Showing papers by "University of Trento published in 2006"
TL;DR: Findings were consistent with highly numerate individuals being more likely to retrieve and use appropriate numerical principles, thus making themselves less susceptible to framing effects, and their affective responses were more precise.
Abstract: A series of four studies explored how the ability to comprehend and transform probability numbers relates to performance on judgment and decision tasks. On the surface, the tasks in the four studies appear to be widely different; at a conceptual level, however, they all involve processing numbers and the potential to show an influence of affect. Findings were consistent with highly numerate individuals being more likely to retrieve and use appropriate numerical principles, thus making themselves less susceptible to framing effects, compared with less numerate individuals. In addition, the highly numerate tended to draw different (generally stronger or more precise) affective meaning from numbers and numerical comparisons, and their affective responses were more precise. Although generally helpful, this tendency may sometimes lead to worse decisions. The less numerate were influenced more by competing, irrelevant affective considerations. Analyses showed that the effect of numeracy was not due to general intelligence. Numerical ability appears to matter to judgments and decisions in important ways.
1,101 citations
TL;DR: The current state of autonomic communications research is surveyed and significant emerging trends and techniques are identified.
Abstract: Autonomic communications seek to improve the ability of network and services to cope with unpredicted change, including changes in topology, load, task, the physical and logical characteristics of the networks that can be accessed, and so forth. Broad-ranging autonomic solutions require designers to account for a range of end-to-end issues affecting programming models, network and contextual modeling and reasoning, decentralised algorithms, trust acquisition and maintenance---issues whose solutions may draw on approaches and results from a surprisingly broad range of disciplines. We survey the current state of autonomic communications research and identify significant emerging trends and techniques.
690 citations
TL;DR: A novel modified TSVM classifier designed for addressing ill-posed remote-sensing problems is proposed that is able to mitigate the effects of suboptimal model selection and can address multiclass cases.
Abstract: This paper introduces a semisupervised classification method that exploits both labeled and unlabeled samples for addressing ill-posed problems with support vector machines (SVMs). The method is based on recent developments in statistical learning theory concerning transductive inference and in particular transductive SVMs (TSVMs). TSVMs exploit specific iterative algorithms which gradually search a reliable separating hyperplane (in the kernel space) with a transductive process that incorporates both labeled and unlabeled samples in the training phase. Based on an analysis of the properties of the TSVMs presented in the literature, a novel modified TSVM classifier designed for addressing ill-posed remote-sensing problems is proposed. In particular, the proposed technique: 1) is based on a novel transductive procedure that exploits a weighting strategy for unlabeled patterns, based on a time-dependent criterion; 2) is able to mitigate the effects of suboptimal model selection (which is unavoidable in the presence of small-size training sets); and 3) can address multiclass cases. Experimental results confirm the effectiveness of the proposed method on a set of ill-posed remote-sensing classification problems representing different operative conditions
560 citations
TL;DR: The article explores the interconnections between the feminization of migration, on the one hand, and ongoing change in the Southern European care regimes, onthe other hand to identify issues of efficiency, equity and sustainability raised by this new ‘model’ of care.
Abstract: Concern over the need to provide long-term care for an ageing population has stimulated a search for new solutions able to ensure financial viability and a better balance between demand and supply of care. There is at present a great variety of care regimes across industrial countries, with Mediterranean countries forming a distinctive cluster where management of care is overwhelmingly entrusted to the family. In some of these countries elderly care has recently attracted large flows of care migrants, ushering in a new division of labour among family carers (mainly women), female immigrants, and skilled native workers. The article explores the interconnections between the feminization of migration, on the one hand, and ongoing change in the Southern European care regimes, on the other hand. Different strands of the literature are brought together and reviewed to illustrate ongoing developments. One main objective is to identify issues of efficiency, equity and sustainability raised by this new ‘model’ of ...
554 citations
TL;DR: The development of the highly accurate ADER–DG approach for tetrahedral meshes provides a numerical technique to approach 3-D wave propagation problems in complex geometry with unforeseen accuracy.
Abstract: SUMMARY
We present a new numerical method to solve the heterogeneous elastic wave equations formulated as a linear hyperbolic system using first-order derivatives with arbitrary high-order accuracy in space and time on 3-D unstructured tetrahedral meshes. The method combines the Discontinuous Galerkin (DG) Finite Element (FE) method with the ADER approach using Arbitrary high-order DERivatives for flux calculation. In the DG framework, in contrast to classical FE methods, the numerical solution is approximated by piecewise polynomials which allow for discontinuities at element interfaces. Therefore, the well-established theory of numerical fluxes across element interfaces obtained by the solution of Riemann-Problems can be applied as in the finite volume framework. To define a suitable flux over the element surfaces, we solve so-called Generalized Riemann-Problems (GRP) at the element interfaces. The GRP solution provides simultaneously a numerical flux function as well as a time-integration method. The main idea is a Taylor expansion in time in which all time-derivatives are replaced by space derivatives using the so-called Cauchy–Kovalewski or Lax–Wendroff procedure which makes extensive use of the governing PDE. The numerical solution can thus be advanced for one time step without intermediate stages as typical, for example, for classical Runge–Kutta time stepping schemes. Due to the ADER time-integration technique, the same approximation order in space and time is achieved automatically. Furthermore, the projection of the tetrahedral elements in physical space on to a canonical reference tetrahedron allows for an efficient implementation, as many computations of 3-D integrals can be carried out analytically beforehand. Based on a numerical convergence analysis, we demonstrate that the new schemes provide very high order accuracy even on unstructured tetrahedral meshes and computational cost and storage space for a desired accuracy can be reduced by higher-order schemes. Moreover, due to the choice of the basis functions for the piecewise polynomial approximation, the new ADER–DG method shows spectral convergence on tetrahedral meshes. An application of the new method to a well-acknowledged test case and comparisons with analytical and reference solutions, obtained by different well-established methods, confirm the performance of the proposed method. Therefore, the development of the highly accurate ADER–DG approach for tetrahedral meshes provides a numerical technique to approach 3-D wave propagation problems in complex geometry with unforeseen accuracy.
433 citations
TL;DR: This paper proposes a classification system based on a genetic optimization framework formulated in such a way as to detect the best discriminative features without requiring the a priori setting of their number by the user and to estimate the best SVM parameters in a completely automatic way.
Abstract: Recent remote sensing literature has shown that support vector machine (SVM) methods generally outperform traditional statistical and neural methods in classification problems involving hyperspectral images. However, there are still open issues that, if suitably addressed, could allow further improvement of their performances in terms of classification accuracy. Two especially critical issues are: 1) the determination of the most appropriate feature subspace where to carry out the classification task and 2) model selection. In this paper, these two issues are addressed through a classification system that optimizes the SVM classifier accuracy for this kind of imagery. This system is based on a genetic optimization framework formulated in such a way as to detect the best discriminative features without requiring the a priori setting of their number by the user and to estimate the best SVM parameters (i.e., regularization and kernel parameters) in a completely automatic way. For these purposes, it exploits fitness criteria intrinsically related to the generalization capabilities of SVM classifiers. In particular, two criteria are explored, namely: 1) the simple support vector count and 2) the radius margin bound. The effectiveness of the proposed classification system in general and of these two criteria in particular is assessed both by simulated and real experiments. In addition, a comparison with classification approaches based on three different feature selection methods is reported, i.e., the steepest ascent (SA) algorithm and two other methods explicitly developed for SVM classifiers, namely: 1) the recursive feature elimination technique and 2) the radius margin bound minimization method
421 citations
TL;DR: A discontinuous Galerkin (DG) method combined with the ideas of the ADER time integration approach to solve the elastic wave equation in heterogeneous media in the presence of externally given source terms with arbitrary high-order accuracy in space and time on unstructured triangular meshes is presented.
Abstract: SUMMARY We present a new numerical approach to solve the elastic wave equation in heterogeneous media in the presence of externally given source terms with arbitrary high-order accuracy in space and time on unstructured triangular meshes. We combine a discontinuous Galerkin (DG) method with the ideas of the ADER time integration approach using Arbitrary high-order DERivatives. The time integration is performed via the so-called Cauchy-Kovalewski procedure using repeatedly the governing partial differential equation itself. In contrast to classical finite element methods we allow for discontinuities of the piecewise polynomial approximation of the solution at element interfaces. This way, we can use the well-established theory of fluxes across element interfaces based on the solution of Riemann problems as developed in the finite volume framework. In particular, we replace time derivatives in the Taylor expansion of the time integration procedure by space derivatives to obtain a numerical scheme of the same high order in space and time using only one single explicit step to evolve the solution from one time level to another. The method is specially suited for linear hyperbolic systems such as the heterogeneous elastic wave equations and allows an efficient implementation. We consider continuous sources in space and time and point sources characterized by a Delta distribution in space and some continuous source time function. Hereby, the method is able to deal with point sources at any position in the computational domain that does not necessarily need to coincide with a mesh point. Interpolation is automatically performed by evaluation of test functions at the source locations. The convergence analysis demonstrates that very high accuracy is retained even on strongly irregular meshes and by increasing the order of the ADER‐DG schemes computational time and storage space can be reduced remarkably. Applications of the proposed method to Lamb’s Problem, a problem of strong material heterogeneities and to an example of global seismic wave propagation finally confirm its accuracy, robustness and high flexibility.
397 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors exploit a unique data set created in 1999 on a sample of 228 public, nonprofit, and for-profit organizations operating in the social service sector, and on 2,066 workers.
Abstract: Exploiting a unique data set created in 1999 on a sample of 228 public, nonprofit, and for-profit organizations operating in the social service sector, and on 2,066 workers, the article tests wheth...
394 citations
TL;DR: Experimental results and comparisons with a standard technique developed for the analysis of very high spatial resolution images confirm the effectiveness of the proposed pixel-based classification system.
Abstract: This paper proposes a novel pixel-based system for the supervised classification of very high geometrical (spatial) resolution images. This system is aimed at obtaining accurate and reliable maps both by preserving the geometrical details in the images and by properly considering the spatial-context information. It is made up of two main blocks: 1) a novel feature-extraction block that, extending and developing some concepts previously presented in the literature, adaptively models the spatial context of each pixel according to a complete hierarchical multilevel representation of the scene and 2) a classifier, based on support vector machines (SVMs), capable of analyzing hyperdimensional feature spaces. The choice of adopting an SVM-based classification architecture is motivated by the potentially large number of parameters derived from the contextual feature-extraction stage. Experimental results and comparisons with a standard technique developed for the analysis of very high spatial resolution images confirm the effectiveness of the proposed system
380 citations
01 Jan 2006
348 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the interactive effects of power and emotion in negotiation have been investigated and it has been shown that low-power negotiators would be influenced by their opponent's emotions (conceding more to an angry opponent than to a happy one), whereas high-Power negotiators would not.
Abstract: This paper focuses on the interactive effects of power and emotion in negotiation. Previous research has shown that negotiators concede more to angry opponents than to happy ones, and that power influences the amount of attention that is devoted to the social environment. Integrating these two lines of inquiry, we predicted that low-power negotiators would be influenced by their opponent's emotions (conceding more to an angry opponent than to a happy one), whereas high-power negotiators would not. Five studies using different methods (an experiment, a field simulation, and three scenario studies), different samples (students, general population, managers), and different operationalisations of power (BATNA, number of alternatives, legitimacy, support) support this hypothesis. The results are discussed in terms of a motivated information processing model of the interpersonal effects of emotions in negotiations.
TL;DR: A systematic series of in vitro experiments on human brain tissue reveals the first direct evidence that the tissue obeys consolidation theory involving fluid migration, with properties similar to fine soils, but having much smaller volumetric compressibility.
Abstract: Slow, large deformations of human brain tissue—accompanying cranial vault deformation induced by positional plagiocephaly, occurring during hydrocephalus, and in the convolutional development—has surprisingly received scarce mechanical investigation. Since the effects of these deformations may be important, we performed a systematic series of in vitro experiments on human brain tissue, revealing the following features. (i) Under uniaxial (quasi-static), cyclic loading, brain tissue exhibits a peculiar nonlinear mechanical behaviour, exhibiting hysteresis, Mullins effect and residual strain, qualitatively similar to that observed in filled elastomers. As a consequence, the loading and unloading uniaxial curves have been found to follow the Ogden nonlinear elastic theory of rubber (and its variants to include Mullins effect and permanent strain). (ii) Loaded up to failure, the “shape” of the stress/strain curve qualitatively changes, evidencing softening related to local failure. (iii) Uniaxial (quasi-static) strain experiments under controlled drainage conditions provide the first direct evidence that the tissue obeys consolidation theory involving fluid migration, with properties similar to fine soils, but having much smaller volumetric compressibility. (iv) Our experimental findings also support the existence of a viscous component of the solid phase deformation. Brain tissue should, therefore, be modelled as a porous, fluid-saturated, nonlinear solid with very small volumetric (drained) compressibility.
TL;DR: A detailed description is provided of a new worm algorithm, enabling the accurate computation of thermodynamic properties of quantum many-body systems in continuous space, at finite temperature, within the general path integral Monte Carlo scheme.
Abstract: A detailed description is provided of a new worm algorithm, enabling the accurate computation of thermodynamic properties of quantum many-body systems in continuous space, at finite temperature. The algorithm is formulated within the general path integral Monte Carlo (PIMC) scheme, but also allows one to perform quantum simulations in the grand canonical ensemble, as well as to compute off-diagonal imaginary-time correlation functions, such as the Matsubara Green function, simultaneously with diagonal observables. Another important innovation consists of the expansion of the attractive part of the pairwise potential energy into elementary (diagrammatic) contributions, which are then statistically sampled. This affords a complete microscopic account of the long-range part of the potential energy, while keeping the computational complexity of all updates independent of the size of the simulated system. The computational scheme allows for efficient calculations of the superfluid fraction and off-diagonal correlations in space-time, for system sizes which are orders of magnitude larger than those accessible to conventional PIMC. We present illustrative results for the superfluid transition in bulk liquid $^{4}\mathrm{He}$ in two and three dimensions, as well as the calculation of the chemical potential of hcp $^{4}\mathrm{He}$.
TL;DR: This article proposes a conceptual framework that captures several basic biological processes in the form of a family of design patterns that inherit desirable properties of biological systems including adaptivity and robustness and shows how to implement important functions for distributed computing based on these patterns.
Abstract: Recent developments in information technology have brought about important changes in distributed computing. New environments such as massively large-scale, wide-area computer networks and mobile ad hoc networks have emerged. Common characteristics of these environments include extreme dynamicity, unreliability, and large scale. Traditional approaches to designing distributed applications in these environments based on central control, small scale, or strong reliability assumptions are not suitable for exploiting their enormous potential. Based on the observation that living organisms can effectively organize large numbers of unreliable and dynamically-changing components (cells, molecules, individuals, etc.) into robust and adaptive structures, it has long been a research challenge to characterize the key ideas and mechanisms that make biological systems work and to apply them to distributed systems engineering. In this article we propose a conceptual framework that captures several basic biological processes in the form of a family of design patterns. Examples include plain diffusion, replication, chemotaxis, and stigmergy. We show through examples how to implement important functions for distributed computing based on these patterns. Using a common evaluation methodology, we show that our bio-inspired solutions have performance comparable to traditional, state-of-the-art solutions while they inherit desirable properties of biological systems including adaptivity and robustness.
18 Sep 2006
TL;DR: An architecture is devised that clearly separates the business logic of a Web service from its monitoring functionality, and a technique is devised for the automatic translation of all these kinds of monitors to Java programs.
Abstract: The run-time monitoring of web service compositions has been widely acknowledged as a significant and challenging problem. In this paper, we propose a novel solution to the problem of monitoring web services implemented in BPEL. We devise an architecture that clearly separates the business logic of a web service from its monitoring functionality. The architecture supports both "instance monitors" that deal with the execution of a single instance of BPEL process, as well as "class monitors" that report aggregated information about all the instances of a BPEL process. We also define a language for the specification of instance and class monitors. The language allows for specifying boolean, statistic, and time-related properties. Finally, we devise a technique for the automatic translation of all these kinds of monitors to Java programs.
TL;DR: The results indicate that in the palladium-catalyzed process the rate constants of the exchange processes are higher than those of the corresponding hydrolysis reactions.
Abstract: To gain insight on the mechanistic aspects of the palladium-catalyzed hydrolysis of NaBH4 in alkaline media, the kinetics of the reaction has been investigated by 11B NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) measurements taken at different times during the reaction course. Working with BH4- concentration in the range 0.05−0.1 M and with a [substrate]/[catalyst] molar ratio of 0.03−0.11, hydrolysis has been found to follow a first-order kinetic dependence from concentration of both the substrate and the catalyst (Pd/C 10 wt %). We followed the reaction of NaBH4 and its perdeuterated analogue NaBD4 in H2O, in D2O and H2O/D2O mixtures. When the process was carried out in D2O, deuterium incorporation in BH4- afforded BH4-nDn- (n = 1, 2, 3, 4) species, and a competition between hydrolysis and hydrogen/deuterium exchange processes was observed. By fitting the kinetics NMR data by nonlinear least-squares regression techniques, the rate constants of the elementary steps involved in the palladium-catalyzed borohydride hyd...
TL;DR: In this paper, a distributed hydrological model, called GEOtop, is proposed to model the effect of topography on the radiation incident on the surface, both shortwave (including shadowing) and longwave (accounting for the sky view factor).
Abstract: This paper describes a new distributed hydrological model, called GEOtop. The model accommodates very complex topography and, besides the water balance, unlike most other hydrological models, integrates all the terms in the surface energy balance equation. GEOtop uses a discretization of the landscape based on digital elevation data. These digital elevation data are preprocessed to allow modeling of the effect of topography on the radiation incident on the surface, both shortwave (including shadowing) and longwave (accounting for the sky view factor). For saturated and unsaturated subsurface flow, GEOtop makes use of a numerical solution of the 3D Richards’ equation in order to properly model, besides the lateral flow, the vertical structure of water content and the suction dynamics. These characteristics are deemed necessary for consistently modeling hillslope processes, initiation of landslides, snowmelt processes, and ecohydrological phenomena as well as discharges during floods and interstorm...
TL;DR: The two excellent papers published in this issue are underlining the conviction that non-invasive EEG-driven BCIs offer a realistic perspective for communication in paralyzed patients, and the slow cortical potential BCIs used for paralyzed ALS patients.
TL;DR: In this article, a full quantum theory for the dissipative dynamics of an optical cavity in the ultrastrong light-matter coupling regime is presented, in which the vacuum Rabi frequency is a significant fraction of the active electronic transition frequency and the antiresonant terms of the light matter coupling play an important role.
Abstract: We present a full quantum theory for the dissipative dynamics of an optical cavity in the ultrastrong light-matter coupling regime, in which the vacuum Rabi frequency is a significant fraction of the active electronic transition frequency and the antiresonant terms of the light-matter coupling play an important role. In particular, our model can be applied to the case of intersubband transitions in doped semiconductor quantum wells embedded in a microcavity. The coupling of the intracavity photonic mode and of the electronic polarization to the external, frequency-dependent, dissipation baths is taken into account by means of quantum Langevin equations in the input-output formalism. In the case of a time-independent vacuum Rabi frequency, exact analytical expressions for the operators are obtained, which allows us to characterize the quantum dissipative response of the cavity to an arbitrary initial condition (vacuum, coherent field, thermal excitation). For a vacuum input in both the photonic and electronic polarization modes, the ground state of the cavity system is a two-mode squeezed vacuum state with a finite population in both photonic and electronic modes. These excitations are, however, virtual and cannot escape from the cavity: for a vacuum input, a vacuum output is found, without any trace of the intracavity squeezing. For a coherent photonic input the linear optical response spectra (reflectivity, absorption, transmission) have been studied, and signatures of the ultrastrong coupling have been identified in the asymmetric and peculiar anticrossing of the polaritonic eigenmodes. Finally, we have calculated the electroluminescence spectra in the case of an incoherent electronic input: the emission intensity in the ultrastrong coupling regime results in being significantly enhanced as compared to the case of an isolated quantum well without a surrounding cavity.
TL;DR: In this article, it was shown that almost bent and almost perfect polynomials are affine inequivalent to any sum of a power function and an affine function, and that they are almost perfect.
Abstract: New infinite classes of almost bent and almost perfect nonlinear polynomials are constructed. It is shown that they are affine inequivalent to any sum of a power function and an affine function
TL;DR: The existing code imple- menting WPPM has been redesigned and improved and the result is a general tool for nonlinear least squares minimisation, highly problem- independent and user-customisable through the use of macros or by a custom software de- velopment kit.
Abstract: Whole Powder Pattern Modelling (WPPM) has been recently proposed as a self- consistent low-bias technique for the microstructural investigation of nanocrystalline materi- als. Through WPPM, a set of physical parameters actually describing the Fourier transform of diffraction line profiles, can be easily extracted from the diffraction data. In order to cope with the need for a higher flexibility (to test, compare and use new line broadening models) and with the request for additional features, the existing code imple- menting WPPM has been redesigned and improved. The result is a general tool for nonlinear least squares minimisation, highly problem- independent and user-customisable through the use of macros or by a custom software de- velopment kit. A set of libraries have been written in the form of plug-ins, actually imple- menting WPPM and the microstructural models proposed in the literature. The work shows software architecture and examples of application of the program to real cases of study.
TL;DR: In this paper, the polariton blockade effect due to polariton-polariton interactions as a function of the photonic dot geometry, spectral linewidths and energy detuning between quantum well exciton and confined photon mode was investigated.
Abstract: We investigate the quantum nonlinear dynamics of a resonantly excited photonic quantum dot embedding a quantum well in the strong exciton-photon coupling regime. Within a master equation approach, we study the polariton blockade effect due to polariton-polariton interactions as a function of the photonic dot geometry, spectral linewidths and energy detuning between quantum well exciton and confined photon mode. The second order coherence function ${g}^{(2)}(t,{t}^{\ensuremath{'}})$ and the photon antibunching are calculated for both continuous wave and pulsed excitations.
TL;DR: A systematic-error-free finite-temperature simulation of the unitarity regime of the BCS-BEC crossover can be realized by diluting a system of two-component lattice fermions with an on-site attractive interaction by diagrammatic determinant Monte Carlo method.
Abstract: The unitarity regime of the BCS-BEC crossover can be realized by diluting a system of two-component lattice fermions with an on-site attractive interaction. We perform a systematic-error-free finite-temperature simulation of this system by diagrammatic determinant Monte Carlo method. The critical temperature in units of Fermi energy is found to be T(C)/epsilonF=0.152(7). We also report the behavior of the thermodynamic functions, and discuss the issues of thermometry of ultracold Fermi gases.
TL;DR: In this paper, the effects of psychological moral constraints on tax evasion behavior were investigated from an experimental perspective, specifically focusing on three main topics related to tax evasion, and the results from eight experiments confirm the importance of the psychological factors in determining taxpayer behaviour and show the complex dynamics that agents activate in order to cope with risk.
Abstract: This paper investigates, from an experimental perspective, tax payer behaviour, specifically focusing on three main topics related to tax evasion. First analysed are the effects of a repetitive dynamic choice process on subjects’ attitude towards risk. Second, the effects of psychological moral constraints on taxpayer behaviour are examined. Finally the effect of context upon behaviour is analysed. The results from eight experiments confirm the importance of the psychological factors in determining taxpayer behaviour and show the complex dynamics that agents activate in order to cope with risk.
TL;DR: This paper implements the new derivative Riemann solver in the high-order finite-volume ADER advection schemes and provides numerical examples for the compressible Euler equations in two space dimensions which illustrate robustness and high accuracy of the resulting schemes.
TL;DR: A first order phase transition from normal to superfluid at x(c)=0.44 corresponding, in the presence of harmonic trapping, to a critical polarization P(c)=(N upward arrow - N downward arrow/(N downward arrow + N upward arrow)=77%.
Abstract: We study the Fermi gas at unitarity and at $T=0$ by assuming that, at high polarizations, it is a normal Fermi liquid composed of weakly interacting quasiparticles associated with the minority spin atoms. With a quantum Monte Carlo approach we calculate their effective mass and binding energy, as well as the full equation of state of the normal phase as a function of the concentration $x={n}_{\ensuremath{\downarrow}}/{n}_{\ensuremath{\uparrow}}$ of minority atoms. We predict a first order phase transition from normal to superfluid at ${x}_{c}=0.44$ corresponding, in the presence of harmonic trapping, to a critical polarization ${P}_{c}=({N}_{\ensuremath{\uparrow}}\ensuremath{-}{N}_{\ensuremath{\downarrow}})/({N}_{\ensuremath{\uparrow}}+{N}_{\ensuremath{\downarrow}})=77%$. We calculate the radii and the density profiles in the trap and predict that the frequency of the spin dipole mode will be increased by a factor of 1.23 due to interactions.
TL;DR: A taxonomy for ESL tools and methodologies is presented that combines UC Berkeley's platform-based design terminologies with Dan Gajski's Y-chart work to help stem the tide of confusion in the ESL world.
Abstract: This article presents a taxonomy for ESL tools and methodologies that combines UC Berkeley's platform-based design terminologies with Dan Gajski's Y-chart work. This is timely and necessary because in the ESL world we seem to be building tools without first establishing an appropriate design flow or methodology, thereby creating a lot of confusion. This taxonomy can help stem the tide of confusion
TL;DR: A Hamilton-Jacobi variational principle is derived from the solution of the Fokker-Planck equation in terms of a path integral that is able to compute the most probable pathway of folding.
Abstract: We present a method to investigate the kinetics of protein folding and the dynamics underlying the formation of secondary and tertiary structures during the entire reaction. By writing the solution of the Fokker-Planck equation in terms of a path integral, we derive a Hamilton-Jacobi variational principle from which we are able to compute the most probable pathway of folding. The method is applied to the folding of the Villin headpiece subdomain simulated using a Go model. An initial collapsing phase driven by the initial configuration is followed by a rearrangement phase, in which secondary structures are formed and all computed paths display strong similarities. This completely general method does not require the prior knowledge of any reaction coordinate and is an efficient tool to perform simulations of the entire folding process with available computers.
TL;DR: The paradigm developed here provides a novel cross-modal extension of the IAT to probe the nature of color-odor associations and suggests that odor-color associations can be both systematic and robust.
Abstract: In the present study, we investigated the nature of any cross-modal associations between colors and odors. In Experiment 1, we show that participants consistently match certain odors to specific colors when asked to explicitly select from among different colors the one that best matched a given odor. In Experiment 2, we investigated the robustness of these cross-modal associations using a cross-modal variant of the implicit association test (IAT). Participants made speeded discrimination responses to a random sequence of odors (strawberry vs. spearmint) and color patches (pink vs. turquoise). On the basis of the results of Experiment 1, the assignment of these targets onto the two response keys was manipulated in order to generate compatible (e.g., responding to the pink color and to the strawberry odor with the same response key) and incompatible (e.g., responding to the pink color and to the spearmint odor with the same response key) blocks of trials. The results showed that participants responded more rapidly and accurately to odor-color pairings having a stronger association than to those having a weaker (or no) association. These results suggest that odor-color associations can be both systematic and robust. The paradigm developed here provides a novel cross-modal extension of the IAT to probe the nature of color-odor associations.
TL;DR: Subjective ratings of appetite during the presentation of food-related stimuli modulated the activity in the insula bilaterally, the left operculum and the right putamen, which provides further insights in the central nervous processing of food relevant stimuli in humans.