Publications | Empirical Inference - Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems

65 results (View BibTeX file of all listed publications)

2014

Juggling revisited — A voxel based morphometry study with expert jugglers

Gerber, P., Schlaffke, L., Heba, S., Greenlee, M., Schultz, T., Schmidt-Wilcke, T.

NeuroImage, 95, pages: 320-325, 2014 (article)

2014

Gerber, P., Schlaffke, L., Heba, S., Greenlee, M., Schultz, T., Schmidt-Wilcke, T. Juggling revisited — A voxel based morphometry study with expert jugglers NeuroImage, 95, pages: 320-325, 2014 (article)

Web DOI [BibTex]

Assessing attention and cognitive function in completely locked-in state with event-related brain potentials and epidural electrocorticography

Bensch, M., Martens, S., Halder, S., Hill, J., Nijboer, F., Ramos, A., Birbaumer, N., Bodgan, M., Kotchoubey, B., Rosenstiel, W., Schölkopf, B., Gharabaghi, A.

Journal of Neural Engineering, 11(2):026006, 2014 (article)

Abstract

Objective. Patients in the completely locked-in state (CLIS), due to, for example, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), no longer possess voluntary muscle control. Assessing attention and cognitive function in these patients during the course of the disease is a challenging but essential task for both nursing staff and physicians. Approach. An electrophysiological cognition test battery, including auditory and semantic stimuli, was applied in a late-stage ALS patient at four different time points during a six-month epidural electrocorticography (ECoG) recording period. Event-related cortical potentials (ERP), together with changes in the ECoG signal spectrum, were recorded via 128 channels that partially covered the left frontal, temporal and parietal cortex. Main results. Auditory but not semantic stimuli induced significant and reproducible ERP projecting to specific temporal and parietal cortical areas. N1/P2 responses could be detected throughout the whole study period. The highest P3 ERP was measured immediately after the patient's last communication through voluntary muscle control, which was paralleled by low theta and high gamma spectral power. Three months after the patient's last communication, i.e., in the CLIS, P3 responses could no longer be detected. At the same time, increased activity in low-frequency bands and a sharp drop of gamma spectral power were recorded. Significance. Cortical electrophysiological measures indicate at least partially intact attention and cognitive function during sparse volitional motor control for communication. Although the P3 ERP and frequency-specific changes in the ECoG spectrum may serve as indicators for CLIS, a close-meshed monitoring will be required to define the exact time point of the transition.

DOI [BibTex]

Bensch, M., Martens, S., Halder, S., Hill, J., Nijboer, F., Ramos, A., Birbaumer, N., Bodgan, M., Kotchoubey, B., Rosenstiel, W., Schölkopf, B., Gharabaghi, A. Assessing attention and cognitive function in completely locked-in state with event-related brain potentials and epidural electrocorticography Journal of Neural Engineering, 11(2):026006, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Identifiability of Gaussian Structural Equation Models with Equal Error Variances

Peters, J., Bühlman, P.

Biometrika, 101(1):219-228, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Peters, J., Bühlman, P. Identifiability of Gaussian Structural Equation Models with Equal Error Variances Biometrika, 101(1):219-228, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Quantifying the effect of intertrial dependence on perceptual decisions

Fründ, I., Wichmann, F., Macke, J.

Journal of Vision, 14(7):1-16, 2014 (article)

Web PDF link (url) DOI [BibTex]

Fründ, I., Wichmann, F., Macke, J. Quantifying the effect of intertrial dependence on perceptual decisions Journal of Vision, 14(7):1-16, 2014 (article)

Web PDF link (url) DOI [BibTex]

Two numerical models designed to reproduce Saturn ring temperatures as measured by Cassini-CIRS

Altobelli, N., Lopez-Paz, D., Pilorz, S., Spilker, L., Morishima, R., Brooks, S., Leyrat, C., Deau, E., Edgington, S., Flandes, A.

Icarus, 238(0):205 - 220, 2014 (article)

Web link (url) DOI [BibTex]

Altobelli, N., Lopez-Paz, D., Pilorz, S., Spilker, L., Morishima, R., Brooks, S., Leyrat, C., Deau, E., Edgington, S., Flandes, A. Two numerical models designed to reproduce Saturn ring temperatures as measured by Cassini-CIRS Icarus, 238(0):205 - 220, 2014 (article)

Web link (url) DOI [BibTex]

CAM: Causal Additive Models, high-dimensional order search and penalized regression

Bühlmann, P., Peters, J., Ernest, J.

Annals of Statistics, 42(6):2526-2556, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Bühlmann, P., Peters, J., Ernest, J. CAM: Causal Additive Models, high-dimensional order search and penalized regression Annals of Statistics, 42(6):2526-2556, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Policy Evaluation with Temporal Differences: A Survey and Comparison

Dann, C., Neumann, G., Peters, J.

Journal of Machine Learning Research, 15, pages: 809-883, 2014 (article)

PDF [BibTex]

Dann, C., Neumann, G., Peters, J. Policy Evaluation with Temporal Differences: A Survey and Comparison Journal of Machine Learning Research, 15, pages: 809-883, 2014 (article)

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Uncovering the Structure and Temporal Dynamics of Information Propagation

Gomez Rodriguez, M., Leskovec, J., Balduzzi, D., Schölkopf, B.

Network Science, 2(1):26-65, 2014 (article)

Abstract

Time plays an essential role in the diffusion of information, influence, and disease over networks. In many cases we can only observe when a node is activated by a contagion—when a node learns about a piece of information, makes a decision, adopts a new behavior, or becomes infected with a disease. However, the underlying network connectivity and transmission rates between nodes are unknown. Inferring the underlying diffusion dynamics is important because it leads to new insights and enables forecasting, as well as influencing or containing information propagation. In this paper we model diffusion as a continuous temporal process occurring at different rates over a latent, unobserved network that may change over time. Given information diffusion data, we infer the edges and dynamics of the underlying network. Our model naturally imposes sparse solutions and requires no parameter tuning. We develop an efficient inference algorithm that uses stochastic convex optimization to compute online estimates of the edges and transmission rates. We evaluate our method by tracking information diffusion among 3.3 million mainstream media sites and blogs, and experiment with more than 179 million different instances of information spreading over the network in a one-year period. We apply our network inference algorithm to the top 5,000 media sites and blogs and report several interesting observations. First, information pathways for general recurrent topics are more stable across time than for on-going news events. Second, clusters of news media sites and blogs often emerge and vanish in a matter of days for on-going news events. Finally, major events, for example, large scale civil unrest as in the Libyan civil war or Syrian uprising, increase the number of information pathways among blogs, and also increase the network centrality of blogs and social media sites.

DOI [BibTex]

Gomez Rodriguez, M., Leskovec, J., Balduzzi, D., Schölkopf, B. Uncovering the Structure and Temporal Dynamics of Information Propagation Network Science, 2(1):26-65, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Causal discovery via reproducing kernel Hilbert space embeddings

Chen, Z., Zhang, K., Chan, L., Schölkopf, B.

Neural Computation, 26(7):1484-1517, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Chen, Z., Zhang, K., Chan, L., Schölkopf, B. Causal discovery via reproducing kernel Hilbert space embeddings Neural Computation, 26(7):1484-1517, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Impact of Large-Scale Climate Extremes on Biospheric Carbon Fluxes: An Intercomparison Based on MsTMIP Data

Global Biogeochemical Cycles, 2014 (article)

Web DOI [BibTex]

Zscheischler, J., Michalak, A., Schwalm, M., Mahecha, M., Huntzinger, D., Reichstein, M., Berthier, G., Ciais, P., Cook, R., El-Masri, B., Huang, M., Ito, A., Jain, A., King, A., Lei, H., Lu, C., Mao, J., Peng, S., Poulter, B., Ricciuto, D., Shi, X., Tao, B., Tian, H., Viovy, N., Wang, W., Wei, Y., Yang, J., Zeng, N. Impact of Large-Scale Climate Extremes on Biospheric Carbon Fluxes: An Intercomparison Based on MsTMIP Data Global Biogeochemical Cycles, 2014 (article)

Web DOI [BibTex]

A Brain-Computer Interface Based on Self-Regulation of Gamma-Oscillations in the Superior Parietal Cortex

Grosse-Wentrup, M., Schölkopf, B.

Journal of Neural Engineering, 11(5):056015, 2014 (article)

Abstract

Objective. Brain–computer interface (BCI) systems are often based on motor- and/or sensory processes that are known to be impaired in late stages of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). We propose a novel BCI designed for patients in late stages of ALS that only requires high-level cognitive processes to transmit information from the user to the BCI. Approach. We trained subjects via EEG-based neurofeedback to self-regulate the amplitude of gamma-oscillations in the superior parietal cortex (SPC). We argue that parietal gamma-oscillations are likely to be associated with high-level attentional processes, thereby providing a communication channel that does not rely on the integrity of sensory- and/or motor-pathways impaired in late stages of ALS. Main results. Healthy subjects quickly learned to self-regulate gamma-power in the SPC by alternating between states of focused attention and relaxed wakefulness, resulting in an average decoding accuracy of 70.2%. One locked-in ALS patient (ALS-FRS-R score of zero) achieved an average decoding accuracy significantly above chance-level though insufficient for communication (55.8%). Significance. Self-regulation of gamma-power in the SPC is a feasible paradigm for brain–computer interfacing and may be preserved in late stages of ALS. This provides a novel approach to testing whether completely locked-in ALS patients retain the capacity for goal-directed thinking.

Web DOI [BibTex]

Grosse-Wentrup, M., Schölkopf, B. A Brain-Computer Interface Based on Self-Regulation of Gamma-Oscillations in the Superior Parietal Cortex Journal of Neural Engineering, 11(5):056015, 2014 (article)

Web DOI [BibTex]

On power law distributions in large-scale taxonomies

Babbar, R., Metzig, C., Partalas, I., Gaussier, E., Amini, M.

SIGKDD Explorations, Special Issue on Big Data, 16(1):47-56, 2014 (article)

[BibTex]

Babbar, R., Metzig, C., Partalas, I., Gaussier, E., Amini, M. On power law distributions in large-scale taxonomies SIGKDD Explorations, Special Issue on Big Data, 16(1):47-56, 2014 (article)

[BibTex]

Predicting Motor Learning Performance from Electroencephalographic Data

Meyer, T., Peters, J., Zander, T., Schölkopf, B., Grosse-Wentrup, M.

Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation, 11:24, 2014 (article)

PDF DOI [BibTex]

Meyer, T., Peters, J., Zander, T., Schölkopf, B., Grosse-Wentrup, M. Predicting Motor Learning Performance from Electroencephalographic Data Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation, 11:24, 2014 (article)

PDF DOI [BibTex]

Special issue on autonomous grasping and manipulation

Ben Amor, H., Saxena, A., Hudson, N., Peters, J.

Autonomous Robots, 36(1-2):1-3, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Ben Amor, H., Saxena, A., Hudson, N., Peters, J. Special issue on autonomous grasping and manipulation Autonomous Robots, 36(1-2):1-3, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Evaluation of Positron Emission Tomographic Tracers for Imaging of Papillomavirus-Induced Tumors in Rabbits

Probst, S., Wiehr, S., Mantlik, F., Schmidt, H., Kolb, A., Münch, P., Delcuratolo, M., Stubenrauch, F., Pichler, B., Iftner, T.

Molecular Imaging, 13(1):1536-0121, 2014 (article)

Web [BibTex]

Probst, S., Wiehr, S., Mantlik, F., Schmidt, H., Kolb, A., Münch, P., Delcuratolo, M., Stubenrauch, F., Pichler, B., Iftner, T. Evaluation of Positron Emission Tomographic Tracers for Imaging of Papillomavirus-Induced Tumors in Rabbits Molecular Imaging, 13(1):1536-0121, 2014 (article)

Web [BibTex]

Extreme events in gross primary production: a characterization across continents

Zscheischler, J., Reichstein, M., Harmeling, S., Rammig, A., Tomelleri, E., Mahecha, M.

Biogeosciences, 11, pages: 2909-2924, 2014 (article)

PDF Web DOI [BibTex]

Zscheischler, J., Reichstein, M., Harmeling, S., Rammig, A., Tomelleri, E., Mahecha, M. Extreme events in gross primary production: a characterization across continents Biogeosciences, 11, pages: 2909-2924, 2014 (article)

PDF Web DOI [BibTex]

Indirect Robot Model Learning for Tracking Control

Bocsi, B., Csató, L., Peters, J.

Advanced Robotics, 28(9):589-599, 2014 (article)

PDF DOI [BibTex]

Bocsi, B., Csató, L., Peters, J. Indirect Robot Model Learning for Tracking Control Advanced Robotics, 28(9):589-599, 2014 (article)

PDF DOI [BibTex]

An extended approach for spatiotemporal gapfilling: dealing with large and systematic gaps in geoscientific datasets

v Buttlar, J., Zscheischler, J., Mahecha, M.

Nonlinear Processes in Geophysics, 21(1):203-215, 2014 (article)

PDF DOI [BibTex]

v Buttlar, J., Zscheischler, J., Mahecha, M. An extended approach for spatiotemporal gapfilling: dealing with large and systematic gaps in geoscientific datasets Nonlinear Processes in Geophysics, 21(1):203-215, 2014 (article)

PDF DOI [BibTex]

On the Quantification Accuracy, Homogeneity, and Stability of Simultaneous Positron Emission Tomography/Magnetic Resonance Imaging Systems

Schmidt, H., Schwenzer, N., Bezrukov, I., Mantlik, F., Kolb, A., Kupferschläger, J., Pichler, B.

Investigative Radiology, 49(6):373-381, 2014 (article)

Web DOI [BibTex]

Schmidt, H., Schwenzer, N., Bezrukov, I., Mantlik, F., Kolb, A., Kupferschläger, J., Pichler, B. On the Quantification Accuracy, Homogeneity, and Stability of Simultaneous Positron Emission Tomography/Magnetic Resonance Imaging Systems Investigative Radiology, 49(6):373-381, 2014 (article)

Web DOI [BibTex]

Natural Evolution Strategies

Wierstra, D., Schaul, T., Glasmachers, T., Sun, Y., Peters, J., Schmidhuber, J.

Journal of Machine Learning Research, 15, pages: 949-980, 2014 (article)

PDF [BibTex]

Wierstra, D., Schaul, T., Glasmachers, T., Sun, Y., Peters, J., Schmidhuber, J. Natural Evolution Strategies Journal of Machine Learning Research, 15, pages: 949-980, 2014 (article)

PDF [BibTex]

Factors controlling decomposition rates of fine root litter in temperate forests and grasslands

Solly, E., Schöning, I., Boch, S., Kandeler, E., Marhan, S., Michalzik, B., Müller, J., Zscheischler, J., Trumbore, S., Schrumpf, M.

Plant and Soil, 2014 (article)

PDF DOI [BibTex]

Solly, E., Schöning, I., Boch, S., Kandeler, E., Marhan, S., Michalzik, B., Müller, J., Zscheischler, J., Trumbore, S., Schrumpf, M. Factors controlling decomposition rates of fine root litter in temperate forests and grasslands Plant and Soil, 2014 (article)

PDF DOI [BibTex]

Causal Discovery with Continuous Additive Noise Models

Peters, J., Mooij, J., Janzing, D., Schölkopf, B.

Journal of Machine Learning Research, 15, pages: 2009-2053, 2014 (article)

PDF Web [BibTex]

Peters, J., Mooij, J., Janzing, D., Schölkopf, B. Causal Discovery with Continuous Additive Noise Models Journal of Machine Learning Research, 15, pages: 2009-2053, 2014 (article)

PDF Web [BibTex]

A few extreme events dominate global interannual variability in gross primary production

Zscheischler, J., Mahecha, M., v Buttlar, J., Harmeling, S., Jung, M., Rammig, A., Randerson, J., Schölkopf, B., Seneviratne, S., Tomelleri, E., Zaehle, S., Reichstein, M.

Environmental Research Letters, 9(3):035001, 2014 (article)

PDF Web DOI [BibTex]

Zscheischler, J., Mahecha, M., v Buttlar, J., Harmeling, S., Jung, M., Rammig, A., Randerson, J., Schölkopf, B., Seneviratne, S., Tomelleri, E., Zaehle, S., Reichstein, M. A few extreme events dominate global interannual variability in gross primary production Environmental Research Letters, 9(3):035001, 2014 (article)

PDF Web DOI [BibTex]

Learning Strategies in Table Tennis using Inverse Reinforcement Learning

Mülling, K., Boularias, A., Mohler, B., Schölkopf, B., Peters, J.

Biological Cybernetics, 108(5):603-619, 2014 (article)

PDF DOI [BibTex]

Mülling, K., Boularias, A., Mohler, B., Schölkopf, B., Peters, J. Learning Strategies in Table Tennis using Inverse Reinforcement Learning Biological Cybernetics, 108(5):603-619, 2014 (article)

PDF DOI [BibTex]

Kernel methods in system identification, machine learning and function estimation: A survey

Pillonetto, G., Dinuzzo, F., Chen, T., De Nicolao, G., Ljung, L.

Automatica, 50(3):657-682, 2014 (article)

Web DOI [BibTex]

Pillonetto, G., Dinuzzo, F., Chen, T., De Nicolao, G., Ljung, L. Kernel methods in system identification, machine learning and function estimation: A survey Automatica, 50(3):657-682, 2014 (article)

Web DOI [BibTex]

Development of a novel depth of interaction PET detector using highly multiplexed G-APD cross-strip encoding

Kolb, A., Parl, C., Mantlik, F., Liu, C., Lorenz, E., Renker, D., Pichler, B.

Medical Physics, 41(8), 2014 (article)

Web DOI [BibTex]

Kolb, A., Parl, C., Mantlik, F., Liu, C., Lorenz, E., Renker, D., Pichler, B. Development of a novel depth of interaction PET detector using highly multiplexed G-APD cross-strip encoding Medical Physics, 41(8), 2014 (article)

Web DOI [BibTex]

Epidural electrocorticography for monitoring of arousal in locked-in state

Martens, S., Bensch, M., Halder, S., Hill, J., Nijboer, F., Ramos-Murguialday, A., Schölkopf, B., Birbaumer, N., Gharabaghi, A.

Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 8(861), 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Martens, S., Bensch, M., Halder, S., Hill, J., Nijboer, F., Ramos-Murguialday, A., Schölkopf, B., Birbaumer, N., Gharabaghi, A. Epidural electrocorticography for monitoring of arousal in locked-in state Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 8(861), 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Simultaneous Whole-Body PET/MR Imaging in Comparison to PET/CT in Pediatric Oncology: Initial Results

Schäfer, J. F., Gatidis, S., Schmidt, H., Gückel, B., Bezrukov, I., Pfannenberg, C. A., Reimold, M., M., E., Fuchs, J., Claussen, C. D., Schwenzer, N. F.

Radiology, 273(1):220-231, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Schäfer, J. F., Gatidis, S., Schmidt, H., Gückel, B., Bezrukov, I., Pfannenberg, C. A., Reimold, M., M., E., Fuchs, J., Claussen, C. D., Schwenzer, N. F. Simultaneous Whole-Body PET/MR Imaging in Comparison to PET/CT in Pediatric Oncology: Initial Results Radiology, 273(1):220-231, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Cost-Sensitive Active Learning With Lookahead: Optimizing Field Surveys for Remote Sensing Data Classification

Persello, C., Boularias, A., Dalponte, M., Gobakken, T., Naesset, E., Schölkopf, B.

IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, 10(52):6652 - 6664, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Persello, C., Boularias, A., Dalponte, M., Gobakken, T., Naesset, E., Schölkopf, B. Cost-Sensitive Active Learning With Lookahead: Optimizing Field Surveys for Remote Sensing Data Classification IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, 10(52):6652 - 6664, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Modular proximal optimization with application to total variation regularization

Barbero, A. J., Sra, S.

2014 (article) In revision

link (url) [BibTex]

Barbero, A. J., Sra, S. Modular proximal optimization with application to total variation regularization 2014 (article) In revision

link (url) [BibTex]

Principles of PET/MR Imaging

Disselhorst, J. A., Bezrukov, I., Kolb, A., Parl, C., Pichler, B. J.

Journal of Nuclear Medicine, 55(6, Supplement 2):2S-10S, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Disselhorst, J. A., Bezrukov, I., Kolb, A., Parl, C., Pichler, B. J. Principles of PET/MR Imaging Journal of Nuclear Medicine, 55(6, Supplement 2):2S-10S, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

IM3SHAPE: Maximum likelihood galaxy shear measurement code for cosmic gravitational lensing

Zuntz, J., Kacprzak, T., Voigt, L., Hirsch, M., Rowe, B., Bridle, S.

Astrophysics Source Code Library, 1, pages: 09013, 2014 (article)

link (url) [BibTex]

Zuntz, J., Kacprzak, T., Voigt, L., Hirsch, M., Rowe, B., Bridle, S. IM3SHAPE: Maximum likelihood galaxy shear measurement code for cosmic gravitational lensing Astrophysics Source Code Library, 1, pages: 09013, 2014 (article)

link (url) [BibTex]

Efficient nearest neighbors via robust sparse hashing

Cherian, A., Sra, S., Morellas, V., Papanikolopoulos, N.

IEEE Transactions on Image Processing, 23(8):3646-3655, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Cherian, A., Sra, S., Morellas, V., Papanikolopoulos, N. Efficient nearest neighbors via robust sparse hashing IEEE Transactions on Image Processing, 23(8):3646-3655, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Sérsic galaxy models in weak lensing shape measurement: model bias, noise bias and their interaction

Kacprzak, T., Bridle, S., Rowe, B., Voigt, L., Zuntz, J., Hirsch, M., MacCrann, N.

Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 441(3):2528-2538, Oxford University Press, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Kacprzak, T., Bridle, S., Rowe, B., Voigt, L., Zuntz, J., Hirsch, M., MacCrann, N. Sérsic galaxy models in weak lensing shape measurement: model bias, noise bias and their interaction Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 441(3):2528-2538, Oxford University Press, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Diminished White Matter Integrity in Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Schmidt-Wilcke, T., Cagnoli, P., Wang, P., Schultz, T., Lotz, A., Mccune, W. J., Sundgren, P. C.

NeuroImage: Clinical, 5, pages: 291-297, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Schmidt-Wilcke, T., Cagnoli, P., Wang, P., Schultz, T., Lotz, A., Mccune, W. J., Sundgren, P. C. Diminished White Matter Integrity in Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus NeuroImage: Clinical, 5, pages: 291-297, 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Information-Theoretic Bounded Rationality and ϵ-Optimality

Braun, DA, Ortega, PA

Entropy, 16(8):4662-4676, August 2014 (article)

Abstract

Bounded rationality concerns the study of decision makers with limited information processing resources. Previously, the free energy difference functional has been suggested to model bounded rational decision making, as it provides a natural trade-off between an energy or utility function that is to be optimized and information processing costs that are measured by entropic search costs. The main question of this article is how the information-theoretic free energy model relates to simple \(\epsilon\)-optimality models of bounded rational decision making, where the decision maker is satisfied with any action in an \(\epsilon\)-neighborhood of the optimal utility. We find that the stochastic policies that optimize the free energy trade-off comply with the notion of \(\epsilon\)-optimality. Moreover, this optimality criterion even holds when the environment is adversarial. We conclude that the study of bounded rationality based on \(\epsilon\)-optimality criteria that abstract away from the particulars of the information processing constraints is compatible with the information-theoretic free energy model of bounded rationality.

DOI [BibTex]

Braun, DA, Ortega, PA Information-Theoretic Bounded Rationality and ϵ-Optimality Entropy, 16(8):4662-4676, August 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Occam’s Razor in sensorimotor learning

Genewein, T, Braun, D

Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B, 281(1783):1-7, May 2014 (article)

Abstract

A large number of recent studies suggest that the sensorimotor system uses probabilistic models to predict its environment and makes inferences about unobserved variables in line with Bayesian statistics. One of the important features of Bayesian statistics is Occam's Razor—an inbuilt preference for simpler models when comparing competing models that explain some observed data equally well. Here, we test directly for Occam's Razor in sensorimotor control. We designed a sensorimotor task in which participants had to draw lines through clouds of noisy samples of an unobserved curve generated by one of two possible probabilistic models—a simple model with a large length scale, leading to smooth curves, and a complex model with a short length scale, leading to more wiggly curves. In training trials, participants were informed about the model that generated the stimulus so that they could learn the statistics of each model. In probe trials, participants were then exposed to ambiguous stimuli. In probe trials where the ambiguous stimulus could be fitted equally well by both models, we found that participants showed a clear preference for the simpler model. Moreover, we found that participants’ choice behaviour was quantitatively consistent with Bayesian Occam's Razor. We also show that participants’ drawn trajectories were similar to samples from the Bayesian predictive distribution over trajectories and significantly different from two non-probabilistic heuristics. In two control experiments, we show that the preference of the simpler model cannot be simply explained by a difference in physical effort or by a preference for curve smoothness. Our results suggest that Occam's Razor is a general behavioural principle already present during sensorimotor processing.

DOI [BibTex]

Genewein, T, Braun, D Occam’s Razor in sensorimotor learning Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B, 281(1783):1-7, May 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Generalized Thompson sampling for sequential decision-making and causal inference

Ortega, PA, Braun, DA

Complex Adaptive Systems Modeling, 2(2):1-23, March 2014 (article)

Abstract

Purpose Sampling an action according to the probability that the action is believed to be the optimal one is sometimes called Thompson sampling. Methods Although mostly applied to bandit problems, Thompson sampling can also be used to solve sequential adaptive control problems, when the optimal policy is known for each possible environment. The predictive distribution over actions can then be constructed by a Bayesian superposition of the policies weighted by their posterior probability of being optimal. Results Here we discuss two important features of this approach. First, we show in how far such generalized Thompson sampling can be regarded as an optimal strategy under limited information processing capabilities that constrain the sampling complexity of the decision-making process. Second, we show how such Thompson sampling can be extended to solve causal inference problems when interacting with an environment in a sequential fashion. Conclusion In summary, our results suggest that Thompson sampling might not merely be a useful heuristic, but a principled method to address problems of adaptive sequential decision-making and causal inference.

DOI [BibTex]

Ortega, PA, Braun, DA Generalized Thompson sampling for sequential decision-making and causal inference Complex Adaptive Systems Modeling, 2(2):1-23, March 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Assessing randomness and complexity in human motion trajectories through analysis of symbolic sequences

Peng, Z, Genewein, T, Braun, DA

Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 8(168):1-13, March 2014 (article)

Abstract

Complexity is a hallmark of intelligent behavior consisting both of regular patterns and random variation. To quantitatively assess the complexity and randomness of human motion, we designed a motor task in which we translated subjects' motion trajectories into strings of symbol sequences. In the first part of the experiment participants were asked to perform self-paced movements to create repetitive patterns, copy pre-specified letter sequences, and generate random movements. To investigate whether the degree of randomness can be manipulated, in the second part of the experiment participants were asked to perform unpredictable movements in the context of a pursuit game, where they received feedback from an online Bayesian predictor guessing their next move. We analyzed symbol sequences representing subjects' motion trajectories with five common complexity measures: predictability, compressibility, approximate entropy, Lempel-Ziv complexity, as well as effective measure complexity. We found that subjects’ self-created patterns were the most complex, followed by drawing movements of letters and self-paced random motion. We also found that participants could change the randomness of their behavior depending on context and feedback. Our results suggest that humans can adjust both complexity and regularity in different movement types and contexts and that this can be assessed with information-theoretic measures of the symbolic sequences generated from movement trajectories.

DOI [BibTex]

Peng, Z, Genewein, T, Braun, DA Assessing randomness and complexity in human motion trajectories through analysis of symbolic sequences Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 8(168):1-13, March 2014 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

2004

On the representation, learning and transfer of spatio-temporal movement characteristics

Ilg, W., Bakir, GH., Mezger, J., Giese, M.

International Journal of Humanoid Robotics, 1(4):613-636, December 2004 (article)

[BibTex]

2004

Ilg, W., Bakir, GH., Mezger, J., Giese, M. On the representation, learning and transfer of spatio-temporal movement characteristics International Journal of Humanoid Robotics, 1(4):613-636, December 2004 (article)

[BibTex]

Insect-inspired estimation of egomotion

Franz, MO., Chahl, JS., Krapp, HG.

Neural Computation, 16(11):2245-2260, November 2004 (article)

Abstract

Tangential neurons in the fly brain are sensitive to the typical optic flow patterns generated during egomotion. In this study, we examine whether a simplified linear model based on the organization principles in tangential neurons can be used to estimate egomotion from the optic flow. We present a theory for the construction of an estimator consisting of a linear combination of optic flow vectors that incorporates prior knowledge both about the distance distribution of the environment, and about the noise and egomotion statistics of the sensor. The estimator is tested on a gantry carrying an omnidirectional vision sensor. The experiments show that the proposed approach leads to accurate and robust estimates of rotation rates, whereas translation estimates are of reasonable quality, albeit less reliable.

PDF PostScript Web DOI [BibTex]

Franz, MO., Chahl, JS., Krapp, HG. Insect-inspired estimation of egomotion Neural Computation, 16(11):2245-2260, November 2004 (article)

PDF PostScript Web DOI [BibTex]

Efficient face detection by a cascaded support-vector machine expansion

Romdhani, S., Torr, P., Schölkopf, B., Blake, A.

Proceedings of The Royal Society of London A, 460(2501):3283-3297, A, November 2004 (article)

Abstract

We describe a fast system for the detection and localization of human faces in images using a nonlinear ‘support-vector machine‘. We approximate the decision surface in terms of a reduced set of expansion vectors and propose a cascaded evaluation which has the property that the full support-vector expansion is only evaluated on the face-like parts of the image, while the largest part of typical images is classified using a single expansion vector (a simpler and more efficient classifier). As a result, only three reduced-set vectors are used, on average, to classify an image patch. Hence, the cascaded evaluation, presented in this paper, offers a thirtyfold speed-up over an evaluation using the full set of reduced-set vectors, which is itself already thirty times faster than classification using all the support vectors.

PDF DOI [BibTex]

Romdhani, S., Torr, P., Schölkopf, B., Blake, A. Efficient face detection by a cascaded support-vector machine expansion Proceedings of The Royal Society of London A, 460(2501):3283-3297, A, November 2004 (article)

PDF DOI [BibTex]

Learning kernels from biological networks by maximizing entropy

Tsuda, K., Noble, W.

Bioinformatics, 20(Suppl. 1):i326-i333, August 2004 (article)

Abstract

Motivation: The diffusion kernel is a general method for computing pairwise distances among all nodes in a graph, based on the sum of weighted paths between each pair of nodes. This technique has been used successfully, in conjunction with kernel-based learning methods, to draw inferences from several types of biological networks. Results: We show that computing the diffusion kernel is equivalent to maximizing the von Neumann entropy, subject to a global constraint on the sum of the Euclidean distances between nodes. This global constraint allows for high variance in the pairwise distances. Accordingly, we propose an alternative, locally constrained diffusion kernel, and we demonstrate that the resulting kernel allows for more accurate support vector machine prediction of protein functional classifications from metabolic and proteinprotein interaction networks.

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Tsuda, K., Noble, W. Learning kernels from biological networks by maximizing entropy Bioinformatics, 20(Suppl. 1):i326-i333, August 2004 (article)

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Masking effect produced by Mach bands on the detection of narrow bars of random polarity

Henning, GB., Hoddinott, KT., Wilson-Smith, ZJ., Hill, NJ.

Journal of the Optical Society of America, 21(8):1379-1387, A, August 2004 (article)

[BibTex]

Henning, GB., Hoddinott, KT., Wilson-Smith, ZJ., Hill, NJ. Masking effect produced by Mach bands on the detection of narrow bars of random polarity Journal of the Optical Society of America, 21(8):1379-1387, A, August 2004 (article)

[BibTex]

Support Vector Channel Selection in BCI

Lal, T., Schröder, M., Hinterberger, T., Weston, J., Bogdan, M., Birbaumer, N., Schölkopf, B.

IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 51(6):1003-1010, June 2004 (article)

Abstract

Designing a Brain Computer Interface (BCI) system one can choose from a variety of features that may be useful for classifying brain activity during a mental task. For the special case of classifying EEG signals we propose the usage of the state of the art feature selection algorithms Recursive Feature Elimination and Zero-Norm Optimization which are based on the training of Support Vector Machines (SVM). These algorithms can provide more accurate solutions than standard filter methods for feature selection. We adapt the methods for the purpose of selecting EEG channels. For a motor imagery paradigm we show that the number of used channels can be reduced significantly without increasing the classification error. The resulting best channels agree well with the expected underlying cortical activity patterns during the mental tasks. Furthermore we show how time dependent task specific information can be visualized.

DOI [BibTex]

Lal, T., Schröder, M., Hinterberger, T., Weston, J., Bogdan, M., Birbaumer, N., Schölkopf, B. Support Vector Channel Selection in BCI IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 51(6):1003-1010, June 2004 (article)

DOI [BibTex]

Distance-Based Classification with Lipschitz Functions

von Luxburg, U., Bousquet, O.

Journal of Machine Learning Research, 5, pages: 669-695, June 2004 (article)

Abstract

The goal of this article is to develop a framework for large margin classification in metric spaces. We want to find a generalization of linear decision functions for metric spaces and define a corresponding notion of margin such that the decision function separates the training points with a large margin. It will turn out that using Lipschitz functions as decision functions, the inverse of the Lipschitz constant can be interpreted as the size of a margin. In order to construct a clean mathematical setup we isometrically embed the given metric space into a Banach space and the space of Lipschitz functions into its dual space. To analyze the resulting algorithm, we prove several representer theorems. They state that there always exist solutions of the Lipschitz classifier which can be expressed in terms of distance functions to training points. We provide generalization bounds for Lipschitz classifiers in terms of the Rademacher complexities of some Lipschitz function classes. The generality of our approach can be seen from the fact that several well-known algorithms are special cases of the Lipschitz classifier, among them the support vector machine, the linear programming machine, and the 1-nearest neighbor classifier.

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von Luxburg, U., Bousquet, O. Distance-Based Classification with Lipschitz Functions Journal of Machine Learning Research, 5, pages: 669-695, June 2004 (article)

PDF PostScript PDF [BibTex]

cDNA-Microarray Technology in Cartilage Research - Functional Genomics of Osteoarthritis [in German]

Aigner, T., Finger, F., Zien, A., Bartnik, E.

Zeitschrift f{\"u}r Orthop{\"a}die und ihre Grenzgebiete, 142(2):241-247, April 2004 (article)

Abstract

Functional genomics represents a new challenging approach in order to analyze complex diseases such as osteoarthritis on a molecular level. The characterization of the molecular changes of the cartilage cells, the chondrocytes, enables a better understanding of the pathomechanisms of the disease. In particular, the identification and characterization of new target molecules for therapeutic intervention is of interest. Also, potential molecular markers for diagnosis and monitoring of osteoarthritis contribute to a more appropriate patient management. The DNA-microarray technology complements (but does not replace) biochemical and biological research in new disease-relevant genes. Large-scale functional genomics will identify molecular networks such as yet identified players in the anabolic-catabolic balance of articular cartilage as well as disease-relevant intracellular signaling cascades so far rather unknown in articular chondrocytes. However, at the moment it is also important to recognize the limitations of the microarray technology in order to avoid over-interpretation of the results. This might lead to misleading results and prevent to a significant extent a proper use of the potential of this technology in the field of osteoarthritis.

[BibTex]

Aigner, T., Finger, F., Zien, A., Bartnik, E. cDNA-Microarray Technology in Cartilage Research - Functional Genomics of Osteoarthritis [in German] Zeitschrift f{\"u}r Orthop{\"a}die und ihre Grenzgebiete, 142(2):241-247, April 2004 (article)

[BibTex]

A Compression Approach to Support Vector Model Selection

von Luxburg, U., Bousquet, O., Schölkopf, B.

Journal of Machine Learning Research, 5, pages: 293-323, April 2004 (article)

Abstract

In this paper we investigate connections between statistical learning theory and data compression on the basis of support vector machine (SVM) model selection. Inspired by several generalization bounds we construct "compression coefficients" for SVMs which measure the amount by which the training labels can be compressed by a code built from the separating hyperplane. The main idea is to relate the coding precision to geometrical concepts such as the width of the margin or the shape of the data in the feature space. The so derived compression coefficients combine well known quantities such as the radius-margin term R^2/rho^2, the eigenvalues of the kernel matrix, and the number of support vectors. To test whether they are useful in practice we ran model selection experiments on benchmark data sets. As a result we found that compression coefficients can fairly accurately predict the parameters for which the test error is minimized.

PDF [BibTex]

von Luxburg, U., Bousquet, O., Schölkopf, B. A Compression Approach to Support Vector Model Selection Journal of Machine Learning Research, 5, pages: 293-323, April 2004 (article)

PDF [BibTex]

Experimentally optimal v in support vector regression for different noise models and parameter settings

Chalimourda, A., Schölkopf, B., Smola, A.

Neural Networks, 17(1):127-141, January 2004 (article)

Abstract

In Support Vector (SV) regression, a parameter ν controls the number of Support Vectors and the number of points that come to lie outside of the so-called var epsilon-insensitive tube. For various noise models and SV parameter settings, we experimentally determine the values of ν that lead to the lowest generalization error. We find good agreement with the values that had previously been predicted by a theoretical argument based on the asymptotic efficiency of a simplified model of SV regression. As a side effect of the experiments, valuable information about the generalization behavior of the remaining SVM parameters and their dependencies is gained. The experimental findings are valid even for complex real-world data sets. Based on our results on the role of the ν-SVM parameters, we discuss various model selection methods.

PDF DOI [BibTex]

Chalimourda, A., Schölkopf, B., Smola, A. Experimentally optimal v in support vector regression for different noise models and parameter settings Neural Networks, 17(1):127-141, January 2004 (article)

PDF DOI [BibTex]

Protein ranking: from local to global structure in the protein similarity network

Weston, J., Elisseeff, A., Zhou, D., Leslie, C., Noble, W.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, 101(17):6559-6563, 2004 (article)

Abstract

Biologists regularly search databases of DNA or protein sequences for evolutionary or functional relationships to a given query sequence. We describe a ranking algorithm that exploits the entire network structure of similarity relationships among proteins in a sequence database by performing a diffusion operation on a pre-computed, weighted network. The resulting ranking algorithm, evaluated using a human-curated database of protein structures, is efficient and provides significantly better rankings than a local network search algorithm such as PSI-BLAST.

Web [BibTex]

Weston, J., Elisseeff, A., Zhou, D., Leslie, C., Noble, W. Protein ranking: from local to global structure in the protein similarity network Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, 101(17):6559-6563, 2004 (article)

Web [BibTex]

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