Spatial pattern learning in the radial arm maze

Rats experienced a spatial pattern of baited and unbaited arms in an eight-arm radial maze. The spatial pattern remained constant over trials, but the spatial locations that were baited varied unpredictably. Although there was no evidence of control by the spatial pattern during free choice training trials, the rats’ ability to locate baited arms in forced choice test trials was superior to that of animals in a control condition for which maze arms were not baited in a consistent spatial pattern. This is consistent with the results of experiments showing that spatial choices by rats in a pole box maze are controlled by abstract spatial patterns.     

Health check for Latvia: opportunities for information professionals in a new democracy

Background: This paper outlines developments in medical information in Latvia since independence from the former USSR in 1991, and analyses the health information gap faced by professionals. Objectives: To explore international initiatives and co‐operation in health information provision in Latvia; to describe the activities of Latvian medical librarians at national, regional and international level; to look at health information provision by specialist information centres; and to discuss the role of librarians in health information provision in public libraries. Methods: An extensive search was made of databases and medical library and health information centre staff were interviewed; a questionnaire survey of librarians was carried out. Results: International initiatives and co‐operation by medical librarians have extended their services at national, regional and international level. Health information portals exist, with online contacts and links to smaller health centres and organizations, but rarely employ qualified librarians or information professionals. Ninety‐three per cent of public librarians had provided health information, with 79% using the Internet. The most popular sources of health information were magazines, books, local pharmacies and the Internet, but mostly for healthy lifestyle, not medical problems. Conclusions: E‐health and medical informatics are high government priorities. Medical librarians are actively involved in these initiatives.     

Finding related sentence pairs in MEDLINE

We explore the feasibility of automatically identifying sentences in different MEDLINE abstracts that are related in meaning. We compared traditional vector space models with machine learning methods for detecting relatedness, and found that machine learning was superior. The Huber method, a variant of Support Vector Machines which minimizes the modified Huber loss function, achieves 73% precision when the score cutoff is set high enough to identify about one related sentence per abstract on average. We illustrate how an abstract viewed in PubMed might be modified to present the related sentences found in other abstracts by this automatic procedure.     

Rivals for the crown: Reply to Opthof and Leydesdorff

We reply to the criticism of Opthof and Leydesdorff on the way in which our institute applies journal and field normalizations to citation counts. We point out why we believe most of the criticism is unjustified, but we also indicate where we think Opthof and Leydesdorff raise a valid point.     

Independent force and position control for cooperating manipulators

The problem of independent force and position control of multitask cooperating manipulators is studied. Each manipulator is in a non-singular configuration and the object can be driven by the contact forces exerted by the end effectors of the manipulators. The design requirement is to control each coordinate of the position of the object as well as each component of the “rest” forces, except the moving forces that are determined uniquely from the object's position. The present design requirement has been proved to be always satisfied together with asymptotic and BIBO stability. A class of controllers solving the above simultaneous problem is analytically determined. The proposed state feedback controller does not depend upon the specific object dynamics and thus the resulting closed-loop multimanipulator system performs as required, not only when handling various objects but also when the dynamics of the objects are unknown or hard to compute or disturbed by external forces.     

Gaining access to everyday life information seeking

The discursive viewpoint adopted by many researchers who study everyday life information seeking allows for a shift in focus away from the individual as a unit of analysis toward a more general understanding of the broader cultural conditions within which individuals operate. However, the data employed by such researchers often consist of the testimony or observed actions of individuals. This paradox provides a point from which to reflect on the process of gaining access or entry to everyday life information seekers as research participants. This article presents the authors’ reflections on their experiences of conducting separate library and information science studies of three diverse populations: pregnant women, members of a self-help support group, and preschool children. The article’s premise is that theory and research practice are intertwined and that attending to issues of gaining access is essential for the development of both. Access is an emergent process dependent on the characteristics of the researcher, the participants, and the research context.     

Path dependency and the politics of quality assurance in higher education

Abstract

National policy agendas for quality assurance in higher education (HE) are increasingly influenced by supra‐national trends and decisions. Taking Spain, Switzerland and The Netherlands as examples, the paper analyses how supranational trends are re‐interpreted at the national level and how recently formulated national policies combine the demands for cross‐national harmonisation with the long‐lasting influence of decisions and procedures run in the past in the domain of quality assurance. In this perspective, the paper argues that cross‐national policy harmonisation, a key prerequisite for the construction of the European Higher Education Area is challenged by the long‐lasting influence of national path dependent policies.     

An examination of the relative age effect in developmental girls’ hockey in Ontario

The relative age effect (RAE) suggests that athletes may be provided with greater opportunities for success depending on the position of their birthdate in a sport’s selection year. While the effect has been well established in men’s sports, less is known about women’s sports. This study examined the RAE in developmental girls’ hockey in Ontario. Relative age, player position, age division, and level of play were provided by the Ontario Women’s Hockey Association for 36,555 registrants. Older players were over-represented, and younger players under-represented across all age divisions and levels of play. This suggests that the RAE is present in developmental girls’ hockey, the magnitude of which varies with level of play and player position.