5,448 research outputs found
Real-time moving object segmentation in H.264 compressed domain based on approximate reasoning
AbstractThis paper presents a real-time segmentation algorithm to obtain moving objects from the H.264 compressed domain. The proposed segmentation works with very little information and is based on two features of the H.264 compressed video: motion vectors associated to the macroblocks and decision modes. The algorithm uses fuzzy logic and allows to describe position, velocity and size of the detected regions in a comprehensive way, so the proposed approach works with low level information but manages highly comprehensive linguistic concepts. The performance of the algorithm is improved using dynamic design of fuzzy sets that avoids merge and split problems. Experimental results for several traffic scenes demonstrate the real-time performance and the encouraging results in diverse situations
JPCam: A 1.2Gpixel camera for the J-PAS survey
JPCam is a 14-CCD mosaic camera, using the new e2v 9k-by-9k 10microm-pixel
16-channel detectors, to be deployed on a dedicated 2.55m wide-field telescope
at the OAJ (Observatorio Astrofisico de Javalambre) in Aragon, Spain. The
camera is designed to perform a Baryon Acoustic Oscillations (BAO) survey of
the northern sky. The J-PAS survey strategy will use 54 relatively narrow-band
(~13.8nm) filters equi-spaced between 370 and 920nm plus 3 broad-band filters
to achieve unprecedented photometric red-shift accuracies for faint galaxies
over ~8000 square degrees of sky. The cryostat, detector mosaic and read
electronics is being supplied by e2v under contract to J-PAS while the
mechanical structure, housing the shutter and filter assembly, is being
designed and constructed by a Brazilian consortium led by INPE (Instituto
Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais). Four sets of 14 filters are placed in the
ambient environment, just above the dewar window but directly in line with the
detectors, leading to a mosaic having ~10mm gaps between each CCD. The massive
500mm aperture shutter is expected to be supplied by the Argelander-Institut
fur Astronomie, Bonn. We will present an overview of JPCam, from the filter
configuration through to the CCD mosaic camera. A brief outline of the main
J-PAS science projects will be included.Comment: 11 pages and 9 figure
Search for new resonant states in 10C and 11C and their impact on the cosmological lithium problem
The observed primordial 7Li abundance in metal-poor halo stars is found to be
lower than its Big-Bang nucleosynthesis (BBN) calculated value by a factor of
approximately three. Some recent works suggested the possibility that this
discrepancy originates from missing resonant reactions which would destroy the
7Be, parent of 7Li. The most promising candidate resonances which were found
include a possibly missed 1- or 2- narrow state around 15 MeV in the compound
nucleus 10C formed by 7Be+3He and a state close to 7.8 MeV in the compound
nucleus 11C formed by 7Be+4He. In this work, we studied the high excitation
energy region of 10C and the low excitation energy region in 11C via the
reactions 10B(3He,t)10C and 11B(3He,t)11C, respectively, at the incident energy
of 35 MeV. Our results for 10C do not support 7Be+3He as a possible solution
for the 7Li problem. Concerning 11C results, the data show no new resonances in
the excitation energy region of interest and this excludes 7Be+4He reaction
channel as an explanation for the 7Li deficit.Comment: Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. C (Rapid Communication
A new rapid desensitization protocol for chemotherapy agents
Background: Desensitization has been used for some decades to treat patients with the allergenic drug when an alternative drug with
similar effi cacy and safety is not available. We present the results from a series of oncology patients desensitized at our hospital during
the last 2 years.
Objective: To assess the effi cacy of a new desensitization protocol in patients allergic to chemotherapy drugs.
Methods: We performed an observational retrospective study of 11 women (6 breast cancer and 5 ovarian cancer) who underwent our
desensitization protocol. Four patients had immediate reactions to carboplatin, 3 to docetaxel, 3 to paclitaxel, and 1 to both docetaxel
and paclitaxel. Premedication was administered in all cases. A 5-step protocol based on 5 different dilutions of the drugs was used.
Results: We performed 39 desensitization procedures: 14 to carboplatin, 3 to oxaliplatin, 16 to docetaxel, and 6 to paclitaxel. Eight patients
tolerated the full dose in 36 procedures. One patient suffered an anaphylactic reaction to carboplatin that reverted with treatment. One
patient had dyspnea after a paclitaxel cycle. One patient experienced dyspnea due to chronic pulmonary thromboembolism related to
her disease.
Conclusion: Desensitization is a useful procedure in patients who are allergic to their chemotherapy agents
Asymmetries between the production of D+ and D- mesons from 500 GeV/c pi- nucleon interactions as a function of xF and pt**2
We present asymmetries between the production of D+ and D- mesons in Fermilab
experiment E791 as a function of xF and pt**2. The data used here consist of
74,000 fully-reconstructed charmed mesons produced by a 500 GeV/c pi- beam on C
and Pt foils. The measurements are compared to results of models which predict
differences between the production of heavy-quark mesons that have a light
quark in common with the beam (leading particles) and those that do not
(non-leading particles). While the default models do not agree with our data,
we can reach agreement with one of them, PYTHIA, by making a limited number of
changes to parameters used
Differential cross sections, charge production asymmetry, and spin-density matrix elements for D*(2010) produced in 500 GeV/c pi^- nucleon interactions
We report differential cross sections for the production of D*(2010) produced
in 500 GeV/c pi^- nucleon interactions from experiment E791 at Fermilab, as
functions of Feynman-x (x_F) and transverse momentum squared (p_T^2). We also
report the D* +/- charge asymmetry and spin-density matrix elements as
functions of these variables. Investigation of the spin-density matrix elements
shows no evidence of polarization. The average values of the spin alignment are
\eta= 0.01 +- 0.02 and -0.01 +- 0.02 for leading and non-leading particles,
respectively.Comment: LaTeX2e (elsart.cls). 13 pages, 6 figures (eps files). Submitted to
Physics Letters
Genetic analysis of the vitamin D receptor gene in two epithelial cancers: melanoma and breast cancer case-control studies
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Vitamin D serum levels have been found to be related to sun exposure and diet, together with cell differentiation, growth control and consequently, cancer risk. Vitamin D receptor (<it>VDR</it>) genotypes may influence cancer risk; however, no epidemiological studies in sporadic breast cancer (BC) or malignant melanoma (MM) have been performed in a southern European population. In this study, the <it>VDR </it>gene has been evaluated in two epithelial cancers BC and MM.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We have conducted an analysis in 549 consecutive and non-related sporadic BC cases and 556 controls, all from the Spanish population, and 283 MM cases and 245 controls. Genotyping analyses were carried out on four putatively functional SNPs within the <it>VDR </it>gene.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>An association with the minor allele A of the non-synonymous SNP rs2228570 (rs10735810, <it>Fok</it>I, Met1Thr) was observed for BC, with an estimated odds ratio (OR) of 1.26 (95% CI = 1.02–1.57; p = 0.036). The synonymous variant rs731236 (<it>Taq</it>I) appeared to be associated with protection from BC (OR = 0.80, 95%CI = 0.64–0.99; p = 0.047). No statistically significant associations with MM were observed for any SNP. Nevertheless, sub-group analyses revealed an association between rs2228570 (<it>FokI</it>) and absence of childhood sunburns (OR = 0.65, p = 0.003), between the 3'utr SNP rs739837 (<it>Bgl</it>I) and fair skin (OR = 1.31, p = 0.048), and between the promoter SNP rs4516035 and the more aggressive tumour location in head-neck and trunk (OR = 1.54, p = 0.020).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>In summary, we observed associations between SNPs in the <it>VDR </it>gene and BC risk, and a comprehensive analysis using clinical and tumour characteristics as outcome variables has revealed potential associations with MM. These associations required confirmation in independent studies.</p
Habitable Zones in the Universe
Habitability varies dramatically with location and time in the universe. This
was recognized centuries ago, but it was only in the last few decades that
astronomers began to systematize the study of habitability. The introduction of
the concept of the habitable zone was key to progress in this area. The
habitable zone concept was first applied to the space around a star, now called
the Circumstellar Habitable Zone. Recently, other, vastly broader, habitable
zones have been proposed. We review the historical development of the concept
of habitable zones and the present state of the research. We also suggest ways
to make progress on each of the habitable zones and to unify them into a single
concept encompassing the entire universe.Comment: 71 pages, 3 figures, 1 table; to be published in Origins of Life and
Evolution of Biospheres; table slightly revise
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