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Artificial neural networks (ANNs) have been widely adopted as general computational tools both in computer science as well as many other engineering fields. Stochastic gradient descent (SGD) and adaptive methods such as Adam are popular as robust optimization algorithms used to train the ANNs. However, the effectiveness of these algorithms is limited because they calculate a search direction based on a first-order gradient. Although higher-order gradient methods such as Newton's method have been proposed, they require the Hessian matrix to be semi-definite, and its inversion incurs a high computational cost. Therefore, in this paper, we propose a variable three-term conjugate gradient (VTTCG) method that approximates the Hessian matrix to enhance search direction and uses a variable step size to achieve improved convergence stability. To evaluate the performance of the VTTCG method, we train different ANNs on benchmark image classification and generation datasets. We also conduct a similar experiment in which a grasp generation and selection convolutional neural network (GGS-CNN) is trained to perform intelligent robotic grasping. After considering a simulated environment, we also test the GGS-CNN with a physical grasping robot. The experimental results show that the performance of the VTTCG method is superior to that of four conventional methods, including SGD, Adam, AMSGrad, and AdaBelief. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Turing (1937) introduces a model of code that is followed by other pioneers of computing machines (such as Flowers 1983, Eckert, Mauchly, Brainerd 1945 and others). One of them is John von Neumann, who defines the concept of optimal code in the context of the conception of EDVAC. He later uses it to build on in his theoretical considerations of the universal constructor (von Neumann 1966). Von Neumann (1963) further presents one of the first neural network models, in relation to the work of McCulloch and Pitts (1943), for both theoretical purposes (von Neumann probe) and practical applications (computer architecture of EDVAC). The aim of this paper is (1) to describe the differences between Turingʼs and von Neumannʼs conceptualizations of code and the mechanical computing model. Between von Neumann's abstract technical conception (von Neumann 1963 and 1966) and Turingʼs more concrete biochemical conception (Turing 1952). Furthermore, (2) we want to answer the question why these influential models of mechanisms (predominantly in computer science) have so far been ignored by philosophers of the new mechanism (Machamer, Darden, Craver 2000, Glennan 2017). We will show that these classical models of machines are not only compatible with the new mechanism, but moreover complement it, since they represent a completely separate type of model of mechanism, alongside producing, maintaining and underlying (Zámečník 2021). The final (3) and main goal of our paper will be an attempt to relate von Neumannʼs and Turingʼs notion of mechanism to Barbieriʼs notion of extended mechanism (Barbieri 2015). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artificial neural networks, inspired by the biological networks of the human brain, have become game-changing computing models in modern computer science. Inspired by their wide scope of applications, synthetic biology strives to create their biological counterparts, which we denote synthetic biological neural networks (SYNBIONNs). Their use in the fields of medicine, biosensors, biotechnology, and many more shows great potential and presents exciting possibilities. So far, many different synthetic biological networks have been successfully constructed, however, SYNBIONN implementations have been sparse. The latter are mostly based on neural networks pretrained in silico and being heavily dependent on extensive human input. In this paper, we review current implementations and models of SYNBIONNs. We briefly present the biological platforms that show potential for designing and constructing perceptrons and/or multilayer SYNBIONNs. We explore their future possibilities along with the challenges that must be overcome to successfully implement a scalable in vivo biological neural network capable of online learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recommendation systems are information filtering tools that present items to users based on their preferences and behavior, for example, suggestions about scientific papers or music a user might like. Based on what we said and with the development of computer science that has started to take an interest in big data and how it is used to discover user interest, we have found a lot of research going on in the area of recommendation and there are powerful systems available. In the unsupervised learning domain, this paper introduces a novel method for creating a hybrid recommender framework that combines Collaborative Filtering with Content Based Approach and Self-Organizing Map neural network technique. By testing our system on a subset of the Movies Database, we demonstrate that our method outperforms state-of-the-art methods in terms of accuracy and precision, as well as improving the efficiency of the traditional Collaborative Filtering methodology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Domain generation algorithm (DGA) is used by botnets to build a stealthy command and control (C&C) communication channel between the C&C server and the bots. A DGA can periodically produce a large number of pseudo-random algorithmically generated domains (AGDs), a few of which direct the bots to the C&C server. AGD detection algorithms provide a lightweight, promising solution in response to the existing DGA techniques. In the constantly evolving attacker–defender game, attackers may seek more advanced DGA techniques to gain a better chance of evading detection by defenders. In this paper, we propose a new DGA, namely a neural networks-based domain name generation (NDG) architecture. NDG is based on a variational autoencoder (VAE), where the encoder and decoder networks use stacked gated convolutional neural networks (GCNNs) to learn the contextual structure hierarchically. NDG is experimentally validated using a set of state-of-the-art AGD detection algorithms. The existing DGAs of different classes following a DGA taxonomy are used to benchmark NDG. NDG shows the best overall anti-detection performance among all tested DGAs. We also demonstrate that NDG is effective in benchmarking AGD detection algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]