Generalization Error Bound for Quantum Machine Learning in NISQ Era -- A Survey

Despite the mounting anticipation for the quantum revolution, the success of Quantum Machine Learning (QML) in the Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum (NISQ) era hinges on a largely unexplored factor: the generalization error bound, a cornerstone of robust and reliable machine learning models. Current QML research, while exploring novel algorithms and applications extensively, is predominantly situated in the context of noise-free, ideal quantum computers. However, Quantum Circuit (QC) operations in NISQ-era devices are susceptible to various noise sources and errors. In this article, we conduct a Systematic Mapping Study (SMS) to explore the state-of-the-art generalization bound for supervised QML in NISQ-era and analyze the latest practices in the field. Our study systematically summarizes the existing computational platforms with quantum hardware, datasets, optimization techniques, and the common properties of the bounds found in the literature. We further present the performance accuracy of various approaches in classical benchmark datasets like the MNIST and IRIS datasets. The SMS also highlights the limitations and challenges in QML in the NISQ era and discusses future research directions to advance the field. Using a detailed Boolean operators query in five reliable indexers, we collected 544 papers and filtered them to a small set of 37 relevant articles. This filtration was done following the best practice of SMS with well-defined research questions and inclusion and exclusion criteria.

Learning Robust Observable to Address Noise in Quantum Machine Learning

Quantum Machine Learning (QML) has emerged as a promising field that combines the power of quantum computing with the principles of machine learning. One of the significant challenges in QML is dealing with noise in quantum systems, especially in the Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum (NISQ) era. Noise in quantum systems can introduce errors in quantum computations and degrade the performance of quantum algorithms. In this paper, we propose a framework for learning observables that are robust against noisy channels in quantum systems. We demonstrate that it is possible to learn observables that remain invariant under the effects of noise and show that this can be achieved through a machine-learning approach. We present a toy example using a Bell state under a depolarization channel to illustrate the concept of robust observables. We then describe a machine-learning framework for learning such observables across six two-qubit quantum circuits and five noisy channels. Our results show that it is possible to learn observables that are more robust to noise than conventional observables. We discuss the implications of this finding for quantum machine learning, including potential applications in enhancing the stability of QML models in noisy environments. By developing techniques for learning robust observables, we can improve the performance and reliability of quantum machine learning models in the presence of noise, contributing to the advancement of practical QML applications in the NISQ era.

Bottleneck-based Encoder-decoder ARchitecture (BEAR) for Learning Unbiased Consumer-to-Consumer Image Representations

Unbiased representation learning is still an object of study under specific applications and contexts. Novel architectures are usually crafted to resolve particular problems using mixtures of fundamental pieces. This paper presents different image feature extraction mechanisms that work together with residual connections to encode perceptual image information in an autoencoder configuration. We use image data that aims to support a larger research agenda dealing with issues regarding criminal activity in consumer-to-consumer online platforms. Preliminary results suggest that the proposed architecture can learn rich spaces using ours and other image datasets resolving important challenges that are identified.

Image-Based Leopard Seal Recognition: Approaches and Challenges in Current Automated Systems

This paper examines the challenges and advancements in recognizing seals within their natural habitats using conventional photography, underscored by the emergence of machine learning technologies. We used the leopard seal, \emph{Hydrurga leptonyx}, a key species within Antarctic ecosystems, to review the different available methods found. As apex predators, Leopard seals are characterized by their significant ecological role and elusive nature so studying them is crucial to understand the health of their ecosystem. Traditional methods of monitoring seal species are often constrained by the labor-intensive and time-consuming processes required for collecting data, compounded by the limited insights these methods provide. The advent of machine learning, particularly through the application of vision transformers, heralds a new era of efficiency and precision in species monitoring. By leveraging state-of-the-art approaches in detection, segmentation, and recognition within digital imaging, this paper presents a synthesis of the current landscape, highlighting both the cutting-edge methodologies and the predominant challenges faced in accurately identifying seals through photographic data.

AI Safety in Practice: Enhancing Adversarial Robustness in Multimodal Image Captioning

Multimodal machine learning models that combine visual and textual data are increasingly being deployed in critical applications, raising significant safety and security concerns due to their vulnerability to adversarial attacks. This paper presents an effective strategy to enhance the robustness of multimodal image captioning models against such attacks. By leveraging the Fast Gradient Sign Method (FGSM) to generate adversarial examples and incorporating adversarial training techniques, we demonstrate improved model robustness on two benchmark datasets: Flickr8k and COCO. Our findings indicate that selectively training only the text decoder of the multimodal architecture shows performance comparable to full adversarial training while offering increased computational efficiency. This targeted approach suggests a balance between robustness and training costs, facilitating the ethical deployment of multimodal AI systems across various domains.

An Automated SQL Query Grading System Using An Attention-Based Convolutional Neural Network

Grading SQL queries can be a time-consuming, tedious and challenging task, especially as the number of student submissions increases. Several systems have been introduced in an attempt to mitigate these challenges, but those systems have their own limitations. This paper describes our novel approach to automating the process of grading SQL queries. Unlike previous approaches, we employ a unique convolutional neural network architecture that employs a parameter-sharing approach for different machine learning tasks that enables the architecture to induce different knowledge representations of the data to increase its potential for understanding SQL statements.

A Review of Pulse-Coupled Neural Network Applications in Computer Vision and Image Processing

Research in neural models inspired by mammal's visual cortex has led to many spiking neural networks such as pulse-coupled neural networks (PCNNs). These models are oscillating, spatio-temporal models stimulated with images to produce several time-based responses. This paper reviews PCNN's state of the art, covering its mathematical formulation, variants, and other simplifications found in the literature. We present several applications in which PCNN architectures have successfully addressed some fundamental image processing and computer vision challenges, including image segmentation, edge detection, medical imaging, image fusion, image compression, object recognition, and remote sensing. Results achieved in these applications suggest that the PCNN architecture generates useful perceptual information relevant to a wide variety of computer vision tasks.

Detecting Hallucinations in Large Language Model Generation: A Token Probability Approach

Concerns regarding the propensity of Large Language Models (LLMs) to produce inaccurate outputs, also known as hallucinations, have escalated. Detecting them is vital for ensuring the reliability of applications relying on LLM-generated content. Current methods often demand substantial resources and rely on extensive LLMs or employ supervised learning with multidimensional features or intricate linguistic and semantic analyses difficult to reproduce and largely depend on using the same LLM that hallucinated. This paper introduces a supervised learning approach employing two simple classifiers utilizing only four numerical features derived from tokens and vocabulary probabilities obtained from other LLM evaluators, which are not necessarily the same. The method yields promising results, surpassing state-of-the-art outcomes in multiple tasks across three different benchmarks. Additionally, we provide a comprehensive examination of the strengths and weaknesses of our approach, highlighting the significance of the features utilized and the LLM employed as an evaluator. We have released our code publicly at https://github.com/Baylor-AI/HalluDetect.

On the Challenges of Creating Datasets for Analyzing Commercial Sex Advertisements to Assess Human Trafficking Risk and Organized Activity

Our study addresses the challenges of building datasets to understand the risks associated with organized activities and human trafficking through commercial sex advertisements. These challenges include data scarcity, rapid obsolescence, and privacy concerns. Traditional approaches, which are not automated and are difficult to reproduce, fall short in addressing these issues. We have developed a reproducible and automated methodology to analyze five million advertisements. In the process, we identified further challenges in dataset creation within this sensitive domain. This paper presents a streamlined methodology to assist researchers in constructing effective datasets for combating organized crime, allowing them to focus on advancing detection technologies.

Efficacy of ByteT5 in Multilingual Translation of Biblical Texts for Underrepresented Languages

This study presents the development and evaluation of a ByteT5-based multilingual translation model tailored for translating the Bible into underrepresented languages. Utilizing the comprehensive Johns Hopkins University Bible Corpus, we trained the model to capture the intricate nuances of character-based and morphologically rich languages. Our results, measured by the BLEU score and supplemented with sample translations, suggest the model can improve accessibility to sacred texts. It effectively handles the distinctive biblical lexicon and structure, thus bridging the linguistic divide. The study also discusses the model's limitations and suggests pathways for future enhancements, focusing on expanding access to sacred literature across linguistic boundaries.