A discriminative learning framework with pairwise constraints for video object classification

To deal with the problem of insufficient labeled data in video object classification, one solution is to utilize additional pairwise constraints that indicate the relationship between two examples, i.e., whether these examples belong to the same class or not. In this paper, we propose a discriminative learning approach which can incorporate pairwise constraints into a conventional margin-based learning framework. Different from previous work that usually attempts to learn better distance metrics or estimate the underlying data distribution, the proposed approach can directly model the decision boundary and, thus, require fewer model assumptions. Moreover, the proposed approach can handle both labeled data and pairwise constraints in a unified framework. In this work, we investigate two families of pairwise loss functions, namely, convex and nonconvex pairwise loss functions, and then derive three pairwise learning algorithms by plugging in the hinge loss and the logistic loss functions. The proposed learning algorithms were evaluated using a people identification task on two surveillance video data sets. The experiments demonstrated that the proposed pairwise learning algorithms considerably outperform the baseline classifiers using only labeled data and two other pairwise learning algorithms with the same amount of pairwise constraints.     

Synthesis of Single-Crystalline Silicon Nitride Nanobelts Via Catalyst-Assisted Pyrolysis of a Polysilazane

Recently, one-dimensional nanostructures have attracted extensive attention since they are potentially important for both applications and fundamental research. In this paper, we report the synthesis of ultra-long single crystal Si₃N₄ nanobelts via catalyst-assisted pyrolysis of polymeric precursors. The obtained products contain both α- and β-Si₃N₄ nanobelts, which are 50–100 nm in thickness, 400–1000 nm in width, and a few hundreds of micrometers to several millimeters in length. Different from previous techniques for synthesizing one-dimensional structures, the current nanobelts are synthesized through confined crystallization of an amorphous phase. A solid–liquid–gas–solid reaction/crystallization growth mechanism is proposed. The formation of nanobelts instead of nanowires is attributed to the anisotropy growth at an earlier stage.     

Study of partial discharge characteristics at repetitive square voltages based on UHF method

Due to overvoltage produced by inverter output,inverter-fed motor insulation systems often experience fast electrical aging process,especially when partial discharge(PD) is incepted.Before putting into use,the PD detection should be performed on inverter-fed motors at repetitive square voltages to avoid the PD caused insulation deterioration when the motors are collected to inverters having specific characteristics.However,unlike PD tests at AC/DC voltages proposed in IEC 60270,the PD detection at repetitive square voltages is much more complex because of serious interference generated by impulse generator.To solve the problem,ultra-high frequency(UHF) method seems recommendable for its preferable signal-to-noise ratio(SNR).The chief aim of this study is to investigate PD pulse and statistical characteristics of turn-to-turn insulation for inverter-fed traction motors.A square-shaped Archimedes antenna,specially designed for the PD detection at repetitive square voltages of fast rise times,was used to perform PD tests on turn-to-turn insulation models.Time and frequency analysis results indicate that energy component of generator disturbance and PD pulses are mainly distributed in the 0-0.5 GHz and 0.6-1.5 GHz range,respectively.Based on the results,suitable filter was designed for power disturbance suppression.Additionally,resorting to the sensor unit(i.e.antenna and filter) and the PD test system,the PD statistical features at square voltages of different frequencies were obtained.Experimental results show that higher frequency will give rise,statistically,to PD of lower magnitudes distributing at smaller phases.A reasonable interpretation of this phenomenon was presented.Lastly,according to the PD statistical features,some suggestions for the PD detection system design,generator parameter optimization and the PD pulse extracting were given.The results of this work would be beneficial to the increase of the sensitivity when performing the PD detection on insulation systems for inverter-fed motors at repetitive square voltages and thus,improving the reliability of inverter-fed motors.     

Note on “Unrelated parallel-machine scheduling with deteriorating maintenance activities”

In this note, we prove that both problems studied by Cheng et al. [Cheng, T. C. E., Hsu, C.-J., & Yang, D.-L. (2011). Unrelated parallel-machine scheduling with deteriorating maintenance activities. Computers and Industrial Engineering, 60, 602–605] can be solved in O(n^m+3) time no matter what the processing time of a job after a maintenance activity is greater or less than its processing time before the maintenance activity, where m is the number of machines and n is the number of jobs.     

Least squares recursive projection twin support vector machine for classification

In this paper we formulate a least squares version of the recently proposed projection twin support vector machine (PTSVM) for binary classification. This formulation leads to extremely simple and fast algorithm, called least squares projection twin support vector machine (LSPTSVM) for generating binary classifiers. Different from PTSVM, we add a regularization term, ensuring the optimization problems in our LSPTSVM are positive definite and resulting better generalization ability. Instead of usually solving two dual problems, we solve two modified primal problems by solving two systems of linear equations whereas PTSVM need to solve two quadratic programming problems along with two systems of linear equations. Our experiments on publicly available datasets indicate that our LSPTSVM has comparable classification accuracy to that of PTSVM but with remarkably less computational time.     

Identification of Breast Cancer Prognosis Markers via Integrative Analysis

In breast cancer research, it is of great interest to identify genomic markers associated with prognosis. Multiple gene profiling studies have been conducted for such a purpose. Genomic markers identified from the analysis of single datasets often do not have satisfactory reproducibility. Among the multiple possible reasons, the most important one is the small sample sizes of individual studies. A cost-effective solution is to pool data from multiple comparable studies and conduct integrative analysis. In this study, we collect four breast cancer prognosis studies with gene expression measurements. We describe the relationship between prognosis and gene expressions using the accelerated failure time (AFT) models. We adopt a 2-norm group bridge penalization approach for marker identification. This integrative analysis approach can effectively identify markers with consistent effects across multiple datasets and naturally accommodate the heterogeneity among studies. Statistical and simulation studies demonstrate satisfactory performance of this approach. Breast cancer prognosis markers identified using this approach have sound biological implications and satisfactory prediction performance.     

The influence of oleic acid on the hydration and mechanical properties of portland cement

To investigate the effects of OA on the portland cement using oleic acid （OA） as grinding aid and the effects of OA on the portland cement, we characterized the different perfermances of the cement, discussed the characteristics of properties. The results reveal that the OA can reduce the water requirement of normal consistency. With the content of OA added, setting time was extended. The OA can significantly improve the rheological properties of cement-based materials, while the compressive strength decreases.     

皖西地区水面蒸发量变化趋势及其影响因素分析

文章选取了皖西地区具有代表性的水文试验站的长系列实测水面蒸发和气象资料进行了分析、检验。分析结果表明,风速是导致蒸发皿蒸发量减少的主要原因。     

砂土的剪胀方程及其塑性势(Ⅰ):发展现状

以能量守恒原理为主线,在各向同性前提下,对Taylor剪胀方程、Cam-clay剪胀方程、修正Cam-clay剪胀方程、Rowe剪胀方程和扩展的Rowe剪胀方程等进行了较全面的综述.论证了剪胀方程和塑性势函数之间的相互转化关系.指出了Lade-Kim塑性势函数和Nova塑性势函数的缺陷之处,即这两个塑性势函数均没有合理耦合临界状态这一概念.     

城镇化背景下户籍制度变革的历史演绎与未来建言

我国传统的户籍管理模式同计划经济下的统购统销制度、人民公社制度、城市劳动力就业和社会福利保障制度等联系在一起,成为维系城乡二元结构的重要的制度推手,具有明显的历史局限性。突破这种局限,更系统、全面地推进我国户籍制度改革,中央政府有必要作出整体、统筹的安排。比如,在财政上对户籍改革城市予以帮助,提高地方财政用于教育、医疗、社保的资金比例;对外来人口入籍入户较多的、人口增长压力较大的城市加大转移支付力度。