The Impact of Automated Cognitive Assistants on Situational Awareness in the Brigade Combat Team

This research investigated the impact of automated cognitive assistants, specifically, the Personalized Assistant that Learns (PAL), on situational awareness, efficiency and effectiveness of decision making in the brigade combat team. PAL was recently commissioned by Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to enhance decision making with the Command Post of the Future (CPOF). This is the first study to investigate PAL's effectiveness. Previous literature has indicated that automated cognitive assistants can reduce cognitive load and improve the efficiency and effectiveness of decision-making. This is consistent with constructivist theories that assume that relegating repetitive tasks to an assistant allows decision makers to focus on the most critical issues. This is particularly true in those conditions where the environment is in continuous flux and the decision makers must remain cognizant of changing situations. To investigate PAL'S influence on situational awareness, two groups of military officers comprising a convenience sample were placed into two groups representing brigade combat teams. Before tests were administered, each team was trained on the cognitive assistants and given a hands-on examination to measure competency in PAL and CPOF. All subjects participated in one trial with PAL-enhanced CPOF and one trial with CPOF alone. Self-assessments of situational awareness were administered which included sub-scales on: task management, information management, decision support, and appreciation of the environment, visualization and trust. Speed and quality of decision-making were also measured. Repeated measures analysis of variance was used to compare PAL and CPOF only on situational awareness. In the repeated measures ANOVA, the overall difference on self-report of situational awareness approachedthe .05 level with PAL (M = 1.85, SD = 0.46) and CPOF (M = 2.06, SD = 0.57; F(1,10) = 4.61, p = .057), with the lower score indicating higher approval. There was a significant difference on the decision support category of situational awareness in the second trial using both PAL and CPOF (M = 2.21, SD = 0.59; rated higher than the first trial (M = 2.53, SD = 0.49; F(1,10) = 5.06, p = .048). The following differences were not significant but the means all favored PAL over CPOF: quality of decision making products PAL (M = 2.89, SD = 0.75); CPOF (M = 2.53, SD = 0.83), speed of submission in minutes PAL (M = 9:13, SD = 3:15); CPOF (M = 10:00, SD = 5:53), and Situational Awareness quizzes PAL (M = 67.03, SD = 7.15); CPOF (M = 59.24, SD = 8.23). While comparisons of PAL and CPOF were not significant, results indicate that the PAL automated cognitive assistant has promise in improving the situational awareness and efficiency of military leaders in complex decision making. The findings demonstrate that as military officers grow more accustomed to using these analytical systems, both PAL and CPOF, they rate their support in decision making higher. This initial study of PAL was conducted with a convenience sample of 12 military officers. Further studies are warranted to investigate the benefits of automated cognitive assistant on an array of factors that influence decision-making across conditions and audiences

Taking the Measure of the Universe: Precision Astrometry with SIM PlanetQuest

Precision astrometry at microarcsecond accuracy has application to a wide range of astrophysical problems. This paper is a study of the science questions that can be addressed using an instrument that delivers parallaxes at about 4 microarcsec on targets as faint as V = 20, differential accuracy of 0.6 microarcsec on bright targets, and with flexible scheduling. The science topics are drawn primarily from the Team Key Projects, selected in 2000, for the Space Interferometry Mission PlanetQuest (SIM PlanetQuest). We use the capabilities of this mission to illustrate the importance of the next level of astrometric precision in modern astrophysics. SIM PlanetQuest is currently in the detailed design phase, having completed all of the enabling technologies needed for the flight instrument in 2005. It will be the first space-based long baseline Michelson interferometer designed for precision astrometry. SIM will contribute strongly to many astronomical fields including stellar and galactic astrophysics, planetary systems around nearby stars, and the study of quasar and AGN nuclei. SIM will search for planets with masses as small as an Earth orbiting in the `habitable zone' around the nearest stars using differential astrometry, and could discover many dozen if Earth-like planets are common. It will be the most capable instrument for detecting planets around young stars, thereby providing insights into how planetary systems are born and how they evolve with time. SIM will observe significant numbers of very high- and low-mass stars, providing stellar masses to 1%, the accuracy needed to challenge physical models. Using precision proper motion measurements, SIM will probe the galactic mass distribution and the formation and evolution of the Galactic halo. (abridged)Comment: 54 pages, 28 figures, uses emulateapj. Submitted to PAS

Impacts of 1.5°C Global Warming on Natural and Human Systems

An IPCC Special Report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and related global greenhouse gas emission pathways, in the context of strengthening the global response to the threat of climate change, sustainable development, and efforts to eradicate povert

Diving into the vertical dimension of elasmobranch movement ecology

Knowledge of the three-dimensional movement patterns of elasmobranchs is vital to understand their ecological roles and exposure to anthropogenic pressures. To date, comparative studies among species at global scales have mostly focused on horizontal movements. Our study addresses the knowledge gap of vertical movements by compiling the first global synthesis of vertical habitat use by elasmobranchs from data obtained by deployment of 989 biotelemetry tags on 38 elasmobranch species. Elasmobranchs displayed high intra- and interspecific variability in vertical movement patterns. Substantial vertical overlap was observed for many epipelagic elasmobranchs, indicating an increased likelihood to display spatial overlap, biologically interact, and share similar risk to anthropogenic threats that vary on a vertical gradient. We highlight the critical next steps toward incorporating vertical movement into global management and monitoring strategies for elasmobranchs, emphasizing the need to address geographic and taxonomic biases in deployments and to concurrently consider both horizontal and vertical movements

Diving into the vertical dimension of elasmobranch movement ecology

Knowledge of the three-dimensional movement patterns of elasmobranchs is vital to understand their ecological roles and exposure to anthropogenic pressures. To date, comparative studies among species at global scales have mostly focused on horizontal movements. Our study addresses the knowledge gap of vertical movements by compiling the first global synthesis of vertical habitat use by elasmobranchs from data obtained by deployment of 989 biotelemetry tags on 38 elasmobranch species. Elasmobranchs displayed high intra- and interspecific variability in vertical movement patterns. Substantial vertical overlap was observed for many epipelagic elasmobranchs, indicating an increased likelihood to display spatial overlap, biologically interact, and share similar risk to anthropogenic threats that vary on a vertical gradient. We highlight the critical next steps toward incorporating vertical movement into global management and monitoring strategies for elasmobranchs, emphasizing the need to address geographic and taxonomic biases in deployments and to concurrently consider both horizontal and vertical movements

Diving into the vertical dimension of elasmobranch movement ecology

Knowledge of the three-dimensional movement patterns of elasmobranchs is vital to understand their ecological roles and exposure to anthropogenic pressures. To date, comparative studies among species at global scales have mostly focused on horizontal movements. Our study addresses the knowledge gap of vertical movements by compiling the first global synthesis of vertical habitat use by elasmobranchs from data obtained by deployment of 989 biotelemetry tags on 38 elasmobranch species. Elasmobranchs displayed high intra- and interspecific variability in vertical movement patterns. Substantial vertical overlap was observed for many epipelagic elasmobranchs, indicating an increased likelihood to display spatial overlap, biologically interact, and share similar risk to anthropogenic threats that vary on a vertical gradient. We highlight the critical next steps toward incorporating vertical movement into global management and monitoring strategies for elasmobranchs, emphasizing the need to address geographic and taxonomic biases in deployments and to concurrently consider both horizontal and vertical movements

Mapping 123 million neonatal, infant and child deaths between 2000 and 2017

Since 2000, many countries have achieved considerable success in improving child survival, but localized progress remains unclear. To inform efforts towards United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 3.2—to end preventable child deaths by 2030—we need consistently estimated data at the subnational level regarding child mortality rates and trends. Here we quantified, for the period 2000–2017, the subnational variation in mortality rates and number of deaths of neonates, infants and children under 5 years of age within 99 low- and middle-income countries using a geostatistical survival model. We estimated that 32% of children under 5 in these countries lived in districts that had attained rates of 25 or fewer child deaths per 1,000 live births by 2017, and that 58% of child deaths between 2000 and 2017 in these countries could have been averted in the absence of geographical inequality. This study enables the identification of high-mortality clusters, patterns of progress and geographical inequalities to inform appropriate investments and implementations that will help to improve the health of all populations