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Wednesday, March 7, 2012
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Tuesday, March 6, 2012
New method for estimating parameters may boost biological models
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Public release date: 6-Mar-2012[ | E-mail |
Share ] Contact: Matt Shipman
matt_shipman@ncsu.edu
919-515-6386
North Carolina State University
Modeling biological systems can provide key insights for scientists and medical researchers, but periodic cycles that repeat themselves so-called oscillatory systems pose some key challenges. Researchers at North Carolina State University have developed a new method for estimating the parameters used in such models which may advance modeling in research areas ranging from cancer to fertility.
"These oscillatory systems are found in everything from mechanisms in cells that allow a cell to replicate itself to the sleep-wake cycle in mammals," says Dr. Cranos Williams, an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at NC State and co-author of a paper describing the work. "The method we've developed should expedite the development of more accurate parameters, which can be used to create more precise and predictable models of oscillatory biological systems." Understanding such oscillatory systems is important for research into cancer, cardiac health, fertility and many other fields, he adds.
Modeling a biological system relies, in part, on defining parameters for that system, which correspond to how the system functions under normal conditions. Once those parameters are established, they can be used to create a model to predict the system's response under different conditions.
To estimate parameters in simpler systems, researchers measure the concentration of the system's components. In a cell, for example, researchers would measure the concentration of its proteins, among other things. Researchers then try to identify the parameters that would result in the closest 'fit' to those concentrations when plugged into the model.
A measure known as an objective function is used to quantify the quality of the 'fit' to the measured concentrations. Simple systems often result in an objective function that looks like a bowl, with the lowest point of the bowl corresponding to the parameters that provide the best or "optimal" fit. All other parameter values correspond to higher points that arc up from the bottom of the bowl. These points correspond to increasingly poor matches to the measured component concentrations as you move further away from the bottom. Robust optimization routines are well adapted to sliding down the sides of these mathematical bowls to identify a functional set of parameters corresponding to the best fit. It can be virtually impossible to identify the optimal set of parameters, but you can often get very close.
But the cyclical nature of oscillatory systems makes it difficult to identify this functional set of parameters, even when using the most robust optimization routines. This is because the repetitive nature of these systems transforms the bowl into something that looks more like a mountain range, with many hills and valleys. This makes it more complicated and time-consuming to work your way toward accurate parameters.
Since these oscillatory systems present a problem for most optimization algorithms, Williams and NC State Ph.D. student Seyedbehzad Nabavi focused on developing methods that would manipulate the surface characteristics of the objective function itself. This new approach factors in the frequency of the concentrations within the system or how often each concentration is repeated to generate a new objective function that mitigates the impact of system oscillations.
"By generating a new objective function that factors in the frequency of the system oscillations, we are able to eliminate many of the hills and valleys, resulting in a surface with the same optimal point, but that is easier to search," Williams says. "This makes it easier for optimization routines to identify a functional working set of parameters that can then be used to predict the activity of the modeled system."
The paper, "A Novel Cost Function for Parameters Estimation in Oscillatory Biochemical Systems," will be presented at the IEEE SoutheastCon in Orlando, Fla., March 15-18. Nabavi is lead author on the paper.
###
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Public release date: 6-Mar-2012[ | E-mail |
Share ] Contact: Matt Shipman
matt_shipman@ncsu.edu
919-515-6386
North Carolina State University
Modeling biological systems can provide key insights for scientists and medical researchers, but periodic cycles that repeat themselves so-called oscillatory systems pose some key challenges. Researchers at North Carolina State University have developed a new method for estimating the parameters used in such models which may advance modeling in research areas ranging from cancer to fertility.
"These oscillatory systems are found in everything from mechanisms in cells that allow a cell to replicate itself to the sleep-wake cycle in mammals," says Dr. Cranos Williams, an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at NC State and co-author of a paper describing the work. "The method we've developed should expedite the development of more accurate parameters, which can be used to create more precise and predictable models of oscillatory biological systems." Understanding such oscillatory systems is important for research into cancer, cardiac health, fertility and many other fields, he adds.
Modeling a biological system relies, in part, on defining parameters for that system, which correspond to how the system functions under normal conditions. Once those parameters are established, they can be used to create a model to predict the system's response under different conditions.
To estimate parameters in simpler systems, researchers measure the concentration of the system's components. In a cell, for example, researchers would measure the concentration of its proteins, among other things. Researchers then try to identify the parameters that would result in the closest 'fit' to those concentrations when plugged into the model.
A measure known as an objective function is used to quantify the quality of the 'fit' to the measured concentrations. Simple systems often result in an objective function that looks like a bowl, with the lowest point of the bowl corresponding to the parameters that provide the best or "optimal" fit. All other parameter values correspond to higher points that arc up from the bottom of the bowl. These points correspond to increasingly poor matches to the measured component concentrations as you move further away from the bottom. Robust optimization routines are well adapted to sliding down the sides of these mathematical bowls to identify a functional set of parameters corresponding to the best fit. It can be virtually impossible to identify the optimal set of parameters, but you can often get very close.
But the cyclical nature of oscillatory systems makes it difficult to identify this functional set of parameters, even when using the most robust optimization routines. This is because the repetitive nature of these systems transforms the bowl into something that looks more like a mountain range, with many hills and valleys. This makes it more complicated and time-consuming to work your way toward accurate parameters.
Since these oscillatory systems present a problem for most optimization algorithms, Williams and NC State Ph.D. student Seyedbehzad Nabavi focused on developing methods that would manipulate the surface characteristics of the objective function itself. This new approach factors in the frequency of the concentrations within the system or how often each concentration is repeated to generate a new objective function that mitigates the impact of system oscillations.
"By generating a new objective function that factors in the frequency of the system oscillations, we are able to eliminate many of the hills and valleys, resulting in a surface with the same optimal point, but that is easier to search," Williams says. "This makes it easier for optimization routines to identify a functional working set of parameters that can then be used to predict the activity of the modeled system."
The paper, "A Novel Cost Function for Parameters Estimation in Oscillatory Biochemical Systems," will be presented at the IEEE SoutheastCon in Orlando, Fla., March 15-18. Nabavi is lead author on the paper.
###
[ | E-mail | Share ] ?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-03/ncsu-nmf030612.php
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Monday, March 5, 2012
Fresh assault on Homs as Red Cross seeks access
Cemetery workers prepare graves for a three Free Syrian Army fighters in Idlib, north Syria, Saturday, March 3, 2012. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Cemetery workers prepare graves for a three Free Syrian Army fighters in Idlib, north Syria, Saturday, March 3, 2012. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
A man sits next to the bodies of a three Free Syrian Army fighters allegedly killed by the Syrian Army during their funeral in Idlib, north Syria, Saturday, March 3, 2012. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Children attend the funeral of a three Free Syrian Army fighters in a park converted to a cemetery in Idlib, north of Syria, Saturday, March 3, 2012. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Men bury three Free Syrian Army fighters allegedly killed by the Syrian Army during their funeral in Idlib, north Syria, Saturday, March 3, 2012. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
BEIRUT (AP) ? Syrian forces launched a fresh assault on Homs on Saturday as the Red Cross pressed forward with efforts to deliver badly needed aid to thousands of people stranded in a besieged neighborhood despite warnings from regime troops of land mines and booby traps.
Two days after they fought their way into the rebel stronghold of Baba Amr, government forces shelled several other neighborhoods of the city, the country's third largest with about 1 million people. They included districts where many of Baba Amr's residents had fled, activists said.
The Syrian regime has said it was fighting "armed gangs" in Baba Amr, which has become a symbol of the nearly year-old uprising against President Bashar Assad's authoritarian rule. The revolt has killed more than 7,500 people, according to the U.N.
The Local Coordination Committees activist network said mortars slammed into the districts of Khaldiyeh, Bab Sbaa and Khader.
Abu Hassan al-Homsi, a doctor at a makeshift clinic in Khaldiyeh, said he treated a dozen people who were wounded, most lightly.
"This has become routine, the mortars start falling early in the morning," he said. Several homes were damaged from the morning shelling.
Another Khaldiyeh resident who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals said the district has been without water and heating fuel for a week amid freezing temperatures and snow.
"We are collecting rain and snow water, and cutting trees to burn to warm ourselves," he said.
Conditions in Baba Amr are believed to be dire, with extended power outages, shortages of food and water, and lack of medical care. Syrian government forces took control of the neighborhood Thursday after rebels fled the district under constant bombardment that activists said killed hundreds of people since early February.
The Red Cross said the regime blocked its entry to Baba Amr on Friday, one day after the group received government permission to enter with a convoy of seven trucks carrying 15 tons of humanitarian aid including food, medical supplies and blankets.
"We are still in negotiations to enter Baba Amr," ICRC spokesman Hicham Hassan said Saturday in Geneva.
The Syrians said they were not letting the Red Cross into Baba Amr because of safety concerns, including land mines, Hassan said, adding the organization had not been able to verify the danger. The government has not offered an official explanation.
There was no immediate word on what was going on in Baba Amr on Saturday, a day after activists accused regime forces of execution-style killings and a scorched-earth campaign of burning homes, raising fears of revenge attacks in a country on the verge of civil war.
Telephone and Internet lines were still down and activists in nearby areas said they had no information from inside.
In the northern Idlib province, cemetery workers were burying people in parks because the graveyards were targets for regime forces, residents said.
"They (the Syrian army) don't let us pass the check point to get to the cemetery over there, they don't let us dig graves over there. So we have to dig graves in the park," Idlib cemetery worker Issam Abbas told The Associated Press.
On Saturday, children were still playing in the park as fresh graves were dug for three Free Syrian Army fighters reportedly killed on Friday night trying to plant anti-tank mines to destroy government vehicles.
Standing knee-deep in one of the graves, worker Abdel Mohcen said working in the city cemetery had become too dangerous.
"Last time I was there I had four bullets fired at me," he said.
Later in the day, a large funeral procession for the fighters made its way to the park graveyard.
In Damascus, Red Crescent officials handed over to embassy officials the bodies of two foreign journalists who were killed in shelling while trapped inside Baba Amr.
French Ambassador Eric Chevallier received the body of French photographer Remi Ochlik, and a Polish diplomat received the remains of American Marie Colvin. U.S. interests in Syria are represented by Poland.
Both journalists had sneaked into Syria illegally to try to get an eyewitness view of the government crackdown in the country. They died on Feb. 22 in shelling that also wounded Edith Bouvier of the daily Le Figaro and British photographer Paul Conroy.
Turkey's foreign minister said a lack of international consensus over Syria is emboldening the government there to proceed with its crackdown.
Ahmet Davutoglu said the scale of the killing matches the bloodshed in the Balkans wars of the 1990s, and described the Syrian regime's actions as a "crime against humanity."
Davutoglu spoke Saturday at a joint news conference with his Italian counterpart, Giulio Terzi.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on Syria to give humanitarian workers immediate access to people who desperately need aid.
"The images which we have seen in Syria are atrocious," said Ban. "It's totally unacceptable, intolerable. How, as a human being, can you bear this situation?"
In other violence Saturday, a suicide car bomb exploded in Daraa, killing at least two people and wounding 20, activists said. The state-run news agency said the blast occurred at a roundabout in an area known as Daraa al-Balad and said there were casualties including civilians and security forces.
It blamed "terrorists" for the attack. But residents taking part in the funeral of the two on Saturday blamed the regime. "They were killed by an explosion prepared by the Assad gang," a banner read.
During the funeral procession, which was shown live online, a crowd of people cried: "Death rather than humiliation," and "We will take our revenge from Maher and Bashar," a reference to Bashar Assad's younger brother Maher, who is believed to be leading the crackdown against the opposition.
Daraa is the birthplace of the uprising against Assad, which started after government forces arrested Daraa students because they scrawled anti-regime graffiti on a wall.
Syria has seen a string of suicide bombings, the last on Feb. 10, when twin blasts struck security compounds in the government stronghold city of Aleppo, killing 28 people and bringing significant violence for the first time to the city.
The capital Damascus, another Assad stronghold, has seen three suicide bombings in the past two months.
The regime has touted the attacks as proof that it is being targeted by "terrorists." The opposition accuses forces loyal to the government of being behind the bombings to tarnish the uprising.
Saturday's bombing in Daraa marked the first time a suicide bombing struck an opposition stronghold.
___
Associated Press writers Frank Jordans in Geneva and Elizabeth A. Kennedy in Beirut contributed to this report.
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Sunday, March 4, 2012
Dog Instruction: Training Jeremy Lin Jersey Your Dog the Sit ...
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Dog Instruction: Training Jeremy Lin Jersey Your Dog the Sit Command
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Educating your dog Jeremy Lin Jersey the "sit" command could be one of the most beneficial commands you ever before educate him. An inadequately educated canine is really an immediate reflection on you the pet owner and how much care about your puppy. The truth is an untrained pet dog gets a nuisance to its owner consequently the canine and owner grow to be disappointed. Whether it really is a pup or a completely developed pet dog you are able to teach them to sit using a little effort in your part.
Have you ever been putting it off since you think your puppy will never ever be capable of learn a brand new 'trick' Don't place it off any longer. Start teaching your canine the way to sit right now.
Use some of these tips to teach your pet dog to sit:
You might be likely to require some treats; however this is usually the most effective method to obtain a pet dog to complete a thing you desire! You'll be able to use something you recognize your canine enjoys: biscuits, chewy treats or house objects.
The main aim is usually to get your pet dog to sit when you utilize the term. One way you can steadily get your dog utilised for the word is by stating the phrase once the puppy is sitting anyhow. Dog sits down - you say "sit" and praise them.
You'll also want Jeremy Lin Jersey to practice this each day by doing the subsequent:
- Phone your dog and offer you them the deal with. Allow them to sniff the treat and get fired up first!
- Slowly transfer the treat till it's over the dogs head. The canine will obviously move in to the sitting place.
- It is important the puppy associates the action of sitting using the treat, the praise and the action of sitting. Try to get your timing right.
- Keep bribing the pet dog and steadily lower the dimension of the deal with. Keep enthusiastically praising the dog.
- Repeat this exercise a few www.knicksjerseysshop.com occasions a day. Do not overdo it - you would like your pet to think of it as fun.
- Attempt to practice around mealtimes when your puppy is hungry; this will make him keener for the treats.
- Have the treats simply accessible, do not fumble about - the treat demands to happen since the dog is sitting.
- Do not push your dog's bottom down; this won't work simply because your pet will associate the action of sitting with getting you push his bottom for the floor. If this genuinely is not working you might desire to take into account obedience lessons with other dogs.
- End each and every instruction session on a good note.
Educating your puppy to sit utilizing these good reinforcement strategies will reinforce the bond in between you. Think about it time well spent.
When you have mastered the basic command 'sit' it ought to be fairly effortless to train your pet dog the other basic commands. "Sit-stay", "down" 'heel' and 'come are a number of the most helpful commands. Make use of the treats within a similar way. Coaching your puppy Jeremy Lin Jersey is definitely an ongoing procedure. You need to keep praising your dog on a regular basis and never affiliate rage with the dog's response to your command.
Make use of every single new situation to prepare or put your instruction into apply. The most crucial part about understanding the best way to sit - is that the canine sits beneath a variety of circumstances. Sitting in new environments, around other dogs, around new men and women, once the doorbell rings and so on.
Instruction your dog Jeremy Lin Jersey well is one of the most significant points it is possible to do for the pet dog. Apart from having a nicely behaved dog you'll also have an obedient canine. Canines functionality as element of the pack - and you are the leader. Your canine will probably be better modified and happier whenever they know their place inside the pack. Your pet dog is by nature keen to be sure to you. Be a fantastic pack leader and start off instructing your puppy to sit right now!
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Apple and Samsung each lose a patent lawsuit in Mannheim ...
Apple and Samsung Electronics each saw patent lawsuits they had filed against one another dismissed by a German court on Friday. Samsung expects to appeal its dismissal.
Samsung had accused Apple of infringing one of its patents declared essential to the UMTS 3G smartphone standard, while Apple claimed one of its user interface patents was infringed by the unlock screen in some of Samsung's Android devices.
"The competent civil court dismissed both actions," said Mannheim District Court spokesman Joachim Bock.
Samsung expects to appeal the dismissal of its 3G patent lawsuit, said company spokesman Brendon Gore. He said the company will decide when it has reviewed the written grounds for Friday's judgment, which the court has not yet released.
In December, Samsung filed a separate action with the same court alleging that Apple infringed four more of its patents.
"We will continue to assert our intellectual property rights and defend against Apple's claims," Gore wrote in an email.
Apple also asserted the slide-to-unlock patent dismissed in Mannheim on Friday in a separate case brought against Motorola in a different German court. Apple won the case in Munich last month, although Motorola said it will appeal.
Although Apple had nothing new to say on the cases, it repeated its previous comment: "It's no coincidence that Samsung's latest products look a lot like the iPhone and iPad, from the shape of the hardware to the user interface, and even the packaging. This kind of blatant copying is wrong," wrote Apple spokesman Alan Hely.
Patent expert Florian Mueller has been closely watching the legal battles pitting Apple against Samsung and Motorola.
"The whole issue here that made Apple lose, for the time being, the slide-to-unlock patent case against Samsung is just the interpretation of certain key terms ("predefined", "displayed", "path")," he wrote on his blog about software patents, commenting on the judge's ruling.
But Apple has another case involving slide-to-unlock pending against Samsung in the Mannheim court, according to Mueller. That case involves "a utility model, a special German kind of intellectual property right," he wrote, and is more likely to go in Apple's favor when the court rules on March 16.
That would be more bad news for Samsung which, wrote Mueller, "still hasn't been able to enforce any intellectual property right anywhere on this planet against Apple."
The Mannheim court is still considering ten further intellectual property lawsuits between the two companies, having now dismissed four of them, according to Mueller.
Source: http://www.cio.com.au/article/417334/apple_samsung_each_lose_patent_lawsuit_mannheim/
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Saturday, March 3, 2012
NY congressman: NJ gov took 'cheap shots' at NYPD (AP)
[unable to retrieve full-text content]AP - An interstate feud escalated Friday when a New York congressman berated the New Jersey governor for "trying to score cheap political points" instead of saving lives when he complained that the New York Police Department's monitoring of Muslims across the state line was arrogant and secretive.
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Badminton Is More Than Just a Fabulous ... - New Health and Fitness
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Just about every day I get emails from badminton players about the world telling me about their style of play on a badminton court. They then ask me which is the best racquet for their specific style of play. If you?ve spent time reading my weblog or forum you?ll likely already know the answer I would give. Even so, for the reader that hasn?t been around this weblog, here is the answer I often give?
?Your style, strategy, badminton expertise, physique and muscular structure are diverse to mine and anyone else for that matter. Consequently, how you really feel about a badminton racquet will also be diverse to me and every other player. This signifies nobody can accurately advise you which racquet to use.?
I honestly believe that the only person who can determine no matter if a racquet is correct for you?is you. Nonetheless, this means you have to take your time and go by means of the encounter of testing different racquets.
And, this is where the significant concern is. Most players do not have access to a wide range of badminton racquets. There are extremely handful of retailers who have demo racquets for players to test on court which means it really is almost impossible to get your selection correct at a initial try. Encounter Counts?
As your badminton experience grows, you create a really feel or instinct for what you like in a racquet and also what you dislike. This encounter, whilst invaluable, can occasionally be to the detriment of your game. Let me give you an example? A handful of years ago I chosen Armortec 900 Power as my racquet of option. I truly loved the racquet and it seemed to cover lots of elements of my game. Not getting a naturally powerful player, I needed the additional weight in the head of the racquet to help me hit challenging. One day I was running a demo session with a player and for some reason definitely struggled defensively which made me question my choice on AT900P. For the subsequent season, I switched racquets to Nanospeed 9900 which was head light. Immediately my defence was ?back to regular?
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