Decision Tree Analysis as a Supplementary Tool to Enhance Histomorphological Differentiation when Distinguishing Human from Non-human Cranial Bone in both Burnt and Unburnt States: A feasibility study

This feasibility study was undertaken to describe and record the histological characteristics of burnt and unburnt cranial bone fragments from human and non-human bones. Reference series of fully mineralised, transverse sections of cranial bone, from all variables and specimen states were prepared by manual cutting and semi-automated grinding and polishing methods. A photomicrograph catalogue reflecting differences in burnt and unburnt bone from human and non-humans was recorded and qualitative analysis was performed using an established classification system based on primary bone characteristics. The histomorphology associated with human and non-human samples was, for the main part, preserved following burning at high temperature. Clearly, fibro-lamellar complex tissue subtypes, such as plexiform or laminar primary bone, were only present in non-human bones. A decision tree analysis based on histological features provided a definitive identification key for distinguishing human from non-human bone, with an accuracy of 100%. The decision tree for samples where burning was unknown was 96% accurate, and multi-step classification to taxon was possible with 100% accuracy. The results of this feasibility study, strongly suggest that histology remains a viable alternative technique if fragments of cranial bone require forensic examination in both burnt and unburnt states. The decision tree analysis may provide an additional, but vital tool to enhance data interpretation. Further studies are needed to assess variation in histomorphology taking into account other cranial bones, ontogeny, species and burning conditions

Self-efficacy mediates the relationship between social norms and HPV vaccine intentions in undergraduate students

poster abstractHuman papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the United States. The HPV vaccine reduces incidences of genital warts and certain cancers among both men and women. Unfortunately, many undergraduate students have not been vaccinated. Previous research suggests students are more likely to report greater intentions to get vaccinated when others (e.g., friends, physicians) believe they should receive the vaccine; that is, greater social norms are associated with greater vaccine intentions. However, few studies have examined potential mediators of this association. Drawing from the Theory of Planned Behavior and the Health Belief Model, we hypothesized that social norms would be related to vaccine intentions through self-efficacy. Undergraduate students (N=210) who had not received the HPV vaccine completed an online survey. Participants were predominately White (72%), female (67%), heterosexual (92%), and on average 19.9 years of age (SD=3.2). Forty-nine percent were in a romantic relationship, and 55% were sexually active within the past three months. Participants completed HPV vaccine specific measures, including social norms regarding vaccination, self-efficacy for vaccination, and vaccine intentions. Two mediation analyses (one per gender) were conducted to examine whether self-efficacy mediated the relationship between social norms and vaccine intentions. For women and men, greater social norms were related to greater self-efficacy, and greater selfefficacy was related to greater vaccine intentions (ps<0.05); additionally, social norms were indirectly related to vaccine intentions through self-efficacy (p<0.05). For women, after accounting for self-efficacy, social norms were still significantly related to intentions (p<0.05). For men, however, after accounting for self-efficacy, social norms were not significantly related to intentions (p=0.75). Consistent with previous findings, social norms were positively related to vaccine intentions; however, we found that this association was mediated by self-efficacy. Future intervention studies should consider targeting social norms and improving students’ confidence in their ability to obtain the vaccine

Optimal interactions of light with magnetic and electric resonant particles

This work studies the limits of far and near-field electromagnetic response of sub-wavelength scatterers, like the unitary limit and of lossless scatterers, and the ideal absorption limit of lossy particles. These limit behaviors are described in terms of analytic formulas that approximate finite size effects while rigorously including radiative corrections. This analysis predicts the electric and/or magnetic limit responses of both metallic and dielectric nanoparticles while quantitatively describing near-field enhancements.Comment: 9 pages, 8 figures, 2 table

Spatial-Distance Cues Influence Economic Decision-Making in a Social Context

Social distance (i.e., the degree of closeness to another person) affects the way humans perceive and respond to fairness during financial negotiations. Feeling close to someone enhances the acceptance of monetary offers. Here, we explored whether this effect also extends to the spatial domain. Specifically, using an iterated version of the Ultimatum Game in a within-subject design, we investigated whether different visual spatial distance-cues result in different rates of acceptance of otherwise identical monetary offers. Study 1 found that participants accepted significantly more offers when they were cued with spatial closeness than when they were cued with spatial distance. Study 2 replicated this effect using identical procedures but different spatial- distance cues in an independent sample. Importantly, our results could not be explained by feelings of social closeness. Our results demonstrate that mere perceptions of spatial closeness produce analogous–but independent–effects to those of social closeness

Critical temperature of a fully anisotropic three-dimensional Ising model

The critical temperature of a three-dimensional Ising model on a simple cubic lattice with different coupling strengths along all three spatial directions is calculated via the transfer matrix method and a finite size scaling for L x L oo clusters (L=2 and 3). The results obtained are compared with available calculations. An exact analytical solution is found for the 2 x 2 oo Ising chain with fully anisotropic interactions (arbitrary J_x, J_y and J_z).Comment: 17 pages in tex using preprint.sty for IOP journals, no figure

The draft genome and transcriptome of Cannabis sativa

Background: Cannabis sativa has been cultivated throughout human history as a source of fiber, oil and food, and for its medicinal and intoxicating properties. Selective breeding has produced cannabis plants for specific uses, including high-potency marijuana strains and hemp cultivars for fiber and seed production. The molecular biology underlying cannabinoid biosynthesis and other traits of interest is largely unexplored. Results: We sequenced genomic DNA and RNA from the marijuana strain Purple Kush using shortread approaches. We report a draft haploid genome sequence of 534 Mb and a transcriptome of 30,000 genes. Comparison of the transcriptome of Purple Kush with that of the hemp cultivar 'Finola' revealed that many genes encoding proteins involved in cannabinoid and precursor pathways are more highly expressed in Purple Kush than in 'Finola'. The exclusive occurrence of \u3949-tetrahydrocannabinolic acid synthase in the Purple Kush transcriptome, and its replacement by cannabidiolic acid synthase in 'Finola', may explain why the psychoactive cannabinoid \u3949-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is produced in marijuana but not in hemp. Resequencing the hemp cultivars 'Finola' and 'USO-31' showed little difference in gene copy numbers of cannabinoid pathway enzymes. However, single nucleotide variant analysis uncovered a relatively high level of variation among four cannabis types, and supported a separation of marijuana and hemp. Conclusions: The availability of the Cannabis sativa genome enables the study of a multifunctional plant that occupies a unique role in human culture. Its availability will aid the development of therapeutic marijuana strains with tailored cannabinoid profiles and provide a basis for the breeding of hemp with improved agronomic characteristics.Peer reviewed: YesNRC publication: Ye

On the psychological origins of tool use

The ubiquity of tool use in human life has generated multiple lines of scientific and philosophical investigation to understand the development and expression of humans' engagement with tools and its relation to other dimensions of human experience. However, existing literature on tool use faces several epistemological challenges in which the same set of questions generate many different answers. At least four critical questions can be identified, which are intimately intertwined-(1) What constitutes tool use? (2) What psychological processes underlie tool use in humans and nonhuman animals? (3) Which of these psychological processes are exclusive to tool use? (4) Which psychological processes involved in tool use are exclusive to Homo sapiens? To help advance a multidisciplinary scientific understanding of tool use, six author groups representing different academic disciplines (e.g., anthropology, psychology, neuroscience) and different theoretical perspectives respond to each of these questions, and then point to the direction of future work on tool use. We find that while there are marked differences among the responses of the respective author groups to each question, there is a surprising degree of agreement about many essential concepts and questions. We believe that this interdisciplinary and intertheoretical discussion will foster a more comprehensive understanding of tool use than any one of these perspectives (or any one of these author groups) would (or could) on their own