Insights from a simple expression for linear fisher information in a recurrently connected population of spiking neurons

A simple expression for a lower bound of Fisher information is derived for a network of recurrently connected spiking neurons that have been driven to a noise-perturbed steady state. We call this lower bound linear Fisher information, as it corresponds to the Fisher information that can be recovered by a locally optimal linear estimator. Unlike recent similar calculations, the approach used here includes the effects of nonlinear gain functions and correlated input noise and yields a surprisingly simple and intuitive expression that offers substantial insight into the sources of information degradation across successive layers of a neural network. Here, this expression is used to (1) compute the optimal (i.e., information-maximizing) firing rate of a neuron, (2) demonstrate why sharpening tuning curves by either thresholding or the action of recurrent connectivity is generally a bad idea, (3) show how a single cortical expansion is sufficient to instantiate a redundant population code that can propagate across multiple cortical layers with minimal information loss, and (4) show that optimal recurrent connectivity strongly depends on the covariance structure of the inputs to the network.     

A phase-locked loop using ESO-based loop filter for grid-connected converter:performance analysis

An extended state observer(ESO)-based loop filter is designed for the phase-locked loop(PLL)involved in a disturbed grid-connected converter(GcC).This ESO-based...     

Functionalization of hydrocolloids: principal component analysis applied to the study of correlations between parameters describing the consistency of hydrogels

This work was part of a pure research project on the functionalization of three families of hydrocolloids: cellulose derivatives, carrageenates, and alginates. Principal component analysis (PCA), a powerful statistical method, was used to demonstrate the relations existing among these different parameters that describe the consistency of hydrogels and their spreadability. This approach therefore provides a basis for modeling hydrogel consistency. PCA also afforded a classification of hydrogels that demonstrated the remarkable adhesiveness of very stiff gels based on cellulose derivatives and sodium or potassium alginates. The corresponding semifluid gels and all the gels based on carrageenates and mixed sodium-calcium alginates, whatever their spreadability, were found to be very poorly adhesive. Generalized to all the many colloids currently marketed, this approach can be used to set up a databank for the formulation of mucoadhesive excipients.     

Quantification of different effects occurring during fatigue tests on bituminous mixtures

Quantification of different effects (nonlinearity, heating, thixotropy, and fatigue) occurring during fatigue tests on bituminous mixtures is presented in this paper. A focus is given on the nonlinearity phenomenon. Continuous fatigue tests and a test with specific protocol (called fatigue tests to estimate biasing effects) were performed in tension/compression mode on cylindrical samples of the same material. The analysis of results reveals that reversible effects (nonlinearity, heating, and thixotropy) are important (more than 90% decrease at 100,000 cycles for a strain amplitude of 100 μm/m at 10 Hz) and cannot be ignored when interpreting classical fatigue tests. The nonlinearity effects respect the time‐temperature superposition principle, and they are more pronounced at “high” temperature (at the same frequency). Direction of nonlinearity curve in the Cole‐Cole axes is shown to be independent of temperature and frequency for the considered range.     

Visible spectrometric indices of hematite (Hm) and goethite (Gt) content in lateritic soils: The application of a Thematic Mapper (TM) image for soil-mapping in Brasilia,Brazil

Data on mineralogy and diffuse reflectance spectra, obtained from 56 samples of Brazilian lateritic soils, were used to establish quantitative relationships between spectral parameters and iron oxides contents (hematite and goethite). A redness index RI H calculated from Helmholtz chromatic co-ordinates ( lambda d, P e, Y) and correlated to hematite content is found. A good estimate of the ratio Hematite/ (Hematite + Goethite) is given by the dominant wavelength lambda which takes into account a large proportion of the tint detected on the soil sample. Based on these laboratory results, radiometric indices were elaborated by combining only those parts of the visible spectrum that correspond to Thematic Mapper (TM) channels: (i) a hematite index I Hm to estimate hematite concentration; and (ii) a ferric index I Fe to estimate the ratio hematite/(hematite goethite). The hematite index, applied to a TM image of the area around Brasilia, allowed hematite contents in the surface horizons of lateritic soils to be mapped accurately.     

Parametric study of surfactant effect on mechanical and dissolution properties of detergent tablets

The aim of this study is to investigate the functional characteristics (mechanical strength and disintegration time) of effervescent detergent tablets containing chlorine provider in the presence of surfactant. A preliminary study high-lighted that the presence of 2% of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) was not favorable to the tablet mechanical properties, inducing a lower “bonding ability,” whereas the disintegration time increased, compared with the reference tablets without surfactant. The linear relationship between the disintegration time and the end-dissolution time led us to consider just the disintegration time to express the behavior of the tablets in water. A parametric study has been completed to assess the influence of the mixing method, the nature, the hydrophilic-lipophilic balance, the granulometry, and the concentration of the surfactant on the tablet properties. In all cases, surfactant presented adverse effects on the mechanical properties and had a retarding effect on disintegration time, but neither solubility, hydrophilic-lipophilic balance, interfacial properties, nor ionic character could be clearly involved to explain surfactant contribution. Furthermore, tablet dissolution could not be correlated to surfactant available surface, as evidenced by granulometry comparison on one side and concentration impact on the other side (a similar effect was observed from 1 to 15%). On the contrary, mechanical properties were damaged as much as the area developed by surfactant particles increased. On the basis of this work, it has been concluded that SDS interacts with the other compounds of the formula by creating weak interparticle bonds and limiting water uptake responsible for disintegration.     

The syntactic role of pauses in the speech of schizophrenic patients with alogia.

Examined the relation between alogia and pausing. The authors analyzed the flow of speech of 17 male schizophrenic patients during an interview, particularly the pauses that occurred within and between syntactic clauses and those that occurred as the turn switched from the interviewer's question to the patient's response. The strongest predictor of alogia ratings was the duration of switching pauses; the frequency of long within-clause pauses was also significantly related to alogia, but the frequency of between-clause pauses showed a trend toward a negative relation with alogia. Words following within-clause pauses were more likely to be content words than function words, and the content words were less frequent in the English language than the speaker's other words. This suggests that alogic patients have difficulty in word finding and in thought formulation, as well as a general increase in the duration of all pauses. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Immunoassays fail to detect antibodies against neuronal calcium channels in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis serum

A NAD-dependent enzyme that catalyzes the oxidation of retinal to retinoic acid has been purified to homogeneity from bovine kidney. The procedures used in the purification included ion-exchange chromatography on DEAE-Sepharose, affinity chromatography on Affi-gel blue and chromatography on a Mono-Q anion-exchange column. On the Mono-Q column, the enzyme aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) resolved into two activity peaks designated as ALDH1 and ALDH2. The enzymes ALDH1 and ALDH2 were purified about 114- and 65-fold, respectively. Gel filtration chromatography of the partially purified native enzyme on Sephacryl S-200 HR exhibited a molecular mass of about 108 kDa. Electrophoresis of the purified enzymes under nondenaturing conditions showed a single protein band. However, sodium dodecyl sulfate--polyacrylamide gel electrophorsis indicated three protein bands in the 55, 30, and 22 kDa molecular mass regions. Both enzymes exhibited a broad substrate specificity oxidizing a wide variety of aliphatic and aromatic aldehydes. The ALDH1 enzyme had a pI of 7.45 and exhibited a low Km (6.37 microM) for retinal, while the ALDH2 enzyme was found to have very low Km for acetaldehyde (0.98 microM). Based on its kinetic properties, it is suggested that the ALDH1 enzyme may be the primary enzyme for oxidizing retinal to retinoic acid in bovine kidney.