We study implementation issues for spatial convolution lters and their Fourier alternative, with the aim to optimise the accuracy of lter output. We focus on Gaussian scale-space lters and show that there exists a trade-o scale that subdivides the available scale range in the sense that the smaller and larger scales are best extracted by Fourier, respectively spatial ltering.

This article examines the methodology New York State used to set capitation rates for a Medicaid health maintenance organization. By examining the methods used and the assumptions made in a particular case, some general lessons are drawn about the ratesetting process. Greater reliance on statewide data to assure fair and statistically stable estimates is needed. Although the article focuses on ...

Tetlock’s sacred value protection model (SVPM) proposed that taboo trade-offs evoke a strong moral reaction in people who resist secular encroachments on their sacred values. This strong moral reaction can be thought of as setting a moral limit on the extent of markets in society. In addition, Tetlock (2000) also suggested that a substantial minority of participants are susceptible to trading o...

Powered by recent advances in next-generation sequencing technologies, metagenomics has already unveiled vast microbial biodiversity in a range of environments, and is increasingly being applied in clinics for difficult-to-diagnose cases. It can be tempting to suggest that metagenomics could be used as a "universal test" for all pathogens without the need to conduct lengthy serial testing using...