Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Logic Design Partitioning for Stacked Power Domains

Energy and battery lifetime constraints are critical challenges to IC designs. Stacked power-domain implementation, which connects voltage domains in series, can effectively improve power delivery efficiency and thus improve battery lifetime. However, such an approach requires balanced currents between different domains across multiple operating scenarios. Furthermore, level shifter insertion, along with placement constraints imposed by power domain regions, can incur significant power and area penalties. To the best of our knowledge, no existing work performs subblock-level partitioning optimization for stacked-domain designs. In this paper, we present an optimization framework for stacked-domain designs. Based on an initial placement solution, we apply a flow-based partitioning that is aware of multiple operating scenarios, cell placement, and timing-critical paths to partition cells into two power domains with balanced cross-domain current and minimized number of inserted level shifters. We further propose heuristics to define regions for each power domain so as to minimize placement perturbation, as well as a dynamic programming-based method to minimize the area cost of power domain generation. In an updated floor plan, we perform matching-based optimization to insert level shifters with minimized wirelength penalty. Overall, our method achieves an excellent current balance across stacked domains with less than 10% discrepancy, which results in up to more than $2\times$ battery lifetime improvements.
Small cell in-band wireless backhaul in massive Multiple-Input Multiple-Output systems

Massive Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) systems, dense Small-Cells (SCs), and full duplexing are three candidates for next-generation wireless systems. The cooperation of the three techniques could offer more benefits, e.g., SC in-band wireless backhaul in massive MIMO systems. In this paper, three strategies of SC in-band wireless backhaul in massive MIMO systems are introduced and compared. Simulation results show that SC in-band wireless backhaul has the potential to improve the throughput for massive MIMO systems, and applying full-duplexing techniques at SCs could provide greater gain.
Functional Maps at the Onset of Auditory Inputs in Very Early Preterm Human Neonates

Abstract During the last trimester of human gestation, neurons reach their final destination and establish long‐ and short‐distance connections. Due to the difficulties obtaining functional data at this age, the characteristics of the functional architecture at the onset of sensory thalamocortical connectivity in humans remain largely unknown. In particular, it is unknown to what extent responses evoked by an external stimulus are general or already sensitive to certain stimuli. In the present study, we recorded high‐density event‐related potentials (ERPs) in 19 neonates, tested ten weeks before term (28‐32 weeks gestational age (wGA), that is, at an average age of 30 wGA) by means of a syllable discrimination task (i.e., a phonetic change: ba vs. ga; and a voice change: male vs. female voice). We first observed that the syllables elicited 4 peaks with distinct topographies implying a progression of the sensory input along a processing hierarchy; second, repetition induced a decrease in the amplitude (repetition suppression) of these peaks, but their latencies and topographies remained stable; and third, a change of stimulus generated mismatch responses, which were more precisely time‐locked to event onset in the case of a phonetic change than in the case of a voice change. A hierarchical and parallel functional architecture is therefore able to process environmental sounds in a timely precise fashion, well before term birth. This elaborate functional architecture at the onset of extrinsic neural activity suggests that specialized areas weakly dependent on the environment are present in the perisylvian region as part of the genetic endowment of the human species.
Association of microRNA‐21 expression with clinicopathological characteristics and the risk of progression in advanced prostate cancer patients receiving androgen deprivation therapy

Despite androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) remains the mainstay therapy for advanced prostate cancer (PCa), the patients have widely variable durations of response to ADT. Unfortunately, there is limited knowledge of pre‐treatment prognostic factors for response to ADT. Recently, microRNA‐21 (miR‐21) has been reported to play an important role in development of castration resistance of CaP. However, little is known about the expression of miR‐21 in advanced PCa biopsy tissues, and data on its potential predictive value in advanced PCa are completely lacking.
An integrated workflow for proteome-wide off-target identification and polypharmacology drug design

Polypharmacology, which focuses on designing drugs to target multiple receptors, has emerged as a new paradigm in drug discovery. To rationally design multi-target drugs, it is fundamental to understand protein-ligand interactions on a proteome scale. We have developed a Proteome-wide Off-target Pipeline (POP) that integrates ligand binding site analysis, protein-ligand docking, the statistical analysis of docking scores, and electrostatic potential calculations. The utility of POP is demonstrated by a case study, in which the molecular mechanism of anti-cancer effect of Nelfinavir is hypothesized. By combining structural proteome-wide off-target identification and systems biology, it is possible for us to correlate drug perturbations with clinical outcomes.
Electrotactile vision substitution for 3D trajectory following

Navigation for blind persons represents a challenge for researchers in vision substitution. In this field, one of the used techniques to navigate is guidance. In this study, we develop a new approach for 3D trajectory following in which the requested task is to track a light path using computer input devices (keyboard and mouse) or a rigid body handled in front of a stereoscopic camera. The light path is visualized either on direct vision or by way of a electro-stimulation device, the Tongue Display Unit, a 12×12 matrix of electrodes. We improve our method by a series of experiments in which the effect of the modality of perception and that of the input device. Preliminary results indicated a close correlation between the stimulated and recorded trajectories.
Occurrence of Priming in the Degradation of Lignocellulose in Marine Sediments

More than 50% of terrestrially-derived organic carbon (terrOC) flux from the continents to the ocean is remineralised in the coastal zone despite its perceived high refractivity. The efficient degradation of terrOC in the marine environment could be fuelled by labile marine-derived material, a phenomenon known as “priming effect”, but experimental data to confirm this mechanism are lacking. We tested this hypothesis by treating coastal sediments with 13C-lignocellulose, as a proxy for terrOC, with and without addition of unlabelled diatom detritus that served as the priming inducer. The occurrence of priming was assessed by the difference in lignocellulose mineralisation between diatom-amended treatments and controls in aerobic sediment slurries. Priming of lignocellulose degradation was observed only at the initial stages of the experiment (day 7) and coincided with overall high microbial activity as exemplified by total CO2 production. Lignocellulose mineralisation did not differ consistently between diatom treatments and control for the remaining experimental time (days 14–28). Based on this pattern, we hypothesize that the faster initiation of lignocellulose mineralisation in diatom-amended treatments is attributed to the decomposition of accessible polysaccharide components within the lignocellulose complex by activated diatom degraders. The fact that diatom-degraders contributed to lignocellulose degradation was also supported by the different patterns in 13C-enrichment of phospholipid fatty acids between treatments. Although we did not observe differences between treatments in the total quantity of respired lignocellulose at the end of the experiment, differences in timing could be important in natural ecosystems where the amount of time that a certain compound is subject to aerobic degradation before burial to deeper anoxic sediments may be limited.
Facilitating dynamic web service composition with fine-granularity context management

Context is an important factor for the success of dynamic service composition. Although many context-based AI or workflow approaches have been proposed to support dynamic service composition, there is still an unaddressed issue of the support of fine-granularity context management. In this paper, we propose a granularity-based context model together with an approach to supporting the intelligent context-aware service composing problem. The corresponding case study is provided to show the validity of our approach.
Molecular dynamics correctly models the unusual major conformation of the GAGU RNA internal loop and with NMR reveals an unusual minor conformation

The RNA “GAGU” duplex, (5′GACGAGUGUCA)2, contains the internal loop (5′-GAGU-3′)2 , which has two conformations in solution as determined by NMR spectroscopy. The major conformation has a loop structure consisting of trans-Watson–Crick/Hoogsteen GG pairs, A residues stacked on each other, U residues bulged outside the helix, and all sugars with a C2′-endo conformation. This differs markedly from the internal loops, (5′-GAGC-3′)2, (5′-AAGU-3′)2, and (5′-UAGG-3′)2, which all have cis-Watson–Crick/Watson–Crick AG “imino” pairs flanked by cis-Watson–Crick/Watson–Crick canonical pairs resulting in maximal hydrogen bonding. Here, molecular dynamics was used to test whether the Amber force field (ff99 + bsc0 + OL3) approximates molecular interactions well enough to keep stable the unexpected conformation of the GAGU major duplex structure and the NMR structures of the duplexes containing (5′-GAGC-3′)2, (5′-AAGU-3′)2, and (5′-UAGG-3′)2 internal loops. One-microsecond simulations were repeated four times for each of the duplexes starting in their NMR conformations. With the exception of (5′-UAGG-3′)2, equivalent simulations were also run starting with alternative conformations. Results indicate that the Amber force field keeps the NMR conformations of the duplexes stable for at least 1 µsec. They also demonstrate an unexpected minor conformation for the (5′-GAGU-3′)2 loop that is consistent with newly measured NMR spectra of duplexes with natural and modified nucleotides. Thus, unrestrained simulations led to the determination of the previously unknown minor conformation. The stability of the native (5′-GAGU-3′)2 internal loop as compared to other loops can be explained by changes in hydrogen bonding and stacking as the flanking bases are changed.
Decoding semantic representations from functional near-infrared spectroscopy signals

Abstract. This study uses representational similarity-based neural decoding to test whether semantic information elicited by words and pictures is encoded in functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) data. In experiment 1, subjects passively viewed eight audiovisual word and picture stimuli for 15 min. Blood oxygen levels were measured using the Hitachi ETG-4000 fNIRS system with a posterior array over the occipital lobe and a left lateral array over the temporal lobe. Each participant’s response patterns were abstracted to representational similarity space and compared to the group average (excluding that subject, i.e., leave-one-out cross-validation) and to a distributional model of semantic representation. Mean accuracy for both decoding tasks significantly exceeded chance. In experiment 2, we compared three group-level models by averaging the similarity structures from sets of eight participants in each group. In these models, the posterior array was accurately decoded by the semantic model, while the lateral array was accurately decoded in the between-groups comparison. Our findings indicate that semantic representations are encoded in the fNIRS data, preserved across subjects, and decodable by an extrinsic representational model. These results are the first attempt to link the functional response pattern measured by fNIRS to higher-level representations of how words are related to each other.
Cortical Development Requires Mesodermal Expression of Tbx1, a Gene Haploinsufficient in 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome

Abstract In mammals, proper temporal control of neurogenesis and neural migration during embryonic development ensures correct formation of the cerebral cortex. Changes in the distribution of cortical projection neurons and interneurons are associated with behavioral disorders and psychiatric diseases, including schizophrenia and autism, suggesting that disrupted cortical connectivity contributes to the brain pathology. TBX1 is the major candidate gene for 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (22q11.2DS), a chromosomal deletion disorder characterized by a greatly increased risk for schizophrenia. We have previously shown that Tbx1 heterozygous mice have reduced prepulse inhibition, a behavioral abnormality that is associated with 22q11.2DS and nonsyndromic schizophrenia. Here, we show that loss of Tbx1 disrupts corticogenesis in mice by promoting premature neuronal differentiation in the medio‐lateral embryonic cortex, which gives rise to the somatosensory cortex (S1). In addition, we found altered polarity in both radially migrating excitatory neurons and tangentially migrating inhibitory interneurons. Together, these abnormalities lead to altered lamination in the S1 at the terminal stages of corticogenesis in Tbx1 null mice and similar anomalies in Tbx1 heterozygous adult mice. Finally, we show that mesoderm‐specific inactivation of Tbx1 is sufficient to recapitulate the brain phenotype indicating that Tbx1 exerts a cell nonautonomous role in cortical development from the mesoderm.
The Weight Distributions of Two Classes of Nonbinary Cyclic Codes With Few Weights

The objective of this letter is to construct two classes of cyclic codes over <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$F_{p}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> with few weights, where <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$p$ </tex-math></inline-formula> is an odd prime. The weight distributions of these codes are determined. Some of the cyclic codes are optimal, which refers to meeting a certain bound on linear codes. The number of nonzero weights of these codes is not more than five and these codes can be employed to obtain secret sharing schemes.
Research Priorities, Measures, and Recommendations for Assessment of Tobacco Use in Clinical Cancer Research

There is strong evidence that cigarette smoking causes adverse outcomes in people with cancer. However, more research is needed regarding those effects and the effects of alternative tobacco products and of secondhand smoke, the effects of cessation (before diagnosis, during treatment, or during survivorship), the biologic mechanisms, and optimal strategies for tobacco dependence treatment in oncology. Fundamentally, tobacco is an important source of variation in clinical treatment trials. Nevertheless, tobacco use assessment has not been uniform in clinical trials. Progress has been impeded by a lack of consensus regarding tobacco use assessment suitable for cancer patients. The NCI-AACR Cancer Patient Tobacco Use Assessment Task Force identified priority research areas and developed recommendations for assessment items and timing of assessment in cancer research. A cognitive interview study was conducted with 30 cancer patients at the NIH Clinical Center to evaluate and improve the measurement items. The resulting Cancer Patient Tobacco Use Questionnaire (C-TUQ) includes “Core” items for minimal assessment of tobacco use at initial and follow-up time points, and an “Extension” set. Domains include the following: cigarette and other tobacco use status, intensity, and past use; use relative to cancer diagnosis and treatment; cessation approaches and history; and secondhand smoke exposure. The Task Force recommends that assessment occur at study entry and, at a minimum, at the end of protocol therapy in clinical trials. Broad adoption of the recommended measures and timing protocol, and pursuit of the recommended research priorities, will help us to achieve a clearer understanding of the significance of tobacco use and cessation for cancer patients. Clin Cancer Res; 22(8); 1907–13. ©2016 AACR.
Effect of Physical Activity on Self‐Reported Disability in Older Adults: Results from the LIFE Study

To test the hypothesis that a long‐term structured, moderate intensity physical activity (PA) program is more effective than a health education (HE) program in reducing the risk of s elf‐reported dependency and disability in basic activities of daily living (BADLs), disability in instrumental ADLs (IADL), and mobility disability.
Pharmacotherapy for obesity in individuals with type 2 diabetes

ABSTRACT Introduction: Type 2 diabetes (T2DM) is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Obesity is one of the main risk factors for T2DM and its management requires a multidisciplinary approach, which may include pharmacotherapy. Areas covered: In this paper, data on efficacy, tolerability and safety of FDA-approved pharmacotherapies for obesity (orlistat, phentermine/topiramate extended-release, lorcaserin, bupropion sustained release/naltrexone sustained release and liraglutide) are reviewed, focusing on individuals with type 2 diabetes. Expert opinion: Obesity is the major pathophysiologic driver of T2DM; conversely 5–10% weight loss leads to significant improvement in glycemic control, lipids and blood pressure. Weight loss maintenance is difficult with lifestyle interventions alone and may require adjunctive therapies. There is good evidence for the efficacy and tolerability of approved anti-obesity pharmacotherapies in individuals with T2DM, with current cardiovascular safety data being most favorable for liraglutide, orlistat and lorcaserin. Given the link between obesity and T2DM, a weight-centric therapeutic approach including use of weight reducing anti-diabetic therapies, and anti-obesity pharmacotherapies is both intuitive and rational to improve glycemic and other metabolic outcomes in patients with T2DM.
Characteristics of adult smokers presenting to a mind–body medicine clinic

Mind–body interventions can improve vulnerabilities that underlie smoking behavior. The characteristics of smokers who use mind–body medicine have not been explored, preventing the development of targeted interventions. Patients (N = 593) presenting to a mind–body medicine clinic completed self-report measures. Patients were 67 percent never smokers, 27 percent former smokers, and 6 percent current smokers. Current smokers were younger; more likely to be single, unemployed, or on disability; and report greater depression symptoms, greater pain, and lower social support (ps < .05). Current smokers who use mind–body medicine have unique psychosocial needs that should be targeted in mind–body smoking cessation interventions.
Free Talk in the Air: A Hierarchical Topology for 60 GHz Wireless Data Center Networks

With the development of 60 GHz technology, data centers are going to be wireless. A fundamental challenge in wireless data center networking is how to efficiently use 60 GHz wireless technology to improve the performance. Many existing works have been proposed for this, but most of them do not perform well in connectivity or may not be flexible for different environments in data centers. This paper presents Graphite, a novel network structure that has many desirable features for wireless data centers. The whole architecture can be suitable for several different deployments of data centers. In Graphite, the problem of link blockage can be properly solved. Graphite makes best use of the propagation distance of 60 GHz and allows one server to communicate with as many other servers as possible. Graphite also improves the average node degree, which is more than any other existing wireless topologies on the same condition. Furthermore, Graphite can be suitable for data center with different deployments. We build a small testbed of Graphite to demonstrate its ability to solve the problem of link blockage. Results from theoretical analysis and extensive evaluations show that Graphite is a viable wireless topology for data center networks.
Community Capacity Building and Sustainability: Outcomes of Community-Based Participatory Research

Background: For communities, the value of community-based participatory research (CBPR) is often manifested in the outcomes of increased capacity and sustainable adoption of evidence-based practices for social change. Educational opportunities that promote discourse between community and academic partners can help to advance CBPR and better define these outcomes.Objectives: This paper describes a community-academic conference to develop shared definitions of community capacity building and sustainability related to CBPR and to identify obstacles and facilitators to both.Methods: "Taking It to the Curbside: Engaging Communities to Create Sustainable Change for Health" was planned by five Clinical Translational Science Institutes and four community organizations. After a keynote presentation, breakout groups of community and academic members met to define community capacity building and sustainability, and to identify facilitators and barriers to achieving both. Groups were facilitated by researcher-community partner teams and conversations were recorded and transcribed. Qualitative analysis for thematic content was conducted by a subset of the planning committee.Results: Important findings included learning that (1) the concepts of capacity and sustainability were considered interconnected; (2) partnership was perceived as both a facilitator and an outcome of CBPR; (3) sustainability was linked to "transfer of knowledge" from one generation to another within a community; and (4) capacity and sustainability were enhanced when goals were shared and health outcomes were achieved.Conclusions: Community capacity building and sustainability are key outcomes of CBPR for communities. Co-learning opportunities that engage and mutually educate both community members and academics can be useful strategies for identifying meaningful strategies to achieve these outcomes.