Fractional Order Version of the HJB Equation

We consider an extension of the well-known Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman (HJB) equation for fractional order dynamical systems in which a generalized performance index is considered for the related optimal control problem. Owing to the nonlocality of the fractional order operators, the classical HJB equation, in the usual form, does not hold true for fractional problems. Effectiveness of the proposed technique is illustrated through a numerical example.Comment: This is a preprint of a paper whose final and definite form is with 'Journal of Computational and Nonlinear Dynamics', ISSN 1555-1415, eISSN 1555-1423, CODEN: JCNDDM. Submitted 28-June-2018; Revised 15-Sept-2018; Accepted 28-Oct-201

Annotated Bibliography: Understanding Ambulatory Care Practices in the Context of Patient Safety and Quality Improvement.

The ambulatory care setting is an increasingly important component of the patient safety conversation. Inpatient safety is the primary focus of the vast majority of safety research and interventions, but the ambulatory setting is actually where most medical care is administered. Recent attention has shifted toward examining ambulatory care in order to implement better health care quality and safety practices. This annotated bibliography was created to analyze and augment the current literature on ambulatory care practices with regard to patient safety and quality improvement. By providing a thorough examination of current practices, potential improvement strategies in ambulatory care health care settings can be suggested. A better understanding of the myriad factors that influence delivery of patient care will catalyze future health care system development and implementation in the ambulatory setting

A minimal HIV-AIDS infection model with general incidence rate and application to Morocco data

We study the global dynamics of a SICA infection model with general incidence rate. The proposed model is calibrated with cumulative cases of infection by HIV-AIDS in Morocco from 1986 to 2015. We first prove that our model is biologically and mathematically well-posed. Stability analysis of different steady states is performed and threshold parameters are identified where the model exhibits clearance of infection or maintenance of a chronic infection. Furthermore, we examine the robustness of the model to some parameter values by examining the sensitivity of the basic reproduction number. Finally, using numerical simulations with real data from Morocco, we show that the model predicts well such reality.Comment: This is a preprint of a paper whose final and definite form is with 'Statistics Opt. Inform. Comput.', Vol. 7, No 2 (2019). See [http://www.IAPress.org]. Submitted 16/Sept/2018; Revised 10 & 15/Dec/2018; Accepted 15/Dec/201

Management of electronic learning (e-learning) and knowledge: A tool to promote higher education

Knowledge as a mental capital is the only strategic resource, and compared to the traditional capital, it is highly mobile and versatile. The purpose of this paper was to introduce management of e-learning and knowledge and study their role in the development of higher education. The results indicate that the development of e-learning and virtual discussion environment produces significant opportunities for transferring and sharing of tacit and explicit knowledge, knowledge organization, and organizing information, and it is also a great base to create beneficial and destructive challenges for higher education

Management of electronic learning (e-learning) and knowledge: A tool to promote higher education

Knowledge as a mental capital is the only strategic resource, and compared to the traditional capital, it is highly mobile and versatile. The purpose of this paper was to introduce management of e-learning and knowledge and study their role in the development of higher education. The results indicate that the development of e-learning and virtual discussion environment produces significant opportunities for transferring and sharing of tacit and explicit knowledge, knowledge organization, and organizing information, and it is also a great base to create beneficial and destructive challenges for higher education

Transcriptomic Profiles of Monocyte-Derived Macrophages in Response to Escherichia coli is Associated with the Host Genetics.

Reactive Nitrogen Species (RNS) are a group of bactericidal molecules produced by macrophages in response to pathogens in a process called oxidative burst. Nitric oxide (NO-) is a member of RNS produced from arginine by inducible Nitric Oxide Synthase (iNOS) enzyme. The activity of iNOS and production of NO- by macrophages following stimulation is one of the indicators of macrophage polarization towards M1/proinflammatory. Production of NO- by bovine monocyte-derived macrophage (MDM) and mouse peritoneal macrophages has been shown to be strongly associated with host genetic with the heritability of 0.776 in bovine MDM and 0.8 in mouse peritoneal macrophages. However, the mechanism of genetic regulation of macrophage response has remained less explored. In the current study, the transcriptome of bovine MDMs was compared between two extreme phenotypes that had been classified as high and low responder based on NO- production. The results showed that 179 and 392 genes were differentially expressed (DE) between high and low responder groups at 3 and 18 hours after exposure to Escherichia coli, respectively. A set of 11 Transcription Factors (TFs) (STAT1, IRF7, SPI1, STAT4, IRF1, HIF1A, FOXO3, REL, NFAT5, HIC1, and IRF4) at 3 hours and a set of 13 TFs (STAT1, IRF1, HIF1A, STAT4, ATF4, TP63, EGR1, CDKN2A, RBL1, E2F1, PRDM1, GATA3, and IRF4) at 18 hours after exposure to E. coli were identified to be differentially regulated between the high and low responder phenotypes. These TFs were found to be divided into two clusters of inflammatory- and hypoxia-related TFs. Functional analysis revealed that some key canonical pathways such as phagocytosis, chemotaxis, antigen presentation, and cell-to-cell signalling are enriched among the over-expressed genes by high responder phenotype. Based on the results of this study, it was inferred that the functional characteristics of bovine MDMs are associated with NO-based classification. Since NO- production is strongly associated with host genetics, this study for the first time shows the distinct proinflammatory profiles of macrophages are controlled by the natural genetic polymorphism in an outbred population. In addition, the results suggest that genetics can be considered as a new dimension in the current model of macrophage polarization which is currently described by the combination of stimulants, only

Electrical and terahertz magnetospectroscopy studies of laser-patterned micro- and nanostructures on InAs-based heterostructures

Nanostructures fabricated from narrow-gap semiconductors with strong spin-orbit interaction (SOI), such as InAs, can be used to filter momentum modes of electrons and offer the possibility to create and detect spin-polarized currents entirely by electric fields. Here, we present magnetotransport and THz magnetospectroscopy investigations of Hall-bars with back-gates made from in InGaAs/InAlAs quantum well structures with a strained 4 nm InAs inserted channel. The two-dimensional electron gas is at 53 nm depth and has a carrier density of about $6\times10^{11}$ cm$^{-2}$ and mobility of about $2\times10^{5}$ cm$^2$/Vs, after illumination. Electrical and THz optical transport measurements at low temperatures and in high magnetic fields reveal an effective mass of 0.038$m_{0}$ and an anisotropic $g$-factor of up to 20, larger than for bulk InAs or InAs-based heterostructures. We demonstrate that quasi-one-dimensional channels can be formed by micro-laser lithography. The population of subbands is controlled by in-plane gates. Contrary to previous reports symmetric and asymmetric in-plane gate voltages applied to quasi-one dimensional channels did not show indications of SOI-induced anomalies in the conductance.Comment: v1 did not contain references due to filename mix-up; v3 is revision following referee report; v4 is corrected version following acceptance; v5 is the published versio

Robot Cognitive Control with a Neurophysiologically Inspired Reinforcement Learning Model

A major challenge in modern robotics is to liberate robots from controlled industrial settings, and allow them to interact with humans and changing environments in the real-world. The current research attempts to determine if a neurophysiologically motivated model of cortical function in the primate can help to address this challenge. Primates are endowed with cognitive systems that allow them to maximize the feedback from their environment by learning the values of actions in diverse situations and by adjusting their behavioral parameters (i.e., cognitive control) to accommodate unexpected events. In such contexts uncertainty can arise from at least two distinct sources – expected uncertainty resulting from noise during sensory-motor interaction in a known context, and unexpected uncertainty resulting from the changing probabilistic structure of the environment. However, it is not clear how neurophysiological mechanisms of reinforcement learning and cognitive control integrate in the brain to produce efficient behavior. Based on primate neuroanatomy and neurophysiology, we propose a novel computational model for the interaction between lateral prefrontal and anterior cingulate cortex reconciling previous models dedicated to these two functions. We deployed the model in two robots and demonstrate that, based on adaptive regulation of a meta-parameter β that controls the exploration rate, the model can robustly deal with the two kinds of uncertainties in the real-world. In addition the model could reproduce monkey behavioral performance and neurophysiological data in two problem-solving tasks. A last experiment extends this to human–robot interaction with the iCub humanoid, and novel sources of uncertainty corresponding to “cheating” by the human. The combined results provide concrete evidence for the ability of neurophysiologically inspired cognitive systems to control advanced robots in the real-world

Outcome of allogeneic transplantation for mature T-cell lymphomas: Impact of donor source and disease characteristics

Mature T-cell lymphomas constitute the most common indication for allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT) of all lymphomas. Large studies evaluating contemporary outcomes of allo-HCT in mature T-cell lymphomas relative to commonly used donor sources are not available. Included in this registry study were adult patients who had undergone allo-HCT for anaplastic large cell lymphoma, angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma (AITL), or peripheral T-cell lymphoma not otherwise specified (PTCL-NOS) between 2008 and 2018. Hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) platforms compared were posttransplant cyclophosphamide-based haploidentical (haplo-)HCT, matched sibling donor (MSD) HCT, matched unrelated donor HCT with in vivo T-cell depletion (MUD TCD+), and matched unrelated donor HCT without in vivo T-cell depletion (MUD TCD-). Coprimary end points were overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS); secondary end points included nonrelapse mortality (NRM), and relapse/progression incidence (RI). A total of 1942 patients were eligible (237 haplo-HCT; 911 MSD; 468 MUD TCD+; 326 MUD TCD-). Cohorts were comparable for baseline characteristics with the exception of higher proportions of patients with decreased performance status (PS) and marrow graft recipients in the haplo-HCT group. Using univariate and multivariate comparisons, OS, PFS, RI, and NRM were not significantly different among the haplo-HCT, MSD, MUD TCD+, and MUD TCD- cohorts, with 3-year OS and PFS of 60%, 63%, 59%, and 64%, respectively, and 50%, 50%, 48%, and 52%, respectively. Significant predictors of inferior OS and PFS on multivariate analysis were active disease status at HCT and decreased PS. AITL was associated with significantly reduced relapse risk and better PFS compared with PTCL-NOS. Allo-HCT can provide durable PFS in patients with mature T-cell lymphoma (TCL). Outcomes of haplo-HCT were comparable to those of matched donor allo-HCT