A forearm controller and tactile display

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2005.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 187-192).This thesis discusses the design and implementation of ARMadillo, a simple virtual environment interface in the form of a small wireless device that is worn on the forearm. Designed to be portable, intuitive, and low cost, the device tracks the orientation of the arm with accelerometers, magnetic field sensors, and gyroscopes, fusing the data with a quaternion based Unscented Kalman Filter. The orientation estimate is mapped to a virtual space that is perceived through a tactile display containing an array of vibrating motors. The controller is driven with an 8051 microcontroller, and includes a BlueTooth module and an extension slot for CompactFlash cards. The device was designed to be simple and modular, and can support a variety of interesting applications, some of which were implemented and will be discussed. These fall into two main classes. The first is a set of artistic applications, represented by a suite of virtual musical instruments that can be played with arm movements and felt through the tactile display, The second class involves utilitarian applications, including a custom Braille-like system called Arm Braille, and tactile guidance. A wearable Braille display intended to be used for reading navigational signs and text messages was tested on two sight-impaired subjects who were able to recognize Braille characters reliably after 25 minutes of training, and read words by the end of an hour.by David Matthew Sachs.S.M

Systematic pathological component scores for skin-containing vascularized composite allografts

Clinical management of skin-containing vascularized composite allografts (VCA) requires accurate assessment of the graft status, typically based on skin biopsies. The Banff 2007 Working Classification proposed 4 grades of acute rejection, but did not score individual features or include vascular rejection. Here we report a systematic scoring system developed from MHC-mismatched porcine skin-containing VCA. Biopsies from 20 VCA, 9 autologous skin flaps and 9 normal skin were analyzed to optimize the methodology and set thresholds. The components quantified were: perivascular cells/dermal vessel (pc), perivascular dermal infiltrate area (pa), luminal leukocytes/capillary or venule (c), epidermal infiltrate (ei), epidermal apoptosis or necrosis (e), endarteritis (v), and chronic allograft vasculopathy (cav). To evaluate prognostic value, we scored a separate group of 28 serial biopsies from 8 recipients (4 that were ultimately accepted and 4 that rejected. Parameters on the initial biopsies predicting later graft rejection included pc (p < 0.02), pa (p < 0.03), ei (p < 0.0005), e (p < 0.003) and c (p < 0.005). Reproducibility between 2 pathologists blinded to clinical data was acceptable, with weighted kappa scores for pc (0.673), pa (0.399), ei (0.464), e (0.663), v (0.766), and c (0.642). This component scoring system can be adapted clinically, since human and porcine skin are highly similar. Vascular lesions in VCA are also highlighted in this system and could impact graft outcome. The component score approach complements Banff 2007 grades and will enable the establishment of clinically significant thresholds

Spacetime Energy Decreases under World-sheet RG Flow

We study renormalization group flows in unitary two dimensional sigma models with asymptotically flat target spaces. Applying an infrared cutoff to the target space, we use the Zamolodchikov c-theorem to demonstrate that the target space ADM energy of the UV fixed point is greater than that of the IR fixed point: spacetime energy decreases under world-sheet RG flow. This result mirrors the well understood decrease of spacetime Bondi energy in the time evolution process of tachyon condensation.Comment: 25 pages, 4 figures, harvma

E-site drug specificity of the human pathogen Candida albicans ribosome

International audienceCandida albicans is a widespread commensal fungus with substantial pathogenic potential and steadily increasing resistance to current antifungal drugs. It is known to be resistant to cycloheximide (CHX) that binds to the E–transfer RNA binding site of the ribosome. Because of lack of structural information, it is neither possible to understand the nature of the resistance nor to develop novel inhibitors. To overcome this issue, we determined the structure of the vacant C. albicans 80 S ribosome at 2.3 angstroms and its complexes with bound inhibitors at resolutions better than 2.9 angstroms using cryo–electron microscopy. Our structures reveal how a change in a conserved amino acid in ribosomal protein eL42 explains CHX resistance in C. albicans and forms a basis for further antifungal drug development

Clinical, cognitive and neuroanatomical associations of serum NMDAR autoantibodies in people at clinical high risk for psychosis

Serum neuronal autoantibodies, such as those to the NMDA receptor (NMDAR), are detectable in a subgroup of patients with psychotic disorders. It is not known if they are present before the onset of psychosis or whether they are associated with particular clinical features or outcomes. In a case-control study, sera from 254 subjects at clinical high risk (CHR) for psychosis and 116 healthy volunteers were tested for antibodies against multiple neuronal antigens implicated in CNS autoimmune disorders, using fixed and live cell-based assays (CBAs). Within the CHR group, the relationship between NMDAR antibodies and symptoms, cognitive function and clinical outcomes over 24 month follow-up was examined. CHR subjects were not more frequently seropositive for neuronal autoantibodies than controls (8.3% vs. 5.2%; OR = 1.50; 95% CI: 0.58-3.90). The NMDAR was the most common target antigen and NMDAR IgGs were more sensitively detected with live versus fixed CBAs (p < 0.001). Preliminary phenotypic analyses revealed that within the CHR sample, the NMDAR antibody seropositive subjects had higher levels of current depression, performed worse on the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Task (p < 0.05), and had a markedly lower IQ (p < 0.01). NMDAR IgGs were not more frequent in subjects who later became psychotic than those who did not. NMDAR antibody serostatus and titre was associated with poorer levels of functioning at follow-up (p < 0.05) and the presence of a neuronal autoantibody was associated with larger amygdala volumes (p < 0.05). Altogether, these findings demonstrate that NMDAR autoantibodies are detectable in a subgroup of CHR subjects at equal rates to controls. In the CHR group, they are associated with affective psychopathology, impairments in verbal memory, and overall cognitive function: these findings are qualitatively and individually similar to core features of autoimmune encephalitis and/or animal models of NMDAR antibody-mediated CNS disease. Overall the current work supports further evaluation of NMDAR autoantibodies as a possible prognostic biomarker and aetiological factor in a subset of people already meeting CHR criteria

The WiggleZ Dark Energy Survey: the transition to large-scale cosmic homogeneity

We have made the largest-volume measurement to date of the transition to large-scale homogeneity in the distribution of galaxies. We use the WiggleZ survey, a spectroscopic survey of over 200,000 blue galaxies in a cosmic volume of ~1 (Gpc/h)^3. A new method of defining the 'homogeneity scale' is presented, which is more robust than methods previously used in the literature, and which can be easily compared between different surveys. Due to the large cosmic depth of WiggleZ (up to z=1) we are able to make the first measurement of the transition to homogeneity over a range of cosmic epochs. The mean number of galaxies N(<r) in spheres of comoving radius r is proportional to r^3 within 1%, or equivalently the fractal dimension of the sample is within 1% of D_2=3, at radii larger than 71 \pm 8 Mpc/h at z~0.2, 70 \pm 5 Mpc/h at z~0.4, 81 \pm 5 Mpc/h at z~0.6, and 75 \pm 4 Mpc/h at z~0.8. We demonstrate the robustness of our results against selection function effects, using a LCDM N-body simulation and a suite of inhomogeneous fractal distributions. The results are in excellent agreement with both the LCDM N-body simulation and an analytical LCDM prediction. We can exclude a fractal distribution with fractal dimension below D_2=2.97 on scales from ~80 Mpc/h up to the largest scales probed by our measurement, ~300 Mpc/h, at 99.99% confidence.Comment: 21 pages, 16 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA

Clinical, cognitive and neuroanatomical associations of serum NMDAR autoantibodies in people at clinical high risk for psychosis

Serum neuronal autoantibodies, such as those to the NMDA receptor (NMDAR), are detectable in a subgroup of patients with psychotic disorders. It is not known if they are present before the onset of psychosis or whether they are associated with particular clinical features or outcomes. In a case–control study, sera from 254 subjects at clinical high risk (CHR) for psychosis and 116 healthy volunteers were tested for antibodies against multiple neuronal antigens implicated in CNS autoimmune disorders, using fixed and live cell-based assays (CBAs). Within the CHR group, the relationship between NMDAR antibodies and symptoms, cognitive function and clinical outcomes over 24 month follow-up was examined. CHR subjects were not more frequently seropositive for neuronal autoantibodies than controls (8.3% vs. 5.2%; OR = 1.50; 95% CI: 0.58–3.90). The NMDAR was the most common target antigen and NMDAR IgGs were more sensitively detected with live versus fixed CBAs (p < 0.001). Preliminary phenotypic analyses revealed that within the CHR sample, the NMDAR antibody seropositive subjects had higher levels of current depression, performed worse on the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Task (p < 0.05), and had a markedly lower IQ (p < 0.01). NMDAR IgGs were not more frequent in subjects who later became psychotic than those who did not. NMDAR antibody serostatus and titre was associated with poorer levels of functioning at follow-up (p < 0.05) and the presence of a neuronal autoantibody was associated with larger amygdala volumes (p < 0.05). Altogether, these findings demonstrate that NMDAR autoantibodies are detectable in a subgroup of CHR subjects at equal rates to controls. In the CHR group, they are associated with affective psychopathology, impairments in verbal memory, and overall cognitive function: these findings are qualitatively and individually similar to core features of autoimmune encephalitis and/or animal models of NMDAR antibody-mediated CNS disease. Overall the current work supports further evaluation of NMDAR autoantibodies as a possible prognostic biomarker and aetiological factor in a subset of people already meeting CHR criteria

Sequencing of \u3ci\u3eAspergillus nidulans\u3c/i\u3e and comparative analysis with \u3ci\u3eA. fumigatus\u3c/i\u3e and \u3ci\u3eA. oryzae\u3c/i\u3e

The aspergilli comprise a diverse group of filamentous fungi spanning over 200 million years of evolution. Here we report the genome sequence of the model organism Aspergillus nidulans, and a comparative study with Aspergillus fumigatus, a serious human pathogen, and Aspergillus oryzae, used in the production of sake, miso, and soy sauce. Our analysis of genome structure provided a quantitative evaluation of forces driving long-term eukaryotic genome evolution. It also led to an experimentally validated model of mating-type locus evolution, suggesting the potential for sexual reproduction in A. fumigatus and A. oryzae. Our analysis of sequence conservation revealed over 5,000 non-coding regions actively conserved across all three species. Within these regions, we identified potential functional elements including a previously uncharacterized TPP riboswitch and motifs suggesting regulation in filamentous fungi by Puf family genes. We further obtained comparative and experimental evidence indicating widespread translational regulation by upstream open reading frames. These results enhance our understanding of these widely studied fungi as well as provide new insight into eukaryotic genome evolution and gene regulation. Document includes all supplementary information (820 pages). Supplementary files are also attached below as Related files. THERE IS NO SUPPLEMENTARY FILE #7. PDF file size (with supplementary files included) is 10 Mbytes. An optimized version of the ARTICLE ONLY is attached as a Related File and is 1.9 Mbytes

Sequencing of \u3ci\u3eAspergillus nidulans\u3c/i\u3e and comparative analysis with \u3ci\u3eA. fumigatus\u3c/i\u3e and \u3ci\u3eA. oryzae\u3c/i\u3e

The aspergilli comprise a diverse group of filamentous fungi spanning over 200 million years of evolution. Here we report the genome sequence of the model organism Aspergillus nidulans, and a comparative study with Aspergillus fumigatus, a serious human pathogen, and Aspergillus oryzae, used in the production of sake, miso, and soy sauce. Our analysis of genome structure provided a quantitative evaluation of forces driving long-term eukaryotic genome evolution. It also led to an experimentally validated model of mating-type locus evolution, suggesting the potential for sexual reproduction in A. fumigatus and A. oryzae. Our analysis of sequence conservation revealed over 5,000 non-coding regions actively conserved across all three species. Within these regions, we identified potential functional elements including a previously uncharacterized TPP riboswitch and motifs suggesting regulation in filamentous fungi by Puf family genes. We further obtained comparative and experimental evidence indicating widespread translational regulation by upstream open reading frames. These results enhance our understanding of these widely studied fungi as well as provide new insight into eukaryotic genome evolution and gene regulation. Document includes all supplementary information (820 pages). Supplementary files are also attached below as Related files. THERE IS NO SUPPLEMENTARY FILE #7. PDF file size (with supplementary files included) is 10 Mbytes. An optimized version of the ARTICLE ONLY is attached as a Related File and is 1.9 Mbytes