WORLDCOMP'08 Tutorial: Ashu M. G. Solo

Fuzzy Logic Theory and Applications in Data Mining Ashu M. G. Solo Principal/R&D Engineer Maverick Technologies America Inc., USA Date: July 14, 2008 Time: 6:00 - 9:00 PM Location: Titanium Room

Abstract



WHY DO WE NEED FUZZY LOGIC?
Recent technological advances have made it possible to develop computers that are extremely fast and efficient for numerical computations. However, these computers lack the abilities of humans and animals in processing cognitive information acquired by natural sensors. For example, the human brain routinely performs tasks like recognizing a face in an unfamiliar crowd in 100-200 ms whereas a computer can take days to accomplish a task of lesser complexity. The use of fuzzy logic can emulate the desirable computing aspects found in humans and animals. Engineers and scientists have had many remarkable accomplishments such as putting people on the moon and returning them safely to Earth, sending spacecraft to the far reaches of the solar system, sending rovers to explore the surface of Mars, exploring the oceans depths, designing computers that can perform billions of computations per second, developing the nuclear bomb, mapping the human genome, and constructing a scanning tunneling microscope that can move individual atoms. But alongside many outstanding achievements using unintelligent systems, there have been many abysmal failures that include modeling the behavior of physical, biological, economic, political, and social systems. Engineers have been unable to develop technology that can decipher sloppy handwriting, recognize oral speech as well as a human can, translate between languages as well as a human interpreter can, drive a car in heavy traffic as well as a human can, walk with the agility of a human or animal, replace the combat infantry soldier, determine the veracity of a statement by a human subject with an acceptable degree of accuracy, replace judges and juries, summarize a complicated document, and explain poetry or song lyrics. These remaining challenges and many more can benefit from fuzzy logic.

WHAT IS FUZZY LOGIC?
Certainty and precision have much too often become an absolute standard in design, decision making, and control problems. The excess of precision and certainty in engineering and scientific research and development is often providing unrealizable solutions. Fuzzy logic, based on the notion of relative graded membership, can deal with information arising from computational perception and cognition that is uncertain, imprecise, vague, partially true, or without sharp boundaries. Fuzzy logic allows for the inclusion of vague human assessments in computing problems. Also, it provides an effective means for conflict resolution of multiple criteria and better assessment of options. New computing methods based on fuzzy logic can lead to greater adaptability, tractability, robustness, and a lower cost solution in the development of intelligent systems for decision making, identification, recognition, optimization, and control.

WHAT ARE SOME APPLICATIONS OF FUZZY LOGIC?
Fuzzy logic has been used in numerous applications such as data mining, facial pattern recognition, washing machines, vacuum cleaners, antiskid braking systems, transmission systems, control of subway systems and unmanned helicopters, intelligent communication networks, knowledge-based systems for multiobjective optimization of power systems, weather forecasting systems, models for new product pricing or project risk assessment, medical diagnosis and treatment plans, and stock trading.




Objectives



This tutorial will provide a clear and rapid description of fuzzy logic theory with example applications mainly in data mining. In three hours, this tutorial will give researchers and developers with no knowledge of fuzzy logic enough knowledge to apply fuzzy logic to their applications.

Hard copies of the tutorial presentation slides will be provided to attendees of this tutorial.

TUTORIAL TOPICS:


1. Introduction to Intelligent Systems
2. Certainty and Precision
3. Uncertainty and Imprecision in Perception and Cognition
4. Human Perception and Cognition
5. Fuzzy Logic for Uncertainty Management
6. Fuzzy Sets
7. Fuzzy Membership Functions
8. Linguistic Variables, Linguistic Qualifiers, and Fuzzy Rules
9. Fuzzy Rules in Data Mining
10. Fuzzy Database Queries in Data Mining
11. Computational Theory of Perceptions and Computing with Words
12. Computing with Words in Data Mining
13. Fuzzy Clustering for Data Mining
14. Fuzzy Rule Induction for Data Mining
15. Fuzzy Math
16. Fuzzy Systems
17. Development of a Fuzzy Knowledge-Based System
18. Fuzzy Logic in Other Applications




Intended Audience



This tutorial will be extremely useful for many people involved in research and development including computer scientists, engineers (computer, electrical, mechanical, civil, chemical, aerospace, agricultural, biomedical, environmental, geological, industrial, mechatronics), mathematicians, social scientists (economics, management science, political science, psychology), natural scientists (biology, chemistry, earth science, physics), business analysts, public policy analysts, jurists, medical researchers, etc.

This tutorial will be presented such that anybody with knowledge of basic university math and computer programming can understand it.


Biography of Instructor



Ashu M. G. Solo is an electrical and computer engineer, mathematician, writer, and entrepreneur. His primary research interests are in new branches of math, intelligent systems, public policy, and the application of intelligent systems in control systems, computer architecture, power systems, optimization, pattern recognition, data mining, decision making, and public policy. Solo has about 100 publications in these and other fields. He co-developed some of the best published methods for maintaining power flow in and multiobjective optimization of radial power distribution system operations. Solo has served on 75 international program committees for 72 research conferences and 3 research multiconferences. He is the principal of Maverick Technologies America Inc. He previously worked in many research and development labs in universities and industry. Also, Solo served honorably as an infantry officer and platoon commander understudy in the Cdn. Army Reserve.

Ashu M. G. Solo,
Principal/R&D Engineer
Maverick Technologies America Inc.
Suite 808
1220 North Market Street
Wilmington, DE 19801
U.S.A.
Email: amgsolo at mavericktechnologies.us