Generation of Strategies for Environmental Deception in Two-Player Normal-Form Games

Methods of performing and defending against deceptive actions are a popular field of study in game theory; however, the focus is mostly on action deception in turn-based games. This work focuses on developing strategies for performing environmental deception in two-player, strategic-form games. Environmental deception is defined as deception where one player has the ability to change the other\u27s perception of the state of the game through modification of their perception of the game\u27s payoff matrix, similar to the use of camouflage. The main contributions of this research are an expansion of the definition of the stability of a Nash equilibrium to include cells outside the equilibrium, and the creation of four algorithms for developing strategies for environmental deception, including closed-form solutions for the creation of a 3x3 deceptive game with a 2x2 mixed-strategy Nash equilibrium (MSNE) that benefits the deceiver from a 3x3 game containing a 2x2 MSNE. It is found that the value gain produced by a deceptive algorithm is dependent upon the type of game to which it is applied and the maximum amount of allowable change to the payoff matrix emphasizing the importance of carefully selecting an algorithm to match the situation to which it is applied

Obesity, antenatal depression, diet and gestational weight gain in a population cohort study

PURPOSE: The aims of this paper are to examine: (1) the relationship between high pre-pregnancy BMI and antenatal depression; (2) whether BMI and antenatal depression interact to predict diet and gestational weight gain (GWG). METHODS: Data came from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). Underweight women were excluded. Pre-pregnancy BMI was self-reported and antenatal depression was assessed using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale at 18 and 32 weeks' gestation to identify persistently elevated depressive symptoms (EPDS>12). Dietary patterns were calculated from food frequency questionnaires at 32 weeks' gestation. GWG was categorised using the USA Institute of Medicine guidelines. RESULTS: This study included 13,314 pregnant women. Obese women had significantly higher odds of antenatal depression than normal weight controls after adjusting for socio-demographics and health behaviours (aOR 1.39, 95%CI 1.05-1.84). Every unit increase in pre-pregnancy BMI was associated with approximately 3% higher odds of antenatal depression (aOR 1.03, 95%CI 1.01-1.05). Antenatal depression was not meaningfully associated with dietary patterns after adjusting for confounders and was not associated with inadequate or excessive GWG. There was no evidence for an interaction of depression and BMI on either diet or GWG. CONCLUSIONS: Healthcare professionals should be aware of the dose-response relationship between high pre-pregnancy BMI and antenatal depression

Socio-economic status influences the relationship between obesity and antenatal depression: Data from a prospective cohort study

Background Obesity has been associated with increased risk of antenatal depression, but little is known about this relationship. This study tested whether socio-economic status (SES) influences the relationship between obesity and antenatal depression. Methods Data were taken from the Screening for Pregnancy Endpoints (SCOPE) cohort. BMI was calculated from measured height and weight at 15±1 weeks' gestation. Underweight women were excluded. SES was indicated by self-reported household income (dichotomised around the median: low SES ≤£45,000; high SES >£45,000). Antenatal depression was defined as scoring ≥13 on the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale at both 15±1 and 20±1 weeks' gestation, to identify persistently elevated symptoms of depression. Results Five thousand five hundred and twenty two women were included in these analyses and 5.5% had persistently elevated antenatal depression symptoms. There was a significant interaction between SES and BMI on the risk of antenatal depression (p=0.042). Among high SES women, obese women had approximately double the odds of antenatal depression than normal weight controls (AOR 2.11, 95%CI 1.16–3.83, p=0.014, adjusted for confounders). Among low SES women there was no association between obesity and antenatal depression. The interaction effect was robust to alternative indicators of SES in sensitivity analyses. Limitations 1) Antenatal depression was assessed with a self-reported screening measure; and 2) potential mediators such as stigma and poor body-image could not be examined. Conclusions Obesity was only associated with increased risk of antenatal depression among high SES women in this sample. Healthcare professionals should be aware that antenatal depression is more common among low SES women, regardless of BMI category

Associations between the built environment and physical activity in public housing residents

Background: Environmental factors may influence the particularly low rates of physical activity in African American and low-income adults. This cross-sectional study investigated how measured environmental factors were related to self-reported walking and vigorous physical activity for residents of low-income public housing developments. Methods: Physical activity data from 452 adult residents residing in 12 low-income housing developments were combined with measured environmental data that examined the neighborhood (800 m radius buffer) around each housing development. Aggregated ecological and multilevel regression models were used for analysis. Results: Participants were predominately female (72.8%), African American (79.6%) and had a high school education or more (59.0%). Overall, physical activity rates were low, with only 21% of participants meeting moderate physical activity guidelines. Ecological models showed that fewer incivilities and greater street connectivity predicted 83% of the variance in days walked per week, p < 0.001, with both gender and connectivity predicting days walked per week in the multi-level analysis, p < 0.05. Greater connectivity and fewer physical activity resources predicted 90% of the variance in meeting moderate physical activity guidelines, p < 0.001, and gender and connectivity were the multi-level predictors, p < 0.05 and 0.01, respectively. Greater resource accessibility predicted 34% of the variance in days per week of vigorous physical activity in the ecological model, p < 0.05, but the multi-level analysis found no significant predictors. Conclusion: These results indicate that the physical activity of low-income residents of public housing is related to modifiable aspects of the built environment. Individuals with greater access to more physical activity resources with few incivilities, as well as, greater street connectivity, are more likely to be physically active

Obesity, antenatal depression, diet and gestational weight gain in a population cohort study

Purpose: The aims of this paper are to examine: (1) the relationship between high pre-pregnancy BMI and antenatal depression; (2) whether BMI and antenatal depression interact to predict diet and gestational weight gain (GWG). Methods: Data came from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). Underweight women were excluded. Pre-pregnancy BMI was self-reported and antenatal depression was assessed using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale at 18 and 32 weeks’ gestation to identify persistently elevated depressive symptoms (EPDS>12). Dietary patterns were calculated from food frequency questionnaires at 32 weeks’ gestation. GWG was categorised using the USA Institute of Medicine guidelines. Results: This study included 13,314 pregnant women. Obese women had significantly higher odds of antenatal depression than normal weight controls after adjusting for sociodemographics and health behaviours (aOR 1.39, 95%CI 1.05–1.84). Every unit increase in pre-pregnancy BMI was associated with approximately 3% higher odds of antenatal depression (aOR 1.03, 95%CI 1.01-1.05). Antenatal depression was not meaningfully associated with dietary patterns after adjusting for confounders and was not associated with inadequate or excessive GWG. There was no evidence for an interaction of depression and BMI on either diet or GWG. Conclusions Healthcare professionals should be aware of the dose-response relationship between high pre-pregnancy BMI and antenatal depression

Socio-economic status influences the relationship between obesity and antenatal depression: Data from a prospective cohort study

BACKGROUND: Obesity has been associated with increased risk of antenatal depression, but little is known about this relationship. This study tested whether socio-economic status (SES) influences the relationship between obesity and antenatal depression. METHODS: Data were taken from the Screening for Pregnancy Endpoints (SCOPE) cohort. BMI was calculated from measured height and weight at 15±1 weeks' gestation. Underweight women were excluded. SES was indicated by self-reported household income (dichotomised around the median: low SES ≤£45,000; high SES >£45,000). Antenatal depression was defined as scoring ≥13 on the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale at both 15±1 and 20±1 weeks' gestation, to identify persistently elevated symptoms of depression. RESULTS: Five thousand five hundred and twenty two women were included in these analyses and 5.5% had persistently elevated antenatal depression symptoms. There was a significant interaction between SES and BMI on the risk of antenatal depression (p=0.042). Among high SES women, obese women had approximately double the odds of antenatal depression than normal weight controls (AOR 2.11, 95%CI 1.16-3.83, p=0.014, adjusted for confounders). Among low SES women there was no association between obesity and antenatal depression. The interaction effect was robust to alternative indicators of SES in sensitivity analyses. LIMITATIONS: 1) Antenatal depression was assessed with a self-reported screening measure; and 2) potential mediators such as stigma and poor body-image could not be examined. CONCLUSIONS: Obesity was only associated with increased risk of antenatal depression among high SES women in this sample. Healthcare professionals should be aware that antenatal depression is more common among low SES women, regardless of BMI category