Joint view expansion and filtering for automultiscopic 3D displays

Multi-view autostereoscopic displays provide an immersive, glasses-free 3D viewing experience, but they require correctly filtered content from multiple viewpoints. This, however, cannot be easily obtained with current stereoscopic production pipelines. We provide a practical solution that takes a stereoscopic video as an input and converts it to multi-view and filtered video streams that can be used to drive multi-view autostereoscopic displays. The method combines a phase-based video magnification and an interperspective antialiasing into a single filtering process. The whole algorithm is simple and can be efficiently implemented on current GPUs to yield a near real-time performance. Furthermore, the ability to retarget disparity is naturally supported. Our method is robust and works well for challenging video scenes with defocus blur, motion blur, transparent materials, and specularities. We show that our results are superior when compared to the state-of-the-art depth-based rendering methods. Finally, we showcase the method in the context of a real-time 3D videoconferencing system that requires only two cameras.Quanta Computer (Firm)National Science Foundation (U.S.) (NSF IIS-1111415)National Science Foundation (U.S.) (NSF IIS-1116296

Spec2Fab: A reducer-tuner model for translating specifications to 3D prints

Multi-material 3D printing allows objects to be composed of complex, heterogenous arrangements of materials. It is often more natural to define a functional goal than to define the material composition of an object. Translating these functional requirements to fabri-cable 3D prints is still an open research problem. Recently, several specific instances of this problem have been explored (e.g., appearance or elastic deformation), but they exist as isolated, monolithic algorithms. In this paper, we propose an abstraction mechanism that simplifies the design, development, implementation, and reuse of these algorithms. Our solution relies on two new data structures: a reducer tree that efficiently parameterizes the space of material assignments and a tuner network that describes the optimization process used to compute material arrangement. We provide an application programming interface for specifying the desired object and for defining parameters for the reducer tree and tuner network. We illustrate the utility of our framework by implementing several fabrication algorithms as well as demonstrating the manufactured results.United States. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (N66001-12-1-4242)National Science Foundation (U.S.) (CCF-1138967)reducer-tuner model for translating specifications to 3D prints (IIS-1116296)Google (Firm) (Faculty Research Award

MultiFab: a machine vision assisted platform for multi-material 3D printing

We have developed a multi-material 3D printing platform that is high-resolution, low-cost, and extensible. The key part of our platform is an integrated machine vision system. This system allows for self-calibration of printheads, 3D scanning, and a closed-feedback loop to enable print corrections. The integration of machine vision with 3D printing simplifies the overall platform design and enables new applications such as 3D printing over auxiliary parts. Furthermore, our platform dramatically expands the range of parts that can be 3D printed by simultaneously supporting up to 10 different materials that can interact optically and mechanically. The platform achieves a resolution of at least 40 μm by utilizing piezoelectric inkjet printheads adapted for 3D printing. The hardware is low cost (less than $7,000) since it is built exclusively from off-the-shelf components. The architecture is extensible and modular -- adding, removing, and exchanging printing modules can be done quickly. We provide a detailed analysis of the system's performance. We also demonstrate a variety of fabricated multi-material objects.National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant CCF-1138967)United States. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Grant N66001-12-1-4242

Predictors of Swimming Skill of Primary School Children in Rural Thailand

Drowning is a leading cause of childhood deaths in Asian countries. Children in primary school have a high rate of fatal drowning. These fatal drownings commonly occur in natural water bodies near the child’s residence. The 2004 Thai National Injury Survey reported a higher rate of drowning death in rural settings. While swimming skill is recommended to decrease drowning risk, there is a lack of information on factors contributing to a child’s swimming skill. This study assesses guardians’ perceptions of the swimming skill of rural primary school children and identifies associated risk and protective factors. A cross-sectional household survey was conducted during August-September 2009 in rural communities of Chiang Rai province, Thailand. We analyzed a total of 633 interview surveys completed with guardians of primary school children. Results revealed that less than one-fifth (19%) of the school children (age 6-12 years old) could swim. Multiple logistic regression showed that children who can swim are more likely to have attended swimming lessons Ratio [OR] = 23.95; 95% CI = 12.21-46.98); be 10-12 years of age (OR = 4.15; 95% CI = 2.35-7.30); be male (OR = 2.82; 95% CI = 1.67-4.77); have had self-reported life-threatening submersion experience (OR = 2.14; 95% CI = 1.10-4.12); or be the child of a guardian who can swim (OR = 2.10; 95% CI = 1.25-3.44). The results highlight the need to provide swimming lessons targeting all children beginning in the younger age groups. Local resources in natural water sites may provide a place for safe swimming lessons in rural areas

On-going collaborative priority-setting for research activity: a method of capacity building to reduce the research-practice translational gap

Background: International policy suggests that collaborative priority setting (CPS) between researchers and end users of research should shape the research agenda, and can increase capacity to address the research-practice translational gap. There is limited research evidence to guide how this should be done to meet the needs of dynamic healthcare systems. One-off priority setting events and time-lag between decision and action prove problematic. This study illustrates the use of CPS in a UK research collaboration called Collaboration and Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care (CLAHRC). Methods: Data were collected from a north of England CLAHRC through semi-structured interviews with 28 interviewees and a workshop of key stakeholders (n = 21) including academics, NHS clinicians, and managers. Documentary analysis of internal reports and CLAHRC annual reports for the first two and half years was also undertaken. These data were thematically coded. Results: Methods of CPS linked to the developmental phase of the CLAHRC. Early methods included pre-existing historical partnerships with on-going dialogue. Later, new platforms for on-going discussions were formed. Consensus techniques with staged project development were also used. All methods demonstrated actual or potential change in practice and services. Impact was enabled through the flexibility of research and implementation work streams; ‘matched’ funding arrangements to support alignment of priorities in partner organisations; the size of the collaboration offering a resource to meet project needs; and the length of the programme providing stability and long term relationships. Difficulties included tensions between being responsive to priorities and the possibility of ‘drift’ within project work, between academics and practice, and between service providers and commissioners in the health services. Providing protected ‘matched’ time proved difficult for some NHS managers, which put increasing work pressure on them. CPS is more time consuming than traditional approaches to project development. Conclusions: CPS can produce needs-led projects that are bedded in services using a variety of methods. Contributing factors for effective CPS include flexibility in use and type of available resources, flexible work plans, and responsive leadership. The CLAHRC model provides a translational infrastructure that enables CPS that can impact on healthcare systems

Chinese journals: a guide for epidemiologists.

Chinese journals in epidemiology, preventive medicine and public health contain much that is of potential international interest. However, few non-Chinese speakers are acquainted with this literature. This article therefore provides an overview of the contemporary scene in Chinese biomedical journal publication, Chinese bibliographic databases and Chinese journals in epidemiology, preventive medicine and public health. The challenge of switching to English as the medium of publication, the development of publishing bibliometric data from Chinese databases, the prospect of an Open Access publication model in China, the issue of language bias in literature reviews and the quality of Chinese journals are discussed. Epidemiologists are encouraged to search the Chinese bibliographic databases for Chinese journal articles.Published versio

Daratumumab for newly diagnosed multiple myeloma:Pooled analysis of patients aged ≥65 years from GRIFFIN and PERSEUS

Background: Older adults with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (NDMM) have poor prognosis and constitute a subgroup of particular interest. In the GRIFFIN (NCT02874742) and PERSEUS (NCT03710603) studies, adding daratumumab to bortezomib/lenalidomide/dexamethasone (VRd) induction/consolidation and lenalidomide (R) maintenance deepened responses and improved progression-free survival (PFS) versus VRd/R in transplant-eligible patients with NDMM. Subgroup analyses of patients aged ≥65 years in PERSEUS demonstrated less pronounced PFS benefits (HRs: 0.97 [computerized algorithm]; 0.87 [independent review committee (IRC)]), potentially due to small event numbers, cytogenetic risk imbalances (high risk: D-VRd, 25.5%; VRd, 19.5%), and specific censoring rules. Here, we report results from a post hoc, pooled analysis of GRIFFIN and PERSEUS in patients aged ≥65 years (D-VRd, n = 122; VRd, n = 115). Methods: Using patient-level data, PFS analysis was evaluated per computerized algorithm in GRIFFIN and IRC in PERSEUS, stratified by International Staging System stage and cytogenetic risk, with no censoring of PFS events after ≥2 missing disease evaluations.Results: At a median follow-up of 49.6/47.5 months (GRIFFIN/PERSEUS), a trend in improved PFS was seen among patients aged ≥65 years favoring D-VRd (HR, 0.56 [95% CI, 0.30-1.01]). D-VRd improved rates of complete response or better (82.8% vs. 67.0%; OR, 2.37 [95% CI, 1.28-4.39]; P = .0046) and minimal residual disease negativity (10–5; 66.4% vs. 41.7%; OR, 2.75 [95% CI, 1.61-4.71]; P = .0002) versus VRd. No new safety concerns were identified. Conclusion: These data support use of D-VRd followed by D-R maintenance as standard of care for all transplant-eligible patients with NDMM, regardless of age up to 70 years.</p

Using Genetic Improvement and Code Transplants to Specialise a C++ Program to a Problem Class

Genetic Improvement (GI) is a form of Genetic Programming that improves an existing program. We use GI to evolve a faster version of a C++ program, a Boolean satisfiability (SAT) solver called MiniSAT, specialising it for a particular problem class, namely Combinatorial Interaction Testing (CIT), using automated code transplantation. Our GI-evolved solver achieves overall 17 percent improvement, making it comparable with average expert human performance. Additionally, this automatically evolved solver is faster than any of the human-improved solvers for the CIT problem