9,965 research outputs found
Conic Multi-Task Classification
Traditionally, Multi-task Learning (MTL) models optimize the average of
task-related objective functions, which is an intuitive approach and which we
will be referring to as Average MTL. However, a more general framework,
referred to as Conic MTL, can be formulated by considering conic combinations
of the objective functions instead; in this framework, Average MTL arises as a
special case, when all combination coefficients equal 1. Although the advantage
of Conic MTL over Average MTL has been shown experimentally in previous works,
no theoretical justification has been provided to date. In this paper, we
derive a generalization bound for the Conic MTL method, and demonstrate that
the tightest bound is not necessarily achieved, when all combination
coefficients equal 1; hence, Average MTL may not always be the optimal choice,
and it is important to consider Conic MTL. As a byproduct of the generalization
bound, it also theoretically explains the good experimental results of previous
relevant works. Finally, we propose a new Conic MTL model, whose conic
combination coefficients minimize the generalization bound, instead of choosing
them heuristically as has been done in previous methods. The rationale and
advantage of our model is demonstrated and verified via a series of experiments
by comparing with several other methods.Comment: Accepted by European Conference on Machine Learning and Principles
and Practice of Knowledge Discovery in Databases (ECMLPKDD)-201
A Long-Term Hydrologically-Based Data Set of Land Surface Fluxes and States for the Conterminous United States
A frequently encountered difficulty in assessing model-predicted landâatmosphere exchanges of moisture and energy is the absence of comprehensive observations to which model predictions can be compared at the spatial and temporal resolutions at which the models operate. Various methods have been used to evaluate the land surface schemes in coupled models, including comparisons of model-predicted evapotranspiration with values derived from atmospheric water balances, comparison of model-predicted energy and radiative fluxes with tower measurements during periods of intensive observations, comparison of model-predicted runoff with observed streamflow, and comparison of model predictions of soil moisture with spatial averages of point observations. While these approaches have provided useful model diagnostic information, the observation-based products used in the comparisons typically are inconsistent with the model variables with which they are comparedâfor example, observations are for points or areas much smaller than the model spatial resolution, comparisons are restricted to temporal averages, or the spatial scale is large compared to that resolved by the model. Furthermore, none of the datasets available at present allow an evaluation of the interaction of the water balance components over large regions for long periods. In this study, a model-derived dataset of land surface states and fluxes is presented for the conterminous United States and portions of Canada and Mexico. The dataset spans the period 1950â2000, and is at a 3-h time step with a spatial resolution of â
degree. The data are distinct from reanalysis products in that precipitation is a gridded product derived directly from observations, and both the land surface water and energy budgets balance at every time step. The surface forcings include precipitation and air temperature (both gridded from observations), and derived downward solar and longwave radiation, vapor pressure deficit, and wind. Simulated runoff is shown to match observations quite well over large river basins. On this basis, and given the physically based model parameterizations, it is argued that other terms in the surface water balance (e.g., soil moisture and evapotranspiration) are well represented, at least for the purposes of diagnostic studies such as those in which atmospheric model reanalysis products have been widely used. These characteristics make this dataset useful for a variety of studies, especially where ground observations are lacking
Vortex spectrum in superfluid turbulence: interpretation of a recent experiment
We discuss a recent experiment in which the spectrum of the vortex line
density fluctuations has been measured in superfluid turbulence. The observed
frequency dependence of the spectrum, , disagrees with classical
vorticity spectra if, following the literature, the vortex line density is
interpreted as a measure of the vorticity or enstrophy. We argue that the
disagrement is solved if the vortex line density field is decomposed into a
polarised field (which carries most of the energy) and an isotropic field
(which is responsible for the spectrum).Comment: Submitted for publication
http://crtbt.grenoble.cnrs.fr/helio/GROUP/infa.html
http://www.mas.ncl.ac.uk/~ncfb
Optical determination and identification of organic shells around nanoparticles: application to silver nanoparticles
We present a simple method to prove the presence of an organic shell around
silver nanoparticles. This method is based on the comparison between optical
extinction measurements of isolated nanoparticles and Mie calculations
predicting the expected wavelength of the Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance
of the nanoparticles with and without the presence of an organic layer. This
method was applied to silver nanoparticles which seemed to be well protected
from oxidation. Further experimental characterization via Surface Enhanced
Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) measurements allowed to identify this protective
shell as ethylene glycol. Combining LSPR and SERS measurements could thus give
proof of both presence and identification for other plasmonic nanoparticles
surrounded by organic shells
Using Sideband Transitions for Two-Qubit Operations in Superconducting Circuits
We demonstrate time resolved driving of two-photon blue sideband transitions
between superconducting qubits and a transmission line resonator. Using the
sidebands, we implement a pulse sequence that first entangles one qubit with
the resonator, and subsequently distributes the entanglement between two
qubits. We show generation of 75% fidelity Bell states by this method. The full
density matrix of the two qubit system is extracted using joint measurement and
quantum state tomography, and shows close agreement with numerical simulation.
The scheme is potentially extendable to a scalable universal gate for quantum
computation.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures, version with high resolution figures available at
http://qudev.ethz.ch/content/science/PubsPapers.htm
Linking Classical and Quantum Key Agreement: Is There "Bound Information"?
After carrying out a protocol for quantum key agreement over a noisy quantum
channel, the parties Alice and Bob must process the raw key in order to end up
with identical keys about which the adversary has virtually no information. In
principle, both classical and quantum protocols can be used for this
processing. It is a natural question which type of protocols is more powerful.
We prove for general states but under the assumption of incoherent
eavesdropping that Alice and Bob share some so-called intrinsic information in
their classical random variables, resulting from optimal measurements, if and
only if the parties' quantum systems are entangled. In addition, we provide
evidence that the potentials of classical and of quantum protocols are equal in
every situation. Consequently, many techniques and results from quantum
information theory directly apply to problems in classical information theory,
and vice versa. For instance, it was previously believed that two parties can
carry out unconditionally secure key agreement as long as they share some
intrinsic information in the adversary's view. The analysis of this purely
classical problem from the quantum information-theoretic viewpoint shows that
this is true in the binary case, but false in general. More explicitly, bound
entanglement, i.e., entanglement that cannot be purified by any quantum
protocol, has a classical counterpart. This "bound intrinsic information"
cannot be distilled to a secret key by any classical protocol. As another
application we propose a measure for entanglement based on classical
information-theoretic quantities.Comment: Accepted for Crypto 2000. 17 page
Homothetic Wyman Spacetimes
The time-dependent, spherically symmetric, Wyman sector of the Unified Field
Theory is shown to be equivalent to a self-gravitating scalar field with a
positive-definite, repulsive self-interaction potential. A homothetic symmetry
is imposed on the fundamental tensor, and the resulting autonomous system is
numerically integrated. Near the critical point (between the collapsing and
non-collapsing spacetimes) the system displays an approximately periodic
alternation between collapsing and dispersive epochs.Comment: 15 pages with 6 figures; requires amsart, amssymb, amsmath, graphicx;
formatted for publication in Int. J. Mod. Phys.
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