Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Organic electrode coatings for next-generation neural interfaces

Traditional neuronal interfaces utilize metallic electrodes which in recent years have reached a plateau in terms of the ability to provide safe stimulation at high resolution or rather with high densities of microelectrodes with improved spatial selectivity. To achieve higher resolution it has become clear that reducing the size of electrodes is required to enable higher electrode counts from the implant device. The limitations of interfacing electrodes including low charge injection limits, mechanical mismatch and foreign body response can be addressed through the use of organic electrode coatings which typically provide a softer, more roughened surface to enable both improved charge transfer and lower mechanical mismatch with neural tissue. Coating electrodes with conductive polymers or carbon nanotubes offers a substantial increase in charge transfer area compared to conventional platinum electrodes. These organic conductors provide safe electrical stimulation of tissue while avoiding undesirable chemical reactions and cell damage. However, the mechanical properties of conductive polymers are not ideal, as they are quite brittle. Hydrogel polymers present a versatile coating option for electrodes as they can be chemically modified to provide a soft and conductive scaffold. However, the in vivo chronic inflammatory response of these conductive hydrogels remains unknown. A more recent approach proposes tissue engineering the electrode interface through the use of encapsulated neurons within hydrogel coatings. This approach may provide a method for activating tissue at the cellular scale, however, several technological challenges must be addressed to demonstrate feasibility of this innovative idea. The review focuses on the various organic coatings which have been investigated to improve neural interface electrodes.
Co‐parenting conversation process: a qualitative study of Chinese Singaporean parents

Although co-parenting in two-parent families has been an increasingly important area of research, little is known about the co-parenting conversation as a crucial aspect of co-parenting. This study used grounded theory methodology to explore how Chinese Singaporean parents perceive their co-parenting conversations in light of the influence of their families of origin. Interviews were conducted with mothers and fathers in sixteen families. Findings revealed a central category, ‘conversations along the co-parenting journey’, and two main categories, ‘conversations that connect and collaborate in co-parenting’, and ‘conversations on family heritage and practices’. A substantive theory of co-parenting conversation process was generated from the synthesis of the findings. This study serves as the foundation for future research in co-parenting conversation, and its implications for clinicians and researchers are presented and discussed. Practitioner Points The typology of co-parenting conversation can serve as a common language of communication for family practitioners, clinicians, and researchers working with parents of young children The scheme of co-parenting conversation process, and the classification for decision-making conversations, can provide a working framework to consider how, when, and where to intervene in therapy for parents dealing with co-parenting issues Co-parenting intentionality is potentially important in addressing family-of-origin issues in co-parenting therapy sessions
For Personal Use. Mass Reproduce Only with Permission from Mayo Clinic Proceedings. for Personal Use. Mass Reproduce Only with Permission from Mayo Clinic Proceedings. Contrast-induced Acute Kidney Injury: Specialty-specific Protocols for Interventional Radiology, Diagnostic Computed Tomography Radi

Contrast-induced acute kidney injury (AKI) (also known as contrast induced nephropathy) is an abrupt deterioration in renal function that can be associated with use of iodinated contrast medium. Although the increase in serum creatinine concentration is transient in most cases, contrast-induced AKI may lead to increased morbidity and mortality rates in selected at-risk populations. This review summarizes the findings of a multidisciplinary panel composed of computed tomography radiologists, interven-tional radiologists, cardiologists, and nephrologists convened to address the specialty-specific issues associated with minimizing the incidence of contrast-induced AKI. As part of this initiative, the panel developed specialty-specific protocols for preventing contrast-induced AKI, taking into account, for example, the variations in patient risk profile, inpatient or outpatient status, and staffing resources that characterize various clinical settings. The 3 protocols, each reflecting a consensus of expert opinion, address the prevention of contrast-induced AKI in interventional radiology, diagnostic computed tomography radiology, and interventional cardiology settings. The protocols are presented in the context of a review of recent guidelines and published reports of trials that discuss contrast-induced AKI and its prevention. The panel reviewed materials retrieved by a PubMed search covering the period January 1990 through January 2008 and used combinations of key words associated with the prevention and treatment of contrast-induced AKI. In addition, the panel reviewed the reference lists of selected articles and the tables of contents posted on the Web sites of selected journals for relevant publications not retrieved in the PubMed searches.
Website Navigation Behavior Analysis for Bot Detection

Detecting bots is an important goal for most website admins. In this paper, we propose a novel machine learning bot detection approach based on local website navigation behavior. While machine learning has been used before for bot detection, most existing approaches rely on general hypotheses based on statistical analysis over multiple websites and are thus easy to counter. In our work, we build a website-specific hypothesis or classifier based on the actual navigation data of the website. The advantages of our approach is that it can be generally used to detect any type of bots and is difficult to counter unless website-specific bots are designed as well. Our classifier uses a Two-Class Boosted Decision Tree classification model and can be periodically re-trained to learn new hypotheses as bots evolve. We tested our approach on two real-world websites and achieved an accuracy of around 83%, outperforming the state-of-the-art machine-learning-based bot detection techniques by almost 14%. We also show that our approach can successfully distinguish between various classes of bots and we show how it can be deployed as a real-world application by any website to automatically detect bots as they navigate the website.
How Well Can Graphs Represent Wireless Interference?

Efficient use of a wireless network requires that transmissions be grouped into feasible sets, where feasibility means that each transmission can be successfully decoded in spite of the interference caused by simultaneous transmissions. Feasibility is most closely modeled by a signal-to-interference-plus-noise (SINR) formula, which unfortunately is conceptually complicated, being an asymmetric, cumulative, many-to-one relationship. We re-examine how well graphs can capture wireless receptions as encoded in SINR relationships, placing them in a framework in order to understand the limits of such modelling. We seek for each wireless instance a pair of graphs that provide upper and lower bounds on the feasibility relation, while aiming to minimize the gap between the two graphs. The cost of a graph formulation is the worst gap over all instances, and the price of (graph) abstraction is the smallest cost of a graph formulation. We propose a family of conflict graphs that is parameterized by a non-decreasing sub-linear function, and show that with a judicious choice of functions, the graphs can capture feasibility with a cost of O(log* Δ), where Δ is the ratio between the longest and the shortest link length. This holds on the plane and more generally in doubling metrics. We use this to give greatly improved O(log* Δ)-approximation for fundamental link scheduling problems with arbitrary power control. We also explore the limits of graph representations and find that our upper bound is tight: the price of graph abstraction is Ω(log* Δ). In addition, we give strong impossibility results for general metrics, and for approximations in terms of the number of links.
Digital PVT calibration of a Frequency-to-Voltage converter

A digital process, voltage, and temperature (PVT) calibration loop for a Frequency-to-Voltage converter (FVC) is presented. The FVC needs a precisely controlled delay element, but delay in CMOS is highly dependent on the PVT condition making it neccessary to calibrate the delay line. The system is designed to calibrate against an external reference frequency which is already present in the intended application. This is advantageous, as it is not neccesary to generate additional bandgap or other reference on chip. Results from transistor level simulations using a 90 nm CMOS process are presented, showing good regulation accross PVT corners and ability to track changes in the PVT condition. The calibration loop is digital and therefore a good fit for CMOS technology.
Evaluation of d-mesh Interconnect for SoC

$d$-meshes belong to an extended family of regular two-dimensional meshes of an arbitrary degree $d$. They have shorter maximal and average node-to-node distances than most other interconnection networks. Competitive congestion-free routing algorithms for all-to-all communication can be implemented on $d$-meshes. Additional nodes can be added to the system with no changes on most of existing nodes and with higher scalability than by other interconnection topologies. The communication links can be implemented by a small number of planes carrying only non-crossing connections. Such properties could be advantageous in eventual applications of $d$-meshes for interconnection topologies in systems-on-chips.
Atomistic and Experimental Investigation of the Effect of Depth of Cut on Diamond Cutting of Cerium

The ultra-precision diamond cutting process exhibits strong size effects due to the ultra-small depth of cut that is comparable with the cutting edge radius. In the present work, we elucidate the underlying machining mechanisms of single crystal cerium under diamond cutting by means of molecular dynamics simulations, with an emphasis on the evaluation of the effect of depth of cut on the cutting process by using different depths of cut. Diamond cutting experiments of cerium with different depths of cut are also conducted. In particular for the smallest depth of cut of 0.2 nm, shallow cutting simulations varying the sharpness of the cutting edge demonstrate that an atomically sharp cutting edge leads to a smaller machining force and better machined surface quality than a blunt one. Simulation results indicate that dislocation slip is the dominant deformation mechanism of cerium under diamond cutting with each depth of cut. Furthermore, the analysis of the defect zone based on atomic radial distribution functions demonstrates that there are trivial phase transformations from γ-Ce to δ-Ce occurred in both the machined surface and the formed chip. It is found that there is a transition of material removal mode from plowing to cutting with the increase of the depth of cut, which is also consistent with the diamond cutting experiments of cerium with different depths of cut.
Optimizing 2-D Triangulations by the Steepest Descent Method

2-D triangulations are useful for building 3-D models or constructing meshes for finite element methods in scientific computing. This paper suggests a new objective function in optimizing the shape of elements. Our new objective function provides a criterion for evaluating the uniformity of a given triangulation. The criterion can be used to optimize triangulations by the steepest descent method. Furthermore, this paper outlines a new strategy of step-size controlling to guarantee that non self-intersections exist within the triangulations. Computational experiments show that the new optimization method is stable and well performed.
Digital-assisted noise-eliminating training for memristor crossbar-based analog neuromorphic computing engine

The invention of neuromorphic computing architecture is inspired by the working mechanism of human-brain. Memristor technology revitalized neuromorphic computing system design by efficiently executing the analog Matrix-Vector multiplication on the memristor-based crossbar (MBC) structure. However, programming the MBC to the target state can be very challenging due to the difficulty to real-time monitor the memristor state during the training. In this work, we quantitatively analyzed the sensitivity of the MBC programming to the process variations and input signal noise. We then proposed a noise-eliminating training method on top of a new crossbar structure to minimize the noise accumulation during the MBC training and improve the trained system performance, i.e.,the pattern recall rate. A digital-assisted initialization step for MBC training is also introduced to reduce the training failure rate as well as the training time. Experimental results show that our noise-eliminating training method can improve the pattern recall rate. For the tested patterns with 128 × 128 pixels our technique can reduce the MBC training time by 12.6% ~ 14.1% for the same pattern recognition rate, or improve the pattern recall rate by 18.7% ~ 36.2% for the same training time.
2 Inverse Dynamics of Flexible Multibodies

Applications of artificial manipulation and robotics are steadily increasing in areas such as: microelectronics, agile space aircraft, vacuum mechatronics, satellite mounted robots, biomedical sciences, teleoperation, assembly lines, manufacturing , and so forth. As a consequence, more demands are being placed on these systems, such as the need to design and use light and fast arms handling heavy payload with accuracy and low energy consumption. If the various links of a manipulator are to be considered rigid, they must be structurally stiff, and this leads to bulky and massive designs. If speed is not to be sacrificed, powerful and heavy actuators with high energy consumption are in turn required to move these arms. The most natural remedy is to use flexible multibodies with slender links. The requirement that manipulators and multibody systems be flexible places new demands and challenges in their design, analysis, and control. The flexibility of their members becomes a very important factor that must be considered, so that vibrations are avoided, particularly for position control. In this chapter, concentration will be placed on the inverse dynamics of flexible multibodies. This recently introduced approach (Bayo (1987) and Bayo et al. (1989)) consists of finding the feed-forward torques that need to be applied at the joints so that the end effector can follow a desired trajectory. From the vibration control viewpoint , the inverse dynamics provides an inversion of the system dynamics. This gives the control specialist a strong tool with which he can design stable and robust control laws for the motion control of multibody systems (Paden et al. (1993)). This chapter begins with the solution of the single-link case where the elastic Coriolis and centrifugal terms are negligible, and algorithms are proposed for the solution of the resulting time invariant system. The algorithms are then extended for the time variant case that includes the Coriolis and centrifugal terms. Solutions in the time and frequency domains are provided. It is clearly shown how the inverse solution is anticipatory; also called non-causal, meaning that the actuation precedes the endpoint motion and continues after it has stopped. For the sake of clarity and conciseness, we will concentrate on the planar case, and we will provide indications as to how to proceed with the 3D cases. Simulation examples are given to clarify the meaning of the inverse dynamics.
COMMENTARY: The machinations of managerialism: New public management and the diminishing power of professionals

In the 1950s Peter Drucker (1954, p. 1) declared that management would ‘remain a basic and dominant institution perhaps as long as Western Civilization itself survives’. By the time of his remarks managers had clearly become the ‘new heroes of the economy’ (Boltanski & Chiapello 2005, p. 59; see Wren 1994). However, Drucker’s naturalistic and teleological description ignores the intricate antecedents that created such a natural ordering of managerial authority. It leads us to forget that in most times and places people managed to manage their affairs without management (see Parker 2002). Culturally, this did not mean that people were necessarily more disorganized when compared to modernites but that they used less formal and more phenomenal and socially embedded ways of coordinating their activities. Yet in an organizational sense management did indeed make people more organized since it was actually managerial rhetoric and practices that were partially responsible for defining and delimiting what it meant to be ‘rational’, ‘productive’, ‘efficient’ and, ultimately, ‘modern’. The insertion of management as an integral part of the ordering of human affairs originated in the midto late nineteenth century with the separation of capital ownership from management and a shift from individual to corporate ownership of companies. This shift led to the insertion of a third ‘special form of wage labor’ between workers and owners for whom, as Marx (1996) described them, ‘the work of supervision becomes their established and exclusive function’. This third group would be responsible for the daily workings of the company and the maximization of profit for the new shareholder owners. In historical terms the rise of management signaled a broader switch from more federative and communal types of social organizations toward the centralized bureaucratic organizations that came to dominate much of modern life (see Weber 1947; Berle & Means 1991 [1933]; Chandler 1977). This switch eventually created a university trained, professional class of both public and private managers whose job it was to discipline the workforce, hone organizational functioning and continually rationalize output and production. While management as an organizational stratum has been around for some time, managerialism as a particular ‘regime of truth’ (Morley & Rassool 2000, p. 170) is more recent. Managerialism can be seen as a set of ideas and practices that, under the direction of managers, arranges a group’s activities in efficiency-minded ways and a doxa that legitimates the need for this control in all settings. Managerialism is, then, much more than the application of particular managerial practices in organizations. It is, rather, the
The proteome of sickle cell disease: insights from exploratory proteomic profiling

The expanding realm of exploratory proteomics has added a unique dimension to the study of the complex pathophysiology involved in sickle cell disease. A review of proteomic studies published on sickle cell erythrocytes and plasma shows trends of upregulation of antioxidant proteins, an increase in cytoskeletal defects, an increase in protein repair and turnover components, a decrease in lipid raft proteins and apolipoprotein dysregulation. Many of these findings are consistent with the pathophysiology of sickle cell disease, including high oxidant burden, resulting in damage to cytoskeletal and other proteins, and erythrocyte rigidity. More unexpected findings, such as a decrease in lipid raft components and apolipoprotein dysregulation, offer previously unexplored targets for future investigation and potential therapeutic intervention. Exploratory proteomic profiling is a valuable source of hypothesis generation for the cellular and molecular pathophysiology of sickle cell disease.
Dual Language Bilingual Education Placement Practices: Educator Discourses About Emergent Bilingual Students in Two Program Types

ABSTRACT This article explores the placement practices of students into different educational programs in PreK–first grade, including two bilingual education programs and an ESL “mainstream” classroom. We then examine the discourse practices of four third-grade teachers and the school principal. Our findings suggest that initial program placement resulted in a perception that students were tracked by ability, and educator discourses on student ability reflected long-term consequences of these initial placement practices. We conclude with both theoretical implications and practical suggestions for the development of equitable dual language bilingual education program implementation.
Use it or lose it: Wear-out and lifetime in future chip multiprocessors

Moore's Law scaling is continuing to yield even higher transistor density with each succeeding process generation, leading to today's multi-core Chip Multi-Processors (CMPs) with tens or even hundreds of interconnected cores or tiles. Unfortunately, deep sub-micron CMOS process technology is marred by increasing susceptibility to wearout. Prolonged operational stress gives rise to accelerated wearout and failure, due to several physical failure mechanisms, including Hot Carrier Injection (HCI) and Negative Bias Temperature Instability (NBTI). Each failure mechanism correlates with different usage-based stresses, all of which can eventually generate permanent faults. While the wearout of an individual core in many-core CMPs may not necessarily be catastrophic for the system, a single fault in the inter-processor Network-on-Chip (NoC) fabric could render the entire chip useless, as it could lead to protocol-level deadlocks, or even partition away vital components such as the memory controller or other critical I/O. In this paper, we develop critical path models for HCI- and NBTI-induced wear due to the actual stresses caused by real workloads, applied onto the interconnect micro-architecture. A key finding from this modeling being that, counter to prevailing wisdom, wearout in the CMP on-chip interconnect is correlated with lack of load observed in the NoC routers, rather than high load. We then develop a novel wearout-decelerating scheme in which routers under low load have their wearout-sensitive components exercised, without significantly impacting cycle time, pipeline depth, area or power consumption of the overall router. We subsequently show that the proposed design yields a 13.8×-65× increase in CMP lifetime.
Reassessing biases and other uncertainties in sea surface temperature observations measured in situ since 1850: 2. Biases and homogenization

[1] Changes in instrumentation and data availability have caused time-varying biases in estimates of global and regional average sea surface temperature. The size of the biases arising from these changes are estimated and their uncertainties evaluated. The estimated biases and their associated uncertainties are largest during the period immediately following the Second World War, reflecting the rapid and incompletely documented changes in shipping and data availability at the time. Adjustments have been applied to reduce these effects in gridded data sets of sea surface temperature and the results are presented as a set of interchangeable realizations. Uncertainties of estimated trends in global and regional average sea surface temperature due to bias adjustments since the Second World War are found to be larger than uncertainties arising from the choice of analysis technique, indicating that this is an important source of uncertainty in analyses of historical sea surface temperatures. Despite this, trends over the twentieth century remain qualitatively consistent.