This paper presents a new meta-heuristic algorithm called Playground algorithm. The Playground algorithm is designed to model social interaction amongst children, and the mechanisms and operators of the algorithm are inspired by the model of child interaction and engagement in games during a child's stay at the playground. In order to evaluate the performance of the algorithm, a series of tests were performed over a class of functions selected so that they possess properties such as: multimodality / unimodality, (non) separability, (non) differentiability, (non) convexity, existence of ridges and valleys and multidimensionality. During testing, the values of the algorithm parameters are varied, in order to determine their recommended values. The analysis was carried out with an overview of the effects of the algorithm parameters on the performance of the algorithm in the problem area, performance in the criterion domain, and the execution time.

In order to validate and demonstrate newly developed ranging techniques, a flexible test platform for signal acquisition enabling offline signal processing is generally needed. Developing such a platform becomes challenging when working with wideband (> 100MHz) signals due to the critical timing, the very high sampling rates and the huge data throughput involved. In this paper, we introduce an Ettus X310 SDR platform using custom designed logic allowing for dual-channel 400 Msps data transmission and acquisition for centimeter level ranging applications. Furthermore, we present initial measurement results as a benchmark of the platform, which show that the time delay of a 10 m cable can be estimated with high accuracy, in the order of 50 ps.

For unstructured environments, multi-leg platforms such as hexapods, introduce better stability and adaptation during the moving in a more complex environment. The common hexapod robots, which are controlled by discrete conventional microcontrollers would require new chip replacement due to I/O constraint. With an FPGA, the user can scale design and include new functionality later in the design process without buying new additional hardware. In this paper, we introduce the hybrid architecture as a combination of FPGA and microcontroller design. The goal of this work is to extend context arbitration of a fuzzy behavior-based approach for hexapod robot navigation at the FPGA device. Verilog has been used to develop FLC on FPGA. The controller algorithm is developed and implemented on FPGA Altera Cyclone IV board. An experimental evaluation of hexapod autonomous navigation at a rough terrain presents advantages of this hierarchy approach for real-time robot embedded systems.

Distribution network power flow (DNPF) is a core application of distribution management system (DMS). Two methods to implement fast DNPF are using Newton-Raphson (NR) approach and current iteration (CI) approach. In distribution systems with high penetration of renewable energy sources both methods must be able to model PV nodes correctly and efficiently. This paper explores implementations of NR DNPF and CI DNPF, their execution time and performance in networks with numerous distributed generators.

As memories are becoming a ubiquitous and indispensable part of electronic devices across all industrial domains, the importance of their reliability and fault-tolerance increases. This especially holds for safety-critical applications, which exhibit different levels of data criticality. As a consequence, recent research aims to proactively engage environmentally induced soft errors, by developing new methods for error detection, mitigation, and data recovery in the mixed-critical memories. This article presents a flexible soft error correction strategy called Redundant Parity (RP), designed to enhance existing 1oo2 architectures. RP extends a 1oo2 system's ability of fault detection by enabling the recovery of faulty data utilizing the parity bit concept. An initial evaluation of the strategy in terms of its runtime performance and memory overhead is performed and compared with other software-based mitigation strategies. The preliminary results suggest that RP is indeed a suitable soft error mitigation strategy in existing 1oo2 fail-safe systems.

The success of fundamental network tasks of traffic delivery from a source to a destination node is mainly dependent on the efficiency of the routing protocol. In mobile ad hoc networks, the effectiveness of routing protocols is additionally demanding due to the dynamic nature of network nodes. In this paper, we dealt with the exploitation of the routes generated using DSDV bellman-ford routing protocol. Through a total of 3960 network simulations with different topologies, network loads and mobility nodes, various parameters of the DSDV were considered. Our results show that there are a large number of unused routes, and techniques for improving the efficiency of routing and reducing routing overhead can be implemented.

The vision of the smart-city environment is based on a large number of sensors, actuators, devices connected to the Internet. As interest in the practical implementation of the smart city environment increases, so does the interest in examining network connectivity which can be useful for investigating security vulnerabilities, identifying or blocking traffic accessibility (when needed), and other. In this paper, we analyze the network connectivity of smart-home Xiaomi solutions based on measurements made over 30 days. We analyze the installation phase, the usage phase, and identify key Xiaomi network nodes using geolocation techniques.

The scope and scale of biological data are increasing at an exponential rate, as technologies like next-generation sequencing are becoming radically cheaper and more prevalent. Over the last two decades, the cost of sequencing a genome has dropped from $100 million to nearly $100—a factor of over 106—and the amount of data to be analyzed has increased proportionally. Yet, as Moore’s Law continues to slow, computational biologists can no longer rely on computing hardware to compensate for the ever-increasing size of biological datasets. In a field where many researchers are primarily focused on biological analysis over computational optimization, the unfortunate solution to this problem is often to simply buy larger and faster machines. Here, we introduce Seq, the first language tailored specifically to bioinformatics, which marries the ease and productivity of Python with C-like performance. Seq starts with a subset of Python—and is in many cases a drop-in replacement—yet also incorporates novel bioinformatics- and computational genomics-oriented data types, language constructs and optimizations. Seq enables users to write high-level, Pythonic code without having to worry about low-level or domain-specific optimizations, and allows for the seamless expression of the algorithms, idioms and patterns found in many genomics or bioinformatics applications. We evaluated Seq on several standard computational genomics tasks like reverse complementation, k-mer manipulation, sequence pattern matching and large genomic index queries. On equivalent CPython code, Seq attains a performance improvement of up to two orders of magnitude, and a 160× improvement once domain-specific language features and optimizations are used. With parallelism, we demonstrate up to a 650× improvement. Compared to optimized C++ code, which is already difficult for most biologists to produce, Seq frequently attains up to a 2× improvement, and with shorter, cleaner code. Thus, Seq opens the door to an age of democratization of highly-optimized bioinformatics software.

Many users need social media platforms to improve business. The usage of those platforms is usually focused on the marketing and customer targeting. Platforms like Facebook, Instagram or YouTube give their users a large number of reports and analytic tools. Public figures and organizations have a large number of followers who generate a significant number of activities. This paper focuses on the use of Facebook's geography analytic in the process of events planning. The problem is formulated as a combinatorial optimization problem. Data from social media platforms are used as an input to nature-inspired optimization algorithm. A public data set has been created with cities from 20 European countries. An adjusted genetic algorithm (AGA) is proposed. The greedy approach and AGA are compared on real data from several Facebook pages and on the created public dataset. The genetic algorithm shows better results and it gives the same solution as an exhaustive search for smaller instances.

The planning of concert tours can be a challenging process which requires a large amount of data to be analyzed. The greatest profit cannot be obtained only by maximizing the expected number of visitors. However, most of the organizers mainly focus on that part of planning. To achieve the maximum profit possible, organizers must include other data in their analysis. Social media play a powerful role in music industry. Most of the mentioned data can be found online on social media like Facebook, YouTube or Instagram. Such data can be found in analytic sections of fan or event pages. In this paper, algorithms for tour planning have been introduced by using above mentioned data. Proposed algorithms are based on heuristic methods such as simulated annealing and genetic algorithm. A clustering based method is also implemented. Aforementioned algorithms were tested on real-world instances from Facebook fan page analytics and use number of fans and distance between cities.

Abstract Background BRAF genomic alterations (GA) occur in multiple tumor types and BRAF/MEK targeted therapies are approved in melanoma and NSCLC. Diverse mechanisms of AR to these therapies have been proposed but have not been comprehensively assessed. Methods Hybrid-capture based comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) was performed on FFPE (n = 228,629) or blood-based cell free DNA (cfDNA, n = 15,069) samples for 222,952 patients (pts). Tumor mutational burden (TMB) was determined on 0.8-1.1 Mbp of sequenced DNA. Samples without evidence of tumor DNA or known to have not received RAF/MEK inhibitors were excluded. Paired samples were collected >60 days apart (median 523, range 71-5571). Results Paired samples with BRAF V600E (64%) or other activating BRAF GA (36%) were available for 154 pts with NSCLC (20%), melanoma (19%), CRC (15%) myeloma (8.4%) glioma (7.1%) or other (30%) cancers. Acquired GA previously described preclinically or clinically including in BRAF, KRAS, NRAS, MEK1, PIK3CA, PTEN, MET, and CCND1 occurred in 34 cases (Table). 56 additional cases had reportable acquired GA in other genes (eg. STK11, NF1). Median TMB was 4.0 vs 5.2 mut/Mb in the first vs second sample (p = 0.23). In 12% of cases (9 tissue, 9 cfDNA) a BRAF GA was not detected in the second sample. Most AR mechanisms (MET amp, KRAS mut, secondary BRAF GA) were tumor agnostic, but PIK3CA and PTEN GA were enriched in brain samples and absent in CRC, and NRAS mut were exclusive to melanoma (Table). Treatment status was available for a subset of cases. Notably V600E CRC, NSCLC and melanoma each had acquired MET amp post-dabrafenib + trametinib, and a V600E myeloma had acquired MEK C121S post-trametinib + vemurafenib. Additional clinical data will be presented. Table: 1878PD . Potential AR mechanism No. cases# AR subtypes Disease Histologies Associated Primary BRAF GA Biopsy location * KRAS mut 7 G12D (2), G12R, G12V, G13D, Q61H, K117N CRC (2), NSCLC (2), cholangiocarcinoma, multiple myeloma, CLL V600E (6), G466A omentum (2), liver NRAS mut 4 G12C, G13R, G13R/Q61H, Q61H/K melanoma (4) V600E (2), V600R, G469A brain (1), lymph node (1), soft tissue (1) NRAS amp 1 amp estimated copies: 41 NSCLC V600E pericardial fluid Secondary BRAF GA 10 N-terminal deletion exons 2-8 (6), duplications exons 10-18, L505H, N581I/D594G, amp estimated copies: 6 NSCLC (4), CRC (2), melanoma (2), multiple myeloma, pancreatic V600E (9), G466A liver (3), lymph node (2), lung, abdominal wall, brain MEK1 mut 1 C121S multiple myeloma V600E NA PIK3CA mut 5 H1047R (2), G1049R, R88Q, S405F glioma (3), NSCLC, thyroid V600E (3), N486_T491>K, R506_K507insVLR brain (4), lung PTEN GA 5 E7fs * , R130 * , G129R, splice site 165-1G>A, loss melanoma (2), glioma, NSCLC, UP neuroendocrine V600E, V600K, R506_K507insVLR, KHDRBS2-BRAF fusion brain (2), abdomen, soft tissue CCND1 amp 2 amp estimated copies: 9, 10 NSCLC, thyroid V600E, G464V brain, pleural fluid MET amp 4 amp estimated copies: 12, 14, 15, 56 NSCLC, CRC, melanoma, UP adenocarcinoma V600E (4) lymph node, colon, brain, liver * Indicated for tissue samples only (NA= not applicable); #5 cases had AR alterations in multiple genes included here; NSCLC: non-small cell lung cancer, CRC: colorectal carcinoma; CLL: chronic lymphocytic leukemia; UP: unknown primary; AR: acquired resistance; mut: mutation; amp: amplification. Conclusions Novel and previously observed potential AR alterations in paired BRAF altered clinical samples were detected using CGP. Most AR mechanisms appeared independent of tumor type and biopsy site. Additional clinical studies to explore effective treatments for these AR subsets are needed. Legal entity responsible for the study The authors. Funding Foundation Medicine. Disclosure F. Pietrantonio: Advisory / Consultancy: Roche; Advisory / Consultancy: Amgen; Advisory / Consultancy: Eli-Lily; Advisory / Consultancy: Bayer; Advisory / Consultancy: Sanofi; Advisory / Consultancy: Servier; Advisory / Consultancy: Merck Serono. J. Lee: Shareholder / Stockholder / Stock options, Full / Part-time employment: Foundation Medicine; Shareholder / Stockholder / Stock options: Roche. L. Boussemart: Advisory / Consultancy: Novartis; Advisory / Consultancy: Pierre Fabre. G. Srkalovic: Speaker Bureau / Expert testimony: Foundation Medicine. R. Madison: Shareholder / Stockholder / Stock options, Full / Part-time employment: Foundation Medicine; Shareholder / Stockholder / Stock options: Roche. J.S. Ross: Leadership role, Shareholder / Stockholder / Stock options, Full / Part-time employment: Foundation Medicine; Shareholder / Stockholder / Stock options: Roche. V.A. Miller: Leadership role, Shareholder / Stockholder / Stock options, Full / Part-time employment: Foundation Medicine; Shareholder / Stockholder / Stock options: Roche; Advisory / Consultancy: Revolution Medicines. B.M. Alexander: Leadership role, Full / Part-time employment: Foundation Medicine; Shareholder / Stockholder / Stock options: Roche. S.M. Ali: Shareholder / Stockholder / Stock options, Full / Part-time employment: Foundation Medicine; Shareholder / Stockholder / Stock options: Roche. A.B. Schrock: Shareholder / Stockholder / Stock options, Full / Part-time employment: Foundation Medicine; Shareholder / Stockholder / Stock options: Roche. All other authors have declared no conflicts of interest.

Abstract We studied numerically the heat transfer in flow over a rotationally oscillating cylinder at a subcritical Reynolds number ( R e = 1.4 × 10 5 ) that is an order of magnitude higher than previously reported in the literature. This paper is a follow-up of the earlier study of hydrodynamics and drag force in a range of forcing frequencies and amplitudes (Palkin et al., 2018). This time we focus on heat transfer and its correlation with the observed flow field and vortical patterns. Four forcing frequencies f = f e / f 0 = 0 , 1 , 2.5 , 4 for two forcing amplitudes Ω = Ω e D / 2 U ∞ = 1 and 2 are considered, where f0 is the natural vortex-shedding frequency, U∞ the free-stream velocity and D the cylinder diameter. The parametric study was performed by solving three-dimensional unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (URANS) equations closed by a wall-integrated second-moment (Re-stress) model, verified earlier by Large-eddy simulations and experiments in several reference cases including flows over a stagnant, as well as rotary oscillating cylinders at the same Re number. The thermal field, treated as a passive scalar, was obtained from the simultaneous solution of the energy equation, closed by the standard (GGDH) anisotropic eddy-diffusivity model. The computations showed that for the unforced cylinder heat transfer is characterized by very high local rates due to a strong thinning of the thermal boundary layer as a result of the impact and interactions of large coherent structures with the wall. The overall average Nusselt number does not change much for the forced cylinder but its time-averaged, phase-averaged and instantaneous circumferential profiles show some profound differences compared to the stationary cylinder. The distribution of Nu on the back surface becomes more uniform with less frequent occurrence of high values, especially for the higher frequencies f = 2.5 and f = 4 . This is attributed to diminishing of the mean-recirculation zone as well as to the overall suppression of turbulent fluctuations. The rotary oscillation of the cylinder appears potentially efficient in achieving a more uniform circumferential distribution of Nu and avoiding local overheats and hot spots.

Abstract Applying MIPVU (Steen et al., 2010) to the corpus of media articles about the European migrant crisis in the period from August 2015 until March 2016 in English and Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian, this paper analyzes the IMMIGRANTS ARE ANIMALS metaphor within the framework of the deliberate metaphor theory by considering the three dimensions of this metaphor, namely, the linguistic dimension of (in)directness, the conceptual parameter of conventionality, and the communicative dimension of (non)deliberateness. Specifically, the paper examines the use of the ANIMALS metaphor as a deliberate metaphor in the immigration discourse in English and Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian. The paper aims to determine to what extent and in which situations the authors of the texts tend to divert the addressee’s attention to viewing immigrants in terms of animals. Using the IDeM protocol for the identification of deliberate metaphor (Krennmayr, 2011), the paper also focuses on the rhetorical potential and the effects of the use of deliberate metaphors in the media discourse. Such metaphors are often used in the media discourse to dehumanize immigrants and consequently reduce the addressee’s empathy for them.

Introduction: Diabetes is the fastest growing chronic diseases worldwide and in Bosnia and Herzegovina. International standards for diabetes care have recognized the crucial role of pharmacists in diabetes management. Community pharmacists can provide services beyond medication dispensing inducing patient identification, assessment, education, referral, monitoring and behavioral counseling. Pharmacists’ attitudes toward diabetes are generally positive but do not correlate with the degree of their involvement in diabetes management and frequency of providing diabetes-related services varied throughout countries. Aim: To measure pharmacists’ attitude toward diabetes management and to identify pharmacy services that are currently provided to patients with diabetes. Material and Methods: We have conducted a descriptive, cross-sectional survey-based study among pharmacists from Bosnia and Herzegovina attending on of the conferences in May 2018. Majority of pharmacist attending such conferences are from community pharmacies across the whole country considering surveyed sample was representative. The questionnaire contained 3 different sections: a) participants’ demographics, b) measured participants’ attitude toward diabetes using the DAS-3 to measure participants’ degree of agreement to 33 diabetes-related statements, on a 5-point Likert type scale and c) a list of possible diabetes patient support activities that could be delivered by pharmacists based on authors experience and available literature. Results: The majority of respondents (86,5%) were female and 53,8% work in private owned pharmacies. Interest in diabetes was indicated by 94,2% while 59,6% completed special diabetes continuing education in the past. All the respondents expressed positive attitudes in all DAS-3 with no significant difference between overall DAS-3 and subscale values. Provided services differ but mainly drug oriented and partially include comorbidity counseling. Conclusion: Pharmacists had positive attitudes toward diabetes but they provided limited diabetes-related services to patients. Additional special education is needed.