Does ℏ play a role in multidimensional spectroscopy? Reduced hierarchy equations of motion approach to molecular vibrations.

PubMed

Sakurai, Atsunori; Tanimura, Yoshitaka

2011-04-28

To investigate the role of quantum effects in vibrational spectroscopies, we have carried out numerically exact calculations of linear and nonlinear response functions for an anharmonic potential system nonlinearly coupled to a harmonic oscillator bath. Although one cannot carry out the quantum calculations of the response functions with full molecular dynamics (MD) simulations for a realistic system which consists of many molecules, it is possible to grasp the essence of the quantum effects on the vibrational spectra by employing a model Hamiltonian that describes an intra- or intermolecular vibrational motion in a condensed phase. The present model fully includes vibrational relaxation, while the stochastic model often used to simulate infrared spectra does not. We have employed the reduced quantum hierarchy equations of motion approach in the Wigner space representation to deal with nonperturbative, non-Markovian, and nonsecular system-bath interactions. Taking the classical limit of the hierarchy equations of motion, we have obtained the classical equations of motion that describe the classical dynamics under the same physical conditions as in the quantum case. By comparing the classical and quantum mechanically calculated linear and multidimensional spectra, we found that the profiles of spectra for a fast modulation case were similar, but different for a slow modulation case. In both the classical and quantum cases, we identified the resonant oscillation peak in the spectra, but the quantum peak shifted to the red compared with the classical one if the potential is anharmonic. The prominent quantum effect is the 1-2 transition peak, which appears only in the quantum mechanically calculated spectra as a result of anharmonicity in the potential or nonlinearity of the system-bath coupling. While the contribution of the 1-2 transition is negligible in the fast modulation case, it becomes important in the slow modulation case as long as the amplitude of the frequency fluctuation is small. Thus, we observed a distinct difference between the classical and quantum mechanically calculated multidimensional spectra in the slow modulation case where spectral diffusion plays a role. This fact indicates that one may not reproduce the experimentally obtained multidimensional spectrum for high-frequency vibrational modes based on classical molecular dynamics simulations if the modulation that arises from surrounding molecules is weak and slow. A practical way to overcome the difference between the classical and quantum simulations was discussed.

Resolution of ranking hierarchies in directed networks.

PubMed

Letizia, Elisa; Barucca, Paolo; Lillo, Fabrizio

2018-01-01

Identifying hierarchies and rankings of nodes in directed graphs is fundamental in many applications such as social network analysis, biology, economics, and finance. A recently proposed method identifies the hierarchy by finding the ordered partition of nodes which minimises a score function, termed agony. This function penalises the links violating the hierarchy in a way depending on the strength of the violation. To investigate the resolution of ranking hierarchies we introduce an ensemble of random graphs, the Ranked Stochastic Block Model. We find that agony may fail to identify hierarchies when the structure is not strong enough and the size of the classes is small with respect to the whole network. We analytically characterise the resolution threshold and we show that an iterated version of agony can partly overcome this resolution limit.

Resolution of ranking hierarchies in directed networks

PubMed Central

Barucca, Paolo; Lillo, Fabrizio

2018-01-01

Identifying hierarchies and rankings of nodes in directed graphs is fundamental in many applications such as social network analysis, biology, economics, and finance. A recently proposed method identifies the hierarchy by finding the ordered partition of nodes which minimises a score function, termed agony. This function penalises the links violating the hierarchy in a way depending on the strength of the violation. To investigate the resolution of ranking hierarchies we introduce an ensemble of random graphs, the Ranked Stochastic Block Model. We find that agony may fail to identify hierarchies when the structure is not strong enough and the size of the classes is small with respect to the whole network. We analytically characterise the resolution threshold and we show that an iterated version of agony can partly overcome this resolution limit. PMID:29394278

Domain Hierarchy and closed Loops (DHcL): a server for exploring hierarchy of protein domain structure

PubMed Central

Koczyk, Grzegorz; Berezovsky, Igor N.

2008-01-01

Domain hierarchy and closed loops (DHcL) (http://sitron.bccs.uib.no/dhcl/) is a web server that delineates energy hierarchy of protein domain structure and detects domains at different levels of this hierarchy. The server also identifies closed loops and van der Waals locks, which constitute a structural basis for the protein domain hierarchy. The DHcL can be a useful tool for an express analysis of protein structures and their alternative domain decompositions. The user submits a PDB identifier(s) or uploads a 3D protein structure in a PDB format. The results of the analysis are the location of domains at different levels of hierarchy, closed loops, van der Waals locks and their interactive visualization. The server maintains a regularly updated database of domains, closed loop and van der Waals locks for all X-ray structures in PDB. DHcL server is available at: http://sitron.bccs.uib.no/dhcl. PMID:18502776

The Evolutionary Origins of Hierarchy.

PubMed

Mengistu, Henok; Huizinga, Joost; Mouret, Jean-Baptiste; Clune, Jeff

2016-06-01

Hierarchical organization-the recursive composition of sub-modules-is ubiquitous in biological networks, including neural, metabolic, ecological, and genetic regulatory networks, and in human-made systems, such as large organizations and the Internet. To date, most research on hierarchy in networks has been limited to quantifying this property. However, an open, important question in evolutionary biology is why hierarchical organization evolves in the first place. It has recently been shown that modularity evolves because of the presence of a cost for network connections. Here we investigate whether such connection costs also tend to cause a hierarchical organization of such modules. In computational simulations, we find that networks without a connection cost do not evolve to be hierarchical, even when the task has a hierarchical structure. However, with a connection cost, networks evolve to be both modular and hierarchical, and these networks exhibit higher overall performance and evolvability (i.e. faster adaptation to new environments). Additional analyses confirm that hierarchy independently improves adaptability after controlling for modularity. Overall, our results suggest that the same force-the cost of connections-promotes the evolution of both hierarchy and modularity, and that these properties are important drivers of network performance and adaptability. In addition to shedding light on the emergence of hierarchy across the many domains in which it appears, these findings will also accelerate future research into evolving more complex, intelligent computational brains in the fields of artificial intelligence and robotics.

Hierarchies and the Choice of Left Conjuncts (With Particular Attention to English).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Allan, K.

1987-01-01

Hierarchies have been identified as determinants of constituent order. The set of such hierarchies is reviewed and ranked as determinants of NP sequencing in English. The effect of a hierarchy in other languages is compared to and contrasted with what is found in English. (Author/LMO)

A study of complications affecting surgery performance: an ISM-based roadmap to patient flow.

PubMed

Dev, Navin K; Shankar, Ravi; Arvind, Kamal

2013-01-01

The aim of this study is to highlight the value of the success rate performance of a surgery while planning patient flow within a supply chain of a health care organization/hospital. The paper has considered one of the common surgeries, cataract, and the complications that subsequently result from this surgery. The study employs interpretive structural modeling (ISM) approach to draw a roadmap to study various complications causing cataract that subsequently help in planning and coordination of patient flow. The study finds that there is a hierarchy of causes and certain complications, the persistence of which gives a higher success rate performance in cataract surgery as compared to others. The paper provides leverage to the decision maker while organizing the patient flow depending upon the information of hierarchy of complication of a disease, and accordingly ensures the availability of resources to the patient. The study is of value in identifying the degree of complications from cataract surgery. Given the degree of complication, the patient logistics can be planned myopically in a health care organization which largely depends upon the degree of success rate. The paper attempts to suggest that the hierarchy obtained through ISM can be implemented in the modules of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) set up.

Organizational structure and communication networks in a university environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mathiesen, Joachim; Jamtveit, Bjørn; Sneppen, Kim

2010-07-01

The “six degrees of separation” between any two individuals on Earth has become emblematic of the “small world” theme, even though the information conveyed via a chain of human encounters decays very rapidly with increasing chain length, and diffusion of information via this process may be very inefficient in large human organizations. The information flow on a communication network in a large organization, the University of Oslo, has been studied by analyzing email records. The records allow for quantification of communication intensity across organizational levels and between organizational units (referred to as “modules”). We find that the number of email messages within modules scales with module size to the power of 1.29±.06 , and the frequency of communication between individuals decays exponentially with the number of links required upward in the organizational hierarchy before they are connected. Our data also indicates that the number of messages sent by administrative units is proportional to the number of individuals at lower levels in the administrative hierarchy, and the “divergence of information” within modules is associated with this linear relationship. The observed scaling is consistent with a hierarchical system in which individuals far apart in the organization interact little with each other and receive a disproportionate number of messages from higher levels in the administrative hierarchy.

Software architecture for a distributed real-time system in Ada, with application to telerobotics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Olsen, Douglas R.; Messiora, Steve; Leake, Stephen

1992-01-01

The architecture structure and software design methodology presented is described in the context of telerobotic application in Ada, specifically the Engineering Test Bed (ETB), which was developed to support the Flight Telerobotic Servicer (FTS) Program at GSFC. However, the nature of the architecture is such that it has applications to any multiprocessor distributed real-time system. The ETB architecture, which is a derivation of the NASA/NBS Standard Reference Model (NASREM), defines a hierarchy for representing a telerobot system. Within this hierarchy, a module is a logical entity consisting of the software associated with a set of related hardware components in the robot system. A module is comprised of submodules, which are cyclically executing processes that each perform a specific set of functions. The submodules in a module can run on separate processors. The submodules in the system communicate via command/status (C/S) interface channels, which are used to send commands down and relay status back up the system hierarchy. Submodules also communicate via setpoint data links, which are used to transfer control data from one submodule to another. A submodule invokes submodule algorithms (SMA's) to perform algorithmic operations. Data that describe or models a physical component of the system are stored as objects in the World Model (WM). The WM is a system-wide distributed database that is accessible to submodules in all modules of the system for creating, reading, and writing objects.

1986 Year End Report for Road Following at Carnegie-Mellon

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-05-01

how to make them work efficiently. We designed a hierarchical structure and a monitor module which manages all parts of the hierarchy (see figure 1...database, called the Local Map, is managed by a program known as the Local Map Builder (LMB). Each module stores and retrieves information in the...knowledge-intensive modules, and a database manager that synchronizes the modules-is characteristic of a traditional blackboard system. Such a system is

Neural mechanisms of social dominance

PubMed Central

Watanabe, Noriya; Yamamoto, Miyuki

2015-01-01

In a group setting, individuals' perceptions of their own level of dominance or of the dominance level of others, and the ability to adequately control their behavior based on these perceptions are crucial for living within a social environment. Recent advances in neural imaging and molecular technology have enabled researchers to investigate the neural substrates that support the perception of social dominance and the formation of a social hierarchy in humans. At the systems' level, recent studies showed that dominance perception is represented in broad brain regions which include the amygdala, hippocampus, striatum, and various cortical networks such as the prefrontal, and parietal cortices. Additionally, neurotransmitter systems such as the dopaminergic and serotonergic systems, modulate and are modulated by the formation of the social hierarchy in a group. While these monoamine systems have a wide distribution and multiple functions, it was recently found that the Neuropeptide B/W contributes to the perception of dominance and is present in neurons that have a limited projection primarily to the amygdala. The present review discusses the specific roles of these neural regions and neurotransmitter systems in the perception of dominance and in hierarchy formation. PMID:26136644

41 CFR 102-83.15 - Is there a general hierarchy of consideration that agencies must follow in their utilization of...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... hierarchy of consideration that agencies must follow in their utilization of space? 102-83.15 Section 102-83... general hierarchy of consideration that agencies must follow in their utilization of space? Yes, Federal agencies must follow the hierarchy of consideration identified in § 102-79.55 of this chapter. ...

Ecdysone triggered PGRP-LC expression controls Drosophila innate immunity.

PubMed

Rus, Florentina; Flatt, Thomas; Tong, Mei; Aggarwal, Kamna; Okuda, Kendi; Kleino, Anni; Yates, Elisabeth; Tatar, Marc; Silverman, Neal

2013-05-29

Throughout the animal kingdom, steroid hormones have been implicated in the defense against microbial infection, but how these systemic signals control immunity is unclear. Here, we show that the steroid hormone ecdysone controls the expression of the pattern recognition receptor PGRP-LC in Drosophila, thereby tightly regulating innate immune recognition and defense against bacterial infection. We identify a group of steroid-regulated transcription factors as well as two GATA transcription factors that act as repressors and activators of the immune response and are required for the proper hormonal control of PGRP-LC expression. Together, our results demonstrate that Drosophila use complex mechanisms to modulate innate immune responses, and identify a transcriptional hierarchy that integrates steroid signalling and immunity in animals.

Spatial and object-based attention modulates broadband high-frequency responses across the human visual cortical hierarchy.

PubMed

Davidesco, Ido; Harel, Michal; Ramot, Michal; Kramer, Uri; Kipervasser, Svetlana; Andelman, Fani; Neufeld, Miri Y; Goelman, Gadi; Fried, Itzhak; Malach, Rafael

2013-01-16

One of the puzzling aspects in the visual attention literature is the discrepancy between electrophysiological and fMRI findings: whereas fMRI studies reveal strong attentional modulation in the earliest visual areas, single-unit and local field potential studies yielded mixed results. In addition, it is not clear to what extent spatial attention effects extend from early to high-order visual areas. Here we addressed these issues using electrocorticography recordings in epileptic patients. The patients performed a task that allowed simultaneous manipulation of both spatial and object-based attention. They were presented with composite stimuli, consisting of a small object (face or house) superimposed on a large one, and in separate blocks, were instructed to attend one of the objects. We found a consistent increase in broadband high-frequency (30-90 Hz) power, but not in visual evoked potentials, associated with spatial attention starting with V1/V2 and continuing throughout the visual hierarchy. The magnitude of the attentional modulation was correlated with the spatial selectivity of each electrode and its distance from the occipital pole. Interestingly, the latency of the attentional modulation showed a significant decrease along the visual hierarchy. In addition, electrodes placed over high-order visual areas (e.g., fusiform gyrus) showed both effects of spatial and object-based attention. Overall, our results help to reconcile previous observations of discrepancy between fMRI and electrophysiology. They also imply that spatial attention effects can be found both in early and high-order visual cortical areas, in parallel with their stimulus tuning properties.

A neural model of the temporal dynamics of figure-ground segregation in motion perception.

PubMed

Raudies, Florian; Neumann, Heiko

2010-03-01

How does the visual system manage to segment a visual scene into surfaces and objects and manage to attend to a target object? Based on psychological and physiological investigations, it has been proposed that the perceptual organization and segmentation of a scene is achieved by the processing at different levels of the visual cortical hierarchy. According to this, motion onset detection, motion-defined shape segregation, and target selection are accomplished by processes which bind together simple features into fragments of increasingly complex configurations at different levels in the processing hierarchy. As an alternative to this hierarchical processing hypothesis, it has been proposed that the processing stages for feature detection and segregation are reflected in different temporal episodes in the response patterns of individual neurons. Such temporal epochs have been observed in the activation pattern of neurons as low as in area V1. Here, we present a neural network model of motion detection, figure-ground segregation and attentive selection which explains these response patterns in an unifying framework. Based on known principles of functional architecture of the visual cortex, we propose that initial motion and motion boundaries are detected at different and hierarchically organized stages in the dorsal pathway. Visual shapes that are defined by boundaries, which were generated from juxtaposed opponent motions, are represented at different stages in the ventral pathway. Model areas in the different pathways interact through feedforward and modulating feedback, while mutual interactions enable the communication between motion and form representations. Selective attention is devoted to shape representations by sending modulating feedback signals from higher levels (working memory) to intermediate levels to enhance their responses. Areas in the motion and form pathway are coupled through top-down feedback with V1 cells at the bottom end of the hierarchy. We propose that the different temporal episodes in the response pattern of V1 cells, as recorded in recent experiments, reflect the strength of modulating feedback signals. This feedback results from the consolidated shape representations from coherent motion patterns and the attentive modulation of responses along the cortical hierarchy. The model makes testable predictions concerning the duration and delay of the temporal episodes of V1 cell responses as well as their response variations that were caused by modulating feedback signals. Copyright 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A hierarchy of timescales explains distinct effects of local inhibition of primary visual cortex and frontal eye fields

PubMed Central

Cocchi, Luca; Sale, Martin V; L Gollo, Leonardo; Bell, Peter T; Nguyen, Vinh T; Zalesky, Andrew; Breakspear, Michael; Mattingley, Jason B

2016-01-01

Within the primate visual system, areas at lower levels of the cortical hierarchy process basic visual features, whereas those at higher levels, such as the frontal eye fields (FEF), are thought to modulate sensory processes via feedback connections. Despite these functional exchanges during perception, there is little shared activity between early and late visual regions at rest. How interactions emerge between regions encompassing distinct levels of the visual hierarchy remains unknown. Here we combined neuroimaging, non-invasive cortical stimulation and computational modelling to characterize changes in functional interactions across widespread neural networks before and after local inhibition of primary visual cortex or FEF. We found that stimulation of early visual cortex selectively increased feedforward interactions with FEF and extrastriate visual areas, whereas identical stimulation of the FEF decreased feedback interactions with early visual areas. Computational modelling suggests that these opposing effects reflect a fast-slow timescale hierarchy from sensory to association areas. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.15252.001 PMID:27596931

A hierarchy of timescales explains distinct effects of local inhibition of primary visual cortex and frontal eye fields.

PubMed

Cocchi, Luca; Sale, Martin V; L Gollo, Leonardo; Bell, Peter T; Nguyen, Vinh T; Zalesky, Andrew; Breakspear, Michael; Mattingley, Jason B

2016-09-06

Within the primate visual system, areas at lower levels of the cortical hierarchy process basic visual features, whereas those at higher levels, such as the frontal eye fields (FEF), are thought to modulate sensory processes via feedback connections. Despite these functional exchanges during perception, there is little shared activity between early and late visual regions at rest. How interactions emerge between regions encompassing distinct levels of the visual hierarchy remains unknown. Here we combined neuroimaging, non-invasive cortical stimulation and computational modelling to characterize changes in functional interactions across widespread neural networks before and after local inhibition of primary visual cortex or FEF. We found that stimulation of early visual cortex selectively increased feedforward interactions with FEF and extrastriate visual areas, whereas identical stimulation of the FEF decreased feedback interactions with early visual areas. Computational modelling suggests that these opposing effects reflect a fast-slow timescale hierarchy from sensory to association areas.

Using Maslow's hierarchy to highlight power imbalances between visiting health professional student volunteers and the host community: An applied qualitative study.

PubMed

Evans, Tracey; Akporuno, Orezioghene; Owens, Katrina M; Lickers, Brittany; Marlinga, Jazmin; Lin, Henry C; Loh, Lawrence C

2017-01-01

Health professional students from high-income countries increasingly participate in short-term experiences in global health (STEGH) conducted abroad. One common criticism of STEGH is the inherent power differential that exists between visiting learners and the local community. To highlight this power differential, this paper explores perceived benefits as described by volunteer and community respondents and applies Maslow's hierarchy of needs to commonly identified themes in each respondent group. A semistructured survey was used to collect qualitative responses from both volunteers and community members located in a Dominican Republic community, that is, a hotspot for traditionally conducted STEGH. Thematic analysis identified themes of perceived benefits from both respondent groups; each group's common themes were then classified and compared within Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Each respondent group identified resource provision as a perceived benefit of STEGH, but volunteer respondents primarily focused on the provision of highly-skilled, complex resources while community respondents focused on basic necessities (food, water, etc.) Volunteer respondents were also the only group to also mention spiritual/religious/life experiences, personal skills development, and relationships as perceived benefits. Applying Maslow's hierarchy thus demonstrates a difference in needs: community respondents focused on benefits that address deficiency needs at the bottom of the hierarchy while volunteers focused on benefits addressing self-transcendence/actualization needs at the top of the hierarchy. The perceived difference in needs met by STEGH between volunteers and the host community within Maslow's hierarchy may drive an inherent power differential. Refocusing STEGH on the relationship level of the hierarchy (i.e., focusing on partnerships) might help mitigate this imbalance and empower host communities.

Electronic health record analysis via deep poisson factor models

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Henao, Ricardo; Lu, James T.; Lucas, Joseph E.

Electronic Health Record (EHR) phenotyping utilizes patient data captured through normal medical practice, to identify features that may represent computational medical phenotypes. These features may be used to identify at-risk patients and improve prediction of patient morbidity and mortality. We present a novel deep multi-modality architecture for EHR analysis (applicable to joint analysis of multiple forms of EHR data), based on Poisson Factor Analysis (PFA) modules. Each modality, composed of observed counts, is represented as a Poisson distribution, parameterized in terms of hidden binary units. In-formation from different modalities is shared via a deep hierarchy of common hidden units. Activationmore » of these binary units occurs with probability characterized as Bernoulli-Poisson link functions, instead of more traditional logistic link functions. In addition, we demon-strate that PFA modules can be adapted to discriminative modalities. To compute model parameters, we derive efficient Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) inference that scales efficiently, with significant computational gains when compared to related models based on logistic link functions. To explore the utility of these models, we apply them to a subset of patients from the Duke-Durham patient cohort. We identified a cohort of over 12,000 patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) based on diagnosis codes and laboratory tests out of our patient population of over 240,000. Examining the common hidden units uniting the PFA modules, we identify patient features that represent medical concepts. Experiments indicate that our learned features are better able to predict mortality and morbidity than clinical features identified previously in a large-scale clinical trial.« less

Electronic health record analysis via deep poisson factor models

DOE PAGES

Henao, Ricardo; Lu, James T.; Lucas, Joseph E.; ...

2016-01-01

Electronic Health Record (EHR) phenotyping utilizes patient data captured through normal medical practice, to identify features that may represent computational medical phenotypes. These features may be used to identify at-risk patients and improve prediction of patient morbidity and mortality. We present a novel deep multi-modality architecture for EHR analysis (applicable to joint analysis of multiple forms of EHR data), based on Poisson Factor Analysis (PFA) modules. Each modality, composed of observed counts, is represented as a Poisson distribution, parameterized in terms of hidden binary units. In-formation from different modalities is shared via a deep hierarchy of common hidden units. Activationmore » of these binary units occurs with probability characterized as Bernoulli-Poisson link functions, instead of more traditional logistic link functions. In addition, we demon-strate that PFA modules can be adapted to discriminative modalities. To compute model parameters, we derive efficient Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) inference that scales efficiently, with significant computational gains when compared to related models based on logistic link functions. To explore the utility of these models, we apply them to a subset of patients from the Duke-Durham patient cohort. We identified a cohort of over 12,000 patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) based on diagnosis codes and laboratory tests out of our patient population of over 240,000. Examining the common hidden units uniting the PFA modules, we identify patient features that represent medical concepts. Experiments indicate that our learned features are better able to predict mortality and morbidity than clinical features identified previously in a large-scale clinical trial.« less

Inferring heuristic classification hierarchies from natural language input

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hull, Richard; Gomez, Fernando

1993-01-01

A methodology for inferring hierarchies representing heuristic knowledge about the check out, control, and monitoring sub-system (CCMS) of the space shuttle launch processing system from natural language input is explained. Our method identifies failures explicitly and implicitly described in natural language by domain experts and uses those descriptions to recommend classifications for inclusion in the experts' heuristic hierarchies.

Community Landscapes: An Integrative Approach to Determine Overlapping Network Module Hierarchy, Identify Key Nodes and Predict Network Dynamics

PubMed Central

Kovács, István A.; Palotai, Robin; Szalay, Máté S.; Csermely, Peter

2010-01-01

Background Network communities help the functional organization and evolution of complex networks. However, the development of a method, which is both fast and accurate, provides modular overlaps and partitions of a heterogeneous network, has proven to be rather difficult. Methodology/Principal Findings Here we introduce the novel concept of ModuLand, an integrative method family determining overlapping network modules as hills of an influence function-based, centrality-type community landscape, and including several widely used modularization methods as special cases. As various adaptations of the method family, we developed several algorithms, which provide an efficient analysis of weighted and directed networks, and (1) determine pervasively overlapping modules with high resolution; (2) uncover a detailed hierarchical network structure allowing an efficient, zoom-in analysis of large networks; (3) allow the determination of key network nodes and (4) help to predict network dynamics. Conclusions/Significance The concept opens a wide range of possibilities to develop new approaches and applications including network routing, classification, comparison and prediction. PMID:20824084

HEP - A semaphore-synchronized multiprocessor with central control. [Heterogeneous Element Processor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gilliland, M. C.; Smith, B. J.; Calvert, W.

1976-01-01

The paper describes the design concept of the Heterogeneous Element Processor (HEP), a system tailored to the special needs of scientific simulation. In order to achieve high-speed computation required by simulation, HEP features a hierarchy of processes executing in parallel on a number of processors, with synchronization being largely accomplished by hardware. A full-empty-reserve scheme of synchronization is realized by zero-one-valued hardware semaphores. A typical system has, besides the control computer and the scheduler, an algebraic module, a memory module, a first-in first-out (FIFO) module, an integrator module, and an I/O module. The architecture of the scheduler and the algebraic module is examined in detail.

The fluency of social hierarchy: the ease with which hierarchical relationships are seen, remembered, learned, and liked.

PubMed

Zitek, Emily M; Tiedens, Larissa Z

2012-01-01

We tested the hypothesis that social hierarchies are fluent social stimuli; that is, they are processed more easily and therefore liked better than less hierarchical stimuli. In Study 1, pairs of people in a hierarchy based on facial dominance were identified faster than pairs of people equal in their facial dominance. In Study 2, a diagram representing hierarchy was memorized more quickly than a diagram representing equality or a comparison diagram. This faster processing led the hierarchy diagram to be liked more than the equality diagram. In Study 3, participants were best able to learn a set of relationships that represented hierarchy (asymmetry of power)--compared to relationships in which there was asymmetry of friendliness, or compared to relationships in which there was symmetry--and this processing ease led them to like the hierarchy the most. In Study 4, participants found it easier to make decisions about a company that was more hierarchical and thus thought the hierarchical organization had more positive qualities. In Study 5, familiarity as a basis for the fluency of hierarchy was demonstrated by showing greater fluency for male than female hierarchies. This study also showed that when social relationships are difficult to learn, people's preference for hierarchy increases. Taken together, these results suggest one reason people might like hierarchies--hierarchies are easy to process. This fluency for social hierarchies might contribute to the construction and maintenance of hierarchies.

Extending an evidence hierarchy to include topics other than treatment: revising the Australian 'levels of evidence'

PubMed Central

2009-01-01

Background In 1999 a four-level hierarchy of evidence was promoted by the National Health and Medical Research Council in Australia. The primary purpose of this hierarchy was to assist with clinical practice guideline development, although it was co-opted for use in systematic literature reviews and health technology assessments. In this hierarchy interventional study designs were ranked according to the likelihood that bias had been eliminated and thus it was not ideal to assess studies that addressed other types of clinical questions. This paper reports on the revision and extension of this evidence hierarchy to enable broader use within existing evidence assessment systems. Methods A working party identified and assessed empirical evidence, and used a commissioned review of existing evidence assessment schema, to support decision-making regarding revision of the hierarchy. The aim was to retain the existing evidence levels I-IV but increase their relevance for assessing the quality of individual diagnostic accuracy, prognostic, aetiologic and screening studies. Comprehensive public consultation was undertaken and the revised hierarchy was piloted by individual health technology assessment agencies and clinical practice guideline developers. After two and a half years, the hierarchy was again revised and commenced a further 18 month pilot period. Results A suitable framework was identified upon which to model the revision. Consistency was maintained in the hierarchy of "levels of evidence" across all types of clinical questions; empirical evidence was used to support the relationship between study design and ranking in the hierarchy wherever possible; and systematic reviews of lower level studies were themselves ascribed a ranking. The impact of ethics on the hierarchy of study designs was acknowledged in the framework, along with a consideration of how harms should be assessed. Conclusion The revised evidence hierarchy is now widely used and provides a common standard against which to initially judge the likelihood of bias in individual studies evaluating interventional, diagnostic accuracy, prognostic, aetiologic or screening topics. Detailed quality appraisal of these individual studies, as well as grading of the body of evidence to answer each clinical, research or policy question, can then be undertaken as required. PMID:19519887

Formal verification of a set of memory management units

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schubert, E. Thomas; Levitt, K.; Cohen, Gerald C.

1992-01-01

This document describes the verification of a set of memory management units (MMU). The verification effort demonstrates the use of hierarchical decomposition and abstract theories. The MMUs can be organized into a complexity hierarchy. Each new level in the hierarchy adds a few significant features or modifications to the lower level MMU. The units described include: (1) a page check translation look-aside module (TLM); (2) a page check TLM with supervisor line; (3) a base bounds MMU; (4) a virtual address translation MMU; and (5) a virtual address translation MMU with memory resident segment table.

Acceptance of Safety and Mission Success Risks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Groen, Frank

2015-01-01

NASA has developed an objectives based hierarchy for guiding Reliability and Maintainability (RM) activities. This presentation overviews the hierarchy and proposes to the international trilateral partners to formulate a task force to consider the elements of the NASA RM framework, as captured in the hierarchy of RM considerations, to identify commonalities and differences in the way RM is addressed by the flight projects among the partners.

Evaluating, Comparing, and Interpreting Protein Domain Hierarchies

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Abstract Arranging protein domain sequences hierarchically into evolutionarily divergent subgroups is important for investigating evolutionary history, for speeding up web-based similarity searches, for identifying sequence determinants of protein function, and for genome annotation. However, whether or not a particular hierarchy is optimal is often unclear, and independently constructed hierarchies for the same domain can often differ significantly. This article describes methods for statistically evaluating specific aspects of a hierarchy, for probing the criteria underlying its construction and for direct comparisons between hierarchies. Information theoretical notions are used to quantify the contributions of specific hierarchical features to the underlying statistical model. Such features include subhierarchies, sequence subgroups, individual sequences, and subgroup-associated signature patterns. Underlying properties are graphically displayed in plots of each specific feature's contributions, in heat maps of pattern residue conservation, in “contrast alignments,” and through cross-mapping of subgroups between hierarchies. Together, these approaches provide a deeper understanding of protein domain functional divergence, reveal uncertainties caused by inconsistent patterns of sequence conservation, and help resolve conflicts between competing hierarchies. PMID:24559108

Sub-cellular mRNA localization modulates the regulation of gene expression by small RNAs in bacteria

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Teimouri, Hamid; Korkmazhan, Elgin; Stavans, Joel; Levine, Erel

2017-10-01

Small non-coding RNAs can exert significant regulatory activity on gene expression in bacteria. In recent years, substantial progress has been made in understanding bacterial gene expression by sRNAs. However, recent findings that demonstrate that families of mRNAs show non-trivial sub-cellular distributions raise the question of how localization may affect the regulatory activity of sRNAs. Here we address this question within a simple mathematical model. We show that the non-uniform spatial distributions of mRNA can alter the threshold-linear response that characterizes sRNAs that act stoichiometrically, and modulate the hierarchy among targets co-regulated by the same sRNA. We also identify conditions where the sub-cellular organization of cofactors in the sRNA pathway can induce spatial heterogeneity on sRNA targets. Our results suggest that under certain conditions, interpretation and modeling of natural and synthetic gene regulatory circuits need to take into account the spatial organization of the transcripts of participating genes.

Identifying Stages in a Learning Hierarchy for Use in Formative Assessment--The Example of Line Graphs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stacey, Kaye; Price, Beth; Steinle, Vicki

2012-01-01

This paper discusses issues arising in the design of questions to use in an on-line computer-based formative assessment system, focussing on how best to identify the stages of a learning hierarchy for reporting to teachers. Data from several hundred students is used to illustrate how design decisions have been made for a test on interpreting line…

Proposal for a Comparison of Reliability and Maintainability Activities Across ESA, JAXA, and NASA

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Evans, John; Groen, Frank

2015-01-01

NASA has developed an objectives based hierarchy for guiding Reliability and Maintainability activities. This presentation overviews the hierarchy and proposes to the international trilateral partners to formulate a task force to consider the elements of the NASA RM framework, as captured in the hierarchy of RM considerations, to identify commonalities and differences in the way reliability and maintainability is addressed by the flight projects among the partners.

Deviance-Related Responses along the Auditory Hierarchy: Combined FFR, MLR and MMN Evidence.

PubMed

Shiga, Tetsuya; Althen, Heike; Cornella, Miriam; Zarnowiec, Katarzyna; Yabe, Hirooki; Escera, Carles

2015-01-01

The mismatch negativity (MMN) provides a correlate of automatic auditory discrimination in human auditory cortex that is elicited in response to violation of any acoustic regularity. Recently, deviance-related responses were found at much earlier cortical processing stages as reflected by the middle latency response (MLR) of the auditory evoked potential, and even at the level of the auditory brainstem as reflected by the frequency following response (FFR). However, no study has reported deviance-related responses in the FFR, MLR and long latency response (LLR) concurrently in a single recording protocol. Amplitude-modulated (AM) sounds were presented to healthy human participants in a frequency oddball paradigm to investigate deviance-related responses along the auditory hierarchy in the ranges of FFR, MLR and LLR. AM frequency deviants modulated the FFR, the Na and Nb components of the MLR, and the LLR eliciting the MMN. These findings demonstrate that it is possible to elicit deviance-related responses at three different levels (FFR, MLR and LLR) in one single recording protocol, highlight the involvement of the whole auditory hierarchy in deviance detection and have implications for cognitive and clinical auditory neuroscience. Moreover, the present protocol provides a new research tool into clinical neuroscience so that the functional integrity of the auditory novelty system can now be tested as a whole in a range of clinical populations where the MMN was previously shown to be defective.

Deviance-Related Responses along the Auditory Hierarchy: Combined FFR, MLR and MMN Evidence

PubMed Central

Shiga, Tetsuya; Althen, Heike; Cornella, Miriam; Zarnowiec, Katarzyna; Yabe, Hirooki; Escera, Carles

2015-01-01

The mismatch negativity (MMN) provides a correlate of automatic auditory discrimination in human auditory cortex that is elicited in response to violation of any acoustic regularity. Recently, deviance-related responses were found at much earlier cortical processing stages as reflected by the middle latency response (MLR) of the auditory evoked potential, and even at the level of the auditory brainstem as reflected by the frequency following response (FFR). However, no study has reported deviance-related responses in the FFR, MLR and long latency response (LLR) concurrently in a single recording protocol. Amplitude-modulated (AM) sounds were presented to healthy human participants in a frequency oddball paradigm to investigate deviance-related responses along the auditory hierarchy in the ranges of FFR, MLR and LLR. AM frequency deviants modulated the FFR, the Na and Nb components of the MLR, and the LLR eliciting the MMN. These findings demonstrate that it is possible to elicit deviance-related responses at three different levels (FFR, MLR and LLR) in one single recording protocol, highlight the involvement of the whole auditory hierarchy in deviance detection and have implications for cognitive and clinical auditory neuroscience. Moreover, the present protocol provides a new research tool into clinical neuroscience so that the functional integrity of the auditory novelty system can now be tested as a whole in a range of clinical populations where the MMN was previously shown to be defective. PMID:26348628

Extracting the sovereigns’ CDS market hierarchy: A correlation-filtering approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

León, Carlos; Leiton, Karen; Pérez, Jhonatan

2014-12-01

This paper employs correlation-into-distance mapping techniques and a minimal spanning tree-based correlation-filtering methodology on 36 sovereign CDS spread time-series in order to identify the sovereigns’ informational hierarchy. The resulting hierarchy (i) concurs with sovereigns’ eigenvector centrality; (ii) confirms the importance of geographical and credit rating clustering; (iii) identifies Russia, Turkey and Brazil as regional benchmarks; (iv) reveals the idiosyncratic nature of Japan and United States; (v) confirms that a small set of common factors affects the system; (vi) suggests that lower-medium grade rated sovereigns are the most influential, but also the most prone to contagion; and (vii) suggests the existence of a “Latin American common factor”.

The Evolutionary Origins of Hierarchy

PubMed Central

Huizinga, Joost; Clune, Jeff

2016-01-01

Hierarchical organization—the recursive composition of sub-modules—is ubiquitous in biological networks, including neural, metabolic, ecological, and genetic regulatory networks, and in human-made systems, such as large organizations and the Internet. To date, most research on hierarchy in networks has been limited to quantifying this property. However, an open, important question in evolutionary biology is why hierarchical organization evolves in the first place. It has recently been shown that modularity evolves because of the presence of a cost for network connections. Here we investigate whether such connection costs also tend to cause a hierarchical organization of such modules. In computational simulations, we find that networks without a connection cost do not evolve to be hierarchical, even when the task has a hierarchical structure. However, with a connection cost, networks evolve to be both modular and hierarchical, and these networks exhibit higher overall performance and evolvability (i.e. faster adaptation to new environments). Additional analyses confirm that hierarchy independently improves adaptability after controlling for modularity. Overall, our results suggest that the same force–the cost of connections–promotes the evolution of both hierarchy and modularity, and that these properties are important drivers of network performance and adaptability. In addition to shedding light on the emergence of hierarchy across the many domains in which it appears, these findings will also accelerate future research into evolving more complex, intelligent computational brains in the fields of artificial intelligence and robotics. PMID:27280881

[Real-time detection and processing of medical signals under windows using Lcard analog interfaces].

PubMed

Kuz'min, A A; Belozerov, A E; Pronin, T V

2008-01-01

Multipurpose modular software for an analog interface based on Lcard 761 is considered. Algorithms for pipeline processing of medical signals under Windows with dynamic control of computational resources are suggested. The software consists of user-friendly completable modifiable modules. The module hierarchy is based on object-oriented heritage principles, which make it possible to construct various real-time systems for long-term detection, processing, and imaging of multichannel medical signals.

Functional correlates of the anterolateral processing hierarchy in human auditory cortex.

PubMed

Chevillet, Mark; Riesenhuber, Maximilian; Rauschecker, Josef P

2011-06-22

Converging evidence supports the hypothesis that an anterolateral processing pathway mediates sound identification in auditory cortex, analogous to the role of the ventral cortical pathway in visual object recognition. Studies in nonhuman primates have characterized the anterolateral auditory pathway as a processing hierarchy, composed of three anatomically and physiologically distinct initial stages: core, belt, and parabelt. In humans, potential homologs of these regions have been identified anatomically, but reliable and complete functional distinctions between them have yet to be established. Because the anatomical locations of these fields vary across subjects, investigations of potential homologs between monkeys and humans require these fields to be defined in single subjects. Using functional MRI, we presented three classes of sounds (tones, band-passed noise bursts, and conspecific vocalizations), equivalent to those used in previous monkey studies. In each individual subject, three regions showing functional similarities to macaque core, belt, and parabelt were readily identified. Furthermore, the relative sizes and locations of these regions were consistent with those reported in human anatomical studies. Our results demonstrate that the functional organization of the anterolateral processing pathway in humans is largely consistent with that of nonhuman primates. Because our scanning sessions last only 15 min/subject, they can be run in conjunction with other scans. This will enable future studies to characterize functional modules in human auditory cortex at a level of detail previously possible only in visual cortex. Furthermore, the approach of using identical schemes in both humans and monkeys will aid with establishing potential homologies between them.

Functional architecture of Escherichia coli: new insights provided by a natural decomposition approach.

PubMed

Freyre-González, Julio A; Alonso-Pavón, José A; Treviño-Quintanilla, Luis G; Collado-Vides, Julio

2008-10-27

Previous studies have used different methods in an effort to extract the modular organization of transcriptional regulatory networks. However, these approaches are not natural, as they try to cluster strongly connected genes into a module or locate known pleiotropic transcription factors in lower hierarchical layers. Here, we unravel the transcriptional regulatory network of Escherichia coli by separating it into its key elements, thus revealing its natural organization. We also present a mathematical criterion, based on the topological features of the transcriptional regulatory network, to classify the network elements into one of two possible classes: hierarchical or modular genes. We found that modular genes are clustered into physiologically correlated groups validated by a statistical analysis of the enrichment of the functional classes. Hierarchical genes encode transcription factors responsible for coordinating module responses based on general interest signals. Hierarchical elements correlate highly with the previously studied global regulators, suggesting that this could be the first mathematical method to identify global regulators. We identified a new element in transcriptional regulatory networks never described before: intermodular genes. These are structural genes that integrate, at the promoter level, signals coming from different modules, and therefore from different physiological responses. Using the concept of pleiotropy, we have reconstructed the hierarchy of the network and discuss the role of feedforward motifs in shaping the hierarchical backbone of the transcriptional regulatory network. This study sheds new light on the design principles underpinning the organization of transcriptional regulatory networks, showing a novel nonpyramidal architecture composed of independent modules globally governed by hierarchical transcription factors, whose responses are integrated by intermodular genes.

Higher spin Chern-Simons theory and the super Boussinesq hierarchy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gutperle, Michael; Li, Yi

2018-05-01

In this paper, we construct a map between a solution of supersymmetric Chern-Simons higher spin gravity based on the superalgebra sl(3|2) with Lifshitz scaling and the N = 2 super Boussinesq hierarchy. We show that under this map the time evolution equations of both theories coincide. In addition, we identify the Poisson structure of the Chern-Simons theory induced by gauge transformation with the second Hamiltonian structure of the super Boussinesq hierarchy.

SemantGeo: Powering Ecological and Environment Data Discovery and Search with Standards-Based Geospatial Reasoning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seyed, P.; Ashby, B.; Khan, I.; Patton, E. W.; McGuinness, D. L.

2013-12-01

Recent efforts to create and leverage standards for geospatial data specification and inference include the GeoSPARQL standard, Geospatial OWL ontologies (e.g., GAZ, Geonames), and RDF triple stores that support GeoSPARQL (e.g., AllegroGraph, Parliament) that use RDF instance data for geospatial features of interest. However, there remains a gap on how best to fuse software engineering best practices and GeoSPARQL within semantic web applications to enable flexible search driven by geospatial reasoning. In this abstract we introduce the SemantGeo module for the SemantEco framework that helps fill this gap, enabling scientists find data using geospatial semantics and reasoning. SemantGeo provides multiple types of geospatial reasoning for SemantEco modules. The server side implementation uses the Parliament SPARQL Endpoint accessed via a Tomcat servlet. SemantGeo uses the Google Maps API for user-specified polygon construction and JsTree for providing containment and categorical hierarchies for search. SemantGeo uses GeoSPARQL for spatial reasoning alone and in concert with RDFS/OWL reasoning capabilities to determine, e.g., what geofeatures are within, partially overlap with, or within a certain distance from, a given polygon. We also leverage qualitative relationships defined by the Gazetteer ontology that are composites of spatial relationships as well as administrative designations or geophysical phenomena. We provide multiple mechanisms for exploring data, such as polygon (map-based) and named-feature (hierarchy-based) selection, that enable flexible search constraints using boolean combination of selections. JsTree-based hierarchical search facets present named features and include a 'part of' hierarchy (e.g., measurement-site-01, Lake George, Adirondack Region, NY State) and type hierarchies (e.g., nodes in the hierarchy for WaterBody, Park, MeasurementSite), depending on the ';axis of choice' option selected. Using GeoSPARQL and aforementioned ontology, these hierarchies are constrained based on polygon selection, where the corresponding polygons of the contained features are visually rendered to assist exploration. Once measurement sites are plotted based on initial search, subsequent searches using JsTree selections can extend the previous based on nearby waterbodies in some semantic relationship of interest. For example, ';tributary of' captures water bodies that flow into the current one, and extending the original search to include tributaries of the observed water body is useful to environmental scientists for isolating the source of characteristic levels, including pollutants. Ultimately any SemantEco module can leverage SemantGeo's underlying APIs, leveraged in a deployment of SemantEco that combines EPA and USGS water quality data, and one customized for searching data available from the Darrin Freshwater Institute. Future work will address generating RDF geometry data from shape files, aligning RDF data sources to better leverage qualitative and spatial relationships, and validating newly generated RDF data adhering to the GeoSPARQL standard.

On the origins of hierarchy in complex networks

PubMed Central

Corominas-Murtra, Bernat; Goñi, Joaquín; Solé, Ricard V.; Rodríguez-Caso, Carlos

2013-01-01

Hierarchy seems to pervade complexity in both living and artificial systems. Despite its relevance, no general theory that captures all features of hierarchy and its origins has been proposed yet. Here we present a formal approach resulting from the convergence of theoretical morphology and network theory that allows constructing a 3D morphospace of hierarchies and hence comparing the hierarchical organization of ecological, cellular, technological, and social networks. Embedded within large voids in the morphospace of all possible hierarchies, four major groups are identified. Two of them match the expected from random networks with similar connectivity, thus suggesting that nonadaptive factors are at work. Ecological and gene networks define the other two, indicating that their topological order is the result of functional constraints. These results are consistent with an exploration of the morphospace, using in silico evolved networks. PMID:23898177

Orion Passive Thermal Control Overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miller, Stephen W.

2007-01-01

An viewgraph presentation of Orion's passive thermal control system is shown. The topics include: 1) Orion in CxP Hierarchy; 2) General Orion Description/Orientation; 3) Module Descriptions and Images; 4) Orion PTCS Overview; 5) Requirements/Interfaces; 6) Design Reference Missions; 7) Natural Environments; 8) Thermal Models; 9) Challenges/Issues; and 10) Testing

Developmental Transitions as Successive Reorganizations of a Control Hierarchy.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Plooij, Frans X.; And Others

1990-01-01

Describes two studies involving chimpanzee mother-infant pairs in Tanzania between 1980 and 1987 that implemented control theory concepts. The first identified behavioral development in infant chimps; the second observed the growth of independence and parenting patterns. Concludes that the hierarchy of controlled variables develops consecutively…

The Wright stuff: reimagining path analysis reveals novel components of the sex determination hierarchy in Drosophila melanogaster.

PubMed

Fear, Justin M; Arbeitman, Michelle N; Salomon, Matthew P; Dalton, Justin E; Tower, John; Nuzhdin, Sergey V; McIntyre, Lauren M

2015-09-04

The Drosophila sex determination hierarchy is a classic example of a transcriptional regulatory hierarchy, with sex-specific isoforms regulating morphology and behavior. We use a structural equation modeling approach, leveraging natural genetic variation from two studies on Drosophila female head tissues--DSPR collection (596 F1-hybrids from crosses between DSPR sub-populations) and CEGS population (75 F1-hybrids from crosses between DGRP/Winters lines to a reference strain w1118)--to expand understanding of the sex hierarchy gene regulatory network (GRN). This approach is completely generalizable to any natural population, including humans. We expanded the sex hierarchy GRN adding novel links among genes, including a link from fruitless (fru) to Sex-lethal (Sxl) identified in both populations. This link is further supported by the presence of fru binding sites in the Sxl locus. 754 candidate genes were added to the pathway, including the splicing factors male-specific lethal 2 and Rm62 as downstream targets of Sxl which are well-supported links in males. Independent studies of doublesex and transformer mutants support many additions, including evidence for a link between the sex hierarchy and metabolism, via Insulin-like receptor. The genes added in the CEGS population were enriched for genes with sex-biased splicing and components of the spliceosome. A common goal of molecular biologists is to expand understanding about regulatory interactions among genes. Using natural alleles we can not only identify novel relationships, but using supervised approaches can order genes into a regulatory hierarchy. Combining these results with independent large effect mutation studies, allows clear candidates for detailed molecular follow-up to emerge.

Technology Staff-Development and Support Programs: Applying Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bailey, Gerald D.; Pownell, David

1998-01-01

Presents Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs (physiological, safety, belonging, esteem, self-actualization) as a model for developing technology training and support for teachers, identifies basic technology-related needs that must be met before higher levels of technology integration can be achieved, and offers seven implications to help…

Systemic risk and hierarchical transitions of financial networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nobi, Ashadun; Lee, Jae Woo

2017-06-01

In this paper, the change in topological hierarchy, which is measured by the minimum spanning tree constructed from the cross-correlations between the stock indices from the S & P 500 for 1998-2012 in a one year moving time window, was used to analyze a financial crisis. The hierarchy increased in all minor crises in the observation time window except for the sharp crisis of 2007-2008 when the global financial crisis occurred. The sudden increase in hierarchy just before the global financial crisis can be used for the early detection of an upcoming crisis. Clearly, the higher the hierarchy, the higher the threats to financial stability. The scaling relations were developed to observe the changes in hierarchy with the network topology. These scaling relations can also identify and quantify the financial crisis periods, and appear to contain the predictive power of an upcoming crisis.

Systemic risk and hierarchical transitions of financial networks.

PubMed

Nobi, Ashadun; Lee, Jae Woo

2017-06-01

In this paper, the change in topological hierarchy, which is measured by the minimum spanning tree constructed from the cross-correlations between the stock indices from the S & P 500 for 1998-2012 in a one year moving time window, was used to analyze a financial crisis. The hierarchy increased in all minor crises in the observation time window except for the sharp crisis of 2007-2008 when the global financial crisis occurred. The sudden increase in hierarchy just before the global financial crisis can be used for the early detection of an upcoming crisis. Clearly, the higher the hierarchy, the higher the threats to financial stability. The scaling relations were developed to observe the changes in hierarchy with the network topology. These scaling relations can also identify and quantify the financial crisis periods, and appear to contain the predictive power of an upcoming crisis.

Modular transcriptional repertoire and MicroRNA target analyses characterize genomic dysregulation in the thymus of Down syndrome infants

PubMed Central

Moreira-Filho, Carlos Alberto; Bando, Silvia Yumi; Bertonha, Fernanda Bernardi; Silva, Filipi Nascimento; da Fontoura Costa, Luciano; Ferreira, Leandro Rodrigues; Furlanetto, Glaucio; Chacur, Paulo; Zerbini, Maria Claudia Nogueira; Carneiro-Sampaio, Magda

2016-01-01

Trisomy 21-driven transcriptional alterations in human thymus were characterized through gene coexpression network (GCN) and miRNA-target analyses. We used whole thymic tissue - obtained at heart surgery from Down syndrome (DS) and karyotipically normal subjects (CT) - and a network-based approach for GCN analysis that allows the identification of modular transcriptional repertoires (communities) and the interactions between all the system's constituents through community detection. Changes in the degree of connections observed for hierarchically important hubs/genes in CT and DS networks corresponded to community changes. Distinct communities of highly interconnected genes were topologically identified in these networks. The role of miRNAs in modulating the expression of highly connected genes in CT and DS was revealed through miRNA-target analysis. Trisomy 21 gene dysregulation in thymus may be depicted as the breakdown and altered reorganization of transcriptional modules. Leading networks acting in normal or disease states were identified. CT networks would depict the “canonical” way of thymus functioning. Conversely, DS networks represent a “non-canonical” way, i.e., thymic tissue adaptation under trisomy 21 genomic dysregulation. This adaptation is probably driven by epigenetic mechanisms acting at chromatin level and through the miRNA control of transcriptional programs involving the networks' high-hierarchy genes. PMID:26848775

Systems-level chromosomal parameters represent a suprachromosomal basis for the non-random chromosomal arrangement in human interphase nuclei

PubMed Central

Fatakia, Sarosh N.; Mehta, Ishita S.; Rao, Basuthkar J.

2016-01-01

Forty-six chromosome territories (CTs) are positioned uniquely in human interphase nuclei, wherein each of their positions can range from the centre of the nucleus to its periphery. A non-empirical basis for their non-random arrangement remains unreported. Here, we derive a suprachromosomal basis of that overall arrangement (which we refer to as a CT constellation), and report a hierarchical nature of the same. Using matrix algebra, we unify intrinsic chromosomal parameters (e.g., chromosomal length, gene density, the number of genes per chromosome), to derive an extrinsic effective gene density matrix, the hierarchy of which is dominated largely by extrinsic mathematical coupling of HSA19, followed by HSA17 (human chromosome 19 and 17, both preferentially interior CTs) with all CTs. We corroborate predicted constellations and effective gene density hierarchy with published reports from fluorescent in situ hybridization based microscopy and Hi-C techniques, and delineate analogous hierarchy in disparate vertebrates. Our theory accurately predicts CTs localised to the nuclear interior, which interestingly share conserved synteny with HSA19 and/or HSA17. Finally, the effective gene density hierarchy dictates how permutations among CT position represents the plasticity within its constellations, based on which we suggest that a differential mix of coding with noncoding genome modulates the same. PMID:27845379

Stimulus Type, Level of Categorization, and Spatial-Frequencies Utilization: Implications for Perceptual Categorization Hierarchies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harel, Assaf; Bentin, Shlomo

2009-01-01

The type of visual information needed for categorizing faces and nonface objects was investigated by manipulating spatial frequency scales available in the image during a category verification task addressing basic and subordinate levels. Spatial filtering had opposite effects on faces and airplanes that were modulated by categorization level. The…

Optimizing an Immersion ESL Curriculum Using Analytic Hierarchy Process

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tang, Hui-Wen Vivian

2011-01-01

The main purpose of this study is to fill a substantial knowledge gap regarding reaching a uniform group decision in English curriculum design and planning. A comprehensive content-based course criterion model extracted from existing literature and expert opinions was developed. Analytical hierarchy process (AHP) was used to identify the relative…

The Hierarchy of Institutional Values in the Communication Discipline.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Monahan, Jennifer L.; Collins-Jarvis, Lori

1993-01-01

Identifies five overarching values central to disciplinary disputes in communication, and how their relative importance changes depending on prevailing social, economic, and intellectual conditions. Explores discipline-level values in the 1980s, and how value structures are likely to shift in the 1990s. Proposes a value hierarchy for the future.…

Hierarchy as a Theme in the US College, 1880-1920

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ris, Ethan W.

2016-01-01

How did the undergraduate college rapidly position itself as the gateway to middle-class US employment between 1880 and 1920? This article attempts to explain one part of that process. Drawing on Weberian organisational theory, transnational intellectual history and case studies of three institutions, it identifies hierarchy as a defining aspect…

Finding modules and hierarchy in weighted financial network using transfer entropy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yook, Soon-Hyung; Chae, Huiseung; Kim, Jinho; Kim, Yup

2016-04-01

We study the modular structure of financial network based on the transfer entropy (TE). From the comparison with the obtained modular structure using the cross-correlation (CC), we find that TE and CC both provide well organized modular structure and the hierarchical relationship between each industrial group when the time scale of the measurement is less than one month. However, when the time scale of the measurement becomes larger than one month, we find that the modular structure from CC cannot correctly reflect the known industrial classification and their hierarchy. In addition the measured maximum modularity, Qmax, for TE is always larger than that for CC, which indicates that TE is a better weight measure than CC for the system with asymmetric relationship.

Breather-to-soliton transformation rules in the hierarchy of nonlinear Schrödinger equations.

PubMed

Chowdury, Amdad; Krolikowski, Wieslaw

2017-06-01

We study the exact first-order soliton and breather solutions of the integrable nonlinear Schrödinger equations hierarchy up to fifth order. We reveal the underlying physical mechanism which transforms a breather into a soliton. Furthermore, we show how the dynamics of the Akhmediev breathers which exist on a constant background as a result of modulation instability, is connected with solitons on a zero background. We also demonstrate that, while a first-order rogue wave can be directly transformed into a soliton, higher-order rogue wave solutions become rational two-soliton solutions with complex collisional structure on a background. Our results will have practical implications in supercontinuum generation, turbulence, and similar other complex nonlinear scenarios.

CAUSAL INFERENCE WITH A GRAPHICAL HIERARCHY OF INTERVENTIONS

PubMed Central

Shpitser, Ilya; Tchetgen, Eric Tchetgen

2017-01-01

Identifying causal parameters from observational data is fraught with subtleties due to the issues of selection bias and confounding. In addition, more complex questions of interest, such as effects of treatment on the treated and mediated effects may not always be identified even in data where treatment assignment is known and under investigator control, or may be identified under one causal model but not another. Increasingly complex effects of interest, coupled with a diversity of causal models in use resulted in a fragmented view of identification. This fragmentation makes it unnecessarily difficult to determine if a given parameter is identified (and in what model), and what assumptions must hold for this to be the case. This, in turn, complicates the development of estimation theory and sensitivity analysis procedures. In this paper, we give a unifying view of a large class of causal effects of interest, including novel effects not previously considered, in terms of a hierarchy of interventions, and show that identification theory for this large class reduces to an identification theory of random variables under interventions from this hierarchy. Moreover, we show that one type of intervention in the hierarchy is naturally associated with queries identified under the Finest Fully Randomized Causally Interpretable Structure Tree Graph (FFRCISTG) model of Robins (via the extended g-formula), and another is naturally associated with queries identified under the Non-Parametric Structural Equation Model with Independent Errors (NPSEM-IE) of Pearl, via a more general functional we call the edge g-formula. Our results motivate the study of estimation theory for the edge g-formula, since we show it arises both in mediation analysis, and in settings where treatment assignment has unobserved causes, such as models associated with Pearl’s front-door criterion. PMID:28919652

CAUSAL INFERENCE WITH A GRAPHICAL HIERARCHY OF INTERVENTIONS.

PubMed

Shpitser, Ilya; Tchetgen, Eric Tchetgen

2016-12-01

Identifying causal parameters from observational data is fraught with subtleties due to the issues of selection bias and confounding. In addition, more complex questions of interest, such as effects of treatment on the treated and mediated effects may not always be identified even in data where treatment assignment is known and under investigator control, or may be identified under one causal model but not another. Increasingly complex effects of interest, coupled with a diversity of causal models in use resulted in a fragmented view of identification. This fragmentation makes it unnecessarily difficult to determine if a given parameter is identified (and in what model), and what assumptions must hold for this to be the case. This, in turn, complicates the development of estimation theory and sensitivity analysis procedures. In this paper, we give a unifying view of a large class of causal effects of interest, including novel effects not previously considered, in terms of a hierarchy of interventions, and show that identification theory for this large class reduces to an identification theory of random variables under interventions from this hierarchy. Moreover, we show that one type of intervention in the hierarchy is naturally associated with queries identified under the Finest Fully Randomized Causally Interpretable Structure Tree Graph (FFRCISTG) model of Robins (via the extended g-formula), and another is naturally associated with queries identified under the Non-Parametric Structural Equation Model with Independent Errors (NPSEM-IE) of Pearl, via a more general functional we call the edge g-formula. Our results motivate the study of estimation theory for the edge g-formula, since we show it arises both in mediation analysis, and in settings where treatment assignment has unobserved causes, such as models associated with Pearl's front-door criterion.

An Integrated Systems Biology Approach Identifies TRIM25 as a Key Determinant of Breast Cancer Metastasis.

PubMed

Walsh, Logan A; Alvarez, Mariano J; Sabio, Erich Y; Reyngold, Marsha; Makarov, Vladimir; Mukherjee, Suranjit; Lee, Ken-Wing; Desrichard, Alexis; Turcan, Şevin; Dalin, Martin G; Rajasekhar, Vinagolu K; Chen, Shuibing; Vahdat, Linda T; Califano, Andrea; Chan, Timothy A

2017-08-15

At the root of most fatal malignancies are aberrantly activated transcriptional networks that drive metastatic dissemination. Although individual metastasis-associated genes have been described, the complex regulatory networks presiding over the initiation and maintenance of metastatic tumors are still poorly understood. There is untapped value in identifying therapeutic targets that broadly govern coordinated transcriptional modules dictating metastatic progression. Here, we reverse engineered and interrogated a breast cancer-specific transcriptional interaction network (interactome) to define transcriptional control structures causally responsible for regulating genetic programs underlying breast cancer metastasis in individual patients. Our analyses confirmed established pro-metastatic transcription factors, and they uncovered TRIM25 as a key regulator of metastasis-related transcriptional programs. Further, in vivo analyses established TRIM25 as a potent regulator of metastatic disease and poor survival outcome. Our findings suggest that identifying and targeting keystone proteins, like TRIM25, can effectively collapse transcriptional hierarchies necessary for metastasis formation, thus representing an innovative cancer intervention strategy. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Male urine signals social rank in the Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus)

PubMed Central

Barata, Eduardo N; Hubbard, Peter C; Almeida, Olinda G; Miranda, António; Canário, Adelino VM

2007-01-01

Background The urine of freshwater fish species investigated so far acts as a vehicle for reproductive pheromones affecting the behaviour and physiology of the opposite sex. However, the role of urinary pheromones in intra-sexual competition has received less attention. This is particularly relevant in lek-breeding species, such as the Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus), where males establish dominance hierarchies and there is the possibility for chemical communication in the modulation of aggression among males. To investigate whether males use urine during aggressive interactions, we measured urination frequency of dye-injected males during paired interactions between size-matched males. Furthermore, we assessed urinary volume stored in the bladder of males in a stable social hierarchy and the olfactory potency of their urine by recording of the electro-olfactogram. Results Males released urine in pulses of short duration (about one second) and markedly increased urination frequency during aggressive behaviour, but did not release urine whilst submissive. In the stable hierarchy, subordinate males stored less urine than males of higher social rank; the olfactory potency of the urine was positively correlated with the rank of the male donor. Conclusion Dominant males store urine and use it as a vehicle for odorants actively released during aggressive disputes. The olfactory potency of the urine is positively correlated with the social status of the male. We suggest that males actively advertise their dominant status through urinary odorants which may act as a 'dominance' pheromone to modulate aggression in rivals, thereby contributing to social stability within the lek. PMID:18076759

Anger Modulates Influence Hierarchies Within and Between Emotional Reactivity and Regulation Networks

PubMed Central

Jacob, Yael; Gilam, Gadi; Lin, Tamar; Raz, Gal; Hendler, Talma

2018-01-01

Emotion regulation is hypothesized to be mediated by the interactions between emotional reactivity and regulation networks during the dynamic unfolding of the emotional episode. Yet, it remains unclear how to delineate the effective relationships between these networks. In this study, we examined the aforementioned networks’ information flow hierarchy during viewing of an anger provoking movie excerpt. Anger regulation is particularly essential for averting individuals from aggression and violence, thus improving prosocial behavior. Using subjective ratings of anger intensity we differentiated between low and high anger periods of the film. We then applied the Dependency Network Analysis (DEPNA), a newly developed graph theory method to quantify networks’ node importance during the two anger periods. The DEPNA analysis revealed that the impact of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) was higher in the high anger condition, particularly within the regulation network and on the connections between the reactivity and regulation networks. We further showed that higher levels of vmPFC impact on the regulation network were associated with lower subjective anger intensity during the high-anger cinematic period, and lower trait anger levels. Supporting and replicating previous findings, these results emphasize the previously acknowledged central role of vmPFC in modulating negative affect. We further show that the impact of the vmPFC relies on its correlational influence on the connectivity between reactivity and regulation networks. More importantly, the hierarchy network analysis revealed a link between connectivity patterns of the vmPFC and individual differences in anger reactivity and trait, suggesting its potential therapeutic role. PMID:29681803

Prokaryotic regulatory systems biology: Common principles governing the functional architectures of Bacillus subtilis and Escherichia coli unveiled by the natural decomposition approach.

PubMed

Freyre-González, Julio A; Treviño-Quintanilla, Luis G; Valtierra-Gutiérrez, Ilse A; Gutiérrez-Ríos, Rosa María; Alonso-Pavón, José A

2012-10-31

Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis are two of the best-studied prokaryotic model organisms. Previous analyses of their transcriptional regulatory networks have shown that they exhibit high plasticity during evolution and suggested that both converge to scale-free-like structures. Nevertheless, beyond this suggestion, no analyses have been carried out to identify the common systems-level components and principles governing these organisms. Here we show that these two phylogenetically distant organisms follow a set of common novel biologically consistent systems principles revealed by the mathematically and biologically founded natural decomposition approach. The discovered common functional architecture is a diamond-shaped, matryoshka-like, three-layer (coordination, processing, and integration) hierarchy exhibiting feedback, which is shaped by four systems-level components: global transcription factors (global TFs), locally autonomous modules, basal machinery and intermodular genes. The first mathematical criterion to identify global TFs, the κ-value, was reassessed on B. subtilis and confirmed its high predictive power by identifying all the previously reported, plus three potential, master regulators and eight sigma factors. The functionally conserved cores of modules, basal cell machinery, and a set of non-orthologous common physiological global responses were identified via both orthologous genes and non-orthologous conserved functions. This study reveals novel common systems principles maintained between two phylogenetically distant organisms and provides a comparison of their lifestyle adaptations. Our results shed new light on the systems-level principles and the fundamental functions required by bacteria to sustain life. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Keeping Minorities Happy: Hierarchy Maintenance and Whites' Decreased Support for Highly Identified White Politicians.

PubMed

Jun, Sora; Lowery, Brian S; Guillory, Lucia

2017-12-01

We test the hypothesis that, to avoid provoking minorities, Whites will withhold their support for White political candidates who are highly identified with their race. In Study 1, we found that White Republicans were less supportive of White candidates the higher the perceived White identity of the candidate due to beliefs that such candidates would provoke racial minorities. In Study 2, we replicated this effect with a manipulation of candidates' White identity. Study 3 found that Whites reported less support for high-identity candidates when they were led to believe that the hierarchy was unstable rather than stable. Consistent with our hypothesis that those who have the most to lose are most likely to avoid provoking minorities, in Study 4, we found that Whites with high subjective socioeconomic status (SES) varied their support for provocative White candidates as a function of hierarchy stability, whereas those with low subjective SES did not.

3D Printing in Instructional Settings: Identifying a Curricular Hierarchy of Activities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Abbie

2015-01-01

A report of a year-long study in which the author engaged in 3D printing activity in order to determine how to facilitate and support skill building, concept attainment, and increased confidence with its use among teachers. Use of 3D printing tools and their applications in instructional settings are discussed. A hierarchy of 3D printing…

Color-Function Categories that Prime Infants to Use Color Information in an Object Individuation Task

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilcox, Teresa; Woods, Rebecca; Chapa, Catherine

2008-01-01

There is evidence for developmental hierarchies in the type of information to which infants attend when reasoning about objects. Investigators have questioned the origin of these hierarchies and how infants come to identify new sources of information when reasoning about objects. The goal of the present experiments was to shed light on this debate…

Constituents and functional implications of the rat default mode network.

PubMed

Hsu, Li-Ming; Liang, Xia; Gu, Hong; Brynildsen, Julia K; Stark, Jennifer A; Ash, Jessica A; Lin, Ching-Po; Lu, Hanbing; Rapp, Peter R; Stein, Elliot A; Yang, Yihong

2016-08-02

The default mode network (DMN) has been suggested to support a variety of self-referential functions in humans and has been fractionated into subsystems based on distinct responses to cognitive tasks and functional connectivity architecture. Such subsystems are thought to reflect functional hierarchy and segregation within the network. Because preclinical models can inform translational studies of neuropsychiatric disorders, partitioning of the DMN in nonhuman species, which has previously not been reported, may inform both physiology and pathophysiology of the human DMN. In this study, we sought to identify constituents of the rat DMN using resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) and diffusion tensor imaging. After identifying DMN using a group-level independent-component analysis on the rs-fMRI data, modularity analyses fractionated the DMN into an anterior and a posterior subsystem, which were further segregated into five modules. Diffusion tensor imaging tractography demonstrates a close relationship between fiber density and the functional connectivity between DMN regions, and provides anatomical evidence to support the detected DMN subsystems. Finally, distinct modulation was seen within and between these DMN subcomponents using a neurocognitive aging model. Taken together, these results suggest that, like the human DMN, the rat DMN can be partitioned into several subcomponents that may support distinct functions. These data encourage further investigation into the neurobiological mechanisms of DMN processing in preclinical models of both normal and disease states.

Application of the industrial hygiene hierarchy of controls to prioritize and promote safer methods of pest control: a case study.

PubMed

Weinberg, Justine Lew; Bunin, Lisa J; Das, Rupali

2009-01-01

In 2005, the California Department of Public Health, Occupational Health Branch (OHB) investigated an incident of pesticide exposure and identified 27 vineyard workers who became ill due to drift of cyfluthrin, a pesticide being applied to a neighboring orange field to control katydids. Another pest, citrus thrips, was also present in the field. We investigated safer alternatives for katydid and thrips control to prevent illness due to pesticide exposure and used the industrial hygiene hierarchy of controls to prioritize the control methods. OHB evaluated factors that contributed to pesticide exposure and identified safer alternatives by conducting literature reviews on katydid and thrips control, drift prevention technology, and other relevant topics, and by interviewing integrated pest management advisors, conventional and organic growers, equipment manufacturers, county agricultural commissioners, pest control advisors, regulatory agencies, and others. We prioritized methods using the industrial hygiene hierarchy of controls. We identified safer pest control practices that incorporated hazard elimination, chemical substitution, engineering controls, and administrative controls, including employer policies and government regulations.

Selecting Health Care Improvement Projects: A Methodology Integrating Cause-and-Effect Diagram and Analytical Hierarchy Process.

PubMed

Testik, Özlem Müge; Shaygan, Amir; Dasdemir, Erdi; Soydan, Guray

It is often vital to identify, prioritize, and select quality improvement projects in a hospital. Yet, a methodology, which utilizes experts' opinions with different points of view, is needed for better decision making. The proposed methodology utilizes the cause-and-effect diagram to identify improvement projects and construct a project hierarchy for a problem. The right improvement projects are then prioritized and selected using a weighting scheme of analytical hierarchy process by aggregating experts' opinions. An approach for collecting data from experts and a graphical display for summarizing the obtained information are also provided. The methodology is implemented for improving a hospital appointment system. The top-ranked 2 major project categories for improvements were identified to be system- and accessibility-related causes (45%) and capacity-related causes (28%), respectively. For each of the major project category, subprojects were then ranked for selecting the improvement needs. The methodology is useful in cases where an aggregate decision based on experts' opinions is expected. Some suggestions for practical implementations are provided.

Large constraint length high speed viterbi decoder based on a modular hierarchial decomposition of the deBruijn graph

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Collins, Oliver (Inventor); Dolinar, Jr., Samuel J. (Inventor); Hus, In-Shek (Inventor); Bozzola, Fabrizio P. (Inventor); Olson, Erlend M. (Inventor); Statman, Joseph I. (Inventor); Zimmerman, George A. (Inventor)

1991-01-01

A method of formulating and packaging decision-making elements into a long constraint length Viterbi decoder which involves formulating the decision-making processors as individual Viterbi butterfly processors that are interconnected in a deBruijn graph configuration. A fully distributed architecture, which achieves high decoding speeds, is made feasible by novel wiring and partitioning of the state diagram. This partitioning defines universal modules, which can be used to build any size decoder, such that a large number of wires is contained inside each module, and a small number of wires is needed to connect modules. The total system is modular and hierarchical, and it implements a large proportion of the required wiring internally within modules and may include some external wiring to fully complete the deBruijn graph. pg,14.

Design of a 0.13-μm CMOS cascade expandable ΣΔ modulator for multi-standard RF telecom systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morgado, Alonso; del Río, Rocío; de la Rosa, José M.

2007-05-01

This paper reports a 130-nm CMOS programmable cascade ΣΔ modulator for multi-standard wireless terminals, capable of operating on three standards: GSM, Bluetooth and UMTS. The modulator is reconfigured at both architecture- and circuit- level in order to adapt its performance to the different standards specifications with optimized power consumption. The design of the building blocks is based upon a top-down CAD methodology that combines simulation and statistical optimization at different levels of the system hierarchy. Transistor-level simulations show correct operation for all standards, featuring 13-bit, 11.3-bit and 9-bit effective resolution within 200-kHz, 1-MHz and 4-MHz bandwidth, respectively.

TinkerCell: modular CAD tool for synthetic biology.

PubMed

Chandran, Deepak; Bergmann, Frank T; Sauro, Herbert M

2009-10-29

Synthetic biology brings together concepts and techniques from engineering and biology. In this field, computer-aided design (CAD) is necessary in order to bridge the gap between computational modeling and biological data. Using a CAD application, it would be possible to construct models using available biological "parts" and directly generate the DNA sequence that represents the model, thus increasing the efficiency of design and construction of synthetic networks. An application named TinkerCell has been developed in order to serve as a CAD tool for synthetic biology. TinkerCell is a visual modeling tool that supports a hierarchy of biological parts. Each part in this hierarchy consists of a set of attributes that define the part, such as sequence or rate constants. Models that are constructed using these parts can be analyzed using various third-party C and Python programs that are hosted by TinkerCell via an extensive C and Python application programming interface (API). TinkerCell supports the notion of a module, which are networks with interfaces. Such modules can be connected to each other, forming larger modular networks. TinkerCell is a free and open-source project under the Berkeley Software Distribution license. Downloads, documentation, and tutorials are available at http://www.tinkercell.com. An ideal CAD application for engineering biological systems would provide features such as: building and simulating networks, analyzing robustness of networks, and searching databases for components that meet the design criteria. At the current state of synthetic biology, there are no established methods for measuring robustness or identifying components that fit a design. The same is true for databases of biological parts. TinkerCell's flexible modeling framework allows it to cope with changes in the field. Such changes may involve the way parts are characterized or the way synthetic networks are modeled and analyzed computationally. TinkerCell can readily accept third-party algorithms, allowing it to serve as a platform for testing different methods relevant to synthetic biology.

TinkerCell: modular CAD tool for synthetic biology

PubMed Central

Chandran, Deepak; Bergmann, Frank T; Sauro, Herbert M

2009-01-01

Background Synthetic biology brings together concepts and techniques from engineering and biology. In this field, computer-aided design (CAD) is necessary in order to bridge the gap between computational modeling and biological data. Using a CAD application, it would be possible to construct models using available biological "parts" and directly generate the DNA sequence that represents the model, thus increasing the efficiency of design and construction of synthetic networks. Results An application named TinkerCell has been developed in order to serve as a CAD tool for synthetic biology. TinkerCell is a visual modeling tool that supports a hierarchy of biological parts. Each part in this hierarchy consists of a set of attributes that define the part, such as sequence or rate constants. Models that are constructed using these parts can be analyzed using various third-party C and Python programs that are hosted by TinkerCell via an extensive C and Python application programming interface (API). TinkerCell supports the notion of a module, which are networks with interfaces. Such modules can be connected to each other, forming larger modular networks. TinkerCell is a free and open-source project under the Berkeley Software Distribution license. Downloads, documentation, and tutorials are available at . Conclusion An ideal CAD application for engineering biological systems would provide features such as: building and simulating networks, analyzing robustness of networks, and searching databases for components that meet the design criteria. At the current state of synthetic biology, there are no established methods for measuring robustness or identifying components that fit a design. The same is true for databases of biological parts. TinkerCell's flexible modeling framework allows it to cope with changes in the field. Such changes may involve the way parts are characterized or the way synthetic networks are modeled and analyzed computationally. TinkerCell can readily accept third-party algorithms, allowing it to serve as a platform for testing different methods relevant to synthetic biology. PMID:19874625

Goal-directed control with cortical units that are gated by both top-down feedback and oscillatory coherence.

PubMed

Kerr, Robert R; Grayden, David B; Thomas, Doreen A; Gilson, Matthieu; Burkitt, Anthony N

2014-01-01

The brain is able to flexibly select behaviors that adapt to both its environment and its present goals. This cognitive control is understood to occur within the hierarchy of the cortex and relies strongly on the prefrontal and premotor cortices, which sit at the top of this hierarchy. Pyramidal neurons, the principal neurons in the cortex, have been observed to exhibit much stronger responses when they receive inputs at their soma/basal dendrites that are coincident with inputs at their apical dendrites. This corresponds to inputs from both lower-order regions (feedforward) and higher-order regions (feedback), respectively. In addition to this, coherence between oscillations, such as gamma oscillations, in different neuronal groups has been proposed to modulate and route communication in the brain. In this paper, we develop a simple, but novel, neural mass model in which cortical units (or ensembles) exhibit gamma oscillations when they receive coherent oscillatory inputs from both feedforward and feedback connections. By forming these units into circuits that can perform logic operations, we identify the different ways in which operations can be initiated and manipulated by top-down feedback. We demonstrate that more sophisticated and flexible top-down control is possible when the gain of units is modulated by not only top-down feedback but by coherence between the activities of the oscillating units. With these types of units, it is possible to not only add units to, or remove units from, a higher-level unit's logic operation using top-down feedback, but also to modify the type of role that a unit plays in the operation. Finally, we explore how different network properties affect top-down control and processing in large networks. Based on this, we make predictions about the likely connectivities between certain brain regions that have been experimentally observed to be involved in goal-directed behavior and top-down attention.

Goal-directed control with cortical units that are gated by both top-down feedback and oscillatory coherence

PubMed Central

Kerr, Robert R.; Grayden, David B.; Thomas, Doreen A.; Gilson, Matthieu; Burkitt, Anthony N.

2014-01-01

The brain is able to flexibly select behaviors that adapt to both its environment and its present goals. This cognitive control is understood to occur within the hierarchy of the cortex and relies strongly on the prefrontal and premotor cortices, which sit at the top of this hierarchy. Pyramidal neurons, the principal neurons in the cortex, have been observed to exhibit much stronger responses when they receive inputs at their soma/basal dendrites that are coincident with inputs at their apical dendrites. This corresponds to inputs from both lower-order regions (feedforward) and higher-order regions (feedback), respectively. In addition to this, coherence between oscillations, such as gamma oscillations, in different neuronal groups has been proposed to modulate and route communication in the brain. In this paper, we develop a simple, but novel, neural mass model in which cortical units (or ensembles) exhibit gamma oscillations when they receive coherent oscillatory inputs from both feedforward and feedback connections. By forming these units into circuits that can perform logic operations, we identify the different ways in which operations can be initiated and manipulated by top-down feedback. We demonstrate that more sophisticated and flexible top-down control is possible when the gain of units is modulated by not only top-down feedback but by coherence between the activities of the oscillating units. With these types of units, it is possible to not only add units to, or remove units from, a higher-level unit's logic operation using top-down feedback, but also to modify the type of role that a unit plays in the operation. Finally, we explore how different network properties affect top-down control and processing in large networks. Based on this, we make predictions about the likely connectivities between certain brain regions that have been experimentally observed to be involved in goal-directed behavior and top-down attention. PMID:25152715

Developing a hierarchy of needs for Type 1 diabetes.

PubMed

Beran, D

2014-01-01

The aim of this study was to use the concept of Maslow's hierarchy of needs and apply this to Type 1 diabetes. Qualitative methods were employed using semi-structured interviews with 101 people from 13 countries. Grounded theory was used for data collection and analysis, with thematic analysis employed to identify the interviewees' needs. Sixteen needs were identified and links between these were mapped. Aligning these with Maslow's hierarchy allowed for a hierarchy to be developed for Type 1 diabetes with 'Policies', 'Organization of health system', 'Insulin', 'Delivery of insulin', 'Control', 'Healthcare workers' and 'Information and education' at the base, as they were needed for survival. Next came 'Community, family and peers' and changing roles for 'Healthcare workers' in their approach to care and delivering 'Information and education'. This enabled people to learn how to use 'Insulin', 'Delivery of insulin' and 'Control' flexibly. People's 'Experience' and 'Personality' then helped them 'Adapt' and 'Be open' about their diabetes, allowing for 'Acceptance' and viewing 'Diabetes as something positive'. Despite limitations, this work highlights that some needs are required for survival and others for well-being. Some are tangible as they can be directly provided, whereas others are intangible and cannot be provided directly by the health system. These results might be used for policy and practice in identifying needs that are met within a health system or what needs are lacking for the individual to then implement targeted interventions. © 2013 The Author. Diabetic Medicine © 2013 Diabetes UK.

The attracting power of the gaze of politicians is modulated by the personality and ideological attitude of their voters: a functional magnetic resonance imaging study.

PubMed

Cazzato, Valentina; Liuzza, Marco Tullio; Caprara, Gian Vittorio; Macaluso, Emiliano; Aglioti, Salvatore Maria

2015-10-01

Observing someone rapidly moving their eyes induces reflexive shifts of overt and covert attention in the onlooker. Previous studies have shown that this process can be modulated by the onlooker's personality, as well as by the social features of the person depicted in the cued face. Here, we investigated whether an individual's preference for social dominance orientation, in-group perceived similarity (PS), and political affiliation of the cued-face modulated neural activity within specific nodes of the social attention network. During functional magnetic resonance imaging, participants were requested to perform a gaze-following task to investigate whether the directional gaze of various Italian political personages might influence the oculomotor behaviour of in-group or out-group voters. After scanning, we acquired measures of PS in personality traits with each political personage and preference for social dominance orientation. Behavioural data showed that higher gaze interference for in-group than out-group political personages was predicted by a higher preference for social hierarchy. Higher blood oxygenation level-dependent activity in incongruent vs. congruent conditions was found in areas associated with orienting to socially salient events and monitoring response conflict, namely the left frontal eye field, right supramarginal gyrus, mid-cingulate cortex and left anterior insula. Interestingly, higher ratings of PS with the in-group and less preference for social hierarchy predicted increased activity in the left frontal eye field during distracting gaze movements of in-group as compared with out-group political personages. Our results suggest that neural activity in the social orienting circuit is modulated by higher-order social dimensions, such as in-group PS and individual differences in ideological attitudes. © 2015 Federation of European Neuroscience Societies and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Personality correlates (BAS-BIS), self-perception of social ranking, and cortical (alpha frequency band) modulation in peer-group comparison.

PubMed

Balconi, Michela; Pagani, Silvia

2014-06-22

The perception and interpretation of social hierarchies are a key part of our social life. In the present research we considered the activation of cortical areas, mainly the prefrontal cortex, related to social ranking perception in conjunction with some personality components (BAS - Behavioral Activation System - and BIS - Behavioral Inhibition System). In two experiments we manipulated the perceived superior/inferior status during a competitive cognitive task. Indeed, we created an explicit and strongly reinforced social hierarchy based on incidental rating in an attentional task. Specifically, a peer group comparison was undertaken and improved (Experiment 1) or decreased (Experiment 2) performance was artificially manipulated by the experimenter. For each experiment two groups were compared, based on a BAS and BIS dichotomy. Alpha band modulation in prefrontal cortex, behavioral measures (performance: error rate, ER; response times, RTs), and self-perceived ranking were considered. Repeated measures ANOVAs and regression analyses showed in Experiment 1 a significant improved cognitive performance (decreased ER and RTs) and higher self-perceived ranking in high-BAS participants. Moreover, their prefrontal activity was increased within the left side (alpha band decreasing). Conversely, in Experiment 2 a significant decreased cognitive performance (increased ER and RTs) and lower self-perceived ranking was observed in higher-BIS participants. Their prefrontal right activity was increased in comparison with higher BAS. The regression analyses confirmed the significant predictive role of alpha band modulation with respect of subjects' performance and self-perception of social ranking, differently for BAS/BIS components. The present results suggest that social status perception is directly modulated by cortical activity and personality correlates. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A Bayesian Sampler for Optimization of Protein Domain Hierarchies

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Abstract The process of identifying and modeling functionally divergent subgroups for a specific protein domain class and arranging these subgroups hierarchically has, thus far, largely been done via manual curation. How to accomplish this automatically and optimally is an unsolved statistical and algorithmic problem that is addressed here via Markov chain Monte Carlo sampling. Taking as input a (typically very large) multiple-sequence alignment, the sampler creates and optimizes a hierarchy by adding and deleting leaf nodes, by moving nodes and subtrees up and down the hierarchy, by inserting or deleting internal nodes, and by redefining the sequences and conserved patterns associated with each node. All such operations are based on a probability distribution that models the conserved and divergent patterns defining each subgroup. When we view these patterns as sequence determinants of protein function, each node or subtree in such a hierarchy corresponds to a subgroup of sequences with similar biological properties. The sampler can be applied either de novo or to an existing hierarchy. When applied to 60 protein domains from multiple starting points in this way, it converged on similar solutions with nearly identical log-likelihood ratio scores, suggesting that it typically finds the optimal peak in the posterior probability distribution. Similarities and differences between independently generated, nearly optimal hierarchies for a given domain help distinguish robust from statistically uncertain features. Thus, a future application of the sampler is to provide confidence measures for various features of a domain hierarchy. PMID:24494927

Hierarchy in the eye of the beholder: (Anti-)egalitarianism shapes perceived levels of social inequality.

PubMed

Kteily, Nour S; Sheehy-Skeffington, Jennifer; Ho, Arnold K

2017-01-01

Debate surrounding the issue of inequality and hierarchy between social groups has become increasingly prominent in recent years. At the same time, individuals disagree about the extent to which inequality between advantaged and disadvantaged groups exists. Whereas prior work has examined the ways in which individuals legitimize (or delegitimize) inequality as a function of their motivations, we consider whether individuals' orientation toward group-based hierarchy motivates the extent to which they perceive inequality between social groups in the first place. Across 8 studies in both real-world (race, gender, and class) and artificial contexts, and involving members of both advantaged and disadvantaged groups, we show that the more individuals endorse hierarchy between groups, the less they perceive inequality between groups at the top and groups at the bottom. Perceiving less inequality is associated with rejecting egalitarian social policies aimed at reducing it. We show that these differences in hierarchy perception as a function of individuals' motivational orientation hold even when inequality is depicted abstractly using images, and even when individuals are financially incentivized to accurately report their true perceptions. Using a novel methodology to assess accurate memory of hierarchy, we find that differences may be driven by both antiegalitarians underestimating inequality, and egalitarians overestimating it. In sum, our results identify a novel perceptual bias rooted in individuals' chronic motivations toward hierarchy-maintenance, with the potential to influence their policy attitudes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Robust Sensitivity Analysis for Multi-Attribute Deterministic Hierarchical Value Models

DTIC Science & Technology

2002-03-01

such as weighted sum method, weighted 5 product method, and the Analytic Hierarchy Process ( AHP ). This research focuses on only weighted sum...different groups. They can be termed as deterministic, stochastic, or fuzzy multi-objective decision methods if they are classified according to the...weighted product model (WPM), and analytic hierarchy process ( AHP ). His method attempts to identify the most important criteria weight and the most

Managing a Solar Sensor Array Project: Analyzing Insolation & Motivation

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-01-01

good, for ourselves and our society. Abraham Maslow (1943) established a prominent theory of motivation with his needs hierarchy. According to...approach combines Maslow ?s needs hierarchy with prosocial behavior theory to encourage team members to motivate themselves and build self-confidence. The...affiliation, and recognition identified by Maslow . There is much satisfaction to be found in serving others and in creating a greater good. When workers are

Newly qualified doctors' perceptions of informal learning from nurses: implications for interprofessional education and practice.

PubMed

Burford, Bryan; Morrow, Gill; Morrison, Jill; Baldauf, Beate; Spencer, John; Johnson, Neil; Rothwell, Charlotte; Peile, Ed; Davies, Carol; Allen, Maggie; Illing, Jan

2013-09-01

Newly qualified doctors spend much of their time with nurses, but little research has considered informal learning during that formative contact. This article reports findings from a multiple case study that explored what newly qualified doctors felt they learned from nurses in the workplace. Analysis of interviews conducted with UK doctors in their first year of practice identified four overarching themes: attitudes towards working with nurses, learning about roles, professional hierarchies and learning skills. Informal learning was found to contribute to the newly qualified doctors' knowledge of their own and others' roles. A dynamic hierarchy was identified: one in which a "pragmatic hierarchy" recognising nurses' expertise was superseded by a "normative structural hierarchy" that reinforced the notion of medical dominance. Alongside the implicit learning of roles, nurses contributed to the explicit learning of skills and captured doctors' errors, with implications for patient safety. The findings are discussed in relation to professional socialisation. Issues of power between the professions are also considered. It is concluded that increasing both medical and nursing professions' awareness of informal workplace learning may improve the efficiency of education in restricted working hours. A culture in which informal learning is embedded may also have benefits for patient safety.

Effects of Radiation on Proteasome Function in Prostate Cancer Cells

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-02-01

California Breast Cancer Research Program Innovative Development and Exploratory Award (IDEA) Competitive Renewal Modulation of...Weissman IL. Establishment of a normal hemato- poietic and leukemia stem cell hierarchy. Cold Spring Harb Symp Quant Biol 2008;73:439–449. 9 Trott KR...existence of CSCs in solid cancer has been advocated by radiobiologists for decades [Withers et al., 1988; Trott , 1994]. However, until recently this

Cyclotomic Gaudin Models: Construction and Bethe Ansatz

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vicedo, Benoît; Young, Charles

2016-05-01

To any finite-dimensional simple Lie algebra g and automorphism {σ: gto g we associate a cyclotomic Gaudin algebra. This is a large commutative subalgebra of {U(g)^{⊗ N}} generated by a hierarchy of cyclotomic Gaudin Hamiltonians. It reduces to the Gaudin algebra in the special case {σ =id}. We go on to construct joint eigenvectors and their eigenvalues for this hierarchy of cyclotomic Gaudin Hamiltonians, in the case of a spin chain consisting of a tensor product of Verma modules. To do so we generalize an approach to the Bethe ansatz due to Feigin, Frenkel and Reshetikhin involving vertex algebras and the Wakimoto construction. As part of this construction, we make use of a theorem concerning cyclotomic coinvariants, which we prove in a companion paper. As a byproduct, we obtain a cyclotomic generalization of the Schechtman-Varchenko formula for the weight function.

Gene selection for the reconstruction of stem cell differentiation trees: a linear programming approach.

PubMed

Ghadie, Mohamed A; Japkowicz, Nathalie; Perkins, Theodore J

2015-08-15

Stem cell differentiation is largely guided by master transcriptional regulators, but it also depends on the expression of other types of genes, such as cell cycle genes, signaling genes, metabolic genes, trafficking genes, etc. Traditional approaches to understanding gene expression patterns across multiple conditions, such as principal components analysis or K-means clustering, can group cell types based on gene expression, but they do so without knowledge of the differentiation hierarchy. Hierarchical clustering can organize cell types into a tree, but in general this tree is different from the differentiation hierarchy itself. Given the differentiation hierarchy and gene expression data at each node, we construct a weighted Euclidean distance metric such that the minimum spanning tree with respect to that metric is precisely the given differentiation hierarchy. We provide a set of linear constraints that are provably sufficient for the desired construction and a linear programming approach to identify sparse sets of weights, effectively identifying genes that are most relevant for discriminating different parts of the tree. We apply our method to microarray gene expression data describing 38 cell types in the hematopoiesis hierarchy, constructing a weighted Euclidean metric that uses just 175 genes. However, we find that there are many alternative sets of weights that satisfy the linear constraints. Thus, in the style of random-forest training, we also construct metrics based on random subsets of the genes and compare them to the metric of 175 genes. We then report on the selected genes and their biological functions. Our approach offers a new way to identify genes that may have important roles in stem cell differentiation. tperkins@ohri.ca Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

SRC-2 orchestrates polygenic inputs for fine-tuning glucose homeostasis

PubMed Central

Fleet, Tiffany; Zhang, Bin; Lin, Fumin; Zhu, Bokai; Dasgupta, Subhamoy; Stashi, Erin; Tackett, Bryan; Thevananther, Sundararajah; Rajapakshe, Kimal I.; Gonzales, Naomi; Dean, Adam; Mao, Jianqiang; Timchenko, Nikolai; Malovannaya, Anna; Qin, Jun; Coarfa, Cristian; DeMayo, Francesco; Dacso, Clifford C.; Foulds, Charles E.; O’Malley, Bert W.; York, Brian

2015-01-01

Despite extensive efforts to understand the monogenic contributions to perturbed glucose homeostasis, the complexity of genetic events that fractionally contribute to the spectrum of this pathology remain poorly understood. Proper maintenance of glucose homeostasis is the central feature of a constellation of comorbidities that define the metabolic syndrome. The ability of the liver to balance carbohydrate uptake and release during the feeding-to-fasting transition is essential to the regulation of peripheral glucose availability. The liver coordinates the expression of gene programs that control glucose absorption, storage, and secretion. Herein, we demonstrate that Steroid Receptor Coactivator 2 (SRC-2) orchestrates a hierarchy of nutritionally responsive transcriptional complexes to precisely modulate plasma glucose availability. Using DNA pull-down technology coupled with mass spectrometry, we have identified SRC-2 as an indispensable integrator of transcriptional complexes that control the rate-limiting steps of hepatic glucose release and accretion. Collectively, these findings position SRC-2 as a major regulator of polygenic inputs to metabolic gene regulation and perhaps identify a previously unappreciated model that helps to explain the clinical spectrum of glucose dysregulation. PMID:26487680

MKS5 and CEP290 Dependent Assembly Pathway of the Ciliary Transition Zone

PubMed Central

Li, Chunmei; Kennedy, Julie; Garcia-Gonzalo, Francesc R.; Romani, Marta; De Mori, Roberta; Bruel, Ange-Line; Gaillard, Dominique; Doray, Bérénice; Lopez, Estelle; Rivière, Jean-Baptiste; Faivre, Laurence; Thauvin-Robinet, Christel; Reiter, Jeremy F.; Blacque, Oliver E.; Valente, Enza Maria; Leroux, Michel R.

2016-01-01

Cilia have a unique diffusion barrier (“gate”) within their proximal region, termed transition zone (TZ), that compartmentalises signalling proteins within the organelle. The TZ is known to harbour two functional modules/complexes (Meckel syndrome [MKS] and Nephronophthisis [NPHP]) defined by genetic interaction, interdependent protein localisation (hierarchy), and proteomic studies. However, the composition and molecular organisation of these modules and their links to human ciliary disease are not completely understood. Here, we reveal Caenorhabditis elegans CEP-290 (mammalian Cep290/Mks4/Nphp6 orthologue) as a central assembly factor that is specific for established MKS module components and depends on the coiled coil region of MKS-5 (Rpgrip1L/Rpgrip1) for TZ localisation. Consistent with a critical role in ciliary gate function, CEP-290 prevents inappropriate entry of membrane-associated proteins into cilia and keeps ARL-13 (Arl13b) from leaking out of cilia via the TZ. We identify a novel MKS module component, TMEM-218 (Tmem218), that requires CEP-290 and other MKS module components for TZ localisation and functions together with the NPHP module to facilitate ciliogenesis. We show that TZ localisation of TMEM-138 (Tmem138) and CDKL-1 (Cdkl1/Cdkl2/Cdkl3/Cdlk4 related), not previously linked to a specific TZ module, similarly depends on CEP-290; surprisingly, neither TMEM-138 or CDKL-1 exhibit interdependent localisation or genetic interactions with core MKS or NPHP module components, suggesting they are part of a distinct, CEP-290-associated module. Lastly, we show that families presenting with Oral-Facial-Digital syndrome type 6 (OFD6) have likely pathogenic mutations in CEP-290-dependent TZ proteins, namely Tmem17, Tmem138, and Tmem231. Notably, patient fibroblasts harbouring mutated Tmem17, a protein not yet ciliopathy-associated, display ciliogenesis defects. Together, our findings expand the repertoire of MKS module-associated proteins—including the previously uncharacterised mammalian Tmem80—and suggest an MKS-5 and CEP-290-dependent assembly pathway for building a functional TZ. PMID:26982032

Properties of Artifact Representations for Evolutionary Design

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hornby, Gregory S.

2004-01-01

To achieve evolutionary design systems that scale to the levels achieved by man-made artifacts we can look to their characteristics of modularity, hierarchy and regularity to guide us. For this we focus on design representations, since they strongly determine the ability of evolutionary design systems to evolve artifacts with these characteristics. We identify three properties of design representations - combination, control-flow and abstraction - and discuss how they relate to hierarchy, modularity and regularity.

Strong Bayesian evidence for the normal neutrino hierarchy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simpson, Fergus; Jimenez, Raul; Pena-Garay, Carlos; Verde, Licia

2017-06-01

The configuration of the three neutrino masses can take two forms, known as the normal and inverted hierarchies. We compute the Bayesian evidence associated with these two hierarchies. Previous studies found a mild preference for the normal hierarchy, and this was driven by the asymmetric manner in which cosmological data has confined the available parameter space. Here we identify the presence of a second asymmetry, which is imposed by data from neutrino oscillations. By combining constraints on the squared-mass splittings [1] with the limit on the sum of neutrino masses of Σmν < 0.13 eV [2], and using a minimally informative prior on the masses, we infer odds of 42:1 in favour of the normal hierarchy, which is classified as "strong" in the Jeffreys' scale. We explore how these odds may evolve in light of higher precision cosmological data, and discuss the implications of this finding with regards to the nature of neutrinos. Finally the individual masses are inferred to be m1=3.80+26.2-3.73meV; m2=8.8+18-1.2meV; m3=50.4+5.8-1.2meV (95% credible intervals).

The Updated Multiple Star Catalog

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tokovinin, Andrei

2018-03-01

The catalog of hierarchical stellar systems with three or more components is an update of the original 1997 version. For 2000 hierarchies, the new Multiple Star Catalog (MSC) provides distances, component masses and periods, and supplementary information (astrometry, photometry, identifiers, orbits, notes). The MSC content and format are explained, and its incompleteness and strong observational selection are stressed. Nevertheless, the MSC can be used for statistical studies and is a valuable source for planning observations of multiple stars. Rare classes of stellar hierarchies found in the MSC (with six or seven components, extremely eccentric orbits, planar and possibly resonant orbits, hosting planets) are briefly presented. High-order hierarchies have smaller velocity dispersion compared to triples and are often associated with moving groups. The paper concludes with an analysis of the ratio of periods and separations between inner and outer subsystems. In wide hierarchies, the ratio of semimajor axes, estimated statistically, is distributed between 3 and 300, with no evidence of dynamically unstable systems.

Do Convolutional Neural Networks Learn Class Hierarchy?

PubMed

Bilal, Alsallakh; Jourabloo, Amin; Ye, Mao; Liu, Xiaoming; Ren, Liu

2018-01-01

Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) currently achieve state-of-the-art accuracy in image classification. With a growing number of classes, the accuracy usually drops as the possibilities of confusion increase. Interestingly, the class confusion patterns follow a hierarchical structure over the classes. We present visual-analytics methods to reveal and analyze this hierarchy of similar classes in relation with CNN-internal data. We found that this hierarchy not only dictates the confusion patterns between the classes, it furthermore dictates the learning behavior of CNNs. In particular, the early layers in these networks develop feature detectors that can separate high-level groups of classes quite well, even after a few training epochs. In contrast, the latter layers require substantially more epochs to develop specialized feature detectors that can separate individual classes. We demonstrate how these insights are key to significant improvement in accuracy by designing hierarchy-aware CNNs that accelerate model convergence and alleviate overfitting. We further demonstrate how our methods help in identifying various quality issues in the training data.

Top-down preparation modulates visual categorization but not subjective awareness of objects presented in natural backgrounds.

PubMed

Koivisto, Mika; Kahila, Ella

2017-04-01

Top-down processes are widely assumed to be essential in visual awareness, subjective experience of seeing. However, previous studies have not tried to separate directly the roles of different types of top-down influences in visual awareness. We studied the effects of top-down preparation and object substitution masking (OSM) on visual awareness during categorization of objects presented in natural scene backgrounds. The results showed that preparation facilitated categorization but did not influence visual awareness. OSM reduced visual awareness and impaired categorization. The dissociations between the effects of preparation and OSM on visual awareness and on categorization imply that they influence at different stages of cognitive processing. We propose that preparation influences at the top of the visual hierarchy, whereas OSM interferes with processes occurring at lower levels of the hierarchy. These lower level processes play an essential role in visual awareness. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Integration of Information and Communications Technology in Full Spectrum Operations: A Case Study of CJTF-101 in Afghanistan

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-06-11

Albert Maslow , “Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs .” Maslow describes basic needs as “physiological, safety, love, esteem, and self-actualization” and...Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Essential Service (Consolidated) DoD Definitions DoS Definitions Dept. of Army Definitions Physiological...the physiological and safety needs identified by Maslow . However, it 52 is also evident there are several services that do not directly correlate

Nonparametric Bayesian inference of the microcanonical stochastic block model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peixoto, Tiago P.

2017-01-01

A principled approach to characterize the hidden modular structure of networks is to formulate generative models and then infer their parameters from data. When the desired structure is composed of modules or "communities," a suitable choice for this task is the stochastic block model (SBM), where nodes are divided into groups, and the placement of edges is conditioned on the group memberships. Here, we present a nonparametric Bayesian method to infer the modular structure of empirical networks, including the number of modules and their hierarchical organization. We focus on a microcanonical variant of the SBM, where the structure is imposed via hard constraints, i.e., the generated networks are not allowed to violate the patterns imposed by the model. We show how this simple model variation allows simultaneously for two important improvements over more traditional inference approaches: (1) deeper Bayesian hierarchies, with noninformative priors replaced by sequences of priors and hyperpriors, which not only remove limitations that seriously degrade the inference on large networks but also reveal structures at multiple scales; (2) a very efficient inference algorithm that scales well not only for networks with a large number of nodes and edges but also with an unlimited number of modules. We show also how this approach can be used to sample modular hierarchies from the posterior distribution, as well as to perform model selection. We discuss and analyze the differences between sampling from the posterior and simply finding the single parameter estimate that maximizes it. Furthermore, we expose a direct equivalence between our microcanonical approach and alternative derivations based on the canonical SBM.

Using analytic hierarchy process to identify the nurses with high stress-coping capability: model and application.

PubMed

F C Pan, Frank

2014-03-01

Nurses have long been relied as the major labor force in hospitals. Featured with complicated and highly labor-intensive job requirement, multiple pressures from different sources was inevitable. Success in identifying stresses and accordingly coping with such stresses is important for job performance of nurses, and service quality of a hospital. Purpose of this research is to identify the determinants of nurses' capabilities. A modified Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was adopted. Overall, 105 nurses from several randomly selected hospitals in southern Taiwan were investigated to generate factors. Ten experienced practitioners were included as the expert in the AHP to produce weights of each criterion. Six nurses from two regional hospitals were then selected to test the model. Four factors are then identified as the second level of hierarchy. The study result shows that the family factor is the most important factor, and followed by the personal attributes. Top three sub-criteria that attribute to the nurse's stress-coping capability are children's education, good career plan, and healthy family. The practical simulation provided evidence for the usefulness of this model. The study suggested including these key determinants into the practice of human-resource management, and restructuring the hospital's organization, creating an employee-support system as well as a family-friendly working climate. The research provided evidence that supports the usefulness of AHP in identifying the key factors that help stabilizing a nursing team.

Using Analytic Hierarchy Process to Identify the Nurses with High Stress-Coping Capability: Model and Application

PubMed Central

F. C. PAN, Frank

2014-01-01

Abstract Background Nurses have long been relied as the major labor force in hospitals. Featured with complicated and highly labor-intensive job requirement, multiple pressures from different sources was inevitable. Success in identifying stresses and accordingly coping with such stresses is important for job performance of nurses, and service quality of a hospital. Purpose of this research is to identify the determinants of nurses' capabilities. Methods A modified Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was adopted. Overall, 105 nurses from several randomly selected hospitals in southern Taiwan were investigated to generate factors. Ten experienced practitioners were included as the expert in the AHP to produce weights of each criterion. Six nurses from two regional hospitals were then selected to test the model. Results Four factors are then identified as the second level of hierarchy. The study result shows that the family factor is the most important factor, and followed by the personal attributes. Top three sub-criteria that attribute to the nurse's stress-coping capability are children's education, good career plan, and healthy family. The practical simulation provided evidence for the usefulness of this model. Conclusion The study suggested including these key determinants into the practice of human-resource management, and restructuring the hospital's organization, creating an employee-support system as well as a family-friendly working climate. The research provided evidence that supports the usefulness of AHP in identifying the key factors that help stabilizing a nursing team. PMID:25988086

Analytic hierarchy process helps select site for limestone quarry expansion in Barbados.

PubMed

Dey, Prasanta Kumar; Ramcharan, Eugene K

2008-09-01

Site selection is a key activity for quarry expansion to support cement production, and is governed by factors such as resource availability, logistics, costs, and socio-economic-environmental factors. Adequate consideration of all the factors facilitates both industrial productivity and sustainable economic growth. This study illustrates the site selection process that was undertaken for the expansion of limestone quarry operations to support cement production in Barbados. First, alternate sites with adequate resources to support a 25-year development horizon were identified. Second, technical and socio-economic-environmental factors were then identified. Third, a database was developed for each site with respect to each factor. Fourth, a hierarchical model in analytic hierarchy process (AHP) framework was then developed. Fifth, the relative ranking of the alternate sites was then derived through pair wise comparison in all the levels and through subsequent synthesizing of the results across the hierarchy through computer software (Expert Choice). The study reveals that an integrated framework using the AHP can help select a site for the quarry expansion project in Barbados.

Using CART to Identify Thresholds and Hierarchies in the Determinants of Funding Decisions.

PubMed

Schilling, Chris; Mortimer, Duncan; Dalziel, Kim

2017-02-01

There is much interest in understanding decision-making processes that determine funding outcomes for health interventions. We use classification and regression trees (CART) to identify cost-effectiveness thresholds and hierarchies in the determinants of funding decisions. The hierarchical structure of CART is suited to analyzing complex conditional and nonlinear relationships. Our analysis uncovered hierarchies where interventions were grouped according to their type and objective. Cost-effectiveness thresholds varied markedly depending on which group the intervention belonged to: lifestyle-type interventions with a prevention objective had an incremental cost-effectiveness threshold of $2356, suggesting that such interventions need to be close to cost saving or dominant to be funded. For lifestyle-type interventions with a treatment objective, the threshold was much higher at $37,024. Lower down the tree, intervention attributes such as the level of patient contribution and the eligibility for government reimbursement influenced the likelihood of funding within groups of similar interventions. Comparison between our CART models and previously published results demonstrated concurrence with standard regression techniques while providing additional insights regarding the role of the funding environment and the structure of decision-maker preferences.

A Cobalt Supramolecular Triple-Stranded Helicate-based Discrete Molecular Cage

PubMed Central

Mai, Hien Duy; Kang, Philjae; Kim, Jin Kyung; Yoo, Hyojong

2017-01-01

We report a strategy to achieve a discrete cage molecule featuring a high level of structural hierarchy through a multiple-assembly process. A cobalt (Co) supramolecular triple-stranded helicate (Co-TSH)-based discrete molecular cage (1) is successfully synthesized and fully characterized. The solid-state structure of 1 shows that it is composed of six triple-stranded helicates interconnected by four linking cobalt species. This is an unusual example of a highly symmetric cage architecture resulting from the coordination-driven assembly of metallosupramolecular modules. The molecular cage 1 shows much higher CO2 uptake properties and selectivity compared with the separate supramolecular modules (Co-TSH, complex 2) and other molecular platforms. PMID:28262690

Technique for fast and efficient hierarchical clustering

DOEpatents

Stork, Christopher

2013-10-08

A fast and efficient technique for hierarchical clustering of samples in a dataset includes compressing the dataset to reduce a number of variables within each of the samples of the dataset. A nearest neighbor matrix is generated to identify nearest neighbor pairs between the samples based on differences between the variables of the samples. The samples are arranged into a hierarchy that groups the samples based on the nearest neighbor matrix. The hierarchy is rendered to a display to graphically illustrate similarities or differences between the samples.

A bispectral q-hypergeometric basis for a class of quantum integrable models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baseilhac, Pascal; Martin, Xavier

2018-01-01

For the class of quantum integrable models generated from the q-Onsager algebra, a basis of bispectral multivariable q-orthogonal polynomials is exhibited. In the first part, it is shown that the multivariable Askey-Wilson polynomials with N variables and N + 3 parameters introduced by Gasper and Rahman [Dev. Math. 13, 209 (2005)] generate a family of infinite dimensional modules for the q-Onsager algebra, whose fundamental generators are realized in terms of the multivariable q-difference and difference operators proposed by Iliev [Trans. Am. Math. Soc. 363, 1577 (2011)]. Raising and lowering operators extending those of Sahi [SIGMA 3, 002 (2007)] are also constructed. In the second part, finite dimensional modules are constructed and studied for a certain class of parameters and if the N variables belong to a discrete support. In this case, the bispectral property finds a natural interpretation within the framework of tridiagonal pairs. In the third part, eigenfunctions of the q-Dolan-Grady hierarchy are considered in the polynomial basis. In particular, invariant subspaces are identified for certain conditions generalizing Nepomechie's relations. In the fourth part, the analysis is extended to the special case q = 1. This framework provides a q-hypergeometric formulation of quantum integrable models such as the open XXZ spin chain with generic integrable boundary conditions (q ≠ 1).

The "art" of science communication in undergraduate research training

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fatemi, F. R.; Stockwell, J.; Pinheiro, V.; White, B.

2016-12-01

Student creation of well-designed and engaging visuals in science communication can enhance their deep learning while streamlining the transmission of information to their audience. However, undergraduate research training does not frequently emphasize the design aspect of science communication. We devised and implemented a new curricular component to the Lake Champlain NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program in Vermont. We took a holistic approach to communication training, with a targeted module in "art and science". Components to the module included: 1) an introduction to environmental themes in fine art, 2) a photography assignment in research documentation, 3) an overview of elements of design (e.g., color, typography, hierarchy), 4) a graphic design workshop using tools in Powerpoint, and 5) an introduction to scientific illustration. As part of the REU program, students were asked to document their work through photographs, and develop an infographic or scientific illustration complementary to their research. The "art and science" training culminated with a display and critique of their visual work. We report on student responses to the "art and science" training from exit interviews and survey questions. Based on our program, we identify a set of tools that mentors can use to enhance their student's ability to engage with a broad audience.

Object-oriented approach for gas turbine engine simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Curlett, Brian P.; Felder, James L.

1995-01-01

An object-oriented gas turbine engine simulation program was developed. This program is a prototype for a more complete, commercial grade engine performance program now being proposed as part of the Numerical Propulsion System Simulator (NPSS). This report discusses architectural issues of this complex software system and the lessons learned from developing the prototype code. The prototype code is a fully functional, general purpose engine simulation program, however, only the component models necessary to model a transient compressor test rig have been written. The production system will be capable of steady state and transient modeling of almost any turbine engine configuration. Chief among the architectural considerations for this code was the framework in which the various software modules will interact. These modules include the equation solver, simulation code, data model, event handler, and user interface. Also documented in this report is the component based design of the simulation module and the inter-component communication paradigm. Object class hierarchies for some of the code modules are given.

Quantifying Hydro-biogeochemical Model Sensitivity in Assessment of Climate Change Effect on Hyporheic Zone Processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, X.; Chen, X.; Dai, H.; Hammond, G. E.; Song, H. S.; Stegen, J.

2016-12-01

The hyporheic zone is an active region for biogeochemical processes such as carbon and nitrogen cycling, where the groundwater and surface water mix and interact with each other with distinct biogeochemical and thermal properties. The biogeochemical dynamics within the hyporheic zone are driven by both river water and groundwater hydraulic dynamics, which are directly affected by climate change scenarios. Besides that, the hydraulic and thermal properties of local sediments and microbial and chemical processes also play important roles in biogeochemical dynamics. Thus for a comprehensive understanding of the biogeochemical processes in the hyporheic zone, a coupled thermo-hydro-biogeochemical model is needed. As multiple uncertainty sources are involved in the integrated model, it is important to identify its key modules/parameters through sensitivity analysis. In this study, we develop a 2D cross-section model in the hyporheic zone at the DOE Hanford site adjacent to Columbia River and use this model to quantify module and parametric sensitivity on assessment of climate change. To achieve this purpose, We 1) develop a facies-based groundwater flow and heat transfer model that incorporates facies geometry and heterogeneity characterized from a field data set, 2) derive multiple reaction networks/pathways from batch experiments with in-situ samples and integrate temperate dependent reactive transport modules to the flow model, 3) assign multiple climate change scenarios to the coupled model by analyzing historical river stage data, 4) apply a variance-based global sensitivity analysis to quantify scenario/module/parameter uncertainty in hierarchy level. The objectives of the research include: 1) identifing the key control factors of the coupled thermo-hydro-biogeochemical model in the assessment of climate change, and 2) quantify the carbon consumption in different climate change scenarios in the hyporheic zone.

A neural network model of causative actions.

PubMed

Lee-Hand, Jeremy; Knott, Alistair

2015-01-01

A common idea in models of action representation is that actions are represented in terms of their perceptual effects (see e.g., Prinz, 1997; Hommel et al., 2001; Sahin et al., 2007; Umiltà et al., 2008; Hommel, 2013). In this paper we extend existing models of effect-based action representations to account for a novel distinction. Some actions bring about effects that are independent events in their own right: for instance, if John smashes a cup, he brings about the event of the cup smashing. Other actions do not bring about such effects. For instance, if John grabs a cup, this action does not cause the cup to "do" anything: a grab action has well-defined perceptual effects, but these are not registered by the perceptual system that detects independent events involving external objects in the world. In our model, effect-based actions are implemented in several distinct neural circuits, which are organized into a hierarchy based on the complexity of their associated perceptual effects. The circuit at the top of this hierarchy is responsible for actions that bring about independently perceivable events. This circuit receives input from the perceptual module that recognizes arbitrary events taking place in the world, and learns movements that reliably cause such events. We assess our model against existing experimental observations about effect-based motor representations, and make some novel experimental predictions. We also consider the possibility that the "causative actions" circuit in our model can be identified with a motor pathway reported in other work, specializing in "functional" actions on manipulable tools (Bub et al., 2008; Binkofski and Buxbaum, 2013).

International Space Station operations: New dimensions - October 13, 1987

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Paules, Granville E.; Lyman, Peter; Shelley, Carl B.

1987-01-01

One of the principal goals of the participants in the International Space Station program is to provide a management support structure which is equitable and fair to all participants, responsive to the needs of users, responsible to other partners, and mutually supportive to the participation of other partners. Shared-utilization, shared-cost, and shared-operations policies considerations are discussed. Special attention is given to the methodology for identifying costs and benefits of this program, in which each partner should be provided with benefits in proportion to his contribution, and no partner would be forced to share in cost the inefficiencies introduced by other partners. The Space Station hierarchy of operations functions are identified, and the recommended framework planning and control hierarchy is presented.

Late electrophysiological modulations of feature-based attention to object shapes.

PubMed

Stojanoski, Bobby Boge; Niemeier, Matthias

2014-03-01

Feature-based attention has been shown to aid object perception. Our previous ERP effects revealed temporally late feature-based modulation in response to objects relative to motion. The aim of the current study was to confirm the timing of feature-based influences on object perception while cueing within the feature dimension of shape. Participants were told to expect either "pillow" or "flower" objects embedded among random white and black lines. Participants more accurately reported the object's main color for valid compared to invalid shapes. ERPs revealed modulation from 252-502 ms, from occipital to frontal electrodes. Our results are consistent with previous findings examining the time course for processing similar stimuli (illusory contours). Our results provide novel insights into how attending to features of higher complexity aids object perception presumably via feed-forward and feedback mechanisms along the visual hierarchy. Copyright © 2014 Society for Psychophysiological Research.

Biomedical Wireless Ambulatory Crew Monitor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chmiel, Alan; Humphreys, Brad

2009-01-01

A compact, ambulatory biometric data acquisition system has been developed for space and commercial terrestrial use. BioWATCH (Bio medical Wireless and Ambulatory Telemetry for Crew Health) acquires signals from biomedical sensors using acquisition modules attached to a common data and power bus. Several slots allow the user to configure the unit by inserting sensor-specific modules. The data are then sent real-time from the unit over any commercially implemented wireless network including 802.11b/g, WCDMA, 3G. This system has a distributed computing hierarchy and has a common data controller on each sensor module. This allows for the modularity of the device along with the tailored ability to control the cards using a relatively small master processor. The distributed nature of this system affords the modularity, size, and power consumption that betters the current state of the art in medical ambulatory data acquisition. A new company was created to market this technology.

Analysis of waste hierarchy in the European waste directive 2008/98/EC.

PubMed

Gharfalkar, Mangesh; Court, Richard; Campbell, Callum; Ali, Zulfiqur; Hillier, Graham

2015-05-01

Loss of recoverable resources in linear resource flow systems is likely to contribute to the depletion of natural resources and environmental degradation. The 'waste hierarchy' in the European Commission's latest Waste Framework Directive 2008/98/EC (WFD2008) makes recommendations on how to address this issue. The WFD2008 is analysed in this work for its adequacy in ensuring return of 'recoverable waste' as a 'resource' into the productive system. Despite the release of guidance documents by the DG Environment, DEFRA and WRAP UK on the interpretation of key provisions of the WFD2008, lack of clarity still exists around the WFD2008 'waste hierarchy'. There is also an overlap between measures such as 'prevention' and 'reduction', 'preparing for reuse' and 'reuse' and lack of clarity on why the measure of 'reuse' is included in the WFD2008 definition of 'prevention'. Finally, absence of the measures of 'recovery' and 'reuse' from the WFD2008 'waste hierarchy' reduces its effectiveness as a resource efficiency tool. Without clarity on the WFD2008 'waste hierarchy', it is challenging for decision makers to take direct action to address inefficiencies existing within their operations or supply chains. This paper proposes the development of an alternative 'hierarchy of resource use' and alternative 'definitions' that attempt to fill identified gaps in the WFD2008 and bring clarity to the key measures of waste prevention, reduction and recovery. This would help the key stakeholders in driving resource effectiveness, which in turn would assist in conservation of natural resources and prevention of environmental degradation. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Self-organizing hierarchies in sensor and communication networks.

PubMed

Prokopenko, Mikhail; Wang, Peter; Valencia, Philip; Price, Don; Foreman, Mark; Farmer, Anthony

2005-01-01

We consider a hierarchical multicellular sensing and communication network, embedded in an ageless aerospace vehicle that is expected to detect and react to multiple impacts and damage over a wide range of impact energies. In particular, we investigate self-organization of impact boundaries enclosing critically damaged areas, and impact networks connecting remote cells that have detected noncritical impacts. Each level of the hierarchy is shown to have distinct higher-order emergent properties, desirable in self-monitoring and self-repairing vehicles. In addition, cells and communication messages are shown to need memory (hysteresis) in order to retain desirable emergent behavior within and between various hierarchical levels. Spatiotemporal robustness of self-organizing hierarchies is quantitatively measured with graph-theoretic and information-theoretic techniques, such as the Shannon entropy. This allows us to clearly identify phase transitions separating chaotic dynamics from ordered and robust patterns.

A hierarchy of unhealthy food promotion effects: identifying methodological approaches and knowledge gaps.

PubMed

Kelly, Bridget; King MPsy, Lesley; Chapman Mnd, Kathy; Boyland, Emma; Bauman, Adrian E; Baur, Louise A

2015-04-01

We assessed the evidence for a conceptual "hierarchy of effects" of marketing, to guide understanding of the relationship between children's exposure to unhealthy food marketing and poor diets and overweight, and drive the research agenda. We reviewed studies assessing the impact of food promotions on children from MEDLINE, Web of Science, ABI Inform, World Health Organization library database, and The Gray Literature Report. We included articles published in English from 2009 to 2013, with earlier articles from a 2009 systematic review. We grouped articles by outcome of exposure and assessed outcomes within a framework depicting a hierarchy of effects of marketing exposures. Evidence supports a logical sequence of effects linking food promotions to individual-level weight outcomes. Future studies should demonstrate the sustained effects of marketing exposure, and exploit variations in exposures to assess differences in outcomes longitudinally.

Topological Galleries: A High Level User Interface for Topology Controlled Volume Rendering

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

MacCarthy, Brian; Carr, Hamish; Weber, Gunther H.

2011-06-30

Existing topological interfaces to volume rendering are limited by their reliance on sophisticated knowledge of topology by the user. We extend previous work by describing topological galleries, an interface for novice users that is based on the design galleries approach. We report three contributions: an interface based on hierarchical thumbnail galleries to display the containment relationships between topologically identifiable features, the use of the pruning hierarchy instead of branch decomposition for contour tree simplification, and drag-and-drop transfer function assignment for individual components. Initial results suggest that this approach suffers from limitations due to rapid drop-off of feature size in themore » pruning hierarchy. We explore these limitations by providing statistics of feature size as function of depth in the pruning hierarchy of the contour tree.« less

Social hierarchy modulates responses of fish exposed to contaminants of emerging concern.

PubMed

Ivanova, Jelena; Zhang, Shiju; Wang, Rong-Lin; Schoenfuss, Heiko L

2017-01-01

Many organisms, including the fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas), a toxicological model organism, establish social hierarchies. The social rank of each male in a population is under the control of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis mainly through regulation of circulating androgen concentrations, which in turn drive the expression of secondary sex characteristics (SSCs). As dominant and subordinate males in an exposure study are initially under different physiological conditions (i.e., differing plasma androgen concentrations), we proposed that they belong to different subpopulations in the context of exposure to compounds that may interact with the HPG axis. Using a meta-analysis of our data from several previously published studies, we corroborated the hypothesis that social status, as indicated by SSCs, results in distinct clusters (eigenvalues >0.8 explaining >80% of variability) with differential expression of plasma vitellogenin, a commonly used biomarker of exposure to contaminants of emerging concern (CEC). Furthermore, we confirmed our predictions that exposure to estrogenic CECs would homogenize plasma vitellogenin response (E1: cluster mean SSC values decreased to 4.33 and 4.86 relative to those of control; E2: decreased to 4.8 and 5.37) across the social hierarchy. In contrast, serotonin-specific reuptake inhibitors expand this response range (cluster mean SSC increased to 5.21 and 6.5 relative to those of control). Our results demonstrated that social hierarchies in male fathead minnows result in heterogeneous responses to chemical exposure. These results represent a cautionary note for the experimental design of single-sex exposure studies. We anticipate our study to be a starting point for the re-evaluation of toxicological data analyses in single sex exposure experiments.

Biased Competition in Visual Processing Hierarchies: A Learning Approach Using Multiple Cues.

PubMed

Gepperth, Alexander R T; Rebhan, Sven; Hasler, Stephan; Fritsch, Jannik

2011-03-01

In this contribution, we present a large-scale hierarchical system for object detection fusing bottom-up (signal-driven) processing results with top-down (model or task-driven) attentional modulation. Specifically, we focus on the question of how the autonomous learning of invariant models can be embedded into a performing system and how such models can be used to define object-specific attentional modulation signals. Our system implements bi-directional data flow in a processing hierarchy. The bottom-up data flow proceeds from a preprocessing level to the hypothesis level where object hypotheses created by exhaustive object detection algorithms are represented in a roughly retinotopic way. A competitive selection mechanism is used to determine the most confident hypotheses, which are used on the system level to train multimodal models that link object identity to invariant hypothesis properties. The top-down data flow originates at the system level, where the trained multimodal models are used to obtain space- and feature-based attentional modulation signals, providing biases for the competitive selection process at the hypothesis level. This results in object-specific hypothesis facilitation/suppression in certain image regions which we show to be applicable to different object detection mechanisms. In order to demonstrate the benefits of this approach, we apply the system to the detection of cars in a variety of challenging traffic videos. Evaluating our approach on a publicly available dataset containing approximately 3,500 annotated video images from more than 1 h of driving, we can show strong increases in performance and generalization when compared to object detection in isolation. Furthermore, we compare our results to a late hypothesis rejection approach, showing that early coupling of top-down and bottom-up information is a favorable approach especially when processing resources are constrained.

Attention Induced Gain Stabilization in Broad and Narrow-Spiking Cells in the Frontal Eye-Field of Macaque Monkeys

PubMed Central

Brandt, Christian; Dasilva, Miguel; Gotthardt, Sascha; Chicharro, Daniel; Panzeri, Stefano; Distler, Claudia

2016-01-01

Top-down attention increases coding abilities by altering firing rates and rate variability. In the frontal eye field (FEF), a key area enabling top-down attention, attention induced firing rate changes are profound, but its effect on different cell types is unknown. Moreover, FEF is the only cortical area investigated in which attention does not affect rate variability, as assessed by the Fano factor, suggesting that task engagement affects cortical state nonuniformly. We show that putative interneurons in FEF of Macaca mulatta show stronger attentional rate modulation than putative pyramidal cells. Partitioning rate variability reveals that both cell types reduce rate variability with attention, but more strongly so in narrow-spiking cells. The effects are captured by a model in which attention stabilizes neuronal excitability, thereby reducing the expansive nonlinearity that links firing rate and variance. These results show that the effect of attention on different cell classes and different coding properties are consistent across the cortical hierarchy, acting through increased and stabilized neuronal excitability. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Cortical processing is critically modulated by attention. A key feature of this influence is a modulation of “cortical state,” resulting in increased neuronal excitability and resilience of the network against perturbations, lower rate variability, and an increased signal-to-noise ratio. In the frontal eye field (FEF), an area assumed to control spatial attention in human and nonhuman primates, firing rate changes with attention occur, but rate variability, quantified by the Fano factor, appears to be unaffected by attention. Using recently developed analysis tools and models to quantify attention effects on narrow- and broad-spiking cell activity, we show that attention alters cortical state strongly in the FEF, demonstrating that its effect on the neuronal network is consistent across the cortical hierarchy. PMID:27445139

Discrete event simulation tool for analysis of qualitative models of continuous processing systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Malin, Jane T. (Inventor); Basham, Bryan D. (Inventor); Harris, Richard A. (Inventor)

1990-01-01

An artificial intelligence design and qualitative modeling tool is disclosed for creating computer models and simulating continuous activities, functions, and/or behavior using developed discrete event techniques. Conveniently, the tool is organized in four modules: library design module, model construction module, simulation module, and experimentation and analysis. The library design module supports the building of library knowledge including component classes and elements pertinent to a particular domain of continuous activities, functions, and behavior being modeled. The continuous behavior is defined discretely with respect to invocation statements, effect statements, and time delays. The functionality of the components is defined in terms of variable cluster instances, independent processes, and modes, further defined in terms of mode transition processes and mode dependent processes. Model construction utilizes the hierarchy of libraries and connects them with appropriate relations. The simulation executes a specialized initialization routine and executes events in a manner that includes selective inherency of characteristics through a time and event schema until the event queue in the simulator is emptied. The experimentation and analysis module supports analysis through the generation of appropriate log files and graphics developments and includes the ability of log file comparisons.

DASS-GUI: a user interface for identification and analysis of significant patterns in non-sequential data.

PubMed

Hollunder, Jens; Friedel, Maik; Kuiper, Martin; Wilhelm, Thomas

2010-04-01

Many large 'omics' datasets have been published and many more are expected in the near future. New analysis methods are needed for best exploitation. We have developed a graphical user interface (GUI) for easy data analysis. Our discovery of all significant substructures (DASS) approach elucidates the underlying modularity, a typical feature of complex biological data. It is related to biclustering and other data mining approaches. Importantly, DASS-GUI also allows handling of multi-sets and calculation of statistical significances. DASS-GUI contains tools for further analysis of the identified patterns: analysis of the pattern hierarchy, enrichment analysis, module validation, analysis of additional numerical data, easy handling of synonymous names, clustering, filtering and merging. Different export options allow easy usage of additional tools such as Cytoscape. Source code, pre-compiled binaries for different systems, a comprehensive tutorial, case studies and many additional datasets are freely available at http://www.ifr.ac.uk/dass/gui/. DASS-GUI is implemented in Qt.

The flowering hormone florigen functions as a general systemic regulator of growth and termination

PubMed Central

Shalit, Akiva; Rozman, Alexander; Goldshmidt, Alexander; Alvarez, John P.; Bowman, John L.; Eshed, Yuval; Lifschitz, Eliezer

2009-01-01

The florigen paradigm implies a universal flowering-inducing hormone that is common to all flowering plants. Recent work identified FT orthologues as originators of florigen and their polypeptides as the likely systemic agent. However, the developmental processes targeted by florigen remained unknown. Here we identify local balances between SINGLE FLOWER TRUSS (SFT), the tomato precursor of florigen, and SELF-PRUNING (SP), a potent SFT-dependent SFT inhibitor as prime targets of mobile florigen. The graft-transmissible impacts of florigen on organ-specific traits in perennial tomato show that in addition to import by shoot apical meristems, florigen is imported by organs in which SFT is already expressed. By modulating local SFT/SP balances, florigen confers differential flowering responses of primary and secondary apical meristems, regulates the reiterative growth and termination cycles typical of perennial plants, accelerates leaf maturation, and influences the complexity of compound leaves, the growth of stems and the formation of abscission zones. Florigen is thus established as a plant protein functioning as a general growth hormone. Developmental interactions and a phylogenetic analysis suggest that the SFT/SP regulatory hierarchy is a recent evolutionary innovation unique to flowering plants. PMID:19416824

Acquiring information about neutrino parameters by detecting supernova neutrinos

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Ming-Yang; Guo, Xin-Heng; Young, Bing-Lin

2010-08-01

We consider the supernova shock effects, the Mikheyev-Smirnov-Wolfenstein effects, the collective effects, and the Earth matter effects in the detection of type II supernova neutrinos on the Earth. It is found that the event number of supernova neutrinos depends on the neutrino mass hierarchy, the neutrino mixing angle θ13, and neutrino masses. Therefore, we propose possible methods to identify the mass hierarchy and acquire information about θ13 and neutrino masses by detecting supernova neutrinos. We apply these methods to some current neutrino experiments.

Auditory and visual modulation of temporal lobe neurons in voice-sensitive and association cortices.

PubMed

Perrodin, Catherine; Kayser, Christoph; Logothetis, Nikos K; Petkov, Christopher I

2014-02-12

Effective interactions between conspecific individuals can depend upon the receiver forming a coherent multisensory representation of communication signals, such as merging voice and face content. Neuroimaging studies have identified face- or voice-sensitive areas (Belin et al., 2000; Petkov et al., 2008; Tsao et al., 2008), some of which have been proposed as candidate regions for face and voice integration (von Kriegstein et al., 2005). However, it was unclear how multisensory influences occur at the neuronal level within voice- or face-sensitive regions, especially compared with classically defined multisensory regions in temporal association cortex (Stein and Stanford, 2008). Here, we characterize auditory (voice) and visual (face) influences on neuronal responses in a right-hemisphere voice-sensitive region in the anterior supratemporal plane (STP) of Rhesus macaques. These results were compared with those in the neighboring superior temporal sulcus (STS). Within the STP, our results show auditory sensitivity to several vocal features, which was not evident in STS units. We also newly identify a functionally distinct neuronal subpopulation in the STP that appears to carry the area's sensitivity to voice identity related features. Audiovisual interactions were prominent in both the STP and STS. However, visual influences modulated the responses of STS neurons with greater specificity and were more often associated with congruent voice-face stimulus pairings than STP neurons. Together, the results reveal the neuronal processes subserving voice-sensitive fMRI activity patterns in primates, generate hypotheses for testing in the visual modality, and clarify the position of voice-sensitive areas within the unisensory and multisensory processing hierarchies.

Auditory and Visual Modulation of Temporal Lobe Neurons in Voice-Sensitive and Association Cortices

PubMed Central

Perrodin, Catherine; Kayser, Christoph; Logothetis, Nikos K.

2014-01-01

Effective interactions between conspecific individuals can depend upon the receiver forming a coherent multisensory representation of communication signals, such as merging voice and face content. Neuroimaging studies have identified face- or voice-sensitive areas (Belin et al., 2000; Petkov et al., 2008; Tsao et al., 2008), some of which have been proposed as candidate regions for face and voice integration (von Kriegstein et al., 2005). However, it was unclear how multisensory influences occur at the neuronal level within voice- or face-sensitive regions, especially compared with classically defined multisensory regions in temporal association cortex (Stein and Stanford, 2008). Here, we characterize auditory (voice) and visual (face) influences on neuronal responses in a right-hemisphere voice-sensitive region in the anterior supratemporal plane (STP) of Rhesus macaques. These results were compared with those in the neighboring superior temporal sulcus (STS). Within the STP, our results show auditory sensitivity to several vocal features, which was not evident in STS units. We also newly identify a functionally distinct neuronal subpopulation in the STP that appears to carry the area's sensitivity to voice identity related features. Audiovisual interactions were prominent in both the STP and STS. However, visual influences modulated the responses of STS neurons with greater specificity and were more often associated with congruent voice-face stimulus pairings than STP neurons. Together, the results reveal the neuronal processes subserving voice-sensitive fMRI activity patterns in primates, generate hypotheses for testing in the visual modality, and clarify the position of voice-sensitive areas within the unisensory and multisensory processing hierarchies. PMID:24523543

The Attitudes to Ageing Questionnaire: Mokken Scaling Analysis

PubMed Central

Shenkin, Susan D.; Watson, Roger; Laidlaw, Ken; Starr, John M.; Deary, Ian J.

2014-01-01

Background Hierarchical scales are useful in understanding the structure of underlying latent traits in many questionnaires. The Attitudes to Ageing Questionnaire (AAQ) explored the attitudes to ageing of older people themselves, and originally described three distinct subscales: (1) Psychosocial Loss (2) Physical Change and (3) Psychological Growth. This study aimed to use Mokken analysis, a method of Item Response Theory, to test for hierarchies within the AAQ and to explore how these relate to underlying latent traits. Methods Participants in a longitudinal cohort study, the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936, completed a cross-sectional postal survey. Data from 802 participants were analysed using Mokken Scaling analysis. These results were compared with factor analysis using exploratory structural equation modelling. Results Participants were 51.6% male, mean age 74.0 years (SD 0.28). Three scales were identified from 18 of the 24 items: two weak Mokken scales and one moderate Mokken scale. (1) ‘Vitality’ contained a combination of items from all three previously determined factors of the AAQ, with a hierarchy from physical to psychosocial; (2) ‘Legacy’ contained items exclusively from the Psychological Growth scale, with a hierarchy from individual contributions to passing things on; (3) ‘Exclusion’ contained items from the Psychosocial Loss scale, with a hierarchy from general to specific instances. All of the scales were reliable and statistically significant with ‘Legacy’ showing invariant item ordering. The scales correlate as expected with personality, anxiety and depression. Exploratory SEM mostly confirmed the original factor structure. Conclusions The concurrent use of factor analysis and Mokken scaling provides additional information about the AAQ. The previously-described factor structure is mostly confirmed. Mokken scaling identifies a new factor relating to vitality, and a hierarchy of responses within three separate scales, referring to vitality, legacy and exclusion. This shows what older people themselves consider important regarding their own ageing. PMID:24892302

Improving the neutrino mass hierarchy identification with inelasticity measurement in PINGU and ORCA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ribordy, Mathieu; Smirnov, A. Yu.

2013-06-01

Multimegaton scale in under-ice and underwater detectors of atmospheric neutrinos with a few GeV energy threshold (PINGU, ORCA) open up new possibilities in the determination of neutrino properties, and in particular the neutrino mass hierarchy. With a dense array of optical modules it will be possible to determine the inelasticity, y, of the charged current νμ events in addition to the neutrino energy Eν and the muon zenith angle θμ. The discovery potential of the detectors will substantially increase with the measurement of y. It will enable (i) a partial separation of the neutrino and antineutrino signals, (ii) a better reconstruction of the neutrino direction, (iii) the reduction of the neutrino parameters degeneracy, (iv) a better control of systematic uncertainties, and (v) a better identification of the νμ events. It will improve the sensitivity to the CP-violation phase. The three-dimensional (Eν,θμ,y), νμ oscillograms with the kinematical as well as the experimental smearing are computed. We present the asymmetry distributions in the Eν-θμ plane for different intervals of y and study their properties. We show that the inelasticity information reduces the effect of degeneracy of parameters by 30%. With the inelasticity, the total significance of establishing mass hierarchy may increase by (20-50)%, thus effectively increasing the volume of the detector by a factor of 1.5-2.

Prolactin Alters the Mammary Epithelial Hierarchy, Increasing Progenitors and Facilitating Ovarian Steroid Action.

PubMed

O'Leary, Kathleen A; Shea, Michael P; Salituro, Stephanie; Blohm, Courtney E; Schuler, Linda A

2017-10-10

Hormones drive mammary development and function and play critical roles in breast cancer. Epidemiologic studies link prolactin (PRL) to increased risk for aggressive cancers that express estrogen receptor α (ERα). However, in contrast to ovarian steroids, PRL actions on the mammary gland outside of pregnancy are poorly understood. We employed the transgenic NRL-PRL model to examine the effects of PRL alone and with defined estrogen/progesterone exposure on stem/progenitor activity and regulatory networks that drive epithelial differentiation. PRL increased progenitors and modulated transcriptional programs, even without ovarian steroids, and with steroids further raised stem cell activity associated with elevated canonical Wnt signaling. However, despite facilitating some steroid actions, PRL opposed steroid-driven luminal maturation and increased CD61 + luminal cells. Our findings demonstrate that PRL can powerfully influence the epithelial hierarchy alone and temper the actions of ovarian steroids, which may underlie its role in the development of breast cancer. Copyright © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated hierarchical classification of protein domain subfamilies based on functionally-divergent residue signatures

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background The NCBI Conserved Domain Database (CDD) consists of a collection of multiple sequence alignments of protein domains that are at various stages of being manually curated into evolutionary hierarchies based on conserved and divergent sequence and structural features. These domain models are annotated to provide insights into the relationships between sequence, structure and function via web-based BLAST searches. Results Here we automate the generation of conserved domain (CD) hierarchies using a combination of heuristic and Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) sampling procedures and starting from a (typically very large) multiple sequence alignment. This procedure relies on statistical criteria to define each hierarchy based on the conserved and divergent sequence patterns associated with protein functional-specialization. At the same time this facilitates the sequence and structural annotation of residues that are functionally important. These statistical criteria also provide a means to objectively assess the quality of CD hierarchies, a non-trivial task considering that the protein subgroups are often very distantly related—a situation in which standard phylogenetic methods can be unreliable. Our aim here is to automatically generate (typically sub-optimal) hierarchies that, based on statistical criteria and visual comparisons, are comparable to manually curated hierarchies; this serves as the first step toward the ultimate goal of obtaining optimal hierarchical classifications. A plot of runtimes for the most time-intensive (non-parallelizable) part of the algorithm indicates a nearly linear time complexity so that, even for the extremely large Rossmann fold protein class, results were obtained in about a day. Conclusions This approach automates the rapid creation of protein domain hierarchies and thus will eliminate one of the most time consuming aspects of conserved domain database curation. At the same time, it also facilitates protein domain annotation by identifying those pattern residues that most distinguish each protein domain subgroup from other related subgroups. PMID:22726767

Figure-ground segregation modulates apparent motion.

PubMed

Ramachandran, V S; Anstis, S

1986-01-01

We explored the relationship between figure-ground segmentation and apparent motion. Results suggest that: static elements in the surround can eliminate apparent motion of a cluster of dots in the centre, but only if the cluster and surround have similar "grain" or texture; outlines that define occluding surfaces are taken into account by the motion mechanism; the brain uses a hierarchy of precedence rules in attributing motion to different segments of the visual scene. Being designated as "figure" confers a high rank in this scheme of priorities.

Optimizing an immersion ESL curriculum using analytic hierarchy process.

PubMed

Tang, Hui-Wen Vivian

2011-11-01

The main purpose of this study is to fill a substantial knowledge gap regarding reaching a uniform group decision in English curriculum design and planning. A comprehensive content-based course criterion model extracted from existing literature and expert opinions was developed. Analytical hierarchy process (AHP) was used to identify the relative importance of course criteria for the purpose of tailoring an optimal one-week immersion English as a second language (ESL) curriculum for elementary school students in a suburban county of Taiwan. The hierarchy model and AHP analysis utilized in the present study will be useful for resolving several important multi-criteria decision-making issues in planning and evaluating ESL programs. This study also offers valuable insights and provides a basis for further research in customizing ESL curriculum models for different student populations with distinct learning needs, goals, and socioeconomic backgrounds. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Solving moment hierarchies for chemical reaction networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krishnamurthy, Supriya; Smith, Eric

2017-10-01

The study of chemical reaction networks (CRN’s) is a very active field. Earlier well-known results (Feinberg 1987 Chem. Enc. Sci. 42 2229, Anderson et al 2010 Bull. Math. Biol. 72 1947) identify a topological quantity called deficiency, for any CRN, which, when exactly equal to zero, leads to a unique factorized steady-state for these networks. No results exist however for the steady states of non-zero-deficiency networks. In this paper, we show how to write the full moment-hierarchy for any non-zero-deficiency CRN obeying mass-action kinetics, in terms of equations for the factorial moments. Using these, we can recursively predict values for lower moments from higher moments, reversing the procedure usually used to solve moment hierarchies. We show, for non-trivial examples, that in this manner we can predict any moment of interest, for CRN’s with non-zero deficiency and non-factorizable steady states.

Model Hierarchies in Edge-Based Compartmental Modeling for Infectious Disease Spread

PubMed Central

Miller, Joel C.; Volz, Erik M.

2012-01-01

We consider the family of edge-based compartmental models for epidemic spread developed in [11]. These models allow for a range of complex behaviors, and in particular allow us to explicitly incorporate duration of a contact into our mathematical models. Our focus here is to identify conditions under which simpler models may be substituted for more detailed models, and in so doing we define a hierarchy of epidemic models. In particular we provide conditions under which it is appropriate to use the standard mass action SIR model, and we show what happens when these conditions fail. Using our hierarchy, we provide a procedure leading to the choice of the appropriate model for a given population. Our result about the convergence of models to the Mass Action model gives clear, rigorous conditions under which the Mass Action model is accurate. PMID:22911242

A Hierarchy of Unhealthy Food Promotion Effects: Identifying Methodological Approaches and Knowledge Gaps

PubMed Central

King, MPsy, Lesley; Chapman, MND, Kathy; Boyland, Emma; Bauman, Adrian E.; Baur, Louise A.

2015-01-01

We assessed the evidence for a conceptual “hierarchy of effects” of marketing, to guide understanding of the relationship between children’s exposure to unhealthy food marketing and poor diets and overweight, and drive the research agenda. We reviewed studies assessing the impact of food promotions on children from MEDLINE, Web of Science, ABI Inform, World Health Organization library database, and The Gray Literature Report. We included articles published in English from 2009 to 2013, with earlier articles from a 2009 systematic review. We grouped articles by outcome of exposure and assessed outcomes within a framework depicting a hierarchy of effects of marketing exposures. Evidence supports a logical sequence of effects linking food promotions to individual-level weight outcomes. Future studies should demonstrate the sustained effects of marketing exposure, and exploit variations in exposures to assess differences in outcomes longitudinally. PMID:25713968

Mammary stem cells and the differentiation hierarchy: current status and perspectives

PubMed Central

Visvader, Jane E.; Stingl, John

2014-01-01

The mammary epithelium is highly responsive to local and systemic signals, which orchestrate morphogenesis of the ductal tree during puberty and pregnancy. Based on transplantation and lineage tracing studies, a hierarchy of stem and progenitor cells has been shown to exist among the mammary epithelium. Lineage tracing has highlighted the existence of bipotent mammary stem cells (MaSCs) in situ as well as long-lived unipotent cells that drive morphogenesis and homeostasis of the ductal tree. Moreover, there is accumulating evidence for a heterogeneous MaSC compartment comprising fetal MaSCs, slow-cycling cells, and both long-term and short-term repopulating cells. In parallel, diverse luminal progenitor subtypes have been identified in mouse and human mammary tissue. Elucidation of the normal cellular hierarchy is an important step toward understanding the “cells of origin” and molecular perturbations that drive breast cancer. PMID:24888586

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Spogen, L.R.; Cleland, L.L.

An approach to the development of performance based regulations (PBR's) is described. Initially, a framework is constructed that consists of a function hierarchy and associated measures. The function at the top of the hierarchy is described in terms of societal objectives. Decomposition of this function into subordinate functions and their subsequent decompositions yield the function hierarchy. ''Bottom'' functions describe the roles of system components. When measures are identified for the performance of each function and means of aggregating performances to higher levels are established, the framework may be employed for developing PBR's. Consideration of system flexibility and performance uncertainty guidemore » in determining the hierarchical level at which regulations are formulated. Ease of testing compliance is also a factor. To show the viability of the approach, the framework developed by Lawrence Livermore Laboratory for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for evaluation of material control systems at fixed facilities is presented.« less

A STUDY ON THE HIERARCHY OF MANAGEMENT ELEMENTS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suzuki, Nobuyuki; Watanabe, Tadashi

Compared to the late 20th century, the Japanese construction industry has drastically changed its business methodology, outlook and approach in response to global issues and the incredible advances in technology. Such influences, non-exhaustively include the; WTO Government procurement agreement, updating conditions of tendering and contracting, client demands for cost reduction and the rapid penetration of ICT (Information and Communication Technology) into modern society. These days, the significance of controlling Quality, Cost and Time (the so-called QCT) has been recognized as an eternal-triangle by almost all countries, Government organizations and the private sector. However, as the construction industry is exposed to , and influenced by, more and more internal and external dynamic factors, continued reliance on managing and controlling QCT elements on their own is no longer adequate in meeting the growing demands and expectations, and as such control of additional management elements is now essential to avoid problems, or minimize their potential impacts should they occur. This paper utilizes the results of a survey carried out amongst construction managers and consultants in Japan and overseas to develop a spatial network that defines the interaction of management factors as a weighted graphical model. The calculated closeness centrality index of the developed management network model is adopted to identify the initialelement hierarchy, which is then further analyzed using the minimum distance of independent relationships of management elements (Warshall-Floyd algorism methodology), to identify the optimum potential hierarchy for effective construction management. A key result of the analysis is the significance of "Human Resource" in the construction industry management element hierarchy alongside the traditional QCT elements.

Vanishing point: Scale independence in geomorphological hierarchies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Phillips, Jonathan D.

2016-08-01

Scale linkage problems in geosciences are often associated with a hierarchy of components. Both dynamical systems perspectives and intuition suggest that processes or relationships operating at fundamentally different scales are independent with respect to influences on system dynamics. But how far apart is ;fundamentally different;-that is, what is the ;vanishing point; at which scales are no longer interdependent? And how do we reconcile that with the idea (again, supported by both theory and intuition) that we can work our way along scale hierarchies from microscale to planetary (and vice-versa)? Graph and network theory are employed here to address these questions. Analysis of two archetypal hierarchical networks shows low algebraic connectivity, indicating low levels of inferential synchronization. This explains the apparent paradox between scale independence and hierarchical linkages. Incorporating more hierarchical levels results in an increase in complexity or entropy of the network as a whole, but at a nonlinear rate. Complexity increases as a power α of the number of levels in the hierarchy, with α < 1 and usually ≤ 0.6. However, algebraic connectivity decreases at a more rapid rate. Thus, the ability to infer one part of the hierarchical network from other level decays rapidly as more levels are added. Relatedness among system components decreases with differences in scale or resolution, analogous to distance decay in the spatial domain. These findings suggest a strategy of identifying and focusing on the most important or interesting scale levels, rather than attempting to identify the smallest or largest scale levels and work top-down or bottom-up from there. Examples are given from soil geomorphology and karst flow networks.

An Enriched Unified Medical Language System Semantic Network with a Multiple Subsumption Hierarchy

PubMed Central

Zhang, Li; Perl, Yehoshua; Halper, Michael; Geller, James; Cimino, James J.

2004-01-01

Objective: The Unified Medical Language System's (UMLS's) Semantic Network's (SN's) two-tree structure is restrictive because it does not allow a semantic type to be a specialization of several other semantic types. In this article, the SN is expanded into a multiple subsumption structure with a directed acyclic graph (DAG) IS-A hierarchy, allowing a semantic type to have multiple parents. New viable IS-A links are added as warranted. Design: Two methodologies are presented to identify and add new viable IS-A links. The first methodology is based on imposing the characteristic of connectivity on a previously presented partition of the SN. Four transformations are provided to find viable IS-A links in the process of converting the partition's disconnected groups into connected ones. The second methodology identifies new IS-A links through a string matching process involving names and definitions of various semantic types in the SN. A domain expert is needed to review all the results to determine the validity of the new IS-A links. Results: Nineteen new IS-A links are added to the SN, and four new semantic types are also created to support the multiple subsumption framework. The resulting network, called the Enriched Semantic Network (ESN), exhibits a DAG-structured hierarchy. A partition of the ESN containing 19 connected groups is also derived. Conclusion: The ESN is an expanded abstraction of the UMLS compared with the original SN. Its multiple subsumption hierarchy can accommodate semantic types with multiple parents. Its representation thus provides direct access to a broader range of subsumption knowledge. PMID:14764611

Defining a stem cell hierarchy in the intestine: markers, caveats and controversies

PubMed Central

Smith, Nicholas R.; Gallagher, Alexandra C.

2016-01-01

Abstract The past decade has appreciated rapid advance in identifying the once elusive intestinal stem cell (ISC) populations that fuel the continual renewal of the epithelial layer. This advance was largely driven by identification of novel stem cell marker genes, revealing the existence of quiescent, slowly‐ and active‐cycling ISC populations. However, a critical barrier for translating this knowledge to human health and disease remains elucidating the functional interplay between diverse stem cell populations. Currently, the precise hierarchical and regulatory relationships between these ISC populations are under intense scrutiny. The classical theory of a linear hierarchy, where quiescent and slowly‐cycling stem cells self‐renew but replenish an active‐cycling population, is well established in other rapidly renewing tissues such as the haematopoietic system. Efforts to definitively establish a similar stem cell hierarchy within the intestinal epithelium have yielded conflicting results, been difficult to interpret, and suggest non‐conventional alternatives to a linear hierarchy. While these new and potentially paradigm‐shifting discoveries are intriguing, the field will require development of a number of critical tools, including highly specific stem cell marker genes along with more rigorous experimental methodologies, to delineate the complex cellular relationships within this dynamic organ system. PMID:26864260

Attention to Color Sharpens Neural Population Tuning via Feedback Processing in the Human Visual Cortex Hierarchy.

PubMed

Bartsch, Mandy V; Loewe, Kristian; Merkel, Christian; Heinze, Hans-Jochen; Schoenfeld, Mircea A; Tsotsos, John K; Hopf, Jens-Max

2017-10-25

Attention can facilitate the selection of elementary object features such as color, orientation, or motion. This is referred to as feature-based attention and it is commonly attributed to a modulation of the gain and tuning of feature-selective units in visual cortex. Although gain mechanisms are well characterized, little is known about the cortical processes underlying the sharpening of feature selectivity. Here, we show with high-resolution magnetoencephalography in human observers (men and women) that sharpened selectivity for a particular color arises from feedback processing in the human visual cortex hierarchy. To assess color selectivity, we analyze the response to a color probe that varies in color distance from an attended color target. We find that attention causes an initial gain enhancement in anterior ventral extrastriate cortex that is coarsely selective for the target color and transitions within ∼100 ms into a sharper tuned profile in more posterior ventral occipital cortex. We conclude that attention sharpens selectivity over time by attenuating the response at lower levels of the cortical hierarchy to color values neighboring the target in color space. These observations support computational models proposing that attention tunes feature selectivity in visual cortex through backward-propagating attenuation of units less tuned to the target. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Whether searching for your car, a particular item of clothing, or just obeying traffic lights, in everyday life, we must select items based on color. But how does attention allow us to select a specific color? Here, we use high spatiotemporal resolution neuromagnetic recordings to examine how color selectivity emerges in the human brain. We find that color selectivity evolves as a coarse to fine process from higher to lower levels within the visual cortex hierarchy. Our observations support computational models proposing that feature selectivity increases over time by attenuating the responses of less-selective cells in lower-level brain areas. These data emphasize that color perception involves multiple areas across a hierarchy of regions, interacting with each other in a complex, recursive manner. Copyright © 2017 the authors 0270-6474/17/3710346-12$15.00/0.

Using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to understand the most important factors to design and evaluate a telehealth system for Parkinson's disease.

PubMed

Cancela, Jorge; Fico, Giuseppe; Arredondo Waldmeyer, Maria T

2015-01-01

The assessment of a new health technology is a multidisciplinary and multidimensional process, which requires a complex analysis and the convergence of different stakeholders into a common decision. This task is even more delicate when the assessment is carried out in early stage of development processes, when the maturity of the technology prevents conducting a large scale trials to evaluate the cost effectiveness through classic health economics methods. This lack of information may limit the future development and deployment in the clinical practice. This work aims to 1) identify the most relevant user needs of a new medical technology for managing and monitoring Parkinson's Disease (PD) patients and to 2) use these user needs for a preliminary assessment of a specific system called PERFORM, as a case study. Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was used to design a hierarchy of 17 needs, grouped into 5 categories. A total of 16 experts, 6 of them with a clinical background and the remaining 10 with a technical background, were asked to rank these needs and categories. On/Off fluctuations detection, Increase wearability acceptance, and Increase self-management support have been identified as the most relevant user needs. No significant differences were found between the clinician and technical groups. These results have been used to evaluate the PERFORM system and to identify future areas of improvement. First of all, the AHP contributed to the elaboration of a unified hierarchy, integrating the needs of a variety of stakeholders, promoting the discussion and the agreement into a common framework of evaluation. Moreover, the AHP effectively supported the user need elicitation as well as the assignment of different weights and priorities to each need and, consequently, it helped to define a framework for the assessment of telehealth systems for PD management and monitoring. This framework can be used to support the decision-making process for the adoption of new technologies in PD.

Using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to understand the most important factors to design and evaluate a telehealth system for Parkinson's disease

PubMed Central

2015-01-01

Background The assessment of a new health technology is a multidisciplinary and multidimensional process, which requires a complex analysis and the convergence of different stakeholders into a common decision. This task is even more delicate when the assessment is carried out in early stage of development processes, when the maturity of the technology prevents conducting a large scale trials to evaluate the cost effectiveness through classic health economics methods. This lack of information may limit the future development and deployment in the clinical practice. This work aims to 1) identify the most relevant user needs of a new medical technology for managing and monitoring Parkinson's Disease (PD) patients and to 2) use these user needs for a preliminary assessment of a specific system called PERFORM, as a case study. Methods Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was used to design a hierarchy of 17 needs, grouped into 5 categories. A total of 16 experts, 6 of them with a clinical background and the remaining 10 with a technical background, were asked to rank these needs and categories. Results On/Off fluctuations detection, Increase wearability acceptance, and Increase self-management support have been identified as the most relevant user needs. No significant differences were found between the clinician and technical groups. These results have been used to evaluate the PERFORM system and to identify future areas of improvement. Conclusions First of all, the AHP contributed to the elaboration of a unified hierarchy, integrating the needs of a variety of stakeholders, promoting the discussion and the agreement into a common framework of evaluation. Moreover, the AHP effectively supported the user need elicitation as well as the assignment of different weights and priorities to each need and, consequently, it helped to define a framework for the assessment of telehealth systems for PD management and monitoring. This framework can be used to support the decision-making process for the adoption of new technologies in PD. PMID:26391847

Ten steps to plan, design, and implement an endocrinology and endocrine surgery module for the Faculty of Medicine, Al-Baha University.

PubMed

Elfakey, Walyeldin Em; Al-Ghamdi, Ahmed H

2016-01-01

The Faculty of Medicine, Al-Baha University (FMBU), is a newly established medical school that implements a community-oriented and integrated system-based curriculum which is suitable for both medical students and serving the needs of the local community. The aim of this study is to describe the steps that were followed to plan, design, and implement an endocrinology and endocrine surgery module (EESM) for the fourth-year medical students, as an example of how system-based modules are designed at FMBU. Ten questions based on Harden's methodolgy were asked in order to design, plan, and implement an endocrinology and endocrine surgery module. The module committee determined the needs of the module and accordingly stated the aims and objectives of the module. The module planners selected the relevant contents, teaching methods, and assessment strategies and organized them. After addressing each of the ten questions, the results indicated the need, aim, objectives, and contents for the endocrinology and endocrine surgery module at FMBU. The implementation strategies were chosen according to the SPICES model. The teaching methods and the assessment strategies were selected and arranged. The module is well communicated at all levels, and the module committee used every effort to create a productive teaching environment. The module is well managed and follows the hierarchy of FMBU. Implementing Harden's ten steps methodology resulted in an integrated module of endocrinology and endocrine surgery where related disciplines and systems were merged and medical and surgical endocrine topics were included.

Abnormal frontoparietal synaptic gain mediating the P300 in patients with psychotic disorder and their unaffected relatives.

PubMed

Díez, Álvaro; Ranlund, Siri; Pinotsis, Dimitris; Calafato, Stella; Shaikh, Madiha; Hall, Mei-Hua; Walshe, Muriel; Nevado, Ángel; Friston, Karl J; Adams, Rick A; Bramon, Elvira

2017-06-01

The "dysconnection hypothesis" of psychosis suggests that a disruption of functional integration underlies cognitive deficits and clinical symptoms. Impairments in the P300 potential are well documented in psychosis. Intrinsic (self-)connectivity in a frontoparietal cortical hierarchy during a P300 experiment was investigated. Dynamic Causal Modeling was used to estimate how evoked activity results from the dynamics of coupled neural populations and how neural coupling changes with the experimental factors. Twenty-four patients with psychotic disorder, twenty-four unaffected relatives, and twenty-five controls underwent EEG recordings during an auditory oddball paradigm. Sixteen frontoparietal network models (including primary auditory, superior parietal, and superior frontal sources) were analyzed and an optimal model of neural coupling, explaining diagnosis and genetic risk effects, as well as their interactions with task condition were identified. The winning model included changes in connectivity at all three hierarchical levels. Patients showed decreased self-inhibition-that is, increased cortical excitability-in left superior frontal gyrus across task conditions, compared with unaffected participants. Relatives had similar increases in excitability in left superior frontal and right superior parietal sources, and a reversal of the normal synaptic gain changes in response to targets relative to standard tones. It was confirmed that both subjects with psychotic disorder and their relatives show a context-independent loss of synaptic gain control at the highest hierarchy levels. The relatives also showed abnormal gain modulation responses to task-relevant stimuli. These may be caused by NMDA-receptor and/or GABAergic pathologies that change the excitability of superficial pyramidal cells and may be a potential biological marker for psychosis. Hum Brain Mapp 38:3262-3276, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Automatically identifying health- and clinical-related content in wikipedia.

PubMed

Liu, Feifan; Moosavinasab, Soheil; Agarwal, Shashank; Bennett, Andrew S; Yu, Hong

2013-01-01

Physicians are increasingly using the Internet for finding medical information related to patient care. Wikipedia is a valuable online medical resource to be integrated into existing clinical question answering (QA) systems. On the other hand, Wikipedia contains a full spectrum of world's knowledge and therefore comprises a large partition of non-health-related content, which makes disambiguation more challenging and consequently leads to large overhead for existing systems to effectively filter irrelevant information. To overcome this, we have developed both unsupervised and supervised approaches to identify health-related articles as well as clinically relevant articles. Furthermore, we explored novel features by extracting health related hierarchy from the Wikipedia category network, from which a variety of features were derived and evaluated. Our experiments show promising results and also demonstrate that employing the category hierarchy can effectively improve the system performance.

RchyOptimyx: Cellular Hierarchy Optimization for Flow Cytometry

PubMed Central

Aghaeepour, Nima; Jalali, Adrin; O’Neill, Kieran; Chattopadhyay, Pratip K.; Roederer, Mario; Hoos, Holger H.; Brinkman, Ryan R.

2013-01-01

Analysis of high-dimensional flow cytometry datasets can reveal novel cell populations with poorly understood biology. Following discovery, characterization of these populations in terms of the critical markers involved is an important step, as this can help to both better understand the biology of these populations and aid in designing simpler marker panels to identify them on simpler instruments and with fewer reagents (i.e., in resource poor or highly regulated clinical settings). However, current tools to design panels based on the biological characteristics of the target cell populations work exclusively based on technical parameters (e.g., instrument configurations, spectral overlap, and reagent availability). To address this shortcoming, we developed RchyOptimyx (cellular hieraRCHY OPTIMization), a computational tool that constructs cellular hierarchies by combining automated gating with dynamic programming and graph theory to provide the best gating strategies to identify a target population to a desired level of purity or correlation with a clinical outcome, using the simplest possible marker panels. RchyOptimyx can assess and graphically present the trade-offs between marker choice and population specificity in high-dimensional flow or mass cytometry datasets. We present three proof-of-concept use cases for RchyOptimyx that involve 1) designing a panel of surface markers for identification of rare populations that are primarily characterized using their intracellular signature; 2) simplifying the gating strategy for identification of a target cell population; 3) identification of a non-redundant marker set to identify a target cell population. PMID:23044634

Automated Comparative Auditing of NCIT Genomic Roles Using NCBI

PubMed Central

Cohen, Barry; Oren, Marc; Min, Hua; Perl, Yehoshua; Halper, Michael

2008-01-01

Biomedical research has identified many human genes and various knowledge about them. The National Cancer Institute Thesaurus (NCIT) represents such knowledge as concepts and roles (relationships). Due to the rapid advances in this field, it is to be expected that the NCIT’s Gene hierarchy will contain role errors. A comparative methodology to audit the Gene hierarchy with the use of the National Center for Biotechnology Information’s (NCBI’s) Entrez Gene database is presented. The two knowledge sources are accessed via a pair of Web crawlers to ensure up-to-date data. Our algorithms then compare the knowledge gathered from each, identify discrepancies that represent probable errors, and suggest corrective actions. The primary focus is on two kinds of gene-roles: (1) the chromosomal locations of genes, and (2) the biological processes in which genes plays a role. Regarding chromosomal locations, the discrepancies revealed are striking and systematic, suggesting a structurally common origin. In regard to the biological processes, difficulties arise because genes frequently play roles in multiple processes, and processes may have many designations (such as synonymous terms). Our algorithms make use of the roles defined in the NCIT Biological Process hierarchy to uncover many probable gene-role errors in the NCIT. These results show that automated comparative auditing is a promising technique that can identify a large number of probable errors and corrections for them in a terminological genomic knowledge repository, thus facilitating its overall maintenance. PMID:18486558

Integrating unmet needs into dementia health-related quality of life research and care: Introduction of the Hierarchy Model of Needs in Dementia.

PubMed

Scholzel-Dorenbos, Carla J M; Meeuwsen, Els J; Olde Rikkert, Marcel G M

2010-01-01

To make an inventory of needs assessment instruments in dementia, to explore the interaction between unmet needs and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and to relate these to the conceptual model of Maslow's Hierarchy of needs in order to design a dementia-specific model. Narrative review of literature on (measures of) needs of patients and caregivers and HRQoL determinants important in dementia. Relating these needs to individual goal setting instruments and Maslow's Hierarchy of needs model. The Camberwell Assessment of Needs for the Elderly (CANE) turns out to be a valid tool to assess needs of dementia patients, suitable for research and clinical use. The Carers' Needs Assessment for Dementia (CNA-D) is a valid instrument to assess needs of caregivers. Patients identified significantly fewer needs than (in)formal caregivers. The most important needs, that also determine large part of HRQoL, are need for information; support with regard to symptoms of dementia; social contact and company; and for health monitoring and safety. Goal attainment scaling in dementia is an important but not yet valid outcome measure, with only few data on feasibility in dementia patients. There are several instruments to assess needs of dementia patients and caregivers. Domains of unmet needs and HRQoL overlap. The Hierarchy Model of Needs in Dementia (HMND) offers a new theoretical framework to address the interplay between meeting of needs and improvement of HRQoL in dementia. By identifying unmet needs in dementia-research and focussing on unmet needs in dementia-care, much can be done to improve HRQoL.

Synthetic biology: new engineering rules for an emerging discipline

PubMed Central

Andrianantoandro, Ernesto; Basu, Subhayu; Karig, David K; Weiss, Ron

2006-01-01

Synthetic biologists engineer complex artificial biological systems to investigate natural biological phenomena and for a variety of applications. We outline the basic features of synthetic biology as a new engineering discipline, covering examples from the latest literature and reflecting on the features that make it unique among all other existing engineering fields. We discuss methods for designing and constructing engineered cells with novel functions in a framework of an abstract hierarchy of biological devices, modules, cells, and multicellular systems. The classical engineering strategies of standardization, decoupling, and abstraction will have to be extended to take into account the inherent characteristics of biological devices and modules. To achieve predictability and reliability, strategies for engineering biology must include the notion of cellular context in the functional definition of devices and modules, use rational redesign and directed evolution for system optimization, and focus on accomplishing tasks using cell populations rather than individual cells. The discussion brings to light issues at the heart of designing complex living systems and provides a trajectory for future development. PMID:16738572

Synthetic biology: new engineering rules for an emerging discipline.

PubMed

Andrianantoandro, Ernesto; Basu, Subhayu; Karig, David K; Weiss, Ron

2006-01-01

Synthetic biologists engineer complex artificial biological systems to investigate natural biological phenomena and for a variety of applications. We outline the basic features of synthetic biology as a new engineering discipline, covering examples from the latest literature and reflecting on the features that make it unique among all other existing engineering fields. We discuss methods for designing and constructing engineered cells with novel functions in a framework of an abstract hierarchy of biological devices, modules, cells, and multicellular systems. The classical engineering strategies of standardization, decoupling, and abstraction will have to be extended to take into account the inherent characteristics of biological devices and modules. To achieve predictability and reliability, strategies for engineering biology must include the notion of cellular context in the functional definition of devices and modules, use rational redesign and directed evolution for system optimization, and focus on accomplishing tasks using cell populations rather than individual cells. The discussion brings to light issues at the heart of designing complex living systems and provides a trajectory for future development.

Attention modulates spatial priority maps in the human occipital, parietal and frontal cortices

PubMed Central

Sprague, Thomas C.; Serences, John T.

2014-01-01

Computational theories propose that attention modulates the topographical landscape of spatial ‘priority’ maps in regions of visual cortex so that the location of an important object is associated with higher activation levels. While single-unit recording studies have demonstrated attention-related increases in the gain of neural responses and changes in the size of spatial receptive fields, the net effect of these modulations on the topography of region-level priority maps has not been investigated. Here, we used fMRI and a multivariate encoding model to reconstruct spatial representations of attended and ignored stimuli using activation patterns across entire visual areas. These reconstructed spatial representations reveal the influence of attention on the amplitude and size of stimulus representations within putative priority maps across the visual hierarchy. Our results suggest that attention increases the amplitude of stimulus representations in these spatial maps, particularly in higher visual areas, but does not substantively change their size. PMID:24212672

The Software Design for the Wide-Field Infrared Explorer Attitude Control System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, Mark O.; Barnes, Kenneth C.; Melhorn, Charles M.; Phillips, Tom

1998-01-01

The Wide-Field Infrared Explorer (WIRE), currently scheduled for launch in September 1998, is the fifth of five spacecraft in the NASA/Goddard Small Explorer (SMEX) series. This paper presents the design of WIRE's Attitude Control System flight software (ACS FSW). WIRE is a momentum-biased, three-axis stabilized stellar pointer which provides high-accuracy pointing and autonomous acquisition for eight to ten stellar targets per orbit. WIRE's short mission life and limited cryogen supply motivate requirements for Sun and Earth avoidance constraints which are designed to prevent catastrophic instrument damage and to minimize the heat load on the cryostat. The FSW implements autonomous fault detection and handling (FDH) to enforce these instrument constraints and to perform several other checks which insure the safety of the spacecraft. The ACS FSW implements modules for sensor data processing, attitude determination, attitude control, guide star acquisition, actuator command generation, command/telemetry processing, and FDH. These software components are integrated with a hierarchical control mode managing module that dictates which software components are currently active. The lowest mode in the hierarchy is the 'safest' one, in the sense that it utilizes a minimal complement of sensors and actuators to keep the spacecraft in a stable configuration (power and pointing constraints are maintained). As higher modes in the hierarchy are achieved, the various software functions are activated by the mode manager, and an increasing level of attitude control accuracy is provided. If FDH detects a constraint violation or other anomaly, it triggers a safing transition to a lower control mode. The WIRE ACS FSW satisfies all target acquisition and pointing accuracy requirements, enforces all pointing constraints, provides the ground with a simple means for reconfiguring the system via table load, and meets all the demands of its real-time embedded environment (16 MHz Intel 80386 processor with 80387 coprocessor running under the VRTX operating system). The mode manager organizes and controls all the software modules used to accomplish these goals, and in particular, the FDH module is tightly coupled with the mode manager.

Evaluation of a developmental hierarchy for breast cancer cells to assess risk-based patient selection for targeted treatment.

PubMed

Bliss, Sarah A; Paul, Sunirmal; Pobiarzyn, Piotr W; Ayer, Seda; Sinha, Garima; Pant, Saumya; Hilton, Holly; Sharma, Neha; Cunha, Maria F; Engelberth, Daniel J; Greco, Steven J; Bryan, Margarette; Kucia, Magdalena J; Kakar, Sham S; Ratajczak, Mariusz Z; Rameshwar, Pranela

2018-01-10

This study proposes that a novel developmental hierarchy of breast cancer (BC) cells (BCCs) could predict treatment response and outcome. The continued challenge to treat BC requires stratification of BCCs into distinct subsets. This would provide insights on how BCCs evade treatment and adapt dormancy for decades. We selected three subsets, based on the relative expression of octamer-binding transcription factor 4 A (Oct4A) and then analysed each with Affymetrix gene chip. Oct4A is a stem cell gene and would separate subsets based on maturation. Data analyses and gene validation identified three membrane proteins, TMEM98, GPR64 and FAT4. BCCs from cell lines and blood from BC patients were analysed for these three membrane proteins by flow cytometry, along with known markers of cancer stem cells (CSCs), CD44, CD24 and Oct4, aldehyde dehydrogenase 1 (ALDH1) activity and telomere length. A novel working hierarchy of BCCs was established with the most immature subset as CSCs. This group was further subdivided into long- and short-term CSCs. Analyses of 20 post-treatment blood indicated that circulating CSCs and early BC progenitors may be associated with recurrence or early death. These results suggest that the novel hierarchy may predict treatment response and prognosis.

A unified construction for the algebro-geometric quasiperiodic solutions of the Lotka-Volterra and relativistic Lotka-Volterra hierarchy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Peng; Fan, Engui

2015-04-01

In this paper, a new type of integrable differential-difference hierarchy, namely, the generalized relativistic Lotka-Volterra (GRLV) hierarchy, is introduced. This hierarchy is closely related to Lotka-Volterra lattice and relativistic Lotka-Volterra lattice, which allows us to provide a unified and effective way to obtain some exact solutions for both the Lotka-Volterra hierarchy and the relativistic Lotka-Volterra hierarchy. In particular, we shall construct algebro-geometric quasiperiodic solutions for the LV hierarchy and the RLV hierarchy in a unified manner on the basis of the finite gap integration theory.

Factors Affecting the Location of Road Emergency Bases in Iran Using Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP).

PubMed

Bahadori, Mohammadkarim; Hajebrahimi, Ahmad; Alimohammadzadeh, Khalil; Ravangard, Ramin; Hosseini, Seyed Mojtaba

2017-10-01

To identify and prioritize factors affecting the location of road emergency bases in Iran using Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). This was a mixed method (quantitative-qualitative) study conducted in 2016. The participants in this study included the professionals and experts in the field of pre-hospital and road emergency services issues working in the Health Deputy of Iran Ministry of Health and Medical Education, which were selected using purposive sampling method. In this study at first, the factors affecting the location of road emergency bases in Iran were identified using literature review and conducting interviews with the experts. Then, the identified factors were scored and prioritized using the studied professionals and experts' viewpoints through using the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) technique and its related pair-wise questionnaire. The collected data were analyzed using MAXQDA 10.0 software to analyze the answers given to the open question and Expert Choice 10.0 software to determine the weights and priorities of the identified factors. The results showed that eight factors were effective in locating the road emergency bases in Iran from the viewpoints of the studied professionals and experts in the field of pre-hospital and road emergency services issues, including respectively distance from the next base, region population, topography and geographical situation of the region, the volume of road traffic, the existence of amenities such as water, electricity, gas, etc. and proximity to the village, accident-prone sites, University ownership of the base site, and proximity to toll-house. Among the eight factors which were effective in locating the road emergency bases from the studied professionals and experts' perspectives, "distance from the next base" and "region population" were respectively the most important ones which had great differences with other factors.

Hierarchy, Dominance, and Deliberation: Egalitarian Values Require Mental Effort.

PubMed

Van Berkel, Laura; Crandall, Christian S; Eidelman, Scott; Blanchar, John C

2015-09-01

Hierarchy and dominance are ubiquitous. Because social hierarchy is early learned and highly rehearsed, the value of hierarchy enjoys relative ease over competing egalitarian values. In six studies, we interfere with deliberate thinking and measure endorsement of hierarchy and egalitarianism. In Study 1, bar patrons' blood alcohol content was correlated with hierarchy preference. In Study 2, cognitive load increased the authority/hierarchy moral foundation. In Study 3, low-effort thought instructions increased hierarchy endorsement and reduced equality endorsement. In Study 4, ego depletion increased hierarchy endorsement and caused a trend toward reduced equality endorsement. In Study 5, low-effort thought instructions increased endorsement of hierarchical attitudes among those with a sense of low personal power. In Study 6, participants' thinking quickly allocated more resources to high-status groups. Across five operationalizations of impaired deliberative thought, hierarchy endorsement increased and egalitarianism receded. These data suggest hierarchy may persist in part because it has a psychological advantage. © 2015 by the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc.

Brain-Mind Operational Architectonics Imaging: Technical and Methodological Aspects

PubMed Central

Fingelkurts, Andrew A; Fingelkurts, Alexander A

2008-01-01

This review paper deals with methodological and technical foundations of the Operational Architectonics framework of brain and mind functioning. This theory provides a framework for mapping and understanding important aspects of the brain mechanisms that constitute perception, cognition, and eventually consciousness. The methods utilized within Operational Architectonics framework allow analyzing with an incredible detail the operational behavior of local neuronal assemblies and their joint activity in the form of unified and metastable operational modules, which constitute the whole hierarchy of brain operations, operations of cognition and phenomenal consciousness. PMID:19526071

Evidence for a distributed hierarchy of action representation in the brain

PubMed Central

Grafton, Scott T.; de C. Hamilton, Antonia F.

2007-01-01

Complex human behavior is organized around temporally distal outcomes. Behavioral studies based on tasks such as normal prehension, multi-step object use and imitation establish the existence of relative hierarchies of motor control. The retrieval errors in apraxia also support the notion of a hierarchical model for representing action in the brain. In this review, three functional brain imaging studies of action observation using the method of repetition suppression are used to identify a putative neural architecture that supports action understanding at the level of kinematics, object centered goals and ultimately, motor outcomes. These results, based on observation, may match a similar functional anatomic hierarchy for action planning and execution. If this is true, then the findings support a functional anatomic model that is distributed across a set of interconnected brain areas that are differentially recruited for different aspects of goal oriented behavior, rather than a homogeneous mirror neuron system for organizing and understanding all behavior. PMID:17706312

Identification of overlapping communities and their hierarchy by locally calculating community-changing resolution levels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Havemann, Frank; Heinz, Michael; Struck, Alexander; Gläser, Jochen

2011-01-01

We propose a new local, deterministic and parameter-free algorithm that detects fuzzy and crisp overlapping communities in a weighted network and simultaneously reveals their hierarchy. Using a local fitness function, the algorithm greedily expands natural communities of seeds until the whole graph is covered. The hierarchy of communities is obtained analytically by calculating resolution levels at which communities grow rather than numerically by testing different resolution levels. This analytic procedure is not only more exact than its numerical alternatives such as LFM and GCE but also much faster. Critical resolution levels can be identified by searching for intervals in which large changes of the resolution do not lead to growth of communities. We tested our algorithm on benchmark graphs and on a network of 492 papers in information science. Combined with a specific post-processing, the algorithm gives much more precise results on LFR benchmarks with high overlap compared to other algorithms and performs very similarly to GCE.

The Contribution of the Cerebellum in the Hierarchial Development of the Self.

PubMed

Ceylan, Mehmet Emin; Dönmez, Aslıhan; Ülsalver, Barış Önen

2015-12-01

What distinguishes human beings from other living organisms is that a human perceives himself as a "self". The self is developed hierarchially in a multi-layered process, which is based on the evolutionary maturation of the nervous system and patterns according to the rules and demands of the external world. Many researchers have attempted to explain the different aspects of the self, as well as the related neural substrates. In this paper, we first review the previously proposed ideas regarding the neurobiology of the self. We then suggest a new hypothesis regarding the hierarchial self, which proposes that the self is developed at three stages: subjective, objective, and reflective selves. In the second part, we attempt to answer the question "Why do we need a self?" We therefore explain that different parts of the self developed in an effort to identify stability in space, stability against constantly changing objects, and stability against changing cognitions. Finally, we discuss the role of the cerebellum as the neural substrate for the self.

Genomic analysis of the hierarchical structure of regulatory networks

PubMed Central

Yu, Haiyuan; Gerstein, Mark

2006-01-01

A fundamental question in biology is how the cell uses transcription factors (TFs) to coordinate the expression of thousands of genes in response to various stimuli. The relationships between TFs and their target genes can be modeled in terms of directed regulatory networks. These relationships, in turn, can be readily compared with commonplace “chain-of-command” structures in social networks, which have characteristic hierarchical layouts. Here, we develop algorithms for identifying generalized hierarchies (allowing for various loop structures) and use these approaches to illuminate extensive pyramid-shaped hierarchical structures existing in the regulatory networks of representative prokaryotes (Escherichia coli) and eukaryotes (Saccharomyces cerevisiae), with most TFs at the bottom levels and only a few master TFs on top. These masters are situated near the center of the protein–protein interaction network, a different type of network from the regulatory one, and they receive most of the input for the whole regulatory hierarchy through protein interactions. Moreover, they have maximal influence over other genes, in terms of affecting expression-level changes. Surprisingly, however, TFs at the bottom of the regulatory hierarchy are more essential to the viability of the cell. Finally, one might think master TFs achieve their wide influence through directly regulating many targets, but TFs with most direct targets are in the middle of the hierarchy. We find, in fact, that these midlevel TFs are “control bottlenecks” in the hierarchy, and this great degree of control for “middle managers” has parallels in efficient social structures in various corporate and governmental settings. PMID:17003135

Planning strategies for the Ambler walking robot

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wettergreen, David; Thomas, Hans; Thorpe, Chuck

1990-01-01

A hierarchy of planning strategies is proposed and explained for a walking robot called the Ambler. The hierarchy decomposes planning into levels of trajectory, gait, and footfall. An abstraction of feasible traversability allows the Ambler's trajectory planner to identify acceptable trajectories by finding paths that guarantee footfalls without specifying exactly which footfalls. Leg and body moves that achieve this trajectory can be generated by the Ambler's gait planner, which incorporates pattern constraints and measures of utility to search for the best next move. By combining constraints from the quality and details of the terrain, the Ambler's footfall planner can select footfalls that insure stability and remain within the tolerances of the gait.

Who's afraid of the boss: cultural differences in social hierarchies modulate self-face recognition in Chinese and Americans.

PubMed

Liew, Sook-Lei; Ma, Yina; Han, Shihui; Aziz-Zadeh, Lisa

2011-02-16

Human adults typically respond faster to their own face than to the faces of others. However, in Chinese participants, this self-face advantage is lost in the presence of one's supervisor, and they respond faster to their supervisor's face than to their own. While this "boss effect" suggests a strong modulation of self-processing in the presence of influential social superiors, the current study examined whether this effect was true across cultures. Given the wealth of literature on cultural differences between collectivist, interdependent versus individualistic, independent self-construals, we hypothesized that the boss effect might be weaker in independent than interdependent cultures. Twenty European American college students were asked to identify orientations of their own face or their supervisors' face. We found that European Americans, unlike Chinese participants, did not show a "boss effect" and maintained the self-face advantage even in the presence of their supervisor's face. Interestingly, however, their self-face advantage decreased as their ratings of their boss's perceived social status increased, suggesting that self-processing in Americans is influenced more by one's social status than by one's hierarchical position as a social superior. In addition, when their boss's face was presented with a labmate's face, American participants responded faster to the boss's face, indicating that the boss may represent general social dominance rather than a direct negative threat to oneself, in more independent cultures. Altogether, these results demonstrate a strong cultural modulation of self-processing in social contexts and suggest that the very concept of social positions, such as a boss, may hold markedly different meanings to the self across Western and East Asian cultures.

Who's Afraid of the Boss: Cultural Differences in Social Hierarchies Modulate Self-Face Recognition in Chinese and Americans

PubMed Central

Liew, Sook-Lei; Ma, Yina; Han, Shihui; Aziz-Zadeh, Lisa

2011-01-01

Human adults typically respond faster to their own face than to the faces of others. However, in Chinese participants, this self-face advantage is lost in the presence of one's supervisor, and they respond faster to their supervisor's face than to their own. While this “boss effect” suggests a strong modulation of self-processing in the presence of influential social superiors, the current study examined whether this effect was true across cultures. Given the wealth of literature on cultural differences between collectivist, interdependent versus individualistic, independent self-construals, we hypothesized that the boss effect might be weaker in independent than interdependent cultures. Twenty European American college students were asked to identify orientations of their own face or their supervisors' face. We found that European Americans, unlike Chinese participants, did not show a “boss effect” and maintained the self-face advantage even in the presence of their supervisor's face. Interestingly, however, their self-face advantage decreased as their ratings of their boss's perceived social status increased, suggesting that self-processing in Americans is influenced more by one's social status than by one's hierarchical position as a social superior. In addition, when their boss's face was presented with a labmate's face, American participants responded faster to the boss's face, indicating that the boss may represent general social dominance rather than a direct negative threat to oneself, in more independent cultures. Altogether, these results demonstrate a strong cultural modulation of self-processing in social contexts and suggest that the very concept of social positions, such as a boss, may hold markedly different meanings to the self across Western and East Asian cultures. PMID:21359209

Mass hierarchy and energy scaling of the Tsallis - Pareto parameters in hadron productions at RHIC and LHC energies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bíró, Gábor; Barnaföldi, Gergely Gábor; Biró, Tamás Sándor; Shen, Keming

2018-02-01

The latest, high-accuracy identified hadron spectra measurements in highenergy nuclear collisions led us to the investigation of the strongly interacting particles and collective effects in small systems. Since microscopical processes result in a statistical Tsallis - Pareto distribution, the fit parameters q and T are well suited for identifying system size scalings and initial conditions. Moreover, parameter values provide information on the deviation from the extensive, Boltzmann - Gibbs statistics in finite-volumes. We apply here the fit procedure developed in our earlier study for proton-proton collisions [1, 2]. The observed mass and center-of-mass energy trends in the hadron production are compared to RHIC dAu and LHC pPb data in different centrality/multiplicity classes. Here we present new results on mass hierarchy in pp and pA from light to heavy hadrons.

Shifting Relations with the More-than-Human: Six Threshold Concepts for Transformative Sustainability Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barrett, M. J.; Harmin, Matthew; Maracle, Bryan; Patterson, Molly; Thomson, Christina; Flowers, Michelle; Bors, Kirk

2017-01-01

Using the iterative process of action research, we identify six portals of understanding, called threshold concepts, which can be used as curricular guideposts to disrupt the socially constituted separation, and hierarchy, between humans and the more-than-human. The threshold concepts identified in this study provide focal points for a curriculum…

Spin generalization of the Calogero–Moser hierarchy and the matrix KP hierarchy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pashkov, V.; Zabrodin, A.

2018-05-01

We establish a correspondence between rational solutions to the matrix KP hierarchy and the spin generalization of the Calogero–Moser system on the level of hierarchies. Namely, it is shown that the rational solutions to the matrix KP hierarchy appear to be isomorphic to the spin Calogero–Moser system in a sense that the dynamics of poles of solutions to the matrix KP hierarchy in the higher times is governed by the higher Hamiltonians of the spin Calogero–Moser integrable hierarchy with rational potential.

Probing neutrino mass hierarchy by comparing the charged-current and neutral-current interaction rates of supernova neutrinos

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lai, Kwang-Chang; Leung Center for Cosmology and Particle Astrophysics; Lee, Fei-Fan

2016-07-22

The neutrino mass hierarchy is one of the neutrino fundamental properties yet to be determined. We introduce a method to determine neutrino mass hierarchy by comparing the interaction rate of neutral current (NC) interactions, ν(ν-bar)+p→ν(ν-bar)+p, and inverse beta decays (IBD), ν-bar{sub e}+p→n+e{sup +}, of supernova neutrinos in scintillation detectors. Neutrino flavor conversions inside the supernova are sensitive to neutrino mass hierarchy. Due to Mikheyev-Smirnov-Wolfenstein effects, the full swapping of ν-bar{sub e} flux with the ν-bar{sub x} (x=μ, τ) one occurs in the inverted hierarchy, while such a swapping does not occur in the normal hierarchy. As a result, more highmore » energy IBD events occur in the detector for the inverted hierarchy than the high energy IBD events in the normal hierarchy. By comparing IBD interaction rate with the mass hierarchy independent NC interaction rate, one can determine the neutrino mass hierarchy.« less

Probing neutrino mass hierarchy by comparing the charged-current and neutral-current interaction rates of supernova neutrinos

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lai, Kwang-Chang; Lee, Fei-Fan; Lee, Feng-Shiuh; Lin, Guey-Lin; Liu, Tsung-Che; Yang, Yi

2016-07-01

The neutrino mass hierarchy is one of the neutrino fundamental properties yet to be determined. We introduce a method to determine neutrino mass hierarchy by comparing the interaction rate of neutral current (NC) interactions, ν(bar nu) + p → ν(bar nu) + p, and inverse beta decays (IBD), bar nue + p → n + e+, of supernova neutrinos in scintillation detectors. Neutrino flavor conversions inside the supernova are sensitive to neutrino mass hierarchy. Due to Mikheyev-Smirnov-Wolfenstein effects, the full swapping of bar nue flux with the bar nux (x = μ, τ) one occurs in the inverted hierarchy, while such a swapping does not occur in the normal hierarchy. As a result, more high energy IBD events occur in the detector for the inverted hierarchy than the high energy IBD events in the normal hierarchy. By comparing IBD interaction rate with the mass hierarchy independent NC interaction rate, one can determine the neutrino mass hierarchy.

Automation in the Space Station module power management and distribution Breadboard

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Walls, Bryan; Lollar, Louis F.

1990-01-01

The Space Station Module Power Management and Distribution (SSM/PMAD) Breadboard, located at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) in Huntsville, Alabama, models the power distribution within a Space Station Freedom Habitation or Laboratory module. Originally designed for 20 kHz ac power, the system is now being converted to high voltage dc power with power levels on a par with those expected for a space station module. In addition to the power distribution hardware, the system includes computer control through a hierarchy of processes. The lowest level process consists of fast, simple (from a computing standpoint) switchgear, capable of quickly safing the system. The next level consists of local load center processors called Lowest Level Processors (LLP's). These LLP's execute load scheduling, perform redundant switching, and shed loads which use more than scheduled power. The level above the LLP's contains a Communication and Algorithmic Controller (CAC) which coordinates communications with the highest level. Finally, at this highest level, three cooperating Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems manage load prioritization, load scheduling, load shedding, and fault recovery and management. The system provides an excellent venue for developing and examining advanced automation techniques. The current system and the plans for its future are examined.

Topographical maps as complex networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

da Fontoura Costa, Luciano; Diambra, Luis

2005-02-01

The neuronal networks in the mammalian cortex are characterized by the coexistence of hierarchy, modularity, short and long range interactions, spatial correlations, and topographical connections. Particularly interesting, the latter type of organization implies special demands on developing systems in order to achieve precise maps preserving spatial adjacencies, even at the expense of isometry. Although the object of intensive biological research, the elucidation of the main anatomic-functional purposes of the ubiquitous topographical connections in the mammalian brain remains an elusive issue. The present work reports on how recent results from complex network formalism can be used to quantify and model the effect of topographical connections between neuronal cells over the connectivity of the network. While the topographical mapping between two cortical modules is achieved by connecting nearest cells from each module, four kinds of network models are adopted for implementing intramodular connections, including random, preferential-attachment, short-range, and long-range networks. It is shown that, though spatially uniform and simple, topographical connections between modules can lead to major changes in the network properties in some specific cases, depending on intramodular connections schemes, fostering more effective intercommunication between the involved neuronal cells and modules. The possible implications of such effects on cortical operation are discussed.

Prioritizing the causes and correctors of smoking towards the solution of tobacco free future using enhanced analytic hierarchy process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Halim, Tisya Farida Abdul; Sapiri, Hasimah; Abidin, Norhaslinda Zainal

2017-11-01

This paper presents a method for prioritizing the causes and correctors of smoking habits in Malaysia. In order to identify the driving forces that causes (initiation factors) smoking habits and its correctors (anti-smoking strategies), a method called Enhanced Analytic Hierarchy Process (EAHP) is employed. The EAHP has advantages over normal Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) based on its capability to eliminate inconsistency (consistency ratio > 0.1) in evaluating expert's judgment. Based on the Theory of Triadic Influence, the identified initiation factors were personal beliefs and values, personal psychological, family influence, psychosocial influence, culture and legislative. There are five anti-smoking strategies that have been implemented in Malaysia, namely packaging and labelling, pricing and taxation, advertising, smoke-free legislation and education and support. Findings from the study shows that psychosocial influence was considered as the initiation factor of smoking among Malaysian adults, and mass media campaign was the most effective anti-smoking strategies to reduce smoking prevalence. The implementation of an effective anti-smoking strategies should be considered towards the endgame of tobacco by the year 2040 as outlined by the government. The findings in turn can provide insights and guidelines for researchers as well as policy makers to assess the effectiveness of anti-smoking strategies towards a better policy planning decisions in the future.

How healthcare states matter: comparing the introduction of clinical standards in Britain and Germany.

PubMed

Burau, Viola; Fenton, Laura

2009-01-01

This paper aims to identify variation in the introduction of New Public Management reforms in healthcare and how this variation is related to country-specific healthcare states. The analysis uses the introduction of clinical standards in Britain and Germany as cases. The two countries are characterised by interesting differences in relation to the institutional set-up of healthcare states and as such present ideal cases to explore the specific ways of how healthcare states filter clinical standards as tools of a generic managerialism. Both countries have introduced clinical standards but, importantly, the substantive nature of clinical standards differs, reflecting differences in initial institutional conditions. More specifically, in Britain clinical standards have taken the form of two parallel policies, which strengthen hierarchy-based governing and redefine professional self-regulation. In Germany, by contrast, clinical standards come in one single policy, which strengthens the hybrid of network- and hierarchy-based governing and to some extent also pure hierarchy-based forms of governing. First, with its cross-country comparative focus, the analysis is able to identify systematic variations across healthcare states and the specific ways in which they impact on the introduction of New Public Management. Second, with its focus on clinical standards, the analysis deals with the governance of medical practice as one of the central areas of healthcare states.

Block algebra in two-component BKP and D type Drinfeld-Sokolov hierarchies

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Li, Chuanzhong, E-mail: lichuanzhong@nbu.edu.cn; He, Jingsong, E-mail: hejingsong@nbu.edu.cn

We construct generalized additional symmetries of a two-component BKP hierarchy defined by two pseudo-differential Lax operators. These additional symmetry flows form a Block type algebra with some modified (or additional) terms because of a B type reduction condition of this integrable hierarchy. Further we show that the D type Drinfeld-Sokolov hierarchy, which is a reduction of the two-component BKP hierarchy, possess a complete Block type additional symmetry algebra. That D type Drinfeld-Sokolov hierarchy has a similar algebraic structure as the bigraded Toda hierarchy which is a differential-discrete integrable system.

GrouseFlocks: steerable exploration of graph hierarchy space.

PubMed

Archambault, Daniel; Munzner, Tamara; Auber, David

2008-01-01

Several previous systems allow users to interactively explore a large input graph through cuts of a superimposed hierarchy. This hierarchy is often created using clustering algorithms or topological features present in the graph. However, many graphs have domain-specific attributes associated with the nodes and edges, which could be used to create many possible hierarchies providing unique views of the input graph. GrouseFlocks is a system for the exploration of this graph hierarchy space. By allowing users to see several different possible hierarchies on the same graph, the system helps users investigate graph hierarchy space instead of a single fixed hierarchy. GrouseFlocks provides a simple set of operations so that users can create and modify their graph hierarchies based on selections. These selections can be made manually or based on patterns in the attribute data provided with the graph. It provides feedback to the user within seconds, allowing interactive exploration of this space.

The exposure hierarchy as a measure of progress and efficacy in the treatment of social anxiety disorder.

PubMed

Katerelos, Marina; Hawley, Lance L; Antony, Martin M; McCabe, Randi E

2008-07-01

This study explored the psychometric properties and utility of the exposure hierarchy as a measure of treatment outcome for social anxiety disorder (SAD). An exposure hierarchy was created for each of 103 individuals with a diagnosis of SAD who completed a course of cognitive behavioral group therapy. Exposure hierarchy ratings were collected on a weekly basis, and a series of self-report measures were collected before and after treatment. Results indicated that the exposure hierarchy demonstrated high test-retest reliability, as well as significant convergent validity, as participants' exposure hierarchy ratings correlated positively with scores on conceptually related measures. Hierarchy ratings were significantly associated with changes in SAD symptoms over time. However, exposure hierarchy ratings were correlated to general measures of psychopathology, suggesting limited discriminant validity. The study highlights the clinical and scientific utility of the exposure hierarchy.

Toda hierarchies and their applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Takasaki, Kanehisa

2018-05-01

The 2D Toda hierarchy occupies a central position in the family of integrable hierarchies of the Toda type. The 1D Toda hierarchy and the Ablowitz–Ladik (aka relativistic Toda) hierarchy can be derived from the 2D Toda hierarchy as reductions. These integrable hierarchies have been applied to various problems of mathematics and mathematical physics since 1990s. A recent example is a series of studies on models of statistical mechanics called the melting crystal model. This research has revealed that the aforementioned two reductions of the 2D Toda hierarchy underlie two different melting crystal models. Technical clues are a fermionic realization of the quantum torus algebra, special algebraic relations therein called shift symmetries, and a matrix factorization problem. The two melting crystal models thus exhibit remarkable similarity with the Hermitian and unitary matrix models for which the two reductions of the 2D Toda hierarchy play the role of fundamental integrable structures.

Why and when hierarchy impacts team effectiveness: A meta-analytic integration.

PubMed

Greer, Lindred L; de Jong, Bart A; Schouten, Maartje E; Dannals, Jennifer E

2018-06-01

Hierarchy has the potential to both benefit and harm team effectiveness. In this article, we meta-analytically investigate different explanations for why and when hierarchy helps or hurts team effectiveness, drawing on results from 54 prior studies (N = 13,914 teams). Our findings show that, on net, hierarchy negatively impacts team effectiveness (performance: ρ = -.08; viability: ρ = -.11), and that this effect is mediated by increased conflict-enabling states. Additionally, we show that the negative relationship between hierarchy and team performance is exacerbated by aspects of the team structure (i.e., membership instability, skill differentiation) and the hierarchy itself (i.e., mutability), which make hierarchical teams prone to conflict. The predictions regarding the positive effect of hierarchy on team performance as mediated by coordination-enabling processes, and the moderating roles of several aspects of team tasks (i.e., interdependence, complexity) and the hierarchy (i.e., form) were not supported, with the exception that task ambiguity enhanced the positive effects of hierarchy. Given that our findings largely support dysfunctional views on hierarchy, future research is needed to understand when and why hierarchy may be more likely to live up to its purported functional benefits. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Neurocognitive pattern analysis reveals classificatory hierarchy of attention deficits in schizophrenia.

PubMed

Shen, Christina; Popescu, Florin C; Hahn, Eric; Ta, Tam T M; Dettling, Michael; Neuhaus, Andres H

2014-07-01

Attention deficits, among other cognitive deficits, are frequently observed in schizophrenia. Although valid and reliable neurocognitive tasks have been established to assess attention deficits in schizophrenia, the hierarchical value of those tests as diagnostic discriminants on a single-subject level remains unclear. Thus, much research is devoted to attention deficits that are unlikely to be translated into clinical practice. On the other hand, a clear hierarchy of attention deficits in schizophrenia could considerably aid diagnostic decisions and may prove beneficial for longitudinal monitoring of therapeutic advances. To propose a diagnostic hierarchy of attention deficits in schizophrenia, we investigated several facets of attention in 86 schizophrenia patients and 86 healthy controls using a set of established attention tests. We applied state-of-the-art machine learning algorithms to determine attentive test variables that enable an automated differentiation between schizophrenia patients and healthy controls. After feature preranking, hypothesis building, and hypothesis validation, the polynomial support vector machine classifier achieved a classification accuracy of 90.70% ± 2.9% using psychomotor speed and 3 different attention parameters derived from sustained and divided attention tasks. Our study proposes, to the best of our knowledge, the first hierarchy of attention deficits in schizophrenia by identifying the most discriminative attention parameters among a variety of attention deficits found in schizophrenia patients. Our results offer a starting point for hierarchy building of schizophrenia-associated attention deficits and contribute to translating these concepts into diagnostic and therapeutic practice on a single-subject level. © The Author 2013. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

An Analytic Hierarchy Process-based Method to Rank the Critical Success Factors of Implementing a Pharmacy Barcode System.

PubMed

Alharthi, Hana; Sultana, Nahid; Al-Amoudi, Amjaad; Basudan, Afrah

2015-01-01

Pharmacy barcode scanning is used to reduce errors during the medication dispensing process. However, this technology has rarely been used in hospital pharmacies in Saudi Arabia. This article describes the barriers to successful implementation of a barcode scanning system in Saudi Arabia. A literature review was conducted to identify the relevant critical success factors (CSFs) for a successful dispensing barcode system implementation. Twenty-eight pharmacists from a local hospital in Saudi Arabia were interviewed to obtain their perception of these CSFs. In this study, planning (process flow issues and training requirements), resistance (fear of change, communication issues, and negative perceptions about technology), and technology (software, hardware, and vendor support) were identified as the main barriers. The analytic hierarchy process (AHP), one of the most widely used tools for decision making in the presence of multiple criteria, was used to compare and rank these identified CSFs. The results of this study suggest that resistance barriers have a greater impact than planning and technology barriers. In particular, fear of change is the most critical factor, and training is the least critical factor.

Sex-specific mechanism of social hierarchy in mice.

PubMed

van den Berg, Wouter E; Lamballais, Sander; Kushner, Steven A

2015-05-01

The establishment of social hierarchies is a naturally occurring, evolutionarily conserved phenomenon with a well-established impact on fitness and health. Investigations of complex social group dynamics may offer novel opportunities for translational studies of autism spectrum disorder. Here we describe a robust behavioral paradigm using an automated version of the tube test. Isogenic groups of male and female mice establish linear social hierarchies that remain highly stable for at least 14 days, the longest interval tested. Remarkably, however, their social strategy is sex-specific: females primarily utilize intrinsic attributes, whereas males are strongly influenced by prior social experience. Using both genetic and pharmacological manipulations, we identify testosterone as a critical sex-specific factor for determining which social strategy is used. Males inheriting a null mutation of the sex-determining region Y (Sry) gene used a similar social cognitive strategy as females. In contrast, females with transgenic expression of Sry utilized a typically male social strategy. Analogously, castration of males and testosterone supplementation of females yielded similar outcomes, with a reversal of their social cognitive strategy. Together, our results demonstrate a sex-specific mechanism underlying social hierarchy, in which both males and females retain the functional capacity to adapt their social strategy. More generally, we expect the automated tube test to provide an important complementary approach for both fundamental and translational studies of social behavior.

The Heath Occupational Model.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heath, William E.

1990-01-01

Career development programs must identify occupational needs of adults. A model based on Maslow's hierarchy develops occupational questions related to individual motivations (physiology, safety, love, esteem, and self-actualization). Individual needs are then compared with characteristics and benefits of proposed jobs, companies, or careers. (SK)

Anomaly Detection for Beam Loss Maps in the Large Hadron Collider

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Valentino, Gianluca; Bruce, Roderik; Redaelli, Stefano; Rossi, Roberto; Theodoropoulos, Panagiotis; Jaster-Merz, Sonja

2017-07-01

In the LHC, beam loss maps are used to validate collimator settings for cleaning and machine protection. This is done by monitoring the loss distribution in the ring during infrequent controlled loss map campaigns, as well as in standard operation. Due to the complexity of the system, consisting of more than 50 collimators per beam, it is difficult to identify small changes in the collimation hierarchy, which may be due to setting errors or beam orbit drifts with such methods. A technique based on Principal Component Analysis and Local Outlier Factor is presented to detect anomalies in the loss maps and therefore provide an automatic check of the collimation hierarchy.

An optoelectric professional's training model based on Unity of Knowing and Doing theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qin, Shiqiao; Wu, Wei; Zheng, Jiaxing; Wang, Xingshu; Zhao, Yingwei

2017-08-01

The "Unity of Knowing and Doing" (UKD) theory is proposed by an ancient Chinese philosopher, Wang Shouren, in 1508, which explains how to unify knowledge and practice. Different from the Chinese traditional UKD theory, the international higher education usually treats knowledge and practice as independent, and puts more emphasis on knowledge. Oriented from the UKD theory, the College of Opto-electric Science and Engineering (COESE) at National University of Defense Technology (NUDT) explores a novel training model in cultivating opto-electric professionals from the aspects of classroom teaching, practice experiment, system experiment, design experiment, research experiment and innovation experiment (CPSDRI). This model aims at promoting the unity of knowledge and practice, takes how to improve the students' capability as the main concern and tries to enhance the progress from cognition to professional action competence. It contains two hierarchies: cognition (CPS) and action competence (DRI). In the cognition hierarchy, students will focus on learning and mastering the professional knowledge of optics, opto-electric technology, laser, computer, electronics and machine through classroom teaching, practice experiment and system experiment (CPS). Great attention will be paid to case teaching, which links knowledge with practice. In the action competence hierarchy, emphasis will be placed on promoting students' capability of using knowledge to solve practical problems through design experiment, research experiment and innovation experiment (DRI). In this model, knowledge is divided into different modules and capability is cultivated on different levels. It combines classroom teaching and experimental teaching in a synergetic way and unifies cognition and practice, which is a valuable reference to the opto-electric undergraduate professionals' cultivation.

Seeking structure in social organization: compensatory control and the psychological advantages of hierarchy.

PubMed

Friesen, Justin P; Kay, Aaron C; Eibach, Richard P; Galinsky, Adam D

2014-04-01

Hierarchies are a ubiquitous form of human social organization. We hypothesized that 1 reason for the prevalence of hierarchies is that they offer structure and therefore satisfy the core motivational needs for order and control relative to less structured forms of social organization. This hypothesis is rooted in compensatory control theory, which posits that (a) individuals have a basic need to perceive the world as orderly and structured, and (b) personal and external sources of control are capable of satisfying this need because both serve the comforting belief that the world operates in an orderly fashion. Our first 2 studies confirmed that hierarchies were perceived as more structured and orderly relative to egalitarian arrangements (Study 1) and that working in a hierarchical workplace promotes a feeling of self-efficacy (Study 2). We threatened participants' sense of personal control and measured perceptions of and preferences for hierarchy in 5 subsequent experiments. Participants who lacked control perceived more hierarchy occurring in ambiguous social situations (Study 3) and preferred hierarchy more strongly in workplace contexts (Studies 4-5). We also provide evidence that hierarchies are indeed appealing because of their structure: Preference for hierarchy was higher among individuals high in Personal Need for Structure and a control threat increased preference for hierarchy even among participants low in Personal Need for Structure (Study 5). Framing a hierarchy as unstructured reversed the effect of control threat on hierarchy (Study 6). Finally, hierarchy-enhancing jobs were more appealing after control threat, even when they were low in power and status (Study 7). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved).

Study of parameter degeneracy and hierarchy sensitivity of NO ν A in presence of sterile neutrino

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghosh, Monojit; Gupta, Shivani; Matthews, Zachary M.; Sharma, Pankaj; Williams, Anthony G.

2017-10-01

The first hint of the neutrino mass hierarchy is believed to come from the long-baseline experiment NO ν A . Recent results from NO ν A shows a mild preference towards the C P phase δ13=-9 0 ° and normal hierarchy. Fortunately this is the favorable area of the parameter space which does not suffer from the hierarchy-δ13 degeneracy and thus NO ν A can have good hierarchy sensitivity for this true combination of hierarchy and δ13. Apart from the hierarchy-δ13 degeneracy there is also the octant-δ13 degeneracy. But this does not affect the favorable parameter space of NO ν A as this degeneracy can be resolved with a balanced neutrino and antineutrino run. However, if we consider the existence of a light sterile neutrino then there may be additional degeneracies which can spoil the hierarchy sensitivity of NO ν A even in the favorable parameter space. In the present work we find that apart from the degeneracies mentioned above, there are additional hierarchy and octant degeneracies that appear with the new phase δ14 in the presence of a light sterile neutrino in the eV scale. In contrast to the hierarchy and octant degeneracies appearing with δ13, the parameter space for hierarchy-δ14 degeneracy is different in neutrinos and antineutrinos though the octant-δ14 degeneracy behaves similarly in neutrinos and antineutrinos. We study the effect of these degeneracies on the hierarchy sensitivity of NO ν A for the true normal hierarchy.

Spectroscopic Studies of Double Beta Decays and MOON

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ejiri, H.; Nuclear Science, Czech Technical University, Brehova, Prague, Czech Republic, National Institute of Radiological Sciences, Chiba, 263-8555

2007-10-12

This is a brief review of future spectroscopic experiments of neutrino-less double beta decays (0{nu}{beta}{beta}) and the MOON (Mo Observatory Of Neutrinos) project. Spectroscopic 0{nu}{beta}{beta} experiments of MOON, SuperNEMO and DCBA are planned to study Majorana masses in the quasi-degenerate (QD) and inverted mass hierarchy (IH) regions. MOON aims at 0{nu}{beta}{beta} studies with the {nu}-mass sensitivities of 100-30 meV by means of a super ensemble of multi-layer modules, each being consist of a scintillator plate, two tracking detector planes and a thin {beta}{beta} source film.

A Two-moment Radiation Hydrodynamics Module in ATHENA Using a Godunov Method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Skinner, M. A.; Ostriker, E. C.

2013-04-01

We describe a module for the Athena code that solves the grey equations of radiation hydrodynamics (RHD) using a local variable Eddington tensor (VET) based on the M1 closure of the two-moment hierarchy of the transfer equation. The variables are updated via a combination of explicit Godunov methods to advance the gas and radiation variables including the non-stiff source terms, and a local implicit method to integrate the stiff source terms. We employ the reduced speed of light approximation (RSLA) with subcycling of the radiation variables in order to reduce computational costs. The streaming and diffusion limits are well-described by the M1 closure model, and our implementation shows excellent behavior for problems containing both regimes simultaneously. Our operator-split method is ideally suited for problems with a slowly-varying radiation field and dynamical gas flows, in which the effect of the RSLA is minimal.

Cortical Hubs Form a Module for Multisensory Integration on Top of the Hierarchy of Cortical Networks

PubMed Central

Zamora-López, Gorka; Zhou, Changsong; Kurths, Jürgen

2009-01-01

Sensory stimuli entering the nervous system follow particular paths of processing, typically separated (segregated) from the paths of other modal information. However, sensory perception, awareness and cognition emerge from the combination of information (integration). The corticocortical networks of cats and macaque monkeys display three prominent characteristics: (i) modular organisation (facilitating the segregation), (ii) abundant alternative processing paths and (iii) the presence of highly connected hubs. Here, we study in detail the organisation and potential function of the cortical hubs by graph analysis and information theoretical methods. We find that the cortical hubs form a spatially delocalised, but topologically central module with the capacity to integrate multisensory information in a collaborative manner. With this, we resolve the underlying anatomical substrate that supports the simultaneous capacity of the cortex to segregate and to integrate multisensory information. PMID:20428515

The Fragility of Individual-Based Explanations of Social Hierarchies: A Test Using Animal Pecking Orders

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

The standard approach in accounting for hierarchical differentiation in biology and the social sciences considers a hierarchy as a static distribution of individuals possessing differing amounts of some valued commodity, assumes that the hierarchy is generated by micro-level processes involving individuals, and attempts to reverse engineer the processes that produced the hierarchy. However, sufficient experimental and analytical results are available to evaluate this standard approach in the case of animal dominance hierarchies (pecking orders). Our evaluation using evidence from hierarchy formation in small groups of both hens and cichlid fish reveals significant deficiencies in the three tenets of the standard approach in accounting for the organization of dominance hierarchies. In consequence, we suggest that a new approach is needed to explain the organization of pecking orders and, very possibly, by implication, for other kinds of social hierarchies. We develop an example of such an approach that considers dominance hierarchies to be dynamic networks, uses dynamic sequences of interaction (dynamic network motifs) to explain the organization of dominance hierarchies, and derives these dynamic sequences directly from observation of hierarchy formation. We test this dynamical explanation using computer simulation and find a good fit with actual dynamics of hierarchy formation in small groups of hens. We hypothesize that the same dynamic sequences are used in small groups of many other animal species forming pecking orders, and we discuss the data required to evaluate our hypothesis. Finally, we briefly consider how our dynamic approach may be generalized to other kinds of social hierarchies using the example of the distribution of empty gastropod (snail) shells occupied in populations of hermit crabs. PMID:27410230

Using Maslows Hierarchy of Needs to Identify Indicators of Potential Mass Migration Events

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-03-23

34, Psychological Review, 1943: 370-396. 7 Ibid. 10 subconsciously ; however, one will consciously seek them out if they are denied. Other...and less prone to bias . Examining statistical data 4 The scatterplots for the most promising

A translocator-specific export signal establishes the translocator-effector secretion hierarchy that is important for type III secretion system function

PubMed Central

Tomalka, Amanda G.; Stopford, Charles M.; Lee, Pei-Chung; Rietsch, Arne

2012-01-01

Summary Type III secretion systems are used by many Gram-negative pathogens to directly deliver effector proteins into the cytoplasm of host cells. To accomplish this, bacteria secrete translocator proteins that form a pore in the host-cell membrane through which the effector proteins are then introduced into the host cell. Evidence from multiple systems indicates that the pore-forming translocator proteins are exported before effectors, but how this secretion hierarchy is established is unclear. Here we used the P. aeruginosa translocator protein PopD as a model to identify its export signals. The amino-terminal secretion signal and chaperone, PcrH, are required for export under all conditions. Two novel signals in PopD, one proximal to the chaperone-binding site and one at the very C-terminus of the protein, are required for export of PopD before effector proteins. These novel export signals establish the translocator-effector secretion hierarchy, which in turn, is critical for the delivery of effectors into host cells. PMID:23121689

An evaluation of three methods of saying "no" to avoid an escalating response class hierarchy.

PubMed

Mace, F Charles; Pratt, Jamie L; Prager, Kevin L; Pritchard, Duncan

2011-01-01

We evaluated the effects of three different methods of denying access to requested high-preference activities on escalating problem behavior. Functional analysis and response class hierarchy (RCH) assessment results indicated that 4 topographies of problem behaviors displayed by a 13-year-old boy with high-functioning autism constituted an RCH maintained by positive (tangible) reinforcement. Identification of the RCH comprised the baseline phase, during which computer access was denied by saying "no" and providing an explanation for the restriction. Two alternative methods of saying "no" were then evaluated. These methods included (a) denying computer access while providing an opportunity to engage in an alternative preferred activity and (b) denying immediate computer access by arranging a contingency between completion of a low-preference task and subsequent computer access. Results indicated that a hierarchy of problem behavior may be identified in the context of denying access to a preferred activity and that it may be possible to prevent occurrences of escalating problem behavior by either presenting alternative options or arranging contingencies when saying "no" to a child's requests.

A high level interface to SCOP and ASTRAL implemented in python.

PubMed

Casbon, James A; Crooks, Gavin E; Saqi, Mansoor A S

2006-01-10

Benchmarking algorithms in structural bioinformatics often involves the construction of datasets of proteins with given sequence and structural properties. The SCOP database is a manually curated structural classification which groups together proteins on the basis of structural similarity. The ASTRAL compendium provides non redundant subsets of SCOP domains on the basis of sequence similarity such that no two domains in a given subset share more than a defined degree of sequence similarity. Taken together these two resources provide a 'ground truth' for assessing structural bioinformatics algorithms. We present a small and easy to use API written in python to enable construction of datasets from these resources. We have designed a set of python modules to provide an abstraction of the SCOP and ASTRAL databases. The modules are designed to work as part of the Biopython distribution. Python users can now manipulate and use the SCOP hierarchy from within python programs, and use ASTRAL to return sequences of domains in SCOP, as well as clustered representations of SCOP from ASTRAL. The modules make the analysis and generation of datasets for use in structural genomics easier and more principled.

A consistent hierarchy of generalized kinetic equation approximations to the master equation applied to surface catalysis.

PubMed

Herschlag, Gregory J; Mitran, Sorin; Lin, Guang

2015-06-21

We develop a hierarchy of approximations to the master equation for systems that exhibit translational invariance and finite-range spatial correlation. Each approximation within the hierarchy is a set of ordinary differential equations that considers spatial correlations of varying lattice distance; the assumption is that the full system will have finite spatial correlations and thus the behavior of the models within the hierarchy will approach that of the full system. We provide evidence of this convergence in the context of one- and two-dimensional numerical examples. Lower levels within the hierarchy that consider shorter spatial correlations are shown to be up to three orders of magnitude faster than traditional kinetic Monte Carlo methods (KMC) for one-dimensional systems, while predicting similar system dynamics and steady states as KMC methods. We then test the hierarchy on a two-dimensional model for the oxidation of CO on RuO2(110), showing that low-order truncations of the hierarchy efficiently capture the essential system dynamics. By considering sequences of models in the hierarchy that account for longer spatial correlations, successive model predictions may be used to establish empirical approximation of error estimates. The hierarchy may be thought of as a class of generalized phenomenological kinetic models since each element of the hierarchy approximates the master equation and the lowest level in the hierarchy is identical to a simple existing phenomenological kinetic models.

The Effects of Dominance on Leadership and Energetic Gain: A Dynamic Game between Pairs of Social Foragers

PubMed Central

Rands, Sean A.

2011-01-01

Although social behaviour can bring many benefits to an individual, there are also costs that may be incurred whenever the members of a social group interact. The formation of dominance hierarchies could offer a means of reducing some of the costs of social interaction, but individuals within the hierarchy may end up paying differing costs dependent upon their position within the hierarchy. These differing interaction costs may therefore influence the behaviour of the group, as subordinate individuals may experience very different benefits and costs to dominants when the group is conducting a given behaviour. Here, a state-dependent dynamic game is described which considers a pair of social foragers where there is a set dominance relationship within the pair. The model considers the case where the subordinate member of the pair pays an interference cost when it and the dominant individual conduct specific pairs of behaviours together. The model demonstrates that if the subordinate individual pays these energetic costs when it interacts with the dominant individual, this has effects upon the behaviour of both subordinate and the dominant individuals. Including interaction costs increases the amount of foraging behaviour both individuals conduct, with the behaviour of the pair being driven by the subordinate individual. The subordinate will tend to be the lighter individual for longer periods of time when interaction costs are imposed. This supports earlier suggestions that lighter individuals should act as the decision-maker within the pair, giving leadership-like behaviours that are based upon energetic state. Pre-existing properties of individuals such as their dominance will be less important for determining which individual makes the decisions for the pair. This suggests that, even with strict behavioural hierarchies, identifying which individual is the dominant one is not sufficient for identifying which one is the leader. PMID:22028645

Retribution as hierarchy regulation: Hierarchy preferences moderate the effect of offender socioeconomic status on support for retribution.

PubMed

Redford, Liz; Ratliff, Kate A

2018-01-01

People punish others for various reasons, including deterring future crime, incapacitating the offender, and retribution, or payback. The current research focuses on retribution, testing whether support for retribution is motivated by the desire to maintain social hierarchies. If so, then the retributive tendencies of hierarchy enhancers or hierarchy attenuators should depend on whether offenders are relatively lower or higher in status, respectively. Three studies showed that hierarchy attenuators were more retributive against high-status offenders than for low-status offenders, that hierarchy enhancers showed a stronger orientation towards retributive justice, and that relationship was stronger for low-status, rather than high-status, criminal offenders. These findings clarify the purpose and function of retributive punishment. They also reveal how hierarchy-regulating motives underlie retribution, motives which, if allowed to influence judgements, may contribute to biased or ineffective justice systems. © 2017 The British Psychological Society.

Comparison of topological clustering within protein networks using edge metrics that evaluate full sequence, full structure, and active site microenvironment similarity.

PubMed

Leuthaeuser, Janelle B; Knutson, Stacy T; Kumar, Kiran; Babbitt, Patricia C; Fetrow, Jacquelyn S

2015-09-01

The development of accurate protein function annotation methods has emerged as a major unsolved biological problem. Protein similarity networks, one approach to function annotation via annotation transfer, group proteins into similarity-based clusters. An underlying assumption is that the edge metric used to identify such clusters correlates with functional information. In this contribution, this assumption is evaluated by observing topologies in similarity networks using three different edge metrics: sequence (BLAST), structure (TM-Align), and active site similarity (active site profiling, implemented in DASP). Network topologies for four well-studied protein superfamilies (enolase, peroxiredoxin (Prx), glutathione transferase (GST), and crotonase) were compared with curated functional hierarchies and structure. As expected, network topology differs, depending on edge metric; comparison of topologies provides valuable information on structure/function relationships. Subnetworks based on active site similarity correlate with known functional hierarchies at a single edge threshold more often than sequence- or structure-based networks. Sequence- and structure-based networks are useful for identifying sequence and domain similarities and differences; therefore, it is important to consider the clustering goal before deciding appropriate edge metric. Further, conserved active site residues identified in enolase and GST active site subnetworks correspond with published functionally important residues. Extension of this analysis yields predictions of functionally determinant residues for GST subgroups. These results support the hypothesis that active site similarity-based networks reveal clusters that share functional details and lay the foundation for capturing functionally relevant hierarchies using an approach that is both automatable and can deliver greater precision in function annotation than current similarity-based methods. © 2015 The Authors Protein Science published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of The Protein Society.

Comparison of topological clustering within protein networks using edge metrics that evaluate full sequence, full structure, and active site microenvironment similarity

PubMed Central

Leuthaeuser, Janelle B; Knutson, Stacy T; Kumar, Kiran; Babbitt, Patricia C; Fetrow, Jacquelyn S

2015-01-01

The development of accurate protein function annotation methods has emerged as a major unsolved biological problem. Protein similarity networks, one approach to function annotation via annotation transfer, group proteins into similarity-based clusters. An underlying assumption is that the edge metric used to identify such clusters correlates with functional information. In this contribution, this assumption is evaluated by observing topologies in similarity networks using three different edge metrics: sequence (BLAST), structure (TM-Align), and active site similarity (active site profiling, implemented in DASP). Network topologies for four well-studied protein superfamilies (enolase, peroxiredoxin (Prx), glutathione transferase (GST), and crotonase) were compared with curated functional hierarchies and structure. As expected, network topology differs, depending on edge metric; comparison of topologies provides valuable information on structure/function relationships. Subnetworks based on active site similarity correlate with known functional hierarchies at a single edge threshold more often than sequence- or structure-based networks. Sequence- and structure-based networks are useful for identifying sequence and domain similarities and differences; therefore, it is important to consider the clustering goal before deciding appropriate edge metric. Further, conserved active site residues identified in enolase and GST active site subnetworks correspond with published functionally important residues. Extension of this analysis yields predictions of functionally determinant residues for GST subgroups. These results support the hypothesis that active site similarity-based networks reveal clusters that share functional details and lay the foundation for capturing functionally relevant hierarchies using an approach that is both automatable and can deliver greater precision in function annotation than current similarity-based methods. PMID:26073648

Scalable persistent identifier systems for dynamic datasets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Golodoniuc, P.; Cox, S. J. D.; Klump, J. F.

2016-12-01

Reliable and persistent identification of objects, whether tangible or not, is essential in information management. Many Internet-based systems have been developed to identify digital data objects, e.g., PURL, LSID, Handle, ARK. These were largely designed for identification of static digital objects. The amount of data made available online has grown exponentially over the last two decades and fine-grained identification of dynamically generated data objects within large datasets using conventional systems (e.g., PURL) has become impractical. We have compared capabilities of various technological solutions to enable resolvability of data objects in dynamic datasets, and developed a dataset-centric approach to resolution of identifiers. This is particularly important in Semantic Linked Data environments where dynamic frequently changing data is delivered live via web services, so registration of individual data objects to obtain identifiers is impractical. We use identifier patterns and pattern hierarchies for identification of data objects, which allows relationships between identifiers to be expressed, and also provides means for resolving a single identifier into multiple forms (i.e. views or representations of an object). The latter can be implemented through (a) HTTP content negotiation, or (b) use of URI querystring parameters. The pattern and hierarchy approach has been implemented in the Linked Data API supporting the United Nations Spatial Data Infrastructure (UNSDI) initiative and later in the implementation of geoscientific data delivery for the Capricorn Distal Footprints project using International Geo Sample Numbers (IGSN). This enables flexible resolution of multi-view persistent identifiers and provides a scalable solution for large heterogeneous datasets.

Information Technology and New Forms of Organisations.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ghasemiyeh, Rahim; Li, Feng

This paper evaluates the impacts of the Internet on organizational structures and identifies new forms of organizations in light of information technology (IT) advances. Four traditional forms of organizations are summarized, i.e., the bureaucratic hierarchy, the entrepreneurial organization, the matrix organization, and the adhocacy. The…

Using Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to Identify Indicators of Potential Mass Migration Events

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-03-23

34, Psychological Review, 1943: 370-396. 7 Ibid. 10 subconsciously ; however, one will consciously seek them out if they are denied. Other...and less prone to bias . Examining statistical data 4 The scatterplots for the most promising

The Cartesian Heritage of Bloom's Taxonomy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bertucio, Brett

2017-01-01

This essay seeks to contribute to the critical reception of "Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives" by tracing the Taxonomy's underlying philosophical assumptions. Identifying Bloom's work as consistent with the legacy of Cartesian thought, I argue that its hierarchy of behavioral objectives provides a framework for certainty and…

Guidance to Registrants: Process for Making Claims Against Emerging Viral Pathogens not on EPA-Registered Disinfectant Labels

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

This guidance proposes to use an organism hierarchy to identify effective products for use with emerging pathogens and to permit registrants to make limited statements against such pathogens. It provides general guidance to interested parties.

A Program Based on Maslow's Hierarchy Helps Students in Trouble.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yates, Mary Ruth; And Others

1980-01-01

Describes the program at Alabama's Huntsville Alternative School, where severe behavioral problems are dealt with by promoting positive self-concepts in students through acceptance, trust, warmth, concern, firmness, consistency, humor, and the meeting of human needs as identified by Abraham Maslow. (Author/PGD)

Cronus: A Distributed Operating System.

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-11-01

general, support movement of arbitrary objects from one host to another; some specific object tye will give rise to mobile objects, however. -34...File hierarchy is achieved by binding file identifiers to symbolic names in a hierarchical name space. Cronus CMos Aplications Since CMOS is the GCE

Profiling human breast epithelial cells using single cell RNA sequencing identifies cell diversity.

PubMed

Nguyen, Quy H; Pervolarakis, Nicholas; Blake, Kerrigan; Ma, Dennis; Davis, Ryan Tevia; James, Nathan; Phung, Anh T; Willey, Elizabeth; Kumar, Raj; Jabart, Eric; Driver, Ian; Rock, Jason; Goga, Andrei; Khan, Seema A; Lawson, Devon A; Werb, Zena; Kessenbrock, Kai

2018-05-23

Breast cancer arises from breast epithelial cells that acquire genetic alterations leading to subsequent loss of tissue homeostasis. Several distinct epithelial subpopulations have been proposed, but complete understanding of the spectrum of heterogeneity and differentiation hierarchy in the human breast remains elusive. Here, we use single-cell mRNA sequencing (scRNAseq) to profile the transcriptomes of 25,790 primary human breast epithelial cells isolated from reduction mammoplasties of seven individuals. Unbiased clustering analysis reveals the existence of three distinct epithelial cell populations, one basal and two luminal cell types, which we identify as secretory L1- and hormone-responsive L2-type cells. Pseudotemporal reconstruction of differentiation trajectories produces one continuous lineage hierarchy that closely connects the basal lineage to the two differentiated luminal branches. Our comprehensive cell atlas provides insights into the cellular blueprint of the human breast epithelium and will form the foundation to understand how the system goes awry during breast cancer.

A fast method for finding bound systems in numerical simulations: Results from the formation of asteroid binaries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leinhardt, Zoë M.; Richardson, Derek C.

2005-08-01

We present a new code ( companion) that identifies bound systems of particles in O(NlogN) time. Simple binaries consisting of pairs of mutually bound particles and complex hierarchies consisting of collections of mutually bound particles are identifiable with this code. In comparison, brute force binary search methods scale as O(N) while full hierarchy searches can be as expensive as O(N), making analysis highly inefficient for multiple data sets with N≳10. A simple test case is provided to illustrate the method. Timing tests demonstrating O(NlogN) scaling with the new code on real data are presented. We apply our method to data from asteroid satellite simulations [Durda et al., 2004. Icarus 167, 382-396; Erratum: Icarus 170, 242; reprinted article: Icarus 170, 243-257] and note interesting multi-particle configurations. The code is available at http://www.astro.umd.edu/zoe/companion/ and is distributed under the terms and conditions of the GNU Public License.

Identification of the needs of haemodialysis patients using the concept of Maslow's hierarchy of needs.

PubMed

Bayoumi, Magda

2012-03-01

Along with basic survival and other clinical outcomes, patients' quality of life is an important indicator to reflect the needs of these patients. Human needs are classified in Maslow's hierarchy, where the most essential basic physiological need provides the base, and self actualisation is at the top of pyramid. The aim of this study is to identify the patients' needs who are on maintenance haemodialysis using concept of Maslow's hierarchy. The descriptive study was conducted in the dialysis unit of Suez Canal University Hospitals. The study included 50 patients attending the dialysis unit. The findings showed that the patients' highest need was for self-esteem (92.0%), whereas the lowest was for love and belonging (38.0%). Statistically significant relationships were revealed between the identified love and belonging needs and patients' age and the duration of dialysis (p = 0.008). The total needs score was lower with the longer duration of dialysis (59.6 ± 7.3), compared to those with a duration less than 24 months (65.7 ± 8.1), p = 0.02. Based on the main study findings it is concluded that haemodialysis patients' highest need was for self-esteem, and the lowest was for love and belonging. These needs increased with longer duration of dialysis. Nurses need to be aware of these findings in order to be able to supply the necessary support to help the patient regain his/her self-concept. © 2011 European Dialysis and Transplant Nurses Association/European Renal Care Association.

CARL: a LabVIEW 3 computer program for conducting exposure therapy for the treatment of dental injection fear.

PubMed

Coldwell, S E; Getz, T; Milgrom, P; Prall, C W; Spadafora, A; Ramsay, D S

1998-04-01

This paper describes CARL (Computer Assisted Relaxation Learning), a computerized, exposure-based therapy program for the treatment of dental injection fear. The CARL program operates primarily in two different modes; in vitro, which presents a video-taped exposure hierarchy, and in vivo, which presents scripts for a dentist or hygienist to use while working with a subject. Two additional modes are used to train subjects to use the program and to administer behavioral assessment tests. The program contains five different modules, which function to register a subject, train subjects to use physical and cognitive relaxation techniques, deliver an exposure hierarchy, question subjects about the helpfulness of each of the therapy components, and test for memory effects of anxiolytic medication. Nine subjects have completed the CARL therapy program and 1-yr follow-up as participants in a placebo-controlled clinical trial examining the effects of alprazolam on exposure therapy for dental injection phobia. All nine subjects were able to receive two dental injections, and all reduced their general fear of dental injections. Initial results therefore indicate that the CARL program successfully reduces dental injection fear.

Cortical interactions in vision and awareness: hierarchies in reverse.

PubMed

Juan, Chi-Hung; Campana, Gianluca; Walsh, Vincent

2004-01-01

The anatomical connections between visual areas can be organized in 'feedforward', 'feedback' or 'horizontal' laminar patterns. We report here four experiments that test the function of some of the feedback projections in visual cortex. Projections from V5 to V1 have been suggested to be important in visual awareness, and in the first experiment we show this to be the case in the blindsight patient GY. This demonstration is replicated, in principle, in the second experiment and we also show the timing of the V5-V1 interaction to correspond to findings from single unit physiology. In the third experiment we show that V1 is important for stimulus detection in visual search arrays and that the timing of V1 interference with TMS is late (up to 240 ms after the onset of the visual array). Finally we report an experiment showing that the parietal cortex is not involved in visual motion priming, whereas V5 is, suggesting that the parietal cortex does not modulate V5 in this task. We interpret the data in terms of Bullier's recent physiological recordings and Ahissar and Hochstein's reverse hierarchy theory of vision.

Signaling hierarchy regulating human endothelial cell development.

PubMed

Kelly, Melissa A; Hirschi, Karen K

2009-05-01

Our present knowledge of the regulation of mammalian endothelial cell differentiation has been largely derived from studies of mouse embryonic development. However, unique mechanisms and hierarchy of signals that govern human endothelial cell development are unknown and, thus, explored in these studies. Using human embryonic stem cells as a model system, we were able to reproducibly and robustly generate differentiated endothelial cells via coculture on OP9 marrow stromal cells. We found that, in contrast to studies in the mouse, bFGF and VEGF had no specific effects on the initiation of human vasculogenesis. However, exogenous Ihh promoted endothelial cell differentiation, as evidenced by increased production of cells with cobblestone morphology that coexpress multiple endothelial-specific genes and proteins, form lumens, and exhibit DiI-AcLDL uptake. Inhibition of BMP signaling using Noggin or BMP4, specifically, using neutralizing antibodies suppressed endothelial cell formation; whereas, addition of rhBMP4 to cells treated with the hedgehog inhibitor cyclopamine rescued endothelial cell development. Our studies revealed that Ihh promoted human endothelial cell differentiation from pluripotent hES cells via BMP signaling, providing novel insights applicable to modulating human endothelial cell formation and vascular regeneration for human clinical therapies.

Status, Power, and Intergroup Relations: The Personal Is the Societal

PubMed Central

Fiske, Susan T.; Dupree, Cydney H.; Nicolas, Gandalf; Swencionis, Jillian K.

2016-01-01

Hierarchies in the correlated forms of power (resources) and status (prestige) are constants that organize human societies. This article reviews relevant social psychological literature and identifies several converging results concerning power and status. Whether rank is chronically possessed or temporarily embodied, higher ranks create psychological distance from others, allow agency by the higher ranked, and exact deference from the lower ranked. Beliefs that status entails competence are essentially universal. Interpersonal interactions create warmth-competence compensatory tradeoffs. Along with societal structures (enduring inequality), these tradeoffs reinforce status-competence beliefs. Race, class, and gender further illustrate these dynamics. Although status systems are resilient, they can shift, and understanding those change processes is an important direction for future research, as global demographic changes disrupt existing hierarchies. PMID:27453923

Status, Power, and Intergroup Relations: The Personal Is the Societal.

PubMed

Fiske, Susan T; Dupree, Cydney H; Nicolas, Gandalf; Swencionis, Jillian K

2016-10-01

Hierarchies in the correlated forms of power (resources) and status (prestige) are constants that organize human societies. This article reviews relevant social psychological literature and identifies several converging results concerning power and status. Whether rank is chronically possessed or temporarily embodied, higher ranks create psychological distance from others, allow agency by the higher ranked, and exact deference from the lower ranked. Beliefs that status entails competence are essentially universal. Interpersonal interactions create warmth-competence compensatory tradeoffs. Along with societal structures (enduring inequality), these tradeoffs reinforce status-competence beliefs. Race, class, and gender further illustrate these dynamics. Although status systems are resilient, they can shift, and understanding those change processes is an important direction for future research, as global demographic changes disrupt existing hierarchies.

A hierarchy of self-renewing tumor-initiating cell types in glioblastoma.

PubMed

Chen, Ruihuan; Nishimura, Merry C; Bumbaca, Stephanie M; Kharbanda, Samir; Forrest, William F; Kasman, Ian M; Greve, Joan M; Soriano, Robert H; Gilmour, Laurie L; Rivers, Celina Sanchez; Modrusan, Zora; Nacu, Serban; Guerrero, Steve; Edgar, Kyle A; Wallin, Jeffrey J; Lamszus, Katrin; Westphal, Manfred; Heim, Susanne; James, C David; VandenBerg, Scott R; Costello, Joseph F; Moorefield, Scott; Cowdrey, Cynthia J; Prados, Michael; Phillips, Heidi S

2010-04-13

The neural stem cell marker CD133 is reported to identify cells within glioblastoma (GBM) that can initiate neurosphere growth and tumor formation; however, instances of CD133(-) cells exhibiting similar properties have also been reported. Here, we show that some PTEN-deficient GBM tumors produce a series of CD133(+) and CD133(-) self-renewing tumor-initiating cell types and provide evidence that these cell types constitute a lineage hierarchy. Our results show that the capacities for self-renewal and tumor initiation in GBM need not be restricted to a uniform population of stemlike cells, but can be shared by a lineage of self-renewing cell types expressing a range of markers of forebrain lineage. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The mouse that roared: neural mechanisms of social hierarchy.

PubMed

Wang, Fei; Kessels, Helmut W; Hu, Hailan

2014-11-01

Hierarchical social status greatly influences behavior and health. Human and animal studies have begun to identify the brain regions that are activated during the formation of social hierarchies. They point towards the prefrontal cortex (PFC) as a central regulator, with brain areas upstream of the PFC conveying information about social status, and downstream brain regions executing dominance behavior. This review summarizes our current knowledge on the neural circuits that control social status. We discuss how the neural mechanisms for various types of dominance behavior can be studied in laboratory rodents by selective manipulation of neuronal activity or synaptic plasticity. These studies may help in finding the cause of social stress-related mental and physical health problems. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Supersymmetric quantum spin chains and classical integrable systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tsuboi, Zengo; Zabrodin, Anton; Zotov, Andrei

2015-05-01

For integrable inhomogeneous supersymmetric spin chains (generalized graded magnets) constructed employing Y( gl( N| M))-invariant R-matrices in finite-dimensional representations we introduce the master T-operator which is a sort of generating function for the family of commuting quantum transfer matrices. Any eigenvalue of the master T-operator is the tau-function of the classical mKP hierarchy. It is a polynomial in the spectral parameter which is identified with the 0-th time of the hierarchy. This implies a remarkable relation between the quantum supersymmetric spin chains and classical many-body integrable systems of particles of the Ruijsenaars-Schneider type. As an outcome, we obtain a system of algebraic equations for the spectrum of the spin chain Hamiltonians.

2540 km: Bimagic Baseline for Neutrino Oscillation Parameters

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dighe, Amol; Goswami, Srubabati; Ray, Shamayita

2010-12-31

We show that a source-to-detector distance of 2540 km, motivated recently [S. K. Raut, R. S. Singh, and S. U. Sankar, arXiv:0908.3741] for a narrow band superbeam, offers multiple advantages for a low energy neutrino factory with a detector that can identify muon charge. At this baseline, for any neutrino hierarchy, the wrong-sign muon signal is almost independent of CP violation and {theta}{sub 13} in certain energy ranges. This allows the identification of the hierarchy in a clean way. In addition, part of the muon spectrum is also sensitive to the CP violating phase and {theta}{sub 13}, so that themore » same setup can be used to probe these parameters as well.« less

Landscape of supersymmetric particle mass hierarchies and their signature space at the CERN Large Hadron Collider.

PubMed

Feldman, Daniel; Liu, Zuowei; Nath, Pran

2007-12-21

The minimal supersymmetric standard model with soft breaking has a large landscape of supersymmetric particle mass hierarchies. This number is reduced significantly in well-motivated scenarios such as minimal supergravity and alternatives. We carry out an analysis of the landscape for the first four lightest particles and identify at least 16 mass patterns, and provide benchmarks for each. We study the signature space for the patterns at the CERN Large Hadron Collider by analyzing the lepton+ (jet> or =2) + missing P{T} signals with 0, 1, 2, and 3 leptons. Correlations in missing P{T} are also analyzed. It is found that even with 10 fb{-1} of data a significant discrimination among patterns emerges.

Recursion Relations for Double Ramification Hierarchies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buryak, Alexandr; Rossi, Paolo

2016-03-01

In this paper we study various properties of the double ramification hierarchy, an integrable hierarchy of hamiltonian PDEs introduced in Buryak (CommunMath Phys 336(3):1085-1107, 2015) using intersection theory of the double ramification cycle in the moduli space of stable curves. In particular, we prove a recursion formula that recovers the full hierarchy starting from just one of the Hamiltonians, the one associated to the first descendant of the unit of a cohomological field theory. Moreover, we introduce analogues of the topological recursion relations and the divisor equation both for the Hamiltonian densities and for the string solution of the double ramification hierarchy. This machinery is very efficient and we apply it to various computations for the trivial and Hodge cohomological field theories, and for the r -spin Witten's classes. Moreover, we prove the Miura equivalence between the double ramification hierarchy and the Dubrovin-Zhang hierarchy for the Gromov-Witten theory of the complex projective line (extended Toda hierarchy).

Quality assurance of chemical ingredient classification for the National Drug File - Reference Terminology.

PubMed

Zheng, Ling; Yumak, Hasan; Chen, Ling; Ochs, Christopher; Geller, James; Kapusnik-Uner, Joan; Perl, Yehoshua

2017-09-01

The National Drug File - Reference Terminology (NDF-RT) is a large and complex drug terminology consisting of several classification hierarchies on top of an extensive collection of drug concepts. These hierarchies provide important information about clinical drugs, e.g., their chemical ingredients, mechanisms of action, dosage form and physiological effects. Within NDF-RT such information is represented using tens of thousands of roles connecting drugs to classifications. In previous studies, we have introduced various kinds of Abstraction Networks to summarize the content and structure of terminologies in order to facilitate their visual comprehension, and support quality assurance of terminologies. However, these previous kinds of Abstraction Networks are not appropriate for summarizing the NDF-RT classification hierarchies, due to its unique structure. In this paper, we present the novel Ingredient Abstraction Network (IAbN) to summarize, visualize and support the audit of NDF-RT's Chemical Ingredients hierarchy and its associated drugs. A common theme in our quality assurance framework is to use characterizations of sets of concepts, revealed by the Abstraction Network structure, to capture concepts, the modeling of which is more complex than for other concepts. For the IAbN, we characterize drug ingredient concepts as more complex if they belong to IAbN groups with multiple parent groups. We show that such concepts have a statistically significantly higher rate of errors than a control sample and identify two especially common patterns of errors. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Contrasting lexical similarity and formal definitions in SNOMED CT: consistency and implications.

PubMed

Agrawal, Ankur; Elhanan, Gai

2014-02-01

To quantify the presence of and evaluate an approach for detection of inconsistencies in the formal definitions of SNOMED CT (SCT) concepts utilizing a lexical method. Utilizing SCT's Procedure hierarchy, we algorithmically formulated similarity sets: groups of concepts with similar lexical structure of their fully specified name. We formulated five random samples, each with 50 similarity sets, based on the same parameter: number of parents, attributes, groups, all the former as well as a randomly selected control sample. All samples' sets were reviewed for types of formal definition inconsistencies: hierarchical, attribute assignment, attribute target values, groups, and definitional. For the Procedure hierarchy, 2111 similarity sets were formulated, covering 18.1% of eligible concepts. The evaluation revealed that 38 (Control) to 70% (Different relationships) of similarity sets within the samples exhibited significant inconsistencies. The rate of inconsistencies for the sample with different relationships was highly significant compared to Control, as well as the number of attribute assignment and hierarchical inconsistencies within their respective samples. While, at this time of the HITECH initiative, the formal definitions of SCT are only a minor consideration, in the grand scheme of sophisticated, meaningful use of captured clinical data, they are essential. However, significant portion of the concepts in the most semantically complex hierarchy of SCT, the Procedure hierarchy, are modeled inconsistently in a manner that affects their computability. Lexical methods can efficiently identify such inconsistencies and possibly allow for their algorithmic resolution. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

On the robustness of Herlihy's hierarchy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jayanti, Prasad

1993-01-01

A wait-free hierarchy maps object types to levels in Z(+) U (infinity) and has the following property: if a type T is at level N, and T' is an arbitrary type, then there is a wait-free implementation of an object of type T', for N processes, using only registers and objects of type T. The infinite hierarchy defined by Herlihy is an example of a wait-free hierarchy. A wait-free hierarchy is robust if it has the following property: if T is at level N, and S is a finite set of types belonging to levels N - 1 or lower, then there is no wait-free implementation of an object of type T, for N processes, using any number and any combination of objects belonging to the types in S. Robustness implies that there are no clever ways of combining weak shared objects to obtain stronger ones. Contrary to what many researchers believe, we prove that Herlihy's hierarchy is not robust. We then define some natural variants of Herlihy's hierarchy, which are also infinite wait-free hierarchies. With the exception of one, which is still open, these are not robust either. We conclude with the open question of whether non-trivial robust wait-free hierarchies exist.

A Maslovian Counseling Method.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kirkpatrick, J. Stephen

1979-01-01

With Maslow's hierarchy as a basis, the model provides structure for setting goals in counseling cases and overall programs. Different kinds of client concerns are identified, and suggestions are made for using these 14 categories. The article includes specific suggestions for using the model in diagnosis, evaluation, counselor education, and…

A Hierarchy of Management Training Requirements: The Competency Domain Model.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sandwith, Paul

1993-01-01

The Competency Domain Model has five domains of management competencies: conceptual/creative, leadership, interpersonal, administrative, and technical. Specific competencies and training plans can be identified in each domain for different levels--first line supervisor, field office manager, assistant manager, area manager, director of operations.…

NANOSTRUCTURED MATERIAL DESIGN FOR HG, AS, AND SE CAPTURE

EPA Science Inventory

The goal of this research project is to identify potential materials that can be used as multipollutant sorbents using a hierarchy of computational modeling approaches. Palladium (Pd) and gold (Au) alloys were investigated and the results show that the addition of a small amou...

Library Education in the ASEAN Countries.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Atan, H. B.; Havard-Williams, P.

1987-01-01

Identifies the hierarchy of library development in Southeast Asian countries that results in the neglect of public and school libraries. Developing local library school curricula which focus on the specific needs of each country and cooperation among library schools are suggested as methods of correcting this situation. (CLB)

A W-Grammar Description for ADA.

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-12-01

7 2. A Type 2 Grammar for Ada Identifiers . . . . . . .... 8 3. The Chomsky erarchy......... ...... 10 4. Some Hypernotions Used in...Ada Language Reference Manual. The Chomsky Hierarchy (4:9-20, 7:217-232). In the 1950s, Noam Chomsky defined five classes of phrase structure grammars ...describing valid language tokens. For example a Type 3 grammar for Ada identifiers is shown in Figure 1. Type 2 Chomsky Languages are the Context-free

Eye Movement Evidence for Hierarchy Effects on Memory Representation of Discourses.

PubMed

Wu, Yingying; Yang, Xiaohong; Yang, Yufang

2016-01-01

In this study, we applied the text-change paradigm to investigate whether and how discourse hierarchy affected the memory representation of a discourse. Three kinds of three-sentence discourses were constructed. In the hierarchy-high condition and the hierarchy-low condition, the three sentences of the discourses were hierarchically organized and the last sentence of each discourse was located at the high level and the low level of the discourse hierarchy, respectively. In the linear condition, the three sentences of the discourses were linearly organized. Critical words were always located at the last sentence of the discourses. These discourses were successively presented twice and the critical words were changed to semantically related words in the second presentation. The results showed that during the early processing stage, the critical words were read for longer times when they were changed in the hierarchy-high and the linear conditions, but not in the hierarchy-low condition. During the late processing stage, the changed-critical words were again found to induce longer reading times only when they were in the hierarchy-high condition. These results suggest that words in a discourse have better memory representation when they are located at the higher rather than at the lower level of the discourse hierarchy. Global discourse hierarchy is established as an important factor in constructing the mental representation of a discourse.

Eye Movement Evidence for Hierarchy Effects on Memory Representation of Discourses

PubMed Central

Wu, Yingying; Yang, Xiaohong; Yang, Yufang

2016-01-01

In this study, we applied the text-change paradigm to investigate whether and how discourse hierarchy affected the memory representation of a discourse. Three kinds of three-sentence discourses were constructed. In the hierarchy-high condition and the hierarchy-low condition, the three sentences of the discourses were hierarchically organized and the last sentence of each discourse was located at the high level and the low level of the discourse hierarchy, respectively. In the linear condition, the three sentences of the discourses were linearly organized. Critical words were always located at the last sentence of the discourses. These discourses were successively presented twice and the critical words were changed to semantically related words in the second presentation. The results showed that during the early processing stage, the critical words were read for longer times when they were changed in the hierarchy-high and the linear conditions, but not in the hierarchy-low condition. During the late processing stage, the changed-critical words were again found to induce longer reading times only when they were in the hierarchy-high condition. These results suggest that words in a discourse have better memory representation when they are located at the higher rather than at the lower level of the discourse hierarchy. Global discourse hierarchy is established as an important factor in constructing the mental representation of a discourse. PMID:26789002

Siting MSW landfill using weighted linear combination and analytical hierarchy process (AHP) methodology in GIS environment (case study: Karaj).

PubMed

Moeinaddini, Mazaher; Khorasani, Nematollah; Danehkar, Afshin; Darvishsefat, Ali Asghar; Zienalyan, Mehdi

2010-05-01

Selection of landfill site is a complex process and needs many diverse criteria. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the suitability of the studied site as landfill for MSW in Karaj. Using weighted linear combination (WLC) method and spatial cluster analysis (SCA), suitable sites for allocation of landfill for a 20-year period were identified. For analyzing spatial auto-correlation of the land suitability map layer (LSML), Maron's I was used. Finally, using the analytical hierarchy process (AHP), the most preferred alternative for the landfill siting was identified. Main advantages of AHP are: relative ease of handling multiple criteria, easy to understand and effective handling of both qualitative and quantitative data. As a result, 6% of the study area is suitable for landfill siting and third alternative was identified as the most preferred for siting MSW landfill by AHP. The ranking of alternatives were obtained only by applying the WLC approach showed different results from the AHP. The WLC should be used only for the identification of alternatives and the AHP is used for prioritization. We suggest the employed procedure for other similar regions. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hierarchical modularization of biochemical pathways using fuzzy-c means clustering.

PubMed

de Luis Balaguer, Maria A; Williams, Cranos M

2014-08-01

Biological systems that are representative of regulatory, metabolic, or signaling pathways can be highly complex. Mathematical models that describe such systems inherit this complexity. As a result, these models can often fail to provide a path toward the intuitive comprehension of these systems. More coarse information that allows a perceptive insight of the system is sometimes needed in combination with the model to understand control hierarchies or lower level functional relationships. In this paper, we present a method to identify relationships between components of dynamic models of biochemical pathways that reside in different functional groups. We find primary relationships and secondary relationships. The secondary relationships reveal connections that are present in the system, which current techniques that only identify primary relationships are unable to show. We also identify how relationships between components dynamically change over time. This results in a method that provides the hierarchy of the relationships among components, which can help us to understand the low level functional structure of the system and to elucidate potential hierarchical control. As a proof of concept, we apply the algorithm to the epidermal growth factor signal transduction pathway, and to the C3 photosynthesis pathway. We identify primary relationships among components that are in agreement with previous computational decomposition studies, and identify secondary relationships that uncover connections among components that current computational approaches were unable to reveal.

Understanding the Reading Attributes and Their Cognitive Relationships on a High-Stakes Biology Assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rawlusyk, Kevin James

Test items used to assess learners' knowledge on high-stakes science examinations contain contextualized questions that unintentionally assess reading skill along with conceptual knowledge. Therefore, students who are not proficient readers are unable to comprehend the text within the test item to demonstrate effectively their level of science knowledge. The purpose of this quantitative study was to understand what reading attributes were required to successfully answer the Biology 30 Diploma Exam. Furthermore, the research sought to understand the cognitive relationships among the reading attributes through quantitative analysis structured by the Attribute Hierarchy Model (AHM). The research consisted of two phases: (1) Cognitive development, where the cognitive attributes of the Biology 30 Exam were specified and hierarchy structures were developed; and (2) Psychometric analysis, that statistically tested the attribute hierarchy using the Hierarchy Consistency Index (HCI), and calculate attribute probabilities. Phase one of the research used January 2011, Biology 30 Diploma Exam, while phase two accessed archival data for the 9985 examinees who took the assessment on January 24th, 2011. Phase one identified ten specific reading attributes, of which five were identified as unique subsets of vocabulary, two were identified as reading visual representations, and three corresponded to general reading skills. Four hierarchical cognitive model were proposed then analyzed using the HCI as a mechanism to explain the relationship among the attributes. Model A had the highest HCI value (0.337), indicating an overall poor data fit, yet for the top achieving examinees the model had an excellent model fit with an HCI value of 0.888, and for examinees that scored over 60% there was a moderate model fit (HCI = 0.592). Linear regressions of the attribute probability estimates suggest that there is a cognitive relationship among six of the ten reading attributes (R2 = 0.958 and 0.922). The results conclude that the Biology 30 Diploma Exam requires examinee to understand specific reading attributes to answer test items successfully. Knowing the specific reading attributes associated with the Biology 30 Diploma Exam allows for teachers and test developers to better assess learners and to be aware that there are other cognitive processes that influence test results other than the examinees science knowledge.

The Toda lattice hierarchy and deformation of conformal field theories

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fukuma, M.; Takebe, T.

In this paper, the authors point out that the Toda lattice hierarchy known in soliton theory is relevant for the description of the deformations of conformal field theories while the KP hierarchy describes unperturbed conformal theories. It is shown that the holomorphic parts of the conserved currents in the perturbed system (the Toda lattice hierarchy) coincide with the conserved currents in the KP hierarchy and can be written in terms of the W-algebraic currents. Furthermore, their anti-holomorphic counterparts are obtained.

The concept of hierarchy in general systems theory.

PubMed

Gasparski, W

1994-01-01

The paper reviews main ideas related to the concept of hierarchy as they are discussed in contemporary general systems theory. After presenting a dictionary definition of the concept, the author examines the intuitive idea of hierarchy quoting Mario Bunge's notion of level structure. Then relationship between two other concepts: a system and a hierarchy is characterised on the bases of Bowler's, Bunge's again, Klir's, and the author's studies. Finally, the paper is concluded that hierarchy is not an otological concept but epistemological one.

Machine Aided Indexing and the NASA Thesaurus

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

vonOfenheim, Bill

2007-01-01

Machine Aided Indexing (MAI) is a Web-based application program for aiding the indexing of literature in the NASA Scientific and Technical Information (STI) Database. MAI was designed to be a convenient, fully interactive tool for determining the subject matter of documents and identifying keywords. The heart of MAI is a natural-language processor that accepts, as input, any user-supplied text, including abstracts, full documents, and Web pages. Within seconds, the text is analyzed and a ranked list of terms is generated. The 17,800 terms of the NASA Thesaurus serve as the foundation of the knowledge base used by MAI. The NASA Thesaurus defines a standard vocabulary, the use of which enables MAI to assist in ensuring that STI documents are uniformly and consistently accessible. Of particular interest to traditional users of the NASA Thesaurus, MAI incorporates a fully searchable thesaurus display module that affords word-search and hierarchy- navigation capabilities that make it much easier and less time-consuming to look up terms and browse, relative to lookup and browsing in older print and Portable Document Format (PDF) digital versions of the Thesaurus. In addition, because MAI is centrally hosted, the Thesaurus data are always current.

A role for glucocorticoids in the long-term establishment of a social hierarchy.

PubMed

Timmer, Marjan; Sandi, Carmen

2010-11-01

Stress can affect the establishment and maintenance of social hierarchies. In the present study, we investigated the role of increasing corticosterone levels before or just after a first social encounter between two rats of a dyad in the establishment and the long-term maintenance of a social hierarchy. We show that pre-social encounter corticosterone treatment does not affect the outcome of the hierarchy during a first encounter, but induces a long-term memory for the hierarchy when the corticosterone-injected rat becomes dominant during the encounter, but not when it becomes subordinate. Post-social encounter corticosterone leads to a long-term maintenance of the hierarchy only when the subordinate rat of the dyad is injected with corticosterone. This corticosterone effect mimics previously reported actions of stress on the same model and, hence, implicates glucocorticoids in the consolidation of the memory for a recently established hierarchy. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Concept of Function.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thomas, H. Laverne

Research reported deals with identifying stages in attaining a concept of function by students, eleven through fourteen years of age, of above average ability, taking the experimental mathematics program of the Secondary School Mathematics Curriculum Improvement Study. In order to obtain a hierarchy of the learning stages, both a written test and…

Structure and Content in Social Cognition: Conceptual and Empirical Analyses.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Edelstein, Wolfgang; And Others

1984-01-01

Conceptual analysis of two perspective-taking tasks identified a number of subtasks calling for equivalent operations of social reasoning within tasks of different content. Subtasks hypothetically formed a logical and developmental sequence of abilities required for decentering. The developmental significance of the hierarchy was tested among 121…

Student Achievement in Title I Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Diaz, Abby T.

2017-01-01

This researcher seeks to answer the following question: How did two elementary Title I schools, identified as "high performing" on the first Smarter Balanced assessment, address elements of Maslow's hierarchy of needs when developing school-wide initiatives to enhance student achievement? Many students in Title I schools face barriers to…

Review of Measurement Instruments and Procedures for Assessing Mobility Behaviors: Implications for Quantitative Measurement.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lehr, Donna H.

The literature review identifies information regarding the emergence of mobility skills in infants and young handicapped children, including rolling, crawling, creeping, and walking. Sections discuss the following topics: assessment instruments relevant to mobility, the identification of developmental milestones in mobility, and a hierarchy of the…

MoveU? Assessing a Social Marketing Campaign to Promote Physical Activity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scarapicchia, Tanya M. F.; Sabiston, Catherine M. F.; Brownrigg, Michelle; Blackburn-Evans, Althea; Cressy, Jill; Robb, Janine; Faulkner, Guy E. J.

2015-01-01

Objective: MoveU is a social marketing initiative aimed at increasing moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) among undergraduate students. Using the Hierarchy of Effects model (HOEM), this study identified awareness of MoveU and examined associations between awareness, outcome expectations, self-efficacy, intentions, and MVPA. Participants:…

Maslow and Values Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Farmer, Rodney

1978-01-01

Identifies major value bases which have been used to teach values in the classroom and outlines a values education program which stresses teaching about values without indoctrination. Based upon the hierarchy of human needs developed by psychologist Abraham Maslow, the program is based upon universal values, basic human needs, and recognition of…

Group Development for Students with Emotional/Behavioral Disorders.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rockwell, Sylvia; Guetzloe, Eleanor

1996-01-01

This article addresses effective techniques for teaching students with emotional disturbances and/or behavior disorders in group settings. Three stages of group development are described with specific teaching strategies for each stage identified and related to Maslow's hierarchy of needs, including needs for safety and trust, belonging and…

Experiential Approaches to Teaching Survey Research: Role Strains and Relationships.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Suelzle, Marijean; And Others

Research and instructional role strains are identified, based on the use of large-scale mail surveys for college self-study that are used to teach introductory research methodology. The two organizational hierarchies, the research model and the instructional model, are examined. Experiences at Northwestern University, Northeastern Illinois…

Sexuality and Aging.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hinkley, Nancy E.

Literature on sexuality and aging and Maslow's hierarchy of needs (which include physiological needs, safety and security needs, belongingness needs, esteem needs, and the need for self-actualization) are used in this paper to identify at each level the needs of the aging individual as they derive from his sexuality in order to provide a…

The Development of Statistical Literacy at School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Callingham, Rosemary; Watson, Jane M.

2017-01-01

Statistical literacy increasingly is considered an important outcome of schooling. There is little information, however, about appropriate expectations of students at different stages of schooling. Some progress towards this goal was made by Watson and Callingham (2005), who identified an empirical 6-level hierarchy of statistical literacy and the…

Comparative Economic Organization: The Analysis of Discrete Structural Alternatives.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williamson, Oliver E.

1991-01-01

Combines institutional economics with aspects of contract law and organization theory to identify and explicate the key differences distinguishing three generic forms of economic organization: market, hybrid, and hierarchy. These generic forms are distinguished by different coordinating and control mechanisms and by different abilities to adapt to…

High School Students' Understanding of Food Webs: Identification of a Learning Hierarchy and Related Misconceptions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Griffiths, Alan K.; Grant, Bette A. C.

1985-01-01

Developed and validated a learning hierarchy for the concept "food web" (the hierarchy consisting of nine skill areas). Also investigated the misconceptions of 200 students related to these nine areas. Suggestions for applying the hierarchy model to remediation and resolution of the misconceptions are provided. (DH)

Coordination of the EMS system: an organizational theory approach.

PubMed

Narad, R A

1998-01-01

Emergency medical services (EMS) systems include autonomous organizations with high degrees of interdependence. The need to coordinate system participants has long been recognized but seldom achieved. This can be explained by organizational theory--specifically, the study of the relationships among organizations. Existing models identify the total system's functions, but fail to explain roles and relationships among the system's participants. Coordination among organizations is more difficult than coordination within an organization because of lack of an authority structure. The EMS system can be described as "a functionally interdependent system," consisting of multiple autonomous organizations with high degrees of interdependence in their technical functions. Communities have five potential management approaches, varying according to their aggressiveness. These are laissez-faire, where even voluntary coordination efforts are not tried; voluntary cooperation efforts, such as coordinating councils; external planning agencies without regulatory control; "framework organizations" with regulatory control over the system participants; and bureaucratization, placing the system participants within a single organizational hierarchy. The "multicratic organization" is a model for management of multiorganizational systems. A "system lead agency" plans joint activities and manages relationships among system participants in the way that the management of a uniorganization integrates departments. A lead agency is usually a unit of government or organized pursuant to government action, but a managed care organization can also fill this role. In extreme application of the model, the system is viewed as a framework and temporary modules are attached. Their interests are limited, as needed, to optimize the entire system. The lead agency sets policies affecting relationships of modules and policies crossing organizational boundaries.

Why hierarchies thrive.

PubMed

Leavitt, Harold J

2003-03-01

Hardly anyone has a good word to say about hierarchies. Academics, consultants, and management gurus regularly forecast their imminent replacement because hierarchies--even when populated by considerate and intelligent people--can be cruel and stupid. They routinely transform motivated and loyal employees into disaffected Dilberts. It's no wonder that we continue to search for more humane and productive alternatives to them. Yet the intensity with which we struggle against hierarchies only serves to highlight their durability. Hierarchy, it seems, may be intrinsic not only to the natural world but also to our own natures. In this article, organizational behavior expert Harold J. Leavitt presents neither a defense of human hierarchies nor another attack on them. Instead, he offers a reality check, a reminder that hierarchy remains the basic structure of most, if not all, large, ongoing human organizations. That's because although they are often depicted as being out of date, hierarchies have proved to be extraordinarily adaptive. Over the past 50 years, for example, they have co-opted the three major managerial movements--human relations, analytic management, and communities of practice. Hierarchies also persist because they deliver real practical and psychological value, and they fulfill our deep need for order and security. Despite the good they may do, hierarchies are inevitably authoritarian. That authoritarianism shows up in all kinds of ways and influences everything in organizations, particularly communication. In multilevel organizations, for instance, messages get distorted as they travel up and down the ladder of command. Self-protection and self-interest weigh in, and relevant information is lost as messages make stops along the route. Sensitive leaders take steps to make speaking the truth as painless as possible. But it never is in organizations, because authoritarianism is an immutable element of hierarchy.

Identifying problems and generating recommendations for enhancing complex systems: applying the abstraction hierarchy framework as an analytical tool.

PubMed

Xu, Wei

2007-12-01

This study adopts J. Rasmussen's (1985) abstraction hierarchy (AH) framework as an analytical tool to identify problems and pinpoint opportunities to enhance complex systems. The process of identifying problems and generating recommendations for complex systems using conventional methods is usually conducted based on incompletely defined work requirements. As the complexity of systems rises, the sheer mass of data generated from these methods becomes unwieldy to manage in a coherent, systematic form for analysis. There is little known work on adopting a broader perspective to fill these gaps. AH was used to analyze an aircraft-automation system in order to further identify breakdowns in pilot-automation interactions. Four steps follow: developing an AH model for the system, mapping the data generated by various methods onto the AH, identifying problems based on the mapped data, and presenting recommendations. The breakdowns lay primarily with automation operations that were more goal directed. Identified root causes include incomplete knowledge content and ineffective knowledge structure in pilots' mental models, lack of effective higher-order functional domain information displayed in the interface, and lack of sufficient automation procedures for pilots to effectively cope with unfamiliar situations. The AH is a valuable analytical tool to systematically identify problems and suggest opportunities for enhancing complex systems. It helps further examine the automation awareness problems and identify improvement areas from a work domain perspective. Applications include the identification of problems and generation of recommendations for complex systems as well as specific recommendations regarding pilot training, flight deck interfaces, and automation procedures.

Development by Design in Colombia: Making Mitigation Decisions Consistent with Conservation Outcomes

PubMed Central

Saenz, Shirley; Walschburger, Tomas; González, Juan Carlos; León, Jorge; McKenney, Bruce; Kiesecker, Joseph

2013-01-01

Mitigation policy and regulatory frameworks are consistent in their strong support for the mitigation hierarchy of: (1) avoiding impacts, (2) minimizing impacts, and then (3) offsetting/compensating for residual impacts. While mitigation frameworks require developers to avoid, minimize and restore biodiversity on-site before considering an offset for residual impacts, there is a lack of quantitative guidance for this decision-making process. What are the criteria for requiring impacts be avoided altogether? Here we examine how conservation planning can guide the application of the mitigation hierarchy to address this issue. In support of the Colombian government's aim to improve siting and mitigation practices for planned development, we examined five pilot projects in landscapes expected to experience significant increases in mining, petroleum and/or infrastructure development. By blending landscape-level conservation planning with application of the mitigation hierarchy, we can proactively identify where proposed development and conservation priorities would be in conflict and where impacts should be avoided. The approach we outline here has been adopted by the Colombian Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development to guide licensing decisions, avoid piecemeal licensing, and promote mitigation decisions that maintain landscape condition. PMID:24339972

Development by design in Colombia: making mitigation decisions consistent with conservation outcomes.

PubMed

Saenz, Shirley; Walschburger, Tomas; González, Juan Carlos; León, Jorge; McKenney, Bruce; Kiesecker, Joseph

2013-01-01

Mitigation policy and regulatory frameworks are consistent in their strong support for the mitigation hierarchy of: (1) avoiding impacts, (2) minimizing impacts, and then (3) offsetting/compensating for residual impacts. While mitigation frameworks require developers to avoid, minimize and restore biodiversity on-site before considering an offset for residual impacts, there is a lack of quantitative guidance for this decision-making process. What are the criteria for requiring impacts be avoided altogether? Here we examine how conservation planning can guide the application of the mitigation hierarchy to address this issue. In support of the Colombian government's aim to improve siting and mitigation practices for planned development, we examined five pilot projects in landscapes expected to experience significant increases in mining, petroleum and/or infrastructure development. By blending landscape-level conservation planning with application of the mitigation hierarchy, we can proactively identify where proposed development and conservation priorities would be in conflict and where impacts should be avoided. The approach we outline here has been adopted by the Colombian Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development to guide licensing decisions, avoid piecemeal licensing, and promote mitigation decisions that maintain landscape condition.

Why Some School Subjects Have a Higher Status than Others: The Epistemology of the Traditional Curriculum Hierarchy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bleazby, Jennifer

2015-01-01

Inherent in most school curricula is some sort of curriculum hierarchy--that is, an assumption that some school subjects are more valuable than others. This paper examines the epistemological assumptions that underpin one such curriculum hierarchy, which I refer to as "the traditional curriculum hierarchy". It is a pervasive and…

Deterministic switching of hierarchy during wrinkling in quasi-planar bilayers

DOE PAGES

Saha, Sourabh K.; Culpepper, Martin L.

2016-04-25

Emergence of hierarchy during compression of quasi-planar bilayers is preceded by a mode-locked state during which the quasi-planar form persists. Transition to hierarchy is determined entirely by geometrically observable parameters. This results in a universal transition phase diagram that enables one to deterministically tune hierarchy even with limited knowledge about material properties.

Predicting Intervention Effectiveness from Oral Reading Accuracy and Rate Measures through the Learning Hierarchy/Instructional Hierarchy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Szadokierski, Isadora Elisabeth

2012-01-01

The current study used the Learning Hierarchy/Instructional Hierarchy (LH/IH) to predict intervention effectiveness based on the reading skills of students who are developing reading fluency. Pre-intervention reading accuracy and rate were assessed for 49 second and third grade participants who then participated in a brief experimental analysis…

Status Hierarchy, Attractiveness Hierarchy and Sex Ratio: Three Contextual Factors Explaining the Status-Aggression Link among Adolescents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zwaan, Michiel; Dijkstra, Jan Kornelis; Veenstra, Rene

2013-01-01

The moderating effects of three specific conditions (status hierarchy, attractiveness hierarchy and sex ratio) on the link between status (popularity) and physical and relational aggression were examined in a large sample of adolescent boys ("N" = 1,665) and girls ("N" = 1,637) ("M" age = 13.60). In line with the…

Gauge transformation and symmetries of the commutative multicomponent BKP hierarchy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Chuanzhong

2016-01-01

In this paper, we defined a new multi-component B type Kadomtsev-Petviashvili (BKP) hierarchy that takes values in a commutative subalgebra of {gl}(N,{{C}}). After this, we give the gauge transformation of this commutative multicomponent BKP (CMBKP) hierarchy. Meanwhile, we construct a new constrained CMBKP hierarchy that contains some new integrable systems, including coupled KdV equations under a certain reduction. After this, the quantum torus symmetry and quantum torus constraint on the tau function of the commutative multi-component BKP hierarchy will be constructed.

ENSO and its modulations on annual and multidecadal timescales revealed by Nonlinear Laplacian Spectral Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Giannakis, D.; Slawinska, J. M.

2016-12-01

The variability of the Indo-Pacific Ocean on interannual to multidecadal timescales is investigated in a millennial control run of CCSM4 and in observations using a recently introduced technique called Nonlinear Laplacian Spectral Analysis (NLSA). Through this technique, drawbacks associated with ad hoc pre-filtering of the input data are avoided, enabling recovery of low-frequency and intermittent modes not accessible previously via classical approaches. Here, a multiscale hierarchy of modes is identified for Indo-Pacific SST and numerous linkages between these patterns are revealed. On interannual timescales, a mode with spatiotemporal pattern corresponding to the fundamental component of ENSO emerges, along with modulations of the annual cycle by ENSO in agreement with ENSO combination mode theory. In spatiotemporal reconstructions, these patterns capture the seasonal southward migration of SST and zonal wind anomalies associated with termination of El Niño and La Niña events. Notably, this family of modes explains a significant portion of SST variance in Eastern Indian Ocean regions employed in the definition of Indian Ocean dipole (IOD) indices, suggesting that it should be useful for understanding the linkage of these indices with ENSO and the interaction of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. In model data, we find that the ENSO and ENSO combination modes are modulated on multidecadal timescales by a mode predominantly active in the western tropical Pacific - we call this mode West Pacific Multidecadal Oscillation (WPMO). Despite the relatively low variance explained by this mode, its dynamical role appears to be significant as it has clear sign-dependent modulating relationships with the interannual modes carrying most of the variance. In particular, cold WPMO events are associated with anomalous Central Pacific westerlies favoring stronger ENSO events, while warm WPMO events suppress ENSO activity. Moreover, the WPMO has significant climatic impacts as demonstrated here through its strong correlation with decadal precipitation over Australia. As an extension of this work, we discuss the deterministic and stochastic aspects of the variability of these modes and their potential predictability based on nonparametric kernel analog forecasting techniques.

Multi-Criteria Decision Making for a Spatial Decision Support System on the Analysis of Changing Risk

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olyazadeh, Roya; van Westen, Cees; Bakker, Wim H.; Aye, Zar Chi; Jaboyedoff, Michel; Derron, Marc-Henri

2014-05-01

Natural hazard risk management requires decision making in several stages. Decision making on alternatives for risk reduction planning starts with an intelligence phase for recognition of the decision problems and identifying the objectives. Development of the alternatives and assigning the variable by decision makers to each alternative are employed to the design phase. Final phase evaluates the optimal choice by comparing the alternatives, defining indicators, assigning a weight to each and ranking them. This process is referred to as Multi-Criteria Decision Making analysis (MCDM), Multi-Criteria Evaluation (MCE) or Multi-Criteria Analysis (MCA). In the framework of the ongoing 7th Framework Program "CHANGES" (2011-2014, Grant Agreement No. 263953) of the European Commission, a Spatial Decision Support System is under development, that has the aim to analyse changes in hydro-meteorological risk and provide support to selecting the best risk reduction alternative. This paper describes the module for Multi-Criteria Decision Making analysis (MCDM) that incorporates monetary and non-monetary criteria in the analysis of the optimal alternative. The MCDM module consists of several components. The first step is to define criteria (or Indicators) which are subdivided into disadvantages (criteria that indicate the difficulty for implementing the risk reduction strategy, also referred to as Costs) and advantages (criteria that indicate the favorability, also referred to as benefits). In the next step the stakeholders can use the developed web-based tool for prioritizing criteria and decision matrix. Public participation plays a role in decision making and this is also planned through the use of a mobile web-version where the general local public can indicate their agreement on the proposed alternatives. The application is being tested through a case study related to risk reduction of a mountainous valley in the Alps affected by flooding. Four alternatives are evaluated in this case study namely: construction of defense structures, relocation, implementation of an early warning system and spatial planning regulations. Some of the criteria are determined partly in other modules of the CHANGES SDSS, such as the costs for implementation, the risk reduction in monetary values, and societal risk. Other criteria, which could be environmental, economic, cultural, perception in nature, are defined by different stakeholders such as local authorities, expert organizations, private sector, and local public. In the next step, the stakeholders weight the importance of the criteria by pairwise comparison and visualize the decision matrix, which is a matrix based on criteria versus alternatives values. Finally alternatives are ranked by Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method. We expect that this approach will help the decision makers to ease their works and reduce their costs, because the process is more transparent, more accurate and involves a group decision. In that way there will be more confidence in the overall decision making process. Keywords: MCDM, Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), SDSS, Natural Hazard Risk Management

Operational framework for quantum measurement simulability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guerini, Leonardo; Bavaresco, Jessica; Terra Cunha, Marcelo; Acín, Antonio

2017-09-01

We introduce a framework for simulating quantum measurements based on classical processing of a set of accessible measurements. Well-known concepts such as joint measurability and projective simulability naturally emerge as particular cases of our framework, but our study also leads to novel results and questions. First, a generalisation of joint measurability is derived, which yields a hierarchy for the incompatibility of sets of measurements. A similar hierarchy is defined based on the number of outcomes necessary to perform a simulation of a given measurement. This general approach also allows us to identify connections between different kinds of simulability and, in particular, we characterise the qubit measurements that are projective-simulable in terms of joint measurability. Finally, we discuss how our framework can be interpreted in the context of resource theories.

Landslide susceptibility mapping by combining the three methods Fuzzy Logic, Frequency Ratio and Analytical Hierarchy Process in Dozain basin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tazik, E.; Jahantab, Z.; Bakhtiari, M.; Rezaei, A.; Kazem Alavipanah, S.

2014-10-01

Landslides are among the most important natural hazards that lead to modification of the environment. Therefore, studying of this phenomenon is so important in many areas. Because of the climate conditions, geologic, and geomorphologic characteristics of the region, the purpose of this study was landslide hazard assessment using Fuzzy Logic, frequency ratio and Analytical Hierarchy Process method in Dozein basin, Iran. At first, landslides occurred in Dozein basin were identified using aerial photos and field studies. The influenced landslide parameters that were used in this study including slope, aspect, elevation, lithology, precipitation, land cover, distance from fault, distance from road and distance from river were obtained from different sources and maps. Using these factors and the identified landslide, the fuzzy membership values were calculated by frequency ratio. Then to account for the importance of each of the factors in the landslide susceptibility, weights of each factor were determined based on questionnaire and AHP method. Finally, fuzzy map of each factor was multiplied to its weight that obtained using AHP method. At the end, for computing prediction accuracy, the produced map was verified by comparing to existing landslide locations. These results indicate that the combining the three methods Fuzzy Logic, Frequency Ratio and Analytical Hierarchy Process method are relatively good estimators of landslide susceptibility in the study area. According to landslide susceptibility map about 51% of the occurred landslide fall into the high and very high susceptibility zones of the landslide susceptibility map, but approximately 26 % of them indeed located in the low and very low susceptibility zones.

The monkey puzzle: a systematic review of studies of stress, social hierarchies, and heart disease in monkeys.

PubMed

Petticrew, Mark; Davey Smith, George

2012-01-01

It is often suggested that psychosocial factors, such as stress, or one's social position, may play an important role in producing social gradients in human disease. Evidence in favour of this model of health inequalities has relied, in part, on studies of the health effects of the natural social hierarchies found among non-human primates. This study aimed to assess the strength of this evidence. A systematic review was carried out to identify all studies of psychosocial factors and coronary artery disease (CAD) in non-human primates. We searched databases (MEDLINE, PsycInfo, EMBASE, and Primatelit from inception to November 2010) to identify experimental and observational studies of the impact of social reorganisation, social instability, and disruption of dominance hierarchies on primate CAD outcomes. We also handsearched bibliographies and examined the citations to those studies in public health articles. Fourteen studies were found which presented evidence on CAD and social status and/or psychosocial stress. These suggested that the association between social status and disease may be sex-specific: in female monkeys dominant status may be protective, with subordinate females having a greater extent of atherosclerosis. In male monkeys the reverse may be the case. Overall, non-human primate studies present only limited evidence for an association between social status and CAD, Despite this, there is selective citation of individual non-human primate studies in reviews and commentaries relating to human disease aetiology. Such generalisation of data from monkey studies to human societies does not appear warranted.

The Monkey Puzzle: A Systematic Review of Studies of Stress, Social Hierarchies, and Heart Disease in Monkeys

PubMed Central

Petticrew, Mark; Davey Smith, George

2012-01-01

Background It is often suggested that psychosocial factors, such as stress, or one's social position, may play an important role in producing social gradients in human disease. Evidence in favour of this model of health inequalities has relied, in part, on studies of the health effects of the natural social hierarchies found among non-human primates. This study aimed to assess the strength of this evidence. Methodology/Principal Findings A systematic review was carried out to identify all studies of psychosocial factors and coronary artery disease (CAD) in non-human primates. We searched databases (MEDLINE, PsycInfo, EMBASE, and Primatelit from inception to November 2010) to identify experimental and observational studies of the impact of social reorganisation, social instability, and disruption of dominance hierarchies on primate CAD outcomes. We also handsearched bibliographies and examined the citations to those studies in public health articles. Fourteen studies were found which presented evidence on CAD and social status and/or psychosocial stress. These suggested that the association between social status and disease may be sex-specific: in female monkeys dominant status may be protective, with subordinate females having a greater extent of atherosclerosis. In male monkeys the reverse may be the case. Conclusions/Significance Overall, non-human primate studies present only limited evidence for an association between social status and CAD, Despite this, there is selective citation of individual non-human primate studies in reviews and commentaries relating to human disease aetiology. Such generalisation of data from monkey studies to human societies does not appear warranted. PMID:22470414

Estimating and Modelling Bias of the Hierarchical Partitioning Public-Domain Software: Implications in Environmental Management and Conservation

PubMed Central

Olea, Pedro P.; Mateo-Tomás, Patricia; de Frutos, Ángel

2010-01-01

Background Hierarchical partitioning (HP) is an analytical method of multiple regression that identifies the most likely causal factors while alleviating multicollinearity problems. Its use is increasing in ecology and conservation by its usefulness for complementing multiple regression analysis. A public-domain software “hier.part package” has been developed for running HP in R software. Its authors highlight a “minor rounding error” for hierarchies constructed from >9 variables, however potential bias by using this module has not yet been examined. Knowing this bias is pivotal because, for example, the ranking obtained in HP is being used as a criterion for establishing priorities of conservation. Methodology/Principal Findings Using numerical simulations and two real examples, we assessed the robustness of this HP module in relation to the order the variables have in the analysis. Results indicated a considerable effect of the variable order on the amount of independent variance explained by predictors for models with >9 explanatory variables. For these models the nominal ranking of importance of the predictors changed with variable order, i.e. predictors declared important by its contribution in explaining the response variable frequently changed to be either most or less important with other variable orders. The probability of changing position of a variable was best explained by the difference in independent explanatory power between that variable and the previous one in the nominal ranking of importance. The lesser is this difference, the more likely is the change of position. Conclusions/Significance HP should be applied with caution when more than 9 explanatory variables are used to know ranking of covariate importance. The explained variance is not a useful parameter to use in models with more than 9 independent variables. The inconsistency in the results obtained by HP should be considered in future studies as well as in those already published. Some recommendations to improve the analysis with this HP module are given. PMID:20657734

Favorable hierarchy detection through Lempel-Ziv coding based algorithm to aid hierarchical fracturing in mask data preparation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bhardwaj, D. S. S.; Ghosh, Nilanjan; Rao, Nageswara; Pai, Ravi R.

2009-10-01

Runtime of the Mask Data Preparation (MDP) tool is largely dependent on the hierarchy of the input layout data. In this paper, we present a technique where a hierarchical or flat input design layout or almost flat mask data can be converted into a favorable hierarchical data which can be directly used by MDP tools for fracturing. A favorable hierarchy is a hierarchy of cells where polygons within cells do not overlap with each other even if bounding boxes of cells might overlap with each other. This is an important characteristic which can be intelligently made use of by intra-polygonal operations like fracturing. Otherwise, a mask data preparation (MDP) tool has to take the responsibility for resolving overlaps among polygons, which slows down the processing and increases the data size. MDP on a favorable hierarchy will thus speed up the fracturing or re-fracturing steps and also minimize the output fractured data size, as shown through the experimental results in the paper. In the proposed technique, the favorable hierarchy is generated using a modified version of the Lempel-Ziv (LZ) coding algorithm, which was originally devised for compressing character strings. A hierarchical fracturing algorithm can be employed to work on the favorable hierarchy generated, which will utilize the property of a favorable hierarchy that polygons do not overlap with each other. Apart from the obvious runtime benefits, such a favorable hierarchy allows considerable reduction in fractured data size as most mask data formats allow representation of a hierarchy containing two levels.

Virasoro symmetry of the constrained multicomponent Kadomtsev-Petviashvili hierarchy and its integrable discretization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Chuanzhong; He, Jingsong

2016-06-01

We construct Virasoro-type additional symmetries of a kind of constrained multicomponent Kadomtsev-Petviashvili (KP) hierarchy and obtain the Virasoro flow equation for the eigenfunctions and adjoint eigenfunctions. We show that the algebraic structure of the Virasoro symmetry is retained under discretization from the constrained multicomponent KP hierarchy to the discrete constrained multicomponent KP hierarchy.

The Exposure Hierarchy as a Measure of Progress and Efficacy in the Treatment of Social Anxiety Disorder

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Katerelos, Marina; Hawley, Lance L.; Antony, Martin M.; McCabe, Randi E.

2008-01-01

This study explored the psychometric properties and utility of the exposure hierarchy as a measure of treatment outcome for social anxiety disorder (SAD). An exposure hierarchy was created for each of 103 individuals with a diagnosis of SAD who completed a course of cognitive behavioral group therapy. Exposure hierarchy ratings were collected on a…

Hierarchy is Detrimental for Human Cooperation.

PubMed

Cronin, Katherine A; Acheson, Daniel J; Hernández, Penélope; Sánchez, Angel

2015-12-22

Studies of animal behavior consistently demonstrate that the social environment impacts cooperation, yet the effect of social dynamics has been largely excluded from studies of human cooperation. Here, we introduce a novel approach inspired by nonhuman primate research to address how social hierarchies impact human cooperation. Participants competed to earn hierarchy positions and then could cooperate with another individual in the hierarchy by investing in a common effort. Cooperation was achieved if the combined investments exceeded a threshold, and the higher ranked individual distributed the spoils unless control was contested by the partner. Compared to a condition lacking hierarchy, cooperation declined in the presence of a hierarchy due to a decrease in investment by lower ranked individuals. Furthermore, hierarchy was detrimental to cooperation regardless of whether it was earned or arbitrary. These findings mirror results from nonhuman primates and demonstrate that hierarchies are detrimental to cooperation. However, these results deviate from nonhuman primate findings by demonstrating that human behavior is responsive to changing hierarchical structures and suggests partnership dynamics that may improve cooperation. This work introduces a controlled way to investigate the social influences on human behavior, and demonstrates the evolutionary continuity of human behavior with other primate species.

Hierarchy is Detrimental for Human Cooperation

PubMed Central

Cronin, Katherine A.; Acheson, Daniel J.; Hernández, Penélope; Sánchez, Angel

2015-01-01

Studies of animal behavior consistently demonstrate that the social environment impacts cooperation, yet the effect of social dynamics has been largely excluded from studies of human cooperation. Here, we introduce a novel approach inspired by nonhuman primate research to address how social hierarchies impact human cooperation. Participants competed to earn hierarchy positions and then could cooperate with another individual in the hierarchy by investing in a common effort. Cooperation was achieved if the combined investments exceeded a threshold, and the higher ranked individual distributed the spoils unless control was contested by the partner. Compared to a condition lacking hierarchy, cooperation declined in the presence of a hierarchy due to a decrease in investment by lower ranked individuals. Furthermore, hierarchy was detrimental to cooperation regardless of whether it was earned or arbitrary. These findings mirror results from nonhuman primates and demonstrate that hierarchies are detrimental to cooperation. However, these results deviate from nonhuman primate findings by demonstrating that human behavior is responsive to changing hierarchical structures and suggests partnership dynamics that may improve cooperation. This work introduces a controlled way to investigate the social influences on human behavior, and demonstrates the evolutionary continuity of human behavior with other primate species. PMID:26692287

Generic hierarchical engine for mask data preparation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kalus, Christian K.; Roessl, Wolfgang; Schnitker, Uwe; Simecek, Michal

2002-07-01

Electronic layouts are usually flattened on their path from the hierarchical source downstream to the wafer. Mask data preparation has certainly been identified as a severe bottleneck since long. Data volumes are not only doubling every year along the ITRS roadmap. With the advent of optical proximity correction and phase-shifting masks data volumes are escalating up to non-manageable heights. Hierarchical treatment is one of the most powerful means to keep memory and CPU consumption in reasonable ranges. Only recently, however, has this technique acquired more public attention. Mask data preparation is the most critical area calling for a sound infrastructure to reduce the handling problem. Gaining more and more attention though, are other applications such as large area simulation and manufacturing rule checking (MRC). They all would profit from a generic engine capable to efficiently treat hierarchical data. In this paper we will present a generic engine for hierarchical treatment which solves the major problem, steady transitions along cell borders. Several alternatives exist how to walk through the hierarchy tree. They have, to date, not been thoroughly investigated. One is a bottom-up attempt to treat cells starting with the most elementary cells. The other one is a top-down approach which lends itself to creating a new hierarchy tree. In addition, since the variety, degree of hierarchy and quality of layouts extends over a wide range a generic engine has to take intelligent decisions when exploding the hierarchy tree. Several applications will be shown, in particular how far the limits can be pushed with the current hierarchical engine.

Motivation: a new look at an age-old topic.

PubMed

Sumrow, Allison

2003-01-01

Employee motivation is a shared responsibility. An employee has to have some amount of intrinsic desire to perform a task. You can't create that desire. But, you can create an environment that brings out that desire, and allows an employee to shine. Abraham Maslow developed one of the most useful of all motivation theories--the "Hierarchy of Needs"--in the 1940s, and it is still the prevailing theory today. The Needs Hierarchy begins with the basic idea that only an unfulfilled need is a motivator. Or, in plain English, people perform specific actions to meet specific personal needs. Maslow defines five levels of needs that all people experience: 1: Physiological, Food, shelter, and yes, sex. 2: Safety/Security. No personal harm and the current lifestyle is safe. 3: Social. The need for acceptance by others, for belonging, friendship and affection. 4: Self-Esteem/Ego. Recognition, status and prestige. 5: Self-Actualization. Self-fulfillment and the need for achieving one's personal best. What makes this needs theory so interesting and so useful in the workplace is the clarity with which a position in the hierarchy can be determined. The basic premise is that lower-level needs must be satisfied before moving upward to the next level. Consider your own employees and what you know about them. Look at their situations, and evaluate where they may be in the hierarchy. Remember, it's difficult to separate their personal situations from their work personas. Try using Abraham Maslow as a starting point to identify motivations of your staff.

When status is grabbed and when status is granted: Getting ahead in dominance and prestige hierarchies.

PubMed

de Waal-Andrews, Wendy; Gregg, Aiden P; Lammers, Joris

2015-09-01

What type of behaviour affords status, agentic, or communal? Research to date has yielded inconsistent answers. In particular, the conflict view holds that agentic behaviour permits the imperious to grab status through overt force, whereas the functional view holds that communal behaviour permits the talented to earn status through popular appeal. Here, we synthesize both views by taking into account the moderating role played by group hierarchy. Group hierarchy can range from being dominance based (where status is grabbed) to prestige based (where status is granted). In a field study (Study 1), and a laboratory experiment (Study 2), we demonstrate that in different groups, status can be achieved in different ways. Specifically, agentic behaviour promotes status regardless of hierarchy type, whereas the effect of communal behaviour on status is moderated by hierarchy type: it augments it in more prestige-based hierarchies but diminishes it in more dominance-based hierarchies. © 2014 The British Psychological Society.

Behavior-aware cache hierarchy optimization for low-power multi-core embedded systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Huatao; Luo, Xiao; Zhu, Chen; Watanabe, Takahiro; Zhu, Tianbo

2017-07-01

In modern embedded systems, the increasing number of cores requires efficient cache hierarchies to ensure data throughput, but such cache hierarchies are restricted by their tumid size and interference accesses which leads to both performance degradation and wasted energy. In this paper, we firstly propose a behavior-aware cache hierarchy (BACH) which can optimally allocate the multi-level cache resources to many cores and highly improved the efficiency of cache hierarchy, resulting in low energy consumption. The BACH takes full advantage of the explored application behaviors and runtime cache resource demands as the cache allocation bases, so that we can optimally configure the cache hierarchy to meet the runtime demand. The BACH was implemented on the GEM5 simulator. The experimental results show that energy consumption of a three-level cache hierarchy can be saved from 5.29% up to 27.94% compared with other key approaches while the performance of the multi-core system even has a slight improvement counting in hardware overhead.

Learning of Alignment Rules between Concept Hierarchies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ichise, Ryutaro; Takeda, Hideaki; Honiden, Shinichi

With the rapid advances of information technology, we are acquiring much information than ever before. As a result, we need tools for organizing this data. Concept hierarchies such as ontologies and information categorizations are powerful and convenient methods for accomplishing this goal, which have gained wide spread acceptance. Although each concept hierarchy is useful, it is difficult to employ multiple concept hierarchies at the same time because it is hard to align their conceptual structures. This paper proposes a rule learning method that inputs information from a source concept hierarchy and finds suitable location for them in a target hierarchy. The key idea is to find the most similar categories in each hierarchy, where similarity is measured by the κ(kappa) statistic that counts instances belonging to both categories. In order to evaluate our method, we conducted experiments using two internet directories: Yahoo! and LYCOS. We map information instances from the source directory into the target directory, and show that our learned rules agree with a human-generated assignment 76% of the time.

Assessing Adolescents’ Attachment Hierarchies: Differences Across Developmental Periods and Associations With Individual Adaptation

PubMed Central

Rosenthal, Natalie L.; Kobak, Roger

2012-01-01

Adolescents’ attachment hierarchies were assessed in a sample of 212 high school and 198 college students. The Important People Interview (IPI) differentiated attachment bonds from other supportive or affiliative relationships and indicated that adolescents show a hierarchical ordering of preferences for multiple attachment figures. Differences in the composition and structure of adolescents’ attachment hierarchies were found between the early high school (9th and 10th grades), later high school (11th and 12th grades), and college samples. In the college sample, romantic partners were placed in higher positions in adolescents’ hierarchies, fathers were placed in lower positions, and the structure of adolescents’ hierarchies were less differentiated than in the high school samples. Individual differences in the composition of adolescents’ hierarchies were associated with adjustment outcomes. Friends’ placement in higher positions and fathers’ exclusion from or placement in quaternary positions was associated with increased behavior problems. Findings demonstrate that the IPI provides a measure of adolescents’ attachment hierarchies that is sensitive to developmental stage and individual differences. PMID:22545000

Bilinear identities for an extended B-type Kadomtsev-Petviashvili hierarchy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Runliang; Cao, Tiancheng; Liu, Xiaojun; Zeng, Yunbo

2016-03-01

We construct bilinear identities for wave functions of an extended B-type Kadomtsev-Petviashvili (BKP) hierarchy containing two types of (2+1)-dimensional Sawada-Kotera equations with a self-consistent source. Introducing an auxiliary variable corresponding to the extended flow for the BKP hierarchy, we find the τ -function and bilinear identities for this extended BKP hierarchy. The bilinear identities generate all the Hirota bilinear equations for the zero-curvature forms of this extended BKP hierarchy. As examples, we obtain the Hirota bilinear equations for the two types of (2+1)-dimensional Sawada-Kotera equations in explicit form.

Moral Psychology Is Relationship Regulation: Moral Motives for Unity, Hierarchy, Equality, and Proportionality

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rai, Tage Shakti; Fiske, Alan Page

2011-01-01

Genuine moral disagreement exists and is widespread. To understand such disagreement, we must examine the basic kinds of social relationships people construct across cultures and the distinct moral obligations and prohibitions these relationships entail. We extend relational models theory (Fiske, 1991) to identify 4 fundamental and distinct moral…

Analyzing Hierarchical Relationships Among Modes of Cognitive Reasoning and Integrated Science Process Skills.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yeany, Russell H.; And Others

1986-01-01

Searched for a learning hierarchy among skills comprising formal operations and integrated science processes. Ordering, theoretic, and probabilistic latent structure methods were used to analyze data collected from 700 science students. Both linear and branching relationships were identified within and across the two sets of skills. (Author/JN)

To Walk or Not to Walk?: The Hierarchy of Walking Needs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alfonzo, Mariela

2005-01-01

The multitude of quality of life problems associated with declining walking rates has impelled researchers from various disciplines to identify factors related to this behavior change. Currently, this body of research is in need of a transdisciplinary, multilevel theoretical model that can help explain how individual, group, regional, and…

Exploring Opportunities for Conflict Resolution in Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Filippelli-DiManna, Leslie P.

2012-01-01

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to identify methods to improve conflict management skills of administrative staff in higher education. General systems, Maslow's hierarchy of needs, and (c) Burton's human needs theories served as the conceptual frameworks for the study. The lived experiences of 25 community…

The Institute for School Administrators: A Program for Professional and Personal Growth. Conceptualization and Assessment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reed, Rodney J.

The annual Institute for School Administrators, founded on Maslow's hierarchy of needs and Knowles' theory of adult learning, was initiated in 1979 at the University of California, Berkeley. After identifying participants' needs, a panel of school administrators and university professors develop the annual program. The Institute's general goals…

A Hierarchy of Human Rights.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brockett, Charles

To establish an objective conception of human rights, one must first identify basic needs intrinsic to all people and then determine whether these needs are or can be hierarchically ordered. Many scholars have conducted research on the concept of human needs, particularly in the area of human rights. Among these scholars are Abraham H. Maslow…

A Comparison of Techniques for Handling and Assessing the Influence of Mobility on Student Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Lindsey J. Wolff; Beretvas, S. Natasha

2017-01-01

Conventional multilevel modeling works well with purely hierarchical data; however, pure hierarchies rarely exist in real datasets. Applied researchers employ ad hoc procedures to create purely hierarchical data. For example, applied educational researchers either delete mobile participants' data from the analysis or identify the student only with…

Using Paired Comparisons to Assess Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Strong, Lisa L.; Fiebert, Martin S.

Past studies which have examined need levels have identified individuals as functioning at specific need levels without an adequate assessment of the intensity of each need or a clear comparison with other need levels. To address these issues, a self-report inventory using a modified paired comparison format was developed to assess need potencies…

A Hierarchical Model and Analysis of Factors Affecting the Adoption of Timber as a Bridge

Treesearch

Robert L. Smith; Robert J. Bush; Daniel L. Schmoldt

1995-01-01

The Analytical Hierarchy Process was used to characterize the bridge material selection decisions of highway engineers and local highway officials across the United States. State Department of Transportation engineers, private consulting engineers, and local highway officials were personally interviewed in Mississippi, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin to identify...

The Delaware Function Rater: A Method of Quantifying Classroom Behavior.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gaynor, John F.; Gaynor, Mary F.

Developed was a student behavior rating system for use by teachers in identifying and assessing behavior problems and as an aid in classroom management. A time coding instrument was used, with behavior expressed as relative frequencies of a hierarchy of four mutually exclusive, exhaustive categories of behavior--relevent, unproductive, disruptive,…

Getting to First Base: Prima Facie Arguments for Propositions of Value.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tuman, Joseph S.

1987-01-01

Argues that few clear standards exist for value debate. Defines values as instrumental or terminal, and identifies four prima facie burdens necessary for affirming a value resolution: value identification; value criteria; value hierarchy; and topicality through relevance. Examines the role of presumption and burden of proof in value debate. (MM)

Innovation of a Reinforcer Preference Assessment with the Difficult to Test

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saunders, Muriel D.; Saunders, Richard R.

2011-01-01

In this study, we continued evaluation of a two-choice preference assessment aimed at identifying a hierarchy of reinforcers for individuals with only one voluntary motor sequence--closing and releasing an adaptive switch. We assessed preferences among types of sensory stimulation in 6 adults with multiple profound impairments using concurrent…

What Makes Blogging Attractive to Bloggers: A Case of College-Level Constituency Users

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huang, Y-H.; Lo, Y-F.

2012-01-01

This study presents a new perspective to facilitate learner-centred weblog evaluation, based on content attractiveness, blogging support, and the value-added service construct. A mixed method, combining fishbone diagram, fuzzy logic techniques, and the analytic hierarchy process, was conducted to identify further the criteria that attract bloggers…

A methodology for the preliminary scoping of future changes in ecosystem services, with an illustration from the future midwestern landscapes study

EPA Science Inventory

The product is a white paper defining a methodology for the preliminary scoping of future changes in ecosystem services, with an Illustration from the Future Midwestern Landscapes Study. The scoping method develops a hierarchy of relevant societal values, identifies the ecosyste...

Higher Education Quality Assessment Model: Towards Achieving Educational Quality Standard

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Noaman, Amin Y.; Ragab, Abdul Hamid M.; Madbouly, Ayman I.; Khedra, Ahmed M.; Fayoumi, Ayman G.

2017-01-01

This paper presents a developed higher education quality assessment model (HEQAM) that can be applied for enhancement of university services. This is because there is no universal unified quality standard model that can be used to assess the quality criteria of higher education institutes. The analytical hierarchy process is used to identify the…

Minimal string theories and integrable hierarchies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Iyer, Ramakrishnan

Well-defined, non-perturbative formulations of the physics of string theories in specific minimal or superminimal model backgrounds can be obtained by solving matrix models in the double scaling limit. They provide us with the first examples of completely solvable string theories. Despite being relatively simple compared to higher dimensional critical string theories, they furnish non-perturbative descriptions of interesting physical phenomena such as geometrical transitions between D-branes and fluxes, tachyon condensation and holography. The physics of these theories in the minimal model backgrounds is succinctly encoded in a non-linear differential equation known as the string equation, along with an associated hierarchy of integrable partial differential equations (PDEs). The bosonic string in (2,2m-1) conformal minimal model backgrounds and the type 0A string in (2,4 m) superconformal minimal model backgrounds have the Korteweg-de Vries system, while type 0B in (2,4m) backgrounds has the Zakharov-Shabat system. The integrable PDE hierarchy governs flows between backgrounds with different m. In this thesis, we explore this interesting connection between minimal string theories and integrable hierarchies further. We uncover the remarkable role that an infinite hierarchy of non-linear differential equations plays in organizing and connecting certain minimal string theories non-perturbatively. We are able to embed the type 0A and 0B (A,A) minimal string theories into this single framework. The string theories arise as special limits of a rich system of equations underpinned by an integrable system known as the dispersive water wave hierarchy. We find that there are several other string-like limits of the system, and conjecture that some of them are type IIA and IIB (A,D) minimal string backgrounds. We explain how these and several other string-like special points arise and are connected. In some cases, the framework endows the theories with a non-perturbative definition for the first time. Notably, we discover that the Painleve IV equation plays a key role in organizing the string theory physics, joining its siblings, Painleve I and II, whose roles have previously been identified in this minimal string context. We then present evidence that the conjectured type II theories have smooth non-perturbative solutions, connecting two perturbative asymptotic regimes, in a 't Hooft limit. Our technique also demonstrates evidence for new minimal string theories that are not apparent in a perturbative analysis.

Using ontology-based annotation to profile disease research

PubMed Central

Coulet, Adrien; LePendu, Paea; Shah, Nigam H

2012-01-01

Background Profiling the allocation and trend of research activity is of interest to funding agencies, administrators, and researchers. However, the lack of a common classification system hinders the comprehensive and systematic profiling of research activities. This study introduces ontology-based annotation as a method to overcome this difficulty. Analyzing over a decade of funding data and publication data, the trends of disease research are profiled across topics, across institutions, and over time. Results This study introduces and explores the notions of research sponsorship and allocation and shows that leaders of research activity can be identified within specific disease areas of interest, such as those with high mortality or high sponsorship. The funding profiles of disease topics readily cluster themselves in agreement with the ontology hierarchy and closely mirror the funding agency priorities. Finally, four temporal trends are identified among research topics. Conclusions This work utilizes disease ontology (DO)-based annotation to profile effectively the landscape of biomedical research activity. By using DO in this manner a use-case driven mechanism is also proposed to evaluate the utility of classification hierarchies. PMID:22494789

Static Modulation Wave of Arrays of Halogen Interactions Transduced to a Hierarchy of Nanoscale Change Stimuli of Crystalline Rotors Dynamics.

PubMed

Simonov, Sergey; Zorina, Leokadiya; Wzietek, Pawel; Rodríguez-Fortea, Antonio; Canadell, Enric; Mézière, Cécile; Bastien, Guillaume; Lemouchi, Cyprien; Garcia-Garibay, Miguel A; Batail, Patrick

2018-06-13

Here we present a study where what can be seen as a static modulation wave encompassing four successive arrays of interacting iodine atoms in crystalline 1,4-Bis((4'-(iodoethynyl)phenyl) ethynyl)bicyclo[2,2,2]octane rotors changes the structure from one-half molecule to three-and-a-half molecules in the asymmetric unit below a phase transition at 105 K. The remarkable finding is that the total 1 H spin-lattice relaxation rate, T 1 -1 , of unprecedented complexity to date in molecular rotors, is the weighted sum of the relaxation rates of the four contributing rotors relaxation rates, each with distinguishable exchange frequencies reflecting Arrhenius parameters with different activation barriers ( E a ) and attempt frequencies (τ o -1 ). This allows us to show in tandem with rotor-environment interaction energy calculations how the dynamics of molecular rotors are able to decode structural information from their surroundings with remarkable nanoscale precision.

Electrostatic Effects in Filamentous Protein Aggregation

PubMed Central

Buell, Alexander K.; Hung, Peter; Salvatella, Xavier; Welland, Mark E.; Dobson, Christopher M.; Knowles, Tuomas P.J.

2013-01-01

Electrostatic forces play a key role in mediating interactions between proteins. However, gaining quantitative insights into the complex effects of electrostatics on protein behavior has proved challenging, due to the wide palette of scenarios through which both cations and anions can interact with polypeptide molecules in a specific manner or can result in screening in solution. In this article, we have used a variety of biophysical methods to probe the steady-state kinetics of fibrillar protein self-assembly in a highly quantitative manner to detect how it is modulated by changes in solution ionic strength. Due to the exponential modulation of the reaction rate by electrostatic forces, this reaction represents an exquisitely sensitive probe of these effects in protein-protein interactions. Our approach, which involves a combination of experimental kinetic measurements and theoretical analysis, reveals a hierarchy of electrostatic effects that control protein aggregation. Furthermore, our results provide a highly sensitive method for the estimation of the magnitude of binding of a variety of ions to protein molecules. PMID:23473495

The central role of recognition in auditory perception: a neurobiological model.

PubMed

McLachlan, Neil; Wilson, Sarah

2010-01-01

The model presents neurobiologically plausible accounts of sound recognition (including absolute pitch), neural plasticity involved in pitch, loudness and location information integration, and streaming and auditory recall. It is proposed that a cortical mechanism for sound identification modulates the spectrotemporal response fields of inferior colliculus neurons and regulates the encoding of the echoic trace in the thalamus. Identification involves correlation of sequential spectral slices of the stimulus-driven neural activity with stored representations in association with multimodal memories, verbal lexicons, and contextual information. Identities are then consolidated in auditory short-term memory and bound with attribute information (usually pitch, loudness, and direction) that has been integrated according to the identities' spectral properties. Attention to, or recall of, a particular identity will excite a particular sequence in the identification hierarchies and so lead to modulation of thalamus and inferior colliculus neural spectrotemporal response fields. This operates as an adaptive filter for identities, or their attributes, and explains many puzzling human auditory behaviors, such as the cocktail party effect, selective attention, and continuity illusions.

A hierarchy of ocean biogeochemical comprehensiveness for Earth System Modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dunne, J. P.

2016-12-01

As Earth System Models mature towards more quantitative explanations of ocean carbon cycle interactions and are applied to an increasingly diverse array of living marine resource communities, the draw towards biogeochemical and ecological comprehensiveness intensifies. However, this draw to comprehensiveness must also be balanced with the added cost of handling additional tracers. One way that GFDL has addressed this constraint is by developing a series of biogeochemical modules based on the 30 tracer TOPAZ formulation used in GFDL's CMIP5 contribution in both simplifying the biogeochemistry down to the 6 tracer BLING formulation and 3 tracer mini-BLING formulation, and in the other direction improving on ecosystem comprehensiveness with the 33 tracer COBALT formulation. We discuss the comparative advantages and disadvantages along this continuum of complexity in terms of both biogeochemical and ecological fidelity and applicability. We also discuss a related approach to separate out other modules for ideal age, 14C, CFCs, SF6, Argon and other tracer suites, allowing use to run an array of experimental designs to suite different needs.

Multiple Hierarchies and Organizational Control

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Evans, Peter B.

1975-01-01

Uses a control-loss model to explore the effects of multiple channels in formal organizations, and presents an argument for the superior control properties of dual hierarchies. Two variant forms of multiple hierarchies are considered. (Author)

Knowledge and Beliefs about National Development and Developmental Hierarchies: the Viewpoints of Ordinary People in Thirteen Countries

PubMed Central

Thornton, Arland; Binstock, Georgina; Abbasi-Shavazi, Mohammad Jalal; Ghimire, Dirgha; Gjonca, Arjan; Melegh, Attila; Mitchell, Colter; Moaddel, Mansoor; Xie, Yu; Yang, Li-shou; Young-DeMarco, Linda; Yount, Kathryn M.

2012-01-01

Scholars and policy makers have for centuries constructed and used developmental hierarchies to characterize different countries. The hypotheses motivating this paper are that such social constructions have been circulated internationally, are constructed similarly in various countries, and follow the social constructions of elite international organizations, such as the United Nations. This paper uses data from fifteen surveys in thirteen diverse countries to study how developmental hierarchies are understood in everyday life. Our research shows that most people have constructions of developmental hierarchies that are similar across countries and are similar to the developmental hierarchies constructed by the United Nations. These findings suggest that developmental hierarchies are widely understood around the world and are widely available to ordinary people as they make decisions about many aspects of life. PMID:23017917

Is there a hierarchy of survival reflexes?

PubMed

Macphail, Kieran

2013-10-01

A hierarchy of survival reflexes for prioritising assessment and treatment in patients with pain of insidious onset is hypothesised. The hierarchy asserts that some systems are more vital than others and that the central nervous system (CNS) prioritises systems based on their significance to survival. The hypothesis suggests that dysfunction in more important systems will cause compensation in less important systems. This paper presents studies examining these effects for each system, arguing that each section of the hierarchy may have effects on other systems within the hierarchy. This concept is untested empirically, highly speculative and substantial research is required to validate the suggested hierarchical prioritisation by the CNS. Nonetheless, the hierarchy does provide a theoretical framework to use to exclude contributing systems in patients with pain of insidious onset. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Towards Interactive Construction of Topical Hierarchy: A Recursive Tensor Decomposition Approach

PubMed Central

Wang, Chi; Liu, Xueqing; Song, Yanglei; Han, Jiawei

2015-01-01

Automatic construction of user-desired topical hierarchies over large volumes of text data is a highly desirable but challenging task. This study proposes to give users freedom to construct topical hierarchies via interactive operations such as expanding a branch and merging several branches. Existing hierarchical topic modeling techniques are inadequate for this purpose because (1) they cannot consistently preserve the topics when the hierarchy structure is modified; and (2) the slow inference prevents swift response to user requests. In this study, we propose a novel method, called STROD, that allows efficient and consistent modification of topic hierarchies, based on a recursive generative model and a scalable tensor decomposition inference algorithm with theoretical performance guarantee. Empirical evaluation shows that STROD reduces the runtime of construction by several orders of magnitude, while generating consistent and quality hierarchies. PMID:26705505

Multicomponent integrable reductions in the Kadomtsev-Petviashvilli hierarchy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sidorenko, Jurij; Strampp, Walter

1993-04-01

New types of reductions of the Kadomtsev-Petviashvili (KP) hierarchy are considered on the basis of Sato's approach. Within this approach the KP hierarchy is represented by infinite sets of equations for potentials u2,u3,..., of pseudodifferential operators and their eigenfunctions Ψ and adjoint eigenfunctions Ψ*. The KP hierarchy was studied under constraints of the following type (∑ni=1 ΨiΨ*i)x = Sκ,x where Sκ,x are symmetries for the KP equation and Ψi(λi), Ψ*i(λi) are eigenfunctions with eigenvalue λi. It is shown that for the first three cases κ=2,3,4 these constraints give rise to hierarchies of 1+1-dimensional commuting flows for the variables u2, Ψ1,...,Ψn, Ψ*1,...,Ψ*n. Bi-Hamiltonian structures for the new hierarchies are presented.

Towards Interactive Construction of Topical Hierarchy: A Recursive Tensor Decomposition Approach.

PubMed

Wang, Chi; Liu, Xueqing; Song, Yanglei; Han, Jiawei

2015-08-01

Automatic construction of user-desired topical hierarchies over large volumes of text data is a highly desirable but challenging task. This study proposes to give users freedom to construct topical hierarchies via interactive operations such as expanding a branch and merging several branches. Existing hierarchical topic modeling techniques are inadequate for this purpose because (1) they cannot consistently preserve the topics when the hierarchy structure is modified; and (2) the slow inference prevents swift response to user requests. In this study, we propose a novel method, called STROD, that allows efficient and consistent modification of topic hierarchies, based on a recursive generative model and a scalable tensor decomposition inference algorithm with theoretical performance guarantee. Empirical evaluation shows that STROD reduces the runtime of construction by several orders of magnitude, while generating consistent and quality hierarchies.

Structural hierarchy controlling dimerization and target DNA recognition in the AHR transcriptional complex.

PubMed

Seok, Seung-Hyeon; Lee, Woojong; Jiang, Li; Molugu, Kaivalya; Zheng, Aiping; Li, Yitong; Park, Sanghyun; Bradfield, Christopher A; Xing, Yongna

2017-05-23

The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) belongs to the PAS (PER-ARNT-SIM) family transcription factors and mediates broad responses to numerous environmental pollutants and cellular metabolites, modulating diverse biological processes from adaptive metabolism, acute toxicity, to normal physiology of vascular and immune systems. The AHR forms a transcriptionally active heterodimer with ARNT (AHR nuclear translocator), which recognizes the dioxin response element (DRE) in the promoter of downstream genes. We determined the crystal structure of the mammalian AHR-ARNT heterodimer in complex with the DRE, in which ARNT curls around AHR into a highly intertwined asymmetric architecture, with extensive heterodimerization interfaces and AHR interdomain interactions. Specific recognition of the DRE is determined locally by the DNA-binding residues, which discriminates it from the closely related hypoxia response element (HRE), and is globally affected by the dimerization interfaces and interdomain interactions. Changes at the interdomain interactions caused either AHR constitutive nuclear localization or failure to translocate to nucleus, underlying an allosteric structural pathway for mediating ligand-induced exposure of nuclear localization signal. These observations, together with the global higher flexibility of the AHR PAS-A and its loosely packed structural elements, suggest a dynamic structural hierarchy for complex scenarios of AHR activation induced by its diverse ligands.

Structural hierarchy controlling dimerization and target DNA recognition in the AHR transcriptional complex

PubMed Central

Lee, Woojong; Jiang, Li; Molugu, Kaivalya; Zheng, Aiping; Li, Yitong; Park, Sanghyun; Bradfield, Christopher A.; Xing, Yongna

2017-01-01

The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) belongs to the PAS (PER-ARNT-SIM) family transcription factors and mediates broad responses to numerous environmental pollutants and cellular metabolites, modulating diverse biological processes from adaptive metabolism, acute toxicity, to normal physiology of vascular and immune systems. The AHR forms a transcriptionally active heterodimer with ARNT (AHR nuclear translocator), which recognizes the dioxin response element (DRE) in the promoter of downstream genes. We determined the crystal structure of the mammalian AHR–ARNT heterodimer in complex with the DRE, in which ARNT curls around AHR into a highly intertwined asymmetric architecture, with extensive heterodimerization interfaces and AHR interdomain interactions. Specific recognition of the DRE is determined locally by the DNA-binding residues, which discriminates it from the closely related hypoxia response element (HRE), and is globally affected by the dimerization interfaces and interdomain interactions. Changes at the interdomain interactions caused either AHR constitutive nuclear localization or failure to translocate to nucleus, underlying an allosteric structural pathway for mediating ligand-induced exposure of nuclear localization signal. These observations, together with the global higher flexibility of the AHR PAS-A and its loosely packed structural elements, suggest a dynamic structural hierarchy for complex scenarios of AHR activation induced by its diverse ligands. PMID:28396409

Structural hierarchy controlling dimerization and target DNA recognition in the AHR transcriptional complex

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Seok, Seung-Hyeon; Lee, Woojong; Jiang, Li

he aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) belongs to the PAS (PER-ARNT-SIM) family transcription factors and mediates broad responses to numerous environmental pollutants and cellular metabolites, modulating diverse biological processes from adaptive metabolism, acute toxicity, to normal physiology of vascular and immune systems. The AHR forms a transcriptionally active heterodimer with ARNT (AHR nuclear translocator), which recognizes the dioxin response element (DRE) in the promoter of downstream genes. We determined the crystal structure of the mammalian AHR–ARNT heterodimer in complex with the DRE, in which ARNT curls around AHR into a highly intertwined asymmetric architecture, with extensive heterodimerization interfaces and AHR interdomainmore » interactions. Specific recognition of the DRE is determined locally by the DNA-binding residues, which discriminates it from the closely related hypoxia response element (HRE), and is globally affected by the dimerization interfaces and interdomain interactions. Changes at the interdomain interactions caused either AHR constitutive nuclear localization or failure to translocate to nucleus, underlying an allosteric structural pathway for mediating ligand-induced exposure of nuclear localization signal. These observations, together with the global higher flexibility of the AHR PAS-A and its loosely packed structural elements, suggest a dynamic structural hierarchy for complex scenarios of AHR activation induced by its diverse ligands.« less

Feedforward and feedback frequency-dependent interactions in a large-scale laminar network of the primate cortex.

PubMed

Mejias, Jorge F; Murray, John D; Kennedy, Henry; Wang, Xiao-Jing

2016-11-01

Interactions between top-down and bottom-up processes in the cerebral cortex hold the key to understanding attentional processes, predictive coding, executive control, and a gamut of other brain functions. However, the underlying circuit mechanism remains poorly understood and represents a major challenge in neuroscience. We approached this problem using a large-scale computational model of the primate cortex constrained by new directed and weighted connectivity data. In our model, the interplay between feedforward and feedback signaling depends on the cortical laminar structure and involves complex dynamics across multiple (intralaminar, interlaminar, interareal, and whole cortex) scales. The model was tested by reproducing, as well as providing insights into, a wide range of neurophysiological findings about frequency-dependent interactions between visual cortical areas, including the observation that feedforward pathways are associated with enhanced gamma (30 to 70 Hz) oscillations, whereas feedback projections selectively modulate alpha/low-beta (8 to 15 Hz) oscillations. Furthermore, the model reproduces a functional hierarchy based on frequency-dependent Granger causality analysis of interareal signaling, as reported in recent monkey and human experiments, and suggests a mechanism for the observed context-dependent hierarchy dynamics. Together, this work highlights the necessity of multiscale approaches and provides a modeling platform for studies of large-scale brain circuit dynamics and functions.

Feedforward and feedback frequency-dependent interactions in a large-scale laminar network of the primate cortex

PubMed Central

Mejias, Jorge F.; Murray, John D.; Kennedy, Henry; Wang, Xiao-Jing

2016-01-01

Interactions between top-down and bottom-up processes in the cerebral cortex hold the key to understanding attentional processes, predictive coding, executive control, and a gamut of other brain functions. However, the underlying circuit mechanism remains poorly understood and represents a major challenge in neuroscience. We approached this problem using a large-scale computational model of the primate cortex constrained by new directed and weighted connectivity data. In our model, the interplay between feedforward and feedback signaling depends on the cortical laminar structure and involves complex dynamics across multiple (intralaminar, interlaminar, interareal, and whole cortex) scales. The model was tested by reproducing, as well as providing insights into, a wide range of neurophysiological findings about frequency-dependent interactions between visual cortical areas, including the observation that feedforward pathways are associated with enhanced gamma (30 to 70 Hz) oscillations, whereas feedback projections selectively modulate alpha/low-beta (8 to 15 Hz) oscillations. Furthermore, the model reproduces a functional hierarchy based on frequency-dependent Granger causality analysis of interareal signaling, as reported in recent monkey and human experiments, and suggests a mechanism for the observed context-dependent hierarchy dynamics. Together, this work highlights the necessity of multiscale approaches and provides a modeling platform for studies of large-scale brain circuit dynamics and functions. PMID:28138530

Short-term plasticity as a neural mechanism supporting memory and attentional functions.

PubMed

Jääskeläinen, Iiro P; Ahveninen, Jyrki; Andermann, Mark L; Belliveau, John W; Raij, Tommi; Sams, Mikko

2011-11-08

Based on behavioral studies, several relatively distinct perceptual and cognitive functions have been defined in cognitive psychology such as sensory memory, short-term memory, and selective attention. Here, we review evidence suggesting that some of these functions may be supported by shared underlying neuronal mechanisms. Specifically, we present, based on an integrative review of the literature, a hypothetical model wherein short-term plasticity, in the form of transient center-excitatory and surround-inhibitory modulations, constitutes a generic processing principle that supports sensory memory, short-term memory, involuntary attention, selective attention, and perceptual learning. In our model, the size and complexity of receptive fields/level of abstraction of neural representations, as well as the length of temporal receptive windows, increases as one steps up the cortical hierarchy. Consequently, the type of input (bottom-up vs. top down) and the level of cortical hierarchy that the inputs target, determine whether short-term plasticity supports purely sensory vs. semantic short-term memory or attentional functions. Furthermore, we suggest that rather than discrete memory systems, there are continuums of memory representations from short-lived sensory ones to more abstract longer-duration representations, such as those tapped by behavioral studies of short-term memory. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

On the huge Lie superalgebra of pseudo-superdifferential operators and super KP-hierarchies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sedra, M. B.

1996-07-01

Lie superalgebraic methods are used to establish a connection between the huge Lie superalgebra Ξ of super- (pseudo-) differential operators and various super KP-hierarchies. We show in particular that Ξ splits into 5=2×2+1 graded algebras expected to correspond to five classes of super-KP-hierarchies generalizing the well-known Manin-Radul and Figueroa-Mas-Ramos supersymmetric KP-hierarchies.

Fractional Volterra hierarchy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Si-Qi; Zhang, Youjin; Zhou, Chunhui

2018-02-01

The generating function of cubic Hodge integrals satisfying the local Calabi-Yau condition is conjectured to be a tau function of a new integrable system which can be regarded as a fractional generalization of the Volterra lattice hierarchy, so we name it the fractional Volterra hierarchy. In this paper, we give the definition of this integrable hierarchy in terms of Lax pair and Hamiltonian formalisms, construct its tau functions, and present its multi-soliton solutions.

Overview of the CCITT Recommendations for Synchronous Digital Hierarchy

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-10-01

Recommendations for8 Synchronous Digital Hierarchy DCK RAPPORTENCEN’TRiLEAD-A245 680 Frederikkazerne, Geb. 140EN 1111 iNTelefcron: 070-3166394/6395... Synchronous Digital Hierarchy author(s) P.P. Copeland institute TNO Physics and Electronics Laboratory date October 1991 NDRO no A90KLu635 no in pow...recent International Consultative Committee for Telephone and Telegraph (CCITT) Recommendations for the Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH). The

A new six-component super soliton hierarchy and its self-consistent sources and conservation laws

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han-yu, Wei; Tie-cheng, Xia

2016-01-01

A new six-component super soliton hierarchy is obtained based on matrix Lie super algebras. Super trace identity is used to furnish the super Hamiltonian structures for the resulting nonlinear super integrable hierarchy. After that, the self-consistent sources of the new six-component super soliton hierarchy are presented. Furthermore, we establish the infinitely many conservation laws for the integrable super soliton hierarchy. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 11547175, 11271008 and 61072147), the First-class Discipline of University in Shanghai, China, and the Science and Technology Department of Henan Province, China (Grant No. 152300410230).

Hierarchical modeling of professional skills in the field of castings manufacture engineering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Samuilă, V.; Soporan, V. F.; Conțiu, G.; Pădurețu, S.; Lehene, T. R.; Vescan, M. M.

2017-06-01

The paper presents a method of hierarchizing professional skills in the manufacturing of molded parts (castings) by using and adapting the FAHP algorithm (Fuzzy Analitical Hierarchy Process). Assessments are made regarding the peculiarities of the professional training process, specifying the activities to be carried out and the competences necessary for their development. The contribution of the design of the method extends to the design of the hierarchy system architecture, the linguistic determination of the importance of each characteristic, the construction of the fuzzy ordering matrices for each stage of the process, the determination of the share of the characteristics for each hierarchy step and establishing the hierarchy of the characteristics taking into account the influences of the others, grouped at the level of the steps and within the global matrix. The research carried out represents the support for generating an instrument of hierarchy of professional competencies that can be used in various professional and institutional contexts. Case study on the hierarchy of professional skills in the manufacturing of molded parts engineering. Keywords: Materials engineering, castings manufacture professional skills, hierarchy, AHP method, standard occupational curriculum.

Visualising large hierarchies with Flextree

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Hongzhi; Curran, Edwin P.; Sterritt, Roy

2003-05-01

One of the main tasks in Information Visualisation research is creating visual tools to facilitate human understanding of large and complex information spaces. Hierarchies, being a good mechanism in organising such information, are ubiquitous. Although much research effort has been spent on finding useful representations for hierarchies, visualising large hierarchies is still a difficult topic. One of the difficulties is how to show both tructure and node content information in one view. Another is how to achieve multiple foci in a focus+context visualisation. This paper describes a novel hierarchy visualisation technique called FlexTree to address these problems. It contains some important features that have not been exploited so far. In this visualisation, a profile or contour unique to the hierarchy being visualised can be gained in a histogram-like layout. A normalised view of a common attribute of all nodes can be acquired, and selection of this attribute is controllable by the user. Multiple foci are consistently accessible within a global context through interaction. Furthermore it can handle a large hierarchy that contains several thousand nodes in a PC environment. In addition results from an informal evaluation are also presented.

Indo-Pacific Variability on Seasonal to Multidecadal Time Scales. Part I: Intrinsic SST Modes in Models and Observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Slawinska, Joanna; Giannakis, Dimitrios

2017-07-01

The variability of Indo-Pacific SST on seasonal to multidecadal timescales is investigated using a recently introduced technique called nonlinear Laplacian spectral analysis (NLSA). Through this technique, drawbacks associated with ad hoc pre-filtering of the input data are avoided, enabling recovery of low-frequency and intermittent modes not previously accessible via classical approaches. Here, a multiscale hierarchy of spatiotemporal modes is identified for Indo-Pacific SST in millennial control runs of CCSM4 and CM3 and in HadISST data. On interannual timescales, a mode with spatiotemporal patterns corresponding to the fundamental component of ENSO emerges, along with ENSO-modulated annual modes consistent with combination mode theory. The ENSO combination modes also feature prominent activity in the Indian Ocean, explaining significant fraction of the SST variance in regions associated with the Indian Ocean dipole. A pattern resembling the tropospheric biennial oscillation emerges in addition to ENSO and the associated combination modes. On multidecadal timescales, the dominant NLSA mode in the model data is predominantly active in the western tropical Pacific. The interdecadal Pacific oscillation also emerges as a distinct NLSA mode, though with smaller explained variance than the western Pacific multidecadal mode. Analogous modes on interannual and decadal timescales are also identified in HadISST data for the industrial era, as well as in model data of comparable timespan, though decadal modes are either absent or of degraded quality in these datasets.

Social conflict resolution regulated by two dorsal habenular subregions in zebrafish.

PubMed

Chou, Ming-Yi; Amo, Ryunosuke; Kinoshita, Masae; Cherng, Bor-Wei; Shimazaki, Hideaki; Agetsuma, Masakazu; Shiraki, Toshiyuki; Aoki, Tazu; Takahoko, Mikako; Yamazaki, Masako; Higashijima, Shin-ichi; Okamoto, Hitoshi

2016-04-01

When animals encounter conflict they initiate and escalate aggression to establish and maintain a social hierarchy. The neural mechanisms by which animals resolve fighting behaviors to determine such social hierarchies remain unknown. We identified two subregions of the dorsal habenula (dHb) in zebrafish that antagonistically regulate the outcome of conflict. The losing experience reduced neural transmission in the lateral subregion of dHb (dHbL)-dorsal/intermediate interpeduncular nucleus (d/iIPN) circuit. Silencing of the dHbL or medial subregion of dHb (dHbM) caused a stronger predisposition to lose or win a fight, respectively. These results demonstrate that the dHbL and dHbM comprise a dual control system for conflict resolution of social aggression. Copyright © 2016, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Evaluating supplier quality performance using fuzzy analytical hierarchy process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ahmad, Nazihah; Kasim, Maznah Mat; Rajoo, Shanmugam Sundram Kalimuthu

2014-12-01

Evaluating supplier quality performance is vital in ensuring continuous supply chain improvement, reducing the operational costs and risks towards meeting customer's expectation. This paper aims to illustrate an application of Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process to prioritize the evaluation criteria in a context of automotive manufacturing in Malaysia. Five main criteria were identified which were quality, cost, delivery, customer serviceand technology support. These criteria had been arranged into hierarchical structure and evaluated by an expert. The relative importance of each criteria was determined by using linguistic variables which were represented as triangular fuzzy numbers. The Center of Gravity defuzzification method was used to convert the fuzzy evaluations into their corresponding crisps values. Such fuzzy evaluation can be used as a systematic tool to overcome the uncertainty evaluation of suppliers' performance which usually associated with human being subjective judgments.

Organic Functional Group Playing Card Deck

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Welsh, Michael J.

2003-04-01

The recognition and identification of organic functional groups, while essential for chemistry and biology majors, is also very useful for non-science majors in the study of molecules in art and life. In order to make this task more palatable for the non-science major (art and communications students), the images of a traditional playing deck of cards (heart, spade, diamond, and club) have been replaced with four representations of common organic functional groups. The hierarchy rules for naming two groups in a molecule is loosely incorporated to represent the sequence (King, Queen, Jack, ?, Ace) of the deck. Students practice recognizing and identifying organic groups by playing simple card games of "Old Maid" and "Go Fish". To play games like "Poker" or "Gin", a student must not only recognize the functional groups, but also master a naming hierarchy for the organic groups.

Auditing Complex Concepts in Overlapping Subsets of SNOMED

PubMed Central

Wang, Yue; Wei, Duo; Xu, Junchuan; Elhanan, Gai; Perl, Yehoshua; Halper, Michael; Chen, Yan; Spackman, Kent A.; Hripcsak, George

2008-01-01

Limited resources and the sheer volume of concepts make auditing a large terminology, such as SNOMED CT, a daunting task. It is essential to devise techniques that can aid an auditor by automatically identifying concepts that deserve attention. A methodology for this purpose based on a previously introduced abstraction network (called the p-area taxonomy) for a SNOMED CT hierarchy is presented. The methodology algorithmically gathers concepts appearing in certain overlapping subsets, defined exclusively with respect to the p-area taxonomy, for review. The results of applying the methodology to SNOMED’s Specimen hierarchy are presented. These results are compared against a control sample composed of concepts residing in subsets without the overlaps. With the use of the double bootstrap, the concept group produced by our methodology is shown to yield a statistically significant higher proportion of error discoveries. PMID:18998838

Auditing complex concepts in overlapping subsets of SNOMED.

PubMed

Wang, Yue; Wei, Duo; Xu, Junchuan; Elhanan, Gai; Perl, Yehoshua; Halper, Michael; Chen, Yan; Spackman, Kent A; Hripcsak, George

2008-11-06

Limited resources and the sheer volume of concepts make auditing a large terminology, such as SNOMED CT, a daunting task. It is essential to devise techniques that can aid an auditor by automatically identifying concepts that deserve attention. A methodology for this purpose based on a previously introduced abstraction network (called the p-area taxonomy) for a SNOMED CT hierarchy is presented. The methodology algorithmically gathers concepts appearing in certain overlapping subsets, defined exclusively with respect to the p-area taxonomy, for review. The results of applying the methodology to SNOMED's Specimen hierarchy are presented. These results are compared against a control sample composed of concepts residing in subsets without the overlaps. With the use of the double bootstrap, the concept group produced by our methodology is shown to yield a statistically significant higher proportion of error discoveries.

Constructing Abstraction Hierarchies Using a Skill-Symbol Loop

PubMed Central

Konidaris, George

2017-01-01

We describe a framework for building abstraction hierarchies whereby an agent alternates skill- and representation-construction phases to construct a sequence of increasingly abstract Markov decision processes. Our formulation builds on recent results showing that the appropriate abstract representation of a problem is specified by the agent’s skills. We describe how such a hierarchy can be used for fast planning, and illustrate the construction of an appropriate hierarchy for the Taxi domain. PMID:28579718

A hierarchy of generalized Jaulent-Miodek equations and their explicit solutions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geng, Xianguo; Guan, Liang; Xue, Bo

A hierarchy of generalized Jaulent-Miodek (JM) equations related to a new spectral problem with energy-dependent potentials is proposed. Depending on the Lax matrix and elliptic variables, the generalized JM hierarchy is decomposed into two systems of solvable ordinary differential equations. Explicit theta function representations of the meromorphic function and the Baker-Akhiezer function are constructed, the solutions of the hierarchy are obtained based on the theory of algebraic curves.

Comparing the hierarchy of author given tags and repository given tags in a large document archive

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tibély, Gergely; Pollner, Péter; Palla, Gergely

2016-10-01

Folksonomies - large databases arising from collaborative tagging of items by independent users - are becoming an increasingly important way of categorizing information. In these systems users can tag items with free words, resulting in a tripartite item-tag-user network. Although there are no prescribed relations between tags, the way users think about the different categories presumably has some built in hierarchy, in which more special concepts are descendants of some more general categories. Several applications would benefit from the knowledge of this hierarchy. Here we apply a recent method to check the differences and similarities of hierarchies resulting from tags given by independent individuals and from tags given by a centrally managed repository system. The results from our method showed substantial differences between the lower part of the hierarchies, and in contrast, a relatively high similarity at the top of the hierarchies.

Measuring, Enabling and Comparing Modularity, Regularity and Hierarchy in Evolutionary Design

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hornby, Gregory S.

2005-01-01

For computer-automated design systems to scale to complex designs they must be able to produce designs that exhibit the characteristics of modularity, regularity and hierarchy - characteristics that are found both in man-made and natural designs. Here we claim that these characteristics are enabled by implementing the attributes of combination, control-flow and abstraction in the representation. To support this claim we use an evolutionary algorithm to evolve solutions to different sizes of a table design problem using five different representations, each with different combinations of modularity, regularity and hierarchy enabled and show that the best performance happens when all three of these attributes are enabled. We also define metrics for modularity, regularity and hierarchy in design encodings and demonstrate that high fitness values are achieved with high values of modularity, regularity and hierarchy and that there is a positive correlation between increases in fitness and increases in modularity. regularity and hierarchy.

Modelling Dominance Hierarchies Under Winner and Loser Effects.

PubMed

Kura, Klodeta; Broom, Mark; Kandler, Anne

2015-06-01

Animals that live in groups commonly form themselves into dominance hierarchies which are used to allocate important resources such as access to mating opportunities and food. In this paper, we develop a model of dominance hierarchy formation based upon the concept of winner and loser effects using a simulation-based model and consider the linearity of our hierarchy using existing and new statistical measures. Two models are analysed: when each individual in a group does not know the real ability of their opponents to win a fight and when they can estimate their opponents' ability every time they fight. This estimation may be accurate or fall within an error bound. For both models, we investigate if we can achieve hierarchy linearity, and if so, when it is established. We are particularly interested in the question of how many fights are necessary to establish a dominance hierarchy.

The use of open and machine vision technologies for development of gesture recognition intelligent systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cherkasov, Kirill V.; Gavrilova, Irina V.; Chernova, Elena V.; Dokolin, Andrey S.

2018-05-01

The article is devoted to reflection of separate aspects of intellectual system gesture recognition development. The peculiarity of the system is its intellectual block which completely based on open technologies: OpenCV library and Microsoft Cognitive Toolkit (CNTK) platform. The article presents the rationale for the choice of such set of tools, as well as the functional scheme of the system and the hierarchy of its modules. Experiments have shown that the system correctly recognizes about 85% of images received from sensors. The authors assume that the improvement of the algorithmic block of the system will increase the accuracy of gesture recognition up to 95%.

[A design of simple ventilator control system based on LabVIEW].

PubMed

Pei, Baoqing; Xu, Shengwei; Li, Hui; Li, Deyu; Pei, Yidong; He, Haixing

2011-01-01

This paper designed a ventilator control system to control proportional valves and motors. It used LabVIEW to control the object mentioned above and design ,validate, evaluate arithmetic, and establish hardware in loop platform. There are two system' s hierarchies. The high layer was used to run non-real time program and the low layer was used to run real time program. The two layers communicated through TCP/IP net. The program can be divided into several modules, which can be expanded and maintained easily. And the harvest in the prototype designing can be seamlessly used to embedded products. From all above, this system was useful in employing OEM products.

Information slows down hierarchy growth

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Czaplicka, Agnieszka; Suchecki, Krzysztof; Miñano, Borja; Trias, Miquel; Hołyst, Janusz A.

2014-06-01

We consider models of growing multilevel systems wherein the growth process is driven by rules of tournament selection. A system can be conceived as an evolving tree with a new node being attached to a contestant node at the best hierarchy level (a level nearest to the tree root). The proposed evolution reflects limited information on system properties available to new nodes. It can also be expressed in terms of population dynamics. Two models are considered: a constant tournament (CT) model wherein the number of tournament participants is constant throughout system evolution, and a proportional tournament (PT) model where this number increases proportionally to the growing size of the system itself. The results of analytical calculations based on a rate equation fit well to numerical simulations for both models. In the CT model all hierarchy levels emerge, but the birth time of a consecutive hierarchy level increases exponentially or faster for each new level. The number of nodes at the first hierarchy level grows logarithmically in time, while the size of the last, "worst" hierarchy level oscillates quasi-log-periodically. In the PT model, the occupations of the first two hierarchy levels increase linearly, but worse hierarchy levels either do not emerge at all or appear only by chance in the early stage of system evolution to further stop growing at all. The results allow us to conclude that information available to each new node in tournament dynamics restrains the emergence of new hierarchy levels and that it is the absolute amount of information, not relative, which governs such behavior.

Information slows down hierarchy growth.

PubMed

Czaplicka, Agnieszka; Suchecki, Krzysztof; Miñano, Borja; Trias, Miquel; Hołyst, Janusz A

2014-06-01

We consider models of growing multilevel systems wherein the growth process is driven by rules of tournament selection. A system can be conceived as an evolving tree with a new node being attached to a contestant node at the best hierarchy level (a level nearest to the tree root). The proposed evolution reflects limited information on system properties available to new nodes. It can also be expressed in terms of population dynamics. Two models are considered: a constant tournament (CT) model wherein the number of tournament participants is constant throughout system evolution, and a proportional tournament (PT) model where this number increases proportionally to the growing size of the system itself. The results of analytical calculations based on a rate equation fit well to numerical simulations for both models. In the CT model all hierarchy levels emerge, but the birth time of a consecutive hierarchy level increases exponentially or faster for each new level. The number of nodes at the first hierarchy level grows logarithmically in time, while the size of the last, "worst" hierarchy level oscillates quasi-log-periodically. In the PT model, the occupations of the first two hierarchy levels increase linearly, but worse hierarchy levels either do not emerge at all or appear only by chance in the early stage of system evolution to further stop growing at all. The results allow us to conclude that information available to each new node in tournament dynamics restrains the emergence of new hierarchy levels and that it is the absolute amount of information, not relative, which governs such behavior.

The relative importance of family socioeconomic status and school-based peer hierarchies for morning cortisol in youth: an exporatory study.

PubMed

West, Patrick; Sweeting, Helen; Young, Robert; Kelly, Shona

2010-04-01

This paper examines the relative importance of family socioeconomic status (SES) and school-based peer hierarchies for young people's psychoneuroendocrine response, represented by cortisol level. Data are drawn from a study of 2824, 15-year-olds in 22 Scottish secondary schools in 2006 who provided information on family SES (parental occupation, material deprivation and family affluence) and social position in school hierarchies, together with two morning salivary cortisol samples. School social position was assessed by participants placing themselves on seven 'ladders', from which three factors were derived, termed scholastic, peer and sports hierarchies. Controlling for confounds, there was little or no variation in cortisol by any SES measure. By contrast, each school hierarchy was independently associated with cortisol, but in different ways. For the scholastic hierarchy, an inverse linear relationship was found for females, cortisol increasing with lower position. For peer hierarchy, an opposite (direct) linear relationship occurred for males, while for females elevated cortisol was associated only with 'top' position. For sports, elevated cortisol among males was associated with 'bottom' position, among females with all except the 'top'. These results are interpreted in the context of Sapolsky's (Sapolsky, 2005) predictions for stress responses to hierarchical position in stable and unstable social systems, the former represented by the scholastic hierarchy involving elevated cortisol in lower positions, the latter by peer hierarchy with elevated cortisol in higher positions. Overall, the results highlight the greater importance of school-based peer groups than family SES for young people's psychoneuroendocrine response. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Completing the land resource hierarchy

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The Land Resource Hierarchy of the NRCS is a hierarchal landscape classification consisting of resource areas which represent both conceptual and spatially discrete landscape units stratifying agency programs and practices. The Land Resource Hierarchy (LRH) scales from discrete points (soil pedon an...

Scaling functional status within the interRAI suite of assessment instruments

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background As one ages, physical, cognitive, and clinical problems accumulate and the pattern of loss follows a distinct progression. The first areas requiring outside support are the Instrumental Activities of Daily Living and over time there is a need for support in performing the Activities of Daily Living. Two new functional hierarchies are presented, an IADL hierarchical capacity scale and a combination scale integrating both IADL and ADL hierarchies. Methods A secondary analyses of data from a cross-national sample of community residing persons was conducted using 762,023 interRAI assessments. The development of the new IADL Hierarchy and a new IADL-ADL combined scale proceeded through a series of interrelated steps first examining individual IADL and ADL item scores among persons receiving home care and those living independently without services. A factor analysis demonstrated the overall continuity across the IADL-ADL continuum. Evidence of the validity of the scales was explored with associative analyses of factors such as a cross-country distributional analysis for persons in home care programs, a count of functional problems across the categories of the hierarchy, an assessment of the hours of informal and formal care received each week by persons in the different categories of the hierarchy, and finally, evaluation of the relationship between cognitive status and the hierarchical IADL-ADL assignments. Results Using items from interRAI’s suite of assessment instruments, two new functional scales were developed, the interRAI IADL Hierarchy Scale and the interRAI IADL-ADL Functional Hierarchy Scale. The IADL Hierarchy Scale consisted of 5 items, meal preparation, housework, shopping, finances and medications. The interRAI IADL-ADL Functional Hierarchy Scale was created through an amalgamation of the ADL Hierarchy (developed previously) and IADL Hierarchy Scales. These scales cover the spectrum of IADL and ADL challenges faced by persons in the community. Conclusions An integrated IADL and ADL functional assessment tool is valuable. The loss in these areas follows a general hierarchical pattern and with the interRAI IADL-ADL Functional Hierarchy Scale, this progression can be reliably and validly assessed. Used across settings within the health continuum, it allows for monitoring of individuals from relative independence through episodes of care. PMID:24261417

Preferences for group dominance track and mediate the effects of macro-level social inequality and violence across societies.

PubMed

Kunst, Jonas R; Fischer, Ronald; Sidanius, Jim; Thomsen, Lotte

2017-05-23

Whether and how societal structures shape individual psychology is a foundational question of the social sciences. Combining insights from evolutionary biology, economy, and the political and psychological sciences, we identify a central psychological process that functions to sustain group-based hierarchies in human societies. In study 1, we demonstrate that macrolevel structural inequality, impaired population outcomes, socio-political instability, and the risk of violence are reflected in the endorsement of group hegemony at the aggregate population level across 27 countries ( n = 41,824): The greater the national inequality, the greater is the endorsement of between-group hierarchy within the population. Using multilevel analyses in study 2, we demonstrate that these psychological group-dominance motives mediate the effects of macrolevel functioning on individual-level attitudes and behaviors. Specifically, across 30 US states ( n = 4,613), macrolevel inequality and violence were associated with greater individual-level support of group hegemony. Crucially, this individual-level support, rather than cultural-societal norms, was in turn uniquely associated with greater racism, sexism, welfare opposition, and even willingness to enforce group hegemony violently by participating in ethnic persecution of subordinate out-groups. These findings suggest that societal inequality is reflected in people's minds as dominance motives that underpin ideologies and actions that ultimately sustain group-based hierarchy.

Abstraction of complex concepts with a refined partial-area taxonomy of SNOMED

PubMed Central

Wang, Yue; Halper, Michael; Wei, Duo; Perl, Yehoshua; Geller, James

2012-01-01

An algorithmically-derived abstraction network, called the partial-area taxonomy, for a SNOMED hierarchy has led to the identification of concepts considered complex. The designation “complex” is arrived at automatically on the basis of structural analyses of overlap among the constituent concept groups of the partial-area taxonomy. Such complex concepts, called overlapping concepts, constitute a tangled portion of a hierarchy and can be obstacles to users trying to gain an understanding of the hierarchy’s content. A new methodology for partitioning the entire collection of overlapping concepts into singly-rooted groups, that are more manageable to work with and comprehend, is presented. Different kinds of overlapping concepts with varying degrees of complexity are identified. This leads to an abstract model of the overlapping concepts called the disjoint partial-area taxonomy, which serves as a vehicle for enhanced, high-level display. The methodology is demonstrated with an application to SNOMED’s Specimen hierarchy. Overall, the resulting disjoint partial-area taxonomy offers a refined view of the hierarchy’s structural organization and conceptual content that can aid users, such as maintenance personnel, working with SNOMED. The utility of the disjoint partial-area taxonomy as the basis for a SNOMED auditing regimen is presented in a companion paper. PMID:21878396

Diphoton resonance from a warped extra dimension

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bauer, Martin; Hörner, Clara; Neubert, Matthias

2016-07-01

We argue that extensions of the Standard Model (SM) with a warped extra dimension, which successfully address the hierarchy and flavor problems of elementary particle physics, can provide an elegant explanation of the 750 GeV diphoton excess recently reported by ATLAS and CMS. A gauge-singlet bulk scalar with {O} (1) couplings to fermions is identified as the new resonance S, and the vector-like Kaluza-Klein excitations of the SM quarks and leptons mediate its loop-induced couplings to photons and gluons. The electroweak gauge symmetry almost unambiguously dictates the bulk matter content and hence the hierarchies of the Sto γ γ, W W,ZZ,Zγ, toverline{t} and dijet decay rates. We find that the S → Zγ decay mode is strongly suppressed, such that Br( S → Zγ) /Br( S → γγ) < 0 .1. The hierarchy problem for the new scalar boson is solved in analogy with the Higgs boson by localizing it near the infrared brane. The infinite sums over the Kaluza-Klein towers of fermion states converge and can be calculated in closed form with a remarkably simple result. Reproducing the observed pp → S → γγ signal requires Kaluza-Klein masses in the multi-TeV range, consistent with bounds from flavor physics and electroweak precision observables.

Risk Assessment of Groundwater Contamination: A Multilevel Fuzzy Comprehensive Evaluation Approach Based on DRASTIC Model

PubMed Central

Zhang, Yan; Zhong, Ming

2013-01-01

Groundwater contamination is a serious threat to water supply. Risk assessment of groundwater contamination is an effective way to protect the safety of groundwater resource. Groundwater is a complex and fuzzy system with many uncertainties, which is impacted by different geological and hydrological factors. In order to deal with the uncertainty in the risk assessment of groundwater contamination, we propose an approach with analysis hierarchy process and fuzzy comprehensive evaluation integrated together. Firstly, the risk factors of groundwater contamination are identified by the sources-pathway-receptor-consequence method, and a corresponding index system of risk assessment based on DRASTIC model is established. Due to the complexity in the process of transitions between the possible pollution risks and the uncertainties of factors, the method of analysis hierarchy process is applied to determine the weights of each factor, and the fuzzy sets theory is adopted to calculate the membership degrees of each factor. Finally, a case study is presented to illustrate and test this methodology. It is concluded that the proposed approach integrates the advantages of both analysis hierarchy process and fuzzy comprehensive evaluation, which provides a more flexible and reliable way to deal with the linguistic uncertainty and mechanism uncertainty in groundwater contamination without losing important information. PMID:24453883

Examining quality improvement programs: the case of Minnesota hospitals.

PubMed

Olson, John R; Belohlav, James A; Cook, Lori S; Hays, Julie M

2008-10-01

To determine if there is a hierarchy of improvement program adoption by hospitals and outline that hierarchy. Primary data were collected in the spring of 2007 via e-survey from 210 individuals representing 109 Minnesota hospitals. Secondary data from 2006 were assembled from the Leapfrog database. As part of a larger survey, respondents were given a list of improvement programs and asked to identify those programs that are used in their hospital. DATA COLLECTION/DATA EXTRACTION: Rasch Model Analysis was used to assess whether a unidimensional construct exists that defines a hospital's ability to implement performance improvement programs. Linear regression analysis was used to assess the relationship of the Rasch ability scores with Leapfrog Safe Practices Scores to validate the research findings. Principal Findings. The results of the study show that hospitals have widely varying abilities in implementing improvement programs. In addition, improvement programs present differing levels of difficulty for hospitals trying to implement them. Our findings also indicate that the ability to adopt improvement programs is important to the overall performance of hospitals. There is a hierarchy of improvement programs in the health care context. A hospital's ability to successfully adopt improvement programs is a function of its existing capabilities. As a hospital's capability increases, the ability to successfully implement higher level programs also increases.

Understanding Social Hierarchies: The Neural and Psychological Foundations of Status Perception

PubMed Central

Koski, Jessica; Xie, Hongling; Olson, Ingrid R.

2017-01-01

Social groups across species rapidly self-organize into hierarchies, where members vary in their level of power, influence, skill, or dominance. In this review we explore the nature of social hierarchies and the traits associated with status in both humans and nonhuman primates, and how status varies across development in humans. Our review finds that we can rapidly identify social status based on a wide range of cues. Like monkeys, we tend to use certain cues, like physical strength, to make status judgments, although layered on top of these more primitive perceptual cues are socio-cultural status cues like job titles and educational attainment. One's relative status has profound effects on attention, memory, and social interactions, as well as health and wellness. These effects can be particularly pernicious in children and adolescents. Developmental research on peer groups and social exclusion suggests teenagers may be particularly sensitive to social status information, but research focused specifically on status processing and associated brain areas is very limited. Recent evidence from neuroscience suggests there may be an underlying neural network, including regions involved in executive, emotional, and reward processing, that is sensitive to status information. We conclude with questions for future research as well as stressing the need to expand social neuroscience research on status processing to adolescents. PMID:25697184

Identification of hierarchical chromatin domains

PubMed Central

Weinreb, Caleb; Raphael, Benjamin J.

2016-01-01

Motivation: The three-dimensional structure of the genome is an important regulator of many cellular processes including differentiation and gene regulation. Recently, technologies such as Hi-C that combine proximity ligation with high-throughput sequencing have revealed domains of self-interacting chromatin, called topologically associating domains (TADs), in many organisms. Current methods for identifying TADs using Hi-C data assume that TADs are non-overlapping, despite evidence for a nested structure in which TADs and sub-TADs form a complex hierarchy. Results: We introduce a model for decomposition of contact frequencies into a hierarchy of nested TADs. This model is based on empirical distributions of contact frequencies within TADs, where positions that are far apart have a greater enrichment of contacts than positions that are close together. We find that the increase in contact enrichment with distance is stronger for the inner TAD than for the outer TAD in a TAD/sub-TAD pair. Using this model, we develop the TADtree algorithm for detecting hierarchies of nested TADs. TADtree compares favorably with previous methods, finding TADs with a greater enrichment of chromatin marks such as CTCF at their boundaries. Availability and implementation: A python implementation of TADtree is available at http://compbio.cs.brown.edu/software/ Contact: braphael@cs.brown.edu Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. PMID:26315910

Rhetorical Motives of Identity, Consubstantiality, and Hierarchy: An Analysis of Community College Program Documents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parkis Pettit, Angela G.

2011-01-01

The dissertation focuses on three academic programs at Tarrant County College, Northeast Campus, specifically the documents used to create and sustain these programs. The purpose of this study includes the following: first, to identify the terminology specific to each program and/or the documents used within the program; second and third to…

Processability Approach to Arabic L2 Teaching and Syllabus Design

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Al Shatter, Ghassan

2011-01-01

This study aims to identify the relationship between the developmental hierarchy in the acquisition of Arabic as a second language (Arabic L2) and formal classroom instruction. It provides a general presentation of the current debate on the influence of formal instruction in the acquisition of L2. Special attention is given to the subset of…

The Effect of Orthographic Complexity on Spanish Spelling in Grades 1-3

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ford, Karen; Invernizzi, Marcia; Huang, Francis

2018-01-01

This study was designed to identify a continuum of orthographic features that characterize Spanish spelling development in Grades 1-3. Two research questions guided this work: (1) Is there a hierarchy of orthographic features that affect students' spelling accuracy in Spanish over and above other school-level, student-level, and word-level…

An Investigation of the Hierarchical and Developmental Structure of Selected Science Concepts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Griffiths, Alan Keith

This report describes the results of an attempt to identify a learning hierarchy for each of a number of science concepts mainly encountered first in the high school grades. The concepts studied relate to stoichiometric calculations and molarity, both from chemistry; to food web relationships and problems involving Mendel's laws from biology; to…

An AHP-Based Weighted Analysis of Network Knowledge Management Platforms for Elementary School Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Chung-Ping; Lou, Shi-Jer; Shih, Ru-Chu; Tseng, Kuo-Hung

2011-01-01

This study uses the analytical hierarchy process (AHP) to quantify important knowledge management behaviors and to analyze the weight scores of elementary school students' behaviors in knowledge transfer, sharing, and creation. Based on the analysis of Expert Choice and tests for validity and reliability, this study identified the weight scores of…

Relationship between the Learning Hierarchy and Academic Achievement on Strategies Used by Third-Grade Students When Solving Multiplication Word Problems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kanive, Rebecca A.

2016-01-01

Distinguishing between sources of variability in mathematics performance may contribute to a more comprehensive theory of mathematics skills. Research has examined student differences based upon scores on achievement tests, which provide overall proficiency, but may not provide the detailed information for identifying and remediating difficulties.…

Analysing hierarchy in the organization of biological and physical systems.

PubMed

Jagers op Akkerhuis, Gerard A J M

2008-02-01

A structured approach is discussed for analysing hierarchy in the organization of biological and physical systems. The need for a structured approach follows from the observation that many hierarchies in the literature apply conflicting hierarchy rules and include ill-defined systems. As an alternative, we suggest a framework that is based on the following analytical steps: determination of the succession stage of the universe, identification of a specific system as part of the universe, specification of external influences on a system's creation and analysis of a system's internal organization. At the end, the paper discusses practical implications of the proposed method for the analysis of system organization and hierarchy in biology, ecology and physics.

The KP hierarchy with self-consistent sources: construction, Wronskian solutions and bilinear identities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Runliang; Liu, Xiaojun; Zeng, Yunbo

2014-10-01

In this paper, we will present some of our results on the soliton hierarchy with self-consistent sources (SHSCSs). The Kadomtsev-Petviashvili (KP) hierarchy will be used as an illustrative example to show the method to construct the SHSCSs. Some properties of the KP hierarchy with self-consistent sources will also be given, such as the dressing approach, the Wronskian solutions (including soliton solutions), its bilinear identities and the tau function.

Testing a hierarchy-of-effects model: pathways from awareness to outcomes in the VERB campaign 2002-2003.

PubMed

Bauman, Adrian; Bowles, Heather R; Huhman, Marian; Heitzler, Carrie D; Owen, Neville; Smith, Ben J; Reger-Nash, Bill

2008-06-01

The McGuire hierarchy-of-effects (HOE) model, used extensively in mass-media interventions to describe the mechanisms for understanding effects, has not been tested in physical activity campaigns. Data collected at baseline (2002) and follow-up (2003) surveys in the VERB evaluation were used in structural equation modeling to test pathways and hierarchies of campaign effects. Population-based cohort of youth aged 9-13 years (N=2364) for whom complete baseline and follow-up data were available. Awareness of the VERB campaign, understanding of the VERB message, attitude toward being active, outcome expectations, and physical activity participation. Among youth aged 9-13 years (tweens) in the study cohort, significant paths were identified between awareness and understanding (0.72, p<0.001) and between understanding and being physically active (0.11, p<0.05). At baseline there was a high prevalence of positive attitudes and outcome expectations, and these were not influenced by change in understanding or awareness. Among inactive tweens only, the same paths were identified except that, in this subgroup, attitude was related to physical activity (0.13, p<0.05), and awareness was more strongly related to physical activity than it was for the whole sample (0.14, p<0.01). These findings provided limited support for the HOE model and suggest that increased awareness and understanding were the key proximal effects that led to behavior change. A distinct sequence of effects, which bypassed attitudes and outcome expectations, was found for these U.S. young people. The findings could inform the design of future campaigns to address youth physical activity.

Comparing the Hierarchy of Keywords in On-Line News Portals

PubMed Central

Tibély, Gergely; Sousa-Rodrigues, David; Pollner, Péter; Palla, Gergely

2016-01-01

Hierarchical organization is prevalent in networks representing a wide range of systems in nature and society. An important example is given by the tag hierarchies extracted from large on-line data repositories such as scientific publication archives, file sharing portals, blogs, on-line news portals, etc. The tagging of the stored objects with informative keywords in such repositories has become very common, and in most cases the tags on a given item are free words chosen by the authors independently. Therefore, the relations among keywords appearing in an on-line data repository are unknown in general. However, in most cases the topics and concepts described by these keywords are forming a latent hierarchy, with the more general topics and categories at the top, and more specialized ones at the bottom. There are several algorithms available for deducing this hierarchy from the statistical features of the keywords. In the present work we apply a recent, co-occurrence-based tag hierarchy extraction method to sets of keywords obtained from four different on-line news portals. The resulting hierarchies show substantial differences not just in the topics rendered as important (being at the top of the hierarchy) or of less interest (categorized low in the hierarchy), but also in the underlying network structure. This reveals discrepancies between the plausible keyword association frameworks in the studied news portals. PMID:27802319

Comparing the Hierarchy of Keywords in On-Line News Portals.

PubMed

Tibély, Gergely; Sousa-Rodrigues, David; Pollner, Péter; Palla, Gergely

2016-01-01

Hierarchical organization is prevalent in networks representing a wide range of systems in nature and society. An important example is given by the tag hierarchies extracted from large on-line data repositories such as scientific publication archives, file sharing portals, blogs, on-line news portals, etc. The tagging of the stored objects with informative keywords in such repositories has become very common, and in most cases the tags on a given item are free words chosen by the authors independently. Therefore, the relations among keywords appearing in an on-line data repository are unknown in general. However, in most cases the topics and concepts described by these keywords are forming a latent hierarchy, with the more general topics and categories at the top, and more specialized ones at the bottom. There are several algorithms available for deducing this hierarchy from the statistical features of the keywords. In the present work we apply a recent, co-occurrence-based tag hierarchy extraction method to sets of keywords obtained from four different on-line news portals. The resulting hierarchies show substantial differences not just in the topics rendered as important (being at the top of the hierarchy) or of less interest (categorized low in the hierarchy), but also in the underlying network structure. This reveals discrepancies between the plausible keyword association frameworks in the studied news portals.

Accelerate!

PubMed

Kotter, John P

2012-11-01

The old ways of setting and implementing strategy are failing us, writes the author of Leading Change, in part because we can no longer keep up with the pace of change. Organizational leaders are torn between trying to stay ahead of increasingly fierce competition and needing to deliver this year's results. Although traditional hierarchies and managerial processes--the components of a company's "operating system"--can meet the daily demands of running an enterprise, they are rarely equipped to identify important hazards quickly, formulate creative strategic initiatives nimbly, and implement them speedily. The solution Kotter offers is a second system--an agile, networklike structure--that operates in concert with the first to create a dual operating system. In such a system the hierarchy can hand off the pursuit of big strategic initiatives to the strategy network, freeing itself to focus on incremental changes to improve efficiency. The network is populated by employees from all levels of the organization, giving it organizational knowledge, relationships, credibility, and influence. It can Liberate information from silos with ease. It has a dynamic structure free of bureaucratic layers, permitting a level of individualism, creativity, and innovation beyond the reach of any hierarchy. The network's core is a guiding coalition that represents each level and department in the hierarchy, with a broad range of skills. Its drivers are members of a "volunteer army" who are energized by and committed to the coalition's vividly formulated, high-stakes vision and strategy. Kotter has helped eight organizations, public and private, build dual operating systems over the past three years. He predicts that such systems will lead to long-term success in the 21st century--for shareholders, customers, employees, and companies themselves.

The socio-matrix reloaded: from hierarchy to dominance profile in wild lemurs.

PubMed

Norscia, Ivan; Palagi, Elisabetta

2015-01-01

Dominance hierarchy influences the life quality of social animals, and its definition should in principle be based on the outcome of agonistic interactions. However, defining and comparing the dominance profile of social groups is difficult due to the different dominance measures used and because no one measure explains it all. We applied different analytical methods to winner-loser sociomatrices to determine the dominance profile of five groups of wild lemurs (species: Lemur catta, Propithecus verreauxi, and Eulemur rufus x collaris) from the Berenty forest (Madagascar). They are an excellent study model because they share the same habitat and an apparently similar dominance profile: linear hierarchy and female dominance. Data were collected over more than 1200 h of observation. Our approach included four steps: (1) by applying the binary dyadic dominance relationship method (I&SI) on either aggressions or supplant sociomatrices we verified whether hierarchy was aggression or submission based; (2) by calculating normalized David's scores and measuring steepness from aggression sociomatrices we evaluated whether hierarchy was shallow or steep; (3) by comparing the ranking orders obtained with methods 1 and 2 we assessed whether hierarchy was consistent or not; and (4) by assessing triangle transitivity and comparing it with the linearity index and the level of group cohesion we determined if hierarchy was more or less cohesive. Our results show that L. catta groups have got a steep, consistent, highly transitive and cohesive hierarchy. P. verreauxi groups are characterized by a moderately steep and consistent hierarchy, with variable levels of triangle transitivity and cohesion. E. rufus x collaris group possesses a shallow and inconsistent hierarchy, with lower (but not lowest) levels of transitivity and cohesion. A multiple analytical approach on winner-loser sociomatrices other than leading to an in-depth description of the dominance profile, allows intergroup and cross-species comparisons.

The socio-matrix reloaded: from hierarchy to dominance profile in wild lemurs

PubMed Central

Norscia, Ivan

2015-01-01

Dominance hierarchy influences the life quality of social animals, and its definition should in principle be based on the outcome of agonistic interactions. However, defining and comparing the dominance profile of social groups is difficult due to the different dominance measures used and because no one measure explains it all. We applied different analytical methods to winner-loser sociomatrices to determine the dominance profile of five groups of wild lemurs (species: Lemur catta, Propithecus verreauxi, and Eulemur rufus x collaris) from the Berenty forest (Madagascar). They are an excellent study model because they share the same habitat and an apparently similar dominance profile: linear hierarchy and female dominance. Data were collected over more than 1200 h of observation. Our approach included four steps: (1) by applying the binary dyadic dominance relationship method (I&SI) on either aggressions or supplant sociomatrices we verified whether hierarchy was aggression or submission based; (2) by calculating normalized David’s scores and measuring steepness from aggression sociomatrices we evaluated whether hierarchy was shallow or steep; (3) by comparing the ranking orders obtained with methods 1 and 2 we assessed whether hierarchy was consistent or not; and (4) by assessing triangle transitivity and comparing it with the linearity index and the level of group cohesion we determined if hierarchy was more or less cohesive. Our results show that L. catta groups have got a steep, consistent, highly transitive and cohesive hierarchy. P. verreauxi groups are characterized by a moderately steep and consistent hierarchy, with variable levels of triangle transitivity and cohesion. E. rufus x collaris group possesses a shallow and inconsistent hierarchy, with lower (but not lowest) levels of transitivity and cohesion. A multiple analytical approach on winner-loser sociomatrices other than leading to an in-depth description of the dominance profile, allows intergroup and cross-species comparisons. PMID:25653908

Identifying States along the Hematopoietic Stem Cell Differentiation Hierarchy with Single Cell Specificity via Raman Spectroscopy.

PubMed

Ilin, Yelena; Choi, Ji Sun; Harley, Brendan A C; Kraft, Mary L

2015-11-17

A major challenge for expanding specific types of hematopoietic cells ex vivo for the treatment of blood cell pathologies is identifying the combinations of cellular and matrix cues that direct hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) to self-renew or differentiate into cell populations ex vivo. Microscale screening platforms enable minimizing the number of rare HSCs required to screen the effects of numerous cues on HSC fate decisions. These platforms create a strong demand for label-free methods that accurately identify the fate decisions of individual hematopoietic cells at specific locations on the platform. We demonstrate the capacity to identify discrete cells along the HSC differentiation hierarchy via multivariate analysis of Raman spectra. Notably, cell state identification is accurate for individual cells and independent of the biophysical properties of the functionalized polyacrylamide gels upon which these cells are cultured. We report partial least-squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) models of single cell Raman spectra enable identifying four dissimilar hematopoietic cell populations across the HSC lineage specification. Successful discrimination was obtained for a population enriched for long-term repopulating HSCs (LT-HSCs) versus their more differentiated progeny, including closely related short-term repopulating HSCs (ST-HSCs) and fully differentiated lymphoid (B cells) and myeloid (granulocytes) cells. The lineage-specific differentiation states of cells from these four subpopulations were accurately identified independent of the stiffness of the underlying biomaterial substrate, indicating subtle spectral variations that discriminated these populations were not masked by features from the culture substrate. This approach enables identifying the lineage-specific differentiation stages of hematopoietic cells on biomaterial substrates of differing composition and may facilitate correlating hematopoietic cell fate decisions with the extrinsic cues that elicited them.

Hierarchy stability moderates the effect of status on stress and performance in humans

PubMed Central

Knight, Erik L.; Mehta, Pranjal H.

2017-01-01

High social status reduces stress responses in numerous species, but the stress-buffering effect of status may dissipate or even reverse during times of hierarchical instability. In an experimental test of this hypothesis, 118 participants (57.3% female) were randomly assigned to a high- or low-status position in a stable or unstable hierarchy and were then exposed to a social-evaluative stressor (a mock job interview). High status in a stable hierarchy buffered stress responses and improved interview performance, but high status in an unstable hierarchy boosted stress responses and did not lead to better performance. This general pattern of effects was observed across endocrine (cortisol and testosterone), psychological (feeling in control), and behavioral (competence, dominance, and warmth) responses to the stressor. The joint influence of status and hierarchy stability on interview performance was explained by feelings of control and testosterone reactivity. Greater feelings of control predicted enhanced interview performance, whereas increased testosterone reactivity predicted worse performance. These results provide direct causal evidence that high status confers adaptive benefits for stress reduction and performance only when the social hierarchy is stable. When the hierarchy is unstable, high status actually exacerbates stress responses. PMID:27994160

Inequality matters: classroom status hierarchy and adolescents' bullying.

PubMed

Garandeau, Claire F; Lee, Ihno A; Salmivalli, Christina

2014-07-01

The natural emergence of status hierarchies in adolescent peer groups has long been assumed to help prevent future intragroup aggression. However, clear evidence of this beneficial influence is lacking. In fact, few studies have examined between-group differences in the degree of status hierarchy (defined as within-group variation in individual status) and how they are related to bullying, a widespread form of aggression in schools. Data from 11,296 eighth- and ninth-graders (mean age = 14.57, 50.6 % female) from 583 classes in 71 schools were used to determine the direction of the association between classroom degree of status hierarchy and bullying behaviors, and to investigate prospective relationships between these two variables over a 6-month period. Multilevel structural equation modeling analyses showed that higher levels of classroom status hierarchy were concurrently associated with higher levels of bullying at the end of the school year. Higher hierarchy in the middle of the school year predicted higher bullying later in the year. No evidence was found to indicate that initial bullying predicted future hierarchy. These findings highlight the importance of a shared balance of power in the classroom for the prevention of bullying among adolescents.

Hierarchy stability moderates the effect of status on stress and performance in humans.

PubMed

Knight, Erik L; Mehta, Pranjal H

2017-01-03

High social status reduces stress responses in numerous species, but the stress-buffering effect of status may dissipate or even reverse during times of hierarchical instability. In an experimental test of this hypothesis, 118 participants (57.3% female) were randomly assigned to a high- or low-status position in a stable or unstable hierarchy and were then exposed to a social-evaluative stressor (a mock job interview). High status in a stable hierarchy buffered stress responses and improved interview performance, but high status in an unstable hierarchy boosted stress responses and did not lead to better performance. This general pattern of effects was observed across endocrine (cortisol and testosterone), psychological (feeling in control), and behavioral (competence, dominance, and warmth) responses to the stressor. The joint influence of status and hierarchy stability on interview performance was explained by feelings of control and testosterone reactivity. Greater feelings of control predicted enhanced interview performance, whereas increased testosterone reactivity predicted worse performance. These results provide direct causal evidence that high status confers adaptive benefits for stress reduction and performance only when the social hierarchy is stable. When the hierarchy is unstable, high status actually exacerbates stress responses.

K-theoretic Gromov-Witten invariants in genus 0 and integrable hierarchies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Milanov, Todor; Tonita, Valentin

2018-06-01

We prove that the genus 0 invariants in K-theoretic Gromov-Witten theory are governed by an integrable hierarchy of hydrodynamic type. If the K-theoretic quantum product is semisimple, then we also prove the completeness of the hierarchy.

On the periodic Toda lattice hierarchy with an integral source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Babajanov, Bazar; Fečkan, Michal; Urazboev, Gayrat

2017-11-01

This work is devoted to the application of inverse spectral problem for integration of the periodic Toda lattice hierarchy with an integral type source. The effective method is presented of constructing the periodic Toda lattice hierarchy with an integral source.

On the constrained B-type Kadomtsev-Petviashvili hierarchy: Hirota bilinear equations and Virasoro symmetry

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Shen, Hsin-Fu; Tu, Ming-Hsien

2011-03-15

We derive the bilinear equations of the constrained BKP hierarchy from the calculus of pseudodifferential operators. The full hierarchy equations can be expressed in Hirota's bilinear form characterized by the functions {rho}, {sigma}, and {tau}. Besides, we also give a modification of the original Orlov-Schulman additional symmetry to preserve the constrained form of the Lax operator for this hierarchy. The vector fields associated with the modified additional symmetry turn out to satisfy a truncated centerless Virasoro algebra.

Quasi-periodic Solutions to the K(-2, -2) Hierarchy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Lihua; Geng, Xianguo

2016-07-01

With the help of the characteristic polynomial of Lax matrix for the K(-2, -2) hierarchy, we define a hyperelliptic curve 𝒦n+1 of arithmetic genus n+1. By introducing the Baker-Akhiezer function and meromorphic function, the K(-2, -2) hierarchy is decomposed into Dubrovin-type differential equations. Based on the theory of hyperelliptic curve, the explicit Riemann theta function representation of meromorphic function is given, and from which the quasi-periodic solutions to the K(-2, -2) hierarchy are obtained.

Extracting tag hierarchies.

PubMed

Tibély, Gergely; Pollner, Péter; Vicsek, Tamás; Palla, Gergely

2013-01-01

Tagging items with descriptive annotations or keywords is a very natural way to compress and highlight information about the properties of the given entity. Over the years several methods have been proposed for extracting a hierarchy between the tags for systems with a "flat", egalitarian organization of the tags, which is very common when the tags correspond to free words given by numerous independent people. Here we present a complete framework for automated tag hierarchy extraction based on tag occurrence statistics. Along with proposing new algorithms, we are also introducing different quality measures enabling the detailed comparison of competing approaches from different aspects. Furthermore, we set up a synthetic, computer generated benchmark providing a versatile tool for testing, with a couple of tunable parameters capable of generating a wide range of test beds. Beside the computer generated input we also use real data in our studies, including a biological example with a pre-defined hierarchy between the tags. The encouraging similarity between the pre-defined and reconstructed hierarchy, as well as the seemingly meaningful hierarchies obtained for other real systems indicate that tag hierarchy extraction is a very promising direction for further research with a great potential for practical applications. Tags have become very prevalent nowadays in various online platforms ranging from blogs through scientific publications to protein databases. Furthermore, tagging systems dedicated for voluntary tagging of photos, films, books, etc. with free words are also becoming popular. The emerging large collections of tags associated with different objects are often referred to as folksonomies, highlighting their collaborative origin and the "flat" organization of the tags opposed to traditional hierarchical categorization. Adding a tag hierarchy corresponding to a given folksonomy can very effectively help narrowing or broadening the scope of search. Moreover, recommendation systems could also benefit from a tag hierarchy.

Extracting Tag Hierarchies

PubMed Central

Tibély, Gergely; Pollner, Péter; Vicsek, Tamás; Palla, Gergely

2013-01-01

Tagging items with descriptive annotations or keywords is a very natural way to compress and highlight information about the properties of the given entity. Over the years several methods have been proposed for extracting a hierarchy between the tags for systems with a "flat", egalitarian organization of the tags, which is very common when the tags correspond to free words given by numerous independent people. Here we present a complete framework for automated tag hierarchy extraction based on tag occurrence statistics. Along with proposing new algorithms, we are also introducing different quality measures enabling the detailed comparison of competing approaches from different aspects. Furthermore, we set up a synthetic, computer generated benchmark providing a versatile tool for testing, with a couple of tunable parameters capable of generating a wide range of test beds. Beside the computer generated input we also use real data in our studies, including a biological example with a pre-defined hierarchy between the tags. The encouraging similarity between the pre-defined and reconstructed hierarchy, as well as the seemingly meaningful hierarchies obtained for other real systems indicate that tag hierarchy extraction is a very promising direction for further research with a great potential for practical applications. Tags have become very prevalent nowadays in various online platforms ranging from blogs through scientific publications to protein databases. Furthermore, tagging systems dedicated for voluntary tagging of photos, films, books, etc. with free words are also becoming popular. The emerging large collections of tags associated with different objects are often referred to as folksonomies, highlighting their collaborative origin and the “flat” organization of the tags opposed to traditional hierarchical categorization. Adding a tag hierarchy corresponding to a given folksonomy can very effectively help narrowing or broadening the scope of search. Moreover, recommendation systems could also benefit from a tag hierarchy. PMID:24391901

Social structure in a family group of Guanaco (Lama guanicoe, Ungulate): is female hierarchy based on 'prior attributes' or 'social dynamics'?

PubMed

Correa, Loreto A; Zapata, Beatriz; Samaniego, Horacio; Soto-Gamboa, Mauricio

2013-09-01

Social life involves costs and benefits mostly associated with how individuals interact with each other. The formation of hierarchies inside social groups has evolved as a common strategy to avoid high costs stemming from social interactions. Hierarchical relationships seem to be associated with different features such as body size, body condition and/or age, which determine dominance ability ('prior attributes' hypothesis). In contrast, the 'social dynamic' hypothesis suggests that an initial social context is a determinant in the formation of the hierarchy, more so than specific individual attributes. Hierarchical rank places individuals in higher positions, which presumably increases resource accessibility to their benefit, including opportunities for reproduction. We evaluate the maintenance of hierarchy in a family group of guanacos (Lama guanicoe) and evaluate the possible mechanisms involved in the stability of these interactions and their consequences. We estimate the linearity of social hierarchy and their dynamics. We find evidence of the formation of a highly linear hierarchy among females with males positioned at the bottom of the hierarchy. This hierarchy is not affected by physical characteristics or age, suggesting that it is established only through intra-group interactions. Rank is not related with calves' weight gain either; however, subordinated females, with lower rank, exhibit higher rates of allosuckling. We found no evidence of hierarchical structure in calves suggesting that hierarchical relationship in guanacos could be established during the formation of the family group. Hence, our results suggest that hierarchical dynamics could be related more to social dynamics than to prior attributes. We finally discuss the importance of hierarchies established by dominance and their role in minimizing social costs of interactions. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Influences on the Knowledge and Beliefs of Ordinary People about Developmental Hierarchies

PubMed Central

Binstock, Georgina; Thornton, Arland; Abbasi-Shavazi, Mohammad J; Ghimire, Dirgha; Xie, Yu; Yount, Kathryn M

2014-01-01

This paper is motivated by the idea that development and developmental hierarchies have been constructed and embraced for centuries by scholars and policy makers, and have been disseminated among ordinary people. Recent research shows that most people have constructions of development hierarchies that are similar across countries. In this paper, we extend this research by examining how basic social factors influence ordinary people´s beliefs about development and developmental hierarchies in six countries: Argentina, China, Egypt, Iran, Nepal and the United States. Results show that the understanding and perception of developmental hierarchies vary by gender and education. These results are important because they show how distinct groups of people have differential access to information or ideas. PMID:24634541

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Revisited.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frame, Douglas

1996-01-01

Reviews Maslow's hierarchy of needs and characterization of the self-actualizing personality, suggesting that since few people meet his self-actualization criteria, an educational system designed to produce such personalities may fail, with teachers attending only to the hierarchy's lower stages (self-esteem and self-actualization) which dilutes…

A class Hierarchical, object-oriented approach to virtual memory management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Russo, Vincent F.; Campbell, Roy H.; Johnston, Gary M.

1989-01-01

The Choices family of operating systems exploits class hierarchies and object-oriented programming to facilitate the construction of customized operating systems for shared memory and networked multiprocessors. The software is being used in the Tapestry laboratory to study the performance of algorithms, mechanisms, and policies for parallel systems. Described here are the architectural design and class hierarchy of the Choices virtual memory management system. The software and hardware mechanisms and policies of a virtual memory system implement a memory hierarchy that exploits the trade-off between response times and storage capacities. In Choices, the notion of a memory hierarchy is captured by abstract classes. Concrete subclasses of those abstractions implement a virtual address space, segmentation, paging, physical memory management, secondary storage, and remote (that is, networked) storage. Captured in the notion of a memory hierarchy are classes that represent memory objects. These classes provide a storage mechanism that contains encapsulated data and have methods to read or write the memory object. Each of these classes provides specializations to represent the memory hierarchy.

A new bidirectional generalization of (2+1)-dimensional matrix k-constrained Kadomtsev-Petviashvili hierarchy

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chvartatskyi, O. I., E-mail: alex.chvartatskyy@gmail.com; Sydorenko, Yu. M., E-mail: y-sydorenko@franko.lviv.ua

We introduce a new bidirectional generalization of (2+1)-dimensional k-constrained Kadomtsev-Petviashvili (KP) hierarchy ((2+1)-BDk-cKPH). This new hierarchy generalizes (2+1)-dimensional k-cKP hierarchy, (t{sub A}, τ{sub B}) and (γ{sub A}, σ{sub B}) matrix hierarchies. (2+1)-BDk-cKPH contains a new matrix (1+1)-k-constrained KP hierarchy. Some members of (2+1)-BDk-cKPH are also listed. In particular, it contains matrix generalizations of Davey-Stewartson (DS) systems, (2+1)-dimensional modified Korteweg-de Vries equation and the Nizhnik equation. (2+1)-BDk-cKPH also includes new matrix (2+1)-dimensional generalizations of the Yajima-Oikawa and Melnikov systems. Binary Darboux Transformation Dressing Method is also proposed for construction of exact solutions for equations from (2+1)-BDk-cKPH. As an example the exactmore » form of multi-soliton solutions for vector generalization of the DS system is given.« less

Hierarchy in the home cage affects behaviour and gene expression in group-housed C57BL/6 male mice.

PubMed

Horii, Yasuyuki; Nagasawa, Tatsuhiro; Sakakibara, Hiroyuki; Takahashi, Aki; Tanave, Akira; Matsumoto, Yuki; Nagayama, Hiromichi; Yoshimi, Kazuto; Yasuda, Michiko T; Shimoi, Kayoko; Koide, Tsuyoshi

2017-08-01

Group-housed male mice exhibit aggressive behaviour towards their cage mates and form a social hierarchy. Here, we describe how social hierarchy in standard group-housed conditions affects behaviour and gene expression in male mice. Four male C57BL/6 mice were kept in each cage used in the study, and the social hierarchy was determined from observation of video recordings of aggressive behaviour. After formation of a social hierarchy, the behaviour and hippocampal gene expression were analysed in the mice. Higher anxiety- and depression-like behaviours and elevated gene expression of hypothalamic corticotropin-releasing hormone and hippocampal serotonin receptor subtypes were observed in subordinate mice compared with those of dominant mice. These differences were alleviated by orally administering fluoxetine, which is an antidepressant of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor class. We concluded that hierarchy in the home cage affects behaviour and gene expression in male mice, resulting in anxiety- and depression-like behaviours being regulated differently in dominant and subordinate mice.

Psychophysical "blinding" methods reveal a functional hierarchy of unconscious visual processing.

PubMed

Breitmeyer, Bruno G

2015-09-01

Numerous non-invasive experimental "blinding" methods exist for suppressing the phenomenal awareness of visual stimuli. Not all of these suppressive methods occur at, and thus index, the same level of unconscious visual processing. This suggests that a functional hierarchy of unconscious visual processing can in principle be established. The empirical results of extant studies that have used a number of different methods and additional reasonable theoretical considerations suggest the following tentative hierarchy. At the highest levels in this hierarchy is unconscious processing indexed by object-substitution masking. The functional levels indexed by crowding, the attentional blink (and other attentional blinding methods), backward pattern masking, metacontrast masking, continuous flash suppression, sandwich masking, and single-flash interocular suppression, fall at progressively lower levels, while unconscious processing at the lowest levels is indexed by eye-based binocular-rivalry suppression. Although unconscious processing levels indexed by additional blinding methods is yet to be determined, a tentative placement at lower levels in the hierarchy is also given for unconscious processing indexed by Troxler fading and adaptation-induced blindness, and at higher levels in the hierarchy indexed by attentional blinding effects in addition to the level indexed by the attentional blink. The full mapping of levels in the functional hierarchy onto cortical activation sites and levels is yet to be determined. The existence of such a hierarchy bears importantly on the search for, and the distinctions between, neural correlates of conscious and unconscious vision. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cancer Stem Cell Hierarchy in Glioblastoma Multiforme

PubMed Central

Bradshaw, Amy; Wickremsekera, Agadha; Tan, Swee T.; Peng, Lifeng; Davis, Paul F.; Itinteang, Tinte

2016-01-01

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), an aggressive tumor that typically exhibits treatment failure with high mortality rates, is associated with the presence of cancer stem cells (CSCs) within the tumor. CSCs possess the ability for perpetual self-renewal and proliferation, producing downstream progenitor cells that drive tumor growth. Studies of many cancer types have identified CSCs using specific markers, but it is still unclear as to where in the stem cell hierarchy these markers fall. This is compounded further by the presence of multiple GBM and glioblastoma cancer stem cell subtypes, making investigation and establishment of a universal treatment difficult. This review examines the current knowledge on the CSC markers SALL4, OCT-4, SOX2, STAT3, NANOG, c-Myc, KLF4, CD133, CD44, nestin, and glial fibrillary acidic protein, specifically focusing on their use and validity in GBM research and how they may be utilized for investigations into GBM’s cancer biology. PMID:27148537

A hierarchy of strategies heroin-using mothers employ to reduce harm to their children.

PubMed

Richter, K P; Bammer, G

2000-12-01

The present paper explores strategies that drug-using women employ to protect their children from drug-related harm. Twenty-two mothers were recruited through word-of-mouth, field recruitment, and flyers. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect mother's views on parenting and heroin use. Analysis was conducted using a standard qualitative software package. A hierarchy of seven strategies was identified: (1) stop using; (2) go into treatment; (3) maintain a stable small habit; (4) shield children from drug-related activities; (5) keep the home environment stable, safe, and secure; (6) stay out of gaol; and, if the children's needs still cannot be met, (7) place them with a trusted caregiver and maintain as active a parental role as possible. These strategies, derived innovatively from mothers' experiences, provide progressive goals for treatment and can also serve as measures of success. In addition, they may determine how well children fare in drug-affected families.

Geographic Profiling to Assess the Risk of Rare Plant Poaching in Natural Areas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Young, John A.; van Manen, Frank T.; Thatcher, Cindy A.

2011-09-01

We demonstrate the use of an expert-assisted spatial model to examine geographic factors influencing the poaching risk of a rare plant (American ginseng, Panax quinquefolius L.) in Shenandoah National Park, Virginia, USA. Following principles of the analytic hierarchy process (AHP), we identified a hierarchy of 11 geographic factors deemed important to poaching risk and requested law enforcement personnel of the National Park Service to rank those factors in a series of pair-wise comparisons. We used those comparisons to determine statistical weightings of each factor and combined them into a spatial model predicting poaching risk. We tested the model using 69 locations of previous poaching incidents recorded by law enforcement personnel. These locations occurred more frequently in areas predicted by the model to have a higher risk of poaching than random locations. The results of our study can be used to evaluate resource protection strategies and to target law enforcement activities.

A neural network for intermale aggression to establish social hierarchy.

PubMed

Stagkourakis, Stefanos; Spigolon, Giada; Williams, Paul; Protzmann, Jil; Fisone, Gilberto; Broberger, Christian

2018-06-01

Intermale aggression is used to establish social rank. Several neuronal populations have been implicated in aggression, but the circuit mechanisms that shape this innate behavior and coordinate its different components (including attack execution and reward) remain elusive. We show that dopamine transporter-expressing neurons in the hypothalamic ventral premammillary nucleus (PMv DAT neurons) organize goal-oriented aggression in male mice. Activation of PMv DAT neurons triggers attack behavior; silencing these neurons interrupts attacks. Regenerative PMv DAT membrane conductances interacting with recurrent and reciprocal excitation explain how a brief trigger can elicit a long-lasting response (hysteresis). PMv DAT projections to the ventrolateral part of the ventromedial hypothalamic and the supramammillary nuclei control attack execution and aggression reward, respectively. Brief manipulation of PMv DAT activity switched the dominance relationship between males, an effect persisting for weeks. These results identify a network structure anchored in PMv DAT neurons that organizes aggressive behavior and, as a consequence, determines intermale hierarchy.

Group decision making with the analytic hierarchy process in benefit-risk assessment: a tutorial.

PubMed

Hummel, J Marjan; Bridges, John F P; IJzerman, Maarten J

2014-01-01

The analytic hierarchy process (AHP) has been increasingly applied as a technique for multi-criteria decision analysis in healthcare. The AHP can aid decision makers in selecting the most valuable technology for patients, while taking into account multiple, and even conflicting, decision criteria. This tutorial illustrates the procedural steps of the AHP in supporting group decision making about new healthcare technology, including (1) identifying the decision goal, decision criteria, and alternative healthcare technologies to compare, (2) structuring the decision criteria, (3) judging the value of the alternative technologies on each decision criterion, (4) judging the importance of the decision criteria, (5) calculating group judgments, (6) analyzing the inconsistency in judgments, (7) calculating the overall value of the technologies, and (8) conducting sensitivity analyses. The AHP is illustrated via a hypothetical example, adapted from an empirical AHP analysis on the benefits and risks of tissue regeneration to repair small cartilage lesions in the knee.

Neural correlates of depth of strategic reasoning in medial prefrontal cortex

PubMed Central

Coricelli, Giorgio; Nagel, Rosemarie

2009-01-01

We used functional MRI (fMRI) to investigate human mental processes in a competitive interactive setting—the “beauty contest” game. This game is well-suited for investigating whether and how a player's mental processing incorporates the thinking process of others in strategic reasoning. We apply a cognitive hierarchy model to classify subject's choices in the experimental game according to the degree of strategic reasoning so that we can identify the neural substrates of different levels of strategizing. According to this model, high-level reasoners expect the others to behave strategically, whereas low-level reasoners choose based on the expectation that others will choose randomly. The data show that high-level reasoning and a measure of strategic IQ (related to winning in the game) correlate with the neural activity in the medial prefrontal cortex, demonstrating its crucial role in successful mentalizing. This supports a cognitive hierarchy model of human brain and behavior. PMID:19470476

A Suggested Modification to Maslow's Need Hierarchy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Groves, David L.; And Others

1975-01-01

Since its development, Maslow's need hierarchy has been criticized and applauded. This investigation was undertaken to explore a modification of the upper levels of the need hierarchy based upon the application of power, competition, and achievement to self, as well as the concept of "other directed." (Author)

Augmentation of the space station module power management and distribution breadboard

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Walls, Bryan; Hall, David K.; Lollar, Louis F.

1991-01-01

The space station module power management and distribution (SSM/PMAD) breadboard models power distribution and management, including scheduling, load prioritization, and a fault detection, identification, and recovery (FDIR) system within a Space Station Freedom habitation or laboratory module. This 120 VDC system is capable of distributing up to 30 kW of power among more than 25 loads. In addition to the power distribution hardware, the system includes computer control through a hierarchy of processes. The lowest level consists of fast, simple (from a computing standpoint) switchgear that is capable of quickly safing the system. At the next level are local load center processors, (LLP's) which execute load scheduling, perform redundant switching, and shed loads which use more than scheduled power. Above the LLP's are three cooperating artificial intelligence (AI) systems which manage load prioritizations, load scheduling, load shedding, and fault recovery and management. Recent upgrades to hardware and modifications to software at both the LLP and AI system levels promise a drastic increase in speed, a significant increase in functionality and reliability, and potential for further examination of advanced automation techniques. The background, SSM/PMAD, interface to the Lewis Research Center test bed, the large autonomous spacecraft electrical power system, and future plans are discussed.

AptRank: an adaptive PageRank model for protein function prediction on   bi-relational graphs.

PubMed

Jiang, Biaobin; Kloster, Kyle; Gleich, David F; Gribskov, Michael

2017-06-15

Diffusion-based network models are widely used for protein function prediction using protein network data and have been shown to outperform neighborhood-based and module-based methods. Recent studies have shown that integrating the hierarchical structure of the Gene Ontology (GO) data dramatically improves prediction accuracy. However, previous methods usually either used the GO hierarchy to refine the prediction results of multiple classifiers, or flattened the hierarchy into a function-function similarity kernel. No study has taken the GO hierarchy into account together with the protein network as a two-layer network model. We first construct a Bi-relational graph (Birg) model comprised of both protein-protein association and function-function hierarchical networks. We then propose two diffusion-based methods, BirgRank and AptRank, both of which use PageRank to diffuse information on this two-layer graph model. BirgRank is a direct application of traditional PageRank with fixed decay parameters. In contrast, AptRank utilizes an adaptive diffusion mechanism to improve the performance of BirgRank. We evaluate the ability of both methods to predict protein function on yeast, fly and human protein datasets, and compare with four previous methods: GeneMANIA, TMC, ProteinRank and clusDCA. We design four different validation strategies: missing function prediction, de novo function prediction, guided function prediction and newly discovered function prediction to comprehensively evaluate predictability of all six methods. We find that both BirgRank and AptRank outperform the previous methods, especially in missing function prediction when using only 10% of the data for training. The MATLAB code is available at https://github.rcac.purdue.edu/mgribsko/aptrank . gribskov@purdue.edu. Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com

Toward a Theory of Sequencing: Study 3-2: An Exploration of Transitivities Formulated From a Set of Piagetian-Derived Operations and Their Implications in Traversing Learning Hierarchies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hopkins, Layne Victor

Certain transitivity relationships formulated from reversible operations were examined. Thirty randomly selected fifth grade students received instructional episodes, developed for each identified behavioral objective and its inverse (on unspecified content), presented via the IBM 1500 Instructional Computer System. It was found that students who…

Needs of Persons with Severe Intellectual Disabilities: A Q-Methodological Study of Clients with Severe Behavioural Disorders and Severe Intellectual Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kreuger, Linda; van Exel, Job; Nieboer, Anna

2008-01-01

Background: A demand-oriented approach is becoming increasingly important in care provision. The purpose of this study was to identify the primary needs of clients with Severe Behavioural Disorders and Severe Intellectual Disabilities. Materials and Methods: We used the theory of Social Production Function and Maslow's hierarchy of needs to…

Types of Meaningfulness of Life and Values of Future Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Salikhova, Nailia R.

2016-01-01

The leading role of meaning of life in regulation of human's activity of all types provides the relevance of the research. The goal of the paper is to identify and describe types of meaningfulness of life in future teachers, and to reveal the specificity of values hierarchy indicative of each type. The leading approach applied in the research was…

Toward Increasing Professionalism in Public Relations: An Activity-Specific System for Categorizing Practitioners.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brownell, Mark A.; Niebauer, Walter E., Jr.

To develop a method of categorizing public relations practitioners according to a hierarchy of professionalism which would also identify what training is needed to raise those in lower levels to higher levels, a study surveyed 93 Iowa practitioners listed in the 1986-87 Public Relations Society of America Register Issue. Response rate was 66% and…

Knowledge, Expectations, and Inductive Reasoning within Conceptual Hierarchies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coley, John D.; Hayes, Brett; Lawson, Christopher; Moloney, Michelle

2004-01-01

Previous research (e.g. "Cognition" 64 (1997) 73) suggests that the privileged level for inductive inference in a folk biological conceptual hierarchy does not correspond to the ''basic'' level (i.e. the level at which concepts are both informative and distinct). To further explore inductive inference within conceptual hierarchies, we examine…

Teaching Beginners to Program: Some Cognitive Considerations.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rogers, Jean B.

Learning to program involves developing an understanding of two hierarchies of concepts. One hierarchy consists of data and extends from very literal data (which represents only itself) to very abstract data incorporating variable values in complex interrelationships. The other hierarchy consists of the operations performed on the data and extends…

The Academic Structure in Japan: Institutional Hierarchy and Academic Mobility.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arimoto, Akira

The characteristics of the Japanese academic structure are examined with attention to the evolution of institutional hierarchy, the closed academic structure, and the effects of the academic structure upon academic research. The evolution of Japan's institutional hierarchy in academics has been tightly related to factors of nationalism,…

An Analytical Hierarchy Process Model for the Evaluation of College Experimental Teaching Quality

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yin, Qingli

2013-01-01

Taking into account the characteristics of college experimental teaching, through investigaton and analysis, evaluation indices and an Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) model of experimental teaching quality have been established following the analytical hierarchy process method, and the evaluation indices have been given reasonable weights. An…

The Diversity Education Dilemma: Exposing Status Hierarchies without Reinforcing Them

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Amoroso, Lisa M.; Loyd, Denise Lewin; Hoobler, Jenny M.

2010-01-01

A "diversity education dilemma" occurs when exposure to information concerning status hierarchies, related to demographic and other socially salient identity groups, reinforces those hierarchies in the classroom. Discussions of diversity-related issues in a variety of management courses (e.g., immigrant issues in labor relations, the composition…

A health hierarchy of effects model: a synthesis of advertising and health hierarchy conceptualizations.

PubMed

Rouse, R A

1991-01-01

Work by both advertising and health researchers has independently yielded hierarchy of effects models which can be used to predict campaign success. Unfortunately, however, previous work has been criticized as "common sense" approaches which are more "assumed" than "proven." This analysis argues that much of the problem is due to the lack of precision often associated with over-simplified "uni-dimensional" models. Instead, this perspective synthesized a "two-dimensional" health hierarchy of effects model and outlines a pragmatic strategy for campaign measurement.

Monitoring Change Through Hierarchical Segmentation of Remotely Sensed Image Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tilton, James C.; Lawrence, William T.

2005-01-01

NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center has developed a fast and effective method for generating image segmentation hierarchies. These segmentation hierarchies organize image data in a manner that makes their information content more accessible for analysis. Image segmentation enables analysis through the examination of image regions rather than individual image pixels. In addition, the segmentation hierarchy provides additional analysis clues through the tracing of the behavior of image region characteristics at several levels of segmentation detail. The potential for extracting the information content from imagery data based on segmentation hierarchies has not been fully explored for the benefit of the Earth and space science communities. This paper explores the potential of exploiting these segmentation hierarchies for the analysis of multi-date data sets, and for the particular application of change monitoring.

The Relationship between Incentives to Learn and Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Wenling

This paper empirically explores lots of students in college for their hierarchy of needs and incentives to learn, and finds the linear relationship between them. With the survey, it's be found that there are some kinds of factors influence the students needs order. The paper gives several diagrams to show these important factors which affect the college students' hierarchy of needs most. The paper also finds the change of the student' hierarchy of needs will affect the variety of incentives to learn. Then the paper develops a model for qualitative analyze this relationship. Numerical examples are used to demonstrate the performance of the model. With this model the correct and useful methods can be easily selected for students to incentive according to their types of hierarchy of needs.

Application of the trigonal curve to the Blaszak-Marciniak lattice hierarchy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geng, Xianguo; Zeng, Xin

2017-01-01

We develop a method for constructing algebro-geometric solutions of the Blaszak-Marciniak ( BM) lattice hierarchy based on the theory of trigonal curves. We first derive the BM lattice hierarchy associated with a discrete (3×3)- matrix spectral problem using Lenard recurrence relations. Using the characteristic polynomial of the Lax matrix for the BM lattice hierarchy, we introduce a trigonal curve with two infinite points, which we use to establish the associated Dubrovin-type equations. We then study the asymptotic properties of the algebraic function carrying the data of the divisor and the Baker-Akhiezer function near the two infinite points on the trigonal curve. We finally obtain algebro-geometric solutions of the entire BM lattice hierarchy in terms of the Riemann theta function.

Rapidly Mixing Gibbs Sampling for a Class of Factor Graphs Using Hierarchy Width.

PubMed

De Sa, Christopher; Zhang, Ce; Olukotun, Kunle; Ré, Christopher

2015-12-01

Gibbs sampling on factor graphs is a widely used inference technique, which often produces good empirical results. Theoretical guarantees for its performance are weak: even for tree structured graphs, the mixing time of Gibbs may be exponential in the number of variables. To help understand the behavior of Gibbs sampling, we introduce a new (hyper)graph property, called hierarchy width . We show that under suitable conditions on the weights, bounded hierarchy width ensures polynomial mixing time. Our study of hierarchy width is in part motivated by a class of factor graph templates, hierarchical templates , which have bounded hierarchy width-regardless of the data used to instantiate them. We demonstrate a rich application from natural language processing in which Gibbs sampling provably mixes rapidly and achieves accuracy that exceeds human volunteers.

Pigmentation Is Associated with Stemness Hierarchy of Progenitor Cells Within Cultured Limbal Epithelial Cells.

PubMed

Liu, Lei; Nielsen, Frederik Mølgaard; Emmersen, Jeppe; Bath, Chris; Hjortdal, Jesper Østergaard; Riis, Simone; Fink, Trine; Pennisi, Cristian Pablo; Zachar, Vladimir

2018-05-20

Ex-vivo cultured human limbal epithelial stem/progenitor cells (hLESCs) are the main source for regenerative therapy of limbal stem cell deficiency (LSCD), which is worldwide one of the major causes of corneal blindness. Despite many stemness-associated markers have been identified within the limbal niche, the phenotype of the earliest hLESCs has not been hitherto identified. We sought to confirm or refute the use of tumor protein p63 (p63) and ATP binding cassette subfamily B member 5 (ABCB5) as surrogate markers for hLESCs early within the limbal differentiation hierarchy. Based on a robust fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) and subsequent RNA isolation protocol, a comprehensive transcriptomic profile was obtained from four subpopulations of cultured hLESCs. The subpopulations were defined by co-expression of two putative stem/progenitor markers, the p63 and ABCB5, and the corneal differentiation marker cytokeratin 3 (CK3). A comparative transcriptomic analysis yielded novel data that indicated association between pigmentation and differentiation, with the p63 positive populations being the most pigmented and immature of the progenitors. In contrast, ABCB5, either alone or in co-expression patterns, identified more committed progenitor cells with less pigmentation. In conclusion, p63 is superior to ABCB5 as a marker for stemness. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. © 2018 AlphaMed Press.

Treating reading comprehension deficits in sub-acute brain injury rehabilitation: Identifying clinical practice and management.

PubMed

Watter, Kerrin; Copley, Anna; Finch, Emma

There is limited evidence for cognitive-communication reading comprehension (CCRC) interventions for adults following acquired brain injury (ABI), particularly during sub-acute rehabilitation. The purpose of this study was to investigate the clinical practice of speech-language pathologists (SLPs) with CCRC deficits during sub-acute ABI rehabilitation and compare it to the best available evidence. An electronic survey was used to gather information from clinicians across Australia regarding clinical practice in the areas of assessment, intervention, treatment hierarchies and service delivery; survey questions were developed from an extensive review of the literature and expert clinician opinion. Survey findings were then compared with the literature in the form of a systematic review. Surveyed clinicians provided multiple interventions for CCRC rehabilitation, including impairment based (94.7%), activity based (94.7%) and reading strategy interventions (100.0%). Five strategies were used by >94% of SLPs (highlighting, identifying main points/wh- questioning, re-reading, summarising, reducing visual load). When compared with the literature, strong similarities were found for strategy-based interventions and individual service delivery, with broad similarities for functional and impairment-based interventions, and impairment based treatment hierarchies. Strong differences in assessment were identified. Strategy use reported in clinical practice (100.0% SLPs) was higher than in the literature. Further investigation into the effectiveness of specific reading strategies for people with ABI is warranted. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Optimization of storage tank locations in an urban stormwater drainage system using a two-stage approach.

PubMed

Wang, Mingming; Sun, Yuanxiang; Sweetapple, Chris

2017-12-15

Storage is important for flood mitigation and non-point source pollution control. However, to seek a cost-effective design scheme for storage tanks is very complex. This paper presents a two-stage optimization framework to find an optimal scheme for storage tanks using storm water management model (SWMM). The objectives are to minimize flooding, total suspended solids (TSS) load and storage cost. The framework includes two modules: (i) the analytical module, which evaluates and ranks the flooding nodes with the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) using two indicators (flood depth and flood duration), and then obtains the preliminary scheme by calculating two efficiency indicators (flood reduction efficiency and TSS reduction efficiency); (ii) the iteration module, which obtains an optimal scheme using a generalized pattern search (GPS) method based on the preliminary scheme generated by the analytical module. The proposed approach was applied to a catchment in CZ city, China, to test its capability in choosing design alternatives. Different rainfall scenarios are considered to test its robustness. The results demonstrate that the optimal framework is feasible, and the optimization is fast based on the preliminary scheme. The optimized scheme is better than the preliminary scheme for reducing runoff and pollutant loads under a given storage cost. The multi-objective optimization framework presented in this paper may be useful in finding the best scheme of storage tanks or low impact development (LID) controls. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cooperation between Epstein-Barr Virus Immune Evasion Proteins Spreads Protection from CD8+ T Cell Recognition across All Three Phases of the Lytic Cycle

PubMed Central

Quinn, Laura L.; Zuo, Jianmin; Abbott, Rachel J. M.; Shannon-Lowe, Claire; Tierney, Rosemary J.; Hislop, Andrew D.; Rowe, Martin

2014-01-01

CD8+ T cell responses to Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) lytic cycle expressed antigens display a hierarchy of immunodominance, in which responses to epitopes of immediate-early (IE) and some early (E) antigens are more frequently observed than responses to epitopes of late (L) expressed antigens. It has been proposed that this hierarchy, which correlates with the phase-specific efficiency of antigen presentation, may be due to the influence of viral immune-evasion genes. At least three EBV-encoded genes, BNLF2a, BGLF5 and BILF1, have the potential to inhibit processing and presentation of CD8+ T cell epitopes. Here we examined the relative contribution of these genes to modulation of CD8+ T cell recognition of EBV lytic antigens expressed at different phases of the replication cycle in EBV-transformed B-cells (LCLs) which spontaneously reactivate lytic cycle. Selective shRNA-mediated knockdown of BNLF2a expression led to more efficient recognition of immediate-early (IE)- and early (E)-derived epitopes by CD8+ T cells, while knock down of BILF1 increased recognition of epitopes from E and late (L)-expressed antigens. Contrary to what might have been predicted from previous ectopic expression studies in EBV-negative model cell lines, the shRNA-mediated inhibition of BGLF5 expression in LCLs showed only modest, if any, increase in recognition of epitopes expressed in any phase of lytic cycle. These data indicate that whilst BNLF2a interferes with antigen presentation with diminishing efficiency as lytic cycle progresses (IE>E>>L), interference by BILF1 increases with progression through lytic cycle (IE

Exploring the significance of structural hierarchy in material systems-A review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pan, Ning

2014-06-01

Structural hierarchy and heterogeneity are inherent features in biological materials, but their significance in affecting the system behaviors is yet to be fully understood. In Sec. I, this article first identifies the major characteristics that manifest, or are resulted from, such hierarchy and heterogeneity in materials. Then in Sec. II, it presents several typical natural material systems including wood, bone, and others from animals to illustrate the proposed views. The paper also discusses a man-made smart material, textiles, to demonstrate that textiles are hierarchal, multifunctional, highly complex, and arguably the engineered material closest on a par with biological materials in complexity, and, more importantly, we can still learn quite a few new things from them in development of novel materials. In Sec. III, the paper summarizes several general approaches in developing a hierarchal material system at various scales, including structure thinning and splitting, laminating and layering, spatial and angular orientation, heterogenization and hybridization, and analyzes the advantages associated with them. It also stresses the adverse consequences once the existing structural hierarchy breaks down due to various mutations in biological systems. It discusses, in particular, the influences of moisture and air on material properties, given the near ubiquitousness of both air and water in materials. It next deals with in Sec. IV, some theoretical issues in material research including packing and ordering, the bi-modular mechanics, the behavior non-affinities due to disparity in hierarchal levels, the importance of system dimensionality in a hierarchal material system, and more philosophically, the issues of Nature's wisdom versus Intelligent Design. Section V then offers some concluding remarks, including a recap of the major issues covered in this article, and some general conclusions derived from the analyses and discussions. The main purpose of this paper is to make an effort to explore, identify, derive, or theorize some generic principles based on the existing results, not to offer another comprehensive review of current research activities in the fields for that there already exist some excellent ones. This paper examines the related topics with several approaches to not only reveal the underlying geometrical and physical mechanisms but also to emphasize the ways in which such mechanisms may be applied to developing engineered material systems with novel properties.

Is the Hierarchy of Loss in Functional Ability Evident in Midlife? Findings from a British Birth Cohort.

PubMed

Wloch, Elizabeth G; Kuh, Diana; Cooper, Rachel

2016-01-01

Difficulties performing a range of physical tasks of daily living have been shown to develop in older populations in a typically observed sequence, known as the hierarchy of loss. Nearly all previous research has been undertaken using populations aged over 75. This study aimed to use cross-sectional and longitudinal data to test for evidence of the hierarchy of loss from midlife onwards. The prevalence of reported difficulty undertaking 16 physical tasks in the MRC National Survey of Health and Development at age 60-64 were calculated, with Mokken scaling used to confirm the hierarchical order. Logistic regression was used to calculate the odds ratios of reporting difficulty performing tasks at the bottom of the hierarchy (i.e. feeding, washing and/or toileting) at age 60-64 by reported difficulty at the top of the hierarchy (i.e. gripping, walking and/or stair climbing) at age 43. At age 60-64, tasks associated with balance, strength and co-ordination, such as climbing stairs, were the first tasks participants reported difficulty with and tasks associated with upper limb mobility, such as feeding yourself, were the last. In a fully-adjusted model, participants who reported difficulty at the top of the hierarchy at age 43 were 2.85 (95% CI: 1.45-5.60) times more likely to report difficulty with tasks at the bottom of the hierarchy at age 60-64. This study presents evidence of the hierarchy of loss in a younger population than previously observed suggesting that targeted interventions to prevent functional decline should not be delayed until old age.

Hierarchy Software Development Framework (h-dp-fwk) project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zaytsev, A.

2010-04-01

Hierarchy Software Development Framework provides a lightweight tool for building portable modular applications for performing automated data analysis tasks in a batch mode. The history of design and development activities devoted to the project has begun in March 2005 and from the very beginning it was targeting the case of building experimental data processing applications for the CMD-3 experiment which is being commissioned at Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics (BINP, Novosibirsk, Russia). Its design addresses the generic case of modular data processing application operating within the well defined distributed computing environment. The main features of the framework are modularity, built-in message and data exchange mechanisms, XInclude and XML schema enabled XML configuration management tools, dedicated log management tools, internal debugging tools, both dynamic and static module chains support, internal DSO version and consistency checking, well defined API for developing specialized frameworks. It is supported on Scientific Linux 4 and 5 and planned to be ported to other platforms as well. The project is provided with the comprehensive set of technical documentation and users' guides. The licensing schema for the source code, binaries and documentation implies that the product is free for non-commercial use. Although the development phase is not over and many features are to be implemented yet the project is considered ready for public use and creating applications in various fields including development of events reconstruction software for small and moderate scale HEP experiments.

The Impact of Perceived Social Power and Dangerous Context on Social Attention

PubMed Central

Cui, Gege; Zhang, Shen; Geng, Haiyan

2014-01-01

Past research has shown that position in a social hierarchy modulates one's social attention, as in the gaze cueing effect. While studies have manipulated the social status of others with whom the participants interact, we believe that a sense of one's own social power is also a crucial factor affecting gaze following. In two experiments, we primed the social power of participants, using different approaches, to investigate the participants' performance in a subsequent gaze cueing task. The results of Experiment 1 showed a stronger gaze cueing effect among participants who were primed with low social power, compared to those primed with high social power. Our predicted gender difference (i.e., women showing a stronger gaze cueing effect than men) was confirmed and this effect was found to be dominated by the lower social power condition. Experiment 2 manipulated the level of danger in the context and replicated the joint impact of gender and one's perceived social power on gaze cueing effect, especially in the low danger context, in comparison to the high danger context. These findings demonstrate that one's perceived social power has a concerted effect on social attention evoked by gaze, along with other factors such as gender and characteristics of the environment, and suggest the importance of further research on the complex relationship between an individual's position in the social hierarchy and social attention. PMID:25464385

Captive chimpanzees' manual laterality in tool use context: Influence of communication and of sociodemographic factors.

PubMed

Prieur, Jacques; Pika, Simone; Blois-Heulin, Catherine; Barbu, Stéphanie

2018-04-14

Understanding variations of apes' laterality between activities is a central issue when investigating the evolutionary origins of human hemispheric specialization of manual functions and language. We assessed laterality of 39 chimpanzees in a non-communication action similar to termite fishing that we compared with data on five frequent conspecific-directed gestures involving a tool previously exploited in the same subjects. We evaluated, first, population-level manual laterality for tool-use in non-communication actions; second, the influence of sociodemographic factors (age, sex, group, and hierarchy) on manual laterality in both non-communication actions and gestures. No significant right-hand bias at the population level was found for non-communication tool use, contrary to our previous findings for gestures involving a tool. A multifactorial analysis revealed that hierarchy and age particularly modulated manual laterality. Dominants and immatures were more right-handed when using a tool in gestures than in non-communication actions. On the contrary, subordinates, adolescents, young and mature adults as well as males were more right-handed when using a tool in non-communication actions than in gestures. Our findings support the hypothesis that some primate species may have a specific left-hemisphere processing gestures distinct from the cerebral system processing non-communication manual actions and to partly support the tool use hypothesis. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Parallel Optical Random Access Memory (PORAM)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alphonse, G. A.

1989-01-01

It is shown that the need to minimize component count, power and size, and to maximize packing density require a parallel optical random access memory to be designed in a two-level hierarchy: a modular level and an interconnect level. Three module designs are proposed, in the order of research and development requirements. The first uses state-of-the-art components, including individually addressed laser diode arrays, acousto-optic (AO) deflectors and magneto-optic (MO) storage medium, aimed at moderate size, moderate power, and high packing density. The next design level uses an electron-trapping (ET) medium to reduce optical power requirements. The third design uses a beam-steering grating surface emitter (GSE) array to reduce size further and minimize the number of components.

An Analytic Hierarchy Process for School Quality and Inspection: Model Development and Application

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Al Qubaisi, Amal; Badri, Masood; Mohaidat, Jihad; Al Dhaheri, Hamad; Yang, Guang; Al Rashedi, Asma; Greer, Kenneth

2016-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to develop an analytic hierarchy planning-based framework to establish criteria weights and to develop a school performance system commonly called school inspections. Design/methodology/approach: The analytic hierarchy process (AHP) model uses pairwise comparisons and a measurement scale to generate the…

A Second Look at Maslow's Hierarchy of Basic Needs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

White, Charles M.

Implications of Maslow's Need Hierarchy are considered in this paper, along with possible qualifications to the suggested structure and potential effects of superimposing relative deprivation theory onto the hierarchy as an approach to adult education. The interfacing of needs and alternative structurings is discussed in terms of two theories: (1)…

A Test of the Need Hierarchy Concept by a Markov Model of Change in Need Strength.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rauschenberger, John; And Others

1980-01-01

In this study of 547 high school graduates, Alderfer's and Maslow's need hierarchy theories were expressed in Markov chain form and were subjected to empirical test. Both models were disconfirmed. Corroborative multiwave correlational analysis also failed to support the need hierarchy concept. (Author/IRT)

Clarifying the Consultant-Client Role Relationship through an Organizational Needs Model.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tubbs, Stewart L.; Baird, John W.

An organizational need hierarchy can be used by consultants as a model for diagnosing organizational problems, after which an intervention plan can be made. The need hierarchy, which approximates Abraham Maslow's individual need hierarchy, is composed of five ascending levels related to organizational needs in the areas of survival of the…

The emergence and representation of knowledge about social and nonsocial hierarchies.

PubMed

Kumaran, Dharshan; Melo, Hans Ludwig; Duzel, Emrah

2012-11-08

Primates are remarkably adept at ranking each other within social hierarchies, a capacity that is critical to successful group living. Surprisingly little, however, is understood about the neurobiology underlying this quintessential aspect of primate cognition. In our experiment, participants first acquired knowledge about a social and a nonsocial hierarchy and then used this information to guide investment decisions. We found that neural activity in the amygdala tracked the development of knowledge about a social, but not a nonsocial, hierarchy. Further, structural variations in amygdala gray matter volume accounted for interindividual differences in social transitivity performance. Finally, the amygdala expressed a neural signal selectively coding for social rank, whose robustness predicted the influence of rank on participants' investment decisions. In contrast, we observed that the linear structure of both social and nonsocial hierarchies was represented at a neural level in the hippocampus. Our study implicates the amygdala in the emergence and representation of knowledge about social hierarchies and distinguishes the domain-general contribution of the hippocampus. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The merit of meritocracy.

PubMed

Son Hing, Leanne S; Bobocel, D Ramona; Zanna, Mark P; Garcia, Donna M; Gee, Stephanie S; Orazietti, Katie

2011-09-01

We argue that the preference for the merit principle is a separate construct from hierarchy-legitimizing ideologies (i.e., system justification beliefs, prejudice, social dominance orientation), including descriptive beliefs that meritocracy currently exists in society. Moreover, we hypothesized that prescriptive beliefs about merit should have a stronger influence on reactions to the status quo when hierarchy-legitimizing ideologies are weak (vs. strong). In 4 studies, participants' preference for the merit principle and hierarchy-legitimizing ideologies were assessed; later, the participants evaluated organizational selection practices that support or challenge the status quo. Participants' prescriptive and descriptive beliefs about merit were separate constructs; only the latter predicted other hierarchy-legitimizing ideologies. In addition, as hypothesized, among participants who weakly endorsed hierarchy-legitimizing ideologies, the stronger their preference for the merit principle, the more they opposed selection practices that were perceived to be merit violating but the more they supported practices that were perceived to be merit restoring. In contrast, those who strongly endorsed hierarchy-legitimizing ideologies were always motivated to support the status quo, regardless of their preference for the merit principle. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved.

Schnek: A C++ library for the development of parallel simulation codes on regular grids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmitz, Holger

2018-05-01

A large number of algorithms across the field of computational physics are formulated on grids with a regular topology. We present Schnek, a library that enables fast development of parallel simulations on regular grids. Schnek contains a number of easy-to-use modules that greatly reduce the amount of administrative code for large-scale simulation codes. The library provides an interface for reading simulation setup files with a hierarchical structure. The structure of the setup file is translated into a hierarchy of simulation modules that the developer can specify. The reader parses and evaluates mathematical expressions and initialises variables or grid data. This enables developers to write modular and flexible simulation codes with minimal effort. Regular grids of arbitrary dimension are defined as well as mechanisms for defining physical domain sizes, grid staggering, and ghost cells on these grids. Ghost cells can be exchanged between neighbouring processes using MPI with a simple interface. The grid data can easily be written into HDF5 files using serial or parallel I/O.

Social status modulates the neural response to unfairness

PubMed Central

Hu, Jie; Blue, Philip R.; Yu, Hongbo; Gong, Xiaoliang; Xiang, Yang; Jiang, Changjun

2016-01-01

In human society, which is organized by social hierarchies, resources are usually allocated unequally and based on social status. In this study, we analyze how being endowed with different social statuses in a math competition affects the perception of fairness during asset allocation in a subsequent Ultimatum Game (UG). Behavioral data showed that when participants were in high status, they were more likely to reject unfair UG offers than in low status. This effect of social status correlated with activity in the right anterior insula (rAI) and with the functional connectivity between the rAI and a region in the anterior middle cingulate cortex, indicating that these two brain regions are crucial for integrating contextual factors and social norms during fairness perception. Additionally, there was an interaction between social status and UG offer fairness in the amygdala and thalamus, implicating the role of these regions in the modulation of social status on fairness perception. These results demonstrate the effect of social status on fairness perception and the potential neural underpinnings for this effect. PMID:26141925

Intelligent control of mixed-culture bioprocesses

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Stoner, D.L.; Larsen, E.D.; Miller, K.S.

A hierarchical control system is being developed and applied to a mixed culture bioprocess in a continuous stirred tank reactor. A bioreactor, with its inherent complexity and non-linear behavior was an interesting, yet, difficult application for control theory. The bottom level of the hierarchy was implemented as a number of integrated set point controls and data acquisition modules. Within the second level was a diagnostic system that used expert knowledge to determine the operational status of the sensors, actuators, and control modules. A diagnostic program was successfully implemented for the detection of stirrer malfunctions, and to monitor liquid delivery ratesmore » and recalibrate the pumps when deviations from desired flow rates occurred. The highest control level was a supervisory shell that was developed using expert knowledge and the history of the reactor operation to determine the set points required to meet a set of production criteria. At this stage the supervisory shell analyzed the data to determine the state of the system. In future implementations, this shell will determine the set points required to optimize a cost function using expert knowledge and adaptive learning techniques.« less

The rules of implicit evaluation by race, religion, and age.

PubMed

Axt, Jordan R; Ebersole, Charles R; Nosek, Brian A

2014-09-01

The social world is stratified. Social hierarchies are known but often disavowed as anachronisms or unjust. Nonetheless, hierarchies may persist in social memory. In three studies (total N > 200,000), we found evidence of social hierarchies in implicit evaluation by race, religion, and age. Participants implicitly evaluated their own racial group most positively and the remaining racial groups in accordance with the following hierarchy: Whites > Asians > Blacks > Hispanics. Similarly, participants implicitly evaluated their own religion most positively and the remaining religions in accordance with the following hierarchy: Christianity > Judaism > Hinduism or Buddhism > Islam. In a final study, participants of all ages implicitly evaluated age groups following this rule: children > young adults > middle-age adults > older adults. These results suggest that the rules of social evaluation are pervasively embedded in culture and mind. © The Author(s) 2014.

Rapidly Mixing Gibbs Sampling for a Class of Factor Graphs Using Hierarchy Width

PubMed Central

De Sa, Christopher; Zhang, Ce; Olukotun, Kunle; Ré, Christopher

2016-01-01

Gibbs sampling on factor graphs is a widely used inference technique, which often produces good empirical results. Theoretical guarantees for its performance are weak: even for tree structured graphs, the mixing time of Gibbs may be exponential in the number of variables. To help understand the behavior of Gibbs sampling, we introduce a new (hyper)graph property, called hierarchy width. We show that under suitable conditions on the weights, bounded hierarchy width ensures polynomial mixing time. Our study of hierarchy width is in part motivated by a class of factor graph templates, hierarchical templates, which have bounded hierarchy width—regardless of the data used to instantiate them. We demonstrate a rich application from natural language processing in which Gibbs sampling provably mixes rapidly and achieves accuracy that exceeds human volunteers. PMID:27279724

Ethnicity-Dependent and -Independent Heterogeneity in Healthy Normal Breast Hierarchy Impacts Tumor Characterization

PubMed Central

Nakshatri, Harikrishna; Anjanappa, Manjushree; Bhat-Nakshatri, Poornima

2015-01-01

Recent reports of widespread genetic variation affecting regulation of gene expression raise the possibility of significant inter-individual differences in stem-progenitor-mature cell hierarchy in adult organs. This has not been explored because of paucity of methods to quantitatively assess subpopulation of normal epithelial cells on individual basis. We report the remarkable inter-individual differences in differentiation capabilities as documented by phenotypic heterogeneity in stem-progenitor-mature cell hierarchy of the normal breast. Ethnicity and genetic predisposition are partly responsible for this heterogeneity, evidenced by the finding that CD44+/CD24- and PROCR+/EpCAM- multi-potent stem cells were elevated significantly in African American women compared with Caucasians. ALDEFLUOR+ luminal stem/progenitor cells were lower in BRCA1-mutation carriers compared with cells from healthy donors (p = 0.0014). Moreover, tumor and adjoining-normal breast cells of the same patients showed distinct CD49f+/EpCAM+ progenitor, CD271+/EpCAM- basal, and ALDEFLUOR+ cell profiles. These inter-individual differences in the rate of differentiation in the normal breast may contribute to a substantial proportion of transcriptome, epigenome, and signaling pathway alterations and consequently has the potential to spuriously magnify the extent of documented tumor-specific gene expression. Therefore, comparative analysis of phenotypically defined subpopulations of normal and tumor cells on an individual basis may be required to identify cancer-specific aberrations. PMID:26311223

Ethnicity-Dependent and -Independent Heterogeneity in Healthy Normal Breast Hierarchy Impacts Tumor Characterization.

PubMed

Nakshatri, Harikrishna; Anjanappa, Manjushree; Bhat-Nakshatri, Poornima

2015-08-27

Recent reports of widespread genetic variation affecting regulation of gene expression raise the possibility of significant inter-individual differences in stem-progenitor-mature cell hierarchy in adult organs. This has not been explored because of paucity of methods to quantitatively assess subpopulation of normal epithelial cells on individual basis. We report the remarkable inter-individual differences in differentiation capabilities as documented by phenotypic heterogeneity in stem-progenitor-mature cell hierarchy of the normal breast. Ethnicity and genetic predisposition are partly responsible for this heterogeneity, evidenced by the finding that CD44+/CD24- and PROCR+/EpCAM- multi-potent stem cells were elevated significantly in African American women compared with Caucasians. ALDEFLUOR+ luminal stem/progenitor cells were lower in BRCA1-mutation carriers compared with cells from healthy donors (p = 0.0014). Moreover, tumor and adjoining-normal breast cells of the same patients showed distinct CD49f+/EpCAM+ progenitor, CD271+/EpCAM- basal, and ALDEFLUOR+ cell profiles. These inter-individual differences in the rate of differentiation in the normal breast may contribute to a substantial proportion of transcriptome, epigenome, and signaling pathway alterations and consequently has the potential to spuriously magnify the extent of documented tumor-specific gene expression. Therefore, comparative analysis of phenotypically defined subpopulations of normal and tumor cells on an individual basis may be required to identify cancer-specific aberrations.

Examining Quality Improvement Programs: The Case of Minnesota Hospitals

PubMed Central

Olson, John R; Belohlav, James A; Cook, Lori S; Hays, Julie M

2008-01-01

Objective To determine if there is a hierarchy of improvement program adoption by hospitals and outline that hierarchy. Data Sources Primary data were collected in the spring of 2007 via e-survey from 210 individuals representing 109 Minnesota hospitals. Secondary data from 2006 were assembled from the Leapfrog database. Study Design As part of a larger survey, respondents were given a list of improvement programs and asked to identify those programs that are used in their hospital. Data Collection/Data Extraction Rasch Model Analysis was used to assess whether a unidimensional construct exists that defines a hospital's ability to implement performance improvement programs. Linear regression analysis was used to assess the relationship of the Rasch ability scores with Leapfrog Safe Practices Scores to validate the research findings. Principal Findings The results of the study show that hospitals have widely varying abilities in implementing improvement programs. In addition, improvement programs present differing levels of difficulty for hospitals trying to implement them. Our findings also indicate that the ability to adopt improvement programs is important to the overall performance of hospitals. Conclusions There is a hierarchy of improvement programs in the health care context. A hospital's ability to successfully adopt improvement programs is a function of its existing capabilities. As a hospital's capability increases, the ability to successfully implement higher level programs also increases. PMID:18761677

Preferences for group dominance track and mediate the effects of macro-level social inequality and violence across societies

PubMed Central

Kunst, Jonas R.; Sidanius, Jim; Thomsen, Lotte

2017-01-01

Whether and how societal structures shape individual psychology is a foundational question of the social sciences. Combining insights from evolutionary biology, economy, and the political and psychological sciences, we identify a central psychological process that functions to sustain group-based hierarchies in human societies. In study 1, we demonstrate that macrolevel structural inequality, impaired population outcomes, socio-political instability, and the risk of violence are reflected in the endorsement of group hegemony at the aggregate population level across 27 countries (n = 41,824): The greater the national inequality, the greater is the endorsement of between-group hierarchy within the population. Using multilevel analyses in study 2, we demonstrate that these psychological group-dominance motives mediate the effects of macrolevel functioning on individual-level attitudes and behaviors. Specifically, across 30 US states (n = 4,613), macrolevel inequality and violence were associated with greater individual-level support of group hegemony. Crucially, this individual-level support, rather than cultural-societal norms, was in turn uniquely associated with greater racism, sexism, welfare opposition, and even willingness to enforce group hegemony violently by participating in ethnic persecution of subordinate out-groups. These findings suggest that societal inequality is reflected in people’s minds as dominance motives that underpin ideologies and actions that ultimately sustain group-based hierarchy. PMID:28484013

Transitivity performance, relational hierarchy knowledge and awareness: Results of an instructional framing manipulation

PubMed Central

Kumaran, Dharshan; Ludwig, Hans

2013-01-01

The transitive inference (TI) paradigm has been widely used to examine the role of the hippocampus in generalization. Here we consider a surprising feature of experimental findings in this task: the relatively poor transitivity performance and levels of hierarchy knowledge achieved by adult human subjects. We focused on the influence of the task instructions on participants’ subsequent performance—a single-word framing manipulation which either specified the relation between items as transitive (i.e., OLD-FRAME: choose which item is “older”) or left it ambiguous (i.e., NO-FRAME: choose which item is “correct”). We show a marked but highly specific effect of manipulating prior knowledge through instruction: transitivity performance and levels of relational hierarchy knowledge were enhanced, but premise performance unchanged. Further, we show that hierarchy recall accuracy, but not conventional awareness scores, was a significant predictor of inferential performance across the entire group of participants. The current study has four main implications: first, our findings establish the importance of the task instructions, and prior knowledge, in the TI paradigm—suggesting that they influence the size of the overall hypothesis space (e.g., to favor a linear hierarchical structure over other possibilities in the OLD-FRAME). Second, the dissociable effects of the instructional frame on premise and inference performance provide evidence for the operation of distinct underlying mechanisms (i.e., an associative mechanism vs. relational hierarchy knowledge). Third, our findings suggest that a detailed measurement of hierarchy recall accuracy may be a more sensitive index of relational hierarchy knowledge, than conventional awareness score—and should be used in future studies investigating links between awareness and inferential performance. Finally, our study motivates an experimental setting that ensures robust hierarchy learning across participants—therefore facilitating study of the neural mechanisms underlying the learning and representation of linear hierarchies. PMID:23804544

Transitivity performance, relational hierarchy knowledge and awareness: results of an instructional framing manipulation.

PubMed

Kumaran, Dharshan; Ludwig, Hans

2013-12-01

The transitive inference (TI) paradigm has been widely used to examine the role of the hippocampus in generalization. Here we consider a surprising feature of experimental findings in this task: the relatively poor transitivity performance and levels of hierarchy knowledge achieved by adult human subjects. We focused on the influence of the task instructions on participants' subsequent performance--a single-word framing manipulation which either specified the relation between items as transitive (i.e., OLD-FRAME: choose which item is "older") or left it ambiguous (i.e., NO-FRAME: choose which item is "correct"). We show a marked but highly specific effect of manipulating prior knowledge through instruction: transitivity performance and levels of relational hierarchy knowledge were enhanced, but premise performance unchanged. Further, we show that hierarchy recall accuracy, but not conventional awareness scores, was a significant predictor of inferential performance across the entire group of participants. The current study has four main implications: first, our findings establish the importance of the task instructions, and prior knowledge, in the TI paradigm--suggesting that they influence the size of the overall hypothesis space (e.g., to favor a linear hierarchical structure over other possibilities in the OLD-FRAME). Second, the dissociable effects of the instructional frame on premise and inference performance provide evidence for the operation of distinct underlying mechanisms (i.e., an associative mechanism vs. relational hierarchy knowledge). Third, our findings suggest that a detailed measurement of hierarchy recall accuracy may be a more sensitive index of relational hierarchy knowledge, than conventional awareness score--and should be used in future studies investigating links between awareness and inferential performance. Finally, our study motivates an experimental setting that ensures robust hierarchy learning across participants--therefore facilitating study of the neural mechanisms underlying the learning and representation of linear hierarchies. Copyright © 2013 The Authors. Hippocampus Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Infinite hierarchy of nonlinear Schrödinger equations and their solutions.

PubMed

Ankiewicz, A; Kedziora, D J; Chowdury, A; Bandelow, U; Akhmediev, N

2016-01-01

We study the infinite integrable nonlinear Schrödinger equation hierarchy beyond the Lakshmanan-Porsezian-Daniel equation which is a particular (fourth-order) case of the hierarchy. In particular, we present the generalized Lax pair and generalized soliton solutions, plane wave solutions, Akhmediev breathers, Kuznetsov-Ma breathers, periodic solutions, and rogue wave solutions for this infinite-order hierarchy. We find that "even- order" equations in the set affect phase and "stretching factors" in the solutions, while "odd-order" equations affect the velocities. Hence odd-order equation solutions can be real functions, while even-order equation solutions are always complex.

[The significance of hierarchy in postgraduate education].

PubMed

Rupprecht, H

1999-01-01

There are structures of hierarchy in the postgraduate education. The postgraduate education is organized as a programme the young doctor has to absolve. The instruction and the control of the implementation of that programme must be carried out by a competent and experienced older physician, who is responsible for the correctness of that, the young doctor has to learn in his postgraduate education. The older physician unequivocally is integrated in the hierarchy above the young doctor legitimated by his knowledge, his experience and his personality. The hierarchy demonstrates itself as an indication of the moral integrity of the community and of each only individual.

Coaching for a winning dental team.

PubMed

Schwartz, S

2000-08-15

In 1943, Abraham Maslow, the "father of humanistic psychology," formulated his "Hierarchy of Needs Theory." Maslow proposed people have needs that must be satisfied, and these needs will motivate until they are satisfied. The needs are arranged in a hierarchy or pyramid ranging from basic needs to higher needs with an individual needing to satisfy a lower need before a higher need can motivate. The five needs of the hierarchy are: physiological needs, safety needs, social needs, esteem needs, and self-actualization. This article discusses adaptation of the hierarchy of needs to the dental practice to motivate staff to perform at a higher level.

The significance of 'hierarchy' in a research project on adoption and adaptation.

PubMed

Mander, R

1999-06-01

In the course of phenomenological research project focusing on the midwife's care of the mother who relinquishes her baby for adoption, hierarchy emerged repeatedly as a significant theme. This concept manifested itself both methodologically as well as thematically. In methodological terms, hierarchy first became apparent during the planning phase in the selection of the research design: at this point it took the form of the distinction between quantitative and qualitative research design. In the course of applying for research access the same attitudes re-emerged in the gatekeepers' responses to the research design which had been chose. Later, during the field work, hierarchy appeared in the course of the interviews, in the form of the unequal balance of power between the interviewer and the informant. Specific tactics were required to overcome the likelihood of hierarchy affecting the data at this stage. Eventually this concept was raised by the informants, who included both relinquishing mothers an midwives, and became a major theme. The informants' use of hierarchy to explain the unselfishness of relinquishment proved to be one of a number of strategies which facilitated coping either with the experience of relinquishment or with caring for a women going through that experience. The conclusion which emerges is that hierarchy features in many aspects of life. While it may be beneficial when applied to certain situations to facilitate coping, in other circumstances it may be less than positive.

Evidence of a dominance hierarchy in captive Caribbean flamingos and its relation to pair bonding and physiological measures of health.

PubMed

Royer, Erica A; Anderson, Matthew J

2014-06-01

Caribbean flamingo social structure, how pair bonds affect the structure of the flock, and how social stress affects health measured by heterophil to lymphocyte ratios (H/L) were investigated at the Philadelphia Zoo. It was hypothesized that a hierarchy may become apparent by analyzing agonistic interactions and that paired individuals would share similar places within the hierarchy. Furthermore, it was hypothesized that a negative relationship between H/L ratio and dominance would exist. Forty observations were conducted and in 70% of interactions instigating bird(s) won the encounter, suggesting either some advantage for instigating birds or a prior expectation of an encounter's outcome based upon an understanding of the flock's hierarchy. The flock possessed a semi-linear hierarchy (in terms of wins/losses) and birds with higher pair-bond strengths maintained dominant positions, suggesting that pair-bonding may help individuals become more successful in agonistic encounters. Birds who won more often had higher lymphocytes percentages and analyses suggested a trend indicating dominant birds may be less stressed. A semi-linear hierarchy was also found in terms of initiation/being targeted, and a bird's rank on the dominance (wins/losses) and initiate/target hierarchies were positively correlated, suggesting that subdominant birds were targeted by dominant birds more frequently than vice versa. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Revisiting the variation of clustering coefficient of biological networks suggests new modular structure.

PubMed

Hao, Dapeng; Ren, Cong; Li, Chuanxing

2012-05-01

A central idea in biology is the hierarchical organization of cellular processes. A commonly used method to identify the hierarchical modular organization of network relies on detecting a global signature known as variation of clustering coefficient (so-called modularity scaling). Although several studies have suggested other possible origins of this signature, it is still widely used nowadays to identify hierarchical modularity, especially in the analysis of biological networks. Therefore, a further and systematical investigation of this signature for different types of biological networks is necessary. We analyzed a variety of biological networks and found that the commonly used signature of hierarchical modularity is actually the reflection of spoke-like topology, suggesting a different view of network architecture. We proved that the existence of super-hubs is the origin that the clustering coefficient of a node follows a particular scaling law with degree k in metabolic networks. To study the modularity of biological networks, we systematically investigated the relationship between repulsion of hubs and variation of clustering coefficient. We provided direct evidences for repulsion between hubs being the underlying origin of the variation of clustering coefficient, and found that for biological networks having no anti-correlation between hubs, such as gene co-expression network, the clustering coefficient doesn't show dependence of degree. Here we have shown that the variation of clustering coefficient is neither sufficient nor exclusive for a network to be hierarchical. Our results suggest the existence of spoke-like modules as opposed to "deterministic model" of hierarchical modularity, and suggest the need to reconsider the organizational principle of biological hierarchy.

Development of an Analysis Method to Identify the Root Causes of Finding from the Air Force Environmental Compliance Assessment and Management Program (ECAMP)

DTIC Science & Technology

1994-09-01

Theories and Applications ..................... 17 Theories of Motivation ........................... 18 Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs...18 Herzberg’s Motivation-Hygiene Theory ............. 19 Instrinsic vs Extrinsic Assumptions ................... 22 McGregor’s Theory X and Theory ...Y Assumptions ...... ... 22 Vroom’s Expectancy Theory ..................... 24 Applications ........ .......................... 25 Tell People What

Maslow, Needs, and War

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-02-28

for individual‟s remains equally true for groups and nations.ŗ Abraham H. Maslow did groundbreaking work on a hierarchy of needs; he identified five...Penguin Press, 1991), 48. 3 Ibid, 49. 4 Abraham H. Maslow , Motivation and Personality, Second Edition. (New York: Harper and Row, 1970), 35-58. 5... Maslow , Needs, and War by Lieutenant Colonel John P. Baker United States Air Force United States Army War College

Development of a Values Inventory for Grades 1 Through 3 in Five Ethnic Groups. Progress Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guilford, Joan S.

The bulk of the report was an outline of the steps taken to accomplish stated project tasks. These tasks included: (1) identifying the dimensions of value, which involved reviewing the literature and formulating a model based on Maslow's hierarchy of needs; (2) constructing the item pool, all of which were to be pictorial; (3) developing a test…

The Effects of Frequency of Media Utilization on Decision Making of Media Choice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gotoh, Yasushi

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study is to use the Analytic Hierarchy Process in order to identify how frequency of media use in daily life affects decision-making in media choice. 276 university students took part in this research, They were asked to prioritize their ways of obtaining information about current affairs using sets of media such as TV, books,…

A Validation Study of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Theory.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clay, Rex J.

A study was conducted to expand the body of research that tests the validity of Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs theory in a work context where it often serves as a guide for the supervisor's relationships with his subordinates. Data was gathered by questionnaire which tested for a hierarchy of needs among instructors at four community colleges…

Hierarchy of Study Designs for Evaluating the Effectiveness of a STEM Education Project or Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy, 2007

2007-01-01

This document contains a narrative overview of the hierarchy, followed by a one-page graphic summary. The purpose of the hierarchy is to help agency/program officials assess which study designs are capable of producing scientifically-valid evidence on the effectiveness of a STEM education project or practice ("intervention"). More specifically,…

Predicting Intervention Effectiveness from Reading Accuracy and Rate Measures through the Instructional Hierarchy: Evidence for a Skill-by-Treatment Interaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Szadokierski, Isadora; Burns, Matthew K.; McComas, Jennifer J.

2017-01-01

The current study used the learning hierarchy/instructional hierarchy phases of acquisition and fluency to predict intervention effectiveness based on preintervention reading skills. Preintervention reading accuracy (percentage of words read correctly) and rate (number of words read correctly per minute) were assessed for 49 second- and…

Action Learning: The Possibility of Differing Hierarchies in Learning Sets

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yeadon-Lee, Annie

2013-01-01

This paper presents the proposition that a variety of differing hierarchies exist in an action learning set at any one time, and each hierarchy has the potential to affect an individual's behaviour within the set. An interpretivist philosophy underpins the research framework adopted in this paper. Data were captured by means of 11 in-depth…

Validation of a Cognitive Diagnostic Model across Multiple Forms of a Reading Comprehension Assessment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clark, Amy K.

2013-01-01

The present study sought to fit a cognitive diagnostic model (CDM) across multiple forms of a passage-based reading comprehension assessment using the attribute hierarchy method. Previous research on CDMs for reading comprehension assessments served as a basis for the attributes in the hierarchy. The two attribute hierarchies were fit to data from…

Science Museum Exhibits' Summative Evaluation with Knowledge Hierarchy Method

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yasar, Erkan; Gurel, Cem

2016-01-01

It is aimed in this research to measure via knowledge hierarchy the things regarding exhibit themes learned by the visitors of the exhibits and compare them with the purpose that the exhibits are designed for, thereby realizing a summative evaluation of the exhibits by knowledge hierarchy method. The research has been conducted in a children's…

A Note on ;New Hierarchies of Integrable Lattice Equations and Associated Properties: Darboux Transformation Conservation Laws and Integrable Coupling; [Rep. Math. Phys. 67 (2011), 259

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, Xi-Xiang

2016-12-01

We prove that two new hierarchies of integrable lattice equations in [Rep. Math. Phys.67 (2011), 259] can be respectively changed into the famous relativistic Toda lattice hierarchies in the polynomial and the rational forms by means of a simple transformation.

A genome-wide survey of sexually dimorphic expression of Drosophila miRNAs identifies the steroid hormone-induced miRNA let-7 as a regulator of sexual identity.

PubMed

Fagegaltier, Delphine; König, Annekatrin; Gordon, Assaf; Lai, Eric C; Gingeras, Thomas R; Hannon, Gregory J; Shcherbata, Halyna R

2014-10-01

MiRNAs bear an increasing number of functions throughout development and in the aging adult. Here we address their role in establishing sexually dimorphic traits and sexual identity in male and female Drosophila. Our survey of miRNA populations in each sex identifies sets of miRNAs differentially expressed in male and female tissues across various stages of development. The pervasive sex-biased expression of miRNAs generally increases with the complexity and sexual dimorphism of tissues, gonads revealing the most striking biases. We find that the male-specific regulation of the X chromosome is relevant to miRNA expression on two levels. First, in the male gonad, testis-biased miRNAs tend to reside on the X chromosome. Second, in the soma, X-linked miRNAs do not systematically rely on dosage compensation. We set out to address the importance of a sex-biased expression of miRNAs in establishing sexually dimorphic traits. Our study of the conserved let-7-C miRNA cluster controlled by the sex-biased hormone ecdysone places let-7 as a primary modulator of the sex-determination hierarchy. Flies with modified let-7 levels present doublesex-related phenotypes and express sex-determination genes normally restricted to the opposite sex. In testes and ovaries, alterations of the ecdysone-induced let-7 result in aberrant gonadal somatic cell behavior and non-cell-autonomous defects in early germline differentiation. Gonadal defects as well as aberrant expression of sex-determination genes persist in aging adults under hormonal control. Together, our findings place ecdysone and let-7 as modulators of a somatic systemic signal that helps establish and sustain sexual identity in males and females and differentiation in gonads. This work establishes the foundation for a role of miRNAs in sexual dimorphism and demonstrates that similar to vertebrate hormonal control of cellular sexual identity exists in Drosophila. Copyright © 2014 by the Genetics Society of America.

A tribal abstraction network for SNOMED CT target hierarchies without attribute relationships.

PubMed

Ochs, Christopher; Geller, James; Perl, Yehoshua; Chen, Yan; Agrawal, Ankur; Case, James T; Hripcsak, George

2015-05-01

Large and complex terminologies, such as Systematized Nomenclature of Medicine-Clinical Terms (SNOMED CT), are prone to errors and inconsistencies. Abstraction networks are compact summarizations of the content and structure of a terminology. Abstraction networks have been shown to support terminology quality assurance. In this paper, we introduce an abstraction network derivation methodology which can be applied to SNOMED CT target hierarchies whose classes are defined using only hierarchical relationships (ie, without attribute relationships) and similar description-logic-based terminologies. We introduce the tribal abstraction network (TAN), based on the notion of a tribe-a subhierarchy rooted at a child of a hierarchy root, assuming only the existence of concepts with multiple parents. The TAN summarizes a hierarchy that does not have attribute relationships using sets of concepts, called tribal units that belong to exactly the same multiple tribes. Tribal units are further divided into refined tribal units which contain closely related concepts. A quality assurance methodology that utilizes TAN summarizations is introduced. A TAN is derived for the Observable entity hierarchy of SNOMED CT, summarizing its content. A TAN-based quality assurance review of the concepts of the hierarchy is performed, and erroneous concepts are shown to appear more frequently in large refined tribal units than in small refined tribal units. Furthermore, more erroneous concepts appear in large refined tribal units of more tribes than of fewer tribes. In this paper we introduce the TAN for summarizing SNOMED CT target hierarchies. A TAN was derived for the Observable entity hierarchy of SNOMED CT. A quality assurance methodology utilizing the TAN was introduced and demonstrated. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Medical Informatics Association. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

In praise of hierarchy.

PubMed

Jaques, E

1990-01-01

Hierarchy has not had its day. After 3,000 years as the preferred structure for large organizations, managerial hierarchy is still the most natural and effective organizational form that a big company can employ. Now, as in the past, the key to organizational success is individual accountability, and hierarchy preserves unambiguous accountability for getting work done. Unfortunately, hierarchy is widely misunderstood and abused. Pay grades are confused with real layers of responsibility, for example, and incompetent bosses abound. As a result, many experts now urge us to adopt group-oriented or "flat" structures. But groups are never held accountable as groups for what they do or fail to do, and groups don't have careers. The proper use of hierarchy derives from the nature of work. As organizational tasks range from simple to very complex, there are sharp jumps in the level of difficulty and responsibility. Surprisingly, people in hundreds of companies in dozens of countries agree on where these jumps take place. They are tied to an objective measure-the time span of the longest task or program assigned to each managerial role-and they occur at 3 months, 1 year, 2 years, 5 years, 10 years, and 20 years. As the time span increases, so does the level of experience, knowledge, and mental stamina required to do the work. This increasing level of mental capacity lets companies put people in jobs they can do, it allows managers to add value to the work of their subordinates, it creates hierarchical layers acceptable to everyone in the organization, and it allows employees to be evaluated by people they accept as organizational superiors. Best of all, understanding hierarchy allows organizations to set up hierarchies with no more than seven layers-often fewer-and to know what the structure is good for and how it ought to perform.

A natural little hierarchy for RS from accidental SUSY

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gherghetta, Tony; von Harling, Benedict; Setzer, Nicholas

2011-07-01

We use supersymmetry to address the little hierarchy problem in Randall-Sundrum models by naturally generating a hierarchy between the IR scale and the electroweak scale. Supersymmetry is broken on the UV brane which triggers the stabilization of the warped extra dimension at an IR scale of order 10 TeV. The Higgs and top quark live near the IR brane whereas light fermion generations are localized towards the UV brane. Supersymmetry breaking causes the first two sparticle generations to decouple, thereby avoiding the supersymmetric flavour and CP problems, while an accidental R-symmetry protects the gaugino mass. The resulting low-energy sparticle spectrum consists of stops, gauginos and Higgsinos which are sufficient to stabilize the little hierarchy between the IR scale and the electroweak scale. Finally, the supersymmetric little hierarchy problem is ameliorated by introducing a singlet Higgs field on the IR brane.

Plasticity within stem cell hierarchies in mammalian epithelia.

PubMed

Tetteh, Paul W; Farin, Henner F; Clevers, Hans

2015-02-01

Tissue homeostasis and regeneration are fueled by resident stem cells that have the capacity to self-renew, and to generate all the differentiated cell types that characterize a particular tissue. Classical models of such cellular hierarchies propose that commitment and differentiation occur unidirectionally, with the arrows 'pointing away' from the stem cell. Recent studies, all based on genetic lineage tracing, describe various strategies employed by epithelial stem cell hierarchies to replace damaged or lost cells. While transdifferentiation from one tissue type into another ('metaplasia') appears to be generally forbidden in nonpathological contexts, plasticity within an individual tissue stem cell hierarchy may be much more common than previously appreciated. In this review, we discuss recent examples of such plasticity in selected mammalian epithelia, highlighting the different modes of regeneration and their implications for our understanding of cellular hierarchy and tissue self-renewal. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Perceptions of national wealth and skill influence pay expectations: replicating global hierarchy on a microscale.

PubMed

Maitner, Angela T; DeCoster, Jamie

2015-01-01

In highly multicultural societies, the economic status hierarchy may come to mimic the hierarchy of global wealth, reinforcing social inequality by tying pay scales to national wealth. We investigated how nationality influences expectations of payment in the UAE. Participants reported how much they expected people to be paid and how much skill they were perceived to have by nationality. They also reported their perceptions of the national wealth of different countries. Participants generally expected Westerners to be paid more than Arabs, who would be paid more than Sub-Saharan Africans and Asians. Expectations about payment in private sector employment were driven by both actual and stereotyped differences in national wealth and skill, with non-Gulf Cooperation Council Arabs most likely to see national wealth as a factor explaining the economic hierarchy. These results suggest that people expect payment to be tied to national wealth, reflecting the global hierarchy on a microscale.

Does formal complexity reflect cognitive complexity? Investigating aspects of the Chomsky Hierarchy in an artificial language learning study.

PubMed

Öttl, Birgit; Jäger, Gerhard; Kaup, Barbara

2015-01-01

This study investigated whether formal complexity, as described by the Chomsky Hierarchy, corresponds to cognitive complexity during language learning. According to the Chomsky Hierarchy, nested dependencies (context-free) are less complex than cross-serial dependencies (mildly context-sensitive). In two artificial grammar learning (AGL) experiments participants were presented with a language containing either nested or cross-serial dependencies. A learning effect for both types of dependencies could be observed, but no difference between dependency types emerged. These behavioral findings do not seem to reflect complexity differences as described in the Chomsky Hierarchy. This study extends previous findings in demonstrating learning effects for nested and cross-serial dependencies with more natural stimulus materials in a classical AGL paradigm after only one hour of exposure. The current findings can be taken as a starting point for further exploring the degree to which the Chomsky Hierarchy reflects cognitive processes.

Does Formal Complexity Reflect Cognitive Complexity? Investigating Aspects of the Chomsky Hierarchy in an Artificial Language Learning Study

PubMed Central

Öttl, Birgit; Jäger, Gerhard; Kaup, Barbara

2015-01-01

This study investigated whether formal complexity, as described by the Chomsky Hierarchy, corresponds to cognitive complexity during language learning. According to the Chomsky Hierarchy, nested dependencies (context-free) are less complex than cross-serial dependencies (mildly context-sensitive). In two artificial grammar learning (AGL) experiments participants were presented with a language containing either nested or cross-serial dependencies. A learning effect for both types of dependencies could be observed, but no difference between dependency types emerged. These behavioral findings do not seem to reflect complexity differences as described in the Chomsky Hierarchy. This study extends previous findings in demonstrating learning effects for nested and cross-serial dependencies with more natural stimulus materials in a classical AGL paradigm after only one hour of exposure. The current findings can be taken as a starting point for further exploring the degree to which the Chomsky Hierarchy reflects cognitive processes. PMID:25885790

Management of Large-Scale Wireless Sensor Networks Utilizing Multi-Parent Recursive Area Hierarchies

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Cree, Johnathan V.; Delgado-Frias, Jose

2013-04-19

Autonomously configuring and self-healing a largescale wireless sensor network requires a light-weight maintenance protocol that is scalable. Further, in a battery powered wireless sensor network duty-cycling a node’s radio can reduce the power consumption of a device and extend the lifetime of a network. With duty-cycled nodes the power consumption of a node’s radio depends on the amount of communication is must perform and by reducing the communication the power consumption can also be reduced. Multi-parent hierarchies can be used to reduce the communication cost when constructing a recursive area clustering hierarchy when compared to singleparent solutions that utilize inefficientmore » communication methods such as flooding and information propagation via single-hop broadcasts. The multi-parent hierarchies remain scalable and provides a level of redundancy for the hierarchy.« less

Flexible scheme to truncate the hierarchy of pure states.

PubMed

Zhang, P-P; Bentley, C D B; Eisfeld, A

2018-04-07

The hierarchy of pure states (HOPS) is a wavefunction-based method that can be used for numerically modeling open quantum systems. Formally, HOPS recovers the exact system dynamics for an infinite depth of the hierarchy. However, truncation of the hierarchy is required to numerically implement HOPS. We want to choose a "good" truncation method, where by "good" we mean that it is numerically feasible to check convergence of the results. For the truncation approximation used in previous applications of HOPS, convergence checks are numerically challenging. In this work, we demonstrate the application of the "n-particle approximation" to HOPS. We also introduce a new approximation, which we call the "n-mode approximation." We then explore the convergence of these truncation approximations with respect to the number of equations required in the hierarchy in two exemplary problems: absorption and energy transfer of molecular aggregates.

Flexible scheme to truncate the hierarchy of pure states

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, P.-P.; Bentley, C. D. B.; Eisfeld, A.

2018-04-01

The hierarchy of pure states (HOPS) is a wavefunction-based method that can be used for numerically modeling open quantum systems. Formally, HOPS recovers the exact system dynamics for an infinite depth of the hierarchy. However, truncation of the hierarchy is required to numerically implement HOPS. We want to choose a "good" truncation method, where by "good" we mean that it is numerically feasible to check convergence of the results. For the truncation approximation used in previous applications of HOPS, convergence checks are numerically challenging. In this work, we demonstrate the application of the "n-particle approximation" to HOPS. We also introduce a new approximation, which we call the "n-mode approximation." We then explore the convergence of these truncation approximations with respect to the number of equations required in the hierarchy in two exemplary problems: absorption and energy transfer of molecular aggregates.

From bird to sparrow: Learning-induced modulations in fine-grained semantic discrimination.

PubMed

De Meo, Rosanna; Bourquin, Nathalie M-P; Knebel, Jean-François; Murray, Micah M; Clarke, Stephanie

2015-09-01

Recognition of environmental sounds is believed to proceed through discrimination steps from broad to more narrow categories. Very little is known about the neural processes that underlie fine-grained discrimination within narrow categories or about their plasticity in relation to newly acquired expertise. We investigated how the cortical representation of birdsongs is modulated by brief training to recognize individual species. During a 60-minute session, participants learned to recognize a set of birdsongs; they improved significantly their performance for trained (T) but not control species (C), which were counterbalanced across participants. Auditory evoked potentials (AEPs) were recorded during pre- and post-training sessions. Pre vs. post changes in AEPs were significantly different between T and C i) at 206-232ms post stimulus onset within a cluster on the anterior part of the left superior temporal gyrus; ii) at 246-291ms in the left middle frontal gyrus; and iii) 512-545ms in the left middle temporal gyrus as well as bilaterally in the cingulate cortex. All effects were driven by weaker activity for T than C species. Thus, expertise in discriminating T species modulated early stages of semantic processing, during and immediately after the time window that sustains the discrimination between human vs. animal vocalizations. Moreover, the training-induced plasticity is reflected by the sharpening of a left lateralized semantic network, including the anterior part of the temporal convexity and the frontal cortex. Training to identify birdsongs influenced, however, also the processing of C species, but at a much later stage. Correct discrimination of untrained sounds seems to require an additional step which results from lower-level features analysis such as apperception. We therefore suggest that the access to objects within an auditory semantic category is different and depends on subject's level of expertise. More specifically, correct intra-categorical auditory discrimination for untrained items follows the temporal hierarchy and transpires in a late stage of semantic processing. On the other hand, correct categorization of individually trained stimuli occurs earlier, during a period contemporaneous with human vs. animal vocalization discrimination, and involves a parallel semantic pathway requiring expertise. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Formation and Stabilization of Vertical Hierarchies among Adolescents: Towards a Quantitative Ethology of Dominance among Humans

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martin, John Levi

2009-01-01

Social psychological investigations of hierarchy formation have been almost entirely confined to the case of task-oriented groups and hence have produced theories that turn on the existence of such a task. But other forms of vertical hierarchy may emerge in non-task groups. One form, orderings of dominance, has been studied among animals using…

Power Structure in the Peer Group: The Role of Classroom Cohesion and Hierarchy in Peer Acceptance and Rejection of Victimized and Aggressive Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martín Babarro, Javier; Díaz-Aguado, María José; Martínez Arias, Rosario; Steglich, Christian

2017-01-01

This study addresses the interacting effects of classroom cohesion and hierarchy on the relationships between victimization and aggression with peer acceptance and rejection. Classroom cohesion and hierarchy were constructed from friendship nominations. Multilevel analysis conducted in a sample of seventh- and eighth-grade students from the…

Increasing Pizza Box Assembly Using Task Analysis and a Least-to-Most Prompting Hierarchy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stabnow, Erin F.

2015-01-01

This study was designed to use a task analysis and a least-to-most prompting hierarchy to teach students with cognitive disabilities pizza box assembly skills. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a least-to-most prompting hierarchy was effective in teaching students with cognitive disabilities to increase the number of task-analyzed…

Intergroup Consensus/Disagreement in Support of Group-Based Hierarchy: An Examination of Socio-Structural and Psycho-Cultural Factors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, I-Ching; Pratto, Felicia; Johnson, Blair T.

2011-01-01

A meta-analysis examined the extent to which socio-structural and psycho-cultural characteristics of societies correspond with how much gender and ethnic/racial groups differ on their support of group-based hierarchy. Robustly, women opposed group-based hierarchy more than men did, and members of lower power ethnic/racial groups opposed…

Integrable equations of the infinite nonlinear Schrödinger equation hierarchy with time variable coefficients.

PubMed

Kedziora, D J; Ankiewicz, A; Chowdury, A; Akhmediev, N

2015-10-01

We present an infinite nonlinear Schrödinger equation hierarchy of integrable equations, together with the recurrence relations defining it. To demonstrate integrability, we present the Lax pairs for the whole hierarchy, specify its Darboux transformations and provide several examples of solutions. These resulting wavefunctions are given in exact analytical form. We then show that the Lax pair and Darboux transformation formalisms still apply in this scheme when the coefficients in the hierarchy depend on the propagation variable (e.g., time). This extension thus allows for the construction of complicated solutions within a greatly diversified domain of generalised nonlinear systems.

On a hierarchy of nonlinearly dispersive generalized Korteweg - de Vries evolution equations

DOE PAGES

Christov, Ivan C.

2015-08-20

We propose a hierarchy of nonlinearly dispersive generalized Korteweg–de Vries (KdV) evolution equations based on a modification of the Lagrangian density whose induced action functional the KdV equation extremizes. Two recent nonlinear evolution equations describing wave propagation in certain generalized continua with an inherent material length scale are members of the proposed hierarchy. Like KdV, the equations from the proposed hierarchy possess Hamiltonian structure. Unlike KdV, the solutions to these equations can be compact (i.e., they vanish outside of some open interval) and, in addition, peaked. Implicit solutions for these peaked, compact traveling waves (“peakompactons”) are presented.

Formal language theory: refining the Chomsky hierarchy

PubMed Central

Jäger, Gerhard; Rogers, James

2012-01-01

The first part of this article gives a brief overview of the four levels of the Chomsky hierarchy, with a special emphasis on context-free and regular languages. It then recapitulates the arguments why neither regular nor context-free grammar is sufficiently expressive to capture all phenomena in the natural language syntax. In the second part, two refinements of the Chomsky hierarchy are reviewed, which are both relevant to the extant research in cognitive science: the mildly context-sensitive languages (which are located between context-free and context-sensitive languages), and the sub-regular hierarchy (which distinguishes several levels of complexity within the class of regular languages). PMID:22688632

Cross-hierarchy systems principles.

PubMed

Goentoro, Lea

2017-02-01

One driving motivation of systems biology is the search for general principles that govern the design of biological systems. But questions often arise as to what kind of general principles biology could have. Concepts from engineering such as robustness and modularity are indeed becoming a regular way of describing biological systems. Another source of potential general principles is the emerging similarities found in processes across biological hierarchies. In this piece, I describe several emerging cross-hierarchy similarities. Identification of more cross-hierarchy principles, and understanding the implications these convergence have on the construction of biological systems, I believe, present exciting challenges for systems biology in the decades to come.

Formal language theory: refining the Chomsky hierarchy.

PubMed

Jäger, Gerhard; Rogers, James

2012-07-19

The first part of this article gives a brief overview of the four levels of the Chomsky hierarchy, with a special emphasis on context-free and regular languages. It then recapitulates the arguments why neither regular nor context-free grammar is sufficiently expressive to capture all phenomena in the natural language syntax. In the second part, two refinements of the Chomsky hierarchy are reviewed, which are both relevant to the extant research in cognitive science: the mildly context-sensitive languages (which are located between context-free and context-sensitive languages), and the sub-regular hierarchy (which distinguishes several levels of complexity within the class of regular languages).

Quasi-periodic solutions to the hierarchy of four-component Toda lattices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wei, Jiao; Geng, Xianguo; Zeng, Xin

2016-08-01

Starting from a discrete 3×3 matrix spectral problem, the hierarchy of four-component Toda lattices is derived by using the stationary discrete zero-curvature equation. Resorting to the characteristic polynomial of the Lax matrix for the hierarchy, we introduce a trigonal curve Km-2 of genus m - 2 and present the related Baker-Akhiezer function and meromorphic function on it. Asymptotic expansions for the Baker-Akhiezer function and meromorphic function are given near three infinite points on the trigonal curve, from which explicit quasi-periodic solutions for the hierarchy of four-component Toda lattices are obtained in terms of the Riemann theta function.

Few-particle quantum dynamics-comparing nonequilibrium Green functions with the generalized Kadanoff-Baym ansatz to density operator theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hermanns, S.; Balzer, K.; Bonitz, M.

2013-03-01

The nonequilibrium description of quantum systems requires, for more than two or three particles, the use of a reduced description to be numerically tractable. Two possible approaches are based on either reduced density matrices or nonequilibrium Green functions (NEGF). Both concepts are formulated in terms of hierarchies of coupled equations—the Bogoliubov-Born-Green-Kirkwood-Yvon (BBGKY) hierarchy for the reduced density operators and the Martin-Schwinger-hierarchy (MS) for the Green functions, respectively. In both cases, similar approximations are introduced to decouple the hierarchy, yet still many questions regarding the correspondence of both approaches remain open. Here we analyze this correspondence by studying the generalized Kadanoff-Baym ansatz (GKBA) that reduces the NEGF to a single-time theory. Starting from the BBGKY-hierarchy we present the approximations that are necessary to recover the GKBA result both, with Hartree-Fock propagators (HF-GKBA) and propagators in second Born approximation. To test the quality of the HF-GKBA, we study the dynamics of a 4-electron Hubbard nanocluster starting from a strong nonequilibrium initial state and compare to exact results and the Wang-Cassing approximation to the BBGKY hierarchy presented recently by Akbari et al. [1].

Breaking through the Glass Ceiling: Consumers in Mental Health Organisations' Hierarchies.

PubMed

Scholz, Brett; Bocking, Julia; Happell, Brenda

2017-05-01

Contemporary mental health policies call for consumers to be engaged in all levels of mental health service planning, implementation, and delivery. Critical approaches to traditional healthcare hierarchies can effectively challenge barriers to better engagement with consumers in mental health organisations. This qualitative exploratory study analyses how particular strategies for consumer leadership facilitate or hinder relationships between consumers and mental health services, and how these strategies influence hierarchical structures. Fourteen participants from a range of mental health organisations were interviewed. These interviews were analysed using thematic analytic and discursive psychological techniques. The findings highlight several benefits of having consumers within mental health organisational hierarchies, and elaborate on ways that employees within mental health services can support integration of consumers into existing hierarchies. Specific barriers to consumers in hierarchies are discussed, including a lack of clarity of structures and roles within hierarchies, and resistance to consumers reaching the highest levels of leadership within organisations. Alternative hierarchical models which privilege consumers' control over resources and power are also discussed. Mental health organisations are encouraged to integrate consumer leaders into their hierarchical structures to improve their organisational offerings, their reputation, and their service innovation.

Objective Bayesian analysis of neutrino masses and hierarchy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heavens, Alan F.; Sellentin, Elena

2018-04-01

Given the precision of current neutrino data, priors still impact noticeably the constraints on neutrino masses and their hierarchy. To avoid our understanding of neutrinos being driven by prior assumptions, we construct a prior that is mathematically minimally informative. Using the constructed uninformative prior, we find that the normal hierarchy is favoured but with inconclusive posterior odds of 5.1:1. Better data is hence needed before the neutrino masses and their hierarchy can be well constrained. We find that the next decade of cosmological data should provide conclusive evidence if the normal hierarchy with negligible minimum mass is correct, and if the uncertainty in the sum of neutrino masses drops below 0.025 eV. On the other hand, if neutrinos obey the inverted hierarchy, achieving strong evidence will be difficult with the same uncertainties. Our uninformative prior was constructed from principles of the Objective Bayesian approach. The prior is called a reference prior and is minimally informative in the specific sense that the information gain after collection of data is maximised. The prior is computed for the combination of neutrino oscillation data and cosmological data and still applies if the data improve.

Who's on First? Investigating the referential hierarchy in simple native ASL narratives.

PubMed

Frederiksen, Anne Therese; Mayberry, Rachel I

2016-09-01

Discussions of reference tracking in spoken languages often invoke some version of a referential hierarchy. In this paper, we asked whether this hierarchy applies equally well to reference tracking in a visual language, American Sign Language, or whether modality differences influence its structure. Expanding the results of previous studies, this study looked at ASL referential devices beyond nouns, pronouns, and zero anaphora. We elicited four simple narratives from eight native ASL signers, and examined how the signers tracked reference throughout their stories. We found that ASL signers follow general principles of the referential hierarchy proposed for spoken languages by using nouns for referent introductions, and zero anaphora for referent maintenance. However, we also found significant differences such as the absence of pronouns in the narratives, despite their existence in ASL, and differential use of verbal and constructed action zero anaphora. Moreover, we found that native signers' use of classifiers varied with discourse status in a way that deviated from our expectations derived from the referential hierarchy for spoken languages. On this basis, we propose a tentative hierarchy of referential expressions for ASL that incorporates modality specific referential devices.

Changes in the dominance hierarchy of captive female Japanese macaques as a consequence of merging two previously established groups.

PubMed

Anderson, Emily J; Weladji, Robert B; Paré, Patrick

2016-11-01

Dominance hierarchies play an important role in reducing competition and aggression in social animals. In zoos, changes in group composition are often required due to management protocols, but these changes may have long lasting effects on dominance hierarchies, and, consequently, the wellbeing of the animals. We studied the changes in the female dominance hierarchy that occurred both during and after the formation of a group of 10 adult Japanese macaques at the Zoo de Granby by combining members from two previously established groups. There was no significant correlation between individual ranks in the old groups (groups A and B) and their ranks in the new group (group AB), indicating a significant change in the hierarchy. Alliances between kin appeared to be important in determining rank; when the sister of the dominant female was removed from group AB, the hierarchy changed significantly a second time. The average standardized rank of individuals added later in the formation process of group AB was not different from those added earlier. Ranks in the group AB did correlate with age of individual at the beginning of the field season, but not at the end, after the shift in hierarchy occurred. Zoo management must be aware of the consequences small changes in a social group can have when removing and transferring individuals in both primates and in other social species. Zoo Biol. 35:505-512, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Reevaluation of dominance hierarchy in bonobos (Pan paniscus).

PubMed

Paoli, T; Palagi, E; Tarli, S M Borgognini

2006-05-01

While dominance relationships have been widely studied in chimpanzees, in bonobos, dominance style and linearity of hierarchy are still under debate. In fact, some authors stated that bonobo hierarchy is nonlinear/ill-defined, while others claimed that it is fairly linear. In this paper, we test the hypothesis that a shift in group composition determines changes in linearity of hierarchy. To test this hypothesis, we collected data on one of the largest captive groups in the world, in the Apenheul Primate Park (The Netherlands). We investigated the linearity of the hierarchy in two different periods, with a shifting group composition. We used the corrected Landau's index and David's scores to estimate which animals were most dominant. The major overall result of our study is that hierarchy is fairly nonlinear in this group: during the first study period (eight adults), the hierarchy was nonlinear, whereas during the second one (six adults), it failed to reach statistical linearity. We argue that the reduction of the number of adults is the principal factor affecting linearity. We also found that dominance interactions were evenly distributed across sex classes in both study periods. Furthermore, no correlation was observed between age/body weight and rank. As for the overall dominance relationship between males and females, our results suggest that there is no exclusive female dominance in the Apenheul group. The dominance style of bonobos may be loose and differentially expressed in diverse groups or in the same group, along with shifting conditions. Copyright 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Dynamic expression profiling of type I and type III interferon-stimulated hepatocytes reveals a stable hierarchy of gene expression.

PubMed

Bolen, Christopher R; Ding, Siyuan; Robek, Michael D; Kleinstein, Steven H

2014-04-01

Despite activating similar signaling cascades, the type I and type III interferons (IFNs) differ in their ability to antagonize virus replication. However, it is not clear whether these cytokines induce unique antiviral states, particularly in the liver, where the clinically important hepatitis B and C viruses cause persistent infection. Here, clustering and promoter analyses of microarray-based gene expression profiling were combined with mechanistic studies of signaling pathways to dynamically characterize the transcriptional responses induced by these cytokines in Huh7 hepatoma cells and primary human hepatocytes. Type I and III IFNs differed greatly in their level of interferon-stimulated gene (ISG) induction with a clearly detectable hierarchy (IFN-β > IFN-α > IFN-λ3 > IFN-λ1 > IFN-λ2). Notably, although the hierarchy identified varying numbers of differentially expressed genes when quantified using common statistical thresholds, further analysis of gene expression over multiple timepoints indicated that the individual IFNs do not in fact regulate unique sets of genes. The kinetic profiles of IFN-induced gene expression were also qualitatively similar with the important exception of IFN-α. While stimulation with either IFN-β or IFN-λs resulted in a similar long-lasting ISG induction, IFN-α signaling peaked early after stimulation then declined due to a negative feedback mechanism. The quantitative expression hierarchy and unique kinetics of IFN-α reveal potential specific roles for individual IFNs in the immune response, and elucidate the mechanism behind previously observed differences in IFN antiviral activity. While current clinical trials are focused on IFN-λ1 as a potential antiviral therapy, the finding that IFN-λ3 invariably possesses the highest activity among type III IFNs suggests that this cytokine may have superior clinical activity. © 2014 by the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.

Artificial Intelligence Methods in Pursuit Evasion Differential Games

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-07-30

objectives, sometimes with fuzzy ones. Classical optimization, control or game theoretic methods are insufficient for their resolution. I Solution...OVERALL SATISFACTION WITH SCHOOL 120 FIGURE 5.13 EXAMPLE AHP HIERARCHY FOR CHOOSING MOST APPROPRIATE DIFFERENTIAL GAME AND PARAMETRIZATION 125 FIGURE 5.14...the Analytical Hierarchy Process originated by T.L. Saaty of the Wharton School. The Analytic Hierarchy Process ( AHP ) is a general theory of

Self Organized Multi Agent Swarms (SOMAS) for Network Security Control

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-03-01

Normal hierarchy vs entangled hierarchy 2.5.7 Quantifying Entangledness . While self organization means that the swarm develops a consistent structure of...flexibility due to centralization of control and com- munication. Thus, self organized, entangled hierarchy multi-agent swarms are evolved in this study to...technique. The resulting design exhibits a self organized multi-agent swarm (SOMAS) with entangled hierarchical control and communication through the

Exploring the Complexities of Army Civilians and the Army Profession

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-03-01

61. 55 Gareth R. Jones, 2-4. 56 Thomas Diefenbach and Rune Todnem, “Bureaucracy and Hierarchy - What Else!? in Reinventing Hierarchy and...57 Thomas Diefenbach and Rune Todnem, “Introduction,” in Reinventing Hierarchy and Bureaucracy—From the Bureau to Network Organizations (Bingley...Handbook of Public Management (New York: Oxford University Press, 2005), 472; Gareth R. Jones, 313. 73 Thomas Diefenbach and Rune Todnem

41 CFR 102-79.55 - Is there a general hierarchy of consideration that agencies must follow in their utilization of...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 41 Public Contracts and Property Management 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Is there a general hierarchy of consideration that agencies must follow in their utilization of space? 102-79.55 Section 102-79... Utilization of Space Utilization of Space § 102-79.55 Is there a general hierarchy of consideration that...

Extraction of Multilayered Social Networks from Activity Data

PubMed Central

Bródka, Piotr; Kazienko, Przemysław; Gaworecki, Jarosław

2014-01-01

The data gathered in all kinds of web-based systems, which enable users to interact with each other, provides an opportunity to extract social networks that consist of people and relationships between them. The emerging structures are very complex due to the number and type of discovered connections. In web-based systems, the characteristic element of each interaction between users is that there is always an object that serves as a communication medium. This can be, for example, an e-mail sent from one user to another or post at the forum authored by one user and commented on by others. Based on these objects and activities that users perform towards them, different kinds of relationships can be identified and extracted. Additional challenge arises from the fact that hierarchies can exist between objects; for example, a forum consists of one or more groups of topics, and each of them contains topics that finally include posts. In this paper, we propose a new method for creation of multilayered social network based on the data about users activities towards different types of objects between which the hierarchy exists. Due to the flattening, preprocessing procedure of new layers and new relationships in the multilayered social network can be identified and analysed. PMID:25105159

Genetic analysis of tachyzoite to bradyzoite differentiation mutants in Toxoplasma gondii reveals a hierarchy of gene induction.

PubMed

Singh, Upinder; Brewer, Jeremy L; Boothroyd, John C

2002-05-01

Developmental switching in Toxoplasma gondii, from the virulent tachyzoite to the relatively quiescent bradyzoite stage, is responsible for disease propagation and reactivation. We have generated tachyzoite to bradyzoite differentiation (Tbd-) mutants in T. gondii and used these in combination with a cDNA microarray to identify developmental pathways in bradyzoite formation. Four independently generated Tbd- mutants were analysed and had defects in bradyzoite development in response to multiple bradyzoite-inducing conditions, a stable phenotype after in vivo passages and a markedly reduced brain cyst burden in a murine model of chronic infection. Transcriptional profiles of mutant and wild-type parasites, growing under bradyzoite conditions, revealed a hierarchy of developmentally regulated genes, including many bradyzoite-induced genes whose transcripts were reduced in all mutants. A set of non-developmentally regulated genes whose transcripts were less abundant in Tbd- mutants were also identified. These may represent genes that mediate downstream effects and/or whose expression is dependent on the same transcription factors as the bradyzoite-induced set. Using these data, we have generated a model of transcription regulation during bradyzoite development in T. gondii. Our approach shows the utility of this system as a model to study developmental biology in single-celled eukaryotes including protozoa and fungi.

Pattern self-repetition of fingerprints, lip prints, and palatal rugae among three generations of family: A forensic approach to identify family hierarchy.

PubMed

Mala, Sankeerti; Rathod, Vanita; Pundir, Siddharth; Dixit, Sudhanshu

2017-01-01

The unique pattern and structural diversity of fingerprints, lip prints, palatal rugae, and their occurrence in different patterns among individuals make it questionable whether they are completely unique even in a family hierarchy? Do they have any repetition of the patterns among the generations? Or is this a mere chaos theory? The present study aims to assess the pattern self-repetition of fingerprints, lip prints, and palatal rugae among three generations of ten different families. The present study was conducted at Rungta College of Dental Science and Research, Bhilai, India. Participants birth by origin of Chhattisgarh were only included in the study. Thirty participants from three consecutive generations of ten different families were briefed about the purpose of the study, and their fingerprints, lip prints, and palatal rugae impression were recorded and analyzed for the pattern of self-repetition. Multiple comparisons among the generations and one-way analysis of variance test were performed using SPSS 20 trial version. Among the pattern of primary palatal rugae, 10% showed repetition in all the three generations. Thirty percent showed repetition of the pattern of thumb fingerprints in all the three generation. The pattern of lip prints in the middle 1/3 rd of lower lip, 20% showed repetition in alternative generations. The evaluations of fingerprints, lip prints, and palatal rugae showed fractal dimensions, occurring variations in dimensions according to the complexity of each structure. Even though a minute self-repetition in the patterns of lip, thumb, and palate among the three consequent generations in a family was observed considering the sample size, these results need to be confirmed in a larger sample, either to establish the role of chaos theory in forensic science or identifying a particular pattern of the individual in his family hierarchy.

Delineation and validation of river network spatial scales for water resources and fisheries management.

PubMed

Wang, Lizhu; Brenden, Travis; Cao, Yong; Seelbach, Paul

2012-11-01

Identifying appropriate spatial scales is critically important for assessing health, attributing data, and guiding management actions for rivers. We describe a process for identifying a three-level hierarchy of spatial scales for Michigan rivers. Additionally, we conduct a variance decomposition of fish occurrence, abundance, and assemblage metric data to evaluate how much observed variability can be explained by the three spatial scales as a gage of their utility for water resources and fisheries management. The process involved the development of geographic information system programs, statistical models, modification by experienced biologists, and simplification to meet the needs of policy makers. Altogether, 28,889 reaches, 6,198 multiple-reach segments, and 11 segment classes were identified from Michigan river networks. The segment scale explained the greatest amount of variation in fish abundance and occurrence, followed by segment class, and reach. Segment scale also explained the greatest amount of variation in 13 of the 19 analyzed fish assemblage metrics, with segment class explaining the greatest amount of variation in the other six fish metrics. Segments appear to be a useful spatial scale/unit for measuring and synthesizing information for managing rivers and streams. Additionally, segment classes provide a useful typology for summarizing the numerous segments into a few categories. Reaches are the foundation for the identification of segments and segment classes and thus are integral elements of the overall spatial scale hierarchy despite reaches not explaining significant variation in fish assemblage data.

An Algebraic Construction of the First Integrals of the Stationary KdV Hierarchy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Matsushima, Masatomo; Ohmiya, Mayumi

2009-09-01

The stationary KdV hierarchy is constructed using a kind of recursion operator called Λ-operator. The notion of the maximal solution of the n-th stationary KdV equation is introduced. Using this maximal solution, a specific differential polynomial with the auxiliary spectral parameter called the spectral M-function is constructed as the quadratic form of the fundamental system of the eigenvalue problem for the 2-nd order linear ordinary differential equation which is related to the linearizing operator of the hierarchy. By calculating a perfect square condition of the quadratic form by an elementary algebraic method, the complete set of first integrals of this hierarchy is constructed.

Ero1-α and PDIs constitute a hierarchical electron transfer network of endoplasmic reticulum oxidoreductases

PubMed Central

Araki, Kazutaka; Iemura, Shun-ichiro; Kamiya, Yukiko; Ron, David; Kato, Koichi; Natsume, Tohru

2013-01-01

Ero1-α and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) oxidoreductases of the protein disulfide isomerase (PDI) family promote the efficient introduction of disulfide bonds into nascent polypeptides in the ER. However, the hierarchy of electron transfer among these oxidoreductases is poorly understood. In this paper, Ero1-α–associated oxidoreductases were identified by proteomic analysis and further confirmed by surface plasmon resonance. Ero1-α and PDI were found to constitute a regulatory hub, whereby PDI induced conformational flexibility in an Ero1-α shuttle cysteine (Cys99) facilitated intramolecular electron transfer to the active site. In isolation, Ero1-α also oxidized ERp46, ERp57, and P5; however, kinetic measurements and redox equilibrium analysis revealed that PDI preferentially oxidized other oxidoreductases. PDI accepted electrons from the other oxidoreductases via its a′ domain, bypassing the a domain, which serves as the electron acceptor from reduced glutathione. These observations provide an integrated picture of the hierarchy of cooperative redox interactions among ER oxidoreductases in mammalian cells. PMID:24043701

Relationship between Organizational Culture and Workplace Bullying among Korean Nurses.

PubMed

An, Yuseon; Kang, Jiyeon

2016-09-01

To identify the relationship between organizational culture and experience of workplace bullying among Korean nurses. Participants were 298 hospital nurses in Busan, South Korea. We assessed nursing organizational culture and workplace bullying among nurses using structured questionnaires from July 1 through August 15, 2014. Most participants considered their organizational culture as hierarchy-oriented (45.5%), followed by relation-oriented (36.0%), innovation-oriented (10.4%), and task-oriented (8.1%). According to the operational bullying criteria, the prevalence of workplace bullying was 15.8%. A multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that the odds of being a victim of bullying were 2.58 times as high among nurses in a hierarchy-oriented culture as among nurses in a relation-oriented culture [95% confidence interval (1.12, 5.94)]. The results suggest that the types of nursing organizational culture are related to workplace bullying in Korean nurses. Further research is needed to develop interventions that can foster relation-oriented cultures to prevent workplace bullying in nurses. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Rhythm in language acquisition.

PubMed

Langus, Alan; Mehler, Jacques; Nespor, Marina

2017-10-01

Spoken language is governed by rhythm. Linguistic rhythm is hierarchical and the rhythmic hierarchy partially mimics the prosodic as well as the morpho-syntactic hierarchy of spoken language. It can thus provide learners with cues about the structure of the language they are acquiring. We identify three universal levels of linguistic rhythm - the segmental level, the level of the metrical feet and the phonological phrase level - and discuss why primary lexical stress is not rhythmic. We survey experimental evidence on rhythm perception in young infants and native speakers of various languages to determine the properties of linguistic rhythm that are present at birth, those that mature during the first year of life and those that are shaped by the linguistic environment of language learners. We conclude with a discussion of the major gaps in current knowledge on linguistic rhythm and highlight areas of interest for future research that are most likely to yield significant insights into the nature, the perception, and the usefulness of linguistic rhythm. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Before hierarchy: the rise and fall of Stephen Jay Gould's first macroevolutionary synthesis.

PubMed

Dresow, Max W

2017-06-01

Few of Stephen Jay Gould's accomplishments in evolutionary biology have received more attention than his hierarchical theory of evolution, which postulates a causal discontinuity between micro- and macroevolutionary events. But Gould's hierarchical theory was his second attempt to supply a theoretical framework for macroevolutionary studies-and one he did not inaugurate until the mid-1970s. In this paper, I examine Gould's first attempt: a proposed fusion of theoretical morphology, multivariate biometry and the experimental study of adaptation in fossils. This early "macroevolutionary synthesis" was predicated on the notion that parallelism and convergence dominate the history of higher taxa, and moreover, that they can be explained in terms of adaptation leading to mechanical improvement. In this paper, I explore the origins and contents of Gould's first macroevolutionary synthesis, as well as the reasons for its downfall. In addition, I consider how various developments during the mid-1970s led Gould to identify hierarchy and constraint as the leading themes of macroevolutionary studies-and adaptation as a macroevolutionary red herring.

Fate mapping of human glioblastoma reveals an invariant stem cell hierarchy.

PubMed

Lan, Xiaoyang; Jörg, David J; Cavalli, Florence M G; Richards, Laura M; Nguyen, Long V; Vanner, Robert J; Guilhamon, Paul; Lee, Lilian; Kushida, Michelle M; Pellacani, Davide; Park, Nicole I; Coutinho, Fiona J; Whetstone, Heather; Selvadurai, Hayden J; Che, Clare; Luu, Betty; Carles, Annaick; Moksa, Michelle; Rastegar, Naghmeh; Head, Renee; Dolma, Sonam; Prinos, Panagiotis; Cusimano, Michael D; Das, Sunit; Bernstein, Mark; Arrowsmith, Cheryl H; Mungall, Andrew J; Moore, Richard A; Ma, Yussanne; Gallo, Marco; Lupien, Mathieu; Pugh, Trevor J; Taylor, Michael D; Hirst, Martin; Eaves, Connie J; Simons, Benjamin D; Dirks, Peter B

2017-09-14

Human glioblastomas harbour a subpopulation of glioblastoma stem cells that drive tumorigenesis. However, the origin of intratumoural functional heterogeneity between glioblastoma cells remains poorly understood. Here we study the clonal evolution of barcoded glioblastoma cells in an unbiased way following serial xenotransplantation to define their individual fate behaviours. Independent of an evolving mutational signature, we show that the growth of glioblastoma clones in vivo is consistent with a remarkably neutral process involving a conserved proliferative hierarchy rooted in glioblastoma stem cells. In this model, slow-cycling stem-like cells give rise to a more rapidly cycling progenitor population with extensive self-maintenance capacity, which in turn generates non-proliferative cells. We also identify rare 'outlier' clones that deviate from these dynamics, and further show that chemotherapy facilitates the expansion of pre-existing drug-resistant glioblastoma stem cells. Finally, we show that functionally distinct glioblastoma stem cells can be separately targeted using epigenetic compounds, suggesting new avenues for glioblastoma-targeted therapy.

Fate mapping of human glioblastoma reveals an invariant stem cell hierarchy

PubMed Central

Lan, Xiaoyang; Jörg, David J.; Cavalli, Florence M. G.; Richards, Laura M.; Nguyen, Long V.; Vanner, Robert J.; Guilhamon, Paul; Lee, Lilian; Kushida, Michelle; Pellacani, Davide; Park, Nicole I.; Coutinho, Fiona J.; Whetstone, Heather; Selvadurai, Hayden J.; Che, Clare; Luu, Betty; Carles, Annaick; Moksa, Michelle; Rastegar, Naghmeh; Head, Renee; Dolma, Sonam; Prinos, Panagiotis; Cusimano, Michael D.; Das, Sunit; Bernstein, Mark; Arrowsmith, Cheryl H.; Mungall, Andrew J.; Moore, Richard A.; Ma, Yussanne; Gallo, Marco; Lupien, Mathieu; Pugh, Trevor J.; Taylor, Michael D.; Hirst, Martin; Eaves, Connie J.; Simons, Benjamin D.; Dirks, Peter B.

2017-01-01

Summary Human glioblastomas (GBMs) harbour a subpopulation of glioblastoma stem cells (GSCs) that drive tumourigenesis. However, the origin of intra-tumoural functional heterogeneity between GBM cells remains poorly understood. Here we study the clonal evolution of barcoded GBM cells in an unbiased way following serial xenotransplantation to define their individual fate behaviours. Independent of an evolving mutational signature, we show that the growth of GBM clones in vivo is consistent with a remarkably neutral process involving a conserved proliferative hierarchy rooted in GSCs. In this model, slow-cycling stem-like cells give rise to a more rapidly cycling progenitor population with extensive self-maintenance capacity, that in turn generates non-proliferative cells. We also identify rare “outlier” clones that deviate from these dynamics, and further show that chemotherapy facilitates the expansion of pre-existing drug-resistant GSCs. Finally, we show that functionally distinct GSCs can be separately targeted using epigenetic compounds, suggesting new avenues for GBM targeted therapy. PMID:28854171