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We consider maps on a surface of genus g with all vertices of degree at least three and positive real lengths assigned to the edges. In particular, we study the family of such metric maps with fixed genus g and fixed number n of faces with circumferences α 1 , ... , α n and a β -irreducibility constraint, which roughly requires that all contractible cycles have length at least β . Using recent results on the enumeration of discrete maps with an irreducibility constraint, we compute the volume V g , n (β) (α 1 , ... , α n) of this family of maps that arises naturally from the Lebesgue measure on the edge lengths. It is shown to be a homogeneous polynomial in β , α 1 , ... , α n of degree 6 g - 6 + 2 n and to satisfy string and dilaton equations. Surprisingly, for g = 0 , 1 and β = 2 π the volume V g , n (2 π) is identical, up to powers of two, to the Weil–Petersson volume V g , n WP of hyperbolic surfaces of genus g and n geodesic boundary components of length L i = α i 2 - 4 π 2 , i = 1 , ... , n . For genus g ≥ 2 the identity between the volumes fails, but we provide explicit generating functions for both types of volumes, demonstrating that they are closely related. Finally we discuss the possibility of bijective interpretations via hyperbolic polyhedra. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two-dimensional quantum gravity, defined either via scaling limits of random discrete surfaces or via Liouville quantum gravity, is known to possess a geometry that is genuinely fractal with a Hausdorff dimension equal to 4. Coupling gravity to a statistical system at criticality changes the fractal properties of the geometry in a way that depends on the central charge of the critical system. Establishing the dependence of the Hausdorff dimension on this central charge c has been an important open problem in physics and mathematics in the past decades. All simulation data produced thus far has supported a formula put forward by Watabiki in the nineties. However, recent rigorous bounds on the Hausdorff dimension in Liouville quantum gravity show that Watabiki's formula cannot be correct when c approaches. Based on simulations of discrete surfaces encoded by random planar maps and a numerical implementation of Liouville quantum gravity, we obtain new finite-size scaling estimates of the Hausdorff dimension that are in clear contradiction with Watabiki's formula for all simulated values of. Instead, the most reliable data in the range is in very good agreement with an alternative formula that was recently suggested by Ding and Gwynne. The estimates for display a negative deviation from the latter formula, but the scaling is seen to be less accurate in this regime. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the present work is twofold. First, we develop the theory of general self-similar growth-fragmentation processes by focusing on martingales which appear naturally in this setting and by recasting classical results for branching random walks in this framework. In particular, we establish many-to-one formulas for growth-fragmentations and define the notion of intrinsic area of a growth-fragmentation. Second, we identify a distinguished family of growth-fragmentations closely related to stable Lévy processes, which are then shown to arise as the scaling limit of the perimeter process in Markovian explorations of certain random planar maps with large degrees (which are, roughly speaking, the dual maps of the stable maps of Le Gall and Miermont in Ann Probab 39:1-69, 2011). As a consequence of this result, we are able to identify the law of the intrinsic area of these distinguished growth-fragmentations. This generalizes a geometric connection between large Boltzmann triangulations and a certain growth-fragmentation process, which was established in Bertoin et al. (Ann Probab, accepted). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to the temporal principle of multisensory integration, cross-modal synchronisation of stimulus onset facilitates multisensory integration. This is typically observed as a greater response to multisensory stimulation relative to the sum of the constituent unisensory responses (i.e., superadditivity). The aim of the present study was to examine whether the temporal principle extends to the cross-modal synchrony of amplitude-modulation (AM) rate. It is well established that psychophysical sensitivity to AM stimulation is strongly influenced by AM rate where the optimum rate differs according to sensory modality. This rate-dependent sensitivity is also apparent from EEG steady-state response (SSR) activity, which becomes entrained to the stimulation rate and is thought to reflect neural processing of the temporal characteristics of AM stimulation. In this study we investigated whether cross-modal congruence of AM rate reveals both psychophysical and EEG evidence of enhanced multisensory integration. To achieve this, EEG SSR and psychophysical sensitivity to simultaneous acoustic and/or vibrotactile AM stimuli were measured at cross-modally congruent and incongruent AM rates. While the results provided no evidence of superadditive multisensory SSR activity or psychophysical sensitivity, the complex pattern of results did reveal a consistent correspondence between SSR activity and psychophysical sensitivity to AM stimulation. This indicates that entrained EEG activity may provide a direct measure of cortical activity underlying multisensory integration. Consistent with the temporal principle of multisensory integration, increased vibrotactile SSR responses and psychophysical sensitivity were found for cross-modally congruent relative to incongruent AM rate. However, no corresponding increase in auditory SSR or psychophysical sensitivity was observed for cross-modally congruent AM rates. This complex pattern of results can be understood in terms of the likely influence of the principle of inverse effectiveness where the temporal principle of multisensory integration was only evident in the context of reduced perceptual sensitivity for the vibrotactile but not the auditory modality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Recent research suggests that multisensory integration may occur at an early phase in sensory processing and within cortical regions traditionally though to be exclusively unisensory. Evidence from perceptual and electrophysiological studies indicate that the cross modal temporal correspondence of multisensory stimuli plays a fundamental role in the cortical integration of information across separate sensory modalities. Further, oscillatory neural activity in sensory cortices may provide the principle mechanism whereby sensory information from separate modalities is integrated. In the present study we aimed to extend this prior research by using the steady-state EEG response (SSR) to examine whether variations in the cross-modality temporal correspondence of amplitude modulated auditory and vibrotactile stimulation are apparent in SSR activity to multisensory stimulation. To achieve this we varied the cross-modal congruence of modulation rate for passively and simultaneously presented amplitude modulated auditory and vibrotactile stimuli. In order to maximise the SSR response in both modalities 21 and 40Hz modulation rates were selected. Consistent with prior SSR studies, the present results showed clear evidence of phase-locking for EEG frequencies corresponding to the modulation rate of auditory and vibrotactile stimulation. As also found previously, the optimal modulation rate for SSR activity differed according to the modality, being greater at 40Hz for auditory responses and greater at 21Hz for vibrotactile responses. Despite consistent and reliable changes in SSR activity with manipulations of modulation rate within modality, the present study failed to provide strong evidence of multisensory interactions in SSR activity for temporally congruent, relative to incongruent, cross modal conditions. The results are discussed in terms of the role of attention as a possible factor in reconciling inconsistencies in SSR studies of multisensory integration. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Research examining multisensory integration suggests that the correspondence of stimulus characteristics across modalities (cross-modal correspondence) can have a dramatic influence on both neurophysiological and perceptual responses to multimodal stimulation. The current study extends prior research by examining the cross-modal correspondence of amplitude modulation rate for simultaneous acoustic and vibrotactile stimulation using EEG and perceptual measures of sensitivity to amplitude modulation. To achieve this, psychophysical thresholds and steady-state responses (SSRs) were measured for acoustic and vibrotactile amplitude modulated (AM) stimulation for 21 and 40Hz AM rates as a function of the cross-modal correspondence. The study design included three primary conditions to determine whether the changes in the SSR and psychophysical thresholds were due to the cross-modal temporal correspondence of amplitude modulated stimuli: NONE (AM in one modality only), SAME (the same AM rate for each modality) and DIFF (different AM rates for each modality). The results of the psychophysical analysis showed that AM detection thresholds for the simultaneous AM conditions (i.e., SAME and DIFF) were significantly higher (i.e., lower sensitivity) than AM detection thresholds for the stimulation of a single modality (i.e., NONE). SSR results showed significant effects of SAME and DIFF conditions on SSR activity. The different pattern of results for perceptual and SSR measures of cross-modal correspondence of AM rate indicates a dissociation between entrained cortical activity (i.e., SSR) and perception. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: An important prerequisite for the development of animal models of human auditory evoked potentials (AEP) is the accurate identification of homology. Prior research has revealed some remarkably similar response properties between rat and human AEPs, although there remains little consensus regarding the nature or validity of this correspondence. In the present study we seek to extend this research by examining the response properties of rat AEP as a function of stimulus repetition and interval. The aim being to determine whether rat AEP components show the same paradoxical reversal of repetition suppression observed for the human N100 AEP component at brief stimulus intervals. To achieve this, AEPs were recorded epidurally at the vertex in the freely moving rat in response to acoustic stimuli presented at random stimulus intervals between 50 and 5000ms. Using stimulation and analysis techniques to remove AEP waveform distortion due to overlapping AEP responses, the present results show that rat AEP components can be successfully resolved at intervals as brief as 50ms. The results also demonstrate several fundamental types of correspondence between human and rat AEP components in terms of the sensitivity to stimulus interval and acoustic stimulus type. However the results found no evidence that rat AEP components show the reversal of repetition suppression at brief, relative to long, stimulus intervals as demonstrated for the N100 component in humans. The results are discussed in terms of EEG recording and AEP analysis procedures that provide promising avenues for future research. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Shape Dynamics is a formulation of General Relativity where refoliation invariance is traded for local spatial conformal invariance. In this paper we explicitly construct Shape Dynamics for a torus universe in 2 + 1 dimensions through a linking gauge theory that ensures dynamical equivalence with General Relativity. The Hamiltonian we obtain is formally a reduced phase space Hamiltonian. The construction of the Shape Dynamics Hamiltonian on higher genus surfaces is not explicitly possible, but we give an explicit expansion of the Shape Dynamics Hamiltonian for large CMC volume. The fact that all local constraints are linear in momenta allows us to quantize these explicitly under a certain assumption on the kinematic Hilbert space, and the quantization problem for Shape Dynamics turns out to be equivalent to reduced phase space quantization. We consider the large CMC-volume asymptotics of conformal transformations of the wave function. We then discuss the similarity of Shape Dynamics on the 2-torus with the explicitly constructible strong gravity Shape Dynamics Hamiltonian in higher dimensions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Provides information on digital battery which offers an alternative to tracking and managing electronic content for intellectual property use without alienating users. Obstacles encountered in attempts to determine frequency of use for digital media; Attributes of a digital battery for monitoring digital media use; Features of digital battery; Attacks on digital batteries. INSETS: Commercialism=Creativity;Separating Product Distribution and Revenue Generation.

Discusses the combination of imperative programming and relational programming. Transformation in the field of programming languages; Possibilities resulting from the development of multiparadigm languages; Features and application of Leda.

A method is described to count simple diagonal walks on Z 2 with a fixed starting point and endpoint on one of the axes and a fixed winding angle around the origin. The method involves the decomposition of such walks into smaller pieces, the generating functions of which are encoded in a commuting set of Hilbert space operators. The general enumeration problem is then solved by obtaining an explicit eigenvalue decomposition of these operators involving elliptic functions. By further restricting the intermediate winding angles of the walks to some open interval, the method can be used to count various classes of walks restricted to cones in Z 2 of opening angles that are integer multiples of π / 4. We present three applications of this main result. First we find an explicit generating function for the walks in such cones that start and end at the origin. In the particular case of a cone of angle 3 π / 4 these walks are directly related to Gessel's walks in the quadrant, and we provide a new proof of their enumeration. Next we study the distribution of the winding angle of a simple random walk on Z 2 around a point in the close vicinity of its starting point, for which we identify discrete analogues of the known hyperbolic secant laws and a probabilistic interpretation of the Jacobi elliptic functions. Finally we relate the spectrum of one of the Hilbert space operators to the enumeration of closed loops in Z 2 with fixed winding number around the origin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stroke is the leading cause of adult disability, and as a consequence, most therapists will provide health care to patients with stroke during their professional careers. An increasing number of studies are investigating the association between upper limb recovery and changes in brain activation patterns following stroke. In this review, we explore the translational implications of this research for health professionals working in stroke recovery. We argue that in light of the most recent evidence, therapists should consider how best to take full advantage of the brain's natural ability to reorganize, when prescribing and applying interventions to those with a stroke-affected upper limb. The authors propose that stroke is a brain-based problem that needs a brain-based solution. This review addresses two topics, anticipating recovery and maximizing recovery. It proposes five practice-ready recommendations that are based on the evidence reviewed. The over-riding aim of this review and discussion is to challenge therapists to reconsider the health care they prescribe and apply to people with a stroke-affected upper limb. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Feedforward inhibition deficits have been consistently demonstrated in a range of neuropsychiatric conditions using prepulse inhibition (PPI) of the acoustic startle eye-blink reflex when assessing sensorimotor gating. While PPI can be recorded in acutely decerebrated rats, behavioural, pharmacological and psychophysiological studies suggest the involvement of a complex neural network extending from brainstem nuclei to higher order cortical areas. The current functional magnetic resonance imaging study investigated the neural network underlying PPI and its association with electromyographically (EMG) recorded PPI of the acoustic startle eye-blink reflex in 16 healthy volunteers. A sparse imaging design was employed to model signal changes in blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) responses to acoustic startle probes that were preceded by a prepulse at 120 ms or 480 ms stimulus onset asynchrony or without prepulse. Sensorimotor gating was EMG confirmed for the 120-ms prepulse condition, while startle responses in the 480-ms prepulse condition did not differ from startle alone. Multiple regression analysis of BOLD contrasts identified activation in pons, thalamus, caudate nuclei, left angular gyrus and bilaterally in anterior cingulate, associated with EMG-recorded sensorimotor gating. Planned contrasts confirmed increased pons activation for startle alone vs 120-ms prepulse condition, while increased anterior superior frontal gyrus activation was confirmed for the reverse contrast. Our findings are consistent with a primary pontine circuitry of sensorimotor gating that interconnects with inferior parietal, superior temporal, frontal and prefrontal cortices via thalamus and striatum. PPI processes in the prefrontal, frontal and superior temporal cortex were functionally distinct from sensorimotor gating. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Objective: Behavioural evidence suggests that individuals with schizophrenia may exhibit impairment in the encoding of cues to sound location. There are three primary cues used by the auditory system to locate the position of a sound in space: interaural differences in the arrival-time (ITD), phase (IPD), and the loudness (ILD) of the sound at the two ears. The goal in this study was to obtain an electrophysiological index of preattentive detection of change in sound lateralization created by these cues. Methods: The amplitude of mismatch negativity (MMN) was measured in 18 individuals with schizophrenia and 19 healthy comparison subjects to changes in sound lateralization produced by interaural temporal cues (ITD and IPD) and interaural loudness cues (ILD). Performance was also investigated on a target detection task, where targets were defined by ITD, IPD, or ILD cues. Results: Individuals with schizophrenia had reduced MMN amplitudes and decreased hit rates when deviants were created by interaural temporal cues, but not when loudness cues were used. Conclusions: Results from both the MMN and behavioural task revealed a selective impairment in the use of temporal cues to sound lateralization in individuals with schizophrenia. Significance: This finding supports previous research that suggests impairment in the encoding of the temporal information in schizophrenia. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Mismatch negativity (MMN) is a scalp-recorded electrical potential that occurs in humans in response to an auditory stimulus that defies previously established patterns of regularity. MMN amplitude is reduced in people with schizophrenia. In this study, we aimed to develop a robust and replicable rat model of MMN, as a platform for a more thorough understanding of the neurobiology underlying MMN. One of the major concerns for animal models of MMN is whether the rodent brain is capable of producing a human-like MMN, which is not a consequence of neural adaptation to repetitive stimuli. We therefore tested several methods that have been used to control for adaptation and differential exogenous responses to stimuli within the oddball paradigm. Epidural electroencephalographic electrodes were surgically implanted over different cortical locations in adult rats. Encephalographic data were recorded using wireless telemetry while the freely-moving rats were presented with auditory oddball stimuli to assess mismatch responses. Three control sequences were utilized: the flip-flop control was used to control for differential responses to the physical characteristics of standards and deviants; the many standards control was used to control for differential adaptation, as was the cascade control. Both adaptation and adaptation-independent deviance detection were observed for high frequency (pitch), but not low frequency deviants. In addition, the many standards control method was found to be the optimal method for observing both adaptation effects and adaptation-independent mismatch responses in rats. Inconclusive results arose from the cascade control design as it is not yet clear whether rats can encode the complex pattern present in the control sequence. These data contribute to a growing body of evidence supporting the hypothesis that rat brain is indeed capable of exhibiting human-like MMN, and that the rat model is a viable platform for the further investigation of the MMN and its associated neurobiology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] The neural basis of task difficulty in the stop-signal task was examined. [•] Participants were given equal time to inhibit cued responses. [•] SSRT was inversely related to the probability of inhibition. [•] The probability of inhibition was inversely related to right IFG activation. [•] Time available for inhibition affects task difficulty and right IFG activation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Temporal and spectral sound information is processed asymmetrically in the brain with the left-hemisphere showing an advantage for processing the former and the right-hemisphere for the latter. Using monaural sound presentation we demonstrate a context and ability dependent ear-asymmetry in brain measures of temporal change detection. Our measure of temporal processing ability was a gap-detection task quantifying the smallest silent gap in a sound that participants could reliably detect. Our brain measure was the size of the mismatch-negativity (MMN) auditory event-related potential elicited to infrequently presented gap sounds. The MMN indexes discrimination ability and is automatically generated when the brain detects a change in a repeating pattern of sound. MMN was elicited in unattended sequences of infrequent gap-sounds presented among regular no-gap sounds. In Study 1, participants with low gap-detection thresholds (good ability) produced a significantly larger MMN to gap sounds when sequences were presented monaurally to the right-ear than to the left-ear. In Study 2, we not only replicated a right-ear-advantage for MMN in silence in good temporal processors, but also showed that this is reversed to a significant left-ear-advantage for MMN when the same sounds are presented against a background of constant low-level noise. In both studies, poor discriminators showed no ear-advantage, and in Study 2, exhibited no differential sensitivity of the ears to noise. We conclude that these data reveal a context and ability-dependent asymmetry in processing temporal information in non-speech sounds. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]