This study aimed to compare the differences in durability and prestress loss between normal-weight concrete (NC) and lightweight aggregate concrete (LWC) prestressed box girders, which were constructed at the same time in the same area, so as to verify the superiority of using synthetic lightweight aggregate (LWA) made from reservoir sediments in prestressed bridges. For the NCs and LWCs used in prestressed box girders, the basic mechanical properties were tested on the one hand, and the durability properties were tested on the other hand. Then, through the prestress monitoring system, the prestress loss of the two groups of the prestressed box girders was tracked. The results of the durability test confirmed that LWC can inhibit the penetration of air, water, and chloride ions by strengthening the interfacial transition zone between the aggregate and the cement paste, thereby improving its durability. Moreover, the magnetic flux prestress loss of the NC prestressed box girder reached 8.1%. In contrast, the magnetic flux prestress losses on both sides of the LWC prestressed box girder were 4.6% and 4.9%, respectively. This verified that, under the same environmental conditions, the use of LWC produced less of a prestress loss than the use of NC.

Our image recognition system mainly judges whether the left upper limb in the image is the left upper limb or the right upper limb through our deep learning model in the image. The doctor then could give the correct surgical position. From the experimental results, it could be found that the precision rate and recall rate of the intelligent image recognition system proposed in this paper for preventing the upper limb dislocation surgery could reach 98% and 93%, respectively. It proved that our artificial intelligent image recognition system, AIIRS, could indeed assist orthopedic surgeons to prevent the occurrence of left and right dislocation in upper limb surgery. At the same time, this paper also completes the IRB application approval through the prototype experimental results and will conduct the second phase of human trials in the future. It showed that the research results of this paper will be of great benefit and research value to upper limb orthopedic surgery.

Our image recognition system mainly judges whether the left upper limb in the image is the left upper limb or the right upper limb through our deep learning model in the image. The doctor then could give the correct surgical position. From the experimental results, it could be found that the precision rate and recall rate of the intelligent image recognition system proposed in this paper for preventing the upper limb dislocation surgery could reach 98% and 93%, respectively. It proved that our intelligent image recognition system could indeed assist orthopedic surgeons to prevent the occurrence of left and right dislocation in upper limb surgery. At the same time, this paper also completes the IRB application approval through the prototype experimental results and will conduct the second phase of human trials in the future. It showed that the research results of this paper will be of great benefit and research value to upper limb orthopedic surgery.

The International Roughness Index (IRI) is the standard scale for evaluating road roughness in many countries in the world. The Taipei City government actively promotes a Road Smoothing Project and plans to complete the rehabilitation of the main and minor roads within its jurisdiction. This study aims to detect the road surface roughness in Taipei City and recommend appropriate IRI thresholds for road rehabilitation. A total of 171 asphalt concrete pavement sections in Taipei City with a total length of 803.49 km were analyzed and compared by IRI. The longitudinal profile of the detected road sections was measured using an inertial profiler. The statistical analysis showed that the IRI value prior to road leveling was mainly distributed between 5 and 8 m/km, while the IRI value after road leveling was mainly distributed between 3 and 4.5 m/km. This confirms that the implementation of the Road Smoothing Project has a significant effect on improving road smoothness. Moreover, based on the analysis results, it is recommended that the IRI threshold value for road rehabilitation in Taipei City be set at 4.50 m/km.

Background: This study aims to compare the impact of early and late post-discharge cardiopulmonary rehabilitation on the outcomes of intensive care unit (ICU) survivors. Methods: The retrospective, cohort study used a sub-database of the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) that contains information of all patients had ICU admission between 2000 and 2012. Early group was defined if patients had received cardiopulmonary rehabilitation within 30 days after ICU discharge, and late group was define as if patients had received cardiopulmonary rehabilitation between 30 days and one year after ICU discharge. The end points were mortality and re-admission during the 3-year follow-up. Results: Among 2136 patients received cardiopulmonary rehabilitation after ICU discharge, 994 was classified early group and other 1142 patients were classified as late group. Overall, early group had a lower mortality rate (6.64% vs 10.86%, p = 0.0006), and a lower ICU readmission rate (47.8% vs 57.97%, p < 0.0001) than late group after 3-year follow-up. Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that early group had significantly lower mortality (p=0.0009) and readmission rate (p<0.0001) than late group. In multivariate analysis, the risk of ICU readmission was found to be independently associated with late group (HR, 1.28; 95% CI, 1.13-1.47). Conclusions: Early post-discharge cardiopulmonary rehabilitation among ICU survivors has the long-term survival benefit and significantly decreases the readmission rate.

Water area segmentation in remote sensing is of great importance for flood monitoring. To overcome some challenges in this task, we construct the Water Index and Polarization Information (WIPI) multi-modality dataset and propose a multi-Modality Fusion and Gated multi-Filter U-Net (MFGF-UNet) convolutional neural network. The WIPI dataset enhances the water information and reduces the data dimension. In particular, the Cloud-Free label provided in the database effectively mitigates the issue of scarcity of labeled samples Since a single form or uniform kernel size cannot handle the variety in size and shape of water bodies, we proposed the gated multi-filter inception (GMF-Inception) module in our MFGF-UNet. Moreover, we utilize the attention mechanism by introducing the Gated Channel Transform (GCT) skip connection and integrating GCT into GMF- Inception to further improve model performance. Extensive experiments on three benchmarks, including WIPI, Chengdu and GF2020 datasets demonstrate that our method achieves favorable performance with lower complexity and better robustness against six competing approaches. For example, on WIPI, Chengdu and GF2020 datasets, the proposed MFGF-UNet model achieves F1 of 0.9191, 0.7410, and 0.8421, respectively, which average F1 on three datasets is 0.0045 higher than the U-Net model and reduces 62% average GFLOPs. New WIPI dataset, code and trained models have been released on GitHub

This paper proposes a novel symmetrical active-switched coupled-inductor high-step-up DC/DC converter. A new active-switched coupled inductor is used to allow much higher voltage gain of the proposed converter. The symmetrical circuit structure of the proposed converter evenly divides large input currents and reduce input current ripple by operating in interleaved mode so power density is increased. The switches also have low voltage stress. The operating principle and design considerations for the converter topology are described. The proposed converter with an input voltage of 40 V, an output voltage of 400 V and an output of 1000 W at a switching frequency of 50 kHz is implemented. The simulations and experimental results are thus depicted to verify the theoretical analysis. The highest efficiency is 95.5% at 200 W measured by using a HIOKI 3390. Consequently, the proposed converter is suitable for renewable energy generation systems that require high power, high voltage gain and high efficiency.

Our previous retrospective observational study demonstrated the safety of laparoscopically assisted subtotal colectomy with ileorectal anastomosis and preservation of the superior rectal artery (SRA), without instances of leakage, in patients with slow-transit constipation (STC). Thus, we extended the enrollment period and enlarged the sample size to detect the differences in the post-operative complications, and surgical and functional outcomes between patients who underwent laparoscopically assisted subtotal colectomy with and without SRA preservation. We conducted a retrospective single-center analysis of patients with STC who underwent laparoscopically assisted subtotal colectomy between 2016 and 2020. The diagnosis of STC was based on the colonic transit and anal functional tests, and barium enema to exclude secondary causes. Patients were divided into group A that underwent surgery with SRA preservation, and group B that underwent ligation of the SRA during surgery. Outcome assessments for both groups included the incidence of anastomotic breakdown, intraoperative complications, length of hospital stay, estimated blood loss, time to first flatus, and complications. Propensity-score matching allocated 34 patients to groups A and B each. Postoperative bowel function, including time to first flatus, stool, and oral intake, recovered better in group A than that in group B. Anastomotic leakage, a significant postoperative complication, was less frequent in patients with SRA preservation. Preservation of the SRA in patients undergoing laparoscopically assisted subtotal colectomy with ileorectal anastomosis for STC is associated with favorable postoperative bowel function recovery and lower anastomotic leakage rates.

The oncologic merits of laparoscopic technique for colorectal cancer surgery remain debatable. Eligible patients with non-metastatic colorectal cancer who were scheduled for an elective resection by only one surgeon in a medical institution were randomized to either laparoscopic or open treatment. During this period, total 188 patients received laparoscopic surgery and other 163 patients to open approach. The primary endpoint was cancer-free 5-year survival after operative treatment and secondary endpoint was the tumor recurrence incidence. We found there was no statistically significant difference between open and laparoscopic groups regarding average number of lymph nodes dissected, overall mortality rate, cancer recurrence rate or cancer-free 5-year survival. Nevertheless, laparoscopic approach was more effective for colorectal cancer treatment with shorter hospital stay and less blood loss despite operation time was significantly longer. Meanwhile fewer patients receiving laparoscopic approach developed postoperative urinary tract infection, wound infection, pneumonia or anastomosis leakage, which reached statistical significance. For non-metastatic colorectal cancer patients, laparoscopic surgery resulted in better short-term outcomes whether in total complications and intra-operative blood loss. Though there was no significant statistical difference in terms of cancer-free 5-year survival and tumor recurrence, we favor patients receiving laparoscopic surgery if not contraindicated.

Emerging evidence has shown that microRNAs play pivotal roles in wound healing. MicroRNA-21 (miR-21) was previously found to upregulate in order to fulfill an anti-inflammation role for wounds. Exosomal miRNAs have been identified and explored as essential markers for diagnostic medicine. However, the role of exosomal miR-21 in wounds has yet to be well studied. In order to facilitate the early management of poorly healing wounds, we developed an easy-to-use, rapid, paper-based microfluidic-exosomal miR-21 extraction device to determine wound prognosis in a timely manner. We isolated and then quantitatively examined exosomal miR-21 in wound fluids from normal tissues, acute and chronic wounds. Eight improving wounds displayed lower levels of exosomal miR-21 expression after wound debridement. However, four instances of increased exosomal miR-21 expression levels were notably associated with patients with poor healing wounds despite aggressive wound debridement, indicating a predictive role of tissue exosomal miR-21 for wound outcome. Paper-based nucleic acid extraction device provides a rapid and user-friendly approach for evaluating exosomal miR-21 in wound fluids as a means of monitoring wounds. Our data suggest that tissue exosomal miR-21 is a reliable marker for determining current wound status.

In all areas of medicine, especially in radiology, computers are increasing year by year. Filmless radiology, speech recognition software, electronic application forms, and teleradiology are recent developments that have greatly improved radiologists' performance. This research explores radiology software trends, predictions, and the challenges posed by informatics and historical trend analysis. The rationale behind this research is that information technology (IT) is overgrowing almost every day. We must continuously seek new ways to apply IT to make more use of resources. Consequently, IT becomes increasingly crucial to radiology organizations' innovative thinking, workflow, and business models. This study aimed to analyze all radiology software publications in the Science Citation Index (SCI). From 1991 to July 2021, SCI was used to search for publications systematically. We have also widely used this historical method in radiology software research. The findings and discussions are base on an assessment of trends, predictions, contributions, and challenges in radiology software, and we are exploring radiology software with six evolutionary stages. The gift of this research is that radiology managers realize that the use of new information technologies is closely related to survival in a competitive environment. Radiology companies can review these new technologies to develop more innovative business models and services to improve operational deficiencies.

This article addresses the trajectory tracking between two non-identical systems with chaotic properties. We employ the Rossler chaotic and RCL-shunted Josephson junctions model in similar phase space to study trajectory tracking. In order to achieve the goal tracking, we afford two stages to approximate the target tracking. The first stage utilizes the active control technique to transfer the output signal from the RCLs-J system into the quasi-Rossler system. Then next, the RCLs-J system employs the proposed the iterative learning control scheme and the control signal from the drive system to trace the trajectory of Rossler system. The numerical results demonstrate the proposed method and the tracking system is asymptotically stable.

This research not only dedicated a less restrictive method of iteration-varying function for a learning control law to design a controller but also synchronize two nonlinear systems with free time-delay. In addition, the mathematical theory of system synchronization has proved rigorously and the theory verified through an example to demonstrate the behavior of each parameter in the theory. The design of a controller using the iterative learning control law is significant for robotic tracking. The controller in this research generates a feed-forward control input using the error dynamics among the drive-response systems. The error dynamics satisfies the Lyapunov function and the combination of output errors, which respectively represented relative estimated differences of the drive-response systems. The iterative learning control rule serves the function of a filter adding previous control error after the end of each iteration. The numerical example of a synchronous system is given a Lorenz system for driving and another with the iterative learning control law for response under different initial condition. The results verify and demonstrate the proposed mathematical theory. The simulation exhibits consistency in the behavior of each parameter to match mathematical theory.

This study explores the public library service evaluation domain through user-generated content on Google Maps, highlighting digital feedback's significant yet underexplored potential in understanding public library patronage across Taiwan's six major cities. Utilizing a mixed-methods research design, this study integrates Google Maps review content analysis with Social Network Analysis to delineate public perceptions and identify areas for service enhancement in public libraries. It innovatively leverages personal experiences extracted from over 60,000 Google Maps reviews to evaluate public library services in cities such as Taipei, New Taipei, Taoyuan, Taichung, Tainan, and Kaohsiung. The research taps into the National Library of Taiwan's National Library Statistics System to provide a robust analysis of library performance and user satisfaction, offering a novel perspective by emphasizing user-centric feedback from Google Maps as a primary data source. This approach provides quantitative data on library usage and geographic distribution and enriches our understanding of the qualitative experiences of library users. In analyzing the keywords from Google Maps reviews of public libraries, we categorize and interpret these under the three core LibQUAL+ dimensions—Affect of Service, Information Control, and Library as Place. The findings expose variances in perceived service quality among the cities, with Kaohsiung and Taichung receiving the highest accolades for service satisfaction. Simultaneously, the study identifies potential areas for improvement, particularly in cities with lower satisfaction ratings like Taipei. This personalized feedback illustrates the intimate relationship between public libraries and their communities, offering invaluable insights for policymakers and library management to enhance service delivery and user experience.

Concrete cracks and local damage can affect the bond performance between concrete and steel bars, thereby reducing the durability of reinforced concrete structures. Compared with general concrete crack repair methods, biomineralization repair not only has effective bonding capabilities but is also particularly environmentally friendly. In view of this, this study aimed to apply biomineralization technology to repair damaged fiber-reinforced lightweight aggregate concrete (LWAC). Two groups of LWAC specimens were prepared. The control group used lightweight aggregates (LWAs) without bacterial spores and nutrient sources, and the experimental group used LWAs containing bacterial spores and nutrient sources. These specimens were first subjected to compression tests and pull-out tests, respectively, and thus were damaged. After the damaged specimen healed itself in different ways for 28 days, secondary compression and pull-out tests were conducted. The self-healing method of the control group involved placing the specimens in an incubator. The experimental group was further divided into experimental group I and experimental group II. The self-healing method of experimental group I was the same as that of the control group. The self-healing method of experimental group II involved soaking the specimen in a mixed solution of urea and calcium acetate for two days, and then taking it out and placing it in an incubator for two days, with a cycle of four days. The test results showed that, compared with the control group specimens, the relative bond strength ratio of the experimental group II specimens increased by 17.9%. Moreover, the EDS and XRD analysis results confirmed that the precipitate formed at the crack was calcium carbonate, which improved the compressive strength and bond strength after self-healing. This indicates that the biomineralization maintenance method used in experimental group II is more effective.

In order to study the petrogenesis and tectonic setting of Permian A-type granites and their relationships with hydrothermal mineralization along the Hegenshan-Heihe suture zone (HHSZ) in northeastern China, we select the newly discovered Hongyan Cu-polymetallic deposit in the northeastern part of the HHSZ that develops three stages of mineralization associated with the Shanshenfu alkali-feldspar granite (SAFG). The zircon U-Pb dating and whole rock geochemistry suggest that the SAFG is a typical A-type granite formed in the Early Permian. The zircon Hf isotopes and trace elements suggest that the SAFG has high Ti-in-zircon temperature (721–990℃), high magmatic oxygen fugacity and largely positive εHf(t) (+6.0 to +9.9). Therefore, we propose that the SAFG was derived from the crustal assimilation and fractional crystallization of the charnockitized juvenile crust. The high oxygen fugacity favors the chalcophile elements (e.g., Cu, Au, Ag) of the source region enriched in the fluid phases after magmatic fractional crystallization, consequently facilitating subsequent hydrothermal mineralization, which is also consistent with the characteristics of ore-forming fluids that changed from the initial high temperature, high salinity, high fO2 and CO2-rich magmatic-hydrothermal fluids of stage I to CO2-poor, dilute, and cooling meteoric fluids of stage III. Combined with regional geological background, the Permian A2-type granites along the HHSZ can be formed in post-collisional slab break-off process. In subsequent exploration for hydrothermal deposits along the HHSZ, the Permian A-type granites with arc-related juvenile crustal source and high fO2 have great potential and need more attention.

Excretory-secretory products (ESPs) are the main research targets for investigating the hosts and helminths interaction. Parasitic worms can migrate to parasitic sites and avoid the host immune response by secreting this product. Angiostrongylus cantonensisis an important food-borne zoonotic parasite that causes severe neuropathological damage and symptoms, including eosinophilic meningitis or meningoencephalitis in humans. Benzaldehydes are organic compounds composed of a benzene ring and formyl substituents. This compound has anti-inflammatory and antioxidation properties. Previous studies showed that 3-hydroxybenzaldehyde (3-HBA) and 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde (4-HBA) can reduce apoptosis in A. cantonensis ESPs treated astrocytes. These results on the protective effect underlying benzaldehyde have primarily focused on cell survival. The study was designed to investigate the molecular mechanisms of endoplasmic reticulum stress (ER stress) and oxidative stress in astrocytes in A. cantonensis ESPs treated astrocytes and to evaluate the therapeutic consequent of 3-HBA and 4-HBA. First, we initially established the RNA-seq dataset in each group, including Normal, ESPs, ESPs+3-HBA, and ESPs+4-HBA. We also found that benzaldehyde (3-HBA and 4-HBA) can stimulate astrocytes to express ER stress-related molecules after ESP treatment. The level of oxidative stress could also be decreased in astrocytes by elevating antioxidant activity and reducing ROS generation. These results suggested that benzaldehyde may be a potential therapeutic compound for human angiostrongyliasis to support brain cell survival by inducing the expression levels of ER stress- and oxidative stress-related pathway.

This paper presents a hybrid probability distribution known as the FCD, which is based on the hazard functions of the Fréchet and Chen distributions. A notable characteristic of the FCD is its ability to model monotonic (increasing and decreasing) and non-monotonic (bathtub-shaped) behaviors, commonly linked to electrical and electronic device failure times in reliability analysis. The paper explores the statistical properties relevant to the reliability analysis of these devices. It proposes a Maximum Likelihood Estimator (MLE) and Bayesian Analysis equations for estimating the parameters of the FCD. Three case studies of electronic device lifetimes with varying behaviors were analyzed to validate the proposed methodology. The FCD was compared to other distributions with similar characteristics, and the results from each case study demonstrated that the proposed distribution yields competitive outcomes, closely reflecting the behavior of the devices analyzed, making it a valuable option for reliability engineering practitioners in warranty and maintenance time evaluations

Taiwan is the world’s leading country regarding tuna longline fisheries; the combined catches with those from Japan account for more than half of the global total. However, the bycatch of sea turtles, seabirds, and dolphins in longline fisheries has attracted international concern. Regarding sea turtle conservation, the use of circle hooks in longline fisheries will inevitably become a trend. Meanwhile, Taiwanese fishermen are concerned whether the use of circle hooks will have a negative impact on the catch efficiency of target species. This study was conducted to compare the catch efficiency of circle and tuna hooks by the Taiwanese commercial tuna longline fishing vessels in the eastern Pacific Ocean. The results indicated that if the effects of immersion time were considered, the catch rates of all groups were the same between 4.2-sun circle and tuna hooks. However, the catch rate of 4.0-sun circle hooks was significantly higher than the two types of 4.2-sun circle and tuna hooks. Regarding survival rates, fish caught with circle hooks showed higher survival rates than tuna hooks for total commercial fish, tunas and yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares). However, the survival rate was only determined at haulback; the relationship between survival rate and immersion time still needs further investigation. Regarding catch sizes, there were no significant differences in the sizes of bigeye (Thunnus obesus) and yellowfin tuna between circle and tuna hooks. But based solely on mean weight, the value of yellowfin tuna caught using circle hooks may be higher than those using tuna hooks. In summary, the circle hooks used in this study did not show a negative impact on the catch efficiency of Taiwanese longline fisheries, and could show a superior performance than that of tuna hooks. These results could be actively promoted in the industry through the education and training of fishermen; thus enabling Taiwan to comply with international sea turtle conservation trends.

Despite recent advancements, therapies remain ineffective against advanced oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), resulting in unsatisfactory therapeutic outcomes. Cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) offers a promising approach in the treatment of malignant neoplasms. Yet, the exact mechanisms driving CAP-induced cancer cell death are not fully understood. This study revealed a significant reduction in the viability of OSCC cell lines, inactivation of AKT and ERK, and the downregulation of the miR-21, miR-31, miR-134, miR-146a and miR-211 expression followed the CAP treatment. Pretreatment with ZVAD, 3-MA, and Fer-1 synergistically reduced CAP-induced cell death, indicating a combined induction of variable death pathways by CAP. Activation of AKT and ERK, alongside combined treatments using death inhibitors and miRNA mimics, counteracted the cell mortality associated with CAP. CAP-induced downregulation of miR-21, miR-31, miR-187 and miR-211 expression was rescued by AKT and ERK activation. Additionally, CAP treatments notably inhibited the growth of SAS cell xenografts on nude mice. The reduced expression of oncogenic miRNAs in vivo aligned with in vitro findings. In conclusion, our study indicates that CAP jet treatment diminishes OSCC cell viability by abrogating survival signals and oncogenic miRNA expression.

Scaffoldings play a critical role as temporary structures in supporting construction processes. Accidents at construction sites frequently stem from issues related to scaffoldings, including insufficient support caused by deviations from the construction design, insecure rod connections, or absence of cross bracing, which result in uneven loading and potential collapse, leading to casualties. In this study, we introduce a deep-learning-based, augmented reality (AR)-enabled system called scaffolding assembly deficiency detection system (SADDS) to assist field inspectors in identifying deficiencies in scaffolding assemblies. Inspectors have the flexibility to utilize SADDS through various devices, such as video cameras, mobile phones, or AR goggles (i.e., Microsoft HoloLens 2), for automated detection of deficiencies in scaffolding assemblies. The training test yielded satisfactory results, with a mean average precision of 0.89 and individual precision values of 0.96, 0.82, 0.90, and 0.89 for “qualified” frames and frames with the “missing cross-tie rod,” “missing lower-tie rod,” and “missing footboard” deficiencies, respectively. Field tests conducted at two construction sites demonstrated improved system performance compared to that in the training test. However, these field tests also revealed certain limitations of the SADDS system.

With the aim of profitable conversion of carbon dioxide (CO2) in an efficient, economical and sustainable manner, we developed a CuBr/ionic liquid (1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate) catalytic system which could efficiently catalyze the three-component reactions of propargylic alcohols, 2-aminoethanols, and CO2 to produce 2-oxazolidinones and α-hydroxy ketones. Remarkably, this catalytic system employed lower metal loading (0.0125-0.5 mol%) but exhibited the highest turnover number (2960) ever reported, demonstrating its excellent activity and sustainability. Moreover, our catalytic system could efficiently work under 1 atm of CO2 pressure and recycle among the metal-catalyzed systems.

Some bispecific radiotracers have been developed to overcome the limitations of monospecific tracers and improve detection sensitivity for heterogeneous tumor lesions. Here we aim to synthesize two bispecific tracers targeting prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) and fibroblast activation protein (FAP), which are key markers expressed in prostate cancer. A pyridine-based FAP-targeted ligand was synthesized through multi-step organic synthesis, and then connected to the 2-Nal-containing PSMA-targeted motif. Ki(PSMA) values of Ga-complexed bispecific ligands, Ga-AV01084 and Ga-AV01088, were 11.6 ± 3.25 and 28.7 ± 6.05 nM, respectively, and the IC50(FAP) values of Ga-AV01084 and Ga-AV01088 were 10.9 ± 0.67 and 16.7 ± 1.53 nM, respectively. The uptake values for PSMA-expressing LNCaP tumor xenografts were 9.05 ± 1.54 and 8.85 ± 1.25 %ID/g for [68Ga]Ga-AV010184 and [68Ga]Ga-AV01088, respectively, which were lower than the monospecific PSMA-targeted tracer [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-617 (16.7 ± 2.30 %ID/g). The uptake values for FAP-expressing HEK293T:hFAP tumor xenografts were 1.90 ± 0.41 and 1.20 ± 0.25 %ID/g for [68Ga]Ga-AV01084 and [68Ga]Ga-AV01088, respectively, which were also lower than the monospecific FAP-targeted tracer, [68Ga]Ga-AV02070 (7.93 ± 1.88 %ID/g). Further investigations are needed to optimize the selection of linkers and targeted pharmacophores to improve the tumor uptake of PSMA/FAP bispecific tracers for prostate cancer imaging.

In view of the problem of cracking easily and partial distortion of images after encryption or decryption, a novel image encryption and decryption algorithm based on Arnod Transform and fractional chaotic is proposed. To begin with, the Arnold transform is used to encrypt. So that the spatial confidence of the original image has been comprehensively disturbed. Secondly, the XOR involving the fractional order chaotic sequence is used to encrypt. The key sequence is dynamically generated to ensure the randomness and difference of key generation. When decryption is required, the first decryption is performed using the key and XOR. Then the second decryption is carried out by using the inverse Arnold transform, and finally the decrypted image is obtained. Experimental results show that the improved algorithm has achieved better performance in encryption and decryption.

There always exist steel cuttings, holes and cracks at the interfaces in the explosive composite plate. Multi-pass friction stir processing (M-FSP) is proposed in this research to optimize the interface microstructure and the interface connection for 1060Al/Q235 explosive composite plate. Results show that the microstructures of 1060Al after M-FSP are fine and uniform owing to the strong stirring effect and recrystallization. Micro-defects formed by the explosive welding can be repaired by the M-FSP. However, M-FSP can also form tunnel defects in the aluminum, especially when the passes are one and two. The melting block and the melting lump in the composite plates are easy to become source of crack. The shear strengths and the bending properties for the 1060Al/Q235 explosive composite plate after M-FSP are the best when the passes are three, with the tool rotation speed of 1200rpm and the forward speed of 60mm/min. The optimized interfaces for the explosive composite plate after M-FSP are mainly by the metallurgical bondings, with a certain thickness and are discontinuous. Therefore, the crack extension stress is the largest and the mechanical properties are the best.

Cs2NaInCl6 double perovskites, which have excellent photoelectric conversion properties and are non-toxic and lead-free, have recently attracted much attention. In particular, double perovskite quantum dots (QDs) are considered to be a promising material for optoelectronic device applications. Ligands such as oleic acid (OA) and oleylamine (OAm) are essential for the synthesis of perovskite QDs, but their roles on double perovskite QDs are not yet clear. In this study, we have investigated the binding of OA and OAm to Cs2NaInCl6 QDs through FTIR and NMR and their effects on the surface defect reduction and stability improvement for Cs2NaInCl6 QDs. We found that only OAm was bound to the QD surfaces while OA was not. The OAm has a great effect on photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) improvement by passivate the QD surface defects. The stability of the QDs was also investigated, and it was shown that OA played a significant role in the stability of the QDs. Our findings provide critical insights into the roles of the ligands for photophysical properties and stability of lead-free double perovskite QDs.

Blood glucose (BG) monitoring is an important issue for critically ill patients. Previous studies reported that poor sugar control was associated with increased mortality in admitted patients. However, repeated blood glucose monitoring can be resource-consuming and cause a healthcare burden in clinical practice. In this study, we aimed to develop a personalized machine-learning model to predict dysglycemia based on electrocardiogram (ECG) findings. The study included patients with more than 20 ECG records during single hospital admission in the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care III database, focusing on the lead II recordings, along with the corresponding blood sugar data. We processed the data and used ECG features from each heartbeat as inputs to develop a one-class support vector machine (SVM) algorithm to predict dysglycemia. The model prediction for dysglycemia using a single heartbeat had an AUC level of 0.92 ± 0.09, with a sensitivity of 0.92 ± 0.10 and specificity of 0.84 ± 0.04. Based on 10 s majority voting, the model prediction for dysglycemia improved to an AUC of 0.97 ± 0.06. In this study, we found that a personalized machine-learning algorithm could accurately detect dysglycemia using a single-lead ECG.

Rainfall retrieval using geostationary satellites provides critical means to the monitoring of extreme rainfall events. Using the relatively new Himawari 8 meteorological satellite with three times more channels than its predecessors, the deep learning framework of “convolutional autoencoder” (CAE) was applied to the extraction of cloud and precipitation features. The CAE method was incorporated into the Convolution Neural Network version of the PERSIANN precipitation retrieval that uses GOES satellites. By applying the CAE technique with the addition of Residual Blocks and other modifications of deep learning architecture, the presented derivation of PERSIANN operated at the Central Weather Bureau of Taiwan (referred to as PERSIANN-CWB) expands four extra convolution layers to fully use Himawari 8’s infrared and water vapor channels, while preventing degradation of accuracy caused by the deeper network. The development of PERSIANN-CWB was trained over Taiwan for its diverse weather systems and localized rainfall features, and the evaluation reveals an overall improvement from its CNN counterpart and superior performance over all other rainfall retrievals analyzed. Limitation of this model was found in the derivation of typhoon rainfall, an area requiring further research.

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) has the characteristics of large-scale deployment, flexible networking, and wide application. It is an important part of the wireless communication networks. However, due to limited energy supply, the development of WSN is greatly restricted. Wireless Rechargeable Sensor Networks (WRSNs) transform the distributed energy around the environment into usable electricity through energy collection technology. In this work, a joint optimization strategy is proposed to improve the energy management efficiency for WRSNs. The joint optimization strategy is divided into two phases. In the first phase, we design an Annulus Virtual Force based Particle Swarm Optimization (AVFPSO) algorithm for area coverage planing. It adopts the multi-parameter joint optimization method to improve the efficiency of the algorithm. In the second phase, a Queuing Game-based Energy Supply (QGES) algorithm is designed for energy scheduling. It converts energy supply and consumption into network service. By solving the game equilibrium of the model, the optimal energy distribution strategy can be obtained. The simulation results show that our scheme improves the efficiency of coverage and energy, and extends the lifetime of WSN.

This paper presents a comprehensive study on the application and optimization of automotive thermoelectric generators (ATEGs), focusing on the crucial role of heat exchangers in enhancing energy conversion efficiency. Recognizing the substantial waste of thermal energy in internal combustion engines, our research delves into the potential of TEGs to convert engine waste heat into electrical energy, thereby improving fuel efficiency and reducing environmental impact. We meticulously analyze various heat exchanger designs, assessing their influence on the TEG's output power under different exhaust gas flow rates and temperatures. Furthermore, we explore the impact of TEG material properties on the overall energy conversion effectiveness. Our findings reveal that specific heat exchanger designs significantly enhance the efficiency of waste gas heat exchange, leading to an improved performance of the TEG system. We also highlight the importance of thermal insulation in maximizing TEG output. This study not only contributes to the ongoing efforts to develop more sustainable and efficient vehicles but also provides valuable insights into the practical application of thermoelectric technology in automotive engineering. Through this research, we aim to pave the way for more environmentally friendly transportation solutions, aligning with global efforts to reduce fossil fuel dependence and mitigate environmental pollution.

Due to the fact that abrasive media can deform flexibly in abrasive flow machining (AFM) making this method easily to polish the complex holes and the curved surface of the hard machining shapes. Although abrasive media dominate the polishing behavior in AFM process, the mechanism of the abrasive media are not easy to understand because of the high viscous gels, therefore, many finishing works need lots of time to design AFM process. Power laws of the abrasive gels is studied here to evaluate the non-Newtonian flow of abrasive gels in complex holes polishing firstly, at the mean time different abrasive gels are utilized to finish the complex holes to follow the results by non-Newtonian flow calculation. Moreover, traditional AFM has difficulty to achieve a uniform roughness of radial distribution in the complex holes polishing because of the non-uniform abrasive forces. So a helical passageway is proposed to create a multiple motion of abrasive medium and to obtain the even surface of the complex holes in AFM process.

In Taiwan, mountainous areas account for approximately two-thirds of the total area. The steep terrain and concentrated rainfall during typhoons cause landslides, which pose a considerable threat to mountain settlements. Therefore, models for analyzing rainfall-induced landslide hazards are urgently required to ensure adequate land use in mountainous areas. In this study, focusing on Pingtung County in southern Taiwan, we developed a landslide hazard index (IRL) to land use. Using FORMOSA-2 and SPOT-5 satellite images, data were collected before and after four typhoons (one in 2009 and three in 2013). The ArcGIS random tree classifier was used for interpreting satellite images to explore surface changes and disasters, which were used to analyze slope disturbances. The product of the maximum 3-h rolling rainfall intensity and effective accumulated rainfall was used as a rainfall trigger index (IRT). Considering environmental and slope disturbance factors, an index of slope environmental strength potential (ISESP) was developed through logistic regression (LR). Landslide hazard to land use was estimated using IRT and ISESP. The average coefficient of agreement (Kappa) was approximately 0.71 (medium to high accuracy); the overall accuracy of slope environmental strength potential analysis was approximately 80.4%. At a constant ISESP, IRT increased with the increasing hazard potential of rainfall-induced landslides. Furthermore, IRT and ISESP were positively correlated with landslide occurrence. When large ISESP values occur (e.g., fragile environment and high land development intensity), small IRT values may induce landslides.

Introduction: Treating elbow fracture-dislocation is a challenge, especially in the situation of basal-coronoid trans-ulnar fracture. The study ams to explain whether or not the minimal invasive surgery (MIS) would be feasible in elbow dislocation with coronoid fracture. Materials & Methods: At Taipei Veterans General Hospital, patients who had elbow dislocations with coronoid process fractures underwent single one surgeon’s MIS techniques which included the fluoroscopy-guided ulnar anteromedial (FGUAM) approach in the stage of reducing coronoid process. When there is a proximal ulnar fracture, the posterior incision should be necessary, followed by the incision over the lateral or medial elbow in treating radial fractures or ligament injuries. Results: The Flow Diagram about approach recommendation was established in base of defining MIS as not to do cross-plane dissection. Anteriorly rigid fixation for the coronoid process was also emphasized. Conclusions: MIS can be achieved by multiple limited surgical incisions. However, if there is an unstable ulnar metaphysis or ligament avulsion fracture, the posterior approach has to be extended and the so-called MIS fails to be established.

This study investigates the transformative impact of ChatGPT, a cutting-edge AI language model developed by OpenAI, on the financial sector. We explore ChatGPT's applications in financial analysis, focusing on its ability to perform tasks traditionally handled by human analysts. By creating a set of multi-step and advanced reasoning financial tasks, and establishing several task-specific evaluation metrics, our experimental results demonstrate that ChatGPT-4o can effectively perform both basic and some complex financial analysis tasks comparable to those executed by humans. However, our empirical evaluation reveals limitations in its performance on complex tasks that require comprehensive understanding and critical thinking. The study highlights the necessity for meticulous task formulation and robust evaluation to achieve consistent functionality. While ChatGPT enhances efficiency in financial analysis, its integration with human expertise remains crucial for effective decision-making. This study contributes to the understanding of AI's role in finance and provides insights into its potential and constraints, guiding future integration of AI technologies in financial practices.

The operation status of manufacturing equipment is directly related to the reliability of the operation of manufacturing equipment and the continuity of operation of the production system. Based on the analysis of the operation status of manufacturing equipment and its characteristics, it is proposed that the concept of assessing the operation status of manufacturing equipment can be realized by applying real-time acquisition of accurate inspection data of important parts of weak motion units and comparing them with their motion status evaluation criteria. Through the study of the application characteristics of fractional-order calculus theory, a differential data fusion model based on the fractional-order differential operator is established. The advantages of Internet of Things (IoT）technology and fractional order differential fusion algorithm are integrated to obtain real-time high-precision data of the operating parameters of manufacturing equipment, and the research objective of operating condition assessment of manufacturing equipment is realized. The feasibility and effectiveness of the method are verified by the application of the method in machining center operation status assessment.

The fixed stroke fatigue test can not simulate the real load condition of the landing gear, and the variable stroke fatigue test has increasingly become the mainstream. A modular test device for fatigue test for aircraft landing gears was designed, the automatic control of the buffer stroke was realized with ectopic displacement control technology effectively, the horizontal loading cylinder could follow the wheel axis actively with the displacement active control technology, follow-up loading along the vertical direction was realized through constructing a polar coordinate system and making the load line automatic alignment, a split-type dummy wheel was designed to improve the loading accuracy, a booster cylinder was designed to realize the control loading of high pressure combined with the hydraulic control system. The test shows that the technical scheme meets the design requirements, and the fatigue test was completed successfully. The device for landing gear variable stroke fatigue testing can be applied to other landing gear static / fatigue tests.

Keywords: mHealth; peritoneal dialysis; functionality; usability

Most of the existing influence maximization algorithms are not suitable for large-scale social networks due to their high time complexity or limited influence propagation range. Therefore, a D-RIS influence maximization algorithm is proposed based on the independent cascade model and combined with the reverse reachable set sampling. Under the premise that the influence propagation function satisfies monotonicity and submodularity, the D-RIS algorithm uses automatic debugging method to determine the critical value of the number of reverse reachable sets, which not only obtains a better influence propagation range, and greatly reduce the time complexity. The experimental results on the two real data sets of Slashdot and Epinions show that D-RIS algorithm is close to the CELF algorithm and higher than RIS algorithm, HighDegree algorithm, LIR algorithm and pBmH algorithm in influence propagation range. At the same time, it is significantly better than the CELF algorithm and RIS algorithm in running time, which indicates that D-RIS algorithm is more suitable for large scale social network.

This paper aims to present a smart high speed battery charger, powered by a photovoltaic module array, for a LiFePO4 battery as a solar energy storage device. With a battery charging strategy, the presented battery charger involves a Buck converter as the core equipped with a simple maximum power point (MPP) tracker. Considering complexity reduction and easy hardware implementation, a constant voltage MPP tracking approach is adopted such that the maximum amount of output power can be delivered to the load in response to an arbitrary change in the solar radiation. A smart two-stage charging strategy, with a constant current mode followed by a constant voltage mode, is employed in such a way that the battery charge process can be accelerated largely, while the damage caused by overcharging can be prevented. In the end, the performance of this proposal is validated experimentally.

This study explores the implementation of an interdisciplinary curriculum in product and media design education and its impact on knowledge innovation and competency development. The curriculum is based on scaffolding theory, incorporating design proposals, workshops, digital design, marketing tests, and marketing activities guided by teachers and mentors from a branded ceramic workshop. The research findings demonstrate that the interdisciplinary curriculum facilitates knowledge innovation and fosters the development of students' professional skills, creativity, and problem-solving skills. The study also highlights the importance of stable scaffolding, including artefact, peer, and teacher support, which significantly contributes to cultivating transformational competencies, as outlined in the 2030 OECD Learning Compass. Additionally, the collaboration with Shanshing Four Seasons Celadon Studio on a patented ceramic product, "Funny Monkey," is a tangible example of the journey towards a triple-helix knowledge economy. This research underscores the importance of interdisciplinary curricula in promoting knowledge innovation and integrating transformational competencies in education. Scaffolding theory provides practical guidance for student learning and teaching strategies, presenting a sustainable roadmap for developing interdisciplinary curricula and offering a concrete and transferable pedagogical prototype for educational innovation.

The silane (3-Aminopropyl)triethoxysilane (APTES), possesses one terminal amine group and three ethoxy groups extending from each silicon atom, serving as a crucial interface adherent between organic and inorganic materials. In corrosion prevention, APTES is frequently employed as a primer, with subsequent topcoat as an extra protective layer. This topcoat is particularly useful in covering sites where APTES may exhibit poor bonding, such as those involving Cu or Cu-rich alloying elements. In our study, we applied a thin layer of APTES to cleaned AA2024-T3 samples using concentrated vapor deposition, followed by spin-coating with a diluted PS/acetone solution. Through combinatorial experimentation, we investigated the impact of APTES on the corrosion resistance of the coating system on AA2024-T3. Our findings indicate that a higher surface energy of the APTES primer contributes to better corrosion resistance in the overall coating system. This improvement can be attributed to enhanced wettability achieved by the PS/acetone solution on the cured APTES primer, leading to a more uniform coverage of the dried PS topcoat. Additionally, our research revealed that, in the early stages of exposure to the corrosion solution, a thinner APTES primer enhances protection against corrosion. This effect is attributed to hydrolytic stability mechanisms, and the interactions between hydrolyzation/condensation in soaked APTES and the dissolution of naturally formed aluminum oxide pre-existing in the bare samples. Finally, we observed that an APTES primer subjected to additional heat treatment before topcoating exhibits superior performance in corrosion resistance.

A large amount of accurate river cross-section data is indispensable for predicting river stages. However, the measured river cross-section data are usually sparse in the transverse direction at each cross-section as well as in the longitudinal direction along the river channel. This study presents three algorithms to resample the river cross-section data points in both the transverse and longitudinal directions from the original data. The resampled cross-section data based on the linear interpolation satisfactorily maintains the topographic and morphological features of the river channel, especially in the meandering river segment. A two-dimensional (2D) high-resolution unstructured-grid hydrodynamic model was used to assess the performance of the original and resampled cross-section data on a simulated river stage under low flow and high flow conditions. The simulated river stages are significantly improved using the resampled cross-section data based on the linear interpolation in the tidal river and non-tidal river segments. Furthermore, the performance of the 2D and three-dimensional (3D) models on the simulated river stage was also evaluated using the resampled cross-section data. The results indicate that the 2D and 3D models reproduce similar river stages in both tidal and non-tidal river segments under the low flow condition. However, the 2D model overestimates the river stages in both the tidal and non-tidal river segments compared to the 3D model under the high flow condition. The model sensitivity was implemented to investigate the influence of bottom drag coefficient and vertical eddy viscosity on river stage. The results reveal that bottom drag coefficient has a minor impact on river stage, but the vertical eddy viscosity is insensitive to river stage.

In the TANGO study, the long-term noninferior efficacy of switching to dolutegravir/lamivudine (DTG/3TC) compared to continuing tenofovir alafenamide–based regimens was demonstrated in treatment-experienced adults with HIV. However, there is limited real-world data comparing the effectiveness and safety of bictegravir/emtricitabine/tenofovir alafenamide fumarate (BIC/FTC/TAF) and DTG/3TC in Asia. This retrospective observational study, conducted at a designated HIV-care hospital from March 2019 to January 2023, aimed to address this gap. Demographic, clinical, and laboratory data, including HIV viral loads and lipid profiles, were collected and analyzed. The primary outcome was the proportion of patients with HIV RNA <50 copies/mL at week 48 in both groups, utilizing a snapshot, per-protocol–exposed population. A total of 1086 patients were included, with 511 in the DTG/3TC group and 575 in the BIC/FTC/TAF group. At week 48, 98% of patients in the DTG/3TC group and 94% in the BIC/FTC/TAF group achieved HIV RNA <50 copies/mL (p <0.01). Logistic regression analysis identified risk factors for detectable viral loads at week 48, including HIV RNA >100,000 copies/mL (AOR 5.13, 95% CI 1.42–18.53), low-level viremia (AOR 3.91, 95% CI 1.07–14.25), and record of virologic failure ≥2 times (AOR 4.21, 95% CI 1.64–10.85) before the switch. Furthermore, no significant difference was found between the DTG/3TC and BIC/FTC/TAF regimens (AOR: 1.51, 95% CI 0.70–3.24). In conclusion, the study demonstrates that the effectiveness and safety profiles of DTG/3TC and BIC/FTC/TAF were comparable in treatment-experienced adults with HIV, particularly among those with undetectable viral loads at baseline.

To enhance industrial competitiveness and increase productivity, every country has strived to create a smart factory by introducing technologies such as Internet of Things, big data and artificial intelligence into production line and build cyber-physical system for the purpose of promoting manufacturing efficiency. For mission assignment, production line management or manufacturing field analysis, the location information of employee, machine and material is very essential. To promote manufacturing efficiency, of course, the location information became more important. A Bluetooth low energy (BLE) positioning system for the manufacturing is developed in this research. A "Tag tracking" mechanism is addressed and adopted, which uses Beacon to catch the location information and a BLE receiver is also used to receive the broadcasting information from Beacon. The position information from the BLE receiver will be compared with the data in the database for calculating the location of the target. The status of the target may also be obtained by using the data from the BLE receiver. Comparing with the mobile device, this method can reduce energy consumption and make the maintenance simple and easy. In the real applications, the target may not be limited to human. The "Regional label positioning technology" is also investigated in this research. Defining a suitable zone location and arranging BLE receiver location, and positioning analysis theory are the key factors included in this developed technology. The developed system will be tested for real industry applications. The test results show that the feasibility of this technology.

Cisplatin-based chemotherapy has long been viewed as the first-line chemotherapy for advanced and metastatic urothelial carcinoma (UC). However, many patients with UC have been classified as “cisplatin-ineligible patient”, which requires alternative chemotherapy due to their poor responses. In fact, vast majority of those who initially responded to cisplatin-based chemotherapy eventually progressed. Understanding of UC tumor immunology provided an immunopathogenic bases for immune checkpoint inhibitors, targeting PD-1 and CTLA-4, to treat cisplatin ineligible metastatic UC and patients with platinum-refractory metastatic UC. In 2020, data from the trail further showed that PD-L1 inhibitors benefit prolonged survival and progression-free survival as maintenance therapy. Besides immune-targeting therapies, manipulation of tumor microenvironment via metabolic pathways alternation, such as inhibiting tumor glycolysis, lactate accumulation and exogenous glutamine uptake, has been investigated in the past few years. In this comprehensive review, we started by introducing traditional chemotherapy of UC, and summarized current evidences supporting the use of immune checkpoint inhibitors and highlighted ongoing clinical trials. Lastly, we reviewed the tumor metabolic characteristic and the anti-tumor treatments targeting metabolic pathways.

We give a simple proof of the Chen inequality for the Chen invariant $\underbrace{\delta (2,...,2)}_{k\mbox{ terms}}$ of submanifolds in Riemannian space forms.

Hydroa vacciniforme (HV) is a rare form of photosensitivity disorders in children and is frequently associated with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection, whereas HV-like lymphoproliferative disorders (HVLPD) describe a spectrum of EBV-associated T-cell or NK-cell lymphoproliferations with HV-like cutaneous manifestations, including EBV-positive HV, atypical HV, and HV-like lymphoma. Classic HV occurs in childhood with vesiculopapules on sun-exposed areas, which is usually induced by sunlight and ultraviolet irradiation, and mostly resolves by early adult life. Unlike classic HV, atypical or severe HV manifests itself as recurrent papulovesicular eruptions in sun-exposed and sun-protected areas associated occasionally with facial edema, fever, lymphadenopathy, oculomucosal lesions, gastrointestinal involvement, and hepatosplenomegaly. Notably, atypical or severe HV may progress to EBV-associated systemic T-cell or natural killer (NK)-cell lymphoma after a chronic course. Although rare in the United States and Europe, atypical or severe HV and HV-like lymphoma are predominantly reported in children from Asia and Latin America with high EBV DNA levels, low numbers of NK cells, and T cell clones in the blood. In comparison with the conservative treatment used for patients with classic HV, systemic therapy such as immunomodulatory therapy is recommended as the first-line therapy for patients with atypical or severe HV. This review aims to provide an integrated, overview of current evidence and knowledge of HV and HVLPD to elucidate the pathophysiology, practical issues, environmental factors, and the impact of EBV infection.

The location routing problem of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) in border patrol for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance is investigated, where the location of UAV base stations and the UAV flying routes for visiting the targets in border area are jointly optimized. The capacity of the base station and the endurance of the UAV are considered. A binary integer programming model is developed to formulate the problem, and two heuristic algorithms combined with local search strategies are designed for solving the problem. The experiment design for simulating the distribution of stations and targets in border is proposed for generating random test instances. Also, an example based on the Sino-Vietnamese border is presented to illustrate the problem and the solution approach. The performance of the two algorithms are analyzed and compared through randomly generated instances.

Semiconductor photocatalytic performances can be modulated through morphology modification. Herein porous hierarchical BiOBr microspheres (BiOBr-MS) of ~3 m was firstly self-assembled without the assistance of a template via a facile solvothermal synthesis in triethylene glycol (TEG) at 150 oC for 3 h. KBrO3 was exploited as a bromine source, which slowly provided bromide ions upon reduction in TEG and controlled the growth and self-assembly of primary BiOBr nanoplates. The addition of PVP during solvothermal synthesis of BiOBr-MS reduced the particle size by about three-fold to generate BiOBr sub-microspheres (BiOBr-sMS) of <1 m. BiOBr-sMS exhibited significantly higher photocatalytic activity than BiOBr-MS for aerobic photooxidation of benzyl alcohol (BzOH) to benzaldehyde (BzH) under simulated sunlight irradiation (conversions of BzOH (50 mM) over BiOBr-sMS and BiOBr-MS were respectively 51.3% and 29.6% with 100% selectivity to BzH after Xenon illumination for 2 h at 25 oC). The photogenerated holes and •O2- were found to be main reactive species for the BzOH oxidation over BiOBr spheres by scavenging tests and spin-trapping EPR spectra. The higher photocatalytic activity of BiOBr-sMS was attributed to its more open hierarchical structure, efficient charge separation, more negative conduction band position and generation of larger amounts of •O2-.

The Chen circuit system, a three-dimensional autonomous system with intriguing dynamics, has gained considerable attention due to its potential applications in diverse scientific fields. In this article, a Chen circuit-like system is defined and a comprehensive dynamics has been studied. The system exhibits chaotic dynamics, limit cycles, and bifurcations, making it a captivating subject of study. By employing numerical simulations and analytical techniques, we explore the system's stability and identify critical parameter values leading to qualitative changes. Notably, we delve Hopf bifurcations, which give rise to stability changes and the emergence of limit cycles. Furthermore, we analyze the fractal dimension of the system's attractor, providing insights into its complexity and self-similarity. Through a systematic examination of the Chen circuit-like system, we deepen our understanding of its intricate dynamics and offer valuable insights into the underlying mechanisms. The findings contribute to the field of dynamical systems and hold potential implications in areas such as chaos-based secure communications, signal processing, and nonlinear control. This work serves as a valuable reference for researchers and practitioners interested in the dynamics and bifurcation analysis of nonlinear systems.

The string of bacteria, Vibrio. sp. QD-5 utilizing alginate, was separated from rotten kelp. The results of genome sequencing showed that the strain QD-5 contained four alginate lyase genes.One of the alginate genes Aly-IV was cloned and linked to the plasmid pET-22b (+). The heterologous expressed alginate lyase aly-IVwas characterized，which possessed the theoretical molecular mass of 62 kDa, and theoretical isoelectric point (pI) of 5.12. - The enzyme aly-IV was purified and the activity reached 1256.78 U/mg, with optimal temperature of 35 ^oC and pH value of 8.9. Nurtured in the temperature below 25 ^oC for 30 minutes, the activity was almost stable. The result also suggested that the activity of enzyme was strongly affected by - NaCl whose optimal concentration was 15 mM in a lab environment The TLC and ESI-TOF-MS analysis suggested that the enzyme aly-IV could degrade sodium alginate and polyG in endo-lytic type, producing monomer, dimer and trimmer. So, aly-IV can also be widely applied to make large scale preparation of alginate oligosaccharides with low degree of polymerization (DP).

Detailed kinetics for a 3-wavelength photopolymerization confinement (PC) system is presented for both numerical solutions and analytic formulas. The dynamic profiles are simulated for oxygen, free radical, and conversion for various situations of: blue-light only, 2-light (red and UV), and 3-light (red, blue, UV). An effective PC requires two conditions: (i) a strong N-inhibition for uncured regime with a low conversion (triggered by the UV-light); and (ii) a weak S-inhibition (oxygen-induced) for high conversion under the blue-light or blue and red-light initiation. Good PC candidates are governed by collective factors of: (i) the double ratio of light-intensity and initiator-concentration, (ii) monomers rate-constant; and (iii) effective absorption constants at specific wavelength and initiators. A new reverse feature for the role of N-inhibition on the blue-conversion is found. Higher oxygen concentration leads to a lower conversion, which could be enhanced by reducing the S-inhibition via a red or blue-light pre-irradiation, having a pre-irradiation time TP=200 s for red-light only, and reduced to 150 s, when both red and blue-light. System under UV-only leads a conversion lower than that of blue-only. However, conversion could be improved by the dual-light (blue and UV), and further enhanced by the pre-irradiation of red-light. The two competing factors, N-inhibition and S-inhibition, could be independently and selectively tailored to achieve: (a) high conversion of blue-light (without UV-light), enhanced by red-light pre-irradiation for minimal S-inhibition; and (b) efficient PC initiated by UV-light produced N-inhibition for reduced confinement thickness and for high print speed.

In the aim of improving the positioning accuracy of monocular visual inertial simultaneous localization and mapping (VI-SLAM) system, an improved initialization method with faster convergence is proposed. This approach is classified as three parts: Firstly, in the initial stage, the pure vision measurement model of ORB-SLAM is employed to make all the variables visible. Secondly, the frequency of IMU camera was aligned by IMU preintegration technology. Thirdly, an improved iterative method is put forward for estimating the initial parameters of IMU faster. The estimation of IMU initial parameters is divided into several simpler sub-problems, containing direction refinement gravity estimation, gyroscope deviation estimation, accelerometer bias and scale estimation. The experimental results on the self-built robot platform show that our method can up-regulate the initialization convergence speed, simultaneously improve the positioning accuracy of the entire VI-SLAM system.

Three-dimensional (3D) imaging has attracted more and more interests because of its widespread applications, especially in information and life science. These techniques can be broadly divided into two types: ray-based and wavefront-based 3D imaging. Issues such as imaging quality and system complexity of these techniques limit the applications significantly, and therefore many investigations have focused on 3D imaging from depth measurements. This paper presents an overview of 3D imaging from depth measurements, and provides a summary of the connection between these the ray-based and wavefront-based 3D imaging techniques.

Based on the 2013–2017 Chinese Family Database and China Household Finance Survey, the study examines the impact of farmland transfer on the income structure of agricultural households. We observe a significant rise in the income of transferred-out households, while that of transferred-in households is unchanged. A further empirical decomposition of income shows a significant increase in both the wage and asset generated incomes of transferred-out households. Although the income generated by transferred-in households through agricultural production and management increases significantly, the decrease in wage income is larger. The study’s empirical designs are robustly tested with propensity score matching and instrumental variables. Moreover, we conduct a comparative analysis of the external constraints faced by the two groups to explore the reasons for the divergence of the income effect. The results show that transferred-in households face highly pronounced external constraints in terms of capital, technology, and farmland size, while transferred-out households face relatively fewer impediments to non-agricultural employment. Our empirical results imply that external constraints can limit the social welfare improvements of agricultural land reform, suggesting that other complementary measures would be required for future policy improvements to work better.

Pastes containing reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and LiCl-Mn(NO3)2·4H2O are screen-printed on a carbon cloth substrate and then calcined using a nitrogen atmospheric-pressure-plasma jet (APPJ) for conversion into rGO-LiMnOx nanocomposites. The APPJ processing time is within 300 s. RGO-LiMnOx on carbon cloth is used to sandwich H2SO4, LiCl, or Li2SO4 gel electrolytes to form hybrid supercapacitors (HSCs). The areal capacitance, energy density, and cycling stability of the HSCs are evaluated using electrochemical measurement. The Li2SO4 gel electrolyte HSC exhibits the highest areal capacitance and energy density but lower cycling stability. By contrast, the H2SO4 gel electrolyte HSC exhibits better cycling stability but lower areal capacitance and energy density.

Due to the great threat of torpedo against surface warships, an efficient hydroacoustic countermeasure system must output realtime strategies that can accommodate varied antagonizing scenarios. Aiming at the decision-making problem in the anti-torpedo hydroacoustic countermeasure cases, this paper proposes an intelligent adversarial strategy based on the game theory. By discretizing the strategy space of both sides, a matrix game model is established with the payoff characterized by the capture probability of attacking torpedo. An improved simplex algorithm is then developed to get the mixed-strategy Nash equilibrium of the game model, with which preferred avoiding strategies can be obtained to minimize the risk of being captured by the attacking torpedo. Based on the probabilistic view of preferred adversarial strategy, the launching strategy of floating acoustic decoy can be achieved, and the evasion trajectory of warship can be confirmed simultaneously. Numerical simulation demonstrates that the proposed method can generate realtime intelligent antagonizing strategy, and consequently, can improve the survival rate of surface warships in the of anti-torpedo countermeasure scenarios.

The effects of anisotropic properties (wettability and roughness) on microgroove surfaces in pool boiling heat transfer using Novec-7100 as a working fluid were experimentally investigated. The idea of introducing the concept of anisotropic wettability in boiling experiments draws inspiration from biphilic surfaces. The investigation is also motivated by two-phase immersion cooling, which involves phase-change heat transfer by using dielectric liquid as a working fluid. Very few studies have focused on the effects of surfaces with anisotropic properties on boiling performance. Thus, this study aims to examine the pool boiling heat transfer performance on surfaces with microgroove-induced anisotropic properties under the saturation condition. A femtosecond laser–texturing method was employed to create microgroove surfaces with different groove spacing. The results indicated that anisotropic properties affected the heat transfer coefficient and critical heat flux. Relative to the plain surface, microgroove surfaces enhanced the heat transfer performance due to the increased number of bubble nucleation sites and higher bubble detachment frequency. An analysis of bubble dynamics under different surface conditions was conducted with the assistance of high-speed images. The microgroove surface with groove spacing of 100 μm maximally increased the BHTC by 37% compared to the plain surface. Finally, the CHF results derived from experiments were compared with related empirical correlations. Good agreement was achieved between the results and the prediction correlation.

The kinetics and efficacy profiles of photoinitiated polymerization are theoretically presented. For the same dose, lower light intensity achieves a higher steady-state-efficacy (SSE) in type-I; in contrast, type-II has an equal SSE. Higher light intensity has a faster rising efficacy, due to faster depletion of photoinitiator (PS) concentration. However, type-II process is also affected by the available oxygen. Higher light intensity produces more efficient singlet oxygen, resulting a higher transient efficacy, in which all intensities reach the same SSE when oxygen is completely depleted. With external oxygen, type-II efficacy increases with time, otherwise, it is governed only by the light dose, i.e., same dose achieves same efficacy. Moreover, type-II has an efficacy follows Bunsen Roscoe law (BRL), whereas type-I follows non-BRL. The measured type-I efficacy and gelation profile are analyzed by our analytic formulas. Schematics of the photocrosslinking stage defined by the availability of oxygen is developed, where both type-I and –II coexist until the oxygen is depleted. The overall efficacy may be enhanced by resupply of PS or oxygen during the light exposure. The roles of light dose and PS concentration on the efficacy of photoinitiated polymerization should be are governed a new concept of a volume efficacy (Ve), defined by the product of the crosslink (or gelation) depth (CD) and local [efficacy].

Optimal conditions for maximum efficacy of photoinitiated polymerization are theoretically presented. Analytic formulas are shown for the crosslink time, crosslink depth and efficacy function. The roles of photoinitiator (PI) concentration, diffusion depth and light intensity on the polymerization spatial and temporal profiles, for both uniform and non-uniform cases, are presented. For optimal efficacy, a strategy via controlled PI concentration is proposed, where re-supply of PI in high light intensity may achieve a combined-efficacy similar to low light intensity, but has a much faster procedure. A new criterion of efficacy based on the polymerization (crosslink) [strength] and [depth] is introduced. Experimental data are analyzed for the role of PI concentration and light intensity on the gelation time and efficacy.

In this paper, an extendable fuzzy robust speed controller suitable for induction motor drive system was proposed. Firstly, the two-degrees-of-freedom (2DOF) robust control technology with feedforward control and disturbance elimination method was adopted. Upon parameter variation and load disturbance, the motor drive system could utilize a robust controller to generate compensation signals and reduce the impact on controlling performance of the motor drive system. The magnitude of the compensation signal was adjusted via the weighting factor. However, should a fixed weighting factor be adopted, system instability might be generated easily when time delay and saturation of control force occur. Based on the above, the smart method of extendable fuzzy theory (EFT) was adopted in this paper to adjust adequate weighting factors, where the controlling performance of the induction motor drive system could be improved accordingly. The method divided the speed difference between motor speed command and actual speed of the induction motor, and the variation rate for such speed difference into 20 regional categories. The correlation degree between the speed difference of actual feedback, variation rate for speed difference and each regional category was then calculated, where more suitable weighting factor was selected. Therefore, the proposed extendable fuzzy robust 2DOF controller with variable weighting factor designed will allow better performance for response in speed tracking and load regulation. Lastly, the simulation software Matlab/Simulink was applied to simulate the utilization of the controlling method proposed for the induction motor drive system. For both the response in speed tracking and load regulation, the simulation results proved that the extendable fuzzy robust speed controller proposed provided better controlling performance than the conventional robust controller.

The kinetics and modeling of dual-wavelength controlled photopolymerization confinement (PC) are presented and measured data are analyzed by analytic formulas and numerical data. The UV-light initiated inhibition effect is strongly monomer-dependent and different monomers have different C=C bond rate constants and conversion efficacy. Without the UV-light, for a given blue-light intensity, higher initiator concentration (C₁₀) and rate constant (k’) lead to higher conversion, as also predicted by analytic formulas, in which the total conversion rate (R_T) is an increasing function of k’R, which is proportional to k[gB₁C₁]^0.5. However, the coupling factor b₁ plays a different role that higher b₁ leads to higher conversion only in the transient regime; whereas higher b₁ leads lower steady-state conversion. For a fixed initiator concentration C₁₀, higher inhibitor concentration (C₂₀) leads to lower conversion due to stronger inhibition effect. However, same conversion reduction was found for the same H-factor of H₀ = [b₁C₁₀ - b₂C₂₀]. Conversion of blue-only are much higher than that of UV-only and UV-blue combined, in which high C₂₀ results a strong reduction of blue-only-conversion, such that the UV-light serves as the turn-off (trigger) mechanism for the purpose of spatial confirmation within the overlap area of UV and blue light. For example, UV-light controlled methacrylate conversion of a glycidyl dimethacrylate resin formulated with a tertiary amine co-initiator, and butyl nitrite, subject to a continuous exposure of a blue light, but an on-off exposure of a UV-light. Finally, we developed a theoretical new finding for the criterion of a good material/candidate governed by a double ratio of light-intensity and concentration, [I₂₀C₂₀.]/[I₁₀C₁₀].

Graphene/silicon (Si) heterojunction photodetectors are widely studied in detecting of optical signals from near-infrared to visible light. However, performance of the graphene/Si photodetectors is limited by defects created in the growth process and surface recombination at the interface. Herein, a remote plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition is introduced to directly grow graphene nanowalls (GNWs) at a low power, which can effectively improve the growth rate and reduce defects. Moreover, hafnium oxide (HfO2) grown by atomic layer deposition has been employed as an interfacial layer for the GNWs/Si heterojunction photodetector. It is shown that the high-k dielectric layer of HfO₂ acts as an electron blocking and hole transport layer, which minimizes the recombination and reduces dark current. By optimizing the thickness of HfO₂, an extremely low dark current of 3.85×10^(-10) A with a responsivity of 0.19 AW^(-1), as well as a specific detectivity of 1.38×10^12 Jones at zero bias can be obtained for the fabricated GNWs/HfO₂/Si photodetector. This work demonstrates a universal strategy to fabricate high-performance graphene/Si photodetectors.

The perturbations of DNA methyltransferase 3 alpha (DNMT3A) may cause uncontrolled gene expression, resulting in cancers and tumors. The DNMT inhibitors Azacytidine (AZA) and Zebu-larine (ZEB) inhibit the DNMT family with no specificities and consequently would bring side effects during the treatment. Therefore, it is vital to understand their inhibitory mechanisms in DNMT3A to inform the new inhibitor design for DNMTs. Herein, we carried out molecular dynamics (MD) and quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) simulations to investigate the inhibitory mechanisms of AZA and ZEB. The results were compared to the methyl transfer of cytosine. We showed AZA might stop the methyl transfer process, whereas the ZEB might be stuck in a me-thyl-transferred intermediate (IM3). Such IM3 state then fails the elimination due to the unique protein dynamics that result in missing the catalytic water chain. Our results brought atomic-level insights into the mechanisms of the two drugs in DNMT3A, which could benefit the new generation of drug design for the DNMTs.

This study aimed to use biomineralization technology to improve the bond strength of fiber-reinforced lightweight aggregate concrete (LWAC) after exposure to temperatures of 300 °C and 500 °C. The specimens of a control group (Group A) and two experimental groups (Group B and Group C) were prepared. These specimens healed themselves in different ways after exposure to high temperatures and pull-out tests. The self-healing method of Group A involved placing the specimen into an incubator. The self-healing method of Group B was the same as that of Group A. The self-healing method of Group C involved immersing the specimen in a mixed solution of urea and calcium acetate for two days, then taking it out and placing it in an incubator for two days. A cycle of four days was undertaken until the desired age was reached. After the specimens were healed to the planned age, the first and secondary pull-out tests and repair compound identification were carried out. After exposure to a temperature of 300 °C and self-healing for 90 days, compared with the specimens in Group A, the relative bond strength ratios of the secondary pull-out tests of the specimens in Group C increased by 20.3%. This indicates that biomineralization can effectively improve the bond strength of LWAC after high-temperature damage.

Most of the current methods for stabilizing electric arc furnace (EAF) slag are time-consuming and cannot be completely stabilized. In view of this, this study aimed to apply microbial‑induced calcium carbonate precipitation (MICP) technology in the stabilization of EAF reducing slag, and this was to be achieved by using the reaction between carbonate ions and free calcium oxide (f-CaO) in reducing slag to form a more stable calcium carbonate to achieve the purpose of stabilization. The test results showed that, when the EAF reducing slag aggregates (ERSAs) were immersed in Bacillus pasteurii bacteria solution or water, the f-CaO contained in it would react such that stabilization was achieved. The titration test results showed that the f-CaO content of the ERSAs immersed in the bacterial solution and water decreased. The expansion test results of the ERSAs that were subjected to hydration showed that the seven-day expansion of ERSAs after biomineralization could meet the Taiwan regulation requirement of a less than 0.5% expansion rate. The thermogravimetric analysis showed that both the experimental group and the control group might contain calcium carbonate compounds. The results of the X-ray diffraction analysis showed that the CaCO3 content in the ERSAs that were immersed in the bacterial solution was significantly higher than those that were immersed in water. Moreover, the compressive strength test results of concrete prepared with ERSAs showed that the compressive strength of the control group concrete began to decline after 28 days. In contrast, the experimental group concrete had a good stabilization effect, and there was no decline in compressive strength until the age of 180 days. At the age of 240 days, the surface cracks of the experimental group were particularly small, while the surface of the control group showed obvious cracks. These results confirmed that a mineralization reaction with B. pasteurii bacteria could be used as a stabilization technology for ERSAs.

Federated learning trains a neural network model using the client's data to maintain the benefits of centralized model training, while maintaining the privacy. However, if the client data are not independently and identically distributed (non-IID) because of different environments, the accuracy of the model may suffer from client drift during training owing to discrepancies in each client's data. This study proposes a personalized federated learning algorithm based on the concept of multitask learning to divide each client model into two layers: a feature extraction layer and a category prediction layer. The feature extraction layer maps the input data to a low-dimensional feature vector space. Furthermore, the parameters of the neural network are aggregated with those of other clients using an adaptive method. The category prediction layer maps low-dimensional feature vectors to the label sample space, with its parameters remaining unaffected by other clients to maintain client uniqueness. The proposed personalized federated learning method produces faster learning model convergence rates and higher accuracy rates for the non-IID datasets in our experiments.

conclusions. The blends of ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene/polypropylene (UHMWPE/PP) possess excellent processability, but limited by its reduced mechnical properties. Herein, the high mechanical properties and wear—resistance UHMWPE/PP composites were fabricated by the addition of silicon carbide (SiC) nanoparticles under a consecutive elongational flow without any other additives or solvents. The morphology and thermal properties, mechanical properties, wear resistance as well as scratch resistance of UHMWPE/PP/SiC composites were investigated . The mechanical properties and friction resistance of composites increase initially then decrease with the increase content of SiC. The optimum mechanical properties of UHMWPE/PP/SiC composites are achieved when the content of SiC is 3 phr. In addition, both the hardness and scratch resistance of composites improved upon increasing the content of SiC. These improved mechanical properties and wear resistance originate from the well disperison of SiC nanoparticles along with favourable interfacial adhesive under a consecutive elongational flow.

The circular supply chain was applied to many industries in the past studies, whereas the rubber recycling industry has not been explored in detail yet. Therefore, this study indentified the key factors of the circular supply chain used in remanufactured products, thereby perfecting its framework. This study put forward 5 aspects and 19 criteria for reference, so that companies in the rubber recycling industry are able to clearly know the direction of implementation when con-structing the circular supply chain for remanufactured products. This study integrated expert opinions with the fuzzy Delphi method and the fuzzy decision making trial and evaluation laboratory proposed key factors, and performed the ranking of importance. The results have displayed that key aspects include the circular business model (A3), increasing the value of resources in the supply chain (A4), and risk management of the circular supply chain (A2). The factors that the rubber recycling industry needs to pay attention to are: optimizing the production process (C2), sharing data in the product lifecycle (C4), effectively tracking and recycling products (C5), redesigning remanufactured products (C13), enhancing resource efficiency (C16), and identifying waste composition and separating materials (C14) . Based on the abovementioned, we had a discussion in this study.

In the case that ship operators may not be aware of the potential risks of environmental factors in situation of high causation probability during the initial stage of the geometric probability analysis process, it is likely that higher-grade collision accident measures will not be taken. However, if any risks is told to the ship operators, more effective and intentional measures can be taken in time. Moreover, if the causation probability corresponding to environmental factors is no less than the risk early warning critical value calculated based on historical collision accident data, there would be a high-risk level that a collision may occur. A new method is put forward based on quantitative analysis of environmental factors and previous collision statistics to provide early warning of any accident risk, and a risk early-warning critical value (REWCV) can be obtained based on this simple but highly operational and practical method. A case study of Three Gorges Reservoir in China indicates that the range of environmental factors where the probability of collision accident grows rapidly is consistent with environmental limits defined by Chinese maritime standards. In addition, the relationship between the risk early-warning critical value and the number of previous collision accident is also clarified.

We aimed to investigate the mechanism underlying social stress (SS)-induced erectile dysfunction (ED) and evaluate the effects of a single sub-anesthetic dose of ketamine on SS-related ED. Male FVB mice were exposed to retired male C57BL/6 mice for 60 minutes daily over a 4-week period. In the third week, SS mice received intraperitoneal injections of either saline (SSS group) or ketamine (SSK group). Erectile function was assessed by measuring intra-cavernosal pressure (ICP) during electrical stimulation at the major pelvic ganglia. Corpus cavernosum (CC) strips were utilized for wire myography to assess their reactivity. Both SSS and SSK mice exhibited significantly lower ICP in response to electrical stimulation than control. SS mice showed increased contractility of CC induced by phenylephrine. Acetylcholine-induced relaxation was significantly reduced in SSS and SSK mice. Sodium nitroprusside-induced relaxation was higher in SSS mice compared to control and SSK mice. Nicotine-induced neurogenic and nitric oxide (NO)-dependent relaxation was significantly impaired in both SSS and SSK mice. Immunohistochemically analysis revealed co-localization of tyrosine hydroxylase and neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS)-immunoreactive fibers in the CC. These findings highlight the complex nature of SS-related ED and suggest the limited efficacy of ketamine as a therapeutic intervention in this condition.

Diastolic dysfunction, a prevalent condition characterized by impaired relaxation and filling of the left ventricle, significantly contributes to heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). Galectin-3, a β-galactoside-binding lectin, has garnered attention as a potential biomarker and mediator of fibrosis and inflammation in cardiovascular diseases. This comprehensive review investigates the impact of galectin-3 on diastolic dysfunction. We explore its molecular mechanisms, including its involvement in cellular signaling pathways and interaction with components of the extracellular matrix. Evidence from both animal models and clinical studies elucidates galectin-3's role in cardiac remodeling, inflammation, and fibrosis, shedding light on the underlying pathophysiology of diastolic dysfunction. Additionally, we examine the diagnostic and therapeutic implications of galectin-3 in diastolic dysfunction, emphasizing its potential as both a biomarker and a therapeutic target. This review underscores the significance of comprehending galectin-3's role in diastolic dysfunction and its promise in enhancing diagnosis and treatment approaches for HFpEF patients.

The solar cell industry is a part of the green energy sector, and effectively combining the patents of various manufacturers within the supply chain to collectively create sustainable patent market value is of paramount importance. This study aimed to establish a business strategy framework for Project-based licensing through the analysis of solar cell patents and the integration of supply chain manufacturers' patents, with the goal of collectively creating market value for patents sustainably. The research methodology included literature analysis and focus group discussions. Initially, the study analyzed solar cell industry patents from the past decade using the WIPS Global Patent database to identify projects with the highest patent count. Subsequently, through the use of focus group discussions, the feasibility of a patent pool strategy within the supply chain was explored. Finally, a strategy framework was proposed for Project-based patent pool licensing, focusing on the top 15 projects with the highest count of 5,579 patents. The results indicated that adopting this strategy framework for supply chain manufacturer patents can result in higher commercial patent value.

Copper-based nanoparticles were synthesized using the glycine–nitrate process (GNP) by using copper nitrate trihydrate [Cu(NO₃)₂‧3H₂O] as the main starting material and glycine [C₂H₅NO₂] as the complexing and incendiary agent. The as-prepared powders were characterized through X-ray diffraction (XRD), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) analysis, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. Using Cu(NO₃)₂.3H₂O as the oxidizer (N) and glycine as fuel (G), we obtained CuO, mixed-valence copper oxides (CuO + Cu₂O, G/N = 0.3–0.5), and metallic Cu (G/N = 0.7). The XRD and BET results indicated that increasing the glycine concentration (G/N = 0.7) and reducing particle surface area increased the yield of metallic Cu. The effects of varying reaction parameters such as catalyst activity, catalyst dose, and H₂O₂ concentration on nonylphenol-9-polyethoxylate (NP9EO) degradation were assessed. With a copper‐based catalyst in a heterogeneous system, the NP9EO and total organic carbon removal efficiencies were 83.1% and 70.6%, respectively, under optimum operating conditions (pH, 6.0; catalyst dose, 0.3 g/L; H₂O₂ concentration, 0.05 mM). The results suggested that removal efficiency increased with an increase in H₂O₂ concentration but decreased when the H₂O₂ concentration exceeded 0.0.5 mM. Furthermore, the trend of photocatalytic activity was as follows: G/N = 0.5 > G/N = 0.7 > G/N = 0.3. The G/N = 0.5 catalysts showed the highest photocatalytic activity and resulted in 94.6% NP9EO degradation in 600 min.

ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), a major cause of mortality worldwide, has been shown through epidemiological studies to have a relationship with short-term exposure to air pollutants; however, the association between air pollutants and the outcome of STEMI has not been well studied. The aim of this study was to estimate the impact of air pollutants on the outcomes of STEMI. Data on particulate matter <2.5 μm (PM2.5), <10 μm (PM10), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and ozone (O3) at each of the 11 air monitoring stations in Kaohsiung City were collected between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2017. Medical records of non-trauma patients aged > 20 years who had visited the ED with a principal diagnosis of STEMI were extracted. The primary outcome measure was in-hospital mortality. After adjusting for potential confounders and meteorological variables, we found that an increase in the interquartile range (IQR) in NO2 was associated with an elevated risk of in-hospital mortality in patients with STEMI. Moreover, during the warm season, an IQR increase in NO2 corresponded to a higher risk of in-hospital mortality in patients with STEMI on lag 3 (OR=3.266; 95% CI:1.203–8.864, p=0.02). Conversely, an IQR increase in PM10 was associated with an increased risk of in-hospital mortality in patients with STEMI on lag 3 (OR=2.792; 95%CI:1.115–6.993, p=0.028) during the cold season. Our study suggests that exposure to NO2 (during warm season) and PM10 (during cold season) may contribute to a higher risk of poor prognosis in patients with STEMI.

This paper reviews the requirements for the production, quality, and quality assurance of solid recovered fuels (SRF) that are increasingly used for the substitution of fossil fuels in the indus-trial utilities. The economical, technological and environmental aspects should be considered before using SRF as an alternative fuel. In general, the most important factors determining the commercial production of SRF referred to the calorific values and their available amounts adopted in the starting materials. Furthermore, the low-melting impurities and undesired constituents/elements, including chlorine, sulfur, potassium and sodium, may pose negative impacts on air pollutant emission and slagging & fouling in the process utilities. In this regard, the vent emitted from the industrial utilities must comply with the effluent standards of station-ary sources like particulate, sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, heavy metals (e.g., lead, cadmium, and mercury) and dioxins. For these reasons, this work will summarize the legal or regulatory requirements under development in Asian countries (i.e., Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan) and European Union (EU). Finally, the outlook of solid recovered fuel (SRF) in the waste manage-ment and industrial sectors will be addressed to echo the sustainable development goals (SDGs).

A typhoon-induced storm surge is considered one of the most severe coastal disasters in Taiwan. However, the combination of the storm surge and the astronomical tide called the storm tide can actually cause extreme flooding in coastal areas. This study implemented a two-dimensional hydrodynamic model to account for the interaction between tides and storm surges on the coast of Taiwan. The model was validated with observed water levels at Sauo Fish Port, Hualien Port, and Chenggong Fish Port under different historical typhoon events. The model results are in reasonable agreement with the measured data. The validated model was then used to evaluate the effects of the typhoon's intensity, bathymetric change, and the combination of the typhoon’s intensity and bathymetric change on the maximum storm tide and its distribution along the east coast of Taiwan. The results indicated that the maximum storm tide rises to 1.92 m under a typhoon with an intensity of a 100-year return period. The maximum storm tide increased from a baseline of 1.26 m to 2.63 m for a 90% bathymetric rise at Sauo Fish Port under the conditions of Typhoon Jangmi (2008). The combination of the intensity of a typhoon with a 100-year return period and a 90% bathymetric rise will result in a maximum storm tide exceeding 4 m, 2 m, and 3 m at Sauo Fish Port, Hualien Port, and Chenggong Fish Port, respectively. We also found that the distribution of the maximum storm tide on the east coast of Taiwan can expand significantly subject to the bathymetric rise.

Adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) were suggested for treating degenerative osteoarthritis, suppressing inflammatory responses, and repairing damaged soft tissues. Moreover, the ADSCs have the potential to undergo self-renewal and differentiate into bone, tendon, cartilage, and ligament. Recently, investigation of the self-renewal and differentiation of the ADSCs becomes an attractive area. In this work, a pneumatic microdevice has been developed to study the gene expression of the ADSCs after the stimulation of multi-axial tensile strain. The ADSCs were cultured on the microdevice and experienced multi-axial tensile strain during a 3-day culture course. Self-renewal and differentiation abilities were investigated by mRNA expressions of NANOG, SOX2, OCT4, SOX9, PPAR-γ, and RUNX2. The result showed that the genes related self-renewal were significantly up-regulated after the tensile stimulation. Higher proliferation ratio of the ADSCs was also shown by cell viability assay. The microdevice provides a promising platform for cell-based study under mechanical tensile stimulation.

This experiment aimed to investigate the impact of malic acid (MA) and citric acid (CA) on the nutritional composition, fermentation quality, rumen degradation rate, and microbial diversity of a mixture of apple pomace and corn protein powder during ensiling. The experiment used apple pomace and corn protein powder as raw materials, with four groups: control group (CON), malic acid treatment group (MA, 10g/kg), citric acid treatment group (CA, 10g/kg), and citric acid + malic acid treatment group (MA, 10g/kg + CA, 10g/kg), subjected to mixed ensiling for 60 days. The results indicated: (1) Compared to the CON group, the crude protein content significantly increased in the MA, CA, and MA+CA groups (p < 0.05), with the highest content observed in the MA+CA group. The addition of MA and CA effectively reduced the water-soluble carbohydrate (WSC) content (p < 0.05). Simultaneously, the CA group showed a decreasing trend in NDFom and hemicellulose content (p = 0.08; p = 0.09). (2) Compared to the CON group, the pH significantly decreased in the MA, CA, and MA+CA groups (p < 0.01), and the three treatment groups exhibited a significant increase in lactic acid and acetic acid content (p < 0.01). The quantity of lactic acid bacteria increased significantly (p < 0.01), with the MA+CA group showing a more significant increase than the MA and CA groups (p < 0.05). (3) Compared to the CON group, the in situ dry matter disappearance (ISDMD) significantly increased in the MA, CA, and MA+CA groups (p < 0.05). All three treatment groups showed highly significant differences in in situ crude protein disappearance (ISCPD) compared to the CON group (p < 0.01). (4) Good's Coverage for all experimental groups was greater than 0.99, meeting the conditions for subsequent sequencing. Compared to the CON group, the Shannon index significantly increased in the CA group (P < 0.01), and the Simpson index increased significantly in the MA group (p < 0.05). However, there was no significant difference in the Chao index among the three treatment groups and the CON group (p > 0.05). At the genus level, the abundance of Lentilactobacillus in the MA, CA, and MA+CA groups was significantly higher than in the control group (p < 0.05). PICRUSt prediction results indicated that the metabolic functional microbial groups in the CA and MA treatment groups were significantly higher than in the CON group (p < 0.05), suggesting that the addition of MA or CA could reduce the loss of nutritional components such as protein and carbohydrates in mixed ensilage. In conclusion, the addition of malic acid and citric acid to a mixture of apple pomace and corn protein powder during ensiling reduces nutritional losses, improves fermentation quality and rumen degradation rate, enhances the diversity of the microbial community in ensiled feed, and improves microbial structure. The combined addition of malic acid and citric acid demonstrates a superior effect.

Aluminum wire is a common material for wire bonding due to its resistance to oxidation and low price. It does not melt when becoming a free air ball (FAB) during the electronic flame-off (EFO) process with wettability, and is applied by wedge bonding. This study used 20μm Zn-Coated Al-0.5wt.%Si (ZAS) wires to improve the FAB shape after the EFO process, while maintaining stability of the mechanical properties, including the interface bonding strength and hardness. In order to test circuit stability after ball bonding, the current-tensile test was performed. During the experiment, it was found that 80nm ZAS with wire bonding has lower resistance and higher fusing current. For the bias tensile test, the thicker Zn film diffused into the Al-Si matrix easily, after which the strength was reduced. The ball-bond interfaces had no change in their condition before and after the bias. Accordingly, ZAS could be a promising candidate for ball bonding in the future.

The development of subterranean non-motorized traffic infrastructure, commonly referred to as the underground pedestrian system (UPS), has become increasingly necessary in densely populated megacities worldwide as a means of advancing the Sustainable Development Goal 11, which aims to promote sustainable cities and communities. To improve the overall spatial performance, it is imperative to decipher the fundamental formation mechanism of sustainable underground pedestrian systems (SUPS) that is simultaneously influenced by spatial morphology and pedestrian behaviors. Thereby, two representative case studies, namely Wujiaochang UPS and Loushanguanlu UPS located in Shanghai, were selected for an in-depth investigation. This study employed correlation and regression analysis to examine the impact of spatial configuration variables and spatial attribute factors on pedestrian flow distributions in distinct SUPSs. The findings indicate that the variables of Betweenness, as measured by both Euclidean and Angular metrics, along with the presence of metro station locations and commercial space connected by UPS, are the three most significant factors influencing pedestrian behaviors in both scenarios. The disclosure has been made that Wujiaochang UPS is seamlessly integrated into a comprehensive three-dimensional pedestrian network both above and below ground. On the other hand, it appears that Loushanguanlu UPS exhibits a greater degree of self-sufficiency as an underground system. This study aims to elucidate the mechanism underlying the development of SUPSs, thus offering effective guidance for the implementation of three-dimensional walking systems in cities that prioritize sustainability.

Two austenitic stainless steel (ASS) plates, 304L and 316L, were cold-rolled (304R and 316R) with a 10 % reduction in thickness then subjected to laser welding. Cold-rolling caused a slight surface hardening and introduced residual tensile stress into the ASS plates. The susceptibility to stress corrosion cracking (SCC) of the welds (304RW and 316RW) was determined using the U-bend test pieces in a salt spray. To highlight the stress concentration at the weld’s fusion boundary (FB), the top weld reinforcement was not ground off before bending. Moreover, micro-shot peening (MSP) was performed to mitigate the SCC of the welds by imposing high residual compressive stress and forming a fine-grained structure. Cold-rolling increased the susceptibility of the 304R specimen to pitting corrosion (PTC) and intergranular (IG) microcracking. Moreover, PTC and SCC were found more often at the FBs of the 304RW. The corrosion pits of the peened 304RW (304RWSP) were finer but greater in amount than the un-peened one. The results also indicated that the 316L ASS welds with MSP was resistant to the incidence of PTC and SCC in a salt spray. The better reliability and longer service life of dry storage canister could be achieved by using 316L ASS for construction and application of MSP on it.

The concepts of fractional calculus and the related techniques have been gaining momentum in circuit system fields, and an increasing body of evidence suggests that fractional-order characteristics are widely distributed in electronic components. In this paper, we consider the fractional characteristics of non-solid aluminum electrolytic capacitors and focus on the nonlinear dynamic characteristics of peak-current-mode controlled (PCMC) dc-dc boost converters with such components. In the work, we establish a piecewise smooth non-commensurate fractional-order model to describe the converter, in which the fractional-order equivalent impedance model of capacitors is adopted and the detailed control loop is considered. In order to analyze the converter, we use the fractional Adams-Bashforth-Moulton typed method (F-ABM) and stroboscopic map technique to obtain the time-domain solutions and the bifurcation diagram. The results of bifurcation diagrams indicate that, with the change of different parameters, the converter enters chaotic state through period doubling bifurcation. In order to provide empirical evidence for the nonlinear dynamic analysis, we consider both circuit-level simulation and experiments in the work, the results of which further confirm the results of theoretical analysis.

Satellite-based monitoring can retrieve ground-level PM_2.5 concentrations with higher-resolution and continuous spatial coverage to assist in making management strategies and estimating health exposures. The Sichuan Basin has a complex terrain and several city clusters that differ from other regions in China: it has an enclosed air basin with a unique planetary boundary layer dynamic which accumulates air pollution. The spatiotemporal distribution of 1-km resolution Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) in the Sichuan Basin was retrieved using the improved dark pixel method and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data in this study. The retrieved seasonal AOD reached its highest values in spring and had the lowest values in autumn. The higher correlation (r = 0.84, N = 171) between the ground-based Lidar AOD and 1-km resolution MODIS AOD indicated that the high-resolution MODIS AOD could be used to retrieve the ground-level PM_2.5 concentration. The Lidar-measured annual average extinction coefficient increased linearly with the Planetary Boundary Layer Height (PBLH) in the range of 100 ~ 670 m, but exponentially decreased between the heights of 670 ~ 1800 m. Both the correlation and the variation tendency of simulated PBLH from WRF_SHIN/CALMET were closer to the Lidar observation than that of three other Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL) schemes (the Grenier-Bretherton-McCaa (GBM) scheme, the he Total Energy-Mass Flux (TEMF) scheme and the University of Washington (UW) scheme), which suggested that the simulated PBLH could be used in the vertical correction of retrieval PM_2.5. Four seasonal fitting functions were also obtained for further humidity correction. The correlation coefficient between the aerosol extinction coefficient and the fitted surface-level PM_2.5 concentration at the benchmark station of Southwest Jiao-tong University was enhanced significantly from 0.62 to 0.76 after vertical and humidity corrections during a whole year. During the evaluation of the retrieved ground-level PM_2.5 with observed values from three cities, Yibin (YB), Dazhou (DZ), and Deyang (DY), our algorithm performed well, resulting in higher correlation coefficients of 0.78 (N = 177), 0.77 (N = 178), and 0.81 (N = 181), respectively.

Glycoside Hydrolase 3 (GH3) is a phytohormone-responsive family of genes that has been found in many plant species. It is implicated in the biological activity of indolacetic (IAA) and jasmonic acids (JA), and also affects plant growth and developmental processes and some stresses. In this study, GH3 genes were identified in 48 plants, which belong to algae, moss, fern, gymnosperm and angiosperm. No GH3 representative gene has been found in algae, and our research identified 4 genes in mosses, 19 in ferns, 7 in gymnosperms, and numerous in Angiosperms. The results showed that GH3 genes mainly occur in seed plants. Phylogenetic analysis of all GH3 genes showed three separate clades. Group I was related to JA adenylation, group II was related to IAA adenylation, and group III was separated from group II but the function was not clear. The structure of GH3 protein indicated highly conserved sequence in the plant kingdom. The analysis of JA-adenylation related to gene expression of GH3 in potato (Solanum tuberosum) showed that StGH3.12 highly responded to Methyl Jasmonate (MeJA) treatment. Expression levels of StGH3.1, StGH3.11, and StGH3.12 were high in flower and StGH3.11 expression was also high in stolon. Our research revealed the evolution of the GH3 family, which is useful for studying the precise function about JA-adenylation GH3 genes in S. tuberosum under development and biotic stresses.

With the advancement of photoelectric technology and computer image processing technology, the visual measurement method based on point clouds is gradually applied to the 3D measurement of large workpieces. Point cloud registration is a key step in 3D measurement, and its registration accuracy directly affects the accuracy of 3D measurements. In this study, we designed a novel MPCR-Net for multiple partial point cloud registration networks. First, an ideal point cloud was extracted from the CAD model of the workpiece and was used as the global template. Next, a deep neural network was used to search for the corresponding point groups between each partial point cloud and the global template point cloud. Then, the rigid body transformation matrix was learned according to these correspondence point groups to realize the registration of each partial point cloud. Finally, the iterative closest point algorithm was used to optimize the registration results to obtain a final point cloud model of the workpiece. We conducted point cloud registration experiments on untrained models and actual workpieces, and by comparing them with existing point cloud registration methods, we verified that the MPCR-Net could improve the accuracy and robustness of the 3D point cloud registration.

Currently, data regarding optimal treatment modality, response, and outcome specifically for N3 head and neck cancer are lacking. This study aimed to compare the treatment outcomes between definitive concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) to the neck and upfront neck dissection followed by adjuvant CCRT. 93 N3 squamous cell carcinoma head and neck cancer patients were included. Primary tumor treatment was divided to definitive CCRT (CCRT group) or curative surgery followed by adjuvant CCRT (surgery group). Neck treatment was also classified into two treatment modalities: definitive CCRT to the neck (CCRT group) or curative neck dissection followed by adjuvant CCRT (neck dissection group). Overall, the 2-year overall survival (OS), local recurrence-free survival (LRFS), regional recurrence-free survival (RRFS), and distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS) were 51.8%, 47.3%, 45.6%, and 43.6%, respectively. In both oropharyngeal cancer and nonoropharyngeal cancer patients, in terms of OS, LRFS, RRFS or DMFS no difference was noted regarding primary tumor treatment (CCRT vs. surgery) or neck treatment (CCRT vs. neck dissection). In summary, N3 neck patients treated with definitive CCRT can achieve similar outcomes to those treated with upfront neck dissection followed by adjuvant CCRT. Cautions should be made to avoid overtreatment for this group of patients.

The Stepped Frequency Waveform (SFW) is commonly employed in radar technology to synthesize wideband signals through the aggregation of narrow-band pulses, thereby achieving high-resolution range profiles without the need to increase the radar's instantaneous bandwidth. However, the inherent large time-bandwidth product of SFW introduces substantial ranging errors and energy dispersion, which significantly hinders its efficacy in detecting high-speed objects. This paper introduces a pioneering velocity estimation technique utilizing the fractional Fourier transform (FrFT) to address these limitations. Leveraging the characteristic of the Doppler signal from a moving target, which manifests as a chirp signal with a rate proportional to the target's velocity, the FrFT is utilized for precise velocity estimation. Subsequent to this, velocity compensation is applied using the deduced metrics, followed by the application of the inverse fast Fourier transform (iFFT) to pinpoint the target's exact location. To optimize the computational efficiency of determining the FrFT's optimal order, we propose an iterative algorithm founded on the golden section search method. The effectiveness of the proposed approach is verified by simulation data, and the results demonstrate that the proposed approach can accurately estimate the velocity and the range of the high-speed targets with a relatively low computational complexity.

The corrected mechanism model of battery voltammetric function is helpful to guide the development and application of battery. There are two scientific issues that need to be answered: First, how many mechanisms do batteries have; Second, how to establish the mechanism model separately under the overlapping of these mechanisms. Volt-ampere characteristics of both linear state and nonlinear state exist; the monotonic decreasing of volt-ampere characteristics indicates that the battery have only three kinds of mechanisms. Without changing the basic form of the function and under the principle of the mechanism function’s working region considered, we propose a mechanism function which satisfies the monotonic decreasing characteristic of the voltammetric curve of battery, via the derivative law of each mechanism function in the voltammetric function of battery. By using the voltammetric data, the obtained cell mechanism function can accurately predict the potential (current or voltage) when the independent variable of the cell is zero, and provide the theoretical basis for the internal working mechanism of the cell, which can guide the practice.

In this work, numerical simulations for the absorption and scattering efficiencies of spheroid core–shell nanoparticles (CSNs) were conducted and studied using the discrete-dipole approximation method. The characteristics of surface plasmon resonances (SPR) depend upon shell thickness, the compositions of the core and shell materials, and the aspect ratio of the constructed CSNs. We used different core@shell compositions, specifically Au@SiO₂, Ag@SiO₂, Au@TiO₂, Ag@TiO₂, Au@Ag, and Ag@Au, for extinction spectra analysis. We also investigated coupled resonance mode wavelengths by adjusting the composition’s layer thickness and aspect ratio. In this study, we show that the extinction efficiency of the Ag@TiO₂ core–shell nanoparticles (CSNPs) was higher than that of the others, and we examined the impact of TiO₂ shell thickness and Ag core radius on SPR peak positions. From the extinction spectra we found that the Ag@TiO₂ nanoparticle had better refractive index sensitivity and figure of merit when the aspect ratio was set to 0.3. All of the experimental results proved that the tunability of these plasmonic resonances was highly dependent on the material used, the layer thickness, and the aspect ratio of the core@shell CSNPs.

The teaching and learning environment have changed significantly over the last decade with the integration of an increasing amount of information and communication technologies, especially in distance education due to global pandemics, total lockdowns, isolation, and quarantine periods. The number of numerous virtual and non-virtual tools involved in educational processes is growing day by day. In terms of technological innovations used in learning environments, many researchers and educators are trying their best to bring more creative ideas into the technology- based learning environments. Although higher educational institutions have greatly benefited from the growing number of hardware and software resources in the educational process, they have also faced some setbacks that have harmed the learning processes. These technologies have in turn complicated some of the processes in the learning atmosphere. Therefore, we take Spanish teaching course as an example to present the challenging smarter teaching and learning systems that higher educational institutions face today.

It was believed that the construction of large dams in the upper tributary basin of the Chao Phraya River (CPR) has caused sediment load reduction in the CPR system by 75–85%. Based on historical and observed river flow and sediment data measured during 1922–2019, we investigated the effects of three large dams, the Sirikit, Naresuan, and Khwae Noi dams, on river runoff and sediment loads supplied to the CPR using Mann-Kendall (MK) test and the double mass curve (DMC). Results from this study revealed that the Nan River contributed approximately 40% and 57% of the runoff and total sediment load (TSL) to the CPR, respectively. The water regulation by the Naresuan diversion dam has mainly caused the reduction on annual runoff and TSL downstream of each dam. The results from this study also reveal that the sediment load observed at the headwater (C.2) of the CPR still increased after the construction of the Sirikit dam due to the expansion of irrigation areas downstream of the dam and the channel improvement in the lower reach of Nan River. After the three major dams were operated, the sediment load at C.2 reduced by 31% compared that discharging during the pre-construction period.

Cancer immunotherapy targeting immune checkpoints has exhibited promising clinical outcomes in many cancers, but it offers only limited benefits for pancreatic cancer (PC). Cancer stem cells (CSCs), a minor subpopulation of cancer cells, play important roles in tumor initiation, progression, and drug resistance. Accumulating evidence suggests that CSCs employ immunosuppressive effect to evade the immune recognition. However, clinical implications of the associations among CD8+ T cells infiltration, programmed death receptor ligand-1 (PD-L1) expression, and CSCs existence are poorly understood in PC. Immunostaining and quantitative analysis were performed to assess CD8+ T cells infiltration, PD-L1 expression, and their relationship with CD44+/CD133+ CSCs and disease progression in PC. CD8+ T cells infiltration was associated with better survival while PD-L1 expression was correlated with PC recurrence. Both the low CD8+ T cells infiltration/high PD-L1 expression group and the high CD8+ T cells infiltration/high PD-L1 expression group show high levels of CD44+/CD133+ CSCs, but patients with low CD8+ T cells infiltration/high PD-L1 expression had worse survival and higher recurrence risk than those with high CD8+ T cells infiltration/high PD-L1 expression. Moreover, CD8+ T cells infiltration could reduce unfavorable prognostic effect of high co-expression of PD-L1 and CD44/CD133. Our study highlights an interaction among CD8+ T cells infiltration, PD-L1 expression, and CD44+/CD133+ CSCs existence, which contributes to PC progression and immune evasion.

This work aims to develop an integrated fault location and restoration approach for microgrids (MGs). This work contains two parts. Part I presents the fault location algorithm, and Part II shows the restoration algorithm. The proposed algorithms are implemented by particle swarm optimization (PSO). The fault location algorithm is based on network connection matrices, which are the modifications of bus-injection to branch-current and branch-current to bus-voltage (BCBV) matrices, to form the new system topology. The backward/forward sweep approach is used for the prefault power flow analysis. After the occurrence of fault, the voltage variation at each bus is calculated by using the Zbus modification algorithm to modify Zbus. Subsequently, the voltage error matrix is computed to search for the fault section by using PSO. After the allocation of the fault section, the multi-objective function is implemented by PSO for optimal restoration with its constraints. Finally, the IEEE 37-bus test system connected to distributed generations is utilized as the sample system for a series simulation and analysis. The outcomes demonstrated that the proposed optimal algorithm can effectively solve the fault location and restoration problem in MGs.

Women are at higher risk of cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) after menopause when the estrous cycle becomes irregular and begins to taper off. Numerous studies have shown that estrogen deficiency, especially estradiol (E2), has been shown to play a key role in this phenomenon. Recently, a novel polymeric drug, hyaluronic acid-17β-Estradiol conjugate (HA-E2), has been developed which has the ability to cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB), facilitate a longer E2 release profile and lower risk of estrogen supplement related side effects. In this study, we used an ovariohysterectomy (OHE) rat model of postmenopausal cognitive deficits and explore whether HA-E2 treatment can improve the cholinergic septo-hippocampal innervation system, synaptic transmission in the hippocampal pyramidal neuron and cognitive impairment. Our results show that OHE rats after HA-E2 administration have increased expression of choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) in the medial septal nucleus (MS nucleus) and the hippocampus, increased spine density in hippocampal pyramidal neurons, and improved spatial learning and memory. Therefore, HA-E2 has great potential as a new novel class of drugs for estrogen-deficiency-induced cognitive impairment and AD.

Aiming at the problem that soft robots are challenging to take into account both flexibility and bearing capacity, Using the software Pneu-Net driver as the deformation mode, magnetorheological fluid material phase transformation to achieve variable stiffness, A pneumatic modular soft joint structure with dynamically adjustable deformation and stiffness in all directions is proposed. In this paper, mathematical models of deformation and variable stiffness are established. The correspondence between gas pressure and deformation and applied current and joint stiffness is obtained. The finite element analysis method was used to simulate the deformation characteristics and variable stiffness characteristics of modular joints based on the Yeoh model. Finally, the theoretical and simulation results are verified by deformation and variable stiffness tests. It is proved that the modular joint has good rigid-flexible coupling characteristics.

Blisks subjected to rough machining for channel creation must undergo finishing processes, and such processes must achieve the required tolerance limits. A high-quality surface finish and predictable long tool life are critical for the finish milling of blisks. Accordingly, the aim of this study was to optimize parameters for the finish machining of an Inconel 718 alloy monolithic blisk. Ball-cone mills were used to machine the blade surface at a constant depth. A sensory tool holder was used to collect cutting force signals during machining, and a digital microscope was used to examine tool wear. The surface texture measuring instrument was used to measure blisk blade surface roughness to evaluate processing quality. This study manipulated two cutting parameters, namely cutting speed and feed per tooth, and investigated their effects. The relationship between cutting conditions and machining efficiency was analyzed. According to the experimental results, we identified a set of optimal parameters for marginal tool wear and fast cutting speeds and then estimated the corresponding tool life by using the derived parameters.

The sustainable development of resource-based cities has long been a focal point for both governmental policies and academic research. A wealth of academic literature identifies the 'resource curse' as a critical barrier to sustainable development in these urban areas. Despite extensive studies, a consensus on effective strategies to circumvent or resolve this challenge remains elusive. Recent empirical data reveals a noticeable pattern of economic growth differentiation in China's resource-based cities. Why do some resource-based cities experience economic decline while others achieve sustainable economic growth? Therefore, this paper analyzes the reasons for the divergence of economic growth in resource cities from the perspective of heterogeneity. The results of the study show that the phenomenon of the resource curse is conditional, and the heterogeneity of demo-graphic changes, geographic location and institutional environment has a significant impact on the economic growth of resource cities. These factors are investigated to elucidate the observed diversification and heterogeneity in the economic growth of resource-based cities. Building upon this analysis, the paper proposes a framework for differentiated sustainable development pathways tailored to the unique contexts of these cities. This approach not only contributes to the current understanding of the 'resource curse' but also offers novel insights for future research aiming to adopt a more nuanced and context-specific perspective in examining sustainable urban development.

A series of penta-1,4-dien-3-one containing a H-phosphonate scaffold were designed and synthesized. The structures of all title compounds were determined by 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, 31P-NMR, and HRMS. Bioassay results showed that several of the title compounds exhibited remarkable antibacterial and antiviral activities. Among these, compounds 3c and 3o exhibited substantial antibacterial activities against Xanthomonas oryzae pv. Oryzae (Xoo) and Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. citri (Xac). In addition, compounds 3c, 3f, and 3r showed remarkable curative activities against tobacco mosaic virus (TMV), with 50% effective concentration (EC50) values of 290.0, 234.0, and 373.6 μg/mL, respectively. These were superior to that of ningnanmycin (386.2 μg/mL). Compound 3r exhibited comparative protective activity against TMV, with an EC50 value of 291.1 μg/mL, which was better than that of ningnanmycin (297.1 μg/mL). Notably, the solubility of all title compounds improved relative to the lead compound curcumin. These results suggest that penta-1,4-dien-3-one containing a H-phosphonate scaffold may be considered as an activator for antibacterial and antiviral agents.

The human interferon-induced transmembrane (IFITM) proteins inhibit the fusion of a broad spectrum of enveloped viruses, both when expressed in target cells and when present in infected cells. Upon expression in infected cells, IFITMs incorporate into progeny virions and reduce their infectivity by a poorly understood mechanism. Since only a few Env glycoproteins are present on HIV-1 particles, and Env clustering has been proposed to be essential for optimal infectivity, we asked if IFITM protein incorporation modulates HIV-1 Env clustering. The incorporation of two members of the IFITM family, IFITM1 and IFITM3, into HIV-1 pseudoviruses verified by Western blotting correlated with a marked reduction of infectivity. Super-resolution imaging of Env distribution on single HIV-1 pseudoviruses did not reveal significant effects of IFITMs on Env clustering. However, IFITM3 markedly reduced the Env processing and incorporation into virions relative to control and IFITM1-containing viruses. These results suggest that IFITM1 and IFITM3 restrict progeny HIV-1 infectivity via distinct mechanisms. We propose that IFITM1 interferes with viral fusion by altering the properties of the viral membrane or Env functionality by means other than disrupting Env clusters, while IFITM3 also targets Env processing and incorporation into progeny virions.