Extraction and Calculation of Roadway Area from Satellite Images Using Improved Deep Learning Model and Post-Processing.

Roadway area calculation is a novel problem in remote sensing and urban planning. This paper models this problem as a two-step problem, roadway extraction, and area calculation. Roadway extraction from satellite images is a problem that has been tackled many times before. This paper proposes a method using pixel resolution to calculate the area of the roads covered in satellite images. The proposed approach uses novel U-net and Resnet architectures called U-net++ and ResNeXt. The state-of-the-art model is combined with the proposed efficient post-processing approach to improve the overlap with ground truth labels. The performance of the proposed road extraction algorithm is evaluated on the Massachusetts dataset and it is shown that the proposed approach outperforms the existing solutions which use models from the U-net family.

Kibi Plateau: A stable-coherent tectonic unit in the active Japanese Islands.

The Kibi Plateau in the active Japanese Islands consists of mainly Permian to Cretaceous rocks that have been deeply weathered into a red soil, comprising a peneplain with U-shaped valley. Systematic geological analyses of the Eocene fluvial deposits revealed the paleo-rivers that existed in the eastern Asian continent and streamed out to the paleo-Pacific Ocean. Each paleo-river is traced in a flow line shape without any significant vertical and horizontal displacement. The Eocene shallow marine sediments in a possible coastal region have no relevant inclination. These geological data strongly suggest that the Kibi Plateau has been a stable-coherent tectonic unit since the Eocene through the opening of the Japan Sea and the associated quick rotation of SW Japan in the Middle Miocene. The Kibi Plateau region with a thick crust over 30 km existed as a stable eastern segment of the Asian continent in the Eocene. The Kibi Plateau tectonic unit drifted to the south without any destruction due to the peripheral successive tectonic events such as the Philippine Sea plate subduction and the reactivation of Median Tectonic Line. No subduction related arc volcanism since the Eocene has also influenced to preserve the stable tectonic unit.

Elevated neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio is associated with nutritional impairment, immune suppression, resistance to S-1 plus cisplatin, and poor prognosis in patients with stage IV gastric cancer.

Gastric cancer continues to be a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Recently, there has been a growing interest in the host inflammatory response and there is increasing evidence that the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR), which is a useful marker of systemic inflammation, can be an effective prognostic indicator in various types of malignant diseases. A total of 110 patients with stage IV gastric cancer who received chemotherapy of S-1 plus cisplatin were enrolled in this study. Eleven patients did not complete four cycles of the chemotherapy. The patients were divided into two groups with 3.0 of NLR. The percentage of patients with a partial response to chemotherapy was significantly higher in the group of patients with a lower NLR (<3) (19.1 vs. 38.5%, high vs. low NLR group, respectively; P<0.05). The percentage of patients with progressive disease was higher in the high vs. low NLR group (57.4 vs. 25.0%, respectively; P<0.05). NLR levels were significantly inversely correlated with serum levels of prealbumin (P<0.01) and retinol binding protein (P<0.05). NLR levels were also significantly correlated with c-reactive protein levels (P<0.05), white blood cell count (P<0.05) and inversely with the stimulation index (a marker of cell-mediated immune function; P<0.05). Overall survival was significantly longer in patients with a lower NLR (≤ 3.0) than in those with a higher NLR (>3.0). The present study demonstrated that the NLR is a useful marker for resistance to chemotherapy, malnutrition, systemic inflammation and immune suppression. Moreover, the NLR was demonstrated to be a strong prognostic indicator in these patients.

In vitro and in vivo investigations of upconversion and NIR emitting Gd2O3:Er³âº,Yb³âº nanostructures for biomedical applications.

The use of an "over 1000-nm near-infrared (NIR) in vivo fluorescence bioimaging" system based on lanthanide containing inorganic nanostructures emitting in the visible and NIR range under 980-nm excitation is proposed. It may overcome problems of currently used biomarkers including color fading, phototoxicity and scattering. Gd(2)O(3):Er(3+),Yb(3+) nanoparticles and nanorods showing upconversion and NIR emission are synthesized and their cytotoxic behavior is investigated by incubation with B-cell hybridomas and macrophages. Surface modification with PEG-b-PAAc provides the necessary chemical durability reducing the release of toxic Gd(3+) ions. NIR fluorescence microscopy is used to investigate the suitability of the nanostructures as NIR-NIR biomarkers. The in vitro uptake of bare and modified nanostructures by macrophages is investigated by confocal laser scanning microscopy. In vivo investigations revealed nanostructures in liver, lung, kidneys and spleen a few hours after injection into mice, while most of the nanostructures have been removed from the body after 24 h.

Multimode hydriding/dehydriding reactions of CaPd.

Combined thermodynamical and structural studies have confirmed the occurrence of multimode hydriding/dehydriding reactions of CaPd that vary depending on temperature, and that these reactions proceed via hydrogen solution/dissolution in the temperature range 273-523 K and via phase decomposition/recombination in the temperature range 523-773 K.