RoboHive: A Unified Framework for Robot Learning

We present RoboHive, a comprehensive software platform and ecosystem for research in the field of Robot Learning and Embodied Artificial Intelligence. Our platform encompasses a diverse range of pre-existing and novel environments, including dexterous manipulation with the Shadow Hand, whole-arm manipulation tasks with Franka and Fetch robots, quadruped locomotion, among others. Included environments are organized within and cover multiple domains such as hand manipulation, locomotion, multi-task, multi-agent, muscles, etc. In comparison to prior works, RoboHive offers a streamlined and unified task interface taking dependency on only a minimal set of well-maintained packages, features tasks with high physics fidelity and rich visual diversity, and supports common hardware drivers for real-world deployment. The unified interface of RoboHive offers a convenient and accessible abstraction for algorithmic research in imitation, reinforcement, multi-task, and hierarchical learning. Furthermore, RoboHive includes expert demonstrations and baseline results for most environments, providing a standard for benchmarking and comparisons. Details: https://sites.google.com/view/robohiveComment: Accepted at 37th Conference on Neural Information Processing Systems (NeurIPS 2023) Track on Datasets and Benchmark

Cordycepin Increases Nonrapid Eye Movement Sleep via Adenosine Receptors in Rats

Cordycepin (3′-deoxyadenosine) is a naturally occurring adenosine analogue and one of the bioactive constituents isolated from Cordyceps militaris/Cordyceps sinensis, species of the fungal genus Cordyceps. It has traditionally been a prized Chinese folk medicine for the human well-being. Because of similarity of chemical structure of adenosine, cordycepin has been focused on the diverse effects of the central nervous systems (CNSs), like sleep regulation. Therefore, this study was undertaken to know whether cordycepin increases the natural sleep in rats, and its effect is mediated by adenosine receptors (ARs). Sleep was recorded using electroencephalogram (EEG) for 4 hours after oral administration of cordycepin in rats. Sleep architecture and EEG power spectra were analyzed. Cordycepin reduced sleep-wake cycles and increased nonrapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. Interestingly, cordycepin increased θ (theta) waves power density during NREM sleep. In addition, the protein levels of AR subtypes (A1, A2A, and A2B) were increased after the administration of cordycepin, especially in the rat hypothalamus which plays an important role in sleep regulation. Therefore, we suggest that cordycepin increases theta waves power density during NREM sleep via nonspecific AR in rats. In addition, this experiment can provide basic evidence that cordycepin may be helpful for sleep-disturbed subjects

Community mobilisation with women's groups facilitated by Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) to improve maternal and newborn health in underserved areas of Jharkhand and Orissa: study protocol for a cluster-randomised controlled trial

Background: Around a quarter of the world's neonatal and maternal deaths occur in India. Morbidity and mortality are highest in rural areas and among the poorest wealth quintiles. Few interventions to improve maternal and newborn health outcomes with government-mandated community health workers have been rigorously evaluated at scale in this setting.The study aims to assess the impact of a community mobilisation intervention with women's groups facilitated by ASHAs to improve maternal and newborn health outcomes among rural tribal communities of Jharkhand and Orissa.Methods/design: The study is a cluster-randomised controlled trial and will be implemented in five districts, three in Jharkhand and two in Orissa. The unit of randomisation is a rural cluster of approximately 5000 population. We identified villages within rural, tribal areas of five districts, approached them for participation in the study and enrolled them into 30 clusters, with approximately 10 ASHAs per cluster. Within each district, 6 clusters were randomly allocated to receive the community intervention or to the control group, resulting in 15 intervention and 15 control clusters. Randomisation was carried out in the presence of local stakeholders who selected the cluster numbers and allocated them to intervention or control using a pre-generated random number sequence. The intervention is a participatory learning and action cycle where ASHAs support community women's groups through a four-phase process in which they identify and prioritise local maternal and newborn health problems, implement strategies to address these and evaluate the result. The cycle is designed to fit with the ASHAs' mandate to mobilise communities for health and to complement their other tasks, including increasing institutional delivery rates and providing home visits to mothers and newborns. The trial's primary endpoint is neonatal mortality during 24 months of intervention. Additional endpoints include home care practices and health care-seeking in the antenatal, delivery and postnatal period. The impact of the intervention will be measured through a prospective surveillance system implemented by the project team, through which mothers will be interviewed around six weeks after delivery. Cost data and qualitative data are collected for cost-effectiveness and process evaluations

Potential of Integrated Nutrient Managements (INM) on Nutrient Uptake (N, P and K) by Chickpea

This work estimated the potential uses of NPK by chickpea under using of different combination of bio-fertilizer. The field experiment was conducted at Research Field, Department of Soil Science, JNKVV, Jabalpur (M.P.). The field is located in the south-eastern part of Madhya Pradesh at 23013’ North latitude, 790 57’ East longitudes at an altitude of 393 meter above the mean sea level. The experimental field was well-drained with levelled topography. The experiment was carried out on chickpea (JG-14). The experiment was consists of three main-plot treatments of NPK and six sub-plot treatments of vermicompost and biofetilizers which were replicated three times in a split plot design (SPD) with treatments error was P>0.05 value during analysis. The results revealed that the INM influence directly on NPK (nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium) uptake. The treatment 100% NPK (65.08 and 26.39 kgha-1) with combination vermicompost and Rhizobium+ PSB+KSB+ Trichoderma (biofetilizers) (61.77 and 27.45 kgha-1) highest nitrogen uptake. Phosphorus uptake estimated maximum in treatment of 50% NPK (7.24 and 4.03 kgha-1) with combination vermicompost and biofetilizers (10.03 and 4.92 kgha-1) moreover potassium uptake found highest in 100% NPK (5.10 and 27.11 kgha-1) with vermicompost and biofetilizers (4.92 and 27.80 kgha-1) in grain and stover respectively

A Comprehensive Review of the Neurological Manifestations of Celiac Disease and Its Treatment

Celiac disease (CD) is a common chronic inflammatory disorder occurring in genetically predisposed individuals secondary to gluten ingestion. CD usually presents with gastrointestinal symptoms such as pain, bloating, flatulence, and constipation or diarrhea. However, individuals can present in a nonclassical manner with only extraintestinal symptoms. The neurological manifestations of CD include ataxia, cognitive impairment, epilepsy, headache, and neuropathy. A lifelong gluten-free diet is the current recommended treatment for CD. This review discusses the relevant neurological manifestations associated with CD and the novel therapeutics. Further research is required to get a better understanding of the underlying pathophysiology of the neurological manifestations associated with CD. Clinicians should keep CD in the differential diagnosis in individuals presenting with neurological dysfunction of unknown cause

Thromboembolic Events in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Comprehensive Overview

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis are chronic inflammatory disorders of the intestines. The underlying inflammation activates the coagulation cascade leading to an increased risk of developing arterial and venous thromboembolic events such as deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism. Patients with IBD are at a 2–3-fold increased risk of developing thromboembolism. This risk increases in patients with active IBD disease, flare-ups, surgery, steroid treatment, and hospitalization. These complications are associated with significant morbidity and mortality making them important in clinical practice. Clinicians should consider the increased risk of thromboembolic events in patients with IBD and manage them with appropriate prophylaxis based on the risk. In this review, we discuss the literature associated with the pathophysiology of thromboembolism in patients with IBD, summarize the studies describing the various thromboembolic events, and the management of thromboembolism in patients with IBD

Defect induced photoluminescence and ferromagnetic properties of bio-compatible SWCNT/Ni hybrid bundles

Designing of bio-compatible nanomagnets with multiple functionalities receives immense scientific attention due to their potential applications in bio-labeling, medical diagnosis and treatment. Here we report the synthesis of Nickel (Ni) incorporated single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) hybrid and bio-compatible bundles having interesting magnetic and photoluminescence (PL) properties. The SWCNT exhibits a high-crystallinity and it has an average diameter of ∼1.7 nm. Ni particles of 10–20 nm were incorporated within the SWCNT bundles. These hybrid bundles exhibit PL and it is attributed to the presence of delocalized π electrons and their recombination at the defective sites of SWCNT. Magnetic characterization revealed that the SWCNT/Ni hybrid bundle possesses a high (50 Oe) coercivity compared to bulk Ni and a long range ferromagnetic ordering at room temperature. MTT-assay has been conducted to study the cytotoxicity of these hybrid nanostructures