A problem of emphasizing features of a surface roughness by means the Discrete Wavelet Transform

When we are interested to the detection of the roughness features by means of the 3D reconstruction, based on photometric stereo techniques, an important problem is the elimination of the brightness variation due to different light conditions which can alter the response. This paper will concentrate on presenting results of a new method for eliminating this problem. Every pixel of a picture gives only one number: the brightness of the corresponding point on the object, whereas the surface orientation is described by a normal vector that has two degrees of freedom. The level of brightness depends on many factors as well as the homogeneity of reflection properties of the material or its physical continuity and the surface smoothness or roughness. In this work we will show how the application of the Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) to the processing of some images, captured on different light conditions, permits to solve the problem of emphasizing roughness features of a metallic surface. Wavelet transforms can model irregular data patterns such as sharp changes, better than the Fourier transforms and standard statistical procedures (e.g., parametric and non-parametric regressions) and provide a multiresolution approximation to the data. Here we propose, also, a non-parametric method, based on the wavelet theory, for the estimation of the threshold level of a gray levels distribution, obtained from the intensity image matrix

Spigelian hernia: a case report and review of the literature

Spigelian hernia is a rare abdominal hernia that occurs through Spigelian aponeurosis. The Authors present a case of Spigelian hernia associated with narrowing of sigmoid colon and diverticular pathology.They also described historical background, surgical anatomy and etiopathogenesis of this hernia. By a remarkable revision of literature, they sum up epidemiology and clinical features of Spigelian hernia. Furthermore, they discuss diagnostic and therapeutic principles

Chemically exfoliated graphene detects NO2 at the ppb level

Abstract The high sensitivity of graphene to the adsorption/desorption of gas molecule, is at the very beginning of its exploitation. This sensitivity relies on the two-dimensional nature of graphene allowing a total exposure of all its atoms to the adsorbing gas molecules, thus providing the greatest sensor area per unit volume. Indeed several technological limits weigh on the synthesis and manipulation of the material for the device fabrication. Herein a simple approach to fabricate conductometric sensors based on chemically exfoliated natural graphite is presented. The devices were tested upon sub-ppm concentrations of NO 2 in environmental conditions and show the ability to detect this toxic gas down to few ppb at room temperature

Le lesioni polipoidi della colecisti: problemi diagnostici e terapeutici

Le lesioni polipoidi della colecisti costituiscono un’entità eterogenea di difficile definizione diagnostica preoperatoria. L’indicazione chirurgica è discutibile ma in alcuni casi obbligatoria . In questo studio abbiamo analizzato i dati clinici relativi a 25 pazienti sottoposti consecutivamente a colecistectomia laparoscopica per formazioni polipoidi. Ciò al fine di evidenziare la possibile correlazione fra aspetto ecografico e valutazione istopatologica e di definire l’indicazione terapeutica

Use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) in cancer patients. An italian multicenter survey

INTRODUCTION: Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) include a wide range of products (herbs, vitamins, minerals, and probiotics) and medical practices, developed outside of the mainstream Western medicine. Patients with cancer are more likely to resort to CAM first or then in their disease history; the potential side effects as well as the costs of such practices are largely underestimated. PATIENTS AND METHOD: We conducted a descriptive survey in five Italian hospitals involving 468 patients with different malignancies. The survey consisted of a forty-two question questionnaire, patients were eligible if they were Italian-speaking and receiving an anticancer treatment at the time of the survey or had received an anticancer treatment no more than three years before participating in the survey. RESULTS: Of our patients, 48.9% said they use or have recently used CAM. The univariate analysis showed that female gender, high education, receiving treatment in a highly specialized institute and receiving chemotherapy are associated with CAM use; at the multivariate analysis high education (Odds Ratio, (OR): 1.96 95% Confidence Interval, CI, 1.27-3.05) and receiving treatment in a specialized cancer center (OR: 2.75 95% CI, 1.53-4.94) were confirmed as risk factors for CAM use. CONCLUSION: Roughly half of our patients receiving treatment for cancer use CAM. It is necessary that health professional explore the use of CAM with their cancer patients, educate them about potentially beneficial therapies in light of the limited available evidence of effectiveness, and work towards an integrated model of health-care provision

intermittent or continuous panitumumab pan plus folfiri for first line treatment of patients pts with ras braf wild type wt metastatic colorectal cancer mcrc a randomized phase ii trial improve

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Investigation of Dark Counts in Innovative Materials for Superconducting Nanowire Single-photon Detector Applications

The phenomenon of dark counts in nanostripes of different superconductor systems such as high-temperature superconducting YBa2Cu3O7-x and superconductor/ferromagnet hybrids consisting of either NbN/NiCu or YBa2Cu3O7- x/L0.7Sr0.3MnO3 bilayers have been investigated. For NbN/NiCu the rate of dark-count transients have been reduced with respect to pure NbN nanostripes and the events were dominated by a single vortex entry from the edge of the stripe. In the case of nanostripes based on YBa2Cu3O7-x, we have found that thermal activation of vortices was also, apparently, responsible for triggering dark-count signals