Quantum-implemented selective reconstruction of high-resolution images

This paper proposes quantum image reconstruction. Input-triggered selection of an image among many stored ones, and its reconstruction if the input is occluded or noisy, has been simulated by a computer program implementable in a real quantum-physical system. It is based on the Hopfield associative net; the quantum-wave implementation bases on holography. The main limitations of the classical Hopfield net are much reduced with the new, original -- quantum-optical -- implementation. Image resolution can be almost arbitrarily increased.Comment: 4 pages, 15 figures, essential

Association of Sociodemographic, Psychopathological and Gambling-Related Factors with Treatment Utilization for Pathological Gambling

Background/Aims: Only a small percentage of pathological gamblers utilizes professional treatment for gambling problems. Little is known about which social and gambling-related factors are associated with treatment utilization. The aim of this study was to look for factors associated with treatment utilization for pathological gambling. Methods: The study followed a sampling design with 3 different recruitment channels, namely (1) a general population-based telephone sample, (2) a gambling location sample and (3) a project telephone hotline. Pathological gambling was diagnosed in a telephone interview. Participants with pathological gambling (n = 395) received an in-depth clinical interview concerning treatment utilization, comorbid psychiatric disorders and social characteristics. Results: Variables associated with treatment were higher age [odds ratio (OR) 1.05, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.03-1.08], an increased number of DSM-IV criteria for pathological gambling (OR 1.34, 95% CI 1.06-1.70), more adverse consequences from gambling (OR 1.10, 95% CI 1.03-1.16) and more social pressure from significant others (OR 1.17, 95% CI 1.07-1.27). Affective disorders were associated with treatment utilization in the univariate analysis (OR 1.81, 95% CI 1.19-2.73), but multivariate analysis showed that comorbid psychiatric disorders were not independently associated. Conclusion: These results indicate that individuals with more severe gambling problems utilize treatment at an older age when more adverse consequences have occurred. Further research should focus on proactive early interventions

Smartphone app reveals that lynx avoid human recreationists on local scale, but not home range scale

Outdoor recreation is increasing and affects habitat use and selection by wildlife. These effects are challenging to study, especially for elusive species with large spatial requirements, as it is hard to obtain reliable proxies of recreational intensity over extensive areas. Commonly used proxies, such as the density of, or distance to, hiking paths, ignore outdoor recreation occurring on other linear feature types. Here we utilized crowdsourced data from the Strava training app to obtain a large-scale proxy for pedestrian outdoor recreation intensity in southeast Norway. We used the proxy and GPS-tracking data from collared Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) to investigate how recreation affects habitat selection at the home range scale and local scale by lynx during summer. We fitted resource selection functions at the two scales using conditional logistic regression. Our analysis revealed that lynx avoided areas of recreational activity at the local scale, but not at home range scale. Nonetheless, lynx frequently used areas associated with recreation, and to a greater degree at night than during the day. Our results suggest that local-scale avoidance of recreation and temporal adjustments of habitat use by lynx mitigate the need for a home range-scale response towards recreation. Scale-dependent responses and temporal adjustments in habitat use may facilitate coexistence between humans and large carnivores

Smartphone app reveals that lynx avoid human recreationists on local scale, but not home range scale

The global incrOutdoor recreation is increasing and afects habitat use and selection by wildlife. These efects are challenging to study, especially for elusive species with large spatial requirements, as it is hard to obtain reliable proxies of recreational intensity over extensive areas. Commonly used proxies, such as the density of, or distance to, hiking paths, ignore outdoor recreation occurring on other linear feature types. Here we utilized crowdsourced data from the Strava training app to obtain a large-scale proxy for pedestrian outdoor recreation intensity in southeast Norway. We used the proxy and GPS-tracking data from collared Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) to investigate how recreation afects habitat selection at the home range scale and local scale by lynx during summer. We ftted resource selection functions at the two scales using conditional logistic regression. Our analysis revealed that lynx avoided areas of recreational activity at the local scale, but not at home range scale. Nonetheless, lynx frequently used areas associated with recreation, and to a greater degree at night than during the day. Our results suggest that local-scale avoidance of recreation and temporal adjustments of habitat use by lynx mitigate the need for a home range-scale response towards recreation. Scale-dependent responses and temporal adjustments in habitat use may facilitate coexistence between humans and large carnivorespublishedVersio

Analysis of thermal stress in cryosurgery of kidneys

In this study, the thermal stress distribution in cryosurgery of kidney was investigated using a multiphysics finite element model developed in ANSYS (V8.

Prevalence of symptomatic and silent stress-induced perfusion defects in diabetic patients with suspected coronary artery disease referred for myocardial perfusion scintigraphy

Purpose: Silent myocardial ischaemia—as evaluated by stress-induced perfusion defects on myocardial perfusion scintigraphy (MPS) in patients without a history of chest pain—is frequent in diabetes and is associated with increased rates of cardiovascular events. Its prevalence has been determined in asymptomatic diabetic patients, but remains largely unknown in diabetic patients with suspected coronary artery disease (CAD) in the clinical setting. In this study we therefore sought (a) to determine the prevalence of symptomatic and silent perfusion defects in diabetic patients with suspected CAD and (b) to characterise the eventual predictors of abnormal perfusion. Methods: The patient population comprised 133 consecutive diabetic patients with suspected CAD who had been referred for MPS. Studies were performed with exercise (41%) or pharmacological stress testing (1-day protocol, 99mTc-sestamibi, 201Tl or both). We used semi-quantitative analysis (20-segment polar maps) to derive the summed stress score (SSS) and the summed difference score (SDS). Results: Abnormal MPS (SSS≥4) was observed in 49 (37%) patients (SSS=4.9±8.4, SDS=2.4±4.7), reversible perfusion defects (SDS≥2) in 40 (30%) patients [SSS=13.3±10.9; SDS=8.0±5.6; 20% moderate to severe (SDS>4), 7% multivessel] and fixed defects in 21 (16%) patients. Results were comparable between patients with and patients without a history of chest pain. Of 75 patients without a history of chest pain, 23 (31%, 95% CI=21-42%) presented reversible defects (SSS=13.9±11.3; SDS=7.4±1.2), indicative of silent ischaemia. Reversible defects were associated with inducible ST segment depression during MPS stress [odds ratio (OR)=3.2, p<0.01). Fixed defects were associated with erectile dysfunction in males (OR=3.7, p=0.02) and lower aspirin use (OR=0.25, p=0.02). Conclusion: Silent stress-induced perfusion defects occurred in 31% of the patients, a rate similar to that in patients with a history of chest pain. MPS could identify these patients with a potentially increased risk of cardiovascular event

Quantification of myocardial blood flow with 82Rb positron emission tomography: clinical validation with 15O-water

Purpose: Quantification of myocardial blood flow (MBF) with generator-produced 82Rb is an attractive alternative for centres without an on-site cyclotron. Our aim was to validate 82Rb-measured MBF in relation to that measured using 15O-water, as a tracer 100% of which can be extracted from the circulation even at high flow rates, in healthy control subject and patients with mild coronary artery disease (CAD). Methods: MBF was measured at rest and during adenosine-induced hyperaemia with 82Rb and 15O-water PET in 33 participants (22 control subjects, aged 30 ± 13years; 11 CAD patients without transmural infarction, aged 60 ± 13years). A one-tissue compartment 82Rb model with ventricular spillover correction was used. The 82Rb flow-dependent extraction rate was derived from 15O-water measurements in a subset of 11 control subjects. Myocardial flow reserve (MFR) was defined as the hyperaemic/rest MBF. Pearson's correlation r, Bland-Altman 95% limits of agreement (LoA), and Lin's concordance correlation ρ c (measuring both precision and accuracy) were used. Results: Over the entire MBF range (0.66-4.7ml/min/g), concordance was excellent for MBF (r = 0.90, [82Rb-15O-water] mean difference ± SD = 0.04 ± 0.66ml/min/g, LoA = −1.26 to 1.33ml/min/g, ρ c = 0.88) and MFR (range 1.79-5.81, r = 0.83, mean difference = 0.14 ± 0.58, LoA = −0.99 to 1.28, ρ c = 0.82). Hyperaemic MBF was reduced in CAD patients compared with the subset of 11 control subjects (2.53 ± 0.74 vs. 3.62 ± 0.68ml/min/g, p = 0.002, for 15O-water; 2.53 ± 1.01 vs. 3.82 ± 1.21ml/min/g, p = 0.013, for 82Rb) and this was paralleled by a lower MFR (2.65 ± 0.62 vs. 3.79 ± 0.98, p = 0.004, for 15O-water; 2.85 ± 0.91 vs. 3.88 ± 0.91, p = 0.012, for 82Rb). Myocardial perfusion was homogeneous in 1,114 of 1,122 segments (99.3%) and there were no differences in MBF among the coronary artery territories (p > 0.31). Conclusion: Quantification of MBF with 82Rb with a newly derived correction for the nonlinear extraction function was validated against MBF measured using 15O-water in control subjects and patients with mild CAD, where it was found to be accurate at high flow rates. 82Rb-derived MBF estimates seem robust for clinical research, advancing a step further towards its implementation in clinical routin

Assessment of Problematic Internet Use by the Compulsive Internet Use Scale and the Internet Addiction Test: A Sample of Problematic and Pathological Gamblers

This study aims to analyze psychometric properties and validity of the Compulsive Internet Use Scale (CIUS) and the Internet Addiction Test (IAT) and, second, to determine a threshold for the CIUS which matches the IAT cut-off for detecting problematic Internet use. A total of 292 subjects with problematic or pathological gambling (237 men, 55 women) aged 14-63 years and with private Internet use for at least 1 h per working or weekend day were recruited via different recruitment channels. Results include that both scales were internally consistent (Cronbach's α = 0.9) and had satisfactory convergent validity (r = 0.75; 95% CI 0.70-0.80). The correlation with duration of private Internet use per week was significantly higher for the CIUS (r = 0.54) compared to the IAT (r = 0.40). Among all participants, 25.3% were classified as problematic Internet users based on the IAT with a cut-off ≥40. The highest proportion of congruent classified cases results from a CIUS cut-off ≥18 (sensitivity 79.7%, specificity 79.4%). However, a higher cut-off (≥21) seems to be more appropriate for prevalence estimation of problematic Internet use

The role of self-esteem in Internet addiction within the context of comorbid mental disorders: Findings from a general population-based sample

Background and aims: Internet Addiction (IA) has consistently been related to comorbid psychiatric disorders and lowered self-esteem. However, most studies relied on self-report questionnaires using non-representative samples. This study aims to analyze the relative impact of self-esteem and comorbid psychopathology with lifetime IA in a population-based sample of excessive Internet users using clinical diagnoses assessed in a personal interview. Methods: The sample of this study is based on a general population survey. Using the Compulsive Internet Use Scale, all participants with elevated Internet use scores were selected and invited to a follow-up interview. Current DSM-5 criteria for Internet gaming disorder were rephrased to apply to all Internet activities. Out of 196 participants, 82 fulfilled the criteria for IA. Self-esteem was measured with the Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale. Results: Self-esteem is significantly associated with IA. For every unit increase in self-esteem, the chance of having IA decreased by 11%. By comparison, comorbidities such as substance-use disorder (excluding tobacco), mood disorder, and eating disorder were significantly more likely among Internet-addicted than in the non-addicted group. This could not be reported for anxiety disorders. A logistic regression showed that by adding self-esteem and psychopathology into the same model, self-esteem maintains its strong influence on IA. Discussion and conclusions: Self-esteem was associated with IA, even after adjustment for substance-use disorders, mood disorder, and eating disorder. Self-esteem and psychopathology should be considered in prevention, intervention measures, as well as in the conception of etiological models