Improving Image Restoration with Soft-Rounding

Several important classes of images such as text, barcode and pattern images have the property that pixels can only take a distinct subset of values. This knowledge can benefit the restoration of such images, but it has not been widely considered in current restoration methods. In this work, we describe an effective and efficient approach to incorporate the knowledge of distinct pixel values of the pristine images into the general regularized least squares restoration framework. We introduce a new regularizer that attains zero at the designated pixel values and becomes a quadratic penalty function in the intervals between them. When incorporated into the regularized least squares restoration framework, this regularizer leads to a simple and efficient step that resembles and extends the rounding operation, which we term as soft-rounding. We apply the soft-rounding enhanced solution to the restoration of binary text/barcode images and pattern images with multiple distinct pixel values. Experimental results show that soft-rounding enhanced restoration methods achieve significant improvement in both visual quality and quantitative measures (PSNR and SSIM). Furthermore, we show that this regularizer can also benefit the restoration of general natural images.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figure

Tensile flow stress of non-oriented Fe-3.3%Si steel at a wide range of moderate temperatures

The flow stress behavior of hot-rolled Fe-3.3%Si steel was studied through single-pass warm tensile experiments within the temperature range of 250 to 700 °C and strain rate range of 0.001 s-1 to 0.1 s-1. The peak stress decreased linearly, but the elongation increased exponentially, with an increase in temperature. Work hardening behavior was obvious, and the non-uniform plastic deformation stage was shorter at lower temperatures, and accordingly the grains were elongated. A novel method was proposed to describe the tensile flow stress of Fe-3.3%Si steel at wide moderate temperatures, and the flow behavior of Fe-3.3%Si was described as the function of temperature, strain and strain rate. The capability of the model to predict tensile flow stress was investigated and the predicted results were in good agreement with measured values. Therefore, the model is reliable and helpful for the optimization of deformation parameters in warm processing

The Physiology Constant Database of Teen-Agers in Beijing

Physiology constants of adolescents are important to understand growing living systems and are a useful reference in clinical and epidemiological research. Until recently, physiology constants were not available in China and therefore most physiologists, physicians, and nutritionists had to use data from abroad for reference. However, the very difference between the Eastern and Western races casts doubt on the usefulness of overseas data. We have therefore created a database system to provide a repository for the storage of physiology constants of teen-agers in Beijing. The several thousands of pieces of data are now divided into hematological biochemistry, lung function, and cardiac function with all data manually checked before being transferred into the database. The database was accomplished through the development of a web interface, scripts, and a relational database. The physiology data were integrated into the relational database system to provide flexible facilities by using combinations of various terms and parameters. A web browser interface was designed for the users to facilitate their searching. The database is available on the web. The statistical table, scatter diagram, and histogram of the data are available for both anonym and user according to queries, while only the user can achieve detail, including download data and advanced search

Moxibustion treatment modulates the gut microbiota and immune function in a dextran sulphate sodium-induced colitis rat model

AIM: To investigate the effect and mechanism of moxibustion in rats with ulcerative colitis. METHODS: A rat colitis model was established by administering 4% dextran sulphate sodium solution. Seventy male rats were randomly divided into seven groups: Healthy controls (HC), ulcerative colitis model group (UC), UC with 7 d of moxibustion (UC-7), UC with 14 d of moxibustion (UC-14), UC with mesalazine gavage (UC-W), HC with 7 d of moxibustion (HC-7), HC with 14 d of moxibustion (HC-14). Moxibustion was applied to the bilateral Tianshu (ST25). Gut microbiome profiling was conducted by 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing, and PCR and ELISA determined the expression of inflammatory cytokines in colon mucosa and serum, respectively. RESULTS: Moxibustion treatment restored the colonic mucosa and decreased submucosal inflammatory cell infiltration in colitis rats. Rats treated with moxibustion and mesalazine had significantly lower levels of the dominant phyla Proteobacteria and the genera Saccharibacteria, Sphingomonas and Barnesiella than colitis rats, and they could restore the microbiome to levels similar to those observed in healthy rats. UC rats had reduced alpha diversity, which could be alleviated by moxibustion therapy, and UC-7 had a higher alpha diversity than UC-14. This finding suggests that short-term (7 d) but no longer term (14 d) moxibustion treatment may significantly affect the gut microbiome. The potential bacterial functions affected by moxibustion may be ascorbate and aldarate metabolism, and amino acid metabolism. Compared with HC group, the levels of the cytokines interleukin-12 (IL-12) (P < 0.05) and IL-6, IL-17, IL-23, interferon-γ, lipopolysaccharide, IgA, tumour necrosis factor-α and its receptors 1 (TNFR1) and TNFR2 (P < 0.01) were all increased, whereas anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-2 and IL-10 (P < 0.01) and transforming growth factor-β (P < 0.05) were decreased in UC rats. These changes were reversed by moxibustion. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that moxibustion exerts its therapeutic effect by repairing mucosal tissue damage and modulating the gut microbiome and intestinal mucosal immunity

Beating the fault-tolerance bound and security loopholes for Byzantine agreement with a quantum solution

Byzantine agreement, the underlying core of blockchain, aims to make every node in a decentralized network reach consensus. Classical Byzantine agreements unavoidably face two major problems. One is $1/3$ fault-tolerance bound, which means that the system to tolerate $f$ malicious players requires at least $3f+1$ players. The other is the security loopholes from its classical cryptography methods. Here, we propose a strict quantum Byzantine agreement with unconditional security to break this bound with nearly $1/2$ fault tolerance due to multiparty correlation provided by quantum digital signatures. Our work strictly obeys the original Byzantine conditions and can be extended to any number of players without requirements for multiparticle entanglement. We experimentally demonstrate three-party and five-party quantum consensus for a digital ledger. Our work indicates the quantum advantage in terms of consensus problems and suggests an important avenue for quantum blockchain and quantum consensus networks.Comment: 22 pages, 10 figures. All comments are welcome

In vitro degradation and biocompatibility of vitamin C loaded Ca-P coating on a magnesium alloy for bioimplant applications

Molecular recognition was utilized to fabricate bioinspired calcium phosphate (Ca-P) coating on bioabsorbable magnesium alloys through small biomolecules such as Vitamin C (VC). Ca-P and VC hybrid coating (Ca-PVC) was successfully fabricated on AZ31 Mg alloy. The surface morphology and chemical composition of the coatings were investigated using SEM, XRD, and FTIR together with XPS. The results showed that the Ca-PVC coating was composed of bamboo leaf-like Ca-P particles with a thickness of about three times that of the Ca-P coating. The surface roughness of the Ca-PVC coating (1.12 ± 0.12 µm) was lower than that (3.14 ± 1.93 µm) of Ca-P coating, suggesting the formation of refined Ca-P particles resulting from the VC addition. The corrosion resistance of the coated samples was characterized via electrochemical polarization, impedance spectroscopy, and immersion hydrogen evolution tests. The cell toxicity of the coated samples was evaluated utilizing mouse MC3T3-E1 pre-osteoblasts. The charge transfer resistance (Rct) of the Ca-PVC coated alloy increased as compared to the bare and Ca-P coated alloy samples. The Ca-PVC coated alloy exhibited minimal corrosion current density (1.36 × 10−6 A cm−2), which is one order of magnitude lower in comparison to that of the Ca-P coated alloy. These results confirm that VC addition greatly enhanced the coating resistance on AZ31 Mg alloy. It was also noticed that the Ca-PVC coated samples rapidly induced the formation of apatite after immersion in Hank's solution. VC was mainly transformed to L-Threonic acid, which facilitated the nucleation process of the Ca-PVC coating and significantly increased the thickness, density, and bonding strength of the coating. With enhanced corrosion resistance property and excellent biocompatibility, Ca-PVC coating has great potential for application in biodegradable Mg-based alloys

Burden of Pneumonia and Meningitis Caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae in China among Children under 5 Years of Age: A Systematic Literature Review

BACKGROUND AND METHODS: To understand the burden and epidemiology of Streptococcus pneumoniae disease among children between 1 and 59 months of age in China, we conducted a review of literature published between 1980 and 2008 applying standardized algorithms. Because of the absence of population-based surveillance for pneumococcal disease (PD), we identified all-cause pneumonia, bacteremia and meningitis burden, syndromes most commonly associated with S. pneumoniae, and applied the proportion of disease attributable to S. pneumoniae from studies that determined the etiology of these three syndromes to calculate PD burden. Because of the microbiologic difficulties in identifying S. pneumoniae-attributable pneumonia which likely underestimates the pneumonia burden, we also used the proportion obtained from vaccine efficacy trials. RESULTS: Between 1980 and 2008, there were 12,815 cases/100,000/year of all-cause pneumonia among children between 1 month and 59 months, with 526 deaths/100,000 annually. There were 14 meningitis cases/100,000/year. We estimate that as of 2000, there were 260,768 (113,000 to 582,382) and 902 (114-4,463) cases of pneumococcal pneumonia and meningitis, respectively with 10,703 (4,638-23,904) and 75 (9-370) pneumococcal pneumonia and meningitis deaths, respectively. Pneumococcal pneumonia cases and deaths were more than two-fold higher, 695,382 (173,845-1,216,918) and 28,542 (7,136-49,949), respectively, when parameters from efficacy trials were used. Serotypes 19F, 19A and 14 were the most common serotypes obtained from pneumonia/meningitis patients. Currently available vaccines are expected to cover 79.5% to 88.4% of the prevalent serotypes. With high antibiotic resistance, introducing pneumococcal vaccines to the routine immunization program should be considered in China. Population-based studies are warranted

Superconductivity and Charge-density-wave-like Transition in Th2Cu4As5

We report the synthesis, crystal structure, and physical properties of a novel ternary compound, Th$_2$Cu$_4$As$_5$. The material crystallizes in a tetragonal structure with lattice parameters $a=4.0716(1)$ {\AA} and $c=24.8131(4)$ {\AA}. Its structure can be described as an alternating stacking of fluorite-type Th$_2$As$_2$ layers with antifluorite-type double-layered Cu$_4$As$_3$ slabs. The measurement of electrical resistivity, magnetic susceptibility and specific heat reveals that Th$_2$Cu$_4$As$_5$ undergoes bulk superconducting transition at 4.2 K. Moreover, all these physical quantities exhibit anomalies at 48 K, where the Hall coefficient change the sign. These findings suggest a charge-density-wave-like (CDW) transition, making Th$_2$Cu$_4$As$_5$ a rare example for studying the interplay between CDW and superconductivity.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures, and 1 tabl

Charge-changing cross section measurements of 300 MeV/nucleon 28^{28}Si on carbon and data analysis

Charge-changing cross section ($\sigma_{\text{cc}}$) measurements via the transmission method have made important progress recently aiming to determine the charge radii of exotic nuclei. In this work, we report a new $\sigma_{\text{cc}}$ measurement of 304(9) MeV/nucleon $^{28}$Si on carbon at the second Radioactive Ion Beam Line in Lanzhou (RIBLL2) and describe the data analysis procedure in detail. This procedure is essential to evaluate the systematic uncertainty in the transmission method. The determined $\sigma_{\mathrm{cc}}$ of 1125(11) mb is found to be consistent with the existing data at similar energies. The present work will serve as a reference in the $\sigma_{\text{cc}}$ determinations at RIBLL2.Comment: 9 pages, 13 figures, to be published in Chinese Physics