Heterogeneous integration of KY(WO4)2-on-glass : a bonding study

Rare-earth ion doped potassium yttrium double tungstate, RE: KY(WO4)(2), is a promising candidate for small, power-efficient, on-chip lasers and amplifiers. There are two major bottlenecks that complicate the realization of such devices. Firstly, the anisotropic thermal expansion coefficient of KY(WO4)(2) makes it challenging to integrate the crystal on glass substrates. Secondly, the crystal layer has to be, for example, < 1 mu m to obtain single mode, high refractive index contrast waveguides operating at 1550 nm. In this work, different adhesives and bonding techniques in combination with several types of glass substrates are investigated. An optimal bonding process will enable further processing towards the manufacturing of integrated active optical KY(WO4)(2) devices. (C) 2019 Optical Society of America under the terms of the OSA Open Access Publishing Agreemen

MDP Homomorphic Networks: Group Symmetries in Reinforcement Learning

This paper introduces MDP homomorphic networks for deep reinforcement learning. MDP homomorphic networks are neural networks that are equivariant under symmetries in the joint state-action space of an MDP. Current approaches to deep reinforcement learning do not usually exploit knowledge about such structure. By building this prior knowledge into policy and value networks using an equivariance constraint, we can reduce the size of the solution space. We specifically focus on group-structured symmetries (invertible transformations). Additionally, we introduce an easy method for constructing equivariant network layers numerically, so the system designer need not solve the constraints by hand, as is typically done. We construct MDP homomorphic MLPs and CNNs that are equivariant under either a group of reflections or rotations. We show that such networks converge faster than unstructured baselines on CartPole, a grid world and Pong

GANGs: Generative Adversarial Network Games

Generative Adversarial Networks (GAN) have become one of the most successful frameworks for unsupervised generative modeling. As GANs are difficult to train much research has focused on this. However, very little of this research has directly exploited game-theoretic techniques. We introduce Generative Adversarial Network Games (GANGs), which explicitly model a finite zero-sum game between a generator ($G$) and classifier ($C$) that use mixed strategies. The size of these games precludes exact solution methods, therefore we define resource-bounded best responses (RBBRs), and a resource-bounded Nash Equilibrium (RB-NE) as a pair of mixed strategies such that neither $G$ or $C$ can find a better RBBR. The RB-NE solution concept is richer than the notion of `local Nash equilibria' in that it captures not only failures of escaping local optima of gradient descent, but applies to any approximate best response computations, including methods with random restarts. To validate our approach, we solve GANGs with the Parallel Nash Memory algorithm, which provably monotonically converges to an RB-NE. We compare our results to standard GAN setups, and demonstrate that our method deals well with typical GAN problems such as mode collapse, partial mode coverage and forgetting

Electrocardiographic Features of Left Ventricular Diastolic Dysfunction and Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction: A Systematic Review

Background: Electrocardiographic features are well-known for heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF), but not for left ventricular diastolic dysfunction (LVDD) and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). As ECG features could help to identify high-risk individuals in primary care, we systematically reviewed the literature for ECG features diagnosing women and men suspected of LVDD and HFpEF. Methods and Results: Among the 7,127 records identified, only 10 studies reported diagnostic measures, of which 9 studied LVDD. For LVDD, the most promising features were T-end-P/(PQ*age), which is the electrocardiographic equivalent of the passive-to-active filling (AUC: 0.91-0.96), and repolarization times (QTc interval ≥ 350 ms, AUC: 0.85). For HFpEF, the Cornell product ≥ 1,800 mm*ms showed poor sensitivity of 40% (AUC: 0.62). No studies presented results stratified by sex. Conclusion: Electrocardiographic features are not widely evaluated in diagnostic studies for LVDD and HFpEF. Only for LVDD, two ECG features related to the diastolic interval, and repolarization measures showed diagnostic potential. To improve diagnosis and care for women and men suspected of heart failure, reporting of sex-specific data on ECG features is encouraged

The potential contribution of yellow cassava to dietary nutrient adequacy of primary-school children in Eastern Kenya; the use of linear programming.

OBJECTIVE: Introduction of biofortified cassava as school lunch can increase vitamin A intake, but may increase risk of other deficiencies due to poor nutrient profile of cassava. We assessed the potential effect of introducing a yellow cassava-based school lunch combined with additional food-based recommendations (FBR) on vitamin A and overall nutrient adequacy using Optifood (linear programming tool). DESIGN: Cross-sectional study to assess dietary intakes (24 h recall) and derive model parameters (list of foods consumed, median serving sizes, food and food (sub)group frequency distributions, food cost). Three scenarios were modelled, namely daily diet including: (i) no school lunch; (ii) standard 5d school lunch with maize/beans; and (iii) 5d school lunch with yellow cassava. Each scenario and scenario 3 with additional FBR were assessed on overall nutrient adequacy using recommended nutrient intakes (RNI). SETTING: Eastern Kenya. SUBJECTS: Primary-school children (n 150) aged 7-9 years. RESULTS: Best food pattern of yellow cassava-based lunch scenario achieved 100 % RNI for six nutrients compared with no lunch (three nutrients) or standard lunch (five nutrients) scenario. FBR with yellow cassava and including small dried fish improved nutrient adequacy, but could not ensure adequate intake of fat (52 % of average requirement), riboflavin (50 % RNI), folate (59 % RNI) and vitamin A (49 % RNI). CONCLUSIONS: Introduction of yellow cassava-based school lunch complemented with FBR potentially improved vitamin A adequacy, but alternative interventions are needed to ensure dietary adequacy. Optifood is useful to assess potential contribution of a biofortified crop to nutrient adequacy and to develop additional FBR to address remaining nutrient gaps

Tick-borne pathogens of zoonotic and veterinary importance in Nigerian cattle

Additional file 1: Multiple infections by tick-borne pathogens according to age classes and overall number of animals. (PDF 19 kb)BACKGROUND : Ticks and tick-borne diseases undermine cattle fitness and productivity in the whole of sub-Saharan Africa, including Nigeria. In this West African country, cattle are challenged by numerous tick species, especially during the wet season. Consequently, several TBDs are known to be endemic in Nigerian cattle, including anaplasmosis, babesiosis, cowdriosis and theilerioris (by Theileria mutans and Theileria velifera). To date, all investigations on cattle TBDs in Nigeria have been based on cytological examinations and/or on serological methods. This study aimed to ascertain the occurrence of tick-borne pathogens of veterinary and zoonotic importance in cattle in Nigeria using molecular approaches. METHODS : In October 2008, 704 whole blood samples were collected from indigenous cattle in the Plateau State, Nigeria. Analysis for tick-borne pathogens was conducted by means of PCR-based reverse line blotting (RLB) and sequencing targeting a panel of five genera of microorganisms (i.e. Babesia, Theileria, Anaplasma, Ehrlichia and Rickettsia spp.). RESULTS : In total, 561/704 (82.6 %) animals were found infected, with 465 (69.6 %) of them being infected by two or more microorganisms, with up to 77 possible combinations of pathogens detected. Theileria mutans was the most prevalent microorganism (66.3 %), followed by Theileria velifera (52.4 %), Theileria taurotragi (39.5 %), Anaplasma marginale (39.1 %), Anaplasma sp. (Omatjenne) (34.7 %), Babesia bigemina (7.9 %), Anaplasma centrale (6.3 %), Anaplasma platys (3.9 %), Rickettsia massiliae (3.5 %), Babesia bovis (2.0 %) and Ehrlichia ruminantium (1.1 %). Calves were found significantly less infected than juvenile and adult cattle. CONCLUSIONS : This study provides updated, molecular-based information on cattle TBDs in Nigeria. The molecular approach employed allowed the diagnosis of numerous positive cases including carrier statuses, multiple infections and novel pathogen detections within the indigenous cattle population. Moreover, the RLB method here described enabled the detection of veterinary agents not only pertaining to bovine health, including also those of zoonotic importance. The high prevalence recorded for T. mutans, T. velifera, A. marginale, T. taurotragi and Anaplasma sp. (Omatjenne), suggests they may be endemically established in Nigeria, whereas the lower prevalence recorded for other microorganisms (i.e. A. centrale and B. bovis) highlights a less stable epidemiological scenario, requiring further investigations.The UK’s Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) under the ‘Combating Infectious Diseases in Livestock for International Development’ (CIDLID) scheme, and the European Union’s Seventh Framework Program (FP7/2007–2013) under grant agreement n° 221948, Integrated Control of Neglected Zoonoses (ICONZ).http://www.parasitesandvectors.comam2016Veterinary Tropical Disease