Graph-based approaches to word sense induction

This thesis is a study of Word Sense Induction (WSI), the Natural Language Processing (NLP) task of automatically discovering word meanings from text. WSI is an open problem in NLP whose solution would be of considerable benefit to many other NLP tasks. It has, however, has been studied by relatively few NLP researchers and often in set ways. Scope therefore exists to apply novel methods to the problem, methods that may improve upon those previously applied. This thesis applies a graph-theoretic approach to WSI. In this approach, word senses are identifed by finding particular types of subgraphs in word co-occurrence graphs. A number of original methods for constructing, analysing, and partitioning graphs are introduced, with these methods then incorporated into graphbased WSI systems. These systems are then shown, in a variety of evaluation scenarios, to return results that are comparable to those of the current best performing WSI systems. The main contributions of the thesis are a novel parameter-free soft clustering algorithm that runs in time linear in the number of edges in the input graph, and novel generalisations of the clustering coeficient (a measure of vertex cohesion in graphs) to the weighted case. Further contributions of the thesis include: a review of graph-based WSI systems that have been proposed in the literature; analysis of the methodologies applied in these systems; analysis of the metrics used to evaluate WSI systems, and empirical evidence to verify the usefulness of each novel method introduced in the thesis for inducing word senses

Attentional Focus and Causal Attributions in Social Phobia: Implications from Social Psychology

This article reviews the social psychological literature on attentional focus and causal attributions as they apply to social phobia. Excessive self-focused attention is increased by physiological arousal, interferes with task performance under some conditions, increases the probability of internal attributions, and intensifies emotional reactions. Social anxiety is also associated with a reversal of the self-serving bias for causal attributions. Implications of these findings for the maintenance and treatment of social phobia are discussed

Variation in performance on common content items at UK medical schools

Background: Due to differing assessment systems across UK medical schools, making meaningful cross-school comparisons on undergraduate students’ performance in knowledge tests is difficult. Ahead of the introduction of a national licensing assessment in the UK, we evaluate schools’ performances on a shared pool of “common content” knowledge test items to compare candidates at different schools and evaluate whether they would pass under different standard setting regimes. Such information can then help develop a cross-school consensus on standard setting shared content. Methods: We undertook a cross-sectional study in the academic sessions 2016-17 and 2017-18. Sixty “best of five” multiple choice ‘common content’ items were delivered each year, with five used in both years. In 2016-17 30 (of 31 eligible) medical schools undertook a mean of 52.6 items with 7,177 participants. In 2017-18 the same 30 medical schools undertook a mean of 52.8 items with 7,165 participants, creating a full sample of 14,342 medical students sitting common content prior to graduation. Using mean scores, we compared performance across items and carried out a “like-for-like” comparison of schools who used the same set of items then modelled the impact of different passing standards on these schools. Results: Schools varied substantially on candidate total score. Schools differed in their performance with large (Cohen’s d around 1) effects. A passing standard that would see 5 % of candidates at high scoring schools fail left low-scoring schools with fail rates of up to 40 %, whereas a passing standard that would see 5 % of candidates at low scoring schools fail would see virtually no candidates from high scoring schools fail. Conclusions: Candidates at different schools exhibited significant differences in scores in two separate sittings. Performance varied by enough that standards that produce realistic fail rates in one medical school may produce substantially different pass rates in other medical schools – despite identical content and the candidates being governed by the same regulator. Regardless of which hypothetical standards are “correct” as judged by experts, large institutional differences in pass rates must be explored and understood by medical educators before shared standards are applied. The study results can assist cross-school groups in developing a consensus on standard setting future licensing assessment

A practical and informative sandpiper monitoring procedure for the Salish Sea

The Salish Sea contains important sites for shorebirds, including migrants and winter residents. There is a need for practical, informative and easily-applied monitoring procedures and goals. Counts at stopover sites are on their own uninformative, because they are strongly affected by factors unseen by local observers. A fall in the usage of a site might signal a global population decline, but could also be due to a reduction of that site’s quality, to an increase in site quality elsewhere such that some birds redistribute, or to changes in migratory behavior. A good framework for assessing the health of shorebird populations must encompass these alternatives. We propose a monitoring method that focusses on Pacific dunlins, the most widespread and common winter resident shorebird in the Salish Sea. The method combines a mid-winter count (Audubon Christmas Bird Count), mapping to measure the size and danger of individual sites, and a behavioral assay. Analyses of range-wide CBC counts of Pacific dunlins 1975 – 2010 give an overall demographic picture showing strong fluctuations. These data also show that the population redistributes somewhat each year, in a way that balances starvation risk and predation danger across sites. Behavioral assays give an index of how much risk shorebirds take at each site to attain requirements. We describe possible assay procedures, and how combinations of census, site attributes and measures of risk-taking at a number of sites relate to local and global changes. Our method will help ecologists and natural resource managers assess whether census changes are local, regional or global, and to diagnose the underlying causes. We also discuss how these measures might be used to measure the effectiveness of estuarine restoration projects from the shorebird point of view

Efficacy of a Manualized and Workbook-Driven Individual Treatment for Social Anxiety Disorder

Social anxiety disorder is a prevalent and impairing disorder for which viable cognitive-behavioral therapies exist. However, these treatments have not been easily packaged for dissemination and may be underutilized as a result. The current study reports on the findings of a randomized controlled trial of a manualized and workbook-driven individual cognitive-behavioral treatment for social anxiety disorder (Hope, Heimberg, Juster, & Turk, 2000; Hope, Heimberg, & Turk, 2006). This treatment package was derived from an empirically supported group treatment for social anxiety disorder and intended for broad dissemination, but it has not previously been subjected to empirical examination on its own. As a first step in that examination, 38 clients seeking treatment for social anxiety disorder at either the Adult Anxiety Clinic of Temple University or the Anxiety Disorders Clinic of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln were randomly assigned to receive either immediate treatment with this cognitive-behavioral treatment package or treatment delayed for 20 weeks. Evaluation at the posttreatment/postdelay period revealed substantially greater improvements among immediate treatment clients on interviewer-rated and self-report measures of social anxiety and impairment. Three-month follow-up assessment revealed maintenance of gains. Clinical implications and directions for future research are discussed

The Grizzly, March 22, 1994

Public Not Pleased with Health Care Proposal • Tax-Exempt Status Challenged • J-Board Issues Punishment for Illegal Pledging Activity • U.S.G.A. Minutes • Letter to the Senior Class • Students Respond to Editor\u27s View on Pledging • Editor Clarifies Position • Awareness Needed • Investigative Team Responds • The Madness is Here: Update on the NCAA Tournament • Track & Field to Begin Seasonhttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/grizzlynews/1333/thumbnail.jp

The Grizzly, October 27, 1992

UC Helping Out • Ursinus Welcomes David • John Cafferty Coming to UC • Looking Forward, Not Inward • Halloween Party • Where They Stand • Delta Pi and Phi Psi Scare Collegeville Kids • Character is an Issue • Letters to the Editor: On Campus Safety; We Can\u27t Ignore Pain and Suffering • The Need for a Coffeehouse • Football Makes it Two in a Rowhttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/grizzlynews/1302/thumbnail.jp

The Grizzly, December 8, 1992

Gomez Speaks on Gildah Stories • Wellness Center Confusion • Greek Service Projects • How To Handle Holiday Dysfunction • Senior Profile: Tina Moukoulis • Wismer\u27s Christmas Dinner • Russian Rock With Yuri • Exam Schedule • Standards • A Lack of Preventive Aid • Letters: Greetings from France; Response to Disabled Accessibility • UC Snaps Losing Steak; Picks Up Three Wins • Lady Bears Recaphttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/grizzlynews/1307/thumbnail.jp

The Grizzly, February 1, 1994

Ursinus Begins Celebration of 125th Anniversary • Group Formed to Study Pledging • Stevens Speaks Against Hazing • Ursinus Mourns Loss of Professor • Clinton Delivers State of the Union • Airband is Coming! • Rodent Mutiny and Other Ursinus Hazards • Lost in a Computer World • Ursinus Open, Weather or Not • The Exchange Continues • A Year of Milestones • Muleya Named Head Soccer Coachhttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/grizzlynews/1328/thumbnail.jp