Changes In Visual Characteristics Research Articles

Changes in Physicochemical Characteristics and Antioxidant Activities of Dried Shiitake Mushroom in Dry-Moist-Heat Aging Process.

Shiitake mushrooms are prized for their unique flavor and bioactive properties. While there has been extensive research on drying methods, a comprehensive investigation of the effects of drying parameters in the dry-moist-heat system on shiitake quality is still needed. This study aimed to investigate the effects of dry-moist-heat aging on dried shiitake mushrooms comprehensively. Four aging temperatures, specifically 50, 60, 70, and 80 °C, were applied to the mushrooms, maintaining a constant humidity level of 75% RH and aging duration of 20 days. Color analysis revealed a progressive decrease in measured values as aging temperature increased, indicating noticeable changes in visual characteristics. Regarding amino acid composition, glutamic acid was found to be the predominant amino acid in shiitake mushrooms in the range of 90.29-467.42 mg/100 g. However, aging led to a reduction in overall amino acid content, with higher aging temperatures resulting in greater decline. Similarly, the equivalent umami content (EUC) also decreased (from 123.99 to 7.12 g MSG/100 g) with the increase in aging temperatures up to 80 °C, suggesting a decline in the overall umami taste sensation. Interestingly, despite the reduction in amino acid levels and umami content, the aging process positively impacted the phenolic compounds and the antioxidant activity of dried shiitake mushrooms. The antioxidative abilities of all aged mushroom extracts for DPPH, ABTS, and FRAP ranged from 65.01 to 81.39 µg TE/mL, 87.04 to 258.33 µg GAE/mL, and 184.50 to 287.68 µg FeSO4/mL, respectively. The utilization of aged temperature at 60 °C for 20 days with controlled relative humidity (~75%) should be a suitable aging condition of this edible mushroom with both antioxidant and umami qualities. Nevertheless, the control sample demonstrated higher levels of amino acid content and EUC compared to the aged samples. Conversely, the aged samples exhibited higher polyphenol content and greater antioxidant activity. Depending on specific requirements, these powders can be used in food formulation as flavor enhancers for control samples or as enriching agents for polyphenols and antioxidant activity in matured samples. Therefore, all of the powders obtained have potential applications in the field of nutrition.

Mobile Robot Control Based on 2D Visual Servoing: A New Approach Combining Neural Network With Variable Structure and Flatness Theory

This paper focuses on the 2D visual servo-control of a mobile robot using a neural network (NN) with variable structure. The interaction matrix relating camera movement and changes in visual characteristics requires an estimation phase to determine its parameters as well as a camera calibration phase. It is common in applications related to mobile robotics that the robot model contains uncertainties generated by the sliding phenomenon. We suggest online identification, using NN to avoid this problem. The RBF NN is used to estimate the block formed by the interaction matrix and the reverse robot. Since the number of variables to be estimated is large, this can lead to the use of an excessive number of RBFs. We propose to use a single point of the scene which is sufficient to solve the problem. This problem reduction is possible thanks to flatness theory which allows to reduce the number of NN inputs from 8 inputs (4 image points) -generally used in the literature- to 2 (one image point) only. In order to further reduce the complexity of the proposed algorithm, the number of neurons for each layer and for each iteration is optimized. We use a neural network with variable structure to reach this objective. The very encouraging results obtained validate the proposed approach.

Computer vision, human senses, and language of art

What is the most important reason for using Computer Vision methods in humanities research? In this article, I argue that the use of numerical representation and data analysis methods offers a new language for describing cultural artifacts, experiences and dynamics. The human languages such as English or Russian that developed rather recently in human evolution are not good at capturing analog properties of human sensorial and cultural experiences. These limitations become particularly worrying if we want to compare thousands, millions or billions of artifacts—i.e. to study contemporary media and cultures at their new twenty-first century scale. When we instead use numerical measurements of image properties standard in Computer Vision, we can better capture details of a single artifact as well as visual differences between a number of artifacts–even if they are very small. The examples of visual dimensions that numbers can capture better then languages include color, shape, texture, contours, composition, and visual characteristics of represented faces, bodies and objects. The methods of finding structures and relationships in large numerical datasets developed in statistics and machine learning allow us to extend this analysis to very big datasets of cultural objects. Equally importantly, numerical image features used in Computer Vision also give us a new language to represent gradual and continuous temporal changes—something which natural languages are also bad at. This applies to both single artworks such as a film or a dance piece (describing movement and rhythm) and also to changes in visual characteristics in millions of artifacts over decades or centuries.

Physical compatibility of fosfomycin for injection with select i.v. drugs during simulated Y-site administration.

The results of a study to determine the physical compatibility of ZTI-01 (fosfomycin for injection) in 0.9% sodium chloride or 5% dextrose during simulated Y-site administration with 37 i.v. antimicrobials and 58 nonantimicrobials are reported. Fosfomycin, an epoxide antibiotic with broad-spectrum activity against multidrug-resistant bacteria, is marketed in the United States only in an oral formulation with limited bioavailability, but an i.v. formulation is in development. Fosfomycin for injection and other evaluated drugs were reconstituted according to manufacturer recommendations and further diluted with 0.9% sodium chloride or 5% dextrose to the final desired concentrations. Y-site administration was simulated in glass culture tubes. Incompatibility was defined as changes in visual characteristics or a change in turbidity of >0.5 nephelometric turbidity units over the 120-minute observation period. Of the 95 drugs tested, 16 were incompatible with fosfomycin in 0.9% sodium chloride, and 18 were incompatible with fosfomycin in 5% dextrose; incompatibility was observed with 10 of 37 antimicrobials, including the 3 commercially available amphotericin B products, anidulafungin, caspofungin, ceftaroline, ciprofloxacin, daptomycin, doxycycline, and isavuconazonium sulfate. Fosfomycin for injection at a concentration of 30 mg/mL was physically compatible with 73 of 95 (77%) of the i.v. drugs tested at concentrations used clinically in both 0.9% sodium chloride injection and 5% dextrose injection. Twenty-two drugs were deemed incompatible in at least 1 of the 2 diluents.

Physical compatibility of isavuconazonium sulfate with select i.v. drugs during simulated Y-site administration.

The physical compatibility of isavuconazonium sulfate with 95 i.v. drugs during simulated Y-site administration was studied. Isavuconazonium sulfate for injection and all other drugs were reconstituted according to the manufacturer's recommendation and further diluted with 0.9% sodium chloride injection or 5% dextrose injection to a final concentration (1.5 mg/mL for isavuconazonium sulfate and standard concentrations used clinically for other drugs). A Y site was simulated in glass culture tubes by mixing 5 mL of the tested drug and isavuconazonium sulfate solutions in each diluent. Incompatibility was defined as changes in visual characteristics or increases in turbidity by greater than 0.5 nephelometric turbidity units over the 120-minute experiment. Of the 95 drugs tested, isavuconazonium sulfate was physically compatible with 66 drugs in 0.9% sodium chloride injection and 60 drugs in 5% dextrose injection. Incompatibility was observed with albumin, amphotericin B deoxycholate, amphotericin B lipid complex, amphotericin B liposome, ampicillin-sulbactam, cefazolin, cefepime, ceftaroline fosamil, ceftazidime, ceftriaxone, cefuroxime, colistimethate sodium, cyclosporine, ertapenem, esomeprazole, filgrastim, fosphenytoin, furosemide, heparin, meropenem, methylprednisolone, micafungin, phenytoin, potassium phosphate, propofol, sodium bicarbonate, sodium phosphate, and tedizolid. Azithromycin, bumetanide, penicillin G potassium, and piperacillin-tazobactam were incompatible with isavuconazonium sulfate in 5% dextrose injection only. Of the 95 drugs tested, isavuconazonium sulfate 1.5 mg/mL was physically compatible with 66 drugs in 0.9% sodium chloride injection and 60 drugs in 5% dextrose injection. Incompatibility was observed with 18 antimicrobials, including most cephalosporins tested, and 14 other i.v. drugs in at least 1 of the 2 tested diluents.

How visual perceptual grouping influences foot placement.

Everybody would agree that vision guides locomotion; but how does vision influence choice when there are different solutions for possible foot placement? We addressed this question by investigating the impact of perceptual grouping on foot placement in humans. Participants performed a stepping stone task in which pathways consisted of target stones in a spatially regular path of foot falls and visual distractor stones in their proximity. Target and distractor stones differed in shape and colour so that each subset of stones could be easily grouped perceptually. In half of the trials, one target stone swapped shape and colour with a distractor in its close proximity. We show that in these ‘swapped’ conditions, participants chose the perceptually groupable, instead of the spatially regular, stepping location in over 40% of trials, even if the distance between perceptually groupable steps was substantially larger than normal step width/length. This reveals that the existence of a pathway that could be traversed without spatial disruption to periodic stepping is not sufficient to guarantee participants will select it and suggests competition between different types of visual input when choosing foot placement. We propose that a bias in foot placement choice in favour of visual grouping exists as, in nature, sudden changes in visual characteristics of the ground increase the uncertainty for stability.