Almost periodic solutions of retarded SICNNs with functional response on piecewise constant argument

We consider a new model for shunting inhibitory cellular neural networks, retarded functional differential equations with piecewise constant argument. The existence and exponential stability of almost periodic solutions are investigated. An illustrative example is provided.Comment: 24 pages, 1 figur

Image informatics strategies for deciphering neuronal network connectivity

Brain function relies on an intricate network of highly dynamic neuronal connections that rewires dramatically under the impulse of various external cues and pathological conditions. Among the neuronal structures that show morphologi- cal plasticity are neurites, synapses, dendritic spines and even nuclei. This structural remodelling is directly connected with functional changes such as intercellular com- munication and the associated calcium-bursting behaviour. In vitro cultured neu- ronal networks are valuable models for studying these morpho-functional changes. Owing to the automation and standardisation of both image acquisition and image analysis, it has become possible to extract statistically relevant readout from such networks. Here, we focus on the current state-of-the-art in image informatics that enables quantitative microscopic interrogation of neuronal networks. We describe the major correlates of neuronal connectivity and present workflows for analysing them. Finally, we provide an outlook on the challenges that remain to be addressed, and discuss how imaging algorithms can be extended beyond in vitro imaging studies

Image-based quantitative analysis of gold immunochromatographic strip via cellular neural network approach

"(c) 2014 IEEE. Personal use of this material is permitted. Permission from IEEE must be obtained for all other users, including reprinting/ republishing this material for advertising or promotional purposes, creating new collective works for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted components of this work in other works."Gold immunochromatographic strip assay provides a rapid, simple, single-copy and on-site way to detect the presence or absence of the target analyte. This paper aims to develop a method for accurately segmenting the test line and control line of the gold immunochromatographic strip (GICS) image for quantitatively determining the trace concentrations in the specimen, which can lead to more functional information than the traditional qualitative or semi-quantitative strip assay. The canny operator as well as the mathematical morphology method is used to detect and extract the GICS reading-window. Then, the test line and control line of the GICS reading-window are segmented by the cellular neural network (CNN) algorithm, where the template parameters of the CNN are designed by the switching particle swarm optimization (SPSO) algorithm for improving the performance of the CNN. It is shown that the SPSO-based CNN offers a robust method for accurately segmenting the test and control lines, and therefore serves as a novel image methodology for the interpretation of GICS. Furthermore, quantitative comparison is carried out among four algorithms in terms of the peak signal-to-noise ratio. It is concluded that the proposed CNN algorithm gives higher accuracy and the CNN is capable of parallelism and analog very-large-scale integration implementation within a remarkably efficient time

Integer Echo State Networks: Hyperdimensional Reservoir Computing

We propose an approximation of Echo State Networks (ESN) that can be efficiently implemented on digital hardware based on the mathematics of hyperdimensional computing. The reservoir of the proposed Integer Echo State Network (intESN) is a vector containing only n-bits integers (where n<8 is normally sufficient for a satisfactory performance). The recurrent matrix multiplication is replaced with an efficient cyclic shift operation. The intESN architecture is verified with typical tasks in reservoir computing: memorizing of a sequence of inputs; classifying time-series; learning dynamic processes. Such an architecture results in dramatic improvements in memory footprint and computational efficiency, with minimal performance loss.Comment: 10 pages, 10 figures, 1 tabl