A multiple intelligent agent system for credit risk prediction via an optimization of localized generalization error with diversity

Company bankruptcies cost billions of dollars in losses to banks each year. Thus credit risk prediction is a critical part of a bank＇s loan approval decision process. Traditional financial models for credit risk prediction are no longer adequate for describing today＇s complex relationship between the financial health and potential bankruptcy of a company. In this work, a multiple classifier system （embedded in a multiple intelligent agent system） is proposed to predict the financial health of a company. In our model, each individual agent （classifier） makes a prediction on the likelihood of credit risk based on only partial information of the company. Each of the agents is an expert, but has limited knowledge （represented by features） about the company. The decisions of all agents are combined together to form a final credit risk prediction. Experiments show that our model out-performs other existing methods using the benchmarking Compustat American Corporations dataset.     

Using Action Research to Improve Communication and Facilitate Group Work in a Multicultural Classroom: A South African Case Study

This study started with problems that my colleagues (and I) were experiencing with interaction and intercultural communication among students in our diverse classrooms. Educators were also experiencing difficulties in motivating students to work effectively in groups. The purpose of this paper was to seek solutions to these problems by exploring variations of the group oral assessment structure in a multilingual and multicultural context. Four phases of assessments were conducted at two tertiary institutions in South Africa using a combination of action research and a participatory approach. Not only did this study succeed in addressing the problems but it also revealed the added benefits of using an action research methodology.     

EXPLORATION/EXPLOITATION TRADEOFF WITH CELL-SHIFT AND HEURISTIC CROSSOVER FOR EVOLUTIONARY ALGORITHMS

In order to tradeoff exploration/exploitation and inspired by cell genetic algorithm a cellshift crossover operator for evolutionary algorithm （EA） is proposed in this paper. The definition domain is divided into n-dimension cubic sub-domains （cell） and each individual locates at an ndimensional cube. Cell-shift crossover first exchanges the cell numbers of the crossover pair if they are in the different cells （exploration） and subsequently shift the first individual from its initial place to the other individual＇s cell place. If they are already in the same cell heuristic crossover （exploitation） is used. Cell-shift/heuristic crossover adaptively executes exploration/exploitation search with the vary of genetic diversity. The cell-shift EA has excellent performance in terms of efficiency and efficacy on ten usually used optimization benchmarks when comparing with the recent well-known FEP evolutionary algorithm.     

INFORMATION CHARACTERIZATION OF COMMUNICATION CHANNELS FOR SYSTEM IDENTIFICATION

This paper studies identification of systems in which the system output is quantized, transmitted through a digital communication channel, and observed afterwards. The concept of the CR Ratio is introduced to characterize impact of communication channels on identification. The relationship between the CR Ratio and Shannon channel capacity is discussed. Identification algorithms are further developed when the channel error probability is unknown.     

Kinematics analysis of a robotic rock grinder

With the aim to discover water, life and resources in other planets, robotic sampling instrument is a crucial part of the space exploration robot. To remove dusty and weathered surfaces and expose the fresh rock underneath the planetary surface, a robotic rock grinder is considered to replace the geolo- gist’s rock hammer to carry out the geological investigation. A primary prototype of the robotic rock grinder with three degrees of freedom has been developed in this paper. Planetary transmission system is used in the grinding driving system with two inputs (rotation motor and revolution motor) and two outputs (grinding wheel and cutting brush). The grinding wheel with two teeth has been used to abrade the rock. The cutting brush is used to sweep the debris. The third actuator is to feed the grinding sys- tem. Kinematics of the grinding system has been analyzed. To get a continuous and smooth fresh face over the rock, grinding trajectory of the grinding wheel has been discussed and planned. Lastly, abra- sion experiments have been made to testify the feasibility and the basic function of this system.     

Enolate chelating N-heterocyclic carbene complexes of Fe(II): Synthesis, structure and their catalytic activity for ring-opening polymerization of ε-caprolactone

The reaction of anhydrous FeBr2 with two equivalents of anionic N-heterocyclic carbene (NaL1 and NaL2), which are generated in situ by the reaction of the corresponding salt [4-R-C6H4COCH2{CH- (NCHCHNiPr)}Br] (R = OCH3, H2L1Br, 1; R = F, H2L2Br, 2) with two equivalents of NaN(SiMe3)2, affords bis-ligand Fe(II) complexes of L12Fe (3) and L22Fe (4) in high yield, respectively. Attempt to synthesize mono-ligand Fe(II) bromide by the 1:1 molar ratio of NaL to FeBr2 is unsuccessful, and the same com- plexes of 3 and 4 were obtained. Both 3 and 4 have been depicted by elemental analysis and X-ray structure determination. Preliminary studies show that both 3 and 4 can be used as single-component catalyst for the ring-opening polymerization of ε-caprolactone, and the catalytic activity of 3 is higher than that of 4.     

Measuring radial Young’s modulus of DNA by tapping mode AFM

Based on tapping mode AFM imaging, a method was demonstrated to evaluate compression elasticity of single double-stranded DNA （dsDNA） molecules in the force region. With images under ambient conditions, Young＇s moduli of dsDNA in compression were calculated. Results demonstrated that Young＇s moduli of dsDNA can be simply deduced according to the proposed model. The method can also be used to evaluate the compression elasticity of similar soft nanomaterials.     

Detection of water masers in a sample of 84 IRAS sources

Using a newly installed system on the 25 m telescope of Urumqi Observatory, we searched for H20 maser emission towards 84 IRAS sources including young stellar objects （YSOs） and candidates for OFUIR stars. Water masers were detected in four star formation regions and one envelope of late type of stars for the first time. New water maser components were measured in two sources. In a maser source with no water maser emission detected six years ago, strong maser emission was found at different velocities, showing that there was a new explosion of water maser in this source.     

Preparation of polypropylene/montmorillonite nanocomposites by intercalative polymerization： Effect of in situ polymer matrix functionalization on the stability of the nanocomposite structure

The copolymerization of propylene and 5-hexenyl-9-borabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane (5-hexenyl-9-BBN) has been conducted with an MgCl2/TiCl4 catalyst intercalated in an organically modified montmorillonite (OMMT) with triethylaluminum (AlEt3) cocatalyst and diphenyldimethoxysilane (DDS) external donor. This polymerization process simultaneously results in both the exfoliation of MMT layers to realize the preparation of polypropylene (PP)/MMT nanocomposites and the implantation of reactive borane groups in the formed PP matrix. The polymer-borne borane groups have been able to undergo an effi-cient hydrolysis process under very mild reaction conditions (40℃, 3 h, in THF), introducing hydroxy groups into PP without sacrificing the polymerization-formed nanocomposite structure (the exfoliation of MMT). The resultant hydroxyl-functionalized PP/MMT nanocomposites exhibit enhanced structural stability against processing compared with those based on unfunctionalized PP matrix.     

Interaction of aloe-emodin with human serum albumin

The presence of several high affinity binding sites on human serum albumin (HSA) makes it a possible target for many drugs. This study is designed to examine the effect of aloe-emodin on HSA by fluo-rescence, CD spectroscopy and molecular modeling. The results of fluorescence measurements sug-gested that the hydrophobic interaction was the predominant intermolecular force stabilizing the AE-HSA complex, which was in good agreement with the result of molecular modeling study. And the enthalpy change ΔH0 and the entropy change ΔS0 were calculated to be -7.041 kJ·mol-1 and 76.619 J·mol-1·K-1 according to the Van't Hoff equation. The alterations of protein secondary structure in the presence of AE in aqueous solution were quantitatively calculated from CD spectra, and the content of α-helices obviously increased.