Action Recognition with a Bio--Inspired Feedforward Motion Processing Model: The Richness of Center-Surround Interactions

International audienceHere we show that reproducing the functional properties of MT cells with various center--surround interactions enriches motion representation and improves the action recognition performance. To do so, we propose a simplified bio--inspired model of the motion pathway in primates: It is a feedforward model restricted to V1-MT cortical layers, cortical cells cover the visual space with a foveated structure, and more importantly, we reproduce some of the richness of center-surround interactions of MT cells. Interestingly, as observed in neurophysiology, our MT cells not only behave like simple velocity detectors, but also respond to several kinds of motion contrasts. Results show that this diversity of motion representation at the MT level is a major advantage for an action recognition task. Defining motion maps as our feature vectors, we used a standard classification method on the Weizmann database: We obtained an average recognition rate of 98.9%, which is superior to the recent results by Jhuang et al. (2007). These promising results encourage us to further develop bio--inspired models incorporating other brain mechanisms and cortical layers in order to deal with more complex videos

The Effects of Oral Consumption of Selenium Nanoparticles on Chemotactic and Respiratory Burst Activities of Neutrophils in Comparison with Sodium Selenite in Sheep

The present study was designed to compare the effects of nano-selenium and of sodium selenite on the chemotactic and respiratory burst activities of neutrophils in sheep. Fifteen sheep were randomly divided into three groups. Groups 1 and 2 received selenium nanoparticles (1 mg/kg) or sodium selenite (1 mg/kg) orally, respectively, for ten consecutive days, and the third group was considered as the control. To determine the chemotactic and respiratory burst activities of the neutrophils, the leading front assay and the NBT test were used on heparinized blood samples that were collected at different intervals (days 0, 10th, 20th, and 30th). The results obtained showed that the chemotactic activities in groups 1 and 2 increased significantly on the 10th, 20th, and 30th day, compared to day 0, and on the 20th day in comparison with the 10th day, while in group 2, there was a significant decrease on the 30th day compared to the 20th day. The chemotactic activities in group 1 were significantly higher than in group 2 on the 10th day and in the control group on the 10th, 20th, and 30th day, but the chemotactic activities in group 2 were significantly higher than those in the control group only on the 20th day. On the 30th day into the experiment, the respiratory bursts in groups 1 and 2 were significantly stronger in comparison with those at day 0. Overall, nano-selenium increased the chemotactic and respiratory burst activities more significantly than sodium selenite, which is suggestive of a stronger stimulatory effect of the Se nanoparticles on intracellular activities

The Effect of Mastectomy on Mood and Quality of Life in Breast Cancer Patients

Introduction: Breast cancer with 22.6% is the most common cancer in Iranian women and mastectomy is the treatment of choice in 81% of cases posted for surgery. Mastectomy can evoke feelings of mutilation, altered body image and decreased sexual attractiveness and function leading to mood disorders. In the last decades, final purpose of treatment strategies in breast cancer is creation of a life with good quality. In this regards, concern is rising about the impact of surgical treatments, especially mastectomy on patient`s quality of life. This study was conducted to determine the relationship of mastectomy with mood and quality of life in breast cancer patients. Methods: This descriptive-analytic study was done in 2005.Case group included mastectomy patients referring to the oncology clinics (n=50).The comparison group consisted of mammography candidates referring to women clinics in Imam Reza and Ghaeem Hospitals. Data collected was based on non-probability and purposeful sampling. The information collected included: demographic and medical information, social support questionnaire, POMS survey for measurement of mood. Quality of life was assessed with FPQOLI. Results: Pearson correlation coefficient showed a significant converse statistical relation between mood and quality of life score in mastectomy women (P<0.001). Independence T test showed that mood and quality of life in mastectomy group were lower than mammography candidate women (P=0.001, P<0.049). The general linear model test showed that group variable had the most effect on women`s mood (P<0.001). Also , mood was the most important factor that predicted level of quality of life in these women (P<0.001). Conclusion: Lack of attention to psychological and spiritual status of the patients after mastectomy may provide conditions for unstable mood and can finally disrupt their quality of life. But, nurses can identify patients with psychological tensions and introduce them to consultancy centers to prevent mood disorders and promote their quality of life

Enterprise risk management, performance measurement systems and organizational performance in Malaysian public listed firms

There has been a call for integrating a strategic performance measurement system and enterprise risk management (ERM) as a proposed best practice for risk management. This study examines the effects of ERM and performance measurement systems (PMS) on organizational performance. In addition, this study also examines the effects of a linked ERM-PMS tool on organizational performance. The research method involved administering an online questionnaire survey to 196 public listed firms. The respondents were the head of risk management department of the firms. In the case of ERM and PMS effects on organizational performance, the result of simple linear regression supported the research hypotheses. However the results from the moderated multiple regression which was employed to test the joint effect of ERM and PMS on organizational performance did not support the research hypothesis. Based on the study results it is recommended that firms may practice ERM and PMS separately rather than linking them together, since their integration may complicate the PMS framework

Impact of entrepreneurial leadership on organization demand for innovation: Moderating role of employees innovative self-efficacy

The main purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of entrepreneurial leadership and employees’ self-efficacy towards organization demand for innovation. Introduction to alternative pathways of thinking and actions in an organization is typically tie-up with innovation nowadays. In this regard, the degrees of organizations willingness to engage and perceive advantage from new products or services, or products or services that embody new technology are being focused. Since leadership has been identified as a key determinant of organization innovation, a conceptual framework is proposed to explore the impact of entrepreneurial leadership on organization demand for innovation. Apart from the leadership behaviors, followers’ characteristic and their own confidence level or perceived self-efficacy are also studied to capture the effect of innovative work behavior. Hence, this study aims to determine the moderating role of employees’ innovative self-efficacy on the relationship between entrepreneurial leadership and organization demand for innovation. A sample from Malaysia Top 100 companies is participated and the hypotheses are evaluated using partial least squares analysis. This research makes a significant contribution by providing empirical evidence that support entrepreneurial leaders and the organizations to generate more opportunities and enact them in ways that increase the firm’s receptivity towards innovation