Ithaca365: Dataset and Driving Perception under Repeated and Challenging Weather Conditions

Advances in perception for self-driving cars have accelerated in recent years due to the availability of large-scale datasets, typically collected at specific locations and under nice weather conditions. Yet, to achieve the high safety requirement, these perceptual systems must operate robustly under a wide variety of weather conditions including snow and rain. In this paper, we present a new dataset to enable robust autonomous driving via a novel data collection process - data is repeatedly recorded along a 15 km route under diverse scene (urban, highway, rural, campus), weather (snow, rain, sun), time (day/night), and traffic conditions (pedestrians, cyclists and cars). The dataset includes images and point clouds from cameras and LiDAR sensors, along with high-precision GPS/INS to establish correspondence across routes. The dataset includes road and object annotations using amodal masks to capture partial occlusions and 3D bounding boxes. We demonstrate the uniqueness of this dataset by analyzing the performance of baselines in amodal segmentation of road and objects, depth estimation, and 3D object detection. The repeated routes opens new research directions in object discovery, continual learning, and anomaly detection. Link to Ithaca365: https://ithaca365.mae.cornell.edu/Comment: Accepted by CVPR 202

The rates and the determinants of hypertension according to the 2017 definition of hypertension by ACC/AHA and 2014 evidence-based guidelines among population aged ≥40 years old

Background : In November 2017, the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) updated their definition of hypertension from 140/90 mm Hg to 130/80 mm Hg. Objectives : We sought to assess the situation of hypertension and the impact of applying the new threshold to a geographically and ethnically diverse population. Methods : We analyzed selected data on 237,142 participants aged ≥40 who had blood pressure taken for the 2014 China National Stroke Screening and Prevention Project. Choropleth maps and logistic regression analyses were performed to estimate the prevalence, geographical distribution and risk factors of hypertension using both 2017 ACC/AHA guidelines and 2014 evidence-based guidelines. Results : The present cross-sectional study showed the age- and sex-standardized prevalence of hypertension was 37.08% and 58.52%, respectively, according to 2014 evidence-based guidelines and 2017 ACC/AHA guidelines. The distribution of hypertension and risk factors changed little between guidelines, with data showing a high prevalence of hypertension around Bohai Gulf and in south central coastal areas using either definition. The age- and sex-standardized prevalence of newly labeled as hypertensive was 21.44%. Interestingly, the high prevalence region of newly labeled as hypertensive was found in the north China. Conclusion : The prevalence of hypertension increased significantly on 2017 ACC/AHA guidelines compared to the prevalence when using 2014 evidence-based guidelines, with high prevalence areas of newly labeled as hypertensive now seen mainly in north China. There need to be correspondingly robust efforts to improve health education, health management, and behavioral and lifestyle interventions in the north

Automated identification and segmentation of urine spots based on deep-learning

Micturition serves an essential physiological function that allows the body to eliminate metabolic wastes and maintain water-electrolyte balance. The urine spot assay (VSA), as a simple and economical assay, has been widely used in the study of micturition behavior in rodents. However, the traditional VSA method relies on manual judgment, introduces subjective errors, faces difficulty in obtaining appearance time of each urine spot, and struggles with quantitative analysis of overlapping spots. To address these challenges, we developed a deep learning-based approach for the automatic identification and segmentation of urine spots. Our system employs a target detection network to efficiently detect each urine spot and utilizes an instance segmentation network to achieve precise segmentation of overlapping urine spots. Compared with the traditional VSA method, our system achieves automated detection of urine spot area of micturition in rodents, greatly reducing subjective errors. It accurately determines the urination time of each spot and effectively quantifies the overlapping spots. This study enables high-throughput and precise urine spot detection, providing important technical support for the analysis of urination behavior and the study of the neural mechanism underlying urination

Altered expression of calcium-activated K and Cl channels in detrusor overactivity of rats with partial bladder outflow obstruction

To evaluate the activity of large- and small-conductance calcium-activated potassium channels (BKCa, SKCa) and calcium-activated chloride channels (ClCa) in detrusor overactivity (DO) cells after partial bladder outlet obstruction (PBOO) in rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS Thirteen female Wistar rats with DO caused by PBOO were studied simultaneously with eight sham-operated rats. The expression of KCa and ClCa channels was assessed by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, and the function of the two groups compared. RESULTS In the DO cells the expression of BKCa, SKCa2 and SKCa3 was lower, and that of ClCa channels higher, than in the control group cells. Using confocal laser scanning microscopic analysis, the function of BKCa and SKCa channels was suppressed, and that of ClCa channels was enhanced in DO group cells. KCa and ClCa effectors altered the cell membrane potentials more significantly in the DO cells than in the control cells, indicating a decrease in KCa and an increase in ClCa in DO group in either iso- or hypo-osmolar medium. Moreover, the change in BKCa, SKCa and ClCa channel activators in DO cells showed a more excitable state in hypo-osmolar medium than in iso-osmolar medium. CONCLUSION In DO myocytes after PBOO, the expression and function of KCa channels were decreased, and those of ClCa channels increased. These changes all provoke greater cell excitability, and could partly account for the DO.</p

Synthesis and dispersing properties of organosilane-modified superplasticiser in cement–silica fume composite binder

The impacts of organosilane-modified polycarboxylate superplasticiser (OS-PCE) on the fluidity and hydration performance of a cement–silica fume (SF) composite binder were systematically analysed. It was found that the saturation adsorption amounts of OS-PCE on cement and SF were, respectively, 30.74% and 23.49% higher than those of ordinary PCE and the greater adsorption behaviour of OS-PCE contributed to higher fluidity of the cement–SF binder. The addition of OS-PCE retarded the hydration process of the cement–SF binder proportionally with the dosage of OS-PCE, but promoted the hydration kinetics of the composite binder. The enhancement in reactivity was attributed to well-dispersed SF by the OS-PCE, which provided more nucleation sites for the reaction of heterogeneous calcium silicate hydrates (C–S–H) and enhanced the contact with water to react with calcium hydroxide forming pozzolanic C–S–H. Well-distributed hydration products were identified in the hardened binder with added OS-PCE, with a large number of hydrated gels uniformly filling the pores and gaps, which densified the hardened structure. </jats:p