Visual interactions with Web database content

Naturalistic stimuli, such as movies, activate a substantial portion of the human brain, invoking a response shared across individuals. Encoding models that predict neural responses to arbitrary stimuli can be very useful for studying brain function. However, existing models focus on limited aspects of naturalistic stimuli, ignoring the dynamic interactions of modalities in this inherently context-rich paradigm. Using movie-watching data from the Human Connectome Project, we build group-level models of neural activity that incorporate several inductive biases about neural information processing, including hierarchical processing, temporal assimilation, and auditory-visual interactions. We demonstrate how incorporating these biases leads to remarkable prediction performance across large areas of the cortex, beyond the sensory-specific cortices into multisensory sites and frontal cortex. Furthermore, we illustrate that encoding models learn high-level concepts that generalize to task-bound paradigms. Together, our findings underscore the potential of encoding models as powerful tools for studying brain function in ecologically valid conditions.

Download Full-text

DroRun: Drone Visual Interactions to Mediate a Running Group

Companion of the 2021 ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction ◽

10.1145/3434074.3447148 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Birgir Baldursson ◽

Tim Björk ◽

Lisa Johansson ◽

Agnes Rickardsson ◽

Ellen Widerstrand ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Visual Interactions

Download Full-text

The Polito Surface Wave flat-file Database (PSWD): statistical properties of test results and some inter-method comparisons

Bulletin of Earthquake Engineering ◽

10.1007/s10518-021-01069-1 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 19 (6) ◽

pp. 2343-2370

Author(s):

Federico Passeri ◽

Cesare Comina ◽

Sebastiano Foti ◽

Laura Valentina Socco

Keyword(s):

Surface Wave ◽

Shear Wave ◽

Wave Velocity ◽

Shear Wave Velocity ◽

Active Surface ◽

Statistical Properties ◽

Test Results ◽

Flat File ◽

Research Fields ◽

Database Content

AbstractThe compilation and maintenance of experimental databases are of crucial importance in all research fields, allowing for researchers to develop and test new methodologies. In this work, we present a flat-file database of experimental dispersion curves and shear wave velocity profiles, mainly from active surface wave testing, but including also data from passive surface wave testing and invasive methods. The Polito Surface Wave flat-file Database (PSWD) is a gathering of experimental measurements collected within the past 25 years at different Italian sites. Discussion on the database content is reported in this paper to evaluate some statistical properties of surface wave test results. Comparisons with other methods for shear wave velocity measurements are also considered. The main novelty of this work is the homogeneity of the PSWD in terms of processing and interpretation methods. A common processing strategy and a new inversion approach were applied to all the data in the PSWD to guarantee consistency. The PSWD can be useful for further correlation studies and is made available as a reference benchmark for the validation and verification of novel interpretation procedures by other researchers.

Download Full-text

Website information retrieval of web database based on symmetric encryption algorithm

Journal of Ambient Intelligence and Humanized Computing ◽

10.1007/s12652-020-02819-w ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Chong Xing ◽

Kunhao Wang

Keyword(s):

Information Retrieval ◽

Encryption Algorithm ◽

Symmetric Encryption ◽

Web Database

Download Full-text

Directional effects of whole-body spinning and visual flow in virtual reality on vagal neuromodulation

Journal of Vestibular Research ◽

10.3233/ves-201574 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-16

Author(s):

Alexander Yang Hui Xiang ◽

Prashanna Khwaounjoo ◽

Yusuf Ozgur Cakmak

Keyword(s):

Heart Rate ◽

Nervous System ◽

Visual Stimulation ◽

Pupil Diameter ◽

Parasympathetic Activity ◽

Whole Body ◽

Vagal Activity ◽

Eyes Closed ◽

Visual Flow ◽

Visual Interactions

BACKGROUND: Neural circuits allow whole-body yaw rotation to modulate vagal parasympathetic activity, which alters beat-to-beat variation in heart rate. The overall output of spinning direction, as well as vestibular-visual interactions on vagal activity still needs to be investigated. OBJECTIVE: This study investigated direction-dependent effects of visual and natural vestibular stimulation on two autonomic responses: heart rate variability (HRV) and pupil diameter. METHODS: Healthy human male subjects (n = 27) underwent constant whole-body yaw rotation with eyes open and closed in the clockwise (CW) and anticlockwise (ACW) directions, at 90°/s for two minutes. Subjects also viewed the same spinning environments on video in a VR headset. RESULTS: CW spinning significantly decreased parasympathetic vagal activity in all conditions (CW open p = 0.0048, CW closed p = 0.0151, CW VR p = 0.0019,), but not ACW spinning (ACW open p = 0.2068, ACW closed p = 0.7755, ACW VR p = 0.1775,) as indicated by an HRV metric, the root mean square of successive RR interval differences (RMSSD). There were no direction-dependent effects of constant spinning on sympathetic activity inferred through the HRV metrics, stress index (SI), sympathetic nervous system index (SNS index) and pupil diameter. Neuroplasticity in the CW eyes closed and CW VR conditions post stimulation was observed. CONCLUSIONS: Only one direction of yaw spinning, and visual flow caused vagal nerve neuromodulation and neuroplasticity, resulting in an inhibition of parasympathetic activity on the heart, to the same extent in either vestibular or visual stimulation. These results indicate that visual flow in VR can be used as a non-electrical method for vagus nerve inhibition without the need for body motion in the treatment of disorders with vagal overactivity. The findings are also important for VR and spinning chair based autonomic nervous system modulation protocols, and the effects of motion integrated VR.

Download Full-text