Many existing rule learning systems are computationally expensive on large noisy datasets. In this paper we evaluate the recently-proposed rule learning algorithm IREP on a large and diverse collection of benchmark problems. We show that while IREP is extremely efficient, it frequently gives error rates higher than those of C4.5 and C4.5rules. We then propose a number of modifications resulting in an algorithm RIPPERk that is very competitive with C4.5rules with respect to error rates, but much more efficient on large samples. RIPPERk obtains error rates lower than or equivalent to C4.5rules on 22 of 37 benchmark problems, scales nearly linearly with the number of training examples, and can efficiently process noisy datasets containing hundreds of thousands of examples.

We consider the problem of discovering association rules between items in a large database of sales transactions. We present two new algorithms for solving this problem that are fundamentally different from the known algorithms. Empirical evaluation shows that these algorithms outperform the known algorithms by factors ranging from three for small problems to more than an order of magnitude for large problems. We also show how the best features of the two proposed algorithms can be combined into a hybrid algorithm, called AprioriHybrid. Scale-up experiments show that AprioriHybrid scales linearly with the number of transactions. AprioriHybrid also has excellent scale-up properties with respect to the transaction size and the number of items in the database.

We introduce a new approach to planning in STRIPS-like domains based on constructing and analyzing a compact structure we call a Planning Graph. We describe a new planner, Graphplan, that uses this paradigm. Graphplan always returns a shortest possible partial-order plan, or states that no valid

Three parallel algorithms for classical molecular dynamics are presented. The first assigns each processor a fixed subset of atoms; the second assigns each a fixed subset of inter-atomic forces to compute; the third assigns each a fixed spatial region. The algorithms are suitable for molecular dynamics models which can be difficult to parallelize efficiently -- those with short-range forces where the neighbors of each atom change rapidly. They can be implemented on any distributed--memory parallel machine which allows for message--passing of data between independently executing processors. The algorithms are tested on a standard Lennard-Jones benchmark problem for system sizes ranging from 500 to 100,000,000 atoms on several parallel supercomputers -- the nCUBE 2, Intel iPSC/860 and Paragon, and Cray T3D. Comparing the results to the fastest reported vectorized Cray Y-MP and C90 algorithm shows that the current generation of parallel machines is competitive with conventi...

A very promising idea for fast searching in traditional and multimedia databases is to map objects into points in k-d space, using k feature-extraction functions, provided by a domain expert [25]. Thus, we can subsequently use highly fine-tuned spatial access methods (SAMs), to answer several

We describe and evaluate the algorithmic techniques that are used in the FF planning system. Like the HSP system, FF relies on forward state space search, using a heuristic that estimates goal distances by ignoring delete lists. Unlike HSP's heuristic, our method does not assume facts to be independent. We introduce a novel search strategy that combines Hill-climbing with systematic search, and we show how other powerful heuristic information can be extracted and used to prune the search space. FF was the most successful automatic planner at the recent AIPS-2000 planning competition. We review the results of the competition, give data for other benchmark domains, and investigate the reasons for the runtime performance of FF compared to HSP.

The Omega testi s ani nteger programmi ng algori thm that can determi ne whether a dependence exi sts between two array references, and i so, under what condi7: ns. Conventi nalwi[A m holds thati nteger programmiB techni:36 are far too expensi e to be used for dependence analysi6 except as a method of last resort for si:8 ti ns that cannot be deci:A by si[976 methods. We present evi[77B that suggests thiwi sdomi s wrong, and that the Omega testi s competi ti ve wi th approxi mate algori thms usedi n practi ce and sui table for usei n producti on compi lers. Experi ments suggest that, for almost all programs, the average ti me requi red by the Omega test to determi ne the di recti on vectors for an array pai ri s less than 500 secs on a 12 MIPS workstati on. The Omega testi based on an extensi n of Four i0-Motzki var i ble eli937 ti n (aliB: r programmiA method) toi nteger programmi ng, and has worst-case exponenti al ti me complexi ty. However, we show that for manysiB7 ti ns i whi h ...

Recently, a number of researchers have investigated a class of graph partitioning algorithms that reduce the size of the graph by collapsing vertices and edges, partition the smaller graph, and then uncoarsen it to construct a partition for the original graph [Bui and Jones, Proc.

The difficulty of developing reliable distributed softwme is an impediment to applying distributed computing technology in many settings. Expeti _ with the Isis system suggests that a structured approach based on virtually synchronous _ groups yields systems that are substantially easier to develop

This paper argues that the typical household’s saving is better described by a “bufferstock” version than by the traditional version of the Life Cycle/Permanent Income Hypothesis (LC/PIH) model. Buffer-stock behavior emerges if consumers with important income uncertainty are sufficiently impatient