Showing papers by "Oklahoma City University published in 2016"

Could robots become authentic companions in nursing care

Abstract: Creating android and humanoid robots to furnish companionship in the nursing care of older people continues to attract substantial development capital and research. Some people object, though, that machines of this kind furnish human-robot interaction characterized by inauthentic relationships. In particular, robotic and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies have been charged with substituting mindless mimicry of human behaviour for the real presence of conscious caring offered by human nurses. When thus viewed as deceptive, the robots also have prompted corresponding concerns regarding their potential psychological, moral, and spiritual implications for people who will be interacting socially with these machines. The foregoing objections and concerns can be assessed quite differently, depending upon ambient religious beliefs or metaphysical presuppositions. The complaints may be set aside as unnecessary, for example, within religious traditions for which even current robots can be viewed as presenting spiritual aspects. Elsewhere, technological cultures may reject the complaints as expression of outdated superstition, holding that the machines eventually will enjoy a consciousness described entirely in materialist and behaviourist terms. While recognizing such assessments, the authors of this essay propose that the heart of the foregoing objections and concerns may be evaluated, in part, scientifically - albeit with a conclusion recommending fundamental revisions in AI modelling of human mental life. Specifically, considerations now favour introduction of AI models using interactive classical and quantum computation. Without this change, the answer to the essay's title question arguably is 'no' - with it, the answer plausibly becomes 'maybe'. Either outcome holds very interesting implications for nurses.

Bitcoin versus Regulated Payment Systems: What Gives?

Abstract: In a short period of time virtual currencies have gained significant traction and become an economic reality, with Bitcoin being the most dominant among over 500 virtual currencies. Bitcoin and other virtual currencies present a particularly difficult and unique jurisdictional challenge to existing regulatory enforcement because of their: ability to transcend national borders in the fraction of a second; and anonymity due to encryption. In January 2014 the Uniform Law Commission (ULC) created a Study Committee on Alternative and Mobile Payments (Study Committee). The focus of the Study Committee (now designated a Drafting Committee) is to devise an optimal licensing system for intermediaries that perform financial services for third parties relating to digital or virtual currencies. The Study Committee/Drafting Committee concluded that the New York regulatory framework for virtual currencies (New York “Bitlicense” Regulation) is “well drafted” and (with some changes) could serve as a beginning template for a uniform law. At this writing, a remaining significant issue is the extent to which the proposed uniform law should go beyond the licensing, compliance and enforcement issues common to the CSBS regulatory framework and the New York “BitLicense” Regulations, to cover substantive commercial transaction issues as in the UCC. Advances such as the blockchain technology underlying Bitcoin and many other virtual currencies may hold great promise for efficiencies in the transfer cost of money and data.This article addresses the legal and financial implications of virtual currencies, and is organized as follows. Part II. presents a brief history describing the evolution and function of money and currencies. Part III. describes the development of virtual currencies and Bitcoin in particular. Part IV. discusses traditional payment and regulatory systems. Part V. looks at criminal law issues relating to currencies. Part VI. considers the history of modern payment systems and regulation, currency stability issues, and the possible threat to financial order posed by virtual currencies. Part VII. Explores the future of regulation in this area of law. Implications for further research are then presented. The focus is the impact on payment systems of the rapidly developing use of virtual and cybercurrencies, especially bitcoins.

Gaussian Process Regression and Bayesian Model Averaging: An Alternative Approach to Modeling Spatial Phenomena

Abstract: Gaussian Process Regression (GPR) is a nonparametric technique that is capable of yielding reliable out-of-sample predictions in the presence of highly nonlinear unknown relationships between dependent and explanatory variables. But in terms of identifying relevant explanatory variables, this method is far less explicit about questions of statistical significance. In contrast, more traditional spatial econometric models, such as spatial autoregressive models or spatial error models, place rather strong prior restrictions on the functional form of relationships, but allow direct inference with respect to explanatory variables. In this article, we attempt to combine the best of both techniques by augmenting GPR with a Bayesian Model Averaging (BMA) component that allows for the identification of statistically relevant explanatory variables while retaining the predictive performance of GPR. In particular, GPR-BMA yields a posterior probability interpretation of model-inclusion frequencies that provides a natural measure of the statistical relevance of each variable. Moreover, while such frequencies offer no direct information about the signs of local marginal effects, it is shown that partial derivatives based on the mean GPR predictions do provide such information. We illustrate the additional insights made possible by this approach by applying GPR-BMA to a benchmark BMA data set involving potential determinants of cross-country economic growth. It is shown that localized marginal effects based on partial derivatives of mean GPR predictions yield additional insights into comparative growth effects across countries.

The NLSY Kinship Links: Using the NLSY79 and NLSY-Children Data to Conduct Genetically-Informed and Family-Oriented Research

Abstract: The National Longitudinal Survey of Youth datasets (NLSY79; NLSY-Children/Young Adults; NLSY97) have extensive family pedigree information contained within them. These data sources are based on probability sampling, a longitudinal design, and a cross-generational and within-family data structure, with hundreds of phenotypes relevant to behavior genetic (BG) researchers, as well as to other developmental and family researchers. These datasets provide a unique and powerful source of information for BG researchers. But much of the information required for biometrical modeling has been hidden, and has required substantial programming effort to uncover-until recently. Our research team has spent over 20 years developing kinship links to genetically inform biometrical modeling. In the most recent release of kinship links from two of the NLSY datasets, the direct kinship indicators included in the 2006 surveys allowed successful and unambiguous linking of over 94 % of the potential pairs. In this paper, we provide details for research teams interested in using the NLSY data portfolio to conduct BG (and other family-oriented) research.

Investment Potential and Risk Hedging Characteristics of Platinum Group Metals

Abstract: We examine the investment potential and risk-hedging characteristics of platinum, palladium, and rhodium by analyzing returns on their spot prices and comparing them with gold, crude oil, and stocks. The three characteristics that we examine that may be of the most importance to investors are the correlation with inflation, the correlation with foreign exchange rates, and the systematic risk of the investments. We find platinum is useful as a hedge against all three factors, and is also useful as a safe haven in periods of extreme stock market declines. Palladium and rhodium do not show the same extensive hedging capabilities.

Evaluating Human-Robot Interaction Using a Robot Exercise Instructor at a Senior Living Community

Abstract: A NAO humanoid robot and a Paro animaloid robot are taken to a senior living community for a study in human-robot interaction. The humanoid robot was programmed to perform autonomously i a warm-up routine in which the robot directs the participants to ask it to perform various tasks and ii an exercise routine in which the robot invites the participants to participate in various physical exercises. The Paro robot is then passed around among the participants. The participants included six elderly residents, three nurses/caregivers, and two administrators. The elderly residents are categorized with respect to cognitive awareness and physical capability. We tabulated video data to measure several dimensions of human-robot interaction among these diverse participant groups. Our findings suggest that while senior residents moderately accept the robots and nurses and administrators are enthusiastic about them, more work needs be done on the auditory capability of the robots.

Results of a Pilot Study with a Robot Instructor for Group Exercise at a Senior Living Community

Abstract: We discuss the motivation, design, implementation, and pilot study of an agent-based exercise robot for five senior residents and five staff members in a senior living community. Our goals of the study were to evaluate the performance of the resident group and the attitudes, acceptance, and opinions of both groups. The pilot study was performed on-site where senior participants were selected a priori by the staff. We use soft systems methodology as a guide to refine the requirements and to evolve the exercise protocol and robot behaviors over multiple exercise sessions. Based on a 30-min session with both groups combined, followed by focus sessions with each group individually, our findings suggest that senior residents moderately accept the robot as a group exercise leader and staff members are cautiously enthusiastic about the idea.

Chapter 5. Minding the Gap: Writing-Related Learning In/Across/With Multiple Activity Systems

Abstract: In the face of budget reductions and reorganizations, universities and colleges have been confronted with calls for greater accountability in the education they provide, at all levels. Professionals deeply invested in education should be involved in actions that assess the effect of programming, curricula and the instruction that takes place in our classrooms. Approaching assessment in a manner that accounts for the kind of deep critical thinking and situated learning that leads to successful transfer of knowledge and skills from the classroom to new environments is a daunting challenge. Even using the term transfer comes with inherent problems that imply what Wardle (2012) refers to as a “carry and unload model” of learning, which suggests that students transport their learned knowledge and skills to new communicative contexts (see also Donahue, this volume). Unfortunately, universities today are pressured by legislators and other stakeholders to use simplified terms for learning such as “transfer” and measures of learning such as standardized testing that “limit the kind of thinking that students and citizens have the tools to do” (Wardle, 2012, par. 7). The study presented here is part of ongoing research into how we can best understand the learning students undergo in the critical transition from high school to college and how they transfer that learning into new situations.

Citing Sisters: A Study of the Oklahoma Appellate Courts

Abstract: This study explores Oklahoma appellate courts citation of sister state appellate court opinions over the past four decades. All opinions of the Oklahoma Supreme Court, Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals, and Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals from 1976, 1996, and 2016 were examined. Individual citations to sister state appellate courts were recorded. The legal basis for citing sister appellate court opinions is explained and instances of citations made in accordance with existing statutory or common law rules are discussed.Various theories of sister appellate court citation are explored in this study including the geographic proximity hypothesis, jury theorem, horizontal federalism, cultural linkage, judicial selection, prestige, uniform law application, West reporter region, and federal circuit preference. The study considers the impact of computer assisted legal research on the courts’ citation practices. The study includes suggestions for Oklahoma appellate practitioners based on the citation practices of the courts over the past four decades. This study is currently in process. A pre-publication copy will be uploaded once available.

State Standing to Challenge Federal Authority in the Modern Administrative State

Abstract: The modern administrative state relies on a model of shared governance. Federal regulatory regimes addressing a range of economic and social issues depend on the participation of state governments for their implementation. Although these state-federal partnerships are often cooperative, conflicts over the allocation of regulatory authority and administrative policy are inevitable. In recent years, states have sought to resolve some of these conflicts in the federal courts. Well-known state challenges to federal authority include challenges to environmental rules, health insurance legislation, and immigration policies. In these cases, courts have struggled to decide whether states have constitutional standing to bring suit against the federal government.This Article fills a gap in the legal scholarship by proposing a “governance” approach to state standing that would allow states to challenge federal authority when the federal statute at issue contemplates an implementation role for state governments. The governance approach finds support both in historical precedent and in modern regulatory reality. The approach makes state-standing doctrine less susceptible to judicial manipulation and ensures that courts focus on other threshold questions often obscured by overly broad, incoherent standing analyses.

Explication du Texte: 'I'm an Originalist; I'm a Textualist; I'm Not a Nut.'

Abstract: This short piece commemorates the passing of Justice Scalia. The piece highlights Justice Scalia's ability to appeal to different audiences. His embrace of originalism gave him popular appeal. His embrace of textualism appealed to academics and practitioners. He distinguished his originalism from that of others with his "faint-hearted originalism," cabined by stare decisis and a dose of prudence.

An Autonomous Robot-to-Group Exercise Coach at a Senior Living Community: A Study in Human-Robot Interaction

Abstract: A NAO humanoid robot is programmed to act as an autonomous exercise instructor at a senior living community. In an on-site session, the robot does i a warm-up routine in which the robot directs participants to ask it to perform various tasks such as dancing and reciting poems and ii an exercise routine in which the robot guides participants through various physical exercises such as leg, hand, and neck exercises. The participants include six elderly residents, three nurses/caregivers, and two administrators. The elderly group is categorized with respect to cognitive awareness and physical capability. The session is videoed and then analyzed to measure several dimensions of human-robot interaction with these diverse participants, including affective reaction, effective reaction, and group responsiveness. Following the exercise session, a focus group session is conducted with the seniors and a separate focus group session conducted with the nurses and administrators to glean further data.

The African-American Interest in Higher Law in the Supreme Court: Justices Marshall and Thomas

Abstract: This paper was written for a Festschrift in honor of Henry J. Richardson III. It reviews the constitutional jurisprudence of Justices Thurgood Marshall and Clarence Thomas from the perspective of Professor Richardson’s presentation of an African-American interest in higher law. Both African America Supreme Court Justices’ constitutional jurisprudence is informed by higher law norms as well as by positive law. The paper contrasts Justice Marshall’s approach, which evaluates legal norms in particular socio-legal contexts, with Justice Thomas’s principled adherence to procedural rules. The paper contends that Professor Richardson’s approach to legal history better accords with Justice Marshall’s methodology, which is the approach most likely to result in the realization of African-American interests in legal recognition and vindication of substantive rights.

Microhabitat Preferences of a Small Mammal Assemblage in Canadian County, Oklahoma

Abstract: We conducted a small mammal ecological study at John Nichols Scout Ranch in Southeastern Canadian County, Oklahoma, during the summers of 2013 and 2014. Microhabitat preferences of Peromyscus leucopus, P. maniculatus, Neotoma floridana, and Sigmodon hispidus were determined using species’ presence/absence and 60 habitat variables at 10 randomly selected plots. These data were subjected to principle components analysis and niche overlap. Peromyscus leucopus and N. floridana occupy similar woodland areas, featuring high degrees of litter and overhang canopy, as well as rocky outcrops. Peromyscus maniculatus was associated with areas of annual, barren, shrub, and tree coverage, with adjacent habitat heterogeneity—an edge. Sigmodon hispidus was found in open grasslands with homogeneous adjacent habitat. Peromyscus leucopus and N. floridana had the highest degree of niche overlap, while P. maniculatus had a smaller overlap with these species. Sigmodon hispidus had the lowest degree of niche overlap among all studied species, indicating high habitat specificity. ©2015 Oklahoma Academy of Science

Free Speech, Occupational Speech, and Psychotherapy

Abstract: Psychotherapy, said one of its earliest clients, Anna O, is a “talking cure.” It banishes or lessens mental illness and suffering not with medicine or surgery, but with words. This aspect of psychotherapy raises an interesting set of First Amendment questions. Is verbal communication between a therapist and her client protected by the First Amendment even though it is part of a healing process, or does government have the same authority to restrict this speech-based healing method as it does to restrict the use of pharmaceuticals or medical equipment? Must it show that therapists’ statements about human psychology are false or harmful to the client? Or may it constitutionally bar even truthful therapist-client communications that raise little risk of harm to the client’s physical or mental health, on the grounds that such verbal treatments promote values or behaviors at odds with those of the profession or of the larger society?These questions are challenging for First Amendment law largely because talk therapy is the kind of activity that straddles an important boundary line in First Amendment law and theory. As the Supreme Court noted in Lawrence v. Texas, the Constitution assumes that there will be certain “spaces” where “the State” is not a “dominant presence” and where sovereignty belongs to each individual, not those who exercise collective political power. Among such spaces is the First Amendment-secured realm of “thought, belief, [and] expression.” 539 U.S. 558, 562 (2003). This constitutional line drawn by the Court in Lawrence mirrors that described by John Locke in A Letter Concerning Toleration: Locke argued that while state power extends to “civil interests” such as protection of “life, liberty, health” and other “outward” concerns, it does not extend to the “care of the soul,” which remains under the control of the individual himself. The challenge presented by psychotherapy, I argue in this article, is that it falls partly within and partly outside this constitutional shielded sphere of mental and expressive autonomy. On the one hand, if there is any activity that belongs in the realm of constitutionally protected “thought, belief, [and] expression” it the self-exploration that individuals engage in as they try to understand their inner lives – whether it occurs in a private meditation or diary entry, or in a psychotherapist’s office. When we use talk therapy, in part, to shape (or reshape) our conception of the good, or the perspective we should take on particular life events, the state should not be permitted to forcibly substitute its values for ours. On the other hand, while government is not supposed to interfere with our choices about what to say or think, or about what values to hold, it is charged with protecting our health and safety, and, in psychotherapy, such health and safety interests are very often at stake – for example, when individuals rely on therapists to make accurate diagnoses of possible mental illnesses (or rule them out), and suggest the proper treatment such conditions. The central question about talk therapy’s First Amendment status then is what kind of First Amendment regime can best reconcile these two conflicting demands – to keep government interference out of the way we understand and shape our mental life through conversation, while letting it into medical practices with significant stakes for our mental health. How, in other words, can First Amendment law simultaneously allow the state to regulate the aspects of psychotherapy that are its business, while keeping it out of those aspects that are in the sphere of individual autonomy? This is also a question that is key to the debate about the First Amendment status of other “occupational speech” that occurs when we seek verbal guidance from other experts.

Appendix A - Supplemental Material (Microhabitat Preferences of a Small Mammal Assemblage in Canadian County, Oklahoma)

Abstract: We conducted a small mammal ecological study at John Nichols Scout Ranch in Southeastern Canadian County, Oklahoma, during the summers of 2013 and 2014. Microhabitat preferences of Peromyscus leucopus, P. maniculatus, Neotoma floridana, and Sigmodon hispidus were determined using species’ presence/absence and 60 habitat variables at 10 randomly selected plots. These data were subjected to principle components analysis and niche overlap. Peromyscus leucopus and N. floridana occupy similar woodland areas, featuring high degrees of litter and overhang canopy, as well as rocky outcrops. Peromyscus maniculatus was associated with areas of annual, barren, shrub, and tree coverage, with adjacent habitat heterogeneity—an edge. Sigmodon hispidus was found in open grasslands with homogeneous adjacent habitat. Peromyscus leucopus and N. floridana had the highest degree of niche overlap, while P. maniculatus had a smaller overlap with these species. Sigmodon hispidus had the lowest degree of niche overlap among all studied species, indicating high habitat specificity. ©2015 Oklahoma Academy of Science

Asset Allocation: A Recommendation for Resolving the Collision between Theory and Practice

Abstract: We examine the creation of a low-cost optimal risky portfolio that individual investors can easily construct and manage We consider five index mutual funds and three precious metals that are easy for investors to trade Collectively, the mutual funds track the returns of the entire US equity market, 98% of foreign stocks, US investment grade bonds, all domestic REITs, and emerging markets The three precious metals are gold, platinum, and palladium Because these mutual funds are available in ETF form, we provide optimization results with and without short selling Optimization results differ greatly from conventional wisdom regarding optimal asset allocation

Effects of Fire Severity on Habitat Recovery in a Mixed Grass Prairie Ecosystem

Abstract: We assessed the recovery and current status of three mixed grass prairie sites 5 yr post burn in the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, Indiahoma, Oklahoma. These sites represent three burn histories: moderate burn, severe burn, and unburned. We used a modified point-intercept method to sample 38 habitat variables at 280 points along three transects at each site. These data were subjected to principal components analysis to assess trends in habitat structure among the sites. The first three components explained 66.6% of the variation in the dataset. Component I represents a gradient from short forbs, lichen covered rocks, and minimal disturbance to areas of tall grasses and ungulate disturbance. Component II represents a gradient from tall forbs and water disturbance to areas with woody shrubs, short herbaceous litter, and graminoid and moss ground cover. Component III represents a gradient from areas with mid-level forbs, fecal matter and herbaceous litter ground cover to areas with tall grasses and bare ground. Projections of the burn treatment sites onto principal components I–III indicate that the moderate and unburned sites cluster closely on component I but are distinct along components II and III. We interpret our results as supporting a relationship between high severity fire and more complete nutrient cycling from accumulated litter, leading initially post fire to dense grass cover followed by increasing forb cover. This increase in forage density potentially alters the grazing patterns of large herbivores, which inflicts higher levels of disturbance. Conversely, the unburned and moderate burn sites had a greater diversity of herbaceous species at lower coverage densities, perhaps resulting from reestablshiment from surviving shoots and seeds.

Football in Greater Manchester: Growth Effects of Premiership Status Teams

Abstract: An extensive body of economic literature suggests that in the United States, there is little gain to a city from using tax revenues to subsidize or in other ways support professional sports franchises. One of the difficulties with these studies is the stability of professional team location. Manchester, England provides an opportunity to examine the growth effects associated with adding and subtracting top tier teams from a single sport in a single area over the course of several decades. Five different Greater Manchester area teams have been in the Premiership with as few as one and as many as four in any given year since the founding of the Premiership. Using Greater Manchester borough level data from 1991 through 2013 we look for changes in gross value added overall and in categories associated with professional sports when Premiership status changes. We find no sustained role for Premiership status, but do find a one off gain in gross value added growth when a team is promoted.

Investigating the Ichthus (Fish) Christianity Symbol on Perceived Source Credibility of Service Providers under Different Service Evaluation Contexts

Abstract: This study investigated potential consumer responses to the display of the Christian fish symbol (Ichthus) used in mock advertisements of services high in credence, experience and search attributes. Discussions from earlier research propose consumers may exhibit different reactions to Christian symbolism displayed in the marketplace and that purchase intentions and consumer perceptions of the seller may be influenced by the strength of the consumer's religious beliefs. This study adds to previous research proposing consumers display different purchase intentions due to differing perceptions of the seller's credibility, trustworthiness and expertise influenced by the consumers own religious beliefs which is influenced by the type of service context.