The perception systems of autonomous vehicles face significant challenges under adverse conditions, with issues such as obscured objects and false detections due to environmental noise. Traditional ...approaches, which typically focus on noise removal, often fall short in such scenarios. Addressing the lack of diverse adverse weather data in existing automotive datasets, we propose a novel data augmentation method that integrates realistically simulated adverse weather effects into clear condition datasets. This method not only addresses the scarcity of data but also effectively bridges domain gaps between different driving environments. Our approach centers on a conditional generative model that uses segmentation maps as a guiding mechanism to ensure the authentic generation of adverse effects, which greatly enhances the robustness of perception and object detection systems in autonomous vehicles, operating under varied and challenging conditions. Besides the capability of accurately and naturally recreating over 90% of the adverse effects, we demonstrate that this model significantly improves the performance and accuracy of deep learning algorithms for autonomous driving, particularly in adverse weather scenarios. In the experiments employing our augmented approach, we achieved a 2.46% raise in the 3D average precision, a marked enhancement in detection accuracy and system reliability, substantiating the model’s efficacy with quantifiable improvements in 3D object detection compared to models without augmentation. This work not only serves as an enhancement of autonomous vehicle perception systems under adverse conditions but also marked an advancement in deep learning models in adverse condition research.
Contextualized in the prolonged period of COVID-19-related school suspension in Hong Kong, the present study unravels relationships among socioeconomic status (SES), parental involvement, and ...learning outcomes for a matched sample of 186 primary and 932 secondary school students and their parents who participated in the eCitizen Education 360 survey. Three-step latent profile analysis (LPA) revealed different types of parental involvement at home and in school. For the primary school sample, students’ SES did not predict membership in the parental involvement typology, but students whose parents provided more home monitoring and support had the highest level of online self-efficacy. As for the secondary student sample, students whose parents provided more home monitoring and support tended to have access to more home learning resources. Students whose parents provided home monitoring and support had the highest levels of online self-efficacy, acquisition of digital skills, and cognitive-emotional regulation, and were the least worried about school resumption. The study underscores complex patterns of parental involvement and identifies effective parental involvement practices that contribute to students’ home online learning during the school suspension.
There have been studies on the relationship between hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and diet. We hypothesized HBV infection is related to dietary calcium intake, but the evidence is limited. This ...study aimed to examine whether dietary calcium intake is independently related to HBV infection in the United States population.
A total of 20,488 participants aged over 20 years from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), conducted from 2007 to 2020, were included in this study. Pearson correlation was used to test the association between dietary calcium and serum calcium. The relationships of HBV infection with dietary calcium and serum calcium were assessed by logistic regression models.
There was a weak correlation between dietary calcium and serum calcium (r = 0.048). Logistic regression models indicated that HBV infection had a linear negative correlation with dietary calcium (OR 0.37; 95%CI 0.19, 0.76). For each additional 10 mg dietary calcium, the possibility of HBV infection was reduced by 63%. Hepatitis B positive participants had lower serum calcium content than negative participants. Stratified analysis shown the linear relationship between calcium and HBV infection varied among sex, race/ethnicity, and body mass index.
Our findings demonstrated HBV infection was linearly and inversely correlated with dietary calcium. The current study is expected to offer a fresh perspective on reducing HBV infection.
This study proposes a method of constructing and transforming three-dimensional (3D) models that can convert a 3D model into a chain-type modular configuration and realize the mutual transformation ...between different configurations with a straight chain as the intermediate state through standard folding steps. A method for detailed representation of voxels is proposed. Based on detailed voxels, an accelerated generation algorithm for the connection forest, which can describe the possible chain configurations, is developed. The foldability verification of the configurations and the generation of the folding operations are realized according to the folding rules. A collision detection algorithm based on encoding and projection is also introduced to detect collisions in the process of folding sequence generation. In this work, an interactive platform is established for users to calculate the input model transformation through simple operations and obtain a simulation animation of the folding operations. The experimental cases prove the effectiveness of the method in constructing and transforming the chain-type modular configurations of the input 3D models.
Highlights
The flower-like
δ
-MnO
2
nanostructures with controlled oxygen vacancies as an extraordinary ZIBs cathode are innovatively developed.
The cathode can present large capacity and high-rate ...zinc-ion storage.
DFT analysis substantially unveils the effects of various vacancy concentrations on their electrochemical performances.
In recent years, manganese-based oxides as an advanced class of cathode materials for zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) have attracted a great deal of attentions from numerous researchers. However, their slow reaction kinetics, limited active sites and poor electrical conductivity inevitably give rise to the severe performance degradation. To solve these problems, herein, we introduce abundant oxygen vacancies into the flower-like
δ
-MnO
2
nanostructure and effectively modulate the vacancy defects to reach the optimal level (
δ
-MnO
2−
x
−2.0). The smart design intrinsically tunes the electronic structure, guarantees ion chemisorption–desorption equilibrium and increases the electroactive sites, which not only effectively accelerates charge transfer rate during reaction processes, but also endows more redox reactions, as verified by first-principle calculations. These merits can help the fabricated
δ
-MnO
2−
x
−2.0 cathode to present a large specific capacity of 551.8 mAh g
−1
at 0.5 A g
−1
, high-rate capability of 262.2 mAh g
−1
at 10 A g
−1
and an excellent cycle lifespan (83% of capacity retention after 1500 cycles), which is far superior to those of the other metal compound cathodes. In addition, the charge/discharge mechanism of the
δ
-MnO
2−
x
−2.0 cathode has also been elaborated through ex situ techniques. This work opens up a new pathway for constructing the next-generation high-performance ZIBs cathode materials.
Abstract Background The main challenge for warfarin anticoagulation is the risk for hemorrhagic complications. Although certain pharmacogenetic factors may explain the individual variabilities about ...the therapeutic warfarin dose requirement, the genetic factors to warfarin hemorrhagic complications due to over-anticoagulation are largely unknown. To interpret the potential role of warfarin-related genotypes on over-anticoagulation and hemorrhagic complications, we conducted a meta-analysis based on 22 published studies. Methods A comprehensive search was applied to the reports on over-anticoagulation and hemorrhagic complications published prior to December 31, 2012 in PubMed and EMBASE. References were identified by strict inclusion and exclusion criteria, with additional information obtained by consulting with the authors of primary studies. The roles of genotypes in CYP2C9 and VKORC1 on over-anticoagulation (INR > 4) and hemorrhagic complications were analyzed by Revman 5.0.2 software. Results A total of 6272 patients in 22 reports were included in the meta-analysis, including studies of 18 from Caucasians (3 from both Caucasian and African–American), 3 from Asians, and 1 from Brazilians. Compared to CYP2C9 wild genotype ( CYP2C9*1 ), both CYP2C9*2 (rs 1799853, c. 430 C > T, p. Arg144Cys) and *3 (rs 1057910, c. 1075 A > C, p. Ile359Leu) confer significantly higher risk for warfarin over-anticoagulation and hemorrhagic complications. After stratification by CYP2C9 allele status, significantly higher risk for hemorrhagic complications was found only in carriers of at least 1 copy of CYP2C9*3 For total hemorrhages: *1/*3 HR: 2.05 (1.36–3.10), p < 0.001; *3/*3 HR: 4.87 (1.38–17.14), p = 0.01; For major hemorrhages: *1/*3 HR: 2.43 (1.17–5.06), p = 0.02; *3/*3 HR: 4.81 (0.95–24.22), p = 0.06. Furthermore, similar susceptibility of total hemorrhage by CYP2C9 genotypes was observed in Caucasians and Asians. After stratification by the occurrence time, both CYP2C9*2 and *3 are risk factors for over-anticoagulation within 30 days of warfarin treatment *2 HR: 1.64 (1.11–2.43), p = 0.01; *3 HR: 2.48 (1.56–3.96), p < 0.001, and only CYP2C9*3 showed higher risk for over-anticoagulation after 30 days HR: 1.86 (1.08–3.20), P = 0.03. For VKORC1 c. − 1639 G > A (rs 9923231) genotypes, GA and AA contributed significantly higher risk for over-anticoagulation within 30 days HR: 2.14 (1.75–2.62), p < 0.001, but not for over-anticoagulation after 30 days HR:0.78 (0.46–1.33), p = 0.36. No significant association was found between VKORC1 genotypes and hemorrhagic complications. Conclusions Both CYP2C9 and VKORC1 genotypes are associated with an increased risk for warfarin over-anticoagulation, with VKORC1 c. − 1639 G > A more sensitive early in the course of anticoagulation. CYP2C9*3 is the main genetic risk factor for warfarin hemorrhagic complications.
Decreased heart rate variability (HRV) is a predictor of autonomic system dysfunction, and is considered as a potential mechanism of increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) induced by exposure ...to particulate matter less than 2.5 μm in diameter (PM
). Previous studies have suggested that exposure to PM
may lead to decreased HRV levels, but the results remain inconsistent.
An updated systematic review and meta-analysis of panel studies till November 1, 2019 was conducted to evaluate the acute effect of exposure to ambient PM
on HRV. We searched electronic databases (PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase) to identify panel studies reporting the associations between exposure to PM
and the four indicators of HRV (standard deviation of all normal-to-normal intervals (SDNN), root mean square of successive differences in adjacent normal-to-normal intervals (rMSSD), high frequency power (HF), and low frequency power (LF)). Random-effects model was used to calculate the pooled effect estimates.
A total of 33 panel studies were included in our meta-analysis, with 16 studies conducted in North America, 12 studies in Asia, and 5 studies in Europe. The pooled results showed a 10 μg/m
increase in PM
exposure which was significantly associated with a - 0.92% change in SDNN (95% confidence intervals (95%CI) - 1.26%, - 0.59%), - 1.47% change in rMSSD (95%CI - 2.17%, - 0.77%), - 2.17% change in HF (95%CI - 3.24%, - 1.10%), and - 1.52% change in LF (95%CI - 2.50%, - 0.54%), respectively. Overall, subgroup analysis suggested that short-term exposure to PM
was associated with lower HRV levels in Asians, healthy population, and those aged ≥ 40 years.
Short-term exposure to PM
was associated with decreased HRV levels. Future studies are warranted to clarity the exact mechanism of exposure to PM
on the cardiovascular system through disturbance of autonomic nervous function.
Senescence of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) contributes to the formation of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). Although mesenchymal stem cell exosomes (MSC-EXO) have been confirmed to restrict ...the development of AAA, their biological activity depends largely on the physiological state of the MSCs. This study aimed to compare the effects of adipose-derived MSC-EXO from healthy donors (HMEXO) and AAA patients (AMEXO) on senescence of VSMCs in AAA and explore the underlying mechanisms. An ApoE-/- mouse model of AAA was used to investigate the therapeutic effects of HMEXO, AMEXO or miR-19b-3p-AMEXO on AAA development. This in vitro model of AAA was established by treating VSMCs with Ang II (Angiotensin II). The senescence of VSMCs was determined by senescence-associated β-galactosidase (SA-β-gal) staining. The morphology of mitochondria in VSMCs was examined by MitoTracker staining. HMEXO exhibited superior capacity compared with AMEXO to inhibit VSMC senescence and attenuate AAA formation in Ang II-treated ApoE-/- mice. In vitro, both AMEXO and HMEXO inhibited Ang II-induced VSMC senescence via downregulation of mitochondrial fission. Notably, compared with HMEXO, the ability of AMEXO to inhibit VSMC senescence was significantly decreased. miRNA sequencing and the expression of miR-19b-3p was significantly decreased in AMEXO compared with HMEXO. Luciferase assay suggested that MST4 (Mammalian sterile-20-like kinase 4) is a potential target of miR-19b-3p. Mechanistically, miR-19b-3p in HMEXO ameliorated VSMC senescence by inhibiting mitochondrial fission via regulation of the MST4/ERK/Drp1 signaling pathway. Overexpression of miR-19b-3p in AMEXO improved their beneficial effect on AAA formation. Our study reveals that MSC-exosomal miR-19b-3p exerts protective effects against Ang II-induced AAA and VSMC senescence via regulation of the MST4/ERK/Drp1 pathway. The pathological state of AAA patients alters the miRNA components of AMEXO and impairs their therapeutic benefits.
For online video service providers, the accurate prediction of video popularity directly impacts their advertisement revenue, bandwidth provisioning policy and copyright procurement decision. Most of ...previous approaches only utilize data from a single platform (e.g., view history) for prediction. However, such approaches cannot provide satisfactory prediction accuracy, as video popularity may be affected by many influential features dispersed over multiple platforms. In this paper, we focus on the popularity prediction of online movies and propose a prediction framework called
DeepFusion
to fuse salient features from multiple platforms so as to boost the accuracy of popularity prediction of online movies. For this purpose, we extract influential factors from Douban, which is a leading movie rating website in China, and Youku, which is one of the largest online video service providers in China. Considering the complexity incurred by numerous parameters, we choose to feed these influential factors into deep neural networks for prediction and thus avoid the limitation of traditional predictive models. Compared with previous approaches, our solution can significantly improve the prediction accuracy over 40%. Moreover, even for movies without any historical views, our approach can also well capture their popular trends and overcome the cold-start problem.
PDF
