VSCAN: An Enhanced Video Summarization using Density-based Spatial Clustering

In this paper, we present VSCAN, a novel approach for generating static video summaries. This approach is based on a modified DBSCAN clustering algorithm to summarize the video content utilizing both color and texture features of the video frames. The paper also introduces an enhanced evaluation method that depends on color and texture features. Video Summaries generated by VSCAN are compared with summaries generated by other approaches found in the literature and those created by users. Experimental results indicate that the video summaries generated by VSCAN have a higher quality than those generated by other approaches.Comment: arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1401.3590 by other authors without attributio

ELVIS: Entertainment-led video summaries

© ACM, 2010. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of ACM for your personal use. Not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in ACM Transactions on Multimedia Computing, Communications, and Applications, 6(3): Article no. 17 (2010) http://doi.acm.org/10.1145/1823746.1823751Video summaries present the user with a condensed and succinct representation of the content of a video stream. Usually this is achieved by attaching degrees of importance to low-level image, audio and text features. However, video content elicits strong and measurable physiological responses in the user, which are potentially rich indicators of what video content is memorable to or emotionally engaging for an individual user. This article proposes a technique that exploits such physiological responses to a given video stream by a given user to produce Entertainment-Led VIdeo Summaries (ELVIS). ELVIS is made up of five analysis phases which correspond to the analyses of five physiological response measures: electro-dermal response (EDR), heart rate (HR), blood volume pulse (BVP), respiration rate (RR), and respiration amplitude (RA). Through these analyses, the temporal locations of the most entertaining video subsegments, as they occur within the video stream as a whole, are automatically identified. The effectiveness of the ELVIS technique is verified through a statistical analysis of data collected during a set of user trials. Our results show that ELVIS is more consistent than RANDOM, EDR, HR, BVP, RR and RA selections in identifying the most entertaining video subsegments for content in the comedy, horror/comedy, and horror genres. Subjective user reports also reveal that ELVIS video summaries are comparatively easy to understand, enjoyable, and informative

Antihyperglycemic effect of casearia sylvestris leaves extract in streptozotocin induced diabetic rats

The antihyperglycaemic effect of Casearia sylvestris aqueous extract (CS) and its flavonoidic fraction using in vivo models in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats was evaluated. CS (500 mg/kg) reduced blood glucose in rats three weeks after a single oral dose. The blood glucose significantly decreased in a test of tolerance to insulin. Phytochemical investigation on TLC, HPLC-DAD and NMR spectral analysis of extract and fractions confirmed the presence of flavonoids. These results direct the hypothesis that CS improves glucose metabolism by reducing insulin resistance, and it may be useful for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.Colegio de Farmacéuticos de la Provincia de Buenos Aire

Antihyperglycemic effect of casearia sylvestris leaves extract in streptozotocin induced diabetic rats

The antihyperglycaemic effect of Casearia sylvestris aqueous extract (CS) and its flavonoidic fraction using in vivo models in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats was evaluated. CS (500 mg/kg) reduced blood glucose in rats three weeks after a single oral dose. The blood glucose significantly decreased in a test of tolerance to insulin. Phytochemical investigation on TLC, HPLC-DAD and NMR spectral analysis of extract and fractions confirmed the presence of flavonoids. These results direct the hypothesis that CS improves glucose metabolism by reducing insulin resistance, and it may be useful for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.Colegio de Farmacéuticos de la Provincia de Buenos Aire

The (decision) tree of fertility: an innovative decision-making algorithm in assisted reproduction technique

Purpose: Several mathematical models have been developed to estimate individualized chances of assisted reproduction techniques (ART) success, although with limited clinical application. Our study aimed to develop a decisional algorithm able to predict pregnancy and live birth rates after controlled ovarian stimulation (COS) phase, helping the physician to decide whether to perform oocytes pick-up continuing the ongoing ART path. Methods: A single-center retrospective analysis of real-world data was carried out including all fresh ART cycles performed in 1998–2020. Baseline characteristics, ART parameters and biochemical/clinical pregnancies and live birth rates were collected. A seven-steps systematic approach for model development, combining linear regression analyses and decision trees (DT), was applied for biochemical, clinical pregnancy, and live birth rates. Results: Of fresh ART cycles, 12,275 were included. Linear regression analyses highlighted a relationship between number of ovarian follicles > 17 mm detected at ultrasound before pick-up (OF17), embryos number and fertilization rate, and biochemical and clinical pregnancy rates (p < 0.001), but not live birth rate. DT were created for biochemical pregnancy (statistical power–SP:80.8%), clinical pregnancy (SP:85.4%), and live birth (SP:87.2%). Thresholds for OF17 entered in all DT, while sperm motility entered the biochemical pregnancy’s model, and female age entered the clinical pregnancy and live birth DT. In case of OF17 < 3, the chance of conceiving was < 6% for all DT. Conclusion: A systematic approach allows to identify OF17, female age, and sperm motility as pre-retrieval predictors of ART outcome, possibly reducing the socio-economic burden of ART failure, allowing the clinician to perform or not the oocytes pick-up

A fast ILP-based Heuristic for the robust design of Body Wireless Sensor Networks

We consider the problem of optimally designing a body wireless sensor network, while taking into account the uncertainty of data generation of biosensors. Since the related min-max robustness Integer Linear Programming (ILP) problem can be difficult to solve even for state-of-the-art commercial optimization solvers, we propose an original heuristic for its solution. The heuristic combines deterministic and probabilistic variable fixing strategies, guided by the information coming from strengthened linear relaxations of the ILP robust model, and includes a very large neighborhood search for reparation and improvement of generated solutions, formulated as an ILP problem solved exactly. Computational tests on realistic instances show that our heuristic finds solutions of much higher quality than a state-of-the-art solver and than an effective benchmark heuristic.Comment: This is the authors' final version of the paper published in G. Squillero and K. Sim (Eds.): EvoApplications 2017, Part I, LNCS 10199, pp. 1-17, 2017. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-55849-3\_16. The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-55849-3_1

Insights on the heparan sulphate-dependent externalisation of transglutaminase-2 (TG2) in glucose-stimulated proximal-like tubular epithelial cells

The extracellular matrix crosslinking enzyme transglutaminase 2 (TG2) is highly implicated in tissue fibrosis that precedes end-stage kidney failure. TG2 is unconventionally secreted through extracellular vesicles in a way that depends on heparan sulphate (HS) proteoglycan syndecan-4 (Sdc4), the deletion of which reduces experimental kidney fibrosis as a result of lower extracellular TG2 in the tubule-interstitium. Here we establish a model of TG2 externalisation in NRK-52E tubular epithelial cells subjected to glucose stress. HS-binding TG2 mutants had reduced extracellular TG2 in transfected NRK-52E, suggesting that TG2-externalisation depends on an intact TG2 heparin binding site. Inhibition of N-ethylmaleimide sensitive factor (NSF) vesicle-fusing ATPase, which was identified in the recently elucidated TG2 kidney membrane-interactome, led to significantly lower TG2-externalisation, thus validating the involvement of membrane fusion in TG2 secretion. As cyclin-G-associated kinase (GAK) had emerged as a further TG2-partner in the fibrotic kidney, we investigated whether glucose-induced TG2-externalisation was accompanied by TG2 phosphorylation in consensus sequences of cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK). Glucose stress led to intense TG2 phosphorylation in serine/threonine CDK-target. TG2 phosphorylation by tyrosine kinases was also increased by glucose. Although the precise role of glucose-induced TG2 phosphorylation is unknown, these novel data suggest that phosphorylation may be involved in TG2 membrane-trafficking

Potencial de conservação de diferentes cultivares de uva de mesa conduzidas sob cobertura plástica.

XV Congresso Latino-Americano de Viticultura e Enologia E XIII Congresso Brasileiro de Viticultura e Enologia. Bento Gonçalves-RS, 3 a 7 de Novembro de 2015

Validação de protocolo para biometria de sementes de Jatoba do cerrado (Hymenae stignocarpa Mart. ex Hayne.) por análise digital.

O Jatobá do cerrado (Hymenaea stigonocarpa) apresenta frutos com polpa farinácea, que por sua vez são apreciadas por moradores regionais e viajantes na forma in natura ou processada. Além disso, a espécie é um condicionante inicial para processos de recuperação de áreas degradadas, estabelecendo assim condições para desenvolvimento da fauna e flora local. O presente estudo teve por objetivo estimar o comprimento e largura de sementes utilizando o paquímetro digital e o software ImageJ®, e validar as mensurações através de análises estatísticas. Foram avaliadas 50 sementes de jatobá do cerrado utilizando: plataforma de fenotipagem, câmera fotográfica Sony Hd Avchd progressive, software ImajeJ® Software SigmaPlot®, régua de 20 cm e paquímetro digital. Com o paquímetro obteve-se estimativas de comprimento e largura das 50 sementes da espécie, e posteriormente se repetiu as análises via software. A metodologia digital se mostra eficaz e acurada na obtenção das estimativas para análise biométrica de sementes, sendo possível o pesquisador realizar leituras de forma objetiva, minimizando os erros