Mathematics posts
- March 4, 2013
- 09:13 PM
- 145 views
How Many English Tweets are Actually Possible?
by Jon Wilkins in Lost in Transcription
So, recently (last week, maybe?), Randall Munroe, of xkcd fame, posted an answer to the question "How many unique English tweets are possible?" as part of his excellent "What If" series. He starts off by noting that there are 27 letters (including spaces), and a tweet length of 140 characters. This gives you 27140 -- or about 10200 -- possible strings.
Of course, most of these are not sensible English statements, and he goes on to estimate how many of these there are. This analysis is base........ Read more »
C. E. Shannon. (1951) Prediction and Entropy of Written English. Bell System Technical Journal, 50-64. info:/
- March 4, 2013
- 01:50 PM
- 169 views
Distributed control of uncertain systems using superpositions of linear operators - Likelihood calculus paper series review part 3
by Travis DeWolf in studywolf
The third (and final, at the moment) paper in the likelihood calculus series from Dr. Terrence Sanger is Distributed control of uncertain systems using superpositions of linear operators. Carrying the torch for the series right along, here Dr. Sanger continues investigating the development of an effective, general method of controlling systems operating under uncertainty. This is the paper that delivers on all the promises of building a controller out of a system described by the stochastic diff........ Read more »
Sanger, T. (2011) Distributed Control of Uncertain Systems Using Superpositions of Linear Operators. Neural Computation, 23(8), 1911-1934. DOI: 10.1162/NECO_a_00151
- March 3, 2013
- 12:55 PM
- 189 views
Why Are People Bad at Evaluating Risks?
by Eric Horowitz in peer-reviewed by my neurons
Using evidence or data to communicate risk to the American public can be a fool’s errand. The most publicized “la, la, la, I can’t hear you!” moments involve people ignoring dangers that threaten ideology or political beliefs. Others may choose to ignore risks because immediate short-term pleasures are too alluring. [...]... Read more »
Bilgin, B., & Brenner, L. (2013) Context affects the interpretation of low but not high numerical probabilities: A hypothesis testing account of subjective probability. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 121(1), 118-128. DOI: 10.1016/j.obhdp.2013.01.004
Simone CB 2nd, Hampshire MK, Vachani C, & Metz JM. (2012) The utilization of oncology web-based resources in Spanish-speaking Internet users. American journal of clinical oncology, 35(6), 520-6. PMID: 21654312
Teigen, K., Juanchich, M., & Riege, A. (2013) Improbable outcomes: Infrequent or extraordinary?. Cognition, 127(1), 119-139. DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2012.12.005
- February 28, 2013
- 04:34 AM
- 221 views
Fooling with mathematicians
by Marco Frasca in The Gauge Connection
I am still working with stochastic processes and, as my readers know, I have proposed a new view of quantum mechanics assuming that at the square root of a Wiener process can be attached a meaning (see here and here). I was able to generate it through a numerical code. A square root of a [...]... Read more »
Marco Frasca. (2012) Quantum mechanics is the square root of a stochastic process. arXiv. arXiv: 1201.5091v2
- February 25, 2013
- 03:00 PM
- 379 views
Whorfian economics reconsidered: Why future tense?
by Sean Roberts in A Replicated Typo 2.0
Keith Chen has found a link between people's economic decisions and whether their language has a future tense. But are there other linguistic variables that are even better at predicting economic decisions?... Read more »
Chen, M. (2011) The Effect of Language on Economic Behavior: Evidence from Savings Rates, Health Behaviors, and Retirement Assets. SSRN Electronic Journal. DOI: 10.2139/ssrn.1914379
Sean Roberts, & James Winters. (2012) Social Structure and Language Structure: the New Nomothetic Approach. Psycology of Language Learning, 16(2), 89-112. info:/10.2478/v10057-012-0008-6
- February 21, 2013
- 08:55 PM
- 187 views
Neuro-mechanical control using differential stochastic operators - Likelihood calculus paper series review part 2
by Travis DeWolf in studywolf
The second paper put out by Dr. Terence Sanger in the likelihood calculus paper series is Neuro-mechanical control using differential stochastic operators. Building on the probabalistic representation of systems through differential stochastic operators presented in the last paper (Controlling variability, which I review here) Dr. Sanger starts exploring how one could effect control over a system whose dynamics are described in terms of these operators. Here, he specifically looks at driving a p........ Read more »
Sanger TD. (2010) Neuro-mechanical control using differential stochastic operators. Conference proceedings : .. Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society. IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society. Conference, 4494-7. PMID: 21095779
- February 5, 2013
- 10:35 AM
- 221 views
Aphids Always Land on Their Feet
by Elizabeth Preston in Inkfish
Pea aphids are even better at "stop, drop and roll" than elementary-schoolers. When a threatening ladybug or grazing deer approaches the stem where an aphid is sucking sap, it lets go and plummets toward the ground. By holding its limbs in just the right way, though, the insect can tumble into an upright position before sticking the landing.
The ground is a dangerous place for a small wingless animal, so it might help a falling pea aphid (Acyrthosiphon pisum) to hit it running. Or, bet........ Read more »
Ribak, G., Gish, M., Weihs, D., & Inbar, M. (2013) Adaptive aerial righting during the escape dropping of wingless pea aphids. Current Biology, 23(3). DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2012.12.010
- February 2, 2013
- 07:46 AM
- 158 views
Mild winters raise risk of flu epidemics
by Andy Extance in Simple Climate
Warm years limit flu transmission, but that makes us more susceptible to the virus the following season, explains Sherry Towers at Arizona State University, meaning health authorities have to watch for severe epidemics as climate changes. ... Read more »
Towers, S., Chowell, G., Hameed, R., Jastrebski, M., Khan, M., Meeks, J., Mubayi, A., & Harris, G. (2013) Climate change and influenza: the likelihood of early and severe influenza seasons following warmer than average winters. PLoS Currents. DOI: 10.1371/currents.flu.3679b56a3a5313dc7c043fb944c6f138
- January 28, 2013
- 05:37 PM
- 219 views
Everybody is talking about this. What's your opinion?
by Eugenio Maria Battaglia in Science to Grok
Science is at a turning point. Decisions has been normally emerged from traditional scientific praxis and a general consent, without a real discussion on it. This worked so far, but nowadays we are facing huge paradigm shifts.
Scientific Blogs and social networking are well spread in the Internet community, and this fact is having a huge impact on the trends of scientific research.
Big Data, ITs and "omic-like" projects are some of the aspects that are speeding our world faster tha........ Read more »
Kobro-Flatmoen, A., Langdon, G., Wright, C., Block, J., Gilarranz, L., Lever, J., Rohr, R., Fortuna, M., Kamfonik, D., Grahl, J.... (2012) NextGenVoices -- Results. Science, 335(6064), 36-38. DOI: 10.1126/science.335.6064.36
Van Noorden, R. (2013) Mathematicians aim to take publishers out of publishing. Nature. DOI: 10.1038/nature.2013.12243
- January 22, 2013
- 04:09 AM
- 195 views
ToxBank: the next generation toxicology
by egonw in Chem-bla-ics
Before I moved to my current position in Maastricht, I had the great pleasure to work with Prof. Roland Grafström (check his pathway bioinformatics done with his then PhD Rebecca) and Prof. Bengt Fadeel at the Karolinska Institutet. During this year I part-time worked on ToxBank and part-time on nano-QSAR, and worked on semantics, predictive toxicology, and Open Data. This blog post is about the ToxBank work.
I promised firework, and the first rockets are heading upw........ Read more »
Kohonen, P., Benfenati, E., Bower, D., Ceder, R., Crump, M., Cross, K., Grafström, R., Healy, L., Helma, C., Jeliazkova, N.... (2013) The ToxBank Data Warehouse: Supporting the Replacement of In Vivo Repeated Dose Systemic Toxicity Testing. Molecular Informatics. DOI: 10.1002/minf.201200114
- January 21, 2013
- 02:07 PM
- 206 views
In Our Partners' Heights, We Get What We Want
by Elizabeth Preston in Inkfish
If you ask most heterosexual people what height they're looking for in a partner, they'll describe basically what a children's-book illustrator would draw: the man taller than the woman but not towering over her. But those of us who aren't pen-and-paper must settle for real human partners in human shapes and sizes. Nevertheless, new research says most people end up with a reality that matches the fantasy.
Researchers led by Gert Stulp of the University of Groningen in the Netherlands wondere........ Read more »
Stulp, G., Buunk, A., Pollet, T., Nettle, D., & Verhulst, S. (2013) Are Human Mating Preferences with Respect to Height Reflected in Actual Pairings?. PLoS ONE, 8(1). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0054186
- January 20, 2013
- 12:34 PM
- 129 views
ThermoPoker Dot Viz: using pygame animations to understand iterated games
by csoeder in Topologic Oceans
I’m revisiting some older research of mine, so that I can talk a little bit about some data visualization I did along the way. If you frequent TriZPUG or the SplatSpace, you might have seen my original presentation, but In Case You Missed It… You might remember a while back I got interested in researching [...]... Read more »
Annila, A., & Salthe, S. (2009) Economies Evolve by Energy Dispersal. Entropy, 11(4), 606-633. DOI: 10.3390/e11040606
Anttila, J., & Annila, A. (2011) Natural games. Physics Letters A, 375(43), 3755-3761. DOI: 10.1016/j.physleta.2011.08.056
- January 9, 2013
- 04:00 PM
- 78 views
Controlling variability - Likelihood calculus paper series review part 1
by Travis DeWolf in studywolf
Dr. Terry Sanger has a series of papers that have come out in the last few years describing what he has named ‘likelihood calculus’. The goal of these papers is to develop a ‘a theory of optimal control for variable, uncertain, and noisy systems that nevertheless accomplish real-world tasks reliably.’ The idea being that successful performance can be thought of as modulating variance of movement, allocating resources to tightly control motions when required and allowing variability in ta........ Read more »
Sanger TD. (2010) Controlling variability. Journal of motor behavior, 42(6), 401-7. PMID: 21184358
- January 4, 2013
- 02:14 AM
- 3 views
Sweet Science
by Emarkham in GeneticCuckoo
A look at the new fun approach and interest taken in science and how this is being marketed and aimed at young people. ... Read more »
E Markham. (2013) Sweet Science. Blogspot. info:/
- January 2, 2013
- 01:49 PM
- 198 views
The Tension Between Theory And Reality
by Jesse Marczyk in Pop Psychology
“In theory, theory and practice are the same. In practice, they are not.” There is a relatively famous quote attributed to Michelangelo who was discussing his process of carving a statue: “I saw the angel in the marble and carved … Continue reading →... Read more »
Nowak, M. (2012) Evolving cooperation. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 1-8. DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2012.01.014
- December 24, 2012
- 03:52 AM
- 298 views
Motivation and Study skills are more important than Intelligence in learning Mathematics
by Usman Paracha in SayPeople
Researchers have found that in learning mathematics, motivation and study skills and habits play more important role than the intelligence.
This research has been published online in the journal Child Development.
"While intelligence as assessed by IQ tests is important in the early stages of developing mathematical competence, motivation and study skills play a more important role in students' subsequent growth," Kou Murayama, postdoctoral researcher of psychology at the ........ Read more »
Murayama, K., Pekrun, R., Lichtenfeld, S., & vom Hofe, R. (2012) Predicting Long-Term Growth in Students' Mathematics Achievement: The Unique Contributions of Motivation and Cognitive Strategies. Child Development. DOI: 10.1111/cdev.12036
- December 19, 2012
- 11:39 AM
- 347 views
Epigenetics and Homosexuality
by Jon Wilkins in Lost in Transcription
So, last week featured a lot of news about a paper that came out in the Quarterly Review of Biology titled "Homsexuality as a Consequence of Epigenetically Canalized Sexual Development." The authors were Bill Rice (UCSB), Urban Friberg (Uppsala U), and Sergey Gavrilets (U Tennessee). The paper got quite a bit of press. Unfortunately, most of that press was of pretty poor quality, badly misrepresenting the actual contents of the paper. (PDF available here.)
I'm going to walk through the paper's ........ Read more »
Rice, W., Friberg, U., & Gavrilets, S. (2012) Homosexuality as a Consequence of Epigenetically Canalized Sexual Development. The Quarterly Review of Biology, 87(4), 343-368. DOI: 10.1086/668167
- November 29, 2012
- 01:06 AM
- 314 views
The Problem With Math Is That It Makes People Seem Smart
by Eric Horowitz in peer-reviewed by my neurons
In 1996 physicist Alan Sokal succeeded in getting a unique article published in the journal Social Text. The article was titled “Transgressing the Boundaries: Towards a Transformative Hermeneutics of Quantum Gravity,” and it was unique because it was complete gibberish. Known as the Sokal Hoax, it was a crowning moment for pretense-haters everywhere. While journal editors have managed [...]... Read more »
Eriksson, Kimmo. (2012) The nonsense math effect. Judgment and Decision Making, 7(6), 746-749. info:/
- November 27, 2012
- 02:39 PM
- 203 views
A new method for analyzing growth in extinct animals (dissertation summary 1)
by zacharoo in Lawn Chair Anthropology
The last year and a half was a whirlwind, and so I never got around to blogging about the fruits of my dissertation: Mandibular growth in Australopithecus robustus... Sorry! So this post will be the first installment of my description of the outcome of the project. The A. robustus age-series of jaws allowed me to address three questions: [1] Can we statistically analyze patterns of size change in a fossil hominid; [2] how ancient is the human pattern of subadult growth, a key aspect of our ........ Read more »
Gordon AD, Green DJ, & Richmond BG. (2008) Strong postcranial size dimorphism in Australopithecus afarensis: results from two new resampling methods for multivariate data sets with missing data. American journal of physical anthropology, 135(3), 311-28. PMID: 18044693
Richtsmeier JT, & Lele S. (1993) A coordinate-free approach to the analysis of growth patterns: models and theoretical considerations. Biological Reviews, 68(3), 381-411. PMID: 8347767
- November 26, 2012
- 11:21 AM
- 298 views
Math and Love
by Katja Keuchenius in United Academics
Did you finally find the one? You can now calculate it mathematically, as you can see in the graphs.... Read more »
Bielczyk, N., Bodnar, M., & Foryś, U. (2012) Delay can stabilize: Love affairs dynamics. Applied Mathematics and Computation, 219(8), 3923-3937. DOI: 10.1016/j.amc.2012.10.028
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