A new algorithm for the relationship between vision and ametropia

Refraction simulators used for undergraduate training at Aston University did not realistically reflect variations in the relationship between vision and ametropia. This was because they used an algorithm, taken from the research literature, that strictly only applied to myopes or older hyperopes and did not factor in age and pupil diameter. The aim of this study was to generate new algorithms that overcame these limitations. Clinical data were collected from the healthy right eyes of 873 white subjects aged between 20 and 70 years. Vision and refractive error were recorded along with age and pupil diameter. Re-examination of 34 subjects enabled the calculation of coefficients of repeatability. The study population was slightly biased towards females and included many contact lens wearers. Sex and contact lens wear were, therefore, recorded in order to determine whether these might influence the findings. In addition, iris colour and cylinder axis orientation were recorded as these might also be influential. A novel Blur Sensitivity Ratio (BSR) was derived by dividing vision (expressed as minimum angle of resolution) by refractive error (expressed as a scalar vector, U). Alteration of the scalar vector, to account for additional vision reduction due to oblique cylinder axes, was not found to be useful. Decision tree analysis showed that sex, contact lens wear, iris colour and cylinder axis orientation did not influence the BSR. The following algorithms arose from two stepwise multiple linear regressions: BSR (myopes) = 1.13 + (0.24 x pupil diameter) + (0.14 x U) BSR (hyperopes) = (0.11 x pupil diameter) + (0.03 x age) - 0.22 These algorithms together accounted for 84% of the observed variance. They showed that pupil diameter influenced vision in both forms of ametropia. They also showed the age-related decline in the ability to accommodate in order to overcome reduced vision in hyperopia.

Five Turning Points in the Historical Progress of Statistics - My Personal Vision

Statistics has penetrated almost all branches of science and all areas of human endeavor. At the same time, statistics is not only misunderstood, misused and abused to a frightening extent, but it is also often much disliked by students in colleges and universities. This lecture discusses/covers/addresses the historical development of statistics, aiming at identifying the most important turning points that led to the present state of statistics and at answering the questions “What went wrong with statistics?” and “What to do next?”. ACM Computing Classification System (1998): A.0, A.m, G.3, K.3.2.

Evaluation of low vision services on the quality of life of individuals with age-related macular degeneration

Background: Age-related macular degeneration (ARMD) is a major cause of irreversible visual loss in the elderly and a significant threat to their quality of life. Although low vision services often improve the functional outcomes of individuals with macular disease, it remains unclear whether or not they have any impact on quality of life. The principal aim of this study was to determine the effect of a hospital-based low vision clinic on the quality of life of individuals with ARMD. Methods: Forty patients with ARMD attended the low vision clinic at Milton Keynes University Hospital. Quality of life was measured with the vision-specific Low Vision Quality of Life (LVQOL) questionnaire and the general health EuroQol (EQ-5D-5L) questionnaire. Measures were completed at baseline (time zero, T0), and at three- (T3) and six-month (T6) follow-up visits. Results: The near visual acuity of individuals attending the low vision clinic for the first time improved significantly between visits T0 and T3 (p=0.005), reflecting the practiced use of their newly-dispensed low vision aids. As expected, there was no significant change in near acuity over this time period for existing patients. For both new and existing patients, a significant increase in LVQOL score was evident between visits T0 and T3, with a further significant improvement between T3 and T6. Similarly, there was a significant decrease in EQ-5D-5L questionnaire scores between visits T0 and T6. Conclusions: The higher LVQOL scores obtained at the end of the study period (T6) provide evidence that low vision services at Milton Keynes University Hospital served to improve patient quality of life. The reduction in EQ-5D-5L scores over the same time period suggests that low vision services also provide for an improvement in general health-related quality of life. Impact: The findings support the cause of low vision services to improve not only the vision and functional outcomes of individuals with macular disease but also their quality of life. Moreover, the findings suggest that a more efficient allocation of resources at low vision clinics may be possible through the standardisation of patient follow-up frequency.

Early spatial vision:a view through two eyes

Simple features such as edges are the building blocks of spatial vision, and so I ask: how arevisual features and their properties (location, blur and contrast) derived from the responses ofspatial filters in early vision; how are these elementary visual signals combined across the twoeyes; and when are they not combined? Our psychophysical evidence from blur-matchingexperiments strongly supports a model in which edges are found at the spatial peaks ofresponse of odd-symmetric receptive fields (gradient operators), and their blur B is givenby the spatial scale of the most active operator. This model can explain some surprisingaspects of blur perception: edges look sharper when they are low contrast, and when theirlength is made shorter. Our experiments on binocular fusion of blurred edges show that singlevision is maintained for disparities up to about 2.5*B, followed by diplopia or suppression ofone edge at larger disparities. Edges of opposite polarity never fuse. Fusion may be served bybinocular combination of monocular gradient operators, but that combination - involvingbinocular summation and interocular suppression - is not completely understood.In particular, linear summation (supported by psychophysical and physiological evidence)predicts that fused edges should look more blurred with increasing disparity (up to 2.5*B),but results surprisingly show that edge blur appears constant across all disparities, whetherfused or diplopic. Finally, when edges of very different blur are shown to the left and righteyes fusion may not occur, but perceived blur is not simply given by the sharper edge, nor bythe higher contrast. Instead, it is the ratio of contrast to blur that matters: the edge with theAbstracts 1237steeper gradient dominates perception. The early stages of binocular spatial vision speak thelanguage of luminance gradients.

Eigen-Adaptation and Distributed Representation of 2-D Phase, Energy, Scale and Orientation in Spatial Vision

Distributed representations (DR) of cortical channels are pervasive in models of spatio-temporal vision. A central idea that underpins current innovations of DR stems from the extension of 1-D phase into 2-D images. Neurophysiological evidence, however, provides tenuous support for a quadrature representation in the visual cortex, since even phase visual units are associated with broader orientation tuning than odd phase visual units (J.Neurophys.,88,455–463, 2002). We demonstrate that the application of the steering theorems to a 2-D definition of phase afforded by the Riesz Transform (IEEE Trans. Sig. Proc., 49, 3136–3144), to include a Scale Transform, allows one to smoothly interpolate across 2-D phase and pass from circularly symmetric to orientation tuned visual units, and from more narrowly tuned odd symmetric units to even ones. Steering across 2-D phase and scale can be orthogonalized via a linearizing transformation. Using the tiltafter effect as an example, we argue that effects of visual adaptation can be better explained by via an orthogonal rather than channel specific representation of visual units. This is because of the ability to explicitly account for isotropic and cross-orientation adaptation effect from the orthogonal representation from which both direct and indirect tilt after-effects can be explained.

Macroscopic Quantum Resonators (MAQRO): 2015 update

Do the laws of quantum physics still hold for macroscopic objects - this is at the heart of Schrödinger’s cat paradox - or do gravitation or yet unknown effects set a limit for massive particles? What is the fundamental relation between quantum physics and gravity? Ground-based experiments addressing these questions may soon face limitations due to limited free-fall times and the quality of vacuum and microgravity. The proposed mission Macroscopic Quantum Resonators (MAQRO) may overcome these limitations and allow addressing such fundamental questions. MAQRO harnesses recent developments in quantum optomechanics, high-mass matter-wave interferometry as well as state-of-the-art space technology to push macroscopic quantum experiments towards their ultimate performance limits and to open new horizons for applying quantum technology in space. The main scientific goal is to probe the vastly unexplored ‘quantum-classical’ transition for increasingly massive objects, testing the predictions of quantum theory for objects in a size and mass regime unachievable in ground-based experiments. The hardware will largely be based on available space technology. Here, we present the MAQRO proposal submitted in response to the 4th Cosmic Vision call for a medium-sized mission (M4) in 2014 of the European Space Agency (ESA) with a possible launch in 2025, and we review the progress with respect to the original MAQRO proposal for the 3rd Cosmic Vision call for a medium-sized mission (M3) in 2010. In particular, the updated proposal overcomes several critical issues of the original proposal by relying on established experimental techniques from high-mass matter-wave interferometry and by introducing novel ideas for particle loading and manipulation. Moreover, the mission design was improved to better fulfill the stringent environmental requirements for macroscopic quantum experiments.

Iowa Department of Public Health Regulatory Plan FY 2016, August 1, 2015

The Department’s vision and mission statements broadly describe the obligations imposed on the Department of Public Health by statute. This plan was approved by Gerd Clabaugh, MPA, Director of the Iowa Department of Public Health. The following table, arranged by Department Divisions, summarizes the administrative rules currently under active consideration or development for fiscal year 2016.

Understanding COPD: A Vision on Phenotypes, Comorbidities and Treatment Approach

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) phenotypes have become increasingly recognized as important for grouping patients with similar presentation and/or behavior, within the heterogeneity of the disease. The primary aim of identifying phenotypes is to provide patients with the best health care possible, tailoring the therapeutic approach to each patient. However, the identification of specific phenotypes has been hindered by several factors such as which specific attributes are relevant, which discriminant features should be used for assigning patients to specific phenotypes, and how relevant are they to the therapeutic approach, prognostic and clinical outcome. Moreover, the definition of phenotype is still not consensual. Comorbidities, risk factors, modifiable risk factors and disease severity, although not phenotypes, have impact across all COPD phenotypes. Although there are some identified phenotypes that are fairly consensual, many others have been proposed, but currently lack validation. The on-going debate about which instruments and tests should be used in the identification and definition of phenotypes has contributed to this uncertainty. In this paper, the authors review present knowledge regarding COPD phenotyping, discuss the role of phenotypes and comorbidities on the severity of COPD, propose new phenotypes and suggest a phenotype-based pharmacological therapeutic approach. The authors conclude that a patient-tailored treatment approach, which takes into account each patient's specific attributes and specificities, should be pursued.

Análisis de posicionamiento en el sector de servicios de hosterías en el Valle de Yunguilla y propuesta de diseño de un plan estratégico de marketing para la hostería “Los Cisnes” en el periodo 2015-2018

El proyecto está enfocado al desarrollo de un Plan Estratégico aplicado a Hostería “Los Cisnes”. Tiene como objetivo contribuir con el desarrollo organizacional de la empresa, hacer frente a la competencia con la finalidad de prestar un servicio de calidad.Para la consecución de lo mencionado anteriormente se realizó un esquema que contempla lo siguiente: Se Expone conceptos y definiciones básicos de marketing que se necesitarán a lo largo del desarrollo del proyecto para el entendimiento del mismo.Se realizó el estudio del sector mediante encuestas y entrevistas aplicadas a personas que hacen uso del servicio de hostería y a los administradores de estos establecimientos. Para la obtención de resultados se utilizó el programa SPSS donde se emplearon variables e indicadores. Se estableció un ranking de acuerdo al catastro de establecimientos otorgado por el Ministerio de Turismo, encontrándose Hostería Los Cisnes en el tercer lugar, esto de acuerdo a la encuesta aplicada por las autoras del trabajo de titulación. Se desarrolló la situación actual de la empresa mediante herramientas como: análisis del micro-entrono y macro-entorno, análisis FODA, matriz EFI, matriz EFE, matriz BCG. Se desarrolló el Plan Estratégico de Marketing que contempla: misión, visión, objetivos, implementación de estrategias, planes de acción y presupuestos, es decir, está formado por todos los recursos necesarios para posicionamiento de la empresa.Finalmente se presenta las conclusiones y recomendaciones que fortalezcan la realización de las estrategias planteadas y que a la vez determinen resultados óptimos para la hostería.

Where Are We After Five Editions?: Robot Vision Challenge, a Competition that Evaluates Solutions for the Visual Place Classification Problem

This article describes the Robot Vision challenge, a competition that evaluates solutions for the visual place classification problem. Since its origin, this challenge has been proposed as a common benchmark where worldwide proposals are measured using a common overall score. Each new edition of the competition introduced novelties, both for the type of input data and subobjectives of the challenge. All the techniques used by the participants have been gathered up and published to make it accessible for future developments. The legacy of the Robot Vision challenge includes data sets, benchmarking techniques, and a wide experience in the place classification research that is reflected in this article.

The domiciliary support in the vision of the informal care provider

The home support services are a social response in order to improve the quality of life directed predominantly for the elderly and for people with varying degrees of disability and dependence. Examples of those services are hygiene and personal comfort, medication, housekeeping and cleaning, preparation and monitoring of the meals; the dressing, etc. It is necessary to make society aware of the importance of these services to all those who need them. The general objective was to understand the most important relationships among informal caregivers, those who are care and home support services providers. Material and Methods. Data were collected through a questionnaire, using the various dimensions of the construct Quality SERVPERF model of service that matches the 22 items of SERVQUAL model. The various items used to assess the perception of care individuals and informal caregivers about the quality of home care services. 82 individuals participated providers of informal care, to receive home support services, and exclusion criteria, the fact of having a diagnosed psychiatric illness or psychological factors that prevent them from responding. The analysis was performed with SPSS and SEM-PLS for the estimation of the proposed structural model. Written consent was obtained, free and clear of each subject. Results and Conclusions. The results showed that the relationships with healthcare professionals are the most important positive effects on satisfaction. This research emphasizes the need to work closely with health professionals to improve the relationship between technicians and patients. Although current constructs appear to explain much of the satisfaction, it is recommended that the future researches exploit new variables, to get a better understanding of the effects of public health policies on the quality of life of these patients.