3-D Gait Identification Utilizing Latent Canonical Covariates Consisting of Gait Features

Biometric gait recognition is a lesser-known but emerging and effective biometric recognition method which enables subjects’walking patterns to be recognized.Existing research in this area has primarily focused on feature analysis through the extraction of individual features,which captures most of the information but fails to capture subtle variations in gait dynamics.Therefore,a novel feature taxonomy and an approach for deriving a relationship between a function of one set of gait features with another set are introduced.The gait features extracted from body halves divided by anatomical planes on vertical,horizontal,and diagonal axes are grouped to form canonical gait covariates.Canonical Correlation Analysis is utilized to measure the strength of association between the canonical covariates of gait.Thus,gait assessment and identification are enhancedwhenmore semantic information is available through CCA-basedmulti-feature fusion.Hence,CarnegieMellon University’s 3D gait database,which contains 32 gait samples taken at different paces,is utilized in analyzing gait characteristics.The performance of Linear Discriminant Analysis,K-Nearest Neighbors,Naive Bayes,Artificial Neural Networks,and Support Vector Machines was improved by a 4%average when the CCA-utilized gait identification approachwas used.Asignificant maximumaccuracy rate of 97.8%was achieved throughCCA-based gait identification.Beyond that,the rate of false identifications and unrecognized gaits went down to half,demonstrating state-of-the-art for gait identification.

Plausible combinations: An improved method to evaluate the covariate structure of Cormack-Jolly-Seber mark-recapture models

Mark-recapture models are extensively used in quantitative population ecology, providing estimates of population vital rates, such as survival, that are difficult to obtain using other methods. Vital rates are commonly modeled as functions of explanatory covariates, adding considerable flexibility to mark-recapture models, but also increasing the subjectivity and complexity of the modeling process. Consequently, model selection and the evaluation of covariate structure remain critical aspects of mark-recapture modeling. The difficulties involved in model selection are compounded in Cormack-Jolly-Seber models because they are composed of separate sub-models for survival and recapture probabilities, which are conceptualized independently even though their parameters are not statistically independent. The construction of models as combinations of sub-models, together with multiple potential covariates, can lead to a large model set. Although desirable, estimation of the parameters of all models may not be feasible. Strategies to search a model space and base inference on a subset of all models exist and enjoy widespread use. However, even though the methods used to search a model space can be expected to influence parameter estimation, the assessment of covariate importance, and therefore the ecological interpretation of the modeling results, the performance of these strategies has received limited investigation. We present a new strategy for searching the space of a candidate set of Cormack-Jolly-Seber models and explore its performance relative to existing strategies using computer simulation. The new strategy provides an improved assessment of the importance of covariates and covariate combinations used to model survival and recapture probabilities, while requiring only a modest increase in the number of models on which inference is based in comparison to existing techniques.

An integrated method of selecting environmental covariates for predictive soil depth mapping

Environmental covariates are the basis of predictive soil mapping.Their selection determines the performance of soil mapping to a great extent,especially in cases where the number of soil samples is limited but soil spatial heterogeneity is high.In this study,we proposed an integrated method to select environmental covariates for predictive soil depth mapping.First,candidate variables that may influence the development of soil depth were selected based on pedogenetic knowledge.Second,three conventional methods(Pearson correlation analysis(PsCA),generalized additive models(GAMs),and Random Forest(RF))were used to generate optimal combinations of environmental covariates.Finally,three optimal combinations were integrated to produce a final combination based on the importance and occurrence frequency of each environmental covariate.We tested this method for soil depth mapping in the upper reaches of the Heihe River Basin in Northwest China.A total of 129 soil sampling sites were collected using a representative sampling strategy,and RF and support vector machine(SVM)models were used to map soil depth.The results showed that compared to the set of environmental covariates selected by the three conventional selection methods,the set of environmental covariates selected by the proposed method achieved higher mapping accuracy.The combination from the proposed method obtained a root mean square error(RMSE)of 11.88 cm,which was 2.25–7.64 cm lower than the other methods,and an R^2 value of 0.76,which was 0.08–0.26 higher than the other methods.The results suggest that our method can be used as an alternative to the conventional methods for soil depth mapping and may also be effective for mapping other soil properties.

A case-based method of selecting covariates for digital soil mapping

Selecting a proper set of covariates is one of the most important factors that influence the accuracy of digital soil mapping(DSM).The statistical or machine learning methods for selecting DSM covariates are not available for those situations with limited samples.To solve the problem,this paper proposed a case-based method which could formalize the covariate selection knowledge contained in practical DSM applications.The proposed method trained Random Forest(RF)classifiers with DSM cases extracted from the practical DSM applications and then used the trained classifiers to determine whether each one potential covariate should be used in a new DSM application.In this study,we took topographic covariates as examples of covariates and extracted 191 DSM cases from 56 peer-reviewed journal articles to evaluate the performance of the proposed case-based method by Leave-One-Out cross validation.Compared with a novices’commonly-used way of selecting DSM covariates,the proposed case-based method improved more than 30%accuracy according to three quantitative evaluation indices(i.e.,recall,precision,and F1-score).The proposed method could be also applied to selecting the proper set of covariates for other similar geographical modeling domains,such as landslide susceptibility mapping,and species distribution modeling.

A new family of covariate-adjusted response adaptive designs and their properties

It is often important to incorporate covariate information in the design of clinical trials. In literature there are many designs of using stratification and covariate-adaptive randomization to balance certain known covariate. Recently, some covariate-adjusted response-adaptive （CARA） designs have been proposed and their asymptotic properties have been studied （Ann. Statist. 2007）. However, these CARA designs usually have high variabilities. In this paper, a new family of covariate-adjusted response-adaptive （CARA） designs is presented. It is shown that the new designs have less variables and therefore are more efficient.

Marginal Distribution Plots for Proportional Hazards Models with Time-Dependent Covariates or Time-Varying Regression Coefficients

Given a sample of regression data from (Y, Z), a new diagnostic plotting method is proposed for checking the hypothesis H0: the data are from a given Cox model with the time-dependent covariates Z. It compares two estimates of the marginal distribution FY of Y. One is an estimate of the modified expression of FY under H0, based on a consistent estimate of the parameter under H0, and based on the baseline distribution of the data. The other is the Kaplan-Meier-estimator of FY, together with its confidence band. The new plot, called the marginal distribution plot, can be viewed as a test for testing H0. The main advantage of the test over the existing residual tests is in the case that the data do not satisfy any Cox model or the Cox model is mis-specified. Then the new test is still valid, but not the residual tests and the residual tests often make type II error with a very large probability.

A Simulation Study on Comparing General Class of Semiparametric Transformation Models for Survival Outcome with Time-Varying Coefficients and Covariates

The consideration of the time-varying covariate and time-varying coefficient effect in survival models are plausible and robust techniques. Such kind of analysis can be carried out with a general class of semiparametric transformation models. The aim of this article is to develop modified estimating equations under semiparametric transformation models of survival time with time-varying coefficient effect and time-varying continuous covariates. For this, it is important to organize the data in a counting process style and transform the time with standard transformation classes which shall be applied in this article. In the situation when the effect of coefficient and covariates change over time, the widely used maximum likelihood estimation method becomes more complex and burdensome in estimating consistent estimates. To overcome this problem, alternatively, the modified estimating equations were applied to estimate the unknown parameters and unspecified monotone transformation functions. The estimating equations were modified to incorporate the time-varying effect in both coefficient and covariates. The performance of the proposed methods is tested through a simulation study. To sum up the study, the effect of possibly time-varying covariates and time-varying coefficients was evaluated in some special cases of semiparametric transformation models. Finally, the results have shown that the role of the time-varying covariate in the semiparametric transformation models was plausible and credible.

Imputed Empirical Likelihood for Varying Coefficient Models with Missing Covariates

The empirical likelihood-based inference for varying coefficient models with missing covariates is investigated. An imputed empirical likelihood ratio function for the coefficient functions is proposed, and it is shown that iis limiting distribution is standard chi-squared. Then the corresponding confidence intervals for the regression coefficients are constructed. Some simulations show that the proposed procedure can attenuate the effect of the missing data, and performs well for the finite sample.

Pharmacological Treatment of Adult Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder(ADHD)in a Longitudinal Observational Study:Estimated Treatment Effect Strengthened by Improved Covariate Balance

An improved method for estimation of causal effects from observational data is demonstrated. Applications in medicine have been few, and the purpose of the present study is to contribute new clinical insight by means of this new and more sophisticated analysis. Long term effect of medication for adult ADHD patients is not resolved. A model with causal parameters to represent effect of medication was formulated, which accounts for time-varying confounding and selection-bias from loss to follow-up. The popular marginal structural model (MSM) for causal inference, of Robins et al., adjusts for time-varying confounding, but suffers from lack of robustness for misspecification in the weights. Recent work by Imai and Ratkovic?[1][2] achieves robustness in the MSM, through improved covariate balance (CBMSM). The CBMSM (freely available software) was compared with a standard fit of a MSM and a naive regression model, to give a robust estimate of the true treatment effect in 250 previously non-medicated adults, treated for one year, in a specialized ADHD outpatient clinic in Norway. Covariate balance was greatly improved, resulting in a stronger treatment effect than without this improvement. In terms of treatment effect per week, early stages seemed to have the strongest influence. An estimated average reduction of 4 units on the symptom scale assessed at 12 weeks, for hypothetical medication in the 9 - 12 weeks period compared to no medication in this period, was found. The treatment effect persisted throughout the whole year, with an estimated average reduction of 0.7 units per week on symptoms assessed at one year, for hypothetical medication in the last 13 weeks of the year, compared to no medication in this period. The present findings support a strong and causal direct and indirect effect of pharmacological treatment of adults with ADHD on improvement in symptoms, and with a stronger treatment effect than has been reported.

Covariates of Disability-Profile Transitions in Older People Living at Home

The objective of this study was to explore the relationship of sociodemographic, clinical, and health-services use-related variables with transitions between disability-based profiles. In a longitudinal study of 1386 people aged 75 and over living in the community at baseline, disabilities were assessed annually for up to four years with the Functional Autonomy Measurement System (SMAF), which generates 14 Iso-SMAF profiles. These profiles are grouped into 4 disability states, which are predominant alterations in instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs), mobility, mental functions as well as severe and mixed disabilities. Continuous-time, multi-state Markov modeling was used to identify the factors associated with transitions made by older people between these states and to institutionalization and death. Greater age and receiving help for ADL were associated with four transitions, while altered cognitive functions and hospitalization were associated with three, all involving more decline or less recovery. From mild IADL profiles, men have a higher risk of transitioning to intermediate predominantly mental profiles, while women are at higher risk of transitioning to intermediate predominantly mobility profiles. Unmet needs are associated with deterioration, from mild IADL to intermediate predominantly mobility profiles. These results help understanding the complex progression of disabilities in older people.

Variable Selection for Generalized Linear Model with Highly Correlated Covariates

The penalized variable selection methods are often used to select the relevant covariates and estimate the unknown regression coefficients simultaneously,but these existing methods may fail to be consistent for the setting with highly correlated covariates.In this paper,the semi-standard partial covariance(SPAC)method with Lasso penalty is proposed to study the generalized linear model with highly correlated covariates,and the consistencies of the estimation and variable selection are shown in high-dimensional settings under some regularity conditions.Some simulation studies and an analysis of colon tumor dataset are carried out to show that the proposed method performs better in addressing highly correlated problem than the traditional penalized variable selection methods.

Covariate-Assisted Matrix Completion with Multiple Structural Breaks

In matrix completion,additional covariates often provide valuable information for completing the unobserved entries of a high-dimensional low-rank matrix A.In this paper,the authors consider the matrix recovery problem when there are multiple structural breaks in the coefficient matrix β under the column-space-decomposition model A=Xβ+B.A cumulative sum(CUSUM)statistic is constructed based on the penalized estimation of β.Then the CUSUM is incorporated into the Wild Binary Segmentation(WBS)algorithm to consistently estimate the location of breaks.Consequently,a nearly-optimal recovery of A is fulfilled.Theoretical findings are further corroborated via numerical experiments and a real-data application.

Robust variance estimation for covariate-adjusted unconditional treatment effect in randomized clinical trials with binary outcomes

To improve the precision of estimation and power of testing hypothesis for an unconditional treatment effect in randomized clinical trials with binary outcomes,researchers and regulatory agencies recommend using g computation as a reliable method of covariate adjustment.How-ever,the practical application of g-computation is hindered by the lack of an explicit robust variance formula that can be used for different unconditional treatment effects of interest.To fill this gap,we provide explicit and robust variance estimators for g-computation estimators and demonstrate through simulations that the variance estimators can be reliably applied in practice.

Multi-arm covariate-adaptive randomization

Simultaneously investigating multiple treatments in a single study achieves considerable efficiency in contrast to the traditional two-arm trials.Balancing treatment allocation for influential covariates has become increasingly important in today’s clinical trials.The multi-arm covariate-adaptive randomized clinical trial is one of the most powerful tools to incorporate covariate information and multiple treatments in a single study.Pocock and Simon’s procedure has been extended to the multi-arm case.However,the theoretical properties of multi-arm covariate-adaptive randomization have remained largely elusive for decades.In this paper,we propose a general framework for multi-arm covariate-adaptive designs which also includes the two-arm case,and establish the corresponding theory under widely satisfied conditions.The theoretical results provide new insights into the balance properties of covariate-adaptive randomization procedures and make foundations for most existing statistical inferences under two-arm covariate-adaptive randomization.Furthermore,these open a door to study the theoretical properties of statistical inferences for clinical trials based on multi-arm covariateadaptive randomization procedures.

Generalized Height-Diameter Models for Pinus montezumae Lamb. and Pinus pseudostrobus Lindl. Plantations in Michoacan, Mexico

Tree height (H) in a natural stand or forest plantation is a fundamental variable in management, and the use of mathematical expressions that estimate H as a function of diameter at breast height (d) or variables at the stand level is a valuable support tool in forest inventories. The objective was to fit and propose a generalized H-d model for Pinus montezumae and Pinus pseudostrobus established in forest plantations of Nuevo San Juan Parangaricutiro, Michoacan, Mexico. Using nonlinear least squares (NLS), 10 generalized H-d models were fitted to 883 and 1226 pairs of H-d data from Pinus montezumae and Pinus pseudostrobus, respectively. The best model was refitted with the maximum likelihood mixed effects model (MEM) approach by including the site as a classification variable and a known variance structure. The Wang and Tang equation was selected as the best model with NLS;the MEM with an additive effect on two of its parameters and an exponential variance function improved the fit statistics for Pinus montezumae and Pinus pseudostrobus, respectively. The model validation showed equality of means among the estimates for both species and an independent subsample. The calibration of the MEM at the plot level was efficient and might increase the applicability of these results. The inclusion of dominant height in the MEM approach helped to reduce bias in the estimates and also to better explain the variability among plots.

Instrumental Variable Type Estimation for Generalized Varying Coefficient Models with Error-Prone Covariates

In this paper,the estimation for a class of generalized varying coefficient models with error-prone covariates is considered.By combining basis function approximations with some auxiliary variables,an instrumental variable type estimation procedure is proposed.The asymptotic results of the estimator,such as the consistency and the weak convergence rate,are obtained.The proposed procedure can attenuate the effect of measurement errors and have proved workable for finite samples.

Additive Rate Model With Auxiliary Covariates

In this paper, we consider an inference method for recurrent event data in which the primary exposure covariate is assessed only in a validation set, while as an auxiliary covariate for the main exposure is available for the full cohort. Additive rate model is considered. The existing estimating equations in the absence of primary exposure are corrected by taking use of the validation data and auxiliary information, which yield consistent and asymptotically normal estimators of the regression parameters. The estimated baseline mean process is shown to converge weakly to a zero-mean Gaussian process. Extensive simulations are conducted to evaluate finite sample performance.

Estimating Survival Treatment Effects with Covariate Adjustment Using Propensity Score

Propensity score is widely used to estimate treatment effects in observational studies.The covariate adjustment using propensity score is the most straightforward method in the literature of causal inference.In this article,we estimate the survival treatment effect with covariate adjustment using propensity score in the semiparametric accelerated failure time model.We establish the asymptotic properties of the proposed estimator by simultaneous estimating equations.We conduct simulation studies to evaluate the finite sample performance of the proposed method.A real data set from the German Breast Cancer Study Group is analyzed to illustrate the proposed method.

Quasi-likelihood techniques in a logistic regression equation for identifying Simulium damnosum s.l.larval habitats intra-cluster covariates in Togo

The standard methods for regression analyses of clustered riverine larval habitat data of Simulium damnosum s.l.a major black-fly vector of onchoceriasis,postulate models relating observational ecological-sampled parameter estimators to prolific habitats without accounting for residual intra-cluster error correlation effects.Generally,this correlation comes from two sources:(1)the design of the random effects and their assumed covariance from the multiple levels within the regression model and(2)the correlation structure of the residuals.Unfortunately,inconspicuous errors in residual intracluster correlation estimates can overstate precision in forecasted S.damnosum s.l.riverine larval habitat explanatory attributes regardless how they are treated(e.g.independent,autoregressive,Toeplitz,etc.).In this research,the geographical locations for multiple riverine-based S.damnosum s.l.larval ecosystem habitats sampled from two preestablished epidemiological sites in Togo were identified and recorded from July 2009 to June 2010.Initially,the data were aggregated into PROC GENMOD.An agglomerative hierarchical residual cluster-based analysis was then performed.The sampled clustered study site data was then analyzed for statistical correlations using monthly biting rates(MBR).Euclidean distance measurements and terrain-related geomorphological statistics were then generated in ArcGIS.A digital overlay was then performed also in ArcGIS using the georeferenced ground coordinates of high and low density clusters stratified by annual biting rates(ABR).The data was overlain onto multitemporal sub-meter pixel resolution satellite data(i.e.QuickBird 0.61m wavbands).Orthogonal spatial filter eigenvectors were then generated in SAS/Geographic Information Systems(GIS).Univariate and nonlinear regression-based models(i.e.logistic,Poisson,and negative binomial)were also employed to determine probability distributions and to identify statistically significant parameter estimators from the sampled data.Thereafter,Durbin–Watson statistics were used to test the null hypothesis that the regression residuals were not autocorrelated against the alternative that the residuals followed an autoregressive process in AUTOREG.Bayesian uncertainty matrices were also constructed employing normal priors for each of the sampled estimators in PROC MCMC.The residuals revealed both spatially structured and unstructured error effects in the high and low ABR-stratified clusters.The analyses also revealed that the estimators,levels of turbidity,and presence of rocks were statistically significant for the high-ABR-stratified clusters,while the estimators distance between habitats and floating vegetation were important for the low-ABR-stratified cluster.Varying and constant coefficient regression models,ABRstratified GIS-generated clusters,sub-meter resolution satellite imagery,a robust residual intra-cluster diagnostic test,MBR-based histograms,eigendecomposition spatial filter algorithms,and Bayesian matrices can enable accurate autoregressive estimation of latent uncertainity affects and other residual error probabilities(i.e.heteroskedasticity)for testing correlations between georeferenced S.damnosum s.l.riverine larval habitat estimators.The asymptotic distribution of the resulting residual adjusted intra-cluster predictor error autocovariate coefficients can thereafter be established while estimates of the asymptotic variance can lead to the construction of approximate confidence intervals for accurately targeting productive S.damnosum s.l.habitats based on spatiotemporal field-sampled count data.

Impact of Sky Conditions on Net Ecosystem Productivity over a “Floating Blanket” Wetland in Southwest China

Based on eddy covariance(EC) measurements during 2016–20, the effects of sky conditions on the net ecosystem productivity(NEP) over a subtropical “floating blanket ” wetland were investigated. Sky conditions were divided into overcast, cloudy, and sunny conditions. On the half-hourly timescale, the daytime NEP responded more rapidly to the changes in the total photosynthetic active radiation(PARt) under overcast and cloudy skies than that under sunny skies. The increase in the apparent quantum yield under overcast and cloudy conditions was the greatest in spring and the least in summer. Additionally, lower atmospheric vapor pressure deficit(VPD) and moderate air temperature were more conducive to enhancing the apparent quantum yield under cloudy skies. On the daily timescale, NEP and the gross primary production(GPP) were higher under cloudy or sunny conditions than those under overcast conditions across seasons. The daily NEP and GPP during the wet season peaked under cloudy skies. The daily ecosystem light use efficiency(LUE) and water use efficiency(WUE) during the wet season also changed with sky conditions and reached their maximum under overcast and cloudy skies, respectively. The diffuse photosynthetic active radiation(PAR_d) and air temperature were primarily responsible for the variation of daily NEP from half-hourly to monthly timescales, and the direct photosynthetic active radiation(PAR_b) had a secondary effect on NEP. Under sunny conditions, PAR_b and air temperature were the dominant factors controlling daily NEP. While daily NEP was mainly controlled by PAR_d under cloudy and overcast conditions.