Terminally ill patients and volunteer support: Is it the right intervention?

Comments on the article by K. T. Herbst-Damm and J. A. Kulik (see record 2005-02260-012) entitled Volunteer support, marital status, and the survival times of terminally ill patients. Can a simple and low-cost intervention, such as a visit by a volunteer, extend the life of terminally ill patients? The answer, according to a study by Herbst-Damm and Kulik (2005), is yes. When it comes to quality of life, however, the effects of volunteer visits remain murky. Thus, it is critical that we look beyond effects on longevity and assess how such a program would influence quality of life. Extending the life of terminally ill patients might not always a blessing. Prolonging their life might even cause harm, as it can extend unwanted physical and mental suffering. It may also go against some patients' desire to hasten their death. Despite Herbst-Damm and Kulik's important findings, the current author remains unconvinced as to the merits of implementing volunteer visits as an intervention policy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Regularizing Flows over Lie Groups

In this paper we discuss regularization of images that take their value in matrix Lie groups. We describe an image as a section in a principal bundle which is a fibre bundle where the fiber (the feature space) is a Lie group. Via the scalar product on the Lie algebra, we define a bi-invariant metric on the Lie-group manifold. Thus, the fiber becomes a Riemannian manifold with respect to this metric. The induced metric from the principal bundle to the image manifold is obtained by means of the bi-invariant metric. A functional over the space of sections, i.e., the image manifolds, is defined. The resulting equations of motion generate a flow which evolves the sections in the spatial-Lie-group manifold. We suggest two different approaches to treat this functional and the corresponding PDEs. In the first approach we derive a set of coupled PDEs for the local coordinates of the Lie-group manifold. In the second approach a coordinate-free framework is proposed where the PDE is defined directly with respect to the Lie-group elements. This is a parameterization-free method. The differences between these two methods are discussed. We exemplify this framework on the well-known orientation diffusion problem, namely, the unit-circle S ¹ which is identified with the group of rotations in two dimensions, SO(2). Regularization of the group of rotations in 3D and 4D, SO(3) and SO(4), respectively, is demonstrated as well.

Online dynamic graph drawing

This paper presents an algorithm for drawing a sequence of graphs online. The algorithm strives to maintain the global structure of the graph and thus the user's mental map, while allowing arbitrary modifications between consecutive layouts. The algorithm works online and uses various execution culling methods in order to reduce the layout time and handle large dynamic graphs. Techniques for representing graphs on the GPU allow a speedup by a factor of up to 17 compared to the CPU implementation. The scalability of the algorithm across GPU generations is demonstrated. Applications of the algorithm to the visualization of discussion threads in Internet sites and to the visualization of social networks are provided.     

Task Switching After Cerebellar Damage.

The authors of this study investigated task switching following cerebellar damage. The study group consisted of 7 children and adolescents (M age = 13.8 years) who underwent surgical removal of a benign posterior fossa tumor. They were tested at a sufficient interval after surgery (M lag = 6.13 years) for restoration of normal cognitive skills and intelligence. Although all showed normal learning of the task compared with control participants, when rapid behavioral changes were required (short preparation time), they exhibited behavioral rigidity manifested by enhanced switching cost. These results are in line with another study on serial reaction time with the same patients (A. Berger et al., in press). They have important implications for our understanding of the cognitive sequelae of early cerebellar damage as well as the involvement of the cerebellum in task switching. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ferromagnetic shape memory flapper

A new method for propulsion using a Ni₂MnGa ferromagnetic shape memory flapper is introduced. We optically examine the magnetic field induced strain of pure shear by means of a state of the art generator that provides alternating magnetic fields of 7000 Oe at frequencies of up to 100 Hz. Preliminary measurements show local shear deformation of about 5%, which open new frontiers in propulsion mechanisms.     

Fast GL(n)-Invariant Framework for Tensors Regularization

We propose a novel framework for regularization of symmetric positive-definite (SPD) tensors (e.g., diffusion tensors). This framework is based on a local differential geometric approach. The manifold of symmetric positive-definite (SPD) matrices, P _n , is parameterized via the Iwasawa coordinate system. In this framework distances on P _n are measured in terms of a natural GL(n)-invariant metric. Via the mathematical concept of fiber bundles, we describe the tensor-valued image as a section where the metric over the section is induced by the metric over P _n . Then, a functional over the sections accompanied by a suitable data fitting term is defined. The variation of this functional with respect to the Iwasawa coordinates leads to a set of \frac12n(n+1)\frac{1}{2}n(n+1) coupled equations of motion. By means of the gradient descent method, these equations of motion define a Beltrami flow over P _n . It turns out that the local coordinate approach via the Iwasawa coordinate system results in very simple numerics that leads to fast convergence of the algorithm. Regularization results as well as results of fibers tractography for DTI are presented.     

QFT application for headphone's active noise cancellation

A quantitative feedback theory design for attenuation of acoustic noise in earphones and headphones is described. Identification including uncertainty is measured for several ears and device location in the ear neighbourhood. Theoretical limitations are discussed. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Dopamine D2 receptor blockade reduces response likelihood but does not affect latency to emit a learned sensory–motor response: Implications for Parkinson's disease.

Parkinsonian behavioral deficits are reduced in the presence of strong eliciting stimuli and are most pronounced when the response requires internal generation. In the present study, rats' head entries into a food compartment were measured in the presence and absence of an eliciting stimulus. The D2 receptor blocker raclopride suppressed the emission of spontaneous head entries but did not slow head entries emitted in response to a food cue. Rats subjected to a pharmacological disruption in dopamine (DA) transmission show response impairments that are reduced, and in this case eliminated, in the presence of strong eliciting stimuli. The present results support the view that neuroleptic-induced reductions in DA transmission do not produce an absolute limit on the speed with which an individual response can be generated but that they reduce the likelihood of response generation in the absence of strong eliciting stimuli. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)