A Plan-Based Model for Response Generation in Collaborative Task-Oriented Dialogues

This paper presents a plan-based architecture for response generation in collaborative consultation dialogues, with emphasis on cases in which the system (consultant) and user (executing agent) disagree. Our work contributes to an overall system for collaborative problem-solving by providing a plan-based framework that captures the {\em Propose-Evaluate-Modify} cycle of collaboration, and by allowing the system to initiate subdialogues to negotiate proposed additions to the shared plan and to provide support for its claims. In addition, our system handles in a unified manner the negotiation of proposed domain actions, proposed problem-solving actions, and beliefs proposed by discourse actions. Furthermore, it captures cooperative responses within the collaborative framework and accounts for why questions are sometimes never answered.Comment: 8 pages, to appear in the Proceedings of AAAI-94. LaTeX source file, requires aaai.sty and epsf.tex. Figures included in separate file

The Latest Development in the Transatlantic Big Stink over Cheeses and other Geographical Indications

This paper looks into recent developments in the EU regulation of geographical indications: the repeal of Regulation 2081/92 on geographical indications and the passage of Regulation 510/2006, following the WTO Panel Report on the United States’ complaint against the European Union and Regulation 2081/92. The Panel Report and its consequences on EU GI legislation demonstrate some of the fundamental tensions between the EU and U.S. perspectives on whether and how geographical indications should be protected, at both the national and international level

Translation inhibition by rocaglates is independent of eIF4E phosphorylation status

Rocaglates are natural products that inhibit protein synthesis in eukaryotes and exhibit antineoplastic activity. In vitro biochemical assays, affinity chromatography experiments coupled with mass spectrometry analysis, and in vivo genetic screens have identified eukaryotic initiation factor (eIF) 4A as a direct molecular target of rocaglates. eIF4A is the RNA helicase subunit of eIF4F, a complex that mediates cap-dependent ribosome recruitment to mRNA templates. The eIF4F complex has been implicated in tumor initiation and maintenance through elevated levels or increased phosphorylation status of its cap-binding subunit, eIF4E, thus furthering the interest toward developing rocaglates as antineoplastic agents. Recent experiments have indicated that rocaglates also interact with prohibitins 1 and 2, proteins implicated in c-Raf-MEK-ERK signaling. Because increased ERK signaling stimulates eIF4E phosphorylation status, rocaglates are also expected to inhibit eIF4E phosphorylation status, a point that has not been thoroughly investigated. It is currently unknown whether the effects on translation observed with rocaglates are solely through eIF4A inhibition or also a feature of blocking eIF4E phosphorylation. Here, we show that rocaglates inhibit translation through an eIF4E phosphorylation-independent mechanism.P50 GM067041 - NIGMS NIH HHS; R01 GM073855 - NIGMS NIH HHS; GM-067041 - NIGMS NIH HHS; MOP-106530 - Canadian Institutes of Health Researc

CleanML: A Study for Evaluating the Impact of Data Cleaning on ML Classification Tasks

Data quality affects machine learning (ML) model performances, and data scientists spend considerable amount of time on data cleaning before model training. However, to date, there does not exist a rigorous study on how exactly cleaning affects ML -- ML community usually focuses on developing ML algorithms that are robust to some particular noise types of certain distributions, while database (DB) community has been mostly studying the problem of data cleaning alone without considering how data is consumed by downstream ML analytics. We propose a CleanML study that systematically investigates the impact of data cleaning on ML classification tasks. The open-source and extensible CleanML study currently includes 14 real-world datasets with real errors, five common error types, seven different ML models, and multiple cleaning algorithms for each error type (including both commonly used algorithms in practice as well as state-of-the-art solutions in academic literature). We control the randomness in ML experiments using statistical hypothesis testing, and we also control false discovery rate in our experiments using the Benjamini-Yekutieli (BY) procedure. We analyze the results in a systematic way to derive many interesting and nontrivial observations. We also put forward multiple research directions for researchers.Comment: published in ICDE 202

MSCRAMM Proteins Linked to Immune Cell Recruitment in Influenza and Bacterial Super-Infection

Influenza is one of the most common human respiratory illnesses, but when paired with secondary bacterial pneumonia (super-infection), it increases rates of hospitalization and death. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is the most common secondary bacterial pneumonia following influenza, and the increase in prevalence of community-acquired MRSA (CA-MRSA) has led to increasing rates of MRSA pneumonia and influenza super-infections. MRSA is a gram-positive bacterium that is resistant to many antibiotics, leading to limited clinical interventions for pneumonia and super-infection. Attachment to host cells is controlled by staphylococcal surface proteins called MSCRAMMs (Microbial Surface Components Recognizing Adhesive Matrix Molecules). Clumping Factor B (ClfB) and Serine-aspartate repeat-containing protein D (SdrD) are two MSCRAMM family members that have known colonization roles in the nose. We hypothesize that these proteins have roles in causing infection in the lung as well. In comparing wild type (WT) MRSA and mutated strains, We have found that SdrD decreases the recruitment of neutrophils whereas ClfB increases recruitment of lymphocytes and eosinophils in the lung during super-infection. This suggests that MSCRAMMs play an important role in immune cell recruitment in lungs during infection

The effect of de-privatisation of the mathematics classroom on the teacher

To improve teacher quality and student outcomes, teachers involved in the Reading and Mathematics Project (RAMP) in Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Sydney have been required to de-privatise their classrooms so that teaching and learning can be observed by, and studied with, other educational colleagues within their own school. This study sought to ascertain how this approach to professional learning has impacted teachers, from their perspective, in the context of primary mathematics education. Teachers were able to voice the conditions under which de-privatisation would be most conducive to their learning and to improvements in the teaching of mathematics across their schools. Employing case study methodology, data was collected through an online survey from 43 teachers who had participated in RAMP (Mathematics) in 2012-2013. Following this, 3 teachers were also individually interviewed. The data was analysed using both quantitative and qualitative methods to determine how de-privatisation was being enacted in schools, including the types and frequency of different forms and the effects it was perceived to be having on professional learning and mathematics teaching practice at an individual and whole school level. The study found that teachers believed that de-privatisation was having a very positive effect. Specifically, the frequency of certain forms significantly affected teachers’ perceptions and the forms of de-privatisation integral to RAMP, namely, in-class support from a Numeracy adviser and Instructional Rounds were viewed to be most beneficial. It also showed that overall teachers perceived ‘Observing’ a class rather than ‘Being observed’ as more influential to changing the way they taught mathematics. Furthermore, the research indicated that when situated within a teacher inquiry model involving teachers collaborating in professional learning communities, these forms of de-privatisation have the potential to improve the teaching of mathematics at the classroom and school level

Optical Readout in a Multi-Module System Test for the ATLAS Pixel Detector

The innermost part of the ATLAS experiment at the LHC, CERN, will be a pixel detector. The command messages and the readout data of the detector are transmitted over an optical data path. The readout chain consists of many components which are produced at several locations around the world, and must work together in the pixel detector. To verify that these parts are working together as expected a system test has been built up. In this paper the system test setup and the operation of the readout chain is described. Also, some results of tests using the final pixel detector readout chain are given.Comment: 6 pages, 10 figures, Pixel 2005 proceedings preprin

Suppression of eukaryotic initiation factor 4E prevents chemotherapy-induced alopecia

BACKGROUND: Chemotherapy-induced hair loss (alopecia) (CIA) is one of the most feared side effects of chemotherapy among cancer patients. There is currently no pharmacological approach to minimize CIA, although one strategy that has been proposed involves protecting normal cells from chemotherapy by transiently inducing cell cycle arrest. Proof-of-concept for this approach, known as cyclotherapy, has been demonstrated in cell culture settings. METHODS: The eukaryotic initiation factor (eIF) 4E is a cap binding protein that stimulates ribosome recruitment to mRNA templates during the initiation phase of translation. Suppression of eIF4E is known to induce cell cycle arrest. Using a novel inducible and reversible transgenic mouse model that enables RNAi-mediated suppression of eIF4E in vivo, we assessed the consequences of temporal eIF4E suppression on CIA. RESULTS: Our results demonstrate that transient inhibition of eIF4E protects against cyclophosphamide-induced alopecia at the organismal level. At the cellular level, this protection is associated with an accumulation of cells in G1, reduced apoptotic indices, and was phenocopied using small molecule inhibitors targeting the process of translation initiation. CONCLUSIONS: Our data provide a rationale for exploring suppression of translation initiation as an approach to prevent or minimize cyclophosphamide-induced alopecia.1U01 CA168409 - NCI NIH HHS; P01 CA 87497 - NCI NIH HHS; P30 CA008748 - NCI NIH HHS; MOP-106530 - Canadian Institutes of Health Research; P01 CA013106 - NCI NIH HH