Bose-Einstein Correlations in Multihadron Events at LEP

Bose-Einstein correlations in pairs of identical particles were analyzed in e+ e- multihadron annihilations at ~91.2 GeV at LEP. The first studies involved identical charged pions and the emitting source size was determined. Then the study of charged kaons suggested that the radius depends on the mass of the emitted particles. Subsequenty the dependence of the source radius on the event multiplicity was analyzed. The study of the correlations in neutral pions and neutral kaons extended these concepts to neutral particles. The shape of the source was analyzed in 3 dimensions and was found not to be spherically symmetric. In recent studies at LEP the correlations were analyzed in intervals of the average pair transverse momentum and of the pair rapidity to study the correlations between the pion production points and their momenta (position-momentum correlations). The latest e+ e- data are consistent with an expanding source.Comment: 8 pages, 10 eps figures. Invited paper at the ``Ninth Workshop on Non Perturbative QCD'', Institut d'Astrophysique de Paris, Paris, France, 4-8 June 200

IORT with mobile linacs: the Italian experience

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A fast - Monte Carlo toolkit on GPU for treatment plan dose recalculation in proton therapy

In the context of the particle therapy a crucial role is played by Treatment Planning Systems (TPSs), tools aimed to compute and optimize the tratment plan. Nowadays one of the major issues related to the TPS in particle therapy is the large CPU time needed. We developed a software toolkit (FRED) for reducing dose recalculation time by exploiting Graphics Processing Units (GPU) hardware. Thanks to their high parallelization capability, GPUs significantly reduce the computation time, up to factor 100 respect to a standard CPU running software. The transport of proton beams in the patient is accurately described through Monte Carlo methods. Physical processes reproduced are: Multiple Coulomb Scattering, energy straggling and nuclear interactions of protons with the main nuclei composing the biological tissues. FRED toolkit does not rely on the water equivalent translation of tissues, but exploits the Computed Tomography anatomical information by reconstructing and simulating the atomic composition of each crossed tissue. FRED can be used as an efficient tool for dose recalculation, on the day of the treatment. In fact it can provide in about one minute on standard hardware the dose map obtained combining the treatment plan, earlier computed by the TPS, and the current patient anatomic arrangement

Ontology-Driven Food Category Classification in Images

The self-management of chronic diseases related to dietary habits includes the necessity of tracking what people eat. Most of the approaches proposed in the literature classify food pictures by labels describing the whole recipe. The main drawback of this kind of strategy is that a wrong prediction of the recipe leads to a wrong prediction of any ingredient of such a recipe. In this paper we present a multi-label food classification approach, exploiting deep neural networks, where each food picture is classified with labels describing the food categories of the ingredients in each recipe. The aim of our approach is to support the detection of food categories in order to detect which one might be dangerous for a user affected by chronic disease. Our approach relies on background knowledge where recipes, food categories, and their relatedness with chronic diseases are modeled within a state-of-the-art ontology. Experiments conducted on a new publicly released dataset demonstrated the effectiveness of the proposed approach with respect to state-of-the-art classification strategies

User study on 3D multitouch interaction (3DMi) and gaze on surface computing

On a multitouch table, user’s interactions with 3D virtual representations of real objects should be influenced by task and their perceived physical characteristics. This article explores the development and user study of an interactive 3D application that allows users to explore virtual heritage objects on a surface device. To-date, most multitouch has focused on 2D or 2.5D systems. A user-study is reported where we analyse their multimodal behaviour – specifically how they interact on a surface device with objects that have similar properties to physical versions and the users’ associated gaze patterns with touch. The study reveals that gaze characteristics are different according to their interaction intention in terms of position and duration of visual attention. We discovered that virtual objects afford the perception of haptic attributes ascribed to their equivalent physical objects, and that differences in the summary statistics of gaze showed consistent characteristics between people and differences between natural and task based activities. An awareness of user behaviours using natural gestures can inform the design of interactive 3D applications which complements the user’s model of past experience with physical objects and with GUI interaction

An Update of Eyeglasses-Supported Nasal–Facial Prosthetic Rehabilitation of Cancer Patients with Post-Surgical Complications: A Case Report

Featured Application: This case report aims to describe an update of the digital protocol for the fabrication of a facial prosthesis for those patients who cannot be rehabilitated with plastic surgery because of post-surgical complications after maxillofacial surgery. In detail, it describes the application of the digital protocol to a mid-facial defect. The innovation proposed is oriented to simplify the procedures and reduce the time and cost of the process, aiming to recover the quality of life of inoperable patients. This case report aims to describe novel steps in the digital design/manufacturing of facial prostheses for cancer patients with wide inoperable residual defects, with a focus on a case of a mid-facial defect. A facial scanner was used to make an impression of the post-surgical residual defect and to digitalize it. The daughter’s face scan was used for reconstructing the missing anatomy. Using 3D printing technologies, try-in prototypes were produced in silicone material. The substructure was laser melted. The final prosthesis was relined directly onto the patient’s defect. The prosthesis resulted in a very low weight and a high elasticity of the external margins. The laser-melted substructure ensured the necessary rigidity with minimum thickness

Comparación de los patrones de huellas de mordedura según forma del cráneo, mediante el análisis morfológico y morfométrico de semiarcadas dentarias de perro doméstico (Canis familiaris)

Forensic science involves the participation of professionals from diverse areas. One of which is forensic odontology; often used to establish the identity of a crime victim or perpetrator, estimate chronological age, and identify bite-marks, among others. In Chile, a professional human odontologist must determine if a bite is human or not. In the case it is caused by dogs, normally, experts are not involved in a search for the perpetrator due to the lack of a database and studies that could lead to the identification of the culprit. Due to the increasing incidence of dog bites resulting in litigation proceedings, the aim of this review is to provide background to support the study and development of forensic veterinary odontology which could provide the scientific evidence valid in the indentification of the agresor by means of studying the bite mark.    Las ciencias forenses involucran la participación de diversas de áreas profesionales. Una de ellas es la odontología forense que se utiliza para establecer la identidad de una víctima o victimario, estimación de edad cronológica, huellas de mordida, entre otros. En Chile, son profesionales odontólogos humanos quienes deben definir si una mordedura es humana o no. En caso de ser provocada por perros, normalmente no se realizan peritajes en busca del agresor debido a la inexistencia de una base de datos y estudios que conduzcan a la identificación del ejemplar involucrado. Dado que cada vez y con mayor frecuencia las mordeduras de perros derivan en procesos de litigación, el objetivo de esta revisión es entregar antecedentes que sirvan de soporte para el estudio y desarrollo de la odontología forense veterinaria, permitiendo entregar evidencia científicamente válida para la identificación y posible individualización del agresor mediante el estudio de huellas de mordeduras.  

2D vs. 3D pain visualization: User preferences in a spinal cord injury cohort

This is the post-print version of the Article. The official published version can be accessed from the link below - Copyright @ 2011 Springer VerlagResearch on pain experienced after Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) has revealed that not only are there several types of pain present in the same individual with this kind of trauma, but also that people who suffer such an injury can describe the characteristics of the same type of pain in different ways. Making it possible, therefore, to more precisely describe pain experience could prove to be vital for an increased quality of life. Accordingly, fifteen individuals with pain after SCI were asked to describe their pain experience using a 3 Dimensional (3D) model of the human body that could be used as an aid in communicating their pain. The results of this study suggest that the consensus of the participants approved the ability of the 3D model to more accurately describe their pain, an encouraging outcome towards the use of 3D technology in support of post SCI pain rehabilitation

Multiple isolated aneurysms in a case of “burned out” Takayasu aortitis

AbstractTakayasu aortitis (TA) is a chronic inflammatory disease predominantly seen in young Asian women. The disease is idiopathic and largely affects the aorta and its major branches. The basic pathologic changes in TA are fibrosis and subsequent occlusion of the large arteries. TA is classically termed “pulseless” disease, with manifestations during the occlusive stage including limb ischemia, renovascular hypertension, and heart failure. Arterial dilation and aneurysm are largely unappreciated manifestations of TA, but they occur in as many as 32% of affected patients. We report chronic “burned out” TA in a 23-year-old Hispanic woman with isolated aneurysms of the descending thoracic aorta, abdominal aorta, and common iliac arteries, without occlusive disease. (J Vasc Surg 2003;37:1094-7.