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Investigating idiomaticity in word representations
Get PDFIdiomatic expressions are an integral part of human languages, often used to express complex ideas in compressed or conventional ways (e.g., eager beaver as a keen and enthusiastic person). However, their interpretations may not be straightforwardly linked to the meanings of their individual components in isolation and this may have an impact for compositional approaches. In this article, we investigate to what extent word representation models are able to go beyond compositional word combinations and capture multiword expression idiomaticity and some of the expected properties related to idiomatic meanings. We focus on noun compounds of varying levels of idiomaticity in two languages (English and Portuguese), presenting a dataset of minimal pairs containing human idiomaticity judgments for each noun compound at both type and token levels, their paraphrases and their occurrences in naturalistic and sense-neutral contexts, totalling 32,200 sentences. We propose this set of minimal pairs for evaluating how well a model captures idiomatic meanings, and define a set of fine-grained metrics of Affinity and Scaled Similarity, to determine how sensitive the models are to perturbations that may lead to changes in idiomaticity. Affinity is a comparative measure of the similarity between an experimental item, a target and a potential distractor, and Scaled Similarity incorporates a rescaling factor to magnify the meaningful similarities within the spaces defined by each specific model. The results obtained with a variety of representative and widely used models indicate that, despite superficial indications to the contrary in the form of high similarities, idiomaticity is not yet accurately represented in current models. Moreover, the performance of models with different levels of contextualization suggests that their ability to capture context is not yet able to go beyond more superficial lexical clues provided by the words and to actually incorporate the relevant semantic clues needed for idiomaticity. By proposing model-agnostic measures for assessing the ability of models to capture idiomaticity, this article contributes to determining limitations in the handling of non-compositional structures, which is one of the directions that needs to be considered for more natural, accurate, and robust language understanding. The source code and additional materials related to this paper are available at our GitHub repository.
Actions and feelings in sync: exploring the relationship between synchrony and empathy in children’s dyadic musical interactions
Get PDFIntroduction: This study investigated the relationship between interpersonal synchrony and empathy in children’s music-making. Drawing from a theoretical framework that suggests a bidirectional relationship between synchrony and empathy, the study examined three key aspects of this relationship: (1) the role of children’s trait empathy in achieving interpersonal synchrony; (2) synchrony’s effects on empathy following brief musical interactions; and (3) the role of experimentally induced empathy in moderating the social bonding effects of synchrony.
Methods: Seventy-two pairs of primary school children participated in two experiments. The first involved free tapping, where participants were instructed to synchronize with one another. In the second experiment, synchrony was manipulated, using an apparatus that either facilitated or disrupted synchrony within pairs. Prior to this task, half of the pairs received a false message about their partner, intended to induce empathy. Trait empathy and social bonding were assessed via self-reported questionnaires.
Results: Findings revealed that cognitive and affective trait empathy related to children’s ability to synchronize with one another, particularly when participants’ temporal performance was unstable (Aspect 1). In addition, brief synchronous musical interactions were found to promote empathy within pairs (Aspect 2). Our method to experimentally induce empathy was not sufficient to influence the social bonding effects of synchrony (Aspect 3). However, trait empathy, pairs’ gender composition and familiarity between children emerged as factors affecting the attainment of synchrony and the bonding experience of music-making.
Discussion: This is the first empirical study investigating multiple aspects of the interplay between synchronizing and empathizing in children, paving the way for future exploration of the mechanisms allowing for a bidirectional relationship. The study outcomes can inform musical interventions leveraging this relationship to nurture children’s simultaneous musical and social development
Exploration of the factor structure of the Physical Symptoms Questionnaire (PSQ-51). Comparisons between Dutch and English samples
Get PDFThe centrality of energy transition: New global shifts and old realities for sub-Saharan Africa
Get PDFThis article develops a new understanding of energy transition through a qualitative historical analysis of the links between ‘so-called’ global transition and histories of colonialism and capitalism in the sub-Saharan Africa. Drawing from 52 energy transition materials centered on Africa, the article critiques dominant emphasis on global transitions and proposes a multiplicity of transitions from a justice and African perspective and proposes an alternative dialogue that leverages national and regional experiences. We find that drivers of energy transition centre on capital pools and financial concentration and energy supply chains but that these ignore possible plurality of transitions – which is crucial for delivering just transitions – but plentiful evidence also exist showing that this misaligns with national visions and socio-economic and political realities. The paper shows how the current framings of energy transition contradict and are misaligned with national conditions that shape realities and possibilities. As a result, new global shifts in energy architecture, we argue, produces old socio-economic and political realities in the way the sub-Saharan Africa is being integrated in the energy transition. Thus, rather than present energy transition as a new dawn for structural transformation across the sub-region, the current structure and organisation of the transition presents historical continuities of dispossession where social formations are marginalised. We conclude that instead of portraying energy transition as a global phenomenon, emphasis should be placed on the multiplicity of transitions based on historiies of colonialism and neoliberal capitalism. A variety of policy angles that can shape transitions and expansion of renewable energy sources in the region are discussed from an African perspective
Quantifying, Understanding and Enhancing Relational Continuity of Care (QUERCC):a mixed-methods protocol
Get PDFINTRODUCTION: Relational continuity of care is where patients see the same clinicians over time. Evidence suggests relational continuity of care is valued by patients and clinicians and results in better health. While current National Health Service policy aims to maintain relational continuity of care, it has been declining in recent years, which may be linked to the growth in practice size, increased staff turnover, part-time working and the focus on patient access. Our research aims to develop resources to help clinicians measure, manage and improve relational continuity of care. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: A mixed-methods approach in UK primary care commencing with two workshops drawing patients, clinicians and researchers together to establish an agreed approach on the measurement of continuity of care. Second, analysis of national data will provide insight into how staff turnover, part time working, practice size and funding per patient affects continuity. Third, case studies in a sample of high-performing practices will document the barriers and facilitators to the establishment and maintenance of continuity of care. Fourth, an economic analysis of resource costs and health outcomes using linked primary and secondary care data will show whether costs influence continuity for different patient groups (by age, sex, deprivation status and chronic disease status). Fifth, we will develop practical guidance for clinicians to improve continuity of care, based on the findings from each stage of the research. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The study has approval from HRA Health and Care Research Wales Research Ethics Committee (HCRW). Findings will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications, participatory workshops, podcasts, clinical networks and academic conferences
Role of a single MCP in evolutionary adaptation of Shewanella putrefaciens for swimming in planktonic and structured environments
Get PDFBacteria can adapt to their environments by changing phenotypic traits by mutations. However, improving one trait often results in the deterioration of another one, a trade-off that limits the degree of adaptation. The gammaproteobacterium Shewanella putrefaciens CN-32 has an elaborate motility machinery comprising two distinct flagellar systems and an extensive chemotaxis array with 36 methyl-accepting chemotaxis sensor proteins (MCPs). In this study, we performed experimental selection on S. putrefaciens for increased spreading through a porous environment. We readily obtained a mutant that showed a pronounced increase in covered distance. This phenotype was almost completely caused by a deletion of 24 bp from the chromosome, which leads to a moderately enhanced production of a single MCP. Accordingly, chemotaxis assays under free-swimming conditions and cell tracking in soft agar showed that the mutation improved navigation through nutritional gradients. In contrast, further increased levels of the MCP negatively affected spreading. The study demonstrates how moderate differences in the abundance of a single MCP can lead to an efficient upgrade of chemotaxis in specific environments at a low expense of cellular resources.IMPORTANCEExperimental evolution experiments have been used to determine the trade-offs occurring in specific environments. Several studies that have used the spreading behavior of bacteria in structured environments identified regulatory mutants that increase the swimming speed of the cells. While this results in a higher chemotaxis drift, the growth fitness decreases as the higher swimming speed requires substantial cellular resources. Here we show that rapid chemotaxis adaptation can also be achieved by modifying the chemotaxis signal input at a low metabolic cost for the cell
Relationship investigation between quantitative cellular information and self-acceleration of lean hydrogen-air spherical premixed flame
Get PDFDue to the high diffusivity of hydrogen molecules, lean hydrogen-air premixed flames are more prone to cellular instability during combustion. This instability is known to often lead to self-acceleration of flame propagation, with the flame speed closely related to the cellular area on its surface. In this study, the relationship between quantitative cellular information and self-acceleration of lean hydrogen-air premixed spherically expanding flames was systematically analyzed under various initial temperatures. The focus was on equivalence ratios of 0.4, 0.5, and 0.6, with initial temperatures set at 300 K, 360 K, and 400 K. Quantitative cellular information, including cell number, two- and three-dimensional average cell area, and total cellular flame area, was obtained using an in-house developed image processing program. Based on these quantitative data, the ratio of cellular flame surface area to laminar flame surface area was calculated, and the fractal dimension of the flame front along with the flame self-acceleration exponent was derived. Results indicate that with increasing equivalence ratio and initial temperature, the onset of cellular instability is delayed, while the self-acceleration exponent gradually increases with flame propagation, eventually stabilizing in the range of 1.2–1.4 after full cellularization. Under leaner conditions and lower initial temperatures, flames exhibited a higher self-acceleration exponent. The self-acceleration exponent obtained from the 3D-reconstructed cellular flame area offers a new perspective for developing accurate models of self-accelerating spherically cellular flame propagation, with significant potential applications in hydrogen combustion and explosion safety
The spatial potential for agrivoltaics to address energy-agriculture land use conflicts in Great Britain
Get PDFGround-mounted solar parks provide much needed low-carbon electricity, but their development is increasingly conflicting with other land uses, such as agriculture, and their visual intrusion on agricultural landscapes and possible impact on food production is causing increasing public concern. Agrivoltaics has been proven across Europe to produce food and electricity concomitantly, but its potential to alleviate land use conflicts in Great Britain is yet to be explored. This study quantifies the extent that existing solar parks overlap with different grades of agricultural land, and forecasts where PV-agriculture land use conflicts may occur in the future. Where agrivoltaics could alleviate these conflicts is determined based on expert stakeholder insights, revealing that this technology could theoretically generate 338 TWh/year while maintaining outputs from 20,272 km2 of high-grade farmland. Some agrivoltaic designs reduce evaporative water loss, and this study highlights where this would be beneficial for regions facing water scarcity. The spatial suitability of different cropland classifications is also shown. This study provides the first spatial assessment of the potential for large scale PV infrastructure to be developed in synergy rather than in conflict with agriculture in Great Britain
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