The active contour model (ACM) Snakes permits to simultaneously solve, in constrained cases, both the segmentation and tracking problems and has been proposed by [Kass et al (1987)]. The aim of this work is to propose a particular ACM formulation to track and analyze left ventricular (LV) endocardial wall motion from color kinesis (CK) echocardiography images [Murta (1998)]. A new approach call...

Cranial kinesis is an important feature in avian feeding behaviour and involves the transmission of quadrate movement to the upper bill by the Pterygoid-Palatinum Complex (PPC). The PPC in Palaeognathae is remarkably different from that found in Neognathae. In this study we analyse whether the special morphology of the PPC is an adaptation to the feeding behaviour of the Palaeognathae. Behaviou...

This paper presents a linguistic analysis of emotions by introducing some concrete linguistic rules in identifying the important elements of an emotion, which are the experiencer and the cause. It specifically discusses two primary emotions, happiness and surprise, in Chinese. These rules can be very useful for emotion detection and classification. We also examine the features of a cause event ...

When males of the roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans come into association with their hermaphroditic counterparts they cease foraging behavior and begin to mate. Here we detail several assays used to demonstrate that a diffusible cue is correlated with this process. This cue is sexually dimorphic, given off only by the hermaphrodite and eliciting a response only in the male. Males are attracted t...

We examined the mandibles of 377 individuals representing 25 species, 12 genera, 5 tribes, and 2 subfamilies of the Loricariidae, a species-rich radiation of detritivorous-herbivorous neotropical freshwater fishes distinguished by having a ventral oral disk and jaws specialized for surface attachment and benthic feeding. Loricariid mandibles are transversely oriented and bilaterally independent...

Freezing of gait (FoG), a transient halt in walking, is a major mobility problem for patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). This study examined the factors that induce FoG, and identified the cues and strategies that help overcome it through a postal survey of 130 PD patients. 72% reported FoG. The factors that commonly induced FoG were turning, fatigue, confined spaces and stressful situation...

Physical examination of patients with shoulder injury not involving full-thickness rotator cuff tears frequently demonstrates decreased abduction strength to manual muscle or dynamometer testing. It is assumed that the supraspina-tus muscle is most frequently involved in this weakness, and tests that evaluate supraspinatus strength are commonly used as measures of abduction strength. Strengthen...

Morphology reflects ecological pressures, phylogeny, and genetic and biophysical constraints. Disentangling their influence is fundamental to understanding selection and trait evolution. Here, we assess the contributions of function, phylogeny, and habitat to patterns of plastron (ventral shell) shape variation in emydine turtles. We quantify shape variation using geometric morphometrics, and d...