Integral Human Pose Regression

State-of-the-art human pose estimation methods are based on heat map representation. In spite of the good performance, the representation has a few issues in nature, such as not differentiable and quantization error. This work shows that a simple integral operation relates and unifies the heat map representation and joint regression, thus avoiding the above issues. It is differentiable, efficient, and compatible with any heat map based methods. Its effectiveness is convincingly validated via comprehensive ablation experiments under various settings, specifically on 3D pose estimation, for the first time

Artificial neural network to classify cognitive impairment using gait and clinical variables

Combining gait and clinical variables could increase the accuracy of identifying cognitive impairment (CI) in geriatric patients. We aimed to classify geriatric patients with and without CI based on clinical variables, gait, or a combination of clinical and gait variables, using two machine learning methods, Random Forest (RF) and Artificial Neural Network (ANN). The most accurate classification model examined how interactions between clinical and gait variables would improve classification accuracy and determine the contributions of key variables. Based on Minimal Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores, 131 geriatric patients were divided into a cognitive impaired and a cognitively healthy (CH) group. From 3D accelerometer data collected during 3 min of walking at a habitual speed, we computed 23 dynamic gait variables. In conclusion, an ANN model incorporating the interaction between clinical and gait variables classified geriatric patients with an accuracy of 96%, an area of the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.95, and a model validation score of 0.97 (F1) based on their clinical status. Machine learning analyses of gait and clinical variables can inform geriatricians about the diagnosis of geriatric patients’ cognitive status.</p

Artificial neural network to classify cognitive impairment using gait and clinical variables

Combining gait and clinical variables could increase the accuracy of identifying cognitive impairment (CI) in geriatric patients. We aimed to classify geriatric patients with and without CI based on clinical variables, gait, or a combination of clinical and gait variables, using two machine learning methods, Random Forest (RF) and Artificial Neural Network (ANN). The most accurate classification model examined how interactions between clinical and gait variables would improve classification accuracy and determine the contributions of key variables. Based on Minimal Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores, 131 geriatric patients were divided into a cognitive impaired and a cognitively healthy (CH) group. From 3D accelerometer data collected during 3 min of walking at a habitual speed, we computed 23 dynamic gait variables. In conclusion, an ANN model incorporating the interaction between clinical and gait variables classified geriatric patients with an accuracy of 96%, an area of the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.95, and a model validation score of 0.97 (F1) based on their clinical status. Machine learning analyses of gait and clinical variables can inform geriatricians about the diagnosis of geriatric patients’ cognitive status

L'espansione mondiale del cristianesimo nel secondo Novecento

Profilo della storia del cristianesimo e delle Chiese nel secondo Novecento fino alla fine della guerra fredda, con attenzione alle dinamiche generali e alle principali vicende dei diversi contesti macroregionali e un approfondimento sul ruolo delle donne nelle Chiese in età contemporanea. INDICE Dinamiche nel protestantesimo nel secondo Novecento - 375, Il cristianesimo tra oppressione, liberazione, giustizia sociale. Le Chiese in America Latina e nei Caraibi - 377, Le Chiese nell’America Settentrionale 386, Il cristianesimo in Africa 391, Le Chiese in India - 394, Le Chiese in Estremo Oriente e nel Sud-Est asiatico 395, Donne, cristianesimo e Chiese nel secondo Novecento - 399, Cambiamenti nel pontificato romano: il 1978 - 401, Alla fine della guerra fredda: il cristianesimo e le Chiese tra dinamiche globali e regionali – 404, Bibliografia ragionata - 40

Flow structure behind two staggered circular cylinders. Part 1. Downstream evolution and classification

2007-2008 > Academic research: refereed > Publication in refereed journalVersion of RecordPublishe

Flow structure behind two staggered circular cylinders. Part 2. Heat and momentum transport

2007-2008 > Academic research: refereed > Publication in refereed journalVersion of RecordPublishe

Monks relax sibling competition over parental resources in Tibetan populations

Why parents in some societies induce some of their sons to become religious celibates is an evolutionary puzzle. Some have speculated that this might be associated with brother competition for family resources. However, the behavioral ecology of monks and the possible links with competition between brothers remain unexplored. Here, we use demographic data from Amdo Tibetan agropastoralists in western China to evaluate what factors determine the probability of becoming a monk and explore the possible association between wealth and having a monk brother. We found that boys with at least one older brother are more likely to become celibate monks. Patrilocal heads of household, who inherit parental property, are more likely to be first-born sons, whereas men who marry uxorilocally, that is they move to their wife’s household, are generally second- or later-born sons. Moreover, we find that men with at least one monk brother are wealthier than men who only have non-celibate brothers. Together, these results suggest that sending a son to the monastery is a way for parents to decrease competition between brothers over family resources. Harsh and resource-limited environments, like the one we consider, can lead to the emergence of communal households, including polyandrous families, which used to be common in Tibetan areas. Directing one son to become a religious celibate offers a potentially effective solution to brother competition in our population

Predators reduce extinction risk in noisy metapopulations

Background Spatial structure across fragmented landscapes can enhance regional population persistence by promoting local “rescue effects.” In small, vulnerable populations, where chance or random events between individuals may have disproportionately large effects on species interactions, such local processes are particularly important. However, existing theory often only describes the dynamics of metapopulations at regional scales, neglecting the role of multispecies population dynamics within habitat patches. Findings By coupling analysis across spatial scales we quantified the interaction between local scale population regulation, regional dispersal and noise processes in the dynamics of experimental host-parasitoid metapopulations. We find that increasing community complexity increases negative correlation between local population dynamics. A potential mechanism underpinning this finding was explored using a simple population dynamic model. Conclusions Our results suggest a paradox: parasitism, whilst clearly damaging to hosts at the individual level, reduces extinction risk at the population level

Religious celibacy brings inclusive fitness benefits

The influence of inclusive fitness interests on the evolution of human institutions remains unclear. Religious celibacy constitutes an especially puzzling institution, often deemed maladaptive. Here, we present sociodemographic data from an agropastoralist Buddhist population in western China, where parents sometimes sent a son to the monastery. We find that men with a monk brother father more children, and grandparents with a monk son have more grandchildren, suggesting that the practice is adaptive. We develop a model of celibacy to elucidate the inclusive fitness costs and benefits associated with this behaviour. We show that a minority of sons being celibate can be favoured if this increases their brothers' reproductive success, but only if the decision is under parental, rather than individual, control. These conditions apply to monks in our study site. Inclusive fitness considerations appear to play a key role in shaping parental preferences to adopt this cultural practice