High-dimensional instrumental variables regression and confidence sets

This article considers inference in linear models with d\_X regressors, some or many of which could be endogenous, and d\_Z instrumental variables (IVs). d\_Z can range from less than d\_X to any order smaller than an exponential in the sample size. For moderate d\_X, identification robust confidence sets are obtained by solving a hierarchy of semidefinite programs. For large d\_X, we propose the STIV estimator. The analysis of its error uses sensitivity characteristics introduced in this paper. Robust confidence sets are derived by solving linear programs. Results on rates of convergence, variable selection, and confidence sets which "adapt" to the sparsity are given. Generalizations include models with endogenous IVs and systems of equations with approximation errors. We also analyse confidence bands for vectors of linear functionals and functions using bias correction. The application is to a demand system with approximation errors, cross-equation restrictions, and thousands of endogenous regressors

Inflation Expectations and the Conduct of Monetary Policy: A Review of Recent Evidence and Experience

This article explores the role of inflation expectations in the conduct of monetary policy. It reviews the various measures of inflation expectations used by central banks, including surveys and market-based indicators, and considers their advantages and disadvantages. It examines the critical role of inflation expectations in the framework that central banks use to understand, forecast, and control inflation. It also looks at their role as an indicator of central bank credibility. The behaviour of inflation expectations over the past two years is analyzed and policy conclusions are offered.

The Charleston School of Slavery : Race, Religion, and Community in the Capital of Southern Civilization

This dissertation explores the interracial religious communities of antebellum South Carolina to highlight patterns of racial consciousness and nation-building and demonstrate that the southern path to modernity was much closer to that of their northern contemporaries than previously recognized. The ready-made system of human classification inherent in racial slavery did not insulate southerners from the modern impulses that transfigured northern racial relations; instead, this dissertation argues that Carolinians white and black, free and slave, participated in a discourse of religious modernization that redirected the potentially destabilizing social implications of evangelicalism and progress into an idealized community structure that served the spiritual needs of black Carolinians, yet also reinforced white supremacy and strengthened the institution of slavery. In response to the external challenge of antislavery and the internal challenge of African-American religious autonomy, white Carolinians invented a tradition of black dependence and parlayed this myth into a modern ethos of community: the bi-racial southern nation. By following the course of race and community formation in South Carolina, the vanguard of proslavery argument and separatism, this dissertation demonstrates striking parallels of racial consciousness common to both northern and southern societies, but also that the racial dynamics of community formation played a formative role in the development of sectional consciousness. Charleston was not the most typical of southern scenes, but the processes of racial modernization that unfolded in the churches of the Holy City were common to many American cities, and the idealized social order modeled and reflected in the sacred spaces of her bi-racial churches provided the quintessential cultural validation for southern nationalism. The strong localized sense of community, modernized through the churches of Charleston over the course of a century, ultimately assumed a position of priority over the more distant imagined community of the United States and convinced most white Charlestonians to volunteer their lives, fortunes, and slaves to the cause of Civil War

Approaching Humans For Help: A Study of Human-Robot Proxemics

In order for a robot to be effective when interacting with a person, it is important for the robot to choose the correct person. Consider an example where a robot is trying to perform a task but it isn’t capable of doing a subtask, like going up a flight of stairs. In this case, the robot would need to ask a person for help with the elevator, in a socially appropriate way. We have conducted an experiment to determine who would be the best candidate to approach in a situation like this. Should the robot choose to approach someone who is very close, with the risk that the person may have already committed to passing? Or someone who is further away, which could result in the person not noticing the robot at all. Our hypothesis is there is some optimal distance that is not too close nor too far away. We tried approaching from different distances to see which distance led to the most successful interactions. The result provide guidance for developers of autonomous robots who need a robot to approach someone for help

Guidelines: The do's, don'ts and don't knows of direct observation of clinical skills in medical education.

IntroductionDirect observation of clinical skills is a key assessment strategy in competency-based medical education. The guidelines presented in this paper synthesize the literature on direct observation of clinical skills. The goal is to provide a practical list of Do's, Don'ts and Don't Knows about direct observation for supervisors who teach learners in the clinical setting and for educational leaders who are responsible for clinical training programs.MethodsWe built consensus through an iterative approach in which each author, based on their medical education and research knowledge and expertise, independently developed a list of Do's, Don'ts, and Don't Knows about direct observation of clinical skills. Lists were compiled, discussed and revised. We then sought and compiled evidence to support each guideline and determine the strength of each guideline.ResultsA final set of 33 Do's, Don'ts and Don't Knows is presented along with a summary of evidence for each guideline. Guidelines focus on two groups: individual supervisors and the educational leaders responsible for clinical training programs. Guidelines address recommendations for how to focus direct observation, select an assessment tool, promote high quality assessments, conduct rater training, and create a learning culture conducive to direct observation.ConclusionsHigh frequency, high quality direct observation of clinical skills can be challenging. These guidelines offer important evidence-based Do's and Don'ts that can help improve the frequency and quality of direct observation. Improving direct observation requires focus not just on individual supervisors and their learners, but also on the organizations and cultures in which they work and train. Additional research to address the Don't Knows can help educators realize the full potential of direct observation in competency-based education

Pheromone-induced polarization is dependent on the Fus3p MAPK acting through the formin Bni1p

During mating, budding yeast cells reorient growth toward the highest concentration of pheromone. Bni1p, a formin homologue, is required for this polarized growth by facilitating cortical actin cable assembly. Fus3p, a pheromone-activated MAP kinase, is required for pheromone signaling and cell fusion. We show that Fus3p phosphorylates Bni1p in vitro, and phosphorylation of Bni1p in vivo during the pheromone response is dependent on Fus3p. fus3 mutants exhibited multiple phenotypes similar to bni1 mutants, including defects in actin and cell polarization, as well as Kar9p and cytoplasmic microtubule localization. Disruption of the interaction between Fus3p and the receptor-associated Gα subunit caused similar mutant phenotypes. After pheromone treatment, Bni1p-GFP and Spa2p failed to localize to the cortex of fus3 mutants, and cell wall growth became completely unpolarized. Bni1p overexpression suppressed the actin assembly, cell polarization, and cell fusion defects. These data suggest a model wherein activated Fus3p is recruited back to the cortex, where it activates Bni1p to promote polarization and cell fusion.</jats:p

A Search for Low-Amplitude Variability in Six Open Clusters Using the Robust Median Statistic

We used point-spread function fitting and a differential ensemble determined from a robust median statistic (RoMS) to examine stars in six open clusters in a search for δ Scuti variables. In the search for new variable stars among hundreds or thousands of stars, the RoMS is proved more effective for finding low-amplitude variables than the traditional error-curve approach. This high-precision differential approach was applied to the open clusters NGC 225, NGC 559, NGC 6811, NGC 6940, NGC 7142, and NGC 7160. Thirteen variables, 29 suspected variables, and 65 potential variables were found, and time-series data of the variables are presented. Among the 13 variables we found nine new δ Scuti variables

Fast, Robust Inference for Linear Instrumental Variables Models using Self-Normalized Moments

We propose and implement an approach to inference in linear instrumental variables models which is simultaneously robust and computationally tractable. Inference is based on self-normalization of sample moment conditions, and allows for (but does not require) many (relative to the sample size), weak, potentially invalid or potentially endogenous instruments, as well as for many regressors and conditional heteroskedasticity. Our coverage results are uniform and can deliver a small sample guarantee. We develop a new computational approach based on semidefinite programming, which we show can equally be applied to rapidly invert existing tests (e.g,. AR, LM, CLR, etc.)

Does daily monitoring of blood glucose predict hemoglobin A1c levels?

Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels correlate closely, though not perfectly, with blood glucose levels in patients with diabetes (strength of recommendation [SOR]: A, based on systematic reviews). Correlation is higher for blood glucose levels later in the day than earlier in the day, higher for blood glucose levels in the most recent 30 days than from the prior 31-120 days, and higher for patients with type 2 diabetes compared with patients with type 1 diabetes (SOR: A, based on cohort studies)