Search Results (442)

Peritoneal coccidioidomycosis is a rare, disseminated manifestation of Coccidioides infection with limited representation in the literature. We report 37 proven or probable cases from a single institution, including 12 patients (32%) with immunosuppression. Thirty-six patients received antifungal therapy, all of whom demonstrated clinical response. Among 11 (29.7%) patients who completed and stopped therapy after a median duration of 26 months, 2 (5%) experienced a relapse and were successfully retreated. Nine patients (24%) had no known relapse. Thirteen patients (35%) required modification of antifungal regimens, primarily due to azole adverse effects. Treatment approaches and median duration of therapy (57 months) were similar between immunosuppressed and non-immunosuppressed groups. No deaths were attributable to infection. Overall, outcomes were favorable, with strong clinical responses to azole therapy. Patients without identifiable immunologic deficits or additional sites of dissemination, when managed with antifungal therapy and close clinical, radiologic, and serologic monitoring, may achieve good prognosis, particularly when indefinite azole therapy is not feasible. Full article

This paper proposes an adaptive single-layer distributed neurodynamic optimization approach with the penalty method to address a non-smooth pseudoconvex optimization problem with affine equality and inequality constraints in multi-agent systems, where the global objective function for the agents is pseudoconvex but not required to be differentiable. The target of this approach is to optimize the global objective while ensuring compliance with various constraints. The approach avoids the use of additional auxiliary variables, thereby reducing communication bandwidth and computational complexity. Under mild assumptions, the solution of the designed model is bounded for any initial conditions, to enter their respective feasible domains in finite time, and remain within these domains indefinitely. To achieve finite-time consensus in undirected, connected networks for multi-agent systems, a novel consensus mechanism is introduced to ensure that all agents synchronize their states within finite time. By exploiting the unique pseudoconvexity of the global objective function, the solution trajectory converges to the optimal state of the original problem. Furthermore, the effectiveness of the proposed approach is verified through two simulation experiments, and comparisons with four existing algorithms are conducted to demonstrate its superiority in convergence performance. Finally, an economic dispatch problem in power systems is provided as an engineering application to illustrate the practical applicability of the proposed algorithm. Full article

Multibody dynamics (MBD) simulations involving hundreds to thousands of bodies give rise to large-scale, sparse, and structurally indefinite linear systems. Traditional direct solvers incur prohibitive memory and computational costs, while iterative methods suffer from slow convergence due to severe ill-conditioning. This paper proposes HPI-MBD, a hybrid preconditioned iterative framework. It combines an algebraic multigrid (AMG) for global error smoothing with a block Jacobi preconditioner tailored to the kinematic constraint graph. The framework exploits graph topology to construct a block-diagonal Schur complement approximation, incorporates Tikhonov regularisation for redundant constraints, and maintains $\mathcal{O}\left(n\right)$ work per iteration, where n is the number of degrees of freedom. A rigorous spectral analysis supports the problem-size independent convergence of the Minimal Residual (MINRES) solver. Evaluated on five benchmark systems with ${10}^4$ to ${10}^6$ degrees of freedom, the HPI-MBD achieves speedups up to $12.7\times$ and memory reductions up to 68% against MA57, with comparable gains against PARDISO. All solutions maintain relative residuals below ${10}^{-6}$. Comparisons against ILU(0)-preconditioned Generalised Minimal Residual (GMRES), Finite Element Tearing and Interconnecting method (FETI-1), and a block-Jacobi-only variant confirm the essential role of AMG. The framework exhibits near-linear scalability and strong parallel efficiency on up to 32 processors, along with robust performance under redundant constraints and varying time step sizes. These results position HPI-MBD as a scalable, memory-efficient alternative for real-time simulation in virtual prototyping, robotics, and biomechanics. Full article

Convolutional neural networks (CNN) have transformed visual recognition, yet robust geometric reasoning, reliable out-of-distribution generalization, and recognition from limited data remain substantially unsolved. CNNs draw their architectural inspiration from the mammalian visual cortex, but the translation from biology to engineering was selective and, in places, imprecise, and those imprecisions have consequences that are well documented. This paper examines where the biological fidelity holds and where it gives way, grounding the analysis in formal results that predate deep learning and in recent empirical findings on CNN failure modes. We identify three diagnosable architectural limitations. First, CNNs conflate visual modalities that the biological system separates structurally at the lateral geniculate nucleus, feeding raw RGB pixels into a single undifferentiated filter bank and entangling orientation, color, and texture signals from the first layer onward. Second, CNNs repeat a spatial subsampling operation across the full depth of the network, far beyond the early visual cortex stages where it has biological warrant. Barnard and Casasent established formally in 1990 that this operation discards positional information irreversibly at every layer where it is applied, and repeating it into regions that correspond to V4 and inferotemporal cortex compounds this loss without the compensating transition to qualitatively different computations that the biological hierarchy performs. Third, the pooling-as-complex-cell analogy that motivated this design reflects a misreading of what complex cells compute. The spatiotemporal energy model formalizes complex cell behavior as geometry extraction: detecting the presence and orientation of a local edge structure robustly, abstracting over photometric accidents of contrast polarity and sub-wavelength phase that are not geometrically meaningful. Pooling is a tolerable first-stage approximation of this behavior, but as a general-purpose invariance mechanism repeated across the full depth of the network, it is attempting something categorically different, namely object-level position invariance through spatial subsampling, which achieves its goal by discarding exactly the geometric information that the energy model preserves. Treating pooling as a scalable, indefinitely repeatable implementation of complex cell behavior—rather than as a first-stage approximation with a natural biological endpoint at V3—conflates two operations that differ not in degree but in kind, and crucially it removed the principled criterion for confining the S-C operation to early visual cortex: because pooling was understood as a general-purpose invariance mechanism, the field had no architectural reason to stop repeating it. We survey how capsule networks, group-equivariant CNNs, PDE-based networks, and vision transformers each address one or two of these limitations while leaving the others intact. We propose six desiderata that a more biologically complete architecture would need to satisfy and argue that satisfying them requires treating the visual cortex’s solution as a coherent package in which each component depends on the others working correctly, rather than as a menu of independently selectable principles. Full article

Valorization of agro-industrial waste into functional materials is fundamental to the circular economy, especially for addressing the persistent contamination by anionic azo dyes in textile wastewater. This study evaluates guava seeds modified with hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (GS-M) as low-cost biosorbents for the removal of Direct Blue 71 (DB71), comparing their performance with that of natural seeds (GS-N) in batch systems and fixed-bed columns. Characterization by infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and electron microscopy (SEM-EDS) confirmed successful surfactant immobilization, thereby creating a cationic surface with strong electrostatic affinity for anionic dye molecules. Batch experiments showed that GS-M achieved 98% DB71 removal within 120 min, whereas GS-N reached only 58% after 300 min. For GS-M, both pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order models fit the kinetic data well, consistent with concurrent electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions; GS-N was best described by the Elovich model, indicating rate limitation by electrostatic repulsion. GS-M maintained removal efficiency above 84% across pH 3–9, whereas GS-N was effective under acidic conditions. Langmuir maximum adsorption capacity (Q_o) values for GS-M were 6.02 mg/g at pH 4 and 7.87 mg/g at pH 8, a 1.5- to 2.2-fold increase over GS-N under matched conditions. Three adsorption–desorption cycles retained ~49% of the initial GS-M capacity, supporting a short-cycle reuse profile rather than indefinite multi-cycle operation. Fixed-bed column performance was highly sensitive to the hydraulic loading rate (v_c), with breakthrough times increasing nearly eightfold as v_c decreased. The Bed Depth Service Time (BDST), Thomas, and Yoon–Nelson models described the dynamic data consistently, yielding a maximum dynamic capacity of 165.6 mg/L under optimal conditions and providing a quantitative basis for scale-up. These results establish surfactant-modified guava seeds as a low-cost, pH-resilient biosorbent system aligned with circular-economy principles for the sustainable remediation of textile wastewater. Full article

Quantum processes with indefinite causal order challenge the classical assumption that operations must occur in a single fixed temporal sequence. The quantum switch provides a concrete setting in which two operation orders, $A\prec B$ and $B\prec A$, are coherently controlled by a quantum system. In the strict process matrix formulation of the lazy guess your neighbour’s input (LGYNI) game, however, quantum theory, including the quantum switch, does not violate the standard causal inequality when probabilities are computed solely from local instruments. In this work, we study an extended control-assisted operational protocol in which the control system of the quantum switch is measured and used to define the task output. We compare increasingly expressive strategy classes, including single-qubit SU(2) operations, product target-ancilla operations, and entangling Cartan-decomposed two-qubit operations with generalized POVMs. Restricted models saturate or remain below the $3/4$ fixed-order benchmark, whereas the optimized Cartan + ancilla + POVM strategy reaches $P_{\mathrm{s}\mathrm{u}\mathrm{c}\mathrm{c}}^{\mathrm{e}\mathrm{x}\mathrm{t}}\approx 0.83596$, demonstrating enhanced task performance within the extended protocol. The optimized strategy remains operationally no-signaling to numerical precision and retains its extended protocol advantage under more than $25\%$ white noise admixture. These results identify the operational resources required for control-assisted quantum switch enhancement and support the view that indefinite temporal order can be used as a quantum informational resource without implying a breakdown of operational causality. Full article

In Turkish, definiteness is marked through accusative case marking -(y)I and the presence or absence of the prenominal determiner bir (one). Crucially the latter may function as an indefinite determiner depending on the context. Previous studies have shown that definiteness is a vulnerable phenomenon for Turkish heritage speakers, as they have to integrate different language modules (e.g., morphosyntax and discourse/pragmatics). This study tested 49 monolingual Turkish speakers from Türkiye and 32 heritage speakers from the USA via an acceptability judgment task. Twenty-three of the heritage speakers were first-generation, and nine were second-generation heritage speakers. The experimental stimuli were created by manipulating both the grammatical number of the object (singular bir kitap ‘one/a book’ vs. plural kitap-lar ‘books’) and whether the object was preceded by a numeric determiner (bare kitap ‘a book’ vs. non-bare beş kitap ‘five books’) to test the acceptability of the nominal’s correct definiteness marking in a subsequent sentence. The results indicate significant discrepancies between the first- and second-generation heritage speakers, indicating crucial transgenerational variation in the use of the correct form of Turkish definiteness, while the first-generation and monolingual speakers do not differ from each other. These findings suggest that the integration of morphosyntax and discourse/pragmatics in definiteness marking, a particular aspect of linguistic competence within theorizing in generative grammar, does not seem to be fully acquired by second-generation heritage speakers as a result of acquiring Turkish under heritage language conditions. Full article

Half-through truss bridges exhibit significantly different mechanical characteristics due to their open tops, necessitating special treatment for calculating their free torsional moment of inertia. This study proposes a novel method: considering the constraints of vertical web members and crossbeams on the top chord, the top chord is equivalently modeled as a continuous beam on elastic supports. An equivalent horizontal bending moment of inertia of the top chord is derived by converting the top chord to the height of the top crossbeam while maintaining equivalent stiffness based on the equivalence principle. According to the analytical formula for the torsional moment of inertia and detailed parametric analysis, the main dimensional parameters affecting the torsional stiffness of half-through truss bridges include bridge length, bridge width, and main truss height. These parameters primarily enhance the bridge’s torsional stiffness by influencing the constrained torsional moment of inertia. However, due to scale limitations and aesthetic requirements, these dimensions cannot be increased indefinitely. In such cases, besides considering weight and aesthetics, increasing the size of the chords may be considered to enhance torsional stiffness. The interactions among the various factors affecting torsional behavior are relatively complex, and more systematic research is recommended for future study. Full article

This work investigates the influence of center positioning in Radial Basis Function (RBF) collocation methods for solving two-dimensional structural problems. The study enforces equilibrium using the indefinite equations approach and evaluates different center distributions to assess their impact on solution accuracy and stability. The numerical results are compared against Finite Element Method (FEM) solutions to determine the effectiveness of the tested approaches. The findings provide insights into optimal node placement strategies, improving the reliability and applicability of RBF collocation methods in structural analysis. Full article

We develop a topological classification of admissible reconstruction operations in generative systems where extended structure is built through repeated local extension subject to compatibility constraints. Reconstruction is formalized as a feasibility-governed process rather than a dynamical or metric one, with admissibility determined by the accumulation of obstruction under composition. Using loop diagnostics, we identify global incompatibilities that are invisible to local extension rules but become unavoidable under closed composition. Under mild and realization-independent assumptions, including indefinite continuation and finite interface capacity, we show that persistent nontrivial obstruction is possible only when it is supported on codimension-2 subsets of the reconstructed domain. This result induces a small number of topological universality classes distinguished by the existence and stability of loop-detectable obstruction. The framework is model-agnostic and applies equally to discrete, combinatorial, and continuum reconstructions, providing a topological explanation for the ubiquity of codimension-2 defects in generative systems. Full article

Background: High-risk neuroblastoma (NB) is a pediatric malignancy associated with metastases and an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. Standard-of-care treatments like chemotherapy are often ineffective, which motivates the investigation of adjuvant approaches. Histotripsy is a noninvasive focused ultrasound therapy that ablates tissue through the mechanical action of bubble clouds. In addition to disruption of the targeted tumor, non-targeted lesions may exhibit growth delay after the histotripsy procedure. The primary hypothesis of this study was histotripsy-induced shifts in the tumor microenvironment will improve the response of metastatic NB to chemotherapy. Methods: Female A/J mice flanks were inoculated bilaterally with 1 × 10⁶ Neuro-2a cells. Histotripsy was applied to one tumor (200–500 mm³), with or without concurrent administration of liposomal doxorubicin (LDOX). The contralateral tumor served as a model of non-targeted distal metastases. Following treatment, tumors were monitored indefinitely for growth, or assessed after 5–7 days with flow cytometry, single-cell RNA sequencing, and immunohistochemistry. Results: Histotripsy alone delayed the growth of treated and contralateral tumors relative to controls (p = 0.01 and p < 0.0001, respectively) and increased CD8⁺ T and CD11b⁺ cells (p < 0.05 for both comparisons). Further, NB cells in targeted and contralateral tumors exhibited a decrease in c-Myc expression and cell-cycle activity, and upregulation of interferon and apoptosis pathways. Histotripsy combined with LDOX had the longest delay in tumor growth (p < 0.0001 vs. untreated controls; p < 0.001 vs. other arms) and greatest expression of CD8⁺ and MOMA staining. Conclusions: These findings indicate that histotripsy induces a systemic antitumor immune response that potentiates chemotherapy efficacy in this model of metastatic NB. Full article

Addition theorems have been indispensable tools for the reduction of quantum transition amplitudes. They are normally utilized at the start of the process to move the angular dependence within plane waves, Coulomb potentials, and the like, into a sum over spherical harmonics that allows the angular integration to be carried out. These have historically been “two-range” addition theorems, characterized by the two-fold notation $r_{>}=Max[r_1,r_2]$ and $r_{<}=Min[r_1,r_2]$ and comprising a single infinite series. More recently, “one-range” addition theorems have been created that have no such piecewise notation, but at the cost of the introduction of another infinite series. We use a very different approach to derive an infinite set of addition theorems for Slater orbitals, hydrogenic and Hylleraas wave functions, and so on, that retain the one-range variable dependence but have, at worst, a finite second series rather than an infinite one. In addition, unlike previous addition theorems, they are applicable to more than one coordinate system. One of these addition theorems may also be used for Yukawa-like functions that may appear late in the reduction of amplitude integrals, and we show its utility for an integral that has stubbornly defied reduction to analytic form for nearly sixty years. Finally, we craft indefinite integrals of 15 half-integer Macdonald functions multiplied by (inverse) powers and negative exponentials containing squares of the integration variable. Full article

Dogs represent a promising animal model for analyzing human neurodegenerative diseases, owing to their similarities to humans in nervous system architecture and behavioral phenotypes. Neural stem cells (NSCs) serve as a highly valuable in vitro experimental model for investigating neurogenesis, neurodegenerative disease pathogenesis, and neural molecular biology; however, studies on immortalized canine neural stem cell lines remain scarce. Herein, we successfully established an immortalized canine hippocampal neural stem cell line that can be continuously passaged in vitro via SV40 large T antigen (SV40LT) viral infection and subsequent cellular transformation. Both the immortalized NSCs and their normal parental counterparts differentiated into neuronal and glial lineages under induced differentiation conditions. Normal canine hippocampal NSCs can be passaged for no more than 10 generations, whereas the immortalized line can be passaged indefinitely while maintaining a normal karyotype. This immortalized canine hippocampal NSC line can act as a critical experimental tool for future research into neural differentiation mechanisms and stem cell-derived therapeutic strategies for neurological disorders in dogs. Full article

Inhaled Treprostinil is the primary treatment of pulmonary hypertension related to interstitial lung disease (PH-ILD). Despite treatment effectiveness in clinical trials, the real-world safety and tolerability of this therapy remains unclear. We conducted a multicenter, retrospective review of adults with PH-ILD who were prescribed inhaled treprostinil. We assessed clinical outcomes, 6 min walk distance (6MWD) and changes in natriuretic peptides (BNP, NT-proBNP), as well as medication tolerance. Eighty-three patients met the inclusion criteria. The 6MWD data was collected but a limited number of patients had results within close proximity to initiation of inhalational treprostinil with only seven patients having assessments within the 3 months prior to initiation as well as 3 months post therapy. Limited 6MWD data is likely due, in part, to coinciding with the COVID pandemic, limiting face-to-face interactions and exercise testing. The majority of our subjects, 63%, had an absolute improvement in their BNP level, over a mean duration of 170 days. However, no significant difference was detected between baseline and follow-up natriuretic peptide levels. Adherence was assessed and the majority (77%) of patients remained on therapy at the time of censoring, with three-quarters (75%) meeting the target dose. Of the 15 patients intolerant to nebulized treprostinil who were transitioned to a dry powder inhaler, the majority (87%) were able to tolerate the other formulation. The medication was well-tolerated with a large percentage of patients remaining on therapy indefinitely and reaching the targeted therapeutic dose. Full article

Physical-layer security (PLS) provides an information-theoretic framework for securing wireless communications by exploiting channel and signal-structure asymmetries, thereby avoiding reliance on computational hardness assumptions. Within this setting, lattice codes and their algebraic constructions play a central role in achieving secrecy over Gaussian and fading wiretap channels. This article offers a comprehensive survey of lattice-based wiretap coding, covering foundational concepts in algebraic number theory, Construction A over number fields, and the structure of modular and unimodular lattice families. We review key secrecy metrics, including secrecy gain, flatness factor, and equivocation, and consolidate classical and recent results to provide a unified perspective that links wireless-channel models with their underlying algebraic lattice structures. In addition, we review a newly proposed family of p-modular lattices in Khodaiemehr, H., 2018 constructed from cyclotomic fields $\mathbb{Q}\left({\zeta }_p\right)$ for primes $p\equiv 1\left(\mathrm{mod}4\right)$ via a generalized Construction A framework. We characterize their algebraic and geometric properties and establish a non-existence theorem showing that such constructions cannot be extended to prime-power cyclotomic fields $\mathbb{Q}\left({\zeta }_{p^n}\right)$ with $n>1$. Finally, motivated by the fact that these p-modular lattices naturally yield mixed-signature structures for which classical theta series diverge, we integrate recent advances on indefinite theta series and modular completions. Drawing on Vignéras’ differential framework and generalized error functions, we outline how modularly completed indefinite theta series provide a principled analytic foundation for defining secrecy-relevant quantities in the indefinite setting. Overall, this work serves both as a survey of algebraic lattice techniques for PLS and as a source of new design insights for secure wireless communication systems. Full article