Widely-used response criteria, conditional upon count recovery, were developed for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in the context of intensive chemotherapy (IC). Extending these definitions to ...continuously-administered venetoclax-based therapies might underestimate responses. Best practices for venetoclax-based therapies mandate interruption after an end-of-cycle 1 bone marrow biopsy shows morphologic remission with cytopenias. We analyzed 435 patients with newly-diagnosed AML and follow-up response assessments. Of the 101 who responded to venetoclax + azacitidine, overall survival for patients whose response was upgraded due to count recovery during a 14-day post-disease assessment period, from complete remission (CR) with incomplete recovery of blood counts to CR, was not different compared to patients who did not need the 14-day period for count recovery. These results were distinct from 138 IC patients. Although sample sizes for the comparison groups were small, and conclusions are exploratory and must be verified, these findings support consideration of new response criteria for venetoclax-based regimens.
The hadronic tile calorimeter (TileCal) of the ATLAS experiment will be upgraded for the High Luminosity phase of the LHC at CERN. This document describes the foreseen upgrade as well as its status, ...including tests of prototypes with beams. Since 2021, a hybrid module has been operated in ATLAS, included in the LHC collisions data taking. This hybrid module is compatible with the current ATLAS architecture but includes numerous electronic boards that are prototypes or even pre-production boards of the upgraded electronics. Results from this hybrid module are presented.
The Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT) is today a frontline international facility for low-frequency radio astronomy, that has produced several exciting and important new results in the 15 years ...that it has been operational. To keep the GMRT competitive in the global arena in the future, a major upgrade of the observatory is nearing completion that will increase its sensitivity by up to three times and make it a more powerful and versatile facility. We describe the main goals of this upgrade, highlight the technical features and challenges, outline the science potential and update the current status of this venture.
To improve traffic management ability, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are gradually upgrading legacy network devices to programmable devices that support Software-Defined Networking (SDN). The ...coexistence of legacy and SDN devices gives rise to a hybrid SDN. Existing hybrid SDNs do not consider the potential performance issues introduced by a centralized SDN controller: flow requests processed by a highly loaded controller may experience long-tail processing delay; inappropriate multi-controller deployment could increase the propagation delay of flow requests. In this paper, we propose to jointly consider the deployment of SDN switches and their controllers for hybrid SDNs. We formulate the joint problem as an optimization problem that maximizes the number of flows that can be controlled and managed by the SDN and minimizes the propagation delay of flow requests between SDN controllers and switches under a given upgrade budget constraint. We show this problem is NP-hard. To efficiently solve the problem, we propose some techniques (e.g., strengthening the constraints and adding additional valid inequalities) to accelerate the global optimization solver for solving the problem for small networks and an efficient heuristic algorithm for solving it for large networks. The simulation results from real network topologies illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed techniques and show that our proposed heuristic algorithm uses a small number of controllers to manage a high amount of flows with good performance.
Despite numerous published studies, management of benign papillomas without atypia remains controversial.
To determine the malignancy upgrade rate of benign papillomas, identify risk factors for ...upgrade, and formulate criteria for selective surgery.
This retrospective study included benign papillomas without atypia diagnosed on percutaneous biopsy between 12/01/2000 and 12/31/2019. Papillomas that did not undergo surgical excision or at least 2 years of imaging and/or clinical follow-up were excluded. Clinical, imaging, and histopathologic features were extracted from the electronic medical record. Features associated with upgrade to malignancy were identified. Multivariable logistic regression was performed.
The study included 612 benign papillomas in 543 women (mean age 54.5 ± 12.1 years); 466 papillomas were excised, and 146 underwent imaging/clinical surveillance. The upgrade rate to malignancy was 2.3% (14/612). Upgrade rate was associated (p<.05) with radiology-pathology correlation (50.0% if discordant vs 2.1% if concordant), patient age (5.6% for age ≥60 vs 0.7% for age <60), presenting symptoms (6.7% if palpable mass or pathologic nipple discharge vs 1.3% if no symptoms), and lesion size (7.3% if ≥10 mm vs 0.6% if <10 mm). Three of 14 upgraded papillomas were associated with ≥4 metachronous or concurrent peripheral papillomas. No incidental papilloma or papilloma reported as completely excised on core biopsy histopathologic analysis was upgraded. A predictive model combining radiology-pathology discordance, symptoms (palpable mass or nipple discharge), age ≥60, size ≥10 mm, and presence of ≥4 metachronous or concurrent peripheral papillomas achieved AUC 0.91, sensitivity 79%, and specificity 89% for upgrade. Selective surgery based on presence of any of these five factors, while excluding from surgery incidental papillomas and papillomas reported as completely excised on histopathology, would spare 294 of 612 lesions from routine excision, while identifying all 14 upgraded lesions.
Benign non-atypical papillomas have a low malignancy upgrade rate; routine surgical excision may not be necessary. Selective excision is recommended for lesions satisfying any of the 5 criteria. Incidental papillomas or papillomas completely excised on histopathology may undergo imaging follow-up.
The proposed criteria for selective surgery of benign papillomas on core biopsy would reduce surgeries without delaying diagnosis of malignancy.
The small‐angle neutron scattering diffractometer SANS‐J at the research reactor JRR‐3, Tokai, Japan has been upgraded. A 3He front detector was installed adjacent to the direct beam just behind the ...sample position to cover scattering in the range 1.3–6 nm−1 for the magnitude of the scattering vector Q. Additionally, the maximum Q covered by the existing main 3He detector was extended to 1.8 nm−1 by decreasing the minimum sample‐to‐detector distance. These modifications enabled gapless measurements of the scattering curve in the Q range 0.002–6 nm−1 with three standard device layouts that can be changed within 10 min. A new graphical user interface simplifies the operation of the device layouts and data acquisition.
The combination of the existing position‐sensitive photomultiplier and 3He main detectors with the newly installed front detectors in SANS‐J at JRR‐3, Tokai, Japan, allows small‐angle neutron scattering signals to be covered in the range 0.002–6 nm−1 for the magnitude of the scattering vector Q without gaps using three standard device layouts. Installation of the front detector and a graphical user interface have greatly improved the usability of SANS‐J.
Direct CO2 electrolysis has been explored as a means to store renewable energy and produce renewable fuels. La chromate-based perovskite oxides have attracted great attention as fuel electrode ...materials for solid oxide electrolyzer cells. However, the electrochemical catalytic activity of such oxides is relatively low, and their stability has not been confirmed. In this study, Pr is doped into La0.75Sr0.25Cr0.5Mn0.5O3-δ (LSCM) and the applicability of the resulting fuel electrode to direct CO2 electrolysis is investigated. The polarization resistance of the resulting electrode at 800 °C is decreased by 25%. Distribution function of relaxation times analysis indicates that the observed improvements may be attributed to increased oxygen ion conductivity. A full cell of Pr-doped LSCM-gadolinium-doped ceria (GDC)|scandia-stabilized zirconia|La0.6Sr0.4Co0.2Fe0.8O3-δ-GDC achieves an electrolysis current of 0.5 A cm−2 at 1.36 V and a Faradaic efficiency close to 100%. Short-term (210 h) stability testing of the cell under an electrolysis current of 0.5 A cm−2 at 800 °C with pure CO2 as the feedstock reveals a decrease in applied voltage at a rate of 7 mV kh−1, thereby indicating excellent stability. Thus, given its satisfactory performance and stability, the Pr-doped LSCM electrode may be considered a promising candidate material for direct CO2 electrolysis.
•Pr was doped into LSCM to develop an effective fuel electrode for CO2 electrolysis.•Polarization resistance in CO2 at 800 °C was reduced by 25% by doping Pr into LSCM.•Full cell with Pr-doped LSCM cathode, ScSZ electrolyte, LSCF-GDC anode was tested.•Full cell showed 0.5 A cm−2 at 1.36 V at 800 °C and Faradaic efficiency nearly 100%.•Full cell showed excellent stability in short-term test with 0.5 A cm−2 at 800 °C.
•Comparative study on curtailment rules and their effects on RES profitability.•Proposal of novel fair curtailment rule which minimises generators’ disruption.•Modeling of private network upgrade as ...leader-follower (Stackelberg) game.•New model incorporating stochastic generation and variable demand.•New methodology for setting transmission charges in private network upgrade.
Renewable energy has achieved high penetration rates in many areas, leading to curtailment, especially if existing network infrastructure is insufficient and energy generated cannot be exported. In this context, Distribution Network Operators (DNOs) face a significant knowledge gap about how to implement curtailment rules that achieve desired operational objectives, but at the same time minimise disruption and economic losses for renewable generators. In this work, we study the properties of several curtailment rules widely used in UK renewable energy projects, and their effect on the viability of renewable generation investment. Moreover, we propose a new curtailment rule which guarantees fair allocation of curtailment amongst all generators with minimal disruption. Another key knowledge gap faced by DNOs is how to incentivise private network upgrades, especially in settings where several generators can use the same line against the payment of a transmission fee. In this work, we provide a solution to this problem by using tools from algorithmic game theory. Specifically, this setting can be modelled as a Stackelberg game between the private transmission line investor and local renewable generators, who are required to pay a transmission fee to access the line. We provide a method for computing the equilibrium of this game, using a model that captures the stochastic nature of renewable energy generation and demand. Finally, we use the practical setting of a grid reinforcement project from the UK and a large dataset of wind speed measurements and demand to validate our model. We show that charging a transmission fee as a proportion of the feed-in tariff price between 15% and 75% would allow both investors to implement their projects and achieve desirable distribution of the profit. Overall, our results show how using game-theoretic tools can help network operators to bridge the knowledge gap about setting the optimal curtailment rule and determining transmission charges for private network infrastructure.
ALICE is the experiment specifically designed to study the Quark-Gluon Plasma (QGP) in heavy-ion collisions at the CERN LHC. The ALICE detector will be upgraded during the Long Shutdown 2, planned ...for 2019-2020, in order to cope with the maximum interaction rate of 50 kHz of Pb-Pb collisions foreseen for Runs 3 and 4. The ambitious programme of high-precision measurements, expected for muon physics after 2020, requires an upgrade of the front-end and readout electronics of the existing Muon Spectrometer. This concerns the Cathode Pad Chambers (CPC) used for tracking and the Resistive Plate Chambers (RPC) used for triggering and for muon identification. The Muon Forward Tracker (MFT), an internal tracker added in front of the front absorber of the existing Muon Spectrometer, is also part of the ALICE detector upgrade programme. It is based on an assembly of circular planes made of Monolithic Active Pixel Sensors (MAPS), covering the pseudorapidity range 2.5 <η < 3.6. The MFT will improve present measurements and enable new ones. A selection of results from physics performance studies will be presented, together with an overview of the technical aspects of the upgrade project.
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