For multilayer structures, interfacial failure is one of the most important elements related to device reliability. For cohesive zone modelling, traction-separation relations represent the adhesive interactions across interfaces. However, existing theoretical models do not currently capture traction-separation relations that have been extracted using direct methods, particularly under mixed-mode conditions. Given the complexity of the problem, models derived from the neural network approach are attractive. Although they can be trained to fit data along the loading paths taken in a particular set of mixed-mode fracture experiments, they may fail to obey physical laws for paths not covered by the training data sets. In this paper, a thermodynamically consistent neural network (TCNN) approach is established to model the constitutive behavior of interfaces when faced with sparse training data sets. Accordingly, three conditions are examined and implemented here: (i) thermodynamic consistency, (ii) maximum energy dissipation path control and (iii) J-integral conservation. These conditions are treated as constraints and are implemented as such in the loss function. The feasibility of this approach is demonstrated by comparing the modeling results with a range of physical constraints. Moreover, a Bayesian optimization algorithm is then adopted to optimize the weight factors associated with each of the constraints in order to overcome convergence issues that can arise when multiple constraints are present. The resultant numerical implementation of the ideas presented here produced well-behaved, mixed-mode traction separation surfaces that maintained the fidelity of the experimental data that was provided as input. The proposed approach heralds a new autonomous, point-to-point constitutive modeling concept for interface mechanics.
Compact finite-difference (FD) schemes specify derivative approximations implicitly, thus to achieve parallelism with domain-decomposition suitable partitioning of linear systems is required. Consistent order of accuracy, dispersion, and dissipation is crucial to maintain in wave propagation problems such that deformation of the associated spectra of the discretized problems is not too severe. In this work we consider numerically tuning spectral error, at fixed formal order of accuracy to automatically devise new compact FD schemes. Grid convergence tests indicate error reduction of at least an order of magnitude over standard FD. A proposed hybrid matching-communication strategy maintains the aforementioned properties under domain-decomposition. Under evolution of linear wave-propagation problems utilizing exponential integration or explicit Runge-Kutta methods improvement is found to remain robust. A first demonstration that compact FD methods may be applied to the Z4c formulation of numerical relativity is provided where we couple our header-only, templated C++ implementation to the highly performant GR-Athena++ code. Evolving Z4c on test-bed problems shows at least an order in magnitude reduction in phase error compared to FD for propagated metric components. Stable binary-black-hole evolution utilizing compact FD together with improved convergence is also demonstrated.
Estimating treatment effects conditional on observed covariates can improve the ability to tailor treatments to particular individuals. Doing so effectively requires dealing with potential confounding, and also enough data to adequately estimate effect moderation. A recent influx of work has looked into estimating treatment effect heterogeneity using data from multiple randomized controlled trials and/or observational datasets. With many new methods available for assessing treatment effect heterogeneity using multiple studies, it is important to understand which methods are best used in which setting, how the methods compare to one another, and what needs to be done to continue progress in this field. This paper reviews these methods broken down by data setting: aggregate-level data, federated learning, and individual participant-level data. We define the conditional average treatment effect and discuss differences between parametric and nonparametric estimators, and we list key assumptions, both those that are required within a single study and those that are necessary for data combination. After describing existing approaches, we compare and contrast them and reveal open areas for future research. This review demonstrates that there are many possible approaches for estimating treatment effect heterogeneity through the combination of datasets, but that there is substantial work to be done to compare these methods through case studies and simulations, extend them to different settings, and refine them to account for various challenges present in real data.
We introduce the Weak-form Estimation of Nonlinear Dynamics (WENDy) method for estimating model parameters for non-linear systems of ODEs. The core mathematical idea involves an efficient conversion of the strong form representation of a model to its weak form, and then solving a regression problem to perform parameter inference. The core statistical idea rests on the Errors-In-Variables framework, which necessitates the use of the iteratively reweighted least squares algorithm. Further improvements are obtained by using orthonormal test functions, created from a set of $C^{\infty}$ bump functions of varying support sizes. We demonstrate that WENDy is a highly robust and efficient method for parameter inference in differential equations. Without relying on any numerical differential equation solvers, WENDy computes accurate estimates and is robust to large (biologically relevant) levels of measurement noise. For low dimensional systems with modest amounts of data, WENDy is competitive with conventional forward solver-based nonlinear least squares methods in terms of speed and accuracy. For both higher dimensional systems and stiff systems, WENDy is typically both faster (often by orders of magnitude) and more accurate than forward solver-based approaches. We illustrate the method and its performance in some common population and neuroscience models, including logistic growth, Lotka-Volterra, FitzHugh-Nagumo, Hindmarsh-Rose, and a Protein Transduction Benchmark model. Software and code for reproducing the examples is available at (//github.com/MathBioCU/WENDy).
In FEM-based EEG and MEG source analysis, the subtraction approach has been proposed to simulate sensor measurements generated by neural activity. While this approach possesses a rigorous foundation and produces accurate results, its major downside is that it is computationally prohibitively expensive in practical applications. To overcome this, we developed a new approach, called the localized subtraction approach. This approach is designed to preserve the mathematical foundation of the subtraction approach, while also leading to sparse right-hand sides in the FEM formulation, making it efficiently computable. We achieve this by introducing a cut-off into the subtraction, restricting its influence to the immediate neighborhood of the source. In this work, this approach will be presented, analyzed, and compared to other state-of-the-art FEM right-hand side approaches. Furthermore, we discuss how to arrive at an efficient and stable implementation. We perform validation in multi-layer sphere models where analytical solutions exist. There, we demonstrate that the localized subtraction approach is vastly more efficient than the subtraction approach. Moreover, we find that for the EEG forward problem, the localized subtraction approach is less dependent on the global structure of the FEM mesh when compared to the subtraction approach. Additionally, we show the localized subtraction approach to rival, and in many cases even surpass, the other investigated approaches in terms of accuracy. For the MEG forward problem, we show the localized subtraction approach and the subtraction approach to produce highly accurate approximations of the volume currents close to the source. The localized subtraction approach thus reduces the computational cost of the subtraction approach to an extent that makes it usable in practical applications without sacrificing rigorousness and accuracy.
Weighted timed games are zero-sum games played by two players on a timed automaton equipped with weights, where one player wants to minimise the cumulative weight while reaching a target. Used in a reactive synthesis perspective, this quantitative extension of timed games allows one to measure the quality of controllers in real-time systems. Weighted timed games are notoriously difficult and quickly undecidable, even when restricted to non-negative weights. For non-negative weights, the largest class that can be analysed has been introduced by Bouyer, Jaziri and Markey in 2015. Though the value problem is undecidable, the authors show how to approximate the value by considering regions with a refined granularity. In this work, we extend this class to incorporate negative weights, allowing one to model energy for instance, and prove that the value can still be approximated, with the same complexity. A small restriction also allows us to obtain a class of decidable weighted timed games with negative weights and an arbitrary number of clocks. In addition, we show that a symbolic algorithm, relying on the paradigm of value iteration, can be used as an approximation/computation schema over these classes. We also consider the special case of untimed weighted games, where the same fragments are solvable in polynomial time: this contrasts with the pseudo-polynomial complexity, known so far, for weighted games without restrictions.
Effect size indices are useful parameters that quantify the strength of association and are unaffected by sample size. There are many available effect size parameters and estimators, but it is difficult to compare effect sizes across studies as most are defined for a specific type of population parameter. We recently introduced a new Robust Effect Size Index (RESI) and confidence interval, which is advantageous because it is not model-specific. Here we present the RESI R package, which makes it easy to report the RESI and its confidence interval for many different model classes, with a consistent interpretation across parameters and model types. The package produces coefficient, ANOVA tables, and overall Wald tests for model inputs, appending the RESI estimate and confidence interval to each. The package also includes functions for visualization and conversions to and from other effect size measures. For illustration, we analyze and interpret three different model types.
As soon as abstract mathematical computations were adapted to computation on digital computers, the problem of efficient representation, manipulation, and communication of the numerical values in those computations arose. Strongly related to the problem of numerical representation is the problem of quantization: in what manner should a set of continuous real-valued numbers be distributed over a fixed discrete set of numbers to minimize the number of bits required and also to maximize the accuracy of the attendant computations? This perennial problem of quantization is particularly relevant whenever memory and/or computational resources are severely restricted, and it has come to the forefront in recent years due to the remarkable performance of Neural Network models in computer vision, natural language processing, and related areas. Moving from floating-point representations to low-precision fixed integer values represented in four bits or less holds the potential to reduce the memory footprint and latency by a factor of 16x; and, in fact, reductions of 4x to 8x are often realized in practice in these applications. Thus, it is not surprising that quantization has emerged recently as an important and very active sub-area of research in the efficient implementation of computations associated with Neural Networks. In this article, we survey approaches to the problem of quantizing the numerical values in deep Neural Network computations, covering the advantages/disadvantages of current methods. With this survey and its organization, we hope to have presented a useful snapshot of the current research in quantization for Neural Networks and to have given an intelligent organization to ease the evaluation of future research in this area.
Vast amount of data generated from networks of sensors, wearables, and the Internet of Things (IoT) devices underscores the need for advanced modeling techniques that leverage the spatio-temporal structure of decentralized data due to the need for edge computation and licensing (data access) issues. While federated learning (FL) has emerged as a framework for model training without requiring direct data sharing and exchange, effectively modeling the complex spatio-temporal dependencies to improve forecasting capabilities still remains an open problem. On the other hand, state-of-the-art spatio-temporal forecasting models assume unfettered access to the data, neglecting constraints on data sharing. To bridge this gap, we propose a federated spatio-temporal model -- Cross-Node Federated Graph Neural Network (CNFGNN) -- which explicitly encodes the underlying graph structure using graph neural network (GNN)-based architecture under the constraint of cross-node federated learning, which requires that data in a network of nodes is generated locally on each node and remains decentralized. CNFGNN operates by disentangling the temporal dynamics modeling on devices and spatial dynamics on the server, utilizing alternating optimization to reduce the communication cost, facilitating computations on the edge devices. Experiments on the traffic flow forecasting task show that CNFGNN achieves the best forecasting performance in both transductive and inductive learning settings with no extra computation cost on edge devices, while incurring modest communication cost.
Conventionally, spatiotemporal modeling network and its complexity are the two most concentrated research topics in video action recognition. Existing state-of-the-art methods have achieved excellent accuracy regardless of the complexity meanwhile efficient spatiotemporal modeling solutions are slightly inferior in performance. In this paper, we attempt to acquire both efficiency and effectiveness simultaneously. First of all, besides traditionally treating H x W x T video frames as space-time signal (viewing from the Height-Width spatial plane), we propose to also model video from the other two Height-Time and Width-Time planes, to capture the dynamics of video thoroughly. Secondly, our model is designed based on 2D CNN backbones and model complexity is well kept in mind by design. Specifically, we introduce a novel multi-view fusion (MVF) module to exploit video dynamics using separable convolution for efficiency. It is a plug-and-play module and can be inserted into off-the-shelf 2D CNNs to form a simple yet effective model called MVFNet. Moreover, MVFNet can be thought of as a generalized video modeling framework and it can specialize to be existing methods such as C2D, SlowOnly, and TSM under different settings. Extensive experiments are conducted on popular benchmarks (i.e., Something-Something V1 & V2, Kinetics, UCF-101, and HMDB-51) to show its superiority. The proposed MVFNet can achieve state-of-the-art performance with 2D CNN's complexity.
The accurate and interpretable prediction of future events in time-series data often requires the capturing of representative patterns (or referred to as states) underpinning the observed data. To this end, most existing studies focus on the representation and recognition of states, but ignore the changing transitional relations among them. In this paper, we present evolutionary state graph, a dynamic graph structure designed to systematically represent the evolving relations (edges) among states (nodes) along time. We conduct analysis on the dynamic graphs constructed from the time-series data and show that changes on the graph structures (e.g., edges connecting certain state nodes) can inform the occurrences of events (i.e., time-series fluctuation). Inspired by this, we propose a novel graph neural network model, Evolutionary State Graph Network (EvoNet), to encode the evolutionary state graph for accurate and interpretable time-series event prediction. Specifically, Evolutionary State Graph Network models both the node-level (state-to-state) and graph-level (segment-to-segment) propagation, and captures the node-graph (state-to-segment) interactions over time. Experimental results based on five real-world datasets show that our approach not only achieves clear improvements compared with 11 baselines, but also provides more insights towards explaining the results of event predictions.