29614860
A mobile computer interface for heterogeneous databases
Computer-based personal information services are evolving beyond simple applications such as retrieval of phone numbers to include interaction with collections of large, heterogeneous, geographically distributed information bases. Concurrently, small, pen-based, mobile computers are becoming the machine of choice for personal computing. This latter trend suggests simple interfaces that are easy-to-use, avoid keyboard use, and are suited for the small screens and small memory sizes of mobile machines. The former trend, however, suggests an increased sophistication in database interfaces, so as to provide access to the more complex heterogeneous collection of databases that are now part of a personal information service. At the Matsushita Information Technology Laboratory (MITL) they are working on a pen-based graphical database language that begins to combine these conflicting demands for simplicity and sophistication. The authors sketch the highlights of the research approach, and present a brief description of the current prototype.<<ETX>>
41657422
Long-Term Caching Strategies for Very Large Distributed File Systems
209397194
Data Caching in Information Retrieval Systems.
62611509
Query optimization in distributed databases through load balancing
Abstract : As technology advances, computing environments composed of large numbers of workstations and mainframes connected by a high bandwidth local area network become attractive. These systems typically support a large number of application classes, and the heterogeneity of their workload, coupled with the decentralization of the systems, can lead to load imbalances across the network. This work attempts to study the benefits of load balancing strategies in the context of a particular application, distributed database systems. It was felt that, by focusing on a specific area, the problem would become more tractable. The choice of database management systems can be justified not only by their intrinsic importance, but also by the adaptability of load balancing strategies to query optimization algorithms. In order to determine whether load balancing strategies can indeed be adapted to current optimizers with a moderate amount of effort and to see whether the resulting performance benefits are sizable, both benchmarking and simulation experiments were carried out.
17958969
Model-guided information discovery for intelligence analysis
Intelligence analysis can be aided and guided by models of the analysts' interests and priorities. This paper describes our approach to analyst modeling as part of the Ant CAFÉ project, in which analyst models are used to guide the searching behavior of a swarm of intelligent agents. Structural elements of our analyst model include concepts and relations, both of which help to capture the analyst's current interest and concerns. In addition, the concepts and relationships have associated scalar parameters to provide a quantitative measure of the user's level of interest. We have developed algorithms for dynamically adapting the weights and evolving the elements of the model itself. To evaluate these algorithms we have built an Analyst Modeling Environment workbench. We have tested our approach on this workbench using traces generated by human analysts, and have demonstrated improvements over current state of the art search engines.
16077675
Hybrid Multi-agent Systems: Integrating Swarming and BDI Agents
The individual agents that interact in a multi-agent system typically exist along a continuum ranging from heavyweight cognitive agents (often of the "BDI" type) to lightweight agents with limited individual processing (digital ants). Most systems use agents from a single position along this spectrum. We have successfully implemented several systems in which agents of very different degrees of internal sophistication interact with one another. Based on this experience, we identify several different ways in which agents of different kinds can be integrated in a single system, and offer observations and lessons from our experiences.
42014672
Trade Press News - Announcement and Preface
29591299
Trade Press News