Solar hard X-ray imaging by means of Compressed Sensing and Finite Isotropic Wavelet Transform

This paper shows that compressed sensing realized by means of regularized deconvolution and the Finite Isotropic Wavelet Transform is effective and reliable in hard X-ray solar imaging. The method utilizes the Finite Isotropic Wavelet Transform with Meyer function as the mother wavelet. Further, compressed sensing is realized by optimizing a sparsity-promoting regularized objective function by means of the Fast Iterative Shrinkage-Thresholding Algorithm. Eventually, the regularization parameter is selected by means of the Miller criterion. The method is applied against both synthetic data mimicking the Spectrometer/Telescope Imaging X-rays (STIX) measurements and experimental observations provided by the Reuven Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI). The performances of the method are compared with the results provided by standard visibility-based reconstruction methods. The results show that the application of the sparsity constraint and the use of a continuous, isotropic framework for the wavelet transform provide a notable spatial accuracy and significantly reduce the ringing effects due to the instrument point spread functions

Subsampling inference in cube root asymptotics with an application to Manski's maximum score estimator

Kim and Pollard (Annals of Statistics, 18 (1990) 191?219) showed that a general class of M-estimators converge at rate n1/3 rather than at the standard rate n1/2. Many times, this situation arises when the objective function is non-smooth. The limiting distribution is the (almost surely unique) random vector that maximizes a certain Gaussian process and is difficult to analyze analytically. In this paper, we propose the use of the subsampling method for inferential purposes. The general method is then applied to Manski?s maximum score estimator and its small sample performance is highlighted via a simulation study.Publicad

Scale Invariant Interest Points with Shearlets

Shearlets are a relatively new directional multi-scale framework for signal analysis, which have been shown effective to enhance signal discontinuities such as edges and corners at multiple scales. In this work we address the problem of detecting and describing blob-like features in the shearlets framework. We derive a measure which is very effective for blob detection and closely related to the Laplacian of Gaussian. We demonstrate the measure satisfies the perfect scale invariance property in the continuous case. In the discrete setting, we derive algorithms for blob detection and keypoint description. Finally, we provide qualitative justifications of our findings as well as a quantitative evaluation on benchmark data. We also report an experimental evidence that our method is very suitable to deal with compressed and noisy images, thanks to the sparsity property of shearlets

Learning with multiple representations: An example of a revision lesson in mechanics

We describe an example of learning with multiple representations in an A-level revision lesson on mechanics. The context of the problem involved the motion of a ball thrown vertically upwards in air and studying how the associated physical quantities changed during its flight. Different groups of students were assigned to look at the ball's motion using various representations: motion diagrams, vector diagrams, free-body diagrams, verbal description, equations and graphs, drawn against time as well as against displacement. Overall, feedback from students about the lesson was positive. We further discuss the benefits of using computer simulation to support and extend student learning.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, 2 tables http://iopscience.iop.org/0031-912

Two-dimensional Navier--Stokes simulation of deformation and break up of liquid patches

The large deformations and break up of circular 2D liquid patches in a high Reynolds number (Re=1000) gas flow are investigated numerically. The 2D, plane flow Navier--Stokes equations are directly solved with explicit tracking of the interface between the two phases and a new algorithm for surface tension. The numerical method is able to pursue the simulation beyond the breaking or coalescence of droplets. The simulations are able to unveil the intriguing details of the non-linear interplay between the deforming droplets and the vortical structures in the droplet's wake.Comment: 13 pages including 4 postscript figures; Revised version as resubmitted to PRL. Title has change

Exploring patterns of recurrent melanoma in Northeast Scotland to inform the introduction a digital self-examination intervention

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Topological Photonics

Topology is revolutionizing photonics, bringing with it new theoretical discoveries and a wealth of potential applications. This field was inspired by the discovery of topological insulators, in which interfacial electrons transport without dissipation even in the presence of impurities. Similarly, new optical mirrors of different wave-vector space topologies have been constructed to support new states of light propagating at their interfaces. These novel waveguides allow light to flow around large imperfections without back-reflection. The present review explains the underlying principles and highlights the major findings in photonic crystals, coupled resonators, metamaterials and quasicrystals.Comment: progress and review of an emerging field, 12 pages, 6 figures and 1 tabl

Evaluation of the public policy for quality assurance in higher education in Chile: A case study

This work presents an evaluation of the Chilean Public Policy for quality assurance in higher education. Such an evaluation is justified by the need to determine if the quality assurance processes have a particular role in generating spaces for inequality, and in portraying possible manifestations of a global policy in a local setting. This dissertation is organized as follows: first, it focuses on the historical inequalities present in Chilean society and its education system, which are observable in the performance results of higher education institutions; second, it focuses on the influence of global policy education discourses in the national scene, by analyzing to what extent this global policy shapes the local ones. Results are obtained on the basis of a case study analysis based on the Policy Performance Analysis approach developed by William Dunn (2011). This approach was chosen to portrait the historical process of the quality assurance policy and to trace the evidence for inequalities in the system. The analysis considered textual sources related to quality assurance policies. These documents were analyzed using Rizvi and Lingard's (2010) policy analysis perspective in order to identify the allocation of values, question the main conceptions within the texts, and compare their evolution over time. The case study draws upon several methodological techniques and sources to structure a perspective about the performance of the public policy from the 1990s to the present. By analyzing the Chilean universities ranking, the policy documents in different historical periods, and three cases of bankrupt universities, the case demonstrates how the quality assurance system has affected institutions and students in a vulnerable position. Thus, the latter is a sign of a functional quality approach of the policy and deficient state regulations, instead of a more substantive concept of quality. Consequently, this study concluded that the Chilean quality assurance policies have been unable to overcome the inequalities already present in the Chilean higher education system. Through the analysis and its results, this research seeks to contribute to a deeper understanding of public policy as an instrument to overcome inequalities, as well as an instrument that can add pressure to overcoming present vulnerabilities in the Chilean higher education system

Sparse, decorrelated odor coding in the mushroom body enhances learned odor discrimination

Sparse coding may be a general strategy of neural systems for augmenting memory capacity. In Drosophila melanogaster, sparse odor coding by the Kenyon cells of the mushroom body is thought to generate a large number of precisely addressable locations for the storage of odor-specific memories. However, it remains untested how sparse coding relates to behavioral performance. Here we demonstrate that sparseness is controlled by a negative feedback circuit between Kenyon cells and the GABAergic anterior paired lateral (APL) neuron. Systematic activation and blockade of each leg of this feedback circuit showed that Kenyon cells activated APL and APL inhibited Kenyon cells. Disrupting the Kenyon cell–APL feedback loop decreased the sparseness of Kenyon cell odor responses, increased inter-odor correlations and prevented flies from learning to discriminate similar, but not dissimilar, odors. These results suggest that feedback inhibition suppresses Kenyon cell activity to maintain sparse, decorrelated odor coding and thus the odor specificity of memories