1,782 research outputs found
Hemispheric Asymmetries in Cortical Thickness
Using magnetic resonance imaging and computational cortical pattern matching methods, we analyzed hemispheric differences in regional gray matter thickness across the lateral and medial cortices in young, healthy adults (n = 60). In addition, we investigated the influence of gender on the degree of thickness asymmetry. Results revealed global and regionally specific differences between the two hemispheres, with generally thicker cortex in the left hemisphere. Regions with significant leftward asymmetry were identified in the precentral gyrus, middle frontal, anterior temporal and superior parietal lobes, while rightward asymmetry was prominent in the inferior posterior temporal lobe and inferior frontal lobe. On the medial surface, significant rightward asymmetries were observed in posterior regions, while significant leftward asymmetries were evident from the vicinity of the paracentral gyrus extending anteriorly. Asymmetry profiles were similar in both sexes, but hemispheric differences appeared slightly pronounced in males compared with females, albeit a few regions also indicated greater asymmetry in females compared with males. Hemispheric differences in the thickness of the cortex might be related to hemisphere-specific functional specializations that are possibly related to behavioral asymmetrie
A Neural Networks Committee for the Contextual Bandit Problem
This paper presents a new contextual bandit algorithm, NeuralBandit, which
does not need hypothesis on stationarity of contexts and rewards. Several
neural networks are trained to modelize the value of rewards knowing the
context. Two variants, based on multi-experts approach, are proposed to choose
online the parameters of multi-layer perceptrons. The proposed algorithms are
successfully tested on a large dataset with and without stationarity of
rewards.Comment: 21st International Conference on Neural Information Processin
Recent Developments of NEMO: Detection of Solar Eruptions Characteristics
The recent developments in space instrumentation for solar observations and
telemetry have caused the necessity of advanced pattern recognition tools for
the different classes of solar events. The Extreme ultraviolet Imaging
Telescope (EIT) of solar corona on-board SOHO spacecraft has uncovered a new
class of eruptive events which are often identified as signatures of Coronal
Mass Ejection (CME) initiations on solar disk. It is evident that a crucial
task is the development of an automatic detection tool of CMEs precursors. The
Novel EIT wave Machine Observing (NEMO) (http://sidc.be/nemo) code is an
operational tool that detects automatically solar eruptions using EIT image
sequences. NEMO applies techniques based on the general statistical properties
of the underlying physical mechanisms of eruptive events on the solar disc. In
this work, the most recent updates of NEMO code - that have resulted to the
increase of the recognition efficiency of solar eruptions linked to CMEs - are
presented. These updates provide calculations of the surface of the dimming
region, implement novel clustering technique for the dimmings and set new
criteria to flag the eruptive dimmings based on their complex characteristics.
The efficiency of NEMO has been increased significantly resulting to the
extraction of dimmings observed near the solar limb and to the detection of
small-scale events as well. As a consequence, the detection efficiency of CMEs
precursors and the forecasts of CMEs have been drastically improved.
Furthermore, the catalogues of solar eruptive events that can be constructed by
NEMO may include larger number of physical parameters associated to the dimming
regions.Comment: 12 Pages, 5 figures, submitted to Solar Physic
Relationships Between Sulcal Asymmetries and Corpus Callosum Size: Gender and Handedness Effects
Magnetic resonance imaging was used to establish the presence and nature of relationships between sulcal asymmetries and mid-sagittal callosal size in neurologically intact subjects, and to determine the influences of sex and handedness. Against a background of long-standing disputes, effects of gender and handedness on callosal size, shape, and variability were additionally examined. Both positive and negative correlations between sulcal asymmetry and callosal size were observed, with effects influenced by sex and handedness. The direction of relationships, however, were dependent on the regional asymmetry measured and on whether real or absolute values were used to quantify sulcal asymmetries. Callosal measurements showed no significant effects of sex or handedness, although subtle differences in callosal shape were observed in anterior and posterior regions between males and females and surface variability was increased in males. Individual variations in callosal size appear to outrange any detectable divergences in size between groups. Relationships between sulcal asymmetries and callosal size, however, are influenced by both sex and handedness. Whether magnitudes of asymmetry are related to increases or decreases in callosal size appears dependent on the chosen indicators of asymmetry. It is an oversimplification, therefore, to assume a single relationship exists between cerebral asymmetries and callosal connection
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Space-variant filtering for correction of wavefront curvature effects in spotlight-mode SAR imagery formed via polar formatting
Wavefront curvature defocus effects can occur in spotlight-mode SAR imagery when reconstructed via the well-known polar formatting algorithm (PFA) under certain scenarios that include imaging at close range, use of very low center frequency, and/or imaging of very large scenes. The range migration algorithm (RMA), also known as seismic migration, was developed to accommodate these wavefront curvature effects. However, the along-track upsampling of the phase history data required of the original version of range migration can in certain instances represent a major computational burden. A more recent version of migration processing, the Frequency Domain Replication and Downsampling (FReD) algorithm, obviates the need to upsample, and is accordingly more efficient. In this paper the authors demonstrate that the combination of traditional polar formatting with appropriate space-variant post-filtering for refocus can be as efficient or even more efficient than FReD under some imaging conditions, as demonstrated by the computer-simulated results in this paper. The post-filter can be pre-calculated from a theoretical derivation of the curvature effect. The conclusion is that the new polar formatting with post filtering algorithm (PF2) should be considered as a viable candidate for a spotlight-mode image formation processor when curvature effects are present
Studies on Monitoring and Tracking Genetic Resources: An Executive Summary
The principles underlying fair and equitable sharing of benefits derived from the utilization of genetic resources are set out in Article 15 of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, which stipulate that access to genetic resources is subject to the prior informed consent of the country where such resources are located and to mutually agreed terms regarding the sharing of benefits that could be derived from such access. One issue of particular concern for provider countries is how to monitor and track genetic resources once they have left the provider country and enter into use in a variety of forms. This report was commissioned to provide a detailed review of advances in DNA sequencing technologies, as those methods apply to identification of genetic resources, and the use of globally unique persistent identifiers for persistently linking to data and other forms of digital documentation that is linked to individual genetic resources. While the report was written for an audience with a mixture of technical, legal, and policy backgrounds it is relevant to the genomics community as it is an example of downstream application of genomics information
The effect of preconditioning on production and antibiotic use in a South African beef feedlot
CONTEXT : There is pressure on production veterinarians to reduce the use of antibiotics in intensive beef production systems.
AIMS : The present study investigated whether preconditioning â the process whereby weaned calves destined for the feedlot are prepared over a period of time â reduced antibiotic treatment events, and improved health and production of calves in a South African feedlot.
METHODS : Preconditioned calves (n = 301) and control calves (n = 332) were sourced from the same origin on two occasions, and arrived at the feedlot on the same day. Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) was defined as the âpullingâ of clinically sick calves from feedlot pens, followed by the standard protocol for treatment of BRD (including antibiotic treatment). Outcome variables related to health were BRD overall incidence (pulling), BRD re-pulling and lung lesion scores. Production outcome variables measured were carcass weight, carcass average daily gain (ADG) and days on feed (DOF). Initial carcass weight was estimated from shrunk liveweight in order to estimate the effect of preconditioning on carcass gain, the most economically relevant outcome. Statistical analyses were done using multiple linear, logistic and Cox regression. Predictor variables were preconditioning vs control, gender, starting weight, DOF, pulling for BRD and carcass ADG.
KEY RESULTS : A lower proportion of preconditioned calves were pulled and a lower proportion of pulled calves were re-pulled for BRD compared with control calves (8 vs 17% and 8 vs 16%, respectively, P < 0.01). A higher proportion of preconditioned calves compared with control calves were market ready at 90 DOF (89 vs 67%, P < 0.01). In the multivariable models preconditioning was associated with a 200 g/d increase in carcass growth rate (P < 0.01) and with a 17.7 kg increase in overall carcass gain (P < 0.01) after adjusting for gender and DOF.
CONCLUSIONS : Preconditioning reduced the incidence and severity of BRD and feedlot standing time and improved production of calves in South African feedlots.
IMPLICATIONS : Preconditioning has the potential to add value to the beef feedlot by reducing the formation of antimicrobial resistance while improving the profitability of the feedlot.Red Meat Research and Development South Africa (RMRD-SA)http://www.publish.csiro.au/anhj2021Production Animal Studie
Metabolite changes in blood predict the onset of tuberculosis
Immunogenetics and cellular immunology of bacterial infectious disease
3D Coronal Density Reconstruction and Retrieving the Magnetic Field Structure during Solar Minimum
Measurement of the coronal magnetic field is a crucial ingredient in
understanding the nature of solar coronal phenomena at all scales. We employed
STEREO/COR1 data obtained during a deep minimum of solar activity in February
2008 (Carrington rotation CR 2066) to retrieve and analyze the
three-dimensional (3D) coronal electron density in the range of heights from
1.5 to 4 Rsun using a tomography method. With this, we qualitatively deduced
structures of the coronal magnetic field. The 3D electron density analysis is
complemented by the 3D STEREO/EUVI emissivity in the 195 A band obtained by
tomography for the same CR. A global 3D MHD model of the solar corona was used
to relate the reconstructed 3D density and emissivity to open/closed magnetic
field structures. We show that the density maximum locations can serve as an
indicator of current sheet position, while the locations of the density
gradient maximum can be a reliable indicator of coronal hole boundaries. We
find that the magnetic field configuration during CR 2066 has a tendency to
become radially open at heliocentric distances greater than 2.5 Rsun. We also
find that the potential field model with a fixed source surface (PFSS) is
inconsistent with the boundaries between the regions with open and closed
magnetic field structures. This indicates that the assumption of the potential
nature of the coronal global magnetic field is not satisfied even during the
deep solar minimum. Results of our 3D density reconstruction will help to
constrain solar coronal field models and test the accuracy of the magnetic
field approximations for coronal modeling.Comment: Published in "Solar Physics
A new application of pelvis area data as culling tool to aid in the management of dystocia in heifers
Although fetomaternal disproportion is
the major cause of dystocia in heifers, pelvis area (PA)
is not recommended as a culling tool due to its relatively
low importance and genetic correlation with calf birth
weight (BWT), the most important factor associated
with dystocia. The objective of this observational study
of 484 limited bred yearling beef heifers was to compare
the effects of different methods of adjustment of PA data
for culling to select against dystocia. Multivariable analyses
were used to determine predictors of PA, calf BWT,
and dystocia. Hypothetical culling rates of 10 and 20%
were then applied after ranking heifers by each of the
following: unadjusted PA, PA adjusted to 365 d of age by
subtracting 0.27 cm2 per day of age difference between
each heiferâs age and 365 d (APA), PA:prebreeding
BW ratio (PA:BW), PA adjusted to the median BW of
the group using the regression coefficient of PA on BW
within age group (BWPA), and PA similarly adjusted to
the median lean BW (LBWPA). Dam parity, sire, prebreeding
age, prebreeding BW, and prebreeding BCS
were associated with PA whereas dam parity, sire, own BWT, PA, AI bull, and calf gender were associated with
calf BWT (P < 0.05). Dam parity, calf BWT, and either
BWPA or LBWPA were the only independent predictors
of dystocia (P < 0.05). Adjusting PA to BW or lean BW
(LBW) improved the sensitivity and specificity to predict
dystocia. After hypothetical culling by PA, retained
heifers were heavier and had a higher calving rate and
calves tended to be heavier at birth compared to culled
heifers, but dystocia rates were not different. Culling by
APA resulted in similar effects, except that dystocia rate
tended to be lower in retained heifers. Culling by PA:BW
resulted in lower dystocia rate in retained than in culled
heifers, but retained heifers had lower prebreeding BW
than culls. Culling by BWPA and LBWPA resulted in
lower proportions with dystocia and a tendency towards
higher calving rates in the retained heifers, without affecting
the prebreeding BW or calf BWT. It is concluded that
pelvimetry is a useful culling tool to aid in the management
of dystocia in yearling heifers and that adjustment
of PA to median BW or LBW within age group improves
its accuracy and avoids the undesirable side effects.http://www.animal-science.org/hb201
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