A solution to the Erd\H{o}s-S\'ark\"ozy-S\'os problem on asymptotic Sidon bases of order 3

A set $S\subset \mathbb{N}$ is a Sidon set if all pairwise sums $s_1+s_2$ (for $s_1, s_2\in S$, $s_1\leq s_2$) are distinct. A set $S\subset \mathbb{N}$ is an asymptotic basis of order 3 if every sufficiently large integer $n$ can be written as the sum of three elements of $S$. In 1993, Erd\H{o}s, S\'{a}rk\"{o}zy and S\'{o}s asked whether there exists a set $S$ with both properties. We answer this question in the affirmative. Our proof relies on a deep result of Sawin on the $\mathbb{F}_q[t]$-analogue of Montgomery's conjecture for convolutions of the von Mangoldt function.Comment: Proof of Lemma 3.1 corrected, 15 page

Improved bounds for the two-point logarithmic Chowla conjecture

Let $\lambda$ be the Liouville function, defined as $\lambda(n) := (-1)^{\Omega(n)}$ where $\Omega(n)$ is the number of prime factors of $n$ with multiplicity. In 2021, Helfgott and Radziwi{\l}{\l} proved that $$\sum_{n\leq x} \frac{1}{n} \lambda(n) \lambda(n+1) \ll \frac{\log x}{(\log \log x)^{1/2}},$$improving earlier results by Tao and Ter\"av\"ainen. We prove that $$\sum_{n\leq x} \frac{1}{n} \lambda(n) \lambda(n+1) \ll (\log x)^{1-c}$$for some absolute constant $c>0$. This appears to be best possible with current methods.Comment: 75 page

TDNetGen: An open-source, parametrizable, large-scale, transmission and distribution test system

In this paper, an open-source MATLAB toolbox is presented that is able to generate synthetic, combined transmission and distribution network models. These can be used to analyse the interactions between transmission and multiple distribution systems, such as the provision of ancillary services by active distribution grids, the co-optimization of planning and operation, the development of emergency control and protection schemes spanning over different voltage levels, the analysis of combined market aspects, etc. The generated test-system models are highly customizable, providing the user with the flexibility to easily choose the desired characteristics, such as the level of renewable energy penetration, the size of the final system, etc

Katana and Grand Guru: a Game of the Lost Words (DEMO)

International audienceWe present here a prototype of a role playing game which allows to both i) crowdsource lexical units (including idioms) for a language and ii) help the player improve their knowledge of the language. Our implementation of the game is focused on non-standardized languages, for which the intergenerational transmission is not as efficient as it used to be. In order to address this, we incentivize the participation of a "Grand Guru", from whom the player needs help to fulfill their mission

Rigor Mortis: Annotating MWEs with a Gamified Platform

International audienceWe present here Rigor Mortis, a gamified crowdsourcing platform designed to evaluate the intuition of the speakers, then train them to annotate multi-word expressions (MWEs) in French corpora. We previously showed (Fort et al., 2018) that the speakers' intuition is reasonably good (65% in recall on non-fixed MWE). After a training phase using some of the tests developed in the PARSEME-FR project, we obtain 0.685 in F-measure at an experimentally determined 25% threshold (number of players who annotated the same segment)

Simultaneous Activation of Complement and Coagulation by MBL-Associated Serine Protease 2

The complement system is an important immune mechanism mediating both recognition and elimination of foreign bodies. The lectin pathway is one pathway of three by which the complement system is activated. The characteristic protease of this pathway is Mannan-binding lectin (MBL)-associated serine protease 2 (MASP2), which cleaves complement proteins C2 and C4. We present a novel and alternative role of MASP2 in the innate immune system. We have shown that MASP2 is capable of promoting fibrinogen turnover by cleavage of prothrombin, generating thrombin. By using a truncated active form of MASP2 as well as full-length MASP2 in complex with MBL, we have shown that the thrombin generated is active and can cleave both factor XIII and fibrinogen, forming cross-linked fibrin. To explore the biological significance of these findings we showed that fibrin was covalently bound on a bacterial surface to which MBL/MASP2 complexes were bound. These findings suggest that, as has been proposed for invertebrates, limited clotting may contribute to the innate immune response

Leukocyte Inflammatory Responses Provoked by Pneumococcal Sialidase

Cell surface expression of sialic acid has been reported to decrease during immune cell activation, but the significance and regulation of this phenomenon are still being investigated. The major human bacterial pathogen Streptococcus pneumoniae causes pneumonia, sepsis and meningitis, often accompanied by strong inflammatory responses. S. pneumoniae expresses a sialidase (NanA) that contributes to mucosal colonization, platelet clearance, and blood-brain barrier penetration. Using wild-type and isogenic NanA-deficient mutant strains, we showed that S. pneumoniae NanA can desialylate the surface of human THP-1 monocytes, leading to increased ERK phosphorylation, NF-κB activation, and proinflammatory cytokine release. S. pneumoniae NanA expression also stimulates interleukin-8 release and extracellular trap formation from human neutrophils. A mechanistic contribution of unmasking of inhibitory Siglec-5 from cis sialic acid interactions to the proinflammatory effect of NanA is suggested by decreased SHP-2 recruitment to the Siglec-5 intracellular domain and RNA interference studies. Finally, NanA increased production of proinflammatory cytokines in a murine intranasal challenge model of S. pneumoniae pneumonia