Endoscopic image analysis using Deep Convolutional GAN and traditional data

One big challenge encountered in the medical field is the availability of only limited annotated datasets for research. On the other hand, medical image annotation requires a lot of input from medical experts. It is noticed that machine learning and deep learning are producing better results in the area of image classification. However, these techniques require large training datasets, which is the major concern for medical image processing. Another issue is the unbalanced nature of the different classes of data, leading to the under-representation of some classes. Data augmentation has emerged as a good technique to deal with these challenges. In this work, we have applied traditional data augmentation and Generative Adversarial Network (GAN) on endoscopic esophagus images to increase the number of images for the training datasets. Eventually we have applied two deep learning models namely ResNet50 and VGG16 to extract and represent the relevant cancer features. The results show that the accuracy of the model increases with data augmentation and GAN. In fact, GAN has achieved the highest accuracy, that is, 94% over non-augmented training set and traditional data augmentation for VGG16

Coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.) : a potential source of high-value components for functional foods and nutraceuticals - a review

Coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.), a herbal plant, belonging to the family Apiceae, is valued for its culinary and medicinal uses. All parts of this herb are in use as flavoring agent and/or as traditional remedies for the treatment of different disorders in the folk medicine systems of different civilizations. The plant is a potential source of lipids (rich in petroselinic acid) and an essential oil (high in linalool) isolated from the seeds and the aerial parts. Due to the presence of a multitude of bioactives, a wide array of pharmacological activities have been ascribed to different parts of this herb, which include anti-microbial, anti-oxidant, anti-diabetic, anxiolytic, anti-epileptic, anti-depressant, anti-mutagenic, anti-inflammatory, anti-dyslipidemic, anti-hypertensive, neuro-protective and diuretic. Interestingly, coriander also possessed lead-detoxifying potential. This review focuses on the medicinal uses, detailed phytochemistry, and the biological activities of this valuable herb to explore its potential uses as a functional food for the nutraceutical industry

Setting and meeting priorities in Indigenous health research in Australia and its application in the Cooperative Research Centre for Aboriginal Health

Priority setting is about making decisions. Key issues faced during priority setting processes include identifying who makes these decisions, who sets the criteria, and who benefits. The paper reviews the literature and history around priority setting in research, particularly in Aboriginal health research. We explore these issues through a case study of the Cooperative Research Centre for Aboriginal Health (CRCAH)'s experience in setting and meeting priorities

Distribution of fixed beneficial mutations and the rate of adaptation in asexual populations

When large asexual populations adapt, competition between simultaneously segregating mutations slows the rate of adaptation and restricts the set of mutations that eventually fix. This phenomenon of interference arises from competition between mutations of different strengths as well as competition between mutations that arise on different fitness backgrounds. Previous work has explored each of these effects in isolation, but the way they combine to influence the dynamics of adaptation remains largely unknown. Here, we describe a theoretical model to treat both aspects of interference in large populations. We calculate the rate of adaptation and the distribution of fixed mutational effects accumulated by the population. We focus particular attention on the case when the effects of beneficial mutations are exponentially distributed, as well as on a more general class of exponential-like distributions. In both cases, we show that the rate of adaptation and the influence of genetic background on the fixation of new mutants is equivalent to an effective model with a single selection coefficient and rescaled mutation rate, and we explicitly calculate these effective parameters. We find that the effective selection coefficient exactly coincides with the most common fixed mutational effect. This equivalence leads to an intuitive picture of the relative importance of different types of interference effects, which can shift dramatically as a function of the population size, mutation rate, and the underlying distribution of fitness effects

Participatory Design with Blind Users: A Scenario-based Approach

Abstract. Through out the design process, designers have to consider the needs of potential users. This is particularly important, but rather harder, when the designers interact with the artefact to-be-designed using different senses or devices than the users, for example, when sighted designers are designing an artefact for use by blind users. In such cases, designers have to ensure that the methods used to engage users in the design process and to communicate design ideas are accessible. In this paper, we describe a participatory approach with blind users based on the use of a scenario and the use of dialogue-simulated interaction during the development of a search interface. We achieved user engagement in two ways: firstly, we involved a blind user with knowledge of assistive technologies in the design team and secondly, we used a scenario as the basis of a dialogue between the designers and blind users to simulate interaction with the proposed search interface. Through this approach, we were able to verify requirements for the proposed search interface and blind searchers were able to provide formative feedback, to critique design plans and to propose new design ideas based on their experience and expertise with assistive technologies. In this paper, we describe the proposed scenario-based approach and examine the types of feedback gathered from its evaluation with blind users. We also critically reflect on the benefits and limitations of the approach, and discuss practical considerations in its application

A Potential Source of High-Value Components for Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals- A Review.

Coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.), a herbal plant, belonging to the family Apiceae, is valued for its culinary and medicinal uses. All parts of this herb are in use as flavoring agent and/or as traditional remedies for the treatment of different disorders in the folk medicine systems of different civilizations. The plant is a potential source of lipids (rich in petroselinic acid) and an essential oil (high in linalool) isolated from the seeds and the aerial parts. Due to the presence of a multitude of bioactives, a wide array of pharmacological activities have been ascribed to different parts of this herb, which include anti-microbial, anti-oxidant, anti-diabetic, anxiolytic, anti-epileptic, anti-depressant, anti-mutagenic, anti-inflammatory, anti-dyslipidemic, anti-hypertensive, neuro-protective and diuretic. Interestingly, coriander also possessed lead-detoxifying potential. This review focuses on the medicinal uses, detailed phytochemistry, and the biological activities of this valuable herb to explore its potential uses as a functional food for the nutraceutical industry

An ICT architecture for Smart Local Councils: a Mauritian case study

The purpose of this paper is to present the work done with regards to the development of an ICT architecture for Smart Local Councils in Mauritius (SLCs). This is in line with vision of the Mauritian government to convert the Mauritius into a Smart Island. Local councils play an important role in the delivery of services to citizen and their conversion to Smart Local Councils will contribute to the transformation of the island. The methodology used to develop the ICT architecture is presented. The components for each layer, based on architecture principles are discussed. The validation which include, validation against the architecture principles, validation through stakeholders’ focus groups and also validation in terms of its contribution to smartness are discussed. This paper provides added value as it shows how the gaps for converting Mauritian local councils into SLCs can be addressed through the proposed architecture. It provides the main building blocks which can aid in designing the roadmap for ICT architecture for Mauritian SLCs