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i rich bingo As the situation in the Middle East remains precarious, it is imperative for all parties involved to exercise restraint and prioritize diplomatic solutions to resolve their differences. The destruction of Syria’s air defense bases is a stark reminder of the consequences of unchecked military aggression and the urgent need for peaceful dialogue to prevent further escalation of violence in the region.

Researchers develop an efficient way to train more reliable AI agents November 22, 2024 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Researchers developed an efficient approach for training more reliable reinforcement learning models, focusing on complex tasks that involve variability. This could enable the leverage of reinforcement learning across a wide range of applications. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIN Email Fields ranging from robotics to medicine to political science are attempting to train AI systems to make meaningful decisions of all kinds. For example, using an AI system to intelligently control traffic in a congested city could help motorists reach their destinations faster, while improving safety or sustainability. Unfortunately, teaching an AI system to make good decisions is no easy task. Reinforcement learning models, which underlie these AI decision-making systems, still often fail when faced with even small variations in the tasks they are trained to perform. In the case of traffic, a model might struggle to control a set of intersections with different speed limits, numbers of lanes, or traffic patterns. To boost the reliability of reinforcement learning models for complex tasks with variability, MIT researchers have introduced a more efficient algorithm for training them. The algorithm strategically selects the best tasks for training an AI agent so it can effectively perform all tasks in a collection of related tasks. In the case of traffic signal control, each task could be one intersection in a task space that includes all intersections in the city. By focusing on a smaller number of intersections that contribute the most to the algorithm's overall effectiveness, this method maximizes performance while keeping the training cost low. The researchers found that their technique was between five and 50 times more efficient than standard approaches on an array of simulated tasks. This gain in efficiency helps the algorithm learn a better solution in a faster manner, ultimately improving the performance of the AI agent. "We were able to see incredible performance improvements, with a very simple algorithm, by thinking outside the box. An algorithm that is not very complicated stands a better chance of being adopted by the community because it is easier to implement and easier for others to understand," says senior author Cathy Wu, the Thomas D. and Virginia W. Cabot Career Development Associate Professor in Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) and the Institute for Data, Systems, and Society (IDSS), and a member of the Laboratory for Information and Decision Systems (LIDS). She is joined on the paper by lead author Jung-Hoon Cho, a CEE graduate student; Vindula Jayawardana, a graduate student in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS); and Sirui Li, an IDSS graduate student. The research will be presented at the Conference on Neural Information Processing Systems. Finding a middle ground To train an algorithm to control traffic lights at many intersections in a city, an engineer would typically choose between two main approaches. She can train one algorithm for each intersection independently, using only that intersection's data, or train a larger algorithm using data from all intersections and then apply it to each one. But each approach comes with its share of downsides. Training a separate algorithm for each task (such as a given intersection) is a time-consuming process that requires an enormous amount of data and computation, while training one algorithm for all tasks often leads to subpar performance. Wu and her collaborators sought a sweet spot between these two approaches. For their method, they choose a subset of tasks and train one algorithm for each task independently. Importantly, they strategically select individual tasks which are most likely to improve the algorithm's overall performance on all tasks. They leverage a common trick from the reinforcement learning field called zero-shot transfer learning, in which an already trained model is applied to a new task without being further trained. With transfer learning, the model often performs remarkably well on the new neighbor task. "We know it would be ideal to train on all the tasks, but we wondered if we could get away with training on a subset of those tasks, apply the result to all the tasks, and still see a performance increase," Wu says. To identify which tasks they should select to maximize expected performance, the researchers developed an algorithm called Model-Based Transfer Learning (MBTL). The MBTL algorithm has two pieces. For one, it models how well each algorithm would perform if it were trained independently on one task. Then it models how much each algorithm's performance would degrade if it were transferred to each other task, a concept known as generalization performance. Explicitly modeling generalization performance allows MBTL to estimate the value of training on a new task. MBTL does this sequentially, choosing the task which leads to the highest performance gain first, then selecting additional tasks that provide the biggest subsequent marginal improvements to overall performance. Since MBTL only focuses on the most promising tasks, it can dramatically improve the efficiency of the training process. Reducing training costs When the researchers tested this technique on simulated tasks, including controlling traffic signals, managing real-time speed advisories, and executing several classic control tasks, it was five to 50 times more efficient than other methods. This means they could arrive at the same solution by training on far less data. For instance, with a 50x efficiency boost, the MBTL algorithm could train on just two tasks and achieve the same performance as a standard method which uses data from 100 tasks. "From the perspective of the two main approaches, that means data from the other 98 tasks was not necessary or that training on all 100 tasks is confusing to the algorithm, so the performance ends up worse than ours," Wu says. With MBTL, adding even a small amount of additional training time could lead to much better performance. In the future, the researchers plan to design MBTL algorithms that can extend to more complex problems, such as high-dimensional task spaces. They are also interested in applying their approach to real-world problems, especially in next-generation mobility systems. The research is funded, in part, by a National Science Foundation CAREER Award, the Kwanjeong Educational Foundation PhD Scholarship Program, and an Amazon Robotics PhD Fellowship. Story Source: Materials provided by Massachusetts Institute of Technology . Original written by Adam Zewe. Note: Content may be edited for style and length. Journal Reference : Cite This Page :

‘Wicked” proved there’s still life in big-budget studio films. But the bulk of 2024’s best still came from independent studios, streaming services and foreign filmmakers. Does that say the business is expanding? Or has the capital of moviemaking shifted? Take a look at the list, and you’ll realize the idea of actors milling about a Hollywood studio didn’t happen this year. Citing high costs, producers used locations to cut the bottom line and produce the year’s best. The year’s best films, in order of preference, go like this: Shot around the world in VistaVision (a process used decades ago to lend importance to a film), this was one of the longest films of the year, clocking in at 3 hours and 35 minutes and featuring an intermission. It accomplished what Francis Ford Coppola’s “Megalopolis” couldn’t — it told an engrossing story about an architect who had to rebuild his life after World War II. Coming to America, Laszlo Toth (a brilliant Adrien Brody) survives on menial jobs, then gets a commission to design a towering facility that reflects his own growth. Co-written and directed by Brady Corbet, “The Brutalist” zips by as turmoil threatens to hammer Toth at every turn. Luckily, determination helps him see the project through, brick by brick. Considering it was produced for less than $10 million, Corbet’s achievement is remarkable. Choosing a pope may seem simple, but Edward Berger’s account makes it every bit as exciting as a John Grisham thriller. Led by Ralph Fiennes as the cardinal running the election, it slyly introduced its candidates, then let the very formal voting process comprise the story. One by one, frontrunners emerged, then fell only to lead to a conclusion that few could see coming. Stanley Tucci and Isabella Rossellini were standouts in a cast filled with scene stealers. The best foreign-language film of the year, “Emilia Pérez” combined several hot-button issues in one elaborate musical. Directed by Jacques Audiard, the film let Zoe Saldaña fire on all cylinders as the attorney for a drug-cartel leader who has a dream — to live life as a woman. While making her moves, Saldaña encounters countless “players” in the leader’s life, including his wife (nicely played by Selena Gomez). Karla Sofia Gascon, as the title character, crossed countless barriers while showing how important the quest was. Covering the Olympics is difficult. Covering a terrorist attack during the Olympics is almost impossible. Yet the men and women at ABC Sports gave viewers a window onto a world they hadn’t seen before. As terrorists claimed hostages at the 1972 Munich Games, reporters scrambled to get the story right. In a day when hearsay is often enough for broadcasters to break into regular programming, this is the real deal — the way journalism should be done. Peter Sarsgaard was outstanding as leader Roone Arledge; Leonie Benesch was unforgettable as a translator trying to help Americans disseminate the truth. Director Tim Fehlbaum got the look just right and made us long for a time when ingenuity and integrity were key. Popular. What can we say? Jon M. Chu did the Broadway fans proud with an adaptation that expanded the story (there are two parts — the second comes next year), introduced new characters and leaned into the O.G., “The Wizard of Oz.” While Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande were overexposed in the lead-up to its release, they didn’t let “Wicked” down. Their performances were ideal and won over a tough crowd. Even original stars Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel got to be part of the fun. Don’t be surprised if this wins the Best Picture Oscar. Mikey Madison made a huge splash as a sex worker who amused the son of a Russian oligarch and quickly found herself in a pot full of trouble. The way director Sean Baker twisted the story made it impossible to ignore. As the Russians in Anora’s life, Mark Eydelshteyn and Yura Borisov were welcome additions to the American acting scene. Both brought new colors to the medium and let Madison shine in ways even she wouldn’t think possible. Three stellar performances in a well-written thrill comedy were more than we could ask. After making a name for himself in documentary films, RaMell Ross turned Colson Whitehead’s Pulitzer Prize winner into a cinematic original. Using some of those documentary techniques, he found a way to pull audiences into the story of two boys sent to an abusive reform school. The film’s cinematography was key; its editing connected the story’s dots. On the 50th anniversary of “Saturday Night Live,” director Jason Reitman came up with the perfect present — a look at the first days of the revolutionary television series. Getting actors to more than suggest the personalities it created justified Reitman’s belief there was something worth preserving. Cory Michael Smith was almost too good as Chevy Chase, the show’s first big star. Actor Jesse Eisenberg wrote and directed this look at cousins who go to Poland to pay homage to their late grandmother. While she may have been the only tie that bound them, she served as a catalyst for change in both. Eisenberg played the uptight cousin; Kieran Culkin (in an Oscar-winning turn) played the rebel. Both were exceptional. Luca Guadagnino had a flashier film this year (“Queer” with Daniel Craig), but this was the more accessible entry. Zendaya starred as a tennis pro who turned to coaching after her playing days were over. Her friendships, however, made it difficult to choose one over the other. Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor played her potential life doubles partners, and they kept the rally going throughout the film. Guadagnino tried a few tricks of his own and came away with a film that was both glossy and telling.

“Gladiator II” asks the question: Are you not moderately entertained for roughly 60% of this sequel? Truly, this is a movie dependent on managed expectations and a forgiving attitude toward its tendency to overserve. More of a thrash-and-burn schlock epic than the comparatively restrained 2000 “Gladiator,” also directed by Ridley Scott, the new one recycles a fair bit of the old one’s narrative cries for freedom while tossing in some digital sharks for the flooded Colosseum and a bout of deadly sea-battle theatrics. They really did flood the Colosseum in those days, though no historical evidence suggests shark deployment, real or digital. On the other hand (checks notes), “Gladiator II” is fiction. Screenwriter David Scarpa picks things up 16 years after “Gladiator,” which gave us the noble death of the noble warrior Maximus, shortly after slaying the ignoble emperor and returning Rome to the control of the Senate. Our new hero, Lucius (Paul Mescal), has fled Rome for Numidia, on the North African coast. The time is 200 A.D., and for the corrupt, party-time twins running the empire (Joseph Quinn and Fred Hechinger), that means invasion time. Pedro Pascal takes the role of Acacius, the deeply conflicted general, sick of war and tired of taking orders from a pair of depraved ferrets. The new film winds around the old one this way: Acacius is married to Lucilla (Connie Nielsen, in a welcome return), daughter of the now-deceased emperor Aurelius and the love of the late Maximus’s life. Enslaved and dragged to Rome to gladiate, the widower Lucius vows revenge on the general whose armies killed his wife. But there are things this angry young phenom must learn, about his ancestry and his destiny. It’s the movie’s worst-kept secret, but there’s a reason he keeps seeing footage of Russell Crowe from the first movie in his fever dreams. Battle follows battle, on the field, in the arena, in the nearest river, wherever, and usually with endless splurches of computer-generated blood. “Gladiator II” essentially bumper-cars its way through the mayhem, pausing for long periods of expository scheming about overthrowing the current regime. The prince of all fixers, a wily operative with interests in both managing gladiators and stocking munitions, goes by the name Macrinus. He’s played by Denzel Washington, who at one point makes a full meal out of pronouncing the word “politics” like it’s a poisoned fig. Also, if you want a masterclass in letting your robes do a lot of your acting for you, watch what Washington does here. He’s more fun than the movie but you can’t have everything. The movie tries everything, all right, and twice. Ridley Scott marshals the chaotic action sequences well enough, though he’s undercut by frenetic cutting rhythms, with that now-familiar, slightly sped-up visual acceleration in frequent use. (Claire Simpson and Sam Restivo are the editors.) Mescal acquits himself well in his first big-budget commercial walloper of an assignment, confined though he is to a narrower range of seething resentments than Crowe’s in the first film. I left thinking about two things: the word “politics” as savored/spit out by Washington, and the innate paradox of how Scott, whose best work over the decades has been wonderful, delivers spectacle. The director and his lavishly talented design team built all the rough-hewn sets with actual tangible materials the massive budget allowed. They took care to find the right locations in Morocco and Malta. Yet when combined in post-production with scads of medium-grade digital effects work in crowd scenes and the like, never mind the sharks, the movie’s a somewhat frustrating amalgam. With an uneven script on top of it, the visual texture of “Gladiator II” grows increasingly less enveloping and atmospherically persuasive, not more. But I hung there, for some of the acting, for some of the callbacks, and for the many individual moments, or single shots, that could only have come from Ridley Scott. And in the end, yes, you too may be moderately entertained. “Gladiator II” — 2.5 stars (out of 4) MPA rating: R (for strong bloody violence) Running time: 2:28 How to watch: Premieres in theaters Nov. 21. Michael Phillips is a Tribune critic.

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ST DAVID, Ariz. — A driver suspected of impairment crossed the center line on State Route 80 in southern Arizona and hit three motorcycles, killing the riders, according to Arizona Department of Public Safety officials. The crash happened Sunday around 6 p.m. just south of St. David, troopers said. The driver of a red SUV was driving east on SR-80 when he allegedly crossed the center line and crashed into the motorcycles. Two of the riders were pronounced dead at the scene and one was pronounced dead at a hospital in Tucson, officials said. >> Live, local, breaking. Download the 12News app The driver of the SUV, who police suspect was impaired, was taken to a Tucson hospital but is expected to recover, officials said. The victims have been identified as 55-year-old James M. Samuel of Maricopa, 37-year-old Anthony O. Davis of Maricopa and 40-year-old Bennie M. Eugene Dansby of Glendale. The SUV driver's identity has not been released, but officials said he was a 41-year-old man from Huachuca City. Criminal charges are expected after the investigation is complete. Up to Speed Catch up on the latest news and stories on the 12News YouTube channel. Subscribe today. Watch 12News for free You can now watch 12News content anytime, anywhere thanks to the 12+ app! The free 12+ app from 12News lets users stream live events — including daily newscasts like "Today in AZ" and "12 News" and our daily lifestyle program, "Arizona Midday"—on Roku, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV . 12+ showcases live video throughout the day for breaking news, local news, weather and even an occasional moment of Zen showcasing breathtaking sights from across Arizona. Users can also watch on-demand videos of top stories, local politics, I-Team investigations, Arizona-specific features and vintage videos from the 12News archives. Roku: Add the channel from the Roku store or by searching for "12 News KPNX." Amazon Fire TV: Search for "12 News KPNX" to find the free 12+ app to add to your account , or have the 12+ app delivered directly to your Amazon Fire TV through Amazon.com or the Amazon app.