Normalized Alignment of Dependency Trees for Detecting Textual Entailment

In this paper, we investigate the usefulness of normalized alignment of dependency trees for entailment prediction. Overall, our approach yields an accuracy of 60% on the RTE2 test set, which is a significant improvement over the baseline. Results vary substantially across the different subsets, with a peak performance on the summarization data. We conclude that normalized alignment is useful for detecting textual entailments, but a robust approach will probably need to include additional sources of information

Illustrating answers: an evaluation of automatically retrieved illustrations of answers to medical questions

In this paper we discuss and evaluate a method for automatic text illustration, applied to answers to medical questions. Our method for selecting illustrations is based on the idea that similarities between the answers and picture-related text (the picture’s caption or the section/paragraph that includes the picture) can be used as evidence that the picture would be appropriate to illustrate the answer.In a user study, participants rated answer presentations consisting of a textual component and a picture. The textual component was a manually written reference answer; the picture was automatically retrieved by measuring the similarity between the text and either the picture’s caption or its section. The caption-based selection method resulted in more attractive presentations than the section-based method; the caption-based method was also more consistent in selecting informative pictures and showed a greater correlation between user-rated informativeness and the confidence of relevance of the system.When compared to manually selected pictures, we found that automatically selected pictures were rated similarly to decorative pictures, but worse than informative pictures

Individual Differences and Ecological Validity of Emotion Regulation in Response to Sadness

The majority of research on emotion regulation processes has been restricted to controlled laboratory settingsthat use experimental paradigms to investigate short-term outcomes (Berking & Wupperman, 2012). A true understanding of emotion regulation requires an unobtrusive, ecologically valid assessment of the construct as it naturally unfolds in the environment. Digital phenotyping, or moment-by-moment quantification of individual-level human behavior using data from smartphone sensors (Torous & Onnela, 2016), is a novel method for evaluating human behavior in naturalistic settings. The present project is the first to implement digital phenotyping in the investigation of emotion regulation. The central aim of the study was to evaluate whether smartphone-based digital phenotyping data predicted individual differences in emotion regulation in both in-lab and naturalistic settings. During an in-lab session, unselected adult participants (N = 69) completed self-report questionnaires measuring trait emotion regulation as well as state affect/emotion regulation following a neutral mood induction, negative mood induction, and recovery period. Smartphone-based digital phenotyping data were collected during a 7-day follow-up period using the Beiwe Research Platform (Onnela & Rauch, 2016), an open-access mobile- and cloud-based research tool for collecting digital data via smartphones. Results showed that variation in mobile power state level and GPS distance were significantly associated with variation in negative state affect and state cognitive reappraisal over time. Clustering and classification analyses showed power state level and GPS distance over time to accurately, and with high sensitivity and specificity, classify two trait emotion clusters. Variation in power state level and GPS distance together with trait and state emotion regulation was not associated with current depressive symptoms. Overall, the findings provide initial data on the use of digital phenotyping data in predicting individual differences in state and trait emotion regulation in both in-lab and naturalistic settings. The results suggest that operationalizations of digital phenotyping data and modeling approaches are particularly important factors to consider when implementing digital phenotyping methodology in the study of mental health processes such as emotion regulation

Production and evaluation of (multimodal) answers to medical questions

This paper describes two experiments carried out to investigate the production and evaluation of multimodal answer presentations in the context of a medical question answering system. In a production experiment participants had to produce answers to different types of questions. The results show that about one in four produced answers using multiple media. In an evaluation experiment, users had to evaluate different types of multimodal answer presentations. Answers with an informative visual were evaluated as more informative and more attractive than answers with a mere illustrative visual

Developing Capacity, Skills, and Tobacco Control Networks to address Tobacco-related Disparities: Leadership and Advocacy Institute to Advance Minnesota’s Parity for Priority Populations (LAAMPP)

Priority populations disproportionately experience tobacco-related disparities, despite population level declines in tobacco use. The Leadership and Advocacy Institute to Advance Minnesota’s Parity for Priority Populations (LAAMPP) recruits and trains African immigrants/African Americans, Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders, American Indians, Chicano/Latinos, and LGBTQ community members to develop leaders to address tobacco harms in their communities. This paper describes and evaluates the LAAMPP Institute, and discusses lessons learned through the Institute and future directions for community-based tobacco-control efforts. The mixed-methods evaluation included qualitative key informant interviews with LAAMPP Fellows and community and project contacts, a Skills Assessment Tool, project case studies, and a social network analysis of the Fellows’ tobacco-control social networks at baseline and follow-up. At follow-up, Fellows’ tobacco control networks were larger, more extensive and diverse, and included more actors perceived to be influential in tobacco control. Fellows’ skills increased in core competencies (tobacco control, advocacy, facilitation, collaboration, cultural/community competence) and Fellows used tobacco, advocacy and cultural/community competencies more frequently. Four of five cohorts successfully passed policies. The results of LAAMPP suggest that a cross-cultural leadership institute contributes to the successful development of capacity and leadership skills among priority populations and may be a useful model for others working toward health equity

Padronização de uma bateria para a avaliação de fatores de risco psicossociais trabalhistas em trabalhadores colombianos

A battery of questionnaires to assess psychosocial risk factors at work was developed in 2010 in response to Resolution 2646 created by the Colombian Ministry of Social Protection. However, this battery presents some theoretical and practical limitations. A new battery of instruments has been designed and validated that includes instruments and risk indicators of the demand-control-social support and the effort-reward imbalance models. Other factors, not included in these models, but that Resolution 2646 suggests should be assessed, have also been added, and with this additional information, the new battery allows us to also calculate a “global indicator” of demand, control, and social support; family and social risk conditions, coping and personality; and health and wellbeing. The new battery was administered to a sample of 16,095 workers from different occupations and representative Colombian regions. An analysis of the various domains indicates that internal consistency of the various scales is high. The new battery has the following properties: it is simple to use in paper format or when administered by computer, it enables comparison between occupations, it offers unified scores for each variable, and provides information to assess the risk factors suggested by Resolution 2646. In addition, it will make it possible to compare the results obtained when analyzing Colombian workers with those obtained from studies of workers from other countries.Em 2010, desenvolveu-se uma bateria de instrumentos para avaliar fatores psicossociais trabalhistas de risco para a saúde, em resposta à Resolução 2 646 do Ministério da Proteção Social da Colômbia. Contudo, esta conta com algumas limitações que, a partir da construção e da validação de uma nova bateria, neste estudo se pretendem superar. Além disso, a nova bateria oferece recursos adicionais para a avaliação desses fatores: a presente bateria incorpora os instrumentos e os indicadores centrais dos modelos demanda-controle-apoio social e desiquilíbrio esforço-recompensa e os fatores internos do trabalho não considerados nesses modelos, mas que a Resolução considera necessários, mediram-se com testes preexistentes ou desenvolvidos pelos autores. Com os dados coletados, é possível calcular indicadores globais de demanda, controle e apoio social; além de condições familiares e sociais de risco, enfrentamento, personalidade e indicadores de saúde e bem-estar. Para a validação, a bateria foi aplicada a uma amostra de 16 095 trabalhadores de diferentes cargos e municípios colombianos. As anál i ses de consistência interna e validade permitem afirmar que a bateria é simples de aplicar em papel ou digital, permitirá comparar cargos, obter pontuações unificadas por variável, oferecer um diagnóstico de um número importante das variáveis sugeridas na Resolução bem como permitirá comparar os resultados dos trabalhadores colombianos com os de outros países. Palavras-chave: fatores trabalhistas de risco psicossocial, Resolução 2 646 de 2008, modelo demanda-controle-apoio social, modelo desiquilíbrio esforço-recompensa, estresse profissional, avaliação.En 2010 se desarrolló una batería de instrumentos para evaluar factores psicosociales laborales de riesgo para la salud, en respuesta a la Resolución 2646 de 2008 del Ministerio de la Protección Social de Colombia. Sin embargo, esta cuenta con algunas limitaciones que, a partir de la construcción y validación de una nueva batería, en el presente estudio se buscan superar. La nueva batería ofrece recursos adicionales para la evaluación de estos factores: incorpora los instrumentos e indicadores centrales de los modelos demanda-control-apoyo social y desequilibrio esfuerzo-recompensa, y los factores intralaborales no contemplados en dichos modelos, pero que la Resolución considera necesarios, se midieron con pruebas preexistentes o desarrolladas por los autores. Con los datos recolectados es posible calcular indicadores globales de demanda, control y apoyo social; además de condiciones familiares y sociales de riesgo, afrontamiento, personalidad e indicadores de salud y bienestar. Para la validación, la batería se aplicó a una muestra de 16.095 trabajadores de diferentes ocupaciones y municipios colombianos. Los análisis de consistencia interna y validez permiten afirmar que la batería es sencilla de aplicar en papel o por computador, permitirá comparar ocupaciones, obtener puntuaciones unificadas por variable, ofrecer un diagnóstico de un número importante de las variables sugeridas en la Resolución y comparar los resultados de los trabajadores colombianos con los de otros países

Forming first-ranked early-type galaxies through hierarchical dissipationless merging

We have developed a computationally competitive N-body model of a previrialized aggregation of galaxies in a flat LambdaCDM universe to assess the role of the multiple mergers that take place during the formation stage of such systems in the configuration of the remnants assembled at their centres. An analysis of a suite of 48 simulations of low-mass forming groups (of about 1E13 solar masses) demonstrates that the gravitational dynamics involved in their hierarchical collapse is capable of creating realistic first-ranked galaxies without the aid of dissipative processes. Our simulations indicate that the brightest group galaxies (BGGs) constitute a distinct population from other group members, sketching a scenario in which the assembly path of these objects is dictated largely by the formation of their host system. We detect significant differences in the distribution of Sersic indices and total magnitudes, as well as a luminosity gap between BGGs and the next brightest galaxy that is positively correlated with the total luminosity of the parent group. Such gaps arise from both the grow of BGGs at the expense of lesser companions and the decrease in the relevance of second-ranked objects in equal measure. This results in a dearth of intermediate-mass galaxies which explains the characteristic central dip detected in their luminosity functions in dynamically young galaxy aggregations. The fact that the basic global properties of our BGGs define a thin mass fundamental plane strikingly similar to that followed giant early-type galaxies in the local universe reinforces confidence in the results obtained.Comment: 25 pages, 14 figures, 3 tables. Accepted to MNRA

Monitoring quantity and quality of pangasius pond effluent : report of a monitoring program and recommendations for certification

The quantity and quality of pangasius pond effluent was monitored by means of monthly sampling during a study conducted on four striped catfish farms located in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. The study was undertaken to test the practical implications of the standards and guidelines with regard to catfish pond effluent that are at present developed by various certification programs for striped catfish production in Vietnam. The results showed a great variability twelve pangasius pond within the samples that were taken during one period of partial pond draining and refilling. The consequences of such variability with regard to the certification standards and guidelines are discussed and recommendations are given