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This paper discusses the use of portfolio approaches based on bandit algorithms to optimize multicriteria decision-making in recommender systems (accuracy and diversity). While previous research has primarily focused on single-item recommendations, this study extends the research to consider the recommendation of several items per iteration. Two methods, Multiple-play Gorthaur and Budgeted-Gorthaur, are proposed to solve the algorithm selection problem and their performances on real-world datasets are compared. Both methods provide a generalization of the Gorthaur method, which enables it to operate with any Multi-Armed Bandit (MAB) and Contextual Multi-Armed Bandit (CMAB) algorithm as meta-algorithm in a multi-item recommendation scenario. For Multiple-play Gorthaur, an empirical evaluation shows that the use of Thompson Sampling for algorithm selection (Gorthaur-TS) yields better results than the original EXP3 method (Gorthaur-EXP3) and the exclusive use of the optimal algorithm in the portfolio in contextual recommendation problems. Additionally, the paper includes a theoretical regret analysis based on the TS sketch proof applied for this variant of the method. Concerning Budgeted-Gorthaur, experiments show that it allows more flexibility to achieve a suitable trade-off between criteria and a broader coverage of the Pareto set of solutions, overcoming a natural limit of "a-priori" methods. Finally, this paper provides a detailed review, including pseudocodes and theoretical bounds, for all the fundamental MAB and CMAB algorithms used in this study. • Bandit literature lacks formal algorithm review, hindering clarity and comparability. • There is no silver bullet: no algorithm can be the best performer in every instance. • Recommender systems need to balance accuracy, diversity, multi-item recommendations. • Optimal algorithm balances criteria, matching decision maker's preferred trade-off. • Dynamic selection ensures safe performance when optimal algorithm is unknown. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intrusion Detection System (IDS) can ensure the network security by identifying network intrusions according to the abnormal traffic data. However, the intrusion detection data has the problem of high dimensionality and changes with network and attack environments, which leads to the poor performance and poor portability of intrusion detection algorithms. Therefore, this paper proposes an intrusion detection algorithm based on joint symmetric uncertainty and hyperparameter optimized fusion neural network. Firstly, a feature selection method based on symmetric uncertainty and approximate Markov blanket is proposed, which fully considers the correlation and redundancy of features, and also the correlation between combined features and the class label, so as to reduce the data dimensionality. Secondly, the CNN-LSTM classifier fused with Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) and Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) is used to extract the spatial features and temporal features to improve the classification performance. Finally, the Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithm is improved and used to automatically optimize the hyperparameters of the classifier, so that the classifier can be applied to different intrusion detection datasets with better generalization ability and portability. Experiments have verified the effectiveness and superiority of the proposed algorithm on multiple evaluation indicators. • An effective algorithm for intrusion detection is proposed in this paper. • Feature selection is based on symmetric uncertainty and approximate Markov blanket. • A fusion neural network is constructed to extract the spatial and temporal features. • The PSO algorithm is improved to automatically optimize the hyperparameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the contemporary world, data pervades every facet of human life, and the information contained in this data plays a pivotal role in shaping decision-making and advancing technology. Among the plethora of techniques available, classification methods are highly effective tools for extracting valuable insights from vast volumes of data. The R ule A ggregation C lassifi ER (RACER) is a novel rule-based classification algorithm known for its exceptional performance. A notable limitation of RACER lies in its inability to handle continuous features. In this paper, we address the aforementioned limitation by employing various supervised discretization methods, including CAIM, MDLP, Decision Tree (CART), and ChiMerge. The impact of these methods on RACER's accuracy and understandability is evaluated across nine datasets from the UCI repository. Additionally, the paper conducts a comparative analysis of RACER's accuracy against well-known classifiers such as Naive Bayes, Logistic Regression, SVM, LightGBM, and Decision Tree. The findings indicate that RACER achieves the highest average accuracy when we utilize MDLP as the discretization method, surpassing its initial average accuracy. Moreover, RACER demonstrates superior understandability by generating the lowest number of rules when employing ChiMerge and Decision Tree for discretizing numerical features. Furthermore, RACER outperforms the other five classifiers when employing MDLP. • The discretization unit enables the RACER algorithm to handle continuous data. • The discretization unit improves the classification accuracy of the RACER. • The discretization unit increases the understandability of the RACER rules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we aim at the cross-period matching problem on a third-party shared manufacturing platform (TSMP) that provides matching services for capacity demanders (CDs) and capacity suppliers (CSs). Considering the impact of delay in meeting demand, we formulate a bi-level multi-objective optimization model (BMOM) with the objective functions of maximizing the manufacturers' matching rate and the TSMP's commission revenue, in which the lower-level model optimizes the matching strategy for the current period, and the upper-level model matches the cross-period demand (i.e., the demand with delay). Then, we propose a method that combines the ε -constraint and a three-stage solution algorithm to solve the BMOM, and the performance of the proposed method is verified by comparing it with the optimization solver CPLEX in numerical experiments. The results of numerical experiments show that the method proposed in the paper has advantages in computational effectiveness and efficiency and can solve the current-period and cross-period joint matching problem of the TSMP, which provides a reference method for TSMPs to optimize the matching strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A feature selection method based on binary dandelion algorithm is proposed. • The algorithm applies a sine-cosine operator and a restart strategy. • Mutual information and quick bit mutation improve the performance of the algorithm. • The algorithm performs well on datasets with larger dimensions. Feature selection (FS) is an important data preprocessing technology for machine learning and data mining. Metaheuristic algorithm (MH) has been widely used in feature selection because of its powerful search function. This paper presents an improved Binary Dandelion Algorithm using Sine Cosine operator and Restart strategy (SCRBDA) for feature selection. First, the sine cosine operator is used in the radius formula of the core dandelions (CD), which significantly enhances the ability of algorithm development and exploration. Secondly, the algorithm uses a restart strategy to increase its ability to get rid of local optimum. Thirdly, mutual information is used to guide the generation of some dandelions, which pays more attention to the correlation between the selected features and categories. Finally, quick bit mutation is used as the mutation strategy to improve the diversity of the population. The SCRBDA proposed in this paper was tested on 18 datasets of different sizes from UCI machine learning database. The SCRBDA was compared with 8 other classical feature selection algorithms, and the performance of the proposed algorithm was evaluated through feature subset size, classification accuracy, fitness value, and F1-score. The experimental results show that SCRBDA achieves the best performance, which has stronger feature reduction ability and achieves better overall performance on most datasets. Especially on large-scale datasets, SCRBDA can obtain extremely smaller feature subsets while maintaining much higher classification accuracy, and satisfactory F1-score. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many-objective optimization problems (MaOPs) are challenging tasks involving optimizing many conflicting objectives simultaneously. Decomposition-based many-objective evolutionary algorithms have effectively maintained a balance between convergence and diversity in recent years. However, these algorithms face challenges in accurately approximating the complex geometric structure of irregular Pareto fronts (PFs). In this paper, an information entropy-driven evolutionary algorithm based on reinforcement learning (RL-RVEA) for many-objective optimization with irregular Pareto fronts is proposed. The proposed algorithm leverages reinforcement learning to guide the evolution process by interacting with the environment to learn the shape and features of PF, which adaptively adjusts the distribution of reference vectors to cover the PFs structure effectively. Moreover, an information entropy-driven adaptive scalarization approach is designed in this paper to reflect the diversity of nondominated solutions, which facilitates the algorithm to balance multiple competing objectives adaptively and select solutions efficiently while maintaining individual diversity. To verify the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm, the RL-RVEA compared with seven state-of-the-art algorithms on the DTLZ, MaF, and WFG test suites and four real-world MaOPs. The results of the experiments demonstrate that the suggested algorithm provides a novel and practical method for addressing MaOPs with irregular PFs. • A novel RL-RVEA addresses many-objective optimization with irregular pareto fronts. • A reinforcement learning-based adaptive reference vector to guide the direction of convergence. • A scalarization approach preserves the diversity of solutions for next generation. • The RL-RVEA outperforms seven advanced many-objective optimization algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the era of rapid paper publications in various venues, automatic citation recommendations would be highly useful to researchers when they write papers. Local citation recommendation aims to recommend possible papers to cite given local citation contexts. Previous work mainly computes the similarity score between citation contexts and cited papers on a one-to-one basis, which is quite time-consuming. We train a pair of neural network encoders that map citation contexts and all possible cited papers to the same vector space, respectively. After that, we index the positions of all cited papers in the vector space. This makes our process for searching recommended papers considerably faster. On the other hand, existing methods tend to recommend papers that are highly similar to each other, which makes recommendations lack diversity. Therefore, we extend our algorithm to perform multi-topic recommendations. We generate multi-topic training examples based on the index we mentioned earlier. Furthermore, we specially design a multi-group contrastive learning method to train our model so that it can distinguish different topics. Empirical experiments show that our model outperforms previous methods by a wide margin. Our model is also light weighted and has been deployed online so that researchers can use it to obtain recommended citations for their own paper in real-time. • Proposed FLCR algorithm with sentence-transformer & k-d tree. • Introduced multi-topic citation recommendation for diverse contexts. • Developed large-scale dataset with 1.7 million citation contexts for evaluation. • Demonstrated significant performance improvement over previous methods. • Deployed demo for real-time citation recommendations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intelligent Fault-Tolerant Control (IFTC) refers to the applications of machine learning algorithms for fault diagnosis and design of Fault-Tolerant Control (FTC). The overall goal of the FTC is to accommodate defects in the system components while they are in use and maintain stability with little to no performance reduction. These systems are crucial for mission-critical and safety-related applications where the safety of people is at stake and service continuity is crucial. In this review paper, a systematic study has been done for the development of FTC with machine learning, deep learning, and transfer learning algorithms. The challenges and limitations faced with their possible solutions through machine learning theories for the IFTC model are lined up. This paper guides researchers on the different possible types of machine learning algorithms and their advanced forms like deep learning and transfer learning. The differences among these are highlighted by the challenges and limitations of each. The paper is significant such that most of the important literature references from the Scopus database particularly related to important electrical and mechanical industrial problems have been discussed to guide the researchers who want to apply IFTC for specific industrial problems, being the research gap. Finally, future research directions for the development of IFTC are highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Identifying the abnormal samples from a data set and determining their type are two key tasks of anomaly detection. However, the existing anomaly detection algorithms are generally faced with the defects of weak generalization ability and insufficient interpretation, the core reason of which is that they cannot mine specific features for different abnormal types. In this paper, a new anomaly detection algorithm aiming at feature selection for different abnormal types is developed. Inspired by self-supervised learning, we take the stationarity of variance changes of abnormal score similarity as a pretext task and combine it with wrapped search method. Then, the features and the corresponding parameters for different abnormal types can be screened to apply to the downstream task of anomaly integration detection. To verify the efficiency of the new algorithm, we conduct two sets of experiments to compare the new algorithm with 11 classical anomaly detection and 3 clustering anomaly detection algorithms on the data sets WDBC, WPBC and Wilt from DAMI database with the evaluation measures P@n , Adj- P@n , AP, Adj-AP and AUC. The experiment results show that, both in the identification and classification on abnormal samples, all performance measures of the new algorithm are explicitly better than that of the contrastive algorithms. Also, we apply the new algorithm to the Chinese auto insurance market, and find that the results can help managers to identify the main patterns of fraudulent claims and to summarize the feature combinations of fraud behaviors. In general, the new algorithm developed in this paper has the following advantages compared with traditional algorithms: 1) It can directly capture abnormal features and realize effective recognition of abnormal types, which effectively bridge the gap between abnormal judgement and feature screening. 2) Automatic screening of abnormal features can be completed under the condition of self-updating learning optimal strategy. 3) Only a few features are extracted from all features to reveal the abnormal characteristics, which significantly improves the interpretability and generalization ability of the algorithm and its results. In a word, through the novel self-supervised design method, feature screening is skillfully integrated into the anomaly detection task, which may provide a new way for anomaly detection research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the advent of the post-pandemic era, the global economic situation has tightened, and the economic benefits of container ports have also been affected. This paper attempts to build a novel berth-tugboat-quay crane joint scheduling method for container ports to reduce the economic cost of container ports. Firstly, from the perspective of the economic cost of container ports, considering random economic factors, this paper proposes a new berth-tugboat-quay crane joint dispatch optimization model, namely E-BUQC, by taking the minimum time cost of vessels in port, the cost of additional freight distance for trucks, the cost of tugboat operation, and the minimum operation cost of quay cranes as the objective function. Then, in order to obtain a relatively high-quality solution, based on chaotic mapping and quantum computing, this paper constructs a new chaotic quantum adaptive satin bower bird optimizer algorithm, namely CQASBO, formulates exclusive coding rules for the E-BUQC model, develops a feasible integer algorithm, and proposes a new joint scheduling solution method of berth-tugboat-quay crane, named E-BUQC_CQASBO. Subsequently, based on the simulation examples of two ports in northern China, the new solution method is tested. The simulation test results show that the E-BUQC model obtains an appropriate solution; The CQASBO constructed in this paper has better performance than other traditional comparison algorithms selected in this paper and can provide a better solution when solving the E-BUQC model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Federated learning (FL) is a distributed machine learning method to protect users' privacy and security. It currently faces the following two problems (McMahan et al., 2017): (1) The performance of the global model degrades when dealing with Non-Independent Identically Distributed (Non-IID) data. Other existing classical methods do not have a rigorous theory based on error processing ; (2) In the process of global model aggregation, the classical FL algorithm either directly averages local models or solely considers the proportion of local data to assign weights to the models, without accounting for the discrepancies between the local models. In this paper, a federated aggregation algorithm Federated Maximum Mean Discrepancy (FedMMD) is proposed to address the deviation between the local models and Non-IID. First of all, this paper utilizes the Dilated Convolution Meet Transformer (DCMT) model for local model feature extraction. This approach aims to capture more feature information and minimize the impact of Non-IID scenarios. Secondly, the learning stability of the local model data participating in the aggregation is compared with Maximum Mean Discrepancy (MMD). The weights of the local models involved in the aggregation are determined using the SKNQ (Student–Keuls–Newman-Q) method and the entropy weight method. The SKNQ method calculates and compares the MMD across multiple clients, while the entropy weight method assigns different weights to clients based on their deviations. On the standard dataset, the FedAvg algorithm (McMahan et al., 2017), the FedProx algorithm (Li et al., 2020) and the FedMMD algorithm are compared. The experimental results demonstrate that the FedMMD algorithm, used in training the global model, not only enhances the accuracy of learning IID and Non-IID data but also improves the generalization capability of the global model. • An DCMT model is proposed to alleviate the model fluctuations caused by NonIID data. • An MMD method is proposed to compared horizontally before the model is aggregated. • Entropy weight method and the SKNQ method are combined to allocate local models' weight when they are fused into global model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the 5G smart grid, battery liquid leakage negatively affects the safe storage and transportation of electricity. Image edge detection help locate the liquid leakage phenomenon. This paper proposes a digitalization-based algorithm that converts the image to the codeword and judges the edge by the code weight. Its main steps are image sampling, quantization, coding and judging. Compared with traditional Sobel and Canny operators, the algorithm dramatically enhances detection ability with machine learning. Moreover, this paper applies the algorithm to detect the leakage of infrared battery images in the 5G smart grid; The results show that it can accurately extract the liquid leakage location, improving fault diagnosis and early risk warning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes an intelligent slope stability prediction method based on the improved pelican optimization algorithm (IPOA) and the optimization random forest (RF) algorithm to reduce disasters and accidents caused by slope instability. First, exploratory data analysis (EDA) is performed using correlation diagrams, heat maps under different states, box plots, histograms, and quantile–quantile (Q-Q) diagrams of variables, followed by establishing a high-quality data set for slope engineering cases and an index system for slope stability prediction. Second, 10 benchmark functions reveal that the IPOA algorithm outperforms other algorithms. Accordingly, this paper develops a slope stability prediction model based on the IPOARF algorithm. Afterward, a set of intelligent slope stability prediction systems is created using MATLAB tools and applied to Lala Copper Mine in Sichuan Province. Finally, this paper compares the accuracy of various models and subjects the proposed model to additional testing. The results reveal that the prediction model based on improved IPOA and RF algorithms is reliable and effective, with an accuracy of up to 90.4%, which can serve as a solid technical basis for slope instability disaster prediction in geotechnical engineering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This paper proposes a new DOSbFC algorithm to remove baseline drift of EOG Signals. • This paper presents a new electrode positioning scheme based on eyeglasses. • This paper provides a long-term eye movement detection function with high accuracy. This paper presents a new method to remove baseline drift and noise by using a differential electrooculography (EOG) signal based on a fixation curve (DOSbFC) and a new electrode positioning scheme based on eyeglasses for user convenience. In addition, a desktop application and mobile applications to control the human–computer interface were implemented. Finally, we created experimental EOG eyeglasses and a new detection protocol using the proposed method for long-term step-by-step detection of eye movements and user comfort. The proposed DOSbFC calculates the difference values of accumulated EOG signals between the initial eye movement and fixation time. It allows long-term detection of eye movements with high accuracy and only requires a single calibration. The vertical and ground electrodes of the standard electrode positioning scheme caused discomfort of subjects; the proposed electrode positioning scheme solves these problems and enables the use of existing eyeglasses without design modification. The experimental results demonstrated that the average accuracy of the long-term eye movement detection was 94%, whereas those of the band pass filter and wavelet transform were 61% and 64%, respectively. This was because baseline drift and noise were removed by averaging the signal variations. Further experimental results demonstrated that the average information transfer rate of the proposed method was 6.0, whereas those of the band pass filter and wavelet transform were 1.1 and 0.9, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reducing the number of lower-level function evaluations (LFEs) is crucial to designing a bilevel evolutionary algorithm (BLEA) for bilevel optimization. Direct neighbor solution transfer (DST) is regularly used in BLEA because it can improve the lower-level search efficiency and reduce the number of LFEs. But this method still faces the challenge of misleading searches to make the algorithm converge to the wrong optimum. This paper proposes a bilevel improved multi-operator differential evolution algorithm (BL-IMODE) for bilevel optimization, which uses the knowledge transfer and adaptive coordinate systems approach. Specifically, this paper proposes a lower-level search knowledge transfer (LLS-KT) and a lower-level (LL) optimal solution distribution information transfer (LLO-DIT) mechanism to implement knowledge transfer. In LLS-KT, transferring LL solutions to the LL optimizer is similar to DST, but the LLS-KT transfers multiple solutions and thus has less possibility of misleading searches than DST. Moreover, the LLO-DIT transfers the LL optimal solution distribution information to the LL optimizer for generating promising offspring solutions. Since this method does not directly transfer LL solutions, it avoids misleading searches. Additionally, the adaptive coordinate systems (ACS) approach is used in two-level optimizers to suit different fitness landscapes and further reduce the number of LFEs. In ACS, three differential evolution mutation operators are produced in two coordinate systems. An adaptive strategy is used to select the suitable differential evolution mutation operator to generate promising offspring solutions in the Eigen coordinate or original coordinate system. Experimental studies on three test suites benchmark problems for comparison with seven state-of-the-art algorithms are conducted. The results show BL-IMODE has a significant advantage over the comparative algorithms. Finally, BL-IMODE is applied to tackle the inverse optimal control problem. • We propose a bilevel improved multi-operator differential evolution algorithm. • We propose a knowledge transfer approach to avoid misleading search. • We propose an adaptive coordinate systems approach to improve search efficiency. • We outperform all existing approaches in most test instances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Feature extraction networks play a crucial role in classification algorithms. However, most convolutional neural networks use the form of residual block stacking to extract downstream features of images, and this simple form is not sufficient to obtain better classification performance. Therefore, this paper proposes a YOLOX detection framework based on an improved ConvNeXt which incorporates many advantages of Swin-Transformer with efficient classification performance. To address the problems of unstable IOU convergence and inaccurate regression coordinates of the algorithm, this paper adopts Manhattan distance as the new penalty term, and the new loss function combines the advantages of Euclidean distance and Manhattan distance, which has no gradient explosion in the early training period and can drop smoothly to a stable point in the late training period. The proposed algorithm is robust to negative effects such as dust, light, shadows, and occlusions, and is well-suited for masked-face detection in industrial and public scenarios. The proposed model is tested on the VOC dataset and the AIZOO open-source masked-face dataset, obtaining 5.58% AP improvement on the VOC dataset and reaching 96.665% AP on the masked-face dataset, which is better than other algorithms. • Designing a deep neural network to use for masked-face detection. • Anchor-free model is used to avoid time-consuming post-processing. • The improved ConvNeXt network improves classification performance. • Adopting Manhattan distance-based localization loss makes training stable. • The Mosaic data augmentation strategy alleviates the overfitting problem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we proposed a novel fitness-value-independent Differential Evolution to tackle complex real-parameter single-objective optimization. There were three innovations in the algorithm: First, dimension improvements based adaptation schemes for control parameters F and C R were advanced in this paper. Different from those fitness value improvements based parameter control in the recent winner DE variants, our algorithm has fitness-value-independent characteristic, therefore, it can be applied in much wider optimization scenarios especially for those that the exact fitness values of the objectives are unavailable. Second, a combined parabolic–linear reduction scheme for population size is employed in the algorithm based on the observation that the slower reduction of population size at the earlier stage of the evolution usually helps to get better perception of the objectives while a linear reduction of population size in the later stage helps to get better exploitation. Third, an indicator is proposed to monitor the diversity of the population and a corresponding population enhancement technique is launched when the diversity is detected bad. The first two innovations have the P arameter a daptive characteristic of the DE algorithm while the third innovation refers to p opulation e nhancement t echnique, therefore, we name our algorithm "the PaDE-pet algorithm". Then, the algorithm is validated under a larger test suite containing 88 benchmarks from CEC2013, CEC2014 and CEC2017 test suites for real-parameter single objective optimization, which may avoid over-fitting problem in comparison with employing a test suite containing a small number of benchmarks. The experiments support the superiority of the novel PaDE-pet algorithm in comparison with several recently proposed powerful DE variants. • A black-box model reflecting complex optimization without available fitness values. • The model reveals the fitness-value-dependent weakness of recent winner DE variants. • A novel fitness-value-independent DE algorithm was proposed to tackle the model. • New adaptation schemes for control parameters and population enhancement technique. • To avoid over-fitting, a larger test suite is employed in algorithm validation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Multi-Objective Discrete Network Design Problem (MO-DNDP) describes the optimisation of a transport network across multiple metrics. Due to the impractical processing times of exact solutions, heuristics have been harnessed to solve this problem. However, the scale of the networks, the set of candidate links and the metrics assessed have been limited. This research proposes a MO-DNDP that encapsulates 8 metrics across three real networks used as benchmarks scaling from 17 km2 to 41,850 km2 to encapsulate the complexity of optimising transport networks at different scales, traffic demands and constraint densities. To solve this more comprehensive MO-DNDP, this paper proposes the Physarum-inspired algorithm PANDA that improves upon the classical Physarum Solver algorithm by harnessing the attractant sensing and merging capabilities of the biological Physarum Polycephalum slime mould. PANDA is a first attempt at solving the complex MO-DNDP using the Physarum foraging model. PANDA consistently scored better than the classical Solver in the land use rating by circumventing landforms, built-up areas, and environmentally sensitive regions. Additionally, PANDA constructed networks that were on average 30 % better than the existing benchmark networks and 32 % better than the Physarum Solver networks. PANDA improved upon the benchmarks by constructing lower capacity roads that were optimised for the actual traffic demand between each origin–destination pair instead of shared arterials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High dimensional and small samples characterize gene expression data and contain a large number of genes unrelated to disease. Feature selection improves the efficiency of disease diagnosis by selecting a small number of important genes. Unfortunately, existing algorithms do not consider the correlation between features, and search algorithms tend to fall into the local optimal solution in the feature search process. To this end, this paper proposes a feature filter and group evolution hybrid feature selection algorithm (FG-HFS) for high-dimensional gene expression data. Unlike existing algorithms, we propose using spectral clustering to group redundant features into a group. Then, we propose a redundant feature filter algorithm. According to the principle of approximate Markov blanket, grouped feature groups are filtered to delete these redundant features. Among them, filtered features are evenly divided by density according to the feature exponential strategy. Most importantly, we propose using the group evolution multi-objective genetic algorithm to search the filtered feature subsets and evaluate the candidate feature subsets according to the in-group and out-group so as to select the feature subsets with the highest accuracy and the least number. Experimental results show that the average accuracy (ACC) and Matthews correlation coefficient (MCC) indexes of the selected feature subsets (FSs) by the FG-HFS algorithm on 5 gene expression datasets are 92.76% and 88.76%, respectively, which are significantly better than the existing algorithms. In addition, the FSs and ACC/FSs indexes of the FG-HFS algorithm are also better than the existing algorithms, which fully proves the superiority of the FG-HFS algorithm. More importantly, the Wilcoxon and Friedman statistical experiments results show that the feature selection effect of FG-HFS algorithm is significantly better than that of existing algorithms, no matter in pairwise comparison or multiple comparison. • We propose using spectral clustering to group the features so that the in-group feature similarity is extremely high. • We propose a redundant feature filter algorithm since existing algorithms cannot filter redundant features. • we propose using the group evolution multi-objective genetic algorithm to search the filtered feature subsets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces a novel surrogate-assisted multi-objective nutcracker optimization algorithm. This algorithm is built upon the recently proposed nutcracker optimization algorithm, drawing inspiration from the behaviours observed in Clark's nutcrackers. The algorithm is developed based on two distinct behaviours exhibited by these birds. To comprehensively evaluate the performance of the proposed algorithm, a dual-pronged approach is adopted. On the one hand, a set of artificial test problems is employed to scrutinize the algorithm's capabilities, while on the other hand, a set of real-world problems is considered to assess its practical efficacy. The results of the proposed algorithm are evaluated in comparison to existing baseline algorithms and state-of-the-art algorithms, using well-recognized performance metrics, both qualitatively and quantitatively. The obtained results provide convincing evidence of the performance of the proposed algorithm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on the deadlock control and scheduling problem of two-stage assembly permutation flowshop with limited buffers. In such a system, all parts are first processed in a permutation flowshop, then assembled into final products. The objective is to find a feasible schedule, including a manufacturing subschedule and an assembly subschedule, to minimize makespan. Owing to limited buffers, not only may the blocking phenomenon appear in the system operation, but also some manufacturing subschedules may lead to deadlock states, making them unavailable. To obtain a feasible schedule, this work first proposes a deadlock control or an availability detection and amendment (ADA) algorithm to determine whether a manufacturing subschedule is available, and convert unavailable ones to available ones. Then by embedding ADA into a social spider algorithm (SSA), a hybrid social spider algorithm (HSSA) is developed for computing feasible schedules. In HSSA, an improved heuristic search algorithm is proposed to generate a better initial population, and a simplified variable neighborhood search algorithm is designed and incorporated into HSSA to enhance its searching ability. Finally, HSSA is tested on instances, showing its superiority over SSA in performance. The effect of buffer size on the scheduling objective is discussed. • The availability of manufacturing subschedules is determined. • The unavailable subschedules can be transformed into available ones. • A hybrid social spider algorithm is developed for computing feasible schedules. • Using an improved heuristic search algorithm to obtain a better initial population. • The local search ability is enhanced by a simplified variable neighborhood search. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The smooth execution of tasks in the cloud manufacturing (CMfg) process can be significantly affected by various real-world uncertainties, resulting in inefficiencies or even failures of the composite manufacturing service (CMS). Nevertheless, current research primarily concentrates on post-exception emergency handling methods, heavily dependent on the planned CMS and real-time status of manufacturing resources, often leading to suboptimal temporary adjustments or even the inability to find a viable solution. Hence, there is an urgent necessity to enhance the robustness of the planned CMS during the service composition and optimal selection (SCOS) phase. In pursuit of this goal, the paper initially presents an adaptive robust service composition and optimization selection (ARSCOS) model. This model dynamically determines whether to await exception resolution or invoke an alternative service, considering the circumstances when a service exception arises and employing task delay time to characterize the robustness of a specific CMS. Subsequently, an enhanced multi-objective artificial hummingbird algorithm (EMOAHA) is devised for this model. Finally, the efficacy of EMOAHA is demonstrated by applying it to nine different scales of civilian unmanned aerial vehicle manufacturing SCOS problems and 17 benchmark functions. The results illustrate that the proposed EMOAHA exhibits superior convergence and diversity in comparison to the other 11 classical intelligent optimization algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In previous studies, ranging errors in the line of sight (LOS) environment were often overlooked, resulting in an increase in positioning errors. In non-line of sight (NLOS) conditions, the measuring distance hardly participates in the location calculation, leading to the loss of useful positioning information. Thus, this paper proposes a WiFi RTT positioning approach based on LOS compensation and trusted NLOS recognition, which improves the performance of RTT positioning by using the compensated LOS distances and trusted NLOS ranges to estimate location. In the proposed approach, NLOS and LOS identification need to be implemented first. A support vector machine algorithm is used to construct a real-time model that recognizes NLOS and LOS distances based on the proposed classification features. Then, the distances under NLOS and LOS environments are evaluated and compensated, respectively, to obtain reliable NLOS ranges and calibrated LOS measurements. A least squares algorithm is utilized to build the LOS distance compensation model, and Bayesian theorem is applied to recognize the trusted NLOS ranges. The compensated LOS distances and credible NLOS ranges are used for estimating the location. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm achieves excellent positioning accuracy, with a mean absolute error of 1.082 m. This signifies a substantial enhancement of 53.34% when compared to the least squares algorithm, a remarkable 60.24% improvement over the weighted centroid positioning algorithm, a significant 36.11% progress in comparison to the RTNLIA algorithm, and a noteworthy 32.82% boost relative to the NLRNB approach. • Real-time and high-precision NLOS and LOS recognition using measuring range and RSS. • A lightweight LOS ranging calibration model is built to improve LOS ranging accuracy. • Trusted NLOS distances are recognized by leveraging RSS and distance measurements. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we present a novel clustering approach that eliminates the need for predefined cluster centres and cluster counts, addressing common limitations in traditional clustering algorithms. We achieve this by allowing each data point within the problem space to serve as a potential cluster centre, determined by the presence of nearby data points. Three distinct algorithms are introduced: i) Identifying valid data points for clustering by assessing their presence within the specified vicinity of each potential cluster centre, allowing data points to belong to multiple clusters, ii) Calculating the fuzzy membership of shared data points among the clusters and iii) Retaining shared data points in the cluster with the highest membership and removing them from others. A comprehensive evaluation of this method using synthetic data and benchmark datasets from well-known problems demonstrates promising performance. Our approach offers increased flexibility, ease of use, and enhances the fidelity of cluster centres to the underlying data distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Feature extraction is one of the fundamental problems in pattern recognition research. For image recognition, extracting effective image features is the key to accomplish the recognition task. In this paper, a partial differential equations-based multi-rank two-dimensional canonical correlation analysis (PDEs-MR2DC2A) is proposed for multi-view feature extraction and pattern classification. Unlike most of the previous researches on multi-view algorithms that work directly on the original 2D representation, in our approach, we first utilize the evolution process of PDEs to extract the feature matrix of per-view. In addition, we employ multi-rank left and right projecting matrices to maximize the correlation. The computational complexity of PDEs-MR2DC2A is also analyzed. To evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm, we conducted a series of performance comparisons with some existing methods on several popular datasets. The experimental results showed that our proposed algorithm performed very well on these datasets and outperformed the existing related methods on some metrics. • A novel multi-rank multi-view algorithm based on PDEs is proposed. • This approach can extract rotation and translation invariant features. • Numerous experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to make multiobjective evolutionary algorithm based on decomposition (MOEA/D) have better performance in dealing with many-objective optimization problems (MaOPs) with different Pareto fronts (PFs), this paper proposes a MOEA/D with adaptive external population guided weight vector adjustment (MaOEA/D-AEW). The algorithm modifies the MOEA/D method of constructing mating pools by calculating the utility function value of individuals in the population to produce high-quality offspring. For the maintenance of non-dominated solutions in the external population (EP), solutions exceeding the capacity of the EP are removed by the method of minimum Euclidean distance combined with the aggregation function value to ensure the convergence and diversity of non-dominated solutions in the EP. For the addition of weight vectors, a new sparsity evaluating method (SL+) is proposed to determine the sparsity of weight vectors by multiplying parallel distances between individuals. For the deletion of the weight vector, the minimum Euclidean distance combined with the aggregation function value is used to delete the weight vector corresponding to invalid or crowded individuals in the population. Comparing MaOEA/D-AEW with six state-of-the-art algorithms on regular PF and irregular PF test problems respectively, simulation results show that the proposed algorithm can adapt well to MaOPs with different PFs and significantly outperforms other comparative algorithms in terms of convergence and diversity of solution sets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a new model for creating fuzzy time series and conducting future forecasts using the Bi-directional Long Short-term Memory model (Bi-LSTM). This study contributes by using both classical machine learning and deep learning techniques. Firstly, a self-updating clustering algorithm is used to determine the optimal number of clusters for time series. Secondly, the study describes a method for determining the fuzzy relationship between elements of time series and the identified clusters. Thirdly, the developed model creates the fuzzy time series based on the established rules. Finally, forecasting for the future value using the Bi-LSTM model with some improvement in optimizing the parameters and increasing the accuracy of forecasting result. The steps of the proposed model are clearly illustrated by a numerical example. Moreover, this model also tested on various datasets, including M3, M4, and M5 datasets. By evaluating its performance using parameters such as sMAPE and RMSSE, the proposed model has shown significant enhancements when compared to existing models. Additionally, the model's effectiveness is further demonstrated through its successful application in forecasting the VN index stock in Vietnam. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The analysis of two-dimensional images enables the detection of structures, objects and their further classification. In the Internet of Things, images are data obtained from cameras or projections of signals. In this paper, we propose a hybridization of the classic RANSAC approach with a selected heuristic algorithm like Grey Wolf Optimizer. This solution allows for increasing the ability to adjust images by analyzing the detected key points of the image. Such hybridization is interesting in terms of the possibility of obtaining stitching accuracy. Moreover, we have introduced the automation of parameter selection to increase the accuracy and speed of the real-time algorithm. For this purpose, an analysis of the results of the algorithm for combining video frames into one large image allowed for a significant reduction in the amount of data processing time. The proposed algorithm was tested on various heuristic algorithms, where their differences and impact on the operation of the method were indicated and discussed. Moreover, the proposition was tested in practical application by automatically creating an image based on video frames recorded by the drone. • Hybridization of RANSAC with a heuristic solution for image stitching purposes. • A method of automating the selection of parameters in the algorithm. • Framework for minimizing the number of calculations in smart devices. • Practical application of the proposed method in IoT solution using a drone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• MMODE is developed as a new hybrid gene selection method for tumor identification. • MMODE combines multi-tasking and multi-objective frameworks. • MMODE uses a new elite strategy and a new guidance strategy. • MMODE selects a few genes and achieves high classification accuracy. A key preprocessing step in tumor recognition based on microarray expression profile data and machine learning is to identify tumor marker genes. Gene selection aims to select the most relevant gene subset from the original ultra-high dimensional microarray expression profile data to improve tumor identification performance. Inspired by evolutionary multitasking (EMT) and multi-objective optimization, this paper puts forward a novel multitasking multi-objective differential evolution gene selection algorithm (MMODE) which uses new elite and guidance strategies to select the best gene subsets. MMODE initializes two different populations according to different filtering criteria to increase the diversity of the search. These two populations guide their respective populations to search in the optimal direction through knowledge transfer in the evolutionary process. In addition, MMODE employs new elite and guidance strategies that enables individuals to narrow the search range and jump out of local optima. The proposed algorithm is validated on 13 publicly available microarray expression datasets in comparison with state-of-the-art gene selection algorithms. The experimental results show that MMODE can find smaller gene subsets and achieve higher classification accuracy compared with other algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the widespread application of Evolutionary Algorithms (EAs), their performance needs to be evaluated using more than the usual performance metrics. In the EA literature, various metrics assess the convergence ability of these algorithms. However, many of them require prior knowledge of the Pareto-optimal front. Recently, two Karush–Kuhn–Tucker Proximity Metrics (KKTPMs) have been introduced to measure convergence without needing prior knowledge. One relies on the Augmented Achievement Scalarization Function (AASF) method (AASF-KKTPM), and the other on Benson's method (B-KKTPM). However, both require specific parameters and reference points, making them computationally expensive. In this paper, we introduce a novel version of KKTPM applicable to single-, multi-, and many-objective optimization problems, utilizing the Penalty-based Boundary Intersection (PBI) method (PBI-KKTPM). Additionally, we introduce an approximate approach to reduce the computational burden of solving PBI-KKTPM optimization problems. Through extensive computational experiments across 23 case studies, our proposed metric demonstrates a significant reduction in computational cost, ranging from 20.68% to 60.03% compared to the computational overhead associated with the AASF-KKTPM metric, and from 16.48% to 61.15% compared to the computational overhead associated with the B-KKTPM metric. Noteworthy features of the proposed metric include its independence from knowledge of the true Pareto-optimal front and its applicability as a termination criterion for EAs. Another feature of the proposed metric is its ability to deal with black box problems very efficiently. • Novel KKTPM metric (PBI-KKTPM) for EA evaluation without prior knowledge of Pareto front. • Addresses limitations of previous KKT-based metrics for convergence assessment in EAs. • Efficient computation of PBI-KKTPM metric for single-, multi-, and many-objective optimization. • Potential use of PBI-KKTPM as a termination criterion for evolutionary algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The differential evolution (DE) algorithm is widely regarded as one of the most influential evolutionary algorithms for addressing complex optimization problems. However, the fixed mutation strategy limits the adaptive ability of DE, and the lack of utilization of historical information limits the optimization ability of DE. In this paper, an indicator-based self-learning differential evolution algorithm (ISDE) is proposed. A jump out mechanism based on deep reinforcement learning is adopted to control the mutation intensity of the population. The neural network in the jump out mechanism is designed as a decision maker. The mutation intensity of the population is controlled by the neural network, and the neural network are trained by a double deep Q network algorithm based on the continuous data generated during the evolution process. A population range indicator (PRI) is utilized to describe individual differences in the population. A diversity maintenance mechanism is designed to maintain individual differences according to the value of PRI. The experimental results reveal that the comprehensive performance of ISDE is superior to comparison algorithms on CEC 2017 real-parameter numerical optimization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The widely used watermarking technique is to hide the watermark information through adding process, which means the watermark is added with the host image to realize embedding. The constraints of these addition-based watermarking systems mainly are non-blind, they are vulnerable to forgery attacks and have the false-positive problem. To solve these problems, a novel blind watermarking scheme based on the QZ algorithm for medical and normal images is first presented in this paper. In the presented scheme, we take the watermark and the host image as two inputs of the QZ algorithm to realize embedding, rather than the adding process. The outputs of the QZ algorithm include four parts: two upper quasitriangular matrices and two unitary matrices. Then the three parts of the outputs are synthesized by the vector synthesis and inverse discrete wavelet transform-singular value decomposition (DWT-SVD) to obtain the watermarked host image. Due to the characteristics of the QZ algorithm, our scheme is blind. The performance is tested and compared by applying our scheme to both medical and non-medical images. The experimental results show that our scheme is robust against various image-processing attacks, forgery attacks, and false-positive problem. And from the comparison results, the proposed scheme outperforms the existing addition-based schemes in terms of robustness against the Median filter, Low-pass filter, Gaussian blur attacks, and forgery attacks, while maintaining good invisibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Moisture affects microbial succession and volatiles generation by mediated with Lactobacillus. • The ratio of ethyl acetate to ethyl lactate and content of acid, alcohol positively relate to moisture. • Increase moisture accelerate formation of Lactobacillus -dominated fermentation microbiota. • Increase moisture enhance complexity and stability of baijiu fermentation ecological networks. Today, image segmentation methods are widely used for various applications, including object detection. Multilevel Thresholding Image Segmentation (MTIS) methods are among the efficient methods for image segmentation. In MTIS methods, it is very important to find the thresholds that gives the best performance for the MTIS and better separate and detect the objects on the image from the image background. Meta-Heuristic (MH) algorithms are among the strategies that can achieve good results in obtaining optimal thresholds to solve this problem. In this paper, we use the combination of Arithmetic Optimization Algorithm (AOA) and Harris Hawks Optimizer (HHO) to improve AOA in exploitation phase, and achieve an optimal threshold vector for MTIS. Therefore, our new hybrid AOA-HHO algorithm solves the MTIS problem with better quality than both AOA and HHO algorithms and some other MH algorithms, and can obtain better thresholds that increase the performance of the MTIS system than AOA and HHO. AOA is powerful in the exploration, and HHO in exploitation phase is powerful. Therefore, AOA-HHO uses the features of both algorithms to search the entire search space locally and globally to find the best find the solution, the high power of the AOA exploration phase, and the high power of the HHO exploitation phase. Also, we use a mathematical equation as the fitness function, that is obtained by using image features. A series of experiments were performed using seven different threshold levels on the test images. Experiments show that AOA-HHO method is better than the compared algorithms and even HHO and AOA in terms of image segmentation accuracy, fitness function value, Peak Signal-to-Noise Ratio (PSNR), Structural Similarity Index Measure (SSIM), and execution time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The possibilistic fuzzy c-means clustering (PFCM) algorithm is a hybridization of possibilistic c-means clustering (PCM) and fuzzy c-means clustering (FCM) algorithms. However, there are two main problems in PFCM. One is that the Euclidean distance employed in PFCM always disregards the imbalance among sample features because it treats all features of data equally, which easily causes misclassification for feature-imbalanced multidimensional data. The other is that PFCM always produces significant center deviations and overlapping centers for multiclass datasets with strong noise injection, due to the difficulty of PFCM in the membership-weight parameter setting and the lack of between-class relationships in possibilistic memberships. Therefore, a feature-weighted suppressed possibilistic fuzzy c-means clustering (FW-S-PFCM) algorithm is presented by introducing a feature-weighted method and "suppressed competitive learning" strategy into the PFCM algorithm in this paper. First, the FW-S-PFCM algorithm introduces a feature-weight matrix into the objective function that can automatically assign feature-weight values to different features and different clusters according to the distribution of samples, thus overcoming the influence of feature imbalance and improving clustering effects for noisy multidimensional datasets. Second, combined with the feature-weight matrix, a "suppressed competitive learning" strategy is designed to resolve the center-overlapping problem in noisy multiclass dataset clustering. Specifically, partial crucial points of each class near the center are selected according to a cluster core generated by a cross-section of a threshold on the possibilistic membership surface. Third, their possibilistic memberships participate in the suppressed learning process to overcome the lack of between-class relationships. Last, a segmentation algorithm for noisy color images based on FW-S-PFCM is proposed combined with the feature-weight method and noise-identification ability of possibilistic memberships. Experiments on synthetic data, UCI data and color image segmentation demonstrate that the proposed FW-S-PFCM algorithm can overcome the partial center-overlapping problem and improve clustering performance on complex datasets with feature imbalance and strong noise injection. The proposed algorithm can also reduce the iteration number, sensitivity to membership weights, and initializations of PFCM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • A novel modeling strategy for Decision Trees is proposed. • Interactive basis functions induce oblique and non-linear decision boundaries. • Benchmarking shows potential gains in accuracy and/or parsimony of models. • Empirical examples illustrate the application of the modeling strategy. • Decision charts are introduced to improve the interpretability of models. Abstract Decision Trees (DTs) are a machine learning technique widely used for regression and classification purposes. Conventionally, the decision boundaries of Decision Trees are orthogonal to the features under consideration. A well-known limitation of this is that the algorithm may fail to find optimal partitions, or in some cases any partitions at all, depending on the underlying distribution of the data. To remedy this limitation, several modifications have been proposed that allow for oblique decision boundaries. The objective of this paper is to propose a new strategy for generating flexible decision boundaries by means of interactive basis functions (IBFs). We show how oblique decision boundaries can be obtained as a particular case of IBFs, and in addition how non-linear decision boundaries can be induced. One attractive aspect of the strategy proposed in this paper is that training Decision Trees with IBFs does not require custom software, since the functions can be precalculated for use in any existing implementation of the algorithm. Since the underlying mechanisms remain unchanged there is no substantial computational overhead compared to conventional trees. Furthermore, this also means that IBFs can be used in any extensions of the Decision Tree algorithm, such as evolutionary trees, boosting, and bagging. We conduct a benchmarking exercise to understand under which conditions the use of IBFs can improve model the performance. In addition, we present three empirical applications that illustrate the approach in classification and regression. As part of discussing the empirical applications, we introduce a device called decision charts to facilitate the interpretation of DTs with IBFs. Finally, we conclude the paper by outlining some directions for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Fault prediction improves the effectiveness of software quality assurance activities. • This paper focuses on building an effective fault prediction classifier. • Fault prediction model using Iterated feature selection algorithms with L-RNN. • We perform experiments on 19 open source projects. • Fault prediction model is best suitable for projects with faulty classes less than the threshold value. Abstract Software fault prediction (SFP) is typically used to predict faults in software components. Machine learning techniques (e.g., classification) are widely used to tackle this problem. With the availability of the huge amount of data that can be obtained from mining software historical repositories, it becomes possible to have some features (metrics) that are not correlated with the faults, which consequently mislead the learning algorithm and thus decrease its performance. One possible solution to eliminate those metrics is Feature Selection (FS). In this paper, a novel FS approach is proposed to enhance the performance of a layered recurrent neural network (L-RNN), which is used as a classification technique for the SFP problem. Three different wrapper FS algorithms (i.e, Binary Genetic Algorithm (BGA), Binary Particle Swarm Optimization (BPSO), and Binary Ant Colony Optimization (BACO)) were employed iteratively. To assess the performance of the proposed approach, 19 real-world software projects from PROMISE repository are investigated and the experimental results are discussed. Receiver operating characteristic - area under the curve (ROC-AUC) is used as a performance measure. The results are compared with other state-of-art approaches including Naïve Bayes (NB), Artificial Neural Network (ANN), logistic regression (LR), the k-nearest neighbors (k-NN) and C4.5 decision trees, in terms of area under the curve (AUC). Our results have demonstrated that the proposed approach can outperform other existing methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Process model for transformation of formalized sentences into relational database. • Algorithms of functions and procedures for each step of transformation. • Meta model for the structure and content of formalized sentences in the relational database. Abstract Verbalized text contains knowledge necessary and sufficient for transfer of numerous human cognitions. The question is how this knowledge was saved into text. Authors believe that they found an important idea how to assemble knowledge into nodes of knowledge. Similar methods in the field of knowledge networks exist, but none of them does it in the same way as the Node of Knowledge (NOK) method. Basic terms and concepts in a language are represented in words whose meaning is final and cannot be divided in subterms. More complex meaning can be achieved by combining words in sentences. According to authors' opinion, each sentence includes connective medium for words in the sentence (related to semantic reasons), which is inwrought in the Node of Knowledge method. Using the Node of Knowledge method each sentence can be presented as a network of connected words. This network is enriched with links between words so a computer can interpret meaning and knowledge of the sentence in the same way an intelligent person does. A formalized and semantically enriched record of sentences (called Formalized Node of Knowledge – FNOK) is developed. Authors find that in this way, even without statistical text analysis, an algorithm can give correct answer to a question set based on written text. This paper presents the system for transformation of textual knowledge expressed in natural language sentences into a relational database. The system is a part of a larger knowledge-based system based on the Node of Knowledge (NOK) conceptual framework for knowledge-based system development. This paper starts with sentences written in the formalized and enriched form for which a logical transformation into the structure of a relational database is proposed. The system and algorithms for the transformation of formalized sentences into n-tuples of the relational database are distributed and represented in several steps. The research has shown that it is possible to store semantically enriched sentences in relational databases. The solution presented in this paper is important for further development of the system for receiving questions from users and providing answers (i.e. question-answering system), with the ability to use well-developed relational SQL languages. Relational database of texts enables numerous applications in the field of expert and intelligent systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper characterizes a class of repeated moral hazard problem where the agent's replacement action is necessary for assuring the performance of important materials and equipment. However, due to the principal's costly monitoring, the continuously decreasing performance caused by the agent's successive shirking behaviors will significantly harm the principal's profits or welfare. For sake of performance assurance and monitoring efficiency, this paper adopts two reinforcement learning algorithms to find and test the strategies on the final path satisfying the conditions of (Restricted) Experience Based Equilibrium. Experimental results in a case of quality assurance of grain demonstrate the effectiveness of the model and the solution methods. Practically, this framework especially fits a kind of government-enterprise relation, such as in the field of emergency materials management and safety production management. Given the increasing need of developing systems for the government's management, this paper aims to provide applicable strategies and guidelines from a theoretical perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mining incrementally closed item sets is an essential problem in data mining. Once closed item sets and their frequencies are found, the frequentation of a found closed item set is always determined. In recent times, concept lattice has been used as an intermediate structure for the purpose of mining incrementally (frequent) closed sets. However, lattice operations are very time-consuming when data fluctuates as well as the memory for lattice is consumed a lot when data becomes large. This paper proposes an intermediate structure called constructive set to produce closed sets along with their occurrence frequencies. The constructive set is constructed from a set of group patterns – an extended form of bit chains. This paper also proposes algorithms based on the constructive set for mining incrementally closed sets when adding and removing transactions. The proposed algorithms along with storing and calculating on bit data have significant advantages shown through experiments and comparisons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces a novel proposal to discover the best associative classification rules through studying the influence of the attributes used in robust catalogues. Notice that a catalogue is defined as a dataset free of duplicate records. Moreover, a robust catalogue is obtained when incomplete records and those with uncertainty are eliminated from a catalogue. Therefore, a robust catalogue is a collection of association rules with 100% confidence and unitary support. In this paper we demonstrate that robust catalogues contain the same association rules as the datasets from which they were obtained, but can be managed in memory without eliminating any data from the analysis. In fact, the experiments performed show that all robust catalogues contained in a classification dataset are easily obtained, providing millions of associative classification rules with 100% confidence to the expert researcher in data mining. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The motivation of this paper follows strictly from industrial needs to improve competitiveness in railway companies by the efficient rolling stock utilization affected by the obligatory preventive maintenances of vehicles, which cause their temporary unavailability. Nevertheless, it is economically essential to minimize the total time on maintenances of vehicles, which can be achieved in a certain range by the scheduling of transport tasks taking into account maintenance policies of the vehicles, their mileage and date since the last maintenance, and the workload related to the tasks. Therefore, to face the problem, we model the consider issue as the job scheduling problem to maximize the availability of railway vehicles under preventive maintenances. We prove that the problem is strongly NP-hard and we propose efficient heuristic and metaheuristic algorithms that are characterized by a low computational complexity and they are able to find solutions satisfying from the perspective of industrial practice. The simulations based on real-life data reveal that our approach can provide schedules, which significantly improve availability of locomotives resulting in high potential financial benefits for railway companies. • The total time of maintenance can be minimized by the scheduling of transport tasks • The railway vehicle availability problem under preventive maintenance is formulated • The considered problem is proved to be strongly NP-hard • The proposed scheduling algorithms improve availability of railway vehicles • The results obtained on real-life data are satisfying for the industrial practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artificial rabbits optimization (ARO) is a swarm intelligence-based algorithm inspired by the survival strategies of rabbits. Although ARO has a good convergence rate, it is prone to get stuck in the local optima and converge prematurely. To overcome this, the present paper redesigns the exploration operator of the ARO algorithm with the roulette fitness-distance balance (RFDB) and dynamic fitness-distance balance (d FDB) strategies. In this context, three different versions of the fitness-distance balance-based artificial rabbits optimization (FDBARO) algorithm are developed. The performance of the original ARO and FDBARO versions (FDBARO-1, FDBARO-2, and FDBARO-3) are evaluated on CEC 2017 and CEC 2020 benchmark functions. The obtained results are analyzed with the Wilcoxon and Friedman statistical tests. Statistical and convergence analysis results showed that the FDBARO-3 algorithm designed with the d FDB selection method can explore the search space more successfully compared to other algorithms. This version was named the dynamic FDBARO (d FDBARO) algorithm. Moreover, the practicability of the proposed d FDBARO is highlighted by the solution of the optimal power flow (OPF) problem formulated with renewable energy sources (RESs) and flexible alternating current transmission system (FACTS) devices considering fixed and uncertain load demands. Experimental results showed that the proposed d FDBARO is a competitive algorithm for solving global optimization and constrained OPF problems. The source code of the d FDBARO algorithm is available at https://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/fileexchange/154845-dfdbaro-an-enhanced-metaheuristic-algorithm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing 3D Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) for medical image segmentation is challenging due to the limited number of available labeled medical images and computational resources. Effective design of a 3D CNN requires a better structure and appropriate hyperparameters. Manually designing a neural network and choosing appropriate hyperparameters requires extensive knowledge, a time-consuming and challenging process, resulting in complex and over-parameterized networks. Neuroevolution is an automatic and effective approach to finding an optimal network structure and hyperparameters. This paper proposes an evolutionary based method using Chameleon Swarm Algorithm (CSA) to develop 3D CNN networks for volume segmentation. We also design a search space to build optimal 3D block-based encoder–decoder structure networks for medical image segmentation. We evaluated the proposed method on two different datasets (CT Spleen and MRI Heart) and compared the results of the obtained model with state-of-the-art models. Furthermore, the comparative results show that our proposed method yields 3D CNN networks with superior performance and fewer parameters than other state-of-the-art models utilized in 3D medical image segmentation. [Display omitted] • Proposed a dynamic 3D CNN for medical image segmentation with fewer parameters. • Implemented search space with various blocks, parameters for encoder–decoder network. • Employed CSA to search the optimal network structure and training hyperparameters. • Results demonstrate the effectiveness of proposed method for 3D segmentation tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fuzzy c-means (FCM) clustering algorithm requires the pre-definition of the number of clusters. When used for imbalanced datasets, FCM tends to equalize the sizes of clusters and thus produces bad clustering results. Although clustering validity index (CVI) is commonly employed to determine the number of clusters, it is often ineffective for bad clustering results of FCM. To address this issue, we have previously proposed a fuzzy CVI, namely IMI, for imbalanced datasets. However, IMI encounters issues when the number of clusters exceeds three, as it tends to divide the majority clusters into multiple subclusters. In this paper, a novel CVI, IMI2, is proposed to enhance the performance of IMI. IMI2 adopts a two-step clustering algorithm that merges some clusters from the IMI result based on their separation values. This enhancement overcomes the limitations of IMI, rendering IMI2 an excellent CVI capable of accurately determining the number of clusters for datasets with multiple imbalanced clusters. The performance of IMI2 is evaluated using several synthetic and UCI datasets. The results demonstrate that IMI2 outperforms other methods in terms of its superior performance for multiple imbalanced clusters. IMI2 retains the good performance of IMI for datasets with two or three clusters, while significantly improving it for multiple imbalanced clusters. • We propose a new clustering validity index that is effective for unbalanced data sets with multiple clusters. • We design a merging algorithm that is able to produce majority clusters of high quality. • This new CVI performs better than existing CVIs and some clustering algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Resistor network research is of great importance, yet many resistor networks and their large-scale fast computations have not received sufficient attention. This paper proposes a new resistor network with idiosyncratic shape, i.e., a α × β conic surface (CS) resistor network that resembles the upper part of a three-dimensional Dirac function. Utilizing the Recursion Transform (RT-V) method of Tan, a recursive matrix equation model is constructed based on Kirchhoff's law and nodal voltages, which contains the modified tridiagonal Toeplitz matrix. By using the orthogonal matrix transformation, the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of the modified tridiagonal Toeplitz are obtained. The discrete sine transform of the fourth type (DST − IV) is utilized to solve node voltages, while the explicit potential function is represented by the Chebyshev polynomials of the second kind. In addition, explicit potential functions for some special cases are provided, and the potential distribution is illustrated using dynamic three-dimensional graph. To achieve a rapid calculation of the potential, a fast algorithm based on the multiplication of DST-IV with a vector is proposed. In the end, analysis of computational efficiency for the explicit potential function and the fast algorithm are shown. • A new conic surface resistor network is established. • The explicit potential function of represented by Chebyshev polynomials. • The potential in special cases are displayed by a three-dimensional dynamic view. • A fast algorithm of computing potential is proposed by using famous DST-IV. • Experimental analysis of computational efficiency and computational scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Addressing the challenges of low convergence accuracy and stagnation at local optima in the application of the golden jackal optimizer (GJO) to mobile robot path planning, this paper proposes a hybrid strategy-based golden jackal optimizer (HGJO) algorithm. The improved algorithm employs a pre-decreasing slow nonlinear energy decay strategy to balance the global and local search capabilities. The roulette wheel selection algorithm and Lévy flight strategy are introduced into the position update of the GJO algorithm, so the proposed algorithm avoids stagnation at the local optimum. The HGJO algorithm is evaluated against some state-of-the-art optimizers on 23 benchmark functions and the CEC2021 benchmark function. It is also applied to ablation experiments for mobile robot path planning. The experimental results show that the HGJO algorithm improves the average path length in path planning by 0.21%, 82.4%, and 7.9% over the original algorithm in three different environments under 30 independent experiments. • A new energy decreasing method is proposed. • A roulette wheel selection strategy is introduced. • A new hybrid position updating strategy is proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In texture classification, local binary pattern (LBP) is currently one of the most widely-concerned feature encoding models. Most existing LBP-based texture classification methods are usually limited to single-kind texture features. In fact, an across-domain fusion of LBP features with other features, such as image contours, could be another potential path to promote texture classification. To enhance the feature modeling ability of LBP-based methods, this paper firstly designs a Cellular Neural Network (CellNN) with recurrent convolutions, initially trained by a simplified simulated-annealing algorithm, to extract informative image contours. For better reliability, a new three-channel contour extractor of deep CellNNs (i. e. , dCellNNs) is proposed. This extractor contains the initially-trained CellNNs of more than three layers, and it is further optimized by fine-tuning parameters. Moreover, a new weighted-base algorithm is designed to fulfill the fusion of the multi-scale texture features by LBPs and the contour features by dCellNNs to enhance feature representation. Finally, these enhanced features are concatenated together to generate the final multi-scale features of given texture image. On texture datasets KTH, Brodatz, OTC12 and UIUC, experiment results verify that the across-domain fusion of multi-scale LBPs and dCellNNs is efficient in capturing & enhancing texture features. With moderate feature dimensionality and computational costs, it could improve texture classification, acquiring an obvious accuracy increase on previous state-of-the-art ones, e.g. , a rise of 2.58% on KTH-TIPS2b, a rise of 3.11% on Brodatz, a rise of 0.71% on OTC12 and a rise of 0.42% on UIUC. • A multi-scale across-domain feature fusion of textures and contours is proposed. • The first deep model of CellNN (dCellNNs) with two-stage training is proposed. • The three-channel texture contour extractor of dCellNNs is designed. • A weighted-base fusing is designed for the across-domain fusion of features. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate a multi-stage newsvendor problem with advance purchase discount (APD) in this paper. At the beginning of a stage, the decision maker (DM) makes the advance ordering decision for all the periods in this stage; at the start of every period within the stage, the DM makes the regular ordering decision. In this problem, the only available information we can observe is the past demands. To solve this problem, we extend the weak aggregating algorithm (WAA) with one decision variable, an online learning approach based on the theory of prediction and learning with expert advice, to a two-dimensional problem that involves advance ordering decisions in stages and regular ordering decisions nested in each stage. The difficulty of the problem lies in transferring learned knowledge of demand information from stage to stage. We design a cross-stage knowledge transfer scheme and obtain online ordering solutions for both advance-order and regular-order. We show that our solutions converge to the optimal solutions asymptotically. In addition, we derive theoretical guarantees for total gains in one stage and cumulative gains for all stages in the planning horizon. Through numerical studies, we find that our solutions are competitive to those offered by the best experts in hindsight. Finally, we do the sensitivity analysis to illustrate the effectiveness of our algorithm under different parameter values. • Consider advance purchase discounts in a multi-stage newsvendor problem. • Extend weak aggregating algorithm from one- to a two-dimensional case. • Obtain analytical solutions for both advance order and regular order. • Derive theoretical guarantees for one stage and all stages' profits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Optimal path planning is a fundamental problem in artificial intelligence (AI) and has wide applications in areas such as robotics, transportation, and logistics. In this paper, we propose a novel approach for ordering algorithms in pathfinding problems using the concept of shell layers. Our approach aims to improve the computational efficiency and distance cost of ordering algorithms. To evaluate the effectiveness of our approach, we compare it with five state-of-the-art techniques commonly used in the field of ordering algorithms on eight different scenarios with varying configurations. Our results show that our proposed approach outperformed the state-of-the-art techniques in terms of time-computational complexity and distance cost in most of the scenarios, demonstrating its potential as a new state-of-the-art technique for ordering algorithms. Specifically, our approach outperformed the nearest neighbor, A*, branch and bound, Christofides, and genetics ordering algorithms. However, we also identified two specific situations where our approach was outperformed by two state-of-the-art algorithms due to the specific distribution of the goal nodes. These findings highlight the importance of evaluating and comparing ordering algorithms in various scenarios. Our approach has significant implications for AI research and development, as it has the potential to improve the performance of pathfinding algorithms in various applications. We also discuss the limitations of our approach and potential areas for further research, such as investigating the effectiveness of our approach in different types of graphs and exploring the potential use of machine learning techniques to optimize the shell layer construction. The code for this study is available at https://github.com/abdullah1aloush1/MuGONA. • Equally-spaced nodes formed over workspace with obstacles, optimizing search process. • Efficient neighboring graph built for equally-spaced nodes, reducing complexity. • Path optimization for navigation by ordering goal nodes, reducing time and distance. • Path smoothing for navigation via interpolation to yield a trajectory on path nodes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A vision system comprises several steps, with each step exerting a significant impact on the final outcome. One of these crucial steps is segmentation, which isolates the region of interest within an object and removes the background. Segmentation is vital because it enhances the quality of the isolated region, improves the accuracy of extracted features, and reduces the noise introduced by poor-quality features. Several segmentation techniques are available in the literature, each requiring one or more adjustable parameters. Selecting the most appropriate technique for segmenting a particular image dataset can be challenging. Several factors can affect the segmentation quality, including preprocessing, the chosen segmentation method, parameter fine-tuning approaches, and the characteristics of the dataset. Moreover, variations in lighting and intensity can further influence segmentation quality. At times, an expert may need to manually choose the segmentation technique and fine-tune its associated parameters. This paper presents the development of an automated algorithm for the selection of segmentation techniques and their associated parameters. The developed techniques are implemented and compared using diverse datasets, and the resulting experimental outcomes are thoroughly discussed and analyzed. The algorithm aims to streamline and simplify the process of selecting appropriate segmentation techniques, determining the required parameters, and selecting suitable pre-processing techniques. • New method to segmentation of image data-sets. • The proposed algorithm prevents poor segmentation due to bright changes. • The proposed algorithm improves the quality of the data-set segmentation. • Automatically found best parameters and space color to segmentation. • We compare the results using PRI VOI and GCE metrics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]