bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Radiation and electrostatic resistance for ultra-stable polymer composites reinforced with carbon fibers
Authors: Delkowski Michal , Smith Christopher T.G. , Anguita José V. , Silva S. Ravi P.
Published: March 2023

Future space travel needs ultra-lightweight and robust structural materials that can withstand extreme conditions with multiple entry points to orbit to ensure mission reliability. This is unattainable with current inorganic materials. Ultra-highly stable carbon fiber reinforced polymers (CFRPs) have shown susceptibility to environmental instabilities and electrostatic discharge, thereby limiting the full lightweight potential of CFRP. A more robust and improved CFRP is needed in order to improve space travel and structural engineering further. Here, we address these challenges and present a superlattice nano-barrier–enhanced CFRP with a density of ~3.18 g/cm
3
that blends within the mechanical properties of the CFRP, thus becoming part of the composite itself. We demonstrate composites with enhanced radiation resistance coupled with electrical conductivity (3.2 × 10
−8
ohm⋅m), while ensuring ultra-dimensionally stable physical properties even after temperature cycles from 77 to 573 K.
Plant and prokaryotic TIR domains generate distinct cyclic ADPR NADase products
Authors: Bayless Adam M. , Chen Sisi , Ogden Sam C. , Xu Xiaoyan , Sidda John D. , Manik Mohammad K. , Li Sulin , Kobe Bostjan , Ve Thomas , Song Lijiang , Grant Murray , Wan Li , Nishimura Marc T.
Published: March 2023

Toll/interleukin-1 receptor (TIR) domain proteins function in cell death and immunity. In plants and bacteria, TIR domains are often enzymes that produce isomers of cyclic adenosine 5′-diphosphate–ribose (cADPR) as putative immune signaling molecules. The identity and functional conservation of cADPR isomer signals is unclear. A previous report found that a plant TIR could cross-activate the prokaryotic Thoeris TIR–immune system, suggesting the conservation of plant and prokaryotic TIR-immune signals. Here, we generate autoactive Thoeris TIRs and test the converse hypothesis: Do prokaryotic Thoeris TIRs also cross-activate plant TIR immunity? Using in planta and in vitro assays, we find that Thoeris and plant TIRs generate overlapping sets of cADPR isomers and further clarify how plant and Thoeris TIRs activate the Thoeris system via producing 3′cADPR. This study demonstrates that the TIR signaling requirements for plant and prokaryotic immune systems are distinct and that TIRs across kingdoms generate a diversity of small-molecule products.
Determinants of Total and Active Microbial Communities Associated with Cyanobacterial Aggregates in a Eutrophic Lake
Authors: Gao Dezhuang , Chen Zhijie , Zhang Junyi , Wang Chao , Ma Yuan , Wang Jiahui , Deng Jie
Published: March 2023

Cyanobacterial aggregates are important mediators of biogeochemical cycles in eutrophic lakes during cyanobacterial blooms, yet regulators of microbial activities within them are not well understood. This study revealed rDNA-based abundances strongly affected the relative activities of microbial taxa within
Microcystis
aggregates, as well as trade-off effects between microbial abundances and activities.
Evolutionary history of the groundwater system in the Pearl River Delta (China) during the Holocene
Authors: Yu Shengchao , Jiao Jiu Jimmy , Luo Xin , Li Hailong , Wang Xuejing , Zhang Xiaolang , Yao Meng , Zuo Jinchao , Liang Wenzhao , Lu Meiqing
Published: March 2023

Coastal groundwater reservoirs are sensitive to the complicated evolution of marine transgressions and regressions in river delta regions. We integrated hydrogeological investigation and hydrogeochemical data with numerical modeling to assess the evolution of the groundwater system in the Pearl River Delta’s aquifer system (in southeastern China). We studied the effects of flow dynamics and redox conditions on the biogeochemical processes of nutrients in the regional groundwater flow systems in response to the transient states related to variable paleoprecipitation and seawater salinity decline from the late Pleistocene to the Holocene. The results from paleo-hydrogeological reconstruction of the aquifer-aquitard system showed that the saline groundwater formed by paleo-seawater intrusion was still present in the old marine aquitard and affected groundwater salinity and chemicals in the adjacent aquifers, while most of the groundwater in the shallow young marine aquitard has been freshened by infiltrated old/fresh rainwater. Consequently, total ammonium and carbon stored in the Pearl River Delta were estimated to be (1.91 ± 1.13) × 107 mol m–1 and (5.74 ± 4.05) × 107 mol m–1, respectively, and the ammonium and bicarbonate fluxes derived from groundwater discharge to the sea were calculated as (90.6 ± 55.9) mol m–1 yr–1 and (301.02 ± 196.23) mol m–1 yr–1, respectively. If the buried ammonium in the delta is released to the sea, it would be equivalent to nearly 205 ± 123 yr of Pearl River fluvial loading. These findings suggest that the chemicals trapped in the deltaic aquifer system during the Holocene could contribute to future ocean eutrophication and acidification.
Secondary survey in paediatric trauma
Authors: Mc Auley Clare , Mullen Stephen , Corley Lisa , McDonald Roisin , Quinn Nuala
Published: March 2023

The purpose of a secondary survey is to identify the non–life-threatening injuries that are not a priority in the primary survey, but if missed could have long-term impacts for the patient. This article provides a structured approach of the head-to-toe examination required for the secondary survey. We follow the journey of a 9-year-old boy, Peter, who was involved in an accident—electric scooter versus car. After resuscitation and primary survey, you have been asked to carry out the secondary survey. This is a guide of the steps to follow in order to carry out a comprehensive examination to ensure nothing is missed. It highlights the importance of good communication and documentation.
Inactivation of interleukin-30 in colon cancer stem cells via CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing inhibits their oncogenicity and improves host survival
Authors: D'Antonio Luigi , Fieni Cristiano , Ciummo Stefania Livia , Vespa Simone , Lotti Lavinia , Sorrentino Carlo , Di Carlo Emma
Published: March 2023

Background

Progression of colorectal cancer (CRC), a leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide, is driven by colorectal cancer stem cells (CR-CSCs), which are regulated by endogenous and microenvironmental signals. Interleukin (IL)-30 has proven to be crucial for CSC viability and tumor progression. Whether it is involved in CRC tumorigenesis and impacts clinical behavior is unknown.

Methods

IL30 production and functions, in stem and non-stem CRC cells, were determined by western blot, immunoelectron microscopy, flow cytometry, cell viability and sphere formation assays. CRISPR/Cas9-mediated deletion of theIL30gene, RNA-Seq and implantation ofIL30gene transfected or deleted CR-CSCs in NSG mice allowed to investigate IL30’s role in CRC oncogenesis. Bioinformatics and immunopathology of CRC samples highlighted the clinical implications.

Results

We demonstrated that both CR-CSCs and CRC cells express membrane-anchored IL30 that regulates their self-renewal, via WNT5A and RAB33A, and/or proliferation and migration, primarily by upregulating CXCR4viaSTAT3, which are suppressed by IL30 gene deletion, along with WNT and RAS pathways. Deletion ofIL30gene downregulates the expression of proteases, such as MMP2 and MMP13, chemokine receptors, mostly CCR7, CCR3 and CXCR4, and growth and inflammatory mediators, including ANGPT2, CXCL10, EPO, IGF1 and EGF. These factors contribute to IL30-driven CR-CSC and CRC cell expansion, which is abrogated by their selective blockade.IL30gene deleted CR-CSCs displayed reduced tumorigenicity and gave rise to slow-growing and low metastatic tumors in 80% of mice, which survived much longer than controls. Bioinformatics and CIBERSORTx of the ‘Colorectal Adenocarcinoma TCGA Nature 2012’ collection, and morphometric assessment of IL30 expression in clinical CRC samples revealed that the lack of IL30 in CRC and infiltrating leucocytes correlates with prolonged overall survival.

Conclusions

IL30 is a new CRC driver, since its inactivation, which disables oncogenic pathways and multiple autocrine loops, inhibits CR-CSC tumorigenicity and metastatic ability. The development of CRISPR/Cas9-mediated targeting of IL30 could improve the current therapeutic landscape of CRC.
Late Triassic granites with mafic microenclaves in the East Kunlun Orogenic Belt, northwestern China: petrogenesis and implications for continental crust evolution and geodynamic evolution
Authors: Xin Wei , Ding Zheng-jiang , Meng Yuan-ku , Bo Jun-wei , Li Liang , Mao Guang-zhou
Published: March 2023

The magmatic source of the Late Triassic granites in the East Kunlun Orogenic Belt (EKOB) is controversial, which restricts our understanding of crustal evolution and geodynamic evolution in the EKOB. Therefore, this study conducts zircon U‒Pb isotope dating, major and trace geochemical analysis, electron microprobe analysis of feldspar and amphibole, and in situ zircon Hf isotope analysis of Xiangride host granites and their mafic microgranular enclaves (MMEs) in the EKOB to reveal their magmatic source and geodynamic implications. Zircon U‒Pb dating shows that the Xiangride host granites and the MMEs crystallized simultaneously at ca. 228–223 Ma. The MMEs show an igneous texture, finer grain size, higher crystallization temperature and water content, and lower oxygen fugacity than those of the host granite, suggesting that they were probably derived from two distinct primitive magmas. Therefore, the MMEs are considered the products of magma mixing between granitic and mafic magmas. The Xiangride host granites show high Sr/Y (42.0–73.1) and (La/Yb)N (12.7–30.7) ratios, showing affinity with adakites derived from a thickened lower crust. Combined with the indistinguishable εHf(t) values (−3.47 to +0.08) from the coeval mafic rocks, it is concluded that they are derived from partial melting of juvenile thickened lower crust. The adakitic features of the Xiangride host granites and widespread coeval granites indicate the existence of a thickened lower crust before 228 Ma and delamination of the lower lithosphere is likely the geodynamic process resulting in the postcollisional extension regime.
Including soil alters the optimization of forestry with carbon sinks
Authors: Parkatti Vesa-Pekka , Tahvonen Olli , Viskari Toni , Liski Jari
Published: March 2023

We integrate a carbon net sink and stand-level wood production to analyze their simultaneous optimization as an economic problem. Carbon is included in living trees, wood products, and forest soil. Forestry is specified by a size-structured model for optimizing thinning timing and intensity, rotation period, and the optimal choice of rotation versus continuous cover forestry. The optimal inclusion of a carbon net sink increases the carbon pool mainly in living trees and forest soil, while the effect on the product carbon pool remains minor. With a 3% interest rate, increasing the CO2 price to €40 per tCO2 increases the total steady-state carbon pool by 131% and the soil carbon accounts for ca. 60% of the increased carbon storage. Omitting soil carbon, as in previous studies, leads to underestimates of the carbon sink, significantly decreasing the optimal total CO2 net sink and achievable economic net gain from joint wood production and carbon management. The inclusion of soil carbon suggests that, in contrast to previous results, a higher CO2 price does not necessarily favor continuous cover forestry.
Exploring coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering using reactor electron antineutrinos in the NEON experiment
Authors: Choi J. J. , Jeon E. J. , Kim J. Y. , Kim K. W. , Kim S. H. , Kim S. K. , Kim Y. D. , Ko Y. J. , Koh B. C. , Ha C. , Park B. J. , Lee S. H. , Lee I. S. , Lee H. , Lee H. S. , Lee J. , Oh Y. M. ,   NEON Collaboration
Published: March 2023

Neutrino elastic scattering observation with NaI (NEON) is an experiment designed to detect neutrino-nucleus coherent scattering using reactor electron antineutrinos. NEON is based on an array of six NaI(Tl) crystals with a total mass of 13.3 kg, located at the tendon gallery that is 23.7 m away from a reactor core with a thermal power of 2.8 GW in the Hanbit nuclear power complex. The installation of the NEON detector was completed in December 2020, and since May 2021, the detector has acquired data at full reactor power. Based on the observed light yields of the NaI crystals of approximately 22, number of photoelectrons per unit keV electron-equivalent energy (keVee), and 6 counts/kg/keV/day background level at 2–6 keVee energy, coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering (CE$$\nu $$
ν
NS) observation sensitivity is evaluated as more than 3$$\sigma $$
σ
assuming 1-year reactor-on and 100 days reactor-off data, 0.2 keVee energy threshold, and 7 counts/keV/kg/day background in the signal region of 0.2$$-$$
-
0.5 keVee. This paper describes the design of the NEON detector, including the shielding arrangement, configuration of NaI(Tl) crystals, and associated operating systems. The initial performance and associated sensitivity of the experiment are also presented.
Weak radiative decay $$\Lambda _{c}^{+}\rightarrow \Sigma ^{+}\gamma $$ using light-cone sum rules
Authors: Shi Yu-Ji , Xing Zhi-Peng , Meißner Ulf-G.
Published: March 2023

We calculate the decay width of the $$\Lambda _{c}^{+}\rightarrow \Sigma ^{+}\gamma $$

Λ

c

+

→

Σ
+

γ

using light-cone sum rules. For the initial quark radiation an effective Hamiltonian is constructed, where the internal quark line shrinks to a point. The final quark radiation is studied within the full theory. The leading twist light-cone distribution amplitudes of the $$\Sigma ^+$$

Σ
+

serve as the non-perturbative input for the sum rules calculation, and the perturbative kernel is calculated at leading order. The branching fraction we obtain is $$\mathcal{B}(\Lambda _{c}^{+}\rightarrow \Sigma ^{+}\gamma )=1.03\pm 0.36 \times 10^{-4}$$

B

(

Λ

c

+

→

Σ
+

γ
)

=
1.03
±
0.36
×

10

-
4

, which is below the recent upper limits $$<2.6 \times 10^{-4}$$

<
2.6
×

10

-
4

and $$<4.4 \times 10^{-4}$$

<
4.4
×

10

-
4

given by the Belle collaboration and the BESIII collaboration, respectively.
Multi-representation dynamics of SU(4) composite Higgs models: chiral limit and spectral reconstructions
Authors: Del Debbio Luigi , Lupo Alessandro , Panero Marco , Tantalo Nazario
Published: March 2023

We present a lattice study of the SU(4) gauge theory with two Dirac fermions in the fundamental and two in the two-index antisymmetric representation, a model close to a theory of partial compositeness proposed by G. Ferretti. Focus of this work are the methodologies behind the computation of the spectrum and the extrapolation of the chiral point for a theory with matter in multiple representations. While being still technical, this study provides important steps towards a non-perturbative understanding of the spectrum of theories of partial compositeness, which present a richer dynamics compared to single-representation theories. The multi-representation features are studied first in perturbation theory, and then non-perturbatively by adopting a dual outlook on lattice data through a joint analysis of time-momentum correlation functions and smeared spectral densities.
Ringing and echoes from black bounces surrounded by the string cloud
Authors: Yang Yi , Liu Dong , Xu Zhaoyi , Long Zheng-Wen
Published: March 2023

In the string theory, the fundamental blocks of nature are not particles but one-dimensional strings. Therefore, a generalization of this idea is to think of it as a cloud of strings. Rodrigues et al. embedded the black bounces spacetime into the string cloud, which demonstrates that the existence of the string cloud makes the Bardeen black hole singular, while the black bounces spacetime remains regular. On the other hand, the echoes are the correction to the late stage of the quasinormal ringing for a black hole, which is caused by the deviation of the spacetime relative to the initial black hole spacetime geometry in the near-horizon region. In this work, we study the gravitational wave echoes of black bounces spacetime surrounded by a cloud of strings under scalar field and electromagnetic field perturbation to explore the effects caused by a string cloud in the near-horizon region. The ringing of the regular black hole and traversable wormhole with string cloud are presented. Our results demonstrate that the black bounce spacetime with strings cloud is characterized by gravitational wave echoes as it transitions from regular black holes to wormholes, i.e. the echoes signal will facilitate us to distinguish between black holes and the wormholes in black bounces surrounded by the string cloud.
Embedding Best-Worst Method into Data Envelopment Analysis
Authors: Yu Yu , Khezrimotlagh Dariush
Published: March 2023

In real-life applications, there generally exist Decision Makers (DMs) who have preferences over outputs and inputs. Choosing appropriate weights for different criteria by DMs often arises as a problem. The Best-Worst Method (BWM) in Multiple Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) depends on very few pairwise comparisons and just needs DMs to identify the most desirable and the least desirable criteria. Unlike MCDM, Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) does not generally assume a priority for an output (an input) over any other outputs (inputs). The link between DEA and MCDM can be introduced by considering Decision-Making Units (DMUs) as alternatives, outputs as criteria to be maximized, and inputs as criteria to be minimized. In this study, we propose a linear programming model to embed DEA and BWM appropriately. We first propose a modified BWM linear programming model to satisfy all conditions that DMs can assume. We then illustrate how a conventional DEA model can be developed to include the BWM conditions. From our approach, the MCDM problem to obtain the optimal weights of different criteria are measured. At the same time, the relative efficiency scores of DMUs corresponding to the MCDM criteria are also calculated. We provide the foundation of measuring the efficiency scores when most desirable and the least desirable inputs and outputs are known. To show the process of the proposed approach, a numerical example (including 17 DMUs with seven inputs and outputs) is also discussed.
Particle motion and lensing with plasma of acoustic Schwarzschild black hole
Authors: Ditta Allah , Xia Tiecheng , Yasir Muhammad
Published: March 2023

This paper is motivationally based on the study revealing the characteristics of Acoustic Schwarzschild BHs in respect of particle dynamics, and weak gravitational plasma lensing. We discuss the particle dynamics by studying the effective potential, ISCO, for massive particle and photon motion. We consider the weak gravitation field to study the gravitational lensed photons. This purpose of lensing is served by taking under consideration three fields of plasma uniform plasma, singular isothermal sphere and a nonsingular isothermal sphere. Each field is separately incorporated to calculate the plasma deflection angle, which is further utilized in the image magnification associated with the source brightness for uniform plasma and singular isothermal sphere as a selective case. All the obtained results are compared with the Schwarzschild black hole case as a standard.
An Offline EP Test Tube Positioning Tilt Correction Algorithm Based on Lightweight Yolov4
Authors: Luo Heng , Huang Wenxuan , Ni Qidong
Published: March 2023

As an infrastructure of biochemical laboratories, EP tube label plays a significant role in information extraction to meet the limitations of computing power in offline devices and solve the problem that the EP tube label cannot be accurately identified before identification because the label belongs to multi-angle random placement. This paper proposes a light-weight neural network YOLOv4-tiny-ECA to position tubes and a tilt correction method based on Hough transform. First, the EP tube rack is roughly positioned based on the diffuse filling algorithm combined with digital morphological corrosion, and then the EP tubes in the rack are precisely positioned using the light-weight YOLO target detection algorithm combined with the attention mechanism. Next, the baseline is added to the label as the basis for determining the tilt angle. For the valid target, the baseline is extracted using the Hough transform and the tilt angle is calculated by vector fork multiplication. Finally, baseline is removed using image processing algorithm for better recognition results. Our results show that the light-weight YOLO algorithm reduces the network parameters by 56% and computation by 55% while keeping the accuracy rate largely unchanged, the offline positioning tilt correction method can achieve 98.8% accuracy and 0.076[Formula: see text]s processing speed for a single test tube on average, which meets the real-time requirement.
Spatio-Temporal Video Denoising Based on Attention Mechanism
Authors: Ji Kai , Lei Weimin , Zhang Wei
Published: March 2023

The demands of high-quality videos captured by camera become bigger due to the rapid development of pattern recognition and artificial intelligence. Video denoising is the key technology to obtain clear videos. However, the research on video denoising is far from enough now. In this paper, we propose a video denoising method based on convolutional neural network architecture to reduce the noise from the sensor system. We improve the loss function of noise estimation by imposing adaptive penalty on under-estimation error of noise level which makes our method perform robustly. Furthermore, we make use of multi-level features to guide the spatial denoising, where multilayer semantic information of the image is regarded as the perceptual loss. Instead of relying on Optical Flow solving the characterization of inter-frame information, we utilize U-Net-like structure to handle motion implicitly. It is less computationally expensive and avoids distortions caused by inaccurate flow and object occlusion. In order to locate temporal features and suppress useless information, the attention mechanism is introduced to the skip connections of the U-Net-like structure. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm outputs more convincing results in both peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) and structural similarity index measure (SSIM) indexes when processing Gaussian noise, synthetic real noise, and real noise compared with selected approaches.
Estimation of Confidence Intervals and Lower Bounds for Various Weibull Percentiles
Authors: Birgören Burak , Yalçınkaya Meryem
Published: March 2023

The design allowables are derived statistically from measured material properties, and the Weibull distribution is one of the most commonly used distributions for statistical modeling. A- and B-basis design allowables are frequently used; they correspond to the confidence lower bounds for the 1st and 10th percentiles, respectively, with a confidence level of 95%. The maximum likelihood method is generally recommended and commonly used for parameter and confidence lower bound estimation. On the other hand, designers are also interested in confidence lower bounds for other percentiles, and in general, confidence intervals to specify uncertainty in percentile estimates. Monte-Carlo simulation methods have been proposed for this purpose; however, they are not easy to code and take a long time to run to obtain reliable results. As an easy-to-use alternative, this study proposes approximate polynomial functions of sample size for various percentiles and confidence levels. The coefficients of the functions are presented in tabular form for each combination of percentiles and confidence levels. They eliminate the need for simulations and provide precise confidence intervals and lower bounds for a large set of Weibull percentiles.
Seismic Response Estimation and Fragility Curve Development Using an Innovative Response Bound Method
Authors: Mohsenian Vahid , Filizadeh Reza , Hajirasouliha Iman
Published: March 2023

Incremental dynamic analysis (IDA) is one of the widely used methods for structural assessment analysis and fragility curve development, given its unique capabilities in taking into account the aleatory uncertainties of earthquake records and its ability to provide a desirable statistical population of the system response. However, the strong dependence of the results on the number of selected records, the record selection process and scaling procedure, as well as the associated high computational costs are some of the obstacles, which limit the practicality of the IDA method especially in the case of large-scale structures. In the present study, an alternative approach called “Response Bounds” is proposed to estimate the expected range of structural responses under earthquakes with different intensity levels and to develop seismic fragility curves. To reduce computational costs and address the challenges associated with the record selection, a novel scenario-based Endurance Time (ET) analysis method is adopted. The good agreement between the fragility results of 5-, 10-, and 15-storey steel moment-resisting frames obtained by the proposed method and the IDA (less than 9% error) demonstrated the accuracy and reliability of the predicted results. The method could also estimate the mean loss ratio from fragility curves with less than 5% error in all cases. The proposed response-bound method can significantly reduce the computational costs of conventional seismic fragility assessment methods, and therefore can be used as an efficient tool for seismic reliability analysis in practical applications.
Buckling Behavior Analysis of Thin-Walled Cylindrical Shell Structure Under Localized Axial Compression Load Based on Initial Imperfection Sensitivity
Authors: Jiao Peng , Chen Zhiping , Ma He , Miao Hao , Ou Haiyang
Published: March 2023

In practical engineering, a thin-walled cylindrical shell structure is more easily subjected to localized axial compression loads caused by external adjacent structures or devices. However, until now there are few studies to reveal the buckling behavior of cylindrical shells under such nonuniform loading conditions based on initial imperfection sensitivity. Therefore, buckling analysis of cylindrical shell under localized axial compression loads is investigated in this paper. Based on the buckling test, the influence of the morphology and amplitude of measured initial geometric imperfection are studied using the finite element method. Meanwhile, the inherent reason for initial geometric imperfection affecting the buckling load is elaborated. The influence of amplitude, distribution range, and different combinations of local dent imperfections are also elucidated. In addition, the effects of inclined loading imperfection and uneven shell thickness distribution imperfection are analyzed in the form of deterministic numerical simulation. Finally, a new buckling load knockdown factor that can reasonably consider the influence of loading imperfection and shell thickness variation imperfection is proposed. This work elucidates the initial imperfection sensitivity of the thin-walled cylindrical shell structures under localized axial compression load and can provide useful guidance for the buckling design and preventing buckling failure of these structures.
Rearrangement distance with reversals, indels, and moves in intergenic regions on signed and unsigned permutations
Authors: Brito Klairton Lima , Oliveira Andre Rodrigues , Alexandrino Alexsandro Oliveira , Dias Ulisses , Dias Zanoni
Published: March 2023

Genome rearrangement events are widely used to estimate a minimum-size sequence of mutations capable of transforming a genome into another. The length of this sequence is called distance, and determining it is the main goal in genome rearrangement distance problems. Problems in the genome rearrangement field differ regarding the set of rearrangement events allowed and the genome representation. In this work, we consider the scenario where the genomes share the same set of genes, gene orientation is known or unknown, and intergenic regions (structures between a pair of genes and at the extremities of the genome) are taken into account. We use two models, the first model allows only conservative events (reversals and moves), and the second model includes non-conservative events (insertions and deletions) in the intergenic regions. We show that both models result in NP-hard problems no matter if gene orientation is known or unknown. When the information regarding the orientation of genes is available, we present for both models an approximation algorithm with a factor of 2. For the scenario where this information is unavailable, we propose a 4-approximation algorithm for both models.
An improved order-encoded quantum image representation model and its application
Authors: Xu Kai , Ran Shukun
Published: March 2023

Quantum image representation is an important research direction of quantum image processing, which mainly studies the use of quantum properties to encode and store images. At present, most quantum image representation models store image grayscale-related information, but lack histogram-related information. A few quantum representation models that store image histogram information cannot accurately retrieve the image, resulting in the difficulty of quantum image histogram processing. Therefore, this paper proposes an improved order-encoded quantum image representation model ONEQR, which uses the quantum basis state sequence to store the grayscale information, real position information and ascending position information of the image, which can not only solve the problem of inability to accurately retrieve the image, but also store the histogram information of the image, which is convenient for the implementation of the histogram processing algorithm of quantum image; In addition, based on ONEQR, a quantum image representation model MULTI-ONEQR that stores multiple images is proposed, and based on this model, a quantum image histogram specification (HS) algorithm is proposed, which can use quantum properties to complete image HS in parallel. Finally, the simulation experiment of the HS algorithm based on the ONEQR model is carried out to verify the effectiveness of the algorithm.
Multiscale Mechanics of Thermal Gradient Coupled Graphene Fracture: A Molecular Dynamics Study
Authors: Zhai Hanfeng , Yeo Jingjie
Published: March 2023

The thermo-mechanical coupling mechanism of graphene fracture under thermal gradients possesses rich applications whereas is hard to study due to its coupled non-equilibrium nature. We employ non-equilibrium molecular dynamics to study the fracture of graphene by applying a fixed strain rate under different thermal gradients by employing different potential fields. It is found that for AIREBO and AIREBO-M, the fracture stresses do not strictly follow the positive correlations with the initial crack length. Strain-hardening effects are observed for “REBO-based” potential models of small initial defects, which is interpreted as blunting effect observed for porous graphene. The temperature gradients are observed to not show clear relations with the fracture stresses and crack propagation dynamics. Quantized fracture mechanics verifies our molecular dynamics calculations. We provide a unique perspective that the transverse bond forces share the loading to account for the nonlinear increase of fracture stress with shorter crack length. Anomalous kinetic energy transportation along crack tips is observed for “REBO-based” potential models, which we attribute to the high interatomic attractions in the potential models. The fractures are honored to be more “brittle-liked” carried out using machine learning interatomic potential (MLIP), yet incapable of simulating post fracture dynamical behaviors. The mechanical responses using MLIP are observed to be not related to temperature gradients. The temperature configuration of equilibration simulation employing the dropout uncertainty neural network potential with a dropout rate of 0.1 is reported to be the most accurate compared with the rest. This work is expected to inspire further investigation of non-equilibrium dynamics in graphene with practical applications in various engineering fields.
Kinetic analysis of p53 gene network with time delays and PIDD
Authors: Huo Ruimin , Liu Nan , Yang Hongli , Yang Liangui
Published: March 2023

p53 kinetics plays a key role in regulating cell fate. Based on the p53 gene regulatory network composed by the core regulatory factors ATM, Mdm2, Wip1, and PIDD, the effect of the delays in the process of transcription and translation of Mdm2 and Wip1 on the dynamics of p53 is studied theoretically and numerically. The results show that these two time delays can affect the stability of the positive equilibrium. With the increase of delays, the dynamics of p53 presents an oscillating state. Further, we also study the effects of PIDD and chemotherapeutic drug etoposide on the kinetics of p53. The model indicates that (i) PIDD low-level expression does not significantly affect p53 oscillatory behavior, but high-level expression could induce two-phase kinetics of p53; (ii) Too high and too low concentration of etoposide is not conducive to p53 oscillation. These results are in good agreement with experimental findings. Finally, we consider the influence of internal noise on the system through Binomial [Formula: see text]-leap algorithm. Stochastic simulations reveal that high-intensity noise completely destroys p53 dynamics in the deterministic model, whereas low-intensity noise does not alter p53 dynamics. Interestingly, for the stable focus, the internal noise with appropriate intensity can induce quasi-limit cycle oscillations of the system. Our work may provide the useful insights for the development of anticancer therapy.
Introduction to the Special Issue on CAD for Security: Pre-silicon Security Sign-off Solutions Through Design Cycle
Authors: Farahmandi Farimah , Srivastava Ankur , Di Natale Giorgio , Tehranipoor Mark
Published: March 2023

This introduction welcomes all readers to this ACM JETC special issue on CAD for Security: Pre-silicon Security Sign-off Solutions Through Design Cycle. The articles published in this special issue reflect how computer-aided design (CAD) tools are developed to expand the notion of automated security verification throughout the system-on-chip (SoC) design cycle. This special issue aims to demonstrate how the semiconductor industry must look for security-oriented metrics and evaluation as part of automatic CAD solution development to aid analysis, identifying, root-causing, and mitigating SoC security problems. Throughout this introductory note, we first represent the need for such a security-oriented sign-off solution for the ASIC design flow, then it is followed by providing an overview of the articles published in this special issue and how they address such requirements.
Probing Aesthetics Strategies for Robot Sound: Complexity and Materiality in Movement Sonification
Authors: Latupeirissa Adrian B. , Panariello Claudio , Bresin Roberto
Published: March 2023

This article presents three studies where we probe aesthetics strategies of sound produced by movement sonification of a Pepper robot by mapping its movements to sound models.

We developed two sets of sound models. The first set was made by two sound models, a sawtooth-based one and another based on feedback chains, for investigating how the perception of synthesized robot sounds would depend on their design complexity. We implemented the second set of sound models for probing the “materiality” of sound made by a robot in motion. This set consisted of a sound synthesis based on an engine highlighting the robot’s internal mechanisms, a metallic sound synthesis highlighting the robot’s typical appearance, and a whoosh sound synthesis highlighting the movement.

We conducted three studies. The first study explores how the first set of sound models can influence the perception of expressive gestures of a Pepper robot through an online survey. In the second study, we carried out an experiment in a museum installation with a Pepper robot presented in two scenarios: (1) while welcoming patrons into a restaurant and (2) while providing information to visitors in a shopping center. Finally, in the third study, we conducted an online survey with stimuli similar to those used in the second study.

Our findings suggest that participants preferred more complex sound models for the sonification of robot movements. Concerning the materiality, participants liked better subtle sounds that blend well with the ambient sound (i.e., less distracting) and soundscapes in which sound sources can be identified. Also, sound preferences varied depending on the context in which participants experienced the robot-generated sounds (e.g., as a live museum installation vs. an online display).
On the Complexity of String Matching for Graphs
Authors: Equi Massimo , Mäkinen Veli , Tomescu Alexandru I. , Grossi Roberto
Published: March 2023

Exact string matching in labeled graphs is the problem of searching paths of a graph
G=(V, E)
such that the concatenation of their node labels is equal to a given pattern string
P
[1.
m
]. This basic problem can be found at the heart of more complex operations on variation graphs in computational biology, of query operations in graph databases, and of analysis operations in heterogeneous networks.

We prove a conditional lower bound stating that, for any constant ε > 0, an
O
(|
E
|
1 - ε
m
) time, or an
O
(|
E
|
m
1 - ε
)time algorithm for exact string matching in graphs, with node labels and pattern drawn from a binary alphabet, cannot be achieved unless the Strong Exponential Time Hypothesis (
SETH
) is false. This holds even if restricted to undirected graphs with maximum node degree 2—that is, to
zig-zag matching in bidirectional strings
, or to
deterministic
directed acyclic graphs whose nodes have maximum sum of indegree and outdegree 3. These restricted cases make the lower bound stricter than what can be directly derived from related bounds on regular expression matching (Backurs and Indyk, FOCS’16). In fact, our bounds are tight in the sense that lowering the degree or the alphabet size yields linear time solvable problems.

An interesting corollary is that exact and approximate matching are equally hard (i.e., quadratic time) in graphs under
SETH
. In comparison, the same problems restricted to strings have linear time vs quadratic time solutions, respectively (approximate pattern matching having also a matching
SETH
lower bound (Backurs and Indyk, STOC’15)).
batP2dFoam: An Efficient Segregated Solver for the Pseudo-2-Dimensional (P2D) Model of Li-Ion Batteries
Authors: Yin Xiaoguang , Zhang Dongxiao
Published: March 2023

An efficient solver for the pseudo-2-dimensional (P2D) model of Li-ion batteries is developed based on the open-source computational fluid dynamics platform OpenFOAM. Species and charge conservation equations are solved in a segregated manner: potential and concentration of electrolyte and solid electrode are solved sequentially. The non-linearity and interlinkage are handled by an iterative procedure. In the P2D model, solving Li-ion (de)intercalation in solid particles implicitly is time-consuming. The Picard method is employed for calculating solid concentration explicitly without the need to solve the discretized equations system. In one time step, Li-ion concentration of future time is recursively approximated until convergence. The explicit solving of solid concentration in combination with the overall iterative procedure makes solving of the P2D model efficient. Nonlinear source terms are linearized whenever possible to retain stability. Adaptive time-stepping is devised, grounded on the derivative of open circuit voltage (OCV) with regard to Li-ion concentration at the particle surface. The developed solver is validated in detail with respect to COMSOL. Performance under various operation conditions, such as discharge of rate 10 C, hybrid charge-discharge cycle, and urban dynamometer driving schedule (UDDS), demonstrates its robustness.
Anisotropic Strain Boosted Hydrogen Evolution Reaction Activity of F-NiCoMo LDH for Overall Water Splitting
Authors: Zhai Zibo , Li Hongwei , Zhou Chuang-an , Zheng Hui , Liu Yao , Yan Wei , Zhang Jiujun
Published: March 2023

Layered double hydroxide (LDH) catalysts provide promising OER activity which can be employed in overall water splitting for hydrogen production. However, their weak surface hydrogen adsorption (Had) and high water dissociation energy can result in the inferior hydrogen evolution reactions (HER) activity. In this paper, a highly efficient HER catalyst of F-doped NiCoMo LDH is successfully designed and synthesized through in situ growing on nickel foam (F-NiCoMo LDH/NF) for overall water splitting. DFT calculations demonstrate that the introduction of Mo and F atoms in NiCo LDH can induce the generation of anisotropic lattice strain, resulting in the generation of high-energy active interface and shifting the d-band centers. Therefore, the adsorption energy of Had is optimized and the water dissociation energy barrier is decreased. As a result, this F-NiCoMo LDH/NF catalyst electrode displays a low overpotential of 107.5 mV at 10 mA cm−2 and a small Tafel slope of 67.2 mV dec−1 for HER. The assembled electrolyzer by employing this catalyst electrode requires only 1.83 V to deliver 300 mA cm−2 and operates stably for 100 h.
Preoperative SARS-CoV-2 infection increases risk of early postoperative cardiovascular complications following noncardiac surgery
Authors: SenthilKumar Gopika , Verhagen Nathaniel B. , Sheriff Salma A. , Yang Xin , Figueroa Castro Carlos E. , Szabo Aniko , Taylor Brad W. , Wainaina Njeri , Lauer Kathryn , Gould Jon C. , Kothari Anai N. ,   on behalf of the N3C Consortium
Published: March 2023

With an increasing proportion of patients undergoing surgery with a prior history of COVID-19, it is crucial to understand the impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection on postoperative cardiovascular/cerebrovascular risk. Our work assesses a large, national, multi-institutional cohort of patients to highlight that COVID-19 infection increases risk for postoperative major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (MACE). MACE risk is influenced by an interplay between disease severity and time between infection and surgery, and full vaccination reduces the risk for 30-day postoperative MACE. These results highlight the importance of stratifying time-to-surgery guidelines based on disease severity.
Neuromuscular fatigability of plantar flexors following continuous and intermittent contractions
Authors: Lebesque Loïc , Scaglioni Gil , Manckoundia Patrick , Martin Alain
Published: March 2023

This study provides new information about the influence of the contraction pattern (i.e., continuous and intermittent) on the development of neuromuscular fatigability when exercise is performed until exhaustion. Maximal torque production is similarly reduced by both exercises, whereas maximal torque sustainability is impaired only after the continuous exercise. To evaluate neuromuscular fatigability, we then recommend using a sustained maximal voluntary contraction since this measure allows to concurrently collect information on complementary aspects of neuromuscular fatigability.
Loss of cardiorespiratory fitness and its recovery following two weeks of head-down bed rest and the protective effects of exercise in 55- to 65-yr-old adults
Authors: Hedge Eric T. , Mastrandrea Carmelo J. , Hughson Richard L.
Published: March 2023

We report the complete time-course of cardiorespiratory fitness recovery back to baseline levels following 2 wk of head-down bed rest in 55- to 65-yr-old adults and found that multimodal training, consisting of high-intensity interval, aerobic and resistive exercises, performed throughout the 2 wk of head-down bed rest prevented reductions in cardiorespiratory fitness.
PV Based Standalone DC -Micro Grid System for EV Charging Station with New GWO-ANFIS MPPTs under Partial Shading Conditions
Authors: Ragul R. , Shanmugasundaram N. , Paramasivam Mariaraja , Seetharaman Suresh , Mary Immaculate Sheela L.
Published: March 2023

The goal of this article is to use MPPTs (maximum power point trackers) to extort maximum power from best configuration or combine renewable resources and energy storage systems that all work together in off-grid for electric vehicle charging. The grey wolf algorithm (GWO) searches the MPP at partial shading condition (PSC) with following two consideration one is high oscillations around GMPPs, and other is that they are unable to track the new GMPPs after it has changed positions because the seeking agents will be busy around the previous GMPPs captured. Hence, in this paper, the proposed research objective is to find solutions to these two difficulties. The issue of oscillations around GMPPs was handled by combining GWO with ANFISs (adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy inference system) to gently tune output produced power at GMPPs. ANFISs are distinguished by their near-zero oscillations and precise GMPPs capturing. The second issue called they are unable to track the new GMPPs after it has changed positions is addressed in this work by using novel initialization by GWOs (Grey wolf Optimizations). In the MATLAB-Simulink and experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of the suggested GWO-ANFIS MPPTs based off-grid station for EVs (Electrical Vehicle) battery charging.
Employing Adalimumab in Treatment of Moderate‐to‐Severe Hidradenitis Suppurativa: Real‐Life Multicenter Data from the Czech Republic
Authors: Smetanova Alzbeta , Marques Emanuel , Kojanova Martina , Arenberger Petr , Strosova Daniela , Fialova Jorga , Arenbergerova Monika
Published: March 2023

Adalimumab is the only approved biologic treatment for moderate‐to‐severe hidradenitis suppurativa, nonetheless, long‐term data from real‐life setting are still limited. The objective of this observational multicenter study was to evaluate the effectiveness, safety, and drug survival of adalimumab in patients with hidradenitis suppurativa included in the BIOREP registry. A total of 299 patients who initiated adalimumab therapy for hidradenitis suppurativa from 2011 to November 2021 were included. The Dermatology‐Life‐Quality‐Index (DLQI), pain scale, the number of abscesses, inflammatory nodules and draining tunnels, and International Hidradenitis Suppurativa Severity Score System (IHS4) were recorded in the 0th, 3rd, and 6th months; then every 6 months during the ongoing adalimumab treatment. Studied patients underwent treatment for up to 48 months, with the average duration of treatment lasting 2.3 years. The mean age of the patients was 44.9 years, 79% were smokers or ex‐smokers, 54.8% were obese, and 26.4% were overweight, the mean BMI was 30.8. The mean time from diagnosis to initiation adalimumab therapy was 9.1 years. The number of patients with severe IHS4 dropped from the initial 249 (83.3%) to 65 (30.1%) after 12 months and this trend was maintained up to the 48th month. A decreasing number of inflammatory lesions were rapid and sustained and correlated to the improvement of patients’ quality of life, the mean DLQI score dropped from 17.6 to 8.5 after 3 months and to 5, 7 after 48 months. No unexpected risk signals were observed. Our long‐term study demonstrates the effectiveness and safety of adalimumab in a real‐life setting.