A Survey of Fault-Injection Methodologies for Soft Error Rate Modeling in Systems-on-Chips

The development of process technology has increased system performance, but the system failure probability has also significantly increased. It is important to consider the system reliability in addition to the cost, performance, and power consumption. In this paper, we describe the types of faults that occur in a system and where these faults originate. Then, fault-injection techniques, which are used to characterize the fault rate of a system-on-chip (SoC), are investigated to provide a guideline to SoC designers for the realization of resilient SoCs

Sericea lespedeza (Lespedeza cuneata) whole plant extract enhances rat muscle mass and sperm production by increasing the activity of NO-cGMP pathway and serum testosterone

Purpose: To analyze the effects of an aqueous extract of Sericea lespedeza (SL) on rat male menopause.Methods: Levels of nitric oxide (NO), endothelial nitric oxide synthase (NOS), cGMP, and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) in the penile corpus cavernosum of the rats were evaluated using appropriate kits. Serum levels of dihydrotestosterone (DHT), testosterone, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), and 17-beta hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases (17β-HSD) were measured with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits. Total and motile sperms were counted on a hemocytometer. Histological changes in rat testis and epididymis were analyzed with hematoxylin and eosin staining.Results: The levels of NO, NOS, and cGMP (but not PGE2) increased in a dose-dependent manner (p< 0.05) upon administration of an aqueous extract of SL (AESL), while levels of DHT, 17β-HSD, and testosterone increased in the group administered with 300 mg/kg of AESL. Epididymal sperm count increased by 24 % in such rats compared to controls (p < 0.05).Conclusion: The aqueous extract of SL improves sperm count and muscle mass in rats by increasing the levels of NO, NOS, cGMP and testosterone. Thus, SL extract can potentially be developed as an alternative therapeutic agent for clinical management of TDS. Keywords: NO-cGMP, Testosterone, Hormones, Sperm count, Muscle mass, Sericea lespedeza, Lespedeza cuneat

Nanopores of carbon nanotubes as practical hydrogen storage media

We report on hydrogen desorption mechanisms in the nanopores of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). The as-grown MWCNTs show continuous walls that do not provide sites for hydrogen storage under ambient conditions. However, after treating the nanotubes with oxygen plasma to create nanopores in the MWCNTs, we observed the appearance of a new hydrogen desorption peak in the 300–350 K range. Furthermore, the calculations of density functional theory and molecular dynamics simulations confirmed that this peak could be attributed to the hydrogen that is physically adsorbed inside nanopores whose diameter is approximately 1 nm. Thus, we demonstrated that 1 nm nanopores in MWCNTs offer a promising route to hydrogen storage media for onboard practical applications

Nb-doped TiO2 air-electrode for advanced Li-air batteries

As new substrate materials to replace a conventional carbon substrate, TiO2 and Nb-doped TiO2 air-electrodes for Li-air batteries were investigated. Through a simple two-step process, we successfully synthesized anatase Nb-doped TiO2 nanoparticles and demonstrated the potential applicability of TiO2-based materials for use in Li-air battery electrode. An air-electrode with Nb-doped TiO2 nanoparticles could deliver a higher discharge capacity than a bare TiO2 electrode due to the enhanced conductivity, which implies the importance of facile electron transport during the discharge process. © 2014 The Ceramic Society of Japan and the Korean Ceramic Society.

Delayed surgical intervention in central cord syndrome with cervical stenosis

Study Design Review of the literature. Objective It is generally accepted that surgical treatment is necessary for central cord syndrome (CCS) with an underlying cervical stenosis. However, the surgical timing for decompression is controversial in spondylotic cervical CCS. The purpose of this study is to review the results of early and delayed surgery in patients with spondylotic cervical CCS. Methods MEDLINE was searched for English-language articles on CCS. There were 1,653 articles from 1940 to 2012 regarding CCS, 5 of which dealt with the timing of surgery for spondylotic cervical CCS. Results All five reports regarding the surgical timing of spondylotic cervical CCS were retrospective. Motor improvement, functional independence measures, and walking ability showed similar improvement in early and late surgery groups in the studies with follow-up longer than 1 year. However, greater improvement was seen in the early surgery group in the studies with follow-up shorter than 1 year. The complication rates did not show a difference between the early and late surgery groups. However, there are controversies regarding the length of intensive care unit stay or hospital stay for the two groups. Conclusions There was no difference in motor improvement, functional independence, walking ability, and complication rates between early and late surgery for spondylotic cervical CCS

Age-related changes in cervical sagittal range of motion and alignment

Study Design Retrospective cohort study. Objective To compare sagittal cervical range of motion (ROM) and alignment in young versus middle-aged adults. Methods One hundred four asymptomatic adults were selected randomly out of 791 subjects who underwent lateral cervical radiographs in neutral, flexion, and extension positions. They were divided into two groups: young (age 20 to 29, 52 people) and middle-aged adults (age 50 to 59, 52 people). We determined the ROMs of upper cervical (occipital–C2 angle), midcervical (C2–C7 angle), and cervicothoracic spine (cervicosternal angle). We compared the alignment differences of the two groups by calculating the distances between C2 and C7 plumb lines, and C2 central-offset distance. Results In neutral position, there was no significant difference between young and middle-aged adults. However, in flexion, C2–C7 angle, distance between C2–C7 plumb lines, and C2 central-offset distance decreased with age. In extension, C2–C7 angle and C2 central-offset distance decreased with age. During flexion and extension, midcervical ROM and the range of C2 central-offset distance decreased in the middle-aged group. However, there was no difference between the two age groups in the ROM of the upper cervical and the cervicothoracic regions during flexion and extension. Conclusion We found that, despite of the presence of age-related cervical alignment changes, the only difference between the two groups was in the sagittal ROM of the midcervical spine during flexion and extension. Only the ROM of the midcervical spine appears to change significantly, consistent with findings that these levels are most likely to develop both symptomatic and asymptomatic degenerative changes

Comparison of Surgical Outcomes in Thoracolumbar Fractures Operated with Posterior Constructs Having Varying Fixation Length with Selective Anterior Fusion

PURPOSE: Surgical treatment in the case of thoracolumbar burst fractures is very controversial. Posterior instrumentation is most frequently used, however, but the number of levels to be instrumented still remains a matter of debate. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 94 patients who had a single burst fracture between T11 and L2 were selected and were managed using posterior instrumentation with anterior fusion when necessary. They were divided into three groups as follows; Group I (n = 28) included patients who were operated by intermediate segment fixation, Group II (n = 32) included patients operated by long segment fixation, and Group III (n = 34) included those operated by intermediate segment fixation with a pair of additional screws in the fractured vertebra. The mean follow-up period was twenty one months. The outcomes were analyzed in terms of kyphosis angle (KA), regional kyphosis angle (RA), sagittal index (SI), anterior height compression rate, Frankel classification, and Oswestry Disability Index questionnaire. RESULTS: In Groups II and III, the correction values of KA, RA, and SI were much better than in Group I. At the final follow up, the correction values of KA (6.3 and 12.1, respectively) and SI (6.2 and 12.0, respectively) were in Groups II and III found to be better in the latter. CONCLUSION: The intermediate segment fixation with an additional pair of screws at the fracture level vertebra gives results that are comparable or even better than long segment fixation and gives an advantage of preserving an extra mobile segment.ope