Evaluating Overfit and Underfit in Models of Network Community Structure

A common data mining task on networks is community detection, which seeks an unsupervised decomposition of a network into structural groups based on statistical regularities in the network's connectivity. Although many methods exist, the No Free Lunch theorem for community detection implies that each makes some kind of tradeoff, and no algorithm can be optimal on all inputs. Thus, different algorithms will over or underfit on different inputs, finding more, fewer, or just different communities than is optimal, and evaluation methods that use a metadata partition as a ground truth will produce misleading conclusions about general accuracy. Here, we present a broad evaluation of over and underfitting in community detection, comparing the behavior of 16 state-of-the-art community detection algorithms on a novel and structurally diverse corpus of 406 real-world networks. We find that (i) algorithms vary widely both in the number of communities they find and in their corresponding composition, given the same input, (ii) algorithms can be clustered into distinct high-level groups based on similarities of their outputs on real-world networks, and (iii) these differences induce wide variation in accuracy on link prediction and link description tasks. We introduce a new diagnostic for evaluating overfitting and underfitting in practice, and use it to roughly divide community detection methods into general and specialized learning algorithms. Across methods and inputs, Bayesian techniques based on the stochastic block model and a minimum description length approach to regularization represent the best general learning approach, but can be outperformed under specific circumstances. These results introduce both a theoretically principled approach to evaluate over and underfitting in models of network community structure and a realistic benchmark by which new methods may be evaluated and compared.Comment: 22 pages, 13 figures, 3 table

A First Step to Convolutive Sparse Representation

In this paper an extension of the sparse decomposition problem is considered and an algorithm for solving it is presented. In this extension, it is known that one of the shifted versions of a signal s (not necessarily the original signal itself) has a sparse representation on an overcomplete dictionary, and we are looking for the sparsest representation among the representations of all the shifted versions of s. Then, the proposed algorithm finds simultaneously the amount of the required shift, and the sparse representation. Experimental results emphasize on the performance of our algorithm.Comment: 4 Pages-In Proceeding of ICASSP 200

Detectability thresholds and optimal algorithms for community structure in dynamic networks

We study the fundamental limits on learning latent community structure in dynamic networks. Specifically, we study dynamic stochastic block models where nodes change their community membership over time, but where edges are generated independently at each time step. In this setting (which is a special case of several existing models), we are able to derive the detectability threshold exactly, as a function of the rate of change and the strength of the communities. Below this threshold, we claim that no algorithm can identify the communities better than chance. We then give two algorithms that are optimal in the sense that they succeed all the way down to this limit. The first uses belief propagation (BP), which gives asymptotically optimal accuracy, and the second is a fast spectral clustering algorithm, based on linearizing the BP equations. We verify our analytic and algorithmic results via numerical simulation, and close with a brief discussion of extensions and open questions.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figure

Quantitative aspects of CO₂-grafted amine interactions in gas-liquid-solid solubility equilibrium : applications to CO₂ capture

Les effets liés à la présence d'eau liquide sur la capacité d'adsorption de CO₂ par une silice mésoporeuse de type SBA-15 fonctionnalisée au moyen des amines suivantes: aminopropyltrimethoxysilane (APS) et N-(2-aminoéthyl) -3 - (aminopropyl) trimethoxysilane (AEAPS) ont été examinés pour évaluer le potentiel de ce mode de contact dans des laveurs gaz-liquide-solide. Les résultats ont été comparés à la capacité d'adsorption de CO₂ des amines greffées dans des conditions humides et sèches ainsi qu'à la capacité d'absorption de CO₂ dans les systèmes gaz-liquide avec des solutions aqueuses d'aminés ayant des structures semblables à celles des amines greffées. Dans ces conditions, une estimation de l'adsorption physique de CO₂ a été obtenue par l'étude de la SB A-15 non-modifiée. En outre, afin d'évaluer l'efficacité et la stabilité à long terme de l'association amine/SBA-15, les amines greffées ont été soumises à huit cycles successifs d'immersion dans les milieux aqueux d'une durée de 24 h chacune. Les échantillons récupérés ont été caractérisés au moyen de la diffraction aux rayons, des isothermes de sorption d'azote et d'analyse élémentaire CHN. Jusqu'à 40% de la quantité d'aminés greffées a subi une lixiviation durant les quelques premiers cycles de régénération; par la suite, la teneur en azote de l'AEAPS est demeurée relativement stable, contrairement à l'APS qui a connu une moindre stabilité. Fait intéressant, les structures des deux matériaux greffés, APS et AEAPS, sont demeurées intactes après plusieurs expositions à l'eau. L'efficacité de capture de CO₂ la plus élevée a été obtenue dans le cas des amines aqueuses (voie homogène). Cependant, la capture de CO₂ à l'aide d'aminés greffées dans le cas du système triphasique (gaz-liquide-solide) a donné lieu, pour des conditions opératoires comparables, à des valeurs intermédiaires entre les voies sèche et humide du mode de contact gaz-solide

Helicobacter pylori in Iran: a systematic review on the association of genotypes and gastroduodenal diseases

Background: Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection is known as a major etiologic factor for a variety of gastroduodenal diseases. In Iran, with a high rate of H. pylori infection close to 90%, numerous studies have revealed many aspects of interaction between the bacterium, mucosal surface and induction of disease outcome. The organism is genetically diverse and several virulence factors are attributed to the more virulent strains. The well-characterized virulence factors of H. pylori are cytotoxin associated gene A and vacuolating cytotoxin gene A. The distribution pattern of H. pylori genotypes and its association with disease status varies geographically. The present review focused on the virulence factors and genotyping of H. pylori in relation to gastroduodenal disorders in different regions of Iran. Methods: In total, 398 studies were reported on different aspects related to H. pylori in our electronic search from 1995-2011. H. pylori infection and its virulence factors in association with disease status were investigated in 159 reports. Looking specifically at the gastrointestinal tract disorders, the most relevant reports including 37 papers were selected. Results: We found no correlation of cagA genotype and disease status in the majority of studies, whereas vacA was demonstrated as a useful marker in predicting the disease outcome. The results of reports on other virulence factors of H. pylori such as blood group antigen-binding adhesion gene A, the induced by contact with epithelium gene A, the outer inflammatory protein A, the duodenal ulcer promoting gene A, and Helicobacter outer membrane gene and their relation with disease status were contradictory. Conclusions: Although different markers of H. pylori were emphasized as useful when predicting disease outcomes in some studies, the inconsistent researches and the scarcity of data made any conclusion or even comparison impossible. Considering the gap of information observed during our search relating to genotyping and other aspects of H. pylori infection, further investigations are suggested

Serum Zinc Level in Patients with Simple Febrile Seizure

ObjectiveTo evaluate the serum zinc level of the patients with simple febrile seizure and compare them with febrile children without seizure.Materials & MethodsThis prospective case - control study was performed on 60 patients aged 6 months to 6 years from Apr. 2009 to Jan.2010 in Ghaem, Imam Reza and Dr. Sheikh Hospitals in Mashhad. The serum zinc level was assessed and compared between the cases (30 individuals who suffered from simple febrile seizure) and the controls (30 individuals who had fever without seizure).ResultsMean serum zinc level was 663.7 µg /l and 758.33  µg /l in the case group and the control group, respectively (PConclusionIt was revealed that the serum level of zinc was significantly lower in children with simple febrile seizure in comparison with febrile children without seizure.

On the Capacity of Abelian Group Codes Over Discrete Memoryless Channels

For most discrete memoryless channels, there does not exist a linear code for the channel which uses all of the channel's input symbols. Therefore, linearity of the code for such channels is a very restrictive condition and there should be a loosening of the algebraic structure of the code to a degree that the code can admit any channel input alphabet. For any channel input alphabet size, there always exists an Abelian group structure defined on the alphabet. We investigate the capacity of Abelian group codes over discrete memoryless channels and provide lower and upper bounds on the capacity

The reaggregation of normal granulosa-cumulus cells and mouse oocytes with polycystic ovarian syndrome in vitro: An experimental study

Background: The dialogue between oocytes and their surrounding cells plays a major role in the progress of oocyte meiosis and their developmental potential. Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of co-culture of normal granulosacumulus cells (GCCs) with oocytes from polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) mice. Materials and Methods: Normal GCCs were collected from 10 virgin adult Naval Medical Research Institute female mice (30-35 gr, 7-8 wk old), and were cultured in an alpha-minimum essential medium supplemented with 5% fetal calf serum for 24-48 hr (1×106 cells/well). Then, germinal-vesicle oocytes from PCOS mice were cultured in the presence of cultured normal GCCs (experimental group) and without GCCs (control group). The maturation rate and quality of the PCOS oocytes were examined by evaluating TFAM and Cx43 gene expression (real-time PCR) and the connection among PCOS oocytes and normal GCCs after 24 hr of culture. Results: The co-culture of normal GCCs and PCOS oocytes in the experimental group led to the formation of a complex called a PCOS oocyte-normal GCCs complex. The maturation rate of these complexes was significantly increased compared to that of the control group (p ≤ 0.001). A significant difference was also found in the expression of Cx43 (p ≤ 0.001) and TFAM (p < 0.05) genes in the experimental group compared with the control group. The connection between PCOS oocytes and normal GCCs was observed in the scanning electron microscope images. Conclusion: Co-culture with normal GCCs improves the capacity of PCOS oocytes to enter meiosis, which may result in the promotion of assisted reproduction techniques. Key words: PCOS, Co-culture, Granulosa-cumulus cells, IVM, Cx43