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At least 1,189 records · Page 66Linked to original sources

PubMed2002

Analysis of tubular structures in three-dimensional confocal images.

Knowledge about the relationship between morphology and the function of neurons is an important instrument in understanding the role that neurons play in information processing in the brain. In paricular, the diameter and length of segments in dendritic arborization are considered to be crucial morphological features. Consequently, accurate detection of morphological features such as centre line position and diameter is a prerequisite to establish this relationship. Accurate detection of neuron morphology from confocal microscope images is hampered by the low signal to noise ratio of the images and the properties of the microscope point spread function (PSF). The size and the anisotropy of the PSF causes feature detection to be biased and orientation dependent. We deal with these problems by utilizing Gaussian image derivatives for feature detection. Gaussian kernels provide for image derivative estimates with low noise sensitivity. Features of interest such as centre line positions and diameter in a tubular neuronal segment of a dendritic tree can be detected by calculating and subsequently utilizing Gaussian image derivatives. For diameter measurement the microscope PSF is incorporated into the derivative calculation. Results on real and simulated confocal images reveal that centre line position and diameter can be estimated accurately and are bias free even under realistic imaging conditions.

Araceae↗

PubMed1987

[Simple bimolecular reaction model with physical feedback mechanism in the handling of rhythmic processes and their modification of receptor populations].

A bimolecular reaction model considering a physical feedback by the concentration dependence of a kinetic coefficient is proposed for the description of the receptor action. The regulatory properties will be treated in the framework of nonequilibrium thermodynamics as dynamic critical phenomena. The receptor and the bioactive agent are regarded as a system working in the vicinity of an instability point. The kinetics contains the possibility for a bifurcation to a limit cycle behavior, a stable time-periodic solution. For the transition regime, the relevant order parameter and its evolution equation can be determined with the help of a reductive pertubation approach. On this way, the magnitude of the receptor output signal may be obtained via its dependence on some essential parameters. The influence of environmentally produced fluctuations is incorporated by a Gaussian white-noise. For the stochastic model, the static probability distributions are calculated yielding some potential laws for the behavior of interesting state variables. The model results will be useful for the understanding of certain receptor related phenomena as for instance sigmoidal relationships between the response and the dose, tachyphylaxis and specific desensitization, temporal oscillations of some concentrations, and modulation effects caused by co-factors. Within the model, pertubations can be included such as a stochastic parameter variation or a competitive mechanism.

Animals↗

PubMed2001

Adaptive independent component analysis of multichannel electrogastrograms.

The electrogastrogram (EGG), a cutaneous measurement of gastric electrical activity, can be severely contaminated by endogenous biological noise sources such as respiratory signal. Therefore it is important to establish effective artifact removal methods. In this paper, a novel blind signal separation method with a flexible non-linearity is introduced and applied to extract the gastric slow wave from multichannel EGGs. Simulation results show that our algorithm is able to separate a wide range of source signals, including mixtures of Gaussian sources. On real data, we demonstrate the successful applications of our procedure to extract the gastric slow wave from multichannel EGGs. As a result, the extracted clean gastric slow wave can be used to facilitate further analysis, e.g. as a reference signal for multichannel adaptive enhancement of the EGG.

Algorithms↗

PubMed2003

The temporal prior in bioelectromagnetic source imaging problems.

The multiplicity of temporal priors proposed for regularization of the bioelectromagnetic source imaging problems [e.g., the inverse electrocardiogram (ECG) and inverse electroencephalogram (EEG) problems], is discordant with the fact that fundamental statistical principles sharply limit the choice. Thus, our objective is to derive the form of the prior consistent with the general unavailability of temporal constraints. Writing linear formulations of the inverse ECG and inverse EEG problems as H = FG + N (where the ith columns of matrices H, G, and N, are data, signal, and noise vectors at time step i, and F is the transfer matrix), and using the noninformative principle that features of the spatiotemporal prior not supplied a posteriori should be invariant under temporal transformations, we show that the implied spatiotemporal signal autocovariance matrix (of the vector formed by the entries of G) is given in block matrix form [equation in text] where Cg is a matrix of unit trace proportional to the autocovariance matrix of any column of G (representing supplied information regarding the spatial prior), epsilon[.] denotes expectation, superscript ' indicates transpose, [symbol in text] is the Kronecker product, [symbol in text] is Frobenius norm, and the "matrix scalar product" [symbol in text] indicates the inner product of the two vectors formed by the entries of the two adjacent matrices (i.e., A [symbol in text] B [triple bond] trace[A'B]). This result eliminates some uncertainties and ambiguities that have characterized spatiotemporal regularization methods--including eight methods previously introduced in this transactions. Ultimately, the result derives from an implied symmetry principle under which the form of a nontrivial noninformative temporal component of the prior can be identified. Among other things, separability of the spatiotemporal prior in terms of the above Kronecker product can be thought of as the expression of the lack of "entanglement" of the spatial and temporal contributions (a consequence of noninformativity). The approach is generalized to the important cases of non-Gaussian spatial priors, and signal and noise that are not independent (transfer matrix noise). We also demonstrate a means for computational complexity reduction, related to the application of a particular orthogonal transformation, having features dependent on whether or not the transfer matrix represents a surjective mapping.

Action Potentials↗

PubMed2003

Spatial domain filtering for fast modification of the tradeoff between image sharpness and pixel noise in computed tomography.

In computed tomography (CT), selection of a convolution kernel determines the tradeoff between image sharpness and pixel noise. For certain clinical applications it is desirable to have two or more sets of images with different settings. So far, this typically requires reconstruction of several sets of images. We present an alternative approach using default reconstruction of sharp images and online filtering in the spatial domain allowing modification of the sharpness-noise tradeoff in real time. A suitable smoothing filter function in the frequency domain is the ratio of smooth and original (sharp) kernel. Efficient implementation can be achieved by a Fourier transform of this ratio to the spatial domain. Separating the two-dimensional spatial filtering into two subsequent one-dimensional filtering stages in the x and y directions using a Gaussian approximation for the convolution kernel further reduces computational complexity. Due to efficient implementation, interactive modification of the filter settings becomes possible, which can completely replace the variety of different reconstruction kernels.

Algorithms↗

PubMed2002

Generic features of modulational instability in nonlocal Kerr media.

The modulational instability (MI) of plane waves in nonlocal Kerr media is studied for a general response function. Several generic properties are proven mathematically, with emphasis on how new gain bands are formed through a bifurcation process when the degree of nonlocality, sigma, passes certain bifurcation values and how the bandwidth and maximum of each individual gain band depends on sigma. The generic properties of the MI gain spectrum, including the bifurcation phenomena, are then demonstrated for the exponential and rectangular response functions. For a focusing nonlinearity the nonlocality tends to suppress MI, but can never remove it completely, irrespectively of the shape of the response function. For a defocusing nonlinearity the stability properties depend sensitively on the profile of the response function. For response functions with a positive-definite spectrum, such as Gaussians and exponentials, plane waves are always stable, whereas response functions with spectra that are not positive definite (such as the rectangular) will lead to MI if sigma exceeds a certain threshold. For the square response function, in both the focusing and defocusing case, we show analytically and numerically how new gain bands that form at higher wave numbers when sigma increases will eventually dominate the existing gain bands at lower wave numbers and abruptly change the length scale of the periodic pattern that may be observed in experiments.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1989

Efficiency of graphical perception.

The term graphical perception refers to the part played by visual perception in analyzing graphs. Computer graphics have stimulated interest in the perceptual pros and cons of different formats for displaying data. One way of evaluating the effectiveness of a display is to measure the efficiency (as defined by signal-detection theory) with which an observer extracts information from the graph. We measured observers' efficiencies in detecting differences in the means or variances of pairs of data sets sampled from Gaussian distributions. Sample size ranged from 1 to 20 for viewing times of 0.3 or 1 sec. The samples were displayed in three formats: numerical tables, scatterplots, and luminance-coded displays. Efficiency was highest for the scatterplots (approximately equal to 60% for both means and variances) and was only weakly dependent on sample size and exposure time. The pattern of results suggests parallel perceptual computation in which a constant proportion of the available information is used. Efficiency was lowest for the numerical tables and depended more strongly on sample size and viewing time. The results suggest serial processing in which a fixed amount of the available information is processed in a given time.

Attention↗

PubMed1993

Linear and nonlinear techniques for the deconvolution of hormone time-series.

Pulsatile hormone secretion is usually investigated by measuring hormone concentration in samples of peripheral plasma. In this paper, the deconvolution of hormone time-series to reconstruct the instantaneous secretion rate of glands is considered. Various techniques are discussed and compared in order to overcome the ill-conditioning of the problem and reduce the computational burden. In particular, linear techniques based on least squares, maximum a posteriori (MAP) estimation, and Wiener filtering are compared. A new nonlinear MAP estimator that keeps into account the non-Gaussian distribution of the unknown signal is worked out and shown to yield the best results. The performances of the algorithms are tested on simulated time-series as well as on series of Luteinizing Hormone (LH).

Algorithms↗

PubMed2005

Combined influence of membrane surface properties and feed water qualities on RO/NF mass transfer, a pilot study.

The impact of membrane surface characteristics and NOM on membrane performance has been investigated for varying pretreatment and membranes in a field study. Surface charge, hydrophobicity and roughness varied significantly among the four membranes used in the study. The membranes were tested in parallel following two different pretreatment processes, an enhanced Zenon ultrafiltration process (ZN) and a compact CSF process (Superpulsator (SP)) prior to RO membrane treatment for a total of eight integrated membrane systems. All membrane systems were exposed to the similar temperature, recovery and flux as well as chemical dosage. The membrane feed water qualities were statistically equivalent following ZN pretreatment and SP pretreatment except for NOM and SUVA. Membrane surface characteristics, NOM and SUVA measurements were used to describe mass transfer in a low-pressure RO integrated membrane system. Solute and water mass transfer coefficients (MTCs) were investigated for dependence on membrane surface properties and NOM mass loading. Inorganic MTCs were accurately described by a Gaussian distribution curve. Water productivity decreased with NOM loading and increased with contact angle and roughness. The negative effects of NOM loading on productivity were reduced as the negative charge on the membrane surface increased. Inorganic MTCs were also correlated to surface hydrophobicity and surface roughness. The permeability change of identical membranes was related to NOM loading, hydrophobicity and roughness. Organic fouling as measured by water, organic and inorganic mass transfer was less for membranes with higher hydrophilicity and roughness.

Flocculation↗

PubMed1999

Understanding of peak deterioration in hyphenated speciation systems due to gas-liquid separation in the hydride generation interface.

In hyphenated speciation systems with a hydride generation interface one of the processes influencing peak deterioration is gas-liquid separation. A mathematical model was developed to calculate attenuation, signal tailing and resolution loss of HPLC peaks due to gas-liquid separation. It was shown experimentally--using an HPLC-hydride generation-atomic fluorescence spectrometry system for arsenic speciation--that the mathematical model predicts peak deterioration well. This allowed us to study the parameters influencing the deterioration, viz. gas-liquid separation parameters (gas-liquid separator head space volume and purge gas volume flow-rate) and HPLC peak parameters [width (ratio) and resolution] theoretically, simulating HPLC peaks with gaussian functions.

Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Determining the visibility of noise in motion signals.

A procedure is described for generating stimuli to study the detection of noise components in motion signals. By using random dots with intensities distributed according to a Gaussian probability function, a temporally and spatially continuous mixture of signal and noise components can be realized in random dot kinematograms. These stimuli were used in a noise detection task, a signal detection task and a direction discrimination task. Signal-to-noise ratio ('coherence') thresholds for the signal detection and direction discrimination tasks were consistent with previous research. Noise can be detected at levels of approximately 0.5-2.5%, depending on the size of the motion stimulus. We argue that the noise in the motion stimulus becomes detectable when it exceeds the noise intrinsic to the various stages of motion processing. Therefore,the method provides a simple procedure for obtaining measures of equivalent input noise and can be used for estimating internal noise levels of motion processing mechanisms.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Reaction mechanism and kinetics of the NCN+NO reaction: comparison of theory and experiment.

The rate constants for the NCN + NO reaction have been measured by laser photolysis/laser-induced fluorescence technique in the temperature range of 254-353 K in the presence of He (40-600 Torr) and N2 (30-528 Torr) buffer gases. The NCN radical was produced from the photodissociation of NCN3 at 193 nm and monitored with a dye laser at 329.01 nm. The reaction was found to be strongly positive-pressure dependent with negative-temperature dependence, as was reported previously. The experimental data could be reasonably accounted for by dual-channel Rice-Ramsperger-Kassel-Marcus calculations based on the predicted potential-energy surface using the modified Gaussian-2 method. The reaction is predicted to occur via weak intermediates, cis- and trans-NCNNO, in the 2A" state which crosses with the 2A' state containing more stable cis- and trans-NCNNO isomers. The high barriers for the fragmentation of these isomers and their trapping in the 2A' state by collisional stabilization give rise to the observed positive-pressure dependence and negative-temperature effect. The predicted energy barrier for the fragmentation of the cis-NCNNO (2A') to CN + N2O also allows us to quantitatively account for the rate constant previously measured for the reverse process CN + N2O --> NCN + NO.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2002

A fluence-convolution method to calculate radiation therapy dose distributions that incorporate random set-up error.

The International Commission on Radiation Units and Measurements Report 62 (ICRU 1999) introduced the concept of expanding the clinical target volume (CTV) to form the planning target volume by a two-step process. The first step is adding a clinically definable internal margin, which produces an internal target volume that accounts for the size, shape and position of the CTV in relation to anatomical reference points. The second is the use of a set-up margin (SM) that incorporates the uncertainties of patient beam positioning, i.e. systematic and random set-up errors. We propose to replace the random set-up error component of the SM by explicitly incorporating the random set-up error into the dose-calculation model by convolving the incident photon beam fluence with a Gaussian set-up error kernel. This fluence-convolution method was implemented into a Monte Carlo (MC) based treatment-planning system. Also implemented for comparison purposes was a dose-matrix-convolution algorithm similar to that described by Leong (1987 Phys. Med. Biol. 32 327-34). Fluence and dose-matrix-convolution agree in homogeneous media. However, for the heterogeneous phantom calculations, discrepancies of up to 5% in the dose profiles were observed with a 0.4 cm set-up error value. Fluence-convolution mimics reality more closely, as dose perturbations at interfaces are correctly predicted (Wang et al 1999 Med. Phys. 26 2626-34, Sauer 1995 Med. Phys. 22 1685-90). Fluence-convolution effectively decouples the treatment beams from the patient. and more closely resembles the reality of particle fluence distributions for many individual beam-patient set-ups. However, dose-matrix-convolution reduces the random statistical noise in MC calculations. Fluence-convolution can easily be applied to convolution/superposition based dose-calculation algorithms.

Algorithms↗

PubMed2005

Phase-space beam summation analysis of rough surface waveguide.

A Gaussian beam summation (GBS) formulation is introduced for a doubly rough boundary waveguide, wherein the coherent and incoherent scattered fields are decomposed into a discrete phase-space summation of Gaussian beams (GB) that emanate from the rough surfaces in all directions. The scheme involves deterministic GB propagators and stochastic GB-to-GB (GB2GB) scattering matrices for the coherent and incoherent fields, where each scattered beam is propagated inside the waveguide and is scattered again from the rough boundaries. The GB2GB matrices are calculated from the statistical moments of the scattering amplitude, which are given either analytically or empirically. An analytical and numerical example for a waveguide with weak boundary roughness is presented and discussed. The formulation reveals explicitly the phase-space footprint of the stochastic multiple scattering process at the rough boundaries, thus providing a cogent physical interpretation and an effective mathematical representation to the field. The formulation also accommodates the receiver's pattern in the same phase-space format. Bistatic reverberations inside a rough surface waveguide as a function of the range and of the source and the receiver directions are thus examined as an implementation example.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2003

Speckle noise in bar-code scanning systems--power spectral density and SNR.

Laser-based flying-spot scanners are strongly affected by speckle that is intrinsic to coherent illumination of diffusing targets. In such systems information is usually extracted by processing the derivative of a photodetector signal that results from collecting over the detector's aperture the scattered light of a laser beam scanning a bar code. Because the scattered light exhibits a time-varying speckle pattern, the signal is corrupted by speckle noise. In this paper we investigate the power spectral density and total noise power of such signals. We also analyze the influence of speckle noise on edge detection and derive estimates for a signal-to-noise ratio when a laser beam scans different sequences of edges. The theory is illustrated by applying the results to Gaussian scanning beams for which we derive closed form expressions.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2003

Laser direct writing polymeric single-mode waveguide devices with a rib structure.

A focused argon-ion laser beam is used on a spin-coated polymeric thin-film deposited upon a SiO2/Si substrate to polymerize the core for fabrication of Gaussian profile optical channel waveguides. A rib structure that allows only the fundamental mode to propagate even with its higher dimension and high-index contrast between the core and the cladding was fabricated. When the thickness of the core-index region outside the rib section decreases, the waveguide produces higher-order modes at the output. The waveguide reported here has cross-sectional dimensions and numerical apertures that match the single-mode fibers for efficient coupling. I used a mixture of two intermiscible acrylate monomers for the cladding and the core of the waveguides. The polymerization process and its dependent dwell time or scan speed and the laser power intensity are shown. I present the operational characteristics of directional couplers using a rib waveguide structure with a core-cladding index difference.

Journal Article↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Recent SETI observations at Arecibo.

During 1980 and 1981, the 305-m radio telescope at the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico was used to conduct a high resolution search for narrowband signals from the direction of 210 nearby solar type stars and 5 OH masers. For each star at least 4 MHz of bandwidth surrounding the 21-cm HI line and/or the 18-cm OH lines was studied with a spectral resolution of 5.5 Hz in both right and left circular polarization. The formal limit of sensitivity achieved during the course of this search varied depending upon the particular receivers available. In all cases the search could have detected a narrowband transmitter of power comparable to the Arecibo planetary radar, had any such been transmitting on the frequencies searched during the time of observation out to the distance of the farthest target star. As in previous searches, the number of "false alarms" encountered was far greater than predicted on the basis of Gaussian noise statistics. A small number of stars have exhibited signals which cannot immediately be explained in terms of astrophysical or man-made sources and deserve reobservation. This is typical of the results of previous non-real-time searches and does not yet constitute the detection of an ETI.

Astronomical Phenomena↗

PubMed1999

Fitness distributions in evolutionary computation: motivation and examples in the continuous domain.

Evolutionary algorithms are, fundamentally, stochastic search procedures. Each next population is a probabilistic function of the current population. Various controls are available to adjust the probability mass function that is used to sample the space of candidate solutions at each generation. For example, the step size of a single-parent variation operator can be adjusted with a corresponding effect on the probability of finding improved solutions and the expected improvement that will be obtained. Examining these statistics as a function of the step size leads to a 'fitness distribution', a function that trades off the expected improvement at each iteration for the probability of that improvement. This paper analyzes the effects of adjusting the step size of Gaussian and Cauchy mutations, as well as a mutation that is a convolution of these two distributions. The results indicate that fitness distributions can be effective in identifying suitable parameter settings for these operators. Some comments on the utility of extending this protocol toward the general diagnosis of evolutionary algorithms is also offered.

Algorithms↗