SOT-MRAM-Enabled Probabilistic Binary Neural Networks for Noise-Tolerant and Fast Training

We report the use of spin-orbit torque (SOT) magnetoresistive random-access memory (MRAM) to implement a probabilistic binary neural network (PBNN) for resource-saving applications. The in-plane magnetized SOT (i-SOT) MRAM not only enables field-free magnetization switching with high endurance (> 10^11), but also hosts multiple stable probabilistic states with a low device-to-device variation (< 6.35%). Accordingly, the proposed PBNN outperforms other neural networks by achieving an 18* increase in training speed, while maintaining an accuracy above 97% under the write and read noise perturbations. Furthermore, by applying the binarization process with an additional SOT-MRAM dummy module, we demonstrate an on-chip MNIST inference performance close to the ideal baseline using our SOT-PBNN hardware

Soil’s Hidden Power : The Stable Soil Organic Carbon Pool Controls the Burden of Persistent Organic Pollutants in Background Soils

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) tend to accumulate in cold regions by cold condensation and global distillation. Soil organic matter is the main storage compartment for POPs in terrestrial ecosystems due to deposition and repeated air–surface exchange processes. Here, physicochemical properties and environmental factors were investigated for their role in influencing POPs accumulation in soils of the Tibetan Plateau and Antarctic and Arctic regions. The results showed that the soil burden of most POPs was closely coupled to stable mineral-associated organic carbon (MAOC). Combining the proportion of MAOC and physicochemical properties can explain much of the soil distribution characteristics of the POPs. The background levels of POPs were estimated in conjunction with the global soil database. It led to the proposition that the stable soil carbon pools are key controlling factors affecting the ultimate global distribution of POPs, so that the dynamic cycling of soil carbon acts to counteract the cold-trapping effects. In the future, soil carbon pool composition should be fully considered in a multimedia environmental model of POPs, and the risk of secondary release of POPs in soils under conditions such as climate change can be further assessed with soil organic carbon models

Multidifferential study of identified charged hadron distributions in ZZ-tagged jets in proton-proton collisions at s=\sqrt{s}=13 TeV

Jet fragmentation functions are measured for the first time in proton-proton collisions for charged pions, kaons, and protons within jets recoiling against a $Z$ boson. The charged-hadron distributions are studied longitudinally and transversely to the jet direction for jets with transverse momentum 20 $< p_{\textrm{T}} < 100$ GeV and in the pseudorapidity range $2.5 < \eta < 4$. The data sample was collected with the LHCb experiment at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 1.64 fb$^{-1}$. Triple differential distributions as a function of the hadron longitudinal momentum fraction, hadron transverse momentum, and jet transverse momentum are also measured for the first time. This helps constrain transverse-momentum-dependent fragmentation functions. Differences in the shapes and magnitudes of the measured distributions for the different hadron species provide insights into the hadronization process for jets predominantly initiated by light quarks.Comment: All figures and tables, along with machine-readable versions and any supplementary material and additional information, are available at https://cern.ch/lhcbproject/Publications/p/LHCb-PAPER-2022-013.html (LHCb public pages

Study of the B−→Λc+Λˉc−K−B^{-} \to \Lambda_{c}^{+} \bar{\Lambda}_{c}^{-} K^{-} decay

The decay $B^{-} \to \Lambda_{c}^{+} \bar{\Lambda}_{c}^{-} K^{-}$ is studied in proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s}=13$ TeV using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 5 $\mathrm{fb}^{-1}$ collected by the LHCb experiment. In the $\Lambda_{c}^+ K^{-}$ system, the $\Xi_{c}(2930)^{0}$ state observed at the BaBar and Belle experiments is resolved into two narrower states, $\Xi_{c}(2923)^{0}$ and $\Xi_{c}(2939)^{0}$, whose masses and widths are measured to be $$m(\Xi_{c}(2923)^{0}) = 2924.5 \pm 0.4 \pm 1.1 \,\mathrm{MeV}, \\ m(\Xi_{c}(2939)^{0}) = 2938.5 \pm 0.9 \pm 2.3 \,\mathrm{MeV}, \\ \Gamma(\Xi_{c}(2923)^{0}) = \phantom{000}4.8 \pm 0.9 \pm 1.5 \,\mathrm{MeV},\\ \Gamma(\Xi_{c}(2939)^{0}) = \phantom{00}11.0 \pm 1.9 \pm 7.5 \,\mathrm{MeV},$$ where the first uncertainties are statistical and the second systematic. The results are consistent with a previous LHCb measurement using a prompt $\Lambda_{c}^{+} K^{-}$ sample. Evidence of a new $\Xi_{c}(2880)^{0}$ state is found with a local significance of $3.8\,\sigma$, whose mass and width are measured to be $2881.8 \pm 3.1 \pm 8.5\,\mathrm{MeV}$ and $12.4 \pm 5.3 \pm 5.8 \,\mathrm{MeV}$, respectively. In addition, evidence of a new decay mode $\Xi_{c}(2790)^{0} \to \Lambda_{c}^{+} K^{-}$ is found with a significance of $3.7\,\sigma$. The relative branching fraction of $B^{-} \to \Lambda_{c}^{+} \bar{\Lambda}_{c}^{-} K^{-}$ with respect to the $B^{-} \to D^{+} D^{-} K^{-}$ decay is measured to be $2.36 \pm 0.11 \pm 0.22 \pm 0.25$, where the first uncertainty is statistical, the second systematic and the third originates from the branching fractions of charm hadron decays.Comment: All figures and tables, along with any supplementary material and additional information, are available at https://cern.ch/lhcbproject/Publications/p/LHCb-PAPER-2022-028.html (LHCb public pages

Measurement of the ratios of branching fractions R(D∗)\mathcal{R}(D^{*}) and R(D0)\mathcal{R}(D^{0})

The ratios of branching fractions $\mathcal{R}(D^{*})\equiv\mathcal{B}(\bar{B}\to D^{*}\tau^{-}\bar{\nu}_{\tau})/\mathcal{B}(\bar{B}\to D^{*}\mu^{-}\bar{\nu}_{\mu})$ and $\mathcal{R}(D^{0})\equiv\mathcal{B}(B^{-}\to D^{0}\tau^{-}\bar{\nu}_{\tau})/\mathcal{B}(B^{-}\to D^{0}\mu^{-}\bar{\nu}_{\mu})$ are measured, assuming isospin symmetry, using a sample of proton-proton collision data corresponding to 3.0 fb${ }^{-1}$ of integrated luminosity recorded by the LHCb experiment during 2011 and 2012. The tau lepton is identified in the decay mode $\tau^{-}\to\mu^{-}\nu_{\tau}\bar{\nu}_{\mu}$. The measured values are $\mathcal{R}(D^{*})=0.281\pm0.018\pm0.024$ and $\mathcal{R}(D^{0})=0.441\pm0.060\pm0.066$, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second is systematic. The correlation between these measurements is $\rho=-0.43$. Results are consistent with the current average of these quantities and are at a combined 1.9 standard deviations from the predictions based on lepton flavor universality in the Standard Model.Comment: All figures and tables, along with any supplementary material and additional information, are available at https://cern.ch/lhcbproject/Publications/p/LHCb-PAPER-2022-039.html (LHCb public pages

Effects of Anacetrapib in Patients with Atherosclerotic Vascular Disease

BACKGROUND: Patients with atherosclerotic vascular disease remain at high risk for cardiovascular events despite effective statin-based treatment of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels. The inhibition of cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) by anacetrapib reduces LDL cholesterol levels and increases high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels. However, trials of other CETP inhibitors have shown neutral or adverse effects on cardiovascular outcomes. METHODS: We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial involving 30,449 adults with atherosclerotic vascular disease who were receiving intensive atorvastatin therapy and who had a mean LDL cholesterol level of 61 mg per deciliter (1.58 mmol per liter), a mean non-HDL cholesterol level of 92 mg per deciliter (2.38 mmol per liter), and a mean HDL cholesterol level of 40 mg per deciliter (1.03 mmol per liter). The patients were assigned to receive either 100 mg of anacetrapib once daily (15,225 patients) or matching placebo (15,224 patients). The primary outcome was the first major coronary event, a composite of coronary death, myocardial infarction, or coronary revascularization. RESULTS: During the median follow-up period of 4.1 years, the primary outcome occurred in significantly fewer patients in the anacetrapib group than in the placebo group (1640 of 15,225 patients [10.8%] vs. 1803 of 15,224 patients [11.8%]; rate ratio, 0.91; 95% confidence interval, 0.85 to 0.97; P=0.004). The relative difference in risk was similar across multiple prespecified subgroups. At the trial midpoint, the mean level of HDL cholesterol was higher by 43 mg per deciliter (1.12 mmol per liter) in the anacetrapib group than in the placebo group (a relative difference of 104%), and the mean level of non-HDL cholesterol was lower by 17 mg per deciliter (0.44 mmol per liter), a relative difference of -18%. There were no significant between-group differences in the risk of death, cancer, or other serious adverse events. CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with atherosclerotic vascular disease who were receiving intensive statin therapy, the use of anacetrapib resulted in a lower incidence of major coronary events than the use of placebo. (Funded by Merck and others; Current Controlled Trials number, ISRCTN48678192 ; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01252953 ; and EudraCT number, 2010-023467-18 .)

Determination and application of path duration of seismic ground motions based on the K-NET data in Sagami Bay, JapanKey points

Duration models are one of the important parameters in ground-motion simulations. This model varies in different study areas, and plays a critical role in nonlinear structural response analysis. Currently, available empirical models are being globally used in ground-motion simulations, with limited research focusing on path duration in specific regions. In this study, we collected 6,486 sets of three-component strong-motion records from 29 K-NET stations in the Sagami Bay, Japan, and its surrounding areas between January 2000 to October 2018. We extracted the effective duration of 386 pieces of ground-motion records by manually picking up the S-wave arrival time and calculating the significant duration. We then obtained the path duration model of the study area based on the empirical equation of dynamic corner frequency and source duration of [7]. Compared with the results of the available empirical models, the Fourier spectrum of the simulated ground motion from our effective duration model showed higher accuracy in the long-term range, with less fitting residuals. This path duration model was then applied to simulate two earthquakes of MW5.4 and MW6.2, respectively, in the region using the stochastic finite-fault method with a set of reliable source, path, and site parameters determined for the study area. The simulation results of most stations fit well with observation records in the 0–30 Hz frequency band. For the MW5.4 earthquake, the simulated ground motions at KNG005/KNG010/SZO008 stations were relatively weak in the mid to high frequency band (1–30 Hz) because the quality factor and geometric diffusion model used in the simulation were the averages of the entire Sagami Bay region, causing a bias in the results of a few stations owing to local crustal velocity anomalies and topographic effects. For the MW6.2 earthquake, the simulated ground motions were relatively weak at all SZO and TKY stations, mainly because of the close distance from these stations to the epicenter and the complex seismic-wave propagation paths. The analysis suggests that the differences between the simulation results of the two earthquakes were mainly related to complex geological conditions and seismic-wave propagation paths

Data from: Indirect effects of global change accumulate to alter plant diversity but not ecosystem function in alpine tundra

1. Environmental change can affect species directly by altering their physical environment and indirectly by altering the abundance of interacting species. A key challenge at the interface of community ecology and conservation biology is to predict how direct and indirect effects combine to influence response in a changing environment. In particular, little is known about how direct and indirect effects on biodiversity develop over time or their potential to influence ecosystem function. 2. We studied how nitrogen (N), winter precipitation (snow), and warming influenced diversity and ecosystem function over six years in alpine tundra. We used path analyses to partition direct effects of environmental manipulations from indirect effects due to changes in the abundance of two dominant plants. We hypothesize that 1) indirect effects will develop more slowly but will become stronger than direct effects over time, and 2) after six years, indirect effects will more strongly influence diversity while direct effects will influence ecosystem function. 3. Indirect effects of N on diversity were consistently stronger than direct effects and actually developed quickly, prior to direct effects. Direct effects of snow on diversity were detected in year two but then subsequently were reversed, while indirect effects were detected in year four and grew stronger over time. Overall in year six, indirect effects were much stronger than direct effects. 4. Direct effects predominated for three of four ecosystem functions we measured (productivity, N mineralization, winter N availability). The only indirect effects we found were that N and snow indirectly affected microbial biomass N by influencing Geum abundance. Across all four ecosystem measures, indirect effects were infrequent and weaker than direct effects. 5. Synthesis. Increasing indirect effects on diversity over time indicate that short-term experiments or monitoring of natural systems may underestimate the full magnitude of global change effects on plant communities. Explicitly accounting for changes in dominant plant abundance may be necessary for forecasting plant community response to environmental change. Conversely, weak indirect effects for ecosystem processes suggest that predicting ecosystem function without knowledge of plant responses to global change may be possible