A fine grained heuristic to capture web navigation patterns

In previous work we have proposed a statistical model to capture the user behaviour when browsing the web. The user navigation information obtained from web logs is modelled as a hypertext probabilistic grammar (HPG) which is within the class of regular probabilistic grammars. The set of highest probability strings generated by the grammar corresponds to the user preferred navigation trails. We have previously conducted experiments with a Breadth-First Search algorithm (BFS) to perform the exhaustive computation of all the strings with probability above a specified cut-point, which we call the rules. Although the algorithm’s running time varies linearly with the number of grammar states, it has the drawbacks of returning a large number of rules when the cut-point is small and a small set of very short rules when the cut-point is high. In this work, we present a new heuristic that implements an iterative deepening search wherein the set of rules is incrementally augmented by first exploring trails with high probability. A stopping parameter is provided which measures the distance between the current rule-set and its corresponding maximal set obtained by the BFS algorithm. When the stopping parameter takes the value zero the heuristic corresponds to the BFS algorithm and as the parameter takes values closer to one the number of rules obtained decreases accordingly. Experiments were conducted with both real and synthetic data and the results show that for a given cut-point the number of rules induced increases smoothly with the decrease of the stopping criterion. Therefore, by setting the value of the stopping criterion the analyst can determine the number and quality of rules to be induced; the quality of a rule is measured by both its length and probability

Effects of chlorantraniliprole and thiamethoxam rice seed treatments on egg numbers and first instar survival of Lissorhoptrus oryzophilus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)

Effects of treatment of rice seeds with an anthranilic diamide, chlorantraniliprole, and a neonicotinoid, thiamethoxam, on egg laying and first instar survival in rice water weevil, Lissorhoptrus oryzophilus Kuschel, were examined under greenhouse conditions. Exposure of adult weevils to rice (6-7 leaf stage) grown from seeds treated with chlorantraniliprole and thiamethoxam resulted in reduction in numbers of eggs and first instars. The low egg numbers by adults exposed to chlorantraniliprole-treated plants was confirmed as a sublethal effect on adults: adult survival was not impacted after 4 d of feeding on foliage from chlorantraniliprole-treated plants but the number of eggs laid by these weevils was reduced when released on untreated plants. Furthermore, a comparison of first instar emergence from chlorantraniliprole-treated plants and from untreated plants infested with weevils previously exposed to this chemical suggested that chlorantraniliprole was also reducing egg or first instar survival. In contrast, adults that fed on foliage from thiamethoxam-treated plants showed increased mortality. Possible sublethal effects of thiamethoxam on the number of eggs laid by adults were investigated by infesting untreated plants with weevils that survived exposure to thiamethoxam via foliar feeding (7 μg active ingredient / seed). Prior exposure to thiamethoxam through adult feeding reduced egg numbers. However, potential larvicidal or ovicidal effects of thiamethoxam seed treatments could not be detected in this study because of low first instar emergence from both thiamethoxam-treated plants and from untreated plants infested with weevils previously exposed to this chemical. These experiments revealed that the two seed treatments accomplish weevil control in different ways. © 2013 Entomological Society of America

Effect of protein/essential amino acids and resistance training on skeletal muscle hypertrophy: A case for whey protein

Regardless of age or gender, resistance training or provision of adequate amounts of dietary protein (PRO) or essential amino acids (EAA) can increase muscle protein synthesis (MPS) in healthy adults. Combined PRO or EAA ingestion proximal to resistance training, however, can augment the post-exercise MPS response and has been shown to elicit a greater anabolic effect than exercise plus carbohydrate. Unfortunately, chronic/adaptive response data comparing the effects of different protein sources is limited. A growing body of evidence does, however, suggest that dairy PRO, and whey in particular may: 1) stimulate the greatest rise in MPS, 2) result in greater muscle cross-sectional area when combined with chronic resistance training, and 3) at least in younger individuals, enhance exercise recovery. Therefore, this review will focus on whey protein supplementation and its effects on skeletal muscle mass when combined with heavy resistance training.peerReviewe

Colorimetric Redox Reactions to Determine Base Composition in Unknown Monomeric DNA Samples

Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) codes for proteins using a unique order of four major nitrogenous bases adenine, thymine, cytosine, and guanine. In several biological applications, such as the determination of DNA stability, production of biologic based drugs, and even taxonomic reorganization of species, it becomes necessary to understand the relative amounts of each nucleotide in a DNA sample, regardless of their sequence. However, most assays used to determine base composition use expensive equipment, harsh chemicals, and advanced computer software. In addition, the determination of base composition is an important educational tool in undergraduate laboratories, but these limitations are infeasible for many institutions. Therefore, our research focus is to develop an easier, safer, and faster base composition assay.https://scholarworks.moreheadstate.edu/celebration_posters_2023/1011/thumbnail.jp

Failure to Filter: Anxious Individuals Show Inefficient Gating of Threat from Working Memory

Dispositional anxiety is a well-established risk factor for the development of psychiatric disorders along the internalizing spectrum,including anxiety and depression. Importantly, many of the maladaptive behaviors characteristic of anxiety, such as anticipatory apprehension, occur when threat is absent.This raises the possibility that anxious individuals are less efficient at gating threat’s access to working memory, a limited capacity work space where information is actively retained, manipulated, and used to flexibly guide goal-directed behavior when it is no longer present in the external environment. Using a well-validated neurophysiological index of working memory storage, we demonstrate that threat-related distracters were difficult to filter on average and that this difficulty was exaggerated among anxious individuals. These results indicate that dispositionally anxious individuals allocate excessive working memory storage to threat,even when it is irrelevant to the task at hand. More broadly,these results provide a novel framework for understanding the maladaptive thoughts and actions characteristic of internalizing disorders

Bostonia: The Boston University Alumni Magazine. Volume 29

Founded in 1900, Bostonia magazine is Boston University's main alumni publication, which covers alumni and student life, as well as university activities, events, and programs

Critical temperature of a fully anisotropic three-dimensional Ising model

The critical temperature of a three-dimensional Ising model on a simple cubic lattice with different coupling strengths along all three spatial directions is calculated via the transfer matrix method and a finite size scaling for L x L oo clusters (L=2 and 3). The results obtained are compared with available calculations. An exact analytical solution is found for the 2 x 2 oo Ising chain with fully anisotropic interactions (arbitrary J_x, J_y and J_z).Comment: 17 pages in tex using preprint.sty for IOP journals, no figure

Intelligent sampling for the measurement of structured surfaces

Uniform sampling in metrology has known drawbacks such as coherent spectral aliasing and a lack of efficiency in terms of measuring time and data storage. The requirement for intelligent sampling strategies has been outlined over recent years, particularly where the measurement of structured surfaces is concerned. Most of the present research on intelligent sampling has focused on dimensional metrology using coordinate-measuring machines with little reported on the area of surface metrology. In the research reported here, potential intelligent sampling strategies for surface topography measurement of structured surfaces are investigated by using numerical simulation and experimental verification. The methods include the jittered uniform method, low-discrepancy pattern sampling and several adaptive methods which originate from computer graphics, coordinate metrology and previous research by the authors. By combining the use of advanced reconstruction methods and feature-based characterization techniques, the measurement performance of the sampling methods is studied using case studies. The advantages, stability and feasibility of these techniques for practical measurements are discussed