1,551 research outputs found
Onondaga, County of and CSEA Local 1000, AFSCME, AFL-CIO, Onondaga County Local 843
In the matter of the fact-finding between the Onondaga County, employer, and the CSEA Local 1000, AFSCME, AFL-CIO, Onondaga County Local 843, union. PERB case no. M2013-298. Before: Michael G. Whelan, fact finder
Segmentation of the left ventricle of the heart in 3-D+t MRI data using an optimized nonrigid temporal model
Modern medical imaging modalities provide large amounts of information in both the spatial and temporal domains and the incorporation of this information in a coherent algorithmic framework is a significant challenge. In this paper, we present a novel and intuitive approach to combine 3-D spatial and temporal (3-D + time) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data in an integrated segmentation algorithm to extract the myocardium of the left ventricle. A novel level-set segmentation process is developed that simultaneously delineates and tracks the boundaries of the left ventricle muscle. By encoding prior knowledge about cardiac temporal evolution in a parametric framework, an expectation-maximization algorithm optimally tracks the myocardial deformation over the cardiac cycle. The expectation step deforms the level-set function while the maximization step updates the prior temporal model parameters to perform the segmentation in a nonrigid sense
Extraction of epi-cardium contours from unseen images using a shape database
Accurate segmentation of the myocardium in cardiac magnetic resonance images can be restricted by image noise and low discrimination between the epi-cardium boundary and other organs. Segmentation of the epi-cardium is important for the calculation of left ventricle mass. In this paper we propose a novel method of epi-cardium segmentation, which firstly segments the left ventricle cavity. The epi-cardium boundary is found using the edge information in the image, and where such information is lacking it enhances the shape with the best fitting scaled segment, taken from a database of expertly assisted hand segmented images. In the final stage the segments are connected using a natural closed spline. The method was evaluated using a leave-one-out strategy on 24 volumes and calculates the coefficient of determination as 0.93 and a root mean square of the point to curve error of 1.54 mm when compared to manually segmented images
On the Relationships Between Real Consumption, Income, and Wealth
The existence of durable goods implies that the welfare flow from consumption cannot be directly associated with total consumption expenditures. As a result, tests of standard theories of consumption (such as the Permanent Income Hypothesis, or PIH) typically focus on nondurable goods and services. Specifically, these studies generally relate real consumption of nondurable goods and services to measures of real income and wealth, where the latter are deflated by a price index for total consumption expenditures. This paper demonstrates that this procedure is only valid under the assumption that real consumption of nondurables and services is a constant multiple of aggregate real consumption outlays---an assumption that represents a very poor description of U.S. data. The paper develops an alternative approach that is based on the observation that the ratio of these series has historically been stable in nominal terms, and uses this approach to examine two basic predictions of the PIH. We obtain significantly different results relative to the traditional approach.
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Street violence amongst young men in London: everyday experiences of masculinity and fear in public space
This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.Arising out of widespread concerns that incidents of street violence amongst young people in the UK were spiralling out of control, this research draws on feminist deconstructions of the public-private space divide to emphasise the importance of a social constructionist perspective on street violence; street violence as it is experienced, understood and constructed by young people. Methodologically this research combines ethnography with Critical Discourse Analysis in what has been referred to as critical ethnography (Fairclough, 2001). Adopting a practitioner research approach within a primarily street based youth work setting, accounts were drawn from a range of sources, including interviews and participant observation with youth workers, young people and local public figures. This study draws out the implications for young menâs subjective experiences of the inner city streets near where they live, focusing on the construction of masculinities in the context of political pressures and institutionalised discourses of young people. The young men in this research experienced uncertain and often fearful public spaces in which the ability to construct a credible propensity for violence was an essential part of a successful masculine identity. It is suggested that a significantly greater focus is required on critical gender identity work with young men, specifically in relation to their identity constructions in public space
The challenging task of determining star formation rates: the case of a massive stellar burst in the brightest cluster galaxy of Phoenix galaxy cluster
Star formation in galaxies at the center of cooling-flow galaxy clusters is
an important phenomenon in the context of formation and evolution of massive
galaxies in the Universe. Yet, star formation rates (SFRs) in such systems
continue to be elusive. We use our Bayesian-motivated spectral energy
distribution (SED)-fitting code, BAYESCOOL, to estimate the plausible SFR
values in the brightest cluster galaxy of a massive, X-ray luminous galaxy
cluster, Phoenix. Previous studies of Phoenix have resulted in the highest
measurement of SFR for any galaxy, with the estimates reaching up to 1000 solar
masses/yr. However, a very small number of models have been considered in those
studies. BAYESCOOL allows us to probe a large parameter space. We consider two
models for star formation history, instantaneous bursts and continuous star
formation, a wide range of ages for the old and the young stellar population,
along with other discrete parameters, such as the initial mass function,
metallicities, internal extinction and extinction law. We find that in the
absence of any prior except that the maximum cooling rate < 3000 solar
masses/yr, the SFR lies in the range (2230-2890) solar masses/yr. If we impose
an observational prior on the internal extinction, E(B-V) < 0.6, the best-fit
SFR lies in (454-494) solar masses/yr, and we consider this as the most
probable range of SFR values for Phoenix. The SFR dependence on the extinction
is a reflection of the standard age-extinction degeneracy, which can be
overcome by using a prior on one of the two quantities in question.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures, 1 Table, accepted for publication in MNRA
Academic work-integrated learning (WIL): Reengaging teaching-focused academics with industry
There has been an increase in the number of teaching-focused academics at Australian universities over recent years. However, research-focused and teaching-research academics have an advantage over teaching-focused academics in terms of promotion, forced redundancies and tenure. While evidence of research success is measured by volume (number of publications and research income), evidence of teaching scholarship is less quantifiable. The value of industry-university collaboration has been reported widely. However, the focus is on the value of the knowledge transfer of university research to industry and collaborative industry-university research. Academics collaborating with industry partners on research projects are able to experience current industry practice firsthand, raising the question: How do teaching-focused academics remain engaged with industry? The benefits of work-integrated learning (WIL) to hosts, students and universities are well documented. This paper poses the question: Is a WIL placement a way to reengage teaching-focused academics with industry?, and introduces the concept of âAcademic WILâ where academics complete an internship placement with an industry partner. The impact on graduate employability is discussed and a methodology for a teaching-focused academic to use their Academic WIL experience as evidence of their achievements in the scholarship of teaching is presented
The Impact of Ex British Soldiers on The Irish Volunteers And Free State Army 1913-1924
The aim of this thesis is to highlight the service of ex-British soldiers in the
Irish Army and to examine some of their experiences during the period 1913-1924
with particular emphasis on the Irish Civil War. There was a constant utilisation of
ex-British servicemen for their skills and also their intimidation by republicans
throughout the period but their involvement may have been one of the factors that
helped the IRA to bring the British government to negotiate. This is also true for the
Free State Army and its defeat of the IRA during the Civil War.
The Irish Volunteers and IRA was a guerrilla force combating a conventional
army in many cases by using British military skills learned from ex-British soldiers.
The Free State Army fought the IRA, which it had also evolved from, portraying a
conventional military force using many more ex-British soldiers and lessons they had
learned from the War of Independence against the British and those learned during the
Great War. The ex-British soldiers helped to transform the army from a guerrilla force
into a conventional army and it was probably their impact that had the greatest
influence on the Irish Free State Army in defeating the republican forces and helped
win the Irish Civil War.
The fact that the Free State government and the new establishment were seen
as pro- British, seen to be supported by the British with a constitution incorporating a
pledge of allegiance to the crown was exasperating to republicans. They saw the
National Army as crown apparatus and the recruitment of ex-British servicemen, their
former enemies as further evidence of this. The attitudes of republicans towards exservicemen
in Ireland and especially those in the army during the Irish Civil War and
the impact of ex-British soldiers on the evolution of the Irish Volunteers and Free
State Army has to a great extent been forgotten in Irish nationalist and military
historiography
Onondaga, County of and Onondaga County Deputy Sheriffs Benevolent Association
In the matter of the fact-finding between the County of Onondaga, employer, and the Onondaga County Deputy Sheriffs Benevolent Association, union. PERB case no. M2013-079. Before: Michael G. Whelan, fact finder
Determining candidate polyp morphology from CT colonography using a level-set method
In this paper we propose a level-set segmentation for
polyp candidates in Computer Tomography Colongraphy
(CTC). Correct classification of the candidate
polyps into polyp and non-polyp is, in most cases,
evaluated using shape features. Therefore, accurate
recovery of the polyp candidate surface is important
for correct classification. The method presented in
this paper, evolves a curvature and gradient dependent
boundary to recover the surface of the polyp candidate
in a level-set framework. The curvature term
is computed using a combination of the Mean curvature
and the Gaussian curvature. The results of
the algorithm were run through a classifier for two
complete data-sets and returned 100% sensitivity for
polyps greater than 5mm
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