Digital Commons Network^™

Long-Term Modifications Of Coastal Defences Enhance Marine Biodiversity, Gustavo M. Martins, Stuart R. Jenkins, Ana I. Neto, Stephen J. Hawkins, Richard C. Thompson

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

No abstract provided.

Same-Sex Sexual Behaviour As A Dominance Display, Sarah M. Lane, Alice E. Haughan, Daniel Evans, Tom Tregenza, Clarissa M. House

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

No abstract provided.

Hierarchical Reinforcement Learning As Creative Problem Solving, Tr Colin, T Belpaeme, A Cangelosi, N Hemion

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

Although creativity is studied from philosophy to cognitive robotics, a definition has proven elusive. We argue for emphasizing the creative process (the cognition of the creative agent), rather than the creative product (the artifact or behavior). Owing to developments in experimental psychology, the process approach has become an increasingly attractive way of characterizing creative problem solving. In particular, the phenomenon of insight, in which an individual arrives at a solution through a sudden change in perspective, is a crucial component of the process of creativity. These developments resonate with advances in machine learning, in particular hierarchical and modular approaches, as …

Impacts Of Climate Change, Agroecology And Socio-Economic Factorson Agricultural Land Use Diversity In Bangladesh (1948–2008), S Rahman

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

The paper examines the impacts of climate change, agroecology and socio-economic factors on agricultural land use diversity (ALUD) using a panel data of 17 regions of Bangladesh covering a 61 year period (1948–2008) by applying a dynamic panel GMM estimator. Results revealed that ALUD and total rainfall have actually increased @ 0.19% and 0.02% per year whereas variability in temperature has declined @ 0.06% with significant differences across agroecological zones (AEZs). Among the climatic factors, total rainfall significantly increases ALUD. ALUD is also significantly influenced by agroecological characteristics. ALUD is significantly higher in Ganges River Floodplains but lower in Meghna …

Boa Constrictor (Common Boa). Reproduction / Courtship, R Puschendorf, G Chaves

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

No abstract provided.

What’S On The Inside Counts: A Grounded Account Of Concept Acquisition And Development, S Thill, K Twomey

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

Understanding the factors which affect the age of acquisition (AoA) of words and concepts is fundamental to understanding cognitive development more broadly. Traditionally, studies of AoA have taken two approaches, either exploring the effect of linguistic variables such as input frequency (e.g., Naigles and Hoff-Ginsberg, 1998) or the semantics of the underlying concept, such as concreteness or imageability (e.g., Bird et al., 2001). Embodied theories of cognition, meanwhile, assume that concepts, even relatively abstract ones, can be grounded in the embodied experience. While the focus of such discussions has been mainly on grounding in external modalities, more recently some have …

Assessing Walking Posture With Geometric Morphometrics: Effects Of Rearing Environment In Pigs, C Tallet, E Sénèque, C Mégnin, S Morisset, Et Al

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

Rearing social animals like pigs in isolation from conspecifics can have consequences on behaviour and physiology. The aim of this experiment was to determine whether rearing conditions affect body posture. We adapted a method for quantitative evaluation of posture based on geometric morphometrics, developed in horses, for pigs and applied it in different conditions. Forty-eight 75-day-old females were reared either alone in 2.25 m2 pens (IH, N = 24 animals and 4 groups) or in groups of four in 4.64 m2 pens (GH, N = 24) for two weeks. They were habituated to human handling (stroking, speaking) and marking on …

Sources, Distribution, And Fate Of Microscopic Plastics In Marine Environments, Richard C. Thompson

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

No abstract provided.

Innovation And Model Organisms For The Environmental Hazard Assessment Of Engineered Nanomaterials, Rd Handy

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

No abstract provided.

Understanding The Routes Of Contamination Of Ready-To-Eat Vegetables In The Middle East, Dima Faour-Klingbeil, Muhammad Murtada, Victor Kuri, Ewen C.D. Todd

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

No abstract provided.

The Transfer Rate Of Salmonella Typhimurium From Contaminated Parsley To Other Consecutively Chopped Batches Via Cutting Boards Under Different Food Handling Scenarios, Dima Faour-Klingbeil, Victor Kuri, Ewen Todd

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

No abstract provided.

On The Use Of The Radon Transform To Estimate Longshore Currents From Video Imagery, Rafael Almar, Stanislas Larnier, Bruno Castelle, Timothy Scott, France Floc'h

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

No abstract provided.

Microbiological Quality Of Ready-To-Eat Fresh Vegetables And Their Link To Food Safety Environment And Handling Practices In Restaurants, Dima Faour-Klingbeil, Ewen C.D. Todd, Victor Kuri

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

he increased consumption of ready-to-eat salads outside homes as a result of a fast paced lifestyle, awareness on their nutritional attributes and enhanced processing technology is well documented. This study aimed to determine the microbiological quality of fresh-cut salads vegetables in small and medium sized foodservice establishments (SMEs) and to identify risk factors and handling practices through observational assessment in order to investigate if an association between microbiological quality and visual assessment (inspection) scores can be established. A total of 118 samples fresh-cut vegetable salads were collected from 50 inspected locations and analysed microbiologically, in addition to 49 swabs of …

Making Microscopy Count: Quantitative Light Microscopy Of Dynamic Processes In Living Plants, Mark D. Fricker, Julian Moger, George R. Littlejohn, Michael J. Deeks

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

No abstract provided.

The Competing Objectives Underlying The Protection Of Intangible Cultural Heritage, Peter K. Yu

Faculty Scholarship

One topic that has received considerable academic and policy attention concerns the key objectives underlying the establishment of this new framework. To help us develop a better and deeper understanding, this article outlines eight most widely documented objectives. While some of these objectives overlap or conflict with each other, others touch on issues that are of only marginal concern to some constituencies. By focusing on each objective in turn, this article aims to underscore the divergent, and at times competing, interests among the many stakeholders involved in the framework.

Although some readers may find the description of all eight underlying …

Diagnostics Of Primary Immunodeficiencies Through Next-Generation Sequencing., Vera Gallo, Laura Dotta, Giuliana Giardino, Emilia Cirillo, Vassilios Lougaris, Roberta D'Assante, Alberto Prandini, Rita Consolini, Emily G. Farrow, Isabelle Thiffault, Carol J. Saunders, Antonio Leonardi, Alessandro Plebani, Raffaele Badolato, Claudio Pignata

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

BACKGROUND: Recently, a growing number of novel genetic defects underlying primary immunodeficiencies (PIDs) have been identified, increasing the number of PID up to more than 250 well-defined forms. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies and proper filtering strategies greatly contributed to this rapid evolution, providing the possibility to rapidly and simultaneously analyze large numbers of genes or the whole exome.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the role of targeted NGS and whole exome sequencing (WES) in the diagnosis of a case series, characterized by complex or atypical clinical features suggesting a PID, difficult to diagnose using the current diagnostic procedures.

METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed …

Developmental Biology (Embryology) Course Syllabus And Policies, Steelman Library, Todd D. Schraw Dr.

Syllabus Repository

No abstract provided.

Medical Terminology, Steelman Library, Todd Schraw Dr.

Syllabus Repository

No abstract provided.

Litigation: Time To Revisit Chevron Difference, Jack M. Beermann, Charles J. Cooper, Thomas W. Merrill, Amy Wildermuth, Don R. Wildermouth

Faculty Scholarship

Article is a transcript from the 2014 National Lawyers Convention panel on Millennials, Equity, and the Rule of Law. A video recording of the panel can be viewed here.

JUSTICE DON WILLETT: ... because Chevron deference is kind of like bacon. Some people like their Chevron deference rigid and crisp. Other people like it a little squishy and a little bendable. A few people dislike it altogether, no matter how it's served. But Chevron' is now thirty years old, older than a number of people in the audience today, and a lot has changed. The regulatory state …

Differentiating Deference, Anya Bernstein

Faculty Scholarship

There is now some consensus that the context of a statutory term plays a crucial part in its meaning.1 The argument continues, however, over what "kinds of context ... matter."2 Building on scholarship that addresses the wide range of contexts that contribute to legal meaning,3 this Article illuminates two factors crucial to interpreting legal language: the social nature of meaning-making and the practical nature of interpretive competence. I locate my inquiry in the judicial review of agency statutory interpretation, a particularly fruitful arena for analyzing statutory interpretation more generally.

To fill the gap, Part I of this Article first illuminates …

From Outlaw To Outcast To In-Law? Contesting The Perils Of Marriage Equality, Linda C. Mcclain

Faculty Scholarship

I am pleased to offer the opening commentary in this BU Law Review Annex symposium on Professor Katherine Franke’s provocative new book, Wedlocked: The Perils of Marriage Equality. As previewed by the book’s additional subtitle, “How African Americans and Gays Mistakenly Thought the Right to Marry Would Set Them Free,” Franke aims to provide “cautionary tales” gleaned, or lessons learned, from juxtaposing post-Civil War regulation of the marriages of African Americans freed from slavery with today’s movement for marriage equality for gay men and lesbians.3 Long a skeptic about the gay community’s focus on the goal of marriage—its (in …

An Assessment Of The Human Subjects Protection Review Process For Exempt Research, Jonathan D. Loe, Alex Winkelman, Christopher Robertson

Faculty Scholarship

Medical and public health research includes surveys, interviews, and biospecimens - techniques that do not present substantial risks to subjects. Consequently, this research is exempt from regulation under the Federal Common Rule. Nevertheless, at many institutions, exempt research is frequently subject to the same regulatory process that is required for non-exempt research, requiring the consumption of time and resources for review by Institutional Review Board members or staff. The federal government has indicated an intention to reform and centralize this system, but has not yet specified the form that it will use instead. By examining the policies of the top …

Beyond Lifestyle: Governing The Social Determinants Of Health, Wendy K. Mariner

Faculty Scholarship

Non-communicable and chronic diseases have overtaken infectious diseases as the major causes of death and disability around the world. Despite recognition that reduction in the chronic disease burden will require governance systems to address the social determinants of health, most public health recommendations emphasize individual behavior as the primary cause of illness and the target of intervention. This Article argues that focusing on lifestyle can backfire, by increasing health inequities and inviting human rights violations. If States fail to take meaningful steps to alter the social and economic structures that create health risks and encourage unhealthy behavior, health at the …

Everyday Problems With Executive Dysfunction And Impulsivity In Adults Recovering From Methamphetamine Addiction, Carilyn Ellis, William Hoffman, Sarah Jaehnert, Jane Plagge, Jennifer M. Loftis, Daniel Schwartz, Marilyn Huckans

Faculty Publications - Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) Program

Objectives

Compared with non-addicted controls (CTLs), adults in remission from methamphetamine addiction (MA-REM) evidence impairments on objective measures of executive functioning and impulsivity.

Methods

To evaluate the impact of these impairments in MA-REM adults, demographically matched groups (MA-REM, n=30; CTLs, n=24) completed objective and self-report measures of executive functioning and impulsivity.

Results

MA-REM adults demonstrated significantly (p < 0.050) greater objective and subjective problems with executive functioning and impulsivity.

Conclusions

These results suggest that adults in MA-REM are aware of their deficits and that these deficits have significant impact in everyday life.

Age-Related Differences In Visuomotor Integration As Measured By Object Affordance Effects - A Combined Behavioural And Neurophysiological Investigation, Elisabeth Linnet

School of Psychology Theses

Visuomotor behaviour – from handling simple objects to operating complex devices – is of fundamental importance in our everyday lives, yet there is relatively little evidence as to how healthy ageing affects these processes. A central role is played by the human capacity for reaching and grasping. Grasping an object requires complex visuomotor transformations, including processing of the object’s extrinsic features (it’s spatial location) and intrinsic features (such as size and shape). It has been documented that action relevant intrinsic object properties automatically facilitate specific motor actions despite being task-irrelevant, the so-called object affordance effect. These effects have been demonstrated …

Biol 208l Human Anatomy & Physiology Lab I, Steelman Library, A Franklin Dr

Syllabus Repository

No abstract provided.

The Adaptive Memory Effect: Exploring Need For Cognition And Survival Processing, Nora Del Giudice

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Adaptive memory demonstrates that memory is enhanced when information is processed because of its relevance to survival (Nairne, Thompson, & Pandeirada, 2007). In the present experiments we examined whether there was a difference in individuals Need for Cognition (NFC) in regards to adaptive memory. Need for Cognition is characterized as the differences in individual’s preference for engaging in thought that requires effort. Specifically, individuals high in NFC could think of numerous ways to survive, thus being more likely to generate more thoughts and ideas, ultimately leading to better memory compared to low-NFC individuals. For both experiments participants read survival and …

Tests Of Reproductive Isolation Between The Fishes Fundulus Heteroclitus And F. Grandis, Ruthie E. Barbas

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The closely related killifishes Fundulus heteroclitus and F. grandis hybridize in a small region where their ranges overlap in coastal northeastern Florida. Hybrids of these species are rare in frequency within the contact zone, suggesting the presence of relatively strong reproductive isolation between these species. The objective of this study was to elucidate barriers to reproduction between F. heteroclitus and F. grandis in the lab, as well as to quantify the relative strengths and contributions of various isolating barriers. Pre-zygotic (mating and fertilization) and post-zygotic (hatching) barriers were investigated by performing a variety of choice and no-choice laboratory mating experiments. …

Seft-Monitoring And Attitude Polarization: Individual Differences In The Role Of Belief Consistency And Belief Confidence In The Mere-Thought Effect, Rosanna Rodriguez

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The mere thought effect is the tendency for favorable attitudes to become more favorable and unfavorable attitudes to become more unfavorable following thought (Tesser, 1978). Changes in belief-consistency and belief-confidence mediate this effect (Tesser, Martin, & Mendolia, 1995). However, there are self-monitoring differences in the extent to which people are driven by consistency in their beliefs (Fuglestad & Snyder, 2009; Snyder, 1974). It was predicted that mere-thought and self-monitoring will interactively influence attitude polarization. We also hypothesized that the interactive effects of mere-thought and self-monitoring on attitude polarization will be mediated by belief-consistency and belief-confidence. After indicating their initial attitudes …

The Mechanics And Fixed Operations Of Human Experience, James Dominick Di Netta

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This paper will use the natural laws of the universe and amassed evidence to support a dynamic systems theory approach to explain the mechanics and fixed operations of the human experience taking place inside a causally determined universe without the possibility of free will. By reductionary methods, the universe and all its’ contents, including human agents, will be exemplified as complex dynamic systems. In so doing, the human experience is reduced to being comprised of information acting and reacting with other information existing in the universe, specifically ideas. Allowing ideas to take on a physical manifestation shows how the feedback …