OBJECTIVE To develop a simulator for training in fluoroscopy-guided facet joint injections and to evaluate the learning curve for this procedure among radiology residents. MATERIALS AND METHODS Using a human lumbar spine as a model, we manufactured five lumbar vertebrae made of methacrylate and plaster. These vertebrae were assembled in order to create an anatomical model of the lumbar spine....

In this study, two novel learning algorithms have been applied on Radial Basis Function Neural Network (RBFNN) to approximate the functions with high non-linear order. The Probabilistic Evolutionary (PE) and Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM) techniques are proposed to significantly minimize the error functions. The main idea is concerning the various strategies to optimize the procedure of Gradient ...

We introduce a coe cient update procedure into existing batch and online dictionary learning algorithms. We rst propose an algorithm which is a coe cient updated version of the Method of Optimal Directions (MOD) dictionary learning algorithm (DLA). The MOD algorithm with coe cient updates presents a computationally expensive dictionary learning iteration with high convergence rate. Secondly, we...

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS The surgical management options for eustachian tube dysfunction have historically been limited. The goal of the current study was to evaluate the technical considerations, learning curve, and potential barriers for balloon dilation of the eustachian tube (BDET) as an alternative treatment modality. STUDY DESIGN Prospective preclinical trial of BDET in a cadaver model. ...

Meta-learning allows an intelligent agent to leverage prior learning episodes as a basis for quickly improving performance on a novel task. Bayesian hierarchical modeling provides a theoretical framework for formalizing meta-learning as inference for a set of parameters that are shared across tasks. Here, we reformulate the model-agnostic meta-learning algorithm (MAML) of Finn et al. (2017) as ...

The paper presents a system LABAQM for the analysis of laboratory animal behaviour based on qualitative modelling. We are dealing with the cognitive phase of the laboratory animal behaviour analysis as a part of the pharmacological experiments. The system is based on the quantitative data from the tracking application and incomplete domain background knowledge. The LABAQM system operates in two...

A novel optimization algorithm named teaching-learning-based optimization (TLBO) algorithm and its implementation procedure were presented in this paper. TLBO is a meta-heuristic method, which simulates the phenomenon in classes. TLBO has two phases: teacher phase and learner phase. Students learn from teachers in teacher phases and obtain knowledge by mutual learning in learner phase. The suit...

Feedback on learning strategies is a promising instructional support measure. However, research on the expertise reversal effect suggests that if instructional support measures are provided to expert learners, these learners would have to integrate and cross-reference redundant instructional guidance with available knowledge structures, resulting in less available resources for effective learni...