A self-shadow algorithm for dynamic hair using density clustering

To investigate how insect hair morphology influences pollination effectiveness, this study examined four common wild pollinators in Camellia oleifera plantations: two bee species (Colletes gigas and Apis cerana) and two hornet species (Vespa velutina and Vespa soror). We systematically measured hair length, hair density, and pollen loads on four body regions (head, thorax, abdomen, and legs). The results indicated that the following: (1) C. gigas possessed significantly longer and denser hairs across all body parts, especially on the legs, compared to the other three species. (2) Both the pollen load per body part and the total pollen load were markedly higher in C. gigas than in the other pollinators. The two hornet species did not differ significantly from A. cerana in pollen load, and even exceeded it in certain traits such as head hair length. (3) Correlation analysis revealed a significant positive relationship between total pollen load and both hair length (ρ = 0.545, p < 0.01) and hair density (ρ = 0.391, p < 0.01). Pollen loads on different body regions were also strongly positively correlated, suggesting functional synergy across the insect's surface. Leg pollen load correlated positively with head and leg hair length, but negatively with head hair density. Notably, leg hair length and density showed a unique positive correlation, highlighting region-specific morphological adaptation. (4) Cluster analysis separated C. gigas from the other three species, which grouped together. In conclusion, hair length and density-particularly on the legs-are key morphological traits underpinning pollen-carrying efficiency in these pollinators. C. gigas demonstrates superior hair morphology and pollen-carrying performance, supporting its role as an effective pollinator of C. oleifera. This study provides a trait-based framework for identifying dominant pollinators and underscores that evaluating species with complex ecological roles, such as hornets, requires integrating morphological traits with broader behavioral and community contexts.

Relatively little is known about the progression of androgenetic alopecia (AGA; male pattern hair loss) in untreated men. We evaluated the long-term (5-year) progression of AGA in men treated with placebo in a controlled clinical trial setting. We analyzed pooled data over 5 years from two replicate studies with finasteride 1 mg/day in men with predominantly vertex-pattern AGA. Each study consisted of an initial 1-year, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled base study and four consecutive, 1-year, double-blind, placebo-controlled extension studies. Change over time in scalp hair growth was evaluated by four predefined endpoints: scalp hair counts; assessment of standardized clinical photographs by an expert panel; investigator clinical assessment; and patient self-assessment. All four predefined endpoints demonstrated progressive scalp hair loss in men receiving placebo over the 5-year study period, with a loss of 239 hairs from baseline (26.3% decline in hair density) measured in the target area at 5 years (p < 0.001 vs. baseline). Similarly, visible progression of scalp hair loss was demonstrated by global photographic assessment, with 75% of placebo patients rated as worsened from baseline at 5 years. We found that scalp hair loss continued in a progressive manner over a 5-year period in placebo-treated men with AGA.

Objective. This study was designed to observe the histocompatibility and long-term results of wigs after xenogeneic hair transplantation and to explore the possibility of industrial products in clinical application. Methods. The human hair and melted medical polypropylene were preceded into the follicular unit-like wigs according to the natural follicular unit by extrusion molding. 12 New Zealand rabbits were used as experimental animals for wigs transplantation. The histocompatibility of polypropylene and human hair was observed by H&E staining and scanning electron microscope. The loss rate of wigs was calculated to evaluate the long-term result after transplantation. Results. Mild infiltration by inflammatory cells around the polypropylene and human hair were seen during the early period after transplantation, accompanied with local epithelial cell proliferation. The inflammatory cells were decreased after 30 days with increased collagen fibers around the polypropylene and human hair. The follicular unit-like wigs maintained a good histocompatibility in one year. The degradation of hair was not significant. The loss rate of wigs was 4.1 ± 4.0% in one year. The appearance of hair was satisfactory. Conclusions. We successfully developed a follicular unit-like wigs, which were made of xenogeneic human hair with medical polypropylene, showing a good histocompatibility, a low loss rate, and satisfactory appearance in a year after transplantation. The follicular unit-like wigs may have prospective industrial products in clinical application.

Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is effective in the treatment of androgenetic alopecia (AGA). The purpose of this study is to assess the effect of PRP on the proliferation of human follicle dermal papilla cells (HFDPCs), to observe the effect of PRP on the growth of hair follicles and hair shaft in vitro, to measure growth factors, and to evaluate the efficacy and safety of PRP injection. The effect of PRP on the proliferation of HFDPCs was observed. The length of hair follicle and hair shaft in vitro was measured. Then, the concentration of growth factors (EGF, FGF-2, FGF-7, IGF-1, HGF, PDGF-BB, and VEGF-A) was evaluated. Half-head injection of PRP was conducted to 10 males. Three treatments were conducted at 30-day intervals. Digital photographs were taken; hair diameter, hair density, unit density of hair follicles, and terminal hair/ vellus hair were analyzed. Platelet-rich plasma significantly promoted the proliferation of HFDPCs. Under the PRP culture, the hair follicle and hair shaft were grown, and the hair growth length on the 3rd and 6th days was greater than that of the control. PRP contained growth factors such as EGF, FGF-2, FGF-7, IGF-1, HGF, PDGF-B, and VEGF-A. Hair diameter, hair density, and unit hair follicle density on the PRP injection side peaked in the 6th month. The terminal hair/ vellus hair of the PRP injection side reached a peak in the 4th month. The average patient satisfaction during the entire treatment was 5.4 points (0-10 points). Platelet-rich plasma can promote hair growth. PRP injection is safe and effective for the treatment of AGA.

Morphometric characteristics of the winter hair coat were studied in Yakut horses of different age and sex groups (n=42) by clipping samples in the shoulder region, followed by measurement of hair length, density, mass, hair diameter, and medulla diameter.In winter, a longer and denser coat is formed, primarily due to the growth of fine undercoat-type hairs. Against the background of an overall decrease in the absolute diameter of the medulla, a significant increase in its relative proportion (77.7–84.1% of total hair diameter) was observed, indicating a functional restructuring of hair structure toward enhanced thermal insulation properties.In young horses, hair density per 1 cm² decreases with age (from 1653 to 1299 hairs/cm²) while hair thickness simultaneously increases, likely due to skin growth and stretching with a relatively stable number of hair follicles. Sexual dimorphism is evident in the highest hair density in stallions (1531 hairs/cm²), greater hair thickness in geldings (96.8 μm) and mares (78.0 μm) compared to stallions, as well as maximum medulla development in 18-month-old youngsters (84.1%) and working geldings (83.7%).Comparative analysis revealed that in Yakut horses the medulla is present and well-developed in all hair types (unlike in Yakut cattle — ~40% and reindeer — predominantly in guard hairs). The results suggest that the pronounced development of the medulla across all hair types represents one of the key morphological adaptations of the Yakut horse to extremely low temperatures (down to –70 °C), providing effective thermal insulation due to the trapped immobile air within the medulla.

Background: Pattern hair loss or androgenic alopecia (AGA) is a widespread condition (that affects both men and women) and it may cause a great deal of physical and psychological discomfort. The condition in men is normally expressed through Hamilton-Norwood scale that illustrates a foreseeable arrangement of bitemporal and vertex hair thinning. Diffuse thinning of the crown area sparing the frontal hairline is common in women in AGA as observed in the Ludwig scale. Prevalence studies show that one out of every three to four men and one out of every three women may get AGA at some point in their lives. Objectives: The main objective of the study is to: compare the efficacy and safety of different minoxidil formulations (e.g., . 5%, foam vs. 5%liquid form) in treating androgenic alopecia Material &amp; Method: The present study was a prospective, randomized, comparative, single-blind clinical trial conducted at the Buner Medical Complex, Buner, following approval of the research protocol by the Institutional Ethics Committee. The study duration was 12 months, including recruitment, intervention, and follow-up periods. Before enrollment, all participants were adequately informed about the study objectives, treatment protocol, follow-up schedule, and potential adverse effects of the interventions. Written informed consent was obtained from all participants prior to inclusion in the study. All the statistical analysis was done by use of the SPSS software (version 23). The data was summarized in terms of descriptive statistics, such as mean, standard deviation, frequencies, and percentages. The student t -test on continuous normally distributed variables and Mann Whitney U test in nonparametric data were used to compare the two treatment groups. The Chi-square test or the Fisher exact test was used to analyze categorical variables based on the test type suited in each case. The p-value below 0.05 was statistically significant. significant for all tests. Results: The results of this randomized comparative trial prove that 5% minoxidil foam and 5% minoxidil liquid solution are effective treatment methods that can be used to manage androgenetic alopecia (AGA) in male patients. There was very close similarity between the two formulations in the measurement of improving hair diameter and similar though slightly differentiated effects on hair density. Both the treatment groups demonstrated statistically significant changes in hair diameter and hair density in terms of improvement of hair diameter by about 12.4-12.6 percent and hair density by 2.4-3.1 percent at the baseline to 12 weeks. Notably, the high baseline homogeneity of the two treatment arms reduces the risks of internal validity in the study that the observed results are because of treatment and not due to the differences in baseline homogeneity. Conclusion: This studty illustrates that 5 percent minoxidil foam and 5 percent minoxidil liquid solution are both effective and well tolerated interventions that result in statistical and clinically significant effects on hair diameter and density after 12 weeks. Although the efficacy of both formulations showed a similar degree of efficacy on hair shaft thickening, there was a tendency towards more density gain and the patient satisfaction with the foam formulation being slightly higher than with the lotion formulation, which points to potential practical benefits. Overall, both formulations are valid, evidence-based therapeutic models, and the choice of the formulation is most effectively determined by the specifics of the patient, his preferences, and treatment goals. These observations support the long-standing status of minoxidil as a first-line treatment of androgenetic alopecia.

We describe a general investigation into the scattering of light by human hair. The main features of the intensity distribution produced by light scattered by an individual hair are identified. Qualitative explanations for the features are advanced in terms of the arrangement of the outer structure of the hair and its level of pigmentation. Contrast gloss values are calculated in an attempt to quantify the appearance of hair. These values are found to depend not only on the properties of hair, such as color and condition, but also on the direction and polarization state of the incident light. In assessing the effects of cosmetic treatments on hair, gloss values are shown to be useful where readings from treated hairs are compared with those from a control sample investigated in the same conditions.

Quantifying alopecia areata in real time has been a challenge for clinicians and investigators. Although several scoring systems exist, they can be cumbersome. Because there are more clinical trials in alopecia areata, there is an urgent need for a quantitative system that is reproducible, standardized, and simple. In this article, a computer imaging algorithm to recreate the Severity of Alopecia Tool scoring system in an automated way is presented. A pediatric alopecia areata image set of four view-standardized photographs was created, and texture analysis was used to distinguish between normal hair and bald scalp. By exploiting local image statistics and the similarity of hair appearance variations across the pediatric alopecia examples, we then used a reference set of hair textures, derived from intensity distributions over very small image patches, to provide global context and improve partitioning of each individual image into areas of different hair densities. This algorithm can mimic a Severity of Alopecia Tool (score) and may also provide more information about the continuum of changes in density of hair seen in alopecia areata.

The hair density of adult Eurasian otters Lutra lutra (Linnaeus, 1758) and sea otters Enhydra lutris (Linnaeus, 1758) was analysed using skin samples taken from frozen carcasses. Lutra lutra exhibited a mean hair density of about 70 000 hairs/cm2 (whole body, appendages excepted), the mean individual density ranging from about 60 000 to 80 000 hairs/cm2. The dominant hair type were secondary hairs (wool hairs), the hair coat comprising only 1.26% of primary hairs (PH). Secondary hair (SH) density remained constant over the body (appendages excepted), whereas a few variations in PH density were observed. Neither an influence of the sex, nor a seasonal variation of the hair coat was found, moulting seems to be continuous. Enhydra lutris had a hair density between 120 000 and 140 000 hairs/cm2, the primary hairs representing less than 1% within the hair coat. Hair density remained quite constant over the regions of the trunk but was lower at the head (about 60 000 hairs/cm2 on the cheek). The hair follicles were arranged in specific groups with different bundles of varying size, normally comprising dominant numbers of wool hair (SH) follicles. Invariably there was always a large central primary hair follicle and numerous sebaceous glands between the bundles and principally around the PH follicles. The results are discussed related to possible ecological influences on hair coat density.

The viewpoint of semiology which the most popular sport comics,instanced by《Slam Dunk》 Abstract Of all kinds of comics, the sport comics is the most popular one for children and teenagers. According to statistics, among 116 domestic research papers studying comics, only 7 concentrate on sport comics. This paper, therefore, aims to use paradigm and syntagm in the semiology to find the symbol of 《Slam Dunk》. Moreover, this paper studies the possibility of applying the Saussure’s point of view that semiology is constituted by signifier and signified and Roland Barthes’s mythology as far as this subject is concerned. The study found out that using the plot as paradigm, and the entire image in the comics as the syntagm, the symbol of each character will stand out. The symbol of a specific character is represented by his wear and hair style. For example, the short-cut hair style signified well- disciplined and obedient. Loose and non-sleeve sportswear with short sport pants and sport shoes are specially designed for basketball players. The number of sportswear for each basketball player implies his position and age in the team. Number 4 is a number for a team leader. The wear of the coach in the sport comics represent his professional ability. In the famous Japanese sport comics, Slam Dunk, all its characters, scene and plot have some special attraction to the readers like that of a myth. Each role represents some outstanding sportsman spirit like the Japanese martial arts, sport confidence, athlete’s identity, and heroic character. The mythological meaning of the scene in that comic signified the precious human value of cooperation and help for each other, the struggle between emotion connection, space and power. As for the plot, victory, friendship, endeavor, and trust are the main themes. Also packed in the plot are individualism vs. group consciousness, sport morals and ethics, immoral conflict which is a challenge to basketball age culture. All is absolutely realistic and under the global influence of the NBA impact. These elements created by comic authors enable the hearts of the readers and watchers to be closely tied. The myth inside Slam Dunk actually creates a myth for sport comics. The writer of this paper wishes that the results of this study will guide a new research direction for future sport comic researchers. Key words: sport comics, semiology, mythology, Slam Dunk

Human hair has significant effect on the life-likeness of human portrait and human recognition. In this paper, we present a classified method of human hair for hair sketching. We extract shape and appearance features from the training data of hair, including hair raw images and their corresponding sketching templates. Based on these features, we learn twenty-four hairstyles. Given a human hair raw image, we extract its shape and appearance features and find the best matched hair style and sketching template by Nearest Neighbor from twenty-four hairstyles. Taking the template as prototype, a new hair sketching corresponding to the raw image can be generalized by Thin Plate Spline. We test our algorithm to a large data set of hair images with diverse hair styles, experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of our method.

Synthetic aperture radiometer imaging use sparse antennas array for reducing the cost.In this process,phase errors of the visibility function will sharply degrade the imaging quality.This paper presents a detailed analysis of system imperfections and a calibration modeling.Meanwhile,we introduce a real time calibration method-Redundant Spacing Calibration(RSC).And its simulation result proves that this calibration method is very efficient under the two kinds of antenna arrays.

Superhydrophobic surfaces prevent certain body parts of semiaquatic and aquatic insects from getting wet while submerged in water. The air layer on these surfaces can serve the insects as a physical gill. Using scanning electron microscopy, we investigated the morphology of air-retaining surfaces in five insect species with different levels of adaptation to aquatic habitats. We found surfaces with either large and sparse hairs (setae), small and dense hairs (microtrichia), or hierarchically structured surfaces with both types of hairs. The structural parameters and air-film persistence of these surfaces were compared. Air-film persistence varied between 2 days in the beetle Galerucella nymphaea possessing only sparse setae and more than 120 days in the bugs Notonecta glauca and Ilyocoris cimicoides possessing dense microtrichia (up to 6.6 × 10(6) microtrichia per millimeter square). From our results, we conclude that the density of the surface structures is the most important factor that affects the persistence of air films. Combinations of setae and microtrichia are not decisive for the overall persistence of the air film but might provide a thick air store for a short time and a thin but mechanically more stable air film for a long time. Thus, we assume that a dense cover of microtrichia acts as a "backup system" preventing wetting of the body surface in case the air-water interface is pressed toward the surface. Our findings might be beneficial for the development of biomimetic surfaces for long-term air retention and drag reduction under water. In addition, the biological functions of the different air retention capabilities are discussed.

Marie Unna hereditary hypotrichosis (MUHH) is a rare autosomal dominant disorder with progressive hair loss starting in early childhood and aggravating at puberty. Several studies have mapped the MUHH gene to chromosome 8p21. Here we report a Chinese MUHH family with variable phenotypes. All affected individuals have anomalies affecting both hair density and hair shafts. Major clinical characteristics, disease history and histological examination support the diagnosis of MUHH, but the features of scarring in this kindred are modest and none of the patients have vertex hair loss, which is in contrast with typical MUHH. We now report genotyping and linkage analysis using 11 polymorphic microsatellite markers spanning the MUHH locus at 8p. Two-point linkage analysis using these markers revealed significant exclusion of this locus (log of the odds scores < - 2) at Theta = 0 indicating that there is a range of clinical presentations in MUHH, and that more than one genetic locus is responsible for the disorder.

Research documents that even subtle changes in visible skin condition affect perceptions of age, health, and attractiveness. There is evidence that hair quality also affects the assessment of physical appearance, as variations in hair diameter, hair density, and hair style have systematic effects on perception. Here, we consider combined effects of hair color and skin color on the perception of female physical appearance. In two experiments, we digitally manipulated facial skin color of lightly-pigmented, young women, both between-subjects (Experiment 1) and within-subjects (Experiment 2), and investigated possible interactions with hair color in regard to age, health, and attractiveness perception. In both experiments, we detected hair color and skin color interaction effects on men's and women's assessments. For between-subjects comparisons, participants with lighter hair color were judged to be younger than those with darker shades; this effect was more pronounced in women with light skin color. No such effect was observed for within-subjects variation in skin color. Both experiments showed that smaller perceived contrast between hair color and skin color resulted in more positive responses. We conclude that hair color and facial skin color together have an effect on perceptions of female age, health, and attractiveness in young women, and we discuss these findings with reference to the literature on the role of hair and skin in the assessment of female physical appearance. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.