Seeing Is Believing: A Practitioner\u27s Guide to the Admissibility of Demonstrative Computer Evidence, 1998 John M. Manos Writing Competition on Evidence

As computer equipment itself becomes more financially accessible, more experts are using computer simulations as demonstrative evidence during their trial testimony. However, this use of computer simulations presents several novel, complex issues. Part II will explore the backgrounds of demonstrative evidence, computerization, and the use of computer simulation for demonstrative evidence. Part III will discuss and analyze several relevant issues, including attorney training, expert knowledge, judicial confusion, additional evidentiary issues, and the possible prejudicial influence of demonstrative computer simulations. This discussion concludes with some general thoughts regarding the use of demonstrative computer simulation to illustrate expert testimony

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

INTRODUCTION Investment in Africa over the past year with regard to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing has led to a massive increase in the number of sequences, which, to date, exceeds 100,000 sequences generated to track the pandemic on the continent. These sequences have profoundly affected how public health officials in Africa have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. RATIONALE We demonstrate how the first 100,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences from Africa have helped monitor the epidemic on the continent, how genomic surveillance expanded over the course of the pandemic, and how we adapted our sequencing methods to deal with an evolving virus. Finally, we also examine how viral lineages have spread across the continent in a phylogeographic framework to gain insights into the underlying temporal and spatial transmission dynamics for several variants of concern (VOCs). RESULTS Our results indicate that the number of countries in Africa that can sequence the virus within their own borders is growing and that this is coupled with a shorter turnaround time from the time of sampling to sequence submission. Ongoing evolution necessitated the continual updating of primer sets, and, as a result, eight primer sets were designed in tandem with viral evolution and used to ensure effective sequencing of the virus. The pandemic unfolded through multiple waves of infection that were each driven by distinct genetic lineages, with B.1-like ancestral strains associated with the first pandemic wave of infections in 2020. Successive waves on the continent were fueled by different VOCs, with Alpha and Beta cocirculating in distinct spatial patterns during the second wave and Delta and Omicron affecting the whole continent during the third and fourth waves, respectively. Phylogeographic reconstruction points toward distinct differences in viral importation and exportation patterns associated with the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants and subvariants, when considering both Africa versus the rest of the world and viral dissemination within the continent. Our epidemiological and phylogenetic inferences therefore underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic on the continent and highlight key insights and challenges, for instance, recognizing the limitations of low testing proportions. We also highlight the early warning capacity that genomic surveillance in Africa has had for the rest of the world with the detection of new lineages and variants, the most recent being the characterization of various Omicron subvariants. CONCLUSION Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve. This is important not only to help combat SARS-CoV-2 on the continent but also because it can be used as a platform to help address the many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats in Africa. In particular, capacity building for local sequencing within countries or within the continent should be prioritized because this is generally associated with shorter turnaround times, providing the most benefit to local public health authorities tasked with pandemic response and mitigation and allowing for the fastest reaction to localized outbreaks. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century

Seeing Is Believing: A Practitioner\u27s Guide to the Admissibility of Demonstrative Computer Evidence, 1998 John M. Manos Writing Competition on Evidence

As computer equipment itself becomes more financially accessible, more experts are using computer simulations as demonstrative evidence during their trial testimony. However, this use of computer simulations presents several novel, complex issues. Part II will explore the backgrounds of demonstrative evidence, computerization, and the use of computer simulation for demonstrative evidence. Part III will discuss and analyze several relevant issues, including attorney training, expert knowledge, judicial confusion, additional evidentiary issues, and the possible prejudicial influence of demonstrative computer simulations. This discussion concludes with some general thoughts regarding the use of demonstrative computer simulation to illustrate expert testimony

Factors Influencing Receipt and Type of Therapy Services in the NICU

Understanding the type and frequency of current neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) therapy services and predictors of referral for therapy services is a crucial first step to supporting positive long-term outcomes in very preterm infants. This study enrolled 83 very preterm infants (<32 weeks, gestational age mean 26.5 ± 2.0 weeks; 38 male) from a longitudinal clinical trial. Race, neonatal medical index, neuroimaging, and frequency of therapy sessions were extracted from medical records. The Test of Infant Motor Performance and the General Movement Assessment were administered. Average weekly sessions of occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech therapy were significantly different by type, but the magnitude and direction of the difference depended upon the discharge week. Infants at high risk for cerebral palsy based on their baseline General Movements Assessment scores received more therapy sessions than infants at low risk for cerebral palsy. Baseline General Movements Assessment was related to the mean number of occupational therapy sessions but not physical therapy or speech therapy sessions. Neonatal Medical Index scores and Test of Infant Motor Performance scores were not predictive of combined therapy services. Medical and developmental risk factors, as well as outcomes from therapy assessments, should be the basis for referral for therapy services in the neonatal intensive care unit

Effect of a NICU to Home Physical Therapy Intervention on White Matter Trajectories, Motor Skills, and Problem-Solving Skills of Infants Born Very Preterm: A Case Series

Infants born very preterm (VPT; &le;29 weeks of gestation) are at high risk of developmental disabilities and abnormalities in neural white matter characteristics. Early physical therapy interventions such as Supporting Play Exploration and Early Development Intervention (SPEEDI2) are associated with improvements in developmental outcomes. Six VPT infants were enrolled in a randomised clinical trial of SPEEDI2 during the transition from the neonatal intensive care unit to home over four time points. Magnetic resonance imaging scans and fixel-based analysis were performed, and fibre density (FD), fibre cross-section (FC), and fibre density and cross-section values (FDC) were computed. Changes in white matter microstructure and macrostructure were positively correlated with cognitive, motor, and motor-based problem solving over time on developmental assessments. In all infants, the greatest increase in FD, FC, and FDC occurred between Visit 1 and 2 (mean chronological age: 2.68&ndash;6.22 months), suggesting that this is a potential window of time to optimally support adaptive development. Results warrant further studies with larger groups to formally compare the impact of intervention and disparity on neurodevelopmental outcomes in infants born VPT

The impact of generative artificial intelligence on socioeconomic inequalities and policy making

Generative artificial intelligence has the potential to both exacerbate and ameliorate existing socioeconomic inequalities. In this article, we provide a state-of-the-art interdisciplinary overview of the potential impacts of generative AI on (mis)information and three information-intensive domains: work, education, and healthcare. Our goal is to highlight how generative AI could worsen existing inequalities while illuminating how AI may help mitigate pervasive social problems. In the information domain, generative AI can democratize content creation and access, but may dramatically expand the production and proliferation of misinformation. In the workplace, it can boost productivity and create new jobs, but the benefits will likely be distributed unevenly. In education, it offers personalized learning, but may widen the digital divide. In healthcare, it might improve diagnostics and accessibility, but could deepen pre-existing inequalities. In each section we cover a specific topic, evaluate existing research, identify critical gaps, and recommend research directions, including explicit trade-offs that complicate the derivation of a priori hypotheses. We conclude with a section highlighting the role of policymaking to maximize generative AI’s potential to reduce inequalities while mitigating its harmful effects. We discuss strengths and weaknesses of existing policy frameworks in the European Union, the United States, and the United Kingdom, observing that each fails to fully confront the socioeconomic challenges we have identified. We propose several concrete policies that could promote shared prosperity through the advancement of generative AI. This article emphasizes the need for interdisciplinary collaborations to understand and address the complex challenges of generative AI

The Impact of Past Conflicts and Social Disruption on the Elderly in Cambodia

Cambodia experienced violence during the rule of the Khmer Rouge in the 1970s. Many who died were the children or spouses of today's elderly. This may have resulted in an erosion of family support in a country where formal channels of assistance are virtually absent. This article examines the extent to which current Cambodian elderly experienced deaths of children or spouses, forced migration, and separation from family during the Khmer Rouge period and the extent to which these experiences are associated with adverse welfare conditions of older adults. Data come from a 2004 representative survey of persons aged 60 years and older. More than one in four report that a child died from violent causes during the Khmer Rouge period. More than one in five report death of multiple children. A striking, and on the surface counterintuitive, conclusion is that the impact of deaths on welfare is modest. The reasons, elucidated in the article, include close family integration, high fertility among the current generation of older adults, the probability that losses depended on family size, and the pervasiveness of poverty. Copyright 2006 The Population Council, Inc..