Performances evaluation and optimization of brain computer interface systems in a copy spelling task.

The evaluation of the performances of brain-computer interface (BCI) systems could be difficult as a standard procedure does not exist. In fact, every research team creates its own experimental protocol (different input signals, different trial structure, different output devices, etc.) and this makes systems comparison difficult. Moreover, the great question is whether these experiments can be extrapolated to real world applications or not. To overcome some intrinsic limitations of the most used criteria a new efficiency indicator will be described and used. Its main advantages are that it can predict with a high accuracy the performances of a whole system, a fact that can be used to successfully improve its behavior. Finally, simulations were performed to illustrate that the best system is built by tuning the transducer (TR) and the control interface (CI), which are the two main components of a BCI system, so that the best TR and the best CI do not exist but just the best combination of them.     

Review of Psychoanalysis at the margins.

Reviews the book, Psychoanalysis at the margins by Paul E. Stepansky (see record 2009-22624-000). For more than two decades, there have been conferences and publications about psychoanalysis’ being in a crisis. None of these calls has led to a radical reorganization or reorientation of psychoanalysis. The result has been that psychoanalysis has become marginal: if in the 1960s a large percentage of professorships in psychiatry were held by psychoanalysts, now there are practically none. There are hardly any graduate programs in clinical psychology that are psychoanalytically oriented, and there are very few professorships in psychology that are in the hands of psychoanalysts. And while there are still many psychoanalytic institutes that succeed in attracting candidates, there are almost no patients left that come for classical psychoanalysis. Stepansky’s book is a major achievement and should be read by anybody concerned with the future of psychoanalysis. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Modular experimental setup for real‐time analysis of emergent behavior in networks of Chua's circuits

This paper describes the design, realization and use of an analogical, fully reconfigurable experimental setup to analyze the complex dynamics of networks of chaotic circuits. It reports details of the implementation and characterization of the setup, together with representative results, showing its flexibility and potential. The setup allows to choose arbitrarily the coupling strength and interconnection structure among the circuits, the type of link and to select the parameters of the node dynamics. It has a modular structure, and it can accommodate up to 32 nodes interconnected by at most 32 links. The collective dynamics of a relatively large set of different network structures and configurations has been investigated using the setup. Synchronization, pattern formation and other interesting collective phenomena were observed experimentally, their evidence being reported here as an illustration of the potential of the proposed setup. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Influence of Carrier Mobility and Interface Trap States on the Transfer and Output Characteristics of Organic Thin Film Transistors

We have used two dimensional drift diffusion simulations to calculate the electrical properties of bottom contact pentacene based organic thin film transistor, taking into account field-dependent mobility and interface or bulk trap states. In order to derive from basic principles the transport properties of the organic semiconductor we have developed a Monte Carlo simulator to calculate the field dependent mobility. We analyzed the presence of trap states at the interface between organic material and gate insulator and we show the influence of trap states combined with the effect of field-dependent mobility on the transfer characteristic. Numerical calculations are also reported for the output characteristics of the device showing a very good agreement with the available experimental results.     

Quantum Capacitance Effects in Carbon Nanotube Field-Effect Devices

Density functional numerical simulations are reported in which the non-equilibrium coherent transport properties of a coaxially gated carbon nanotube (CNT) are studied. Effects of screening properties of CNT on the channel conductance modulation are shown. Other factors which influence the CNT quantum capacitance beyond the density of states (DOS) are pointed out, first of all many-body effects which even cause the CNT to over-screen the gate field. Results stress the importance of a good electrostatic-design of the gate contact to obtain an effective field-effect current modulation, and suggest new interesting operation modes for quasi-one dimensional channel devices.     

Hydrogen storage performance of methyl-substituted mesoporous silica with tailored textural characteristics

Journal of Porous Materials - The present study reports a systematic analysis of morphology and hydrogen sorption capacity of mesoporous organic-inorganic silica prepared by varying the silica...     

Volume-Independent Sodium Toxicity in Peritoneal Dialysis: New Insights from Bench to Bed

Sodium overload is common in end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) and is associated with increased cardiovascular mortality that is traditionally considered a result of extracellular volume expansion. Recently, sodium storage was detected by Na23 magnetic resonance imaging in the interstitial tissue of the skin and other tissues. This amount of sodium is osmotically active, regulated by immune cells and the lymphatic system, escapes renal control, and, more importantly, is associated with salt-sensitive hypertension. In chronic kidney disease, the interstitial sodium storage increases as the glomerular filtration rate declines and is related to cardiovascular damage, regardless of the fluid overload. This sodium accumulation in the interstitial tissues becomes more significant in ESKD, especially in older and African American patients. The possible negative effects of interstitial sodium are still under study, though a higher sodium intake might induce abnormal structural and functional changes in the peritoneal wall. Interestingly, sodium stored in the interstial tissue is not unmodifiable, since it is removable by dialysis. Nevertheless, the sodium removal by peritoneal dialysis (PD) remains challenging, and new PD solutions are desirable. In this narrative review, we carried out an update on the pathophysiological mechanisms of volume-independent sodium toxicity and possible future strategies to improve sodium removal by PD.