Academic literature on the topic 'Refill synchronization'

Tip decomposition is a crucial kernel for mining dense subgraphs in bipartite networks, with applications in spam detection, analysis of affiliation networks etc. It creates a hierarchy of vertex-induced subgraphs with varying densities determined by the participation of vertices in butterflies (2, 2-bicliques). To build the hierarchy, existing algorithms iteratively follow a delete-update (peeling) process: deleting vertices with the minimum number of butterflies and correspondingly updating the butterfly count of their 2-hop neighbors. The need to explore 2-hop neighborhood renders tip-decomposition computationally very expensive. Furthermore, the inherent sequentiality in peeling only minimum butterfly vertices makes derived parallel algorithms prone to heavy synchronization. In this paper, we propose a novel parallel tip-decomposition algorithm - REfine CoarsE-grained Independent Tasks (RECEIPT) that relaxes the peeling order restrictions by partitioning the vertices into multiple independent subsets that can be concurrently peeled. This enables RECEIPT to simultaneously achieve a high degree of parallelism and dramatic reduction in synchronizations. Further, RECEIPT employs a hybrid peeling strategy along with other optimizations that drastically reduce the amount of wedge exploration and execution time. We perform detailed experimental evaluation of RECEIPT on a shared-memory multicore server. It can process some of the largest publicly available bipartite datasets orders of magnitude faster than the state-of-the-art algorithms - achieving up to 1100× and 64× reduction in the number of thread synchronizations and traversed wedges, respectively. Using 36 threads, RECEIPT can provide up to 17.1× self-relative speedup.

Synchronization plays an important role in strategic planning, especially for large multi-business firms, in avoiding parallel duplicate efforts and improving synergies. The focus is on (technology) roadmapping as it is a simple, flexible, and popular method that covers three core dimensions relating to synchronization in strategic planning: function (horizontal), system hierarchy (vertical), and time. This research aims to identify the enablers of the synchronization process, and to develop, test and refine a Synchronization Assessment Framework (SAF). The adopted methodology is a process approach, consisting of three phases: development (literature review), improvement (in-dept case study), and validation (case studies). As a result, five groups and 13 enablers or critical factors of synchronization processes were identified, and a SAF was developed, leveraging the identified enablers and the roadmapping structure (know-why, know-what and know-know), leading to practical guidelines for a company.

The article deals with the systems of phase synchronization of radio engineering devices of communication technology. The purpose of the article is theoretical research in the direction of development, analysis and improvement of known and synthesis of new phase synchronization circuits, characterized by high noise immunity, accuracy and speed with simplicity of design. The problem is solved to investigate the possibilities of closed and combined synchronization systems for operation under conditions of phase instability of generators in a communication channel against the background of external additive Gaussian noise and Doppler frequency shift. The following results were obtained. The analysis of closed-type synchronization systems during operation under the conditions of phase instability of generators is carried out and its inconsistency is shown in order to minimize the phase error variance and increase the dynamics during carrier frequency monitoring. The process of synthesis of open communication in the combined synchronization system is refined and analytical dependences are offered, which allow to refine the technique of synthesis of open communication for the combined synchronization system with regard to the phase instability of the generators against the background of the influence of the adducts. Conclusions. Increasing the noise bandwidth of the proportional-integrating filter of the closed-loop phase-in-phase synchronization system to the parameters of the ideal filter impairs the dynamics of the specified system. For the combined synchronization system, in the conditions of phase instability of the generators, an increase in the noise bandwidth of the input signal can be achieved by applying a closed-loop proportional-integrating filter and by making appropriate selection of parameters of the transfer function of the link of the open channel. In the conditions of phase instability of the generators in the combined system of synchronization by selecting the parameters of the proportional-integrating filter, it is possible to provide the necessary dynamics of the system and to achieve the optimal value of the dispersion of the phase error in it. Taking into account Doppler noise under conditions of phase instability of generators for a closed-type synchronization system and a combined synchronization system requires a reduction of the optimal value of the noise bandwidth.

Purpose Previous work on the temporal coordination between gesture and speech found that the prominence in gesture coordinates with speech prominence. In this study, the authors investigated the anchoring regions in speech and pointing gesture that align with each other. The authors hypothesized that (a) in contrastive focus conditions, the gesture apex is anchored in the intonation peak and (b) the upcoming prosodic boundary influences the timing of gesture and intonation movements. Method Fifteen Catalan speakers pointed at a screen while pronouncing a target word with different metrical patterns in a contrastive focus condition and followed by a phrase boundary. A total of 702 co-speech deictic gestures were acoustically and gesturally analyzed. Results Intonation peaks and gesture apexes showed parallel behavior with respect to their position within the accented syllable: They occurred at the end of the accented syllable in non–phrase-final position, whereas they occurred well before the end of the accented syllable in phrase-final position. Crucially, the position of intonation peaks and gesture apexes was correlated and was bound by prosodic structure. Conclusions The results refine the phonological synchronization rule (McNeill, 1992), showing that gesture apexes are anchored in intonation peaks and that gesture and prosodic movements are bound by prosodic phrasing.

Abstract Underwater monitoring activities are crucial for the preservation of marine ecosystems. Currently, scuba divers are involved in data collection campaigns that are repetitive, dangerous, and expensive. This article describes the application of Information Communication Technology (ICT) tools to underwater visual data for monitoring purposes. The data refer to a Posidonia Oceanica survey mission carried out by a scuba diver using a Smart Dive Scooter equipped with visual acquisition and acoustic localization systems. An acoustic-based strategy for geo-referencing of the optical dataset is reported. It exploits the synchronization between the audio track extracted from a camera and the transponder pings adopted for the acoustic positioning. The positioning measurements are employed within an extended Kalman filter to estimate the diver's path during the mission. A visual odometry algorithm is implemented within the filter to refine the navigation state estimation of the diver with respect to the acoustic positioning only. Moreover, a smoothing step based on the Rauch-Tung-Striebel smoother is applied to further improve the estimated diver's positions. Finally, the article reports the results of two different data processing for monitoring applications. The first one is an image mosaicking obtained by concatenating subsequent frames, whereas the second one refers to a qualitative distribution of the Posidonia Oceanica over the mission area accomplished through an image segmentation process. The two outcomes are plotted over a satellite image of the surveyed area, showing that the proposed process is an effective tool capable of facilitating divers in their monitoring and inspection activities.

6145 Background: The timely identification of available clinical trials by an oncologist for a patient represents a critical initial step in the research process. The challenges in supporting this step are threefold: (1) Large cancer centers may have more than 200 active clinical trials; (2) The accrual status of any particular clinical trial can change frequently; (3) Oncologists have limited time in their schedule to seek out clinical trial information. We hypothesized that delivering up-to-date clinical trial information directly to a handheld device would address the combination of these three challenges, and we utilized an iterative design process to refine the format and organization of this information. Methods: Web pages containing clinical trial information and optimized for a handheld display were created using an existing database and standard web development software. AvantGo software was utilized for transferring these web pages to handheld devices upon synchronization. Feedback on the initial design was obtained from four oncologists based in our community network locations. Two subsequent designs were developed based on both this feedback and encountered technical constraints. Results: Four major design changes emerged during our iterative design process. These changes included: (1) The organization of trial information based on network location; (2) The improvement of trial disease categories; (3) The shortening of trial titles; and (4) The inclusion of descriptive trial summaries for all trials. Conclusions: A demonstration of the handheld clinical trial information that is available to over 60 oncologists in our extended network will be provided. The merits of this approach as well as the lessons learned from our design process should be considered by other cancer centers seeking new methods for the distribution of clinical trial information. No significant financial relationships to disclose.

Abstract Abstract 2989 Sequential drug combination is a rational approach to maximize tumor killing and minimize side effects in cancer therapy. However, this is rarely achieved because the mechanism of drug action is often incompletely understood and the cell cycle specificity of individual drugs unknown. Dysregulation of cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK)4 and CDK6 is common in human cancer and precedes unrestrained proliferation of tumor cells in multiple myeloma (MM) patients, especially during refractory relapse. This highlights the critical importance of targeting CDK4/CDK6 in MM. We have now developed, for the first time, a novel therapeutic strategy to selectively inhibit CDK4/CDK6 in sequential combination with clinically relevant cytotoxic drugs for maximal tumor killing at reduced doses in MM. CDK4 and CDK6 promote reentry and progression of the cell cycle through G1. PD 0332991, the only known CDK4/CDK6-specific inhibitor, is potent, reversible and bioavailable. We showed that inhibition of CDK4/CDK6 with PD 0332991 induces early G1 arrest and upon release from the G1 block, synchronous progression to S phase and G2/M with exceptional precision and efficiency in MM cells in vitro and in animal models. This provides a unique means to determine the cell cycle targeting specificity of individual compounds for optimal combination. Simultaneous analysis of BrdU pulse-labeling (30 minutes) and DNA content per cell reveals that bortezomib, a reversible proteasome inhibitor; carfilzomib (PR-171), an irreversible selective inhibitor of the proteasom; and its oral analog ONX-0912 (PR-047) all preferentially target MM cells synchronized into S phase over those arrested in G1, but not cells in G2/M. On this basis, killing of myeloma cells by proteasome inhibitors is markedly enhanced in prolonged G1 arrest induced by PD 0332991 and further augmented during synchronous entry into and progression through S phase upon release from the G1 block, in vitro and in vivo in the native bone marrow niches. Induction of early G1 arrest by PD 0332991 requires Rb, the substrate of CDK4 and CDK6, but not p53. Importantly, the increase in carfilzomib, ONX-0912 or bortezomib mediated killing after S phase synchronization significantly surpasses the enrichment of S phase cells. It is in fact proportional to the time of prior G1 arrest. Kinetics analyses of global gene expression patterns, specific RNA and protein levels and functional shRNA interference show that prolonging early G1 arrest leads to time-dependent uncoupling of gene expression from the cell cycle. PD 0332991 withdraw rapidly restores the CDK4 and CDK6 catalytic activity and scheduled expression of cell cycle genes, hence synchronous progression to S phase and mitosis. This includes upregulation of cyclin A synthesis and Skp2 mediated ubiquitin-proteasome degradation of p27 for S phase entry, mini chromosome maintenance(MCM)s and thymidine kinase for DNA replication, and genes critical for G2/M checkpoint control and mitosis. However, it fails to fully reverse the metabolic impairment (altered glucose, nucleotide and ATP metabolism) induced in prolonged early G1 arrest. This culminates in the loss of IRF-4 required for myeloma survival and selective gain of pro-apoptotic Bim function in G1 arrest and Noxa in S phase in synergy with carfilzomib and bortezomib, which lowers the threshold for activation of the intrinsic apoptosis pathway. Selective inhibition of CDK4/CDK6 in sequential combination therapy thus not only halts tumor cell proliferation but also potently induces synergistic tumor killing. This sequential combination therapy has been implemented in a multi-center phase 1/2 clinical trial targeting CDK4/6 with PD 0332991 in combination with bortezomib and dexamethasone in relapsed refractory MM. Phase 1 data indicate that PD 0332991 is well tolerated, and directly and completely inhibits CDK4/CDK6 and the cell cycle in tumor cells in MM patients with promising clinical efficacy. Evidence from phase 2 trials of carfilzomib indicates that it is also well tolerated. The peripheral neuropathy commonly observed with bortezomib appears to be less severe and less frequent. Selective combination with carfilzomib or the oral agent ONX-0912 thus represents a promising alternative to refine targeting CDK4/6 in sequential combination therapy for multiple myeloma and potentially other cancers. Disclosures: Off Label Use: PD 0332991 is a cell cycle CDK4/CDK6 inhibitor Carfilzomib is a proteasome inhibitor. Kirk:Onyx: Employment, Equity Ownership. Randolph:Pfizer: Employment, Equity Ownership. Niesvizky:Celgene: Consultancy, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Onyx: Consultancy, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Millennium: Consultancy, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to enhance the readers’ understanding of the domain of talent management and employee engagement, and how the former culminates in the latter, specifically as a tool for retention of employees. The paper also attempts to probe and aid readers in understanding of the domain of talent management and employee engagement, specifically as a tool for retention of employees. Design/methodology/approach The paper is based on secondary research in the areas of talent management practices, employee engagement and talent retention. The authors have reviewed the existing body of work on these topics in order to arrive at an analysis of the practice of talent management and employee engagement and to successively measure its impact on the retention of employees. In order to aid the endeavor to bring some clarity to and explore the trends in talent management, the authors have based this paper on a systematic review of the existing literature which seeks to examine the modern thought process and evidence. Current examples are drawn from many leading companies and their practices are emphasized for better understanding. Various drivers responsible for engaging and retaining talent are studied by reviewing the existing literature. After analyzing the existing literature, the authors have arrived at talent retention and engagement practices that may aid and assist industry practitioners and policy makers in designing and implementing successful talent management initiatives. The authors have proposed a model for arriving at improved retention from talent management practices. Findings One of the most effective tools in ensuring that employees stay engaged and committed to their work is talent management. This sense of engagement or commitment toward their work ensures in turn that these employees stay with the organization in the long run. As the authors have begun analyzing the costs associated with recruitment, selection and the opportunity cost related to attrition, organizations have been concentrating their talent management efforts in the direction of retention. The paper concludes that a synchronization of talent management practices and employee engagement initiatives leads to improved talent retention and proposes a model to this end. Research limitations/implications Owing to the fact that the paper is conceptual, the model and hypotheses the authors arrive at must be empirically tested by relevant stakeholders in the organization, specifically the stakeholders specializing in the area of talent management, in order to add further weight to the literature. Practical implications Derived from an extensive study of current and impending talent management strategies, the findings may aid organizations and policy makers to develop and refine talent management practices in order to engage human capital, with the ulterior aim of talent retention – a concern that plagues most contemporary organizations. Originality/value Preempting or preventing attrition is a priority in several organizations, and more often, in some industries as a whole. The authors examine how talent management practices can contribute to the efforts in preempting or preventing attrition in organizations. Adding to the existing literature on talent management, the paper explores the areas of talent management which directly affect employee engagement and in turn make a difference in talent retention. This link connecting talent management practices with retention deserves a greater amount of investigation, which the paper explores.

This chapter describes the fundamental concepts of continuous-time chaotic dynamical systems so as to make the book self-contained and readable by fairly unfamiliar people with using simple chaotic systems and understanding their chaotic properties, but also by experts who desire to refine their knowledge regarding chaos theory. It will also define the sense in which a chaotic system is suitable for real-world applications such as encryption.

A standard high-solids vessel (SHSV) concept design approach using pulse jet mixers (PJM) has been proposed by the US Department of Energy (DOE) for the Hanford Tank Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) as a potential replacement for several vessels that will be used to process highly radioactive waste. To assist with the evaluation of the SHSV concept, at DOE’s direction, the WTP Project recently completed qualification testing of the SHSV PJM mixing system to verify the design. Testing of the SHSV design, conducted at full scale, was split into two phases. The first phase of testing developed PJM controls that supported all operational modes under a set of most adverse fluid conditions. The second phase of testing used the PJM operating strategy, established during the first phase, to perform qualification testing to verify that the mixing system design supports the transfer, de-inventory, throughput, and sampling functional requirements of the SHSV. The different control methods that were used to operate PJMs in simulants exhibiting Newtonian and non-Newtonian rheological properties with high solids loading are presented. The PJM system of the SHSV uses six pulse tubes distributed in a circular array. Each pulse tube (3000 liters nominal volume) is connected to a jet pump pair (JPP) by means of an air link line. The JPP powers the PJM operation by applying a vacuum to refill the PJM (suction phase), pressurizing the PJM to discharge the pulse tube content at a target velocity (drive phase), and releasing the compressed air to allow the PJM to depressurize into a ventilation system (vent phase) designed for contaminated air. A PJM control system was developed to maximize the PJM operation and minimize potential impact to the structural integrity of the vessel. The experimental results showed effective control of the system parameters. The system response demonstrated reliable control of the drive set pressure, the drive time, and synchronization. The PJM control system design also proved robust in mobilizing settled solids.