Attention Loss Adjusted Prioritized Experience Replay

Prioritized Experience Replay (PER) is a technical means of deep reinforcement learning by selecting experience samples with more knowledge quantity to improve the training rate of neural network. However, the non-uniform sampling used in PER inevitably shifts the state-action space distribution and brings the estimation error of Q-value function. In this paper, an Attention Loss Adjusted Prioritized (ALAP) Experience Replay algorithm is proposed, which integrates the improved Self-Attention network with Double-Sampling mechanism to fit the hyperparameter that can regulate the importance sampling weights to eliminate the estimation error caused by PER. In order to verify the effectiveness and generality of the algorithm, the ALAP is tested with value-function based, policy-gradient based and multi-agent reinforcement learning algorithms in OPENAI gym, and comparison studies verify the advantage and efficiency of the proposed training framework

Joint Coverage and Power Control in Highly Dynamic and Massive UAV Networks: An Aggregative Game-theoretic Learning Approach

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) ad-hoc network is a significant contingency plan for communication after a natural disaster, such as typhoon and earthquake. To achieve efficient and rapid networks deployment, we employ noncooperative game theory and amended binary log-linear algorithm (BLLA) seeking for the Nash equilibrium which achieves the optimal network performance. We not only take channel overlap and power control into account but also consider coverage and the complexity of interference. However, extensive UAV game theoretical models show limitations in post-disaster scenarios which require large-scale UAV network deployments. Besides, the highly dynamic post-disaster scenarios cause strategies updating constraint and strategy-deciding error on UAV ad-hoc networks. To handle these problems, we employ aggregative game which could capture and cover those characteristics. Moreover, we propose a novel synchronous payoff-based binary log-linear learning algorithm (SPBLLA) to lessen information exchange and reduce time consumption. Ultimately, the experiments indicate that, under the same strategy-deciding error rate, SPBLLA's learning rate is manifestly faster than that of the revised BLLA. Hence, the new model and algorithm are more suitable and promising for large-scale highly dynamic scenarios

Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae type b carriage in Chinese children aged 12–18 months in Shanghai, China: a cross-sectional study

Abstract Background The bacteria Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus) and Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) are leading causes of childhood pneumonia and meningitis and are major contributors to worldwide mortality in children younger than 5 years of age. Asymptomatic nasopharyngeal carriage of pneumococcus and Hib was determined for healthy children in Shanghai in 2009. Methods Children from 5 immunization clinics were enrolled in this study. Specimens from the nasopharynx were collected and cultured in Columbia and chocolate agar to identify pneumococcal and Hib carriage. Pneumococcal specimens were serotyped with the Neufeld test, and antibiotic resistance for pneumococcal and Hib specimens used the E-test method. Significance of risk factors for carriage was assessed through chi-square tests. Results Among 614 children, 16.6 % had pneumococcal carriage and 8.0 % Hib carriage. The predominant serotype of pneumococcus that was isolated was 19 F (52.9 %); serotype coverage was 68.6 % for both 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) and PCV-10, and 82.3 % for PCV-13. Household residency and father’s education were both significantly related to pneumococcal and Hib carriage. The majority of S. pneumoniae isolates were sensitive to most antimicrobials but there were high levels of resistance to azithromycin (51.0 %) and erythromycin (51.0 %). Haemophilus influenzae isolates were sensitive to almost all antimicrobials tested although 12.2 % of isolates were resistant to ampicillin. Conclusions The pneumococcal and Hib vaccines require payment, and the children with the highest burden of disease may not be receiving these vaccines. Moreover, the presence of high antibiotic susceptibility towards pneumococcus, and to a lesser extent towards Hib, underscores the need for preventive protection against these diseases. Public funding of pneumococcal and Hib vaccines would be one mechanism to increase uptake of these vaccines.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/134553/1/12879_2016_Article_1485.pd

Phosphorus fractions and alkaline phosphatase activity in sediments of a large eutrophic Chinese lake (Lake Taihu)

Spatial, vertical, and seasonal variations in phosphorus fractions and in alkaline phosphatase activity (APA) were investigated in sediments in a large-shallow eutrophic Chinese lake (Lake Taihu) in 2003-2004. The phosphorus content was highest in the most seriously polluted lake area. Iron-bound phosphorus (Fe(OOH)-P) dominated (47% on average) among the phosphorus fractions determined according to Golterman (Hydrobiologia 335:87-95, 1996). Notably, organically-bound P comprised a further significant additional portion (acid-soluble + hot NaOH-extractable organic P = 25%), which was highest at the most polluted sites. The Fe(OOH)-P content was the lowest in spring (April, 2004), suggesting that degradation of organic matter led to the release of iron-bound phosphates. Sediment APA showed a significant positive relationship with both organically-bound P and Fe(OOH)-P. Consequently, organically-bound P is an important portion of the sediment phosphorus in Lake Taihu. It is mainly derived from freshly-settled autochthonous particles and from external discharges. Organically-bound P induces APA and may lead to the release of bioavailable phosphates from the organic sediments, thereby accelerating lake eutrophication.Spatial, vertical, and seasonal variations in phosphorus fractions and in alkaline phosphatase activity (APA) were investigated in sediments in a large-shallow eutrophic Chinese lake (Lake Taihu) in 2003-2004. The phosphorus content was highest in the most seriously polluted lake area. Iron-bound phosphorus (Fe(OOH)-P) dominated (47% on average) among the phosphorus fractions determined according to Golterman (Hydrobiologia 335:87-95, 1996). Notably, organically-bound P comprised a further significant additional portion (acid-soluble + hot NaOH-extractable organic P = 25%), which was highest at the most polluted sites. The Fe(OOH)-P content was the lowest in spring (April, 2004), suggesting that degradation of organic matter led to the release of iron-bound phosphates. Sediment APA showed a significant positive relationship with both organically-bound P and Fe(OOH)-P. Consequently, organically-bound P is an important portion of the sediment phosphorus in Lake Taihu. It is mainly derived from freshly-settled autochthonous particles and from external discharges. Organically-bound P induces APA and may lead to the release of bioavailable phosphates from the organic sediments, thereby accelerating lake eutrophication

Epidemiological Characteristics of Human Rabies in Urban and Suburban Districts in Shanghai, 2006–2021

Rabies is a vaccine-preventable, viral zoonotic disease caused by a lyssavirus. This study was aimed at analyzing the epidemiological characteristics of human rabies in Shanghai to provide valuable information to support accurate prevention and control. Individual-level data on human rabies and dog bites/attacks in Shanghai were collected from 2006 to 2021. Demographic characteristics, spatial and seasonal patterns, and correlations were analyzed to explore the epidemiological profiles. Infection risk was predicted with a Bayesian aggression model. A total of 43 human rabies cases were registered in Shanghai in 2006–2021; the annual average incidence rate was 0.01/100000. Males and residents at ages of 10 to 19 years and over 50 years had an elevated risk of rabies. All cases were reported in suburban districts and peaked in July. The body parts most frequently injured by dogs were the hands (48.84%). The fatality rate was 100%. Most cases (86.05%) were not treated after exposure. A total of 310 dog bites/attacks were reported and significantly correlated with the number of cases (P=0.010). The predicted risk of human rabies was higher in suburban than urban areas. The incidence of human rabies in Shanghai was relatively low; nevertheless, risk still existed, particularly in suburban areas

Research on the Dynamic Coupling and Coordination of Science and Technology Innovation and Sustainable Development in Anhui Province

The coupling of and coordination between science and technology innovation (STI) and sustainable development (SD) is a basic requirement for Anhui Province’s economic high-quality development. According to panel data of 16 prefecture-level cities in Anhui Province from 2010 to 2021, the entropy method was applied to quantify the comprehensive development level of the two systems. The models of coupling coordination degree, grey GM (1, 1), and ARIMA prediction were constructed to analyze the spatiotemporal dynamic evolution features of the two systems’ coupling coordination. In the time series, the two systems’ comprehensive development showed a steady increase, a high level of coupling, and an increasing overall trend of coupling coordination. Moreover, the two systems’ coupling and coordination levels show the gradient spatial differentiation characteristics of “central > east > west.” The prediction shows that the two systems’ coupling coordination degree exhibits a monotonic increasing trend and reaches the optimal coupling coordination state around 2030. This study provides a decision-making reference for the implementation of the innovation-driven development strategy of Anhui Province

Research progress of gut microbiota in neuropathic pain

The mechanism of neuropathic pain (NP) is extremely complicated, and current pharmacological treatments for NP are still unsatisfactory. The gut microbiota plays important roles in inducing NP. The changes of gut microbiota and gut microbiota-dependent metabolite could promote the immune cells and glial cells releasing pro-inflammatory cytokines, initiating the innate immune response and inflammation by activating Toll-like receptors (TLRs), which is believed to be a potential candidate to alleviate NP