Trust, Competition and Cooperation in Autism Spectrum Disorder

Objective: Impaired social interactions and repetitive behavior are key features of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In the present study we compared social decision-making in subjects with and without ASD. Subjects performed five social decision-making games in order to assess trust, fairness, cooperation & competition behavior and social value orientation. Methods: 19 adults with autism spectrum disorder and 17 controls, matched for age and education, participated in the study. Each subject performed five social decision-making tasks. In the trust game, subjects could maximize their gain by sharing some of their money with another person. In the punishment game, subjects played two versions of the Dictator’s Dilemma. In the dictator condition they could share an amount of 0-100 points with another person. In the punishment condition, the opponent was able to punish the subject if he/she was not satisfied with the amount of points received. In the cooperation game, subjects played with a small group of 3 people. Each of them could (anonymously) select an amount of 5, 7.5 or 10 Swiss francs. The goal of the game was to achieve a high group minimum. In the competition game, subjects performed a dexterity task. Before performing the task, they were asked whether they wanted to compete (winner takes it all) or cooperation (sharing the joint achieved amount of points) with a randomly selected person. Lastly, subjects performed a social value orientation task where they were playing for themselves and for another person. Results: There was no overall difference between healthy controls an ASD subjects in investment in the trust game. However, healthy controls increased their investment over number of trials whereas ASD subjects did not. A similar pattern was found for the punishment game. Furthermore, ASD subjects revealed a decreased investment in the dictator condition of the punishment game. There were no mean differences in competition behavior and social value orientation. Conclusions: The results provide evidence for differences between ASD subjects and healthy controls in social decision-making. Subjects with ASD showed a more consistent behavior than healthy controls in the trust game and the dictator dilemma. The present findings provide evidence for impaired social learning in ASD.

Report on the practice based culminating experience as teaching assistant for "Pathology and Public Health" class taught at University of Texas School of Public Health, Houston

Objectives. The objectives of this report were to describe current best standards in online education, class competencies, class objectives, class activities and to compare the class competencies, objectives and activities undertaken with the current best practices in online teaching and to provide a list of recommendations based on the most efficacious practices. ^ Methods. Utilizing the key words- online teaching, national standards, quality, online courses, I: (1) conducted a search on Google to find the best standard for quality online courses; the search yielded National Standards for Quality Online Teaching as the gold standard in online course quality; (2) specified class objectives and competencies as well as major activities undertaken as a part of the class. Utilizing the Southern Regional Education Board evaluation checklist for online courses, I: (1) performed an analysis comparing the class activities, objectives, and competencies with the current best standards; (2) utilized the information obtained from the analysis and class experiences to develop recommendations for the most efficacious online teaching practices. ^ Results. The class met the criteria set by the Southern Regional Education Board for evaluating online classes completely in 75%, partially in 16% and did not meet the criteria in 9% cases. The majority of the parameters in which the class did not meet the standards (4 of 5) were due to technological reasons beyond the scope of the class instructor, teaching assistant and instructional design. ^ Discussion. Successful online teaching requires awareness of technology, good communication, methods, collaboration, reflection and flexibility. Creation of an online community, engaging online learners and utilizing different learning styles and assessment methods promote learning. My report proposes that online teaching should actively engage the students and teachers with multiple interactive strategies as evidenced from current best standards of online education and my “hands-on” work experience. ^ Conclusion. The report and the ideas presented are intended to create a foundation for efficacious practice on the online teaching platform. By following many of the efficacious online practices described in the report and adding from their own experiences, online instructors and teaching assistants can contribute to effective online learning. ^

Commentary on "Alternative Strategies for Identifying High-Performing Charter Schools in Texas"

In the last few years policy makers and practitioners nationally have shown much interest in identifying, recognizing, and replicating successful charter schools, many of which are showing that they can educate low-income and otherwise at-risk students remarkably well. However past efforts to identify high performing schools have been problematic. Using these systematic, rigorous value-added methods, the authors identify 44 Open Enrollment charter schools that merit a “high-performer” rating. Nearly all of those campuses identified serve a disadvantaged student population. The article also finds that most of those high performers are highly cost-effective, earning high ratings on the cost-efficiency measures. The authors argue for more widespread use of value-added modeling in the state accountability system. The approach taken to identifying high-performers is sensible and fair, but any formulaic approach to school labels comes with some limitations.

Comunicación alternativa en odontología

Los odontólogos que nos dedicamos a la atención de pacientes especiales sabemos que la técnica odontológica no es lo único que debemos conocer, ya que el manejo de distintas situaciones relacionadas con la discapacidad hace que nuestra tarea sea más compleja para Ilegar al logro de la salud bucal. Nos vamos a referir a una de esas situaciones en particular: la barrera que encontramos para el desarrollo de la comunicación a partir de la privación sensorial (visual o auditiva) o de dificultades motrices o intelectuales que presenta el paciente. La comunicación no tiene por qué ser solamente a través de la palabra oral o escrita, y debemos conocer la existencia de los sistemas alternativos de comunicación (SAAC). El término comunicación aumentativa describe las formas que usan las personas para comunicarse cuando no pueden hablar suficientemente claro, mientras que comunicación alternativa se refiere a métodos de comunicación usados para reemplazar completamente el habla.

Las revistas académicas del campo de la educación (Argentina, 1990-2002)

El estudio de las revistas especializadas permite comprender aspectos importantes de la dinámica de los campos científicos y académicos. Entre ellos, los grados de institucionalización, diferenciación y especialización o las redes de intercambio. La cantidad, la calidad y la difusión de las revistas expresa, en buena medida, el poder relativo de las diversas comunidades académicas y su influencia en el nivel nacional e internacional. Este estudio realiza un análisis descriptivo de las revistas académicas argentinas especializadas en educación durante la década de 1990, como parte de una investigación más amplia sobre la producción de conocimientos en educación, desarrollada en la FLACSO entre 2002 y 2004. Se presentan los datos y conclusiones del análisis de 17 revistas que refieren exclusivamente a temas de educación y que declaran contar con algún mecanismo de referato científico-académico. La descripción toma como punto de partida las siguientes dimensiones: a) las agencias productoras; b) las referencias temporales (fecha de aparición, frecuencia y regularidad de las revistas); c) la distribución regional; d) la estructura de las publicaciones; d) la pertenencia institucional de los autores y e) los temas abordados en las publicaciones. Al final del artículo, se discuten los avances alcanzados en materia de publicaciones en la década pasada y las dificultades que persisten para consolidar una cantidad y diversidad de instancias de comunicación especializada en el campo de la educación en la Argentina.

Las revistas académicas del campo de la educación (Argentina, 1990-2002)

El estudio de las revistas especializadas permite comprender aspectos importantes de la dinámica de los campos científicos y académicos. Entre ellos, los grados de institucionalización, diferenciación y especialización o las redes de intercambio. La cantidad, la calidad y la difusión de las revistas expresa, en buena medida, el poder relativo de las diversas comunidades académicas y su influencia en el nivel nacional e internacional. Este estudio realiza un análisis descriptivo de las revistas académicas argentinas especializadas en educación durante la década de 1990, como parte de una investigación más amplia sobre la producción de conocimientos en educación, desarrollada en la FLACSO entre 2002 y 2004. Se presentan los datos y conclusiones del análisis de 17 revistas que refieren exclusivamente a temas de educación y que declaran contar con algún mecanismo de referato científico-académico. La descripción toma como punto de partida las siguientes dimensiones: a) las agencias productoras; b) las referencias temporales (fecha de aparición, frecuencia y regularidad de las revistas); c) la distribución regional; d) la estructura de las publicaciones; d) la pertenencia institucional de los autores y e) los temas abordados en las publicaciones. Al final del artículo, se discuten los avances alcanzados en materia de publicaciones en la década pasada y las dificultades que persisten para consolidar una cantidad y diversidad de instancias de comunicación especializada en el campo de la educación en la Argentina.

Las revistas académicas del campo de la educación (Argentina, 1990-2002)

El estudio de las revistas especializadas permite comprender aspectos importantes de la dinámica de los campos científicos y académicos. Entre ellos, los grados de institucionalización, diferenciación y especialización o las redes de intercambio. La cantidad, la calidad y la difusión de las revistas expresa, en buena medida, el poder relativo de las diversas comunidades académicas y su influencia en el nivel nacional e internacional. Este estudio realiza un análisis descriptivo de las revistas académicas argentinas especializadas en educación durante la década de 1990, como parte de una investigación más amplia sobre la producción de conocimientos en educación, desarrollada en la FLACSO entre 2002 y 2004. Se presentan los datos y conclusiones del análisis de 17 revistas que refieren exclusivamente a temas de educación y que declaran contar con algún mecanismo de referato científico-académico. La descripción toma como punto de partida las siguientes dimensiones: a) las agencias productoras; b) las referencias temporales (fecha de aparición, frecuencia y regularidad de las revistas); c) la distribución regional; d) la estructura de las publicaciones; d) la pertenencia institucional de los autores y e) los temas abordados en las publicaciones. Al final del artículo, se discuten los avances alcanzados en materia de publicaciones en la década pasada y las dificultades que persisten para consolidar una cantidad y diversidad de instancias de comunicación especializada en el campo de la educación en la Argentina.

Desarrollo de una interfaz para controlar por voz la aplicación móvil de mensajería Telegram

La aparición de los smartphones, trajo consigo el desarrollo de aplicaciones móviles de mensajería instantánea. Estas aplicaciones aprovechan la infraestructura de las redes de datos para enviar los mensajes de unos dispositivos a otros, lo que supone la posibilidad de enviar mensajes ilimitados a bajo coste. Hoy en día lo inusual es ver a alguna persona que haga uso de los antiguos mensajes de texto o sms (Short Message Service), que además llevan el coste de comunicación definido por las distintas operadoras. Tanto ha sido su auge que se ha convertido en uno de los principales medios de comunicación tanto en el ámbito personal como empresarial. Desafortunadamente, cada vez son más los conductores que hacen uso de las aplicaciones de mensajería para enviar y recibir mensajes mientras conducen, a pesar de que su uso está totalmente prohibido y penado por la ley. Por este motivo, en este proyecto se propone la modificación de la aplicación de mensajería Telegram, que permite controlar el env´ıo y recepción de mensajes únicamente utilizando la voz, evitando así cualquier tipo de distracci´on ocasionada por la interacción táctil con el dispositivo. Esta idea propuesta en el proyecto puede ayudar a reducir el número de accidentes ocasionados por este tipo de distracciones al volante, así como las posibles multas e incidentes que pueda ocasionar el uso del móvil durante la conducción. ---ABSTRACT---The emergence of smartphones, fostered the development of mobile instant messaging applications. These applications take advantage of the infrastructure of data networks to send messages between devices with almost no additional cost attached to it. Today you will hardly be able to find a person who makes use of the old text messages or sms (Short Message Service), and therefore bears the cost of communication defined by the respective operators. This boom has been such that it has become one of the main communication methods or channels in both the personal and work environments. Unfortunately, more and more drivers use messaging applications to send and receive messages while they are driving, even though its use is strictly prohibited and punished by law. Therefore our objective is to modify the existing messaging application Telegram allowing interaction with the mobile device by only using the user’s voice to send and receive messages, avoiding any distractions that any tactile interaction with the device could cause. The aim is to significantly try to reduce accidents caused while driving, as well as to avoid any related potential fines and incidents that may result from use of mobile phone while driving.

Análisis de las tecnologías de comunicación entre robots y humanos para su aplicación en grupos de robots

En los últimos tiempos los esfuerzos se están centrando en mejorar los métodos de interacción entre el humano y el robot. El objetivo es conseguir que esa relación parezca simple y que se produzca de la manera más natural posible entre el humano y el robot. Para ese fin se está investigando en métodos de reconocimiento e interpretación del lenguaje corporal, gestos, expresiones de la cara y de sonidos que emite el humano para que la máquina se de cuenta de las intenciones y deseos de los humanos sin recibir órdenes muy específicas. Por otro lado interesa saber cómo se podría aplicar estas técnicas a la comunicación entre robots, pensando aquí en grupos de robots que trabajan en equipos realizando tareas ya asignadas. Estas máquinas se tienen que comunicar para entender las situaciones, detectar necesidades puntuales (si una máquina falla y necesita refuerzo, si pasan acontecimientos inesperados) y reaccionar a ello. Ejecutar estas tareas y realizar las comunicaciones para desarrollar las tareas entre las máquinas resultan especialmente difíciles en entornos hostiles, p.ej. debajo del agua, por lo que el objetivo de este proyecto fin de carrera es investigar las posibles aplicaciones de las técnicas de comunicación entre humanos y máquinas a grupos de robots, como refuerzo o sustitución de los métodos de comunicación clásicos. ABSTRACT. During the last years, many efforts are made to improve the interaction between humans and robots. The aim is to make this relationship simpler and the most natural as possible. For these purpose investigations on the recognition and interpretation of body language, gestures, facial expressions etc are carried out, in order to understand human intentions and desires without receiving specific orders. On the other hand, it is of interest investigate how these techniques could be applied to the communication among robots themselves, e.g. groups of robots which are working in teams resolving certain tasks. These machines have to communicate in order to understand the situations, detect punctual necessities and react to them (e.g. if a machines fails and needs some support, or when some unexpected event happens). The execution of certain tasks and the involved communication, happen to be especially hard in hostile environments, i.e. under water. The objective of this final thesis is to investigate the possible applications of the communication techniques between human and machines to groups of robots, as reinforcement or substitution for the classical communication methods.

Comparing German and British political culture through values : and analysis of the values of health care reform

This research sets out to compare the values in British and German political discourse, especially the discourse of social policy, and to analyse their relationship to political culture through an analysis of the values of health care reform. The work proceeds from the hypothesis that the known differences in political culture between the two countries will be reflected in the values of political discourse, and takes a comparison of two major recent legislative debates on health care reform as a case study. The starting point in the first chapter is a brief comparative survey of the post-war political cultures of the two countries, including a brief account of the historical background to their development and an overview of explanatory theoretical models. From this are developed the expected contrasts in values in accordance with the hypothesis. The second chapter explains the basis for selecting the corpus texts and the contextual information which needs to be recorded to make a comparative analysis, including the context and content of the reform proposals which comprise the case study. It examines any contextual factors which may need to be taken into account in the analysis. The third and fourth chapters explain the analytical method, which is centred on the use of definition-based taxonomies of value items and value appeal methods to identify, on a sentence-by-sentence basis, the value items in the corpus texts and the methods used to make appeals to those value items. The third chapter is concerned with the classification and analysis of values, the fourth with the classification and analysis of value appeal methods. The fifth chapter will present and explain the results of the analysis, and the sixth will summarize the conclusions and make suggestions for further research.

Implementing a knowledge management system within an NHS hospital:a case study exploring the roll-out of an Electronic Patient Record (EPR)

This research aims to contribute to understanding the implementation of knowledge management systems (KMS) in the field of health through a case study, leading to theory building and theory extension. We use the concept of the business process approach to knowledge management as a theoretical lens to analyse and explore how a large teaching hospital developed, executed and practically implemented a KMS. A qualitative study was conducted over a 2.5 year period with data collected from semi-structured interviews with eight members of the strategic management team, 12 clinical users and 20 patients in addition to non-participant observation of meetings and documents. The theoretical propositions strategy was used as the overarching approach for data analysis. Our case study provides evidence that true patient centred approaches to supporting care delivery with a KMS benefit from process thinking at both the planning and implementation stages, and an emphasis on the knowledge demands resulting from: the activities along the care pathways; where cross-overs in care occur; and knowledge sharing for the integration of care. The findings also suggest that despite the theoretical awareness of KMS implementation methodologies, the actual execution of such systems requires practice and learning. Flexible, fluid approaches through rehearsal are important and communications strategies should focus heavily on transparency incorporating both structured and unstructured communication methods.

Effects of structured writing versus nonstructured writing as an effective and efficient teaching and learning strategy

This research investigated the effectiveness and efficiency of structured writing as compared to traditional nonstructured writing as a teaching and learning strategy in a training session for teachers.^ Structured writing is a method of identifying, interrelating, sequencing, and graphically displaying information on fields of a page or computer. It is an alternative for improving training and educational outcomes by providing an effective and efficient documentation methodology.^ The problem focuses upon the contradiction between: (a) the supportive research and theory to modify traditional methods of written documents and information presentation and (b) the existing paradigm to continue with traditional communication methods.^ A MANOVA was used to determine significant difference between a control and an experimental group in a posttest only experimental design. The experimental group received the treatment of structured writing materials during a training session. Two variables were analyzed. They were: (a) effectiveness; correct items on a posttest, and (b) efficiency; time spent on test.^ The quantitative data showed a difference for the experimental group on the two dependent variables. The experimental group completed the posttest in 2 minutes less time while scoring 1.5 more items correct. An interview with the training facilitators revealed that the structured writing materials were "user friendly." ^

Towards automated Android app collusion detection

Android OS supports multiple communication methods between apps. This opens the possibility to carry out threats in a collaborative fashion, c.f. the Soundcomber example from 2011. In this paper we provide a concise definition of collusion and report on a number of automated detection approaches, developed in co-operation with Intel Security.

Mudança de rota

Fundado num estudo de caso sobre a TAP Air Portugal, a empresa pública nacional do sector da aeronáutica, este artigo pretende comunicar o binómio constituído por processos planeados e emergentes na gestão da mudança organizacional. Nas últimas décadas, a TAP Air Portugal vinha acumulando prejuízos constantes, desmotivação nos seus colaboradores e instabilidade laboral permanente. Com a chegada de uma nova equipa de gestão liderada por Fernando Pinto em 2000, o cenário parece ter-se invertido. O papel do líder, o estilo de gestão, as tácticas de negociação e o fomento de uma visão corporativa são debatidos. Através de um plano minuciosamente projectado e comunicado a toda a organização, observou-se uma mudança cultural alicerçada em objectivos comummente partilhados. Restaurada a confiança dos colaboradores, a empresa retomou a rota desejada.

CHARACTERIZING AND IMPROVING PRODUCTION OF FERMENTABLE SUGARS AND CO-PRODUCTS FROM A FOREST PRODUCT INDUSTRY WASTEWATER STREAM

Hardboard processing wastewater was evaluated as a feedstock in a bio refinery co-located with the hardboard facility for the production of fuel grade ethanol. A thorough characterization was conducted on the wastewater and the composition changes of which during the process in the bio refinery were tracked. It was determined that the wastewater had a low solid content (1.4%), and hemicellulose was the main component in the solid, accounting for up to 70%. Acid pretreatment alone can hydrolyze the majority of the hemicellulose as well as oligomers, and over 50% of the monomer sugars generated were xylose. The percentage of lignin remained in the liquid increased after acid pretreatment. The characterization results showed that hardboard processing wastewater is a feasible feedstock for the production of ethanol. The optimum conditions to hydrolyze hemicellulose into fermentable sugars were evaluated with a two-stage experiment, which includes acid pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis. The experimental data were fitted into second order regression models and Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was employed. The results of the experiment showed that for this type of feedstock enzymatic hydrolysis is not that necessary. In order to reach a comparatively high total sugar concentration (over 45g/l) and low furfural concentration (less than 0.5g/l), the optimum conditions were reached when acid concentration was between 1.41 to 1.81%, and reaction time was 48 to 76 minutes. The two products produced from the bio refinery were compared with traditional products, petroleum gasoline and traditional potassium acetate, in the perspective of sustainability, with greenhouse gas (GHG) emission as an indicator. Three allocation methods, system expansion, mass allocation and market value allocation methods were employed in this assessment. It was determined that the life cycle GHG emissions of ethanol were -27.1, 20.8 and 16 g CO2 eq/MJ, respectively, in the three allocation methods, whereas that of petroleum gasoline is 90 g CO2 eq/MJ. The life cycle GHG emissions of potassium acetate in mass allocation and market value allocation method were 555.7 and 716.0 g CO2 eq/kg, whereas that of traditional potassium acetate is 1020 g CO2/kg.