A TVD Scheme using Roe's Flux and the Ambient Boundary Condition

Details of a second-order accurate TVD scheme using the Roe's Riemann solver is described for the three-dimensional Euler equation. The differential equations are discretized using a finite volume formulation. The ambient boundary condition proposed by us is also explained

The Osher Upwind Scheme and its Application to Cosmic Gas Dynamics

Details of the second order Osher scheme for the multi-dimensional Euler equation are presented. The adopted method to attain the second order of accuracy differs from the existing second order formulation by Osher. The present method is easy to be implemented and can be applied to other first order upwind schemes. Two types of numerical integration forms are coded. One is written in the integral form (cell method), and the other is the usual finite-difference form. Both forms work well and can capture strong shocks without any auxiliary artificial damping. The integration form strictly satisfies the flux conservation even on geometrical singular coordinate lines, which inevitably appear in three dimensional calculations with bodies embedded. Hydrodynamic calculations of the interaction between a stellar wind and an accretion flow are performed to demonstrate the ability of the present method

Numerical Simulations of Axisymmetric Flows in Astrophysics and their Visualization by a Video Movie

Numerical simulations of axisymmetric flow in four different astrophysical situations are performed, and their results are visualized by using a video movie. The situations considered are : 1) an accretion flow on to a gravitating compact object allowing maximum accrection ; 2) a jet formation in a flow past a gravitating rigid sphere ; 3) an interaction between a supersonic wind from a central object and a uniform supersonic incident flow ; 4) a wind bubble formed by spherical supersonic wind. The video tape of VHS/NTSC format is available from the author

Measurement and Evaluation of Finger Tapping Movements Using Log-linearized Gaussian Mixture Networks

This paper proposes a method to quantitatively measure and evaluate finger tapping movements for the assessment of motor function using log-linearized Gaussian mixture networks (LLGMNs). First, finger tapping movements are measured using magnetic sensors, and eleven indices are computed for evaluation. After standardizing these indices based on those of normal subjects, they are input to LLGMNs to assess motor function. Then, motor ability is probabilistically discriminated to determine whether it is normal or not using a classifier combined with the output of multiple LLGMNs based on bagging and entropy. This paper reports on evaluation and discrimination experiments performed on finger tapping movements in 33 Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients and 32 normal elderly subjects. The results showed that the patients could be classified correctly in terms of their impairment status with a high degree of accuracy (average rate: 93.1 ± 3.69%) using 12 LLGMNs, which was about 5% higher than the results obtained using a single LLGMN

Evaluation and Training of Human Finger Tapping Movements

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A CPG synergy model for evaluation of human finger tapping movements

Abstract—This paper proposes the CPG synergy model – a biomimetic rhythm generator model based on central pattern generators (CPGs) and muscle synergy theory to enable evaluation of rhythmic motions with non-stationary characteristics such as human finger tapping movements. The model consists of multiple CPGs to approximate the complex rhythmic movement of humans, and has the potential to allow evaluation of abnormal movements in patients with motor function impairments such as Parkinson’s disease (PD). To verify the validity of the proposed model, comparison experiments were conducted using model parameters (i.e., syn-ergies, weight coefficients and time-shift parameters) extracted from finger tapping movements performed by individuals in a healthy subject group and a PD patient group. The results showed that the number of synergies, the second moment of synergy shapes and the coefficient of variation of maximum weight coefficients show significant differences for each subject group, and indicated that the model could be used to evaluate irregular rhythmic movements as well as regular ones. I

The Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonist Exendin-4 Inhibits Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Osteoclast Formation and Bone Resorption via Inhibition of TNF-α Expression in Macrophages

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists are an effective treatment approach for type 2 diabetes. Recently, anti-inflammatory effects of GLP-1 receptor agonists have also been reported. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induces inflammation and osteoclast formation. In this study, we investigated the effect of exendin-4, a widely used GLP-1 receptor agonist, in LPS-induced osteoclast formation and bone resorption. LPS with or without exendin-4 was administered on mouse calvariae by daily subcutaneous injection. The number of osteoclasts, the ratio of bone resorption pits, and the level of C-terminal cross-linked telopeptide of type I collagen (CTX) were significantly lower in LPS- and exendin-4-coadministered mice than in mice administered with LPS alone. RANKL and TNF-α mRNA expression levels were lower in the exendin-4- and LPS-coadministered group than in the LPS-administered group. Our in vitro results showed no direct effects of exendin-4 on RANKL-induced osteoclast formation, TNF-α-induced osteoclast formation, or LPS-induced RANKL expression in stromal cells. Conversely, TNF-α mRNA expression was inhibited in the exendin-4- and LPS-cotreated macrophages compared with cells treated with LPS alone. These results indicate that the GLP-1 receptor agonist exendin-4 may inhibit LPS-induced osteoclast formation and bone resorption by inhibiting LPS-induced TNF-α production in macrophages

Parkinson\u27s disease showing progressive conduction aphasia

Patients with Parkinson\u27s disease (PD) may develop progressive dementia late in their clinical course. Dementia in PD is mostly related to neuropathological findings of extensive Lewy bodies (LBs), with or without the coexistence of Alzheimer\u27s disease (AD) pathology. Aphasia has been reported in patients with LB diseases with AD pathology; however, there have been no reports of typical PD patients developing progressive aphasia during their clinical course. We describe a female PD patient who later developed progressive conduction aphasia characterized by phonemic paraphasia and disturbance in repetition of short sentences without disturbance in writing or auditory comprehension. No episodes of fluctuations of attention, memory complaints, or planning errors were observed. She experienced episodes of visual hallucination. Her low scores on the Mini-Mental State Examination suggested impairment of orientation and attention, and her scores on Raven\u27s Coloured Progressive Matrices test indicated impaired visuospatial functions. However, her cognitive deficits were not sufficiently severe to impair her daily life. Brain magnetic resonance images revealed atrophy of the left superior temporal gyrus and widening of the left sylvian fissure. [18F]-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography revealed glucose hypometabolism in the left cerebral hemisphere. These findings may be related to conduction aphasia. During the progression of PD lesions, the brainstem LB is assumed to take an upward course, extend to the limbic system, and then extend to the neocortex. Conduction aphasia observed in our patient may be associated with an unusual progression of the LB pathology from the brainstem to the left temporoparietal lobe. © 2011 Springer-Verlag

Hierarchical Cluster and Region of Interest Analyses Based on Mass Spectrometry Imaging of Human Brain Tumours

Imaging mass spectrometry (IMS) has been rarely used to examine specimens of human brain tumours. In the current study, high quality brain tumour samples were selected by tissue observation. Further, IMS analysis was combined with a new hierarchical cluster analysis (IMS-HCA) and region of interest analysis (IMS-ROI). IMS-HCA was successful in creating groups consisting of similar signal distribution images of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and related multiple proteins in primary brain tumours. This clustering data suggested the relation of GFAP and these identified proteins in the brain tumorigenesis. Also, high levels of histone proteins, haemoglobin subunit α, tubulins, and GFAP were identified in a metastatic brain tumour using IMS-ROI. Our results show that IMS-HCA and IMS-ROI are promising techniques for identifying biomarkers using brain tumour samples