136 research outputs found
Silicene Nanomesh
Similar to graphene, zero band gap limits the application of silicene in
nanoelectronics despite of its high carrier mobility. By using first-principles
calculations, we reveal that a band gap is opened in silicene nanomesh (SNM)
when the width W of the wall between the neighboring holes is even. The size of
the band gap increases with the reduced W and has a simple relation with the
ratio of the removed Si atom and the total Si atom numbers of silicene. Quantum
transport simulation reveals that the sub-10 nm single-gated SNM field effect
transistors show excellent performance at zero temperature but such a
performance is greatly degraded at room temperature
MetaBox: A Benchmark Platform for Meta-Black-Box Optimization with Reinforcement Learning
Recently, Meta-Black-Box Optimization with Reinforcement Learning
(MetaBBO-RL) has showcased the power of leveraging RL at the meta-level to
mitigate manual fine-tuning of low-level black-box optimizers. However, this
field is hindered by the lack of a unified benchmark. To fill this gap, we
introduce MetaBox, the first benchmark platform expressly tailored for
developing and evaluating MetaBBO-RL methods. MetaBox offers a flexible
algorithmic template that allows users to effortlessly implement their unique
designs within the platform. Moreover, it provides a broad spectrum of over 300
problem instances, collected from synthetic to realistic scenarios, and an
extensive library of 19 baseline methods, including both traditional black-box
optimizers and recent MetaBBO-RL methods. Besides, MetaBox introduces three
standardized performance metrics, enabling a more thorough assessment of the
methods. In a bid to illustrate the utility of MetaBox for facilitating
rigorous evaluation and in-depth analysis, we carry out a wide-ranging
benchmarking study on existing MetaBBO-RL methods. Our MetaBox is open-source
and accessible at: https://github.com/GMC-DRL/MetaBox.Comment: Accepted at NuerIPS 202
The role played by ailanthone in inhibiting bone metastasis of breast cancer by regulating tumor-bone microenvironment through the RANKL-dependent pathway
Introduction: Bone metastasis of breast cancer (BC) is a process in which the disruption of the bone homeostatic microenvironment leads to an increase in osteoclast differentiation. Ailanthus altissima shows an inhibitory effect on osteoclast differentiation. Ailanthone (AIL) refers to a natural compound isolated from Ailanthus altissima, a Chinese herbal medicine, and has effective anti-tumor activity in numerous cell lines. Its impact on bone metastases for BC is yet unclear.Methods: We measured the effect of AIL on MDA-MB-231 cells by wound healing experiments, Transwell and colony formation experiment. Using the Tartrate-resistant Acid Phosphatase (TRAP) staining tests, filamentous (F-actin) staining and bone resorption test to detect the effect of AIL on the osteoclast cell differentiation of the Bone Marrow-derived Macrophages (BMMs), activated by the MDA-MB-231 cell Conditioned Medium (MDA-MB-231 CM) and the Receptor Activator of Nuclear factor-κB Ligand (RANKL),and to explore its possibility Mechanisms. In vivo experiments verified the effect of AIL on bone destruction in breast cancer bone metastasis model mice.Results:In vitro, AIL significantly decrease the proliferation, migration and infiltration abilities of MDA-MB-231 cells at a safe concentration, and also reduced the expression of genes and proteins involved in osteoclast formation in MDA-MB-231 cells. Osteoclast cell differentiation of the BMMs, activated by MDA-MB-231 CM and RANKL, were suppressed by AIL in the concentration-dependent manner. Additionally, it inhibits osteoclast-specific gene and protein expression. It was noted that AIL inhibited the expression of the osteoclast differentiation-related cytokines RANKL and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) that were secreted by the MDA-MB-231 cells after upregulating the Forkhead box protein 3 (FOXP3) expression. Furthermore, AIL also inhibits the expression of the Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase (MAPK), Phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (AKT), and Nuclear factor-κB Ligand (NF-κB) signaling pathways, which then suppresses the MDA-MB-231CM-induced development of Osteoclasts.Conclusion: Our study shows that AIL blocks osteoclast differentiation in the bone metastasis microenvironment by inhibiting cytokines secreted by BC cells, which may be a potential agent for the treatment of BC and its secondary bone metastasis
SpeechMirror: A Multimodal Visual Analytics System for Personalized Reflection of Online Public Speaking Effectiveness
As communications are increasingly taking place virtually, the ability to
present well online is becoming an indispensable skill. Online speakers are
facing unique challenges in engaging with remote audiences. However, there has
been a lack of evidence-based analytical systems for people to comprehensively
evaluate online speeches and further discover possibilities for improvement.
This paper introduces SpeechMirror, a visual analytics system facilitating
reflection on a speech based on insights from a collection of online speeches.
The system estimates the impact of different speech techniques on effectiveness
and applies them to a speech to give users awareness of the performance of
speech techniques. A similarity recommendation approach based on speech factors
or script content supports guided exploration to expand knowledge of
presentation evidence and accelerate the discovery of speech delivery
possibilities. SpeechMirror provides intuitive visualizations and interactions
for users to understand speech factors. Among them, SpeechTwin, a novel
multimodal visual summary of speech, supports rapid understanding of critical
speech factors and comparison of different speech samples, and SpeechPlayer
augments the speech video by integrating visualization of the speaker's body
language with interaction, for focused analysis. The system utilizes
visualizations suited to the distinct nature of different speech factors for
user comprehension. The proposed system and visualization techniques were
evaluated with domain experts and amateurs, demonstrating usability for users
with low visualization literacy and its efficacy in assisting users to develop
insights for potential improvement.Comment: Main paper (11 pages, 6 figures) and Supplemental document (11 pages,
11 figures). Accepted by VIS 202
Tunable band gap in few-layer graphene by surface adsorption
There is a tunable band gap in ABC-stacked few-layer graphene (FLG) via
applying a vertical electric field, but the operation of FLG-based field effect
transistor (FET) requires two gates to create a band gap and tune channel's
conductance individually. Using first principle calculations, we propose an
alternative scheme to open a band gap in ABC-stacked FLG namely via single-side
adsorption. The band gap is generally proportional to the charge transfer
density. The capability to open a band gap of metal adsorption decreases in
this order: K/Al > Cu/Ag/Au > Pt. Moreover, we find that even the band gap of
ABA-stacked FLG can be opened if the bond symmetry is broken. Finally, a
single-gated FET based on Cu-adsorbed ABC-stacked trilayer graphene is
simulated. A clear transmission gap is observed, which is comparable with the
band gap. This renders metal-adsorbed FLG a promising channel in a single-gated
FET device
Tetraphenylethylene‐Based Multicomponent Emissive Metallacages as Solid‐State Fluorescent Materials
Tetraphenylethylene‐based multicomponent emissive metallacages with high fluorescence quantum yield and good processability were prepared. These metallacages were further utilized as coatings of a blue light‐emitting bulb to prepare white‐light emitting diodes, demonstrating their applications as solid‐state fluorescent materials
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