Department of Computer Science
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- ItemBreach path detection reliability in energy harvesting wireless sensor networks(2021) Abougamila, Salwa; Elmorsy, Mohammed; Elmallah, Ehab S.In this paper, we consider reliability assessment of energy harvesting wireless sensor networks (EH-WSNs) deployed to guard a geographic area against intruders that can enter and exit the network through a known set of entry-exit perimeter sides. To handle energy fluctuations during different time slots, a node may reduce its transmission power. Using a probabilistic graph model, we formalize a problem denoted EH-BPDREL (for breach path detection reliability). The problem calls for estimating the likelihood that any such intrusion can be detected and reported to a sink node. Due to the hardness of the problem, bounding algorithms are needed. We devise an efficient algorithm to solve a core problem that facilitates the design of various lower bounding algorithms. We obtain numerical results on the use of Monte Carlo simulation to estimate the probabilistic graph parameters, and illustrate the use of our devised algorithm to bound the solutions.
- ItemArtificial intelligence approaches to build ticket to ride maps(2022) Smith, Iain; Anton, CalinFun, as a game trait, is challenging to evaluate. Previous research explores game arc and game refinement to improve the quality of games. Fun, for some players, is having an even chance to win while executing their strategy. To explore this, we build boards for the game Ticket to Ride while optimizing for a given win rate between four AI agents. These agents execute popular strategies human players use: one-step thinking, long route exploitation, route focus, and destination hungry strategies. We create the underlying graph of a map by connecting several planar bipartite graphs. To build the map, we use a multiple phase design, with each phase implementing several simplified Monte Carlo Tree Search components. Within a phase, the components communicate with each other passively. The experiments show that the proposed approach results in improvements over randomly generated graphs and maps.
- ItemLow-rank plus sparse decomposition of fMRI data with application to Alzheimer's disease(2022) Tu, Wei; Fu, Fangfang; Kong, Linglong; Jiang, Bei; Cobzas, Dana; Huang, ChaoStudying functional brain connectivity plays an important role in understanding how human brain functions and neuropsychological diseases such as autism, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, and Alzheimer's disease (AD). Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is one of the most popularly used tool to construct functional brain connectivity. However, the presence of noises and outliers in fMRI blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) signals might lead to unreliable and unstable results in the construction of connectivity matrix. In this paper, we propose a pipeline that enables us to estimate robust and stable connectivity matrix, which increases the detectability of group differences. In particular, a low-rank plus sparse (L + S) matrix decomposition technique is adopted to decompose the original signals, where the low-rank matrix L recovers the essential common features from regions of interest, and the sparse matrix S catches the sparse individual variability and potential outliers. On the basis of decomposed signals, we construct connectivity matrix using the proposed novel concentration inequality-based sparse estimator. In order to facilitate the comparisons, we also consider correlation, partial correlation, and graphical Lasso-based methods. Hypothesis testing is then conducted to detect group differences. The proposed pipeline is applied to rs-fMRI data in Alzheimer's disease neuroimaging initiative to detect AD-related biomarkers, and we show that the proposed pipeline provides accurate yet more stable results than using the original BOLD signals.
- ItemInternationalizing the student experience through computing for social good(2020) Aheer, Komal; Bauer, Ken; Macdonell, CamInformation technology has connected our world and its citizens in incredible ways. Despite this connectedness, students are often isolated within the "online bubbles" of their own university, city, or country. Technology provides a great opportunity to connect them to a broader global experience. We have developed and piloted a cross-institution activity as part of an Internationalization at Home (IaH) initiative to expose first year computer science students to the concept of computing for social good in an international context. We explore how differences in culture can influence students' perceptions and approaches to computing for social good. Specifically, we had students from a Mexican and a Canadian university explore how computing for social good could be used to solve issues they faced in their communities. Students participated in surveys to propose and then rank applications for social good. The students also participated in a videoconference discussion with the students from the other school to discuss their choices. Thematic analysis revealed that the students had much more in common with each other than they had differences. Both groups not only focused on similar areas of interest, but they also tended to focus on solving issues with a local scope rather than national or global scope. Despite their cultural differences, the majority students felt they were more similar to their peers of the other culture than they were different.
- ItemComparisons between text-only and multimedia tweets on user engagement(2020) Indratmo, Indratmo; Zhao, Michael; Buro, KarenHaving highly engaged followers on social media allows us to spread information, seek feedback, and promote a sense of community efficiently. Crafting engaging posts, however, requires careful thoughts, creativity, and communication skills. This research studied tweets and explored the effect of content types on user engagement. More specifically, we compared the number of likes and retweets between text-only and multimedia tweets. We analyzed four Twitter accounts relevant to the City of Edmonton, Canada, and performed negative binomial regressions to model the expected count of likes and retweets based on accounts, content types, and their interaction. The results showed that multimedia content increased engagement in two of the four accounts but did not change engagement significantly in the other two. In other words, multimedia content had a positive or neutral effect on user engagement, depending on accounts. Our analysis also showed the effectiveness of well-written texts in attracting the attention of users. Tweets, by design, are text-oriented, and posting multimedia content may help, but is not a necessary condition to engage with followers effectively on Twitter.