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At least 271 records · Page 15

Profiling B cell immunodominance after SARS-CoV-2infection reveals antibody evolution to non-neutralizing viral targets

Dissecting the evolution of memory B cells (MBCs) against SARS-CoV-2 is critical for understanding antibody recall upon secondary exposure. Here, we used single-cell sequencing to profile SARS-CoV-2-reactive B cells in 38 COVID-19 patients. Using oligo-tagged antigen baits, we isolated B cells specific to the SARS-CoV-2 spike, nucleoprotein (NP), open reading frame 8 (ORF8), and endemic human coronavirus (HCoV) spike proteins. SARS-CoV-2 spike-specific cells were enriched in the memory compartment of acutely infected and convalescent patients several months post symptom onset. With severe acute infection, substantial populations of endemic HCoV-reactive antibody-secreting cells were identified and possessed highly mutated variable genes, signifying preexisting immunity. Finally, MBCs exhibited pronounced maturation to NP and ORF8 over time, especially in older patients. Monoclonal antibodies against these targets were non-neutralizing and non-protective in vivo. These findings reveal antibody adaptation to non-neutralizing intracellular antigens during infection, emphasizing the importance of vaccination for inducing neutralizing spike-specific MBCs.

antibody↗

Some Improvements in Utilization of Flash Memory Devices

Two developments improve the utilization of flash memory devices in the face of the following limitations: (1) a flash write element (page) differs in size from a flash erase element (block), (2) a block must be erased before its is rewritten, (3) lifetime of a flash memory is typically limited to about 1,000,000 erases, (4) as many as 2 percent of the blocks of a given device may fail before the expected end of its life, and (5) to ensure reliability of reading and writing, power must not be interrupted during minimum specified reading and writing times. The first development comprises interrelated software components that regulate reading, writing, and erasure operations to minimize migration of data and unevenness in wear; perform erasures during idle times; quickly make erased blocks available for writing; detect and report failed blocks; maintain the overall state of a flash memory to satisfy real-time performance requirements; and detect and initialize a new flash memory device. The second development is a combination of hardware and software that senses the failure of a main power supply and draws power from a capacitive storage circuit designed to hold enough energy to sustain operation until reading or writing is completed.

Gender, Thomas K.↗

Operational earth resources data handling system for the 1980's

Results of a recent study of data handling requirements for future operational earth observation systems are reported. Such systems in the 1980's may have 10-20 meter resolution and generate .2 tecabits of data per day, with peak rates of 0.8 gigabits per second based on the dominant requirements of agriculture. System alternatives are considered that will handle such data. Data relayed to the facility are recorded at high rates and then processed at lower speed by computer. Hardwired special digital logic computers may be used with an appropriate classification algorithm for crop recognition. Optical mass memories now in the prototype stage will handle the 10 tecabits and 800 megabit per second read-in rate required.

Van Vleck, E. M.↗

Short-term memory load and pronunciation rate

In a test of short-term memory recall, two subjects attempted to recall various lists. For unpracticed subjects, the time it took to read the list is a better predictor of immediate recall than the number of items on the list. For practiced subjects, the two predictors do about equally well. If the items that must be recalled are unfamiliar, it is advantageous to keep the items short to pronounce. On the other hand, if the same items will be encountered over and over again, it is advantageous to make them distinctive, even at the cost of adding to the number of syllables.

Schweickert, Richard↗

Rotary encoding device with polygonal reflector and centroid detection

A device for positioning encoding of a rotating shaft in which a polygonal mirror having a number of facets is mounted to the shaft and a light beam is directed towards the facets. The facets of the polygonal mirror reflect the light beam such that a light spot is created on a linear array detector. An analog-to-digital converter is connected to the linear array detector for reading the position of the spot on the spots on the linear array detector. A microprocessor with memory is connected to the analog-to-digital converter to hold and manipulate the data provided by the analog-to-digital converter on the position of the spot and to compute the position of the shaft based upon the data from the analog-to-digital converter.

Leviton, Douglas B.↗

Hybrid analog-digital associative neural network

Random access memory is used to store synaptic information in the form of a matrix of rows and columns of binary digits. N rows read in sequence are processed through switches and resistors, and a summing amplifier to N neural amplifiers in sequence, one row for each amplifier, using a first array of sample-and-hold devices S/H1 for commutation. The outputs of the neural amplifiers are stored in a second array of sample-and-hold devices S/H2 so that after N rows are processed, all of the second array of sample-and-hold devices are updated. A second memory may be added for binary values of 0 and -1, and processed simultaneously with the first to provide for values of 1, 0, and -1, the results of which are combined in a difference amplifier.

Moopenn, Alexander W.↗

Hybrid analog-digital associative neural network

Random access memory is used to store synaptic information in the form of a matrix of rows and columns of binary digits. N rows read in sequence are processed through switches and resistors, and a summing amplifier to N neural amplifiers in sequence, one row for each amplifier, using a first array of sample-and-hold devices S/H1 for commutation. The outputs of the neural amplifiers are stored in a second array of sample-and-hold devices S/H2 so that after N rows are processed, all of said second array of sample-and-hold devices are updated. A second memory may be added for binary values of 0 and -1, and processed simultaneously with the first to provide for values of 1, 0, and -1, the results of which are combined in a difference amplifier.

Moopenn, Alexander W.↗

Single-Event Effect Performance of a Conductive-Bridge Memory EEPROM

We investigated the heavy ion SEE characteristics of an EEPROM based on CBRAM technology. SEFI is the dominant type of SEE for each operating mode (standby, read-only, write/read). We also observed single bit upsets in the CBRAM cell, during write/read tests. the SEULET threshold is between 10 and 20 MeV * sq cm/mg, with an upper fluence limit of 3 × 10(exp 6) cm(exp -2) at 10 MeV * sq cm/mg. In the stand by mode, the CBRAM array appears immune to bit upsets.

single event effects↗

NAND flash screening and qualification guideline for space application

All space missions have a need for nonvolatile memory (NVM), which maintains data integrity when unpowered. Types of NVM include PROM, EEPROM, NOR Flash, and NAND Flash. PROMs, NOR Flash, and EEPROMs are good choices for storing smaller file size data such as boot code or FPGA configurations. These products have excellent data retention characteristics and can reliably store data for years, unpowered, without any data corruption. They can also be read many times without disturbing the data. Another application of NVM is storage of science and engineering data, which requires large of amounts of memory. The highest density memories available today are SDRAM and NAND Flash. However, the power required to operate and store data in NAND Flash is far less than SDRAM. Wherever high density and low power is required, NAND Flash is very attractive.

Heidecker, Jason↗

Read disturb errors in a CMOS static RAM chip

Results are reported from an extensive investigation into pattern-sensitive soft errors (read disturb errors) in the TCC244 CMOS static RAM chip. The TCC244, also known as the SA2838, is a radiation-hard single-event-upset-resistant 4 x 256 memory chip. This device is being used by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in the Galileo and Magellan spacecraft, which will have encounters with Jupiter and Venus, respectively. Two aspects of the part's design are shown to result in the occurrence of read disturb errors: the transparence of the signal path from the address pins to the array of cells, and the large resistance in the Vdd and Vss lines of the cells in the center of the array. Probe measurements taken during a read disturb failure illustrate how address skews and the data pattern in the chip combine to produce a bit flip. A capacitive charge pump formed by the individual cell capacitances and the resistance in the supply lines pumps down both the internal cell voltage and the local supply voltage until a bit flip occurs.

Wood, Steven H.↗

A scalable superconducting nanowire memory array with row–column addressing

Scalable superconducting memory is required for the development of low-energy superconducting computers and fault-tolerant quantum computers. Conventional superconducting logic-based memory cells possess a large footprint that limits scaling; nanowire-based superconducting memory cells, although more compact, have high error rates, which hinders integration into large arrays. Here we report a 4 × 4 superconducting nanowire memory array that is designed for scalable row–column operations and has a functional density of 2.6 Mbit cm −2 . Each memory cell is based on a nanowire loop consisting of two temperature-dependent superconducting switches and a variable kinetic inductor. The arrays operate at 1.3 K, where we implement and characterize multiflux quanta state storage and destructive read-out. By optimizing the write- and read-pulse sequences, we minimize bit errors and maximize operating margins. We achieve a minimum bit error rate of 10 −5 . Here, we also use circuit-level simulations to understand the memory cell’s dynamics, performance limits and stability under varying pulse amplitudes.

Electrical and electronic engineering↗

DEDUPKV: A Space-Efficient and High-Performance Key-Value Store via Fine-Grained Deduplication

Log-Structured Merge Tree (LSM-tree) based key-value stores excel in write-intensive environments but suffer from data duplication, consuming up to 49% of storage space in LSM-tree-based key-value store deployments. Traditional solutions like compression and coarse-grained file system-level deduplication introduce overhead or have limited effectiveness. In this study, we propose DedupKV, a fine-grained deduplication framework tailored for LSM-tree, maximizing data reduction efficiency while minimizing write stalls and read overheads. DedupKV features three key innovations: (1) FLUSH-integrated inline deduplication, which removes duplicates during memory-to-storage writes; (2) WAL file-based offline deduplication, repurposing write-ahead logs to avoid double writes; and (3) elastic execution, dynamically balancing inline and offline deduplication based on memory pressure and workload intensity. Additionally, dynamic granularity management reduces deduplication metadata overhead. We implemented these four ideas in RocksDB for the first time and conducted experiments in a Linux environment. Our evaluation shows that WAL file-based offline deduplication and DedupKV outperform BlobDB by 33% and 23%, respectively, in write-heavy workloads, while reducing write amplification by 1.2 ×, 2 ×, and 1.6 × for real KV datasets.

Jamil, Safdar [Sogang University]↗

GRAPH — an readout ASIC for large MCP based detectors

We present a programmable 16 channel, mixed signal, low power readout ASIC, having the project historically named Gigasample Recorder of Analog waveforms from a PHotodetector (GRAPH). It is designed to read large aperture single photon imaging detectors using micro channel plates for charge multiplication, and measuring the detector's response on crossed strips anodes to extrapolate the incoming photon position. Each channel consists of a fast, low power and low noise charge sensitive amplifier, which provides a myriad of coarse and fine programmable options for gain and shaping settings. Further, the amplified signal is recorded using, to our knowledge novel, the Hybrid Universal sampLing Architecture (HULA) ADC. A kind of mixed signal double buffer memory, that enables concurrent waveform recording, and selected event digitized data extraction. The sampling frequency is freely adjustable between few kHz up to 125 MHz, while the chip's internal digital memory holds a history 2048 samples for each channel, with a digital headroom of 12 bits. An optimized region of interest sample-read algorithm allows to extract the information just around the event pulse peak, while selecting the next event, thus substantially reducing the operational dead time. The chip is designed in 130 nm TSMC CMOS technology, and its power consumption is around 47 mW per channel.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗

Demonstration of Vertical 2T-nC FeRAM Hybrid Cell and Its Scalability for High-Density 3-D Ferroelectric Capacitor Memory

In this work, we present a comprehensive experimental and modeling study on the scaling of vertical 2T-nC ferroelectric random access memory (FeRAM) hybrid cells, comprising n metal-ferroelectric–metal (MFM) capacitors, to demonstrate a high-performance and high-density 3-D capacitor memory. Our contributions include: 1) successful process integration of vertical 2T-3C FeRAM cells by stacking MFM structures on top of Si CMOS transistors; 2) experimental validation of memory cell functionality, confirming the feasibility of the vertical 2T-nC FeRAM architecture; 3) an analysis of scaling effects on parasitic capacitance in densely integrated 3-D arrays, using 3-D technology computer-aided design (TCAD) simulations; 4) exploration of aggressive stacking of write bitlines (WBLs) to enhance memory density, where ferroelectric linear capacitance ( C FE ) enables self-boosted inhibition under the V W /2 scheme, but renders the V W /3 scheme ineffective due to intolerable write disturbances; and 5) assessment of horizontal scaling, revealing significant increases in read disturbances caused by interplane capacitance between adjacent WBLs ( C Z ). This work represents an early exploration into the potential of 2T-nC FeRAM as a scalable and efficient 3-D memory solution.

42 ENGINEERING↗

Software Coherence in Multiprocessor Memory Systems

Processors are becoming faster and multiprocessor memory interconnection systems are not keeping up. Therefore, it is necessary to have threads and the memory they access as near one another as possible. Typically, this involves putting memory or caches with the processors, which gives rise to the problem of coherence: if one processor writes an address, any other processor reading that address must see the new value. This coherence can be maintained by the hardware or with software intervention. Systems of both types have been built in the past; the hardware-based systems tended to outperform the software ones. However, the ratio of processor to interconnect speed is now so high that the extra overhead of the software systems may no longer be significant. This issue is explored both by implementing a software maintained system and by introducing and using the technique of offline optimal analysis of memory reference traces. It finds that in properly built systems, software maintained coherence can perform comparably to or even better than hardware maintained coherence. The architectural features necessary for efficient software coherence to be profitable include a small page size, a fast trap mechanism, and the ability to execute instructions while remote memory references are outstanding.

Bolosky, William Joseph↗

Electrically Variable Resistive Memory Devices

Nonvolatile electronic memory devices that store data in the form of electrical- resistance values, and memory circuits based on such devices, have been invented. These devices and circuits exploit an electrically-variable-resistance phenomenon that occurs in thin films of certain oxides that exhibit the colossal magnetoresistive (CMR) effect. It is worth emphasizing that, as stated in the immediately preceding article, these devices function at room temperature and do not depend on externally applied magnetic fields. A device of this type is basically a thin film resistor: it consists of a thin film of a CMR material located between, and in contact with, two electrical conductors. The application of a short-duration, low-voltage current pulse via the terminals changes the electrical resistance of the film. The amount of the change in resistance depends on the size of the pulse. The direction of change (increase or decrease of resistance) depends on the polarity of the pulse. Hence, a datum can be written (or a prior datum overwritten) in the memory device by applying a pulse of size and polarity tailored to set the resistance at a value that represents a specific numerical value. To read the datum, one applies a smaller pulse - one that is large enough to enable accurate measurement of resistance, but small enough so as not to change the resistance. In writing, the resistance can be set to any value within the dynamic range of the CMR film. Typically, the value would be one of several discrete resistance values that represent logic levels or digits. Because the number of levels can exceed 2, a memory device of this type is not limited to binary data. Like other memory devices, devices of this type can be incorporated into a memory integrated circuit by laying them out on a substrate in rows and columns, along with row and column conductors for electrically addressing them individually or collectively.

Liu, Shangqing↗

Single-Event Upset in Flash Memories

This paper discusses single-event upset effets in flash memories, using heavy ions at the Texas A&M cyclotron. Initial results are presented for one manufacturer that compare uspet in the individual memory elemts with the more complex funtion failure modes that occur in the internal state machine and its control registers. This device is designed to function with either 5-V or 3.3-V power supply levels for read operations, but requires an additional 5 or 12-V power supply for write and erase operations.

Flash↗

Spaceborne optical disk controller development

The current status and potential applications of an optical-disk buffer (ODB) memory system being developed by an interagency consortium including NASA and the USAF are reviewed. The design goals for the ODB include usable capacity 1 Tb, maximum data rate 1.6 Gb/s, read error rate less than 10 to the -12th, time to initial access less than 100 ms, and unlimited read/write cycles. Present efforts focus on a brassboard ODB which employs 12 14-inch magnetooptic disks and 24 nine-diode read/write heads. A typical space application of an optical disk mass memory system (ODMMS) is discussed: as communications buffer, temporary storage, and/or multiuser I/O buffer for data management on the Space Station Earth Observing System. Environmental, operational, system-architecture, and functional-separation factors; critical design issues; and standardization questions for spaceborne ODMMSs are examined in detail.

Shull, Thomas A.↗