SoTerML (Soil and Terrain Markup Language) is a XML-based markup language for storing and exchanging soil and terrain related data. SoTerML development is being done within The e-SoTer Platform. GEOSS plans a global Earth Observation System and, within this framework, the e-SOTER project addresses the felt need for a global soil and terrain database. The Centre for Geospatial Science (Currently Nottingham Geospatial Institute) at the University of Nottingham has initiated the development since January 2009. Further development and maintenance is currently handled in National Soil Resources Institute (NSRI) at Cranfield University, UK. The role of CGS is within the development of the e-SOTER dissemination platform, which is based on INSPIRE principles. The SoTerML development included: 1. Development of a data dictionary for nomenclatures and various data sources (data and metadata). 2. Development of an exchange format/procedures from the World Reference Base 2006.
Control system
A control system manages, commands, directs, or regulates the behavior of other devices or systems using control loops. It can range from a single home heating controller using a thermostat controlling a domestic boiler to large industrial control systems which are used for controlling processes or machines. The control systems are designed via control engineering process. For continuously modulated control, a feedback controller is used to automatically control a process or operation. The control system compares the value or status of the process variable (PV) being controlled with the desired value or setpoint (SP), and applies the difference as a control signal to bring the process variable output of the plant to the same value as the setpoint. For sequential and combinational logic, software logic, such as in a programmable logic controller, is used. == Open-loop and closed-loop control == == Feedback control systems == == Logic control == Logic control systems for industrial and commercial machinery were historically implemented by interconnected electrical relays and cam timers using ladder logic. Today, most such systems are constructed with microcontrollers or more specialized programmable logic controllers (PLCs). The notation of ladder logic is still in use as a programming method for PLCs. Logic controllers may respond to switches and sensors and can cause the machinery to start and stop various operations through the use of actuators. Logic controllers are used to sequence mechanical operations in many applications. Examples include elevators, washing machines and other systems with interrelated operations. An automatic sequential control system may trigger a series of mechanical actuators in the correct sequence to perform a task. For example, various electric and pneumatic transducers may fold and glue a cardboard box, fill it with the product and then seal it in an automatic packaging machine. PLC software can be written in many different ways – ladder diagrams, SFC (sequential function charts) or statement lists. == On–off control == On–off control uses a feedback controller that switches abruptly between two states. A simple bi-metallic domestic thermostat can be described as an on-off controller. When the temperature in the room (PV) goes below the user setting (SP), the heater is switched on. Another example is a pressure switch on an air compressor. When the pressure (PV) drops below the setpoint (SP) the compressor is powered. Refrigerators and vacuum pumps contain similar mechanisms. Simple on–off control systems like these can be cheap and effective. == Linear control == == Fuzzy logic == Fuzzy logic is an attempt to apply the easy design of logic controllers to the control of complex continuously varying systems. Basically, a measurement in a fuzzy logic system can be partly true. The rules of the system are written in natural language and translated into fuzzy logic. For example, the design for a furnace would start with: "If the temperature is too high, reduce the fuel to the furnace. If the temperature is too low, increase the fuel to the furnace." Measurements from the real world (such as the temperature of a furnace) are fuzzified and logic is calculated arithmetic, as opposed to Boolean logic, and the outputs are de-fuzzified to control equipment. When a robust fuzzy design is reduced to a single, quick calculation, it begins to resemble a conventional feedback loop solution and it might appear that the fuzzy design was unnecessary. However, the fuzzy logic paradigm may provide scalability for large control systems where conventional methods become unwieldy or costly to derive. Fuzzy electronics is an electronic technology that uses fuzzy logic instead of the two-value logic more commonly used in digital electronics. == Physical implementation == The range of control system implementation is from compact controllers often with dedicated software for a particular machine or device, to distributed control systems for industrial process control for a large physical plant. Logic systems and feedback controllers are usually implemented with programmable logic controllers. The Broadly Reconfigurable and Expandable Automation Device (BREAD) is a recent framework that provides many open-source hardware devices which can be connected to create more complex data acquisition and control systems.
Lise Getoor
Lise Getoor is an American computer scientist who is a distinguished professor and Baskin Endowed chair in the Computer Science and Engineering department, at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and an adjunct professor in the Computer Science Department at the University of Maryland, College Park. Her primary research interests are in machine learning and reasoning with uncertainty, applied to graphs and structured data. She also works in data integration, social network analysis and visual analytics. She has edited a book on Statistical relational learning that is a main reference in this domain. She has published many highly cited papers in academic journals and conference proceedings. She has also served as action editor for the Machine Learning Journal, JAIR associate editor, and TKDD associate editor. She received her Ph.D. from Stanford University, her M.S. from UC Berkeley, and her B.S. from UC Santa Barbara. Prior to joining University of California, Santa Cruz, she was a professor at the University of Maryland, College Park until November 2013. == Recognition == Getoor has multiple best paper awards, an NSF Career Award, and is an Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI) Fellow. In 2019, she was elected as an ACM Fellow "for contributions to machine learning, reasoning under uncertainty, and responsible data science", was selected as a Distinguished Alumna of the UC Santa Barbara Computer Science Department, was awarded the UCSC WiSE Chancellor's Achievement Award for Diversity, and was selected to give the UC Santa Cruz Faculty Research Lecture 2018-19, one of the highest recognitions given to UC faculty. She was named an IEEE Fellow in 2021, "for contributions to machine learning and reasoning under uncertainty". In October 2022, Getoor was elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). In 2024, she was named a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAA&S). Also in 2024, she received the ACM SIGKDD Innovation Award recognizing individuals with outstanding technical innovations in the field of Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining that have had a lasting impact in advancing the theory and practice of the field. == Personal life == Getoor's father was mathematician Ronald Getoor (1929–2017).
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Showbox.com
Showbox is an online video streaming platform that enables users to stream and download many videos, commonly movies and TV shows, for free. == History == The company opened the platforms to users who registered from its beta in late 2015. The platform was officially launched in February 2016, enabling any visitor to sign up and create videos online. In April 2016, Showbox was featured on the Product Hunt website, coming to the top of the website's lists for that day and week with over 1400 upvotes from the Product Hunt community. Also in April 2016, Showbox partnered with YouTube's leading multi-channel networks, including Fullscreen, BroadbandTV, StyleHaul, AwesomenessTV, and BuzzMyVideos, to enable their communities of creators to access the platform. In June 2016, the company launched Showbox For Brands, a business-oriented video creation platform, enabling companies to create video content in-house and with their communities and influencers. In March 2017, the company launched Showbox Engage, a use case of its B2B product launched in 2016, enabling companies to launch user-generated content campaigns with their communities. In April 2017, Showbox and the United Nations announced a partnership around the 70th anniversary of the declaration of human rights, with an annual, ongoing global campaign in 135 languages, inviting people worldwide to create their part of the declaration in a video from anywhere around the world. In November 2017, Showbox partnered with the Ad:tech and Digital Marketing World Forum conferences (DMWF) in New York to provide their users and communities with a User Generated Content video solution. == Technology == Showbox's video creation technology includes an online green screen feature, proprietary computer vision algorithms, deep learning technology to support the automatic creation of videos in the cloud, and advanced video composition, including special effects. == Coverage and awards == In March 2015, Showbox was nominated as one of the 10 Israeli startups to take over our TV screens this year. In July 2016, Showbox won the Publicis90 award as part of Publicis' "global initiative to foster digital entrepreneurship". In March 2017, Showbox was chosen as one of The Culture Trip's 10 startups to watch for in 2017.
Collocation extraction
Collocation extraction is the task of using a computer to extract collocations automatically from a corpus. The traditional method of performing collocation extraction is to find a formula based on the statistical quantities of those words to calculate a score associated to every word pairs. Proposed formulas are mutual information, t-test, z test, chi-squared test and likelihood ratio. Within the area of corpus linguistics, collocation is defined as a sequence of words or terms which co-occur more often than would be expected by chance. 'Crystal clear', 'middle management', 'nuclear family', and 'cosmetic surgery' are examples of collocated pairs of words. Some words are often found together because they make up a compound noun, for example 'riding boots' or 'motor cyclist' or ‘collocation extraction’ its very self.