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Fast neutron radiography (FNR) has a great potential as a nondestructive technique for testing large objects. A FNR system developed based on a deuterium-tritium neutron generator is presented. Resolution of the FNR system is analyzed using the modulation transfer function (MTF). FNR experiments based on film and charge-coupled device imaging are carried out, respectively. The experimental results of image resolution are compared with the results of MTF calculation. Moreover, the impacts of various system components on signal degradation are discussed in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The optical quality of explanted intraocular lenses (IOLs) was analysed to verify if their quality is maintained after having been in the human eye for several years. Twenty-five explanted IOLs were studied, 10 because of intraocular luxation and 15 from corneal donors. The dioptric power and modulation transfer function (MTF) were determined to discover the image quality of the IOLs. The spectral transmission was also established to ascertain whether the filter against ultraviolet (UV) radiation was still effective. The results show that the MTF of implanted IOLs is maintained and therefore so is the image quality they provide. Only decay in the MTF of some of the explanted IOLs was observed because of intraocular luxation. The transmission of the UV filters incorporated in the different IOLs hardly varied; thus they maintained their effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A United States sample of 166 transgender adults including 50 male-to-females (MTFs), 52 female-to-males (FTMs), and 64 genderqueers (neither completely female nor completely male), were surveyed about identity development, levels of disclosure of transgender status, and relationship to community. There was no difference among transgender groups in age of first experiencing oneself differently from assigned birth sex. MTFs first identified as other than their assigned sex earlier than FTMs. However, they did not present themselves to others in a gender-congruent way until much later than FTMs. MTFs were less likely to disclose their gender identity to their parents than were FTMs. Disclosure of assigned birth sex was more common among younger participants. There was no difference in the extent to which individuals felt connected to the transgender community. Genderqueers felt more connected to the lesbian, gay, and bisexual community than did MTFs or FTMs. Implications for health care professionals and transgender communities are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay maps the connections between transgender/transsexual rights and nationalism in Australia. Comparing Jay Prosser’s idea of a transsexual ‘politics of home’ with the recent legalisation of transsexual marriage in Australia, it argues that marriage rights are granted by the state on the ability of particular bodies to maintain and reproduce a series of demarcated zones: between male and female, but also between ‘Australian’ and ‘un‐Australian’, ‘white’ and ‘non‐white.’ This has been most evident in a successful Australian transsexual marriage case, Re Kevin, where the success of the respondents relied on arguing that transsexuality is a biological condition. Establishing the gender of the transsexual respondent involved ‘proving’ biology through reference to his social performance of normative masculinity. But the norms of masculinity used to ‘prove’ such a thing are socially constructed and, as such, racialised: home maintenance, proficiency with power‐tools, enjoying the white Australian tradition of barbeques and sport. Exploring the Australian political context of the court case, where ‘Australian‐ness’ has a particular meaning and a particular value, I critique the liberal‐democratic capitalist structure of rights claims in which gender variant subjects must present ‘whiteness’ as a form of cultural capital in exchange for rights. The cost of this exchange falls overwhelmingly on gender variant subjects who don’t present a racially/culturally normative performance of masculinity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A theoretical treatment of the effect of quantization upon the determination of modulation transfer functions (MTF) of digital acquisition devices is initially developed for a noiseless system, when using sinusoidal targets. The analytical work shows that a component due to quantization exists in the measured MTF which increases as the bitdepth of the quantization and the amplitude of the input signal decrease. An expression to estimate this component from parameters describing the input signal and quantizer is derived. Modifications are made to account for quantization and input signal noise, yielding new estimates of the component for single measurements. The estimates were experimentally tested using an analogue-to-digital converter (ADC). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transgender people face many typical experiences associated with growing old compounded by unique stresses and challenges related to being transgender. Public and corporate policies and a history of discrimination tend to isolate transgender elders, potentially impairing their health, quality of life, and longevity, Health care providers and transgender people alike need accurate and representative information about the experiences and needs of these elders. Research on the lives and concerns of transgender elders is necessary to better understand their aging and caregiving experiences and to illuminate effective and respectful interventions to support them across the life course. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The results of some experiments to evaluate the effect of image stabilisation on the quality of images in a digital camera are described and the results analysed. Image quality is determined objectively using a modulation transfer function based criterion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]