Analysis of Bidirectional Associative Memory using SCSNA and Statistical Neurodynamics

Bidirectional associative memory (BAM) is a kind of an artificial neural network used to memorize and retrieve heterogeneous pattern pairs. Many efforts have been made to improve BAM from the the viewpoint of computer application, and few theoretical studies have been done. We investigated the theoretical characteristics of BAM using a framework of statistical-mechanical analysis. To investigate the equilibrium state of BAM, we applied self-consistent signal to noise analysis (SCSNA) and obtained a macroscopic parameter equations and relative capacity. Moreover, to investigate not only the equilibrium state but also the retrieval process of reaching the equilibrium state, we applied statistical neurodynamics to the update rule of BAM and obtained evolution equations for the macroscopic parameters. These evolution equations are consistent with the results of SCSNA in the equilibrium state.Comment: 13 pages, 4 figure

The Classical Limit of Quantum Mechanics and the Fejer Sum of the Fourier Series Expansion of a Classical Quantity

In quantum mechanics, the expectation value of a quantity on a quantum state, provided that the state itself gives in the classical limit a motion of a particle in a definite path, in classical limit goes over to Fourier series form of the classical quantity. In contrast to this widely accepted point of view, a rigorous calculation shows that the expectation value on such a state in classical limit exactly gives the Fej\'{e}r's arithmetic mean of the partial sums of the Fourier series

Conserving Nature; Preserving Identity

Fundamental approaches to environmental ethics currently seem polarized between two broad varieties: the “conservationist” approach on which we should conserve the environment when it is in our interest to do so and the “preservationist” approach on which we should preserve the environment even when it is not in our interest to do so. The first approach obviously has a broader potential audience and is invoked even by preservationists when they seek to marshal the broadest possible support for environmental protection. For preservationists, however, the conservationist approach has obvious limitations. It permits damage to the environment whenever required by the balance of human interests. It does not express the real reasons we must protect nonhuman animals, streams, or forests. Preservationists believe that harm to sentient beings, to teleological centers of life, and even to ecological communities should be prevented independently of whether of not it also harms our interests. To conservationists, the idea that the environment ought to be preserved even when it is not in our interest to preserve it often appears inscrutable or flaky. They believe that nature is a precious resource that we should use wisely but when it is not in our interest to conserve nature they do not believe we must do so. Preservationists would object that consideration of human interests does not amount to due consideration of everything that has value. But, it is unclear what preservationists can say to change conservationists’ minds on the matter. In this essay we deploy a third approach to dealing with environmental problems “relationalism.” Like conservationism, this approach tells us to conserve nature when doing so is necessary to respect people in the right way. Unlike conservationism, it does not so prescribe on the basis of a cost-benefit analysis of what would best satisfy our current interests. Like preservationism this approach tells us to preserve nature even when it is not necessary to do so to protect human interests. Relationalism, rather, tells us to preserve nature as part of what makes us who we are or could be. Relationalism starts from a relational conception of human identity. The basic idea is that the nonhuman world may enter into who we are, just as other human beings and communities may enter into who we are. If we, as persons, have value, whatever is bound up with us in positive ways ought also be valued and this gives us reason to conserve or preserve nature. After setting out the relationalist account, we argue that it can explain key preservationist and conservationist intuitions, though its policy recommendations in particular cases may coincide with neither

Investigation of Mn and Fe Substitution Effects on the Characteristics of High-Voltage LiCo1–xMxPO4 (x=0.1, 0.4) Cathodes Prepared by Sol–gel Route

Herein, we provide a fundamental study revealing the substantial changes promoted by manganese and iron substitution for cobalt in a high-voltage LiCoPO4 olivine cathode. Therefore, LiCoPO4, LiCo0.9Fe0.1PO4, LiCo0.6Fe0.4PO4, LiCo0.9Mn0.1PO4, and LiCo0.6Mn0.4PO4 are synthesized by a sol–gel pathway and comparatively investigated in terms of structure, morphology, and electrochemical features in lithium battery. Besides the observed effects on structure, particle size, and metals distribution, the work reveals a gradually enhancing electrode reaction by increasing the Fe content in LiCo0.9Fe0.1PO4 and LiCo0.6Fe0.4PO4, with Co3+/Co2+ and Fe3+/Fe2+ signatures at 4.8 and 3.5 V vs Li+/Li, respectively. On the other hand, the introduction of Mn leads to a progressive electrode deactivation in LiCo0.9Mn0.1PO4 and LiCo0.6Mn0.4PO4 due to an intrinsic hindering of the Mn3+/Mn2+ process at 4.1 V vs Li+/Li. The reasons accounting for such an intriguing behavior are investigated in detail using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy within the potential range of the redox processes. The study reveals that manganese and iron substitutions in the high-voltage olivine have opposite effects on the charge transfer resistance, i.e., detrimental for the former while beneficial for the latter, with remarkable enhancement of the reversible capacity, the Coulombic efficiency, and the cycle life. Such results provide to the scientific community useful information on possible strategies to enhance the emerging LiCoPO4 high-voltage electrode by transition metal substitution

Regional differences in AIDS and non-AIDS related mortality in HIV-positive individuals across Europe and Argentina: the EuroSIDA study

BACKGROUND Differences in access to care and treatment have been reported in Eastern Europe, a region with one of the fastest growing HIV epidemics, compared to the rest of Europe. This analysis aimed to establish whether there are regional differences in the mortality rate of HIV-positive individuals across Europe, and Argentina. METHODS 13,310 individuals under follow-up were included in the analysis. Poisson regression investigated factors associated with the risk of death. FINDINGS During 82,212 person years of follow-up (PYFU) 1,147 individuals died (mortality rate 14.0 per 1,000 PYFU (95% confidence interval [CI] 13.1-14.8). Significant differences between regions were seen in the rate of all-cause, AIDS and non-AIDS related mortality (global p<0.0001 for all three endpoints). Compared to South Europe, after adjusting for baseline demographics, laboratory measurements and treatment, a higher rate of AIDS related mortality was observed in East Europe (IRR 2.90, 95%CI 1.97-4.28, p<.0001), and a higher rate of non-AIDS related mortality in North Europe (IRR 1.51, 95%CI 1.24-1.82, p<.0001). The differences observed in North Europe decreased over calendar-time, in 2009-2011, the higher rate of non-AIDS related mortality was no longer significantly different to South Europe (IRR 1.07, 95%CI 0.66-1.75, p = 0.77). However, in 2009-2011, there remained a higher rate of AIDS-related mortality (IRR 2.41, 95%CI 1.11-5.25, p = 0.02) in East Europe compared to South Europe in adjusted analysis. INTERPRETATIONS There are significant differences in the rate of all-cause mortality among HIV-positive individuals across different regions of Europe and Argentina. Individuals in Eastern Europe had an increased risk of mortality from AIDS related causes and individuals in North Europe had the highest rate of non-AIDS related mortality. These findings are important for understanding and reviewing HIV treatment strategies and policies across the European region

Design and development of a biorelevant simulated human lung fluid

Biorelevant fluids are required to enable meaningful in vitro experimental determinations of the biopharmaceutical properties of inhaled medicines, e.g. drug solubility, particle dissolution, cellular uptake. Our aim was to develop a biorelevant simulated lung fluid (SLF) with a well-defined composition and evidence-based directions for use. The SLF contained dipalmitoylphosphotidylcholine, dipalmitoylphosphatidylglycerol, cholesterol, albumin, IgG, transferrin and antioxidants. Freshly made SLF had pH 7.2, viscosity 1.138 × 10−3 Pa s, conductivity 14.5 mS/m, surface tension 54.9 mN/m and density 0.999 g/cm3. Colour, surface tension and conductivity were the most sensitive indicators of product deterioration. The simulant was stable for 24 h and 48 h at 37 °C and 21 °C, respectively, (in-use stability) and for 14 days when stored in a refrigerator (storage stability). To extend stability, the SLF was vacuum freeze-dried in batches to produce lyophilised powder that can be reconstituted readily when needed at the point of use. In conclusion, we have reported the composition and manufacture of a biorelevant, synthetic SLF, provided a detailed physico-chemical characterisation and recommendations for how to store and use a product that can be used to generate experimental data to provide inputs to computational models that predict drug bioavailability in the lungs

Involvement of mast cells in monocrotaline-induced pulmonary hypertension in rats

Background: Mast cells (MCs) are implicated in inflammation and tissue remodeling. Accumulation of lung MCs is described in pulmonary hypertension (PH); however, whether MC degranulation and c-kit, a tyrosine kinase receptor critically involved in MC biology, contribute to the pathogenesis and progression of PH has not been fully explored.Methods: Pulmonary MCs of idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (IPAH) patients and monocrotaline-injected rats (MCT-rats) were examined by histochemistry and morphometry. Effects of the specific c-kit inhibitor PLX and MC stabilizer cromolyn sodium salt (CSS) were investigated in MCT-rats both by the preventive and therapeutic approaches. Hemodynamic and right ventricular hypertrophy measurements, pulmonary vascular morphometry and analysis of pulmonary MC localization/counts/activation were performed in animal model studies.Results: There was a prevalence of pulmonary MCs in IPAH patients and MCT-rats as compared to the donors and healthy rats, respectively. Notably, the perivascular MCs were increased and a majority of them were degranulated in lungs of IPAH patients and MCT-rats (p < 0.05 versus donor and control, respectively). In MCT-rats, the pharmacological inhibitions of MC degranulation and c-kit with CSS and PLX, respectively by a preventive approach (treatment from day 1 to 21 of MCT-injection) significantly attenuated right ventricular systolic pressure (RVSP) and right ventricular hypertrophy (RVH). Moreover, vascular remodeling, as evident from the significantly decreased muscularization and medial wall thickness of distal pulmonary vessels, was improved. However, treatments with CSS and PLX by a therapeutic approach (from day 21 to 35 of MCT-injection) neither improved hemodynamics and RVH nor vascular remodeling.Conclusions: The accumulation and activation of perivascular MCs in the lungs are the histopathological features present in clinical (IPAH patients) and experimental (MCT-rats) PH. Moreover, the accumulation and activation of MCs in the lungs contribute to the development of PH in MCT-rats. Our findings reveal an important pathophysiological insight into the role of MCs in the pathogenesis of PH in MCT- rats

Characteristics of a gold-doped electrode for application in high-performance lithium-sulfur battery

Bulk sulfur incorporating 3 wt% gold nano-powder is investigated as possible candidate to maximize the fraction of active material in the Li-S battery cathode. The material is prepared via simple mixing of gold with molten sulfur at 120 °C, quenching at room temperature, and grinding. Our comprehensive study reports relevant electrochemical data, advanced X-ray computed tomography (CT) imaging of the positive and negative electrodes, and a thorough structural and morphological characterization of the S:Au 97:3 w/w composite. This cathode exhibits high rate capability within the range from C/10 to 1C, a maximum capacity above 1300 mAh gS−1, and capacity retention between 85% and 91% after 100 cycles at 1C and C/3 rates. The novel formulation enables a sulfur fraction in the composite cathode film as high as 78 wt%, an active material loading of 5.7 mg cm−2, and an electrolyte/sulfur (E/S) ratio of 5 μL mg−1, which lead to a maximum areal capacity of 5.4 mAh cm−2. X-ray CT at the micro- and nanoscale reveals the microstructural features of the positive electrode that favor fast conversion kinetics in the battery. Quantitative analysis of sulfur distribution in the porous cathode displays that electrodeposition during the initial cycle may trigger an activation process in the cell leading to improved performance. Furthermore, the tomography study reveals the characteristics of the lithium anode and the cell separator upon a galvanostatic test prolonged over 300 cycles at a 2C rate

Dry-air-stable lithium silicide-lithium oxide core-shell nanoparticles as high-capacity prelithiation reagents

Rapid progress has been made in realizing battery electrode materials with high capacity and long-term cyclability in the past decade. However, low first-cycle Coulombic efficiency as a result of the formation of a solid electrolyte interphase and Li trapping at the anodes, remains unresolved. Here we report LixSi-Li2O core-shell nanoparticles as an excellent prelithiation reagent with high specific capacity to compensate the first-cycle capacity loss. These nanoparticles are produced via a one-step thermal alloying process. LixSi-Li2O core-shell nanoparticles are processible in a slurry and exhibit high capacity under dry-air conditions with the protection of a Li2O passivation shell, indicating that these nanoparticles are potentially compatible with industrial battery fabrication processes. Both Si and graphite anodes are successfully prelithiated with these nanoparticles to achieve high first-cycle Coulombic efficiencies of 94% to 4100%. The LixSi-Li2O core-shell nanoparticles enable the practical implementation of high-performance electrode materials in lithium-ion batteries.open6

Degradation of Layered Oxide Cathode in a Sodium Battery: A Detailed Investigation by X-Ray Tomography at the Nanoscale

The degradation mechanism in a sodium cell of a layered Na0.48Al0.03Co0.18Ni0.18Mn0.47O2 (NCAM) cathode with P3/P2 structure is investigated by revealing the changes in microstructure and composition upon cycling. The work aims to rationalize the gradual performance decay and the alteration of the electrochemical response in terms of polarization, voltage signature, and capacity loss. Spatial reconstructions of the electrode by X-ray computed tomography at the nanoscale supported by quantitative and qualitative analyses show fractures and deformations in the cycled layered metal-oxide particles, as well as inorganic side compounds deposited on the material. These irreversible morphological modifications reflect structural heterogeneities across the cathode particles due to formation of various domains with different Na+ intercalation degrees. Besides, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy data suggest that the latter inorganic species in the cycled electrode are mainly composed of NaF, Na2O, and NaCO3 formed by parasitic electrolyte decomposition. The precipitation of these insulating compounds at the electrode/electrolyte interphase and the related structural stresses induced in the material lead to a decrease in cathode particle size and partial loss of electrochemical activity. The retention of the NCAM phase after cycling suggests that electrolyte upgrade may improve the performance of the cathode to achieve practical application for sustainable energy storage