An Improved Fruit Fly Optimization Algorithm Inspired from Cell Communication Mechanism

Fruit fly optimization algorithm (FOA) invented recently is a new swarm intelligence method based on fruit fly’s foraging behaviors and has been shown to be competitive with existing evolutionary algorithms, such as particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm. However, there are still some disadvantages in the FOA, such as low convergence precision, easily trapped in a local optimum value at the later evolution stage. This paper presents an improved FOA based on the cell communication mechanism (CFOA), by considering the information of the global worst, mean, and best solutions into the search strategy to improve the exploitation. The results from a set of numerical benchmark functions show that the CFOA outperforms the FOA and the PSO in most of the experiments. Further, the CFOA is applied to optimize the controller for preoxidation furnaces in carbon fibers production. Simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the CFOA

Tissue factor in tumor microenvironment: a systematic review

The aberrant hemostasis is a common manifestation of cancer, and venous thromboembolism (VTE) is the second leading cause of cancer patients’ mortality. Tissue factor (TF), comprising of a 47-kDa transmembrane protein that presents in subendothelial tissues and leukocytes and a soluble isoform, have distinct roles in the initiation of extrinsic coagulation cascade and thrombosis. Laboratory and clinical evidence showed the deviant expression of TF in several cancer systems and its tumor-promoting effects. TF contributes to myeloid cell recruitment in tumor stroma, thereby remodeling of tumor microenvironment. Additionally, the number of TF-positive-microparticles (TF+MP) from tumor origins correlates with the VTE rates in cancer patients. In this review, we summarize our current understanding of the TF regulation and roles in tumor progression and clinical complications

Construction of a Fish-like Robot Based on High Performance Graphene/PVDF Bimorph Actuation Materials.

Smart actuators have many potential applications in various areas, so the development of novel actuation materials, with facile fabricating methods and excellent performances, are still urgent needs. In this work, a novel electromechanical bimorph actuator constituted by a graphene layer and a PVDF layer, is fabricated through a simple yet versatile solution approach. The bimorph actuator can deflect toward the graphene side under electrical stimulus, due to the differences in coefficient of thermal expansion between the two layers and the converse piezoelectric effect and electrostrictive property of the PVDF layer. Under low voltage stimulus, the actuator (length: 20 mm, width: 3 mm) can generate large actuation motion with a maximum deflection of about 14.0 mm within 0.262 s and produce high actuation stress (more than 312.7 MPa/g). The bimorph actuator also can display reversible swing behavior with long cycle life under high frequencies. on this basis, a fish-like robot that can swim at the speed of 5.02 mm/s is designed and demonstrated. The designed graphene-PVDF bimorph actuator exhibits the overall novel performance compared with many other electromechanical avtuators, and may contribute to the practical actuation applications of graphene-based materials at a macro scale

New Noise-Tolerant ZNN Models With Predefined-Time Convergence for Time-Variant Sylvester Equation Solving

Sylvester equation is often applied to various fields, such as mathematics and control systems due to its importance. Zeroing neural network (ZNN), as a systematic design method for time-variant problems, has been proved to be effective on solving Sylvester equation in the ideal conditions. In this paper, in order to realize the predefined-time convergence of the ZNN model and modify its robustness, two new noise-tolerant ZNNs (NNTZNNs) are established by devising two novelly constructed nonlinear activation functions (AFs) to find the accurate solution of the time-variant Sylvester equation in the presence of various noises. Unlike the original ZNN models activated by known AFs, the proposed two NNTZNN models are activated by two novel AFs, therefore, possessing the excellent predefined-time convergence and strong robustness even in the presence of various noises. Besides, the detailed theoretical analyses of the predefined-time convergence and robustness ability for the NNTZNN models are given by considering different kinds of noises. Simulation comparative results further verify the excellent performance of the proposed NNTZNN models, when applied to online solution of the time-variant Sylvester equation

A Noise-Tolerant Zeroing Neural Network for Time-Dependent Complex Matrix Inversion Under Various Kinds of Noises

Complex-valued time-dependent matrix inversion (TDMI) is extensively exploited in practical industrial and engineering fields. Many current neural models are presented to find the inverse of a matrix in an ideal noise-free environment. However, the outer interferences are normally believed to be ubiquitous and avoidable in practice. If these neural models are applied to complex-valued TDMI in a noise environment, they need to take a lot of precious time to deal with outer noise disturbances in advance. Thus, a noise-suppression model is urgent to be proposed to address this problem. In this article, a complex-valued noise-tolerant zeroing neural network (CVNTZNN) on the basis of an integral-type design formula is established and investigated for finding complex-valued TDMI under a wide variety of noises. Furthermore, both convergence and robustness of the CVNTZNN model are carefully analyzed and rigorously proved. For comparison and verification purposes, the existing zeroing neural network (ZNN) and gradient neural network (GNN) have been presented to address the same problem under the same conditions. Numerical simulation consequences demonstrate the effectiveness and excellence of the proposed CVNTZNN model for complex-valued TDMI under various kinds of noises, by comparing the existing ZNN and GNN models