bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
PAS‐C platelets contain less plasma protein, lower anti‐A and anti‐B titers, and decreased HLA antibody specificities compared to plasma platelets
Authors: Weisberg Stuart P. , Shaz Beth H. , Tumer Gizem , Silliman Chris C. , Kelher Marguerite R. , Cohn Claudia S.
Published: February 2018

BACKGROUND

Platelets (PLTs) collected and stored in PLT additive solution Intersol (PAS‐C) are presumed to reduce recipient exposure to donor plasma components; however, the effects of PAS‐C on PLT supernatant composition are poorly defined. Therefore, we compared the total protein concentration, isohemagglutinin titers, and HLA antibodies in supernatants of PAS‐C PLTs to plasma PLTs.

STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS

Apheresis PLTs from group O blood donors were collected into either 100% donor plasma (n = 50) or a mixture of 65% PAS‐C/35% donor plasma (n = 50). Within 12 hours of collection, samples of the PLT supernatant were frozen and stored. PLT supernatants were assayed for total protein concentration and anti‐A and anti‐B titers and screened for HLA antibodies. Samples positive for HLA antibodies were further tested using single‐antigen bead assays to determine antibody strength and specificity.

RESULTS

Supernatants of PAS‐C PLTs had significantly lower total protein concentration and anti‐A and anti‐B titers compared to plasma PLTs. There was no significant difference in the number of HLA antibody screen–positive PAS‐C (3/50) compared to plasma PLT supernatants (2/50); however, the HLA antibody screen–positive supernatants of PAS‐C PLTs had fewer HLA specificities (2) compared to those of the plasma PLTs (18).

CONCLUSION

Decreased plasma proteins likely underlie lower rates of allergic and febrile, nonhemolytic transfusion reactions from the infusion of PAS‐C PLTs. Decreased anti‐A and anti‐B titers may prevent hemolysis from minor ABO mismatch. Lower HLA antibody specificities may mitigate transfusion‐related acute lung injury.
Ultraviolet light‐based pathogen inactivation and alloimmunization after platelet transfusion: results from a randomized trial
Authors: Norris Philip J. , Kaidarova Zhanna , Maiorana Erica , Milani Silvano , Lebedeva Mila , Busch Michael P. , Custer Brian , Rebulla Paolo
Published: February 2018

BACKGROUND

The current study explored whether pathogen‐reduction treatment of platelet components before transfusion would decrease the risk of alloimmunization.

STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS

Study participants were patients with hematologic cancer who were included in two parallel, randomized clinical trials testing pathogen‐reduction treatment versus conventional platelets using the Mirasol or Intercept pathogen‐reduction systems. Patients who had a baseline, pretransfusion sample and a follow‐up, posttransfusion sample were included in the study (n = 179 patients in each study arm). Human leukocyte antigen antibody levels were determined using a commercial multianalyte, bead‐based assay.

RESULTS

The rate of human leukocyte antigen Class I alloimmunization at the clinical sites in recipients of conventional platelets was low at the highest assay cutoff (range, 1.2%‐5.9%). Consistent with prior studies, human leukocyte antigen antibodies were first detected from 3 to 35 days after transfusion. There were no statistically significant differences between alloimmunization rates in patients who received pathogen‐reduction treatment versus conventional platelet transfusions. Although he difference was not statistically significant, the effect size for protection from alloimmunization was greatest for high‐level human leukocyte antigen Class I antibodies (approximately threefold) in the Intercept‐treated patients compared with those who received conventional platelets. In the Mirasol study, only two patients and one patient in the control group developed medium‐level or high‐level antibodies, respectively, so it was impossible to determine an effect size for potential protection.

CONCLUSIONS

The current study was not sufficiently powered to determine whether pathogen‐reduction treatment provides protection from human leukocyte antigen alloimmunization in platelet transfusion recipients. The data presented will be useful in the design of future trials and endpoints powered to detect a protective effect.
Cover Image, Volume 16, Issue 1
Authors: Keller Alexandra , Wingelhofer Bettina , Peter Barbara , Bauer Karin , Berger Daniela , Gamperl Susanne , Reifinger Martin , Cerny‐Reiterer Sabine , Moriggl Richard , Willmann Michael , Valent Peter , Hadzijusufovic Emir
Published: February 2018

The cover image, by Alexandra Keller et al., is based on the Original Article The JAK2/STAT5 signaling pathway as a potential therapeutic target in canine mastocytoma, DOI: 10.1111/vco.12311

image
Randomized, controlled, prospective clinical trial of autologous greater omentum free graft versus autogenous cancellous bone graft in radial and ulnar fractures in miniature breed dogs
Authors: Ree Jennifer J. , Baltzer Wendy I. , Nemanic Sarah
Published: February 2018

Objective

To determine the rate of radiographic healing, complications, vascularization, and bone density after repair of radial and ulnar fractures in dogs <6 kg that were treated with an autogenous cancellous bone graft (BG) or free autologous omentum graft (OG).

Study Design

Prospective, randomized, controlled clinical trial with owners/radiologists blinded to treatment.

Animals

25 dogs with naturally occurring traumatic radial/ulnar fractures.

Methods

Fractures underwent plate fixation with OG or BG. Power Doppler ultrasonographic, computed tomographic (CT), and radiographic examinations of the affected antebrachium were performed preoperatively and every 3 weeks postoperatively until healed. Pressure‐sensitive walkway gait analysis and owner and veterinarian assessments were obtained preoperatively (0 weeks) and 3, 6, 9, 12, and 24 weeks postoperatively.

Results

Owner/veterinarian assessments improved postoperatively but did not differ significantly between groups. The improvement in peak vertical force/vertical impulse was greater in dogs with OG than in those with BG, beginning 3 weeks postoperatively. Radiographic healing occurred earlier in bones treated with OG (median, 9 weeks) than in those treated with BG (12 weeks). Cortical bone density derived from CT of the distal ulna was higher in bones with BG compared with bones with OG. Signal intensity and the number of vessels in the fracture callus declined over time in both groups, according to results of ultrasonography. However, bones retained more vessels and greater signal intensity when treated with OG compared with treatment with BG, according to multiple views at 6 and 9 weeks postoperatively.

Conclusion

Omental grafting was not associated with major complications, and it accelerated bone healing and return to weight bearing in dogs.

Clinical significance

Omental grafting should be considered as an adjunct to stabilization of antebrachial fractures in toy and small breed dogs.
Recoverability-driven coarticulation: Acoustic evidence from Japanese high vowel devoicing
Authors: Whang James
Published: February 2018

High vowel devoicing in Japanese, where /i, u/ in a C1VC2 sequence devoice when both C1 and C2 are voiceless, has been studied extensively, but factors that contribute to the devoiced vowels' likelihood of complete deletion is still debated. This study examines the effects of phonotactic predictability on the deletion of devoiced vowels. Native Tokyo Japanese speakers (N = 22) were recorded in a sound-attenuated booth reading sentences containing lexical stimuli. C1 of the stimuli were /k, ʃ/, after which either high vowel can occur, and /ʧ, ϕ, s, ç/, after which only one of the two occurs. C2 was always a stop. C1 duration and center of gravity (COG), the amplitude weighted mean of frequencies present in a signal, were measured. Duration results show that devoicing lengthens only non-fricatives, while it has either no effect or a shortening effect on fricatives. COG results show that coarticulatory effects of devoiced vowels are evident in /k, ʃ/ but not in /ʧ, ϕ, s, ç/. Devoiced high vowels, therefore, seem to be more likely to delete when the vowel is phonotactically predictable than when it is unpredictable.
Individually tailored spectral-change enhancement for the hearing impaired
Authors: Chen Jing , Moore Brian C. J. , Baer Thomas , Wu Xihong
Published: February 2018

An algorithm for enhancing spectral changes over time was previously shown to improve the intelligibility of speech in steady speech-spectrum noise (SSN) for hearing-impaired subjects but tended to impair intelligibility for speech in a background of two-talker speech. Large individual differences were found and the application of a genetic algorithm for selecting the “best” parameter values for each listener was found to be beneficial. In the present study, the spectral-change enhancement (SCE) processing was modified by individually tailoring the degree of SCE based on the frequency-dependent hearing loss of the subjects, and by using finer frequency resolution. The effect of the modified SCE processing on the intelligibility and quality of speech in SSN and babble noise (BBN) was evaluated. Ten subjects with mild to moderate hearing loss were tested twice for all tests. The SCE processing led to small but significant improvements in the intelligibility of speech in both SSN and BBN, while the effect of the SCE processing on speech quality was small.
Experience-Based Leadership Development and Professional Sport Organizations
Authors: Frawley Stephen , Favaloro Daniel , Schulenkorf Nico
Published: February 2018

In recent years, there has been a significant interest around leadership development practices within the field of management. Leadership development is particularly important within the highly competitive sport industry, where leadership performance is under constant and ever-increasing scrutiny. For sport organizations, strong leadership can be a source of significant competitive advantage, and hence, increased focus on leadership and investment into the development of talent has occurred. However, there has been a surprising lack of scholarly research into leadership and the associated processes within the sport management field, particularly from an Australian perspective. This paper addresses this gap as it examines the nature of experience-based leadership development practices within three of Australia’s leading professional sport organizations. Following a qualitative multicase study approach, the thematic analysis of 15 in-depth semistructured interviews with members of the senior executive of each case organization suggested that the national sport organizations placed significant emphasis on experience-based opportunities as a way of developing their workforce. Via the adoption of McCall’s experience-based leadership development framework, four main themes emerged: the importance of experience-based opportunities for leadership development; leadership development through involvement and exposure to experiences; networking opportunities gained from experienced-based exposure; and the relationship between on-the-job experience and formal leadership education. These findings extend our knowledge of current leadership development and practices implemented in national sport organizations and highlight the importance of effective leadership within highly competitive sport markets. Based on these findings, implications are provided for current practice illustrating the benefits that an experience-based approach to leadership development within sport organizations can have.
Symbolic use of marine shells and mineral pigments by Iberian Neandertals 115,000 years ago
Authors: Hoffmann Dirk L. , Angelucci Diego E. , Villaverde Valentín , Zapata Josefina , Zilhão João
Published: February 2018

U-Th dating of archaeological deposits of Cueva de los Aviones provides evidence for Neandertal symbolism 115,000 years ago.
Observation of three-photon bound states in a quantum nonlinear medium
Authors: Liang Qi-Yu , Venkatramani Aditya V. , Cantu Sergio H. , Nicholson Travis L. , Gullans Michael J. , Gorshkov Alexey V. , Thompson Jeff D. , Chin Cheng , Lukin Mikhail D. , Vuletić Vladan
Published: February 2018

Forming photonic bound states

Photons do not naturally interact with each other and must be coaxed into doing so. Liang
et al.
show that a gas of Rydberg atoms—a cloud of rubidium atoms excited by a sequence of laser pulses—can induce strong interactions between propagating photons. The authors could tune the strength of the interaction to make the photons form dimer and trimer bound states. This approach should prove useful for producing novel quantum states of light and quantum entanglement on demand.

Science
, this issue p.
783
Gene Expression of Pneumocystis murina after Treatment with Anidulafungin Results in Strong Signals for Sexual Reproduction, Cell Wall Integrity, and Cell Cycle Arrest, Indicating a Requirement for Ascus Formation for Proliferation
Authors: Cushion Melanie T. , Ashbaugh Alan , Hendrix Keeley , Linke Michael J. , Tisdale Nikeya , Sayson Steven G. , Porollo Aleksey
Published: February 2018

The echinocandins are a class of antifungal agents that target β-1,3-
d
-glucan (BG) biosynthesis. In the ascigerous
Pneumocystis
species, treatment with these drugs depletes the ascus life cycle stage, which contains BG, but large numbers of forms which do not express BG remain in the infected lungs. In the present study, the gene expression profiles of
Pneumocystis murina
were compared between infected, untreated mice and mice treated with anidulafungin for 2 weeks to understand the metabolism of the persisting forms. Almost 80 genes were significantly up- or downregulated. Like other fungi exposed to echinocandins, genes associated with sexual replication, cell wall integrity, cell cycle arrest, and stress comprised the strongest upregulated signals in
P. murina
from the treated mice. The upregulation of the
P. murina
β-1,3-
d
-glucan endohydrolase and endo-1,3-glucanase was notable and may explain the disappearance of the existing asci in the lungs of treated mice since both enzymes can degrade BG. The biochemical measurement of BG in the lungs of treated mice and fluorescence microscopy with an anti-BG antibody supported the loss of BG. Downregulated signals included genes involved in cell replication, genome stability, and ribosomal biogenesis and function and the
Pneumocystis
-specific genes encoding the major surface glycoproteins (Msg). These studies suggest that
P. murina
attempted to undergo sexual replication in response to a stressed environment and was halted in any type of proliferative cycle, likely due to a lack of BG. Asci appear to be a required part of the life cycle stage of
Pneumocystis
, and BG may be needed to facilitate progression through the life cycle via sexual replication.
Full-Length Genome Sequences of Recombinant and Nonrecombinant Sympatric Strains of
Rice yellow mottle virus
from Western Kenya
Authors: Adego Antony Kigaru , Poulicard Nils , Pinel-Galzi Agnès , Mukoye Benard , Fargette Denis , Wéré Hassan Karakacha , Hébrard Eugénie
Published: February 2018

Five isolates of
Rice yellow mottle virus
from western Kenya were fully sequenced. One isolate of strain S4lv had been collected in 1966. Two isolates belonged to the emerging strain S4ug recently described in Uganda. Two isolates collected in 2012 are putative recombinants between the S4lv and S4ug strains.
Animal and Human Tissue Models of Vertical Listeria monocytogenes Transmission and Implications for Other Pregnancy-Associated Infections
Authors: Lowe David E. , Robbins Jennifer R. , Bakardjiev Anna I.
Published: February 2018

Intrauterine infections lead to serious complications for mother and fetus, including preterm birth, maternal and fetal death, and neurological sequelae in the surviving offspring. Improving maternal and child heath is a global priority. Yet, the development of strategies to prevent and treat pregnancy-related diseases has lagged behind progress made in other medical fields. One of the challenges is finding tractable model systems that replicate the human maternal-fetal interface. Animal models offer the ability to study pathogenesis and host defenses
in vivo
. However, the anatomy of the maternal-fetal interface is highly divergent across species. While many tools are available to study host responses in the pregnant mouse model, other animals have placentas that are more similar to that of humans. Here we describe new developments in animal and human tissue models to investigate the pathogenesis of listeriosis at the maternal-fetal interface. We highlight gaps in existing knowledge and make recommendations on how they can be filled.
Evidence of a cumulative effect for risk factors predicting low bone mass among male adolescent athletes
Authors: Barrack Michelle T , Fredericson Michael , Tenforde Adam S , Nattiv Aurelia
Published: February 2018

Background

Limited research has evaluated risk factors for low bone mineral density (BMD) in male adolescent athletes.

Aims/objectives

To evaluate predictors of low BMD (defined as BMD Z-score <−1.0) in a sample of male adolescent distance runner and non-runner athletes.

Methods

Male adolescent athletes completed a survey characterising sports participation, nutrition, stress fracture history, dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA)-measured BMD and body composition. Independent t-tests and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) evaluated group differences; logistic regression evaluated low BMD risk factors.

Results

Runners (n=51) exhibited a lower body weight (p=0.02), body mass index (BMI) (kg/m2) (p=0.02), per cent expected weight (p=0.02) and spine BMD Z-score (p=0.002) compared with non-runners (n=18). Single risk factors of low BMD included <85% expected weight (OR=5.6, 95% CI 1.4 to 22.5) and average weekly mileage >30 in the past year (OR=6.4, 95% CI 1.5 to 27.1). The strongest two-variable and three-variable risk factors included weekly mileage >30+ stress fracture history (OR=17.3, 95% CI 1.6 to 185.6) and weekly mileage >30+<85% expected weight + stress fracture history (OR=17.3, 95% CI 1.6 to 185.6), respectively. Risk factors were cumulative when predicting low BMD (including <85% expected weight, weekly mileage >30, stress fracture history and <1 serving of calcium-rich food/day): 0–1 risk factors (11.1%), 2 risk factors (42.9%), or 3–4 risk factors (80.0%), p<0.001).

Conclusions

Male adolescent runners exhibited lower body weight, BMI and spine BMD Z-score values. The risk of low BMD displayed a graded relationship with increasing risk factors, highlighting the importance of using methods to optimise bone mass in this population.
Macmillan GP facilitators
Authors: Loftus Rosie , Campion-Smith Charles
Published: February 2018

Rosie Loftus
and
Charles Campion-Smith
describe a worthwhile add on specialty
Working in paediatric intensive care
Authors: Manguyu Wangui , Paget Richard
Published: February 2018

Wangui Manguyu
and
Richard Paget
provide an overview
Comparison of new-generation drug-eluting stents versus drug-coated balloon for in-stent restenosis: a meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials
Authors: Cai Jin-Zan , Zhu Yong-Xiang , Wang Xin-Yu , Bourantas Christos V , Iqbal Javaid , Zhu Hao , Cummins Paul , Dong Sheng-jie , Mathur Anthony , Zhang Yao-Jun
Published: February 2018

Objective

The study sought to compare angiographic and clinical outcomes of new-generation drug-eluting stents (DES) versus drug-coated balloon (DCB) in patients with coronary in-stent restenosis (ISR).

Design

Meta-analysis using data from randomised trial found by searches on PubMed, the Cochrane Library, ClinicalTrials.gov and websites of major cardiovascular congresses.

Setting

Only randomised trials comparing DES with DCB were included.

Participants

Patients with ISR in the included trials.

Interventions

New-generation DES versus DCB.

Outcomes

The angiographic and clinical outcomes including cardiac death, all-cause death, myocardial infarction, target lesion revascularisation (TLR), target vessel revascularisation (TVR), major adverse cardiac events (MACE) and stent thrombosis were investigated.

Results

Five trials including 913 patients were eligible and included. Pooled analysis in angiographic results identified that new-generation DES were associated with higher acute luminal gain (−0.31 mm, 95% CI −0.42 to −0.20, P<0.001) and lower per cent diameter stenosis (risk ratio (RR): 0.28, 95% CI 0.02 to 0.55, P=0.04). DES significantly reduced the risk of TLR (RR: 1.96, 95% CI 1.17 to 3.28, P=0.01) compared with DCB; however, there was no statistical differences for MACE (RR: 1.21, 95% CI 0.67 to 2.17, P=0.53), myocardial infarction (RR: 1.16, 95% CI 0.55 to 2.48, P=0.69) and cardiac death (RR: 1.80, 95% CI 0.60 to 5.39, P=0.29).

Conclusions

Interventions with new-generation DES appear to be associated with significant reduction in per cent diameter stenosis and TLR at short-term follow-up, but had similar MACE, myocardial infarction and cardiac death for patients with coronary ISR compared with DCB. Appropriately powered studies with longer term follow-up are warranted to confirm these findings.
OpenPrescribing: normalised data and software tool to research trends in English NHS primary care prescribing 1998–2016
Authors: Curtis Helen J , Goldacre Ben
Published: February 2018

Objectives

We aimed to compile and normalise England’s national prescribing data for 1998–2016 to facilitate research on long-term time trends and create an open-data exploration tool for wider use.

Design

We compiled data from each individual year’s national statistical publications and normalised them by mapping each drug to its current classification within the national formulary where possible. We created a freely accessible, interactive web tool to allow anyone to interact with the processed data.

Setting and participants

We downloaded all available annual prescription cost analysis datasets, which include cost and quantity for all prescription items dispensed in the community in England. Medical devices and appliances were excluded.

Primary and secondary outcome measures

We measured the extent of normalisation of data and aimed to produce a functioning accessible analysis tool.

Results

All data were imported successfully. 87.5% of drugs were matched exactly on name to the current formulary and a further 6.5% to similar drug names. All drugs in core clinical chapters were reconciled to their current location in the data schema, with only 1.26% of drugs not assigned a current chemical code. We created an openly accessible interactive tool to facilitate wider use of these data.

Conclusions

Publicly available data can be made accessible through interactive online tools to help researchers and policy-makers explore time trends in prescribing.
Does macrolide use confer risk of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest compared with penicillin V? A Danish national case-crossover and case–time–control study
Authors: Hertz Frederik Boetius , Jensen Aksel , Knudsen Jenny D , Arpi Magnus , Andersson Charlotte , Gislason Gunnar H , Køber Lars , Torp–Pedersen Christian , Lippert Freddy , Weeke Peter E
Published: February 2018

Introduction and objectives

Macrolides have been associated with proarrhythmic properties, but the evidence is conflicting. We evaluated the risk of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) associated with specific macrolides in a retrospective study. Associations between specific macrolides and OHCA were examined by conditional logistic regression analyses in case-crossover and case–time–control models, using penicillin-V treatment as the comparative reference. From nationwide registries, we identified all OHCAs in Denmark from 2001 to 2010 and use of antibiotics.

Ethics

The present study was approved by the Danish Data Protection Agency (Danish Data Protection Agency (ref.no. 2007-58-0015, local ref.no. GEH-2014-017, (I-Suite.nr. 02 735)).

Participants

We identified 29 111 patients with an OHCA. Of these, 514 were in macrolide treatment ≤7 days before OHCA and 1237 in penicillin-V treatment.

Results

In the case-crossover analyses, overall macrolide use was not associated with OHCA with penicillin V as negative comparative reference (OR=0.90; 95% CI 0.73 to 1.10). Compared with penicillin-V treatment, specific macrolides were not associated with increased risk of OHCA: roxithromycin (OR=0.97; 95% CI 0.74 to 1.26), erythromycin (OR=0.68; 95% CI 0.44 to 1.06), clarithromycin (OR=0.95; 95% CI 0.61 to 1.48) and azithromycin (OR=0.85; 95% CI 0.57 to 1.27).

Similar results were obtained using case–time–control models: overall macrolide use (OR=0.81; 95% CI 0.62 to 1.06) and specific macrolides (roxithromycin(OR=0.70; 95% CI 0.49 to 1.00), erythromycin(OR=0.67; 95% CI 0.38 to 1.18), clarithromycin(OR=0.75; 95% CI 0.41 to 1.39) or azithromycin(OR=1.17; 95% CI 0.70 to 1.95)).

Conclusion

The risk of OHCA during treatment with macrolides was similar to that of penicillin V, suggesting no additional risk of OHCA associated with macrolides.
Is childhood wheeze and asthma in Latin America associated with poor hygiene and infection? A systematic review
Authors: Ardura-Garcia Cristina , Garner Paul , Cooper Philip J
Published: February 2018

Introduction

High asthma prevalence in Latin-American cities is thought to be caused by poor hygiene and infections. This contradicts the widely accepted ‘hygiene hypothesis’ for asthma aetiology.

Methods

Systematic review of observational studies evaluating the association between poor hygiene exposures or infections and asthma/wheeze among Latin-American children aged 4–16 years. MEDLINE, EMBASE, LILACS and CINAHL electronic databases were searched following a predefined strategy to 18 December 2017. We quantified outcomes measured and reported, assessed risk of bias and tabulated the results.

Results

Forty-five studies included: 6 cohort, 30 cross-sectional and 9 case–control studies. 26 cross-sectional studies were school-based surveys (14 of over 3000 children), whereas 5 case–control studies were hospital/health centre-based. Exposures measured and reported varied substantially between studies, and current wheeze was the most common outcome reported. Data showed selective reporting based on statistical significance (P value <0.05): 17/45 studies did not clearly describe the number of exposures measured and 15/45 studies reported on less than 50% of the exposures measured. Most exposures studied did not show an association with wheeze or asthma, except for a generally increased risk associated with acute respiratory infections in early life. Contradictory associations were observed frequently between different studies.

Conclusion

Selective reporting is common in observational studies exploring the association between environmental exposures and risk of wheeze/asthma. This, together with the use of different study outcomes (wheeze/asthma) associated with possibly distinct causal mechanisms, complicates inferences about the role of poor hygiene exposures and childhood infections in explaining asthma prevalence in Latin-American children.
On the Conjecture About the Linear Structures of Rotation Symmetric Boolean Functions
Authors: Sun Lei , Fu Fangwei , Liu Jian
Published: February 2018

In this paper, we study the conjecture that [Formula: see text]-variable ([Formula: see text] odd) rotation symmetric Boolean functions with degree [Formula: see text] have no non-zero linear structures. We show that if this class of RSBFs have non-zero linear structures, then the linear structures are invariant linear structures and the homogeneous component of degree [Formula: see text] in the function’s algebraic normal form has only two possibilities. Moreover, it is checked that the conjecture is true for [Formula: see text], and then a more explicit conjecture is proposed.
A Fault-Free Unicast Algorithm in the Generalized Hypercube with Restricted Faulty Vertices
Authors: Guo Lili , Wang Xi , Lin Cheng-Kuan , Zhou Jingya , Fan Jianxi
Published: February 2018

The generalized hypercube is a highly-connective network proposed by Bhuyan and Agrawal. In this paper, we study the restricted connectivity and fault-free unicast algorithm in the generalized hypercube. Firstly, we prove that the restricted connectivity of a [Formula: see text]-dimensional generalized hypercube [Formula: see text] is [Formula: see text], where [Formula: see text] denotes the connectivity of [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] max [Formula: see text], under the condition that each vertex has at least one fault-free neighbor. It is almost twice the traditional connectivity of [Formula: see text]. Furthermore, we present an [Formula: see text] fault-free unicast algorithm in the generalized hypercube.
Half-metallic ferromagnetism prediction in MoS2-based two-dimensional superlattice from first-principles
Authors: Wen Yan-Ni , Gao Peng-Fei , Xia Ming-Gang , Zhang Sheng-Li
Published: February 2018

Half-metallic ferromagnetism (HMFM) has great potential application in spin filter. However, it is extremely rare, especially in two-dimensional (2D) materials. At present, 2D materials have drawn international interest in spintronic devices. Here, we use ab initio density functional theory (DFT) calculations to study the structural stability and electrical and magnetic properties of the MoS2-based 2D superlattice formed by inserting graphene hexagonal ring in [Formula: see text] MoS2 supercell. Two kinds of structures with hexagonal carbon ring were predicted with structural stability and were shown HMFM. The two structures combine the spin transport capacity of graphene with the magnetism of the defective 2D MoS2. And they have strong covalent bonding between the C and S or Mo atoms near the interface. This work is very useful to help us to design reasonable MoS2-based spin filter.
Lump, periodic lump and interaction lump stripe solutions to the (2+1)-dimensional B-type Kadomtsev–Petviashvili equation
Authors: Wu Pinxia , Zhang Yufeng , Muhammad Iqbal , Yin Qiqi
Published: February 2018

In this paper, the Hirota’s bilinear form is employed to investigate the lump, periodic lump and interaction lump stripe solutions of the (2+1)-dimensional B-type Kadomtsev–Petviashvili (BKP) equation. Many results are obtained by dynamic process of figures. We analyze the propagation direction and horizontal velocity of lump solutions to find some constraint conditions which include positiveness and localization. In the process of the travel of the periodic lump solutions, it appears that the energy distribution is not symmetrical. The interaction lump stripe solutions of non-elastic indicate that the lump solitons are dropped and swallowed by the stripe soliton.
Martensite aging in 〈001〉 oriented Co49Ni21Ga30 single crystals in tension
Authors: Lauhoff C. , Krooß P. , Langenkämper D. , Somsen C. , Eggeler G. , Kireeva I. , Chumlyakov Y. I. , Niendorf T.
Published: February 2018

Co–Ni–Ga high-temperature shape memory alloys (HT-SMAs) are well-known candidate materials for damping applications at elevated temperatures. Recent studies showed that upon heat treatment in stress-induced martensite under compressive loads transformation temperatures can be increased significantly, qualifying Co–Ni–Ga for HT-actuation. The increase in transformation temperatures is related to a change in chemical order recently validated via neutron diffraction experiments. Since SMAs show distinct tension–compression asymmetry in terms of theoretical transformation strains and bearable stresses, understanding the impact of martensite aging in tension is crucial for future applications. The current results indicate that martensite aging in tension provides for a further improvement in functional properties.
Utopias of Participation
Authors: Bardzell Shaowen
Published: February 2018

This essay addresses the question of how participatory design (PD) researchers and practitioners can pursue commitments to social justice and democracy while retaining commitments to reflective practice, the voices of the marginal, and design experiments “in the small.” I argue that contemporary feminist utopianism has, on its own terms, confronted similar issues, and I observe that it and PD pursue similar agendas, but with complementary strengths. I thus propose a cooperative engagement between feminist utopianism and PD at the levels of theory, methodology, and on-the-ground practice. I offer an analysis of a case—an urban renewal project in Taipei, Taiwan—as a means of exploring what such a cooperative engagement might entail. I argue that feminist utopianism and PD have complementary strengths that could be united to develop and to propose alternative futures that reflect democratic values and procedures, emerging technologies and infrastructures as design materials, a commitment to marginalized voices (and the bodies that speak them), and an ambitious, even literary, imagination.
The Contribution of Stereoscopic and Motion Depth Cues to the Perception of Structures in 3D Point Clouds
Authors: Aygar Erol , Ware Colin , Rogers David
Published: February 2018

Particle-based simulations are used across many science domains, and it is well known that stereoscopic viewing and kinetic depth enhance our ability to perceive the 3D structure of such data. But the relative advantages of stereo and kinetic depth have not been studied for point cloud data, although they have been studied for 3D networks. This article reports two experiments assessing human ability to perceive 3D structures in point clouds as a function of different viewing parameters. In the first study, the number of discrete views was varied to determine the extent to which smooth motion is needed. Also, half the trials had stereoscopic viewing and half had no stereo. The results showed kinetic depth to be more beneficial than stereo viewing in terms of accuracy and so long as the motion was smooth. The second experiment varied the amplitude of oscillatory motion from 0 to 16 degrees. The results showed an increase in detection rate with amplitude, with the best amplitudes being 4 degrees and greater. Overall, motion was shown to yield greater accuracy, but at the expense of longer response times in comparison with stereoscopic viewing.
Perceptual Constancy in the Reproduction of Virtual Tactile Textures With Surface Displays
Authors: Bochereau Séréna , Sinclair Stephen , Hayward Vincent
Published: February 2018

For very rough surfaces, friction-induced vibrations contain frequencies that change in proportion to sliding speed. Given the poor capacity of the somatosensory system to discriminate frequencies, this fact raises the question of how accurately finger sliding speed must be known during the reproduction of virtual textures with a surface tactile display. During active touch, ten observers were asked to discriminate texture recordings corresponding to different speeds. The samples were constructed from a common texture, which was resampled at various frequencies to give a set of stimuli of different swiping speeds. In trials, they swiped their finger in rapid succession over a glass plate, which vibrated to accurately reproduce three texture recordings. Two of these recordings were identical and a third differed in that the sample represented a texture swiped at a speed different from the other two. Observers identified which of the three samples felt different. For a metal mesh texture recording, seven observers reported differences when the speed varied by 60, 80, and 100mm/s while the other three did not reach a discrimination threshold. For a finer leather chamois texture recording, thresholds were never reached in the 100mm/s range. These results show that the need for high-accuracy measurement of swiping speed during texture reproduction may actually be quite limited compared to what is commonly found in the literature.
Practical Secure Computation Outsourcing
Authors: Shan Zihao , Ren Kui , Blanton Marina , Wang Cong
Published: February 2018

The rapid development of cloud computing promotes a wide deployment of data and computation outsourcing to cloud service providers by resource-limited entities. Based on a pay-per-use model, a client without enough computational power can easily outsource large-scale computational tasks to a cloud. Nonetheless, the issue of security and privacy becomes a major concern when the customer’s sensitive or confidential data is not processed in a fully trusted cloud environment. Recently, a number of publications have been proposed to investigate and design specific secure outsourcing schemes for different computational tasks. The aim of this survey is to systemize and present the cutting-edge technologies in this area. It starts by presenting security threats and requirements, followed with other factors that should be considered when constructing secure computation outsourcing schemes. In an organized way, we then dwell on the existing secure outsourcing solutions to different computational tasks such as matrix computations, mathematical optimization, and so on, treating data confidentiality as well as computation integrity. Finally, we provide a discussion of the literature and a list of open challenges in the area.
Replicated Computations Results (RCR) Report for “Mesoscopic Modelling of Pedestrian Movement using C
arma
and its Tools”
Authors: Loreti Michele
Published: February 2018

“Mesoscopic modeling of pedestrian movement using Carma and its tools” uses C
arma
(Collective Adaptive Resource-sharing Markovian Agents), a specification language recently introduced for modeling CAS, to model spatially distributed systems in which the desired model lies between an individual-based (microscopic) and a population-based (macroscopic) spatial model. The impact on the system dynamics of changes to the topology of paths is studied via simulation. The provided experiments show that it is difficult to predict the effect of changes to the network structure and that even small variations can produce significant effects. This replicated computations results report focuses on the prototypical tool implementation used in the article to perform such analysis. The software was straightforward to install and use, and all the experimental results from the article could be reproduced.
Collaborative art practice as HCI research
Authors: Kang Laewoo (Leo) , Jackson Steven
Published: February 2018

This forum highlights conversations at the intersection of design methods and social studies of technology. By highlighting a diversity of perspectives on design interventions and programs, we aim to forge new connections between HCI design and communication, science and technology studies, and media studies scholarship. ---
Daniela Rosner, Editor
Selection of Critical Paths for Reliable Frequency Scaling under BTI-Aging Considering Workload Uncertainty and Process Variations Effects
Authors: Gomez Andres F. , Champac Victor
Published: February 2018

Conventional clock guardbanding to assure a circuit’s reliable operation under device aging due to NBTI/PBTI and process variations introduce significant performance loss in modern nanometer circuits. Dynamic Frequency Scaling (DFS) is a more efficient technique that allows us to adjust the system clock frequency according to the process condition and aging deterioration of the circuit. At the design phase, the DFS technique requires the identification of the logic paths to be monitored to introduce the required circuitry to monitor their delay. However, critical path identification is a complex problem due to three major challenges: (1) The critical paths of the circuit depend on the stress duty cycle of the devices, which are unknown in advance at design phase; (2) the critical paths of the circuit depend on the process parameters variations, whose impact on delay depend on the spatial correlation due to proximity at the circuit layout; and (3) the critical paths reordering probability may change over time due to aging. This article presents a methodology for efficient selection of the critical paths to be monitored under a DFS framework, addressing the aforementioned challenges. Experimental results on
ISCAS
85/89 benchmark circuits show the feasibility of the proposed approach to select a restricted path set while providing reliable aging monitoring.
Learning-Based, Fine-Grain Power Modeling of System-Level Hardware IPs
Authors: Lee Dongwook , Gerstlauer Andreas
Published: February 2018

Accurate power and performance models are needed to enable rapid, early system-level analysis and optimization. There is, however, a lack of fast yet fine-grain power models of hardware components at such high levels of abstraction. In this article, we present novel learning-based approaches for extending fast functional simulation models of accelerators and other hardware intellectual property components (IPs) with accurate cycle-, block-, and invocation-level power estimates. Our proposed power modeling approach is based on annotating functional hardware descriptions with capabilities that, depending on observability, allow capturing data-dependent resource, block, or input and output (I/O) activity without a significant loss in simulation speed. We further leverage advanced machine learning techniques to synthesize abstract power models using novel decomposition techniques that reduce model complexities and increase estimation accuracy. Results of applying our approach to various industrial-strength design examples show that our power models can predict cycle-, basic block-, and invocation-level power consumption to within 10%, 9%, and 3% of a commercial gate-level power estimation tool, respectively, all while running at several order of magnitude faster speeds of 1-10Mcycles/sec. Model training and synthesis takes less than 34 minutes in all cases, including up to 30 minutes for training data and trace generation using gate-level simulations.
Multicast Testing of Interposer-Based 2.5D ICs
Authors: Wang Shengcheng , Wang Ran , Chakrabarty Krishnendu , Tahoori Mehdi B.
Published: February 2018

Interposer-based 2.5D integrated circuits (ICs) are seen today as a precursor to 3D ICs based on through-silicon vias (TSVs). All the dies in a 2.5D IC must be adequately tested for product qualification. However, due to the limited number of package pins, it is a major challenge to test 2.5D ICs using conventional methods. Moreover, due to higher integration levels, test-application time and test power consumption for 2.5D ICs are also increased compared to their 2D counterparts. Therefore, it is imperative to take these issues into account during 2.5D IC testing. In this article, we present an efficient multicast test architecture for targeting defects in dies, in which multiple dies can be tested simultaneously to reduce the test-application time under constraints on test power and fault coverage. We also propose a test scheduling and optimization technique that can be utilized with the multicast test architecture. By considering the trade-off between test-application time, test-power budget, and test quality, the proposed technique provides test schedules with minimum test-application time under constraints on power consumption and fault coverage. Compared to previous work, the proposed technique can reduce test-application time by up to 53.4 for benchmark designs while achieving higher fault coverage. Since the loss in fault coverage due to multicast testing is extremely small, we can use top-off patterns to achieve full fault coverage for the dies at negligible additional cost.
Citizen observatories
Authors: Seffah Ahmed
Published: February 2018

NOTE FROM ACM: It has been determined that this article plagiarized the contents of a previously written paper. Therefore ACM has shut off access to this article.

This article has been removed from the ACM Digital Library because it was found to plagiarize an earlier work written by Maria Palacin-Silva, Ahmed Seffah, Jari Porras and Timo Pyhälahti, published by Bioinformatics and entitled "Why Citizen Science and Observatories? How Human can be Engaged in Environmental Sustainability Design?" submitted to Communications of the ACM on June 30, 2016.

For further information, contact the ACM Director of Publications.
A Visual Approach for Interactive Keyterm-Based Clustering
Authors: Nourashrafeddin Seyednaser , Sherkat Ehsan , Minghim Rosane , Milios Evangelos E.
Published: February 2018

The keyterm-based approach is arguably intuitive for users to direct text-clustering processes and adapt results to various applications in text analysis. Its way of markedly influencing the results, for instance, by expressing important terms in relevance order, requires little knowledge of the algorithm and has predictable effect, speeding up the task. This article first presents a text-clustering algorithm that can easily be extended into an interactive algorithm. We evaluate its performance against state-of-the-art clustering algorithms in unsupervised mode. Next, we propose three interactive versions of the algorithm based on keyterm labeling, document labeling, and hybrid labeling. We then demonstrate that keyterm labeling is more effective than document labeling in text clustering. Finally, we propose a visual approach to support the keyterm-based version of the algorithm. Visualizations are provided for the whole collection as well as for detailed views of document and cluster relationships. We show the effectiveness and flexibility of our framework,
Vis-Kt
, by presenting typical clustering cases on real text document collections. A user study is also reported that reveals overwhelmingly positive acceptance toward keyterm-based clustering.
Personalizing Search via Automated Analysis of Interests and Activities
Authors: Teevan Jaime , Dumais Susan T. , Horvitz Eric
Published: February 2018

We formulate and study search algorithms that consider a user's prior interactions with a wide variety of content to personalize that user's current Web search. Rather than relying on the unrealistic assumption that people will precisely specify their intent when searching, we pursue techniques that leverage implicit information about the user's interests. This information is used to re-rank Web search results within a relevance feedback framework. We explore rich models of user interests, built from both search-related information, such as previously issued queries and previously visited Web pages, and other information about the user such as documents and email the user has read and created. Our research suggests that rich representations of the user and the corpus are important for personalization, but that it is possible to approximate these representations and provide efficient client-side algorithms for personalizing search. We show that such personalization algorithms can significantly improve on current Web search.
Report on CLEF 2017
Authors: Cappellato Linda , Ferro Nicola , Goeuriot Lorraine , Gonzalo Julio , Jones Gareth J. F. , Kelly Liadh , Lawless Séamus , Mandl Thomas
Published: February 2018

This is a report on the eighth edition of the Conference and Labs of the Evaluation Forum (CLEF 2017), held in early September 2017, in Dublin, Ireland. CLEF was a four day event combining a Conference and an Evaluation Forum. The Conference featured keynotes by Leif Azzopardi and Vincent Wade, and presentation of 32 peer reviewed research papers covering a wide range of topics. The Evaluation Forum consisted to eight Labs and two workshops: eHealth, ImageCLEF, LifeCLEF, NEWSREEL, PAN, Cultural Microblog Contextualization, Early Risk Prediction on the Internet, Dynamic Search for Complex Tasks, Personalised Information Retrieval at CLEF, and Multimodal Spatial Role Labelling addressing a wide range of tasks, media, languages, and ways to go beyond standard test collections.