Advancing Adversarial Training by Injecting Booster Signal

Recent works have demonstrated that deep neural networks (DNNs) are highly vulnerable to adversarial attacks. To defend against adversarial attacks, many defense strategies have been proposed, among which adversarial training has been demonstrated to be the most effective strategy. However, it has been known that adversarial training sometimes hurts natural accuracy. Then, many works focus on optimizing model parameters to handle the problem. Different from the previous approaches, in this paper, we propose a new approach to improve the adversarial robustness by using an external signal rather than model parameters. In the proposed method, a well-optimized universal external signal called a booster signal is injected into the outside of the image which does not overlap with the original content. Then, it boosts both adversarial robustness and natural accuracy. The booster signal is optimized in parallel to model parameters step by step collaboratively. Experimental results show that the booster signal can improve both the natural and robust accuracies over the recent state-of-the-art adversarial training methods. Also, optimizing the booster signal is general and flexible enough to be adopted on any existing adversarial training methods.Comment: Accepted at IEEE Transactions on Neural Networks and Learning System

trans-Bis[1-(2-anilino-2-oxoeth­yl)-3-benzyl-1H-imidazol-2-yl]palladium(II) methanol disolvate

In the title compound, [Pd(C18H16N3O)2]·2CH3OH, the PdII atom is located on a crystallographic inversion center. It has a square-planar coordination geometry, with the two bidentate ligands coordinated in a trans fashion via the carbene C atom and the amido N atoms. The methanol solvent mol­ecules form O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds with the complex. Additional non-classical inter­molecular C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds link the complexes into a two-dimensional network parallel to (001)

Amphibian communities and physical characteristics of intermittent streams in old-growth and young forest stands in western Oregon

Intermittent, headwater streams recently have been recognized as important components of forest ecosystems and have been provided increased protection by the Northwest Forest Plan. However, few studies have examined their distribution, dynamics, and ecological roles, such as habitat for wildlife. My goal was to provide additional information on the ecology of intermittent streams in the Pacific Northwest. I examined and compared hydrologic, water quality, and physical characteristics of 16 intermittent streams in old-growth and young forest stands in the central Cascade Range in western Oregon. I documented amphibian communities and habitat associations in these streams during spring and summer. I used comparisons of current habitat conditions and amphibian communities between stand types to gain insight into potential impacts of timber harvesting on these stream systems. Of the streams surveyed in old-growth and young forest stands, relatively few (23%) were designated as intermittent based on my definition which included presence of a definable channel, evidence of annual scour and deposition, and lack of surface flow along at least 90% of the stream length. Intermittent streams in old-growth stands exhibited the following characteristics: (1) annual flow pattern in which streams started to dry in May and June and were mostly dry by July; (2) lengthy annual flow durations (range 6-11 months); (3) cool and stable daily stream temperatures; (4) primarily coarse substrates, such as cobbles and pebbles; (5) streamside vegetation comprised of predominantly coniferous overstories, and plant species associated with uplands or dry site conditions, such as Oregon-grape and salal, as well as riparian areas or wet site site conditions, such as Oregon-grape and salal, as well as riparian areas or wet site conditions, such as red alder, oxalis, red huckleberry, and vine maple (Steinblums et al. 1984, Bilby 1988); and (6) low to moderate densities of large wood, mostly moderately- and well-decayed. Study streams in young forest appeared to dry about one to two months later than the streams in old growth but had similar annual flow durations. They also were characterized by higher daily stream temperatures, similar diel fluctuations, finer substrates, more deciduous overstory and herbaceous understory cover, and lower densities of moderately-decayed large wood. Differences in habitat conditions between stand types may be attributed to timber harvesting as well as discrepancies in physiographic and geological factors, such as elevationgradient, and soil type. Amphibian communities in spring and summer were comprised primarily of the Cascade torrent salamander (Rhyacotriton cascadae), Dunn's salamander (Plethodon dunni), and Pacific giant salamander (Dicamptodon tenebrosus). Amphibian communities in streams in young forest stands exhibited different species composition and seasonal patterns in total density from those in old growth. Cascade torrent salamanders and Dunn's salamanders maintained similar densities and biomass between spring and summer by potentially adopting drought avoidance strategies. Species differed in their use of habitat types and associations with habitat features. In general, amphibian species were positively correlated with percent surface flow, water depth, intermediate-sized substrates and negatively associated with overstory canopy cover, elevation, and wood cover. Results of my study suggest that intermittent streams may warrant protection for their potential effects on downstream habitat and water quality and for their role as habitat for aquatic species, such as amphibians. Streamside vegetation should be maintained along intermittent channels to provide shade protection for water temperature regulation and sources of large woody debris and other allochthonous energy input, to help stabilize slopes, and to minimize erosion and sedimentation. At a minimum, intermittent stream channels should receive protection from physical disturbance during timber harvesting operations. However, since intermittent stream systems are highly variable, management should address individual site conditions and vary accordingly

THE VALIDITY OF USING VIRTUAL REALITY HEAD-MOUNTED DISPLAY FOR AGILITY TRAINING

Virtual reality (VR) provides a fully controlled environment with the potential of making sports training easier. However, to date very few studies concerned creating a locomotion training environment enabling multi-directional movements for mimicking realistic locomotion. This study aims to investigate the validity of using low-cost VR head-mounted display (HMD) for agility training in a virtual environment (VE) for ‘real-walking’ locomotion. Three male college participants (age: 24.00±1.00years, height: 1.68±0.09m, weight: 65.63±4.65kg) participated in this study. They were asked to complete two agility ladder training tasks: the forward and backward icky shuffle, in the real environment (RE) and VE. The correlations of the segment trajectories in the RE and VE were calculated, respectively. Moreover, the correlations of the segment trajectories between the two environments were also calculated. The z-test results show that no significant difference has been obtained in the consistency of the movements between the two environments. Also, high correlations in the segment trajectories were obtained between the virtual and real training environment. The results indicate that it is feasible to use VR HMD for agility training

Dispersion of Vascular Plant in Kumo-do, Korea

AbstractThe vascular plants observed in the area were composed of a total of 228 taxa; 72 families, 172 genus, 201 species, 25 varieties, 1 sub-species and 1 cross species. The only endangered plants found in the area were Milletia japonica (Siebold & Zucc.) A.Gray. The endemic plants growing in the Geumodo except transplanted plants were Lespedeza x maritima Nakai and Carpinus coreana Nakai. which accounted for 0.8% of the vascular plants in Geumodo, 228 taxa. Specialized plants of Geumodo were a total of 41 species; 30 taxa in Grade I, 1 taxon in Grade II, 9 taxa in Grade III and 1 taxon in Grade V. Milletia japonica (Siebold & Zucc.) A.Gray was the only species found in important Grade IV to V. Currently, ferries ply to the island, attracting many tourists. This poses a threat to the rare plants living in the island and presses down the island to develop. Therefore, in the long-term perspective, the conservation plan such as comprehensive research and monitoring on the ecosystem shall be established to protect evergreen broad-leaved forests