What does augmented reality mean as a medium of expression for computational artists?

As augmented reality (AR) quickly evolves with new technological practice, there is a growing need to question and reevaluate its potential as a medium for creative expression. The authors discuss AR within computational art, framed within AR as a medium, AR aesthetics and applications. The Forum for Augmented Reality Immersive Instruments (ARImI), a two-day event on AR, highlights both possibilities and fundamental concerns for continuing artworks in this field, including visual bias, sensory modalities, interactivity and performativity. The authors offer a new AR definition as real-time computationally mediated perception

KIMA - A holographic telepresence environment based on cymatic principles

KIMA is a holographic surround-sound installation that visualizes telepresence as both a phonetic and a synaesthetic phenomenon. The performance piece is based on the physical conditions of cymatics-the study of physically visible sound wave patterns. Two environments, a quad surround and a holographic interface, build the framework of a telematic experience that illustrates communication as wave forms while focusing on the relationship between sound and matter. © 2013 Oliver Gingrich, Alain Renaud, Eugenia Emets

Prevalence and genotypes of Candida albicans from necrotising periodontal disease and the tongue

OBJECTIVES : The objectives were to determine the prevalence of Candida albicans in lesions of necrotising periodontal disease (NPD) and on the tongue of patients and to compare the fingerprinting patterns of C. albicans isolates from the two oral sites. METHODS : Microbiological specimens were taken from NPD lesions and the tongue of 87 patients and cultured on Sabouraud Dextrose and CHROMagar, followed by treating patients according to a standard protocol. DNA fingerprinting, using restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) with a 32P-labelled Ca3 probe, was performed on paired isolates of C. albicans simultaneously isolated from NPD lesions and the tongue. RESULTS : C. albicans was isolated from 47 (54%) patients in total, from only the tongue in 39 (44.8%), simultaneously from the tongue and diseased sites in 7 (8.0%) and only from diseased site in 1 patient (1.1%). The DNA fingerprinting patterns of the isolates were similar within each pair but differed between the 7 pairs, without any evidence of a predominant genetic subtype among the isolates. The clade affiliation resembled that of previously fingerprinted isolates obtained from the region. No statistically significant correlation was demonstrated between the extent (p = 0.4621) or severity (p = 0.3365) of NPD lesions and the presence of yeasts (Fisher’s Exact Test). NPD in all patients presenting for a follow-up visit had resolved with conventional treatment and without the addition of antifungal agents. CONCLUSION : No association between C. albicans and NPD could be demonstrated and evidence is presented that it is unlikely that the C. albicans isolated from NPD represent a pathogenic subgroup and are more likely to be contaminants from elsewhere in the mouth. KeywordsSouth African Medical Research Council (MRC) grant to EB.http://www.cmepub.com/journals/international-journal-of-oral-health-dental-management-homeam2018Oral Pathology and Oral Biolog

Platelet count and platelet indices of symptomatic and asymptomatic children infected by malaria in Calabar Metropolis, Nigeria

Background: Malaria infection has been reported to be a major problem affecting developing countries. This study aimed at the effect of malaria parasite infection on platelets count, and platelet indices; mean platelet volume (MPV), platelets distribution width (PDW) and plateletcrit (PCT) among symptomatic subjects.Methods: A case-control study design with a total of 112 subjects (males and females) comprising of 58 symptomatic and 54 asymptomatic children infected by malaria, age range of 0-15 years from the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital were enrolled. Thick and thin film method was used to ascertain malaria parasite density.Results: The mean values of the symptomatic malaria subjects were found to be significantly reduced in PCT, PDW and PC (0.16±0.04, 15.84±0.89 and 181.45±43.62) and significant high in MPV and MPD (9.36±1.05 and (418.80±554.40) against that of asymptomatic malaria subject (p˂0.05). The mean MPV was significantly increased in 6-10 and 11-15 years (9.35±0.90 and 9.81±1.16) when compared with 0-5 years (8.60±0.62) age range symptomatic malaria subject groups while mean PC was significantly decrease in 6-10 and 11-15 years (172.14±35.52 and 181.55±48.49) when compared to 0-5 years (204.36±36.92) age range groups. A moderate positive significant correlation between PCT versus MPV (r=0.327) while PC versus PCT shows a strong (r=0.895) positive significant correlation (p˂0.05).Conclusions: There is significant increase MPD and MPV, decrease PC, PCT and PDW in the symptomatic group compared to the asymptomatic. It is important that platelet indices and platelet count should be included as a routine screening investigation to detect malaria parasite infection and treated accordingly

Raltegravir-intensified initial antiretroviral therapy in advanced HIV disease in Africa : a randomised controlled trial

Funding: REALITY was funded by Joint Global Health Trials Scheme (JGHTS) of the UK Department for International Development (DFID), the Wellcome Trust, and Medical Research Council (MRC) (G1100693). Additional funding support was provided by the PENTA foundation and core support to the MRC Clinical Trials Unit at UCLBACKGROUND: In sub-Saharan Africa, individuals infected with HIV who are severely immunocompromised have high mortality (about 10%) shortly after starting antiretroviral therapy (ART). This group also has the greatest risk of morbidity and mortality associated with immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS), a paradoxical response to successful ART. Integrase inhibitors lead to significantly more rapid declines in HIV viral load (VL) than all other ART classes. We hypothesised that intensifying standard triple-drug ART with the integrase inhibitor, raltegravir, would reduce HIV VL faster and hence reduce early mortality, although this strategy could also risk more IRIS events. METHODS AND FINDINGS: In a 2×2×2 factorial open-label parallel-group trial, treatment-naive adults, adolescents, and children >5 years old infected with HIV, with cluster of differentiation 4 (CD4) 0.7) and despite significantly greater VL suppression with raltegravir-intensified ART at 4 weeks (343/836 [41.0%] versus 113/841 [13.4%] with standard ART, p < 0.001) and 12 weeks (567/789 [71.9%] versus 415/803 [51.7%] with standard ART, p < 0.001). Through 48 weeks, there was no evidence of differences in mortality (aHR = 0.98 [95% CI 0.76-1.28], p = 0.91); in serious (aHR = 0.99 [0.81-1.21], p = 0.88), grade-4 (aHR = 0.88 [0.71-1.09], p = 0.29), or ART-modifying (aHR = 0.90 [0.63-1.27], p = 0.54) adverse events (the latter occurring in 59 [6.5%] participants with raltegravir-intensified ART versus 66 [7.3%] with standard ART); in events judged compatible with IRIS (occurring in 89 [9.9%] participants with raltegravir-intensified ART versus 86 [9.5%] with standard ART, p = 0.79) or in hospitalisations (aHR = 0.94 [95% CI 0.76-1.17], p = 0.59). At 12 weeks, one and two raltegravir-intensified participants had predicted intermediate-level and high-level raltegravir resistance, respectively. At 48 weeks, the nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI) mutation K219E/Q (p = 0.004) and the non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI) mutations K101E/P (p = 0.03) and P225H (p = 0.007) were less common in virus from participants with raltegravir-intensified ART, with weak evidence of less intermediate- or high-level resistance to tenofovir (p = 0.06), abacavir (p = 0.08), and rilpivirine (p = 0.07). Limitations of the study include limited clinical, radiological, and/or microbiological information for some participants, reflecting available services at the centres, and lack of baseline genotypes. CONCLUSIONS: Although 12 weeks of raltegravir intensification was well tolerated and reduced HIV viraemia significantly faster than standard triple-drug ART during the time of greatest risk for early death, this strategy did not reduce mortality or clinical events in this group and is not warranted. There was no excess of IRIS-compatible events, suggesting that integrase inhibitors can be used safely as part of standard triple-drug first-line therapy in severely immunocompromised individuals.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Underwater robots with sonar and smart tether for underground cistern mapping and exploration

This paper describes the application of using a submersible remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to map and explore underground water cisterns during a series of expeditions to Malta and Gozo. The purpose of this project was to create maps of ancient cisterns located under private homes, churches, and fortresses where passageways leading to the cisterns are too narrow and dangerous for humans to enter. These cisterns were used as water storage systems for hundreds of years, and many still contained water. The small ROV that was lowered into these cisterns was equipped with a sonar module to enable the creation of maps, two cameras to record live video, a grabber-arm for interacting with objects in the environment, and a Smart Tether to record additional positioning data of the ROV. Each of these components are discussed in terms of functionality and appropriateness for use by archaeologists wishing to explore and extract mapping information from narrow water-filled caverns. Additionally, three different mapping and localization techniques are presented including 1) Sonar image mosaics using stationary sonar scans, 2) Sonar image mosaics using stationary sonar scans with Smart Tether position data, and 3) Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) using stationary sonar scans. Each of the algorithms used in this project have benefits in certain applications. During two expeditions in Malta and Gozo, 2-dimensional maps of 32 cisterns were successfully constructed.peer-reviewe