133 research outputs found
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Lexical databases for computational analyses: A linguistic perspective
Large typological databases have permitted new ways of studying cross-linguistic morphological variation. Recently, computational modelers with typological interests have begun to turn to broad multilingual text databases. In this paper, we will focus particularly on the UniMorph database, a collection of morphological paradigms, mostly gathered automatically from the crowd-sourced multi-lingual dictionary Wiktionary. It was designed to make the large quantity of data contained in Wiktionary available for NLP researchers by standardizing the data and putting it into a form that is easy to access. For typological studies, however, the requirements for a linguistically informed view of morphological variation are quite different. They involve using a morphological database as a scientific instrument to both formulate and test hypotheses about the nature and organization of language systems. The requirements are, accordingly, much higher. In this paper, we survey some of the methodological challenges and pitfalls involved in using corpora for typological research, and we end with a proposal for best practices and directions for further research
Antidepressants for treating depression in dementia
BackgroundThe use of antidepressants in dementia accompanied by depressive symptoms is widespread, but their clinical efficacy is uncertain. This review updates an earlier version, first published in 2002.ObjectivesTo determine the efficacy and safety of any type of antidepressant for patients who have been diagnosed as having dementia of any type and depression as defined by recognised criteria.Search methodsWe searched ALOIS, the Cochrane Dementia and Cognitive Improvement Groupâs Specialised Register, on 16 August 2017. ALOIS contains information on trials retrieved from databases and from a number of trial registers and grey literature sources.Selection criteriaWe included all relevant doubleâblind, randomised trials comparing any antidepressant drug with placebo, for patients diagnosed as having dementia and depression.Data collection and analysisTwo review authors selected studies for inclusion and extracted data independently. We assessed risk of bias in the included studies using the Cochrane 'Risk of bias' tool. Where clinically appropriate, we pooled data for treatment periods up to three months and from three to nine months. We used GRADE methods to assess the overall quality of the evidence.Main resultsWe included ten studies with a total of 1592 patients. Eight included studies reported sufficiently detailed results to enter into analyses related to antidepressant efficacy. We split one study which included two different antidepressants and therefore had nine groups of patients treated with antidepressants compared with nine groups receiving placebo treatment. Information needed to make 'Risk of bias' judgements was often missing.We found highâquality evidence of little or no difference in scores on depression symptom rating scales between the antidepressant and placebo treated groups after 6 to 13 weeks (standardised mean difference (SMD) â0.10, 95% confidence interval (CI) â0.26 to 0.06; 614 participants; 8 studies). There was probably also little or no difference between groups after six to nine months (mean difference (MD) 0.59 point, 95% CI â1.12 to 2.3, 357 participants; 2 studies; moderateâquality evidence). The evidence on response rates at 12 weeks was of low quality, and imprecision in the result meant we were uncertain of any effect of antidepressants (antidepressant: 49.1%, placebo: 37.7%; odds ratio (OR) 1.71, 95% CI 0.80 to 3.67; 116 participants; 3 studies). However, the remission rate was probably higher in the antidepressant group than the placebo group (antidepressant: 40%, placebo: 21.7%; OR 2.57, 95% CI 1.44 to 4.59; 240 participants; 4 studies; moderateâquality evidence). The largest of these studies continued for another 12 weeks, but because of imprecision of the result we could not be sure of any effect of antidepressants on remission rates after 24 weeks. There was evidence of no effect of antidepressants on performance of activities of daily living at weeks 6 to 13 (SMD â0.05, 95% CI â0.36 to 0.25; 173 participants; 4 studies; highâquality evidence) and probably also little or no effect on cognition (MD 0.33 point on the MiniâMental State Examination, 95% CI â1.31 to 1.96; 194 participants; 6 studies; moderateâquality evidence).Participants on antidepressants were probably more likely to drop out of treatment than those on placebo over 6 to 13 weeks (OR 1.51, 95% CI 1.07 to 2.14; 836 participants; 9 studies). The metaâanalysis of the number of participants suffering at least one adverse event showed a significant difference in favour of placebo (antidepressant: 49.2%, placebo: 38.4%; OR 1.55, 95% CI 1.21 to 1.98, 1073 participants; 3 studies), as did the analyses for participants suffering one event of dry mouth (antidepressant: 19.6%, placebo: 13.3%; OR 1.80, 95% CI 1.23 to 2.63, 1044 participants; 5 studies), and one event of dizziness (antidepressant: 19.2%, placebo: 12.5%; OR 2.00, 95% CI 1.34 to 2.98, 1044 participants; 5 studies). Heterogeneity in the way adverse events were reported in studies presented a major difficulty for metaâanalysis, but there was some evidence that antidepressant treatment causes more adverse effects than placebo treatment does.Authors' conclusionsThe available evidence is of variable quality and does not provide strong support for the efficacy of antidepressants for treating depression in dementia, especially beyond 12 weeks. On the only measure of efficacy for which we had highâquality evidence (depression rating scale scores), antidepressants showed little or no effect. The evidence on remission rates favoured antidepressants but was of moderate quality, so future research may find a different result. There was insufficient evidence to draw conclusions about individual antidepressant drugs or about subtypes of dementia or depression. There is some evidence that antidepressant treatment may cause adverse events
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The effects of temperature and food availability on energy partitioning and growth in the pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas (Thunberg)
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Coastal and Ocean Sciences at Oregon State University
The purpose of this report is to document the depth and breadth of research, education, and outreach activities in coastal and ocean sciences at Oregon State University. The scale and diversity of those activities are not well known outside of OSU, and in fact they are significantly underestimated, even by the faculty, staff, and students of the university. The report shows that relevant teaching and research activities are widely distributed among
several colleges, departments, centers, institutes, and programs, both on and off campus. The broad distribution of the activities among 9 of OSUâs 11 colleges is a testament to its multidisciplinary nature, but it could also be the primary reason that OSUâs remarkable capabilities have never been fully inventoried and reported
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Food consumption and growth of the larvae of the Pacific oyster (Crassostrea gigas)
The food consumption and growth of Pacific oyster larvae were studied in three experiments making use of a constant flow apparatus. The apparatus maintained a continuous flow of various densities of
algae through test chambers containing different numbers of larvae in a factorial design. Three additional experiments were conducted in which a flow of algae was not used. These standing water experiments were conducted to study the effects of temperature, larval size, and algal density
on the food consumption rate of oyster larvae. Dichromate wet oxidations were conducted on samples of oyster larvae to establish the relationship between shell length and caloric content of the larvae. These data were used to estimate the total
caloric content of test populations of larvae. The constant flow experiments showed that larval growth rates increased as the density of algae flowing into the test chambers increased up to an optimum density. Subsequent increases in algal inflow density caused the larval growth rate to decline.
Larval food consumption in the three standing water experiments was measured as cells consumed per larva per hour and as an instantaneous coefficient of food consumption called grazing rate. Grazing rate is essentially a measure of the proportion of the algal population that is removed by the larvae. The standing water experiments showed that larval food consumption increased rapidly with increases in temperature from 10°C to 24°C. Grazing rate more than doubled with each increase of 5°C. In other experiments, the grazing rate of Pacific oyster larvae was found to increase exponentially with increases in larval shell length and linearly with increases in the caloric content per larva. A third experiment showed that larval grazing rate was inversely related to algal density (i. e. , grazing rate declined with increased algal density).
The number of algal cells consumed per larva per hour, on the other hand, was found to be directly related to the algal density. The possible application of a constant flow feeding system to an oyster hatchery is discussed
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Hatchery manual for the Pacific oyster
Published December 1975. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalo
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Intensive culture of the Pacific oyster, Crassostrea gigas (Thunberg), in heated effluents
Published November 1978. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalo
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