Attention In Efforts Research Articles

Methodology for Knowledge Extraction from Trained Artificial Neural Networks

Artificial neural networks are widely spread models that outperform more basic, but explainable machine learning models like classification decision tree. Although their lack of explainability severely limits their area of application. All mission critical areas or law regulated areas (like European GDPR) require model to be explained. Explainability allows model validation for correctness and lack of bias. Thus methods for knowledge extraction from artificial neural networks have gained attention and development efforts. Current paper addresses this problem and describes knowledge extraction methodology which can be applied to classification problems. It is based on previous research and allows knowledge to be extracted from trained fully connected feed-forward artificial neural network, from radial basis function neural network and from hyper-polytope based classifier in the form of binary classification decision tree, elliptical rules and If-Then rules.

Technology Focus: Offshore Production and Flow Assurance (November 2018)

Technology Focus Production-design, engineering, operations, and maintenance concerns have represented some of the more interesting and challenging issues with which I have dealt over more than 20 years of experiences around the world in offshore production facilities as a major operator; manufacturer; and engineering, procurement, and construction contractor. While gas-hydrate handling typically dominates thermohydraulic design, the mitigation of wax, erosion, asphaltenes, corrosion, and salt deposition, along with solids handling; slugging; and elimination/ minimization of pipeline, tubing, and surface choke failures are all challenging issues that demand attention and considerable technical effort. The deposition of paraffin (interchangeable with wax) in pipelines has gained importance in offshore production design, engineering, and operations. Development of reliable wax-deposition mathematical models based on specially designed flow-loop experiments is worthy of investigation as an available mitigation option. Developing erosion-prediction models for fine particles in multiphase flow is another option to address offshore production assurance. Also, addressing these challenges requires thorough technical investigation and development of offshore pipeline failures. The three papers presented here discuss slightly different issues and approaches to production continuity and oil/gas fluid-production assurance. All three have been defined by mathematical modeling and verified with actual field confirmation and use. Wax deposition is a phenomenon present in oil-production systems mainly in deep water. Given the relevance of this issue in new-fields development and the absence of a theory able to explain its evolution and characteristics, the production limitation caused by this phenomenon is one of the main issues in offshore production. Because the flow regime in production lines can vary from laminar to turbulent, the influence of the Reynolds number in the deposition phenomena is investigated and modeled in paper OTC 28053. The model combines an enthalpy/porosity approach with a kinetic energy/specific dissipation turbulence model. The main behaviors observed with respect to the shape of the paraffin deposit for turbulent regimes were verified with the proposed model and corroborated by the thermal, velocity, and turbulence profiles presented. Pipeline production systems often experience complex multiphase flow and entrained fine particles. The erosion from solid fine particles presents one of the larger threats to oil and gas offshore production. Paper OTC 28360 investigates the erosional effect caused by fine particles in annular flow regime using a multiphase computational fluids dynamics (CFD) approach. The integration of a multiphase-fluid-flow model and erosion calculation using a multiphase CFD approach improved the accuracy of erosion prediction. Paper SPE 188717 presents a failure-root-cause analysis for offshore pipelines. The study objectives were to evaluate potential causes of failures of several pipelines operating in shallow waters and develop an analysis/program to identify the root cause of failure, perform an analysis to confirm the causes of failures, assess remedial measures to find the most suitable option, recommend those remedial measures, and then perform high-level engineering to confirm suitability of the chosen option in accordance with recommended practices. Offshore production assurance continues to drive new production technology applications and approaches. The three papers highlighted here focus on developing analytical tools and performing root-cause analyses while providing safe, cost-effective, and reliable operations. I hope you find them as interesting as I did; I much appreciate this opportunity to disseminate these new technology options to you. In addition, I invite you to join the Flow Assurance Technical Section to learn more on different topics. Recommended additional reading at OnePetro: www.onepetro.org. OTC 28155 Stability Solver for Offshore Oil Flows by Ivanilto Andreolli, Petrobras, et al. OTC 28548 A Pragmatic Approach to Corrosion Inhibition of Offshore Pipelines Transporting Produced Hydrocarbons by Robert Horan Nuttall, Petronas, et al. OTC 28885 Risk-Based, Statistical Approach to Assessment of Corrosion Anomalies in Pipelines by Derek Scales, Atteris, et al.

A Comprehensive Update on Stillbirth Prevention: from Preconception to Postpartum, Individuals to Public Health Administrations

Stillbirth is a devastating event for the pregnant woman, families, and care providers alike. No preventable stillbirths should be tolerated, no matter how low the incidence is. The rate of reducing stillbirth rate is less than satisfactory and warrants continued efforts. Indeed, massive researches from all specialties bloomed in recent years. Some interventions are with good evidence and feasible to be practiced, while others are preliminary but exciting to be investigated further. The purpose of this review is a comprehensive overview of the recent studies on stillbirth prevention. An emphasis is placed on novel ideas or areas to be improved on that might interest prospective readers. For pregnant women, optimized healthy lifestyle including body weight, blood sugar, and blood pressure control is warranted. Vigilance on fetal movement is important for detecting fetal distress. Sudden vigorous movement means no less than reduced movement and should prompt timely evaluations. Sleep in supine position compromises maternal vena cava and poses increased stillbirth risks; thus, mothers are advised to sleep on their left side. For health professionals, biomarkers are studied to detect early placental insufficiency. Doppler velocimetry, fetal cardiotocography, and biophysical profile are helpful in evaluating fetal well-being but require adequate training and careful interpretation. Timely iatrogenic delivery is effective in lowering perinatal deaths but should be balanced against newborn prematurity. Precision medicine, utilizing genetic studies, microarrays to analyze causes of death or fetal hypoxia severity in utero is promising in filling the knowledge gaps about stillbirth. Special effort should be allocated to bereavement services, follow-up clinics, and social support to minimize the psychological impact on stillbirths. Moreover, care bundles that set specific goals, algorithms, including stillbirth investigations and cause classifications should be implemented, followed by auditing and data analysis. In the long run, health promotion in women by empowerment through gender equality and access to medical resources should be strived for. Stillbirth prevention is a work undone but has received ongoing attention and massive research efforts. Individuals, healthcare providers, and policy makers alike should stay interested and up to date.

Are Fast Complex Movements Unimaginable? Pupillometric Studies of Motor Imagery in Expert Piano Playing

Motor imagery (MI; mental simulation of actions) shares certain mental representations and processes with executed movement (ME). This neurocognitive overlap between MI and ME may explain why the systematic use of MI improves skilled performance in numerous domains. Unfortunately, the attentional mechanisms underlying MI remain unresolved. Therefore, the present studies investigated the role of attentional effort (as measured by pupil dilation) in MI. We evaluated the effects of movement complexity and speed on expert pianists' pupil dilation as they physically executed and used MI to perform easy/complex and slow/fast music phrases. Results revealed that easy movements required similar levels of attentional effort during MI and ME. However, during complex movements performed at a fast speed, the correspondence between execution and imagery of movement was disrupted.

Attentional Effort and Efficiency in Expert Dancers

Humans fluctuate naturally between two attentional states – characterized in some literature as good "on-task attention" and bad "mind wandering." However, these states can also be characterized in terms of attentional effort available (high vs. low). Here, we ask whether dancers have gained perceptual expertise that enables them to perform complex tasks even with divided attention or while in a "mind-wandering" state. In dance expertise, the effectively infinite movement possibilities dancers face when mimicking/learning dance sequences ensure that changes in required attentional effort are not attributable to proceduralization alone. Experiment 1 tested whether dance expertise transforms dance movement mimicry into a low-effort attention task. In a dual-task paradigm, we asked expert dancers (n=7) to watch and mimic 10s dance videos 1) with no secondary task, 2) while counting randomly presented auditory beeps, or 3) while performing mental math with the beeps. Subjects were recorded with an Xbox One Kinect sensor, and three expert dancers rated the movements' accuracy and timing. The dancers' performance was unaffected by either of the secondary attention tasks. Experiment 2 investigated whether, under naturally fluctuating attention, low-effort attention supports real-time reacting, but not remembering (due to added processing demands that require high-effort attention). Dancers (n=20) watched and mimicked dance videos, which stopped randomly every 40-80s. They indicated their attention state and tried to replicate their last few mimicked movements. Sensor recordings of the mimicked and replicated movements were analyzed using a Kinect machine learning gesture recognition software trained on the recordings from Experiment 1. As hypothesized, memory for the movements suffered significantly during low-effort attention (t=2.35, p=0.02), while real-time mimicry remained unimpaired (t=-0.45, p=0.67). These studies suggest that it may be adaptive (even optimal) to perform low-effort tasks in a mind-wandering state, and b) introduce a new method of studying complex actions with the Kinect. Meeting abstract presented at VSS 2018

Presaccadic EEG activity predicts visual saliency in free-viewing contour integration.

While viewing a scene, the eyes are attracted to salient stimuli. We set out to identify the brain signals controlling this process. In a contour integration task, in which participants searched for a collinear contour in a field of randomly oriented Gabor elements, a previously established model was applied to calculate a visual saliency value for each fixation location. We studied brain activity related to the modeled saliency values, using coregistered eye tracking and EEG. To disentangle EEG signals reflecting salience in free viewing from overlapping EEG responses to sequential eye movements, we adopted generalized additive mixed modeling (GAMM) to single epochs of saccade-related EEG. We found that, when saliency at the next fixation location was high, amplitude of the presaccadic EEG activity was low. Since presaccadic activity reflects covert attention to the saccade target, our results indicate that larger attentional effort is needed for selecting less salient saccade targets than more salient ones. This effect was prominent in contour-present conditions (half of the trials), but ambiguous in the contour-absent condition. Presaccadic EEG activity may thus be indicative of bottom-up factors in saccade guidance. The results underscore the utility of GAMM for EEG-eye movement coregistration research.

Blood Economy: The Failure of the Developed World to End Conflict Minerals in the Congo

Conflict minerals have long been among the leading causes of violence in part of the Global South. For many years there was little attention to the issue despite an enormous dependence on conflict minerals by advanced and emerging economies. In recent years however it seems that countries of the Global North have finally begun to take notice. Despite this attention efforts rarely equal success and the attempts by the developed world to end or reduce the trade in conflict minerals are no exception. The Kimberley Process, arguably the most successful effort so far, has generally been decried as ineffective and unproductive by several NGOs and some governments. This paper examines the issue of conflict minerals, their relationship with war and violence, and their role in the global economy in order to explain the failure of the developed world to end the trade of conflict minerals. The paper seeks to understand the lack of international attention to some of the worst atrocities since the holocaust and explores recently attempted solutions and the obstacles therein. The Democratic Republic of the Congo is used as a case study as the Second Congo War and the continuing violence in the country illuminate the murky complexities of the conflict mineral trade, from raw minerals to finished products.

Attention Restoration Theory: Exploring the Role of Soft Fascination and Mental Bandwidth

Soft fascination is a key but underexamined element of Attention Restoration Theory (ART). According to ART, attending to softly fascinating stimuli not only requires little effort but also leaves mental space for reflection. We propose that soft fascination can be characterized as the interaction of both attentional effort and mental bandwidth and hypothesize that the restorative potential of everyday activities can be categorized based on this interaction. In an online survey, 398 adults rated four activities on Mental Bandwidth (MB), Perceived Restorativeness (PR), and preference. Supporting the hypothesis, the results showed that walking in nature was perceived as softly fascinating, whereas watching television was a source of hard fascination. Furthermore, PR, but not MB, was highly correlated with preference. Findings are discussed in the context of developing a measure to help people better anticipate activities that may or may not be restorative.

To go or not to go? Pupillometry elucidates inhibitory mechanisms in motor imagery

ABSTRACTMotor imagery (MI) involves consciously performing an action in our minds without engaging in overt physical movement. Although inhibition is crucial to MI, few studies have explored the nature of inhibitory mechanisms underlying this construct. Therefore, little progress has been made in elucidating how or when inhibition is implemented during MI. The present study addressed this unresolved issue by measuring participants’ pupil dilation (an index of attentional effort) as they performed an inhibitory-control (Go/NoGo) procedure in a modified task-switching paradigm. The results showed that inhibitory mechanisms in MI may be implemented via various routes. When MI was the only movement mode used, minimal attentional effort was invested during the Go/NoGo responses, suggesting an early implemented, proactive inhibitory strategy. Conversely, when imagery was preceded by physical movement responses, inhibition required greater attentional effort and it appears as though more active and attention-demanding inhibitory processes must be employed.

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Sleep deprivation increases the costs of attentional effort: Performance, preference and pupil size

Sleep deprivation (SD) consistently degrades performance in tasks requiring sustained attention, resulting in slower and more variable response times that worsen with time-on-task. Loss of motivation to exert effort may exacerbate performance degradation during SD. To test this, we evaluated sustained performance on a vigilance task, combining this with an effort-based decision-making task and pupillometry. Vigilance was tested at rest and after sleep deprivation, under different incentive conditions (1, 5 or 15 cents for fast responses). Subsequently, preference measures were collected from an effort-discounting task, in which a commensurate reward was offered for maintaining attentional performance for different durations (1, 5, 10, 20 or 30 min). Vigilance was impaired during SD, in a manner modulated by reward value. Preference metrics showed that the value of available rewards was discounted by task duration, an effect compounded by SD. Pupillometry revealed that arousal was modulated during SD in a value-based manner, and moment-to-moment fluctuations in pupil diameter were directly predictive of performance. Together, these data demonstrate that attentional performance can be interpreted within a value-based effort allocation framework, such that the perceived cost of attentional effort increases after sleep deprivation.

The sensitivity of TIMSS country rankings in science achievement to differences in opportunity to learn at classroom level

BackgroundFair comparisons of educational systems in large-scale assessments can be made only if the differences in curricula have little impact on the outcomes. This study investigated the sensitivity of science achievement rankings to varying degrees of curriculum implementation in the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS).MethodsCountry-specific teacher-reported curriculum implementation profiles across the TIMSS science domains were charted including their within-country variability across the classrooms for 33 participating countries of TIMSS 2015. A sensitivity test compared the original ranking to TIMSS curriculum implementation scenarios (a least-possible, a most-possible, and more realistic country-specific median implementation).ResultsIn contrast to expectations, no support was found for a positive relationship between opportunity to learn and science achievement at the between-country level or the within-country level, with only minor exceptions. The sensitivity analysis under different curriculum implementation scenarios also suggests little impact on the rank order of the countries.ConclusionsPlausible explanations for this null finding are addressed; attention and research efforts should focus on improving the quality of curriculum implementation indicators in large-scale assessments.

DOES SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISE (SME) FINANCIAL RESOURCE BUILDING EFFORT ON PERFORMANCE DESERVE ATTENTION?

Often times it is argued that firm’s resources most especially financial resources have significant impact on performance. However, in spite of the indelible phenomenal impact of financial resources exhibit toward firm performance, relatively, the attention (effort) pay in building this financial resource is less examined. Relied on this assertion, this paper sought to engage attention-based view theory to develop a conceptual model to investigate whether financial resource building effort via sources of finance are able to result in SME performance. If the theoretical and conceptual model analysis confirm the above mentioned hypothesis, we can conclude that financial resource building effort by SMEs have wrongly been disregarded, which we anticipate to initiate further standpoint of studies.

Foggy windows: Pupillary responses during task preparation.

We investigated pupil dilation in 96 subjects during task preparation and during a post-trial interval in a visual search task and an auditory working memory task. Completely informative difficulty cues (easy, medium, or hard) were presented right before task preparation to examine whether pupil dilation indicated advance mobilisation of attentional resources; functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies have argued for the existence of such task preparation, and the literature shows that pupil dilation tracks attentional effort during task performance. We found, however, little evidence for such task preparation. In the working memory task, pupil size was identical across cues, and although pupil dilation in the visual search task tracked the cue, pupil dilation predicted subsequent performance in neither task. Pupil dilation patterns in the post-trial interval were more consistent with an effect of emotional reactivity. Our findings suggest that the mobilisation of attentional resources in the service of the task does not occur during the preparatory interval, but is delayed until the task itself is initiated.

Narrating climate change as a rite of passage

Narrative tropes used to tell the climate change story shape ethical action. Hulme has given biblical descriptors to four metaphorical tropes commonly used to shape climate change narratives: lamenting Eden, presaging Apocalypse, building Babel, and celebrating Jubilee. I argue that the metaphor of rites of passage, illustrated paradigmatically by the biblical Exodus narrative, can serve as an overarching narrative metaphor for Hulme’s four tropes while better orienting readers to the ethical challenges of the Anthropocene. Rites of passage guide individuals and communities through significant transitions by focusing attention, orienting individual and collective efforts, and increasing the likelihood of reaching a desired future. Intentionally crafting the climate change story as a rite of passage can clarify how to respond adequately to the challenges of climate disruption. Moreover, linking the rites-of-passage narrative to the Exodus account amplifies the force of the resulting story. Even in secular and pluralistic contexts, stories that draw on religious narratives are compelling and, when read critically, can be adapted and retold to shape morally responsible action.

Sleep deprivation increases the costs of attentional effort: performance, preference and pupil size

Abstract Sleep deprivation (SD) consistently degrades performance in tasks requiring sustained attention, resulting in slower and more variable response times that worsen with time-on-task. Loss of motivation to exert effort may exacerbate performance degradation during SD. To test this, we evaluated sustained performance on a vigilance task, combining this with an effort-based decision-making task and pupillometry. Vigilance was tested at rest and after sleep deprivation, under different incentive conditions (1, 5 or 15 cents for fast responses). Subsequently, preference measures were collected from an effort-discounting task, in which a commensurate reward was offered for maintaining attentional performance for different durations (1, 5, 10, 20 or 30 min). Vigilance was impaired during SD, in a manner modulated by reward value. Preference metrics showed that the value of available rewards was discounted by task duration, an effect compounded by SD. Pupillometry revealed that arousal was modulated during SD in a value-based manner, and moment-to-moment fluctuations in pupil diameter were directly predictive of performance. Together, these data demonstrate that attentional performance can be interpreted within a value-based effort allocation framework, such that the perceived cost of attentional effort increases after sleep deprivation.

The importance of arousal for variation in working memory capacity and attention control: A latent variable pupillometry study.

A great deal of prior research has examined the relation between working memory capacity (WMC) and attention control. The current study explored the role of arousal in individual differences in WMC and attention control. Participants performed multiple WMC and attention control tasks. During the attention control tasks participants were periodically probed regarding their current attentional state and both baseline and task-evoked pupillary responses were recorded as indicators of tonic arousal and phasic arousal because of attentional effort, respectively. Latent variable analyses demonstrated that variability in both baseline pupil diameter and task-evoked responses was related to WMC, attention control, and off-task thinking. Furthermore, structural equation models suggested that variability in both baseline pupil diameter and task-evoked pupillary responses predicted off-task thinking, which in turn predicted variation in WMC and attention control. These results provide important evidence linking moment-to-moment fluctuations in arousal to individual differences in WMC and attention control. (PsycINFO Database Record

Technology Focus: Offshore Production and Flow Assurance (November 2017)

Technology Focus Flow assurance and mitigation technical concerns are some of the more critical components in the engineering, design, cost, and operation of offshore production facilities. While gas-hydrate handling typically dominates the thermo-hydraulic design, the mitigation of waxes, emulsions, asphaltenes, corrosion, scale, and salt; solids handling; slugging; and operability of tubing, surface chokes, and pipelines are all challenging issues that demand attention and consider-able technical effort. Among these challenges, paraffin deposition (interchangeable with wax) in pipelines has gained importance in flow assurance. Reliable wax-deposition-prediction models based on specially designed flow-loop experiments are an available mitigation option. Alternative internal pipeline/flowline coatings or materials present another option to address flow-assurance problems. Addressing these challenges requires thorough technical investigation and development of advanced transient modeling. The three papers here discuss slightly different approaches to production continuity and oil/gas fluid-production assurance. All three have been scaled up either to demonstration stage or to actual field implementation and use. Subsea production faces both fluid and flow-based challenges that eventually lead to shutdown, safety concerns, or flow intermittency in production. The oil/gas production pipelines typically operate at a high Reynolds number and low-wall-shear-stress conditions; however, current wax-deposition models are based on laboratory flow-loop data obtained at low Reynolds number and high shear stress. Paper OTC 27757 discusses a present study that decouples the effect of the hydrodynamic parameters with specially designed flow-loop experiments. From the results, the Reynolds-number effects are more dominant on the deposited-wax-mass density compared with the shear stress and aid in scaleup from the laboratory to field conditions. Gas hydrates typically form at high-pressure and low-temperature conditions where free water and small hydrocarbon molecules exist together in sufficient concentrations. Once these thermodynamic conditions occur in oil/gas production flowlines/pipelines, solid hydrate plugs that greatly restrict flow usually form. One potential hydrate-mitigation technique involves using a low-adhesion, protective-surface internal coating to inhibit deposition. Paper OTC 27874 describes a study evaluating two different coatings, one a superhydrophobic, anti-icing coating and one an omniphobic and corrosion-resistant coating. Hydrate/ surface interactions were studied using micromechanical-adhesion-force measurements in both liquid and gas bulk phases. The initial results suggest that the use of these coatings may be an effective mitigation technique at low water content and in significantly corroded flowlines. The third paper presents the flow-assurance challenges and associated mitigation steps implemented in the high-pressure/high-temperature North Kuwait Jurassic (NKJ) fields. An offline transient-model adviser was built to mimic the hydrate mechanism and optimize the methanol injection. Paper SPE 182237 discusses the traditional methods of hydrate mitigation performed in the NKJ fields and the way the transient model was initially built and continually improved with more data. Currently, methanol is used for hydrate inhibition and an antiagglomerate is under trial. Mitigation of flow-assurance problems continues to drive new production-technology applications and approaches. The three papers highlighted here focus on minimizing costs while providing safe, effective, and reliable operations. I hope you find them as interesting as I did, and I greatly appreciate the opportunity to offer these new options to you in this and future Focus sections. Recommended additional reading at OnePetro: www.onepetro.org. SPE 181560 A Pigging Model for Wax Removal in Pipes by Qiyu Huang, China University of Petroleum, et al. SPE 183055 Multiphase-Flowmeter Performance: A Critical Piece of an Offshore-Well-Management Toolkit by V.U. Okotie, Abu Dhabi Marine Operating Company, et al.

The importance of attention in motor skill learning

Segundo Fitts & Posner (1967), durante a aprendizagem de uma habilidade um indivíduo passa por três estágios: cognitivo, associativo e autônomo. Dentre as diversas características de cada estágio, uma importante mudança decorrente da prática ocorre nos processos da atenção. No estágio cognitivo o indivíduo está tentando compreender os objetivos da tarefa, o que sobrecarrega os mecanismos da atenção, proporcionando uma “performance” inconsistente. Após um certo período de prática, ele passará para o estágio associativo, no qual consegue manter uma “performance” mais estável, sendo cápaz inclusive de detectar alguns erros. As necessidades de atenção neste estágio decrescem significativamente. Depois de muita prática, ele será capaz de atingir o terceiro e último estágio (autônomo), no qual a habilidade está bem desenvolvida, permitindo que o indivíduo realize-a com consistência e “quase sem pensar” As exigências nos processos da atenção são mínimos, permitindo que ele direcione o foco da atenção para outros aspectos importantes da “performance”. Um exemplo da transição entre estes três estágios é o de uma criança aprendendo a driblar no basquetebol, partindo do movimento estático em que necessita olhar para a bola, passando para movimentos em deslocamento, até chegar a driblar de diversas formas ao mesmo tempo em que observa os companheiros e adversários durante o jogo. A transição até a automaticidade poderá ocorrer naturalmente, porém o tempo necessário para que isto aconteça irá depender da quantidade de prática e do grau de complexidade da tarefa. Por mais que isto possa ocorrer em função da prática, é importante também que professores de educação física e técnicos desportivos tenham conhecimento das diferenças existentes entre crianças e adultos em termos da utilização de estratégias de atenção seletiva, velocidade no processamento de informações, uso dos processos de controle para processar e armazenar informações, as quais poderão dificultar a aprendizagem. De posse destas informações, podemos criar um ambiente que facilite a aprendizagem, diminuindo as exigências nos processos da atenção através da utilização de estratégias cognitivas

Prompt sonographic scanning and quantification of lumbar muscles: Seeing the butterfly

We have taken interest in the article by Hides and Stanton which has been published in your journal (Hides et al., 2017). First, we congratulate the authors for their effort in calling attention to the use of ultrasound (US) for scanning the multifidus and quadratus lumborum (QL) muscles. Errors in quantification might stem mainly from two reasons; failure to capture an appropriate image and failure to technically quantify it (Ozcakar et al., 2011 and 2013). This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.