Evaluation of genetic improvement tools for improvement of non-functional properties of software

Genetic improvement (GI) improves both functional properties of software, such as bug repair, and non-functional properties, such as execution time, energy consumption, or source code size. There are studies summarising and comparing GI tools for improving functional properties of software; however there is no such study for improvement of its non-functional properties using GI. Therefore, this research aims to survey and report on the existing GI tools for improvement of non-functional properties of software. We conducted a literature review of available GI tools, and ran multiple experiments on the found open-source tools to examine their usability. We applied a cross-testing strategy to check whether the available tools can work on different programs. Overall, we found 63 GI papers that use a GI tool to improve nonfunctional properties of software, within which 31 are accompanied with open-source code. We were able to successfully run eight GI tools, and found that ultimately only two ---Gin and PyGGI--- can be readily applied to new general software

The linear (n − 1)-arboricity of Cartesian product graphs

A linear k-forest of an undirected graph G is a subgraph of G whose components are paths with lengths at most k. The linear k-arboricity of G, denoted by la k (G), is the minimum number of linear k-forests needed to partition the edge set E(G) of G. In this paper, the exact values of the linear (n − 1)-arboricity of Hamming graph, and Cartesian product graphs C m nt and Kn Kn,n are obtained

Rapid Vehicle Detection in Aerial Images under the Complex Background of Dense Urban Areas

Vehicle detection on aerial remote sensing images under the complex background of urban areas has always received great attention in the field of remote sensing; however, the view of remote sensing images usually covers a large area, and the size of the vehicle is small and the background is complex. Therefore, compared with object detection in the ground view images, vehicle detection in aerial images remains a challenging problem. In this paper, we propose a single-scale rapid convolutional neural network (SSRD-Net). In the proposed framework, we design a global relational (GR) block to enhance the fusion of local and global features; moreover, we adjust the image segmentation method to unify the vehicle size in the input image, thus simplifying the model structure and improving the detection speed. We further introduce an aerial remote sensing image dataset with rotating bounding boxes (RO-ARS), which has complex backgrounds such as snow, clouds, and fog scenes. We also design a data augmentation method to get more images with clouds and fog. Finally, we evaluate the performance of the proposed model on several datasets, and the experimental results show that the recall and precision are improved compared with existing methods

Reinforcement learning-based fixed-time trajectory tracking control for uncertain robotic manipulators with input saturation

A fixed-time trajectory tracking control method for uncertain robotic manipulators with input saturation based on reinforcement learning (RL) is studied. The designed reinforcement learning control algorithm is implemented by radial basis function (RBF) neural network, in which the actor neural network is used to generate the control strategy and the critic neural network is used to evaluate the execution cost. A new non-singular fast terminal sliding mode technique is used to ensure the convergence of tracking error in fixed time, and the upper bound of convergence time is estimated. To solve the saturation problem of an actuator, a nonlinear anti-windup compensator is designed to compensate for the saturation effect of the joint torque actuator in real time. Finally, the stability of the closed-loop system based on Lyapunov candidate is analyzed, and the timing convergence of the closed-loop system is proved. Simulation and experimental results show the effectiveness and superiority of the proposed control law.</div

Noiseless Attenuation for Continuous-Variable Quantum Key Distribution over Ground-Satellite Uplink

Satellite-based quantum key distribution (QKD) has lately received considerable attention due to its potential to establish a secure global network. Associated with its application is a turbulent atmosphere that sets a notable restriction to the transmission efficiency, which is especially challenging for ground-to-satellite uplink scenarios. Here, we propose a novel noiseless attenuation (NA) scheme involving a zero-photon catalysis operation for source preparation to improve the performance of continuous-variable (CV) QKD over uplink. Numerical analysis shows that the NA-based CV-QKD, under attenuation optimization, outperforms the traditional CV-QKD, which is embodied in extending the allowable zenith angle while improving the effective communication time. Attributing to characteristics of the attenuation optimization, we find that the NA-involved source preparation improves the security bound by relatively reducing the amount of information available to eavesdroppers. Taking the finite-size effect into account, we achieve a tighter bond of security, which is more practical compared with the asymptotic limit

Salinadaptatus Xue & Zuo & Zhou & Zhou & Zhang & Han & Zhao & Xiang 2021, GEN. NOV.

DESCRIPTION OF SALINADAPTATUSGEN. NOV. Salinadaptatus (Sa.lin.a.dap.ta′ tus. L. fem. pl. n. salinae salterns, salt works; L. part. adj. adaptatus adapted to a thing; N.L. masc. n. Salinadaptatus an archaeon adapted to salt.) Colonies are pink-pigmented. Cells are chemoorganotrophic, Gram-stain-negative, rod and contain PG and PGP-Me as its major phospholipids. No glycolipids were detected. Growth occurs in a wide range of substrates. This genus is phylogenetically included in the family Table 1. Continued +, Positive; −, negative; PG, Phosphatidylglycerol; PGP-Me, phosphatidylglycerol phosphate methyl ester; PGP, phosphatidylglycerophosphate; PL, phospholipids; S 2 - DGD, disulfated mannosyl glucosyl diether; DGE, dialkyl glycerol ether; ND, no detection. *Determined in this study. Natrialbaceae, order Natrialbales, class Halobacteria. The recommended three-letter abbreviation is Sad. The type species is Salinadaptatus halalkaliphilus.Published as part of Xue, Qiong, Zuo, Zhenqiang, Zhou, Heng, Zhou, Jian, Zhang, Shengjie, Han, Jing, Zhao, Dahe & Xiang, Hua, 2021, Salinadaptatus halalkaliphilus gen. nov., sp. nov., a haloalkaliphilic archaeon isolated from salt pond in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China, pp. 1-10 in International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology (004584) (004584) 71 (1) on pages 7-9, DOI: 10.1099/ijsem.0.004584, http://zenodo.org/record/604871

Synergistic therapy of magnetism-responsive hydrogel for soft tissue injuries

Soft tissue injury is very common and associated with pain, tissue swelling and even malformation if not treated on time. Treating methods include cryotherapy, electrical therapy, ultrasound therapy and anti-inflammatory drug, but none of them is completely satisfying. In this work, for a better therapeutic effect, drug therapy and pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF) therapy were combined. We constructed a drug delivery system using the tetra-PEG/agar hydrogel (PA). By incorporating Fe3O4 NPs into the hydrogel network, a magnetism-responsive property was achieved in the system. The cytotoxicity and in vivo study showed a good biocompatibility of the PA/Fe3O4 hydrogel. A magnetism-controlled release was attained by the incorporation of Fe3O4. Finally, in vivo study showed a better performance of the DS-loaded PA/Fe3O4 compared with the commercially available DS ointment regarding the recovery of the injured soft tissue. Therefore, this magnetism-responsive hydrogel may represent a promising alternative to treat soft tissue injury. Keywords: Hydrogel, Magnetism-responsive, Tissue injury, Tetra-PEG/aga