The prognosis of allocentric and egocentric neglect : evidence from clinical scans

We contrasted the neuroanatomical substrates of sub-acute and chronic visuospatial deficits associated with different aspects of unilateral neglect using computed tomography scans acquired as part of routine clinical diagnosis. Voxel-wise statistical analyses were conducted on a group of 160 stroke patients scanned at a sub-acute stage. Lesion-deficit relationships were assessed across the whole brain, separately for grey and white matter. We assessed lesions that were associated with behavioural performance (i) at a sub-acute stage (within 3 months of the stroke) and (ii) at a chronic stage (after 9 months post stroke). Allocentric and egocentric neglect symptoms at the sub-acute stage were associated with lesions to dissociated regions within the frontal lobe, amongst other regions. However the frontal lesions were not associated with neglect at the chronic stage. On the other hand, lesions in the angular gyrus were associated with persistent allocentric neglect. In contrast, lesions within the superior temporal gyrus extending into the supramarginal gyrus, as well as lesions within the basal ganglia and insula, were associated with persistent egocentric neglect. Damage within the temporo-parietal junction was associated with both types of neglect at the sub-acute stage and 9 months later. Furthermore, white matter disconnections resulting from damage along the superior longitudinal fasciculus were associated with both types of neglect and critically related to both sub-acute and chronic deficits. Finally, there was a significant difference in the lesion volume between patients who recovered from neglect and patients with chronic deficits. The findings presented provide evidence that (i) the lesion location and lesion size can be used to successfully predict the outcome of neglect based on clinical CT scans, (ii) lesion location alone can serve as a critical predictor for persistent neglect symptoms, (iii) wide spread lesions are associated with neglect symptoms at the sub-acute stage but only some of these are critical for predicting whether neglect will become a chronic disorder and (iv) the severity of behavioural symptoms can be a useful predictor of recovery in the absence of neuroimaging findings on clinical scans. We discuss the implications for understanding the symptoms of the neglect syndrome, the recovery of function and the use of clinical scans to predict outcome

Report of the 2005 Workshop on Ocean Ecodynamics Comparison in the Subarctic Pacific

I. Scientific Issues Posed by OECOS II. Participant Contributions to the OECOS Workshop A. ASPECTS OF PHYTOPLANKTON ECOLOGY IN THE SUBARCTIC PACIFIC Microbial community compositions by Karen E. Selph Subarctic Pacific lower trophic interactions: Production-based grazing rates and grazing-corrected production rates by Nicholas Welschmeyer Phytoplankton bloom dynamics and their physiological status in the western subarctic Pacific by Ken Furuya Temporal and spatial variability of phytoplankton biomass and productivity in the northwestern Pacific by Sei-ichi Saitoh, Suguru Okamoto, Hiroki Takemura and Kosei Sasaoka The use of molecular indicators of phytoplankton iron limitation by Deana Erdner B. IRON CONCENTRATION AND CHEMICAL SPECIATION Iron measurements during OECOS by Zanna Chase and Jay Cullen 25 The measurement of iron, nutrients and other chemical components in the northwestern North Pacific Ocean by Kenshi Kuma The measurement of iron, nutrients and other chemical components in the northwestern North Pacific Ocean by Kenshi Kuma C. PHYSICAL OCEANOGRAPHY, FINE-SCALE DISTRIBUTION PATTERNS AND AUTONOMOUS DRIFTERS The use of drifters in Lagrangian experiments: Positives, negatives and what can really be measured by Peter Strutton The interaction between plankton distribution patterns and vertical and horizontal physical processes in the eastern subarctic North Pacific by Timothy J. Cowles D. MICROZOOPLANKTON Microzooplankton processes in oceanic waters of the eastern subarctic Pacific: Project OECOS by Suzanne Strom Functional role of microzooplankton in the pelagic marine ecosystem during phytoplankton blooms in the western subarctic Pacific by Takashi Ota and Akiyoshi Shinada E. MESOZOOPLANKTON Vertical zonation of mesozooplankton, and its variability in response to food availability, density stratification, and turbulence by David L. Mackas and Moira Galbraith Marine ecosystem characteristics and seasonal abundance of dominant calanoid copepods in the Oyashio region by Atsushi Yamaguchi, Tsutomu Ikeda and Naonobu Shiga OECOS: Proposed mesozooplankton research in the Oyashio region, western subarctic Pacific by Tsutomu Ikeda Some background on Neocalanus feeding by Michael Dagg Size and growth of interzonally migrating copepods by Charles B. Miller Growth of large interzonal migrating copepods by Toru Kobari F. MODELING Ecosystem and population dynamics modeling by Harold P. Batchelder III. Reports from Workshop Breakout Groups A. PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL ASPECTS WITH EMPHASIS ON IRON AND IRON SPECIATION B. PHYTOPLANKTON/MICROZOOPLANKTON STUDIES C. MESOZOOPLANKTON STUDIES IV. Issues arising during the workshop A. PHYTOPLANKTON STOCK VARIATIONS IN HNLC SYSTEMS AND TROPHIC CASCADES IN THE NANO AND MICRO REGIMES B. DIFFERENCES BETWEEN EAST AND WEST IN SITE SELECTION FOR OECOS TIME SERIES C. TIMING OF OECOS EXPEDITIONS D. CHARACTERIZATION OF PHYSICAL OCEANOGRAPHY V. Concluding Remarks VI. References (109 page document

Comparison between unipolar and bipolar single phase grid-connected inverters for PV applications

An inverter is essential for the interfacing of photovoltaic panels with the AC network. There are many possible inverter topologies and inverter switching schemes and each one will have its own relative advantages and disadvantages. Efficiency and output current distortion are two important factors governing the choice of inverter system. In this paper, it is argued that current controlled inverters offer significant advantages from the point of view of minimisation of current distortion. Two inverter switching strategies are explored in detail. These are the unipolar current controlled inverter and the bipolar current controlled inverter. With respect to low frequency distortion, previously published works provide theoretical arguments in favour of bipolar switching. On the other hand it has also been argued that the unipolar switched inverter offers reduced switching losses and generates less EMI. On efficiency grounds, it appears that the unipolar switched inverter has an advantage. However, experimental results presented in this paper show that the level of low frequency current distortion in the unipolar switched inverter is such that it can only comply with Australian Standard 4777.2 above a minimum output current. On the other hand it is shown that at the same current levels bipolar switching results in reduced low frequency harmonics

Comparison between unipolar and bipolar single phase grid-connected inverters for PV applications

An inverter is essential for the interfacing of photovoltaic panels with the AC network. There are many possible inverter topologies and inverter switching schemes and each one will have its own relative advantages and disadvantages. Efficiency and output current distortion are two important factors governing the choice of inverter system. In this paper, it is argued that current controlled inverters offer significant advantages from the point of view of minimisation of current distortion. Two inverter switching strategies are explored in detail. These are the unipolar current controlled inverter and the bipolar current controlled inverter. With respect to low frequency distortion, previously published works provide theoretical arguments in favour of bipolar switching. On the other hand it has also been argued that the unipolar switched inverter offers reduced switching losses and generates less EMI. On efficiency grounds, it appears that the unipolar switched inverter has an advantage. However, experimental results presented in this paper show that the level of low frequency current distortion in the unipolar switched inverter is such that it can only comply with Australian Standard 4777.2 above a minimum output current. On the other hand it is shown that at the same current levels bipolar switching results in reduced low frequency harmonics

DARCOF II. Danish research in Organic Food and Farming systems 2000-2005

The aim of this book is to present a comprehensive overview of the 41 research projects undertaken in the period 2000-2005 in the research programme DARCOF II.For each project there is a description of its background and objective in terms of which issues gave rise to the project and what the project aims to achieve. This is followed by a short description of the experiments or investigations that have been undertaken in the project. The general and applicable results derived from the project are finally described. For each project there is a reference to a project home page on www.darcof.dk. Via this page there is direct access to "Organic Eprints", which is the site containing all the project publications – both technical and scientific

Examining the association between exposome score for schizophrenia and functioning in schizophrenia, siblings, and healthy controls: Results from the EUGEI study.

Background. A cumulative environmental exposure score for schizophrenia (exposome score for schizophrenia [ES-SCZ]) may provide potential utility for risk stratification and outcome prediction. Here, we investigated whether ES-SCZ was associated with functioning in patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorder, unaffected siblings, and healthy controls. Methods. This cross-sectional sample consisted of 1,261 patients, 1,282 unaffected siblings, and 1,525 healthy controls. The Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) scale was used to assess functioning. ES-SCZ was calculated based on our previously validated method. The association between ES-SCZ and the GAF dimensions (symptom and disability) was analyzed by applying regression models in each group (patients, siblings, and controls). Additional models included polygenic risk score for schizophrenia (PRS-SCZ) as a covariate. Results. ES-SCZ was associated with the GAF dimensions in patients (symptom: B = 1.53, p-value = 0.001; disability: B = 1.44, p-value = 0.001), siblings (symptom: B = 3.07, p-value < 0.001; disability: B = 2.52, p-value < 0.001), and healthy controls (symptom: B = 1.50, p-value < 0.001; disability: B = 1.31, p-value < 0.001). The results remained the same after adjusting for PRS-SCZ. The degree of associations of ES-SCZ with both symptom and disability dimensions were higher in unaffected siblings than in patients and controls. By analyzing an independent dataset (the Genetic Risk and Outcome of Psychosis study), we replicated the results observed in the patient group. Conclusions. Our findings suggest that ES-SCZ shows promise for enhancing risk prediction and stratification in research practice. From a clinical perspective, ES-SCZ may aid in efforts of clinical characterization, operationalizing transdiagnostic clinical staging models, and personalizing clinical management

AUGURES : profit-aware web infrastructure management

Over the last decade, advances in technology together with the increasing use of the Internet for everyday tasks, are causing profound changes in end-users, as well as in businesses and technology providers. The widespread adoption of high-speed and ubiquitous Internet access, is also changing the way users interact with Web applications and their expectations in terms of Quality-of-Service (QoS) and User eXperience (UX). Recently, Cloud computing has been rapidly adopted to host and manage Web applications, due to its inherent cost effectiveness and on-demand scaling of infrastructures. However, system administrators still need to make manual decisions about the parameters that affect the business results of their applications ie., setting QoS targets and defining metrics for scaling the number of servers during the day. Therefore, understanding the workload and user behavior ¿the demand, poses new challenges for capacity planning and scalability ¿the supply, and ultimately for the success of a Web site. This thesis contributes to the current state-of-art of Web infrastructure management by providing: i) a methodology for predicting Web session revenue; ii) a methodology to determine high response time effect on sales; and iii) a policy for profit-aware resource management, that relates server capacity, to QoS, and sales. The approach leverages Machine Learning (ML) techniques on custom, real-life datasets from an Ecommerce retailer featuring popular Web applications. Where the experimentation shows how user behavior and server performance models can be built from offline information, to determine how demand and supply relations work as resources are consumed. Producing in this way, economical metrics that are consumed by profit-aware policies, that allow the self-configuration of cloud infrastructures to an optimal number of servers under a variety of conditions. While at the same time, the thesis, provides several insights applicable for improving Autonomic infrastructure management and the profitability of Ecommerce applications.Durante la última década, avances en tecnología junto al incremento de uso de Internet, están causando cambios en los usuarios finales, así como también a las empresas y proveedores de tecnología. La adopción masiva del acceso ubicuo a Internet de alta velocidad, crea cambios en la forma de interacción con las aplicaciones Web y en las expectativas de los usuarios en relación de calidad de servicio (QoS) y experiencia de usuario (UX) ofrecidas. Recientemente, el modelo de computación Cloud ha sido adoptado rápidamente para albergar y gestionar aplicaciones Web, debido a su inherente efectividad en costos y servidores bajo demanda. Sin embargo, los administradores de sistema aún tienen que tomar decisiones manuales con respecto a los parámetros de ejecución que afectan a los resultados de negocio p.ej. definir objetivos de QoS y métricas para escalar en número de servidores. Por estos motivos, entender la carga y el comportamiento de usuario (la demanda), pone nuevos desafíos a la planificación de capacidad y escalabilidad (el suministro), y finalmente el éxito de un sitio Web.Esta tesis contribuye al estado del arte actual en gestión de infraestructuras Web presentado: i) una metodología para predecir los beneficios de una sesión Web; ii) una metodología para determinar el efecto de tiempos de respuesta altos en las ventas; y iii) una política para la gestión de recursos basada en beneficios, al relacionar la capacidad de los servidores, QoS, y ventas. La propuesta se basa en aplicar técnicas Machine Learning (ML) a fuentes de datos de producción de un proveedor de Ecommerce, que ofrece aplicaciones Web populares. Donde los experimentos realizados muestran cómo modelos de comportamiento de usuario y de rendimiento de servidor pueden obtenerse de datos históricos; con el fin de determinar la relación entre la demanda y el suministro, según se utilizan los recursos. Produciendo así, métricas económicas que son luego aplicadas en políticas basadas en beneficios, para permitir la auto-configuración de infraestructuras Cloud a un número adecuado de servidores. Mientras que al mismo tiempo, la tesis provee información relevante para mejorar la gestión de infraestructuras Web de forma autónoma y aumentar los beneficios en aplicaciones de Ecommerce