Exploring Psychopathy Predictors in Males and Females

Psychopathy is a clinical term used to describe a personality disorder. This personality disorder presents as callousness, lack of empathy, feelings of grandiosity, impulsivity, narcissism, and a lack of guilt or remorse (Cleckley, 1951). It is noteworthy that by some estimates, those meeting the criteria of psychopathy commit 20 – 40% of violent crimes (Drislane et al., 2019) and makeup between 15% and 25% of the prison population (Kiehl & Hoffman, 2011). As such, psychopathy is one of the most significant criminal justice constructs of the present day because of the heightened and persistent levels of aggression, criminality, and financial damage implemented by psychopathic individuals (DeLisi & Piquero, 2011). Though the topic has seen an increase in research, and some have lauded psychopathy as the unified theory of crime (DeLisi, 2009), the field has seen a paucity of research concerning the disorder in female youth and gender differences in all aspects. Due to the severity and prevalence of criminal behavior exhibited by those meeting some criteria of psychopathy, additional research is needed into antecedents and the role gender plays in psychopathic development in youth toward tailoring prevention (Nicholls & Petrila, 2005). Thus, data from the Pathway to Desistance study (PTD) is analyzed to address this gap in knowledge. The current research uses PTD data to focus on youth aged 14 to 20 and concentrates on three research questions, targeting developmental antecedents, the role gender plays in psychopathic development, and psychopathic dimensions in males and females. Several theories are explored to explain the development of psychopathic traits in the sample and the differences between the genders. These theories include attachment theory, gender schema, and socialization theories. Study results suggest that race, gender, presence of caring adults, motivation to succeed and baseline psychopathy scores affect later psychopathic development in males and females. Findings also reveal males and females are affected by different developmental antecedents, and different relationships occur based on gender. Additionally, gender appears to have a modifying effect on the relation between one protective factor and psychopathy development. Lastly, males reported on average higher total psychopathy scores and higher scores in the callus-unemotional, grandioise-manipultive and impulsive-irresponsible dimension. When it comes to psychopathy stability, the findings reveal there is an overall decrease, on average, in final psychopathy scores, as well as in each of the psychopathic dimensions whether examining males or females. The results demonstrate that psychopathy is affected by gender, risk factors and protective factors. These findings provide a unique perspective to the analysis of psychopathy, but they also emphasize the need for expansion of research focused on developmental antecedents and the role gender plays in psychopathic development. This research can inform early identification of at-risk youth toward appropriate intervention methods, and, hopefully, successful responses to treatment during early developmental stages when individuals are more malleable to change (Shine & Hobson, 2000)

Methodology of Construction of an Algorithm for the Systemic Learning of First Semester Students of the TICs Subject

Algorithms have become the primary source to start programming. Particularly, making an algorithm from a given problem and converting it into a program is of great importance for analysts, technologists, and computer engineers, that is why this article aims to give a clear idea of how to develop an algorithm for any given problem. The objective of this work was to develop a methodology that is not so complex and that allows our students to perform the algorithm, pseudo-code, flow diagram and finally be able to carry out the program. The tests carried out show that the methodology used gives good results, achieving a significant improvement in the learning of students in the first semester of industrial engineering.   Keywords: algorithms, flow diagrams, program, programming, software engineerin

Eruption type probability and eruption source parameters at Cotopaxi and Guagua Pichincha volcanoes (Ecuador) with uncertainty quantification

Future occurrence of explosive eruptive activity at Cotopaxi and Guagua Pichincha volcanoes, Ecuador, is assessed probabilistically, utilizing expert elicitation. Eight eruption types were considered for each volcano. Type event probabilities were evaluated for the next eruption at each volcano and for at least one of each type within the next 100 years. For each type, we elicited relevant eruption source parameters (duration, average plume height, and total tephra mass). We investigated the robustness of these elicited evaluations by deriving probability uncertainties using three expert scoring methods. For Cotopaxi, we considered both rhyolitic and andesitic magmas. Elicitation findings indicate that the most probable next eruption type is an andesitic hydrovolcanic/ash-emission (~ 26–44% median probability), which has also the highest median probability of recurring over the next 100 years. However, for the next eruption at Cotopaxi, the average joint probabilities for sub-Plinian or Plinian type eruption is of order 30–40%—a significant chance of a violent explosive event. It is inferred that any Cotopaxi rhyolitic eruption could involve a longer duration and greater erupted mass than an andesitic event, likely producing a prolonged emergency. For Guagua Pichincha, future eruption types are expected to be andesitic/dacitic, and a vulcanian event is judged most probable for the next eruption (median probability ~40–55%); this type is expected to be most frequent over the next 100 years, too. However, there is a substantial probability (possibly >40% in average) that the next eruption could be sub-Plinian or Plinian, with all that implies for hazard levels

Fragmentation of Andes-to-Amazon connectivity by hydropower dams

Andes-to-Amazon river connectivity controls numerous natural and human systems in the greater Amazon. However, it is being rapidly altered by a wave of new hydropower development, the impacts of which have been previously underestimated. We document 142 dams existing or under construction and 160 proposed dams for rivers draining the Andean headwaters of the Amazon. Existing dams have fragmented the tributary networks of six of eight major Andean Amazon river basins. Proposed dams could result in significant losses in river connectivity in river mainstems of five of eight major systems—the Napo, Marañón, Ucayali, Beni, and Mamoré. With a newly reported 671 freshwater fish species inhabiting the Andean headwaters of the Amazon (>500 m), dams threaten previously unrecognized biodiversity, particularly among endemic and migratory species. Because Andean rivers contribute most of the sediment in the mainstem Amazon, losses in river connectivity translate to drastic alteration of river channel and floodplain geomorphology and associated ecosystem services

Anti-proliferative effect of melissa officinalis on human colon cancer cell line

Melissa officinalis L. (Lamiaceae) is consumed as a traditional herbal tea in the Mediterranean region. The cytotoxic effect of the 50% ethanolic and aqueous extract, determined by the MTT and NR assays, was evaluated in vitro on Human Colon Cancer Cell Line (HCT-116), using Triton 10% as positive control. The 50 % ethanolic extract showed significant differences after 72 hours of treatment, reducing cell proliferation to values close to 40%, even the lowest dose tested (5 μg/ml). In the MTT assay, the same extract caused the lowest cell viability with 13% at a concentration of 1000 μg/ml after 72 h of treatment, being a value lower than triton 10%. The antioxidant activity was also confirmed evaluating the capacity of the extracts to scavenge ABTS and DPPH radicals, and IC50 values were highly correlated with the total phenolic and flavonoid content. Bioassay guided fractionation led to the isolation of an anti-proliferative compound, rosmarinic acid. Its structural elucidation was performed by HPLC/DAD/ESI/MS analysis. High dose of rosmarinic acid (1000 μg/ml) was clearly cytotoxic against HCT-116 cells, with a significant decrease in cell number since the earliest time point (24 h)

HAWC+/SOFIA Polarimetry in L1688: Relative Orientation of Magnetic Field and Elongated Cloud Structure

We present a study of the relative orientation between the magnetic field and elongated cloud structures for the $\rho$ Oph A and $\rho$ Oph E regions in L1688 in the Ophiuchus molecular cloud. Combining inferred magnetic field orientation from HAWC+ 154 $\mu$m observations of polarized thermal emission with column density maps created using Herschel submillimeter observations, we find consistent perpendicular relative alignment at scales of $0.02$ pc ($33.6"$ at $d \approx 137$ pc) using the histogram of relative orientations (HRO) technique. This supports the conclusions of previous work using Planck polarimetry and extends the results to higher column densities. Combining this HAWC+ HRO analysis with a new Planck HRO analysis of L1688, the transition from parallel to perpendicular alignment in L1688 is observed to occur at a molecular hydrogen column density of approximately $10^{21.7}$ cm$^{-2}$. This value for the alignment transition column density agrees well with values found for nearby clouds via previous studies using only Planck observations. Using existing turbulent, magnetohydrodynamic simulations of molecular clouds formed by colliding flows as a model for L1688, we conclude that the molecular hydrogen volume density associated with this transition is approximately $\sim10^{4}$ cm$^{-3}$. We discuss the limitations of our analysis, including incomplete sampling of the dense regions in L1688 by HAWC+.Comment: To be published in Ap

Global distribution of a key trophic guild contrasts with common latitudinal diversity patterns

Most hypotheses explaining the general gradient of higher diversity toward the equator are implicit or explicit about greater species packing in the tropics. However, global patterns of diversity within guilds, including trophic guilds (i.e., groups of organisms that use similar food resources), are poorly known. We explored global diversity patterns of a key trophic guild in stream ecosystems, the detritivore shredders. This was motivated by the fundamental ecological role of shredders as decomposers of leaf litter and by some records pointing to low shredder diversity and abundance in the tropics, which contrasts with diversity patterns of most major taxa for which broad-scale latitudinal patterns haven been examined. Given this evidence, we hypothesized that shredders are more abundant and diverse in temperate than in tropical streams, and that this pattern is related to the higher temperatures and lower availability of high-quality leaf litter in the tropics. Our comprehensive global survey (129 stream sites from 14 regions on six continents) corroborated the expectedlatitudinal pattern and showed that shredder distribution (abundance, diversity and assemblage composition) was explained by a combination of factors, including water temperature (some taxa were restricted to cool waters) and biogeography (some taxa were more diverse in particular biogeographic realms). In contrast to our hypothesis, shredder diversity was unrelated to leaf toughness, but it was inversely related to litter diversity. Our findings markedly contrast with global trends of diversity for most taxa, and with the general rule of higher consumer diversity at higher levels of resource diversity. Moreover, they highlight the emerging role of temperature in understanding global patterns of diversity, which is of great relevance in the face of projected global warming. © 2011 by the Ecological Society of America.Peer Reviewe

The Twisted Magnetic Field of the Protobinary L483

We present H-band (1.65 μm) and SOFIA HAWC+ 154 μm polarization observations of the low-mass core L483. Our H-band observations reveal a magnetic field that is overwhelmingly in the E–W direction, which is approximately parallel to the bipolar outflow that is observed in scattered IR light and in single-dish 12CO observations. From our 154 μm data, we infer a ∼45° twist in the magnetic field within the inner 5″ (1000 au) of L483. We compare these new observations with published single-dish 350 μm polarimetry and find that the 10,000 au scale H-band data match the smaller-scale 350 μm data, indicating that the collapse of L483 is magnetically regulated on these larger scales. We also present high-resolution 1.3 mm Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array data of L483 that reveals it is a close binary star with a separation of 34 au. The plane of the binary of L483 is observed to be approximately parallel to the twisted field in the inner 1000 au. Comparing this result to the ∼1000 au protostellar envelope, we find that the envelope is roughly perpendicular to the 1000 au HAWC+ field. Using the data presented, we speculate that L483 initially formed as a wide binary and the companion star migrated to its current position, causing an extreme shift in angular momentum thereby producing the twisted magnetic field morphology observed. More observations are needed to further test this scenario

Riparian Plant Litter Quality Increases With Latitude

Plant litter represents a major basal resource in streams, where its decomposition is partly regulated by litter traits. Litter-trait variation may determine the latitudinal gradient in decomposition in streams, which is mainly microbial in the tropics and detritivore-mediated at high latitudes. However, this hypothesis remains untested, as we lack information on large-scale trait variation for riparian litter. Variation cannot easily be inferred from existing leaf-trait databases, since nutrient resorption can cause traits of litter and green leaves to diverge. Here we present the first global-scale assessment of riparian litter quality by determining latitudinal variation (spanning 107°) in litter traits (nutrient concentrations; physical and chemical defences) of 151 species from 24 regions and their relationships with environmental factors and phylogeny. We hypothesized that litter quality would increase with latitude (despite variation within regions) and traits would be correlated to produce ‘syndromes’ resulting from phylogeny and environmental variation. We found lower litter quality and higher nitrogen:phosphorus ratios in the tropics. Traits were linked but showed no phylogenetic signal, suggesting that syndromes were environmentally determined. Poorer litter quality and greater phosphorus limitation towards the equator may restrict detritivore-mediated decomposition, contributing to the predominance of microbial decomposers in tropical streams