Behavior analysis in intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) have deficits in adaptive behavior, slow rates of learning, and behavior disorders that interfere with learning or place them or others at risk. Since the 1960s, researchers and clinicians in the field of applied behavior analysis have used methods based on principles of learning to increase adaptive behavior and decrease the occurrence of behavior disorders of individuals with IDD. This article provides an overview of assessment and treatment strategies used in behavior analysis to effect positive changes in the quality of life for individuals with IDD and presents an illustrative case study. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Genetic dissection of signal transduction mediated by the sevenless receptor tyrosine kinase in Drosophila

The specification of the R7 photoreceptor cell fate in the developing eye of Drosophila depends on the local activation of the sevenless (sev) receptor tyrosine kinase by boss, a protein expressed on the membrane of the neighboring R8 cell. Constitutive activation of the sev receptor results in a dosage dependent increase in the number of R7 cells per ommatidium. Genetic screens have been used to identify mutations that alter the efficiency of signal transduction. Subsequent molecular characterization of the corresponding genes has led to the identification of a number of proteins involved in transducing the signal from the receptor to the nucleus. In contrast to the receptor and its ligand, these components are shared between different signal transduction pathways not only in Drosophila but are also homologous to components involved in signal transduction in other organisms.     

VIAN: A Visual Annotation Tool for Film Analysis

While color plays a fundamental role in film design and production, existing solutions for film analysis in the digital humanities address perceptual and spatial color information only tangentially. We introduce VIAN, a visual film annotation system centered on the semantic aspects of film color analysis. The tool enables expert‐assessed labeling, curation, visualization and Classification of color features based on their perceived context and aesthetic quality. It is the first of its kind that incorporates foreground‐background information made possible by modern deep learning segmentation methods. The proposed tool seamlessly integrates a multimedia data management system, so that films can undergo a full color‐oriented analysis pipeline.     

More problems and less support: Early adolescent adjustment forecasts changes in perceived support from parents.

This study examines longitudinal associations between adolescent adjustment and perceived parental support across the middle-school years (ages 11 to 13) in a diverse sample of 197 girls and 116 boys. Growth curve models revealed associations between the slope of change in perceptions of support in relationships with mothers and fathers and the slope of change in adolescent internalizing and externalizing symptoms such that declining support accompanied increasing problems. After controlling for this correlated change, there was still evidence of child-problem effects on changes in relationship support (i.e., initial levels of adolescent externalizing symptoms predicted subsequent changes in perceived parental support), but there was no evidence of parent-support effects on changes in adjustment (i.e., initial levels of relationship support did not predict changes in adolescent externalizing symptoms). Declines in perceived parental support were steeper at high-initial levels of adolescent externalizing than at average or low levels. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Thymus Extracellular Matrix-Derived Scaffolds Support Graft-Resident Thymopoiesis and Long-Term In Vitro Culture of Adult Thymic Epithelial Cells

The thymus provides the physiological microenvironment critical for the development of T lymphocytes, the cells that orchestrate the adaptive immune system to generate an antigen-specific response. A diverse population of stroma cells provides surface-bound and soluble molecules that orchestrate the intrathymic maturation and selection of developing T cells. Forming an intricate 3D architecture, thymic epithelial cells (TEC) represent the most abundant and important constituent of the thymic stroma. Effective models for in and ex vivo use of adult TEC are still wanting, limiting the engineering of functional thymic organoids and the understanding of the development of a competent immune system. Here a 3D scaffold is developed based on decellularized thymic tissue capable of supporting in vitro and in vivo thymopoiesis by both fetal and adult TEC. For the first time, direct evidences of feasibility for sustained graft-resident T-cell development using adult TEC as input are provided. Moreover, the scaffold supports prolonged in vitro culture of adult TEC, with a retained expression of the master regulator Foxn1. The success of engineering a thymic scaffold that sustains adult TEC function provides unprecedented opportunities to investigate thymus development and physiology and to design and implement novel strategies for thymus replacement therapies.     

Common and distinct roles of DFos and DJun during Drosophila development

The Drosophila homolog of c-Jun regulates epithelial cell shape changes during the process of dorsal closure in mid-embryogenesis. Here, mutations in the DFos gene are described. In dorsal closure, DFos cooperates with DJun by regulating the expression of dpp; Dpp acts as a relay signal that triggers cell shape changes and DFos expression in neighboring cells. In addition to the joint requirement of DFos and DJun during dorsal closure, DFos functions independently of DJun during early stages of embryogenesis. These findings demonstrate common and distinct roles of DFos and DJun during embryogenesis and suggest a conserved link between AP-1 (activating protein-1) and TGF-beta (transforming growth factor-beta) signaling during epithelial cell shape changes.     

AWSum-Combining Classi cation with Knowledge Aquisition

Many classi ers achieve high levels of accuracy but have limited applicability in real world situations because they do not lead to a greater understanding or insight into the way features in uence the classi cation. In areas such as health informatics a classi er that clearly identi es the in uences on classi cation can be used to direct research and formulate interventions. This research investigates the practical applications of Automated Weighted Sum, (AWSum), a classi er that provides accuracy comparable to other techniques whist providing insight into the data. This is achieved by calculating a weight for each feature value that represents its in uence on the class value. The merits of this approach in classi cation and insight are evaluated on a Cystic Fibrosis and Diabetes datasets with positive results.     

The great climate debate

For over two decades, scientific and political communities have debated whether and how to act on climate change. The present paper revisits these debates and synthesizes the longstanding arguments. Firstly, it provides an overview of the development of international climate policy and discusses clashing positions, represented by sceptics and supporters of action on climate change. Secondly, it discusses the market-based measures as a means to increase the win–win opportunities and to attract profit-minded investors to invest in climate change mitigation. Finally, the paper examines whether climate protection policies can yield benefits both for the environment and the economy. A new breed of analysts are identified who are convinced of the climate change problem, while remaining sceptical of the proposed solutions. The paper suggests the integration of climate policies with those of development priorities that are vitally important for developing countries and stresses the need for using sustainable development as a framework for climate change policies.     

Measurement system design for leak detection in hydraulic pressurized networks

This paper compares four sensor placement strategies which differ according to their evaluation criteria (EC). The first involves the minimisation of the expected number of candidate models, and the second is based on maximising joint entropy. The first methodology shows better results in terms of diagnostic performance. However, the second is promising due to faster execution time. The third strategy is a combination of the first two. Finally, a fourth strategy involves consideration of the cost of the sensor placement at each location in addition to the EC of the third strategy. The four strategies are evaluated in terms of performance, computational load and cost. Since there is only mild competition between the three criteria, a hierarchical multicriteria decision-making approach is employed to identify the best sensor placement strategy. Two case studies are used for illustration. The results show that the sensor placement strategies are useful for identifying optimised sensor configurations for new configurations as well as for evaluating the performance of existing sensor configurations. Using a hierarchical multicriteria decision-making technique, the fourth sensor placement strategy satisfies all criteria well, making it the best strategy.     

Speech information retrieval: a review

Speech is an information-rich component of multimedia. Information can be extracted from a speech signal in a number of different ways, and thus there are several well-established speech signal analysis research fields. These fields include speech recognition, speaker recognition, event detection, and fingerprinting. The information that can be extracted from tools and methods developed in these fields can greatly enhance multimedia systems. In this paper, we present the current state of research in each of the major speech analysis fields. The goal is to introduce enough background for someone new in the field to quickly gain high-level understanding and to provide direction for further study.