More than a Lesbian Novel Essay

Anna Maria Moix is a Spanish novelist, journalist, essay writer, poet and a translator. â€Å"Julia† is her first novel which is an autobiographical novel. Many characters and incidents from this novel are influenced by her life. The novel â€Å"Julia† is a very beautiful and thought provoking novel by Moix. It is called as a lesbian novel. According to some critics, in Julia, the pedagogical scene of seduction is subverted by making it lesbian scene. Julia’s relationship with her teachers like Senorita Mabel and especially Eva is shown as lesbian type of relationship. While some critics oppose it by putting forward the opposite opinion. According to them the relationship between Eva and Julia is much more than a lesbian one. â€Å"The title character in this novel embarks on a relationship with Eva, her literature teacher. Though the novel suggests a sexual dimension to the relationship, it never makes the sexual dynamics patently clear, and Julia never becomes fully aware of her sexuality. For her, Eva represents mother, friend, and lover. † [1] Thus critically it is described as a lesbian novel. It is because of the inclination of the female protagonist towards Eva and some other women. Lesbian concept is not a new concept for the European writers. Virginia Woolf, Jeanette Winterson and other many writers have written on lesbian theory. Winterson â€Å"Written on Body† in this case is such an unusual novel in which the readers never realize whether the narrator on whom the entire story is woven is male or female character. It might be perhaps because the female authors could not explain the lesbian theories openly due to the social constraints. Hence that she has indirectly put the theory of lesbianism Julia was published after a great scrutiny because writing on lesbianism or homosexuality was a taboo in the society. Now on such background the question arises whether the novel â€Å"Julia† is really lesbian or it is about something more. As per my observation, though it has the references of obsessive and intense relationship of the protagonist Julia with her literature professor, it cannot be concluded that it is entirely a lesbian novel. In Julia Anna Moix has unfolded the gloomy and devastated life of the protagonist right from her tender age to entire life. The author has given more focus on the mental and psychosomatic condition of the protagonist Julia which appeals more than her lesbian tendency. According to Katharina Wilson â€Å"it is a story of a â€Å"self destructive adolescent psyche of a teenager. †Ã¢â‚¬  She states, â€Å"Her first novel Julia (1970) though narrated in the third person is intensely subjective and intimate, drawing the reader immediately into the inner monologues of a tormented and self destructive adolescent psyche. † Katharina Wilson also writes, â€Å"In exploring the dark world of divided self, obsessed by a lost double from the past (the sixteen years old Julia), Moix also delicately alludes to the problem of sexual identity as it takes shape in the form of unconscious lesbianism. †[2] Though Julia was closely attached with many women in her life she is not entitled lesbian. The circumstance in which Julia grows has to be taken into account. These circumstances compel her to attract towards women. She loves women not out of any attraction but because she hates men. Her experience about the men was very sickening. At the very tender age of six she was raped by Victor who was their family friend. And this was the reason that the repugnance for men developed in her mind and a strong and striking need for a female grew in her mind. In short Moix is persistent about explaining the inner mind of Julia. â€Å"Julia,† the novel published in 1970, describes about typical teenager young college girl. Julia, who is in love with her literature professor Eva and decides to commit suicide out of the nervous breakdown when she comes to know that she cannot keep romantic relationship with her female partner due to social bondage and threats,. Eva for Julia is more than just a sexual partner. For her she is like a mother and in her loneliness she just wants Eva to be with her. â€Å"She only wanted to be close to Eva. She wanted her presence and nothing else. † [3] The story starts with the protagonist mental condition when she is there in the hospital lonely and totally broken hearted. Here the author has vividly depicted each and every facets of the complex mind of the protagonist. Why she has been called as a lesbian, just because she has intense love in her mind for a female figure? This is not the only reason. The subterranean â€Å"raison d’etre† is that she wants a female figure under whose shelter she can be safe and secure. She cannot find the security and safety in the arms of any man, because for her man is just like a wolf who has crunched into her body as well as mind. Her childhood was a like a nightmare for her because of the very unfortunate experience of the rape. This is the reason why Julia wanted to keep herself far away from the men. Her relationship with Eva is thus dignified by the author which according to her not unusual and wrong. Julia’s mother was never close to her and she wants to experience the real love of the mother and for that she has chosen Eva, who is her mother in her imaginations â€Å"Eva is for Julia a mother, a sister and a friend. There is an attempt to ‘explain away’ lesbianism not as desiring women, but as fear of men. † [3] Here I would like to refer the story by Danish poet and author Hans Christian Anderson, â€Å"The Little Match Girl,† who was shivering and almost dead because of hunger and cold. At that time for getting herself warm she lit a stick from her matchbox and the small and tiny light of the little stick gives her hundreds of beautiful dreams from which she doesn’t want to come out. Eva’s presence for Julia is like a warm in the deadly winter. Eva is like an Oasis in the deserted life of Julia. But Eva’s presence is nothing but a hallucination. Eva is like a lighthouse for the ship of Julia’s life. When she realizes that this lighthouse is collapsed she cannot survive herself and then she decides to end her life. â€Å"Over a course of a sleepless night the 20-year-old Julia recollects instances from her past as she lies in a hospital bed following a suicide attempt. Her intense physical aversion to men and recurrent obsession with a series of strong female figures would seem to stem from traumatic childhood experiences, including her rape at the age of 6 by a family friend and the emotional deprivation felt in the relationship with her mother. † [4] From Julia the author brings forward her opinion that the lesbians are not women who love women but who hate men. Rather than calling this novel as a lesbian novel we can say that it is the novel depicts the rebellious attitude of the women who have been for years and years tormented by the patriarchal and male dominated society. This novel is also called a novel of relationship. Rather the theme of relationship constantly remains dominant rather than the lesbianism. Moix reveals the different ridges of relationship in it. The author has outspread the different types of relationships of the protagonist right from her childhood, her relationship with her family members, the deteriorated relationship between her and her mother, the death of her beloved brother Rafael, her relationship with her older brother Ernesto, Every where we find the blemished relationship. In the crowd of the people the Julia seems to be alone and isolated. The failure in maintaining the relationship can cause the mental and psychological damage of the person. Anna Moix tries to show the complexities of the relationship as well as the lack of harmony among all the characters. The novel represents such society where the family system is collapsed. This novel is the symbol of the society which has lost the family values and morality. The characters are shown self centered and no one seems to bother about the rest of the members of the society. Relationship is lacking with every character. Julia is searching for the love in the female figures. She has to search it from the outside world because she is not finding it in her family members. The relationship of Julia with her mother which ought to be very close, and there aught to be a natural attachment and affection between mother and daughter is in reality very stained. Her mother is shown as a self centered who never tries to know what exactly her daughter expects, and what exactly her responsibility towards her daughter. We strongly feel it when we read the scene of rape done on Julia by the Victor. At that time she needs her Mama’s tender touch and her love and solace but she was abdicated ruthlessly by her mother. â€Å"She would escape from Victor and run to mama, who was talking and laughing nonstop, ignoring her. Little Julia would tap her on the arms, and Mama would ask: Do you want a coke? No. And she would keep on touching Mama until, irritated, she would yell at her or slap her, and little Julia burst into tears. Aurelia – Mama called – put her to bed, she is unbearable. † [5]She needs love, pampering from her mother which is her Psychological and quite natural need. But this basic need is also never fulfilled by her mother. She knows that she is a big burden for her mother and this feeling creates more and more insecurity in her mind. This pampering she is searching in another woman. In Julia the author also focuses on the growing materialism in the society. Everybody is involved in gaining the worldly pleasure. Everybody is careless and is not in position to think of the other. Julia’s brother is a homosexual. There is total miscommunication between the relationships of Julia’s parents. Everybody has chosen their own path life in which they don’t want to involve other family members. Under the roof of one house they are living like strangers. They don’t want to share their happiness, their sorrow with the others. Why life has become so difficult for the protagonist? Why does she want to escape from her present? Why can’t she accept the present bravely? Why does she prefer to stay in her past life? These are very important questions arise while the reading of the novel. Julia is not a novel which just propounds the theory of lesbianism but it is the psychological novel which focuses on the mental condition of the protagonist. The protagonist is caught by the split personality. Young Julia is not ready to accept the fact of her being young and she wants to be in the past. The incident of rape has been carved on her mind so intensely that she prefers to live the life of listlessness and detachment. She prefers to live an isolated life. â€Å"As her remembrances peel away the layers of her past, she reveals chilling details of a life filled with alienation and unhappiness. [6] This is the reason why she cannot face the relationship with the opposite sex. The horror experience becomes her inability to enter into the relationship with opposite sex. When Carol kisses her she feels it as a nightmare and it reminds r the incident of her violent rape. â€Å"a beach, rocks, a sea urchin, the paddle boat floating on the sea. † (Page 209, Julia) There is a constant conflict in her mind, the conflict of two different personalities, Julia and Julita. Julita is her past which is being more and more dominated. â€Å"Her schizophrenic experience eventually leads to an unsuccessful suicide attempt. According to German Bleiberg â€Å"The novel is relentless psychological whodunit, narrated as the interior monologue of the disturbed and intermittently suicidal young protagonist. † [7] The novel consists of the series of memory of Julia’s life right from her childhood to the present day. â€Å"These memories carry from her childhood to her present traumatic psychological stagnation. † [8] Julia has locked herself in deep pains. Her pains are like a web which the protagonist fails to break. Her story is necessarily thought from psychological point of view. When we start thinking from that perception we realize that this is not just a lesbian novel. It is a deep and thorough study of human psyche. And when we change the angle of our thoughts and starts thinking from the point of view of the protagonist, we start feeling sympathetic about the protagonist. The entire novel seems to be haunted by a weird silence. A voiceless ness is spread around the protagonist. She is completely fed up of all types of relationships and the people that she wants to stay alone. She rather feels safe in her loneliness. That is why when she arrives in the city she feels as if she is captured in the cage. â€Å"The noise, continuous movement of cars and buses, and the sight of so many people in the streets made her feel dizzy. † [9] Julia was blamed by the other school children for being silent and for not mixing with anybody. â€Å"She found herself forced to stay locked up in the classroom for four hours in the morning and three in the afternoon, sitting behind a desk, among twenty other girls. She didn’t talk to anybody. If they asked her something, she answered with a fewest possible words. After a week at School, they called her â€Å"the girl who doesn’t talk. †[10] Thus apparently it seems a lesbian novel but if we consider the other factors of this novel we realize that the story has a depth and it wants to tell us something else and lesbianism is just one of the parts of the novel. Thus this novel focuses many factors such as a world of chaos and anarchy, the broken frame of the family structure, the voiceless ness, materialism and self centered attitude of the modern society, lack of communication between the human beings, the physical and psychological exploitation of the women by the society and the spoiled human relationships. This novel also reveals the psychological problems which arise due to the loneliness insecurity and individualism. Being a typical feminist novel it throws the light on various above factors which are more dominating than the lesbian theme. Sources: [1] (Page 4, Spanish Literature, glbtq literature, http://www. glbtq. com/literature/spanish_lit,4. html) [2] (Page 853, â€Å"An Encyclopedia of Continental Women Writers,† by Katharina M. Wilson, Published by Tailor & Francis) [3] (Page 4, â€Å"Julia,† Anna Moix, Sandra Kingery , published by University of Nebraska Press, 2004) [3] (Page 287, â€Å"Who’s who in Contemporary Gay and Lesbian History†, By Robert Aldrich, Garry, Published by Routledge, 2001) [4] (Page 199, â€Å"A New History of Spanish Writing by Christopher Perriam†, published by Oxford University Press. ) [5](Page 41, Julia, Written by Anna Moix, translated by Sandra Kingery, University of Nebraska Press, 2004) [6](Page 140, â€Å"Dangerous Virtues†, By Ana Maria Moix, Margaret E. W. Jones, published by University of Nebraska Press, 1997) [7] (Page1107, â€Å"L-Z†, by German Bleiberg, published by Greenwood Publishing Group. ) [8] (Page 37, â€Å"Queer Transitions in Contemporary Spanish Culture,† By Gema Perez-Sanchez, published by Suny Press. ) [9] (Page93, â€Å"Julia† Written by Anna Moix, translated by Sandra Kingery, University of Nebraska Press, 2004) [10] (Page93, â€Å"Julia† Written by Anna Moix, translated by Sandra Kingery, University of Nebraska Press, 2004)

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The economic impact of Atlantic City closing casinos - Annotated Bibliography Example hallenges facing Atlantic City are in the way in which market shifts in the future could directly impact upon the overall success that could be achieved by the firms seeking to operate within this particular region. This article was included in the researcher due to the fact that it helps to exemplify the way in which the entire economy of Atlantic City, and by extension, the entire economy of the state of New Jersey, is at least partially dependent upon the revenues she from casinos and gambling. As this particular industry has begun to falter, the impact upon other sectors of the economy has been commensurately felt. Furthermore, rather than providing justification for the underlying reasons for why the Atlantic City gambling scene has experienced such a loss of the past several years, the authors instead seek to focus the majority of their attention upon the way in which a new economic base could be achieved for Atlantic City; and whether or not such a shift would be able to be accomplished in a relatively brief period of time. Moreover, the authors focus upon seeking to engage the overall economic impact that has been felt within Atlantic City has a direct result of the loss of revenue. Whereas a great degree of analysis has been placed upon potential solutions to the economic hardships facing Atlantic City, relatively little focus has been placed upon how the situation actually unfolded. As such, this particular article is essentially useful due to the fact that it focuses upon the factors that allowed Atlantic City to falter from its position of preeminent gambling location on the East Coast. Likewise, the author indicates the fact that even though the economic downturn was a primary catalyst to the way in which Atlantic City began to lose revenue and market share, it was ultimately the result of the fact that Atlantic City was unresponsive to the demands of the consumer. Without a primary and fundamental level of focus upon the demands of the consumer

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Radioimmunoscintigraphy using Prostascint (Capromab Pendetide) Essay Abstract   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Prostate cancer is one of the most common malignancies encountered among the men over the age of 65 years in the U.S. Proper treatment of patients with prostate cancer requires the determination of exact extent of cancer spread. Conventional imaging modalities like CT and MRI have proved to be of little use. Newer imaging modality involving radioimmunoscintigraphy using Prostascint has emerged as a useful diagnostic test for management of cases of carcinoma of prostate, particularly patients with localized disease and those showing evidence of recurrence following radiotherapy. Prostascint imaging serves as a reliable, noninvasive means of differentiating patients with organ-confined disease from those with metastatic spread to lymph. Following a positive Prostascint scan confirmatory studies (biopsy of involved sites) must be undertaken prior to initiation of a definitive surgical procedure. In the modern era, high quality fused images, using CT or MRI with Prostascint scans, obtained from using higher-resolution gamma cameras, have further increased the value of radioimmunoscintigraphy. However well designed randomized controlled trials in future are required to prove the exact clinical role of Prostascint imaging in cases of prostate cancer. Table of contents Introduction†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.4 Analysis of Prostascint Imaging†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.5 Applications of Prostascint imaging†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦6 Newly diagnosed patients with biopsy-proven prostate cancer.6 Patients with rising levels of PSA following prostatectomy†¦..7 Challenges associated with the use of Prostascint imaging†¦.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.10 Safety and precautions†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.11 Conclusion†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦13 References/ bibliography†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦l5 Radioimmunoscintigraphy using Prostascint (Capromab Pendetide) Introduction Prostate cancer is one of the most common malignancies encountered among the men over the age of 65 years in the U.S. During the year 2004, in the U.S 230,110 men were registered with the diagnosis of carcinoma prostate, whereas 29,900 died from it. (Jemal et al, 2004). Following the diagnosis of prostate cancer, one of the most important challenges for the clinician is to estimate the exact extent of the cancer (cancer staging) in order to undertake a proper treatment plan, which would be able to cure the cancer in its entirety in early as well as late cases. Information needed to stage prostate cancer depends upon tumor size, location, extra-prostatic extension, lymphatic involvement and distant metastases (Neal Kelly, 2004). In more than one third of cases of prostate cancer, by the time cancer is diagnosed, it has frequently involved the lymph nodes outside the pelvis, the most common ones being the periaortic lymph nodes (Neal Kelly, 2004). Treatment options and prognosis of localized cancer of prostate is different from the cases where the cancer has spread into the lymph nodes, contradicting the use of both surgery and radiotherapy, which works well for the localized disease. Hormone therapy and recently taxane based chemotherapy is used for the treatment of advanced disease (Neal Kelly, 2004). Presently the prediction of lymph node metastasis is not very accurate because, in the vast majority of cases, tissue examination for evaluating spread of cancer is based on biopsies involving a limited sample of the area with possible lymphatic spread. Conventional imaging modalities like computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for detecting soft tissue metastasis, suffer from many disadvantages, which limits their use for this purpose (Neal Kelly, 2004). Lymphography as a diagnostic modality for visualization of lymphatic vessels and lymph nodes, following injection of radio opaque material in a lymphatic vessel has also proven to be inaccurate (Wolfgang, 2003). Significant advancements in the field of medical imaging have enabled the accurate estimation of cancer spread to a large extent. One such imaging technology is radioimmunoscintigraphy with Prostascint, which would be discussed in this paper. Analysis of Prostascint Imaging Radioimmunoscintigraphy is a nuclear medicine imaging technique which detectsn  signal from a radio labeled antibody that recognizes prostate tissue (Wolfgang, 2003). The most commonly studied monoclonal murine antibody for this purpose is (7E11-C53), capromab pendetide conjugated with the linker-chelator glycyl-tyrosyl-(N, ÃŽ-diethylenetriamine-pentaacetic acid)-lysine commonly known as Prostascint. In the most commonly used type of radioimmunoscintigraphy, Prostascint which has been radio labeled with indium-111(In-111) is given, followed by nuclear medicine imaging or SPECT imaging (Keane, Rosner, Wingo, McLeod, 2006). The most studied target for prostate cancer is the prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA), a glycoprotein expressed by prostate tissue, which is produced both by benign and malignant prostate epithelial cells. However it is expressed more abundantly in patients with prostate cancer, hormone-refractive disease, and prostate cancer metastases (Keane et al, 2006). Thus immunoscintigraphy is dependent on the degree of PSMA expression rather than the actual size of a metastatic lesion or the increase in the levels of PSA (prostate specific antigen). Applications of Prostascint imaging Prostascint (Capromab Pende ­tide) is commonly used as a diagnostic imaging agent, which shows significantly improved sensitivity for extra-prostatic cancer detection compared with conventional imaging modalities (Keane et al, 2006). According to the literature review by Keane et al, (2006), Prostascint, received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval in 1996 for its use as an imaging agent for the following purposes: (1) For the staging of patients, who have been recently diagnosed with histologically proven localized prostate cancer and are at a high risk for soft tissue metastases or (2) For the restaging of post prostatectomy patients with a rising PSA level. These applications of Prostascint have been described below in details: Newly diagnosed patients with biopsy-proven prostate cancer Prostascint imaging should be considered after a definitive diagnosis of localized prostate cancer, as proven by standard diagnostic investigations including chest x-ray, bone scan, CT scan, or MRI, which have been made prior to the initiation of definitive therapy in form of surgery or radiotherapy. Prostascint is not indicated in patients who are not at high risk for developing metastatic disease (Hinke et al, 1998). In fact it is especially administered to those patients who are at a high risk for pelvic lymph node metastasis as shown by an intermediate to high Gleason grade (a system for grading prostate cancer depending on the degree of differentiation of the malignant cells under a microscope) or by other diagnostic investigations carried out to evaluate the disease spread. In a study by Hinke et al (1998), scan positive extraprostatic regions, especially lymph nodes, following initial treatment, were histologically evaluated. The sensitivity and specificity of Prostascint imaging in   detection of extraprostatic disease was found to be 75% and   86% respectively, whereas the accuracy was found to be 81% and the positive predictive of Prostascint imaging in   detection of extraprostatic disease was found to be 79%. Thus, the study by Hinke et al (1998) shows that In-111 capromab pendetide (Prostascint) imaging has emerged as a promising diagnostic tool for detecting prostate cancer by having a significant impact on patient management through its detection of occult extra-prostatic disease in more than 50% of prostate carcinoma patients studied, and information regarding the presence of lymph node metastasis. It also shows that Prostascint imaging serves as a reliable, noninvasive means of differentiating patients with organ-confined disease from those with metastatic spread to lymph nodes and complements other modalities including prostate specific antigen (PSA), Gleason score, and clinical staging. Since Prostascint imaging can help predict the future involvement of lymph nodes in patients at high risk for extraprostatic disease it can therefore help in the selection of patients who may not benefit from definitive local therapy in form of surgery or radiotherapy. Patients with rising levels of PSA following prostatectomy Despite the ability of radical prostatectomy to eradicate prostate carcinoma, biochemical evidence of recurrent prostate carcinoma, in form of elevation in the serum PSA levels above the limit of detection may be seen in approximately 40% of patients, 15 years after they undergo surgery. The PSA test may become positive many years prior to a change in the bone scan or before the emergence of clinical evidence of recurrence (Neal Kelly, 2004). In more than 33% of cases the disease may recur locally in the prostatic fossa or regional lymph nodes or at distant sites. The presence of cancer recurrence requires further treatment in form of local salvage treatments or systemic therapy (Neal Kelly, 2004). Salvage therapy in form of external beam radiation may provide a therapeutic benefit only to those patients who have a localized recurrence. On the other hand, systemic therapy like hormonal therapy is usually recommended for patients with disseminated disease (lymphatic or metastatic spread) (Neal Kelly, 2004). Traditionally, most patients who show elevated serum levels of PSA post-surgically undergo a computed tomography (CT) scan of abdomen and pelvis or bone scintigraphy. The detection of tumor deposits on CT scans is size dependent i.e. the size of the tumor deposits should be more than 10–15 mm prior to detection. Further more, CT scan is not able to differentiate whether the lymph node is enlarged due to the presence of inflammation or metastasis (Neal Kelly, 2004). Thus the finding of radiographically enlarged lymph nodes is not diagnostic of carcinoma. Recurrence of prostate cancer after radiotherapy presents several challenges for the clinician regarding appropriate management. It is of utmost importance to identify correctly those patients with persistent localized disease and the potential to benefit from curative therapy (Keane et al, 2003). The localization of the extent of recurrent disease after radical prostatectomy is especially important for patients showing rising levels of PSA after prostatectomy and are being considered for salvage radiation therapy. However this is difficult with presently available techniques and may greatly influence subsequent clinical management (Raj, Partin, Polasiik, 2002). Prostascint imaging would greatly help in providing solution to this problem. Patients showing a positive result with radioimmunoscintigraphy, demonstrating that the cases with disease spread outside the pelvis can be spared inappropriate treatment, with radiotherapy, thus helps in reducing the associated morbidity and expense (Keane et al, 2006). Raj et al (2002) conducted a study to determine the use of indium- 111 labelled Prostascint imaging to detect recurrent prostate carcinoma radiographically in men with early biochemical evidence of failure (serum PSA levels less than or equal to 4.0 ng/mL) and tried to assess the minimum rise in serum PSA level, which would be necessary for imaging recurrent disease. Preoperatively, all patients had negative bone scans and negative lymph nodes on histopathological biopsy, and they did not undergo   any therapy including   hormonal ablation, chemotherapy, or radiation therapy preoperatively or postoperatively until the (111)In labeled Prostascint imaging was performed. The results of this study demonstrated that the Prostascint imaging is capable of detecting recurrent disease irrespective of level of serum PSA increase. Postive results on prostascint imaging were associated with significant increase in the probability of having recurrent disease. Furthermore 42.8% of patients demonstrated regional uptake in prostatic fossa with or without regional lymph nodes. Almost one-third of patients (30.6%) had local uptake only in the prostatic fossa. These results are in agreement with the known fact that one-third of prostate tumors that recur after prostate surgery occurs locally within the prostatic bed. Thus a positive Prostascint scan results can help classify the patients into two clinically useful categories, i.e.   those with local disease and those with distant recurrent disease, which are candidates for subsequent salvage treatment protocols. Challenges associated with the use of Prostascint imaging   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Imaging with indium In-111 capromab pendetide is technically challenging, requiring high degree of attention to anatomical details, which is not normally necessary with most nuclear medicine studies. The image quality of Prostascint imaging is observed to widely vary among different institutions depending on the method of image acquisition, the skills of the interpreting radiologist, and the resolution of cameras used for SPECT scanning (Wong, Turkington, Polascik, Coleman, 2004). Thus Prostascint imaging requires special training of the involved health care professionals in the field of nuclear medicine, utilizing this technique. Interpretation of the images requires the nuclear medicine physician to become familiar with detailed anatomy of the pelvis in order to read through the normal uptake patterns seen with this drug. On being given sufficient training and experience, the study can become routine for most nuclear medicine departments. Some of the limitations associated with the use of Prostascint scan include, relatively low spatial resolution and low detection efficiency of medium-energy collimators used in the past for detection of In-111 photo peaks; nonspecific localization of monoclonal antibodies in the blood, bowel, bone marrow, and prostate gland and lack of anatomic information on the part of the radiologist to localize accumulation of radiotracer (Wong et al, 2004). In order to improve upon the image quality, diagnostic accuracy and to discover a practical and efficient method of imaging, free from the above described problems, increasing degree of research has been done to improve image resolution. Over the past 5 years, significantly greater image resolution from improved camera technology and the use of co-registration to fuse functional images provided by radioimmunoscintigraphy with anatomic imaging scans such as CT or MRI (Wong, et al 2004). The fusion of these images helps in fusion of anatomical image (obtained on CT or MRI) and physiological image (obtained through Prostascint imaging), thereby considerably improving the resolution of fused image. Keane et al (2006) have reported an accuracy of 83% with fused images. The use of dual-head gamma cameras with a much higher resolution, to co-register the functional single-photon emission tomography (SPECT) image and an anatomic image (CT or MRI) has also made a dramatic difference in prostate cancer detection with the Prostascint imaging (Keane, (2006).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Wong et al (2004) conducted a study in which they tried to improve the diagnostic accuracy of this examination by using hybrid gamma camera–CT technology. Imaging was performed on a dual-head scanner with an integrated CT scanner built onto the same rotating gantry as the camera heads (for SPECT scanning). Wong et al reached the conclusion that evaluation of extraprostatic disease in the pelvis and lower abdomen may also be facilitated by the combined SPECT-CT images. However, the sample size of this study was too small to reach any definitive conclusion. In future, larger well designed, randomized controlled studies are required in order to definitely prove the advantage of this type of scanning in comparison to conventional Prostascint imaging. Safety and precautions Certain precautions which must be observed at the time of Prostascint imaging as   highlighted in a study by Raj et al (2002) are as follows: Prior investigations have demonstrated that 111In-capromab pendetide immunoscintigraphy is safe, with mild adverse effects and minimal increase in the levels of antibodies directed against murine antibody levels (Raj et al, 2002). There is a theoretical risk for occurrence of allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis, in patients who receive murine antibodies. Although serious reactions of this type have not been observed in clinical trials after administration of Indium In-111 Prostascint, Raj et al (2002) have suggested that emergency medications for the treatment of anaphylactic reactions should be available during admin ­istration of this agent. confirmatory trials in the future Due to difficulties in image interpretation, Prostascint imaging is associated with high rate rates of false positive and false negative image interpretation results.   Thus patient management should not be solely based on ProstaScint scan results without appropriate phase three confirmatory trials in the future. Positive Prostascint scan results should be followed by further confirmatory tests (e.g. histopathological analysis). Also these images should be interpreted only by physicians who have had specific training in Indium In-111 Prostascint image interpretation. High False positive scan rates associated with Prostascint may be detrimental to patient care by resulting in inappropriate surgical intervention in patients who had been cured of their primary cancer and have no cancer recurrence. On the other hand, inappropriate denial of curative therapy may occur in case results are not confirmed. Positive Prostascint scanning can also result in inappropriately high stage on sur ­gical staging if only areas of uptake are sam ­pled. Surgical sampling should not be limited to the areas of positive uptake, unless histologic examination Of these areas has yielded positive results Bone scans are more sensitive than Prostascint scanning for the detection of metastases to bone. Thus Prostascint scanning should not replace bone scan for the evaluation of skeletal metastases. Prostascint imaging involves use of radiopharmaceuticals, which must be used only by physicians and other health care professionals who are qualified for handling and using radionuclides. Care should be taken to minimize radiation exposure to patients and medical per ­sonnel, consistent with proper hospital and patient management procedures. Due to delayed clearance of In- 111 Prostascint and post scan localization in the bowel, blood , kidneys, and bladder, most researchers suggest that bladder   should be catheterized and irrigated when obtaining SPECT images. A cathartic must also be administered the evening before imaging the patient, and a cleansing enema should be administered within an hour prior to each imaging session. Conclusion From the above discussion it becomes apparent that Prostascint imaging using indium In-111 capromab pendetide offers important additional information to physicians who treat and manage prostate carcinoma patients. In the patients with primary disease, prostascint imaging should be considered after a definitive diagnosis of cancer has been made, prior to surgery or radiation therapy, when there is high risk for pelvic lymph node metastasis. Prostascint imaging serves as   a reliable, noninvasive means of differentiating patients with organ-confined disease from those with metastatic spread to lymph nodes and complements other indicators of metastatic disease like PSA, Gleason score etc. A positive Prostascint scan serves as an indicator for undertaking confirmatory studies  Ã‚   (biopsy of involved sites) prior to initiation of a definitive surgical procedure. In the modern era, high quality fused images (with CT or MRI) obtained from using higher-resolution gamma cameras, have confirmed the value of radioimmunoscintigraphy. However well designed randomized controlled trials in future are required to prove the exact clinical role of Prostascint imaging in cases of prostate cancer. References Hinke, G.H., Burgers, J.K., Neal, C.E., Texer, J.H., Kahn, D., Williams, R.D., et al. (1998). Multicenter radioimmunoscintigraphic evaluation of patients with prostate carcinoma using indium-111 capromab pendetide. Cancer, 83(4), 739-747. Jemal, A., Tiwari, R.C., Murray, T., Ghafoor, A., Samuels, A., Ward, E. et al (2004).   Cancer Statistics, 2004. Cancer Journal for Clinicians, 54, 8-29. Keane, T.E.,   Rosner, I.L., Wingo, M.S.,    McLeod, D. J. (2006). The Emergence of Radioimmunoscintigraphy for Prostate Cancer. Reviews in Urology, 8 (Suppl 1), S20–S28. Neal, D.E., Kelly, J.D.(2004). The prostate and seminal vesicles. In Russell, R.C.G., Williams, N. S., Bulstrode (Eds.), C.J.K.Bailey and Love Short Practice of Surgery. 24th Edition. (pp. 1370-1387). London: Oxford University Press. Raj, G.V., Partin, A.W., Polasiik, T.J. (2002). Clinical utility of indium 111-capromab   pendetide immunoscintigraphy in the detection of early, recurrent prostate carcinoma after radical prostatectomy. Cancer, 94(4), 987-96. Wolfgang, Dahnert. 2003. Radiology review manual: Nuclear medicine. 5th Edition.   Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams and Willikins: (pp.1080). Wong, T.Z., Turkington, T.G., Polascik, T.J., Coleman, R.E. (2005). Prostascint   (Capromab Pendetide) Imaging Using Hybrid Gamma Camera–CT Technology. AJR, 184, 676-680.

Six Glasses by Tom Standage Essay Example for Free

Six Glasses by Tom Standage Essay Throughout history certain drinks have marked a trend that has changed the face of the earth. Each drinks including beer, wine, spirits (distilled alcohol), coffee, tea, and coca-cola have been a catalyst for the development of our society. As a result, the alcohol and the caffeine in the drinks have not only quenched our thirst through history, but have done much more than that; they have helped different cultures intertwine. Each one of them set humankind on a path towards modernity. Six beverages precisely, three alcoholic, and three caffeine marked the tendency; the first beverage to mark a trend was beer that both served as a currency and for political purposes. Later came the Greeks with a fermented grape juice, named wine that with the help of formal drinking parties helped diffuse ideas and thoughts. With the coming of the age of exploration and the discovery of America, raw goods and the distillation process arrived and helped the development of distilled drinks such as brandy, rum, and whiskey which were used as currency to buy slaves and became popular in North America. As alcoholism spread, other people especially professionals looked for that drink that instead of confusing the mind rather promoted clarity. Coffee, the black gift from the Arabs promoted clarity that was what professionals were looking for such a long time. However the emergence of the British Empire as a world dominion helped Chinas flagship drink, tea helped to open lucrative trade routes with the east. Perhaps, the most affluent of all, or at least the one single drink that reached every corner of earth is the carbonated soft beverage called Coca-Cola; Coca-Cola marked the start of the globalization period. Six drinks, six different stories that mark our world today. Beer, the first alcoholic beverage appeared as a result of a change of lifestyle from the humans that migrated from out of Africa. Before, these people were nomads meaning that they life was based on hunting and gathering. However, starting twelve-thousand years ago, Humans in the Near East abandoned the Paleolithic lifestyle and adopted farming rather than hunting and gathering. Beer was not invented but rather discovered since it was found that cereal grain could be stored for a long time a would not be spoiled. With the introduction of beer, people no matter their social rank were able to enjoy a drink that at the time was considered a gift of god. All along the Fertile Crescent people drank beer from the same container. This was considered a mayor development because it showed that beer was both a drink that united social classes, and it was a universal symbol and friendship and hospitality since drinking from the same container through a straw meant that the one offering the drink did not intoxicate the beverage. Beer abundance and invigorating flavors convinced the consumers of making ceremonies to god, whom in their conscience gifted such drink. Beer was used in religious ceremonies, agricultural fertility rites, and funerals by the Sumerians and Egyptians. Beer rich contents cannot be denied. Without such stimulating and rich content, beer would not have the same popularity as it has. When stored for a long period, beer starts the fermentation process. In the Neolithic period, beer was rather drunk much sooner than todays standards. Most people left it fermenting for about a week or less. As a result, the beer drank had a relatively low alcohol content but would be rich in yeast which would provide protein and vitamin, especially vitamin B. The rich contents of beer were essential for the development and survival of early civilizations since vitamin B provided the nutrients meat provided; so when there was a shortage of food, especially meat, people would opt drink beer. Although extremely important for the development of early societies, beer is constantly associated with drunkenness and unclear thinking. Even many scholars consider beer as just a drink that it is used to quench special cravings or just simply to get drunk. However, beer importance in the development of writing is more important than common thinking. The earliest written documents are Sumerian wage lists and tax receipts that were used to record several things; amongst them was beer. Since beer by this time was considered the drink of the common man, beer was used as a form of payment for many people. Some people were given the drink as it is the case during the construction of the pyramid of Giza, and others were given tokens so they could exchange them with beer. Beer importance in the development of our civilized world is often under regarded, especially by those whom believe that beer sole purpose is to get people drunk. Departing from Assyria, King Ashurnasirpar II gave a drink to his guests which aroma and taste was far more refined than that of beer. Even more, this vitalizing drink was not a universal drink for the common man, but was rather a way to show their wealth. As a result, wine development as the next popular drink, especially in Greece and Italy. Wine consists of a fermented juice of crushed grapes. Despite the availability of grapes through human history, wine did not emerge until later since in order to ferment the fruit it is necessary to use a pot. As wine became more widely available, it came to be seen as a social drink as well as a religious beverage. Its main consumption was based on the Near East and the Eastern Mediterranean. Furthermore, its increasing accessibility demised wine as an all elite drink. Despite its high cost, wine is a determining factor for the development of non-barbaric settlements such as Greece and Rome. Thucydides, a Greek writer described, the peoples of the Mediterranean began to emerge from barbarism when they learnt to cultivate the olive and the vine. When wine emerged in the Eastern Mediterranean wine price decreased and it was widely available. As a result, wine became increasingly important especially in the economic sense. Wine was now not considered as just a drink, but rather a form of income. Italys and Greece convenient location helped wine become easy to trade amongst other European and Muslim nations. Therefore, vineyards became prime targets in the Peloponnesian War between Sparta and Athens. Different from beer, old wine was a badge of status; the older the wine, the better. For Greeks and Romans wine drinking was associated with civilization and refinement. Also, wine was also a form to test someones personality. As Aeschylus, a Greek poet said, Bronze is the mirror of the outward form; wine is the mirror of the mind, referring to the ability of a person to speak truth when drinking wine. Some Greek philosophers considered wine as treacherous for the human society; they believed that placing too much power in human hands (wine alcoholic content), could ultimately lead to revolution and anarchy. Wine social is so important that is often undermined. For example there is a Roman story, that once Marcus Antonius sought for refuge  and someone accept it. In order to delight and give tribute to their guest, the house owner sent their slave to buy the most expensive wine, the kind only people such of Marcus Antonius would drink. As a result, the authorities discovered Marcus Antonius as a result of just the wine he drank, marking wine as a social drink. Therefore, wine became a symbol of social differentiation and a rentable way of business. Wines riches and development of trade led to the discovery of America. With the riches of wine European nations now sought more resources and other form of transporting beverages. For voyages such as those to America, wine was not that convenient. Instead in the Spanish city of Cordoba, the distillation process was developed. Distilled drinks provided a durable and compact way to transport alcohol on board ships. The first distilled drink was distilled wine and it was considered a therapeutically drink. Arnald of Villanova, a wine distiller, believed that the true water of life will come over in precious drops, which, being rectified by three or four successive distillations, will afford the wonderful quintessence of wine, he wrote we call it aqua vitae, and this name is remarkably suitable, since it is really a water of immortality. It prolongs life, clears away ill-humors, revives the heart, and maintains youth. As Villanova said, aqua vita godlike powers were tempting for many see king immortality. During the Pre-Columbian period, people believed that drinking a regular dose of aqua vita could improve the functioning human body and mind. Following the discovery of America and the establishment of the European colonies in the Americas, slavery soon out spurted, especially in the Caribbean colonies. In these colonies, especially in the British sugar cane was the main crop. However, in order to obtain the man power to extract the resource, the British sought to exchange Brandy for slaves in West Africa. Europeans soon realized that it was far more efficient to use distilled alcohol extracted from the sugar cane. Rumbullion as it is called was far superior for high seas since it didnt spoil like wine since it had a high concentration of alcohol. Rum was perhaps the most profitable spirits, or distilled drink of all became it is relatively easy to distill and it was also made with the leftovers of sugarcane plantations. Therefore, rum did  not only serve as a way to use the leftovers but it consequently was used as a form of income. Inevitably, rum became the American typical drink, rather than brandy, the British counterpart. Rum was far cheaper then brandy and was made from leftover molasses. Rum amongst the American minds alleviated hardship and provided a liquid form of central heating during harsh winters. More importantly alleviated the dependence of foreign imports. In some cases, rum was so cheap that a one day wage could get drunk a person for weeks. Indirectly, rum triggered the American Civil war. The story goes like this, as the colonies grew economically and constantly became more independent of foreign goods, the British felt that they were losing money from a market that before they controlled in a monopolistic manner. As a result, they decided to put taxes on the molasses, the main ingredient of rum. However, the British felt that they could exploit the Americans and kept increasing the taxes to see if the Americans once and for all opted for brandy. Instead, the number of rum producing factories increased and smuggling molasses became a normal business. During the fight for independence, the American soldiers opted for rum. As Henry Knox said in a letter, Besides beef and pork, bread and flour, Rum is too material an article to be omitted, he wrote, No exertions ought to be spared to provide ample quantities of it. Distilled drinks helped shaped the New World since it served as a form of income and as a form of enjoyment. After the age of exploration, came the Age of Reason where everything was put into contest. No longer were Greek and Roman scientific commonly accepted. As Bacon expressed, There is no hope of any major increase in scientific knowledge by grafting or adding the new on top of the old, referring that in order to develop new thoughts have to be accepted. Along with this advance came coffee, which promoted sharpness and clarity of thought. It became the preferred drink for scientists, intellectuals, merchants and clerks. Coffee instead of relaxing the mind instead sharpened it and was usually drank during the mornings or during continuous working time. Coffee drinkers argued that with alcohol people had a clouded view of the world; therefore, coffee was there to clear it. Coffee success is mainly as a result of the coffee houses. The coffee houses differed from the taverns in which they were often visited by scholars rather than by the common man, and had an environment more tranquil and better to think. Coffee houses were used as information hubs; there you could tell your thoughts of the book you just read, talk about new scientific developments, simply any information you could find in a coffee shop. These were so important that for example, after Hooke demonstrated an improved form of astronomical quadrant a the Royal Society, he repeated his demonstration at Garraways coffeehouse. In a certain manner, coffee helped European nations to develop at a faster rate since with coffee and coffee shops people were able to discuss and exchange ideas amongst them. Even today, coffee plays a major role in keeping our society awake and up to task. Despite its reach, coffee was not able to compete in England with a drink similar to coffee called tea. During the 17th, 18th and early 19th century, British enjoyed its golden reach. As Sir George McCartney described, this vast empire on which the sun never sets. Indeed it was true since Britain had colonies in America, Asia, and Australia, meaning that the sun was always seen in any one of the colonies. Britains reach during this epoch was immeasurable and its power imaginable. However as any other empire they needed a national drink. The British opted for tea that had been invigorating the Chinese for quite some time. As coffee, tea promoted, clear thought and the spread of thought. However tea was not well known in Britain until Catherine of Braganza, the wife of Charles II introduced tea to the English court. As any other mayor power, the citizens view their rulers of examples of what to do, so they inferred that drinking tea was good. Even some scientist said that tea had special powers. Such was the case for Cornelius Bontekoe who said, We recommend tea to the entire nation, and to all peoples! he declared, we urge every man, every woman, to drink it every day; if possible, every hour; beginning with ten cups a day and subsequently increasing the dosage-as much as the stomach can take.One of the most important aspects of tea was its economic factor. The East India Company, the largest at its time recorded that sixty percent of its profits derived from the tea trade. Moreover, ten percent of British tax revenue  derived from the tea. Clearly, teas economic influence is undeniable. With tea, Britain was able to develop settlements so far away, such as that of Hong Kong. Tea influence in Britain colonies helped Britain input more revenue since they created the drinking of tea as away of life. Everyone no matter their social class needed to have their tea at least once a day. As a result, tea was a drink that was s o popular that Britain it spread through the world and became the main association with Britain. Coca-Cola, perhaps the most well known brand in the world is a carbonated drink that was developed from Carbonated Water, or just simply Soda. Coca-Cola was developed by John Pemberton, a pharmacist who lived Atlanta, Georgia. Most people believe that the creation of Coca-Cola was a mistake. However this is false because in fact Pemberton was an experienced medicine producer and while creating Coca -Cola he was trying to find another remedy for stomach ache. While devising the formula, Pemberton added Coca that has a stimulating effect; later he added the koka leaf from Western Africa. In order to put a name for his invigorating, refreshing, quenching beverage he named it Coca-Cola referring to the two main ingredients of the product. Coca-Coca introduced globalization into our minds. Rather than thinking for a single market, Coca-Cola owners believed in mass production and versatility of the product. Advertisements such as, Drink Coca-Cola. Delicious and refreshing, showed the world that the age of reason was light years away and that now it was the dawn of globalization. For Asa Candler the Coca-Cola business turned out to be really profitable. First the product was easy and cheap to produce and people paid a lot for each drink. Following his purchase of the company came the prohibition period; a period were alcohol consumption was illegal in the United States. Therefore, as a remedy people opted for Coca-Cola. As a result, Coca-Cola enjoyed a relative monopoly in drinks. However this hit hard by the end of prohibition when alcohol reanimated its sale. Right after the prohibition, people said, Who would drink soft stuff when real beer and he-mans whiskey could be obtained legally? Furthermore, Coca-Cola was hit even harder with the innovating drink sizes of Pepsi that offer a similar flavor for a reduced price. Coca-Cola globalization was marked when Coca-Cola set a policy that those  fighting the war (World War II) would have a Coca-Cola no matter where they were. The refreshing drink inside that remarkable bottle was so important for the soldiers since it made them feel at home. Also, as people outside the war effort saw the soldiers consuming the drink, they opted to start drinking it. Coca-Cola influence today is undeniable; Coca-Cola is simply globalization in a bottle. Six drinks, each drink including beer, wine, spirits (distilled alcohol), coffee, tea, and coca-cola have been a catalyst for the development of our society. Each one has had its glory period and its place in history without them, the world would not be the same, nor as developed as it is today. From the start of civilization, to today globalize society each drink has played a major role in our development as a civilized world. However, the drink that we have to pay more tribute is water. Through history water has been essential for sustaining human life, but no one has paid respect to such precious item. In less than a century, water will become the transparent oil since only two percent of the whole planets water is drinkable. Although we live in a place where we believe there is sufficient water, there isnt, and we have to face it. In places such as Darfur and other dry places water has become so essential that instead of fighting for diamonds or any other resources; they are fighting for land in order to obtain at least was necessary for survival. If us (the youth), dont stop consuming that much we will have to find another remedy for survival because at its pace water could start lacking in many critical places. In the end, we cannot be self-centered and just think of ourselves, we have to also think of taking care of unacknowledged earth. American Beverage Association History of Beverage Products and Companies. American Beverage Association Beverage Industry News Resources Home. 14 Apr. 2008 . Beverages and Drinks History and Origins of Beverages and Drinks. Inventors. 14 Apr. 2008 . Standage, Tom. A History of the World in 6 Glasses. New York: Walker Company, 2005.

Image Super-Resolver using Cascaded Linear Regression

Image Super-Resolver using Cascaded Linear Regression Abstract A number of existing super-resolution algorithms fail in modeling the relationship between high and low resolution image patches and time complexity in training the model. To overcome the above-stated problem, simple, effective, robust and fast image super-resolver (SERF) based on cascaded linear regression has been used for learning the model parameters. The image divided into patches are grouped into clusters using k-means clustering algorithm for learning the model parameter based on series of linear least square function, named cascaded linear regression to identify the missing detail information. This approach has been simulated using MATLAB for various images. The simulation results show that SERF gives better PSNR and less computation cost compared to existing methods. Keywords-Cascaded linear regression, example learning based image super-resolution, K-means. Super-Resolution (SR) is the process of producing a high-resolution (HR) image or video from low-resolution images or frames. In this technology, multiple low-resolution (LR) images are applied to generate the single high-resolution image. The image super-resolution is applied in a wide range, including the areas of military, medicine, public safety and computer vision, all of which will be in great need of this technology. The SR process is an ill-posed inverse problem, even though the estimation of HR image from LR input image has many possible solutions. There are many SR algorithms available to resolve this ill-pose problem. Interpolation Based method is the most intuitive method for the image super-resolution. This kind of algorithm has the low-resolution image registered on the grid of the high-resolution image to be calculated. Reconstruction based method is mainly based on iterative back projection method. This algorithm is very convergent, simple and direct, but the resoluti on is not steady and unique. Because of the limitation of the reconstruction algorithm, the learning-based super-resolution technology emerges as an active research area. Learning based approach synthesize HR image from a training set of HR and LR image pairs. This approach commonly works on the image patches (Equal-sized patches which is divided from the original image with overlaps between neighbouring patches). Since, learning based method achieves good performance result for HR image recovery; most of the recent technologies follow this methodology. Freeman et al [1] describe a learning based method for low-level vision problem-estimating scenes from images and modeling the relation between synthetic world of images and its corresponding images with markov network. This technique use Bayesian belief propagation to find out a local maximum of the posterior probability for the scene of given image. This method shows the benefits of applying machine learning network and large datasets to the problem of visual interpretation. Sun et al [2] use the Bayesian approach to image hallucination where HR images are hallucinated from a generic LR images using a set of training images. For practical applications, the robustness of this Bayesian approach produces an inaccurate PSF. To overcome the estimation of PSF, Wang et al [3] propose a framework. It is based on annealed Gibbs sampling method. This framework utilized both SR reconstruction constraint and a patch based image synthesis constraint in a general probabilistic and also has poten tial to reduce the other low-level vision related problems. A new approach introduced by Yang et al [4] to represent single image super-resolution via sparse representation. With the help of low resolution input image sparse model, output high resolution image can be generated. This method is superior to patch-based super-resolution method [3]. Zedye et al [5] proposed a sparse representation model for single image scale-up problem. This method reduces the computational complexity and algorithmic architecture than Zhan [6] model. Gao et al [7] introduce the sparsity based single image super-resolution by proposing a structure prior based sparse representation. But, this model lags in estimation of model parameter and sparse representation. Freedman et al [8] extend the existing example-based learning framework for up-scaling of single image super-resolution. This extended method follows a local similarity assumption on images and extract localized region from input image. This techn ique retains the quality of image while reducing the nearest-neighbour search time. Some recent techniques for single image SR learn a mapping from LR domain to HR domain through regression operation. Inspired by the concept of regression [9], Kim [10] and Ni Nguyen [11] use the regression model for estimating the missing detail information to resolve SR problem. Yang and Wang [12] presented a self-learning approach for SR, which advance support vector regression (SVR) with image sparse co-efficient to make the model relationship between LR and HR domain. This method follows bayes decision theory for selecting the optimal SVR model which produces the minimum SR reconstruction error Kim and Kwon [13] proposed kernel ridge regression (KRR) to train the model parameter for single image SR. He and siu [14] presented a model which estimates the parameter using Gaussian process regression (GPR).Some efforts have been taken to reduce the time complexity. Timofte et al [15] proposed Anchored neighbourhood regression (ANR) with projection matrices for mapping the LR image patches onto the HR image patches. Yang et al [16] combined two fundamental SR approaches-learning from datasets and l earning from self-examples. The effect of noise and visual artifacts are suppressed by combining the regression on multiple in-place examples for better estimation. Dong et al [17] [18] proposed a deep learning convolutional neural network (CNN) to model the relationship between LR and HR images. This model performs end-to-end mapping which formulates the non-linear mapping and jointly optimize the number of layers. An important issues of the example learning based image SR technique are how to model the mapping relationship between LR and HR image patches; most existing models either hard to diverse natural images or consume a lot of time to train the model parameters. The existing regression functions cannot model the complicated mapping relationship between LR and HR images. Considering this problem, we have developed a new image super-resolver for single image SR which consisting of cascaded linear regression (series of linear regression) function. In this method, first the images are subdivided into equal-sized image patches and these image patches are grouped into clusters during training phase. Then, each clusters learned with model parameter by a series of linear regression, thereby reducing the gap of missing detail information. Linear regression produces a closed-form solution which makes the proposed method simple and efficient. The paper is organized as follows. Section II describes a series of linear regression, results are discussed in section III and section IV concludes the paper. Inspired by the concept of linear regression method for face detection [19], a series of linear regression framework is used for image super-resolution. Here, the framework of cascaded linear regression in and how to use it for image SR were explained. A. Series of Linear Regression Framework The main idea behind cascaded linear regression is to learn a set of linear regression function for each cluster thereby gradually decreasing the gaps of high frequency details between the estimated HR image patches and the ground truth image patches. In order to produce the original HR image from LR input image, first interpolate LR image to obtain the interpolated LR image with same size as HR image. This method works at the patch level, each linear regressor parameter computes an increment from a previous image patch, and the present image patch is then updated in cascaded manner. (1) (2) denotes the estimated image patch after t-stages. denotes the estimated increment. denotes feature extractor by which the f-dimensional feature vector can be obtained. Linear regressor parameters at t-stage T Total number of regression stages. The next step is learning of the linear regression parameters and for T stages. Relying on these linear regression T stages, parameters for regressors are subsequently learnt to reduce the total number of reconstruction errors and to make presently updated image patch more appropriate to generate the HR patch. Using least squares form to optimize and , it can be written as, (3) The regularization term accomplishes a constraint on the linear regression parameters and to avert over-fitting and ÃŽÂ ² be the data fidelity term and the regularization term. At each regression stage, a new dataset values can be created by recurrently applying the update rule in (1) with learnedand. Next, and can be learned subsequently using (2) in cascade manner. Fig. 1. Flow of cascaded linear regression framework B. Pseudo code For Cascaded Linear Regression Algorithm The Pseudo code for cascaded linear regression algorithm for training phase is given below, Input: , image patch size à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã… ¡d xà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã… ¡d for t=1 to T do { Apply k-means to obtain cluster centres for i = 1 to c do { compute A and b. update the values of A and b in . } end for } end for The output of this training phase is and cluster centroid. C. SERF Image Super-Resolver This section deals with cascaded linear regression based SERF image. The process starts by converting color image from the RGB space into the YCbCr space where the Y channel represents luminance, and the Cb and Cr channels represent the chromaticity. SERF is only applied to the Y channel. The Cb and Cr channels reflect G and B channels of the interpolated LR image. D. SERF Implementation To extract the high frequency details from each patch by subtracting the mean value from each patch as feature patch denoted as . Since the frequency content is missing from the initially estimated image patches, the goal of a series of linear regression is to compensate for high frequency detail (4), (4) To diminish the error between HR feature patch and the estimated feature patch, it is normal that the regression output should be small. Hence, by putting the constraint on regularization term to (4), the output is, (5) Where, ÃŽÂ » is the regularization parameter. t Denotes the number of regression stages. denotes the feature extractor. ÃŽÂ ² and ÃŽÂ » are set to 1 and 0.25. A closed-form solution for equation (5) can be computed by making the partial derivative of equation (5) equal to zero. In testing phase, for a given LR image, bicubic interpolation is applied to up sample it by a factor of r. This interpolated image is divided into M image patches. Feature patches are calculated by subtracting the mean value from each image patch. At the tth stage, each feature patch is assigned to a cluster l according to the Euclidean distance. To obtain the feature subsequently, linear regression parameters are applied to compute the increment. Concurrently, the feature patch is updated using, (6) After passing through T-stages, reconstructed image patches are obtained by adding mean value to the final feature patches. All the reconstructed patches are then combined with the overlapping area and then averaged to generate the original HR image. E. Pseudo code For SERF Image Super-Resolver Algorithm The pseudo code for SERF image super-resolver algorithm is as follows: Inputs: Y, a, r, for t=1 to T do { Adapt each patch clusterto a cluster. Compute. Update the values of A and b in } End for The output will be the High Resolution image (HR). The simulation of the SERF image super-resolver is done by using MATLAB R2013a for various images. The LR image is read from image folder and is processed using the algorithms explained before. The output HR image is taken after regression stages. The implementation is done by considering many reference images. The colour image (RGB) is first converted into YCbCr space, where Y channel represents luminance. Cb and Cr are simply copied from the interpolated LR image. The number of cluster size is 200. Image patch size 5 x 5 and magnification factor is set to 3. a)LR input b)HR input (c)Zooming result Fig.2. SERF Result under Magnification Factor 3 a)LR input b)HR output c)zooming result Fig.3. SERF Result under Magnification Factor 2 a)LR input b)HR output c)zooming result Fig.4. SERF Result under Magnification Factor 1 (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f) (g) (h) Fig.5. Comparisons ResultsButterfly (a) ground truth image (original size is 256 ÃÆ'- 256); (a)super-resolution results of (b) SRCNN, (c) ScSR, (d) Zeydes, (e) ANR, (f) BPJDL,(g) SPM, and (h) SERF. Zeydes [5] method gives noiseless image, but texture details are not well reconstructed as shown Figure (d). The BPJDL [14] methods generate sharper edges when compared to other methods as shown Figure (f). Figure (h) shows the zooming results of SERF method that performs well for both reconstruction and visual artifacts suppression. TABLE I:PSNR AND SSIM VALUES UNDER MAGNIFICATION FACTOR OF 1, 2 AND 3. Magnification Factor PSNR SSIM TIME(s) 3 29.0775 0.839 0.4323 2 30.5 0.812 0.4000 1 38.4 0.798 0.3870 TABLE II:PSNR AND SSIM VALUES UNDER MAGNIFICATION FACTOR OF 3 FOR TESTING IMAGES. S.NO IMAGES PSNR SSIM TIME(s) 1 Baboon 23.63 0.532 0.3115 2 Baby 35.29 0.906 0.4148 3 Butterfly 26.87 0.883 0.2018 4 Comic 24.32 0.755 0.2208 5 Man 28.19 0. 778 0.5468 6 zebra 29.09 0.839 0.4324 For magnification factor of 3, SERF outplays ScSR method by an average PSNR gain of 0.43dB, Zeydes [5] method by 0.37dB, ANR [15] by 0.44dB, BPJDL [14] method by 0.23dB and the SPM [7] method by 0.16dB. SERF gives average SSIM value of 0.8352 and it is fastest method compared to existing methods (TABLE III). TABLE III: PSNR AND SSIM VALUE COMPARISON OF SERF METHOD WITH EXISTING METHODS UNDER MAGNIFICATION FACTOR OF 3. EXISTING METHODS PSNR SSIM TIME(s) ScSR [4] 23.69 0.8835 7.27 Zeydes [5] 23.60 0.8765 0.06 ANR [15] 24.32 0.8687 0.02 BPJDL [14] 24.17 0.8890 17.85 SPM [7] 24.63 0.8982 0.74 SERF 29.0775 0.8352 0.23 SERF has few parameters to control the model, and results in easy adaption for training a new model when the experimental settings, zooming factors and databases were changed. The cascaded linear regression algorithm and SERF image super-resolver has been simulated in MATLAB2013a. SERF Image super-resolver achieves better performance with sharper details for magnification factor up to 3. This model reduces the gaps of high-frequency details between the HR image patch and the LR image patch gradually and thus recovers the HR image in a cascaded manner. This cascading process promises the convergence of SERF image super-resolver. This method can also be applied to other heterogeneous image transformation fields such as face sketch photo synthesis. Further this algorithm will be implemented on FPGA by proposing suitable VLSI architectures. REFERENCES [1] W. Freeman, E. Pasztor, and O. Carmichael, Learning low-level vision, International Journal of Computer Vision, vol. 40, no. 1, pp. 25-47,2000. [2] J. Sun, N. Zheng, H. Tao, and H. Shum, Image hallucination with primal sketch priors, in Proceedings of IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition, 2003, pp. 729-736. [3] Q. Wang, X. Tang, and H. Shum, Patch based blind image super resolution, in Proceedings of IEEE international Conference on Computer Vision, 2005, pp. 709-716. [4] J. Yang, J. Wright, T. Huang, and Y. Ma, Image super-resolution via sparse representation, IEEE Transactions on Image Processing, vol. 19,no. 11, pp. 2861-2873,2010. [5] R. Zeyde, M. Elad, and M. Protter, On single image scale-up using sparse-representations, in Proceedings of Curves and Surfaces, 2012, pp. 711-730. [6] X. Gao, K. Zhang, D. Tao, and X. Li, Joint learning for single-image super-resolution via a coupled constraint, IEEE Transactions on Image Processing, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 469-480, 2012. [7] K. Zhang, X. Gao, D. Tao, and X. Li, Single image super-resolution with multiscale similarity learning, IEEE Transactions on Neural Networks and Learning Systems, vol. 24, no. 10, pp. 1648-1659, 2013. [8] G. Freedman and G. Fattal, Image and video upscaling from local selfexamples, ACM Transactions on Graphics, vol. 28, no. 3, pp. 1-10, 2011. [9] K. Zhang, D. Tao, X. Gao, X. Li, and Z. Xiong, Learning multiple linear mappings for efficient single image super-resolution, IEEE Transactions on Image Processing, vol. 24, no. 3, pp. 846-861, 2015. [10] K. Kim, D. Kim, and J. Kim, Example-based learning for image super resolution, in Proceedings of Tsinghua-KAIST Joint Workshop Pattern Recognition, 2004, pp. 140-148. [11] K. Zhang, D. Tao, X. Gao, X. Li, and Z. Xiong, Learning multiple linear mappings for efficient single image super-resolution, IEEE Transactions on Image Processing, vol. 24, no. 3, pp. 846-861, 2015. [12] M. Yang and Y. Wang, A self-learning approach to single image super resolution, IEEE Transactions on Multimedia, vol. 15, no. 3, pp. 498-508, 2013. [13] K. Kim and K. Younghee, Single-image super-resolution using sparse regression and natural image prior, IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence, vol. 32, no. 6, pp. 1127-1133, 2010. [14] H. He and W. Siu, Single image super-resolution using gaussian process regression, in Proceedings of IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition, 2011, pp. 449-456. [15] R. Timofte, V. Smet, and L. Gool, Anchored neighborhood regression for fast example-based super-resolution, in Proceedings of IEEE Conference on Computer Vision, 2013, pp. 1920-1927. [16] J. Yang, Z. Lin, and S. Cohen, Fast image super-resolution based on in-place example regression, in Proceedings of IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition, 2013, pp. 1059-1066. [17] C. Dong, C. Loy, K. He, and X. Tang, Learning a deep convolutional network for image super-resolution, in Proceedings of European Conference on Computer Vision, 2014, pp. 184-199. [18] C. Dong, C. Loy, K. He, and X. Tang, Image super-resolution using deep convolutional networks, IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence, DOI:10.1109/TPAMI.2015.2439281, 2015. [19] P. Viola and M. Jones, Robust real-time face detection, International Journal of Computer Vision, vol. 57, no. 2, pp. 137-154, 2004.

Essay --

The Christian view of theology is found in two ways: general revelation and special revelation. General revelation is available to all people at all times and can be found in the nature and design of the entire universe. Special revelation is given to specific people at specific times and places and can be found in Christ and the Scriptures. These two types of revelation show something very important to the cornerstone of Christian theology, it shows that God is personal. Through the revelation it can be seen that God is self-aware, self-determining, and He has emotions, the characteristics of a person. Another key idea to Christian theology is the fact that God is triune, He exists in the Father, Son, and the Spirit. Each one of the three branches serves a different purpose, but all are equally important and equally powerful. Matthew 28:19 affirms the idea of the Trinity by saying â€Å"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son , and of the Holy Ghost:†, mentioning every part of the trinity. God is a loving God who gave us His own Son in order to save us from our sins even though we didn’t deserve to be saved. Our Christian theology is based on this idea that Christ came and died for our sins, with this idea Christianity either stands or falls. Philosophy is also a major part in the Christian worldview even though some people use the first part of Colossians 2:8, which tells us not to be deceived by philosophy, as a way to say our faith doesn’t need to have reason and doesn’t have to be defended. These people negate the second part of the verse which says to not fall prey to philosophy based on man’s ideas. One question directed towards Christianity is the question of how is it po... ...volution in order to create humans. This idea however, is ridiculous and inefficient, and with an understanding Christians are able to defend the idea that God created all things. One of greatest arguments for Creationism is the idea of teleology, because there is design in the universe there must be a designer. We can see this in DNA, which has an incredible amount of order and information in just a small space, and functions as the blueprint for life. The gene pool is another thing that supports the idea of Creationism because it shows that macroevolution, not microevolution, is impossible. Creatures aren’t able to breed outside of their own gene pools, and we can see that this didn’t happen because of the many gaps in the fossil record. The Christian view of Creationism provides a good explanation for the origins of life, which points back to an all-powerful God.

Essay --

Financial support of minors Parents have an obligation to provide for their children. Children below the age of eighteen years are minors; hence, parents and guardians have the primary liability to support their children. It is their moral obligation to provide for their children as well as their mandate as the law stipulates. Parents are expected to provide common basic needs to the best of their ability. The general obligation of a parent is to provide love, affection, education, food, clothes and proper medical care. Minors on their part are supposed to respect their parents or guardians and utilize the opportunity they are given. For example, the opportunities to go to school, where they are expected to attend all classes and pass exams. When minors leave their parents’ home on their own accord, there is little probability that court will force their parents to support them financially. If the minors leave their parents’ home as a result of the influence of other people or failure to abide b y the rule stipulated by their family, then parents do not have any financial liabil...

Mock Exam Constitutional Law B

Constitutional Law Exam (Practice) N. B. The questions in this exam are taken, in part, from the tutorial questions – but expanded. Question One: The Commonwealth government passes a tax act on coal which is 10% tax on the sale of coal. The act also deals with regulations on the way coal is mined in states. If a coal company heeds all the regulations the government will increase the amount of funding given to the States for all its projects. The tax will increase the price of coal sold interstate as the companies attempt to offset the tax increase. The act also provides provisions for new mining companies that set up in ‘country towns’ will pay only 7% of the tax – this is part of its decentralised sustainable planning policy. To encourage people to go and work in these country towns and to encourage other businesses also the act adjusts the income tax rate for people who work in the mines and live in the country. It also prescribes a reduction in HECS and education costs for miners with children who attend university/school. †¢Is there a head of power to support these laws? If yes, †¢Is the Act constitutionally valid? Issues for concern: Multi-characterisation: †¢S 51(20) – Corporations power – ‘trading corporation’ –Adamson’s activities test etc. †¢S 51(1) – Trade and Commerce. †¢S 51(2) – Taxation power. †¢S 51(39) – Incidental Power. Constitutional Limitations: †¢S 51(2) does it discriminate between States? – s51(2) – issue of non-coal mining tax compared to coal mining states – Tasmania v Queensland †¢Regulations – cleaner technology – more funding from federal government gives preference to mining States – Tasmania v Queensland – possible breach of s 99? The coal tax act must deal exclusively with tax anything else [regulations] shall have no effect: s 55. So notwithstanding s 99 breaches may have no effect through s 55 anyway. †¢Section 92 – in effect the laws impact on the ‘absolutely free’ intercourse of trade between states à ¢â‚¬â€œ increase in prices. †¢Section 117 – tax reduced to 7% or new business setting up in country towns; adjustment of income tax rates in for country towns – and educational benefits – discrimination between the residences of States. Question Two: The Federal Government makes a regulation in the immigration legislation in relation to that claiming refugee status. It states that the applications of those who come from Middle Eastern countries should not be processed for six months. The Government argues these rules are necessary because the situation in those countries is unsettled, and it is difficult for them to properly assess claims of persecution at this time. The new regulations also prevent the renewal of all working visas for Middle Eastern people, and require immediate deportation of people whose visas have expired. The new regulations also require that those of Islamic faith (from Middle-Eastern countries) must identify themselves with a patch sewn on their clothes and any mosque must be registered with the Australian Federal Police. The regulations prescribe that the accounting books of these mosques are audited every two months. There has been a great deal of protest over these new laws and so the government has also passed regulation that attempts to retard the more aggressive protestors by imposing mandatory prison sentences for those people cause grievous bodily harm to police officers in protesting, or cause damage to cars/buildings or other property. †¢Is there a head of power to support these laws? If yes, †¢Is the Act constitutionally valid? Issues for concern: Multi-characterisation: †¢S 51(19) – Alien power. †¢S 51(26) – Race. S 51(2) – Emigration or Immigration. †¢S 51(39) – Incidental Power. †¢S 51(6) – Defence Power (not an issue for the exam – but noteworthy). Constitutional Limitations: †¢Breach of freedom of religion s 116. †¢Implied freedom of political communication †¢Possibly an issue of Separation of Powers – Kable – (not an issue for the exam – but noteworthy). Question Three: The F ederal Government makes regulation to stimulate the economy and then begins issue handouts to business in the Eastern States, as well as Eastern State Governments. They argue that because Eastern States contribute the most to our economy their economies are more important coming out of a recession. †¢Is there a head of power to support these laws? If yes, †¢Is the Act constitutionally valid? Issues for concern: Multi-characterisation: †¢S 96 – Grants to the States. †¢S 81 – Appropriations – head of power for this section: †¢S 51(20) – Corporations power – ‘trading corporation’ –Adamson’s activities test etc. †¢S 51(1) – Trade and Commerce. S 51(39) – Incidental Power. Constitutional Limitations: †¢Section 99 – preference to States. †¢Section 117 – residence. Question Four: (Essay Question) Are rights in Australia sufficiently covered by the Constitution; even when rights have been provided for – right to trial by jury – they have been narrowly construed to circumvent their application? Should this happe n? Is a bill of Rights need in our constitutional regime? Are implied rights sufficient. Discuss – with reference to examples.