Autonomous nudges and AI choice architects – where does responsibility lie in computer mediated decision making?

AI and algorithms shape many aspects of our everyday life, from the familiar algorithms structuring our social media feeds, to those subtly transforming more complex fields, such as policymaking and commerce. Stuart Mills argues that as these choice architects become increasingly autonomous and automatic, and produce nudges that are difficult if not impossible to explain, there is a need to reassess the ethical limits underpinning how and who is nudged

Deceptive choice architecture and behavioral audits: a principles‐based approach

Regulators are increasingly concerned about deceptive, online choice architecture, including dark patterns and behavioral sludge. From a behavioral science perspective, fostering a regulatory environment which reduces the economic harm caused by deceptive designs, while safeguarding the benefits of well-meaning behavioral insights, is essential. This article argues for a principles-based approach and proposes behavioral audits as a tool to support this approach

Children\u27s Peer Social Competence in Relation to Extensivity of Unreciprocated Friendship Nominations

Third- through fifth- grade students completed measures to assess loneliness, peer optimism, social preference (liking minus disliking from peers), number of mutual friends, and number of non-reciprocated friends. It is well documented that number of mutual friends is related to positive social outcome. Of interest for the present research was whether the extent of unreciprocated friendship nominations related to other indices of peer social competence (loneliness, peer optimism, and social preference). Consistent with previous research, number of mutual friends related to peer outcomes. Both loneliness and peer optimism were related to sex of the child but were not related to number of non-reciprocated friendships. Peer social preference, a measure of group acceptance by peers was significantly, and inversely, related to number of non-reciprocated friendships, for females only. These findings add to the literature by emphasizing the importance of friendships for social competence, by identifying the association of non-mutual friendships

INDIRECT MEASUREMENT OF FORCES ON THE GYMNASTICS RINGS

INTRODUCTION: Forces produced during the Men’s Gymnastics Rings Exercise have been used to identify factors associated with excellence, and techniques which increase the risk of injury (Cheetham, 1987; Nissinen, 1995). Load cells positioned, either within the metal framework at the attachment of the ring cable, or connected in series between the ring cable and the frame have been used to record the forces applied by gymnasts. The purpose of this study was to develop an indirect video based method for determining the forces exerted on the rings during a gymnastics exercise. METHODS: Two genlocked video cameras were used to record a series of swinging skills performed by a member of the Great Britain Senior Men’s National Team. A third genlocked video camera recorded a close-up view of the displacement of the frame and of the ‘bungs’ (elastic damping devices from which the rings cables are suspended). A strain-gauged load cell was fitted into one of the rings cables to directly measure the applied forces for evaluation purposes. Prior to the main recording session, static calibration loads were applied to the rings in steps up to 6kN and synchronised video recordings of the frame and ‘bung’ deflections were recorded with the close-up camera. All video data were obtained using a Target high resolution video digitising system. The Direct Linear Transformation was used to reconstruct the 3D coordinates of the gymnast’s joint centres and the orientation of the rings cables from the two main camera views. Force values recorded during a series of swings by the gymnast were obtained indirectly from digitised video data of the frame and bung displacements and from the directly measured strain gauge output. RESULTS: During calibration the displacement of the rings frame was linear, with a displacement of 10.4 mm resulting when the maximum load of just under 6 kN was applied to the rings. Each ‘bung’ comprised a set of concave metal washers which were progressively flattened under loading in a non-linear relationship up to a maximum displacement of 19.4 mm at a submaximal applied load of 4690 N. Two mathematical functions, which accurately reflected the differing behaviours of the linear spring (frame) and the damped spring (bung), were fitted to the static calibration data using a simulated annealing procedure. The root mean squared differences between the measured and predicted force values for a backward longswing, forward longswing and basic swing were 45 N, 63 N and 37 N. CONCLUSION: The indirect method, based on video digitisation of the deflections in the rings frame and ‘bungs’, provided data which matched the overall profile of the force-time histories in the rings cables, and estimated cable tension to an accuracy of approximately 2 percent of the overall force range. REFERENCES: Cheetham, P. J. et al., (1987). Sports Psyche Editions, 99-106. Nissinen, M. A., (1995), Biomechanics XV, 680-681

Relaxed plasma equilibria and entropy-related plasma self-organization principles

The concept of plasma relaxation as a constrained energy minimization is reviewed. Recent work by the authors on generalizing this approach to partially relaxed threedimensional plasma systems in a way consistent with chaos theory is discussed, with a view to clarifying the thermodynamic aspects of the variational approach used. Other entropy-related approaches to finding long-time steady states of turbulent or chaotic plasma systems are also briefly reviewed

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SCRUMMAGING STRENGTH AND STANDARD FIELD TESTS FOR POWER IN RUGBY

INTRODUCTION: In the game of rugby, the development of leg power is of particular importance for forwards in the scrum and maul. The forward is required to hold the push in the scrum and give an explosive push when the ball is put in. The most frequently used standard field tests for leg power according to Nicholas (1997), which are also recommended in numerous training manuals and by the England Rugby Football Union (RFU), are the vertical jump and a timed short sprint test. This study was designed to compare performance scores attained and the maximal force applied in these tests with the maximal force which could be applied against the pneumatically controlled Predator individual scrummaging machine

Lead-tellurium oxysalts from Otto Mountain near Baker, California: IV. Markcooperite, Pb(UO_2)Te^(6+)O_6, the first natural uranyl tellurate

Markcooperite, Pb_2(UO_2)Te^(6+)O_6, is a new tellurate from Otto Mountain near Baker, California, named in honor of Mark A. Cooper of the University of Manitoba for his contributions to mineralogy. The new mineral occurs on fracture surfaces and in small vugs in brecciated quartz veins. Markcooperite is directly associated with bromian chlorargyrite, iodargyrite, khinite-4O, wulfenite, and four other new tellurates: housleyite, thorneite, ottoite, and timroseite. Various other secondary minerals occur in the veins, including two other new secondary tellurium minerals: paratimroseite and telluroperite. Markcooperite is monoclinic, space group P2_1/c, a = 5.722(2), b = 7.7478(2), c = 7.889(2) Å, β = 90.833(5)°, V = 349.7(2) Å^3, and Z = 2. It occurs as pseudotetragonal prisms to 0.2 mm with the forms {100} and {011} and as botryoidal intergrowths to 0.3 mm in diameter; no twinning was observed. Markcooperite is orange and transparent, with a light orange streak and adamantine luster, and is non-fluorescent. Mohs hardness is estimated at 3. The mineral is brittle, with an irregular fracture and perfect {100} cleavage. The calculated density is 8.496 g/cm3 based on the empirical formula. Markcooperite is biaxial (+), with indices of refraction α= 2.11, β = 2.12, γ= 2.29 calculated using the Gladstone-Dale relationship, measured α-β birefringence of 0.01 and measured 2V of 30(5)°. The optical orientation is X = c, Y = b, Z = a. The mineral is slightly pleochroic in shades of orange, with absorption: X > Y = Z. No dispersion was observed. Electron microprobe analysis provided PbO 50.07, TeO_3 22.64, UO_3 25.01, Cl 0.03, O≡Cl –0.01, total 97.74 wt%; the empirical formula (based on O+Cl = 8) is Pb_(2.05)U_(0.80)Te^(6+)_(1.18)O_(7.99)Cl_(0.01). The strongest powder X-ray diffraction lines are [d_(obs) in Å (hkl) I]: 3.235 (120, 102, 1[overbar]02) 100, 2.873 (200) 40, 2.985 (1[overbar]21, 112, 121) 37, 2.774 (022) 30, 3.501 (021, 012) 29, 2.220 (221, 2[overbar]21, 212) 23, 1.990 (222, 2[overbar]22) 21, and 1.715 (320) 22. The crystal structure (R_1 = 0.052) is based on sheets of corner-sharing uranyl square bipyramids and tellurate octahedra, with Pb atoms between the sheets. Markcooperite is the first compound to show Te^(6+) substitution for U^(6+) within the same crystallographic site. Markcooperite is structurally related to synthetic Pb(UO_2)O_2

Psychological interference, liberty and technology

Power and the use of force are central concerns in liberal political theory. Yet, it is claimed that liberal theory fails to account for the power that is exerted through, for example, personalised nudging based on Big Data. We dispute this claim and through a reappraisal of the concept of negative liberty we show how psychological interference can be both coercive and manipulative. This reappraisal is partly achieved through an examination of psychological equivalents of physical interference, in order to highlight the arbitrariness of excluding the non-physical from consideration. The liberal understanding of liberty and interference here provided enables us to see how power is exerted through technology. It thus provides a novel contribution to the analysis of the liberty reducing effects of new technologies combined with a lack of privacy and a will to manipulate, based on an individualist liberal theory argued to be incapable of just that.publishedVersio