C57BL/6J, DBA/2J, and DBA/2J.Gpnmb+ mice have different visual signal processing in the inner retina

To characterize differences in retinal ganglion cell (RGC) function in mouse strains relevant to disease models. C57BL/6J (B6) and DBA/2J (D2) are the two most common mouse strains; D2 has two mutated genes, tyrosinase-related protein 1 (Tyrp1) and glycoprotein non-metastatic melanoma protein B (Gpnmb), causing iris disease and intraocular pressure (IOP) elevation after 6 months of age that results in RGC degeneration, and is the most widely used model of glaucoma. DBA/2J.Gpnmb(+) (D2.Gpnmb(+)) is the wild type for the Gpnmb mutation and does not develop IOP elevation and glaucoma. Young (2-4 months of age) B6, D2, and D2.Gpnmb(+) mice (n=6 for each group) were tested with pattern electroretinogram (PERG) in response to different contrasts and spatial frequencies. PERG amplitude and latency dependencies on stimulus parameters (transfer functions) were established for each mouse strain, together with corresponding thresholds for contrast and spatial resolution. PERG analysis showed that B6, D2, and D2.Gpnmb(+) mice had comparable contrast threshold and spatial resolution. Suprathreshold spatial contrast processing, however, had different characteristics in the three strains. PERG amplitude and latency changes with increasing contrast were different between B6 and D2 as well as between D2 and D2.Gpnmb(+). B6, D2, and D2.Gpnmb(+) mice have different characteristics of PERG spatial contrast processing consistent with different mechanisms of contrast gain control. This may imply differences in the activity of underlying PERG generators and synaptic circuitry in the inner retina

How to Backdoor Diffusion Models?

Diffusion models are state-of-the-art deep learning empowered generative models that are trained based on the principle of learning forward and reverse diffusion processes via progressive noise-addition and denoising. To gain a better understanding of the limitations and potential risks, this paper presents the first study on the robustness of diffusion models against backdoor attacks. Specifically, we propose BadDiffusion, a novel attack framework that engineers compromised diffusion processes during model training for backdoor implantation. At the inference stage, the backdoored diffusion model will behave just like an untampered generator for regular data inputs, while falsely generating some targeted outcome designed by the bad actor upon receiving the implanted trigger signal. Such a critical risk can be dreadful for downstream tasks and applications built upon the problematic model. Our extensive experiments on various backdoor attack settings show that BadDiffusion can consistently lead to compromised diffusion models with high utility and target specificity. Even worse, BadDiffusion can be made cost-effective by simply finetuning a clean pre-trained diffusion model to implant backdoors. We also explore some possible countermeasures for risk mitigation. Our results call attention to potential risks and possible misuse of diffusion models

IT-Enabled Management Control Systems Transformations: Lessons Learned from SaveCom

Information technology (IT)-enabled organizational transformations are emphasized in a great deal of research. However, IT-enabled management control systems (MCS) transformations to facility management for steering an organization toward its strategic objectives have become relevant and important, yet underexplored. To address this gap, the present study illustrates how a business intelligence (BI) system enables the transformations of organizational MCS. Through an in-depth case study of a Taiwanese telecommunications company, the IT features, and their direct effects and induced effects to MCS are analyzed in terms of an organization’s belief systems, boundary systems, diagnostic control systems, and interactive control systems. The implications for the organizational MCS design of these effects are discussed

Manifestation of chiral magnetic current in Floquet-Weyl semimetals

Materials that can host macroscopic persistent current are important because they are useful for energy storage. However, there are very few examples of such materials in nature. Superconductors are known as an example in which flow of supercurrent can persist up to 100,000 years. The chiral magnetic current is possibly the second example predicted by the chiral magnetic effect. It was proposed to be realized in recently discovered Weyl semimetals. However, a no-go theorem negates the chiral magnetic effect and shows that the chiral magnetic current is generally absent in any equilibrium condensed-matter system. Here we show how to break the no-go theorem by resorting to dynamical transitions in time-frequency space. By driving an insulator using a time-periodic potential and coupling it to a phonon heat bath that provides suitable dissipation, we show that a Floquet-Weyl semi-metallic phase with Fermi-Dirac-like distribution emerges. Furthermore, we show that even in the presence of a static magnetic field, the resulting steady Floquet-Weyl semimetal supports non-vanishing chiral magnetic current. Our dynamical model provides a systematic way to fully realize the chiral magnetic effect in condensed matter systems.Comment: 7 page, 4 figure

Internet keywords with user feedback

Thesis (M. Eng.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2008.Includes bibliographical references (p. 71-72).The web today is accessed primarily through graphical user interfaces although some of its functionality can be more efficiently invoked through a command line interface. This thesis presents Inky, a sloppy command line for the web. This interface accepts commands that may be out of order, have missing arguments, contain synonyms or is otherwise sloppy and determines possible interpretations. It then presents these interpretations to the user, who can then pick one to execute. The interpretations are presented to the user as she types, providing responsive feedback on the state of the system. Inky uses specification files that indicate how to recognize a type or function in a command, how to display it to the user, and how to translate it into code. It also contains an interaction window and a keyword engine that determines the completions. This thesis argues that this interaction style is better for some functionality than the standard website interface. It also explores whether the sloppiness and feedback are useful in counteracting the negative effects of traditional command line interfaces.by Victoria H. Chou.M.Eng

Flow field and performance of high frequency micromachined synthetic jets

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/77283/1/AIAA-2002-974-315.pd

A Novel Secure Session Key Generation using two-level architecture For Cluster-Based Ad Hoc Networks Based On ID-Based Bilinear Paring

In 1997, Ruppe R. et al [17] first proposed a Near-Term Digital Radio (NTDR) network system which is a cluster-based ad hoc network intended to be used efficiently for military missions. In the same year, Zavgren J. [18] proposed a management protocol for the NTDR network system. But they both lack the security considerations. In 2003, Varadharajan et al [4] proposed a secure cluster-based ad hoc network protocol using public key infrastructure (PKI). However, in 2005, Chang et al pointed out that using PKI would be a heavy burden for the computation of each mobile node. Hence, they proposed a protocol [5] based on Diffie-Hellman method for securing network, in the same year, Liaw et al. proposed a secured key exchange protocol [20] for securing nodes communication in mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs). In 2006, also for security purpose, Chang and Lee [6] proposed the other scheme by using nodes’ identities. But after our analysis, we find that both of their protocols have some mistakes. Accordingly, we propose a new protocol based on ID-based bilinear pairing to get rid of nowadays unsolved security problem in NTDR network. After our analysis, we conclude that our scheme is not only secure but also very efficient