Eigenvalue Spectra of Functional Networks in fMRI Data and Artificial Models

Full paper available at Springerlink: http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007%2F978-3-642-38658-9_19In this work we provide a spectral comparison of functional networks in fMRI data of brain activity and artificial energy-based neural model. The spectra (set of eigenvalues of the graph adjacency matrix) of both networks turn out to obey similar decay rate and characteristic power-law scaling in their middle parts. This extends the set of statistics, which are already confirmed to be similar for both neural models and medical data, by the graph spectrum

The development of language skills and theory of mind of four years old children

Teoria umysłu to konstrukt, który służy do opisywania tego, w jaki sposób dzieci myślą o cudzych stanach mentalnych (m.in. o pragnieniach i przekonaniach). W wieku około 4-ech lat obserwowany jest u dzieci istotna, jakościowa zmiana osiągnięć w testach fałszywych przekonań, służących do weryfikacji poziomu teorii umysłu. Lepsze wyniki w tych testach uzasadniać może równoległy rozwój zdolności językowych, np. rozumienie coraz bardziej złożonych struktur gramatycznych. Aby sprawdzić powyższe założenie, zbadano 49 dzieci w wieku czterech lat technikami mierzącymi różne zdolności językowe (syntaktykę, rozumienie słów oraz rekurencję językową), teorię umysłu (Skala Rozumienia Umysłu) oraz, kontrolnie, pamięć roboczą. Analiza zebranych danych wykazała związek pomiędzy skokiem w udzielaniu przez dzieci poprawnych odpowiedzi w teście teorii umysłu a rozumieniem przez nie struktur syntaktycznych, jednak nie udało się wykluczyć całkowicie możliwego wpływu posiadanego zasobu słownictwa. Ustalenie powyższych kwestii stanowi kontynuację badań nad mechanizmami rozwoju teorii umysłu na gruncie polskim.Theory of mind is a construct that serves the purpose of describing how children think of other people’s mental states (e.g. desires and beliefs). The researchers observed a qualitative change in children’s performance in false belief tasks around the age of 4. Better performance might occur due to the development of language skills, such as understanding more complex gramatic structures. To test the assumption above, 49 children (aged 4 years old) were tested with a battery of methods measuring language skills (syntactics, vocabulary understanding and language reccurence), theory of mind (Mind Understanding Scale) and working memory (Spin the Pot task). The analysis of gathered data implied that the connection between theory of mind and understanding syntactic structures does exsist, however the influence of the lexicon be excluded. Determining the above issues is a continuation of research on the theory of mind development mechanisms on Polish ground

Industrial Verification and Research Development of Lime–Gypsum Fertilizer Granulation Method

This work concerns non-pressure granulation of mineral materials used for the production of agricultural fertilizers for soil deacidification. In order to expand the product range of Nordkalk Poland sp. z o. o. located in Poland, the granulation conditions of the gypsum–lime mix were examined with the use of various granulation methods. The processed mixture was Jurassic lime flour mined in the Sławno mine (Poland) and waste gypsum (sulfogypsum) obtained from the largest coal-fired power plant in the EU, Bełchatów Power Plant (Poland). This paper presents the results of the optimization of the gypsum–lime fertilizer granulation process. The results of the study of granulation of gypsum–lime mixture realized in one-stage technology in a disc granulator were compared with the effects of two-stage agglomeration. During the research, a mixture (in a 1:1 ratio) of waste sulfogypsum and lime flour was used. Such a weight ratio provides maximum use of the sulfogypsum waste while maintaining good mechanical properties of the granulate. The granulated bed was moistened with a lignosulfonate solution. The process was carried out periodically. After the experiment, the grain composition of the granulate obtained was determined and tests were performed to determine the strength of the product. The test results were compared with analogous ones obtained during granulation with the use of molasses (waste from sugar production). The results obtained were verified during a trial carried out on an industrial scale

Effect of Nitrogen Doping on the Growth of 4H Polytype on the 6H-SiC Seed by PVT Method

score: 0collation: 29-3

Comprehensive Biological Evaluation of Biomaterials Used in Spinal and Orthopedic Surgery

Biological acceptance is one of the most important aspects of a biomaterial and forms the basis for its clinical use. The aim of this study was a comprehensive biological evaluation (cytotoxicity test, bacterial colonization test, blood platelets adhesion test and transcriptome and proteome analysis of Saos-2 cells after contact with surface of the biomaterial) of biomaterials used in spinal and orthopedic surgery, namely, Ti6Al4V ELI (Extra Low Interstitials), its modified version obtained as a result of melting by electron beam technology (Ti6Al4V ELI-EBT), polyether ether ketone (PEEK) and polished medical steel American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) 316L (the reference material). Biological tests were carried out using the osteoblasts-like cells (Saos-2, ATCC HTB-85) and bacteria Escherichia coli (DH5α). Results showed lack of cytotoxicity of all materials and the surfaces of both Ti6Al4V ELI and PEEK exhibit a significantly higher resistance to colonization with E. coli cells, while the more porous surface of the same titanium alloy produced by electron beam technology (EBT) is more susceptible to microbial colonization than the control surface of polished medical steel. None of the tested materials showed high toxicity in relation to E. coli cells. Susceptibility to platelet adhesion was very high for polished medical steel AISI 316L, whilst much lower for the other biomaterials and can be ranked from the lowest to the highest as follows: PEEK < Ti6Al4V ELI < Ti6Al4V ELI-EBT. The number of expressed genes in Saos-2 cells exposed to contact with the examined biomaterials reached 9463 genes in total (ranging from 8455 genes expressed in cells exposed to ELI to 9160 genes in cells exposed to PEEK). Whereas the number of differentially expressed proteins detected on two-dimensional electrophoresis gels in Saos-2 cells after contact with the examined biomaterials was 141 for PEEK, 223 for Ti6Al4V ELI and 133 for Ti6Al4V ELI-EBT. Finally, 14 proteins with altered expression were identified by mass spectrometry. In conclusion, none of the tested biomaterials showed unsatisfactory levels of cytotoxicity. The gene and protein expression analysis, that represents a completely new approach towards characterization of these biomaterials, showed that the polymer PEEK causes much more intense changes in gene and protein expression and thus influences cell metabolism

Characterization of Vanadium Doped 4H- and 6H-SiC Grown by PVT Method Using the Open Seed Backside

score: 13collation: 21-2