Ontological quality control in large-scale, applied ontology matching

To date, large-scale applied ontology mapping has relied greatly on label matching and other relatively simple syntactic features. In search of more holistic and accurate alignment, we offer a suite of partially overlapping ontology mapping heuristics which allows us to hypothesise matches and test them against the knowledge in our source ontology (OpenCyc). We thereby automatically align our source ontology with 55K concepts from Wikipedia with 93% accuracy

Massive ontology interface

This paper describes the Massive Ontology Interface (MOI), a web portal which facilitates interaction with a large ontology (over 200,000 concepts and 1.6M assertions) that is built automatically using OpenCyc as a backbone. The aim of the interface is to simplify interaction with the massive amounts of information and guide the user towards understanding the ontology’s data. Using either a text or graph-based representation, users can discuss and edit the ontology. Social elements utilizing gamification techniques are included to encourage users to create and collaborate on stored knowledge as part of a web community. An evaluation by 30 users comparing MOI with OpenCyc’s original interface showed significant improvements in user understanding of the ontology, although full testing of the interface’s social elements lies in the future

Divergent RNA transcription:A role in promoter unwinding?

New approaches using biotinylated-psoralen as a probe for investigating DNA structure have revealed new insights into the relationship between DNA supercoiling, transcription and chromatin compaction. We explore a hypothesis that divergent RNA transcription generates negative supercoiling at promoters facilitating initiation complex formation and subsequent promoter clearance

The molecular diagnosis of Pneumocystis pneumonia in children using nasopharyngeal aspirate samples

Pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP) is an important opportunistic infection caused by thefungus Pneumocystis jirovecii. The incidence of PCP in sub-Saharan Africa is on theincrease. This is due to the progression of the HIV-pandemic and limited access to healthcare facilities, specific highly active anti-retroviral therapy and chemoprophylaxis. It is a major cause of hospitalization and mortality in HIV-infected children with in-hospital case-fatality rates ranging from 20-63%

Verbal autopsy interpretation: a comparative analysis of the InterVA model versus physician review in determining causes of death in the Nairobi DSS

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Developing countries generally lack complete vital registration systems that can produce cause of death information for health planning in their populations. As an alternative, verbal autopsy (VA) - the process of interviewing family members or caregivers on the circumstances leading to death - is often used by Demographic Surveillance Systems to generate cause of death data. Physician review (PR) is the most common method of interpreting VA, but this method is a time- and resource-intensive process and is liable to produce inconsistent results. The aim of this paper is to explore how a computer-based probabilistic model, InterVA, performs in comparison with PR in interpreting VA data in the Nairobi Urban Health and Demographic Surveillance System (NUHDSS).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Between August 2002 and December 2008, a total of 1,823 VA interviews were reviewed by physicians in the NUHDSS. Data on these interviews were entered into the InterVA model for interpretation. Cause-specific mortality fractions were then derived from the cause of death data generated by the physicians and by the model. We then estimated the level of agreement between both methods using Kappa statistics.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The level of agreement between individual causes of death assigned by both methods was only 35% (κ = 0.27, 95% CI: 0.25 - 0.30). However, the patterns of mortality as determined by both methods showed a high burden of infectious diseases, including HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and pneumonia, in the study population. These mortality patterns are consistent with existing knowledge on the burden of disease in underdeveloped communities in Africa.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The InterVA model showed promising results as a community-level tool for generating cause of death data from VAs. We recommend further refinement to the model, its adaptation to suit local contexts, and its continued validation with more extensive data from different settings.</p

Impact of Brain-Based Instructional Strategy on Academic Performance of Deaf Students in Mathematics in Oyo School of Handicapped, Nigeria

This study investigated the impact of brain-based instructional strategy on academic performance of students who are deaf or hard of hearing (D/HH) in mathematics. A pre-test, post-test, control group quasi-experimental design was adopted with a 2 x 3 x 2 factorial matrix. The sample size of 41 students who are D/HH were randomly selected in the school. Two intact classes each were randomly assigned to the experimental group (Brain-Based Instructional Strategy-BBIS) and the Control Group respectively. The instruments used were, Mathematics Attitude Questionnaire (r = 0.81), Cognitive Style Test (r = 0.80), and Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale (r = 0.81). Three research questions guided the study. Data obtained were analyzed using descriptive statistics of mean scores and standard deviations to explain and compare pretest and posttest scores of the experimental and control groups in all the criteria measured. Brain-based instructional strategy was more effective at improving students’ attitude to mathematics than the conventional method. The findings of the study also indicated that tension and test-phobia which normally permeates the teaching-learning process of mathematics was highly reduced due to the optimal use of diverse brain compatible instructional materials among students who are D/HH