Concentric-Tube-Eccentric-Rod: A Continuum Actuator for Macro-/Micro-Scale Translational Actuation

This paper proposes a motion de-amplification-basedactuator design, which comprises coarse and fine-stagesthat respectively achieve macro and micro-scale linearactuation. The proposed de-amplification mechanism, whichoutputs micrometer-level translation from scaling downmillimeter-level translation input, is a hybrid continuummechanism formed by embedding a many-backbone continuummechanism in a concentric tube mechanism. A simplifiedCosserat-rod-based analytical model incorporating a lumpedCoulomb friction model is derived to describe themicro-actuation input/output behavior. A prototype isfabricated and its micro-motion capabilities arecharacterized by experiments. The results demonstrate theactuator's micro-motion output possesses a travel stroke of$232.48,$$mu$m, resolution of $0.216,$$mu$m, repeatabilityof $1.92,$$mu$m (standard deviation), and output complianceamong $13.52, - 16.01,$$mu$m/N. Besides, open-looppositioning tests show a steady state error of $1.67,$$mu$m(mean). The actuator exhibits excellent performance and canbe created from off-the-shelf components using conventionalworkshop tools

LassoNet:Deep Lasso-Selection of 3D Point Clouds

Selection is a fundamental task in exploratory analysis and visualization of 3D point clouds. Prior researches on selection methods were developed mainly based on heuristics such as local point density, thus limiting their applicability in general data. Specific challenges root in the great variabilities implied by point clouds (e.g., dense vs. sparse), viewpoint (e.g., occluded vs. non-occluded), and lasso (e.g., small vs. large). In this work, we introduce LassoNet, a new deep neural network for lasso selection of 3D point clouds, attempting to learn a latent mapping from viewpoint and lasso to point cloud regions. To achieve this, we couple user-target points with viewpoint and lasso information through 3D coordinate transform and naive selection, and improve the method scalability via an intention filtering and farthest point sampling. A hierarchical network is trained using a dataset with over 30K lasso-selection records on two different point cloud data. We conduct a formal user study to compare LassoNet with two state-of-the-art lasso-selection methods. The evaluations confirm that our approach improves the selection effectiveness and efficiency across different combinations of 3D point clouds, viewpoints, and lasso selections. Project Website: https://lassonet.github.ioComment: 10 page

LKCA: Large Kernel Convolutional Attention

We revisit the relationship between attention mechanisms and large kernel ConvNets in visual transformers and propose a new spatial attention named Large Kernel Convolutional Attention (LKCA). It simplifies the attention operation by replacing it with a single large kernel convolution. LKCA combines the advantages of convolutional neural networks and visual transformers, possessing a large receptive field, locality, and parameter sharing. We explained the superiority of LKCA from both convolution and attention perspectives, providing equivalent code implementations for each view. Experiments confirm that LKCA implemented from both the convolutional and attention perspectives exhibit equivalent performance. We extensively experimented with the LKCA variant of ViT in both classification and segmentation tasks. The experiments demonstrated that LKCA exhibits competitive performance in visual tasks. Our code will be made publicly available at https://github.com/CatworldLee/LKCA

Etch-back in DDSOG Process by Ultrasonic Agitation and Application to Tunneling Gyroscope Fabrication

The etch-back of anodic bonded silicon-on-glass wafer using ultrasonic agitation to obtain uniform silicon film and good surface finish in deeply dissolved silicon-on-glass (DDSOG) process has been studied in KOH solution. Etch-back characteristics of ptype (100) 4inch SOG wafer have been explored under the different ultrasonic power. It has been observed that the characteristics of etch-back such as the etch rate, etch uniformity and surface roughness were evidently improved under 120W ultrasonic power agitation. The etching uniformity was less than +/-1% on the whole wafer. And the root-mean-square roughness (R(rms)) of 20.6nm was achieved after 360 mu m thickness silicon being etched. Some shortcomings of ultrasonic agitation such as damaging membrane and reducing the bonding intensity are observed and how to overcome these disadvantages in DDSOG process is also discussed. Using this technology, a tunneling gyroscope with an out-of-plane, 30 mu m thickness beam was successfully fabricated

Characterization of the Toxicities of Cd-Ni and Cd-Cr Binary Mixtures Using Combination Index Method

Direct equipartition ray design was used to construct Cd-Ni and Cd-Cr binary mixtures. Microplate toxicity analysis was used to evaluate the toxicity of individual substance and the Cd-Ni and Cd-Cr mixtures on Chlorella pyrenoidosa and Selenastrum capricornutum. The interacting toxicity of the mixture was analyzed with concentration addition (CA) model. In addition, combination index method (CI) was proposed and used to quantitatively characterize the toxicity of the binary mixtures of CdNi and Cd-Cr observed in experiment and find the degree of deviation from the predicted outcome of the CA model, that is, the intensity of interacting toxicity. Results indicate that most of the 20 binary mixtures exhibit enhancing and synergistic effect, and only Cd-Cr-R4 and Cd-Cr-R5 mixtures have relatively high antagonistic effects against C. pyrenoidosa. Based on confidence interval, CI can compare the intensities of interaction of the mixtures under varying levels of effect. The characterization methods are applicable for analyzing binary mixture with complex interaction

A motivação e a cooperação desportiva no atletismo

A educação física para as crianças e jovens, consiste num período crítico do percurso educacional, dado que pode promover o seu futuro envolvimento desportivo e decisões acerca da sua participação em actividades físicas futuras. Deste modo, o estudo de modelos ou a identificação de determinantes psicológicas, assume-se como uma necessidade para o desenvolvimento de intervenções adequadas para o aumento dos níveis de actividade física. A orientação motivacional e o sentido de cooperação, são factores de primordial importância na coordenação e no sucesso de diversas actividades humanas, e de impacto bem visível no âmbito do desporto. Assim, o presente trabalho destina-se à verificação das possibilidades de correlação entre orientação motivacional e sentido de cooperação em participantes de uma mesma modalidade desportiva, neste caso o atletismo, para o que se utilizou o “Task and Ego Orientation in Sport Questionnaire” (TEOSQ), na versão portuguesa desenvolvido por Duda e colaboradores (1989, 1992, citado por Cruz, 1996), de Fonseca e Brito, (2006) e o Cuestionario de Cooperación Deportiva (CCD), igualmente na versão portuguesa, de Almeida, Garcia-Mas, Lameiras, Olmedílla, Ortega, Martins, (2006). A amostra foi constituída por 52 atletas, onde 51,9% dos sujeitos são do sexo masculino e 48,1% são do sexo feminino, de diversas especialidades.ABSTRACT: Physical education for children and young people is a critical period of the educational process, as this selling may promote individual`s futures involvement in physical activity and sports, and may influence young persons decisions about future sport and activity participation. Therefore, the study of models and identification of psychology variables, underscores the need of developing interventions to increase physical activity. The motivational orientation and the direction of cooperation are factors of primordial importance in the coordination and the success of diverse activities human beings, and well visible impact in the scope of the sport. Thus, the present work destines it verification of the possibilities of correlation between the motivational orientation an direction of cooperation in participants of one same porting modality, in this in case that the track and field so that it was used “Task and Ego Orientation in Sport Questionnaire” (TEOSQ), in the Portuguese version developed by Duda and Collaborators (1989, 1992, cited for Cruz, 1996), and the Cuestionario de Cooperación Deportiva (CCD),equally in the Portuguese version of Almeida, Garcia-Mas, Lameiras, Olmedílla, Ortega, Martins, (2006). A sample of 52 athletes, of diverse modalities

DNaseI hypersensitivity at gene-poor, FSH dystrophy-linked 4q35.2

A subtelomeric region, 4q35.2, is implicated in facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD), a dominant disease thought to involve local pathogenic changes in chromatin. FSHD patients have too few copies of a tandem 3.3-kb repeat (D4Z4) at 4q35.2. No phenotype is associated with having few copies of an almost identical repeat at 10q26.3. Standard expression analyses have not given definitive answers as to the genes involved. To investigate the pathogenic effects of short D4Z4 arrays on gene expression in the very gene-poor 4q35.2 and to find chromatin landmarks there for transcription control, unannotated genes and chromatin structure, we mapped DNaseI-hypersensitive (DH) sites in FSHD and control myoblasts. Using custom tiling arrays (DNase-chip), we found unexpectedly many DH sites in the two large gene deserts in this 4-Mb region. One site was seen preferentially in FSHD myoblasts. Several others were mapped >0.7 Mb from genes known to be active in the muscle lineage and were also observed in cultured fibroblasts, but not in lymphoid, myeloid or hepatic cells. Their selective occurrence in cells derived from mesoderm suggests functionality. Our findings indicate that the gene desert regions of 4q35.2 may have functional significance, possibly also to FSHD, despite their paucity of known genes