David Wagner writes that a predictive computer model using machine learning methods is helping to identify soldiers in the United States Army most likely to commit suicide. Computers combed through data on more than 40,000 soldiers who'd been hospitalized for mental health problems looking at 421 variables on each soldier drawn from 38 military data systems. Using a method known as “machine learning,” the researchers identified roughly two dozen factors that are most important in predicting soldiers most likely to commit suicide. The soldiers most likely to take their own lives were men with past suicidal behavior and a history of psychiatric disorders and criminal offenses, including weapons possession and verbal assaults. Soldiers with hearing loss also faced heightened risk — a strong indicator that they had suffered a head injury. So did enlisting in the Army after age 27, most likely because those soldiers had already experienced trouble finding their way in life. “There’s this group that comes to the Army later in life — they’re smart, they have skills, they tend not to be married and they have no career or have left a career to join,” Dr. Kessler said. “We don’t know why they should be at higher risk, but they appear to be.”
Murray Stein, co-author of the new study, found that among soldiers recently discharged from psychiatric hospitals, more than half of suicides were committed by just five percent of patients. “The most impressive thing is that they identified this high-risk group in the hospital, and by just focusing on one in 20 of them, you’re really dramatically improving your ability to predict,” says Dr. Mark Olfson, a professor of psychiatry at Columbia University who was not involved in the study. “Clinicians don’t do a very good job predicting suicide risk, even though we think we do.”
(Score: 1) by dmbasso on Sunday November 16 2014, @12:50PM
Using a method known as “machine learning,”
Might as well say "using a method known as 'statistics'"... or "computer science", or "math".
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(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 16 2014, @12:56PM
The sperm is sucked from the penis using a method known as fellatio.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 16 2014, @01:02PM
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(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 16 2014, @01:20PM
Or even "An Evening at gewg_'s".
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1702845791×2
(Score: 1) by dmbasso on Tuesday November 18 2014, @08:05AM
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Unfortunately the anagrams are not prime... too bad, I liked 'lesbianmod' :p
`echo $[0x853204FA81]|tr 0-9 ionbsdeaml`@gmail.com
(Score: 0, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 16 2014, @12:54PM
When soldiers in the United States Army break through their conditioning and comprehend that they serve the Ultimate Evil, the guilt is so overwhelming that they kill themselves out of shame.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 16 2014, @10:43PM
We can't even be honest with ourselves about why we are targets of terrorism:
- George W. Bush
- Osama bin Laden
We defend the Korean border while leaving our own open. Why risk your life elsewhere when your own country is being invaded?
(Score: 2) by tibman on Monday November 17 2014, @12:51AM
Normal citizens just watching TV receive more mental conditioning than US Army soldiers. Soldiers do get a lot of physical conditioning though : )
SN won't survive on lurkers alone. Write comments.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 16 2014, @12:59PM
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(Score: 2) by wonkey_monkey on Sunday November 16 2014, @01:01PM
Using a method known as “machine learning,”
Did they use a "comp-u-ter"?
Machine Learning Used to Predict Military Suicides
But it doesn't any more? That's a shame.
systemd is Roko's Basilisk
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 16 2014, @01:07PM
Toilets used to flush shit but now they be clogged nigga. Where's dat cracka ass janitor at?
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Kell on Sunday November 16 2014, @02:34PM
I'm trying to puzzle this out. If half of suicides are committed by 5 per cent of patients... does that mean that suicide collectively account for 10 per cent of soldiers discharged from psychiatric hospitals? Presumably suicide has a low rate of recurrance... or so I hope. I suspect they really mean "suicide attempts".
Scientists ask questions. Engineers solve problems.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 16 2014, @02:34PM
You shut down your monster and turn it into doing humanitarian projects, instead of making war.
Then you can use your program to monitor the healing affects of doing something beautiful in the world.