Synthesized Clustering: A method for Amalgamating Alternative Clustering Bases with Differential Weighting of Variables

In the application of clustering methods to real world data sets, two problems frequently arise: (a) how can the various contributory variables in a specific battery be weighted so as to enhance some cluster structure that may be present, and (b) how can various alternative batteries be combined to produce a single clustering that “best” incorporates each contributory set. A new method is proposed ( SYNCLUS, SYN thesized CLUS tering) for dealing with these two problems.