The Effect Of Stress And Hypercortisolaemia On Limbic Epileptogenesis & Affective Disorder.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$380,714.00
Summary
This project has the potential to provide novel insights about the causal connections between stress, psychiatric illness (specifically anxiety and depression) and temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) - the most common form of medical refractory epilepsy in the community. Up to 50% of patients with TLE suffer from anxiety and-or depression. Until relatively recently it had been widely assumed that this was a consequence of the chronic epileptic condition. However, recent evidence suggests that there is ....This project has the potential to provide novel insights about the causal connections between stress, psychiatric illness (specifically anxiety and depression) and temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) - the most common form of medical refractory epilepsy in the community. Up to 50% of patients with TLE suffer from anxiety and-or depression. Until relatively recently it had been widely assumed that this was a consequence of the chronic epileptic condition. However, recent evidence suggests that there is a bi-directional relationship, with the psychiatric conditions and stress also acting to aggravate the seizures and even predispose to the development of the epilepsy itself. Apart from gaining insights into causes of TLE, anxiety and depression, this framework has potential public health relevance suggesting approaches to the eventual primary and secondary prevention of both MTLE and its associated psychiatric co-morbidities, a neglected area at present. The use of an animal model allows investigation of aetiological processes that extend over the lifetime, which is exceptionally difficult to achieve in humans. Retrospective studies, such as case-control studies, although an indispensable research methods, are subject to bias and imprecision when it comes to measuring remote past exposures to stress, abuse, and deprivation. If the results of these experiments are consistent with our hypotheses, a very strong case would exist for exploring this relationship in human studies. The data would also provide a strong rationale for more aggressive detection and treatment of these psychiatric co-morbidities in TLE patients, in order to potentially modify the progression of the disorder as well as improve the quality of life of sufferers. The results of intervention studies in animal models may suggest specific mode of treatment to achieve this.Read moreRead less
Why Does Early Life Stress Aggravate Limbic Epileptogenesis?
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$540,116.00
Summary
High rates of anxiety and depression occur in individuals with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE), the most common form of focal epilepsy in adults. Rats that have experienced early life stress show increased anxiety, decreased seizure thresholds and accelerated epilepsy as adults. We have important leads to mechanisms. The proposed study will better understand the mechanisms connecting early life stress and psychiatric disease to adult TLE, and to test interventions that may counteract these effects.
A scalable and portable question-answering system. The current availability of large volumes of free text digitally stored demands the development of methodologies that can automatically find specific answers to user questions about this "unstructured" information. The goal of this project is to develop a scalable portable and domain-independent real-time natural-language question-answering system that explores the logical contents of the text. To achieve this we will fuse current approaches to ....A scalable and portable question-answering system. The current availability of large volumes of free text digitally stored demands the development of methodologies that can automatically find specific answers to user questions about this "unstructured" information. The goal of this project is to develop a scalable portable and domain-independent real-time natural-language question-answering system that explores the logical contents of the text. To achieve this we will fuse current approaches to question answering with approaches that look at the logical contents of the questions and answer candidates. A central part of the project will be the characterisation of the optimal logical forms, the determination of efficient methods to create and store sentence logical forms of potentially large volumes of text, and the treatment of difficult questions by incorporating summarisation and text generation techniques.Read moreRead less
A Layered Controlled Natural Language for Knowledge Representation. In this research project we will develop a controlled natural language for knowledge representation that has the potential to bridge the gap between fragments of natural language and formal languages. This controlled language will be based on a variety of increasing sophisticated layers, each building upon those below it by providing enhancements in expressive power. Sentences of the controlled language will be unambiguously tra ....A Layered Controlled Natural Language for Knowledge Representation. In this research project we will develop a controlled natural language for knowledge representation that has the potential to bridge the gap between fragments of natural language and formal languages. This controlled language will be based on a variety of increasing sophisticated layers, each building upon those below it by providing enhancements in expressive power. Sentences of the controlled language will be unambiguously translatable into a corresponding formal language. Anyone who can read and write English can immediately use the controlled language with the help an intelligent text editor. This technology will make it possible for non-specialists to write problem specifications in terms of the application domain without the need to formally encode the information.Read moreRead less
A Skin Detection Micro-Sensor for Face Identification using Color and Stereo Information. The objective of this research is to develop a micro-sensor for face identification, using color and stereo information. The micro-sensor chip performs a real-time search of the scene to locate human skin for subsequent face detection. This micro-sensor could also be used for gesture recognition, lip reading, monitoring driver's hypo-vigilance or tracking a person in a crowd. The chip image-recognition capa ....A Skin Detection Micro-Sensor for Face Identification using Color and Stereo Information. The objective of this research is to develop a micro-sensor for face identification, using color and stereo information. The micro-sensor chip performs a real-time search of the scene to locate human skin for subsequent face detection. This micro-sensor could also be used for gesture recognition, lip reading, monitoring driver's hypo-vigilance or tracking a person in a crowd. The chip image-recognition capabilities will spur the development of a new generation of consumer products with "intelligent eyes".
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Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE100100235
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$280,000.00
Summary
Accelerating Australia's large scale video surveillance research programmes. The research to be conducted using this infrastructure will bring immense benefits to Australia in terms of increased levels of public safety and in the protection of critical facilities from terrorism and other crimes, by developing better surveillance systems. This will provide both increases in measurable research outputs and opportunities for Australian business to commercialise these systems. The infrastructure wil ....Accelerating Australia's large scale video surveillance research programmes. The research to be conducted using this infrastructure will bring immense benefits to Australia in terms of increased levels of public safety and in the protection of critical facilities from terrorism and other crimes, by developing better surveillance systems. This will provide both increases in measurable research outputs and opportunities for Australian business to commercialise these systems. The infrastructure will accelerate the pace of surveillance research and development in Australia, enhancing the competitiveness of both Australia's researchers and the businesses that will commercialise these researchers' discoveries.Read moreRead less
A Computer-Aided Cartooning System. This project is aimed at developing a computer-aided system to accelerate main image-related processes in cartoon production. Using such a system, many of the tedious and repetitive tasks can be performed semi-automatically. The project is focused on accurate representation and matching of shapes. New vectorization methods based on projection onto convex sets (POCS), and new matching methods based on multi-stage hierarchical structures will be developed. The t ....A Computer-Aided Cartooning System. This project is aimed at developing a computer-aided system to accelerate main image-related processes in cartoon production. Using such a system, many of the tedious and repetitive tasks can be performed semi-automatically. The project is focused on accurate representation and matching of shapes. New vectorization methods based on projection onto convex sets (POCS), and new matching methods based on multi-stage hierarchical structures will be developed. The targeted applications include entertainment, next generation mobile services, and the internet.Read moreRead less
Vision Model Based Perceptual Digital Video Coding. Digital video coding and compression is an enabling technology and has diversified applications in audiovisual communications, multimedia computing, digital television broadcast and electronic entertainment industries. The project aims at spearheading research in theory, techniques and implementation of perceptual video coding in order to achieve constant and guaranteed quality in visual communications and services. It will explore a new appr ....Vision Model Based Perceptual Digital Video Coding. Digital video coding and compression is an enabling technology and has diversified applications in audiovisual communications, multimedia computing, digital television broadcast and electronic entertainment industries. The project aims at spearheading research in theory, techniques and implementation of perceptual video coding in order to achieve constant and guaranteed quality in visual communications and services. It will explore a new approach to digital video coding other than the constant bit rate coding techniques which have dominated digital video research for the past four decades. It will form a part of the theoretical foundation and principles for the next generation video coding and compression techniques, and may lead to new standards and practice.Read moreRead less
Advanced Processing for Through-the-Wall Radar Imaging. There is currently considerable interest around the world in imaging systems that can 'see' through-the-walls. This project is at the cutting edge of through-the-wall radar imaging research and technology. It will benefit both the defence and security industries, and position Australia among the leading countries in this technology, as only a handful of research teams around the world have the necessary background and expertise in this area ....Advanced Processing for Through-the-Wall Radar Imaging. There is currently considerable interest around the world in imaging systems that can 'see' through-the-walls. This project is at the cutting edge of through-the-wall radar imaging research and technology. It will benefit both the defence and security industries, and position Australia among the leading countries in this technology, as only a handful of research teams around the world have the necessary background and expertise in this area. The research outcomes will enhance the capability of the military, law enforcement, counter-terrorism, and search and rescue personnel. It will play a vital role in protecting and safeguarding Australia from terrorism and crime.Read moreRead less
Enhanced Through-Wall Imaging using Bayesian Compressive Sensing. The aim of this project is to develop radar imaging techniques which enable us to 'see' objects behind walls and opaque materials. The major intended breakthrough is the ability to image objects behind walls and inside buildings or enclosed structures without accessing the scene. Novel signal and image processing algorithms, based on Bayesian compressive sensing, will be developed to enhance image quality and resolution, improve s ....Enhanced Through-Wall Imaging using Bayesian Compressive Sensing. The aim of this project is to develop radar imaging techniques which enable us to 'see' objects behind walls and opaque materials. The major intended breakthrough is the ability to image objects behind walls and inside buildings or enclosed structures without accessing the scene. Novel signal and image processing algorithms, based on Bayesian compressive sensing, will be developed to enhance image quality and resolution, improve speed of operation, and reduce the cost and time of data acquisition and processing. Many applications are expected to benefit from this research including search and rescue, surveillance, security, and defence. The research outcomes are expected to enhance the capabilities of the Australian armed forces, counter-terrorism, police and law-enforcement agencies.Read moreRead less