The bifurcation angle is associated with the progression of saccular aneurysms

The role of the bifurcation angle in progression of saccular intracranial aneurysms (sIAs) has been undetermined. We, therefore, assessed the association of bifurcation angles with aneurysm progression using a bifurcation-type aneurysm model in rats and anterior communicating artery aneurysms in a multicenter case-control study. Aneurysm progression was defined as growth by ≥ 1 mm or rupture during observation, and controls as progression-free for 30 days in rats and ≥ 36 months in humans. In the rat model, baseline bifurcation angles were significantly wider in progressive aneurysms than in stable ones. In the case-control study, 27 and 65 patients were enrolled in the progression and control groups. Inter-observer agreement for the presence or absence of the growth was excellent (κ coefficient, 0.82; 95% CI, 0.61-1.0). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that wider baseline bifurcation angles were significantly associated with subsequent progressions. The odds ratio for the progression of the second (145°-179°) or third (180°-274°) tertiles compared to the first tertile (46°-143°) were 5.5 (95% CI, 1.3-35). Besides, the bifurcation angle was positively correlated with the size of aneurysms (Spearman's rho, 0.39; P = 0.00014). The present study suggests the usefulness of the bifurcation angle for predicting the progression of sIAs

The MAXI Mission on the ISS: Science and Instruments for Monitoring All Sky X-Ray Images

The MAXI (Monitor of All-sky X-ray Image) mission is the first astronomical payload to be installed on the Japanese Experiment Module-Exposed Facility (JEM-EF) on the ISS. It is scheduled for launch in the middle of 2009 to monitor all-sky X-ray objects on every ISS orbit. MAXI will be more powerful than any previous X-ray All Sky Monitor (ASM) payloads, being able to monitor hundreds of AGN. MAXI will provide all sky images of X-ray sources of about 20 mCrab in the energy band of 2-30 keV from observation on one ISS orbit (90 min), about 4.5 mCrab for one day, and about 1 mCrab for one month. A final detectability of MAXI could be 0.2 mCrab for 2 year observations.Comment: 12 pages, 11 figures, accepted for publication in Publications of the Astronomical Society of Japa

Monitor of All-sky X-ray Image (MAXI)

Abstract. Monitor of All-sky X-ray Image (MAXI) is the first astrophysical payload which will be mounted on the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) Exposed Facility in 2004. It is an X-ray all-sky monitor with unprecedented sensitivity to watch the activities of the X-ray sources in the whole sky in every 90 minutes. MAXI is boxshaped in 0.8 x 1.0 x 1.85 m with the weight of 500 kg. The mission life will be at least 2 years. MAXI has two fan-like field of views (FOV), 160 x 1.5 degree each. The X-ray instruments are Gas Slit Camera (GSC) and Solid-state Slit Camera (SSC). The GSC uses gas one-dimensional position sensitive proportional counters with 5340 cm 2 effective area in total and the SSC uses CCDs with 200 cm 2 . Both are capable to detect one-dimensional image, which is used to obtain the locations of the X-ray sources in the FOV along the long direction. Together with the scan which determine the other direction, MAXI can scan almost all sky with a precision of better than 1 degree in the energy range of 0.5-30 keV. The CCD is electrically cooled to -60°C and the camera body is radiatively cooled to -20°C. The CCD chip itself and the radiators may suffer contamination problem. The continuous Ethernet down link will enable us to alert the astronomers in all over the world to the appearance of X-ray transients, novae, bursts, flares etc. We made a test counter and test chips in 1998. Those are being tested in RIKEN, NASDA and Osaka-university. In this paper the test results will be presented, as well as the general description of the MAXI mission

Shadows alter facial expressions of Noh masks.

BACKGROUND: A Noh mask, worn by expert actors during performance on the Japanese traditional Noh drama, conveys various emotional expressions despite its fixed physical properties. How does the mask change its expressions? Shadows change subtly during the actual Noh drama, which plays a key role in creating elusive artistic enchantment. We here describe evidence from two experiments regarding how attached shadows of the Noh masks influence the observers' recognition of the emotional expressions. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: In Experiment 1, neutral-faced Noh masks having the attached shadows of the happy/sad masks were recognized as bearing happy/sad expressions, respectively. This was true for all four types of masks each of which represented a character differing in sex and age, even though the original characteristics of the masks also greatly influenced the evaluation of emotions. Experiment 2 further revealed that frontal Noh mask images having shadows of upward/downward tilted masks were evaluated as sad/happy, respectively. This was consistent with outcomes from preceding studies using actually tilted Noh mask images. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Results from the two experiments concur that purely manipulating attached shadows of the different types of Noh masks significantly alters the emotion recognition. These findings go in line with the mysterious facial expressions observed in Western paintings, such as the elusive qualities of Mona Lisa's smile. They also agree with the aesthetic principle of Japanese traditional art "yugen (profound grace and subtlety)", which highly appreciates subtle emotional expressions in the darkness