Bridging the generation gap between text planning and linguistic realization

Text planning is traditionally done as a separate process, independent of linguistic realization. However, I show in this paper that it is essential for a text planner to know the linguistic consequences of its actions. The choice of how to realize an element affects how much information is conveyed (e.g., “Floyd arrived safely in Boston” vs. “Floyd landed safely at Logan”) and what other information can be added (e.g., “Peter was deciding for an hour” vs. *“Peter made a decision for an hour”). The choice of realization also affects how the relative salience of the elements being expressed will be perceived (e.g., “The green car is in the garage” vs. “The car in the garage is green”). I have defined an intermediate level of representation for text planning, called the Text Structure. It is an abstract linguistic level that reflects germane linguistic constraints while abstracting away from syntactic detail. This representation allows the text planner to have greater control over the decisions, so that it can take advantage of the expressiveness of language to convey subtleties of meaning. More importantly, the Text Structure allows the generation process overall to be incremental, since it ensures that the text plan being composed will always be expressible in the language. La planification de textes est habituellement réalisée séparément, sans tenir compte de la réalisation linguistique. Cependant, ľauteur demontre dans cet article qu'il est essentiel à un planificateur de textes de connai̊tre les conséquences linguistiques de ses actions. Le choix de la méhode de réalisation ?un élément influe sur la quantité?informations qui est transmise (par ex.: 〈〈 Floyd est arrivé sain et sauf à Boston 〉〉 et 〈〈 Floyd a atterri sain et sauf àľaéroport Logan 〉〉) et sur quelle autre information peut ětre ajoutée. Le choix de la méthode de réalisation influe également sur la façon dont les caractères saillants des ééments qui sont exprimés seront perçus (par ex.: 〈〈 la voiture verte est dans le garage 〉〉 et 〈〈 la voiture dans le garage est verte 〉〉). L'auteur a défini un niveau intérmediaire de représentation pour la planification de textes qu'il a appelé structure de texte. Il; s'agit ?'un niveau linguistique abstrait qui refléte les contraintes linguistiques appropriées tout en s'éloignant du détail syntaxique. Cette représentation permet au planificateur de textes ?avoir un meilleur contrǒle des décisions, et done de tirer profit de la force ?expression du langage afin de tenir compte des subtiliés de sens. Plus important encore, la structure de texte permet au processus de génération ?ětre incrémentiel, car elle s'assure que le plan de texte en voie de composition soit toujours exprimable dans le langage.     

On an approach to the automatic evaluation of the subjects' verbal behavior in Roemer's inkblot tests

Roemer, a collaborator of Rorschach's, devised a “symbol test series” that is used as one of the projective methods of psychodiagnostic testing. We refrain from getting involved in the controversy related to the reliability of such technique. A learning program under development is described that would be able to classify the subjects on the basis of their verbal behavior. By comparing the diagnosis of the psychologist, accepted as “objective truth”, with the profile provided by the computer, the quality of the latter can be made to improve continuously.     

A company-office system “Valentine” providing informal communication and personal space based on 3D virtual space and avatars

In this paper we propose a virtual office environment that integrates natural communication and secure private space. The features of this system are the following. (1) This system has a virtual shared room based on the idea of “shared room metaphor” and 3D graphics on an SGI workstation is used for this system. It uses Ethernet media (i.e. real-time audio/video streams). (2) This system implements the field of view of a human by using our “around view” technique. This provides more natural communication between members. (3) “Sound effects” are used to help users feel the presence of other members. For instance, members hear the sound of a door opening when someone logs into our system and the sound of footsteps when someone is walking around our virtual room. (4) At times our system limits the flow of awareness information. A person concentrating on his/her work may not want to perceive excessive awareness of others. To support such situation, we define “awareness space” which restricts the field where other members' awareness is transmitted. Awareness space changes in size with the degree of concentration which is measured through two factors: the movement of a chair and the frequency of keyboard typing. (5) “Headphone metaphor”. A picture of a headphone is attached above a person's image and changes color depending on the degree of concentration. This enables other members to recognize his/her state and can be a criterion as to whether he/she is available to communicate or not. (6) In the virtual space, users are represented as avatars built of 3D polygons and still pictures. The avatars change shape automatically according to the users' action.     

(Russian) Writer‐Bloggers: Digital Perfection and the Aesthetics of Imperfection

This article explores readings of (micro)blogging services as outlets for playful, “imperfect” language. Adopting a transcultural approach, it examines a blog category that has attracted scarce academic attention to date: the creative worker's blog. Through a qualitative analysis of metalinguistic statements by 14 Russian writer‐bloggers, the author tests 2 interdependent hypotheses: (H1) through metalinguistic statements and pragmatic strategies, writers present language play and “imperfect” language as prototypical for new media; and (H2) If H1 is correct, the writer‐blogger's preference for “imperfect” language caters into a broader cultural‐philosophical anxiety – one of foregrounding imperfection as an aesthetic counterresponse to digital perfection.     

A novel approach for electromagnetic inverse scattering of a two‐dimensional perfect electric conductor object

A two‐dimensional shape determination technique for a perfect electric conductor target using electromagnetic inverse scattering is presented. The proposed algorithm uses the scattered field pattern and an inverse scattering technique derived from Green's function to retrieve the geometry of an unknown target. This method uses the scattering field data over a band of observation points, which is synthesized using frequency domain “method of moment” computational technique. We have verified this algorithm with four different types of numerical examples.     

Cross-cultural IS adoption in multinational corporations: A study of rationality

A common claim in the literature on Information Systems' implementation in the context of less developed economies or so-called “developing countries” is that the “Western” technology is at odds with the local cultural context, in particular it is believed to mismatch local rationality in the sense of the accepted ways of doing things. In this paper we investigate IS implementation in a company based in a “non-Western” context compared with IS adoption in another company in a “Western” country context. Seen as a particular form of decision-making, the adoption and implementation processes are analysed drawing on the literature on decision-making, rationality in “Western” and “non-Western” contexts. Presenting evidence from these two contexts we argue that multiple forms of rationality exist in any context and that national culture is only one aspect of actors' as well as researchers' sense-making of activities in any given context. Linking the cases back the literature we reflect on the implications of our findings for cross-cultural research of IT implementation.     

A broadband inverted umbrella shaped cylindrical dielectric resonator antenna for “WLAN” and “C” band applications

The main objective of the present article is to improve the bandwidth of a low profile Cylindrical Dielectric Resonator Antenna (CDRA) and operate it for WLAN and “C” band applications. An inverted umbrella shaped CDRA excited by a microstrip feedline with single stub is proposed here. Efficient coupling has been achieved by means of a single stub microstrip feed between DRA and the feed. The new shape of DRA and a single stub microstrip feed improves the bandwidth significantly as high as 28% from 5 to 6.67 GHz which is quite useful for both WLAN and “C” band applications. The proposed antenna is simple in construction, easy to fabricate, low profile and thickness of CDRA is only 5 mm. A parametric study is performed using Ansoft HFSS simulation software to optimize the antenna performance. The proposed CDRA is fabricated and the characteristics of the antenna are measured.     

Perceived Interior Space of Motor Vehicles based on Illusory Design Elements

Driver and passengers recognize the interior spaces of cars psychologically as well as physically. Since the car companies have difficulty extending the physical spaces of cars due to the cost and physical constraints, they tend to make an effort to widen the perceived space instead of the physical space. In this study, we aim to investigate the effectiveness of car interior designs to which optical illusions are applied to increase their perceived roominess. Instrument panels, door‐trim armrests, and A‐pillars were chosen as the interior spaces of cars that optical illusions were applied to because drivers most frequently recognize and use them. To get alternative car interior designs, the original car designs were modified by applying optical illusions. Also, the questionnaire that includes 28 questions was used to measure “perceived roominess,” “space completeness,” “openness,” “dullness,” and “narrowness” for original interior design and alternative designs based on optical illusions, and 30 people participated in the experiments that were conducted to compare among original and optical illusion–based designs. As a result, optical illusion–based designs were significantly better than original designs in terms of perceived roominess, and the following alternative designs were recommended: the instrument panel design of a 30% longer converging point than the original design, the horizontal door‐trim armrest design, and the A‐pillar design whose cross section is rectangular. We can conclude that the optical illusions can be applied to designing in‐vehicle spaces to increase perceived roominess.     

2D-Shape Analysis Using Conformal Mapping

The study of 2D shapes and their similarities is a central problem in the field of vision. It arises in particular from the task of classifying and recognizing objects from their observed silhouette. Defining natural distances between 2D shapes creates a metric space of shapes, whose mathematical structure is inherently relevant to the classification task. One intriguing metric space comes from using conformal mappings of 2D shapes into each other, via the theory of Teichmüller spaces. In this space every simple closed curve in the plane (a “shape”) is represented by a ‘fingerprint’ which is a diffeomorphism of the unit circle to itself (a differentiable and invertible, periodic function). More precisely, every shape defines to a unique equivalence class of such diffeomorphisms up to right multiplication by a Möbius map. The fingerprint does not change if the shape is varied by translations and scaling and any such equivalence class comes from some shape. This coset space, equipped with the infinitesimal Weil-Petersson (WP) Riemannian norm is a metric space. In this space, the shortest path between each two shapes is unique, and is given by a geodesic connecting them. Their distance from each other is given by integrating the WP-norm along that geodesic. In this paper we concentrate on solving the “welding” problem of “sewing” together conformally the interior and exterior of the unit circle, glued on the unit circle by a given diffeomorphism, to obtain the unique 2D shape associated with this diffeomorphism. This will allow us to go back and forth between 2D shapes and their representing diffeomorphisms in this “space of shapes”. We then present an efficient method for computing the unique shortest path, the geodesic of shape morphing between each two end-point shapes. The group of diffeomorphisms of S¹ acts as a group of isometries on the space of shapes and we show how this can be used to define shape transformations, like for instance ‘adding a protruding limb’ to any shape.     

Interactive design of 2D car profiles with aerodynamic feedback

The design of car shapes requires a delicate balance between aesthetic and performance. While fluid simulation provides the means to evaluate the aerodynamic performance of a given shape, its computational cost hinders its usage during the early explorative phases of design, when aesthetic is decided upon. We present an interactive system to assist designers in creating aerodynamic car profiles. Our system relies on a neural surrogate model to predict fluid flow around car shapes, providing fluid visualization and shape optimization feedback to designers as soon as they sketch a car profile. Compared to prior work that focused on time-averaged fluid flows, we describe how to train our model on instantaneous, synchronized observations extracted from multiple pre-computed simulations, such that we can visualize and optimize for dynamic flow features, such as vortices. Furthermore, we architectured our model to support gradient-based shape optimization within a learned latent space of car profiles. In addition to regularizing the optimization process, this latent space and an associated encoder-decoder allows us to input and output car profiles in a bitmap form, without any explicit parameterization of the car boundary. Finally, we designed our model to support pointwise queries of fluid properties around car shapes, allowing us to adapt computational cost to application needs. As an illustration, we only query our model along streamlines for flow visualization, we query it in the vicinity of the car for drag optimization, and we query it behind the car for vortex attenuation.     

“StoryWeb”: A storytelling‐based knowledge‐sharing application among multiple stakeholders

The research objective of this paper is to develop a storytelling‐based knowledge‐sharing application that enables users to co‐create their own stories for both individuals and groups. To address this, a design science research methodology was applied for elucidating users' requirements. As empirical evidence, a case study was conducted on the children's book industry to synthesize a knowledge‐sharing design application named “StoryWeb”. Usability tests were conducted to reconfigure users' feedback and suggestions after two StoryWeb prototypes were developed. This study makes three main contributions. First, it empirically tests individual's or group's creativity and co‐creation by a view of knowledge sharing. Second, it methodologically applies a design thinking approach into a knowledge‐sharing study. Third, it also practically suggests feasible guidelines for the creativity and innovation research community on which features of storytelling‐based applications can be configured.     

智能小车联网组队方法的设计与实现

随着5G技术的到来,物联网技术的发展不可限量,而在智能交通领域中起着举足轻重的无人驾驶技术和车联网技术必定成为未来研究的热点。那么如何通过车联网技术控制无人驾驶智能车辆进行联网组队也就成为研究的焦点问题。为此,模拟实现了无人驾驶智能小车联网组队运行的全过程。首先介绍了系统总体的设计方案,接着在STM32嵌入式开发平台下进行智能小车的硬件设计,然后介绍了如何利用ZigBee无线通信技术实现无人驾驶智能小车与智能网关之间的通信协议和相应的软件实现方案,最后进行了相应的测试。结果表明,本次设计完成了智能小车在行驶过程中接收和执行控制命令以快速组队的功能。实现了多辆智能小车排列“一”字、“V”字、“X”形、矩形、菱形五种组队队形。     

Model Predictive Control of Hybrid Electric Vehicles for Improved Fuel Economy

This brief proposes a model predictive control method using preceding vehicle information within hybrid electric vehicles' (HEVs') predictive cruise control system to improve car following performance and reduce fuel consumption. This paper adds two original contributions to the related literature. First, a real‐time optimization approach using Pontryagin's minimum principle with analytical methods rather than numerical iteration methods is proposed. Second, to compute the desired battery state of charge trajectory as a function of vehicle position, only the topographic profile of the future road segments must be known. Both the fuel economy and the driving profile are optimized using the proposed approach. Simulation results show that fuel economy using the proposed method is improved significantly.     

An A Contrario Decision Method for Shape Element Recognition

Shape recognition is the field of computer vision which addresses the problem of finding out whether a query shape lies or not in a shape database, up to a certain invariance. Most shape recognition methods simply sort shapes from the database along some (dis-)similarity measure to the query shape. Their main weakness is the decision stage, which should aim at giving a clear-cut answer to the question: “do these two shapes look alike?” In this article, the proposed solution consists in bounding the number of false correspondences of the query shape among the database shapes, ensuring that the obtained matches are not likely to occur “by chance”. As an application, one can decide with a parameterless method whether any two digital images share some shapes or not.     

On Birnbaum–Saunders inference

The Birnbaum–Saunders distribution, also known as the fatigue-life distribution, is frequently used in reliability studies. We obtain adjustments to the Birnbaum–Saunders profile likelihood function. The modified versions of the likelihood function were obtained for both the shape and scale parameters, i.e., we take the shape parameter to be of interest and the scale parameter to be of nuisance, and then consider the situation in which the interest lies in performing inference on the scale parameter with the shape parameter entering the modeling in nuisance fashion. Modified profile maximum likelihood estimators are obtained by maximizing the corresponding adjusted likelihood functions. We present numerical evidence on the finite sample behavior of the different estimators and associated likelihood ratio tests. The results favor the adjusted estimators and tests we propose. A novel aspect of the profile likelihood adjustments obtained in this paper is that they yield improved point estimators and tests. The two profile likelihood adjustments work well when inference is made on the shape parameter, and one of them displays superior behavior when it comes to performing hypothesis testing inference on the scale parameter. Two empirical applications are briefly presented.     

An Optimization Approach to Improving Collections of Shape Maps

Finding an informative, structure‐preserving map between two shapes has been a long‐standing problem in geometry processing, involving a variety of solution approaches and applications. However, in many cases, we are given not only two related shapes, but a collection of them, and considering each pairwise map independently does not take full advantage of all existing information. For example, a notorious problem with computing shape maps is the ambiguity introduced by the symmetry problem — for two similar shapes which have reflectional symmetry there exist two maps which are equally favorable, and no intrinsic mapping algorithm can distinguish between them based on these two shapes alone. Another prominent issue with shape mapping algorithms is their relative sensitivity to how “similar” two shapes are — good maps are much easier to obtain when shapes are very similar. Given the context of additional shape maps connecting our collection, we propose to add the constraint of global map consistency, requiring that any composition of maps between two shapes should be independent of the path chosen in the network. This requirement can help us choose among the equally good symmetric alternatives, or help us replace a “bad” pairwise map with the composition of a few “good” maps between shapes that in some sense interpolate the original ones. We show how, given a collection of pairwise shape maps, to define an optimization problem whose output is a set of alternative maps, compositions of those given, which are consistent, and individually at times much better than the original. Our method is general, and can work on any collection of shapes, as long as a seed set of good pairwise maps is provided. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our method for improving maps generated by state‐of‐the‐art mapping methods on various shape databases.     

NOTE ON THE ARITHMETIC RULE BY ZADEH FOR FUZZY CONDITIONAL INFERENCE

Abstract

This paper shows that Zadeh's arithmetic rule for fuzzy conditional propositions “If x is A then y is B” and “If x is A then y is B else y is C” can infer quite reasonable consequences in a fuzzy conditional inference if new compositions of “max-[Odot] composition” and “max- composition” are used in the compositional rule of inference, though, as was pointed out before, this arithmetic rule cannot get suitable consequences in the compositional rule of inference which uses max-min composition. Moreover, it is shown that the arithmetic rule satisfies a syllogism under these two compositions.     

The use of pressure mapping to assess the comfort of agricultural machinery seats

Interface pressure measurement gives an objective value to human comfort. Prolonged sitting is known to contribute to musculoskeletal disorders. Driving a tractor involves several actions such as steering, operating levers, buttons, brake and clutch pedals, and looking behind to observe and maneuver the machine. These operations affect sitting posture and create a pattern of loading on the structures of the operator's body.The aim of this study was to study barometric mapping at the operator's buttocks-seat interface for comfort evaluation of the agricultural and forestry machine seats. Three different tractor seats (A “low cost”; B “medium cost”; C “high cost”) were tested during ploughing, harrowing and haying operations, by 8 different operators. Two standardized conditions were used, one on a track with ridges and one on an asphalted surface, with driving tests conducted on both. From each test, the following values were obtained: maximum pressure peak (P_max); average pressure value (P_avg); and the average percentage of cells activated by pressures ranging between 50 and 130 g/cm² (NC_50-130), 131–400 g/cm² (NC_131-400) and higher than 400 g/cm² (NC_401-1000). Mean values of P_avg, P_max, NC_131-400, recorded after the two lab tests (on the road and the ridged track) carried out with seat-A tractors were greater (p < 0.05) than those obtained in tests with more comfortable seats (seats B and C). P_avg and P_max mean values recorded after three field tests carried out with A-seat tractors were greater than those obtained in tests with more comfortable seats (B and C). Similarly, the cell activation in the pressure interval 131–400 g/cm² (NC_131-400) in A-seat tests was significantly greater than that of both B and C seats. Based on our findings, it is possible to conclude that the analyzed pressure indexes in this study are useful instruments to describe the characteristics of seat mapping and compare agricultural machine seats as a function of operator's buttocks-seat interface, thus highlighting the comfort rate obtainable in dynamic situations by the operator.SummaryThe sitting posture is one of the main factors that contribute to musculoskeletal disorders. The methodology is based on barometric mapping for comfort evaluation. Tractors seats were tested in three agriculture operations and on two standardized tracks. The study showed indicators to evaluate barometric maps in dynamics conditions.     

Book Reviews

As the results of man-engineered experiments with social design, social “revolution”, socialist “architectures”, and other feats of “social engineering”, are crumbling down, they are causing large-scale human suffering through their failures. There is a renewed awareness that self-organizing and spontaneous properties of complex social systems are much too powerful (and much too vulnerable at the same lime) to respond or be exposed to the endless, reductionistic “tinkering” of policy “makers”, “scientists” of the artificial, and “engineers of human souls”.? ? Geoffrey Vickers, in his Human Systems are Different²⁶ ends up expressing a similar awareness: “It [his book] does not offer a blueprint for the design of human societies. I hope it will weaken the contemporary urge to regard such activities as akin to engineering rather than (at most) to gardening.” View all notes The mankind is again ready to learn how to “trigger”, “catalyze”, “sustain” and “lead-manage” a spontaneous process of social self-organization; it is becoming less inclined to design another “central super-controller”, “information-processing command system”, or “World Brain”.

The purpose of this paper is to show: (1) that theories dealing with “spontaneous social orders” have deep historical roots and (2) that systems sciences are in a good position (better than economics, engineering or sociology) to build upon these roots and expand the theories into useful, practical methodologies. For example, modern theories of autopoiesis and order through fluctuations, especially their rich, computer-based simulation experiments, provide a good and solid point of departure.