Showing papers on "Class (philosophy) published in 2012"

NbClust package: finding the relevant number of clusters in a dataset

Abstract: Clustering is the partitioning of a set of objects into groups (clusters) so that objects within a group are more similar to each others than objects in different groups. Most of the clustering algorithms depend on certain assumptions in order to define the subgroups present in a data set. As a consequence, in most applications the resulting clustering scheme requires some sort of evaluation as regards its validity. In general terms, there are three approaches to investigate cluster validity. The first is based on external criteria, which consist in comparing the results of cluster analysis to externally known results, such as externally provided class labels. The second approach is based on internal criteria which use the information obtained from within the clustering process to evaluate how well the results of cluster analysis fit the data without reference to external information. The third approach of clustering validity is based on relative criteria. Here the basic idea is the evaluation of a clustering structure by comparing it with other clustering schemes, resulting by the same algorithm but with different parameters values, e.g. the number of clusters. In the literature, a wide variety of indices have been proposed to find the optimal number of clusters in a partitioning of a data set during the clustering process. Although a vast number of references exist, few comparative studies have been performed on these indices (Milligan and Cooper,1985). Moreover, for most of indices proposed in the literature, programs are unavailable to test these indices and compare them. The R package, NbClust, has been developped specifically for that purpose. It implements 30 indices for cluster validation ready to apply on outputs produced by clustering algorithms, Hierarchical clustering and Kmeans, coming from the same package. Most of these indices are described in Milligan and Cooper study (Milligan and Cooper, 1985). The NbClust function allows to apply one or 30 indices simultaneously and proposes to user the best clustering scheme from the different results obtained by varying all combinations of number of clusters, distance measures ("euclidean", "maximum", "manhattan", "canberra", "binary", "minkowski"), and clustering methods ("ward", "single", "complete", "average", "mcquitty", "median", "centroid").

Method and arrangement for re-loading a class

Abstract: The method is for deploying an input class in a computer readable memory. A state class is created that has at least one field and at least one proxy method and a behavior class version that includes at least one method on the basis of the input class. At least one method call of the state class is redirected to the behavior class version. Also, an arrangement and a computer-software are disclosed.

Loops and Self-Reference in the Construction of Dictionaries

Abstract: Dictionaries link a given word to a set of alternative words (the definition) which in turn point to further descendants. Iterating through definitions in this way, one typically finds that definitions loop back upon themselves. We demonstrate that such definitional loops are created in order to introduce new concepts into a language. In contrast to the expectations for a random lexical network, in graphs of the dictionary, meaningful loops are quite short, although they are often linked to form larger, strongly connected components. These components are found to represent distinct semantic ideas. This observation can be quantified by a singular value decomposition, which uncovers a set of conceptual relationships arising in the global structure of the dictionary. Finally, we use etymological data to show that elements of loops tend to be added to the English lexicon simultaneously and incorporate our results into a simple model for language evolution that falls within the ‘‘rich-get-richer’’ class of network growth.

A General Characterization of the Variable-Sharing Property by Means of Logical Matrices

Abstract: As is well known, the variable-sharing property (vsp) is, according to Anderson and Belnap, a necessary property of any relevant logic. In this paper, we shall consider two versions of the vsp, what we label the "weak vsp" (wvsp) and the "strong vsp" (svsp). In addition, the "no loose pieces property," a property related to the wvsp and the svsp, will be defined. Each one of these properties shall generally be characterized by means of a class of logical matrices. In this way, any logic verified by an actual matrix in one of these classes has the property the class generally represents. Particular matrices (and so, logics) in each class are provided.

Horn versus full first-order

Abstract: We study techniques for deciding the computational complexity of infinite-domain constraint satisfaction problems. For certain basic algebraic structures Δ, we prove definability theorems of the following form: for every first-order expansion Γ of Δ, either Γ has a quantifier-free Horn definition in Δ, or there is an element d of Γ such that all non-empty relations in Γ contain a tuple of the form (d,₀,d), or all relations with a first-order definition in Δ have a primitive positive definition in Γ. The results imply that several families of constraint satisfaction problems exhibit a complexity dichotomy: the problems are either polynomial-time solvable or NP-hard depending on the choice of the allowed relations. As concrete examples, we investigate fundamental algebraic constraint satisfaction problems. The first class consists of all relational structures with a first-order definition in (ℚ; +) that contain the relation {(x, y, z) ∈ ℚ3 | x + y = z}. The second class is the affine variant of the first class. In both cases, we obtain full dichotomies by utilizing our general methods.

Witnessable quantifiers license type-e meaning: Evidence from contrastive topic, equatives and supplements

Abstract: This paper presents three novel ways of testing which plural quantificational phrases can denote individuals (type e). Specifically, it is argued that only type-e expressions can (i) be marked as a contrastive topic in a discourse contrasting individuals, (ii) be equated with another type-e expression in an equative frame, and (iii) anchor supplementing material. The main empirical finding is that the class of quantifiers allowing type-e nominal denotations is larger than assumed on classic accounts like Reinhart 1997. Furthermore, this class is characterizable in semantic terms. The quantifiers that give rise to type-e meanings are "witnessable" in the sense of entailing the existence of an individual satisfying both their restrictor and their nuclear scope.

Fuzzy OOP: expanded and reduced term interpretations

Abstract: We display a novel perspective of novice OOP difficulties. In a thorough study of 120 undergraduates, in their first OOP course, we noticed a variety of misconceptions and difficulties with a wide range of basic terms and notions. Careful analysis revealed a recurring phenomenon, of fuzzy OOP conceptions, which derive from expansion and reduction of basic term features. Novices tended to expand and/or reduce properties not only of terms such as "class" and "object", but also of terms such as "static", "access", and "instance". Particular misconceptions were of the forms: "One vs. Many". We display a detailed categorization of our findings, in an ordered hierarchical structure, and discuss its cognitive characteristics.

An Exploration of Reading Methods in First-Grade: Comparing the Basal Approach and Balanced Literacy

Abstract: Few topics in education have sparked as much interest and debate as the teaching of reading. Throughout the past century, instructional approaches have come and gone but one thing has remained constant: the teacher. Behind every effective classroom lies a teacher. It is ultimately the teachers decisions that drive daily instruction in the classroom. But what is the best way for teachers to teach children how to read? For decades, researchers have plagued studies seeking to find the best method for accomplishing this. Just as students physical characteristics are very diverse, so too are their academic abilities. Reading teachers must be able to understand these differences and consequently choose and employ teaching materials that meet the needs of all the students among the class. With the ever-increasing importance of high-stakes testing and accountability, schools expect their teachers to deliver effective reading instruction that will produce results. The purpose of this study was to compare two approaches to reading instruction: a basal program and balanced literacy. Classroom observations and teacher interviews were conducted and collected in order to investigate the following questions: How do basal programs and balanced literacy impact reading instruction in elementary school classrooms? How are the perceptions of teachers and students impacted in these respected settings?

On the pattern recognition and classification of stochastically episodic events

Abstract: Researchers in the field of Pattern Recognition (PR) have traditionally presumed the availability of a representative set of data drawn from the classes of interest, say ω1 and ω2 in a 2-class problem. These samples are typically utilized in the development of the system's discriminant function. It is, however, widely recognized that there exists a particularly challenging class of PR problems for which a representative set is not available for the second class, which has motivated a great deal of research into the so-called domain of One Class (OC) classification. In this paper, we extend the frontiers of novelty detection by the introduction of a new field of problems open for analysis. In particular, we note that this new realm deviates from the standard set of OC problems based on the presence of three characteristics, which ultimately amplify the classification challenge. They involve the temporal nature of the appearance of the data, the fact that the data from the classes are "interwoven", and that a labelling procedure is not merely impractical - it is almost, by definition, impossible. As a first attempt to tackle these problems, we present two specialized classification strategies denoted by Scenarios S1 and S2 respectively. In Scenarios S1, the data is such that standard binary and one-class classifiers can be applied. Alternatively, in Scenarios S2, the labelling challenge prevents the application of binary classifiers, and instead dictates the novel application of one-class classifiers. The validity of these scenarios has been demonstrated for the exemplary domain involving the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban-Treaty (CTBT), for which our research endeavour has also developed a simulation model. As far as we know, our research in this field is of a pioneering sort, and the results presented here are novel.

Serialization of pre-initialized objects

Abstract: An illustrative embodiment for serialization of pre-initialized objects receives a source code definition of a class, identifies a set of constants associated with the class in the source code to form a set of identified constants, creates a result object corresponding to each constant in the set of identified constants, and compiles the source code into a compiled form of the class. The illustrative embodiment further serializes each result object into a resource file associated with the class to form a set of serialized objects and replaces, in the compiled form of the class, each reference to a respective constant associated with the class from the set of identified constants with a corresponding dynamic instruction using a respective serialized object in the set of serialized objects.

Enforcing policies over linked XML resources

Abstract: A system and method generate an ontology of linked resources. The method includes providing a policy comprising at least one logical rule which is to hold across an ontology of linked resources and initializing a set of resources with an initial subset of the set of resources, each resource in the initial subset being identified by a respective link. Each of the resources in the subset is processed, which includes populating the ontology with a corresponding member of a resource class, for a resource that is valid against a schema, asserting the member's class as a class specific to the schema of the validated resource in the ontology and providing a dependency specification for extracting links within the resource, each extracted link identifying one of the set of resources. A link property is asserted in the ontology for a link between the resource of the subset containing an extracted link and the resource identified by the extracted link and the ontology populated with a member of the resource class for each newly identified resource. A verification that the at least one logical rule holds across the set of resources in the ontology is performed.

No-leak authentication by the Sherlock Holmes method

Abstract: We propose a class of authentication schemes that are literally zeroknowledge, as compared to what is formally defined as "zero-knowledge" in cryptographic literature. We call this "no-leak" authentication to distinguish from an established "zero-knowledge" concept. The "no-leak" condition implies "zero-knowledge" (even "perfect zero-knowledge"), but it is actually stronger, as we illustrate by examples. The principal idea behind our schemes is: the verifier challenges the prover with questions that he (the verifier) already knows answers to; therefore, even a computationally unbounded verifier who follows the protocol cannot possibly learn anything new during any number of authentication sessions. This is therefore also true for a computationally unbounded passive adversary.

Towards understanding of classes versus data types in conceptual modeling and UML

Abstract: Traditional conceptual modeling and UML take different vague, ambiguous, and apparently incompatible approaches to making a distinction between two different entity types - classes and data types. In this paper, an in-depth theoretical study of these ambiguities and discrepancies is given and a new semantic interpretation is proposed for consolidation. The interpretation is founded on the premise that populations of the two kinds of entity types are defined in two substantially different ways: by intensional (for data types) and extensional (for classes) definitions. The notion of a generative relationship set is introduced to explain the role of specific relationship types that are used to define populations of structured data types by cross-combinations of populations of the related entity types. Finally, some important semantic consequences are described through the proposed interpretation: value-based vs. object-based semantics, associations vs. attributes, and identity vs. identification. The given interpretation is based on runtime semantics and allows for fully unambiguous discrimination of the related concepts, yet it fits into intuitive understanding and common practical usage of these concepts.

'Ranking-Based Ties' Social Networks: An Illustration Based on a System of Fashion Capital Cities in the World

Abstract: Our paper aims to apply a non-conventional Social Network Analysis to a network generated from an initial sorting of data with mere order. The aim is to test whether and how one relationship set "conveniently" generated by the ranking is able to provide a coherent system of interactions with possible practical and theoretical utility. We consider a system of city distributions where we focus on "Ranking-Based Ties" social networks, considering a system of "objects" of the same class that would be able to interact. The objects in question are ordered according to their "performance" in a particular ranking. According to a survey developed by Global Language Monitor, there is a ranked number for every capital that could be considered important among the world’s most fashionable cities. Using the rank of scoring average we construct a fashion cities network in order to analyze the dynamics and the topology of the system following a gradual process of clustering or densification of relationships consistent with key network statistics analysis.

Referencia directa en los términos de clases naturales: reflexiones ontológicas

Abstract: Has the theory of direct reference for general terms ontological consequences or requirements? It has normally been said that general terms should be conceived as rigid designators of “natural classes”, but this is a very vague expression. What is a “natural class” here? Is it a universal? Is it a class of resembling objects or tropes? It is argued that the theory of direct reference functions better in connection with an ontology of universals. The semantic model actually requires certain type of successful cognitive relation with the referent and it is difficult to explain how such a successful connection could be obtained if there are no universal properties, but only perfect resemblance classes of objects or tropes.

The effects of teaching style on student learning of DNA

Abstract: ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express my sincere appreciation to my committee chair, Dr. Dana Browne, for his guidance and suggestions. To my committee members, Dr. Cyrill Slezak and Dr. Juana Moreno, thank you for pushing me to challenge myself. Without their support and advice, this thesis would not have been possible. To my MNS family, the past three years have been a struggle but you have all been here for me and I greatly appreciate it. I could not have completed this thesis without the laughter, constructive criticism, discussions, editing, and mutual frustration we had together. To my parents, David and Cyndy Branton, thank you for your constant support and words of encouragement throughout this process.

Automatic Target Recognition User Interface Tool

Abstract: : A computer tool to aid in selecting the best Automatic Target Recognition (ATR) algorithm is developed. The program considers many quantifiers, accepts user-defined parameters, allows for changes in the operational environment and presents results in a meaningful way. It is written for Microsoft Excel. An ATR algorithm assigns a class label to a recognized target. General designations can include "Friend" and "Foe." The error of designating "Friend" as "Foe" as well as "Foe" as "Friend" comes with a high cost. Studying each algorithm's error can minimize this cost. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves provide only information on the probabilities given a system state of declaring up to three class labels: "True," "False" or "Unknown." Other quantifiers, including an alternate ROC curve, are developed in this study to provide information on the probability of a system state given any of multiple declarations, which is more useful to the user. Sensitivity to prior probabilities, suggestions for user-defined parameters and areas for future research are identified as the User Interface Tool is described in detail in this thesis.

On "de":a Perspective in Chinese Prosodic Grammar

Abstract: This paper discusses the importance of "de" in both Chinese prosodic morphology and prosodic synta x.In prosody,"de",as a clitic,cannot stand alone,but must be attached to an adjacent clitic grou p.Due to this feature,"de" plays a very important role in reconstructing the rhythm in phrases and sentence s.Both language facts and theoretic studies demonstrate that "de" should be divided into two classes:The first class of "de" is derived in syntax,playing a role mainly in gramma r.The second class,however,is derived in the interface between morphosyntax and prosody,playing a role mainly in prosod y.

Fields of definition of building blocks with quaternionic multiplication

Abstract: This paper investigates the fields of definition up to isogeny of the abelian varieties called building blocks. A result of Ribet characterizes the fields of definition of these varieties together with their endomorphisms, in terms of a Galois cohomology class canonically attached to them. However, when the building blocks have quaternionic multiplication, then the field of definition of the varieties can be strictly smaller than the field of definition of their endomorphisms. What we do is to give a characterization of the fields of definition of the varieties in this case (also in terms of their associated Galois cohomology class), by translating the problem into the language of group extensions with non-abelian kernel. We also make the computations that are needed in order to calculate in practice these fields from our characterization.