Probabilistic Quantitative Temporal Constraints:Representing,Reasoning,and Query Answering

In many applications and domains,temporal constraints between actions, and their probabilities play an important role. We propose the first approach in the literature coping with probabilistic quantitative constraints. To achieve such a challenging goal, we extend the widely used simple temporal problem(STP) framework to consider probabilities.Specifically,we propose i) a formal representation of probabilistic quantitative constraints, ii) an algorithm,based on the operations of intersection and composition,for the propagation of such temporal constraints, and iii) facilities to support query answering on a set of such constraints. As a result, we provide users with the first homogeneous method supporting the treatment(representing,reasoning,and querying) of probabilistic quantitative constraints, as required by many applications and domains.

High-Speed Railway Train Timetable Conflict Prediction Based on Fuzzy Temporal Knowledge Reasoning

Trains are prone to delays and deviations from train operation plans during their operation because of internal or external disturbances. Delays may develop into operational conflicts between adjacent trains as a result of delay propagation, which may disturb the arrangement of the train operation plan and threaten the operational safety of trains. Therefore, reliable conflict prediction results can be valuable references for dispatchers in making more efficient train operation adjustments when conflicts occur. In contrast to the traditional approach to conflict prediction that involves introducing random disturbances, this study addresses the issue of the fuzzification of time intervals in a train timetable based on historical statistics and the modeling of a high-speed railway train timetable based on the concept of a timed Petri net. To measure conflict prediction results more comprehensively, we divided conflicts into potential conflicts and certain conflicts and defined the judgment conditions for both. Two evaluation indexes, one for the deviation of a single train and one for the possibility of conflicts between adjacent train operations, were developed using a formalized computation method. Based on the temporal fuzzy reasoning method, with some adjustment, a new conflict prediction method is proposed, and the results of a simulation example for two scenarios are presented. The results prove that conflict prediction after fuzzy processing of the time intervals of a train timetable is more reliable and practical and can provide helpful information for use in train operation adjustment, train timetable improvement, and other purposes.

A NOVEL TEMPORAL ERROR CONCEALMENT METHOD BASED ON FUZZY REASONING FOR H.264

In this paper,a fuzzy reasoning based temporal error concealment method is proposed. The basic temporal error concealment is implemented by estimating Motion Vector (MV) of the lost MacroBlock (MB) from its neighboring MVs. Which MV is the most proper one is evaluated by some criteria. Generally,two criteria are widely used,namely Side Match Distortion (SMD) and Sum of Absolute Difference (SAD) of corresponding MV. However,each criterion could only partly describe the status of lost block. To accomplish the judgement more accurately,the two measures are considered together. Thus a refined measure based on fuzzy reasoning is adopted to balance the effects of SMD and SAD. Terms SMD and SAD are regarded as fuzzy input and the term ‘similarity’ as output to complete fuzzy reasoning. Result of fuzzy reasoning represents how the tested MV is similar to the original one. And k-means clustering technique is performed to define the membership function of input fuzzy sets adaptively. According to the experimental results,the concealment based on new measure achieves better performance.

Using AI and Precision Nutrition to Support Brain Health during Aging

Artificial intelligence, often referred to as AI, is a branch of computer science focused on developing systems that exhibit intelligent behavior. Broadly speaking, AI researchers aim to develop technologies that can think and act in a way that mimics human cognition and decision-making [1]. The foundations of AI can be traced back to early philosophical inquiries into the nature of intelligence and thinking. However, AI is generally considered to have emerged as a formal field of study in the 1940s and 1950s. Pioneering computer scientists at the time theorized that it might be possible to extend basic computer programming concepts using logic and reasoning to develop machines capable of “thinking” like humans. Over time, the definition and goals of AI have evolved. Some theorists argued for a narrower focus on developing computing systems able to efficiently solve problems, while others aimed for a closer replication of human intelligence. Today, AI encompasses a diverse set of techniques used to enable intelligent behavior in machines. Core disciplines that contribute to modern AI research include computer science, mathematics, statistics, linguistics, psychology and cognitive science, and neuroscience. Significant AI approaches used today involve statistical classification models, machine learning, and natural language processing. Classification methods are widely applicable to problems in various domains like healthcare, such as informing diagnostic or treatment decisions based on patterns in data. Dean and Goldreich, 1998, define ML as an approach through which a computer has to learn a model by itself from the data provided but no specification on the sort of model is provided to the computer. They can then predict values for things that are different from the values used in training the models. NLP looks at two interrelated concerns, the task of training computers to understand human languages and the fact that since natural languages are so complex, they lend themselves very well to serving a number of very useful goals when used by computers.