3,252 research outputs found
An optical fibre dynamic instrumented palpation sensor for the characterisation of biological tissue
AbstractThe diagnosis of prostate cancer using invasive techniques (such as biopsy and blood tests for prostate-specific antigen) and non-invasive techniques (such as digital rectal examination and trans-rectal ultrasonography) may be enhanced by using an additional dynamic instrumented palpation approach to prostate tissue classification. A dynamically actuated membrane sensor/actuator has been developed that incorporates an optical fibre Fabry–Pérot interferometer to record the displacement of the membrane when it is pressed on to different tissue samples. The membrane sensor was tested on a silicon elastomer prostate model with enlarged and stiffer material on one side to simulate early stage prostate cancer. The interferometer measurement was found to have high dynamic range and accuracy, with a minimum displacement resolution of ±0.4μm over a 721μm measurement range. The dynamic response of the membrane sensor when applied to different tissue types changed depending on the stiffness of the tissue being measured. This demonstrates the feasibility of an optically tracked dynamic palpation technique for classifying tissue type based on the dynamic response of the sensor/actuator
The oldest fossil record of bandicoots (Marsupialia; Peramelemorphia) from the late Oligocene of Australia
Two new late Oligocene representatives of the marsupial order Peramelemorphia (bandicoots and bilbies) from the Etadunna Formation of South Australia are described here. Bulungu muirheadae sp. nov., from Zone B (Ditjimanka Local Fauna [LF]), is represented by several dentaries and isolated upper and lower molars. Bulungu campbelli sp. nov., from Zone C (Ngapakaldi LF), is represented by a single dentary and maxilla. Together, they represent the oldest fossil bandicoots described to date. Both are small (estimated body mass o
On the combination of omics data for prediction of binary outcomes
Enrichment of predictive models with new biomolecular markers is an important
task in high-dimensional omic applications. Increasingly, clinical studies
include several sets of such omics markers available for each patient,
measuring different levels of biological variation. As a result, one of the
main challenges in predictive research is the integration of different sources
of omic biomarkers for the prediction of health traits. We review several
approaches for the combination of omic markers in the context of binary outcome
prediction, all based on double cross-validation and regularized regression
models. We evaluate their performance in terms of calibration and
discrimination and we compare their performance with respect to single-omic
source predictions. We illustrate the methods through the analysis of two real
datasets. On the one hand, we consider the combination of two fractions of
proteomic mass spectrometry for the calibration of a diagnostic rule for the
detection of early-stage breast cancer. On the other hand, we consider
transcriptomics and metabolomics as predictors of obesity using data from the
Dietary, Lifestyle, and Genetic determinants of Obesity and Metabolic syndrome
(DILGOM) study, a population-based cohort, from Finland
Thermodynamic parameters of bonds in glassy materials from viscosity-temperature relationships
Doremus's model of viscosity assumes that viscous flow in amorphous materials is mediated by broken bonds (configurons). The resulting equation contains four coefficients, which are directly related to the entropies and enthalpies of formation and motion of the configurons. Thus by fitting this viscosity equation to experimental viscosity data these enthalpy and entropy terms can be obtained. The non-linear nature of the equation obtained means that the fitting process is non-trivial. A genetic algorithm based approach has been developed to fit the equation to experimental viscosity data for a number of glassy materials, including SiO2, GeO2, B2O3, anorthite, diopside, xNa2O–(1-x)SiO2, xPbO–(1-x)SiO2, soda-lime-silica glasses, salol, and α-phenyl-o-cresol. Excellent fits of the equation to the viscosity data were obtained over the entire temperature range. The fitting parameters were used to quantitatively determine the enthalpies and entropies of formation and motion of configurons in the analysed systems and the activation energies for flow at high and low temperatures as well as fragility ratios using the Doremus criterion for fragility. A direct anti-correlation between fragility ratio and configuron percolation threshold, which determines the glass transition temperature in the analysed materials, was found
On the regularization scheme and gauge choice ambiguities in topologically massive gauge theories
It is demonstrated that in the (2+1)-dimensional topologically massive gauge
theories an agreement of the Pauli-Villars regularization scheme with the other
schemes can be achieved by employing pairs of auxiliary fermions with the
opposite sign masses. This approach does not introduce additional violation of
discrete (P and T) symmetries. Although it breaks the local gauge symmetry only
in the regulator fields' sector, its trace disappears completely after removing
the regularization as a result of superrenormalizability of the model. It is
shown also that analogous extension of the Pauli-Villars regularization in the
vector particle sector can be used to agree the arbitrary covariant gauge
results with the Landau ones. The source of ambiguities in the covariant gauges
is studied in detail. It is demonstrated that in gauges that are softer in the
infrared region (e.g. Coulomb or axial) nonphysical ambiguities inherent to the
covariant gauges do not arise.Comment: Latex, 13 pages. Replaced mainly to change preprint references to
journal one
Symmetric and asymmetric action integration during cooperative object manipulation in virtual environments
Cooperation between multiple users in a virtual environment (VE) can take place at one of three levels. These
are defined as where users can perceive each other (Level 1), individually change the scene (Level 2), or
simultaneously act on and manipulate the same object (Level 3). Despite representing the highest level of
cooperation, multi-user object manipulation has rarely been studied. This paper describes a behavioral
experiment in which the piano movers' problem (maneuvering a large object through a restricted space) was
used to investigate object manipulation by pairs of participants in a VE. Participants' interactions with the object
were integrated together either symmetrically or asymmetrically. The former only allowed the common
component of participants' actions to take place, but the latter used the mean. Symmetric action integration was
superior for sections of the task when both participants had to perform similar actions, but if participants had to
move in different ways (e.g., one maneuvering themselves through a narrow opening while the other traveled
down a wide corridor) then asymmetric integration was superior. With both forms of integration, the extent to
which participants coordinated their actions was poor and this led to a substantial cooperation overhead (the
reduction in performance caused by having to cooperate with another person)
“Cycles upon cycles, stories upon stories” : contemporary audio media and podcast horror’s new frights
During the last ten years the ever-fertile horror and Gothic genres have birthed a new type of fright-fiction: podcast horror. Podcast horror is a narrative horror form based in
audio media and the properties of sound. Despite association with oral ghost tales, radio drama, and movie and TV soundscapes, podcast horror remains academically overlooked. Podcasts offer fertile ground for the revitalization and evolution of such extant audio-horror
traditions, yet they offer innovation too. Characterized by their pre-recorded nature, individualized listening times and formats, often “amateur” or non-corporate production, and
isolation from an ongoing media stream more typical of radio or TV, podcasts potentialize the instigation of newer audio-horror methods and traits. Podcast horror shows vary greatly in form and content, from almost campfire-style oral tales, comprising listener-produced and
performed content (Drabblecast; Tales to Terrify; NoSleep); to audio dramas reminiscent of radio’s Golden Era (Tales from Beyond the Pale; 19 Nocturne Boulevard); to dramas delivered in radio-broadcast style (Welcome to Night Vale; Ice Box Theatre); to, most recently, dramas,
which are themselves acknowledging and exploratory of the podcast form (TANIS; The Black Tapes Podcast; Lime Town). Yet within this broad spectrum, sympathies and conventions arise which often not only explore and expand notions of Gothic sound, but which challenge broader existing horror and Gothic genre norms. This article thus demonstrates the extent to which podcast horror uses its audio form, technology and mediation to disrupt and evolve
Gothic/horror fiction, not through a cumulative chronological formulation of podcast horror but through a maintained and alternately synthesized panorama of forms. Herein new aspects of generic narration, audience, narrative and aesthetic emerge. Exploring a broad spectrum of American and British horror podcasts, this article shows horror podcasting to utilize podcasting’s
novel means of horror and Gothic distribution/consumption to create fresh, unique and potent horror forms. This article reveals plot details about some of the podcasts examined
The law of equal opportunities or unintended consequences?:The impact of unisex risk assessment in consumer credit
The Distribution of Constituent Charm Quarks in the Hadron
Using a statistical approach in the framework of non-covariant perturbation
theory the distributions for light and charmed quarks in the hadron have been
derived, taking into account the mass of the charmed quark. The parameters of
the model have been extracted from the comparison with NA3 data on
hadroproduction of J/psi particles. A reanalysis of the EMC data on charm
production in muon-nucleon scattering has been performed. It has been found in
comparison with the conventional source of charmed quarks from photon-gluon
fusion, that the EMC data indicate the presence of an additional contribution
from deep-inelastic scattering on charmed quarks at large x. The resulting
admixture of the Fock states, containing charmed quarks in the decomposition of
the proton wave function is of the order of 1%. The approach presented for the
excitation of the Fock states with charmed quarks can also be applied to states
with beauty quarks as well as to the hadronic component of the virtual photon
(resolved photon component).Comment: 23 pages, 4 PostScript figures, Latex2e. In revised version in
comparison with the original one all (?) mistypings have been corrected, one
more thank has been added and the comparison of the pion and the proton J/psi
production is described in more detai
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