Search for Subsolar Mass Ultracompact Binaries in Advanced LIGO's Second Observing Run

We present a search for subsolar mass ultracompact objects in data obtained during Advanced LIGO's second observing run. In contrast to a previous search of Advanced LIGO data from the first observing run, this search includes the effects of component spin on the gravitational waveform. We identify no viable gravitational-wave candidates consistent with subsolar mass ultracompact binaries with at least one component between 0.2  M_{⊙}-1.0  M_{⊙}. We use the null result to constrain the binary merger rate of (0.2  M_{⊙}, 0.2  M_{⊙}) binaries to be less than 3.7×10^{5}  Gpc^{-3} yr^{-1} and the binary merger rate of (1.0  M_{⊙}, 1.0  M_{⊙}) binaries to be less than 5.2×10^{3}  Gpc^{-3} yr^{-1}. Subsolar mass ultracompact objects are not expected to form via known stellar evolution channels, though it has been suggested that primordial density fluctuations or particle dark matter with cooling mechanisms and/or nuclear interactions could form black holes with subsolar masses. Assuming a particular primordial black hole (PBH) formation model, we constrain a population of merging 0.2  M_{⊙} black holes to account for less than 16% of the dark matter density and a population of merging 1.0  M_{⊙} black holes to account for less than 2% of the dark matter density. We discuss how constraints on the merger rate and dark matter fraction may be extended to arbitrary black hole population models that predict subsolar mass binaries.

ARBEE: Towards Automated Recognition of Bodily Expression of Emotion in the Wild

Humans are arguably innately prepared to comprehend others' emotional expressions from subtle body movements. If robots or computers can be empowered with this capability, a number of robotic applications become possible. Automatically recognizing human bodily expression in unconstrained situations, however, is daunting given the incomplete understanding of the relationship between emotional expressions and body movements. The current research, as a multidisciplinary effort among computer and information sciences, psychology, and statistics, proposes a scalable and reliable crowdsourcing approach for collecting in-the-wild perceived emotion data for computers to learn to recognize body languages of humans. To accomplish this task, a large and growing annotated dataset with 9876 video clips of body movements and 13,239 human characters, named Body Language Dataset (BoLD), has been created. Comprehensive statistical analysis of the dataset revealed many interesting insights. A system to model the emotional expressions based on bodily movements, named Automated Recognition of Bodily Expression of Emotion (ARBEE), has also been developed and evaluated. Our analysis shows the effectiveness of Laban Movement Analysis (LMA) features in characterizing arousal, and our experiments using LMA features further demonstrate computability of bodily expression. We report and compare results of several other baseline methods which were developed for action recognition based on two different modalities, body skeleton and raw image. The dataset and findings presented in this work will likely serve as a launchpad for future discoveries in body language understanding that will enable future robots to interact and collaborate more effectively with humans.

The stomatal flexoskeleton: how the biomechanics of guard cell walls animate an elastic pressure vessel

In plants, stomatal guard cells are one of the most dynamic cell types, rapidly changing their shape and size in response to environmental and intrinsic signals to control gas exchange at the plant surface. Quantitative and systematic knowledge of the biomechanical underpinnings of stomatal dynamics will enable strategies to optimize stomatal responsiveness and improve plant productivity by enhancing the efficiency of photosynthesis and water use. Recent developments in microscopy, mechanical measurements, and computational modeling have revealed new insights into the biomechanics of stomatal regulation and the genetic, biochemical, and structural origins of how plants achieve rapid and reliable stomatal function by tuning the mechanical properties of their guard cell walls. This review compares historical and recent experimental and modeling studies of the biomechanics of stomatal complexes, highlighting commonalities and contrasts between older and newer studies. Key gaps in our understanding of stomatal functionality are also presented, along with assessments of potential methods that could bridge those gaps.

Tests of General Relativity with GW170817

The recent discovery by Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo of a gravitational wave signal from a binary neutron star inspiral has enabled tests of general relativity (GR) with this new type of source. This source, for the first time, permits tests of strong-field dynamics of compact binaries in the presence of matter. In this Letter, we place constraints on the dipole radiation and possible deviations from GR in the post-Newtonian coefficients that govern the inspiral regime. Bounds on modified dispersion of gravitational waves are obtained; in combination with information from the observed electromagnetic counterpart we can also constrain effects due to large extra dimensions. Finally, the polarization content of the gravitational wave signal is studied. The results of all tests performed here show good agreement with GR.

Multi-outcome homodyne detection in a coherent-state light interferometer

The Cramér-Rao bound plays a central role in both classical and quantum parameter estimation, but finding the observable and the resulting inversion estimator that saturates this bound remains an open issue for general multi-outcome measurements. Here we consider multi-outcome homodyne detection in a coherent-light Mach-Zehnder interferometer and construct a family of inversion estimators that almost saturate the Cramér-Rao bound over the whole range of phase interval. This provides a clue on constructing optimal inversion estimators for phase estimation and other parameter estimation in any multi-outcome measurement.

[The relationship between prevalence of hypertension and dietary factors among the elderly aged 60 years old and over in China during 2010-2012]

Objective: To analyze the status of hypertension and isolated systolic hypertension and to investigate the relationship between the prevalence of hypertension and dietary factors among Chinese elderly aged 60 yea and over during 2010-2012. Methods: Using a multi-stage stratified probability proportional to size cluster randomization sampling method during 2010-2012, a total of 14 791 old people aged 60 years old and over were investigated at 150 counties (districts) from 31 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities) in China. Information on demographic socio-economic status and the physical activities was collected through questionnaires. Blood pressure measurement and physical examination were carried out by standard methods. The 3 days consecutive individual 24 hours dietary investigation was used to calculate food and nutrients intake of the subjects. Multiple logistic regression was used to investigate the possible related dietary factors for the hypertension and isolated systolic hypertension. Results: The prevalence of hypertension among the elderly aged 60 years old and over was 54.6% (95%CI: 52.8%-56.4%), of which isolated systolic hypertension was 24.5% (95%CI: 23.0%-26.1%). Compared with the lowest intake level, the OR (95%CI) of hypertension for higher tuber consumption (≥43.34 g/d) and milk intake (>0 g/d) with were 0.89 (0.83-0.97) and 0.88 (0.81-0.97), respectively. The OR (95%CI) of hypertension for higher dietary potassium (≥1 747.69 mg/d), folate acid (28.42-56.88 μg/d), vitamin B(1)2 (0.22-0.58 μg/d) and vitamin B(2) (0.61-0.81 mg/d) intake were 0.87 (0.77-0.98), 0.89 (0.81-0.98), 0.88 (0.80-0.97) and 0.89 (0.80-0.99). The OR (95%CI) of isolated systolic hypertension for higher tuber (≥43.34 g/d), milk intake (>0 g/d) and higher dietary potassium (≥1 747.69 mg/d), folate acid (≥99.89 μg/d), vitamin B(12) intake (≥1.48 μg/d) were 0.84 (0.75-0.93), 0.85 (0.76-0.95), 0.82 (0.71-0.96), 0.87 (0.76-0.99) and 0.87 (0.77-0.98). Conclusion: There was inverse association between highertuber consumptione, milk consumption, dietary potassium, folate acid, vitamin B(12) intake and elderly hypertensive and isolated systolic hypertension.

[The comparison of predicting clinical outcomes between immunolophenotype and hematological complete remission before human leukocyte antigen-matched sibling donor transplantation in acute myeloid leukemia]

目的

比较移植前免疫表型缓解（ICR）和血液形态学缓解对急性髓系白血病（AML）患者同胞HLA相合造血干细胞移植（MSDT）疗效的预测价值。

方法

回顾性分析182例接受MSDT的AML患者（除外急性早幼粒细胞白血病），将移植前血液形态学缓解分为血细胞恢复的完全缓解（CR）、血小板未恢复的CR（CRp）、血小板和中性粒细胞均未恢复的CR（CRi），将多参数流式细胞术检测微小残留病阴性定义为ICR。

结果

①全部182例AML患者中，男97例，女85例，中位年龄41（4~62）岁。②移植前CR、CRp+CRi率分别为80.8%（147/182）、19.2%（35/182）；移植前CRp+CRi组、CR组的预期4年累积复发率（CIR）[（11.0±4.3）%对（16.0±7.1）%，χ²=0.274，P=0.600]、非复发死亡率（NRM）[（14.0±4.3）%对（9.0±6.3）%，χ²=0.913，P=0.339]、无白血病生存（LFS）率[（75.0±5.1）%对（75.0±8.3）%，χ²=0.256，P=0.613]、总生存（OS）率[（77.0±5.2）%对（80.0±8.1）%，χ²=0.140，P=0.708]差异均无统计学意义。③移植前ICR组（147例）与非ICR组（35例）比较，4年CIR较低[（11.3±3.4）%对（55.2±8.8）%，χ²=32.687，P<0.001]，LFS率[（76.2±4.7）%对（32.8±8.7）%，χ²=26.234，P<0.001]和OS率[（79.0±4.7）%对（39.0±9.1）%，χ²=25.253，P<0.001]较高，NRM差异无统计学意义[（12.5±4.1）%对（12.0±7.1）%，χ²=1.002，P=0.656]。④多因素分析显示，移植前非ICR是影响AML患者MSDT后复发[HR=11.026（95% CI 4.685~25.949），P<0.001]、LFS[HR=5.785（95% CI 2.974~11.254），P< 0.001]和OS[HR=5.578（95%CI 2.575~27.565），P<0.001]的独立危险因素。

结论

移植前ICR对AML患者MSDT的疗效预测价值优于HCR。

[Age-related clinical characteristics and prognosis in non-senile adults with acute myeloid leukemia]

目的

探讨非老年成人初发急性髓系白血病（AML）患者年龄相关的临床特征、早期治疗反应和预后。

方法

回顾性分析2008年1月至2017年12月收治的18~65岁初发AML（非急性早幼粒细胞白血病）连续病例，分析不同年龄组患者初诊时疾病特征、早期治疗反应、复发和生存，以及相关影响因素。

结果

共收集1 097例患者，男性591例（53.9%），中位年龄42岁。随着年龄的增长，患者WBC显著下降（P=0.003)，PLT显著上升（P=0.034），骨髓原始细胞比例显著下降（P=0.021）。SWOG危险度在各年龄组的分布差异无统计学意义（P=0.063）。NPM1阳性伴FLT3-ITD阴性的患者比例随年龄增长显著上升（P<0.001)。多因素分析显示，在总人群中，年龄增加是获得形态学无白血病状态（MLFS）（P=0.053）、完全缓解（CR）（P=0.004）和总生存（OS）（P=0.070）的不利影响因素，但在接受标准诱导治疗的患者中，年龄增加仅与CR相关（P=0.075），而与MLFS和OS无关。

结论

非老年初发AML患者的临床、细胞遗传学和分子学特征随年龄变化而不同。在接受标准诱导治疗的患者中，年龄增加与获得MLFS和OS均无显著相关性。

Constraining the p-Mode-g-Mode Tidal Instability with GW170817

We analyze the impact of a proposed tidal instability coupling p modes and g modes within neutron stars on GW170817. This nonresonant instability transfers energy from the orbit of the binary to internal modes of the stars, accelerating the gravitational-wave driven inspiral. We model the impact of this instability on the phasing of the gravitational wave signal using three parameters per star: an overall amplitude, a saturation frequency, and a spectral index. Incorporating these additional parameters, we compute the Bayes factor (lnB_{!pg}^{pg}) comparing our p-g model to a standard one. We find that the observed signal is consistent with waveform models that neglect p-g effects, with lnB_{!pg}^{pg}=0.03_{-0.58}^{+0.70} (maximum a posteriori and 90% credible region). By injecting simulated signals that do not include p-g effects and recovering them with the p-g model, we show that there is a ≃50% probability of obtaining similar lnB_{!pg}^{pg} even when p-g effects are absent. We find that the p-g amplitude for 1.4  M_{⊙} neutron stars is constrained to less than a few tenths of the theoretical maximum, with maxima a posteriori near one-tenth this maximum and p-g saturation frequency ∼70  Hz. This suggests that there are less than a few hundred excited modes, assuming they all saturate by wave breaking. For comparison, theoretical upper bounds suggest ≲10^{3} modes saturate by wave breaking. Thus, the measured constraints only rule out extreme values of the p-g parameters. They also imply that the instability dissipates ≲10^{51}  erg over the entire inspiral, i.e., less than a few percent of the energy radiated as gravitational waves.

Probabilistic Multigraph Modeling for Improving the Quality of Crowdsourced Affective Data

We proposed a probabilistic approach to joint modeling of participants' reliability and humans' regularity in crowdsourced affective studies. Reliability measures how likely a subject will respond to a question seriously; and regularity measures how often a human will agree with other seriously-entered responses coming from a targeted population. Crowdsourcing-based studies or experiments, which rely on human self-reported affect, pose additional challenges as compared with typical crowdsourcing studies that attempt to acquire concrete non-affective labels of objects. The reliability of participants has been massively pursued for typical non-affective crowdsourcing studies, whereas the regularity of humans in an affective experiment in its own right has not been thoroughly considered. It has been often observed that different individuals exhibit different feelings on the same test question, which does not have a sole correct response in the first place. High reliability of responses from one individual thus cannot conclusively result in high consensus across individuals. Instead, globally testing consensus of a population is of interest to investigators. Built upon the agreement multigraph among tasks and workers, our probabilistic model differentiates subject regularity from population reliability. We demonstrate the method's effectiveness for in-depth robust analysis of large-scale crowdsourced affective data, including emotion and aesthetic assessments collected by presenting visual stimuli to human subjects.

Search for Subsolar-Mass Ultracompact Binaries in Advanced LIGO's First Observing Run

We present the first Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo search for ultracompact binary systems with component masses between 0.2  M_{⊙}-1.0  M_{⊙} using data taken between September 12, 2015 and January 19, 2016. We find no viable gravitational wave candidates. Our null result constrains the coalescence rate of monochromatic (delta function) distributions of nonspinning (0.2  M_{⊙}, 0.2  M_{⊙}) ultracompact binaries to be less than 1.0×10^{6}  Gpc^{-3}  yr^{-1} and the coalescence rate of a similar distribution of (1.0  M_{⊙}, 1.0  M_{⊙}) ultracompact binaries to be less than 1.9×10^{4}  Gpc^{-3}  yr^{-1} (at 90% confidence). Neither black holes nor neutron stars are expected to form below ∼1  M_{⊙} through conventional stellar evolution, though it has been proposed that similarly low mass black holes could be formed primordially through density fluctuations in the early Universe and contribute to the dark matter density. The interpretation of our constraints in the primordial black hole dark matter paradigm is highly model dependent; however, under a particular primordial black hole binary formation scenario we constrain monochromatic primordial black hole populations of 0.2  M_{⊙} to be less than 33% of the total dark matter density and monochromatic populations of 1.0  M_{⊙} to be less than 5% of the dark matter density. The latter strengthens the presently placed bounds from microlensing surveys of massive compact halo objects (MACHOs) provided by the MACHO and EROS Collaborations.

GW170817: Measurements of Neutron Star Radii and Equation of State

On 17 August 2017, the LIGO and Virgo observatories made the first direct detection of gravitational waves from the coalescence of a neutron star binary system. The detection of this gravitational-wave signal, GW170817, offers a novel opportunity to directly probe the properties of matter at the extreme conditions found in the interior of these stars. The initial, minimal-assumption analysis of the LIGO and Virgo data placed constraints on the tidal effects of the coalescing bodies, which were then translated to constraints on neutron star radii. Here, we expand upon previous analyses by working under the hypothesis that both bodies were neutron stars that are described by the same equation of state and have spins within the range observed in Galactic binary neutron stars. Our analysis employs two methods: the use of equation-of-state-insensitive relations between various macroscopic properties of the neutron stars and the use of an efficient parametrization of the defining function p(ρ) of the equation of state itself. From the LIGO and Virgo data alone and the first method, we measure the two neutron star radii as R_{1}=10.8_{-1.7}^{+2.0}  km for the heavier star and R_{2}=10.7_{-1.5}^{+2.1}  km for the lighter star at the 90% credible level. If we additionally require that the equation of state supports neutron stars with masses larger than 1.97  M_{⊙} as required from electromagnetic observations and employ the equation-of-state parametrization, we further constrain R_{1}=11.9_{-1.4}^{+1.4}  km and R_{2}=11.9_{-1.4}^{+1.4}  km at the 90% credible level. Finally, we obtain constraints on p(ρ) at supranuclear densities, with pressure at twice nuclear saturation density measured at 3.5_{-1.7}^{+2.7}×10^{34}  dyn cm^{-2} at the 90% level.

Balancing Strength and Flexibility: How the Synthesis, Organization, and Modification of Guard Cell Walls Govern Stomatal Development and Dynamics

Guard cells are pairs of epidermal cells that control gas diffusion by regulating the opening and closure of stomatal pores. Guard cells, like other types of plant cells, are surrounded by a three-dimensional, extracellular network of polysaccharide-based wall polymers. In contrast to the walls of diffusely growing cells, guard cell walls have been hypothesized to be uniquely strong and elastic to meet the functional requirements of withstanding high turgor and allowing for reversible stomatal movements. Although the walls of guard cells were long underexplored as compared to extensive studies of stomatal development and guard cell signaling, recent research has provided new genetic, cytological, and physiological data demonstrating that guard cell walls function centrally in stomatal development and dynamics. In this review, we highlight and discuss the latest evidence for how wall polysaccharides are synthesized, deposited, reorganized, modified, and degraded in guard cells, and how these processes influence stomatal form and function. We also raise open questions and provide a perspective on experimental approaches that could be used in the future to shed light on the composition and architecture of guard cell walls.

Modeling and analysis of a new locomotion control neural networks

Experimental data have shown that inherent bursting of the neuron plays an important role in the generation of rhythmic movements in spinal networks. Based on the mechanism that the spinal neurons of a lamprey generate this inherent bursting, this paper builds a simplified inherent bursting neuron model. A new locomotion control neural network is built that takes advantage of this neuron model and its performance is analyzed mathematically and by numerical simulation. From these analyses, it is found that the new control networks have no restriction on their topological structure for generating the oscillatory outputs. If a network is used to control the motion of bionic robots or build the model of the vertebrate spinal circuitry, its topological structure can be constructed using the unit burst generator model proposed by Grillner. The networks can also be easily switched between oscillatory and non-oscillatory output. Additionally, inactivity and saturation properties of the new networks can also be developed, which will be helpful to increase the motor flexibility and environmental adaptability of bionic robots.

[Clinical Application Value of Peripheral Blood Diagnostic Report]

Objective: To explore the clinical application value of peripheral blood diagnostic report. Methods: 557 peripheral blood diagnostic reports were collected from Peking University First Hospital, YANDA LU DAOPEI Hospital and Beijing United Family Hospital. The results were analyzed and summarized according to different blood cell morphology character for the first time and review cases, respectively. Results: Two hundred and one samples from first time patients were found abnormal complete blood count or leukocyte differential count, they were summarized as anemia, anemia accompanied with leukopenia or thrombopenia, abnormal white blood cell count or leukocyte differential count and abnormal platelet count. Each condition was further distinguished on the basis of different morphology character. Initial diagnosis or further examination could be proposed if abnormal morphology was specific or typical, when blood cell morphology was atypical or normal, the morphology was described objectively. 22 review cases included many benign and malignant disorders such as acute leukemia, chronic leukemia, myelodysplastic syndrome, multiple myeloma, infectious mononucleosis and so on. Suggestion of therapeutic effect, progression of diseases or further examination could be present according to complete blood cell count and morphology character. Conclusion: Peripheral blood diagnostic report can provide more comprehensive and accurate information for clinic, and propose important advisory opinions for primary diagnosis, differential diagnosis, treatment monitoring and progression assessment.

[Comparison of colonization ability of O1 and O139 Vibrio cholerae strains on soft-shelled turtle's surface]

Objective: To study the preferred colonization sites of O1 Vibrio cholerae (V.cholerae) and the colonization ability difference for O1 and O139 V. cholerae on soft-shelled turtle's surface. Methods: 8 O1 and O139 V. cholerae strains were obtained from branch of diarrheal diseases, Chinese center for disease control and prevention. 63 soft-shelled turtles weighing 150 g and 9 cm in length (diameter of calipash) were selected for use in the study. The preferred colonization sites and proliferation trend were studied by using bioluminescent imaging method. The colonization factors for O1 V. cholerae strains were studied by constructing colonization gene mutant strains (VC1897dmshA, VC1897dgbpA and VC1897dtcpA), performing competition colonization assays and analyzing the competitive indexes. After pairing off O1 and O139 strains respectively to perform 16 competition groups, the colonization difference of these two strains were studied by competition colonization assays. Results: The colonization sites by V. cholerae on soft-shelled turtles surfaces was clustered. More V. cholerae strains colonized on turtle's calipash and carapace on dorsal side and less strain colonized on ventral side. The competition colonization assays showed that colonization ability of O1 serogroup mshA mutant strains were 7.26 times lower than VC1897dlacZ. Besides, the CI value (O139/O1) of 11 out of the 16 competition groups were greater than 2 (between 2.07 and 59.84). Two groups showed values of 1.43 and 0.93 respectively and 3 groups lower than 0.7. Conclusion: The preferred colonization sites for O1 V. cholerae strains on body surface were observed.MSHA was one of the main colonization factors for its colonization. Our study suggested that in general, O139 V. cholerae strains have stronger colonization ability than O1 strains. Besides, strains isolated from soft-shelled turtles tend to have stronger colonization ability than strains isolated from patients.

Search for Tensor, Vector, and Scalar Polarizations in the Stochastic Gravitational-Wave Background

The detection of gravitational waves with Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo has enabled novel tests of general relativity, including direct study of the polarization of gravitational waves. While general relativity allows for only two tensor gravitational-wave polarizations, general metric theories can additionally predict two vector and two scalar polarizations. The polarization of gravitational waves is encoded in the spectral shape of the stochastic gravitational-wave background, formed by the superposition of cosmological and individually unresolved astrophysical sources. Using data recorded by Advanced LIGO during its first observing run, we search for a stochastic background of generically polarized gravitational waves. We find no evidence for a background of any polarization, and place the first direct bounds on the contributions of vector and scalar polarizations to the stochastic background. Under log-uniform priors for the energy in each polarization, we limit the energy densities of tensor, vector, and scalar modes at 95% credibility to Ω_{0}^{T}<5.58×10^{-8}, Ω_{0}^{V}<6.35×10^{-8}, and Ω_{0}^{S}<1.08×10^{-7} at a reference frequency f_{0}=25  Hz.