Shuffled linear regression through graduated convex relaxation

The shuffled linear regression problem aims to recover linear relationships in datasets where the correspondence between input and output is unknown. This problem arises in a wide range of applications including survey data, in which one needs to decide whether the anonymity of the responses can be preserved while uncovering significant statistical connections. In this work, we propose a novel optimization algorithm for shuffled linear regression based on a posterior-maximizing objective function assuming Gaussian noise prior. We compare and contrast our approach with existing methods on synthetic and real data. We show that our approach performs competitively while achieving empirical running-time improvements. Furthermore, we demonstrate that our algorithm is able to utilize the side information in the form of seeds, which recently came to prominence in related problems

Graph similarity through entropic manifold alignment

In this paper we decouple the problem of measuring graph similarity into two sequential steps. The first step is the linearization of the quadratic assignment problem (QAP) in a low-dimensional space, given by the embedding trick. The second step is the evaluation of an information-theoretic distributional measure, which relies on deformable manifold alignment. The proposed measure is a normalized conditional entropy, which induces a positive definite kernel when symmetrized. We use bypass entropy estimation methods to compute an approximation of the normalized conditional entropy. Our approach, which is purely topological (i.e., it does not rely on node or edge attributes although it can potentially accommodate them as additional sources of information) is competitive with state-of-the-art graph matching algorithms as sources of correspondence-based graph similarity, but its complexity is linear instead of cubic (although the complexity of the similarity measure is quadratic). We also determine that the best embedding strategy for graph similarity is provided by commute time embedding, and we conjecture that this is related to its inversibility property, since the inverse of the embeddings obtained using our method can be used as a generative sampler of graph structure.The work of the first and third authors was supported by the projects TIN2012-32839 and TIN2015-69077-P of the Spanish Government. The work of the second author was supported by a Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit Award

CyberResearch on the Ancient Near East and Eastern Mediterranean

CyberResearch on the Ancient Near East and Neighboring Regions provides case studies on archaeology, objects, cuneiform texts, and online publishing, digital archiving, and preservation. Eleven chapters present a rich array of material, spanning the fifth through the first millennium BCE, from Anatolia, the Levant, Mesopotamia, and Iran. Customized cyber- and general glossaries support readers who lack either a technical background or familiarity with the ancient cultures. Edited by Vanessa Bigot Juloux, Amy Rebecca Gansell, and Alessandro Di Ludovico, this volume is dedicated to broadening the understanding and accessibility of digital humanities tools, methodologies, and results to Ancient Near Eastern Studies. Ultimately, this book provides a model for introducing cyber-studies to the mainstream of humanities research

Semantic Domains in Akkadian Text

The article examines the possibilities offered by language technology for analyzing semantic fields in Akkadian. The corpus of data for our research group is the existing electronic corpora, Open richly annotated cuneiform corpus (ORACC). In addition to more traditional Assyriological methods, the article explores two language technological methods: Pointwise mutual information (PMI) and Word2vec.Peer reviewe

Gallinazo Phase Migration in the Moche Valley, Peru

This dissertation project is focused on settlement patterns in the Moche Valley, on the North Coast of Peru, during the Gallinazo Phase of the Early Intermediate Period (ca. 0-200 CE). Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology, generalized logistic models (GLM) and Principal Components Analysis (PCA) are used to define architecture and spatial organization unique to nonlocal settlement. This research addresses broad theoretical concepts in anthropology like ethnicity and power, and examines methodological issues of investigating prehistoric culture contact and interaction. The concept of an ethnotone is reintroduced to replace the core/periphery model in a pluralistic society where there is no central place. Nonlocal architecture at a sample of sites is specifically described and settlement patterns are differentiated. The results provide further evidence that nonlocal Gallinazo Phase settlements in the Moche Valley are ethnic-highland. Contrary to conflict-centered theories about culture contact in the Andes, interaction between migrants and locals on the North Coast at this time was probably less violent than previously thought. Among other variables, this research establishes that building on hillsides was common, and communities tended to aggregate into clusters around elite compounds; yet, this pattern is not overtly defensive. Technological advancement in the form of expanding irrigation regimes lessened competition for resources, resulting in social complementarity rather than conflict.Doctor of Philosoph