper etiquette strategy to address one of four learning factors (motivation, confidence, satisfaction, and performance) under two different levels of user frustration. We explored whether etiquette strategy selection based on this rule set (systematic) or random changes in etiquette strategy for a given level of frustration affected the four learning factors. Participants solved mathematics problems under different frustration conditions with feedback that adapted dynamic changes in etiquette strategies either systematically or randomly. The results demonstrated that feedback with etiquette strategies chosen systematically via the rule set could selectively target and improve motivation, confidence, satisfaction, and performance more than changing etiquette strategies randomly. The systematic adaptation was effective no matter the level of frustration for the participant. If computer tutors can vary the interaction style to effectively mitigate negative emotions, then ITS designers would have one more mechanism in which to design affect-aware adaptations that provide the proper responses in situations where human emotions affect the ability to learn.

  10. Adaptive mechanism-based congestion control for networked systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Zhi; Zhang, Yun; Chen, C. L. Philip

    2013-03-01

    In order to assure the communication quality in network systems with heavy traffic and limited bandwidth, a new ATRED (adaptive thresholds random early detection) congestion control algorithm is proposed for the congestion avoidance and resource management of network systems. Different to the traditional AQM (active queue management) algorithms, the control parameters of ATRED are not configured statically, but dynamically adjusted by the adaptive mechanism. By integrating with the adaptive strategy, ATRED alleviates the tuning difficulty of RED (random early detection) and shows a better control on the queue management, and achieve a more robust performance than RED under varying network conditions. Furthermore, a dynamic transmission control protocol-AQM control system using ATRED controller is introduced for the systematic analysis. It is proved that the stability of the network system can be guaranteed when the adaptive mechanism is finely designed. Simulation studies show the proposed ATRED algorithm achieves a good performance in varying network environments, which is superior to the RED and Gentle-RED algorithm, and providing more reliable service under varying network conditions.

  11. Video-feedback Intervention to promote Positive Parenting adapted to Autism (VIPP-AUTI): A randomized controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Poslawsky, Irina E; Naber, Fabiënne Ba; Bakermans-Kranenburg, Marian J; van Daalen, Emma; van Engeland, Herman; van IJzendoorn, Marinus H

    2015-07-01

    In a randomized controlled trial, we evaluated the early intervention program Video-feedback Intervention to promote Positive Parenting adapted to Autism (VIPP-AUTI) with 78 primary caregivers and their child (16-61 months) with Autism Spectrum Disorder. VIPP-AUTI is a brief attachment-based intervention program, focusing on improving parent-child interaction and reducing the child's individual Autism Spectrum Disorder-related symptomatology in five home visits. VIPP-AUTI, as compared with usual care, demonstrated efficacy in reducing parental intrusiveness. Moreover, parents who received VIPP-AUTI showed increased feelings of self-efficacy in child rearing. No significant group differences were found on other aspects of parent-child interaction or on child play behavior. At 3-months follow-up, intervention effects were found on child-initiated joint attention skills, not mediated by intervention effects on parenting. Implementation of VIPP-AUTI in clinical practice is facilitated by the use of a detailed manual and a relatively brief training of interveners. © The Author(s) 2014.

  12. Adaptive goal setting and financial incentives: a 2 × 2 factorial randomized controlled trial to increase adults’ physical activity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marc A. Adams

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Emerging interventions that rely on and harness variability in behavior to adapt to individual performance over time may outperform interventions that prescribe static goals (e.g., 10,000 steps/day. The purpose of this factorial trial was to compare adaptive vs. static goal setting and immediate vs. delayed, non-contingent financial rewards for increasing free-living physical activity (PA. Methods A 4-month 2 × 2 factorial randomized controlled trial tested main effects for goal setting (adaptive vs. static goals and rewards (immediate vs. delayed and interactions between factors to increase steps/day as measured by a Fitbit Zip. Moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA minutes/day was examined as a secondary outcome. Results Participants (N = 96 were mainly female (77%, aged 41 ± 9.5 years, and all were insufficiently active and overweight/obese (mean BMI = 34.1 ± 6.2. Participants across all groups increased by 2389 steps/day on average from baseline to intervention phase (p < .001. Participants receiving static goals showed a stronger increase in steps per day from baseline phase to intervention phase (2630 steps/day than those receiving adaptive goals (2149 steps/day; difference = 482 steps/day, p = .095. Participants receiving immediate rewards showed stronger improvement (2762 step/day increase from baseline to intervention phase than those receiving delayed rewards (2016 steps/day increase; difference = 746 steps/day, p = .009. However, the adaptive goals group showed a slower decrease in steps/day from the beginning of the intervention phase to the end of the intervention phase (i.e. less than half the rate compared to the static goals group (−7.7 steps vs. -18.3 steps each day; difference = 10.7 steps/day, p < .001 resulting in better improvements for the adaptive goals group by study end. Rate of change over the intervention phase did not differ between reward groups. Significant goal phase x goal

  13. A GRASP algorithm for the container stowage slot planning problem

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Parreno, Francisco; Pacino, Dario; Alvarez-Valdes, Ramon

    2016-01-01

    in clusters along the vessel. For each of those clusters a specific position for each container must be found. Compared to previous studies, we have introduced two new features: the explicit handling of rolled out containers and the inclusion of separations rules for dangerous cargo. We present a novel......This work presents a generalization of the Slot Planning Problem which raises when the liner shipping industry needs to plan the placement of containers within a vessel (stowage planning). State-of-the-art stowage planning relies on a heuristic decomposition where containers are first distributed...... integer programming formulation and a Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure (GRASP) to solve the problem. The approach is able to find high-quality solution within 1 s. We also provide comparison with the state-of-the-art on an existing and a new set of benchmark instances. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd...

  14. A hybrid genetic algorithm for ROADEF’05-like complex production problems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mariano Frutos

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available En este trabajo se presenta una técnica híbrida que combina un Algoritmo Genético con meta-heurísticas para la resolución de un problema en las plantas productivas de RENAULT Francia. El método comienza con una solución inicial por medio de GRASP (Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure, que es utilizada como entrada por un Algoritmo Genético complementado por un procedimiento de Simulated Annealing para mejorar las poblaciones. Se establece un punto de comparación entre las diferentes técnicas. El desempeño de las mismas es evaluado así como el de todo el método. La conclusión es que los métodos híbridos tienen claras ventajas para el tratamiento de problemas de planificación de la producción.

  15. DYNAMIC AND INCREMENTAL EXPLORATION STRATEGY IN FUSION ADAPTIVE RESONANCE THEORY FOR ONLINE REINFORCEMENT LEARNING

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Budhitama Subagdja

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available One of the fundamental challenges in reinforcement learning is to setup a proper balance between exploration and exploitation to obtain the maximum cummulative reward in the long run. Most protocols for exploration bound the overall values to a convergent level of performance. If new knowledge is inserted or the environment is suddenly changed, the issue becomes more intricate as the exploration must compromise the pre-existing knowledge. This paper presents a type of multi-channel adaptive resonance theory (ART neural network model called fusion ART which serves as a fuzzy approximator for reinforcement learning with inherent features that can regulate the exploration strategy. This intrinsic regulation is driven by the condition of the knowledge learnt so far by the agent. The model offers a stable but incremental reinforcement learning that can involve prior rules as bootstrap knowledge for guiding the agent to select the right action. Experiments in obstacle avoidance and navigation tasks demonstrate that in the configuration of learning wherein the agent learns from scratch, the inherent exploration model in fusion ART model is comparable to the basic E-greedy policy. On the other hand, the model is demonstrated to deal with prior knowledge and strike a balance between exploration and exploitation.

  16. Mejoras de las Heurísticas Greedy empleadas en el secuenciamiento de los Sistemas de Producción Multi-modelo y Multi-nivel

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Juan José Areal Alonso

    2013-04-01

    Full Text Available Resumen: El problema de secuenciamiento de los sistemas de producción multi-modelo y multi-nivel reside en el alisado de las tasas de producción de los productos finales y también de las tasas de consumo de los diversos subconjuntos y elementos empleados en las etapas previas de producción. Las secuencias deben construirse de acuerdo a las opciones de cada producto, que requieren diferentes recursos y tiempo de producción, siendo el objetivo evitar sobrepasar el potencial de la instalación y de los medios humanos. Este artículo se desarrolla a partir del método Goal-chasing, que es una heurística Greedy desarrollada por Toyota para resolver este problema y que es ampliamente utilizado en la industria del automóvil. El artículo propone una mejora de dicho método con la introducción de pesos diferentes para cada opción con el fin de mejorar el ordenamiento de la secuencia. Profundizando en esta vía, se aplica el método Nelder-Mead de optimización no lineal para obtener los pesos de opciones que minimizan el coste de la secuencia resultante. Los resultados obtenidos aplicando los algoritmos a sistemas de producción multi-modelo y multi-nivel se concretan en el mundo del automóvil para una secuencia inicial, se generalizan a un conjunto de 30 secuencias representativas del entorno industrial del automóvil y se contrastan con referencias clásicas de la literatura. Abstract: The Car Sequencing Problem consists in maintaining a certain order in the vehicles as they pass through the assembly line. Sequences have to be built according to each vehicle's options, each one requiring different resources and production time, with the objective of avoiding to exceed the maximum human and facility potential. In this paper, we use a Greedy heuristic, the Goal-chasing method developed by Toyota, to solve the Car Sequencing Problem. The concept of different weights for each option is introduced to improve the ordering of the sequence. Nelder

  17. A principle of organization which facilitates broad Lamarckian-like adaptations by improvisation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Soen, Yoav; Knafo, Maor; Elgart, Michael

    2015-12-02

    During the lifetime of an organism, every individual encounters many combinations of diverse changes in the somatic genome, epigenome and microbiome. This gives rise to many novel combinations of internal failures which are unique to each individual. How any individual can tolerate this high load of new, individual-specific scenarios of failure is not clear. While stress-induced plasticity and hidden variation have been proposed as potential mechanisms of tolerance, the main conceptual problem remains unaddressed, namely: how largely non-beneficial random variation can be rapidly and safely organized into net benefits to every individual. We propose an organizational principle which explains how every individual can alleviate a high load of novel stressful scenarios using many random variations in flexible and inherently less harmful traits. Random changes which happen to reduce stress, benefit the organism and decrease the drive for additional changes. This adaptation (termed 'Adaptive Improvisation') can be further enhanced, propagated, stabilized and memorized when beneficial changes reinforce themselves by auto-regulatory mechanisms. This principle implicates stress not only in driving diverse variations in cells tissues and organs, but also in organizing these variations into adaptive outcomes. Specific (but not exclusive) examples include stress reduction by rapid exchange of mobile genetic elements (or exosomes) in unicellular, and rapid changes in the symbiotic microorganisms of animals. In all cases, adaptive changes can be transmitted across generations, allowing rapid improvement and assimilation in a few generations. We provide testable predictions derived from the hypothesis. The hypothesis raises a critical, but thus far overlooked adaptation problem and explains how random variation can self-organize to confer a wide range of individual-specific adaptations beyond the existing outcomes of natural selection. It portrays gene regulation as an

  18. Frontostriatal and behavioral adaptations to daily sugar-sweetened beverage intake: a randomized controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burger, Kyle S

    2017-03-01

    Background: Current obesity theories suggest that the repeated intake of highly palatable high-sugar foods causes adaptions in the striatum, parietal lobe, and prefrontal and visual cortices in the brain that may serve to perpetuate consumption in a feed-forward manner. However, the data for humans are cross-sectional and observational, leaving little ability to determine the temporal precedence of repeated consumption on brain response. Objective: We tested the impact of regular sugar-sweetened beverage intake on brain and behavioral responses to beverage stimuli. Design: We performed an experiment with 20 healthy-weight individuals who were randomly assigned to consume 1 of 2 sugar-sweetened beverages daily for 21 d, underwent 2 functional MRI sessions, and completed behavioral and explicit hedonic assessments. Results: Consistent with preclinical experiments, daily beverage consumption resulted in decreases in dorsal striatal response during receipt of the consumed beverage ( r = -0.46) and decreased ventromedial prefrontal response during logo-elicited anticipation ( r = -0.44). This decrease in the prefrontal response correlated with increases in behavioral disinhibition toward the logo of the consumed beverage ( r = 0.54; P = 0.02). Daily beverage consumption also increased precuneus response to both juice logos compared with a tasteless control ( r = 0.45), suggesting a more generalized effect toward beverage cues. Last, the repeated consumption of 1 beverage resulted in an explicit hedonic devaluation of a similar nonconsumed beverage ( P < 0.001). Conclusions: Analogous to previous reports, these initial results provide convergent data for a role of regular sugar-sweetened beverage intake in altering neurobehavioral responses to the regularly consumed beverage that may also extend to other beverage stimuli. Future research is required to provide evidence of replication in a larger sample and to establish whether the neurobehavioral adaptations observed

  19. Adaptive sampling method in deep-penetration particle transport problem

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang Ruihong; Ji Zhicheng; Pei Lucheng

    2012-01-01

    Deep-penetration problem has been one of the difficult problems in shielding calculation with Monte Carlo method for several decades. In this paper, a kind of particle transport random walking system under the emission point as a sampling station is built. Then, an adaptive sampling scheme is derived for better solution with the achieved information. The main advantage of the adaptive scheme is to choose the most suitable sampling number from the emission point station to obtain the minimum value of the total cost in the process of the random walk. Further, the related importance sampling method is introduced. Its main principle is to define the importance function due to the particle state and to ensure the sampling number of the emission particle is proportional to the importance function. The numerical results show that the adaptive scheme under the emission point as a station could overcome the difficulty of underestimation of the result in some degree, and the adaptive importance sampling method gets satisfied results as well. (authors)

  20. Benchmark tests and spin adaptation for the particle-particle random phase approximation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yang, Yang; Steinmann, Stephan N.; Peng, Degao [Department of Chemistry, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708 (United States); Aggelen, Helen van, E-mail: Helen.VanAggelen@UGent.be [Department of Chemistry, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708 (United States); Department of Inorganic and Physical Chemistry, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent (Belgium); Yang, Weitao, E-mail: Weitao.Yang@duke.edu [Department of Chemistry and Department of Physics, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708 (United States)

    2013-11-07

    The particle-particle random phase approximation (pp-RPA) provides an approximation to the correlation energy in density functional theory via the adiabatic connection [H. van Aggelen, Y. Yang, and W. Yang, Phys. Rev. A 88, 030501 (2013)]. It has virtually no delocalization error nor static correlation error for single-bond systems. However, with its formal O(N{sup 6}) scaling, the pp-RPA is computationally expensive. In this paper, we implement a spin-separated and spin-adapted pp-RPA algorithm, which reduces the computational cost by a substantial factor. We then perform benchmark tests on the G2/97 enthalpies of formation database, DBH24 reaction barrier database, and four test sets for non-bonded interactions (HB6/04, CT7/04, DI6/04, and WI9/04). For the G2/97 database, the pp-RPA gives a significantly smaller mean absolute error (8.3 kcal/mol) than the direct particle-hole RPA (ph-RPA) (22.7 kcal/mol). Furthermore, the error in the pp-RPA is nearly constant with the number of atoms in a molecule, while the error in the ph-RPA increases. For chemical reactions involving typical organic closed-shell molecules, pp- and ph-RPA both give accurate reaction energies. Similarly, both RPAs perform well for reaction barriers and nonbonded interactions. These results suggest that the pp-RPA gives reliable energies in chemical applications. The adiabatic connection formalism based on pairing matrix fluctuation is therefore expected to lead to widely applicable and accurate density functionals.

  1. Genetic Variability for Drought Adaptive Traits in A-511 Maize ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Drought causes considerable yield reduction in maize (Zea mays L.) grown in the moisture stressed areas of Ethiopia. Increased crop production through improvement is expected if the adapted local genotypes possess variability for drought adaptive traits. Randomly taken 196 S1 lines generated from Population A-511 ...

  2. Distributed Synchronization in Networks of Agent Systems With Nonlinearities and Random Switchings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tang, Yang; Gao, Huijun; Zou, Wei; Kurths, Jürgen

    2013-02-01

    In this paper, the distributed synchronization problem of networks of agent systems with controllers and nonlinearities subject to Bernoulli switchings is investigated. Controllers and adaptive updating laws injected in each vertex of networks depend on the state information of its neighborhood. Three sets of Bernoulli stochastic variables are introduced to describe the occurrence probabilities of distributed adaptive controllers, updating laws and nonlinearities, respectively. By the Lyapunov functions method, we show that the distributed synchronization of networks composed of agent systems with multiple randomly occurring nonlinearities, multiple randomly occurring controllers, and multiple randomly occurring updating laws can be achieved in mean square under certain criteria. The conditions derived in this paper can be solved by semi-definite programming. Moreover, by mathematical analysis, we find that the coupling strength, the probabilities of the Bernoulli stochastic variables, and the form of nonlinearities have great impacts on the convergence speed and the terminal control strength. The synchronization criteria and the observed phenomena are demonstrated by several numerical simulation examples. In addition, the advantage of distributed adaptive controllers over conventional adaptive controllers is illustrated.

  3. The effect of creative problem solving on students’ mathematical adaptive reasoning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muin, A.; Hanifah, S. H.; Diwidian, F.

    2018-01-01

    This research was conducted to analyse the effect of creative problem solving (CPS) learning model on the students’ mathematical adaptive reasoning. The method used in this study was a quasi-experimental with randomized post-test only control group design. Samples were taken as many as two classes by cluster random sampling technique consisting of experimental class (CPS) as many as 40 students and control class (conventional) as many as 40 students. Based on the result of hypothesis testing with the t-test at the significance level of 5%, it was obtained that significance level of 0.0000 is less than α = 0.05. This shows that the students’ mathematical adaptive reasoning skills who were taught by CPS model were higher than the students’ mathematical adaptive reasoning skills of those who were taught by conventional model. The result of this research showed that the most prominent aspect of adaptive reasoning that could be developed through a CPS was inductive intuitive. Two aspects of adaptive reasoning, which were inductive intuitive and deductive intuitive, were mostly balanced. The different between inductive intuitive and deductive intuitive aspect was not too big. CPS model can develop student mathematical adaptive reasoning skills. CPS model can facilitate development of mathematical adaptive reasoning skills thoroughly.

  4. Solution verification, goal-oriented adaptive methods for stochastic advection–diffusion problems

    KAUST Repository

    Almeida, Regina C.

    2010-08-01

    A goal-oriented analysis of linear, stochastic advection-diffusion models is presented which provides both a method for solution verification as well as a basis for improving results through adaptation of both the mesh and the way random variables are approximated. A class of model problems with random coefficients and source terms is cast in a variational setting. Specific quantities of interest are specified which are also random variables. A stochastic adjoint problem associated with the quantities of interest is formulated and a posteriori error estimates are derived. These are used to guide an adaptive algorithm which adjusts the sparse probabilistic grid so as to control the approximation error. Numerical examples are given to demonstrate the methodology for a specific model problem. © 2010 Elsevier B.V.

  5. Solution verification, goal-oriented adaptive methods for stochastic advection–diffusion problems

    KAUST Repository

    Almeida, Regina C.; Oden, J. Tinsley

    2010-01-01

    A goal-oriented analysis of linear, stochastic advection-diffusion models is presented which provides both a method for solution verification as well as a basis for improving results through adaptation of both the mesh and the way random variables are approximated. A class of model problems with random coefficients and source terms is cast in a variational setting. Specific quantities of interest are specified which are also random variables. A stochastic adjoint problem associated with the quantities of interest is formulated and a posteriori error estimates are derived. These are used to guide an adaptive algorithm which adjusts the sparse probabilistic grid so as to control the approximation error. Numerical examples are given to demonstrate the methodology for a specific model problem. © 2010 Elsevier B.V.

  6. A case study of evolutionary computation of biochemical adaptation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    François, Paul; Siggia, Eric D

    2008-01-01

    Simulations of evolution have a long history, but their relation to biology is questioned because of the perceived contingency of evolution. Here we provide an example of a biological process, adaptation, where simulations are argued to approach closer to biology. Adaptation is a common feature of sensory systems, and a plausible component of other biochemical networks because it rescales upstream signals to facilitate downstream processing. We create random gene networks numerically, by linking genes with interactions that model transcription, phosphorylation and protein–protein association. We define a fitness function for adaptation in terms of two functional metrics, and show that any reasonable combination of them will yield the same adaptive networks after repeated rounds of mutation and selection. Convergence to these networks is driven by positive selection and thus fast. There is always a path in parameter space of continuously improving fitness that leads to perfect adaptation, implying that the actual mutation rates we use in the simulation do not bias the results. Our results imply a kinetic view of evolution, i.e., it favors gene networks that can be learned quickly from the random examples supplied by mutation. This formulation allows for deductive predictions of the networks realized in nature

  7. Landscape structure and the speed of adaptation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Claudino, Elder S.; Campos, Paulo R.A.

    2014-01-01

    The role of fragmentation in the adaptive process is addressed. We investigate how landscape structure affects the speed of adaptation in a spatially structured population model. As models of fragmented landscapes, here we simulate the percolation maps and the fractal landscapes. In the latter the degree of spatial autocorrelation can be suited. We verified that fragmentation can effectively affect the adaptive process. The examination of the fixation rates and speed of adaptation discloses the dichotomy exhibited by percolation maps and fractal landscapes. In the latter, there is a smooth change in the pace of the adaptation process, as the landscapes become more aggregated higher fixation rates and speed of adaptation are obtained. On the other hand, in random percolation the geometry of the percolating cluster matters. Thus, the scenario depends on whether the system is below or above the percolation threshold. - Highlights: • The role of fragmentation on the adaptive process is addressed. • Our approach makes the linkage between population genetics and landscape ecology. • Fragmentation affects gene flow and thus influences the speed of adaptation. • The level of clumping determines how the speed of adaptation is influenced

  8. Discrete Particle Swarm Optimization Routing Protocol for Wireless Sensor Networks with Multiple Mobile Sinks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Jin; Liu, Fagui; Cao, Jianneng; Wang, Liangming

    2016-07-14

    Mobile sinks can achieve load-balancing and energy-consumption balancing across the wireless sensor networks (WSNs). However, the frequent change of the paths between source nodes and the sinks caused by sink mobility introduces significant overhead in terms of energy and packet delays. To enhance network performance of WSNs with mobile sinks (MWSNs), we present an efficient routing strategy, which is formulated as an optimization problem and employs the particle swarm optimization algorithm (PSO) to build the optimal routing paths. However, the conventional PSO is insufficient to solve discrete routing optimization problems. Therefore, a novel greedy discrete particle swarm optimization with memory (GMDPSO) is put forward to address this problem. In the GMDPSO, particle's position and velocity of traditional PSO are redefined under discrete MWSNs scenario. Particle updating rule is also reconsidered based on the subnetwork topology of MWSNs. Besides, by improving the greedy forwarding routing, a greedy search strategy is designed to drive particles to find a better position quickly. Furthermore, searching history is memorized to accelerate convergence. Simulation results demonstrate that our new protocol significantly improves the robustness and adapts to rapid topological changes with multiple mobile sinks, while efficiently reducing the communication overhead and the energy consumption.

  9. Dynamics of adaptive and innate immunity in patients treated during primary human immunodeficiency virus infection: results from Maraviroc in HIV Acute Infection (MAIN) randomized clinical trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ripa, M; Pogliaghi, M; Chiappetta, S; Galli, L; Pensieroso, S; Cavarelli, M; Scarlatti, G; De Biasi, S; Cossarizza, A; De Battista, D; Malnati, M; Lazzarin, A; Nozza, S; Tambussi, G

    2015-09-01

    We evaluated the dynamics of innate and adaptive immunity in patients treated with combined antiretroviral therapy (cART) during primary human immunodeficiency virus infection (PHI), enrolled in a prospective randomized trial (MAIN, EUDRACT 2008-007004-29). After 48 weeks of cART, we documented a reduction in activated B cells and CD8(+) T cells. Natural killer cell and dendritic cell frequencies were measured and a decrease in CD16(+) CD56(dim) with a reciprocal rise in CD56(high) natural killer cells and an increase in myeloid and plasmacytoid dendritic cells were recorded. In conclusion, 48 weeks of cART during PHI showed significant benefits for both innate and adaptive immunity. Copyright © 2015 European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Random walks and diffusion on networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masuda, Naoki; Porter, Mason A.; Lambiotte, Renaud

    2017-11-01

    Random walks are ubiquitous in the sciences, and they are interesting from both theoretical and practical perspectives. They are one of the most fundamental types of stochastic processes; can be used to model numerous phenomena, including diffusion, interactions, and opinions among humans and animals; and can be used to extract information about important entities or dense groups of entities in a network. Random walks have been studied for many decades on both regular lattices and (especially in the last couple of decades) on networks with a variety of structures. In the present article, we survey the theory and applications of random walks on networks, restricting ourselves to simple cases of single and non-adaptive random walkers. We distinguish three main types of random walks: discrete-time random walks, node-centric continuous-time random walks, and edge-centric continuous-time random walks. We first briefly survey random walks on a line, and then we consider random walks on various types of networks. We extensively discuss applications of random walks, including ranking of nodes (e.g., PageRank), community detection, respondent-driven sampling, and opinion models such as voter models.

  11. Randomized Oversampling for Generalized Multiscale Finite Element Methods

    KAUST Repository

    Calo, Victor M.

    2016-03-23

    In this paper, we develop efficient multiscale methods for flows in heterogeneous media. We use the generalized multiscale finite element (GMsFEM) framework. GMsFEM approximates the solution space locally using a few multiscale basis functions. This approximation selects an appropriate snapshot space and a local spectral decomposition, e.g., the use of oversampled regions, in order to achieve an efficient model reduction. However, the successful construction of snapshot spaces may be costly if too many local problems need to be solved in order to obtain these spaces. We use a moderate quantity of local solutions (or snapshot vectors) with random boundary conditions on oversampled regions with zero forcing to deliver an efficient methodology. Motivated by the randomized algorithm presented in [P. G. Martinsson, V. Rokhlin, and M. Tygert, A Randomized Algorithm for the approximation of Matrices, YALEU/DCS/TR-1361, Yale University, 2006], we consider a snapshot space which consists of harmonic extensions of random boundary conditions defined in a domain larger than the target region. Furthermore, we perform an eigenvalue decomposition in this small space. We study the application of randomized sampling for GMsFEM in conjunction with adaptivity, where local multiscale spaces are adaptively enriched. Convergence analysis is provided. We present representative numerical results to validate the method proposed.

  12. Effects of Yoga on Stress, Stress Adaption, and Heart Rate Variability Among Mental Health Professionals--A Randomized Controlled Trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lin, Shu-Ling; Huang, Ching-Ya; Shiu, Shau-Ping; Yeh, Shu-Hui

    2015-08-01

    Mental health professionals experiencing work-related stress may experience burn out, leading to a negative impact on their organization and patients. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of yoga classes on work-related stress, stress adaptation, and autonomic nerve activity among mental health professionals. A randomized controlled trial was used, which compared the outcomes between the experimental (e.g., yoga program) and the control groups (e.g., no yoga exercise) for 12 weeks. Work-related stress and stress adaptation were assessed before and after the program. Heart rate variability (HRV) was measured at baseline, midpoint through the weekly yoga classes (6 weeks), and postintervention (after 12 weeks of yoga classes). The results showed that the mental health professionals in the yoga group experienced a significant reduction in work-related stress (t = -6.225, p control group revealed no significant changes. Comparing the mean differences in pre- and posttest scores between yoga and control groups, we found the yoga group significantly decreased work-related stress (t = -3.216, p = .002), but there was no significant change in stress adaptation (p = .084). While controlling for the pretest scores of work-related stress, participants in yoga, but not the control group, revealed a significant increase in autonomic nerve activity at midpoint (6 weeks) test (t = -2.799, p = .007), and at posttest (12 weeks; t = -2.099, p = .040). Because mental health professionals experienced a reduction in work-related stress and an increase in autonomic nerve activity in a weekly yoga program for 12 weeks, clinicians, administrators, and educators should offer yoga classes as a strategy to help health professionals reduce their work-related stress and balance autonomic nerve activities. © 2015 The Authors. Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Society for Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing.

  13. Adaptive transmit selection with interference suppression

    KAUST Repository

    Radaydeh, Redha Mahmoud Mesleh

    2010-01-01

    This paper studies the performance of adaptive transmit channel selection in multipath fading channels. The adaptive selection algorithms are configured for single-antenna bandwidth-efficient or power-efficient transmission with as low transmit channel estimations as possible. Due to the fact that the number of active co-channel interfering signals and their corresponding powers experience random behavior, the adaptation to channels conditions, assuming uniform buffer and traffic loading, is proposed to be jointly based on the transmit channels instantaneous signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) and signal-to- interference-plus- noise ratios (SINRs). Two interference cancelation algorithms, which are the dominant cancelation and the less complex arbitrary cancelation, are considered, for which the receive antenna array is assumed to have small angular spread. Analytical formulation for some performance measures in addition to several processing complexity and numerical comparisons between various adaptation schemes are presented. ©2010 IEEE.

  14. Adaptive Clinical Trials: Advantages and Disadvantages of Various Adaptive Design Elements.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Korn, Edward L; Freidlin, Boris

    2017-06-01

    There is a wide range of adaptive elements of clinical trial design (some old and some new), with differing advantages and disadvantages. Classical interim monitoring, which adapts the design based on early evidence of superiority or futility of a treatment arm, has long been known to be extremely useful. A more recent application of interim monitoring is in the use of phase II/III designs, which can be very effective (especially in the setting of multiple experimental treatments and a reliable intermediate end point) but do have the cost of having to commit earlier to the phase III question than if separate phase II and phase III trials were performed. Outcome-adaptive randomization is an older technique that has recently regained attention; it increases trial complexity and duration without offering substantial benefits to the patients in the trial. The use of adaptive trials with biomarkers is new and has great potential for efficiently identifying patients who will be helped most by specific treatments. Master protocols in which trial arms and treatment questions are added to an ongoing trial can be especially efficient in the biomarker setting, where patients are screened for entry into different subtrials based on evolving knowledge about targeted therapies. A discussion of three recent adaptive clinical trials (BATTLE-2, I-SPY 2, and FOCUS4) highlights the issues. Published by Oxford University Press 2017. This work is written by US Government employees and is in the public domain in the US.

  15. Protocol: Adaptive Implementation of Effective Programs Trial (ADEPT): cluster randomized SMART trial comparing a standard versus enhanced implementation strategy to improve outcomes of a mood disorders program.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kilbourne, Amy M; Almirall, Daniel; Eisenberg, Daniel; Waxmonsky, Jeanette; Goodrich, David E; Fortney, John C; Kirchner, JoAnn E; Solberg, Leif I; Main, Deborah; Bauer, Mark S; Kyle, Julia; Murphy, Susan A; Nord, Kristina M; Thomas, Marshall R

    2014-09-30

    Despite the availability of psychosocial evidence-based practices (EBPs), treatment and outcomes for persons with mental disorders remain suboptimal. Replicating Effective Programs (REP), an effective implementation strategy, still resulted in less than half of sites using an EBP. The primary aim of this cluster randomized trial is to determine, among sites not initially responding to REP, the effect of adaptive implementation strategies that begin with an External Facilitator (EF) or with an External Facilitator plus an Internal Facilitator (IF) on improved EBP use and patient outcomes in 12 months. This study employs a sequential multiple assignment randomized trial (SMART) design to build an adaptive implementation strategy. The EBP to be implemented is life goals (LG) for patients with mood disorders across 80 community-based outpatient clinics (N = 1,600 patients) from different U.S. regions. Sites not initially responding to REP (defined as implementation costs, and organizational change. This study design will determine whether an off-site EF alone versus the addition of an on-site IF improves EBP uptake and patient outcomes among sites that do not respond initially to REP. It will also examine the value of delaying the provision of EF/IF for sites that continue to not respond despite EF. ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02151331.

  16. Adaptation to Temporally Fluctuating Environments by the Evolution of Maternal Effects.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Snigdhadip Dey

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available All organisms live in temporally fluctuating environments. Theory predicts that the evolution of deterministic maternal effects (i.e., anticipatory maternal effects or transgenerational phenotypic plasticity underlies adaptation to environments that fluctuate in a predictably alternating fashion over maternal-offspring generations. In contrast, randomizing maternal effects (i.e., diversifying and conservative bet-hedging, are expected to evolve in response to unpredictably fluctuating environments. Although maternal effects are common, evidence for their adaptive significance is equivocal since they can easily evolve as a correlated response to maternal selection and may or may not increase the future fitness of offspring. Using the hermaphroditic nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, we here show that the experimental evolution of maternal glycogen provisioning underlies adaptation to a fluctuating normoxia-anoxia hatching environment by increasing embryo survival under anoxia. In strictly alternating environments, we found that hermaphrodites evolved the ability to increase embryo glycogen provisioning when they experienced normoxia and to decrease embryo glycogen provisioning when they experienced anoxia. At odds with existing theory, however, populations facing irregularly fluctuating normoxia-anoxia hatching environments failed to evolve randomizing maternal effects. Instead, adaptation in these populations may have occurred through the evolution of fitness effects that percolate over multiple generations, as they maintained considerably high expected growth rates during experimental evolution despite evolving reduced fecundity and reduced embryo survival under one or two generations of anoxia. We develop theoretical models that explain why adaptation to a wide range of patterns of environmental fluctuations hinges on the existence of deterministic maternal effects, and that such deterministic maternal effects are more likely to contribute to

  17. Interactive effects of body-size structure and adaptive foraging on food-web stability.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heckmann, Lotta; Drossel, Barbara; Brose, Ulrich; Guill, Christian

    2012-03-01

    Body-size structure of food webs and adaptive foraging of consumers are two of the dominant concepts of our understanding how natural ecosystems maintain their stability and diversity. The interplay of these two processes, however, is a critically important yet unresolved issue. To fill this gap in our knowledge of ecosystem stability, we investigate dynamic random and niche model food webs to evaluate the proportion of persistent species. We show that stronger body-size structures and faster adaptation stabilise these food webs. Body-size structures yield stabilising configurations of interaction strength distributions across food webs, and adaptive foraging emphasises links to resources closer to the base. Moreover, both mechanisms combined have a cumulative effect. Most importantly, unstructured random webs evolve via adaptive foraging into stable size-structured food webs. This offers a mechanistic explanation of how size structure adaptively emerges in complex food webs, thus building a novel bridge between these two important stabilising mechanisms. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd/CNRS.

  18. Slowly switching between environments facilitates reverse evolution in small populations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tan, Longzhi; Gore, Jeff

    2011-03-01

    The rate at which a physical process occurs usually changes the behavior of a system. In thermodynamics, the reversibility of a process generally increases when it occurs at an infinitely slow rate. In biological evolution, adaptations to a new environment may be reversed by evolution in the ancestral environment. Such fluctuating environments are ubiquitous in nature, although how the rate of switching affects reverse evolution is unknown. Here we use a computational approach to quantify evolutionary reversibility as a function of the rate of switching between two environments. For small population sizes, which travel on landscapes as random walkers, we find that both genotypic and phenotypic reverse evolution increase at slow switching rates. However, slow switching of environments decreases evolutionary reversibility for a greedy walker, corresponding to large populations (extensive clonal interference). We conclude that the impact of the switching rate for biological evolution is more complicated than other common physical processes, and that a quantitative approach may yield significant insight into reverse evolution.

  19. Commercial Territory Design for a Distribution Firm with New Constructive and Destructive Heuristics

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jaime

    2012-02-01

    Full Text Available A commercial territory design problem with compactness maximization criterion subject to territory balancing and connectivity is addressed. Four new heuristics based on Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedures within a location-allocation scheme for this NP-hard combinatorial optimization problem are proposed. The first three (named GRLH1, GRLH2, and GRDL build the territories simultaneously. Their construction phase consists of two parts: a location phase where territory seeds are identified, and an allocation phase where the remaining basic units are iteratively assigned to a territory. In contrast, the other heuristic (named SLA builds the territories one at a time. Empirical results reveals that GRLH1 and GRLH2 find near-optimal or optimal solutions to relatively small instances, where exact solutions could be found. The proposed procedures are relatively fast. We carried out a comparison between the proposed heuristic procedures and the existing method in larger instances. It was observed the proposed heuristic GRLH1 produced competitive results with respect to the existing approach.

  20. Random wave fields and scintillated beams

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Roux, FS

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available F. Stef Roux CSIR National Laser Centre PO Box 395, Pretoria 0001, South Africa CSIR National Laser Centre – p.1/29 Contents . Scintillated beams and adaptive optics . Detecting a vortex — Shack-Hartmann . Remove optical vortices . Random vortex... beam. CSIR National Laser Centre – p.3/29 Weak scintillation If the scintillation is weak the resulting phase function of the optical beam is still continuous. Such a weakly scintillated beam can be corrected by an adaptive optical system. CSIR National...

  1. Adapting RRT growth for heterogeneous environments

    KAUST Repository

    Denny, Jory; Morales, Marco; Rodriguez, Samuel; Amato, Nancy M.

    2013-01-01

    Rapidly-exploring Random Trees (RRTs) are effective for a wide range of applications ranging from kinodynamic planning to motion planning under uncertainty. However, RRTs are not as efficient when exploring heterogeneous environments and do not adapt to the space. For example, in difficult areas an expensive RRT growth method might be appropriate, while in open areas inexpensive growth methods should be chosen. In this paper, we present a novel algorithm, Adaptive RRT, that adapts RRT growth to the current exploration area using a two level growth selection mechanism. At the first level, we select groups of expansion methods according to the visibility of the node being expanded. Second, we use a cost-sensitive learning approach to select a sampler from the group of expansion methods chosen. Also, we propose a novel definition of visibility for RRT nodes which can be computed in an online manner and used by Adaptive RRT to select an appropriate expansion method. We present the algorithm and experimental analysis on a broad range of problems showing not only its adaptability, but efficiency gains achieved by adapting exploration methods appropriately. © 2013 IEEE.

  2. Adapting RRT growth for heterogeneous environments

    KAUST Repository

    Denny, Jory

    2013-11-01

    Rapidly-exploring Random Trees (RRTs) are effective for a wide range of applications ranging from kinodynamic planning to motion planning under uncertainty. However, RRTs are not as efficient when exploring heterogeneous environments and do not adapt to the space. For example, in difficult areas an expensive RRT growth method might be appropriate, while in open areas inexpensive growth methods should be chosen. In this paper, we present a novel algorithm, Adaptive RRT, that adapts RRT growth to the current exploration area using a two level growth selection mechanism. At the first level, we select groups of expansion methods according to the visibility of the node being expanded. Second, we use a cost-sensitive learning approach to select a sampler from the group of expansion methods chosen. Also, we propose a novel definition of visibility for RRT nodes which can be computed in an online manner and used by Adaptive RRT to select an appropriate expansion method. We present the algorithm and experimental analysis on a broad range of problems showing not only its adaptability, but efficiency gains achieved by adapting exploration methods appropriately. © 2013 IEEE.

  3. Methylphenidate and Memory and Attention Adaptation Training for Persistent Cognitive Symptoms after Traumatic Brain Injury: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McDonald, Brenna C; Flashman, Laura A; Arciniegas, David B; Ferguson, Robert J; Xing, Li; Harezlak, Jaroslaw; Sprehn, Gwen C; Hammond, Flora M; Maerlender, Arthur C; Kruck, Carrie L; Gillock, Karen L; Frey, Kim; Wall, Rachel N; Saykin, Andrew J; McAllister, Thomas W

    2017-08-01

    The purpose of this multicenter, prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled study was to evaluate and compare the efficacy of two cognitive rehabilitation interventions (Memory and Attention Adaptation Training (MAAT) and Attention Builders Training (ABT)), with and without pharmacological enhancement (ie, with methylphenidate (MPH) or placebo), for treating persistent cognitive problems after traumatic brain injury (TBI). Adults with a history of TBI at least 4 months before study enrollment with either objective cognitive deficits or subjective cognitive complaints were randomized to receive MPH or placebo and MAAT or ABT, yielding four treatment combinations: MAAT/MPH (N=17), ABT/MPH (N=19), MAAT/placebo (N=17), and ABT/placebo (N=18). Assessments were conducted pre-treatment (baseline) and after 6 weeks of treatment (post treatment). Outcome measures included scores on neuropsychological measures and subjective rating scales. Statistical analyses used linear regression models to predict post-treatment scores for each outcome variable by treatment type, adjusting for relevant covariates. Statistically significant (PABT/placebo), nonverbal learning (MAAT/MPH>MAAT/placebo and MAAT/MPH>ABT/MPH), and auditory working memory and divided attention (MAAT/MPH>ABT/MPH). These results suggest that combined treatment with metacognitive rehabilitation (MAAT) and pharmacotherapy (MPH) can improve aspects of attention, episodic and working memory, and executive functioning after TBI.

  4. Frontostriatal and behavioral adaptations to daily sugar-sweetened beverage intake: a randomized controlled trial123

    Science.gov (United States)

    2017-01-01

    Background: Current obesity theories suggest that the repeated intake of highly palatable high-sugar foods causes adaptions in the striatum, parietal lobe, and prefrontal and visual cortices in the brain that may serve to perpetuate consumption in a feed-forward manner. However, the data for humans are cross-sectional and observational, leaving little ability to determine the temporal precedence of repeated consumption on brain response. Objective: We tested the impact of regular sugar-sweetened beverage intake on brain and behavioral responses to beverage stimuli. Design: We performed an experiment with 20 healthy-weight individuals who were randomly assigned to consume 1 of 2 sugar-sweetened beverages daily for 21 d, underwent 2 functional MRI sessions, and completed behavioral and explicit hedonic assessments. Results: Consistent with preclinical experiments, daily beverage consumption resulted in decreases in dorsal striatal response during receipt of the consumed beverage (r = −0.46) and decreased ventromedial prefrontal response during logo-elicited anticipation (r = −0.44). This decrease in the prefrontal response correlated with increases in behavioral disinhibition toward the logo of the consumed beverage (r = 0.54; P = 0.02). Daily beverage consumption also increased precuneus response to both juice logos compared with a tasteless control (r = 0.45), suggesting a more generalized effect toward beverage cues. Last, the repeated consumption of 1 beverage resulted in an explicit hedonic devaluation of a similar nonconsumed beverage (P < 0.001). Conclusions: Analogous to previous reports, these initial results provide convergent data for a role of regular sugar-sweetened beverage intake in altering neurobehavioral responses to the regularly consumed beverage that may also extend to other beverage stimuli. Future research is required to provide evidence of replication in a larger sample and to establish whether the neurobehavioral adaptations observed

  5. Lifetime Maximizing Adaptive Power Control in Wireless Sensor Networks

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Sun, Fangting; Shayman, Mark

    2006-01-01

    ...: adaptive power control. They focus on the sensor networks that consist of a sink and a set of homogeneous wireless sensor nodes, which are randomly deployed according to a uniform distribution...

  6. Global optimization in the adaptive assay of subterranean uranium nodules

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vulkan, U.; Ben-Haim, Y.

    1989-01-01

    An adaptive assay is one in which the design of the assay system is modified during operation in response to measurements obtained on-line. The present work has two aims: to design an adaptive system for borehole assay of isolated subterranean uranium nodules, and to investigate globality of optimal design in adaptive assay. It is shown experimentally that reasonably accurate estimates of uranium mass are obtained for a wide range of nodule shapes, on the basis of an adaptive assay system based on a simple geomorphological model. Furthermore, two concepts are identified which underlie the optimal design of the assay system. The adaptive assay approach shows promise for successful measurement of spatially random material in many geophysical applications. (author)

  7. Adaptive servo-ventilation therapy for patients with chronic heart failure in a confirmatory, multicenter, randomized, controlled study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Momomura, Shin-Ichi; Seino, Yoshihiko; Kihara, Yasuki; Adachi, Hitoshi; Yasumura, Yoshio; Yokoyama, Hiroyuki; Wada, Hiroshi; Ise, Takayuki; Tanaka, Koichi

    2015-01-01

    Adaptive servo-ventilation (ASV) therapy is expected to be novel nonpharmacotherapy with hemodynamic effects on patients with chronic heart failure (CHF), but sufficient evidence has not been obtained. A 24-week, open-label, randomized, controlled study was performed to confirm the cardiac function-improving effect of ASV therapy on CHF patients. At 39 institutions, 213 outpatients with CHF, whose left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) was control group], respectively. The primary endpoint was LVEF, and the secondary endpoints were HF deterioration, B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP), and clinical composite response (CCR: NYHA class+HF deterioration). LVEF and BNP improved significantly at completion against the baseline values in the 2 groups. However, no significant difference was found between these groups. HF deterioration tended to be suppressed. The ASV group showed a significant improvement in CCR corroborated by significant improvements in NYHA class and ADL against the control group. Under the present study's conditions, ASV therapy was not superior to GDMT in the cardiac function-improving effect but showed a clinical status-improving effect, thus indicating a given level of clinical benefit.

  8. Cold-Adapted Enzymes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Georlette, D.; Bentahir, M.; Claverie, P.; Collins, T.; D'amico, S.; Delille, D.; Feller, G.; Gratia, E.; Hoyoux, A.; Lonhienne, T.; Meuwis, M.-a.; Zecchinon, L.; Gerday, Ch.

    In the last few years, increased attention has been focused on enzymes produced by cold-adapted micro-organisms. It has emerged that psychrophilic enzymes represent an extremely powerful tool in both protein folding investigations and for biotechnological purposes. Such enzymes are characterised by an increased thermosensitivity and, most of them, by a higher catalytic efficiency at low and moderate temperatures, when compared to their mesophilic counterparts. The high thermosensitivity probably originates from an increased flexibility of either a selected area of the molecular edifice or the overall protein structure, providing enhanced abilities to undergo conformational changes during catalysis at low temperatures. Structure modelling and recent crystallographic data have allowed to elucidate the structural parameters that could be involved in this higher resilience. It was demonstrated that each psychrophilic enzyme adopts its own adaptive strategy. It appears, moreover, that there is a continuum in the strategy of protein adaptation to temperature, as the previously mentioned structural parameters are implicated in the stability of thermophilic proteins. Additional 3D crystal structures, site-directed and random mutagenesis experiments should now be undertaken to further investigate the stability-flexibility-activity relationship.

  9. Adaptive single-antenna transmit selection with interference suppression

    KAUST Repository

    Radaydeh, Redha Mahmoud Mesleh; Alouini, Mohamed-Slim

    2011-01-01

    -efficient transmission with as low transmit channel estimations as possible. Due to the fact that the number of active co-channel interfering signals and their corresponding powers experience random behavior, the adaptation to channels conditions, assuming uniform buffer

  10. Climate changes and farmers' endogenous adaptation strategies ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    It has been claimed that climate changes impact studies often assume certain adaptations and little explicit examination of how, when, why, and under what conditions they occur. This research aims at analysing the endogenous strategies developed by farmers in agricultural land and crop management. With random ...

  11. Adaptive Dynamic Process Scheduling on Distributed Memory Parallel Computers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wei Shu

    1994-01-01

    Full Text Available One of the challenges in programming distributed memory parallel machines is deciding how to allocate work to processors. This problem is particularly important for computations with unpredictable dynamic behaviors or irregular structures. We present a scheme for dynamic scheduling of medium-grained processes that is useful in this context. The adaptive contracting within neighborhood (ACWN is a dynamic, distributed, load-dependent, and scalable scheme. It deals with dynamic and unpredictable creation of processes and adapts to different systems. The scheme is described and contrasted with two other schemes that have been proposed in this context, namely the randomized allocation and the gradient model. The performance of the three schemes on an Intel iPSC/2 hypercube is presented and analyzed. The experimental results show that even though the ACWN algorithm incurs somewhat larger overhead than the randomized allocation, it achieves better performance in most cases due to its adaptiveness. Its feature of quickly spreading the work helps it outperform the gradient model in performance and scalability.

  12. Familias Unidas for high risk adolescents: Study design of a cultural adaptation and randomized controlled trial of a U.S. drug and sexual risk behavior intervention in Ecuador.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jacobs, Petra; Estrada, Yannine A; Tapia, Maria I; Quevedo Terán, Ana M; Condo Tamayo, Cecilia; Albán García, Mónica; Valenzuela Triviño, Gilda M; Pantin, Hilda; Velazquez, Maria R; Horigian, Viviana E; Alonso, Elizabeth; Prado, Guillermo

    2016-03-01

    Developing, testing and implementing evidence-based prevention interventions are important in decreasing substance use and sexual risk behavior among adolescents. This process requires research expertise, infrastructure, resources and decades of research testing, which might not always be feasible for low resource countries. Adapting and testing interventions proven to be efficacious in similar cultures might circumvent the time and costs of implementing evidence-based interventions in new settings. This paper describes the two-phase study, including training and development of the research infrastructure in the Ecuadorian university necessary to implement a randomized controlled trial. Familias Unidas is a multilevel parent-centered intervention designed in the U.S. to prevent drug use and sexual risk behaviors in Hispanic adolescents. The current study consisted of Phase 1 feasibility study (n=38) which adapted the intervention and study procedures within a single-site school setting in an area with a high prevalence of drug use and unprotected sexual behavior among adolescents in Ecuador, and Phase 2 randomized controlled trial of the adapted intervention in two public high schools with a target population of families with adolescents from 12 to 14 years old. The trial is currently in Phase 2. Study recruitment was completed with 239 parent-youth dyads enrolling. The intervention phase and the first follow-up assessment have been completed. The second and third follow-up assessments will be completed in 2016. This project has the potential of benefitting a large population of families in areas of Ecuador that are disproportionally affected by drug trafficking and its consequences. MSP-DIS-2015-0055-0, Ministry of Public Health (MSP), Quito, Ecuador. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. Adaptive Sniping for Volatile and Stable Continuous Double Auction Markets

    Science.gov (United States)

    Toft, I. E.; Bagnall, A. J.

    This paper introduces a new adaptive sniping agent for the Continuous Double Auction. We begin by analysing the performance of the well known Kaplan sniper in two extremes of market conditions. We generate volatile and stable market conditions using the well known Zero Intelligence-Constrained agent and a new zero-intelligence agent Small Increment (SI). ZI-C agents submit random but profitable bids/offers and cause high volatility in prices and individual trader performance. Our new zero-intelligence agent, SI, makes small random adjustments to the outstanding bid/offer and hence is more cautious than ZI-C. We present results for SI in self-play and then analyse Kaplan in volatile and stable markets. We demonstrate that the non-adaptive Kaplan sniper can be configured to suit either market conditions, but no single configuration is performs well across both market types. We believe that in a dynamic auction environment where current or future market conditions cannot be predicted a viable sniping strategy should adapt its behaviour to suit prevailing market conditions. To this end, we propose the Adaptive Sniper (AS) agent for the CDA. AS traders classify sniping opportunities using a statistical model of market activity and adjust their classification thresholds using a Widrow-Hoff adapted search. Our AS agent requires little configuration, and outperforms the original Kaplan sniper in volatile and stable markets, and in a mixed trader type scenario that includes adaptive strategies from the literature.

  14. Farmers’ Perceptions about Adaptation Practices to Climate Change and Barriers to Adaptation: A Micro-Level Study in Ghana

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Francis Ndamani

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available This study analyzed the farmer-perceived importance of adaptation practices to climate change and examined the barriers that impede adaptation. Perceptions about causes and effects of long-term changes in climatic variables were also investigated. A total of 100 farmer-households were randomly selected from four communities in the Lawra district of Ghana. Data was collected using semi-structured questionnaires and focus group discussions (FGDs. The results showed that 87% of respondents perceived a decrease in rainfall amount, while 82% perceived an increase in temperature over the past 10 years. The study revealed that adaptation was largely in response to dry spells and droughts (93.2% rather than floods. About 67% of respondents have adjusted their farming activities in response to climate change. Empirical results of the weighted average index analysis showed that farmers ranked improved crop varieties and irrigation as the most important adaptation measures. It also revealed that farmers lacked the capacity to implement the highly ranked adaptation practices. The problem confrontation index analysis showed that unpredictable weather, high cost of farm inputs, limited access to weather information, and lack of water resources were the most critical barriers to adaptation. This analysis of adaptation practices and constraints at farmer level will help facilitate government policy formulation and implementation.

  15. Deployment of check-in nodes in complex networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jiang, Zhong-Yuan; Ma, Jian-Feng

    2017-01-01

    In many real complex networks such as the city road networks and highway networks, vehicles often have to pass through some specially functioned nodes to receive check-in like services such as gas supplement at gas stations. Based on existing network structures, to guarantee every shortest path including at least a check-in node, the location selection of all check-in nodes is very essential and important to make vehicles to easily visit these check-in nodes, and it is still remains an open problem in complex network studies. In this work, we aim to find possible solutions for this problem. We first convert it into a set cover problem which is NP-complete and propose to employ the greedy algorithm to achieve an approximate result. Inspired by heuristic information of network structure, we discuss other four check-in node location deployment methods including high betweenness first (HBF), high degree first (HDF), random and low degree first (LDF). Finally, we compose extensive simulations in classical scale-free networks, random networks and real network models, and the results can well confirm the effectiveness of the greedy algorithm. This work has potential applications into many real networks.

  16. Smallholder farmers’ attitudes and determinants of adaptation to climate risks in East Africa

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Shikuku, Kelvin M.; Winowiecki, Leigh; Twyman, Jennifer; Eitzinger, Anton; Perez, Juan G.; Mwongera, Caroline; Läderach, Peter

    2017-01-01

    Adapting to climate risks is central to the goal of increasing food security and enhancing resilience of farming systems in East Africa. We examined farmers’ attitudes and assessed determinants of adaptation using data from a random sample of 500 households in Borana, Ethiopia; Nyando, Kenya;

  17. The sources of adaptive variation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Charlesworth, Deborah; Barton, Nicholas H; Charlesworth, Brian

    2017-05-31

    The role of natural selection in the evolution of adaptive phenotypes has undergone constant probing by evolutionary biologists, employing both theoretical and empirical approaches. As Darwin noted, natural selection can act together with other processes, including random changes in the frequencies of phenotypic differences that are not under strong selection, and changes in the environment, which may reflect evolutionary changes in the organisms themselves. As understanding of genetics developed after 1900, the new genetic discoveries were incorporated into evolutionary biology. The resulting general principles were summarized by Julian Huxley in his 1942 book Evolution: the modern synthesis Here, we examine how recent advances in genetics, developmental biology and molecular biology, including epigenetics, relate to today's understanding of the evolution of adaptations. We illustrate how careful genetic studies have repeatedly shown that apparently puzzling results in a wide diversity of organisms involve processes that are consistent with neo-Darwinism. They do not support important roles in adaptation for processes such as directed mutation or the inheritance of acquired characters, and therefore no radical revision of our understanding of the mechanism of adaptive evolution is needed. © 2017 The Author(s).

  18. Effect of a care plan based on Roy adaptation model biological dimension on stroke patients' physiologic adaptation level.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alimohammadi, Nasrollah; Maleki, Bibi; Shahriari, Mohsen; Chitsaz, Ahmad

    2015-01-01

    Stroke is a stressful event with several functional, physical, psychological, social, and economic problems that affect individuals' different living balances. With coping strategies, patients try to control these problems and return to their natural life. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of a care plan based on Roy adaptation model biological dimension on stroke patients' physiologic adaptation level. This study is a clinical trial in which 50 patients, affected by brain stroke and being admitted in the neurology ward of Kashani and Alzahra hospitals, were randomly assigned to control and study groups in Isfahan in 2013. Roy adaptation model care plan was administered in biological dimension in the form of four sessions and phone call follow-ups for 1 month. The forms related to Roy adaptation model were completed before and after intervention in the two groups. Chi-square test and t-test were used to analyze the data through SPSS 18. There was a significant difference in mean score of adaptation in physiological dimension in the study group after intervention (P adaptation in the patients affected by brain stroke in the study and control groups showed a significant increase in physiological dimension in the study group by 47.30 after intervention (P adaptation model biological dimension care plan can result in an increase in adaptation in patients with stroke in physiological dimension. Nurses can use this model for increasing patients' adaptation.

  19. Cascade phenomenon against subsequent failures in complex networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jiang, Zhong-Yuan; Liu, Zhi-Quan; He, Xuan; Ma, Jian-Feng

    2018-06-01

    Cascade phenomenon may lead to catastrophic disasters which extremely imperil the network safety or security in various complex systems such as communication networks, power grids, social networks and so on. In some flow-based networks, the load of failed nodes can be redistributed locally to their neighboring nodes to maximally preserve the traffic oscillations or large-scale cascading failures. However, in such local flow redistribution model, a small set of key nodes attacked subsequently can result in network collapse. Then it is a critical problem to effectively find the set of key nodes in the network. To our best knowledge, this work is the first to study this problem comprehensively. We first introduce the extra capacity for every node to put up with flow fluctuations from neighbors, and two extra capacity distributions including degree based distribution and average distribution are employed. Four heuristic key nodes discovering methods including High-Degree-First (HDF), Low-Degree-First (LDF), Random and Greedy Algorithms (GA) are presented. Extensive simulations are realized in both scale-free networks and random networks. The results show that the greedy algorithm can efficiently find the set of key nodes in both scale-free and random networks. Our work studies network robustness against cascading failures from a very novel perspective, and methods and results are very useful for network robustness evaluations and protections.

  20. Time-dependent postural control adaptations following a neuromuscular warm-up in female handball players: a randomized controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Steib, Simon; Zahn, Peter; Zu Eulenburg, Christine; Pfeifer, Klaus; Zech, Astrid

    2016-01-01

    Female handball athletes are at a particular risk of sustaining lower extremity injuries. The study examines time-dependent adaptations of static and dynamic balance as potential injury risk factors to a specific warm-up program focusing on neuromuscular control. Fourty one (24.0 ± 5.9 years) female handball athletes were randomized to an intervention or control group. The intervention group implemented a 15-min specific neuromuscular warm-up program, three times per week for eleven weeks, whereas the control group continued with their regular warm-up. Balance was assessed at five time points. Measures included the star excursion balance test (SEBT), and center of pressure (COP) sway velocity during single-leg standing. No baseline differences existed between groups in demographic data. Adherence to neuromuscular warm-up was 88.7 %. Mean COP sway velocity decreased significantly over time in the intervention group (-14.4 %; p  control group (-6.2 %; p  = 0.056). However, these effects did not differ significantly between groups ( p  = .098). Mean changes over time in the SEBT score were significantly greater ( p  = .014) in the intervention group (+5.48) compared to the control group (+3.45). Paired t-tests revealed that the first significant balance improvements were observed after 6 weeks of training. A neuromuscular warm-up positively influences balance variables associated with an increased risk of lower extremity injuries in female handball athletes. The course of adaptations suggests that a training volume of 15 min, three times weekly over at least six weeks produces measurable changes. Retrospectively registered on 4th October 2016. Registry: clinicaltrials.gov. Trial number: NCT02925377.

  1. Randomized Oversampling for Generalized Multiscale Finite Element Methods

    KAUST Repository

    Calo, Victor M.; Efendiev, Yalchin R.; Galvis, Juan; Li, Guanglian

    2016-01-01

    boundary conditions defined in a domain larger than the target region. Furthermore, we perform an eigenvalue decomposition in this small space. We study the application of randomized sampling for GMsFEM in conjunction with adaptivity, where local multiscale

  2. Myocardial adaption to HI(R)T in previously untrained men with a randomized, longitudinal cardiac MR imaging study (Physical adaptions in Untrained on Strength and Heart trial, PUSH-trial).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scharf, Michael; Oezdemir, Derya; Schmid, Axel; Kemmler, Wolfgang; von Stengel, Simon; May, Matthias S; Uder, Michael; Lell, Michael M

    2017-01-01

    Although musculoskeletal effects in resistance training are well described, little is known about structural and functional cardiac adaption in formerly untrained subjects. We prospectively evaluated whether short term high intensity (resistance) training (HI(R)T) induces detectable morphologic cardiac changes in previously untrained men in a randomized controlled magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) study. 80 untrained middle-aged men were randomly assigned to a HI(R)T-group (n = 40; 43.5±5.9 years) or an inactive control group (n = 40; 42.0±6.3 years). HI(R)T comprised 22 weeks of training focusing on a single-set to failure protocol in 2-3 sessions/week, each with 10-13 exercises addressing main muscle groups. Repetitions were decreased from 8-10 to 3-5 during study period. Before and after HI(R)T all subjects underwent physiologic examination and cardiac MRI (cine imaging, tagging). Indexed left (LV) and right ventricular (RV) volume (LV: 76.8±15.6 to 78.7±14.8 ml/m2; RV: 77.0±15.5 to 78.7±15.1 ml/m2) and mass (LV: 55.5±9.7 to 57.0±8.8 g/m2; RV: 14.6±3.0 to 15.0±2.9 g/m2) significantly increased with HI(R)T (all pHI(R)T-group did not alter with training (0.73g/mL and 0.19g/mL, respectively [p = 0.96 and p = 0.87]), indicating balanced cardiac adaption. Indexed LV (48.4±11.1 to 50.8±11.0 ml/m2) and RV (48.5±11.0 to 50.6±10.7 ml/m2) stroke volume significantly increased with HI(R)T (pHI(R)T (36.2±7.9 to 37.0±8.4 ml/m2, p = 0.411), the ratio to end-diastolic LV volume at baseline and post-training was unchanged (0.47 vs. 0.47, p = 0.79). 22 weeks of HI(R)T lead to measurable, physiological changes in cardiac atrial and ventricular morphologic characteristics and function in previously untrained men. The PUSH-trial is registered at the US National Institutes of Health (ClinicalTrials.gov), NCT01766791.

  3. Neural-Fuzzy Digital Strategy of Continuous-Time Nonlinear Systems Using Adaptive Prediction and Random-Local-Optimization Design

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhi-Ren Tsai

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available A tracking problem, time-delay, uncertainty and stability analysis of a predictive control system are considered. The predictive control design is based on the input and output of neural plant model (NPM, and a recursive fuzzy predictive tracker has scaling factors which limit the value zone of measured data and cause the tuned parameters to converge to obtain a robust control performance. To improve the further control performance, the proposed random-local-optimization design (RLO for a model/controller uses offline initialization to obtain a near global optimal model/controller. Other issues are the considerations of modeling error, input-delay, sampling distortion, cost, greater flexibility, and highly reliable digital products of the model-based controller for the continuous-time (CT nonlinear system. They are solved by a recommended two-stage control design with the first-stage (offline RLO and second-stage (online adaptive steps. A theorizing method is then put forward to replace the sensitivity calculation, which reduces the calculation of Jacobin matrices of the back-propagation (BP method. Finally, the feedforward input of reference signals helps the digital fuzzy controller improve the control performance, and the technique works to control the CT systems precisely.

  4. Adaptive evolution of molecular phenotypes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Held, Torsten; Nourmohammad, Armita; Lässig, Michael

    2014-01-01

    Molecular phenotypes link genomic information with organismic functions, fitness, and evolution. Quantitative traits are complex phenotypes that depend on multiple genomic loci. In this paper, we study the adaptive evolution of a quantitative trait under time-dependent selection, which arises from environmental changes or through fitness interactions with other co-evolving phenotypes. We analyze a model of trait evolution under mutations and genetic drift in a single-peak fitness seascape. The fitness peak performs a constrained random walk in the trait amplitude, which determines the time-dependent trait optimum in a given population. We derive analytical expressions for the distribution of the time-dependent trait divergence between populations and of the trait diversity within populations. Based on this solution, we develop a method to infer adaptive evolution of quantitative traits. Specifically, we show that the ratio of the average trait divergence and the diversity is a universal function of evolutionary time, which predicts the stabilizing strength and the driving rate of the fitness seascape. From an information-theoretic point of view, this function measures the macro-evolutionary entropy in a population ensemble, which determines the predictability of the evolutionary process. Our solution also quantifies two key characteristics of adapting populations: the cumulative fitness flux, which measures the total amount of adaptation, and the adaptive load, which is the fitness cost due to a population's lag behind the fitness peak. (paper)

  5. Effects of practice schedule and task specificity on the adaptive process of motor learning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barros, João Augusto de Camargo; Tani, Go; Corrêa, Umberto Cesar

    2017-10-01

    This study investigated the effects of practice schedule and task specificity based on the perspective of adaptive process of motor learning. For this purpose, tasks with temporal and force control learning requirements were manipulated in experiments 1 and 2, respectively. Specifically, the task consisted of touching with the dominant hand the three sequential targets with specific movement time or force for each touch. Participants were children (N=120), both boys and girls, with an average age of 11.2years (SD=1.0). The design in both experiments involved four practice groups (constant, random, constant-random, and random-constant) and two phases (stabilisation and adaptation). The dependent variables included measures related to the task goal (accuracy and variability of error of the overall movement and force patterns) and movement pattern (macro- and microstructures). Results revealed a similar error of the overall patterns for all groups in both experiments and that they adapted themselves differently in terms of the macro- and microstructures of movement patterns. The study concludes that the effects of practice schedules on the adaptive process of motor learning were both general and specific to the task. That is, they were general to the task goal performance and specific regarding the movement pattern. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Impact of adaptation algorithm, timing, and stopping boundaries on the performance of Bayesian response adaptive randomization in confirmative trials with a binary endpoint.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jiang, Yunyun; Zhao, Wenle; Durkalski-Mauldin, Valerie

    2017-11-01

    Despite the concerns of time trend in subject profiles, the use of Bayesian response adaptive randomization (BRAR) in large multicenter phase 3 confirmative trials has been reported in recent years, motivated by the potential benefits in subject ethics and/or trial efficiency. However three issues remain unclear to investigators: 1) among several BRAR algorithms, how to choose one for the specific trial setting; 2) when to start and how frequently to update the allocation ratio; and 3) how to choose the interim analyses stopping boundaries to preserve the type 1 error. In this paper, three commonly used BRAR algorithms are evaluated based on type 1 error, power, sample size, the proportion of subjects assigned to the better performing arm, and the total number of failures, under two specific trial settings and different allocation ratio update timing and frequencies. Simulation studies show that for two-arm superiority trials, none of the three BRAR algorithms has predominant benefits in both patient ethics and trial efficiency when compared to fixed equal allocation design. For a specific trial aiming to identify the best or the worst among three treatments, a properly selected BRAR algorithm and its implementation parameters are able to gain ethical and efficiency benefits simultaneously. Although the simulation results come from a specific trial setting, the methods described in this paper are generally applicable to other trials. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Sobol indices for dimension adaptivity in sparse grids

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Dwight, R.P.; Desmedt, S.G.L.; Shoeibi Omrani, P.

    2016-01-01

    Propagation of random variables through computer codes of many inputs is primarily limited by computational expense. The use of sparse grids mitigates these costs somewhat; here we show how Sobol indices can be used to perform dimension adaptivity to mitigate them further. The method is compared to

  8. Adaptation of the Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI) to Turkish

    OpenAIRE

    Yavuz, Mustafa

    2010-01-01

    Aim of this research is determined as adapting the Leadership Practice Inventory developed by Kouzes & Posner (2003) to Turkish. Working group of the research consist of 436 teachers chosen by using the random sampling method among the teachers working in 2009- 2010 educational years in Konya/Turkey. 194 of the teachers constituting the working group are female and 242 of them are male. Average working year of them are 15 years. During the adaptation of the scale, it was first translated ...

  9. Comparing cluster-level dynamic treatment regimens using sequential, multiple assignment, randomized trials: Regression estimation and sample size considerations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    NeCamp, Timothy; Kilbourne, Amy; Almirall, Daniel

    2017-08-01

    Cluster-level dynamic treatment regimens can be used to guide sequential treatment decision-making at the cluster level in order to improve outcomes at the individual or patient-level. In a cluster-level dynamic treatment regimen, the treatment is potentially adapted and re-adapted over time based on changes in the cluster that could be impacted by prior intervention, including aggregate measures of the individuals or patients that compose it. Cluster-randomized sequential multiple assignment randomized trials can be used to answer multiple open questions preventing scientists from developing high-quality cluster-level dynamic treatment regimens. In a cluster-randomized sequential multiple assignment randomized trial, sequential randomizations occur at the cluster level and outcomes are observed at the individual level. This manuscript makes two contributions to the design and analysis of cluster-randomized sequential multiple assignment randomized trials. First, a weighted least squares regression approach is proposed for comparing the mean of a patient-level outcome between the cluster-level dynamic treatment regimens embedded in a sequential multiple assignment randomized trial. The regression approach facilitates the use of baseline covariates which is often critical in the analysis of cluster-level trials. Second, sample size calculators are derived for two common cluster-randomized sequential multiple assignment randomized trial designs for use when the primary aim is a between-dynamic treatment regimen comparison of the mean of a continuous patient-level outcome. The methods are motivated by the Adaptive Implementation of Effective Programs Trial which is, to our knowledge, the first-ever cluster-randomized sequential multiple assignment randomized trial in psychiatry.

  10. Intelligent control of non-linear dynamical system based on the adaptive neurocontroller

    Science.gov (United States)

    Engel, E.; Kovalev, I. V.; Kobezhicov, V.

    2015-10-01

    This paper presents an adaptive neuro-controller for intelligent control of non-linear dynamical system. The formed as the fuzzy selective neural net the adaptive neuro-controller on the base of system's state, creates the effective control signal under random perturbations. The validity and advantages of the proposed adaptive neuro-controller are demonstrated by numerical simulations. The simulation results show that the proposed controller scheme achieves real-time control speed and the competitive performance, as compared to PID, fuzzy logic controllers.

  11. TU-H-CAMPUS-JeP3-01: Towards Robust Adaptive Radiation Therapy Strategies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Boeck, M; Eriksson, K; Hardemark, B; Forsgren, A

    2016-01-01

    Purpose: To set up a framework combining robust treatment planning with adaptive reoptimization in order to maintain high treatment quality, to respond to interfractional variations and to identify those patients who will benefit the most from an adaptive fractionation schedule. Methods: We propose adaptive strategies based on stochastic minimax optimization for a series of simulated treatments on a one-dimensional patient phantom. The plan should be able to handle anticipated systematic and random errors and is applied during the first fractions. Information on the individual geometric variations is gathered at each fraction. At scheduled fractions, the impact of the measured errors on the delivered dose distribution is evaluated. For a patient that receives a dose that does not satisfy specified plan quality criteria, the plan is reoptimized based on these individual measurements using one of three different adaptive strategies. The reoptimized plan is then applied during future fractions until a new scheduled adaptation becomes necessary. In the first adaptive strategy the measured systematic and random error scenarios and their assigned probabilities are updated to guide the robust reoptimization. The focus of the second strategy lies on variation of the fraction of the worst scenarios taken into account during robust reoptimization. In the third strategy the uncertainty margins around the target are recalculated with the measured errors. Results: By studying the effect of the three adaptive strategies combined with various adaptation schedules on the same patient population, the group which benefits from adaptation is identified together with the most suitable strategy and schedule. Preliminary computational results indicate when and how best to adapt for the three different strategies. Conclusion: A workflow is presented that provides robust adaptation of the treatment plan throughout the course of treatment and useful measures to identify patients in need

  12. Chromostereopsis in "virtual reality" adapters with electrically tuneable liquid lens oculars

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ozolinsh, Maris; Muizniece, Kristine; Berzinsh, Janis

    2016-10-01

    Chromostereopsis can be sight and feel in "Virtual Reality" adapters, that induces the appearance of color dependant depth sense and, finally, combines this sense with the source conceived depth scenario. Present studies are devoted to investigation the induced chromastereopsis when using adapted "Virtual Reality" frame together with mobile devices as smartphones. We did observation of composite visual stimuli presented on the high spatial resolution screen of the mobile phone placed inside a portable "Virtual Reality" adapter. Separated for the left and right eyes stimuli consisted of two areas: a) identical for both eyes color chromostereopsis part, and b) additional conventional color neutral random-dot stereopsis part with a stereodisparity based on the horizontal shift of a random-dot segment in images for the left and right eyes, correspondingly. The observer task was to equalize the depth sense for neutral and colored stimuli areas. Such scheme allows to determine actual observed chromostereopsis disparity value versus eye stimuli color difference. At standard observation conditions for adapter with +2D ocular lenses for mobile red-blue stimuli, the perceptual chromostereopsis depth sensitivity on color difference was linearly approximated with a slope SChS ≈ 2.1[arcmin/(Labcolor difference)] for red-blue pairs. Additional to standard application in adapter the tuneable "Varioptic" liquid lens oculars were incorporated, that allowed stimuli eye magnification, vergence and disparity values control electrically.

  13. Adapted physical activity is beneficial on balance, functional mobility, quality of life and fall risk in community-dwelling older women: a randomized single-blinded controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kovács, E; Prókai, L; Mészáros, L; Gondos, T

    2013-06-01

    Exercise programmes have important role in prevention of falls, but to date, we have little knowledge about the effects of Adapted Physical Activity programme on balance of older women. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of an Adapted Physical Activity programme on balance, risk of falls and quality of life in community-dwelling older women. This was a randomized controlled study. Community, in a local sport centre. Older women aged over 60 years. Seventy-six women were randomised to an exercise group providing Adapted Physical Activity programme for 25 weeks or a control group (in which they did not participate in any exercise programme). The one-leg stance test, Timed Up and Go test, incidence of fall and the quality of life (SF-36V2) were measured at baseline and after 25 weeks. The one-leg stance test and the Timed Up and Go test in the exercise group was significantly better than in the control group after the intervention period (P=0.005; P=0.001, respectively). The Physical Functioning, Vitality and General Health subdomains of quality of life were also significantly better in the exercise group compared to the control group (P=0.004; P=0.005; P=0.038, respectively). Relative risk was 0.40 (90% CI 0.174 to 0.920) and the number needed to treat was 5 (95% CI 2.3 to 23.3). This 25-week Adapted Physical Activity programme improves static balance, functional mobility, as well as Physical Functioning, Vitality and General Health subdomains of quality of life. Based on our results, the Adapted Physical Activity programme may be a promising fall prevention exercise programme improving static balance and functional mobility for community-dwelling older women.

  14. The effectiveness of a Housing First adaptation for ethnic minority groups: findings of a pragmatic randomized controlled trial

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vicky Stergiopoulos

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Little is known about the effectiveness of Housing First (HF among ethnic minority groups, despite its growing popularity for homeless adults experiencing mental illness. This randomized controlled trial tests the effectiveness of a HF program using rent supplements and intensive case management, enhanced by anti-racism and anti-oppression practices for homeless adults with mental illness from diverse ethnic minority backgrounds. Methods This unblinded pragmatic field trial was carried out in community settings in Toronto, Canada. Participants were 237 adults from ethnic minority groups experiencing mental illness and homelessness, who met study criteria for moderate needs for mental health services. Participants were randomized to either adapted HF (n = 135 or usual care (n = 102 and followed every 3 months for 24 months. The primary study outcome was housing stability; secondary outcomes included physical and mental health, social functioning, quality of life, arrests and health service use. Intention to treat statistical analyses examined the effectiveness of the intervention compared to usual care. Results During the 24-month study period, HF participants were stably housed a significantly greater proportion of time compared to usual care participants, 75 % (95 % CI 70 to 81 vs. 41 % (95 % CI 35 to 48, respectively, for a difference of 34 %, 95 % CI 25 to 43. HF also led to improvements in community integration over the course of the study: the change in the mean difference between treatment groups from baseline to 24-months was significantly greater among HF participants compared to those in usual care (change in mean difference = 2.2, 95 % CI 0.06 to 4.3. Baseline diagnosis of psychosis was associated with reduced likelihood of being housed ≥ 50 % of the study period (OR = 0.37, 95 % CI 0.18 to 0.72. Conclusion Housing First enhanced with anti-racism and anti-oppression practices can

  15. Discrete least squares polynomial approximation with random evaluations - application to PDEs with Random parameters

    KAUST Repository

    Nobile, Fabio

    2015-01-07

    We consider a general problem F(u, y) = 0 where u is the unknown solution, possibly Hilbert space valued, and y a set of uncertain parameters. We specifically address the situation in which the parameterto-solution map u(y) is smooth, however y could be very high (or even infinite) dimensional. In particular, we are interested in cases in which F is a differential operator, u a Hilbert space valued function and y a distributed, space and/or time varying, random field. We aim at reconstructing the parameter-to-solution map u(y) from random noise-free or noisy observations in random points by discrete least squares on polynomial spaces. The noise-free case is relevant whenever the technique is used to construct metamodels, based on polynomial expansions, for the output of computer experiments. In the case of PDEs with random parameters, the metamodel is then used to approximate statistics of the output quantity. We discuss the stability of discrete least squares on random points show convergence estimates both in expectation and probability. We also present possible strategies to select, either a-priori or by adaptive algorithms, sequences of approximating polynomial spaces that allow to reduce, and in some cases break, the curse of dimensionality

  16. Multi-modal Social Networks: A MRF Learning Approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    2016-06-20

    Network forensics: random infection vs spreading epidemic , Proceedings of ACM Sigmetrics. 11-JUN-12, London, UK. : , TOTAL: 4 06/09/2016 Received Paper...Multi-modal Social Networks A MRF Learning Approach The work primarily focused on two lines of research. 1. We propose new greedy algorithms...Box 12211 Research Triangle Park, NC 27709-2211 social networks , learning and inference REPORT DOCUMENTATION PAGE 11. SPONSOR/MONITOR’S REPORT

  17. Dark adaptation during transient hyperglycemia in type 2 diabetes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Holfort, Stig Kragelund; Jackson, Gregory R; Larsen, Michael

    2010-01-01

    It was the purpose of the present study to examine dark adaptation in subjects with type 2 diabetes during transient hyperglycemia. Twenty-four subjects with type 2 diabetes and minimal diabetic retinopathy were randomized to undergo an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) or to remain fasting. Dark...... glycemia increased in the 12 OGTT subjects, from 8.6±2.1 at baseline to 21.1±3.6 mM after 80 min. In the OGTT group, four out of seven subjects with delayed dark adaptation at baseline reached normal values during hyperglycemia. All examined aspects of rod adaptation were accelerated by hyperglycemia (time...... compared with healthy subjects, the delay being reversible in response to hyperglycemia....

  18. Parallel random number generator for inexpensive configurable hardware cells

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ackermann, J.; Tangen, U.; Bödekker, B.; Breyer, J.; Stoll, E.; McCaskill, J. S.

    2001-11-01

    A new random number generator ( RNG) adapted to parallel processors has been created. This RNG can be implemented with inexpensive hardware cells. The correlation between neighboring cells is suppressed with smart connections. With such connection structures, sequences of pseudo-random numbers are produced. Numerical tests including a self-avoiding random walk test and the simulation of the order parameter and energy of the 2D Ising model give no evidence for correlation in the pseudo-random sequences. Because the new random number generator has suppressed the correlation between neighboring cells which is usually observed in cellular automaton implementations, it is applicable for extended time simulations. It gives an immense speed-up factor if implemented directly in configurable hardware, and has recently been used for long time simulations of spatially resolved molecular evolution.

  19. Adaptive Colour Feature Identification in Image for Object Tracking

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Feng Su

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Identification and tracking of a moving object using computer vision techniques is important in robotic surveillance. In this paper, an adaptive colour filtering method is introduced for identifying and tracking a moving object appearing in image sequences. This filter is capable of automatically identifying the most salient colour feature of the moving object in the image and using this for a robot to track the object. The method enables the selected colour feature to adapt to surrounding condition when it is changed. A method of determining the region of interest of the moving target is also developed for the adaptive colour filter to extract colour information. Experimental results show that by using a camera mounted on a robot, the proposed methods can perform robustly in tracking a randomly moving object using adaptively selected colour features in a crowded environment.

  20. Analyses of determinants of adaptation to climate change among ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The study examined the factors influencing arable crop farmers' adaptation to climate change in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Nigeria. Using multistage random sampling technique, 120 respondents were selected for detailed study. Focus Group Discussion and structured questionnaire were used to elicit information ...

  1. Budget-aware random testing with T3: benchmarking at the SBST2016 testing tool contest

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Prasetya, S.W.B.

    2016-01-01

    Random testing has the advantage that it is usually fast. An interesting use case is to use it for bulk smoke testing, e.g. to smoke test a whole project. However, on a large project, even with random testing it may still take hours to complete. To optimize this, we have adapted an automated random

  2. An adaptive stochastic model for financial markets

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hernández, Juan Antonio; Benito, Rosa Marı´a; Losada, Juan Carlos

    2012-01-01

    An adaptive stochastic model is introduced to simulate the behavior of real asset markets. The model adapts itself by changing its parameters automatically on the basis of the recent historical data. The basic idea underlying the model is that a random variable uniformly distributed within an interval with variable extremes can replicate the histograms of asset returns. These extremes are calculated according to the arrival of new market information. This adaptive model is applied to the daily returns of three well-known indices: Ibex35, Dow Jones and Nikkei, for three complete years. The model reproduces the histograms of the studied indices as well as their autocorrelation structures. It produces the same fat tails and the same power laws, with exactly the same exponents, as in the real indices. In addition, the model shows a great adaptation capability, anticipating the volatility evolution and showing the same volatility clusters observed in the assets. This approach provides a novel way to model asset markets with internal dynamics which changes quickly with time, making it impossible to define a fixed model to fit the empirical observations.

  3. A model for generating several adaptive phenotypes from a single genetic event

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Møller, Henrik D; Andersen, Kaj S; Regenberg, Birgitte

    2013-01-01

    Microbial populations adapt to environmental fluctuations through random switching of fitness-related traits in individual cells. This increases the likelihood that a subpopulation will be adaptive in a future milieu. However, populations are particularly challenged when several environment facto...... energy recruitment by trehalose mobilization, and in some cases, adherent biofilm growth. Our proposed model of a hub-switch locus enhances the bet-hedging model of population dynamics....

  4. Effect of Treatment Education Based on the Roy Adaptation Model on Adjustment of Hemodialysis Patients.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kacaroglu Vicdan, Ayse; Gulseven Karabacak, Bilgi

    2016-01-01

    The Roy Adaptation Model examines the individual in 4 fields: physiological mode, self-concept mode, role function mode, and interdependence mode. Hemodialysis treatment is associated with the Roy Adaptation Model as it involves fields that might be needed by the individual with chronic renal disease. This research was conducted as randomized controlled experiment with the aim of determining the effect of the education given in accordance with the Roy Adaptation Model on physiological, psychological, and social adaptation of individuals undergoing hemodialysis treatment. This was a random controlled experimental study. The study was conducted at a dialysis center in Konya-Aksehir in Turkey between July 1 and December 31, 2012. The sample was composed of 82 individuals-41 experimental and 41 control. In the second interview, there was a decrease in the systolic blood pressures and body weights of the experimental group, an increase in the scores of functional performance and self-respect, and a decrease in the scores of psychosocial adaptation. In the control group, on the other hand, there was a decrease in the scores of self-respect and an increase in the scores of psychosocial adaptation. The 2 groups were compared in terms of adaptation variables and a difference was determined on behalf of the experimental group. The training that was provided and evaluated for individuals receiving hemodialysis according to 4 modes of the Roy Adaptation Model increased physical, psychological, and social adaptation.

  5. Adaptive automatic generation control with superconducting magnetic energy storage in power systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tripathy, S.C.; Balasubramanian, R.; Nair, P.S.C.

    1992-01-01

    An improved automatic generation control (AGC) employing self-tuning adaptive control for both main AGC loop and superconducting magnetic energy storage (SMES) is presented in this paper. Computer simulations on a two-area interconnected power system show that the proposed adaptive control scheme is very effective in damping out oscillations caused by load disturbances and its performance is quite insensitive to controller gain parameter changes of SMES. A comprehensive comparative performance evaluation of control schemes using adaptive and non-adaptive controllers in the main AGC and in the SMES control loops is presented. The improvement in performance brought in by the adaptive scheme is particularly pronounced for load changes of random magnitude and duration. The proposed controller can be easily implemented using microprocessors

  6. Effect of visuomotor-map uncertainty on visuomotor adaptation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saijo, Naoki; Gomi, Hiroaki

    2012-03-01

    Vision and proprioception contribute to generating hand movement. If a conflict between the visual and proprioceptive feedback of hand position is given, reaching movement is disturbed initially but recovers after training. Although previous studies have predominantly investigated the adaptive change in the motor output, it is unclear whether the contributions of visual and proprioceptive feedback controls to the reaching movement are modified by visuomotor adaptation. To investigate this, we focused on the change in proprioceptive feedback control associated with visuomotor adaptation. After the adaptation to gradually introduce visuomotor rotation, the hand reached the shifted position of the visual target to move the cursor to the visual target correctly. When the cursor feedback was occasionally eliminated (probe trial), the end point of the hand movement was biased in the visual-target direction, while the movement was initiated in the adapted direction, suggesting the incomplete adaptation of proprioceptive feedback control. Moreover, after the learning of uncertain visuomotor rotation, in which the rotation angle was randomly fluctuated on a trial-by-trial basis, the end-point bias in the probe trial increased, but the initial movement direction was not affected, suggesting a reduction in the adaptation level of proprioceptive feedback control. These results suggest that the change in the relative contribution of visual and proprioceptive feedback controls to the reaching movement in response to the visuomotor-map uncertainty is involved in visuomotor adaptation, whereas feedforward control might adapt in a manner different from that of the feedback control.

  7. Muscle, functional and cognitive adaptations after flywheel resistance training in stroke patients: a pilot randomized controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fernandez-Gonzalo, Rodrigo; Fernandez-Gonzalo, Sol; Turon, Marc; Prieto, Cristina; Tesch, Per A; García-Carreira, Maria del Carmen

    2016-04-06

    Resistance exercise (RE) improves neuromuscular function and physical performance after stroke. Yet, the effects of RE emphasizing eccentric (ECC; lengthening) actions on muscle hypertrophy and cognitive function in stroke patients are currently unknown. Thus, this study explored the effects of ECC-overload RE training on skeletal muscle size and function, and cognitive performance in individuals with stroke. Thirty-two individuals with chronic stroke (≥6 months post-stroke) were randomly assigned into a training group (TG; n = 16) performing ECC-overload flywheel RE of the more-affected lower limb (12 weeks, 2 times/week; 4 sets of 7 maximal closed-chain knee extensions; trained (48.2 %), and the less-affected, untrained limb (28.1 %) increased after training. TG showed enhanced balance (8.9 %), gait performance (10.6 %), dual-task performance, executive functions (working memory, verbal fluency tasks), attention, and speed of information processing. CG showed no changes. ECC-overload flywheel resistance exercise comprising 4 min of contractile activity per week offers a powerful aid to regain muscle mass and function, and functional performance in individuals with stroke. While the current intervention improved cognitive functions, the cause-effect relationship, if any, with the concomitant neuromuscular adaptations remains to be explored. Clinical Trials NCT02120846.

  8. Efficacy of a multidisciplinary fibromyalgia treatment adapted for women with low educational levels: a randomized controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Castel, Antoni; Fontova, Ramon; Montull, Salvador; Periñán, Rocío; Poveda, Maria José; Miralles, Iris; Cascón-Pereira, Rosalia; Hernández, Pilar; Aragonés, Natalia; Salvat, Isabel; Castro, Sonia; Monterde, Sonia; Padrol, Anna; Sala, José; Añez, Cristóbal; Rull, Maria

    2013-03-01

    Multidisciplinary treatments of fibromyalgia (FM) have demonstrated efficacy. Nevertheless, they have been criticized for not maintaining their benefits and for not being studied for specific populations. Our objectives were to determine the efficacy of a multidisciplinary treatment for FM adapted for patients with low educational levels and to determine the maintenance of its therapeutic benefits during a long-term followup period. Inclusion criteria consisted of female sex, a diagnosis of FM (using American College of Rheumatology criteria), age between 18 and 60 years, and between 3 and 8 years of schooling. Patients were randomly assigned to 1 of the 2 treatment conditions: conventional pharmacologic treatment or multidisciplinary treatment. Outcome measures were functionality, sleep disturbances, pain intensity, catastrophizing, and psychological distress. Analysis was by intent-to-treat and missing data were replaced following the baseline observation carried forward method. One hundred fifty-five participants were recruited. No statistically significant differences regarding pretreatment measures were found between the 2 experimental groups. Overall statistics comparison showed a significant difference between the 2 groups in all of the variables studied (P educational levels is effective in reducing key symptoms of FM. Some improvements were maintained 1 year after completing the multidisciplinary treatment. Copyright © 2013 by the American College of Rheumatology.

  9. Efficacy of an adapted HIV and sexually transmitted infection prevention intervention for incarcerated women: a randomized controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fogel, Catherine I; Crandell, Jamie L; Neevel, A M; Parker, Sharon D; Carry, Monique; White, Becky L; Fasula, Amy M; Herbst, Jeffrey H; Gelaude, Deborah J

    2015-04-01

    We tested the efficacy of an adapted evidence-based HIV-sexually transmitted infection (STI) behavioral intervention (Providing Opportunities for Women's Empowerment, Risk-Reduction, and Relationships, or POWER) among incarcerated women. We conducted a randomized trial with 521 women aged 18 to 60 years in 2 correctional facilities in North Carolina in 2010 and 2011. Intervention participants attended 8 POWER sessions; control participants received a single standard-of-care STI prevention session. We followed up at 3 and 6 months after release. We examined intervention efficacy with mixed-effects models. POWER participants reported fewer male sexual partners than did control participants at 3 months, although this finding did not reach statistical significance; at 6 months they reported significantly less vaginal intercourse without a condom outside of a monogamous relationship and more condom use with a main male partner. POWER participants also reported significantly fewer condom barriers, and greater HIV knowledge, health-protective communication, and tangible social support. The intervention had no significant effects on incident STIs. POWER is a behavioral intervention with potential to reduce risk of acquiring or transmitting HIV and STIs among incarcerated women returning to their communities.

  10. Research on the adaptive optical control technology based on DSP

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Xiaolu; Xue, Qiao; Zeng, Fa; Zhao, Junpu; Zheng, Kuixing; Su, Jingqin; Dai, Wanjun

    2018-02-01

    Adaptive optics is a real-time compensation technique using high speed support system for wavefront errors caused by atmospheric turbulence. However, the randomness and instantaneity of atmospheric changing introduce great difficulties to the design of adaptive optical systems. A large number of complex real-time operations lead to large delay, which is an insurmountable problem. To solve this problem, hardware operation and parallel processing strategy are proposed, and a high-speed adaptive optical control system based on DSP is developed. The hardware counter is used to check the system. The results show that the system can complete a closed loop control in 7.1ms, and improve the controlling bandwidth of the adaptive optical system. Using this system, the wavefront measurement and closed loop experiment are carried out, and obtain the good results.

  11. Adaptation Practices to Climate Change Among Rice Farmers in ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The study examined adaptation practices to climate change among rice farmers in Anambra State, Nigeria. Data were collected from 100 rice farmers by the combination of multistage, purposive and simple random sampling techniques, through the use of interview schedule. Percentage and mean statistics were used for ...

  12. An Adaptive Sparse Grid Algorithm for Elliptic PDEs with Lognormal Diffusion Coefficient

    KAUST Repository

    Nobile, Fabio

    2016-03-18

    In this work we build on the classical adaptive sparse grid algorithm (T. Gerstner and M. Griebel, Dimension-adaptive tensor-product quadrature), obtaining an enhanced version capable of using non-nested collocation points, and supporting quadrature and interpolation on unbounded sets. We also consider several profit indicators that are suitable to drive the adaptation process. We then use such algorithm to solve an important test case in Uncertainty Quantification problem, namely the Darcy equation with lognormal permeability random field, and compare the results with those obtained with the quasi-optimal sparse grids based on profit estimates, which we have proposed in our previous works (cf. e.g. Convergence of quasi-optimal sparse grids approximation of Hilbert-valued functions: application to random elliptic PDEs). To treat the case of rough permeability fields, in which a sparse grid approach may not be suitable, we propose to use the adaptive sparse grid quadrature as a control variate in a Monte Carlo simulation. Numerical results show that the adaptive sparse grids have performances similar to those of the quasi-optimal sparse grids and are very effective in the case of smooth permeability fields. Moreover, their use as control variate in a Monte Carlo simulation allows to tackle efficiently also problems with rough coefficients, significantly improving the performances of a standard Monte Carlo scheme.

  13. Feasibility of the adaptive and automatic presentation of tasks (ADAPT system for rehabilitation of upper extremity function post-stroke

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Choi Younggeun

    2011-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Current guidelines for rehabilitation of arm and hand function after stroke recommend that motor training focus on realistic tasks that require reaching and manipulation and engage the patient intensively, actively, and adaptively. Here, we investigated the feasibility of a novel robotic task-practice system, ADAPT, designed in accordance with such guidelines. At each trial, ADAPT selects a functional task according to a training schedule and with difficulty based on previous performance. Once the task is selected, the robot picks up and presents the corresponding tool, simulates the dynamics of the tasks, and the patient interacts with the tool to perform the task. Methods Five participants with chronic stroke with mild to moderate impairments (> 9 months post-stroke; Fugl-Meyer arm score 49.2 ± 5.6 practiced four functional tasks (selected out of six in a pre-test with ADAPT for about one and half hour and 144 trials in a pseudo-random schedule of 3-trial blocks per task. Results No adverse events occurred and ADAPT successfully presented the six functional tasks without human intervention for a total of 900 trials. Qualitative analysis of trajectories showed that ADAPT simulated the desired task dynamics adequately, and participants reported good, although not excellent, task fidelity. During training, the adaptive difficulty algorithm progressively increased task difficulty leading towards an optimal challenge point based on performance; difficulty was then continuously adjusted to keep performance around the challenge point. Furthermore, the time to complete all trained tasks decreased significantly from pretest to one-hour post-test. Finally, post-training questionnaires demonstrated positive patient acceptance of ADAPT. Conclusions ADAPT successfully provided adaptive progressive training for multiple functional tasks based on participant's performance. Our encouraging results establish the feasibility of ADAPT; its

  14. Non-resonant energy harvesting via an adaptive bistable potential

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hosseinloo, Ashkan Haji; Turitsyn, Konstantin

    2016-01-01

    Narrow bandwidth and easy detuning, inefficiency in broadband and non-stationary excitations, and difficulties in matching a linear harvester’s resonance frequency to low-frequency excitations at small scales, have convinced researchers to investigate nonlinear, and in particular bistable, energy harvesters in recent years. However, bistable harvesters suffer from co-existing low and high energy orbits, and sensitivity to initial conditions, and have recently been proven inefficient when subjected to many real-world random and non-stationary excitations. Here, we propose a novel non-resonant buy-low-sell-high strategy that can significantly improve the harvester’s effectiveness at low frequencies in a much more robust fashion. This strategy could be realized by a passive adaptive bistable system. Simulation results confirm the high effectiveness of the adaptive bistable system following a buy-low-sell-high logic when subjected to harmonic and random non-stationary walking excitations compared to its conventional bistable and linear counterparts. (paper)

  15. Segmentation of Large Unstructured Point Clouds Using Octree-Based Region Growing and Conditional Random Fields

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bassier, M.; Bonduel, M.; Van Genechten, B.; Vergauwen, M.

    2017-11-01

    Point cloud segmentation is a crucial step in scene understanding and interpretation. The goal is to decompose the initial data into sets of workable clusters with similar properties. Additionally, it is a key aspect in the automated procedure from point cloud data to BIM. Current approaches typically only segment a single type of primitive such as planes or cylinders. Also, current algorithms suffer from oversegmenting the data and are often sensor or scene dependent. In this work, a method is presented to automatically segment large unstructured point clouds of buildings. More specifically, the segmentation is formulated as a graph optimisation problem. First, the data is oversegmented with a greedy octree-based region growing method. The growing is conditioned on the segmentation of planes as well as smooth surfaces. Next, the candidate clusters are represented by a Conditional Random Field after which the most likely configuration of candidate clusters is computed given a set of local and contextual features. The experiments prove that the used method is a fast and reliable framework for unstructured point cloud segmentation. Processing speeds up to 40,000 points per second are recorded for the region growing. Additionally, the recall and precision of the graph clustering is approximately 80%. Overall, nearly 22% of oversegmentation is reduced by clustering the data. These clusters will be classified and used as a basis for the reconstruction of BIM models.

  16. Epidemic spreading on preferred degree adaptive networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jolad, Shivakumar; Liu, Wenjia; Schmittmann, B; Zia, R K P

    2012-01-01

    We study the standard SIS model of epidemic spreading on networks where individuals have a fluctuating number of connections around a preferred degree κ. Using very simple rules for forming such preferred degree networks, we find some unusual statistical properties not found in familiar Erdös-Rényi or scale free networks. By letting κ depend on the fraction of infected individuals, we model the behavioral changes in response to how the extent of the epidemic is perceived. In our models, the behavioral adaptations can be either 'blind' or 'selective'--depending on whether a node adapts by cutting or adding links to randomly chosen partners or selectively, based on the state of the partner. For a frozen preferred network, we find that the infection threshold follows the heterogeneous mean field result λ(c)/μ = / and the phase diagram matches the predictions of the annealed adjacency matrix (AAM) approach. With 'blind' adaptations, although the epidemic threshold remains unchanged, the infection level is substantially affected, depending on the details of the adaptation. The 'selective' adaptive SIS models are most interesting. Both the threshold and the level of infection changes, controlled not only by how the adaptations are implemented but also how often the nodes cut/add links (compared to the time scales of the epidemic spreading). A simple mean field theory is presented for the selective adaptations which capture the qualitative and some of the quantitative features of the infection phase diagram.

  17. Contrast adaptation in the Limulus lateral eye.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valtcheva, Tchoudomira M; Passaglia, Christopher L

    2015-12-01

    Luminance and contrast adaptation are neuronal mechanisms employed by the visual system to adjust our sensitivity to light. They are mediated by an assortment of cellular and network processes distributed across the retina and visual cortex. Both have been demonstrated in the eyes of many vertebrates, but only luminance adaptation has been shown in invertebrate eyes to date. Since the computational benefits of contrast adaptation should apply to all visual systems, we investigated whether this mechanism operates in horseshoe crab eyes, one of the best-understood neural networks in the animal kingdom. The spike trains of optic nerve fibers were recorded in response to light stimuli modulated randomly in time and delivered to single ommatidia or the whole eye. We found that the retina adapts to both the mean luminance and contrast of a white-noise stimulus, that luminance- and contrast-adaptive processes are largely independent, and that they originate within an ommatidium. Network interactions are not involved. A published computer model that simulates existing knowledge of the horseshoe crab eye did not show contrast adaptation, suggesting that a heretofore unknown mechanism may underlie the phenomenon. This mechanism does not appear to reside in photoreceptors because white-noise analysis of electroretinogram recordings did not show contrast adaptation. The likely site of origin is therefore the spike discharge mechanism of optic nerve fibers. The finding of contrast adaption in a retinal network as simple as the horseshoe crab eye underscores the broader importance of this image processing strategy to vision. Copyright © 2015 the American Physiological Society.

  18. Two-Level Adaptive Algebraic Multigrid for a Sequence of Problems with Slowly Varying Random Coefficients [Adaptive Algebraic Multigrid for Sequence of Problems with Slowly Varying Random Coefficients

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kalchev, D. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Ketelsen, C. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States); Vassilevski, P. S. [Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)

    2013-11-07

    Our paper proposes an adaptive strategy for reusing a previously constructed coarse space by algebraic multigrid to construct a two-level solver for a problem with nearby characteristics. Furthermore, a main target application is the solution of the linear problems that appear throughout a sequence of Markov chain Monte Carlo simulations of subsurface flow with uncertain permeability field. We demonstrate the efficacy of the method with extensive set of numerical experiments.

  19. Optimization of Transformation Coefficients Using Direct Search and Swarm Intelligence

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Manusov V.Z.

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available This research considers optimization of tap position of transformers in power systems to reduce power losses. Now, methods based on heuristic rules and fuzzy logic, or methods that optimize parts of the whole system separately, are applied to this problem. The first approach requires expert knowledge about processes in the network. The second methods are not able to consider all the interrelations of system’s parts, while changes in segment affect the entire system. Both approaches are tough to implement and require adjustment to the tasks solved. It needs to implement algorithms that can take into account complex interrelations of optimized variables and self-adapt to optimization task. It is advisable to use algorithms given complex interrelations of optimized variables and independently adapting from optimization tasks. Such algorithms include Swarm Intelligence algorithms. Their main features are self-organization, which allows them to automatically adapt to conditions of tasks, and the ability to efficiently exit from local extremes. Thus, they do not require specialized knowledge of the system, in contrast to fuzzy logic. In addition, they can efficiently find quasi-optimal solutions converging to the global optimum. This research applies Particle Swarm Optimization algorithm (PSO. The model of Tajik power system used in experiments. It was found out that PSO is much more efficient than greedy heuristics and more flexible and easier to use than fuzzy logic. PSO allows reducing active power losses from 48.01 to 45.83 MW (4.5%. With al, the effect of using greedy heuristics or fuzzy logic is two times smaller (2.3%.

  20. Adherence to AHA Guidelines When Adapted for Augmented Reality Glasses for Assisted Pediatric Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siebert, Johan N; Ehrler, Frederic; Gervaix, Alain; Haddad, Kevin; Lacroix, Laurence; Schrurs, Philippe; Sahin, Ayhan; Lovis, Christian; Manzano, Sergio

    2017-05-29

    The American Heart Association (AHA) guidelines for cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) are nowadays recognized as the world's most authoritative resuscitation guidelines. Adherence to these guidelines optimizes the management of critically ill patients and increases their chances of survival after cardiac arrest. Despite their availability, suboptimal quality of CPR is still common. Currently, the median hospital survival rate after pediatric in-hospital cardiac arrest is 36%, whereas it falls below 10% for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Among emerging information technologies and devices able to support caregivers during resuscitation and increase adherence to AHA guidelines, augmented reality (AR) glasses have not yet been assessed. In order to assess their potential, we adapted AHA Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) guidelines for AR glasses. The study aimed to determine whether adapting AHA guidelines for AR glasses increased adherence by reducing deviation and time to initiation of critical life-saving maneuvers during pediatric CPR when compared with the use of PALS pocket reference cards. We conducted a randomized controlled trial with two parallel groups of voluntary pediatric residents, comparing AR glasses to PALS pocket reference cards during a simulation-based pediatric cardiac arrest scenario-pulseless ventricular tachycardia (pVT). The primary outcome was the elapsed time in seconds in each allocation group, from onset of pVT to the first defibrillation attempt. Secondary outcomes were time elapsed to (1) initiation of chest compression, (2) subsequent defibrillation attempts, and (3) administration of drugs, as well as the time intervals between defibrillation attempts and drug doses, shock doses, and number of shocks. All these outcomes were assessed for deviation from AHA guidelines. Twenty residents were randomized into 2 groups. Time to first defibrillation attempt (mean: 146 s) and adherence to AHA guidelines in terms of time to other

  1. Treatment Sequencing for Childhood ADHD: A Multiple-Randomization Study of Adaptive Medication and Behavioral Interventions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pelham, William E; Fabiano, Gregory A; Waxmonsky, James G; Greiner, Andrew R; Gnagy, Elizabeth M; Pelham, William E; Coxe, Stefany; Verley, Jessica; Bhatia, Ira; Hart, Katie; Karch, Kathryn; Konijnendijk, Evelien; Tresco, Katy; Nahum-Shani, Inbal; Murphy, Susan A

    2016-01-01

    Behavioral and pharmacological treatments for children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were evaluated to address whether endpoint outcomes are better depending on which treatment is initiated first and, in case of insufficient response to initial treatment, whether increasing dose of initial treatment or adding the other treatment modality is superior. Children with ADHD (ages 5-12, N = 146, 76% male) were treated for 1 school year. Children were randomized to initiate treatment with low doses of either (a) behavioral parent training (8 group sessions) and brief teacher consultation to establish a Daily Report Card or (b) extended-release methylphenidate (equivalent to .15 mg/kg/dose bid). After 8 weeks or at later monthly intervals as necessary, insufficient responders were rerandomized to secondary interventions that either increased the dose/intensity of the initial treatment or added the other treatment modality, with adaptive adjustments monthly as needed to these secondary treatments. The group beginning with behavioral treatment displayed significantly lower rates of observed classroom rule violations (the primary outcome) at study endpoint and tended to have fewer out-of-class disciplinary events. Further, adding medication secondary to initial behavior modification resulted in better outcomes on the primary outcomes and parent/teacher ratings of oppositional behavior than adding behavior modification to initial medication. Normalization rates on teacher and parent ratings were generally high. Parents who began treatment with behavioral parent training had substantially better attendance than those assigned to receive training following medication. Beginning treatment with behavioral intervention produced better outcomes overall than beginning treatment with medication.

  2. Testlet-Based Multidimensional Adaptive Testing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frey, Andreas; Seitz, Nicki-Nils; Brandt, Steffen

    2016-01-01

    Multidimensional adaptive testing (MAT) is a highly efficient method for the simultaneous measurement of several latent traits. Currently, no psychometrically sound approach is available for the use of MAT in testlet-based tests. Testlets are sets of items sharing a common stimulus such as a graph or a text. They are frequently used in large operational testing programs like TOEFL, PISA, PIRLS, or NAEP. To make MAT accessible for such testing programs, we present a novel combination of MAT with a multidimensional generalization of the random effects testlet model (MAT-MTIRT). MAT-MTIRT compared to non-adaptive testing is examined for several combinations of testlet effect variances (0.0, 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5) and testlet sizes (3, 6, and 9 items) with a simulation study considering three ability dimensions with simple loading structure. MAT-MTIRT outperformed non-adaptive testing regarding the measurement precision of the ability estimates. Further, the measurement precision decreased when testlet effect variances and testlet sizes increased. The suggested combination of the MTIRT model therefore provides a solution to the substantial problems of testlet-based tests while keeping the length of the test within an acceptable range.

  3. Testlet-based Multidimensional Adaptive Testing

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andreas Frey

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available Multidimensional adaptive testing (MAT is a highly efficient method for the simultaneous measurement of several latent traits. Currently, no psychometrically sound approach is available for the use of MAT in testlet-based tests. Testlets are sets of items sharing a common stimulus such as a graph or a text. They are frequently used in large operational testing programs like TOEFL, PISA, PIRLS, or NAEP. To make MAT accessible for such testing programs, we present a novel combination of MAT with a multidimensional generalization of the random effects testlet model (MAT-MTIRT. MAT-MTIRT compared to non-adaptive testing is examined for several combinations of testlet effect variances (0.0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5 and testlet sizes (3 items, 6 items, 9 items with a simulation study considering three ability dimensions with simple loading structure. MAT-MTIRT outperformed non-adaptive testing regarding the measurement precision of the ability estimates. Further, the measurement precision decreased when testlet effect variances and testlet sizes increased. The suggested combination of the MTIRT model therefore provides a solution to the substantial problems of testlet-based tests while keeping the length of the test within an acceptable range.

  4. Domain Adaptation for Machine Translation with Instance Selection

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Biçici Ergun

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available Domain adaptation for machine translation (MT can be achieved by selecting training instances close to the test set from a larger set of instances. We consider 7 different domain adaptation strategies and answer 7 research questions, which give us a recipe for domain adaptation in MT. We perform English to German statistical MT (SMT experiments in a setting where test and training sentences can come from different corpora and one of our goals is to learn the parameters of the sampling process. Domain adaptation with training instance selection can obtain 22% increase in target 2-gram recall and can gain up to 3:55 BLEU points compared with random selection. Domain adaptation with feature decay algorithm (FDA not only achieves the highest target 2-gram recall and BLEU performance but also perfectly learns the test sample distribution parameter with correlation 0:99. Moses SMT systems built with FDA selected 10K training sentences is able to obtain F1 results as good as the baselines that use up to 2M sentences. Moses SMT systems built with FDA selected 50K training sentences is able to obtain F1 point better results than the baselines.

  5. On Invertible Sampling and Adaptive Security

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ishai, Yuval; Kumarasubramanian, Abishek; Orlandi, Claudio

    2011-01-01

    functionalities was left open. We provide the first convincing evidence that the answer to this question is negative, namely that some (randomized) functionalities cannot be realized with adaptive security. We obtain this result by studying the following related invertible sampling problem: given an efficient...... sampling algorithm A, obtain another sampling algorithm B such that the output of B is computationally indistinguishable from the output of A, but B can be efficiently inverted (even if A cannot). This invertible sampling problem is independently motivated by other cryptographic applications. We show......, under strong but well studied assumptions, that there exist efficient sampling algorithms A for which invertible sampling as above is impossible. At the same time, we show that a general feasibility result for adaptively secure MPC implies that invertible sampling is possible for every A, thereby...

  6. Bayesian analysis for exponential random graph models using the adaptive exchange sampler

    KAUST Repository

    Jin, Ick Hoon; Liang, Faming; Yuan, Ying

    2013-01-01

    Exponential random graph models have been widely used in social network analysis. However, these models are extremely difficult to handle from a statistical viewpoint, because of the existence of intractable normalizing constants. In this paper, we

  7. Adaptive Queue Management with Restraint on Non-Responsive Flows

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lan Li

    2003-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper proposes an adaptive queue management scheme (adaptive RED to improve Random Early Detection (RED on restraining non-responsive flows. Due to a lack of flow control mechanism, non-responsive flows can starve responsive flows for buffer and bandwidth at the gateway. In order to solve the disproportionate resource problem, RED framework is modified in this way: on detecting when the non-responsive flows starve the queue, packet-drop intensity (Max_p in RED can be adaptively adjusted to curb non-responsive flows for resource fair-sharing, such as buffer and bandwidth fair-sharing. Based on detection of traffic behaviors, intentionally restraining nonresponsive flows is to increase the throughput and decrease the drop rate of responsive flows. Our experimental results based on adaptive RED shows that the enhancement of responsive traffic and the better sharing of buffer and bandwidth can be achieved under a variety of traffic scenarios.

  8. Algorithms for selecting informative marker panels for population assignment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rosenberg, Noah A

    2005-11-01

    Given a set of potential source populations, genotypes of an individual of unknown origin at a collection of markers can be used to predict the correct source population of the individual. For improved efficiency, informative markers can be chosen from a larger set of markers to maximize the accuracy of this prediction. However, selecting the loci that are individually most informative does not necessarily produce the optimal panel. Here, using genotypes from eight species--carp, cat, chicken, dog, fly, grayling, human, and maize--this univariate accumulation procedure is compared to new multivariate "greedy" and "maximin" algorithms for choosing marker panels. The procedures generally suggest similar panels, although the greedy method often recommends inclusion of loci that are not chosen by the other algorithms. In seven of the eight species, when applied to five or more markers, all methods achieve at least 94% assignment accuracy on simulated individuals, with one species--dog--producing this level of accuracy with only three markers, and the eighth species--human--requiring approximately 13-16 markers. The new algorithms produce substantial improvements over use of randomly selected markers; where differences among the methods are noticeable, the greedy algorithm leads to slightly higher probabilities of correct assignment. Although none of the approaches necessarily chooses the panel with optimal performance, the algorithms all likely select panels with performance near enough to the maximum that they all are suitable for practical use.

  9. The Efficacy of Adapted MBCT on Core Symptoms and Executive Functioning in Adults With ADHD: A Preliminary Randomized Controlled Trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hepark, Sevket; Janssen, Lotte; de Vries, Alicia; Schoenberg, Poppy L A; Donders, Rogier; Kan, Cornelis C; Speckens, Anne E M

    2015-11-20

    The aim of this study was to examine the effectiveness of mindfulness as a treatment for adults diagnosed with ADHD. A 12-week-adapted mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) program is compared with a waiting list (WL) group. Adults with ADHD were randomly allocated to MBCT (n = 55) or waitlist (n = 48). Outcome measures included investigator-rated ADHD symptoms (primary), self-reported ADHD symptoms, executive functioning, depressive and anxiety symptoms, patient functioning, and mindfulness skills. MBCT resulted in a significant reduction of ADHD symptoms, both investigator-rated and self-reported, based on per-protocol and intention-to-treat analyses. Significant improvements in executive functioning and mindfulness skills were found. Additional analyses suggested that the efficacy of MBCT in reducing ADHD symptoms and improving executive functioning is partially mediated by an increase in the mindfulness skill "Act With Awareness." No improvements were observed for depressive and anxiety symptoms, and patient functioning. This study provides preliminary support for the effectiveness of MBCT for adults with ADHD. © The Author(s) 2015.

  10. Relationship between adaptation and cardiovascular response to tonic cold and heat pain Adaptability to tonic pain and cardiovascular responses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Devoize, L; Chalaye, P; Lafrenaye, S; Marchand, S; Dallel, R

    2016-05-01

    The mechanisms of adaptation to tonic pain are not elucidated. We hypothesized that the adaptability to tonic pain is related to the cardiovascular system. Twenty-six subjects received over two sessions in a random order: tonic cold (7 ± 0.2 °C) and heat pain (47.5 ± 0.5 °C) on the hand for 5 min. Pain intensity, blood pressure (BP), and heart rate (HR) were continuously monitored. Pain experience during the heat (HIT) and cold (CIT) immersion tests exhibited different average time courses, being approximated with a linear and cubic function, respectively. In each test, two groups of participants could be identified based on the time course of their tonic thermal pain: one-third of participants were pain adaptive and two-thirds non adaptive. The adaptive group exhibited higher initial pain, lower last pain, and shorter latency to peak pain than the non-adaptive one. Interestingly, some participants were adaptive to both pain stimuli, most were not. HIT as well as CIT produced a stable elevation of BP. However, BP was higher during CIT than HIT (p = 0.034). HR was also increased during CIT and HIT, but the two tests differed with respect to the time course of responses. Finally, the intensity and time course of pain rating to both HIT and CIT correlated with neither BP nor HR responses. These results suggest that individual sensitivity and adaptability to tonic thermal pain is related to the intensity of initial pain rating and the latency to peak pain but not to cardiovascular responses. © 2015 European Pain Federation - EFIC®

  11. Multidimensional Computerized Adaptive Testing for Indonesia Junior High School Biology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kuo, Bor-Chen; Daud, Muslem; Yang, Chih-Wei

    2015-01-01

    This paper describes a curriculum-based multidimensional computerized adaptive test that was developed for Indonesia junior high school Biology. In adherence to the Indonesian curriculum of different Biology dimensions, 300 items was constructed, and then tested to 2238 students. A multidimensional random coefficients multinomial logit model was…

  12. Effects of physical randomness training on virtual and laboratory golf putting performance in novices.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pataky, T C; Lamb, P F

    2018-06-01

    External randomness exists in all sports but is perhaps most obvious in golf putting where robotic putters sink only 80% of 5 m putts due to unpredictable ball-green dynamics. The purpose of this study was to test whether physical randomness training can improve putting performance in novices. A virtual random-physics golf-putting game was developed based on controlled ball-roll data. Thirty-two subjects were assigned a unique randomness gain (RG) ranging from 0.1 to 2.0-times real-world randomness. Putter face kinematics were measured in 5 m laboratory putts before and after five days of virtual training. Performance was quantified using putt success rate and "miss-adjustment correlation" (MAC), the correlation between left-right miss magnitude and subsequent right-left kinematic adjustments. Results showed no RG-success correlation (r = -0.066, p = 0.719) but mildly stronger correlations with MAC for face angle (r = -0.168, p = 0.358) and clubhead path (r = -0.302, p = 0.093). The strongest RG-MAC correlation was observed during virtual training (r = -0.692, p golf putting kinematics. Adaptation to external physical randomness during virtual training may therefore help golfers adapt to external randomness in real-world environments.

  13. Effects of nursing intervention models on social adaption capability development in preschool children with malignant tumors: a randomized control trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, Lu; Mo, Lin; Tang, Yan; Huang, Xiaoyan; Tan, Juan

    2014-06-01

    The objectives of this study are to compare the effects of two nursing intervention models on the ability of preschool children with malignant tumors to socialize and to determine if these interventions improved their social adaption capability (SAC) and quality of life. Inpatient preschool children with malignant tumors admitted to the hospital between December 2009 and March 2012 were recruited and randomized into either the experimental or control groups. The control group received routine nursing care, and the experimental group received family-centered nursing care, including physical, psychological, and social interventions. The Infants-Junior Middle School Student's Social-Life Abilities Scale was used to evaluate SAC development of participants. Participants (n = 240) were recruited and randomized into two groups. After the intervention, the excellent and normal SAC rates were 27.5% and 55% in the experimental group, respectively, compared with 2.5% and 32.5% in the control group (p intervention, SAC in experimental group was improved compared with before intervention (54.68 ± 10.85 vs 79.9 ± 22.3, p intervention in the control group (54.70 ± 11.47 vs. 52 ± 15.8, p = 0.38). The family-centered nursing care model that included physical, psychological, and social interventions improved the SAC of children with malignancies compared with children receiving routine nursing care. Establishing a standardized family-school-community-hospital hierarchical multi-management intervention model for children is important to the efficacy of long-term interventions and to the improvement of SAC of children with malignancies. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  14. Work Stress Adaptation: Roles of Gender, Social Support and ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Workers in Nigeria are faced with many stress factors such as work-related, domestic, after job, age or retirement problem to cope with or managed. In view of this, the present study examined the effects of gender, social support and personality (Type A and Type B) on work stress adaptation. Using random and accidental ...

  15. Uncertainty of feedback and state estimation determines the speed of motor adaptation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kunlin Wei

    2010-05-01

    Full Text Available Humans can adapt their motor behaviors to deal with ongoing changes. To achieve this, the nervous system needs to estimate central variables for our movement based on past knowledge and new feedback, both of which are uncertain. In the Bayesian framework, rates of adaptation characterize how noisy feedback is in comparison to the uncertainty of the state estimate. The predictions of Bayesian models are intuitive: the nervous system should adapt slower when sensory feedback is more noisy and faster when its state estimate is more uncertain. Here we want to quantitatively understand how uncertainty in these two factors affects motor adaptation. In a hand reaching experiment we measured trial-by-trial adaptation to a randomly changing visual perturbation to characterize the way the nervous system handles uncertainty in state estimation and feedback. We found both qualitative predictions of Bayesian models confirmed. Our study provides evidence that the nervous system represents and uses uncertainty in state estimate and feedback during motor adaptation.

  16. Harmony Search Based Parameter Ensemble Adaptation for Differential Evolution

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rammohan Mallipeddi

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available In differential evolution (DE algorithm, depending on the characteristics of the problem at hand and the available computational resources, different strategies combined with a different set of parameters may be effective. In addition, a single, well-tuned combination of strategies and parameters may not guarantee optimal performance because different strategies combined with different parameter settings can be appropriate during different stages of the evolution. Therefore, various adaptive/self-adaptive techniques have been proposed to adapt the DE strategies and parameters during the course of evolution. In this paper, we propose a new parameter adaptation technique for DE based on ensemble approach and harmony search algorithm (HS. In the proposed method, an ensemble of parameters is randomly sampled which form the initial harmony memory. The parameter ensemble evolves during the course of the optimization process by HS algorithm. Each parameter combination in the harmony memory is evaluated by testing them on the DE population. The performance of the proposed adaptation method is evaluated using two recently proposed strategies (DE/current-to-pbest/bin and DE/current-to-gr_best/bin as basic DE frameworks. Numerical results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed adaptation technique compared to the state-of-the-art DE based algorithms on a set of challenging test problems (CEC 2005.

  17. The Emergence of Groups and Inequality through Co-Adaptation.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jon Atwell

    Full Text Available The emergence of groups and of inequality is often traced to pre-existing differences, exclusionary practices, or resource accumulation processes, but can the emergence of groups and their differential success simply be a feature of the behaviors of a priori equally-capable actors who have mutually adapted? Using a simple model of behavioral co-adaptation among agents whose individual actions construct a common environment, we present evidence that the formation of unequal groups is endemic to co-adaptive processes that endogenously alter the environment; agents tend to separate into two groups, one whose members stop adapting earliest (the in-group, and another comprising agents who continue to adapt (the out-group. Over a wide range of model parameters, members of the in-group are rewarded more on average than members of the out-group. The primary reason is that the in-group is able to have a more profound influence on the environment and mold it to the benefit of its members. This molding capacity proves more beneficial than the persistence of adaptivity, yet, crucially, which agents are able to form a coalition to successfully exert this control is strongly contingent on random aspects of the set of agent behaviors. In this paper, we present the model, relevant definitions, and results. We then discuss its implications for the study of complex adaptive systems generally.

  18. Adaptive Detection and ISI Mitigation for Mobile Molecular Communication.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Ge; Lin, Lin; Yan, Hao

    2018-03-01

    Current studies on modulation and detection schemes in molecular communication mainly focus on the scenarios with static transmitters and receivers. However, mobile molecular communication is needed in many envisioned applications, such as target tracking and drug delivery. Until now, investigations about mobile molecular communication have been limited. In this paper, a static transmitter and a mobile bacterium-based receiver performing random walk are considered. In this mobile scenario, the channel impulse response changes due to the dynamic change of the distance between the transmitter and the receiver. Detection schemes based on fixed distance fail in signal detection in such a scenario. Furthermore, the intersymbol interference (ISI) effect becomes more complex due to the dynamic character of the signal which makes the estimation and mitigation of the ISI even more difficult. In this paper, an adaptive ISI mitigation method and two adaptive detection schemes are proposed for this mobile scenario. In the proposed scheme, adaptive ISI mitigation, estimation of dynamic distance, and the corresponding impulse response reconstruction are performed in each symbol interval. Based on the dynamic channel impulse response in each interval, two adaptive detection schemes, concentration-based adaptive threshold detection and peak-time-based adaptive detection, are proposed for signal detection. Simulations demonstrate that the ISI effect is significantly reduced and the adaptive detection schemes are reliable and robust for mobile molecular communication.

  19. Adaptive and non-adaptive models of depression: A comparison using register data on antidepressant medication during divorce.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rosenström, Tom; Fawcett, Tim W; Higginson, Andrew D; Metsä-Simola, Niina; Hagen, Edward H; Houston, Alasdair I; Martikainen, Pekka

    2017-01-01

    Divorce is associated with an increased probability of a depressive episode, but the causation of events remains unclear. Adaptive models of depression propose that depression is a social strategy in part, whereas non-adaptive models tend to propose a diathesis-stress mechanism. We compare an adaptive evolutionary model of depression to three alternative non-adaptive models with respect to their ability to explain the temporal pattern of depression around the time of divorce. Register-based data (304,112 individuals drawn from a random sample of 11% of Finnish people) on antidepressant purchases is used as a proxy for depression. This proxy affords an unprecedented temporal resolution (a 3-monthly prevalence estimates over 10 years) without any bias from non-compliance, and it can be linked with underlying episodes via a statistical model. The evolutionary-adaptation model (all time periods with risk of divorce are depressogenic) was the best quantitative description of the data. The non-adaptive stress-relief model (period before divorce is depressogenic and period afterwards is not) provided the second best quantitative description of the data. The peak-stress model (periods before and after divorce can be depressogenic) fit the data less well, and the stress-induction model (period following divorce is depressogenic and the preceding period is not) did not fit the data at all. The evolutionary model was the most detailed mechanistic description of the divorce-depression link among the models, and the best fit in terms of predicted curvature; thus, it offers most rigorous hypotheses for further study. The stress-relief model also fit very well and was the best model in a sensitivity analysis, encouraging development of more mechanistic models for that hypothesis.

  20. Examining the impact of differential cultural adaptation with Latina/o immigrants exposed to adapted parent training interventions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parra-Cardona, J Rubén; Bybee, Deborah; Sullivan, Cris M; Rodríguez, Melanie M Domenech; Dates, Brian; Tams, Lisa; Bernal, Guillermo

    2017-01-01

    There is a dearth of empirical studies aimed at examining the impact of differential cultural adaptation of evidence-based clinical and prevention interventions. This prevention study consisted of a randomized controlled trial aimed at comparing the impact of 2 differentially culturally adapted versions of the evidence-based parenting intervention known as Parent Management Training, the Oregon Model (PMTOR). The sample consisted of 103 Latina/o immigrant families (190 individual parents). Each family was allocated to 1 of 3 conditions: (a) a culturally adapted PMTO (CA), (b) culturally adapted and enhanced PMTO (CE), and (c) a wait-list control. Measurements were implemented at baseline (T1), treatment completion (T2) and 6-month follow up (T3). Multilevel growth modeling analyses indicated statistically significant improvements on parenting skills for fathers and mothers (main effect) at 6-month follow-up in both adapted interventions, when compared with the control condition. With regard to parent-reported child behaviors, child internalizing behaviors were significantly lower for both parents in the CE intervention (main effect), compared with control at 6-month follow-up. No main effect was found for child externalizing behaviors. However, a Parent × Condition effect was found indicating a significant reduction of child externalizing behaviors for CE fathers compared with CA and control fathers at posttest and 6-month follow-up. Present findings indicate the value of differential cultural adaptation research designs and the importance of examining effects for both mothers and fathers, particularly when culturally focused and gender variables are considered for intervention design and implementation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  1. Clearing out a maze: A model of chemotactic motion in porous media

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schilling, Tanja; Voigtmann, Thomas

    2017-12-01

    We study the anomalous dynamics of a biased "hungry" (or "greedy") random walk on a percolating cluster. The model mimics chemotaxis in a porous medium: In close resemblance to the 1980s arcade game PAC-MA N ®, the hungry random walker consumes food, which is initially distributed in the maze, and biases its movement towards food-filled sites. We observe that the mean-squared displacement of the process follows a power law with an exponent that is different from previously known exponents describing passive or active microswimmer dynamics. The change in dynamics is well described by a dynamical exponent that depends continuously on the propensity to move towards food. It results in slower differential growth when compared to the unbiased random walk.

  2. An adaptive multi-element probabilistic collocation method for statistical EMC/EMI characterization

    KAUST Repository

    Yücel, Abdulkadir C.

    2013-12-01

    An adaptive multi-element probabilistic collocation (ME-PC) method for quantifying uncertainties in electromagnetic compatibility and interference phenomena involving electrically large, multi-scale, and complex platforms is presented. The method permits the efficient and accurate statistical characterization of observables (i.e., quantities of interest such as coupled voltages) that potentially vary rapidly and/or are discontinuous in the random variables (i.e., parameters that characterize uncertainty in a system\\'s geometry, configuration, or excitation). The method achieves its efficiency and accuracy by recursively and adaptively dividing the domain of the random variables into subdomains using as a guide the decay rate of relative error in a polynomial chaos expansion of the observables. While constructing local polynomial expansions on each subdomain, a fast integral-equation-based deterministic field-cable-circuit simulator is used to compute the observable values at the collocation/integration points determined by the adaptive ME-PC scheme. The adaptive ME-PC scheme requires far fewer (computationally costly) deterministic simulations than traditional polynomial chaos collocation and Monte Carlo methods for computing averages, standard deviations, and probability density functions of rapidly varying observables. The efficiency and accuracy of the method are demonstrated via its applications to the statistical characterization of voltages in shielded/unshielded microwave amplifiers and magnetic fields induced on car tire pressure sensors. © 2013 IEEE.

  3. An Improved Fast Compressive Tracking Algorithm Based on Online Random Forest Classifier

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xiong Jintao

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The fast compressive tracking (FCT algorithm is a simple and efficient algorithm, which is proposed in recent years. But, it is difficult to deal with the factors such as occlusion, appearance changes, pose variation, etc in processing. The reasons are that, Firstly, even if the naive Bayes classifier is fast in training, it is not robust concerning the noise. Secondly, the parameters are required to vary with the unique environment for accurate tracking. In this paper, we propose an improved fast compressive tracking algorithm based on online random forest (FCT-ORF for robust visual tracking. Firstly, we combine ideas with the adaptive compressive sensing theory regarding the weighted random projection to exploit both local and discriminative information of the object. The second reason is the online random forest classifier for online tracking which is demonstrated with more robust to the noise adaptively and high computational efficiency. The experimental results show that the algorithm we have proposed has a better performance in the field of occlusion, appearance changes, and pose variation than the fast compressive tracking algorithm’s contribution.

  4. Heuristics comparison for u-shaped assembly line balancing in the apparel factory

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nuchsara Kriengkorakot

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available In recent year, many industries have adopted a Just-in-time (JIT approach to manufacturing. One of the important changes resulting from JIT implementation is the replacement of the traditional straight lines with Ushaped assembly lines. The important characteristic of these new configurations is that multiskilled workers perform various tasks of different stations along the production line. This research is to improve the assembly line balancing in apparel factory in case study of T-shirt style 53287. The efficiency of production line was 55.48%, the factory balanced line with the traditional method in straight line. Then, the u-shaped assembly line balancing problem (UALBP is to be performed instead of straight line. By using the heuristics of Maximum Task Time, Minimum Task Time, Maximum Ranked Positional Weight (RPWmax and Greedy Randomized to determine the optimal solutions related to the number of stations and line efficiency. The results indicate that two heuristics have given the good solution which have produced by the use of Maximum Task Time and Greedy Randomized. The minimum number of stations have reduced from 17 stations to 11 stations in UALB and the line efficiency was increased from 55.48% to 85.75%. The U-line configuration frequently improves the line efficiency and has fewer work stations compared to the traditional lines.

  5. Shape Modelling Using Markov Random Field Restoration of Point Correspondences

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Paulsen, Rasmus Reinhold; Hilger, Klaus Baggesen

    2003-01-01

    A method for building statistical point distribution models is proposed. The novelty in this paper is the adaption of Markov random field regularization of the correspondence field over the set of shapes. The new approach leads to a generative model that produces highly homogeneous polygonized sh...

  6. Adaptation response of Arabidopsis thaliana to random positioning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kittang, A.-I.; Winge, P.; van Loon, J. J. W. A.; Bones, A. M.; Iversen, T.-H.

    2013-10-01

    Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings were exposed on a Random Positioning Machine (RPM) under light conditions for 16 h and the samples were analysed using microarray techniques as part of a preparation for a space experiment on the International Space Station (ISS). The results demonstrated a moderate to low regulation of 55 genes (genes). Genes encoding proteins associated with the chaperone system (e.g. heat shock proteins, HSPs) and enzymes in the flavonoid biosynthesis were induced. Most of the repressed genes were associated with light and sugar responses. Significant up-regulation of selected HSP genes was found by quantitative Real-Time PCR in 1 week old plants after the RPM exposure both in light and darkness. Higher quantity of DPBA (diphenylboric acid 2-amino-ethyl ester) staining was observed in the whole root and in the root elongation zone of the seedlings exposed on the RPM by use of fluorescent microscopy, indicating higher flavonoid content. The regulated genes and an increase of flavonoids are related to several stresses, but increased occurrence of HSPs and flavonoids are also representative for normal growth (e.g. gravitropism). The response could be a direct stress response or an integrated response of the two signal pathways of light and gravity resulting in an overall light response.

  7. Elementary learners’ reading of e-books with different adaptive designs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pei-Yu Wang

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available This study aimed to explore the impact of age and adaptive design on elementary students’reading of e-books. This study was a two-way experimental design where the first factor was learner age (4th and 5th grade and the second factor was e-book adaptive design (adaptive, non-adaptive visual, non-adaptive verbal. The e-books used in this study targeted six major classes of nutrients as content. This study was guided by the following question: Is there any interaction between age and e-book adaptive design on learning achievement (recall and transfer and learning motivation (attention, relevance and confidence? A sample of one hundred 4th and 5th graders participated in the study, and participants were randomly assigned into one of three groups. They were asked to do a pre-test first, and then they read their assigned e-books for twenty minutes. After they finished reading, they were given a post-test. The results showed significant interactions between age and the e-book adaptive design. For the 4th graders, the adaptive e-book group worked best in recall, transfer and attention scores. For the 5th graders, there was no significant difference among these three e-book designs. This revealed that the adaptive design is more critical for younger children. This study hoped to broaden theories on multimedia learning for young learners and serve as a reference for elementary school teachers and e-book designers.

  8. Sinusoidal error perturbation reveals multiple coordinate systems for sensorymotor adaptation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hudson, Todd E; Landy, Michael S

    2016-02-01

    A coordinate system is composed of an encoding, defining the dimensions of the space, and an origin. We examine the coordinate encoding used to update motor plans during sensory-motor adaptation to center-out reaches. Adaptation is induced using a novel paradigm in which feedback of reach endpoints is perturbed following a sinewave pattern over trials; the perturbed dimensions of the feedback were the axes of a Cartesian coordinate system in one session and a polar coordinate system in another session. For center-out reaches to randomly chosen target locations, reach errors observed at one target will require different corrections at other targets within Cartesian- and polar-coded systems. The sinewave adaptation technique allowed us to simultaneously adapt both dimensions of each coordinate system (x-y, or reach gain and angle), and identify the contributions of each perturbed dimension by adapting each at a distinct temporal frequency. The efficiency of this technique further allowed us to employ perturbations that were a fraction the size normally used, which avoids confounding automatic adaptive processes with deliberate adjustments made in response to obvious experimental manipulations. Subjects independently corrected errors in each coordinate in both sessions, suggesting that the nervous system encodes both a Cartesian- and polar-coordinate-based internal representation for motor adaptation. The gains and phase lags of the adaptive responses are not readily explained by current theories of sensory-motor adaptation. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Is adaptation. Truly an adaptation? Is adaptation. Truly an adaptation?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Thais Flores Nogueira Diniz

    2008-04-01

    Full Text Available The article begins by historicizing film adaptation from the arrival of cinema, pointing out the many theoretical approaches under which the process has been seen: from the concept of “the same story told in a different medium” to a comprehensible definition such as “the process through which works can be transformed, forming an intersection of textual surfaces, quotations, conflations and inversions of other texts”. To illustrate this new concept, the article discusses Spike Jonze’s film Adaptation. according to James Naremore’s proposal which considers the study of adaptation as part of a general theory of repetition, joined with the study of recycling, remaking, and every form of retelling. The film deals with the attempt by the scriptwriter Charles Kaufman, cast by Nicholas Cage, to adapt/translate a non-fictional book to the cinema, but ends up with a kind of film which is by no means what it intended to be: a film of action in the model of Hollywood productions. During the process of creation, Charles and his twin brother, Donald, undergo a series of adventures involving some real persons from the world of film, the author and the protagonist of the book, all of them turning into fictional characters in the film. In the film, adaptation then signifies something different from itstraditional meaning. The article begins by historicizing film adaptation from the arrival of cinema, pointing out the many theoretical approaches under which the process has been seen: from the concept of “the same story told in a different medium” to a comprehensible definition such as “the process through which works can be transformed, forming an intersection of textual surfaces, quotations, conflations and inversions of other texts”. To illustrate this new concept, the article discusses Spike Jonze’s film Adaptation. according to James Naremore’s proposal which considers the study of adaptation as part of a general theory of repetition

  10. Approximation algorithms for a genetic diagnostics problem.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kosaraju, S R; Schäffer, A A; Biesecker, L G

    1998-01-01

    We define and study a combinatorial problem called WEIGHTED DIAGNOSTIC COVER (WDC) that models the use of a laboratory technique called genotyping in the diagnosis of an important class of chromosomal aberrations. An optimal solution to WDC would enable us to define a genetic assay that maximizes the diagnostic power for a specified cost of laboratory work. We develop approximation algorithms for WDC by making use of the well-known problem SET COVER for which the greedy heuristic has been extensively studied. We prove worst-case performance bounds on the greedy heuristic for WDC and for another heuristic we call directional greedy. We implemented both heuristics. We also implemented a local search heuristic that takes the solutions obtained by greedy and dir-greedy and applies swaps until they are locally optimal. We report their performance on a real data set that is representative of the options that a clinical geneticist faces for the real diagnostic problem. Many open problems related to WDC remain, both of theoretical interest and practical importance.

  11. An adaptive randomized trial of dialectical behavior therapy and cognitive behavior therapy for binge-eating.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, E Y; Cacioppo, J; Fettich, K; Gallop, R; McCloskey, M S; Olino, T; Zeffiro, T A

    2017-03-01

    Early weak treatment response is one of the few trans-diagnostic, treatment-agnostic predictors of poor outcome following a full treatment course. We sought to improve the outcome of clients with weak initial response to guided self-help cognitive behavior therapy (GSH). One hundred and nine women with binge-eating disorder (BED) or bulimia nervosa (BN) (DSM-IV-TR) received 4 weeks of GSH. Based on their response, they were grouped into: (1) early strong responders who continued GSH (cGSH), and early weak responders randomized to (2) dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), or (3) individual and additional group cognitive behavior therapy (CBT+). Baseline objective binge-eating-day (OBD) frequency was similar between DBT, CBT+ and cGSH. During treatment, OBD frequency reduction was significantly slower in DBT and CBT+ relative to cGSH. Relative to cGSH, OBD frequency was significantly greater at the end of DBT (d = 0.27) and CBT+ (d = 0.31) although these effects were small and within-treatment effects from baseline were large (d = 1.41, 0.95, 1.11, respectively). OBD improvements significantly diminished in all groups during 12 months follow-up but were significantly better sustained in DBT relative to cGSH (d = -0.43). At 6- and 12-month follow-up assessments, DBT, CBT and cGSH did not differ in OBD. Early weak response to GSH may be overcome by additional intensive treatment. Evidence was insufficient to support superiority of either DBT or CBT+ for early weak responders relative to early strong responders in cGSH; both were helpful. Future studies using adaptive designs are needed to assess the use of early response to efficiently deliver care to large heterogeneous client groups.

  12. Greedy subspace clustering.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2016-09-01

    We consider the problem of subspace clustering: given points that lie on or near the union of many low-dimensional linear subspaces, recover the subspaces. To this end, one first identifies sets of points close to the same subspace and uses the sets ...

  13. Effects of a Culture-Adaptive Forgiveness Intervention for Chinese College Students

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ji, Mingxia; Hui, Eadaoin; Fu, Hong; Watkins, David; Tao, Linjin; Lo, Sing Kai

    2016-01-01

    The understanding and application of forgiveness varies across cultures. The current study aimed to examine the effect of a culture-adaptive Forgiveness Intervention on forgiveness attitude, self-esteem, empathy and anxiety of Mainland Chinese college students. Thirty-six participants were randomly allocated to either experimental groups or a…

  14. Multi-level adaptive simulation of transient two-phase flow in heterogeneous porous media

    KAUST Repository

    Chueh, C.C.

    2010-10-01

    An implicit pressure and explicit saturation (IMPES) finite element method (FEM) incorporating a multi-level shock-type adaptive refinement technique is presented and applied to investigate transient two-phase flow in porous media. Local adaptive mesh refinement is implemented seamlessly with state-of-the-art artificial diffusion stabilization allowing simulations that achieve both high resolution and high accuracy. Two benchmark problems, modelling a single crack and a random porous medium, are used to demonstrate the robustness of the method and illustrate the capabilities of the adaptive refinement technique in resolving the saturation field and the complex interaction (transport phenomena) between two fluids in heterogeneous media. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd.

  15. Extraordinarily Adaptive Properties of the Genetically Encoded Amino Acids

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ilardo, Melissa; Meringer, Markus; Freeland, Stephen; Rasulev, Bakhtiyor; Cleaves II, H. James

    2015-01-01

    Using novel advances in computational chemistry, we demonstrate that the set of 20 genetically encoded amino acids, used nearly universally to construct all coded terrestrial proteins, has been highly influenced by natural selection. We defined an adaptive set of amino acids as one whose members thoroughly cover relevant physico-chemical properties, or “chemistry space.” Using this metric, we compared the encoded amino acid alphabet to random sets of amino acids. These random sets were drawn from a computationally generated compound library containing 1913 alternative amino acids that lie within the molecular weight range of the encoded amino acids. Sets that cover chemistry space better than the genetically encoded alphabet are extremely rare and energetically costly. Further analysis of more adaptive sets reveals common features and anomalies, and we explore their implications for synthetic biology. We present these computations as evidence that the set of 20 amino acids found within the standard genetic code is the result of considerable natural selection. The amino acids used for constructing coded proteins may represent a largely global optimum, such that any aqueous biochemistry would use a very similar set. PMID:25802223

  16. Extraordinarily adaptive properties of the genetically encoded amino acids.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ilardo, Melissa; Meringer, Markus; Freeland, Stephen; Rasulev, Bakhtiyor; Cleaves, H James

    2015-03-24

    Using novel advances in computational chemistry, we demonstrate that the set of 20 genetically encoded amino acids, used nearly universally to construct all coded terrestrial proteins, has been highly influenced by natural selection. We defined an adaptive set of amino acids as one whose members thoroughly cover relevant physico-chemical properties, or "chemistry space." Using this metric, we compared the encoded amino acid alphabet to random sets of amino acids. These random sets were drawn from a computationally generated compound library containing 1913 alternative amino acids that lie within the molecular weight range of the encoded amino acids. Sets that cover chemistry space better than the genetically encoded alphabet are extremely rare and energetically costly. Further analysis of more adaptive sets reveals common features and anomalies, and we explore their implications for synthetic biology. We present these computations as evidence that the set of 20 amino acids found within the standard genetic code is the result of considerable natural selection. The amino acids used for constructing coded proteins may represent a largely global optimum, such that any aqueous biochemistry would use a very similar set.

  17. Intrinsic gain modulation and adaptive neural coding.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sungho Hong

    2008-07-01

    Full Text Available In many cases, the computation of a neural system can be reduced to a receptive field, or a set of linear filters, and a thresholding function, or gain curve, which determines the firing probability; this is known as a linear/nonlinear model. In some forms of sensory adaptation, these linear filters and gain curve adjust very rapidly to changes in the variance of a randomly varying driving input. An apparently similar but previously unrelated issue is the observation of gain control by background noise in cortical neurons: the slope of the firing rate versus current (f-I curve changes with the variance of background random input. Here, we show a direct correspondence between these two observations by relating variance-dependent changes in the gain of f-I curves to characteristics of the changing empirical linear/nonlinear model obtained by sampling. In the case that the underlying system is fixed, we derive relationships relating the change of the gain with respect to both mean and variance with the receptive fields derived from reverse correlation on a white noise stimulus. Using two conductance-based model neurons that display distinct gain modulation properties through a simple change in parameters, we show that coding properties of both these models quantitatively satisfy the predicted relationships. Our results describe how both variance-dependent gain modulation and adaptive neural computation result from intrinsic nonlinearity.

  18. Epidemic propagation on adaptive coevolutionary networks with preferential local-world reconnecting strategy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Song Yu-Rong; Jiang Guo-Ping; Gong Yong-Wang

    2013-01-01

    In the propagation of an epidemic in a population, individuals adaptively adjust their behavior to avoid the risk of an epidemic. Differently from existing studies where new links are established randomly, a local link is established preferentially in this paper. We propose a new preferentially reconnecting edge strategy depending on spatial distance (PR-SD). For the PR-SD strategy, the new link is established at random with probability p and in a shortest distance with the probability 1 − p. We establish the epidemic model on an adaptive network using Cellular Automata, and demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed model by numerical simulations. The results show that the smaller the value of parameter p, the more difficult the epidemic spread is. The PR-SD strategy breaks long-range links and establishes as many short-range links as possible, which causes the network efficiency to decrease quickly and the propagation of the epidemic is restrained effectively. (general)

  19. Predictors of Career Adaptability Skill among Higher Education Students in Nigeria

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ebenehi, Amos Shaibu; Rashid, Abdullah Mat; Bakar, Ab Rahim

    2016-01-01

    This paper examined predictors of career adaptability skill among higher education students in Nigeria. A sample of 603 higher education students randomly selected from six colleges of education in Nigeria participated in this study. A set of self-reported questionnaire was used for data collection, and multiple linear regression analysis was used…

  20. Adapting hypertension self-management interventions to enhance their sustained effectiveness among urban African Americans.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ameling, Jessica M; Ephraim, Patti L; Bone, Lee R; Levine, David M; Roter, Debra L; Wolff, Jennifer L; Hill-Briggs, Felicia; Fitzpatrick, Stephanie L; Noronha, Gary J; Fagan, Peter J; Lewis-Boyer, LaPricia; Hickman, Debra; Simmons, Michelle; Purnell, Leon; Fisher, Annette; Cooper, Lisa A; Aboumatar, Hanan J; Albert, Michael C; Flynn, Sarah J; Boulware, L Ebony

    2014-01-01

    African Americans suffer disproportionately poor hypertension control despite the availability of efficacious interventions. Using principles of community-based participatory research and implementation science, we adapted established hypertension self-management interventions to enhance interventions' cultural relevance and potential for sustained effectiveness among urban African Americans. We obtained input from patients and their family members, their health care providers, and community members. The process required substantial time and resources, and the adapted interventions will be tested in a randomized controlled trial.

  1. Perceptual adaptation of voice gender discrimination with spectrally shifted vowels.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Tianhao; Fu, Qian-Jie

    2011-08-01

    To determine whether perceptual adaptation improves voice gender discrimination of spectrally shifted vowels and, if so, which acoustic cues contribute to the improvement. Voice gender discrimination was measured for 10 normal-hearing subjects, during 5 days of adaptation to spectrally shifted vowels, produced by processing the speech of 5 male and 5 female talkers with 16-channel sine-wave vocoders. The subjects were randomly divided into 2 groups; one subjected to 50-Hz, and the other to 200-Hz, temporal envelope cutoff frequencies. No preview or feedback was provided. There was significant adaptation in voice gender discrimination with the 200-Hz cutoff frequency, but significant improvement was observed only for 3 female talkers with F(0) > 180 Hz and 3 male talkers with F(0) gender discrimination under spectral shift conditions with perceptual adaptation, but spectral shift may limit the exclusive use of spectral information and/or the use of formant structure on voice gender discrimination. The results have implications for cochlear implant users and for understanding voice gender discrimination.

  2. Non-canonical spectral decomposition of random functions of the traction voltage and current in electric transportation systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    N.A. Kostin

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available The paper proposes the non-canonical spectral decomposition of random functions of the traction voltages and currents. This decomposition is adapted for the electric transportation systems. The numerical representation is carried out for the random function of voltage on the pantograph of electric locomotives VL8 and DE1.

  3. Randomized, controlled trial of an intervention for toddlers with autism: the Early Start Denver Model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dawson, Geraldine; Rogers, Sally; Munson, Jeffrey; Smith, Milani; Winter, Jamie; Greenson, Jessica; Donaldson, Amy; Varley, Jennifer

    2010-01-01

    To conduct a randomized, controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of the Early Start Denver Model (ESDM), a comprehensive developmental behavioral intervention, for improving outcomes of toddlers diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Forty-eight children diagnosed with ASD between 18 and 30 months of age were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 groups: (1) ESDM intervention, which is based on developmental and applied behavioral analytic principles and delivered by trained therapists and parents for 2 years; or (2) referral to community providers for intervention commonly available in the community. Compared with children who received community-intervention, children who received ESDM showed significant improvements in IQ, adaptive behavior, and autism diagnosis. Two years after entering intervention, the ESDM group on average improved 17.6 standard score points (1 SD: 15 points) compared with 7.0 points in the comparison group relative to baseline scores. The ESDM group maintained its rate of growth in adaptive behavior compared with a normative sample of typically developing children. In contrast, over the 2-year span, the comparison group showed greater delays in adaptive behavior. Children who received ESDM also were more likely to experience a change in diagnosis from autism to pervasive developmental disorder, not otherwise specified, than the comparison group. This is the first randomized, controlled trial to demonstrate the efficacy of a comprehensive developmental behavioral intervention for toddlers with ASD for improving cognitive and adaptive behavior and reducing severity of ASD diagnosis. Results of this study underscore the importance of early detection of and intervention in autism.

  4. Musical noise reduction using an adaptive filter

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hanada, Takeshi; Murakami, Takahiro; Ishida, Yoshihisa; Hoya, Tetsuya

    2003-10-01

    This paper presents a method for reducing a particular noise (musical noise). The musical noise is artificially produced by Spectral Subtraction (SS), which is one of the most conventional methods for speech enhancement. The musical noise is the tin-like sound and annoying in human auditory. We know that the duration of the musical noise is considerably short in comparison with that of speech, and that the frequency components of the musical noise are random and isolated. In the ordinary SS-based methods, the musical noise is removed by the post-processing. However, the output of the ordinary post-processing is delayed since the post-processing uses the succeeding frames. In order to improve this problem, we propose a novel method using an adaptive filter. In the proposed system, the observed noisy signal is used as the input signal to the adaptive filter and the output of SS is used as the reference signal. In this paper we exploit the normalized LMS (Least Mean Square) algorithm for the adaptive filter. Simulation results show that the proposed method has improved the intelligibility of the enhanced speech in comparison with the conventional method.

  5. ANALYSIS AND PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT OF EXISTING SOLUTION METHODS OF QUADRATIC ASSIGNMENT PROBLEM

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Morteza KARAMI

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Quadratic Assignment Problem (QAP is known as one of the most difficult combinatorial optimization problems that is classified in the category of NP-hard problems. Quadratic Assignment Problem Library (QAPLIB is a full database of QAPs which contains several problems from different authors and different sizes. Many exact and meta-heuristic solution methods have been introduced to solve QAP. In this study we focus on previously introduced solution methods of QAP e.g. Branch and Bound (B&B, Simulated Annealing (SA Algorithm, Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure (GRASP for dense and sparse QAPs. The codes of FORTRAN for these methods were downloaded from QAPLIB. All problems of QAPLIB were solved by the abovementioned methods. Several results were obtained from the computational experiments part. The Results show that the Branch and Bound method is able to introduce a feasible solution for all problems while Simulated Annealing Algorithm and GRASP methods are not able to find any solution for some problems. On the other hand, Simulated Annealing and GRASP methods have shorter run time comparing to the Branch and Bound method. In addition, the performance of the methods on the objective function value is discussed.

  6. A HYBRID HEURISTIC ALGORITHM FOR SOLVING THE RESOURCE CONSTRAINED PROJECT SCHEDULING PROBLEM (RCPSP

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Juan Carlos Rivera

    Full Text Available The Resource Constrained Project Scheduling Problem (RCPSP is a problem of great interest for the scientific community because it belongs to the class of NP-Hard problems and no methods are known that can solve it accurately in polynomial processing times. For this reason heuristic methods are used to solve it in an efficient way though there is no guarantee that an optimal solution can be obtained. This research presents a hybrid heuristic search algorithm to solve the RCPSP efficiently, combining elements of the heuristic Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure (GRASP, Scatter Search and Justification. The efficiency obtained is measured taking into account the presence of the new elements added to the GRASP algorithm taken as base: Justification and Scatter Search. The algorithms are evaluated using three data bases of instances of the problem: 480 instances of 30 activities, 480 of 60, and 600 of 120 activities respectively, taken from the library PSPLIB available online. The solutions obtained by the developed algorithm for the instances of 30, 60 and 120 are compared with results obtained by other researchers at international level, where a prominent place is obtained, according to Chen (2011.

  7. Gender differences in farmers' responses to climate change adaptation in Yongqiao District, China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jin, Jianjun; Wang, Xiaomin; Gao, Yiwei

    2015-12-15

    This study examines the gender differences in farmers' responses to climate change adaption in Yongqiao District, China. A random sampling technique was used to select 220 household heads, while descriptive statistics and binary logit models were used to analyze the data obtained from the households. We determine that male and female respondents are not significantly different in their knowledge and perceptions of climate change, but there is a gender difference in adopting climate change adaptation measures. Male-headed households are more likely to adopt new technology for water conservation and to increase investment in irrigation infrastructure. The research also indicates that the adaptation decisions of male and female heads are influenced by different sets of factors. The findings of this research help to elucidate the determinants of climate change adaptation decisions for male and female-headed households and the strategic interventions necessary for effective adaptation. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. Accelerated Desensitization with Adaptive Attitudes and Test Gains with 5th Graders

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miller, Melanie; Morton, Jerome; Driscoll, Richard; Davis, Kai A.

    2006-01-01

    The study evaluates an easily-administered test-anxiety reduction program. An entire fifth grade was screened, and 36 students identified as test-anxious were randomly assigned to an Intervention or a non-participant Control group. The intervention was an accelerated desensitization and adaptive attitudes (ADAA) treatment which involved…

  9. On construction of partial association rules

    KAUST Repository

    Moshkov, Mikhail

    2009-01-01

    This paper is devoted to the study of approximate algorithms for minimization of partial association rule length. It is shown that under some natural assumptions on the class NP, a greedy algorithm is close to the best polynomial approximate algorithms for solving of this NP-hard problem. The paper contains various bounds on precision of the greedy algorithm, bounds on minimal length of rules based on an information obtained during greedy algorithm work, and results of the study of association rules for the most part of binary information systems. © 2009 Springer Berlin Heidelberg.

  10. Performance study of Active Queue Management methods: Adaptive GRED, REDD, and GRED-Linear analytical model

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hussein Abdel-jaber

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available Congestion control is one of the hot research topics that helps maintain the performance of computer networks. This paper compares three Active Queue Management (AQM methods, namely, Adaptive Gentle Random Early Detection (Adaptive GRED, Random Early Dynamic Detection (REDD, and GRED Linear analytical model with respect to different performance measures. Adaptive GRED and REDD are implemented based on simulation, whereas GRED Linear is implemented as a discrete-time analytical model. Several performance measures are used to evaluate the effectiveness of the compared methods mainly mean queue length, throughput, average queueing delay, overflow packet loss probability, and packet dropping probability. The ultimate aim is to identify the method that offers the highest satisfactory performance in non-congestion or congestion scenarios. The first comparison results that are based on different packet arrival probability values show that GRED Linear provides better mean queue length; average queueing delay and packet overflow probability than Adaptive GRED and REDD methods in the presence of congestion. Further and using the same evaluation measures, Adaptive GRED offers a more satisfactory performance than REDD when heavy congestion is present. When the finite capacity of queue values varies the GRED Linear model provides the highest satisfactory performance with reference to mean queue length and average queueing delay and all the compared methods provide similar throughput performance. However, when the finite capacity value is large, the compared methods have similar results in regard to probabilities of both packet overflowing and packet dropping.

  11. Adaptation to altered balance conditions in unilateral amputees due to atherosclerosis: a randomized controlled study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bretz Éva

    2011-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Amputation impairs the ability to balance. We examined adaptation strategies in balance following dysvascularity-induced unilateral tibial amputation in skilled prosthetic users (SPU and first fitted amputees (FFA (N = 28. Methods Excursions of center of pressure (COP were determined during 20 s quiet standing using a stabilometry system with eyes-open on both legs or on the non-affected leg(s. Main measures: COP trajectories and time functions; distribution of reaction forces between the two legs; inclination angles obtained through second order regression analysis using stabilogram data. Results FFA vs SPU demonstrated 27.8% greater postural sway in bilateral stance (p = 0.0004. Postural sway area was smaller in FFA standing on the non-affected leg compared with SPU (p = 0.028. The slope of the regression line indicating postural stability was nearly identical in FFA and SPU and the direction of regression line was opposite for the left and right leg amputees. Conclusion Of the two adaptation strategies in balance, the first appears before amputation due to pain and fatigue in the affected leg. This strategy appears in the form of reduced postural sway while standing on the non-affected leg. The second adaptation occurs during rehabilitation and regular use of the prosthesis resulting in normal weightbearing associated with reduced postural sway on two legs and return to the normal postural stability on one leg.

  12. Probability differently modulating the effects of reward and punishment on visuomotor adaptation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Song, Yanlong; Smiley-Oyen, Ann L

    2017-12-01

    Recent human motor learning studies revealed that punishment seemingly accelerated motor learning but reward enhanced consolidation of motor memory. It is not evident how intrinsic properties of reward and punishment modulate the potentially dissociable effects of reward and punishment on motor learning and motor memory. It is also not clear what causes the dissociation of the effects of reward and punishment. By manipulating probability of distribution, a critical property of reward and punishment, the present study demonstrated that probability had distinct modulation on the effects of reward and punishment in adapting to a sudden visual rotation and consolidation of the adaptation memory. Specifically, two probabilities of monetary reward and punishment distribution, 50 and 100%, were applied during young adult participants adapting to a sudden visual rotation. Punishment and reward showed distinct effects on motor adaptation and motor memory. The group that received punishments in 100% of the adaptation trials adapted significantly faster than the other three groups, but the group that received rewards in 100% of the adaptation trials showed marked savings in re-adapting to the same rotation. In addition, the group that received punishments in 50% of the adaptation trials that were randomly selected also had savings in re-adapting to the same rotation. Sensitivity to sensory prediction error or difference in explicit process induced by reward and punishment may likely contribute to the distinct effects of reward and punishment.

  13. Institutional adaptation to drought: the case of Fars Agricultural Organization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keshavarz, Marzieh; Karami, Ezatollah

    2013-09-30

    Recurrent droughts in arid and semi-arid regions are already rendering agricultural production, mainstay of subsistence livelihoods, uncertain. In order to mitigate the impact of drought, agricultural organizations must increase their capacity to adapt. Institutional adaptation refers to the creation of an effective, long-term government institution or set of institutions in charge of planning and policy, and its capacity to develop, revise, and execute drought policies. Using the Fars Agricultural Organization in Iran, as a case study, this paper explores the institutional capacities and capabilities, necessary to adapt to the drought conditions. The STAIR model was used as a conceptual tool, and the Bayesian network and Partial Least Squares (PLS) path modeling was applied to explain the mechanisms by which organizational capacities influence drought management. A survey of 309 randomly selected managers and specialists indicated serious weaknesses in the ability of the organization to apply adaptation strategies effectively. Analysis of the causal models illustrated that organizational culture and resources and infrastructure significantly influenced drought management performance. Moreover, managers and specialists perceived human resources and strategy, goals, and action plan, respectively, as the main drivers of institutional adaptation to drought conditions. Recommendations and implications for drought management policy are offered to increase organizational adaptation to drought and reduce the subsequent sufferings. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Fluid Intelligence and Psychosocial Outcome: From Logical Problem Solving to Social Adaptation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huepe, David; Roca, María; Salas, Natalia; Canales-Johnson, Andrés; Rivera-Rei, Álvaro A.; Zamorano, Leandro; Concepción, Aimée; Manes, Facundo; Ibañez, Agustín

    2011-01-01

    Background While fluid intelligence has proved to be central to executive functioning, logical reasoning and other frontal functions, the role of this ability in psychosocial adaptation has not been well characterized. Methodology/Principal Findings A random-probabilistic sample of 2370 secondary school students completed measures of fluid intelligence (Raven's Progressive Matrices, RPM) and several measures of psychological adaptation: bullying (Delaware Bullying Questionnaire), domestic abuse of adolescents (Conflict Tactic Scale), drug intake (ONUDD), self-esteem (Rosenberg's Self Esteem Scale) and the Perceived Mental Health Scale (Spanish adaptation). Lower fluid intelligence scores were associated with physical violence, both in the role of victim and victimizer. Drug intake, especially cannabis, cocaine and inhalants and lower self-esteem were also associated with lower fluid intelligence. Finally, scores on the perceived mental health assessment were better when fluid intelligence scores were higher. Conclusions/Significance Our results show evidence of a strong association between psychosocial adaptation and fluid intelligence, suggesting that the latter is not only central to executive functioning but also forms part of a more general capacity for adaptation to social contexts. PMID:21957464

  15. Fluid intelligence and psychosocial outcome: from logical problem solving to social adaptation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huepe, David; Roca, María; Salas, Natalia; Canales-Johnson, Andrés; Rivera-Rei, Álvaro A; Zamorano, Leandro; Concepción, Aimée; Manes, Facundo; Ibañez, Agustín

    2011-01-01

    While fluid intelligence has proved to be central to executive functioning, logical reasoning and other frontal functions, the role of this ability in psychosocial adaptation has not been well characterized. A random-probabilistic sample of 2370 secondary school students completed measures of fluid intelligence (Raven's Progressive Matrices, RPM) and several measures of psychological adaptation: bullying (Delaware Bullying Questionnaire), domestic abuse of adolescents (Conflict Tactic Scale), drug intake (ONUDD), self-esteem (Rosenberg's Self Esteem Scale) and the Perceived Mental Health Scale (Spanish adaptation). Lower fluid intelligence scores were associated with physical violence, both in the role of victim and victimizer. Drug intake, especially cannabis, cocaine and inhalants and lower self-esteem were also associated with lower fluid intelligence. Finally, scores on the perceived mental health assessment were better when fluid intelligence scores were higher. Our results show evidence of a strong association between psychosocial adaptation and fluid intelligence, suggesting that the latter is not only central to executive functioning but also forms part of a more general capacity for adaptation to social contexts.

  16. Fluid intelligence and psychosocial outcome: from logical problem solving to social adaptation.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    David Huepe

    Full Text Available While fluid intelligence has proved to be central to executive functioning, logical reasoning and other frontal functions, the role of this ability in psychosocial adaptation has not been well characterized.A random-probabilistic sample of 2370 secondary school students completed measures of fluid intelligence (Raven's Progressive Matrices, RPM and several measures of psychological adaptation: bullying (Delaware Bullying Questionnaire, domestic abuse of adolescents (Conflict Tactic Scale, drug intake (ONUDD, self-esteem (Rosenberg's Self Esteem Scale and the Perceived Mental Health Scale (Spanish adaptation. Lower fluid intelligence scores were associated with physical violence, both in the role of victim and victimizer. Drug intake, especially cannabis, cocaine and inhalants and lower self-esteem were also associated with lower fluid intelligence. Finally, scores on the perceived mental health assessment were better when fluid intelligence scores were higher.Our results show evidence of a strong association between psychosocial adaptation and fluid intelligence, suggesting that the latter is not only central to executive functioning but also forms part of a more general capacity for adaptation to social contexts.

  17. Adapting Hypertension Self-Management Interventions to Enhance their Sustained Effectiveness among Urban African Americans

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ameling, Jessica M.; Ephraim, Patti L.; Bone, Lee R.; Levine, David M.; Roter, Debra L.; Wolff, Jennifer L.; Hill-Briggs, Felicia; Fitzpatrick, Stephanie L.; Noronha, Gary J.; Fagan, Peter J.; Lewis-Boyer, LaPricia; Hickman, Debra; Simmons, Michelle; Purnell, Leon; Fisher, Annette; Cooper, Lisa A.; Aboumatar, Hanan J.; Albert, Michael C.; Flynn, Sarah J.; Boulware, L. Ebony

    2014-01-01

    African Americans suffer disproportionately poor hypertension control despite the availability of efficacious interventions. Using principles of community-based participatory research and implementation science, we adapted established hypertension self-management interventions to enhance interventions’ cultural relevance and potential for sustained effectiveness among urban African Americans. We obtained input from patients and their family members, their health care providers, and community members. The process required substantial time and resources, and the adapted interventions will be tested in a randomized controlled trial. PMID:24569158

  18. Predictors of Career Adaptability Skill among Higher Education Students in Nigeria

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Amos Shaibu Ebenehi

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper examined predictors of career adaptability skill among higher  education students in Nigeria. A sample of 603 higher education students randomly selected from six colleges of education in Nigeria participated in this study.  A set of self-reported questionnaire was used for data collection, and multiple linear regression analysis was used to analyze the data.  Results indicated that 33.3% of career adaptability skill was explained by the model.  Four out of the five predictor variables significantly predicted career adaptability skill among higher education students in Nigeria.  Among the four predictors, career self-efficacy sources was the most statistically significant predictor of career adaptability skill among higher education students in Nigeria, followed by personal goal orientation, career future concern, and perceived social support respectively.  Vocational identity did not statistically predict career adaptability skill among higher education students in Nigeria.  The study suggested that similar study should be replicated in other parts of the world in view of the importance of career adaptability skill to the smooth transition of graduates from school to the labor market.  The study concluded by requesting stakeholders of higher institutions in Nigeria to provide career exploration database for the students, and encourage career intervention program in order to enhance career adaptability skill among the students.

  19. [A magnetic therapy apparatus with an adaptable electromagnetic spectrum for the treatment of prostatitis and gynecopathies].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kuz'min, A A; Meshkovskiĭ, D V; Filist, S A

    2008-01-01

    Problems of engineering and algorithm development of magnetic therapy apparatuses with pseudo-random radiation spectrum within the audio range for treatment of prostatitis and gynecopathies are considered. A typical design based on a PIC 16F microcontroller is suggested. It includes a keyboard, LCD indicator, audio amplifier, inducer, and software units. The problem of pseudo-random signal generation within the audio range is considered. A series of rectangular pulses is generated on a random-length interval on the basis of a three-component random vector. This series provides the required spectral characteristics of the therapeutic magnetic field and their adaptation to the therapeutic conditions and individual features of the patient.

  20. Anxiety and Adaptive behaviour of fresh students: A case study of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The study investigated the relationship between anxiety level and adaptive behaviour of one hundred and fifty randomly selected fresh students of Covenant University. There were a total of seventy-five (75) males with mean age of 17.59 and SD = 1.54 and seventy-five (75) females with mean age of 17.24 and SD = 1.51 ...

  1. Hybrid Adaptive Flight Control with Model Inversion Adaptation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nguyen, Nhan

    2011-01-01

    This study investigates a hybrid adaptive flight control method as a design possibility for a flight control system that can enable an effective adaptation strategy to deal with off-nominal flight conditions. The hybrid adaptive control blends both direct and indirect adaptive control in a model inversion flight control architecture. The blending of both direct and indirect adaptive control provides a much more flexible and effective adaptive flight control architecture than that with either direct or indirect adaptive control alone. The indirect adaptive control is used to update the model inversion controller by an on-line parameter estimation of uncertain plant dynamics based on two methods. The first parameter estimation method is an indirect adaptive law based on the Lyapunov theory, and the second method is a recursive least-squares indirect adaptive law. The model inversion controller is therefore made to adapt to changes in the plant dynamics due to uncertainty. As a result, the modeling error is reduced that directly leads to a decrease in the tracking error. In conjunction with the indirect adaptive control that updates the model inversion controller, a direct adaptive control is implemented as an augmented command to further reduce any residual tracking error that is not entirely eliminated by the indirect adaptive control.

  2. Self-adapted sliding scale spectroscopy ADC

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xu Qichun; Wang Jingjin

    1992-01-01

    The traditional sliding scale technique causes a disabled range that is equal to the sliding length, thus reduces the analysis range of a MCA. A method for reduce ADC's DNL, which is called self-adapted sliding scale method, has been designed and tested. With this method, the disabled range caused by a traditional sliding scale method can be eliminated by a random trial scale and there is no need of an additional amplitude discriminator with swing threshold. A special trial-and-correct logic is presented. The tested DNL of the spectroscopy ADC described here is less than 0.5%

  3. Statistical auditing and randomness test of lotto k/N-type games

    Science.gov (United States)

    Coronel-Brizio, H. F.; Hernández-Montoya, A. R.; Rapallo, F.; Scalas, E.

    2008-11-01

    One of the most popular lottery games worldwide is the so-called “lotto k/N”. It considers N numbers 1,2,…,N from which k are drawn randomly, without replacement. A player selects k or more numbers and the first prize is shared amongst those players whose selected numbers match all of the k randomly drawn. Exact rules may vary in different countries. In this paper, mean values and covariances for the random variables representing the numbers drawn from this kind of game are presented, with the aim of using them to audit statistically the consistency of a given sample of historical results with theoretical values coming from a hypergeometric statistical model. The method can be adapted to test pseudorandom number generators.

  4. Diversification and intensification of agricultural adaptation from global to local scales.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Minjie Chen

    Full Text Available Smallholder farming systems are vulnerable to a number of challenges, including continued population growth, urbanization, income disparities, land degradation, decreasing farm size and productivity, all of which are compounded by uncertainty of climatic patterns. Understanding determinants of smallholder farming practices is critical for designing and implementing successful interventions, including climate change adaptation programs. We examine two dimensions wherein smallholder farmers may adapt agricultural practices; through intensification (i.e., adopt more practices or diversification (i.e. adopt different practices. We use data on 5314 randomly sampled households located in 38 sites in 15 countries across four regions (East and West Africa, South Asia, and Central America. We estimate empirical models designed to assess determinants of both intensification and diversification of adaptation activities at global scales. Aspects of adaptive capacity that are found to increase intensification of adaptation globally include variables associated with access to information and human capital, financial considerations, assets, household infrastructure and experience. In contrast, there are few global drivers of adaptive diversification, with a notable exception being access to weather information, which also increases adaptive intensification. Investigating reasons for adaptation indicate that conditions present in underdeveloped markets provide the primary impetus for adaptation, even in the context of climate change. We also compare determinants across spatial scales, which reveals a variety of local avenues through which policy interventions can relax economic constraints and boost agricultural adaptation for both intensification and diversification. For example, access to weather information does not affect intensification adaptation in Africa, but is significant at several sites in Bangladesh and India. Moreover, this information leads to

  5. Diversification and intensification of agricultural adaptation from global to local scales

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Minjie; Wichmann, Bruno; Luckert, Marty; Winowiecki, Leigh; Förch, Wiebke

    2018-01-01

    Smallholder farming systems are vulnerable to a number of challenges, including continued population growth, urbanization, income disparities, land degradation, decreasing farm size and productivity, all of which are compounded by uncertainty of climatic patterns. Understanding determinants of smallholder farming practices is critical for designing and implementing successful interventions, including climate change adaptation programs. We examine two dimensions wherein smallholder farmers may adapt agricultural practices; through intensification (i.e., adopt more practices) or diversification (i.e. adopt different practices). We use data on 5314 randomly sampled households located in 38 sites in 15 countries across four regions (East and West Africa, South Asia, and Central America). We estimate empirical models designed to assess determinants of both intensification and diversification of adaptation activities at global scales. Aspects of adaptive capacity that are found to increase intensification of adaptation globally include variables associated with access to information and human capital, financial considerations, assets, household infrastructure and experience. In contrast, there are few global drivers of adaptive diversification, with a notable exception being access to weather information, which also increases adaptive intensification. Investigating reasons for adaptation indicate that conditions present in underdeveloped markets provide the primary impetus for adaptation, even in the context of climate change. We also compare determinants across spatial scales, which reveals a variety of local avenues through which policy interventions can relax economic constraints and boost agricultural adaptation for both intensification and diversification. For example, access to weather information does not affect intensification adaptation in Africa, but is significant at several sites in Bangladesh and India. Moreover, this information leads to diversification of

  6. ADAPTATION OF THE FIRST FORM PUPILS TO EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITY IN PRIMARY SCHOOL

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Микола Прозар

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available The article presents the results of a study of adaptive possibilities (social and psychological of pupils of the first form to the educational activities in secondary schools. Using the research methods, an one-year experiment was conducted: the pupils of the first forms of Kamjanets-Podilsky secondary schools  № 13 and № 14 (73 boys and 87 girls were selected by the method of random sample. The study found that the living conditions of the 6-year-olds (due to the beginning of education in secondary school do not assist formation of adequate adaptation: at the beginning, the social and psychological adaptation correspond to the average level, and in the end – to the lowest one. Obtained results give reason to conclude that the learning activities in the first year of study negatively affects the adaptive possibilities of the first form pupils; it results in poor mental capacity and health of pupils.

  7. Fluctuations and information filtering in coupled populations of spiking neurons with adaptation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deger, Moritz; Schwalger, Tilo; Naud, Richard; Gerstner, Wulfram

    2014-12-01

    Finite-sized populations of spiking elements are fundamental to brain function but also are used in many areas of physics. Here we present a theory of the dynamics of finite-sized populations of spiking units, based on a quasirenewal description of neurons with adaptation. We derive an integral equation with colored noise that governs the stochastic dynamics of the population activity in response to time-dependent stimulation and calculate the spectral density in the asynchronous state. We show that systems of coupled populations with adaptation can generate a frequency band in which sensory information is preferentially encoded. The theory is applicable to fully as well as randomly connected networks and to leaky integrate-and-fire as well as to generalized spiking neurons with adaptation on multiple time scales.

  8. Adaptation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Broom, Donald M

    2006-01-01

    The term adaptation is used in biology in three different ways. It may refer to changes which occur at the cell and organ level, or at the individual level, or at the level of gene action and evolutionary processes. Adaptation by cells, especially nerve cells helps in: communication within the body, the distinguishing of stimuli, the avoidance of overload and the conservation of energy. The time course and complexity of these mechanisms varies. Adaptive characters of organisms, including adaptive behaviours, increase fitness so this adaptation is evolutionary. The major part of this paper concerns adaptation by individuals and its relationships to welfare. In complex animals, feed forward control is widely used. Individuals predict problems and adapt by acting before the environmental effect is substantial. Much of adaptation involves brain control and animals have a set of needs, located in the brain and acting largely via motivational mechanisms, to regulate life. Needs may be for resources but are also for actions and stimuli which are part of the mechanism which has evolved to obtain the resources. Hence pigs do not just need food but need to be able to carry out actions like rooting in earth or manipulating materials which are part of foraging behaviour. The welfare of an individual is its state as regards its attempts to cope with its environment. This state includes various adaptive mechanisms including feelings and those which cope with disease. The part of welfare which is concerned with coping with pathology is health. Disease, which implies some significant effect of pathology, always results in poor welfare. Welfare varies over a range from very good, when adaptation is effective and there are feelings of pleasure or contentment, to very poor. A key point concerning the concept of individual adaptation in relation to welfare is that welfare may be good or poor while adaptation is occurring. Some adaptation is very easy and energetically cheap and

  9. Marginal adaptation of large adhesive class IV composite restorations before and after artificial aging

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ardu, S.; Stavridakis, M.; Feilzer, A.J.; Krejci, I.; Lefever, D.; Dietschi, D.

    2011-01-01

    Purpose: To test the marginal adaptation of Class IV restorations made of different composite materials designed for anterior use. Materials and Methods: Forty-two extracted caries-free human maxillary central incisors were randomly divided into 7 experimental groups - one per composite tested - for

  10. Therapist-Designed Adaptive Riding in Children With Cerebral Palsy : Results of a Feasibility Study

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Angsupaisal, Mattana; Visser, Baudina; Alkema, Anne; Meinsma-van der Tuin, Marja; Maathuis, Carel G. B.; Reinders-Messelink, Heleen; Hadders-Algra, Mijna

    Background. It is debatable whether adaptive riding (AR) in children with cerebral palsy (CP) improves postural control and gross motor development. Objective. The study aim was to explore the feasibility of an extensive assessment protocol for a randomized controlled trial of therapist-designed

  11. Sparse approximation with bases

    CERN Document Server

    2015-01-01

    This book systematically presents recent fundamental results on greedy approximation with respect to bases. Motivated by numerous applications, the last decade has seen great successes in studying nonlinear sparse approximation. Recent findings have established that greedy-type algorithms are suitable methods of nonlinear approximation in both sparse approximation with respect to bases and sparse approximation with respect to redundant systems. These insights, combined with some previous fundamental results, form the basis for constructing the theory of greedy approximation. Taking into account the theoretical and practical demand for this kind of theory, the book systematically elaborates a theoretical framework for greedy approximation and its applications.  The book addresses the needs of researchers working in numerical mathematics, harmonic analysis, and functional analysis. It quickly takes the reader from classical results to the latest frontier, but is written at the level of a graduate course and do...

  12. Statistical Inference for Data Adaptive Target Parameters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hubbard, Alan E; Kherad-Pajouh, Sara; van der Laan, Mark J

    2016-05-01

    Consider one observes n i.i.d. copies of a random variable with a probability distribution that is known to be an element of a particular statistical model. In order to define our statistical target we partition the sample in V equal size sub-samples, and use this partitioning to define V splits in an estimation sample (one of the V subsamples) and corresponding complementary parameter-generating sample. For each of the V parameter-generating samples, we apply an algorithm that maps the sample to a statistical target parameter. We define our sample-split data adaptive statistical target parameter as the average of these V-sample specific target parameters. We present an estimator (and corresponding central limit theorem) of this type of data adaptive target parameter. This general methodology for generating data adaptive target parameters is demonstrated with a number of practical examples that highlight new opportunities for statistical learning from data. This new framework provides a rigorous statistical methodology for both exploratory and confirmatory analysis within the same data. Given that more research is becoming "data-driven", the theory developed within this paper provides a new impetus for a greater involvement of statistical inference into problems that are being increasingly addressed by clever, yet ad hoc pattern finding methods. To suggest such potential, and to verify the predictions of the theory, extensive simulation studies, along with a data analysis based on adaptively determined intervention rules are shown and give insight into how to structure such an approach. The results show that the data adaptive target parameter approach provides a general framework and resulting methodology for data-driven science.

  13. Adaptive Tutorials Versus Web-Based Resources in Radiology: A Mixed Methods Comparison of Efficacy and Student Engagement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wong, Vincent; Smith, Ariella J; Hawkins, Nicholas J; Kumar, Rakesh K; Young, Noel; Kyaw, Merribel; Velan, Gary M

    2015-10-01

    Diagnostic imaging is under-represented in medical curricula globally. Adaptive tutorials, online intelligent tutoring systems that provide a personalized learning experience, have the potential to bridge this gap. However, there is limited evidence of their effectiveness for learning about diagnostic imaging. We performed a randomized mixed methods crossover trial to determine the impact of adaptive tutorials on perceived engagement and understanding of the appropriate use and interpretation of common diagnostic imaging investigations. Although concurrently engaged in disparate blocks of study, 99 volunteer medical students (from years 1-4 of the 6-year program) were randomly allocated to one of two groups. In the first arm of the trial on chest X-rays, one group received access to an adaptive tutorial, whereas the other received links to an existing peer-reviewed Web resource. These two groups crossed over in the second arm of the trial, which focused on computed tomography scans of the head, chest, and abdomen. At the conclusion of each arm of the trial, both groups completed an examination-style assessment, comprising questions both related and unrelated to the topics covered by the relevant adaptive tutorial. Online questionnaires were used to evaluate student perceptions of both learning resources. In both arms of the trial, the group using adaptive tutorials obtained significantly higher assessment scores than controls. This was because of higher assessment scores by senior students in the adaptive tutorial group when answering questions related to topics covered in those tutorials. Furthermore, students indicated significantly better engagement with adaptive tutorials than the Web resource and rated the tutorials as a significantly more valuable tool for learning. Medical students overwhelmingly accept adaptive tutorials for diagnostic imaging. The tutorials significantly improve the understanding of diagnostic imaging by senior students. Crown Copyright

  14. A New Adaptive Hungarian Mating Scheme in Genetic Algorithms

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chanju Jung

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available In genetic algorithms, selection or mating scheme is one of the important operations. In this paper, we suggest an adaptive mating scheme using previously suggested Hungarian mating schemes. Hungarian mating schemes consist of maximizing the sum of mating distances, minimizing the sum, and random matching. We propose an algorithm to elect one of these Hungarian mating schemes. Every mated pair of solutions has to vote for the next generation mating scheme. The distance between parents and the distance between parent and offspring are considered when they vote. Well-known combinatorial optimization problems, the traveling salesperson problem, and the graph bisection problem are used for the test bed of our method. Our adaptive strategy showed better results than not only pure and previous hybrid schemes but also existing distance-based mating schemes.

  15. Effectiveness of Structured Teacher Adaptations to an Evidence-Based Summer Literacy Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, James S.; Burkhauser, Mary A.; Quinn, David M.; Guryan, Jonathan; Kingston, Helen Chen; Aleman, Kirsten

    2017-01-01

    The authors conducted a cluster-randomized trial to examine the effectiveness of structured teacher adaptations to the implementation of an evidence-based summer literacy program that provided students with (a) books matched to their reading level and interests and (b) teacher scaffolding for summer reading in the form of end-of-year comprehension…

  16. Smallholder farmers’ attitudes and determinants of adaptation to climate risks in East Africa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kelvin M. Shikuku

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Adapting to climate risks is central to the goal of increasing food security and enhancing resilience of farming systems in East Africa. We examined farmers’ attitudes and assessed determinants of adaptation using data from a random sample of 500 households in Borana, Ethiopia; Nyando, Kenya; Hoima, Uganda; and Lushoto, Tanzania. Adaptation was measured using a livelihood-based index that assigned weights to different individual strategies based on their marginal contributions to a household’s livelihood. Results showed that farmers’ attitudes across the four sites strongly favored introduction of new crops, changes in crop varieties, and changes in planting times. Farmers disfavored soil, land, and water management practices. At lower levels of adaptation (25% quantile, adaptation index correlated positively with membership to farmers’ groups, household size, sex of the household head, and number of months of food shortage. Farmer group membership enhanced adaptation at intermediate (50% quantile level whereas access to credit increased adaptation at high (75% quantile level. Food insecurity, however, correlated negatively with the likelihood to choose individual adaptation strategies suggesting that although households adapted to improve food security status of their households, hunger was a barrier to adaptation. Our findings suggest that providing climate information to inform timely planting, promoting crop diversification, and encouraging adoption of adapted varieties of crops might be successful to enhancing resilience of farming systems in the short-term. In the long-term, increased investment in reducing hunger, encouraging groups formation, and easing liquidity constraints will be required to promote adaptation through implementation of soil, water, and land management strategies.

  17. Adaptive Rationality, Adaptive Behavior and Institutions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Volchik Vyacheslav, V.

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available The economic literature focused on understanding decision-making and choice processes reveals a vast collection of approaches to human rationality. Theorists’ attention has moved from absolutely rational, utility-maximizing individuals to boundedly rational and adaptive ones. A number of economists have criticized the concepts of adaptive rationality and adaptive behavior. One of the recent trends in the economic literature is to consider humans irrational. This paper offers an approach which examines adaptive behavior in the context of existing institutions and constantly changing institutional environment. It is assumed that adaptive behavior is a process of evolutionary adjustment to fundamental uncertainty. We emphasize the importance of actors’ engagement in trial and error learning, since if they are involved in this process, they obtain experience and are able to adapt to existing and new institutions. The paper aims at identifying relevant institutions, adaptive mechanisms, informal working rules and practices that influence actors’ behavior in the field of Higher Education in Russia (Rostov Region education services market has been taken as an example. The paper emphasizes the application of qualitative interpretative methods (interviews and discourse analysis in examining actors’ behavior.

  18. On the adaptivity and complexity embedded into differential evolution

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Senkerik, Roman; Pluhacek, Michal; Jasek, Roman; Zelinka, Ivan

    2016-01-01

    This research deals with the comparison of the two modern approaches for evolutionary algorithms, which are the adaptivity and complex chaotic dynamics. This paper aims on the investigations on the chaos-driven Differential Evolution (DE) concept. This paper is aimed at the embedding of discrete dissipative chaotic systems in the form of chaotic pseudo random number generators for the DE and comparing the influence to the performance with the state of the art adaptive representative jDE. This research is focused mainly on the possible disadvantages and advantages of both compared approaches. Repeated simulations for Lozi map driving chaotic systems were performed on the simple benchmark functions set, which are more close to the real optimization problems. Obtained results are compared with the canonical not-chaotic and not adaptive DE. Results show that with used simple test functions, the performance of ChaosDE is better in the most cases than jDE and Canonical DE, furthermore due to the unique sequencing in CPRNG given by the hidden chaotic dynamics, thus better and faster selection of unique individuals from population, ChaosDE is faster.

  19. On the adaptivity and complexity embedded into differential evolution

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Senkerik, Roman; Pluhacek, Michal; Jasek, Roman [Tomas Bata University in Zlin, Faculty of Applied Informatics, Nam T.G. Masaryka 5555, 760 01 Zlin, Czech Republic, senkerik@fai.utb.cz,pluhacek@fai.utb.cz (Czech Republic); Zelinka, Ivan [Technical University of Ostrava, Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 17. listopadu 15,708 33 Ostrava-Poruba, Czech Republic, ivan.zelinka@vsb.cz (Czech Republic)

    2016-06-08

    This research deals with the comparison of the two modern approaches for evolutionary algorithms, which are the adaptivity and complex chaotic dynamics. This paper aims on the investigations on the chaos-driven Differential Evolution (DE) concept. This paper is aimed at the embedding of discrete dissipative chaotic systems in the form of chaotic pseudo random number generators for the DE and comparing the influence to the performance with the state of the art adaptive representative jDE. This research is focused mainly on the possible disadvantages and advantages of both compared approaches. Repeated simulations for Lozi map driving chaotic systems were performed on the simple benchmark functions set, which are more close to the real optimization problems. Obtained results are compared with the canonical not-chaotic and not adaptive DE. Results show that with used simple test functions, the performance of ChaosDE is better in the most cases than jDE and Canonical DE, furthermore due to the unique sequencing in CPRNG given by the hidden chaotic dynamics, thus better and faster selection of unique individuals from population, ChaosDE is faster.

  20. On the adaptivity and complexity embedded into differential evolution

    Science.gov (United States)

    Senkerik, Roman; Pluhacek, Michal; Zelinka, Ivan; Jasek, Roman

    2016-06-01

    This research deals with the comparison of the two modern approaches for evolutionary algorithms, which are the adaptivity and complex chaotic dynamics. This paper aims on the investigations on the chaos-driven Differential Evolution (DE) concept. This paper is aimed at the embedding of discrete dissipative chaotic systems in the form of chaotic pseudo random number generators for the DE and comparing the influence to the performance with the state of the art adaptive representative jDE. This research is focused mainly on the possible disadvantages and advantages of both compared approaches. Repeated simulations for Lozi map driving chaotic systems were performed on the simple benchmark functions set, which are more close to the real optimization problems. Obtained results are compared with the canonical not-chaotic and not adaptive DE. Results show that with used simple test functions, the performance of ChaosDE is better in the most cases than jDE and Canonical DE, furthermore due to the unique sequencing in CPRNG given by the hidden chaotic dynamics, thus better and faster selection of unique individuals from population, ChaosDE is faster.

  1. Robust Optimal Adaptive Control Method with Large Adaptive Gain

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nguyen, Nhan T.

    2009-01-01

    In the presence of large uncertainties, a control system needs to be able to adapt rapidly to regain performance. Fast adaptation is referred to the implementation of adaptive control with a large adaptive gain to reduce the tracking error rapidly. However, a large adaptive gain can lead to high-frequency oscillations which can adversely affect robustness of an adaptive control law. A new adaptive control modification is presented that can achieve robust adaptation with a large adaptive gain without incurring high-frequency oscillations as with the standard model-reference adaptive control. The modification is based on the minimization of the Y2 norm of the tracking error, which is formulated as an optimal control problem. The optimality condition is used to derive the modification using the gradient method. The optimal control modification results in a stable adaptation and allows a large adaptive gain to be used for better tracking while providing sufficient stability robustness. Simulations were conducted for a damaged generic transport aircraft with both standard adaptive control and the adaptive optimal control modification technique. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed modification in tracking a reference model while maintaining a sufficient time delay margin.

  2. Supporting Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP in Wireless Meshed Networks using Random Linear Network Coding

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hundebøll, Martin; Pedersen, Morten Videbæk; Roetter, Daniel Enrique Lucani

    2014-01-01

    This work studies the potential and impact of the FRANC network coding protocol for delivering high quality Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP (DASH) in wireless networks. Although DASH aims to tailor the video quality rate based on the available throughput to the destination, it relies...

  3. A new efficient RLF-like algorithm for the vertex coloring problem

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adegbindin Mourchid

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The Recursive Largest First (RLF algorithm is one of the most popular greedy heuristics for the vertex coloring problem. It sequentially builds color classes on the basis of greedy choices. In particular, the first vertex placed in a color class C is one with a maximum number of uncolored neighbors, and the next vertices placed in C are chosen so that they have as many uncolored neighbors which cannot be placed in C. These greedy choices can have a significant impact on the performance of the algorithm, which explains why we propose alternative selection rules. Computational experiments on 63 difficult DIMACS instances show that the resulting new RLF-like algorithm, when compared with the standard RLF, allows to obtain a reduction of more than 50% of the gap between the number of colors used and the best known upper bound on the chromatic number. The new greedy algorithm even competes with basic metaheuristics for the vertex coloring problem.

  4. CAN Tree Routing for Content-Addressable Network

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhongtao LI

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available We propose a novel topology to improve the routing performance of Content- Addressable Network overlays while minimizing the maintenance overhead during nodes churn. The key idea of our approach is to establish a P2P tree structure (CAN tree by means of equipping each node with a few long links towards some distant nodes. The long links enhance routing flexibility and robustness against failures. Nodes automatically adapt routing table to cope with network change. The routing complexity is O(log n, which is much better than a uniform greedy routing, while each node maintains two long links in average.

  5. Learning to Adapt. Organisational Adaptation to Climate Change Impacts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Berkhout, F.; Hertin, J.; Gann, D.M.

    2006-01-01

    Analysis of human adaptation to climate change should be based on realistic models of adaptive behaviour at the level of organisations and individuals. The paper sets out a framework for analysing adaptation to the direct and indirect impacts of climate change in business organisations with new evidence presented from empirical research into adaptation in nine case-study companies. It argues that adaptation to climate change has many similarities with processes of organisational learning. The paper suggests that business organisations face a number of obstacles in learning how to adapt to climate change impacts, especially in relation to the weakness and ambiguity of signals about climate change and the uncertainty about benefits flowing from adaptation measures. Organisations rarely adapt 'autonomously', since their adaptive behaviour is influenced by policy and market conditions, and draws on resources external to the organisation. The paper identifies four adaptation strategies that pattern organisational adaptive behaviour

  6. A Bioinspired Adaptive Congestion-Avoidance Routing for Mobile Ad Hoc Networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Huang Qiong

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Traditional mobile Ad Hoc network routing protocols are mainly based on the Shortest Path, which possibly results in many congestion nodes that incur routing instability and rerouting. To mitigate the side-efforts, this paper proposed a new bioinspired adaptive routing protocol (ATAR based on a mathematics biology model ARAS. This paper improved the ARAS by reducing the randomness and by introducing a new routing-decision metric “the next-hop fitness” which was denoted as the congestion level of node and the length of routing path. In the route maintenance, the nodes decide to forward the data to next node according to a threshold value of the fitness. In the recovery phase, the node will adopt random manner to select the neighbor as the next hop by calculation of the improved ARAS. With this route mechanism, the ATAR could adaptively circumvent the congestion nodes and the rerouting action is taken in advance. Theoretical analysis and numerical simulation results show that the ATAR protocol outperforms AODV and MARAS in terms of delivery ratio, ETE delay, and the complexity. In particular, ATAR can efficiently mitigate the congestion.

  7. Adaptive Self-Occlusion Behavior Recognition Based on pLSA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hong-bin Tu

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Human action recognition is an important area of human action recognition research. Focusing on the problem of self-occlusion in the field of human action recognition, a new adaptive occlusion state behavior recognition approach was presented based on Markov random field and probabilistic Latent Semantic Analysis (pLSA. Firstly, the Markov random field was used to represent the occlusion relationship between human body parts in terms an occlusion state variable by phase space obtained. Then, we proposed a hierarchical area variety model. Finally, we use the topic model of pLSA to recognize the human behavior. Experiments were performed on the KTH, Weizmann, and Humaneva dataset to test and evaluate the proposed method. The compared experiment results showed that what the proposed method can achieve was more effective than the compared methods.

  8. Near optimal power allocation algorithm for OFDM-based cognitive using adaptive relaying strategy

    KAUST Repository

    Soury, Hamza; Bader, Faouzi; Shaat, Musbah M R; Alouini, Mohamed-Slim

    2012-01-01

    Relayed transmission increases the coverage and achievable capacity of communication systems. Adaptive relaying scheme is a relaying technique by which the benefits of the amplifying or decode and forward techniques can be achieved by switching the forwarding technique according to the quality of the signal. A cognitive Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing (OFDM) based adaptive relaying protocol is considered in this paper. The objective is to maximize the capacity of the cognitive radio system while ensuring that the interference introduced to the primary user is below the tolerated limit. A Near optimal power allocation in the source and the relay is presented for two pairing techniques such that the matching and random pairing. The simulation results confirm the efficiency of the proposed adaptive relaying protocol, and the consequence of choice of pairing technique. © 2012 ICST.

  9. Effects of the amount and schedule of varied practice after constant practice on the adaptive process of motor learning

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Umberto Cesar Corrêa

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available This study investigated the effects of different amounts and schedules of varied practice, after constant practice, on the adaptive process of motor learning. Participants were one hundred and seven children with a mean age of 11.1 ± 0.9 years. Three experiments were carried out using a complex anticipatory timing task manipulating the following components in the varied practice: visual stimulus speed (experiment 1; sequential response pattern (experiment 2; and visual stimulus speed plus sequential response pattern (experiment 3. In all experiments the design involved three amounts (18, 36, and 63 trials, and two schedules (random and blocked of varied practice. The experiments also involved two learning phases: stabilization and adaptation. The dependent variables were the absolute, variable, and constant errors related to the task goal, and the relative timing of the sequential response. Results showed that all groups worsened the performances in the adaptation phase, and no difference was observed between them. Altogether, the results of the three experiments allow the conclusion that the amounts of trials manipulated in the random and blocked practices did not promote the diversification of the skill since no adaptation was observed.

  10. PARALLEL AND ADAPTIVE UNIFORM-DISTRIBUTED REGISTRATION METHOD FOR CHANG’E-1 LUNAR REMOTE SENSED IMAGERY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    X. Ning

    2012-08-01

    To resolve the above-mentioned registration difficulties, a parallel and adaptive uniform-distributed registration method for CE-1 lunar remote sensed imagery is proposed in this paper. Based on 6 pairs of randomly selected images, both the standard SIFT algorithm and the parallel and adaptive uniform-distributed registration method were executed, the versatility and effectiveness were assessed. The experimental results indicate that: by applying the parallel and adaptive uniform-distributed registration method, the efficiency of CE-1 lunar remote sensed imagery registration were increased dramatically. Therefore, the proposed method in the paper could acquire uniform-distributed registration results more effectively, the registration difficulties including difficult to obtain results, time-consuming, non-uniform distribution could be successfully solved.

  11. Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Intermittent Explosive Disorder: A Pilot Randomized Clinical Trial

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCloskey, Michael S.; Noblett, Kurtis L.; Deffenbacher, Jerry L.; Gollan, Jackie K.; Coccaro, Emil F.

    2008-01-01

    No randomized clinical trials have evaluated the efficacy of psychotherapy for intermittent explosive disorder (IED). In the present study, the authors tested the efficacy of 12-week group and individual cognitive-behavioral therapies (adapted from J. L. Deffenbacher & M. McKay, 2000) by comparing them with a wait-list control in a randomized…

  12. Muscle adaptations and performance enhancements of soccer training for untrained men

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Krustrup, Peter; Christensen, Jesper F.; Randers, Morten Bredsgaard

    2010-01-01

    We examined the physical demands of small-sided soccer games in untrained middle-age males and muscle adaptations and performance effects over 12 weeks of recreational soccer training in comparison with continuous running. Thirty-eight healthy subjects (20-43 years) were randomized into a soccer....... Blood lactate during running at 11 km/h was lowered (p soccer organized as small-sided games stimulates both aerobic and anaerobic...

  13. Learning Unknown Structure in CRFs via Adaptive Gradient Projection Method

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wei Xue

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available We study the problem of fitting probabilistic graphical models to the given data when the structure is not known. More specifically, we focus on learning unknown structure in conditional random fields, especially learning both the structure and parameters of a conditional random field model simultaneously. To do this, we first formulate the learning problem as a convex minimization problem by adding an l_2-regularization to the node parameters and a group l_1-regularization to the edge parameters, and then a gradient-based projection method is proposed to solve it which combines an adaptive stepsize selection strategy with a nonmonotone line search. Extensive simulation experiments are presented to show the performance of our approach in solving unknown structure learning problems.

  14. Climate change adaptation: Uncovering constraints to the use of adaptation strategies among food crop farmers in South-west, Nigeria using principal component analysis (PCA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Moradeyo Adebanjo Otitoju

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available This study focused on the constraints to the use of climate variability/change adaptation strategies in South-west Nigeria. Multistage random technique was employed to select the location and the respondents. Descriptive statistics and principal component analysis (PCA were the analytical tools engaged in this study. The constraints to climate variability and change examined before did not use PCA but generalized factor analysis. Hence, there is need to examine these constraints extensively using PCA. Uncovering the constraints to the use of climate variability/change adaptation strategies among crop framers is important to give a realistic direction in the development of farmer-inclusive climate policies in Nigeria. The PCA result showed that the principal constraints that the farmers faced in climate change adaptation were public, institutional and labour constraint; land, neighbourhood norms and religious beliefs constraint; high cost of inputs, technological and information constraint; farm distance, access to climate information, off-farm job and credit constraint; and poor agricultural programmes and service delivery constraint. These findings pointed out the need for both the government and non-government organizations to intensify efforts on institutional, technological and farmers’ friendly land tenure and information systems as effective measures to guide inclusive climate change adaptation policies and development in South-west Nigeria.

  15. Research on machine learning framework based on random forest algorithm

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ren, Qiong; Cheng, Hui; Han, Hai

    2017-03-01

    With the continuous development of machine learning, industry and academia have released a lot of machine learning frameworks based on distributed computing platform, and have been widely used. However, the existing framework of machine learning is limited by the limitations of machine learning algorithm itself, such as the choice of parameters and the interference of noises, the high using threshold and so on. This paper introduces the research background of machine learning framework, and combined with the commonly used random forest algorithm in machine learning classification algorithm, puts forward the research objectives and content, proposes an improved adaptive random forest algorithm (referred to as ARF), and on the basis of ARF, designs and implements the machine learning framework.

  16. A fast random walk algorithm for computing the pulsed-gradient spin-echo signal in multiscale porous media.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grebenkov, Denis S

    2011-02-01

    A new method for computing the signal attenuation due to restricted diffusion in a linear magnetic field gradient is proposed. A fast random walk (FRW) algorithm for simulating random trajectories of diffusing spin-bearing particles is combined with gradient encoding. As random moves of a FRW are continuously adapted to local geometrical length scales, the method is efficient for simulating pulsed-gradient spin-echo experiments in hierarchical or multiscale porous media such as concrete, sandstones, sedimentary rocks and, potentially, brain or lungs. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. Trigonometric bases for matrix weighted Lp-spaces

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, Morten

    2010-01-01

    We give a complete characterization of 2π-periodic matrix weights W for which the vector-valued trigonometric system forms a Schauder basis for the matrix weighted space Lp(T;W). Then trigonometric quasi-greedy bases for Lp(T;W) are considered. Quasi-greedy bases are systems for which the simple...

  18. Driving Meaningful Adaptation Action through an Adaptation Market Mechanism

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Butzengeiger-Geyer, Sonja; Koehler, Michel; Michaelowa, Axel

    2011-07-01

    Approaches and criteria for allocating adaptation funds vary significantly among current sources - UN-backed funds and bilateral cooperation - and to some extent lack transparency and consistency. Such funding risks being spent in a haphazard way that repeats many of the mistakes made in development assistance over the past decades. An Adaptation Market Mechanism (AMM) could contribute to efficient allocation of adaptation funds, promote adaptation activities by private and public actors through additional financial incentives, and raise additional and reliable adaptation money. This would help to avoid future public criticism of the effectiveness and efficiency of spending adaptation funding.The proposed AMM would specify mandatory adaptation targets, on international, regional or domestic level. Participants who achieve their targets either by generating adaptation units or by buying them in the market would incentivize private, commercial and institutional actors to develop adaptation projects that create verified adaptation units. A universally accepted and verifiable trading unit applicable to all types of adaptation activities would help to maximize the cost reduction potential for the AMM. We suggest applying net present value (NPV) for property saved; Disability Adjusted Life Years Saved (DALYS) for health benefits; and potentially a separate unit to consider the environmental benefits of an adaptation activity.(Author)

  19. Cross-cultural Adaptation and Validation of the Medication Regimen Complexity Index Adapted to Spanish.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saez de la Fuente, Javier; Such Diaz, Ana; Cañamares-Orbis, Irene; Ramila, Estela; Izquierdo-Garcia, Elsa; Esteban, Concepcion; Escobar-Rodríguez, Ismael

    2016-11-01

    The most widely used validated instrument to assess the complexity of medication regimens is the Medication Regimen Complexity Index (MRCI). This study aimed to translate, adapt, and validate a reliable version of the MRCI adapted to Spanish (MRCI-E). The cross-cultural adaptation process consisted of an independent translation by 3 clinical pharmacists and a backtranslation by 2 native English speakers. A reliability analysis was conducted on 20 elderly randomly selected patients. Two clinical pharmacists calculated the MRCI-E from discharge treatments and 2 months later. For the validity analysis, the sample was augmented to 60 patients. Convergent validity was assessed by analyzing the correlation between the number of medications; discriminant validity was stratified by gender; and predictive validity was determined by analyzing the ability to predict readmission and mortality at 3 and 6 months. The MRCI-E retained the original structure of 3 sections. The reliability analysis demonstrated an excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's α=0.83), and the intraclass correlation coefficient exceeded 0.9 in all cases. The correlation coefficient with the number of medications was 0.883 ( Pdifferences were found when stratified by gender (3.6; 95%CI=-2.9 to 10.2; P=0.27). Patients who were readmitted at 3 months had a higher MRCI-E score (10.7; 95%CI=4.4 to 17.2; P=0.001). The differences remained significant in patients readmitted at 6 months, but differences in mortality were not detected. The MRCI-E retains the reliability and validity of the original index and provides a suitable tool to assess the complexity of medication regimens in Spanish.

  20. Influence of smallholder farmers’ perceptions on adaptation strategies to climate change and policy implications in Zimbabwe

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jiri Obert

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Smallholder agricultural production is largely affected by climate change and variability. Despite the negative effects brought by climate variability, smallholder farmers are still able to derive livelihoods. An understanding of factors that influence farmers’ responses and adaptation to climate variability can improve decision making for governments and development partners. This study investigated farmers’ perceptions and adaptation strategies to climate change and how these influence adaptation policies at local level. A survey was conducted with 100 households randomly selected from Chiredzi district. Data collected was used to derive farmer perceptions to climate change as well as the influence of their perceptions and subsequent adaptation methods to ensuing local agricultural adaptation measures and policies. The results indicated that smallholder farmers perceived general reduction in long-term annual rainfall and rising local average temperatures. Adverse trends in rainfall and average temperature perceived by farmers were consistent with empirical data. These perceptions and other socio-economic factors helped to shape smallholder farmer agricultural adaptation strategies. Policy implications are that the government and development partners should seek ways to assist autonomous adaptations by farmers through investments in planned adaptation initiatives.

  1. Using randomized variable practice in the treatment of childhood apraxia of speech.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Skelton, Steven L; Hagopian, Aubrie Lynn

    2014-11-01

    The purpose of this study was to determine if randomized variable practice, a central component of concurrent treatment, would be effective and efficient in treating childhood apraxia of speech (CAS). Concurrent treatment is a treatment program that takes the speech task hierarchy and randomizes it so that all tasks are worked on in one session. Previous studies have shown the treatment program to be effective and efficient in treating phonological and articulation disorders. The program was adapted to be used with children with CAS. A research design of multiple baselines across participants was used. Probes of generalization to untaught words were administered every fifth session. Three children, ranging in age from 4 to 6 years old, were the participants. Data were collected as percent correct productions during baseline, treatment, and probes of generalization of target sounds to untaught words and three-word phrases. All participants showed an increase in correct productions during treatment and during probes. Effect sizes (standard mean difference) for treatment were 3.61-5.00, and for generalization probes, they were 3.15-8.51. The results obtained from this study suggest that randomized variable practice as used in concurrent treatment can be adapted for use in treating children with CAS. Replication of this study with other children presenting CAS will be needed to establish generality of the findings.

  2. Random matrices and random difference equations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Uppuluri, V.R.R.

    1975-01-01

    Mathematical models leading to products of random matrices and random difference equations are discussed. A one-compartment model with random behavior is introduced, and it is shown how the average concentration in the discrete time model converges to the exponential function. This is of relevance to understanding how radioactivity gets trapped in bone structure in blood--bone systems. The ideas are then generalized to two-compartment models and mammillary systems, where products of random matrices appear in a natural way. The appearance of products of random matrices in applications in demography and control theory is considered. Then random sequences motivated from the following problems are studied: constant pulsing and random decay models, random pulsing and constant decay models, and random pulsing and random decay models

  3. Adapting Activity and Participation (The ADAPT intervention program)

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    von Bülow, Cecilie

    Præsentation af et ergoterapeutisk gruppebaseret program, ADAPT programmet. ADAPT programmet er designet på baggrund af evidens samt understøttet af ergoterapeutiske teorier og modeller......Præsentation af et ergoterapeutisk gruppebaseret program, ADAPT programmet. ADAPT programmet er designet på baggrund af evidens samt understøttet af ergoterapeutiske teorier og modeller...

  4. Adapted motivational interviewing to improve the uptake of treatment for glaucoma in Nigeria: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abdull, Mohammed M; Gilbert, Clare; McCambridge, Jim; Evans, Jennifer

    2014-04-29

    Glaucoma is a chronic eye disease associated with irreversible visual loss. In Africa, glaucoma patients often present late, with very advanced disease. One-off procedures, such as laser or surgery, are recommended in Africa because of lack of or poor adherence to medical treatment. However, acceptance of surgery is usually extremely low. To prevent blindness, adherence to treatment needs to improve, using acceptable, replicable and cost-effective interventions. After reviewing the literature and interviewing patients in Bauchi (Nigeria) motivational interviewing (MI) was selected as the intervention for this trial, with adaptation for glaucoma (MIG). MI is designed to strengthen personal motivation for, and commitment to a specific goal by eliciting and exploring a person's reasons for change within an atmosphere of acceptance and compassion. The aim of this study is to assess whether MIG increases the uptake of laser or surgery amongst glaucoma patients where this is the recommended treatment. The hypothesis is that MIG increases the uptake of treatment. This will be the first trial of MI in Africa. This is a hospital based, single centre, randomized controlled trial of MIG plus an information sheet on glaucoma and its treatment (the latter being "standard care") compared with standard care alone for glaucoma patients where the treatment recommended is surgery or laser.Those eligible for the trial are adults aged 17 years and above who live within 200 km of Bauchi with advanced glaucoma where the examining ophthalmologist recommends surgery or laser. After obtaining written informed consent, participants will be randomly allocated to MIG plus standard care, or standard care alone. Motivational interviewing will be delivered in Hausa or English by one of two MIG trained personnel. One hundred and fifty participants will be recruited to each arm. The primary outcome is the proportion of participants undergoing laser or surgery within two months of the date given

  5. Holland's SDS Applied to Chinese College Students: A Revisit to Cross-Culture Adaptation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kong, Jin; Xu, Yonghong Jade; Zhang, Hao

    2016-01-01

    In this study, data collected from 875 college freshman and sophomore students enrolled in a 4-year university in central China are used to examine the applicability and validity of a Chinese version of Holland's Self-Directed Search (SDS) that was adapted in the 1990s. The total sample was randomly divided into two groups. Data from the first…

  6. Facial Expression Aftereffect Revealed by Adaption to Emotion-Invisible Dynamic Bubbled Faces

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luo, Chengwen; Wang, Qingyun; Schyns, Philippe G.; Kingdom, Frederick A. A.; Xu, Hong

    2015-01-01

    Visual adaptation is a powerful tool to probe the short-term plasticity of the visual system. Adapting to local features such as the oriented lines can distort our judgment of subsequently presented lines, the tilt aftereffect. The tilt aftereffect is believed to be processed at the low-level of the visual cortex, such as V1. Adaptation to faces, on the other hand, can produce significant aftereffects in high-level traits such as identity, expression, and ethnicity. However, whether face adaptation necessitate awareness of face features is debatable. In the current study, we investigated whether facial expression aftereffects (FEAE) can be generated by partially visible faces. We first generated partially visible faces using the bubbles technique, in which the face was seen through randomly positioned circular apertures, and selected the bubbled faces for which the subjects were unable to identify happy or sad expressions. When the subjects adapted to static displays of these partial faces, no significant FEAE was found. However, when the subjects adapted to a dynamic video display of a series of different partial faces, a significant FEAE was observed. In both conditions, subjects could not identify facial expression in the individual adapting faces. These results suggest that our visual system is able to integrate unrecognizable partial faces over a short period of time and that the integrated percept affects our judgment on subsequently presented faces. We conclude that FEAE can be generated by partial face with little facial expression cues, implying that our cognitive system fills-in the missing parts during adaptation, or the subcortical structures are activated by the bubbled faces without conscious recognition of emotion during adaptation. PMID:26717572

  7. AMA- and RWE- Based Adaptive Kalman Filter for Denoising Fiber Optic Gyroscope Drift Signal.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Gongliu; Liu, Yuanyuan; Li, Ming; Song, Shunguang

    2015-10-23

    An improved double-factor adaptive Kalman filter called AMA-RWE-DFAKF is proposed to denoise fiber optic gyroscope (FOG) drift signal in both static and dynamic conditions. The first factor is Kalman gain updated by random weighting estimation (RWE) of the covariance matrix of innovation sequence at any time to ensure the lowest noise level of output, but the inertia of KF response increases in dynamic condition. To decrease the inertia, the second factor is the covariance matrix of predicted state vector adjusted by RWE only when discontinuities are detected by adaptive moving average (AMA).The AMA-RWE-DFAKF is applied for denoising FOG static and dynamic signals, its performance is compared with conventional KF (CKF), RWE-based adaptive KF with gain correction (RWE-AKFG), AMA- and RWE- based dual mode adaptive KF (AMA-RWE-DMAKF). Results of Allan variance on static signal and root mean square error (RMSE) on dynamic signal show that this proposed algorithm outperforms all the considered methods in denoising FOG signal.

  8. Supporting Adaptive and Adaptable Hypermedia Presentation Semantics

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    D.C.A. Bulterman (Dick); L. Rutledge (Lloyd); L. Hardman (Lynda); J.R. van Ossenbruggen (Jacco)

    1999-01-01

    textabstractHaving the content of a presentation adapt to the needs, resources and prior activities of a user can be an important benefit of electronic documents. While part of this adaptation is related to the encodings of individual data streams, much of the adaptation can/should be guided by the

  9. Association of adaptive and maladaptive narcissism with personal burnout: findings from a cross-sectional study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    VON Känel, Roland; Herr, Raphael Manfred; VAN Vianen, Annelies Elizabeth Maria; Schmidt, Burkhard

    2017-06-08

    Burnout is associated with poor mental and physical functioning and high costs for societies. Personality attributes may critically increase the risk of personal burnout. We specifically examined whether narcissism associates with personal burnout in a working population. We studied n=1,461 employees (mean age 41.3 ± 9.4 yr, 52% men) drawn from a random sample of a pharmaceutical company in Germany. All participants completed the personal burnout subscale of the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory and the Narcissistic Personality Inventory to assess maladaptive (entitlement/exploitativeness) and adaptive (leadership/authority) narcissism. In linear regression analysis, when mutually adjusting for the maladaptive and adaptive narcissism scales, higher adaptive narcissism was associated with lower burnout scores (ß=-0.04, pnarcissism was associated with higher burnout scores (ß=0.04, pnarcissism was associated with increased levels of burnout symptoms, adaptive narcissism was associated with fewer burnout symptoms.

  10. Adaptation and complexity in repeated games

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Maenner, Eliot Alexander

    2008-01-01

    The paper presents a learning model for two-player infinitely repeated games. In an inference step players construct minimally complex inferences of strategies based on observed play, and in an adaptation step players choose minimally complex best responses to an inference. When players randomly...... select an inference from a probability distribution with full support the set of steady states is a subset of the set of Nash equilibria in which only stage game Nash equilibria are played. When players make ‘cautious' inferences the set of steady states is the subset of self-confirming equilibria...... with Nash outcome paths. When players use different inference rules, the set of steady states can lie between the previous two cases...

  11. Adaptive radiotherapy for long course neo-adjuvant treatment of rectal cancer

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nijkamp, Jasper; Marijnen, Corrie; Herk, Marcel van; Triest, Baukelien van; Sonke, Jan-Jakob

    2012-01-01

    Purpose: To quantify the potential margin reduction with adaptive radiotherapy (ART) during neo-adjuvant treatment of locally-advanced rectal cancer. Methods and materials: Repeat CT scans were acquired for 28 patients treated with 25 × 2 Gy, daily during the first week, and followed by weekly scans. The CTV was delineated on all scans, and shape variation was estimated. Five ART strategies were tested, consisting of an average CTV over the planning CT and one to five repeat CTs. Required PTV margins were calculated for adapted and non-adapted treatment. The strategy with the least PTV volume over the whole treatment was selected and bowel area dose reduction was estimated. Results: Substantial systematic and random shape variation demanded for a PTV margin up to 2.4 cm at the upper-anterior part of the CTV. Plan adaptation after fraction 4 resulted in a maximum 0.7 cm margin reduction and a significant PTV reduction from 1185 to 1023 cc (p < 0.0001). The bowel area volume receiving 15, 45, and 50 Gy was reduced from 436 to 402 cc, 111 to 81 cc, and 49 to 29 cc, respectively (p < 0.0001). Conclusions: With adaptive radiotherapy, maximum required PTV margins can be reduced from 2.4 to 1.7 cm, resulting in significantly less dose to the bowel area.

  12. 75 FR 57859 - Specially Adapted Housing and Special Home Adaptation

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-09-23

    ... Home Adaptation AGENCY: Department of Veterans Affairs. ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY: The Department of... specially adapted housing and special home adaptation grants. This final rule incorporates certain... regulations pertaining to eligibility for specially adapted housing (SAH) grants and special home adaptation...

  13. Random walk on random walks

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hilário, M.; Hollander, den W.Th.F.; Sidoravicius, V.; Soares dos Santos, R.; Teixeira, A.

    2014-01-01

    In this paper we study a random walk in a one-dimensional dynamic random environment consisting of a collection of independent particles performing simple symmetric random walks in a Poisson equilibrium with density ¿¿(0,8). At each step the random walk performs a nearest-neighbour jump, moving to

  14. Adaptation of electrical conductivity test for Moringa oleifera seeds

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maria Luiza de Souza Medeiros

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available This study aimed to adapt and test the efficiency of electrical conductivity methodology test in quality evaluation of Moringa oleifera Lam seeds. For physiological characterization four seed sets were evaluated by tests of germination, seedlings emergency, speed of emergency index, emergency first count, seedlings length and dry mass and cold test. The electrical conductivity test was carried out at 25 °C for 4, 8, 12, 16 and 24 h of immersion in 75 or 125 mL of distilled water using 25 or 50 seeds. A completely randomized design was used. The best results were obtained when using 50 seeds immersed in 75 mL or 125 mL of distilled water for 4 h. The electrical conductivity test adapted to moringa seeds was efficient in ranking sets of different vigor levels. The test may be efficiently used for physiological quality evaluation of moringa seeds.

  15. Effects of dihydrocapsiate on adaptive and diet-induced thermogenesis with a high protein very low calorie diet: a randomized control trial

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zerlin Alona

    2010-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Dihydrocapsiate (DCT is a natural safe food ingredient which is structurally related to capsaicin from chili pepper and is found in the non-pungent pepper strain, CH-19 Sweet. It has been shown to elicit the thermogenic effects of capsaicin but without its gastrointestinal side effects. Methods The present study was designed to examine the effects of DCT on both adaptive thermogenesis as the result of caloric restriction with a high protein very low calorie diet (VLCD and to determine whether DCT would increase post-prandial energy expenditure (PPEE in response to a 400 kcal/60 g protein liquid test meal. Thirty-three subjects completed an outpatient very low calorie diet (800 kcal/day providing 120 g/day protein over 4 weeks and were randomly assigned to receive either DCT capsules three times per day (3 mg or 9 mg or placebo. At baseline and 4 weeks, fasting basal metabolic rate and PPEE were measured in a metabolic hood and fat free mass (FFM determined using displacement plethysmography (BOD POD. Results PPEE normalized to FFM was increased significantly in subjects receiving 9 mg/day DCT by comparison to placebo (p Conclusions These data provide evidence for postprandial increases in thermogenesis and fat oxidation secondary to administration of dihydrocapsiate. Trial registration clinicaltrial.govNCT01142687

  16. Evolution of adaptation mechanisms: Adaptation energy, stress, and oscillating death.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gorban, Alexander N; Tyukina, Tatiana A; Smirnova, Elena V; Pokidysheva, Lyudmila I

    2016-09-21

    In 1938, Selye proposed the notion of adaptation energy and published 'Experimental evidence supporting the conception of adaptation energy.' Adaptation of an animal to different factors appears as the spending of one resource. Adaptation energy is a hypothetical extensive quantity spent for adaptation. This term causes much debate when one takes it literally, as a physical quantity, i.e. a sort of energy. The controversial points of view impede the systematic use of the notion of adaptation energy despite experimental evidence. Nevertheless, the response to many harmful factors often has general non-specific form and we suggest that the mechanisms of physiological adaptation admit a very general and nonspecific description. We aim to demonstrate that Selye׳s adaptation energy is the cornerstone of the top-down approach to modelling of non-specific adaptation processes. We analyze Selye׳s axioms of adaptation energy together with Goldstone׳s modifications and propose a series of models for interpretation of these axioms. Adaptation energy is considered as an internal coordinate on the 'dominant path' in the model of adaptation. The phenomena of 'oscillating death' and 'oscillating remission' are predicted on the base of the dynamical models of adaptation. Natural selection plays a key role in the evolution of mechanisms of physiological adaptation. We use the fitness optimization approach to study of the distribution of resources for neutralization of harmful factors, during adaptation to a multifactor environment, and analyze the optimal strategies for different systems of factors. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  17. The process of organisational adaptation through innovations, and organisational adaptability

    OpenAIRE

    Tikka, Tommi

    2010-01-01

    This study is about the process of organisational adaptation and organisational adaptability. The study generates a theoretical framework about organisational adaptation behaviour and conditions that have influence on success of organisational adaptation. The research questions of the study are: How does an organisation adapt through innovations, and which conditions enhance or impede organisational adaptation through innovations? The data were gathered from five case organisations withi...

  18. From “Crash!” to Crash: Adapting the Adaptation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ljubica Matek

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available The paper focuses on J.G. Ballard’s various adaptations of his own material related to the issue of the sexual and sensual nature of an automobile crash, and suggests that adaptation is one of the key methods in art and literature which can be used as a means of contemplating and developing various aesthetic and political ideas. Ballard’s short story “Crash!” was first published in the ICA’s (Institute of Contemporary Arts Eventsheet in February 1969, and later became a chapter of his experimental novel The Atrocity Exhibition (1970. At the same time, Ballard adapts the idea into the “Crashed Cars” exhibition (1970 in London. The short story was then adapted into a short film, Crash!, directed by Harley Cokeliss (1971 and starring Ballard himself, to be finally adapted into the novel Crash (1973. Ballard’s adaptation of his initial ideas across literary forms and media testifies to the importance of adaptation as a process and method of creating art. Thus, rather than suggesting that adaptations merely “breathe life” into the written word, the paper points to the conclusion that the form and content are mutually influential and that, in this case, the novel itself is an adaptation, rather than a hypotext (which it becomes in 1996 to David Cronenberg as he adapts it to film. The complexity of the relationship between the source text and its many adaptations has already contributed to the deconstruction, in Derrida’s terms, of the hierarchy (opposition between the original and the copy. Rather, Ballard’s crossmedial and transmedial adaptations of his own ideas show how, as Ray would suggest, an adaptation cites the source and grafts it into a new context, giving it a new function, both aesthetic and political.

  19. Uncertainty quantification in a chemical system using error estimate-based mesh adaption

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mathelin, Lionel; Le Maitre, Olivier P.

    2012-01-01

    This paper describes a rigorous a posteriori error analysis for the stochastic solution of non-linear uncertain chemical models. The dual-based a posteriori stochastic error analysis extends the methodology developed in the deterministic finite elements context to stochastic discretization frameworks. It requires the resolution of two additional (dual) problems to yield the local error estimate. The stochastic error estimate can then be used to adapt the stochastic discretization. Different anisotropic refinement strategies are proposed, leading to a cost-efficient tool suitable for multi-dimensional problems of moderate stochastic dimension. The adaptive strategies allow both for refinement and coarsening of the stochastic discretization, as needed to satisfy a prescribed error tolerance. The adaptive strategies were successfully tested on a model for the hydrogen oxidation in supercritical conditions having 8 random parameters. The proposed methodologies are however general enough to be also applicable for a wide class of models such as uncertain fluid flows. (authors)

  20. Effects of adaptive servo-ventilation therapy on cardiac function and remodeling in patients with chronic heart failure (SAVIOR-C): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seino, Yoshihiko; Momomura, Shin-Ichi; Kihara, Yasuki; Adachi, Hitoshi; Yasumura, Yoshio; Yokoyama, Hiroyuki

    2015-01-16

    Adaptive servo-ventilation (ASV) therapy, which is a form of noninvasive positive pressure ventilation therapy and uses an innovative ventilator that has simple operability and provides good patient adherence, potentially has therapeutic benefits-suppression of the deterioration and progression of chronic heart failure (CHF) and a reduction in the number of repeated hospitalizations. Therefore, ASV therapy draws attention as a novel, noninvasive nonpharmacotherapy for patients with CHF owing to its hemodynamics-improving effect, and it is currently being accepted in real-world clinical settings in Japan. However, clinical evidence sufficient for treatment recommendation is lacking because a multicenter, randomized, controlled study of ASV therapy has never been conducted. The present study is a confirmatory, prospective, multicenter, collaborative, open-label, blinded-endpoint, parallel-group, randomized, controlled study. At 40 medical institutions in Japan, 200 Japanese outpatients with mild to severe CHF (age: ≥ 20 years; New York Heart Association classification: greater than or equal to class II) will be randomly assigned to either of the following two study groups: the ASV group, in which 100 outpatients undergo guideline-directed medical therapy and ASV therapy for 24 weeks; and the control group, in which 100 outpatients undergo only guideline-directed medical therapy for 24 weeks. The objective of the present study is to confirm whether the ASV group is superior to the control group concerning the improvement of left ventricular contractility and remodeling, both assessed by two-dimensional echocardiography. Furthermore, the present study will also secondarily examine the effects of ASV therapy on the prognosis and quality of life of patients with CHF. ASV therapy using the device has the potential to provide therapeutic benefits based on its simple operability and good patient adherence and possesses the potential to improve left ventricular

  1. On Adaptive vs. Non-adaptive Security of Multiparty Protocols

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Canetti, Ran; Damgård, Ivan Bjerre; Dziembowski, Stefan

    2001-01-01

    highlights of our results are: – - According to the definition of Dodis-Micali-Rogaway (which is set in the information-theoretic model), adaptive and non-adaptive security are equivalent. This holds for both honest-but-curious and Byzantine adversaries, and for any number of parties. – - According......Security analysis of multiparty cryptographic protocols distinguishes between two types of adversarialsettings: In the non-adaptive setting, the set of corrupted parties is chosen in advance, before the interaction begins. In the adaptive setting, the adversary chooses who to corrupt during...... the course of the computation. We study the relations between adaptive security (i.e., security in the adaptive setting) and non-adaptive security, according to two definitions and in several models of computation. While affirming some prevailing beliefs, we also obtain some unexpected results. Some...

  2. A hybridised variable neighbourhood tabu search heuristic to increase security in a utility network

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Janssens, Jochen; Talarico, Luca; Sörensen, Kenneth

    2016-01-01

    We propose a decision model aimed at increasing security in a utility network (e.g., electricity, gas, water or communication network). The network is modelled as a graph, the edges of which are unreliable. We assume that all edges (e.g., pipes, cables) have a certain, not necessarily equal, probability of failure, which can be reduced by selecting edge-specific security strategies. We develop a mathematical programming model and a metaheuristic approach that uses a greedy random adaptive search procedure to find an initial solution and uses tabu search hybridised with iterated local search and a variable neighbourhood descend heuristic to improve this solution. The main goal is to reduce the risk of service failure between an origin and a destination node by selecting the right combination of security measures for each network edge given a limited security budget. - Highlights: • A decision model aimed at increasing security in a utility network is proposed. • The goal is to reduce the risk of service failure given a limited security budget. • An exact approach and a variable neighbourhood tabu search heuristic are developed. • A generator for realistic networks is built and used to test the solution methods. • The hybridised heuristic reduces the total risk on average with 32%.

  3. Is adaptation. Truly an adaptation?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Thais Flores Nogueira Diniz

    2006-04-01

    Full Text Available The article begins by historicizing film adaptation from the arrival of cinema, pointing out the many theoretical approaches under which the process has been seen: from the concept of “the same story told in a different medium” to a comprehensible definition such as “the process through which works can be transformed, forming an intersection of textual surfaces, quotations, conflations and inversions of other texts”. To illustrate this new concept, the article discusses Spike Jonze’s film Adaptation. according to James Naremore’s proposal which considers the study of adaptation as part of a general theory of repetition, joined with the study of recycling, remaking, and every form of retelling. The film deals with the attempt by the scriptwriter Charles Kaufman, cast by Nicholas Cage, to adapt/translate a non-fictional book to the cinema, but ends up with a kind of film which is by no means what it intended to be: a film of action in the model of Hollywood productions. During the process of creation, Charles and his twin brother, Donald, undergo a series of adventures involving some real persons from the world of film, the author and the protagonist of the book, all of them turning into fictional characters in the film. In the film, adaptation then signifies something different from itstraditional meaning.

  4. Subsampling for graph power spectrum estimation

    KAUST Repository

    Chepuri, Sundeep Prabhakar; Leus, Geert

    2016-01-01

    In this paper we focus on subsampling stationary random signals that reside on the vertices of undirected graphs. Second-order stationary graph signals are obtained by filtering white noise and they admit a well-defined power spectrum. Estimating the graph power spectrum forms a central component of stationary graph signal processing and related inference tasks. We show that by sampling a significantly smaller subset of vertices and using simple least squares, we can reconstruct the power spectrum of the graph signal from the subsampled observations, without any spectral priors. In addition, a near-optimal greedy algorithm is developed to design the subsampling scheme.

  5. Subsampling for graph power spectrum estimation

    KAUST Repository

    Chepuri, Sundeep Prabhakar

    2016-10-06

    In this paper we focus on subsampling stationary random signals that reside on the vertices of undirected graphs. Second-order stationary graph signals are obtained by filtering white noise and they admit a well-defined power spectrum. Estimating the graph power spectrum forms a central component of stationary graph signal processing and related inference tasks. We show that by sampling a significantly smaller subset of vertices and using simple least squares, we can reconstruct the power spectrum of the graph signal from the subsampled observations, without any spectral priors. In addition, a near-optimal greedy algorithm is developed to design the subsampling scheme.

  6. Hydrogen peroxide release kinetics into saliva from different whitening products: a double-blind, randomized clinical trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marques, Duarte Nuno da Silva; da Mata, António Duarte Sola Pereira; Silveira, João Miguel Lourenço; Marques, Joana Rita Oliveira Faria; Amaral, João Pedro de Almeida Rato; Guilherme, Nuno Filipe Rito Parada Marques

    2012-02-01

    The objective of this study is to compare salivary hydrogen peroxide (HP) release kinetics and potential toxicity of systemic exposure of four different whitening products. A double-blind, randomized controlled trial was conducted in a Portuguese dental faculty clinic. Two hundred forty volunteers were randomized to eight intervention groups. Participants were randomly assigned to receive active or placebo applications of one of four different products: Opalescence 10% PF™ (OPL), Vivastyle® 10%™ (VS10%), Vivadent Paint On Plus™ (PO+), and Trés White Supreme™ (TWS). Saliva collection was obtained by established methods at different times. The HP salivary content was determined by a photometric method. Salivary HP variations, total amount of salivary HP, and counts of subjects above the safe daily HP dose were the main outcome measures. All whitening systems significantly released HP to the saliva when compared to placebo, and all showed different release kinetics. The adaptable tray system (TWS) presented a risk increase of 37% [20-54%, 95% confidence interval] when compared to the other systems. The use of an adaptable tray whitening system with higher concentration of HP increases the toxicity potential.

  7. Effects of Random Values for Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hou-Ping Dai

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available Particle swarm optimization (PSO algorithm is generally improved by adaptively adjusting the inertia weight or combining with other evolution algorithms. However, in most modified PSO algorithms, the random values are always generated by uniform distribution in the range of [0, 1]. In this study, the random values, which are generated by uniform distribution in the ranges of [0, 1] and [−1, 1], and Gauss distribution with mean 0 and variance 1 ( U [ 0 , 1 ] , U [ − 1 , 1 ] and G ( 0 , 1 , are respectively used in the standard PSO and linear decreasing inertia weight (LDIW PSO algorithms. For comparison, the deterministic PSO algorithm, in which the random values are set as 0.5, is also investigated in this study. Some benchmark functions and the pressure vessel design problem are selected to test these algorithms with different types of random values in three space dimensions (10, 30, and 100. The experimental results show that the standard PSO and LDIW-PSO algorithms with random values generated by U [ − 1 , 1 ] or G ( 0 , 1 are more likely to avoid falling into local optima and quickly obtain the global optima. This is because the large-scale random values can expand the range of particle velocity to make the particle more likely to escape from local optima and obtain the global optima. Although the random values generated by U [ − 1 , 1 ] or G ( 0 , 1 are beneficial to improve the global searching ability, the local searching ability for a low dimensional practical optimization problem may be decreased due to the finite particles.

  8. Adaptive Lighting

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Petersen, Kjell Yngve; Søndergaard, Karin; Kongshaug, Jesper

    2015-01-01

    Adaptive Lighting Adaptive lighting is based on a partial automation of the possibilities to adjust the colour tone and brightness levels of light in order to adapt to people’s needs and desires. IT support is key to the technical developments that afford adaptive control systems. The possibilities...... offered by adaptive lighting control are created by the ways that the system components, the network and data flow can be coordinated through software so that the dynamic variations are controlled in ways that meaningfully adapt according to people’s situations and design intentions. This book discusses...... differently into an architectural body. We also examine what might occur when light is dynamic and able to change colour, intensity and direction, and when it is adaptive and can be brought into interaction with its surroundings. In short, what happens to an architectural space when artificial lighting ceases...

  9. Computer intervention impact on psychosocial adaptation of rural women with chronic conditions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weinert, Clarann; Cudney, Shirley; Comstock, Bryan; Bansal, Aasthaa

    2011-01-01

    Adapting to living with chronic conditions is a life-long psychosocial challenge. The purpose of this study was to report the effect of a computer intervention on the psychosocial adaptation of rural women with chronic conditions. A two-group study design was used with 309 middle-aged, rural women who had chronic conditions, randomized into either a computer-based intervention or a control group. Data were collected at baseline, at the end of the intervention, and 6 months later on the psychosocial indicators of social support, self-esteem, acceptance of illness, stress, depression, and loneliness. The impact of the computer-based intervention was statistically significant for five of six of the psychosocial outcomes measured, with a modest impact on social support. The largest benefits were seen in depression, stress, and acceptance. The women-to-women intervention resulted in positive psychosocial responses that have the potential to contribute to successful management of illness and adaptation. Other components of adaptation to be examined are the impact of the intervention on illness management and quality of life and the interrelationships among environmental stimuli, psychosocial response, and illness management.

  10. Distinguishing Byproducts from Non-Adaptive Effects of Algorithmic Adaptations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Justin H. Park

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available I evaluate the use of the byproduct concept in psychology, particularly the adaptation-byproduct distinction that is commonly invoked in discussions of psychological phenomena. This distinction can be problematic when investigating algorithmic mechanisms and their effects, because although all byproducts may be functionless concomitants of adaptations, not all incidental effects of algorithmic adaptations are byproducts (although they have sometimes been labeled as such. I call attention to Sperber's (1994 distinction between proper domains and actual domains of algorithmic mechanisms. Extending Sperber's distinction, I propose the terms adaptive effects and non-adaptive effects, which more accurately capture the phenomena of interest to psychologists and prevent fruitless adaptation-versus-byproduct debates.

  11. Is prevention of acute pesticide poisoning effective and efficient, with Locally Adapted Personal Protective Equipment?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Varma, Anshu; Neupane, Dinesh; Ellekilde Bonde, Jens Peter

    2016-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Farmers' risk of pesticide poisoning can be reduced with personal protective equipment but in low-income countries farmers' use of such equipment is limited. OBJECTIVE: To examine the effectiveness and efficiency of Locally Adapted Personal Protective Equipment to reduce organophosphate...... exposure among farmers. METHODS: In a crossover study, 45 male farmers from Chitwan, Nepal, were randomly allocated to work as usual applying organophosphate pesticides wearing Locally Adapted Personal Protective Equipment or Daily Practice Clothing. For seven days before each experiment, each farmer.......08;0.06]. Wearing the Locally Adapted Personal Protective Equipment versus Daily Practice Clothing gave the following results, respectively: comfort 75.6% versus 100%, sense of heat 64.4% versus 31.3%, other problems 44.4% versus 33.3%, likeability 95.6% versus 77.8%. CONCLUSION: We cannot support the expectation...

  12. Adaptability and phenotypic stability of common bean genotypes through Bayesian inference.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Corrêa, A M; Teodoro, P E; Gonçalves, M C; Barroso, L M A; Nascimento, M; Santos, A; Torres, F E

    2016-04-27

    This study used Bayesian inference to investigate the genotype x environment interaction in common bean grown in Mato Grosso do Sul State, and it also evaluated the efficiency of using informative and minimally informative a priori distributions. Six trials were conducted in randomized blocks, and the grain yield of 13 common bean genotypes was assessed. To represent the minimally informative a priori distributions, a probability distribution with high variance was used, and a meta-analysis concept was adopted to represent the informative a priori distributions. Bayes factors were used to conduct comparisons between the a priori distributions. The Bayesian inference was effective for the selection of upright common bean genotypes with high adaptability and phenotypic stability using the Eberhart and Russell method. Bayes factors indicated that the use of informative a priori distributions provided more accurate results than minimally informative a priori distributions. According to Bayesian inference, the EMGOPA-201, BAMBUÍ, CNF 4999, CNF 4129 A 54, and CNFv 8025 genotypes had specific adaptability to favorable environments, while the IAPAR 14 and IAC CARIOCA ETE genotypes had specific adaptability to unfavorable environments.

  13. Climate adaptation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kinzig, Ann P.

    2015-03-01

    This paper is intended as a brief introduction to climate adaptation in a conference devoted otherwise to the physics of sustainable energy. Whereas mitigation involves measures to reduce the probability of a potential event, such as climate change, adaptation refers to actions that lessen the impact of climate change. Mitigation and adaptation differ in other ways as well. Adaptation does not necessarily have to be implemented immediately to be effective; it only needs to be in place before the threat arrives. Also, adaptation does not necessarily require global, coordinated action; many effective adaptation actions can be local. Some urban communities, because of land-use change and the urban heat-island effect, currently face changes similar to some expected under climate change, such as changes in water availability, heat-related morbidity, or changes in disease patterns. Concern over those impacts might motivate the implementation of measures that would also help in climate adaptation, despite skepticism among some policy makers about anthropogenic global warming. Studies of ancient civilizations in the southwestern US lends some insight into factors that may or may not be important to successful adaptation.

  14. A DIFFERENTIAL EVOLUTION ALGORITHM DEVELOPED FOR A NURSE SCHEDULING PROBLEM

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shahnazari-Shahrezaei, P.

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available Nurse scheduling is a type of manpower allocation problem that tries to satisfy hospital managers objectives and nurses preferences as much as possible by generating fair shift schedules. This paper presents a nurse scheduling problem based on a real case study, and proposes two meta-heuristics a differential evolution algorithm (DE and a greedy randomised adaptive search procedure (GRASP to solve it. To investigate the efficiency of the proposed algorithms, two problems are solved. Furthermore, some comparison metrics are applied to examine the reliability of the proposed algorithms. The computational results in this paper show that the proposed DE outperforms the GRASP.

  15. Understanding climate change adaptation and adaptive capacity: synthesis report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Patino, L. [Policy Research Initiative, Government of Canada, Ottawa, ON (Canada)

    2010-09-15

    In 2007, the Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation Division (CCIAD) offered its support to research projects that were involved in understanding and improving adaptation and adaptive capacity and contributed to climate change decision-making and policy development in Canada. 20 research projects were commissioned by the CCIAD. With the collaboration of NRCan, the principal findings raised by the commissioned projects were synthesized by the Policy Research Initiative (PRI). Common themes and main messages are introduced in this synthesis report, and policy and program aspects that promote adaptive capacity to climate change in Canada are identified. Common themes and important messages emerging from the research projects, as well as the processes and barriers to adaptation and adaptive capacity identified in the commissioned projects, were discussed during a workshop held in Ottawa in 2009. Five main themes and four common barriers to adaptation were found. 25 refs.

  16. A structure-based approach to evaluation product adaptability in adaptable design

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cheng, Qiang; Liu, Zhifeng; Cai, Ligang; Zhang, Guojun; Gu, Peihua

    2011-01-01

    Adaptable design, as a new design paradigm, involves creating designs and products that can be easily changed to satisfy different requirements. In this paper, two types of product adaptability are proposed as essential adaptability and behavioral adaptability, and through measuring which respectively a model for product adaptability evaluation is developed. The essential adaptability evaluation proceeds with analyzing the independencies of function requirements and function modules firstly based on axiomatic design, and measuring the adaptability of interfaces secondly with three indices. The behavioral adaptability reflected by the performance of adaptable requirements after adaptation is measured based on Kano model. At last, the effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated by an illustrative example of the motherboard of a personal computer. The results show that the method can evaluate and reveal the adaptability of a product in essence, and is of directive significance to improving design and innovative design

  17. Handling preference heterogeneity for river services' adaptation to climate change.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Andreopoulos, Dimitrios; Damigos, Dimitrios; Comiti, Francesco; Fischer, Christian

    2015-09-01

    Climate projection models for the Southern Mediterranean basin indicate a strong drought trend. This pattern is anticipated to affect a range of services derived from river ecosystems and consecutively deteriorate the sectoral outputs and household welfare. This paper aims to evaluate local residents' adaptation preferences for the Piave River basin in Italy. A Discrete Choice Experiment accounting for adaptation scenarios of the Piave River services was conducted and the collected data were econometrically analyzed using Random Parameters Logit, Latent Class and Covariance Heterogeneity models. In terms of policy-relevant outcomes, the analysis indicates that respondents are willing to pay for adaptation plans. This attitude is reflected on the compensating surplus to sustain the current state of the Piave, which corresponds to a monthly contribution of 80€ per household. From an econometric point of view, the results show that it is not sufficient to take solely into account general heterogeneity, provided that distinct treatment of the heterogeneity produces rather different welfare estimates. This implies that analysts should examine a set of criteria when deciding on how to better approach heterogeneity for each empirical data set. Overall, non-market values of environmental services should be considered when formulating cost-effective adaptation measures for river systems undergoing climate change effects and appropriate heterogeneity approximation could render these values unbiased and accurate. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. Investigating organizational culture adaptability of broadcasting firm in response to environmental changes

    OpenAIRE

    Seyed Mohammad Reza Salehi; Naser Mirsepasi; Ali Akbar Farhangi

    2015-01-01

    The primary objective of this paper is to study the present status of organizational adaptability in Iranian broadcasting system against environmental changes and present possible suggestions to empower the organization to cope with future changes. The study uses the method developed by Denison (1990) [Denison, D. R. (1990). Corporate culture and organizational effectiveness. John Wiley & Sons.] to study the organizational changes. Using a sample of 354 randomly selected employees who worked ...

  19. Impact of co-channel interference on the performance of adaptive generalized transmit beamforming

    KAUST Repository

    Radaydeh, Redha Mahmoud Mesleh

    2011-08-01

    The impact of co-channel interference on the performance of adaptive generalized transmit beamforming for low-complexity multiple-input single-output (MISO) configuration is investigated. The transmit channels are assumed to be sufficiently separated and undergo Rayleigh fading conditions. Due to the limited space, a single receive antenna is employed to capture desired user transmission. The number of active transmit channels is adjusted adaptively based on statistically unordered and/or ordered instantaneous signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs), where the transmitter has no information about the statistics of undesired signals. The adaptation thresholds are identified to guarantee a target performance level, and the adaptation schemes with enhanced spectral efficiency or power efficiency are studied and their performance are compared under various channels conditions. To facilitate comparison studies, results for the statistics of instantaneous combined signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) are derived, which can be applied for different fading conditions of interfering signals. The statistics for combined SNR and combined SINR are then used to quantify various performance measures, considering the impact of non-ideal estimation of the desired user channel state information (CSI) and the randomness in the number of active interferers. Numerical and simulation comparisons for the achieved performance of the adaptation schemes are presented. © 2006 IEEE.

  20. Considerations about expected a posteriori estimation in adaptive testing: adaptive a priori, adaptive correction for bias, and adaptive integration interval.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Raiche, Gilles; Blais, Jean-Guy

    2009-01-01

    In a computerized adaptive test, we would like to obtain an acceptable precision of the proficiency level estimate using an optimal number of items. Unfortunately, decreasing the number of items is accompanied by a certain degree of bias when the true proficiency level differs significantly from the a priori estimate. The authors suggest that it is possible to reduced the bias, and even the standard error of the estimate, by applying to each provisional estimation one or a combination of the following strategies: adaptive correction for bias proposed by Bock and Mislevy (1982), adaptive a priori estimate, and adaptive integration interval.

  1. Channel Asymmetry in Cellular OFDMA-TDD Networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Agyapong Patrick

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract This paper studies time division duplex- (TDD- specific interference issues in orthogonal frequency division multiple access- (OFDMA- TDD cellular networks arising from various uplink (UL/downlink (DL traffic asymmetries, considering both line-of-sight (LOS and non-LOS (NLOS conditions among base stations (BSs. The study explores aspects both of channel allocation and user scheduling. In particular, a comparison is drawn between the fixed slot allocation (FSA technique and a dynamic channel allocation (DCA technique for different UL/DL loads. For the latter, random time slot opposing (RTSO is assumed due to its simplicity and its low signaling overhead. Both channel allocation techniques do not obviate the need for user scheduling algorithms, therefore, a greedy and a fair scheduling approach are applied to both the RTSO and the FSA. The systems are evaluated based on spectral efficiency, subcarrier utilization, and user outage. The results show that RTSO networks with DL-favored traffic asymmetries outperform FSA networks for all considered metrics and are robust to LOS between BSs. In addition, it is demonstrated that the greedy scheduling algorithm only offers a marginal increase in spectral efficiency as compared to the fair scheduling algorithm, while the latter exhibits up to 20% lower outage.

  2. Initialization and Restart in Stochastic Local Search: Computing a Most Probable Explanation in Bayesian Networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mengshoel, Ole J.; Wilkins, David C.; Roth, Dan

    2010-01-01

    For hard computational problems, stochastic local search has proven to be a competitive approach to finding optimal or approximately optimal problem solutions. Two key research questions for stochastic local search algorithms are: Which algorithms are effective for initialization? When should the search process be restarted? In the present work we investigate these research questions in the context of approximate computation of most probable explanations (MPEs) in Bayesian networks (BNs). We introduce a novel approach, based on the Viterbi algorithm, to explanation initialization in BNs. While the Viterbi algorithm works on sequences and trees, our approach works on BNs with arbitrary topologies. We also give a novel formalization of stochastic local search, with focus on initialization and restart, using probability theory and mixture models. Experimentally, we apply our methods to the problem of MPE computation, using a stochastic local search algorithm known as Stochastic Greedy Search. By carefully optimizing both initialization and restart, we reduce the MPE search time for application BNs by several orders of magnitude compared to using uniform at random initialization without restart. On several BNs from applications, the performance of Stochastic Greedy Search is competitive with clique tree clustering, a state-of-the-art exact algorithm used for MPE computation in BNs.

  3. The effect of atomoxetine on random and directed exploration in humans.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Warren, Christopher M; Wilson, Robert C; van der Wee, Nic J; Giltay, Eric J; van Noorden, Martijn S; Cohen, Jonathan D; Nieuwenhuis, Sander

    2017-01-01

    The adaptive regulation of the trade-off between pursuing a known reward (exploitation) and sampling lesser-known options in search of something better (exploration) is critical for optimal performance. Theory and recent empirical work suggest that humans use at least two strategies for solving this dilemma: a directed strategy in which choices are explicitly biased toward information seeking, and a random strategy in which decision noise leads to exploration by chance. Here we examined the hypothesis that random exploration is governed by the neuromodulatory locus coeruleus-norepinephrine system. We administered atomoxetine, a norepinephrine transporter blocker that increases extracellular levels of norepinephrine throughout the cortex, to 22 healthy human participants in a double-blind crossover design. We examined the effect of treatment on performance in a gambling task designed to produce distinct measures of directed exploration and random exploration. In line with our hypothesis we found an effect of atomoxetine on random, but not directed exploration. However, contrary to expectation, atomoxetine reduced rather than increased random exploration. We offer three potential explanations of our findings, involving the non-linear relationship between tonic NE and cognitive performance, the interaction of atomoxetine with other neuromodulators, and the possibility that atomoxetine affected phasic norepinephrine activity more so than tonic norepinephrine activity.

  4. Microleakage of Different Post Systems and a Custom Adapted Fiber Post

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Farideh Geramipanah

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Objective: The effects of closely adapting a prefabricated fiber to the post space remain unknown. The purpose of this study was to quantify the microleakages of a custom adapted fiber-reinforced post, a prefabricated quartz fiber post and a cast post using nondestructive methods.Materials and Methods: Sixty-five extracted human premolars were endodontically treated and randomly divided into three groups (n=15, which were restored using a cast post-and-core, a custom adapted fiber post (Refropost with a microhybrid microfiller resin composite (Gradia, or a prefabricated quartz fiber post (DT light post and two groups of control ( n=10. All groups were cemented using a dual polymerizing resin cement (Panavia F2.0. A composite core (Z100 was used for the fiber posts. The microleakage was calculated for the experimental and control groups before and after thermal cycling and cycling loading using a radiotracer solution (thallium 201 chloride and a gamma counter device. Data were subjected to statistical analysis of ANOVA and Tukey HSD at significant level of P< 0.05.Results: Significantly lower microleakage values were found for the cast post-and-core (mean value =16.04 ×104 and custom adapted fiber post groups (mean value=14.36×104. Thermal cycling and cyclic loading had no significant effect on the microleakage value of any tested group.Conclusion: Post systems with improved adaptation showed similar microleakage to casting post

  5. Optimal Design of Large Dimensional Adaptive Subspace Detectors

    KAUST Repository

    Ben Atitallah, Ismail; Kammoun, Abla; Alouini, Mohamed-Slim; Alnaffouri, Tareq Y.

    2016-01-01

    This paper addresses the design of Adaptive Subspace Matched Filter (ASMF) detectors in the presence of a mismatch in the steering vector. These detectors are coined as adaptive in reference to the step of utilizing an estimate of the clutter covariance matrix using training data of signalfree observations. To estimate the clutter covariance matrix, we employ regularized covariance estimators that, by construction, force the eigenvalues of the covariance estimates to be greater than a positive scalar . While this feature is likely to increase the bias of the covariance estimate, it presents the advantage of improving its conditioning, thus making the regularization suitable for handling high dimensional regimes. In this paper, we consider the setting of the regularization parameter and the threshold for ASMF detectors in both Gaussian and Compound Gaussian clutters. In order to allow for a proper selection of these parameters, it is essential to analyze the false alarm and detection probabilities. For tractability, such a task is carried out under the asymptotic regime in which the number of observations and their dimensions grow simultaneously large, thereby allowing us to leverage existing results from random matrix theory. Simulation results are provided in order to illustrate the relevance of the proposed design strategy and to compare the performances of the proposed ASMF detectors versus Adaptive normalized Matched Filter (ANMF) detectors under mismatch scenarios.

  6. Optimal Design of Large Dimensional Adaptive Subspace Detectors

    KAUST Repository

    Ben Atitallah, Ismail

    2016-05-27

    This paper addresses the design of Adaptive Subspace Matched Filter (ASMF) detectors in the presence of a mismatch in the steering vector. These detectors are coined as adaptive in reference to the step of utilizing an estimate of the clutter covariance matrix using training data of signalfree observations. To estimate the clutter covariance matrix, we employ regularized covariance estimators that, by construction, force the eigenvalues of the covariance estimates to be greater than a positive scalar . While this feature is likely to increase the bias of the covariance estimate, it presents the advantage of improving its conditioning, thus making the regularization suitable for handling high dimensional regimes. In this paper, we consider the setting of the regularization parameter and the threshold for ASMF detectors in both Gaussian and Compound Gaussian clutters. In order to allow for a proper selection of these parameters, it is essential to analyze the false alarm and detection probabilities. For tractability, such a task is carried out under the asymptotic regime in which the number of observations and their dimensions grow simultaneously large, thereby allowing us to leverage existing results from random matrix theory. Simulation results are provided in order to illustrate the relevance of the proposed design strategy and to compare the performances of the proposed ASMF detectors versus Adaptive normalized Matched Filter (ANMF) detectors under mismatch scenarios.

  7. A Simulation of Readiness-Based Sparing Policies

    Science.gov (United States)

    2017-06-01

    variant of a greedy heuristic algorithm to set stock levels and estimate overall WS availability. Our discrete event simulation is then used to test the...variant of a greedy heuristic algorithm to set stock levels and estimate overall WS availability. Our discrete event simulation is then used to test the...WS Type with 22 Individual WS at a Representative Site.....................................................................................31

  8. AN EVALUATION OF FARMERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF AND ADAPTATION TO THE EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE IN KENYA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hilary K. Ndambiri

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available The study was carried out to evaluate how farmers in Kyuso District have perceived and adapted to climate change. Data was collected from 246 farmers from six locations sampled out through a multistage and simple random sampling procedure. The Heckman probit model was fitted to the data to avoid sample selection bias since not every farmer who may perceive climate change responds by adapting. The analysis revealed that 94% of farmers in Kyuso District had a perception that climate was changing and as a result, 85% of these farmers had responded by adapting. In this regard, age of the household head, gender, education, farm experience, household size, distance to the nearest market, access to irrigation water, local agro-ecology, on and off farm income, access to information on climate change through extension services, access to credit, changes in temperature and precipitation were found to have significant influence on the probability of farmers to perceive and/or adapt to climate change. With the level of perception to climate change being more than that of adaptation, the study suggests that more policy efforts should be geared towards helping farmers to adapt to climate change

  9. Modeling adaptive and non-adaptive responses to environmental change

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Coulson, Tim; Kendall, Bruce E; Barthold, Julia A.

    2017-01-01

    , with plastic responses being either adaptive or non-adaptive. We develop an approach that links quantitative genetic theory with data-driven structured models to allow prediction of population responses to environmental change via plasticity and adaptive evolution. After introducing general new theory, we...... construct a number of example models to demonstrate that evolutionary responses to environmental change over the short-term will be considerably slower than plastic responses, and that the rate of adaptive evolution to a new environment depends upon whether plastic responses are adaptive or non-adaptive....... Parameterization of the models we develop requires information on genetic and phenotypic variation and demography that will not always be available, meaning that simpler models will often be required to predict responses to environmental change. We consequently develop a method to examine whether the full...

  10. Cognitive function in multiple sclerosis improves with telerehabilitation: Results from a randomized controlled trial.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Leigh E Charvet

    Full Text Available Cognitive impairment affects more than half of all individuals living with multiple sclerosis (MS. We hypothesized that training at home with an adaptive online cognitive training program would have greater cognitive benefit than ordinary computer games in cognitively-impaired adults with MS. This was a double-blind, randomized, active-placebo-controlled trial. Participants with MS were recruited through Stony Brook Medicine and randomly assigned to either the adaptive cognitive remediation (ACR program or active control of ordinary computer games for 60 hours over 12 weeks. Training was remotely-supervised and delivered through a study-provided laptop computer. A computer generated, blocked stratification table prepared by statistician provided the randomization schedule and condition was assigned by a study technician. The primary outcome, administered by study psychometrician, was measured by change in a neuropsychological composite measure from baseline to study end. An intent-to-treat analysis was employed and missing primary outcome values were imputed via Markov Chain Monte Carlo method. Participants in the ACR (n = 74 vs. active control (n = 61 training program had significantly greater improvement in the primary outcome of cognitive functioning (mean change in composite z score±SD: 0·25±0·45 vs. 0·09±0·37, p = 0·03, estimated difference = 0·16 with 95% CI: 0·02-0·30, despite greater training time in the active control condition (mean±SD:56·9 ± 34·6 vs. 37·7 ±23 ·8 hours played, p = 0·006. This study provides Class I evidence that adaptive, computer-based cognitive remediation accessed from home can improve cognitive functioning in MS. This telerehabilitation approach allowed for rapid recruitment and high compliance, and can be readily applied to other neurological conditions associated with cognitive dysfunction.Clinicaltrials.gov NCT02141386.

  11. How random is a random vector?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Eliazar, Iddo

    2015-01-01

    Over 80 years ago Samuel Wilks proposed that the “generalized variance” of a random vector is the determinant of its covariance matrix. To date, the notion and use of the generalized variance is confined only to very specific niches in statistics. In this paper we establish that the “Wilks standard deviation” –the square root of the generalized variance–is indeed the standard deviation of a random vector. We further establish that the “uncorrelation index” –a derivative of the Wilks standard deviation–is a measure of the overall correlation between the components of a random vector. Both the Wilks standard deviation and the uncorrelation index are, respectively, special cases of two general notions that we introduce: “randomness measures” and “independence indices” of random vectors. In turn, these general notions give rise to “randomness diagrams”—tangible planar visualizations that answer the question: How random is a random vector? The notion of “independence indices” yields a novel measure of correlation for Lévy laws. In general, the concepts and results presented in this paper are applicable to any field of science and engineering with random-vectors empirical data.

  12. How random is a random vector?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eliazar, Iddo

    2015-12-01

    Over 80 years ago Samuel Wilks proposed that the "generalized variance" of a random vector is the determinant of its covariance matrix. To date, the notion and use of the generalized variance is confined only to very specific niches in statistics. In this paper we establish that the "Wilks standard deviation" -the square root of the generalized variance-is indeed the standard deviation of a random vector. We further establish that the "uncorrelation index" -a derivative of the Wilks standard deviation-is a measure of the overall correlation between the components of a random vector. Both the Wilks standard deviation and the uncorrelation index are, respectively, special cases of two general notions that we introduce: "randomness measures" and "independence indices" of random vectors. In turn, these general notions give rise to "randomness diagrams"-tangible planar visualizations that answer the question: How random is a random vector? The notion of "independence indices" yields a novel measure of correlation for Lévy laws. In general, the concepts and results presented in this paper are applicable to any field of science and engineering with random-vectors empirical data.

  13. Adaptive firefly algorithm: parameter analysis and its application.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ngaam J Cheung

    Full Text Available As a nature-inspired search algorithm, firefly algorithm (FA has several control parameters, which may have great effects on its performance. In this study, we investigate the parameter selection and adaptation strategies in a modified firefly algorithm - adaptive firefly algorithm (AdaFa. There are three strategies in AdaFa including (1 a distance-based light absorption coefficient; (2 a gray coefficient enhancing fireflies to share difference information from attractive ones efficiently; and (3 five different dynamic strategies for the randomization parameter. Promising selections of parameters in the strategies are analyzed to guarantee the efficient performance of AdaFa. AdaFa is validated over widely used benchmark functions, and the numerical experiments and statistical tests yield useful conclusions on the strategies and the parameter selections affecting the performance of AdaFa. When applied to the real-world problem - protein tertiary structure prediction, the results demonstrated improved variants can rebuild the tertiary structure with the average root mean square deviation less than 0.4Å and 1.5Å from the native constrains with noise free and 10% Gaussian white noise.

  14. On the Distribution of Indefinite Quadratic Forms in Gaussian Random Variables

    KAUST Repository

    Al-Naffouri, Tareq Y.

    2015-10-30

    © 2015 IEEE. In this work, we propose a unified approach to evaluating the CDF and PDF of indefinite quadratic forms in Gaussian random variables. Such a quantity appears in many applications in communications, signal processing, information theory, and adaptive filtering. For example, this quantity appears in the mean-square-error (MSE) analysis of the normalized least-meansquare (NLMS) adaptive algorithm, and SINR associated with each beam in beam forming applications. The trick of the proposed approach is to replace inequalities that appear in the CDF calculation with unit step functions and to use complex integral representation of the the unit step function. Complex integration allows us then to evaluate the CDF in closed form for the zero mean case and as a single dimensional integral for the non-zero mean case. Utilizing the saddle point technique allows us to closely approximate such integrals in non zero mean case. We demonstrate how our approach can be extended to other scenarios such as the joint distribution of quadratic forms and ratios of such forms, and to characterize quadratic forms in isotropic distributed random variables.We also evaluate the outage probability in multiuser beamforming using our approach to provide an application of indefinite forms in communications.

  15. Error Decomposition and Adaptivity for Response Surface Approximations from PDEs with Parametric Uncertainty

    KAUST Repository

    Bryant, C. M.; Prudhomme, S.; Wildey, T.

    2015-01-01

    In this work, we investigate adaptive approaches to control errors in response surface approximations computed from numerical approximations of differential equations with uncertain or random data and coefficients. The adaptivity of the response surface approximation is based on a posteriori error estimation, and the approach relies on the ability to decompose the a posteriori error estimate into contributions from the physical discretization and the approximation in parameter space. Errors are evaluated in terms of linear quantities of interest using adjoint-based methodologies. We demonstrate that a significant reduction in the computational cost required to reach a given error tolerance can be achieved by refining the dominant error contributions rather than uniformly refining both the physical and stochastic discretization. Error decomposition is demonstrated for a two-dimensional flow problem, and adaptive procedures are tested on a convection-diffusion problem with discontinuous parameter dependence and a diffusion problem, where the diffusion coefficient is characterized by a 10-dimensional parameter space.

  16. The effect of interpersonal psychotherapy on marriage adaptive and postpartum depression in isfahan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hajiheidari, Mahnaz; Sharifi, Marzieh; Khorvash, Fariborz

    2013-05-01

    Regarding high prevalence and injurious consequences of postpartum depression, the aim of the present work is the study of the effect rate of interpersonal psychotherapy on marriage adaptive and postpartum in women. The present study is semi-empiric, and included control group and pre- and post-test groups. Thirty-two women suffering from postpartum depression were selected from among female referents to counseling centers and clinics in Esfahan city by purposive sampling and were placed in two groups (control and test) randomly case group participated in a 10-weeks marriage interpersonal psychotherapy meetings. Beck II depression questionnaire and marriage adaptive scale were completed by two groups at pre-test and post-test steps. Collected data were analyzed using SPSS software and multivariable covariance analysis. The scores of average of depression and marriage adaptive post-test in test group was significantly less than that in the control group (P marriage interpersonal psychotherapy on the depression recovery and the increasing marriage satisfaction of women suffering from postpartum depression.

  17. Randomized random walk on a random walk

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, P.A.

    1983-06-01

    This paper discusses generalizations of the model introduced by Kehr and Kunter of the random walk of a particle on a one-dimensional chain which in turn has been constructed by a random walk procedure. The superimposed random walk is randomised in time according to the occurrences of a stochastic point process. The probability of finding the particle in a particular position at a certain instant is obtained explicitly in the transform domain. It is found that the asymptotic behaviour for large time of the mean-square displacement of the particle depends critically on the assumed structure of the basic random walk, giving a diffusion-like term for an asymmetric walk or a square root law if the walk is symmetric. Many results are obtained in closed form for the Poisson process case, and these agree with those given previously by Kehr and Kunter. (author)

  18. Adaptability and stability of maize varieties using mixed model methodology

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Walter Fernandes Meirelles

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance, adaptability and stability of corn cultivars simultaneously in unbalanced experiments, using the method of harmonic means of the relative performance of genetic values. The grain yield of 45 cultivars, including hybrids and varieties, was evaluated in 49 environments in two growing seasons. In the 2007/2008 growing season, 36 cultivars were evaluated and in 2008/2009 25 cultivars, of which 16 were used in both seasons. Statistical analyses were performed based on mixed models, considering genotypes as random and replications within environments as fixed factors. The experimental precision in the combined analyses was high (accuracy estimates > 92 %. Despite the existence of genotype x environment interaction, hybrids and varieties with high adaptability and stability were identified. Results showed that the method of harmonic means of the relative performance of genetic values is a suitable method for maize breeding programs.

  19. A GRASP METAHEURISTIC FOR THE ORDERED CUTTING STOCK PROBLEM UN META-HEURÍSTICO GRASP PARA EL PROBLEMA DE STOCK DE CORTE ORDENADO

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rodrigo Rabello Golfeto

    2008-12-01

    Full Text Available This study presents a new mathematical model and a Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedure (GRASP meta-heuristic to solve the ordered cutting stock problem. The ordered cutting stock problem was recently introduced in literature. It is appropriate to minimize the raw material used by industries that deal with reduced product inventories, such as industries that use the just-in-time basis for their production. In such cases, classic models for solving the cutting stock problem are useless. Results obtained from computational experiments for a set of random instances demonstrate that the proposed method can be applied to large industries that process cuts on their production lines and do not stock their products.Este estudio presenta un nuevo modelo matemático y un procedimiento meta-heurístico de búsqueda voraz adaptativa y aleatoria (GRASP, por sus siglas en inglés para resolver el problema de stock de corte ordenado. Éste problema ha sido introducido recientemente en la literatura. Es apropiado minimizar la materia prima usada por las industrias que manipulan inventarios reducidos de productos, tales como las industrias que usan la base justo a tiempo para su producción. En tales casos, los modelos clásicos para resolver el problema de stock de corte ordenado son inútiles. Los resultados obtenidos, mediante experimentos computacionales para un conjunto de ejemplos aleatorios, demuestran que el método propuesto puede ser aplicado a industrias grandes que procesan cortes en sus líneas de producción y no mantienen en stock sus productos.

  20. A culturally adapted lifestyle intervention addressing a Middle Eastern immigrant population at risk of diabetes, the MEDIM (impact of Migration and Ethnicity on Diabetes In Malmö): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saha, Sanjib; Leijon, Matti; Gerdtham, Ulf; Sundquist, Kristina; Sundquist, Jan; Arvidsson, Daniel; Bennet, Louise

    2013-09-03

    Studies have shown that lifestyle interventions are effective in preventing or delaying the onset of type 2 diabetes in high-risk patients. However, research on the effectiveness of lifestyle interventions in high-risk immigrant populations with different cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds is scarce. The aim was to design a culturally adapted lifestyle intervention for an immigrant population and to evaluate its effectiveness and cost-effectiveness. In this randomized controlled trial, 308 participants (born in Iraq, living in Malmö, Sweden and at high risk of type 2 diabetes) will be allocated to either a culturally adapted intervention or a control group. The intervention will consist of 10 group counseling sessions focusing on diet, physical activity and behavioral change over 6 months, and the offer of exercise sessions. Cultural adaptation includes gender-specific exercise sessions, and counseling by a health coach community member. The control group will receive the information about healthy lifestyle habits provided by the primary health care center. The primary outcome is change in fasting glucose level. Secondary outcomes are changes in body mass index, insulin sensitivity, physical activity, food habits and health-related quality of life. Measurements will be taken at baseline, after 3 and 6 months. Data will be analyzed by the intention-to-treat approach. The cost-effectiveness during the trial period and over the longer term will be assessed by simulation modeling from patient, health care and societal perspectives. This study will provide a basis to measure the effectiveness of a lifestyle intervention designed for immigrants from the Middle East in terms of improvement in glucose metabolism, and will also assess its cost-effectiveness. Results from this trial may help health care providers and policy makers to adapt and implement lifestyle interventions suitable for this population group that can be conducted in the community. Clinical

  1. Adaptation research meets adaptation decision-making. Second Nordic international conference on climate change adaption. Programme and abstracts

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2012-07-01

    Nearly two years have passed since a small team of researchers began a new chapter in Nordic co-operation on climate change by organising a conference in Stockholm, Sweden. The conference, entitled Climate Adaptation in the Nordic Countries - Science, Practice, Policy, co-ordinated by the Stockholm Environment Institute and hosted by Stockholm University in November 2010, was the first of its kind in the Nordic region. Since the European Commission adopted its White Paper on adaptation to climate change in 2009, many of that document's 33 actions have been implemented, a climate change adaptation platform, Climate-ADAPT, was launched at the European Environment Agency in March this year, and just a week before this conference the Commission concluded a public consultation of stakeholders and experts in member states designed to feed into the preparation of a European Union adaptation strategy. The 2012 conference therefore presents an ideal opportunity to take stock of ongoing efforts and to consider how adaptation research efforts are keeping pace with policy demands as well as the needs of public and private decision-makers operating at a range of scales. It brings together researchers, public and private decision- makers, as well as those who plan and realize adaptation plans. Session themes include, among others: national and local adaptation plans, climate portals and climate services, adaptation in developing countries, legal aspects of adaptation, economic appraisal of adaptation, analysing and handling risk and uncertainty, urban planning and scenarios. The contributors have very diverse backgrounds, ranging from biosciences to social sciences, economics to geo-sciences, and engineering to architecture. Interest in climate change adaptation in the Nordic region is clearly high, with over 70% of our participants drawn from the five Nordic countries, but the conference has also managed to attract participation from further afield, with registrations

  2. Adaptive steganography

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chandramouli, Rajarathnam; Li, Grace; Memon, Nasir D.

    2002-04-01

    Steganalysis techniques attempt to differentiate between stego-objects and cover-objects. In recent work we developed an explicit analytic upper bound for the steganographic capacity of LSB based steganographic techniques for a given false probability of detection. In this paper we look at adaptive steganographic techniques. Adaptive steganographic techniques take explicit steps to escape detection. We explore different techniques that can be used to adapt message embedding to the image content or to a known steganalysis technique. We investigate the advantages of adaptive steganography within an analytical framework. We also give experimental results with a state-of-the-art steganalysis technique demonstrating that adaptive embedding results in a significant number of bits embedded without detection.

  3. Relationship between Psychological Hardiness and Social Support with Adaptation: A Study on Individuals with Multiple Sclerosis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    N hasan neghad

    2013-10-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: Psychological hardiness is a personal factor and social support is regarded as an environmental factor that can facilitate adjustment to disease. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between adaptation with psychological hardiness and social support in individuals with Multiple sclerosis (MS. Methods: Seventy two females with MS and 25 males with MSwere selected through randomized sampling from two MS centers. Main variables of the study including adaptation, psychological hardiness, and social supportwere assessed respectively by Adaptation Inventory, Personal Attitudes Survey, and Social Support Questionnaire. Results: Spearman correlation coefficients revealed that there are significant relationships between adaptation and psychological hardiness (p<0.0001, as well as between adaptation and social support (p<0.0001. In addition, Multiple linear Regression showed that psychological hardiness (β= -0.483 and social support (β= -0.240 can explain 35/1% of adaptation variance in individuals with MS. Psychological hardinessproved to have a more important role in adaptation of individuals with MS. Conclusion: The study data demonstrated that personal factors like psychological hardiness and environmental factors such as social support can predict adjustment in individuals with MS. In order to clarify mechanisms of these factors on adaptation in individuals with MS, morelongitudinal and experimental studiesare required. These results are alsoapplicable in designing therapeutic programs for individuals with MS.

  4. Adaptive versus Non-Adaptive Security of Multi-Party Protocols

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Canetti, Ran; Damgård, Ivan Bjerre; Dziembowski, Stefan

    2004-01-01

    Security analysis of multi-party cryptographic protocols distinguishes between two types of adversarial settings: In the non-adaptive setting the set of corrupted parties is chosen in advance, before the interaction begins. In the adaptive setting the adversary chooses who to corrupt during...... the course of the computation. We study the relations between adaptive security (i.e., security in the adaptive setting) and nonadaptive security, according to two definitions and in several models of computation....

  5. The effect of peer support groups on family adaptation from the perspective of wives of war veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vagharseyyedin, Seyyed Abolfazl; Gholami, Mojtaba; Hajihoseini, Morteza; Esmaeili, Aliakbar

    2017-11-01

    The aim of this study was to examine the effect of peer group support on family adaptation of wives of war veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In this randomized controlled trial, 80 wives of war veterans with PTSD were incorporated, and selected participants were randomly assigned into intervention and control groups (n = 40 per group). The intervention group was divided into four subgroups, with each participating in eight weekly based 1.5-hr peer support group sessions and the control group received no intervention. Demographics form and Family Adaptation Scale (FAS) developed by Antonovsky and Sourani (1988) were applied. The total mean scores of family adaptation increased significantly more in the intervention group than in the control group (p = .033). Furthermore, the time × group interaction effects were significant for internal family fit (p = .013) and a combination of both family fit and family community fit (p = .020) dimensions. Nonetheless family fit dimensions mean scores had no significant increase in the intervention group than the control group over time (p = .948). Peer support group can be a useful tool for health care professionals to enhance family adaptation in spouses of war veterans with PTSD. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  6. Probabilistic DHP adaptive critic for nonlinear stochastic control systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Herzallah, Randa

    2013-06-01

    Following the recently developed algorithms for fully probabilistic control design for general dynamic stochastic systems (Herzallah & Káarnáy, 2011; Kárný, 1996), this paper presents the solution to the probabilistic dual heuristic programming (DHP) adaptive critic method (Herzallah & Káarnáy, 2011) and randomized control algorithm for stochastic nonlinear dynamical systems. The purpose of the randomized control input design is to make the joint probability density function of the closed loop system as close as possible to a predetermined ideal joint probability density function. This paper completes the previous work (Herzallah & Káarnáy, 2011; Kárný, 1996) by formulating and solving the fully probabilistic control design problem on the more general case of nonlinear stochastic discrete time systems. A simulated example is used to demonstrate the use of the algorithm and encouraging results have been obtained. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Adapt

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bargatze, L. F.

    2015-12-01

    Active Data Archive Product Tracking (ADAPT) is a collection of software routines that permits one to generate XML metadata files to describe and register data products in support of the NASA Heliophysics Virtual Observatory VxO effort. ADAPT is also a philosophy. The ADAPT concept is to use any and all available metadata associated with scientific data to produce XML metadata descriptions in a consistent, uniform, and organized fashion to provide blanket access to the full complement of data stored on a targeted data server. In this poster, we present an application of ADAPT to describe all of the data products that are stored by using the Common Data File (CDF) format served out by the CDAWEB and SPDF data servers hosted at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. These data servers are the primary repositories for NASA Heliophysics data. For this purpose, the ADAPT routines have been used to generate data resource descriptions by using an XML schema named Space Physics Archive, Search, and Extract (SPASE). SPASE is the designated standard for documenting Heliophysics data products, as adopted by the Heliophysics Data and Model Consortium. The set of SPASE XML resource descriptions produced by ADAPT includes high-level descriptions of numerical data products, display data products, or catalogs and also includes low-level "Granule" descriptions. A SPASE Granule is effectively a universal access metadata resource; a Granule associates an individual data file (e.g. a CDF file) with a "parent" high-level data resource description, assigns a resource identifier to the file, and lists the corresponding assess URL(s). The CDAWEB and SPDF file systems were queried to provide the input required by the ADAPT software to create an initial set of SPASE metadata resource descriptions. Then, the CDAWEB and SPDF data repositories were queried subsequently on a nightly basis and the CDF file lists were checked for any changes such as the occurrence of new, modified, or deleted

  8. Resilience through adaptation.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guus A Ten Broeke

    Full Text Available Adaptation of agents through learning or evolution is an important component of the resilience of Complex Adaptive Systems (CAS. Without adaptation, the flexibility of such systems to cope with outside pressures would be much lower. To study the capabilities of CAS to adapt, social simulations with agent-based models (ABMs provide a helpful tool. However, the value of ABMs for studying adaptation depends on the availability of methodologies for sensitivity analysis that can quantify resilience and adaptation in ABMs. In this paper we propose a sensitivity analysis methodology that is based on comparing time-dependent probability density functions of output of ABMs with and without agent adaptation. The differences between the probability density functions are quantified by the so-called earth-mover's distance. We use this sensitivity analysis methodology to quantify the probability of occurrence of critical transitions and other long-term effects of agent adaptation. To test the potential of this new approach, it is used to analyse the resilience of an ABM of adaptive agents competing for a common-pool resource. Adaptation is shown to contribute positively to the resilience of this ABM. If adaptation proceeds sufficiently fast, it may delay or avert the collapse of this system.

  9. Resilience through adaptation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ten Broeke, Guus A; van Voorn, George A K; Ligtenberg, Arend; Molenaar, Jaap

    2017-01-01

    Adaptation of agents through learning or evolution is an important component of the resilience of Complex Adaptive Systems (CAS). Without adaptation, the flexibility of such systems to cope with outside pressures would be much lower. To study the capabilities of CAS to adapt, social simulations with agent-based models (ABMs) provide a helpful tool. However, the value of ABMs for studying adaptation depends on the availability of methodologies for sensitivity analysis that can quantify resilience and adaptation in ABMs. In this paper we propose a sensitivity analysis methodology that is based on comparing time-dependent probability density functions of output of ABMs with and without agent adaptation. The differences between the probability density functions are quantified by the so-called earth-mover's distance. We use this sensitivity analysis methodology to quantify the probability of occurrence of critical transitions and other long-term effects of agent adaptation. To test the potential of this new approach, it is used to analyse the resilience of an ABM of adaptive agents competing for a common-pool resource. Adaptation is shown to contribute positively to the resilience of this ABM. If adaptation proceeds sufficiently fast, it may delay or avert the collapse of this system.

  10. Science of adaptation to climate change and science for adaptation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rob eSwart

    2014-07-01

    Full Text Available Adaptation to climate change has gained a prominent place next to mitigation on global, national and local policy agendas. However, while an abundance of adaptation strategies, plans and programmes have been developed, progress in turning these into action has been slow. The development of a sound knowledge basis to support adaptation globally is suggested to accelerate progress, but has lagged behind. The emphasis in both current and newly proposed programmes is very much on practice-oriented research with strong stakeholder participation. This paper supports such practice-oriented research, but argues that this is insufficient to support adaptation policy and practice in a productive manner. We argue that there is not only a need for science for adaptation, but also a science of adaptation. The paper argues that participatory, practice-oriented research is indeed essential, but has to be complemented by and connected to more fundamental inquiry and concept development, which takes into account knowledge that has been developed in disciplinary sciences and on issues other than climate change adaptation. At the same time, the level and method of participation in science for adaptation should be determined on the basis of the specific project context and goals. More emphasis on science of adaptation can lead to improved understanding of the conditions for successful science for adaptation.

  11. Expressing Adaptation Strategies Using Adaptation Patterns

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zemirline, N.; Bourda, Y.; Reynaud, C.

    2012-01-01

    Today, there is a real challenge to enable personalized access to information. Several systems have been proposed to address this challenge including Adaptive Hypermedia Systems (AHSs). However, the specification of adaptation strategies remains a difficult task for creators of such systems. In this paper, we consider the problem of the definition…

  12. Determinants of Farmers Adaptation to Climate Change. A Case from Nawalparasi District of Nepal

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jeevan Lamichhane

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available A field survey was conducted to study the factor that determines farmers’ decisions to adapt to climate change in Deurali and Agyouli V.D.Cs of Nawalparasi District. Altogether 180 household, 90 from each V.D.C were selected randomly for the study. A logit regression model was employed in the study. However, in order to measure the magnitude of the impact of the explanatory variables on the decision of the farmer to adapt to climate change marginal effects were computed. The study uses a binary dependent variable taking the value 1 if the farmer adapted to climate change and 0 otherwise. A farmer is considered to have adapted to climate change if he/she has employed at least one of the adaptation strategies such as early and late planting, use of drought resistant crops, zero tillage operation, crop diversification, use of mulching and composting of weeds to control water loss and conserving moisture in the field. This current research considers the following as potential factors determining farmers’ decisions to adapt to climate change; economically active members, education of the household head, farm size, annual cash earnings, access to credit, training and extension. Findings reveal that these factors influence farmers’ decisions to adapt to climate change in Nawalparasi District and marginal effects computed showed that per unit increase in these variables increased the probability of practicing different adaptation strategies by 4.3%, 31.4%, 3%, 1.5%, 17%, 66% respectively. The log likelihood was computed to be -43.45. Psuedo. R2 was calculated to be 39%.

  13. A Remote Sensing Image Fusion Method based on adaptive dictionary learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    He, Tongdi; Che, Zongxi

    2018-01-01

    This paper discusses using a remote sensing fusion method, based on' adaptive sparse representation (ASP)', to provide improved spectral information, reduce data redundancy and decrease system complexity. First, the training sample set is formed by taking random blocks from the images to be fused, the dictionary is then constructed using the training samples, and the remaining terms are clustered to obtain the complete dictionary by iterated processing at each step. Second, the self-adaptive weighted coefficient rule of regional energy is used to select the feature fusion coefficients and complete the reconstruction of the image blocks. Finally, the reconstructed image blocks are rearranged and an average is taken to obtain the final fused images. Experimental results show that the proposed method is superior to other traditional remote sensing image fusion methods in both spectral information preservation and spatial resolution.

  14. Generic adaptation framework for unifying adaptive web-based systems

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Knutov, E.

    2012-01-01

    The Generic Adaptation Framework (GAF) research project first and foremost creates a common formal framework for describing current and future adaptive hypermedia (AHS) and adaptive webbased systems in general. It provides a commonly agreed upon taxonomy and a reference model that encompasses the

  15. Adaptive Global Innovative Learning Environment for Glioblastoma: GBM AGILE.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alexander, Brian M; Ba, Sujuan; Berger, Mitchel S; Berry, Donald A; Cavenee, Webster K; Chang, Susan M; Cloughesy, Timothy F; Jiang, Tao; Khasraw, Mustafa; Li, Wenbin; Mittman, Robert; Poste, George H; Wen, Patrick Y; Yung, W K Alfred; Barker, Anna D

    2018-02-15

    Glioblastoma (GBM) is a deadly disease with few effective therapies. Although much has been learned about the molecular characteristics of the disease, this knowledge has not been translated into clinical improvements for patients. At the same time, many new therapies are being developed. Many of these therapies have potential biomarkers to identify responders. The result is an enormous amount of testable clinical questions that must be answered efficiently. The GBM Adaptive Global Innovative Learning Environment (GBM AGILE) is a novel, multi-arm, platform trial designed to address these challenges. It is the result of the collective work of over 130 oncologists, statisticians, pathologists, neurosurgeons, imagers, and translational and basic scientists from around the world. GBM AGILE is composed of two stages. The first stage is a Bayesian adaptively randomized screening stage to identify effective therapies based on impact on overall survival compared with a common control. This stage also finds the population in which the therapy shows the most promise based on clinical indication and biomarker status. Highly effective therapies transition in an inferentially seamless manner in the identified population to a second confirmatory stage. The second stage uses fixed randomization to confirm the findings from the first stage to support registration. Therapeutic arms with biomarkers may be added to the trial over time, while others complete testing. The design of GBM AGILE enables rapid clinical testing of new therapies and biomarkers to speed highly effective therapies to clinical practice. Clin Cancer Res; 24(4); 737-43. ©2017 AACR . ©2017 American Association for Cancer Research.

  16. [Dependence of the pharmacokinetics of captopril on the type of adaptation reactions in the organism].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Udut, V V; Khazanov, V A; Gurto, R V; Borodulina, E V; Postnikova, Iu E

    2007-01-01

    The dependence of the pharmacokinetic profiles (PhP) of captopril in the phase of adaptation reactions in the organism has been studied within the framework of randomized, comparative, double cross research of bioeqivalency of captopril (Aspharma Co, Anzhero-Sudzhensk) and capoten (Bristol Myers Squibb Co.; official Russian producer, Akrikhin KhimFarmKombinat). It is established that the maximum bioaccessibility and high concentration of captopril in the blood plasma is determined on the background of physiologically optimum reactions of training and in the zone of quiet activation. These characteristics decrease during the reactions of general adaptation syndrome according to the type of increased activation and reactivation.

  17. Adaptation of community health worker-delivered behavioral activation for torture survivors in Kurdistan, Iraq.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Magidson, J F; Lejuez, C W; Kamal, T; Blevins, E J; Murray, L K; Bass, J K; Bolton, P; Pagoto, S

    2015-12-01

    Growing evidence supports the use of Western therapies for the treatment of depression, trauma, and stress delivered by community health workers (CHWs) in conflict-affected, resource-limited countries. A recent randomized controlled trial (Bolton et al . 2014 a ) supported the efficacy of two CHW-delivered interventions, cognitive processing therapy (CPT) and brief behavioral activation treatment for depression (BATD), for reducing depressive symptoms and functional impairment among torture survivors in the Kurdish region of Iraq. This study describes the adaptation of the CHW-delivered BATD approach delivered in this trial (Bolton et al .2014 a ), informed by the Assessment-Decision-Administration-Production-Topical experts-Integration-Training-Testing (ADAPT-ITT) framework for intervention adaptation (Wingood & DiClemente, 2008). Cultural modifications, adaptations for low-literacy, and tailored training and supervision for non-specialist CHWs are presented, along with two clinical case examples to illustrate delivery of the adapted intervention in this setting. Eleven CHWs, a study psychiatrist, and the CHW clinical supervisor were trained in BATD. The adaptation process followed the ADAPT-ITT framework and was iterative with significant input from the on-site supervisor and CHWs. Modifications were made to fit Kurdish culture, including culturally relevant analogies, use of stickers for behavior monitoring, cultural modifications to behavioral contracts, and including telephone-delivered sessions to enhance feasibility. BATD was delivered by CHWs in a resource-poor, conflict-affected area in Kurdistan, Iraq, with some important modifications, including low-literacy adaptations, increased cultural relevancy of clinical materials, and tailored training and supervision for CHWs. Barriers to implementation, lessons learned, and recommendations for future efforts to adapt behavioral therapies for resource-limited, conflict-affected areas are discussed.

  18. The role of stimulus-specific adaptation in songbird syntax generation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wittenbach, Jason D.

    Sequential behaviors are an important part of the behavioral repertoire of many animals and understanding how neural circuits encode and generate such sequences is a long-standing question in neuroscience. The Bengalese finch is a useful model system for studying variable action sequences. The songs of these birds consist of well-defined vocal elements (syllables) that are strung together to form sequences. The ordering of the syllables within the sequence is variable but not random - it shows complex statistical patterns (syntax). While often thought to be first-order, the syntax of the Bengalese finch song shows a distinct form of history dependence where the probability of repeating a syllable decreases as a function of the number of repetitions that have already occurred. Current models of the Bengalese finch song control circuitry offer no explanation for this repetition adaptation. The Bengalese finch also uses real-time auditory feedback to control the song syntax. Considering these facts, we hypothesize that repetition adaptation in the Bengalese finch syntax may be caused by stimulus-specific adaptation - a wide-spread phenomenon where neural responses to a specific stimulus become weaker with repeated presentations of the same stimulus. We begin by proposing a computational model for the song-control circuit where an auditory feedback signal that undergoes stimulus-specific adaptation helps drive repeated syllables. We show that this model does indeed capture the repetition adaptation observed in Bengalese finch syntax; along the way, we derive a new probabilistic model for repetition adaptation. Key predictions of our model are analyzed in light of experiments performed by collaborators. Next we extend the model in order to predict how the syntax will change as a function of brain temperature. These predictions are compared to experimental results from collaborators where portions of the Bengalese finch song circuit are cooled in awake and behaving birds

  19. Marginal adaptation of newer root canal sealers to dentin: A SEM study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Polineni, Swapnika; Bolla, Nagesh; Mandava, Pragna; Vemuri, Sayesh; Mallela, Madhusudana; Gandham, Vijaya Madhuri

    2016-01-01

    This in vitro study evaluated and compared the marginal adaptation of three newer root canal sealers to root dentin. Thirty freshly extracted human single-rooted teeth with completely formed apices were taken. Teeth were decoronated, and root canals were instrumented. The specimens were randomly divided into three groups (n = 10) based upon the sealer used. Group 1 - teeth were obturated with epoxy resin sealer (MM-Seal). Group 2 - teeth were obturated with mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) based sealer (MTA Fillapex), Group 3 - teeth were obturated with bioceramic sealer (EndoSequence BC sealer). Later samples were vertically sectioned using hard tissue microtome and marginal adaptation of sealers to root dentin was evaluated under coronal and apical halves using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and marginal gap values were recorded. The data were statistically analyzed by two-way ANOVA and Tukey's multiple post hoc test. The highest marginal gap was seen in Group 2 (apical-16680.00 nm, coronal-10796 nm) and the lowest marginal gap was observed in Group 1 (apical-599.42 nm, coronal-522.72 nm). Coronal halves showed superior adaptation compared to apical halves in all the groups under SEM. Within the limitations of this study epoxy resin-based MM-Seal showed good marginal adaptation than other materials tested.

  20. State Complexity of Testing Divisibility

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Emilie Charlier

    2010-08-01

    Full Text Available Under some mild assumptions, we study the state complexity of the trim minimal automaton accepting the greedy representations of the multiples of m >= 2 for a wide class of linear numeration systems. As an example, the number of states of the trim minimal automaton accepting the greedy representations of the multiples of m in the Fibonacci system is exactly 2m^2.

  1. Genetic parameters and simultaneous selection for root yield, adaptability and stability of cassava genotypes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    João Tomé de Farias Neto

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available The objective of this work was to estimate genetic parameters and to evaluate simultaneous selection for root yield and for adaptability and stability of cassava genotypes. The effects of genotypes were assumed as fixed and random, and the mixed model methodology (REML/Blup was used to estimate genetic parameters and the harmonic mean of the relative performance of genotypic values (HMRPGV, for simultaneous selection purposes. Ten genotypes were analyzed in a complete randomized block design, with four replicates. The experiment was carried out in the municipalities of Altamira, Santarém, and Santa Luzia do Pará in the state of Pará, Brazil, in the growing seasons of 2009/2010, 2010/2011, and 2011/2012. Roots were harvested 12 months after planting, in all tested locations. Root yield had low coefficients of genotypic variation (4.25% and broad-sense heritability of individual plots (0.0424, which resulted in low genetic gain. Due to the low genotypic correlation (0.15, genotype classification as to root yield varied according to the environment. Genotypes CPATU 060, CPATU 229, and CPATU 404 stood out as to their yield, adaptability, and stability.

  2. Learning to adapt: Organisational adaptation to climate change impacts

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Berkhout, F.G.H.; Hertin, J.; Gann, D.M.

    2006-01-01

    Analysis of human adaptation to climate change should be based on realistic models of adaptive behaviour at the level of organisations and individuals. The paper sets out a framework for analysing adaptation to the direct and indirect impacts of climate change in business organisations with new

  3. The effects of whey protein with or without carbohydrates on resistance training adaptations

    OpenAIRE

    Hulmi, Juha; Laakso, Mia; Mero, Antti; Häkkinen, Keijo; Ahtiainen, Juha; Peltonen, Heikki

    2015-01-01

    Background: Nutrition intake in the context of a resistance training (RT) bout may affect body composition and muscle strength. However, the individual and combined effects of whey protein and carbohydrates on long-term resistance training adaptations are poorly understood. Methods: A four-week preparatory RT period was conducted in previously untrained males to standardize the training background of the subjects. Thereafter, the subjects were randomized into three groups: 30 g of...

  4. Selection of examples in case-based computer-aided decision systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mazurowski, Maciej A; Zurada, Jacek M; Tourassi, Georgia D

    2008-01-01

    Case-based computer-aided decision (CB-CAD) systems rely on a database of previously stored, known examples when classifying new, incoming queries. Such systems can be particularly useful since they do not need retraining every time a new example is deposited in the case base. The adaptive nature of case-based systems is well suited to the current trend of continuously expanding digital databases in the medical domain. To maintain efficiency, however, such systems need sophisticated strategies to effectively manage the available evidence database. In this paper, we discuss the general problem of building an evidence database by selecting the most useful examples to store while satisfying existing storage requirements. We evaluate three intelligent techniques for this purpose: genetic algorithm-based selection, greedy selection and random mutation hill climbing. These techniques are compared to a random selection strategy used as the baseline. The study is performed with a previously presented CB-CAD system applied for false positive reduction in screening mammograms. The experimental evaluation shows that when the development goal is to maximize the system's diagnostic performance, the intelligent techniques are able to reduce the size of the evidence database to 37% of the original database by eliminating superfluous and/or detrimental examples while at the same time significantly improving the CAD system's performance. Furthermore, if the case-base size is a main concern, the total number of examples stored in the system can be reduced to only 2-4% of the original database without a decrease in the diagnostic performance. Comparison of the techniques shows that random mutation hill climbing provides the best balance between the diagnostic performance and computational efficiency when building the evidence database of the CB-CAD system.

  5. Communal farming, climate change adaptation and the media in Zimbabwe

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mthokozisi P. Ndhlovu

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Climate change is destroying Zimbabwean communal farmers’ agricultural activities – a source of living for most people. As communal farmers struggle to adapt, the media is expected to assume a fundamental theoretical role of educating and informing them about the appropriate adaptation techniques. Located in Umguza District in Matabeleland North Province, the study explored how communal farmers created meaning out of climate change media content and its influence on their agricultural practices from October 2014 to April 2015. In doing so, the study used the Two-Step Flow theory and Hall’s Encoding and Decoding Model. Entrenched in pragmatism, the study embedded quantitative techniques at different stages. Multistage sampling combining Simple Random Sampling (SRS, purposive and systematic sampling techniques was used to identify the 263 households for semi structured questionnaires, direct observations and in-depth interviews. The findings were analysed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS, thematic analysis and pattern matching. The results show that personal observations; print, broadcast and online media; and opinion leaders were the main sources of climate change information. The radio was the most used medium in communicating climate change adaptation though it was the second most accessed after mobile phones. Conservation Agriculture and planting of drought-resistant crops were some of the adaptation techniques communicated in the media. When interacting with media content, communal farmers create their own meaning influenced by their cultural values, resulting in some adopting, rejecting or modifying certain adaptation techniques. The study concludes that opinion leaders are fundamental in communal farmers’ interaction with media but their influence must not be overestimated.

  6. Adaptive Modular Playware

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lund, Henrik Hautop; Þorsteinsson, Arnar Tumi

    2011-01-01

    In this paper, we describe the concept of adaptive modular playware, where the playware adapts to the interaction of the individual user. We hypothesize that there are individual differences in user interaction capabilities and styles, and that adaptive playware may adapt to the individual user...

  7. Random broadcast on random geometric graphs

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bradonjic, Milan [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Elsasser, Robert [UNIV OF PADERBORN; Friedrich, Tobias [ICSI/BERKELEY; Sauerwald, Tomas [ICSI/BERKELEY

    2009-01-01

    In this work, we consider the random broadcast time on random geometric graphs (RGGs). The classic random broadcast model, also known as push algorithm, is defined as: starting with one informed node, in each succeeding round every informed node chooses one of its neighbors uniformly at random and informs it. We consider the random broadcast time on RGGs, when with high probability: (i) RGG is connected, (ii) when there exists the giant component in RGG. We show that the random broadcast time is bounded by {Omicron}({radical} n + diam(component)), where diam(component) is a diameter of the entire graph, or the giant component, for the regimes (i), or (ii), respectively. In other words, for both regimes, we derive the broadcast time to be {Theta}(diam(G)), which is asymptotically optimal.

  8. Adaptation

    International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

    building skills, knowledge or networks on adaptation, ... the African partners leading the AfricaAdapt network, together with the UK-based Institute of Development Studies; and ... UNCCD Secretariat, Regional Coordination Unit for Africa, Tunis, Tunisia .... 26 Rural–urban Cooperation on Water Management in the Context of.

  9. Resilience through adaptation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Broeke, ten Guus; Voorn, van George A.K.; Ligtenberg, Arend; Molenaar, Jaap

    2017-01-01

    Adaptation of agents through learning or evolution is an important component of the resilience of Complex Adaptive Systems (CAS). Without adaptation, the flexibility of such systems to cope with outside pressures would be much lower. To study the capabilities of CAS to adapt, social simulations

  10. Determinants of farmers’ adaptation to climate change: A micro level analysis in Ghana

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Francis Ndamani

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available ABSTRACT This study analyzed socio-economic factors that influence farmers’ adaptation to climate change in agriculture. Perceptions regarding long-term changes in climate variables and the rate of occurrence of weather extremes were also investigated. Additionally, farmers’ perceived barriers to the use of adaptation practices were identified and ranked. A total of 100 farm-households were randomly selected from four communities in the Lawra district of Ghana and data were collected through semi-structured questionnaires, focused group discussions and field observations. A logistic regression model and weighted average index were used to analyze the data. The results showed that 87 % of respondents perceived a decrease in rainfall amount, while 82 % perceived an increase in temperature over the past 10 years. Results of the weighted average index indicate that dry spell and drought have a higher annual rate of occurrence than flood. Empirical results of the logistic regression model showed that education, household size, annual household income, access to information, credit and membership of farmer-based organization are the most important factors that influence farmers’ adaptation to climate change. The main constraints on adaptation include unpredictability of weather, high farm input cost, lack of access to timely weather information and water resources. The policy implication of this study is that governments should mainstream barriers to, and choice factors of, adaptation practices to climate change related projects and programs.

  11. How stable 'should' epigenetic modifications be? Insights from adaptive plasticity and bet hedging.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Herman, Jacob J; Spencer, Hamish G; Donohue, Kathleen; Sultan, Sonia E

    2014-03-01

    Although there is keen interest in the potential adaptive value of epigenetic variation, it is unclear what conditions favor the stability of these variants either within or across generations. Because epigenetic modifications can be environmentally sensitive, existing theory on adaptive phenotypic plasticity provides relevant insights. Our consideration of this theory suggests that stable maintenance of environmentally induced epigenetic states over an organism's lifetime is most likely to be favored when the organism accurately responds to a single environmental change that subsequently remains constant, or when the environmental change cues an irreversible developmental transition. Stable transmission of adaptive epigenetic states from parents to offspring may be selectively favored when environments vary across generations and the parental environment predicts the offspring environment. The adaptive value of stability beyond a single generation of parent-offspring transmission likely depends on the costs of epigenetic resetting. Epigenetic stability both within and across generations will also depend on the degree and predictability of environmental variation, dispersal patterns, and the (epi)genetic architecture underlying phenotypic responses to environment. We also discuss conditions that favor stability of random epigenetic variants within the context of bet hedging. We conclude by proposing research directions to clarify the adaptive significance of epigenetic stability. © 2013 The Author(s). Evolution © 2013 The Society for the Study of Evolution.

  12. Impact of heuristics in clustering large biological networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shafin, Md Kishwar; Kabir, Kazi Lutful; Ridwan, Iffatur; Anannya, Tasmiah Tamzid; Karim, Rashid Saadman; Hoque, Mohammad Mozammel; Rahman, M Sohel

    2015-12-01

    Traditional clustering algorithms often exhibit poor performance for large networks. On the contrary, greedy algorithms are found to be relatively efficient while uncovering functional modules from large biological networks. The quality of the clusters produced by these greedy techniques largely depends on the underlying heuristics employed. Different heuristics based on different attributes and properties perform differently in terms of the quality of the clusters produced. This motivates us to design new heuristics for clustering large networks. In this paper, we have proposed two new heuristics and analyzed the performance thereof after incorporating those with three different combinations in a recently celebrated greedy clustering algorithm named SPICi. We have extensively analyzed the effectiveness of these new variants. The results are found to be promising. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Adaptation and Retention of a Perceptual-Motor Task in Children: Effects of a Single Bout of Intense Endurance Exercise.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ferrer-Uris, Blai; Busquets, Albert; Angulo-Barroso, Rosa

    2018-02-01

    We assessed the effect of an acute intense exercise bout on the adaptation and consolidation of a visuomotor adaptation task in children. We also sought to assess if exercise and learning task presentation order could affect task consolidation. Thirty-three children were randomly assigned to one of three groups: (a) exercise before the learning task, (b) exercise after the learning task, and (c) only learning task. Baseline performance was assessed by practicing the learning task in a 0° rotation condition. Afterward, a 60° rotation-adaptation set was applied followed by three rotated retention sets after 1 hr, 24 hr, and 7 days. For the exercise groups, exercise was presented before or after the motor adaptation. Results showed no group differences during the motor adaptation while exercise seemed to enhance motor consolidation. Greater consolidation enhancement was found in participants who exercised before the learning task. Our data support the importance of exercise to improve motor-memory consolidation in children.

  14. Uncertainty in adaptive capacity; Incertitudes dans la capacite d'adaptation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Neil Adger, W.; Vincent, K. [East Anglia Univ., Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, School of Environmental Sciences, Norwich (United Kingdom)

    2005-03-01

    The capacity to adapt is a critical element of the process of adaptation: it is the vector of resources that represent the asset base from which adaptation actions can be made. Adaptive capacity can in theory be identified and measured at various scales, from the individual to the nation. The assessment of uncertainty within such measures comes from the contested knowledge domain and theories surrounding the nature of the determinants of adaptive capacity and the human action of adaptation. While generic adaptive capacity at the national level, for example, is often postulated as being dependent on health, governance and political rights, and literacy, and economic well-being, the determinants of these variables at national levels are not widely understood. We outline the nature of this uncertainty for the major elements of adaptive capacity and illustrate these issues with the example of a social vulnerability index for countries in Africa. (authors)

  15. An Optimal Control Modification to Model-Reference Adaptive Control for Fast Adaptation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nguyen, Nhan T.; Krishnakumar, Kalmanje; Boskovic, Jovan

    2008-01-01

    This paper presents a method that can achieve fast adaptation for a class of model-reference adaptive control. It is well-known that standard model-reference adaptive control exhibits high-gain control behaviors when a large adaptive gain is used to achieve fast adaptation in order to reduce tracking error rapidly. High gain control creates high-frequency oscillations that can excite unmodeled dynamics and can lead to instability. The fast adaptation approach is based on the minimization of the squares of the tracking error, which is formulated as an optimal control problem. The necessary condition of optimality is used to derive an adaptive law using the gradient method. This adaptive law is shown to result in uniform boundedness of the tracking error by means of the Lyapunov s direct method. Furthermore, this adaptive law allows a large adaptive gain to be used without causing undesired high-gain control effects. The method is shown to be more robust than standard model-reference adaptive control. Simulations demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

  16. Topics in random walks in random environment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sznitman, A.-S.

    2004-01-01

    Over the last twenty-five years random motions in random media have been intensively investigated and some new general methods and paradigms have by now emerged. Random walks in random environment constitute one of the canonical models of the field. However in dimension bigger than one they are still poorly understood and many of the basic issues remain to this day unresolved. The present series of lectures attempt to give an account of the progresses which have been made over the last few years, especially in the study of multi-dimensional random walks in random environment with ballistic behavior. (author)

  17. Adaptive Lighting

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Petersen, Kjell Yngve; Søndergaard, Karin; Kongshaug, Jesper

    2015-01-01

    the investigations of lighting scenarios carried out in two test installations: White Cube and White Box. The test installations are discussed as large-scale experiential instruments. In these test installations we examine what could potentially occur when light using LED technology is integrated and distributed......Adaptive Lighting Adaptive lighting is based on a partial automation of the possibilities to adjust the colour tone and brightness levels of light in order to adapt to people’s needs and desires. IT support is key to the technical developments that afford adaptive control systems. The possibilities...... differently into an architectural body. We also examine what might occur when light is dynamic and able to change colour, intensity and direction, and when it is adaptive and can be brought into interaction with its surroundings. In short, what happens to an architectural space when artificial lighting ceases...

  18. Quantifying fluctuations in economic systems by adapting methods of statistical physics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stanley, H. E.; Gopikrishnan, P.; Plerou, V.; Amaral, L. A. N.

    2000-12-01

    The emerging subfield of econophysics explores the degree to which certain concepts and methods from statistical physics can be appropriately modified and adapted to provide new insights into questions that have been the focus of interest in the economics community. Here we give a brief overview of two examples of research topics that are receiving recent attention. A first topic is the characterization of the dynamics of stock price fluctuations. For example, we investigate the relation between trading activity - measured by the number of transactions NΔ t - and the price change GΔ t for a given stock, over a time interval [t, t+ Δt] . We relate the time-dependent standard deviation of price fluctuations - volatility - to two microscopic quantities: the number of transactions NΔ t in Δ t and the variance WΔ t2 of the price changes for all transactions in Δ t. Our work indicates that while the pronounced tails in the distribution of price fluctuations arise from WΔ t, the long-range correlations found in ∣ GΔ t∣ are largely due to NΔ t. We also investigate the relation between price fluctuations and the number of shares QΔ t traded in Δ t. We find that the distribution of QΔ t is consistent with a stable Lévy distribution, suggesting a Lévy scaling relationship between QΔ t and NΔ t, which would provide one explanation for volume-volatility co-movement. A second topic concerns cross-correlations between the price fluctuations of different stocks. We adapt a conceptual framework, random matrix theory (RMT), first used in physics to interpret statistical properties of nuclear energy spectra. RMT makes predictions for the statistical properties of matrices that are universal, that is, do not depend on the interactions between the elements comprising the system. In physics systems, deviations from the predictions of RMT provide clues regarding the mechanisms controlling the dynamics of a given system, so this framework can be of potential value if

  19. Adaptation of reach-to-grasp movement in response to force perturbations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rand, M K; Shimansky, Y; Stelmach, G E; Bloedel, J R

    2004-01-01

    This study examined how reach-to-grasp movements are modified during adaptation to external force perturbations applied on the arm during reach. Specifically, we examined whether the organization of these movements was dependent upon the condition under which the perturbation was applied. In response to an auditory signal, all subjects were asked to reach for a vertical dowel, grasp it between the index finger and thumb, and lift it a short distance off the table. The subjects were instructed to do the task as fast as possible. The perturbation was an elastic load acting on the wrist at an angle of 105 deg lateral to the reaching direction. The condition was modified by changing the predictability with which the perturbation was applied in a given trial. After recording unperturbed control trials, perturbations were applied first on successive trials (predictable perturbations) and then were applied randomly (unpredictable perturbations). In the early predictable perturbation trials, reach path length became longer and reaching duration increased. As more predictable perturbations were applied, the reach path length gradually decreased and became similar to that of control trials. Reaching duration also decreased gradually as the subjects adapted by exerting force against the perturbation. In addition, the amplitude of peak grip aperture during arm transport initially increased in response to repeated perturbations. During the course of learning, it reached its maximum and thereafter slightly decreased. However, it did not return to the normal level. The subjects also adapted to the unpredictable perturbations through changes in both arm transport and grasping components, indicating that they can compensate even when the occurrence of the perturbation cannot be predicted during the inter-trial interval. Throughout random perturbation trials, large grip aperture values were observed, suggesting that a conservative aperture level is set regardless of whether the

  20. Evolutionary online behaviour learning and adaptation in real robots.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Silva, Fernando; Correia, Luís; Christensen, Anders Lyhne

    2017-07-01

    Online evolution of behavioural control on real robots is an open-ended approach to autonomous learning and adaptation: robots have the potential to automatically learn new tasks and to adapt to changes in environmental conditions, or to failures in sensors and/or actuators. However, studies have so far almost exclusively been carried out in simulation because evolution in real hardware has required several days or weeks to produce capable robots. In this article, we successfully evolve neural network-based controllers in real robotic hardware to solve two single-robot tasks and one collective robotics task. Controllers are evolved either from random solutions or from solutions pre-evolved in simulation. In all cases, capable solutions are found in a timely manner (1 h or less). Results show that more accurate simulations may lead to higher-performing controllers, and that completing the optimization process in real robots is meaningful, even if solutions found in simulation differ from solutions in reality. We furthermore demonstrate for the first time the adaptive capabilities of online evolution in real robotic hardware, including robots able to overcome faults injected in the motors of multiple units simultaneously, and to modify their behaviour in response to changes in the task requirements. We conclude by assessing the contribution of each algorithmic component on the performance of the underlying evolutionary algorithm.

  1. Integrating adaptive governance and participatory multicriteria methods: a framework for climate adaptation governance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stefania Munaretto

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Climate adaptation is a dynamic social and institutional process where the governance dimension is receiving growing attention. Adaptive governance is an approach that promises to reduce uncertainty by improving the knowledge base for decision making. As uncertainty is an inherent feature of climate adaptation, adaptive governance seems to be a promising approach for improving climate adaptation governance. However, the adaptive governance literature has so far paid little attention to decision-making tools and methods, and the literature on the governance of adaptation is in its infancy in this regard. We argue that climate adaptation governance would benefit from systematic and yet flexible decision-making tools and methods such as participatory multicriteria methods for the evaluation of adaptation options, and that these methods can be linked to key adaptive governance principles. Moving from these premises, we propose a framework that integrates key adaptive governance features into participatory multicriteria methods for the governance of climate adaptation.

  2. Development of adaptive control applied to chaotic systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rhode, Martin Andreas

    1997-12-01

    Continuous-time derivative control and adaptive map-based recursive feedback control techniques are used to control chaos in a variety of systems and in situations that are of practical interest. The theoretical part of the research includes the review of fundamental concept of control theory in the context of its applications to deterministic chaotic systems, the development of a new adaptive algorithm to identify the linear system properties necessary for control, and the extension of the recursive proportional feedback control technique, RPF, to high dimensional systems. Chaos control was applied to models of a thermal pulsed combustor, electro-chemical dissolution and the hyperchaotic Rossler system. Important implications for combustion engineering were suggested by successful control of the model of the thermal pulsed combustor. The system was automatically tracked while maintaining control into regions of parameter and state space where no stable attractors exist. In a simulation of the electrochemical dissolution system, application of derivative control to stabilize a steady state, and adaptive RPF to stabilize a period one orbit, was demonstrated. The high dimensional adaptive control algorithm was applied in a simulation using the Rossler hyperchaotic system, where a period-two orbit with two unstable directions was stabilized and tracked over a wide range of a system parameter. In the experimental part, the electrochemical system was studied in parameter space, by scanning the applied potential and the frequency of the rotating copper disk. The automated control algorithm is demonstrated to be effective when applied to stabilize a period-one orbit in the experiment. We show the necessity of small random perturbations applied to the system in order to both learn the dynamics and control the system at the same time. The simultaneous learning and control capability is shown to be an important part of the active feedback control.

  3. Longitudinal effects of adaptive interventions with a speech-generating devicein minimally verbal children with ASD

    Science.gov (United States)

    Almirall, Daniel; DiStefano, Charlotte; Chang, Ya-Chih; Shire, Stephanie; Kaiser, Ann; Lu, Xi; Nahum-Shani, Inbal; Landa, Rebecca; Mathy, Pamela; Kasari, Connie

    2016-01-01

    Objective There are limited data on the effects of adaptive social communication interventions with a speech-generating device in autism. This study is the first to compare growth in communications outcomes among three adaptive interventions in school-aged children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who are minimally verbal. Methods Sixty-one children, aged 5–8 years participated in a sequential, multiple-assignment randomized trial (SMART). All children received a developmental communication intervention: joint attention, symbolic play, engagement and regulation (JASP) with enhanced milieu teaching (EMT). The SMART included three two-stage, 24-week adaptive interventions with different provisions of a speech-generating device (SGD) in the context of JASP+EMT. The first adaptive intervention, with no SGD, initially assigned JASP+EMT alone; then intensified JASP+EMT for slow responders. In the second adaptive intervention, slow responders to JASP+EMT were assigned JASP+EMT+SGD. The third adaptive intervention initially assigned JASP+EMT+SGD; then intensified JASP+EMT+SGD for slow responders. Analyses examined between-group differences in change in outcomes from baseline to week 36. Verbal outcomes included spontaneous communicative utterances and novel words. Non-linguistic communication outcomes included initiating joint attention and behavior regulation, and play. Results The adaptive intervention beginning with JASP+EMT+SGD was estimated as superior. There were significant (Pcommunicative utterances and initiating joint attention. Conclusions School-aged children with ASD who are minimally verbal make significant gains in communication outcomes with an adaptive intervention beginning with JASP+EMT+SGD. Future research should explore mediators and moderators of the adaptive intervention effects and second-stage intervention options that further capitalize on early gains in treatment. PMID:26954267

  4. [Intel random number generator-based true random number generator].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Feng; Shen, Hong

    2004-09-01

    To establish a true random number generator on the basis of certain Intel chips. The random numbers were acquired by programming using Microsoft Visual C++ 6.0 via register reading from the random number generator (RNG) unit of an Intel 815 chipset-based computer with Intel Security Driver (ISD). We tested the generator with 500 random numbers in NIST FIPS 140-1 and X(2) R-Squared test, and the result showed that the random number it generated satisfied the demand of independence and uniform distribution. We also compared the random numbers generated by Intel RNG-based true random number generator and those from the random number table statistically, by using the same amount of 7500 random numbers in the same value domain, which showed that the SD, SE and CV of Intel RNG-based random number generator were less than those of the random number table. The result of u test of two CVs revealed no significant difference between the two methods. Intel RNG-based random number generator can produce high-quality random numbers with good independence and uniform distribution, and solves some problems with random number table in acquisition of the random numbers.

  5. Accumulator and random-walk models of psychophysical discrimination: a counter-evaluation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vickers, D; Smith, P

    1985-01-01

    In a recent assessment of models of psychophysical discrimination, Heath criticises the accumulator model for its reliance on computer simulation and qualitative evidence, and contrasts it unfavourably with a modified random-walk model, which yields exact predictions, is susceptible to critical test, and is provided with simple parameter-estimation techniques. A counter-evaluation is presented, in which the approximations employed in the modified random-walk analysis are demonstrated to be seriously inaccurate, the resulting parameter estimates to be artefactually determined, and the proposed test not critical. It is pointed out that Heath's specific application of the model is not legitimate, his data treatment inappropriate, and his hypothesis concerning confidence inconsistent with experimental results. Evidence from adaptive performance changes is presented which shows that the necessary assumptions for quantitative analysis in terms of the modified random-walk model are not satisfied, and that the model can be reconciled with data at the qualitative level only by making it virtually indistinguishable from an accumulator process. A procedure for deriving exact predictions for an accumulator process is outlined.

  6. The nature and efficacy of culturally-adapted psychosocial interventions for schizophrenia: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Degnan, A; Baker, S; Edge, D; Nottidge, W; Noke, M; Press, C J; Husain, N; Rathod, S; Drake, R J

    2018-04-01

    Evidence-based psychosocial treatments for schizophrenia founded on Western belief systems and values may not be efficacious in different cultures without adaptation. This systematic review analyses the nature and outcomes of culturally-adapted psychosocial interventions in schizophrenia, examining how interventions have been adapted, their efficacy and what features drive heterogeneity in outcome. Articles identified by searching electronic databases from inception to 3 March 2016, reference lists and previous reviews were independently screened by two authors for eligible controlled trials. Data on the nature of adaptations was analysed inductively using thematic analyses. Meta-analyses were conducted using random effects models to calculate effect sizes (Hedges' g) for symptoms. Forty-six studies with 7828 participants were included, seven adapted for minority populations. Cultural adaptations were grouped into nine themes: language, concepts and illness models, family, communication, content, cultural norms and practices, context and delivery, therapeutic alliance, and treatment goals. Meta-analyses showed significant post-treatment effects in favour of adapted interventions for total symptom severity (n = 2345, g: -0.23, 95% confidence interval (CI) -0.36 to -0.09), positive (n = 1152, g: -0.56, 95% CI -0.86 to -0.26), negative (n = 855, g: -0.39, 95% CI -0.63 to -0.15), and general (n = 525, g: -0.75, CI -1.21 to -0.29) symptoms. The adaptation process can be described within a framework that serves as a benchmark for development or assessment of future adaptations. Culturally adapted interventions were more efficacious than usual treatment in proportion to the degree of adaptation. There is insufficient evidence to show that adapted interventions are better than non-adapted interventions. Features of context, intervention and design influenced efficacy. Investigating whether adaptation improves efficacy, most importantly amongst ethnic minorities, requires

  7. A Table-Based Random Sampling Simulation for Bioluminescence Tomography

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xiaomeng Zhang

    2006-01-01

    Full Text Available As a popular simulation of photon propagation in turbid media, the main problem of Monte Carlo (MC method is its cumbersome computation. In this work a table-based random sampling simulation (TBRS is proposed. The key idea of TBRS is to simplify multisteps of scattering to a single-step process, through randomly table querying, thus greatly reducing the computing complexity of the conventional MC algorithm and expediting the computation. The TBRS simulation is a fast algorithm of the conventional MC simulation of photon propagation. It retained the merits of flexibility and accuracy of conventional MC method and adapted well to complex geometric media and various source shapes. Both MC simulations were conducted in a homogeneous medium in our work. Also, we present a reconstructing approach to estimate the position of the fluorescent source based on the trial-and-error theory as a validation of the TBRS algorithm. Good agreement is found between the conventional MC simulation and the TBRS simulation.

  8. Random access to mobile networks with advanced error correction

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dippold, Michael

    1990-01-01

    A random access scheme for unreliable data channels is investigated in conjunction with an adaptive Hybrid-II Automatic Repeat Request (ARQ) scheme using Rate Compatible Punctured Codes (RCPC) Forward Error Correction (FEC). A simple scheme with fixed frame length and equal slot sizes is chosen and reservation is implicit by the first packet transmitted randomly in a free slot, similar to Reservation Aloha. This allows the further transmission of redundancy if the last decoding attempt failed. Results show that a high channel utilization and superior throughput can be achieved with this scheme that shows a quite low implementation complexity. For the example of an interleaved Rayleigh channel and soft decision utilization and mean delay are calculated. A utilization of 40 percent may be achieved for a frame with the number of slots being equal to half the station number under high traffic load. The effects of feedback channel errors and some countermeasures are discussed.

  9. Randomization tests

    CERN Document Server

    Edgington, Eugene

    2007-01-01

    Statistical Tests That Do Not Require Random Sampling Randomization Tests Numerical Examples Randomization Tests and Nonrandom Samples The Prevalence of Nonrandom Samples in Experiments The Irrelevance of Random Samples for the Typical Experiment Generalizing from Nonrandom Samples Intelligibility Respect for the Validity of Randomization Tests Versatility Practicality Precursors of Randomization Tests Other Applications of Permutation Tests Questions and Exercises Notes References Randomized Experiments Unique Benefits of Experiments Experimentation without Mani

  10. Adaptive Multimedia Retrieval: Semantics, Context, and Adaptation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    This book constitutes the thoroughly refereed post-conference proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Adaptive Multimedia Retrieval, AMR 2012, held in Copenhagen, Denmark, in October 2012. The 17 revised full papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from numerous submissi......This book constitutes the thoroughly refereed post-conference proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Adaptive Multimedia Retrieval, AMR 2012, held in Copenhagen, Denmark, in October 2012. The 17 revised full papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from numerous...... submissions. The papers cover topics of state of the art contributions, features and classification, location context, language and semantics, music retrieval, and adaption and HCI....

  11. Factors influencing farmers’ choices of adaptation to climate change in Ekiti State, Nigeria

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Oluwakemi Adeola Obayelu

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Climate change poses a great threat to human security through erratic rainfall patterns and decreasing crop yields, contributing to increased hunger. The perceptions of the indigenous people about climate change and their responses to climate change have significant roles to play in addressing climate change. Therefore a critical study on farmers’ choices of adaptation to is critical for ensuring food security poverty alleviation. A multi-stage random sampling technique was used to select 156 households in Ekiti state while descriptive statistics and multinomial logit were used to analyze the data obtained from the households. The results showed that the most widely used adaptation method by the farmers were soil and water conservation measures (67 percent. The multinomial logit analysis revealed that the factors explaining farmer’s choices of climate change adaptation include age of the farmers, gender of the household head, years of education, years of farming experience, household size, farmers information on climate change, farmers access to credit, farm income, non-farm income, livestock ownership and extension contact.

  12. Adaptive leadership curriculum for Indian paramedic trainees.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mantha, Aditya; Coggins, Nathaniel L; Mahadevan, Aditya; Strehlow, Rebecca N; Strehlow, Matthew C; Mahadevan, S V

    2016-12-01

    Paramedic trainees in developing countries face complex and chaotic clinical environments that demand effective leadership, communication, and teamwork. Providers must rely on non-technical skills (NTS) to manage bystanders and attendees, collaborate with other emergency professionals, and safely and appropriately treat patients. The authors designed a NTS curriculum for paramedic trainees focused on adaptive leadership, teamwork, and communication skills critical to the Indian prehospital environment. Forty paramedic trainees in the first academic year of the 2-year Advanced Post-Graduate Degree in Emergency Care (EMT-paramedic equivalent) program at the GVK-Emergency Management and Research Institute campus in Hyderabad, India, participated in the 6-day leadership course. Trainees completed self-assessments and delivered two brief video-recorded presentations before and after completion of the curriculum. Independent blinded observers scored the pre- and post-intervention presentations delivered by 10 randomly selected paramedic trainees. The third-party judges reported significant improvement in both confidence (25 %, p leadership (2.6 vs. 4.6, p confidence (3.0 vs. 4.8, p leadership curriculum for prehospital providers demonstrated significant improvement in self-reported NTS commonly required of paramedics in the field. The authors recommend integrating focused NTS development curriculum into Indian paramedic education and further evaluation of the long term impacts of this adaptive leadership training.

  13. Can enriching emotional intelligence improve medical students? proactivity and adaptability during OB/GYN clerkships?

    OpenAIRE

    Guseh, Stephanie H.; Chen, Xiaodong P.; Johnson, Natasha R.

    2015-01-01

    Objectives: The purpose of this pilot study was to examine our hypothesis that enriching workplace emotional intelligence through resident coaches could improve third-year medical students’ adaptability and proactivity on the Obstetrics and Gynecology clerkship. Methods: An observational pilot study was conducted in a teaching hospital. Fourteen 3rd year medical students from two cohorts of clerkships were randomly divided into two groups, and equally assigned to trained resident coaches and ...

  14. Paradoxical cardiovascular effects of implementing adaptive emotion regulation strategies in generalized anxiety disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aldao, Amelia; Mennin, Douglas S

    2012-02-01

    Recent models of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) have expanded on Borkovec's avoidance theory by delineating emotion regulation deficits associated with the excessive worry characteristic of this disorder (see Behar, DiMarco, Hekler, Mohlman, & Staples, 2009). However, it has been difficult to determine whether emotion regulation is simply a useful heuristic for the avoidant properties of worry or an important extension to conceptualizations of GAD. Some of this difficulty may arise from a focus on purported maladaptive regulation strategies, which may be confounded with symptomatic distress components of the disorder (such as worry). We examined the implementation of adaptive regulation strategies by participants with and without a diagnosis of GAD while watching emotion-eliciting film clips. In a between-subjects design, participants were randomly assigned to accept, reappraise, or were not given specific regulation instructions. Implementation of adaptive regulation strategies produced differential effects in the physiological (but not subjective) domain across diagnostic groups. Whereas participants with GAD demonstrated lower cardiac flexibility when implementing adaptive regulation strategies than when not given specific instructions on how to regulate, healthy controls showed the opposite pattern, suggesting they benefited from the use of adaptive regulation strategies. We discuss the implications of these findings for the delineation of emotion regulation deficits in psychopathology. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  15. Adaptive sampling based on the cumulative distribution function of order statistics to delineate heavy-metal contaminated soils using kriging

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Juang, K.-W.; Lee, D.-Y.; Teng, Y.-L.

    2005-01-01

    Correctly classifying 'contaminated' areas in soils, based on the threshold for a contaminated site, is important for determining effective clean-up actions. Pollutant mapping by means of kriging is increasingly being used for the delineation of contaminated soils. However, those areas where the kriged pollutant concentrations are close to the threshold have a high possibility for being misclassified. In order to reduce the misclassification due to the over- or under-estimation from kriging, an adaptive sampling using the cumulative distribution function of order statistics (CDFOS) was developed to draw additional samples for delineating contaminated soils, while kriging. A heavy-metal contaminated site in Hsinchu, Taiwan was used to illustrate this approach. The results showed that compared with random sampling, adaptive sampling using CDFOS reduced the kriging estimation errors and misclassification rates, and thus would appear to be a better choice than random sampling, as additional sampling is required for delineating the 'contaminated' areas. - A sampling approach was derived for drawing additional samples while kriging

  16. A local cubic smoothing in an adaptation mode

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dikoussar, N.D.

    2001-01-01

    A new approach to a local curve approximation and the smoothing is proposed. The relation between curve points is defined using a special cross-ratio weight functions. The coordinates of three curve points are used as parameters for both the weight functions and the tree-point cubic model (TPS). A very simple in computing and stable to random errors cubic smoother in an adaptation mode (LOCUS) is constructed. The free parameter of TPS is estimated independently of the fixed parameters by recursion with the effective error suppression and can be controlled by the cross-ratio parameters. Efficiency and the noise stability of the algorithm are confirmed by examples and by comparison with other known non-parametric smoothers

  17. The utility of adaptive eLearning in cervical cytopathology education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Samulski, T Danielle; Taylor, Laura A; La, Teresa; Mehr, Chelsea R; McGrath, Cindy M; Wu, Roseann I

    2018-02-01

    Adaptive eLearning allows students to experience a self-paced, individualized curriculum based on prior knowledge and learning ability. The authors investigated the effectiveness of adaptive online modules in teaching cervical cytopathology. eLearning modules were created that covered basic concepts in cervical cytopathology, including artifacts and infections, squamous lesions (SL), and glandular lesions (GL). The modules used student responses to individualize the educational curriculum and provide real-time feedback. Pathology trainees and faculty from the authors' institution were randomized into 2 groups (SL or GL), and identical pre-tests and post-tests were used to compare the efficacy of eLearning modules versus traditional study methods (textbooks and slide sets). User experience was assessed with a Likert scale and free-text responses. Sixteen of 17 participants completed the SL module, and 19 of 19 completed the GL module. Participants in both groups had improved post-test scores for content in the adaptive eLearning module. Users indicated that the module was effective in presenting content and concepts (Likert scale [from 1 to 5], 4.3 of 5.0), was an efficient and convenient way to review the material (Likert scale, 4.4 of 5.0), and was more engaging than lectures and texts (Likert scale, 4.6 of 5.0). Users favored the immediate feedback and interactivity of the module. Limitations included the inability to review prior content and slow upload time for images. Learners demonstrated improvement in their knowledge after the use of adaptive eLearning modules compared with traditional methods. Overall, the modules were viewed positively by participants. Adaptive eLearning modules can provide an engaging and effective adjunct to traditional teaching methods in cervical cytopathology. Cancer Cytopathol 2018;126:129-35. © 2017 American Cancer Society. © 2017 American Cancer Society.

  18. Adaptivity in GRAPPLE: Adaptation in any way you like (Poster)

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    De Bra, P.M.E.; Smits, D.; Pechenizkiy, M.; Vasilyeva, E.; Bonk, C.J.; et al., xx

    2008-01-01

    GRAPPLE is an EU funded IST FP7 project that brings together a group of researchers into adaptive learning technology and environments and developers of learning management systems (LMSs), in order to offer adaptive learning as a standard feature of future LMSs. This paper presents the adaptation

  19. Catalytic micromotor generating self-propelled regular motion through random fluctuation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yamamoto, Daigo; Mukai, Atsushi; Okita, Naoaki; Yoshikawa, Kenichi; Shioi, Akihisa

    2013-07-01

    Most of the current studies on nano/microscale motors to generate regular motion have adapted the strategy to fabricate a composite with different materials. In this paper, we report that a simple object solely made of platinum generates regular motion driven by a catalytic chemical reaction with hydrogen peroxide. Depending on the morphological symmetry of the catalytic particles, a rich variety of random and regular motions are observed. The experimental trend is well reproduced by a simple theoretical model by taking into account of the anisotropic viscous effect on the self-propelled active Brownian fluctuation.

  20. Random Access Memories: A New Paradigm for Target Detection in High Resolution Aerial Remote Sensing Images.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zou, Zhengxia; Shi, Zhenwei

    2018-03-01

    We propose a new paradigm for target detection in high resolution aerial remote sensing images under small target priors. Previous remote sensing target detection methods frame the detection as learning of detection model + inference of class-label and bounding-box coordinates. Instead, we formulate it from a Bayesian view that at inference stage, the detection model is adaptively updated to maximize its posterior that is determined by both training and observation. We call this paradigm "random access memories (RAM)." In this paradigm, "Memories" can be interpreted as any model distribution learned from training data and "random access" means accessing memories and randomly adjusting the model at detection phase to obtain better adaptivity to any unseen distribution of test data. By leveraging some latest detection techniques e.g., deep Convolutional Neural Networks and multi-scale anchors, experimental results on a public remote sensing target detection data set show our method outperforms several other state of the art methods. We also introduce a new data set "LEarning, VIsion and Remote sensing laboratory (LEVIR)", which is one order of magnitude larger than other data sets of this field. LEVIR consists of a large set of Google Earth images, with over 22 k images and 10 k independently labeled targets. RAM gives noticeable upgrade of accuracy (an mean average precision improvement of 1% ~ 4%) of our baseline detectors with acceptable computational overhead.