\u3ci\u3eThe Demon\u27s Concubine\u3c/i\u3e

Where is Ashtan? asked Zylle, anxiously twisting the hem of her ceremonial robe. I don\u27t know, my lady, he hasn\u27t been seen since last night, when he was performing his last trial, answered her handmaiden

Infinite Action Contextual Bandits with Reusable Data Exhaust

For infinite action contextual bandits, smoothed regret and reduction to regression results in state-of-the-art online performance with computational cost independent of the action set: unfortunately, the resulting data exhaust does not have well-defined importance-weights. This frustrates the execution of downstream data science processes such as offline model selection. In this paper we describe an online algorithm with an equivalent smoothed regret guarantee, but which generates well-defined importance weights: in exchange, the online computational cost increases, but only to order smoothness (i.e., still independent of the action set). This removes a key obstacle to adoption of smoothed regret in production scenarios.Comment: Final version after responding to reviewer

Efficacy of office ergonomics training: an evaluation and comparison of instructor and web-based training

Due to a variety of reasons, one of the most common types of training found at companies is safety and health training. As part of a comprehensive health and safety training program there is usually an ergonomics training course. These courses are used to empower the employees to identify hazards and set up their workstations with the goal of injury prevention and increasing employee efficiency. Even with their usage, little data exist on the effectiveness of ergonomics training. In addition, no published research is available on the effectiveness of office ergonomics delivered via the web. This research project investigated the effectiveness of office ergonomics training delivered by both an instructor and a web-based program. Using a methodology popularized by Kirkpatrick, this investigation focused on the effects of both training delivery methods for knowledge, behavior, and reaction to training. As a method for comparing results, data was collected for both the knowledge and the behavior prior to and post-training delivery. Data for reaction to training was collected post training. This investigation used multiple methods of comparisons between base pre and post-training data and between the two training delivery methods. These methods include intra-group, inter-group, gain-score, and normalized-scores comparisons. The result form these comparisons showed that for both delivery methods there was a significant increase for knowledge and behavioral changes. Additionally, the group that received web-based training had a significantly greater increase for both behaviors and knowledge. However, there was no difference between the two training methods for reaction to training. For the study population assessed, this investigation shows evidence that both instructor and web-based office ergonomics training is effective at generating behavior change and knowledge gain. However, this study shows that web-based training was more effective at generating a greater change than the instructor delivered course. Additionally, this study provides evidence that the common method of assessing participate reaction to training is not effective at determining the true effectiveness of the training

Label-Free Toxin Detection by Means of Time-Resolved Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy

The real-time detection of trace concentrations of biological toxins requires significant improvement of the detection methods from those reported in the literature. To develop a highly sensitive and selective detection device it is necessary to determine the optimal measuring conditions for the electrochemical sensor in three domains: time, frequency and polarization potential. In this work we utilized a time-resolved electrochemical impedance spectroscopy for the detection of trace concentrations of Staphylococcus enterotoxin B (SEB). An anti-SEB antibody has been attached to the nano-porous aluminum surface using 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane/glutaraldehyde coupling system. This immobilization method allows fabrication of a highly reproducible and stable sensing device. Using developed immobilization procedure and optimized detection regime, it is possible to determine the presence of SEB at the levels as low as 10 pg/mL in 15 minutes

Tetherin-Driven Adaptation of Vpu and Nef Function and the Evolution of Pandemic and Nonpandemic HIV-1 Strains

Vpu proteins of pandemic HIV-1 M strains degrade the viral receptor CD4 and antagonize human tetherin to promote viral release and replication. We find that Vpus from SIVgsn, SIVmus and SIVmon infecting Cercopithecus primate species also degrade CD4 and antagonize tetherin. In contrast, SIVcpz, the immediate precursor of HIV-1, whose Vpu shares a common ancestry with SIVgsn/mus/mon Vpu, uses Nef rather than Vpu to counteract chimpanzee tetherin. Human tetherin, however, is resistant to Nef and thus poses a significant barrier to zoonotic transmission of SIVcpz to humans. Remarkably, Vpu from non-pandemic HIV-1 O strains are poor tetherin antagonists while those from the rare group N viruses do not degrade CD4. Thus, only HIV-1 M evolved a fully functional Vpu following the three independent cross-species transmissions that resulted in HIV-1 groups M, N, and O. This may explain why group M viruses are almost entirely responsible for the gobal HIV/AIDS pandemic

Tele-branding in TVIII: the network as brand and the programme as brand

In the era of TVIII, characterized by deregulation, multimedia conglomeration, expansion and increased competition, branding has emerged as a central industrial practice. Focusing on the case of HBO, a particularly successful brand in TVIII, this article argues that branding can be understood not simply as a feature of television networks, but also as a characteristic of television programmes. It begins by examining how the network as brand is constructed and conveyed to the consumer through the use of logos, slogans and programmes. The role of programmes in the construction of brand identity is then complicated by examining the sale of programmes abroad, where programmes can be seen to contribute to the brand identity of more than one network. The article then goes on to examine programme merchandising, an increasingly central strategy in TVIII. Through an analysis of different merchandising strategies the article argues that programmes have come to act as brands in their own right, and demonstrates that the academic study of branding not only reveals the development of new industrial practices, but also offers a way of understanding the television programme and its consumption by viewers in a period when the texts of television are increasingly extended across a range of media platforms

A leaky umbrella has little value: evidence clearly indicates the serotonin system is implicated in depression.

A recent “umbrella” review examined various biomarkers relating to the serotonin system, and concluded there was no consistent evidence implicating serotonin in the pathophysiology of depression. We present reasons for why this conclusion is overstated, including methodological weaknesses in the review process, selective reporting of data, over-simplification, and errors in the interpretation of neuropsychopharmacological findings. We use the examples of tryptophan depletion and serotonergic molecular imaging, the two research areas most relevant to the investigation of serotonin, to illustrate this