A Morphological Associative Memory Employing A Stored Pattern Independent Kernel Image and Its Hardware Model

An associative memory provides a convenient way for pattern retrieval and restoration, which has an important role for handling data distorted with noise. As an effective associative memory, we paid attention to a morphological associative memory (MAM) proposed by Ritter. The model is superior to ordinary associative memory models in terms of calculation amount, memory capacity, and perfect recall rate. However, in general, the kernel design becomes difficult as the stored pattern increases because the kernel uses a part of each stored pattern. In this paper, we propose a stored pattern independent kernel design method for the MAM and design the MAM employing the proposed kernel design with a standard digital manner in parallel architecture for acceleration. We confirm the validity of the proposed kernel design method by auto- and hetero-association experiments and investigate the efficiency of the hardware acceleration. A high-speed operation (more than 150 times in comparison with software execution) is achieved in the custom hardware. The proposed model works as an intelligent pre-processor for the Brain-Inspired Systems (Brain-IS) working in real world

How to Expand the Workspace of Parallel Robots

In this chapter, methods for expanding the workspace of parallel robots are introduced. Firstly, methods for expanding the translational workspace of the parallel robot are discussed. The parallel robot has multiple solutions of the inverse and forward displacement analysis. By changing its configurations from one solution to another, the parallel robot can expand its translational workspace. However, conventional nonredundant parallel robot encounters singularity during the mode change. Singularity-free mode changes of the parallel robot by redundant actuation are introduced. Next, methods for expanding the rotational workspace of the parallel robot are shown. In order to achieve the large rotation, some mechanical gimmicks by gears, pulleys, and helical joints have been embedded in the moving part. A novel differential screw-nut mechanism for expanding the rotational workspace of the parallel robot is introduced

Long-term exposure to methylmercury and psychiatric symptoms in residents of Minamata, Japan

Introduction: It is well-known that prenatal or postnatal exposure to methylmercury can produce neurological signs in adults and children, exemplified by a case of large-scale poisoning in Minamata, Japan, in the 1950s. However, evidence regarding whether pre- or postnatal exposure to methylmercury causes psychiatric symptoms (e.g., impairment of intelligence and mood and behavioral dysfunction) is still limited-excluding cases of fetal Minamata disease patients. Methods: We evaluated the effects of pre- or postnatal exposure to methylmercury on psychiatric symptoms using data derived from a 1971 population-based survey in Minamata and neighboring communities. We adopted residential areas as an exposure indicator and psychiatric symptoms as the outcome. Then, we estimated the adjusted prevalence odds ratio (POR) and confidence interval (Cl) of psychiatric symptoms in relation to residential area. Results: There were 904 participants in Minamata (high exposure area), 1700 in Goshonoura (middle exposure area), and 913 in Ariake (low exposure area). Compared to the Ariake area, participants in the Minamata area manifested psychiatric symptoms more frequently: PORs for impairment of intelligence and mood and behavioral dysfunction were 5.2 (95% Cl: 3.7-7.3) and 4.4 (95% Cl: 2.9-6.7), respectively. Furthermore, participants with psychiatric symptoms in the Minamata area more frequently had neurological signs. Peaks in prevalence of psychiatric symptoms occurred around age 20 and in older age adults in the area. These findings did not change when we excluded those who had been officially certified as Minamata disease patients by that time. Conclusions: The present study suggests a relationship between pre- or postnatal exposure to methylmercury and psychiatric symptoms among the general population in Minamata even after excluding officially certified patients

Anisotropic lattice with nonperturbative accuracy

We determine the nonperturbative anisotropic parameter of the gauge action in the quenched approximation with less than 1% accuracy using the Sommer scale measured by the L\"uscher-Weisz algorithm or smearing technique. We also study the nonperturbative O(a)-improvement of the quark action. The bare quark anisotropy is determined using the masses from the temporal and spatial directions. For the determination of the $O(a)$ improvement coefficients, we apply the Schr\"odinger functional method.Comment: 3 pages, 5 figures, Lattice2004(improved

Anisotropic lattices for precision computations in heavy flavor physics

We study the anisotropic lattice QCD for precision computations of heavy-light matrix elements. Our previous study in which the lattices are calibrated with a few percent accuracy has already given results comparable to the existing calculations. This suggests that even higher precision may be achieved by a more precise calibration of anisotropic lattices. We describe our strategy to tune the gauge and quark parameters with accuracies much less than 1 % in the quenched approximation.Comment: 3 papes, 2 figures, Lattice2003(heavy

Social influence on preference in situations with different levels of importance

One’s preferences are influenced by another individual’s preferences. The trustworthiness of those individuals can modulate changes in our preferences. Previous studies have examined this social influence in a single situation (e.g., the preference ratings for a T-shirt). Although it is possible that social influence on preference is affected by the importance of the situation, that remains to be elucidated. In the present study, we examined the influence of other individual’s preferences on individual preferences in various important situations. We tested two hypotheses: 1) situations of low importance are more likely to induce one’s own preference than situations of medium and high importance, 2) the influence of a trustworthy individual is larger than that of an untrustworthy individual in situations of low importance, while no difference is found in situations of medium and high importance. Forty-seven participants conducted a two times preference rating task in six situations (two situations for each of the three levels of importance). Preferences for individual characteristics (trustworthy or untrustworthy person) were also presented in the first preference rating task. The results showed that situations of high importance induced a bigger change in preference than situations of low and medium importance. On the other hand, no significant difference in preference change was found between the influence of trustworthy and untrustworthy individuals in each of the three important situations. These results imply that the influence of another individual's preferences on one’s preferences is different in various life situations.本研究は，科学研究費補助金（18K03177）の助成を受けて実施した

Domain Nucleation and Annihilation in Uniformly Magnetized State under Current Pulses in Narrow Ferromagnetic Wires

We investigate the current-driven magnetization dynamics in narrow Permalloy wires by means of Lorentz microscopy and electron holography. Current pulses are found to transform the magnetic structure in the uniformly magnetized state below the Curie temperature. A variety of magnetic states including reversed magnetic domains are randomly obtained in low probability. The dynamics of vortices found in most of observed magnetic states seems to play a key role in triggering the magnetization reversal.Comment: 11 pages, 3 figures, 1 video, to appear in Japanese Journal of Applied Physics (Express Letter