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Developmental changes in the perceived moral standing of robots
Get PDFEmerging evidence suggests that children may think of robots—and artificial intelligence, more generally—as having moral standing. In this paper, we trace the developmental trajectory of this belief. Over three developmental studies (combined N = 415) and one adult study (N = 156), we compared participants' judgments (Experiments 1–3) and donation choices (Experiment 4) towards a human boy, a humanoid robot, and control targets. We observed that, on the whole, children endorsed robots as having moral standing and mental life. With age, however, they tended to deny experiential mental life to robots, which aligned with diminished ascription of moral standing. Older children's judgments more closely mirrored those of adult participants, who overwhelmingly denied these attributes to robots. This sheds new light on children's moral cognitive development and their relationship to emerging technologies
Young adults’ perspectives on sex education at school in Scotland
No full textThere is a wealth of evidence on the benefits to young people’s health and academic achievement from timely, good-quality sex education. Conversely, sex education that is poor or too late poses risks to mental and physical health. This small-scale qualitative study set in Scotland used semi-structured questionnaires to ask 48 young adults to reflect on the sex education that they received at school and to consider its usefulness to their lives. Findings reveal that what was taught often came too late to be useful and was covered in insufficient depth by teachers who often seemed awkward or to lack confidence. The narrow heteronormative focus often made LGBT young people feel excluded or stigmatised. There are clear implications for teacher educators, school leaders and policy makers: the need to review how teachers are prepared for their role in sex education and reconsider how the subject is situated within the curriculum and the school timetable. Although often seen as a discrete part of curriculum, sex education is influenced by and builds on what is happening across all learning, and reciprocally, if done well, sex education can enhance the positive relationships necessary for a safe, inclusive learning culture across the whole school
The process of translation and cross-cultural adaptation of functional assessment tools for dementia:A systematized review
No full textBackground and AimsA decline in function related to impairment in cognitive abilities is required for diagnosing dementia. Cultural diversity influences everyday functioning, suggesting that functional assessment tools need to be culturally dependent. Therefore, this systematized review aimed to explore the translation and cross-cultural adaptation of functional assessment tools designed to support dementia diagnosis.MethodsA systematic search of five electronic databases (CINAHL Plus, EMBASE, PubMed/MEDLINE, PsycINFO) was conducted from inception until September 2023. Quality assessment criteria were then utilized to evaluate the process of cross-cultural adaptation and psychometric properties of identified functional assessment tools.ResultsFifteen studies relating to adapted functional assessment tools in 11 languages were identified. It was found that less than half of these studies fully adhered to established guidelines for the translation and cross-cultural adaptation of instruments. Regarding psychometric properties, while the internal consistency and reliability of included measures were generally strong, there was variability in evaluating other psychometric properties, notably structural validity, measurement error, and cross-cultural validity.ConclusionsThis review underscores the need for researchers and clinicians to follow standardized guidelines for translating and cross-culturally adapting functional assessment tools for dementia and ensuring the comprehensive evaluation of psychometric properties in cross-cultural settings. Researchers and clinicians should consider whether the psychometric properties and characteristics of an adapted functional activity measure are suitable for use in their population of interest
Meat yields and primal cut weights from beef carcasses can be predicted with similar accuracies using in-abattoir 3D measurements or EUROP classification grade
No full textThree-dimensional (3D) measurements extracted from beef carcass images were used to predict the weight of four saleable meat yield (SMY) traits (total SMY and the SMY of the forequarter, flank, and hindquarter) and four primal cuts (sirloin, ribeye, topside and rump). Data were collected at two UK abattoirs using time-of-flight cameras and manual bone out methods. Predictions were made for 484 carcasses, using multiple linear regression (MLR) or machine learning (ML) techniques. Model inputs included breed type, sex, and abattoir as fixed effects, and cold carcass weight, visually assessed EUROP fat and conformation classes, and 3D measurements as covariates. Machine learning techniques were only used for models including 3D measurements. The CCW and fixed effects resulted in high accuracy (SMY R2 = 0.72-0.90, RMSE = 2.12-3.96 kg, primal R2 = 0.56-0.67, RMSE = 0.36-0.91 kg), and including the EUROP covariates increased accuracies (SMY R2 = 0.75-0.96, RMSE = 2.00-3.11 kg, primal R2 = 0.58-0.79, RMSE = 0.36-0.79 kg). The 3D measurement covariates and abattoir resulted in moderate accuracy (SMY MLR R2 = 0.39-0.58, RMSE = 3.26-10.31 kg, primal MLR R2 = 0.33-0.52, RMSE = 0.44-1.14 kg) and high accuracy when combined with CCW and all fixed effects (SMY MLR R2 = 0.72-0.95, RMSE = 1.81-3.42 kg, primal MLR R2 = 0.52-0.74, RMSE = 0.40-0.81 kg). The best ML models resulted in similar accuracies to the MLR models. Models including 3D measurements produced similar accuracies to models built using conventional data recorded at the abattoir, indicting the potential for automated prediction.</p
Genetic and environment influences on childhood victimization:A systematic review and meta-analysis
No full textChildhood victimization is a key risk factor for poor mental and physical health. In order to prevent childhood victimization, it is important to better understand its underlying etiological factors. Childhood victimization is not randomly distributed in the population but occurs more often in the context of certain characteristics of the child, the family, and the broader environment. These characteristics may be both genetically and environmentally influenced, making genetically informative designs valuable to disentangle the etiological factors. Here we performed meta-analyses of the genetic and environmental influences on childhood victimization based on twin studies. We also tested whether genetic and environmental influences on childhood victimization vary depending on key features of victimization experiences including the reporter of victimization experiences, the type of victimization, and the age at exposure. Following PRISMA guidelines, a search for relevant literature was conducted using MEDLINE, APA PsycInfo, and Embase databases until September 2023. A meta-analysis based on 21 studies with 62,794 participants showed that genetic influences accounted for 40% of the variance in childhood victimization, shared environmental influences for 20%, and non-shared environmental influences for 40%. In addition, we found that genetic and environmental influences on victimization varied based on the reporter and the type of victimization, and the age at victimization. The quantitative summary of genetic and environmental influences provided by this study advances our understanding of the mechanisms underlying risk for childhood victimization and points to prevention targets for victimization and its health effects
Quantile regression of tobacco tax pass-through in the UK 2017- 2021: How have manufacturers passed through tax changes for different tobacco products in small retailers? Analysis at the national level and by neighbourhood of deprivation.
Get PDFBackground The effectiveness of tax increases in reducing tobacco consumption relies on the tobacco retailers and producers passing on increases to consumers (tax pass-through). Previous UK research on supermarkets found heterogeneous levels of tax pass-through across the market segments and price distribution of tobacco products. This study uses data from small retailers across the UK to assess whether recent tax changes have been passed on to consumers and if this varies across the price distribution, between countries of the UK and by neighbourhood deprivation.Methods We use panel data quantile regression analysis of tobacco sales in small retailers in the UK from March 2017 to December 2021 combined with UK tax rates and store-level index of multiple deprivation (IMD). We calculated the rate of tax pass-through for factory-made cigarettes (FM) and roll-your-own tobacco (RYO).Results Following increases in the duty payable on tobacco, we find evidence of overshifting across the entire price distribution for FM and RYO. For England, Scotland and Wales, the rate of the overshift in tax increased with product price. For Scotland, we find that stores in the least deprived IMD pass-through taxes at a higher rate.Conclusions Our evidence shows heterogeneous levels of tax pass-through by price, region and level of deprivation. The findings emphasise the importance of understanding the pricing strategies of the tobacco industry (TI) and how these vary across the UK to develop robust approaches to mitigate the pricing strategies of the TI
Perspectives on mating–system evolution: comparing concepts in plants and animals
Get PDFThe study of mating systems, defined as the distribution of who mates with whom and how often in a sexually reproducing population, forms a core pillar of evolution research due to their effects on many evolutionary phenomena. Historically, the “mating system” has either been used to refer to the rate of self-fertilization or to the formation of mating pairs between individuals of distinct sexes. Consequently, these two types of mating systems have tended to be studied separately rather than jointly.This separation often means that mating systems are not necessarily researched in a coherent manner that might apply to different types of organisms (e.g., plants versus animals, or hermaphrodites versus dioecious species), even if similar mechanisms may drive the evolution of self-fertilization and mating pair formation. Here, we review the evolution of both plant and animal mating systems, highlighting where similar concepts underlie both these fields and also where differing mechanisms are at play. We particularly focus on the effects of inbreeding, but also discuss the influence of spatial dynamics on mating–system evolution. We end with a synthesis of these different ideas and propose ideas for which concepts can be considered together to move towards a more cohesive approach to studying mating–system evolution.</p
Flexible Compression for Efficient Information Sharing in a Network of Radio Frequency Sensors
Get PDFThe efficient extraction of useful information from radio frequency (RF) sensors is one important application for artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) approaches. In particular, there is a desire to maximise efficiency when sharing positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) information captured by distributed networks of low size, weight, power, and cost (SWAP-C) RF sensors when operating in congested or contested electromagnetic environments (EMEs). By implementing effective PNT information sharing strategies, these networks can more easily position the sensors or characterise targets of interest. In this work, we propose a novel ML-inspired compression design framework that improves efficiency when sharing PNT information in a network of sensors receiving radar waveforms. In addition, through novel learning procedures, the network can adapt to unforeseen EMEs such that network efficiency can be maintained in the presence of unforeseen RF waveforms and sensor surroundings. We show that our intelligent, model-driven, ML-inspired data reduction strategies can outperform alternative strategies that do not best-utilise the information content of waveforms within the EME. In addition, we demonstrate the ability of our strategies to adapt to changing mission goals by balancing different types of PNT information and learning from developing EMEs
Impaired macroscopic CSF flow by sevoflurane in humans - both during and after anesthesia
Get PDFBACKGROUND: According to the model of the glymphatic system, the directed flow of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is a driver of waste clearance from the brain. In sleep, glymphatic transport is enhanced, but it is unclear how it is affected by anesthesia. Animal research indicates partially opposing effects of distinct anesthetics but corresponding results in humans are lacking. Thus, this study aims to investigate the effect of sevoflurane anesthesia on CSF flow in humans, both during and after anesthesia.METHODS: Using data from a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) experiment in 16 healthy human subjects before, during, and 45 minutes after sevoflurane mono-anesthesia of 2vol%, we related grey matter blood-oxygenation-level dependent (BOLD) signals to CSF flow, indexed by fMRI signal fluctuations, across the basal cisternae. Specifically, CSF flow was measured by CSF fMRI signal amplitudes, global grey matter (gGM) functional connectivity by the median of inter-regional GM fMRI Spearman rank correlations, and gGM-CSF basal cisternae coupling by Spearman rank correlations of fMRI signals.RESULTS: Anesthesia decreased cisternal CSF peak-to-trough amplitude (median difference Mdn-diff = 1.00, 95% CI [0.17 1.83], p = .013), disrupted the global, cortical BOLD-fMRI-based connectivity (Mdn-diff = 1.5, 95% CI [0.67, 2.33], p < 0.001) and, global grey matter (gGM)-CSF coupling (Mdn-diff = 1.19, 95% CI [0.36, 2.02], p = 0.002). Remarkably, the impairments of global connectivity (Mdn-diff = 0.94, 95% CI [0.11, 1.77], p = 0.022) and gGM-CSF coupling (Mdn-diff = 1.06, 95% CI [0.23, 1.89], p = 0.008) persisted after re-emergence from anesthesia.CONCLUSIONS: Collectively, our data show that sevoflurane impairs macroscopic CSF flow via a disruption of coherent gGM activity. This effect persists, at least for a short time, after regaining consciousness. Future studies need to elucidate whether this contributes to the emergence of postoperative neurocognitive symptoms, especially in older patients or those with dementia.</p
Evaluating serious slow game jams as a mechanism for co-designing serious games to improve understanding of cybersecurity
Get PDFWe present a first evaluation of a Serious Slow Game Jam (SSGJ) methodology as a mechanism for co-designing serious games in the application domain of cybersecurity, to evaluate how the SSGJ contributed to improving the understanding of cybersecurity. To this end, we engaged 13 participants with no experience in cybersecurity, in a multidisciplinary SSGJ involving domain-specific, pedagogical, and game design knowledge, and encouraged engagement in-between scheduled days of the SSGJ. Findings show improved confidence of participants in their knowledge of cybersecurity (from 12.5% to 62.5%) after undertaking the SSGJ, with free-text answers specifically indicating an improved understanding in terms of vulnerabilities, attacks, and defences for three quarters of the participants. Also, confidence in knowledge of game design improved (12.5% to 75%), and the SSGJ successfully engaged participants in-between scheduled days. Finally, a serious game is presented that was co-designed with participants during our SSGJ, and produced as an output of the SSGJ methodology
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