Cross-lingual Natural Language Processing (NLP) has gained significant traction in recent years, offering practical solutions in low-resource settings by transferring linguistic knowledge from resource-rich to low-resource languages. This field leverages techniques like annotation projection and model transfer for language adaptation, supported by multilingual pre-trained language models. However, linguistic divergences hinder language transfer, especially among typologically distant languages. In this paper, we present an analysis of predicate-argument structures in parallel Chinese and English sentences. We explore the alignment and misalignment of predicate annotations, inspecting similarities and differences and proposing a categorization of structural divergences. The analysis and the categorization are supported by a qualitative and quantitative analysis of the results of an annotation projection experiment, in which, in turn, one of the two languages has been used as source language to project annotations into the corresponding parallel sentences. The results of this analysis show clearly that language transfer is asymmetric. An aspect that requires attention when it comes to selecting the source language in transfer learning applications and that needs to be investigated before any scientific claim about cross-lingual NLP is proposed.

Dynamical system (DS)-based learning from demonstration (LfD) is a powerful tool for generating motion plans in the operation (`task') space of robotic systems. However, the realization of the generated motion plans is often compromised by a ''task-execution mismatch'', where unmodeled dynamics, persistent disturbances, and system latency cause the robot's actual task-space state to diverge from the desired motion trajectory. We propose a novel task-level robust control architecture, L1-augmented Dynamical Systems (L1-DS), that explicitly handles the task-execution mismatch in tracking a nominal motion plan generated by any DS-based LfD scheme. Our framework augments any DS-based LfD model with a nominal stabilizing controller and an L1 adaptive controller. Furthermore, we introduce a windowed Dynamic Time Warping (DTW)-based target selector, which enables the nominal stabilizing controller to handle temporal misalignment for improved phase-consistent tracking. We demonstrate the efficacy of our architecture on the LASA and IROS handwriting datasets.

This position paper argues for the importance of open small AI models in creative independence for interactive art practices. Deployable locally, these models offer artists vital control over infrastructure and code, unlike dominant large, closed-source corporate systems. Such centralized platforms function as opaque black boxes, imposing severe limitations on interactive artworks, including restrictive content filters, preservation issues, and technical challenges such as increased latency and limited interfaces. In contrast, small AI models empower creators with more autonomy, control, and sustainability for these artistic processes. They enable the ability to use a model as long as they want, create their own custom model, either by making code changes to integrate new interfaces, or via new datasets by re-training or fine-tuning the model. This fosters technological self-determination, offering greater ownership and reducing reliance on corporate AI ill-suited for interactive art's demands. Critically, this approach empowers the artist and supports long-term preservation and exhibition of artworks with AI components. This paper explores the practical applications and implications of using open small AI models in interactive art, contrasting them with closed-source alternatives.

Group Relative Policy Optimization (GRPO) has demonstrated great utilization in post-training of Large Language Models (LLMs). In GRPO, prompts are answered by the model and, through reinforcement learning, preferred completions are learnt. Owing to the small communication volume, GRPO is inherently suitable for decentralised training as the prompts can be concurrently answered by multiple nodes and then exchanged in the forms of strings. In this work, we present the first adversarial attack in decentralised GRPO. We demonstrate that malicious parties can poison such systems by injecting arbitrary malicious tokens in benign models in both out-of-context and in-context attacks. Using empirical examples of math and coding tasks, we show that adversarial attacks can easily poison the benign nodes, polluting their local LLM post-training, achieving attack success rates up to 100% in as few as 50 iterations. We propose two ways to defend against these attacks, depending on whether all users train the same model or different models. We show that these defenses can achieve stop rates of up to 100%, making the attack impossible.

The widespread integration of Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT) in smart home environments has amplified the demand for transparent and interpretable machine learning models. To foster user trust and comply with emerging regulatory frameworks, the Explainable AI (XAI) methods, particularly post-hoc techniques such as SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP), and Local Interpretable Model-Agnostic Explanations (LIME), are widely employed to elucidate model behavior. However, recent studies have shown that these explanation methods can inadvertently expose sensitive user attributes and behavioral patterns, thereby introducing new privacy risks. To address these concerns, we propose a novel privacy-preserving approach based on SHAP entropy regularization to mitigate privacy leakage in explainable AIoT applications. Our method incorporates an entropy-based regularization objective that penalizes low-entropy SHAP attribution distributions during training, promoting a more uniform spread of feature contributions. To evaluate the effectiveness of our approach, we developed a suite of SHAP-based privacy attacks that strategically leverage model explanation outputs to infer sensitive information. We validate our method through comparative evaluations using these attacks alongside utility metrics on benchmark smart home energy consumption datasets. Experimental results demonstrate that SHAP entropy regularization substantially reduces privacy leakage compared to baseline models, while maintaining high predictive accuracy and faithful explanation fidelity. This work contributes to the development of privacy-preserving explainable AI techniques for secure and trustworthy AIoT applications.

Accurate prediction of small molecule solubility using material-sparing approaches is critical for accelerating synthesis and process optimization, yet experimental measurement is costly and many learning approaches either depend on quantumderived descriptors or offer limited interpretability. We introduce Solvaformer, a geometry-aware graph transformer that models solutions as multiple molecules with independent SE(3) symmetries. The architecture combines intramolecular SE(3)-equivariant attention with intermolecular scalar attention, enabling cross-molecular communication without imposing spurious relative geometry. We train Solvaformer in a multi-task setting to predict both solubility (log S) and solvation free energy, using an alternating-batch regimen that trains on quantum-mechanical data (CombiSolv-QM) and on experimental measurements (BigSolDB 2.0). Solvaformer attains the strongest overall performance among the learned models and approaches a DFT-assisted gradient-boosting baseline, while outperforming an EquiformerV2 ablation and sequence-based alternatives. In addition, token-level attention produces chemically coherent attributions: case studies recover known intra- vs. inter-molecular hydrogen-bonding patterns that govern solubility differences in positional isomers. Taken together, Solvaformer provides an accurate, scalable, and interpretable approach to solution-phase property prediction by uniting geometric inductive bias with a mixed dataset training strategy on complementary computational and experimental data.

Operationalizing definitions of fairness is difficult in practice, as multiple definitions can be incompatible while each being arguably desirable. Instead, it may be easier to directly describe algorithmic bias through ad-hoc assumptions specific to a particular real-world task, e.g., based on background information on systemic biases in its context. Such assumptions can, in turn, be used to mitigate this bias during training. Y et, a framework for incorporating such assumptions that is simultaneously principled, flexible, and interpretable is currently lacking. Our approach is to formalize bias assumptions as programs in ProbLog, a probabilistic logic programming language that allows for the description of probabilistic causal relationships through logic. Neurosymbolic extensions of ProbLog then allow for easy integration of these assumptions in a neural network's training process. We propose a set of templates to express different types of bias and show the versatility of our approach on synthetic tabular datasets with known biases. Using estimates of the bias distortions present, we also succeed in mitigating algorithmic bias in real-world tabular and image data. We conclude that ProbLog4Fairness outperforms baselines due to its ability to flexibly model the relevant bias assumptions, where other methods typically uphold a fixed bias type or notion of fairness.

Resource orchestration and configuration parameter search are key concerns for container-based infrastructure in cloud data centers. Large configuration search space and cloud uncertainties are often mitigated using contextual bandit techniques for resource orchestration including the state-of-the-art Drone orchestrator. Complexity in the cloud provider environment due to varying numbers of virtual machines introduces variability in workloads and resource metrics, making orchestration decisions less accurate due to increased nonlinearity and noise. Ksurf, a state-of-the-art variance-minimizing estimator method ideal for highly variable cloud data, enables optimal resource estimation under conditions of high cloud variability. This work evaluates the performance of Ksurf on estimation-based resource orchestration tasks involving highly variable workloads when employed as a contextual multi-armed bandit objective function model for cloud scenarios using Drone. Ksurf enables significantly lower latency variance of $41\%$ at p95 and $47\%$ at p99, demonstrates a $4\%$ reduction in CPU usage and 7 MB reduction in master node memory usage on Kubernetes, resulting in a $7\%$ cost savings in average worker pod count on VarBench Kubernetes benchmark.

Neurodevelopmental disorders such as Fragile X Syndrome (FXS) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are characterized by disrupted cortical oscillatory activity, particularly in the alpha and gamma frequency bands. These abnormalities are linked to deficits in attention, sensory processing, and cognitive function. In this work, we present an adaptive machine learning-based brain-computer interface (BCI) system designed to modulate neural oscillations through frequency-specific auditory stimulation to enhance cognitive readiness in individuals with FXS. EEG data were recorded from 38 participants using a 128-channel system under a stimulation paradigm consisting of a 30-second baseline (no stimulus) followed by 60-second auditory entrainment episodes at 7Hz, 9Hz, 11Hz, and 13Hz. A comprehensive analysis of power spectral features (Alpha, Gamma, Delta, Theta, Beta) and cross-frequency coupling metrics (Alpha-Gamma, Alpha-Beta, etc.) was conducted. The results identified Peak Alpha Power, Peak Gamma Power, and Alpha Power per second per channel as the most discriminative biomarkers. The 13Hz stimulation condition consistently elicited a significant increase in Alpha activity and suppression of Gamma activity, aligning with our optimization objective. A supervised machine learning framework was developed to predict EEG responses and dynamically adjust stimulation parameters, enabling real-time, subject-specific adaptation. This work establishes a novel EEG-driven optimization framework for cognitive neuromodulation, providing a foundational model for next-generation AI-integrated BCI systems aimed at personalized neurorehabilitation in FXS and related disorders.

Developing reliable iris recognition and presentation attack detection methods requires diverse datasets that capture realistic variations in iris features and a wide spectrum of anomalies. Because of the rich texture of iris images, which spans a wide range of spatial frequencies, synthesizing same-identity iris images while controlling specific attributes remains challenging. In this work, we introduce a new iris image augmentation strategy by traversing a generative model's latent space toward latent codes that represent same-identity samples but with some desired iris image properties manipulated. The latent space traversal is guided by a gradient of specific geometrical, textural, or quality-related iris image features (e.g., sharpness, pupil size, iris size, or pupil-to-iris ratio) and preserves the identity represented by the image being manipulated. The proposed approach can be easily extended to manipulate any attribute for which a differentiable loss term can be formulated. Additionally, our approach can use either randomly generated images using either a pre-train GAN model or real-world iris images. W e can utilize GAN inversion to project any given iris image into the latent space and obtain its corresponding latent code.