An investigation of techniques that aim to improve the quality of labels provided by the crowd

The 2013 MediaEval Crowdsourcing task looked at the problem of working with noisy crowdsourced annotations of image data. The aim of the task was to investigate possible techniques for estimating the true labels of an image by using the set of noisy crowdsourced labels, and possibly any content and metadata from the image itself. For the runs in this paper, we’ve applied a shotgun approach and tried a number of existing techniques, which include generative probabilistic models and further crowdsourcing

Social Cognitive Evolution in Captive Foxes Is a Correlated By-Product of Experimental Domestication

AbstractDogs have an unusual ability for reading human communicative gestures (e.g., pointing) in comparison to either nonhuman primates (including chimpanzees) or wolves [1–8]. Although this unusual communicative ability seems to have evolved during domestication [6, 8], it is unclear whether this evolution occurred as a result of direct selection for this ability, as previously hypothesized [8], or as a correlated by-product of selection against fear and aggression toward humans [9]—as is the case with a number of morphological and physiological changes associated with domestication [11–18]. We show here that fox kits from an experimental population selectively bred over 45 years to approach humans fearlessly and nonaggressively (i.e., experimentally domesticated) are not only as skillful as dog puppies in using human gestures but are also more skilled than fox kits from a second, control population not bred for tame behavior (critically, neither population of foxes was ever bred or tested for their ability to use human gestures) [11, 12]. These results suggest that sociocognitive evolution has occurred in the experimental foxes, and possibly domestic dogs, as a correlated by-product of selection on systems mediating fear and aggression, and it is likely the observed social cognitive evolution did not require direct selection for improved social cognitive ability

EVALUATION OF PATIENT AND PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT INITIATIVES IN HEALTH TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT:A SURVEY OF INTERNATIONAL AGENCIES

Although there is increased awareness of patient and public involvement (PPI) among health technology assessment (HTA) organizations, evaluations of PPI initiatives are relatively scarce. Our objective as members of Health Technology Assessment International's (HTAi's) Patient and Citizen Involvement Group (PCIG) was to advance understanding of the range of evaluation strategies adopted by HTA organizations and their potential usefulness. In March 2016, a survey was sent to fifty-four HTA organizations through the International Network of Agencies for Health Technology Assessment (INAHTA) and contacts of members of HTAi's PCIG. Respondents were asked about their organizational structure; how patients and members of the public are involved; whether and how PPI initiatives have been evaluated, and, if so, which facilitators and challenges to evaluation were found and how results were used and disseminated. Fifteen (n = 15) programs from twelve countries responded (response rate 27.8 percent) that involved patients (14/15) and members of the public (10/15) in HTA activities. Seven programs evaluated their PPI activities, including participant satisfaction (5/7), process (5/7) and impact evaluations (4/7). Evaluation results were used to improve PPI activities, identify education and training needs, and direct strategic priorities. Facilitators and challenges revolved around the need for stakeholder buy-in, sufficient resources, senior leadership, and including patients in evaluations. A small but diverse set of HTA organizations evaluate their PPI activities using a range of strategies that reflect the range of rationales and approaches to PPI in HTA. It will be important for HTA organizations to draw on evaluation theories and methods

What's in a name? Common name misuse potentially confounds the conservation of the wild camel Camelus ferus

Common names allow species diversity to be acknowledged by experts and non-specialists alike; they are descriptors with both scientific and cultural implications. However, a lack of clarity when using a common name could risk altering perceptions of threatened species. This is the case for the Critically Endangered wild camel Camelus ferus, which, despite extensive evidence of its species status, is frequently referred to in English as wild Bactrian camel. However, the wild camel (Mongolian: хавтгай, khavtgai; Chinese: 野骆驼, ye luo tuo) is not a wild version of the domestic Bactrian camel Camelus bactrianus but a separate species near extinction, with an estimated population of c. 950. Failure to clearly separate Bactrian and wild camels in name risks masking the plight of the few remaining wild camels with the visible abundance of the domesticated species. Here we advocate the use of the accurate English common name wild camel for C. ferus ideally alongside its Indigenous names to correctly represent its cultural and conservation importance

Transfer across the air-sea interface

The efficiency of transfer of gases and particles across the air-sea interface is controlled by several physical, biological and chemical processes in the atmosphere and water which are described here (including waves, large- and small-scale turbulence, bubbles, sea spray, rain and surface films). For a deeper understanding of relevant transport mechanisms, several models have been developed, ranging from conceptual models to numerical models. Most frequently the transfer is described by various functional dependencies of the wind speed, but more detailed descriptions need additional information. The study of gas transfer mechanisms uses a variety of experimental methods ranging from laboratory studies to carbon budgets, mass balance methods, micrometeorological techniques and thermographic techniques. Different methods resolve the transfer at different scales of time and space; this is important to take into account when comparing different results. Air-sea transfer is relevant in a wide range of applications, for example, local and regional fluxes, global models, remote sensing and computations of global inventories. The sensitivity of global models to the description of transfer velocity is limited; it is however likely that the formulations are more important when the resolution increases and other processes in models are improved. For global flux estimates using inventories or remote sensing products the accuracy of the transfer formulation as well as the accuracy of the wind field is crucial

Early warning indicators for first-line virologic failure independent of adherence measures in a South African urban clinic.

Abstract We sought to develop individual-level Early Warning Indicators (EWI) of virologic failure (VF) for clinicians to use during routine care complementing WHO population-level EWI. A case-control study was conducted at a Durban clinic. Patients after≥5 months of first-line antiretroviral therapy (ART) were defined as cases if they had VF [HIV-1 viral load (VL)>1000 copies/mL] and controls (2:1) if they had VL≤1000 copies/mL. Pharmacy refills and pill counts were used as adherence measures. Participants responded to a questionnaire including validated psychosocial and symptom scales. Data were also collected from the medical record. Multivariable logistic regression models of VF included factors associated with VF (p<0.05) in univariable analyses. We enrolled 158 cases and 300 controls. In the final multivariable model, male gender, not having an active religious faith, practicing unsafe sex, having a family member with HIV, not being pleased with the clinic experience, symptoms of depression, fatigue, or rash, low CD4 counts, family recommending HIV care, and using a TV/radio as ART reminders (compared to mobile phones) were associated with VF independent of adherence measures. In this setting, we identified several key individual-level EWI associated with VF including novel psychosocial factors independent of adherence measures