A new approach for centerline extraction in handwritten strokes: an application to the constitution of a code book

International audienceWe present in this paper a new method of analysis and decomposition of handwritten documents into glyphs (graphemes) and their associated code book. The different techniques that are involved in this paper are inspired by image processing methods in a large sense and mathematical models implying graph coloring. Our approaches provide firstly a rapid and detailed characterization of handwritten shapes based on dynamic tracking of the handwriting (curvature, thickness, direction, etc.) and also a very efficient analysis method for the categorization of basic shapes (graphemes). The tools that we have produced enable paleographers to study quickly and more accurately a large volume of manuscripts and to extract a large number of characteristics that are specific to an individual or an era

An analog of Hardy’s theorem for the second Hankel-Clifford transformation

In this paper, we generalize theorem of Hardy for the second Hankel-Clifford transform

Midwater fish data report for warm-core Gulf Stream rings cruises 1981-1982

This data report is for midwater fishes collected during the multidisciplinary Warm-Core Rings Program in 1981 and 1982. Stations were made in and near three warm-core rings on five cruises within a period of 14 months. On Atlantis II cruise 110 (September-October 1981) six stations were made in and around ring 81-D (age two months). Stations were made in the vicinity of ring 82-B on three cruises in 1982--twelve stations during Oceanus 118 (April) when the ring was two months old, 15 stations during Oceanus 121 (June) at age four months, and 19 stations during Oceanus 125 (August) at age 5.5 months. Finally, twelve stations were made in and near meander/ring 82-H (age 0) during Knorr 98 in September/October 1982 (Tables 1-10). The collections were made with a new midwater trawl - the MOCNESS-20 (MOC-20) (Wiebe et al., 1985), a scaled-up version of the MOCNESS-1 (an apparatus for collecting zooplankton; Wiebe et al., 1976) and successor to the MOCNESS-10 (like the MOC-20, a midwater trawl). (The number forming the distinctive part of the name of these nets is equal to the area of the projected mouth in square meters when the apparatus is in a common fishing attitude.) The MOC-20 consists of a set of 3-mm mesh rectangular nets that can be opened and closed by command from the surface via a signal-conducting towing warp. Apparatus attached to the net frame measures and transmits depth, temperature, conductivity, flow, and net-frame angle to the towing ship's laboratory. Flow (net speed), vertical velocity, and net-frame angle allow computation of the water volume filtered . On the WCR cruises a set of five or six nets was used. One net (not used for quantitative analyses) was fished down to 1000 m, then closed and a second net opened. The second and successive nets were closed and opened sequentially at intervals as the apparatus was brought back to the surface. A surface-to-surface cycle with the gear is referred to as a station, the contents of a single net as a collection. In addition to be1ng described by latitude and longitude, stat1ons are located in the same radial coordinate system used to composite the warm-core rings physical data, that is, by distance and bearing from the moving ring center.Funding was provided by the National Scten.ce Foundation under Grant Numbers OCE 80-17270 and OCE 86-20402

Long-Term Earth-Moon Evolution With High-Level Orbit and Ocean Tide Models

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/171054/1/jgr_2021_daheretal_earthmoonhistory.pdfDescription of jgr_2021_daheretal_earthmoonhistory.pdf : Main articleSEL

Mild guanidinoacetate increase under partial guanidinoacetate methyltransferase deficiency strongly affects brain cell development.

Among cerebral creatine deficiency syndromes, guanidinoacetate methyltransferase (GAMT) deficiency can present the most severe symptoms, and is characterized by neurocognitive dysfunction due to creatine deficiency and accumulation of guanidinoacetate in the brain. So far, every patient was found with negligible GAMT activity. However, GAMT deficiency is thought under-diagnosed, in particular due to unforeseen mutations allowing sufficient residual activity avoiding creatine deficiency, but enough guanidinoacetate accumulation to be toxic. With poorly known GAA-specific neuropathological mechanisms, we developed an RNAi-induced partial GAMT deficiency in organotypic rat brain cell cultures. As expected, the 85% decrease of GAMT protein was insufficient to cause creatine deficiency, but generated guanidinoacetate accumulation causing axonal hypersprouting and decrease in natural apoptosis, followed by induction of non-apoptotic cell death. Specific guanidinoacetate-induced effects were completely prevented by creatine co-treatment. We show that guanidinoacetate accumulation without creatine deficiency is sufficient to affect CNS development, and suggest that additional partial GAMT deficiencies, which may not show the classical brain creatine deficiency, may be discovered through guanidinoacetate measurement

Key geological characteristics of the Saida-Tyr Platform along the eastern margin of the Levant Basin, offshore Lebanon:implications for hydrocarbon exploration

More than 60 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of natural gas have been recently discovered in the Levant Basin (eastern Mediterranean region) offshore Cyprus, Egypt and Israel, Palestine. Un-explored areas, such as the Lebanese offshore, may yield additional discoveries. This contribution focuses the Saida-Tyr Platform (STP), an offshore geological feature adjacent to the southern Lebanese coastline – part of the eastern margin of the Levant Basin. First, an extensive synthesis of recent published research work, tackling crustal modeling, structural geology and stratigraphy will be presented. Then, a new local crustal model and the interpretation of seismic reflection specifically on the STP are discussed and emplaced in the context of the upcoming petroleum exploration activities in this region. Characteristic structural features form the limits of the STP which is believed to be an extension of the Arabian continent into the Levant Basin. Its westernmost limit consists of the extension of the crustal interface, previously termed “hinge zone”, where major plate-scale deformations are preferentially localized. The northward extension of this “hinge zone” beyond the STP can be mapped by means of major similar deformation structures (i.e. S-N-trending anticlines) and can be associated to the Levant Fracture System (LFS) – the northwestern border of the Arabian plate. The northern limit of the STP (i.e. the Saida Fault) is a typical E-W, presently active, structure that is inherited from an older, deeply rooted regional fault system, extending eastward throughout the Palmyra Basin. The STP is characterized by a variety of potential plays for hydrocarbon exploration. Jurassic and Cretaceous clastics and carbonates are believed to include reservoir plays, which could have been charged by deeper Mesozoic source rocks, and sealed by Upper Cretaceous marly layers. The edge of the Cretaceous carbonate platforms and potential carbonate buildups are well recognizable on seismic reflection profiles. The western and northern anticlinal structures bordering the STP are excellent targets for Oligo-Miocene biogenic gas charging systems. Based on integrating geodynamics, tectono-stratigraphic interpretations and petroleum systems analyses, such plays are well constrained and the exploration risk is therefore lowered

Distribution of calling blue, fin, and humpback whales in the North Pacific

May also be cited as: WHOI-00-12The seasonal distribution of calling ble whales (Balaenoptera musculus), fin whales (B. physalus), and singing humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) has been analyzed from acoustic data recorded by the U.S. Navy Sound Surveillance System (SOSUS) and other hydrophone arrays in the North Pacific. The data from ten arrays were selected as representative of four Regions along the continental margins, labeled Northwest (NW), NorthCentral (NC), Northeast (NE), and Southeast (SE). The call data indicate that there is a substantial population of blue whales scattered over the North Pacific and concentrated during the Fall season in the NW and NC Regions. Blue whale calls are recorded in all seasons, particularly in these NW and NC Regions. Fin whales are found in groups but also in relatively large numbers in all Regions, with most calling in the Winter season and in the NC Region, while calling is absent in most Regions during Summer. Fin whale calling includes "F" calls from individuals heard in all seasons and "J" calls from too many whales to separate, particularly prominent in the winter reproductive season. Humpback singing is recorded most in the both the NC and SE Regions between the 1996-1997 and 1998-2000 periods.Funding was provided by the Office of Naval Research under Contract No. N00014-96-1-1130 CNO-N45 Environmental Program and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (DCA87-00/H-0026) with funds from the Department of Defense Legacy Reseource Management Program

Islamic Banks’ Capital Buffers: Unique Risk Exposures and the Disciplining Effects of Charter Values

In the aftermath of the recent financial crisis, the inherent linkages between banks’ capital buffers and risk took center stage as policy makers promoted a more resilient global banking system. The growing recognition of Islamic banking as a viable alternative-banking model warrants the need to investigate the overall susceptibilities of Islamic banks’ capital buffers to unique risks emanating from their operating environments. We examine this issue over the period 2005-2012 in the 18 countries where Islamic and conventional commercial banks coexist. We employ a panel model using dynamic Generalized Methods of Moments (GMM) on a data set comprising 128 commercial banks of which 44 are Islamic commercial banks. The search for alternative forms of prudential regulation over and above risk based capital guidelines has also shifted the attention of policy makers towards investigating the disciplining effects of banks’ charter values on capital buffers. We test this issue for Islamic banks, and whether the relationship varies as a function of the size of the charter as implied by theory. We employ the cross-section threshold approach suggested by Hansen (2000) for 101 publicly listed commercial banks in the same countries. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first attempt to examine empirically the aforementioned issues for Islamic banks. This study is expected to expose shortcomings in capital adequacy guidelines and raises distinct policy implications with regards to the regulation and supervision of Islamic banks in countries where both bank types co-exist