Corruption in building the image of politics in television news broadcasts

This work analyses the political news of eight Spanish television channels in order to see what image is built of politics, and particularly how the news of corruption affects the image of politics in Spanish news broadcasts. Different cases of corruption such as Gürtel, Palma Arena and those associated with judge Baltasar Garzón in his final stage in office, occupy part of the study. A new methodology is therefore proposed that enables the quality of the political information emitted from inside and outside the political content of the news programmes to be observed. Particular attention is paid to the news broadcasts of Televisión Española and Cuatro as those which offer a more balanced view of politics, and channels such as La Sexta, which give priority to a narrative construction of politics in the news programmes around causes of corruption.

Low-cost MR-compatible moving heart phantom.

For the development and evaluation of cardiac magnetic resonance (MR) imaging sequences and methodologies, the availability of a periodically moving phantom to model respiratory and cardiac motion would be of substantial benefit. Given the specific physical boundary conditions in an MR environment, the choice of materials and power source of such phantoms is heavily restricted. Sophisticated commercial solutions are available; however, they are often relatively costly and user-specific modifications may not easily be implemented. We therefore sought to construct a low-cost MR-compatible motion phantom that could be easily reproduced and had design flexibility. A commercially available K'NEX construction set (Hyper Space Training Tower, K'NEX Industries, Inc., Hatfield, PA) was used to construct a periodically moving phantom head. The phantom head performs a translation with a superimposed rotation, driven by a motor over a 2-m rigid rod. To synchronize the MR data acquisition with phantom motion (without introducing radiofrequency-related image artifacts), a fiberoptic control unit generates periodic trigger pulses synchronized to the phantom motion. Total material costs of the phantom are US$ < 200.00, and a total of 80 man-hours were required to design and construct the original phantom. With schematics of the present solution, the phantom reproduction may be achieved in approximately 15 man-hours. The presented MR-compatible periodically moving phantom can easily be reproduced, and user-specific modifications may be implemented. Such an approach allows a detailed investigation of motion-related phenomena in MR images.

Iron acquisition with the natural siderophore enantiomers pyochelin and enantio-pyochelin in Pseudomonas species.

The bacterial siderophore pyochelin is composed of salicylate and two cysteine-derived heterocycles, the second of which is modified by reduction and N-methylation during biosynthesis. In Pseudomonas aeruginosa, the first cysteine residue is converted to its D-isoform during thiazoline ring formation, whereas the second cysteine remains in its L-configuration. Stereochemistry is opposite in the Pseudomonas fluorescens siderophore enantio-pyochelin, in which the first ring originates from L-cysteine and the second ring from D-cysteine. Both siderophores promote growth of the producer organism during iron limitation and induce the expression of their biosynthesis genes by activating the transcriptional AraC-type regulator PchR. However, neither siderophore is functional as an iron carrier or as a transcriptional inducer in the other species, demonstrating that both processes are highly stereospecific. Stereospecificity of pyochelin/enantio-pyochelin-mediated iron uptake is ensured at two levels: (i) by the outer membrane siderophore receptors and (ii) by the cytosolic PchR regulators.

Septal lesions impair the acquisition of a cued place navigation task: attentional or memory deficit?

These experiments were designed to analyze how medial septal lesions reducing the cholinergic innervation in the hippocampus might affect place learning. Rats with quisqualic lesions of the medial septal area (MS) were trained in a water maze and on a homing table where the escape position was located at a spatially fixed position and further indicated by a salient cue suspended above it. The lesioned rats were significantly impaired in reaching the cued escape platform during training. In addition rats, did not show any discrimination of the training sector during a probe trial in which no platform or cue was present. This impairment remained significant during further training in the absence of the cue. When the cued escape platform was located at an unpredictable spatial location, the MS-lesioned rats showed no deficit and spent more time under the cue than control rats during the probe trial. On the homing board, with a salient object in close proximity to the escape hole, the MS rats showed no deficit in escape latencies, although a significant reduction in spatial memory was observed. However, this was overcome by additional training in the absence of the cue. Under these conditions, rats with septal lesions were prone to develop a pure guidance strategy, whereas normal rats combined a guidance strategy with a memory of the escape position relative to more distant landmarks. The presence of a salient cue appeared to decrease attention to environmental landmarks, thus reducing spatial memory. These data confirm the general hypothesis that MS lesions reduce the capacity to rely on a representation of the relation between several landmarks with different salience.

Le Linceul: une exploration par la bande dessinée des potentialités narratives de la (re)production de l'image christique

L'article aborde la façon dont la série BD Le Linceul (2003-2006) s'approprie, dans le cadre de la fiction et du récit d'action grand public, le contexte de la réception de l'image acheiropoïète du Saint Suaire, intégrant la référence à des enjeux théologiques et scientifiques au sein d'une histoire à suspense située à différentes époques et dont les nombreux rebondissements s'articulent autour d'une croyance progressive dans le statut sacré de la vera icon. L'examen détaillé de certains choix narratifs et graphiques de l'auteur Laurent Bidot permet de dégager les modalités d'une exploitation contemporaine et (a priori) laïcisée de la figure de Jésus qui, à l'ère des technologies numériques, conserve sa part de mystère. Dans une perspective narratologique, l'interprétation procède principalement de constats liés à l'organisation énonciative de cette production bédéique.

Image Analysis for the Characterization of Materials for Highway Construction : Phase I, Progress Report, HR-346, 1992

The major objective of this project is to evaluate image analysis for characterizing air voids in Portland cement contract (PCC) and asphalt concrete (AC) and aggregate gradation in asphalt concrete. Phase 1 of this project has concentrated on evaluation and refinement of sample preparation techniques, evaluation of methods and instruments for conducting image analysis, and finally, analysis and comparison of a select portion of samples. Preliminary results suggest a strong correlation between the results obtained from the linear traverse method and image analysis methods for determining percent air voids in concrete. Preliminary work with asphalt samples has shown that damage caused by a high vacuum of the conventional scanning electron microscope (SEM) may too disruptive. Alternative solutions have been explored, including confocal microscopy and low vacuum electron microscopy. Additionally, a conventional high vacuum SEM operating at a marginal operating vacuum may suffice.

Brain dysfunctions, psychopathologies, and body image distortions

The major features in eating disorders are a preoccupation with food and its consumption and body dissatisfaction. Diagnostic manuals provide clusters of criteria according to which affected individuals can be categorized into one or other group of eating disorder. Yet, when considering the high proportion of comorbidities and ignoring the content of the symptoms (food, body), the major features seem to yield obsessional-compulsive, addictive, and impulsive qualities. In the present article, we review studies from the neuroscientific literature (mainly lesion studies) on eating disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, impulse control disorder, and addiction to investigate the possibility of a wider phenotype that can be related to a common brain network. The literature localizes this network to the right frontal lobe and its connectivities. This network, when dysfunctional, might result in a behavior that favors the preoccupation with particular thoughts, behaviors, anxieties, and uncontrollable urges that are accompanied by little scope for ongoing behavioral adjustments (e.g., impulse control). We reason that this network may turn out to be equally involved in understudied mental conditions of dysfunctional body processing such as muscle dysmorphia, body dysmorphic disorder (including esthetic surgery), and xelomelia. We finally consider previous notions of a wider phenotype approach to current diagnostic practice (using DSM), such as the possibility of a model with a reduced number of diagnostic categories and primary and secondary factors, and to etiological models of mental health conditions.

Transcriptome analysis of intraspecific competition in Arabidopsis thaliana reveals organ-specific signatures related to nutrient acquisition and general stress response pathways.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Plants are sessile and therefore have to perceive and adjust to changes in their environment. The presence of neighbours leads to a competitive situation where resources and space will be limited. Complex adaptive responses to such situation are poorly understood at the molecular level. RESULTS: Using microarrays, we analysed whole-genome expression changes in Arabidopsis thaliana plants subjected to intraspecific competition. The leaf and root transcriptome was strongly altered by competition. Differentially expressed genes were enriched in genes involved in nutrient deficiency (mainly N, P, K), perception of light quality, and responses to abiotic and biotic stresses. Interestingly, performance of the generalist insect Spodoptera littoralis on densely grown plants was significantly reduced, suggesting that plants under competition display enhanced resistance to herbivory. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides a comprehensive list of genes whose expression is affected by intraspecific competition in Arabidopsis. The outcome is a unique response that involves genes related to light, nutrient deficiency, abiotic stress, and defence responses.

On the convergence of EM-like algorithms for image segmentation using Markov random fields.

Inference of Markov random field images segmentation models is usually performed using iterative methods which adapt the well-known expectation-maximization (EM) algorithm for independent mixture models. However, some of these adaptations are ad hoc and may turn out numerically unstable. In this paper, we review three EM-like variants for Markov random field segmentation and compare their convergence properties both at the theoretical and practical levels. We specifically advocate a numerical scheme involving asynchronous voxel updating, for which general convergence results can be established. Our experiments on brain tissue classification in magnetic resonance images provide evidence that this algorithm may achieve significantly faster convergence than its competitors while yielding at least as good segmentation results.

Improved SNR efficiency in gradient echo coronary MRA with high temporal resolution using parallel imaging.

Contemporary coronary magnetic resonance angiography techniques suffer from signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) constraints. We propose a method to enhance SNR in gradient echo coronary magnetic resonance angiography by using sensitivity encoding (SENSE). While the use of sensitivity encoding to improve SNR seems counterintuitive, it can be exploited by reducing the number of radiofrequency excitations during the acquisition window while lowering the signal readout bandwidth, therefore improving the radiofrequency receive to radiofrequency transmit duty cycle. Under certain conditions, this leads to improved SNR. The use of sensitivity encoding for improved SNR in three-dimensional coronary magnetic resonance angiography is investigated using numerical simulations and an in vitro and an in vivo study. A maximum 55% SNR enhancement for coronary magnetic resonance angiography was found both in vitro and in vivo, which is well consistent with the numerical simulations. This method is most suitable for spoiled gradient echo coronary magnetic resonance angiography in which a high temporal and spatial resolution is required.

Occupational and patient exposure as well as image quality for full spine examinations with the EOS imaging system.

PURPOSE: EOS (EOS imaging S.A, Paris, France) is an x-ray imaging system that uses slot-scanning technology in order to optimize the trade-off between image quality and dose. The goal of this study was to characterize the EOS system in terms of occupational exposure, organ doses to patients as well as image quality for full spine examinations. METHODS: Occupational exposure was determined by measuring the ambient dose equivalents in the radiological room during a standard full spine examination. The patient dosimetry was performed using anthropomorphic phantoms representing an adolescent and a five-year-old child. The organ doses were measured with thermoluminescent detectors and then used to calculate effective doses. Patient exposure with EOS was then compared to dose levels reported for conventional radiological systems. Image quality was assessed in terms of spatial resolution and different noise contributions to evaluate the detector's performances of the system. The spatial-frequency signal transfer efficiency of the imaging system was quantified by the detective quantum efficiency (DQE). RESULTS: The use of a protective apron when the medical staff or parents have to stand near to the cubicle in the radiological room is recommended. The estimated effective dose to patients undergoing a full spine examination with the EOS system was 290μSv for an adult and 200 μSv for a child. MTF and NPS are nonisotropic, with higher values in the scanning direction; they are in addition energy-dependent, but scanning speed independent. The system was shown to be quantum-limited, with a maximum DQE of 13%. The relevance of the DQE for slot-scanning system has been addressed. CONCLUSIONS: As a summary, the estimated effective dose was 290μSv for an adult; the image quality remains comparable to conventional systems.

Recruitment advertising and corporate image : The HRM-marketing interface

Extended abstract.

Subjectively adapted high capacity lossless image data hiding based on prediction errors

This article reports on a lossless data hiding scheme for digital images where the data hiding capacity is either determined by minimum acceptable subjective quality or by the demanded capacity. In the proposed method data is hidden within the image prediction errors, where the most well-known prediction algorithms such as the median edge detector (MED), gradient adjacent prediction (GAP) and Jiang prediction are tested for this purpose. In this method, first the histogram of the prediction errors of images are computed and then based on the required capacity or desired image quality, the prediction error values of frequencies larger than this capacity are shifted. The empty space created by such a shift is used for embedding the data. Experimental results show distinct superiority of the image prediction error histogram over the conventional image histogram itself, due to much narrower spectrum of the former over the latter. We have also devised an adaptive method for hiding data, where subjective quality is traded for data hiding capacity. Here the positive and negative error values are chosen such that the sum of their frequencies on the histogram is just above the given capacity or above a certain quality.

Lossless Image Data Embedding in Plain Areas

This letter presents a lossless data hiding scheme for digital images which uses an edge detector to locate plain areas for embedding. The proposed method takes advantage of the well-known gradient adjacent prediction utilized in image coding. In the suggested scheme, prediction errors and edge values are first computed and then, excluding the edge pixels, prediction error values are slightly modified through shifting the prediction errors to embed data. The aim of proposed scheme is to decrease the amount of modified pixels to improve transparency by keeping edge pixel values of the image. The experimental results have demonstrated that the proposed method is capable of hiding more secret data than the known techniques at the same PSNR, thus proving that using edge detector to locate plain areas for lossless data embedding can enhance the performance in terms of data embedding rate versus the PSNR of marked images with respect to original image.

Armes et munitions. Fabrication, commerce, acquisition, détention et port . Edition mise à jour au 3 novembre 1956

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