Automorphisms of free groups with boundaries

The automorphisms of free groups with boundaries form a family of groups A_{n,k} closely related to mapping class groups, with the standard automorphisms of free groups as A_{n,0} and (essentially) the symmetric automorphisms of free groups as A_{0,k}. We construct a contractible space L_{n,k} on which A_{n,k} acts with finite stabilizers and finite quotient space and deduce a range for the virtual cohomological dimension of A_{n,k}. We also give a presentation of the groups and calculate their first homology group.Comment: Published by Algebraic and Geometric Topology at http://www.maths.warwick.ac.uk/agt/AGTVol4/agt-4-25.abs.htm

Church tradition and psychological type preferences among Anglicans in England

A sample of 290 individuals attending Evangelical Anglican churches and Anglo-Catholic churches in central England completed the Keirsey Temperament Sorter, a measure of psychological type preferences. Overall, there were clear preferences for sensing over intuition, for feeling over thinking, and for judging over perceiving, which is consistent with the findings of two earlier studies profiling the psychological type of Anglican churchgoers. However, there was also a significantly higher proportion of intuitives among Anglo-Catholics than among Evangelical Anglicans, which is consistent with the greater emphasis in Anglo-Catholic churches on mystery, awe, and the centrality of sacraments in worship which may resonate with the intuitive predisposition. The implications of these findings are discussed for the benefits of breadth and diversity within Anglicanism

Nonlinear tube-fitting for the analysis of anatomical and functional structures

We are concerned with the estimation of the exterior surface and interior summaries of tube-shaped anatomical structures. This interest is motivated by two distinct scientific goals, one dealing with the distribution of HIV microbicide in the colon and the other with measuring degradation in white-matter tracts in the brain. Our problem is posed as the estimation of the support of a distribution in three dimensions from a sample from that distribution, possibly measured with error. We propose a novel tube-fitting algorithm to construct such estimators. Further, we conduct a simulation study to aid in the choice of a key parameter of the algorithm, and we test our algorithm with validation study tailored to the motivating data sets. Finally, we apply the tube-fitting algorithm to a colon image produced by single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and to a white-matter tract image produced using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI).Comment: Published in at http://dx.doi.org/10.1214/10-AOAS384 the Annals of Applied Statistics (http://www.imstat.org/aoas/) by the Institute of Mathematical Statistics (http://www.imstat.org

NONLINEAR TUBE-FITTING FOR THE ANALYSIS OF ANATOMICAL AND FUNCTIONAL STRUCTURES

We are concerned with the estimation of the exterior surface of tube-shaped anatomical structures. This interest is motivated by two distinct scientific goals, one dealing with the distribution of HIV microbicide in the colon and the other with measuring degradation in white-matter tracts in the brain. Our problem is posed as the estimation of the support of a distribution in three dimensions from a sample from that distribution, possibly measured with error. We propose a novel tube-fitting algorithm to construct such estimators. Further, we conduct a simulation study to aid in the choice of a key parameter of the algorithm, and we test our algorithm with validation study tailored to the motivating data sets. Finally, we apply the tube-fitting algorithm to a colon image produced by single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT)and to a white-matter tract image produced using diffusion tensor `imaging (DTI)

The integral cohomology of the group of loops

Let PSigma_n denote the group that can be thought of either as the group of motions of the trivial n-component link or the group of symmetric automorphisms of a free group of rank n. The integral cohomology ring of PSigma_n is determined, establishing a conjecture of Brownstein and Lee.Comment: This is the version published by Geometry & Topology on 11 July 200

Serum relaxin levels are reduced in pregnant women with a history of recurrent miscarriage, and correlate with maternal uterine artery Doppler indices in first trimester

Objectives: Defective implantation is a mechanism for recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL). We sought to determine whether the serum expression of human relaxin-2 (RLX) is impaired in women with a history of RPL. Study design: Employing a prospective case-controlled design we studied 20 pregnant women with a history of RPL and 20 age-matched women with no history of RPL (NRPL). We measured serum relaxin-2 levels by ELISA at 6-8. 10-12, 20, and 34 weeks gestation and in cord blood, and maternal uterine artery Doppler resistance index (RI) at >= 10 weeks gestation. Results: Relaxin rose to a peak at 12 weeks, and gradually declined towards term. At all gestations, women with a history of RPL had lower RLX levels than women without. At 10-12 weeks gestation, uterine artery RI correlated with serum RLX for both RPL and NRPL. In the NRPL group at 10-12 weeks the presence of a notched waveform was associated with higher RLX levels than the absence of a notch (mean 2.1 ng/ml vs. 1.3 ng/ml, P < 0.05) and also at 20 weeks (2.1 ng/ml vs. 0.95 ng/ml, P < 0.05) but no such difference was seen in the RPL group. Umbilical venous RLX was 4-fold higher in the RPL group than the NRPL group. Conclusion: Women with a history of RPL demonstrate attenuated levels of serum RLX across all pregnancy trimesters. How dysregulated RLX metabolism may contribute to adverse pregnancy outcome in RPL requires further investigation. Crown Copyright (C) 2009 Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved

Liver Resection for Primary Hepatic Neoplasms.

Subtotal hepatic resection was performed in 356 patients; 87 had primary hepatic malignancies, 108 had metastatic tumors, and 161 had benign lesions including 8 traumatic injuries. The global mortality was 4.2%. The experience has elucidated the role of subtotal hepatic resection both for benign and malignant neoplasms

Control and visualisation of a software defined radio system on the Xilinx RFSoC platform using the PYNQ framework

The availability of commercial Radio Frequency System on Chip (RFSoC) devices brings new possibilities for implementing Software Defined Radio (SDR) systems. Such systems are of increasing interest given the pace of innovation in wireless technology, and the pressure on RF spectrum resources, leading to a growing need to access the spectrum in more dynamic and innovative ways. In this paper, we present an SDR demonstration system based on the Xilinx RFSoC platform, which leverages the Python- based 'PYNQ' (Python Productivity for Zynq) software framework. In doing so, we highlight features that can be extremely useful for prototyping radio system design. Notably, our developed system features Python-based control of hardware processing blocks and Radio Frequency (RF) data converters, as well as direct visualisation of communications signals captured within the chip. The system architecture is reviewed, hardware and software components are discussed, functionality is demonstrated, and aspects of the system's performance are evaluated. Finally, it is noted that this combined RFSoC + PYNQ approach is readily extensible for other SDR systems; we highlight our online shared resources, and invite other engineers to investigate and build upon our work