191 research outputs found
Researcher as Artist/Artist as Researcher
This is a postmodern article that is nontraditional in its form, content, and mode of representation. Upon recognizing that we share interests and common experiences as artists, we decided to collect life history information from each other about our artistic experiences. Thus we have become, simultaneously, "the researched" and "the re searcher." In these conversations, we explore the ways in which we were each guided by our past, very strong aesthetic and artistic experiences. We also include the voices of other researchers and artists in our conversations as we explore the influences of art in the formation of our worldviews.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/68774/2/10.1177_107780049500100107.pd
Towards Machine Wald
The past century has seen a steady increase in the need of estimating and
predicting complex systems and making (possibly critical) decisions with
limited information. Although computers have made possible the numerical
evaluation of sophisticated statistical models, these models are still designed
\emph{by humans} because there is currently no known recipe or algorithm for
dividing the design of a statistical model into a sequence of arithmetic
operations. Indeed enabling computers to \emph{think} as \emph{humans} have the
ability to do when faced with uncertainty is challenging in several major ways:
(1) Finding optimal statistical models remains to be formulated as a well posed
problem when information on the system of interest is incomplete and comes in
the form of a complex combination of sample data, partial knowledge of
constitutive relations and a limited description of the distribution of input
random variables. (2) The space of admissible scenarios along with the space of
relevant information, assumptions, and/or beliefs, tend to be infinite
dimensional, whereas calculus on a computer is necessarily discrete and finite.
With this purpose, this paper explores the foundations of a rigorous framework
for the scientific computation of optimal statistical estimators/models and
reviews their connections with Decision Theory, Machine Learning, Bayesian
Inference, Stochastic Optimization, Robust Optimization, Optimal Uncertainty
Quantification and Information Based Complexity.Comment: 37 page
Fitting the integrated Spectral Energy Distributions of Galaxies
Fitting the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of galaxies is an almost
universally used technique that has matured significantly in the last decade.
Model predictions and fitting procedures have improved significantly over this
time, attempting to keep up with the vastly increased volume and quality of
available data. We review here the field of SED fitting, describing the
modelling of ultraviolet to infrared galaxy SEDs, the creation of
multiwavelength data sets, and the methods used to fit model SEDs to observed
galaxy data sets. We touch upon the achievements and challenges in the major
ingredients of SED fitting, with a special emphasis on describing the interplay
between the quality of the available data, the quality of the available models,
and the best fitting technique to use in order to obtain a realistic
measurement as well as realistic uncertainties. We conclude that SED fitting
can be used effectively to derive a range of physical properties of galaxies,
such as redshift, stellar masses, star formation rates, dust masses, and
metallicities, with care taken not to over-interpret the available data. Yet
there still exist many issues such as estimating the age of the oldest stars in
a galaxy, finer details ofdust properties and dust-star geometry, and the
influences of poorly understood, luminous stellar types and phases. The
challenge for the coming years will be to improve both the models and the
observational data sets to resolve these uncertainties. The present review will
be made available on an interactive, moderated web page (sedfitting.org), where
the community can access and change the text. The intention is to expand the
text and keep it up to date over the coming years.Comment: 54 pages, 26 figures, Accepted for publication in Astrophysics &
Space Scienc
Physics of Solar Prominences: I - Spectral Diagnostics and Non-LTE Modelling
This review paper outlines background information and covers recent advances
made via the analysis of spectra and images of prominence plasma and the
increased sophistication of non-LTE (ie when there is a departure from Local
Thermodynamic Equilibrium) radiative transfer models. We first describe the
spectral inversion techniques that have been used to infer the plasma
parameters important for the general properties of the prominence plasma in
both its cool core and the hotter prominence-corona transition region. We also
review studies devoted to the observation of bulk motions of the prominence
plasma and to the determination of prominence mass. However, a simple inversion
of spectroscopic data usually fails when the lines become optically thick at
certain wavelengths. Therefore, complex non-LTE models become necessary. We
thus present the basics of non-LTE radiative transfer theory and the associated
multi-level radiative transfer problems. The main results of one- and
two-dimensional models of the prominences and their fine-structures are
presented. We then discuss the energy balance in various prominence models.
Finally, we outline the outstanding observational and theoretical questions,
and the directions for future progress in our understanding of solar
prominences.Comment: 96 pages, 37 figures, Space Science Reviews. Some figures may have a
better resolution in the published version. New version reflects minor
changes brought after proof editin
An Observational Overview of Solar Flares
We present an overview of solar flares and associated phenomena, drawing upon
a wide range of observational data primarily from the RHESSI era. Following an
introductory discussion and overview of the status of observational
capabilities, the article is split into topical sections which deal with
different areas of flare phenomena (footpoints and ribbons, coronal sources,
relationship to coronal mass ejections) and their interconnections. We also
discuss flare soft X-ray spectroscopy and the energetics of the process. The
emphasis is to describe the observations from multiple points of view, while
bearing in mind the models that link them to each other and to theory. The
present theoretical and observational understanding of solar flares is far from
complete, so we conclude with a brief discussion of models, and a list of
missing but important observations.Comment: This is an article for a monograph on the physics of solar flares,
inspired by RHESSI observations. The individual articles are to appear in
Space Science Reviews (2011
Mapping geographical inequalities in childhood diarrhoeal morbidity and mortality in low-income and middle-income countries, 2000–17 : analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017
Background
Across low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs), one in ten deaths in children younger than 5 years is attributable to diarrhoea. The substantial between-country variation in both diarrhoea incidence and mortality is attributable to interventions that protect children, prevent infection, and treat disease. Identifying subnational regions with the highest burden and mapping associated risk factors can aid in reducing preventable childhood diarrhoea.
Methods
We used Bayesian model-based geostatistics and a geolocated dataset comprising 15 072 746 children younger than 5 years from 466 surveys in 94 LMICs, in combination with findings of the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2017, to estimate posterior distributions of diarrhoea prevalence, incidence, and mortality from 2000 to 2017. From these data, we estimated the burden of diarrhoea at varying subnational levels (termed units) by spatially aggregating draws, and we investigated the drivers of subnational patterns by creating aggregated risk factor estimates.
Findings
The greatest declines in diarrhoeal mortality were seen in south and southeast Asia and South America, where 54·0% (95% uncertainty interval [UI] 38·1–65·8), 17·4% (7·7–28·4), and 59·5% (34·2–86·9) of units, respectively, recorded decreases in deaths from diarrhoea greater than 10%. Although children in much of Africa remain at high risk of death due to diarrhoea, regions with the most deaths were outside Africa, with the highest mortality units located in Pakistan. Indonesia showed the greatest within-country geographical inequality; some regions had mortality rates nearly four times the average country rate. Reductions in mortality were correlated to improvements in water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) or reductions in child growth failure (CGF). Similarly, most high-risk areas had poor WASH, high CGF, or low oral rehydration therapy coverage.
Interpretation
By co-analysing geospatial trends in diarrhoeal burden and its key risk factors, we could assess candidate drivers of subnational death reduction. Further, by doing a counterfactual analysis of the remaining disease burden using key risk factors, we identified potential intervention strategies for vulnerable populations. In view of the demands for limited resources in LMICs, accurately quantifying the burden of diarrhoea and its drivers is important for precision public health
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