HRV (heart rate variability) is a non-invasive maker of cardiac autonomic modulation utilized in many hundreds of scientific studies each year. The reliability of heart rate variability has been frequently investigated yet remains poorly quantified. Assessing the reliability of a measure that assesses dynamic physiological processes and shows large between- and within-subject variation is a com...

We experienced a patient who showed severe allergic symptoms immediately after blood transfusion using a filter for removal of leukocytes. To investigate the cause of this incident, we conducted a maximization test on the antigenicity of substances extracted from filters used for leukocyte removal. The tests were performed in guinea pigs. Acetone extracts were obtained from filters made by thre...

We propose an explanatory approach to Café Wall type illusions that is simple yet fairly comprehensive. These illusions are constructed out of basic elementary units in a jigsaw-like manner. Each unit, in general, contains both a solid body and a thin tail: the contrast polarity between the two determines the direction of the contributory illusory tilt produced by that element-according to a he...

The scattering around the human pinna that is captured by the Head-Related Transfer Functions (HRTFs) is a complex problem that creates uncertainties in both acoustical measurements and simulations. Within the simulation framework of Finite Difference Time Domain (FDTD) with axis-aligned staircase boundaries resulting from a voxelization process, the voxelization-based uncertainty propagating i...

The watercolor illusion is a long-range color assimilation (coloration effect) imparting a figure-ground segregation (figural effect) across large enclosed areas (B. Pinna, 1987; B. Pinna, G. Brelstaff, & L. Spillmann, 2001; B. Pinna, L. Spillmann, & J. S. Werner, 2003; B. Pinna, J. S. Werner, & L. Spillmann, 2003). The watercolored figure has a very poorly reversible or univocal figure-ground ...

External ear development is a lengthy and complex process that extends from early embryonic life until well into the postnatal period. Initial development of the auricle and external auditory canal during the fourth and fifth weeks of gestation is closely associated with anatomical changes involving the pharyngeal arch apparatus of the human embryo. The auricle and external canal are well forme...

Cholinesterase and succinyldehydrogenase activity of surgically removed left atrial auricles from patients in atrial fibrillation and in sinus rhythm have been compared, using histochemical methods. Higher cholinesterase and lower succinyldehydrogenase activity has been found in atrial fibrillation than in sinus rhythm. The pulmonary capillary mean pressure of patients with atrial fibrillation ...

1. Experiments on dogs show that whereas the pulse pressure in the larger arteries (femoral) varies extensively, it varies within narrow limits only in the small ones (dorsal artery of the foot). These results supply an experimental explanation for the fact that in man uniform pressure readings were obtained by Gaertner's method at the digital artery. 2. The experiments show likewise that in ce...

In the human electrocardiogram, A-V block prolongs the P-R interval to values exceeding 02 sec., while nodal rhythm is characterized by P-R intervals ranging from approximately plus 0-12 to minus 0-19 sec. (R-P intervals). The simultaneous occurrence of both A-V block and nodal rhythm may produce P-R intervals within normal range (0d12 to 0-2) ; however, this condition can be recognized by the ...