Exploring Hidden Coherent Feature Groups and Temporal Semantics for Multimedia Big Data Analysis

Thanks to the advanced technologies and social networks that allow the data to be widely shared among the Internet, there is an explosion of pervasive multimedia data, generating high demands of multimedia services and applications in various areas for people to easily access and manage multimedia data. Towards such demands, multimedia big data analysis has become an emerging hot topic in both industry and academia, which ranges from basic infrastructure, management, search, and mining to security, privacy, and applications. Within the scope of this dissertation, a multimedia big data analysis framework is proposed for semantic information management and retrieval with a focus on rare event detection in videos. The proposed framework is able to explore hidden semantic feature groups in multimedia data and incorporate temporal semantics, especially for video event detection. First, a hierarchical semantic data representation is presented to alleviate the semantic gap issue, and the Hidden Coherent Feature Group (HCFG) analysis method is proposed to capture the correlation between features and separate the original feature set into semantic groups, seamlessly integrating multimedia data in multiple modalities. Next, an Importance Factor based Temporal Multiple Correspondence Analysis (i.e., IF-TMCA) approach is presented for effective event detection. Specifically, the HCFG algorithm is integrated with the Hierarchical Information Gain Analysis (HIGA) method to generate the Importance Factor (IF) for producing the initial detection results. Then, the TMCA algorithm is proposed to efficiently incorporate temporal semantics for re-ranking and improving the final performance. At last, a sampling-based ensemble learning mechanism is applied to further accommodate the imbalanced datasets. In addition to the multimedia semantic representation and class imbalance problems, lack of organization is another critical issue for multimedia big data analysis. In this framework, an affinity propagation-based summarization method is also proposed to transform the unorganized data into a better structure with clean and well-organized information. The whole framework has been thoroughly evaluated across multiple domains, such as soccer goal event detection and disaster information management.

Feature-based tracking of urethral motion in low-resolution trans-perineal ultrasound

This paper describes a novel algorithm for tracking the motion of the urethra from trans-perineal ultrasound. Our work is based on the structure-from-motion paradigm and therefore handles well structures with ill-defined and partially missing boundaries. The proposed approach is particularly well-suited for video sequences of low resolution and variable levels of blurriness introduced by anatomical motion of variable speed. Our tracking method identifies feature points on a frame by frame basis using the SURF detector/descriptor. Inter-frame correspondence is achieved using nearest-neighbor matching in the feature space. The motion is estimated using a non-linear bi-quadratic model, which adequately describes the deformable motion of the urethra. Experimental results are promising and show that our algorithm performs well when compared to manual tracking.

Feature-based tracking of urethral motion in low-resolution trans-perineal ultrasound

This paper describes a novel algorithm for tracking the motion of the urethra from trans-perineal ultrasound. Our work is based on the structure-from-motion paradigm and therefore handles well structures with ill-defined and partially missing boundaries. The proposed approach is particularly well-suited for video sequences of low resolution and variable levels of blurriness introduced by anatomical motion of variable speed. Our tracking method identifies feature points on a frame by frame basis using the SURF detector/descriptor. Inter-frame correspondence is achieved using nearest-neighbor matching in the feature space. The motion is estimated using a non-linear bi-quadratic model, which adequately describes the deformable motion of the urethra. Experimental results are promising and show that our algorithm performs well when compared to manual tracking.

The role of cancer related inflammation, Src family kinases and matrix metalloproteinase 9 in colorectal cancer

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer in the UK with 41,000 new cases diagnosed in 2011. Despite undergoing potentially curative resection, a significant amount of patients develop recurrence. Biomarkers that aid prognostication or identify patients who are suitable for adjuvant treatments are needed. The TNM staging system does a reasonably good job at offering prognostic information to the treating clinician, but it could be better and identifying methods of improving its accuracy are needed. Tumour progression is based on a complex relationship between tumour behaviour and the hosts’ inflammatory responses. Sustained tumour cell proliferation, evading growth suppressors, resisting apoptosis, replicative immortality, sustained angiogenesis, invasion & metastasis, avoiding immune destruction, deregulated cellular energetics, tumour promoting inflammation and genomic instability & mutation have been identified as hallmarks. These hallmarks are malignant behaviors are what makes the cell cancerous and the more extreme the behaviour the more aggressive the cancer the more likely the risk of a poor outcome. There are two primary genomic instability pathways: Microsatellite Instability (MSI) and Chromosomal Instability (CI) also referred to as Microsatellite Stability (MSS). Tumours arising by these pathways have a predilection for specific anatomical, histological and molecular biological features. It is possible that aberrant molecular expression of genes/proteins that promote malignant behaviors may also act as prognostic and predictive biomarkers, which may offer superior prognostic information to classical prognostic features. Cancer related inflammation has been described as a 7th hallmark of cancer. Despite the systemic inflammatory response (SIR) being associated with more aggressive malignant disease, infiltration by immune cells, particularly CD8+ lymphocytes, at the advancing edge of the tumour have been associated with improved outcome and tumour MSI. It remains unknown if the SIR is associated with tumour MSI and this requires further study. The mechanisms by which colorectal cancer cells locally invade through the bowel remain uncertain, but connective tissue degradation by matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) such as MMP-9 have been implicated. MMP-9 has been found in the cancer cells, stromal cells and patient circulation. Although tumoural MMP-9 has been associated with poor survival, reports are conflicting and contain relatively small sample sizes. Furthermore, the influence of high serum MMP-9 on survival remains unknown. Src family kinases (SFKs) have been implicated in many adverse cancer cell behaviors. SFKs comprise 9 family members BLK, C-SRC, FGR, FYN, HCK, LCK, LYN, YES, YRK. C-SRC has been the most investigated of all SFKs, but the role of other SFKs in cellular behaviors and their prognostic value remains largely unknown. The development of Src inhibitors, such as Dasatinib, has identified SFKs as a potential therapeutic target for patients at higher risk of poor survival. Unfortunately, clinical trials so far have not been promising but this may reflect inadequate patient selection and SFKs may act as useful prognostic and predictive biomarkers. In chapter 3, the association between cancer related inflammation, tumour MSI, clinicopathological factors and survival was tested in two independent cohorts. A training cohort consisting of n=182 patients and a validation cohort of n=677 patients. MSI tumours were associated with a raised CRP (p=0.003). Hypoalbuminaemia was independently associated with poor overall survival in TNM stage II cancer (HR 3.04 (95% CI 1.44 – 6.43);p=0.004), poor recurrence free survival in TNM stage III cancer (HR 1.86 (95% 1.03 – 3.36);p=0.040) and poor overall survival in CI colorectal cancer (HR 1.49 (95% CI 1.06 – 2.10);p=0.022). Interestingly, MSI tumours were associated with poor overall survival in TNM stage III cancer (HR 2.20 (95% CI 1.10 – 4.37);p=0.025). In chapter 4, the role of MMP-9 in colorectal cancer progression and survival was examined. MMP-9 in the tissue was assessed using IHC and serum expression quantified using ELISA. Serum MMP-9 was associated with cancer cell expression (Spearman’s Correlation Coefficient (SCC) 0.393, p<0.001)) and stromal expression (SCC 0.319, p=0.002). Serum MMP-9 was associated with poor recurrence-free (HR 3.37 (95% CI 1.20 – 9.48);p=0.021) and overall survival (HR 3.16 (95% CI 1.22 – 8.15);p=0.018), but tumour MMP-9 was not survival or MSI status. In chapter 5, the role of SFK expression and activation in colorectal cancer progression and survival was studied. On PCR analysis, although LYN, C-SRC and YES were the most highly expressed, FGR and HCK had higher expression profiles as tumours progressed. Using IHC, raised cytoplasmic FAK (tyr 861) was independently associated with poor recurrence free survival in all cancers (HR 1.48 (95% CI 1.02 – 2.16);p=0.040) and CI cancers (HR 1.50 (95% CI 1.02 – 2.21);p=0.040). However, raised cytoplasmic HCK (HR 2.04 (95% CI 1.11 – 3.76);p=0.022) was independently associated with poor recurrence-free survival in TNM stage II cancers. T84 and HT29 cell lines were used to examine the cellular effects of Dasatinib. Cell viability was assessed using WST-1 assay and apoptosis assessed using an ELISA cell death detection assay. Dasatinib increased T84 tumour cell apoptosis in a dose dependent manner and resulted in reduced expression of nuclear (p=0.008) and cytoplasmic (p=0.016) FAK (tyr 861) expression and increased nuclear FGR expression (p=0.004). The results of this thesis confirm that colorectal cancer is a complex disease that represents several subtypes of cancer based on molecular biological behaviors. This thesis concentrated on features of the disease related to inflammation in terms of genetic and molecular characterisation. MSI cancers are closely associated with systemic inflammation but despite this observation, they retain their relatively improved survival. MMP-9 is a feature of tissue remodeling during inflammation and is also associated with degradation of connective tissue, advanced T-stage and poor outcome when measured in the serum. The lack of stromal quantification due to TMA use rather than full sections makes the value of tumoural MMP-9 immunoreactivity in the prognostication and its association with MSI unknown and requires further study. Finally, SFK activation was also associated with SIR, however, only cytoplasmic HCK was independently associated with poor survival in patients with TNM stage II disease, the group of patients where identifying a novel biomarker is most needed. There is still some way to go before these biomarkers are translated into clinical practice and future work needs to focus on obtaining a reliable and robust scientific technique with validation in an adequately powered independent cohort.

Development of a Computer-Based methodology for tolerance selection and optimization applied to the automotive sector

The design optimization of industrial products has always been an essential activity to improve product quality while reducing time-to-market and production costs. Although cost management is very complex and comprises all phases of the product life cycle, the control of geometrical and dimensional variations, known as Dimensional Management (DM), allows compliance with product and process requirements. Hence, the tolerance-cost optimization becomes the main practice to provide an effective application of Design for Tolerancing (DfT) and Design to Cost (DtC) approaches by enabling a connection between product tolerances and associated manufacturing costs. However, despite the growing interest in this topic, a profitable application in the industry of these techniques is hampered by their complexity: the definition of a systematic framework is the key element to improving design optimization, enhancing the concurrent use of Computer-Aided tools and Model-Based Definition (MBD) practices. The present doctorate research aims to define and develop an integrated methodology for product/process design optimization, to better exploit the new capabilities of advanced simulations and tools. By implementing predictive models and multi-disciplinary optimization, a Computer-Aided Integrated framework for tolerance-cost optimization has been proposed to allow the integration of DfT and DtC approaches and their direct application for the design of automotive components. Several case studies have been considered, with the final application of the integrated framework on a high-performance V12 engine assembly, to achieve both functional targets and cost reduction. From a scientific point of view, the proposed methodology provides an improvement for the tolerance-cost optimization of industrial components. The integration of theoretical approaches and Computer-Aided tools allows to analyse the influence of tolerances on both product performance and manufacturing costs. The case studies proved the suitability of the methodology for its application in the industrial field, providing the identification of further areas for improvement and refinement.

The Effect Of Poly(methyl Methacrylate) Surface Treatments On The Adhesion Of Silicone-based Resilient Denture Liners.

Different surface treatment protocols of poly(methyl methacrylate) have been proposed to improve the adhesion of silicone-based resilient denture liners to poly(methyl methacrylate) surfaces. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of different poly(methyl methacrylate) surface treatments on the adhesion of silicone-based resilient denture liners. Poly(methyl methacrylate) specimens were prepared and divided into 4 treatment groups: no treatment (control), methyl methacrylate for 180 seconds, acetone for 30 seconds, and ethyl acetate for 60 seconds. Poly(methyl methacrylate) disks (30.0 × 5.0 mm; n = 10) were evaluated regarding surface roughness and surface free energy. To evaluate tensile bond strength, the resilient material was applied between 2 treated poly(methyl methacrylate) bars (60.0 × 5.0 × 5.0 mm; n = 20 for each group) to form a 2-mm-thick layer. Data were analyzed by 1-way ANOVA and the Tukey honestly significant difference tests (α = .05). A Pearson correlation test verified the influence of surface properties on tensile bond strength. Failure type was assessed, and the poly(methyl methacrylate) surface treatment modifications were visualized with scanning electron microscopy. The surface roughness was increased (P < .05) by methyl methacrylate treatment. For the acetone and ethyl acetate groups, the surface free energy decreased (P < .05). The tensile bond strength was higher for the methyl methacrylate and ethyl acetate groups (P < .05). No correlation was found regarding surface properties and tensile bond strength. Specimens treated with acetone and methyl methacrylate presented a cleaner surface, whereas the ethyl acetate treatment produced a porous topography. The methyl methacrylate and ethyl acetate surface treatment protocols improved the adhesion of a silicone-based resilient denture liner to poly(methyl methacrylate).

Strict Criteria For Selection Of Laparoscopy For Women With Adnexal Mass.

We compared the indication of laparoscopy for treatment of adnexal masses based on the risk scores and tumor diameters with the indication based on gynecology-oncologists' experience. This was a prospective study of 174 women who underwent surgery for adnexal tumors (116 laparotomies, 58 laparoscopies). The surgeries begun and completed by laparoscopy, with benign pathologic diagnosis, were considered successful. Laparoscopic surgeries that required conversion to laparotomy, led to a malignant diagnosis, or facilitated cyst rupture were considered failures. Two groups were defined for laparoscopy indication: (1) absence of American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG) guideline for referral of high-risk adnexal masses criteria (ACOG negative) associated with 3 different tumor sizes (10, 12, and 14 cm); and (2) Index of Risk of Malignancy (IRM) with cutoffs at 100, 200, and 300, associated with the same 3 tumor sizes. Both groups were compared with the indication based on the surgeon's experience to verify whether the selection based on strict rules would improve the rate of successful laparoscopy. ACOG-negative and tumors ≤10 cm and IRM with a cutoff at 300 points and tumors ≤10cm resulted in the same best performance (78% success = 38/49 laparoscopies). However, compared with the results of the gynecology-oncologists' experience, those were not statistically significant. The selection of patients with adnexal mass to laparoscopy by the use of the ACOG guideline or IRM associated with tumor diameter had similar performance as the experience of gynecology-oncologists. Both methods are reproducible and easy to apply to all women with adnexal masses and could be used by general gynecologists to select women for laparoscopic surgery; however, referral to a gynecology-oncologist is advisable when there is any doubt.

Testes de desempenho aeróbio relacionados a intensidades de corrida em treinamento e competição para fundistas de alto rendimento = : Aerobic performance tests related to training and competition running intensities for high performance distance runners

Universidade Estadual de Campinas . Faculdade de Educação Física

Correlation between margin fit and microleakage in complete crowns cemented with three luting agents

Microleakage can be related to margin misfit. Also, traditional microleakage techniques are time-consuming. This study evaluated the existence of correlation between in vitro margin fit and a new microleakage technique for complete crowns cemented with 3 different luting agents. Thirty human premolars were prepared for full-coverage crowns with a convergence angle of 6 degrees, chamfer margin of 1.2 mm circumferentially, and occlusal reduction of 1.5 mm. Ni-Cr cast crowns were cemented with either zinc phosphate (ZP) (S.S. White), resin-modified glass-ionomer (RMGI) (Rely X Luting Cement) or a resin-based luting agent (RC) (Enforce). Margin fit (seating discrepancy and margin gap) was evaluated according to criteria in the literature under microscope with 0.001 mm accuracy. After thermal cycling, crowns were longitudinally sectioned and microleakage scores at tooth-cement interface were obtained and recorded at ×100 magnification. Margin fit parameters were compared with the one-way ANOVA test and microleakage scores with Kruskal-Wallis and Dunn's tests (alpha=0.05). Correlation between margin fit and microleakage was analyzed with the Spearman's test (alpha=0.05). Seating discrepancy and marginal gap values ranged from 81.82 µm to 137.22 µm (p=0.117), and from 75.42 µm to 78.49 µm (p=0.940), respectively. Marginal microleakage scores were ZP=3.02, RMGI=0.35 and RC=0.12 (p<0.001), with no differences between RMGI and RC scores. The correlation coefficient values ranged from -0.27 to 0.30 (p>0.05). Conclusion: Margin fit parameters and microleakage showed no strong correlations; cast crowns cemented with RMGI and RC had lower microleakage scores than ZP cement.

Correlation between metal-ceramic bond strength and coefficient of linear thermal expansion difference

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the metal-ceramic bond strength (MCBS) of 6 metal-ceramic pairs (2 Ni-Cr alloys and 1 Pd-Ag alloy with 2 dental ceramics) and correlate the MCBS values with the differences between the coefficients of linear thermal expansion (CTEs) of the metals and ceramics. Verabond (VB) Ni-Cr-Be alloy, Verabond II (VB2), Ni-Cr alloy, Pors-on 4 (P), Pd-Ag alloy, and IPS (I) and Duceram (D) ceramics were used for the MCBS test and dilatometric test. Forty-eight ceramic rings were built around metallic rods (3.0 mm in diameter and 70.0 mm in length) made from the evaluated alloys. The rods were subsequently embedded in gypsum cast in order to perform a tensile load test, which enabled calculating the CMBS. Five specimens (2.0 mm in diameter and 12.0 mm in length) of each material were made for the dilatometric test. The chromel-alumel thermocouple required for the test was welded into the metal test specimens and inserted into the ceramics. ANOVA and Tukey's test revealed significant differences (p=0.01) for the MCBS test results (MPa), with PI showing higher MCBS (67.72) than the other pairs, which did not present any significant differences. The CTE (10-6 oC-1) differences were: VBI (0.54), VBD (1.33), VB2I (-0.14), VB2D (0.63), PI (1.84) and PD (2.62). Pearson's correlation test (r=0.17) was performed to evaluate of correlation between MCBS and CTE differences. Within the limitations of this study and based on the obtained results, there was no correlation between MCBS and CTE differences for the evaluated metal-ceramic pairs.

Reviewed evidence about the safety of the daily use of alcohol-based mouthrinses

Current scientific knowledge provides clear evidence that alcohol-based mouthwashes can be beneficial in a daily oral health routine, including dental hygiene and plaque control. Several issues are worth discussing, in spite of the wealth of supporting evidence. Despite some undesirable effects to some people, like burning sensation, and some contraindications, like the use by infants, alcohol addicts and patients with mucosal injuries, there is no reason to avoid the use of alcohol-containing mouthwashes as long as they are used following proper guidance by dental professionals and the manufacturers' instructions. The alleged correlation between oral cancer and alcohol-based mouthrinses presents so little, weak, inconsistent and even contradictory evidence in the literature that any kind of risk warning to patients would be uncalled for. Antimicrobial mouthrinses are safe and effective in reducing plaque and gingivitis, and should be part of a comprehensive oral health care regimen that includes brushing, flossing and rinsing to prevent or minimize periodontal disease.

A contribution to the phytogeography of Brazilian campos: an analysis based on Poaceae

Twenty areas from eight Brazilian states were compared according to a list of 224 species of Poaceae. In order to determinate affinity patterns between the areas, a binary matrix was submitted to cluster and ordination analysis. The patterns found were then faced to climate and geographic position. The scores corresponding to the areas obtained from the cluster analysis showed a strong correlation to temperature. The scores corresponding to the species suggest a gradient that associates distribution patterns to the photosynthetic pathway (C3 or C4). The current results suggest that the traditional classification of the Southern American grasslands might require some modification in order to be broadly applicable in the Brazilian context.

Phylogenetic relationships within the speciose family Characidae (Teleostei: Ostariophysi: Characiformes) based on multilocus analysis and extensive ingroup sampling

Background: With nearly 1,100 species, the fish family Characidae represents more than half of the species of Characiformes, and is a key component of Neotropical freshwater ecosystems. The composition, phylogeny, and classification of Characidae is currently uncertain, despite significant efforts based on analysis of morphological and molecular data. No consensus about the monophyly of this group or its position within the order Characiformes has been reached, challenged by the fact that many key studies to date have non-overlapping taxonomic representation and focus only on subsets of this diversity. Results: In the present study we propose a new definition of the family Characidae and a hypothesis of relationships for the Characiformes based on phylogenetic analysis of DNA sequences of two mitochondrial and three nuclear genes (4,680 base pairs). The sequences were obtained from 211 samples representing 166 genera distributed among all 18 recognized families in the order Characiformes, all 14 recognized subfamilies in the Characidae, plus 56 of the genera so far considered incertae sedis in the Characidae. The phylogeny obtained is robust, with most lineages significantly supported by posterior probabilities in Bayesian analysis, and high bootstrap values from maximum likelihood and parsimony analyses. Conclusion: A monophyletic assemblage strongly supported in all our phylogenetic analysis is herein defined as the Characidae and includes the characiform species lacking a supraorbital bone and with a derived position of the emergence of the hyoid artery from the anterior ceratohyal. To recognize this and several other monophyletic groups within characiforms we propose changes in the limits of several families to facilitate future studies in the Characiformes and particularly the Characidae. This work presents a new phylogenetic framework for a speciose and morphologically diverse group of freshwater fishes of significant ecological and evolutionary importance across the Neotropics and portions of Africa.

Disequilibrium Coefficient: A Bayesian Perspective

Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium (HWE) is an important genetic property that populations should have whenever they are not observing adverse situations as complete lack of panmixia, excess of mutations, excess of selection pressure, etc. HWE for decades has been evaluated; both frequentist and Bayesian methods are in use today. While historically the HWE formula was developed to examine the transmission of alleles in a population from one generation to the next, use of HWE concepts has expanded in human diseases studies to detect genotyping error and disease susceptibility (association); Ryckman and Williams (2008). Most analyses focus on trying to answer the question of whether a population is in HWE. They do not try to quantify how far from the equilibrium the population is. In this paper, we propose the use of a simple disequilibrium coefficient to a locus with two alleles. Based on the posterior density of this disequilibrium coefficient, we show how one can conduct a Bayesian analysis to verify how far from HWE a population is. There are other coefficients introduced in the literature and the advantage of the one introduced in this paper is the fact that, just like the standard correlation coefficients, its range is bounded and it is symmetric around zero (equilibrium) when comparing the positive and the negative values. To test the hypothesis of equilibrium, we use a simple Bayesian significance test, the Full Bayesian Significance Test (FBST); see Pereira, Stern andWechsler (2008) for a complete review. The disequilibrium coefficient proposed provides an easy and efficient way to make the analyses, especially if one uses Bayesian statistics. A routine in R programs (R Development Core Team, 2009) that implements the calculations is provided for the readers.

Genetic analysis of average annual productivity of Nellore breeding cows (COWPROD)

With the aim of estimating the coefficient of heritability of average annual productivity of Nellore cows (COWPROD), a data set from 24,855 animals with known pedigree was analyzed. COWPROD is defined as the amount (in kilograms) of weaned calves produced yearly by one cow during her remaining time in herd ignoring a fixed period of 365 days. COWPROD was calculated regarding three standards: a) based on the post-weaning weight from the calves ignoring any kind of adjustment (COWPROD_NAJ), b) adjusted weight for the fixed effects (COWPROD_AJFIX) and c) adjusted weight for the fixed effects and for the genetic merit of the sire (COWPROD_AJFIN). The obtained heritabilities were 0.15, 0.15 and 0.16 for COWPROD_NAJ, COWPROD_AJFIX and COWPROD_AJFIN, respectively. A complete set composed of 105,158 COWPROD records on 130,740 animals in pedigree was also analyzed for predicting the genetic merit of all animals in the data set and for the calculation of the genetic, phenotypic and residual trends. Ranking correlation was high for the adjusted and non-adjusted data, yet, for some of the animals, the difference among the genetic values was large. This would be an indication that it would be better to work always with the adjusted weaning weights. The genetic trend was positive, but was of small magnitude (0.26% of the trait average) and the residual trend was negative as a consequence of the large intensification of the production system, which has been occurring in the last years in the farms studied. The phenotypic trend was also negative and intermediate between the genetic and the residual ones.