Models for Integration of Psychological and Linguistic Knowledge in Complex Forensic Examinations

The article presents complex forensic psychological and linguistic examination models developed basing on various kinds of integration of psychological and linguistic knowledge in solving typical expert tasks. Based on forensic expertise, expert practice, methodological developments in complex, as well as psychological and psychiatric examinations, the author describes the following types of studies: a sequential complex of examinations, parallel complex examination, complex sequential analysis, sequential-parallel complex study.The author also illustrates the sequence of the use and integration of the results of applying specialized knowledge with particular examples.

Clinical Effectiveness and Safety of Chinese Herbal Medicine Compound Kushen Injection as an Add-On Treatment for Breast Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Objective. To systematically evaluate the effect and safety of compound Kushen injection (CKI) as an add-on treatment on the treatment for breast cancer. Methods. We searched eight major electronic databases from their inception to November 1, 2021, for randomized clinical trials (RCTs) comparing CKI plus chemotherapy with chemotherapy alone. Primary outcomes included objective response rate (ORR) and disease control rate (DCR), health-related quality of life (HRQoL), progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS). Secondary outcomes included adverse drug reactions (ADRs) and tumor marker level. We used Cochrane’s RevMan 5.3 for data analysis. The GRADEpro was used to appraise the certainty of evidence. Trial sequential analysis (TSA) was applied to estimate the required sample size in a meta-analysis and test the robustness of the current results. Results. Thirty RCTs with 2556 participants were totally included. CKI plus chemotherapy showed significant effects in increasing ORR (RR 1.30, 95%CI [1.18, 1.43], I2 = 27%, n = 1694), increasing DCR (RR 1.21, 95%CI [1.15, 1.28], I2 = 16%, n = 1627), increasing HRQol as measured by Karnofsky Performance Scale (KPS) score improvement rate (RR 1.42, 95% CI [1.26, 1.61], I2 = 37%, n = 1172), increasing the PFS (MD 2.24 months, 95%CI [1.26, 3.22], n = 94) and the OS (MD 2.24 months, 95%CI [1.45, 3.43], n = 94), compared to chemotherapy alone. The results showed that CKI plus chemotherapy had a lower risk of ADRs than that of chemotherapy alone group. The certainty of evidence of the included trials was generally low to very low. TSA for ORR and KPS score improvement rate demonstrated that the current results reached a sufficient power regarding both numbers of trials and participants. Conclusions. Low certainty of evidence suggested that the combination of CKI and conventional chemotherapy appeared to improve ORR, DCR, and KPS score in breast cancer patients. Conclusions about PFS and OS could not be drawn due to lack of evidence. Additionally, CKI appeared to relieve the risk of ADRs in patients with breast cancer receiving chemotherapies. However, due to weak evidence, the findings should be further confirmed in large and rigorous trials.

Asymptotically Optimal Sequential Design for Rank Aggregation

A sequential design problem for rank aggregation is commonly encountered in psychology, politics, marketing, sports, etc. In this problem, a decision maker is responsible for ranking K items by sequentially collecting noisy pairwise comparisons from judges. The decision maker needs to choose a pair of items for comparison in each step, decide when to stop data collection, and make a final decision after stopping based on a sequential flow of information. Because of the complex ranking structure, existing sequential analysis methods are not suitable. In this paper, we formulate the problem under a Bayesian decision framework and propose sequential procedures that are asymptotically optimal. These procedures achieve asymptotic optimality by seeking a balance between exploration (i.e., finding the most indistinguishable pair of items) and exploitation (i.e., comparing the most indistinguishable pair based on the current information). New analytical tools are developed for proving the asymptotic results, combining advanced change of measure techniques for handling the level crossing of likelihood ratios and classic large deviation results for martingales, which are of separate theoretical interest in solving complex sequential design problems. A mirror-descent algorithm is developed for the computation of the proposed sequential procedures.

Heavy Loaded Parts of Petrochemical Equipment Destruction Cause Investigation

The problem of using specialized passivating metals and alloys lies in a rather narrow range of the protecting film performance. With a slight change in operating conditions, the film is destroyed and an avalanche-like process of local corrosion begins at the place of film breakdown. A sequence has been developed for determining parts destruction causes, including a sequential analysis of operating conditions; nature of the part destruction; corrosion products composition; phase inversion in the alloy during overheating or mechanical stress in the part.

Collaborative Behavior Patterns of Students in Programming Instruction

The pair programming approach is used to overcome the difficulties of the programming process in education environments. In this study, the interaction sequences during the paired programming of preservice teachers was investigated. Lag sequential analysis were used to explore students’ behavioral patterns in pair programming. The participants of the study consist of 14 students, seven pairs enrolled in a Programming Languages course. The findings indicate that there are significant behavioral learning sequences. During the program development process, students hesitated to create an algorithm and to improve an existing one while proposing the next step. In addition, they constantly waited for approval. Collaborative behaviors such as giving and receiving feedback and helping other partners were less observed in females. In addition, significant sequential driver and navigator behaviors were presented. The findings of the study have important implications for instructors and designers when using a pair programming approach in teaching programming. In the future, programming instruction environments can be designed by considering the learner behaviors that are presented in this study.

Oral Antihypertensives for Nonsevere Pregnancy Hypertension: Systematic Review, Network Meta- and Trial Sequential Analyses

Background: We aimed to address which antihypertensives are superior to placebo/no therapy or another antihypertensive for controlling nonsevere pregnancy hypertension and provide future sample size estimates for definitive evidence. Methods: Randomized trials of antihypertensives for nonsevere pregnancy hypertension were identified from online electronic databases, to February 28, 2021 (registration URL: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/ ; unique identifier: CRD42020188725). Our outcomes were severe hypertension, proteinuria/preeclampsia, fetal/newborn death, small-for-gestational age infants, preterm birth, and admission to neonatal care. A Bayesian random-effects model generated estimates of direct and indirect treatment comparisons. Trial sequential analysis informed future trials needed. Results: Of 1246 publications identified, 72 trials were included; 61 (6923 women) were informative. All commonly prescribed antihypertensives (labetalol, other β-blockers, methyldopa, calcium channel blockers, and mixed/multi-drug therapy) versus placebo/no therapy reduced the risk of severe hypertension by 30% to 70%. Labetalol decreased proteinuria/preeclampsia (odds ratio, 0.73 [95% credible interval, 0.54–0.99]) and fetal/newborn death (odds ratio, 0.54 [0.30–0.98]) compared with placebo/no therapy, and proteinuria/preeclampsia compared with methyldopa (odds ratio, 0.66 [0.44–0.99]) and calcium channel blockers (odds ratio, 0.63 [0.41–0.96]). No other differences were identified, but credible intervals were wide. Trial sequential analysis indicated that 2500 to 10 000 women/arm (severe hypertension or safety outcomes) to >15 000/arm (fetal/newborn death) would be required to provide definitive evidence. Conclusions: In summary, all commonly prescribed antihypertensives in pregnancy reduce the risk of severe hypertension, but labetalol may also decrease proteinuria/preeclampsia and fetal/newborn death. Evidence is lacking for many other safety outcomes. Prohibitive sample sizes are required for definitive evidence. Real-world data are needed to individualize care.

Development of computer-based learning system for learning behavior analytics

<p>This paper aims to analyze the learning behavior of Thai learners by using a computer-based learning system for English writing. Three main objectives were set: the development of a computer-based learning system, automatic behavior data collection, and learning behavior analytics. Firstly, the system is developed under a multidisciplinary idea that is designed to integrate two concepts between the self-regulated learning model and components of natural language processing. The integration design encourages self-learning in the digital learning environment and supports appropriate English writing by the provided component selection. Second, the system automatically collects the writing behavior of a group of Thai learners. The data collected are necessary input for the process of learning analytics. Third, the writing behaviors data were analyzed to find the learning behavioral patterns of the learners. For learning analytics, behavior sequential analysis was used to analyze the learning logs from the system. The 31 undergraduate students are participated to record writing behaviors via the system. The learning patterns in relation to grammatical skills were compared between three groups: basic, intermediate, and advanced levels. The learning behavior patterns of the three groups are different that use for reflecting learners and improving the learning materials or curriculum.</p>