In this work, we developed a self-organizing map (SOM) technique for using web-based text analysis to forecast when a group is undergoing a phase change. By 'phase change', we mean that an organization has fundamentally shifted attitudes or behaviors. For instance, when ice melts into water, the characteristics of the substance change. A formerly peaceful group may suddenly adopt violence, or a violent organization may unexpectedly agree to a ceasefire. SOM techniques were used to analyze text obtained from organization postings on the world-wide web. Results suggest it may be possible to forecast phase changes, and determine if an example of writing can be attributed to a group of interest.
The purpose of this work was to help develop a research roadmap and small proof ofconcept for addressing key problems and gaps from the perspective of using text analysis methods as a primary tool for detecting when a group is undergoing a phase change. Self- rganizing map (SOM) techniques were used to analyze text data obtained from the tworld-wide web. Statistical studies indicate that it may be possible to predict phase changes, as well as detect whether or not an example of writing can be attributed to a group of interest.
This report summarizes the results of a three-year LDRD project on prognostics and health management. System failure over some future time interval (an alternative definition is the capability to predict the remaining useful life of a system). Prognostics are integrated with health monitoring (through inspections, sensors, etc.) to provide an overall PHM capability that optimizes maintenance actions and results in higher availability at a lower cost. Our goal in this research was to develop PHM tools that could be applied to a wide variety of equipment (repairable, non-repairable, manufacturing, weapons, battlefield equipment, etc.) and require minimal customization to move from one system to the next. Thus, our approach was to develop a toolkit of reusable software objects/components and architecture for their use. We have developed two software tools: an Evidence Engine and a Consequence Engine. The Evidence Engine integrates information from a variety of sources in order to take into account all the evidence that impacts a prognosis for system health. The Evidence Engine has the capability for feature extraction, trend detection, information fusion through Bayesian Belief Networks (BBN), and estimation of remaining useful life. The Consequence Engine involves algorithms to analyze the consequences of various maintenance actions. The Consequence Engine takes as input a maintenance and use schedule, spares information, and time-to-failure data on components, then generates maintenance and failure events, and evaluates performance measures such as equipment availability, mission capable rate, time to failure, and cost. This report summarizes the capabilities we have developed, describes the approach and architecture of the two engines, and provides examples of their use. 'Prognostics' refers to the capability to predict the probability of