How \u3ci\u3eDaubert\u3c/i\u3e and its Progeny Have Failed Criminalistics Evidence and a Few Things the Judiciary Could Do About It.

Part I documents how courts have failed to faithfully apply Daubert’s criteria for scientific validity to this type of evidence. It describes how ambiguities and flaws in the terminology adopted in Daubert combinedwith the opaqueness of forensic-science publications and standards have been exploited to shield some test methods from critical judicial analysis. Simply desisting from these avoidance strategies would be an improvement. Part II notes how part of the U.S. Supreme Court’s opinion in Kumho Tire Co. v. Carmichael has enabled courts to lower the bar for what is presented as scientific evidence by mistakenly maintaining that there is no difference between that evidence and other expert testimony that need not be scientifically validated. It suggests that a version of Rule 702 that explicitly insists on more rigorous validation of evidence that is promoted or understood as being “scientific” would be workable and more clearly compatible with the rule’s common law roots. Part III sketches various meanings of the terms “reliability” and “validity” in science and statistics, on the one hand, and in the rules and opinions on the admissibility of expert evidence, on the other. It discusses the two-part definition of “validity” in the PCAST report and the proposed criteria for demonstrating scientific validity of subjective pattern-matching testimony. It contends that if “validity” means that a procedure (even a highly subjective one) for making measurements and drawing inferences is fit for its intended use, then whether test results that have higher error rates than the ones selected in the report might nevertheless assist fact finders who are also appropriately informed of the evidence’s probative value must be evaluated. Finally, Part IV articulates two distinct approaches to informing judges or jurors of the import of similarities in features: the traditional one in which examiners opine on the truth and falsity of source hypotheses and a more finely grained one in which criminalists report only on the strength of the evidence. It suggests that the rules for admitting scientific evidence need to be flexible enough to accommodate the latter, likelihood-based testimony when it has a satisfactory empirically established basis

Science vs. science: the complexities of interdisciplinary research

Human-Computer Interaction and Web Science are radically interdisciplinary fields, but what does this mean in practical terms? Undertaking research (and writing papers) that encompass multiple disciplinary perspectives and methods is a serious challenge and it is difficult to maintain conferences that fairly review and host contributions from multiple disciplines. The colocation of the ACM WebSci conference with CHI in Paris, offers an unusual opportunity to bring these two communities together. Previous discussions have considered how to conduct interdisciplinary work that bridges HCI/WebSci with specific areas. Our objective is to provide a space for interested researchers from both communities to share their views and approaches to tackling the tensions and complexities associated with interdisciplinary work, whatever fields are being bridged

Teaching Information Literacy Using the Short Story

Stories are powerful teaching tools because of their potential to stimulate the imagination of students and engage them with the material. The short story gives meaning to abstract concepts, aids memory, makes learning fun, and is time efficient. This article explains the approach to teaching information literacy through the use of short stories, including how to create vivid connections to the Association of College and Research Libraries’ Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education. Provides course instructors with examples of how the short story can be used as a platform to discuss information literacy standards

Mesh alignment using grid based PCA.

We present an algorithm for mesh alignment by performing Principal Components Analysis (PCA) on a set of nodes of a regular 3D grid. The use of a 3D lattice external to both inputs increases the robustness of PCA, particularly when dealing with meshes of different and possibly uneven vertex density. The proposed algorithm was tested on meshes that have undergone standard mesh processing operations such as smoothing, simplification and remeshing. In several cases the results indicate an improved robustness compared to performing PCA directly on mesh vertices

Intercomparison of Multiple UV-LIF Spectrometers using the Aerosol Challenge Simulator

Measurements of primary biological aerosol particles (PBAPs) have been conducted worldwide using ultraviolet light-induced fluorescence (UV-LIF) spectrometers. However, how these instruments detect and respond to known biological and non-biological particles, and how they compare, remains uncertain due to limited laboratory intercomparisons. Using the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, Aerosol Challenge Simulator (ACS), controlled concentrations of biological and non-biological aerosol particles, singly or as mixtures, were produced for testing and intercomparison of multiple versions of the Wideband Integrated Bioaerosol Spectrometer (WIBS) and Multiparameter Bioaerosol Spectrometer (MBS). Although the results suggest some challenges in discriminating biological particle types across different versions of the same UV-LIF instrument, a difference in fluorescence intensity between the non-biological and biological samples could be identified for most instruments. While lower concentrations of fluorescent particles were detected by the MBS, the MBS demonstrates the potential to discriminate between pollen and other biological particles. This study presents the first published technical summary and use of the ACS for instrument intercomparisons. Within this work a clear overview of the data pre-processing is also presented, and documentation of instrument version/model numbers is suggested to assess potential instrument variations between different versions of the same instrument. Further laboratory studies sampling different particle types are suggested before use in quantifying impact on ambient classification.Peer reviewe

Liquid-like behaviour of gold nanowire bridges

A combination of Focused Ion Beam (FIB) and Reactive Ion Etch (RIE) was used to fabricate free standing gold nanowire bridges with radii of 30 nm and below. These were subjected to point loading to failure at their mid-points using an Atomic Force Microscope (AFM), providing strength and deformation data. The results demonstrate a dimensionally dependent transition from conventional solid metallic properties to liquid-like behaviour including the unexpected reformation of a fractured bridge. The work reveals mechanical and materials properties of nanowires which could have significant impact on nanofabrication processes and nanotechnology devices such as Nano Electro Mechanical Systems (NEMS)

Learning information literacy through drawing

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore drawing as an instructional method to teach information literacy. Design/methodology/approach – The authors describe their work using Collaborative Speed Drawing with students in a collection of information literacy workshops for students enrolled in English 100 (first-year composition). Examples of student drawings from the workshops are examined to demonstrate the benefits and problems of this teaching method. Findings – Drawing is an excellent low-tech teaching method that helps students demonstrate their competence (or ignorance) of information literacy concepts. This method enables librarians to clarify, reinforce, challenge or change the pictures in student’s heads that underpin their understandings of library instruction and information literacy. Practical implications – This article provides ideas on how to use drawing in information literacy sessions or credit courses. Many of the ideas shared can be copied, enhanced or tailored to meet the needs of diverse lessons and students taking face-to-face instruction sessions. Originality/value – This is the first paper in library literature that focuses on and promotes drawing as a teaching method. In doing so, it challenges the high-tech instruction imperative and invites librarians to explicitly consider the images behind the words and concepts used in information literacy and library instruction sessions

IP3 receptor isoforms differently regulate ER-mitochondrial contacts and local calcium transfer

Contact sites of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and mitochondria locally convey calcium signals between the IP3 receptors (IP3R) and the mitochondrial calcium uniporter, and are central to cell survival. It remains unclear whether IP3Rs also have a structural role in contact formation and whether the different IP3R isoforms have redundant functions. Using an IP3R-deficient cell model rescued with each of the three IP3R isoforms and an array of super-resolution and ultrastructural approaches we demonstrate that IP3Rs are required for maintaining ER-mitochondrial contacts. This role is independent of calcium fluxes. We also show that, while each isoform can support contacts, type 2 IP3R is the most effective in delivering calcium to the mitochondria. Thus, these studies reveal a non-canonical, structural role for the IP3Rs and direct attention towards the type 2 IP3R that was previously neglected in the context of ER-mitochondrial calcium signaling