How to help intelligent systems with different uncertainty representations cooperate with each other

In order to solve a complicated problem one must use the knowledge from different domains. Therefore, if one wants to automatize the solution of these problems, one has to help the knowledge-based systems that correspond to these domains cooperate, that is, communicate facts and conclusions to each other in the process of decision making. One of the main obstacles to such cooperation is the fact that different intelligent systems use different methods of knowledge acquisition and different methods and formalisms for uncertainty representation. So an interface f is needed, 'translating' the values x, y, which represent uncertainty of the experts' knowledge in one system, into the values f(x), f(y) appropriate for another one. The problem of designing such an interface as a mathematical problem is formulated and solved. It is shown that the interface must be fractionally linear: f(x) = (ax + b)/(cx + d)

A Survey on Big Data Analytics: Challenges

A gigantic archive of terabytes of information is created every day from current data frameworks and computerized advances, for example, Internet of Things and distributed computing. Examination of these gigantic information requires a ton of endeavors at various levels to extricate information for dynamic. Hence, huge information examination is an ebb and flow region of innovative work. The essential goal of this paper is to investigate the likely effect of huge information challenges, and different instruments related with it. Accordingly, this article gives a stage to investigate enormous information at various stages. Moreover, it opens another skyline for analysts to build up the arrangement, in light of the difficulties and open exploration issues

Generated holographic stereograms in photorefractive polymer

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2012.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 77-80).This thesis aims to assess the feasibility of an updatable three-dimensional display based on the direct fringe writing of computer-generated holographic gratings into a novel photorefractive polymer. The photorefractive polymer in question has been developed by Nitto Denko Technical Corporation and has many attractive properties for the 3-D display application, including long image persistence, rapid erasure, high diffraction efficiency, and large area; however, current holographic display systems based around its use involve interference methods that complicate their optical and computational architectures. The direct fringe writing architecture under question is poised as a simplifying and enhancing alternative to previous demonstrations of updatable holographic displays in photorefractive polymeric materials based around such conventional interference-based holographic stereogram techniques. In addition to simplifying optical architectures, direct fringe writing can allow for complete control of recorded hologram characteristics; interference fringes can be computed to simulate any arbitrary reference beam geometry and wavefront curvature. The system concept - comprised of fringe pattern generation on computer, fringe pattern transfer from SLM to photorefractive polymer, and spatial multiplexing for large-image generation - reintroduces accommodation cues to the resulting holographic images and represents a reduction of system footprint, complexity, and cost relative to the current interference-based systems. The adaptation of the Diffraction Specific Coherent Panoramagram fringe computation method - originally developed to drive AOM-based holographic displays at video rates while preserving all depth cues, including accommodation - to the current display architecture is presented and methods for direct fringe transfer from SLM to photorefractive polymer are depicted. Such methods for direct fringe writing are explored in simulation and experiment. Theoretical arguments for system performance are formulated in the context of a wave optics-based system analysis. Preliminary results of horizontal parallax-only images on this display are presented and directions for performance improvements and system extensions are explored.by Sundeep Jolly.S.M

Productivity and economics of direct seeded rice (Oryza sativa L.)

A field study was conducted during Kharif season of 2011 and 2012, to evaluate direct seeded rice options as compared to transplanted rice with an objective to improve farm productivity and efficiency. Labour and cost saving of 97% and 80% were observed in direct seeded rice (DSR) as compared to manual puddled transplanted rice in sowing/transplanting. Tillage and crop establishment methods had a significant effect on rice yields. Yield of manual puddled transplanted rice was significantly higher (10-12%) than DSR during both the years. DSR consumed 12-17 percent less water as compared to puddled transplanted rice during 2011, whereas, it consumed 5-9 per cent more water as compared to puddled transplanted rice during 2012. When compared to manual puddled transplanted rice, a labour saving of 7-8 percent (overall) was observed in DSR during both the years. The B: C ratio was highest in DSR in zero till condition (1.74) as compared to manual puddled transplanted rice (1.62). The study showed that the conventional practice of puddled transplanting could be replaced with zero till DSR to save water and labour

Molecular diversity analysis in selected fodder and dual purpose oat (Avena sativa L.) genotypes by using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD)

Genetic variability among 15 oat genotypes comprising fodder and dual purpose oat varieties from different geographical regions was analyzed by random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) marker method in Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, College of Agriculture, Pant University of Agriculture and Technology (G.B.P.U.A. & T.), Pantnagar. The results show appreciably high genetic diversity among the oat genotypes studied. Fifteen (15) primers selected from 20 RAPD primers could amplify 259 clear and identifiable bands, of which 250 bands were polymorphic, accounting for 96.52% genetic polymorphism. All the oat genotypes studied could be distinctly divided into two major groups with the genetic distance level at 0.46 by cluster analysis based on the Jaccard’s coefficient of similarity. The cluster break indicated sufficient genetic variability among the genotypes. Clustering pattern of the varieties appeared such that it can be grouped in the genotypes suitable for the fodder purpose and the dual purpose varieties separately. Several polymorphic bands were also found in different genotypes which helped in molecular diversity analysis of these genotypes. The results found are encouraging and indicate that RAPD technique is an easy, quick and reliable technique used for molecular diversity analysis for preliminary selection.Keywords: Oats, RAPD, genetic diversity, polymorphism.African Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 12(22), pp. 3425-342

Age Detection based on Facial Image using Fusion Extreme Learning Machine Classifier

Age Estimation from the human facial image is a very difficult process since age is influenced by many factors gender, life style, working environment, mental state of the person etc. For age estimation LBP (Local Binary Pattern) histogram are generated and wrinkle estimation is performed using the Gabor filter resulting with the Gabor feature vectors based on the wrinkle levels. Training and testing are done with Fusion Extreme Learning Classifier which is proposed. The proposed fusion classifiers combine the Gabor feature vectors and LBP histograms and estimates the age based on the classification results and manual voting results. The testing is performed with FG-Net database and achieves higher accuracy levels with ease of computation

Contrast Enhancement and Segmentation using Wavelet Analysis and Non–Linear Enhancement in Diabetic Foot Ulcer Imaging

            Diabetic Foot Ulcers(DFUs) affect between 5% to 10% of the population. The area of a diabetic foot ulcer is measured manually or semi-automatically. There is no clear procedure for evaluating the foot ulcer region for the purpose of treatment.The problem to be solved is complex due to the various shapes of the ulcers and their position on the foot, which is not necessarily flat and can cover several areas of the foot.  In this research work, a combination of Logarithmic Discrete Wavelet Transform (LDWT) within a Symmetric Logarithmic Image Processing Model (S-LIP) model is applied for the contrast enhancement of foot ulcer images and then standard Grab-Cut segmentation algorithm is applied for the Region of Interest (ROI) extraction. The experimental results reveal that the proposed contrast enhancement and segmentation model is best suitable for the diabetic foot ulcer segmentation

Representations of specific acoustic patterns in the auditory cortex and hippocampus

Previous behavioural studies have shown that repeated presentation of a randomly chosen acoustic pattern leads to the unsupervised learning of some of its specific acoustic features. The objective of our study was to determine the neural substrate for the representation of freshly learnt acoustic patterns. Subjects first performed a behavioural task that resulted in the incidental learning of three different noise-like acoustic patterns. During subsequent high-resolution functional magnetic resonance imaging scanning, subjects were then exposed again to these three learnt patterns and to others that had not been learned. Multi-voxel pattern analysis was used to test if the learnt acoustic patterns could be 'decoded' from the patterns of activity in the auditory cortex and medial temporal lobe. We found that activity in planum temporale and the hippocampus reliably distinguished between the learnt acoustic patterns. Our results demonstrate that these structures are involved in the neural representation of specific acoustic patterns after they have been learnt

A strategic approach for preparation of oxide nanomaterials

A microwave assisted solvothermal method is described for rapid preparation of nano-oxides. This method is based on exploiting differential dielectric constants to induce preferred heating and decomposition of the oxide precursors in the presence of suitable capping agents. This strategic approach has been used to prepare nanopowders of MgO, NiO, ZnO, Al2O3, Fe2O3 and ZrO2

Fragility thy name is glass

Fragility is a novel concept to understand the behaviour of glass-forming liquids. Several approaches have been made to quantify fragility. In this paper, some important formulae have been briefly introduced. A new approach has been made, in which the ionicity of bonding and a distance parameter have been introduced on the basis of intuitive arguments. An expression has been proposed on a heuristic basis, which seems to give fragilities in good agreement with the reported F Relx 1/2 fragilities