BACKGROUND Inclusion of inhomogeneity corrections in intensity modulated small fields always makes conformal irradiation of lung tumor very complicated in accurate dose delivery. OBJECTIVE In the present study, the performance of five algorithms via Monte Carlo, Pencil Beam, Convolution, Fast Superposition and Superposition were evaluated in lung cancer Intensity Modulated Radiotherapy planni...

We present a consistent, geometric notion of homogeneity, for vector elds (diierential equations and control systems), functions, diierential forms and endomorphisms. The fundamental observation is that homogeneity is an intrinsic, geometric property. Accordingly, a coordinate-free characterization is given, and shown to yield the desired/expected results. This also addresses: \When do there ex...

The notion of geometric homogeneity is extended for differential inclusions. This kind of homogeneity provides the most advanced coordinate-free framework for analysis and synthesis of nonlinear discontinuous systems. The main qualitative properties of continuous homogeneous systems are extended to the discontinuous setting: the equivalence of the global asymptotic stability and the existence o...

Sufficient as well as necessary conditions are studied for a dendrite or a dendroid to be homogeneous with respect to monotone mappings. The obtained results extend ones due to H. Kato and the first named author. A number of open problems are asked.

Long-term adherence to continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is low among patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). The potential role of "habit" in sustaining adherence to CPAP use has not been studied. This study aimed to establish the relevance of habit to CPAP adherence, via validation of an adaptation of the Self-Report Habit Index (the CPAP Habit Index-5; CHI-5). Analyses focused ...

A common assumption in comparative sequence analysis is that the sequences have evolved with the same pattern of nucleotide substitution (homogeneity of the evolutionary process). Violation of this assumption is known to adversely impact the accuracy of phylogenetic inference and tests of evolutionary hypotheses. Here we propose a disparity index, ID, which measures the observed difference in e...

We compared the efficiency and accuracy of full-arc and half-arc volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) delivery for maxillary cancer. Plans for gantry rotation angles of 360° and 180° (full-arc and half-arc VMAT) were created for six maxillary cancer cases with the Monaco treatment planning system, and delivered using an Elekta Synergy linear accelerator. Full-arc and half-arc VMAT were compa...

The semi-arid grasslands in Inner Mongolia (IM) are under increasing stress owing to climate change and rapid socio-economic development in the recent past. We investigated changes in land cover/land use and landscape structure between 1992 and 2004 through the analysis of AVHRR and MODIS derived land cover data. The scale of analysis included the regional level (i.e. the whole of IM) as well a...