Probabilistic modeling of noise transfer characteristics in digital circuits

Device scaling, the driving force of CMOS technology, led to continuous decrease in the energy level representing logic states. The resulting small noise margins in combination with increasing problems regarding the supply voltage stability and process variability creates a design conflict between efficiency and reliability. This conflict is expected to rise more in future technologies. Current research approaches on fault-tolerance architectures and countermeasures at circuit level, unfortunately, cause a significant area and energy penalty without guaranteeing absence of errors. To overcome this problem, it seems to be attractive to tolerate bit errors at circuit level and employ error handling methods at higher system levels. To do this, an estimate of the bit error rate (BER) at circuit level is necessary. Due to the size of the circuits, Monte Carlo simulation suffers from impractical runtimes. Therefore the needed modeling scheme is proposed. The model allows a probabilistic estimation of error rates at circuit level taking into account statistical effects ranging from supply noise and electromagnetic coupling to process variability within reasonable runtimes

Quantitative comparison of performance analysis techniques for modular and generic network-on-chip

NoC-specific parameters feature a huge impact on performance and implementation costs of NoC. Hence, performance and cost evaluation of these parameter-dependent NoC is crucial in different design-stages but the requirements on performance analysis differ from stage to stage. In an early design-stage an analysis technique featuring reduced complexity and limited accuracy can be applied, whereas in subsequent design-stages more accurate techniques are required. <br><br> In this work several performance analysis techniques at different levels of abstraction are presented and quantitatively compared. These techniques include a static performance analysis using timing-models, a Colored Petri Net-based approach, VHDL- and SystemC-based simulators and an FPGA-based emulator. Conducting NoC-experiments with NoC-sizes from 9 to 36 functional units and various traffic patterns, characteristics of these experiments concerning accuracy, complexity and effort are derived. <br><br> The performance analysis techniques discussed here are quantitatively evaluated and finally assigned to the appropriate design-stages in an automated NoC-design-flow

Corporate governance and financial constraints on strategic turnarounds

The paper extends the Robbins and Pearce (1992) two-stage turnaround response model to include governance factors. In addition to the retrenchment and recovery, the paper proposes the addition of a realignment stage, referring specifically to the re-alignment of expectations of principal and agent groups. The realignment stage imposes a threshold that must be crossed before the retrenchment and hence recovery stage can be entered. Crossing this threshold is problematic to the extent that the interests of governance-stakeholder groups diverge in a crisis situation. The severity of the crisis impacts on the bases of strategy contingent asset valuation leading to the fragmentation of stakeholder interests. In some cases the consequence may be that management are prevented from carrying out turnarounds by governance constraints. The paper uses a case study to illustrate these dynamics, and like the Robbins and Pearce study, it focuses on the textile industry. A longitudinal approach is used to show the impact of the removal of governance constraints. The empirical evidence suggests that such financial constraints become less serious to the extent that there is a functioning market for corporate control. Building on governance research and turnaround literature, the paper also outlines the general case necessary and sufficient conditions for successful turnarounds

Superposition of Weyl solutions: The equilibrium forces

Solutions to the Einstein equation that represent the superposition of static isolated bodies with axially symmetry are presented. The equations nonlinearity yields singular structures (strut and membranes) to equilibrate the bodies. The force on the strut like singularities is computed for a variety of situations. The superposition of a ring and a particle is studied in some detailComment: 31 pages, 7 figures, psbox macro. Submitted to Classical and Quantum Gravit

Towards estimating computer users' mood from interaction behaviour with keyboard and mouse

The purpose of this exploratory research was to study the relationship between the mood of computer users and their use of keyboard and mouse to examine the possibility of creating a generic or individualized mood measure. To examine this, a field study (n = 26) and a controlled study (n = 16) were conducted. In the field study, interaction data and self-reported mood measurements were collected during normal PC use over several days. In the controlled study, participants worked on a programming task while listening to high or low arousing background music. Besides subjective mood measurement, galvanic skin response (GSR) data was also collected. Results found no generic relationship between the interaction data and the mood data. However, the results of the studies found significant average correlations between mood measurement and personalized regression models based on keyboard and mouse interaction data. Together the results suggest that individualized mood prediction is possible from interaction behaviour with keyboard and mouse

Study protocol to investigate the effect of a lifestyle intervention on body weight, psychological health status and risk factors associated with disease recurrence in women recovering from breast cancer treatment

Background Breast cancer survivors often encounter physiological and psychological problems related to their diagnosis and treatment that can influence long-term prognosis. The aim of this research is to investigate the effects of a lifestyle intervention on body weight and psychological well-being in women recovering from breast cancer treatment, and to determine the relationship between changes in these variables and biomarkers associated with disease recurrence and survival. Methods/design Following ethical approval, a total of 100 patients will be randomly assigned to a lifestyle intervention (incorporating dietary energy restriction in conjunction with aerobic exercise training) or normal care control group. Patients randomised to the dietary and exercise intervention will be given individualised healthy eating dietary advice and written information and attend moderate intensity aerobic exercise sessions on three to five days per week for a period of 24 weeks. The aim of this strategy is to induce a steady weight loss of up to 0.5 Kg each week. In addition, the overall quality of the diet will be examined with a view to (i) reducing the dietary intake of fat to ~25% of the total calories, (ii) eating at least 5 portions of fruit and vegetables a day, (iii) increasing the intake of fibre and reducing refined carbohydrates, and (iv) taking moderate amounts of alcohol. Outcome measures will include body weight and body composition, psychological health status (stress and depression), cardiorespiratory fitness and quality of life. In addition, biomarkers associated with disease recurrence, including stress hormones, estrogen status, inflammatory markers and indices of innate and adaptive immune function will be monitored. Discussion This research will provide valuable information on the effectiveness of a practical, easily implemented lifestyle intervention for evoking positive effects on body weight and psychological well-being, two important factors that can influence long-term prognosis in breast cancer survivors. However, the added value of the study is that it will also evaluate the effects of the lifestyle intervention on a range of biomarkers associated with disease recurrence and survival. Considered together, the results should improve our understanding of the potential role that lifestyle-modifiable factors could play in saving or prolonging lives

Desulfuribacillus alkaliarsenatis gen. nov. sp. nov., a deep-lineage, obligately anaerobic, dissimilatory sulfur and arsenate-reducing, haloalkaliphilic representative of the order Bacillales from soda lakes

An anaerobic enrichment culture inoculated with a sample of sediments from soda lakes of the Kulunda Steppe with elemental sulfur as electron acceptor and formate as electron donor at pH 10 and moderate salinity inoculated with sediments from soda lakes in Kulunda Steppe (Altai, Russia) resulted in the domination of a Gram-positive, spore-forming bacterium strain AHT28. The isolate is an obligate anaerobe capable of respiratory growth using elemental sulfur, thiosulfate (incomplete reduction) and arsenate as electron acceptor with H2, formate, pyruvate and lactate as electron donor. Growth was possible within a pH range from 9 to 10.5 (optimum at pH 10) and a salt concentration at pH 10 from 0.2 to 2 M total Na+ (optimum at 0.6 M). According to the phylogenetic analysis, strain AHT28 represents a deep independent lineage within the order Bacillales with a maximum of 90 % 16S rRNA gene similarity to its closest cultured representatives. On the basis of its distinct phenotype and phylogeny, the novel haloalkaliphilic anaerobe is suggested as a new genus and species, Desulfuribacillus alkaliarsenatis (type strain AHT28T = DSM24608T = UNIQEM U855T)

Whole number thinking, learning and development: neuro-cognitive, cognitive and developmental approaches

The participants of working group 2 presented a broad range of studies, 11 papers in total, related to whole number learning representing research groups from 11 countries as follows. Two large cross-sectional studies focused on developmental aspects of young children’s number learning provide a lens for re-examining ‘traditional’ features of number acquisition. van den Heuvel-Panhuizen (the Netherlands) presented a co-authored paper with Elia (Cyprus; Elia and van den Heuvel-Panhuizen 2015) on a cross-cultural study of kindergartners’ number competence focused on counting, additive and multiplicative thinking. Second, Milinković (2015) examined the development of young Serbian children’s initial understanding of representations of whole numbers and counting strategies in a large study of 3- to 7-year-olds. Children’s invented (formal) representations such as set representation and the number line were found to be limited in their recordings. In a South African study focused on early counting and addition, Roberts (2015) directs attention to the role of teachers by providing a framework to support teachers’ interpretation of young disadvantaged learners’ representations of number when engaging with whole number additive tasks. Some papers reflected the increasing role of neuroscientific concepts and methodologies utilised in research on WNA learning and development. Sinclair and Coles (2015) drew upon neuroscientific research to highlight the significant role of symbol-to-symbol connections and the use of fingers and touch counting exempli- fied by the TouchCounts iPad app. Gould (2015) reported aspects of a large Australian large study of children in the first years of schooling aimed at improving numeracy and literacy in disadvantaged communities. A case study exemplified how numerals were identified by relying on a mental number line by using location to retrieve number names. This raised the question addressed in the neuroscientific work of Dehaene and other papers focused on individual differences in how the brain processes numbers. The Italian PerContare1 project (Baccaglini-Frank 2015) built upon the collaboration between cognitive psychologists and mathematics educators, aimed at developing teaching strategies for preventing and addressing early low achievement in arithmetic. It takes an innovative approach to the development of number sense that is grounded upon a kinaesthetic and visual-spatial approach to part-whole relationships. Mulligan and Woolcott (2015) provided a discussion paper on the underlying nature of number. They presented a broader view of mathematics learning (including WNA) as linked to spatial interaction with the environment; the concept of connectivity across concepts and the development of underlying pattern and structural relationships are central to their approach

Breast cancer risk among women with psychiatric admission with affective or neurotic disorders: a nationwide cohort study in Denmark

There is a considerable interest in the possible relationship between psychosocial factors and the onset of breast cancer. This cohort study was based upon two nationwide and population-based central registers: The Danish Psychiatric Central Register, which contains all cases of psychiatric admissions, and The Danish Cancer Registry, which contains all cases of cancer. The register-linkage was accomplished by using a personal identification number. The study population comprised all women admitted to psychiatric departments or psychiatric hospitals in Denmark between 1969 and 1993 with an affective or a neurotic disorder. Overall, 66 648 women comprising 199 910 admissions and 775 522 person-years were included. The incidence of breast cancer in the cohort was compared with the national breast cancer incidence rates adjusted for age and calendar time. In all, 1270 women with affective or neurotic disorders developed breast cancer subsequent to the first admission as compared with the 1242 women expected, standardized incidence ratio (SIR) = 1.02 (95% confidence interval 0.97–1.08). None of the hypothetical risk factors: type of diagnosis, age or calendar period at cohort entry, age at breast cancer, alcohol abuse, alcohol/drug abuse without further specification, total number of admissions, total length of admissions, or time from first admission showed a statistically significant effect on the relative risk of breast cancer. We found no support for the hypothesis that women admitted to a psychiatric department with an affective or a neurotic disorder subsequently have an increased risk of breast cancer. © 1999 Cancer Research Campaig

Mental fortitude training: An evidence-based approach to developing psychological resilience for sustained success

Drawing on the body of knowledge in this area, this article presents an evidence-based approach to developing psychological resilience for sustained success. To this end, the narrative is divided into three main sections. The first section describes the construct of psychological resilience and explains what it is. The second section outlines and discusses a mental fortitude training™ program for aspiring performers. The third section provides recommendations for practitioners implementing this program. It is hoped that this article will facilitate a holistic and systematic approach to developing resilience for sustained success