Ultra-small low power temperature-to-digital converter and verification methods of analog circuit with Trojan states

Accurate, small and low-power CMOS temperature sensors designed for multi-position temperature monitoring of power management in multi-core processors are proposed. The temperature sensors utilize the temperature characteristics of the threshold voltage of a MOS transistors to sense temperature and are highly linear from 60°C to 90°C. This is the temperature range needed for the power management applications where temperature sensors are strategically placed at multiple locations in each core to protect the processor from temperature-induced reliability degradation. A temperature-to-digital converter (TDC) that does not require either a reference generator or an ADC is also introduced, and it exhibits low supply sensitivity, small die area, and low power consumption. Both analog threshold voltage based temperature sensor and a prototype TDC designed to support multi-position thermal-sensing for power management applications from 60°C to 90°C are implemented in an IBM 0.13μm CMOS process with a 1.2V power supply. A new verification approach with several variants for identifying the number of stable equilibrium points in supply-insensitive bias generators, references, and temperature sensors based upon self-stabilized feedback loops is introduced. This provides a simple and practical method for determining if these circuits require a “start-up” circuit and, if needed, for verifying that the startup circuit is effective at eliminating undesired stable equilibrium points in the presence of process and temperature variations. These undesired stable equilibrium points are often referred to as Trojan states. It will be shown that some widely used approaches for verification do not guarantee Trojan states have been removed. Some of the methods introduced appear to be more practical to work with than others. A group of benchmark circuit with Trojan states will be introduced and used to demonstrate the effectiveness of the new method

Adverse Situations Encountered by Adolescent Students Who Return to School Following Suspension

This study aimed to investigate the adverse personal, family, peer and school situations encountered by adolescent students who had returned to school after being suspended. This was a large-scale study involving a representative population of Taiwanese adolescents. A total of 8,494 adolescent students in Southern Taiwan were recruited in the study and completed the questionnaires. The relationships between their experiences of suspension from school and adverse personal, family, peer, and school situations were examined. The results indicated that 178 (2.1%) participants had been suspended from school at some time. Compared with students who had never been suspended, those who had experienced suspension were more likely to report depression, low self-esteem, insomnia, alcohol consumption, illicit drug use, low family support, low family monitoring, high family conflict, habitual alcohol consumption, illicit drug use by family members, low rank and decreased satisfaction in their peer group, having peers with substance use and deviant behaviors, low connectedness to school, and poor academic achievement. These results indicate that adolescent students who have returned to school after suspension encounter numerous adverse situations. The psychological conditions and social contexts of these individuals need to be understood in depth, and intervention programs should be developed to help them to adjust when they return to school and to prevent school dropouts in the future

THE EFFECTS OF CORE STABILITY TRAINING ON THE FUNCTIONAL MOVEMENT SCREEN AND POSTURAL STABILITY IN COLLEGIATE STUDENTS

This study evaluated effects of core stability training (CST) on the functional movement screen (FMS) and postural stability (PS) in healthy young collegiate students. 28 healthy collegiate female students were assigned to an experimental (CST exercises twice a week for six weeks) or control group (equal time of warm-up and stretching exercises only). The CST combined Pilates and Swiss ball exercise for fifty minutes, twice per week, for six weeks. FMS scores were evaluated by a certified professional. The PS was evaluated by the 8-direction limits of stability (LOS) test using the Biodex Balance System. Repeated measures analyses of variance (ANOVAs) revealed the FMS and LOS performances in the experiment group were significantly improved after training. It was concluded that regular CST can improve the performance of FMS and dynamic postural stability in healthy young students

A Comparative Study on Spin-Orbit Torque Efficiencies from W/ferromagnetic and W/ferrimagnetic Heterostructures

It has been shown that W in its resistive form possesses the largest spin-Hall ratio among all heavy transition metals, which makes it a good candidate for generating efficient dampinglike spin-orbit torque (DL-SOT) acting upon adjacent ferromagnetic or ferrimagnetic (FM) layer. Here we provide a systematic study on the spin transport properties of W/FM magnetic heterostructures with the FM layer being ferromagnetic Co$_{20}$Fe$_{60}$B$_{20}$ or ferrimagnetic Co$_{63}$Tb$_{37}$ with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. The DL-SOT efficiency $|\xi_{DL}|$, which is characterized by a current-induced hysteresis loop shift method, is found to be correlated to the microstructure of W buffer layer in both W/Co$_{20}$Fe$_{60}$B$_{20}$ and W/Co$_{63}$Tb$_{37}$ systems. Maximum values of $|\xi_{DL}|\approx 0.144$ and $|\xi_{DL}|\approx 0.116$ are achieved when the W layer is partially amorphous in the W/Co$_{20}$Fe$_{60}$B$_{20}$ and W/Co$_{63}$Tb$_{37}$ heterostructures, respectively. Our results suggest that the spin Hall effect from resistive phase of W can be utilized to effectively control both ferromagnetic and ferrimagnetic layers through a DL-SOT mechanism

THE EFFECTS OF UNSTABLE EXERCISE TRAINING ON DYNAMIC BALANCE AND ABDOMINAL MUSCLE STRENGTH IN YOUNG FEMALE INDIVIDUALS

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of unstable exercise training (UET) on dynamic balance (DB) and abdominal muscle strength in young female individuals. 22 healthy collegiate female students underwent a series of UET sessions. DB was evaluated by the 8-direction limits of stability (LOS) test. Abdominal strength was measured using 60s sit-up test. The UET combined the Both Sides Utilized (BOSU) and Swiss ball exercises, undertaken for 90mins, twice per week, for 6 weeks. The LOS performance in overall, forward, right, forward-left, backward-right, and backward-left at level 6 also significantly improved post-training. Further, significant improvements were observed in the 60s sit-up test. It is concluded that regular UET can improve DB and abdominal muscle strength in young female individuals

THE EFFECTS OF NEUROMUSCULAR TRAINING ON COUNTER-MOVEMENT JUMP PERFORMANCE IN HEALTHY YOUNG STUDENTS

Neuromuscular training (NT) programs are effective for improving measures of performance and used by athletes in all types of sports to increase sports performance. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of NT on arm counter-movement jump (CMJ) performance in healthy young students. Thirteen healthy collegiate female students volunteered and underwent a series of NT exercise. The NT was performed for 50 minutes three times per week, for six weeks. Paired t-tests were used to analyze the differences in each parameter before and after training. The arm CMJ in explosive power, flight time, and jump height was statistically improved in post-training compared to pretraining. It is concluded that six weeks NT can improve the arm CMJ performance in young female students

THE EFFECTS OF CORE STABILITY TRAINING ON DYNAMIC BALANCE IN HEALTHY YOUNG STUDENTS

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of core stability training (CST) on dynamic balance in healthy young students. 24 healthy collegiate female students volunteered and underwent a series of CST exercise. Dynamic balance was evaluated by the 8-direction limits of stability (LOS) test. The CST combined the Pilates mat and Swiss ball exercise, ninety minutes, twice per week, for six weeks. The LOS performance in right and backward-right directions at level 3 was significant improved in post-training than pre-training. Furthermore, The LOS performance in overall, forward, right, forward,left, backward-right, and backward-left directions at level 6 were significant improved in post-training than pre-training. It is concluded that regular CST can improve the dynamic postural stability in healthy young students