Optimal eavesdropping on QKD without quantum memory

We consider the security of the BB84, six-state and SARG04 quantum key distribution protocols when the eavesdropper doesn't have access to a quantum memory. In this case, Eve's most general strategy is to measure her ancilla with an appropriate POVM designed to take advantage of the post-measurement information that will be released during the sifting phase of the protocol. After an optimization on all the parameters accessible to Eve, our method provides us with new bounds for the security of six-state and SARG04 against a memoryless adversary. In particular, for the six-state protocol we show that the maximum QBER for which a secure key can be extracted is increased from 12.6% (for collective attacks) to 20.4% with the memoryless assumption.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures. Analysis of six-state and SARG04 QKD protocols adde

Enabling Explainable Fusion in Deep Learning with Fuzzy Integral Neural Networks

Information fusion is an essential part of numerous engineering systems and biological functions, e.g., human cognition. Fusion occurs at many levels, ranging from the low-level combination of signals to the high-level aggregation of heterogeneous decision-making processes. While the last decade has witnessed an explosion of research in deep learning, fusion in neural networks has not observed the same revolution. Specifically, most neural fusion approaches are ad hoc, are not understood, are distributed versus localized, and/or explainability is low (if present at all). Herein, we prove that the fuzzy Choquet integral (ChI), a powerful nonlinear aggregation function, can be represented as a multi-layer network, referred to hereafter as ChIMP. We also put forth an improved ChIMP (iChIMP) that leads to a stochastic gradient descent-based optimization in light of the exponential number of ChI inequality constraints. An additional benefit of ChIMP/iChIMP is that it enables eXplainable AI (XAI). Synthetic validation experiments are provided and iChIMP is applied to the fusion of a set of heterogeneous architecture deep models in remote sensing. We show an improvement in model accuracy and our previously established XAI indices shed light on the quality of our data, model, and its decisions.Comment: IEEE Transactions on Fuzzy System

Australian Coaches’ Views on Coaching Supervision: A Study with Implications for Australian Coach Education, Training and Practice

In the first study to examine Australian coaches’ views on supervision, 174 experienced professional Australian coaches competed an on-line survey; 82.7% of participants were receiving some form of supervision. There was overwhelming support for supervision, but 30% reported having a negative experience with supervision with complaints about peer group supervision and unskilled supervisors being most common. Coach supervision was seen as a complex skill set that has significant value in terms of delivering an opportunity for reflective practice, the development of insights and new perspectives, and assuring the delivery of good quality coaching, particularly in dealing with difficult cases. Recommendations are made for teaching, training and practice

What constitutes evidence-based coaching? A two-by-two framework for distinguishing strong from weak evidence for coaching

There has been an almost exponential growth in the amount of coaching-specific and coaching-related research over the past ten years. At the same time there has been considerable interest in the development of evidence-based approaches to coaching, and many coaching practitioners have incorporated the phrase into their terms of reference for their practice. However, these is still a lack of clarity about what constitutes evidence-based coaching, and there have been few, if any, published guidelines about how to determine the relevance of different bodies of research to coaching practice. This article discusses the nature of evidence-based practice as it relates to coaching and then presents a two-by-two framework that highlights the relevance of a broad range of research to evidence-based coaching practice. The aim of this paper is to help further develop a more nuanced view of evidence-based approaches to coaching practice

Executive, Workplace and Life Coaching: Findings from a Large-Scale Survey of International Coach Federation Members

The knowledge base of coach-specific research detailing theories, techniques and outcomes of coaching is growing annually. However, little is known about coaches themselves. This paper reports on a large scale survey of coaches. A total of 2,529 coaches responded to an online survey conducted in 2003 amongst International Coach Federation (ICF) members. Data on credentialing, prior professional background, and current coach practice were collected. The coaches in this study had overwhelmingly graduated from or have been enrolled in a coach training program and virtually all had come to professional coaching from a prior professional background. In addition, data on coach demographics, coaching process and demographics were collected. This paper reports in detail on these findings, and makes suggestions for future research directions