Learning to Perceive and Act by Trial and Error

This article considers adaptive control architectures that integrate active sensory-motor systems with decision systems based on reinforcement learning. One unavoidable consequence of active perception is that the agent's internal representation often confounds external world states. We call this phoenomenon perceptual aliasingand show that it destabilizes existing reinforcement learning algorithms with respect to the optimal decision policy. We then describe a new decision system that overcomes these difficulties for a restricted class of decision problems. The system incorporates a perceptual subcycle within the overall decision cycle and uses a modified learning algorithm to suppress the effects of perceptual aliasing. The result is a control architecture that learns not only how to solve a task but also where to focus its visual attention in order to collect necessary sensory information.     

地震勘探技术在焉耆盆地勘探开发中的合理应用探讨

地震勘探技术应用可以分为以二维地震研究构造为主的地震勘探初级阶段、以地震地层学为主的地震勘探中级阶段、以三维地震油藏静态描述为主的地震勘探高级阶段、以地震储层研究为主的开发地震妆级阶段和以四维地震进行油藏监测为主的开发地震高级阶段。针对5个不同阶段的地质条件和地质任务，选择使用合理的地震勘探技术是有效提高勘探开发效益的重要途径。焉耆盆地的勘探开发体现了以地震勘探为主的思路，在勘探开发过程中重视了针对不同勘探开发阶段和不同的地质 地震技术，因此，在早期勘探开发中取得了很好的经济效益。     

天津通信企业IT信息存储支撑平台

天津通信企业IT信息存储支撑平台承载着天津通信关键业务支撑系统和主要的企业信息管理系统．为IT运营管理提供了高效、快速、稳定、安全的数据源，形成统一的存储平台。该平台采用了多系统存储资源集中共享的方式，通过海量数据的异构存储平台数据迁移实现了多系统的整合．达到多系统的数据资源共享。存储的整合为应用提供了可靠的资源保证，数据的整合则消除了信息孤岛，实现了数据共享。     

On the learning control of a robot manipulator

This paper derives a learning control law to achieve trajectory following for a robot manipulator. The controller consists of two parts, a computed torque servo for the rigid body terms that can be modelled and a learning law for the unmodelled dynamics. An advantage of this method is that bounds can be assigned to the position and velocity tracking errors.     

Learning to Predict Non-Deterministically Generated Strings

In this article we present an algorithm that learns to predict non-deterministically generated strings. The problem of learning to predict non-deterministically generated strings was raised by Dietterich and Michalski (1986). While their objective was to give heuristic techniques that could be used to rapidly and effectively learn to predict a somewhat limited class of strings, our objective is to give an algorithm which, though impractical, is capable of learning to predict a very general class. Our algorithm is meant to provide a general framework within which heuristic techniques can be effectively employed.     

Extending boosting for large scale spoken language understanding

We propose three methods for extending the Boosting family of classifiers motivated by the real-life problems we have encountered. First, we propose a semisupervised learning method for exploiting the unlabeled data in Boosting. We then present a novel classification model adaptation method. The goal of adaptation is optimizing an existing model for a new target application, which is similar to the previous one but may have different classes or class distributions. Finally, we present an efficient and effective cost-sensitive classification method that extends Boosting to allow for weighted classes. We evaluated these methods for call classification in the AT&;T VoiceTone^® spoken language understanding system. Our results indicate that it is possible to obtain the same classification performance by using 30% less labeled data when the unlabeled data is utilized through semisupervised learning. Using model adaptation we can achieve the same classification accuracy using less than half of the labeled data from the new application. Finally, we present significant improvements in the “important” (i.e., higher weighted) classes without a significant loss in overall performance using the proposed cost-sensitive classification method.     

Age of acquisition: Its neural and computational mechanisms.

The acquisition of new skills over a life span is a remarkable human ability. This ability, however, is constrained by age of acquisition (AoA); that is, the age at which learning occurs significantly affects the outcome. This is most clearly reflected in domains such as language, music, and athletics. This article provides a perspective on the neural and computational mechanisms underlying AoA in language acquisition. The authors show how AoA modulates both monolingual lexical processing and bilingual language acquisition. They consider the conditions under which syntactic processing and semantic processing may be differentially sensitive to AoA effects in second-language acquisition. The authors conclude that AoA effects are pervasive and that the neural and computational mechanisms underlying learning and sensorimotor integration provide a general account of these effects. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Signal analysis of total internal reflection fluorescent speckle microscopy (TIR-FSM) and wide-field epi-fluorescence FSM of the actin cytoskeleton and focal adhesions in living cells

Fluorescent speckle microscopy (FSM) uses low levels of fluorescent proteins to create fluorescent speckles on cytoskeletal polymers in high‐resolution fluorescence images of living cells. The dynamics of speckles over time encode subunit turnover and motion of the cytoskeletal polymers. We sought to improve on current FSM technology by first expanding it to study the dynamics of a non‐polymeric macromolecular assembly, using focal adhesions as a test case, and second, to exploit for FSM the high contrast afforded by total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy (TIR‐FM). Here, we first demonstrate that low levels of expression of a green fluorescent protein (GFP) conjugate of the focal adhesion protein, vinculin, results in clusters of fluorescent vinculin speckles on the ventral cell surface, which by immunofluorescence labelling of total vinculin correspond to sparse labelling of dense focal adhesion structures. This demonstrates that the FSM principle can be applied to study focal adhesions. We then use both GFP‐vinculin expression and microinjected fluorescently labelled purified actin to compare quantitatively the speckle signal in FSM images of focal adhesions and the actin cytoskeleton in living cells by TIR‐FM and wide‐field epifluorescence microscopy. We use quantitative FSM image analysis software to define two new parameters for analysing FSM signal features that we can extract automatically: speckle modulation and speckle detectability. Our analysis shows that TIR‐FSM affords major improvements in these parameters compared with wide‐field epifluorescence FSM. Finally, we find that use of a crippled eukaryotic expression promoter for driving low‐level GFP‐fusion protein expression is a useful tool for FSM imaging. When used in time‐lapse mode, TIR‐FSM of actin and GFP‐conjugated focal adhesion proteins will allow quantification of molecular dynamics within interesting macromolecular assemblies at the ventral surface of living cells.     

David W. Johnson: Award for Distinguished Contributions of Applications of Psychology to Education and Training.

Provides the biography of David W. Johnson and announces that he has won the Award for Distinguished Contributions of Applications of Psychology to Education and Training for programmatic research, comprehensive research reviews, and revision of theory over four decades of persistence that have provided the knowledge foundation for cooperative learning, constructive controversy, conflict resolution, and peer mediation training. A selected bibliography is also provided. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

储层压力与天然气分布关系——以鄂北塔巴庙地区上古生界储层为例

通过分析塔巴庙地区储层压力的分布特征，建立了研究区泥岩压实曲线，并对影响和控制该区储层压力的主要因素和机理进行了探讨，对“欠压实”剩余压力、生气增压、抬升引起的降压进行了定量计算。分析结果表明，晚三叠-早白垩世末“欠压实”作用和晚侏罗-早白垩世末烃源岩大量生烃作用使塔巴庙地区上古生界形成异常高压；晚白垩系构造抬升降压，使得现今储层为正常-低异常压力。同时证实了“欠压实”对天然气有压力封盖作用，天然气都分布在最大“欠压实”幅度以下的储层当中。烃源岩生气高峰为晚侏罗-早白垩世末，但天然气大规模运移是在晚白垩世，方向以沿过剩压力梯度降低较快的方向（太原-山西组至下石盒子组）垂向运移，通道主要为裂缝，运移的动力主要为异常高压。由于储层致密，聚集成藏能量有限，造成天然气充注不足、气水分异不好、含气饱和度低。