Induction of First-Order Decision Lists: Results on Learning the Past Tense of English Verbs

This paper presents a method for inducing logic programs from examples that learns a new class of concepts called first-order decision lists, defined as ordered lists of clauses each ending in a cut. The method, called FOIDL, is based on FOIL (Quinlan, 1990) but employs intensional background knowledge and avoids the need for explicit negative examples. It is particularly useful for problems that involve rules with specific exceptions, such as learning the past-tense of English verbs, a task widely studied in the context of the symbolic/connectionist debate. FOIDL is able to learn concise, accurate programs for this problem from significantly fewer examples than previous methods (both connectionist and symbolic).Comment: See http://www.jair.org/ for any accompanying file

Education Law - Act 88 - Public Employe [sic] Relations Act - Teachers\u27 Strikes - Courts of Equity - Mandatory Negotiations

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court held that state courts may order a school district and teachers\u27 association to participate in court-monitored negotiations when the courts grant the Secretary of Education an injunction ending a teachers\u27 strike. Carroll v. Ringgold Educ. Ass\u27n, 680 A.2d 1137 (Pa. 1996)

Spatial composition in the multi-channel domain: aesthetics and techniques

This paper outlines technical and aesthetic approaches to sound spatialisation for electroacoustic music composition. In particular, the paper discusses how spatialisation (sound diffusion) is used to realise specific musical objectives. Technological solutions to problems associated with adapting multichannel compositions for live spatialisation are explored, with particular reference to the open-source Resound system [2, 3]. Examples of Resound applications are provided to illustrate the potential of the system for controlling complex spatial behaviour during live performance

Of “Zipper Rings” and “Tatum Ts”, Chile – USA: Intrauterine Devices, Men of Science, and Women in Need

Der Beitrag untersucht die zur Verhütung eingesetzten „Intrauterine Devices“ (IUDs. Zu deutsch: Intrauterinpessare) als „reisende Objekte“, die weltweit auf Konferenzen und in Arztpraxen Gegenstand von Verhandlungen waren. Ebenso wirft er ein Schlaglicht auf die politischen und vergeschlechtlichten Machtstrukturen, die zwischen den “men of science” und “women in need” bezüglich der Einführung und Anwendung der IUDs bestanden. Während die Intrauterinpessare in Nord- und Südamerika im Kontext des Kalten Krieges vorrangig von männlichen Experten mit dem Ziel der Bevölkerungskontrolle entwickelt wurden, oenbart die Nachfrage nach dieser Form der Schwangerschaftsverhütung den dringlichen Wunsch von Frauen, über ihreneigenen Körper bestimmen zu können. Der Beitrag verdeutlicht damit auch die “embodiedness”von Dingen und ihre enge Beziehung zum Körper.The contribution frames the “intrauterine devices“ (IUDs) as “travelling objects,” which were debated and negotiated at conferences and in doctor’s oces on a global scale. It also sheds light on the political and gendered power structures between the “men of science” and “women in need,” especially concerning the introduction and usage of the IUDs. Whereas the IUDs were developed by male experts in North and Latin America in the context of the Cold War with the main aim of population control, the women’s demands for this new form of contraception pointed to their ardent desire to control their own body. The chapter therefore also illustrates the “embodiedness” and close relation of things to the body

Property Settlements and the Federal Gift Tax—A Survey

I. Antenuptial Agreements … A. History … B. 1954 Code … C. A Partial Solution II. Support and Property Rights … A. History … B. 1954 Code III. Support for Minor Children IV. Separation and Divorce Agreements … A. History … B. 1954 Code … C. Legislative History of IRC § 2516 … D. Situations Where § 2516 Does Not Appl

Links Between Social Support, Thwarted Belongingness, and Suicide Ideation among Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual College Students

Emerging adults with a lesbian, gay, or bisexual (LGB) identity are at greater risk for engaging in suicide-related behaviors. This disparity highlights a need to elucidate specific risk and protective factors associated with suicide-related behaviors among LGB youth, which could be utilized as targets for suicide prevention efforts in this population. Informed by the interpersonal-psychological theory of suicide, the present study hypothesized that social support would be indirectly associated with decreased suicide ideation via lower thwarted belongingness. A sample of 50 emerging adults (62.0% male, 70.0% Hispanic) who identified as gay, lesbian, bisexual, questioning, or “other” orientation, with a mean age of 20.84 years (SD = 3.30 years), completed self-report assessments. Results indicated that support from both family and the LGB community were associated with lower thwarted belongingness over and above the effects of age, sex, and depressive symptoms. Indirect effects models also indicated that both family and LGB community support were associated with suicide ideation via thwarted belongingness. The results of the present study suggest that family and LGB community support may represent specific targets for reducing thwarted belongingness that could be leveraged in suicide prevention efforts for LGB emerging adults

The functional importance of disease-associated mutation

BACKGROUND: For many years, scientists believed that point mutations in genes are the genetic switches for somatic and inherited diseases such as cystic fibrosis, phenylketonuria and cancer. Some of these mutations likely alter a protein's function in a manner that is deleterious, and they should occur in functionally important regions of the protein products of genes. Here we show that disease-associated mutations occur in regions of genes that are conserved, and can identify likely disease-causing mutations. RESULTS: To show this, we have determined conservation patterns for 6185 non-synonymous and heritable disease-associated mutations in 231 genes. We define a parameter, the conservation ratio, as the ratio of average negative entropy of analyzable positions with reported mutations to that of every analyzable position in the gene sequence. We found that 84.0% of the 231 genes have conservation ratios less than one. 139 genes had eleven or more analyzable mutations and 88.0% of those had conservation ratios less than one. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that phylogenetic information is a powerful tool for the study of disease-associated mutations. Our alignments and analysis has been made available as part of the database at http://cancer.stanford.edu/mut-paper/. Within this dataset, each position is annotated with the analysis, so the most likely disease-causing mutations can be identified

Deepening the Universal Apostolic Preferences through Discernment at Xavier University

Following Fr. Arturo Sosa, S.J.’s promulgation of the Universal Apostolic Preferences (UAPs) and as part of Xavier University’s strategic planning, the Center for Mission and Identity invited faculty and staff to participate in a semester-long Discernment Group to learn about each of the UAPs and to brainstorm ways to deepen Xavier’s expression of each, resulting in a strategic proposal (one of the President\u27s Annual Goals). Based on the principles of Ignatian Communal Discernment, the Discernment Group met throughout the Fall 2019 semester in prayerful discussion and reflection and produced documents for each of the UAPs, which were then shared and vetted by the university community. The Discernment Group concluded with the creation of a document outline Xavier’s current best practices, next steps, and aspirational goals. The work of integrating the UAPs into the life of the Xavier University is an on-going effort, which is now guided by the document – a strategic plan for the decade. This discernment process may be effective for other Jesuit Catholic institutions seeking methods to advance the UAPs