A DISTRIBUTION LAW OF THE RESULTS OF MEASUREMENT OF COMPOSITION AND PROPERTIES OF PETROLEUM PRODUCTS

Идентификацию закона распределения результатов измерений состава и свойств нефтепродуктов проводили путем проверки сложной гипотезы с использованием пяти критериев согласия: χ2-Пирсона, Колмогорова, Смирнова, ω2 Крамера-Мизеса-Смирнова; Ω2 Андерсона-Дарлинга. В качестве возможных функций распределения вероятностей рассматривали 12 симметричных одномодальных законов распределения, а также 66 смесей этих же законов распределения. Целью идентификации являлось нахождение универсального закона распределения (смеси законов распределений) справедливого для всех рассматриваемых величин. Проверка сложной гипотезы о соответствии какому-либо симметричному одномодальному закону распределения показала, что не существует универсального закона распределения справедливого для всех методик измерений состава и свойств нефтепродуктов, наиболее часто не отвергалась гипотеза о соответствии данных обобщенному логистическому распределению, распределению Лапласа и двустороннему экспоненциальному распределению. Проверка сложной гипотезы о соответствии какой-либо смеси симметричных одномодальных законов распределения показала, что эмпирическая функция распределения результатов измерений состава и свойств нефтепродуктов может быть представлена в виде смеси двух нормальных распределений с разными значениями параметров положения и масштаба. При этом для одной и той же выборки значения достигаемого уровня значимости гипотезы о соответствии смеси законов распределений в несколько раз выше среднего значения достигаемого уровня значимости гипотезы о соответствии одному закону распределения. На основе проведенного исследования обоснована вероятностная модель процесса испытаний нефтепродуктов, в рамках которой результат испытаний нефтепродуктов рассматривается как случайная величина с функцией распределения в виде смеси нормальных законов распределения: «основного» с дисперсией, не превышающей установленные требования (при статистически управляемом состоянии процесса испытаний), и «засоряющего» с дисперсией значительно превышающей установленные требования (при статистически неуправляемом состоянии процесса испытаний). The identification of a distribution law of the results of measurements of the composition and properties of petroleum products was carried out by testing a complex hypothesis using five goodness-of-fit tests: χ2-Pearson, Kolmogorov, Smirnov, ω2Cramer-Mises-Smirnov; Ω2 Anderson-Darling. Twelve symmetric unimodal distribution laws and 66 mixtures of the same distribution laws were considered as possible probability distribution functions. The purpose of the identification was to find a universal distribution law (a mixture of distribution laws) that is valid for all considered quantities. Testing the complex hypothesis of compliance with any symmetric unimodal distribution law showed that there is no universal distribution law that is valid for all measurement techniques of the composition and properties of petroleum products; most often the hypothesis of the correspondence the data to the generalized logistic distribution, the Laplace distribution and the two-sided exponential distribution was not rejected. Testing a complex hypothesis about the correspondence of any mixture of symmetric unimodal distribution laws showed that the empirical distribution function of the results of measurements of the composition and properties of petroleum products can be represented as a mixture of two normal distributions with different values ​​of the position and scale parameters. At the same time, for the same sample, the values ​​of the achieved significance level of the hypothesis about the correspondence to the mixture of distribution laws is several times higher than the average value of the achieved significance level of the hypothesis about the correspondence to one distribution law. Based on this study, a chance model of the process of testing petroleum products was substantiated, within which the result of testing petroleum products is considered as a random variable with a distribution function in the form of a mixture of normal distribution laws: "basic" with a variance not exceeding the established requirements (with a statistically controlled state of the test process), and "fouling" with a variance significantly exceeding the established requirements (with a statistically uncontrolled state of the test process).

Refutation of traumatic insemination in the Drosophila bipectinata species complex: Hypothesis fails critical tests

Traumatic insemination (TI) is a rare reproductive behaviour characterized by the transfer of sperm to the female via puncture wounds inflicted across her body wall. Here, we challenge the claim made by Kamimura (2007) that males of species of the Drosophila bipectinata complex utilize a pair of claw-like processes (claws) to traumatically inseminate females: the claws are purported to puncture the female body wall and genital tract, and to inject sperm through the wounds into the genital tract, bypassing the vaginal opening, the route of sperm transfer occurring in other Drosophila. This supposed case of TI is widely cited and featured in prominent subject reviews. We examined high-resolution scanning electron micrographs of the claws and failed to discover any obvious groove for sperm transport. We demonstrated that sperm occurred in the female reproductive tract as a single integrated unit when mating flies were experimentally separated, inconsistent with the claim that sperm are injected via paired processes. The aedeagus in the bipectinata complex was imaged, and shown to deliver sperm through the vaginal opening. Laser ablation of the sharp terminal ends of the claws failed to inhibit insemination. The results refute the claim of TI in the Drosophila bipectinata species complex.

Chloride transporters and channels in β-cell physiology: revisiting a 40-year-old model

It is accepted that insulin-secreting β-cells release insulin in response to glucose even in the absence of functional ATP-sensitive K+ (KATP)-channels, which play a central role in a ‘consensus model’ of secretion broadly accepted and widely reproduced in textbooks. A major shortcoming of this consensus model is that it ignores any and all anionic mechanisms, known for more than 40 years, to modulate β-cell electrical activity and therefore insulin secretion. It is now clear that, in addition to metabolically regulated KATP-channels, β-cells are equipped with volume-regulated anion (Cl–) channels (VRAC) responsive to glucose concentrations in the range known to promote electrical activity and insulin secretion. In this context, the electrogenic efflux of Cl– through VRAC and other Cl– channels known to be expressed in β-cells results in depolarization because of an outwardly directed Cl– gradient established, maintained and regulated by the balance between Cl– transporters and channels. This review will provide a succinct historical perspective on the development of a complex hypothesis: Cl– transporters and channels modulate insulin secretion in response to nutrients.

Brain-wide mapping of contextual fear memory engram ensembles supports the dispersed engram complex hypothesis

Neuronal ensembles that hold specific memory (memory engrams) have been identified in the hippocampus, amygdala, and cortex. It has been hypothesized that engrams for a specific memory are distributed among multiple brain regions that are functionally connected. Here, we report the hitherto most extensive engram map for contextual fear memory by characterizing activity-tagged neurons in 409 regions using SHIELD-based tissue phenotyping. The mapping was aided by a novel engram index, which identified cFos+ brain regions holding engrams with a high probability. Optogenetic manipulations confirmed previously known engrams and revealed new engrams. Many of these engram holding-regions were functionally connected to the CA1 or amygdala engrams. Simultaneous chemogenetic reactivation of multiple engrams, which mimics natural memory recall, conferred a greater level of memory recall than reactivation of a single engram ensemble. Overall, our study supports the hypothesis that a memory is stored in functionally connected engrams distributed across multiple brain regions.

China: Some Exceptions of Secularization Thesis

The aim of this article is to present the controversial features of the secularization thesis about Chinese religions performed via analyzing the newly published Chinese religious policy named The Several Opinions on Further Governance of Commercial Problems in Buddhism and Taoism. This article proposes a complex hypothesis: (1) though the public influence of religion has acquired momentum of expansion in China, the growth and expansion of Chinese religions accompanied the decline of private religiosity; (2) Chinese religions possess controversial features of secularization: though they experience the reduction of their power, range of control, and prestige, meanwhile they embrace the increase in numbers of members, intensity, frequency, and importance of public life; (3) Nonreligious factors play an important role in promoting the growth of Chinese religions temporarily, while religious factors will be responsible for resurgence of Chinese religions chronically. This paper is the first in a series to apply the secularization thesis to Chinese religions.

BAYESIAN OCKHAM’S RAZOR AND NESTED MODELS

While Bayesian methods are widely used in economics and finance, the foundations of this approach remain controversial. In the contemporary statistical literature Bayesian Ockham’s razor refers to the observation that the Bayesian approach to scientific inference will automatically assign greater likelihood to a simpler hypothesis if the data are compatible with both a simpler and a more complex hypothesis. In this paper I will discuss a problem that results when Bayesian Ockham’s razor is applied to nested economic models. I will argue that previous responses to the problem found in the philosophical literature are unsatisfactory and develop a novel reply to the problem.

Effects of explaining on children's preference for simpler hypotheses

Research suggests that the process of explaining influences causal reasoning by prompting learners to favor hypotheses that offer “good” explanations. One feature of a good explanation is its simplicity. Here we investigate whether prompting children to generate explanations for observed effects increases the extent to which they favor causal hypotheses that offer simpler explanations, and whether this changes over the course of development. Children aged 4, 5, and 6 years observed several outcomes that could be explained by appeal to a common cause (the simple hypothesis) or two independent causes (the complex hypothesis). We varied whether children were prompted to explain each observation or, in a control condition, to report it. Children were then asked to make additional inferences for which the competing hypotheses generated different predictions. The results revealed developmental differences in the extent to which children favored simpler hypotheses as a basis for further inference in this task: 4-year- olds did not favor the simpler hypothesis in either condition; 5-year-olds favored the simpler hypothesis only when prompted to explain; and 6-year-olds favored the simpler hypothesis whether or not they explained.

Statistical Justification of Pearson's Criterion for Testing a Complex Hypothesis on the Uniform Distribution

The paper is studying the justification of the Pearson criterion for checking the hypothesis on the uniform distribution of the general totality. If the distribution parameters are unknown, then estimates of the theoretical frequencies are used [1, 2, 3]. In this case the quantile of the chi-square distribution with the number of degrees of freedom, reduced by the number of parameters evaluated, is used to determine the upper threshold of the main hypothesis acceptance [7]. However, in the case of a uniform law, the application of Pearson's criterion does not extend to complex hypotheses, since the likelihood function does not allow differentiation with respect to parameters, which is used in the proof of the theorem mentioned [7, 10, 11].A statistical experiment is proposed in order to study the distribution of Pearson statistics for samples from a uniform law. The essence of the experiment is that at first a statistically significant number of one-type samples from a given uniform distribution is modeled, then for each sample Pearson statistics are calculated, and then the law of distribution of the totality of these statistics is studied. Modeling and processing of samples were performed in the Mathcad 15 package using the built-in random number generator and array processing facilities.In all the experiments carried out, the hypothesis that the Pearson statistics conform to the chi-square law was unambiguously accepted (confidence level 0.95). It is also statistically proved that the number of degrees of freedom in the case of a complex hypothesis need not be corrected. That is, the maximum likelihood estimates of the uniform law parameters implicitly used in calculating Pearson statistics do not affect the number of degrees of freedom, which is thus determined by the number of grouping intervals only.

Cytogenetic and DNA barcoding reveals high divergence within the trahira, Hoplias malabaricus (Characiformes: Erythrinidae) from the lower Amazon River

Molecular and cytogenetic data have provided evidence of cryptic speciation in the widespread South American trahira, Hoplias malabaricus. In the present study, karyotypes and DNA barcode sequences of specimens from seven populations inhabiting the lower Amazon River were analyzed in order to characterize the levels of genetic divergence within a single karyomorph. All the specimens presented karyotypes with 2n = 40 chromosomes (20m+20sm) that were consistent with the species' C karyomorph. The DNA barcodes revealed six haplogroups, with clear divergence between populations from Brazil and Argentina. The results support the species complex hypothesis and indicate that a single karyomorph of H. malabaricus may harbor more than one species

The Influence of Presentation Format on the “Bigger is Better” (BIB) Effect

Two experiments tested the “bigger is better” (BIB) effect, whereby bigger objects are perceived more favorably than smaller ones. In Experiment 1, participants directly compared pairs of objects and a strong BIB effect was obtained for both positively and negatively valenced stimuli. In Experiment 2, comparative and absolute evaluations were combined in a single experiment and the BIB effect was mediated for positively and negatively valenced stimuli. Taken in combination, the data support a complex hypothesis that pair-wise presentations induce a comparative process that causes a BIB effect. But when objects are evaluated separately, size and valence interact such that increased size evokes more positive ratings of positive objects and more negative ratings for negative objects.