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Regular and chronic use of ketamine causes inflammatory changes in the urinary tract. Imaging has a crucial role in the assessment of this pathology. A particular imaging characteristic of an hourglass-shaped bladder is highlighted in three cases of ketamine intoxication. Teaching point: Three cases of ketamine intoxication with a characteristic bladder deformation are reported.

We provide an alternative approach to a problem posed in the article “Hourglass of Constant Weight” by Becker and Pöschel (Granul Matter 10(3):231–232, 2008. ), i.e. 14 years ago. Our goal to return to this article after so much time is purely pedagogical. Although there is a slight and subtle inaccuracy in the derivation of equation (8) in the work of Becker and Pöschel, which we correct, we use this circumstance only to give a detailed pedagogical exposition of an excellent physical problem and to show the pedagogical usefulness of the concept of momentum flow when considering the mechanics of systems with variable mass. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Topological Indices are the mathematical estimate related to atomic graph that corresponds biological structure with several real properties and chemical activities. These indices are invariant of graph under graph isomorphism. If top(h1) and top(h2) denotes topological index h1 and h2 respectively then h1 approximately equal h2 which implies that top(h1) = top(h2). In biochemistry, chemical science, nano-medicine, biotechnology and many other science's distance based and eccentricity-connectivity(EC) based topological invariants of a network are beneficial in the study of structure-property relationships and structure-activity relationships. These indices help the chemist and pharmacist to overcome the shortage of laboratory and equipment. In this paper we calculate the formulas of eccentricity-connectivity descriptor(ECD) and their related polynomials, total eccentricity-connectivity(TEC) polynomial, augmented eccentricity-connectivity(AEC) descriptor and further the modified eccentricity-connectivity(MEC) descriptor with their related polynomials for hourglass benzenoid network.

Most existing methods for RGB hand pose estimation use root-relative 3D coordinates for supervision. However, such supervision neglects the distance between the camera and the object (i.e., the hand). The camera distance is especially important under a perspective camera, which controls the depth-dependent scaling of the perspective projection. As a result, the same hand pose, with different camera distances can be projected into different 2D shapes by the same perspective camera. Neglecting such important information results in ambiguities in recovering 3D poses from 2D images. In this article, we propose a camera projection learning module (CPLM) that uses the scale factor contained in the camera distance to associate 3D hand pose with 2D UV coordinates, which facilities to further optimize the accuracy of the estimated hand joints. Specifically, following the previous work, we use a two-stage RGB-to-2D and 2D-to-3D method to estimate 3D hand pose and embed a graph convolutional network in the second stage to leverage the information contained in the complex non-Euclidean structure of 2D hand joints. Experimental results demonstrate that our proposed method surpasses state-of-the-art methods on the benchmark dataset RHD and obtains competitive results on the STB and D+O datasets.

Several sociocultural female body ideals exist — thin, muscular/athletic, and, more recently, curvier ideals, which research specifically suggests are more prevalent among Black women. Two validated measures assess women's desire for curvier bodies, but neither assess certain facets of curvy ideals (e.g., thick vs. slim-thick) separately. We developed and validated the Curvy Ideals Internalization (CII) Scale, to be used alone or alongside existing measures of appearance ideal internalization. Focus groups among racially/ethnically diverse women informed initial items. A sample of 897 White (37.1%), Black (34.2%), and biracial Black and White (28.7%) U.S. women completed the initial 37-item CII to determine factor structure, narrow the item pool, and examine validity and reliability. A separate sample (N = 366) of U.S. Black, White, and biracial women completed the CII to confirm the factor structure. The final CII has eleven items, with factors assessing thick/curvy ideal internalization and facets of slim-thick ideal internalization: thin waist and large breast size. The CII has adequate internal consistency, test-retest reliability, construct validity, and factorial validity. The CII is appropriate for use among Black, White, and biracial women to assess internalization of curvier body ideals and needs to be validated in more diverse samples. • We developed and validated the Curvy Ideals Internalization (CII) Scale. • The CII has three subscales assessing thick/curvy and slim-thick internalization. • Slim-thick subscales assessed desire for a small waist and large breasts. • The CII may assess body ideal internalization more relevant to Black/biracial women. • CII may be used with the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a new closed-form formulation with universal matrices strongly recommends that Weighted Richardson Extrapolation (WRE) with robust and hourglass controlled one-point quadrature can absolutely replace the conventional Gauss Quadrature in terms of efficiency, accuracy, and speed to find element stiffness matrices of quadrilateral and hexahedral elements. Linearizing the geometric transformation and averaging the material property over an element, using sampling point at the origin (0,0) of a standard mapped 2-square (ξ,η) plane for two-dimensional analysis and origin (0,0,0) of a standard mapped 2-cube (ξ,η,ζ) system in the hexahedral element (mid-point rule), helps to obtain element stiffness matrix quickly and explicitly through constant universal matrices. This technique is used independently to each of the eight sub-cubes of the mapped 2-cube (ξ,η,ζ) of the element for three-dimensional problems and four sub-squares of the mapped 2-square of the element for two-dimensional problems. These matrices are assembled appropriately for a second and better approximation. A weighted addition of the two approximations produces a stiffness matrix as accurate as from conventional Gauss Quadrature. However, finding the stiffness matrix in this way, due to explicit integrations, demands only a third of the time needed for Gauss Quadrature.

Nature's morphology and optimal energetic solutions remain the key motivation for designing cellular-based lattice structures. Understanding the nonlinear dynamical behaviors that arise from different lattice topologies of such structures in the metastructure framework is crucial for their successful implementation in various novel designs and technologies related to vibration and shape control. This paper presents a study of the static and dynamic response of auxetic and honeycomb lattices with hourglass or dome-shaped metastructures. The potential tailoring of nonlinearity of such responses through various design parameters that play a vital role in shaping the dynamic properties of such structures is discussed here. The impact of cell design parameters on the resulting macroscopic behavior is assessed using both numerical simulations and experimental studies. The transition from softening to hardening nonlinear dynamic responses is reported with cell topologies ranging from the regular honeycomb to auxetic topologies that are widely used as fundamental cells of cellular materials design. The experimental study is based on the time responses measured to verify the numerical predictions. The experimental system consists of different 3D printed hourglass samples based on the auxetic and honeycomb lattices on which dynamic testing using a laser Doppler vibrometer is performed. The design strategies proposed in this paper can be integrated into a wide range of lattice-based materials for noise and vibration control applications and biomedical devices. • Transitioning from softening to hardening nonlinear dynamic responses through lattice. • Achieved controlled nonlinearities by utilizing the instabilities of the dome structure. • Numerical simulations and experimental investigations using laser Doppler vibrometer. • Study will potentially help the selection of lattice for functionally graded materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Computer vision with deep learning is emerging as a significant approach for non-invasive and non-destructive plant phenotyping. Spikes are the reproductive organs of wheat plants. Detection and counting of spikes considered the grain-bearing organ have great importance in the phenomics study of large sets of germplasms. In the present study, we developed an online platform, “Web-SpikeSegNet,” based on a deep-learning framework for spike detection and counting from the wheat plant’s visual images. The architecture of the Web-SpikeSegNet consists of 2 layers. First Layer, Client-Side Interface Layer, deals with end user’s requests and corresponding responses management. In contrast, the second layer, Server Side Application Layer, consists of a spike detection and counting module. The backbone of the spike detection module comprises of deep encoder-decoder network with hourglass network for spike segmentation. The Spike counting module implements the “Analyze Particle” function of imageJ to count the number of spikes. For evaluating the performance of Web-SpikeSegNet, we acquired the wheat plant’s visual images, and the satisfactory segmentation performances were obtained as Type I error 0.00159, Type II error 0.0586, Accuracy 99.65%, Precision 99.59% and F1 score 99.65%. As spike detection and counting in wheat phenotyping are closely related to the yield, Web-SpikeSegNet is a significant step forward in the field of wheat phenotyping and will be very useful to the researchers and students working in the domain.

Background: Shoulder surgeons performing tenodesis note a great variability in morphology of the proximal biceps. The hourglass biceps test measures the integrity of the intra-articular biceps tendon. The hourglass maneuver (HM) is positive when there is a passive flexion deficit compared to the contralateral shoulder in a relaxed patient in the supine position. Hypothesis: Preoperative HM is correlated with an increased width of the biceps portion resected during tenodesis. Methods: This prospective study evaluated all patients (N = 58) who underwent biceps tenodesis between January and September 2019. Two groups of patients were compared: group 1 (n = 20) had a positive HM and group 2 had a negative HM (n = 38). The smallest (s) and largest (L) width of the tendon were measured intraoperatively, and the L/s ratio was calculated. The HM was then evaluated as a diagnostic test by creating a contingency table and determining the sensitivity and specificity of the test for different L/s ratios. A receiver operating characteristic curve was created and the area under the curve (AUC) was calculated. Results: A nonsignificant difference was found between the mean largest biceps width in group 1 compared to group 2 (11.65 mm [range: 5-21] vs. 9.71 mm [range: 6-20], respectively; P < .05). The AUC was 0.81; the sensitivity was 68.9% and specificity, 80.8%. Conclusion: Preoperative positivity of the HM is linked to the increased width of the biceps portion resected during tenodesis. The hourglass biceps test should be predictive of intraoperative hourglass biceps according to our definition.

Evolutionary developmental biology (evo‐devo) is the study of the evolution of developmental mechanisms. Here, I review some of the theories, models, and laws in evo‐devo, past and present. Nineteenth‐century evo‐devo was dominated by recapitulation theory and archetypes. It also gave us germ layer theory, the vertebral theory of the skull, floral organs as modified leaves, and the "inverted invertebrate" theory, among others. Newer theories and models include the frameshift theory, the genetic toolkit for development, the ABC model of flower development, the developmental hourglass, the zootype, Urbilateria, and the hox code. Some of these new theories show the influence of archetypes and recapitulation. Interestingly, recent studies support the old "primordial leaf," "inverted invertebrate," and "segmented head" theories. Furthermore, von Baer's first three laws may now need to be rehabilitated, and the hourglass model modified, in view of what Abzhanov has pointed out about the maternal‐zygotic transition. There are many supposed "laws" of evo‐devo but I argue that these are merely generalizations about trends in particular lineages. I argue that the "body plan" is an archetype, and is often used in such a way that it lacks any scientific meaning. Looking to the future, one challenge for evo‐devo will be to develop new theories and models to accommodate the wealth of new data from high‐throughput sequencing, including single‐cell sequencing. One step in this direction is the use of sophisticated in silico analyses, as in the "transcriptomic hourglass" models. Research highlights: Laws and other universal concepts, past and present, are reviewed.I show that many concepts focus on conserved aspects of development.The puzzle remains as to how embryonic phenotype, natural selection, and developmental mechanisms can be aligned to give an integrated view of evolution and development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main intention of the work is to show the characters mother and sister in trilogy-Family circus by Danilo Kiš. This trilogy contains novels: Garden, ashes (Bašta, pepeo), Hourglass (Peščanik), Early sorrows (Rani jadi). We aim to show that thecharacter of the sister, although not shown in detail in the trilogy like the figure of the father, is important because it reflects the childhood of his brother Andreas Sam. That is why the descriptions of sister's character and appearance are best seen in the works Garden, ashes and Early sorrows. We can conclude that she represents a companion through all stages of her brother's life. Although different from him, Ana Sam supports her younger brother and shares with him all the hardships that befell them during the Holocaust. On the other hand, the mother is portrayed as a character opposite to the father, devoid of flaws. In addition, there is no feeling of frustration in the relationship between mother and son, like those present towards the father, but also the sister who shares his characteristics. Thus, analysis of the trilogy has the goal to demonstrate the attachment to the mother and the perspective of a person who is not a Jew but feels the consequences of anti-Semitism and the Holocaust suffered by her family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to present and synthesize biographical data of one of the main characters in Danilo Kiš's novel Hourglass, namely, Eduard Sam. First, we shall list all of his personal information such as the date of birth, address, marital status, family relations, work experience, pastime activities, etc. Then, we shall present the staircases of life and death as they appear within the novel. Since the character in question is of Jewish origin, the paper will examine the recurring signs of anti-Semitism as well as the physically and emotionally debilitating consequences of such national identity. Eduard Sam is someone who is lucid, not mad, with his lucidity emerging as a result of his ceaseless speculation about the terror of death within a concentration camp. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background The evolution of embryological development has long been characterized by deep conservation. In animal development, the phylotypic stage in mid-embryogenesis is more conserved than either early or late stages among species within the same phylum. Hypotheses to explain this hourglass pattern have focused on purifying the selection of gene regulation. Here, we propose an alternative—genes are regulated in different ways at different stages and have different intrinsic capacities to respond to perturbations on gene expression. Results To eliminate the influence of natural selection, we quantified the expression variability of isogenetic single embryo transcriptomes throughout fly Drosophila melanogaster embryogenesis. We found that the expression variability is lower at the phylotypic stage, supporting that the underlying regulatory architecture in this stage is more robust to stochastic variation on gene expression. We present evidence that the phylotypic stage is also robust to genetic variations on gene expression. Moreover, chromatin regulation appears to play a key role in the variation and evolution of gene expression. Conclusions We suggest that a phylum-level pattern of embryonic conservation can be explained by the intrinsic difference of gene regulatory mechanisms in different stages.

A striking property of vertebrate embryos is the emergence of a conserved body plan across a wide range of organisms through the process of gastrulation. As the body plan unfolds, gene regulatory networks (GRNs) and multicellular interactions (cell regulatory networks, CRNs) combine to generate a conserved set of morphogenetic events that lead to the phylotypic stage. Interrogation of these multilevel interactions requires manipulation of the mechanical environment, which is difficult in vivo. We review recent studies of stem cell models of early embryogenesis from different species showing that, independent of species origin, cells in culture form similar structures. The main difference between embryos and in vitro models is the boundary conditions of the multicellular ensembles. We discuss these observations and suggest that the mechanical and geometric boundary conditions of different embryos before gastrulation hide a morphogenetic ground state that is revealed in the stem-cell-based models of embryo development. Steventon et al. present a perspective looking at stem cell models of early embryogenesis from different species showing that, independent of their species origin, cells in culture form similar structures. These are compared to in vivo development and the differences stemming from boundary conditions are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is currently unclear if men with Peyronie's Disease (PD) who achieve minimal benefits with the first 2 series of Collagenase Clostridium Histolyticum (CCH) injections should continue with additional injections. To analyze curvature improvements from the final two series of CCH injections based on amount of improvement during the first 2 series. A prospective registry was analyzed of all men undergoing CCH injections for PD at a single institution. Men were included if they had completed a full 4 series (8 injections) of CCH and had baseline, interval (after 2 series), and/or final (after 4 series) curvature assessments available. Men were stratified into cohorts using baseline-to-interval assessments of ≤10° (or ≤20%) and >10° (or >20%), and improvements were compared using interval-to-final assessments. The primary outcome was interval-to-final curvature improvements stratified by ≤10°/>10° or ≤20%/>20% improvements achieved during the baseline-to-interval period. Secondary outcomes included analyses of demographic and pathophysiologic variables to determine associations with significant improvements during the final 2 CCH series. A total of 296 PD men were identified as receiving at least one CCH injection, of whom 175 had baseline-to-interval, 84 interval-to-final, and 115 with baseline-to-final measurements. Mean age was 56.6, PD duration 28.6 months, baseline curvature 63.4°, hourglass deformity 36.2%, and calcification 20%. Mean overall curve improvement was −21.5° (33.1%). Among men who experienced ≤20% improvements after 2 series, the mean subsequent curvature change was -24.6% during the final two series (vs +4.3% of those with >20% initial improvement, P <.001), and they were 2.7x more likely to experience >20% subsequent curve improvements. Thirty-one percent of those who achieved >10° during the first 2 series experienced benefits during the final 2 series compared to 70% of men who had ≤10° improvement initially. No demographic or pathophysiological variables predicted likelihood for improvements during the final 2 series of injections. Men who fail to achieve significant benefits with 2 series of CCH injections may benefit from completing the final 2 series. Strengths including a relatively large, prospective series. Limitations include a single center, nonrandomization, nonblinded assessments, and restriction to men who completed eight injections. In the current series, approximately 2/3 of men who fail to achieve >10° or 20% curve improvements with an initial 2 series of CCH injections achieved >10° or 20% improvements with the subsequent 2 series. Alom M, Burgon H, Ziegelmann M, et al. Continuing Collagenase Clostridium Histolyticum Injections Among Initial Nonresponders Results in Significant Curvature Improvements in the Majority of Peyronie's Disease Men. J Sex Med 2021;18:1092–1098. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The spatiotemporal control of gene expression is crucial for the successful completion of animal development. The evolutionary constraints on development are particularly strong for the mid-embryonic stage when body segments are specified, as evidenced by a high degree of morphological and protein-coding gene conservation during this period--a phenomenon known as the developmental hourglass. The discovery of microRNA-mediated gene control revealed an entirely new layer of complexity of the molecular networks that orchestrate development. However, the constraints on microRNA developmental expression and evolution, and the implications for animal evolution are less well understood. To systematically explore the conservation of microRNAs during development, we carried out a genome-wide comparative study of microRNA expression levels throughout the ontogenesis of two divergent fruit flies, Drosophila melanogaster and D. virilis. We show that orthologous microRNAs display highly similar temporal profiles regardless of their mutation rates, suggesting that the timely expression of microRNA genes can be more constrained than their sequence. Furthermore, transitions between key developmental events in the different species are accompanied by conserved shifts in microRNA expression profiles, with the mid-embryonic period between gastrulation and segmentation characterized by the highest similarity of microRNA expression. The conservation of microRNA expression therefore displays an hourglass pattern similar to that observed for protein-coding genes.

In this paper, a new closed-form formulation with universal matrices strongly recommends that Weighted Richardson Extrapolation (WRE) with robust and hourglass controlled one-point quadrature can absolutely replace the conventional Gauss Quadrature in terms of efficiency, accuracy, and speed to find element stiffness matrices of quadrilateral and hexahedral elements. Linearizing the geometric transformation and averaging the material property over an element, using sampling point at the origin (0,0) of a standard mapped 2-square (ξ , η) plane for two-dimensional analysis and origin (0,0,0) of a standard mapped 2-cube (ξ , η , ζ) system in the hexahedral element (mid-point rule), helps to obtain element stiffness matrix quickly and explicitly through constant universal matrices. This technique is used independently to each of the eight sub-cubes of the mapped 2-cube (ξ , η , ζ) of the element for three-dimensional problems and four sub-squares of the mapped 2-square of the element for two-dimensional problems. These matrices are assembled appropriately for a second and better approximation. A weighted addition of the two approximations produces a stiffness matrix as accurate as from conventional Gauss Quadrature. However, finding the stiffness matrix in this way, due to explicit integrations, demands only a third of the time needed for Gauss Quadrature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A randomized, controlled clinical trial evaluating the efficacy of RestoreX traction therapy in men with Peyronie's disease (PD) has been completed, with the 3-month results previously reported. The present study presents outcomes from the open-label and follow-up phases of the original trial. To report 6-month (open-label phase) and 9-month (follow-up phase) outcomes from a randomized, controlled trial (NCT03389854). A randomized controlled trial was performed from 2017 to 2019 in 110 all-comer men with PD. Men were randomized 3:1 to RestoreX (PTT) or no therapy (control) for 3 months, followed by 3-month open-label and follow-up phases. Key outcomes included adverse events (AEs), changes in penile curvature and length, erectile function, and standardized and nonstandardized assessments of PD. The primary outcomes are safety, penile length, penile curvature, Peyronie's Disease Questionnaire, International Index of Erectile Function, and satisfaction. 6-month (n = 64) and 9-month (n = 63) outcomes were reported, with a mean duration of PTT use of 31.1 minutes. No significant AEs were reported, with temporary erythema and discomfort being most common and resolving within minutes. On intent-to-treat analysis, control-to-PTT men experienced significant length (1.7–2.0 cm) and curvature improvements (18–20%). PTT-to-PTT men also achieved additional length (0.6–0.8 cm) without further curvature improvements. An as-treated analysis of PTT use ≥15 minute/day demonstrated 2.0- to 2.3-cm length gains (largest of any PTT to date) and 18–21% curve improvement. All sexual function domains of the International Index of Erectile Function and Peyronie's Disease Questionnaire were significantly improved (except orgasmic domain). 95% of men treated for 6 months experienced length gains (mean 2.0–2.2 cm), and 61% had curve improvements (16.8–21.4° [32.8–35.8%]). RestoreX was preferred 3–4:1 over all other PD treatments, and 100% preferred it over other PTT devices. Use of RestoreX 30 minutes daily results in significant length and curve improvements in PD men without significant AEs. Strengths include largest randomized study of PTT, blinded assessments, and inclusion of all-comers with few restrictions; limitations include sample size that precludes comparisons between treatment cohorts and lack of long-duration (>3–9 hours) treatment arm. PTT with RestoreX results in significant improvements in length, curve, and subjective and objective measures of sexual function without significant AEs. RestoreX PTT represents a safe, conservative, low-cost option for managing men with PD. Joseph J, Ziegelmann M, Alom M, et al. Outcomes of RestoreX Penile Traction Therapy in Men With Peyronie's Disease: Results From Open Label and Follow-up Phases. J Sex Med 2020;17:2462–2471. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The central place of Danilo Kiš’s novel Hourglass, which is a kind of an illness/disease narrative (écriture patografique), is occupied by the human condition as an animal rationale. It was one of the subjects raised by many intellectuals, including Edmund Husserl, whose name does not appear here accidentally. Phenomenology was a strong intellectual impetus for the authors of the new French novel. Although in his statements Kiš resolutely distanced himself from any connections with him, emphasizing the documentary, auto/biographical character of his work, in this article I point to the existent (albeit unintended) connections between Kiš’s novel and the literary views of his French colleagues.

Background: The evolution of embryological development has long been characterized by deep conservation. In animal development, the phylotypic stage in mid-embryogenesis is more conserved than either early or late stages among species within the same phylum. Hypotheses to explain this hourglass pattern have focused on purifying the selection of gene regulation. Here, we propose an alternative—genes are regulated in different ways at different stages and have different intrinsic capacities to respond to perturbations on gene expression. Results: To eliminate the influence of natural selection, we quantified the expression variability of isogenetic single embryo transcriptomes throughout fly Drosophila melanogaster embryogenesis. We found that the expression variability is lower at the phylotypic stage, supporting that the underlying regulatory architecture in this stage is more robust to stochastic variation on gene expression. We present evidence that the phylotypic stage is also robust to genetic variations on gene expression. Moreover, chromatin regulation appears to play a key role in the variation and evolution of gene expression. Conclusions: We suggest that a phylum-level pattern of embryonic conservation can be explained by the intrinsic difference of gene regulatory mechanisms in different stages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus has an unusual pattern of nursing behavior. After giving birth in a nursery burrow (or laboratory nest box), the mother immediately leaves the young and only returns to nurse for a few minutes once approximately every 24 h. It has been assumed this schedule, like a variety of other functions in the rabbit, is under circadian control. This assumption has been largely based on findings from mothers only permitted restricted access to their young once every 24 h. However, in nature and in the laboratory, mothers with free access to young show nursing visits with a periodicity shorter than 24 h, that does not correspond to other behavioral and physiological rhythms entrained to the prevailing 24 h light/dark (LD) cycle. To investigate how this unusual, apparently non-circadian pattern might be regulated, we conducted two experiments using female Dutch-belted rabbits housed individually in cages designed to automatically register feeding activity and nest box visits. In Experiment 1 we recorded the behavior of 17 mothers with free access to their young under five different LD cycles with long photo and short scotoperiods, spanning the limits of entrainment of the rabbit's circadian system. Whereas feeding rhythms were entrained by LD cycles within the rabbit's circadian range of entrainment, nursing visits showed a consistently shorter periodicity regardless of the LD regimen, largely independent of the circadian system. In Experiment 2 we tested further 12 mothers under more conventional LD 16:8 cycles but "trained" by having access to the nest box restricted to 1 h at the same time each day for the first 7 d of nursing. Mothers were then allowed free access either when their young were left in the box (n = 6), or when the litter had been permanently removed (n = 6). Mothers with pups still present returned to nurse them on the following days according to a similarly advancing pattern to the mothers of Experiment 1 despite the previous 7 d of "training" to an experimentally enforced 24 h nursing schedule as commonly used in previous studies of rabbit maternal behavior. Mothers whose pups had been removed entered the box repeatedly several times on the first day of unrestricted access, but on subsequent days did so only rarely, and at times of day apparently unrelated to the previously scheduled access. We conclude that the pattern of the rabbit's once-daily nursing visits has a periodicity largely independent of the circadian system, and that this is reset at each nursing. When nursing fails to occur nest box visits cease abruptly, with mothers making few or no subsequent visits. Together, these findings suggest that the rabbit's once-daily pattern of nursing is regulated by an hourglass-type process with a period less than 24 h that is reset at each nursing, rather than by a circadian oscillator. Such a mechanism might be particularly adaptive for rhythms of short duration that should end abruptly with a sudden change in context such as death or weaning of the young. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Isothermal and undercooling experiments were conducted on one of the most primitive trachybasalts from Mt. Etna volcano in order to examine the crystallization mechanisms controlling the textural and compositional variability of clinopyroxene. Experiments were performed at 400–800 MPa, 1050–1200 °C, 0–4 wt.% H 2 O and at oxygen fugacity 2 log units above the Ni-NiO + 2 buffer. In isothermal experiments, the final resting temperature is approached from room temperature and clinopyroxene growth is dominated by an interface-controlled mechanism, leading to the formation of small (∼10 µm) and euhedral crystals with homogeneous compositions. Conversely, in undercooling experiments, the final resting temperature is approached after annealing at temperature above the liquidus , imposing an effective degree undercooling (Δ T) to the system. In presence of undercooling, the crystallization of clinopyroxene is dominated by a diffusion-controlled mechanism that determines the formation of large (>100 µm) crystals, constituted by two compositionally distinct domains, enriched in Al 2 O 3 + TiO 2 and SiO 2 + MgO, respectively. The maximum growth rate (G max) decreases progressively from ∼10−7 to ∼10−8 cm/s as the degree of undercooling increases from ∼20 to ∼230 °C, due to the increase in nucleation rate. At low to moderate degrees of undercooling (Δ T = 23–41 °C) clinopyroxene is prevalently euhedral to subhedral, whereas at high degrees of undercooling, the crystal shape changes from prevalently subhedral (Δ T = 73–123 °C) to skeletal and dendritic (Δ T = 132–233 °C). Hourglass sector zoning similar to that documented for natural phenocrysts from eruptions at Mt. Etna volcano is observed only at low degrees of undercooling (Δ T = 23–32 °C). This type of zoning develops in the form of the cation exchange [Si + Mg] {-111} ↔ [Al + Ti] {100} and demonstrates that hourglass sector zoning is an effective indicator of sluggish kinetic effects caused by relatively low degrees of undercooling. In contrast, at increasing degrees of undercooling (Δ T > 32 °C), strong melt supersaturation determines the early formation of Al 2 O 3 + TiO 2 -rich dendritic crystals and further SiO 2 + MgO-rich overgrowths, as the bulk system attempts to return to a near-equilibrium state between the advancing crystal surface and the feeding melt. The experimentally-determined relationship between Δ T and clinopyroxene chemistry is used to reconstruct the crystallization conditions of natural clinopyroxenes from 1974 and 2002–2003 eccentric eruptions at Mt. Etna volcano. Clinopyroxene rims record much higher degrees of undercooling (up to ∼110 °C) than crystal mantles associated with magma recharge at depth (mostly 0–40 °C). Hence, the rims track decompression-induced degassing and cooling during the ascent of magma towards the surface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose a new method for source separation by synthesizing the source from a speech mixture corrupted by various environmental noise. Unlike traditional source separation methods which estimate the source from the mixture as a replica of the original source (e.g. by solving an inverse problem), our proposed method is a synthesis-based approach which aims to generate a new signal (i.e. “fake” source) that sounds similar to the original source. The proposed system has an encoder-decoder topology, where the encoder predicts intermediate-level features from the mixture, i.e. Mel-spectrum of the target source, using a hybrid recurrent and hourglass network, while the decoder is a state-of-the-art WaveNet speech synthesis network conditioned on the Mel-spectrum, which directly generates time-domain samples of the sources. Both objective and subjective evaluations were performed on the synthesized sources, and show great advantages of our proposed method for high-quality speech source separation and generation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present undercooling (∆T) experiments aimed at investigating the effect of growth kinetics on the textural and compositional evolution of clinopyroxene crystals growing from a high-K basalt erupted during the 2003 paroxysm of Stromboli volcano (Italy). The experiments were performed at P = 350 MPa, T = 1050–1210 °C, H 2 O melt = 0–3 wt%, and f O 2 = Ni-NiO + 1.5 buffer. An initial stage of supersaturation was imposed to the melt under nominally anhydrous (∆T anh = 10–150 °C) and hydrous (∆T hyd = 25–125 °C) conditions. Afterwards, this supersaturation state was mitigated by melt relaxation phenomena over an annealing time of 24 h. Results show that plagioclase is the liquidus mineral phase of the high-K basalt at ∆T anh = 10 °C and dominates the phase assemblage as the degree of undercooling increases. Conversely, clinopyroxene and spinel co-saturate the melt at ∆T hyd = 25 °C, followed by the subordinate formation of plagioclase. At ∆T anh/hyd ≤ 50 °C, the textural maturation of clinopyroxene produces polyhedral crystals with {−111} (hourglass) and { hk 0} (prism) sectors typical of a layer-by-layer growth mechanism governed by an interface-controlled crystallization regime. At ∆T anh/hyd ≥ 75 °C, the attainment of dendritic and skeletal morphologies testifies to the establishment of diffusion-limited reactions at the crystal-melt interface. 3D reconstructions of synchrotron radiation X-ray microtomographic data reveal a composite growth history for clinopyroxene crystals obtained at ∆T anh/hyd ≥ 95 °C. The early stage of melt supersaturation produces rosette-like structures composed of dendritic branches of clinopyroxene radiating from a common spinel grain, which acts as surface for heterogeneous nucleation. As diffusive relaxation phenomena progress over the annealing time, the elongate dendrites that constitute the inner crystal domain are partially infilled by the melt and develop skeletal overgrowths in the outer domain. With the increasing degree of undercooling, TAl and M1Ti cations are progressively incorporated in the lattice site of clinopyroxene at the expense of TSi and M1Mg cations. Because of the effect of H 2 O melt on the liquidus depression and melt depolymerization, crystals obtained at ∆T hyd are also more enriched in TAl and M1Ti and depleted in TSi and M1Mg than those growing at ∆T anh. The emerging picture is that the morphological and geochemical evolution of clinopyroxene is mutually controlled by the combined effects of melt supersaturation and relaxation phenomena. A new empirical relationship based on the cation exchange reactions in the lattice site of clinopyroxene is finally proposed to estimate the degree of undercooling governing the crystallization of augitic phenocrysts erupted during normal and violent explosions at Stromboli. • Clinopyroxene growth kinetics in basalt investigated by undercooling experiments. • Hourglass sector-zoned clinopyroxene forms at ∆T ≤ 50 °C. • Increasing ∆T favours the incorporation of TAl and M1Ti in clinopyroxene. • 3D reconstructions reveal rosette-like structures at ∆T ≥ 95 °C. • A parametrization of ∆T is used to decipher magma dynamics at Stromboli. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An abdominoscrotal hydrocele is a rare clinical entity in which there is a large hydrocele that extends from the scrotum into the abdominal cavity through the inguinal canal in an hourglass fashion. It is a condition usually affecting children and is infrequently seen in adults. Unilateral involvement is more common than bilateral. Authors hereby report an unusual presentation of abdominoscrotal hydrocele at an age of 27 years, presented with gradually progressing abdominal mass and bilateral scrotal swelling.

Due to the maneuverability and small size of the Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), the traditional object detection method cannot meet the requirements of detection accuracy and real‐time performance. To address this dilemma, we propose an object detection method by using the improved hourglass network as its backbone network generating the confidence diagonal lines as detection result, and then getting the bounding box through this diagonal line. As a one‐stage method, it has a good real‐time performance. At the same time, due to the good performance of our improved network, its mean average precision performs well. Through experiments with the UAV dataset, compared with faster‐regions‐with‐convolutional‐neural‐network and You only look once (YOLO), we show that the proposed framework can quickly and accurately detect objects. © 2019 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The circadian clock controls 24-h biological rhythms in our body, influencing many time-related activities such as sleep and wake. The simplest circadian clock is found in cyanobacteria, with the proteins KaiA, KaiB, and KaiC generating a self-sustained circadian oscillation of KaiC phosphorylation and dephosphorylation. KaiA activates KaiC phosphorylation by binding the A-loop of KaiC, while KaiB attenuates the phosphorylation by sequestering KaiA from the A-loop. Structural analysis revealed that magnesium regulates the phosphorylation and dephosphorylation of KaiC by dissociating from and associating with catalytic Glu residues that activate phosphorylation and dephosphorylation, respectively. High magnesium causes KaiC to dephosphorylate, whereas low magnesium causes KaiC to phosphorylate. KaiC alone behaves as an hourglass timekeeper when the magnesium concentration is alternated between low and high levels in vitro. We suggest that a magnesium-based hourglass timekeeping system may have been used by ancient cyanobacteria before magnesium homeostasis was established. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, our new quadrature schemes based on the Richardson extrapolation (RE) and centroid or midpoint rule are further applied to the quadrilateral Mindlin plate element for static and free vibration analysis. In the process of generating element matrices, to apply RE and midpoint quadrature rule, there are two approximations are particularly considered. As the first approximation, element matrices are calculated at centroid of whole plate element. For stabilizing function or second approximation, each quadrilateral element is divided into four sub-quadrilaterals, either centroid of the each sub-quadrilateral plate for Element midpoint method (EM-plate method) or midpoint of the element edges are used for Element edge method (EE-plate method) to compute the all the element matrices. Then, both the approximations are added with the RE based weighting functions. Generally, midpoint based quadrature avoids the shear-locking phenomenon in the plate elements and the RE enhances accuracy and rate of convergence of the final solution without hourglass or zero-energy issues. The numerical examples validated that the RE based EM-plate method and EE-plate method are free of shear-locking, ability to pass the patch test, better rate of convergence with less number of sampling points. Also, the new schemes confirms the three important properties such as (i) can produce high accurate solutions with better rate of convergence for problems for irregular geometries in the static analysis; (ii) can produce high accurate solutions without hourglass issues in free vibration analysis; and (iii) can generate the accurate values of high frequencies of plate elements over irregular meshes. • The Richardson extrapolation based integration scheme simply the computation process using reduced integration scheme. • The computation time is drastically reduced compared to the conventional quadrature. • The simplifies procedure also elevate the shear locking phenomenon in plate element without required any additional smoothing function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The structures of a domus with two mosaics were discovered, and due to its features, it was decided to keep it integrated in the crypt of the Museum building in Bracara Augusta (Portugal). One of the mosaic floors consists on a chessboard pattern, with contrasting colours and the other is furnished with hourglass gridlines. A study of the hourglass motif integrated into different compositions will be presented here, helping to the international standardization of the description of the Roman Mosaic and trying to confront the same pattern from the West (Portugal) to the East (Turkey) of the Roman World.