876 research outputs found

    Tracing Evolution of Gene Transfer Agents Using Comparative Genomics

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    The accumulating evidence suggest that viruses and their components can be domesticated by their hosts, equipping them with convenient molecular toolkits for various functions. One of such domesticated system is Gene Transfer Agents (GTAs) that are produced by some bacteria and archaea. GTAs morphologically resemble small phage-like particles and contain random fragments of their host genome. They are produced only by a small fraction of the microbial population and are released through a lysis of the host cell. Bioinformatic analyses suggest that GTAs are especially abundant in the taxonomic class of Alphaproteobacteria, where they are vertically inherited and evolve as a part of their host genomes. In this work, we extensively analyze evolutionary patterns of alphaproteobacterial GTAs using comparative genomics, phylogenomics and machine learning methods. We initially develop an algorithm that validate the wide presence of GTA elements in alphaproteobacterial genomes, where they are generally mistaken for prophages due to their homology. Furthermore, we demonstrate that GTAs evolve under the selection that reduces the energetic cost of their production, indicating their importance for the conditions of the nutrient depletion. The genome-wide screenings of translational selection and coevolution signatures highlight the significance of GTAs as a stress-response adaptation for the horizontal gene transfer, revealing a set of previously unknown genes that could play a role in the GTA cycle. As production of GTAs leads to the host death, their maintenance is likely to be under a kin or group level selection. By combining our findings with accumulated body of knowledge, this work proposes a conceptual model illustrating the role of GTAs in bacterial populations and their persistence for hundreds of millions of years of evolution

    2017 GREAT Day Program

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    SUNY Geneseo’s Eleventh Annual GREAT Day.https://knightscholar.geneseo.edu/program-2007/1011/thumbnail.jp

    Summer/Fall 2023

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    Management of socio-economic transformations of business processes: current realities, global challenges, forecast scenarios and development prospects

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    The authors of the scientific monograph have come to the conclusion that мanagement of socio-economic transformations of business processes requires the use of mechanisms to support of entrepreneurship, sectors of the national economy, the financial system, and critical infrastructure. Basic research focuses on assessment the state of social service provision, analysing economic security, implementing innovation and introducing digital technologies. The research results have been implemented in the different models of costing, credit risk and capital management, tax control, use of artificial intelligence and blockchain. The results of the study can be used in the developing of policies, programmes and strategies for economic security, development of the agricultural sector, transformation of industrial policy, implementation of employment policy in decision-making at the level of ministries and agencies that regulate the management of socio-economic and European integration processes. The results can also be used by students and young scientists in the educational process and conducting scientific research on global challenges and creation scenarios for the development of socio-economic processes

    Establishing a Relationship Between Emotional Quotient (EQ) and Academic Performance within Third Year Medical Students during their Surgical Clerkship

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    Abstract Introduction: Professionalism competencies are essential in the medical field, yet these skills are often insufficiently covered and instructed in undergraduate medical education. This study explores the overlap between medical professionalism and emotional intelligence, proposing emotional intelligence training as a practical solution. However, its integration into medical education still needs more in-depth exploration. Methodology: This study introduced Boost Incorporated's mental toughness and leadership training curriculum to third-year medical students during their Surgery Clerkship. All third-year students in the 2020-2021 academic year were invited to participate in this investigation. Student volunteers were randomly assigned to either a control or an intervention group. The intervention group was granted access to Boost Incorporated’s twelve-hour online mental toughness and leadership training curriculum and had weekly faculty-led training sessions throughout their Surgical Clerkships. Both groups completed pre-course and post-course Mental Toughness and Leadership Assessments (MTLA) and National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) Surgery Exams. The pre-course and post-course MTLA scores within each group were analyzed to assess the impact of the training intervention on the overall scores of the MTLA and its components in third-year medical student participants on their Surgery Clerkship. MTLA scores and NBME Surgery Shelf Exam scores were also analyzed to assess their relationship. In addition, student experiences were utilized to examine faculty-facilitated small-group learning as a delivery method for interventional training. Results: The intervention group receiving Boost's training showed significant improvements in MTLA scores and related assessment components, while the control group did not. However, both groups exhibited a small to medium, statistically insignificant correlation between MTLA scores and NBME Surgery Shelf scores. Faculty-led small group learning emerged as an adaptable and engaging delivery method for Boost's intervention training among clinical-phase Surgery Clerkship participants during their third year of medical school. They reported substantial benefits, including improved stress management, wellness promotion, practical guidance, and enhanced workload balance. Conclusion: This research underscores the potential of emotional intelligence training to enhance professionalism in medical education. The results indicate significant improvements in MTLA scores for students who received interventional training. However, further investigation is needed to explore the broader implications of these findings. Keywords: professionalism, medical education, emotional intelligence, emotional quotient, mental toughness, leadership training, Surgery Clerkship, student experiences, small-group learning, academic performance, Boost Incorporated, Mental Toughness and Leadership Assessment (MTLA), National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) Surgery Shelf Exam, emotional intelligence training

    Intent-aligned AI systems deplete human agency: the need for agency foundations research in AI safety

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    The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) systems suggests that artificial general intelligence (AGI) systems may soon arrive. Many researchers are concerned that AIs and AGIs will harm humans via intentional misuse (AI-misuse) or through accidents (AI-accidents). In respect of AI-accidents, there is an increasing effort focused on developing algorithms and paradigms that ensure AI systems are aligned to what humans intend, e.g. AI systems that yield actions or recommendations that humans might judge as consistent with their intentions and goals. Here we argue that alignment to human intent is insufficient for safe AI systems and that preservation of long-term agency of humans may be a more robust standard, and one that needs to be separated explicitly and a priori during optimization. We argue that AI systems can reshape human intention and discuss the lack of biological and psychological mechanisms that protect humans from loss of agency. We provide the first formal definition of agency-preserving AI-human interactions which focuses on forward-looking agency evaluations and argue that AI systems - not humans - must be increasingly tasked with making these evaluations. We show how agency loss can occur in simple environments containing embedded agents that use temporal-difference learning to make action recommendations. Finally, we propose a new area of research called "agency foundations" and pose four initial topics designed to improve our understanding of agency in AI-human interactions: benevolent game theory, algorithmic foundations of human rights, mechanistic interpretability of agency representation in neural-networks and reinforcement learning from internal states

    Agency and professionalism in translation and interpreting: navigating conflicting role identities among translation and interpreting practitioners working for local government in Japan

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    This thesis investigates the ethical choices of Coordinators for International Relations (CIRs), a group of largely non-professional translators and interpreters working for local government bodies in Japan. In addition to T&I, CIRs are tasked with engaging in intercultural relations, “internationalising” their local areas, and working with the public as members of the civil service. The thesis examines the different roles and particular circumstances of CIRs to describe and explain how they make ethical decisions in T&I. This was explored using an ethnographic methodology featuring both traditional and online sites. Specifically, data was collected from participant observation of an internet forum created by CIRs, through online surveys, and also by employing focus groups and interviews held with CIRs in Japan. Analysis of forum and survey data illuminated the ethical struggles experienced by CIRs in T&I. It indicated that professionalism and agency were of particular concern for these CIRs when dealing with questions of ethics. Through focus groups, more detailed data was elicited surrounding the ethical struggles faced by CIRs, with a particular focus on professionalism and agency. Forum and focus group data combined to create a set of hypothetical ethical scenarios discussed during semistructured interviews held to understand factors that influence CIR decision making. A theoretical framework combining Agency Theory (Mitnick, 1975) and Role Identity Theory (Stryker, 1968) was used to describe and explain CIR ethical decision making; foregrounding their potential to effect change in their workplaces (agency) and the prioritisation afforded to different roles with which they identify in their work (role identity). Ultimately, CIRs were most disposed to translate or interpret in a manner that they believed was in keeping with the wishes of their employers, based on their superior ability to monitor and control the CIRs. However, in instances where the CIR operated with free will, their choices were a result of complex structuring of the various identities that they had normalised within themselves. Keywords: translation, interpreting, Coordinator for International Relations (CIR), Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme, agency, professionalism, role identity

    A new frontier for the study of the commons:Open-source hardware

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