Abstract: A method for treating body tissue using acoustic energy includes identifying a target focal zone of tissue to be treated, delivering a first pulse of acoustic energy from a transducer to generate bubbles in a tissue region located distally, relative to the transducer, of a focal center of the target focal zone, and delivering a second pulse of acoustic energy from the transducer in the presence of the bubbles generated by the first pulse, the second pulse focused at the focal center to generate thermal ablation energy. In a further embodiment, a method of treating body tissue using ultrasound energy includes identifying a target focal zone to be treated and delivering a plurality of pulses of acoustic ablation energy to locations distributed symmetrically in or proximate a focal plane about the focal center of the target focal zone.

Abstract: Software processes are automated by storing predetermined responses and recognizing the screens of server and/or web-based applications that require data to continue operating.

Abstract: A dynamic range compression system is provided, using either a sample-by-sample or a block processing system. Such a system can be used, for example, in a hearing aid. The system, using a frequency-warped processing system, is comprised of a cascade of all-pass filters with the outputs of the all-pass filters providing the input to the frequency analysis used to compute the filter coefficients. The compression filter is then designed in the frequency domain. Using a compression filter having even symmetry guarantees that the group delay is constant and does not depend on the compression gains at any given time. Additionally, due to the use of all-pass filters, the compression filter group delay more closely matches human auditory latency. An inverse frequency transform back into the warped time domain is used to produce the compression filter coefficients that are convolved with the outputs of the all-pass delay line to give the processed output signal.