Modelling optional infinitive phenomena: A computational account of tense optionality in children’s speech

The Optional Infinitive hypothesis proposed by Wexler (1994) is a theory of children’s early grammatical development that can be used to explain a variety of phenomena in children’s early multi-word speech. However, Wexler’s theory attributes a great deal of abstract knowledge to the child on the basis of rather weak empirical evidence. In this paper we present a computational model of early grammatical development which simulates Optional Infinitive phenomena as a function of the interaction between a performance-limited distributional analyser and the statistical properties of the input. Our findings undermine the claim that Optional Infinitive phenomena require an abstract grammatical analysis

Modeling children’s case marking errors with MOSAIC

We present a computational model of early grammatical development which simulates case-marking errors in children’s early multi-word speech as a function of the interaction between a performance-limited distributional analyser and the statistical properties of the input. The model is presented with a corpus of maternal speech from which it constructs a network consisting of nodes which represent words or sequences of words present in the input. It is sensitive to the distributional properties of items occurring in the input and is able to create ‘generative’ links between words which occur frequently in similar contexts, building pseudo-categories. The only information received by the model is that present in the input corpus. After training, the model is able to produce child-like utterances, including case-marking errors, of which a proportion are rote-learned, but the majority are not present in the maternal corpus. The latter are generated by traversing the generative links formed between items in the network

Modelling children's negation errors using probabilistic learning in MOSAIC.

Cognitive models of language development have often been used to simulate the pattern of errors in children’s speech. One relatively infrequent error in English involves placing inflection to the right of a negative, rather than to the left. The pattern of negation errors in English is explained by Harris & Wexler (1996) in terms of very early knowledge of inflection on the part of the child. We present data from three children which demonstrates that although negation errors are rare, error types predicted not to occur by Harris & Wexler do occur, as well as error types that are predicted to occur. Data from MOSAIC, a model of language acquisition, is also presented. MOSAIC is able to simulate the pattern of negation errors in children’s speech. The phenomenon is modelled more accurately when a probabilistic learning algorithm is used

Mating weaners does not affect future ewe performance

Maiden ewes in Western Australia are usually mated in their second year because of supposed ill-effects of earlier mating on the ewe\u27s future production. Mating at a younger age however, providing there was no reduction in future performance, would provide for an extra lamb drop and thus increase the lifetime output of ewes. Information from various sources indicated that weaners could be successfully mated providing their bodyweights were satisfactory. This trial was carried out to test the results of mating weaners under Western Australian conditions

“What about diet?” A qualitative study of cancer survivors' views on diet and cancer and their sources of information

Given the abundance of misreporting about diet and cancer in the media and online, cancer survivors are at risk of misinformation. The aim of this study was to explore cancer survivors' beliefs about diet quality and cancer, the impact on their behaviour and sources of information. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with adult cancer survivors in the United Kingdom who had been diagnosed with any cancer in adulthood and were not currently receiving treatment (n = 19). Interviews were analysed using Thematic Analysis. Emergent themes highlighted that participants were aware of diet affecting risk for the development of cancer, but were less clear about its role in recurrence. Nonetheless, their cancer diagnosis appeared to be a prompt for dietary change; predominantly to promote general health. Changes were generally consistent with healthy eating recommendations, although dietary supplements and other non-evidence-based actions were mentioned. Participants reported that they had not generally received professional advice about diet and were keen to know more, but were often unsure about information from other sources. The views of our participants suggest cancer survivors would welcome guidance from health professionals. Advice that provides clear recommendations, and which emphasises the benefits of healthy eating for overall well-being, may be particularly well-received

Piloting a manualised weight management programme (Shape Up-LD) for overweight and obese persons with mild-moderate learning disabilities: study protocol for a pilot randomised controlled trial

National obesity rates have dramatically risen over the last decade. Being obese significantly reduces life expectancy, increases the risk of a range of diseases, and compromises quality of life. Costs to both the National Health Service and society are high. An increased prevalence of obesity in people with learning disabilities has been demonstrated. The consequences of obesity are particularly relevant to people with learning disabilities who are already confronted by health and social inequalities. In order to provide healthcare for all, and ensure equality of treatment for people with learning disabilities, services must be developed specifically with this population in mind. The aim of this project is to pilot the evaluation of a manualised weight management programme for overweight and obese persons with mild-moderate learning disabilities (Shape Up-LD)

Using feature vectors to detect frog calls in wireless sensor networks

A method for detecting vocalization of giant barred frogs (Mixophyes iteratus) in noisy audio is proposed. Audio recordings from remote wireless sensor nodes were segmented into individual sounds and from each sound a small set of features was extracted. Feature vectors were compared to those of example calls using a Euclidean distance formula as a detection system. The system achieved a sensitivity of 0.85 with specificity of 0.92 when distinguishing M. iteratus calls from other species’ calls and sensitivity of 0.88 with specificity 0.82 against background noise

The Western Australian Clinical Senate as a Model for State-Wide Clinical Engagement

International reforms in healthcare have established the principal that embracing clinical engagement can drive healthcare reform and improved safety and quality outcomes. Most attention has focussed on how clinicians might be engaged at a local or hospital level. However, healthcare reforms are usually initiated at a state or national level. Less attention has gone into exploring the key elements of a model to achieve clinical engagement at state or national level. This paper explores the key elements of a successful state-wide clinical engagement model including culture and leadership, membership, decision-making processes and accountability and discusses how the current model of the Western Australian Clinical Senate addresses these elements. This model may be applicable in other jurisdictions and healthcare systems

The protein kinase C inhibitor, Ro-31-7459, is a potent activator of ERK and JNK MAP kinases in HUVECs and yet inhibits cyclic AMP-stimulated <i>SOCS-3</i> gene induction through inactivation of the transcription factor c-Jun

Induction of the suppressor of cytokine signalling 3 (SOCS-3) gene is vital to the normal control of inflammatory signalling. In order to understand these processes we investigated the role of the proto-oncogene component of the AP-1 transcription factor complex, c-Jun, in the regulation of SOCS-3 gene induction. We found that cyclic AMP stimulation of HUVECs promoted phosphorylation and activation of JNK MAP kinase and its substrate c-Jun. The JNK responsive element of the human SOCS-3 promoter mapped to a putative AP-1 site within 1000 bp of the transcription start site. The PKC inhibitors, GF-109203X, Gö-6983 and Ro-317549, were all found to inhibit AP-1 transcriptional activity, transcriptional activation of this minimal SOCS-3 promoter and SOCS-3 gene induction in HUVECs. Interestingly, Ro-317549 treatment was also found to promote PKC-dependent activation of ERK and JNK MAP kinases and promote JNK-dependent hyper-phosphorylation of c-Jun, whereas GF-109203X and Gö-6983 had little effect. Despite this, all three PKC inhibitors were found to be effective inhibitors of c-Jun DNA-binding activity. The JNK-dependent hyper-phosphorylation of c-Jun in response to Ro-317549 treatment of HUVECs does therefore not interfere with its ability to inhibit c-Jun activity and acts as an effective inhibitor of c-Jun-dependent SOCS-3 gene induction