Schematic Network Research Articles

Pathways and networks-based analysis of candidate genes associated with nicotine addiction.

Nicotine is the addictive substance in tobacco and it has a broad impact on both the central and peripheral nervous systems. Over the past decades, an increasing number of genes potentially involved in nicotine addiction have been identified by different technical approaches. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying nicotine addiction remain largely unclear. Under such situation, a comprehensive analysis focusing on the overall functional characteristics of these genes, as well as how they interact with each other will provide us valuable information to understand nicotine addiction. In this study, we presented a systematic analysis on nicotine addiction-related genes to identify the major underlying biological themes. Functional analysis revealed that biological processes and biochemical pathways related to neurodevelopment, immune system and metabolism were significantly enriched in the nicotine addiction-related genes. By extracting the nicotine addiction-specific subnetwork, a number of novel genes associated with addiction were identified. Moreover, we constructed a schematic molecular network for nicotine addiction via integrating the pathways and network, providing an intuitional view to understand the development of nicotine addiction. Pathway and network analysis indicated that the biological processes related to nicotine addiction were complex. Results from our work may have important implications for understanding the molecular mechanism underlying nicotine addiction.

Generation of schematic network maps with automated detection and enlargement of congested areas

Nowadays, the design of the London Tube map (as a kind of schematic map) has been popularly adopted for transport network maps worldwide because of its great clarity of representation. In such types of map, the shape of the network is simplified and the topology between lines is preserved while the congested areas are enlarged to a desirable scale. Efforts have also been made to automate the production of such maps. However, to our best knowledge, no existing methods have explicitly taken into consideration the automated enlargement of congested areas. As such an enlargement is vital to the improvement of clarity, this paper proposes a new automated method to generate schematic network maps, consisting of (a) automated detection of congested areas, (b) automated enlargement of congested areas to a desirable scale and (c) automated generation of the schematic representation of the deformed network maps using a stroke-based approach. The new method has been tested with two real-life network data sets, i.e. the London Tube and Hong Kong metro data sets, and evaluated by fractal analysis and experimental studies. The results of the evaluation indicate that the new method is able to automatically generate the schematic maps with improved clarity and aesthetics.

Conceptual Structures of QurʔĀnic SaʔAla ‘Ask’: An Analysis from Cognitive Linguistics

This project attempts to provide one cognitive, that is, schematic, network of all occurrences of the Qurʔānic saʔala ask. The theoretical framework to argue for the proposed network is dual: to argue for a number of pragmatic functions that seem to underlie the choice of saʔala; and to make a strong case that these pragmatic functions motivate cognitive interpretation. The paper, which initially examines distinct interpretations of Qurʔānic saʔala that ensue from a contextual analysis of its occurrences, reveals these pragmatic functions: ṭalab request, ʔistifsār enquiry, muħāsaba interrogation, ʔistifzāz aggravation, ʔiṭmiʔnān concern about well-being, tawbīx reproach, tabkīt rebuke, taqrīr attestation and duʕāʔ prayer. Based on this pragmatic and other related syntactic evidence, it argues that ask cognitively frames, not two, but three central types of cognitively-based construal: information-seeking ask, performative ask and interrogating ask. The paper proposes some conceptual structures trigger some various utilizations of Qurʔānic ask; and argues that they all interlink into one schematic network that enables readers, translators and interpreters of the Holy Qurʔān to account, in a natural manner, for the verb's execution of these pragmatic functions. Finally, the findings and their theoretical implications are outlined. Keywords : Arabic linguistics, cognitive semantics, linguistic pragmatics & Qurʔānic interpretation & translation

In situ IR study of dimethyl oxalate hydrogenation to ethylene glycol over Cu/SiO2 catalyst

The mechanism of dimethyl oxalate hydrogenation to ethylene glycol over Cu/SiO2 catalyst was investigated by in situ Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. It was found that dimethyl oxalate and methyl glycolate proceeded via dissociative adsorption on Cu/SiO2 catalyst, and four main intermediates, CH3OC(O)(O)C-M (1655 cm−1), M-C(O)(O)C-M (1618 cm−1), HOCH2(O)C-M (1682 cm−1) and CH3O-M (2924-2926 cm−1), were identified during the reaction. It was concluded that dimethyl oxalate hydrogenation to ethylene glycol mainly proceeded along the route: dimethyl oxalate → CH3OC(O)(O)C-M → methyl glycolate → HOCH2(O)C-M → ethylene glycol. Finally a schematic reaction network was proposed.

Monitoring of defoliation in forest stands of the Czech Republic and its comparison with results of defoliation monitoring in other European countries

 As a part of International Cooperative Programme on Assessment and Monitoring of Air Pollution Effect on Forests (ICP Forests), defoliation of forest stands has been assessed in the Czech Republic since 1986. Defoliation is one of the principal parameters reflecting the health of forest stands that is assessed on monitoring plots within this programme. Monitoring plots are distributed evenly according to woodiness of the area in a regular schematic network all over the Czech Republic. Even though there has been a long-term reduction of air pollution in most European countries, forest ecosystems reflect these changes with some delay. In the Czech Republic the trend of total defoliation of coniferous and deciduous forest stands has been increasing very moderately in the last 10 years. This trend appears to be partially analogous with some neighbouring countries. Compared to the whole of Europe the trend of defoliation of broadleaves is very similar, but differences have occurred in conifers in the last 10 years. There are significant differences in defoliation levels among the particular countries; in this comparison the Czech Republic is classified as one of the worst. Differences in these levels are very evident especially among the neighbouring countries. To partly eliminate these differences, regular international calibration courses are organized.  

Sexual development and cryptic sexuality in fungi: insights fromAspergillusspecies

Major insights into sexual development and cryptic sexuality within filamentous fungi have been gained from investigations using Aspergillus species. Here, an overview is first given into sexual morphogenesis in the aspergilli, describing the different types of sexual structures formed and how their production is influenced by a variety of environmental and nutritional factors. It is argued that the formation of cleistothecia and accessory tissues, such as Hülle cells and sclerotia, should be viewed as two independent but co-ordinated developmental pathways. Next, a comprehensive survey of over 75 genes associated with sexual reproduction in the aspergilli is presented, including genes relating to mating and the development of cleistothecia, sclerotia and ascospores. Most of these genes have been identified from studies involving the homothallic Aspergillus nidulans, but an increasing number of studies have now in addition characterized 'sex-related' genes from the heterothallic species Aspergillus fumigatus and Aspergillus flavus. A schematic developmental genetic network is proposed showing the inter-relatedness between these genes. Finally, the discovery of sexual reproduction in certain Aspergillus species that were formerly considered to be strictly asexual is reviewed, and the importance of these findings for cryptic sexuality in the aspergilli as a whole is discussed.

A stroke-based method for automated generation of schematic network maps

This article deals with the graphic simplification of a network by schematization. A new method employing a stroke-based and progressive strategy is proposed to generate schematic network maps. This method treats a stroke (which is a long line with segments concatenated together) as a basic unit for the implementation. The procedure is as follows: (a) strokes are formed from line segments, (b) the strokes are re-orientated along grid lines and/or diagonals, and (c) two endpoints and all intersection points on (sub-)strokes are projected onto re-oriented straight lines, and (d) spatial inconsistency is detected and resolved. A methodology for each of these steps is described. This new method has been tested with a set of real-life road network data and evaluated by fractal analysis and empirical study. Experimental results show that this new method is more effective than segment-based methods and is able to produce graphics with great simplicity and clarity. Based on the results obtained, the stroke-based schematization with four primary directions is recommended.

Gravity is Your Friend but Every Turn is a Leap of Faith: Design and Testing a Schematic Map for Ski Resort Trails

title/>Trail maps for winter sports often take the form of highly illustrative landscape paintings, or panoramas, overprinted with trails and lifts to allow winter sports enthusiasts a mechanism for on-mountain navigation. The character of mountain environments lends itself particularly well to the panoramic representation which creates aesthetically pleasing representations that have become the de facto standard for trail mapping in ski resorts. Using them for navigating on mountain is not always easy since conditions, map perspective, orientation and the illustrative form often make reading the map awkward. Here, an alternative to the traditional trail map is designed by reducing a mountain and its trails to topological primitives. Harry Beck's famous London Underground provided inspiration to depict ski trails as a schematic network for the primary purpose of navigation. The schematic map illustrates the 176 trails in Breckenridge, CO, USA, derived from GPS tracklogs and incorporates a range of other datasets and a panoramic inset to provide context. The map has been tested at Breckenridge ski resort and results of this usability study are reported showing that there is value in this alternative way of depicting ski resorts though the panoramic style is well established, trusted and unlikely to face serious competition from alternative approaches.

Does the olfactory cue activate the same brain network during aging in the rat after taste potentiated odor aversion retrieval?

Depending on the brain networks involved, aging is not accompanied by a general decrease in learning and memory capabilities. We demonstrated previously that learning and retrieval of taste potentiated odor aversion (TPOA) is preserved, and even slightly improved, in senescent rats showing some memory deficiencies in cognitive tasks ( Dardou, Datiche, & Cattarelli, 2008). TPOA is a particular behavior in which the simultaneous presentation of odor and taste cues followed by a delayed visceral illness leads to a robust aversion towards both conditioned stimuli, which permits diet selection and animal survival. The present experiment was performed in order to investigate the stability or the evolution of the brain network underlying TPOA retrieval during aging. By using immunocytochemical detection of Fos and Egr1 proteins we mapped the cerebral activation induced by TPOA retrieval elicited by the odor presentation in the young, the adult and the senescent rats. The pattern of brain activation changed and the number of activated areas decreased with age. Nevertheless, the piriform cortex and the basolateral amygdala nucleus were always activated and seemed essential for TPOA retrieval. The hippocampus and the neocortical areas could have different implications in TPOA memory in relation to age. The patterns of expression of Fos and Egr1 were different, suggesting their differential involvement in TPOA retrieval. Data are discussed according to the possible roles of the brain areas studied and a model of schematic brain network subtending TPOA retrieval induced by the odor cue is proposed.

Synergistic effect of trichostatin A and 5‐aza‐2′‐deoxycytidine on growth inhibition of pancreatic endocrine tumour cell lines: A proteomic study

Our research group recently reported that pancreatic endocrine cancer cell lines are sensitive to the HDAC inhibitor trichostatin A (TSA). In the present paper, we show that the combined treatment of pancreatic endocrine tumour cell lines with TSA and the DNA methyltransferase inhibitor 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine (DAC) determines a strong synergistic inhibition of proliferation mainly due to apoptotic cell death. Proteomic analysis demonstrates that the modulation of specific proteins correlates with the antiproliferative effect of the drugs. A schematic network clarifies the most important targets or pathways involved in pancreatic endocrine cancer growth inhibition by single or combined drug treatments, which include proteasome, mitochondrial apoptotic pathway and caspase related proteins, p53 and Ras related proteins. A comparison between the patterns of proteins regulated by TSA or DAC in endocrine and ductal pancreatic cancer cell lines is also presented.

Cognitive Approaches to Lexical Semantics

AbstractThis article reviews the achievements and recent research programs in the field of cognitive lexical semantics, which has become a full‐fledged field since the early 1980s, when important research findings in cognitive psychology concerning the internal structure of categories (prototype structure and family resemblance structure) were adopted to analyze lexical categories (Taylor et al. 2003). Cognitive linguists have since changed their conceptions about the nature of word meanings, and the interplay between words and their contexts. The traditional dividing lines between lexicon and grammar, and linguistic knowledge and encyclopedic knowledge have been largely blurred, and meaning is seen as a manifestation of conceptual structure, which is embodied and entrenched in the schematic network of structures and is extended on the basis of language usage events.

A Schematic Urban Street Network-Display Algorithm

The link-node network is the most commonly used model for representing a large-scale urban street system. It is easy to formulate a mathematical model which describes the complicated spatial and temporal urban-street-related problems on such a simplified network representation. However, recently developed microscopic network traffic models contain important details which cannot be depicted on the link-node diagram. This paper describes a computer-graphics algorithm which can generate a lane-detailed schematic urban street network display. The algorithm is very comprehensive, and it can accommodate various types of urban street configurations. The regular four-approach, right-angle intersection can be displayed most accurately. However, intersections with more or less than four approaches and/or links intersecting at an angle other than 90-deg can be generated satisfactorily. One-way streets intersecting two-way or one-way streets can also be depicted. Furthermore, roadways where the number of lanes changes (for example, from two lanes to three lanes, or from two lanes to one lane) can also be plotted. The overall quality of the display generated by this algorithm is satisfactory. The required input data is relatively simple, although the time associated with the input data preparation is short. In addition, applications using this algorithm are also discussed.

Schematic road network map progressive generalization based on multiple constraints

Multiple constraints for schematic road network map cartographic design are analyzed and summarized. Based on this, a set of quantitative criteria are set up and a new road network generalization method including progressive selection and displacement is proposed. Furthermore, topological checking methods for road networks are researched. Based on these constraints, the points in a road network are classified, and a satisfactory and effective schematic map is designed in a concrete experiment while maintaining topological consistency of the road network between the original and the schematic map.

Convergence Analysis and Quality Criteria for an Iterative Schematization of Networks

Schematic networks are linear abstractions of functional networks, such as route networks. Lines in the original network are modified in order to produce a schematic network which satisfies a set of constraints chosen to design the network. A method is described which accomplishes this line transformation using an iterative improvement technique driven by design constraints. The method maintains topological characteristics of the network by the use of simple geometric operations and tests. The iterative process can be repeated until the line displacements become small enough or until it meets user defined stopping criteria. Experimental results are provided to examine the acceptability of outcomes and the convergence of the applied iterative technique. Criteria for measuring the quality of results, as well as for stopping the iterative approach are presented.

Integrating Arc Hydro Features with a Schematic Network

A framework for integrating GIS features with processing engines to simulate hydrologic behavior is presented. The framework is designed for compatibility with the ArcGIS ModelBuilder environment, and utilizes the data structure provided by the SchemaLink and SchemaNode feature classes from the ArcGIS Hydro data model. SchemaLink and SchemaNode form the links and nodes, respectively, in a schematic network representing the connectivity between hydrologic features pertinent to the movement of surface water in the landscape. A specific processing engine is associated with a given schematic feature, depending on the type of feature the schematic feature represents. Processing engines allow features to behave as individual hydrologic processors in the landscape. The framework allows two types of processes for each feature, a Receive process and a Pass process. Schematic network features operate with four types of values: received values, incremental values, total values, and passed values. The framework assumes that the schematic network is dendritic, and that no backwater effects occur between schematic features. A case study is presented for simulating bacterial loading in Galveston Bay in Texas from point and nonpoint sources. A second case study is presented for simulating rainfall-runoff response and channel routing for the Llano River in Texas.

嵐山の森林景観における地域らしさの評価構造

A landscape including elements that identify its area becomes necessary condition in regional planning. A case study to investigate perception and evaluation structure of district identity at Arashiyama area, Kyoto City, was conducted. 30 subjects who lived in or near Kyoto City were asked to respond to structured interviews with landscape photographs by 2 types of improved repertory grid analyses. One analysis revealed a perception structure of forest landscape image, and another showed us a schematic network of criteria words expressing identity of Arashiyama area. This also clarified that how the criteria words involve concrete elements of district identity. And a relationship between evaluation of district identity and perception structure of forest landscape was analyzed by multiple regression analysis. The identity of Arashiyama area was strongly bound with the image of "artificiality" and "harmony". Furthermore, based on these results, an application for present regional landscape planning was discussed.

In situ FTIR studies of methanol adsorption and dehydrogenation over Cu/SiO 2 catalyst

In situ FTIR spectroscopy was used to identify the adsorbed species and the intermediates during methanol dehydrogenation over Cu/SiO 2 catalyst, and a schematic reaction network was proposed. Methoxy species on copper, which were derived from adsorbed methanol, dehydrogenated into formaldehyde. Then several competitive pathways took place. The adsorbed formaldehyde could desorb to the gas phase, or react with another adsorbed methoxy group to form methyl formate, and/or undergo further dehydrogenation to CO and H 2. Carbon monoxide formed from the decomposition first adsorbed on high-index planes of copper, and then on low-index planes as the reaction progressed. With the increase of temperature, the concentration of formaldehyde and CO in gas phase increased, and that of methyl formate decreased.

Dynamics of Parkinsonian tremor during deep brain stimulation.

The mechanism by which chronic, high frequency, electrical deep brain stimulation (HF-DBS) suppresses tremor in Parkinson's disease is unknown. Rest tremor in subjects with Parkinson's disease receiving HF-DBS was recorded continuously throughout switching the deep brain stimulator on (at an effective frequency) and off. These data suggest that the stimulation induces a qualitative change in the dynamics, called a Hopf bifurcation, so that the stable oscillations are destabilized. We hypothesize that the periodic stimulation modifies a parameter affecting the oscillation in a time dependent way and thereby induces a Hopf bifurcation. We explore this hypothesis using a schematic network model of an oscillator interacting with periodic stimulation. The mechanism of time-dependent change of a control parameter in the model captures two aspects of the dynamics observed in the data: (1) a gradual increase in tremor amplitude when the stimulation is switched off and a gradual decrease in tremor amplitude when the stimulation is switched on and (2) a time delay in the onset and offset of the oscillations. This mechanism is consistent with these rest tremor transition data and with the idea that HF-DBS acts via the gradual change of a network property. (c) 2001 American Institute of Physics.

Managing the process-centred enterprise

This article presents the Enterprise Model which simultaneously addresses business functions and processes. It has two core elements. The first is a schematic network of functions and processes which creates a platform for assessing enterprise-wide alignment and identifying opportunities for performance improvement. The second is the 3Cs—the business's customer relations, capabilities, and competencies—which constitute the resource platform for the enterprise's future strategies and determine the feasibility of its plans. The model links the firm's operating decisions to its strategic direction. The article describes the model and how to use it in an integrated audit of an enterprise and its plans.

Network Analog of Bone Conduction

Earlier experiments in animals, cadaver heads, and cochlear models gave evidence for a number of factors contributing to bone-conduction responses [Acta Otolaryngol., Supplement No. 213 (1966)]. Based upon that evidence, a schematic impedance network of the bone-conduction mechanism has been constructed. It indicates that there are three signal pathways: soft tissues, bone, and skull contents; and three responding components that act as independent inputs: the walls of the external canal, the ossicles, and the perilymphatic spaces. The latter are interconnected by a response line and affected by a number of modifying factors—(a) the air column in the external canal with its external opening, (b) the air bubble in the middle ear, (c) the tympanic membrane, (d) the oval and round windows, and (e) the so-called 3rd cochlear window, the sum total of all communications between the cochlear spaces and the skull interior. [Work supported by grants from the National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Blindness, National Institutes of Health, U. S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare.]