José Garcia Vivas Miranda

The network of concepts in written texts

Abstract.Complex network theory is used to investigate the structure of meaningful concepts in written texts of individual authors. Networks have been constructed after a two phase filtering, where words with less meaning contents are eliminated and all remaining words are set to their canonical form, without any number, gender or time flexion. Each sentence in the text is added to the network as a clique. A large number of written texts have been scrutinised, and it is found that texts have small-world as well as scale-free structures. The growth process of these networks has also been investigated, and a universal evolution of network quantifiers have been found among the set of texts written by distinct authors. Further analyses, based on shuffling procedures taken either on the texts or on the constructed networks, provide hints on the role played by the word frequency and sentence length distributions to the network structure.

Modularity map of the network of human cell differentiation

Cell differentiation in multicellular organisms is a complex process whose mechanism can be understood by a reductionist approach, in which the individual processes that control the generation of different cell types are identified. Alternatively, a large-scale approach in search of different organizational features of the growth stages promises to reveal its modular global structure with the goal of discovering previously unknown relations between cell types. Here, we sort and analyze a large set of scattered data to construct the network of human cell differentiation (NHCD) based on cell types (nodes) and differentiation steps (links) from the fertilized egg to a developed human. We discover a dynamical law of critical branching that reveals a self-similar regularity in the modular organization of the network, and allows us to observe the network at different scales. The emerging picture clearly identifies clusters of cell types following a hierarchical organization, ranging from sub-modules to super-modules of specialized tissues and organs on varying scales. This discovery will allow one to treat the development of a particular cell function in the context of the complex network of human development as a whole. Our results point to an integrated large-scale view of the network of cell types systematically revealing ties between previously unrelated domains in organ functions.

Electroencephalographic Patterns in Chronic Pain: A Systematic Review of the Literature

The main objective of this study is to review and summarize recent findings on electroencephalographic patterns in individuals with chronic pain. We also discuss recent advances in the use of quantitative Electroencephalography (qEEG) for the assessment of pathophysiology and biopsychosocial factors involved in its maintenance over time. Data collection took place from February 2014 to July 2015 in PubMed, SciELO and PEDro databases. Data from cross-sectional studies and longitudinal studies, as well as clinical trials involving chronic pain participants were incorporated into the final analysis. Our primary findings related to chronic pain were an increase of theta and alpha EEG power at rest, and a decrease in the amplitude of evoked potentials after sensory stimulation and cognitive tasks. This review suggests that qEEG could be considered as a simple and objective tool for the study of brain mechanisms involved in chronic pain, as well as for identifying the specific characteristics of chronic pain condition. In addition, results show that qEEG probably is a relevant outcome measure for assessing changes in therapeutic studies.

COMPLEX SEMANTIC NETWORKS

Verbal language is a dynamic mental process. Ideas emerge by means of the selection of words from subjective and individual characteristics throughout the oral discourse. The goal of this work is to characterize the complex network of word associations that emerge from an oral discourse from a discourse topic. Because of that, concepts of associative incidence and fidelity have been elaborated and represented the probability of occurrence of pairs of words in the same sentence in the whole oral discourse. Semantic network of words associations were constructed, where the words are represented as nodes and the edges are created when the incidence-fidelity index between pairs of words exceeds a numerical limit (0.001). Twelve oral discourses were studied. The networks generated from these oral discourses present a typical behavior of complex networks and their indices were calculated and their topologies characterized. The indices of these networks obtained from each incidence-fidelity limit exhibit a critical value in which the semantic network has maximum conceptual information and minimum residual associations. Semantic networks generated by this incidence-fidelity limit depict a pattern of hierarchical classes that represent the different contexts used in the oral discourse.

A Randomized, Double-Blind, Sham-Controlled Trial of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Background Current standardized treatments for cognitive impairment in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder remain limited and their efficacy restricted. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a promising tool for enhancing cognitive performance in several neuropsychiatric disorders. Nevertheless, the effects of tDCS in reducing cognitive impairment in patients with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have not yet been investigated. Methods A parallel, randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled trial was conducted to examine the efficacy of tDCS on the modulation of inhibitory control in adults with ADHD. Thirty patients were randomly allocated to each group and performed a go/no-go task before and after a single session of either anodal stimulation (1 mA) over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex or sham stimulation. Results A nonparametric two-sample Wilcoxon rank-sum (Mann-Whitney) test revealed no significant differences between the two groups of individuals with ADHD (tDCS vs. sham) in regard to behavioral performance in the go/no go tasks. Furthermore, the effect sizes of group differences after treatment for the primary outcome measures—correct responses, impulsivity and omission errors—were small. No adverse events resulting from stimulation were reported. Conclusion According to these findings, there is no evidence in support of the use of anodal stimulation over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex as an approach for improving inhibitory control in ADHD patients. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first clinical study to assess the cognitive effects of tDCS in individuals with ADHD. Further research is needed to assess the clinical efficacy of tDCS in this population. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01968512

Neighborhood properties of complex networks.

A concept of neighborhood in complex networks is addressed based on the criterion of the minimal number of steps to reach other vertices. This amounts to, starting from a given network R1, generating a family of networks Rl, l = 2, 3,... such that, the vertices that are l steps apart in the original R1, are only 1 step apart in Rl. The higher order networks are generated using Boolean operations among the adjacency matrices Ml that represent Rl. The families originated by the well known linear and the Erdös-Renyi networks are found to be invariant, in the sense that the spectra of Ml are the same, up to finite size effects. A further family originated from small world network is identified.

Mother wavelet functions generalized through q-exponentials

We generalize some widely used mother wavelets by means of the q-exponential function exq ? [1 + (1 ? q)x]1/(1?q) that emerges from nonextensive statistical mechanics. In particular, we define extended versions of the Mexican hat and the Morlet wavelets. We also introduce new wavelets that are q-generalizations of the trigonometric functions. All cases reduce to the usual ones as q ? 1. Within nonextensive statistical mechanics, departures from unity of the entropic index q are expected in the presence of long-range interactions, long-term memory, multi-fractal structures, among others. Consistently the analysis of signals associated with such features is hopefully improved by proper tuning of the value of q. We exemplify with the wavelet transform modulus-maxima method for mono- and multi-fractal self-affine signals.

R/S analysis of pluviometric records: comparison with numerical experiments

Hursts exponent H is obtained for historical precipitation data in northeast Brazil. The influence of periodic natural forces in the data is reflected by the presence of breaks and steps in the plots of the R/S signal vs. the time lag τ. The reliability of the results for actual data is tested by the comparison to those for numerical simulations of random variables under the influence of an external periodic modulated forcing.

Spreading Effect of tDCS in Individuals with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder as Shown by Functional Cortical Networks: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Sham-Controlled Trial

Background Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is known to modulate spontaneous neural network excitability. The cognitive improvement observed in previous trials raises the potential of this technique as a possible therapeutic tool for use in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) population. However, to explore the potential of this technique as a treatment approach, the functional parameters of brain connectivity and the extent of its effects need to be more fully investigated. Objective The aim of this study was to investigate a functional cortical network (FCN) model based on electroencephalographic activity for studying the dynamic patterns of brain connectivity modulated by tDCS and the distribution of its effects in individuals with ADHD. Methods Sixty ADHD patients participated in a parallel, randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled trial. Individuals underwent a single session of sham or anodal tDCS at 1 mA of current intensity over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex for 20 min. The acute effects of stimulation on brain connectivity were assessed using the FCN model based on electroencephalography activity. Results Comparing the weighted node degree within groups prior to and following the intervention, a statistically significant difference was found in the electrodes located on the target and correlated areas in the active group (p < 0.05), while no statistically significant results were found in the sham group (p ≥ 0.05; paired-sample Wilcoxon signed-rank test). Conclusion Anodal tDCS increased functional brain connectivity in individuals with ADHD compared to data recorded in the baseline resting state. In addition, although some studies have suggested that the effects of tDCS are selective, the present findings show that its modulatory activity spreads. Further studies need to be performed to investigate the dynamic patterns and physiological mechanisms underlying the modulatory effects of tDCS. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01968512.

Instrumento livre para medidas de movimento

This paper presents the validation of a computational tool that serves to obtain continuous measurements of moving objects. The software uses techniques of computer vision, pattern recognition and optical flow, to enable the tracking of objects in videos, generating data trajectory, velocity, acceleration and angular movement. The program was applied to track a ball around a simple pendulum. The methodology used for this validation takes as a basis for comparisons the measured values of the program as well as the theoretical values expected according to the model of a simple pendulum. The experiment is appropriate to the method because it was built within the limits of the linear harmonic oscillator, and energy losses due to friction had been minimized, making it the most ideal possible. The results indicate that the tool is sensitive and accurate. Deviations of less than a millimeter in the measurements of the trajectory ensure the applicability of the software on physics, either in research or in teaching topics.