Fairness in Preference-based Reinforcement Learning

In this paper, we address the issue of fairness in preference-based reinforcement learning (PbRL) in the presence of multiple objectives. The main objective is to design control policies that can optimize multiple objectives while treating each objective fairly. Toward this objective, we design a new fairness-induced preference-based reinforcement learning or FPbRL. The main idea of FPbRL is to learn vector reward functions associated with multiple objectives via new welfare-based preferences rather than reward-based preference in PbRL, coupled with policy learning via maximizing a generalized Gini welfare function. Finally, we provide experiment studies on three different environments to show that the proposed FPbRL approach can achieve both efficiency and equity for learning effective and fair policies.Comment: Accepted to The Many Facets of Preference Learning Workshop at the International Conference on Machine Learning (ICML

A Case of Persistent Methicillin- Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) Bacteraemia with no Identifiable Source: A Peculiar Clinical Challenge

AbstractWith the increase in antibiotic resistance, Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) hasbecome a global health challenge. We present a case of a 74-years-old female who was unwell withcomplaints of dizziness, shortness of breath on exertion and palpitations. She had presented withparoxysmal atrial fibrillation and Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteraemiawith concerns for possible endocarditis. Transesophageal Echocardiogram (TEE) performed ruledout any evidence of endocarditis. MRSA sepsis was established based on blood cultures with unclearsources. After 7 days on Vancomycin and Ceftaroline, her repeated blood cultures were still positivefor MRSA, so she was started on IV Cefazolin 2g and IV Daptomycin 6mg/kg every 24 hours. Herblood culture cleared after 5 days of this therapy. Treatment strategies for patients of MRSAB need tobe individualized to achieve infection clearance, while guidelines do serve to provide a basicblueprint of treatment plans for physicians.Keywords: Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus, Bacteremia, Sepsis

A case of pseudohyperkalemia in a patient presenting with leucocytosis and high potassium level: a Case Report

Pseudohyperkalemia can appear in a variety of settings and should be recognized early. Treatment of pseudohyperkalemia can lead to an inappropriate decrease of actual serum potassium levels which may lead to life threatening conditions. In the case presented, an 81-year-old male presented with massive leucocytosis and an extremely elevated potassium level. This case report emphasizes the importance of recognizing pseudohyperkalemia in a patient with a severely increased potassium and WBC level; such patients may be clinically asymptomatic or may have a normal ECG

Assessment of Human Health Risk of Zinc and Lead by Consuming Food Crops Supplied with Excessive Fertilizers

For the study of heavy metals impact on human beings, areas in Sargodha city that were supplied with various types of fertilizers were chosen. The three industrial areas; (Bhalwal, Sillanwali, and Sahiwal) of this city were explored for research reasons. The researchers wanted to know how much heavy metal was in the soil, food crops, and human. Excess fertilizer use contributes to global pollution. Farmyard manure, urea, and potassium chloride were used on Site 1; urea phosphate, manure, and ammonium sulphate were used on Site 2; and super phosphate, ammonium phosphate, and nitrate phosphate were used on Site 3. Samples of commonly used food crops, their respective soils and blood of residents who ingested the food crops of the studied area were collected. The zinc and lead levels in soil (8.30-16.80 and 1.80-12.71 mg/kg) and food crops (0.26-2.02 and 2.26-4.70 mg/kg) were far lower than WHO permitted limits. Blood mean concentration of both Zn (2.30-4.30 mg/L) and Ni (0.24-0.70 mg/L) were found maximum in residents of Site 3. The values of pollution load index, bioconcentration factor, enrichment factor for both zinc and lead were (0.18-0.37 and0.220-0.948), (0.027-0.138 and 0.316-1.705), (0.020-0.144 and 0.515-2.780), respectively. Daily intake of metal (0.004-0.008 and 0.001-0.002 mg/kg/day) and health risk index (0.0001-0.016 and 0.005-0.115) values were observed to be lower in individuals for Zn and Pb, respectively. In present work values of all pollution indices wereSo, there would be no human health hazard

Los lenguajes controlados y la documentación técnica : mejorando la traducibilidad

Los lenguajes controlados pueden suponer una estrategia efectiva para mejorar los procesos de traducción, modificando el texto origen para que se adapte a una serie de reglas que mejoran su traducibilidad. El artículo analiza el concepto de lenguaje controlado y revisa las diferentes áreas de control y su tipología, para después realizar un breve repaso al origen y evolución de estos si stemas lingüísticos. A continuación explora qué papel representan los lenguajes controlados en el proceso de redacción y traducción de documentación técnica. Por último, se centra en la relación entre lenguajes controlados y traducción y, más en concreto, la traducción automática, haciendo especial hincapié en las reglas más efectivas para la mejora de la traducibilidad.Els llenguatges controlats poden suposar una estratègia efectiva per a millorar els processos de traducció, modificant el text origen perquè s'adapte a una sèrie de regles que milloren la seua traduïbilitat. L'article analitza el concepte de llenguatge controlat i revisa les diferents àrees de control i la seua tipologia, per a després realitzar un breu repàs a l'origen i evolució d'estos sistemes lingüístics. A continuació explora quin paper representen els llenguatges controlats en el procés de redacció i traducció de documentació tècnica. Finalment, es centra en la relació entre llenguatges controlats i traducció i, més concretament, traducció autom àtica, fent especial insistència en les regles més efectives per a la millora de la traduïbilitat.Controlled languages can be an effective strategy to improve translation processes, pre-editing the source text to conform to a set of rules to improve its translatability. This article analyses the concept of controlled language and reviews the different control areas and their typology. Further, it reviews the origin and evolution of these linguistic systems and explores the role controlled languages play in the process of writing and translating technical documentation. Finally, it focuses on the relationship between controlled language and translation and, more specifically, machine translation, with particular emphasis on the rules aimed at improving translatability

Monitoring of Cadmium and Lead Accumulation in Soil-Forage-Animal Continuum in Pasture Land Irrigated with Ground Water in Bhalwal, Punjab, Pakistan

Recent study was directed to check the accumulation of Cd and Pb in pasture land treated with ground water. In particular the transfer of cadmium and lead from soil to forages and in turn to animal (buffaloes) was conducted in Bhalwal, Punjab, Pakistan which comes under sub-tropical environmental conditions. The Cd and Pb concentration in selected samples was explored by atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AA-6300 Shimadzu Japan). The results depicted the concentration of cadmium in water, soil, forages, milk and hair of buffaloes was in the range of 0. 00320 – 0.00866 mgL-1, 1.9500 to 5.3000 mg/kg, 0.300 to 0.7100 mgkg-1, 0.1033 to 0.4133 mgL-1 and 0.037 to 0.0656 mg/kg, respectively. The lead concentration was ranged from 0.004 mg/L to 1.963 mgL-1 for water, 5.960 -13.600 mg/kg for soil, 0.293 to 2.570 mg/kg for forages, 0.2166 to 6.100 mg/L for milk and 0.0206 to 0.074 mg/kg for hair samples. Various indices (BCF, PLI, EF, DIM and HRI) were examined and results presented that PLI and EF of Cd, EF and HRI for Pb was above 1 indicating that metal was causing pollution while value of BCF and DIM was below one. If exposed for an extended period of time through feed, forages with a higher Cd and Pb content may harm animal\u27s cells, create respiratory issues and have an adverse effect on the animal\u27s kidney, liver and lungs

Learning Fair Policies in Decentralized Cooperative Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning

We consider the problem of learning fair policies in (deep) cooperative multi-agent reinforcement learning (MARL). We formalize it in a principled way as the problem of optimizing a welfare function that explicitly encodes two important aspects of fairness: efficiency and equity. As a solution method, we propose a novel neural network architecture, which is composed of two sub-networks specifically designed for taking into account the two aspects of fairness. In experiments, we demonstrate the importance of the two sub-networks for fair optimization. Our overall approach is general as it can accommodate any (sub)differentiable welfare function. Therefore, it is compatible with various notions of fairness that have been proposed in the literature (e.g., lexicographic maximin, generalized Gini social welfare function, proportional fairness). Our solution method is generic and can be implemented in various MARL settings: centralized training and decentralized execution, or fully decentralized. Finally, we experimentally validate our approach in various domains and show that it can perform much better than previous methods.Comment: International Conference on Machine Learnin

Linking sustainability management and success in construction projects: Moderating influence of high performance work systems

The environmental footprint of the global construction industry has emerged as a major concern in an era of massive urbanization across the world. Drawing on the complex and under-explored role of project sustainability management (PSM) and high performance work systems (HPWS), this study investigates the moderating role of HPWS between PSM and construction project success (CPS). Using survey of 368 project professionals working in the construction industry in Pakistan, the hypothesized relationships were tested with the partial least squares based structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) technique. The study findings establish empirical support for the significant positive influence of PSM and HPWS on CPS. Moreover, the findings confirmed that HPWS positively moderates the effect of PSM on CPS. This research provides the initial evidence to confirm that PSM and HPWS are significant predictors of CPS, especially theeffects of PSM on CPS can be significantly enhanced by advancing HPWS in construction projects