How form and structure of Chinese characters affect eye movement control

This study investigated the correlations between the form features and legibility of Chinese characters by employing the eye tracking method in two experiments: Experiment 1 examined factors affecting Chinese character legibility with character modules and identified the correlations between character form and legibility of crossing strokes; and Experiment 2 examined the effect of crossing strokes on subjective complicacy perception in both Chinese characters and English letters. This study determined that enclosed Chinese characters affect subjective complicacy perception and reduce saccadic amplitude. In addition, greater number of stroke crossings produced higher subjective complicacy perceived for both Chinese characters and English letters. The results of this study serve as a reference for predicting Chinese character legibility and assessing type design superiority

Imaging Calcification in Cerebral Aneurysm Tissue - A Multi-Modal Approach

Intracranial aneurysms are abnormal bulges in the walls of brain arteries that have high morbidity and mortality rates when they rupture. Because the risks associated with treatment are substantial, it is important to identify patients at lower risk for rupture who can avoid treatment. However, to date, a clinically used tool for risk assessment remains elusive. Our group has recently identified calcification as a remarkably common finding in human cerebral aneurysm tissue and have demonstrated that it can play an important role in generating stress concentrations in cerebral aneurysms. While arterial calcification in atherosclerotic plaques has been the focus of extensive study, relatively little attention has been given to calcification in cerebral aneurysms. The studies of calcification in arteries have addressed the location, development and morphological patterns of calcification in atherosclerosis as well as the possibly beneficial role of calcification in mechanical reinforcement and deleterious role as a source of stress concentration. A central objective of this thesis was the development of protocols for studying calcification and lipid pools in cerebral aneurysms using multiple imaging modalities.These protocols were successfully developed and then applied to a case study to investigate the relationship between calcification, collagen fibers, and lipid pools.The approaches developed here will be used in an ongoing large-scale investigation of sources of strength and weakness in cerebral aneurysm walls

Actinomycosis of the Gallbladder: A Case Report

Introduction: Actinomycosis of the gallbladder is extremely rare and may mimic a malignancy leading to delayed diagnosis and/or inappropriate treatment.Presentation of case: Here we report the case of an 82-year-old man who presented with right upper abdominal discomfort for one month. Radiographically, an ill-defined mass was found in the gallbladder fossa that invaded the adjacent abdominal wall and liver bed. In addition, a stone was found in the gallbladder lumen. The imaging features suggested a gallbladder carcinoma. An initial CT-guided needle biopsy showed an inflammatory process. The subsequent open cholecystectomy revealed a contracted, thick-walled gallbladder surrounded by a soft tissue mass near the fundus. Histologically, the gallbladder revealed acute and chronic cholecystitis and microabscesses containing sulfur granules in the soft tissue mass, which showed Gram-positive filamentous bacilli. Under the diagnosis of gallbladder actinomycosis, the patient received post-operative antibiotics for 7 weeks and was well 5 months after diagnosis.Conclusion: Our case demonstrated that a gallbladder actinomycosis should be considered in the differential diagnosis in patients with cholelithiasis and cholecystitis presenting an invasive mass in the gallbladder fossa

CHADS 2

Vascular events are one of the major causes of death in case of Cushing’s syndrome (CS). However, due to the relative low frequency of CS, it is hard to perform a risk assessment for these events. As represented congestive heart failure (C), hypertension (H), age (A), diabetes (D), and stroke (S), the CHADS2 score is now accepted to classify the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) in patients with atrial fibrillation. In this study, participants were enrolled from the National Health Research Institute Database (NHIRD) of Taiwan, and we reviewed 551 patients with their sequential clinically diagnosed CS data between 2002 and 2009 in relation to MACEs risk using CHADS2 score. Good correlation could be identified between the CS and CHADS2 score (AUC=0.795). Our results show that patients with CS show significantly higher risk of vascular events and the CHADS2 score could be applied for MACEs evaluation. Adequate lifestyle modifications and aggressive cardiovascular risks treatment are suggested for CS patients with higher CHADS2 score

Assessing the Decision-Making Process in Human-Robot Collaboration Using a Lego-like EEG Headset

Human-robot collaboration (HRC) has become an emerging field, where the use of a robotic agent has been shifted from a supportive machine to a decision-making collaborator. A variety of factors can influence the effectiveness of decision-making processes during HRC, including the system-related (e.g., robot capability) and human-related (e.g., individual knowledgeability) factors. As a variety of contextual factors can significantly impact the human-robot decision-making process in collaborative contexts, the present study adopts a Lego-like EEG headset to collect and examine human brain activities and utilizes multiple questionnaires to evaluate participants’ cognitive perceptions toward the robot. A user study was conducted where two levels of robot capabilities (high vs. low) were manipulated to provide system recommendations. The participants were also identified into two groups based on their computational thinking (CT) ability. The EEG results revealed that different levels of CT abilities trigger different brainwaves, and the participants’ trust calibration of the robot also varies the resultant brain activities

Butterfly-shaped Dibenz[a,j]anthracenes: Synthesis and photophysical properties

A strategy for the synthesis of dibenz[a,j]anthracenes (DBAs) from cyclohexa-2,5-diene-1-carboxylic acids is presented. Our approach involves sequential C–H olefination, cycloaddition, and decarboxylative aromatization. In the key step for DBA skeleton construction, the bis-C–H olefination products, 1,3-dienes, are utilized as substrates for [4 + 2] cycloaddition with benzyne. This concise synthetic route allows for regioselective ring formation and functional group introduction. The structural features and photophysical properties of the resulting DBA molecules are discussed

The three-dimensional organization of telomeres in the nucleus of mammalian cells

BACKGROUND: The observation of multiple genetic markers in situ by optical microscopy and their relevance to the study of three-dimensional (3D) chromosomal organization in the nucleus have been greatly developed in the last decade. These methods are important in cancer research because cancer is characterized by multiple alterations that affect the modulation of gene expression and the stability of the genome. It is, therefore, essential to analyze the 3D genome organization of the interphase nucleus in both normal and cancer cells. RESULTS: We describe a novel approach to study the distribution of all telomeres inside the nucleus of mammalian cells throughout the cell cycle. It is based on 3D telomere fluorescence in situ hybridization followed by quantitative analysis that determines the telomeres' distribution in the nucleus throughout the cell cycle. This method enables us to determine, for the first time, that telomere organization is cell-cycle dependent, with assembly of telomeres into a telomeric disk in the G2 phase. In tumor cells, the 3D telomere organization is distorted and aggregates are formed. CONCLUSIONS: The results emphasize a non-random and dynamic 3D nuclear telomeric organization and its importance to genomic stability. Based on our findings, it appears possible to examine telomeric aggregates suggestive of genomic instability in individual interphase nuclei and tissues without the need to examine metaphases. Such new avenues of monitoring genomic instability could potentially impact on cancer biology, genetics, diagnostic innovations and surveillance of treatment response in medicine

Surface scattering mechanisms of tantalum nitride thin film resistor

In this letter, we utilize an electrical analysis method to develop a TaN thin film resistor with a stricter spec and near-zero temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) for car-used electronic applications. Simultaneously, we also propose a physical mechanism mode to explain the origin of near-zero TCR for the TaN thin film resistor (TFR). Through current fitting, the carrier conduction mechanism of the TaN TFR changes from hopping to surface scattering and finally to ohmic conduction for different TaN TFRs with different TaN microstructures. Experimental data of current–voltage measurement under successive increasing temperature confirm the conduction mechanism transition. A model of TaN grain boundary isolation ability is eventually proposed to influence the carrier transport in the TaN thin film resistor, which causes different current conduction mechanisms

Targeting PML-RARα and Oncogenic Signaling Pathways by Chinese Herbal Mixture Tien-Hsien Liquid in Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia NB4 Cells

Tien-Hsien Liquid (THL) is a Chinese herbal mixture that has been used worldwide as complementary treatment for cancer patients in the past decade. Recently, THL has been shown to induce apoptosis in various types of solid tumor cells in vitro. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms have not yet been well elucidated. In this study, we explored the effects of THL on acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) NB4 cells, which could be effectively treated by some traditional Chinese remedies containing arsenic trioxide. The results showed THL could induce G2/M arrest and apoptosis in NB4 cells. Accordingly, the decrease of cyclin A and B1 were observed in THL-treated cells. The THL-induced apoptosis was accompanied with caspase-3 activation and decrease of PML-RARα fusion protein. Moreover, DNA methyltransferase 1 and oncogenic signaling pathways such as Akt/mTOR, Stat3 and ERK were also down-regulated by THL. By using ethyl acetate extraction and silica gel chromatography, an active fraction of THL named as EAS5 was isolated. At about 0.5–1% of the dose of THL, EAS5 appeared to have most of THL-induced multiple molecular targeting effects in NB4 cells. Based on the findings of these multi-targeting effects, THL might be regarding as a complementary and alternative therapeutic agent for refractory APL