Pattern recognition beyond classification: An abductive framework for time series interpretation

Time series interpretation aims to provide an explanation of what is observed in terms of its underlying processes. The present work is based on the assumption that the common classification-based approaches to time series interpretation suffer from a set of inherent weaknesses, whose ultimate cause lies in the monotonic nature of the deductive reasoning paradigm. In this thesis we propose a new approach to this problem, based on the initial hypothesis that abductive reasoning properly accounts for the human ability to identify and characterize the patterns appearing in a time series. The result of this interpretation is a set of conjectures in the form of observations, organized into an abstraction hierarchy and explaining what has been observed. A knowledge-based framework and a set of algorithms for the interpretation task are provided, implementing a hypothesize-and-test cycle guided by an attentional mechanism. As a representative application domain, interpretation of the electrocardiogram allows us to highlight the strengths of the present approach in comparison with traditional classification-based approaches

Two conceptions of the mind

Since the cognitive revolution during the last century the mind has been conceived of as being computer-like. Like a computer, the brain was assumed to be a physical structure (hardware) upon which a computational mind (software) was built. The mind was seen as a collection of independent programs which each have their own specific tasks, or modules. These modules took sensory input data and transduced it into language-like representations which were used in mental computations. Recently, a new conception of the mind has developed, grounded cognition. According to this model, sensory stimulus is saved in the original format in which it was received and recalled using association mechanisms. Rather than representations being language-like they are instead multimodal. The manipulation of these multimodal representations requires processing distributed throughout the brain. A new holistic model for mental architecture has developed in which the concerted activity of the brain\u27s modal systems produces functional systems which are intimately codependent with one another. The purpose of this thesis is to explore both the modular and multimodal theories of mental architecture. Each will be described in detail along with their supporting paradigms, cognitivism and grounded cognition. After my expositions I will offer support for my own position regarding these two theories before suggesting avenues for future research

Keeping Nebraska in Fashion: The Success of Postwar Custom Dressmaker Ilona Dorenter Berk

Keeping Nebraska in Fashion: The Success of Postwar Custom Dressmaker Ilona Dorenter Berk examines the life and work of previously undocumented Midwestern dressmaker Ilona Berk. Through the interdisciplinary study of three vital components in the entrepreneurial dressmaking business of Ilona; who worked out of her home in Lincoln, Nebraska from 1953 to approximately 2000; research establishes her as a significant contributor to the fashion system of the twentieth century, and an important figure in Midwestern costume history. Components chosen for the study are: Ilona’s unique personal characteristics, the global and regional fashion systems she worked within, and the garments she designed and created. The comprehensive method of study is qualitative examination via published scholarly works, archival public records, oral interviews, and object-based analysis. Results of the study are presented as: a partial biography of Ilona, summary tables of her methods, and a modified E. McClung Fleming method group artifact analysis. Discussion includes a comparison of Ilona and her work to documented characteristics of successful female immigrant entrepreneurs, Jewish Holocaust survivor immigrants, custom dressmakers, and couture garments. Advisor: Barbara Trou

Ensembles working towards performance: Emerging coordination and interactions in self-organised groups

For small ensembles, preparing for ensemble performance is often achieved through a framework of rehearsals and performance goals. The ways that groups work together varies widely, but generally involves the concurrent evolution of social and task behaviours. Time as factor within and across a series of ensemble rehearsals has not been extensively studied. Research on organisations increasingly recognises the value of studying groups as dynamic, emergent entities. As well as the specific musical tasks and processes involved, this research takes a broader perspective, incorporating investigations of moment-by-moment verbal interactions between group members, and the way the explicit and implicit communication processes evolve over time. This research aimed to address the central question of how behavioural interactions in small ensembles emerge and change over time. It aimed to investigate the ways that ensembles work together in rehearsal, in particular as a way of preparing for performance. The key theoretical perspectives on which this research is based are concerned with processes of coordination in small groups, in which the ensemble is viewed as a dynamic, self-managed collective. This was a mixed methods study including a questionnaire study, quantitative measures of verbal interactions, and qualitative analysis of participant experiences and perceptions. A background survey on rehearsal methods was conducted with small ensembles (< 12 members), along with two longitudinal case studies of newly formed a cappella vocal quintets. Rehearsals were video-recorded in the field (Case 1) and in a laboratory setting (Case 2) over a three-month period. Verbal interactions were captured, and the rehearsal utterances were time-stamped and coded. Behaviours were analysed using the software Theme (Patternvision Ltd) to identify recurrent temporal interaction patterns (‘T-patterns). In Case 2, further aspects were incorporated – two contrasting pieces were provided for rehearsals, and musical and verbal interactions were explored. Finally, a qualitative study combined interview, observation and visual methods explored experiences from participants of both case studies. The emergence of interactions, implicit communication and rehearsal activities were subject to a series of transitional changes triggered by exogenous factors, including approaching deadlines and social familiarity. Survey findings showed differences in rehearsal structure at different stages of preparation, but also commonalities across a range of types and sizes of ensembles. In the case studies, patterns in behaviour were evident at two main levels of analysis – emergent, inter-individual interactions ‘in the moment’, and in progressions through phases over a series of rehearsals. Verbal interaction patterns contributed were evident from first encounters onwards; patterns appeared very early and increased in complexity over time, as implicit communication modes became more established. Three phases were identified – an initial exploration phase where social and task familiarity were established, a transition phase where differences were surfaced and resolved, and a final integration phase in which a shared plan for performance was realised. The findings also showed that over time, implicit coordination increased and explicit coordination modes decreased. A new model of ensemble processes was proposed, in which the emergent interactions and larger-scale transitional phases are combined. This research provided a new perspective on collaboration in music ensembles. It offered implications for further research on small group processes and their emergence over time, and for music ensemble performers and teachers seeking to reflect on practice. In describing these processes and their predictable ‘transition’ points, the metaphor of a river was used as a powerful image of change and renewal. It recognised ways that small groups, including music ensembles, need to balance paradoxical forces for predictability and structure with creativity and sharing of ideas. It also contributed to methods, both in its longitudinal design and the combination of approaches to investigation. Finally, the thesis highlighted further possibilities for interdisciplinary research in self-organised music ensembles and small group research

Jester’s role in organizational ideation:“you don’t have to be serious to be taken seriously”

Abstract. The objective of this study is to examine is there a clear meaning with managers using jestering to enhance organizational ideation. Moreover, the research focuses on jestering and aims to understand the phenomenon of jester as an organizational phenomenon. The research question: “What is jester role’s meaning in increasing ideation and creativity in organizations?” is answered via one sub-question, which examines how the role of a jester is reflected by others in organizational creativity. This study contributes to idea generation processes, humor and jester research, ideation research and creative organization research. This study is a qualitative research employing in-depth interviews with abductive research approach, where the theoretical framework is a base for the empirical study, but it is modified during the research. The empirical data was gathered from six interviews, consisting of three managers and three specialists. The study uses in-depth interviews as primary source of data. Abductive logic was used to conduct scientific reasoning in this study. Based on the findings of this research, jester role has remarkable role on ideation and in building organizational trust. When employees feel organizational trust and sense of agency, employees are more interested in bringing forth their ideas and participative in ideation. Jesters facilitate new ways of thinking and develop organizational culture towards more permissive attitude. Findings also indicate that jester role adopted by managers should be constructive and goal-oriented in order for bringing successful results in ideation. In the empirical findings it was shown that managers do not avoid jester role due to pressure or fear of decreasing career opportunities, but rather use the role to gain benefits on an organizational or group level. This research also found that managers in fact have a good comprehension on creativity, but they suffer from lack of time to prepare and invest in creativity and feel the pressure of organizational norms to use deviance and humor. It seems that managers taking jester role should seek to build an atmosphere where everyone is committed in generating ideas. Jester role should be a shared role, so that it does not settle permanently on anyone’s shoulders alone. In ideation, managers should focus on preparing and guiding the ideation. Constructive and goal-oriented jester role requires managers to also have sensitivity and emotional intelligence, but also interest to making sure others are good to be. Once managers have gained trust and have built a relationship with subordinates, they are more aware how to express divergent opinions and what kind of humor works. The findings in this research suggest organizations to develop organizational culture to support ideation. In addition, the findings help managers to better understand the importance and value of using jester role in ideation. This research suggests leadership training where managers learn to use jester role consciously and learn to break from organizational boundaries while being aligned with organization’s objectives. Therefore, it provides insight for managers and organizations that wish to be a creative organization

The Road to General Intelligence

Humans have always dreamed of automating laborious physical and intellectual tasks, but the latter has proved more elusive than naively suspected. Seven decades of systematic study of Artificial Intelligence have witnessed cycles of hubris and despair. The successful realization of General Intelligence (evidenced by the kind of cross-domain flexibility enjoyed by humans) will spawn an industry worth billions and transform the range of viable automation tasks.The recent notable successes of Machine Learning has lead to conjecture that it might be the appropriate technology for delivering General Intelligence. In this book, we argue that the framework of machine learning is fundamentally at odds with any reasonable notion of intelligence and that essential insights from previous decades of AI research are being forgotten. We claim that a fundamental change in perspective is required, mirroring that which took place in the philosophy of science in the mid 20th century. We propose a framework for General Intelligence, together with a reference architecture that emphasizes the need for anytime bounded rationality and a situated denotational semantics. We given necessary emphasis to compositional reasoning, with the required compositionality being provided via principled symbolic-numeric inference mechanisms based on universal constructions from category theory. • Details the pragmatic requirements for real-world General Intelligence. • Describes how machine learning fails to meet these requirements. • Provides a philosophical basis for the proposed approach. • Provides mathematical detail for a reference architecture. • Describes a research program intended to address issues of concern in contemporary AI. The book includes an extensive bibliography, with ~400 entries covering the history of AI and many related areas of computer science and mathematics.The target audience is the entire gamut of Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning researchers and industrial practitioners. There are a mixture of descriptive and rigorous sections, according to the nature of the topic. Undergraduate mathematics is in general sufficient. Familiarity with category theory is advantageous for a complete understanding of the more advanced sections, but these may be skipped by the reader who desires an overall picture of the essential concepts This is an open access book

Arithmetic, Set Theory, Reduction and Explanation

Philosophers of science since Nagel have been interested in the links between intertheoretic reduction and explanation, understanding and other forms of epistemic progress. Although intertheoretic reduction is widely agreed to occur in pure mathematics as well as empirical science, the relationship between reduction and explanation in the mathematical setting has rarely been investigated in a similarly serious way. This paper examines an important particular case: the reduction of arithmetic to set theory. I claim that the reduction is unexplanatory. In defense of this claim, I offer evidence from mathematical practice, and I respond to contrary suggestions due to Steinhart, Maddy, Kitcher and Quine. I then show how, even if set-theoretic reductions are generally not explanatory, set theory can nevertheless serve as a legitimate foundation for mathematics. Finally, some implications of my thesis for philosophy of mathematics and philosophy of science are discussed. In particular, I suggest that some reductions in mathematics are probably explanatory, and I propose that differing standards of theory acceptance might account for the apparent lack of unexplanatory reductions in the empirical sciences

Systems action design research : delineation of an application to develop hybrid local climate services

In this thesis, a Systems Action Design Research (SADR) model was developed, which allows the Action Design Research Paradigm to be extended to process hybrid systems of stationary or changing interacting systems; including both quantitative and qualitative aspects. The crucial challenge is to get the experts and grass-root end-users to work together actively in a participatory and cocreative way instead of the foremost current expert dominated practices. Hence the basic model is engaged with an epistemic Delphi entry process, which considers the particular application. This study delineates a unique application to develop hybrid local climate services, which take into account also humanitarian values and presents three case studies done in Mozambique, Kenya, and Tanzania conducted by design thinking.Tutkimuksessa on kehitetty vuorovaikutteisten järjestelmien toiminnan suunnittelun tutkimusmalli, joka laajentaa aikaisempia toiminnan suunnittelun tutkimusmalleja stationaarisiin tai muuttuviin vuorovaikutteisiin mahdollisimman kokonaisvaltaisiin eli hybrideihin järjestelmiin. Malli ottaa huomioon sekä määrällisiä että laadullisia tekijöitä. Vielä nykyisin vallalla olevien asiantuntijapainotteisten käytäntöjen välttämättömänä haasteena on saattaa asiantuntijat ja ruohonjuuritason loppukäyttäjät työskentelemään yhteisen luovuuden merkeissä osallistavalla tavalla. Tästä syystä kehitetyn mallin olennaisena osana on episteeminen, sovelluskohtainen Delphi-prosessi. Sovelluksena toteutettavien hybridien paikallisten loppukäyttäjien tietotarpeita palvelevien mobiili-ilmastomallien osalta viitoitetaan tämän sovelluksen pääpiirteet tutkimuksessa esitetyn mallin näkökulmasta sekä esitetään kolmen Itä-Afrikassa (Mosambik, Kenia ja Tansania) suunnitteluajattelun mukaisesti toteutetun ideointiprojektin ehdotukset. Kehitettävissä mobiiliilmastopalveluissa otetaan soveltuvin osin huomioon myös humanitaariset arvot. Tulokset osoittavat, että kehitetty malli voi avata uusia näköaloja hybridien paikallisten mobiili-ilmastopalvelujen kehittämiseen ruohonjuuritason viljelijöille