Race-free clocking of CMOS pipelines using a single global clock

A novel, single-phase, race-free CMOS circuit clocking technique, which provides and uses complementary logic, is presented. The clock can be driven by a sinusoidal waveform. This avoids any requirement for transmitting the very-high-frequency components associated with fast clock edges. Such circuits are therefore less sensitive to clock distortion caused by transmission-line effects     

Multi‐Nonvolatile State Resistive Switching Arising from Ferroelectricity and Oxygen Vacancy Migration

Resistive switching phenomena form the basis of competing memory technologies. Among them, resistive switching, originating from oxygen vacancy migration (OVM), and ferroelectric switching offer two promising approaches. OVM in oxide films/heterostructures can exhibit high/low resistive state via conducting filament forming/deforming, while the resistive switching of ferroelectric tunnel junctions (FTJs) arises from barrier height or width variation while ferroelectric polarization reverses between asymmetric electrodes. Here the authors demonstrate a coexistence of OVM and ferroelectric induced resistive switching in a BaTiO₃ FTJ by comparing BaTiO₃ with SrTiO₃ based tunnel junctions. This coexistence results in two distinguishable loops with multi‐nonvolatile resistive states. The primary loop originates from the ferroelectric switching. The second loop emerges at a voltage close to the SrTiO₃ switching voltage, showing OVM being its origin. BaTiO₃ based devices with controlled oxygen vacancies enable us to combine the benefits of both OVM and ferroelectric tunneling to produce multistate nonvolatile memory devices.     

The pericentromeric inversion, inv (6)(p25q13), is a novel diagnostic marker in chondromyxoid fibroma

Chondromyxoid fibroma is a benign bone tumor that arises most commonly in the metaphysis of long bones in young adults. The cytogenetic features of this tumor are not well known. In this study, four chondromyxoid fibromas were karyotyped after short-term cell culture. All of the tumors contained clonal rearrangements of chromosome 6, and each of these rearrangements involved band 6q13. Two tumors contained a pericentromeric inversion, inv (6)(p25q13), which was described recently in chondromyxoid fibroma. 6q13 rearrangements are not associated with other types of bone and soft tissue tumors, and the inv (6)(p25q13) is reported only in chondromyxoid fibroma. Hence, this cytogenetic marker might be helpful in distinguishing chondromyxoid fibroma from chondrosarcoma and other histologic mimics. The consistent occurrence of 6q13 rearrangements suggests a specific oncogenic mechanism in chondromyxoid fibroma, most likely involving oncogene activation.     

The up-regulation of IL-6 and IL-8 in human endothelial cells by activated protein C

The protein C/protein S anticoagulant pathway has been proposed to be a common link between coagulation and inflammation. Studies have suggested that a component of the anticoagulant pathway, activated protein C (APC), may play a role in the inflammatory response by modulating the effects of cytokines such as TNF and by blocking neutrophil activation. Cytokines are known to be intimately involved in the inflammatory response and to function in part to restore hemostatic balance. To begin to delineate what role APC may have in the inflammatory response, we have investigated the effect of APC on the production of the proinflammatory cytokines IL-6 and IL-8 in primary HUVEC, human microvascular endothelial cells, and human coronary artery endothelial cells. Our results have demonstrated that physiologic concentrations of APC significantly up-regulated the production of both IL-6 and IL-8. This increase, which was seen at both the RNA and protein level, was not due to either thrombin or LPS contamination of the APC preparation. Additional studies also showed that the APC-mediated up-regulation of IL-6 and IL-8 was IL-1 independent. Although neither purified protein C nor protein S alone had an effect on cytokine production, protein S, the cofactor for APC, significantly enhanced the ability of APC to up-regulate IL-6/IL-8 production. These results provide further evidence for a role for APC in the inflammatory response.     

Combined cognitive behavioral therapy and bupropion for the treatment of problematic on-line game play in adolescents with major depressive disorder

The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the efficacy of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in combination with bupropion for treatment of problematic on-line game play in adolescents with co-morbid major depressive disorder. Sixty-five depressed adolescents with excessive on-line game play were randomly assigned to a CBT group (CBT-Med group (N = 32)) or a clinical control group (Med group (N = 33)). Measures of severity of internet use, depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, life satisfaction and school adaptation were assessed at baseline, after the 8 week intervention, and at the end of a 4 week follow-up post-treatment period. Young Internet Addiction Scale scores in the CBT-Med group were reduced compared to those of the Med group, but there was no significant difference in the change of depression scores between two groups. The mean anxiety scores in the CBT-Med group did not change while those in the Med group were increased. The mean life satisfaction scores in the CBT-Med group were increased compared to those of the Med group. CBT in combination with bupropion may be effective for the treatment of depressed adolescents with on-line game addiction, particularly in reducing on-line game play and anxiety, as well as in improving life satisfaction.     

Disentangling mark/point interaction in marked-point processes

In many spatial situations, not only do the point locations of mark variables (e.g. tree heights) play a key role in the underlying process generating mechanism, but there can be interdependence between the marks and points themselves. Although Monte Carlo frequency-domain analyses can separate mark and point structure, theoretical advances for marks have so far related to the conditional mark spectrum based on a given point structure. A ‘discrepancy function’ is therefore developed which isolates the spatial structure of the marks alone, and involves a harmonic decomposition of the mark frequencies. The concept is introduced via various simulated examples based on mark cosine waves and thinned point processes, with particular attention given to the construction of sequential and simultaneous search procedures for developing parameter estimates. The procedure is then applied to Spanish daily ozone data with missing values, a spatial growth-interaction process, and a classic longleaf pine data set from the Wade Tract in Georgia, USA.     

A WSI approach towards defect/fault-tolerant reconfigurable serialsystems

A superchip for realizing ultra-large-scale integrated (ULSI) systems based on a wafer-scale integrated (WSI) circuit concept, which incorporates defect/fault tolerance and system reconfiguration, is introduced. The key features of the central architectural component, a large crossbar switch matrix, are described. A prototype has been fabricated in silicon technology. Hypothetical processor examples demonstrate the power of the superchip approach, and design/performance figures are discussed     

Speciation and Electronic Structure of La<Subscript>1−x</Subscript>Sr<Subscript>x</Subscript>CoO<Subscript>3−δ</Subscript> During Oxygen Electrolysis

Cobalt-containing perovskite oxides are promising electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in alkaline electrolyzers. However, a lack of fundamental understanding of oxide surfaces impedes rational catalyst design for improved activity and stability. We couple electrochemical studies of epitaxial La_1?xSr_xCoO_3?δ films with in situ and operando ambient pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy to investigate the surface stoichiometry, adsorbates, and electronic structure. In situ investigations spanning electrode compositions in a humid environment indicate that hydroxyl and carbonate affinity increase with Sr content, leading to an increase in binding energy of metal core levels and the valence band edge from the formation of a surface dipole. The maximum in hydroxylation at 40% Sr is commensurate with the highest OER activity, where activity scales with greater hole carrier concentration and mobility. Operando measurements of the 20% Sr-doped oxide in alkaline electrolyte indicate that the surface stoichiometry remains constant during OER, supporting the idea that the oxide electrocatalyst is stable and behaves as a metal, with the voltage drop confined to the electrolyte. Furthermore, hydroxyl and carbonate species are present on the electrode surface even under oxidizing conditions, and may impact the availability of active sites or the binding strength of adsorbed intermediates via adsorbate–adsorbate interactions. For covalent oxides with facile charge transfer kinetics, the accumulation of hydroxyl species with oxidative potentials suggests the rate of reaction could be limited by proton transfer kinetics. This operando insight will help guide modeling of self-consistent oxide electrocatalysts, and highlights the potential importance of carbonates in oxygen electrocatalysis.     

Bupropion sustained release treatment decreases craving for video games and cue-induced brain activity in patients with Internet video game addiction.

Bupropion has been used in the treatment of patients with substance dependence based on its weak inhibition of dopamine and norepinephrine reuptake. We hypothesized that 6 weeks of bupropion sustained release (SR) treatment would decrease craving for Internet game play as well as video game cue-induced brain activity in patients with Internet video game addiction (IAG). Eleven subjects who met criteria for IAG, playing StarCraft (>30 hr/week), and eight healthy comparison subjects (HC) who had experience playing StarCraft (     

Triacetyluridine (TAU) decreases depressive symptoms and increases brain pH in bipolar patients.

Eleven patients with bipolar depression were given doses of up to 18 g per day of triacetyluridine (TAU) over 6 weeks to test the effect of uridine on symptoms of depression via Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS; Asberg, Montgomery, Perris, Schalling, & Sedvall, 1978) scores and on cellular bioenergetics using phosphorus magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (31P-MRSI). All patients and comparison participants (n = 9) completed baseline 31P-MRSI scans, and 9 patients completed posttherapy scans. The percentage changes for MADRS scores (Week 2, -23.8; Week 3, -34.9; Week 4, -42.5) and the time effects of TAU on MADRS scores (Week 2, z = -2.07, p = .039; Week 3, z = -4.28, p