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Copycat vs. Original: Multi-modal Pretraining and Variable Importance in Box-office Prediction

arXiv.org Artificial Intelligence

The movie industry is associated with an elevated level of risk, which necessitates the use of automated tools to predict box-office revenue and facilitate human decision-making. In this study, we build a sophisticated multimodal neural network that predicts box offices by grounding crowdsourced descriptive keywords of each movie in the visual information of the movie posters, thereby enhancing the learned keyword representations, resulting in a substantial reduction of 14.5% in box-office prediction error. The advanced revenue prediction model enables the analysis of the commercial viability of "copycat movies," or movies with substantial similarity to successful movies released recently. We do so by computing the influence of copycat features in box-office prediction. We find a positive relationship between copycat status and movie revenue. However, this effect diminishes when the number of similar movies and the similarity of their content increase. Overall, our work develops sophisticated deep learning tools for studying the movie industry and provides valuable business insight.


Beyond Linear Steering: Unified Multi-Attribute Control for Language Models

arXiv.org Artificial Intelligence

Controlling multiple behavioral attributes in large language models (LLMs) at inference time is a challenging problem due to interference between attributes and the limitations of linear steering methods, which assume additive behavior in activation space and require per-attribute tuning. We introduce K-Steering, a unified and flexible approach that trains a single non-linear multi-label classifier on hidden activations and computes intervention directions via gradients at inference time. This avoids linearity assumptions, removes the need for storing and tuning separate attribute vectors, and allows dynamic composition of behaviors without retraining. To evaluate our method, we propose two new benchmarks, ToneBank and DebateMix, targeting compositional behavioral control. Empirical results across 3 model families, validated by both activation-based classifiers and LLM-based judges, demonstrate that K-Steering outperforms strong baselines in accurately steering multiple behaviors.


14 award-winning images of our mighty oceans

Popular Science

The 2025 Ocean Photographer of the Year announced its winners this week. This photo was taken on April 1, 2024, off Point No Point, WA. In Puget Sound, there's a community of people who prefer watching orcas from the land rather than from boats. Land-based whale watchers in Puget Sound can sometimes get lucky, as these wild apex predators occasionally approach the shore, seemingly curious about their human spectators. My friend is one of those land-based whale enthusiasts, and April 1, 2024, was no ordinary day for her.


What every button on your iPhone can do (including hidden features)

Popular Science

Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. If you own an iPhone 16 or an iPhone 17, you'll find different buttons around the sides of your smartphone. Older iPhones have fewer, depending on the model, but all of these buttons are multitaskers: They come with secondary functions as well as primary ones. For example, did you know you can use either of the volume buttons to snap pictures when you're in the Camera app? This can make it easier to capture photos, compared to trying to hit the circular button on screen.


The pros and cons of not raking leaves

Popular Science

Your local beetles and chipmunks will thank you for backing away from the rake. Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. There's the shift to cooler weather and the opportunity to pull out your favorite hoodie and enjoy the colorful symphony of fall leaves. However, many do not look forward to raking leaves. Believe it or not, you do have a choice when it comes to whether or not to rake leaves.


Is A.I. Taking Your Job?

Slate

Has This All Been a Weird Dream? Is A.I. Taking Your Job? For young workers, it might be time to worry. Please enable javascript to get your Slate Plus feeds. If you can't access your feeds, please contact customer support.


How Russian-funded fake news network aims to disrupt election in Europe - BBC investigation

BBC News

A secret Russian-funded network is attempting to disrupt upcoming democratic elections in an eastern European state, the BBC has found. Using an undercover reporter, we discovered the network promised to pay participants if they posted pro-Russian propaganda and fake news undermining Moldova's pro-EU ruling party ahead of the country's 28 September parliamentary ballot. Participants were paid to find supporters of Moldova's pro-Russia opposition to secretly record - and also to carry out a so-called poll. This was done in the name of a non-existent organisation, making it illegal. The results of this selective sampling, an organiser from the network suggested, could lay the groundwork to question the outcome of the election.



The Sonos Arc Ultra, tested and reviewed: Arguably the best all-in-one premium soundbar for movies and shows

Daily Mail - Science & tech

Wealthy enclave sees a spate of'dangerous' incidents that have left residents terrified Charlie Kirk suspect's trans lover had a flirty relationship with ANOTHER man: Family and friends reveal couple's sick web of darkness What IS causing your maddening itch, should you scratch it... and when do you need to see a doctor? Fury as beach town eyes becoming new Vegas: Thousands of residents fear'predatory' casino will erase history Jimmy Kimmel was just the start. America is undergoing a tectonic shift. And the liberal Left, sick beyond help, are totally unprepared for what's coming next: MAUREEN CALLAHAN The sick moment I knew the'Zombie Hunter' was the sadistic serial killer I was looking for William's had a rotten 18 months. Many have remarked he's appeared unusually sombre - and not just when standing next to Prince Andrew.


11 adorable photos of red pandas to celebrate International Red Panda Day

Popular Science

There are less than 10,000 of these furry tree-climbers left in the wild. September 20, 2025 is International Red Panda Day. These medium-sized mammals are not pandas at all and are more closely related to weasels and raccoons. Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. These endangered mammals are found in the treetops of Nepal, India, Bhutan, Myanmar (Burma), and China and are most closely related to raccoons .