Spatial effects, sampling errors, and task specialization in the honey bee

Task allocation patterns should depend on the spatial distribution of work within the nest, variation in task demand, and the movement patterns of workers, however, relatively little research has focused on these topics. This study uses a spatially explicit agent based model to determine whether such factors alone can generate biases in task performance at the individual level in the honey bees, Apis mellifera. Specialization (bias in task performance) is shown to result from strong sampling error due to localized task demand, relatively slow moving workers relative to nest size, and strong spatial variation in task demand. To date, specialization has been primarily interpreted with the response threshold concept, which is focused on intrinsic (typically genotypic) differences between workers. Response threshold variation and sampling error due to spatial effects are not mutually exclusive, however, and this study suggests that both contribute to patterns of task bias at the individual level. While spatial effects are strong enough to explain some documented cases of specialization; they are relatively short term and not explanatory for long term cases of specialization. In general, this study suggests that the spatial layout of tasks and fluctuations in their demand must be explicitly controlled for in studies focused on identifying genotypic specialists

General Recommendations for Integrating Health Internet-Based Data in Forensic Mental Health Assessments and What We Still Need to Know

The concluding chapter of this edited book summarizes the overall purpose of book and aggregates the take-away points from individual chapters. Based on common themes highlighted in the assessment-specific chapters, this chapter discusses broader implications of using SNS and Internet-based data in the field of psychology-law and provides a more comprehensive set of practice recommendations designed to capture the unique challenges presented by online collateral sources. Finally, we propose directions for continued research with forensic clinicians, legal decision-makers, and the general public to improve our understanding about the prevalence of SNS and Internet sources in expert psycho-legal evaluations for the courts, as well as perceptions of these types of data that may influence clinical or legal outcomes