Stability analysis for delayed quaternion-valued neural networks via nonlinear measure approach

In this paper, the existence and stability analysis of the quaternion-valued neural networks (QVNNs) with time delay are considered. Firstly, the QVNNs are equivalently transformed into four real-valued systems. Then, based on the Lyapunov theory, nonlinear measure approach, and inequality technique, some sufficient criteria are derived to ensure the existence and uniqueness of the equilibrium point as well as global stability of delayed QVNNs. In addition, the provided criteria are presented in the form of linear matrix inequality (LMI), which can be easily checked by LMI toolbox in MATLAB. Finally, two simulation examples are demonstrated to verify the effectiveness of obtained results. Moreover, the less conservatism of the obtained results is also showed by two comparison examples

Sewage monitoring system based on artificial intelligence

In order to avoid the problems of unstable water quality and high treatment cost caused by manual control of operators in wastewater treatment process, it is proposed to design and develop an intelligent wastewater monitoring system. According to the characteristics of numerous sewage treatment devices and unstable control indexes, the soft sensing technology of dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration is combined with computer automatic control technology to design intelligent monitoring scheme of sewage treatment process. The overall structure and function of the system are given, the control software, DO concentration soft measurement module and operation guidance are introduced, which lays a foundation for the concrete implementation of the system. The results show that the intelligent monitoring scheme and the aeration control method based on DO concentration soft measurement are applied to the sewage treatment field, and the hardware integration design and software configuration development are completed. The man-machine interface designed is intuitive and friendly, and the operation is convenient. After field installation and debugging, it is successfully operated in a sewage treatment plant, making the removal rate of effluent impurities reach the expected goal and achieve obvious economic benefits. Therefore, it is of great scientific significance and application value to strengthen the research and application of intelligent control of sewage treatment system in China

Investigation of physiological pulsatile flow in a model arterial stenosis using large-eddy and direct numerical simulations

Physiologicalpulsatileflow in a 3D model of arterialstenosis is investigated by using largeeddysimulation (LES) technique. The computational domain chosen is a simple channel with a biological type stenosis formed eccentrically on the top wall. The physiological pulsation is generated at the inlet using the first harmonic of the Fourier series of pressure pulse. In LES, the large scale flows are resolved fully while the unresolved subgrid scale (SGS) motions are modelled using a localized dynamic model. Due to the narrowing of artery the pulsatileflow becomes transition-to-turbulent in the downstream region of the stenosis, where a high level of turbulent fluctuations is achieved, and some detailed information about the nature of these fluctuations are revealed through the investigation of the turbulent energy spectra. Transition-to-turbulent of the pulsatileflow in the post stenosis is examined through the various numerical results such as velocity, streamlines, velocity vectors, vortices, wall pressure and shear stresses, turbulent kinetic energy, and pressure gradient. A comparison of the LES results with the coarse DNS are given for the Reynolds number of 2000 in terms of the mean pressure, wall shear stress as well as the turbulent characteristics. The results show that the shear stress at the upper wall is low just prior to the centre of the stenosis, while it is maximum in the throat of the stenosis. But, at the immediate post stenotic region, the wall shear stress takes the oscillating form which is quite harmful to the blood cells and vessels. In addition, the pressure drops at the throat of the stenosis where the re-circulated flow region is created due to the adverse pressure gradient. The maximum turbulent kinetic energy is located at the post stenosis with the presence of the inertial sub-range region of slope −5/3

2D Parity Product Code for TSV online fault correction and detection

Through-Silicon-Via (TSV) is one of the most promising technologies to realize 3D Integrated Circuits (3D-ICs).  However, the reliability issues due to the low yield rates and the sensitivity to thermal hotspots and stress issues are preventing TSV-based 3D-ICs from being widely and efficiently used. To enhance the reliability of TSV connections, using error correction code to detect and correct faults automatically has been demonstrated as a viable solution.This paper presents a 2D Parity Product Code (2D-PPC) for TSV fault-tolerance with the ability to correct one fault and detect, at least, two faults.  In an implementation of 64-bit data and 81-bit codeword, 2D-PPC can detect over 71 faults, on average. Its encoder and decoder decrease the overall latency by 38.33% when compared to the Single Error Correction Double Error Detection code.  In addition to the high detection rates, the encoder can detect 100% of its gate failures, and the decoder can detect and correct around 40% of its individual gate failures. The squared 2D-PPC could be extended using orthogonal Latin square to support extra bit correction

LES of non-Newtonian physiological blood flow in a model of arterial stenosis

Large Eddy Simulation (LES) is performed to study the physiological pulsatile transition-to-turbulent non-Newtonian blood flow through a 3D model of arterial stenosis by using five different blood viscosity models: (i) Power-law, (ii) Carreau, (iii) Quemada, (iv) Cross and (v) modified-Casson. The computational domain has been chosen is a simple channel with a biological type stenosis formed eccentrically on the top wall. The physiological pulsation is generated at the inlet of the model using the first four harmonic series of the physiological pressure pulse (Loudon and Tordesillas [1]). The effects of the various viscosity models are investigated in terms of the global maximum shear rate, post-stenotic re-circulation zone, mean shear stress, mean pressure, and turbulent kinetic energy. We find that the non-Newtonian viscosity models enlarge the length of the post-stenotic re-circulation region by moving the reattachment point of the shear layer separating from the upper wall further downstream. But the turbulent kinetic energy at the immediate post-lip of the stenosis drops due to the effects of the non-Newtonian viscosity. The importance of using LES in modelling the non-Newtonian physiological pulsatile blood flow is also assessed for the different viscosity models in terms of the results of the dynamic subgrid-scale (SGS) stress Smagorinsky model constant, C<sub>s</sub>, and the corresponding SGS normalised viscosity

Pathophysiology and Treatment of Non-motor Dysfunction in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a progressive and fatal neurodegenerative disease typically presenting with bulbar or limb weakness. There is increasing evidence that amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a multisystem disease with early and frequent impacts on cognition, behaviour, sleep, pain and fatigue. Dysfunction of normal physiological and metabolic processes also appears common. Evidence from pre-symptomatic studies and large epidemiological cohorts examining risk factors for the future development of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis have reported a high prevalence of changes in behaviour and mental health before the emergence of motor weakness. This suggests that changes beyond the motor system are underway at an early stage with dysfunction across brain networks regulating a variety of cognitive, behavioural and other homeostatic processes. The full impact of non-motor dysfunction continues to be established but there is now sufficient evidence that the presence of non-motor symptoms impacts overall survival in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and with up to 80% reporting non-motor symptoms, there is an urgent need to develop more robust therapeutic approaches. This review provides a contemporary overview of the pathobiology of non-motor dysfunction, offering readers a practical approach with regard to assessment and management. We review the current evidence for pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatment of non-motor dysfunction in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and highlight the need to further integrate non-motor dysfunction as an important outcome measure for future clinical trial design

Caspase-2 is upregulated after sciatic nerve transection and its inhibition protects dorsal root ganglion neurons from Apoptosis after serum withdrawal

Sciatic nerve (SN) transection-induced apoptosis of dorsal root ganglion neurons (DRGN) is one factor determining the efficacy of peripheral axonal regeneration and the return of sensation. Here, we tested the hypothesis that caspase-2(CASP2) orchestrates apoptosis of axotomised DRGN both in vivo and in vitro by disrupting the local neurotrophic supply to DRGN. We observed significantly elevated levels of cleaved CASP2 (C-CASP2), compared to cleaved caspase-3 (C-CASP3), within TUNEL+DRGN and DRG glia (satellite and Schwann cells) after SN transection. A serum withdrawal cell culture model, which induced 40% apoptotic death in DRGN and 60% in glia, was used to model DRGN loss after neurotrophic factor withdrawal. Elevated C-CASP2 and TUNEL were observed in both DRGN and DRG glia, with C-CASP2 localisation shifting from the cytosol to the nucleus, a required step for induction of direct CASP2-mediated apoptosis. Furthermore, siRNAmediated downregulation of CASP2 protected 50% of DRGN from apoptosis after serum withdrawal, while downregulation of CASP3 had no effect on DRGN or DRG glia survival. We conclude that CASP2 orchestrates the death of SN-axotomised DRGN directly and also indirectly through loss of DRG glia and their local neurotrophic factor support. Accordingly, inhibiting CASP2 expression is a potential therapy for improving both the SN regeneration response and peripheral sensory recovery

Sequential damage study induced in fiber reinforced composites by shear and tensile stress using a newly developed Arcan fixture

This work presents the application of both uniaxial and bi-axial in-plane loads to unidirectional carbon fiber reinforced polymer laminates using a newly developed Arcan fixture, which is a reliable experimental set-up to obtain a uniform shear stress field in a butterfly specimen. The set-up can be used for both damage model validation and parameters identification at various fiber orientations while using the same specimens. A sequential damage study was completed to highlight the influence of diffused damage induced in pure shear on the fiber direction tensile behavior of the laminate. This was accomplished by applying load on the specimens in two steps: (i) the pure shear step and then unloading at approximately 70% of the shear failure strength, (ii) in the tensile step until final failure. A clear drop in the tensile behavior of the laminate was observed by the diffused damage induced in the first loading step of pure shear. The experimental study is also supplemented with numerical simulations using a nonlinear elasto-plastic coupled damage constitutive law by employing Puck’s failure theory for mesodamage activation. In addition to the damage pattern, the non-linear mechanical behavior in shear is predicted and found in good correspondence with the experimental results

The ability and safety of community-based health workers to safely initiate lifesaving therapies for pre-eclampsia in Ogun State, Nigeria: An analysis of 260 community treatments with MgSO4 and/or methyldopa

Objectives: To evaluate community-based health workers\u27 ability to identify cases of hypertension in pregnancy, safely deliver methyldopa and magnesium sulphate and make referrals when appropriate.Study design: This was part of Nigeria Community-Level Interventions for Pre-eclampsia (CLIP) cluster randomized controlled trial (NCT01911494). Community-based Health Workers (CHW) recruited pregnant women from five Local Government Areas (clusters) and used mobile health aid for clinical assessment of pre-eclampsia.Main outcome measures: The primary outcome was the number of adverse events that occurred after the administration of magnesium sulphate and/or methyldopa to pregnant women by CHWs.Findings: Of 8790 women receiving mobile health-guided care, community-based health workers in Nigeria provided 309 women with hypertension (4.2% of delivered women), and safely administered 142 doses of intramuscular magnesium sulphate. Community Heath Extension Workers (CHEWs) and nurses gave fifty-two and sixty-seven doses of intramuscular magnesium sulphate respectively, twenty-three doses were given by other health care workers (midwives, community health officers, health assistants). The high rate of administration by nurses can be explained by turf protection as well as their seniority within the health system. Also, CHEWs and nurses gave 124 doses of oral methyldopa and 126 urgent referrals were completed. There were no complications related to administration of treatment or referral.Interpretation: These findings demonstrate the ability of community-based health workers to safely administer methyldopa and intramuscular magnesium sulphate. The use of task-sharing, therefore, could drastically reduce the three delays (triage, transport and treatment) associated with high maternal mortality and morbidity in rural communities in low- and middle-income countries