Predicting Clinical Course from Subcortical Shape in Provisional Tic Disorder

The ongoing NewTics study examines children who have had tics for less than 9 months (NT group) - a population on which little research exists. Here, we further investigate relationships between subcortical shape and tic symptom outcomes. 138 children were assessed at baseline and a 12-month follow-up: 79 with NT, 27 tic-free healthy controls (HC), and 32 with chronic tic disorder or Tourette syndrome (TS), using T1-weighted MRI and total tic scores (TTS) from the Yale Global Tic Severity Scale to evaluate symptom change. Subcortical surface maps were generated using FreeSurfer-initialized large deformation diffeomorphic metric mapping, and linear regression models were constructed to correlate structural shapes with TTS while accounting for covariates, with relationships mapped onto structure surfaces. When compared to healthy controls, smaller mean volumes were found in the TS group for the caudate, nucleus accumbens, pallidum, and thalamus. NT had smaller mean volumes than controls in the caudate, pallidum, and thalamus. Surface maps illustrate distinct patterns of inward deformation (localized volume loss) in the TS group compared to NT children. In the NT group, a larger hippocampus at baseline significantly correlated with the worsening of tic symptoms at 12 months. Outward deformation in the hippocampus and inward deformation in the accumbens at baseline are also related to worsening tic symptoms at follow-up. Since the NT group has had tics only for a few months, we can rule out the possibility that these subcortical volume differences are caused by living with tics for years; they are more likely related to the cause of tics. These observations constitute some of the first prognostic biomarkers for tic disorders and suggest localized circuitry that may be associated with outcome of tic disorders.

Meaning and Expected Surfaces Combine to Guide Attention During Visual Search in Scenes

How do spatial constraints and meaningful scene regions interact to control overt attention during visual search for objects in real-world scenes? To answer this question, we combined novel surface maps of the likely locations of target objects with maps of the spatial distribution of scene semantic content. The surface maps captured likely target surfaces as continuous probabilities. Meaning was represented by meaning maps highlighting the distribution of semantic content in local scene regions and objects. Attention was indexed by eye movements during search for target objects that varied in the likelihood they would appear on specific surfaces. The interaction between surface maps and meaning maps was analyzed to test whether fixations were directed to meaningful scene regions on target-related surfaces. Overall, meaningful scene regions were more likely to be fixated if they appeared on target-related surfaces than if they appeared on target-unrelated surfaces. These findings suggest that the visual system prioritizes meaningful scene regions on target-related surfaces during visual search in scenes.

Optimizing Game Performance with Dynamic Level of Detail Mesh Terrrain Based on CPU Usage

AbstrakPeta permukaan merupakan dasar dari pembuatan suatu game. Game tidak dapat dimainkan apabila suatu karakter tidak memiliki area untuk ditelusuri. PCG merupakan metode pembuatan konten game secara otomatis berdasarkan aturan tertentu. Pembuatan konten game secara otomatis dapat memperhemat waktu dan biaya. Perlin Noise merupakan salah satu metode yang dapat digunakan untuk pembuatan peta game. Algoritma Perlin Noise dapat membuat suatu noise yang berbentuk gradient dan menyimpan nilai 1 sampai dengan 0 pada setiap pixelnya. Nilai tersebut dapat dimanfaatkan sebagai nilai ketinggian dari suatu peta 3D yang dibentuk dari titik yang kemudian dihubungkan menjadi suatu permukaan disebut sebagai mesh. LOD merupakan suatu tingkatan ketelitian tampilan objek. Mesh dapat dipadukan dengan LOD dengan mengurangi atau menambah jumlah mesh. Pada penelitian ini LOD dibagi menjadi 6 level. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk meningkatkan performa permainan menggunakan LOD dinamik yang disesuaikan berdasarkan penggunaan CPU. Didapat bahwa dinamik LOD memiliki rata – rata FPS yang lebih tinggi dibandingkan dengan statik LOD.Abstract Surface maps are the basis of making games. The game can't be played with characters that don't have an area to search. PCG is an automatic method of creating game content based on certain rules. Creating game content automatically can save time and money. Perlin Noise is one method that can be used for making game maps. The Perlin Noise algorithm can make noise that forms a gradient and store values from 1 to 0 in each pixel. This value can be used as a high value from 3D made from a point which is then converted into what is called a mesh. LOD is a level of detail object. Mesh can be combined with LOD by reducing or increasing the number of mesh. In this study LOD was divided into 6 levels. This study aims to improve game performance using a dynamic LOD that is adjusted based on CPU usage. Obtained that dynamic LOD has a higher average FPS compared to static LOD.