In traditional video coding schemes, motion information is tightly coupled to the prediction strategy. In this preliminary work, we depart from this model by utilizing metadata to convey motion information to the client; in particular, metadata conveys crude boundaries of objects together with motion information for these objects. Here, we are interested in applications where metadata itself carries semantics that the client is interested in, such as tracking information in surveillance applications. To keep things simple, we focus on the case where we have a single object to track. Therefore, we model each frame as a background region with a foreground region/object, enclosing each region by a quadrilateral that identifies it. The foreground quadrilateral does not follow the exact boundaries of the foreground object; it leaves the task of identifying these boundaries to the client. The advantages of metadata is that it provides a global representation of motion, which allows predicting a given object from potentially all the frames that contain that object. The approach is applicable in fully open loop systems such as in the case of the JPEG2000-Based Scalable Interactive Video (JSIV) paradigm. In this work, we present the concepts behind the proposed approach and detail the modifications introduced to the JSIV server and client policies, presenting some promising preliminary results.

Teicoplanin, a glycopeptide antibiotic produced by Actinoplanes teichomyceticus, comprises five main components, denoted T-A2-1 to T-A2-5, differing in the structure of their acyl side chain, which is linear in T-A2-1 and T-A2-3 and branched in the other components. Production of T-A2-1, characterized by a linear C10:1 acyl moiety, is entirely dependent on the presence of linoleate in the fermentation medium. Addition to the medium of oleic acid esters at 2 g l-1 increases the yields of T-A2-3, characterized by a linear C10:0 acyl chain, about threefold. The antibiotic linear side chains thus appear to originate from C18 unsaturated acid by beta-oxidation degradation. The percentage of T-A2-2, T-A2-4 and T-A2-5, bearing the iso-C10:0, anteiso-C11:0 and iso-C11:0 acyl moieties, respectively, is strongly influenced by the presence in the medium of the amino acids known to be precursors of branched-chain fatty acids. Thus, valine increases the production of T-A2-2 whereas isoleucine or leucine increase the relative yields of T-A2-4 or T-A2-5, respectively. Analysis of the total cell lipids upon addition of the same amino acid shows corresponding increases in the proportion of the iso-C16:0, iso-C15:0 or anteiso-C17:0. A mutant A. teichomyceticus strain, which produces a novel teicoplanin with a linear C9:0 chain, differs from the wild strain in the presence of the linear C17:1 acid in its lipids.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

The advantages and technical problems related to the on-line connection of liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry are described, with special emphasis on applications in pharmaceutical chemistry. The most important characteristics of various interfaces, such as direct liquid introduction, Magic, continous flow fast atom bombardment and thermospray, are discussed. Special applications to the study of thermally very labile compounds are considered.