A discriminative approach to grounded spoken language understanding in interactive robotics

Spoken Language Understanding in Interactive Robotics provides computational models of human-machine communication based on the vocal input. However, robots operate in specific environments and the correct interpretation of the spoken sentences depends on the physical, cognitive and linguistic aspects triggered by the operational environment. Grounded language processing should exploit both the physical constraints of the context as well as knowledge assumptions of the robot. These include the subjective perception of the environment that explicitly affects linguistic reasoning. In this work, a standard linguistic pipeline for semantic parsing is extended toward a form of perceptually informed natural language processing that combines discriminative learning and distributional semantics. Empirical results achieve up to a 40% of relative error reduction

Robust Spoken Language Understanding for House Service Robots

Service robotics has been growing significantly in thelast years, leading to several research results and to a numberof consumer products. One of the essential features of theserobotic platforms is represented by the ability of interactingwith users through natural language. Spoken commands canbe processed by a Spoken Language Understanding chain, inorder to obtain the desired behavior of the robot. The entrypoint of such a process is represented by an Automatic SpeechRecognition (ASR) module, that provides a list of transcriptionsfor a given spoken utterance. Although several well-performingASR engines are available off-the-shelf, they operate in a generalpurpose setting. Hence, they may be not well suited in therecognition of utterances given to robots in specific domains. Inthis work, we propose a practical yet robust strategy to re-ranklists of transcriptions. This approach improves the quality of ASRsystems in situated scenarios, i.e., the transcription of roboticcommands. The proposed method relies upon evidences derivedby a semantic grammar with semantic actions, designed tomodel typical commands expressed in scenarios that are specificto human service robotics. The outcomes obtained throughan experimental evaluation show that the approach is able toeffectively outperform the ASR baseline, obtained by selectingthe first transcription suggested by the AS

LexMeter. Validation of an automated system for the assessment of lexical competence of medical students as a prerequisite for the development of an adaptive e-learning system

Distance learning is used in medical education, even if some recent meta-analyses indicated that it is no more effective than traditional methods. To exploit the technological capabilities, adaptive distance learning systems aim to bridge the gap between the educational offer and the learner’s need. A decrease of lexical competence has been noted in many western countries, so lexical competence could be a possible target for adaptation. The “Adaptive message learning” project (Am-learning) is aimed at designing and implementing an adaptive e-learning system, driven by lexical competence. The goal of the project is to modulate texts according to the estimated skill of learners, to allow a better comprehension. LexMeter is the first of the four modules of the Am-learning system. It outlines an initial profile of the learner’s lexical competence and can also produce cloze tests, a test based on a completion task. A validation test of LexMeter was run on 443 medical students of the first, third, and sixth year at the University “Sapienza” of Rome. Six cloze tests were automatically produced, with 10 gaps each. The tests were different for each year and with varying levels of difficulty. A last cloze test was manually created as a control. The difference of the mean score between the easy tests and the tests with a medium level of difficulty was statistically significant for the third year students but not for first and sixth year. The score of the automatically generated tests showed a slight but significant correlation with the control test. The reliability (Cronbach alpha) of the different tests fluctuated under and above 0.60, as an acceptable level. In fact, classical item analysis revealed that the tests were on the average too simple. Lexical competence is a relevant outcome and its assessment allows an early detection of students at risk. Cloze tests can also be used to assess specific knowledge of technical jargon and to train reasoning skill

Fingerprint Identification Using Noise in the Horizontal-to-Vertical Spectral Ratio: Retrieving the Impedance Contrast Structure for the Almaty Basin (Kazakhstan)

Detailed knowledge of the 3D basin structure underlying urban areas is of major importance for improving the assessment of seismic hazard and risk. However, mapping the major features of the shallow geological layers becomes expensive where large areas need to be covered. In this study, we propose an innovative tool, based mainly on single station noise recordings and the horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio (H/V), to identify and locate the depth of major impedance contrasts. The method is based on an identification of so-called fingerprints of the major impedance discontinuities and their migration to depth by means of an analytical procedure. The method is applied to seismic noise recordings collected in the city of Almaty (Kazakhstan). The estimated impedance contrasts vs. depth profiles are interpolated in order to derive a three-dimensional (3D) model, which after calibration with some available boreholes data allows the major tectonic features in the subsurface to be identified

Deformation and Fault Propagation at the Lateral Termination of a Subduction Zone: The Alfeo Fault System in the Calabrian Arc, Southern Italy

The Calabrian Arc subduction, southern Italy, is a critical structural element in the geodynamic evolution of the central Mediterranean basin. It is a narrow, northwest-dipping slab bordered to the southwest by the Alfeo Fault System (AFS) and to the northeast by a gradual transition to a collision. We used a dense set of two-dimensional high-penetration (up to 12 s) multichannel seismic reflection profiles to build a three-dimensional model that spans the AFS for over 180 km of its length. We find that the AFS is made up of four deep-seated major blind segments that cut through the lower plate, offset the subduction interface, and only partially propagate upward across the accretionary wedge in the upper plate. These faults evolve with a scissor-like mechanism (mode III of rupture propagation). The shallow part of the accretionary wedge is affected by secondary deformation features well aligned with the AFS at depth but also mechanically decoupled from it. Despite the decoupling, the syn-tectonic Pliocene-Holocene deposits that fill in the accommodation space generated by the AFS activity at depth, constrain the age of inception of the AFS and allows us to estimate its throw and propagation rates. The maximum throw value is 6,000 m in the NW sector and decreases to the SE. Considering the age of faulting, the fault throw rate decreases accordingly from 2.31 mm/yr to 1 mm/yr. The propagation rate decreases from 62 mm/yr to 15 mm/yr during the Pliocene-Pleistocene, suggesting that also the Calabrian subduction process should have slowed down accordingly. The detailed spatial and temporal reconstruction of this type of faults can reveal necessary information about the evolution of subduction systems

Importance of earthquake rupture geometry on tsunami modelling: the Calabrian Arc subduction interface (Italy) case study

SUMMARY The behaviour of tsunami waves at any location depends on the local morphology of the coasts, the encountered bathymetric features, and the characteristics of the source. However, the importance of accurately modelling the geometric properties of the causative fault for simulations of seismically induced tsunamis is rarely addressed. In this work, we analyse the effects of using two different geometric models of the subduction interface of the Calabrian Arc (southern Italy, Ionian Sea) onto the simulated tsunamis: a detailed 3-D subduction interface obtained from the interpretation of a dense network of seismic reflection profiles, and a planar interface that roughly approximates the 3-D one. These models can be thought of as representing two end-members of the level of knowledge of fault geometry. We define three hypothetical earthquake ruptures of different magnitudes (Mw 7.5, 8.0, 8.5) on each geometry. The resulting tsunami impact is evaluated at the 50-m isobath in front of coastlines of the central and eastern Mediterranean. Our results show that the source geometry imprint is evident on the tsunami waveforms, as recorded at various distances and positions relative to the source. The absolute differences in maximum and minimum wave amplitudes locally exceed one metre, and the relative differences remain systematically above 20 per cent with peaks over 40 per cent. We also observe that tsunami energy directivity and focusing due to bathymetric waveguides take different paths depending on which fault is used. Although the differences increase with increasing earthquake magnitude, there is no simple rule to anticipate the different effects produced by these end-member models of the earthquake source. Our findings suggest that oversimplified source models may hinder our fundamental understanding of the tsunami impact and great care should be adopted when making simplistic assumptions regarding the appropriateness of the planar fault approximation in tsunami studies. We also remark that the geological and geophysical 3-D fault characterization remains a crucial and unavoidable step in tsunami hazard analyses

Maternal and paternal psychological control and adolescents’ negative adjustment: a dyadic longitudinal study in three countries

Psychological Control (PC) interferes with autonomy-related processes in adolescence and has a negative impact on adolescents’ development related to internalizing and externalizing problems. Several scholars suggested that PC can be used differently by mothers and fathers. However, these differences are still understudied and mainly grounded on maternal and/or adolescents’ perspectives, leading to potentially incomplete inferences on the effects of PC. The present study extends previous research on PC in two directions. First, we tested the dyadic and cumulative effects of maternal and paternal PC on adolescents’ antisocial behaviors and anxious-depressive symptoms. Secondly, we explored the cross-cultural generalizability of these associations in three countries: Italy, Colombia, and USA. Participants included 376 families with data from three consecutive years (T1, adolescents’ age=13.70). Mothers’ and fathers’ reports of PC and youth’s reports of antisocial and internalizing behaviors were assessed. Using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM) we found that maternal PC predicted adolescents’ reported antisocial behaviors whereas paternal PC predicted lower anxious-depressed symptoms. Comparisons across countries evidenced the cross-cultural invariance of the longitudinal APIM across Italy, Colombia, and USA. The practical implications of these results are discussed

Coping with global uncertainty: Perceptions of COVID-19 psychological distress, relationship quality, and dyadic coping for romantic partners across 27 countries

Following the global outbreak of COVID-19 in March 2020, individuals report psychological distress associated with the “new normal”—social distancing, financial hardships, and increased responsibilities while working from home. Given the interpersonal nature of stress and coping responses between romantic partners, based on the systemic transactional model this study posits that perceived partner dyadic coping may be an important moderator between experiences of COVID-19 psychological distress and relationship quality. To examine these associations, self-report data from 14,020 people across 27 countries were collected during the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic (March–July, 2020). It was hypothesized that higher symptoms of psychological distress would be reported post-COVID-19 compared to pre-COVID-19 restrictions (Hypothesis 1), reports of post-COVID-19 psychological distress would be negatively associated with relationship quality (Hypothesis 2), and perceived partner DC would moderate these associations (Hypothesis 3). While hypotheses were generally supported, results also showed interesting between-country variability. Limitations and future directions are presented

factors underlying the development of chronic temporal lobe epilepsy in autoimmune encephalitis

Abstract Purpose Limbic encephalitis (LE) is an autoimmune condition characterized by amnestic syndrome, psychiatric features and seizures. Early diagnosis and prompt treatment are crucial to avoid long-term sequelae, including psycho-cognitive deficits and persisting seizures. The aim of our study was to analyze the characteristics of 33 LE patients in order to identify possible prognostic factors associated with the development of chronic epilepsy. Methods This is a retrospective cohort study including adult patients diagnosed with LE in the period 2010–2017 and followed up for ≥12 months. Demographics, seizure semiology, EEG pattern, MRI features, CSF/serum findings were reviewed. Results All 33 LE patients (19 M/14F, mean age 61.2 years) presented seizures. Thirty subjects had memory deficits; 22 presented behavioural/mood disorders. Serum and/or CSF auto-antibodies were detected in 12 patients. In 31 subjects brain MRI at onset showed typical alterations involving temporal lobes. All patients received immunotherapy. At follow-up, 13/33 had developed chronic epilepsy; predisposing factors included delay in diagnosis (p = .009), low seizure frequency at onset (p = .02), absence of amnestic syndrome (p = .02) and absence/rarity of inter-ictal epileptic discharges on EEG (p = .06). Conclusions LE with paucisymptomatic electro-clinical presentation seemed to be associated to chronic epilepsy more than LE presenting with definite and severe "limbic syndrome"

Probabilistic tsunami forecasting for early warning

Tsunami warning centres face the challenging task of rapidly forecasting tsunami threat immediately after an earthquake, when there is high uncertainty due to data deficiency. Here we introduce Probabilistic Tsunami Forecasting (PTF) for tsunami early warning. PTF expli- citly treats data- and forecast-uncertainties, enabling alert level definitions according to any predefined level of conservatism, which is connected to the average balance of missed-vs- false-alarms. Impact forecasts and resulting recommendations become progressively less uncertain as new data become available. Here we report an implementation for near-source early warning and test it systematically by hindcasting the great 2010 M8.8 Maule (Chile) and the well-studied 2003 M6.8 Zemmouri-Boumerdes (Algeria) tsunamis, as well as all the Mediterranean earthquakes that triggered alert messages at the Italian Tsunami Warning Centre since its inception in 2015, demonstrating forecasting accuracy over a wide range of magnitudes and earthquake types