Comment on ``Large-space shell-model calculations for light nuclei''

In a recent publication Zheng, Vary, and Barrett reproduced the negative quadrupole moment of Li-6 and the low-lying positive-parity states of He-5 by using a no-core shell model. In this Comment we question the meaning of these results by pointing out that the model used is inadequate for the reproduction of these properties.Comment: Latex with Revtex, 1 postscript figure in separate fil

Neural parameters estimation for brain tumor growth modeling

Understanding the dynamics of brain tumor progression is essential for optimal treatment planning. Cast in a mathematical formulation, it is typically viewed as evaluation of a system of partial differential equations, wherein the physiological processes that govern the growth of the tumor are considered. To personalize the model, i.e. find a relevant set of parameters, with respect to the tumor dynamics of a particular patient, the model is informed from empirical data, e.g., medical images obtained from diagnostic modalities, such as magnetic-resonance imaging. Existing model-observation coupling schemes require a large number of forward integrations of the biophysical model and rely on simplifying assumption on the functional form, linking the output of the model with the image information. In this work, we propose a learning-based technique for the estimation of tumor growth model parameters from medical scans. The technique allows for explicit evaluation of the posterior distribution of the parameters by sequentially training a mixture-density network, relaxing the constraint on the functional form and reducing the number of samples necessary to propagate through the forward model for the estimation. We test the method on synthetic and real scans of rats injected with brain tumors to calibrate the model and to predict tumor progression

Time--delay autosynchronization of the spatio-temporal dynamics in resonant tunneling diodes

The double barrier resonant tunneling diode exhibits complex spatio-temporal patterns including low-dimensional chaos when operated in an active external circuit. We demonstrate how autosynchronization by time--delayed feedback control can be used to select and stabilize specific current density patterns in a noninvasive way. We compare the efficiency of different control schemes involving feedback in either local spatial or global degrees of freedom. The numerically obtained Floquet exponents are explained by analytical results from linear stability analysis.Comment: 10 pages, 16 figure

Metacognition as Evidence for Evidentialism

Metacognition is the monitoring and controlling of cognitive processes. I examine the role of metacognition in ‘ordinary retrieval cases’, cases in which it is intuitive that via recollection the subject has a justified belief. Drawing on psychological research on metacognition, I argue that evidentialism has a unique, accurate prediction in each ordinary retrieval case: the subject has evidence for the proposition she justifiedly believes. But, I argue, process reliabilism has no unique, accurate predictions in these cases. I conclude that ordinary retrieval cases better support evidentialism than process reliabilism. This conclusion challenges several common assumptions. One is that non-evidentialism alone allows for a naturalized epistemology, i.e., an epistemology that is fully in accordance with scientific research and methodology. Another is that process reliabilism fares much better than evidentialism in the epistemology of memory

The Epistemic Status of Processing Fluency as Source for Judgments of Truth

This article combines findings from cognitive psychology on the role of processing fluency in truth judgments with epistemological theory on justification of belief. We first review evidence that repeated exposure to a statement increases the subjective ease with which that statement is processed. This increased processing fluency, in turn, increases the probability that the statement is judged to be true. The basic question discussed here is whether the use of processing fluency as a cue to truth is epistemically justified. In the present analysis, based on Bayes’ Theorem, we adopt the reliable-process account of justification presented by Goldman (1986) and show that fluency is a reliable cue to truth, under the assumption that the majority of statements one has been exposed to are true. In the final section, we broaden the scope of this analysis and discuss how processing fluency as a potentially universal cue to judged truth may contribute to cultural differences in commonsense beliefs

The home advantage over the first 20 seasons of the English Premier League: Effects of shirt colour, team ability and time trends

This study explored the relationship between teams' home shirt colour and the magnitude of the home advantage in English professional soccer. Secondary aims were to explore the consistency of the home advantage over time and the relationship between the home advantage and team ability. Archival data from 7720 matches contested over the first 20 seasons of the English Premier League were analysed. The data show that teams wearing red are more successful than teams wearing other colours, and that teams are more successful in home games than in away games (home advantage index = 0.608). The home advantage has also remained consistent over time (1992/1993-2011/2012) and is greater in low-ability teams (teams with lower league positions) than in high-ability teams. After controlling for team ability, it was found that teams opting for red shirts in their home games did not show a greater home advantage than teams opting for other colour shirts. Two possibilities for this finding are offered: (1) shirt colour is not a contributing factor to team success, or (2) changes in psychological functioning associated with viewing or wearing red stay with team members after the shirt colour has been changed. It is recommended that researchers continue to explore the effect of shirt colour on athlete and team behaviour and further explore how team ability can affect the magnitude of the home-field advantage. © 2012 International Society of Sport Psychology

Relativity in social cognition: basic processes and novel applications of social comparisons

A key challenge for social psychology is to identify unifying principles that account for the complex dynamics of social behaviour. We propose psychological relativity and its core mechanism of comparison as one such unifying principle. Social cognition is relative in that it is shaped by comparative thinking. If comparative thinking is indeed a central mechanism in social psychology, then it should be affected by, and affect itself, a wide variety of phenomena. To support our proposal, we review recent evidence investigating basic processes underlying and novel applications of social comparisons. Specifically, we clarify determinants of assimilation and contrast, evaluative consequences of comparing similarities vs. differences, attitudinal effects of spatial relativity, and how spatial arrangements determine perceived similarity, one of the antecedents of social comparisons. We then move to behavioural relativity effects on motivation and self-regulation, as well as imitation behaviour. Finally, we address relativity within the more applied areas of morality and political psychology. The reviewed research thereby illustrates how unifying principles of social cognition may be instrumental in answering old questions and discovering new phenomena and explanations

Veiled Muslim women’s responses to experiences of gendered Islamophobia in the UK

In a post-9/11 climate, Islamophobia has increased significantly in the UK and elsewhere in the West. ISIS-inspired terrorist attacks in the UK as well as in France, Belgium, Germany and more recently in Sri Lanka have triggered an increase in verbal and physical attacks against Muslims. Drawing on intersectionality (as a nexus of identities that work together to render certain individuals as ‘ideal’ targets to attack), veiled Muslim women are likely to experience gendered Islamophobia in the cyber world but also in ‘real’ life due to the intersections between their ‘visible’ Muslim identity and gender performance. In the British context, although Islamophobia is recorded as a hate crime nationally, and misogyny is recorded as a hate crime locally in some police forces, veiled Muslim women are unlikely to report their experiences to the police. Drawing on qualitative interviews with Muslim women who wear the niqab (face veil), the purpose of this paper is to examine the ways in which they respond to experiences of gendered Islamophobia as well as their reasons for not reporting their experiences to the police

Eurythmy therapy in chronic disease: a four-year prospective cohort study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Many patients with chronic diseases use complementary therapies, often provided by their physicians. In Germany, several physician-provided complementary therapies have been reimbursed by health insurance companies as part of health benefit programs. In most of these therapies, the patient has a predominantly passive role. In eurythmy therapy, however, patients actively exercise specific movements with the hands, the feet or the whole body. The purpose of this study was to describe clinical outcomes in patients practising eurythmy therapy exercises for chronic diseases.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In conjunction with a health benefit program, 419 outpatients from 94 medical practices in Germany, referred to 118 eurythmy therapists, participated in a prospective cohort study. Main outcomes were disease severity (Disease and Symptom Scores, physicians' and patients' assessment on numerical rating scales 0–10) and quality of life (adults: SF-36, children aged 8–16: KINDL, children 1–7: KITA). Disease Score was documented after 0, 6 and 12 months, other outcomes after 0, 3, 6, 12, 18, 24, and (SF-36 and Symptom Score) 48 months.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Most common indications were mental disorders (31.7% of patients; primarily depression, fatigue, and childhood emotional disorder) and musculoskeletal diseases (23.4%). Median disease duration at baseline was 3.0 years (interquartile range 1.0–8.5). Median number of eurythmy therapy sessions was 12 (interquartile range 10–19), median therapy duration was 119 days (84–188).</p> <p>All outcomes improved significantly between baseline and all subsequent follow-ups (exceptions: KITA Psychosoma in first three months and KINDL). Improvements from baseline to 12 months were: Disease Score from mean (standard deviation) 6.65 (1.81) to 3.19 (2.27) (p < 0.001), Symptom Score from 5.95 (1.75) to 3.49 (2.12) (p < 0.001), SF-36 Physical Component Summary from 43.13 (10.25) to 47.10 (9.78) (p < 0.001), SF-36 Mental Component Summary from 38.31 (11.67) to 45.01 (11.76) (p < 0.001), KITA Psychosoma from 69.53 (15.45) to 77.21 (13.60) (p = 0.001), and KITA Daily Life from 59.23 (21.78) to 68.14 (18.52) (p = 0.001). All these improvements were maintained until the last follow-up. Improvements were similar in patients not using diagnosis-related adjunctive therapies within the first six study months.</p> <p>Adverse reactions to eurythmy therapy occurred in 3.1% (13/419) of patients. No patient stopped eurythmy therapy due to adverse reactions.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Patients practising eurythmy therapy exercises had long-term improvement of chronic disease symptoms and quality of life. Although the pre-post design of the present study does not allow for conclusions about comparative effectiveness, study findings suggest that eurythmy therapy can be useful for patients motivated for this therapy.</p