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Power Accounting in Heterogeneous Compute Clusters
Get PDFEnergy efficiency is a critical concern for WLCG operations. We present a proof-of-concept for dynamic power accounting in our heterogeneous compute clusters at ScotGrid Glasgow. Our approach leverages real-time metrics from Prometheus to attribute energy consumption to individual Virtual Organizations (VOs) based on actual core usage. By integrating hardware-specific power efficiency data, derived from static measurements across different node generations, we compute per-core power usage while accounting for architectural differences.
Our methodology distinguishes between active power (consumed by running jobs) and infrastructure overhead (idle power and other services), the latter is allocated to the hosting institute. This granular, data-driven model not only provides transparent energy allocation but also encourages system administrators to optimize resource utilization and improve overall Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE).
Our work lays the foundation for integrating energy accounting into existing monitoring infrastructures and provides insights into sustainable cluster operations
Ambroxol confers neuroprotection against scopolamine-induced Alzheimer's-like pathology by modulating oxidative stress, neuroinflammation, and cognitive deficits via Nrf-2/JNK/GSK-3ß signaling pathways
Get PDFAlzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common and costly chronic progressive neurodegenerative disorder, with the highest impact on public health worldwide. Pathological hallmarks of AD include progressive cognitive decline and memory impairment, dominantly mediated by oxidative neurodegeneration. Oxidative stress is commonly recognized as a key factor in the pathophysiological progression of AD. Despite significant advancements, a definitive and effective therapeutic intervention for AD remains elusive. In this study, we investigate the neuroprotective potential of ambroxol (Amb), known for its potent anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Given ambroxol’s potential neuroprotective effects, we explore the underlying molecular mechanisms, explicitly examining its role in attenuating scopolamine-induced oxidative stress-mediated activation of the c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) pathway, as well as its modulation of Akt and glycogen synthase kinase-3 beta (GSK-3β) signaling, which is a key contributor to neuroinflammation, synaptic dysfunction and neurodegeneration. AD pathology is induced by scopolamine administration, leading to excessive lipid peroxidation (LPO) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, which leads to a decline in critical antioxidant proteins, including nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf-2) and heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1). However, ambroxol treatment effectively attenuated oxidative stress by reducing the production of reactive oxidative species while restoring the expression of key antioxidant proteins. Similarly, ambroxol attenuated oxidative stress-induced JNK activation and modulated Akt and GSK-3β alterations. Immunofluorescence and western blot analyses revealed that ambroxol attenuated reactive gliosis by suppressing the expression of GFAP and Iba-1, alongside the downregulation of key pro-inflammatory mediators, such as IL-1β, TNF-α, and phosphorylated NF-κB (p-p65). Scopolamine also compromised synaptic integrity and induced deficits in memory formation and spatial learning. In contrast, ambroxol promoted synaptic integrity by upregulating the expression of SNAP-23 and PSD-95, thereby ameliorating scopolamine-induced impairments in spatial learning and memory
Is diamagnetism really acausal?
Get PDFDiamagnetism, in which the magnetisation in a medium opposes the direction of an applied magnetic field, is a weak but familiar effect in a wide class of materials. Being weak it is also a linear response to any applied field. The problem is that the existence of diamagnetism is in direct conflict with the requirements of causality as embodied in the familiar Kramers-Kronig relations. Nature does not care about our confusion and diamagnetism exists and physics is constrained by the requirements of causality (that effect cannot precede its cause). This puzzle has received attention from time to time, with a variety of arguments made to resolve the paradox. None of these, no matter how plausible, reveal the mechanism that resolves the existence of diamagnetism without sacrificing causality. The full resolution is presented in this letter
Microsampling with dried blood spots and mass spectrometry enables PK/PD profiling of responses to praziquantel in a Schistosoma haematobium–exposed Zimbabwean population
No full textIntroduction:
Praziquantel (PZQ) is commonly used to treat schistosomiasis; however, there is considerable interindividual variability in its efficacy, partly because of genetic variation. Data on this relationship is scarce across Africa – where schistosomiasis is prevalent. This study aimed to investigate the pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic and pharmacogenetic relationship between PZQ and its metabolites in a Zimbabwean population infected with Schistosoma haematobium by leveraging dried blood spots (DBS) and mass spectrometry (MS).
Methods:
DBS were obtained from 38 Zimbabwean participants on PZQ treatment at four-time points (0.5, 1.5, 2.5, and 4 h). We compared two extraction methods for recovering PZQ and its metabolites from the DBS cards and performed MS analysis to determine the concentrations. A random forest model was used to determine whether CYP1A2 , CYP2C9 , CYP2C19 , CYP2D6 , CYP3A4 , and CYP3A5 known variants were predictive of PZQ efficacy. The relationships between PZQ/metabolite concentration, metabolite ratio, and drug exposure with genotype were determined using a one-way analysis of variance.
Results:
An acetonitrile and water (4 : 1) mixture was determined to be optimal for recovering PZQ and its metabolites from the DBS cards. Subsequent MS analysis identified PZQ and six metabolite compounds – including phase 1 metabolites (–2H)-O-PZQ, O2-PZQ, and 4-OH-PZQ. Pooled MS sampling was comparable to individual MS sampling for determining pharmacokinetic profiles at the 2.5 and 4-h time points. The (–2H)-O-PZQ and O2-PZQ metabolites had significantly higher concentrations in participants with CYP2C9*1/*9 and *9/*9 versus those with CYP2C9*1/*1. CYP1A2 rs2069514-A (formerly *1C ) and rs762551-A ( CYP1A2*30 ; formerly *1F ) were observed to alter PZQ pharmacokinetic profiles; however, differences in analyte concentrations across the corresponding genotypes were NS.
Conclusion:
We show that low-cost microsampling using DBS and MS is feasible for detecting and quantifying PZQ and its metabolites. Furthermore, our pharmacogenetics analysis elucidates the impact of known cytochrome P450 variants on PZQ drug response in an African setting
Sweet or Sour CHERI: Performance Characterization of the Arm Morello Platform
Get PDFCapability Hardware Enhanced RISC Instructions (CHERI) is an emerging hardware approach to memory safety that enforces strong spatial and temporal protections. This paper presents the most comprehensive performance evaluation of CHERI to date. Using on-chip performance monitoring counters (PMCs) on the CHERI-enabled Arm Morello platform, we analyze 20 C/C++ applications, including SPEC CPU2017, a SQL database engine, a JavaScript engine, and a large language model inference framework, across three CHERI Application Binary Interfaces (ABIs). We find that CHERI overheads range from negligible to 1.65×, with the highest costs in pointer-intensive and memory-sensitive workloads, largely due to increased memory traffic and higher L1/L2 cache pressure from 128-bit capabilities. Importantly, our projections suggest that modest microarchitectural improvements could significantly reduce these costs, enabling CHERI to deliver memory safety with minimal performance impact. We hope these findings offer timely evidence to guide the development of future architectures that combine strong memory security with high performance
Investigating microbial population structure and function in the chicken caeca and large intestine over time using metagenomics
Get PDFObjectives:
Although taxonomic variations in chicken gut microbiota have been previously documented, their functional capacity remain poorly understood. To gain a better understanding, we incorporated whole genome shotgun metagenomics to analyse microbial communities of two different organs: the caeca and the large intestine.
Results:
Using 24 samples obtained from the caeca and the large intestine of commercial chickens, we assembled Metagenome-Assembled Genomes (MAGs) and characterise their functional profiles. Afterwards, using 8 samples, we integrated this sequencing data with chicken performance metadata body weight (BW), weight gain, feed intake (FI), feed conversion ratio (FCR) and age. MAGs belonging to specific families were found to be positively associated with changes in performance parameters. Functional analyses suggest changes in nutrient geochemical cycles including hydrogen generation within the carbon-cycle. Furthermore, 108 CAZymes were identified for MAGs belonging to two major families – glycoside hydrolase (GH) and polysaccharide lyase (PL), which are important for breakdown of dietary carbohydrates and fibres. A total of 13 polysaccharide lyases were identified functioning on day 20 with enzymes were specific to organs. Overall, our results provide a deeper understanding of microbial-mediated metabolism concerning key performance parameters in chicken production
Design and development of a prototype single crystalline silicon cryogenic suspension for 3rd generation gravitational wave detectors
Get PDFCurrent generation gravitational wave detectors rely on ultra-high purity fused silica in the final monolithic stage of the mirror suspension systems for their excellent thermal noise performance. There is however a push to develop cryogenic suspension systems for the next generation detectors, where fused silica loses its superior thermal noise properties. Silicon is an attractive candidate material, and is the baseline design selected for use in the cryogenic Einstein Telescope and brings with it a new set of challenges. This paper outlines what the authors believe to be the world’s first demonstration of a single ribbon hydroxy-catalysis bonded silicon suspension that has cycled between room temperature and a 4 K environment. Also discussed is the characterisation of similar silicon ribbon, detailing work on surface treatments used to improve the ultimate tensile strength alongside the thermal conductivity of the silicon suspension
Community macroecological patterns and interspecific interactions in guild level regulate avian isotopic niche over time
No full textUnderstanding how ecological patterns shift across space and time is key to comprehend how biological communities respond to environmental changes. We used stable isotopes to investigate the ecological mechanisms underlying community, trophic guild, and species-level organization in Atlantic Forest birds, focusing on the effects of long-term anthropogenic impacts. The study was based entirely on feather samples from bird specimens housed in Brazilian natural history collections, which proved fundamental to reconstructing temporal ecological baselines. We analysed carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios in 1778 specimens collected between 1893 and 2022 across two regions that share a history of human expansion: the Pernambuco and Serra do Mar areas of endemism. At the community level, all Layman metrics (niche area, δ13C and δ15N ranges, and trophic redundancy) increased over time, suggesting greater niche partitioning and potential specialization in modern communities. At the guild and species level, changes in niche metrics over time varied depending on the region of the Atlantic Forest. This finding reveals that anthropogenic changes can influence interspecific and intraguild interactions regionally. Our study underscores the critical role of bird collections in enabling large-scale ecological inference and demonstrates their unique value for understanding biodiversity responses in historically transformed tropical landscapes
Independent Legal Representation and the Victims, Witnesses, and Justice Reform (Scotland) Bill: A Review of Potential Models of Delivery
Get PDFEvidence based research on different potential models of delivery for independent legal representation in the Scottish context, with reference to international comparable adversarial legal jurisdictions, and the victims, witnesses, and justice reform (Scotland) bill
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