When Is Word Sense Disambiguation Difficult? A Crowdsourcing Approach

We identified features that drive differential accuracy in word sense disambiguation (WSD) by building regression models using 10,000 coarse-grained WSD instances which were labeled on Mturk. Features predictive of accuracy include properties of the target word (word frequency, part of speech, and number of possible senses), the example context (length), and the Turker’s engagement with our task. The resulting model gives insight into which words are difficult to disambiguate. We also show that having many Turkers label the same instance provides at least a partial substitute for more expensive annotation

Time-resolved terahertz–Raman spectroscopy reveals that cations and anions distinctly modify intermolecular interactions of water

The solvation of ions changes the physical, chemical and thermodynamic properties of water, and the microscopic origin of this behaviour is believed to be ion-induced perturbation of water’s hydrogen-bonding network. Here we provide microscopic insights into this process by monitoring the dissipation of energy in salt solutions using time-resolved terahertz–Raman spectroscopy. We resonantly drive the low-frequency rotational dynamics of water molecules using intense terahertz pulses and probe the Raman response of their intermolecular translational motions. We find that the intermolecular rotational-to-translational energy transfer is enhanced by highly charged cations and is drastically reduced by highly charged anions, scaling with the ion surface charge density and ion concentration. Our molecular dynamics simulations reveal that the water–water hydrogen-bond strength between the first and second solvation shells of cations increases, while it decreases around anions. The opposite effects of cations and anions on the intermolecular interactions of water resemble the effects of ions on the stabilization and denaturation of proteins

Preliminary Survey on the Crucial Root Causes of Material Waste Generation in Malaysian Construction Industry

Construction waste generation has been perceived as a crucial issue that has critical consequences on the project effectiveness and ecological effect of the construction industry. The key objective of the current research is to identify the root causes of material construction waste generation in Malaysia. A well-structured questionnaire was designed based on the 52 identified root causes of material waste generation. The developed questionnaire was distributed to 35 highly experienced in Malaysian construction industry experts. The collected data was analyzed by the use of mean score analysis. The top identified root causes are poor supervision during the construction stage, lack of efficient site management, last minute changes, cutting uneconomical sizes of materials, and constant design changes during the construction period. The initial findings will aid construction practitioners to focus on these root causes in order to reduce the material construction waste generation at construction sites

Thigh-length compression stockings and DVT after stroke

Controversy exists as to whether neoadjuvant chemotherapy improves survival in patients with invasive bladder cancer, despite randomised controlled trials of more than 3000 patients. We undertook a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the effect of such treatment on survival in patients with this disease