Large language models (LLMs) are increasingly applied in clinical decision support, yet current evaluations rarely reveal whether their outputs reflect genuine medical reasoning or superficial correlations. We introduce DeVisE (Demographics and Vital signs Evaluation), a behavioral testing framework that probes fine-grained clinical understanding through controlled counterfactuals. Using intensive care unit (ICU) discharge notes from MIMIC-IV, we construct both raw (real-world) and template-based (synthetic) variants with single-variable perturbations in demographic (age, gender, ethnicity) and vital sign attributes. We evaluate eight LLMs, spanning general-purpose and medical variants, under zero-shot setting. Model behavior is analyzed through (1) input-level sensitivity, capturing how counterfactuals alter perplexity, and (2) downstream reasoning, measuring their effect on predicted ICU length-of-stay and mortality. Overall, our results show that standard task metrics obscure clinically relevant differences in model behavior, with models differing substantially in how consistently and proportionally they adjust predictions to counterfactual perturbations.
In this work, we present a methodology for devising forward-backward methods for finding zeros in the sum of a finite number of maximally monotone operators. We extend the framework and techniques from [SIAM J. Optim., 34 (2024), pp. 1569-1594] to cover the case involving a finite number of cocoercive operators, which should be directly evaluated instead of computing their resolvent. The algorithms are induced by three graphs that determine how the algorithm variables interact with each other and how they are combined to compute each resolvent. The hypotheses on these graphs ensure that the algorithms obtained have minimal lifting and are frugal, meaning that the ambient space of the underlying fixed point operator has minimal dimension and that each resolvent and each cocoercive operator is evaluated only once per iteration. This framework not only allows to recover some known methods, but also to generate new ones, as the forward-backward algorithm induced by a complete graph. We conclude with a numerical experiment showing how the choice of graphs influences the performance of the algorithms.
Spiking Neural Networks (SNNs) emulate the spiking behavior of biological neurons and are typically deployed on distributed-memory neuromorphic hardware. The deployment of a SNN usually requires partitioning the network and mapping these partitions onto the hardware's processing units. However, finding optimal deployment configurations is an NP-hard problem, often addressed through optimization algorithms. While some objectives (e.g., memory utilization and chip count) are static, others (e.g., communication latency and energy efficiency) depend on the network's dynamic behavior, necessitating dynamic-aware optimization. To address this, we model SNN dynamics using an Ising-type pairwise interaction framework, bridging microscopic neuron interactions with macroscopic network behavior. We optimize deployment by exploring the parameter and configuration spaces of the Ising model. We evaluate our approach on two SNNs deployed on the sPyNNaker neuromorphic platform. Initial results suggest that the method underperforms, potentially due to the Ising model's equilibrium assumptions and the architectural complexity of real-world neuromorphic hardware, highlighting limitations in its curre
A code design problem for memory devises with restricted state transitions is formulated as a combinatorial optimization problem that is called a subgraph domatic partition (subDP) problem. If any neighbor set of a given state transition graph contains all the colors, then the coloring is said to be valid. The goal of a subDP problem is to find a valid coloring with the largest number of colors for a subgraph of a given directed graph. The number of colors in an optimal valid coloring gives the writing capacity of a given state transition graph. The subDP problems are computationally hard; it is proved to be NP-complete in this paper. One of our main contributions in this paper is to show the asymptotic behavior of the writing capacity $C(G)$ for sequences of dense bidirectional graphs, that is given by C(G)=Omega(n/ln n) where n is the number of nodes. A probabilistic method called Lovasz local lemma (LLL) plays an essential role to derive the asymptotic expression.
We study the $(Δ+1)$-edge-coloring problem in the parallel $\left(\mathrm{PRAM}\right)$ model of computation. The celebrated Vizing's theorem [Viz64] states that every simple graph $G = (V,E)$ can be properly $(Δ+1)$-edge-colored. In a seminal paper, Karloff and Shmoys [KS87] devised a parallel algorithm with time $O\left(Δ^5\cdot\log n\cdot\left(\log^3 n+Δ^2\right)\right)$ and $O(m\cdotΔ)$ processors. This result was improved by Liang et al. [LSH96] to time $O\left(Δ^{4.5}\cdot \log^3Δ\cdot \log n + Δ^4 \cdot\log^4 n\right)$ and $O\left(n\cdotΔ^{3} +n^2\right)$ processors. [LSH96] claimed $O\left(Δ^{3.5} \cdot\log^3Δ\cdot \log n + Δ^3\cdot \log^4 n\right)$ time, but we point out a flaw in their analysis, which once corrected, results in the above bound. We devise a faster parallel algorithm for this fundamental problem. Specifically, our algorithm uses $O\left(Δ^4\cdot \log^4 n\right)$ time and $O(m\cdot Δ)$ processors. Another variant of our algorithm requires $O\left(Δ^{4+o(1)}\cdot\log^2 n\right)$ time, and $O\left(m\cdotΔ\cdot\log n\cdot\log^δΔ\right)$ processors, for an arbitrarily small $δ>0$. We also devise a few other tradeoffs between the time and the number of process
We present a rehearsal-oriented system for creating responsive built environments during theatre devising workshops. The system connects bespoke sensing modules for gesture, position, and speech recognition to light and sound outputs through a visual no-code programming layer. It was developed, used, and refined across six workshops with eight professional performance-makers, where participants created light-and-sound scores, gesture- and position-triggered scenes, responsive architectures, participatory prototypes, and a multi-room scratch performance. Rather than presenting a production-ready show-control platform, this demo focuses on how sensing and actuation can be made available as compositional materials during early-stage creative experimentation for immersive theatrical compositions. The system is designed to support quick configuration, visible mappings, and in-room testing, allowing performers to experiment with responsive spaces with minimal technical support. We describe the system architecture, its workshop use, and the practical conditions that helped integrate interactive sensing into embodied performance-making.
In this work, to facilitate the real-time processing of multi-scan registration error minimization on factor graphs, we devise a point cloud downsampling algorithm based on coreset extraction. This algorithm extracts a subset of the residuals of input points such that the subset yields exactly the same quadratic error function as that of the original set for a given pose. This enables a significant reduction in the number of residuals to be evaluated without approximation errors at the sampling point. Using this algorithm, we devise a complete SLAM framework that consists of odometry estimation based on sliding window optimization and global trajectory optimization based on registration error minimization over the entire map, both of which can run in real time on a standard CPU. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed framework outperforms state-of-the-art CPU-based SLAM frameworks without the use of GPU acceleration.
Given a graph $G=(V,E)$, a collection $\mathcal{T}$ of spanning trees of $G$ is called a spanning tree cover of stretch $α$ if for every $u,v\in V$ there is a tree $T_{uv}\in\mathcal{T}$, such that \[d_{T_{uv}}(u,v)\leqα\cdot d_G(u,v)~.\] Spanning tree covers were introduced in the pioneering work of Gupta et al. [GKR04], that showed that $p$-path-separable graphs admit stretch-$3$ spanning tree covers with size $O(p\log n)$. Many subsequent papers focused on a relaxed notion of non-spanning tree covers, in which the trees are required to be dominating, but may use edges that do not belong to the graph. In particular, Bartal et al. [BFN22] devised a construction of non-spanning tree covers with stretch $1+ε$ and size $O(p\cdot\frac{\log^2n}{ε^2})$. Recently, for $K_r$-minor-free graphs, Chang et al. [CCL+23,CCL+24] devised a non-spanning tree cover with stretch $1+ε$ and size $2^{\frac{1}εr^{O(r)}}$, and an exact spanning tree cover with size $r^{O(diam(G))}$. However, the problem of devising spanning tree covers with stretch smaller than $3$ and small size for general $p$-path-separable graphs remained open. We show that $p$-path-separable graphs admit spanning tree covers with st
Denoising diffusion models produce high-fidelity image samples by capturing the image distribution in a progressive manner while initializing with a simple distribution and compounding the distribution complexity. Although these models have unlocked new applicabilities, the sampling mechanism of diffusion does not offer means to extract image-specific semantic representation, which is inherently provided by auto-encoders. The encoding component of auto-encoders enables mapping between a specific image and its latent space, thereby offering explicit means of enforcing structures in the latent space. By integrating an encoder with the diffusion model, we establish an auto-encoding formulation, which learns image-specific representations and offers means to organize the latent space. In this work, First, we devise a mechanism to structure the latent space of a diffusion auto-encoding model, towards recognizing region-specific cellular patterns in brain images. We enforce the representations to regress positional information of the patches from high-resolution images. This creates a conducive latent space for differentiating tissue types of the brain. Second, we devise an unsupervised
Fuzzing has been proven extremely effective in finding vulnerabilities in software. When it comes to fuzz stateless systems, analysts have no doubts about the choice to make. In fact, among the plethora of stateless fuzzers devised in the last 20 years, AFL (with its descendants AFL++ and LibAFL) stood up for its effectiveness, speed and ability to find bugs. On the other hand, when dealing with stateful systems, it is not clear what is the best tool to use. In fact, the research community struggles to devise (and benchmark) effective and generic stateful fuzzers. In this short paper, we discuss the reasons that make stateful fuzzers difficult to devise and benchmark.
According to the data, the percent of women who underwent screening for cervical cancer, breast and oral cancer in Telangana in the year 2020 was 3.3 percent, 0.3 percent and 2.3 percent respectively. Although early detection is the only way to reduce morbidity and mortality, people have very low awareness about cervical and breast cancer signs and symptoms and screening practices. We developed an ML classification model to predict if a person is susceptible to breast or cervical cancer based on demographic factors. We devised a system to provide suggestions for the nearest hospital or Cancer treatment centres based on the users location or address. In addition to this, we can integrate the health card to maintain medical records of all individuals and conduct awareness drives and campaigns. For ML classification models, we used decision tree classification and support vector classification algorithms for cervical cancer susceptibility and breast cancer susceptibility respectively. Thus, by devising this solution we come one step closer to our goal which is spreading cancer awareness, thereby, decreasing the cancer mortality and increasing cancer literacy among the people of Telang
We consider a control-constrained optimal control problem subject to time-harmonic Maxwell's equations; the control variable belongs to a finite-dimensional set and enters the state equation as a coefficient. We derive existence of optimal solutions, and analyze first- and second-order optimality conditions. We devise an approximation scheme based on the lowest order Nédélec finite elements to approximate optimal solutions. We analyze convergence properties of the proposed scheme and prove a priori error estimates. We also design an a posteriori error estimator that can be decomposed as the sum two contributions related to the discretization of the state and adjoint equations, and prove that the devised error estimator is reliable and locally efficient. We perform numerical tests in order to assess the performance of the devised discretization strategy and the a posteriori error estimator.
In recent years, we have observed a growing interest in Indoor Tracking Systems (ITS) for providing location-based services indoors. This is due to the limitations of Global Navigation and Satellite Systems, which do not operate in non-line-of-sight environments. Depending on their architecture, ITS can rely on expensive infrastructure, accumulate errors, or be challenging to evaluate in real-life environments. Building an ITS is a complex process that involves devising, evaluating and fine-tuning tracking algorithms. This process is not yet standard, as researchers use different types of equipment, deployment environments, and evaluation metrics. Therefore, it is challenging for researchers to build novel tracking algorithms and for the research community to reproduce the experiments. To address these challenges, we propose MobiXIM, a framework that provides a set of tools for devising, evaluating and fine-tuning tracking algorithms in a structured manner. For devising tracking algorithms, MobiXIM introduces a novel plugin architecture, allowing researchers to collaborate and extend existing algorithms. We assess our framework by building an ITS encompassing the key elements of wi
In this paper, we devise non-distributive relatives of Exactly True Logic (ETL) by Pietz and Riveccio and its dual (NFL) Non-Falsity Logic by Shramko, Zaitsev and Belikov. We consider two pre-orders which are algebraic counterparts of the ETL's and NFL's entailment relations on the De Morgan lattice $\mathbf{4}$. We generalise these pre-orders and determine which distributive properties that hold on $\mathbf{4}$ are not forced by either of the pre-orders. We then construct relatives of ETL and NFL but lack such distributive properties. For these logics, we also devise a truth table semantics which uses non-distributive lattice $\mathbf{M3}$ as their lattice of truth values. We also provide analytic tableaux systems that work with sequents of the form $φ\vdashχ$. We also prove the correctness and completeness results for these proof systems and provide a neat generalisation for non-distributive ETL- and NFL-like logics built over a certain family of non-distributive modular lattices.
The linear Fisher market (LFM) is a basic equilibrium model from economics, which also has applications in fair and efficient resource allocation. First-price pacing equilibrium (FPPE) is a model capturing budget-management mechanisms in first-price auctions. In certain practical settings such as advertising auctions, there is an interest in performing statistical inference over these models. A popular methodology for general statistical inference is the bootstrap procedure. Yet, for LFM and FPPE there is no existing theory for the valid application of bootstrap procedures. In this paper, we introduce and devise several statistically valid bootstrap inference procedures for LFM and FPPE. The most challenging part is to bootstrap general FPPE, which reduces to bootstrapping constrained M-estimators, a largely unexplored problem. We devise a bootstrap procedure for FPPE under mild degeneracy conditions by using the powerful tool of epi-convergence theory. Experiments with synthetic and semi-real data verify our theory.
We devise an a posteriori error estimator for an affine optimal control problem subject to a semilinear elliptic PDE and control constraints. To approximate the problem, we consider a semidiscrete scheme based on the variational discretization approach. For this solution technique, we design an a posteriori error estimator that accounts for the discretization of the state and adjoint equations, and prove, under suitable local growth conditions of optimal controls, reliability and efficiency properties of such error estimator. A simple adaptive strategy based on the devised estimator is designed and its performance is illustrated with numerical examples.
Large language models (LLMs) remain vulnerable to a slew of adversarial attacks and jailbreaking methods. One common approach employed by white-hat attackers, or red-teamers, is to process model inputs and outputs using string-level obfuscations, which can include leetspeak, rotary ciphers, Base64, ASCII, and more. Our work extends these encoding-based attacks by unifying them in a framework of invertible string transformations. With invertibility, we can devise arbitrary string compositions, defined as sequences of transformations, that we can encode and decode end-to-end programmatically. We devise a automated best-of-n attack that samples from a combinatorially large number of string compositions. Our jailbreaks obtain competitive attack success rates on several leading frontier models when evaluated on HarmBench, highlighting that encoding-based attacks remain a persistent vulnerability even in advanced LLMs.
Information disclosure can compromise privacy when revealed information is correlated with private information. We consider the notion of inferential privacy, which measures privacy leakage by bounding the inferential power a Bayesian adversary can gain by observing a released signal. Our goal is to devise an inferentially-private private information structure that maximizes the informativeness of the released signal, following the Blackwell ordering principle, while adhering to inferential privacy constraints. To achieve this, we devise an efficient release mechanism that achieves the inferentially-private Blackwell optimal private information structure for the setting where the private information is binary. Additionally, we propose a programming approach to compute the optimal structure for general cases given the utility function. The design of our mechanisms builds on our geometric characterization of the Blackwell-optimal disclosure mechanisms under privacy constraints, which may be of independent interest.
Understanding the relationship between population dynamics and disease-specific mortality is central to evidence-based health policy. This study introduces two novel metrics, PoPDivergence and PoPStat, one to quantify the difference between population pyramids and the other to assess the strength and nature of their association with the mortality of a given disease. PoPDivergence, based on Kullback-Leibler divergence, measures deviations between a countrys population pyramid and a reference pyramid. PoPStat is the correlation between these deviations and the log form of disease-specific mortality rates. The reference population is selected by a brute-force optimization that maximizes this correlation. Utilizing mortality data from the Global Burden of Disease 2021 and population statistics from the United Nations, we applied these metrics to 371 diseases across 204 countries. Results reveal that PoPStat outperforms traditional indicators such as median age, GDP per capita, and Human Development Index in explaining the mortality of most diseases. Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) like neurological disorders and cancers, communicable diseases (CDs) like neglected tropical diseases, and
We devise achievable encoding schemes for distributed source compression for computing inner products, symmetric matrix products, and more generally, square matrix products, which are a class of nonlinear transformations. To that end, our approach relies on devising nonlinear mappings of distributed sources, which are then followed by the structured linear encoding scheme, introduced by Körner and Marton. For different computation scenarios, we contrast our findings on the achievable sum rate with the state of the art to demonstrate the possible savings in compression rate. When the sources have special correlation structures, it is possible to achieve unbounded gains, as demonstrated by the analysis and numerical simulations.