4,267 research outputs found
The effects of a 10-day altitude training camp at 1828 meters on varsity cross-country runners
International Journal of Exercise Science 10(1): 97-107, 2017. Altitude training has been shown to alter blood lactate (BL) levels due to alterations resulting from acclimatization. This study aims to estimate the impact of altitude training on BL changes immediately following an incremental treadmill test and during recovery before and after 10-day altitude training at approximately 1828 meters. Eight varsity cross-country runners performed an incremental treadmill test (ITT), pre and post-altitude training. Resting and post-warm-up BL values were recorded. During ITT, heart rate (HR), oxygen saturation (SpO2), and time to exhaustion were monitored. BL was also measured post-ITT at 0, 2, 4, 6, and 8 minutes. The average of all BL values was higher following altitude intervention (8.8 ± 4.6 mmol/L) compared to pre-intervention (7.4 ± 3.3 mmol/L). These differences were statistically significant (t(6) = -2.40, p = .026). BL immediately (0 minutes) after the ITT was higher following the altitude intervention (13.6 ± 3.6 mmol/L) compared to pre-intervention (9.7 ± 3.8 mmol/L) and was statistically significant (t(7) = -3.30, p = .006). Average HR during the ITT was lower following the altitude intervention (176.9 ± 11.1 bpm) compared to pre (187 ± 9.5 bpm), these differences were statistically significant (t(28)= 18.07, p
Learning Shape Priors for Single-View 3D Completion and Reconstruction
The problem of single-view 3D shape completion or reconstruction is
challenging, because among the many possible shapes that explain an
observation, most are implausible and do not correspond to natural objects.
Recent research in the field has tackled this problem by exploiting the
expressiveness of deep convolutional networks. In fact, there is another level
of ambiguity that is often overlooked: among plausible shapes, there are still
multiple shapes that fit the 2D image equally well; i.e., the ground truth
shape is non-deterministic given a single-view input. Existing fully supervised
approaches fail to address this issue, and often produce blurry mean shapes
with smooth surfaces but no fine details.
In this paper, we propose ShapeHD, pushing the limit of single-view shape
completion and reconstruction by integrating deep generative models with
adversarially learned shape priors. The learned priors serve as a regularizer,
penalizing the model only if its output is unrealistic, not if it deviates from
the ground truth. Our design thus overcomes both levels of ambiguity
aforementioned. Experiments demonstrate that ShapeHD outperforms state of the
art by a large margin in both shape completion and shape reconstruction on
multiple real datasets.Comment: ECCV 2018. The first two authors contributed equally to this work.
Project page: http://shapehd.csail.mit.edu
Deposition and preservation of fluvio-tidal shallow-marine sandstones: A re-evaluation of the Neoproterozoic Jura Quartzite (western Scotland)
The 2 to 5 km thick, sandstoneâdominated (>90%) Jura Quartzite is an extreme example of a mature Neoproterozoic sandstone, previously interpreted as a tideâinfluenced shelf deposit and herein reâinterpreted within a fluvioâtidal deltaic depositional model. Three issues are addressed: (i) evidence for the reâinterpretation from tidal shelf to tidal delta; (ii) reasons for vertical facies uniformity; and (iii) sand supply mechanisms to form thick tidalâshelf sandstones. The predominant facies (compound crossâbedded, coarseâgrained sandstones) represents the lower parts of metres to tens of metres high, transverse fluvioâtidal bedforms with superimposed smaller bedforms. Ubiquitous erosional surfaces, some with granuleâpebble lags, record erosion of the upper parts of those bedforms. There was selective preservation of the higher energy, topographicallyâlower, parts of channelâbar systems. Strongly asymmetrical, bimodal, palaeocurrents are interpreted as due to associated selective preservation of fluviallyâenhanced ebb tidal currents. Finerâgrained facies are scarce, due largely to suspended sediment bypass. They record deposition in lowerâenergy environments, including channel mouth bars, between and down depositionalâdip of higher energy fluvioâebb tidal bars. The lack of waveâformed sedimentary structures and low continuity of mudstone and sandstone interbeds, support deposition in a nonâshelf setting. Hence, a sandârich, fluvialâtidal, currentâdominated, largely subâtidal, delta setting is proposed. This new interpretation avoids the problem of transporting large amounts of coarse sand to a shelf. Facies uniformity and vertical stacking are likely due to sediment oversupply and bypass rather than balanced sediment supply and subsidence rates. However, facies evidence of relative sea level changes is difficult to recognise, which is attributed to: (i) the areally extensive and polygenetic nature of the preserved facies, and (ii) a large stored sediment buffer that dampened response to relative seaâlevel and/or sediment supply changes. Consideration of preservation bias towards highâenergy deposits may be more generally relevant, especially to thick Neoproterozoic and Lower Palaeozoic marine sandstones
Outcomes of decompression for lumbar spinal canal stenosis based upon preoperative radiographic severity
BACKGROUND: The relationship between severity of preoperative radiographic findings and surgical outcomes following decompression for lumbar degenerative spinal canal stenosis is unclear. Our aim in this paper was to gain insight into this relationship. We determined pre-operative radiographic severity on MRI scans using strict methodological controls and correlated such severity with post-operative outcomes using prospectively collected data. METHODS: Twenty-seven consecutive patients undergoing decompression for isolated degenerative spinal canal stenosis at L4-L5 were included. We measured cross-sectional area on MRI using the technique of Hamanishi. We categorized the severity of stenosis using Laurencin and Lipson's 'Stenosis Ratio'. We determined pre-operative status (prospectively) and post-operative outcomes using Weiner and Fraser's 'Neurogenic Claudication Outcome Score'. We determined patient satisfaction using standardized questionnaires. Each of these is a validated measure. Formal statistical evaluation was undertaken. RESULTS: No patients (0 of 14) with a greater than 50% reduction in cross-sectional area on pre-operative MRI had unsatisfactory outcomes. In contrast, outcomes for patients with less than or equal to 50% reduction in cross-sectional area had unsatifactory outcomes in 6 of 13 cases, with all but one negative outcome having a cross-sectional area reduction between 32% and 47%. CONCLUSION: The findings suggest that there appears to be a relationship between severity of stenosis and outcomes of decompressive surgery such that patients with a greater than 50% reduction in cross sectional area are more likely to have a successful outcome
The Architectural Design Rules of Solar Systems based on the New Perspective
On the basis of the Lunar Laser Ranging Data released by NASA on the Silver
Jubilee Celebration of Man Landing on Moon on 21st July 1969-1994, theoretical
formulation of Earth-Moon tidal interaction was carried out and Planetary
Satellite Dynamics was established. It was found that this mathematical
analysis could as well be applied to Star and Planets system and since every
star could potentially contain an extra-solar system, hence we have a large
ensemble of exoplanets to test our new perspective on the birth and evolution
of solar systems. Till date 403 exoplanets have been discovered in 390
extra-solar systems. I have taken 12 single planet systems, 4 Brown Dwarf -
Star systems and 2 Brown Dwarf pairs. Following architectural design rules are
corroborated through this study of exoplanets. All planets are born at inner
Clarke Orbit what we refer to as inner geo-synchronous orbit in case of
Earth-Moon System. By any perturbative force such as cosmic particles or
radiation pressure, the planet gets tipped long of aG1 or short of aG1. Here
aG1 is inner Clarke Orbit. The exoplanet can either be launched on death spiral
as CLOSE HOT JUPITERS or can be launched on an expanding spiral path as the
planets in our Solar System are. It was also found that if the exo-planet are
significant fraction of the host star then those exo-planets rapidly migrate
from aG1 to aG2 and have very short Time Constant of Evolution as Brown Dwarfs
have. This vindicates our basic premise that planets are always born at inner
Clarke Orbit. This study vindicates the design rules which had been postulated
at 35th COSPAR Scientific Assembly in 2004 at Paris, France, under the title
,New Perspective on the Birth & Evolution of Solar Systems.Comment: This paper has been reported to Earth,Moon and Planets Journal as
MOON-S-09-0007
Identifying Ligand Binding Conformations of the ÎČ2-Adrenergic Receptor by Using Its Agonists as Computational Probes
Recently available G-protein coupled receptor (GPCR) structures and biophysical studies suggest that the difference between the effects of various agonists and antagonists cannot be explained by single structures alone, but rather that the conformational ensembles of the proteins need to be considered. Here we use an elastic network model-guided molecular dynamics simulation protocol to generate an ensemble of conformers of a prototypical GPCR, ÎČ2-adrenergic receptor (ÎČ2AR). The resulting conformers are clustered into groups based on the conformations of the ligand binding site, and distinct conformers from each group are assessed for their binding to known agonists of ÎČ2AR. We show that the select ligands bind preferentially to different predicted conformers of ÎČ2AR, and identify a role of ÎČ2AR extracellular region as an allosteric binding site for larger drugs such as salmeterol. Thus, drugs and ligands can be used as "computational probes" to systematically identify protein conformers with likely biological significance. © 2012 Isin et al
Deep generative modeling for single-cell transcriptomics.
Single-cell transcriptome measurements can reveal unexplored biological diversity, but they suffer from technical noise and bias that must be modeled to account for the resulting uncertainty in downstream analyses. Here we introduce single-cell variational inference (scVI), a ready-to-use scalable framework for the probabilistic representation and analysis of gene expression in single cells ( https://github.com/YosefLab/scVI ). scVI uses stochastic optimization and deep neural networks to aggregate information across similar cells and genes and to approximate the distributions that underlie observed expression values, while accounting for batch effects and limited sensitivity. We used scVI for a range of fundamental analysis tasks including batch correction, visualization, clustering, and differential expression, and achieved high accuracy for each task
Intracranial delivery of AAV9 gene therapy partially prevents retinal degeneration and visual deficits in CLN6-Batten disease mice
Batten disease is a family of rare, fatal, neuropediatric diseases presenting with memory/learning decline, blindness, and loss of motor function. Recently, we reported the use of an AAV9-mediated gene therapy that prevents disease progression in a mouse model of CLN6-Batten disease (Cln6nclf), restoring lifespans in treated animals. Despite the success of our viral-mediated gene therapy, the dosing strategy was optimized for delivery to the brain parenchyma and may limit the therapeutic potential to other disease-relevant tissues, such as the eye. Here, we examine whether cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) delivery of scAAV9.CB.CLN6 is sufficient to ameliorate visual deficits in Cln6nclf mice. We show that intracerebroventricular (i.c.v.) delivery of scAAV9.CB.CLN6 completely prevents hallmark Batten disease pathology in the visual processing centers of the brain, preserving neurons of the superior colliculus, thalamus, and cerebral cortex. Importantly, i.c.v.-delivered scAAV9.CB.CLN6 also expresses in many cells throughout the central retina, preserving many photoreceptors typically lost in Cln6nclf mice. Lastly, scAAV9.CB.CLN6 treatment partially preserved visual acuity in Cln6nclf mice as measured by optokinetic response. Taken together, we report the first instance of CSF-delivered viral gene reaching and rescuing pathology in both the brain parenchyma and retinal neurons, thereby partially slowing visual deterioration
The role of Comprehension in Requirements and Implications for Use Case Descriptions
Within requirements engineering it is generally accepted that in writing specifications (or indeed any requirements phase document), one attempts to produce an artefact which will be simple to comprehend for the user. That is, whether the document is intended for customers to validate requirements, or engineers to understand what the design must deliver, comprehension is an important goal for the author. Indeed, advice on producing âreadableâ or âunderstandableâ documents is often included in courses on requirements engineering. However, few researchers, particularly within the software engineering domain, have attempted either to define or to understand the nature of comprehension and itâs implications for guidance on the production of quality requirements.
Therefore, this paper examines thoroughly the nature of textual comprehension, drawing heavily from research in discourse process, and suggests some implications for requirements (and other) software documentation. In essence, we find that the guidance on writing requirements, often prevalent within software engineering, may be based upon assumptions which are an oversimplification of the nature of comprehension. Hence, the paper examines guidelines which have been proposed, in this case for use case descriptions, and the extent to which they agree with discourse process theory; before suggesting refinements to the guidelines which attempt to utilise lessons learned from our richer understanding of the underlying discourse process theory. For example, we suggest subtly different sets of writing guidelines for the different tasks of requirements, specification and design
Focusing and Compression of Ultrashort Pulses through Scattering Media
Light scattering in inhomogeneous media induces wavefront distortions which
pose an inherent limitation in many optical applications. Examples range from
microscopy and nanosurgery to astronomy. In recent years, ongoing efforts have
made the correction of spatial distortions possible by wavefront shaping
techniques. However, when ultrashort pulses are employed scattering induces
temporal distortions which hinder their use in nonlinear processes such as in
multiphoton microscopy and quantum control experiments. Here we show that
correction of both spatial and temporal distortions can be attained by
manipulating only the spatial degrees of freedom of the incident wavefront.
Moreover, by optimizing a nonlinear signal the refocused pulse can be shorter
than the input pulse. We demonstrate focusing of 100fs pulses through a 1mm
thick brain tissue, and 1000-fold enhancement of a localized two-photon
fluorescence signal. Our results open up new possibilities for optical
manipulation and nonlinear imaging in scattering media
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