Behavioral Task Modeling for Entity Recommendation

Our everyday tasks involve interactions with a wide range of information. The information that we manage is often associated with a task context. However, current computer systems do not organize information in this way, do not help the user find information in task context, but require explicit user actions such as searching and information seeking. We explore the use of task context to guide the delivery of information to the user proactively, that is, to have the right information easily available at the right time. In this thesis, we used two types of novel contextual information: 24/7 behavioral recordings and spoken conversations for task modeling. The task context is created by monitoring the user's information behavior from temporal, social, and topical aspects; that can be contextualized by several entities such as applications, documents, people, time, and various keywords determining the task. By tracking the association amongst the entities, we can infer the user's task context, predict future information access, and proactively retrieve relevant information for the task at hand. The approach is validated with a series of field studies, in which altogether 47 participants voluntarily installed a screen monitoring system on their laptops 24/7 to collect available digital activities, and their spoken conversations were recorded. Different aspects of the data were considered to train the models. In the evaluation, we treated information sourced from several applications, spoken conversations, and various aspects of the data as different kinds of influence on the prediction performance. The combined influences of multiple data sources and aspects were also considered in the models. Our findings revealed that task information could be found in a variety of applications and spoken conversations. In addition, we found that task context models that consider behavioral information captured from the computer screen and spoken conversations could yield a promising improvement in recommendation quality compared to the conventional modeling approach that considered only pre-determined interaction logs, such as query logs or Web browsing history. We also showed how a task context model could support the users' work performance, reducing their effort in searching by ranking and suggesting relevant information. Our results and findings have direct implications for information personalization and recommendation systems that leverage contextual information to predict and proactively present personalized information to the user to improve the interaction experience with the computer systems.Jokapäiväisiin tehtäviimme kuuluu vuorovaikutusta monenlaisten tietojen kanssa. Hallitsemamme tiedot liittyvät usein johonkin tehtäväkontekstiin. Nykyiset tietokonejärjestelmät eivät kuitenkaan järjestä tietoja tällä tavalla tai auta käyttäjää löytämään tietoja tehtäväkontekstista, vaan vaativat käyttäjältä eksplisiittisiä toimia, kuten tietojen hakua ja etsimistä. Tutkimme, kuinka tehtäväkontekstia voidaan käyttää ohjaamaan tietojen toimittamista käyttäjälle ennakoivasti, eli siten, että oikeat tiedot olisivat helposti saatavilla oikeaan aikaan. Tässä väitöskirjassa käytimme kahdenlaisia uusia kontekstuaalisia tietoja: 24/7-käyttäytymistallenteita ja tehtävän mallintamiseen liittyviä puhuttuja keskusteluja. Tehtäväkonteksti luodaan seuraamalla käyttäjän tietokäyttäytymistä ajallisista, sosiaalisista ja ajankohtaisista näkökulmista katsoen; sitä voidaan kuvata useilla entiteeteillä, kuten sovelluksilla, asiakirjoilla, henkilöillä, ajalla ja erilaisilla tehtävää määrittävillä avainsanoilla. Tarkastelemalla näiden entiteettien välisiä yhteyksiä voimme päätellä käyttäjän tehtäväkontekstin, ennustaa tulevaa tiedon käyttöä ja hakea ennakoivasti käsillä olevaan tehtävään liittyviä asiaankuuluvia tietoja. Tätä lähestymistapaa arvioitiin kenttätutkimuksilla, joissa yhteensä 47 osallistujaa asensi vapaaehtoisesti kannettaviin tietokoneisiinsa näytönvalvontajärjestelmän, jolla voitiin 24/7 kerätä heidän saatavilla oleva digitaalinen toimintansa, ja joissa tallennettiin myös heidän puhutut keskustelunsa. Mallien kouluttamisessa otettiin huomioon datan eri piirteet. Arvioinnissa käsittelimme useista sovelluksista, puhutuista keskusteluista ja datan eri piirteistä saatuja tietoja erilaisina vaikutuksina ennusteiden toimivuuteen. Malleissa otettiin huomioon myös useiden tietolähteiden ja näkökohtien yhteisvaikutukset. Havaintomme paljastivat, että tehtävätietoja löytyi useista sovelluksista ja puhutuista keskusteluista. Lisäksi havaitsimme, että tehtäväkontekstimallit, joissa otetaan huomioon tietokoneen näytöltä ja puhutuista keskusteluista saadut käyttäytymistiedot, voivat parantaa suositusten laatua verrattuna tavanomaiseen mallinnustapaan, jossa tarkastellaan vain ennalta määritettyjä vuorovaikutuslokeja, kuten kyselylokeja tai verkonselaushistoriaa. Osoitimme myös, miten tehtäväkontekstimalli pystyi tukemaan käyttäjien suoritusta ja vähentämään heidän hakuihin tarvitsemaansa työpanosta järjestämällä hakutuloksia ja ehdottamalla heille asiaankuuluvia tietoja. Tuloksillamme ja havainnoillamme on suoria vaikutuksia tietojen personointi- ja suositusjärjestelmiin, jotka hyödyntävät kontekstuaalista tietoa ennustaakseen ja esittääkseen ennakoivasti personoituja tietoja käyttäjälle ja näin parantaakseen vuorovaikutuskokemusta tietokonejärjestelmien kanssa

Healthcare consumers’ sensitivity to costs: a reflection on behavioural economics from an emerging market

Decision-making regarding healthcare expenditure hinges heavily on an individual's health status and the certainty about the future. This study uses data on propensity of general health exam (GHE) spending to show that despite the debate on the necessity of GHE, its objective is clear—to obtain more information and certainty about one’s health so as to minimise future risks. Most studies on this topic, however, focus only on factors associated with GHE uptake and overlook the shifts in behaviours and attitudes regarding different levels of cost. To fill the gap, this study analyses a dataset of 2068 subjects collected from Hanoi (Vietnam) and its vicinities using the baseline-category logit method. We evaluate the sensitivity of Vietnamese healthcare consumers against two groups of factors (demographic and socioeconomic-cognitive) regarding payment for periodic GHE, which is not covered by insurance. Our study shows that uninsured, married and employed individuals are less sensitive to cost than their counterparts because they value the information in reducing future health uncertainty. The empirical results challenge the objections to periodic health screening by highlighting its utility. The relevance of behavioural economics is further highlighted through a look at the bounded rationality of healthcare consumers and private insurance companies in using and providing the service, respectively

Higher spin gravity

Diese Dissertation ist den Quantenaspekten von Gravitationen höherer Spins (GRAHSs) und den ihnen zugrundeliegenden algebraischen Strukturen gewidmet. Theorien höherer Spins enthalten unendlichdimensionale Symmetrien, die mächtig genug sein sollten, um keine relevanten Gegenterme zuzulassen. Aus diesem Grund wird seit langem erwartet, dass GRAHSs endlich, oder zumindest renormierbar sind. Sobald gezeigt ist, dass diese Eigenschaft tatsächlich realisiert wird, macht sie Theorien höherer Spins zu interessanten Quantengravitationsmodellen. Wenn das keine-Gegenterme-Argument funktioniert, reduziert sich das Problem, eine quantenkonsistente Theorie höherer Spins zu konstruieren, bemerkenswerterweise auf das Problem, ein konsistentes klassisches Modell von GRAHS zu finden. Eine der interessantesten Klassen von GRAHSs ist die chirale GRAHS, die sowohl in der Minkowski- als auch in der AdS-Raumzeit existiert. Sie ist momentan die einzige Theorie mit propagierenden Feldern höherer Spins und einer recht einfachen Wirkung. Die Theorie ist auf perturbativer Ebene lokal. Die Wirkung der chiralen GRAHS ist in der Lichtkegel-Eichung bekannt und vermeidet alle Theoreme, welche die Existenz einer Theorie höherer Spins im flachen Raum verbieten. Wir studieren die Struktur der Quantenkorrekturen in der chiralen GRAHS im Minkowskiraum im Detail. Wir zeigen, dass aufgrund einer nichttrivialen Kürzung unter den Feynmandiagrammen dank einer spezifischen Form der Wechselwirkungen (dem Kopplungs-Verschwörungs-Mechanismus), alle Baumniveau-Amplituden verschwinden; wir analysieren im Detail zwei-, drei- und vier-Punkt Einschleifenamplituden und zeigen, dass diese UV-konvergent sind. Mit Hilfe von Unitaritätsschnitten berechnen wir die komplette n-Punkt Einschleifenamplitude und zeigen, dass sie aus drei Faktoren besteht: (i) der Einschleifenamplitude in QCD oder SDYM mit allen Helizitäten plus; (ii) einem bestimmten kinematischen Verzierungsfaktor für höhere Spins; (iii) einem rein numerischen Faktor der Gesamtanzahl der Freiheitsgrade. Im Kontext von AdS/KFT wird vermutet, dass GRAHSs dual zu recht einfachen konformen Feldtheorien (KFTs) sind: zu freien und kritischen Vektormodellen (Typ-A), freien Fermionen und Gross–Neveu-Modellen (Typ-B) und, allgemeiner, zu Chern–Simons-Materie- Theorien. Wir studieren im Detail die Vakuum-Einschleifenkorrekturen in verschiedenen Theorien höherer Spins in der anti-de Sitter (AdS) Raumzeit. Für die Typ-A-Theorie in AdSd+1 beweisen wir die Vermutung, dass die freie Energie für alle ganzzahligen Spins verschwindet und der freien Energie einer Kugel eines freien Skalarfeldes für alle geraden Spins gleicht. Wir erweitern dieses Resultat auf alle nicht-ganzzahligen Dimensionen und reproduzieren insbesondere die freie-Energie-Korrektur zur 4 − ε Wilson–Fisher KFT als einen Einschleifeneffekt in der Typ-A-Theorie auf AdS5−ε. Wir berechnen ebenfalls die Beiträge fermionischer Felder höherer Spins, die für supersymmetrische GRAHS relevant sind. Es wird gezeigt, dass diese exakt mit der Vorhersage der KFT übereinstimmen. Der Beitrag bestimmter Felder gemischter Symmetrie, die in Typ-B GRAHS vorkommen, wird ebenfalls berechnet. Der letztere Beitrag führt (in geraden Raumzeitdimensionen) auf eine Frage, die zu beantworten bleibt. Freie KFTs haben unendlichdimensionale globale Symmetrien, die in Algebras höherer Spins manifestiert sind. Die holographisch dualen GRAHSs sollten im Prinzip komplett durch diese Symmetrie bestimmt sein. Deshalb ist die einzige Information, die wir benötigen, um eine Theorie höherer Spins in AdS zu konstruieren, eine Algebra höherer Spins, die aus ihrer dualen freien KFT extrahiert werden kann. In dieser Dissertation rekonstruieren wir die Typ-A GRAHS in AdS5 auf der Ebene der formal konsistenten klassischen Bewegungsgleichungen (formale GRAHS).This dissertation is dedicated to the quantum aspects of higher spin gravities (HSGRAs) and to their underlining algebraic structures. Higher-spin theories are governed by infinite-dimensional symmetries called higher-spin symmetries. Higher-spin symmetry should be powerful enough to leave no room for any relevant counterterms. Therefore, higher spin gravities have long been expected to be finite or at least renormalizable. This feature, once shown to be realized, makes higher-spin theories interesting toy models of Quantum Gravity. Remarkably, if the no-counterterm argument works, the problem of constructing a quantum consistent higher-spin theory downgrades to a problem of finding a consistent classical model of higher-spin gravity. One of the most interesting classes of HSGRAs is chiral HSGRA, which exists both in Minkowski and AdS spacetime. It is the only theory at present with propagating massless higher spin fields and a rather simple action. The theory is perturbatively local. The action of the chiral theory is known in the light-cone gauge and and avoids all No-Go theorems that forbid the existence of higher-spin theories in flat space. We study in detail the structure of quantum corrections in the Minkowski Chiral HSGRA. We show that all tree-level amplitudes vanish, which is due to a nontrivial cancellation among all Feynman diagrams thanks to the specific form of the interactions (coupling conspiracy mechanism); we analyze in detail two-, three- and four-point one-loop amplitudes and show that they are UV-convergent. Using unitarity cuts we compute the complete one-loop n-point amplitude and show that it consists of three factors: (i) all-plus helicity one-loop amplitude in QCD or SDYM; (ii) a certain kinematical higher spin dressing factor; (iii) a purely numerical factor of the total number of degrees of freedom. In the context of AdS/CFT, HSGRAs are conjectured to be dual to rather simple conformal field theories (CFT): free and critical vector models (Type-A), free fermion and Gross-Neveu models (Type-B) and, more generally, to Chern-Simons Matter theories. We study in detail vacuum one-loop corrections in various higher-spin theories in anti-de Sitter (AdS) spacetime. For the Type-A theory in AdSd+1 we prove the conjecture that the free energy vanishes for all integer spins and is equal to the sphere free energy of one free scalar field for all even spins. We extend this result to non-integer dimension and, in particular, reproduce the free energy correction to the 4 − ε Wilson-Fisher CFT as a one-loop effect in the Type- A theory on AdS5−ε. We also compute the contribution of fermionic higher spin fields that are relevant for supersymmetric HSGRA. These are shown to match precisely with the prediction of the CFT. The contribution of certain mixed-symmetry fields that appear in Type-B HSGRA is also computed. The latter leads to a puzzle (in even spacetime dimension) that remains to be resolved. Free CFTs have infinite-dimensional global symmetries manifested in higher spin algebras. The holographic dual HSGRAs should, in principle, be completely determined by this higher spin symmetry. Therefore, to construct a higher-spin theory in AdS, the only initial data we need is a higher spin algebra extracted from its free CFT dual. In this thesis, we reconstructed the Type-A HSGRA in AdS5 at the level of formally consistent classical equations of motion (Formal HSGRA)

‘The painting can be fake, but not the feeling’: an overview of the Vietnamese market through the lens of fake, forgery and copy paintings

A work of Vietnamese art crossed a million-dollar mark in the international art market in early 2017. The event was reluctantly seen as a sign of maturity from the Vietnamese art amidst the many existing problems. Even though the Vietnamese media has discussed the issues enthusiastically, there is a lack of literature from the Vietnamese academics examining the subject, and even rarer in from the market perspective. This paper aims to contribute an insightful perspective on the Vietnamese art market, and hesitantly the Vietnamese art as well, through the lens of fake, forgery and copy artworks. 35 cases of fake, forgery and copy paintings were found on the news and from the experts' wisdom. Through the examples, we argue that the Vietnamese art market is a temporary reaction to the immaturely rising of the Vietnamese art and the economy. Therefore, the art market is unable to function healthily unless the Vietnamese art and the economy developed

How swelling debts give rise to a new type of politics in Vietnam

Vietnam has seen fast-rising debts, both domestic and external, in recent years. This paperreviews the literature on credit market in Vietnam, providing an up-to-date take on the domesticlending and borrowing landscape. The study highlights the strong demand for credit in both therural and urban areas, the ubiquity of informal lenders, the recent popularity of consumer financecompanies, as well as the government’s attempts to rein in its swelling public debt. Given thehigh level of borrowing, which is fueled by consumerism and geopolitics, it is inevitable that theamount of debt will soon be higher than the saving of the borrowers. Unlike the conventional wisdom that creditors have more bargaining power over the borrowers, we suggest that—albeitlacking a quantitative estimation—when the debts pile up so high that the borrowers could not repay, the power dynamics may reverse. In this new politics of debt, the lenders fear to lose the money's worth and continue to lend and feed the insolvent debtors. The result is a toxic lending/borrowing market and profound lessons, from which the developing world could learn

Naturalistic digital task modeling for personal information assistance via continuous screen monitoring

Peer reviewe

Proactive Information Retrieval via Screen Surveillance

We demonstrate proactive information retrieval via screen surveillance. A user's digital activities are continuously monitored by capturing all content on a user's screen using optical character recognition. This includes all applications and services being exploited and relies on each individual user's computer usage, such as their Web browsing, emails, instant messaging, and word processing. Topic modeling is then applied to detect the user's topical activity context to retrieve information. We demonstrate a system that proactively retrieves information from a user's activity history being observed on the screen when the user is performing unseen activities on a personal computer. We report an evaluation with ten participants that shows high user satisfaction and retrieval effectiveness. Our demonstration and experimental results show that surveillance of a user's screen can be used to build an extremely rich model of a user's digital activities across application boundaries and enable effective proactive information retrieval.Peer reviewe

Watching inside the Screen: Digital Activity Monitoring for Task Recognition and Proactive Information Retrieval

We investigate to what extent it is possible to infer a user’s work tasks by digital activity monitoring and use the task models for proactive information retrieval. Ten participants volunteered for the study, in which their computer screen was monitored and related logs were recorded for 14 days. Corresponding diary entries were collected to provide ground truth to the task detection method. We report two experiments using this data. The unsupervised task detection experiment was conducted to detect tasks using unsupervised topic modeling. The results show an average task detection accuracy of more than 70% by using rich screen monitoring data. The single-trial task detection and retrieval experiment utilized unseen user inputs in order to detect related work tasks and retrieve task-relevant information on-line. We report an average task detection accuracy of 95%, and the corresponding model-based document retrieval with Normalized Discounted Cumulative Gain of 98%. We discuss and provide insights regarding the types of digital tasks occurring in the data, the accuracy of task detection on different task types, and the role of using different data input such as application names, extracted keywords, and bag-of-words representations in the task detection process. We also discuss the implications of our results for ubiquitous user modeling and privacy.Peer reviewe

Multi-faceted insights of entrepreneurship facing a fast-growing economy: A literature review

This study explores entrepreneurship research in Vietnam, a lower-middle-income country in Southeast Asia that has witnessed rapid economic growth since the 1990s but has nonetheless been absent in the relevant Western-centric literature. Using an exclusively developed software, the study presents a structured dataset on entrepreneurship research in Vietnam from 2008 to 2018, highlighting: low research output, low creativity level, inattention to entrepreneurship theories, and instead, a focus on practical business matters. The scholarship remains limited due to the detachment between the academic and entrepreneur communities. More important are the findings that Vietnamese research on entrepreneurship, still in its infancy, diverges significantly from those in developed and emerging economies in terms of their content and methods. These studies are contextualized to a large extent to reflect the concerns of a developing economy still burdened by the high financial and nonfinancial costs