bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
DYNAMIC DEFORMATION OF VORTEX LATTICE IN THE HOLLOW SUPERCONDUCTING YBaCuO CYLINDER
Authors: BABAYAN V. H. , AYVAZYAN M. T. , KTEYAN A. A. , VARDANYAN R. A.
Published: December 2009

The elastic and viscous properties of vortex lattice in ceramic YBaCuO are studied by the measurements of ac response U in the cavity of the hollow cylinder placed in the magnetic field H aligned along the cylinder's axis. It is observed that the U(H) dependence is reaching saturation with increase of magnetic field. We interpret this effect by nonlocality of the vortex lattice elastic constants. Based on the analysis of the response dependence on excitation frequency, we conclude that vortex lattice deformation vector decreases at higher frequencies. The amplitude–frequency characteristics of the response indicate that vortices perform overdamped oscillations. The estimated damping coefficient value exceeds the evaluation by Bardeen–Stephen theory.
TRANSFORMATION MATRIX OF NETWORK-CONTROLLED TELEPORTATION
Authors: TIAN XIU-LAO
Published: December 2009

According to the collapse principle of quantum state when being measured, we present a method of directly writing out transformation matrix by looking at the figure of a network-controlled quantum channel. We find the rule of constructing transformation matrix in network-controlled teleportation. Based on this method, we gain transformation matrix of two-qubit state teleportation in which two GHZ state act as controlled quantum channels. We further proposed a scheme of one-qubit teleportation by a series-controlled quantum channel and teleportation of three-qubit via a typical network controlled quantum channel, in which two-qubit state instead of GHZ state act as quantum channel. So, Hadamard operation is not necessary in our scheme.
QUANTIZATION FOR THE MESOSCOPIC RLC CIRCUIT AND ITS THERMAL EFFECT BY VIRTUE OF GHFT
Authors: LIANG BAO-LONG , WANG JI-SUO , MENG XIANG-GUO
Published: December 2009

The mesoscopic single RLC (resistance-inductance-capacitance) circuit and the RLC circuit including complicated coupling are quantized by employing Dirac's standard canonical quantization method. The thermal effects for the systems are investigated by virtue of GHFT (the generalized Hellmann–Feynman theorem). The results distinctly show the effect of temperature on the quantum fluctuation.
REEXAMINATION OF SPIN TRANSPORT THROUGH A DOUBLE-δ MAGNETIC BARRIER WITH SPIN-ORBIT INTERACTIONS
Authors: BI CAIHUA , ZHAI FENG
Published: December 2009

We revisit the properties of spin transport through a semiconductor 2DEG system subjected to the modulation of both a ferromagnetic metal (FM) stripe on top and the Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit interactions (SOIs). The FM stripe has a magnetization along the transporting direction and generates an inhomogeneous magnetic field in the 2DEG plane which is taken as a double-δ shape. It is found that the spin polarization of this system generated from a spin-unpolarized injection can be remarkable only within a low Fermi energy region and is not more than 30% for the parameters available in current experiments. In this energy region, both the magnitude and the orientation of the spin polarization can be tuned by the Rashba strength, the Dresselhaus strength, and the magnetic field strength. The magnetization reversal of the FM stripe cannot result in a change of the conductance, but can rotate the orientation of the spin polarization. The results are in contrast to those in [ J. Phys.: Condens. Matter15 (2003) L31] where a pure spin state for incident electrons is artificially assumed.
Layered shape synthesis
Authors: Rosenberger Amir , Cohen-Or Daniel , Lischinski Dani
Published: December 2009

Many inhomogeneous real-world textures are non-stationary and exhibit various large scale patterns that are easily perceived by a human observer. Such textures violate the assumptions underlying most state-of-the-art example-based synthesis methods. Consequently, they cannot be properly reproduced by these methods, unless a suitable control map is provided to guide the synthesis process. Such control maps are typically either user specified or generated by a simulation. In this paper, we present an alternative: a method for automatic example-based generation of control maps, geared at synthesis of natural, highly inhomogeneous textures, such as those resulting from natural aging or weathering processes. Our method is based on the observation that an appropriate control map for many of these textures may be modeled as a superposition of several layers, where the visible parts of each layer are occupied by a more homogeneous texture. Thus, given a decomposition of a texture exemplar into a small number of such layers, we employ a novel example-based shape synthesis algorithm to automatically generate a new set of layers. Our shape synthesis algorithm is designed to preserve both local and global characteristics of the exemplar's layer map. This process results in a new control map, which then may be used to guide the subsequent texture synthesis process.
Interactive design of urban spaces using geometrical and behavioral modeling
Authors: Vanegas Carlos A. , Aliaga Daniel G. , Benes Bedrich , Waddell Paul A.
Published: December 2009

The main contribution of our work is in closing the loop between behavioral and geometrical modeling of cities. Editing of urban design variables is performed intuitively and visually using a graphical user interface. Any design variable can be constrained or changed. The design process uses an iterative dynamical system for reaching equilibrium: a state where the demands of behavioral modeling match those of geometrical modeling. 3D models are generated in a few seconds and conform to plausible urban behavior and urban geometry. Our framework includes an interactive agent-based behavioral modeling system as well as adaptive geometry generation algorithms. We demonstrate interactive and incremental design and editing for synthetic urban spaces spanning over 200 square kilometers.
A GPU Laplacian solver for diffusion curves and Poisson image editing
Authors: Jeschke Stefan , Cline David , Wonka Peter
Published: December 2009

We present a new Laplacian solver for
minimal
surfaces---surfaces having a mean curvature of zero everywhere except at some fixed (Dirichlet) boundary conditions. Our solution has two main contributions: First, we provide a robust rasterization technique to transform continuous boundary values (diffusion curves) to a discrete domain. Second, we define a
variable stencil size
diffusion solver that solves the minimal surface problem. We prove that the solver converges to the right solution, and demonstrate that it is at least as fast as commonly proposed multigrid solvers, but much simpler to implement. It also works for arbitrary image resolutions, as well as 8 bit data. We show examples of robust diffusion curve rendering where our curve rasterization and diffusion solver eliminate the strobing artifacts present in previous methods. We also show results for real-time seamless cloning and stitching of large image panoramas.
Harmonic shells
Authors: Chadwick Jeffrey N. , An Steven S. , James Doug L.
Published: December 2009

We propose a procedural method for synthesizing realistic sounds due to nonlinear thin-shell vibrations. We use linear modal analysis to generate a small-deformation displacement basis, then couple the modes together using nonlinear thin-shell forces. To enable audio-rate time-stepping of mode amplitudes with mesh-independent cost, we propose a reduced-order dynamics model based on a thin-shell cubature scheme. Limitations such as mode locking and pitch glide are addressed. To support fast evaluation of mid-frequency mode-based sound radiation for detailed meshes, we propose
far-field acoustic transfer maps
(FFAT maps) which can be precomputed using state-of-the-art fast Helmholtz multipole methods. Familiar examples are presented including rumbling trash cans and plastic bottles, crashing cymbals, and noisy sheet metal objects, each with increased richness over linear modal sound models.
Motion-aware temporal coherence for video resizing
Authors: Wang Yu-Shuen , Fu Hongbo , Sorkine Olga , Lee Tong-Yee , Seidel Hans-Peter
Published: December 2009

Temporal coherence is crucial in content-aware video retargeting. To date, this problem has been addressed by constraining temporally adjacent pixels to be transformed coherently. However, due to the
motion-oblivious
nature of this simple constraint, the retargeted videos often exhibit flickering or waving artifacts, especially when significant camera or object motions are involved. Since the feature correspondence across frames varies spatially with both camera and object motion,
motion-aware
treatment of features is required for video resizing. This motivated us to align consecutive frames by estimating interframe camera motion and to constrain relative positions in the aligned frames. To preserve object motion, we detect distinct moving areas of objects across multiple frames and constrain each of them to be resized consistently. We build a complete video resizing framework by incorporating our motion-aware constraints with an adaptation of the scale-and-stretch optimization recently proposed by Wang and colleagues. Our streaming implementation of the framework allows efficient resizing of long video sequences with low memory cost. Experiments demonstrate that our method produces spatiotemporally coherent retargeting results even for challenging examples with complex camera and object motion, which are difficult to handle with previous techniques.
Virtual spherical lights for many-light rendering of glossy scenes
Authors: Hašan Miloš , Křivánek Jaroslav , Walter Bruce , Bala Kavita
Published: December 2009

In this paper, we aim to lift the accuracy limitations of many-light algorithms by introducing a new light type, the
virtual spherical light
(VSL). The illumination contribution of a VSL is computed over a non-zero solid angle, thus eliminating the illumination spikes that virtual point lights used in traditional many-light methods are notorious for. The VSL enables application of many-light approaches in scenes with glossy materials and complex illumination that could previously be rendered only by much slower algorithms. By combining VSLs with the matrix row-column sampling algorithm, we achieve high-quality images in one to four minutes, even in scenes where path tracing or photon mapping take hours to converge.
Ray casting of multiple volumetric datasets with polyhedral boundaries on manycore GPUs
Authors: Kainz Bernhard , Grabner Markus , Bornik Alexander , Hauswiesner Stefan , Muehl Judith , Schmalstieg Dieter
Published: December 2009

We present a new GPU-based rendering system for ray casting of multiple volumes. Our approach supports a large number of volumes, complex translucent and concave polyhedral objects as well as CSG intersections of volumes and geometry in any combination. The system (including the rasterization stage) is implemented entirely in CUDA, which allows full control of the memory hierarchy, in particular access to high bandwidth and low latency shared memory. High depth complexity, which is problematic for conventional approaches based on depth peeling, can be handled successfully. As far as we know, our approach is the first framework for multivolume rendering which provides interactive frame rates when concurrently rendering more than 50 arbitrarily overlapping volumes on current graphics hardware.
BiDi screen
Authors: Hirsch Matthew , Lanman Douglas , Holtzman Henry , Raskar Ramesh
Published: December 2009

We transform an LCD into a display that supports both 2D multi-touch and unencumbered 3D gestures. Our BiDirectional (BiDi) screen, capable of both image capture and display, is inspired by emerging LCDs that use embedded optical sensors to detect multiple points of contact. Our key contribution is to exploit the spatial light modulation capability of LCDs to allow lensless imaging without interfering with display functionality. We switch between a display mode showing traditional graphics and a capture mode in which the backlight is disabled and the LCD displays a pinhole array or an equivalent tiled-broadband code. A large-format image sensor is placed slightly behind the liquid crystal layer. Together, the image sensor and LCD form a mask-based light field camera, capturing an array of images equivalent to that produced by a camera array spanning the display surface. The recovered multi-view orthographic imagery is used to passively estimate the depth of scene points. Two motivating applications are described: a hybrid touch plus gesture interaction and a light-gun mode for interacting with external light-emitting widgets. We show a working prototype that simulates the image sensor with a camera and diffuser, allowing interaction up to 50 cm in front of a modified 20.1 inch LCD.
Evaluation of reverse tone mapping through varying exposure conditions
Authors: Masia Belen , Agustin Sandra , Fleming Roland W. , Sorkine Olga , Gutierrez Diego
Published: December 2009

Most existing image content has low dynamic range (LDR), which necessitates effective methods to display such legacy content on high dynamic range (HDR) devices. Reverse tone mapping operators (rTMOs) aim to take LDR content as input and adjust the contrast intelligently to yield output that recreates the HDR experience. In this paper we show that current rTMO approaches fall short when the input image is not exposed properly. More specifically, we report a series of perceptual experiments using a Brightside HDR display and show that, while existing rTMOs perform well for under-exposed input data, the perceived quality degrades substantially with over-exposure, to the extent that in some cases subjects prefer the LDR originals to images that have been treated with rTMOs. We show that, in these cases, a simple rTMO based on gamma expansion avoids the errors introduced by other methods, and propose a method to automatically set a suitable gamma value for each image, based on the image key and empirical data. We validate the results both by means of perceptual experiments and using a recent image quality metric, and show that this approach enhances visible details without causing artifacts in incorrectly-exposed regions. Additionally, we perform another set of experiments which suggest that spatial artifacts introduced by rTMOs are more disturbing than inaccuracies in the expanded intensities. Together, these findings suggest that when the quality of the input data is unknown, reverse tone mapping should be handled with simple, non-aggressive methods to achieve the desired effect.
Robust color-to-gray via nonlinear global mapping
Authors: Kim Yongjin , Jang Cheolhun , Demouth Julien , Lee Seungyong
Published: December 2009

This paper presents a fast color-to-gray conversion algorithm which robustly reproduces the visual appearance of a color image in grayscale. The conversion preserves feature discriminability and reasonable color ordering, while respecting the original lightness of colors, by simple optimization of a nonlinear global mapping. Experimental results show that our method produces convincing results for a variety of color images. We further extend the method to temporally coherent color-to-gray video conversion.
Hair meshes
Authors: Yuksel Cem , Schaefer Scott , Keyser John
Published: December 2009

Despite the visual importance of hair and the attention paid to hair modeling in the graphics research, modeling realistic hair still remains a very challenging task that can be performed by very few artists. In this paper we present
hair meshes
, a new method for modeling hair that aims to bring hair modeling as close as possible to modeling polygonal surfaces. This new approach provides artists with direct control of the overall shape of the hair, giving them the ability to model the exact hair shape they desire. We use the hair mesh structure for modeling the hair volume with topological constraints that allow us to automatically and uniquely trace the path of individual hair strands through this volume. We also define a set of topological operations for creating hair meshes that maintain these constraints. Furthermore, we provide a method for hiding the volumetric structure of the hair mesh from the end user, thus allowing artists to concentrate on manipulating the outer surface of the hair as a polygonal surface. We explain and show examples of how hair meshes can be used to generate individual hair strands for a wide variety of realistic hair styles.
Exploratory modeling with collaborative design spaces
Authors: Talton Jerry O. , Gibson Daniel , Yang Lingfeng , Hanrahan Pat , Koltun Vladlen
Published: December 2009

Enabling ordinary people to create high-quality 3D models is a long-standing problem in computer graphics. In this work, we draw from the literature on design and human cognition to better understand the design processes of novice and casual modelers, whose goals and motivations are often distinct from those of professional artists. The result is a method for creating
exploratory
modeling tools, which are appropriate for casual users who may lack rigidly-specified goals or operational knowledge of modeling techniques.

Our method is based on parametric design spaces, which are often high dimensional and contain wide quality variations. Our system estimates the distribution of good models in a space by tracking the modeling activity of a distributed community of users. These estimates drive intuitive modeling tools, creating a self-reinforcing system that becomes easier to use as more people participate.

We present empirical evidence that the tools developed with our method allow rapid creation of complex, high-quality 3D models by users with no specialized modeling skills or experience. We report analyses of usage patterns garnered throughout the year-long deployment of one such tool, and demonstrate the generality of the method by applying it to several design spaces.
Out-of-core multigrid solver for streaming meshes
Authors: Shi Xiaohan , Bao Hujun , Zhou Kun
Published: December 2009

We present an out-of-core multigrid for solving the Poisson equation defined over gigantic meshes. This enables gradient-domain operations on out-of-core meshes with irregular connectivity. Taking a streaming mesh and boundary constraints as input, our solver builds a multigrid hierarchy and refines the multigrid solution progressively by performing all operations as streaming computations. A set of rules are carefully designed to make neighboring multigrid nodes perform tasks cooperatively and efficiently. With a sublinear memory growth with respect to the number of mesh vertices, our approach handles meshes with 14M vertices using merely 84MB of memory, while an equivalent in-core multigrid implementation fails to fit into 2GB memory space.
Dynamic shape capture using multi-view photometric stereo
Authors: Vlasic Daniel , Peers Pieter , Baran Ilya , Debevec Paul , Popović Jovan , Rusinkiewicz Szymon , Matusik Wojciech
Published: December 2009

We describe a system for high-resolution capture of moving 3D geometry, beginning with dynamic normal maps from multiple views. The normal maps are captured using active shape-from-shading (photometric stereo), with a large lighting dome providing a series of novel spherical lighting configurations. To compensate for low-frequency deformation, we perform multi-view matching and thin-plate spline deformation on the initial surfaces obtained by integrating the normal maps. Next, the corrected meshes are merged into a single mesh using a volumetric method. The final output is a set of meshes, which were impossible to produce with previous methods. The meshes exhibit details on the order of a few millimeters, and represent the performance over human-size working volumes at a temporal resolution of 60Hz.
Vector GA
Authors: Bhattacharyya Indrajit , Bandypopadhyay Anup Kumar , Gupta Bhaskar , Chattopadhyay Aloknath , Chattopadhyay Rajeswari , Yasumoto Kiyotoshi
Published: December 2009

Many software engineering problems can be viewed as a large multidimensional searching problem. This paper presents an enhancement of conventional Genetic Algorithms (GA) for more efficient multi-variable or multi-dimensional searches. The concept relies upon expressing chromosomes as vectors in the required multidimensional frame of reference. Usual GA operators are also defined as vector operators. Comparison with conventional genetic algorithm is made to illustrate its superior performance.
Template for a system design file using OODPM version 2010
Authors: Drori Offer
Published: December 2009

Object Oriented Design by Prototype Methodology (OODPM) inte-grates two known technologies: the object approach and the prototype concept. Object oriented methodology is used for internal system de-sign, and prototype methodology is used for external system design. This document is a template for a system design file using OODPM version 2010 (titles of paragraphs only). For full explanations for each paragraph look at [1]. This version developed after tens of projects that developed and plan using 5.1 version in a very vast projects for national information systems. This version companion by "User Guide OODPM Methodology for Planning Information Systems Version 2010" -- meanwhile only in Hebrew.
A comparative introduction to CSP and ACT-ONE formal languages
Authors: Nami Mohammad Reza , Sheikh-Abbasi Bahareh , Khoshandam Marjaneh
Published: December 2009

Formal Methods have changed software engineering development process. They have been used in implementation of software for safety-critical environments. Formal specification languages have good properties for describing a system. ACT-ONE and Communicating Sequential Process (CSP) are two specification languages we have discussed on them in this paper. This paper compares them from different aspects such as their styles, special symbols, databases, and combination with other languages. As future work, we will present a new formal model for a distributed system in our next research.
Component adaptation process and adaptability viewpoints
Authors: Gill Nasib S. , Balkishan
Published: December 2009

Component adaptation is one of the most crucial issues in Component-Based Software Development (CBSD). The present paper addresses the component adaptation process consisting of three activities: Finding Mismatch, Evaluating Adaptability and Component Adaptation. Furthermore, this paper describes six viewpoints for component adaptability evaluation: Cost, Quality of Services (QoS), Fault Tolerance, Functional Requirement, Behavioral Requirement and Technical Requirement. Finally, this paper discusses the importance of measuring adaptability that helps in evaluating component adaptability.
Some Rules and Restrictions May Apply
Authors: Kelly-Bootle Stan
Published: December 2009

In many of our interactions with the outside world (solipsists can stop reading now, if indeed they ever started) we enter into contracts with diverse entities, some up front, some lurking below the surface. The commonly construed contractual theme is a mutual agreement where each party accepts certain costs and responsibilities, and in return can rely on certain benefits and rewards. Some sort of symmetry is implied, in that the rational parties favored by the economists (when they come out of their recessionary hiding holes) will weigh the positive and negative impacts of the agreement before "signing." I will put aside the notions of Hobbes, Rousseau, Rawls, and that crowd that in merely being born we enter into some form of
social
contract with the combined prevailing laws of nature, nurture, and parliamentary whoredom.
Edge indexing in a grid for highly dynamic virtual environments
Authors: Seo Beomjoo , Zimmermann Roger
Published: December 2009

Newly emerging game-based application systems provide three-dimensional virtual environments where multiple users interact with each other in realtime. Such virtual worlds are filled with autonomous, mutable virtual content which is continuously augmented by the users. To make the systems highly scalable and dynamically extensible, they are usually built on a client-server based grid subspace division where the virtual worlds are partitioned into manageable sub-worlds. In each sub-world, the user continuously receives relevant geometry updates of moving objects via a streaming process from remotely connected servers and renders them according to her viewpoint, rather than retrieving them from a local storage medium.
Codec-agnostic dynamic and distributed adaptation of scalable multimedia content
Authors: Ransburg Michael , Hellwagner Hermann , Van de Walle Rik
Published: December 2009

Today's Internet is accessible to diverse end devices through a wide variety of network types. Independent from this huge amount of usage contexts, content consumers desire to retrieve content with the best possible supported quality. The designers of new media codecs react to this diversity of usage contexts by including adaptation support into the codec design. Scalable media codecs, such as the new MPEG-4 Scalable Video Codec, enable to easily retrieve different qualities of the media content by simply disregarding certain media segments. All these variables (different end devices, network types, user preferences, media codec types, scalability options) lead to a manifold of needed and possible adaptation operations.
Collaborative media streaming
Authors: Kahmann Verena , Wolf Lars , Ott Jörg
Published: December 2009

At the time being, multimedia services using IP technology are a hot topic for network and service providers. Examples are IPTV, which stands for television broadcast over a (mostly closed) network infrastructure by means of the IP suite, or video on-demand, which allows for watching selected movies via Internet on TV devices or computers in the home.
Session management for accountability in distributed multimedia services
Authors: Conner William , Nahrstedt Klara , Borisov Nikita , Campbell Roy , Gupta Indranil , Iyengar Arun
Published: December 2009

Internet-based multimedia applications (e.g., voice-over-IP, instant messaging, and video conferencing) are continuing to grow in importance as more people depend on such applications for personal and professional communications. Although performance is almost always a concern with multimedia systems that must satisfy quality-of-service (QoS) constraints, security is also a major requirement given the increasing criticality of such applications. For example, businesses might depend on Internet telephony to reach customers while governments might depend on video streaming to disseminate information. For distributed multimedia services, in addition to the traditional security properties (confidentiality, integrity, and availability), accountability is also important to complement perimeter defenses. Accounting for user actions within the system enables the development of higher-level security services.
A Role for Angiotensin II Type 1 Receptors on Bone Marrow-Derived Cells in the Pathogenesis of Angiotensin II–Dependent Hypertension
Authors: Crowley Steven D. , Song Young-Soo , Sprung Gregory , Griffiths Robert , Sparks Matthew , Yan Ming , Burchette James L. , Howell David N. , Lin Eugene E. , Okeiyi Benson , Stegbauer Johannes , Yang Yanqiang , Tharaux Pierre-Louis , Ruiz Phillip
Published: December 2009

Activation of type 1 angiotensin (AT
1
) receptors causes hypertension, leading to progressive kidney injury. AT
1
receptors are expressed on immune cells, and previous studies have identified a role for immune cells in angiotensin II–dependent hypertension. We, therefore, examined the role of AT
1
receptors on immune cells in the pathogenesis of hypertension by generating bone marrow chimeras with wild-type donors or donors lacking AT
1A
receptors (BMKO). The 2 groups had virtually identical blood pressures at baseline, suggesting that AT
1
receptors on immune cells do not make a unique contribution to the determination of baseline blood pressure. By contrast, in response to chronic angiotensin II infusion, the BMKOs had an augmented hypertensive response, suggesting a protective effect of AT
1
receptors on immune cells with respect to blood pressure elevation. The BMKOs had 50% more albuminuria after 4 weeks of angiotensin II–dependent hypertension. Angiotensin II–induced pathological injury to the kidney was similar in the experimental groups. However, there was exaggerated renal expression of the macrophage chemokine monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 in the BMKO group, leading to persistent accumulation of macrophages in the kidney. This enhanced mononuclear cell infiltration into the BMKO kidneys was associated with exaggerated renal expression of the vasoactive mediators interleukin-1β and interleukin-6. Thus, in angiotensin II–induced hypertension, bone marrow–derived AT
1
receptors limited mononuclear cell accumulation in the kidney and mitigated the chronic hypertensive response, possibly through the regulation of vasoactive cytokines.
Christianizing Confucian Didacticism: Protestant Publications for Women, 1832-1911
Authors: Dunch Ryan
Published: December 2009

The printed Protestant missionary engagement with Chinese views of the role and proper conduct of women in society was more complex and ambiguous than scholars have often assumed. Publications targeted at women readers occupied an important place among Protestant missionary periodicals, books, and other printed materials in Chinese during the late Qing. Most publications for women and girls were elementary doctrinal works, catechisms, and devotional texts designed to introduce early readers to Christian belief, and light reading (fictional tracts and biographies) for women's spiritual edification, but there were some more elaborate works as well. After an overview of mission publications for women, this article focuses on two complex texts, one a compendium of practical knowledge and moral guidance for the Chinese Protestant "new woman," Jiaxue jizhen (The Christian home in China) (1897; revised 1909), and the other, a Protestant reworking from 1902 of the Qing dynasty didactic compilation Nü sishu (Women's four books). Together, these two texts give us a more multifaceted picture of how missionaries engaged with Chinese society and the role of women therein.
Accessibility and Cognition: The Effect of Transport Mode on Spatial Knowledge
Authors: Mondschein Andrew , Blumenberg Evelyn , Taylor Brian
Published: December 2009

Spatial behaviour and decision-making require knowledge of the urban environment, including opportunities available and the means to reach them. Thus, variations in spatial knowledge can result in radically different levels of effective accessibility, despite similar locations, demographics and other factors commonly thought to influence travel behaviour. Cognitive maps, which develop primarily through wayfinding and travel experience, are individuals’ repositories of spatial knowledge. This paper examines whether differences in cognitive maps can be explained, in part, by variations in travel mode. Adults were surveyed in two Los Angeles neighbourhoods with relatively low auto use and high transit use. The data show that spatial knowledge does indeed vary with previous experience with travel modes.
The Gift and the Trap: Working the “Teen Brain” Into Our Concept of Youth
Authors: Sercombe Howard
Published: December 2009

Progressive developments in scanning technologies over the last decade have led to a surge of new research into the structure and function of the brain and into differences between the brains of teenagers and other adults. This work has not been free of controversy, notably around the question of deficits in the capacity of young people concerning risk-taking behavior. In a previous article, Michael Males mounted a challenge to this body of work, arguing that it exaggerated the propensity of young people to take risks and ignored the impact of external contextual and sociological factors. In responding to Males’s article, this article not only supports his concern about deficit models of adolescence but also explores the way that the new brain science takes us beyond the century-old binary between biological determinism and social constructionism. It calls for renewed scholarly effort to develop theory and discourse that will allow us to think about young people’s responses in terms of the interaction between biology, experience and social context, and individual agency.
Paediatric and adult multiple sclerosis: age-related differences and time course of the neuroimmunological response in cerebrospinal fluid
Authors: Reiber H. , Teut M. , Pohl D. , Rostasy KM , Hanefeld F.
Published: December 2009

We investigate common pathophysiology in paediatric and adult multiple sclerosis (MS) by comparison of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) data. We compared cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) data from eight patient groups with onset of MS at 7 to 29 years ( n = 184). A new statistics program allows sensitive detection, quantifies the mean amount of intrathecal Ig synthesis in groups based on the 96% reference range of 4100 non-inflammatory controls, corrects for age-related increase of blood-derived albumin and immunoglobulins in CSF, and presents graphical data interpretation in Reibergrams. Already at onset of MS before puberty (≤10 years) the frequency of intrathecal IgG synthesis (oligoclonal IgG) was 100% like in adults with 98%, but the amount of intrathecal IgG increases twofold during puberty. Intrathecal IgM synthesis is most frequent before and during puberty (in 57—67% of patients) compared with 41% in adults. The amount of intrathecal IgM synthesis before puberty is only 30% of that in adults. IgG and IgM Index are biased evaluations not suitable for characterizing age-related dynamics. A twofold age-related increase of the albumin quotient, QAlb, as a measure of the blood—CSF barrier function, represents normal physiological growth. Cell counts in CSF are low. The pre-puberty gender ratio is about 1:1. Intrathecal antibodies against measles, rubella and/or varicella zoster virus are detected in 73% of patients before puberty compared with 89% of adults. Individual paediatric patients ( n = 17), with sequential punctures over 2—5 years, show constant quantities of intrathecal IgM and specific antibodies. In conclusion, paediatric MS already at first clinical manifestation shows the complete, neuroimmunological data pattern in CSF, i.e. inflammatory signs are not gradually evolving. Paediatric and adult MS differ quantitatively but not qualitatively in neuroimmunological patterns which does not allow for discrimination between ‘early’ and ‘late’ onset MS. CSF analysis may help to discriminate between acute and mono-symptomatic chronic inflammatory disease already at earliest clinical manifestation.
Assessing visual pathway function in multiple sclerosis patients with multifocal visual evoked potentials
Authors: Laron Michal , Han Cheng  , Bin Zhang  , Schiffman Jade S , Tang Rosa A , Frishman Laura J
Published: December 2009

Multifocal visual evoked potentials provide a topographic measure of visual response amplitude and latency. The objective of this study was to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of the multifocal visual evoked potential technique in detecting visual abnormalities in patients with multiple sclerosis. Multifocal visual evoked potentials were recorded from 74 patients with multiple sclerosis with history of optic neuritis (MS-ON, n = 74 eyes) or without (MS-no-ON, n = 71 eyes), and 50 normal subjects (controls, n = 100 eyes) using a 60-sector pattern reversal dartboard stimulus (VERIS). Amplitude and latency for each sector were compared with normative data and assigned probabilities. Size and location of clusters of adjacent abnormal sectors ( p < 0.05) were examined. Mean response amplitudes were (± SE) 0.39 ± 0.02, 0.53 ± 0.02, and 0.60 ± 0.01 for MS-ON, MS-no-ON, and control groups, respectively, with significant differences between all groups ( p < 0.0001). Mean latencies (ms; ±SE relative to normative data) were 12.7 ± 1.3 (MS-ON), 4.3 ± 1.1 (MS-no-ON), and 0.3 ± 0.4 (controls); group differences again significant ( p < 0.0001). Half the MS-ON eyes had clusters larger than five sectors compared with 13% in MS-no-ON and 2% in controls. Abnormal sectors were distributed diffusely, although the largest cluster was smaller than 15 sectors in two-thirds of MS-ON eyes. Cluster criteria combining amplitude and latency showed an area of 0.96 under the receiver operating characteristic curve, yielding a criterion with 91% sensitivity and 95% specificity. We conclude that the multifocal visual evoked potential provides high sensitivity and specificity in detecting abnormalities in visual function in multiple sclerosis patients.
Long term survival following the detection of circulating tumour cells in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma
Authors: Winter Stuart C , Stephenson Sally-Anne , Subramaniam Selva K , Paleri Vinidh , Ha Kien , Marnane Conor , Krishnan Suren , Rees Guy
Published: December 2009

Background

Techniques for detecting circulating tumor cells in the peripheral blood of patients with head and neck cancers may identify individuals likely to benefit from early systemic treatment.

Methods

Reconstruction experiments were used to optimise immunomagnetic enrichment and RT-PCR detection of circulating tumor cells using four markers (ELF3, CK19, EGFR and EphB4). This method was then tested in a pilot study using samples from 16 patients with advanced head and neck carcinomas.

Results

Seven patients were positive for circulating tumour cells both prior to and after surgery, 4 patients were positive prior to but not after surgery, 3 patients were positive after but not prior to surgery and 2 patients were negative. Two patients tested positive for circulating cells but there was no other evidence of tumor spread. Given this patient cohort had mostly advanced disease, as expected the detection of circulating tumour cells was not associated with significant differences in overall or disease free survival.

Conclusion

For the first time, we show that almost all patients with advanced head and neck cancers have circulating cells at the time of surgery. The clinical application of techniques for detection of spreading disease, such as the immunomagnetic enrichment RT-PCR analysis used in this study, should be explored further.
Molecular characterization and phylogenetic analysis of the complete genome of a porcine sapovirus from Chinese swine
Authors: Yang Shixing , Zhang Wen , Shen Quan , Huang Fen , Wang Yan , Zhu Jianguo , Cui Li , Yang Zhibiao , Hua Xiuguo
Published: December 2009

Background

Porcine sapovirus was first identified in the United States in 1980, hitherto, several Asian countries have detected this virus. In 2008, the first outbreak of gastroenteritis in piglets caused by porcine sapovirus in China was reported. The complete genome of the identified SaV strain Ch-sw-sav1 was sequenced and analyzed to provide gene profile for this outbreak.

Methods

The whole genome of Ch-sw-sav1 was amplified by RT-PCR and was sequenced. Sequence alignment of the complete genome or RNA dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) gene was done. 3' end of ORF2 with 21-nt nucleotide insertion was further analyzed using software.

Results

Sequence analysis indicated that the genome of Ch-sw-sav1 was 7541 nucleotide long with two ORFs, excluding the 17 nucleotides ploy (A) at the 3' end. Phylogenetic analysis based on part of RdRp gene of this strain showed that it was classified into subgroup GIII. Sequence alignment indicated that there was an inserted 21-nt long nucleotide sequence at the 3' end of ORF2. The insertion showed high antigenicity index comparing to other regions in ORF2.

Conclusion

Ch-sw-sav1 shared similar genetic profile with an American PEC strain except the 21-nt nucleotide at the 3' end of ORF2. The insert sequence shared high identity with part gene of Sus scrofa clone RP44-484M10.
Diagnostic performance of rapid influenza antigen assays in patients infected with the new influenza A (H1N1) virus
Authors: Herzum Ileana , Lutz Thomas , Koch Friederike , Geisel Roland , Gehrt Andreas
Published: December 2009

Background: The new swine influenza (H1N1) requires fast and accurate diagnosis. Currently, there are few reports about the diagnostic performance of influenza antigen tests with regard to the H1N1 virus infection. We evaluated the reactivity of eight commercially available rapid antigen tests in samples from confirmed infected patients.

Methods: From 23 patients tested positive by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), parallel testing with the antigen tests QuickVue Influenza A+B (Quidel Corporation), Binax NOW Flu A and B (Binax), Clearview Exact Influenza A and B (Inverness medical), TRUFLU (Meridian Bioscience), Directigen EZ Flu A+B (Becton Dickinson), Influenza A and B (Diagnostik Nord), Xpect Flu A and B (remel) and Influenza Antigen Quick (Generic Assays) was performed.

Results: Only few antigen tests showed positive reactivity in six of the 23 samples. The virus load of the reactive samples as indicated by the PCR cycle threshold was high. Negative results of rapid influenza tests do not rule out infection with the new influenza A (H1N1) virus. Their analytical sensitivity with reference to the virus load is low and not reproducible.

Conclusions: As reliable laboratory results during a pandemic are essential, the diagnostic use of rapid influenza tests seems to be questionable.

Clin Chem Lab Med 2010;48:53–6.
Process Performance Evaluation with Imprecise Information
Authors: Wu Chien-Wei , Liao Mou-Yuan , Shu Ming-Hung
Published: December 2009

Process capability indexes have been widely used in the manufacturing industry for measuring process performance. Most studies on assessing the process capability are based on crisp estimates of process capability indexes while assuming output measurements of the process being precise number. However, in practical situations it is much more realistic that the output characteristics of continuous quantities are more or less imprecise in general. The fuzziness and stochastic uncertainty are unavoidable features of collected observations from continuous quantities. To assess the process performance more accurately, we consider the capability index CPMK, which is recognized as the most useful index to date for assessing the process capability with two-sided specification limits. We construct the fuzzy estimator for the index CPMK according to the fuzzy set theory. To make reliable decisions, we propose a decision rule to assess the process capability based on the fuzzy lower confidence bound of CPMK. A step-by-step procedure for testing process capability is provided for easy execution in practical situations. An example of manufacturing silicon wafers is also presented to illustrate the applicability of the proposed approach.
Differential developmental expression of transcription factors GATA-4 and GATA-6, their cofactor FOG-2 and downstream target genes in testicular carcinoma in situ and germ cell tumors
Authors: Salonen Jonna , Rajpert-De Meyts Ewa , Mannisto Susanna , Nielsen John E , Graem Niels , Toppari Jorma , Heikinheimo Markku
Published: December 2009

Objective

Testicular germ cell cancer is the most common malignancy among young males. The pre-invasive precursor, carcinoma in situ testis (CIS), presumably originates from arrested and transformed fetal gonocytes. Given that GATA transcription factors have essential roles in embryonic and testicular development, we explored the expression of GATA-4, GATA-6, cofactor friend of GATA (FOG)-2, and downstream target genes during human testis development and addressed the question whether changes in this pathway may contribute to germ cell neoplasms.

Methods

Fetal testis, testicular CIS, and overt tumor samples were analyzed by immunohistochemistry for GATA-4, GATA-6, FOG-2, steroidogenic factor 1 (NR5A1/SF1), anti-Müllerian hormone/Müllerian-inhibiting substance (AMH), and inhibin-α (INHα).

Results

GATA-4 was not expressed in normal germ cells, except for a subset of gonocytes at the 15th gestational week. The CIS cells expressed GATA-4 and GATA-6 heterogeneously, whereas most of the CIS cells expressed GATA-4 cofactor FOG-2. GATA target gene SF-1 was expressed heterogeneously in CIS cells, whereas INHα and AMH were mostly negative. Seminomas and yolk sac tumors were positive for GATA-4 and GATA-6, but mostly negative for FOG-2 and the GATA target genes. In contrast, pluripotent embryonal carcinomas and choriocarcinomas were GATA-4 and GATA-6 negative.

Conclusions

Differential expression of the GATA-4 target genes suggested cell-specific functions of GATA-4 in the germ and somatic cells. The GATA-4 expression in early fetal gonocytes, CIS, and seminoma cells but the absence in more mature germ cells is consistent with the early fetal origin of CIS cells and suggests that GATA-4 is involved in early germ cell differentiation.
Effect of Music by Mozart on Energy Expenditure in Growing Preterm Infants
Authors: Lubetzky Ronit , Mimouni Francis B. , Dollberg Shaul , Reifen Ram , Ashbel Gina , Mandel Dror
Published: December 2009

OBJECTIVE: The rate of weight gain in preterm infants who are exposed to music seems to improve. A potential mechanism could be increased metabolic efficiency; therefore, we conducted this study to test the hypothesis that music by Mozart reduces resting energy expenditure (REE) in growing healthy preterm infants.

DESIGN. A prospective, randomized clinical trial with crossover was conducted in 20 healthy, appropriate-weight-for-gestational-age, gavage-fed preterm infants. Infants were randomly assigned to be exposed to a 30-minute period of Mozart music or no music on 2 consecutive days. Metabolic measurements were performed by indirect calorimetry.

RESULTS: REE was similar during the first 10-minute period of both randomization groups. During the next 10-minute period, infants who were exposed to music had a significantly lower REE than when not exposed to music (P = .028). This was also true during the third 10-minute period (P = .03). Thus, on average, the effect size of music on REE is a reduction of ∼10% to 13% from baseline, an effect obtained within 10 to 30 minutes.

CONCLUSIONS: Exposure to Mozart music significantly lowers REE in healthy preterm infants. We speculate that this effect of music on REE might explain, in part, the improved weight gain that results from this “Mozart effect.”
Development of declarative and procedural knowledge test
Authors: Miscevic-Kadijevic Gordana
Published: December 2009

Teacher training faculty, University of Belgrade, Serbia The paper presents the development of a knowledge test, designed for ten-year old pupils, that measures the attainment of declarative and procedural knowledge about human body acquired through a fourth-grade course on nature and society. The final version comprising sixteen tasks, had desired factor structure evidenced by the applied confirmatory factor analysis as well as appropriate metric characteristics of reliability, discriminativity and objectivity. Apart from the metric characteristics of the whole test and its two knowledge subtests as regards reliability, this paper also reports the discriminativity of particular tasks. The reported characteristics evidence that a solid instrument has been developed.
News in childhood asthma therapy
Authors: Zivkovic Zorica , Cerovic Sofija , Vukasinovic Zoran , Jocic-Stojanovic Jasmina
Published: December 2009

Research in the field of pediatric pulmonology, especially asthmology, has been intensified for the last couple of years. A large number of studies describe early wheezing episodes, risk factors, natural course of early childhood asthma. Besides this, literature shows a growing interest in epidemiology, genetics and virusology as predictive factors for development and clinical course of childhood asthma. In this paper, the authors are providing a review of recently published articles on asthma therapy based on phenotypes in terms of better understanding of asthma and asthma-like syndromes. Pediatric respiratory experts worldwide are equally positive in the following statements: real diagnosis leads to real therapy as soon as possible; inhaled corticosteroids are not recommended in very young infants especially if a positive effect is missing; long-term therapy with inhaled corticosteroids has to be scrutinized.