Abstract: The present disclosure provides compositions and methods for sensing a target substance of interest in the environment and inducing gene expression in response thereto, useful for detection of biological and chemical agents and environmental pollutants.

Abstract: Described are polypeptide analogs of parathyroid hormone (PTH) that include an unnatural amino acid substitution at positions 7 or 8 from the N-terminus of the polypeptide. Also described are pharmaceutical compositions useful for treating hypoparathyroidism that contain the analogs and methods of using the analogs to treat hypoparathyroidism.

Abstract: Compositions and methods for reducing the level of nornicotine and N?-nitrosonornicotine (NNN) in Nicotiana plants and plant parts thereof are provided. The compositions comprise isolated polynucleotides and polypeptides for cytochrome P450s that are involved in the metabolic conversion of nicotine to nornicotine in these plants. Expression cassettes, vectors, plants, and plant parts thereof comprising inhibitory sequences that target expression or function of the disclosed cytochrome P450 polypeptides are also provided. Methods for the use of these novel sequences to inhibit expression or function of cytochrome P450 polypeptides involved in this metabolic conversion are also provided. The methods find use in the production of tobacco products that have reduced levels of nornicotine and its carcinogenic metabolite, NNN, and thus reduced carcinogenic potential for individuals consuming these tobacco products or exposed to secondary smoke derived from these products.

Abstract: An apparatus for manufacturing a thermoplastic resin material, including: a mold for molding a base material containing a thermoplastic resin into a predetermined shape; and a transfer mechanism that places the base material in the mold, wherein the transfer mechanism includes a detection mechanism that detects a state of the base material, and a controlling unit that controls operation of the mold and the transfer mechanism.

Abstract: SphericRTC provides real-time 360-degree video communication, which allows the viewer to observe the environment in any direction from the camera location. This more allows users to more-efficiently exchange information and can be beneficial in the real-time setting. The system selects representations of 360-degree frames to allow efficient, content-adaptive delivery. The system performs joint content and bitrate adaptation in real-time by offloading expensive transformation operations to a GPU. The system demonstrates that the multiple sub-components: viewport feedback, representation selection, and joint content and bitrate adaptation, can be effectively integrated within a single framework. Compared to a baseline implementation, views in SphericRTC have consistently higher visual quality. The median Viewport-PSNR of such views is 2.25 dB higher than views in the baseline system.

Abstract: Disclosed herein are systems and methods for identifying and mitigating Flush-based cache attacks. The systems and methods can include adding a zombie bit to a cache line. The zombie bit can be used to track the status of cache hits and misses to the flushed line. A line that is invalidated due to a Flush-Caused Invalidation can be marked as a zombie line by marking the zombie bit as valid. If another hit, or access request, is made to the cache line, data retrieved from memory can be analyzed to determine if the hit is benign or is a potential attack. If the retrieved data is the same as the cache data, then the line can be marked as a valid zombie line. Any subsequent hit to the valid zombie line can be marked as a potential attack. Hardware- and software-based mitigation protocols are also described.

Abstract: Methods, compositions, and systems for steeping, propagation and fermentation, particularly large-scale operations for production of starch and ethanol and fermentation product streams are provided. Addition of mycotoxin mitigating enzymes or microorganisms expressing mycotoxin mitigating enzymes to steeping, propagation, and/or fermentation tanks, and/or to post-fermentation product streams, mitigates mycotoxin levels in fermentation co-products obtained from mycotoxin contaminated feedstocks.

Abstract: A nucleoside that is more practical for RNA pharmaceuticals and other applications and use thereof is represented by formula (1) or (2) below, or a salt thereof: (In formula (1), R1 represents a hydrogen atom, a hydroxyl group, a hydroxyl group in which a hydrogen atom is substituted by an alkyl group or alkenyl group, or a protected group, and in formula (2), X represents a halogen atom. In formula (1) and formula (2), R2 and R3 may be the same or different, and each represents a hydrogen atom etc., R4 represents NHR7 (in which R7 represents a hydrogen atom etc., and B represent represents any of a purine-9-yl group, 2-oxo-pyrimidin-1-yl group, substituted purine-9-yl group or substituted 2-oxo-pyrimidin-1-yl group).

Abstract: Disclosed is a highly reliable physically unclonable function technology. In a tunneling-based memory device disclosed herein, a conductive layer (e.g., Al2O3) is stacked on a bottom electrode, an oxide layer (e.g., TiOx) is stacked on the conductive layer, and a top electrode is stacked on the oxide layer. The tunneling-based memory device has a structure of a memristor crossbar array and has a current-voltage characteristic independent of a temperature that is an external environmental variable due to a tunneling mechanism when constructing an unpredictable physically unclonable function (PUF) of hardware as a memory semiconductor array.

Abstract: Disclosed are compositions and methods for the co-delivery of ribonucleic acids and interferon binding proteins. Compositions include mineral coated microparticles having a mineral layer, a ribonucleic acid, and an interferon binding protein. Ribonucleic acids and interferon binding proteins can be adsorbed to the mineral layer, can be incorporated into the mineral Layer, and combinations thereof. Also disclosed are methods for co-delivery of ribonucleic acids and interferon binding proteins and methods for treating inflammatory diseases using mineral coated microparticles having a mineral layer to provide co-delivery of ribonucleic acids and interferon binding proteins.

Abstract: Provided is a method for mapping a neural area involved in speech processing, including applying a plurality of recording electrodes to a surface of a cortex of a human subject, presenting a plurality of auditory stimuli to the subject wherein some of the plurality of stimuli are speech sounds and others of the plurality of auditory stimuli are non-speech sounds, recording brain activity during the presenting of the plurality of auditory stimuli, and identifying one or more brain areas wherein activity changes more after presentation of speech sounds than it does after presentation of non-speech sounds, wherein the human subject does not speak during the presenting and the recording. Also provided is a method for mapping a neural area involved in speech production wherein the human subject does not speak during presenting speech stimuli and recording neural activity.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a composite comprising a metal alloy matrix; where the metal alloy matrix comprises aluminum in an amount greater than 50 atomic percent; a first metal and a second metal; where the first metal is different from the second metal; and where the metal alloy matrix comprises a low temperature melting phase and a high temperature melting phase; where the low temperature melting phase melts at a temperature that is lower than the high temperature melting phase; and a contracting constituent; where the contracting constituent exerts a compressive force on the metal alloy matrix at a temperature between a melting point of the low temperature melting phase and a melting point of the high temperature melting phase or below the melting points of the high and low temperature melting phases.

Abstract: Disclosed are a defense method and a model of deep learning model aiming at adversarial attacks in the technical field of image recognition, which makes full use of the internal relationship between the adversarial samples and the initial samples, and transforms the adversarial samples into common samples by constructing a filter layer in front of the input layer of the deep learning model; the parameters of the filter layer are trained by using the adversarial attack samples, so as to improve the ability of the model to resist adversarial attack; then the trained filter layer is combined with the learning model after the adversarial training, and a deep learning model with strong robustness and high classification accuracy is obtained, which ensures that the recognition ability of the initial sample is not reduced while resisting the adversarial attacks.

Abstract: A system, method and computer program product for detecting, by at least a first sensor, a position and/or movement of an object at or on at least first window, determining, if the position and/or movement of the object detected by the at least first sensor represents an intention by a vehicle occupant to move the at least first window, and responsive to a determination that the position and/or movement of the of the object represents an intention by the vehicle occupant to move the at least first window, cause the at least first window controller to initiate a movement of the at least first window accordingly.

Abstract: The present invention concerns the use of compounds and compositions for the treatment or prevention of Flavivirus infections, such as dengue virus infections and Zika virus infections. Aspects of the invention include methods for treating or preventing Flavivirus virus infection, such as dengue virus and Zika virus infection, by administering a compound or composition of the invention, to a subject in need thereof; methods for inhibiting Flavivirus infections, such as dengue virus and Zika virus infections, in a cell in vitro or in vivo; pharmaceutical compositions; packaged dosage formulations; and kits useful for treating or preventing Flavivirus infections, such as dengue virus and Zika virus infections.

Abstract: Coverage cluster-based beamforming in a wireless node in a wireless communications system (WCS) is provided. In a conventional beamforming system, a wireless node (e.g., base station) periodically emits multiple reference beams, each steered toward a predefined direction, to provide a blanket coverage in a coverage area. Contrary to providing the blanket coverage, a wireless node disclosed herein is configured to provide targeted coverage in a coverage area. Specifically, the wireless node is configured to dynamically group multiple coverage points (e.g., user equipment, high user density area, etc.) into multiple coverage clusters. Accordingly, the wireless node can form and steer a respective reference beam toward each of the coverage clusters.

Abstract: An image display device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a display panel, a touch sensor structure and an antenna electrode layer. The display panel includes a panel substrate, and an electrode structure and an insulation structure stacked on the panel substrate. The touch sensor structure is disposed on the display panel. The antenna electrode layer is disposed on the display panel at the same level as that of the touch sensor structure and at least partially overlaps the electrode structure of the display panel in a thickness direction. The antennal electrode layer is disposed in consideration of an electrode construction of the display panel and the touch sensor structure to provide a thin-layered image display device with high reliability.

Abstract: Disclosed are methods of encoding and decoding an audio signal using side information, and an encoder and a decoder for performing the methods. The method of encoding an audio signal using side information includes identifying an input signal, the input signal being an original audio signal, extracting side information from the input signal using a learning model trained to extract side information from a feature vector of the input signal, encoding the input signal, and generating a bitstream by combining the encoded input signal and the side information.

Abstract: A heating system for a vehicle wing element, wherein the wing element is moveably arranged between an open position and a closed position relative to a vehicle main structure. The heating system includes a heating element at a contact surface between the wing element and the main structure and a control unit for activating the heating element. The system further includes a wing element handle sensor and a wing element latch switch. The switch is operatively connected to the control unit for sending a signal indicative of its state to the control unit. The control unit is arranged to send an activation signal to the heating element when the control unit receives a signal from the wing element handle sensor that the handle is being pulled and a signal from the wing element latch switch that the wing element is closed.

Abstract: This document provides polymer compositions (e.g., biopolymer compositions) and coatings. For example, methods and materials related to polymer compositions (e.g., biopolymer compositions) and coatings as well as methods and materials for making and using such compositions (e.g., biopolymer compositions) and coatings are provided.