63 research outputs found

    Modeling the Role of Polysemy in Verb Categorization

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    Recent work has indicated that static word embeddings can predict human semantic categories (Majewska et al. 2021). In this paper, we consider the role of polysemy in semantic categorization, by comparing sense-level embeddings with previously studied static embeddings in their prediction of human-produced categories. We find that the polysemy is crucial for predicting human categories; sense-level embeddings dramatically outperform static embeddings in predicting semantic categories. Our findings highlight the role of polysemy in semantic categorization that is exclusively based on linguistic input

    Constructing a Buddhist-Inspired Framework for Examining Tulkus’ use of Cyberspace

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    This thesis is both, an examination of tulkus’ use of cyberspace (with a particular focus on social media); and a methodological experiment. In this thesis I construct a framework for examining tulkus’ use of social media platforms, such as: Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. However rather than using “alien” ideas to construct the framework (such as, the ideas of Virtual Reality, and telepresence), I draw on concepts and doctrines found within the Buddhist tradition. The four ideas I draw on are: nirmāṇakāya; the yamakaprātihārya; ideas surrounding presence and absence in the Buddhist tradition; and visualization meditation. The four ideas are then applied to case studies in order to demonstrate how these ideas could potentially offer a way to view tulkus’ use of cyberspace from a “Buddhist” perspective. One of the aims of this framework is to investigate the potential (from a Buddhist perspective) for cyberspace to be sacralised by the presence of a being such as a tulku, and consider how religious functions and activities seem to be carried out “in” cyberspace. This framework is also a methodological experiment. Rather than using an “off the shelf” theory I plan to construct my methodology using ideas from within the Buddhist tradition. As far as I’m aware, the method of considering material from within the tradition being studied is relatively rare. I hope that this project will demonstrate the general potential for such an approach being used more widely in academia. NB: When I submitted this thesis for examination, I was informed that I should have obscured the names of the Facebook users in the screenshots included in this work. I have done my best to rectify this problem, by obscuring all the names of the followers of the tulkus studied, and removed any reference to them by name in the body of the thesis

    Animal Tracks Northern Forest Action Pack

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    Welcome to Animal Tracks®, a classroom education program of the National Wildlife Federation focusing on teacher training and environmental education resources. In Animal Tracks materials, the animals and their tracks lead educators and students on an exploration of conservation issues. Thank you for using this Action Pack, our newest resource. We hope you find the Action Packs useful and as a \u27\u27work-in-progress,\u27\u27 we welcome any comments you might have for improvements. As you turn the page you\u27ll see our questionnaire. Please take a minute to fill it out and put it in the mail. We\u27ll include you on our mailing list and you\u27ll get invitations to any Animal Tracks educator workshops that we hold in your area as well as the latest information on Animal Tracks programs and materials. Animal Tracks Workshops are a large part of the Animal Tracks program. The Action Pack series was originally developed as our teacher training module. The workshops are designed to help teachers easily fit environmental and conservation issues into their lesson plans across the curriculum. Animal Tracks workshops emphasize learning by doing and include an interactive discussion of how to successfully incorporate action projects into learning. Animal Tracks has educator materials and information available online at http://www.nwf.orglatracks including the Water and Habitat Action Packs, Current Events Hotline, information about NWF\u27s EarthTomorrow program for Detroit area schools, Environmental Education Online Conference, Animal Tracks Workshop schedule, and Animal Tracks Online classroom activities. There are also Animal Tracks kids\u27 pages at http://www.nwf.orglnwflkids/ with our Cool Tour of the Environment, Ranger Rick site, resources in Spanish, games, and more fun. The next pages of the Action Pack are a questionnaire and an explanation about how to effectively use the Animal Tracks Action Packs. Again, we hope you find this a valuable resource and be sure to check out all the Animal Tracks Action Pack titles

    Serum profiling by MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry as a diagnostic tool for domoic acid toxicosis in California sea lions

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    <p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>There are currently no reliable markers of acute domoic acid toxicosis (DAT) for California sea lions. We investigated whether patterns of serum peptides could diagnose acute DAT. Serum peptides were analyzed by MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry from 107 sea lions (acute DAT n = 34; non-DAT n = 73). Artificial neural networks (ANN) were trained using MALDI-TOF data. Individual peaks and neural networks were qualified using an independent test set (n = 20).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>No single peak was a good classifier of acute DAT, and ANN models were the best predictors of acute DAT. Performance measures for a single median ANN were: sensitivity, 100%; specificity, 60%; positive predictive value, 71%; negative predictive value, 100%. When 101 ANNs were combined and allowed to vote for the outcome, the performance measures were: sensitivity, 30%; specificity, 100%; positive predictive value, 100%; negative predictive value, 59%.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>These results suggest that MALDI-TOF peptide profiling and neural networks can perform either as a highly sensitive (100% negative predictive value) or a highly specific (100% positive predictive value) diagnostic tool for acute DAT. This also suggests that machine learning directed by populations of predictive models offer the ability to modulate the predictive effort into a specific type of error.</p

    Analysis of shared heritability in common disorders of the brain

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    ience, this issue p. eaap8757 Structured Abstract INTRODUCTION Brain disorders may exhibit shared symptoms and substantial epidemiological comorbidity, inciting debate about their etiologic overlap. However, detailed study of phenotypes with different ages of onset, severity, and presentation poses a considerable challenge. Recently developed heritability methods allow us to accurately measure correlation of genome-wide common variant risk between two phenotypes from pools of different individuals and assess how connected they, or at least their genetic risks, are on the genomic level. We used genome-wide association data for 265,218 patients and 784,643 control participants, as well as 17 phenotypes from a total of 1,191,588 individuals, to quantify the degree of overlap for genetic risk factors of 25 common brain disorders. RATIONALE Over the past century, the classification of brain disorders has evolved to reflect the medical and scientific communities' assessments of the presumed root causes of clinical phenomena such as behavioral change, loss of motor function, or alterations of consciousness. Directly observable phenomena (such as the presence of emboli, protein tangles, or unusual electrical activity patterns) generally define and separate neurological disorders from psychiatric disorders. Understanding the genetic underpinnings and categorical distinctions for brain disorders and related phenotypes may inform the search for their biological mechanisms. RESULTS Common variant risk for psychiatric disorders was shown to correlate significantly, especially among attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder (MDD), and schizophrenia. By contrast, neurological disorders appear more distinct from one another and from the psychiatric disorders, except for migraine, which was significantly correlated to ADHD, MDD, and Tourette syndrome. We demonstrate that, in the general population, the personality trait neuroticism is significantly correlated with almost every psychiatric disorder and migraine. We also identify significant genetic sharing between disorders and early life cognitive measures (e.g., years of education and college attainment) in the general population, demonstrating positive correlation with several psychiatric disorders (e.g., anorexia nervosa and bipolar disorder) and negative correlation with several neurological phenotypes (e.g., Alzheimer's disease and ischemic stroke), even though the latter are considered to result from specific processes that occur later in life. Extensive simulations were also performed to inform how statistical power, diagnostic misclassification, and phenotypic heterogeneity influence genetic correlations. CONCLUSION The high degree of genetic correlation among many of the psychiatric disorders adds further evidence that their current clinical boundaries do not reflect distinct underlying pathogenic processes, at least on the genetic level. This suggests a deeply interconnected nature for psychiatric disorders, in contrast to neurological disorders, and underscores the need to refine psychiatric diagnostics. Genetically informed analyses may provide important "scaffolding" to support such restructuring of psychiatric nosology, which likely requires incorporating many levels of information. By contrast, we find limited evidence for widespread common genetic risk sharing among neurological disorders or across neurological and psychiatric disorders. We show that both psychiatric and neurological disorders have robust correlations with cognitive and personality measures. Further study is needed to evaluate whether overlapping genetic contributions to psychiatric pathology may influence treatment choices. Ultimately, such developments may pave the way toward reduced heterogeneity and improved diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric disorders

    The Effects of Cognitive Style and Degree of Familiarity on Belief in Supernatural Events in Religious Stories

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    Two studies assessed whether individual differences in cognitive style, familiarity with religious content, or the inclusion of supernatural details in religious stories had any effect on individual religious beliefs. Two scales intended to indentify individual differences in the need for cognition and the need for cognitive closure were used to cognitive style. Three different types of religious beliefs were measured by Hunt’s (1972) Literal, Anti-literal, Metaphorical religious belief scale and also by a similar scale that measured participants’ belief in actual Biblical stories. The Bible stories manipulated to include either familiar or unfamiliar details as well as supernatural natural details. Participants revealed higher metaphorical religious beliefs in unfamiliar Bible stories and higher literal religious beliefs in familiar Bible stories
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