Gathering on Rings for Myopic Asynchronous Robots With Lights

We investigate gathering algorithms for asynchronous autonomous mobile robots moving in uniform ring-shaped networks. Different from most work using the Look-Compute-Move (LCM) model, we assume that robots have limited visibility and lights. That is, robots can observe nodes only within a certain fixed distance, and emit a color from a set of constant number of colors. We consider gathering algorithms depending on two parameters related to the initial configuration: M_{init}, which denotes the number of nodes between two border nodes, and O_{init}, which denotes the number of nodes hosting robots between two border nodes. In both cases, a border node is a node hosting one or more robots that cannot see other robots on at least one side. Our main contribution is to prove that, if M_{init} or O_{init} is odd, gathering is always feasible with three or four colors. The proposed algorithms do not require additional assumptions, such as knowledge of the number of robots, multiplicity detection capabilities, or the assumption of towerless initial configurations. These results demonstrate the power of lights to achieve gathering of robots with limited visibility

Brief Announcement: Neighborhood Mutual Remainder and Its Self-Stabilizing Implementation of Look-Compute-Move Robots

In this paper, we define a new concept neighborhood mutual remainder (NMR). An NMR distributed algorithms should satisfy global fairness, l-exclusion and repeated local rendezvous requirements. We give a simple self-stabilizing algorithm to demonstrate the design paradigm to achieve NMR, and also present applications of NMR to a Look-Compute-Move robot system

Asynchronous Gathering in a Torus

We consider the gathering problem for asynchronous and oblivious robots that cannot communicate explicitly with each other but are endowed with visibility sensors that allow them to see the positions of the other robots. Most investigations on the gathering problem on the discrete universe are done on ring shaped networks due to the number of symmetric configurations. We extend in this paper the study of the gathering problem on torus shaped networks assuming robots endowed with local weak multiplicity detection. That is, robots cannot make the difference between nodes occupied by only one robot from those occupied by more than one robot unless it is their current node. Consequently, solutions based on creating a single multiplicity node as a landmark for the gathering cannot be used. We present in this paper a deterministic algorithm that solves the gathering problem starting from any rigid configuration on an asymmetric unoriented torus shaped network

Beneficial Effects of Cocoa in Perivascular Mato Cells of Cerebral Arterioles in SHR-SP (Izm) Rats

As previously reported, the cerebral arterioles are surrounded by unique perivascular Mato cells. They contain many inclusion bodies rich in hydrolytic enzymes, and have strong uptake capacity. They are thus considered scavenger cells of vascular and neural tissues in steady-state. In this study, employing hypertensive SHR-SP (Izm) rats, the viability of Mato cells was investigated. In hypertensive rats, the capacity for uptake of horse radish peroxidase (HRP) and the activity of acid phosphatase (ACPase) of Mato cells were markedly reduced, and on electron-microscopic examination Mato cells were found to include heterogeneous contents and appeared electron-dense and degenerated. Vascular cells exhibited some signs of pathology. However, in hypertensive rats fed chow containing 0.25% cocoa, the uptake capacity and ACPase activity of Mato cells for HRP were enhanced, and on electron-microscopic examination Mato cells appeared healthy, with mitochondria with nearly normal profiles. Signs of pathology in vascular cells were also decreased. Superoxides may impair Mato cells and vascular cells

放射線被ばくにおける科学と司法判断の生命倫理学的考察

京都府立医科大学大学院医学研究科医学生命倫理学日本文理大学日本は原爆が投下された唯一の国であり、2011年には福島第一原子力発電所の事故も経験した。被爆者援護法は原爆被爆者の認定と原爆症に対する医療給付を目的としているが、「放射線起因性の判断」において疾病の申請を却下された被爆者による原爆症認定訴訟で国の敗訴が続いている。本稿ではこれらの司法の判断を生命倫理の基本原則の「無危害原則」「善行原則」および「正義原則」の観点から考察する。国は被爆者援護法のもと「放射線起因性」の判断について科学的知見を重視しているが、司法は被爆者救済という立法趣旨のもと「善行原則」を重視していることは明らかである。これらの状況は、生命倫理の観点からは「善行原則」と「正義原則」の比較衡量であり、被爆者への医療給付は憲法が保障する「生存権」や「社会全体の効用の増大」という功利主義的原理により正当化される。放射線被ばくにおける科学的に立証が難しい身体への影響に関して科学と司法の対立では、被爆者救済という点で司法は強力なツールを保有している

The Usefulness of Bone Scintigraphy in the Detection of Hypertrophic Pulmonary Osteoarthropathy

In a patient with lung cancer, increased accumulation in both lower legs on bone scintigraphy with 99mTc-hydroxymethylene diphosphonate was confirmed radiographically to be hypertrophic pulmonary osteoarthropathy. A characteristic scintigraphic pattern of radionuclide accumulation could be distinguished from bone metastasis