Determination of diffusing capacity by modeling the dynamics of C18O uptake in newborns

Dynamic modeling of lung C¹⁸O diffusion is used to measure the C¹⁸O transfer factor (TL_co) of 14 newborns aged 1-4 mo. The model equation is based on the alveolar fractions of C¹⁸O and on changing alveolar ventilation induced by the rebreathing conditions. The model does not involve the volume of the rebreathing bag which is usually needed when applying rebreathing technique add which is a source of error. The equation is discretized and solved for recorded data obtained with equipment adapted to use in newborns. A least-square parameter calculation technique is applied to estimate TL_co. Results show a strong relationship between this index and the biometrical ones and confirm those found in the literature featuring that the measurement duration can be considerably shortened     

An entropy-based persistence barcode

In persistent homology, the persistence barcode encodes pairs of simplices meaning birth and death of homology classes. Persistence barcodes depend on the ordering of the simplices (called a filter) of the given simplicial complex. In this paper, we define the notion of “minimal” barcodes in terms of entropy. Starting from a given filtration of a simplicial complex K, an algorithm for computing a “proper” filter (a total ordering of the simplices preserving the partial ordering imposed by the filtration as well as achieving a persistence barcode with small entropy) is detailed, by way of computation, and subsequent modification, of maximum matchings on subgraphs of the Hasse diagram associated to K. Examples demonstrating the utility of computing such a proper ordering on the simplices are given.     

Image segmentation and edge enhancement with stabilized inversediffusion equations

We introduce a family of first-order multidimensional ordinary differential equations (ODEs) with discontinuous right-hand sides and demonstrate their applicability in image processing. An equation belonging to this family is an inverse diffusion everywhere except at local extrema, where some stabilization is introduced. For this reason, we call these equations "stabilized inverse diffusion equations" (SIDEs). Existence and uniqueness of solutions, as well as stability, are proven for SIDEs. A SIDE in one spatial dimension may be interpreted as a limiting case of a semi-discretized Perona-Malik equation (1990, 19994). In an experiment, SIDE's are shown to suppress noise while sharpening edges present in the input signal. Their application to image segmentation is also demonstrated.     

Atomic-Scale Friction in Xe/Ag and N2/Pb

Quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) and electrical resistivity measurements were carried out on the systems Xe/Ag and N₂/Pb to determine the relative contributions of electronic and phonon dissipative mechanisms to sliding friction. Results show significantly differing proportions of electronic friction in the two systems.     

A smart stochastic approach for manifolds smoothing

In this paper, we present a probabilistic approach for 3D object's smoothing. The core idea behind the proposed method is to relate the problem of smoothing objects to that of tracking the transition probability density functions of an underlying random process. We show that such an approach allows for additional insight and sufficient flexibility compared with existing standard smoothing techniques. In particular, we are able to propose a newer, faster, and simpler smoothing approach that retains and enhances important manifold features. Furthermore, it is demonstrated to improve performance over existing smoothing techniques.     

Stochastic differential equations and geometric flows

In previous years, curve evolution, applied to a single contour or to the level sets of an image via partial differential equations, has emerged as an important tool in image processing and computer vision. Curve evolution techniques have been utilized in problems such as image smoothing, segmentation, and shape analysis. We give a local stochastic interpretation of the basic curve smoothing equation, the so called geometric heat equation, and show that this evolution amounts to a tangential diffusion movement of the particles along the contour. Moreover, assuming that a priori information about the shapes of objects in an image is known, we present modifications of the geometric heat equation designed to preserve certain features in these shapes while removing noise. We also show how these new flows may be applied to smooth noisy curves without destroying their larger scale features, in contrast to the original geometric heat flow which tends to circularize any closed curve.     

Operator approach to performance analysis of root-MUSIC androot-min-norm

The authors carry out a performance analysis of two eigenstructure-based direction-of-arrival estimation algorithms, using a series expansion of projection operators (or projectors) on the signal and noise subspaces. In the interest of algebraic simplicity, an operator formalism is utilized. A perturbation analysis is performed on the projectors, the results of which are used to determine the effect on the estimated parameters. The approach makes it possible to carry out the analysis to any chosen order of expansion of the projectors by using an original recurrence formula developed for the higher-order terms in the series expansion of the projectors. This method is used to study the root-MUSIC and root-min-norm algorithms and establish the superiority of root-MUSIC in all cases. The analysis has also resulted in insightful asymptotic expressions that describe the statistical behavior of the estimated angles and radii of the signal zeros     

Monte Carlo calculations on extremity and eye lens dosimetry for medical staff at interventional radiology procedures

There are many factors that can influence the extremity and eye lens doses of the medical staff during interventional radiology and cardiology procedures. Numerical simulations can play an important role in evaluating extremity and eye lens doses in correlation with many different parameters. In the present study, the first results of the ORAMED (Optimisation of Radiation protection of MEDical staff) simulation campaign are presented. The parameters investigated for their influence on eye lens, hand, wrist and leg doses are: tube voltage, filtration, beam projection, field size and irradiated part of the patient's body. The tube voltage ranged from 60 to 110 kV(p), filtration from 3 to 6 mm Al and from 0 to 0.9 mm Cu. For all projections, the results showed that doses received by the operator decreased with increasing tube voltage and filtration. The magnitude of the influence of the tube voltage and the filtration on the doses depends on the beam projection and the irradiated part of the patient's body. Finally, the influence of the field size is significant in decreasing the doses.