Our understandings of money, possessions, and ownership are all changing dramatically as consumption becomes digital and virtual. The Metaverse is an imagined future space where these building blocks ...of neoliberal production and consumption are delinked. We examine these changes through the affordances of cryptocurrencies, algorithmic collectibles, and NFTs. We seek to disambiguate these efforts at disintermediation through online auctions and speculation. We present practical implications for artists, art institutions, buyers, and investors. We theorize new forms of ownership with fractional ownership and fractionalized property rights. And we seek to understand why some consumers pay astronomical prices for digital art that includes simple and often silly artwork with limited property rights. To do so we distinguish alternate, but sometimes overlapping, buyer motivations in the wild world of crypto art as we purportedly move toward the Metaverse.
The increase in the demand for eXtended Reality (XR)/Virtual Reality (VR) services in the recent years, poses a great challenge for Wi-Fi networks to maintain the strict latency requirements. In VR ...over Wi-Fi, latency is a significant issue. In fact, VR users expect instantaneous responses to their interactions, and any noticeable delay can disrupt user experience. Such disruptions can cause motion sickness, and users might end up quitting the service. Differentiating interactive VR traffic from Non-VR traffic within a Wi-Fi network can aim to decrease latency for VR users and improve Wi-Fi Quality of Service (QoS) with giving priority to VR users in the access point (AP) and efficiently handle VR traffic. In this paper, we propose a machine learning-based approach for identifying interactive VR traffic in a Cloud-Edge VR scenario. The correlation between downlink and uplink is crucial in our study. First, we extract features from single-user traffic characteristics and then, we compare six common classification techniques (i.e., Logistic Regression, Support Vector Machines, k-Nearest Neighbors, Decision Trees, Random Forest, and Naive Bayes). For each classifier, a process of hyperparameter tuning and feature selection, namely permutation importance is applied. The model created is evaluated using datasets generated by different VR applications, including both single and multi-user cases. Then, a Wi-Fi network simulator is used to analyze the VR traffic identification and prioritization QoS improvements. Our simulation results show that we successfully reduce VR traffic delays by a factor of 4.2x compared to scenarios without prioritization, while incurring only a 2.3x increase in delay for background (BG) traffic related to Non-VR services.
With the rapid development and evolution of immersive technologies there are growing concerns of security and privacy threats to the metaverse and extended reality (XR) systems. Immersive reality ...solutions are a combination of multiple vulnerable technologies allowing attackers to easily undermine security. Furthermore the deployment of appropriate security controls and defensive mechanisms for resource constrained proprietary XR products has been limited. In this paper, we provide a comprehensive overview of extended reality systems and the metaverse with emphasis on technology weaknesses, cyber security challenges and users’ safety concerns. Five major taxonomies have been presented in this research with an aim of identifying privacy inference vectors and potential cyber threats; determining the impact on human health and the extent to which cyberstalking, and digital currency scam activities proliferate when using XR. This research also proposes strategies for primary lines of defense and provides recommendations on the adoption of safety measures.
From BIM to extended reality in AEC industry Alizadehsalehi, Sepehr; Hadavi, Ahmad; Huang, Joseph Chuenhuei
Automation in construction,
August 2020, 2020-08-00, 20200801, Volume:
116
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
In the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry, Extended Reality (XR) technologies that simulate a construction project in a multidimensional digital model and present multiple ...aspects of a project can be a tremendous help in all stages of a project. This study aims to identify the outsourcing patterns for such technologies among construction project stakeholders. Currently, there is limited literature about XR technologies, and because of it, the sections containing the results of this study are as follows: (1) a concise review of the most recent VR, AR, and MR technologies in the design and construction industry; (2) an introduction to the most commonly used wearable XRs on the market in terms of features, ease of use, and their specifications; (3) a summary of the different methods and software used for converting the BIM model to VR, AR, and MR; and (4) finally, a case study included the integrated definition function (IDEF0) model that details how to convert the BIM model of the NASA-Mars habitat project to a VR and MR model that uses Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Samsung HMD, and Microsoft HoloLens headsets. Overall, this study provides a comprehensive review regarding using XR to solve a variety of construction project management issues effectively and efficiently. More importantly, this study provides a roadmap for future efforts involving the implementation of XR technologies in the AEC industry.
•This study reviewed the most relevant articles regarding BIM and XR (VR, AR, and MR) in the AEC industry.•This study proposed a BIM-based XR process/workflow to support construction projects.•This study evaluated the BIM-to-VR and BIM-to-MR process used by NASA-Mars habitat project case study.•This study identified the strengths and weaknesses of BIM-to-XR.•This study proposes processes which solve construction project management issues effectively and efficiently.
This study was designed to evaluate the short-term efficacy and safety of once-daily lurasidone (80mg/day and 160mg/day) in the treatment of an acute exacerbation of schizophrenia.
Participants, who ...were recently admitted inpatients with schizophrenia with an acute exacerbation of psychotic symptoms, were randomly assigned to 6weeks of fixed-dose, double-blind treatment with lurasidone 80mg (n=125), lurasidone 160mg (n=121), quetiapine XR 600mg (QXR-600mg; n=119; active control included to test for assay sensitivity), or placebo (n=121), all dosed once daily in the evening. Efficacy was evaluated using a mixed-model repeated-measures analysis of the change from Baseline to Week 6 in Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) total score (the primary efficacy measure) and Clinical Global Impressions severity (CGI-S) score (the key secondary efficacy measure).
Treatment with both doses of lurasidone or with QXR-600mg was associated with significantly greater improvement at Week 6 on PANSS total score, PANSS positive and negative subscale scores, and CGI-S score compared with placebo. The endpoint responder rate (≥20% improvement in PANSS total score) was higher in subjects treated with lurasidone 80mg (65%; p<0.001), lurasidone 160mg (79%; p<0.001), and QXR-600mg (79%; p<0.001) compared with placebo (41%). The proportion of patients experiencing ≥7% weight gain was 4% for each lurasidone group, 15% for the QXR-600mg group, and 3% for the placebo group. Endpoint changes in levels of cholesterol, triglycerides, and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol were comparable for both lurasidone groups and placebo, while the QXR-600mg group showed a significant median increase compared with the placebo group in levels of cholesterol (p<0.001), LDL cholesterol (p<0.01), and triglycerides (p<0.05).
Lurasidone 80mg and 160mg doses administered once-daily in the evening, were safe and effective treatments for subjects with acute schizophrenia, with increased response rates observed at the higher dose. Dose-related adverse effects were limited, and both doses were generally well-tolerated.
5G networks are designed to support a variety of services with highly demanding Quality-of-Service (QoS) requirements. This opened the door for novel extended reality (XR) media applications to ...emerge with 5G. However, recent 5G field tests and system-level simulation studies show that further XR enhancements are required to support a massive adoption of XR services in 5G networks. Such enhancements are expected to come into play with 5G-Advanced. In this line, we propose and study an XR loopback mechanism that adapts the XR traffic to the instantaneous 5G network conditions by exploiting an XR application feedback. We propose various XR loopback algorithms, strategies, and parameters' configurations and study their impact on the 5G end-to-end performance. We conduct extensive simulation campaigns by building realistic end-to-end 5G network scenarios with 3GPP mixed XR traffic setups. Results show that the proposed XR loopback mechanism can boost XR performance in 5G networks by adapting to 5G network conditions, while keeping the XR QoS requirements under control. We provide various insights and practical directions on XR loopback design that allow us to take full advantage of the 5G network capabilities and progress toward 5G-Advanced network design.
In evidence-based guidelines published in 2000, topiramate was a third-tier migraine preventive with no scientific evidence of efficacy; recommendation for its use reflected consensus opinion and ...clinical experience. Its neurostabilizing activity, coupled with its favorable weight profile, made topiramate an attractive alternative to other migraine preventives that caused weight gain. When guidelines for migraine prevention in episodic migraine were published in 2012, topiramate was included as a first-line option based on double-blind, randomized controlled trials involving nearly 3000 patients. The scientific and clinical interest in topiramate has generated a large body of data from randomized controlled trials, meta-analyses, patient registries, cohort studies, and claims data analyses that have more fully characterized its role as a migraine preventive.
This article will review the profile of topiramate that has emerged out of the past decade of research and clinical use in migraine prophylaxis. It will also address the rationale for extended-release (XR) formulations in optimizing topiramate therapy in migraine.
Topiramate has activity at multiple molecular targets, which may account for why it is effective in migraine and most other, more specific, anticonvulsants are not. Based on randomized controlled trials, topiramate reduces migraine frequency and acute medication use, improves quality of life, and reduces disability in patients with episodic migraine and in those with chronic migraine with or without medication overuse headache. Its efficacy in chronic migraine is not improved by the addition of propranolol. Topiramate's ability to prevent progression from high-frequency episodic migraine to chronic migraine remains unclear. Consistent with clinicians' perceptions, migraineurs are more sensitive to topiramate-associated side effects than patients with epilepsy. Paresthesia is a common occurrence early in treatment but is rarely cause for terminating topiramate treatment. Cognitive problems occur much less frequently than paresthesia but are more troublesome in terms of treatment discontinuation. Cognitive complaints can often be managed by slowly increasing the topiramate dose in small increments to allow habituation. As with other carbonic anhydrase inhibitors, topiramate has metabolic effects that favor the development of metabolic acidosis and possibly renal stones. Because migraineurs have an increased risk of renal stones independent of topiramate exposure, clinicians should counsel all migraine patients to maintain hydration. Abrupt onset of blurring, other visual disturbances, and/or ocular pain following topiramate's initiation should be evaluated promptly since this may indicate rare but potentially sight-threatening idiosyncratic events. Postmarketing evidence has shown that first-trimester exposure to topiramate monotherapy is associated with increased occurrence of cleft lip with or without cleft palate (Pregnancy Category D). Even though topiramate's long half-life would seemingly support q.d. dosing, randomized controlled migraine trials used b.i.d. administration of immediate-release (IR) topiramate, which has more favorable plasma concentration-time profile (ie, lower peak concentrations and higher trough concentrations) than q.d. IR dosing. Given the sensitivity of migraineurs to topiramate-related adverse events, particularly cognitive effects, pharmacokinetic profiles should be considered when optimizing migraine outcomes. The extended-release (XR) formulations Qudexy
XR (Upsher-Smith Laboratories) and Trokendi XR
(Supernus Pharmaceuticals) were specifically designed to achieve the adherence benefits of q.d. dosing but with more favorable (ie, more constant) steady-state plasma concentrations over the 24-hour dosing interval vs IR topiramate b.i.d. Intriguing results from a study in healthy volunteers showed consistently less impairment in neuropsychometric tests of verbal fluency and mental processing speed with an XR topiramate formulation (Trokendi XR) vs IR topiramate b.i.d. These findings suggest a pharmacodynamic effect associated with significantly reducing plasma concentration fluctuation when topiramate absorption is slowed. Results of retrospective studies in migraineurs treated with XR topiramate appear to support a clinically meaningful benefit of XR topiramate vs IR topiramate in terms of significantly fewer cognitive effects, improved adherence, and overall better outcomes of migraine prophylaxis with topiramate.
The discovery of a new physical process in manganese metal is reported. This process will also be present for all manganese‐containing materials in condensed matter. The process was discovered by ...applying our new technique of XR‐HERFD (extended‐range high‐energy‐resolution fluorescence detection), which was developed from the popular high‐resolution RIXS (resonant inelastic X‐ray scattering) and HERFD approaches. The acquired data are accurate to many hundreds of standard deviations beyond what is regarded as the criterion for `discovery'. Identification and characterization of many‐body processes can shed light on the X‐ray absorption fine‐structure spectra and inform the scientist on how to interpret them, hence leading to the ability to measure the dynamical nanostructures which are observable using the XR‐HERFD method. Although the many‐body reduction factor has been used universally in X‐ray absorption spectroscopy in analysis over the past 30 years (thousands of papers per year), this experimental result proves that many‐body effects are not representable by any constant reduction factor parameter. This paradigm change will provide the foundation for many future studies and X‐ray spectroscopy.
A new physical process in manganese, present for manganese‐containing materials and materials science, has been discovered by applying our new technique – XR‐HERFD (extended‐range high‐energy‐resolution fluorescence detection) – developed from high‐resolution RIXS (resonant inelastic X‐ray scattering) and HERFD (high‐energy‐resolution fluorescence detection).
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