An investigation of aesthetic appreciation

[EMBARGOED UNTIL 5/31/2023] This dissertation comprises three papers in investigating the essential topics around aesthetic appreciation. The first paper examines George Dickie's Institutional theory on defining artworks and challenges his theory by analyzing the critical concepts like artifactuality and the candidacy of the status of appreciation. Further, it introduces a perceptional approach, an innovative method of interpreting one's perceptual experience combined with imagination, to defining art. The second paper proposes an evolutionary account of one's aesthetic engagement with artworks, which indicates a plausible way of understanding Hume's discussion of the standard of taste and the puzzle it generates. The third paper reconstructs Edward Bullough's Distance theory in response to his critic, George Dickie. Based on the clarification of the original ideas proposed by Bullough, the principle of distance is proved to be practical for understanding the various states of one's aesthetic appreciation.Includes bibliographical references

Structural Attack to Anonymous Graph of Social Networks

With the rapid development of social networks and its applications, the demand of publishing and sharing social network data for the purpose of commercial or research is increasing. However, the disclosure risks of sensitive information of social network users are also arising. The paper proposes an effective structural attack to deanonymize social graph data. The attack uses the cumulative degree of n-hop neighbors of a node as the regional feature and combines it with the simulated annealing-based graph matching method to explore the nodes reidentification in anonymous social graphs. The simulation results on two social network datasets show that the attack is feasible in the nodes reidentification in anonymous graphs including the simply anonymous graph, randomized graph and k-isomorphism graph

Causative agent distribution and antibiotic therapy assessment among adult patients with community acquired pneumonia in Chinese urban population

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Knowledge of predominant microbial patterns in community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) constitutes the basis for initial decisions about empirical antimicrobial treatment, so a prospective study was performed during 2003–2004 among CAP of adult Chinese urban populations.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Qualified patients were enrolled and screened for bacterial, atypical, and viral pathogens by sputum and/or blood culturing, and by antibody seroconversion test. Antibiotic treatment and patient outcome were also assessed.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Non-viral pathogens were found in 324/610 (53.1%) patients among whom <it>M. pneumoniae </it>was the most prevalent (126/610, 20.7%). Atypical pathogens were identified in 62/195 (31.8%) patients carrying bacterial pathogens. Respiratory viruses were identified in 35 (19%) of 184 randomly selected patients with adenovirus being the most common (16/184, 8.7%). The nonsusceptibility of <it>S. pneumoniae </it>to penicillin and azithromycin was 22.2% (Resistance (R): 3.2%, Intermediate (I): 19.0%) and 79.4% (R: 79.4%, I: 0%), respectively. Of patients (312) from whom causative pathogens were identified and antibiotic treatments were recorded, clinical cure rate with β-lactam antibiotics alone and with combination of a β-lactam plus a macrolide or with fluoroquinolones was 63.7% (79/124) and 67%(126/188), respectively. For patients having mixed <it>M. pneumoniae </it>and/or <it>C. pneumoniae </it>infections, a better cure rate was observed with regimens that are active against atypical pathogens (e.g. a β-lactam plus a macrolide, or a fluoroquinolone) than with β-lactam alone (75.8% vs. 42.9%, <it>p </it>= 0.045).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>In Chinese adult CAP patients, <it>M. pneumoniae </it>was the most prevalent with mixed infections containing atypical pathogens being frequently observed. With <it>S. pneumoniae</it>, the prevalence of macrolide resistance was high and penicillin resistance low compared with data reported in other regions.</p

Tirofiban for Stroke without Large or Medium-Sized Vessel Occlusion

The effects of the glycoprotein IIb/IIIa receptor inhibitor tirofiban in patients with acute ischemic stroke but who have no evidence of complete occlusion of large or medium-sized vessels have not been extensively studied. In a multicenter trial in China, we enrolled patients with ischemic stroke without occlusion of large or medium-sized vessels and with a National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score of 5 or more and at least one moderately to severely weak limb. Eligible patients had any of four clinical presentations: ineligible for thrombolysis or thrombectomy and within 24 hours after the patient was last known to be well; progression of stroke symptoms 24 to 96 hours after onset; early neurologic deterioration after thrombolysis; or thrombolysis with no improvement at 4 to 24 hours. Patients were assigned to receive intravenous tirofiban (plus oral placebo) or oral aspirin (100 mg per day, plus intravenous placebo) for 2 days; all patients then received oral aspirin until day 90. The primary efficacy end point was an excellent outcome, defined as a score of 0 or 1 on the modified Rankin scale (range, 0 [no symptoms] to 6 [death]) at 90 days. Secondary end points included functional independence at 90 days and a quality-of-life score. The primary safety end points were death and symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage. A total of 606 patients were assigned to the tirofiban group and 571 to the aspirin group. Most patients had small infarctions that were presumed to be atherosclerotic. The percentage of patients with a score of 0 or 1 on the modified Rankin scale at 90 days was 29.1% with tirofiban and 22.2% with aspirin (adjusted risk ratio, 1.26; 95% confidence interval, 1.04 to 1.53, P = 0.02). Results for secondary end points were generally not consistent with the results of the primary analysis. Mortality was similar in the two groups. The incidence of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage was 1.0% in the tirofiban group and 0% in the aspirin group. In this trial involving heterogeneous groups of patients with stroke of recent onset or progression of stroke symptoms and nonoccluded large and medium-sized cerebral vessels, intravenous tirofiban was associated with a greater likelihood of an excellent outcome than low-dose aspirin. Incidences of intracranial hemorrhages were low but slightly higher with tirofiban

Methylprednisolone as Adjunct to Endovascular Thrombectomy for Large-Vessel Occlusion Stroke

Importance It is uncertain whether intravenous methylprednisolone improves outcomes for patients with acute ischemic stroke due to large-vessel occlusion (LVO) undergoing endovascular thrombectomy. Objective To assess the efficacy and adverse events of adjunctive intravenous low-dose methylprednisolone to endovascular thrombectomy for acute ischemic stroke secondary to LVO. Design, Setting, and Participants This investigator-initiated, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was implemented at 82 hospitals in China, enrolling 1680 patients with stroke and proximal intracranial LVO presenting within 24 hours of time last known to be well. Recruitment took place between February 9, 2022, and June 30, 2023, with a final follow-up on September 30, 2023.InterventionsEligible patients were randomly assigned to intravenous methylprednisolone (n = 839) at 2 mg/kg/d or placebo (n = 841) for 3 days adjunctive to endovascular thrombectomy. Main Outcomes and Measures The primary efficacy outcome was disability level at 90 days as measured by the overall distribution of the modified Rankin Scale scores (range, 0 [no symptoms] to 6 [death]). The primary safety outcomes included mortality at 90 days and the incidence of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage within 48 hours. Results Among 1680 patients randomized (median age, 69 years; 727 female [43.3%]), 1673 (99.6%) completed the trial. The median 90-day modified Rankin Scale score was 3 (IQR, 1-5) in the methylprednisolone group vs 3 (IQR, 1-6) in the placebo group (adjusted generalized odds ratio for a lower level of disability, 1.10 [95% CI, 0.96-1.25]; P = .17). In the methylprednisolone group, there was a lower mortality rate (23.2% vs 28.5%; adjusted risk ratio, 0.84 [95% CI, 0.71-0.98]; P = .03) and a lower rate of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (8.6% vs 11.7%; adjusted risk ratio, 0.74 [95% CI, 0.55-0.99]; P = .04) compared with placebo. Conclusions and Relevance Among patients with acute ischemic stroke due to LVO undergoing endovascular thrombectomy, adjunctive methylprednisolone added to endovascular thrombectomy did not significantly improve the degree of overall disability.Trial RegistrationChiCTR.org.cn Identifier: ChiCTR210005172

Evidence Of Nematic Phases In Electrorheological Fluid By Acoustic Impedance Measurement

Phase transitions of an electrorheological (ER) fluid were studied by measuring its shear specific acoustic impedance with increasing electric field. Two nematic phases were found for the first time in experiment and they confirmed the theoretical prediction. It is proved that measuring acoustic impedance is a unique way to study the structure formation in non-transparent ER fluids where the optical techniques are not available. The measuring results also demonstrate that ER fluids have potential of being active impedance matching devices

Design and Fabrication of Double-Layer Crossed Si Microchannel Structure

A four-step etching method is used to prepare the double-layer cross Si microchannel structure. In the first etching step, a &lt;100&gt; V-groove structure is etched on (100) silicon, and the top channel is formed after thermal oxidation with the depth of the channel and the slope of its sidewall being modulated by the etching time. The second etching step is to form a sinking substrate, and then the third step is to etch the bottom channel at 90&deg; (&lt;100&gt; direction) and 45&deg; (&lt;110&gt; direction) with the top channel, respectively. Hence, the bottom channel on the sink substrate is half-buried into the top channel. Undercut characteristic of 25% TMAH is used to perform the fourth step, etching through the overlapping part of the two layers of channels to form a double-layer microchannel structure. Different from the traditional single-layer microchannels, the double-layer crossed microchannels are prepared by the four-step etching method intersect in space but are not connected, which has structural advantages. Finally, when the angle between the top and bottom is 90&deg;, the root cutting time at the intersection is up to 6 h, making the width of the bottom channel 4&ndash;5 times that of the top channel. When the angle between the top and bottom is 45&deg;, the root cutting time at the intersection is only 4 h, and due to the corrosion along (111), the corrosion speed of the sidewall is very slow and the consistency of the width of the upper and lower channels is better than 90&deg; after the end. Compared with the same-plane cross channel structure, the semiburied microchannel structure avoids the V-shaped path at the intersection, and the fluid can pass through the bottom channel in a straight line and cross with the top channel without overlapping, which has a structural advantage. If applied to microfluidic technology, high-efficiency delivery of two substances can be carried out independently in the same area; if applied to microchannel heat dissipation technology, the heat conduction area of the fluid can be doubled under the same heat dissipation area, thereby increasing the heat dissipation efficiency

Dielectric engineered graphene transistors for high-performance near-infrared photodetection

Summary: Graphene, known for its ultrahigh carrier mobility and broadband optical absorption, holds significant potential in optoelectronics. However, the carrier mobility of graphene on silicon substrates experienced a marked decrease due to surface roughness, phonon scattering affects. Here we report carrier mobility enhancement of graphene dielectric engineering. Through the fabrication of devices utilizing Si/SiO2/Al2O3/graphene layers and subsequent electrical characterization, our findings illustrate the navigable nature of the Al2O3 dielectric layer is navigable for reducing the SiO2 phonon scattering and increasing graphene’s carrier mobility by up to ∼8000 cm2V−1s−1. Furthermore, the improvement in carrier mobility of graphene has been utilized in the hybrid near-infrared photodetector, resulting in outstanding responsivity of ∼400 AW-1, detectivity of ∼2.2 ✕ 1011 Jones in the graphene/Ag2Te detector. Our study establishes pathways for the seamless integration of graphene or other 2D materials within the standard CMOS processes, thereby facilitating the fabrication of advanced optoelectronic devices

Bi-CMR: Bidirectional Reinforcement Guided Hashing for Effective Cross-Modal Retrieval

Cross-modal hashing has attracted considerable attention for large-scale multimodal data. Recent supervised cross-modal hashing methods using multi-label networks utilize the semantics of multi-labels to enhance retrieval accuracy, where label hash codes are learned independently. However, all these methods assume that label annotations reliably reflect the relevance between their corresponding instances, which is not true in real applications. In this paper, we propose a novel framework called Bidirectional Reinforcement Guided Hashing for Effective Cross-Modal Retrieval (Bi-CMR), which exploits a bidirectional learning to relieve the negative impact of this assumption. Specifically, in the forward learning procedure, we highlight the representative labels and learn the reinforced multi-label hash codes by intra-modal semantic information, and further adjust similarity matrix. In the backward learning procedure, the reinforced multi-label hash codes and adjusted similarity matrix are used to guide the matching of instances. We construct two datasets with explicit relevance labels that reflect the semantic relevance of instance pairs based on two benchmark datasets. The Bi-CMR is evaluated by conducting extensive experiments over these two datasets. Experimental results prove the superiority of Bi-CMR over four state-of-the-art methods in terms of effectiveness

Tiny endoscopic optical coherence tomography probe driven by a miniaturized hollow ultrasonic motor

We present an endoscopic probe for optical coherence tomography (OCT) equipped with a miniaturized hollow ultrasonic motor that rotates the objective lens and provides an internal channel for the fiber to pass through, enabling 360 deg unobstructed circumferential scanning. This probe has an outer diameter of 1.5 mm, which is ultra-small for motorized probes with an unobstructed view in distal scanning endoscopic OCT. Instead of a mirror or prism, a customized aspheric right-angle lens is utilized, leading to an enlargement of the numerical aperture and thus high transverse resolution. Spectral-domain OCT imaging of bio-tissue and a phantom are demonstrated with resolution of 7.5  μm (axial) × 6.6  μm (lateral) and sensitivity of 96 dB