Basis transformation of trial function space in lagrange interpolation

Various transformation rules that are due to two different bases of the same trial function space kept over an arbitrary finite element are presented in simple matrix form. Such interpolation theory clarifies the relation between nodeless variables and conventional nodal ones. It is further demonstrated that the finite element solutions are theoretically independent of the basis choice unless the assembly admissible conditions are violated.     

Role of GABAB receptors in the control of hypoglossal motoneurons in vivo

There is little information on GABAB receptor-mediated effects on orofacial motoneurons. We recorded the inspiratory activity from both hypoglossal (XII) nerves in urethane-anesthetized, paralyzed, vagotomized and artificially ventilated rats. A GABAB receptor agonist, baclofen, or antagonist, CGP-35348, was microinjected into one XII nucleus. Baclofen rapidly reduced the XII nerve activity in a dose-dependent manner by over 50%. The antagonist caused a delayed suppression of activity by 40%. We conclude that: (1) GABAB receptors within the XII nucleus may suppress the activity of inspiratory XII motoneurons, but they are not tonically active under the conditions of our experiment; (2) there is a net endogenous excitatory effect in XII motoneurons that is mediated by GABAB receptors located in the reticular formation surrounding the XII nucleus.     

Recombinant human soluble thrombomodulin reduces endotoxin-induced pulmonary vascular injury via protein C activation in rats

Adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a serious complication of disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) or multiple organ failure. To determine whether recombinant soluble human thrombomodulin (rsTM) may be useful in treating ARDS due to sepsis, we investigated the effect of rsTM on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced pulmonary vascular injury in rats. The intravenous administration of rsTM prevented the increase in pulmonary vascular permeability induced by LPS. Neither heparin plus antithrombin III (AT III) nor dansyl Glu Gly Arg chloromethyl ketone-treated factor Xa (DEGR-Xa), a selective inhibitor of thrombin generation, prevented LPS-induced vascular injury. The agents rsTM, heparin plus AT III, and DEGR-Xa all significantly inhibited the LPS-induced intravascular coagulation. Recombinant soluble TM pretreated with a monoclonal antibody (moAb) that inhibits protein C activation by rsTM did not prevent the LPS-induced vascular injury; in contrast, rsTM pretreated with a moAb that does not affect thrombin binding or protein C activation by rsTM prevented vascular injury. Administration of activated protein C (APC) also prevented vascular injury. LPS-induced pulmonary vascular injury was significantly reduced in rats with leukopenia induced by nitrogen mustard and by ONO-5046, a potent inhibitor of granulocyte elastase. Results suggest that rsTM prevents LPS-induced pulmonary vascular injury via protein C activation and that the APC-induced prevention of vascular injury is independent of its anticoagulant activity, but dependent on its ability to inhibit leukocyte activation.     

Selective minimum-norm solution of the biomagnetic inverse problem

A new multidipole estimation method which gives a sparse solution of the biomagnetic inverse problem is proposed. This solution is extracted from the basic feasible solutions of linearly independent data equations. These feasible solutions are obtained by selecting exactly as many dipole-moments as the number of magnetic sensors. By changing the selection, the authors search for the minimum-norm vector of selected moments. As a result, a practically sparse solution is obtained; computer-simulated solutions for L_p-norm (p=2, 1, 0.5, 0.2) have a small number of significant moments around the real source-dipoles. In particular, the solution for L₁-norm is equivalent to the minimum-L₁-norm solution of the original inverse problem. This solution can be uniquely computed by using linear programming     

Paths and distance functions on three-dimensional digitized pictures

We present in this note a formula to calculate the length of a path between two arbitrary voxels of a digitized three-dimension (3D) picture. Distance functions on the 3D digitized space are derived using the resulting formula.     

Phenomenological study on sol–gel transition of linear low density polyethylene in organic solvents

Solutions of linear low density polyethylenes in organic solvents formed thermoreversible gels on cooling. Gel-melting temperatures of the polymers in tetralin, decalin, and o-xylene were measured. They increased slowly with increasing polymer concentration. Experimental data were analyzed by the thermodynamic theory of Takahashi, Nakamura, and Kagawa, which is derived for the gel-melting temperature of a crystalline linear copolymer gel. A plot of the gel-melting temperature by the theory depended considerably on the kind of comonomer of the polymer.     

Self-Organization through Spike-Timing Dependent Plasticity Using localized Synfire-Chain Patterns

Many experimental results suggest that more precise spike timing is significant in neural information processing. From this point of view, we construct a self-organizing model using the spatio-temporal patterns, where Spike-Timing Dependent Plasticity (STDP) tunes the conduction delays between neurons. STDP forms smoother map with the spatially random and dispersed patterns, whereas it causes spatially distributed and clustered firings for spatially continuous and synchronous inputs. These results suggest that STDP forms cell assemblies having a fine structure reflecting external stimuli.     

Creating Fluid Animation from a Single Image using Video Database

We present a method for synthesizing fluid animation from a single image, using a fluid video database. The user inputs a target painting or photograph of a fluid scene along with its alpha matte that extracts the fluid region of interest in the scene. Our approach allows the user to generate a fluid animation from the input image and to enter a few additional commands about fluid orientation or speed. Employing the database of fluid examples, the core algorithm in our method then automatically assigns fluid videos for each part of the target image. Our method can therefore deal with various paintings and photographs of a river, waterfall, fire, and smoke. The resulting animations demonstrate that our method is more powerful and efficient than our prior work.     

Recovery of Platinum Group Metals from Spent Catalysts Using Iron Chloride Vapor Treatment

Metallurgical and Materials Transactions B - The recovery of platinum group metals (PGMs) from spent automobile catalysts is a difficult process because of their relatively low contents in the...