Ambiguous Figures Research Articles

Electroanatomical features of biopsy-proven cardiac amyloidosis

Abstract Funding Acknowledgements Type of funding sources: None. Background Cardiac amyloidoses (CA) are an increasingly recognized group of infiltrative cardiomyopathies associated with high risk of heart failure, thromboembolic events, arrhythmias, and sudden death. Endomyocardial biopsy may be required to differentiate the amyloid type (mainly, Immunoglobulin light chain [AL] versus transthyretin-related [ATTR]) in some cases. Purpose to provide a first description of electroanatomical characteristics of amyloid cardiomyopathy, and relate them to endomyocardial biopsy findings. Methods we enrolled ten consecutive patients (median age, 68 [63-77]; male, 50%) in an observational, retrospective study. All of them had a clinical diagnosis of CA, but a diagnosis of CA type was hampered by the presence of inconclusive or discordant laboratory-imaging findings (abnormal serum free light chain assay and positive bone scintigraphy, n=5; ambiguous imaging results, n=4; abnormal serum free light chain assay and TTR gene mutation, n=1). Therefore, all patients underwent right ventricular high-density electroanatomical mapping (EAM) using a multipolar catheter (Advisor HD Grid, Abbott), and EAM-guided endomyocardial biopsy (EMB). We recorded electrogram features at EMB sampling site, and explored their correlation with histological findings with mixed effect models. Results The clinical, electroanatomical, and histological features of enrolled patients according to the EMB-proven type of CA (AL, n=6; ATTR, n=4) are resumed in Table. Electrogram amplitudes in both the bipolar and the unipolar configuration were generally normal both in the overall right ventricle, and at EMB sites. We found a significant correlation between both unipolar and bipolar electrogram amplitude and the percentage of both amyloid tissue (p<0.01 and p=0.016, respectively) and fibrous tissue (both p<0.01) at EMB (Figure). We observed the strongest linear association (i.e., highest R2) between unipolar electrogram amplitude and amyloid tissue, as well as between bipolar electrogram amplitude and fibrous tissue. On the other hand, electrogram duration and the number of electrogram peaks were unrelated to histological findings. The unipolar voltage cutoff that best identified regions with >15% amyloid tissue infiltration according to Youden index was 9.1 mV (sensitivity, 43%; specificity, 100%; accuracy, 77%). Conclusion CA is associated with normal electrogram amplitudes using ahigh density mapping catheter and conventional voltage cutoffs. Nevertheless, unipolar electrogram amplitude is strongly related to the extent of amyloid infiltration, and unipolar voltage<9.1 mV is 100% specific for >15% amyloid tissue deposition.

The Bronze Serpent: Abuse, Trauma and the Lifted Healer in the Wilderness

AbstractMany Christian groups and churches have been forced to recognize that they have been complicit in behaviour which has betrayed the gospel. How then is the church to address the historical reality of being an abusive healer? The image of the bronze serpent (Num. 21.4-9; 2 Kgs 18.4; Jn 3.14) offers an ambiguous image which may reveal the reality of the church as both a source of abuse and trauma as well as an instrument of healing within a pattern of restorative justice.

UNNOTICED BUT NOT FORGOTTEN: EEG-CORRELATES OF AMBIGUOUS FIGURES PRIMING EFFECTS

In order to find evidence of the inhibition or episodic retrieval account to explain the effect of negative priming, a study of behavioral and EEG-correlates of ambiguous figures perception, which are used as primes for the lexical decision task. It is shown that at the behavioral level the noticed meanings of used images demonstrate a positive, unnoticed – a negative priming-effect. EEG correlates of these effects in the anterio-central regions of the brain were revealed. Thus, the correlate of positive priming is attenuation of the N400 component, and the correlate of negative priming is attenuation of the late positive complex. Both components are considered in the literature as indicators of episodic retrieval, a memory-related process. The fact that the priming effect of the unnoticed meanings of ambiguous figures at the psychophysiological level is expressed in memory phenomena leads to the conclusion that the subjects remember the meanings they did not notice.

E020 Pneumatosis intestinalis with spontaneous pneumoperitoneum in a patient with systemic sclerosis-myositis overlap syndrome: a case report and review of the literature

Abstract Background/Aims Pneumatosis intestinalis (PI) is a rare complication of systemic sclerosis (SSc), characterised by submucosal and/or subserosal collections of free gas, forming cystic lesions within the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Methods A 67-year-old man with SSc-myositis overlap syndrome presented acutely unwell with worsening abdominal pain, bloating, bloody diarrhoea and vomiting for three weeks. He was afebrile and haemodynamically stable. His abdomen was distended with generalised tenderness but soft and regular bowel sounds were audible. There were no palpable organomegaly or signs of peritonism. He had raised CRP, serum amylase, serum lactate and pre-renal acute kidney injury. He tested positive for ANA Hep2 (speckled) and anti-Mi-2b. His contrast-enhanced CT abdomen and pelvis displayed extensive pneumatosis changes, moderately dilated small bowel loops and pneumoperitoneum without portal venous gas or acute thrombotic occlusion in the main-stem superior or inferior mesenteric arteries. He was managed conservatively with bowel rest, elemental diet, cycling antibiotics for small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) and commenced on end-of-life care as surgical exploration was deemed too risky considering that he has exceedingly poor cardiac reserve. He made a surprisingly excellent recovery and his repeat CT scans at approximately 11 weeks showed a complete resolution of pneumatosis intestinalis and pneumoperitoneum. Results PI in SSc generally runs a benign course and is usually managed conservatively. The development of PI is multifactorial, involving a complex interplay between mechanical, biochemical, bacterial and drug factors. PI is usually asymptomatic but patients can present with GI and constitutional symptoms or peritonism. CT scan is the most preferred diagnostic modality for PI. Conservative management is preferable to surgical intervention after careful exclusion of acute surgical causes. The underlying cause of PI should be appropriately addressed and managed in all cases. The management of PI is based on the severity of symptoms and it includes bowel rest, elemental diet or parenteral nutrition, antibiotics, high concentration oxygen, hyperbaric oxygen therapy and/or octreotide. Our patient was managed conservatively as he did not exhibit clinical signs of peritonism or bowel ischaemia and surgical interventions were deemed too risky. He was treated with and has responded well to cycling oral antibiotics for SIBO which was thought to be contributory to his PI. Conclusion This case illustrates that PI with or without pneumoperitoneum could be a rare complication of SSc, and contrary to common belief, it is usually benign and managed conservatively with favourable outcome. An accurate interpretation of its clinical significance is crucial as acute presentations and ambiguous imaging findings can simulate acute surgical emergency leading to diagnostic dilemma and unnecessary or risky surgical interventions. However, emergency laparotomy should be considered in patients who exhibit signs of peritonism or bowel ischaemia and therefore timely involvement of surgeons and multidisciplinary team is essential. Disclosure K. Lim: None. S. Knights: None. J. Pauling: None. J. Gotto: None.

Application and Analysis of Remote Sensing Image Processing Technology in Robotic Power Inspection

Along with the increase of electricity consumption in society, it means that the quality of power inspection gives higher requirements. The traditional manual inspection method is difficult to ensure the stability of checking quality. Without the popularization of manned distribution stations and smart grid methods, replacing manual inspection with electric power inspection robots can improve the inspection quality and inspection efficiency to a certain extent. Along with theimage processing process which is widely used in the robot system, visual impact is not only an effective way for us to obtain information but also the key reflection of the robot system intelligence. Unmanned aircraft as an extremely important robot has long been widely used in all walks of life. Power inspection is the most common use of unmanned aircraft robot inspection. However, due to extreme criteria such as bad weather, relative motion, and shaking of imaging equipment, inspection images are obtained ambiguously. The quality of the inspection image is related to the timely understanding, analysis, and judgment of the power engineering quality inspection database. In the paper, the unmanned aircraft power inspection robot as a scientific research foothold, according to explore the key technology of anti-internet technology to clear the image ambiguity, proposed a complete disambiguation optimization calculation method. The image denoising optimization calculation method based on the directional characteristics of time-frequency analysis and edge maintenance is selected to carry out the finding of the image, which reasonably solves the image resolution bottleneck problem of GIS in unmanned aircraft robot line inspection. Meanwhile, with the emergence of nanorobots in the 21st century, the application and analysis of remote sensing image processing technology in the field of robotic power inspection in this paper will also bring new vitality and vigor to the research of nanopower inspection robots and solve the problem of unclear images existing in nanorobots.

Questionnaire survey on the conceptual framework, optimal evaluation, and support measures for children's language disorders in Japan using the Delphi method.

To compile the opinions of native Japanese speakers on the conceptual framework, optimal evaluation, and support measures for children with language disorders to devise materials on which a consensus can be formed. A quantitative descriptive study using the Delphi method. Using the Delphi method, 43 clinicians with at least 15 years of experience working professionally with children's language disorders in Japan were surveyed three times via a web-based questionnaire. Thirty-nine items that were carefully selected by the working group were surveyed, and the agreement level was set to ≥80%. We investigated the following aspects related to developmental language disorder (DLD) among Japanese children: definition, core symptoms, evaluation of core symptoms, relationship with a second language, relationship with other related disorders, support systems, and information availability. Overall, 43 qualified panel members were included in this study. Among the 39 items in the questionnaire, a high level of consensus (≥80%) from the responses of the participants was achieved for five items in Round 1, whereas no consensus (<50%) was achieved for seven items. After revising and integrating the questionnaires into 22 items, we conducted Rounds 2 and 3 and obtained high and medium levels of agreement in 20 items on disease concept, core symptoms, coexisting disorders, and manner of support of DLD in children. Our results clarify the previously ambiguous image of DLD in Japan. Information-sharing strategies that connect professionals, patients, their families, and community members are required in the future. 5.

Automatic image annotation system using deep learning method to analyse ambiguous images

Automatic image annotation system using deep learning method to analyse ambiguous images

From Jailhouse Rock to Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go: George Michael and the New Man

This article looks at the intersection between men’s fashion, ambiguous masculine identities and the emerging media form of music video in the AIDS-darkened early 1980s. It asks two questions: firstly, what enabled sartorial features in masculine fashion and grooming previously associated with queer-identifying men to cross over into the mainstream fashion culture of the 1980s? Secondly, how was it that in the startlingly homophobic climate of this ‘age of AIDS’, sexually ambiguous figures such as Wham!’s George Michael became such popular style role models? The article addresses these questions by arguing that Elvis Presley’s Jailhouse Rock (1957) – a strong stylistic influence on Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go by Wham! in 1984 – is an example of the Camp trace that remains when Camp aesthetics are removed from explicitly queer contexts. It argues that Jailhouse Rock is a dramatization of situational homosexuality, a mid-twentieth-century understanding of same-sex attraction between straight-identifying men, a precedent that permits the homoerotic group dynamic of Wham!. The article then explains how fashion worn by Michael in Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go – namely British designer Katherine Hamnett’s CHOOSE LIFE slogan T-shirt, and an alternative costume in which the colour pink is most prominent – demonstrates an intersection between fashion and politics for gay men in the 1980s. It also discusses Michael as an example of the New Man, an advertising and media trope of the 1980s that represented a blurring between queer masculine style and a new straight stereotype.

“The Moscow Miracle”: a Representation of the “Nineties” in the TV Program “Namedni”

The article is devoted to the study of the memory of the 1990s in Russia. The main purpose is to determine the significance of television documentary films, namely the television project “Namedni”, in the process of shaping the memory of Russians about the initial stage of post-Soviet Russia. The episodes of the program “Namedni”, devoted to the period from 1990 to 1999, have been analyzed. The qualitative content analysis of the series was conducted on the basis of the thematic categories: politics, social sphere, economy, culture (sports) and the subject criteria: story title, content, timing, personalities and key details, as well as the organization of the story. The predominantly negative perception of the period of the “nineties” in Russia is not confirmed in the episodes of the program “Namedni”. Political and economic themes predominate in most of the episodes, and the 1990s are presented as an optimistic “era of change”, symbolizing a fleeting transition from the old to a potentially positive and bright new. The ambiguity of the positive image of the 1990s is determined by the low attention of the authors of the program to the events of the regional scale, most of the subjects refer to either global or the capital city events of the past.

Deep learning-enabled segmentation of ambiguous bioimages with deepflash2

Bioimages frequently exhibit low signal-to-noise ratios due to experimental conditions, specimen characteristics, and imaging trade-offs. Reliable segmentation of such ambiguous images is difficult and laborious. Here we introduce deepflash2, a deep learning-enabled segmentation tool for bioimage analysis. The tool addresses typical challenges that may arise during the training, evaluation, and application of deep learning models on ambiguous data. The tool’s training and evaluation pipeline uses multiple expert annotations and deep model ensembles to achieve accurate results. The application pipeline supports various use-cases for expert annotations and includes a quality assurance mechanism in the form of uncertainty measures. Benchmarked against other tools, deepflash2 offers both high predictive accuracy and efficient computational resource usage. The tool is built upon established deep learning libraries and enables sharing of trained model ensembles with the research community. deepflash2 aims to simplify the integration of deep learning into bioimage analysis projects while improving accuracy and reliability.

Deep learning for the detection of machining vibration chatter

Most of the work on chatter detection is based on laboratory machining tests, thus without the constraints of noise, the variety of situations to be managed in the industry, and the uncertainties on the parameters (sensor position, tool engagement, and sometimes even spindle rotation frequency). This work presents an approach first based on mechanical skills first to identify the optimal signal processing, then based on deep learning to automatically detect the phenomenon of chatter in machining. To do so, we use input images from the Fast Fourier Transform analysis of a vibration signal from the machining of an Alstom industrial railway system. The FFT images are first cropped in height to perform a renormalization of the signal scale. This renormalization step eliminates a bias regularly observed in the literature, which did not eliminate a simple correlation with signal amplitude because chatter is often, but not always, associated with stronger vibrations. Deep learning extracted features from the image data by exploiting pre-trained deep neural networks such as VGG16 and ResNet50. The data is derived from an industrial vibration signal (with noise, a not ideally placed sensors, and uncertainties on process parameters), which was very poorly represented in the literature. It is shown that by depleting the signal (renormalized amplitude and absence of information on the rotation speed), the model obtains a good result (an accuracy of 99% in the training and validation phases), which had never been done in the literature. In addition, since a part of the test dataset is similar to the training dataset, the proposed model obtains an accuracy of 98.82%. The robustness is proved by adding another test dataset containing noisy and more or less ambiguous images to be classified. The model still manages to detect these cases from its training of unambiguous cases, showing that the obtained generalization is efficient with an accuracy of 73.71%.

Estreno absoluto: Concert Version of Felipe Pedrell’s La Celestina (1902) in Madrid’s Teatro de la Zarzuela (2022)

<i>Estreno absoluto</i>: Concert Version of Felipe Pedrell’s <i>La Celestina</i> (1902) in Madrid’s Teatro de la Zarzuela (2022)

Research on the identification and distribution of biofouling using underwater cleaning robot based on deep learning

The rapid identification of biofouling is of great significance to the intelligent operation and maintenance of large ships or other deep-sea and offshore projects. The biofouling's optical imaging properties and its dispersion and concealment bring challenges to the correct segmentation of its images. In this article, a filter-guided inverse dark channel inversion exposure compensation (FIDCE) algorithm is proposed for the ambiguous image by exploring an underwater optical imaging model partially over-exposed and partially under-exposed. Also, MFONet, a pixel-level segmentation model, is proposed. Its backbone feature extraction network includes MobileNetV2—a lightweight CNN model with the Sandglass block as the basic unit, and combines with ASPP enhanced feature extraction module, thereby enhancing the network perception field. In this model, SENet is also used to enhance the deep and shallow feature fusion. In addition, the underwater image evaluation functions are compared to verify the validity of the image processing algorithm mentioned above. According to the results, a more accurate and quicker effect can be observed in the fine-grained identification of biofouling using MFONet. Nowadays, such an algorithm can be used for a priori study of biofouling and the cleaning operation of the robot.

Impact of SAR Azimuth Ambiguities on Doppler Velocity Estimation Performance: Modeling and Analysis

Doppler Centroid Analysis (DCA) technique is one of the major techniques that do permit a direct retrieval of ocean surface velocity from synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data. However, azimuth ambiguities in the SAR images severely restrict the capability of DCA technique to obtain accurate ocean surface Doppler velocities. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate how the azimuth ambiguities impact the Doppler velocity estimation performance and to evaluate how significant the impact is. In this paper, a model for ocean surface Doppler velocity estimation affected by azimuth ambiguities is developed resorting to jointly circular Gaussian processes, and its statistic is derived. The impact of azimuth ambiguities on Doppler velocity estimation performance in terms of Doppler centroid estimation bias and the standard deviation of Doppler centroid estimates is analyzed. The theoretical results are validated through simulation and Doppler velocities retrieved from Chinese Gaofen-3 (GF-3) SAR Doppler centroid estimates affected by azimuth ambiguities. This study will help researchers better understand the impact of azimuth ambiguities on Doppler velocity estimation, and will provide a theoretical reference for subsequent research on how to reduce the impact of azimuth ambiguities more effectively.

Clinical images, imperial power and Bhau Daji&amp;rsquo;s secret treatment for leprosy at the Royal College of Physicians Museum

In 1874, Indian polymath physician Bhau Daji (1822–1874) passed away suddenly – and the details of his secretive ‘cure’ for leprosy died with him. Drawing on a collection of clinical photographs and illustrations at the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) Museum, this paper will unravel Daji’s place in the College’s empire-wide enquiry into leprosy in the mid-nineteenth century. We will argue, drawing on Elizabeth Edward’s (2014) work, that these images represent ‘photographic uncertainties’ – both conforming to and undermining traditional conventions of colonial photography, while at the same time highlighting Daji’s place as an ambiguous figure in colonial medical hierarchies. We treat the images as ‘visual arguments’ (Fox and Lawrence, 1998) testifying to the effectiveness of Daji’s secret remedy and the contagious nature of the disease. Despite the supposed objectivity of the photographic form, Daji’s treatment was never seriously investigated by the Leprosy Committee of the Royal College of Physicians. Transported from Bombay to London, we will consider the differential value placed on Daji’s medical expertise as captured by the patient images. In the spirit of the current movement to ‘decolonise collections’, we reflect on how this case study demonstrates the need for specialist medical museums to interrogate their own colonial pasts.

Care as Intertextuality: From Human Condition to Holistic Device

Since the Roman mythographer Hyginus composed the fable of Cura in the second century AD, it has been cited and reemployed in literary and philosophical texts by authors like Augustin, Herder, Goethe, Heidegger, Blumenberg and Kristeva. These authors all use the tale about the ambiguous figure of Cura (Care) to reflect upon the fundamentals of the human condition. Later, aspects of these philosophies have been translated into the medical humanities, but often in an ontologically “purified” form, stripping Cura of her ontological ambiguity and more troubling traits such as sorrow, anxiety or dependency. This purification turns care into something easily digestible, fit to “sweeten the pill” of curative medical interventions that can be painful and accompanied by suffering. The ontological, epistemological, and cultural dualisms marking modern medicine are reproduced instead of being problematized, while care is reduced to a soft, psychological, or cultural supplement to “hard” biomedical therapies. How can we restore the original ambiguity and richness of the concept of “care”, making it capable of troubling the current system of medical categories? To address this question, we will use Kristeva’s notion of intertextuality to explore the inscription and reductionist use of Cura in philosophy and the medical humanities.

Bziki tropikalne „białych mużynów”: (anty)kolonialne fantazje międzywojennej awangardy. Casus Witkacego

The Polish avant-garde, as is well known, was eager to activate colonial and racial fantasies. For example, the figure of the “white Negro” was used by the Futurists as a figure signaling – at first glance invisible, but real – foreignness, non-privilegedness and anti-systemicity. “The Negro” in the Futurist narrative was an unidentified Other. His only distinguishing feature was his racial identity associated with a state of uncivilization. From the perspective of today’s sensibilities, shaped by years of development and application of postcolonial theories, this was an ambiguous figure: politically and ethically suspect. In this text, I argue that in order to understand it well and avoid presentist readings, it is necessary to see, if only in a brief and selective approximation, the discursive field of the scientific press and journalism of the time. The avant-garde and, more specifically, Witkacy’s tropical fantasies were provocations whose scale and nature may escape the modern viewer. Therefore, based on the sketchily reconstructed discursive background of the Polish interwar period, and the issues of race and European colonialism present in it, I will attempt to reach the meaning of these provocations at that time and understand the perverse game that the Polish avant-garde undertook with these themes. And against this background – to show the uniqueness of Witkacy, who, unlike his avant-garde contemporaries, showed the political nature of the opposition of civilization and savagery, complicating the colonial imaginary of his own era and formulating catastrophic predictions for the European future.

The Fast Detection of Crop Disease Leaves Based on Single-Channel Gravitational Kernel Density Clustering

Plant diseases and pests may seriously affect the yield of crops and even threaten the survival of human beings. The characteristics of plant diseases and insect pests are mainly reflected in the occurrence of lesions on crop leaves. Machine vision disease detection is of great significance for the early detection and prevention of plant diseases and insect pests. A fast detection method for lesions based on a single-channel gravitational kernel density clustering algorithm was designed to examine the complexity and ambiguity of diseased leaf images. Firstly, a polynomial was used to fit the R-channel feature histogram curve of a diseased leaf image in the RGB color space, and then the peak point and peak area of the fitted feature histogram curve were determined according to the derivative attribute. Secondly, the cluster numbers and the initial cluster center of the diseased leaf images were determined according to the peak area and peak point. Thirdly, according to the clustering center of the preliminarily determined diseased leaf images, the single-channel gravity kernel density clustering algorithm in this paper was used to achieve the rapid segmentation of the diseased leaf lesions. Finally, the experimental results showed that our method could segment the lesions quickly and accurately.

Ambiguous images of Soviet-Kyrgyz mountainscapes in The Sky of Our Childhood (1966)

ABSTRACT Mountains play dominant and strategic roles in Kyrgyz cinema. They serve as an important mediator in the constructed antagonism between ‘national’ and ‘socialist’ evoked by media representations and, further, in the conventional associations between ‘nature’ and ‘national’, on the one hand, and ‘progress’ and ‘Soviet’, on the other. This article explores how mountainscapes constitute and interweave ‘Sovietness’ and ‘Kyrgyzness’ with reference to the 1966 film The Sky of Our Childhood (Nebo nashego detstva, 1966), directed by Tolomush Okeyev. The mountainscape serves not as a mere backdrop to the narrative but expresses ambiguities as a result of its transformative power.

«ФАТАЛИСТ»: ПРЕДОПРЕДЕЛЕНИЕ И СВОБОДА ВОЛИ КАК ФАКТОРЫ СТРУКТУРЫ ТЕКСТА

The author of the article proposes a structural analysis of Lermontov’s short story “The Fatalist”. The main structural principles on which the artistic world of the Fatalist is built are discussed. It artistically explores the question of the presence or absence of determinism. Related to this is the idea of life as a repetition, with slight variations of the previous already known pattern, which in turn goes back to the archetype. On the other hand, other structural principles opposite to determinism operate in the work. This is uncertainty, ambiguity of images, interpretations of events and ambiguity of the events. In situations with a clear but ambiguous choice, this is the possibility of unpredictable outcomes. This makes the numerical binary code artistically significant. In particular, this concerns the role of the card game. Thus, Vulich’s meeting with a Cossack and the tragic death of Vulich can be described as a structural analogue of the game of “Shtoss”, where the correct identification of the object is required. The work refutes determinism and unambiguity, but confirms the very fact of the presence of patterns and the naturalness of repetitions of key elements, without which life itself is impossible.