TNC-UTM: A Holistic Solution to Secure Enterprise Networks

This paper presents TNC-UTM, a holistic solution to secure enterprise networks from gateway to endpoints. Just as its name suggested, the TNC-UTM solution combines two popular techniques TNC and UTM together by defining an interface between them that integrates their security capacity to provide efficiently network access control and security protection for enterprise network. Not only TNC-UTM provides the features of TNC and UTM, but also it achieves stronger security and higher performance by introducing intelligent configuration decisions and RBAC mechanism. Experiment demonstrated the superior advantages of the TNC-UTM solution

Verification of the standard theory of plasma emission with particle-in-cell simulations

The standard theory of plasma emission is based on kinetic couplings between a single beam of energetic electrons and unmagnetized thermal plasmas, involving multi-step nonlinear wave-particle and wave-wave interactions. The theory has not yet been completely verified with fully-kinetic electromagnetic particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations. Earlier studies, greatly limited by available computational resources, are controversial regarding whether the fundamental emission can be generated according to the standard theory. To resolve the controversy, we conducted PIC simulations with a large domain of simulation and a large number of macroparticles, among the largest ones of similar studies. We found significant fundamental emission if the relative beam density is small enough (say, $\le$ 0.01), in line with earlier study with a much-smaller domain; the relative intensity (normalized by the total initial beam energy) of all modes, except the mode associated with the beam-electromagnetic Weibel instability, decreases with increasing relative density of the beam. We also found significant transverse magnetic component associated with the superluminal Langmuir turbulence, which has been mistakenly regarded as evidence of the F emission in earlier study. Further investigations are required to reveal their origin

Neutron Scattering Signature of Phonon Renormalization in Nickel (II) Oxide

The physics of mutual interaction of phonon quasiparticles with electronic spin degrees of freedom, leading to unusual transport phenomena of spin and heat, has been a subject of continuing interests for decades. Despite its pivotal role in transport processes, the effect of spin-phonon coupling on the phonon system, especially acoustic phonon properties, has so far been elusive. By means of inelastic neutron scattering and first-principles calculations, anomalous scattering spectral intensity from acoustic phonons was identified in the exemplary collinear antiferromagnetic nickel (II) oxide, unveiling strong spin-lattice correlations that renormalize the polarization of acoustic phonon. In particular, a clear magnetic scattering signature of the measured neutron scattering intensity from acoustic phonons is demonstrated by its momentum transfer and temperature dependences. The anomalous scattering intensity is successfully modeled with a modified magneto-vibrational scattering cross section, suggesting the presence of spin precession driven by phonon. The renormalization of phonon eigenvector is indicated by the observed "geometry-forbidden" neutron scattering intensity from transverse acoustic phonon. Importantly, the eigenvector renormalization cannot be explained by magnetostriction but instead, it could result from the coupling between phonon and local magnetization of ions.Comment: Research pape

Matryoshka Phonon Twinning in alpha-GaN

Understanding lattice dynamics is crucial for effective thermal management in high-power electronic devices because phonons dominate thermal transport in most semiconductors. This study utilizes complementary inelastic X-ray and neutron scattering techniques and reports the temperature-dependent phonon dynamics of alpha-GaN, one of the most important third-generation power semiconductors. A prominent Matryoshka phonon dispersion is discovered with the scattering tools and confirmed by the first-principles calculations. Such Matryoshka twinning throughout the three-dimension reciprocal space is demonstrated to amplify the anharmonicity of the related phonon modes through creating abundant three-phonon scattering channels and cutting the phonon lifetime of affected modes by more than 50%. Such phonon topology effectively contributes to the reduction of the in-plane thermal transport, thus the anisotropic thermal conductivity of alpha-GaN. The results not only have significant implications for engineering the thermal performance and other phonon-related properties of alpha-GaN, but also offer valuable insights on the role of anomalous phonon topology in thermal transport of other technically important semiconductors.Comment: 34 pages, 15 figure

Frustration-induced diffusive scattering anomaly and dimension change in FeGe2\rm FeGe_2

Magnetic frustration, arising from the competition of exchange interactions, has received great attention because of its relevance to exotic quantum phenomena in materials. In the current work, we report an unusual checkerboard-shaped scattering anomaly in $\rm FeGe_2$, far from the known incommensurate magnetic satellite peaks, for the first time by inelastic neutron scattering. More surprisingly, such phenomenon appears as spin dynamics at low temperature, but it becomes prominent above N\'eel transition as elastic scattering. A new model Hamiltonian that includes an intraplane next-nearest neighbor was proposed and attributes such anomaly to the near-perfect magnetic frustration and the emergence of unexpected two-dimensional magnetic order in the quasi-one-dimensional $\rm FeGe_2$.Comment: 24 pages, 10 figure

CodeLabeller: A Web-based Code Annotation Tool for Java Design Patterns and Summaries

With the rise of AI in SE, researchers have shown how AI can be applied to assist software developers in a wide variety of activities. However, it has not been accompanied by a complementary increase in labelled datasets, which is required in many supervised learning methods. Several studies have been using crowdsourcing platforms to collect labelled training data in recent years. However, research has shown that the quality of labelled data is unstable due to participant bias, knowledge variance, and task difficulty. Thus, we present CodeLabeller, a web-based tool that aims to provide a more efficient approach in handling the process of labelling Java source files at scale by improving the data collection process throughout, and improving the degree of reliability of responses by requiring each labeller to attach a confidence rating to each of their responses. We test CodeLabeller by constructing a corpus of over a thousand source files obtained from a large collection of opensource Java projects, and labelling each Java source file with their respective design patterns and summaries. Apart from assisting researchers to crowdsource a labelled dataset, the tool has practical applicability in software engineering education and assists in building expert ratings for software artefacts. This paper discusses the motivation behind the creation of CodeLabeller, the intended users, a tool demonstration and its UI, its implementation, benefits, and lastly, the evaluation through a user study and in-practice usage.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

Mutual spin-phonon driving effects and phonon eigenvector renormalization in nickel (II) oxide

The physics of mutual interaction of phonon quasiparticles with electronic spin degrees of freedom, leading to unusual transport phenomena of spin and heat, has been a subject of continuing interests for decades. Despite its pivotal role in transport processes, the effect of spin-phonon coupling on the phonon system, especially acoustic phonon properties, has so far been elusive. By means of inelastic neutron scattering and first-principles calculations, anomalous scattering spectral intensity from acoustic phonons was identified in the exemplary collinear antiferromagnetic nickel (II) oxide, unveiling strong spin-lattice correlations that renormalize the polarization of acoustic phonon. In particular, a clear magnetic scattering signature of the measured neutron scattering intensity from acoustic phonons is demonstrated by its momentum transfer and temperature dependences. The anomalous scattering intensity is successfully modeled with a modified magneto-vibrational scattering cross-section, suggesting the presence of spin precession driven by phonon. The renormalization of phonon eigenvector is indicated by the observed "geometry-forbidden" neutron scattering intensity from transverse acoustic phonon. Importantly, the eigenvector renormalization cannot be explained by magnetostriction but instead, it could result from the coupling between phonon and local magnetization of ions

Differential Expression Pattern of Goat Uterine Fluids Extracellular Vesicles miRNAs during Peri-Implantation

Early pregnancy failure occurs when a mature embryo attaches to an unreceptive endometrium. During the formation of a receptive endometrium, extracellular vesicles (EVs) of the uterine fluids (UFs) deliver regulatory molecules such as small RNAs to mediate intrauterine communication between the embryo and the endometrium. However, profiling of small RNAs in goat UFs’ EVs during pregnancy recognition (day 16) has not been carried out. In this study, EVs were isolated from UFs on day 16 of the estrous cycle or gestation. They were isolated by Optiprep™ Density G radient (ODG) and verified by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA), and Western blotting. Immunostaining demonstrated that CD63 was present both in the endometrial epithelium and glandular epithelium, and stain intensity was greater in the pregnant endometrium compared to the non-pregnant endometrium. Small RNA sequencing revealed that UFs’ EVs contained numerous sRNA families and a total of 106 differentially expressed miRNAs (DEMs). Additionally, 1867 target genes of the DEMs were obtained, and miRNA–mRNA interaction networks were constructed. GO and KEGG analysis showed that miRNAs were significantly associated with the formation of a receptive endometrium and embryo implantation. In addition, the fluorescence in situ hybridization assay (FISH) showed that chi-miR-451-5p was mainly expressed in stromal cells of the endometrium and a higher level was detected in the endometrial luminal epithelium in pregnant states. Moreover, the dual-luciferase reporter assay showed that chi-miR-451-5p directly binds to PSMB8 and may play an important role in the formation of a receptive endometrium and embryo implantation. In conclusion, these results reveal that UFs’ EVs contain various small RNAs that may be vital in the formation of a receptive endometrium and embryo implantation

Tantalum Particles Induced Cytotoxic and Inflammatory Effects in Human Monocytes

The aim of this study is to evaluate the biological safety of tantalum (Ta) particles and to further explore the effects of Ta particles on human monocyte toxicity and inflammatory cytokine expression. Human monocyte leukemia (THP-1) cells were cultured with Ta and hydroxyapatite (HA) particles. Cell counting kit-8 method was used to evaluate the cytotoxicity of Ta and HA particles. The apoptosis effects were evaluated by flow cytometry, and the protein expression levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) were evaluated by ELISA. The protein levels of inflammation-related signaling pathways including nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) and extracellular regulated kinase (ERK) were detected by western blotting. The cytotoxicity test showed that the toxicity level of Ta in vitro was grade l, which is within the clinically acceptable range. Compared with the HA control, Ta had no significant effect on THP-1 cell apoptosis, IL-6, and TNF-α release. The phosphorylated levels of NF-κB and ERK at 3 h in the Ta group were lower than those in the HA and control groups (P<0.001 both). These results reveal Ta particles behave good biosafety properties and provide some new insights for the future clinical use of Ta