Annotating communication problems using the MATE workbench
problems in writing an abstract
句子无主语在汉语中，无主语的句子被广泛使用，受此影响，作者在用英文撰写时也往往以动词开始。
汉语原文：首先回顾了光纤通信的历史，综述了光纤通信的发展现状，接着介绍了密集波分复用的若干使能技术最后对40Gb／s系统的若干关键技术进行了评述。
英语原文：Introduced status for optical fiber communication at first. Then described some enabling technologies of dense wavelength division multiplexing(DWDM). Finally commented some key technologies for 40Gb/s system.修改后：This paper begins with an introduction to the current status of optical fiber communication, followed by a presentation of some enabling technologies of dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) and concludes with a comment on some key technologies for the 40Gb/s system.在英语语言中，直接以动词开头的句子在书面语中并不常见，因此，在摘要中可将这类句子翻译为被动语态“… is introduced/described/presented/dealt with…”或以“This paper introduces/describes/presents/deals with…”开头的主动语态。
时态使用错误在汉语中“做了某事”表示动作已经发生，受此影响，中国作者常将“本文讨论了”翻译为过去时态。
Communication issues in multi-agent-based plant automation scheduling
Communication Issues in Multi-Agent-BasedPlant Automation Scheduling∗Yoseba K. Penya, Thilo SauterInstitute of Computer Technology,Vienna University of Technology, Vienna, Austria{yoseba, sauter}@ict.tuwien.ac.atAbstract — The current state of the art in production planning is still dominated bylargely centralized solutions. More distributed approaches require a substantial in-crease in communication, and network load becomes an important factor. This paperpresents a distributed plant automation approach based on mobile software agentsand investigates the network load generated by the agents in terms of communicationand migration. Particular emphasis is given to the impact of the planning horizonand prioritization, which leads to extensive rescheduling processes. It appears thatscheduling approaches that plan several steps in advance need substantially morecommunication overhead, but can be made less susceptible to snowball effects asso-ciated with rescheduling.1 IntroductionAs far as the production planning is concerned, the current state of the art in plant auto-mation is still dominated by centralized solutions. Nevertheless, distributed approaches are the focus of much research work. The most obvious benefit of distributing functions of, e.g., the MES (manufacturing execution system) or the control level is a tremendous increase in flexibility, the ultimate goal being an autonomous self-organization of the entire production process. Another advantage less often addressed is scalability. Distrib-uted approaches no longer need powerful central computers to execute the planning tasks, or at least they alleviate the performance requirements. This is beneficial especially in large plants.On the other hand, the reduction of local computing power in distributed systems comes at the price of an increased demand for communication. When the elements of such a sys-tem increase their flexibility, autonomy and intelligence, they need to exchange more information in order to successfully synchronize and coordinate themselves. The network constitutes a shared resource within the plant automation system. This is particularly im-portant for distributed solutions (such as the one addressed by the EU-funded Project PABADIS, Plant Automation Based on Distributed Systems [1,2]) that make use of mo-bile software agents to enhance the control of the individual manufacturing process. In spite of their benefits, the necessary migration for every step of the production process increases the network traffic. Consequently, it is worthwhile to investigate the impact that a distributed approach has on the network load and where the limits of scalability are.∗ A shorter early version of this paper appeared in the Proceedings of the 6th IEEE International Confer-ence on Intelligent Engineering Systems (INES), pages 339-343, Opatija, Croatia, May 2002.PENYA, SAUTERThe remainder of the paper is organized as follows: in the section 2 we introduce the main features of the multi-agent system used in PABADIS, section 3 describes the sched-uling approach, section 4 explains the model used in the simulation, section 5 presents and discusses the results, and section 6 draws conclusions and outlines future work.2 Plant Automation as an Information SystemThe classical representation of Plant Automation is that of a three-layered pyramid, where the machinery is on the lowest (control) level and two layers of more complex plant-wide control, and planning functions are above it. This approach starts from the assumption that every production cell has a minimum degree of intelligence to provide some informa-tion that will be used by the upper layer for scheduling, dispatching, and other manage-ment tasks. In other words, the plant is conceived as a network of information points. Traditionally, the information stream flows to a central place, where it is processed by an ERP (enterprise resource planning) system that controls the plant as a whole, issues production orders and records the results. Unlike this approach of concentrating all the responsibility, intelligence, and production management in one point, latest trends tend to distribute these three tasks at least partly between several units that have smaller process-ing power but communicate and cooperate to enhance the overall plant automation func-tionalities.In PABADIS, a plant is composed of abstract entities called Cooperative Manufactur-ing Units (CMU) that comprise both an intelligence module and a production module, which can involve one or more machines. All the CMUs are connected to a common net-work, so they can cooperate in the manufacturing process. There are three types of CMUs (in [2], they are called BIIOs, Basic Intelligent Independent Objects, which is essentially the same):− Logical CMUs for computational services such as complex scheduling algorithms, database search etc.,− Manufacturing CMUs for the physical processing of the products,− SCADA CMUs providing an interface to the SCADA system that controls the plant. Basically, PABADIS can be seen as an enhancement of a MES, with a clear focus on a product-oriented view (this is why the approach is mainly targeted at single-piece produc-tion), rather than the more process-oriented approach of classical MES. According to [3], functions covered by the MES are the following:− Resource allocation, scheduling, and dispatching: This most complicated function of the MES manages the resources of the plans and performs ERP order execution. On the one hand, the goal of this function is to optimize the usage of resources, such as ma-chines, tools, labor skills, or materials. On the other hand, the product creation must be optimized as well. In PABADIS this functionality is distributed in the community of software agents which act individually with respect to their own tasks, such as product creation or machine optimization.− Document control, data collection, product tracking and genealogy, process manage-ment and performance analysis: This function provides information to the ERP system regarding the current situation of the production and product processing.COMMUNICATION ISSUES IN MULTI-AGENT-BASED… − Maintenance management, which tracks and directs the activities to maintain the equipment and tools, in order to ensure their availability for manufacturing and to ensure scheduling for periodic or preventive maintenance.3 Scheduling of a Multi-Agent-Based PlantAs mentioned before, the CMUs in PABADIS are composed of a manufacturing module and an intelligence module. The latter is in fact a stationary agent called Residential Agent (RA) that represents the CMU in the network. It provides the network with an in-terface to the physical resources and functionalities the CMU offers.The interface is used by the Product Agents (PA), which are mobile software agents that guide the product through its manufacturing process. In the same way that the Resi-dential Agents know everything about the CMU they represent, the Product Agents pos-sess all the necessary data to optimize the development of the product they are in charge of. Therefore, when a PA arrives at a CMU, it exactly knows which parameters must be indicated to the RA, in order to get its work-piece processed.Product Agents are created in an entity called Agency, which is the interface of the PABADIS agent community to an ERP system. It processes the demand and transforms it into XML documents – one per work order. The Agency parses the documents and cre-ates a product agent that will be responsible for the creation of the corresponding work-piece. The Agency also collects the reports of the product agents.Finally, there is another key element within PABADIS: the Look-up Service (LUS) [4]. It acts as white pages mechanism for the product agents, so they know where to migrate when they need a specific functionality. Every CMU notifies the LUS of its joining the network, and provides it with data about the functionalities it offers. The LUS periodi-cally renews its data, so that when a PA requests some information, it is up to date. Figure 1 illustrates the main components of the PABADIS system.ERPFigure 1: Components of the PABADIS System3.1 SchedulingMuch has been said, written, and discussed about constrained scheduling and the benefits of using software agents in planning processes in general [5, 6, 7] or for specific use cases that implement different solutions to tackle the problem [8, 9]. In PABADIS, the schedul-PENYA, SAUTERing is distributed (physically and operatively); the problem is divided into small bits, since it is carried out in local operations at CMU level between Product Agents and Resi-dential Agents. On the one hand, PAs represent the resource consumers, on the other hand, RAs represent the resource owners. Consequently, they have to negotiate with each other to reach an agreement. Specifically, the scheduling is performed in two ways [10]: − Horizontal fashion: The RAs collect the incoming requests for processing and gener-ate a schedule of tasks from different PAs that need to be processed on the respective CMU.− Vertical fashion: The PAs generate a list with all possible CMUs where their tasks could be carried out.The combination of both tables forms a matrix representing the whole schedule.3.2 Depth of Scheduling and prioritiesThe scheduling process is in its simplest form a kind of first-come first-serve model, which is easy to solve. Nevertheless, this simple schema does not fit the requirements imposed by current Plant Automation systems. There must be a mechanism to prioritize the manufacturing of special products to account for urgent demands. Therefore, PA-BADIS supports priority-based scheduling. When a PA requests a time slot that has been already reserved by a lower-priority PA, the RA arbitrates the conflict by assigning the time slot to the high-priority PA. Since the lower-priority PA must reallocate its re-sources, the RA notifies it of the new situation to let the PA start a rescheduling process. If the PA still has a higher priority than other PAs, this may lead to a rescheduling cas-cade effect [11] propagating through the whole agent community.The solution that PABADIS promotes to reduce this effect is the introduction of a “depth of scheduling” parameter. This variable gives the number of tasks a Product Agent plans before starting the manufacturing process. Depending on the value of this parame-ter, the scheduling can be classified in three categories:− Advance scheduling: The PA allocates the resources for all tasks in the work order. Thus, the PA analyses the whole work order and chooses the best possible way of exe-cution. The depth of scheduling parameter is equal to the number of tasks the work or-der comprises.− Step-by-step scheduling: In this case a PA allocates a resource for the next task only when the current one is completed. In fact, real scheduling is not necessary for the RA, which makes the optimization of resource usage almost impossible. The depth of scheduling parameter is equal to 1.− Hybrid approach: In this case a PA analyses a work order several steps in advance (the number specified by depth of scheduling parameter) and allocates resources for this certain number of tasks, but not for the whole work order.3.3 Life Cycle of a Product AgentFigure 2 illustrates the program flow of a Product Agent. After parsing the XML docu-ment with the work order, it contacts the Look-up Service to find out about which CMUs provide the functionalities needed for the execution of the work order. The LUS returns a list of matching CMUs and also adds a rough estimate for the time required by each CMU to finish the task. This information is then used by the PA to outline a graph where all the possible paths for the accomplishment of the work order are represented and can be or-COMMUNICATION ISSUES IN MULTI-AGENT-BASED… dered with respect to their overall processing time. Of course, other criteria for the deci-sion might be used as well: workload of the CMU, cost, status of the stocks, etc. Subsequently, the PA selects the best path and starts allocating a “depth of scheduling” number of tasks on the CMUs that compose such path. This process includes the negotia-tion with the RAs about which time slot is available and which PA with lower priority can be forced to give way. Afterwards, the PA starts the migration and physical manufac-turing of its associated work-piece. In case that the depth of scheduling was less than the total amount of tasks needed, it starts a new allocation procedure and so on, until the work piece is finished.AllocationerrorMigrationerrorFigure 2: Program flow of a Product AgentPENYA, SAUTER4 Model of the SystemThe objective of the simulation is to evaluate the influence that the behavior of the agents has on the network load. For this purpose, a model representing a worst-case PABADIS environment with the following characteristics is investigated:− The goal is to measure the migrations of the agents and the interchanged messages, as well as the time when they are performed or sent.− All the parameters (number of agents, number of tasks that compose a work order, etc.) remain fixed, whereas the depth of scheduling and number of product agents with higher priority are the variables to be tuned and observed.− Only one kind of product is manufactured, hence the work orders of all Product Agents are identical. Moreover, all Residential Agents represent similar CMUs, there-fore each work order is composed of a fixed number of identical tasks.− Migration time is supposed to be negligible. Hence, there is no need to include time slots for migrations in the scheduling. Furthermore, the migration is performed before the task but in the same time slot.− Although all CMUs are alike, the PAs cannot reserve two time slots with the same RA. They must perform a task and then move to a different machine.− Each PA starts its life cycle at the Agency and it must return there upon completion of the work order to report about the operation that was carried out. Thus, there is al-ways an extra movement (not necessary for the manufacturing of the product) that must be done by the Product Agent.The simulation itself is not based on a real agent platform (like the Grasshopper plat-form used in the PABADIS project) and several machines, but for the sake of simplicity on a multi-threaded Java program running on a single PC. The flow of the program is as follows: a daemon thread starts four Residential Agent threads and afterwards ten Product Agent threads consecutively and with a small pause in between to have enough time to finish the allocation of resources. The agents allocate their required resources from the first time step on, so the first time interval is devoted to initial operations. Furthermore, all the high priority PAs are launched when the ordinary PAs have finished their respec-tive allocation procedures. Since by that time the previous PAs have already reserved time slots in the CMUs, the highest possible number of rescheduling processes will hap-pen (one per task and high priority PA).Identifier Depth of Scheduling high priority PAsA0 1 (step by step) 0A2 1 (step by step) 2A4 1 (step by step) 4B0 5 (50% of tasks) 0B2 5 (50% of tasks) 2B4 5 (50% of tasks) 4C0 10 (full advance) 0C2 10 (full advance) 2C4 10 (full advance) 4Table 1: Experiments performed in the simulationCOMMUNICATION ISSUES IN MULTI-AGENT-BASED… Table 1 shows the set-up details of the individual experiments. The work order length is set to ten tasks that require each one time step for execution. The daemon thread acts also as the clock of the system, so every time it ticks, all the PAs and RAs are notified. After simulation starts, the Product Agents contact the LUS and then begin to allocating a num-ber of tasks defined by the “depth of scheduling” parameter. According to the program flow shown in Figure 2, they wait afterwards until they are able to move and perform an operation on a CMU. Moreover, if the task was the last to do, they quit and return to the Agency. If the task is the last allocated but they needed to allocate more (thus, the depth of scheduling is less than the total number of tasks), they restart the allocation process.To account for the network traffic, the daemon thread registers all messages sent and migrations performed upon notification of the entity that did it. Effectively, only the numbers are counted. The final value of the network traffic is then estimated. Taking into account that the maximum length of an Ethernet packet is 1500 bytes, a segmentation of the agent is indispensable. Furthermore, the header information for Ethernet (11 bytes), IP (20 bytes), and TCP (20 bytes) must also be included. The agent size assumed here is 3,000 bytes for the code and 1,200 bytes for the data of the work order. This makes three packets and in total 4123 bytes that need to be moved, each time the agent migrates from one CMU to another. The messages exchanged between the agents are very short, they are assumed to have just 10 bytes each, which is enough to convey information about CMU status, time slot availability, or schedule details. However, the header overhead is significant, and so a total of 61 bytes must be sent over the network.Concerning the rescheduling processes that can be initiated be Product Agents with a higher priority, an additional restriction was imposed on the timing. It is essential to avoid rescheduling when the affected agent is migrating or is about to migrate. Therefore, the time slot that is going to be reassigned must be at least one time step after the request from the high priority agent is received.5 ResultsTable 2 shows the main results of the experiments. At first sight, it can be seen that mi-grations are not affected by the variation in the change of scheduling or the number of PAs with higher priority. They are always 11 per PA, this is, one for each task and one more for the return to the Agency (the high priority agents are not counted to ensure comparability). Figure 3 shows the average of the experiments (A for A0, A2 and A4; B for B0, B2 and B4, etc.). It illustrates the behaviors of the system over time.The number of rescheduling processes depends only on the number of high-priority PAs and the number of tasks to be performed. Thus, with 8 high-priority PAs and 10 tasks, 80 rescheduling processes happen. There is no snowball effect because there are only two different priorities, and the affected PAs are not able to cause more rescheduling processes (the other PAs have at least the same priority).PENYA, SAUTER0200004000060000800001000000510********Time elapsed (seconds)D a t a T r a n s m i t t e d (b y t e s )Identifier Finishing Time Messages Migrations Bytes transmittedA0 26 1840 110 615270A2 28 1834 110 614904A4 27 1982 110 623932B0 27 4772 110 794122B2 28 3699 110 728699B4 28 2544 110 658214C0 30 6981 110 928871C2 30 5567 110 842617C4 30 4414 110 772284Table 2: Results of the measurementsAnother interesting effect regarding rescheduling is that if the PAs do some advance scheduling, a higher number of high priority agents results in a decrease of total messages needed in the experiment. The reason is the scheduling strategy of the agents. The PA aims to allocate all the tasks consecutively. If there is a gap in its schedule, this means that other PAs reserved the slots in between. Thus, when rescheduling, the PA assumes that earlier time slots are already reserved and therefore does not try to allocate them, which saves messages. For instance, if a PA has allocated the following resources: t = 10, t = 11, t = 13, and it receives a notification of rescheduling at t = 10, the PA will start rescheduling from t = 13 on. It supposes that if it previously did not succeed in allocating resources for t = 12, it will not succeed in the future. This effect is especially relevant with advanced planning, since the saving is bigger than in step-by-step or hybrid schedul-ing (see Table 2).Figure 3 shows the network load for each scheduling modality. Advance scheduling (type C) requires most of the network traffic at the beginning, where the PAs send all the messages. Afterwards, they migrate to the CMUs without any further exchange of infor-mation. The hybrid approach (type B) presents a diagram with pronounced peaks, corre-sponding to the moments where the allocation is performed.Figure 3: Average behavior regarding the depth of schedulingCOMMUNICATION ISSUES IN MULTI-AGENT-BASED…50000100000150000051015202530Time elapsed (seconds)D a t a t r a n s m i t t e d (b y t e s )Since the depth of scheduling is 5 and the PAs start allocating from t = 1, the time slots with higher network traffic are 6, 11, and then 16, 21, etc, but obviously the peaks are smaller since there are fewer agents. Finally, the type A experiments (step-by-step sched-uling) do not show significant peaks (only when in the same time slot some PAs return to the Agency and others migrate to perform a task) and distribute the network load uni-formly.Figure 4 shows the average of the results with the number of high priority PAs as pa-rameter. It confirms what was exposed by Figure 3: experiments with a lower number of high priority PAs need to interchange a higher amount of data, due to the previously ex- Figure 4: Average behavior regarding number of high priority Product Agents6 Conclusion and future workThe model presented in this paper illustrates the impact on the network load that different scheduling modalities for a plant automation system based on mobile software agents have. The simulation demonstrated that snowball effects due to rescheduling processes and extra migrations may be avoided by using only two different priority levels, and by ensuring that an agent to that is going to be rescheduled is not about to arrive at the tar-get CMU. Evidently, the simulation model used was rather coarse. In the course of the project, however, it will be refined to account for, e.g., non-uniform task execution times per CMU, which will open new possibilities for optimization.The simulations seems to suggest that full-in-advance scheduling creates an extremely high network load at the beginning of the process and is therefore inferior to a step-by-step scheduling or an approach with a low depth of scheduling where the load is more balanced. From the viewpoint of network load, this is certainly true. However, the simu-lation cannot judge the benefits of a larger scheduling depth such as better optimization results that might outweigh the temporarily higher network traffic. Still, future investiga-tions have to explore the impact the number of agents has on the load. Particularly during the negotiation phase, it is anticipated that the load will dramatically increase with the number of agents. The available network bandwidth may therefore easily put an upper limit to the practically achievable scheduling depth. Of course, it has to be noted that it is highly unlikely that all PAs start at the same time. In practice, they can be released with short delays in between. The only critical situation will be then a rescheduling process affecting a large number of agents.PENYA, SAUTERReferences[1] PABADIS, IST-1999-60016, [2] T. Sauter and P. Palensky. Network Technology for Distributed Plant Automation. In Pro-ceedings of the 5th IEEE International Conference on Intelligent Engineering Systems, pages 407-412, Helsinki, Finland, September 2001.[3] MES Association, [4] Y. K. Penya, S. Detter, T. Sauter. Plug-and-Participate Functionality for Agent-EnabledFlexible Automation. In Proceedings of the 6th IEEE International Conference on Intelli-gent Engineering Systems, page 136, Assiut, Egypt, March 2002.[5] C. Le Pape. Classification of scheduling problems and selection of corresponding con-straint-based techniques. In Proceedings of the 1993 IEE Colloquium on Advanced Soft-ware Technologies for Scheduling, pages 1/1-1/3, 1993[6] P. Prosser. The future of scheduling-DAI?. In Proceedings of the 1993 IEE Colloquium onAdvanced Software Technologies for Scheduling, pages 8/1-8/2, 1993[7] T. Grant. Overview And Conclusions. In Proceedings of the 1996 IEE Colloquium on Intel-ligent Planning and Scheduling Solutions, pages 7/1-7/4, London, U.K., 1996[8] B. Drabble. Modern planning and scheduling technologies. In Proceedings of the 1996 IEEColloquium on Intelligent Planning and Scheduling Solutions, pages 3/1-3/6, London, U.K., 1996[9] J. Reaidy, P. Massotte, L. Yingjiu and D. Diep. Product and process reconfiguration basedon intelligent agents. In Proceedings of the 2001 IEEE International Conference on Sys-tems, Man, and Cybernetics, pages 3397-3402, Tucson-Arizona, U.S.A., October 2001 [10] A. Bratoukhine, Y.K. Penya and T. Sauter. Intelligent Software Agents in Plant Automation.In Proceedings of the 3rd International NAISO Symposium on Engineering of Intelligent Systems, page 77, Malaga, Spain, September 2002[11] M. Fletcher and S. M. Deen. Task rescheduling in multi-agent manufacturing. In Proceed-ings of the 10th International Workshop on Database and Expert Systems Applications, pages 689-694, Florence, Italy, September 1999About the AuthorsYoseba K. Penya received his Master’s degree in computer science in 2000 from the Deusto University in the Basque Country. Since July 2000 he is research assistant at the Vienna Univer-sity of Technology and his area of expertise include multi-agent systems, scheduling in plant automation and e-commerce techniques applied to energy management.Thilo Sauter received his Dipl.-Ing. and doctorate degrees in electrical engineering from the Vienna University of Technology in 1992 and 1999, respectively. From 1992 to 1996 he was a research assistant at the Institute of General Electrical Engineering, working in the area of pro-grammable logic and analog ASIC design. Since 1996, he has been with the Institute of Computer Technology, where he is head of the center of excellence for fieldbus systems and leading the factory communications group. He is member of the Austrian technical committee ÖVE MR65SC concerned with fieldbus standardization. His current research interests are integrated sensor sys-tems and communication networks in automation, with a focus on interconnection issues of field-bus systems and IP-based networks.。
2025年研究生考试考研英语(一201)试卷与参考答案
2025年研究生考试考研英语(一201)模拟试卷与参考答案一、完型填空（10分）Section ARead the following passage and fill in each blank with ONE word that best fits the context. Each blank has four choices marked A), B), C), and D). You should read the passage through carefully before making your choices.In the past, a typical student at a university in the United States was a white, middle-class male, usually between the ages of 18 and 22. He entered college directly from high school, majored in a technical subject, and had a clear idea of what he wanted to do after graduation. Now, the typical student is different. Today’s university students are diverse in terms of race, gender, age, and background. They come from all walks of life and bring with them a variety of experiences and perspectives.The diversity of today’s university students is a reflection of the changing society in which they live. The population of the United States is increasingly multicultural, and universities are responding to this trend by becoming more inclusive. This shift in demographics has had a significant impact on the curriculum and the teaching methods used in universities.1.The passage begins by describing the_of a typical student in the past.A) ageB) backgroundC) genderD) major2.The word “he” in the second sentence refers to the _.A) universityB) studentC) teacherD) high school3.According to the passage, today’s university students are _.A) mostly whiteB) of similar ageC) diverseD) all male4.The phrase “all walks of life” in the second paragraph means _.A) different levels of societyB) various interestsC) different jobsD) various backgrounds5.The passage suggests that universities are_in response to the multicultural society.A) becoming exclusiveB) segregating studentsC) adaptingD) resisting change6.The author implies that the curriculum at universities has_due to the demographic changes.A) become more technicalB) become more diverseC) remained the sameD) become more restrictive7.The teaching methods used in universities have_to accommodate the diverse student population.A) changedB) remained unchangedC) become more rigidD) been abandoned8.The passage indicates that the population of the United States is _.A) becoming more homogeneousB) decreasing in sizeC) increasingly multiculturalD) declining9.The author uses the word “trend” to describe the _.A) increasing number of studentsB) growing diversity in societyC) decline of traditional universitiesD) changing demographics10.The author suggests that the shift in demographics has_on universities.A) had no impactB) caused problemsC) had a significant impactD) been unnoticed11.The word “inclusive” in the third paragraph can be best replaced by _.A) exclusiveB) diverseC) variedD) broad12.The author mentions that the diversity of students has led to _.A) a more homogeneous curriculumB) a more diverse curriculumC) a more restrictive curriculumD) a more exclusive curriculum13.The author implies that the teaching methods used in universities are _.A) being updatedB) becoming outdatedC) becoming more standardizedD) becoming more traditional14.The passage indicates that the population of the United States is _.A) becoming more homogeneousB) decreasing in sizeC) increasingly multiculturalD) declining15.The author suggests that the shift in demographics has_on universities.A) had no impactB) caused problemsC) had a significant impactD) been unnoticed16.The author uses the word “trend” to describe the _.A) increasing number of studentsB) growing diversity in societyC) decline of traditional universitiesD) changing demographics17.The passage indicates that the population of the United States is _.A) becoming more homogeneousB) decreasing in sizeC) increasingly multiculturalD) declining18.The author suggests that the shift in demographics has_on universities.A) had no impactB) caused problemsC) had a significant impactD) been unnoticed19.The author uses the word “trend” to describe the _.A) increasing number of studentsB) growing diversity in societyC) decline of traditional universitiesD) changing demographics20.The author implies that the teaching methods used in universities are _.A) being updatedB) becoming outdatedC) becoming more standardizedD) becoming more traditionalAnswers:1.B) background2.B) student3.C) diverse4.D) various backgrounds5.C) adapting6.B) become more diverse7.A) changed8.C) increasingly multicultural9.B) growing diversity in society10.C) had a significant impact11.B) diverse12.B) a more diverse curriculum13.A) being updated14.C) increasingly multicultural15.C) had a significant impact16.B) growing diversity in society17.C) increasingly multicultural18.C) had a significant impact19.B) growing diversity in society20.A) being updated二、传统阅读理解（本部分有4大题，每大题10分，共40分）第一题Passage:The digital age has brought about significant changes in the way we communicate, work, and live. With the advent of the internet, social media, andvarious digital devices, our lives have become more connected than ever before. However, this digital revolution has also raised concerns about the impact it has on our mental health. One of the most prevalent issues is the rise in social isolation and loneliness, particularly among young adults.A recent study conducted by the National Institute of Mental Health found that young adults are more likely to experience symptoms of depression and anxiety compared to previous generations. The study attributes this to the excessive use of digital devices and social media, which can lead to a lack of face-to-face interaction and a decline in social skills. According to the study, young adults who spend more time on social media are more likely to report feelings of loneliness and social isolation.The study also highlights the negative effects of social isolation on mental health. Social isolation has been linked to an increased risk of depression, anxiety, and even cardiovascular disease. Moreover, individuals who feel socially isolated may experience a decline in their overall well-being and quality of life.To address these concerns, experts recommend several strategies to mitigate the negative effects of social isolation in the digital age. Firstly, they emphasize the importance of maintaining a healthy balance between digital and face-to-face interactions. This means reducing the amount of time spent on digital devices and making an effort to engage in real-life social activities. Secondly, experts suggest that individuals should be more mindful of theironline behavior and avoid excessive use of social media, especially during stressful or challenging times. Lastly, building a strong support network of friends, family, and community can help combat feelings of social isolation.The digital age has undoubtedly brought numerous benefits, but it is crucial to be aware of the potential negative effects it can have on our mental health. By adopting healthy habits and being proactive in fostering social connections, we can better navigate this digital landscape and maintain our mentalwell-being.Questions:1、What is the main topic of the passage?A. The benefits of the digital ageB. The negative effects of social isolationC. The role of social media in mental healthD. The importance of maintaining a healthy balance between digital and face-to-face interactions2、According to the passage, what is the primary cause of the rise in social isolation and loneliness among young adults?A. Excessive use of digital devices and social mediaB. The decline in social skillsC. The negative effects of social isolation on mental healthD. A lack of face-to-face interaction3、What are the negative effects of social isolation on mental health,according to the passage?A. Increased risk of depression and anxietyB. A decline in overall well-being and quality of lifeC. Cardiovascular diseaseD. All of the above4、What strategies are recommended by experts to mitigate the negative effects of social isolation in the digital age?A. Reducing the amount of time spent on digital devicesB. Engaging in real-life social activitiesC. Being more mindful of online behaviorD. Building a strong support networkE. All of the above5、What is the main message of the passage?A. The digital age has brought about significant changes in the way we communicate, work, and live.B. Social isolation and loneliness are prevalent issues in the digital age.C. The negative effects of social isolation on mental health are significant.D. By adopting healthy habits and fostering social connections, we can maintain our mental well-being.Answers:1、B2、A3、D4、E5、D第二题Reading PassageThe following passage is followed by some questions. For each question, four answers are given. Read the passage carefully and choose the best answer to each question.In the 19th century, the development of the steam engine and the expansion of the railway network revolutionized transportation and industry. The steam engine, invented by James Watt in the late 18th century, provided a powerful source of energy that could be harnessed to drive machinery and power locomotives. This innovation led to the Industrial Revolution, which transformed societies and economies across the world.The steam engine was a remarkable piece of engineering, as it converted heat energy into mechanical work. The engine worked by using steam pressure to move a piston, which in turn drove the machinery. The invention of the steam engine had a profound impact on various sectors of society, including agriculture, mining, and manufacturing.1.What was the primary innovation of James Watt in the late 18th century?A. The steam engineB. The railway networkC. The steam turbineD. The internal combustion engine2.What was the main purpose of the steam engine?A. To generate electricityB. To power locomotivesC. To heat homesD. To produce steam3.How did the steam engine work?A. By using wind pressure to move a turbineB. By using steam pressure to move a pistonC. By using hydraulic pressure to move a pumpD. By using nuclear energy to create steam4.What was the most significant impact of the steam engine on society?A. It improved agricultural productivityB. It led to the development of new forms of transportationC. It increased the availability of clean waterD. It reduced the need for manual labor5.Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a sector of society affected by the steam engine?A. AgricultureB. EducationC. MiningD. ManufacturingAnswers:1.A. The steam engine2.B. To power locomotives3.B. By using steam pressure to move a piston4.B. It led to the development of new forms of transportation5.B. EducationThird Question: Traditional Reading ComprehensionReading Passage:In the heart of the Amazon rainforest, scientists have discovered a previously unknown species of frog, which they have named “Callimico mexicanus.” This frog, with its iridescent green skin and distinctive call, has been a mystery to biologists for decades. The discovery of this species has sparkeda new wave of research into the biodiversity of the Amazon and the potential impact of climate change on its delicate ecosystem.The Amazon rainforest is one of the most complex and diverse ecosystems on Earth, home to thousands of plant and animal species. However, human activities, such as deforestation and pollution, have put immense pressure on this vital ecosystem. The new species of frog, with its unique characteristics, could provide valuable insights into the health of the Amazon’s biodiversity.1.The main purpose of this passage is to:a) Describe the discovery of a new species of frog.b) Discuss the impact of climate change on the Amazon rainforest.c) Analyze the biodiversity of the Amazon rainforest.d) Explain the role of humans in the conservation of the Amazon rainforest.2.The word “iridescent” in the first paragraph is closest in meaning to:a) Transparentb) Varying in colorc) Hardd) Smaller3.The author mentions “thousands of plant and animal species” to:a) Emphasize the diversity of the Amazon rainforest.b) Highlight the new species of frog.c) Criticize the impact of human activities on the Amazon.d) Compare the Amazon rainforest to other ecosystems.4.It can be inferred from the passage that:a) The new species of frog is the most diverse species in the Amazon.b) The discovery of the new species has led to a significant reduction in deforestation.c) Scientists are studying the new species to understand the effects of climate change.d) The Amazon rainforest is not as important as other ecosystems.5.The author’s tone throughout the passage can be described as:a) Skepticalb) Excitedc) Boredd) IndifferentAnswers:1.b2.b3.a4.c5.b第四题Reading PassageIn the world of science, the greatest discoveries often come from unexpected sources. The case of the discovery of penicillin is no exception. This remarkable story begins with a curious incident involving a moldy bread and the observations of a young Scottish scientist named Alexander Fleming.One day, Alexander Fleming returned to his laboratory after a holiday, only to find that one of his cultures had become contaminated with a strange mold. Rather than discarding the culture, he decided to examine it further. He noticed that the mold was killing the bacteria in the culture. Intrigued, Fleming began to study the mold and its properties. He discovered that it produced a substance that had antibacterial properties. This substance, which he named penicillin, was the first antibiotic and would revolutionize the treatment of bacterial infections.1、What is the main topic of the reading passage?A、The discovery of penicillinB、The importance of scientific observationC、The history of antibioticsD、The life of Alexander Fleming2、Why did Alexander Fleming decide to examine the moldy bread culture?A、He wanted to discard it.B、He was interested in the mold’s antibacterial properties.C、He was on a holiday.D、He didn’t care about the contamination.3、What did Alexander Fleming discover about the mold?A、It was killing the bacteria in the culture.B、It was a common type of mold.C、It was the cause of the contamination.D、It was beneficial for bacterial growth.4、What is the significance of the discovery of penicillin?A、It showed that mold can kill bacteria.B、It helped to improve the quality of bread.C、It led to the development of new antibiotics.D、It helped to prevent contamination in laboratories.5、What is the name of the substance that Fleming named after discovering its antibacterial properties?A、MoldB、BacteriaC、PenicillinD、Antibiotic答案：1、A2、B3、A4、D5、C三、阅读理解新题型（10分）PassageThe rise of the Internet has dramatically transformed the way people communicate and access information. One of the most significant changes brought about by the Internet is the emergence of online social networks. These networks allow individuals to connect with others, share information, and collaborate on various projects. However, this transformation has also raised concerns about the impact on face-to-face interactions and the potential risks associated with online communication.Online social networks offer numerous benefits. They provide a platform for people to maintain and strengthen existing relationships, as well as toestablish new connections with like-minded individuals. Moreover, these networks enable users to access a wealth of information, resources, and opportunities. For instance, students can join online study groups, professionals can network with peers in their field, and job seekers can find employment opportunities.Despite these benefits, there are potential drawbacks to online social networks. One major concern is the decline in face-to-face interactions. As people become more reliant on digital communication, they may find themselves less inclined to engage in face-to-face conversations, which can hinder the development of interpersonal skills. Additionally, online social networks can expose individuals to various risks, such as cyberbullying, privacy breaches, and identity theft.Online social networks also have the potential to impact mental health. Excessive use of these networks can lead to social isolation, anxiety, and depression. The constant comparison with others’ seemingly perfect lives on social media can lead to feelings of inadequacy and low self-esteem. Furthermore, the rapid spread of false information and misinformation on these platforms can contribute to confusion, polarization, and even violence in society.In order to mitigate the potential negative impacts of online social networks, it is essential to strike a balance between digital and face-to-face interactions. Individuals should be encouraged to maintain and nurture their relationships both online and offline. Additionally, efforts should be made toeducate users about the risks associated with online communication and to promote responsible use of social media platforms.Questions:1.What is the main topic of the passage?A. The benefits of online social networksB. The risks associated with online social networksC. The impact of online social networks on mental healthD. The balance between digital and face-to-face interactions2.According to the passage, which of the following is a potential benefit of online social networks?A. Decrease in face-to-face interactionsB. Improved access to information and resourcesC. Increased risk of cyberbullyingD. Decline in mental health3.What is one concern raised by the passage regarding the decline in face-to-face interactions?A. The loss of interpersonal skillsB. The reduction in access to informationC. The increase in social isolationD. The enhancement of privacy4.How can individuals mitigate the potential negative impacts of online social networks?A. By reducing their usage of social media platformsB. By maintaining and nurturing their relationships both online and offlineC. By avoiding online communication altogetherD. By seeking professional help for mental health issues5.What is the author’s main suggestion to address the risks associated with online social networks?A. To ban the use of social media platformsB. To promote responsible use of social mediaC. To encourage face-to-face interactions onlyD. To limit access to social media for young peopleAnswers:1.B2.B3.A4.B5.B四、翻译（本大题有5小题，每小题2分，共10分）第一题中文：“随着互联网的普及，网络信息已经成为人们获取知识、学习新技能的重要途径。
strategies-of-communication
and learning strategies? ➢ 3. How many kinds of communication strategies? What are
they? ➢ 4. What are the main factors that affect learners’ use of
communication strategies? ➢ 5. What's the role of commucaition strategies in SLA? ➢ 6. How to improve learners' communicative abiities?
第9页，共24页。
6. What is the definion of communication strategies ? Communication strategies are psycholinguistic plans which exist
as part of the language user's communicative competence. They are potentially conscious and serve as substitutes for production plans which the learner is unable to implement.
英语说课标说教材
Task based teaching method
Implementation steps 1. Teachers design tasks and clarify task objectives.
2. Students are grouped or independently complete tasks.
• The current is a system that includes all aspects of education and teaching activities, including current objectives, content, implementation, evaluation, etc. The current is the core of education and teaching activities, and it is also the main basis for evaluating the quality of education and teaching activities
• The current is a key component of education and teaching activities, and it is also the foundation of education quality The current determines the direction and goals of education and teaching activities, and it is also the main carrier of educational ideas and educational objectives
Task based teaching method
大学英语上册试题及答案
大学英语上册试题及答案一、选择题（每题2分，共20分）1. Which of the following is NOT a reason for people to learn English?A. To travel abroad.B. To watch English movies.C. To play computer games.D. To communicate with foreigners.2. What is the main difference between British English and American English?A. Vocabulary.B. Pronunciation.C. Spelling.D. Grammar.3. In English, which of the following words is a verb?A. Book.B. Table.C. Chair.D. Read.4. What does the phrase "break the ice" mean?A. To start a conversation.B. To end a relationship.C. To make a decision.D. To solve a problem.5. Which of the following is a correct way to greet someone in English?A. "How do you do?"B. "What's up?"C. "Hello, how are you?"D. "Hi, what's your name?"6. What is the past tense of the verb "write"?A. Wrote.B. Written.C. Writes.D. Writing.7. In English, which of the following is a countable noun?A. Water.B. Furniture.C. Advice.D. Bread.8. What is the meaning of the word "perplexed" in English?A. Confused.B. Angry.C. Happy.D. Sad.9. Which of the following is a formal way to end a letter in English?A. Yours sincerely.B. Best regards.C. Take care.D. See you.10. What does the acronym "FAQ" stand for?A. Frequently Asked Questions.B. Full Automatic Question.C. Fast Answer Query.D. Free Access Question.二、填空题（每题1分，共10分）1. The opposite of "agree" is _______.2. "To be punctual" means to arrive _______.3. The word "unique" means _______.4. "To apologize" is to say you are _______.5. "To be exhausted" means to be very _______.6. The past participle of "see" is _______.7. The comparative form of "big" is _______.8. The word "environment" can be a _______ noun.9. "To be curious" means to have a strong _______.10. The word "bored" is an adjective that describes a feeling of being _______.三、阅读理解（每题2分，共20分）Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow.Passage:(The passage text would be provided here, but since it's not specified, we'll proceed with the questions assuming a generic passage.)1. What is the main topic of the passage?A. Environmental issues.B. Technological advancements.C. Cultural differences.D. Economic trends.2. According to the passage, which of the following is a benefit of the new technology?A. It reduces costs.B. It increases efficiency.C. It improves safety.D. It enhances communication.3. What does the author suggest as a solution to the problem discussed?A. Government intervention.B. Public awareness.C. Private sector involvement.D. International cooperation.4. In the passage, the author cites an example to illustrate:A. A success story.B. A failure case.C. A common mistake.D. A potential risk.5. What is the tone of the passage?A. Informative.B. Persuasive.C. Critical.D. Neutral.四、作文题（共50分）Write an essay of about 200 words on the following topic: "The Importance of Learning English in the Globalized World"参考答案：一、选择题1. C2. B3. D4. A5. C6. A7. D8. A9. A10. A二、填空题1. disagree2. on time3. one of a kind4. sorry5. tired6. seen7. bigger8. countable9. desire to know10. uninterested三、阅读理解1. A2. B3. C4. A5. D四、作文题(The essay would be written by the student, and thus no answer is provided here.)。
Towards a Secure Medium Access Control Protocol forCluster-Based Underwater Wireless Sensor Networks
channels are separated into time, frequency, or code domains, such as Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), and Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) [6–8]. TDMA allows sharing the same frequency channel by dividing the signal into different time slots. In order to maintain reliable transmission schedules, all sensor nodes must remain synchronized, which incur additional control packets and scheduling operations. FDMA divides the frequency band into several subbands, but only a narrow available underwater acoustic bandwidth can be used due to the prevalent fading in underwater environments, which results in a low throughput. CDMA is robust against frequency-selective fading and allows receivers to distinguish among signals simultaneously transmitted by multiple devices, which in turn increases channel utilization and reduces packet retransmissions. However, CDMA is not suitable for UWSNs because it is difficult to assign pseudo random codes to a large number of sensor nodes. Also, the inherent near-far problem in CDMA is not well addressed in UWSNs.
过度使用数字通讯的问题和建议英语作文
The Dilemma of Over-Reliance on Digital Communication and its SolutionsIn today's digital era, the overuse of digital communication has become a pressing issue that warrants attention. The constant buzz of notifications, the endless scrolling through social media feeds, and the constant urge to stay connected have taken over our lives, often to the detriment of our physical and mental health. This addiction to digital communication is not without its consequences, and it is high time we addressed this issue head-on.The problem with over-reliance on digital communication is that it can lead to a number of negative outcomes. Firstly, it can erode our ability to communicate face-to-face, which is an essential skill in any relationship. Face-to-face communication involves reading body language, understanding emotional cues, and developing deeper connections with others. However, when we rely solely on digital communication, we miss out on these vital aspects of human interaction.Secondly, overuse of digital communication can lead to information overload. With so much information constantlyflooding our screens, it becomes difficult to filter out what is important and what is not. This can lead to stress and anxiety, as we feel the need to keep up with everything, even if it does not pertain to us.Moreover, the constant connectedness through digital communication can disrupt our work-life balance. We find ourselves checking emails, social media, or text messages even when we should be focused on other tasks. Thisconstant interruption not only affects our productivity but can also lead to feelings of exhaustion and dissatisfaction. To address these issues, several solutions can be explored. Firstly, we need to cultivate the habit ofturning off our digital devices at least an hour before bedtime. This will help us establish a healthy sleeproutine and prevent the negative effects of blue light emissions from screens. Additionally, setting asidespecific times for checking emails or social media can help us avoid constant distractions and stay focused on our work. Secondly, we should make an effort to engage in face-to-face communication more often. This could meaninitiating conversations with family and friends, attendingsocial events, or even participating in group activities that involve interpersonal interaction. By doing so, we can enhance our social skills and develop deeper relationships with those around us.Lastly, we should aim to create boundaries when it comes to digital communication. This could mean setting limits on screen time, deleting unnecessary apps, or even taking periodic breaks from social media. By doing so, we can prevent information overload and protect our mental health.In conclusion, the overuse of digital communication is a real problem that can have significant impacts on our lives. By recognizing its negative consequences and implementing practical solutions, we can reclaim control of our digital habits and lead healthier, more fulfilling lives.**数字通讯过度使用的困境及其解决方案**在当今数字化时代，数字通讯的过度使用已成为一个亟待关注的问题。
- 1、下载文档前请自行甄别文档内容的完整性，平台不提供额外的编辑、内容补充、找答案等附加服务。
- 2、"仅部分预览"的文档,不可在线预览部分如存在完整性等问题,可反馈申请退款(可完整预览的文档不适用该条件!)。
- 3、如文档侵犯您的权益，请联系客服反馈,我们会尽快为您处理(人工客服工作时间：9:00-18:30)。
Annotating Communication Problems Using the MATE WorkbenchLaila Dybkjær, Morten Baun Møller, Niels Ole Bernsen,Michael Grosse, Martin Olsen, Amanda SchiffrinNatural Interactive Systems Laboratory,Science Park 10, 5230 Odense M, Denmarklaila@nis.sdu.dk, baun@mip.sdu.dk, nob@nis.sdu.dk,grosse@mip.sdu.dk, coma@mip.sdu.dk, mandy@nis.sdu.dkAbstractThe increasing commercialisation and sophistication of language engineering products reinforces the need for tools and standards in support of a more cost-effective development and evaluation process than has been possible so far. This paper presents results of the MATE project which was launched in response to the need for standards and tools in support of creating, annotating, evaluating and exploiting spoken language resources. Focusing on the MATE workbench, we illustrate its functionality and usability through its use for markup of communication problems.1. IntroductionThe growing industrial take-up of language engineering products, and their constantly increasing variety and sophistication reinforces the need for tools and standards which can help making their development and evaluation more efficient. One aspect of this multi-faceted problem is the need for standardised annotated corpora and standard corpus annotation tools. In the case of spoken language dialogue systems (SLDSs), the need for tools and standards is evident as regards annotated spoken dialogue corpora and automatic information extraction. Information extraction from annotated corpora is used in SLDSs engineering for many different purposes, such as training and testing of components, constructing lexicons and grammars, extracting dialogue control structures, performing diagnostic evaluation of interfaces, and comparing and evaluating annotation schemes used by humans and/or machines.The production of enriched corpus data is time- and cost-intensive. The idea of re-using annotated data is thus a very attractive one. So far, however, re-use of resources has usually required a painstaking, time-consuming and often inefficient adaptation process due to the lack of standards and widely used tools. Various initiatives have in recent years addressed the problem of markup standardisation, such as the Text Encoding Initiative (TEI), the Corpus Encoding Standard (CES), and (EAGLES). Whilst these initiatives have made progress on written language and/or current coding practice, none of them have focused on the creation of standards and tools for cross-level spoken language corpus annotation.The European Telematics project Multi-level Annotation Tools Engineering (MATE) was launched in March 1998 in response to the need for standards and tools in support of creating, annotating, evaluating and exploiting spoken language resources. This paper provides an overview of the MATE project in Section 2. Section 3 briefly presents the workbench developed in MATE. Section 4 introduces the coding level for communication problems. Section 5 provides a thorough walkthrough of major workbench functionalities as seen from the user’s point of view and illustrated through use of the workbench for communication problems markup. Section 6 concludes the paper by discussing future work and prospects.2. The MATE ProjectThe aim of the MATE project has been to facilitate the re-use of spoken language resources by addressing theoretical issues as well as the practical implementation of solutions.MATE has reviewed more than 60 existing annotation schemes relating to the coding levels addressed in the project, i.e. prosody, (morpho-)syntax, co-reference, dialogue acts, communication problems, and cross-level issues (Klein et al., 1998).Based on the collected information and the consortium’s experience, MATE has developed a standard framework for annotating spoken dialogue corpora at multiple levels, including those mentioned above (Dybkjær et al., 1998). The core concept of the MATE markup framework is that of a coding module, which extends and formalises the concept of a coding scheme. Roughly speaking, a coding module includes or describes everything that is needed in order to perform a certain kind of markup of a particular spoken language corpus. A coding module prescribes what constitutes a coding, including the representation of markup and relations to other codings.The MATE markup framework has been used to ensure a common approach across the levels addressed. For each annotation level, one or more existing coding schemes were selected to form the basis of the best practice coding schemes to be included in the MATE workbench (Mengel et al., 2000). Common to the selected coding schemes is that these are among the most widely used coding schemes for their particular level, which means that they have been used by several annotators and for the annotation of many dialogues. All MATE best practice coding schemes are expressed in terms of coding modules.Although the five coding levels addressed by MATE are very different, the MATE markup framework appear-ed to work well for all of them including their cross-level interactions. Use of the framework ensures a uniform description across levels of the best practice coding schemes. This enhances usability by making it easier for the annotator to move from one level to another and by facilitating use of the same set of software tools and ensuring the same interface look-and-feel across levels.The MATE workbench is a corpus annotation toolboxwhich builds on the theoretical part of the MATE projectdiscussed above. The following section presents theworkbench (see also Section 5).3. The MATE WorkbenchA number of existing tools for annotating spokendialogues were reviewed early in the project in order toprovide input to the specification of the MATEworkbench (Isard et al., 1998). Based on the specification, the MATE markup framework and the MATE bestpractice coding schemes, the functionality describedbelow has been implemented as a java-based workbench,see (Isard et al., 2000) for implementation details. XML isused for internal representation of coding files but the userneeds not know about XML to be able to use the workbench.The MATE best practice coding schemes are includedin the workbench as useful example coding modules andare ready for immediate use. In addition, users are offeredthe possibility of adding new coding schemes via the easy-to-use interface of the MATE coding module editor. One part of a coding module is a markup declaration. On the basis of the entered markup declaration, a DTD is automatically generated that defines which tags are available and how they can be used during markup of a corpus. The interface of the coding module editor builds on the MATE markup framework which serves as an intermediate layer ensuring that the user interface need not change even if the underlying XML representation of coding files should be changed and vice versa.An audio tool offers the user the possibility oflistening to speech files, e.g. while making a transcription,and to have sound files displayed as a waveform. A transcribed file may be annotated according to a selected coding module. The workbench itself only comes with a very simple transcription module. However, the workbench includes a bridge to the Transcriber tool (http://www.etca.fr/CTA/gip/Projets/Transcriber/)which means that dialogues transcribed with Transcriber can be used immediately for level markup in the MATE workbench.A number of default style sheets define how output tothe user is visually presented. Thus, for instance,phenomena of interest in the corpus may be given acertain colour or shown in boldface. The user may modify a style sheet or define new ones. At the moment, however, no style sheet editor is available, so a fairly detailed understanding of XSLT concepts and structure is required of those who want to write their own style sheets.The workbench enables information extraction of anykind from annotated MATE corpora. In particular, any number of annotations from the level(s) marked up in the corpus can be combined in the query. Using the MATE query language editor, users can specify their query interactively, receiving support for consistency control. The result is shown as a set of references to the queried corpus. The query mechanism also supports extraction of statistical information from corpora (e.g. the number of marked-up nouns). Moreover, computation of important reliability measures, such as kappa values, is enabled.Import of files from XLabels and BAS Partitur toXML format is supported. Other converters can easily beadded to the workbench. Export to file formats other than XML may be achieved by using style sheets. For example,information extracted by the query tool could be exportedto HTML in order to serve as input to a browser.4. Communication ProblemsOne of the annotation levels addressed by MATE isthat of communication problems. The increasing numberof advanced SLDSs which support people in carrying outordinary tasks, such as flight/train timetable consultation,ticket booking or directory inquiry, demands rigorous methods and tools for identifying, analysing, preventingand repairing problems in spoken human-machineinteraction. Annotation of communication problems inspoken dialogue corpora can not only help developers andresearchers extract information on the deficiencies ofemerging dialogue interaction models, but can also yield clues as to how these might be improved.Communication problems, if detected by users,typically lead to clarification or repair meta-communication. This is not really a problem in human-human dialogue. However, with current SLDS technologythe possibility of real-time handling of clarification and repair meta-communication is seriously limited. User needs for clarification meta-communication that arise from the way the system addresses its domain, can easily surpass the system’s meta-communication skills.Nevertheless, detection of communication problems inSLDSs has so far usually been carried out on an ad hoc basis. It has generally been performed as a time-consuming task at a fairly late development stage if performed at all. In order to support a more cost-efficient development process for interaction models for SLDSs, we need a solid understanding of communication problems, both of their nature and why they occur. A straightforward way of approaching this problem is to annotate communication problems.Communication problems annotation is still at an earlystage, however. In the state-of-the-art review done inMATE, we only found one coding scheme which focusedon communication problems. Many other schemes included some communication problem types but only because those problems were relevant to, e.g., dialogue act annotation which would then be the main focus of the coding scheme.Communication problems are different in severalrespects from most other phenomena that are usually annotated and studied in a corpus. Most notably, communication problems need not necessarily be present in a corpus at all. In fact, the fewer there are, the better. This is in direct contrast with, e.g., prosodic and morpho-syntactic phenomena, or dialogue acts, which are present in any spoken dialogue corpus. To a large extent, the same is true for co-reference. All these phenomena are among the building blocks of spoken dialogue. Communication problems, on the other hand, are disruptive to a dialogue and co-operative human interlocutors usually try to avoid them. In particular for SLDSs, co-operative system communication is important for avoiding communication problems which often lead to user dialogue behaviour with which the system cannot cope.The best practice communication problems codingscheme included in the MATE workbench, the Odensescheme, is based on a set of guidelines for co-operativespoken human-machine dialogue design (Bernsen,Dybkjær and Dybkjær, 1998; Dybkjær, 1999). These guidelines have so far been shown to work for two-party, shared-goal human-machine dialogue. The primary focus of the Odense coding scheme is the markup of communication problems caused by the system because the emphasis is on investigating how system interaction can be improved to achieve a smoother dialogue with users. Of course, users also commit errors from time to time, which can be direct causes of communication problems. User errors have only been investigated to a limited extent in this context (Bernsen, Dybkjær and Dybkjær, 1998) and we still lack detailed knowledge of their mechanisms.The set of tags (elements and attributes) used by the Odense scheme is small and simple, even if a three-component structure is involved, cf. the bottom of Figure 1. It is, however, a non-trivial task to identify commun-ication problems and analyse them correctly to determine which guidelines they violate and how, i.e., which types of violation we are dealing with. Communication problems are tagged as types of violation of the guidelines for co-operative spoken dialogue. A particular guideline may be violated in several different ways. For example, GG7 (avoid ambiguity) would be violated by not saying whether the time "9 o’clock" given to the user by the system means 9 am or 9 pm. Another type of violation of the same guideline might occur if it was not made clear whether a certain flight arrival time refers to that given by the timetable or to the actual expected arrival time.Such violation types are necessarily task dependent as they refer to concrete problems found in dialogues with particular applications. Thus, a communication problem refers both to the part of the orthographic transcription in which the guideline violation was found, and to a set of violation types which is being created along with the markup of communication problems. Each type of violation in its turn refers to the particular guideline that was violated.For more information on how to detect and analyse communication problems using the cooperativity guidelines as a frame of reference, see (Dybkjær, 1999) and (Bernsen, Dybkjær and Dybkjær, 1998). These references include collections of examples of communication problems, violation types and references to the guidelines.In the following we illustrate the main functionalities of the MATE workbench by describing how it is used for markup of communication problems.Figure 1. File organisation for a corpus annotated with respect to communication problems. The dashed arrow A --> B means that elements in A refer to elements in B by their attribute IDs, while the arrow A —> B means that there is areference in A to B by its file name.5. Markup of Communication ProblemsWhen launched, the MATE workbench comes up withthe two windows shown in Figures 2a and 2b. Figure 2a shows the controller window. Figure 2b shows a corpus folder window. The workbench tools can be opened from the controller window. The list of tools is extensible and is constructed automatically from the available set of tools.Status messages are written in the blank area under themenu. The corpus folder window is used for browsing,adding or editing corpus files. Additional corpus folderwindows can be opened from the File menu of the controller window.Figure 2a. The MATE controller window.Figure 2b. The corpus folder window.Figure 3. The coding module editor.The coding module editor (Figure 3) allows the user to enter new coding modules without knowing about XML which is used for internal file representation. Based on the element structure defined by the user, the tool itself automatically generates the XML document type definition (DTD) which is used internally in the MATE workbench.The Odense coding scheme with its three coding modules is already included in the workbench as it is one of the MATE best practice schemes. To illustrate the concept of a coding module, the coding module for communication problems is shown in Figure 4. The coding modules for guidelines and violation types are not shown but follow the same principles and have the same list of entries.Name: Communication_problems.Coding purpose: Records the different ways in which generic and specific cooperativity guidelines are violated in a corpus. The communication problems coding file refers to a problem type coding file as well as to a transcription.Coding level: Communication problems.Data sources: Dialogue corpora.Module references: Module Basic_orthographic_ transcription; Module Violation_types.Markup declaration:ELEMENT comprobATTRIBUTESvtype: REFERENCE(Violation_types, vtype)wref: REFERENCE(Basic_orthographic_transcription, (w,w)+)uref: REFERENCE(Basic_orthographic_transcription, u+)caused_by: REFERENCE(this, comprob)temp: TEXTELEMENT noteATTRIBUTESwref: REFERENCE(Basic_orthographic_transcription, (w,w)+)uref: REFERENCE(Basic_orthographic_transcription, u+)Description: In order to annotate communication problems caused by inadequate system dialogue design we use the element comprob. It refers to some kind of violation of one of the cooperativity guidelines. The comprob element may be used to mark up any part of the dialogue which caused the communication problem. Thus it may be used to annotate one or more words, an entire utterance or even several utterances in which a communication problem was detected. The comprob element has five attributes.The attribute vtype is mandatory. vtype is a reference to a description of a guideline violation type in a file which incrementally represents the different kinds of violations discovered of each individual guideline.Either wref or uref must be indicated. Both these attributes refer to an orthographic transcription. wref delimits the word(s) which caused a communication problem, and uref refers to one or more entire utterances which caused a problem.The attribute caused_by is optional. In some cases, a communication problem is caused by a problem which occurred earlier in the dialogue. caused_by is used to refer to a communication problem which was found elsewhere in the dialogue and which led to the presentcommunication problem.The attribute temp is optional. It indicates a temporarymarkup. It usually takes a few dialogues before the codergets a good grasp of the types of guideline violationswhich tend to occur in the corpus and what caused them. Often logfile inspection will be needed to make an exactcausal diagnosis. Moreover, some problems become easierto detect when comparing several dialogues. Thus, temp ismainly for use during initial corpus markup but may alsobe used later if it is convenient to make temporary notesbefore making the final diagnosis. The vtype attribute overrides whatever communication problem the attribute temp indicates.In the beginning of the analysis, the vtype attribute maybe left open and the temp attribute filled in to describethe type of guideline violation identified. Very soon,however, a file containing the violation types should be established and in most cases the temp comments can simply be moved to this file and possibly modified to provide a violation type description. Note that due to this and to the coding procedure which requires at least two coders, the violation type references in the vtype attribute are likely to eventually be re-classified.The note element can be used anywhere in a corpus tocomment on whatever the user wants. It refers to one ormore words or one or more utterances in the same way asthe comprob element. The body of the note elementcontains text.Example: The following example communication problems markup assumes a transcription from the Sundial corpus and refers to an example in the violation types coding module not shown in this paper:<u id="S1:7-1-sun" who="S">flight information british airways good day can I help you</u><comprob id="3" vtype="Sundial_problems#SG4-1" uref="Sundial#S1:7-1-sun"/>Coding procedure: We recommend to use the samecoding procedure for markup of communication problemsas for violation types since the two actions are tightlyconnected. As a minimum, the following procedure shouldbe followed:1. Encode by coders 1 and2.2. Check and merge codings (performed by coders 1and 2 until consensus).Creation notes:Authors: Hans Dybkjær and Laila Dybkjær.Version: 1 (25 November 1998), 2 (19 June 1999). Comments: For guidance on how to identify communication problems and for a collection of examples, the reader is referred to (Dybkjær, 1999). Literature: (Bernsen, Dybkjær and Dybkjær, 1998).Figure 4. The communication problems coding module.From the corpus folder window the user can select an already existing file to work on or create new files. It is possible to inspect the different types of file in a folder, cf. Figure 2b. For example, the user may inspect the DTDs generated by the coding module editor or view the style sheet used to display the coding file(s). Figure 5 shows a dialogue annotated using the Odense coding scheme and the default style sheet provided for communication problems.Figure 5. A dialogue annotated with communication problems.Figure 6. The audio tool.In Figure 5 the dialogue is shown in the upper left-hand corner. The cooperativity guidelines are shown in shorthand version in the upper right-hand corner. Violation types are shown and can be added in the lower right-hand corner and notes in the lower left-hand corner.During the detection and analysis of communication problems, an orthographic transcription of the dialogue is used. Often the logfile will have to be inspected as well, cf. the reference structure in Figure 1. In some cases it may even be necessary to access the sound files to, e.g., use intonation to disambiguate an ambiguous utterance in the orthographic transcription. For example, some questions have the same form as statements, and only the information provided by the intonation will reveal whether it is one or the other. The MATE workbench includes an audio tool which allows the user to play soundfiles, cf. Figure 6.Having annotated a corpus the user may want to extract various kinds of information. The MATE workbench includes a query tool for this purpose, cf.Figure 7. It is one of the tools accessible from the toolsmenu in Figure 5. First of all, the user must select thedocument(s) to be queried. In a second step, the user canchoose the element types to be included in the queryexpression from those available in the selected documents. Then the query expression can be built. Buttons in theinterface are active as appropriate, and the attributeswhich belong to the selected element types are shown.Logical combinations and bracketing of simple queryexpressions can also be defined.The result of a query is a document with a list of tuples of elements that are hrefs to the elements found. Figure 8 shows the result of asking for all types of cooperativity guideline violation found in a corpus. Since the output of the query is XML, the results can be displayed to the user in the same way as the data itself, using a stylesheet.Figure 7. The query window.Figure 8. Results of a query.6. Future WorkA major aim of MATE has been to support thedevelopment of spoken language dialogue systems. The market for spoken dialogue systems is growing rapidlyand so is the need for re-usable resources and for toolswhich facilitate their creation. MATE, it would seem, hastherefore in many respects been timely and appropriate inresponding to actual needs. This has also been apparentfrom the considerable interest shown in the MATE project world-wide.The functionality of the MATE workbench is stillbeing improved. The next generation of spoken dialoguesystems are already taking first steps towards more naturalinteractivity by combining speech with other modalities,such as gesture and facial expression. As such multimodal dialogue systems are gaining ground, the need for re-usable multimodal resources as well as for tools and standardisation efforts in support of the development of multimodal systems, is increasing. A natural continuation of MATE would therefore be to re-use the successful MATE approach to the extent possible in order to create a markup framework and workbench for multimodal dialogue annotation.7. ReferencesBernsen, N.O., Dybkjær, H. and Dybkjær, L., 1998.Designing Interactive Speech Systems. From First Ideasto User Testing. Springer Verlag.Dybkjær, L., 1999. CODIAL - a Tutorial and Tool inSupport of Co-operative Dialogue Design.http://www.disc2.dk/tools/codial/.Dybkjær, L., Bernsen, N.O., Dybkjær, H., McKelvie, D.and Mengel, A., 1998. The MATE Markup Framework.MATE Deliverable D1.2.Isard, A., McKelvie, D., Cappelli, B., Dybkjær, L., Evert,S., Fitschen, A., Heid, U., Kipp, M., Klein, M., Mengel,A., Møller, M.B. and Reithinger, N., 1998. Specification of Workbench Architecture. MATE Deliverable D3.1.Isard, A., McKelvie, D., Mengel, A., Møller, M.B.,Grosse, M. and Olsen, M.V., 2000. Data Structures andAPIs for the MATE Workbench. MATE DeliverableD3.2.Klein, M., Bernsen, N.O., Davies, S., Dybkjær, L.,Garrido, J., Kasch, H., Mengel, A., Pirrelli, V., Poesio,M., Quazza, S. and Soria, S., 1998. Supported CodingSchemes. MATE Deliverable D1.1.Mengel, A., Dybkjær, L., Garrido, J., Heid, U., Klein, M.,Pirrelli, V., Poesio, M., Quazza, S., Schiffrin, A. and Soria, C., 2000. MATE Dialogue Annotation Guidelines. MATE Deliverable D2.1.CES: /CES/EAGLES: r.it/EAGLES/home.htmlMATE: http://mate.nis.sdu.dkTEI: /TEI.htmlTranscriber:http://www.etca.fr/CTA/gip/Projets/Transcriber/。