Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A concept for automated construction progress monitoring using BIM-based geometric constraints and photogrammetric point clouds

On-site progress monitoring is essential for keeping track of the ongoing work on construction sites. Currently, this task is a manual, time-consuming activity. The research presented here, describes a concept for an automated comparison of the actual state of construction with the planned state for the early detection of deviations in the construction process. The actual state of the construction site is detected by photogrammetric surveys. From these recordings, dense point clouds are generated by the fusion of disparity maps created with semi-global-matching (SGM). These are matched against the target state provided by a 4D Building Information Model (BIM). For matching the point cloud and the BIM, the distances between individual points of the cloud and a componentOs surface are aggregated using a regular cell grid. For each cell, the degree of coverage is determined. Based on this, a confidence value is computed which serves as basis for the existence decision concerning the respective component. Additionally, process- and dependency-relations are included to further enhance the detection process. Experimental results from a real-world case study are presented and discussed.
Conditioning and associative learning.

This is rightly regarded as the last word in lea~=iing theory but, as Mackintosh emphasizes on p. 2, lee/rning theory of this particular kind 'no "anger occupies the exalted position it once held among the various fields of psychology'. The the-o~y applies most directly to rats and pigeons re-,. eiving signal-reinforcer pairings in Skinner boxes (co.,a.(titioned emotional response procedures for rats; autoshaping for pigeons): in the preface Mackintosh notes that he has 'eschewed discussion' of anything directly concerned with schedules of reinforcement , and said little or nothing about naturalistic topics such as imprinting, song learning , navigation or intelligence in animal species. That is because the theoretical aim of the book is to establish certain laws of association which make up "one possible view of the nature of condition-ing'. One cannot do justice to this view briefly, but Mackintosh first adopts a version of two-factor theory, that is he accepts an operational and functional distinction between classical and instrumental conditioning (p. 41); then he advocates a stimulus-substi~r.ution theory of c! assical conditioning , in which a CS elicits responses by activating a representation of a UCS, but only according to its own sensory properties (pp. 68-70); puts forward a '! 'oimamai~ ,. h~ory of instrumental conditioning, in which an animal must infer from previous associations between lever pressing and food that it might be a good idea to press the lever again (pp. 110-112); argues for the theoretical symmetry of re~ard and pmfishment (pp. 126-131); just about (I think) accepts the two-iactor tileory of avoidance learning (pp. 155-170); discusses various laws of association in terms of the adequacy or otherwise of the Rescoda-Wagner single-equation model (pp. 171-239); and in a final short chapter sets off the phenomena of discrimination learning as calling upon processes 'not normally studied in simple conditioning experiments' (p. 273) and 'outside the scope of standard theories of condi-tioning' (p. 271). l? y comparison with his enormously ~uccessful The Psychology of Animal Learning, Maekintosh's present book is theoretically tighter and more succinct. The major theoretical change seems to me to be a slight firming up of the classical/instrumental distinction. Within the areas covered, Macldntosh is so encyclopaedically knowledgeable, and au fait with the merits and failings of all conceivable theoretical positions, as to be quite abc~vc criticism. One can only lament, for the purposes of this journal, that the learning theories of the present Cambridge school make so little contact with …
Adaptive detection for shared-spectrum multistatic radar in Gaussian clutter

This paper addresses the target detecting problem of the shared-spectrum multistatic radar. All of the transmitters emit the same waveforms in the same spectrum in this radar system. By widely separating the platforms of the shared-spectrum radars and adopting the temporal diversity of transmitter-receiver pairs, the spatial diversity is exploited to improve the detection performance. The signal model and the hypothesis test model are presented. A detector based on general likelihood ratio test (GLRT) criterion is derived. Simulation results show the advantages of the derived adaptive detector.
Outcome of molar pregnancies in Malaysia: A tertiary centre experience

Gestational trophoblastic disease (GTD) is a common problem among Asian ethnics. A total of 102 women with molar pregnancies between 1 January 2005 and 31 December 2010, were analysed. The aim of the study was to determine the outcome of all molar pregnancies in our institution. The local incidence of molar pregnancy was 2.6 per 1,000 deliveries. A total of 48 women (47.1%) had complete hydatidiform mole and another 54 (52.9%) had partial mole. The mean age of the women with molar pregnancies was 32.0 ± 7.9 years. The mean gestational age at initial diagnosis was 11 weeks ± 3 days. The majority (97 women, 95.1%) had symptoms of vaginal bleeding and 18 (17.6%) women had a uterus larger than dates. A total of 48 (47.1%) women had ultrasound scan findings of ‘snow-storm’ appearance. None of the women with uncomplicated molar pregnancy had evidence of relapse following one undetectable serum β-hCG level. Four out of the 102 women (3.9%) developed persistent trophoblastic disease before attaining one undetectable serum β-hCG level. All four women required single agent methotrexate and they remained in remission. The prognosis for uncomplicated molar pregnancy is good. Establishment of a National Trophoblastic Centre is recommended to maintain optimal outcome.
SKIN ARGINASE ACTIVITY AS A MEASURE OF SKIN CHANGE UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF SOME ALKANES AND ALKENES *

SUMMARY. — Guinea‐pig epidermal soluble arginase has been shown to be increased by topical application of some linear and branched alkanes and alkenes and, although the response is related to the carbon chain size, the response does not always quantitatively reflect change in epidermis/dermis ratios. It is suggested that skin arginase activity will provide a measurable index of epidermal change due to non‐cyclic aliphatic hydrocarbons.
Eccentric contraction-induced injury in normal and hindlimb-suspended mouse soleus and EDL muscles.

The primary objective of this study was to compare the magnitude of injury in mouse extensor digitorum longus (EDL) and soleus muscles induced by high-force eccentric contractions. A second objective was to study the effect of altering the daily loading of the muscles through hindlimb suspension (HS) on the injury. One of two protocols was performed in vitro: 1) 15 eccentric contractions (n = 20: 10 EDL and 10 soleus muscles) or 2) 15 isometric contractions (n = 20: 10 EDL and 10 soleus muscles). After the protocol, the decrements in contractile performance and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release were measured at 15-min intervals over 1 h. Immediately after the eccentric contraction protocol, markedly greater decrements in maximal isometric tetanic force (Po) occurred in the normal EDL than in the normal soleus muscles (60.7 +/- 4.2 vs. 7.6 +/- 2.1%, P < or = 0.0001). LDH release immediately after the eccentric contraction protocol was 2.7-fold greater in the normal EDL than in the normal soleus muscles. To investigate the role of recent loading of the muscles in the injury, EDL (n = 9) and soleus (n = 10) muscles from mice subjected to HS for 14 days performed the eccentric contraction protocol. HS resulted in greater decrements in contractile performance for the soleus muscles (decreases in Po immediately after the protocol for HS and normal soleus muscles were 31.0 +/- 1.8 and 7.6 +/- 2.1%, respectively; P < or = 0.0001) but not for the EDL muscles. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Differential diagnosis of small round cervical lymph nodes: comparison of power Doppler US with contrast-enhanced CT and pathologic results.

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to differentiate reactive small round lymph nodes (SRLNs) from metastases by power Doppler ultrasonography (PD-US) and contrast-enhanced CT (CE-CT). MATERIALS AND METHODS Both PD-US and CE-CT were performed in 99 cervical lymph nodes (LNs) with a maximum diameter of 1.5 cm or smaller and maximum longitudinal/transverse ratio of 1.5 or smaller in 76 patients with head and neck cancer. At pathologic examinations, 45 were reactive and 54 were metastatic LNs. The vascular patterns on PD-US were classified as hilar, avascular, peripheral, and miscellaneous vascular patterns. The enhancement patterns on CE-CT were classified as homogeneous, heterogeneous, and ring enhancement. RESULTS On PD-US, the hilar pattern was more frequently associated with benignancy (91%) and the peripheral, miscellaneous vascular pattern with malignancy (91%). The avascular pattern included both benign (58%) and malignant (42%) LNs. On PD-US, accuracy was 85%. On CE-CT, ring enhancement showed metastasis (100%), and these LNs showed avascular or peripheral patterns on PD-US. On CE-CT, accuracy was 77%. When information on CE-CT results was added to PD-US results, the accuracy rate increased significantly, to 94% (p=0.01). CONCLUSION Vascular patterns evaluated with PD-US and enhancement patterns on CE-CT can characterize SRLNs. For an avascular pattern on PD-US, information on CE-CT results can significantly increase the accuracy of characterization.
Pathways to psychiatric care in South-Verona, Italy

Synopsis This paper compares the pathway to psychiatric care of patients contacting the South-Verona Community Psychiatric Service (CPS) with the pathways described in other countries, using the method of the WHO cross-cultural study of pathways in psychiatric care. One hundred and sixteen South-Verona residents starting new episodes of care were traced and included in the study. The first port of call for 92% of patients was a doctor. More than one-third arrived at the CPS directly, not filtered by other carers. One-third went first to the GP and then straight to the CPS. Both the median total interval since onset of symptoms and the median interval between onset of the problem and first seeking care was 8 weeks. Patients presenting first at the two major ports of call tend to have a quite similar latency period before seeking care. Problems presented are represented mostly by depression and anxiety. The diagnosis of affective disorders occurred in more than half of the sample, followed by neurotic and somatoform disorders and schizophrenia and related disorders. The intervals after seeing the first carer are short and quite homogeneous among all patients. More than three-quarters of the patients said that they received some form of treatment for their presenting problems prior to arrival at the CPS, mostly psychopharmacotherapy with sedatives/hypnotics. These results are discussed in the light of those obtained in the WHO cross-cultural study.
For whom does Alcoholics Anonymous work?

A brief summary of the literature to evaluate for whom Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.) is or is not likely to be effective is provided. A description of A.A. is presented. Next, support and criticisms of A.A. , details of who A.A. seems to help and does not seem to help, and alternatives to A.A. are discussed. Finally, recommendations regarding matching clients to supportive treatments are made.
A review of the use of spheno-occipital synchondrosis as an age indicator and its implications for Sri Lanka

A spheno – occipital synchondrosis is a cartilaginous joint, a growth centre found in the base of the skull between the basilar part of the occipital bone and the body of the sphenoid bone joining them together with a hyaline cartilage. This joint is important in cranio facial development for both vertical axis and horizontal plains resulting in the increase of facial height and width. The hyaline cartilage as usual is gradually replaced by bone with age and this very process has been used as a method to estimate the age of an unknown victim in forensic practice.
Haplotype diversity in the human red and green opsin genes: evidence for frequent sequence exchange in exon 3.

We studied polymorphisms in the coding sequences of the human red and green opsin genes of 133 Caucasian males. Eleven polymorphic sites were discovered in the red opsin gene, seven of which were in exon 3, three in exon 4 and one in exon 5. Polymorphisms at 8 of these sites resulted in amino acid substitutions which generated a total of 18 unique red opsins in the population. The substitutions at three (S180A, I230T, and A233S) of the 8 sites involve hydroxyl-bearing to non-polar amino acid residues, and are therefore likely to alter spectral characteristics of the red pigment. Eight polymorphic sites were observed in the green opsin coding sequences, six of which were in exon 3, one in exon 2 and one in exon 5. Five of the eight involved amino acid substitutions which generated 15 unique green opsins in the population. Substitutions at two of these sites involve hydroxyl-bearing vs. non-polar residues. Six polymorphisms, all of which are located in exon 3, are shared between the red and green opsin genes, essentially making it difficult to assign this exon to either of these genes. Markers in exon 3 are in partial linkage disequilibrium with those in exons 4 and 5, whereas the latter two are in strong linkage disequilibrium with each other. Furthermore, markers in the 5' region of exon 3 are also in only partial (54%) disequilibrium with those in the 3' region. The above results strongly suggest a history of frequent gene conversion, mainly localized to exon 3, in the lineages leading to the human red and green opsin genes. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
'You say treatment, I say hard work': treatment burden among people with chronic illness and their carers in Australia.

The aim of this study was to explore treatment burden among people with a variety of chronic conditions and comorbidities and their unpaid carers. The burden of living with ongoing chronic illness has been well established. However, the burden associated with proactively treating and managing chronic illness, commonly referred to as 'treatment burden', is less understood. This study helps to bridge this gap in our understanding by providing an in-depth analysis of qualitative data collected from a large sample of adults from diverse backgrounds and with various chronic conditions. Using semi-structured in-depth interviews, data were collected with a large sample of 97 participants that included a high representation of people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and indigenous populations across four regions of Australia. Interviews were conducted during May-October 2012, either face to face (n = 49) or over the telephone (n = 48) depending on the participant's preference and location. Data were analysed using an iterative thematic approach and the constant comparison method. The findings revealed four interrelated components of treatment burden: financial burden, time and travel burden, medication burden and healthcare access burden. However, financial burden was the most problematic component with the cost of treatment being significant for most people. Financial burden had a detrimental impact on a person's use of medication and also exacerbated other types of burden such as access to healthcare services and the time and travel associated with treatment. The four components of treatment burden operated in a cyclical manner and although treatment burden was objective in some ways (number of medications, and time to access treatment), it was also a subjective experience. Overall, this study underscores the urgent need for healthcare professionals to identify patients overwhelmed by their treatment and develop 'individualised' treatment options to alleviate treatment burden.
LINEAR ACCELERATOR‐BASED STEREOTACTIC RADIOSURGERY FOR BILATERAL VESTIBULAR SCHWANNOMAS IN PATIENTS WITH NEUROFIBROMATOSIS TYPE 2

OBJECTIVEPatients with neurofibromatosis Type 2 (NF2) patients typically have bilateral vestibular schwannomas (VS) and are at risk for developing bilateral deafness, bilateral trigeminal, and bilateral facial nerve function loss. Previous reports suggested that treatment outcomes in these patients are worse compared with those for patients with sporadic solitary VS. Very few reports, however, have been published on linear accelerator-based radiosurgery (RS) and stereotactic radiation therapy (SRT) in patients with NF2. In particular, in patients with NF2 who already have unilateral hearing loss, avoidance of hearing loss on the opposite side poses a challenge for RS and SRT. We studied our treatment results in patients with NF2 with bilateral VS, treated with linear accelerator-based RS and SRT. METHODSIn 204 patients with VS treated with RS or SRT in Amsterdam starting from 1992, we identified 25 patients with NF2 who had bilateral tumors. Indications for treatment were either tumor progression on sequential magnetic resonance imaging scans and/or progressive hearing loss. Mean tumor diameter was 2.5 cm. Stereotactic irradiation was administered to all patients using five noncoplanar arcs with a single isocenter to a dose of 10 to 12.5 Gy in a single fraction or 20 to 25 Gy in five fractions in 1 week prescribed to the 80% isodose encompassing the tumor. On the untreated side, all patients showed hearing loss and eight (32%) had ipsilateral deafness. Five patients were followed for less than 1 year. Of the remaining 20 patients, five had ipsilateral deafness before treatment. Consequently, 15 patients were at risk for treatment-related hearing loss. They showed a mean pure tone average (PTA) of 51 dB (8–112 dB) before treatment. After treatment all patients were assessed at yearly intervals including magnetic resonance imaging and pure tone audiometry. RESULTSMedian follow-up time was 51 months (12–109 mo). Local tumor control was obtained in all 20 patients, and no treatment-related trigeminal or facial nerve toxicity was observed. Hearing status was assessed yearly after treatment. This assessment revealed that the mean PTA in the 15 hearing patients dropped from 51 to 77 dB (40–120 dB). In six patients (40%) the additional PTA loss ranged from 0 to 15 dB, in another six (40%) it ranged from 15 to 45 dB, and in three of these patients (20%), it was more than 45 dB. No additional hearing loss was observed beyond 36 months after treatment. CONCLUSIONIn this largest series in the literature of linear accelerator-based RS and SRT for VS NF2 patients, excellent local control rates were found with minimal facial and trigeminal nerve toxicity. Although more than 40% of the patients retained their hearing level or lost less than 15 dB of PTA on the irradiated side, preservation of hearing remains a major concern.
Mining patterns of orientations and magnitudes for face recognition

Good face recognition system is one which quickly delivers high accurate results to the end user. For this purpose, face representation must be robust, discriminative and also of low computational cost in both terms of time and space. Inspired by recently proposed feature set so-called POEM (Patterns of Oriented Edge Magnitudes) which considers the relationships between edge distributions of different image patches and is argued balancing well the three concerns, this work proposes to further exploit patterns of both orientations and magnitudes for building more efficient algorithm. We first present novel features called Patterns of Dominant Orientations (PDO) which consider the relationships between “dominant” orientations of local image regions at different scales. We also propose to apply the whitened PCA technique upon both the POEM and PDO based representations to get more compact and discriminative face descriptors. We then show that the two methods have complementary strength and that by combining the two descriptors, one obtains stronger results than either of them considered separately. By experiments carried out on several common benchmarks, including both frontal and non-frontal FERET as well as the AR datasets, we prove that our approach is more efficient than contemporary ones.
Electrophysiological Studies in the Denervated Transplanted Human Heart: Response to Atrial Pacing and Atropine

To date, no studies have documented the conduction characteristics of the atrioventricular conduction system in the transplanted human heart. Three patients who had undergone cardiac transplantation 1–2 years previously formed the basis of this study. All were functional class I symptomatically and had normal hemodynamics and coronary arteriograms at the time of study. Each patient was in sinus rhythm with a normal P-R interval and QRS configuration. None was taking medications known to affect the atrioventricular conduction system. Using the His bundle technique, all were shown to have normal base-line atrium-His bundle (AH) and His bundle-ventricle (HV) conduction times. Recordings were made of both the donor (AD) and the recipient (AR) electrograms. The AD rate was more rapid than the AR rate by an average of 24 beats/min. Right atrial pacing to a rate of 170 beats/min resulted in a progressive lengthening of the AH interval to an average of 205 msec, a result comparable to that in normal patients. At the cessation of rapid pacing, AD recovery time averaged 770 msec, which is normal. The administration of 1–2 mg of atropine increased the AR rate by an average of 28% but did not alter the AD rate; the AH intervals did not change. We conclude that (1) the normal AH intervals at rest and the increased AH intervals during pacing demonstrate the inherent conduction delay imposed by the atrioventricular node independent of autonomic influence, (2) the AD recovery time after overdrive is an inherent property of the AD sinus node, and (3) the absence of change in the AD rate or the AH interval after administration of atropine suggests that parasympathetic reinnervation has not occurred in these patients.
Posttraumatic growth and benefit-finding in lung cancer survivors: The benefit of rural residence?

Rural cancer survivors report more distress than non-rural survivors. Little research has examined whether rural residence might also be linked to positive psychological outcomes. Rural (n = 117) and non-rural (n = 76) lung cancer survivors completed measures of posttraumatic growth, benefit-finding, and distress. Rural survivors reported more posttraumatic growth than urban survivors. There were no differences in benefit-finding. Mediation analyses indicated distress mediated the relationship between rural residence and posttraumatic growth. Findings suggest rural residence might be beneficial with regard to potential for posttraumatic growth among cancer survivors. Consistent with trauma theory, distress mediated the relationship between rural residence and posttraumatic growth.