26,525 research outputs found
Geometric, Variational Integrators for Computer Animation
We present a general-purpose numerical scheme for time integration of Lagrangian dynamical systems—an important
computational tool at the core of most physics-based animation techniques. Several features make this
particular time integrator highly desirable for computer animation: it numerically preserves important invariants,
such as linear and angular momenta; the symplectic nature of the integrator also guarantees a correct energy
behavior, even when dissipation and external forces are added; holonomic constraints can also be enforced quite
simply; finally, our simple methodology allows for the design of high-order accurate schemes if needed. Two key
properties set the method apart from earlier approaches. First, the nonlinear equations that must be solved during
an update step are replaced by a minimization of a novel functional, speeding up time stepping by more than a
factor of two in practice. Second, the formulation introduces additional variables that provide key flexibility in the
implementation of the method. These properties are achieved using a discrete form of a general variational principle
called the Pontryagin-Hamilton principle, expressing time integration in a geometric manner. We demonstrate
the applicability of our integrators to the simulation of non-linear elasticity with implementation details
A generalized Poisson and Poisson-Boltzmann solver for electrostatic environments
The computational study of chemical reactions in complex, wet environments is
critical for applications in many fields. It is often essential to study
chemical reactions in the presence of applied electrochemical potentials,
taking into account the non-trivial electrostatic screening coming from the
solvent and the electrolytes. As a consequence the electrostatic potential has
to be found by solving the generalized Poisson and the Poisson-Boltzmann
equation for neutral and ionic solutions, respectively. In the present work
solvers for both problems have been developed. A preconditioned conjugate
gradient method has been implemented to the generalized Poisson equation and
the linear regime of the Poisson-Boltzmann, allowing to solve iteratively the
minimization problem with some ten iterations of a ordinary Poisson equation
solver. In addition, a self-consistent procedure enables us to solve the
non-linear Poisson-Boltzmann problem. Both solvers exhibit very high accuracy
and parallel efficiency, and allow for the treatment of different boundary
conditions, as for example surface systems. The solver has been integrated into
the BigDFT and Quantum-ESPRESSO electronic-structure packages and will be
released as an independent program, suitable for integration in other codes
Ab-Initio Molecular Dynamics
Computer simulation methods, such as Monte Carlo or Molecular Dynamics, are
very powerful computational techniques that provide detailed and essentially
exact information on classical many-body problems. With the advent of ab-initio
molecular dynamics, where the forces are computed on-the-fly by accurate
electronic structure calculations, the scope of either method has been greatly
extended. This new approach, which unifies Newton's and Schr\"odinger's
equations, allows for complex simulations without relying on any adjustable
parameter. This review is intended to outline the basic principles as well as a
survey of the field. Beginning with the derivation of Born-Oppenheimer
molecular dynamics, the Car-Parrinello method and the recently devised
efficient and accurate Car-Parrinello-like approach to Born-Oppenheimer
molecular dynamics, which unifies best of both schemes are discussed. The
predictive power of this novel second-generation Car-Parrinello approach is
demonstrated by a series of applications ranging from liquid metals, to
semiconductors and water. This development allows for ab-initio molecular
dynamics simulations on much larger length and time scales than previously
thought feasible.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figure
Top-N Recommender System via Matrix Completion
Top-N recommender systems have been investigated widely both in industry and
academia. However, the recommendation quality is far from satisfactory. In this
paper, we propose a simple yet promising algorithm. We fill the user-item
matrix based on a low-rank assumption and simultaneously keep the original
information. To do that, a nonconvex rank relaxation rather than the nuclear
norm is adopted to provide a better rank approximation and an efficient
optimization strategy is designed. A comprehensive set of experiments on real
datasets demonstrates that our method pushes the accuracy of Top-N
recommendation to a new level.Comment: AAAI 201
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