Influences of Block Play on Academic Learning in Preschool

Preschool classrooms often include free play time during the school day. Many studies have been conducted on the common sociodramatic play center, yet less research has observed the importance of block play. However, the block play center can be used to foster literacy and mathematics skills. Similar to other play centers, block play is a social phenomenon where students can develop language skills and vocabulary. Early math skills are supported as students count, sort, classify, and identify blocks. Students must also use spatial awareness and language to place blocks. Furthermore, preschoolers must problem solve and use logical and creative thinking to strengthen block structures. Finally, blocks are representational in that they serve as symbols. By understanding symbolic representation, students are learning that an object or idea can stand for something else, similar to written words. It is important for preschool teachers to develop a strong block play center where students can participate in sustained block play in order to foster reading literacy and mathematics skills

Towards accessible content creation of real world objects for virtual environments

3D reconstruction is the general problem of creating 3D models from real world objects. In today\u27s movie and games industry,there is an increasing demand for using real world content as assets in production. In general, however, 3D reconstruction is achallenging problem, and current techniques only allow for production-ready results given a combination of expensive equipment andspecific expertise.This thesis is a collection of three papers that address various aspects of this general problem of 3D reconstruction,with the aim of lowering the bar for making usable real world content.In Paper I, we address the problem of storing and streaming time varying geometry for e.g.\ free-viewpoint video, whichotherwise has too high bandwidth requirements to be streamed efficiently. We use a memory-efficient structure based on compressedvoxels to store the data, in which we can send only incremental updates to the geometry in each frame.In Paper II, we implement an end-to-end real-time pipeline for free-viewpoint video communication.The pipeline uses a set of ordinary webcams as input and do all processing on a single desktop computer. Even with theselimitations, we show that we can produce free-viewpoint video with agreeable quality in real-time.Paper III addresses the problem of accessible and accurate modeling of static real-world objects.Given a set of calibrated input images, we have developed an interactive tool that makes 3D reconstruction with multi-view stereo moreaccessible. This interactive reconstruction has several advantages over automatic 3D scanning, since we obtain correct topology by designas well as information about visibility and foreground segmentation

Neutrophil-induced endothelial barrier dysfunction in acute inflammation : mechanisms and therapeutic strategies

The acute inflammatory response is characterized by recruitment of leukocytes and increased vascular permeability, resulting in the cardinal signs of inflammation; redness, heat, swelling, pain and loss of function. Permeability changes of the vascular wall are important in functional immune responses and host defense. On the other hand, derangement of the vascular barrier is a principal cause for plasma leakage and edema formation in severe disease states such as sepsis, substantially accounting for high morbidity and mortality by contributing to organ dysfunction and circulatory failure. Neutrophil granulocytes, a subtype of leukocytes, are first on sight in the acute inflammatory response where they adhere to, and migrate through, a monolayer of endothelial cells that constitute the innermost layer of the vascular wall. Neutrophil-derived proteins, released from activated neutrophils, cause endothelial barrier disruption via partly unknown mechanisms. Since neutrophil activation and degranulation are considered central in the pathogenesis of acute inflammatory disease states, and novel treatment strategies are sought after, this thesis work aimed to further expand our understanding of mechanisms regulating neutrophil-evoked alterations of the endothelial barrier. In paper I, the role of the kallikrein-kinin system (KKS) in neutrophil- induced vascular leakage was investigated. The KKS is a pro-inflammatory protein complex found in plasma that is responsible for formation of bradykinin (BK), a known inducer of vascular hyperpermeability via binding of bradykinin receptors on endothelial cells. In three different in vivo models of acute inflammation in two different species, we found that inhibition of KKS attenuated neutrophil-mediated plasma leakage. Further, in vitro studies with isolated human neutrophils and endothelial cells showed that factors secreted from activated neutrophils caused BK-mediated endothelial barrier disruption, and that neutrophil-derived heparin-binding protein facilitated KKS activation caused by neutrophil granule proteases. In paper II, we investigated the therapeutic potential and mode of action of the heparin derivative sevuparin in neutrophil-mediated vascular leak caused by group A Streptococcus. In vivo and in vitro studies showed that sevuparin attenuated endothelial barrier disruption and lung plasma leakage by neutralizing neutrophil-derived proteins. Affinity chromatography and mass spectrometry were utilized to identify proteins targeted by sevuparin, confirming the previously established disruptive role of several neutrophil- derived proteins on endothelial barrier function. In paper III, we tested the hypothesis that platelet-derived polyphosphates (polyP) activate neutrophils, and investigated polyP as a potential therapeutic target in acute inflammation. During inflammation, interaction of activated platelets with neutrophils results in neutrophil activation. Also, platelets are known to release polyP that have been attributed roles in both inflammation and coagulation. We found in vitro that polyP induced neutrophil degranulation and in vivo that systemic administration of polyP caused lung plasma leakage in a neutrophil-dependent manner. Furthermore, inhibition of polyP decreased lung plasma leakage in a mouse model of acute systemic inflammation induced by group A Streptococcus. In paper IV, we set out to investigate the effect of phenylbutyrate (PBA), a short-chain fatty acid suggested to have immunomodulatory properties, on the inflammatory response in a mouse model of pneumonia with Pseudomonas aeruginosa. PBA treatment altered the kinetics of neutrophil recruitment in lungs in response to P. aeruginosa resulting in enhanced initial mobilization of neutrophils followed by a more rapid decline in cell recruitment compared to no treatment. Coincident with the decline in cell recruitment, lung edema and protein leakage was reduced. In vitro, PBA was found to promote release of neutrophil chemotactic factors from lung epithelium. In conclusion, this thesis work provides new insights into mechanisms regulating endothelial barrier function in neutrophilic inflammation and suggests potential therapeutic strategies

Tests of Methods that Control Round-Off Error

Methods of controlling round-off error in one-step methods in the numerical solution of ordinary differential equations are compared. A new Algorithm called theoretical cumulative rounding is formulated. Round-off error bounds are obtained for single precision, and theoretical cumulative rounding. Limits of these bounds are obtained as the step length approaches zero. It is shown that the limit of the bound on the round-off error is unbounded for single precision and double precision, is constant for theoretical partial double precision, and is zero for theoretical cumulative rounding. The limits of round-off bounds are not obtainable in actual practice. The round-off error increases for single precision, remains about constant for partial double precision and decreases for cumulative rounding as the step length decreases. Several examples are included. (34 pages

Primary Pericardial Mesothelioma: Report of a Patient and Literature Review

Primary mesothelioma of the pericardium is a rare tumor and carries a dismal prognosis. This case report presents a 38-year-old man who suffered from recurrent pericardial fluid. Initial symptoms were unspecific, with dry cough and progressing fatigue. Pericardiocentesis was performed, but analyses for malignant cells and tuberculosis were negative. After recurrence a pericardiectomy was planned. At operation, partial resection of tumor tissue surrounding the heart was performed. Histopathologic examination including immunohistochemical staining for calretinin showed a biphasic mesothelioma. During the postoperative period the patient's condition ameliorated, but symptoms recurred and the patient died 3 months after diagnosis and 15 months after the first symptoms. At autopsy, the pericardium was transformed by the tumor that also expanded into the mediastinum and had set metastases to the liver. A review of 29 cases presented in the recent literature indicates a higher incidence of malignant pericardial mesothelioma among men than women. Median age was 46 (range, 19–76) years. In pleural mesotheliomas, exposure to asbestos is a known risk factor. However, in primary pericardial mesotheliomas the evidence for asbestos as an etiologic factor seems to be less convincing (3 exposed among 14 cases). Symptoms are often unspecific and cytologic examination of pericardial fluid is seldom conclusive (malignant cells demonstrated in 4/17 cases). Partial resection of the tumor can give a period of symptom reduction. Only a few patients have been treated with chemotherapy. Median survival of patients with pericardial mesotheliomas is approximately 6 months

Automatic Test Methods for Image and Video Verification

In this thesis four methods for automatic verification of images and video on mobile platforms are developed. Both the case of recording images and video and the case of viewing images and video on the mobile lcd screen are considered. The first method is used to test the zoom function of the camera. It uses SURF decriptors along with clustering and histograms to determine which of six discrete zoom levels the current frame belongs to. The second method identifies color effects and color anomalies using histograms. The third method determines if the autofocus works correctly by measuring the average length of edges in the image. The fourth method is an artifact detection scheme using a non-reference implementation of the SSIM metric, used in conjunction with a for this purpose specially designed test setup. Together these methods form a tool kit for detecting the mnost common errors to occur in images and video during the development stage of mobile platforms

(Solid plus liquid) solubility of organic compounds in organic solvents - correlation and extrapolation

peer-reviewedA semi-empirical model is developed for the regression of (solid + liquid) solubility data with temperature. The model fulfils the required boundary conditions, allowing for robust extrapolation to higher and lower temperatures. The model combines a representation of the solid-state activity which accommodates a temperature-dependent heat capacity difference contribution with a scaled three-parameter Weibull function representing the temperature dependence of the solution activity coefficient at equilibrium. Evaluation of the model is based on previously published experimental calorimetric and solubility data of four organic compounds, fenoxycarb, fenofibrate, risperidone and butyl paraben, in five common organic solvents, methanol, ethyl acetate, acetone, acetonitrile, and toluene. The temperature dependence of the van't Hoff enthalpy of solution and its components is analysed and discussed. Among the four compounds the influence of temperature on the enthalpy of fusion varies from moderate to substantial. Based on the semi-empirical model, a new equation containing three adjustable parameters is proposed for regression and extrapolation of solubility data for cases when only melting data and solubility data is available. The equation is shown to provide good accuracy and robustness when evaluated against the full semi-empirical model as well as against commonly used, more simple empirical equations. It is shown how such a model can be used to obtain an estimate of the heat capacity difference for cases where accurate solubility data is available in multiple solvents. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.ACCEPTEDpeer-reviewe

PERF: Performant, Explicit Radiance Fields

We present a novel way of approaching image-based 3D reconstruction based on radiance fields. The problem of volumetric reconstruction is formulated as a non-linear least-squares problem and solved explicitly without the use of neural networks. This enables the use of solvers with a higher rate of convergence than what is typically used for neural networks, and fewer iterations are required until convergence. The volume is represented using a grid of voxels, with the scene surrounded by a hierarchy of environment maps. This makes it possible to get clean reconstructions of 360\ub0 scenes where the foreground and background is separated. A number of synthetic and real scenes from well-known benchmark-suites are successfully reconstructed with quality on par with state-of-the-art methods, but at significantly reduced reconstruction times

A low-cost, practical acquisition and rendering pipeline for real-time free-viewpoint video communication

We present a semiautomatic real-time pipeline for capturing and rendering free-viewpoint video using passive stereo matching. The pipeline is simple and achieves agreeable quality in real time on a system of commodity web cameras and a single desktop computer. We suggest an automatic algorithm to compute a constrained search space for an efficient and robust hierarchical stereo reconstruction algorithm. Due to our fast reconstruction times, we can eliminate the need for an expensive global surface reconstruction with a combination of high coverage and aggressive filtering. Finally, we employ a novel color weighting scheme that generates credible new viewpoints without noticeable seams, while keeping the computational complexity low. The simplicity and low cost of the system make it an accessible and more practical alternative for many applications compared to previous methods