Robust competence assessment for job assignment

International audienceAllocating the right person to a task or job is a key issue for improving quality and performance of achievements, usually addressed using the concept of "competences". Nevertheless, providing an accurate assessment of the competences of an individual may be in practice a difficult task. We suggest in this paper to model the uncertainty on the competences possessed by a person using a possibility distribution, and the imprecision on the competences required for a task using a fuzzy constraint, taking into account the possible interactions between competences using a Choquet Integral. As a difference with comparable approaches, we then suggest to perform the allocation of persons to jobs using a Robust Optimisation approach, allowing to minimize the risk taken by the decision maker. We first apply this framework to the problem of selecting a candidate within n for a job, then extend the method to the problem of selecting c candidates for j jobs (c ≥ j) using the leximin criterion

Les dynamiques spatio-temporelles de l'occupation du sol en Seine-et-Marne et leurs conséquences sur la biodiversité

International audienceLes modifications de l'occupation du sol liées aux évolutions multidimensionnelles des territoires (démographie, infrastructures, urbanisation,…) constituent l'une des causes majeures de la perte globale de la biodiversité. Pour faire face aux enjeux associés, les acteurs de l'aménagement et de la gestion des territoires doivent pouvoir articuler la préservation de la biodiversité et leurs pratiques. La création d'outils d'aide à la décision basés sur des observations fiables apparaît nécessaire. L'Atlas dynamique de la biodiversité (co-construction CG Seine-et-Marne, UMR 7204 CERSP, UMR 7533 LADYSS) a pour objectif de fournir un tel outil, qui détaillera de façon spatiale et temporelle la biodiversité du département ainsi que les pressions anthropiques qui la menacent. Cette présentation fait une synthèse de l'approche et des résultats obtenus lors de travaux engagés dans le cadre d'une thèse inscrite dans le développement de cet outil. L'objectif est d'établir les conséquences des dynamiques spatio-temporelles de l'occupation du sol sur la biodiversité fonctionnelle de Seine-et-Marne depuis les années 80. A la croisée de la géographie et de l'écologie, ce travail présente la particularité d'une approche intégrative allant de la description des dynamiques spatiales de l'occupation du sol à la création de modèles permettant de comprendre et visualiser les modifications de la diversité fonctionnelle depuis les années 80

The potential of collaborative learning as a tool for forensic students: Application to signature examination

Transferring theoretical knowledge to practical skills remains a big challenge in forensic science, especially in questioned documents. The examination of handwriting and signatures requires years of practice to develop the necessary skills. While students (and to some extent the general population) often have the impression that it is easy to differentiate handwriting from different persons, in practice, particularly when dealing with simulated signatures, there is a high risk of reaching a wrong conclusion when questioned document experts do not use a systematic approach and/or are not sufficiently experienced (see for example the famous French Dreyfus case). Thus, a novel teaching approach, based on collaborative learning, has been introduced in a theoretical handwriting class to improve the students’ theoretical knowledge, and additionally make them aware of the limitations of their practical skills and give them tools to improve them in their future practice. Through five activities, the students took the roles of victims, forgers, teachers and experts and created their own learning materials (i.e. signatures and mock casework). During those interactive activities, they learned to describe their signature’s characteristics, intra-variability and complexity, and thus evaluate their own signature’s vulnerability (as potential victims). They learned techniques to simulate signatures and detect the resulting forgeries’ characteristics (in the role of forgers). In the role of teachers, they prepared mock casework scenarios and gave feedback to their colleague’s examination of the produced material. As experts, they carried out signature examination as they would in a proficiency test and were exposed to the difficulties an actual expert may encounter in practice. The evaluation of this novel teaching scenario was very positive, as students learned more extensively the possibilities and limitations of signature comparison. They were more active and motivated in their learning experiences. The teaching team also had an improved experience. Some students complained of an increased workload and imprecise instructions. Improvements were tested and are discussed in this paper

Vergleichende ökonomisch-ökologische Analyse von biologisch und konventionell wirtschaftenden Betrieben in Luxemburg („öko-öko“)

International gibt es zahlreiche vergleichende Untersuchungen von ökonomischen oder ökologischen Leistungen von biologisch und konventionell wirtschaftenden Betrieben (Baumgartner et al., 2010; Offermann and Nieberg, 2000; Olesen et al., 2006). Dabei werden meist aber entweder ökonomische oder ökologische Wirkungen untersucht. Studien, die beide Aspekte zu einer übergreifenden Sichtweise vereinen, sind rar (Schader, 2009). Dabei sind gerade solche integrierte Studien aus agrarpolitscher Sicht höchst relevant. Denn bei der Gestaltung der Gemeinsamen Agrarpolitik (GAP) auf Mitgliedsstaatenebene spielt die Frage der Ausrichtung der Maßnahmen eine zentrale Rolle. Die Pläne zur ländlichen Entwicklung und die darin beinhalteten Agrarumweltprogramme bilden die 2. Säule der GAP, die während der letzten Jahre im Vergleich zur ersten Säule finanziell an Bedeutung gewann. Eine dieser Maßnahmen ist die Flächen- und Umstellungsförderung des biologischen Landbaus, welche in allen Mitgliedsstaaten implementiert wird. Während die Effektivität der Maßnahme in der Erbringung von Umweltleistungen wenig umstritten ist, streiten sich Ökonomen, ob der biologische Landbau diese Umweltleistungen auch kostengünstig erbringen kann (Dabbert, 2002). Kürzlich zeigte Schader (2009), dass hier keine grundsätzlichen Vorbehalte vorgebracht werden müssen, die Effizienz aber regions- und länderspezifisch evaluiert werden sollte. In der Politikevaluation spricht man hier von sogenannten „targeting and tailoring“ (OECD, 2007) der Maßnahmen. Auch in Luxemburg, einem Land in dem die Entwicklung des biologischen Landbaus bisher vergleichsweise schleppend voranging, ist diese Frage von agrarpolitischer Relevanz. Gerade im Zusammenhang des 2009 ins Leben gerufenen „Aktionsplan für biologische Landwirtschaft Luxemburg“ stellt sich die Frage, zu welchen Kosten die biologisch wirtschaftenden Betriebe Umweltleistungen erfüllen und ob diese Zahlungen angemessen sind. Eine derartige Evaluationsstudie ist bisher in Luxemburg nicht durchgeführt worden. Die vorliegende Studie versucht diese Wissenslücke zu schließen. Dabei wird das Ziel verfolgt, die ökologischen Leistungen und monetären Kosten der biologisch wirtschaftenden Betriebe in Luxemburg vergleichbaren konventionellen Betrieben gegenüberzustellen. Daraus sollen Aussagen über die ökologische Effektivität und die ökonomische Effizienz der biologischen Wirtschaftsweise in Luxemburg abgeleitet werden. In dem Projekt „öko-öko“ werden ökologische Wirkungen von Biobetrieben und konventionellen Betrieben in Luxemburg verglichen. Zusätzlich wird die betriebswirtschaftliche Situation und die Förderung der verschiedenen Betriebe beleuchtet. Daraufhin werden die ökonomischen und ökologischen Größen miteinander in Beziehung gesetzt, um Erkenntnisse für eine Optimierung der Effektivität und Effizienz der Förderung der Biobetriebe in Luxemburg zu gewinnen. Dazu wird zunächst eine Übersicht über die vorhandene Literatur gegeben (Kapitel 2). In Kapitel 3 wird der methodische Zugang erläutert, der für diese Studie gewählt wurde und die Datengrundlage wird kurz beschrieben. Dies beinhaltet auch eine kurze Analyse der Betriebsstruktur der Stichprobe der analysierten Betriebe. Danach werden die ökologischen (Kapitel 4) und ökonomischen (Kapitel 5) Parameter analysiert und diskutiert. Kapitel 6 analysiert die Kosteneffizienz der Zahlungen an biologisch wirtschaftende Betriebe. In Kapitel 7 werden Schlussfolgerungen aus den Ergebnissen der Studie für die Wissenschaft und Agrarpolitik abgeleitet

Solvent-cast direct-writing as a fabrication strategy for radiopaque stents

Bioresorbable stents (BRS) potential in treating coronary heart disease is still to be further developed. Current trends include research with new polymeric materials, the need for thinner struts combined with appropriate mechanical properties, radiopacity and optimized local drug delivery. This work presents a novel solvent-cast direct-write (SC-DW) printing system to manufacture BRS onto a rotating cylinder with poly-l-lactic acid (PLLA) and poly(l-lactic-co- ¿ -caprolactone) (PLCL) inks. Printed stents were characterized in terms of mechanical, thermal and biological properties with human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Expansion assays showed that stents withstood pressures of at least 16 atm and the indirect cytotoxicity test indicated that stents were biocompatible. Polymeric inks were further modified with the addition of 3 radiopaque agents, namely iodine, triiodobenzoic acid (TIBA) and barium sulfate (BaSO) to render stents radiopaque. Subsequent characterization showed a general increase in strut thickness with respect to control PLLA or PLCL stents, which in turn resulted in higher resistance to compression. Microcomputed tomography was used to assess stents’ radiopacity, showing that TIBA and BaSO-containing stents presented high X-ray attenuation values and maintained their radiopacity after 3 months incubation time.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Real-world effectiveness of abobotulinumtoxinA (Dysport®) in adults with upper limb spasticity in routine clinical practice: an observational study

AbobotulinumtoxinA (aboBoNT-A, Dysport®) is used in clinical practice as a well-tolerated and effective therapy for muscle spasticity. AboBoNT-A has been shown to reduce upper and lower limb spastic paresis in clinical trials, demonstrating improvements in muscle tone and limb function. This open-label, multicentre, observational, non-interventional study was the first to investigate aboBoNT-A’s efficacy in adult patients with upper limb spasticity (ULS) in routine clinical practice in Poland. All enrolled patients received ≥1 aboBoNT-A injection cycles, per routine clinical practice (full analysis set, FAS), and ≥1 rehabilitation session. Patients attended a baseline visit (V1) and two follow-up visits (V2, V3) for retreatment, depending on the investigator’s assessment of individual patient needs, with a mean interval (SD) between injections of 4.4 (1.4) and 4.5 (1.2) months. The primary effectiveness endpoint was patient- and physician-based evaluation using the Clinical Global Impression-Improvement Scale (CGII), a validated 7-point scale (1 = very much improved to 7 = very much worse) relative to baseline. CGI-I has not previously been used as a primary endpoint in studies evaluating ULS. Secondary endpoints included muscle tone in shoulder, elbow, carpal joint, and finger muscles, measured by the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS), and muscle strength according to the Medical Research Council scale (MRC). Of 108 enrolled patients (FAS), 92 (85.2%) completed the study and 57 (52.8%) were included in the per protocol (PP) population. AboBoNT-A improved patient conditions in 96.4% and 98.6% at V2 and V3 (investigator assessment) and 92.8% and 98.6% (as reported by patient) of patients, respectively. Significant reductions in muscle tone from baseline were observed at both visits (p < 0.0001–0.0077) across muscle groups. Increased muscle strength by cumulative MRC was observed at V2 (p = 0.0566) and V3 (p = 0.0282) versus baseline. Safety was consistent with the known profile of aboBoNT-A. In conclusion, aboBoNT-A treatment is beneficial in patients with post-stroke ULS in routine clinical practice, assessed by patients and investigators

RNY-derived small RNAs as a signature of coronary artery disease

International audienceBackgroundData from next generation sequencing technologies uncovered the existence of many classes of small RNAs. Recent studies reported that small RNAs are released by cells and can be detected in the blood. In this report, we aimed to discover the occurrence of novel circulating small RNAs in coronary artery disease (CAD).MethodsWe used high-throughput sequencing of small RNAs from human and mouse apoptotic primary macrophages, and analyzed the data by empirical Bayes moderated t-statistics to assess differential expression and the Benjamini and Hochberg method to control the false discovery rate. Results were then confirmed by Northern blot and RT-qPCR in foam cells and in two animal models for atherosclerosis, namely ApoE −/− and Ldlr −/− mouse lines. Quantitative RT-PCR to detect identified small RNAs, the RNY-derived small RNAs, was performed using sera of 263 patients with CAD compared to 514 matched healthy controls; the Student t-test was applied to statistically assess differences. Associations of small RNAs with clinical characteristics and biological markers were tested using Spearman’s rank correlations, while multivariate logistic regressions were performed to test the statistical association of small RNA levels with CAD.ResultsHere, we report that, in macrophages stimulated with pro-apoptotic or pro-atherogenic stimuli, the Ro-associated non-coding RNAs, called RNYs or Y-RNAs, are processed into small RNAs (~24–34 nt) referred to as small-RNYs (s-RNYs), including s-RNY1-5p processed from RNY1. A significant upregulation of s-RNY expression was found in aortic arches and blood plasma from ApoE −/− and Ldlr −/− mice and in serum from CAD patients (P <0.001). Biostatistical analysis revealed a positive association of s-RNY1-5p with hs-CRP and ApoB levels; however, no statistical interaction was found between either of these two markers and s-RNY1-5p in relation to the CAD status. Levels of s-RNY1-5p were also independent from statin and fibrate therapies.ConclusionOur results position the s-RNY1-5p as a relevant novel independent diagnostic biomarker for atherosclerosis-related diseases. Measurement of circulating s-RNY expression would be a valuable companion diagnostic to monitor foam cell apoptosis during atherosclerosis pathogenesis and to evaluate patient’s responsiveness to future therapeutic strategies aiming to attenuate apoptosis in foam cells in advanced atherosclerotic lesions

Active thermo-reflectometry for absolute temperature measurement by infrared thermography on specular materials

AbstractKnowledge of material emissivity maps and their true temperatures is of great interest for contactless process monitoring and control with infrared cameras when strong heat transfer and temperature change are involved. This approach is always followed by emissivity or reflections issues. In this work, we describe the development of a contactless infrared imaging technique based on the pyro-reflectometry approach and a specular model of the material reflection in order to overcome emissivities and reflections problems. This approach enables in situ and real-time identification of emissivity fields and autocalibration of the radiative intensity leaving the sample by using a black body equivalent ratio. This is done to obtain the absolute temperature field of any specular material using the infrared wavelength. The presented set up works for both camera and pyrometer regardless of the spectral range. The proposed method is evaluated at room temperature with several heterogeneous samples covering a large range of emissivity values. From these emissivity fields, raw and heterogeneous measured radiative fluxes are transformed into complete absolute temperature fields

Fermi level shift in carbon nanotubes by dye confinement

International audienceDye confinement into carbon nanotube significantly affects the electronic charge density distribution of the final hybrid system. Using the electron-phonon coupling sensitivity of the Raman G-band, we quantify experimentally how charge transfer from thiophene oligomers to single walled carbon nanotube is modulated by the diameter of the nano-container and its metallic or semiconducting character. This charge transfer is shown to restore the electron-phonon coupling into defected metallic nanotubes. For sub-nanometer diameter tube, an electron transfer optically activated is observed when the excitation energy matches the HOMO-LUMO transition of the confined oligothiophene. This electron doping accounts for an important enhancement of the photoluminescence intensity up to a factor of nearly six for optimal confinement configuration. This electron transfer shifts the Fermi level, acting on the photoluminescence efficiency. Therefore, thiophene oligomer encapsulation allows modulating the electronic structure and then the optical properties of the hybrid system

Understanding COVID-19 Dynamics and the Effects of Interventions in the Philippines: A Mathematical Modelling Study

Background COVID-19 initially caused less severe outbreaks in many low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) compared with many high-income countries; possibly because of differing demographics; socioeconomics; surveillance; and policy responses. Here; we investigate the role of multiple factors on COVID-19 dynamics in the Philippines; a LMIC that has had a relatively severe COVID-19 outbreak. Methods We applied an age-structured compartmental model that incorporated time-varying mobility; testing; and personal protective behaviors (through a “Minimum Health Standards” policy; MHS) to represent the first wave of the Philippines COVID-19 epidemic nationally and for three highly affected regions (Calabarzon; Central Visayas; and the National Capital Region). We estimated effects of control measures; key epidemiological parameters; and interventions. Findings Population age structure; contact rates; mobility; testing; and MHS were sufficient to explain the Philippines epidemic based on the good fit between modelled and reported cases; hospitalisations; and deaths. The model indicated that MHS reduced the probability of transmission per contact by 13-27%. The February 2021 case detection rate was estimated at ~8%; population recovered at ~9%; and scenario projections indicated high sensitivity to MHS adherence. Interpretation COVID-19 dynamics in the Philippines are driven by age; contact structure; mobility; and MHS adherence. Continued compliance with low-cost MHS should help the Philippines control the epidemic until vaccines are widely distributed; but disease resurgence may be occurring due to a combination of low population immunity and detection rates and new variants of concern