Effects of deceptive behavior on biomechanical measures of standing posture

Title from PDF of title page, viewed on June 22, 2012Thesis advisor: Gregory W. KingVitaIncludes bibliographic references (p. 82-88)Thesis (M.S.)--School of Computing and Engineering. University of Missouri--Kansas City, 2012The accurate detection of deception has potential applications in many fields including credibility assessment, security screening, homeland security, and counter-terrorism. Techniques currently used for deception detection typically capitalize on deception-related physiological changes, and include polygraph testing, voice stress analysis, brain activity analysis, and thermal scanners. However, the use of these techniques in natural environments is limited as they often require intrusive sensors to be attached to the body. These limitations may be addressed with posturography, which involves studying the ground reactions associated with standing balance without the need for intrusive sensors. Therefore, the objective of the current study was to examine deception-related effects on measures of standing posture using a mock security screening interview. We hypothesized that deceptive participants, compared to truthful would demonstrate significant differences in ground reactions during the interview. Participants were required to pack a backpack with various items. One group of participants had items that were "prohibited", whereas the other group had equivalent, non-prohibited control items. Both groups were questioned about the contents of the backpack. The group with "prohibited" items was instructed not to reveal that they were carrying any prohibited items. Results of the study indicated that there was a significant deception-related decrease in center of pressure movement. The deception related decrease in both center of pressure pathlength and mean velocity suggests that people "freeze" when they are being deceptive. This notion was supported by increased oscillations in the anterior-posterior direction.Introduction -- Methods -- Results -- Discussion -- Conclusions -- Appendix A -- Appendix

Oxygen isotope dendrochronology of Llwyn Celyn; One of the oldest houses in Wales

We report the application of oxygen isotope dendrochronology to date a high-status and remarkably unaltered late medieval hall house on the eastern border of South Wales. The oak timbers have either short and complacent ring series, or very strong growth disturbance, and none were suitable for ring-width dendrochronology. By using stable oxygen isotopes from the latewood cellulose, rather than ring widths, it was possible to cross-match and date all 14 timber samples and to provide felling dates related to several phases of building. The hall and solar cross-wing were constructed shortly after 1420CE, which is remarkably early. The house was upgraded using timbers felled in the winter of 1695/6CE by ceiling over of the hall and inserting a chimney. A separate small domestic building was added at the same time and the addition of the kitchen is likely to be contemporaneous. A substantial beast house was added a few years before the house was refurbished, emphasising the importance of cattle as the main source of wealth. A small barn with timbers felled in spring 1843 CE was added later. Llwyn Celyn is one of the most important domestic buildings in Wales, but without the new approach none of the phases of its evolution could have been dated precisely. Oxygen isotope dendrochronology has enormous potential for dating timbers that have small numbers of rings and/or show severe growth disturbance and it works well in regions where tree growth is not strongly constrained by climate. The research was generously supported by the Leverhulme Trust, Natural Environment Research Council, Landmark Trust and the UK National Lottery Heritage Fund

Scaled deployment of Wolbachia to protect the community from dengue and other Aedes transmitted arboviruses.

Background: A number of new technologies are under development for the control of mosquito transmitted viruses, such as dengue, chikungunya and Zika that all require the release of modified mosquitoes into the environment. None of these technologies has been able to demonstrate evidence that they can be implemented at a scale beyond small pilots. Here we report the first successful citywide scaled deployment of Wolbachia in the northern Australian city of Townsville. Methods: The wMel strain of Wolbachia was backcrossed into a local Aedes aegypti genotype and mass reared mosquitoes were deployed as eggs using mosquito release containers (MRCs). In initial stages these releases were undertaken by program staff but in later stages this was replaced by direct community release including the development of a school program that saw children undertake releases. Mosquito monitoring was undertaken with Biogents Sentinel (BGS) traps and individual mosquitoes were screened for the presence of Wolbachia with a Taqman qPCR or LAMP diagnostic assay. Dengue case notifications from Queensland Health Communicable Disease Branch were used to track dengue cases in the city before and after release. Results: Wolbachia was successfully established into local Ae. aegypti mosquitoes across 66 km 2 in four stages over 28 months with full community support.  A feature of the program was the development of a scaled approach to community engagement. Wolbachia frequencies have remained stable since deployment and to date no local dengue transmission has been confirmed in any area of Townsville after Wolbachia has established, despite local transmission events every year for the prior 13 years and an epidemiological context of increasing imported cases. Conclusion: Deployment of Wolbachia into Ae. aegypti populations can be readily scaled to areas of ~60km 2 quickly and cost effectively and appears in this context to be effective at stopping local dengue transmission

The queenslandensis and the type Form of the Dengue Fever Mosquito (Aedes aegypti L.) Are Genomically Indistinguishable

The mosquito Aedes aegypti (L.) is a major vector of viral diseases like dengue fever, Zika and chikungunya. Aedes aegypti exhibits high morphological and behavioral variation, some of which is thought to be of epidemiological significance. Globally distributed domestic Ae. aegypti have often been grouped into (i) the very pale variety queenslandensis and (ii) the type form. Because the two color forms co-occur across most of their range, there is interest in understanding how freely they interbreed. This knowledge is particularly important for control strategies that rely on mating compatibilities between the release and target mosquitoes, such as Wolbachia releases and SIT. To address this question, we analyzed nuclear and mitochondrial genome-wide variation in the co-occurring pale and type Ae. aegypti from northern Queensland (Australia) and Singapore.We typed 74 individuals at a 1170 bp-long mitochondrial sequence and at 16,569 nuclear SNPs using a customized double-digest RAD sequencing. 11/29 genotyped individuals from Singapore and 11/45 from Queensland were identified as var. queenslandensis based on the diagnostic scaling patterns. We found 24 different mitochondrial haplotypes, seven of which were shared between the two forms. Multivariate genetic clustering based on nuclear SNPs corresponded to individuals' geographic location, not their color. Several family groups consisted of both forms and three queenslandensis individuals were Wolbachia infected, indicating previous breeding with the type form which has been used to introduce Wolbachia into Ae. aegypti populations.Aedes aegypti queenslandensis are genomically indistinguishable from the type form, which points to these forms freely interbreeding at least in Australia and Singapore. Based on our findings, it is unlikely that the presence of very pale Ae. aegypti will affect the success of Aedes control programs based on Wolbachia-infected, sterile or RIDL mosquitoes

Biosolids as Nitrogen Source for Irrigated Maize and Rainfed Sorghum

We quantified effects of anaerobically digested sewage sludge (bio- solids) on yield, N use efficiency, and soil NO3 over a period of 4 yr. Field experiments with five biosolids rates and six N rates were conducted at two sites on a silty clay loam soil: one with irrigated maize (Zea mays L.) and another site with rainfed sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.). Biosolids rates for achieving maximum yields in the year of application were 62 Mg ha-1 (441 kg organic N ha-1) on irrigated maize and 36 Mg ha-1 (257 kg organic N ha-1) on rainfed sorghum. At those rates, the increase in relative yield (RY) was 33% in the year of application, 21% in the second year, 14% in the third year, and 9% in the fourth year. Approximately 40, 20, 10, and 5% of the total biosolids-N was recovered by the crops in the first, second, third, and fourth year, respectively. In irrigated maize, use efficiency of biosolids-N decreased with increasing biosolids rate, but was similar to that of fertilizer-N. In rainfed sorghum, use efficiency of biosolids- N was lower than that of fertilizer-N. Little NO3 accumulated in soil when biosolids were applied at the recommended rate, but application in excess of that required for maximum yield increasedNO3 accumula- tion in soil. The cumulative N fertilizer value of a biosolids application at the optimal rate was $136 ha-1 for maize and$68 ha-1 for sorghum. Biosolids had a total fertilizer-N replacement value of $1.9 to 2.2 Mg-1 biosolids. Recommendations for biosolids use should be based on the total N input and its cumulative plant recovery and leaching potential across a 4-yr period

GraphData_Figure 3.docx

Data underlying Figure 3 of O'Neill et al 2018 Gates Open Researc