Juan Antonio Monroy: An Autobiography

Juan Antonio Monroy was a Marxist atheist as a young man, but since his conversion his passion has been to tell everyone he meets about Jesus. He has traveled to all of earth\u27s continents except Antarctica and to many of the countries of those continents. He has experienced religious and political persecution and, as a result, helped found what became known as Amnesty International. Juan Antonio Monroy\u27s footprints are seen around the world. His books, pamphlets, and articles are read in English and Spanish, and his radio programs are heard across Europe, the Caribbean, and much of Central and South America. In this long-awaited autobiography, he tells his fascinating story. • A militant atheist turned Christian evangelist • Baptized in Morocco, Africa, in 1950 by a Cuban missionary • Joined the Herald of Truth evangelistic team in 1964 • Presented his first radio broadcast in 1967 • In 1985, he became the first minister with Churches of Christ to enter Cuba since the revolution • He continues to travel and teach at a pace that belies his agehttps://digitalcommons.acu.edu/acu_library_books/1017/thumbnail.jp

Morphological Analysis for Object Recognition, Matching, and Applications

This thesis deals with the detection and classifcation of objects in visual images and with the analysis of shape changes between object instances. Whereas the task of object recognition focuses on learning models which describe common properties between instances of a specific category, the analysis of the specific differences between instances is also relevant to understand the objects and the categories themselves. This research is governed by the idea that important properties for the automatic perception and understanding of objects are transmitted through their geometry or shape. Therefore, models for object recognition and shape matching are devised which exploit the geometry and properties of the objects, using as little user supervision as possible. In order to learn object models for detection in a reliable manner, suitable object representations are required. The key idea in this work is to use a richer representation of the object shape within the object model in order to increase the description power and thus the performance of the whole system. For this purpose, we first investigate the integration of curvature information of shapes in the object model which is learned. Since natural objects intrinsically exhibit curved boundaries, an object is better described if this shape cue is integrated. This subject extends the widely used object representation based on gradient orientation histograms by incorporating a robust histogram-based description of curvature. We show that integrating this information substantially improves detection results over descriptors that solely rely upon histograms of orientated gradients. The impact of using richer shape representations for object recognition is further investigated through a novel method which goes beyond traditional bounding-box representations for objects. Visual recognition requires learning object models from training data. Commonly, training samples are annotated by marking only the bounding-box of objects since this appears to be the best trade-off between labeling information and effectiveness. However, objects are typically not box-shaped. Thus, the usual parametrization of objects using a bounding box seems inappropriate since such a box contains a significant amount of background clutter. Therefore, the presented approach learns object models for detection while simultaneously learning to segregate objects from clutter and extracting their overall shape, without however, requiring manual segmentation of the training samples. Shape equivalence is another interesting property related to shape. It refers to the ability of perceiving two distinct objects as having the same or similar shape. This thesis also explores the usage of this ability to detect objects in unsupervised scenarios, that is where no annotation of training data is available for learning a statistical model. For this purpose, a dataset of historical Chinese cartoons drawn during the Cultural Revolution and immediately thereafter is analyzed. Relevant objects in this dataset are emphasized through annuli of light rays. The idea of our method is to consider the different annuli as shape equivalent objects, that is, as objects sharing the same shape and devise a method to detect them. Thereafter, it is possible to indirectly infer the position, size and scale of the emphasized objects using the annuli detections. Not only commonalities among objects, but also the specific differences between them are perceived by a visual system. These differences can be understood through the analysis of how objects and their shape change. For this reason, this thesis also develops a novel methodology for analyzing the shape deformation between a single pair of images under missing correspondences. The key observation is that objects cannot deform arbitrarily, but rather the deformation itself follows the geometry and constraints imposed by the object itself. We describe the overall complex object deformation using a piecewise linear model. Thereby, we are able to identify each of the parts in the shape which share the same deformation. Thus, we are able to understand how an object and its parts were transformed. A remarkable property of the algorithm is the ability to automatically estimate the model complexity according to the overall complexity of the shape deformation. Specifically, the introduced methodology is used to analyze the deformation between original instances and reproductions of artworks. The nature of the analyzed alterations ranges from deliberate modifications by the artist to geometrical errors accumulated during the reproduction process of the image. The usage of this method within this application shows how productive the interaction between computer vision and the field of the humanities is. The goal is not to supplant human expertise, but to enhance and deepen connoisseurship about a given problem

Perceptual Generalization and Context in a Network MemoryInspired Long-Term Memory for Artificial Cognition

Abstract: In the framework of open-ended learning cognitive architectures for robots, this paper deals with thedesign of a Long-Term Memory (LTM) structure that can accommodate the progressive acquisition ofexperience-based decision capabilities, or what different authors call “automation” of what is learnt, asa complementary system to more common prospective functions. The LTM proposed here provides fora relational storage of knowledge nuggets given the form of artificial neural networks (ANNs) that isrepresentative of the contexts in which they are relevant in a configural associative structure. It alsoaddresses the problem of continuous perceptual spaces and the task- and context-related generalizationor categorization of perceptions in an autonomous manner within the embodied sensorimotor apparatusof the robot. These issues are analyzed and a solution is proposed through the introduction of two newtypes of knowledge nuggets: P-nodes representing perceptual classes and C-nodes representing contexts.The approach is studied and its performance evaluated through its implementation and application to areal robotic experimentXunta de Galicia; ED431C 2017/12Xunta de Galicia; ED341D R2016/01

Differences in the Form of Presentation between Papillary Microcarcinomas and Papillary Carcinomas of Larger Size

Papillary thyroid carcinomas (PTCs) with a diameter ≤1 cm are referred to as papillary microcarcinomas (PTMCs). The prognostic factors for PTMCs have not been defined. Different clinical and histopathologic variables were studied in 152 PTCs, including 74 PTMCs and 78 PTCs of larger size. We found that PTMCs are associated with less multifocality (P = .046) and bilaterality (P = .003), fewer lymphadenectomies (P < .001), and a higher rate of incidental tumours (P < .001). Moreover, patients with a low aggressive profile were significantly older than the remaining patients (54 ± 13.7 years versus 45.8 ± 13.1 years; P = .001). In conclusion PTMCs show significant differences compared to PTCs of larger size in the form of presentation. Furthermore, it is possible that the classic risk factors, which are well validated in PTCs, such as age, must be cautiously interpreted in the current increasing subgroup of PTMCs

Fade statistics of M-turbulent optical links

A new and generalized statistical model, called Málaga or simply ℳ distribution, has been derived recently to characterize the irradiance fluctuations of an unbounded optical wavefront propagating through a turbulent medium under all irradiance fluctuation conditions. The aforementioned model extends and unifies in a simple analytical closed-form expression most of the proposed statistical models for free-space optical (FSO) communications widely employed until now in the scientific literature. Based on that ℳ model, we have studied some important features associated to its fade statistics and expressed in terms of the expected number of fades per second. The derived expressions become relevant for many aspects in a FSO system, especially those ones related to determine the optimum threshold in a receiver based on a direct detection scheme employing a fixed detection threshold

Modelado e implementación de un sistema de enseñanza de Lenguaje de Señas Mexicano

En este artículo se muestra un sistema que permite el estudio y práctica del Lenguaje de Señas Mexicano (LMS), el cual es el método de comunicación de las personas que padecen un trastorno de procesamiento auditivo. El sistema propuesto en este artículo consta de un guante de tela instrumentado con sensores de flexión, una etapa de acondicionamiento de señales y una tarjeta de adquisición de datos; que en su conjunto constituyen el Hardware. El software esta formado por un programa de adquisición de datos y una interfaz de usuario, ambos codificados en Visual Basic Net. El sistema propuesto se modela por medio del lenguaje de modelado unificado (UML), ya que Visual Basic es un lenguaje orientado a eventos.En este artículo se muestra un sistema que permite el estudio y práctica del Lenguaje de Señas Mexicano (LMS), el cual es el método de comunicación de las personas que padecen un trastorno de procesamiento auditivo. El sistema propuesto en este artículo consta de un guante de tela instrumentado con sensores de flexión, una etapa de acondicionamiento de señales y una tarjeta de adquisición de datos; que en su conjunto constituyen el Hardware. El software esta formado por un programa de adquisición de datos y una interfaz de usuario, ambos codificados en Visual Basic Net. El sistema propuesto se modela por medio del lenguaje de modelado unificado (UML), ya que Visual Basic es un lenguaje orientado a eventos

Role of FGFs in the control of programmed cell death during limb development

10 páginas, 8 figuras.We have investigated the role of FGFs in the control of programmed cell death during limb development by analyzing the effects of increasing and blocking FGF signaling in the avian limb bud. BMPs are currently considered as the signals responsible for cell death. Here we show that FGF signaling is also necessary for apoptosis and that the establishment of the areas of cell death is regulated by the convergence of FGF- and BMP-mediated signaling pathways. As previously demonstrated, cell death is inhibited for short intervals (12 hours) after administration of FGFs. However, this initial inhibition is followed (24 hours) by a dramatic increase in cell death, which can be abolished by treatments with a BMP antagonist (Noggin or Gremlin). Conversely, blockage of FGF signaling by applying a specific FGF-inhibitor (SU5402) into the interdigital regions inhibits both physiological cell death and that mediated by exogenous BMPs. Furthermore, FGF receptors 1, 2 and 3 are expressed in the autopodial mesoderm during the regression of the interdigital tissue, and the expression of FGFR3 in the interdigital regions is regulated by FGFs and BMPs in the same fashion as apopotosis. Together our findings indicate that, in the absence of FGF signaling BMPs are not sufficient to trigger apoptosis in the developing limb. Although we provide evidence for a positive influence of FGFs on BMP gene expression, the physiological implication of FGFs in apoptosis appears to result from their requirement for the expression of genes of the apoptotic cascade. We have identified MSX2 and Snail as candidate genes associated with apoptosis the expression of which requires the combined action of FGFs and BMPs.This work was supported by grants to J. M. H. (DGESIC/PM98-0061 and Fundación Valdecilla) to M. A. N. (DGESIC/PM98-0125) and to D. Macias (Junta de Extremadura; IPR99C035). J. J. S.-E. was supported by an MRC programme grant to Cheryll Tickle; J. C.-M. was supported by DGAPA (UNAM) and J. A. M. by a grant from the Junta de Extremadura (Consejeria de Educación y Juventud/Fondo Social Europeo).Peer reviewe

Hybrid optical CDMA-FSO communications network under spatially correlated gamma-gamma scintillation

\u3cp\u3eIn this paper, we propose a new hybrid network solution based on asynchronous optical code-division multiple-access (OCDMA) and free-space optical (FSO) technologies for last-mile access networks, where fiber deployment is impractical. The architecture of the proposed hybrid OCDMA-FSO network is thoroughly described. The users access the network in a fully asynchronous manner by means of assigned fast frequency hopping (FFH)-based codes. In the FSO receiver, an equal gain-combining technique is employed along with intensity modulation and direct detection. New analytical formalisms for evaluating the average bit error rate (ABER) performance are also proposed. These formalisms, based on the spatially correlated gamma-gamma statistical model, are derived considering three distinct scenarios, namely, uncorrelated, totally correlated, and partially correlated channels. Numerical results show that users can successfully achieve error-free ABER levels for the three scenarios considered as long as forward error correction (FEC) algorithms are employed. Therefore, OCDMA-FSO networks can be a prospective alternative to deliver high-speed communication services to access networks with deficient fiber infrastructure.\u3c/p\u3