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The first compilations of Proterozoic eukaryote diversity, published in the 1980s showed a dramatic peak in the Tonian Period (1000–720 Ma), interpreted as the initial radiation of eukaryotes in the marine realm. Over the decades, new discoveries filled in the older part of the record and the peak diminished, but the idea of a Tonian radiation of eukaryotes has remained strong, and is now widely accepted as fact. We present a new diversity compilation based on 181 species and 713 species occurrences from 145 formations ranging in age from 1890 Ma to 720 Ma and find a significant increase in diversity in the Tonian. However, we also find that the number of eukaryotic species through time is highly correlated with the number of formations in our dataset (i.e. eukaryote-bearing formations) through time. This correlation is robust to interpretations of eukaryote affinity, bin size, and bin boundaries. We also find that within-assemblage diversity—a measure thought to circumvent sampling bias—is related to the number of eukaryote-bearing formations through time. Biomarkers show a similar pattern to body fossils, where the rise of eukaryotic biosignatures correlates with increased sampling. We find no evidence that the proportion of eukaryote-bearing versus all fossiliferous formations changed through the Proterozoic, as might be expected if the correlation reflected an increase in eukaryote diversity driving an increase in the number of eukaryote-bearing formations. Although the correlation could reflect a common cause such as changes in sea level driving both diversification and an increase in sedimentary rock volume, we favor the explanation that the pattern of early eukaryote diversity is driven by variations in paleontological sampling.
We explore if fairness and inequality motivations affect cooperation in indefinitely repeated games. Each round, we randomly divided experimental participants into donor–recipient pairs. Donors could make a gift to recipients, and ex-ante earnings are highest when all donors give. Roles were randomly reassigned every period, which induced inequality in ex-post earnings. Theoretically, income-maximizing players do not have to condition on this inequality because it is payoff-irrelevant. Empirically, payoff-irrelevant inequality affected participants’ ability to coordinate on efficient play: donors conditioned gifts on their own past roles and, with inequalities made visible, discriminated against those who were better off.
We conduct a series of experiments to examine the effects of the make and take fee structure currently used by equity exchanges in the U.S. We examine the effects of these fees on measures of market quality (efficiency, book depth, and the bid-ask spread). We find spreads to be smaller in the presence of make and take fees, and we note that this fee structure seems to induce buyers (moreso than sellers) to compete for rebates from the exchange leading to higher prices and lower profits. To test whether our results are due to the make and take fee structure or are artefacts of trading fees in general, we performed a second set of experiments in which traders on both sides of a transaction were assessed an identical fee. These identical trading fees do not appear to significantly affect our market quality measures.
This is an investigation into the design of a market-based process to replace NASA's current committee process for allocating Shuttle secondary payload resources (lockers, Watts and crew). The market-based process allocates budgets of tokens to NASA internal organizations that in turn use the budget to bid for priority for their middeck payloads. The scheduling algorithm selects payloads by priority class and maximizes the number of tokens bid to determine a manifest. The results of a number of controlled experiments show that such a system tends to allocate resources more efficiently by guiding participants to make resource and payload tradeoffs. Most participants were able to improve their position over NASA's current ranking system. Furthermore, those that are better off make large improvements while the few that do worse have relatively small losses.
To what extent can the harms of misinformation be mitigated by relying on nudges? Prior research has demonstrated that non-intrusive ‘accuracy nudges’ can reduce the sharing of misinformation. We investigate an alternative approach. Rather than subtly reminding people about accuracy, our intervention, indebted to research on the bystander effect, explicitly appeals to individuals' capacity to help solve the misinformation challenge. Our results are mixed. On the one hand, our intervention reduces the willingness to share and believe in misinformation fact-checked as false. On the other hand, it also reduces participants' willingness to share information that has been fact-checked as true and innocuous, as well as non-fact-checked information. Experiment 1 offers proof of concept; Experiment 2 tests our intervention with a more realistic mix of true and false social media posts; Experiment 3 tests our interventions alongside an accuracy nudge. The effectiveness of our intervention at reducing willingness to share misinformation remains consistent across experiments; meta-analysis reveals that our treatment reduced willingness to share false content across experiments by 20% of a scale point on a six-point scale. We do not observe the accuracy nudge reducing willingness to share false content. Taken together, these results highlight the advantages and disadvantages of accuracy nudges and our more confrontational approach.
The functioning and richness of marine systems (and biological interactions such as parasitism) are continuously influenced by a changing environment. Using hierarchical modelling of species communities (HMSC), the presence and abundance of multiple parasite species of the black-spotted croaker, Protonibea diacanthus (Sciaenidae), was modelled against environmental measures reflecting seasonal change. Protonibea diacanthus were collected in three seasons across 2019–2021 from four locations within the waters of the Northern Territory, Australia. The length of P. diacanthus proved to have a strong positive effect on the abundance of parasite taxa and overall parasitic assemblage of the sciaenid host. This finding introduces potential implications for parasitism in the future as fish body size responds to fishing pressure and climate changes. Of the various environmental factors measured during the tropical seasons of northern Australia, water temperature and salinity changes were shown as potential causal factors for the variance in parasite presence and abundance, with changes most influential on external parasitic organisms. As environmental factors like ocean temperature and salinity directly affect parasite–host relationships, this study suggests that parasite assemblages and the ecological functions that they perform are likely to change considerably over the coming decades in response to climate change and its proceeding effects.
There are numerous challenges pertaining to epilepsy care across Ontario, including Epilepsy Monitoring Unit (EMU) bed pressures, surgical access and community supports. We sampled the current clinical, community and operational state of Ontario epilepsy centres and community epilepsy agencies post COVID-19 pandemic. A 44-item survey was distributed to all 11 district and regional adult and paediatric Ontario epilepsy centres. Qualitative responses were collected from community epilepsy agencies. Results revealed ongoing gaps in epilepsy care across Ontario, with EMU bed pressures and labour shortages being limiting factors. A clinical network advising the Ontario Ministry of Health will improve access to epilepsy care.
Helium or neopentane can be used as surrogate gas fill for deuterium (D2) or deuterium-tritium (DT) in laser-plasma interaction studies. Surrogates are convenient to avoid flammability hazards or the integration of cryogenics in an experiment. To test the degree of equivalency between deuterium and helium, experiments were conducted in the Pecos target chamber at Sandia National Laboratories. Observables such as laser propagation and signatures of laser-plasma instabilities (LPI) were recorded for multiple laser and target configurations. It was found that some observables can differ significantly despite the apparent similarity of the gases with respect to molecular charge and weight. While a qualitative behaviour of the interaction may very well be studied by finding a suitable compromise of laser absorption, electron density, and LPI cross sections, a quantitative investigation of expected values for deuterium fills at high laser intensities is not likely to succeed with surrogate gases.
Rock debris covers ~30% of glacier ablation areas in the Central Himalaya and modifies the impact of atmospheric conditions on mass balance. The thermal properties of supraglacial debris are diurnally variable but remain poorly constrained for monsoon-influenced glaciers over the timescale of the ablation season. We measured vertical debris profile temperatures at 12 sites on four glaciers in the Everest region with debris thickness ranging from 0.08 to 2.8 m. Typically, the length of the ice ablation season beneath supraglacial debris was 160 days (15 May to 22 October)—a month longer than the monsoon season. Debris temperature gradients were approximately linear (r2 > 0.83), measured as −40°C m–1 where debris was up to 0.1 m thick, −20°C m–1 for debris 0.1–0.5 m thick, and −4°C m–1 for debris greater than 0.5 m thick. Our results demonstrate that the influence of supraglacial debris on the temperature of the underlying ice surface, and therefore melt, is stable at a seasonal timescale and can be estimated from near-surface temperature. These results have the potential to greatly improve the representation of ablation in calculations of debris-covered glacier mass balance and projections of their response to climate change.
Animal-derived dietary protein ingestion and physical activity stimulate myofibrillar protein synthesis rates in older adults. We determined whether a non-animal-derived diet can support daily myofibrillar protein synthesis rates to the same extent as an omnivorous diet. Nineteen healthy older adults (aged 66 (sem 1) years; BMI 24 (sem 1) kg/m2; twelve males, seven females) participated in a randomised, parallel-group, controlled trial during which they consumed a 3-d isoenergetic high-protein (1·8 g/kg body mass per d) diet, where the protein was provided from predominantly (71 %) animal (OMNI; n 9; six males, three females) or exclusively vegan (VEG; n 10; six males, four females; mycoprotein providing 57 % of daily protein intake) sources. During the dietary control period, participants conducted a daily bout of unilateral resistance-type leg extension exercise. Before the dietary control period, participants ingested 400 ml of deuterated water, with 50-ml doses consumed daily thereafter. Saliva samples were collected throughout to determine body water 2H enrichments, and muscle samples were collected from rested and exercised muscle to determine daily myofibrillar protein synthesis rates. Deuterated water dosing resulted in body water 2H enrichments of approximately 0·78 (sem 0·03) %. Daily myofibrillar protein synthesis rates were 13 (sem 8) (P = 0·169) and 12 (sem 4) % (P = 0·016) greater in the exercised compared with rested leg (1·59 (sem 0·12) v. 1·77 (sem 0·12) and 1·76 (sem 0·14) v. 1·93 (sem 0·12) %/d) in OMNI and VEG groups, respectively. Daily myofibrillar protein synthesis rates did not differ between OMNI and VEG in either rested or exercised muscle (P > 0·05). Over the course of a 3-d intervention, omnivorous- or vegan-derived dietary protein sources can support equivalent rested and exercised daily myofibrillar protein synthesis rates in healthy older adults consuming a high-protein diet.
Psychosocial interventions that mitigate psychosocial distress in cancer patients are important. The primary aim of this study was to examine the feasibility and acceptability of an adaptation of the Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) program among adult cancer patients. A secondary aim was to examine pre–post-program changes in psychosocial wellbeing.
Method
The research design was a feasibility and acceptability study, with an examination of pre- to post-intervention changes in psychosocial measures. A study information pack was posted to 173 adult cancer patients 6 months–5 years post-diagnosis, with an invitation to attend an eight-week group-based adaptation of the MSC program.
Results
Thirty-two (19%) consented to the program, with 30 commencing. Twenty-seven completed the program (mean age: 62.93 years, SD 14.04; 17 [63%] female), attending a mean 6.93 (SD 1.11) group sessions. There were no significant differences in medico-demographic factors between program-completers and those who did not consent. However, there was a trend toward shorter time since diagnosis in the program-completers group. Program-completers rated the program highly regarding content, relevance to the concerns of cancer patients, and the likelihood of recommending the program to other cancer patients. Sixty-three percent perceived that their mental wellbeing had improved from pre- to post-program; none perceived a deterioration in mental wellbeing. Small-to-medium effects were observed for depressive symptoms, fear of cancer recurrence, stress, loneliness, body image satisfaction, mindfulness, and self-compassion.
Significance of results
The MSC program appears feasible and acceptable to adults diagnosed with non-advanced cancer. The preliminary estimates of effect sizes in this sample suggest that participation in the program was associated with improvements in psychosocial wellbeing. Collectively, these findings suggest that there may be value in conducting an adequately powered randomized controlled trial to determine the efficacy of the MSC program in enhancing the psychosocial wellbeing of cancer patients.
Increasingly, ambulance services offer alternatives to transfer to the emergency department (ED), when this is better for patients. The introduction of electronic health records (EHR) in ambulance services is encouraged by national policy across the United Kingdom (UK) but roll-out has been variable and complex.
Electronic Records in Ambulances (ERA) is a two-year study which aims to investigate and describe the opportunities and challenges of implementing EHR and associated technology in ambulances to support a safe and effective shift to out of hospital care, including the implications for workforce in terms of training, role and clinical decision-making skills.
METHODS:
Our study includes a scoping review of relevant issues and a baseline assessment of progress in all UK ambulance services in implementing EHR. These will inform four in-depth case studies of services at different stages of implementation, assessing current usage, and examining context.
RESULTS:
The scoping review identified themes including: there are many perceived potential benefits of EHR, such as improved safety and remote diagnostics, but as yet little evidence of them; technical challenges to implementation may inhibit uptake and lead to increased workload in the short term; staff implementing EHR may do so selectively or devise workarounds; and EHR may be perceived as a tool of staff surveillance.
CONCLUSIONS:
Our scoping review identified some complex issues around the implementation of EHR and the relevant challenges, opportunities and workforce implications. These will help to inform our fieldwork and subsequent data analysis in the case study sites, to begin early in 2017. Lessons learned from the experience of implementing EHR so far should inform future development of information technology in ambulance services, and help service providers to understand how best to maximize the opportunities offered by EHR to redesign care.
Following the 2016 U.S. election, researchers and policymakers have become intensely concerned about the dissemination of “fake news,” or false news stories in circulation (Lazer et al., 2017). Research indicates that fake news is shared widely and has a pro-Republican tilt (Allcott and Gentzkow, 2017). Facebook now flags dubious stories as disputed and tries to block fake news publishers (Mosseri, 2016). While the typical misstatements of politicians can be corrected (Nyhan et al., 2017), the sheer depth of fake news’s conspiracizing may preclude correction. Can fake news be corrected?
By
Anthony M. Kwasnica, Smeal College of Business, The Pennsylvania State University,
John O. Ledyard, Division of the Humanities and Social Sciences, California Institute of Technology,
David P. Porter, Economic Science Institute, Chapman University,
Christine DeMartini, Division of the Humanities and Social Sciences, California Institute of Technology
Theory, experiment and practice suggest that, when bidder valuations for multiple objects are super-additive, combinatorial auctions are needed to increase efficiency, seller revenue, and bidder willingness to participate (Bykowsky et al. 2000, Rassenti et al. 1982, Ledyard et al. 2002). A combinatorial auction is an auction in which bidders are allowed to express bids in terms of packages of objects. The now famous FCC spectrum auctions are a good example of the relevance of these issues. In 41 auction events from 1994 to 2003, the FCC used what is known as a Simultaneous Multiple Round (SMR) auction to allocate spectrum and raise over $40 billion in revenue. This auction format does not allow package bidding. The FCC auctions also divide the spectrum by geographic location. It is reasonable to expect that some bidders might receive extra benefits by obtaining larger, more contiguous portions of the spectrum. A firm might enjoy cost savings if they could purchase two adjacent locations. However, without package bidding, a bidder cannot express that preference, potentially lowering the efficiency and revenue of the auction. If the bidder attempts to acquire both licenses through bidding on the licenses individually, they might be forced to expose themselves to potential losses. The high number of bidder defaults on payments might, in part, be evidence of losses caused by the lack of package bidding. In response to these difficulties, the FCC plans to allow package bidding in future auctions (Federal Communications Commission 2002, Dunford et al. 2001). In particular, the FCC in its auction #31 for the upper 700 MHz band, affords bidders the ability to submit bids for packages of licenses. The particular design presented in this paper was developed prior to the FCC package auction design. Indeed one of the major features of the FCC design was clearly influenced by the pricing rules we developed herein.
from
Part IV
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Experimental Comparisons of Auction Designs
By
John O. Ledyard, Division of the Humanities and Social Sciences, California Institute of Technology,
David P. Porter, Economic Science Institute, Chapman University,
Antonio Rangel, Division of the Humanities and Social Sciences, California Institute of Technology
During the discussion and evaluation of proposals for the design of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) mechanism to sell the spectrum, over 130 auctions were run under controlled conditions at Caltech for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), the FCC, and others. While these data were used in those debates, we do not intend to relive that process here. Instead, in this paper, we reexamine these data and try to extract some useful information for those who may, in the future, be involved in the difficult task of creating mechanisms to auction multiple items.
The two major design questions we can say something about are (1) should the items be auctioned off sequentially or simultaneously? and (2) should package bidding be allowed? Ourmain conclusion is that, over a very wide range of environments, package bidding mechanisms (weakly) dominate simultaneous mechanisms, which in turn (weakly) dominate sequential mechanisms. This conclusion is based on three observations derived from a close look at the data.
First, in environments with multiple items to be allocated, if those items are homogeneous and substitutes, then little coordination between buyers is needed and the only role of the mechanism is to sort bidders with high values from bidders with low values. Both the sequential and simultaneous mechanisms seem to work very well at finding efficient allocations in these “easy” environments.
Second, in environments with multiple items to be allocated, if those items are heterogeneous, then some coordination among bidders is necessary to achieve high-value allocations even if there are only low synergy values. Simultaneous auctions provide a first step at this coordination that sequential auctions might have difficulty in providing.
Third, in environments with heterogeneous goods exhibiting complementarities, significant coordination is required for an auction or allocation mechanism to perform well with respect to efficiency or revenue. Sequential auctions perform poorly. Simultaneity is clearly necessary but not sufficient to attain high efficiencies.
Combinatorial auctions enhance our ability to efficiently allocate multiple resources in complex economic environments. They explicitly allow buyers and sellers of goods and services to bid on packages of items with related values or costs. For example, “I bid $10 to buy 1 unit of item A and 2 units of item B, but I won't pay anything unless I get everything.” They also allow buyers, sellers and the auctioneer to impose logical constraints that limit the feasible set of auction allocations. For example, “I bid $12 to buy 2 units of item C OR $15 to buy 3 units of item D, but I don't want both.” Finally, they can handle functional relationships amongst bids or allocations, such as budget constraints or aggregation limits that allow many bids to be connected together. For example, “I won't spend more than a total of $35 on all my bids” or “This auction will allocate no more than a total of 7 units of items F, G and H.”
There are several reasons to prefer to have the bidding message space expanded beyond the simple space used for traditional single commodity auctions. As Bykowsky et al. (2000) point out, when values have strong complementarities, there is a danger of ‘financial exposure’ that results in losses to bidders if combinatorial bidding is not allowed. For example, in the case of complementary items such as airport take-off and landing times, the ability to reduce uncertainty to the bidder by allowing him to precisely declare his object of value, a cycle of slots for an entire daily flight pattern, is obvious: one component slot not acquired ruins the value of the flight cycle. In the same situation substitution possibilities would also be important to consider: if flight cycle A is not won, cycle B may be an appropriate though less valuable substitute for the crew and equipment available. Allocation inefficiencies due to financial exposure in noncombinatorial auctions have been frequently demonstrated in experiments beginning with Rassenti et al. (1982) (see also Porter (1999), Banks et al. (1989), Ledyard et al. (2002) and Kwasnika et al. (1998)).