bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Experience-dependent homeostasis of ‘noise’ at inhibitory synapses preserves information coding in adult visual cortex
Authors: Gao Ming , Whitt Jessica L. , Huang Shiyong , Lee Angela , Mihalas Stefan , Kirkwood Alfredo , Lee Hey-Kyoung
Published: January 2017

Synapses are intrinsically ‘noisy’ in that neurotransmitter is occasionally released in the absence of an action potential. At inhibitory synapses, the frequency of action potential-independent release is orders of magnitude higher than that at excitatory synapses raising speculations that it may serve a function. Here we report that the frequency of action potential-independent inhibitory synaptic ‘noise’ (i.e. miniature inhibitory postsynaptic currents, mIPSCs) is highly regulated by sensory experience in visual cortex. Importantly, regulation of mIPSC frequency is so far the predominant form of functional plasticity at inhibitory synapses in adults during the refractory period for plasticity and is a locus of rapid non-genomic actions of oestrogen. Models predict that regulating the frequency of mIPSCs, together with the previously characterized synaptic scaling of miniature excitatory PSCs, allows homeostatic maintenance of both the mean and variance of inputs to a neuron, a necessary feature of probabilistic population codes. Furthermore, mIPSC frequency regulation allows preservation of the temporal profile of neural responses while homeostatically regulating the overall firing rate. Our results suggest that the control of inhibitory ‘noise’ allows adaptive maintenance of adult cortical function in tune with the sensory environment.

This article is part of the themed issue ‘Integrating Hebbian and homeostatic plasticity’.
The dialectic of Hebb and homeostasis
Authors: Turrigiano Gina G.
Published: January 2017

It has become widely accepted that homeostatic and Hebbian plasticity mechanisms work hand in glove to refine neural circuit function. Nonetheless, our understanding of how these fundamentally distinct forms of plasticity compliment (and under some circumstances interfere with) each other remains rudimentary. Here, I describe some of the recent progress of the field, as well as some of the deep puzzles that remain. These include unravelling the spatial and temporal scales of different homeostatic and Hebbian mechanisms, determining which aspects of network function are under homeostatic control, and understanding when and how homeostatic and Hebbian mechanisms must be segregated within neural circuits to prevent interference.

This article is part of the themed issue ‘Integrating Hebbian and homeostatic plasticity’.
Gradation (approx. 10 size states) of synaptic strength by quantal addition of structural modules
Authors: Liu Kang K. L. , Hagan Michael F. , Lisman John E.
Published: January 2017

Memory storage involves activity-dependent strengthening of synaptic transmission, a process termed long-term potentiation (LTP). The late phase of LTP is thought to encode long-term memory and involves structural processes that enlarge the synapse. Hence, understanding how synapse size is graded provides fundamental information about the information storage capability of synapses. Recent work using electron microscopy (EM) to quantify synapse dimensions has suggested that synapses may structurally encode as many as 26 functionally distinct states, which correspond to a series of proportionally spaced synapse sizes. Other recent evidence using super-resolution microscopy has revealed that synapses are composed of stereotyped nanoclusters of α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA) receptors and scaffolding proteins; furthermore, synapse size varies linearly with the number of nanoclusters. Here we have sought to develop a model of synapse structure and growth that is consistent with both the EM and super-resolution data. We argue that synapses are composed of modules consisting of matrix material and potentially one nanocluster. LTP induction can add a trans-synaptic nanocluster to a module, thereby converting a silent module to an AMPA functional module. LTP can also add modules by a linear process, thereby producing an approximately 10-fold gradation in synapse size and strength.

This article is part of the themed issue ‘Integrating Hebbian and homeostatic plasticity’.
Homeostatic plasticity mechanisms in mouse V1
Authors: Kaneko Megumi , Stryker Michael P.
Published: January 2017

Mechanisms thought of as homeostatic must exist to maintain neuronal activity in the brain within the dynamic range in which neurons can signal. Several distinct mechanisms have been demonstrated experimentally. Three mechanisms that act to restore levels of activity in the primary visual cortex of mice after occlusion and restoration of vision in one eye, which give rise to the phenomenon of ocular dominance plasticity, are discussed. The existence of different mechanisms raises the issue of how these mechanisms operate together to converge on the same set points of activity.

This article is part of the themed issue ‘Integrating Hebbian and homeostatic plasticity’.
Applying meta-analysis to Genotype-Tissue Expression data from multiple tissues to identify eQTLs and increase the number of eGenes
Authors: Duong Dat , Gai Lisa , Snir Sagi , Kang Eun Yong , Han Buhm , Sul Jae Hoon , Eskin Eleazar
Published: January 2017

During the last decade, with the advent of inexpensive microarray and RNA-seq technologies, there have been many expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) studies for identifying genetic variants called eQTLs that regulate gene expression. Discovering eQTLs has been increasingly important as they may elucidate the functional consequence of non-coding variants identified from genome-wide association studies. Recently, several eQTL studies such as the Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) consortium have made a great effort to obtain gene expression from multiple tissues. One advantage of these multi-tissue eQTL datasets is that they may allow one to identify more eQTLs by combining information across multiple tissues. Although a few methods have been proposed for multi-tissue eQTL studies, they are often computationally intensive and may not achieve optimal power because they do not consider a biological insight that a genetic variant regulates gene expression similarly in related tissues. In this paper, we propose an efficient meta-analysis approach for identifying eQTLs from large multi-tissue eQTL datasets. We name our method RECOV because it uses a random effects (RE) meta-analysis with an explicit covariance (COV) term to model the correlation of effect that eQTLs have across tissues. Our approach is faster than the previous approaches and properly controls the false-positive rate. We apply our approach to the real multi-tissue eQTL dataset from GTEx that contains 44 tissues, and show that our approach detects more eQTLs and eGenes than previous approaches.
Associative Learning from Replayed Experience
Authors: Ludvig Elliot A. , Mirian Mahdieh S. , Kehoe E. James , Sutton Richard S.
Published: January 2017

We develop an extension of the Rescorla-Wagner model of associative learning. In addition to learning from the current trial, the new model supposes that animals store and replay previous trials, learning from the replayed trials using the same learning rule. This simple idea provides a unified explanation for diverse phenomena that have proved challenging to earlier associative models, including spontaneous recovery, latent inhibition, retrospective revaluation, and trial spacing effects. For example, spontaneous recovery is explained by supposing that the animal replays its previous trials during the interval between extinction and test. These include earlier acquisition trials as well as recent extinction trials, and thus there is a gradual re-acquisition of the conditioned response. We present simulation results for the simplest version of this replay idea, where the trial memory is assumed empty at the beginning of an experiment, all experienced trials are stored and none removed, and sampling from the memory is performed at random. Even this minimal replay model is able to explain the challenging phenomena, illustrating the explanatory power of an associative model enhanced by learning from remembered as well as real experiences.
Excessive ERK-dependent synaptic clustering drives enhanced motor learning in the MECP2 duplication syndrome mouse model of autism
Authors: Ash Ryan Thomas , Buffington Shelly Alexandra , Park Jiyoung , Costa-Mattioli Mauro , Zoghbi Huda Yaya , Smirnakis Stelios Manolis
Published: January 2017

Autism-associated genetic mutations may produce altered learning abilities by perturbing the balance between stability and plasticity of synaptic connections in the brain. Here we report an increase in the stabilization of dendritic spines formed during repetitive motor learning in the mouse model ofMECP2-duplication syndrome, a high-penetrance form of syndromic autism. This increased stabilization is mediated entirely by spines that form cooperatively in clusters. The number of clusters formed and stabilized predicts the mutant’s enhanced motor learning and memory phenotype, reminiscent of savant-like behaviors occasionally associated with autism.

The ERK signaling pathway, which promotes cooperative plasticity between spines, was found to be hyperactive inMECP2-duplication motor cortex specifically after training. Inhibition of ERK signaling normalizes clustered spine stabilization and rescues motor learning behavior in mutants. We conclude that learning-associated dendritic spine clustering stabilized by hyperactive ERK signaling drives abnormal motor learning and memory consolidation in this model of syndromic autism.
Crystal structure of rubidium peroxide ammonia disolvate
Authors: Grassl Tobias , Korber Nikolaus
Published: January 2017

The title compound, Rb2O2·2NH3, has been obtained as a reaction product of rubidium metal dissolved in liquid ammonia and glucuronic acid. As a result of the low-temperature crystallization, a disolvate was formed. To our knowledge, only one other solvate of an alkali metal peroxide is known: Na2O2·8H2O has been reported by Grehlet al.[Acta Cryst.(1995), C51, 1038–1040]. We determined the peroxide bond length to be 1.530 (11) Å, which is in accordance with the length reported by Bremm & Jansen [Z. Anorg. Allg. Chem.(1992),610, 64–66]. One of the ammonia solvate molecules is disordered relative to a mirror plane, with 0.5 occupancy for the corresponding nitrogen atom.
Crystal structures and hydrogen bonding in the isotypic series of hydrated alkali metal (K, Rb and Cs) complexes with 4-aminophenylarsonic acid
Authors: Smith Graham , Wermuth Urs D.
Published: January 2017

The structures of the alkali metal (K, Rb and Cs) complex salts with 4-aminophenylarsonic acid (p-arsanilic acid) manifest an isotypic series with the general formula [M2(C6H7AsNO3)2(H2O)3], withM= K {poly[di-μ3-4-aminophenylarsonato-tri-μ2-aqua-dipotassium], [K2(C6H7AsNO3)2(H2O)3], (I)}, Rb {poly[di-μ3-4-aminophenylarsonato-tri-μ2-aqua-dirubidium], [Rb2(C6H7AsNO3)2(H2O)3], (II)}, and Cs {poly[di-μ3-4-aminophenylarsonato-tri-μ2-aqua-dirubidium], [Cs2(C6H7AsNO3)2(H2O)3], (III)}, in which the repeating structural units lie across crystallographic mirror planes containing two independent and different metal cations and a bridging water molecule, with the two hydrogenp-arsanilate ligands and the second water molecule lying outside the mirror plane. The bonding about the two metal cations in all complexes is similar, one five-coordinate, the other progressing from five-coordinate in (I) to eight-coordinate in both (II) and (III), with overallM—O bond-length ranges of 2.694 (5)–3.009 (7) (K), 2.818 (4)–3.246 (4) (Rb) and 2.961 (9)–3.400 (10) Å (Cs). The additional three bonds in (II) and (III) are the result of inter-metal bridging through the water ligands. Two-dimensional coordination polymeric structures with the layers lying parallel to (100) are generated through a number of bridging bonds involving the water molecules (including hydrogen-bonding interactions), as well as through the arsanilate O atoms. These layers are linked across [100] through amine N—H...O hydrogen bonds to arsonate and water O-atom acceptors, giving overall three-dimensional network structures.
9-Fluoro-2,4,4a,6-tetrahydrospiro[benzo[c]chromene-3,2′-[1,3]dioxolane]
Authors: Ayswariya I. , Rajalakshmi P. , Krishnakumar R.V. , Srinivasan N.
Published: January 2017

In the title compound, C15H15FO3, the dihedral angle between the mean plane through all the non-H atoms of the dioxolane ring with those of the rest of the atoms of the chromene ring system, including the substituent F atom, is 81.1 (1)°. The pyran ring has an envelope conformation with the O atom as the flap. The cyclohexene ring has a half-chair conformation, while the dioxolane ring has a twisted conformation on an –O—CH2– bond. In the crystal, molecules are linked via C—H...O hydrogen bonds, forming chains along [100]. The chains are linked by C—H...π interactions, involving the fluorobenzene ring, forming layers parallel to the ac plane.
Impacts of human resource development on engineering, procurement, and construction project success
Authors: Nguyen Huong Thanh , Hadikusumo Bonaventura
Published: January 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify the impact of human resource development (HRD) on engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) project success (PS), human resource competency (HRC), job performance (JP), and the interrelationship among them. This paper also investigates the impact of EPC project factors (PF) on PS, the factors affecting HRD, including internal factors (IF) and external factors (EF) during EPC project implementation.

Design/methodology/approach

Structural equation modeling (SEM), SPSS, and AMOS software were used to test nine proposed hypotheses. The respondents comprised 800 participants involved in EPC projects throughout Vietnam.

Findings

The results show that HRD positively affects HRC, JP, and PS. HRD is influenced by IF but not influenced by EF. HRC positively impacts on JP and PS, while PF directly impacts on PS.

Originality/value

The study indicates that the development of competent human resources for EPC project implementation plays a considerable role in EPC PS. The findings also give project professionals a tool for improving HRD, and HRC to increase the likelihood of PS.
Identification of risk patterns in Vietnamese road and bridge construction
Authors: Dang Chau Ngoc , Le-Hoai Long , Kim Soo-Yong , Nguyen Chau Van , Lee Young-Dai , Lee Sun-Ho
Published: January 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify risk patterns of road and bridge projects in Vietnam, where the construction market is emerging but attractive to construction organizations, especially foreign companies.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a questionnaire, experienced practitioners of various contractors were interviewed to collect risk-related data in terms of actual likelihood and impact from road and bridge construction projects in Vietnam. Using the collected data of actual likelihood and impact, the specific probability and impact of risk factors were determined for different types of road and bridge projects, including small and medium type, big type, government-funding type, and other-funding type (e.g. official development assistance funds, public-private partnership).

Findings

The results of analysis indicate the specific probability and impact of risk factors in four risk themes, including contractor-related, project-related, owner-related, and external risks. Actual risk patterns for different types of road and bridge projects in Vietnam were identified.

Practical implications

The identification of actual risk patterns could help practitioners to know which risk factors are severe in frequency and/or impact. Hence, they could establish proper strategies to manage risk-related problems of road and bridge projects, in which they are directly involved.

Originality/value

The findings of this study could provide construction companies, especially foreign companies, with a better understanding of real risk panorama in Vietnamese road and bridge construction. Hence, they could make effective improvements on risk management of road and bridge projects in Vietnam.
Success criteria of toll road projects from a community societal perspective
Authors: Rohman Mohammad Arif , Doloi Hemanta , Heywood Christopher Andrew
Published: January 2017

Purpose

While the success of the toll road projects procured through public private partnerships (PPPs) routes are widely confined to the cost, time and quality performance in the delivery context, considerable evidence suggests that such success criteria are not sufficient when the toll road projects are assessed in relation to meeting the long-run community expectations. The purpose of this paper is to examine the key factors associated with the success of the toll road projects from a societal perspective in Indonesia.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the input from 12 experts and a rigorous literature review, a questionnaire survey was designed and a total of 206 respondents from three broad stakeholders’ groups, namely, government, private and end-users’ communities were surveyed to measure the performance of eight toll road projects. The data were primarily analyzed using exploratory factor analysis and reliability test using SPSS Software.

Findings

Four significant factors associated with the project social benefit were established as a measure of the overall success criteria in toll road projects. It is expected these can be used as guidance to deliver project social benefit to the community in the overall project lifecycle.

Research limitations/implications

This research contributes to the incorporation of social project benefit attributes to the the toll road projects’ success criteria in overall project lifecycle.

Practical implications

This study can be used as guidance for the overall stakeholders, such as the government and the project manager to address the current social problems and better navigate the project direction in order to achieve the overall toll road project success in the overall project lifecycles.

Social implications

The research highlights how the Indonesian government’s program of developing toll road projects using the PPP procurement routes can be supported for complete social inclusivity by considering the social dimension to achieve long-term success.

Originality/value

Identification of the key project social factors based on the data set with a wide representation of the stakeholders has made the research original and unique.
Exchange-rate volatility and Malaysian-Thai bilateral industry trade flows
Authors: Aftab Muhammad , Syed Karim Bux Shah , Katper Naveed Akhter
Published: January 2017

Purpose

After the fall of fix exchange rate regime in early 1970s, the nexus between the exchange rate volatility and trade flows has been of a great interest to the policy makers and researchers. Resultantly an extensive literature is available on the topic. However, the research findings are inconclusiveness so far. The purpose of this paper is to examine the exchange-rate volatility and bilateral industry trade link between the two important countries of Southeast Asia, i.e. Malaysia and Thailand.

Design/methodology/approach

This study employs Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroskedasticity (GARCH) (1, 1) to measure exchange rate volatility and autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model to study the relationship between exchange rate volatility and trade flows. ARDL approach is suitable to accommodate the mix cases (i.e. stationary and first difference stationary). The paper considers 62 Malaysian exporting and 60 Malaysian importing industries with Thailand over the monthly period 2000-2013.

Findings

Findings suggest the influence of exchange-rate volatility on the trade flows in a limited number of industries. Large industries like instruments and apparatus experience negative influence from exchange-rate volatility.

Originality/value

Past literature continued to be inconclusiveness on the nexus between exchange-rate volatility and trade flows due to its over-reliance on the aggregated data. Besides, the past studies are more based on quarterly or yearly frequency data. These issues contribute to the aggregation bias. This research focusses on a country bilateral trade pair, using industry level disaggregated monthly data. Such research is rare in Malaysian-Thai bilateral trade context. This study uses a suitable estimation approach and also draws valuable implications.
The influence of political regime vs political instability on real output
Authors: Sweidan Osama D.
Published: January 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to empirically compare and contrast the effect of the nature of the political regime vs the political instability (PI) on real output in a group of countries from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) during the period 1980-2011. This part of the world has been going through a series of unstable political regimes and continuous PI events for over seven decades.

Design/methodology/approach

The author employs a time-series cross-sectional Prais-Winsten regression model with panel-corrected standard errors.

Findings

The author concludes that the relationship between the nature of the political regime and real output is mixed (negative and positive); this impact seems to get changed to a positive value whenever the regimes’ instability events are mitigated. However, the influence of PI on real output has a negative benchmark level. The author also notices that the effect of the political regime on real output is stronger over all the sample countries of the study. The results depart somehow from the previous studies’ findings. Therefore, the implication of the author’s conclusion is to investigate how and why the effects of these uncertainties turned positive.

Originality/value

The paper contributes to the literature from three perspectives. First, the author compares the effects on real output from different types of political system uncertainties. Second, the author extracts evidence on this topic from the most unstable region of the world, the MENA region. Third, the author uses a new econometric technique compared to the previous studies.
Criminal and legal characteristics of criminal intent
Authors: Veresha Roman
Published: January 2017

Purpose

This paper aims to consider the problems related to criminal legal characteristics of the crime objective and to analyze specific features of the crime objective as the subjective aspect of crime.

Design/methodology/approach

Research methodology used in studying the criminal legal characteristics of the crime objective was based on the dialectical method of scientific cognition of the social and legal phenomena, its laws and categories. The author used general scientific research methods, systematic, historical, logical and functional, and observation, analysis, comparison and the empirical sociological method.

Findings

Definition of the crime objective as one of the subjective aspects related to the socially dangerous act will be helpful to detect the real causes of crime and to apply the right type and term of punishment. The crime objective should be understood as the important, well-defined features of conscious mental image of the future desired result, which determines the orientation and order of various actions aimed at crime commitment.

Originality/value

The paper substantiated the need to determine crime objective as one of the signs of the subjective aspect of crime. This will reveal the real causes of crime and apply the right type and term of punishment. It was established that the crime objective was a psychological phenomenon, and the question of its analysis and study had to be settled with regard to psychology and criminology, which will influence its cognition. The paper provided a definition of crime objective. Based on a scientific approach to the theoretical definition of the objective in the criminal law and the place in the subjective aspect of crime, the author presumed that crime objective had to be regarded as an optional feature of the subjective aspect of crime.
Tax arrears amongst individual income taxpayers in Malaysia
Authors: Mohamad Azhar , Radzuan Neazlin , Hamid Zarinah
Published: January 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between tax arrears and socio-psychological demographic factors on individual taxpayers as well as macroeconomic factors in Malaysia.

Design/methodology/approach

In this study, using proprietary data from Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia on individual income tax returns for the year of 2004 through 2012, the authors run a panel data fixed effect model analysis to examine the impact of socio-psychological demographic factors such as age, gender, marital status, income level, occupational sector, place of residence of individual tax payers as well macroeconomic factors such as real GDP, inflation and economic growth on tax arrears in Malaysia.

Findings

We find that, by and large, older male taxpayers in big towns, with high incomes, tend to accumulate tax arrears. Tax arrears are also significantly affected by real GDP, but not by marital status or occupational sector.

Originality/value

To the best of our knowledge, this is one the few studies that uses individual tax returns data to study determinants of tax arrears.
The experience of forensic males in dialectical behaviour therapy (forensic version): a qualitative exploratory study
Authors: Russell Samantha , Siesmaa Belinda
Published: January 2017

Purpose

Dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) has been widely used in a number of different settings with published outcomes and literature supporting its validity and efficacy. What is less understood is DBT’s application to forensic populations. The purpose of this paper is to qualitatively explore the experiences of high risk and adult male forensic clients (diagnosed with borderline personality disorder (BPD) and antisocial personality disorder (ASPD)) in a forensic adapted version of DBT.

Design/methodology/approach

Six clients who had completed four modules of DBT and individual therapy engaged in semi-structured interviews which were transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis.

Findings

The findings identified emerging themes relating to group processes and treatment outcomes. Specifically, the importance of motivation, shared learning, professionalism, reinforcement and reflection in creating a positive experience of DBT were identified. In addition clients identified feeling supported, a sense of belonging, personal achievement, increased knowledge and skills application as being part of their experience of DBT.

Research limitations/implications

Whilst efforts were made to manage limitations, potential confounders include the impact of the researcher’s direct involvement in the facilitation of DBT and the small sample size.

Practical implications

This study provides support for the use of DBT with forensic males diagnosed with ASPD and BPD and the importance of the group component to the treatment modality. It emphasises the importance of group cohesion and the development of interpersonal factors including feeling supported, sense of belonging and a sense of achievement.

Originality/value

This paper provides a unique contribution to the understanding of the application of DBT with forensic male clients with personality disorder. It is the first known study to use qualitative methods to explore forensic male clients’ experiences of group and individual DBT. This paper provides insight into the key themes of clients’ experiences of DBT. These identified themes lend support to the importance of motivation of clients and the experience of shared learning, reinforcement and reflection. Furthermore, feeling supported, having a sense of belonging and a sense of personal achievement were identified as key to the positive experience of clients.
The impact of time discretization on solvency measurement
Authors: Schmeiser Hato , Luca Daliana
Published: January 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to study how the discretization interval affects the solvency measurement of a property-liability insurance company.

Design/methodology/approach

Starting with a basic solvency model, the authors study the impact of the discretization interval on risk measures. The analysis considers the sensitivity of the discrepancy between the risk measures in continuous and discrete time to various parameters, such as the asset-to-liability ratio, the characteristics of the asset and liability processes, as well as the correlation between assets and liabilities. Capital requirements for the one-year planning horizon in continuous vs discrete time are reported as well. The purpose is to report the degree to which the deviations in risk measures, due to the different discretization intervals, can be reduced by means of increasing the frequency with which the risk measures are assessed.

Findings

The simulation results suggest that the risk measures of an insurance company are consistently underestimated when assessed on an annual basis (as it is currently done under insurance regulation such as Solvency II). The authors complement the analysis with the capital requirements of an insurance company and conclude that more frequent discretization translates into higher capital requirements for the insurance company. Both the probability of ruin and the expected policyholder deficit (EPD) can be reduced through intermediate financial reports.

Originality/value

The results from our simulation analysis suggest that that the choice of discretization interval has an impact on the risk assessment of an insurance company which uses the probability of ruin and the EPD as risk measures. By assessing the risk measures once a year, both risk measures and the capital requirements are consistently underestimated. Therefore, the recommendation for risk managers is to complement the capital requirements in solvency regulation with sensitivity analyses of the risk measures presented with respect to time discretization. On the one hand, it seems to us that there is value in knowing about the substantial discrepancy between the focused time discrete ruin probability and EPD compared to the continuous version. On the other hand, and if there are no substantial transaction costs associated with more frequent monitoring of solvency figures, a frequent update would be helpful to increase the accuracy of the calculations and reduce the EPD.
Segmentation of ordered point cloud using a novel measure of terrain unevenness
Authors: Reddy Satish Kumar , Pal Prabir K.
Published: January 2017

Purpose

This paper aims to present object or feature segmentation from an ordered 3D point cloud range data obtained from a laser scanner for the purpose of robot navigation.

Design/methodology/approach

Rotating multi-beam laser scanners provide ordered 3D range data. Differences between consecutive ranges in radial direction are used to compute a novel measure of terrain unevenness at each data point. Computed over a complete rotation, an unevenness field is formed surrounding the scanner. A part of this field staying below a threshold is recognized as ground and removed. Remaining non-ground points are segmented into objects by region growing with points whose unevenness lies within pre-specified limiting values.

Findings

The proposed unevenness attribute is simple and efficient for segmenting distinct objects or features. The fineness of surface features can be regulated by adjusting the threshold value of difference in unevenness between neighbouring points that triggers an onset of new segments.

Research limitations/implications

The angles between neighbouring laser range data are assumed to be known.

Practical implications

Segmented objects or features can be used for scan registration, object tracking and robot navigation.

Social implications

The method may find use in autonomous robots and driverless cars.

Originality/value

Differences between consecutive range data are used imaginatively to derive a novel measure of terrain unevenness, which in turn, is used for efficient segmentation of objects and features.
Hollow waveguide-enhanced mid-infrared sensor for fast and sensitive ethylene detection
Authors: Li Jinyi , Du Zhenhui , Zhang Zheyuan , Song Limei , Guo Qinghua
Published: January 2017

Purpose

This paper aims to provide a sensor for fast, sensitive and selective ethylene (C2H4) concentration measurements.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper developed a sensor platform based on tunable laser absorption spectroscopy with a 3,266-nm interband cascade laser (ICL) as an optical source and a hollow waveguide (HWG) as a gas cell. The ICL wavelength was scanned across a C2H4 strong fundamental absorption band, and an interference-free C2H4 absorption line located at 3,060.76 cm−1 was selected. Wavelength modulation spectroscopy with the second harmonic detection (WMS-2f) technique was used to improve the sensitivity. Furthermore, the HWG gas cell can achieve a long optical path in a very small volume to improve the time response.

Findings

The results show excellent linearity of the measured 2f signal and the C2H4 concentration with a correlation coefficient of 0.9997. Also, the response time is as short as about 10 s. The Allan variance analysis indicates that the detection limit can achieve 53 ppb with an integration time of 24 s.

Practical implications

The ethylene sensor has many meaningful applications in environmental monitoring, industrial production, national security and the biomedicine field.

Originality/value

The paper provides a novel sensor architecture which can be a versatile sensor platform for fast and sensitive trace-gas detection in the mid-infrared region.
Radius based domain clustering for WiFi indoor positioning
Authors: Zhang Wei , Hua Xianghong , Yu Kegen , Qiu Weining , Chang Xin , Wu Bang , Chen Xijiang
Published: January 2017

Purpose

Nowadays, WiFi indoor positioning based on received signal strength (RSS) becomes a research hotspot due to its low cost and ease of deployment characteristics. To further improve the performance of WiFi indoor positioning based on RSS, this paper aims to propose a novel position estimation strategy which is called radius-based domain clustering (RDC). This domain clustering technology aims to avoid the issue of access point (AP) selection.

Design/methodology/approach

The proposed positioning approach uses each individual AP of all available APs to estimate the position of target point. Then, according to circular error probable, the authors search the decision domain which has the 50 per cent of the intermediate position estimates and minimize the radius of a circle via a RDC algorithm. The final estimate of the position of target point is obtained by averaging intermediate position estimates in the decision domain.

Findings

Experiments are conducted, and comparison between the different position estimation strategies demonstrates that the new method has a better location estimation accuracy and reliability.

Research limitations/implications

Weighted k nearest neighbor approach and Naive Bayes Classifier method are two classic position estimation strategies for location determination using WiFi fingerprinting. Both of the two strategies are affected by AP selection strategies and inappropriate selection of APs may degrade positioning performance considerably.

Practical implications

The RDC positioning approach can improve the performance of WiFi indoor positioning, and the issue of AP selection and related drawbacks is avoided.

Social implications

The RSS-based effective WiFi indoor positioning system can makes up for the indoor positioning weaknesses of global navigation satellite system. Many indoor location-based services can be encouraged with the effective and low-cost positioning technology.

Originality/value

A novel position estimation strategy is introduced to avoid the AP selection problem in RSS-based WiFi indoor positioning technology, and the domain clustering technology is proposed to obtain a better accuracy and reliability.
Adaptive neuro-fuzzy fusion of multi-sensor data for monitoring of CNC machining
Authors: Jovic Srdjan , Anicic Obrad , Jovanovic Milivoje
Published: January 2017

Purpose

Acoustic emission (AE) could be used for prevention and detection of tool errors in Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machining. The purpose of this study is to analyze the AE form of CNC machining operations.

Design/methodology/approach

Experimental measurements were performed with three sensors on the CNC lathe to collect the data of the CNC machining. Adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) was applied for the fusion from the sensors’ signals to determine the strength of the signal periodic component among the sensors.

Findings

There were three inputs, namely, spindle speed, feed rate and depth of cut. ANFIS was also used to determine the inputs’ influence on the prediction of strength of the signal periodic component. Variable selection process was used to select the most dominant factors which affect the prediction of strength of the signal periodic component.

Originality/value

Results were shown that the spindle speed has the most dominant effect on the strength of the signal periodic component.
Target infrared radiation calculation model and method based on finite element analysis method in infrared photoelectric detection system
Authors: Li Hanshan
Published: January 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the detection performance of infrared photoelectric detection system and establish stable tracking platform.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper puts forward making use of the finite element analysis method to set up the infrared radiation characteristics calculation model of flying target in infrared photoelectric detection system; researches the target optical characteristics based on the target imaging detection theory; sets up the heat balance equation of target’s surface node and gives the calculation method of total radiation intensity of flying target; and deduces the target detection distance calculation function; studies the changed regulation of radiation energy that charge coupled device (CCD) gain comes from target surface infrared heat radiations under different sky background luminance and different target flight attitude.

Findings

Through calculation and experiment analysis, the results show that when the target’s surface area increases or the target flight velocity is higher, the radiation energy that CCD obtained is higher, which is advantageous to the target stable detection in infrared photoelectric detection system.

Originality/value

This paper uses the finite element analysis method to set up the infrared radiation characteristics calculation model of flying target and give the calculation and experiment results; those results can provide some data and improve the design method of infrared photoelectric detection system, and it is of value.
Low migratory connectivity is common in long‐distance migrant birds
Authors: Finch Tom , Butler Simon J. , Franco Aldina M. A. , Cresswell Will
Published: January 2017

Estimating how much long‐distance migrant populations spread out and mix during the non‐breeding season (migratory connectivity) is essential for understanding and predicting population dynamics in the face of global change.

We quantify variation in population spread and inter‐population mixing in long‐distance, terrestrial migrant land‐bird populations (712 individuals from 98 populations of 45 species, from tagging studies in the Neotropic and Afro‐Palearctic flyways). We evaluate the Mantel test as a metric of migratory connectivity, and explore the extent to which variance in population spread can be explained simply by geography.

The mean distance between two individuals from the same population during the non‐breeding season was 743 km, covering 10–20% of the maximum width of Africa/South America. Individuals from different breeding populations tended to mix during the non‐breeding season, although spatial segregation was maintained in species with relatively large non‐breeding ranges (and, to a lesser extent, those with low population‐level spread). A substantial amount of between‐population variation in population spread was predicted simply by geography, with populations using non‐breeding zones with limited land availability (e.g. Central America compared to South America) showing lower population spread.

The high levels of population spread suggest that deterministic migration tactics are not generally adaptive; this makes sense in the context of the recent evolution of the systems, and the spatial and temporal unpredictability of non‐breeding habitat.

The conservation implications of generally low connectivity are that the loss (or protection) of any non‐breeding site will have a diffuse but widespread effect on many breeding populations. Although low connectivity should engender population resilience to shifts in habitat (e.g. due to climate change), we suggest it may increase susceptibility to habitat loss. We hypothesize that, because a migrant species cannot adapt to both simultaneously, migrants generally may be more susceptible to population declines in the face of concurrent anthropogenic habitat and climate change.
A lemma science of mind: the potential of the Kegon (Flower Ornament) Sutra
Authors: Nakazawa Shin'ichi
Published: January 2017

The paper argues for a new perspective on the relationship between Buddhism and European psychology, or sciences of the mind, based in the Kegon Sutra, a text that emerged in the early stages of Mahayana Buddhism (3rd ‐ 5th century CE). The basis of European science is logos intellection, formalized by Aristotle as following three laws: the law of identity, the law of contradiction and the law of the excluded middle. Logic in the Buddhist tradition, by contrast, is based in lemma (meaning to understand as a whole not with language, but with intuition). Lemma‐based science born in the Buddhist tradition shows that rational perception is possible even without the three laws of logos. The Kegon Sutra, which explains what Buddha preached only a week after he attained enlightenment, is unified under the logic of lemma and can be seen as an effort to create a ‘lemma science of the mind’. The fundamental teaching of the Kegon Sutra is explored, and its principles are compared with primary process thinking and the unconscious as outlined by Freud and Jung. Jung's research of Eastern texts led him to create a science of the mind that went further than Freud: his concept of synchronicity is given by way of example and can be seen anew within the idea of a lemma‐based science.
Floating worlds and their phantoms in the aftermath of social catastrophes
Authors: Kimbles Samuel
Published: January 2017

In this paper the author describes certain kinds of images (phantoms) that appear in the aftermath of social catastrophes. These phantoms come with an underlying narrative structure, which the author describes as phantom narratives. Phantom narratives show how the unconscious, working at the group and individual levels, provides political and social contexts within which the individual may find a different kind of containment for these catastrophes. In this way their suffering may be potentially processed psychologically and related to symbolically.
“Leaps of faith”: parents' and professionals' viewpoints on preparing adolescents on the autism spectrum for leaving school
Authors: Hatfield Megan , Falkmer Marita , Falkmer Torbjorn , Ciccarelli Marina
Published: January 2017

Adolescents on the autism spectrum experience difficulty transitioning from secondary school to post‐school activities, often due to transition planning processes that do not meet their unique needs. This study identified parents' and professionals' viewpoints on transition planning for adolescents on the autism spectrum. Interviews were completed with nine parents of adolescents on the autism spectrum and four professionals who worked with adolescents on the autism spectrum. A constant comparison approach was used to analyse the transcripts. Four themes were identified, reflecting parents' and professionals' viewpoints on how to meet the transition planning needs of adolescents on the autism spectrum. Supporting adolescents to grasp the big picture can enhance motivation to participate in transition planning. Autism can be an ‘invisible disability’; therefore, encouraging adolescents to be active participants and to be seen in transition planning ensures their individual needs are met. Encouraging adolescents to have high aspirations in transition planning develops their self‐determination. Finally, to be prepared for the transition from school may reduce the adolescent's' anxiety. Adolescents on the autism spectrum face unique challenges in transition planning. The themes identified in this study provide insight into how parents and professionals might support adolescents with these challenges.
The Potential of High‐Dimensional Propensity Scores in Health Services Research: An Exemplary Study on the Quality of Care for Elective Percutaneous Coronary Interventions
Authors: Enders Dirk , Ohlmeier Christoph , Garbe Edeltraut
Published: January 2017

Objective

Evaluating the potential of the high‐dimensional propensity score (HDPS) to control for residual confounding in studies analyzing quality of care based on administrative health insurance data.

Data Source

Secondary data from 2004 to 2009 from three German statutory health insurance providers.

Study Design

We conducted a retrospective cohort study in patients with elective percutaneous coronary interventions (PCIs) and compared the mortality risk between the in‐ and outpatient setting using Cox regression. Adjustment for predefined confounders was performed using conventional propensity score (PS) techniques. Further, an HDPS was calculated based on predefined and empirically selected confounders from the database.

Principal Findings

Conventional PS methods showed a decreased mortality risk for outpatient compared to inpatient PCIs, while trimming of patients with nonoverlap in the HDPS distribution and weighting resulted in a comparable risk. Most comorbidities were less prevalent in the HDPS‐trimmed population compared to the original one.

Conclusion

The HDPS methodology may reduce residual confounding by rendering the studied cohort more comparable through restriction. However, results cannot be generalized for the entire study population. To provide unbiased results, full assessment of all unmeasured confounders from proxy information in the database would be necessary.
A Shovel‐Ready Solution to Fill the Nursing Data Gap in the Interdisciplinary Clinical Picture
Authors: Keenan Gail M. , Lopez Karen Dunn , Sousa Vanessa E. C. , Stifter Janet , Macieira Tamara G. R. , Boyd Andrew D. , Yao Yingwei , Herdman T. Heather , Moorhead Sue , McDaniel Anna , Wilkie Diana J.
Published: January 2017

PURPOSE

To critically evaluate 2014 American Academy of Nursing (AAN) call‐to‐action plan for generating interoperable nursing data.

DATA SOURCES

Healthcare literature.

DATA SYNTHESIS

AAN's plan will not generate the nursing data needed to participate in big data science initiatives in the short term because Logical Observation Identifiers Names and Codes and Systematized Nomenclature of Medicine – Clinical Terms are not yet ripe for generating interoperable data. Well‐tested viable alternatives exist.

CONCLUSIONS

Authors present recommendations for revisions to AAN's plan and an evidence‐based alternative to generating interoperable nursing data in the near term. These revisions can ultimately lead to the proposed terminology goals of the AAN's plan in the long term.